Pairing: Eren/Mikasa (Plus BROT3)

Setting: After the trio gets moved to Wall Rose.

Words: 1030

Rating: K

Notes: This one is from Armin's perspective just to mix it up a little bit. I also couldn't remember if Armin's Grandpa was still alive and comes with them? I just reread the manga and I didn't remember seeing anything about it, but I just always headcanon that they all live together once they are forced to leave their town.

November 12 – Cruel World

Armin looked up at the small house he was led to. Well, house was an overstatement; it was basically a one room shack shoved between other buildings that he assumed were homes. It was the middle of the night though so it was hard to tell.

"Okay, guys, I'm sorry. It was the best I could do," Hannes fumbled with the key before swinging the door open. "Go on."

Armin stood looking at the open door but a tug from Eren's hand got him moving again. It was just as small as he had assumed from the outside; there was one bed off to the side, a small kitchen, a table and chairs, a little couch, and what Armin hoped was a door to a bathroom off to the side. Surprisingly there were some clothes and blankets on the bed, and food on the kitchen counter.

"I got some of the locals to donate a few things," Hannes said while he went to clear off their bed and lay down some of the blankets. "It's not much I know, but at least it's not the streets. The people around here know you guys are just kids, I'm sure they can help and I won't be too far away either, okay?"

Armin looked over to Eren and Mikasa near him. Eren had his arms crossed, his eyes at the floor while Mikasa was watching him carefully.

"Thank you, it really was nice of you to do this," Armin spoke up when he knew the other two weren't gonna say anything.

"Its…it's the least I could do." Armin saw Hannes glance over at Eren and Mikasa before walking back to the door. "I'll check up on you kids in the morning. Try to get some sleep, okay?"

Armin watched Hannes shut the door as silence settled in the room.

"He's right," Armin said, looking over to the other two. "We'll…we'll have to share the bed, but it's not like we've never done that before."

Eren and Mikasa still weren't moving or saying a word.

Armin stepped forward and grabbed onto Eren's arm. "Come on," Armin said, slowly walking towards the worn mattress. Surprisingly Eren didn't put up a fight; Armin assumed Eren was just too tired to even bother and like Armin also assumed, Mikasa was one step behind Eren. Armin stepped aside to let Eren crawl up first, followed by Mikasa, and then himself. Without a word, he pulled the thick blanket over their weary forms and hoped sleep would come all too soon.

Sleep came for him, but not to keep him through the entirety of the night. Every time Armin closed his eyes all he could see was that titan breaking down the walls, his town being destroyed, Mrs. Jaeger…Armin could only imagine how much worse it was for Eren and Mikasa. Not that he had to; he could occasionally hear the choked sobs, the sniffling coming from his friends.

Armin carefully slipped out of the bed, hoping he wouldn't wake them if they had managed to fall asleep at all, and sat down on a nearby chair that faced the window. The moon was bright in the dark sky. Armin remembered sneaking up to watch the night sky hoping he would see a shooting star. Tonight, it seemed childish to hope for something like that, when really he was just a child.

"Hey, hey," Eren's voice was barely a whisper but Armin could still hear it. Armin looked over to see tears running down Mikasa's face. Eren was talking to her in calm, hushed tones, but Armin couldn't make out what Eren was saying. He supposed he shouldn't be eavesdropping, but he was worried about his friends who just lost everything; Mikasa for the second time.

Armin watched Eren who shuffled around before pulling Mikasa close to him, her own arms reaching up to embrace him as well. It wasn't long before Armin saw Eren's own tears fall into her hair.

It wasn't fair. It was just the three of them now; the three of them left alone in the world.

"It's okay, Eren," Mikasa's soft but sorrow strained voice came out through the quiet cries.

At least they had each other. Armin didn't know what he would do if he had lost either of them and he couldn't ever imagine what would happen if Eren or Mikasa lost each other. It didn't take away from the fact they all had lost something: their town, their home, their mom. Mrs. Jaeger had been like a mom to him; she always treated him like her other son and the same for Mikasa.

Armin remembered how Mrs. Jaeger always would tell Mikasa it was okay to call her mom if it was something she was comfortable with. "Ma'am and Mrs. Jaeger are too formal for you, my dear, you're family," she would always say. Armin still saw the way Mrs. Jaeger's face lit up the first time Mikasa did. Mrs. Jaeger loved Eren more than Armin even knew how to put into words.

He hadn't noticed tears had begun to fall down his own face.

It just was so cruel to take her away, and not just because of how he felt, but because of his two best friends huddled in the corner of the bed together, whose nightmares would only get worse from now on. When Armin would sleep over, he generally woke up to one of them curled up with the other. He was woken up in the middle of the night enough times to know both of them suffered through nightmares of the past. More often it was Mikasa, but Armin knew today and on it would be Eren too.

He wiped his face and moved to crawl back into their bed. He gently put a hand on Mikasa's arm to let her and Eren know that he was there for them, like he always would be. Not a moment later he felt Eren's warm hand over his and the tears came running down Armin's face once more. He couldn't help but wonder if the three of them to ever to be able to be happy again.