Mikasa looked around for a pencil and paper, prompting Eren to give her a pen and notepad.
He had half a mind to chase after him, but his sister was his first priority. "I swear," he muttered as he clenched his fists, "If he hurt you again—"
He was cut off by a furious shake of Mikasa's head as she handed him the notepad.
I understand him better. We talked, and he apologized—and so did I.
Eren couldn't believe the words on the page. "You…you got him to open up?"
Mikasa nodded as the green-eyed brunette handed back the notepad. "I…what did he say? Did he say anything about how—or why—?"
The notepad was handed back to him, cutting off his string of questions.
I can't say. I promised not to say anything. All I can tell you is the reason he's hurts people is because he's hurting himself.
"…what?" Eren asked, staring at the notepad. "…how is he hurting himself? I mean, he said that he kills because he can't, then it turns into 'I kill people I care about' or something, then—"
He then noticed that Mikasa had taken the notepad back from him, scribbling some more words on the pages.
He thinks he's a bad person, she wrote, and he's making up for all of the bad that's happened to him.
Now Eren was even more confused.
Mikasa gave an exasperated sigh, writing three more words onto the notepad.
He's punishing himself.
"How!?" the green-eyed brunette demanded, "He—he's just running around killing people—he's tortured he's tortured you twice now! It seems to me that he's punishing everyone else for existing!"
The notepad suddenly hit him hard on the head, making him wince. "Ow, what the hell!?" he demanded, picking it up off the floor. "Are you trying to give me another concussion?"
His sister only glared at him.
Rolling his eyes, he opened the notepad and read.
He's been beat down all his life, it read, and he thinks that he deserves it somehow, that he's a bad person. People treated him as less than human, and when he snapped he thought 'I might as well behave as everyone's treating me'. He became a beast because he was sick of being weak, but he never thought of the fact that he could still be human—but he is.
Suddenly it started to click.
"Then…we came along," Eren said quietly, "We…we treated him like a person, and he doesn't know what to do anymore."
Mikasa nodded in satisfaction, coughing slightly.
To be honest, Eren felt pretty stupid—now that the answer was right in front of him, he couldn't believe why he hadn't came to that conclusion earlier. He's known him for this long and he's just figured him out?
His thoughts were interrupted by his sister poking him, gesturing for the notepad.
"Here," he said absentmindedly, handing it to her as his mind continued to spin on.
Then again, he'd lost sight of everything for awhile, didn't he? He was convinced that Armin was a demon after that interview who-knows-how-long ago, but he hadn't accounted for the fact that the blonde had been trapped in the very hell he hated for months beforehand.
That was bound to do something to him.
Mikasa tugged on his sleeve, handing him the notepad.
Talk to Annie, she wrote, I think she deserves to know…but it'd be best if she heard it straight from the horse's mouth.
"But there's one problem with that," Eren said, "I don't know where the hell Armin even is…"
His sister only stared.
He stared back.
Sighing, Mikasa took back the notepad and scribbled things down on it.
JUST TALK TO HER!
"Wow tone down the caps lock," Eren muttered, handing back the notepad. "I'll go talk to her, hell…"
Mikasa merely smiled soundlessly at him as he got up to leave.
"Oh, one more thing," he said, turning back. "I…I forgive you."
The brunette woman cocked her head to the side, confused.
"You…" Eren let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. "You're trying to pay Armin back for killing his Grandfather, aren't you?"
Judging by the shock and tears on her face, Eren assumed he was right.
"So thank you," he said, walking back over and giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I mean it."
His sister blinked, completely confused. "You're…welcome…?"
He then left, feeling her confused gaze on his back.
"Hi guys," Eren said, awkwardly scratching his head.
He couldn't believe that he screwed up again—he forgot that Annie had roommates, and now he has to think of a random reason as to why he was there in the first place. It's not like he could say "Oh, I'm here to talk to Annie about her psychopathic boyfriend's mental stability" and get away with it…
"Annie told us everything," Reiner said immediately, "about Armin."
…or maybe I can, Eren thought. "Oh, that's good…I think…"
"Come inside," the blonde brute said, opening the door and making way for him. "Annie's kind of having an emotional breakdown, so it'd be nice if you delivered some good news."
Never in his life had he heard the words "Annie" and "emotional breakdown" in the same sentence without a negative somewhere in between, and that worried him. "I-is there a reason why she's freaking out?"
Reiner sighed, putting a hand to his face. "Well…it'd be best if you hear for yourself."
Steeling himself for the worst, Eren nodded and stepped inside.
"For the last time, no means no!"
Marco resisted the urge to punch Amber in the face as she stomped her foot. "You have no right to keep me from my grandson!" she shouted, "He's the only family I have left! I deserve to at least tell him that I'm sorry!"
"You had a chance to apologize," Marco growled, "How many times was he locked away in a mental institution? You could have visited him without fear of retribution."
"Until he broke out again!" the blonde woman shot back, "Then he would have been out to get me!"
"And what makes this time different?"
The freckled brunette stared Amber contemplated his question. He already knew the answer.
"I…I just feel it," she whispered, "He's…he's changing, and it may be for the better."
"No thanks to you," Marco almost snarled, "How do you know that seeing you won't completely undo the progress he's made? Don't forget—it's your fault that he's like this in the first place.
Amber looked like she had been hit.
"It seems like you have," the freckled brunette sighed, "Look, I'm not going to let him see you—not yet, at least. As much as I think you two should stay as far from each other as possible, Annie thinks that you may be able to help—"
"So let me see him!" Amber burst out, "What's so difficult about that!?"
"Seeing you will only make things worse," he said, "and forcing yourself on him will have devastating consequences. Knowing you, if he refuses you'll just see him anyway, which will just incur his wrath."
By now, Amber was trembling. "A-a-and if I do stay away?"
"Look me in the eye and say that you will."
Amber looked away.
"That's what I thought," Marco muttered, "Now you stay away from Armin, or else it won't be him you should be worried about."
The blonde's mouth open and closed like a fish, but no words came out.
"He needs more time," he continued, "and then we'll tell him that you exist, and ask if he wants to see you. If he does, then fine. But if not…"
Marco watched detachedly as the blonde woman stepped back in fear. "…I'll kill you myself."