"Are you going to bed now, Eren? I'll walk you."
Eren glances around at the Special Ops squad. It's late one evening and they sit around a table in the mess hall, playing cards. Petra was winning, Auruo was whining, Gunter was snickering and Erd was penning a letter. The Captain was sipping his tea.
When he stood up, Petra stood up with him. Cautiously, Eren glances at the Captain, asking silent permission. He studies the two for a second, and his cool gaze makes Eren feel small and flinty. Was it even possible for a 15-foot Titan shifter to feel small and flinty?
Apparently so. It only took Humanity's Strongest to make him feel that way.
He waves his hand noncommitedly. "Do what you want. I don't care. If you want to babysit him, Petra, that's your own fault." He tosses her the keys to Eren's cell and shackles. "You can lock him up, then."
"Sir!" Petra stumbles forward, stuck between saluting and catching the keys. Eren salutes clumsily too, even though the Captain's staring into his dark tea.
"Come on." Petra nods at him, and he follows the smaller soldier out the hall. The last thing he hears is Auruo yelling at Petra if he can have her cards before the door closes behind them. The dark hallway is far quieter than the hustle and bustle of the Survey Corps soldiers within.
"You don't have to come with me." Eren says automatically, then winces at how rude it sounds. "But I appreciate it! Thank you, Miss Petra."
She grins at him, tucking her ginger hair behind her ear. "It's alright. Hey, I wanted to come with you. We're on the same squad, you know. I want to know more about you."
"Squad Leader Hanji already has all the notes she can get about my Titan shifting-"
"No," Petra chuckles, raising an eyebrow at him. "Tell me about Eren Jaeger, the cadet. The new recruit. Not Eren Jaeger, the Titan-shifter. Besides," They turn down the hallway, heading down one of the many staircases to the dungeon. "The papers seem to know everything about Eren Jaeger, the Titan-shifter. You know, apparently you have horns." She stretches up on her tip-toes and ruffles his hair. "Any horns under there, demon?"
Eren sputters at her action, flushing red. "Miss Petra!" He shoves her hands away, and she laughs. It's a free, gleeful noise that sounds out of place among the empty, rotting cells.
The Special Operations Squad of the Survey Corps puzzled him, to say the least. He was amongst some of the most notorious veterans of the Corps, and they were far different than he expected them to be. What was he expecting, any way? Tall, hard-hearted, muscly, steely soldiers who scowled all the time and had faraway gazes of fallen comrades and blood-stained blades? Who crowded around him every step he took with their hands on knives tucked away under their sleeves?
The soldiers he was with didn't fit that perception at all. Well, maybe the Captain fit his idea of a stoic soldier, sans the tall part. They were all so strong, in their own way, but still so human. Erd was quick on his reflexes but he was loud and funny and spoke lovingly of his wife back home. Gunther cut deep, deeper than anyone Eren knew, but he was quiet and thoughtful and kept everyone on track better than Erd could, to be honest. Auruo's solo kill count was unimaginable (except to Captain Levi, of course) but he was clumsy and outspoken and confident of the wrong things. Petra was more agile than any of his fellow trainees, but she was kind and warm and caring, like the sun had taken form in the shape of a person. She'd been the only one to shake his hand when the Captain introduced him to the squad. Within a few days, she had taken notice of how Eren drank his coffee and started preparing his too. She inquired about his health and accompanied him when he was alone, since he wasn't allowed to speak to his fellow trainees without express permission. He hadn't felt kindness like hers since his mother was alive, and that was five years ago.
She made him feel like he had a friend in his fellow comrade.
"Oh! Hold on a second." Petra says, holding out her hand. They stand in front of a small utility closet. Petra hooks the keys onto her belt and throws open the door, coughing in the dust. "Stand back. Oh, who was meant to clean this? Probably Erd. He hates dusting." Cursing to herself, she rummages around for a moment, hoisting a heavy blanket into her arms and passing another one to Eren. "Here. I found them when I was looking for cleaning rags. It gets pretty cold down there, doesn't it?"
"Sometimes. A little." Eren lies. Truthfully, it's freezing down there, but he tries hard not to complain about his situation when the only other option was death. The squad is risking their lives to make sure he aids humanity in the best way he can. His trivial complaints are meaningless.
Petra frowns. "Eren, don't be ridiculous. It's cold. You're allowed to still feel human, you know. That's what makes you different to a Titan." She shifts the key into his cell lock and pushes it open. "Just because the Captain is...unique, in how he treats you, we all still see you as human. Human emotions, human needs." Her mouth turns down further, and her amber eyes are sad. "You're still so young. And you have all of humanity on your back."
"Don't worry, Miss Petra." Eren reassures her. He doesn't like seeing her sad. "I've accepted it. It's just what I have to do. My childhood isn't worth all of humanity dying at the hands of the Titans."
"Even so…" She casts a despairing look at the shackles hanging on the walls. She should be clamping them around Eren's wrists and ankles right now, but she fluffs out the blankets over his bed instead, sitting on the edge as he slides under. "My father has a boy who helps him at his market stall. He's your height and age and has friends and goes to school and plays silly games. It's what you should be doing. It's what all of your fellow trainees should be doing. Not enlisting in the military to fight against the Titans. You must've started training so young."
"I don't mind, Miss Petra."
"I know. I know you don't mind and it's very noble of you."
"It's not noble." Eren says. He stares down at his hands, at the harsh bite mark on his right palm. His fingers clench. That familiar feeling of vengeance rises up through his body and clenches around his heart like an iron fist. "It's not noble at all to want to fight the Titans. It's human. I want to eradicate the Titans from this world. I will eradicate the Titans from this world, so no one will ever have to fall victim to them again. To think like that isn't noble. Risking your life for the ones you love shouldn't be noble at all. It's human. The only ones who think it's noble are the ones who won't risk their lives for others." He looks up at her, his eyes blazing. "I will destroy them from this world. I swear on it."
Petra tilts her head and studies him thoughtfully. It's impossible to know what she's thinking- for someone who's so open about her emotions, she's awfully hard to read when she wants to be-
All of a sudden, he feels the blanket being pulled down low over his head, obscuring his vision. Surprised, he jerks back and hits his head on the stone wall. Petra laughs. "How are you going to do that when you don't get enough sleep?" She asks, giggling behind her hand. "Still so young. You can kill as many Titans as you can, but you'll always be a child to me."
"Miss Petra!"
Petra is the closest thing Eren's had to a maternal figure in a long time, but that doesn't mean she really has to treat him like he's a child. But there's a playful glint in her eyes and she's smiling again, so he decides that for now it's okay to be coddled if it means she'll feel happier.
"Eren!" There's a pair of footsteps echoing down the hallway towards his cell- no, two, and one is clearly faster on their feet than the other. The pair stare at the cell bars for a moment, before two very familiar faces appear behind the bars. "Mikasa! Armin!"
"Eren!" Mikasa exhales gratefully. There's a rare, small smile on her face as her eyes roam over Eren for a moment, like she's checking him for any injuries. She doesn't notice Petra at first. Armin salutes immediately at the elite soldier, flushing at being caught out breaking the rules and elbows Mikasa in the ribs to do the same. "Sir! We are very sorry for breaking protocol during this situation! We know we are not supposed to visit Eren without permission!"
Petra blinks, then snaps to attention. "Oh! Oh, right. Well," She lets them both into the small room, which is starting to get quite crowded. "You're here now. So here's your permission, from a veteran soldier. No harm done." She winks at them. "Go on. I understand. You're just worried about your friend."
Mikasa jumps at the chance, rushing towards Eren's bed and pulling back the covers quickly to examine him while he jumps and shoves her away. Armin stands behind her, quickly filling him in on what they've been learning as new recruits and details on the upcoming expedition.
Petra leans back against the bars with a fond smile on her face. Eren knows she wants to give them as much time as possible together, but she'll need to ask them to leave soon to shackle Eren up. As kind and willing Petra is to push rules for other's safety, she'll never go behind her superiors backs. Especially if the order came from Captain Levi himself.
She's begun to fidget with the keys hanging from her hip when another pair of footsteps approach; these are slow and purposeful. Immediately, Petra straightens up and glances at Mikasa and Armin worriedly. Her eyes flit around the small space, as if looking for a place to hide them before the person in question strolls up.
"Petra," Captain Levi takes in the scene. His voice is as bored as usual - they could've been drinking and smoking and he would've sounded the same. "I thought you were putting the brat to bed. Not staying up telling fairy tales to even more brats. Who-" He evaluates Mikasa and Armin cooly. "Are not even allowed to be here."
"I gave them permission, sir." Petra says. She doesn't flinch under his gaze. Eren wasn't lying when he said she really is one of the strongest soldiers he's ever met. "They've only come to check up on their fri-comrade."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Sir."
Armin salutes fiercely to the captain. Mikasa is slower - a lot slower- to copy, but she gets there in the end, matching the Captain's intimidating glare with her own. Petra slips through the door to stand behind Levi, but he wordlessly gestures to the shackles still hanging on the wall. Biting back a sigh, Petra moves forward, closing them around Eren's joints. It's less constricting and looser than when the other soldiers do it, he notices. She pats his arm before she retreats back out of the cell. For a moment, no one says a word, but Mikasa and Armin get the clear dismissal in the captain's body language.
Armin salutes to both of the elite soldiers. "Sirs!"
"Sir." Mikasa repeats, but she only directs it to one soldier; Petra. She inclines her head slightly to the smaller woman. "I hope you sleep well, sir."
Petra blinks at her for a moment, confused, before regaining her composure. "Thank you."
Mikasa brushes by Captain Levi without a word of acknowledgement. Armin gapes after her, salutes again, this time a hasty apology, and sprints after her.
Captain Levi turns towards Petra. If he's annoyed at Mikasa's gutsy disrespect, he certainly doesn't show it. "Next time, I wouldn't expect babysitting to last so long. I was starting to think you were helping the brat take a shit or something." Without waiting for a reply, he takes the keys from her hand and locks Eren's cell himself. "Go to sleep, brat. Or don't. I don't care. But if you show up to training tomorrow tired as shit, don't expect me to go any easier on you because that's your own fucking fault." He turns on his heel and marches back down the hallway. Petra throws Eren an apologetic look.
"Sleep well, Eren." She says softly, her smile as bright as the torchlight flickering on the walls, before she follows her captain back up to the castle.
Eren goes to sleep that night much warmer than he usually does, and he thinks it's not just because of his new blankets.
a/n: it's late and this is the result of me not being able to write the next chapter of my new rivetra au (rivetra enthusiasts check it out on my profile thanks!) so i wrote this instead. also, at you lovely people who have put in requests on what you would love to see, i am slowly but surely going to be working towards those! i really love some of the ideas you've given me, and i promise that when i can ill start writing them