Chapter 16

"Mikasa!" the shout was all the warning Sasha gave her friend before she attempted to give her a surprise hug from behind but, as usual, the other woman's reflexes were as sharp as her swords as she dodged. Sasha knew she would've fallen flat on her face on the floor had Mikasa not pulled her up by the collar "What are you doing?"

"That's no way to greet a friend!" Sasha complained, this time managing to catch Mikasa in to a hug, not that the Asian even tried to dodge, returning the hug instead "And bouncing on them like they were a prey is?"

Sasha pouted, saying: "It's better than your way."

"If you say so" Mikasa said with a shrug "I heard you and the captain went to the harbor as well. Is everything alright there?"

"Everything's great!" Sasha said. Then she scratched her head and continued: "I mean, most Marleyans are a bit bitchy and hostile, and some of our soldiers return the favor from time to time, but there hasn't been any major trouble. I think the peace will last!"

"It really might; it's been more than a year" Mikasa said, much to Sasha's surprise.

"Really?" she asked, starting to count with her fingers and noticing that it was true. She'd just been so focused on how long it had been since Nikolo left that she'd completely missed thinking about the anniversary of the peace-

"Ah!" she realized something in horror "The anniversary for peace was a few weeks ago yet we didn't hold a party! We should've gotten to eat something really delicious to celebrate it!"

"…" Mikasa just stared at her blankly, not commenting on it. Sasha puffed her cheeks, asking: "C'mon, peace is so important! Surely you think so too, right?"

"Well, we did have a banquet here" Mikasa confessed, making Sasha gape at her "You got to go to a banquet!? That is so unfair!"

Sasha sank to the floor, crying. Why couldn't she have been sent to take the letter here a few weeks earlier? Why now instead of then!? Life was so unfair!

"…Have you calmed down?" Mikasa asks after Sasha had been quiet for a while.

"…Yeah" Sasha said, accepting Mikasa's outstretched hand for help as she got up.

"We might still find something from the MPs stashes" Mikasa said. Sasha was about to cheer, but Mikasa covered her mouth before she could "But if we're not quiet, someone will notice."

"Got it" Sasha said after Mikasa removed her hand "I'll be quiet like the captain at a party!"

Mikasa raised an eyebrow, and Sasha blinked before covering her mouth in shock, realizing she had just yelled.

"Oops…"

XXXXX

"You call those pushups? Add some speed!" Thomas said, laughing at Nikolo as they trained with the other soldiers. Nikolo scoffed "What are you, my superior?"

"If that's the best you can do then someday, I probably will be" Thomas told him "Might even be rather soon 'cause I'm awesome."

"Your bragging skills certainly put mine to shame" Nikolo shot back, quickening his space, but only slightly. He noticed that few of those around them started to drop already, no longer having the stamina to do their pushups. He supposed those people would get in trouble for only lasting this long.

"I'm a natural talent" Nikolo didn't doubt that for a second "What are you a natural at?"

"…" he had no answer. He could name a few things he was good at, but a natural talent? He couldn't think of anything "No idea."

"Sometimes you're not fun at all, you know" Thomas said, and Nikolo remembered Connie once telling him the same thing. Huh, guess it was true, then.

"So I've been told" he replied "Now quiet; I feel eyes on my back."

It was probably their superior, his attention being caught by their chatting. Well, since he hadn't come over, he and Thomas weren't in trouble.

"Or maybe he'll just start giving us hell after this"

XXXXX

"That was good!" Sasha said when she and Mikasa had gotten to safety after successfully raiding the MPs food stash. Mikasa had prevented her from taking as much as she wanted, claiming that the MPs would've gotten too suspicious, but Sasha chose not to hold a grudge against her for it. Some food was better than none, after all.

"Yes, the salty licorice especially" Mikasa agreed, but that actually made Sasha wrinkle her nose. She was anything but a picky eater, but she didn't like salty licorice. She wouldn't spit it out like Connie would, but if she got to pick something else, she would. Mikasa and Levi liked the black stuff for some reason though "Maybe it's an Ackerman thing?"

"Did you taste the chocolate chip cookies?" Sasha asked instead.

"Back at the banquet, yes" Mikasa told, giving her a pointed look "But today I didn't get any because you ate the ones that were left before I could."

"Oh" Sasha said, blushing. Smiling sheepishly, she said: "Sorry."

"So that's what you two are up to, huh?" Sasha jumped, not believing she'd let her guard down so much that she didn't notice someone coming. Mikasa however, didn't look surprised. She'd known all along.

"Hello Hitch" the Asian woman said.

"Hi Hitch!" Sasha greeted, too cheerfully she realized. Well, Hitch had apparently already heard them, so they couldn't hide anything from the MP. Damn.

"Hi Sasha" Hitch said "Stealing again I see."

"It was Mikasa's idea!" Sasha huffed, but when Hitch raised an eyebrow, she realized that the blonde didn't believe her. Annoyed, she turned to Mikasa "Mikasa, tell her!"

Mikasa just stared at her blankly. Right, of course the Asian would let the blame fall on her when it came to something like this.

"I don't know what you're talking about" she said, and there was no use arguing. Hitch would definitely believe Mikasa over her, especially when food was concerned. She was screwed.

"I need to go; Kiyomi is waiting for me" Mikasa said, already turning away "Hopefully you two have enough time to catch up with each other."

"I'm sure we do" Hitch said. To Sasha, she did not sound happy.

"I'm really screwed"

XXXXX

"Nikolo, right?" Nikolo looked up from the card game he was playing with few others as one of the soldiers recently positioned to the place addressed him "Yes?"

"You were one of the people who got stuck on Paradis, right?" the younger man asked, making Nikolo tense "What's the place like? How did you survive?"

"Stop it" Thomas said before Nikolo even had the time to think of anything "You're being way too insensitive."

"C'mon, he got back what, a year ago?" the guy said, sitting down "Besides, the superiors wouldn't have let him come here if they thought he wasn't okay."

"Still bit under a year, actually" Nikolo said, this time cutting Thomas off just as he opened his mouth "And no, they wouldn't have. I'm fine, but the amount of information I'm allowed toshare is limited."

"Then share what you're allowed to" one of the guys he'd been playing cards with urged him on, obviously also curious. Nikolo didn't miss how Thomas glared at the guy, especially since he added right after that: "I mean, if it's not too hard for you."

Nikolo sighs. It's not hard for him to go through those memories aside from particular few, but it was bothersome trying to stick to the truth without revealing something his superiors wouldn't want him to or something that would get him in trouble. Oh well, he supposed it'd be easier for him to just give them something to dull down their curiosity.

"What do you want to know?" he asks, not missing Thomas' frown. Nikolo already saw it coming when the guy said: "You don't need to talk about this, really."

"It's fine, really" to prevent Thomas from getting too suspicious, he added: "…To a certain extent."

"You don't have to talk about anything that brings up too many bad memories" his card game buddy reminded, the others nodding along, looking eager to listen. Looks like he had everyone's attention now. Great.

"Got it" Nikolo says, putting his cards down "So again, what do you want to know?"

"Did you ever meet the devil himself, Eren Yeager?" so the guy was curious about the man who shook the whole world. Well, Nikolo supposed that was to be expected "I did."

"What was he like? I mean, how intimidating? They say when you see something horrifying, you just freeze up and- "

Unable to help himself, Nikolo interrupts the guy with a chuckle which soon turns in to full blown laughter. Noticing the stares he's getting, he says: "Sorry sorry, it's just…" he pauses "It was nothing like that at all."

"Huh?" they're all confused, Nikolo can tell. Getting himself together, he starts: "Eren Yeager… he was indeed terrifying in his titan form and when he was angry, but other than that, there wasn't much of a difference between him and the other young Eldian soldiers. Though he was always rather gloomy…" he shrugs "Honestly, as long as one didn't piss him off or seem like a threat, he seemed like an ordinary person. It's the Ackermans that scared me the hell out."

"The Ackermans?" the other soldiers chorus "What were they like, then?"

"Scary" Nikolo said, remembering his first meeting with Levi with a shudder "I met the first one right as I was captured. At the time I honestly thought I wouldn't live to see the next day."

"But you did" Thomas comments, much to Nikolo's surprise "So I suppose at least that one wasn't all that impulsive?"

"Yeah, he wasn't" the former war prisoner confirms "Though I did feel like he wanted my head from time to time. The other one, too. So, if you ever get sent to Paradis, beware of the Ackermans and if you run in to them, don't piss them off."

Sure, Levi was now crippled, but Nikolo had no doubts that he'd still kick any average soldier's ass.

"Fully noted" the originally most curious soldier states "What about the current Founding Titan? Do you know anything about him?"

"Her" Nikolo automatically corrects before realizing that he wasn't sure if he should've done that. Oh well "And not really; only met her a few times. We didn't really talk."

"So, the greatest devil is a woman now?" one of the soldiers asks with a shudder "She named Ymir or something?"

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't" Nikolo says despite knowing it was probably a joke "Though I can't recall the actual name."

"Hmm…" one of the guys hums in thought, looking a bit hesitant about saying whatever it is that he has in mind. Nikolo's not so sure if that's a good thing or not "Say, I heard a rumor that you were one of the main spreaders of the poisoned goods" he says "Is this true?"

"…Yeah" Nikolo admits, now on guard since he has a feeling, he knows what will be asked, yet he also knows that he can't answer with the truth "Why?"

"The devils had to be really angry when they found out" yes, he knows where this was going, and he can't help but swallow "How did you survive? Why weren't you killed for it?"

All eyes were on him now, more intense than ever. Everyone clearly wanted to know. Weighting his options, Nikolo knew he couldn't say anything that would contradict with what he had told his superiors; he couldn't risk the word getting around. Same with telling them as much false details as he did to the superiors; he couldn't really guess how it'd affect his time here, but in truth he didn't really want to, either. He had to give them a very vague answer, yet still enough to keep them from insisting. What should he-

"Alright, time to go back to the game before we forgot whose turn it was" Thomas said out of the blue, getting everyone's attention "It was yours, wasn't it, Hans?"

"Huh?" the guy asked "Uh, yeah."

"But Nikolo hasn't told us- "

"Back. To. The. Game!" Thomas hissed, glaring at everyone who looked like they were about to object. No one did so after that, the ones who had been playing obeying Thomas. Nikolo tried to hide his sigh of relief before giving Thomas a bit awkward but grateful smile. He was safe.

For now, at least.

XXXXX

"You're impossible; I don't understand how Commander Hanji tolerates you" Hitch tells Sasha "Or how you weren't kicked out long time ago for breaking food regulations and all."

"I'm tolerated because I'm irreplaceable" Sasha says smugly "And I was a kid back then; everyone makes mistakes."

"But you still do it"

"Yeah, but we don't have strict regulations anymore save for meat" Sasha defends herself with a grin "And rarer stuff that they don't keep in the common storages anyway."

"You only know that because you checked, didn't you?" Hitch asks, eyebrow twitching, causing Sasha to grin sheepishly.

"Ma~ybe" she more or less admitted, making Hitch sigh. Suddenly, Sasha remembered something she had been meaning to ask from the woman "Hey Hitch?"

"Yeah?"

"Is everything okay between you and Jean?" well, it was out. There was no backing down now, but she felt like it was her responsibility to help Jean out with this matter if she could since he'd always helped her so much.

"Jean and I? Sure" Hitch said, much to Sasha's surprise "It's not like we're on bad terms or anything."

…No. Hitch's voice was steady and matched her words, but her body language gave her away. She was uncomfortable with the subject, with just the mention of Jean.

"I know you guys have a thing going on" Sasha states, making Hitch flinch. She doesn't say anything and Sasha waits, so finally, the MP breaks "…Jean just had to tell you, huh? I bet Connie knows too."

"Yeah, he does, but to be fair to Jean, it's not like he was bragging" Sasha clarifies "Someone saw you and him, so Connie and I forced the info out of him."

"…I suppose that makes sense" Hitch says, sitting down. She chews on her bottom lip a bit "So, what exactly did he say?"

"…This and that" Sasha said, averting her eyes a little. She was putting her nose where it didn't belong, she knew, so she had to be really careful not to say too much and mess things up even further "What do you think of Jean? Do you like him? As in- "

"As in like like?" Hitch interrupts, muttering "To hell with it" before stating boldly: "Yes, yes I do, but there's no telling what the hell he's thinking."

Well, Sasha certainly hadn't expected her to admit it so easily. How was she supposed to continue from here? She hadn't really thought this through…

"He cares about you" she said, feeling like she had to say something. Hitch snorted "This is Jean we're talking about; he can be an ass on the surface but in the end, he cares about everyone. Of course he cares about me, too."

"Not the way he cares about others" Sasha thought, but saw it better not to say it "He's afraid you're thinking he's just using you."

"Huh!?" Hitch was visibly and undeniably surprised. Well, at least that confirmed that Jean's worries were uncalled for "He thinks he's using me!?"

Sasha did not like the fact that Hitch put emphasis on those particular words. However, she had to make sure: "Are you saying it's the other way around?"

Hitch looked away in shame.

"Well, sort off" she said. Still not looking at Sasha, the woman continued: "I'm the one who always makes the first move, and I only do so when I'm in bad mood or sad… so doesn't that mean I'm using him? He's just a tool to deal with my loneliness."

Hitch didn't look proud or indifferent as she said this, which was enough to tell Sasha that she didn't real mean that. She cared for Jean, but had been unable to show it to him properly.

"Do you want there to be more between you two?" she asks. Hitch doesn't answer, but to Sasha, that's already an answer in itself "You should tell him."

"I can't" Hitch said "I don't want things to awkward between us."

On instinct, Sasha did what she tended to do to Connie when he said something really stupid. She whacked Hitch on the head.

"Ow!" she whined, glaring at Sasha as she rubbed her head "What was that for!?"

"You're such an idiot" Sasha says with a sigh, ignoring Hitch's narrowing glare "Just why do you think Jean's so worried?"

Again, Hitch didn't answer, but Sasha knew the woman had caught on. Knowing that a final push was needed, she said: "He really cares about you."

Hitch groaned, and Sasha didn't need to wonder why; this kind of stuff was difficult.

"Why hasn't he just said something?" she mumbled.

"Why haven't you said something?" Sasha asked back, making Hitch blush "Thought so."

Not that Sasha was one to talk; she wasn't really all that experienced with this stuff after all. Wanting to lighten the mood, she smirked coyly and asked: "So~ what exactly do you see in Jean?"

Hitch glared.

"He's a better kisser than you" blushing furiously, Sasha yelled in panic: "Don't bring that up!"

Hitch just laughed.

XXXXX

"You didn't have to be so aggressive" Nikolo tells Thomas as they return to their room "But thanks anyway."

"No problem" Thomas said, but the frown on his face told Nikolo that the other soldier wasn't done "You could've put a stop to it yourself, though. You didn't need to tell them anything."

"I know" Nikolo said with a sigh, sitting down on his bed "But I just… don't want to look like I'm badly traumatized or something, because I'm not. Giving off that impression would do me no good."

"I don't disagree, but try not to look like you're trying too hard" Thomas pointed out, making Nikolo tense momentarily. He hadn't thought of that option at all "…I'll keep that in mind."

Thomas climbed up to his bed and Nikolo laid down as well, deciding to change a little later. He was a bit tired, but not so tired he'd fall asleep with his clothes on. Still, he didn't feel like focusing on reading, and aside from that there wasn't really anything to do in their room alone.

"But I'm used to times like these…"

Flashback

Nikolo lay on his bed, counting the boards of the ceiling as he waited for sleep to come. It was still scary, sleeping on this island, but at least he wasn't in a cell anymore. Plus, Grior was in the next room so if something happened, the guy would have his back.

"It's too bad he's not all that great company" Nikolo thought with a sigh. Part of him even hoped that someone else had been forced to run a restaurant with him instead of Grior, but the situation is what it is. Oh well, better with Grior than alone.

GLANG!

Nikolo jolted up at the sound, his heart racing. Grior had gone to sleep already as far as he knew, and only the two of them were supposed to be here, so-

"Calm down; maybe Grior went to get some water and just knocked something over" he assured himself. Still, it would be wise to check.

Taking out a kitchen knife he kept under his pillow, Nikolo got off the bed and walked to the door. Gulping, he opened it, trying to be as quiet as possible. He glanced at Grior's door, seeing it fully closed. That didn't mean anything though; he could still be the one making the noise.

"Downstairs… probably the kitchen" the young POW thought, trying to steel his nerves as he walked forward. He reached the kitchen door without encountering anything unusual. So far so good; it probably really was just Grior. Still, his grip on the knife tightened as he opened the door.

Grior wasn't in the kitchen, but someone else was.

"What the-!?" Nikolo let out in surprise as he spotted the brunette girl, a soldier, he reminded himself, in the kitchen, hands in the cabinets, frozen in place as she stared at the door with wide eyes "What are you doing here?!"

Nikolo couldn't help but wonder if he had messed something up big time. Or perhaps not him; it could've been Grior, and the girl had been sent to deal with them… but why would they send her alone? Wait, how could he be sure it was just her!?

"I was just… looking for food…" the girl muttered, looking slightly embarrassed. Nikolo blinked. Was she serious? Well, she was going through kitchen cabinets, but it was more likely that she was checking if they'd hid something there… or that she was trying to set them up with something. Shit, that wasn't the case, was it?!

"Sorry if I woke you up" she said "But… since you're here, can you make me something?"

"Huh?" Nikolo asked "Uuh… sure."

It wouldn't do any good to anger her, after all. He could probably overpower her if the need came, she was a woman after all and seemed slightly younger, but in this situation, he wouldn't get away with it without trouble.

"Thanks!" she said, smiling happily. Nikolo walked over to the food storage, thinking as he went.

"Even if she is here to leave behind some false evidence, perhaps I can distract her enough that she'll forget to place any? Or if she already has, I might be able to find them once she leaves. Yes, there is no reason to panic" with that in mind, Nikolo relaxed a little. He'd be okay, he was sure. He just had to keep his head cool.

"Have you settled here well?"

Seriously!? She wanted to chat? It'd be much harder to keep his head cool like that and he might end up saying something wrong. However, she might take him not answering as hostility. He had to be careful.

"I… think so" was his answer. However, even if it would be safer for him, he didn't want the Eldian to think he enjoyed his time here, so he added: "Considering the circumstances."

"Yeah, I suppose it kinda sucks being stuck in an unfamiliar town doing something which isn't your actual job" not the point he was trying to make, but she was right about those, too "But hey, it could be worse, right?"

"I could be dead" Nikolo snapped, immediately regretting it. Maybe that was too much. Cautiously, he peeked over his shoulder to see her reaction, finding that she had averted her gaze "…Yeah, I suppose you could be."

It seems he hadn't gotten in trouble, but this was still awkward. Deciding to be brave, hopefully not stupidly so, he asked: "Why aren't I?"

"Why aren't you wha- "she stopped midsentence "Oh, right."

Nikolo was still observing her, seeing her bite her lower lip. Could it be that she didn't know why they were being kept alive?

"I don't really understand complicated stuff; I just follow orders" she admitted, seeming a bit embarrassed "But I do know that no one here likes killing. You're alive because we don't want or need to kill you."

So she was convinced they could handle him and the other prisoners if the need came? Well, considering the numbers and the fact that they had titans, it was probably true. But doing this because they didn't like killing? Yeah right, more like they wanted hostages or cheap labor.

"No one likes killing, right?" she continued and as she looked at him, Nikolo realized it wasn't a statement, it was a question; she was looking for confirmation.

"There are people who do" Nikolo said, thinking that if that wasn't true, serial killers wouldn't exist. Not to mention he had seen a certain crazy look in the eyes of some of his comrades "Including some soldiers."

"Oh…" she let out quietly "Even you?"

"No" Nikolo said immediately and truthfully. This was something he didn't need to lie about or beat around the push for "Not me."

She looked relieved, Nikolo realized.

"The rest of them aside, perhaps this one really doesn't enjoy killing" he thought "She seems way too innocent."

Flashback

Nikolo jolted, blinking. Looks like he had fallen asleep after all. He was tired, but he should change clothes at the very least. While doing so he checked top bunk, noting that Thomas had also fallen asleep with his clothes on. Should he wake the guy up?

"Nah, he'll just get cranky. I'll leave him as he is and he'll laugh it off in the morning."