God of Hate
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Godzilla or Attack on Titan
Eren reeled back, all three jaws opened in shock.
[[[[HOLY SHIT, SHE CAN HEAR ME?!]]]]
"Y-yes! I can! Now not so loud!" Krista yelled over Eren's startled calls, covering her ears.
[[[Sorry, sorry!]]]
[Finally! No more fucking charades!]
Armin and Hange watched the exchange with numb disbelief, trying to register that Krista understood what Eren was saying!
[[How and why you of all people!?]]
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Krista asked with a frown, uncovering her ears.
"What is what supposed to mean?!" Hange interrupted, suddenly grabbing Krista by the shoulder and shaking her with a mad gleam in her eyes. "Don't hold back on me now! What's he saying!? Tell me everything!"
"Section Commander, calm down!" Armin said urgently, trying to put himself between the two.
[[[[Hange, if you mess this up, I'm throwing you over the wall!]]]]
"H-he's afraid you're going to make me unable to hear him?" Krista translated with an uncertain, shaken voice.
Hange abruptly stopped shaking the blonde, ripping her own hands off the girl as if she were on fire. "Right, right. We have no idea what's allowing this to work. You might accidentally...stop it yourself if too much stress is applied," Hange noted absently, her eyes possessing a distant focus to them.
Armin sighed in relief as things finally started to calm down. Cautiously, he looked around. There were some soldiers watching them in the distance, but none of them seemed particularly alarmed or surprised. That was the good thing about Hange's...eccentricities. No one questioned when anything she did caused a ruckus. And after a few days of Hange around Eren, no one was surprised to hear the giant creature freaking out a bit.
Especially not after Hange tried to pry a scale off of Eren without permission. Or warning.
"Hange, if we want to keep this a secret, you might not want to have this conversation here," Armin pointed out carefully.
Hange was very self-aware in some cases. She was very aware that she could be very loud and draw a lot of attention when excited. That said, she was also a disciplined soldier when needed. "I'm fine now," Hange promised, her tone serious as she leveled Krista with a scrutinizing stare.
Krista swallowed; she didn't need to read minds to know what Hange was thinking. It was too suspicious, too coincidental; her relationship with Ymir and now her ability to understand Eren. All the good trust she had garnered with Hange and the others might have just burnt to ashes.
Hange's eyes went over to Eren, the three heads craned down and gazing at them with very mixed expressions. "I take it you don't know how this happened?" Hange asked to her large study-specimen.
Zwei and Drei shook their heads. Eins hesitated.
Hange observed with contained amusement as the middle and left heads looked to the right with confusion and then contemplation before their eyes fell back to Krista before they started to, well, talk to the short cadet.
"He, um, he thinks that it might have something to do with me being in his mouth," Krista answered nervously.
Hange didn't acknowledge her, not until Eren nodded to show that was indeed what he said. She hummed, cupping her chin. If that was the case, then nothing had changed. They had suspected something because Ymir revealed herself after Eren saved Krista. This could simply be a consequence of that.
[I felt a jolt.]
"What?" Krista said, blinking as she looked to Eins. "What do you mean, a jolt?"
"Does he mean when you were...in his mouth?" Armin asked, getting a nod from Eren.
Krista suddenly flushed as Eins continued, all three heads now looking fairly uncomfortable. "He, um, thought it was just from tasting...me," she explained in embarrassment. "But yeah, the one that caught me felt it, the other two didn't notice."
Hange almost smirked at that, but kept herself focused. "A jolt, eh?" she murmured thoughtfully.
"Well, there is...one thing we haven't considered," Armin said, looking a bit sheepish himself now.
[[[I don't like that look]]]
[[He knows we're not going to like this.]]
[Please don't say someone else should crawl in my mouth.]
"Mikasa said that Krista was...wrapped up by his tongue," Armin reminded slowly, making Krista blush harder. No one had told her that specific detail. "I don't understand why this would work, but...could it be from coming in contact with his tongue?"
[[[[...That's even worse!]]]]
"Er-Trips isn't...thrilled with testing that idea," Krista informed casually.
"And for once, I don't blame him," Hange said with a grin. "But we'll have to put a pin in that potential experiment. Right now, I have to inform the commanders that we have a proper line of communication formed," she said before turning disturbingly serious. "In the meantime, you two are to stay here and are not to leave Trips no matter what."
"Understood, Ma'am," Armin and Krista both saluted.
"Oi! That order goes for you too, big guy!" Hange called over to Eren. "You don't let Krista out of your sight, got it?"
All three heads nodded. No translation needed.
"Good. Now, if anyone asks, I'm off to organize a team to take that horn piece away for studying. Which is also true," Hange said before turning to leave.
The pair of blondes watched the scout leave awkwardly until she was out of hearing range.
"Dammit."
Armin and Drei snapped their gazes to Krista, while Eins and Zwei looked at her curiously.
"Why is all of this happening to me?" Krista muttered in annoyance.
Eins snorted while Zwei now cocked his head at the girl.
[[[[...Really?]]]]
"Eren, I'm sorry you've been going through a lot of shit too, but I really don't need this right now," Krista said as she cupped her face in her hands. "Ohhh, Walls. They're going to think I'm hiding something again."
"Again?" Armin question with a frown. "You mean about...her?"
There was a rumble in Zwei's throat.
Krista winced at the sound and the emotion within. "I didn't know," Krista said simply. "And I don't think I'm allowed to talk about that."
"Right," Armin said in acceptance. Armin took this chance to take in Krista. She was...different from when he remembered. The way she talked had a few blunter and sharper edges to it, instead of the ever kind and ever patient demeanor she usually had. But her eyes had dark circles under them and her body seemed rigid and weary, not to mention she looked like she was still in shock from being able to understand Eren.
Armin came to two conclusions. Either Krista was a traitor or she wasn't. If she wasn't, she had been through her own share of headaches and problems since the Battle of Trost. If she was, she was on guard now, and well aware that her life was in danger if her cover was blown.
In neither case was it wise to leave her like this. Putting her at ease would either help her relax or lower her guard.
"So, does he actually sound like himself? His voice I mean?" Armin asked curiously as he glanced up at Eren.
"Huh?" Krista looked up at Armin before glancing up at the reptile, who was giving her three different looks of curiosity. "Umm, yeah? It's a bit deeper, and like he's growling out every word, but it's definitely still him."
[[Interesting.]]
[[[I was wondering that too.]]]
[I didn't care to begin with.]
"Okay, seriously, you don't hear that?" Krista asked in bewilderment, raising her hand in Eren's direction. "What does that sound like to you?"
Armin blinked. It hadn't dawned on him just yet how weird this had to be from Krista's side. What were just animal noises to everyone else, were complete sentences to her. "All I can hear are growls and hisses, things like that," Armin answered thoughtfully. "Why, what'd he say?"
"I have no idea, all three of him were saying different things," Krista said with a sigh before perking up. "Wait, so...he hasn't been able to speak to anyone...since Trost?" Krista asked slowly. Armin's nod prompted her to look to the massive golden beast once more. "Got anything to say, Ere- er, Trips?"
[[[[Why couldn't you have brought your gear?]]]]
Armin raised an eyebrow at the exasperated and disappointed looks from the heads on either side. "He's mad because we didn't bring the ODM, right?"
Krista looked to him oddly. "I thought you couldn't...?"
"I can guess him a lot of the times, same as Mikasa," Armin explained idly, getting an amused snort from Drei. "He likes it when we talk to him from the rooftops."
"Why would...oh," Krista started before stopping herself, catching his meaning. "I guess it would be nice to not be looking up so much."
"And you don't have to worry about the tails," Armin added in with a small smile.
"Tails?" Krista repeated, glancing to the rear appendages. "Right, he does have two tails...why two tails and three heads?"
[[[Hange thinks we might grow another one day,]]]
[I hope not.]
[[Two is enough, anymore and I'll wake up with them in knots, I know it.]]
Krista snorted and laughed into her hand from the mental image, getting a chuckle from Drei.
"Do I want to know?" Armin asked with a smile.
"N-nothing," Krista said with a wave of her hand. "But seriously, you must have something you want to say while I'm here."
"It's okay if he doesn't, Krista," Armin assured with a grimace. "It'll take some getting used to, you telling us what he's saying."
Krista was about to say something when Eren interrupted. "He says no, he was just debating on waiting to say it to both you and Mikasa at the same time," Krista explained.
Now Armin was curious. What could Eren have to say to both of them?
The three heads glanced back and forth amongst one another before coming to a consensus, turning towards Krista and beginning to speak.
The male blond took in all three expressions well. Eins was begrudging, almost apologetic, like Eren when he was younger and caught doing something stupid. Zwei was almost solemn in his contemplative visage, like Eren during his calmer and more serious moments. Drei had a look of bitter amusement, as Eren did while healing wounds from bullies he had tried to fight on his own.
Krista's eyes slowly went wide before composing herself as she addressed Armin with a small smile. "He says, 'Sorry you had to put up with me all these years.'"
"What?" Armin said in shock, looking back up at his friend in surprise. "Where is that coming from?"
Krista paused as Armin answered, her smile growing just a bit. "Three parts of me have all endured being separated and forced to live with each other. I know I'm a rash, overly emotional idiot that doesn't think things through," Krista said, trying to keep a straight face. Eren grunted at her again. "Look, let me leave out some of the swear words, okay?"
Armin just stared, processing that Eren had more or less said those words, before turning embarrassed and unconfident. "Come on, Eren, don't say stuff like that. You and Mikasa are the ones that had to deal with me being dead weig-"
[[[But you're not!]]]
[You're not!]
[And you never were.]
Krista winced at the rather urgent response that cut Armin off. "Yeah, he doesn't think that, at all," she explained, Armin smiling self-deprecatingly. "Guys? I honestly don't mind this, but if this gets emotional, I'm pretty sure we're going to draw too much attention."
"R-right, let's change the subject for now," Armin agreed readily, forcing his smile on.
Eins was more than a little displeased by the abrupt and unsatisfying end to that conversation, though Zwei begrudgingly agreed with Krista. Drei, however...
[[[So, are you teaming up with Annie again?]]]
Krista looked to the head in surprise before looking to Armin. "You and Annie teamed up for something?"
"Oh, yeah, we usually take shifts watching over Eren in pairs. Annie was with me last time," Armin elaborated. "And I don't know, she's used to teaming up with Reiner at night and it was just because we had to change the usual teams up..."
[[[Krista, little help here?]]]
[What is up with you?]
Krista eyed the toothy grin on Drei for a moment, the other two heads giving their third strange looks. "...He says you might want to consider asking to switch with Reiner," Krista said with a knowing smile. "She seemed like she was enjoying your company more."
"Huh? Really? You think so? I mean, Trips thinks so?" Armin asked in surprise, looking back up at the three heads.
Drei nodded in agreement, as did Zwei and Eins with less enthusiasm.
[[[[Not really a lie.]]]]
"Well...it might not be a bad idea," Armin accepted thoughtfully.
He completely missed the smirks shared between Drei and Krista before they schooled their expressions.
"So...are the rumors true?" Krista asked suddenly. "Did Hange really stab a sword up his butt?"
[[[[Can we not talk about that? Ever?]]]]
"I...can guess what he said," Armin said with a chuckle.
Meanwhile
Something was wrong…very, very wrong.
Levi only had to look outside the walls of Trost to know that was true.
"Captain, what exactly are we looking for?" Eld asked with a frown.
"Four-eyes didn't exactly give a lot of details," Oluo grunted.
"And you both haven't noticed yet?" Levi remarked in disapproval.
"Of course I did, Captain," Oluo said with a smirk while Eld raised an eyebrow. "There are no Titans around here."
A bit of an oversimplification, but true; Levi scanned the ruins just outside Trost and couldn't spy any Titans there, or along the side of the wall.
And that was strange. District walls, especially this southern one, normally had Titans clawing around it at all times. Even after the Battle of Trost, there had been plenty stumbling about or even in the gap of the closed breach.
But the Titans hadn't just vanished entirely; there were some in the distance, either out in the fields or along the main ring of Wall Rose. For this area to be vacant, something had to have happened.
"And no one noticed anything happening?" Eld asked skeptically.
"Whatever happened, it was last night. All the soldiers were too busy looking at the golden lizard to be bothered by anything going on out here," Levi remarked with distaste.
"Yeah, I heard about that. Besides from Hange I mean," Oluo stated, dropping his Levi-imitation for a second. "I'm going to guess we're here to figure out why Trippy was over here?"
"That'd be my guess," Levi agreed. "Keep your guard up. Titans aren't our only concerns anymore."
His subordinates nodded and, as one, the three of them descended off the wall, using their gear to ease their descent and move half way down the wall.
"Titans definitely died here," Eld stated with a frown, spotting several imprints in the ground that were vague human shaped, but giant in size.
"I don't like this," Olou muttered. "What kills Titans so fast and quiet like that?"
"I'm going to guess whatever left that."
Both turned to their captain, suspended just above the hole where the gate used to be.
Oluo didn't see it at first. Between the Colossus's giant imprints and the many Titans that had walked through here, it just looked like a mess of overlapping, giant footprints. But then he saw the abnormal tree in the forest of Titans.
"Captain, the hell is that?" Olou asked, his head jerking up suddenly and scanning the area again.
"A footprint, Oluo," Levi answered simply.
Eld's eyes widened as he noticed it as well. "That...can't be a Titan's, can it?"
Levi didn't answer. It could be the Beast Titan for all he knew, but he got the feeling that wasn't the case.
"We need to report this. And have some assholes actually keeping watch out here."
The two nodded in silence, but none of the three dared to move.
"Sir?" Eld questioned, tension in his voice.
"We're being watched," Levi confirmed bluntly, eyeing the town. His instincts screamed that they were being observed…stalked even. But for all his skill, he couldn't spot from where.
"What are the odds it's another thing like Trips, wanting to help?" Olou asked doubtfully.
Levi let that question hang unanswered. "Up the wall. But not too suddenly."
The other two obeyed as they climbed up the wall, the tension never quite leaving them until they were securely on top of Rose once more.
"You two stay here. Keep an eye on things. See if our uninvited guest tries to slip out of hiding," Levi remarked sternly. "Unless you find out it can climb the walls, don't engage."
"Sir," both saluted obediently.
Levi turned to leave, giving a look down into Trost, finding the golden brat. The three heads were leaning down, fixated on two cadets. He looked fully healed now from taking two cannonballs, and it wasn't even noon.
Something interesting must have happened though. The brat didn't seem nearly as moody as he had been earlier.
He absently wondered what.
Meanwhile
Krista had fallen from the walls and landed into the jaws of a giant, non-Titan monster.
This was somehow more terrifying than that.
[[[[Krista, tell her.]]]]
She shouldn't be surprised. Why was she surprised?
Armin shared an awkward look to Krista as they looked to the new arrival.
"Is something wrong?" Mikasa asked with a frown as she glanced between the sheepish Armin, the stiff-as-a-board Krista, and Eren's three heads that were staring rather pointedly at Krista.
"Oh, no, nothing is wrong," Armin answered with a tight smile. This wasn't a bad thing, really, but how did he broach the topic of Krista being able to understand Eren to Mikasa?
[[[[Tell her, dammit!]]]]
And Eren's impatience wasn't helping the situation.
Mikasa raised an eyebrow as Eren's scaly visages grew increasingly annoyed. "Does he not trust her?" Mikasa asked to Armin.
"No, no. E-Trips, could you ease up for a moment?" Armin requested. Eren grunted but stopped glaring at the blond female.
"Krista, Armin, what's going on?" Mikasa asked bluntly. "Why is he acting like Hange just tried to retest if he's a Titan?"
Eren's heads broke unison at that, Eins glaring at Mikasa while Drei gave a squawk of embarrassment while looking away. Zwei made his face neutral, refusing to acknowledge that.
"...Okay, there's no way to say this delicately," Krista accepted with a sigh. "Mikasa? I can understand what Eren is saying."
Mikasa didn't react for a moment at that, the only sound being the breeze and the rather loud breathing of a three headed reptile. Her gaze went over to Armin, who just nodded reassuringly. She glanced up at Eren's heads, who all nodded with varying levels of enthusiasm.
Krista saw several emotions flash across Mikasa's face; A barest of smiles, a softening in the eyes, a flash of suspicion, a twitch off annoyance, and who knew what else. Finally, she took a breath and calmly stated. "Armin, I'll be taking my next shift with Krista."
Everyone was surprised as Mikasa turned to leave, and Drei let out a strange, throaty sound.
"Is he...?" Armin asked idly.
"He's laughing, yes," Krista confirmed. '"Why did she leave...?"
[[Because if she stays, it'll be too obvious; Her having a conversation with us.]]
Krista glanced back up at the giant. "When did you get smarter?"
[[[[We didn't.]]]]
[[I'm just the brains.]]
[And not much else.]
"Is it stranger than it looks?" Armin asked as the heads started to squabble amongst each other.
"They all have the same voice, so, yes," Krista answered.
Armin nodded, moving a bit closer to Krista while Eren was distracted. "Think you can help those two along as well?"
Krista started before looking to Armin in surprise. Did he know one of Eren's heads was playing matchmaker? Still, she smiled a bit. "I'll see what I can do."
[[[[What are you two whispering about?]]]]
Both of them looked up at the three heads looking down at them with equally suspicious looks. In unison, Krista and Armin smiled innocently and answered. "Nothing."
[Liars.]
[[Definitely.]]
[[[Neither of you are good at this.]]]
Meanwhile
Levi didn't have to wonder long.
"Okay, I call bullshit."
Erwin remained stoic at Levi's response to the news Hange brought. "Trust me, I'm skeptical as well," Hange said with a frown.
"It is rather unlikely that Cadet Lenz would be so close to the Shifter and able to understand Trips, while having no knowledge about the true nature of either," Pixis agreed.
"Unless our theory is true, that this is a side effect of her coming in contact with the tongue," Hange mused.
"That seems rather unlikely, but we can't rule it out without testing it," Erwin stated. "Regardless, Krista's value just grew. We can finally have detailed conversations with Eren and possibly find out more about his nature."
"Well, I suppose it's my turn," Levi said with a sigh.
"Yes, you both said you had urgent information for us," Pixis noted absently. "I don't think you can top that one though, Captain."
"We have some sneaky bastard squatting outside the wall," Levi offered bluntly. "Is that exciting enough, Commander?"
"Wait, you saw something?" Hange asked with interest, turning her full attention to him now.
"More what I didn't see," Levi countered. "But something cleared out the Titans last night."
"Cleared them out?" Erwin repeated. "Are you sure they died?"
That uncomfortable idea entered the air now: The Founding Titan, the power to control Titans.
"There were more than a few imprints where they fell, and lots of damage that looks fresh when you get down there," Levi explained. "And I found a footprint. Or, clawprint, I suppose. It's big too, Titan-sized."
"Oh?" Pixis asked as Hange buzzed with excitement. "Do you think it could be from another thing like our big friend?"
"I don't think so. Whatever it was, its prints each had three long digits, claws by the look of it," Levi explained.
Hange paused in thought. "Trips has four claws, and they're not that long, compared to his feet anyway."
"Right," Levi agreed with a nod. "But while we were looking around, my squad and I were all sure something was watching us."
Pixis and Erwin shared a look at that. "I trust my solders' instincts on this," Erwin stated firmly.
"So, it might still be out there," Hange murmured thoughtfully.
"It?" Levi asked pointedly.
Erwin raised a brow as Hange stiffened. "You didn't tell him?"
"I was in a hurry, and forgot he wasn't there when Mikasa told us," Hange explained with a sigh.
"Just give me the short version," Levi said flatly.
"Trips sensed something on the other side of the boulder last night," Erwin answered. "And according to Cadet Ackerman, they both heard something speak, saying Trip's true name."
Levi's eye widened minutely. "So, if this is the same thing, it can talk?" Levi summarized, getting a nod. "And it knows the Golden Brat, even though he supposedly doesn't know anything how he turned into a a three headed freak of nature?"
"It is strange yes, but it would appear that, just as the Shifter is not the only one, there may be more giant creatures," Erwin stated, humming for a second. "And no friend to regular titans, it would seem…"
Levi grunted. "Any more surprises?"
"Now that you mention it, yes," Pixis stated with a neutral look. "There was a reason I asked Commander Erwin to meet with me. One of those sent to judge the Shifter and Trips has arrived."
"Oh?" Hange asked curiously as Erwin raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, a "representative" of the nobles in this matter," Pixis stated with expertly hidden distaste. "They arrived ahead of the rest, and requested to meet with us."
"I'm guessing that request wasn't a request," Levi remarked bluntly.
As if to make his point, a knock on the door drew their attention.
"It's Anka, Sir. The representative has arrived. Shall I let her in?" Anka's voice came through the door.
"Thank you, Anka, you may," Pixis called back as the Scouts turned to the door with wary curiosity. It was no secret the nobles weren't fans of their regiment.
The door was opened, and the first thing Levi noticed was the walking stick…an old timer or a cripple. Judging by the lack of wrinkles on the hand, it was the latter. The rest was covered in a heavy white robe, save for the face.
She smiled at them with bright, tired blue eyes. "Sorry for my attire. I thought a storm was brewing," she said in a friendly tone. "I'm the head of the Reiss Family, but please, call me Frieda."
End of Chapter
And this is how cannon dies. The lull is ending, and everything is starting to pick up. You all thought the big mystery was going to be what is hiding out there, but nope, Frieda is still alive people!
But yeah, Krista now looks suspicious again, Eren is having some heart to hearts. Also, he's playing matchmaker with Armin and Annie while Armin is playing matchmaker with Eren and Mikasa, and both are getting Krista to help them. THis won't turn into a romcon, but that's still funny.
Early viewing of chapters 15-16 avaliable on my pat-reon:
p a treon . com (slash) akumakami64