the hilt | eren jaeger

t h i r t y - E.J.

[Manga Spoilers Present]

[From here until the end of the book, there will be huge manga spoilers and Season 4 spoilers. Most likely, I will not be putting a warning again]

[Read at your own risk]

It was a low mutter as it came out of her throat, "Eren, you're a crazy son of a bitch." A sly smirk on her lips. Her eyes were glazed with an admiration of sorts. Her hair was tied back and away from her face, the wind dancing across her cutting cheekbones.

She stared at me from the bluff, rocks hiding her from the view of the Marleyans. I stood tall to the contrast of their boat below my feet. We had been together only minutes prior, as she planted a gentle kiss onto my forehead and told me to be safe. I just smiled at her, only one cheek gaining suppleness; it was half hearted. Lifeless. Dull. She saw it though. She chose to ignore it, it could be dealt with later. She ruffled my hair a bit and sent me off.

Commotion below us. I didn't care. I was just there to look terrifying and intimidate them. A large boom resonated at the feet of those who were still standing. A man laid dead on the floor, blood seeping out from his head as his body twitched for a final time. A thick stench to the air. The gunpowder wafting into our noses unannounced. Large, calloused hands gripped the handle of a weapon.

The tall, blonde woman's gun was seeping out with steam, a greedy look in her pure black irises, "Put your weapons down." She had such a tone of voice that her jurisdiction was certainly not to be questioned. She had just shot one of her comrades, after all. No one wanted to be the next. Understandable, yet I knew that most of them would be dead within a few years anyways. Didn't matter if they got shot now, or crushed to death later.

In hindsight, death now would probably be the least painless.

Everyone who saw the sight was cowering, such a powerful display could not be rivaled. If anyone saw her clearly, they would've seen the estranged twitch of a smile on her face, fresh after killing. Her tongue licked the top row of her teeth, and her pores were dewy in the dusk. She reveled in the feeling of the kill. The arm that held the pistol was shaking, but not in remorse nor cowardice, but pure thrill.

"Do as she says." Her compatriot chimed in, authoritatively. His voice was like honey in the brisk of the night. 

All the other Marleyans reluctantly put their guns down and allowed their own terror to consume them. Some had their eyes widen, some wanted to protest yet did not speak, and others went numb. Even those on the land had gone silent. Rustling of boots was a thing of the past.

A petty smile warped the woman's look, this time for all to see, "Hange. I'm honored to receive your invitation. Now, how about that tea?" Hange's face warped, an unidentifiable expression on it. They were unable to deduce what had actually just happened.

The blonde turned up to me, and I got a good look at her. She was tall, intimidating, and had a presence like no other. Almost as if she knew I was looking at her, she spoke, "I've so wanted to meet you, Eren."

It was time for Yelena to enter the bigger picture.

*****

Levi Ackerman did not trust Jo. Not at all. He never had, not back in the days of the early Survey Corps, not when she had gotten kidnapped, and not when she returned. Even in the past year when she had all the time in the world to convince him that she was trustworthy. Every time he looked in her direction, he was searching for a way to prove her inferiority. He deemed her unworthy of his trust, but there was one thing he could not dispute.