Vista - Attack on Titan x Reader

CHAPTER NINETY ONE: Base to Base

"Hello friends from Marley! Welcome to Paradis Island! I'm Hange, here to greet our guests who've come so far across the sea! Now, step this way and join us for some tea!"

I adored Hange to pieces, but my god, every time they opened their mouth lately I got a wave of second hand embarrassment. As the Commander exuberantly gestured towards the petrified Marleyans we had lined up on the shore I took the opportunity to launch myself up and onto Eren's shoulder.

He had been the one to seize the ship in his titan form, and he hadn't changed back yet. There would likely be more lurking in nearby waters, so it was a good move. I knew Armin was on standby as well.

"Good job. No casualties, either." I commended, stabilising myself by holding a lock of his thick hair. He glanced over to me out of the corner of his eye, but made no other move. I knew it would have been hard on him, having to deal with people from Marley. It was hard for me to.

What if Reiner's on one of the ships next time..?

Sighing, I gave him a pat on the jaw before grappling back down, landing upon the stationary ship. Just briefly looking around me, I knew they were leaps and bounds ahead of us when it came to technology. No matter how much we prepared, going against them would be the biggest struggle we would face.

My boots crunched against gritty sand and dirt as I exited the ship, catching the eye of one of the prisoners as I passed. His brown eyes were screaming with concealed panic, blond hair sticking out every which way. I pitied him, but only for a brief moment. He was probably a military dog too, but a dog's fate laid within the hands of its master.

"(Y/N), would your unit kindly escourt our guests to Base Two so we can prepare them for their stay? Levi and I are gonna have a nice chat with their superior officers!" Hange addressed me in such a bubbly manner, it was almost concerning. They knew how serious the situation was, but they just couldn't tone it down.

"You heard the Commander!" I shouted, gaining the attention of my squad, still not quite used to using that term when talking about Hange. "Round them up and roll out!" I wasn't used to being such a high rank, either. Much to my dismay, I was actively trying to carry myself in a mature manner when in the public eye. It was all fun and games when it was only my name being tarnished, but now that my paternal lineage was common knowledge I felt like I had to straighten out.

It didn't take long for the Marleyans to be loaded into their carts, and we were off. Between Wall Maria and the sea, we had set up four bases to make travelling back and forth more bearable.

Base One was by the shore, where we had prepared to take prisoners and keep a lookout for any approaching enemies.

Base Two was roughly an hour away on horseback, and was where we would process Marleyans and whoever else decided to pay us a visit. From there, Base Three served as a supplies checkpoint, and Base Four was where the Interior Police awaited to take custody of whomever we brought.

It wasn't a great setup, but it was a work in progress. At the very least it made it less stressful when I wanted to head back home to see Verena, or Odette and the other kids at the orphanage.

When we were about half way, I turned and whistled to Floch, who rode up to my side.
"What's up? Wanted to chat?" He asked curiously, but I shook my head.
"Can you take the lead for a bit? I want a better look at who we're bringing in."

I shouldn't...I don't want to see them as people...

His brow furrowing, Floch glanced around at the barred carts, then back to me.
"I mean, sure, but why? I mean, and I'm not trying to offend you by saying this, you kinda already got attached to Marleyans before. You think it's a good idea to be taking an interest?"