I had heard rumors of a Titan within the walls. There had been small whispers at first, and it had become worrying. Some soldiers had gone in, ODM gear, stocked with blades, but I had watched them come back, not a man missing. People had then said it just kids had been pulling pranks. But the screech that had sounded during the night was no prank. Not many in Wall Rose had seen or even heard a Titan before, but there was no mistaking it. The anger filled shriek had awoken many, the pure emotion in it had been terrifying. But, all this had only been a rumor.
Of course, this had been years ago, I can't really remember what had happened myself. I can vaguely remember being scared, but I think this was for a different reason. I don't remember hearing a Titan in the night, just pained screams. It was like a drawing being smudged. That morning had been odd, not only with the talks of a Titan being within the walls. I couldn't remember where I was, or who I had been before waking up. All I had been wearing were some dirt colored rags, a scarf and a note. It had read something, but the letters and meaning had escaped me at the time. A lot seemed to be escaping me, if not everything. It still seems to.
I had wandered from the edge of the forests to the town. People had adverted their gaze from me, but I hadn't been sure why. I had eventually been stopped by a man, he had claimed he was a doctor and could help me, but I can't remember his name, I could distinctively remember him wearing glasses, but everything else about him eludes me. He had wiped away the caked blood that had tracked down from my nose, his care gentle and kind. He said I must have tripped and hit my head; it would explain the memory loss as well as the bleed. I had been asked about my parents, and where I lived, but I hadn't an answer or clue.
This had all been when I was twelve. I was short for my age, in fact, some people had often mistaken me for a younger child. Doctor had been able to figure out my age, I can't remember how, but I will admit that he was a smart man.
He had taken me to Shiganshina, to a home there. It had been empty but he had said I could stay there for the time being, he said a man from the Garrison would check on me and bring me food. During my first year in Shiganshina, I had not regained any memory, but Conners, the man that came to check on me, had been very supporting. I had usually gone weeks without seeing the Doctor, but I knew he was okay. He probably had a family to look after and he must have gone around a lot too, making sure no one was sick.
Even now, eleven years later, I let my mind wonder. It had been all so weird, but what had brought me to this very moment now? But how had that all come to this? The darkness was unsettling. The moldy air burnt my throat. The utter silence, it was horrifying. But my mask didn't crack. It didn't now, it didn't then.
I had walked into my own doom. The confines of a cell never sat well with anyone, but beyond that basic repulsion, the darkness always made me tremble. I didn't know why it did this to me, but it always had. I feared the dark, but not just because of the monsters lingering within, something else gnawed at me. It could be something I don't remember, something from my hidden past. Now it was more of a gut feeling, the fact that I was in a cage of metal. There was no lamp in my cell, but now I could hear the chatter of a guard. He was stationed a bit away. I recall him passing when I was first brought here, a scowl on his face like someone had taken a shit on his lunch. Right now, the light from his lamp didn't reach me. The darkness would be sucking it in, making sure no light escaped.
I strained my hearing, leaning forward and gasping slightly. The steel cuffs around my writs burn into my skin, marring the flesh slowly with each tug of my arms. Luckily, my ankles weren't as bad since I was chained to the ground, I didn't have to move them as much.
A door opened not too far off and I tried to shuffle back into the corner of the cell. The voices seemed to get closer, their steps reverberating in the stone hall. Soon enough, some light was visible, and I blinked a few times before closing my eyes. There was a chance they would leave if they thought I was asleep, that or they would wake me up. After a moment, the voices stopped and I could hear the rustle of clothes shifting. They were in front of me, that much was clear, albeit on the other side of steel bars.
One cleared his throat and I remained steady. I wasn't sure who they were and I wasn't just about to sneak a peek at my captors. There was a long still, where nothing seemed to happen, but I could feel a glare burning into me. I honestly was curious as to who they were. If they were here to interrogate me then I guessed they would have sent someone intimidating. I'm sure I could handle whoever was glaring at me, I'd faced plenty of cocky men at the Garrison when I was still in Shiganshina. As my thoughts seemed to drone on, there was the scuff of a boot moving forwards and I held my breath. "Wake the fuck up." The was a loud bang and I could only assume he had kicked the metal bars.
Mentally rolling my eyes, I shifted, lifting my head up and offering a false yawn. I moved my hands up to rub my eyes, chains clinking and scraping. As I looked at the pair, I was rather disappointed. They sent in a man with possibly the best eyebrows I have ever seen with a midget beside him. The blonde one had a slight raise of his brow, watching the shorty. The midget man looked annoyed as he stepped back, leaning against the wall with his arms over his chest. In all honesty, he looked like he had a stick up his ass.
"Evening fellas. Or morning, it really is hard to tell what time of the day it is down here." I grinned, shifting forward slightly. I remember my talks with Conners, he'd been a funny man, always telling me off for talking back to him. The blonde man looked to me, faced now straight. The thought of challenging him to a game of poker crossed my mind but I decided to keep my collective mouth shut.
The was a deepening scowl on Shorty's face and it filled me with amusement. Though I tried not to show it, but from the look on Shorty's face I wasn't doing too well at it. There were a few more moments of silence before the man with amazing eyebrows spoke up, clearing his throat.
"What were you doing beyond the Walls?" The slight edge to his voice was rough, pressing into my mind with slight anger. From the look on his face, you wouldn't have been able to tell this, but I had always been good at reading people.
"Why did you drag me back in?" I asked, voice raised ever so slightly with a tone of amusement. Shorty kicked at the bars again, but I didn't move an inch. Didn't even blink. This seemed to annoy him even more, and I gave the pair a devious grin. I decided to fuel the fire. "Yeah, I was out there, but remember that you lads were the ones that dragged me out of my freedom." I huffed, moving to run a hand through my hair but I had momentarily forgotten about the chains. The pullback they gave was painful, but I endured and didn't show it, simply placing my hands on the ground instead.
The midget's jaw shifted slightly and I could tell he was grinding his teeth. "That did not answer my question." Blonde man said, stepping forward slightly. I tilted my head, eyes squinting. The blonde seemed confused, it had shown for a second before he composed himself. It was hard to tell if it was me annoying him, or something else. Shorty Mc Short Fuck was still scowling, dark eyes watching my every movement.
"You want an answer that I can't really give." I said after a moment of pause. This didn't seem to do much for me as Midget Man kicked off the wall, stepping closer to the bars. The tall one placed a hand on his shoulder and Shorty whipped around, annoyance on his face clearly shown for a moment. He seemed to want to be here as much as I did. "How about this? An answer for an answer? Sounds fair to me." I hummed casually, shifting my right leg as it began to fall asleep again. The raw skin covered by iron shackles burned at this point, but I couldn't do much about it. Not yet at least.
Blondie let out a deep but long sigh. I guess he was considering my offer then. I'm a bit surprised he was giving me the option to ask something, and if this was the only question I was going to be able to ask I was defiantly not going to waste it. After a few more moments of utter silence and Shorty's eyes burning into me Golden Brows spoke. "Fine, but only one question. You have to answer all of ours after." He said, face unnervingly straight. "Deal?"
I snorted lightly. "And how many questions will I be answering? I think that is hardly fair that I only get to ask just one question, and I might not even receive an answer if you don't like the question anyways." The blondie didn't seem to agree as he repeated. With a roll of my eyes, I nodded. I wasn't about to verbally agree to anything. Verbal saying something is different to not saying anything at all. In, wasn't there a saying about actions speaking louder than words? Who knew really. I was rather desensitized from the world at this point, having not had much human interaction. I raised a brow, a smug grin on my face. I knew I looked like an idiot, that much was clear already, but I just wanted this over and done with. I wanted to leave, to go back home. Home… Raion… was he doing alright? Raion had been my friend for many years, he was as faithful as they came… for a bird.
I shook my head lightly before looking up to the pair. "What is your question?" Blondie asked curtly, arms crossed over his chest. He seemed to hold a great deal of power, and I don't just mean physically. He looked like he knew what he was doing, where he was in life, what his place was. In truth, I didn't know anything of that. I could be telling someone I did, that I knew what I wanted, but I've never really known. There are many things to want, food, water, warmth, safety, freedom. For me, I had lived with freedom, but for all these people… they wanted safety, and those two things didn't mix, in this world of ours.
I cleared my throat slightly. It felt scratchy, most likely since I haven't had anything to drink the whole time I have been here. My guess was maybe three days, this being the third. There was no real way to tell, but the shuffling of guards had happened every now and again, I couldn't be certain of the time, but I would guess their shift change would be every six hours or so. It could have been other things moving around and I might have the time wrong all together. I might have only been here for a few hours, or maybe even week, but I wasn't about to ask. Swallowing, I opened my mouth. "Why do you want me?" I questioned. Blondie Boy seemed a tad confused. I guess he thought I was going to ask if I could leave or something. No, I wasn't that stupid… well… sometimes but not now. Too much was on the line. I wanted my freedom. I wanted to fly again.
The man was clearly thinking of a good answer, something reasonable to say. He looked like he was putting words together in his mind. But of course, the Short Fuck in the corner popped in on our lovely conversation. "You are accused of being the Armored Titan, fucking brat!" Brownie points for interrupting Eyebrows, but I reeled back from the question regardless. They were seriously accusing me of being the Armored Titan?
"Yeah, I don't think so." I said, not waiting for either of them to answer me since all I would hear is bullshit. "If you can't tell I'm actually a female and from what I know the Armored was a guy."
"That is beyond the point, not all Titans appear to be female." I seriously needed to get the blondes name, it was getting tedious to keep coming up with names for him.
"Yeah, good point. Something like breast would get in the way of a fucker that had to run through walls." I laughed lightly, falling back. The chains stopped me form lying on the ground, digging in painfully. But again, I didn't show my discomfort. "Shorty, could you stop glaring? You look like a fucking idiot." I sniggered lightly and Shorty Mc Short Fuck, yet again, scowled and stepped forward, digging around in his pocket for something. I could only assume he had an itch to scratch or was looking for the keys to my cage. Golden Boy looked unhappy, shaking his head lightly and sighing. This wasn't good, was it? Well, for me at least. There wasn't much I could do to the short man chained up how I was. As the keys clicked into place I flinched. He was giving me a dark look and I was honestly worried. What was he going to do? I looked to the tall blondie and he looked away slightly. I swallowed for what seemed the up tenth time.
Each click of the keys made me shiver and I hated it. Finally, there was a louder click as the door finally gave in and I watched him. His dark look burned into me and I tried to shuffle back, dragging on the ground He seemed to notice my shivering and a smirk flicked over his face, it was hardly noticeable, but it was there. He squatted down to my level, grabbing the chain connected to my left hand and giving a yank. I grit my teeth together and put on a straight face. This seemed to annoy him and he did it again, pulling it to the point where I was dragged towards him slightly. He lifted his leg and I tried to move away but his firm grip on the chain made it impossible. I uselessly look to Blondie, but he remains purposefully ignorant. As the short man brought his foot down onto my ankle I swallowed a scream. He continued to press down but I knew the bone was already fractured, if not broken.
"This isn't a fucking joke, brat." He growled, stepping away. His dark eyes swept over me and I stuck my tongue out, my face still contorted in a grimace. His leg swept back and his boot connected with my ribs. I didn't know if they cracked but the pressure on my lungs was almost unbearable. I could feel my organs strain against the pain, all of them screaming in union.
At this point, I could see the Blondie step forward, a scowl on his own face. "Levi, that's enough! We did not come down to kill her. We need to get information. If you're going to act like this I will send down Hanji." So, the little man's name was Levi? And who was this Hanji? Was he like Levi? I doubted it. Golden Boy didn't seem to like the fact that Levi was kicking the shit out of me.
"You cannot be serious Erwin!" Ah, there we go. Finally, a name to each face. Levi was going to argue some more, but a single pointed look from Erwin seemed to silence him. I was grinning… well, in my mind. The pain hissing in my leg was burning me. The pain was spreading slowly, creeping up my leg like a spider, making me twitch. As the short man stomped off, locking my cell behind him. Erwin sighed. He watched me for a moment, and I could only think of different ways to spite him.
"I'm not the fucking Armored." I hissed, glaring daggers at the blonde man. I was clutching at my ribs, my lungs screaming in pain. Did he really have to kick me in the ribs? God that midget man had issues. I'd get him back for this, I swear to whatever God is up there. I mean, I could be overreacting right now, but it isn't every day you get locked up, yelled at, accused and kicked for doing absolutely nothing. It seemed he was just mad that I was out there. Did he have someone that didn't make it? Was that why he was so damned pissed at me? Or did he just have some pent-up anger? Maybe he didn't get out a lot.
My thoughts were interrupted by the blondie. "Yes, but there is no proof of this. Can we continue?" I rolled my eyes, and shifted, moving my legs slightly to ease the pain. I brought my knees to my chest, wincing slightly at the pain that blossomed there. Erwin sat down on a chair that I hadn't noticed, bringing it in front of the bars and clearing his throat slightly. "Why were you out there?" Ah, so he changed the question? That helps me feel a bit more at ease.
"I wanted to fly." He seemed confused. Seemed about right. I guess it was a confusing answer to his question. He must have been expecting something stupid. "Flying is to be… free," I sighed the word, a small glimmer of a smile appearing on my face. "I had that and you… you took it away from me. I wasn't doing anything wrong by being out there." I frowned and rested my chin on my knees as he seemed to process what I had said. It took him a few moments, wonderful eyebrows knitted in deep thought.
"I see. May I ask your motive? Why did you want to be out there when death lurks around every corner?" Death? He must have meant Titans that lumbered around out there. Honestly, they never bothered me much. I usually avoided fighting them if I could. Sometimes one of them would come too close for comfort but that was rare. They mostly appeared when I was hunting, and even then, I didn't seem to bother them, not like a single person would really. And most of the time I smelt like an animal, having not been around humans much tends to do that. I kept clean, but the fact that I went hunting and got blood on me must have dulled my smell to them.
"Like I said, I wanted to fly and being trapped in a cage… that just wasn't what I thought freedom was. I wanted to see everything there was to see… not just walls…" I sighed into my knees and looked at my grimy feet. I wiggled the toes of me feet slowly, making sure whatever Shorty Mc Short Fuck had done wasn't too bad. Luckily, each toe moved, so that settled my nerves. "I know everyone says the walls are to protect us but when the Colossal and Armored came the walls became a cage."
Erwin hummed and sat back slightly, rolling his shoulders. My ears twitched as I heard footsteps and Erwin turned, letting a deep sigh come through his nose. Seemed my instant guess was right. "Captain Levi." Erwin hummed as he took back his place, leaning against the wall with his right leg propping him up some more. His scowl was ever present but he seemed to have collected himself. I offered a grin and slight nod of the head and he simply clicked his tongue in disdain. "Okay, I simply have one more question." I raised a brow. Really? Just one? "What is your name?"
"It doesn't really matter, does it?" I drawled in mild annoyance. Erwin raised one of his perfect eyebrows and I sniffed slightly. "I don't even have any family you could use to threaten me. There's no point in getting my name." I hissed. Erwin seemed to think otherwise, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You'll answer the question, brat." Levi said, raised voice making me flinch slightly. I shook my head and his lips pulled up in another scowl. Would he ever stop scowling at me? I seriously doubted it.
"We'll continue tomorrow. I'll send Hanji down with some water." Erwin pinched the bridge of his nose and nodded to me slightly. I wasn't sure what for, he must have been thankful that I answered something. Levi clicked his tongue before walking off, soon followed by Erwin. As their footsteps faded away, I noticed the oil lamp that Erwin had brought down. I was thankful for the light. I looked around slowly, joints in my neck cracking lightly form not having moved much. It was a small cell, really. I was chained to the floor, the steel in turn attached to the wall. Well, that would stop me from going anywhere. I wheezed out a shaky breath, ribs straining. Why wasn't I healing? Was it because I was scared? No… I wasn't scared. There was no reason to be. None. As my leg pulsed I flinched. Okay… there was one thing to be scared of… in the form of an angry midget.
I sat for a while, just thinking. I tried to think of ways to escape but nothing seemed like it was going to work. Was I going to ever get out of this cage? The walls felt like they were coming in, crushing me. The lamp was dulling down, so I had guessed it had been over an hour since Golden Brows left. When was Hanji coming? Who even was Hanji? Were they nice? Or just another maniac wanting to see me suffer. I wasn't sure, and I wouldn't know until I met them. My ears twitched slightly and I looked up, shifting my legs so I was sitting cross legged. The footsteps were rushed and quick paced. Were they in a rush to see me or someone else in this pit?
I was soon greeted by a brown-haired woman, it seemed. She was wearing a pair of glasses and her hair was up in a messy ponytail. She had a jug of water in her hand and a small bag in the other.
"Ah!" She breathed out, placing the bag down and reaching into her pocket for what I guessed was a key. After a moment, she proved my guess right. She unlocked the cells door and I flinched back as it creaked open. She grabbed the chair Erwin had been on after relighting the lamp, dragging it in and grabbing her bag. She left the cell door wide open, but I wouldn't have been able to escape. "Hello there!" She chimed. I frowned at her. She seemed too happy. "My name is Zoe Hanji. Nice to meet you!" I gave her a small nod as she slid the small jug of water closer. She opened her bag and pulled out a cup, pouring some water and holding it out to me. I grabbed it and raised the cup to my lips, taking a big gulp of water. It soothed my throat. I finished off the cup and she took it from me, placing it down as she watched me curiously.
"Can I help you?" This seemed to jolt her out of a trance and she blinked in surprise. I tilted my head slightly and she grinned.
"You can actually! I need to take a blood sample from you if that's okay?" I knew she was going to do it, even if I said no. Was there anything I could have done to stop her? Would they be able to find out what I was?
I swallowed, letting out a deep sigh through my nose. "Yeah… uh… go right ahead."
Hanji clapped her hands together before diving into her bag and pulling out a syringe. She inspected it for a moment before getting a strap and buckling it to my upper arm. She tightened it and grinned. "So? You lived outside the walls…" She sighed slightly, an almost dreamy smile on her face. "Must have been fun!" She stuck the needle in carefully, drawing blood into the glass tube. "How many Titans did you kill? Did you see any Abnormals? Have you ever heard a Titan speak?!" Well, I could tell she was curious about Titans, that was for sure. She pulled the needle out and flicked it lightly before smiling and putting it away, removing the strap around my arm. Hanji was… odd, that much was for sure. I wasn't sure on how to answer all her questions. I looked to my arm, a small fleck of blood was there. Hanji seemed to notice my staring and grabbed a cloth, pressing down on the small dot and rubbing it away.
She watched me, and I swallowed. "Y-Yeah… I've seen a few Abnormal Titans… but none of them have tried to say anything… and maybe around two hundred and something… I think…"
She grinned and clapped her hands together slightly. "With this blood sample, I'll be able to confirm if you're the Armored or not!" Hanji said happily, and I froze slightly as a sudden thought passed. Would they kill me if they found out…? No… they want information… but if I give it to them that Shorty might… I shuddered slightly.
Hanji seemed to notice and blinked. "Are you cold? It's cold down here but I'm not meant to help you until after you're cleared for everything. Sorry about that…" She laughed nervously and I sighed slightly. We sat there in silence for a moment before she hummed. I looked up and saw her digging through her bag again. She pulled out a scarf and I looked at her. "You were throwing a pretty bad tantrum when they took this off you…" She said, leaning forward and tying it loosely around my neck. "I'm guessing this is important to you?"
"Yeah… it is…" I sighed slightly, thankful to feel the fabric around my neck. It was a small moment of happiness before I was pulled out of it. I flinched and looked to Hanji whom had made the chains shorter. She looked at me and smiled.
"Since I'm giving you that, we need to make sure you can't strangle yourself!" She chimed casually. I sighed, but nodded. If it meant I couldn't move my arms as much, I'd put up with it. I could still move my legs enough at least.
She soon left after more rambling about Titans, locking my cell and scurrying off. She never stopped much, did she? I released a sigh. Tomorrow was another day in the grand scheme of things, I just had to put up with the ever-glaring midget.
My eyes flicked up and my face went pale as I heard heavy footsteps approach me. Did the Gods curse me? I don't know. Did they want me dead? That was a high possibility. Levi glared down at me and I shifted back. I was fucked. He pulled his keys out, unlocking the door and closing it behind him. My leg and chest thrum with pain and I look up at him. "Pathetic." He spits, crouching down. "You'll tell me your name, fucking brat." He snarls. I shake my head, trying to glare back at him, but I was scared. He kicked me again, the left side of my rips. I swallow a whimper as my bones rattle, lungs screaming in pain. He did it again and I shook my head. "I can keep this up all day." He answered me, voice filled with poison. I guess I can understand when they say 'pick your poison'. I had annoyed him, and he was angry. What happened to the humor in people? I remember Conners and everyone at the Garrison being hilarious!
After a moment, I looked at him again, my eyes avoiding his as I chose to instead look at the tie around his neck. He bent down, now level with me and scowled. "I'm not saying anything." I said.
For a moment, he just stared at me, dark eyes scanning my face. I made an effort not to look at him but the piercing gaze was hard to avoid. Suddenly, his hand snapped out, grabbing my scarf. He pulled it, making me face him again. I could hear the fabric strain against his grip and my eyes darkened. I shifted, and I guess it was too sudden for him to register, but as my leg shot out, I almost froze. I had gotten him in the nose, a crack had sounded and I would have lied if I said I didn't enjoy it, but when I looked at him, he looked back, glaring more so than before. He was clutching at his nose, a small trickle of blood dripping down. He pulled his hand away and looked at it before snarling and grabbing one of my chains, pulling me by my arm. He wiped his hand on me and threw me on the ground before cracking his knuckles.
I have been planning this for ages and to finally have something out? Oml. I'd like to thank the amazing writer and my Beta for this story, Frantastic1993! She is really talented and helped me flesh out this first chapter! She's currently writing a few of her own AoT fanfictions and you should check 'em out! My personal favourite is 'Chained Wings'!
See you all in the next chapter!