Chapter One: A Gamble

It was another day behind the walls that protected humanity from the harsh world of the titans.

A warm, gentle wind blew making the blades of grass dance gracefully while the sun shone brightly in the mid-afternoon sky. The citizens took this as a cue to hang out their laundry and almost all the clothes lines were occupied by either clean, white linen bedsheets or clean clothes all of which flapped serenely with the wind.

Among the people who were hanging out their laundry was Mikasa Ackerman. Today she was wearing casual clothes instead of her military uniform, her trademark scarf which she got from her childhood friend Eren wrapped snugly around her neck to keep her from feeling the changing weather to the cooler chill that the wind brought signaling that the sunny days were numbered as the season changed from summer to autumn.

"Thanks for helping me hang out the laundry, young lady," the elderly woman who stood beside her said.

A small smile passed on Mikasa's lips as she waved off the thanks humbly. The both of them then started walking back for the sun had risen up fully replacing the cool morning air with a more hot and humid one.

"But you sure must be happy that you're getting a break from those expeditions outside the walls," the elderly lady commented before she sighed and rubbed at the small area of her back just slightly above her waist level. "Ah, I'm not as young as I used to be. Excuse me if I blabber on like that. It must come with the old age."

Mikasa shook her head and reassured the old lady that it was fine and that she wasn't bothered by that comment. "Actually, I'm glad too. There's so many things that have been happening lately."

It was true. The recent increase in attacks by the invading titans led to the members of the army to grow tired and weary. Especially now since every attack caused them to dwindle in numbers they were all on their toes as they tried to make do with their limited manpower to always be on the ready. Even the normal citizens were on high alert, especially those living at the outermost wall having their luggage packed in case they had to evacuate at a moment's notice.

"You think so too, young lady?" the elderly woman glad to have found that they both shared the same opinion spoke more freely. "Hm, still, I wonder if we can afford to relax now that the military can question one of the more intelligent titans after they've captured one," she paused and her mood darkened, "Or if we should be more guarded seeing that there are people who can shape-shift into titans at will. We don't know how many of them are in these walls living among us waiting to strike."

Mikasa noted the old woman's concern and thought about the issues that she's raised for a moment. While she was lost in her thoughts the elderly woman stopped walking abruptly and turned towards her a smile breaking on her face, stretching out the heavy wrinkled lines on her face. "Well, this is my house. Thanks for the help, young lady," she picked up the laundry basket that Mikasa was carrying on her arms and added, "Don't think too much about what I've said. Old people can say things when they talk to themselves aloud sometimes." And with a wave, the elderly lady hobbled along the gravel path until she reached her house which was only a short distance away.

Mikasa stared at the old woman's small, bent back and smiled to herself. She felt an odd satisfaction at being able to help others especially help that didn't require violence. What she began as trying to keep Eren safe by joining the military had now grown into her (though she would still place Eren as the number one priority).

It didn't take Mikasa more than ten minutes before she spotted Eren. For some odd reason she had developed a sense of tracking of some sort to always be by Eren's side never leaving him for longer than an hour or so at most, though she wasn't aware of this strange ability herself.

She exited the narrow street she was walking through and entered the dusty and busy market square. As soon as she got through, she called out to him and shouted his name but he was oblivious to her calls as he continued walking from store to store getting pushed along by the crowd as he went.

Seeing that Eren couldn't hear her, Mikasa quickened her pace, pushing through multiple sweaty bodies along the way. Several times people grunted in irritation as Mikasa's well trained body hard enough to withstand a few light blows from titans collided with them pushing them to the side even through Mikasa's low momentum.

"Eren!" Mikasa called out once again.

The black haired man still with some hints of his boyish features thought he heard someone call his name so he looked in front of him trying to find out the source of the call. It took Mikasa three more shouts before Eren finally isolated her voice from the loud buzzing of the crowd and of merchants shouting out their wares and peddlers selling their goods. Eren turned around to see his childhood friend sweaty from both the heat and the exertion of pushing through the crowd. He looked at her and noted the thin strands of dark, black hair sticking upon the sides of her face.

"What's up, Mikasa?" he asked, surprise showing on his face. Today was a day off for most of them and they were all left to their own devices. There was no duty or instructions left for them so they were free to do what they wanted to do for the rest of the day hence many of them decided to enjoy their day by doing just that so he didn't expect to run into Mikasa at all.

Without knowing the reason himself, Eren helped Mikasa brush off the rogue strands of hair on her face causing Mikasa to blush slightly. Fortunately Eren didn't notice.

"Nothing," she replied. "I just saw you when I entered the market square."

Eren had an odd feeling from within him and he somehow had his doubts since this wasn't the first time that Mikasa chanced upon him after they were separated. Deep in his subconscious he was coming to a realisation that Mikasa was never away from him for long periods of time. He knew that this doubt wasn't an ill doubt though, but more a good one if there was such a thing as a good doubt.

Whatever it was, he brushed his thoughts aside and offered for them to walk around together.

Mikasa readily agreed and as they both walked around together viewing the stalls. Mikasa had to convince herself that it was a simple offer of walking around together and not a date.

"Why are you walking around the market square though?" Mikasa asked. "If you wanted to go shopping you could have gone to the shopping district. There's nothing to buy here but fresh produce."

"Ah, erm," Eren immediately replied. The question came so suddenly so even though he had an answer he still stumbled around his words. "Well, you see, we're already twenty years old right?" he said, beating around the bush.

Mikasa waited patiently. She knew Eren well and knew that the answer would come eventually.

"Yeah… I was thinking if I ever got a wife and if she went on strike from cooking because of some mood swing or something then I'd have to cook for myself so since we have the day off I wanted to try my hand at cooking."

Mikasa kept silent for a moment and Eren was embarrassed thinking that his childhood friend might be thinking that he was stupid for saying the stuff that he just said.

"A noble idea, Eren," Mikasa finally broke her silence. "But you really should get a girlfriend first."

"What?! That's horrible Mikasa!" Eren protested. "I'll have you know that I'm about to get myself one. Soon."

Mikasa raised an eyebrow and, in a teasing tone said, "Oh? So who's this girl that you're after?"

Eren opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water. He didn't have the answer. The reasoning that he gave Mikasa about buying cooking ingredients from the market square was the truth but his statement after Mikasa's reply was a lie. He was thinking that it was about time that he settled down, get a girlfriend, marry and then have kids. It was an instinct that almost all of the humans within the walls had for life was short and they could die anytime so natural selection made sure that the human race didn't die out.

Having someone else that he liked was a different matter. He had none yet. Still, Eren didn't want to lose the argument without putting up a fight so, blushing even harder, he mumbled barely audibly but still enough for Mikasa to hear despite the buzzing of the crowd since they were standing close enough, "Well, Krista's very pretty and Sasha is charming… even Hannah has an odd beauty to her with her freckles and all…"

"Huh?" Mikasa exclaimed. She was expecting Eren to randomly blurt out names but she never expected him to give her a description of why they were candidates for his affection in the future. Right then, Mikasa felt a feeling of jealousy rise up from within her, threatening to burst out from her chest but outwardly she kept her cool and she replied by patting Eren on the shoulder and saying solemnly, "It's alright, Eren. You'll find a girlfriend soon - and she may be even closer to you than you think."

Eren was about to ask her what she meant when he noticed that the crowd parted revealing a clear path to their direction. Walking over was a group of people who looked about Eren and Mikasa's age bearing the uniform of the Military Police Brigade walking towards them.

"You are Eren Jaeger?" the one at the front, obviously their leader, questioned.

"I am. What do you want?" Eren replied guardedly.

"Come with us."

Mikasa started. She made to stop Eren from going and was about to ask for the reason for the disturbance but she was stopped by another from the group.

"Mikasa Ackerman." The person stated. "We've heard much about you and your good service but regrettably this is an order from above. Eren Jaeger will come with us and you will stay here. Do anything foolish and you'll be sure that you won't be seeing him again," he threatened.

The room was wide and elaborately decorated. Precious metals of silver and gold coated handles, candle holders and the like. The carpets although it had seen better days still exhibited a sliver of its former glory through the intricate patterns weaved into it. Even the desk and the chair were made with expensive wood polished and finished with lacquer to protect it from ageing.

In the middle of the room sat a balding man wearing an elegant robe. His nose nearly touched the paper that he was writing on and his hand flew across the paper with precision, the peacock feathered quill that he held adding an artful elegance to his writing strokes.

There was a soft knock on the door followed by an announcement. "Milord, we bring Eren Jaeger as requested."

The balding man looked up and peered through his round spectacles and told the people standing outside to enter.

The door swung open and five people burst into the room. One led the way while two marched an unwilling Eren into the room. The fifth person entered last. He was the rear guard making sure that Eren didn't have a path of escape.

There was a short silence in the room after the group entered as they stood awkwardly not knowing what to do next in this kind of situation. A frown crept up on the balding man's face as he regarded the five before him. In a dismayed tone he addressed Eren who was still held like a prisoner in between the two. "You are Eren Jaeger?"

Eren glared at the balding man and defiantly said, "Yeah. And who are you?"

One of the people holding him made to hit him while saying, "You dare-" but was cut off and stopped by the balding man.

"Apologies, Eren, for the rough treatment." He said, though his voice carried no hint of apology at all. Eren knew that the statement was just a formality. "I am Laird Sears, Duke of Stohess," he introduced himself. "Don't look at me like that. I am your friend. Not an enemy."

With a wave of his hand he dismissed the other four and indicated for him to sit. Eren didn't sit straightaway but instead watched Laird with suspicion before he finally decided to sit down on the expensive sofa slowly.

As soon as he saw Eren ease up a bit, Laird smiled, a smile which Eren felt was genuine. "Would you like a drink? Coffee? Tea?"

Eren shook his head and spoke a little bit more politely. He knew that he was taken captive. Perhaps he was going to be interrogated, he thought. But whatever the case may be, he was still being treated well compared to other treatments he has had before.

"Sure? Well that's a shame. Well then," Laird clapped his hands together. "Let's get to the point, Eren. What do you know of Annie Leonhart?"

Eren immediately stiffened and became guarded.

"Sir, I think I have already answered that question before when I appeared in front of the board." Eren remembered the two times that he appeared in front of the board. First was during his trial and the second was after the capture of Annie Leonhard. The bitter memory of the gruelling interrogation by the most important people starting from the Duke of the smallest keep to the heads of each military faction all the way up to the Emperor.

"That was that and this is this, Eren," the balding Duke said nonchalantly.

His patience running low, Eren burst out, "I don't know! She was my training partner that's it! What do you people want me to say? 'Oh yes, we knew each other as titan shifters and have been scheming to destroy humanity from the walls inside out'?

Give me a break. I hate the titans from my core. I would rather kill all of them than join them. They killed my mother!" he roared.

Laird frowned. "I see. That's a shame," he sighed dejectedly. "I was hoping I could assign you to a task. Of course, it will benefit in the war against the titans."

Eren's curiosity was piqued. He was not one to shy from missions, especially if it was regarding killing titans.

Laird smiled. "Ohoho, it seems that you're interested, Eren. However, judging from your looks, it seems you and I are not on the same page. Yes. You have the look of a hot blooded man seeking to kill titans. That's the kind of mission you're expecting but," he paused. "Killing titans isn't the only way to help humanity, you know?"

Eren looked at Laird questioningly and the balding man continued.

"You see, I was thinking of getting more information from Annie Leonhart. Who else are titan shifters, where they are, what are the titans really… the list of questions I have just goes on and on."

"But-"

"You're really not one for patience are you, Eren Jaeger," Laird cut Eren off before he could interject. "That's the problem when you're young, you see. You never listen. There is a saying, Eren: 'Know thy enemy more than you know thyself'. If we had more information about the titans maybe we can finish them once and for all.

I know that you're thinking that Annie will never give out information. I agree. We've tried everything. Violence, truth serum, but she won't utter even a single word. So I'm thinking, perhaps having a lover coax information from her will do the trick."

"Sir?" Eren's head spun. The conversation took a strange turn and he feared that he wouldn't be able to keep up unless the balding Duke explained it to him slowly.

Laird walked across the room, his robes swaying against the carpet as he did and stopped in front of a bookshelf. Pulling out a small volume and flipping it open to a bookmarked page he said, "This book is one of the few in existence that survived from before the walls were formed. It was passed down from my ancestors to every generation of my family. We call it the bible.

One of the passages tell of a hero named Samson who was gifted strength by God. It took a shrewed woman called Delilah who was sent by the Devil to ensnare Samson with her beauty then unravel the secrets to his strength and how to defeat him," Laird stopped looking at the book called the bible and smiled at Eren. "You Eren will be Delilah. You will help us gather information by making Annie fall in love with you."

Eren was aghast. He opened and closed his mouth not knowing what to say. He couldn't even think about what Laird told him. A few minutes passed and Laird simply observed him, waiting patiently for Eren to digest the information he just presented him. Laird knew that if Eren agreed the rewards he would reap would be enormous.

On the other hand, when Eren's brain finally functioned, he could only think slowly and so he finally said, "Let me think about it, sir."

Laird nodded. He didn't mind waiting. This was an under the table arrangement that he concocted himself after all. Only he could do it for as Duke of Stohess he had free reign over the prisons in the area under his jurisdiction. He thought that it was a lucky break for him that Annie's capture occurred within the area of his jurisdiction and as such she was imprisoned there as well.

"Very well, go," he dismissed Eren. "I expect to hear from you soon."

Eren bowed slightly to show a little bit of courtesy and left leaving Laird to his thoughts. A few moments later a knock on the door signalled that someone else was waiting outside. He ordered the person in and the leader of the group earlier walked in.

"Milord, do you think this decision is wise?"

"You have been listening, Kelvin?"

"Only just, Sir."

Laird smiled and nodded. "Of course you were, my son. But worry not. This decision is perhaps the wisest I've made." Laird looked at his son's questioning look and smiled, giving away the answer. "You have read my archives. We have a vague understanding of why children look like their parents."

"Something about genetics?" Kelvin offered.

"Yes. Genetics. And what do you think would happen if love were to blossom between the two titan shifters?"

Kelvin's eyes opened wide as realisation came to him. "You don't mean?"

Laird grinned, a mad look in his eyes showing in the light of the setting sun. "That's exactly what I mean. How would you like to have a titan shifter army all kidnapped from Eren and Annie's joining during their childhood and brainwashed to be faithful to us?"

End of Chapter One

To be continued...

P.S.

Hi All, thank you for reading the first chapter of this fanfic.

I haven't been writing in a long time and would really like to hear your thoughts on this and don't forget to subscribe or like to get update notifications! It would really mean a lot to me! Cheers,

Kyough