AN: First and only disclosure, I do not own Attack on Titan or any of Hajime Isayama's affiliated characters. I don't own anything but my OCs.

Prologue - Condolences

Year 834

Safety.

To live in a state free from harm, without worry. The century of seclusion from the rest of the world sharpened the definition into a sharp, biting truth. The outside was hell, and the remainder of humanity reached the consensus that the three walls, Maria, Rose, and Sina could be considered nothing short of goddesses offering divine protection. A gift from the heavens to be cherished and praised. There was no question as to what they were safe from – no one was ignorant of the titans' existence. Even the king's landed and titled class understood that they were blessed. The threat never loomed over them, but the news from the outer two walls kept them ever aware of the dangers outside – reports of casualties from the Survey Corps and the grumbling of wasted taxes were always an easy topic of conversation to fall on.

Erwin kept a fluid stride, navigating the district in the early evening. The interior was most certainly not his favorite place to be, even compared to the dangers outside. While these "high standing" members of society never feared a titan breathing down their necks, the red tape and bureaucratic nonsense never failed to dampen what little spirits could be mustered up after expeditions. Granted, there was rarely call for high spirits with the rising death tolls incurred upon each excursion. As if the occasion for his trip wasn't depressing enough, the universe thought to add somber rainclouds to boot.

By Maria, this couldn't get any more dismal, he thought as he rounded another corner. With a slip of paper marking an address clamped in his right hand and a tightly folded cape pressed to his torso with the left, he made his way down the street, counting off the house numbers. A drop of water splattered on the white sheet, seeping into the fibers and smudging the delicate ink near the end and signaled the impending drizzle. He made to lift his own hood over his head while continuing forward. 16 Magnolia Road… 8… 10… It was a futile effort to reach the medium sized estate before the drops caught up to him, growing into a light shower. He finally neared the iron gate to the house in question, and made his way up a cobblestone path to the front doors.

The tall mahogany pieces loomed over Erwin, an impressive feat to accomplish over his six foot stature. It just served as another reminder for how much he hated this part – he was never the best person for offering condolences. Of course, an official courier for the military could always be dispatched for these kinds of jobs, but Emmerich deserved better than that. All of his brothers-in-arms deserved better. This was the least he could do. Opting to avoid the polished door knocker, he raised a fist and knocked at the door. It took every ounce of will to not gulp when the door swung open.

It was always a surprise to see who would be standing there. The men and women killed in action left a whole assortment of people behind; parents, lovers, children – all evidence that his comrades did indeed live and die for something. Children were always the worst for the deliverers of bad news. The wide-eyed, innocent stare up at the grim and imposing soldiers would morph into ones of confusion, terror, or for an unfortunate few, grim realization. Dark green eyes met cool blue ones, interrupting his thoughts as he looked down at the small woman. Barely reaching his chin, the diminutive brunette's stature changed from elated to calm in an instant, a name dying on her lips along with her smile.

Just as suddenly, her posture sprang back to one of propriety and grace, hands folding at her front and another smile reaching her face.

"Can I help you, sir?" she began. "Oh, I mean soldier," she amended, making note of his military garb. Her voice came out silvery and inviting. Address still clamped in his right hand, Erwin made to salute. Although it was rare for the nobility to have any direct control over military personnel they still demanded respects to be paid, and it wouldn't bode well for him to earn complaints to his superiors for a casualty notification assignment.

"Miss, is this the Maurer Estate? Is Emmerich Maurer II available?" He asked starkly. Please let him be home he hoped. He was asked to break the news to the father, and was not looking forward to leaving the news to another. Girlfriend, maybe? Emmerich never talked about his family, but did receive frequent letters. No, she couldn't be a lover, he and Mirka were still in the early stages of building a relationship when-

"No, I'm sorry. He's still out at his meeting." She spoke over the drizzle of the rain, assessing the soldier's disheveled appearance. The rain had begun to seep into his cloak and stuck to his face, blond locks matted to his forehead with drops of water sliding off his straight nose. He looked imposing and miserable at the same time, earning a sympathetic smile. "If you have a message, I suppose you could wait out the shower here for a few minutes. He always gets home around this time, you wouldn't have to wait all that long, Mister… ah Mister?"

Erwin dropped his salute to respond. "Team Leader Erwin Smith," before mulling over his options. He could give her the news and be off. This wasn't a social call, and it'd be unprofessional to lounge in the home of a dead comrade. The letter, he reminded himself. Images of his comrade flashed in his mind.

"God there's blood everywhere… Oh Sina… Make sure this reaches… give it to my father. It has to reach his hands only. He needs to know! Markgraf Emmerich Maurer II! I'm sorry… by Sina!" he gasped gruffly, snagging Erwin's arm in a death grip. A deep set of emerald yes pleaded at his superior. "Please let them know. I did this willingly. I died… I died proudly…" he trailed off, voice starting to slur from blood loss.

Erwin snapped back to reality, locking on the woman before him with the same eyes. "If that's not too much trouble, my Lady, I would appreciate that." Offering a smile of his own. She nodded and stepped aside for him to pass through before pulling the doors shut again.

"Alex," she smiled. "No need to be overly formal, I promise not to bite." Leading him to a lavish sitting room with patterned royal blue walls and dark oak trims. "Can I get you a drink? There's already some water for coffee at a boil, it will be no trouble. Something to warm you up from the rain?" she rattled on, the perfect courteous host. With a gentle nod from the man, she excused herself to the kitchen to check on the water's progress, leaving Erwin alone to his observations. It seemed like a lovely home, fitting for Emmerich. There was no denying his upper class origins, observed through overly formal slips of the tongue, or complete inability to break posture. Erwin sighed. It did no good to focus on it at this his command. Climbing the ranks over the last six year left him in a position to make life and death calls. The responsibility fell to him, to an extent. As did the blame. Placing the cape on his lap, he lifted his hand up to his brow, massaging the budding headache.

From the other room, the young woman had taken a silent watch at the threshold. She took in her own observations of the young man. Tall, broad shouldered, with blond hair in a soppy state from the rain. She guessed that were the weather better, it would be neater. As his head dipped down, his right hand joined the left in massaging his temples. A shapely jaw held firm lips drawn into a relatively calm face. And those EYEBROWS! Easily the most distinctive feature of his face, they did nothing to take away from his all-around look. In a word? Handsome. In two? Very handsome.

The squeal of steam from the stove drew her eyes away as she grabbed the flip pot and set it down to drip through. She had a few minutes before the coffee would finish dripping through the filter and thought to at least speak to the man. It was odd to have one of the soldiers report directly to the house – they usually knew where her father was and the meeting schedules. Maybe a mix up? Her mind buzzed with curiosity as she stepped back into the sitting room, clearing her throat to gain the man's attention.

He looked up and eyes locked for a second time, and she began, "You'll have to excuse the drinks. The housekeeper, she just had her baby and we're still looking for new help."

"I'm sure it will be fine. You were gracious enough to let me stay here for the time being, I can't complain." He took a moment to observe the woman as she took a seat on the chair across from him. Well maintained lengthy chocolate brown hair trailed along to the small of her back, gathered at the very end in a blue ribbon, matching the royal crisp color of her gown. Appearance-wise she seemed a perfectly respectable member of the noble class, he just wasn't sure who exactly she was.

Her eyes flickered to a grandfather clock taking residence in the corner. Father's late. Opting to not sit in silence, Alex made it a goal to start conversation. "So, were you involved in that training exercise at the beginning of the week? The one with the newer recruits? I think that's the most exciting thing that's happened all month." Curious eyes peeked at him, gauging for any interest to be taken in the conversation.

"Ah… no. My squad was not involved in any… recent training exercises." Her face drooped at the clipped answer. Shit… keep talking, don't upset her. "How… how did the exercise go? Did the recruits seem well prepared?"

She actually took a moment to deliberate before answering. "Well, when my brother was in training he would write about how difficult the maneuver gear was to balance in his first months. That was… three – no, four years ago. If anything, the cadets didn't need help using the gear as opposed to using around each other. Group work and awareness was," she paused for a moment, pondering the least offensive way to phrase her assessment. "Lacking to say the least."

Erwin would have been lying if he said he wasn't taken aback. Eyebrows raised to consider her answer, and the fact the answer was serious to begin with. Even if she did have a family member who worked the military, he had not expected the most careful observations from the relatively self-centered upper classes. They seemed less interested in the training of their recruits and more focused on attempting to cut their budget. "To say the least? I'm afraid to hear what your harshest critique would be," he mused.

"Oh, I mean no offence to them as a whole. But you can hardly watch them barely escape two midair collisions and expect them to be battle ready. One even managed to fall through into the bazaar, poor thing." She let out a small chuckle, eyes cast down in sympathetic embarrassment.

"You're not wrong. A unit's ability to navigate around the environment and each other is crucial to survival," he commented. Erwin couldn't help but give a smirk, reminiscing about his own troupe's difficulties with the 3DMG.

"Miles, what the hell! You could have sliced Mirka in two with that maneuver!"

"MAURER, KEEP MOVING – THIS IS NO TIME FOR STOPPING, SHIT WORK OR NO!"

"10 meter class approaching from the south!"

Erwin's eyes flashed back to the present, lost for a second as Alex appeared to pick up the conversation.

"- I have no doubt that they'll keep those measures in place, so long as the officials continue being lenient. And we all know they will if it keeps lining their pockets on the side." Another winning smile – Is it even possible to be that cheery? No, wait, she was saying something. As he fumbled to salvage some kind of response, he was saved by the timely chime from the grandfather clock. Both turned to make note of the hands marking off the hour at seven. "You know, the coffee should be ready. I'll be back in a moment."

He nodded in assent as she left the room once again, left alone once more with his thoughts. In the corner of his eye he caught a glimmer, turning to see a portrait with a golden trimmed frame. The painting showed a family of four – a lean faced and sharp eyed man sat straight on the small bench, flanked by two young adults behind the seat and one residing beside him. They all wore the same emerald eyes and sly smiles which oozed an air of confidence. The girl on the couch beside him, clearly a younger version of Alex with a rounder face. The woman behind the seat held her head high, face framed with dark chocolate locks and next to her – Erwin gasped.

It took a moment for the realization to hit him before he felt the overwhelming urge to hit himself. Sisters… shit. I just spent the last ten minutes with his sister and I'm supposed to be delivering her news of THIS?! He looked down at the stained cape. You just HAD to make small talk, didn't you?

Clearing her throat again, his eyes snapped back up to see her carrying a tray with the coffee pot, two cups, sugar, and a cream pitcher. His eyes cast back down in an attempt to hide the rising heat to his head. There would be no living this down, he knew it for a fact. Providing a mumbled answer to the questions "sugar," and "cream," he watched her prepare the two cups. Gingerly taking the cup from her delicate hands and resettling into the chair, he made it a point to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.

"I apologize for my father's lateness. Something must have come up at the offices, he really is quite punctual. At this point I'm afraid that you might have found him sooner had I let you report back to the offices." All the while she gently stirred her drink, looking for a new topic to pass the time. "So are you new to the force? I don't recognize you as one of my father's regular assistants."

"Ah, that's probably because I'm not stationed here." Better not to lie at this point. "The Survey Corps is making its post expedition report." He moved the damp green cloth covering the Wings of Freedom insignia, seeing her eyes widen in what he assumed was interest. In actuality it was shock. If he's a Survey Corps member, then they're back from the expedition – where the hell is Emmerich? He has never failed to visit when back in the interior for report.

Placing her cup down gently on a side table, she tried to clear her thoughts enough to comment. She was interrupted by sound of a door opening and slamming shut followed by gruff shouts.

"Selene! Selene – Damn it all, SELENE!" The muffled sound of boots stomping across the rugged floor had both Erwin and Alex at their feet to see the reason for all the commotion. "Were is the help when you need it the most?!" Rounding the corner was the same leaned face, sharp eyed man as depicted in the portrait, aged with greying hair and a close trimmed beard.

"Father, what in the world?" Alex chimed, walking over and placing a hand on the man's arm. He stopped his griping upon noticing the tall uniformed soldier in his home, green eyes widening for a moment before casting downwards. He already knows, thought Erwin.

"Alexandria, who is this?" he asked with a much gentler tone.

"Ah, he's… he's…" she began, at a loss for words both confused by the new information he had disclosed and the dramatic state of her father. Erwin took the initiative, striking another salute.

"Sir, Team Leader Erwin Smith of the Survey Corps division reporting! Are you Markgraf Emmerich Maurer II? Father of Emmerich Maurer III?" His voice came out clipped, professional and stiff.

"Yes, this is my house. Report, soldier – what do you need?" His eyes were already stained red, face blank.

"Sir, on behalf of the Commander of the Survey Corps, I regret to inform you that your son Emmerich Maurer III was killed in action on the 5th of August outside the walls on expedition." The room was silent. Alex squeezed the fabric of her father's sleeve, her face morphing into one of shock and struggling to stand. She looked from the soldier to her father, whose face was held down with a grimace.

Her father, through grit teeth strained out a reply. "I… I already know." Erwin looked on the scene with a sense of pity. He was his first soldier to die under his command, and was far from the last. Clearing his throat and dropping his salute, he pulled the dried blood stained cloak off of the couch, holding out the personal article. Alex reached out for the cloak, and ran her hands over the insignia flecked with blood drops. The blue and silver of the Wings of Freedom stared back up at her as tears reached the corners of her eyes.

"There was also a letter addressed to you, sir." He pulled the envelope out from the inside of his jacket and held it out for him. The father gripped the envelope, threaded a thumb under the flap and broke the seal. He extracted two folded sheets, and handed one off to his daughter with her name scrawled on the back. The two read silently, Alex's hand moving up to her mouth and tears trickling down her cheeks. Erwin simply waited. It was rare to have many articles to return to the families, and under normal circumstances he would have been quickly dismissed, leaving the next-of-kin to their grief. His dismissal had yet to be uttered.

The father's face was the first to come up from reading, eyes still hard. It was always a difficult burden to notify the families, but Erwin could see the broken nature of his eyes. It would never amount to the pain of receiving the information. Slowly, Alex's face rose from the letter to meet Erwin's, before returning to her father. The room was still silent, cloaked in shadow from the rolling rain clouds outside.

"Thank you, for returning his affects to us." The father's voice was hardened, detached. "Alexandria… please, show our guest out." He shuffled out, posture breaking and the sound of muffled feet growing distant as he ascended a staircase back in the hall. Alex was still in shock, clamping the paper between her hands. She began to move slowly, back turned to the solder as she set the letter down beside her forgotten drink. Erwin couldn't help but look nervously between her and the hallway, debating the benefits of excusing himself and just leaving. He was anything but a coward but the detached reactions made him feel like an intruder. Taking a small step forward, he was stopped by sound of a sniffle.

"P-please allow me to show you out." She began gently, turning back to Erwin with her voice cracking under tremendous effort, all traces of cheer lost. She led him back through the entrance hall, opening the door to the outside. The rain had picked up since he first entered, and he once again brought his hood up over his head. Taking a step out threshold, he muttered a condolence. A hand shot out, gripping the trim of his cloak and stopping him from making an exit.

"Did… did you know him?" she said just loudly enough to be heard over the sound of rain smacking on cobblestone.

"I did," he began while averting his eyes downward. "He… died proudly. Of that I'm sure. Defending another member of his team." She had showed him courtesy, and it was under his command that her brother had died. Offering answers for some closure was something he could easily do.

"That's just like him." She gave a sad smile as water tricked down her face more freely, looking upwards and trying to blink them away. "Thank you, Mr. Smith." She released her hand and moved to shut the towering door. As it closed with a click, the light from the inside disappeared, leaving Erwin in the shadowed dark. The late sun was nowhere to be found and he turned back to make his leave and report back.

He tried to ignore the sobbing behind him as he stepped out into the rain.

AN: I really should be doing homework. I actually spent an hour researching how coffee was made for this, instead of writing dialectical journals. So yeah… This story idea hit me in the middle of break, and after buying Hiroyuki Sawano's amazing album Yamanaiame and listening to it for three days straight, I finally got around to writing this. I will probably work with both the Anime and Manga, plus the OVAs (I can't wait to get to Jean's episode… eventually) and A Choice With No Regrets. Please review, I'd love the chance to improve my writing skills through this. I doubt I'll be able to update regularly – Senior Year is hell. But I really do want to continue this. Thanks for reading. :)

- Miamigirl