Hunger carves a whole new world into Eren's eyes. It is not so hard to sympathize with the monsters outside, dragging their feet and rotting their insides. They're just so hungry. The boy cradles his stomach as he drags into a fetal position, struggles to breathe. He can understand someone who's just looking for his next meal, but why, why did it have to be them?

I wish they'd all die, Eren thinks, and ignores the tiny whisper in his ear, like a devilish lullaby: Oh, honey, but they already are.

He hopes Mother is doing better than him. Mikasa too. He didn't have time to go back and find them before he rushed into the tree house, pulling up the ladder behind him. He knows Father is fine, he left for the hospital down state months ago. Although, he hasn't been back to help so Eren supposes he doesn't know a lot of things.

A few days before, Eren was stashing little snacks and such into the tree house. He was planning to sleep out here again, there was something comforting about the fresh air and the stars planted in the sky when he looked out. Mikasa was insistent on joining him. The boy opens his eyes sluggishly.

The air doesn't taste so good anymore.

He just wants to go home. It's right outside, waiting for him, but so are other things, and it takes centuries for courage to grow. Eren is not a coward, never will be, but he is not stupid, although sometimes he wishes he was. Just to get it over with.

There is a boy in a tree house and he is dying.

Eren starts when he hears it. Footsteps, drawing nearer to the fence bordering the backyard. Too fast, too coordinated to be anything dead. The boy drags himself over to look out the window just in time to see a dark haired man jump over the fence gracefully, land on his feet. Eren ducks his head immediately, eyes wide.

The man is definitely human. The thought makes Eren want to jump out of the tree house, wave his hands and cry. But, but, not all humans are saints and to survive this long, it takes more than intelligence. It takes murder. Eren takes a deep breath, peeks outside again. He catches a flash of dark hair closing the sliding door behind him.

It takes Eren twelve seconds to follow and three to regret it.

When he gets down from the ladder, he notices the walkers outside the wooden fence, banging against it with their heads, slamming their arms through the holes. Eren swallows nervously, rushes to the sliding glass door. Peeks inside. No one. He goes in. The kitchen is to the right of him and it'll only take a few seconds to snatch some food and get back in the tree house. The man wouldn't notice.

He moves to do so when he steps on something wet. And red. Stumbles back. Blood, streaked over the floor like something had dragged it across.

"No," Eren chants, "no, no, no."

There's a scuffling sound from upstairs, a muffled curse. Eren closes his eyes, counts to ten, before moving. He's still weak but he can do something, he thinks as he stumbles up the stairs. The sound is coming from his room. The boy notices the abandoned sword at the foot of the doorway immediately, hesitates before reaching to grab it. Looks in.

One, two, three, and Eren rushes forward, arching downwards with the sword. It gets stuck in the neck, and the thing looks back towards him.

One, two, three, and Eren is stumbling back, and the walker crawls after him.

One, two, three, and the man gets up from where he was being crushed by the walker, brushes himself off, reaches for the sword stuck in the thing's neck. Jerks it to the side. The boy hears an audible crack and blood dusts across his face. The man puts his foot on the back of the thing's shoulder, pushes down to get his sword out. He examines it with a disgusted face.

"Filthy," the man mutters, slants a look to the collapsed walker at his feet, then the shivering boy. Eren is staring at the corpse with wide eyes, shaking, breathing erratic.

"Oi," the man speaks up as Eren starts to cry, "never seen a kill before, have you. Were you the one cowering in the tree house?"

Eren ignores him and the man scowls, "Don't ignore adults, you shitty brat."

Eren bows over, like death has gripped him by the heart and squeezed, one hand reaching for the mangled sorry excuse of a hand on the corpse.

"Mother," he chokes, and the man stills.

He helps Eren bury her.

Eren almost chokes on the stale bread, but hunger adds a savory taste to every dish and he does not complain. The man watches him while he wipes his blade clean with a towel. The man had asked about the rest of his family, and Eren had answered honestly. Mikasa is missing, but she is strong, he's sure she's out there somewhere (as what, is the question), and his Father is down state. The man's name is Rivaille and he's a hunter or something. Eren wasn't really paying attention.

"I'm heading down state," Rivaille speaks up as Eren munches, "You can come, if you want. We'll probably see that hospital you're talking about."

Eren pauses, shoves the rest of the bread in his mouth as Rivaille grimaces. "What if they come back?"

Rivaille shrugs, "Then stay. It doesn't matter to me."

The boy looks down, frowning. Rivaille sighs, walks over to Eren and kneels down.

"I'll take care of you," Rivaille says, "Whatever happens, I'll take care of it."

Eren grabs the man's hand suddenly, eyes wide, "I don't need to be taken care of. I need you to find my family and take care of them, please, please. You're a hunter right? You guys are strong. Find them and don't let them become anything else but my family."

"Please," Eren begs, buries his face in Rivaille's legs, "Please, they're still alive, I know. You will save them-"

Rivaille puts his hand on Eren's head.

"I will take care of you," he corrects, and promises nothing else.