𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 | 𝐞. 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐫

{ five } the fall of shiganshina

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"Don't tell anyone I was crying." Eren whispered to Mikasa as they made their way back to the Yeager family house, carrying firewood on their backs as Eren's mother had asked.

"I won't," She replied obediently. "But, if you don't know why you're crying, maybe you should talk to your dad about it?" She suggested, eager herself to find out what had caused his grief and stop it.

"Are you kidding me?" Eren scoffed back at her. "I can't tell my dad about that!"

"What are you crying about, Eren?" A man's voice echoed through the short tunnel the two children had just entered, cutting off their path as he stepped in front of the children.

"Hannes." Eren greeted as he recognized the adult in front of him.

Hannes was a simple Garrison soldier, with short blonde hair and hazel eyes. Though he normally stood averagely tall, today, his posture was slouched as he bent down in front of Eren and Mikasa to get a better look at them. His eyes were opened lazily, pupils dilated and cheeks flushed a rose red with a strong scent that Eren couldn't ignore.

"Is Mikasa mad at you?" Hannes questioned.

"What? Why would I be crying?" Eren quickly defended himself before shrinking away from the older man and covering his nose. "And you reek of alcohol!" He shouted at his family friend, trying his best to steer away from the embarrassing fact that he had cried over something he couldn't explain.

"Nothin' wrong with that." A small group of soldiers sat at the end of the tunnel, cards in one hand and a silver flask that was being passed around in the other. They looked as lazy as ever, which had always filled Eren with disgust and disappointment.

"Wanna join us?" Hannes asked the young boy.

"Aren't you on duty today?" Eren retorted.

"Yah, we're watching the gates today," Hannes answered casually, his words loosely connecting together in his tipsy state. "We've been here all day. Started getting hungry and thirsty. But, it's not a big deal if we happen to drink something with a little alcohol in it." The soldier defended himself and his friend's drinking habits with a slight shrug of his shoulders, a notion that caused a spike in Eren's easily triggered anger.

"But, if you're drunk, how are you gonna fight?" Eren interrogated, his face scrunched in frustration.

"Huh? When would we have to fight?" Hannes asked absentmindedly.

"Do you really have to ask?" Eren's voice raised as he tightened his hold on the straps that kept the wood secured on his back. "When they break the wall and come in!" He exclaimed.

"Ouch," Hannes muttered while clutching his head. Shouting children and drinking was never a good combination, but it seemed like Eren never failed to be upset about the most minor inconveniences. Even if they usually made little to no sense, riling him up further was always a great way to get a migraine. "Don't say things like that out loud, Eren." The blonde man groaned.

"Well, if it isn't Dr. Yeager's son. You've got spirit, kid," Another Garrison soldier - or drunkard, in Eren's opinion - stepped forward. "If they do end up breaking the wall, we'll do our jobs." The brunette man added smugly.