𝐑𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐒 | 𝐋.𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐍

𝟖𝟓 | 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬

The mop hair scoffs, "Yeah, you're right...." dryly chuckling. "I'm not a childhood friend of his, hell, I'm not his friend at all. But I can still tell you why he's the one standing here now. It's 'cause you two got emotional and Corporal Akira and Captain Levi did the same......you made an irrational choice. You treated that syringe like it was yours and wasted it! He's alive because you think your friends are more important than the rest of us."

My breath grew shaky with anger, hating how Floch was mistreating and breaking Armin down like it was nothing. 

Eren storms towards Floch eye to eye, "All right, I think it's time you shut your mouth," he warns the red haired soldier, but Floch's eyes darken before lowering his tone dangerously with frustration building inside.

"Eren....I bet even at your core, you're always completely certain that you're in the right," Floch continues. "That's why you wouldn't give up, you're like a little kid who won't listen to reason."

Before Eren to lash out Mikasa approaches him from behind with a gentle hand, "Eren, just leave him be, all right?"

"At least Mikasa acted like an adult out there," Floch comments, bitterness still dripping from his tone. "I saw her give up in the end....." hearing Mikasa's breath hitch, eyes slightly widen.

Before anything could get worse, Jean comes in and pushes the two away strongly but calmly.

"Geez! What the hells wrong with you two?" He growls lowly, before turning to Floch calmly. "Hey, Floch...let's not do this during a memorial for our fallen comrades."

Connies approaches them, "What's done is done, so there's no sense in dredging it up again,"

"As for you two, you might not have acted against your superiors, but you didn't try to stop Eren and Mikasa either," He accuses Jean and Connie. "You didn't do anything but watch.......Medals? For what? A memorial for who? When you guys start rebuilding the Survey Corps, you'd better tell your recruits the truth, or else you'll just end up with cowards like me in the ranks. What the hell are we supposed to do now that we've lost Erwin?! I know that I'm just titan fodder, I understand that my life is expendable, but still....I should get to call it like I see it....and to decide if this cause is worth dying for."

My patience was wearing thin by his words, despite most of it was the truth. It was his arrogance, attitude, behaviour and stepping over the line with my 104th soldiers that i trained myself, proudly.

Biting the inside of my cheek while holding my words, I could feel Levi's grip on my hip to grow tightly. 

"Floch...is right," Armin ruefully admits. "Commander Erwin's the one who should've been saved....maybe he could've turned this situation around. I can't though......"

Eren steps forth placing a hand on his comrades shoulder, "Then how can you be so sure about that?" leaving a silence to give a moment to dwell on, before he lowers his hand with a sigh, "I don't know what choice was right, so I won't pretend to. None of us know what the future might hold. I mean......we can barely imagine. Think about it, if we rode straight from Wall Maria, what would we find?"

Side glancing I noticed Armin's eyes widen, "The sea....."

"Yeah, that right....we'd find the sea," Eren nods in agreement. "A place we've only dreamed about. Water that glows like fire, fields of ice, giant rocks that take days to climbs! How can we be sure of anything, when there's so much we haven't seen yet? On the other side of the wall, freedom is--"

Eren suddenly paused for a moment, allowing Levi to step forward with me following behind.

"Alright you brats, it's time.......line up," he gestures to the line, before I give Armin a warm comforting smile to rest his worries for now. Seeing a wave of sadness in regret in his eyes, my heart felt heavy for him.