(Y/N) woke up early the next morning to make breakfast. Normally, she wouldn't wake up this early just to eat, but today she had to make food for another person. Hange was probably starving and (Y/N) wasn't a monster. Of course, she would feed Hange and make sure that they're alive and well...as long as they complied to what she told them to do. In no way did (Y/N) want to torture them. She was a tough person, but she wasn't a murderer—at least not of innocent people.
"What are you doing so early?" Levi raised an eyebrow from where he sat at the dining table (which was a pre-using coffee table scrouged from the dump).
"I thought I'd try a good cop-bad cop routine with Hange," (Y/N) reached for the loaf of bread, slicing off a sizable chunk. "I'll be the good cop, you be the bad cop. Maybe they won't hate me if I bring them food..."
"I think they'll hate you regardless."
"Oh, jee, thanks for the confidence," (Y/N) shot Levi a look.
"What if this doesn't work? What if Hange refuses to speak consistently? What are we going to do, (Y/N), have you thought that far ahead?"
(Y/N) stayed silent as she poured a glass of water. She hadn't thought that far ahead. Honestly, she had been hoping that Hange would have been more willing to help. Was the topic of humans suffering not enough? Perhaps the topsiders had demonized the undercity so much, that they didn't even seem human anymore.
"I'll figure something out, Levi," (Y/N) promised. "I'll get to the bottom of this. Just trust me."
Levi nodded and resumed drinking his tea. (Y/N) left the kitchen with a chunk of bread, an apple, and a glass of water. It wasn't a lot, and it certainly wasn't the nutritious breakfast that Hange might have been used to, but it was all (Y/N) had to give.
--
"Rise and shine," (Y/N) sang as she opened the door to where Hange was staying. They were awake, their eyes shooting daggers in her direction. She walked over to where they were bound, placing the tray of food in their lap. "Ready to talk?"
"What is this?" Hange frowned down at the food.
"Breakfast, of course. I assume you're hungry? It's been a couple of hours since we've taken you from your lab," (Y/N) glanced at the old clock on the wall. Six hours to be exact. Would the guards be looking for Hange yet? Hopefully, not. Perhaps they'd think that Hange was sleeping or...on a secret rendezvous. She needed at least 24 hours without the guards infiltrating the undercity—it wouldn't take long for them to figure out that this was all connected to citizens of the underground.
"Breakfast?"
"Yes, breakfast," (Y/N) said, exasperated. Why was Hange so surprised, had they never eaten an apple before? "I know it's not all fancy shmancy like the meals that you have on the topside, but it's all that we have. Suck it up, cupcake."
Hange's brows shot so far up, they disappeared under their messy locks of brown hair. "For a kidnapper, you're quite sassy. Are you always like this, or is the attitude just for your victims?"
(Y/N) huffed. "You paint me in such a negative light. You're not my victim if you cooperate with me. What will you have to lose if you just tell me the information that you have?"
"It's not about what I will lose, it's about what you will gain. What will you do with the information, hmm? This entire feat seems like a desperate grab at money and power. I will not be held responsible for that," Hange declared, glancing down at the food in their lap. "And could you possibly untie my hands? I kind of need them if I want to eat."
(Y/N) snorted, eyeing Hange's body. They were lean, but she was sure that they were strong. Due to Hange's arms being tied behind them, their muscles strained underneath their shirt. Yep, definitely strong.
"Are you checking me out right now?" Hange asked incredulously, noticing the way (Y/N)'s gaze lingered on their muscles.
"What? No!" (Y/N) cried indignantly. "I was calculating your strength, and I've come to the conclusion that it's not safe to take off your arm restraints. You shall remain tied up in the position you are in currently."
"And how am I supposed to eat, oh wise one?" Hange retorted.
(Y/N) stayed silent before she let out a long sigh. She walked over to where Hange was sitting and kneeled in front of them, tearing off a piece of the bread from the tray and holding it up to their mouth. "I'll feed you."
Hange let out a sharp laugh. "Feed me? Why not leave me here to rot? I'm pretty sure you don't care about my nutrition or health. I'm just a means to your end—"
(Y/N) shoved the bread so that it smeared against Hange's lips. Their eyes widened at her insistence, and they hesitantly opened up, letting her push the food into their mouth. She did it again and again, forcing the bread and water down Hange's throat. She held the apple to their mouth and practically shoved that down as well. When she was down, she sat back on her heels and looked up at Hange, eyes tracing their facial features.
Round wire glasses, hooked nose, intense brown eyes...they wore a simple tracksuit and an old white coat. Nothing about Hange screamed wealth, which was ironic because they were one of the richest people in the topside. The gold watch they wore wasn't even real gold, and it didn't even work properly—it was just a prop of some sort.
"It must be nice being the king's royal scientist," (Y/N) said quietly. "You get all the wealth and prestige you could wish for."
Hange looked at her suspiciously before answering. "It's a good job. I love what I do."
(Y/N) nodded. "Of course, you do. You had the privilege to follow your heart and seek out a career that you're passionate about. Not a lot of people get that opportunity. Not a lot of people in the undercity even live out to reach that milestone. You know how many kids die here?"
Hange's expression softened. "I'm very well aware of my privilege."
"I know. I was just pointing it out. Some people have died when they were so young...because of witnessing a drug transaction that they shouldn't have," (Y/N) stared down at her hands, her heart feeling heavy as she recalled Sasha and Connie's deaths. For a long time, she had debated whether she wanted to tell Hange about her truth, about the real reason why she was doing all of this. If it would help them confide in her, then she was willing to bare her soul.
"That sounds...specific," Hange said cautiously.
"I once had a family. I mean, I still kind of do...Levi is like my older brother or fatherly figure and something. And there's Jean, but I don't see much of him anymore. But I once had two more people that I loved dearly. One of them was like a sister to me. I grew up with her, I loved her dearly," (Y/N)'s voice was soft and quiet, a stark contrast to what she usually was.
"Sasha was like a burst of light. She was so active and passionate, and she loved food. Like was obsessed with it. She was crazy good at archery too. Like, I'm still in awe at how her aim was perfect every single time. One day, we were walking home from...from an event. And we managed to run into two members of the Sina guard confronting a person from the undercity."
Hange stayed silent, watching (Y/N) carefully as she continued her story.
"They exchanged a drug that I later figured out was called Shimmer. When they saw us, they chased after us and killed Sasha and Connie. They tried killing me too but didn't get the chance," (Y/N)'s breath caught as a figure of Connie's lifeless body flashed in her mind. "And a while back, I learned that the very drug that we say that day is responsible for the deaths of many others because of the horrible side effects and symptoms."
(Y/N) looked up at Hange, waiting for them to say something. Anything.
"That's...horrible. I'm sorry to hear that," Hange frowned. They hadn't expected feeling sorry for their kidnapper, yet here they were.
"This is why I want to know more about Shimmer. I want to know more about the people behind it so that I can shut the whole operation down. The guards that killed my family are closely tied to this drug and...and I also want revenge. I want to kill the bastard that killed my Sasha and Connie," (Y/N)'s soft voice turned fierce and her eyes glinted with hatred.
"You asked me about what I would gain if you told me this information," (Y/N) looked up, making sure that Hange's eyes were locked with hers. "I will get revenge, Hange. I don't care about money or power. I don't care about taking over the topside. All I want is revenge. And to stop this from happening again. I don't want to hurt anyone besides the guard that took my family. Help me, and I'll let you go and never bother you again."
Hange averted their gaze, staring at the ceiling. They let out a slow sigh, their bangs fluttering due to their breath. "You brought me here because you thought that I could help you? That I knew something about Shimmer?"
"I figured that since you're literally the smartest person—you work for the actual king—that you'd know something helpful. Something that would guide me in the right direction. I don't want to hurt you, Hange," (Y/N) whispered.
Hange swallowed, their eyes fluttering closed. They seemed to be in turmoil, as if they were debating something in their mind. After a long pause, they looked toward her. "Fine. I'll help you."