You and Erwin smith were completely different people to say the least. He was stern and reserved, remaining stoic in almost any situation presented to him but he was also hopeful and determined. You on the other hand was the more expressive and social type, not fearing to be audacious to anyone even to those of higher rank than you. The real kicker was that you two were leaders in two regiments that never got along. While Erwin commanded the Scouts, you were recently appointed as the Commander of the Military Police after Nile Dok's sudden retirement despite his young age.
Now having this new responsibility and heavy burden on your shoulders it made things harder in terms of your reputation, not only was this unexpected but the public didn't react well having a woman as the new leader. You received a lot of harsh criticism calling you inadequate and inexperienced, telling you that someone else should have been chosen but you trusted your friend's decision and took the role willingly, planning to reform the Military Police and rid it of any and all corruption.
"It's been half a year since you've been put into this role, you'll be attending your first hearing today. Have you decided what to do with the boy?" one of the officers asked, handing you the papers with Eren's file and progress report.
"I'm still a bit torn but I have made a decision, whether he goes into our custody or not will not ruin our image nor will it weaken our forces. I just hope that everyone else remembers that." you tucked the papers in between your arm so you could adjust your bolo tie properly.
With that you were escorted to the hearing venue, you were stationed at the right side of the room with some sort of fence-like area with a pole in the middle where Eren was hand-cuffed to. Across that was the Survey Corps regiment alongside Commander Pixis of the Garrison regiment, the three of you shared a look before redirecting your attention to the Commander In-Chief.
"Well, let's begin." he sat down, picking up the papers on the table and adjusting his glasses. "You are Eren Jaeger, yes? As a soldier, you've pledged your life to serve the public, correct?"
Eren moved in his spot finding a somewhat comfortable stance before answering, "Yes, sir."
"Regular law cannot apply in these exceptional circumstances. Therefore, this will be a military tribunal. Ultimate authority has been entrusted to me even over your life. Now, I will only ask you once. Do you have any objections?" Zackly looked at Eren, "No, sir!"
"I'm glad that you understand. Now, this unprecedented case has given rise to many conflicting, passionate arguments behind these walls. There are those who call you a demon that will lead us to destruction. And others who consider you a savior who will bring hope to the human race. As expected, it proved impossible to hide your existence from the general public. When we are eventually forced to make an official announcement about you, it will inevitably produce a new threat in addition to the titans. We're here to decide which branch of the military will be responsible for your activities. That decision will determine how you are dealt with."
"The Military Police Brigade, or the Survey Corps. We'll hear from the Military Police Brigade first." he gestured. You held the papers tightly, "I am (Y/N) Smith of the Military Police Brigade and we believe that Eren Jaeger's abilities should be closely monitored as we have seen how much destruction he has caused. While I believe that it wasn't completely his fault for the destruction and victims of his powers, we cannot afford for this to happen again. He needs to be held at a safer location further away from any crowded towns to avoid this. My initial proposal was to thoroughly examine his body then dispose of it afterwards but after careful consideration I have decided that it would be too inhumane. Eren Jaeger should be brought to a far and remote area to further monitor him and see the extent of his powers to see if he can be deemed useful to protect us against titans."
Minister Nick took a step forward, "That isn't necessary! He should be executed immediately!" he glared at the young boy. "Minister Nick, quiet, please. We will now hear the proposal from the Survey Corps."
"Sir. I'm Erwin Smith, the 13th Commander of the Survey Corps. We plan to induct Eren into the Corps as a full fledged member and use his titan power to take back Wall Maria. That is all." Zackly pondered for a moment, "Hm? That's all you have to say?"
Erwin stood tall, "Yes, sir. With his strength, we can recover Wall Maria. I believe our priorities are clear."
Zackly leaned in his seat, looking at Commander Pixis. "By the way, what base do you plan to use to launch expeditions outside the wall going forward? Pixis? The Trost District Wall is now completely sealed, is it not?"
Pixis nodded, "Yes, that gate will never open again."
"We wish to set out from Eastern Karanes District. We need to develop a new route to Shiganshina District completely from scratch." Erwin explained. A frenzied man raised his hand, "Hold on! Isn't it time we sealed off all the gates permanently? The Colossus Titan has only been able to destroy the gates in the walls! If we reinforced those areas, they would never be able to attack us again... do those dogs in the merchants' association really want land that badly? All you people do is blur out unrealistic ideas while plunging us further into ruin! We won't let you play at being heroes any longer!"
Leaning over you whispered to one of the officers beside you, "I need two squad members behind me ready for my orders if ever an argument breaks out. On my command you will apprehend them, am I clear?" the officer nodded walking off.
"You're full of talk, you pig. But where's your guarantee that the titans will wait patiently while we wall up the gates? When you say 'we', you're talking about my friends, who protect you while you get fat. You pigs take no notice of the people who can't eat because there isn't enough land!" Levi went on, making the man grow pale in his place. "All I said was that we'd be safe if we sealed up the gates!-"
"That's enough, insolent scoundrel!" Minister Nick yelled at the man, "Wall Rose was a gift from God. Do you mean to say human beings should lay a hand on it? How can you fools look upon that wall, that divine masterpiece beyond human knowledge, and still not comprehend?"
You placed your hands behind your back, clearing your throat. "Commander In-Chief, I would like to request for the Minister and the man to be apprehended by my men if they continue disrupting the hearing and I don't see how their presence is deemed as needed as this issue is purely between the Military forces."
Zackly waved his hand, "You are permitted to do so, Commander. Let's move on." after receiving that permission you could see the men become silent and still, knowing that they were just threatened. "Eren, I have a question for you."
The boy looked up, "Sir."
"It seems you wish to join the Survey Corps but can you continue as a soldier and use this titan power for the benefit of the human race?" asked Zackly, you could see Eren think for a second to have a sure answer. "Yes, sir. I can!"
"Is that so? This is from the report on the recovery mission. Right after becoming a titan... you swung your fist three times at Mikasa Ackerman. Where is Mikasa Ackerman?" a black-haired girl spoke, "That's me, sir."
"So you're Mikasa? Is it true that Eren attacked you?" Rico whispered something to Mikasa. making her furrow her eyesbrows. "Yes, It's true. Two times before that... Eren saved my life in his titan form. The first time, a titan was about to eat me. He stood against it and protected me. The second time, he shielded Armin and me from and explosive shell. I believe these facts should be considered as well."
You let out a sigh, "As much as that information would be valuable to his case, I was able to pull up some information regarding Eren's background. A record of an incident six years ago states that when these two were only nine years old they stabbed three adult robbers to death. While it is justifiable as legitimate self-defense it still raises doubts as to Eren's basic humanity. It is hard to imagine a child such as young as he was to be capable of stabbing grown men to death, shouldn't this be explanation enough that he needs to be distanced from everyone else?"
Murmurs went through the audience, "That's right! He must be a titan that took the form of a child to infiltrate our society!" a man said, "But in the end, he couldn't hide his violent nature!" said another. "Is this any time to be having a leisurely debate? He's right in front of us, like a powder keg that could explode any minute! Those shackles mean nothing!" Someone pointed at Mikasa, "That on, too! How do we know she's human? Just in case, we should have them both be brought away!"
"You're wrong. I may be a monster but Mikasa has nothing to do with it. She's not involved. And what's more... everyone's just saying whatever speculation happens to be convenient to them! But once you've cut yourselves off from all reality it's all pointless! In the first place, you people have never ever seen a titan, so what are you so afraid of?" Eren grit his teeth, "What can we do when the people who have power don't fight? If you're afraid of fighting for your own lives, then please help me! You cowards... Just shut your mouths and invest everything in me!" he let out a yell causing everyone to grow silent in fear.
An officer readied his gun but you raised your hand in front of him to stop him, "Don't. Stand down." doing that you got nasty looks that you knew meant they assumed you sided with Eren. But the real reason was because you saw Levi walk over, hopping over the fence and kicking Eren in the face.
As Levi continued kicking Eren, a blond boy held Mikasa back and everyone watched. "This is just my opinion, but I've always found pain the most effective punishment." Levi said, his foot on Eren's head. "The lesson you need to learn right now can't be taught with words, only with action. And you're kneeling, which makes you easy to kick."
"Captain Levi, I think that's enough. He may be a titan but he's also a child." you interrupted. "He apparently killed 20 titans when he was a titan himself, stopping only out of exhaustion. The fact that he has intelligence could make him a formidable enemy. But he's not my enemy, is he yours? You just want to take him away to some hidden place forever. Everyone who's persecuted him should think carefully, too. I wonder... could you really kill him?"
You bit the insides of your cheek, tapping your right finger on your leg. He had a point, your plan was to just cage him somewhere else until he eventually died because you didn't know what to do. Dissecting him would be too inhumane and you didn't have anyone experienced enough to do so, you would have to accept defeat and hand him over to the Survey Corps.
"Commander In-Chief, I have a proposal. There are many unknown elements behind Eren's titan power. Danger will always be lurking beneath the surface. Therefore, in the event that you decide to put him under our control I would pair him up with Captain Levi as a failsafe. Someone as skilled as the captain would be able to deal with Eren even in a worst-case scenario." Erwin suggested, "I see. Can you do it, Levi?"
Levi looked at Zackly blankly, "If you mean killing him, it's no problem. Rather, the problem is there would be no half-measures." The Commander nodded, "I see we have exhausted this line of inquiry. I will now make my decision."
You raised your hand, "Hold on. Commander Erwin, I want to ask you... what will you do about the interior?" he looked at you stoically in return. "I'm quite aware that our activities outside the wall depend on the stability of the human race. I don't take the problems of the interior lightly. So let me propose that to calm the public, we'll prove that Eren is a valuable asset to humanity in our next expedition beyond the wall. I would like to decide his future based on those results."
Zackly nodded. "I see, so you're going outside the wall. Then it's settled. Eren Jaeger is placed in the care of the Survey Corps. However, he may return here, depending on his accomplishments." With that everyone dispersed, you already told the officers to go on ahead and leave a carriage behind as you decided to stay a bit longer. Once the place was empty enough you walked the halls looking for the room that the Scouts were temporarily staying in for the time being, and soon enough you found it after hearing their voices through the door.
Bringing your hand up to the door you gave it a few light knocks and not long after that Mike opened the door, looking down at you. "Hello Squad Leader, may I enter?" you gave him a polite smile to which he nodded and let you enter, closing the door behind you. There you saw Levi and Eren seated on the sofa, Hanji kneeled down looking into Eren's mouth who was open and Erwin crouching down slightly. "It's growing back..." Hanji said.
"What's growing back?" you asked, catching them by surprise as they looked over. Walking towards them you crouched down to get a better look, and there you saw Eren's tooth growing back quickly not even an hour after it was kicked out from his mouth. You gasped in surprise seeing how even his injuries don't last long, "Amazing, really like a titan. But it seems that Levi really did pack a harsh kick."
"What brings you here, (Y/N)?" Erwin asked, placing his hand on your shoulder. "Ah yes sorry! I just wanted to chat for a bit and apologise to Eren. I really am sorry for bringing up the report on the incident from 6 years ago, I do hope you don't hate me for it. If I'm being honest I'm actually glad you're in the Survey Corps' custody. If you did end up in my hands I'm afraid my men would not be able to handle it as they're just lazy pigs who drink all day, my plans to reform the Military Police are still a work in progress." you let out a laugh.
"We never got to formally meet other than earlier so," you held your hand out which the young boy shook, "I am (Y/N) Smith, I do hope we can rely on you. Erwin here has been telling me all about you since last night, he's quite eager to have you join the Scouts."
Eren had a confused look, he swore that he thought the Military Police and Scouts never got along well but now their Commanders were in the same room chatting so casually? He thought he was hallucinating for a second until Levi smirked, "The kid's confused."
"I thought the last names were self-explanatory? As ironic as it is given our line of work, she is indeed my spouse." Erwin explained, "Although not a lot of people usually believe me when I say that..." that statement made you giggle and you leant on his shoulder. "I wouldn't think about it too much."