"The ground is rumbling, rumbling, rumbling, rumbling," Valeria Tepes babbled. "He's coming. He's coming. They're burning. They're dying. It's the end of the world. Flat flat flat. Burned and crushed and smushed and smashed till the whole world is flat. I can feel the rumbling. It hurts. It hurts."
"Valerie," Gasper whispered, eyes wide in fear and panic as he held the blonde's hands tightly.
"What is wrong with her," Rias demanded, looking around the room to find the cause of her Bishop's distress.
Akeno didn't have those answers, but she turned her attention from the rambling young woman to the other intruders in the Hyoudou Residence.
Team Vali had shown up in the middle of the night at their doorstep and the Gremory Group had prepared for battle.
Only to be surprised to find they came in peace, with two... guests.
One was the dhampir girl laid out on the couch, staring at the ceiling with vacant eyes and mumbling semi-coherently.
The other was the second strongest being in existence... the little girl dressed like a gothic Lolita poking Issei in the arm.
"Ddraig," Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon, commanded in her deadpan voice. "Turn into a wall. Help Eren beat up Baka Red."
Issei looked decidedly uncomfortable, looking around for rescue from the tiny terror.
Weirdly enough, despite having the power to vaporize the planet with a thought, the little girl was being ignored by the entirety of Vali's team as they looked at the blonde woman on the couch with grim faces.
"Valeria Tepes is the current possessor of the Sephirot Grail," Vali introduced with a nod toward the girl. "Specifically, she has a subspecies Balance Breaker that gave her three Grails. Two of which were extracted by the Hero Faction."
Everyone sucked in a breath.
Unlike the other eleven Longinus, the Sephirot Grail was a support Gear, similar to Asia's Twilight Healing.
As one of the two holy artifacts, it was quite plainly capable of performing miracles: healing, bringing the dead back to life, removing racial weaknesses, like devils' aversion to Light, and even manipulating the soul.
What it lacked in direct combat power, it made up for in utility, making it one of the most desired Longinus for almost any faction, devils included.
Any Balance Breaker was inherently powerful, but a subspecies producing three Grails instead of just one was positively broken, even by Longinus standards.
It was Koneko who asked the question, though.
"... How is she still alive?"
"The Hero Faction healed her," Bikou, the descendant of Sun Wukon, nodded toward where Arthur and Le Fay Pendragon stood.
Right beside them was a miniature golem and a MUCH smaller form of Fenrir. The mythical wolf was currently napping while a few familiars, like Rassei the Spirit Dragon, sniffed it curiously.
Akeno really wanted Yuuto to get back with Mikasa and Azazel as soon as possible. Even with the entirety of the Occult Research here, they were severely outgunned if it came to a fight.
"The Tepes faction was using her to remove their weaknesses," Arthur explained. "Thanks to her, they were winning the civil war against the Carmilla faction. Once they had an extractor they could use, the Hero Faction attacked the vampires, killed all their leaders, and took her. We helped."
"You did this to her," Gasper accused, far angrier than Akeno had ever seen him.
"Hey, hey, she came willingly," Bikou shook his head, holding up his hands defensively. "Cao Cao promised to reunite her with you when we were done with what we needed, and since the vamps weren't exactly treating her great, she decided to trust us."
"It's true," Le Fay nodded eagerly. "I was there for the extraction. After we removed two of the grails, she went into a coma, but we were able to heal her with the power of one of them. She's been a bit weak and confused since then, but the Hero Faction was treating her really well. I checked on her occasionally to make sure since they don't really like other races. They would give them back once they were done with the Grail."
"Then how did this happen," Akeno asked, pointing to the young woman whose head had fallen to the side. She was facing Gasper without seeing him, and drool fell from her open mouth.
Asia, who had unsuccessfully tried to heal the woman, looked near to tears.
Akeno had never met the comatose dhampir, but Gasper cared about her, so the whole Gremory Group cared.
"A few days ago," Vali explained as he leaned against the wall. "Georg, the vice leader of the Hero Faction, dropped her off with us. They said they couldn't care for her now that Eren was back. She was already like this by then. We've been caring for her, trying to discover why she's like... this."
"Val's Gear lets her see things we can't," Le Fay explained, looking genuinely distressed at the sight of the dhampir's empty eyes. "The dead. The nature of the world. Even hints of the future, though that is more about the dead whispering secret plans of others than actual foresight. We were working together on a spell that would let her control her power better because it could be overwhelming at times. But never like this."
"So you brought her here?" Rias asked.
"Only three things are consistent in her ramblings," Vali said plainly. "The end of the world. The dead. And Eren. Eren won't meet us. So we came to find Kuroka since she knows him best. Before we help with his plan, we need to know if he's planning on betraying us."
"You think she learned something of Eren's plan, and he did something to her," Akeno guessed with a frown.
Vali just shrugged.
"Then what about her?" Rias asked, nodding toward the Goth Loli, who had decided that poking Issei wasn't enough and had graduated to holding his left arm out and speaking to it directly.
Ophis, in her current form as a little girl, was much shorter than Issei. While she was holding his arm and speaking into the wrist, Issei was forced to bend down at an awkward angle to maintain his balance.
Though Xenoiva had tried to aid him, no matter how much they struggled, they could not pry his arm from the Dragon God's tiny hands.
"We've been Ophis' babysitters for years. Eren's plan is counting on Ophis," Vali shrugged again. "Until we know what set Valerie off, I decided it was best we keep her out of his reach."
"You kidnapped the Orouboros Dragon!?" Rossweiss hissed in disbelief.
"I, wanted to see Ddraig," Ophis said simply. "New power. Strong. Useful against Baka Red."
"We watched your Rating Game match against the Bael," Le Fay told Issei excitedly, practically buzzing with awe. "You were so cool!"
"Erm, thanks," Issei said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with his free arm in embarrassment.
"Ophis only listens to Eren and sometimes Kuroka," Arthur elaborated. "We couldn't control her if we wanted to. But she saw the Crimson World Wall and wanted to recruit Issei. We took the opportunity to... convince her to spend some time trying. She's technically not supposed to leave the base."
"I, snuck out," Ophis said proudly. "I, will convince Ddraig. Watch."
Ophis then reached into a small portal and, almost reverently, pulled out a small bag.
A plastic bag filled with cookies.
With great reluctance, almost as if parting with her treasure, Ophis held one of the cookies to Issei's mouth.
"Eat."
Issei looked around wildly, fearing some sort of trap or poison in the cookies.
Most just watched, entirely baffled by the turn of events, yet unable to stop the second most powerful being in existence.
Except for Vali's team. They just looked at Issei in... jealousy?
Akeno watched in confusion as Issei took a tentative bite of the offered cookie.
Issei's eyes widened, and tears started to stream from his eyes.
"Ise!" Asia cried, lunging at her boyfriend. Her hands glowed green as she held them to his head to try and fix whatever had just happened.
"Shou... Gud!" Issei cried through a mouthful of cookie.
"I, give cookie if Ddraig helps Eren," Ophis said, quickly stashing the rest of the cookies back in the portal. "One now. One after we beat Baka Red."
Akeno liked to think she had a considerable tolerance for the absurdity the world threw at her. She was usually more likely to roll with the punches as they came along, using what she could to tease others and have a good time.
But even she had her limits.
Watching the Orouboros Dragon promise the Red Dragon Emperor a cookie if he helped kill Great Red, while a dhampir prophesied the end of the world from the couch, was well over that limit.
"What."
That was all Akeno could say, unable to formulate even the basics of thought.
"Those cookies are... how Eren controls Ophis for the most part," Vali said with a grimace.
"What." Rias repeated her Queen's word/question/denial of reality.
"What happens when the greatest sage the world has ever seen uses Senjutsu to grow every single ingredient and then bakes the perfect cookie?" Bikou's smile was also slightly pained but also filled with a deep yearning. "It becomes something not even a Dragon God can ignore... or at least Ophis. She has a sweet tooth."
"Eren... can cook?"
Somehow, that was the thing that stood out most to Akeno.
Maybe she was just trying to keep her sanity.
"Not really," Arthur said with a shrug. "Cookies are the only thing he actually practiced, and even then, he just cheats with his power. Everything else he cooks is just decent."
"We were his test subjects when we were younger," Le Fay said, watching Issei savour the last bit of the cookie with jealousy. "I haven't had one of his cookies in years. When he left, he secretly gave enough to Ophis to last until he returned, but she won't share."
"My, cookies."
"Apart from cookies, he can cook decently," Bikou shrugged. "He's really good at keeping things clean and organized, though. When we were training with him, he made sure there wasn't a speck of dust anywhere in the house."
"Eren... cleans?" Rias asked in wonder.
"Eren's housewife power is uselessly high," Le Fay nodded seriously. "Or did you think Kuroka was the one who kept things in order in that relationship?"
She was dreaming, Akeno rationalized. She had to be dreaming.
Or the world had gone completely mad, and the leader of the Chaos Brigade was secretly a housewife, and they treated their pillar of support, the entity around which they had based the entire organization, like some sort of pet... or mascot.
"Senpai," Issei cried, holding his fist dramatically in the air. "You could have made these? I'll never forgive you!"
Definitely dreaming.
"He also used bananas to bribe her," Vali said, seeming to enjoy his 'rival's' despair. "Baring sweets, they're her favourite food. They don't last well, even Senjutsu bananas. But they are amazing."
"I, want a banana," Ophis seemed to mutter to herself. Then her eyes widened, and she put a tiny fist into a tiny palm. "Eren is back. He can give me more bananas."
"Shit!" Bikou swore as a black portal appeared in the living room.
"Ophis!" Vali hurried to say before the tiny girl could step through. "Food or silence?"
Ophis froze mid-stride through the portal.
She looked at Vali, head tilted, and Akeno could almost imagine the '?' above her head.
"Food? Or silence?" Ophis muttered to herself, seeming to struggle with this, the greatest conundrum of her life.
The portal remained there, but Ophis was too lost in thought to pay attention to it as Vali used his Sacred Gear to Divide it into nothing.
"She can take us to Eren," Rias said with narrowed eyes.
"Sure," Bikou said genially. "If you want to die. We're not really suicidal, though, so we'll stay here."
"We can't really control Ophis," Arthur shrugged. "We are just distracting her. To keep her from him for any length of time, we need Kuroka."
"Nyaa? Someone call me?" Kuroka called as she sauntered into the room. She didn't look surprised at the new guests as she casually raised a hand to wave at them. "Hey guys."
"Kuroka," Le Fay greeted excitedly. "How are you doing? They haven't tortured you for information yet, have they?"
"Nyahahahaha," Kuroka laughed easily, ruffling the younger girl's hair. "I'd like to see them try."
"Why are you not with Aunty," Rias asked suspiciously.
"Mikasa is with her King and niece, so I am keeping an eye on her," Azazel said affably as he also joined them. "We were having a drink and a round of Mario Cart together when she sensed our guests. Since nobody was screaming, we finished our game."
With the arrival of the leader of the fallen angels, a new tension filled the room.
Vali looked at the man he had betrayed, and Azazel met the eyes of the son who had betrayed him.
Then, as one, both looked away.
"Well," Azazel cleared his throat and gave Ophis as winning a smile as he could. "I must say, I like this new form much better than your last. The 'Overpowered Old Man' trope is overused, and little girls are much creepier.
Ophis ignored him, still lost in a mental debate over whether the silence of absolute nonexistence was worth giving up her favourite foods.
"Nyahahahaha," Kuroka laughed at the fallen. "Talking about little girls. You can be pretty creepy yourself, Azazel. Stay away from Shirone, or we're going to have problems."
"She's older than this planet," Azazel rolled his eyes playfully, more than willing to trade bants with the cat. "Besides, didn't you run away with a nine-year-old?"
All eyes fell on Kuroka as they realized that, yes, she had fallen in love with someone much younger than her.
"Hey!" Kuroka said defensively under everyone's accusing eyes. Particularly Koneko's. "We didn't get together till he was much older. Besides, Eren reincarnated, so he was twenty-eight, not nine. I'm the victim here. I was young. Naive. Fell for an older man's charm. Who can blame me?"
"In a younger man's body," Azazel needled.
"Ehem," Kuroka fake coughed and clearly tried to change the subject. "So... Vali. Why are you guys here?"
Vali just gestured to the girl lying on the couch, who had been mumbling this entire time.
"Those devils. They did it. The Rumbling. Rumbling. Rumbling. We should have killed them. Elidans should die. DIE!diediedie. Exterminate them all. Whywhywhywhywhywhy. Mom. I don't want to die. I don't want to die. He's coming. Kill them all. The ground is shaking. The sea is boiling. Run runrunrunrun. You can't outrun the walls. We're all going to die."
While Azazel spent a few moments examining Valerie with spells and tools, and Le Fay explained her situation to the world's foremost expert on Sacred Gears, Kuroka froze as soon as she heard the word 'Rumbling.'
Everyone in the park when Mikasa confronted her had also heard the term from the Pawn, but nobody had any context.
Except for Koneko, who had been entirely silent this entire time, sitting in one of the chairs and staring straight at the dhampir.
"This isn't Valerie," Azazel eventually said, standing up. "Valerie is unconscious. The destabilization from the initial extraction of two-thirds of her Gear should have left her completely comatose. That the Hero Faction managed to wake her up is almost a miracle. After that, I imagine she was kept in a pocket dimension of some sort? Maybe in the Gap? Or one of Dimension Lost's creations?"
"Georg makes the pocket worlds they hide in," Arthur nodded.
"She was essentially cut off from the world, which is a significant source of the Grail's connection to the old man's System," Azazel explained. "That's the only reason she could last as long as she did. Then something happened that overwhelmed her, and she went right back into that coma. Only now, her Gear is self-driving itself, not unlike what Regulus Nemea can do. Too many of the dead are trying to work through her to accomplish anything but... this."
"Is there any way to fix her," Gasper asked hopefully. He had retreated to his box but had placed it beside the couch so his hand could poke out and hold Valerie's.
"Get her back her Gear," Azazel said simply. "That should fix the root cause of the issue. One of the Grails would help get her on her feet, but she really should have the full Gear, subspecies or not."
"And if we do that, she can tell us what she saw?" Vali asked as he drummed his fingers in thought.
"You really should have listened to me when I taught you about Sacred Gears," Azazel lectured his wayward ward. "The only thing she could have seen was the dead... Or their imprints, at least. That is how the Grail works as a Gear. It is a direct connection to the old man's System. Its main ability is the Miracles the System can generate, but because it connects to it, it can also see the imprints of the dead. Not their actual souls, the Old Man wouldn't have created something like that, but rather their impression of the world. So Valerie saw something, conveyed through those imprints, that overwhelmed her."
"It's Karmic threads, not actual souls," Bikou said with a snap of his fingers. "That's what was bugging me. She saw Hades and didn't have anywhere near this reaction, and he's surrounded by the dead."
Akeno tuned out the conversation, slid up next to her King, and whispered in her ear.
"Do you know what's taking Yuuto so long?"
"I sent him to get Aunty at Sona's house," Rias whispered back. "If they were with Lady Leviathan, they might be in the Underworld. If he can't find them there, he should be back soon. I'll send a message to my family to pass it along to Aunty."
"...Don't let Aunty know," Koneko said quietly, having also approached and tugged on Rias' sleeve.
Akeno looked at the smaller girl in surprise, but Koneko was looking toward her older sister.
Kuroka had not taken her eyes off Valerie since first hearing her babbling.
"Why not," Rias asked her Rook gently. "She is the only one who knows whatever the Rumbling is. Maybe this is a clue to finding and stopping Eren."
"Rumbling... Bad for Aunty," Koneko shook her head. "She doesn't want to talk about it."
"We know that, Koneko," Akeno lowered herself to eye level with the younger girl. "But it's clearly important. We need to know if it has something to do with Eren's plan."
"Us, yes," Koneko nodded, gesturing toward Vali's team with her chin. "Them... no. She tells us, we tell them. I don't want to hurt Aunty."
Akeno could understand that point. Mikasa clearly didn't want to talk about it, and forcing her to do so to a bunch of strangers would not go well. Still...
"Do you know what 'The Rumbling' is," Akeno asked quietly.
It wasn't unlike Koneko to care for someone and leave them alone if they didn't want to be interrogated, but she rarely spoke up with a plan, usually content to go along with others.
"Overheard Aunty talking with Nee-san," Koneko whispered back with a jerk of her head towards Kuroka. "The Rumbling... It's how Eren died."
Both Rias and Akeno took in a sharp breath.
Eren had died in his world. They had all known it. But nobody had asked either Eren or Mikasa about it for obvious reasons. Nobody would want to talk about their own death, after all.
But there were hints that it hadn't been because of his disease.
Akeno remembered that small gathering on the bench over half a year ago to celebrate a year with Eren and Koneko's high school debut.
Four years. Eren had said he wanted four years with the woman he loved. Knowing what they did now, they could guess he was talking about Mikasa.
But he hadn't gotten it.
Instead, he left to start a plan that pitted him against his friends.
Instead of leading to his exile to the other side of the world from his mercenary group, they now knew he had been talking about his own death.
"...I'll try and get Sona alone," Rias eventually said, crafting the spell through her familiar to send to the Underworld.
In the end, it didn't matter.
Only a minute later, Yuuto teleported into the living room.
He was accompanied by both Sona Sitri, Mikasa Ackerman, and Serafall Leviathan.
"Halt evil-doers!" The Satan said as she appeared in a twinkling of stars to level her pink wand at Vali's face. "Miracle Girl Levi-tan is here to stop your dastardly schemes!"
The light show that accompanied her was, unironically, a marvellous feat of magical control, seeing as it only targeted her despite using the same teleportation circle as the other three.
Vali grinned as the wings of Divine Dividing burst from his back.
A shame he wouldn't get the fight he wanted.
"Levi-tan!" Le Fay cheered as she dashed toward the Satan. "Can I have an autograph?"
"A fan!" Serafall gasped joyfully, pulling a marker from between her breasts to quickly sign to the Miracle Girl Levi-tan collector edition.
(Seasons 1 through 13, with bonus scenes and a collectible wand that could shoot tiny ice blasts. Get yours now and enter a contest to tour the studio and meet Serafall Leviathan, Miracle Girl Levi-tan!)
Serafall looked at Vali again, re-evaluating him. "I guess you can't all be evil. Very well, I shall not erase you!"
Vali, if anything, looked disappointed.
"And is it true there is a special crossover show with Oppai Dragon coming?" Le Fay asked eagerly as she stowed her show away in a magical pocket.
Unlike her King, Mikasa was less able to roll with the punches. When she heard the White Dragon Emperor team had shown up at the Hyoudou residence, she had come ready for a fight.
While Serafall took up the spotlight, Mikasa quickly placed herself between Rias, Koneko, Akeno and the rest of the room.
She had done it so smoothly and quickly while subtly carrying Sona that Akeno wondered if she and Leviathan had planned this ahead of time or if they were just in sync.
"What's the situation," Sona asked quietly while her aunt surveyed the room.
"They aren't hostile so far," Rias whispered back. "They want information from Kuroka. About Eren."
"What about Eren?" Mikasa asked out of the side of her mouth as she judged how best to defend both the children behind her and reach Issei, Xenovia, Asia, and Irina on the other side of the room.
It didn't help that Rossweiss had been pulled into a discussion with Azazel and Bikou about the various afterlives and whether a Karmic imprint actually counted as a soul, or part of one, or was just an echo of what a person once was, or an echo of an 'event,' rather than a person.
"It doesn't matter," Kuroka said, hurrying to their side. She glared at Mikasa. "You need to leave. Now."
Mikasa narrowed her eyes, completely unwilling to budge.
"Let Leviathan protect them," Kuroka hissed. "Or don't you trust your King?"
"Why?"
"Aunty," Koneko said, looking up at the woman pleadingly. "Please-"
Valerie, who had been mumbling about running and dying, returned to what seemed to be the chorus of her ramblings.
"Rumbling rumbling rumbling. The ground's shaking. He's coming."
Mikasa whipped her eyes from Koneko's pleading gaze to the young woman lying on the couch behind them. The former soldier had noted her before but judged her not to be an immediate threat based on Gasper's close proximity and her state of weakness.
Now, Mikasa stepped around Akeno to get a better look at the blonde dhampir.
The movement drew the eyes of the insensate woman, who had been staring at where Gasper's hand grasped hers.
Valerie Tepes locked eyes with Mikasa Ackerman.
And screamed.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
The enormous living room of the Hyoudou residence exploded into motion as everyone readied themselves for a fight at the sudden outburst of sound.
Except for Ophis. She was still lost in thought.
Right away, the factions formed.
In one corner, Vali's team had bunched up with Vali, Arthur, and a growling Fenrir facing the room, while Bikou stayed next to Le Fay behind them, and Gogmagog was behind them.
Rossweiss erected a magical sigil in another corner to defend Issei, Asia, Xenovia, Irina, and Ravel while Azazel held a light spear. Though the Governor of the fallen kept his easy smile, his eyes were sharp.
Despite the amicable talks and jokes, it was clear that nobody had forgotten that they were still enemies.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, those closest to the screaming dhampir were the least affected. They still tensed at the suddenness of the sound, and Serafall Leviathan was suddenly right between her Pawn and sister, but they had seen the cause and were more aware that there hadn't actually been an attack.
It didn't mean they were calm, though.
"He's here he's here he's here," Valerie screamed in a panic as she threw herself over the couch and away from Mikasa. "It's the Attack Titan! Run run. He's going to kill us all! It's the Rumbling! Those devils did -"
Valerie froze, mouth wide, in a scream that wouldn't leave her lips and eyes filled with fear.
Gasper had activated his Sacred Gear, Forbidden Balor View, to freeze his childhood friend in time.
But no eyes were on him.
All eyes were on Mikasa, who looked at the frozen woman with narrowed eyes.
"Who is she?" Mikasa asked, a sword having appeared in her hand with the dhampir's scream.
Akeno was not dumb. She could put two and two together.
She refused to.
"Valerie Tepes." Azazel was the one who answered, while everyone else looked at Mikasa with despair, hostility, or confusion. "She's this generation's holder of the Sephiroth Grail."
No, Akeno refused to acknowledge what her mind was telling her was the truth.
It couldn't be right.
That was... too cruel.
"And?" Mikasa asked, looking around the room. Her eyes flitted over Sona's, who looked horrified, and Serafall's, who looked near tears, before settling on Vali's.
Even for Eren...
Even for Mikasa...
Akeno couldn't, wouldn't, believe it.
"She can see the dead," Vali said with a glare. Mikasa froze. "We think seeing Eren did this to her. So why did she react like that to you?"
Akeno could see the moment Mikasa shut down.
She didn't faint, but every outward display of emotion ceased as she went rigid, and her face froze over into that wall of emptiness.
She looked like Eren had when they first met.
"Wait," Issei suddenly said, looking around the room in confusion. "You think Ackerman-sensei killed Eren? No way. They-"
"I did."
Issei's words died on his lips.
"I killed him," Mikasa said woodenly, her eyes landing on Kuroka.
The Black Cat bit her lip but didn't look surprised.
"Aunty..." Sona said softly, but Mikasa continued, almost as if she couldn't stop herself.
"We all fought him, but I was the one that cut off his head. And I'll do it again. If you are on his side, you are an enemy. If you get in my way, I will kill you too."
"I want to see you try!" Vali said with gritted teeth, stepping forward.
"Remember where you are, White Dragon Emperor," Serafall said with an icy gaze, all playfulness was gone from the Satan.
Though she was still dressed as a Magical Girl, everyone felt the temperature drop precipitously in the room.
"...Why?" Akeno asked, unable to stop herself even when it looked like a fight would break out. "Why did you do it?"
It was too cruel to Eren. It was too cruel to Mikasa.
"It was the only way to stop The Rumbling."
Mikasa said it so easily, so simply, that Akeno snapped.
"What is The Rumbling!?"
What was so bad that forced Mikasa to do... that to both Eren and herself?
"It was Eren's plan," Kuroka said, not taking her eyes off Mikasa. "A coordinated attack on all the other nations of the world with the Yeagersists, wasn't it? A way to ensure a war between Eldia and everyone else like he's doing with the Brigade."
"It was his revenge, wasn't it," Yuuto asked sadly. "And he didn't care who got in the way. Except for you. He planned to get his revenge and still have you fight him so you wouldn't be implicated, right?"
Mikasa looked at the Knight, the faintest hint of surprise showing through the mask of emptiness.
"You are right and wrong. It was Eren's plan, but I chose to fight him. I chose to kill him. My choice and my sin. That is why I will do it again."
"Why," Rias pleaded. "Why kill him? If you could kill him, you could have captured him, right? Eren loves you. You love him. Why couldn't you save him? Why couldn't you be happy?"
"Eren..." Mikasa trailed off, clearly unsure of what to say.
Sona stepped forward.
Like everyone else, Sona was shocked and appaled by the events and revelations, but she was the closest to both Eren and Mikasa.
Sona had the key to this.
So she stepped forward, bracing herself for what was to come.
"Aunty," Sona said, her eyes firmly meeting Mikasa's. "You promised Eren to tell me when I asked about your world. This is me asking. Tell us. I am ready."
Mikasa seemed to search her eyes for a long moment, and the room held its breath.
Sona did not back down.
Mikasa was the one who looked away first.
"It will change how you think of Eren," Mikasa said softly, not looking at anyone in particular. "Can't you let me deal with this? I want your memories with him to be happy ones."
"That wouldn't be fair to you," Sona denied vehemently. "That wouldn't be fair to Eren."
"So-tan," Serafall stepped forward to place a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Focus on your dream. Let us deal with this. We're strong."
"So are we," Rias said, stepping forward with her head held high and Akeno by her side.
They weren't the only ones. Everyone who knew Eren personally, all his friends and former comrades, from Yuuto and Issei to Koneko and Kuroka, and even Vali's team, all looked at Mikasa Ackerman and challenged her to look at them as anything but strong enough to handle what the world threw at them.
"Aunty."
At the lead, Sona asked the question she should have asked that day in the infirmary.
"Who is Eren Yeager?"
So Mikasa told them.
"Eren Yeager was our hero, and we made him a villain. He was... a guardian angel that became our Devil. Eren was a victim of the cruelties of our world who lived long enough to become an aggressor who destroyed our world."
Mikasa slumped against the wall as she spoke, sliding down it until she was on the ground with her knees to her chest.
She stared at nothing as she pulled up the red scarf she always wore until it covered the bottom half of her face.
It was as if Mikasa was trying to hide from the world.
"By killing eighty percent of humanity."