Jean snaps awake, his body jolting up from where he lay. He was resting in a hospital bed with several other beds surrounding his. All occupied.

He begins to frantically look around. "Where's yn? Where's the princess?" He asks to no one in particular.

Eren, who was seated right beside his bed, picks at some scabs on the back of his hand. "Calm down. Don't make a scene unless you want Ackerman to knock you out again."

Jean blinks with confusion. "Again?"

"How do you think you got here?" Eren questions.

Somehow that made complete sense. He couldn't recall hurting himself in any other way. In fact, he couldn't remember much at all. Levi must've knocked him unconscious. But why?

His hand comes up to the back of his head and his fingers come into contact with the throbbing bump that now inhabited his scalp. "God, what did he hit me with? A brick?"

"Close." Eren bites a hangnail off. "Back of a shotgun."

"Why?" Jean asks as he tries to gain his memory.

Eren keeps his eyes on Jean as he uses his teeth to rip more skin off his fingers. "You were hyperventilating. Your lungs were already filling up with smoke so you started turning purple because you couldn't breathe. No one could calm you down so Ackerman put you to sleep."

Jean quickly noticed all the fresh scabs and cuts all over Eren's hands. The wounds must've already existed prior to the bombing but his anxiety was causing him to make them look fresh again by picking at them. His eyes were also dark and tired.

He moves his sight away from Eren's consistently bleeding skin to all the other beds in area. He recognized most of the faces. Some no longer looked familiar to him at all.

At one bed, several nurses crowded around. It seemed all medical staff was mainly focused on whoever was laying there. Clearly, someone of major importance.

"Is that..." Jean begins.

"Prince Malakai." Eren finally breaks his eyes away and looks down at his hands.

Jean begins to feel a small glimmer of hope. "He's alive?" The last time he saw Kai, the poor prince was in horrible shape. He could barely even speak and blood spewed out his mouth each time he did.

Eren never looks back up. Instead, he continues to inflict pain on himself. It was almost like he was punishing himself by making the wounds hurt even more.

He takes some time to speak. "He's in a coma. They're trying their best but... it's not looking too good. He inhaled too many chemicals. He was next to one of the bombs when it went off. The impact made him fly back and he hit his head hard. He's suffering a grade 3 concussion."

The nurses leave his side and from the distance, Jean can see the faint outline of Kai's comatose body. Pascal hops onto the bed and curls up beside him.

Eren catches Jean looking. "Pascal doesn't leave his side. He growls at anyone who comes close besides the doctors."

Jean finds himself smile slightly. With Elijah being dead and his sister missing, Jean was happy Kai atleast had someone by his side.

"Where is Ambrose?" Jean asks. "Is he okay?"

Eren shrugs. "No one has seen him. They think whoever took the princess took him too."

Jean frowns. "Why would they want Ambrose?"

Eren sighs and leans back in his chair, his feet kicked up on Jean's bed. Thick chunks of mud stuck to the bottom of his boots. "I don't know. Leverage? Maybe as a hostage? I couldn't tell you."

"So, the princess," Jean braces himself for an answer he knows he won't want to hear. "Is she still missing?"

Eren looks at Jean finally. His face sympathetic as can be. "She's still missing."

A flicker of anger flashes past Jean's face. "Is anyone even bothering to look for her?"

Eren matches his expression, his feet coming off the bed and his posture stiffening. "You're talking about the morning after a catastrophic event. We have a lot going on. There's dead bodies everywhere. You can't blame anyone for not dropping everything to go find her. Besides, no one even knows where to begin searching."

Jean faces the nearest window. There was faint sunlight shaded by passing clouds. The usually green grass was covered by rumble and broken chunks of the castle. Smoke still slowly floated around, taunting people to come close.

A second later, the sound of a door opening catches his attention instead.

Mikasa, bandaged wrist in hand, speaks to one of the nurses as she enters the hospital wing. White bandage wrapped tightly around her forearm and hints of red bled through the fabric.

"Why is she still here?" Jean asks. "Shouldn't she be locked up?"

Eren wastes no time defending her. "There's no proof she's the traitor."

Jean snaps his head back to his friend. "One of the last words the princess said to me before she went missing was that Mikasa was the traitor. You don't find that suspicious?"

The brunette leans forward, frustration written all over his body language. "I've spent almost every single day with Mikasa for months now. I think I would've noticed if she was plotting to blow the god damn castle up!"

"Why are you defending her so much?!" Jean shouts.

"She's my girlfriend!" Eren shouts back. "If it were the other way around, you'd defend yn with your life."

Jean shuts up when he realizes Eren was right. No one in this world could convince him that you were evil or a bad person. You were light itself.

Eren seems to simmer down as well. "Besides, if she were the other traitor, wouldn't she be gone with Marco too? Why would he leave her here?"

He watches his girlfriend as they guide her toward one of the hospital beds so they can change her bandage. "She passed out from shock and blood loss. She just woke up a few hours ago."

When they begin to remove the old bandage, Eren looks away, his body wincing. "They managed to save her arm but the skin..it was too..."

His eyes looked horrified as he recalls the fresh wound. It was the exact face he had when he begged Smith to come back to the castle. He must've seen Mikasa in that state and that's why he was so scared. He thought he was going to lose her.

Jean looks back at Mikasa who looked so worn out and sad. Her eyes were low as they treat her wound and wrap it with new bandage. "Do you think it's her? Do you really think she's one of the traitors?"

"No." Eren doesn't hesitate. He pauses for a moment. "But then again, what do I know? I didn't know she was born in Ember. She never told me that. She could be hiding so much more from me."

Jean turns back to Eren who seemed disappointed in himself for even having doubts. "And besides, never would I have ever thought Marco would be one of the traitors." He adds.

Jean brings his head down and looks down at his lap. "Yeah. I didn't see that coming either."

Eren gives him a sad look. If he was feeling the betrayal, he couldn't imagine how Jean, who had always been closer to Marco, was taking it.

"When I found out it was Marco..." Eren starts as he continues to pick at his fingers. "I just stood there. I was so in shock after seeing Mikasa that I just felt stuck. I felt like such a coward."

He lets his hands breathe for a moment as he gestures his words. "In one ear, they're screaming at me not to save the girl I'm in love with because she's a traitor. And in the other ear, people are saying Marco is the traitor and that he just killed the king and queen in cold blood."

His hand comes down to his lap with defeat. "I didn't know what to think. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. It was just too much all at once."

Jean sighs. "I know the feeling." He pulls the blanket that laid on him to the side and kicks his legs off the bed. "So what now?"

Eren watches Jean step off the bed with caution. "They're not letting anyone leave the castle grounds until they investigate everyone. They just finished with Mikasa's interrogation. The reason she's still roaming around freely means they didn't find her guilty."

Jean doesn't say much. Eren takes it as a sign that he wasn't too fully convinced. "Go talk to her. She'll explain everything."

He really didn't want to speak to her. He and Mikasa weren't necessarily close enough to talk one on one. They didn't have much in common beside sharing a protective interest for you.

Eren nudges him. "Hurry up. In about thirty minutes, Commander Smith is going to address Eldia as a whole. I'll catch with you two then."

Jean freezes for a second. He couldn't believe they were already going to make a public address to everyone. The fact that the commander was doing it and not the king or queen just meant they weren't alive to do so.

Jean takes a deep breath before he approaches Mikasa. As much as he wanted to avoid her all together, he wasn't going to have even the slightest peace of mind until he knew the whole story.

The dark haired girl rises from the bed as they finish dressing her wound and she stands still when she sees Jean coming toward her. She almost looked scared for a second. He couldn't imagine how many people probably attacked and bombarded her when they were under the impression that she was the traitor.

"Hey." Jean says awkwardly.

She tilts her head. "Glad to see you're alive and well."

Jean points to her arm. "How's uh..."

She looks at the wrapped arm and clutches it tight. "They have me on strong pain medicine so it isn't too bad."

"That's good."

"Yeah."

Silence.

How exactly was he supposed to bring up the topic? Does he just straight up ask if she's a traitor or not? How could he bring up such a serious conversation in a crowded room of people?

She gestures toward the door. "Want to go for a walk?"

Jean nods, relieved she was the one to make the offer and follows her out the door. As soon as he steps out the hospital wing, he is hit with the smell of burning materials.

The two walk down the hall that no longer had a ceiling. The ceiling was now in blown up pieces all over the place.

"So," She says as she looks up at the open sky. "Go on. Ask me."

He knew there was no point in playing dumb. "I'd ask if you are the traitor but I guess I already have my answer considering you're not locked up right now."

"Oh, trust me," She chuckles. "I was in there for a moment." Her face then goes back to the sorrowful look she had. "It was all just a misunderstanding."

He continues to walk beside her. "I'm listening."

She tucks her black hair behind both ears. "The letters she found. All the ink and paper. It's because I'm leaving. Me and Eren are leaving Eldia together. He got offered a job in Marley and he's taking it. I was planning to write to her. The reason I kept telling her to not tell Eren was because he didn't want anyone to know until the job was set in stone."

That made sense. He was honestly stuck on the part where Eren got offered a job in Marley. He felt a small pang of jealously, which seemed foolish to even think about. Jean was offered a job there and he declined. He can't be mad that someone else took up the offer instead.

Besides, that wasn't what was important right now anyway. "What about the birth certificate?"

"I am born in Ember." She confirms. "When the bombing there happened, all orphans were relocated to Eldia. When I turned 18, I had to leave the orphanage and fend for myself. So, I got a job at the castle watching over the princess."

She steps carefully over debris that was scattered around the hall. "I kept my birth certificate hidden because I knew if someone were to find it I'd immediately get labeled as a possible traitor."

"Why didn't you just tell her all this when she confronted you?" He wonders. It seemed so simple.

"I couldn't." She begins to explain. "She was so angry and hurt that I couldn't tell her I was leaving right when she needed me the most."

Her head down, her hair falls out from behind her ear and shields her face. "The way she was looking at me, her face, it was different. I've never seen her like that before. It was like looking at a completely different person."

The smell was horrible. He wasn't surprised people were walking around in masks. "So, you just let her believe the worst instead?" He was no longer able to hide his irritation. "You would've hurt her a lot less if you told her the truth."

"I know." She responds. "It was just so much happening all at once. Next thing I knew..." She raises her wounded arm.

It was hard to imagine it. Someone so kind and caring, burning someone else. He couldn't picture it. Although, he knew that if you let your emotions get the best of you, it was a slippery slope from there.

You were probably terrified out of your mind when it happened. Actually, he knew you were. Your face when you found him in the forest said it all.

Both sides of the argument were left traumatized over some miscommunication. Mikasa looked terrified to even look anyone in the eye. Her head remained low a majority of the conversation and her body language was reserved and cautious.

He wanted to say something to make her feel better but that kind of thing wasn't necessarily his strong suit. She looked like she desperately needed a pick-me-up or some strong words of encouragement. But what could he say?

What would yn say?

He finds himself smiling slightly. "When we find her, she'll be able to heal you and everyone else. You can tell her the truth and you'll be friends again. I'm sure she'll understand."

"Yeah." Is all she says back. 

They both continue to walk down the rumble path, careful to not misstep anywhere. People run from corner to corner carrying medical supplies, clothes, boxes, and wheelbarrels full of destroyed walls.

He forces himself to look around out in the field. There was no longer any dead bodies scattered anywhere. They've must've collected all of them already and disposed of them. He wondered how many there actually were.

"Are you angry with him?" Mikasa asks abruptly. "Eren." She clarifies.

Jean doesn't turn to look at her. "Why would I be?"

She, regardless, continues to look at him. "Because he's taking the job in Marley."

He finally looks back at her. "So it's official then. He's taking the job?"

She pauses, deciding whether she should answer truthfully or not. "He is. He wanted to rub it in your face when he first found out. You know how it's always been a competition between you two."

"And now?" Jean asks, surprised the brunette didn't tell him the second he found out.

"Well," She begins. "He didn't want to leave you behind. He always pictured you both would go to Marley together. Then, he said you'd be fine without him because you still had Connie and Marco. But now..."

"But now I have neither." Jean finishes for her. He finds himself laughing now. "The bastard feels guilty for leaving."

He knew Eren always had a soft spot for his friends, whether he liked to show it or not. The truth is, all four of them, Jean, Eren, Connie and Marco had always been close friends at the training academy. They all met at the same time and graduated together. Jean forgot how much Connie and Marco must be hurting Eren as well.

"Can you blame him?" Mikasa says as she gestures for him to look around. "I can't think of any worst time for him to leave."

Jean shrugs. "Or the best. This could be his opportunity to run and save himself from whatever is bound to happen after the smoke settles. I mean, do you really want to stick around for Eldia's downfall?"

"That would make him a coward." Mikasa states firmly. She stops walking and plants her feet on the ground. "Do you seriously think Eren would leave this place when it's at its weakest? This is his home, and even though everyone looks at me differently now because I'm not 'eldia born,' this is still my home too."

Jean stops now too. "Are the King and Queen alive?"

She waits a moment. "No."

"And I assume Elijah didn't make it."

"No."

He scoffs. "Then I hope you and Eren make the right decision and leave while you still can. Marley is one of the biggest kingdoms out there and is well protected. That's the safest place for you to be right now. Not in a kingdom with no living aire."

She grows annoyed with his pessimism. "Ambrose and Malakai are still able to take the crown."

Jean throws his arms out. "Kai is practically a vegetable and Ambrose is no where to be found as usual probably somehow making this situation worse. Neither of them are fit kings."

Mikasa seems shocked by his brutal honesty.

Jean turns and begins to walk away. He didn't want to hear anything from anyone. He couldn't take anymore bad news. He just wanted to find out where you were and how to get you the hell away from all of this. He was still banished after all and had two lonely train tickets still in his possession.

Mikasa refuses to give in . She steps forward. "So that's it? You just give up? You're going to run away and not help rebuild the place you call home?"

"I'm going to find the princess since clearly, no one else is." Jean says as he doesn't even bother to look back at her.

She takes more steps forward and raises her voice. "And how do you expect to do that? You have no idea where she is. You'll be running around like a chicken with its head cut off."

"I've found her before." He stops, falling for her trap and growing heated.

"Because she led you to her!" She shouts, exhausted. "There's no hints this time! No secret note, no subliminal message! She's gone! She didn't run away! She was kidnapped!"

"You think I don't know that?!" Jean returns the gesture. "My best friend is the one who did it!"

The words burned fiercely on his tongue like someone took a hot iron and branded the sentence onto the soft tissue. The burnt skin tasted bitter and hard to swallow.

She shrinks back to her normal size again. Jean breathes in to also cool down. "Look, I'm not giving up. But I can't just stand here and throw rocks around while she's most likely suffering somewhere alone."

"I understand that." Mikasa says. "And I'm all for dropping everything and running after her. Trust me. But we just can't right now. We need a plan. We need to at least have an idea of where to even begin to search for her. Right now, we have nothing."

Jean knew she was right. It was pointless to just ride off into the sunset all hero-like when he had no idea where the hell he was even supposed to go.

It was driving him crazy. He needed to know you were safe. He wouldn't be able to sleep, eat or practically even breathe until he knew you were. Much less, use every last brain cell he had to somehow piece the puzzle pieces together.

He needed to calm his brain and settle his nerves. He needed a clear mindset so he could try to come up with some kind of plan.

He knew you didn't plan to disappear this time so there wasn't any perfectly placed clues in only spots he'd notice. But that didn't necessarily mean there wouldn't any placed by accident either.

"Hey." Eren finally meets up with the two of them. "The announcement should be beginning soon so we should start heading toward the main plaza in the kingdom's center."

He looks at back and forth at his girlfriend and his friend. "This is awkward."

Jean rolls his eyes and begins to walk toward the center plaza. He noticed others doing the same. Some people walked normally with a hint of paranoia and fear. Some limped through the grass with someone beside them holding them up.

Eren walks beside Jean as Mikasa walks beside some other women. She helps guide a young girl who had her whole left leg in a cast.

"So, Connie." Jean mutters as he shoves his hands in his pocket.

Eren shakes his head. "Who would've thought he'd be the one to sacrifice himself to save a prince, huh?"

Out of all his friends, Connie was the most unpredictable. He was silly in situations when he should be nothing but serious, and had a joke for every moment. It was a wonder he even made it to graduation.

"I mean, Kai might be the future king now if they don't find Ambrose's body." Eren points out. "Meaning Connie saved the king."

Jean laughs with disbelief. "Connie fucking Springer."

Eren laughs in return and repeats the same. "Connie motherfucking Springer."

The two boys laugh and laugh until they slowly die down and rest in silence when they remember their friend was really gone.

"You should take the job in Marley." Jean breaks the silence. "You deserve it."

Eren smiles graciously but it fades just as quickly. "I can't leave right now. It isn't right. If the job is still there whenever I'm ready, it was meant to be. If not, it wasn't." He says casually.

Jean snickers. "Now you want to be a hero too." He teases his friend.

Eren elbows him. "Hey, I was one way before Connie. I've saved people before, you just don't know them."

"Oh yeah? What's their names?" Jean challenges.

Eren immediately changes the subject and points at the stage and a slowly growing crowd began circling around it. "Shhh, it's about to begin."

Mikasa joins the two of them again and Jean tries to pick out any other familiar faces in the crowd. The large mass of people contained the remaining members of royal guard, the surviving castle staff and your average citizens of Eldia.

Commander Smith climbs up the stairs and steps up on the stage. He clears his throat loudly before he addressing the nervous crowd.

"People of Eldia." He begins. His usually combed back blonde hair was dull in color and lacking in style. His face was bloody and scratched up and his uniform matched his painted skin. He even had his hurt arm in a sling.

Ackerman stood off to the side. He had a bandage wrap around his head and covering the left side of his face and eye. He had two sewn up scars running from his cheek to his lip and chin area.

All the remaining members of the royal guard that could still stand and join the meeting were all badly beaten. There were even worse members back in the hospital wing. Jean was the only one who was completely unscathed if you didn't count the bump in the back of his head.

He wondered what really went down at the castle while he was both wandering in the forest and also knocked unconscious.

"I am Commander Smith of the royal guard of Eldia." His voice echos through the petrified and quiet crowd. "I stand before you all today with devastating news. Last night, the castle was attacked from the inside. Bombs were placed at the lowest corridor and exploded in the evening. Several people were killed or violently injured."

Whispers begin to build in the crowd and tension began to rise as people itch anxiously where they stand. Their once peaceful kingdom was now unsafe and dangerous. It was a change quite literally overnight.

Smith raises his one good arm up in the air to signal for everyone to quiet down. He waits and even when the crowd is silent, he finds it difficult to say the following words. "King Hendrix and Queen Solana of Eldia are dead."

Collective gasps and more frantic whispers begin to spread. Some people begin to break down into tears as others stand there in shock.

"Prince Elijah." He carries on. "The future king is also dead."

More people begin to cry now. Elijah had always been a public favorite. He was the one who was gifted the opportunity to reach out to the citizens the most so they were most familiar with him. He won the hearts of everyone easily and people were proud to one day call him king.

Someone lifts their head as they grow brave with optimism and hope. "They had more children. What of Prince Ambrose or Prince Malakai? Surely they made it out alive."

Smith looks down at his feet for a moment before he picks his head back up. Jean could tell the news was hard for him to take in too. "Prince Malakai is currently is severe critical condition. We have the best doctors doing the best they can. As for Prince Ambrose, he is missing along with the Princess."

More gasping. More whispering. More weeping.

Suddenly, a million hands shoot up onto the air and the crowd goes into an uproar with questions and concerns.

"Where are Ambrose and the Princess?"

"Who killed the King and Queen?"

"Who placed the bombs in the castle?"

"Who will lead us?"

They all bombard the poor fatigued Commander with their questions all at once. He does his best to answer to each one but the crowd was too chaotic to answer their questions one by one.

"Oi!" Ackerman shouts impossibly louder than the crowd. "Don't ask questions if you don't allow the man to answer." He snaps.

The crowd goes silent again.

Erwin Smith tilts his head toward Levi with gratitude before he turns to address the crowd once again. "One of our very own, Cadent Marco Bodt, was a traitor. He and someone else placed the bombs in the castle. The other person has yet to be identified. If anyone has any information on either person, please alert the royal guard immediately."

Glances are exchanged between the guards when they hear Marco's name. Civilians look around in confusion on how a traitor could've snuck his way in without being caught.

"Marco Bodt, if that is his real name, was a member of the royal guard and pretended to be a citizen of Eldia. He is suspected of murdering the King and Queen in cold blood as well as the Prince. We have troops searching for him as we speak. There is a bounty on his head for anyone who can find him and bring him to us." Erwin explains. "Dead or alive."

People begin to talk quietly amongst themselves as they try to see if they had any useful information. Some people stood in shock when they realize they knew the boy and never pictured him as someone so cruel.

"We also have guards searching every perimeter of Eldia for Prince Ambrose and the Princess. Again, if you have any information, please inform us immediately. There will be a reward if found." He adds.

There was one last question left unanswered. Who would led us? Every single person in line for the throne was either dead, missing or somewhere in the middle.

That's when another set of footprints graces the stage. A tall man with dark, smooth skin and thick, chocolate hair steps up the center of the stage. "Hello everyone, I am King Adonis of Cicily and this is my wife, Queen Isla, and my son, Prince Phoenix." He gestures to the side of the stage where they stand.

Jean follows with his eyes and sees the queen standing there, completely unharmed and holding tightly onto her son who was also unharmed on the outside but his distant eyes said otherwise.

Jean wondered how he was feeling right now.

King Adonis looks at each individual person as he addresses the massive crowd that continued to grow. He didn't look scared or overwhelmed even if that's how he felt on the inside. He spoke calmly and clearly, just as a king should.

"I know many of you may not know us," He speaks. "But we happened to be here when the bombing occurred. We were luckily on the outskirts of Eldia, far from the castle, when the bombs dispersed. Our kingdom works closely with Eldia and has always been business partners for years now. We will do everything we can to help."

His hands come together. "Not only are we business partners, but we were soon to be family. We are devastated to hear about the king and queen as well as the royal children."

He looks over at his son. "My son was to be engaged to the princess in a matter of weeks. With that being said, it is our moral duty to help Eldia in such a dire time of need. We will watch over all of you with the help of the royal guard, of course."

He faces the crowd again, keeping firm eye contact. "We will find the succeeding prince and princess and bring them home. We will also do every thing possible to guarantee a speedy recovery for Prince Malakai."

The queen joins him now on the stage. "We are sending supplies and troops from our kingdom to aid in rebuilding the castle and restrenghting the kingdom. We will be reaching out to other neighboring kingdoms in alliance with Eldia for assistance as well in search for the missing royal children."

She places her hand over her heart. "And please, if there is anything any of you need, please do not hesitate to ask. We have medical supplies and food at the castle for anyone in need of it."

Almost every hand in the crowd comes rushing up into the air. Queen Isla blinks slowly as she looks at the overwhelming amount of people shouting incoherent things.

Smith returns to stage and quickly gets them back in order again. "We lost more than half of our troops so please bear with us and help in any way you can. The more we work together, the safer we will be again."

One of the surviving members of the royal guard, Floch, who had flaming red hair and looked more pale than usual, hands Smith a rolled up piece of paper bound by a rubber band.

"I will now announce the names of the deceased." He says as he pulls the band off.

Everyone grows eerily silent again. Jean could hear his heart thumping loudly in his ears. The anticipation was excruciating.

Smith begins to read off the list. Each name Jean recognizes brings him closer into the abyss he seemed to be slowly slipping into. The names of the deceased sounded like far away mutters.

Connie's name, amongst others, force an unavoidable wave of survivor's guilt onto him. About 10% of his graduating class was now dead. People he went to school with. People he sat with at lunch. People who he saw every single day.

Gone.

"Connie Springer."

"Hange Zoe."

"Hitch Dreyse."

The list seemed to go on forever and he wasn't sure how much more he could take. He just wanted to slam his hands over his ears to shut out the noise.

Although the list seemed impossibly long, it finally comes to an end. People break out into groups as they weep into each other's arms and sympathize with those who lost someone important to them. Others immediately jump into action and offer their assistance with anything they could do.

As soon as he catches Smith dismissing the crowd and trailing down the steps, Jean charges in a straight line in his direction. "So that's it? We just sit around and wait?"

"You're not even supposed to be here." Ackerman reminds Jean.

Jean looks down at him. He looked even smaller now that he was all bandaged up and frail looking. "I'm pretty sure that doesn't stand anymore considering the people who placed that order are dead."

He sucks his teeth. "It doesn't work that way."

"I'm sorry." A soft, feminine voice says behind the two of them. "I couldn't help but overhear."

It was Queen Isla, standing with her hands tied together and a comforting smile. "You're the princess's body guard, correct? Jean?"

Jean bows his head. "Yes, your highness."

"Stay." She says simply. "You could help us find her."

Erwin finally speaks. "Your majesty, this man—"

She gracefully raises her hand to stop him. "Please. We need all the help we can get right now if you haven't noticed." She turns back to Jean. "Besides, I'm sure whatever Jean did wasn't so bad if he's still alive."

"That's only because the King and Queen were courteous enough to grant him his life in exchange for banishment, your highness." Levi corrects.

That rat.

Even with that information, she doesn't budge. Instead, she continues to smile at Jean. "I trust him."

She had a very maternal presence. Soft brown eyes and an amiable persona. He reminded her a lot of his mother in a way even though they looked completely different from one another. Despite the obvious differences, they both smiled at him in a similar way.

He feels her hand slip in between his arm and torso and she leads him in another direction to walk beside her. Even though this was his first time ever speaking to her, he felt like he could tell her anything. It was freaky really.

"I'm going to be honest with you." He admits. "What I did truly was worth banishment." He felt he should atleast be honest with her if she was going to be defending him.

She smiles at people as she passes them by. "You knew the princess was going to run away and you let her go right? Isn't that why you're in trouble?"

He hesitates for a moment. Is that the story they told them? He debated on saying what actually happened or playing along with the lie.

Considering it was probably going to help him tremendously to have her on his side, he figured it was best for her to believe the lie rather than the truth. He couldn't see her being so kind to him if he admitted he tried to destroy her son's pending marriage.

It was either that or tell her that he was in love with her son's fiancé.

"The good thing is you went back to find her and corrected your mistake." She says. "I don't think you need punishment for that."

He had begun to feel slightly guilty. He wasn't the type to worm his way to the top or rig his chance of survival. All the lying and sneaking around was taking a toll on him and he no longer felt like his honest self. Frankly, he didn't even feel like that person anymore. He wondered if that part of him even still existed.

"You found her once. You can find her again." She stops walking and stands before him.

Now that they were eye to eye again, it was even more intimidating. Maybe she was testing him? Maybe she knew damn well what they told her was a lie and she wanted the full story? Was the soft, motherly act simply just an act?

He had to think his answers through carefully. One wrong move and he could end up back in that jail cell or worse. "That's different. I at least knew where she was going last time so it wasn't as difficult. I just had to head in the same direction."

"True." She nods slowly. "But I think you'll be able to find her a lot easier than you think."

He frowns. "Why is that?"

She fights a smile. "A little birdie told me that you and the princess actually have known each other way before you became her bodyguard. Is that true?"

He nods cautiously but doesn't say a word. Regardless of his silence, she keeps going. "Since childbirth actually. Meaning you must know her very well. Considering her brothers and parents aren't here, you fall next in line when it comes to knowing her the best."

He hadn't thought of it in that way. Since everyone in your family was either dead or missing, he was the closest thing to family you had left. Him and his—

"Jeanboy?"

Jean spins around and sees his mother standing behind him. She was in perfect health which means she luckily wasn't anywhere near the bombs when they went off. Despite her being unharmed, her facial expression showed nothing but pain.

"Mom?" He lights up. "You're alright!"

The queen taps his arm before she lets him go. "I'll let you be."

When she departs, he races over to his mother and hugs her much longer than he expected to. She doesn't move or even ask anything. She just allows him to hug her for as long as he needed to.

Her hands rub his back as she comforts him. "My poor boy. What happened? Is everyone alright?"

His mother was an overly caring person. The type to care for anyone even if they just met, so he knew she really was asking if quite literally everyone was okay. But deep down, he knew she was specially asking about one particular group of people.

How does he tell his mother that the children she practically raised as her own from birth to adulthood were all either dead, nearly dead or missing with no trace behind them.

He hugs her tightly. "Connie..."

She brings her hand to his hair and runs her fingers through it. "I know. I made it just in time to hear the list of deceased."

He lets go and clears his throat. He forgot he was surrounded by a bunch of people who were probably watching the whole thing. "So then you know about Elijah too."

Tears build in her eyes but she does her best not to let them fall in front of her son. "Yes." Her voice creaks.

It was safe to assume he didn't need to ask if she knew about the king and queen as well. She looks past Jean and at the crumbling castle that once used to stand so tall. "Malakai... is he alright?"

Jean looks down at the ground. Gunpowder and ashes were everywhere below his feet. "He's in a coma. They don't think he's going to wake up."

Despite the gut wrenching news, she had a small twinkle of hope in her eyes. "But yn... she can fix that." She whispers. "She can wake him up."

Even though all his friends were dead and the castle was in ruins, none of it brought a lump to his throat like talking about you did. "She's not here, mom. I don't know where she is. No one does. Not a single person has seen her before the bombings."

"Someone had to have seen something." She argues. "All these people who work in the castle and you're telling me no one noticed what was happening?"

It was true. Between the royal guard and castle staff, there had to be at least one person out there who had even the slightest of information. He just had to figure out who.

"Well they're questioning everyone one by one so hopefully someone comes forward." He says bitterly. He didn't have the patience to sit around and wait all day for someone to speak up.

"I hope so." She fiddles with her fingers. She watches as guards and staff carry supplies over to the main quarters of the castle. Volunteers surround the gates and use buckets and wheel barrows to help clean up debris and anything else in the way. "I would like to help with something."

He sets a hand on her shoulder. "I think they have it covered. We have help coming from neighboring kingdoms on the way too. We also have the King and Queen of Cicily here to help maintain order."

She looks over at the woman who was walking alongside Jean just a few moments ago. "So that was the queen, huh?" She was now standing by her husband and son as they spoke to citizens who had a million and one burning questions.

They both had empathic smiles and talked with such elegance and compassion. He could tell it wasn't fake either. They genuinely seemed to care about the people of Eldia even when it wasn't their people to care for.

"They seem like good people." His mother says as she watches them too. "I'm assuming that's the prince beside them. The one engaged to the princess."

Jean nods.

"Do you like him?" She asks.

He glares at her. "Are you really asking me that?"

She laughs. "Don't let jealously blind you from seeing a person's true colors. If he is a good man and treats you with respect, you better do the same."

He sighs. "Yeah, yeah."

She rolls her eyes at her stubborn son who always had a knack for spotting out competition. She then brings her eyes back to the castle. "I still can't believe this is real. A kingdom that had always been so strong is now...."

"Weak." He finishes for her. "No king to rule. No king in line either. The castle is barely standing and the people are running wild in fear. It's a disaster."

"That's not true." She debates. "Malakai is still alive. I'm sure Ambrose is alive too wherever he is. There is still hope."

"What if they're not?" He asks. "What if Kai doesn't wake up? What if Ambrose is never found or what if they do find him but he's dead? What then?"

"Then I guess the crown would go to the princess." She says.

He tried to imagine it. You, the queen of Eldia and the only surviving member of the royal family. When he tried to picture you as the queen before all of this, he pictured that cheesy smile of yours as they placed the crown on your head. But now, he only saw a devastated girl who had to take the responsibility because everyone else was dead.

"What if they never find her either?" He tries to speak with the lump lodged in his throat.

She looks up at him. "You will."

He points at himself. "Me?"

She chuckles. "If they don't find her, I know you won't rest until you do. You'd spend your entire life searching for her."

He breaks away from her eyes, embarrassed by how well she knew him. She raised him so she knew exactly the kind of person he was. She also was probably the only person who knew how much he cared for you.

"Kirstein." Ackerman calls from a few feet away. Both he and his mother turn. He nods toward Jean's mother. "Ms. Kirstein. Good to see you again. I need to borrow your son."

She holds onto his arm. "He's not in trouble again, is he?"

"Mom!" Jean hisses under his breath.

Ackerman tries not to laugh. "No, ma'am. We are questioning everyone one by one and he's up next. We won't take up too much of his time."

She didn't seem too convinced. "Okay." She says as she slowly lets her son go. "I'm going to go see Malakai so if you need anything, you know where to find me, okay?"

"Okay." Jean answers. She departs from the two of them and heads toward the hospital. Ackerman leads Jean to Smith's office which was remarkably still standing.

Erwin sits at his desk, elbows on the surface and face in palms. Jean takes a seat in front of him and Ackerman closes the door behind him and stands idly to the side. "Commander." Jean speaks.

The blonde lifts his head up and sighs. "What a shit show, am I right?" He moves some documents out of the way and looks Jean right in the face. "So, you were the last person with the princess."

"I was." Jean says.

Erwin never even blinks. "Can you tell me what the last thing you remember is?"

Jean points his thumb backward in the direction in which Levi stands. "I don't remember shit because your shitty lieutenant knocked me out."

Ackerman smirks. "I'll do it again if you don't answer."

Jean groans. "All I remember was finding Elijah and Marco's body. The princess she..." He begun to feel that sinking feeling again. "She was trying to save Elijah but he..."

His throat cursed him to be quiet. "He was already dead. I told her to go to Marco instead because he was still breathing."

Now that he thought of it, he couldn't believe he told you to do that. He practically forced you to pull yourself away from your deceased brother to save someone who destroyed your life. He couldn't help but feel slightly responsible for it.

Maybe if he just let you cry over your brother, if he had just let you mourn him like a little sister should, you'd still be here right now.

He clears his throat when he sees his vision begin to blur. His posture adjusts to sit up straight again. "While she was with Marco, she ordered me to go find her family. I did as I was told and found Kai and Connie together."

"Was there anyone else around when you left the princess behind with Marco?" Erwin asks.

Jean tries to recall the memory but he couldn't. At the moment, all he could focus on was the resilient flames spreading around him. "I don't know."

Levi pulls his back off the corner and approaches the desk. "Did you seriously think leaving the princess alone during an attack was a good idea?"

"I was doing as I was told!" Jean snaps, twisting his body to face him. "I didn't want to leave her there! I had to force myself to leave her! She gave me orders to find her family. She had her dying brother in front of her. I couldn't say no to her."

"Now isn't the time to be placing the blame on others and judging them, Levi." Smith sighs. "We were all under a lot of stress."

Ackerman scoffs but says no more. Jean leans forward. "Look, I don't have any other information to give you. That's all I know."

He stops for a moment. "Although, I do know it wasn't Marco who took her. He was too... mangled up. There had to have been someone around to grab her body and his while she was trying to help him. I just can't think of who."

"My best guess is Eren Jaeger." Ackerman says, arms crossed.

"Eren?" Jean asks. "Why him?"

Levi uncrosses his arms and takes a seat. "There were only three people who were always with Marco. You, Connie and Eren. It isn't you for obvious reasons and Connie is no longer with us."

"That's crazy. It isn't Eren." Jean defends. "It has to be someone who you never see with Marco. He's smart. If someone were helping him, he'd make sure to make it seem like they weren't working together at all."

"What's your best guess?" Erwin asks, genuinely curious.

Jean freezes. "I don't know. I would say someone who isn't here. Like I said, Marco couldn't have took the princess all by himself, meaning who ever helped him is with them right now."

Erwin's eyes dart over to a sheet of paper on the far end of his desk. "I have a list of missing people. It isn't long though. Most bodies were found and identified."

"I'd start there." Jean suggests. "Other than that, I'm not going to be much help."

He begins to stand from his chair, assuming he'll now be dismissed but Erwin stops him. "Actually, there is one more thing you can help us with."

Jean slowly sinks back into his seat. Erwin sets his elbows down on the desk again and locks his hands together under his chin. "Considering the princess didn't make too many public appearances, there are people who have no idea what she looks like which doesn't help us at all in searching for her."

"So?" Jean asks.

"So," Erwin begins. "A little bird told me that you're quite the artist. Since the princess seems to be a muse for you anyway, I wanted you to draw the princess so we can make prints of it and give it to everyone."

Jean could feel his face burn with embarrassment. "What's with these stupid little birds?!"

Erwin hands him a blank journal and a pen. "I need your best sketch done by today. Don't make us regret giving you another chance."

Jean sighs and takes the journal from him. "Fine." Before they can stop him again, he darts out the office.

He stares at the notebook as he walks down the halls. In his head, he tries to visualize your face. No matter how hard he tried to picture you any other way, he only saw the way your face looked the last time he saw you.

As he walks through the castle, he felt foolish compared to everyone else. People were covered in dirt as they carry large chunks of the castle or heavy bags full of who knows what. Yet, all he had in his hands was a notebook and a pen.

He sets them both down to the side and runs to the nearest group of people he can find and asks how he could help. He might've just been trying to avoid what he was supposed to be doing but at least he was doing something useful in the meantime.

Another part of it had to do with the fact that he felt absolutely pathetic and useless. Everyone was moving forward, doing everything possible to fix what happened and he stayed still. He was stuck in that one miserable moment. The smell, the taste, the sound. It was stuck in his head. How did everyone else move on so easily?

To prove to himself that he wasn't as weak as felt, he attempts to fill as many things into his arms as he can and begins marching from one side of the castle to other.

He was no superhuman. He was strong, yes, but just like every other normal human being, mental strength and physical strength went hand in hand. So while his mind was running amuck, his body always seemed to struggle to keep up the pace with everyone else.

One of the heavy boxes filled with medicine in his arms almost falls to the floor and he already anticipates the deafening sound of all the glass bottles breaking when suddenly, the box stops midair.

The last person he wanted to see right now pokes his head out from behind the box. "Whoa." Prince Phoenix says as he catches the box at an annoyingly perfect time. "Let me help you with that."

"I got it." Jean fights as he tries to reach for the box. Phoenix turns his body away so he can't. "Don't exhaust yourself." He says. "You already have so much in your arms. Let me help you with this atleast."

Jean didn't have the energy to argue so he lets him take the stupid box. Phoenix holds it firmly as he walks beside him.

"You don't have to help, you know?" Jean says looking forward as he speaks. "Not just with me but with anyone."

Even though Jean didn't bother to look in Phoenix's direction, the prince looked right at him as he spoke. "Why? Because I'm royalty? That's ridiculous. At the end of the day, we're all humans helping other humans."

Jean snorts quietly. It sounded like something corny you'd say.

And speaking of you. "I heard you were the last person with the princess. Any idea of where she might be?"

He was getting tired of people "hearing" things about him. Not only did he always find gossiping annoying but right now, his fuse was much shorter than usual. "If I did, I would be there right now." He snaps.

He instantly felt bad for being so nasty unprovoked. He wasn't sure why he was so angry at the world.

It probably wasn't the brightest idea to be rude to royalty either. He was already on thin ice. Also, he owed Phoenix's mother a favor for sticking up for him. The least he could do was have a conversation with her son.

"I guess that was a dumb question." Phoenix chuckles at himself.

Jean exhales and finally looks over at Phoenix. "I'm sorry. I'm just on edge. I didn't mean to be rude, your highness."

"Phoenix." He corrects. "Just Phoenix." He reminded Jean so much of you. Right now, this was the closest thing he had to you. He was embarrassed to admit how much comfort it gave him.

He watches the prince carefully. He had his head straight but his eyes were somewhere else. He seemed genuinely worried. Jean wasn't sure why that surprised him. You were his soon to be wife.

"Wherever she is, I know she's okay." Jean offers Phoenix the same sense of comfort. "She's not the type to accept defeat easily. She's giving them one hell of a fight, trust me."

The prince's gloomy expression lights up. "You think so?"

Jean laughs. "She has the incredible inability to sit still and to talk forever. They'll probably give her back before we even find her."

Phoenix's body relaxes and Jean can see the weight lifting off him as he laughs too. "That's right. You do know her pretty well."

Jean hated how it was impossible to hate him. He was literally the male version of you. To hate Phoenix, was to hate you.

And he could never hate you.

The two set the boxes of medical supplies down in the hospital wing. Phoenix immediately looks over to Kai's bed. Jean follows his eyes and sees Kai still unconscious with Pascal guarding his bed.

"What about him?" Phoenix asks. "You think he'll be okay?"

Jean thinks. "Honestly, I'm not sure. Kai has always been lazy. If a part of him is still awake in there fighting for his life, I don't think he'll last long."

Phoenix's face stiffens again. Clearly, that's not the answer he wanted to hear. He runs his hands over his eyes. "I wanted to be able to save at least one of them. I want her to come home to at least just one."

Jean felt like crying. He wanted to so badly. But he'd be damned if he cried in front of the man who he was in competition with. "There's still Ambrose. We just have to find him."

"Yeah." Phoenix breathes in deeply. "Maybe they're together right now. That'd make me feel a little better knowing she's not alone."

Jean nods but doesn't say anything. He was too choked up and knew if he spoke, his voice would tremble and his pride would be demolished.

"You know," Phoenix starts. "I'm helping with all this stuff not just because I want to but because I need to feel like I'm actually doing something useful."

Shit. You're making this even harder, just shut up.

"She's my fiancé. It's not like I was all the way back home when she went missing." He says. "I was here. In Eldia. Instead of protecting her, I was with my family taking a stupid tour."

He seemed to really be punishing himself. "She was supposed to come with us. We waited for her but someone told me she didn't feel good so she stayed back. I should've went to check on her. If I had, maybe she'd still be here."

Jean considered the possibility. Instead of going on the tour, you faked not feeling good to stay behind and chase after Jean. If Phoenix stayed back with you, you probably would've never left.

He could've protected you. If you stayed in the castle, guards would've sacrificed themselves to save you just like Connie did with Kai.

Not to mention, the only reason you were even near Marco was because you ran after Jean. If you hadn't, Elijah would've died killing Marco and you would've been sad, yes, but safe.

It seemed like the universe was screaming at him that he wasn't the right choice. Because you made the wrong decision, all these bad things happened. All because you chose him.

"Don't blame yourself." Jean finally forced himself to speak. "If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I was the last person who had eyes on her. I left her alone. She's missing because of me."

Phoenix looks at Jean with despondent eyes. Jean doesn't dare look his way because he knew if he saw him looking at him like that, he'd only feel even more shitty than he already felt.

"I have to go." He announces. "I need to go draw your fiancé a hundred times."

"Okay." Phoenix nods. The words then hit him as Jean walks away. "Wait, what?"

When Jean makes it to the hallway where his room resides, he quickly remembers how painfully close your room was to his.

In order to get to his room, he needed to pass by yours. It was inevitable. As he passes, he notices your door slightly open and out of curiosity, he pushes it further to look inside.

It was a disaster. Your bed was flipped over and your closet looked like it was throwing up your clothes as they poured out onto the floor. Muddy footprints covered the area.

It was clear that Marco and whoever else was helping him, searched here first. They looked in any and every corner but you were nowhere.

He's hit with your smell, and even though he knew it was your perfume in the air or the smell of your bedsheets, he found himself hoping you were somewhere in here hiding. Maybe you'd jump out from behind the flipped bed and scream it was a prank.

Maybe he was stupid for even picturing it.

He closes the door again and enters his room which was almost exactly like yours. His mattress was also off the frame and the belongings he left behind were scattered everywhere. He doesn't bother fixing any of it.

He sets the notebook and pen down on the desk and takes a seat. Before he does anything else, he shuts his eyes and allows himself to breathe in peace for a moment.

He flips open the journal and grabs the pen. It isn't until then when he realizes how shaky his hands are. He wraps his left hand around his wrist to try to calm the trembling but it was futile.

Regardless, he attempts to begin the sketch. He had known you since you were babies. Quite literally. Before he left the castle the first time, he saw you everyday for years. Even now, he saw your face all the time. So why couldn't he remember anything?

Why couldn't he remember the way your hair curled or the shape of your eyes? Why was it that everything he forced his brain to remember, he kept seeing that one specific memory?

All he could see when he closed his eyes was you and your heart breaking before him. The way your eyes drowned in your tears and the way your lips quivered as you spoke.

It was one bad memory compared to the million of happy memories he had with you. So why this one? Why was his brain so fixated on that one agonizing moment?

He drew you over and over again based on memory. The once empty trash can by his desk was now filled to the brim with crumpled up drawings that didn't make the cut.

He felt like he was going insane. He couldn't stop. The more he drew you, the more he began to forget how you looked. He'd stare at the paper and couldn't recognize the person looking back at him. It was like when you repeat a word over and over so much it begins to sound weird.

The entire desk was filled with multiple sketches of you. Crumpled paper spilled out the overflowing trash can and covered the floor around it.

His hand was beginning to cramp up but he refused to give up. No matter how hard he tried to focus, none of the sketches looked like the you he remembered.

He throws his pen across the room in a state of frustration and sets his burning head onto the desk's cool surface.

In an attempt to not blame his artistic ability, he blames his poor sketches on the amount of stress he was in. A series of unfortunate events happened and now they expect him to sit and draw as if nothing happened? He couldn't do it. He was still in shock from everything that went down.

Jean comes to the conclusion that he could use some fresh air. Well, as fresh as the air could be following such a disaster. Either way, a quiet walk could help stimulate his brain again.

His peaceful, self reflecting walk didn't last too long. He had gone unbothered for maybe 6 minutes tops.

When he approaches the library, Phoenix's head pops through the door. "Jean! Just who I was looking for!"

Jean raises an eyebrow and even though the prince quite clearly said his name, he points at his chest. "Me?"

Phoenix nods wildly and gestures Jean to come into the library. Jean cautiously steps forward and sees Eren and Mikasa in the library along with Armin.

Eren looks up when he sees his friend at the door. "Get your ass in here!" His dark eyebrows pin together as he whispers angrily for Jean to shut the door behind him.

After the door shuts, it is now just the five of them in the massive library. They all huddle around the table that rested in the center.

Armin, who normally always had a smile and a clear complexion looked the opposite. His skin didn't have the normal glow to it and he had prominent dark circles around his eyes.

"Armin, are you..." Jean struggles to ask what he wants to ask without being rude.

"Okay?" Armin gathers the rest of the question. "Yeah, I am. Well... Actually, no. I'm not, but that's okay."

"Okay..." Jean says.

Phoenix throws his arm around the poor exhausted teacher. "This man right here is a genius!"

Eren quickly notices Jean's confusion expression. "Armin might have figured out where yn is."

Jean suddenly felt a burst of energy again. "Seriously?"

Armin clears his throat and wipes sweat from his forehead as he throws a heavy book onto the table. "Everyone thought Mikasa was the traitor because she was born in Ember, right? So I thought to myself, what does Ember have to do with anything?"

Jean looks over at the book that took up most of the table and read the lettering on the leather cover. The history of Ember.

Armin flips the book open and begins to flip through pages like a madman. His hands were shaking along with the rest of his body. In the trash can by the table, there was about 7 cups of coffee that were now empty.

When he lands on the page he's looking for, he stabs his pale finger onto the paper. "The current king of Ember is King James the third." His finger slides down toward the bottom of the page. "He has three sons."

He flips to the other side of the page. A family portrait was printed onto the paper and at the very bottom of the portrait listed the names of his children. "Prince Leon, Prince Nicholas and Prince Markell."

His finger then goes to the youngest son in the picture. "This is Prince Markell. Look familiar to you?"

Sure enough, it did. It took a moment to recognize him but Marco stood there, proudly by his father who sat on the throne and his two older brothers.

"Markell. Marco." Eren snorts. "Not a very creative disguise, is it?"

"Sure fooled you." Mikasa snipes.

Eren snaps his head toward his girlfriend. "And you!"

Armin ignores the couple and continues to explain. "Marco is the third son of King James. I kept reading and saw that Ember was bombed by Celestite and vise versa. Queen Solana is from Celestite."

"So it was an act of revenge." Phoenix thinks out loud. "He kidnapped the princess and possibly Ambrose for what? Leverage? He got revenge already so what does he want with them?"

Armin stares at the prince with a blank expression and then back at the other three in the room. "He doesn't know, does he?"

Jean steps back. "Wait, you know too?!"

Armin scratches his blonde coated head. "I didn't until recently. When the princess ran away, Elijah was worried about her. He wanted to find out how to help her because he knew she was struggling. He came to me so we could put our brains together."

Jean sighs and takes a seat at the table. "Please tell me Elijah figured something out."

"What are we talking about?" Phoenix asks. "The princess was struggling with what?"

Jean looks over at Eren and Mikasa. Mikasa shrugs. "He's going to find out one way or another."

Jean looks at Phoenix and tries his best to explain it without freaking him out. "Look, the princess, she..."

"Oh god, she's sick, isn't she?" He begins to panic.

"What?" Jean loses his patience. "No. She's fine. She actually can't get sick at all."

Phoenix's mouth makes a straight line. "Yeah, I'm lost."

Mikasa holds her hands out. "She has...magic hands."

"What?"

Eren steps in. "Her hands make people feel good."

"WHAT?!" 

Armin drags his hands over his face. "The princess has magical healing powers. She has had them since she was born. That's why they kept her hidden for so long."

The prince shakes his head. "Whoa, whoa. Wait. She mentioned something about that at breakfast. She said there was a flower that gave people magic powers. We all thought she was joking."

"A lot of the things she says sound like a joke." Mikasa explains. "It usually isn't. You'll catch on eventually."

Now Phoenix takes a seat. "This makes so much sense but also none at the same time."

Jean focuses his attention back at Armin. "So she's in Ember."

He nods. "I believe so."

He stands up from his seat. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Whoa!" Armin stops him. "Hold on. It seems too easy."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Eren questions.

"Not necessarily." Armin answers. "I do believe she's in Ember. I just... don't think it's her."

Mikasa leans forward to look at Armin more clearly. "What do you mean not her?"

His fingers twist together. "It's just a theory I have. It might be nothing."

"Just say it." Jean grunts.

Armin takes a long, deep breath. "You all know the laws of evolution, natural selection and adaptation, right? Plants and animals develop certain characteristics to adapt to their environment. Humans do it too but not as drastically."

Everyone nods.

"Now I know the princess isn't an animal." He grabs another book and slams it onto the table. "But she does have the power of a plant inside her. Meaning, her body works much differently than the average human."

"We knew all this already." Jean says flatly. He then shoots at look at Phoenix. "Well, maybe not everyone."

Armin shakes his head. "No, this is different. Think about yn when she was younger. She was trapped in her room for the first couple years of her life. Do you recall her personality back then?"

Jean thinks for a moment. "I don't really know. We never saw her but when she first started coming out of the room, she was a lot more shy and quiet than she is now."

Armin snaps his fingers. "Exactly! Now when she started hanging out with you and her brothers, she began to change."

"Well, yeah." Jean responds. "She grew up."

Armin seemed to be growing annoyed that none of them were catching on yet. "She adapted to her brothers pushing her around and found a way to get them to respect her by adapting to them."

Everyone stares at him blankly.

He sighs. "She studied and read to be as curious and knowledgeable as Elijah. She did sports and practiced speaking to be as strong and vocal as Ambrose. She became kind and humorous like Kai. She had to adapt in order to survive beside them."

He looks right at Jean. "When she left and it was just you two, she adapted to being around you and all these other people she's never met. She started to change without anyone even noticing."

Mikasa gasps softly. "So, that's why she looked so different when she came back. She looked more mature in a way. I just thought it was because she lost her—"

Eren elbows her. She seemed to forget Phoenix was right there. "Uh, nevermind."

All of it started to come together. When it was just you two traveling, you became bolder and more confident. You had adapted to Jean. He had noticed you changing but he just thought this was just a side of you that you had kept hidden.

Armin continues. "She was stuck here her whole life and that's why she never grew up or changed. She was always the girl we knew and loved. It wasn't until she went to other places that she began to change."

"I hate how much sense that makes." Jean sinks into his seat. "Especially after reading that damn book about the flower. It all ties together."

Eren sits down. "If only we had that book here in front of us. Armin, how the hell did you figure all this out without it?"

Armin looks off to the side. "Well, I can't take all the credit." He grabs a folder that was so stuffed with notes and paperwork that it didn't even close properly.

"Me and Elijah sat at this very table for hours on end while you two were gone. We tried to piece all the pieces together without the help of the book since it's all the way in Paradis." He continues to explain.

Now Mikasa takes a seat. Her one good hand flips the folder open. "Jesus."

"These are all Elijah's notes." Armin reveales. "Notes he has taken for years now. He was tracking yn's behavior and growth even since she was a kid. He wanted to understand her fully."

He begins to pull the notes out. "He figured out how the weather around her changes depending on her mood. He figured out that she can heal anyone but also reverse their health too."

Phoenix seemed stuck in a trance. "She can make people sick too? And what do you mean she can control the weather?" He honestly looked more terrified than impressed.

"When she's sad, it rains. When she's angry, wind picks up and it's like an intense storm is approaching." Mikasa explains. "She can touch people and heal them but she can also do the opposite if she tried to."

Phoenix nods, slowly processing the information. It was baffling that he had no clue about any of this. He was going to marry someone who could bring so much health and life to their kingdom or be it's downfall.

Mikasa sighs. "So what does this mean? What's your conclusion?"

"Well," Armin begins. "If my hypothesis is correct and she really does adapt to her surroundings, I fear that her body will force her to adapt to wherever she is."

"Meaning that if she's in Ember with Marco, or Markell, whatever the hell his name is, she's going to adapt to survive around him." Phoenix thinks.

Eren stares out the window at the faded landscape. "One bad seed can destroy an entire garden." He looks back at Armin. "You think she's going to turn bad."

"I mean, just think of it like this," Armin brings his hands together in a lecture position. "She's probably devastated right now. She lost her parents and her older brother and if anything, she probably thinks she lost even more people important to her. She's in scary, new environment. She's going to adapt to it to survive."

"Okay." Jean stands back up. "I'm going."

"Stop!" Mikasa screeches with frustration. "Can't you just sit still for a second?! Yes, we know she's in Ember but we don't know where exactly. The only person in this room who has ever been in Ember is me and I don't remember any of it."

Armin scatters through the Elijah's folders. "Actually, we thought of something. He probably has her hidden. Her powers don't work when she doesn't have sunlight or water near her, just like a plant. Now, Ember is a coal mine kingdom."

"So you think he has her hidden in a cave?" Jean says through gritted teeth.

"It's the smartest idea." Armin admits. "Yn is probably angry as hell right now. He'll want to keep her locked up so she can't escape or hurt anyone."

Phoenix finally begins to join the conversation. "I don't think that's true."

Every single head turns in his direction.

He looks slightly nervous but says the words anyway. "I think he wants us to think she'll be hidden so we waste time looking through the coal mines."

He explains further. "He obviously wants her to help bring life to his kingdom. In order for her to do that, she needs sunlight and water like Elijah and Armin said. He needs her in good health so she can help the best she can."

"So she's just roaming around freely?" Mikasa wonders. "That doesn't make much sense. He knows she'll take off the second she sees an opportunity."

Eren gasps. "That's why he has Ambrose! Marco is using Ambrose as leverage so yn doesn't run away. Probably told her that if she tried to run, Ambrose would die."

"Or." Phoenix stands from his seat. Again, all eyes naturally go to him. "He's going to marry her."

Jean felt his heart drop from his chest and down into his stomach. No one says a single word.

Mikasa speaks first. "They can't get married. She's already in a contract with you, right Phoenix?"

Phoenix sucks his lips in between his teeth. "Actually... the contract no longer stands since the King and Queen are dead. Technically, her and I are no longer engaged. The decision would go to the proceeding King which would be Elijah."

Armin gasps quietly. "Ambrose is yn's legal guardian now. That's why they took Ambrose. He has to sign a contract that says that she will marry Marco, not Phoenix."

"But Ambrose would never sign that!" Jean slams his hand on the table. "Especially after all Marco has done."

Mikasa runs her fingers through her black hair. "Unless Marco persuades him. Maybe he gave him a deal he couldn't refuse. Let me marry your sister and you can be King of Eldia and we won't bother you."

Jean's heart thumped painfully, he could hear the sound in his ears. He wanted to say Ambrose would never accept an offer like that.

But for some reason, when his mouth tried to speak the words, his tongue stopped him. He couldn't say it. There was something inside him telling him to take it into consideration.

Ambrose had always wanted to be king. He had resented being born after Elijah who was perfect at literally everything. Now that Elijah was gone, Ambrose was first in line.

The deal must've been tempting. Ambrose's dream was being handed to him and the only catch was to give your sister away.

Would he?

"Is it bad that I don't put it past him?" Mikasa whispers so quietly.

Everyone stares at her. They were all thinking it, she was just the only one who actually said it out loud.

"She can't marry him." Jean says. "She can't fucking marry the man who killed her parents! She doesn't deserve that!"

No one says anything. They all seemed too sad to even speak. Jean looks down at the papers scattered over the table that had Elijah's handwriting all over it. The writing was neat but hectic at the same time.

He imagined his friend, your oldest brother, here for hours on end scavenging this library for any useful information. He wondered if this is where Elijah was always disappearing to.

"I can't just stand here anymore." Jean collects his belongings. "I'm going."

"Are you insane?" Eren asks. "You're not going alone."

Jean spins around. "Why not? I was supposed to be protecting her! I was the one who left her alone and that's why she's missing."

Eren keeps his end going. "And that's exactly why you shouldn't be the one going after her alone. You've lost her twice now, we can't risk you doing it again." 

"I can find her like nothing!" Jean defends. "I've done it before the first time she went missing."

Now Mikasa joins. "Because she left you hints."

Jean angrily grabs the book and waves it in the air. "These are my hints! We know where she's at and she's obviously not going to be hidden. She'll be in the castle somewhere close to Marco."

Eren steps forward and speaks with his hands like he's lecturing a child. "Look, I get that you're a do-it-yourself kind of guy and you want to be the hero who takes all the credit but this is bigger than just you now. Let us help you."

"I don't need anyone's help!" Jean shouts.

"Okay, let's say you don't need our help," Phoenix begins. "That doesn't mean you couldn't use it. The more eyes, the better. Right?"

Eren carries on. "If this is about me taking the job in Marley, I'm sorry but you could've took the job and chose not to."

Jean felt like digging his nails through his face. "That's not what this is about!"

"You're upset because I'm leaving." Eren states. "Connie is dead. Marco is not even Marco. Ambrose is missing. Kai is in a coma and yn is somewhere far away. You're angry because I'm leaving and you'll be alone again."

Jean immediately begins to deny the accusations but before he can even get a full sentence in, Eren doesn't allow him to. "You're used to doing everything alone and I'm sorry I'm leaving
but you don't have to do this alone. I'm still here. You feel like you can't trust anyone. I get it. But you can trust us."

Jean looks around the room to see the people Eren referred to when he said the word 'us.'

Jean knew he could trust Eren. He was impulsive and irresponsible at times but he was loyal and dependable.

With Mikasa, he wasn't sure what she could bring to the table. Especially with one functioning arm. But she was the person closest to you and if Armin's theory is right and you might be far off the deep in, it may be good to see Mikasa's face to bring you back.

Armin was essential. He was like a human library and the person who figured this entire thing out. His help was needed for sure.

Finally, there was Phoenix. Jean was around royalty long enough to know that princes were required to have some kind of athletic training so he had to be useful in something. Besides, maybe it would help if you saw him too.

He couldn't believe this was his team. Not that he really wanted them to be. He felt he'd get a lot more things done faster on his own. No distractions, no complications.

"Fine." Jean replies. "I need to use the bathroom. We can discuss a plan when I get back."

Everyone nods as they huddle back around the table and study the map of Ember as Jean disappears out the library.

About 30 minutes pass and Armin looks up from the book and at the library door. Eren follows. "The bastard left, didn't he?"

Armin sighs. "It blows my mind how that trick works everytime."