PSL / MEME CONTINUATION

[thecoordinate]

Comments

[thecoordinate]

[There are no more words of comfort from Eren. At her pained hissing, he merely glances at her, then begins preparing the bandages again. But, to his credit, his usual outright cruelness seems to be about as present as his glimpse of kindness - not so at all.]

Sit up. You can.

[headhooligan]

[Alright. Fine. Aubrey’s hand drops, finally, though it’s with less enthusiasm than she’d normally muster. Her grip feels really cold, now.]

[She glares at him, somewhat, but obeys anyway. Like hell if he’s gonna catch her whining about something simple as that. But again, Aubrey tries too much too fast, and although she does haul herself up it sends another bolt through her abdomen, and on instinct she grabs at it. Which also hurts, so she lets go of that, too, and it’s…]

[Well. It’s embarrassing.]

[Her gaze travels down to nothing in particular, resting on the medicine bag as she tries to catch her breath again.] What… was that…?

[There’s a lot of things that could be about.]

[thecoordinate]

[When Aubrey rears up in pain, one of Eren’s hands, on instinct, comes to support her back. The other hovers over her hands, ready to move them if needed.

[It seems his protective streak hasn’t quite ended.

[He pulls his hands back after a moment, and answers dryly:]

Antiseptic. I already told you.

[Possible that’s not what she’s asking.]

you know how it is

[headhooligan]

[She doesn’t notice his hands until they’ve left. At his comment Aubrey manages an exhaled wheeze that kind of resembles a laugh. Which, surprise surprise, also hurts… good thing she doesn’t do that often.]

Genius. [There’s more of a sentence, before that, but it’s marginally safer to cut to the chase. Easier, really. She makes a nod at his hands.] That. [It’s a start.]

[thecoordinate]

[He briefly follows her gaze to his hands. They're as smooth and pristine as ever. The wound from earlier is long gone. All that remains is some dried blood.]

The transformation, you mean.

[He says it more like a statement than a question.]

[headhooligan]

[The connection does not fully register to Aubrey (transformation of what, the thing or…? Her eyes on his hands is more incidental than anything), but it’s not like she hasn’t noticed his ritual un/clenching. So she nods.]

[thecoordinate]

[As if on cue, Eren flexes his hand - clenching, unclenching, just like she's seen a million times now.]

Self-injury and intention trigger the transformation. What you saw was my Titan.

[He doesn't have the Founder's power here; no way to accomplish that without Zeke. Luckily, that didn't affect his ability to utilize the Attack and Warhammer Titans.]

[headhooligan]

[Self-injury.]

[Aubrey saw a lot, sees the blood dried on his hands (whose?), but that detail stands out like the red streaks down his eyes. Maybe they’ve faded by now. She hasn’t met his eyes since sitting up.]

Why. [That’s all, really.]

[thecoordinate]

[The streaks on his eyes are slightly duller than they were before, but still present, running deep grooves in his skin.]

I was saving your life.

[As if to punctuate this, he lifts her shirt just slightly - just enough to expose the wound - and then, he starts wrapping the bandages gently around her torso, hands careful and precise.]

You should be thanking me.

[headhooligan]

[A retort rises and dies in her throat.]

[His voice, as expected—not gentle. His hands, the wrapping—]

Why.

[More insistent. She doesn’t move.]

[thecoordinate]

[Silently, he wraps her wound. It takes several minutes to do it properly - pin the bandages in place, ensure they're wrapped tightly enough, adjusting here and there for comfort. He doesn't speak the entire time.

[Finally, he pulls his hands away, begins putting things back into Grisha's bag. He doesn't look at her.]

I don't know.

[headhooligan]

[It’s a long silence.]

[Aubrey wants to be somewhere else. The bandaging, adjusting, binds her here.]

[She doesn’t respond. Just breathing. Eren’s. Hers.]

[“I don’t know.”

[What a joke.]

Does that scare you?

[She doesn’t look at him, either.]

[thecoordinate]

[There's another pause, significant. He closes his father's bag.]

Does it scare you?

[headhooligan]

[Very, very funny. Eren might catch a faint, quick expression cross Aubrey’s face; it’s not fear.]

I asked first.

[And if (and only if) he hesitates, or starts to deflect again:] Answer me.

[thecoordinate]

[At the "answer me", Eren's gaze sharpens into a glare.]

You don't get to tell me what to do.

Am I afraid of you? Not by a long shot. I could tear you to pieces if I wanted to. I know you're well aware of that now.

[And yet he's still! Deflecting!]

[headhooligan]

[She meets his glare. No irritation; not amused.]

You won’t.

[thecoordinate]

Don't bet on that.

[headhooligan]

Hm.

I don’t care. Answer me.

[thecoordinate]

I have answered you.

[He can do this all day.]

[headhooligan]

[Game on.]

Why would I ever think you’re afraid of me. [Come on.]

[thecoordinate]

Tell me what you're asking, then.

I spared your life. What does that have to do with fear? Be grateful I didn't let you die.

[headhooligan]

Kh. “Spared.”

[She doesn’t have the energy to taunt him proper, but she can talk now. She can talk juuuust fine.]

Don’t be stupid, Jaeger. You say you don’t know why you did that. Does that scare you?

an apt icon for how he's feeling rn

[thecoordinate]

It isn't that serious.

[aubrey voice] i won’t hesitate, bitch

[headhooligan]

[Aubrey doesn’t know if she should feel smug or pissed. Good thing she’s getting better at staying blank-faced, huh?]

You’re still not answering me.

[thecoordinate]

No. It doesn't.

[A lie? Possibly.]

I saw that you were in danger and took action. I'm a sold-- [He cuts himself off sharp.]

I did what my instincts told me to. That's all.

[Which is why he caught her when she fell, spoke to her in soft tones, gently laid her on her back, brought her to a safe place, tenderly wrapped her bandage...

[Even he thinks he's full of shit.]

Next time I'll let that thing tear you to shreds.