rollcharisma | PSL / MEME CONTINUATION

Not if we stop you.

And we will.

We have to.

Would that kill him?

[A short, sharp exhale; might be a laugh if there were anything even remotely funny about this conversation. Eren feels fed up - with Aubrey, with Armin, with this argument.]

I'm dead either way.

Oh will you just save it?

[Armin glares at Eren. It's probably one of the only times in his life that he has glared at Eren. Talk about fed up. He can't stomach the cold, condescending look on his friend's face; the flippant way in which he talks about his death, as if it won't kill Armin in a thousand ways too. When Armin thinks of Mikasa and how she'll have to cope without either of them, he feels rage.]

Your lifespan is reaching its end, so your solution is to make your friends hunt you down and kill you themselves? You really are selfish, aren't you?

I know you're suffering, Eren. I know your burden is insurmountable, and I know you want it all to be over--

[Armin cuts Eren off before he can protest.]

No. I'm talking now, and you can listen. You owe me that much, Eren, and you know it.

[Eren goes to speak again. He chokes as the universe takes his voice. His eyes rage; truly a cornered animal. Armin looks pained.]

Eren, I am not your enemy. We are not your enemy. We love you, and we know we're going to lose you, but God. Don't make us lose you like this! Don't make us kill you!

[Eren strains desperately at his chains. He still can't speak.]

[So he really is good as dead.]

[Armin’s the one raging, but it’s Eren who fixates Aubrey. Eren, chained by a world that hates him, where screams like the memory must be part of the background noise; Eren, chained by fear; Eren Jaeger, chained by himself. He’s helpless, choked, hurting.]

Leave him alone… [Just a mutter, barely audible, as Armin fires barrage after pleading barrage. Aubrey can’t pretend it’s not fair. She wants to jump into the abyss and take him with her.]

[When Eren strains, her free hand reaches for his, as if an instinct. It’s Eren she faces, aching, even as she speaks to Armin:]

Then lose him here. [Just as thoughtless.] I’ll show him the ocean, both of you— He has a chance…

[He has to.]

[Aubrey reaches for his hand, and Eren takes hers, wrapping his fingers tightly around her own. It's an instinct in and of itself, but more too. In doing it, he wonders if he'd ever be able to resist Aubrey if she reached for him. Part of him really doubts that.

[He'd felt frantic until she turned to face him. He stares at her now, eyes locked on eyes, unwavering; even as she speaks to Armin. He still can't speak himself (or...does he just not know what to say?).

[The moment strikes him deeply. It makes a little flame light in his chest. It isn't a war, but if it were, Aubrey would be on his side. Compared to Armin, Eren must really look like a monster; she chose him anyway.

["SO WHAT IF HE’S A MONSTER! YOU LOVE HIM ANYWAY! DON'T YOU? YOU WANT TO GIVE HIM EVERYTHING"]

[The small "Leave him alone," barely registers. Armin's too impassioned, too angry; he's finally getting a chance to say what he's been feeling in his chest for months - God, and it isn't even the beginning, but then...Aubrey speaks again.

[Armin turns to her. She isn't looking at him. She's looking at Eren, and Eren is looking at her. It's not difficult to place the expression; it's a look that Armin is extremely familiar with, in fact. Eren used to look at him that way too.

["He has a chance..."

[Will Armin Arlert's tears ever dry? The anger crumbles out of his expression. He looks helpless instead; so very, very sorrowful.

[There's hope there too. Always hope. Armin has to keep clinging to it somehow. He has to.]

I want him to have that chance. [His voice is hushed with grief.]

I'm not racing to get him home. It's nothing like that.

I want him to live. I want him to be happy. Of course I do...

[Eren meets her grip, her eyes. “Yes. Yes.” He didn’t need to say that twice (didn’t want to say it at all), but…

[Aubrey doesn’t want to break the moment. She’d take him in both hands then and there, but she’s still hooked to Armin, and it’s him who speaks instead. And his words surprise her, again.

[Just for a moment, not wanting to leave Eren long, Aubrey turns back to Armin—though she really didn’t have to, emotion hushing his voice. As soon as she sees his tears they spring to her eyes, too. For once, Aubrey doesn’t resist them.]

Then we both do.... [She tugs Armin’s hand a little, invites him forward.] And while we’re here…

[Back to Eren. Her thumb strays, trying to rub beneath his cuff; that must really hurt....] Maybe we can.

[Eren should be protesting. He's not. He tells himself he still can't speak. He keeps his eyes on Aubrey. Then Armin takes his other hand, sending a shockwave up his arm. He looks at him.

[All Eren can think is that he doesn't deserve this. Any of this. They want to keep him here to prevent The Rumbling; that would be the easy, flippant, bitter answer. That's what makes the most sense. He should be rebelling against that. They're trying to stop him.

[But they're not. They love him. Aubrey is running her thumb over his sore wrists. Armin is squeezing his fingers. They're both crying, and they're both looking at him, and he knows what love looks like, he knows love.

[He has to swallow down a lump in his throat. It's too much. All of this...]

We'll do that then...

[Armin squeezes Eren's hand again. Then, he drops it, and runs his hand over one of the chains instead.]

This isn't necessary. Chained up like an animal...

[The shackle Armin's touching releases. Eren pulls his hand away, immediately twisting it around. It does look like it hurts.]

(the icon is, in spirit, from this art)

[Ah… it looks so easy, when Armin does it. Well, if that’s all it takes…

[Aubrey keeps her hand in Eren’s. She just flicks her thumb against the metal, and off it breaks—and without wasting another moment she throws her arms around him. (The cuff to Armin may break, it may not. He’s welcome to join, regardless.)]

[The cuff does indeed break from Armin's wrist, and the embrace is all Aubrey's; Aubrey's and Eren's that is. There isn't a second of hesitation. He wraps his arms around her, gripping the back of her head. His eyes are closed. At the moment, he doesn't care what Armin might see. Aubrey's reaching for him...

[He loves her desperately.]

[It only stings a little that Eren doesn't show Armin the same affection; he gets it. He and Eren have been at odds. They haven't had any time alone to talk about it - and there's so much to talk about.

[He took his hand. That's enough for now.

[Armin barely knows Aubrey. He's endlessly grateful for her. There has been a change in Eren, and Armin's positive that she's to thank for that.

[Just look at them...He lets them have their moment.]

[It’s not by any means the first time they’ve hugged, been close, embraced any of that; but somehow, it’s the first that feels really, truly free. Maybe it’s the chains breaking, apt as ever. Aubrey’s here, Eren’s here, and he’s embracing her and he’s embracing, or at least not protesting, hope.

[It was never truly lost, was it?]

[Aubrey indulges for a good while, squeezing Eren back tight with her arms around his shoulders. But Armin’s here, too, of course; Aubrey plants a quick kiss on Eren’s cheek, because what is subtlety, then rests her head on his chest as she turns back to face his other friend. Which she’s a little shy about, maybe apologetic, but it doesn’t feel bad. She’s still smiling.]

[Eren wouldn't dare move Aubrey from where she is. He wants her head on his chest. He keeps his arms loosely around her, even as they both look at Armin. He's tired of hiding things - of hiding everything. Aubrey's his. Armin should know.

[He should say sorry. He should say "I love you." He should say...something, but...

[What can you say when you've broken someone that badly? When you know that you'd break them again if the circumstances were different? That's what these two are trying to say, though. They're all here. They have no reason to suspect that they'll be leaving any time soon...]

Armin.

[The name is so familiar on his tongue. It's Armin, for fuck's sake. How did Eren let them drift so far apart? He's not sure he'll ever be able to repair the damage he's done; he's not even sure it would be worth trying. More pain for Armin, and all he gets for it is Eren.]

Forget my message...

[The mention of Eren's message makes Armin want to cringe, but he manages a weak smile instead.]

I wasn't going to listen to your stupid message anyway.

[His tone is subdued, but lighthearted all the same. He's just glad that...maybe things will calm down now, and then, they can talk.

[Hell, they don't even have to talk about anything going on back home. Armin would almost like not to. It would be nice to see his friend again, and just leave it at that...Even if just for the moment.]

Where do we go from here, then...?

[He takes a glance around the space surrounding them.]

There's definitely a lot to take in...

[Let them stay together a little longer...]

[Aubrey doesn’t feel broken at all; or at least, a lot less so in Eren’s arms. Never mind that he’s been… a contributor, too. She was forgetting about his message to Armin already. It’s really easy to forget how cold he can be, in general, like this.

[And, while she’s like this, she doesn’t want to break it. He’s warm, and she’s his.]

[Still, Aubrey gets the feeling Armin’s not just talking about the store. She answers like he is, anyway, not leaving Eren but glancing around a bit. Maybe now’s a good time to leave the screen aisle…]

Right. Department store. [Since Eren didn’t get that part, probably.] They sell all sorts of things here… we probably don’t even have to pay. [Because money mattering here would be the biggest crime of all.]

[It feels a little strange to speak so casually after...all of what just happened, but Eren certainly doesn't want to dwell on any of it, so he stays agreeable.

[He realizes that he is very, very relieved at having Aubrey close to him. Chained up the way he was, she'd seemed...inaccessible. He didn't like that. If they were alone, he'd be kissing her.

[All that being said, this is the first time Eren's actually gotten a chance to process what he's looking at. A lot to take in - Armin wasn't kidding. His frown is...something between perplexed and curious.]

Things like what?

Some of the strangest things you've ever seen.

[The sound of Armin's voice surprises Eren - almost startles him. That's because Armin sounds more like he did in he and Eren's memories, showing off his book, than he did a few minutes ago. He doesn't mean to dismiss all that they've been through, but he had only barely begun processing the sensory onslaught of Wal-Mart when Aubrey first got shackled to him. This place is completely mind-blowing to him.]

I can make heads or tails out of almost anything here. Aubrey seems to know, though - don't you, Aubrey?

[Armin’s first comment gets a light huff of a laugh out of Aubrey. She feels a bit like someone just slapped a her with a nametag and dubbed her a tour guide. Not the worst thing to happen lately, by a long shot. Sure, maybe it’s a little too casual too fast, but it’s not like the bounceback is new....]

[“…don’t you, Aubrey?”
That almost makes her suppresses a flinch, though. But it’s Armin talking, not the disembodied voice. Nothing to lie about, anyway.]

Some of it. The basic stuff, like clothing, food, books… I didn’t browse much. [A little too busy ramming carts into things, the works.] Like, all this [—and here she lets one hand go, to gesture around—] is bizarre to me, too.

[The hand then reaches for one of Eren’s, as she finally steps back; it’s a casual thing. Aubrey’s tempted to start tugging him along like she did Armin earlier, but she doesn’t want to tempt the world again… The urge is channeled instead through a couple steps in that directiom.] Describe some of the other strange things, though. I might know about them.

[Everything in this universe seems to go from "casual" to "decidedly not casual" in the blink of an eye. It's the only way to cope with the turbulence. Aside from that, Eren's options are to either ice up again, to talk honestly about his feelings, or to look around Wal-Mart and pretend neither of the first two options exist. Let's go with that.

[He's not ready for Aubrey to be away from his chest, but he takes her hand as a consolation, and lets her start leading the way.]

[Armin follows, noting the way that Eren keeps his hand in Aubrey's. Is that more for her benefit, or for his? He's never really seen him act that way around someone else. Who knew Eren Jaeger could still find love after all of this?

[Armin knew that, actually. Armin knew that, because he knows that Eren Jaeger loves fast, and hard, and desperate, and violent. Armin also knows what it can mean to be loved by Eren Jaeger.

[Aubrey's a nice girl. He hopes this place will be gentle with them. Recalling the thousand bloody screens only a few minutes ago, he doubts it. In that, he hopes that Eren will, at least, be gentle with her. He is right now. That's all Armin can see, though.

[Focusing on Wal-Mart does sound like the easiest option right now, yeah.]

I was passing through this one aisle - I think it was mostly children's toys, but some of them played music, lit up, or even moved. Then, with the cooking utensils, there were all sorts of strange, colorful contraptions. I couldn't even begin to tell you what they do.

[He bets Niccolo and Sasha would really get a kick out of--

[Ah...

[Nevermind...that...]

[Aubrey’s a little surprised that Armin’s not asking about… a lot of things, really. But it’s fine. They’ve both seen a lot. For now, life is like this, and maybe it really can stay fine. Just don’t try to introduce some wild new thing, don’t dredge up everything, keep it relaxed… steel up, don’t lose footing. Eren’s hand is in hers, and maybe everything will be okay.

[Plus, the thought of Armin poking around kids’ toys is frickin’ hilarious.]

Hah, maybe blenders or mixers? Mashes up food quick for ya. [This whole ordeal is giving her some questions about technology levels. Surely a society menaced by those things can’t waste resources on power lines; the ODM gear looks advanced, but it’s fuel-powered…

[Hopefully this is a safe topic.] Are you guys familiar with electricity? I mean, you didn’t seem too surprised by the diner, Armin; and Eren— [The elevator.] —well, we’ve been in other rooms with lights and all that. [There, vague is better.]

[Aubrey doesn’t notice anything amiss. If Armin and Eren aren’t looking, they’ll just hear a weirdly-timed pause. If they are looking, Aubrey (who isn’t facing either of them, walking slightly ahead of Eren) doesn’t seem to stop talking.
[But they won’t hear part of it.]

Edited (added detail for visual clarity) 2023-10-07 22:25 (UTC)

[Eren still has Aubrey's hand in his. Subconsciously, he squeezes it when he notices Aubrey's words go quiet - no sound, lips still moving. His expression goes tense. He looks at Armin. They both stop walking.]

Aubrey. Say that again.

[It can't be nothing. Aubrey's voice disappeared. Eren saw it too; they aren't mistaken. This will precede something. Armin's sure of it...]

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