Jaw

Chapter 17

They stood outside the same building the Warriors had left from all those years ago. Silena wondered if anyone had been inside since then.

The cadet that had escorted them had long since left them at the door, saluting shakily before running off. There was no reason to be waiting, really. Nothing stopping them from going inside and seeing their childhood friends again.

Porco was tense at her side. They were close enough to touch, but they didn't. Still, she could feel the muscles in his forearms, revealed by the rolled up sleeves of his button-up, flexing every few seconds.

Not that she could blame him. His one and only brother (and the source of most of his parents' insanity) had been gone for a whole five years. In that time, they had both grown beyond each others' memories– nerves were normal. Pieck had been gone for a little under a year, and Silena was anxious about seeing her again.

"Are you alright?" Silena asked quietly. She dared a glance to his face, watching his jaw clench and unclench.

"Yes," he replied, barely a whisper. Then, impossibly quieter, "No."

Silena smiled as she heaved a heavy sigh. "Good. Me neither."

It was her hand that opened the splintering doors, but Porco took the lead, setting their quick pace. As Silena walked through the dingy old hall, she swore she saw the ghosts of her and Pieck running across the dirty carpet.

The double doors leading to the main room were open. Silena could see Zeke's blond hair over Porco's shoulder. He was smoking, from what she could tell, and his beard seemed to have gotten thicker in the time he was gone. He looked up when they arrived, a grimace barely visible through his facial hair. That was strange.

"You took your time," was all he said when they entered.

"I think the messenger got lost," Silena said. It might as well have been the truth.

Porco, who had barely cast a glance to Zeke, asked, "Where's my brother? And where the hell are Leonhardt and Pieck?"

Now that he mentioned it, the room was a little empty. Aside from the three of them, there were only two other men there. Silena assumed they were Reiner and Bertholdt– but, Ymir, she was having trouble handling the idea of those two buff men being her childhood friends.

"Pieck is at home resting," Zeke replied coolly. "She's been in her Cart form for a year; that's very taxing for her."

"And Marcel?" Asked Porco.

A moment of tense, uncomfortable silence passed. Silena bit her nails while she watched Zeke's impassive face.

"Where the hell is my brother, Zeke?"

Zeke turned to Reiner and Bertholdt instead. "Would you mind taking Silena into the hall?"

Silena allowed herself to be led away by Reiner, while Bertholdt closed the doors behind them. He took them to the end of the corridor and stopped, watching Bertholdt hurry to catch up. As they stood in an awkward clump, it became increasingly apparent that neither man had any idea what to say.

So Silena broke the ice. "Where are they?" She murmured.

Both of them tensed before her. It was strange to see such tall men (and Ymir they were tall– and so buff!) look so nervous at such a simple question.

"Annie's still in Paradis," Betholdt admitted. He had changed the least out of the two– which wasn't saying much at all. He still had the same perfect olive skin and doe eyes as he'd had as a child, but his hair was longer and he was bigger in every way. "We're sure the devils are keeping her alive, but we have no idea where she is. We're going back for her, though, we have to. And Marcel..." he took a shuddery breath before breaking off completely.