𝐚𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬 | 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬

The Other Side - Hange x Reader

Hange x Reader / Comfort AU

The following one-shot has spoilers for AOT Season 4 episodes 1-3. This takes place before recovering Eren in Marley, before Tybur's speech. It is in the point of view of Y/N and the Scout Regiment. 

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We sat there in the dark, nothing surrounding us but canvas lining and the all too familiar metallic smell of a crimson. Personally, I couldn't feel much around me, but I could sense the little things. The small draft that was blowing from an open hatch of the airship. The breathing of my comrades that sat on the floor with me, their breath quick but becoming shallow.

No one had died yet, nor had our spirit. But we could be dead in a minute or two, and we'd rather not think about what that sensation felt like.

My new ODM gear was smudged with dirt and grime from the canisters, giving off a stench that wasn't necessarily pleasant. All in all, the airship wasn't smelling too good, but the dirty feeling that was physically on me was something that I had never gotten used to. That was something that several of my comrades shared, but it's not like there was anything we could do about it. We swore that the stench of an Eldian was almost as strong as the sea.

That name, Eldian. I haven't gotten used to that either. Not since the war started, not since Eren suddenly didn't seem like the person I used to know. Not ever since we found out that our life, our world, was nothing but a small island that couldn't even be compared to the rest of this "planet".

Devils. I shuddered a little at the name. Eldians. That's what we were.

"Y/N?"

I lifted my head to see someone in front of me, a pretty person with recklessly chopped hair and an eye patch over one eye. They looked at me with their eye, and something about their gaze was like a loving older sibling's.

"Hange Commander," I said, and my voice shook a bit. Shit, I cursed at myself. The last thing I wanted was to show any sort of weakness or fear. I was an Eldian from Paradise Island, who had experienced terrors no one else could ever imagine. I'd faced death so many times before, but even now I didn't have the luxury of being afraid.

"You alright?" they asked.

I looked up to them, face surrounded in the dark. "Yeah. I'm ready to fight."

They nodded their head and backed away, sitting themselves in front me. One by one others came to join us, my best friends since we started training together in the 104 Cadet Corps. Faces were looking grim, but I knew that I didn't look much better. Sasha and Connie sat next to each other, Sasha's face resting into Connie's lap like a pillow. Jean opened a small crack in the sliding door to let in some light, helping us better see each other.

Levi stood in a corner. I don't think I really wanted to be seen like this.

"We've come a long way, haven't we?" Jean said finally. "From the 104th, I mean."

"A long way is just a little bit of an understatement, isn't it?" Connie argued, but he forced a smile.

Sasha remained on his lap and dug into his pants pocket, where she found a small, ugly, meager piece of bread. It was slightly molded and I didn't want to know how long that it had been there, but I still would've given anything to eat it.

Sasha scarfed it up.

Connie's smile stayed. "But maybe some things never change."

"Still though," I started. "Who would've thought a few good years ago that this would be our life? We've planned this siege for what, three years now? And look at us, we aren't much better than where we started."