The Burdens We Bare

Chapter 3: It's Time

Present time

Unbeknownst to the girl, a few tears had fallen from her eyes. Erwin was unsure of what to do, but slowly reached out to wipe her tears. (Y/N), who appeared to be in a trance, jerked away from the movement. She wiped her face with the back of her hand before making eye contact with the man in front of her.

"Uh...so you are the daughter of George and Lisa (L/N) then?" Erwin asked after the silence. (Y/N) clenched her jaw at the mention of her parents. "You know, they have told everyone a very different story."

"And what would that be?" the girl asked emotionlessly.

"You decided to run away after corrupting Caleb's mind. Because of the corruption, Caleb decided to follow you, throwing everything that he had worked for away. Their story never sat well with me and now I know why. I didn't know the extent that George would go to to keep his reputation," Erwin explained.

"Yea, well my parents were always good at lying about what I had been doing. Caleb was the only person that ever cared about me. And now, this is all I have left of him." (Y/N) replied, clutched the necklace that had been around her neck. When she was 4, she had spent hours carving out the circle and tying the twine together to make the necklace. She had given it to Caleb for his birthday. Even though it wasn't much, Caleb loved it. It was the only thing she was able to find the morning after they were left outside the wall.

(Y/N) wasn't sure how long she had spaced out for, but when she snapped back into reality, Erwin was looking at her. He wore a look that she found familiar, but she couldn't place it. He seemed to be lost in thought and spaced out as well. (Y/N) grew increasingly uncomfortable before clearing her throat.

"So.. uh.. Are there any other questions that I can answer for you?" The sound of her voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Not that I can think of. Just to recap, you are 13 right now correct? That means you were 7 when your father abandoned you, which means you were out there on your own for 6 years right?" (Y/N) nodded a response to all of the questions.

6 years. Wow. I was out there for a long time. That means Alex is 26, Darren is 20, Jess is 15 and Caleb... Caleb would be 24.

"Well then. That is all the information that I need from you, unless you have other information to tell me" Erwin waited for a response. There was a lot more that she could tell him about herself. There was a secret that only her family knew about, but it was also the reason that they despised her. However looking at it from a strategic standpoint, her...abilities...could help her out of this situation.

"Hey wait, I have a few questions too. It's at least fair you let me ask them." Erwin looked over at her. He gave a small chuckle before nodding.

"First, I would like to know where Tsuki is." The look that crossed Erwin's face let (Y/N) know that he had no idea what she was talking about. Soon, a look of understanded appeared on his face.

"Ah yes. The wolf that was your travel partner. We have her in a cage where she is being taken care of. She is quite a beautiful specimen. Hange has been all over her since she got here." (Y/N) was not a fan of her friend being in a cage, but at least she was nearby and safe. Erwin waited for the next question.

"Ok then. What is going to happen to me Commander Erwin?" (Y/N) watched as his face faltered from the stoic look he held. Though it was for only a moment, it let (Y/N) know that it wasn't the best of news.

"I wish I could tell you young (Y/N). However, there are a lot of people that need to be brought in in order to make a decision. Until then we will just have to wait and see." (Y/N)'s gaze fell to the ground in front of her. After taking a deep breath, she returned Erwin's gaze and offered half a smile. He returned it before turning and leaving the room. (Y/N) sat in silence for a while before someone entered her room. She looked up to see a short man standing at the foot of her bed.