Probably super weird to ask since I'm heavy EreAnnie still, but because of the new chapter, any chance for a weird Eren X Yelena fic?
a good ship! i love it! thank you for letting me write for you ^^ also tell me if you hate the ship name we can come up with a new one but i’m just bad at it
thank you to my shy editor who was afraid he would only be holding me back but has managed to make everything so much better 😙
Don’t Leave Me Alone
YeRena. Canonverse.
1326 words.
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She was hardly a child when her homeland had been invaded by Marley. They had taken her when she was just a little girl, ripped her from the arms of her mother, and forced her into the military with other children who had been stolen from their homes. Even now, she can hardly recall the faces of her parents or what her old house looked like. Whenever she tries to remember her childhood, all she can remember are the cruel military officers that would work them until they collapsed, molding them into weapons they could use because they were worth less than the citizens of Marley.
Yelena remembers sleeping on mattresses so hard that they felt like stone, pressed up against strangers because the Marleyan officers refused to give them enough space to sleep. It didn’t matter if they ended up suffocating from being cramped into such cramped quarters. After all, Marley could always round up even more prisoners from the countries they conquered and force them to be their soldiers. Yelena remembers that thought the most—the constant reminder that even though she could be used, she was still disposable in the end. It’s a thought that terrified the rest of the prisoners around her. They would weep beside her—not just young girls next to her but even grown men in the corner of the cabin when they thought no one was awake—because they were afraid they would be abandoned when they were found to be useless for being too weak or too slow.
But, Yelena never shed a tear. While the rest of those around her were constantly threatened by the thought of being thrown away, Yelena used it to become stronger.
She gritted her teeth even as her body was covered in cuts and bruises. She fought, and she killed. She even stained her hands with the blood of the innocent if that is what they wanted. Whatever they believed a soldier should do, Yelena did it. If she could be used by them, they would be less likely to dispose of her. All she had to do was survive.
But even as she climbed the ranks, she knew that her safety could never be ensured. It wasn’t just the fact that she could be killed in battle at any moment. It was also the fact that no matter how loyal and strong she proved herself to be, the Marley could get rid of her on a whim. If they became suspicious of how she was climbing the ranks so steadily, if they found her to be a potential threat, or if they simply just wanted someone to use as a scapegoat for their problems, they could easily just do away with her.
It’s what had led her to follow Zeke in the end. Perhaps his plan was uncertain to bring about any real change, but she could easily slip away and act as if she had no idea about his plan to overthrow Marley. If he succeeded, she would finally be free of Marley’s chains. In the end, she had more to gain than she had to lose by following him, so she slipped away onto a ship to Paradis only to betray all of the Marleyan soldiers on board, forcing the others with her to become prisoners—or “volunteers,” she told them because it was a kinder word—to the Eldians of Paradis because she was sure it would set her free. She even greeted the monstrous Attack Titan—the famed Eren Jaeger that Zeke had told her would be the key to achieving true freedom—with open arms as she readied herself to build his trust in her by doing everything he wanted.
In time, she became a spy not just for Paradis, but for Eren as well. She would feed him the information he wanted—about Marley’s Titans, their military, their allies, their weapons—and he would trust her.
She could, of course, always align herself with the Eldians instead of plotting behind their back with Zeke and Eren. The only problem is that they would never truly trust her. She could see that in the way they looked at her, so she dedicated herself to serving the Jaeger brothers instead, believing that they would be her key to freedom.
But it seems she must have miscalculated, she thinks as she sits in the little cabin that serves as her prison. It’s admittedly nicer than any place she had ever been housed in as a Marleyan soldier, but being there alone still fills her with a dreadful lonely feeling no matter how hard she tries to shake it off. It is just a setback, she tries to convince herself, and she can easily make her way out by choosing her words carefully, tricking the Eldian officers that she is innocent of any crime or at least did not mean any harm in her actions. All she needs to do is stay calm and things will work out, but she finds herself growing more and more panicked with every passing second.
The plan is to break Eren out of prison and have those who were still free to help those who had been imprisoned—Yelena, Floch, Zeke, and the others—to escape, but Yelena fears she has been forgotten or worse—left behind.
It’s then that she comes faced with the fear that she had tried to ignore all those years before. She had not become stronger to fight against her kidnappers or escape to another place; she had become stronger because she was afraid of being left behind. She had convinced herself that if she became strong enough, fast enough—then they would never abandon her, but it seems she was wrong all along. Even after all of her hard work, her careful plotting, her loyalty—she was still being left behind. The worst of it is that she can’t even turn around and find a way out. She had betrayed the Marleyans, shown her true colors to the Eldians, and now the Jaeger brothers have left her to rot on this island.
But maybe it’s what she deserves, Yelena thinks as she stands by the window, looking out into the world that she had so desperately wanted to be a part of. She had been so pathetic—allowing others to use her and using others in whatever way it benefitted her—that it only makes sense that she be denied the one thing she so desires.
And so she swallows it down, the realization that she’ll be left behind like she was always afraid she would be and tries to accept it even though the thought of it is draining away her will to live any longer now that she knows her whole life is a waste. Even after enduring so many things just getting here—killing people, sacrificing others, betraying others only to be betrayed herself—somehow this is unbearable. She wishes she had died that night in Liberio instead.
But just then the door opens and she turns to see Eren Jaeger, thinner than he was when she saw him last and tired from the journey here, and she’s sure she’s dreaming. His followers had always called him a hero, but she only understands why when she sees him now in the doorway looking completely disheveled, still barefoot because he hadn’t even bothered to grab shoes before traveling here to free her.
“You came for me,” Yelena says to him in disbelief. She hasn’t moved from her spot. It all seems like a dream to her.
“Of course,” he replies. “How could I ever leave you behind?”
He says it so easily that it surprises her. To believe her to be so important that abandoning her is unthinkable… it makes her want to fall to her knees and thank him a thousand times over, but he holds out his hand and she takes it instead, allowing him to take her wherever he wants because she knows now that she’ll never be alone.
Hey Lunar! Just wanted to give you a shout out for SnK positivity week! The fandom kinda needs it right now, and that's why I'm glad for being able to read all of your stories and being able to see your artwork on here! Love how you write and portray the best ship ever! (EreAnnie) despite what the manga has done to us all at this point. Well hope things stay great for you! Wish you a happy day
Haha! Hey you’re the one who always reviews my stories on FF.Net! Thank you so much for the support, writers thrive off of kind reviews, and same to you! Yeah, I’m glad I could contribute whatever I can to this small ship, even when the series finishes, ereani would be that pairing I would remember fondly. especially for the angst
