victory_road | o9

So, uh... I was going through some of the pictures I first took on my Pokegear and the first one was labeled for today. A year ago. It's almost hard to believe that I've been here for that long, and I only realized in May that I don't want to go back home. It probably sounds selfish, but things are, um... They're better here, and...

_{[Bertolt seems to hesitate for a moment, then he swings his camera around to focus on his Arcanine sprawled out on his back and taking up the entire space on the floor between his bed and the other in his hotel room.}

I couldn't leave him behind. It's even harder to believe that he was barely thirty pounds and didn't even reach my knee when I got here, and now he's got to be around five-hundred and even taller than I am.

_{[One of his Arcanine's feet kick and he shifts around so he's more or less completely upside down, his jowls flopping out to show off his big ol' pearly whites. He's sort of smiling for the camera in his sleep now!]}

I think if I was given the choice to go home or stay here, I'd choose the latter. _{[Bertolt stretches his leg out and now he's rubbing his Arcanine's chest with his foot, which earns a low, content rumble that sounds more bear than dog. Gods, why are these Pokemon so ridiculous?]}

If you had the option, uh... What would you choose? And why?

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I--

[He hesitates but that has nothing to do with Bertolt. He trusts Bertolt fully. It's... It's Bertolt, after all. What he doesn't trust, not fully, is his own judgement. Is he actually right? If he is, perhaps Bertolt deserves to know too. But if he isn't, and it is not like he had any proof, telling him something like that might cause a lot of problems in the future. Not that he expects Bertolt to react too rashly should Annie ever arrive here, but if she is that dangerous, he doesn't want to put his friend at risk.]

It's... it's just an idea I have. I'm not sure if it is right for me to say it out loud. I might not be right at all.

...Do you want me to come to your room?

_{[Saying it over the network is one thing, but what about face-to-face? That'd alleviate some of the conflict in regards to it, right? No one else would overhear it that way. It's not as if the walls have ears or their Pokemon would know what to do with any of that information, after all.]}

[Armin chews his bottom lip uncertainly. If he is going to talk about this to Bertolt he will certainly not do it over the network. But he's still not sure if he should at all.]

I don't know. It's just that... if I'm wrong, and I might be, I don't want to get people unnecessarily upset.

[You know, by accusing one of them of being a traitor.]

_{[Bertolt's brows furrow and his gaze drops to Marcel for a few moments.]}

Have you told anyone?

_{[He can't lie to himself - there's a small part of him that feels bothered in knowing that something that sounds so important has been kept under wraps for over a year. It has to be important, otherwise Armin wouldn't want to go home, right?]}

[Yes. Important information being kept under wraps. That certainly is not something Bertolt has any experience with doing.]

Jean and I... discussed it once. But that was a while ago.

[Which means that, yes, Armin hadn't even told this to Eren or Mikasa while they were here. In fact, those two would've been the worst people to tell, in his opinion. They tended to completely take him at his word, and Eren at least, responded far too emotionally. Seeing as he might be wrong, he didn't want to create a scene.]

_{[Bertolt glances over towards the empty bed in the room, then back down to Marcel. Why only Jean? If he was so worried about upsetting people, why tell anyone in that case?

Unless...]}

If it's that important, why haven't you told the rest of us? Don't we have a right to know?

_{[It can't involve Reiner, could it? He knows he's safe and more importantly, alive. Even four years in the future, he's still alive. Nothing could've happened to him that he remembers hearing from the other man.]}

[In his defence, he hadn't really intended to tell Jean at all. He had slipped up in an unguarded, chaotic moment, and Jean hadn't taken no for an answer.]

I don't think we as soldiers have a right to know.

[After all, didn't many tactics depend on people not knowing certain bits of information? That had been crucial during their mission outside of the walls as well, and as many people as had died during that manoeuvre to try and catch the Female Titan, Armin can't say it was the wrong decision. Considering what had been at stake and what Commander Erwin had been suspecting, keeping certain information to himself and a select number of soldiers had been the only way to proceed.]

It is important but it is only something I suspect. I have no proof and I could very easily be wrong. I think spreading potential misinformation around can be more dangerous than keeping it to myself. If I turn out to be wrong, I could really hurt people. That's why I want Commander Erwin to judge my thoughts. I think if there is anyone who can determine whether I am right or wrong, it is him.

What I suspect is... not something that is putting anyone at risk while we are here. So you don't have to worry about that.

[Annie isn't here, after all. And if she ever arrived here... well, Armin would have to decide what to do then.]

Edited 2017-10-03 11:46 (UTC)

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