(A/N: Disclaimer-The author of this Fanfiction does NOT own characters of "Shingeki no Kyojin" (commonly known as "Attack on Titan"), which is created by Hajime Isayama.

Eren, Mikasa an Armin are all 22-23 years old.)

++Eight years since humanity defeated the titan race.++

Eren yawned and rubbed his eyes. Bright sunlight shone through their open window like a large flashlight.

Dammit it's morning.

He pulled the covers over his head, but after a short attempt to go back to sleep he came out defeated. Giving up, he flung the sheets off his body in a short rage. The sun was awfully warm that day, making their room almost toasty feeling. He stretched his arms and legs and basked in the morning sun, the sun which had always been hidden behind the tall walls eight years ago. As he laid there to enjoy the golden rays, she mumbled, "Eren… go back to sleep."

The old Eren Jaeger would have acted stubbornly towards her, but he rarely did that now. Normally he would have yelled "you're not my mom!", but today he just stayed quiet. There were no more titans to ruin his life, and he found himself finally at peace.

He found himself under the warm rays of sunlight, outside the Walls, with the only one he loved. He smiled and turned to his right, towards a sleepy Mikasa, lying beside him. She was lying on her back with the covers up to her collarbone. Sunlight illuminated her fair skin and her long dark hair, making her even more beautiful. Eren was feeling dazed, either due to the fact that it was so early or that his wife seemed to be prettier by the day.

"Mikasa?" He whispered. No answer, but he smiled anyway. He gazed at her delicate features, how peaceful she looked when she was asleep. Eren snuggled back under the covers and shuffled closer to her, just like they had done when they were children.

Just as he got comfortable against her warm body, she issued a command. "Eren, let's get up".

Still feeling lazy and slightly irritated, he didn't reply and pretended to snooze off.

Mikasa sighed happily. She giggled at his fake snoring, and his breath that was a little too fast for a sleeping person. "You know, you could at least try to act better."

Mikasa looked at his sudden surprised expression, and they both began laughing.

"We're out of food. How about goinginside the walls to collect some supplies?" She teased, knowing he wasn't a morning person.

Eren frowned comically. If he refused her invitation she would win. If he accepted she would still win. He mumbled "fine" in defeat and grabbed a clean shirt hanging in their closet. Mikasa smiled and got dressed in a casual dress and blouse. She giggled knowing Eren would be blushing behind her, like he usually did, whether she turned around or not.

Many people like Eren and Mikasa had been bold enough to settle outside the Walls since the titans disappeared. Although they welcomed the change, it wasn't easy to live outside. The "Outsiders" weren't numerous enough to start markets and had to enter the walls to purchase food and supplies. Hunters like Sasha found it easy to adjust to living in the forests, but town-folk like Eren and Mikasa were not.

They each rode a horse, gifts from the King to all veteran soldiers. Mikasa rode Nutmeg and Eren road Lightning. They ran south-west to get to the gate opening into the Shiganshina district. Mikasa fell in step behind Eren as they approached the gates. It may be time consuming to get into and out of the Wall, but the duo had no hesitation returning to their old home. It would mean another chance to see Armin and his family, and their old neighbors.

Many things have changed since the new era of humans. A new policy created by the government was to make sure everybody had a personal identification card in order to enter in and out of the Walls. Since the population of mankind is predicted to increase they had to take measures to keep tabs on everyone. Eren and Mikasa both flashed their ID's at the gate and were granted entrance. As soon as they entered the walls, the aromas of fresh food and bread filled their nostrils, and the sight of a large marketplace welcomed them. More and more people moved outside the walls over the years, increasing the businesses on the outer perimeters.

It seems that almost everyone was out that morning, including their old friend, Armin. The young man was known for his brilliant mind. It was became quite a surprise when he had quit his job as Erwin's advisor to become a simple teacher. Seeing the old faces of his best friends, the young professor ran outside to greet them with a warm hug.

"Wow is it great to see you!" Armin helped Mikasa dismount. "So how is life outside?"

"Life outside?" Eren exclaimed happily. "It couldn't be better! You can actually see the morning sun!" Eren looked over to Mikasa and smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Well why don't you guys come visit my place and have breakfast? I'm sure Annie would be glad to see you. Then you can tell me all about this sun!" He smiled.

"That's so generous of you, Armin." Mikasa smiled back.

"We'll have to come back another day then, friend." Eren winked to Armin while Mikasa was looking away, and Armin took the hint.

"Oh you're on a date! Well you two have fun then!" Eren was flushed with embarrassment. Armin suddenly realized he had insensitively blown it. "Err, well I mean why not, after all, you don't visit the walls every day, right? Check out the new bakery down the road too! They make the best bread."

Eren laughed and nodded to Armin as they mounted their horses and walked deeper into the marketplace. The couple agreed to split up and search for supplies, then meet back at the bakery that Armin had suggested.

On her way around, Mikasa browsed the many shops lined along the path, paying for bags of fruit and vegetables and hanging them on to Nutmeg's saddle. The street was busy; merchants advertised themselves to different passerbies and many children ran around their parents as they shopped. Finally filling up all her fabric sacs with beans and grains, and the occasional treat to some fruit, she decided that was sufficient, and led her horse back in the direction of the bakery.

Eren on the other hand, could not decide between choosing beef to lamb. From a whole morning of collecting supplies, he didn't have enough money left, and could only afford one of the two delicacies. Shifting his weight to one foot and then the other, he put a hand to his chin and pondered. Eventually the bossy shop keeper lost his patience and kicked him out of the store, saying that he was holding up a line. Eren didn't complain but was thoroughly displeased as he walked away.

As he scanned the street for another deli, a barely audible scream stopped him in his tracks.

At first it was a small noise that he ignored, but then it became louder, and then fading suddenly. He stopped the horse and looked around, cocking his ear to the side. It sounded like a sorrowful feminine voice and a deep masculine voice. The sound grabbed his attention and he put Lightning to a jog, trying to find the source. The intensity of the fight fueled his strides. Finally he passed by an empty alleyway and found the source of the commotion.

At the back door of a bar, a woman was clinging to a middle-heavy man, who was holding a bottle of beer. He was trying to shake her off, cursing, but she was hanging on, begging for something. Eren began to run towards them, yelling for the man to stop. As he raised his bottle to strike, Eren grabbed the man's wrist just in time.

"What do you think you're doing brat? Let me teach this thing a lesson!" The man was angry, resisting Eren's grasp. Eren guessed that he might have been under the influence of alcohol and wasn't thinking properly.

"Sir, if you don't mind I will take care of the lady for you, just please don't hurt her."

The man stopped resisting him, realizing that his strength was outmatched, and snickered. He turned a heel and shut the door on them without another word.

The alleyway was silent except for the muffled voices of drunken men behind the metal door.

Eren turned to give a hand to the woman, who had fallen onto the ground. She ignored him and stood up on her own, brushed off her dress and proceeded to walk despite a bad limp. Eren quickly ran to her side. "Let me help you, ma'am, I can take you to a doctor."

"No please!" The woman yelled, with hands up in defense. "Thank you for saving me, but please leave me be." The whole time, she did not look at her rescuer in the eyes. Tears streamed down her face as she slowly moved to a sitting position. "I'm not worth it."

Eren took an apple from one of his bags, sat down beside her and offered it to her. At the sight of the fruit, the woman immediately took it without complaint, and chewed it down hungrily.

"Ever life is important in this world." Eren told her.

"Thank you." She replied quietly. "I'm sorry for my manners. My name is Margaret… Thank you for saving my life."

Eren was concerned by her brokenness. "Is there something I could do?"

She sighed, her face sunken. "Stranger, you must be one of the Outsiders, for you do not seem to know…"

"Indeed I am. What put me out?"

"No one would care to tend to someone as lowly as me, nor all the other barren women."

Eren was surprised. Now that he has thought about it, from his observations, there were indeed an odd number of homeless females on the side of the road.

Margaret continued, "Since the law was issued, we were discriminated and disregarded as equal human beings. Most of the poor women are sold for prostitution in the smaller towns, including my own old mother." She began to sob. "A-and now, I've become too old to have children, and so my husband has threatened to replaced me."

Eren jumped to his knees. "No that can't be right. He must only be drunk or something!"

"But he can. The new law was like a form of bribery. The government has promised great sums of gold to those with many children. Many thought it was good, to reward those who have taken a step to repopulating humans… but no one has thought of the women who would now be considered dead-weight."

All the new information was hard for Eren to process. "So your husband really was…"

"He was intoxicated with greed! He wanted the money, not me. When he found out that I could not bear children he abused me, wished I could die so he wouldn't have to waste his profits on me!" Margaret cried even harder.

Eren placed an arm around her heaving shoulders. He needed someone to steady himself as well. His eyes wide with shock, he looked to the exit of the alleyway, at the numerous people walking on the streets, suddenly filled with anger. How could this have happened in such a short amount of time? How could this injustice have spread so quickly?

"Thank you, Margaret. I'm sorry about your situation." He stood up and walked towards his horse, knowing there really was nothing he could do to help. "My name is Eren."

He mounted Lightning and rode away, the sound of her crying in the back of his mind.