.˜"*°• L I T T L E M O N S T E R •°*"˜.

          Levi and Missy walked in silence to the meeting room within the Maria Headquaters. Missy had been surprised to hear Hange say that the King had requested a meeting with them both. Was this something to do with the Special Operations squad? It couldn't be, otherwise the other three would have been called for as well. Was she in trouble? She felt her hands become clammy at the thought.

The last thing she had expected was to walk through the doors of the meeting room and see her entire family sat along a wooden table. The King, her father, and a man she didn't recognize were also present, along with Mikasa and Kenny Ackerman.

"What is going on?" Missy whispered to herself as Levi passed her to sit down in a free space between Mikasa and Kenny, his face expressionless.

"Artemis, how lovely to see you again!" King Thomas greeted, motioning for her to sit down in the seat between two of her brothers. "Please, come and sit down, we have much to discuss".

Missy's body responded quickly to the words of the King, sitting down between Apollo and Hades. She folded her hands in her lap, her eyes fixed on the King.

"I'd like to thank you all for joining us on such short notice." Thomas smiled, clasping his hands together in front of him as he scanned the people around the table. "I'm sure you're all wondering the reason for me summoning you here, but let me start off by addressing the reason why Achilles has had to depart so abruptly from the Scouting Regiment".

Missy felt her curiosity spike at that, her eyes flickering towards Levi who just remained as stone faced as ever. He had known the reason why but had been ordered not to share the information, and now she would finally know for herself.

"Due to the recent catastrophe's that have been occurring inside the walls, and the threat of an unknown enemy, I have made the decision to reinstate the Duo Guard to the throne".

Missy's throat constricted with the need to shout, her eyes shooting towards her father who sat calmly in his seat beside the King, the smug smirk on his face making her blood boil.

"I hope you can understand that I'm still very new to this job as your King," Thomas explained, his eyes soft and kind, yet Missy couldn't help but hate him in that moment. Everything she had previously thought about him was now clouded by a thick mist of hatred. How could someone so kind do such a backwards thing? "The gate being broken and my father being assassinated by this unknown organization within the walls is something no one could've expected. I cannot promise the safety of the people of Paradis without the help of the Ackermans and Rhydduchs".

"What about the rules?" Cassius asked, ignoring the look that their father shot him for speaking out of turn. "Asking us to help protect Paradis is one thing, but bringing back those ancient laws is something else entirely".

Thomas frowned, clearing his throat. "When deciding what the best way forward would be, I summoned a meeting with the governors of Paradis, as well as the heads of both families. While Kenny Ackerman voted against the laws being reinstated, Alec Rhydduch voted for it".

Missy felt the sudden urge to throw up. She could sense the anger rising from Hades beside her, the entire room falling into a deafening silence. She didn't understand. Her father had wanted his bloodline back beside the King, and he was getting exactly that, so why did he have to go one step further and opt to bring the laws back too? Missy knew Alec had never loved his children, but stripping them of their human rights... forcing them into marriages... setting a dark future for his grandchildren... He truly was a devil.

"As outdated as the old laws may seem, the majority of the board voted for it rather than against," Thomas continued. "If this is an outcome you may not have wanted, I can at least assure you that the entire situation had been thought out thoroughly".

"So you're just gonna set us back a couple hundred years and take away our human rights again?" Hades asked, letting out a dark chuckle. "And you think we'll just comply with this?".

"You have no choice," Alec spat, speaking up for the first time. "You will follow the orders given to you, and even if you find a way to wiggle yourself around it, you'll be punished accordingly".

"This is a fucking joke, right?" Hades laughed, his eyes dark and dangerous as he smacked his hand down on the table. "You're sick in the head".

"Enough!" Alec barked, standing up from his seat. "I've had enough of your attitude, boy, you will sit there in silence and listen to what your King has to say".

Missy watched out of the corner of her eye as Hades' mouth twitched, clearly trying to fight back against the blood curse forcing him to follow the order.

Alec sat down again, sending one more deadly look towards his son before motioning for the King to continue.

"The four rules of the Ackerman and Rhydduch laws are back in motion from this very moment," Thomas announced, not seeming at all phased by Hades' little outburst. "Those of you who are over twenty-five will be expected to marry within the year. Of course, if you are struggling to find a suitable partner, there will be help available to you within the palace".

Missy clutched her knees under the table, her fingernails digging into the fabric of her pants. Her entire body was screaming at her, as if the curse inside her was tearing at her insides and begging to be set free.

"If you were wondering, Achilles has been appointed as the left guard, and Kenny as the right," Thomas added, motioning between Achilles and Kenny who both sat with their heads facing the floor. "That is why Achilles has left his regiment".

Kenny? That's odd, Missy thought, surely Levi would've been the obvious choice.

"However, the Duo Guard was not the only thing that I've called you here to discuss today," Thomas continued, motioning towards the scientist next to him.

Levi couldn't help but feel a wave of deja vu as he listened to the scientist introduce himself. Florian Brockhurst told the room exactly what he had told Levi and Erwin just a couple of weeks prior. He explained how he had studied Titans, as well as the two families blood curses for a majority of his career. He showed them the documents which held his findings from mixing the DNA of both Rhydduchs and Ackermans.

"You think if someone had both sides of the blood curse that they would have superhuman abilities even stronger than ours?" Hera asked, grabbing one of the documents and scanning it over.

"I believe someone like this would be the key to eradicating Titans completely," Florian replied, "It could be the only way for us to finally live outside of the walls".

"So, how do we mix the blood curses together then?" Cassius asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well, it's not something we can just do," Florian replied, clearing his throat awkwardly. "A child would need to be born with a parent from both families".

The already silent room seemed to get even quieter, and Missy's heartbeat suddenly thrummed so loudly against her chest that she was sure it was ricocheting across every bone in her body. She felt it in her hands, her toes, her head.

"What-" Circe stuttered, her eyes blown wide as she stared at Florian. "What do you mean by that?".

"Wipe the stupid looks from your faces," Alec snapped, drawing everyone's attention towards him. "It means that Captain Levi is going to be joining the family".

"Levi?" Missy whispered, her head snapping up towards her Squad Leader. He was glaring at the table in front of him, his hands gripping the solid wood. His fingers gripped the wood a little harder upon hearing Artemis speak up for the first time, the material groaning in protest under his touch. "Why Levi?".

"Because he so kindly volunteered himself," Alec smirked, ignoring how Levi gritted his teeth in response. "In Mikasa's place".

Mikasa's eyes widened as she looked sideways at her Captain, her mouth opening to speak but no words coming out. She turned to look at Missy, who just shook her head slowly in shock.

"I'm not going to sit here and listen to this bullshit," Hades growled, standing up from his seat again. "If you want to pimp out my sisters for the sake of a stupid little theory, then let me leave this room before I end up punching someone".

Missy reached out to tug on Hades' sleeve. "Hades please, you'll get in trouble".

"Listen to your sister, Hades," Alec called out. "I think you and I need to have a little chat after this about respecting your superiors. Sit. Down".

Hades let out a frustrated growl as his body obeyed the order, sitting himself back down at the table.

"Who is it?" Hera asked, avoiding her fathers eyes as if she already had a feeling she knew it would be her.

Levi held his breath. If his and Erwin's theory had been correct, it would be Hera. It was the only logical answer. Circe was gay, and Artemis was seven years younger than him, Hera was the obvious choice.

"It was a difficult choice," Alec replied, tapping his calloused fingertips on the table. "I've never been a big believer that Rhydduch women should fight. I've always believed their true place is at home, bearing children to keep the bloodline strong and plentiful".

At his words, Missy's hand shot up from it's spot on her knee, her eyes blurry as she saw the beginnings of red taint the corners of her vision. The feeling was gone as quickly as it had come, feeling Hades wrap his fingers around her wrist to keep her grounded. Her vision cleared and she blinked a few times.

"All three of you have grown to be good fighters, however, so it was the question of which one can we afford to lose," Alec continued, his eyes flickering between his son and daughter. "Then I thought of it from a different perspective. Your mother had served me well up until she decided to curse me with twins".

Missy's eyebrows furrowed as she looked up to see her fathers scowl.

"Cursed twins," Alec spat. "A terrible omen. It was this, along with a couple of other deciding factors that helped me make my decision to pluck away the thorns from our family. Artemis will be the one to save humanity by giving Paradis a blessed child, to make up for being born a pitiful curse. An impure, little monster".

Missy's head snapped up as Hades flung his chair back, lunging across the table towards his father. Achilles met him halfway, pushing Hades forward onto the table and restraining him as the younger brother fought to free himself.

"Hades, calm down," Achilles ordered, even though he himself seemed wide-eyed and confused by what had just been said.

"Artemis?" Hera whispered. "Is that a joke?".

"Not at all," Alec replied, watching as his two sons struggled just a few centimeters away from his face, slight amusement laced in his features.

"Father please," Circe begged. "She's practically still a child, choose me or Hera instead!".

"She's not a child," Alec snapped. "She's nineteen, a grown woman".

"She's seven years younger than Captain Levi!" Cassius argued, turning to Levi. "Levi, say something!".

Levi looked up from the table, which had splintered and cracked under the pressure of his hands. His eyes were almost black with hatred and anger as he barred his teeth at Alec. When Erwin had asked him what his worst outcome would be, it had been this. None of them had been great. He and Hera had never seen eye-to-eye, and he hadn't even ever had a solid conversation with Circe yet he knew that he wasn't exactly her preferred type. Artemis, however...

"Is it her age?" Erwin had asked as he sat in his office chair, watching Levi pace the floor in front of him. "Seven years isn't as bad as you might think".

"It's nothing to do with her age," Levi replied, pausing his pacing to glare at his Commander. "That girl has suffered horrors that you wouldn't even imagine, Erwin. I can see it in her eyes. The issue is that I have suffered my own horrors. Alec will likely request a marriage, and I won't be able to give her what she deserves. I will not be able to create a safe space for her to heal. I'm as damaged and broke as she is, and my only way to see past my pain is serving in this regiment and fighting to get us out of these walls. I've been a solid part of her life for three years, I've trained her the right way, I've shown her that she needn't be scared, to embrace the monster inside her and tame it to her will. I can't give her any more than I already have, but someone out there can".

Erwin hadn't said anything else after that. Erwin may have been the one to take Levi from the underground, but he still had no idea the things he had faced down there. Things that Levi will never be able to come back from. His heart had the same iron barricades as Missy had built, except Levi had built his three times fold. Artemis deserved to spend the rest of her life with a man who could give her time and care to stitch the broken pieces of her soul back together. To love her. Levi was certain he would never love anyone.

"You're sick!" Hades yelled, still struggling against his brothers restraint. "She's a fucking baby, you sick bastard!".

Alec rolled his eyes, motioning for Achilles to remove him from the room. Achilles let out a shaky breath before nodding, dragging Hades from the room kicking and screaming.

Missy didn't think she'd breathed since the moment her father had said her name. What did he mean she had to have a baby with Levi? This was some sick joke. She stared at her lap, her long brown hair covering her face. She knew if she opened her mouth to talk that she would throw up, so she sat and listened as the people around her argued her case. Apollo sat beside her, just as still and silent as she was.

"Silence!" Alec bellowed, causing the room to fall quiet immediately. "I have made my choice and that is final. If you don't like it then too bad. Artemis's participation in this experiment is the greatest accomplishment she will ever have in her entire life. She will be contributing to the future of human kind if her child is born with these abilities".

"I am aware you have a mission coming up soon," Thomas spoke, resting his chin on his upright arm. "So the wedding will be held once you're back".

"Wedding?" Circe croaked, her voice raw from arguing back and forth. "They're getting married?".

"Of course they are," Alec scoffed. "The laws are back in place, and they'll be conceiving a child together. Marriage only makes sense".

Missy could hardly believe her ears. Marriage? Kids? She was nineteen, fresh out of the training corps... And with Levi of all people?

Her father had mentioned that he had volunteered himself in Mikasa's place, which meant he had known about this beforehand. She felt her hands shake at the thought. How long had he known?

"Levi, do you have any objections?" Thomas asked, tilting his head towards the Captain.

Levi's jaw clenched. "Would it make a difference if I did?".

"Not in the slightest," Alec replied instantaneously. "You volunteered for this, knowing the risks".

"That was before I knew it would be her".

Alec let out a dry chuckle, causing Levi's blood to boil. "You didn't seem to care much at the coronation, in fact you both seemed rather comfortable with each other. It was your little show at the party that actually solidified my choice in the end. Other than the idea of making you suffer by handing my curse over to you".

Missy closed her eyes tightly, clenching her fists as she recalled the events of the coronation, specifically Levi dragging her away from her fathers wrath.

"I said something to you that night that I'll gladly tell you again," Alec smirked, leaning forward in his chair slightly. "Enjoy her".

An hour later, Missy was hunched over the toilet in the girl's bathroom throwing up everything she had eaten that day. Circe rubbed her back gently as Hera paced back and forth behind them.

"I can't believe he would do this," Hera mumbled, pausing her pacing to face her little sister's as Artemis heaved once more. "Artemis should've been his last choice!".

"No offence, Hera, but it would have made a lot more sense if he had picked you," Circe sighed, still rubbing circles onto Missy's back.

"He should have!" Hera exclaimed, a frustrated sound leaving her mouth as she walked over to her sisters and pulled Missy's hair back into a loose ponytail. "Missy i'm so sorry, you don't deserve this. I promise that if I could change his mind I would. I'd have volunteered if it meant keeping the both of you safe".

"Safe?" Missy replied, her voice hoarse from throwing up. "How safe would we have been, Hera? The rules are back in place, we'll all be married off and bred no matter what".

Her sisters fell silent, knowing what she said was the truth.

"This is exactly what dad wanted," Missy whispered, leaning back over the toilet. "We've been summoned back to the King's side after centuries of being free. I bet he practically begged the King to reinstate the rules too. Anything to see us suffer even more".

"It wouldn't surprise me," Hera mumbled, leaning against the bathroom wall and staring into space. "He'll probably have me married off not long after you".

"Oh fuck," Circe swore, looking up at her older sister. "He's gonna make me marry a man, isn't he?".

Hera opened her mouth to reply, but shut it again, unable to do anything but give her a sympathetic frown.

"This is going to ruin our lives," Missy said weakly. "All of us, and there's nothing that we can do to stop it".

"We have each other," Hera whispered, kneeling down to wrap her arms around her baby sister. "I'm sorry that we let father put such a wedge between us. I want to know you. Both of you. I don't want to let him continue driving brick walls between us".

"You're right," Circe nodded. "We need each other now more than ever".

Tears pricked at the corners of Missy's eyes as her stomach grumbled dangerously, allowing her body to relax in her sister's embrace. Her mind was foggy with the events of the meeting, her Father's snarling words of hatred still floating around in her brain. She never would have thought that he would give the freedom of his children up to get what he had wanted, but she shouldn't have been surprised.

Levi had been right. Change was inevitable and it was a feeling she would never get used too.