The doctor Commander Zachary had sent finally arrived.
Under her white coat gleamed a flash of red—a miniskirt, high heels, and the shimmer of dark stockings. The dungeon, dim for days, seemed suddenly too bright.
Every eye followed her. Even Zeke, slumped in his cell, blinked in surprise as the woman strode up to him. She lifted his chin with one gloved hand and said in a sing-song voice, "Relax, little brother. The president sent me for your examination."
Zeke froze. Examination? Something about her tone felt wrong, but before he could ask, she had already pushed him back onto the bench.
"Is this really a doctor?" he muttered. Since when were doctors on Paradis this… intense? His mind flickered to his father's old clinic, to antiseptic smells and cold stethoscopes. This was nothing like that.
Ten minutes later the dungeon echoed with his voice.
"Levi! Levi, help me!"
Levi sat at the exit with his cards, expression blank. "Ignore him," he said, and dealt another hand. The soldiers nodded solemnly and played on.
Two hours later, the woman emerged. Her coat was spotless; her smile, dazzling.
"The subject's physiology is remarkable," she reported lightly. "Stronger than any human specimen I've studied. I'll have my notes ready for Commander Zachary. Be prepared." With that she turned and walked out, leaving a trail of perfume and silence behind.
When her heels finally faded up the corridor, Hange, Levi, and the others crowded to Zeke's cell.
He lay face-down on the cot, trembling. "Anna… I'm not clean anymore…" he whimpered.
Hange's eyes gleamed with far too much interest. "What happened? Did she—"
"No!" Zeke shouted. "She prodded and poked everywhere! What kind of doctor checks reflexes like that? She even— she even used her fingers to test muscle response where no test should be!"
Levi sighed. "At least now we know you're healthy."
Hange scribbled furiously in a notebook. "Fascinating! While we're on anatomy—when you turn into a Titan, do they even have, um, the usual exits? I've always wondered."
Zeke stared at her, horrified. One lunatic leaves, another arrives.
He muttered something about "structural weaknesses," then regretted it instantly.
Levi's eyes narrowed. "Commander Zachary has… peculiar tastes. I assume the doctor was one of his associates."
Zeke followed his gaze to the strange tools left on the floor. Realisation hit. "Oh, no…"
Levi nodded. "Exactly."
Zeke groaned. "Anna… I'm not clean anymore!"
"Who's Anna?" Levi asked.
"My wife," he sniffed.
Levi looked him over. "You're too young for that."
"She died last week," Zeke choked out.
Levi exhaled through his nose. "Tragic," he said flatly.
Word of the exam—and Zeke's outburst—reached headquarters before dawn. President Zachary's next order was brief: "Public trial tomorrow."
The Survey Corps began preparations at once.
In the lower dungeon, Levi and two soldiers appeared in full protective gear—scarves, masks, gloves. "Erwin wants you cleaned up," Levi said. "If you look halfway decent, the public might hate you a little less."
Seven days in confinement had turned Zeke into something feral: unshaven, eyes sunken, skin grey with dust.
"I can wash myself!" he protested. "Why are you dressed like that?"
Levi gave him a look. "Because you're filthy."
Before Zeke could argue, Isabel bounced in. "I'll help give Zeke a bath—"
She was promptly pushed back out. "Not for girls!" Franz stammered, face crimson.
"Why not?" Isabel demanded.
"Because—uh—men's dirt is dangerous!" he blurted.
Levi just muttered, "Because he's disgusting," and shut the door.
Outside, Isabel folded her arms and sulked while the others got to work.
Upstairs, the mood was very different.
A guard opened another cell. Keith and Erwin stepped in. Inside sat Carla, shoulders shaking, face buried in her hands.
"Carla," Keith said gently.
She turned, eyes red and swollen. "He's really going to stand trial, isn't he?"
Keith nodded. "Tomorrow. The king, nobles, and delegates from every district will attend. All of humanity will finally hear what Zeke did."
Carla laughed once, bitterly. "Good. Let him be judged."
"Carla!" Keith snapped, then softened. "I know he killed Grisha, but remember why. He did it to save Eren. To stop the cycle his father began."
Her breath caught. The anger melted into grief again. "I know… but how can I face Eren now? How can I look at either of them?"
The cell fell silent except for her sobbing, echoing down the stone hall.
That night, Levi returned to his quarters, shaking water off his gloves. Zeke sat scrubbed and sullen in a clean uniform, muttering the same words under his breath.
"Anna, I'm not clean anymore…"
Levi closed the door behind him. "No one here ever is," he said quietly. Then he turned out the light.