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هذه ترجمة أدبية محافظة على قوة المشاعر وروح المشهد:
❖ Winter Garden – A Game Beneath the Firelight
The sunset draped itself like a fierce shawl over the glass of the winter garden, weaving golden lines across the polished floor. Layla slipped in quietly, carrying a tray scented with freshly brewed coffee. She glanced at the faces gathered by the fireplace — faces worn thin by exhaustion, with the echo of war still trembling somewhere deep inside them.
Layla (with a warm smile that barely hid the faint tremor in her eyes):
"Since Sarah is away at the Tybur estate… how about a little break? An old game… and a cup of coffee?"
Jean (stretching lazily across the sofa):
"If the game is 'Truth or Lie'… I'm ready to set some hearts on fire."
Connie (raising his hand with a laugh):
"As long as no one brings up my mom… I'm in."
Sasha (chewing on a biscuit):
"Just don't hint at my eating habits… It's my weakness, but I won't deny it!"
Mikasa (quietly, her steady eyes scanning the room):
"That's fine… as long as no one asks about pain."
Hange (clapping her hands with sudden enthusiasm):
"Let's play! Between death and war, we always forget that we still have a pulse worth discovering."
Armin (in his usual gentle tone):
"But… what if the truth hurts?"
Layla (sitting cross-legged on the floor, setting her cup aside):
"Maybe we need to break our hearts a little… to remember we're still human."
[The fireplace light dances. Steam rises from the cups like memories.]
Layla: "Mikasa… Truth or Lie? Is your headache because of Eren?"
Mikasa (lifting her gaze toward the emptiness):
"Truth.
Whenever I close my eyes, I see a woman I don't know… and Eren, a little boy, running toward her.
Then the pain begins… like something inside me is tearing apart."
A heavy silence settles. Even the fire seems to dim.
Mikasa (turning to Eren):
"Truth or Lie? Are you hiding plans from us… plans we'd be afraid to know?"
Eren (looking down, whispering):
"…I don't want to answer."
No one needs clarification. The fear that spreads between them is not of Titans… but of Eren himself.
Sasha (trying to lighten the air):
"Armin, Truth or Lie?
Have you ever wished you hadn't been given the Titan's power?"
Armin (staring into his cup):
"Truth.
Sometimes… I feel like I stole it from Erwin.
And that I should have been the one who died."
Their eyes lower together, as if burying Erwin once more.
Jean (attempting to bring life back):
"Layla, Truth or Lie? Are you hiding something from me?"
Layla (smiling softly, her eyes speaking louder than words):
"Truth.
From the first moment I saw you… I felt something I can't explain.
I don't play mysterious. Sarah might.
I say what's in my heart."
Hange: "Connie, Truth or Lie? Do you still hate the Titans… even after knowing the truth?"
Connie (staring at the floor):
"Lie.
My mom…
Her face still visits my sleep.
I can't hate her, no matter how terrifying she looked."
Mikasa: "Hange… Truth or Lie? Have you ever regretted leading the Corps?"
Hange (lowering her head):
"Truth.
I'm a scientist… not a commander.
Erwin carried the Corps on his back.
I was just… the heir who never chose the inheritance."
Erwin's shadow seems to pass silently across the walls.
Hange: "Sasha, Truth or Lie? Is your love of food… a way to escape your fear?"
Sasha (laughing through wet eyes):
"Truth.
Every bite feels like it could be my last.
Every time I eat, I fear the next Titan is waiting…
That I'll turn into a piece of potato myself… and life will laugh at me."
Layla wraps her gently in an embrace.
"You're stronger than you think… our beautiful little potato."
[The door opens softly. Levi steps in — like a shadow from a distant winter.]
Everyone turns. He wasn't invited to the game… but he heard everything.
Levi (gazing at the fire, not at them):
"My turn?"
The silence becomes sacred.
Levi:
"Truth or Lie?
Did I love her?"
Their eyes freeze.
Levi (lowering his head, whispering):
"Lie."
Jean smirks faintly — until Levi cuts through the air:
Levi (his voice cracking at the edge):
"I did… and I still do."
He lifts his head. A rare light flickers in his eyes — something no one has seen before.
Levi:
"And I'm afraid…
that I killed the only thing that saved me from my own shadow."
Layla covers her mouth. Armin turns away. For the first time, Mikasa clenches her hand against her chest — not around her blade.
Connie (hoarsely):
"That… wasn't in the rules."
Levi (lighting a cigarette — for the first time in his life. As if summoning her ghost. Or punishing himself.):
"Neither is love.
But love isn't a game… and it isn't war."
He rises quietly, walking toward the corridor.
Levi (without turning back):
"On the battlefield, I learned to fight to survive.
But with her…
I just wanted to live."
He leaves.
And behind him, hearts remain shaken — no longer the same.
Not because of a commander.
But because a man… finally learned how to feel.