A not-significant part of Reiner wants to do this somewhere else. He wants to do this in his bedroom, not in the neutral ground of a hotel. He wants to lay Eren down on his bed, tie Eren up on his sheets, press his nose to Eren's hair and feel his mind fully relax, soothed by the knowledge that he's successfully "captured" his target. However, Reiner isn't a fool. Doing this in his bedroom would just be begging for something to go horribly wrong, setting off a disastrous chain reaction. And besides, Reiner is pretty sure that tying Eren up, period, will soothe whatever part of his brain hungers for victory.

Anyway, this isn't about Reiner finding peace of mind. It's about Eren. It's about erasing whatever haunts Eren's dreams—even if only briefly. That's what the spell is supposed to do, right? Reiner isn't sure if it will work, still having a mental block about certain aspects of magic. But for Eren's sake, he hopes it will.

And if it doesn't? Well, hopefully Eren will still enjoy it. Reiner is damn sure that he'll enjoy the sight alone, all those intricate knots crisscrossing Eren's skin.

While Eren inspects the rope, Reiner glances over a pamphlet detailing various knots one last time, ensuring he has the steps correctly memorized. He practiced these knots in the Underground Mall (albeit on a dummy, not a person); there, the instructor's only advice was that Reiner leave a little more slack in the rope. ("You're not tying up a prisoner," they'd said; Reiner only smiled weakly.) He's confident that he can do this properly.

"I'm sure," Reiner says, accepting the rope, his fingers deliberately brushing Eren's. He lets a smile tease the corners of his lips, leaning forward slightly as he adds, "You're going to look amazing."

He can only hope Eren will feel amazing, too.