a/n: This will be the last time I touch this chapter. The essentials remain unchanged; it's the overall flow that has improved, as well as the ADHD-like quality of certain segments. In particular, the sex scene has been reworked for the sake of realism. Here's hoping my efforts pay off in the long run!
CHAPTER ONE: THE BREAK-OUT
Through the gap in the metal bars, Annie glanced restlessly towards the outline of the dungeon door and the back of the guard's head for the twentieth time. For the twentieth time there was no response. Disgruntled, she lowered her head again.
The air outside was just warm enough to be pleasant. Inside the cell, sitting upon her bed, things were a shade cooler. Sunlight came in through a tiny window above her head, casting pink shapes across the floor, her folded legs and the threadbare sheets covering the mattress.
Annie figured there was probably about an hour or so to the start of curfew, signified by the changing of the guard, the lighting of the torches; repetition lent itself to a sort of familiarity. Wake up, train, perhaps find time to observe her fellow soldiers in their various errands as they came and went from the HQ. Life was easier if she kept to herself.
Once a week (or twice, if she was able), she'd inevitably be called down for one of the commander's ventures, then return and recuperate until she had healed; from there, it was back to the start. To-night, she was resting, off-duty for once.
There was no real need to talk to anyone — not the guards, nor the other Scouts. Although her presence was no longer met with an ill-disguised vitriol, it had taken several weeks before the rift began to show any sign of abatement. Even now, she had to wonder what they all thought about her.
Not that Annie was foolish enough to hold onto hope. A year ago, she'd have most likely been plotting her escape, perhaps her own demise. Now she found her situation to be irritatingly rote, but tolerable none-the-less. Five years was time enough to make herself of use, and there was nothing to be gained by questioning whatever Commander Hanji had seen in her. But what was the point, taking in another Shifter when the Regiment already had two on hand …?
And what of Eren and Armin? How long did they have until their minds and bodies betrayed them, until each was transformed into the very thing that humanity feared? She didn't want to just ask a question like that, but it weighed on her: I have five, maybe six years if I'm lucky, before I lose complete control of my faculties, turn into a mindless Titan and someone will have to put me down. How long are you going to be around?
It was like some sort of sick joke; and each morning, acceptance came a little easier.
Distinctly uncomfortable, and unable to find a physical means of escape, Annie looked up at the guard's head for the twenty-first time. Her sense of agitation would not be dispelled, a seething sort of disquiet that kept her limbs coiled and her eyes sharp, ready for a fight that would never ensue. She just wanted out of this goddam cell. She didn't care about recovering anymore, she wanted to talk to someone who wasn't a complete stranger. Was that so selfish?
Annie frowned. Even if she did manage to slip out in one piece, that didn't guarantee much. She had nothing to go on but chance, and she certainly didn't like the sound of that. But what else did she have to fear? Additional guards?
"Oi, Ralph," said Annie smoothly, re-directing her attention with a plan already in mind, "I'm going to be out for a little while. Maybe an hour or two."
Ralph, the aforementioned guard, was a sandy-haired recruit who couldn't have been much older than she was, a product of the Regiment's recent draft. He flinched at her address, and she knew this was going to be easy.
"Now," Annie continued, on her feet and approaching, "we all know I can't get out on my own." At the bars, just a few steps away from contact, she could see the Regiment insignia on the back of his jacket. "The key's right there on the wall. All you have to do is —"
"Let him alone," interrupted Gretchen, the adjacent guard and Ralph's older sister, who was also sandy-haired, sharp-eyed and not so easy to intimidate. "You reckon you can scare him like that when you're alone, well, I won't have it." She turned to her brother, speaking in an undertone: "Just cos' she's crafty don't mean she can really mess with us."
"This has nothing to do with either of you," said Annie. "I just want to stretch my legs, get some fresh air."
"That's your problem, isn't it?" Gretchen retorted to the wall. "Maybe you should have thought of that, before we locked you up for the night. There's a good reason why you're in there, don't play dumb with us."
"So you've heard about my war-crimes? Good for you."
"I know what you are, Titan," Gretchen spat, turning around to address her.
"You don't talk to the others that way," said Annie, trying her best to sound bored rather than annoyed.
"Because they ain't murdered any of our people. And you've done a sorry job provin' your worth."
Provoking a stupid argument was definitely the last thing Annie ought to do. Somehow, she didn't have much energy to care. "Of course. But if I'm as dangerous as you say I am, then why has your commanding officer assigned you this post? Is it because he trusts me not to kill you?"
"All right, Leonhardt, if I tell you you've won, will it shut you up?" Gretchen said stiffly, as though seeking a means to end this conversation.
"Oh? You're just going to give up?" Annie pressed. "I don't mind talking —"
"Just leave her alone! She's done nothing to you!" It was Ralph. He had rounded on her, scared but determined. Apparently straight-forward intimidation wasn't going to get her anywhere, so Annie conceded in silence. Ralph quickly averted his gaze as though she were some sort of mad dog, and compensated by throwing his sister a look of frustration.
"Can't we just — let her be?" he suggested, "I really don't want to fight."
Gretchen scoffed. "Let her be? I'd happily let her be, but she won't let well enough alone!"
Ralph seemed to regain a little nerve. "It's like you said, she's just — toying with us. Won't do any good to keep on talking to her."
Gretchen scowled at him. "Oh yeah? When did you become so knowledgeable about the likes o'her?"
"That's not even what I'm getting at!" Ralph snapped, clearly offended by the implication, even giving Annie a sort of half-hearted scowl for emphasis. "It's like —" Annie raised her eyebrows, and he winced horribly, turned away, "— like she told us, isn't it? There are others in the Scouts, Jaeger and Arlert, and they can transform, like her — but we trust them, don't we? And if it's good enough for the Commander and Captain Levi, and good enough for the Queen, then we've nothing to fear."
"You can trust in someone, that doesn't mean you have to like 'em," Gretchen said darkly. "Listen to yourself. You're not even that good at defendin' her."
"Why don't YOU listen to yourself?" Ralph shot back. "You sound like one of the idiots who thought we'd all be dead within the next month, but look!" He raised a hand, ticking off on his fingers. "Just last year, under the control of Commander Irvin, the Scouts took back Trost, stopped HER —" he motioned to Annie "— from escaping Stohess, helped topple the false King, reinstate a new Queen, and that's probably not even half of the stuff they've done! And after ALL the people saying it couldn't be done, they were able to take back Wall Maria! They've done nothing but give us hope, Gretch!"
Despite the impassioned nature of his speech, he seemed to be losing some nerve; Annie figured that no amount of distraction would ever completely subtract from the ever-present fear that came with standing in a cell with someone like her. But Ralph paused to piece together his thoughts, continuing in a more level-headed way:
"If the people of the Scouting Regiment are tough enough to survive Titan territory — even after the death of someone as great as Commander Irvin, they're willing to continue to put their faith in Commander Hanji, or Jaeger, or Arlert, or even someone like Leonhardt, then what are we so afraid of?"
No one said anything for a while. Annie figured now was as good a time as ever to cut in. "This is all very touching, but I don't have all the time in the world, you know." Both siblings turned to her in alarm, and she set her eyes on Ralph. "Don't worry about your sister. I think she can handle herself." Without waiting for a response, Annie turned her attention to Gretchen. "And you. What are you going on about?"
Gretchen's jaw tightened. "I don't gotta listen to this," she growled. "You're a goddam killer."
"Aren't you observant?" said Annie patiently. "But I think there's a difference between us."
"Which is what, exactly?"
"I may very well have killed other soldiers. But at the very least, I'm willing to admit to my crimes."
"And what sort of things d'you reckon I've done that'll be anything close to the likes of YOU?" Gretchen sneered.
"It's not what I think that should concern you. Everybody has secrets. You'd be surprised what the other guards talk about when they forget I'm here."
Gretchen paled, but said nothing to this, her eyes scathing, mouth tight. Ralph was watching them both curiously.
"Relax. It was nothing serious enough to get you deported," Annie continued. "But not exactly the type of thing you'd want an officer to know about."
"Shut up!" Gretchen spat, half-afraid, half-furious. "You're just — you can't be serious —"
"What makes you think you're in control, here? Neither of you have any leverage over me, so you might as well go along with what I say." Another silence followed this proclamation. "Look," said Annie, finally betraying impatience, "all I want is to be out, I won't bother you afterward. If someone tries to pin the blame on you for letting me go, I'll make sure to correct them, but only if you keep up your side of the bargain."
Gretchen's complexion had taken on a sallowness resembling the colour of sour milk, but she didn't try to protest. Ralph's attention flickered hastily from Annie to his sister and back to Annie, who added coolly: "Are we clear?"
He nodded preemptively, more of a vertical twitch. He and his sister then looked towards the key on the wall. Both of them moved abruptly to grab it; Ralph got there first, turning back to the cell and inserting the key into the lock without delay. The door opened with a sharp screech, metal on stone, and they watched Annie walk out.
Now that she was free, she could make up for lost time. She had no intention of getting caught — though the actual act of smuggling herself and/or someone else outdoors was much like sport. An occasional diversion such as this gave her a reason to put all her pent-up energy to use, while circumstances permitted.
Tracking Eren down wasn't bound to be that difficult, as he was situated several blocks down the same hall where they kept her locked up. (Conversely, Armin's cell was directly adjacent to Eren's, but he was rarely there for long, often busy with other projects unrelated to Shifting, so Annie didn't see him very often. He was friendly enough, as friendly as someone could be under the pressure of these circumstances and a lack of familiarity.)
When she finally reached Eren's cell, she found it empty. The guard, a red-haired, stocky boy with eyes the colour of gunpowder and a thin mouth, gave no acknowledgement of her. His face was marred by a sharp whitish-grey scar running from his left temple to the corner of his mouth in a perverted crescent, which made him look much older than he likely was. In uniform, he stood out among the rest of his peers like an unwelcome reminder of humanity's transgressions. At present, he exhaled through his nostrils, finally regarding Annie the same way one might an unruly horse.
"Joyce," she said, as a way of greeting.
"Oi, Leonhardt," he responded. "Looking for someone?"
"Yes," said Annie, a little stiffly this time.
Joyce grunted. "Then you should've come up earlier. Jaeger isn't here. He left around an hour or so ago. I'm not sure what he's been up to, but it's getting late. I expect he'll be back soon. You want to wait for him?"
It was important to watch her words with someone like Joyce; Annie had no doubt that he saw her for what she was, just as she saw him. That alone was dangerous — a fellow like this couldn't be intimidated or swayed.
"I don't really care if you do, either way," said Joyce, interrupting her thoughts. "You're old enough to know better."
His tone bothered her immensely. Like she was the one fresh out of the military, still learning the routines and layout of the old castle. Foolishly, she retorted: "That's not —"
"It's none of my business?" suggested Joyce, with an air of lazy recognition. "Of course. I'm only on duty to protect all our heads, God forbid I pay attention to whatever it is you get up to after-hours."
Annie scowled. She'd meant to say not the point, because who was he to tell her about being old enough for anything? But she kept quiet; after all, Joyce was not the one with something to lose.
"Now, if it was up to me, every one of you Titans would have been shut up in your cells an hour ago," Joyce continued. "Though I suppose you'll just keep finding new ways to get out. But if it's no trouble to the Captain, and you aren't killing anyone, we have nothing to contest."
"I didn't come here to have a talk," snapped Annie, against her better judgement. Joyce raised his eyebrows.
"And I didn't ask you to chat with me. Funny how life works out."
By now, Annie was angrier at the fact she kept allowing herself to be played like this; for God's sake, she was supposed to be dangerous, calculating, and here she was acting like a child.
"You're awfully talkative to-night," Joyce said, as though it were a topic for discussion. Annie glared at him, and he snorted: "All right, Leonhardt, I get it. You're pissed at me and your little boyfriend is — hell if I know. But what would you have me do about it? I'm just a guard."
Refusing to give any more signs of potential weakness, Annie cast her eyes down the corridor but saw no-one except a passing scout, who startled and hastened to pass-by. Once they were alone again, Joyce spoke quietly, gesturing down the corridor: "You know, I think you'd have better luck finding him if you took your search outside."
Annie had been half-prepared to make some kind of retort, but she was caught off guard. What would compel someone of this nature to just — let her go? What did he stand to gain from suggestion, if not a laugh at her expense?
"I won't be around to pester you," Joyce added, as though sensing her doubts. "That's what's getting to you, isn't it?"
Annie still wasn't buying it. She sized him up. Joyce rolled his eyes, shooing her with a hand. "God, just go already. You're scaring everyone away, I won't have a job to do the rest of the night."
By the time she was outside, the sun had vanished beneath the tree-line and the sky was starting to darken. The air carried a chill, and Annie was once again painfully aware that she had no idea where Eren was, or if he was even coming this way. With a creeping sense of frustration and unease, she took up a spot against the stone wall and decided she could stand to wait things out.
Seconds passed, became minutes. The air wasn't getting any warmer. Tension subsisted in her limbs. Annie had to wonder if guards would find her sooner than she would anyone else. She decided this would be the last time she took advice from Joyce, trick or not.
But then, she caught sight of someone headed across the grounds in her general direction, lantern in hand, unaccompanied and unhurried. She did not think too much of this initially. Probably just a soldier. As it drew nearer, Annie recognised the gait, then the hair. She could hardly believe her luck, dared not speak for fear of revealing herself.
Steeling herself, Annie pushed off from the wall, striding towards him and coming to an abrupt stop in his path, hands clenched and body tense like she was about to spring at him — she wasn't, though, just wanted to get his attention.
"Oi," she greeted bluntly.
Eren was slow to respond: "I thought you were resting."
"I was," she said, starting to feel silly. Despite all that meticulous planning, she hadn't thought about what she was going to say to him. "Just couldn't sleep, that's all."
"Well, I'm heading back in," he said, gesticulating with the lantern. "What about you?"
Annie deliberated, scanning the grounds for potential onlookers, finding none. "I was looking for you, actually," she admitted, becoming more anxious the longer she remained in the open. "I'd rather not talk out here."
"All right, where to?" He spoke as if this were a perfectly unsuspicious place to be holding conversation. Sometimes, Annie had no idea what to make of him.
She did her best to answer off-handedly: "If you really want to know, you can always tag along."
Eren frowned. "Yeah. Do you even know where we're going?"
Annie raised her eyebrows as if to say: Well, can you? and he huffed, grinning covertly. She averted her eyes out of principle; his whole demeanour was starting to affect her composure. "I'll need that," she said, indicating the lantern.
"What for?"
She afforded him a rare smile. "You'll find out soon enough."
It was a short trip. Disregarding the vast stone castle, the grounds were not sprawling, mostly surrounded by thick patches of forest. There was a river to the west, other smaller structures dotting the landscape — the stables, a few storehouses that had recently been repurposed for gunpowder, manoeuvre gear and other such materials, a well in the eastern courtyard — but not much else to speak of.
As Eren fell into stride alongside her, he glanced around as she had done. Annie was half-tempted to dissuade him, but it was nice to have someone else looking out, for a change.
She was surprised to find the shed unguarded, unsure whether to attribute this to sheer, dumb luck, or perhaps a new and as-of-yet uncharacteristic decline in the quality of the Regiment's security. Either way, it wouldn't make too much difference. With an effort, she managed to push up the wooden bar holding the doors shut and gain entry.
It was very dark inside. There were a few boxes, some racks normally used for holding spare gas canisters or sacks of feed for the horses. Not much else. She glanced back at Eren, who chose to linger a few careful steps in her stead. He was looking past her, peering into the depths.
"What do you think?" she asked.
"I'm not sure what you mean, Ann."
Raising her arm so the light cast out a little farther, she pressed: "Well, do you think we'll be safe in here?"
"Probably," Eren said. "As long as we don't draw attention to ourselves."
"I wouldn't worry about that," said Annie. She closed the door, noting with some measure of disapproval that it did not lock from the inside. Setting the lantern down, she turned to look at Eren. Shadows became more distinct in the low light, enunciating sharp corners and serving as a contrast to the steady amber glow that engulfed them; the effect was decidedly claustrophobic.
"So," he said, "what happens if we get locked in?"
"We could break out," she responded evenly. Eren glanced up at the ceiling as though in precise contemplation of this suggestion, then back to her. Annie smirked. "But it won't come to that," she said. "Not when there's other business that you could be getting on with."
"What sort of business?"
Annie stared at him, wondering if she'd not been obvious enough. Then his mouth twitched. In a burst of pent-up frustration she stalked over to him, grasping his shirt and kissing him more ferociously than she had originally intended.
"You know what I mean," she grumbled.
"I reckon you're onto something." His tone both irked and amused her. She did not grace him with a retort. "But," Eren continued seriously, "if you're gonna track me down like this, we should plan ahead, maybe. For next time."
"Hm?" She hardly looked up. "I did plan this. That's why I waited 'til to-night."
"Right," Eren muttered. "Dunno where you think the difference is."
"I suppose I owe you an explanation, don't I?"
Eren shrugged. Her hands trailed down his forearms to clasp his own.
"So, I went looking for you. You were out of your cell, and I got tired of waiting for you to come back."
"You would have found me either way, I bet," he insisted, half-grinning, but his humour quickly faded. "Is that why they let you go?"
"More or less. I had to do a bit more talking than I would've liked, but I did convince them in the end."
She must have said this too easily, because Eren frowned. "What d'you mean, convinced them? Won't they get in trouble once an officer finds out?"
"No," said Annie crossly, "because I'll cover for them."
"Because they let you out of the cell, after-hours," said Eren dubiously.
"Look, I didn't hurt anyone. I have a clean record, and the Commander needn't know every-thing that goes on in her absence." The confusion faded slowly from Eren's expression to be replaced with something like indignation. Annie scoffed. "What, do you think you're the only one that can afford to be wandering around at night?"
Eren threw her a hard look. "That's not the point, Ann. Someone knows I'm out."
Annie wasn't going to contest the matter, switching tactics: "All right, what are you doing here?"
Almost at once, Eren's face became stony. "It's …" he exhaled, as though searching for words, "Armin. He's not — he's not all right in the head, I think. Ever since we got back from Shiganshina, he's been different. Now he can't sleep, he won't eat unless we watch him do it. I know he stays up all night writing, he says he has to get down as much as he can, or he'll have died for nothing, but …."
Any sense of thrill that might've existed inside her evaporated, and Annie was left feeling hollow and foolish.
"If I would have known, I wouldn't have asked you to come with me."
"Why? You've been busy," he said bluntly. "I wouldn't expect you to have known, anyway."
The words weren't exactly harsh, but they stung coming from him. Annie took a step back when he did not elaborate, gazing sullenly at some dark corner of the shed. At last, she spoke: "I won't make you stay here. If you're worried about Armin, you should be there for him."
Eren shook his head and laughed, bitter-sweet. "Look, Armin isn't gonna let me near him. But I know he's in good hands. Mikasa won't let him starve, nor will Levi or Hanji." Her gaze drifted back to him once he added: "It's not just him I'm worried about, you know."
His tone was weary, his whole body was weary. He could have been several years older for the shadow across his face, the profundity in his green eyes. Annie was struck.
"Listen," he said gruffly, "Armin's got people to look after him. You and I, we don't have shit, so. Maybe we should try and look after one another."
Annie stiffened. "I don't need your pity."
"That's not what — I know you can look after yourself," Eren said, with an air of strained forbearance. "I just don't think it would kill you to reach out to other people, once-in-a-while."
"Why do you think I came to you in the first place, Jaeger?"
Silence, as the admittance dawned on them both. Then Eren said, carefully: "You realise we can always do this again, right? This isn't the last time we're going to see each other."
It felt like a promise. Annie looked at him a long, long moment, not knowing how to answer; she hugged him without preface, trying to put what she could not bring herself to say into the gesture.
He stayed still for some time before he put his arms around her. She was reluctant to let go as he departed, keeping her at arm's length. He said: "Look. I want to help you, however I can. But you're not giving me much to work with."
Annie couldn't deny it. She wasn't sure what she wanted from him, anymore, studying his knuckles, the shape of his wrist. "I thought we could — forget, about all this. Just for now." She turned away as he leant in; something in his eyes still haunted her.
"O.K.," he said quietly. Then he kissed her. She brought her arms around him cautiously, like he might disappear if she moved too quickly. Even when he did come up for air, all she could do was look at him. He huffed. "What?"
"You're still growing your hair out," said Annie lamely.
"Yeah," Eren said, as though it was news to him, "I've never let it get this long before. Guess I should cut it soon." Annie felt her face go hot. To add to her predicament, now he looked concerned. "Are you O.K.?"
"You're just — different," she muttered, almost wishing she hadn't said anything at all. "I'm not used to it yet."
Eren mulled that over. "That's right," he said, much more genially. "I suppose you've missed out on a lot of stuff, so. We've got some catching up to do."
Annie shivered, feeling much too small for her own body. Eren seemed to catch on, nuzzling her jaw. "Where d'you want to start?"
It was as if all the heat, all that tension between them had coalesced, trapped inside the shed when she'd closed the door. Feeling constrained by her clothes, Annie shrugged away in order to undress, only half-surprised when Eren caught her 'round the waist.
"Let me?" he suggested, fingers poised on the hem of her shirt.
Slightly amused, Annie lifted her arms, allowing him to relieve her. Gooseflesh chased up her skin in the absence of cloth. In silence, he studied the scars of her contravention. She wondered what he chose to see.
She wasted no time in attempting to divest him of his shirt, but Eren brushed her away: "Easy, there. We have a little time, yeah?"
Annie couldn't stand it any longer. She drew him in and kissed him fiercely. "No," she hissed, "I want to feel you."
He seemed surprised at that, but rather willing. "Oh."
Between the two of them, she was laid bare; not in haste, because he kept stealing kisses, and she didn't know whether to bat him away or take advantage of his distraction, maybe try and undo his belt.
In the end, she made it a point to step just out-of-reach, taking a seat upon one of the larger crates nearby, thankfully covered. Eren did not approach, choosing to assess her from afar.
"Is this what we're doin'?" was his only question.
Annie smirked. "Did you think we'd be on the floor?"
"That can't be much better."
"I'm just getting comfortable. You're still dressed," she replied dryly, "but you can fix that."
Eren made a sound that was halfway between acknowledgement and exasperation. Annie lay back upon the crate to demonstrate her indifference. She closed her eyes, waiting, tense. Nothing happened for several seconds. She heard footsteps on dirt, retreating, and opened her eyes, lifting her head in time to see him walking away. "What is it?" she asked, faintly crestfallen, not enough to bother getting up.
Eren made his way over to the open door (hadn't she closed it?) and shut it without preamble, turning back to her. "That's it."
Embarrassed by her lack of cognisance, Annie threw him what she hoped was a look of discontent. If he noticed, he didn't acknowledge it.
"Fine," she grumbled, giving up and staring at the ceiling. "Come back."
She could hear him approaching, and soon he came into view above, rucking up his own shirt and tossing it aside. She'd expected heavier scars, some kind of obvious blemish upon his skin, yet save for several faded lines running up his throat and jaw, his body seemed more-or-less intact.
Eren lowered himself to her, propped on an elbow, and said: "What, did you think I was gonna leave you there?"
"Um," said Annie. He cupped her face and brought her back to him. She made an effort to compose herself: "Are you going to …?"
He answered with a little peck on the mouth. She huffed — he looked almost relieved when she did — it felt strange, and sweet and undeserved, a moment stolen from someone else's life where there was nothing left to fight, more to share than faulty memories and the inevitability of an early death.
He descended to cover her with his palms and mouth. Annie stopped thinking about the past altogether, hiked one leg carelessly about his midriff. Eren halted, glancing up at her.
"You can keep going," she muttered.
He pressed a kiss to her breast, still lingering overhead, one hand sweeping up her body from hip to shoulder. Annie was too aware of their proximity, the chafe of his trousers against her skin. She raised her hips; there was a hitch in his breath and he pushed her down firmly, spreading her legs at the knee.
He threw her an odd look — it wasn't irritation, almost pensive — before glancing back at her cunt. Annie decided to feign a little coolness and raised her eyebrows despite the heat pooling in her belly.
"What?" she asked, not-quite stifling a groan when he cupped her.
"You're wet," Eren muttered, like making conversation. Annie hummed vaguely. He seemed content, kissing her once or twice but clearly focussed on touching her. Soon enough he delved a couple fingers in. She hissed in pleasure and surprise, rocking with it. Eren caught her, caressed her, down to the knuckle.
"W-wait —" Annie sat up and he watched as she grabbed his wrist, pressing him inward, "— like this. Keep your fingers together."
She laid back down as Eren took her up on it, pressing an idle kiss to her throat.
"What d'you even need me for?" he muttered against the skin, bemused.
Annie squirmed underhand. "Because — it's you, Jaeger."
"Yeah? I must be pretty good."
"You're still learning, you know. Don't get cocky."
Eren smiled. "M'not worried about that, I've got you."
Annie didn't know what to say. He added another finger. "O.K.," she exhaled, letting him go, "then, show me."
He started thrusting, gently at first. When he found the little spot inside she jolted, and he was alarmingly attentive.
"You like that?" Annie caught the glint in his eyes as he waited for an answer. She snorted, and he retaliated by pressing in hard with three fingers, making her gasp.
Even with a lack of finesse he was dogged, kissing up her sternum and capturing her mouth. Annie clamped her legs around his waist. Eren grabbed her shoulder and pressed her back down, breaking the kiss. "Don't stop," she gasped.
He assured her as much. Annie shied away, head falling to the side, breathless.
"Hey," he whispered, pressing a quick kiss to her chin, "c'mere, let me see you."
Annie side-eyed him through her lashes. It was like staring down the sun, or something just as bright, stupidly beautiful.
"So," he huffed, stopping his ministrations, leaning down so he was eye-to-eye with her, "you never told me what's next."
In a daze, Annie brushed her lips against his jaw and whispered: "I want your mouth first. Then you can fuck me."
Eren tensed. It took a few more seconds for him to respond, deliberately: "Just like that?"
She didn't answer. He pulled back, bringing his hand to his mouth, all while retaining eye-contact.
"Oh —" she cut off prematurely, then, "Goddam it."
He grinned, boyish again, pushing her legs apart. She let him advance, nosing inward. His next kiss was open-mouthed; she could feel him panting as he tilted his head, incontrollable beneath her.
The only way from here was upward, and Eren seemed to sense this, stilling her legs, licking in. Annie's head fell back, her eyes screwed shut. Dimly aware that she was the one moaning under her breath, arching into his hands.
She didn't remember coming, just the brief loss of comprehension, a jarring gap in her memory. Then, she was here — on her back, skin hot enough to be feverish, and he was mumbling unintelligibly into her skin.
"Eren," she groaned, pawing at his head. "Mmf. Get up here."
"Hnh?" He nuzzled in; she whimpered, still winding down.
"You're not done," she rasped, tugging him close despite the way it made her stumble over words. "You — h-hah, haven't even fucked me yet."
He groaned tangibly. Annie bit back a noise herself.
"Just look at me," she said huskily.
He did so, hazy-eyed, like he was straining to see her. He had a little come on his nose. She reached for his face.
"Wh-what is it?" he muttered, shifting back, blushing.
"Nothing's wrong. Let me see you." He went quiet as she cupped his jaw. "You need a bit of practise, that's all." Eren looked abashed, but also very pleased. Annie decided to reel him in further. "We could try again, just to be sure..."
Something else caught her eye. She looked up at the door; it was still shut. A few crates to the right, she noticed a shadow flickering in the lantern's light that shouldn't have been there.
Without warning, Annie pushed Eren down hard enough that he slammed face-first into the crate with a muffled shout of pain and surprise. The figure in the shadows shrieked almost in unison, vaulting off its perch with a certain level of expertise, landing somewhat clumsily, quick to recover.
"What the fuck!" Annie barked.
"I should be asking YOU that!" Sasha retorted, voice high with a mixture of indignation and fear. "For God's sake, I almost shot 'ya!" Her bow was drawn, but she was loathe to lower it. The longer Annie glowered at her, the more quickly Sasha seemed to realise this was not an argument worth pursuing.
Eren was hardly helping matters, now struggling to get up. Annie held him firm.
"Don't move," she said sharply.
"What the hell, Annie?"
"Oi, is he all right?" Sasha asked, trying to get a look at what was happening.
"Blaus, I swear to God," Annie snarled without looking up.
Sasha yelped and let the bow change hands, threw one out in front of her as though to stop an attack. "Look, it's not —" she faltered, as though just realising the absurdity of the situation, pressing her palm to her face in exasperation, "— aw Jesus, at least let me explain before you murder me, O.K.?"
Annie weighed the pros and cons over in her head. Murder probably wasn't worth the effort. "Fine. Start talking."
"Ah! R-right, so. The officer in charge, he put me on patrol duty, an' it's a bloody bore most nights, you know, 'cos nothin' ever happens. So here I am, mindin' my own business, making the rounds, when all of a sudden…"
"Get to the point," said Annie dangerously.
"Don't interrupt me, then!" Sasha hissed, shifting from fear to irritation and back within the span of a few seconds, "O.K., o-KAY, so I saw the door to one of them sheds was open, and I knew it shouldn't be at this hour! So I went and had a look. A-an' then I realised it was you? I mean, how'dya even get out here in the first pla —"
"That doesn't really matter. You could have left," said Annie tersely. "Minutes ago."
Now Sasha became rather indignant. "Oh, d'ya think I PLANNED on being stuck in 'ere with you? I'd have been happy to leave you to — your business, what-have-you, but then he went and closed the damn door!"
"Is that Sasha?" Eren grunted.
"Please shut up," Annie hissed at her knees.
Sasha was still going on like she hadn't heard them, all-the-while edging carefully towards the door: "… knew I would've given myself away if I tried to get back out on foot, so I figured, maybe I could shoot the lantern and buy myself some time …?" She looked away, going pink. "A-actually, that isn't a good plan at all, come to think of it. I might've burned the whole place down, s-so. Yeah." She took a few more steps, petrified again. "Say, if anyone asks, I was never 'ere, all right? Won't breathe a word to anyone, we all had a nice night, uneventful, nothin' to report, thank you very much and I think I'll be GOIN' now —"
She whirled around, fumbling frantically with the door. Once she realised it opened from the inside she wasted no time throwing her weight against it. The heavy wood scraped against the ground, but it opened just enough that Sasha was able to swoop out without another word.
Annie sat there a moment, her eyes fixed on the light spilling out through the pitch of evening. The longer she stayed alive, the harder it became to discern whether or not her superiors were fucking with her. Perhaps Joyce had tipped someone off, perhaps Captain Levi had grilled Ralph or Gretchen for information. It could be mere coincidence, for all the difference it made now.
"What was that about?" Eren asked, hand over his face.
"Hell if I know any-more," she said flatly.
A decidedly awkward pause.
"Fine. Warn me next time you do something drastic," Eren grumbled.
"I just thought she'd have less chance of seeing you. Obviously I was wrong."
"Well, I'm not bleeding or anything. It just — ow."
Annie scowled, feeling guilty until he kissed her knee, unprompted; there came a small jump under her navel.
"I'd still love you," he muttered. "Even if you broke my nose."
Annie wasn't sure what had prompted this. "Thanks?"
"Don't mention it." Eren pulled back, still beaming, then seemed to recall himself. "What about you?"
"What about me, Jaeger?"
He got to his feet — when had he undone his belt? — and eyed the lantern by the door.
"I reckon we should get a move on before someone else finds us." He met her eyes, paused to assess her. "You should probably put somethin' on."
Before he could get away, Annie grabbed his arm.
"Actually ..." she swallowed dryly, "I thought we could finish this, first?"
Eren went pink, gawked at her. "The door's open."
"It'll just have to be quick," said Annie, with a note of false confidence. "And I never got to touch you."
His laugh was tinged with something like desperation. "Wh-what? Shit, I mean — you don't have to worry about —"
Annie stood up, kissing him quiet. Eren didn't move at all. She broke away, inexplicably anxious, and said: "I thought this was about looking after one another."
His eyes on hers were dark, strangely lucid. He looked over towards the door, back to her as though deep in thought. Then his mouth curled, and he pulled her against his chest.
"'lright," he said, close to her temple, "quickly."
a/n: If you're reading this for the first time, there's gonna be another chapter you can dig your teeth into as well. Thanks for stopping by! :D