Second Month (November):
She stands at a crossroads, looking at the dusk with the walls in the far distance, not sure which way to go. There is a storm happening around her and lightning lights up the path behind her. One path, she somehow knows, will take her back to being Verity, the other will allow her to continue going down the path she has chosen so far. The wind blows around her, and her hat flies off, making her hair fall out of the ponytail she had it in. A figure appears before her in a black cloak, hood up, and it grabs her hat. She can hear its voice crackling, telling her to choose her destiny, but at a great price for either choice. Her eyes drip tears at the thought of this, but can't imagine what the other choice will bring her. The shadowy figure throws her hat at her and she catches it, hearing the last words of the figure before it disappears. It told her that one choice will end her days, but the other will end her heart. She looks back down the path she came from and realizes there is no path. She takes a deep breath and, swallowing her tears, takes a step forward, toward the path she has chosen when she went into Trost as the thunder crashes and the lightning wakes her.
Gwen falls out of bed and looks around, realizing that the dream she had was the same one from when she made the choice that she knew would be her end. Gwen looked out the window and saw that it was still dark, but she couldn't sleep. So much has happened in the last two months since her and Eren had gotten together. She reflected on the time she had made the wish, the one that she knew would be the reason she died. She would have to start planning, so that Eren would know what to do when she...Gwen didn't want to think of that anymore, not after the dream, still so vivid in her mind. She decided to pay Eren a visit, in the middle of the night. It wasn't like he had visited her a billion times at one in the morning, but she had never visited him at night. She picked up her torch and pulled on her boots and woolliest jacket, then put in her contacts and locked her room, then set off for Eren's room. At night, things were almost peaceful, like there was no such thing as Titans or death. Gwen could almost forget their current situation, the hell they had to live through.
She passed under the bridge that marked the barrier between the girls' side of the barracks and the boys' side, then made for Eren's room, using her torch to light her way. She finally made it to Eren's room, number 247, and quietly knocked on his door. Gwen breathed in and out slowly, like Levi had taught her, and tried to control her happiness. He finally opened the door and smiled immediately when he saw it was her. Eren took her hand and pulled her inside, pushing her into his chair. She looked at his rumpled pajamas and hair, his bleary eyes blinking at her, still tired, but he was clearly happy to see her, not caring that she came to visit late. Eren hugged her and, through their bond, she could feel his worry at what he saw etched on her face. "Why do you look so troubled? Did you have a bad dream?" Eren asks her gently, stroking her face and hair. Gwen nods once and says, "I don't want to think about my dreams right now. Did I wake you?" Eren smiles at her anxious expression and shakes his head. "I wasn't really sleeping. Too busy thinking about next month's expedition. It'll be our first one together," He says with a grin and she can't help smiling back at that.
"My second expedition in general though, and the risk of either of us dying is still there, don't you realize that?" Gwen says and he slides back into bed, a pensive expression on his face. "I don't think we'll die, what with our powers and status. And Levi would strangle himself if either of us were killed. I think he likes having two perfect soldiers on his Squad," Eren says ruefully and Gwen nods. "I really think there's some ulterior move to why he agreed to me being on Squad Levi in the first place, though," Eren's eyes widen and he scratches his head. "There is someplace he's trying to get to, within Wall Maria," Eren says and she glares at him. "You know?" she says, accusatory, and his face goes down sadly then his eyes light up. "D'you want to sleep here?" Eren asks, a hopeful expression on his face, and her face turns bright red.
"I-I um, don't know, if, um, that's a good idea," Gwen stammers and Eren's face turns a similar color. "I don't mean like that, I just meant you can sleep here with me tonight. I think I'll sleep better if I knew you were here, with me, safe," Eren hurriedly explains and she sighs in relief. "I think I would like that. But don't get any ideas, Eren," Gwen says and comes to the bed, climbing into it, and snuggles close to Eren's warm body. She rolls to her side, looking up at his smiling face, and kisses him on the cheek. Eren scowls and shakes his head, then takes her face and tilts it upward, saying, "You missed," and kisses her. When they finally came up for air, Eren hugs her close and she sighs happily. Eren gets under the covers and she does as well, holding his hand underneath, blushing a bit. "Is it wrong if I, um, want to see you without your shirt at least?" Gwen asks awkwardly and Eren's eyebrow arches upward. Without a word, he slides off the bed and stands, then pulls off his shirt and throws it in the laundry basket, then gets back into bed.
Gwen gapes at him, and he grins at her playfully. She stares at his chest and he waves his hands at her. "Yes, it's a male chest. Do you like it?" Eren says and she slowly pokes it. "It's so...nice," Gwen says and she turns over, trying not to yawn. "I'm getting kind of tired, could we talk about this later?" She mumbles and slides out her contacts, putting them in a cloth she takes out from her pocket. Eren sighs and gets his shirt, putting it back on, and slides down into the bed next to her, stroking her hair. Gwen turns off the light and curls up in the bed close to him and they fall asleep together.
She is on the side of the wall, chained, screaming Eren's name over and over again. There is a terrible wind howling around them and the sky is blood-red, reflecting the bloodlust in all the Titans' eyes surrounding the wall. The hooded figure stabs a knife into the chains, holding them in place, and draws out a broken blade. The Titans surrounding the wall all take a step back at once, eyes on the blade. Gwen screams Verity's name and the figure looks down at her. Gwen barely catches her reply of there being no more time left for her choice. Gwen's final choice was her death. Her end was her fatal choice and there was no more time. Gwen screams how she had made her decision so very long ago, how Eren was her dying wish, and her wish was the best ever.
Verity says nothing, just picks up the unconscious form of Eren and waves his body around, taunting her with jabs at her emotional stability, and ends with something about watching her boyfriend perish before her. Gwen's head jerks upward at that, screaming Eren's name, begging him to wake up, but to no avail. Verity throws him over the side, and she can see his face, half dead, fall past her, going down to the Titans, who start devouring him when he lands. Gwen screams his name, sobbing, trying to get out, but her superhuman strength has failed her, like all her other powers. She can only watch her love be murdered before her eyes, without any fight at all. Gwen lets her head hang down, crying, trying not to let her emotions get the best of her, but they do anyway. She is able to pull her arms out of the chains, then one leg, then the other, feeling an adrenaline that she never felt before. She pulls the knife out of the chains and jumps down to the ground, counting the miles as she falls.
At the end, just when she about to hit the ground, Gwen puts the knife through herself, so that the Titans don't eat her, so she can see him. Her choice had not saved all of humanity, but she had made her peace with death at last, tasting blood that was her own. It was a death that she knew would not allow her passage to heaven, but to the middle, where she knew she had always belonged. Her final moments were spent slipping away slowly, feeling death claim her. She was glad, at least, that her soul had been cleaned of the blood she had carried for so long. Now, she could rest in peace. Gwen closed her eyes and sighed, feeling the ground. Verity slipped away as well, and she died.