September, 1944

Walking the streets of Munich was a little more than eye-opening. Armin was almost sick when the trio came across a man hanging from a lamppost with a sign strung around his neck. Apparently it was a common sight, judging by Mikasa's reaction. The Asian girl kept her head down and was rather unperturbed. Or maybe it was inaccurate to say she was unperturbed, because it was highly probable that she was just trying to pretend like she had not seen it. Eren stared in disgust and was unable to let it go, even as they kept on walking away from the horrific scene.

"That's barbaric…! Mikasa, did you see that?" the wide-eyed male went on and on. Mikasa and Armin remained silent, "What did that sign around his neck say!?"

Armin was too stunned to speak a word, fearing that if he attempted to open his mouth, vomit would spill out of it. He knew that the image of that poor man who was murdered and then left to rot publically would stay with him forever.

"It read: 'Jew lover'." Mikasa answered faintly, while her eyes remained fixed on the ground.

Of course Armin could read and understand what the sign had said. For some reason, those words shook him and made him question what would have been his fate if his family had not left Germany all those years ago. Would he have suffered the same end and been hung? Probably something far worse would have happened. After all, he didn't just associate with Jews. He had Jewish blood, and that was by far more of crime.

"That's…inhumane…" Eren kept turning his head back, as if he were almost in disbelief, "I can't believe they would do something so horrible to their own people!"

Mikasa looked to Armin out of the corner of her eye and sensing that he was clearly distressed, especially since his face was a much paler complexion than usual, she spoke up, "Eren." The boy turned to her and she did not even have to say another word for the message to be understood. Eren remained relatively quiet after that and none of them really spoke again until they arrived at the train station.

"Unfortunately, there has been damage to some of the train tracks." Mikasa announced as her eyes finished scanning over the text on a sign that had been put up.

"I feared this would happen at some point," Armin spoke quietly, "It would have been a miracle if all of the train lines had remained intact after all of the bombings over the years."

"Yes and with most of the men away at war, there is not many people left to rebuild them."

"What are we going to do then?" Eren questioned.

"Hmm," Armin pulled out the map from his trunk and furrowed his brows, "Mikasa, it is not possible to reach Nürnberg from here is it?"

The Asian shook her head, "I do not think so. I remember reading in one of the newspapers recently that Nürnberg suffered some casualties. We are best of travelling to and from the smaller towns and avoid bigger cities. Smaller towns have not been affected."

"Okay, in that case…" the blond looked back down to his map again, "We get the train from here to Eichstӓtt and then from there we go to Ansbach. Ansbach is only thirty-so kilometres away from my hometown. It should not be a big problem for us to get the train from there." Armin looked back up to face Eren and Mikasa,

"We will avoid running into trouble that way, good idea Armin." Mikasa nodded.

"It seems like it is going to be a very long trek, though. I tell you Armin, this Annie Leonhart had better be worth it!" Eren gave his friend a slight nudge in his side. The blond only sighed and nodded his head,

"She is."

A good portion of the day had been lost to waiting around for trains to turn up, but the trio were finally settled on yet another train, heading towards the German town of Ansbach. To Armin, the whole situation was truly becoming very surreal. In a matter of hours, he could be face-to-face with the girl he had not seen for seven years. The thought alone made his heart rate spike and nervous butterflies fluttered inside of his stomach. He also had to prepare himself for the worst case scenario, but he didn't want to dwell on it too much. Thankfully, his mind was kept occupied during the long and strenuous train journey as the boys both got to know Mikasa Ackerman a little better, and vice-versa. Of course the trio had to keep a low profile and also were unable to speak very loudly in fear of being caught out for speaking a foreign language.

"I am curious, do you have a photograph of her?" Mikasa questioned the blond boy quietly.

"Unfortunately I do not…" he replied sadly, he had always thought it was a shame that he did not have a picture of the girl.

"Are you sure you will recognise her? I do not wish to sound rude, but considering that all these years have passed…"

"I'm positive I'll recognise her, I could never forget her face. You see she has very distinctive features."

"What does she look like?" The Asian girl seemed very interested and obviously wanted to form a mental image of the girl she was about to meet.

"She is uniquely beautiful, with a very pale complexion and golden hair. Her eyes are sky blue. She was so fair…fairer than me."

"I picture her as a perfect Aryan girl." Mikasa stated, "From the way you describe her, she does sound very beautiful."

"I am not really into blondes myself," Eren's eyes flickered to Mikasa and the tiniest of smirks appeared on Armin's face. He had a feeling Eren liked Mikasa, in fact he would bet his life on it. And if he was not mistaken, he was certain Mikasa liked Eren, too.

Ignoring Eren's comment, but bringing a hand to her own hair and placing a strand behind her ear, Mikasa asked, "Do you think she will recognise you?"

"I…I don't think I've changed all that much. I'm sure she will know who I am when she sees me."

"I am sure she will be shocked to see you, especially what with the circumstances. I am very interested to meet her and to see how she will react."

"To be honest, I'm already feeling anxious at the prospect of meeting her again." Armin admitted,

"She probably won't be able to keep her hands off of you." Eren gave Armin a pat on the back and the boy's face flushed red.

"How did you meet Miss Leonhart? I remember you telling me you were childhood friends, but that was all." Mikasa suddenly asked,

"Come to think of it, I've never heard the tale either." Eren added and looked to his blond friend.

At that moment, it was as if Armin was sent back in time as he recalled the very first time he ever saw Annie Leonhart…

June, 1932

Armin was certain he was being watched. He could feel eyes on him and he had heard the rustling of a nearby bush, even though there hadn't been a breeze. The young child's large blue eyes scanned the area twice over, but there was nothing strange about the field, the flowers or the trees and so he continued to lie on his stomach with his chin resting in the palm of his hand while he read one of his favourite books. He giggled once he reached his favourite part of the book, but stopped when he heard the harsh sound of a twig snapping underneath someone's foot. This time, the little boy's eyes shot up quick enough to come face to face with a young girl, who looked around the same age as himself half-hiding behind the trunk of a tree.

The little girl froze and her porcelain cheeks flushed pink. Armin only blinked and she rolled her eyes at the realisation that her game was up—she had been caught. The boy quickly sat up from his position on the grass, but never stopped looking at the blonde who now stood in front of a tree just a metre or so away from him. He was positive that he had never seen her around before, which was strange considering he lived in a rural part of town and it was already a smallish town to begin with. Armin was quick to take in all of her features and soon reached the conclusion that she was far prettier than the illustrations of the princesses in his books. Although, the girl's nose was prominent on her oval like face and Armin was absolutely certain she would have been teased by the other boys and girls at school because of it, but he would never do such a thing. Her pale blue dress almost resembled something out of a book Armin had read recently, 'Alice in Wonderland', and after making the comparison, he could not help but think that the girl belonged in some kind of fairy-tale.

"H-hello, my name is Armin. What's yours?" the boy introduced shyly as he brushed himself off.

"Annie." her voice was tentative and quiet.

"Why was you watching me?" when Annie had nothing to say for herself, Armin smiled and let out a chuckle, "Why haven't I seen you around before?"

"My Papa doesn't let me go outside." Annie looked down at her feet and Armin suddenly felt overwhelmingly sad for her.

"What about your mama?"

"I don't have a mama."

"Oh…" there was a long pause as Armin tried to read Annie's face, he didn't want her to feel upset so he asked, "Do you want to play?" and at Armin's request, the young girl's dull eyes lit up and she nodded.

"Can you teach me?" she asked as she walked beside Armin, "I've never played any games before."

"Don't you get lonely?" Armin looked to her in bewilderment.

"I have my Papa." was Annie's response.

"Won't your papa be angry because you're outside?"

"Not if he doesn't find out!" the little girl's eyes shone mischievously, "Armin, aren't you going to teach me how to play a game?" she looked at him expectantly and the boy's face formed into a huge grin.

"…and we spent almost every day after that day together. We never stopped seeing each other, not even after her father forbade us. "

"It is so sad that you had to part," Mikasa said, "I can understand why you want to meet with her again so desperately."

"It was very painful. But here I am, ready to be reunited with her once again."

"What is the plan after we meet Annie?" the Asian enquired. To her, the picture was still rather hazy and unclear.

"I plan to get back into Switzerland and stay there until the war is over." was Armin's response.

"Tell me, when do you think the war will end? It seems like it is a whole different story from your viewpoint. Here, everyone is led to believe that the Germans are winning."

"It's hard to say. All I know for sure is that the Germans are being pushed out of France. It could go on for another few years, but I have this feeling it will come to an end sooner than that."

"I see, I suppose we can only hope for the best."

"I wanted to fight in this war before it came to an end." Eren mumbled quietly, not looking up at either Armin or Mikasa. A silence fell upon the trio for a few minutes, Armin really didn't feel like going over this again and so he remained quiet.

"Eren," Mikasa spoke up after several moments, "I know you want to fight because of your mother. I understand that feeling very well, because as you know, my father too was killed by the evils of this regime. More times than I can count I've felt like getting my own revenge, Levi as well wanted his revenge for what happened to Petra. But your life is very valuable. It is very valuable and also very fragile…as humans, we are all weak. It is so easy to kill and be killed in this war. It is also so very easy to be consumed by darkness, and in these dark times, I think the real challenge is to not succumb to it, and find the light instead…at least, that is what I have tried to do over the years. This world…is very cruel, but can also be very beautiful…"

"What are you saying?" the brunet looked up to face the girl who sat opposite him, clearly perplexed by what she had said.

"Your life is worth too much to throw away in this war. I know you feel like it is your duty to become a soldier, but I think your mother would much rather you live to be an old man rather than die on the battlefield."

For once in his life, Eren did not say a word. Armin was dumbfounded by his friend's silence, but maybe for just once, Eren had decided to listen.

Moments later, a ticket inspector approached the three teens and asked to see both their tickets and identification. Armin's heart skipped a beat as he rummaged through his case for the official documents that he had forged, "Arlert, Armin, date of birth 3rd November 1926, Rothenburg ob Tauber", the man then turned to the darker haired male, "Jӓger, Eren, date of birth 30th March 1927, Rothenburg ob Tauber…" he nodded at the two and looked to the Asian girl, "Ackerman, Mikasa, date of birth 10th February 1927, Tokyo". The man seemed to give Mikasa a much more thorough inspection, most likely because of her Eastern appearance, which Armin found somewhat ironic. Not to mention that the Japanese were not an enemy of the German people, but were in fact one of their closest allies in this war. Fortunately for Armin, he barely got a look over and nor did Eren really. Once the ticket officer was satisfied with all three, he moved onto the next carriage, leaving Mikasa scowling as she snuggled into the scarf around her neck. It seemed to be becoming a habit of hers to do so whenever she felt uncomfortable or emotionally distressed. Armin only let out a breath of relief in the end, thankful that he had managed to get away with it. Who knows what he would have done if the inspector had found something to be wrong with the identification.

It must have taken all day long, but by late evening the trio had met their destination of Ansbach. Although Armin was itching to get to his hometown, all three agreed that they would spend the night in Ansbach and head to Rothenburg in the morning. It had been an exhaustingly long day, and everybody needed some rest. The trio were lucky to find an inn to stay the night. Eren was to keep an extremely low profile as it was vital that he pretended to be a German, otherwise he could risk getting himself shot, along with Armin and Mikasa. The boy was not very happy to say the least when the innkeeper, who was an elderly woman, questioned why the brunet was so silent and Armin quickly explained that he was mute. Of course Armin hadn't wanted to say anything, but he was left with very few options. After supper, they all resided in the rooms provided. The room was box-like, but Armin was just thankful that he could sleep in a proper bed rather than on the seat of a train or even worse, the cold hard ground.

Despite being extremely tired, the boy found it difficult to fall asleep. The day's events weighed down on him, suffocating him. It was as if the image of the man hanging from the lamppost was imprinted on his brain. He had been so deeply affected by it, and he found it odd because he had witnessed the brutal murders of three men by his best friend just a few days prior and although he had had nightmares about that too, it did not play on his mind even remotely as much. Eventually though, his heavy eyelids succumbed to sleep.

The trio ate breakfast shortly after the break of dawn and then they were already off again. It was not long at all before they reached the train station and were waiting for the train that would take them to Rothenburg ob Tauber.

"I'm so nervous," Armin felt like being sick. He was so close and he suddenly felt so unprepared, "W-what if she does not recognise me after all? What if she found someone else? What if—"

"No more 'what ifs'," Eren cut him off, "God knows how we managed it, but we've somehow got this far. Don't you see that as a sign, Armin? It seems like fate is on your side…it is your fate to meet with her again." the brunet placed a comforting hand on the shorter teen's shoulder and Armin couldn't help but feel warmed by Eren's unexpected words.

"Yes but you said so yourself, she could have died…or…."

"The train is approaching." Mikasa stated as the huge hunk of metal trudged along the track towards them, "Try not to worry, Armin. We cannot avoid our fate, so there is little point in worrying over it."

"And if it all goes wrong at the very least you will always have us, of course, that is if Mikasa wants to stick around."

The Asian girl nodded quickly, "Eren is right, we will support you always."

Both Eren and Mikasa's words brought a tear to Armin's eye and he smiled at them both, "Thank you."

As the blond boarded the train he looked up and released a breath he'd been holding, this is it, he thought to himself. I'm almost home. Armin's stomach flipped over as a whistle was blown and the engines roared, seconds later the train was on the move. Time passed by frustratingly slowly. Armin was restless and fidgety throughout the journey, often standing up and pacing up and down the aisles of the carriage. On his fifth attempt at getting up, Mikasa grabbed hold of his arm and sat him back down,

"Calm down." her grey eyes expressed her concern and he felt comforted just by looking into them. Mikasa was always so poised, the young woman had an air of serenity despite all she had been through in her short life. Her voice alone was enough to keep Armin in his seat and he couldn't help but think of her as somewhat motherly.

"I'm s-sorry." he stuttered, realising that his anxious behaviour was probably irritating.

"You do not have to be sorry, just try and relax."

Armin simply nodded and turned his head to look out of the window in an attempt to distract himself. The view of the passing landscape was beyond beautiful, fields that reminded him so much of the field by his house that he used to play in during the summers of his childhood. The train ride was only little over an hour, but it felt considerably longer. The blond was left glued to his seat while all of the other passengers filtered out of the vehicle.

"Come on, Armin! What are you waiting for?" Eren gave his friend a smile as he stood beside Mikasa.

The teen looked up at his friends and stood from his seat slowly, his legs almost shook as he stepped out of the train.

"…Ich bin daheim. (I'm home)" Armin whispered, "It feels like it's been forever…" the boy inhaled the air into his lungs and recognised the scent. It was far different to the smell of larger cities and it took him back in time.

"It doesn't appear like the town has been affected by bombings." Eren observed,

"It wouldn't have. Most of the smaller towns were not targeted." Mikasa explained.

"So Armin, are you ready to lead the way?" Eren asked, Armin nodded,

"If I remember the way," the teen let out a false laugh and Eren frowned,

"You've navigated us across four countries and we've made it to Rothenburg, you can't be serious Armin. Have some faith in yourself, you're brilliant."

The blond blinked, it was true. He had somehow achieved what many would have thought was impossible, considering Europe had been so torn apart by the war. It was Eren who made him realise that what he had done was incredibly impressive.

"Of course I know the way." Armin nodded, suddenly feeling a surge of confidence.

With every step he took, Armin's legs felt weaker and weaker. His heart was thumping as he got closer to the village he was born in. In spite of everything that had occurred in the past seven years, little had changed at all. The medieval town looked exactly the same as the day he left, with the exception of red flags with the Nazi emblem flying over some of the houses. The streets and shops were all familiar and a strong wave of nostalgia washed over the boy. Memories of his parents and grandfather hit him hard and he felt a pang of sadness, missing them and wishing they were all still around. It was safe to say he was feeling a mixture of emotions.

It took around twenty minutes to walk from the station to Armin's village and when they finally arrived, the boy found himself speechless. His mouth wouldn't work as he stared in awe at the old field and houses he remembered so vividly. So many memories he had forgotten resurfaced and he was unable to describe exactly how he felt.

I can't believe how little has changed…I can't believe I am really here…

"Are we here?" Eren asked, snapping Armin away from his thoughts and bringing him back to reality.

"Y-yes," Armin nodded, "I was born here."

Armin began to walk off down a cobbled path while Eren and Mikasa followed behind. The boy's feet knew exactly where they were heading, while his brain had not quite caught up with them. After twisting and turning around several corners, the blond finally came to a stop. The trio found themselves standing in front of a very small, modest medieval style house. The windows had pretty wooden shutters and pots of flowers adorned the ledge.

"This…this was once my house," Armin explained quietly, "I wish I could go inside." He felt melancholic, staring up at the building that held so many happy memories of the times with his family, "Unfortunately, all I can do now is look at it from the outside." Neither Eren nor Mikasa spoke, allowing their friend to have a moment. They understood how emotional this was for him. After a couple of minutes, the blond walked away and they followed after him.

Armin's heart was racing again. He knew exactly where he was heading next. The field he had spent his summers playing in, the field where he met her. As he approached the vast amount of grass he took in a sharp breath, half hoping she would be there waiting for him. But that was a stupid thought that he quickly dismissed. A cool breeze ruffled his blond locks and the grass and flowers swayed gently. It was exactly like in his dreams, except she wasn't there. The boy let out a sigh and walked over to the tree he often used to sit under. He sat down, placing his head into his hands and running them through his hair. Eren and Mikasa looked to each other and then sat down on either side of the boy,

"Are you okay?" Eren questioned, looking at Armin with concern.

"I'm scared."

"What for?"

"It's been seven years, I'm so scared…how will she react?" Armin could feel his stomach churn over and over.

"It's okay to be scared, but we've come this far. You're one of the bravest people I know, Armin." Eren said truthfully, "Don't dwell on the 'what if's', just keep your mind set on how thrilled she will be to see you after all this time. And remember what I said before, Mikasa and me are here for you."

Armin remained silent for several more moments, just staring down at the grass. He had never felt so anxious in his life, at the same time he was excited. He wondered how it was even possible to feel so absolutely terrified and exhilarated simultaneously.

"When you are ready, Armin." Mikasa said, ensuring that there was no pressure on him to make a move any time other than when he felt comfortable to do so.

The boy sat for a while more under the tree, taking deep breaths and running his hand through his hair every now and then.

"I think my heart will burst through my chest at this rate…" he said, "I must see her, before it cuts out on me." It was then that Armin brought himself to his feet. His legs noticeably shook from nerves but nevertheless he began to walk in the direction of the house he knew to be Annie's. Even Eren started to feel apprehensive as they got closer. They walked up a hill and at the very top there was a single house, larger than Armin's but in the same medieval style.

"This is it." Armin's voice was almost inaudible as he stood before the house. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, mustering up all of the courage he had to approach the door and knock. A part of him wanted to run to the door, to see her, but the other part was petrified.

Go. Walk. Move, Armin, the boy took a step forward and with every step that followed, the pace increased. Eren and Mikasa were right behind him and by the time he reached the door, the boy was practically hyperventilating. His hand visibly shook as he knocked on the wooden door, and waited.

Oh god, please answer. I've wanted to see you for such a long, long time…

The boy felt a sudden qualm as he waited for the door to open. Armin knocked again and waited some more. After another few minutes passed without an answer, the boy was almost in tears at his desperation, "Annie?" he called out and finally, the door swung open. Armin's heart must have stopped for less than a second. However, the person who stood at the door was not Annie Leonhart, nor was the person Annie Leonhart's father. It was in fact someone Armin was unfamiliar with, and he was instantly drowned in disappointment. The man who answered stood propped up by a walking stick, he was missing a leg.

"What do you want? There is no Annie here." he seemed slightly disgruntled.

Armin could barely form the words to speak, his mouth opened and closed several times before he finally uttered, "I-I'm sorry…Do you…Do you happen to know the girl who used to live here whereabouts?"

"I don't, they moved away years ago."

"Oh," was all Armin could muster. Sheer dread was swallowing him hole by this point.

"I'm sorry I'm not who you are looking for." With that, the man closed the door in Armin's face.

Armin felt as though he should have broken down right there and then and cried his heart out, but instead he felt numb.

"It's okay Armin…" he vaguely heard Eren say in an attempt to comfort him, but his hearing had gone all funny and the brunet's voice was unclear. The boy just seemed to stare blankly at the door, until Mikasa took hold of his arm and began to lead him away slowly.

Eren took hold of his trunk and the two carried on walking him away from the house. Armin wasn't listening at all. He couldn't seem to focus on anything. "Armin…" Eren's voice kept calling to get his attention and then they stopped somewhere, Armin wasn't sure where.

"It's all over." the blond said bluntly, he felt so unbearably defeated. He came all this way, and for what?

"I'm so sorry, Armin." was all Eren could say, but Armin cared little at that moment in time.

"It might not be over just yet, Annie could still be in town." Eren tried to reason. He was not used to Armin being so unresponsive.

"No. The man said he did not know where she is. In a town like this, he would have known if she was around."

Mikasa did not speak at all, too upset for her blond friend to say a word. She knew that nothing could really be said to make the situation any better.

"What are we going to do now?" Eren asked, but Armin ignored him.

"I…I don't know what to do…" he finally whispered, "I think, I just want to be alone for a moment." At that, the boy darted off and Eren and Mikasa quickly rushed after him. They knew he needed space, but not when he was so vulnerable.

The blond started to run through the streets, but came to a sudden stop when he heard someone call out his name.

"Arlert?"

The boy's head turned abruptly to the direction of the voice and his wide blue eyes landed on a tallish male with a long face and dark blond hair with an undercut,

"Arlert, is that really you?" the young man asked, and that's when it clicked.

"J-Jean Kirstein?" Armin knew the face, even though he had matured. Jean had always teased Annie for her height and as a result ended up covered in bruises for it every time. He never seemed to learn from his mistakes.

"So it is you! I was sure I recognised you. You've grown…" Armin just blinked, "I haven't seen you in years. I didn't think you would ever return…What are you doing here again?"

"I…" Armin found it difficult to articulate himself, everything was just so overwhelming. "I came back for someone."

"Who?" Jean cocked an eyebrow and looked at him as if he were crazy.

Suddenly, Armin realised something and he felt hopeful again for a split second. Perhaps Jean knew Annie's whereabouts.

"Jean, do you know where Annie Leonhart is?" the boy's heart was already racing.

"Annie Leonhart? Ah," the taller boy smiled a little, "You came back for her."

"Yes, now Jean, can you please answer me. Do you know where she is!?" the blond had little patience left, if Jean knew where Annie was, it would mean there was still every chance they could be reunited and that his journey had not been in vain.

Jean Kirstein looked to Eren and Mikasa who accompanied the blond, and then back to the shorter of the trio, "Please, come back to mine. I'll tell you all I know."

Armin was positive Jean had not changed one bit, he was still annoying as ever. He wanted, no he needed to know if Jean knew where Annie was, "Do you know where she is or not?" the blond's tone was more than desperate.

"Yes, I think so." Jean replied and Armin felt instantly alleviated, "Come to mine. Your friends are welcome as well." he encouraged. Armin wasted no time, and the trio followed Jean back to his home.

There, he would hopefully find answers. Maybe, it wasn't all over just yet.