A/N: First of all...This was really really tough to write. I had to re-write it twice because I wasn't happy with it. I am still not very happy with this chapter.
Please Please review this chapter. I really want to know what you think of my stories. Also do me a BIG favour please check out my other stories.
So it's time for me to demand that you go read a wonderful Bertolt x Ymir story called ''Baby Fubar'' by 'Decorafeminae' It is a really lovely story.
So see you next time for the next chapter. I know I bug you to review but it is to make my story better for you. So yeah...SEE YA AND ENJOY
For a horrifyingly long second everything was still. The air, the people, even the Colossal Titan was still. But not for long. With a single strike of its gargantuan foot, humanities greatest enemy blew a hole not just in Wall Rose but also in the minds of every single person. On that day no one would forget any of the gory details.
No matter how many times she saw it, Annie always found herself in awe of the Colossal Titan. The way it towered over the great walls ignited a fire inside of her chest. But right now her ocean blue eyes were not locked on the Titan, her gaze was focused on the single foolish soldier trying to fight it. It didn't take her long to figure out who that foolish person was. Who else was it going to be? The snake chuckled.
Annie wanted to run to him. She wanted to tell to stop being such a fucking idiot, but she knew by the time she reached him it would all be over. So Annie decided to watch. Her icy eyes followed the figure that was dancing around the Titan. He can certainly move. The creature said, ''He sure can.'' Annie was glad that the rest of her squad had disappeared to find safety. If they had stayed on the Wall they would have had to listen to Annie talking to herself, which might have scared them almost as much as the Colossal Titan. Do you think he can beat him? Annie chuckled softly. She could see the boy rounding back to the nape of the Titan's neck, he was making his final attack, his swords raised. ''No.'' She whispered. Just as the words left her lips the giant skinless Titan exploded into an agonizingly hot cloud of steam. Is he going to be okay? That looks pretty hot. Annie sighed. ''It'll take more than hot air to kill Eren.''
*Twenty minutes later*
''Just follow your training! Split into groups under the Garrisons orders!'' Captain Weilman's voice echoed through the courtyard. He looked out across the yard. ''As you all know, desertion in the face of the enemy is punishable by death! So fight for humanity with your last dying breath! Dismissed!'' Panic flooded over almost every member of the 104th. Some started to cry, others to scream for their mothers. But not everyone was afraid.
''Annie, are you ready?'' Annie turned around to see Reiner and Bertolt jogging towards them.
''Yeah. I'm fine...'' She paused to look at Bertolt. Despite his tanned skin he was pale, his normally full eyes were sunken and Annie could hear his ragged breaths. ''Bertolt are you doing okay?'' The giant boy looked down at the floor, refusing to meet her eyes.
''Yeah. Just fine.'' He mumbled.
Reiner sighed and rested his hand on his dear friends shoulder. ''Come on. We're on a team with Marco, lets get this day over with.'' Both Annie and Bertolt nodded before heading over to Marco.
As they approached their freckled companion Annie noticed a lonely figure, standing in the shadows cast by the clock tower. She immediately understood who it was. Annie could never mistake those emerald eyes. ''I will be right back.'' She left before Reiner could even turn around.
''Eren. What are you doing moping in the shadows?'' Annie said as she neared the edge of the shadows.
''I...Just needed to be alone for a bit.'' He said despairingly. Annie opened her mouth to reply but never got the chance. Eren rushed forward and seized her lips with his own. Annie's arms instinctively pulled him closer, Eren happily returned the gesture. Their lips melted together just like they had done before on so many occasions. But this time. Their warm embrace was filled was sadness. Neither of them wanted to pull away but after a few minutes of lustful moans and wandering hands Eren pulled away slowly. ''Be careful out there Ann.'' His words were soft and heavy.
''Don't lecture me.'' She nuzzled his neck. ''I came fourth remember.''
Eren brushed his hand through her perfect golden hair. ''Fifth isn't too bad either.'' Eren whispered as he buried his face into her blond locks.
''True...Just remember your promise...Please.'' Annie balled her fists in the fabric of Eren's uniform.
Eren pulled back to reply when a loud voice called for him. ''Eren! Come on we're moving out!'' The members of team 34 were waiting for him.
Eren reached his hand up to Annie's cheek and brushed a lock of beautiful hair from her face. ''I promise you Annie. I won't die.'' he wasn't aware that he was lying as the words left his lips. He planted a warm kiss on her forehead before running off to join his friends. Annie stood there in the darkness, wishing more than anything that today would end quickly.
*Thirty minutes later*
A strong wind blew through Trost, carrying the stench of death of fire across the entire city. Annie winced at the smell from her perch on a church spire. From here Annie could see across most of the now burning city of Trost. The other members of squad 19 were also watching the plumes of smoke rise from burning homes. ''Squad 19! Advance!'' Marco's voice shattered the eerie silence that had fallen on them. Annie sighed, she tucked her hair behind her ears and took one last look at the latest victim of the Colossal Titan.
Annie gracefully weaved between the giants that had crawled through the breach, Titans were slow, stupid and cumbersome making them pathetically easy to avoid. Annie fired her cables into a nearby spire and with one blast of gas she launched herself high into the air, at the peak of her ascension Annie pirouetted in the air. She focused all of her attention on the neck of a ten meter Titan that was following Marco. With the flick of her wrist Annie launched her hooks into the shoulders of the monster and pulled herself in, readying her swords as she went until she was only a couple of meters from its vital spot. ''I'm sorry.'' She whispered as her blade tore through the skin. Scarlet, sticky blood erupted out of the cut but Annie didn't falter. She drove her swords deeper into the neck of the beast until she felt them connect with the bone of its spine. The Titan went limp at the lose of its pilot, collapsing to its knees before falling to the stone floor. Annie landed on the steaming corpse of the monster, crimson blood dripping from her face and hands; Annie wiped the quickly evaporating blood from her eyes with the sleeve of her uniform.
Marco's eyes were wide with awe. ''Good kill Annie.'' He stuttered. Annie leaped down from the carcass and shrugged at his comment. She craned her head up to the roof of a nearby house where Bertolt and Reiner were struggling with a twelve meter class Titan. ''We should go help. Come on.'' Marco launched himself onto the roof. Annie took one last look at the corpse she had created before going to rescue her friends.
Eren was standing on the precarious edge of Wall Rose. Team 34 was ordered to wait on top of the wall and await orders to advance. His emerald gaze was locked on every Titan that strolled past them ''Disgusting.'' Eren didn't even realise that he spoke out loud.
''Eren?'' Armin rested one of his hands on Eren's shoulder. ''Are you worried about Annie? Her squad is out there now aren't they?'' The blond was concerned for his best friend, ever since the Colossal Titan appeared earlier that day he had been acting weirdly...Well weird for Eren.
Eren shook his head and turned to face Armin. ''Sorry, what did you say?'' Armin noticed that Eren's hands were clenched to the point where if he put more pressure on his hands they might start bleeding.
''I asked if you were okay?'' Armin spoke softly. ''You seem...Off. Are you worried about Annie?''
Eren chuckled. ''Of course I am...I know she can look after herself better than anyone. But I still worry.'' Armin cast his friend a warming smile. Eren turned his gaze back across the burning city, wondering where among the Titan riddled town his lover was.
''Eren! Armin! We have been ordered to move off the walls and prepare to support the Vanguard.'' Both Eren and Armin turned to see Mina, Thomas, Mylus and Nac running towards them.
''You know what Armin?'' Eren smiled at his friend. ''This is a great opportunity.''
With a flash of golden hair and icy blue eyes another Titan fell. ''I'm sorry.'' Annie whispered to the giant corpse. Why do you apologize to them all? Said the voice. Annie's gaze never left the steaming body. ''Because I know what it is like to lose my mind, like them.'' She pointed to the neck of the fallen beast. ''Only difference is...I was lucky enough to escape it.'' The snake laughed. Now look at you...One after another you cut them down. It hissed. Annie winced at the words. ''It isn't as if I have a choice...I chose this path.'' She spat, in her head the voice chuckled softly. Don't lie Annie. This time Annie didn't reply, she turned to see Bertolt standing behind her.
''It isn't easy...Is it?'' He murmured as his ashen eyes lingered on the body of a six meter Titan.
''We shouldn't be talking about this.'' Annie snapped. Without waiting for a reply she fired off her cables and with one blast of gas she flew off into the distance.
''She isn't doing too well is she?'' Reiner appeared behind his tall friend with sticky blood dripping from his cloak.
Bertolt turned to his dear friend. ''Neither are we.'' He said with hazy eyes full of despair. ''But I think you're right...Annie is...Cracking.'' Bertolt sighed.
''She will be fine. I mean we all chose this path right?'' Reiner gently pushed Bertolt's shoulder.
''Yeah we did.'' The tall boy lied as he gazed off into the inferno he had created.
Annie gracefully ducked under a giant fist that was aimed at her head, she drew a fresh set of blades and with a single strike Annie tore apart the Achilles tendon of her latest foe. With a primal roar the Titan fell to its knees, pillars of steam started to rise from the gruesome wound. Using a nearby church Annie propelled herself into the air, right above it's neck. ''I'm sorry.'' But her words were lost to the sound of steel rending away flesh.
''Annie! Good job.'' Marco yelled from the roof top. ''Reiner, Bertolt, I have sent out a supply order. Could you go pick it up?'' Marco pointed to HQ. ''Me and Annie will keep the Titans focused here.''
Bertolt and Reiner exchanged a nervous glance before nodding. ''Okay. But if you get killed, I'll resurrect you and kill you again.'' Reiner scoffed.
''We won't be long so don't do anything stupid.'' Bertolt shouted to his comrades.
Marco watched them go until they were completely out of sight. ''Come on we should get to higher ground and wait for their return.'' He pointed to what looked like a large market place. Annie nodded and they made it to the roof without any trouble. ''How do you think the evacuation is going?'' He asked as he sat down against a chimney stack. Annie shrugged. ''How much longer do you think they are going to be?'' Annie shrugged. ''Not much of a talker are you?'' He joked.
''I don't play well with others.'' She deadpanned.
''I don't know about that...You seem to play well with Eren.'' He flashed her a childish grin. Annie drew her swords and shot him a venomous glare. Marco visibly shrunk. ''Sorry that was a bad joke, I was just trying to lighten the mood.'' They sat there in silence as the minutes passed on. Marco was about to suggest they go looking for Reiner and Bertolt when he noticed a black column of smoke coming from a close by park. ''That is an emergency flare!'' He stood up and ran to the edge of the roof. ''Come on! That is where squad twelve was.'' Annie nodded, she tucked her hair behind her ears and flew off towards the sounds of screams.
As they approached the source of the smoke flare Annie noticed that the clouds were changing. Instead of being a flawless white they were beginning to turn a dark and dirty grey, before long the clear blue sky had been engulfed by heavy black clouds. It didn't take long for them to find who fired the flare, the remainder of squad twelve were huddled together on a roof that was being besieged by a group of small Titans. ''This isn't good. There are a lot of Titans there.'' Annie murmured.
One of the terrified trainees tore his gaze from the heard of monster and looked directly at Annie. ''HEY! OVER HERE!'' He waved his arms in the air.
''Look.'' Marco pointed at the group. ''That's Franz. We have to help him.'' Marco started waving back. ''FRANZ! I KNOW THIS SOUNDS CRAZY...BUT I NEED YOU TO LURE THE TITANS AWAY FROM YOUR LOCATION!'' Annie gasped Is this guy for real? He must know Franz will die of he leaves. The voice scoffed.
''Marco. Franz will die if he goes out there.'' Annie explained.
''...No he will make it...Franz is quick and clever.'' Marco refused to meet her eye.
Aaahh I see now. He knows he will die, he just doesn't want to believe it...Sounds familiar. Annie winced. ''Shut up.'' She whispered.
Franz cast a sorry glance to his squad mates, he looked back to Marco. ''If you make it out of this shit hole, tell Hannah I'm sorry.''
With that he leaped off the roof ignoring the cries of his friends. ''COME ON! IF YOU DON'T FOLLOW ME I WILL STICK THIS BLADE RIGHT UP YOUR FILTHY ASS!'' Franz roared as he flew through the air with a trail of Titans behind him.
As soon as he was out of sight Marco called for the rest of his squad to get to higher ground. Once the area was clear Marco sighed heavily. ''Franz will be okay. Hannah will kill me if something were to happen to him.''
''You and I both know that Franz won't be okay so stop lying to yourself.'' Annie spat.
Marco rounded on her with a look of disgust on his face. ''How do you do it? How can you be so cold? We just sent our friend off to die! Do you not feel anything?'' Tears were forming in the corners of his eyes.
Rage flooded though Annie's body, she lunged forward and drove her knee into his abdomen, she grabbed a fist full of his hair and dragged him off the floor. ''First of all, you sent him to die, not me. Secondly, the moment you put on that uniform you understood that you could die. Franz knew that...that is how he could run off like that.'' Annie threw him to the floor. ''And finally. Don't you ever, EVER mistake my composure for emotionlessness again. Do I make myself clear?'' Annie stomped her foot down on his chest. Through gritted teeth Marco nodded, Annie removed her boot from his chest causing Marco coughed violently. ''What would Franz want you to do in this situation? Would he want you to sit here and cry? You are a war-soldier, now act like it.'' Without waiting for a reply Annie launched herself into the distance.
It didn't take long Marco long to wipe the tears from his eyes before he caught up to Annie, as soon as she was in ear shot Marco called out ''When we find Bertolt and Reiner, don't tell them about this.'' Annie nodded and not another word was said between them for the rest of their flight.
It took them only a few minutes to reach the rendezvous point that Marco pointed out on the map and when they arrived Bertolt and Reiner were already waiting for them, with looks of despair and anguish. ''What happened? Where are the supplies?'' Annie demanded.
Reiner massaged his eyes and sighed. ''HQ has been completely surrounded by Titans. No way in. No way out.''
''We are almost out of gas! What do we do know?'' Bertolt asked.
''Did you see any other squads on the way? If you did we should meet up with them.'' Marco said as he ran his fingers through his hair.
''We saw Jean's team and a few others on the way back.'' Bertolt glanced at Reiner who just shook his head. ''They aren't too far away we could reach them and have some gas to spare.'' Bertolt suggested.
''If I'm gonna die, I at least want to lay my eyes on that goddess Krista one last time .'' Reiner scoffed.
''Is this really the time for jokes Reiner?'' Marco sighed.
''Lets go.'' Annie spat in a frosty voice. ''We will have to fight some of them on the way to Jean by the look of it.'' Annie pointed to a large fourteen meter class Titan. She fired out her cables and was gone before Reiner had a chance to sigh. As she neared the monster Annie descended to it's knees. ''Reiner assist!'' She called out. Reiner nodded and fell in behind her. With a single slice of her blades Annie shaved the flesh of the backs of its knees away, the Titan fell to the ground in a spray of sticky blood and dust. Before it even had a chance to start healing Reiner fell from the sky and carved a large chunk of dripping flesh from the nape of its neck, with that the Titan lay still.
Marco watched on with a look of awe upon his face. ''What happened to not playing well with others?'' He mumbled as Reiner and Bertolt moved onto a ten meter Titan.
''BERTOLT! EYES!'' The tall boy nodded and swooped down out of the air, his blades pierced the hungry eyes of the monster with a stomach churning pop. As the Titan raised it's hands to smite the attacker, Bertolt released his swords and kicked off of the blood soaked face. Without it's vision Reiner easily weaved between the Titans frantic strikes, the blond ox stabbed one of his blades into the shoulder of the beast. Reiner stood on the back of the monster as it stumbled around. ''God damn it!'' He raised his free blade and with all his strength he brought it crashing down on the nape of the Titans neck.
''You guys are amazing! I feel like a burden watching you fight.'' Marco shouted as he severed the Achilles tendon of another Titan.
''Enough talk, we are almost there. Marco leave that one.'' Annie pointed to the Titan Marco disabled. ''It won't be getting up anytime soon.'' The freckled boy quickly nodded.
Annie turned to Bertolt, her eyes widened with shock as he spat up a thick wad of scarlet blood. ''Don't worry, one of them grabbed me for a bit, but I'm fine now.'' He said as he wiped the dripping liquid from his lips.
''It will take more than a little seven meter Titan to kill Bertie!'' Reiner shouted. Annie felt a smile pick at her lips as she watched her blond friend pull his giant companion into a headlock.
''Now isn't time to play. If we move quickly we can make it to Jean's location...without having to fight too many of them.'' Marco called out. With that all four members of squad nineteen leapt back into the pit of fire, ash and giants.
''I'm sorry.'' Annie whispered as her blades tore away the neck of eleven meter class, she didn't even stop to confirm her kill, she just fired out her cables and moved on to the next target. Annie was passing over an empty street when a six meter monster leaped clear off the ground, its grotesque fingers curled around her leg. Annie didn't flinch, she swung one of her blades in a wide arc. A malefic smile rose on her lips as she watched the severed digits fall to the floor with a spine tingling squelch. Free from her captor Annie quickly caught up to her squad.
''There! I see them!'' Marco pointed his sword to a rooftop that was littered with soldiers. Seconds later Marco, Reiner, Bertolt and Annie came crashing onto the roof. ''Jean! What is going on?'' Marco yelled as he ran to his friend.
A look of pure astonishment dawned on the mousy brown haired boys face when he saw his friend. ''Marco! I thought...Doesn't matter, the retreat bell sounded by we are almost out of gas...We are trapped here.''
As Marco and Jean tried to come up with a plan of escape, Annie franticly looked around the battered faces of the surviving members of the 104th. Do you really think that idiot would be here? If he had any gas left he would be using it to kill Titans. Not cry like a child. ''I guess your righ-Armin!'' Annie's azure eyes widened when she saw Eren's best friend curled up into a ball against a wall. Ooohhh...Maybe Eren isn't here for another reason. The snake hissed. Annie wanted to run up to him and ask him where Eren was. She wanted to shake him by the shoulders until he told her. But Annie couldn't. Annie was afraid of what he might say. You're only delaying the inevitable Annie. The hiss she was so used to hearing had transformed into a voice...Into Eren's voice. Annie was about to scream, she was about to pass out, she was about to raise her hand to her open mouth...
''Annie...I am sorry to involve my personal feelings, but did you see Eren's team?'' She turned her head to see Mikasa running toward them, her smoky eyes filled with hope. Annie wanted to answer but the words died in her throat. Eventually Reiner saved her the trouble.
''Actually. Armin is over there.'' He pointed to the little boy.
Annie turned away as Mikasa walked towards Armin. Eren is fine...He promised me he wouldn't die...He is alive. She thought to herself, all the time the creature in her mind tightened its hold over her sanity.
''The members of Trainee Corps team 34...Thomas Wagner, Nac Tias, Milius Zermusky, Mina Karolina...'' Tears were streaming down Armins tears.
No!...Please don't say it...Please don't. I'm begging you don't say it. Is what she wanted to say but Annie's blood had turned to ice in her body.
''Eren Jeager! These five died valiantly in the line of duty!'' Armin cried out.
Inside her mind something snapped. Four words engulfed her entire being...Eren broke his promise.