Eren's eyes fluttered open but she was unmoving, staring up at the twinkle lights in the trees. Her breathing came out in wisps. "We have to get her inside," Levi said desperately. Eren was awake. She was alive! Levi felt a frantic need to keep her alive.

"Shit, she's warm," Jean said, pressing a hand to her forehead. At his touch, Eren winced and slowly turned her head away from him and ended up staring at Levi. There was no recognition in her eyes.

"Eren," Levi said cautiously. He touched her hand and instantly knew what Jean had meant. Her skin was hot and he could see sweat on her brow. "Eren, can you hear me?"

She squinted at him and frowned. Then her eyes darted away, scanning the faces of everyone gathered around her. "Where…?" Her voice was raspy and quiet.

No one answered the question for her, stunned. Petra whispered for the second time that night, "She shouldn't have survived it."

Eren was glancing uneasily around the group. Levi reached down to brush the hair out of her face but her hand shot out to stop him, sizzling with green energy. It was on the verge of burning him.

Levi frowned, breathless. "Eren, who am I?"

She blinked and tears began to form at the edge of her eyes. The more Eren squinted at him, the more Levi grew afraid. Could she really not remember him? His chest ached with the fear. "Please remember me," he pleaded, his hand still pressed in hers.

The magic began to recede and she just continued to look at him. "You're…"

Levi's hope soared. Please let her remember. Please.

"Levi?" she whispered. Eren gasped and slipped her hand from hers, pressing both of her hands to her head. "Levi, it hurts," she moaned.

Petra fell to her knees above Eren's head with wide eyes. "We have to do something."

Levi glanced at all of them. "I have a plan but I don't think you will be happy with it…"

Hangi placed her hand on Levi's shoulder, anchoring him. "You want to restore our magic."

Levi sighed heavily and grasped at his black hair in frustration. "I know I shouldn't ask you of this. It's too much. I just freed you of this magic and now I'm forcing it on you again. I wouldn't hold it against you if you said no."

"We can do it," Petra spoke up, determination sparkling in her eyes. "I followed you before and I won't regret it now."

"But you'll be cursed with the black magic again," Levi reasoned. "We would be back to square one."

"It would be better than to let Eren take all of our sins for us," Erwin said. His face was grim and somber. "She's an innocent. I will not let her take that on herself."

Levi nodded at Erwin, silently expressing his gratitude. His three friends had always been loyal. He didn't want them to sacrifice themselves, nor would he ask them to, but it looked like they had already made their decision.

Jean cleared his throat, gaining Levi's attention. "You aren't leaving me out of this," Jean said, looking Levi right in the eye. "Without Eren, I have nothing left. I want to help."

Levi pursed his lips, considering. Surely Eren would hate it that Jean was dragged into this mess again. This wasn't his burden to bear either…

Eren abruptly whimpered. She coughed deeply with blood spilling from her lips. "We're running out of time," Petra warned, threading her fingers into Eren's brown hair.

"Let me help," Jean urged.

"Fine," Levi said with a nod. "You're in."

"Levi," Hangi said lowly. "We don't know how much magic is in her. We have to make sure it spreads evenly through the six of us."

"Is it possible that we'll go mad?" Jean asked.

"Yes," Levi said, tracing his hand across Eren's delicate jaw. "We could. But if there is at least one of us sane, we will figure out a different way to free us of the dark magic without going to Purgatory." He glanced at Jean. "Are you willing to take that risk?"

Jean nodded, his eyes set hard with determination. "Let's do it."

Levi glanced at Eren's key and around at the others. "There's a chance this might not work at all," he told them. "If it backfires…"

"Don't," Petra said. "It's going to work."

Levi nodded. "All right, here goes nothing."

With his magic, Levi centralized it into his hand before reaching out for Eren's key. He grimaced, bracing himself, knowing that this was about to hurt. His hand latched onto the key and he cried out instantly with the intense burning sensation against his hand. But yet, he held on tight, pushing his magic around the key. He needed to grab onto Eren's magic and draw some of it out. "Grab onto me," he yelled at the others through gritted teeth. The wind had picked up, causing the snowflakes to come heavier.

The others all placed a hand onto Levi's shoulders but he barely felt it. He was too focused on the overwhelming magic, building and building. Pain shot up his arm and through his spine excruciatingly. He cried out, wanting to let go of the key, but he couldn't. Not with Eren writhing at his knees.

Through the pain and the howling wind, Levi placed his free hand on Eren's forehead, trying to keep it firmly in place despite Eren's harsh movements. Tears were streaming from her face.

Levi felt the magic rap around him. He let it latch onto him but then, he tugged. The magic was rushing through him and his body was alit with the fire. God, it burned.

He pushed the magic even further, through his body and into the bodies of his four friends. Levi squeezed his eyes shut, just feeling it rush through, using himself as a conductor. It grew and grew and grew… until he let go.

Levi couldn't take it anymore and he dropped the key, gasping. He quickly pressed his burnt hand into the snow but kept his eyes on Eren. Levi hoped that that had been enough magic taken from her. Did it save her?

"I can feel the magic," Jean said in complete awe. His face was scrunched up in discomfort, suggesting he hadn't had a pleasant experience either.

"Do you think that did it?" Levi asked, feeling the magic fill his veins, spreading through his whole body. How much magic was a lot? How much was too little? At least, Levi felt like his self.

Eren was lying limply in front of him. Her hair was wet and matted with snow and surprisingly, her skin had gained more color. Levi's hope grew.

He leaned down and cradled Eren's head, pressing his forehead to hers. There were soft puffs of air coming from Eren's lips and Levi sighed in relief. At least she was alive.

"Eren," he called to her, moving his lips to her ear. He whispered her name again into her ears. His lips brushed her jaw as he moved again, this time to her bloody lips. He ghosted over her lips, mouthing her name delicately against them.

She gasped into him and Levi couldn't help it, he moved in for a full kiss. He kissed her and she remained unmoving until suddenly her mouth was moving against his, deepening the kiss. Levi kissed back one more time before moving back to look at her.

Eren was crying.

He brushed the tears away from her eyes with his thumbs. "I love you," he said passionately, looking at the girl who had stolen his heart all of those years ago.

Eren's smile was watery. "I love you, too."

Eren and Levi stood on the platform at the train station, lost in a bustling crowd. She glanced at Levi in adoration as he weaved his arm around her waist and she leaned into the touch.

Down further on the platform stood the rest of their friends, chatting away. She and Levi had removed their selves from the group for some privacy.

They all had magic now, Eren had learned from Levi. They all shared the dark magic inside of them, destined for all the same fate. Eren held the most magic, because of her key, but her life was no longer threatened. She just hated that she couldn't take the stupid thing off.

Eren observed Levi as he watched the tracks, oblivious to her stare. He had saved her, more than once. And now he was leading them into a journey to rid them all of their black magic for good. But this time, they would do it together.

The thought of how good he was brought her to tears.

He looked at her, startled. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Eren pressed a hand to her eyes and shook her head. Despite her crying, she smiled. Eren wouldn't tell him how grateful she was to him or praise how much he had done. He would only put himself down and bring up all the things he had done in the past. She didn't like to hear him talk about himself in that way.

"I'm okay," she said and wiped the tears away, composing herself. Today was a happy day. She shouldn't be crying.

He smiled back at her and Eren basked in it, truly happy.

"Have you decided where we should go?" he asked, just as the train appeared around the corner. The horn blared through the crowd and chugged into the station. Excitement shot through Eren as she realized that they were moving on, leaving the past in the past.

She grinned back at him and leaned into him, pressing their lips together in a soft, quick kiss. "With you, anywhere."

So there you have it! That's the end! I hope you enjoyed the story and it's been a great ride. Thank you to everyone who supported me! I'll see you around.