She hadn't seen Marcel in several days now but he had her resume work about three days ago. Today, Ymir only had to visit Willy and then she could head over to the hospital to spend time with Historia. The visits had busied her schedule even more and the brunette found herself hardly having time to spare. She didn't mind though. Seeing Historia was worth it. It wasn't like Ymir had anything better to do. The only frustrating thing about the whole ordeal was her car was starting to give her even more problems. She always knew it was a piece of shit but now she was starting to feel the distaste Eren always feels when he sees the vehicle.

The engine sputtered as she pulled up to the gate of Willy Tybur's mansion. A simple look at the boxy-looking camera with a speaker was enough to get the barrier open and she drove inside. Her relationship with Willy was an odd once but she felt comfortable enough to call him a friend despite being a customer. Willy seemed to enjoy her company and Ymir didn't mind. She was actually warming up to him and getting used to his unusual behavior.

Parking her car in the driveway of a large open garage, Ymir stepped out. In front of the house, Willy was at the porch putting up Christmas lights. At the sight of the man decorating, the brunette let out a puff of air. The holidays were already approaching. She should have noticed due to the recent forecast of cold water. And when she thought back to it, ever so slowly, the town was slowly being covered in festive decor.

Instead of getting the suitcase filled with Willy's wanted products, Ymir approached the man as he finished putting the last of the lights on the porch.

He grinned and gave a curt nod in greeting. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he commented. "I'll have to get someone else to do the second story of the house. Heights happen to be a weak point of mine."

Ymir snorted with amusement and the blond man continued. "You wait out here for a moment and I'll get the both of us drinks and then we can share a couple of cigarettes." The brunette gave a look of approval and he went off. She would only have to spend at least an hour or so here and she could be off again.

Shifting her weight, Ymir leaned onto the railing of the porch and looked out at the massive land that the mansion had. A little distance away, a lush wooded area surrounding the land as a barrier. The brunette wondered if Willy ever had troubles with wild animals. Probably not. A thin boundary of barbed wire laid between the tamed and wildland.

Her drive here was always relaxing due to the scenery. It was beautiful to be away from civilization and she didn't blame Willy for living all the way out here. With his father being a former president, she could only imagine how tiring it must have been for the man to be constantly around people. Being out here you had privacy. Isolation. It was more comforting than unsettling. Ymir wouldn't mind owning a house out in the woods or country. It would be her, her daughter and….

The brunette felt her face flush at the thought.

Historia.

What a childish thought. She was blushing like a love-struck high schooler. She had hardly ever felt this way in her life and the fact she was experiencing this as a full-grown adult was almost laughable.

Her expression grew serious as she continued thinking about the blond. It had been a week now since the woman has been in the hospital and they had talked a lot. Not a lot about their personal lives though. Nothing too personal. They hadn't even had a serious talk about what was going on between them. What happened that night at Nicolo's restaurant. Ymir was honestly afraid to ask but she had to know. She wouldn't start the discussion during Historia's hospital stay but she was aware that it had to happen soon. The brunette had to know how Historia ended up in her current state. Why did you leave me that night?

Ymir remembered those two words she spoke with the weight of confession laced into each syllable. You're beautiful. It wasn't a simple compliment. It was more than what it seemed. There was a deeper meaning that the brunette knew she got across to the short blond. She knew Historia understood. Well, she felt really sure that Historia got the message.

Her attention was taken away from her thoughts as she caught a glimpse of a figure near the tree line. Due to the distance, it was hard to make out distinguishable features but she was sure it was the shape of a….person? Her heart skipped due to the absurdity of what she was witnessing. She opened her mouth to call out but a hand on her shoulder startled her.

"I hope you don't mind sparkling water," Willy said, handing her a narrow can. He took a sip from his glass with a small curve to his lips.

"Er, I don't mind," Ymir glanced over to the treeline and saw that the person was gone. Blinking a couple of times, she shook her head. Maybe it wasn't a person. It must have been a wild animal who wandered a little too close. Who knows? It didn't matter. She doubted it was a big deal. Her gold eyes fluttered to her sparkling drink.

The blond man offered her a cigarette and the two of them starting smoking. He blew the smoke away from the brunette and said, "Do you have any plans for the holidays?"

Ymir felt something twist inside her when the words reached her words. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing on the smoke inside her lungs. She would rather not let dark thoughts try to horde and conquer her mind. She was getting better. The holidays wouldn't ruin that. "Don't really know. Maybe?"

Willy hummed. "Are you spending Christmas with family? Friends? Or…maybe a lover?"

Ymir snorted in amusement. "Hah, I don't know about that either." She took a drink from her glass. The person that popped into her mind was Historia. She had to hide a smile at the thought as a warm bubbly feeling fizzed through her veins. Childish. At this point, Ymir didn't care.

…

Breathless.

She didn't realize how weak she was until she felt herself grow exhausted by the simple movement of walking. During her entire stay at the hospital, they had made sure Historia was walking around the hospital more than one time a day to build strength in her muscles. Ever so slowly, she felt herself finding more strength to walk long distances. Her effort was encouraged by the fact that this was part of the healing process, that held more meaning to her than anyone else, and the companied she had with Ymir.

The brunette had made it her goal to visit Historia every day and the blond couldn't complain. She enjoyed Ymir's presence. She appreciated that the tall woman would stay with her longer than necessary. She was growing stronger. Her gratitude directed towards Ymir.

Their conversations seemed to be endless and they never seem to run out of things to talk about. When silence, every now and then, settled between them, it was a comfortable one. No awkwardness floated in the air. Historia was aware that their discussions never went to a personal topic. They avoided talking about family or their past as if they would be killed for it. The blond knew she was the reason why they never reached such intimate conversations. They still had to talk about...well, everything. Historia didn't know if she was ready for that. She doubted a hospital would be the appropriate place to converse about it either.

"I never really liked a particular celebrity or artist, like get obsessed or be a devoted fan," Historia commented, her eyebrows scrunching together in concentration as she tried to focus on walking and Ymir's words. "No one ever seemed to catch my interest. I know girls my age back then were usually boy-crazy over those mainstream bands and yeah, I enjoyed some of their songs, but I never freaked out over them."

The brunette bit her lip. "Hmmm."

"What?"

"Nah, I just think it is weird," Ymir chuckled lightly.

"In what wait?"

"It's just, er, I had this phase where I was really into the genre rock when I was younger. Tweens-early teens, I suppose. Had the whole hairstyle, makeup and attitude, it was crazy," She rubbed the back of her neck, smiling awkwardly and a small flush to her cheeks.

Cute. Historia grinned and asked curiously, "Is that why you know how to play guitar?"

"Guitar and a bit of bass. Never really planned on making a career out of it though, just enjoyed it as a hobby."

The two of them continued walking for a bit, feeling settled in each other's company. Historia felt as if her insides were doing flips and getting mixed up and she knew it wasn't because of her exercise. She hadn't had simple conversations such as this one for a long time. Ever since Ymir's first visit, it has been constant nonsense that seemed to be interesting. The blond was never bored with Ymir's words and the brunette never seemed to be bored with Historia's.

"It's getting colder," Ymir commented, her hands shoved in her pockets. "The holidays are coming up."

"Yeah," Historia looked around the whiteness of the hospital. Her gaze drifting towards an empty room with the door open, she caught a glimpse of the outside world. It looked bleak. A nearby tree was almost barren and noticed the tiny raindrops starting to form on the glass window. "They are. Do you like Christmas?"

The brunette shrugged. "I don't really care about the holidays."

Historia quirked an eyebrow. "Really? So, you don't have a favorite holiday?"

Ymir shook her head.

"You are an odd one, Ymir," She laughed.

"Maybe," The freckled woman's lips curved. The distance between the two of them seemed to grow shorter and shorter. Ymir stopped by a corner in an empty hallway by the stairs. Historia stood by her, wondering curiously on why they stopped. The brunette looked at her, her hands fidgeting in her pockets. "Historia…"

The blond paused for a moment, her heart rate increasing as if she was expecting something unexpected to happen. "Ymir?"

"What do you plan on doing when you get out of here?"

The short woman froze. Her shoulders unconsciously stiffened. She had been intentionally avoiding that thought for a while. Because in all honesty, she didn't know what to do. Historia took a breath. Honesty. She would have to start being more honest. For both their sake. She bit her bottom lip. "I...I don't know."

It was a relieving truth. For Historia. She knew this time she could say something and not fear anything. She didn't have to lie. She didn't have to be vague. Because the home she lived in, wasn't even a home anymore. Just the remnants of a man and a woman who lived together with the most toxic of relationships. The blond closed her eyes and she took a deep breath. An invisible weight had lifted from her chest and her shoulders. She didn't feel as tense anymore. She looked up and stared into those gold orbs.

"Come home with me."

The words tumbled out of Ymir's mouth more as instant thought then something she thought about. The brunette pulled her lips in, making a face as she cringed. Historia didn't mind.

"I-I….er, just...Would you like to stay with me for a bit? O-or, I mean, I could stay with you for a bit. It doesn't matter for me, whatever you w-want, " She fumbled with her words.

"Ymir," The blond said her name softly, moving a hand to gently grip hers. She felt the sweaty nervous palm of the brunette and squeezed it. "Of course."

If it meant Historia could spend more time with Ymir, then she wouldn't decline.

The freckled woman paused, her features one of surprise. Then, shaking her head, Ymir straightened herself and cleared her throat. Historia just chuckled and tugged her hand to continue their walk.

They walked in comfortable silence. Both their heads, swarming with all sorts of thoughts. Ymir felt excited and accomplished; Historia felt happy and nervous.