I hope all of you are healthy and staying safe out there! Crazy times these are...
Reiner gurgles and coughs, the blood smeared over his face hot and sticky. His nose is broken and bent into his skull and through the buzzing white noise ringing in his eardrums, he hears Gabi plead for everyone's help.
His heart joins his nose in breaking when Gabi sobs in pain and defeat, Reiner's bleary vision catching Jean flee into the forest. His hand wants to find her, comfort his cousin and apologize for a fate he wished she'd never experience; this suffering must some kind of family curse and Reiner is positive he's the inception of it. Despite all of his efforts, none of his limbs move. He's paralyzed by the stun of his beating and the image of Marco's tearing face. Reiner hiccups and the invisible spikes of his guilt and self-torture sinks deeper into his chest.
Something soft touches his temples and Reiner jolts.
"Calm down." The voice is firm but there's a softness weaved within it. "It's just me."
The fuzziness of his sight clears a little when Reiner glances up.
Annie stares down at him. Apathy always dominates her expression, except this time, her eyebrows are in slightly upturned arches, ice-lake eyes sympathetic. An investigative tune hums in her throat then Annie tugs off her green cloak and wraps it into a fabric ball.
"It's nothing you can't heal within a few minutes." Annie tells him. "Just sleep it off."
Her palms are warm and soothingly assuring as Annie lifts up Reiner's throbbing head and rests him on the cloak she carefully placed under him. This tenderness from her is both foreign and surprising to Reiner but her care is far from unwelcome. She's only brought him closer to tears.
Annie Leonhardt—a girl whose unstoppable dedication and intelligence rivals that of seasoned war veteran, calm and unwavering even in the midst of a flashflood of misfortune and struggle. She's exposed hardly any emotion since their time spent together as children, not until that day.
He made Annie cry that day.
He's never seen her cry before.
Annie never complained during training, not even when punches bruised their jaws or their heads were pressed into the ground by a steel-toe boot to motivate them to, "Work harder! Move faster! Back straight when you salute!" She took it all in silence and carried their task of researching into the Founder all on her own. Reiner envied how a person two times smaller than him had such an overwhelming presence and strength of mind. Yet all he did in return is condescend her lack of ambition during their training in the 104th, force her to help him fix a mistake he never should have made in the first place.
Gabi and Falco rush over to him, fervently ask him if he's okay, if he needs anything. Reiner's tongue itches to reassure them only the words die every time he tries to speak. All which repeats in his head are the tears he brought on his friend's faces, on the concern he's imposed on these two children who mean so much to him. He looks up to his fellow Warrior.
"Annie…" Reiner hoarse voice croaks. "I-I'm…"
"Shut up about it already." Annie reprimands him sternly. "You need to focus on healing, not running your mouth again."
A pained noise coughs out of him. He voices he's dizzy and Gabi rushes to get water and a towel with Falco keeping to his side. Reiner finally manages to place his hand on Falco's shoulder and squeezes—he's fine, he mutely speaks—and relief unwrinkles the boy's worried face.
Reiner's focus doesn't leave Annie. She uses a nearby tree as a backrest, tucking her legs into her chest and settling her forearms over her knees.
"We've dealt with the sin for four years now, Reiner." Annie speaks in a faraway tone. "I'm just as responsible for Marco as you are but dwelling on the past wastes both our breath and the time we have left." Eyes hollowed by their years as Warriors and the prolonged worry for her Father swivel to him. "Be at peace about it for once. Our real problems start tomorrow and if we want to get back to Marley, we need to be at the top of our game."
Reiner keeps his attention locked on her before swallowing thickly, nodding in understanding.
Even if some sins can never be forgiven, if keeping himself together is all he has to do to make amends—to ensure they'll succeed—, he'll do everything in his power to do so.