"See you later, Eren."
Mikasa thought as she leaped towards Eren, decided to kill him. Just as she approach him, Eren directed his eyes and fixed them on her. He was as if waiting for her to end everything, waiting for her to end his life. Mikasa knew that it was his surrender, his last will.
With a heavy heart and unshed tears, she cut through Eren's neck using her sword. "It's over." she thought. The Founder Titan began to fall apart.
She gained her balance and walked towards Eren. She held her hands toward his head, touched him lovingly. "You are now free.", she said. "Thank you, Mikasa.", Eren whispered as life slowly leaving him. Then, she kissed him. It's their first kiss-- gentle and pure. In that moment, all else faded away. Nothing else mattered but the two of them, just like the old times when they were sitting under the tree on the hill watching the sunset. It felt like home. Eren responded to the kiss and he breathed his last.
Mikasa knew that Eren was gone but she can't move yet. She was frozen in place, holding Eren's head near her heart. How can she move when he's gone? They can never go back to how they were.
Then suddenly, memories started to resurface. "It wasn't a dream." Mikasa realized. The time they spent on the countryside was not a dream. It was a reality Eren created for both them. Mikasa sobbed painfully knowing how happy they can be if these were all just a dream, if Eren's death was just a dream. She felt the weight of what she had lost. Eren's sacrifice was for the humanity's good, right? Then... "Why does it hurt so bad? Why do you have to die, Eren?" Mikasa said as she wept mournfully.
Time went by. Of course it did. But Mikasa was not aware of how long she was sitting there, holding Eren's head. The love of her life was gone, never to be with her again. Her tears eventually dried out, she can't cry anymore. She can't feel anymore. But she knew she had to move. Eren deserved to go back home. With all the strength she could muster, she got up and headed toward their comrades. When the smoke cleared, she saw Armin.
"Armin..." Mikasa called him, it was almost a whisper but Armin still heard her. He turned his head towards Mikasa and saw her holding Eren's head. Tears welled up in Armin's eyes as he saw his lifeless childhood friend. He gently took him from Mikasa's grasp and cried bitterly. He remembered their conversation when Eren visited him and found out all the sacrifices and hardships Eren went through for them to have the freedom they long for. Armin understood but it still pained him to see how it ended for Eren. He mourned for him but still feel at peace knowing Eren got the freedom he deserved.
"I'll be going now." Mikasa said as she took Eren from Armin. "Huh? To where?" Armin answered and handed Eren back to Mikasa. He always knew that Eren belonged to her. Mikasa wanted to give Eren a proper burial and they both knew that this was not the place where Eren would have wanted to lay in peace. Mikasa and Armin just knew the right place-- under the tree on the hill, it was their sanctuary.
Mikasa stood up, removed her vertical maneuver gear, fixed the scarf around her neck. She turned her back from Armin. She was ready to walk away and go back home with Eren. She stopped and glanced back to Armin one more time. With all the strength and courage she had left, she continued to head on. She left everything behind her, all the regrets, the pain, the chaos. She slowly disappeared behind the smoke. She didn't know what will happen next or what the future had for her. But she had all she ever needed in her hands-- it's Eren.