≃2000 years ago

[Five Years after the first appearance of The Titan]

"What's this?" Ymir curiously asked Az while holding a small notebook she had found around his things.

They were laying under the starry sky, near the riverbed they were used to go to. It was a cold night but they had each other and their campfire to keep them warm.

"It's just a small book that I write things on," the young man explained.

"What kind of things?" She asked, still curious about it.

"Just some notes sometimes, about important things," he replied very vaguely while scratching his head.

Ymir smiled. "You have a diary! That is so sweet!" she exclaimed smiling even wider while going through the pages.

"It's not a diary." Azzy complained, gently whisking it from her hands.

"Sure." She replied with a small laugh. "Do you write about me?" Ymir asked with tease, but genuinely curious about it.

"Did you ever eat someone?" Azzy asked, quickly raising himself and also quickly changing the subject. He swiftly put the small notebook back under his things while Ymir was stunned by his question. "What?" she asked back confused.

"You know... In one of those 'rituals', or maybe just casually at lunch, I don't really know how it works honestly," he joked about that ancient culture's tradition.

"You are hilarious," she said sarcastically. "Of course is not just a regular occurrence. Those are rituals and only warriors can participate on them." Ymir explained.

"And you are not a part of it?" Azzy asked, confused.

"Why would I be? I'm not a warrior. I never have been, I've never even killed anyone in human form." she pointed out.

"Right," he nodded then realised: "Wait. Does that mean I have to participate?"

"Welcome to the Eldian Empire," she said to him again with an evil smile. Azzy looked at her with much disgust. "Hey, you are the one who said you would do anything for me," she reminded him and gave him a small kiss on the lips.

"Yeah, but that's just... a bit too far," he complained.

"I'm sure you'll find a way around it, if it bothers you too much," Ymir pointed out. "But you have to be careful or the soldiers will say you're a coward," she added.

"Eldians are so weird!" he complained once more, embracing himself and his knees.

"We are eldians," she reminded him.

"Technically yes," Azzy replied. "But not really," he added. Ymir looked at him unconvinced. "I mean, it's been far too long to consider," he tried to explain.

"You just don't want to be counted as a cannibal," she argued.

"I rather not think about it," he replied. Azzy reflected for a moment longer then shook his head disapprovingly.

"What?" Ymir asked with a smile, teasing him again.

Azzy continued to shake his head. "You are becoming too close to these odd people. Be careful or you'll find yourself too attached to them."

"Hey, I'm just looking out for my future, you should do the same really," Ymir advised him.

"Well, you shouldn't put too much work on it. I mean, you should only look after Torin, he is more likely who you descend from," Az pointed out.

"I hope not! He is ghastly and he hates me!" Ymir disclosed her complaints.

"He hates everyone," Az reminded her.

"Besides, Fritz has seventeen children, so we never know…" Ymir pointed out.

"I thought he only had nine," Az interjected.

"Legitimate." Ymir explained. "Need I remind you that my mother wasn't a legitimate child? And what's worse! The oldie might not be done having children! We need to make sure he is protected, make sure that all of them are! The last thing I need is to be erased from existence out of my own negligence."

"Good point." Az concurred. He wondered about it all for a moment and decided to bring out a question he had been reluctant to ask, but constantly meandered through his mind. "You would tell me right? If they ever tried anything on you?"

"They would never. They are all too scared!" Ymir laughed. "They think I'm cursed and evil and not human!" she explained with her claws extended in a threatening way, but Ymir looked more like a small cat than a proper witch. "They think I might poison them or destroy them with my magical powers," she added with some dramatisation.

Azzy laughed, but pointed out: "You do have some sort of magical powers."

"You are the one to say. Imagine what they would do if they ever find out what you really are." Ymir tossed back at him.

"Really? And what am I?" He asked her very charmingly, leaning in for a kiss.

Ymir pressed both his cheeks with her hands and looked at him with a pout. "I'll tell you. You are a little boy trapped inside a grown man's body who thinks we are still playing hide-and-seek."

"Hide-and-seek?" Az interjected. "I thought we were just running."

"And isn't that the same thing?" Ymir replied, leaning in to meet his lips. They kissed.

Az pulled away with a slightly confused expression in his face. "Then why marry the old booby?" he questioned her. "I mean I don't get the point. How did that even happen?"

Ymir smiled that evil smile again. "He was very pleased with the success of the Titan. After all that conquering he told me he would give me anything I wanted. So I told him I wanted the throne." She explained in a cold tone.

"Okay, but is it really worth it though? What if the oldie decides he wants his rights?" Az asked further.

She rolled her eyes. "Even if he got passed the cursed witch thing, I don't think he would climb all the stairs of my tower," Ymir pointed out. "He would probably die of exhaustion if he tried! Which wouldn't be too bad," she laughed about it.

Ymir lived in the new castle's tower so she could be safeguarded while in human form. That seemed to be the main reasoning behind it, but it also made it crystal clear that she was their prisoner. If only she could see it, but Ymir never realised that. "And besides, he has more than enough concubines to spend his time." she concluded.

"I don't know. I think you are too confident about all this, I'm just saying you need to be careful," Azzy replied with a small hint of jealousy.

"I'm all yours, sweetie. And that's all that I will ever be," she told him smiling and gave him a long, wet kiss.

Azzy smiled. "I've got you something," he said, reminding himself of a trick he had just learned. He presented her with a mesmerising red rose that slowly materialised on his hand, coming to form in a mist of blue sparkles. "It's for you," he said in a charming way, giving her the rose.

"How did you do that? Where did it even come from?" Ymir asked confused, looking around the dark forest for a clue. She slowly reached for the flower, a little scared of the trick but also curious to inspect the small sudden gift.

"I saw it in a garden earlier today. Isn't it beautiful? It made me think of you-" Az tried to explain in a romantic way before being interrupted.

"But how did you make it appear like that?" She asked again, spellbound.

"It's just something new I've been trying," he replied casually.

"It's fascinating!" She said with excitement, staring at the red rose. "You are fascinating, baby," she told him and awarded him with another warm kiss in the cold night. "I will hold this forever," Ymir promised, with the rose near her heart. They embraced each other and laid together, under the moonlight.