Chapter 14: Brief Midnight

The ride back to the farm took twice as long. Dia's persistence did well running away from a titan, but her age caught up to her on the way back. She trotted through the rocky field, back onto the main road, then plodded home. Thankfully, a trough lay near a sheep pasture, where only a few lambs with no shepherd grazed. The rider tried to be patient, but after only a few moments of refreshment, she saddled onto the horse and kept riding.

Navy blue and purple replaced oranges and yellows as the passion of the day wore off. Some farmhands peeked out of their huts as she rode, jerking their heads around in lieu of the titan. Dia's pace put them to rest, and they began putting things back in order. She saw some rearranging furniture on their decks and others watering vegetable gardens. Some had to wrangle cows from the edges of the pastures, unwilling to return to the screaming. A few small children waved as she passed, their hands still shaking.

Although the knots in her stomach came loose, a noose still wrapped around Edie's neck. Jamie was hopefully still in that barn, that the titan hadn't noticed that there was one less person in the calvary. Hopefully he'd stayed in the shed, hadn't tried to be a hero, hadn't tried to be a scout. Cowards tended to live longer, but he'd refused to be one. Every twinkling star mirrored his eye, and the deepening blue made her kick Dia's sides over and over again, to grip the reins and the horse's mane tighter.

"This is ridiculous," she muttered to herself. "Titans aren't supposed to attack here. This wasn't supposed to happen. It should've been at least a year until he had to see them, before he had to grow up. We're in heaven, for God's sake." A bull's persistent moo from half a mile away still made her jump. "Unless the second wall was breached."

Thankfully for Dia's remaining hair, the village came into view.

"Edie!" Mr. Solway plodded on his own horse toward her, shouting and sobbing as he came. "Edie! Thank God." He rode right next to her and threw his arms around her, nearly pulling Edie to the ground. "We thought you were dead. They saw you riding across the field, toward the sun, and, well, a titan can outrun and old horse."

"Dia did alright." Edie patted her neck. "Did you get everyone out?"

"Yes. There's no bodies or bloodstains, from what we can tell. You and Jamie distracted it at just the right time, so those stubborn oxen closest to it hunkered down. Not many people along the road even saw it, just heard the screaming." Mr. Solway rubbed his temples and wailed. "Oh, God. It was horrifying. Those poor people in Wall Maria…"

"Hopefully they were quick deaths. Have the police come?"

"Yes, we intercepted them during the escape. They sent some scouts your way, and the rest came to the village. Honestly, they didn't believe anyone would lead the titan away intentionally, so only two went."

"Well, only one of them way helpful," Edie admitted. "And the military police?"

"They're assessing damages now."

"Do they know how the titan got inside?"

"Some Garrison troops went to search the walls, but they were skeptical that there was a titan in the first place. But so many of us saw it, that they couldn't refuse."

"Good." Edie urged Dia on. "I've got to find Jamie, then get back to Hajule and Larmie. They might not even know something happened."

"Do that." Mr. Solway touched her shoulder, then rode toward his shop. "Come over for dinner tomorrow! Bring the whole family."

Edie paused for a moment, staring where he'd gone. She pressed her hand on her chest. "Family."

A few people moved around the village, slow as molasses, cleaning up debris with moans and groans. The buildings themselves mourned, with broken tiles and felled in rooves. The shopkeepers threw open their windows, and savory potato stew wafted in the streets. Further in, Edie saw soldiers and citizens grouped around bowls, speaking softly of the day. A few of the citizens she knew raised their heads, eyes full of tears.

"Edie! Is the titan dead?"

"Were the scouts able to defeat it?"

"Are there any casualties in the fields?"

She answered their questions quickly, ignoring the soldiers, and rode on, searching for that barn. They all looked the same under night's cover, the titan's path clear with broken windows and deep crevasses in the road. Finally, she found the double doors that she'd locked herself and undid that work.

"Jamie! Are you in here?" She ran through the barn and toward the shed, throwing its doors open. Sure enough, shivering in the corner, was Jamie, looking like he was four years old. Edie fell on the floor, wrapping her arms around him, holding his head close to her shoulder. "You're breathing; you're breathing." The exhaustion caught up with her, and she slumped to the wall. She stroked his hair, confirming his life over and over. After a few minutes, he responded, locking his arms around her. His breathing became louder and louder, until he wheezed and shook.

"We're dead," he wailed.

"We're not dead. We didn't die. We survived." Edie stroked his hair. "The titan's dead. The scout killed him."

"They couldn't kill him," Jamie wheezed. "There wasn't anything to grapple to. You can't get high enough, and it's eaten us."

"We're not dead. And that scout found a way." She lifted his face and stared into his eyes. "You're alright, I promise you. We can get home and prove it."

"You left me," he whispered. "You left me here."

"I had to—"

"What would I do if you died? If I'd been stuck here, and you hadn't of come back?"

Least he doesn't think he's dead anymore. Edie wiped his tears with her sleeve. "You would've done what you mean to. Become a scout, kill titans, help the world."

"If they killed you, then I wouldn't stand a chance. You were incredible. You knew exactly what to do."

"It was just—"

"You could've died. We both would've been dead right now." Jamie took a deep, shaking breath. "It wasn't anything like I thought it would be. It was…huge. It wasn't thinking. It just wanted to eat us, and didn't have a reason for it." He clasped his hand over his stomach and lurched forward. Edie jumped out of the way as bile spilled out of his mouth. "What in hell are those things?"

"They're titans."

"But what do they want with us? Why do they want to eat people?" He threw up again, yelling as he did. "They don't even need to; they just want to. What kind of animal does that?" He wheezed and rocked. "I don't know. I don't know."

Jamie threw up once more, and was finally still and silent. She drew his arm around her shoulder and carried him to Dia. He managed to climb onto her back, riding in front, and Edie took the reins around him. Dia trotted happier now, in spite of the weight, familiar with the trail home. They passed Mr. Solway's shop, who paused his bread distribution to wave, and exited the accursed town.

The fresh, cold wind hit like an assault. Spring was well in the air, and Larmie had said showers would come soon. They needed good rains right after seeding, but lately, something had affected the usual cycle. Rains fell at odd points, sometimes flooding the area. Winds were stronger, and he feared a large storm. But rain was the one thing farmers could depend on. It had to be, though the military police couldn't make rain fall.

Dia turned onto their drive without any prompting and cantered to the house. Hajule and Larmie both sat on the porch, one idly reading, and the other knitting. The refugees bedroom light was on, but the home was quiet.

Dany stepped out of the front door when they came closer. Her hands were on her hips. "You missed dinner and homework. Kikoi's driving me crazy because he knows how to do this geometry stuff and I don't."

"Sounds like him." Edie dismounted and pulled Jamie off. "If you can take care of Dia, I'll be right inside."

"Sure," she grumbled, flashing a little smile of thanks. Edie laid one more hand on Dia's side, of thanks, then carried Jamie to his parents.

"What happened?" Hajule put down her book and rushed down the stairs, pulling her son close. "He's limp, and cold."

"The boy probably tried to swim in an icy creek again," Larmie said.

But Jamie shook his head, face buried in his mother's shirt. "There was a titan," he said quietly, "that ran through town."

"Don't be ridiculous, Jamie. You're sorely late for dinner, and everyone been worried about you. If you've got anything to say to us, then—"

"There was a titan." He lifted his head. "Mr. Solway and everyone saw it. Edie led it away, or we all would've been dead."

Hajule and Larmie looked at Edie, who nodded and rubbed Jamie's back. The two shared a glance and nodded, too. Larmie picked up his son and carried him inside, whispering in his ear and rubbing his back. Hajule went into the kitchen and poured tea for the two of them. After setting Jamie down at the table, Larmie went in his room.

Edie drew a chair next to Jamie, and he leaned on her shoulder. "I'm supposed to be the brave one," he said. "Or the stupid one, depending on who you talk to. I should've been the one leading the titan away, but I couldn't even move."

"It's your first time seeing a titan."

He propped his head up. "But it wasn't yours?"

"I…guess not."

"Right." He sat up, his strength returned. "I hope you're not angry with me. You could've gotten eaten because I was a coward."

"You weren't a coward, Jamie."

"I stayed in the shed—"

"Then you were obedient. We were a team, and you followed orders. Because of that, nobody died. We got the best case scenario."

"Sure. But before that, when we were running away." He took a haggled breath. "I don't want you to be angry with me. I still want to be a scout, but…I think I get why other people don't do it."

"Because it's scary?"

He shook his head. "Because there's not much point. We can't kill all the titans. There'll always be titans, so why try to get rid of them?"

"But it—" Edie pressed her lips together. "Never mind. I'm glad you still want to fight."

"I really need to start training," he breathed. "Do you think we could start training together? Maybe you can invite that military police guy over, even though he's as dull as bricks."

"He is not—"

"He is."

"…yeah."

Larmie returned, and he and Hajule sat at the kitchen table. "Are you two alright? Are you hurt at all?"

"I threw up lunch," Jamie admitted.

"And you weren't home for dinner," Hajule said, "but we'll talk about that later."

Lamie set a huge book on the table and opened to the middle. "Edie, Hajule and I have been talking about this for a while, and this seems like the most appropriate time to bring it up." He turned the page around and ran his finger along the margin. "This book has been in my family for hundreds of years. Every Cartwell has tracked his farm's progress, farmhands, marriages, deaths, births, and so on, going back twelve generations. It's not much use logistically, but it's the history of every person with our name."

Hajule pointed to her name, joined to Larmie's, leading to Jamie's. "We want you to be a part of it."

"Aren't I already?" Edie asked. "I've worked on the farm

But Jamie's eyes lit up. "You want her to be in the family tree? As a Cartwell?"

Hajule nodded. "You've been a sister to Jamie, and a wonderful friend to me. A great companion to Larmie, as well."

"And you put up with Corini," Larmie chuckled.

"With all you've done for our family, and since your own hasn't come to find you, we want you to be a part of ours, in the legal and historical sense."

"If you'll have us," Larmie finished.

Edie blinked, her mouth ajar. She and Jamie met eyes, and he beamed. "You're Edie Cartwell," he whispered. "For real."

She grinned back and nodded at her new parents. "Edie Cartwell. I like the sound of that."