SORRY FOR NOT POSTING FOR FOREVER! I actually have quite a bit written, but I've just been busy. Your girl is moving, so that's taking up all my time.

Anyways, HAPPY HOLIDAYS! I hope your holidays were great! I know some of you may be starting up work or school again today for the New Year, so I WISH YOU LUCK AND HAPPINESS!

But for everyone: HAPPY 2019! I WISH YOU A WONDERFUL YEAR WHERE YOU WILL HAVE HAPPINESS AND ADVENTURES! I HOPE THAT ANY HARDSHIPS THAT MAY COME YOUR WAY, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO FIND THE RESOLVE TO OVERCOME IT AND CONQUER YOUR DREAMS AND DESIRES!

Year 2: Spring

It was a long ride on the horses. We decided that we needed to head out towards the edge of the island – if there even was an edge. The information we received in Eren's basement so long ago told us that we were on an island and that there was an ocean around us. After we killed all of the remaining titans inside of Wall Maria, we made our journey out to see if this information was true.

It had taken us a year to kill al the titans within the walls. It was hard and tiresome, but it needed to be done. A weird feeling was in the pit of my stomach as we rode through the trees and past the familiar land. I believed that it was hope that was bubbling inside of me. Hope that we were about to reach the end. Hope that the ocean was real. Hope that we weren't doomed to live in fear for the rest of our lives.

"Make sure you're paying attention." I heard Levi's voice. I looked over to him and saw that he was looking ahead.

"Huh?"

"If you lose your balance and fall, I'm not stopping to make sure you're okay." He said.

"I'm not going to fall. Don't worry." I winked at him before looking forward again. "Hey, Levi."

"Hm?"

"Do you think it's true?" I asked.

"What's true?"

"Everything? Do you think we're going to see the ocean today?" I asked.

"That's what we're going to find out, if you didn't notice." Levi said. I rolled my eyes at his comment.

"But what do you think." I emphasized.

"I don't know. The whole idea is weird to me. I'm not brought along these expeditions to think about what we might find." He said.

"But I like it when you think." I turned to look at him and he looked at me. "It's such an attractive quality." Levi didn't say anything. He just turned his head and looked forwards.

"You're an embarrassment." Were the only words he said. I threw my head back and laughed at Levi's comment before continuing riding forward in silence. We ended up passing by a titan that wasn't fully functioning since it tried to drag itself towards us. It was almost sad to see, especially since we learned that we were related to the person inside the titan.

However, we left the titan and continued forward. We weren't going to let it slow us down towards our main goal. As we got closer to the next wall, a very strong smell wafted its way into the air. I had never smelt something like this before. It was strong and stung my nose slightly. The closer we got to the wall, we saw that we could go around an opening since it wasn't a closed circle like our walls. As we got closer, the smell became stronger. We rode up the dirt and we all stopped at the edge. The sound of water lapping at the sand filled my eardrums. My breath was caught in my throat and I wasn't the only one.

We all looked at the large body of water in front of us. Silently, we climbed off our horses and walked down to the sand. Was this really the ocean? Was this what Armin was talking about all that time ago. Walking over the sand felt strange in our boots. I knelt down and touched the sand with my hands.

"It's so soft and warm." I quietly said. As the sound of the water continued to fill my eardrums and the smell continued to bring a new life to me – that's when I took off my shoes.

"Ryder. Put your shoes back on." Levi said to me. He moved to stand beside me, but I ignored him and pulled off my shoes and socks. Once both my feet were planted on the sand, I felt just how soft it was. How warm the sand was. It was like having a warm towel wrapped around your feet, but that towel was made of clouds. I had never felt something so perfect in my entire life.

"It's so soft and warm." I quietly said again. I looked around at everyone standing around me and my smile grew on my face. "It's so warm and soft!" I yelled. "Quickly, take off your shoes and feel! Come on!" I encouraged everyone around me to do as I said. Our Squad and Hanji took off their boots and socks. I watched as their facial expressions changed from confusion to happiness as they felt the softness and the warmness of the sand. Then, the sound of the water caught my attention. My head turned, so I could look at it. "Hey, Armin." I called for the familiar blonde. I turned to look at him. "Go see the ocean." Armin took a few seconds to realize what I was saying, but once he did, I watched him walk over to the water and slowly submerge his feet into the water. The others all exchanged glances before smiling and running over to join Armin.

"You could get us all killed, Ryder. What if this sand has traps? What if that water is poisonous?" Levi asked from beside me. I wrapped my arm around his and looked at him.

"Levi." He turned, so he was now looking at me. "Shut-up."

"I'm your Captain. I can punish you for being disrespectful." Levi threatened.

"We sleep in the same bed, so I don't think those rules apply to me." I said before tapping the tip of his nose with my index finger. "I want to feel the water, too." I unwrapped my arm from Levi's and began to walk forward, but stopped once I felt him grab onto my hand. I turned back around to look at him.

"It could be poisonous. I don't think you should touch it." He said.

"Well if it is then I'll die, but at least you get to watch me die with a smile on my face." I shook off Levi's hand and turned to walk towards the water. With hesitant steps, I finally walked into the water and felt the cold liquid cover my feet. It sent shock waves up my legs and through my spine. With the hot sand, the sun beating down on us and the cold water around our feet – the temperature almost didn't matter anymore. I turned around and looked at Levi. "Levi, you should-" my words stopped as my feet touched something.

"Ryder?" Levi took a step towards me, but I was busy looking at the water. My foot had touched something. Something solid. "Ryder, what is it?" I bent down and reached for what I touched. "What're you doing? Did you find something?" My fingers wrapped themselves around it and I brought it out of the water and in front of my face. It was a large white shell. It was hollow on the inside, but the outside was a smooth ivory colour with hints of pink scattered throughout. It had sharp pointy bits that stuck out on the sides and top, but it felt so smooth to the touch.

"Levi." I looked up and saw that he was almost touching the water with his boots. He looked at me with concerned filled eyes and it was the first time in a long time I had ever seen him so worried. "I'm going to bring this back."

"No you're not."

"Yes I am. It'll go on the bedside table." I told him.

"Ryder, this isn't up for negotiation." He said.

"Hey, Armin!" I yelled for the blonde. I looked over my shoulder and saw him look at me. "What's this called?" I raised my new found object in my hand.

"My grandfather's books said that's a seashell!" He answered.

"Are they harmless?"

"Yes! They're just empty shells!" I looked back at Levi with a smug look on my face.

"I'm brining this seashell home with us."

So I wrote a holiday special chapter for this story and I didn't even post it for the holidays...pelt me with banana peels because that's ridiculous!

Do you still want me to post it when we reach it? I kind of want to...