"…The waiting game is not one I enjoy playing, it's usually long and tedious, especially if we're the ones waiting for something to happen in order to move on…anticipation is a bitch…"-Edith Diary, 850

Spring 850
Wall Rose

The backlash of the Colossal hitting the ground face first was enormous; unimaginable heat exploded upwards enveloping all in its path, human and plant alike. Those who could, held onto the Wall for dear life, some using themselves as protective covers for others.

Through all the chaos, Armin was able to just barely lift his head from where Sasha's arm had locked itself as she clung to him and watch the proceedings down below. The Armoured Titan had used the distraction to pin Eren to the ground, face first, leaving his nape completely free. Cracking open his jaws, the Armoured bared down on Eren's nape like a starving dog and tore through the flesh with its fangs; taking Eren along with it.

Then from the steaming Colossal, Bertolt emerged completely fine and carrying to figures. Ymir and Edith had been lumped together like sacks of flour with Edith practically sandwiched between Bertolt's chest and Ymir.

Even from his place on the Wall, Armin could tell something weird was going on. Not only did Ymir continue to -produce steam from her wounds, but Edith almost seemed to glow an eerie red. What the hell? He thought as he watched Bertolt carry the two with him, even as he latched onto the fleeing Armoured with the ODM gear he had somehow acquired.

"EREN!" Armin wailed watching his comrades disappear from sight, only the faint Titan steam rising into the air trailed behind them.

Spring 850
Trost District

"HEY! THE ADVANCED SQUAD IS BACK! GO! TELL COMMANDER PIXIS!" Two messengers thundered up the main road of the Trost District, headed straight for the group of Scouts and Military Police situated at the base of the Wall.

"I see, no Titans as far as you could tell, correct?" Pixis summarised from the report; bending over to talk to the crouched Garrison soldier before him.

"That's…correct, sir" Panted Williams from where he sat clutching to his water skin, surrounded by the MPs and Scouts gathered there. Behind him, Sasha venomously attacked her own water skin, gulping down the water like a dying fish.

"Hm, As I thought"

"But sir! A situation has developed! You see, we ran into another group on the way back to Trost; it was the Scout group led by Sergent Hanji. There were cadets from the 104th Cadet Corps with them, none of whom had equipment. This may sound crazy sir, but three of them…were Titans!"

"What the? Hang on a sec, seriously? You mean liker there were…three more? But who were they? WHO DAMMIT?!" Jean piped up as he listened to the report.

"Actually I, um…" Sasha stuttered, startled by the sudden interrogation.

"Jean, calm down" Erwin intervened, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, "What happened when their Titan forms were revealed?"

"The Scouts engaged the Armoured and Colossal Titan in combat as best they could sir. But by the time our unit had arrived on the scene it was…too late. I'm sorry" Williams bowed his head in defeat.

Spring 850
Wall Rose

After having tended to the injured as much as possible with their limited supplies, Ryan left the others to take over tending to the smaller wounds so that he could take care of his own. Plopping down next to Armin and Mikasa, he set to work, singing a familiar tune under his breath as he did so, his quiet voice carrying over the Walltop.

Holiest red dilly dilly

Holiest green

If I were Herald dilly dilly

I'd need a Blade

Thankfully he had been atop the Wall when the Colossal had collapsed over the side, leaving him with only his burnt hand that he had received in the initial attack. Most of the others hadn't been so lucky. But still his thoughts weren't on himself, where they probably should've been. No, instead they were focused on Edith who had been taken along with Ymir and Eren. What did they want her for?

Who told you so? Who told you so?

Mother told me so dilly dilly

Mother told me so

Next to him, Armin quietly listened to the tune as he studied Mikasa's prone form. Unlike the others, she hadn't been hurt too bad in comparison, however she had gained some serious bumps and bruises that would need treatment later on. The trio was soon joined by Hannes who had stuck around when the Colossal and Armoured had vaulted over the Wall after Eren. Ryan kept his head down and focused on his arm as the two talked.

And if your dilly dilly heart

Feels a dilly dilly way

And if you answer yes

"Aw man! What a mess!" Hannes commented looking out towards the horizon as he came to a stop in front of Mikasa's head, "Count you lucky stars we were all the way up here. The rest of 'em got blasted by steam and debris, not much they could do"

In a pretty little Church

On a dilly dilly day

We'll be bound in a dilly dilly way

"How badly is Mikasa hurt?" Hannes asked finally looking down at the younger teens.

"Well, there aren't any wounds to speak of. I think it's just a concussion" Armin replied.

"Could be worse I suppose" Hannes sighed resignedly "Armin, I've got food if you're hungry. You eaten?" Armin merely shook his head in response. "Be right back" Hannes reassured, ruffling the blonde's hair before walking off.

Holiest red dilly dilly

Holiest green

Then I'll be Herald dilly dilly

You'll be my Blade

"That song, what is it?" Armin softly asked, turning to Ryan who had finished slowly and methodically wrapping his burnt hand.

"It's a hymn, I think" Ryan replied, hugging a leg to his chest and staring out over the plains, "Eddie's always singing it; got stuck in my head"

"Oh" Armin broke the ration Hannes had given him in half and held it out to Ryan. "Here"

"Thanks" Ryan winced as he munched on the bland tasting ration bar, letting his thoughts drift into the past.

"Highly nutritious and used widely in the Scout Regiment…these consist of high-calorie crackers and canned food…They provide sufficient energy for the field, and the taste has been made to be agreeable"-Public Information: Field Rations

Summer 849
Mirror Lake & Forest, Trost Bootcamp

"Eddie what are you doing?" Ryan asked peering down at the brunette who laid spread out on the mossy ground like a starfish with her basket of herbs and medicinal plants lain beside her.

"I'm melting! It's so hot!" Edith whined, shifting as her henley shirt clung to her sweaty body like a second skin, "I'm pretty sure my arm's welded itself onto my skin! You could cook an egg on me!"

"Don't be so dramatic" Ryan smiled.

She was right though. Even though it was the middle of the night, the temperature hadn't gone down all that much, still staying somewhere between melting and boiling. What he wouldn't give for a cold shower right now.

"Hey Ryan" Edith suddenly propped herself up onto her elbows and tipped her head back to stare up at Ryan; at the same time giving Ryan a pretty good view of the beads of sweat rolling down the valley between her uncaged breasts.

"Uh, yeah?" Ryan got out, relieved that he hadn't stumbled over his words.

"You wanna go for a swim?"

"Huh?"

"You wanna swim? In the lake?"

"B-but we don't have any swimwear"

And indeed they didn't, both teens were garbed in the coolest sleepwear they had. Edith had paired a pair of orange and purple polka dot boxer shorts with an old green henley shirt with the sleeves rolled up as far as they would go.

Instead of the usual braid she wore, her hair had been twisted up into a crown braid with wisps of hair falling this way and that. Even at her messiest, Ryan still thought she looked beautiful, like one of those forest faeries he'd read about.

In comparison to her forest faerie, he may as well have been a goblin. He had just grabbed whatever thing he could find, really. This turned out to be one of his grandfather's plaid shirts that had been cut into a tank top, leaving the arm holes to end somewhere close to his waist. And the pair of floral boxer shorts, which had been a gag gift from his brother.

"Well, then we'll just go skinny dipping!" Edith replied, breaking Ryan from his musings. However at that comment, all the spit in his mouth dried up and his heart rate picked up. Skinny dipping? He knew what that entailed…and this girl, this beauty before him had suggested it? He probably could've died right then and there a happy man with that thought in mind. "Come on, Ryan! Let's go!" Somehow Edith had risen without his knowledge and was now tugging him towards the water's edge with basket in hand. "It'll be fun, I promise!"

It would be fair to say that that was the slowest Ryan had ever changed, instead shamelessly gawking at Edith who easily stripped out of her sweat-soaked layers before diving into the lake and breaking the surface like a mermaid.

But who could blame him? The way the full moon illuminated her short figure, showing off the various scars the covered every curve of her body and the metallic arm that clung to her shoulder seamlessly.

All around him, the forest life seemed to pick a tempo, one that his heart held no qualms about joining in with, as he watched the beauty before him. Just like Edith, the nocturnal creatures had come out to play beneath the full moon.

Ryan felt like he couldn't breathe as he watched the little water droplets slide down her body as she pushed the wet hair out of her eyes, before she turned to face him. She looked like she'd stepped right out of a fantasy; she was otherworldly, a real piece of art.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Ryan? Come on!"

Spring 850
Wall Rose

"Mikasa!" Armin gasped waking form his doze at the sudden movement next to him.

"Where is Eren! Where did he go?!" Mikasa demanded gripping tight to Armin's lapels and pulling him in close so that they were almost nose to nose.

"Woah! Calm down!" Armin protested as Mikasa dropped her grip and made to look over the edge, scrambling over Ryan's napping form in the process.

"Ugh! Wazzit? What happened? Whose dead?" Ryan yawned, propping himself up onto his elbows as he was jolted from his nap by Mikasa, who now lay unceremoniously across his lap.

"Wait! You shouldn't…we don't know how badly you're hurt!" Armin cried as Mikasa picked herself up and peered over the edge of the Wall.

"Ah! Watch the feet! Watch the feet!" Ryan muttered, trying to dodge Mikasa's flailing feet that were dangerously close to his crotch as the girl moved.

"Where is he?" Mikasa demanded glancing up at Armin and Ryan with sorrowful eyes as they two moved to comfort the girl. Down below, only a couple of smaller Titans stood along the base of the Wall where Eren, Reiner and Bertolt had fought.

"Eren, Edith and Ymir were taken" Ryan replied as calmly as he could, "They're gone, Reiner and Bertolt abducted them"

"Eren fought, but the Armoured Titan was just too…" Armin added on, sorrow tinging his voice.

"That was about five hours ago"

"Somebody's gone after them…right? Tell me someone went after them!" Mikasa questioned in disbelief.

"…I'm sorry" Armin apologised, unable to look Mikasa in the face.

"Why not?!"

"We wanted to, but the horses are on the other side of the Wall. Our only option is to wait. The mount's can't be hauled over until the lift's make it here and that take's time. There's nothing else we can do right now"

"Besides" Ryan continued softly, looking over Mikasa's shoulder at the others, "Sergent Hanji and the other officers are too injured to move. We don't have enough soldiers to form a scouting party; even a small one would need more than this. We're not experienced enough, we can't do this alone, do you understand?"

Mikasa gave a slow nod, her eyes shining with tears. She held her head in her hands as she tried to hide the tears dripping down her face, she was supposed to be the strong one, so why did she feel so broken? "Dammit! Not this again!" Mikasa whispered.

"Do you feel any pain?" Armin worried.

"No, I hit my head but I think I'm okay now. Don't worry about it. It's just…this isn't the first time I've been down this road" Ryan decided that Armin had everything under control and so he moved back away from the two and resumed his watch over the plains. "Except when Annie took him, I didn't waste a second, not one. That's how Captain Levi and I were able to get him back. But…it's already been five hours"

"Hey, Armin?" Mikasa asked placing the manky red scarf around her neck once more, "Why's he do it? Always leave? Always end up some place we're not?"

"Yeah, it does seem to happen a lot. Ever since we were kids, Eren liked to run off on his own and leave us worried sick. Who knows? Maybe that's just the sort of person he's meant to be" Armin reminisced.

"I don't want much, I just…want to be near him" Mikasa whispered burying her face in the scarf, "That's all. Is that so wrong?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like you'd literally take anything else, do anything instead of losing them again" Ryan softly spoke up. He felt both Mikasa's and Armin's eyes on him, but he refused to move his gaze from the horizon. Like if he stopped looking, he'd never see Edith again.

A few hours later, the reinforcements had finally arrived. "They're here" Mikasa reported, spotting the soldiers running the length of the Wall.

"Is that?"

"Oh wow!"

"Ah! Commander Erwin! With MPs!"

"I never thought they'd ride on top of the Wall" Armin commented.

"Probably the quickest route here" Historia replied.

"For the record, I know you won't but I'd much rather if you'd stay behind"

"No! Not happening, nice try though. As long as Ymir's in danger, nothing will keep me here. Sorry, that's just how it is"

"I'm with you" Ryan added, his arms crossed as he stood next to Connie.

"What do you mean, Ryan?" Armin asked.

"Whether you like it or not, there's nothing that'll keep us away" He glanced back at Armin, a small smile on his face, "Besides, Eddie owes me a dance and I plan to collect"

"They're right" Connie agreed, "We're all in this together, Armin. You're not special, we all have a reason for going. Still trying to process mine to be honest: I have to know why Reiner did what he did. I wanna ask them while I look 'em dead in the eye"

When Commander Erwin and the reinforcements finally reached them, Moblit rose to meet him. "Good to see you Commander Erwin, glad you're here"

"Is the situation still the same?" Erwin asked, dismounting from his horse.

"Yes sir"

"Good" Turning to the others, Erwin gave out his orders "Right, deploy the lifts!"

Moblit jolted at the sudden grip on his ankle, making him look down at the person clinging to him. "Ah! Hanji!" he cried.

"Don't just…stand there…Give me…a map" Hanji rasped, barely holding onto consciousness. It was clear her injuries were still giving her trouble, considering she had practically dragged herself over to the two.

A few moments later, those not operating the lifts were crowded around the Hanji and the map lain before her. "It's a gamble, but…the trees in this forest are massive. I say we ride straight for it" She gestured to the large cluster of trees on the map, "See, if they had a way to cover the Armoured Titans footprints…this is almost definitely where we would find them"

"Why's that?" Erwin asked.

"They need to re-coop, they have the power to assume Titan form but other Titans on that side of the Wall still pose a threat. Especially after putting up such a fight. Yes, Eren was the worst for it, but they've got to be spent" Hanji pushed herself up onto her elbows so that she could meet Erwin's gaze easier.

"Remember when Annie went out cold? Let's suppose they're headed somewhere beyond Wall Maria; that's not a simple hike, they'll need all the rest they can get before travelling that kind of distance. They're in no shape to make it in a single push and if so, they'll want to catch their breath somewhere the other Titans can't them"

All eyes focused on the map and the brunette before them as she continued to lay out the plan, "Odds are they'll hold out until it gets dark. We have until sundown, if we can reach the forest by then we might just have a chance to save them!"

Spring 850
Titan Forest, Beyond Wall Rose

Edith woke with a gasping breath, coughing and choking on the saliva stuck in her throat. Quickly rolling over, she lay there trying to get rid of the bile climbing up her throat. She barely acknowledged the sounds of disgust next to her or how the ground beneath her felt curved and rough.

Eventually she stopped coughing and hacking, instead flopping onto her back as she tried to regain her breathe; her eyes stayed scrunched shut at all times. The last thing she remembered was cursing her luck as she was chucked unceremoniously into yet another Titan mouth.

Even with her eyes closed she knew she wasn't alone; she could feel at least two other presences nearby. Who knew how many more there were? Ultimately she was able to peel her eyes open with a groan, even as she lay there panting with a line of bile dribbling from the corner of her mouth.

Upon inspection, Edith found that she seemed to blanketed by the hot steam that was emitted from Eren and Ymir on either side of her. Barely lifting her head off of the branch upon which she lay, she could see that Reiner and Bertolt occupied the tree across from them.

"You're awake" Reiner's voice came from in front of her. He sounded like he hadn't just kidnapped three of his comrades or revealed that he and Bertolt were the Armoured and Colossal Titans respectively.

"Welcome to the land of the living" Ymir sassed from her right as Edith let her head drop back down on the branch, closed her eyes against the sun rays and rested her remaining arm across her stomach.

"I've never…said this before" Edith panted, "But stop…eating me!" The boys choked and burnt red at the innuendo. Ymir barked out a laugh.