AN: Okay, here we are at Chapter XVIII! I know I updated later than usual but anyways, this is the start of the Forgotten Arc. It's going to be a short arc, mind you. I hope this chapter is enough to get you guys aboard the feels train but if it doesn't, it doesn't. Thanks to those who reviewed on the previous chapters and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter…though I'm wondering if someone is still reading this…

CHAPTER XVIII:

FORGOTTEN

Celeste should be accustomed to this; it's happened to her before when she'd crash on races. She's been through the walk of shame but why did this make her feel so bad?

"Heh…looks like they're back again." A man said.

"These Expeditions are a waste of time and money." A woman said.

"A Fool's Errand, I tell you." Another one said. Back in her trainee days, she would've agreed with them but now, it made her so angry. A lot of people died for Humanity's sake. To free them from these cages the people call Walls. They were the Fools; for thinking these Walls would keep them safe.

'It's like they haven't learned from Shiganshina or Trost. The living should be grateful to the dead for putting their lives on the line.' She thought as she clenched her jaw. Celeste looked to her left and saw Petra and Eren in a medic cart. Now, she knows the reason why she felt bad; her mother. She only realized it now but the guilt was slowly eating her up.

"Shit." She muttered to herself.

"I guess not even the Ice Princess was of use this time." A man said. Celeste looked at him with a glare and was about to stomp over there with Clara but she felt a hand at her shoulder. Looking back, she saw Hanji shaking her head. Deciding to let it go, they continued on. Irvin and Levi would probably get called back to Sina. Once they were out of Karanese, the soldiers were brought back to the clinics to be healed. Levi, however, ordered the medic to bring Petra and Eren back to HQ and that was what they did.

When they returned to HQ, Petra was brought to a different room to be examined by a doctor while Eren was brought to his own room. They freshened up and after bathing, Celeste went to Petra's room and stayed with her while The Doctor continued his examinations.

"How is she, Doc?" She asked him as she held Petra's hand.

"She'll live but she hit her head hard. I don't know how that'll turn out for her. It could either be Retrograde or Anterograde Amnesia or maybe she'll still be the same." He answered. Just then, Levi entered the room.

"She'll live, Cap." Celeste told him, still refusing to call him dad. The Doctor exited the room, leaving Levi and Celeste alone. Until nightfall came, they both sat there, holding both her hands.

"Tell her something." Levi ordered her. "Something that'll wake her up."

Celeste hesitated for a while but started speaking.

"Uh…mom? It's me, Celeste. Can you wake up? Can you come back to us?"

She received no response from the woman so Celeste kept talking.

"Oh, I get it; you won't wake up until you get a kiss from your prince, eh? Just like in those Fairy Tales." Celeste jokingly said. "I'd rope The Captain into that idea but I doubt he'd do it. You know how frigid he is."

Celeste stopped talking for a while but continued again.

"Mom, please don't forget us. I'm begging you."

Celeste knew it was her fault why her mother was risking amnesia thanks to her head injury. She knew it was her fault why this was happening.

'If only I wasn't so fucking reckless.' She thought as she balled the sheets in her fists but she refused to cry.

"Do you still believe in those, Celeste? You still believe in Fairy Tales?" Levi asked her. She shook her head immediately.

"I never did." Celeste replied as she slowly took her mother's wedding ring off. Should she get amnesia, a ring is one thing she doesn't need. It would only confuse her.

"Captain, should she forget, what do we do?" Celeste asked Levi. He sighed and thought about it. He felt like a failure. He felt like a failure as a Squad Leader, he felt like a failure as a husband and he didn't need a genius to tell him that he was already a failure as a father.

"We let her remember on her own. Don't force her memories back to her." He answered. Levi wondered if that kiss would work. He leaned in and he pressed his lips to his wife's hoping it would wake her up.

"I love you." Levi whispered to Petra. Celeste was shocked, needless to say. She always thought that her father didn't have a heart ever since she first saw him but when he's with her mom, it makes her see that maybe he does have a heart. She noticed Levi sit down when he didn't receive any reaction. They sat there for a few seconds until Petra's hand twitched in Celeste's grip. Her head shot up immediately.

"Mom?" She called. After a while, her eyes opened.

"Petra." Levi greeted as he stared in surprise.

"Captain?" She called for him. Celeste rushed out immediately.

"DOCTOR!" She yelled out. The Doctor rushed in and examined her.

"Ms. Ral, how are you feeling?" He asked her.

"My head hurts."

"What do you remember?"

Petra tried to recall. The last thing she remembers is the death of the others at the hands of the Female Titan and almost breaking her neck at the 57th Expedition.

"The 57th Expedition? How did it go?"

The Doctor stood up and fixed his glasses.

"Anterograde Amnesia. It's best to bring her to places where she can remember things on her own." He said before leaving. Levi approached her while Celeste stayed by the window.

"Petra, the 57th Expedition happened 18 years ago." He told her bluntly. Petra was shocked.

"I've been asleep for 18 years?"

"No. The recent Expedition landed you in an accident when you pushed me away. You hit your head pretty hard and you're suffering Anterograde Amnesia." Celeste explained as she approached them.

"Oh. Hello. May I ask who you are?" Petra asked. She sighed before answering. Guess she'd have to use her former last name again.

"Knight. Celeste Knight." She answered before holding her left hand out. "I'm the new Squad Member. I joined about a week ago."

"Oh, nice to meet you then, Celeste." Petra said as they shook hands. After that, Celeste let her hand go.

"I have to go. See you around." She said before walking out of the room. When she closed the door, she took a deep breath and leaned against the wall.

"EREN! MIKASA! ARMIN!" She yelled. The three immediately came upstairs.

"What? What is it?" Eren asked.

"Mom has amnesia and I don't want her to feel weird bunking with The Captain since the last thing she remembers is the 57th Expedition."

"Well, what do you want us to do?" Armin asked him.

"Move her stuff to the spare room next to mine." Celeste ordered them. The three nodded and she walked past them.

"Thanks. I'm going for a walk." Celeste said as she went downstairs. She walked out of the HQ with only one destination in mind.

When Levi walked out of the room after Petra has fallen asleep once again. He saw Ackerman and Jaeger moving Petra's things from their room.

"What the fuck is going on here?" He asked.

"Celeste told us to move Petra's things to another room so she won't get confused on how things are now because of her memory loss." Armin answered him as he carried a box.

'That kid; why would she do this without asking me first?' Levi thought to himself.

"Where is she?" He asked.

"She said something about going out on a walk." Eren said as he moved another box of Petra's things to the Spare Room. Levi walked out of the HQ to find his estranged and wayward daughter.

Celeste was driving out of the woods as fast as she could in her anger while yelling her head off in frustration. She wasn't driving to find an Anomaly though, just to let her anger out, get some fresh air and go star gazing. In her frustration, she just kept driving beyond her usual speed limit. When she was at the desired area, she made a sharp turn before stopping the car. Then, she brought the roof down and reclined her seat. After that, she just stared at the stars.

'I don't see stars like these in the future anymore.' She thought to herself. Celeste heard someone get in the passenger seat with her and saw Levi sitting in the car.

"What do you want now?" She snapped at him.

"Nothing." Levi answered her emotionlessly.

"Nothing usually means something."

Levi rolled his eyes in frustration. She can read him easily like a book. Just like Petra.

"Don't get snippy with me, you brat. You were about to cry earlier but you held it in. Why?" He asked.

"I don't cry. I didn't cry when my mom and dad died. I didn't cry then, I sure as hell ain't crying now." Celeste answered. Okay, that obviously wasn't true; she cried when the squad members told her about how Levi felt towards her when she was born but she's not letting him find that out.

'Of course you wouldn't.' Levi thought to himself. He closed his eyes and leaned back on the seat. When Celeste was born, one of his biggest fears was that she would grow up to be like him; every emotion, except anger, always locked away. Not crying whenever she's supposed to cry. When he and Petra got married, he tried his best to let his emotional walls down when he's with her but sadly, he can barely do it.

"You want to kill me, don't you?" She asked him.

"Your mother would kill me if she remembers who we are to her now and you're dead by then." He deadpanned.

"Doesn't change the fact that you'd like to kill me. Not that I'm complaining. It's my fault anyways." She replied as she set her chair back upright.

"It's not your fault." Levi told her.

"Yes, it is! If only I wasn't reckless, she never would have gone to my aid! Mom never would've gotten injured if it wasn't for me!" Celeste yelled as she gripped the steering wheel so tight to stop herself from crying. She was surprised when she felt a hand on her head. Celeste looked to her right and saw Levi covering his face with his right hand.

"When you disappeared, it almost killed me. The only person who held me together was your mother." He explained to her. Celeste kept her gaze at him and wondered if he was trying not to cry as well.

"It wasn't your fault, Celeste." Levi repeated. "I don't know who to blame but it's most likely my fault."

"Why would you think that?"

"Because it's my responsibility to keep my squad safe but most of all, she's my wife and you're my daughter. I'm supposed to keep the two of you safe. I love you, Celeste and I love your mother. I'm sorry I couldn't keep her safe but I want you to cry as much as you want because she wouldn't want you to keep it all in."

Celeste was about to cry when she noticed the small tears threatening to leave his eyes. Celeste could see that his poker face was on par with Mikasa's but when she gazed into her father's eyes, she could see the pain, anguish and sadness in them.

"You're quite the hypocrite, aren't you? You want to cry too." She said as she finally released her tears. Celeste felt her face against his chest and his arms around her.

"Someone has to be strong and that's not your burden to bear." Levi told her. At that moment, Celeste cried in her father's arms. She would've told him to cry with her but he wasn't the one who was forgotten. He and her mother still had their superior-subordinate relationship. Usually, Celeste Ral didn't cry but one of her biggest fears in life is now staring her in the face…

.

.

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She was crying because she didn't want to be forgotten.

AN: And here is Chapter XVIII! Did it get you guys aboard the feels train? I hope it did. I hope you guys enjoyed this as well. Thanks to those who reviewed and will review!