AN: Alright! Here we are in Chapter XXVIII! How did you people like the previous chapter? I hope you guys liked it a lot. Anyways, thanks to those who reviewed, followed and favourite due to the previous chapters. They are very much appreciated. This chapter just tells you what they do when they arrive in Santa Monica. Anyhoo, I hope you guys enjoy this!

CHAPTER XXVIII:

SANTA MONICA

It was in the middle of the night and Celeste was still driving her car while Rex, Levi and Petra slept. They've been driving for 14 hours straight and Celeste still hasn't asked for a driver change. Aunt Natalie and Uncle Damon switched an hour ago though. She sustained herself with Red Bull and Potato Chips and the occasional burgers and pizza she'd buy for them. She took another sip of Red Bull and ate some potato chips. She's not even sleepy.

"Celeste?" She heard someone call for her. Looking in the rear-view mirror, she saw that Petra woke up.

"Oh, hey. What are you doing up? Get some sleep. We got about another 12 hours before we get to California." She said. They were about to exit Idaho in another hour.

"I've gotten enough sleep. Did you get some sleep?" Petra asked her worriedly. She knew that Celeste most likely didn't get enough sleep the night before thanks to her Red Anomaly induced nightmare.

"No. I've been driving for 14 hours straight. I don't need the sleep." She answered. To be honest, her body's starting to build up immunity against the Red Bull so she was getting a little tired. She turned the radio on to some soft piano music to lull Petra back to sleep. Unfortunately, it was starting to lull her to sleep too.

"Hey." Rex said as he patted her shoulder.

"Yeah?" She asked as she finished her Red Bull.

"You're starting to fall asleep. Let's switch." He offered. Celeste looked in the rear-view mirror and saw that Petra has fallen asleep once more. She had to admit it but she was tired and she wanted to sleep as well. Grabbing the walkie talkie, she radioed Natalie.

"Yeah, Yo, mind pulling over? Rex and I are switching drivers, over." She requested.

"Copy that, over." Aunt Natalie answered.

"Alright, thanks." She replied. They pulled over at the side of the road and got off the car. The stop jolted Petra and Levi awake.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Celeste and I are just switching drivers. She needs some sleep. Nothing to worry about." Rex explained as they got back in the car. Immediately when she got in, Celeste reclined her chair, went on her side and fell asleep. With a small smile, Petra held her hand tightly before leaning back on Levi's chest and closing her eyes once more. Levi, on the other hand, just grabbed their hands before falling asleep.

Unfortunately for the 19 year old, just as she fell asleep, she started dreaming. Celeste was dreaming that she was in that horrid timeline once again. To make matters worse, it always shifted between the 57th Expedition where her mother dies and the one where her father failed to protect Petra and her younger brother. Once the images were done flashing themselves, she woke up immediately.

"AAAAAH!" She screamed as she bolted in her seat. It scared the crap out of Rex that he almost went to the next lane where in an oncoming truck would've hit them.

"What the fuck?" Levi asked as he and Petra woke up.

"Are you alright?" Rex asked as he kept driving.

"Where are we?" She asked him.

"Wha? We're halfway through Nevada." He answered as Celeste took deep breaths and rubbed her eyes.

"We're switching. Keep me awake." She decided. Rex knew better than to argue with Celeste so he grabbed the talkie.

"Hey, Duncan, pull over. Celeste and I are switching." He reported.

"Got it." Duncan answered as he pulled over the side of the road. When Rex and Celeste switched places, she immediately honked and they went on their way.

"Was it the nightmares again, Celeste?" Petra asked and she nodded as she drove on.

"Nightmares? Again? What nightmares?" Levi asked. Celeste angrily glared at him via the rear-view mirror. The dreams weren't helping her attitude towards her father.

"Tell him, mom." She dared Petra. Rex and Levi listened intently as Petra told her husband what Celeste saw in the Red Anomaly and therefore started dreaming about. By the end of it, Levi wasn't sure what to say to comfort Celeste. For the first time in his life, he didn't know what to do.

"Listen, don't let her get to you if she randomly snaps. When she's tired or cranky, it clouds her judgment." Rex told them.

"Yeah, sure, put it that way, Rex." She told him as she drove.

"Uh-oh…you guys might want to buckle up too." He told them as they put on their seatbelts. Whenever Celeste is angry, she goes beyond the recommended speed limit. Something that she is currently doing right now.

"Rex, what's going on?" Duncan asked them.

"Uh, yeah, it's Celeste. She's pissed because of some nightmare." He reported back.

"Well, calm her down before she gets pulled over." Uncle Damon butted in. Rex hung up immediately.

"You guys got any ideas on how to calm her down?" She asked. Levi looked at Petra for answers, knowing she was closer to the girl than he ever is.

"Celeste, calm down. Please. What you dreamed about; it's not true. None of it is ever going to happen. Trust us, please. We're here and we're never going anywhere. You have to believe us, please." Petra begged as she grabbed her shoulders. That snapped Celeste out of her anger that she pulled over and waved to the other car to go on ahead.

"Feel better?" Rex asked.

"I calmed down a bit. That doesn't make me feel any better." She answered before stepping on the gas once more.

"Pepsi or Red Bull?" Petra asked her.

"Red Bull. Keep me awake." She answered. Petra handed her one and they silently kept on driving.

About hours later, Petra felt someone shaking her awake. She didn't realize that she's fallen asleep.

"What?" She asked.

"Wake dad up and look out the window." Celeste told them. Levi woke up at the mention of his name and they obeyed Celeste and their jaws practically dropped.

They were looking at the ocean.

"Armin's going to eat his heart out, isn't he?" She asked with a smile. "I'll show you guys an additional something later but right now, we got to get to the house and get some rest."

"House?" Petra asked. Did they turn back to North Dakota or something?

"We're a racing family and all 50 states in America has a race track. So whenever Celeste has a race in one of those states, we go to a house there. We have a house in all 50 states." Rex answered. After a while, they finally arrived at the house. It was pretty large but not beachfront. The kids immediately tried to rush in but Celeste stopped them.

"Whoa, whoa. Don't come in. At least, not until I say so." She warned them as she pulled the pistol from her back. The Knight Family always had assassins after them whenever there's a big race happening. Cautiously, she entered the house and pointed her gun.

"I know you're in there!" She yelled. Just then, a man with a black mask jumped at her with a knife. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to block in time so it resulted in a deep gash in her neck. She immediately fired her gun which hit the assassin in the leg. She stood up and tackled him before hitting him again and again and again. In all her years of dealing with assassins, they never learn not to mess with the Black Knight of North Dakota. When he was completely knocked out, she dragged him out of the house and threw him in front of them.

"Take him to the nearest police station. You guys can go in now." Celeste explained. The kids rushed in immediately and headed upstairs while Uncle Damon loaded the assassin in the car and driving off. Celeste grabbed their things and lugged them inside.

"Celeste, pull your jacket collar down." Levi ordered her as they entered. She did so and the adults gasped upon seeing the ice covered wound.

"Nothing a little ice can't fix." She answered as she headed upstairs with their things. As usual, she stuck her parents in the guest room before heading to her own. She took a shower immediately before heading out back to sit on the swing and taking some fresh air.

"Fine day, isn't it?" She heard someone say. Turning her head, she saw Duncan sitting beside her.

"Oh, yeah. Fine day." Celeste answered sarcastically. Celeste could read between the lines; she knew that Duncan wanted to ask her about what she dreamt about. For his sake, she hopes she doesn't.

"So, how was life back in the past?" He asked. Celeste smiled and chuckled.

"Well, it wasn't really pretty. The only beautiful thing there is that there are plenty of trees and flowers. And night sky is very clear you can see the stars almost as if you can just pluck them. No one there has seen the ocean or volcanoes or a desert. The titans are the only problem. One wrong move and humanity can go extinct. God knows the Legion has already lost so much."

"So, you're parents seem pretty cool. Tell me about them." He requested. Celeste hesitated but told him anyways. They were family now. She's pretty sure they'll be fine with it.

"Well, dad was an orphan who became a thug. Eventually, Commander Irvin of the Scouting Legion offered him the chance to sign up and he took it. Eventually, he earned the title of 'Humanity's Strongest Soldier'. Then he met my mom. He handpicked her with 3 other men to be a part of the Spec Ops Squad. Man, I've seen them during the 57th Expedition, which happened about a couple of months before I was born thanks to an Anomaly. They were the best of the best. They can sync without even talking to each other."

Duncan saw the way Celeste's eyes lit up as she explained everything to him. He saw a girl who had passion for what she did. He saw a girl who admired her parents for what they did.

"Sadly, the 3 men died during that Expedition. That Titan was smart, man. You should've seen it. Mom almost died which eventually led to dad's confession of his feelings. One thing led to another and here I am." Celeste added. Duncan chuckled in response at the story.

"Well, I see where you get your looks. Your mom's pretty hot. Not surprised a hardass like your dad fell for her." He told her.

"Hey, my mom is beloved by men from the Trost District to the nobles of Utopia. Women are actually jealous because only she had the charm and beauty to melt Captain Levi's Ice Cold Heart. If that ain't enough to be a testament to my mother's charm and beauty, you should see how the women, Commoners and Nobles alike, reacted when they found out that she was bearing Captain Levi's child; they basically ate their hearts out. I mean the Commander pretty much threw a party for everyone when my parents were expecting and another party for when I was born." She countered. Hanji and Commander Irvin told her those stories when Petra was still suffering from Amnesia.

'Yep; pure admiration, alright.' Duncan mentally decided. Celeste checked the time on her watch and realized it was 4:30 PM. They've been sitting out here for too long?

"I got to go. I promised my parents I'd show them something else as a bonus." She replied before grabbing two handkerchiefs from her back pocket. Walking inside, she immediately wrapped a handkerchief around Petra's eyes.

"I'll show you something later on, alright." She whispered as she moved on to Levi.

"The fuck are you doing, Celeste?" He asked emotionlessly. Celeste immediately stood up once she was done and made them hold hands.

"I'm sorry, do you guys want to see the bonus that comes with the ocean or do one of you want to return to the thug life and shag random chicks? If you want the former, I suggest you calm your pants." She snapped at him. To be honest, she's still affected by the Red Anomaly so what she said most likely hit home with Levi.

"Good. Both of you stand up and no matter what happens do not let go of each other's hands." Celeste told them as she grabbed Petra's other hand and led them out of the house. She made them go in the backseat of the car and put their seatbelts on before getting on the driver's side and driving to the Santa Monica Pier. After parking the car, she dragged them out of the car. She dragged them to the beach by the pier. Thankfully, not a lot of people were swimming and hanging around the beach, otherwise they'd get culture shock.

"Okay, you guys can take them off now." She said. When they did, again, their jaws basically dropped to the ground.

"It's your first time seeing the sunset, right? I thought I'd grant it to you guys." Celeste said. She was never really sentimental so it was hard wording those out. Oh God, she's too much like her father, isn't she?

"Yes, this is our first time. Thank you, Celeste." Petra said as she hugged her daughter around the waist. She sure as hell can't wrap her arms around Celeste considering she kinda towered over her.

"Yeah, yeah. The Ocean is always the best place to see the sunset." Celeste said as they separated and sat on the sand. Pulling out her phone, she took pictures of it.

"Armin is SO gonna eat his heart out." She said. Her entire being filled with glee at the thought of torturing the poor boy. Petra patted her head as they watched the sunset. She looked at Levi and gestured towards Celeste. Earlier, she's been begging him to talk to Celeste about the new issue that just rose up. He immediately stood up and walked up to Celeste.

"Oi, brat, let's talk." He said as he dragged her up. Petra almost facepalmed at him; that was not the approach she wanted him to do. He was talking to a 19 year old who has mood swings because of a bad dream.

"What do you want? We can't just leave Mom alone there?" She growled at him.

"Your dream. What are you so afraid of? Haven't I told you once that I would never leave you or your mother?" He snapped at her.

"That's rich coming from a big time soldier who can easily go back to his old ways and let this family fall apart." Celeste retorted.

"No. Celeste, I know I have a hard time expressing my emotions but even though I don't show it, I do love you. And I love your mother. So, I'm not leaving the two of you unless I die in the battlefield. Just because one boy did something bad to you it doesn't mean that I will."

Celeste could see the sincerity in his eyes and she nodded as she bowed her head in shame.

"Come on, let's go back before your mother pisses herself like in her first Expedition." He quipped and Celeste giggled. After a minute of walking, they found Petra still watching the ocean.

"Having fun, mom?" She asked as she sat behind Petra and laid her chin on her head.

"Yeah, this is nice." She answered. Petra was very grateful that she survived all those Expeditions and had a wonderful (albeit dysfunctional) family.

"Hang on, both of you stay here. I'll be back with something." Celeste said before standing up. It only took her 3 minutes before coming back with three cones of Chocolate Ice Cream.

"Here. It's called Ice Cream. Eat it, come on. It won't hurt. It's just cold." She told them as she handed it to them. They each took one and mimicked Celeste as she licked her Ice Cream.

"It's good." Levi said emotionlessly.

"It should be. It's from one of the best Ice Cream Parlours in the Santa Monica Pier. Eat it quick or it'll melt." Celeste replied. The name 'Cassandra Knight' does wonders sometimes. Usually, that place is packed with people but the moment she walked in, they started parting like the Red Sea.

"Thank you, Celeste." Petra said once more and she kissed her on the cheek, leaving a chocolate kiss mark on her cheek.

"No problem." Celeste replied as she wiped the kiss mark away. As the sun went down, Celeste didn't realize that she was already leaning against her father until he patted her head and wrapped his arm around her waist.

'This is nice.' Celeste thought as she gazed along the sunset.

AN: And that is Chapter XXVIII! I hope it didn't suck so much but I'm having trouble organizing my thoughts as of late. I hope you guys enjoyed this though and that it's not too piss poor. Anyhow, Thanks to those who reviewed and will review!