Chapter 17 – Annie (Arc 4)
She left the stallion with the dockworker she had come to know from her travels around to the other nearby islands, asking him to return it to which the man closed his wrinkled eyes, his beard being moved softly by the nod of his head. Getting onto the boat, she felt a wave of anxiety wash over her as she realised this would be the first time she had returned home in years; forcing it back down, she felt herself rebalance as she found a comfort in the rocking of the boat.
Knowing that it would be some time, she quickly let go of her sack, but kept her blades on her waist, letting her head rest against the wooden edge of the ship's hull as the spray from the chilling waters drifted onto her hair. She knew that it was safe to rest on these ships; the captains having been retired veterans who knew well enough the dangers of a threatened young solider. As her mind drifted to sleep, her thoughts wandered back to the island.
In her dreams, she saw it's soft pebbled shores swishing as the waves washed over them, the woodland near the coastline, all leading to a vast flat area of farming land. She thought back to how she, Reiner and Bertholdt, mere days after they had killed for their freedom, had decided to clear the rats out of their nest in their home, silently slaughtering the lazy troops with ease, reaching its shores at dusk and being able to leave at midnight.
They considered seeing their parents, if only to show their anger at them, but Bertholdt couldn't bring himself to do it, Reiner stood beside him in solidarity, leaving Annie to walk the familiar but so long forgotten path that led to her old home. As the hut came into view, she felt something different about it, the natural atmosphere of the building emanated an entirely different, somewhat warmer one than she had known as a child, and only upon looking inside she realised why.
Sitting next to a line of three or so cots, was a family that she knew not, unable to recognise even a single one of them. But there they sat, happy and laughing. As a family. Annie couldn't recall even one memory with her parents that came at all near to what was before her. As she allowed her thoughts to swirl into memories, she hadn't noticed that the youngest child must have seen her shadow as it stared at her, confused, but not afraid. It was an odd sensation that she had forgotten. Being observed without malice but out of pure curiosity.
Cursing herself for nearly being caught she quickly returned to Bertholdt and Reiner, awaiting her at the mouth of the guard's outpost. As she stormed through the buildings entrance, she quickly pushed past the two who deftly stepped out of her way. Jerking her blade from its sheath, she dug it into the timber of the wall, her hands trembling with rage as she began scoring into it the symbol of the Titans. The Flayed Giant's Head. Beneath it, she scored the words, "Go. Never return to this island. It is ours". Silently putting her blade away, she turned, arctic eyes locking onto the pair's and walked with certainty back to the gate, eyes filled with determination to get her revenge now that her hometown was safe.
The boat jolted as its hull knocked into the dock and Annie out of her dream. Taking a moment to catch her breath from the memory and dream, she glared daggers at the captain who quickly stared back at her, giving no ground. Realising she was getting nowhere in this pedantic conflict, Annie slung her bag over her shoulder and made her way off the boat, paying the ferryman's toll as she stepped onto the platform.
Looking at the islands horizon, she began to walk to her old home, hoping to meet the people who lived there properly. She knew that she was still a monster, still the Frozen Titan; but her time in the cadet corps had helped her to grow as more than just that, to the point that she felt willing enough to try and be civil. She knew that it was mostly for show, but she somewhat secretly revelled in it as it let her feel normal; If only for a while.
As the dirt gave way for her to walk along it's beaten path, she decided to look at the island around her. It was strange, she had almost forgotten how beautiful this place was, the fields of crops shimmering in the northern sun as did the cold waters around the land she stood on. It was only when she felt that familiar sensation of being watched that she realised that she was not the only one travelling this path.
Yes, the road before her was clear and the thick fields around her barren; it wasn't until she looked upwards to the clouds that she saw the faint shadow slowly hovering in the sky. Judging from its size and speed, she could instantly tell it was a dragon, her observation getting even closer to her as did the abnormally large spines that flew from the skies that sink into the ground like a wolfs teeth into a kill. A Titan Wing Deadly Nadder. Great, she thought, gritting her teeth. How convenient.