Chapter 19: Goodbye
Krista woke slowly, eyes fluttering open at the sound of rustling sheets. She groggily watched Ymir stumble out of bed, stretching and yawning widely. With a fond smile, Krista sat up and rubbed her eyes tiredly, hair mussed up and shirt hanging off one shoulder. Ymir peeked behind her shoulder mid-stretch and faltered, eyes widening. She suddenly smirked and sauntered over to the blonde, sliding into bed next to her and pressing a kiss to her shoulder.
"Mornin' beautiful," she whispered softly, pressing another kiss to the blonde's cheek.
"Good morning," Krista returned equally as soft, gazing into Ymir's brown orbs.
They smiled at each other and Ymir helped Krista up and out of bed. The morning air was cold, but their closeness repelled the frost. Krista stayed at Ymir's side throughout their morning routine, to the point where Ymir roughly shoved her out of the bathroom when she had to relieve herself.
The couple sat together and Krista watched as Ymir made breakfast. They were changed into their uniforms, Krista wearing one of Ymir's old ones from when she first started high school. The blonde rolled up the sleeves of her blouse a bit and wore a belt around her trousers, and Ymir couldn't help but tease Krista by placing two fingers under her waistband and commenting on the tightness around her waist.
Said brunette moved fluidly around the small kitchen, acutely aware of the pair of blue eyes following her every move. She prepared two plates of bread, cheese and fruits before setting them down in front of her and Krista at the table. The blonde smiled and thanked Ymir warmly for the food.
"It's nothing," Ymir replied, a tint of red on her cheeks, "now hurry up and eat so we can get to school early."
"Are we going straight to Pixis' office?"
"No, we're going to see Erwin, along with Pixis."
"Okay."
The blonde thought about her father and hoped he was okay. She had heard a gunshot the night before, and only hoped that he hadn't been on the receiving end. She wanted to check on him, but she was scared. If she didn't see him today, she would definitely try something.
Krista finished her bread and cheese and watched Ymir bite into an orange. The juice ran down the freckled girl's chin, and Krista watched the orange drop slide slowly down. Ymir put the orange down and reached up to wipe it away, but the blonde beat her to the punch. She thumbed it delicately and put it to her lips, looking Ymir in the eye as she licked her thumb clean. The brunette swallowed nervously and peeled the rest of her orange, shoving the rest into her mouth hurriedly. Krista grinned and stood to help Ymir with the dishes.
Afterwards, they grabbed their bags and exited the apartment. Krista leaned against the wall beside the door and watched Ymir lock it, feeling a sense of security and comfort. She smiled up at her love and intertwined their fingers when Ymir put hers out to take. With her bag slung over her shoulder, the tall girl led them both out of the apartment complex and onto the streets.
It was a quiet morning, yet still lively in the neighbourhood, much like the first time Krista had stayed with Ymir. The only difference was that now, her attention was taken by the tall girl next to her. The blonde moved closer to Ymir and the brunette smiled slightly in answer.
Krista glanced at Ymir's neck and did a double-take.
"A tie? Ymir, since when do you wear ties?"
Ymir shrugged. "I dunno, I just felt like it. Why?" Ymir leaned forward and brushed her lips against Krista's ear. "You like it?"
The blonde's face steamed and she pulled the brunette to her lips for a short, passionate kiss. She pushed Ymir back roughly and wiped her mouth, grinning at Ymir's star struck face. She walked away and swung her book bag around gleefully, turning a corner and finally seeing the school in the distance. The other students trudged, sprinted and marched to school, some excited for the end of the week and others dreading the beginning of the day.
Ymir's figure caused immediate disturbance among the student body, and several heads turned to watch the beast walk into the school with the alleged goddess of Rose Academy on her arm. Many interpreted this as close friendship and simply shrugged it off, since the more pressing issue was that Ymir had returned and would seek vengeance on the souls who caused her trouble. The gossip swirled around, as usual, and only Krista's calming presence prevented Ymir from going on a murderous rampage and destroying the entire student body.
A car pulled up next to them, and Krista's father emerged. He looked disheveled, his hair unkempt and his clothes wrinkly and sagging. Krista gasped and ran to him, hugging him tightly in relief.
"Dad!" she cried. "You're okay!" Behind her, Ymir observed their interaction with curiosity.
"Of course, honey. Why would you think otherwise?" He ruffled her hair affectionately and glanced at Ymir warily.
"I heard a gunshot yesterday."
"Oh! Well, Edward tried to attack me, but I managed to get him. He's not a very good shot." Mr. Reiss chuckled to himself as he shook her head. He then looked Ymir over suspiciously. "You must be Ymir, yes?"
"Yes, sir." No use being rude to her girlfriend's dad.
"Thank you for being there for my daughter. I know I haven't been the best dad, but I try. Please take good care of her. I don't know how long I'll be able to hold out."
Krista's heart thumped at the tone of his voice. "Dad, what do you mean?"
Mr. Reiss sighed. "I killed her."
The blonde girl gasped. "No way…"
Her father nodded. "I was struck by immense rage and tried to force her back in the house. She refused, grabbed Edward's gun after I threw it away and tried to shoot me. I managed to point the gun at her and accidentally pulled the trigger. I'm turning myself in, but I just wanted to see you one last time, dear."
"Dad…" Krista's eyes watered as she hyperventilated. This wasn't happening right now.
Ymir immediately saw the situation escalating and stepped forward, placing her hand on Mr. Reiss' shoulder. "She's in good hands, sir. Take care of yourself." She nodded at him as he smiled in gratitude.
"Goodbye, Krista. I love you."
"Dad, no – you can't do this!" she cried out, trying to pull him to her. Ymir held her back, glaring at any students who stared. William pressed a kiss to his daughter's forehead. He got into his car and left, tears streaming down his face. Krista screamed and dropped to her knees.
I love you, Dad.
After making sure Krista was okay, they entered the school. The brunette steered her clear of any students, heading straight for the principal's office. Upon entering, Petra immediately rushed to them, her face filled with apology and remorse.
"Krista! I'm so, so sorry! I forgot your uniform in my locker, so I took the liberty of washing it for you – here!" Petra extended her arms out with the uniform and was shocked when Krista leapt for a hug instead.
"Thank you, Petra, for all of your help," Krista muttered emotionally. Petra noticed the awful expression on Krista's face and felt her heart constrict.
"Krista, what happened?" She glanced up and noticed Ymir. "It's nice to see you again, Ymir. I'm glad you're safe."
"Me too," the brunette grumbled. "Sorry, but we don't have time for reunions. We have to go see Erwin."
Petra sensed something was amiss. "Can I come with you? I need to speak to him about the medicine cabinet. There are some missing bandages and ointments that need to be replaced."
"Sure."
They made it to the door to the principal's office and were about to knock when Petra hugged them tightly. "Whatever's going on right now, we'll get through it together, alright?" She released them to knock on the wooden surface. Krista scooted closer to Ymir and squeezed her hand, to which the brunette smiled and squeezed back.
A faint "come in!" was heard, and the three entered the office to see Erwin signing a document, Pixis at his side and looking over his shoulder. They both looked up to greet the girls, and the shorter two of the three returned the greeting; Ymir grumbled and sat down on one of the standard office chairs.
Erwin set down his pen once he finished his last stroke and smiled at the guests. Pixis nodded and gathered the files to place them in a folder. He made to move away, but stopped when Ymir shook her head and nodded at him to stay. Erwin raised an eyebrow and his smile slowly became a concentrated frown. Petra tilted her head in confusion and glanced at Krista, who shook her head and swallowed nervously, sitting beside Ymir.
"What can I do for you ladies?" the blond man asked politely.
"Petra can go first," Ymir answered, "'cause we're gonna take a while."
"No, that's fine. I have a feeling that what happened is partly my fault," Petra sighed, closing her eyes and leaning her back heavily against the wall.
"Petra, what do you mean?" Krista asked worriedly.
"Krista, you got in trouble for your uniform, didn't you?"
Krista fidgeted, but nodded after Ymir prodded her side with an elbow.
"I thought so," Petra said, gripping her elbows, "because your father came here, asking for you earlier this morning. I actually wanted to talk to Erwin about that."
At the mention of her father, Krista bowed her head and clenched her fists. Ymir locked her jaw and crossed her arms. "My Dad…" Krista sniffled and broke down into tears.
The adults looked at each other in worry. Erwin steeled himself.
"Tell me what happened."
Krista looked at Ymir for support, and the freckled girl held her hand and intertwined their fingers. The only men in the room looked startled, but smiled warmly behind their hands. Krista took a deep breath and recounted everything.
It took nearly two hours, and at some point Krista had been driven to tears when she remembered her father's last words to her. Throughout it all, Ymir had been very supportive, rubbing her back and pressing soft kisses to the back of her hand. Krista was extremely grateful for her support, and she felt herself falling for the tall brunette even more.
"Well," Erwin sighed, standing up. Pixis followed suit, since he had been seated on the principal's desk, and stretched his arms out. Petra fidgeted and moved to hug Krista and Ymir tightly, apologizing for the hell they've been through.
"It's not your fault, Petra," Krista said.
"Still, I'm really sorry."
"Apologies aside," Erwin coughed, "we need to find Krista a new home. You are a Scout, therefore part of our family, and we always support each other."
"Thank you," Krista said, clenching her free hand into a fist on her knee.
"In any case, you need a guardian, and a place to live."
"I'll do it!"
The exclamation came from Petra, who grinned radiantly and raised her hand. The occupants of the room appeared shocked, and Ymir shrunk slightly.
"I'll be her guardian, she can live with me," the nurse continued, placing her hand on the blonde's shoulder.
"Petra–"
"Please, this is the only way I can repay you for causing this mess. If I hadn't forgotten about your uniform, you wouldn't have gotten caught, and then thrown out of your home. Allow me to give you a–"
"Hell no!"
Ymir stood abruptly and shook her head. "No, she'll live with me!"
"Ymir," Pixis interrupted, "you cannot just–"
"No, listen here – I'm tired of the people I care about getting sent away from me. First Berik with Reiner, now Krista with Petra. No, this is not happening again. No offence, Petra, but I'd rather have Krista stay with me. I can defend her if anyone tries to hurt her."
"I understand, Ymir, but you're not of legal age to take care of Krista, nor do you meet the standards of guardianship."
"I don't want to be her guardian; I just want her to live with me. I'm tired of coming home to an empty apartment."
Erwin looked down slightly and Pixis rubbed the bridge of his nose. Petra bit her lip and removed her hand from Krista's shoulder.
"What do we do, Pixis?" Erwin muttered.
Pixis smoothed down his moustache and sighed. "Tell you what, Ymir, how about we sign Petra as Krista's guardian, but we put Krista's residency with you. However, Petra will need to visit on a regularly scheduled basis to check up on you two. If anything inappropriate is going on, or she feels that Krista's safety is at risk, then your privilege of living together is revoked until Krista is of legal age. What do you say?"
"I say you got a deal, old man."
"Petra? What do you say?"
"I say whatever makes Krista happy and safe is fine with me."
"And you, Krista? This is all about you after all."
"I want to live with Ymir," Krista answered, smiling, "and I want Petra as my guardian. But what about my father?"
"I'll deal with that," Erwin said, his voice deep and reassuring, "you just worry about school and... girls."
Krista blushed and Ymir scoffed. "I think you mean 'girl', because I'm not letting her go." Krista ducked her head and Ymir laughed, thinking she embarrassed her girlfriend. In truth, Krista was winding up for a powerful headbutt, one that made Ymir's teeth slice straight through her gums and squirt out blood.
"KRISSTTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
After their discussion, it neared the end of second period, so the girls decided to simply wait out the rest of the minutes until lunch. They sat with Petra in the nurse's office and watched as the short nurse tended to students in need. At some point, Levi had walked in and questioned their presence.
"What are you two slackers doing here? Get to class!"
"We're helping Petra with her shit, Levi, so leave us alone."
Levi raised an eyebrow at Ymir's tone and directed his penetrating stare to Krista, who fidgeted under his gaze and turned away. The short man glanced at Petra to find her tending to a girl's knee scrapes, and Ymir quickly stood to 'retrieve' two large bandages for the nurse. Petra blinked but thanked her, greeting Levi haphazardly and returning to her duties.
"Very well," he muttered, "but I better not catch you skipping class again, or you'll get shit from me in your other classes."
"Aye aye, sir," Ymir mocked, saluting the short teacher. She returned to her seat beside Krista and slouched in her chair. The blonde sighed in relief and sagged against the brunette's shoulder.
"That was close," she muttered.
"Not really, I mean, he can't get us in trouble 'cause Erwin and Pixis already know where we are."
"You're right."
"Aren't I always?"
"No, especially when you take us out for lunch and you bring us to–"
"ONE TIME! One time I brought us to a weird-ass noodle–"
"They served worms, Ymir!"
"Stop, end of discussion!"
"Ymir!"
Krista giggled when Ymir stuck her tongue out and grabbed her hand, intertwining their fingers. The brunette grinned toothily and bumped their heads together. They watched the clock, hoping that time would pass slowly for once so they could enjoy their moments together.
"Ymir," Krista began.
"Hm?"
"I'm gonna fix your reputation. I'll make everyone see that you're not someone to be afraid of, just watch. I'll make it so that even Mina Carolina likes you."
Ymir laughed and snorted, rubbing her knuckles across Krista's head. "Yeah, right, and the Titans will grow brains and play with bunnies."
"I'm serious!"
"Sure you are."
"No, Ymir, I really am; I'm so tired of all the negative things people say about you – it's time for a change!"
"And how will you do that, huh?"
"I'll make you do nice things!"
"Nice things?"
"Yeah! You can help me on my errands and stuff."
"Whatever, you do what you want – I don't care."
"And you need to meet all of my friends officially, and we need to tell them about us being a couple."
"What?! Why would you do that? They won't like me, anyway."
"Do you care about that?"
"No."
"Good, 'cause the Ymir I know doesn't care about anyone but herself."
"You're wrong."
"Huh?"
"The Ymir you know... cares about one person besides herself."
Krista smiled and squeezed the brunette's hand. The bell rang then, signifying lunch, and the couple waved goodbye to Petra on their way out of the office. They walked together down the hall, ignoring the murmurs and amazed whispers of other students. They turned their heads – with immense effort on Ymir's part – when a group of girls pointed and giggled with smirks on their faces.
"Don't worry, Ymir, someday they'll see how amazing you are," Krista whispered under her breath, unaware that Ymir had heard what she'd said.
"Thanks," Ymir replied softly, smiling slightly. They continued their trek down the hall, turning around corners until they finally reached the exit that led to where Krista's friends sat. Ymir dug her heels in, scowling at the innocent blue eyes that begged for a chance.
"Ymir."
"Krista."
"Ymiiiiiir."
"Kristaaaaaa."
"Let's go!"
"No!"
Krista pouted and stepped closer to Ymir. The brunette leaned back when the blonde leaned up and fluttered her eyelashes. Ymir swallowed nervously but kept her gaze firm. She scowled and looked away, but Krista wasn't through. She put her hand to Ymir's cheek and turned it to face her, smiling so warmly Ymir's heart melted.
In truth, Ymir was not afraid of what Krista's friends thought of her, but rather how their opinion could influence Krista's opinion of their relationship. If their friends didn't approve of her, and ostracized her, then maybe Krista would leave her. It was an absurd thought, but Ymir was so used to loss and sadness that it became part of her subconscious, lurking in her mind and causing insecurities to surface.
Krista understood, she knew what Ymir truly worried for, since Ymir slowly began to unravel her personality and therefore her thought processes. Sure, she was a bit of a mystery and an odd ball at times, but the reasons behind her exaggerated reactions were not that hard to guess. Ymir did not want to be alone again, and Krista understood, but this was something they had to do – loving each other secretly would not bode well if someone discovered them and used their relationship as blackmail material.
"We'll do this together, right, Ymir? I'm with you no matter what," Krista murmured, stepping up on her toes for a kiss. Ymir gladly obeyed, kissing her with enthusiasm. Krista moved her arms around the tall girl's neck and Ymir gripped her waist with strong arms. Eventually, they separated, and Ymir sighed as she bumped their foreheads.
"Damn, you've been winning for a while now – don't get used to it," she muttered, rolling her eyes at Krista's cheeky grin.
"Whatever you say!" the blonde chirped. She grabbed her love's hand and pushed the doors open. Sunlight greeted them, as well as surprised gasps and cries.
"Krista, hey! Who's that with– YMIR?!"
All movement halted, and each teenager, except for Mikasa and Annie, dropped their jaws in amazement. Finally, Sasha shook her head and rushed to them both, wrapping her arms around them and laughing happily.
"Yay! You're finally back, Krista! And you brought Ymir with you! The more the merrier!" she exclaimed.
"I don't have any food, nitwit," Ymir grumbled.
"That doesn't matter to me, we're friends, right? You can give me food later," Sasha laughed, poking her tongue out. Ymir rolled her eyes and watched Reiner out of the corner of her eye, grimacing and making sure to avoid his gaze. He watched with an emotionless expression, eyes locked onto the couple's linked hands. He squeezed the water bottle in his hand tightly, and Bertholdt watched with a nervous expression, sighing and wringing his hands.
Eren jumped up to tackle Jean when the latter took a deep breath, most likely to curse at the freckled girl. Marco dragged his boyfriend away from Eren and, clearly avoiding Ymir, walked behind the tree to give Jean a talk. Mikasa continued to eat her sandwich, merely nodding at Krista in greeting, and Armin smiled brightly as he shook Ymir's hand.
"Hi, I'm Armin, though I'm sure you already knew that."
"Yeah, you're the genius kid who keeps beating me."
"That's me!" he laughed.
"And I'm Eren!" the tall boy interrupted, giving an honest smile.
Ymir nodded in greeting and shook his hand. Krista watched Ymir fondly and displayed her adoration by rubbing her thumb against the back of her hand. The brunette turned her head slightly to hide a smile and spotted Connie approaching her. The boy walked carefully, halting in front of her and crossing his arms. He stared at her intensely, then stuck his hand out. Ymir stared at the offered hand, baffled, and looked back when Krista pushed her.
'Go!' the blonde mouthed.
The brunette hesitantly shook Connie's hand, but the boy kept a stoic expression.
"Thanks for your help, hag," was all he said as he retreated and walked to Sasha. The hungry girl ate with Mikasa and offered some of her bread to an obviously upset Connie, who grinned and snatched the whole loaf. He ran away, climbing up the tree and laughing at Sasha's bewildered expression.
Annie watched with indifference, eating her own lunch. When she finished, she simply stood up and walked away. Krista's expression dropped slightly but she wasn't deterred. She looked at Reiner, but the tall boy was intent on avoiding her gaze. Bertholdt gave an apologetic smile and stood, walking over to her.
"It's nice to see you again, Ymir," he greeted as happily as he could. He ignored Reiner's angry sputter and Ymir's cool expression.
"Yeah, same to you, Bert," she returned in her usual tone.
"I'm sorry about Reiner and Annie."
"I don't care, it's their loss. I'm willing to move on, but are they? Who knows? Either way, it doesn't matter to me."
"I understand."
Krista fidgeted and smiled brightly. "Well, we have something to announce to everyone," she exclaimed loudly.
Connie hung upside down from a tree, swinging the loaf at Sasha, but stopped short at Krista's voice. Everyone stopped what they were doing, and both Jean and Marco came back from their private discussion with a question in their eyes.
"Well? Ymir? Would you do the honours?" Krista asked, looking up at Ymir with shining blue eyes.
Ymir swallowed nervously and looked at the group. She spotted Reiner watching intently, completely focused on what she had to say. All of their eyes were on her – it was the moment of truth. Would they accept her, and allow Krista to be with her? Or would they judge her harshly and try to convince Krista to leave her? It all depended on what she said right now, and the pressure rose up her throat and blocked her words.
"Uh..." she began, she peeked at Krista, still seeing that hopeful expression, and turned back to the group, "well, you see, Krista and I, I mean, we…"
She scratched the side of her cheek and scowled at the ground, growing frustrated with her incoherent speech. Krista's smile slowly dimmed and her eagerness diminished to impatience.
"Ymir?" she pressed, prodding her side with a finger.
"Don't do that, damn it!" Ymir snapped, jumping from the touch.
"You're taking forever!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"It's not as easy as it looks!"
"Oh for the love of–"
Krista tugged on Ymir's tie and pulled her down to her height. She pressed their lips together, ignoring Ymir's blocked protests and the group's various exclamations of shock and bewilderment. Krista concentrated on the feel of Ymir's chapped lips against hers, the texture of her tongue and the small stream of air washing over her face from the brunette's nose. She moved her hands up to her shoulders and peeked between her eyelids to see Ymir slowly closing her eyes and leaning into the kiss heavily.
When they finally finished, they pulled back, panting lightly and grinning widely. Krista giggled and bit her lip when Ymir smirked.
"Was that so hard?"