Chapter 23: The Storm
Ymir and Reiner stared at each other for a long time, before finally the hulking teen looked away and scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. Ymir sighed and nodded, already walking to a private location located near the back of the school.
"Let's talk," she replied simply, not even glancing at him.
They walked briskly and passed by Connie's basketball team, who all high-fived Reiner on their way to the gym. The blond teen grinned and wished the Scouts good luck, then turned his head and deflated slightly. The seriousness of the talk he wanted to have with Ymir weighed upon his shoulders heavily. This is for Berik, Reiner thought determinedly, and Bertholdt, and Annie, and Krista… and Ymir.
"Let's kick some Titan ass!" a voice that sounded suspiciously like Eren cheered excitedly
They kept a distance between each other, at least a metre wide, and Ymir withdrew to her thoughts, numbing herself and setting up a mental wall to keep Reiner out. All she wanted to do at this moment was cuss at him, punch him and go back to brooding beside Krista. Now he wanted to talk? Now he wanted to make up and be friends? They really did need to talk, because Ymir wanted to know what was going through that thick skull of his before she bashed it in.
But Berik wouldn't want that – Krista wouldn't that – so she resigned to being calm and leading Reiner to a place she had been before: the dumpsters. No one ever came by here anymore, not after the fight she'd had with Nack and his crew – there was still blood spots stained on the side of the metal bin – so it was an ideal spot to discuss important subjects. Ymir leaned against one of the bins, ankles crossed, and closed her eyes.
Reiner stood awkwardly, clenching and relaxing his fists as he tried to control his emotions. The girl in front of him had caused him so much pain, but at the same time, he had caused her pain as well. Over the course of the three weeks he had spent thinking, he had reflected on his actions and grew disgusted with the way he treated her. Thanks to Krista and Bertholdt, he had realized that Ymir was not to blame for Berik's death, and that she had been more of a victim that his deceased friend had been – she had lost everything, twice, while he still had Bertholdt and Annie, as well as all of his new friends at the time. Ymir was the double victim – she lost her brother, and she lost her happiness.
When Reiner came to this conclusion, he became depressed. When he found out that Ymir had hold of Krista's heart, he was crushed. However, Bert had been there for him, every step of the way. When the blond teen woke from another nightmare at three in the morning – this time him being in Ymir's place and going through her turmoil – the first person he had called was his first and best friend, Bertholdt. The tall boy had been a good listener and soothed his friend with his delicate words and soft voice. It eased Reiner's depression somewhat, but he still could not get over the deplorable actions he had engaged in.
Eventually, he came to the conclusion that he hadn't really liked Krista as much as he thought he did, he just thought she was pretty and extremely nice. He realized that he practically knew nothing about her, and that she was incredibly different to what he had originally perceived - her snappy attitude towards Ymir at times proved that. He only liked her image, not the depth of her personality.
Reiner clutched the sides of his pants tightly and looked at Ymir, who looked like she was about to fall asleep any minute. She hadn't said anything yet, so he could think a little more about what he wanted to say. Bert was starting to point out his mistakes and push him in a different direction, which Reiner believed to be a result of talking with Krista. He was glad, because it's about damn time someone told him he was wrong and pulled him away from whatever cliff he almost dropped off of.
Berik had done that in the past, Reiner thought nostalgically, smiling slightly. Berik had always been one to stick to the truth, and always steered their little band of friends in the right direction. But he was gone, and now the threaded remains of his legacy needed to be sewn back together. They needed to reconcile and rekindle their friendship to keep Berik's memory alive, because though a photograph may represent a thousand words, a memory holds a million.
"Berik," Reiner croaked, his voice coming out scratchy from not talking for a while, "Berik would want us to be friends."
"I know that," Ymir growled, her reply coming out harsh.
Reiner flinched and frowned. "Then let's talk about that day."
"What is there to talk about? A bunch of fucking Titans pushed him and the fucking mall's goddamn railings snapped behind him. I missed my chance to catch him, and he fell to his death."
"That's not what I meant."
Ymir pushed off of the bin and stalked to Reiner dangerously. "Then what do you mean, Reiner? Do you mean to say that you blamed me for his death for years and years and fucking years! Do you mean to tell me that I should've been a bit quicker, a little stronger, and a tad smarter?"
"Piss off, Ymir! You're grating on my nerves with the way you keep assuming shit that I'm not even thinking!"
"But you thought it!" Ymir shouted angrily, throwing her hands up in the air in frustration, "you fucking thought it and you spat it in my face! And you know what? I thought that too! I thought it was my fault Berik died, and that if I hadn't been alive he still would be." Reiner remained silent after her tirade, watching her with troubled eyes and agony written across his face. Ymir grumbled to herself and turned her head, neutralizing her expression and crossing her arms.
"So, what do you want? Is that what you want me to say? Is that all it will take for us to 'be friends again'?" Ymir sneered, pulling her lips back into a snarl.
"Do you still think that, Ymir?" Reiner replied instead, shoving his hands into his pockets, "do you still blame yourself for Berik's death?"
Ymir pressed her lips together then shook her head slowly. "No. No, not anymore. Krista," Ymir smiled slightly as she mentioned her name, "she convinced me otherwise. It's thanks to her that I want to try again."
Reiner grinned and laughed quietly. "Krista just came out of nowhere and changed everything. She's like our saviour."
"She's the Goddess of Rose Academy," Ymir chuckled wryly, "didn't you know?"
"I knew, trust me."
"Do you still have feelings for her?"
"No."
"Good, 'cause she's mine, and I'm not gonna lose her."
"I feel oddly reassured by that, Ymir. I know you'll take good care of her."
Ymir smirked and Reiner grinned. "Damn straight I will."
Reiner looked around and frowned slightly. "Where is she, anyway? I thought she was with you," he questioned.
"She forgot her project so she went to grab it from our home." Simply saying that made her chest tingle delightfully, and Ymir could not hide the slight blush from Reiner.
"'Our home', huh?" he teased, laughing when Ymir glared at him.
"Shut up. At least I had the fucking guts to confess."
Reiner sighed exasperatedly and grabbed Ymir's forearm. "You're so damn crude, Ymir. But we're not done talking."
"Funny how before you wouldn't even look at me and that's all you can do right now."
"Shut it," Reiner growled, "do you want Krista to be happy or not?" When Ymir stopped talking he smiled. "Okay, so I don't blame you for Berik's death, and you don't anymore. What's stopping us from being friends again?"
"I don't trust you," Ymir answered easily, sliding out of his grip.
Reiner flinched and scratched the back of his head. "Ouch, that hurt," he admitted, "but I don't blame you, not to mention I'm not your biggest fan either."
The freckled girl shrugged and shoved her hands in her pockets. "So where is this going? What do you want?" she demanded impatiently. She needed to get back to Krista now, this was taking way too long. She clenched the cloth above her heart, feeling a squeezing sensation threatening to overtake her.
"What I want is…"
"...for you to leave me alone!" Krista cried. She struggled against her captors vehemently, trying to move her arms away from their greedy hands. There were a few boys, Titans, laughing and joking as they teased her and pulled on her hair.
"She's got pretty hair," one commented.
"Smells nice, too," another remarked.
"Should we take a sample home?" a different one suggested.
"Nah, boys, we'll just take the whole package," a familiar voice interrupted. Krista looked up, tearful blue eyes widening as Bean came into view. He looked just the same as he always did, with brown hair slicked back and equally brown eyes staring at her creepily. Krista shuddered - those were not the same brown eyes she loved and adored, these ones were lifeless.
Right under his elbow was Sawney, a boy with short, messy blond hair and equally lifeless eyes. His, however, were blue, and his expression was somewhat different than when Krista had first seen him. He seemed more… sheltered, more introverted. He didn't say a word and kept to the side, watching the events going on without interest. He looked almost bored.
The Titans had come down from a bus just as Krista passed by the familiar bus stop. She had been power-walking, and as soon as she noticed them getting off of the bus, her blood ran cold and she started to run, but they stopped her by calling her out. They recognized her, and she knew they would follow her if she tried to flee. She couldn't bear to endanger anyone else, and going back home was out of the question – they would know where she and Ymir lived and would definitely try something.
Bean approached her and grinned evilly. He picked up a silky strand of her straw-coloured hair and let it slide between his fingers. "I haven't forgotten what the bitch said to me at the restaurant, you know. The bitch who likes to sniff over your shoulder. Where the fuck is she? Ah well, you'll be enough for my boys here. Right, Sawney?" Bean turned to his buddy, who shrugged and zipped up his sweater to his nose.
"Let's make this quick – we have some Scouts to annihilate in basketball."
"You guys are so goddamn stupid!" Krista shouted, squeezing her eyes shut. She thought of Ymir, and her bravery, and her obscenely loud words that always instilled confidence in her and terrified aggressors.
"Fucking adorable, thinks she's a threat, huh? We'll show her a threat."
One teen grabbed her arms and put them behind her back while the other two stood to the side, watching for any witnesses. Their team had already gone ahead with their coach, therefore they could spend a few minutes to have some fun. Sawney yawned and stretched out on the pavement. Bean gripped Krista's chin in his hand and harshly lifted her head up.
"I'm going to break you and send you back to that cunt in pieces," he whispered, his eyes wide and dangerous, "and no one will fuck with us again."
Krista spat in his face and he grinned as he wiped it off. "I'll hose down that fire of yours real quick," he promised, "just watch."
Just as he wound his hand back to slap her, Krista shut her eyes tight and prayed for Ymir to save her.
"Ymir," she murmured desperately, "Ymir!"
"Ymir, slow down!"
Reiner chased after Ymir, apologizing to students in the wake of her torrent. She dashed down the hallway in a flurry of curses and flying papers. The brunette was severely worried out of her mind – Krista had been gone for over half an hour, and the trip to and fro usually took fifteen minutes maximum. Unless she had gotten sidetracked along the way, there was absolutely no reason for Ymir to stay here and wait for bad news.
Ymir burst out of the doors and approached Sasha quickly. She pulled the girl up by her collar and ignored Mikasa's venomous glare, which softened slightly at the desperate and worried look on Ymir's face.
"Where's Krista?"
Sasha frowned and tilted her head. "Krista? Isn't she with you?"
"NO!" Ymir shouted. "Does it fucking look like she's with me?"
Mikasa stood up then and shoved Ymir off. "Calm down," she grit through clenched teeth, "and tell us what is going on."
"Krista…" Ymir muttered, sliding a hand down her face and backing off, "Krista is missing. Fuck, shit I should never have let her go by herself. She's probably lost, that dumbass, or got hit by a car."
"Whoa, Ymir, slow down!" Reiner exclaimed, gripping her shoulder tightly. The whole group stared at them, and Bertholdt smiled wide when he saw the close contact. Finally they were friends. The tall boy joined them and smiled at Reiner, who returned it with a smile of his own before quickly frowning and shaking Ymir slightly. The brunette had gone mute, eyes wide and jaw slack. She appeared to be thinking about something.
"It's happening again," she muttered softly to no one in particular.
Jean stood up and approached them, sighing and scratching the back of his head. "She's probably in the bathroom or something," Jean dismissed casually, "don't worry about it!"
Ymir blinked and narrowed her eyes. The atmosphere suddenly thickened, and her glare chilled Jean's bones. She pulled her fist back to punch him, but Reiner had grabbed hold of it and used all of his force to keep it from smashing straight through Jean's jaw. He struggled with the force in which he held her arm, evident by the quaking of their limbs.
"Fuck you!" she screamed, spit flying out of her mouth and spraying Jean, "you fucking idiot! If that was Marco out there you'd be the first one looking for him, so don't you dare say a goddamn word, or I'll tear you a new one!"
Jean backed up and bumped into Marco, who held him and shook his head in disapproval at his boyfriend. "I'm sorry, Ymir, Jean didn't mean to hurt your feelings," Marco explained gently, "go look for her, we'll stay at school in case she comes back, and we'll let the teachers know."
Ymir nodded, not really focusing but still there. Reiner dropped her arm and she turned on her heel and ran into the school. Reiner followed her as well, with Bertholdt right on his heel. The three of them decided to split up, Ymir going outside and toward her home while Reiner and Bertholdt looked in the schoolyard. They couldn't take any chances – she could be anywhere, really, and in any condition.
Mikasa and Sasha sat together, worried for their friend. Mikasa had wanted to go search with them, but figured Ymir would not appreciate her help, and Sasha needed her anyway. The girl sniffled as she thought about Krista, and hoped that the blonde was safe wherever she was.
Armin walked in then, and lowered his hand when no one greeted him in return. His smile faded and he slowly walked to Mikasa and sat down.
"What happened here?" he demanded.
Mikasa sighed and rubbed Sasha's back when the girl sniffed again, snot sliding down from her nose and tears soaking through the black-haired girl's uniform.
Reiner ran out onto the field, desperately searching for a head of blonde hair. When he spotted one, his heart jerked painfully and he sprinted to it. He needed to find Krista, he absolutely needed to. It was crucial, not just for the blonde's overall safety, but for Ymir as well. If Ymir lost Krista now, that was it. She was done – Ymir would break into a million pieces and no amount of time or any person would be able to put her back together. Love was a painful emotion, and though it was certainly worth it, there were always repercussions to giving your heart out to someone.
"Come on, Bert!" he shouted behind him excitedly, "I think that's Krista!"
"No," Bertholdt shook his head, "that's not Krista."
"Huh?"
"That's Annie."
"Oh, yeah, it is! Wait, let's go ask Annie if she saw Krista!"
"Exactly what I was thinking." Bertholdt smiled back at his friend.
"Annie!" Reiner gasped as they reached her. He put his hands to his knees and tried to catch his breath, Bertholdt doing the same. Annie sat up from where she'd been lying down, and watched her friends curiously. Eren was occupied with the basketball game, therefore she decided to avoid the group lunch and sit by herself. However, it seemed she wouldn't even have that to enjoy.
"Annie, have you seen Krista?" Bert asked breathlessly. They didn't have a second to spare, not even for breathing.
"Krista? No, I haven't seen her," Annie replied tonelessly, lying back down and closing her eyes as she crossed her arms behind her head.
"She's missing!" Reiner added loudly, "and Ymir left school to look for her!"
Annie shot up and glared at both teens. They shuddered at the cold look she gave them, and clutched each other for support.
"Explain."
Ymir's strong and uneven heartbeat was the only sound she could hear over her laboured breathing. Her feet kicked off the ground in a powerful rhythm, and with how fast she was going she was surprised her feet hadn't burned through the soles of her shoes.
But that didn't matter.
All that mattered was Krista.
If anyone hurt her she would fly into a rage and eliminate all of them. She wouldn't hold back, she was through with acting like a wimp and not defending what was rightfully hers. Krista unconsciously depended on Ymir to protect her, and Ymir was not about to let her down. She wouldn't be able to take another episode like Berik. Krista had been warm, in personality and in body, unlike when Berik had been exceptionally cold prior to his death.
If only she'd listened to Krista that morning and helped her look for her project.
Ymir shook her head to clear out the 'what ifs'. Those kind of thoughts were absolutely useless, and would only lead to her doubting herself and weakening her resolve. No, Ymir thought, gritting her teeth, she would find Krista and if anyone got in her way she would beat the shit out of them.
She ran ahead and nearly turned a corner when she spotted a short blonde kneeling before a group of boys in an alley close to the bus stop. Her blood froze, as well as her tracks, and she slowly turned around and watched as a Titan she recognized as 'Bean' lifted his hand, as though to smack–
"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Ymir screamed, sprinting forward. Bean stopped mid-slap and turned around. He didn't even have the time to grin when Ymir tackled him and put her hands around his throat. The brunette focused on cutting his breathing and had a crazed look in her eye as her grin stretched to a frightening width. Bean put his hands to hers and glared at her, kicking his feet in a signal.
Quickly, the other two boys threw Ymir off of Bean and held her arms. She cursed and shouted, foaming at the mouth. Bean came up to her, but she ignored him in favour of looking at Krista, who met her eyes with fear. Ymir felt her rage climb higher and higher when she saw the bruises lining Krista's jaw, as well as the buttons undone on her blouse and her bleeding lips.
However, just as her rage seemed to be at its breaking point, Ymir suddenly calmed down. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, remembering how her emotions never helped her. She needed to think this through logically in order to get her and Krista out of this mess safely. She flicked her eyes around and counted the Titans.
Four Titans: two holding her, one holding Krista, and Bean.
She could easily take care of the Titans holding her, it was just a matter of getting Krista to safety. This was not going to be a repeat of Berik. Krista's safety came before everything, even if…
Ymir squeezed her eyes shut and lowered her head.
...even if it meant her life.
"Heh, looks like she gave up," Bean snorted.
"Think again, fucker," Ymir snarled, grabbing the arms of the boys holding her and pulling them around and forward. They knocked their foreheads against each other and fell back on the concrete, instantly knocked out. Bean barked at the other boy to let go of Krista and take care of Ymir, which he did, or attempted to do. Bean took his place and held Krista against him, snarling maliciously down at her. This was getting bad, he needed to finish this and hightail it out of here before he got in too deep.
Ymir grabbed the boy in front of her by his collar with her left hand and socked him in his jaw with her right. He fell to the floor and rolled onto his back, catching Ymir's foot when she made to step on him. He pulled on her foot and tripped her, Krista shouting all the while and struggling against Bean's iron grip.
The boy got up and prepared to kick Ymir's stomach, but the brunette returned the favour and held onto his ankle tightly. She grinned and slammed her fist on his knee cap, making him shout in pain and kneel down. She stood and looked down at him evilly, a shadow cast over her eyes. Swiftly, she delivered a kick to his temple and knocked him out cold. Bean watched with a desperation in his eyes, his brown orbs flickering to where Sawney lied. It seemed Ymir hadn't noticed him yet.
"Sawney!" Bean shouted, "grab the bitch!"
Ymir whirled around punched the boy approaching her, but the blond boy grabbed her fist and glared coldly. Only serving to make her angrier, she clenched her jaw and threw another punch, but Sawney had grabbed that one as well. Shouting profanities, she threw her head back then forward, landing a powerful head-butt that would make Krista proud.
"GODDAMN!" Ymir yelled. She was sure she would regret that later.
Sawney backed up, eyes rolling into the back of his head, before totally crumpling onto the pavement in a heap. Ymir turned around, aware that she had wasted too much time and she was running out. She had to save Krista before–
The sound of a bus made Bean grin widely. He looked behind him and waved at the bus, then turned around and smirked at Ymir. The brunette felt her blood run cold, and started to run. Krista looked on helplessly, struggling weakly against Bean, but the teen had pushed her out onto the road.
Krista gasped as she fell back and twisted her ankle, as well as landing on her wrist the wrong way. Pain shot up from both her hand and foot, sparks of fire going up her arm and leg. She cried out, stuck on the asphalt, and looked up into Ymir's desperate eyes. The bus was only a few metres away, and Ymir was running as fast as she could. The driver was busy looking into the rear-view mirror and shouting something, so he hadn't noticed Krista, and kept his foot steady on the gas pedal.
Ymir ran forward, pushing Bean out of the way and extending her hand out for Krista to take. Krista imitated her, stretching her good hand out as far she could in her current position. The bus' horn sounded a few times, and its headlights reflected off of Krista's form harshly. The blonde held her breath as Ymir's fingertips touched her own.
Ymir's only thought from that day was that Krista's hands were cold as ice.