In Love With A Monster (Armin X Annie)

~Chapter Fifteen~

The four shifters were frozen in place, Annie's heart began to beat out of her chest. Some parts of her wanted this to happen, she wanted Armin to catch her before she left, for him to help her but not like this, not in front of them. She knew Reiner wouldn't hesitate to hurt him to protect information, just like what happened with Marco.

"What the hell is going on..." Armin asked as he looked from Annie to Reiner to Bertholdt to Ymir. There was no logical explanation he could come up with until he remembered Annie's note. He remembered that there were other people working with her. "The mission... you were working with them?"

"You told him?" Reiner couldn't help but yell, he could help but let his anger show through.

"No, I- he never knew it was you... I didn't..." Annie looked back at Armin, he looked deeply hurt that Annie had hidden this truth from him that his comrades, the people he shared a room with for years were also working with her on the mission that killed multiple people.

"What's going on, I want to know." Armin demanded, Armin already knew too much, Reiner began to advance towards the couple but Annie held her arm out to stop him from coming any closer.

"We're all shifters, me, Bertholdt, Ymir and Reiner. Bertholdt and Reiner... they're the Colossal and Armoured." Annie explained, she didn't see the point of keeping any more secrets. If only he had never saw that note, he wouldn't have made the connection. "No more secrets now, right Reiner?"

Bertholdt's mouth dropped, he couldn't believe she had just told him. "Annie!"

Reiner began to charge towards Armin again. Annie forcefully pushed him back, knocking him onto the ground. Her only option to save Armin now was to defend him against Reiner, even if it got violent.

"I won't hesitate to hurt you..." Annie stared bullets into him.

"He knows too much, everything we have done will be exposed because you're too blinded by him to see the truth! You've gone soft Annie, come on, you're smarter than this..."

"Annie what about your father, your home!" Bertholdt called out to her, he didn't want her to resist this mission anymore, they would have been so close to leaving and continuing if Armin didn't walk out and catch them, if he never figured out it who they truly were. Then Reiner wouldn't have to try and kill him for knowing too much and knowing Reiner, he wouldn't leave until Armin was dead.

"These devils have brainwashed you... You've fallen for a devil, Annie! Haven't you forgotten what they've done—"

Annie didn't want to listen anymore, she kicked Reiner straight in the jaw, she was reminded of the time they fought as children. She stared down at him, "You're going to have to go through me first."

Reiner had enough, he knew what he had to do. He took out a knife he had in his side pocket, Annie knew what he was doing the moment he reached to his side as did Bertholdt and Ymir. Annie grabbed Armin and pushed him into the house, ducking beneath the windows. Ymir and Bertholdt ran and hid behind one of the houses. The windows to their house shattered and the door flew open as gold lightning struck the ground outside.

"They're shifters?" Armin raised his voice so Annie could hear him over the continuing sounds of wind and the of Reiners Titan forming.

Annie nodded, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you... They're going to try and kill you. I'm sorry!" The sounds began to settle and Annie took a look over to the outside. A lot of the houses looked destroyed from the blast, the stables were barely intact, it would be a miracle if anyone else in the village managed to survive. Annie's heard sank, all the people she had been living with over the past few months, all the children, they were gone. She never wanted anymore bloodshed to happen, this was the last thing she ever wanted. But she knew she could save one more life.