Reign Of Blood|L. Ackerman

XX.i

"What's this? A welcome party?"

They all snapped their heads back when they saw her. Armin's eyes widened and he and the two other kids rushed to her. "I can't believe they discharged you!"

She chuckled lightly as she hugged them back, but the impact of their small frames crashing into her caused her teeth to grit as she tried not to let out a string of profanities.

"How are you feeling?" Eren asked her as he opened the door to her room and helped her inside. "Can you see alright? Can you go to the bathroom by yourself? Do you need us to-"

"I'm okay," she insisted, catching her breath as she sat down on her bed. "A little tender but nothing too bad."

She sat on the bed and tried to compose herself, noticing that the bed adjacent to her had been stripped bare. The drawers were open as if they have been cleared out in a haste, and the top of the dresser and desk held a thin sheen of dust that remained as evidence of what was once there.

Petra was officially gone and whoever cleared her things out had made sure of it.

She tore her eyes away as she glanced at Armin who was still standing tentatively at the doorway.

"Little mouse?"

"So, you're alright now?" he asked, looking down to see that the doctors hadn't taken the stitches out of her arms. "They're going to scar."

"Yeah, I know," she said with a shrug. Honestly, she didn't mind the idea of scars in the slightest. They're a testament to all the battles she had fought and won, a reminder of everything she fought to protect the kids from. "They don't really hurt anymore."

"That's a lie," Mikasa snorted, leaning on the other side of the door frame across from Armin. "She's supposed to be on bed rest for a few more days, a week or two of minimal activity, too."

"And where exactly did you learn this information?" Katerina questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"That's what happens when you leave against medical advice," Mikasa replied. "The doctors were expecting you to bail, so they came and found me this morning. Apparently, he didn't think you'd follow his treatment plan."

"Devlin not doing what others tell her to do? Is that really that shocking?" Jean interjected, sitting on what used to be Petra's bed.

"That was a suggestion," Katerina defended, sending Jean a glare that made him immediately shoot off the bed. "I already admitted that I'm in pain, what more do you want from me? We have things to do."

"Yes, let's definitely not listen to the trained medical professional that's in charge of making sure you don't kill yourself," Reiner teased, chuckling at her. "Not like he's trying to heal you."

"Very funny, Reiner," she mumbled, stretching her arms over her head to prove that she was fine, but what they couldn't hear was the screams of protest her body made at this. "I love that you're all so concerned, but you don't need to worry about me."

She caught a glimpse of something passing in the hallway, furrowing her eyebrows when Connie appeared and whispered something in his Armin's, holding two large suitcases.

"What's that about?" Katerina asked, her nose scrunching at Connie whose cheeks flushed red. "Connie?"

"This?" Armin questioned nervously, shoving Connie away before he could say anything. "This is nothing! Just spring cleaning!"

She didn't miss the unusually high pitch his voice took on. "Armin. It's February."

"We're getting to it early!"