Levi was the only who was able to visit Katrina. Erwin was stuck all day arguing with people. At least the Corporal came back to tell him what was going on. "I heard her screaming, is she alright?"
"She's fine. They have her chained up and it looks as though she hasn't been eating." Levi sat down, crossing on leg over the other.
Erwin ran his hands through his hair, worried. "I'm not going to let this go. They can't do this to her." He sighed and looked up. "Anything else?"
Levi was silent for a moment, staring off somewhere else. "She is miserable."
"This is all your fault!" The Commander yelled suddenly, standing and slamming his fists into the table. "If I would have known you would drag her out there, I would have never agreed to let her escort you guys! You've caused me so much trouble, I can't even begin to say. She used to be so cheerful and nothing got her down. Now she's screaming and locked up!"
The Corporal stood as well put his hands on his hips, eyes like daggers aimed at him. "You can't blame this on me. She was only like that because she didn't know what was happening around here. That everyday people died."
"And I wanted it that way!" He stomped up to him, wanting to throw all his anger at him. "I wanted to protect her from all that!" Katrina was damaged now and he could see it. She was scared and it was possibly hell for her. If only he could have stopped it all.
Katrina had been eaten and attacked. Now she was a shifter as well, and it wasn't going according to their plan. She must really hate him. He was going to keep fighting until he got them to understand and let her come back. He couldn't sleep anymore, and food just tasted bitter to his tongue. He raked his fingers through his hair, trying to calm down.
The door was pushed open, and Eren rushed into the room, panting. All negative thoughts flooded his mind, panic settling in. "You need to come with me, now." The boy left quickly and the two hurried out of door, following him to the staircase leading to the basement.
"Where are you taking us? I've been trying to go down there for a while now, but they wont allow it." Erwin grumbled, stopping. Yet, there were no soldiers guarding the area.
Eren waved at him impatiently when he reached the bottom. "Just come down, it's fine." His whole attitude changed remarkably and he sauntered down the hall.
The Commander was weary as he made his way down the steps behind the Corporal, their boots causing sounds to echo in the silence. Ahead, he noticed Hanji standing in front of a cell, to which he pushed pass the others, wanting to see who she could possibly as been staring at.
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Another nightmare. Of course, that's all it was. But she hadn't had one for a while, at least, not that she could remember. What was going to happen? Everything was too dark for her to understand the situation she was in. She couldn't move, but whatever was restraining her, she wasn't sure what it was.
Moaning and panting filled her ears, and she blinked. What? Suddenly, she was standing up right, and wind rushed pass her. Pain filled noises rose in the darkness, and she looked around her.
Who was that? Were they in trouble? There was a sudden gasp and more intense panting. Cries and tormenting sounds grew louder and she made her way to it. "P-Please.." A voice finally spoke between shattered breathing. "St-op, ple-uh-ase."
Katrina covered her ears as a muffled scream hit her, causing her to run. What was happening? She found a single door and stopped in front of it. It seemed to be the source of the cries, and she pushed the doors open. But to her horror, she wished immediately that she hadn't gone into the room.
Yet, the image disappeared and a sinlge person stood before her. "Hanji?"
"Katrina, I won't hurt you." Hanji looked up and smiled kindly. She changed forms and now a man stood in her place. "Just come with me." He had a familiar voice, but she couldn't place it.
She stepped back, but was stopped by the door. "What do you mean?"
He grinned, moving around her. His face was shadowed and all she could see was his mouth and down. "You are very important, please. Just come with me. Come with me. Come with me." He started repeating those three words and fear spiked in her.
"No." She breathed, her chest heaving in panic. His voice seemed to seep inside her head, stirring around in her mind. This feeling, it was like someone's hand was inside her. She was panting now, gasping and choking. "St-op!" Her words were broken up from the air in her lungs not working. She was just like the girl she saw earlier. "Ple-ase.." She cried.
The girl in the room. It was her.
Katrina sat up in a panic, hands moving to her chest and stomach. A wave of dizziness crashed over her, and she looked up, but her vision was hazing. "Who-"
"Katrina!" Voices resurfaced and she covered her ears, falling to her side. "Unlock the door."
The first person she saw was Levi, and he grabbed her arm, pulling her up. "Levi."
"Shut up, are you okay?" He had to keep tugging her, her body falling. She was numb and it was hard to force herself to stay still.
Come with me. The voice invaded her thoughts and she winced, her breathing quickening. "Make him stop. He won't stop talking to me."
"Who?" Erwin was next to her this time, holding her up and rubbing her arms. It seems as though they were trying to get the feeling back into her limbs. "Who are you talking about?"
She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. It was just a dream, he isn't real. Shaking her head, she gave a small smile and blinked slowly. Her eyelids were heavy, but she was just sleeping. "I don't know. It was just a nightmare. I'm alright."
"Are you sure?" Erwin pushed, but he was calm now.
Katrina nodded, patting his hand. "Yes, I'm still a little shaken up though. But why are you here? Aren't you going to get into trouble?"
Eren pushed his way through, giving her a toothy grin. "For some reason the guards aren't around, so I thought it would be a good idea to sneak Commander Erwin down here for you. But, are you going to be alright? I heard that they are possibly going to allow the Military Police to take you."
Katrina's eyes widened and her insides twisted. "The Military?!" Why was she getting so worked up? But her heart was telling her it was a bad idea.
"Major Hanji, would you be willing to take her?" Erwin turned his attention to the silent woman behind them.
Hanji snapped out of her thoughts and her mouth fell slightly. "Eh? Me? I couldn't possibly."
"Please Hanji!" Eren cried, holding his hands together. "We can't let the Police get her. They'll kill her."
Levi gave her a look as well, she turned her eyes to the girl in the bed. Scanning her for a moment, she smiled. "Only if I get to experiment on her."
"Denied." Erwin said quickly and harshly.
Katrina gripped his hand and sat up. "I'll let you."
"What are you saying?" Levi growled, his cold eyes on her now. "There won't be any 'experimenting'. If we wanted that, we'd just hand her over to those damn pigs."
She felt sick just thinking about the Police. Was the man in her dream from it? No, that wasn't possible. He wasn't real. "Please Hanji, don't let them take me." Hanji stared at her for a moment, and nodded.
"Katrina, what are you doing? We can think of something else." Erwin gripped her arm, and she leaned against him tiredly.
Hanji smiled and put her hands on her hips. "Don't worry, Katrina. I won't hurt you."
Those words filled her ears and she flinched, eyes widening. Smiling quickly, she nodded. "Thank you."
"Ah, I'm glad this worked out." Eren grinned and stretched his arms. "I think we should go though, before the guards show up."
Erwin moved his gaze to them. "You go ahead, I need to speak with her alone." They hesitated, but decided it was best to leave. Erwin pulled her against his chest and took a deep breath. She could hear the pounding of his heart, and she smiled, feeling calmer. It was like she was being wrapped in warmth that eased her tension.
"Erwin, please don't leave me." She murmured, wrapping her arms around his torso.
There was a short silence before he spoke. "I have to. If we can convince them tomorrow to allow Hanji to watch over you, it'll be tough to even move about. Everyone will be suspicious of you, so you need to be careful."
Katrina nodded, pressing her face to his chest. "In my dream, I heard some horrible things. Then, I found out the one making those sounds was me. I was being tortured. First, it was Hanji who was there, but then it was someone else." Her body shook and she hugged his body tighter. "I'm scared. What is going to happen to me?"
"Nothing." He snapped, stroking her hair and resting his chin on her head. "Nothing is going to happen. Just listen to what you are told, and don't walk around by yourself."
She took a quick breath and looked up. "If I'm with Hanji, you'll still come see me, right? I could sneak back home. I really miss it."
Erwin chuckled and kissed her forehead. Yet, his eyes gave off a sadness that hurt to look at. She had to do something to make this right. He was suffering, and it was all because of her.
"Let's make a promise."
He pulled away from her, raising a brow. "Hm?"
"Let's make a promise to never lose sight of one another. And, to keep our old promise." Her cheeks burned lightly. It was too embarrassing for her to say now, so she would just have to call it that.
Looking her over, he tilted his head to the side. "I promise. I think I know of a way to help this situation though, so you just wait a bit. I have to make a proposition of my own for the second trial tomorrow." He took her head between his hands and looked into her eyes. "I won't let them win."
Katrina smiled at his determination and was pulled into a kiss. He was getting good at surprising her with those, and she tried to move back. He smiled against her lips and they parted. "Erwin..."
"I didn't know I could love you this much."
Her heart started beating faster. "What are you saying?" Flustered, she covered her mouth and fell back onto the bed.
Grinning, he stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow." With that, he left as soon as he could, closing and locking the door and walking away.
As his footsteps faded, she thought back to her dream, and uneasiness fell on her. If he was real, she'd have to find him before she was caught in this trap. Whatever he wanted from her, she couldn't let him have it. New footstep approached her and she sat up. Guards stopped in front of her cell and they questioned if she needed anything. Shaking her head, they sat down.
Just one more day in this hell, and she'd be able to leave. That is, if Erwin or Hanji win the trial. Falling back, she stared up at the ceiling, overwhelmed by the silence. She had to trust them and pray for the best. Yet, she felt a new pain in her heart, like something was coming.