(Y/n) = Your name
(F/n) = Fake name
(F/c) = Favorite color
(H/c) = Hair color
(S/c) = Skin color
(Y/n) P.O.V
(Dream)
I found myself sitting on the ground with my back against the barrel of hay in a familiar lush field. Looking around, I noticed that both my legs were back catching me a bit off-guard until I saw Historia sitting next to me with her head leaning against my shoulder. Just looking at her in this place brought a warm and relaxing feeling to my heart and as I was about to reach over to rub her head, she looked over to me.
Historia: "Why didn't you come back?" she suddenly asked.
Me: "H-Huh?" I asked a bit caught off-guard.
Historia: "You always came back, you always promised to come back but you never did... you lied to me." she said standing up.
Me: "Wait... I tried to come back! I tried so hard trying but I was too weak. But I'm here now." I said standing up.
She looked at me and smiled before shaking her head.
Historia: "My (Y/n) never came back. He died when the wall Maria fell. You're not the (Y/n) I knew all those years ago. You're nothing but a fake!" she yelled before running away.
Me: "Historia! Please wait!" I cried out to her.
Not wanting to lose her, I ran after her. As I ran and began gaining on her, I reached my hand out to her and right as I was about to grab her hand, a flash of light blinded me. I quickly grabbed Historia's hand while covering my eyes with my free arm for a few moments before the light faded away. Once I lowered my arm, I was greeted with a familiar door that replaced Historia. Looking down to my hand, I saw that I was holding onto a doorknob instead of a hand.
I was confused with what just happen and slowly turned the knob to open the door. As the door opened, I saw the two dead and bloody bodies of the kidnappers I killed when Mikasa was kidnapped. In the middle of the room stood Mikasa holding a bloody knife with the third dead kidnapper. It seemed as if she heard the door open because she turned her head towards me.
Mikasa: "You didn't want anyone to stain their hands with blood but look at what happened. You murdered someone and... I had to kill someone too because you were too weak. Completely useless." she stated.
Me: "I didn't want any of that to happen! I wanted to save you! I wanted to protect you but-" I tried saying only to be interrupted by Mikasa chuckling.
Mikasa: "Save? Protect? You can't save anyone. Did you save Isabel or Furlan? What about Marco or any of the other recruits? You couldn't even protect the people you love." she stated.
Another flash of light blinded me before fading away once again. This time, I found myself in the Forest of Giant Trees. I fell to the ground face first as I lost of sensation to my legs. As I looked back to them, they were gone, all there was left was a bloody mess. I looked away not wanting to see the gruesome sight and faced forward. When I looked forward, I found myself speechless as I felt tears beginning to build up to what I saw in front of me. Gunther, Olou, Eld and in front of the three of them was Petra smiling at me. I didn't even bother holding back the tears as I began pulling myself across the ground over to them.
Me: "I-I miss you all of y-you. Please... let's go back home t-together!" I cried out pulling myself closer to them.
They looked over to me sadly before looking at one another. Gunther, Olou, and Eld looked over to Petra as she nodded her head. She crouched down ten feet in front of me as I continued to pull myself towards her.
Petra: "We have to go." she said softly to me.
Me: "No... nononono...no! Don't leave!" I yelled out completely breaking down as I continued to pull myself closer.
Tears continued to run down my eyes as I felt snot running down my nose. I looked up to her shaking my head, pleading for her not to go. I could see tears beginning to form underneath Petra's eyes before she looked over to Gunther, Olou, and Eld and gestured to them to come over to her. They did as they were told and walked over before the four of them walked over to me together. They gathered around me with Petra in front of me. I pushed myself up only for Petra to close the distance between us and help me sit up right before pulling me into a tight hug.
Me: "I don't want any of you to go yet." I told them still crying.
Eld looked over to Gunther as he was becoming teary-eyed before smiling and reaching his hand down to me and rubbed my head.
Eld: "Take care of yourself, kid." he said before he fades away.
I cried out his name but it was too late. Gunther rubbed his eyes as he crouched down to me.
Gunther: "I was really looking forward to that picnic too... next time, ok?" he smiled as he faded away as well.
I only nodded my head fully knowing that there wouldn't be a next time but I wanted to believe. That was when Olou, who was behind me placed his hand on my back.
Olou: "Give the captain our apologies for failing." he said trying to act cool but I could hear him crying as the feeling of his hand faded away.
I only held onto Petra desperately shaking in fear of her disappearing as well.
Me: "Don't go... Mama..." I called her.
I felt her stiff up as she pulled back from me a bit to look at me allowing me to see the tears running down her face.
Petra: "W-What?" she asked.
Me: "I always thought of you as my real mama. The way you treated me... I felted loved... the way a real mother treats her children." I revealed.
She had a look of disbelief before a sad smile appeared on her face as she placed her hands on the side of my head and pulled me closer to kiss my head.
Petra: "I'm so happy... take care of the Captain for me and don't die. And remember, we'll always be there for you. I love you and the Captain so much." she said before fading away.
I felt my grip of her disappear as I fell face first to the ground. My hands curled up as I began hitting the ground as hard as I can calling out to them. There was silence. I laid there crying as one word continued to fill my mind. Useless. I couldn't save the ones I love or protect anyone. The only time I was able to save anyone was when I was me and not (F/n) but both of them are dead now.
Me: "...I'm... going to be me and not someone else." I told myself.
(Awake)
I slowly opened my eyes to be greeted with Ymir looking down at me with a worried look on her face. Her left hand was on my face as she ran her thumb across my cheek.
Ymir: "Nightmare?" she asked.
Looking at her, I moved my hand up to my face to feel the tears running down my cheeks. I stayed quiet before reaching up to cup her face with my hand.
Me: "... a dream." I told her.
I watched as her usual smirk appeared on her face as she looked down at me rolling her eyes.
Ymir: "A dream where you call out for your mama?" she joked.
A smile slowly grew on my face.
Me: "Yes... how are you, Ymir? What happened?" I asked.
She seemed to chuckle a bit as she lifted her right arm in front of me to reveal that her hand was missing as steam came out of it. I gasped a bit looking worried but Ymir only shook her head as she only smiled at me.
Ymir: "Nothing I can't handle but if you want to know what happened, you need to ask them." she said looking away from me.
I looked over to where she was looking to see Bertholdt and Reiner looking away from us as they looked towards the setting sun.
Me: "Ymir? Who am I?" I asked.
Ymir: "Huh? You're (F/n) Engel, right? Did you hit your head or something?" she asked a bit confused.
Me: "...(Y/n)." I told her with a smile.
Ymir: "(Y/n)?" she asked looking down at me.
Me: "It's... my real name. (Y/n) Wurzel." I revealed to her.
Ymir: "...your real name? So you were pretending to be someone else?" she asked.
Me: "I going to stop lying to myself. I'm not some goddess. I'm me. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm weak, I'm useless, I'm just a hopeful idiot. I'm done with telling lies." I said chuckling a bit.
I watched as Ymir's eyes suddenly widen as she stared down at me making me a bit confused as a look of happiness filled her face.
Ymir: "So you finally decided to stop pretending to be a girl?" she suddenly asked with a grin forming on her face.
Me: "...you... knew?" I asked a bit surprised.
Ymir: "I... always had my suspicions." she said looking away a bit.
She seemed a bit too hesitant making me wonder how she discovered that I was a boy. Deciding that this was something I could ask later, I slowly lifted my head of Ymir's lap and sat down next to her to see that the bottom part of her right leg was missing. I looked around a bit to see that we were on a branch of a giant tree meaning we were in the Forest of Giant Trees. Looking down, I spotted several Titans at the bottom, after seeing this, I continued to look around to see Eren a bit down the branch we were on with a small green cloak wrapped around him as he slowly sat up.
Reiner: "Oh, Eren... you're awake too, huh?" he asked as he turned back to us.
Eren looked at them a bit confused until a look of determination appeared on his face as he tried to move forward only to look down when he was unable to move his arms. He struggled to unwrap himself from the green cloak but it didn't take long for him to unwrap himself as a large amount of steam blew out to reveal his amputated arms. I was beginning to feel as if they purposely put everyone that was missing a limb on one tree.
Eren: "W-What the hell?! My arms!" he yelled out.
Ymir: "Eren. Look at me. I'm in the same shape as you. Guess the both of us are having a bad day. Hell, this one lost both their legs just three days ago and unlike us, he can't grow them back." she said wrapping her left arm around my shoulder.
Me: "You don't need to rub it in... I can maybe make new legs... in a few weeks." I said a bit disappointed.
Eren: "Ymir... (Y/n)... why... don't I have any arms?" he asked.
I only shrugged not knowing what happened other than being thrown into the Colossal Titan's mouth with Ymir.
Reiner: "That's my bad. I'm the one who did that. I kinda was in a hurry. When I rushed to bite your nape, I neglected to take your arms into account." he admitted.
Eren: "I see... I... must've lost." he said quietly.
There was tension in the air as Eren, Bertholdt, and Reiner looked at one another. It felt as if they were about to fight right then and there. Ymir pulled me closer to her in a protective way.
Ymir: "Stay close to me." she whispered in my ear.
I nodded my head as I held onto her more tightly right before Eren lifted his arm up to his mouth and bit down onto it.
Bertholdt: "Eren, stop!" he yelled out.
Ymir remained quiet before nudging me to move closer to Eren so that she could call out to him.
Ymir: "Hold your horses, Eren." she said removing her arm from my shoulder to grab Eren's arm.
Ymir: "Take a good look around us. We're in the giant forest within Wall Maria. It's not even close to any of the walls. In other words, we're deep in Titan territory. Take a look. I think that one down there's an Abnormal. It looks like he's just lounging around but he's not taking his eyes off us. There's a lot of small ones down there, too. That alone is dangerous. Over that way's another big one. He's staring at us but won't come any closer. I bet you that one's a scaredy-cat. And then you've got these chumps." she said pointing over to Bertholdt and Reiner after pointing out the abnormals.
Ymir: "Those dirty bastards. They're the only ones with any ODM gear on. Reiner's wearing gear he took from you. So I don't think changing into a Titan at this point is going to solve anything. Not only can they do that, but they can escape high into the trees as well. Those two aside, there's Titans all around us. Escaping out of this Titan territory would be tough, even with Titan powers. And don't forget, (Y/n) can't turn into a titan and doesn't have ODM gear if we fight them, we would endanger him, and if we protect him, we would be easy pickings for them. Understand? There's nothing to gain by acting up." she pointed out.
Her saying that only made me feel even more useless. I would be a giant burden for them if they escaped. There was only one way for them to be free from this burden. I looked down to the Titans below.
Reiner: "No." he suddenly said as I was thinking about jumping.
Reiner: "You two can't even turn into Titans right now. So don't count on that to help you. Your body is at its limit. It's taking everything you've got to repair the damage." he told them.
Eren: "...are you stupid? Why the hell would I trust anything coming out of your mouth?" he asked them.
Ymir: "Well... It's not like I know the specifics behind how Titan powers work. Unlike you guys, I'm pretty clueless about it. Hey, Reiner. You said you would talk once these two woke up. It's about time one of you says what you plan to do with us." she told him.
There was a moment of silence as Bertholdt and Reiner looked at one another. Bertholdt nodded his head to Reiner as they turned to face us.
Reiner: "We'll take you to our hometown. I realize that you're not going to listen and do as I say. But like Ymir was saying, this place is swarming with Titans. We could beat the shit out of each other right now, but when we're weak, the other Titans would just come and eat us. So until nightfall, when the Titans can't move, we have no choice but to wait here. Whether you try to run and escape from us or don't and we take you away. Either way, we wait for night." he stated to us.
Ymir: "Tch, why didn't you stay the Armored Titan and run home? What's the point of stopping here? Too tired and had to take a break?" she asked.
Reiner: "Why don't you use your imagination?" he told us.
Ymir: "Are you simply waiting here for it to become night?" she asked.
Reiner: "Maybe I am." he told us.
Me: "But... the Titans at the castle were still moving, it shouldn't be possible. If they can move at night now, waiting for it to be night is pointless now." I pointed out.
Reiner: "The Titans here can't move at night." he told me.
Me: "That doesn't make sense though. How could the Titans from the castle and the ones here be any different?" I said to him.
Reiner: "You're smart, think about it." he told me.
With that, Bertholdt and Reiner sat down to wait things out as the three of us sat around waiting. After half an hour, Ymir was fanning herself as I continued to hold onto her not knowing what else to do.
Ymir: "Reiner. You got any water? If you don't get some soon, I'm going to dry up and die." she told him.
Reiner: "Even if it's a matter of life and death, there's nothing we can do given our situation." he pointed out.
Ymir: "He's completely right... this situation couldn't be any shitter." she said before letting out a sigh.
Me: "We barely had any sleep, we never ate anything since yesterday morning, we almost died from Titans that suddenly appeared, and now we're outside the wall... honestly, it could easily get worse. An abnormal could come along and climb the tree." I stated.
Ymir: "Oye, don't jinx it." she said pulling me closer to rest her head on top of mine.
Reiner: "You're right... ever since the Titans showed up yesterday morning, we've been working our asses off. With nothing to eat or drink and not even a wink of sleep. Fortunately, the wall wasn't broken or anything. So I think we deserve to take a break for once. We'll see about getting promoted later." he suddenly said.
Bertholdt: "Reiner." he called out.
Reiner: "What? We've done plenty enough to deserve it. I think we've performed outstandingly, considering all we've been put through. I know soldiers like us are expected to fulfill their duties, but I think we've all earned it." he said proudly.
Ymir: "Do you hear what he's saying?" she whispered to me.
Me: "He's... delusional." I whispered back nodding my head.
Ymir: "... Reiner. What in the world are you talking about?" she asked.
Reiner: "Huh? What do you mean? I'm not saying we go demand to be promoted to captains or anything." he told her.
Ymir: "That's... not what I mean." she said in shock.
Reiner: "Oh yeah. Where did you all get that cannon from? That really saved my ass." he asked.
Me: "... from a storage room. It... was properly there to fire from a vantage point." I revealed to him.
Reiner: "If only there was another one with cannon balls. If there were, we could've helped out a bit more. Well, not me since I ended up getting hurt, but it was a good thing Krista and (F/n) helped me after that. To be honest, I think she has a thing for me. Not to say I don't like you (F/n), you're very beautiful and kind but I think of you as a little sister you know... Hey, (F/n)? Do you think you can help me talk to her since you two are close?" he suddenly asked.
Me: "What the fuck..." I muttered to myself quietly.
Ymir: "He really is delusional." she whispered to me.
Eren: "Hey..." he called out to him.
Reiner: "(F/n)? Have you ever noticed that Krista has always treated me especially-" he tried to say.
Eren: "Hey!" he yelled standing up.
Everyone was taken aback from his yell resulting in me pulling closer to Ymir as she held onto me tightly.
Eren: "You bastard... You've gotta be kidding me." he said in disbelief.
Reiner: "Huh? What are you angry about, Eren? Did I.. say something wrong? You always said you liked (F/n), so what's wrong with me asking-" he tried saying.
Eren: "If you want to die, just keep talking!" he announced making me confused since I think everyone more or less liked me.
Ymir: "Hold up, Eren. This isn't normal, no matter how you look at it. Isn't that right, Bertholdt? If you know something, quit with the silence and come out and say it." she told him.
Bertholdt: "Reiner... You're not... a soldier, remember? You and I... we're warriors." he said to him.
There was a look of shock of Reiner's face as he began to hyperventilate. After a few moments, he began to calm down as a serious look covered his face.
Reiner: "Right. That's... how it is." he said quietly to himself as he fell to his knees with his hand over his face.
Eren: "Huh? What's he doing?" he asked.
Ymir: "More or less, I think I've figured out. I thought it was strange. Why would the guy who broke the wall risk his life to save Conny? Everything he does is contradictory, but he doesn't realize it himself. I don't know why he ended up like this. He must've originally been a warrior whose goal was to break the wall but after pretending to be a soldier for so long...no. Unable to bear the weight of his sins, he convinced himself he was a soldier protecting the wall to maintain emotional balance within his own heart. And in the end, he believed it. As a result, his heart was split and his memories broken." she stated to Eren.
Eren: "What does any of that mean?!" he asked.
Me: "Reiner is... delusional. He trying his best to imagine a different reality to what happened. Basically, he's lying to himself. The better the lie, the more convincing it could be." I explained to him.
Ymir: "It's amazing, really. For someone excessively honest like you to-" she tried saying only for Reiner to glare over to us.
Reiner: "Enough! Shut your mouth." he ordered her.
Ymir: "...sorry about that. I might've pried too much." she said as we stared at him.
Eren: "You've got to be kidding me. Why are you pretending to be the victim here? What's your deal? That day, what the hell were you thinking when you talked to us? ...tell me, Bertholdt. I'm talking to you, you damn lackey. I told you everything... while you looked at me in the eyes. About the day my mother was eaten alive... Isn't that right? Thanks to the piece of wall you kicked that went flying straight into my house, my mother along with Sir Li couldn't escape or run away." he revealed.
When he said that, it felt as if my heart was grabbed and was being crushed by this information. I assumed that he died when I saw Eren, Mikasa, and Armin again without his mother or Sir Li, but a part of me clanged onto the hope of him surviving... but now, he was just another person I cared for that died. Everyone I care for was dying.
Eren: "You remember, right? I told you my story. What were you thinking? What were you thinking when I told you?" he asked him.
Bertholdt: "...back then... I thought... I felt sorry for you." he replied to him honestly.
Eren: "...Oh... I see... you guys..... you guys... are neither soldiers nor warriors. You're just murderers. You're psychotic mass-murderers who've killed countless innocent people who never did anything wrong!" he yelled to them.
Reiner: "You don't think I know that?! I don't need you to point that out to me!" he yelled as he suddenly snapped.
Eren: "Then don't pretend to have emotions like you're one of us! You guys aren't even human anymore! It's you two who've turned this world into a living hell! Does that make you happy, murderers?!" he yelled again.
Reiner: "What are you after by calling us murderers?! Do you want us to regret it? Do you want us to apologize?! Would that give you satisfaction? The people you thought we were no longer exist! If screaming will make you feel better, then scream your damn head off!" he told Eren as his voice echoed through the air.
There was silence after that with the only noise coming from Reiner as he was breathing heavily. I was rather nervous now compared to how I felt earlier. It felt as if they were about to start killing one another right here and now. As I glanced over to Eren, he had this psychotic look on his face.
Eren: "That's right... I'm still... too naïve. I've... gotta do what I can. Do what I can... to make you guys... suffer and die in the worst way possible. You've got it coming." he announced to them.
I found myself moving as close to Ymir as physically possible not wanting to leave her side at this moment. What Eren was saying... it frightened me. They may have betrayed us and killed a countless amount of people, but they were once his friends, I still hope that they are friends. They must have a reason for doing it. But seeing Eren like this, wanting to kill another person, it made me sick and scared. That was when a thought came across my mind.
Me: 'Am I any better than him?' I thought to myself.
I killed two people before and from what Eren said, I was beastly when I did it. Killing another person... makes you the monster you fear. Now seeing him before me like this, it worried me to what he was willing and capable to do.
Ymir: "You can't be serious." she suddenly said.
The look of anger that covered Eren face suddenly looked towards us as he glared at Ymir.
Eren: "Huh?" he questioned.
Ymir: "Quit it, Eren. You're freaking (Y/n) out. Besides, if you keep saying childish crap like that, I've got no hope for you." she stated which only seemed to anger Eren.
Eren: "Huh?!" he asked again.
She tightens her grip on me as I held onto her as tightly as I physically could. I looked up to her as she stared at Eren before looking down at me with a reassuring look that comforts me a bit. She was the only one here that I felt safe with at the moment. That was when Ymir looked over to Reiner.
Ymir: "Hey, Reiner. What's the deal with that monkey?" she asked.
Reiner remained quiet as he stared at us before shaking his head.
Reiner: "Monkey? What do you mean?" he asked.
Ymir: "Hmm? You don't know? That's surprising, given how much you two stared at it with stars in your eyes like two little brats. That monkey." she said to them.
Eren: "What's that? A monkey?" he asked.
Ymir: "Just listen. That monkey Beast Titan is what caused this recent fiasco. It made Titans rise up from within the wall. I wonder if he was trying to assess our strength. That's where these guys are trying to get. If you guys get to him, you'll be able to go back home, right?" she asked.
Me: "That... makes a lot of sense. If that Beast Titan was able to get Titans over the wall somehow, then it makes that those Titans attack us. It herded them towards us, not only that, it attacked us from the wall. So... that Beast Titan... is like them. It's a person! Meaning there's mo-" I tried to announce only for Ymir to cover my mouth with the arm she was holding me with.
Ymir: "More than likely." she said knowing what I was going to say.
Eren: "You two... knew this? What do you know?! Tell me everything!" he demanded.
Ymir: "Just wait. I've got circumstances of my own." she told him.
Eren: "What the hell do you mean by that?!" he asked.
Ymir: "Eren... if you think killing these two will bring an end to everything then you're gravely mistaken." she stated.
Eren: "Then who's the enemy?!" he questioned her.
Ymir: "Enemy? If I said that, the-" she tried saying only to be interrupted.
Reiner: "Ymir! Do you think there's any future for this world? If you know so much, think about what you want to do. It's not out of the question for you and (Y/n) to join our side." he told us.
Ymir: "And trust you? Yeah, right. You two don't even trust me." she told them as she slowly lowers her hand from my mouth.
Reiner: "Wrong. We can trust you. Because your one goal... is to protect both Krista and (Y/n)." he revealed.
Me: 'Historia and me?' I questioned.
Reiner: "When it comes to them, we should be able to trust one another. You might think that I'm joking, but is it that hard for you to believe that we might want the best for them as well? Or... would you rather put your hopes in Eren and rely on him over us?" he asked her.
Eren: "Huh?!" he yelled out.
Reiner: "You're probably thinking your best chance is to use Eren to Escape from here. Because if you're taken by us, there's little chance for your rescue. To be honest, that's pretty much true. Even if you come with us, we can't guarantee your safety. But if it's Krista and (Y/n) we're talking about, we might be able to do something for them. Will it be your petty life or their future? It's up to you to decide." he told her.
Ymir seemed to become quiet with his proposal. I grabbed her shirt earning her attention as she looked towards me.
Me: "Ymir? You don't need to worry about us, do what's best for you." I told her.
Her eyes seemed to widen a bit before she placed her hand on my cheek.
Eren: "Hey! Hey, say something! Who's the enemy?! Ymir!" he yelled out to her.
Ymir: "... who know." she told him as she basically accepted Reiner's deal which shocked me.
Reiner: "It's settled then. Too bad, Eren. (Y/n), I expect you won't resist. I still keep my promise of leaving everyone alone and the walls alone if you listen." he said to me.
Me: "I... I won't put Ymir or anyone else in danger. I don't want anyone else to get hurt." I said.
He only nodded his head as Bertholdt jumped down next to him. As he did this, the sound of a blast echoed through the air. We all looked over to see what it was but Ymir, Eren, and I are unable to see a thing with the angle of the branch we were on.
Reiner: "Blimps!" he yelled out.
Me: "That sounds much more unique than airships!" I cried out.
Reiner: "You! ...you made those didn't you?" he asked me.
Me: "Huh? Yeah, it took several attempts but this design was the best I could get to work within a short time span. I wanted something a little smaller and faster, to be honest." I complained.
Reiner: "This world is practically in the dark ages yet you are able to shine a light through that darkness... dammit!" he yelled out as Bertholdt ran over to him and place his hand on his shoulder.
Ymir: "Airships?" she asked me as Bertholdt and Reiner began talking with one another quietly.
Me: "Think of it like a ship that sails through the sky and clouds. But I was forced to make my dream into something larger than I originally wanted but at least I have what I need for my dream now." I told her.
Ymir: "...what's your dream?" she asked me.
Me: "To... escape from my cage. I want to be free and do what I want." I revealed to her.
Ymir: "Then what stopped you?" she questioned.
Me: "Everyone. If I left, I would leave behind everyone. So I feel stuck now." I stated.
As I said this, Reiner fired his ODM gear towards our tree and flew over to us.
Eren: "What's going on, Reiner? Aren't we waiting until night?" he asked.
Reiner: "Nope. We're leaving now. Eren, don't try to resist." he told him.
Eren: "...come on, don't get violent with me. Look at the shape that I'm in. Does it look like I can resist? Please, gimme a break." he said to Reiner as he showed him his handless arms.
As Reiner began thinking about it, Eren suddenly pulled his arms back and hit Reiner across the face. He shoved him down and began repeatedly elbowing his face all while telling him to die. But this didn't seem to stop Reiner as he placed his foot on Eren's stomach and sent him flying backward into the trunk of the tree. Reiner rushed over to Eren and put him in a chokehold. He began struggling as Bertholdt flew down to Ymir and me making me rather nervous. But there was a calm smile on his face as he looked at me.
Bertholdt: "Don't worry, we won't hurt you. Just listen to we say and everything will be alright." he reassured me.
All I did was nod as I stayed close to Ymir just in case.
Ymir: "Hey. Why are we leaving already?" she asked.
Bertholdt: "Ymir. When you turned back into a human, do you remember the person you ate?" he suddenly asked.
My eyes widen to this new information. Turned back into a human? Eating someone? I felt a cold sweat run down my face fearing what I was about to learn.
Ymir: "No, I don't remember. But it was five years ago... was it one of your comrades? ...I see... sorry... for not even remembering." she apologized.
Bertholdt: "It's not your fault for forgetting. It was the same for us, too. Eren doesn't seem to remember either." he informed her.
Ymir: "Is that how it works? ... do you resent me for it?" she asked him.
Bertholdt: "I'm not sure... I... don't know. You probably didn't want to eat a human either. How long were you wandering outside the walls for?" he asked.
Ymir: "About sixty years. It was like... I was stuck in a nightmare that would never end." she told him.
Reiner: "Bertholdt, come here and help me tie Eren to my back." he told him as he let go of the unconscious Eren.
Bertholdt nodded as he walked over leaving me and Ymir alone. There was silence between us until she spoke up.
Ymir: "Are you disguised with me? For eating another person?" she asked me.
I looked up to her to see her staring down to me waiting for an answer. I thought about it before shaking my head as I smiled at her.
Ymir: "Why?" she asked looking confused and thankful.
Me: "I... wouldn't know what it was like nor do I judge any of my friends for the things they've done. That includes Reiner and Bertholdt. I am a little surprised to know that you're older than me, Ymir." I said.
She chuckled as she places her hand on my cheek again all while staring me in the eyes.
Ymir: "I may be much older, but I'm still physically the same age before everything happened to me." she said to me.
Me: "What... did happen? If you wouldn't mind me asking." I said to her.
Ymir: "...it all happened when I was little in a far-off land away from here. I was an orphan living on the streets with other children until one day two people showed up and took me away to live a new life... as someone else. That day... was the first time I lied to myself. From that point on, I convinced myself... that I never had a choice. But... I ended up becoming the icon of some cult that worshipped someone named Ymir and to be honest... it wasn't all that bad. My food wasn't cold anymore. And neither was my bed. But more than all... was the feeling of being needed by someone. I served a purpose in someone's life for the first time ever. To me, that was more precious than anything else." she revealed.
I felt my heart beat faster and faster. Her story... it feels similar to what happens to me. Becoming a goddess for everyone to give them hope. The feeling of serving a purpose and enjoying it.
Ymir: "But then, one day... soldiers came and held guns towards us. I was cruelly reminded that everything in my life... was a lie. I wanted to tell them the truth about who I really was but the look of despair on the people who believed me was too much. I wanted to keep them hopeful... and once again... I told more lies. If that's what it took to save everyone else. However... things didn't work that way. They took us through the streets throwing rocks at us. I had made things worse and they took us to someplace... and injected us with something that turned us into Titans. That's when I knew that, that was my punishment." she said with the smile fading from her face replacing it with one of sorrow.
Ymir: "It's not that I was being punished for deceiving all those people. It was for convincing myself to believe... to feel needed by someone. It's what I deserved for continuing to lie to myself. It was my punishment... that was when I woke up from my nightmare five years ago. When I opened my eyes... what I saw was freedom spread out before me. If there was such a thing as fate, I can only laugh at how fickle it can be. And in that moment... I made a promise to myself. I was done with telling lies. I wasn't going to lie to myself anymore. From then on, I'd live honest to myself. And then... and then I met Krista and you. I could tell right away that... the two of you were the same as me... you both fed yourself lies. The two of you were someone desperately trying to convince yourself. So when you told me that you were going to stop lying to yourself... it made me happy that you finally decided to stop and not make the same mistake that I did." she told me.
Me: "Ymir... I." I didn't know what to say.
Ymir: "I want the two of you to live life the way you want. This is why I'm doing this... so please come along. I'm going to bring Krista with me and then we all could... the two of you could... be happy." she said moving her head close to mine.
I didn't know what to do at the moment, I felt as if I was frozen and place staring deep into her golden brown eyes feeling my cheeks being to heat up. I knew what was going to happen. A kiss. Like the one, I shared with Krista and Annie. I smiled a bit at her as she moves slowly towards me until my lips touched her. It felt calming. She made me feel at ease and at peace for a bit. As if the world and all its problems, none of that mattered. It was a small yet warm kiss. Until she made the kiss deeper, more passionate. I felt her hands on the back of my neck play with my hair for a bit before pulling away.
Ymir: "... I've been waiting to do that for a long time now." she stated as she let go of me and stood up.
Reiner: "Do what?" he asked.
I looked back to see Reiner and Bertholdt walking over to us with Eren tied to Reiner's back.
Ymir: "Nothing, just telling (Y/n) about myself." she lied.
Reiner: "Alright, we need to move. Ymir, grab ahold of Bertholdt's back. (Y/n), hold onto Eren." he told me as he crouched down with his back to me to reveal Eren.
I looked over to Ymir as she gave me a nodded, so I did as I was told and grabbed ahold of Eren tightly and when I told him I was ready, we began flying away.
Reiner: "For now, let's get to a place without Titans! We need to get as far away as possible! My Titan form isn't very fast. If I get surrounded, I won't be able to protect you guys!" he told us.
Ymir: "Then why didn't we just wait until nightfall?! ...smoke signals? Did the Survey Corps come to rescue us?" she suddenly realized.
Me: "Oh, so that's how you knew about the airships. I just thought you saw them during the expedition." I said to myself.
Reiner: "I didn't think it would happen so soon. It must be Commander Erwin. A tough opponent! Shit... they're already that close? It's Eren's fault for going berserk." he stated.
Ymir: "...Reiner! Krista's here! Krista came with them! If you want her, now's the chance!" she yelled at him.
Reiner: "How do you know? You can't see her from here!" he pointed out.
Ymir: "I just know it! She's such a good-natured person like (Y/n) and it's stupid! I guarantee she came to save the two of us! I know it!" she told him.
Reiner: "Even if that's true, it's no use! We'll do it later! Our chance of succeeding is way too low! How will you get Krista out of that formation? Wait for a chance!" he told her.
Ymir: "Wait for a chance? Seriously? Will that be after I'm eaten by one of your warriors? No! I don't trust you!" she yelled to him.
Reiner: "Trust me! Krista is indispensable to us, too!" he tried telling her.
Ymir: "Then get her now! Go prove it to me this instant! It has to be now or never! I want to see her right now! At his rate... I'll never get a chance to see her again!" she cried out.
Me: "Please! Do this for her! Maybe we can draw her to us!" I told them.
Bertholdt: "It's impossible. I'm sorry, Ymir. We don't even know if we can escape ourselves, let alone go back for her." he informed us.
Reiner: "I promise you! If anyone, it's Krista and (Y/n) I want to save from this conflict! You have to trust us! So just bear with it! This is for Krista's own sake! Got it, Ymir?! First, we need to get Eren and (Y/n) out of her, then we can get here later!" he told her.
Ymir: "Is it... really for Krista's sake?" she asked.
Reiner said that it was and Ymir agreed to go along all while looking back. She looked over to me and I saw the look in her eyes. It was one of resolve. I nodded my head to her. I want her to see Krista again.
Ymir: "In this environment, I'm the strongest one here." she said before wrapping her arms around Bertholdt head covering one eye.
Bertholdt: "Q-Quit it, Ymir!" he begged.
Ymir: "Don't you think a forest like this is where I can shine the most? Well?" she asked.
As she asked, the nearly chased into a tree and nearly avoided crashing into the ground in the process. When Bertholdt managed to regain some distance away from the ground, he looked to Ymir.
Bertholdt: "Ymir! Stop! We'll fall!" he warned her.
Ymir: "Do you think I care? If I became a Titan, I might be powerless compared to you, but I can jump through the trees and move swiftly. I could snatch (Y/n) and Eren away from you and go back to meet up with the Survey Corps and probably succeed. If you don't agree to take Kirsta with us right now, I'll get in your way and fight you right here." she threatened which made us stop and land on the side of one of the trees.
Reiner: "Wh-What are you saying?! Don't you care what happens to them?! We can't save her that way!" he told her.
Ymir: "Yeah, that's fine. Even if it means taking their future away, I'll do what it takes to live and meet her. I might be the shittiest person there ever was. You guys don't know what it's like. They know how awful I am and yet those two still smile at me... so let me see her. I have a plan for it. if I stay and fight, it should be easier for you to escape anyways! Or would you rather stay and kill each other?! Do you want me to prove how crazy I am?!" she threated again.
Me: "Let her go get Historia." he told them.
Reiner: "But-" he tried saying.
Me: "Live life the way you want, Ymir! Isn't that what you told me? Practice what you preach and go to her!" I yelled to her smiling.
She looked at me and nodded her head as she quickly reached down to Bertholdt's ODM gear and slightly pulled out a blade to cut herself before letting go of him as she began to glow. No matter what the future holds for me, I face it head first. I will break free from my cage and live the way I want. And... maybe take a page from Ymir and just go for it. Maybe... if I had a fate like Ymir, maybe I would be like her.
That brat is all I have left. I'll make sure that nothing else happens to him.
-Levi Ackermann
The end of Season 2 is near! Which means Season 3 will be next and hopefully I'll get to it once the rest of Season 3 arrives later this year.
See you in the next chapter!
P.S Sorry for the delay. Accidentally deleted the chapter when I was almost done believe it or not. Took some time remembering what I typed up. Sorry!
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Buuuuut I'm back!