A/N: It's been quite some time since I've updated, I'm sorry. I've been pretty busy and I don't know what my updates are going to look like, but hopefully I'll be able to keep updating this story, because I really like how far I've come with it. In this chapter, you may think I am confirming a ship of sorts between characters, but I wanna let you all know that there is nothing confirmed yet of who ends up with who, but this is also not a harem story at all. You're all free to still believe in whatever ship you wanna have, nothing about a ship is confirmed here. Hope you all enjoy. Thank you.

That Same Night

After the court hearing and learning of the news about your father, you were utterly devastated and wandered off on your own to try and gather your bearings. Hearing of your father's death felt like the world almost came to an end. You felt sick to your stomach, you pushed away anyone trying to support and comfort you, and worse of all, you couldn't fathom the feeling of what face your mother would make when you told her of the news. Mustering up whatever sanity you had left for that day, you decided that it'd be best to inform your mother of the horrible news. Right now, you were walking down the dim empty streets of town, heading to the home your mother was located to after the evacuation. Your feet dragged across the ground as you remembered the fond memories of your childhood with your father, how loving and doting he was of both you and Sarah. You remembered the feeling of whenever he would pat you on the head whenever he came home from an expedition, the times your family laughed with one another at one of his stories from his training days. The image of your family being together was the only thing you could see in your head, and without realizing it, you were stood outside the home where your mother was currently staying at. You felt a cold breeze blow through the air and tears welled in your eyes as you raised a shaky fist to the wooden door. You trembled and bit your lip while shutting your eyes in frustration and sadness, but before you could steel your nerves and knock on the door, the door opened and revealed your mother.

"Y/N...Why are you..." Natalia stopped herself when she saw the saddened state that you were in and the tears in your eyes.

"M-Mom...Mom...!" You began to break down and choke up as you almost fell into her arms and sobbed into the crook of her should as she held you closely.

"What's wrong? Hey, what is it?" Your mother spoke with worry as you just hugged her tighter and sobbed into her shoulder.

"S-Sarah...came back..." You muffled into her dress as she was surprised by this news.

"R-Really? Where is she? What about your father--!" She was cut of by your hands gripping her dress and your hitched breaths as you sobbed even harder, reinforcing the terrible feeling she was having the entire day. "N-No...It can't be...!" Tears began to form in her eyes as she looked to the moon and remembered a memory of your father.

Flashback

"Michael, do you really have to go? Natalia asked while being sat at the dinner table of your home as your father was tying his boots and getting ready to head on an expedition.

"This is gonna be my first expedition, and I'm gonna be a part of a pretty important squad. The Survey Corps also has to make a stop at the underground for a special assignment that they want me to take part in." Michael said as he heard a pair of footsteps come running towards him and a small pair of arms wrap around him.

"Don't go, Papa! Stay here with me and Mama, you promised you'd help me train so I'd be ready to join the military!" Michael turned and looked down to see a very young Sarah clinging to his waist.

"You're still too young to even think about those things. Enjoy your time and have fun as a kid." Michael ruffled the hair on her head. "Sarah, you also have to help your mother a lot more now, since we just found out she's pregnant. I'm counting on you." He said as he stood back up and Sarah pulled away and walked over to her mother, and Michael walked out the front door and stood outside as Natalia and Sarah stood at the doorway.

"I'm just nervous. You have to come back." Natalia demanded from him as he smiled before taking her hand and placing something in it as she was confused.

"I'm coming back to the two of you, I will. While I'm gone, hold onto this for me..." Michael said as he pulled his hand away and Natalia looked down to see he gave her his ring. "...You're my good luck charm, this way you'll give bless me while I'm out there. " He said as she looked up at him and he leaned in and kissed her deeply, holding it for a few seconds before releasing.

"Then..." Michael spoke with a gentle smile as the light shined down on him.

Flashback Over

"...I'm off now." Those words echoed in Natalia's mind as she felt a cold wind blow through the air.

"Michael..." Your father's name left your mother's mouth in a painful and sorrowful tone as your mother just continued to hug and comfort while trying to not break down herself.

After a few more moments of grieving, your mother brought you inside where the two of you sat at the dinner table with a single lit candle and cups of water to help you calm down. Both of you were silent and trying to figure out the next thing to say to each other, but nothing came to mind. The sound of footsteps pattering on the wood of the house caught both of yours and Natalia's attention as you two turned around and saw the little girl you saved walk into the room.

"Miss...?" The little girl spoke in a tired voice while rubbing her eye as she noticed you. "Ah, Mister? Why are you here?" She asked in curiosity.

"Ah, I-I was just here to visit my mother...I'm sorry, I must've woken you up." You apologized to her as she shook her head.

"What's wrong, Sarah?" Natalia spoke as you went wide-eyed with shock over hearing her name as the girl turned towards her.

"I wanted to get some water." Little Sarah said as you looked at her perplexed by the coincidence, but shook your head and stood up from your seat.

"I'll get it for you." You said as Natalia was about to say something, but you already grabbed a cup and began filling it from the water pump. "Come on, Sarah. I'll tuck you back in." You said as you walked over and picked Sarah up into your free arm.

Walking up the stairs and to the room that had its door open, you walked in to see a small room and a bed that had its sheets slightly hanging off the edge. The light of the moon shined down on the spot where the pillow was, and as Sarah drank from the cup of water with two hands, you walked over and sat her down on the bed as she finished sipping. Taking the cup and placing it on top of a nightstand next to the bed, Sarah laid down in bed as you moved the blanket to cover her as you knelt next to her bed and just stared at her while she turned her head back to you.

"Mister..." Little Sarah spoke to you as you brushed some hair out of her face.

"Y/n is fine..." You said to her and allowed her to call you by your name.

"Y/N...Are you going back to the army?" Sarah asked as your mother was stood at the door, peaking through a crack through the opening.

"Yeah. I still have work left to do." You answered her as her small hand reached out from the blanket and held onto your hand.

"Why do you have to fight?" She asked as you were surprised by this question, as well as your mother who was wide-eyed in front of the door. "Those big monsters are scary, and they do horrible things...Why do you fight them? Aren't you scared?" She asked as you were still shaken by the question and couldn't find a direct answer.

Thinking back, you began to question the whole reason that you had became a soldier in the first place. The pay was nothing special, many people view you soldiers as wasting their taxes, and the life expectancy of a soldier sent to fight Titans is horrifyingly short. Not only that, but you had just found out that your father was killed horribly by a Titan, and your sister had grown cold and changed during the rest of her time with the military. Deep down in your heart as well, the very sight of a Titan shook you to the core and you had been secretly terrified of them ever since that day Wall Maria had fallen. You began to question your own beliefs of being a soldier, and the reason you wanted to join the military in the first place, but then, as if it was a sign of sorts, the moonlight shined its gentle light on Sarah you felt an easing feeling come from her. After that, images of your friends had flashed through your mind, then after that was the memory of your mother and sister back when they were still happy and things were normal. You realized it at that moment, you don't fight because you're not scared, because the truth is that you're scared everyday and every time you face those horrible things out there. However, the reason you can face those monsters and keep pushing forward was...

"...I do it to protect you." You said as Sarah was surprised and a little confused by the question as you smiled and caressed her cheek. "I am scared whenever I see those things, but I have the strength and courage to face them because of the people I love and want to protect. I wanna protect you, my mother, my sister, my friends...and my home..." You said as you looked down at your father's ring. "I fight not because I'm not scared...I fight..." You trailed off as you looked back to Sarah with a gentle smile. "...Because the only thing that's scarier than the Titans...Is the thought of losing the people I love." You said as this touched a few strings within Sarah's heart and she felt as if she had just came to a realization. "Get some sleep, okay? Take care." You said as you kissed her forehead and fixed the blanket over her once more before standing and turning to the door.

"Y/N..." Sarah called out as you opened the door and came to a stop before turning your head back towards her. "...Can I be like you someday?" She asked as you just stared at her from the door with a contemplating face before you had an answer.

"Don't aim to be like someone else...Aim to be the best person that you could be. Because that person is gonna be a lot better in the future than the person I am right now." You said before stepping out the room and slowly closing the door, but stopping it a slight crack away. "Sweet dreams, kiddo." You said your goodnight before closing the door.

"Y/N..." You turned to see your mother standing in the hallway as you smiled at her and walked over to her before kissing her cheek and hugging her as she returned the gesture.

"I promise to bring Sarah back home once this is all over..." You said before pulling away and looking her in the eyes. "...One day, we'll be a family again." You said to her before kissing the top of her forehead and walking pass her and down the stairs before opening the front door as she turned towards you from the top of the staircase and you turned back. "Then..." You started as the wind picked up outside and blew through your hair as your mother watched with shocked eyes as the faint image of your father shrouded you and you wore the same smile as him. "...I'm off now." Natalia heard both yours and your father's voice which brought a tear to her eye as she now stared at the closed front door and dropped to her knees, silently sobbing in her hands.

Meanwhile, you were standing in the middle of the empty dark road, with your head hung low as the cold wind blew through the district. Looking down at your father's ring, you began to remember the kind look that he always had on his face whenever you saw him. The memories of him that you held dearly began to go through your mind, and then a few images of your older sister and treasured memories of her began to fill your head as well. Your heart was pounding and your chest felt like it was tightening up as you clenched your fists tightly before looking forward with a look of coldness that could pierce anything in front of it.

"That's right...I fight to protect the people I love...but now I have another reason..." You thought while walking down the dark path ahead of you as you remembered the image of the Colossal and Armored Titan clearly. "So, this is what Eren must've felt like..." You thought as your heart now not only held great amounts of love for the people you know, but anger and hate for the ones who have taken or hurt them. "...I will grow stronger, and become an avenger of not just my father, but for everyone they've killed. They will die by my hand." You thought as you reached the end of the dark path and turned onto a lit up road where there were only civilians and the occasional Military Police patrolman present.

You walked in silence and decided to take your time heading back to the inn and try to let the cool night help you be at ease. You listened to the sound of families laughing and talking about their days or whatever they talked about as you walked with the cold breeze that blew through the street every now and then. While walking through the town, you saw a familiar face a few meters down the road and decided that it would be in your best interest to try and be around people to help you cope with things. Raising your hand in the air, you took a quick breath before calling out to a certain Garrison officer.

"Hannes!" You called out and waved your arm around as your voice had reached the old soldier's ears and he turned toward you.

"Huh? Y/N, what are you doing out here?" Hannes approached you as you stopped in your tracks and put on a smile for the time being.

"I was just visiting my mother while I still could. All of us newly-graduate recruits have been on standby waiting for the ceremony where we pick which branch we wanna join. What about you?" You asked as he scratched the back of his head and let out an exhausted sigh.

"Ah, I was just making my rounds around this area. Between handling the damage control and refugees, it's been hell lately..." Hannes groaned before shaking off his tiredness and looking at you with a serious look. "How are you doing?" He asked with sincerity, knowing you were on the front lines for most of the time, facing the Titans since the beginning of the breach incident.

"...I'm fine." You put on a poker face and turned your head away slightly while crossing your arms across your chest.

"...I see." Hannes said before stepping pass you a bit and putting his hand on your shoulder. "Get some rest...you deserve it more than anyone, kiddo...You did good..." Were his last words to you for the night as he patted your shoulder a few times before walking off.

"...Hannes...!" You called as he turned back in response and you didn't look him in the eye, but turned your head back towards his direction. "...Thanks." You said as he stared at you in perplexment for a few moments before nodding in acknowledgement and the two of you parted ways.

You walked down the road deciding that you wanted to head back and get the rest Hannes suggested, but on your way there, you caught another familiar face off in the distance hanging near an alleyway entrance. A few meters away you saw Reiner in a long hooded cloak standing near the entrance of a small narrow side-street, looking uneasy. You slowed your walk a little to watch him for a few moments, but a few seconds after doing so, Reiner seemed to have saw you and the two of you made eye contact for a brief moment before he turned away and disappeared into the darkness. Feeling uneasy for some strange reason, you decided to pursue your tall comrade into the darkness as you walked faster towards the alley. Finally making it to the dark compact street, you walked in and tried your hardest to focus your sight in the dark, and as you continued down the path, you found two paths that broke off from the main alley, one on your right and the other on your left. Walking in between, you stood in the center of the crossroads and stared down the right path into the darkness, but as you tried to see if Reiner was down there, you heard noise come from behind you.

"Who's there?!" You shot your head around and stood in a defensive manner while staring down the left path.

"Wait! Wait! It's me!" Reiner's voice called out in panic as he came out from the darkness in nervousness as you lowered your guard once you saw him.

"Reiner? What are you doing here?" You asked him as he approached you with an extremely nervous look.

"I could say the same for you. Why are you hanging around this place?" Reiner asked as you stood up straight and calmed down.

"I was on my way back when I saw you duck into this alley. You looked nervous like something was off. Are you okay?" You asked as he immediately tensed up from your question and went into a cold-sweat.

"Damn it...! What the hell is this guy doing here!? Did he see what I was doing? Does he think I'm doing something suspicious? If he finds out why I'm here...Think! Think!" Reiner began to panic as you noticed his sudden cold-sweat.

"What's wrong, Reiner?" You approached him as he grew more nervous and couldn't think of anything to say.

Before you or Reiner could say anything however, the pattering of running footsteps could be heard barreling down from the path behind you. Turning around to try and see what the noise was, you were met with a dark hooded figure that blew right through you guys, knocking you and Reiner against the walls of the alley. You groaned as you pushed yourself back to your feet and glared down the path the suspect ran down, but Reiner suddenly had an outburst and yelled.

"A-Ahh! I knew it!" Reiner yelled as you were confused by his sudden screaming.

"What?!" You asked trying to make some sense of what he was talking about.

"I came here because I felt like someone was following me...!" Reiner said as he began to feel around his clothes and pockets. "O-Oh no, he took it!" Reiner panicked.

"Took what, Reiner?!" You asked him.

"M-My money pouch! Shit!" Reiner groaned in despair as you suddenly broke off into a sprint after the hooded figure. "Where are you going?!" Reiner asked in fear as you chased the person.

"I'll stay in pursuit! You find some MP's or soldiers and tell them what happened!" You yelled as you disappeared into the darkness.

"Shit, he went after her. Well, at least he thinks its just some mugger, but now you gotta lose him before he finds out who you are and what you're up to. Don't fail...Annie!" Reiner thought as the hooded figure, revealed as another one of your comrades, Annie Leonhart, ran down the alley.

"Dammit! Why'd you have to be here of all people...!" Annie groaned in her thoughts while pulling up a mask to cover her lower face and turned back to see you on her tail. "...Y/N!" She cursed you before jumping onto a stack of boxes and beginning to climb window cills of buildings to get to the roof.

"Stop!" You demanded as you reached the stacked boxes and hopped onto them before jumping and grabbing a windowsill below Annie.

Annie was ahead of you and making quick progress, but you were resilient and persisted forward, trying to catch up as fast as you could. Swing her leg over the edge and standing up on the roof, Annie began to run across the rooftops towards, leaping over the gaps between different buildings. While she had a head start, you had just pulled yourself over the edge of the building and scrambled to your feet as you began to chase after what you thought was a thief. The two of you raced across the rooftops in the night as Annie was growing annoyed at your persistence. Jumping across another gap, Annie saw a stack of empty baskets next to some a clothes line. Once she reached them, she grabbed a few and turned around to throw two of them at you. Barely making it over the gap, you reacted almost too late as you were barely able to dodge the first one and block the second one. Still shocked from the sudden attacks and making a lot of movements near the edge, you had unintentionally leaned back too much began to teeter back and forth over the edge before you threw your body forward and landed on your knees on the roof. Before you could get a chance to breath though, you barely had time to react and duck your head under a kick as you rolled across the roof and jumped to your feet while you and Annie stared each other down.

"You're annoying, you know that?" Annie spoke in a different tone, trying to hide her voice from you in order to conceal her identity.

"You stole something from my friend and almost knocked me off a roof. I'd say my actions are understandable at least. Why don't you turn yourself in? Make it easier for me." You said as Annie wasn't phased by your words.

"Sorry, but I got something to do. Be a good boy and leave while you can still breath properly." Annie told you intimidatingly.

"I can't do that." You said as Annie closed her eyes for a moment before opening them once more.

"Then you leave me no choice..." Annie said as you had a feeling something was coming, and that feeling was spot on.

Not a moment after what she had just said, Annie brought her rear hand that was hidden in her cloak forward and threw a basket she had hidden behind her. Feeling a little insulted by another basket attack, you merely swiped it away, but the moment your vision of her was brought back, you went wide-eyed when you saw a shining blade coming towards you.

"That's...!" You couldn't finish your thoughts as you had to lean back to dodge the sharp edged weapon. 

Annie barely missed making a cut along your forehead, but she brought out another blade with her other hand and sent another slash towards your stomach. Cutting through the cloth and making a long cut along the surface of your skin, you winced in pain as she spun around and sent a back kick to your gut, pushing you closer to the edge of the roof. There was a sound of a clicking noise as you gasped when you saw one of her blades come flying at you while you were sat on your rear end. Pushing yourself back you watched the blade lodge itself into the roof, just inches away from your best friend that hung below your waist in your pants. Too in shock of how close you came to having your bloodline end, you didn't notice Annie come flying towards you as she had both her knees pointed at your face. You raised your hands to defend yourself, but the force was too great as she collided with your arms and pushed you hard enough to roll back and off the roof, barely hanging on with one hand. You groaned while holding onto the edge as she came over and stared down at you, and as you looked up at her, you saw what was hidden away under her cloak that confirmed what you had thought when you saw the blades she wielded. She raised her blade up in the air and was about to do you in, but as you prepared yourself to meet your end, Annie remembered something, and pulled her blade away as you grew a confused look.

"You're lucky I've got to keep a schedule." Annie said before planting her foot on your fingers that were keeping you held onto the roof as you groaned in pain. "That doesn't mean I'm just going to leave you like that. See you, asshole." Annie said as she pressed hard on your fingers.

"Agh!" You yelled in pain as you lost grip of the roof and fell down.

After a moment of falling, you crashed onto some clothes lines and a few extended windowsills that were extended out. After crashing into a few more things, you free-fell for about another second before crashing into a few bags and bins of garbage below. Annie looked at you from above as you didn't move for longer than she expected and she was a bit nervous, but that uneasy feeling went away when she saw you began to move and curl in pain.

"Sorry, Y/N..." Annie muttered under her breath as she lowered Marco's ODM gear from her cloak and sped off towards the compound where the captured Titans were, disappearing into the night.

Some time had passed since your battle, but due to the harshness of your fall and the power from the criminal's last attack, you were still unable to move. Meanwhile out in the streets, Sasha, Jean, and Connie were all hanging out trying to use their free time to the fullest before the night of the ceremony. They walked with some snacks in hand they bought from a food vendor, but as they were walking pass an alley, Connie noticed something strange in the dimly lit alley.

"Huh? Is something wrong with that guy?" Connie asked as Jean poked his head around to see.

"What are you talking about?" Jean asked in confusion before seeing your body sprawled out on the stone ground with piles of clothes and trash below you. "Hey, are you okay?" Jean asked as he walked over and when he flipped over your body, he was surprised to see you and the state you were in. "Wha--Y/N! Hey! Are you okay!?" Jean asked with worry as he got on his knees and lifted you into his arms as you groaned in pain.

"What's wrong?" Sasha poked her head around with a piece of food in her mouth, but stopped chewing when she saw you were injured. "Y/N!" Sasha ran towards you without a second thought as she dropped her snack and knelt down next to you. "What's wrong? Who did this to you?" Sasha asked as Jean turned to Connie.

"Connie! Help me move him! Let's get bring him back to the barracks. Sasha, go ahead of us and find a doctor. Hurry!" Jean said as Sasha rushed off while Connie and Jean swung your arms over their shoulders and began to carry you back.

Dragging you back as fast as they could, you were brought to the barracks where quite a few people were shocked by what happened to you. Those who didn't know you were intrigued by all the commotion and wanted to see what was going on. When some of your comrades found out, they were extremely worried, especially since you were the best of them, and to see you in such a state must have meant that your opponent was a serious one. After the military doctor had finished treating your wounds and getting you all cleaned up, you were laying in bed in one of the hospital rooms. Laying down and just contemplating what had just happened, you remembered what you had seen just before falling off the roof.

"That blade...and what was under her cloak..." You muttered as you remembered the look of the blade and seeing ODM gear. "That was 3D Maneuver Gear. Just how did she manage to get that? Is she a soldier? Did she steal it off of one? Why have all that gear for just pickpocketing and stealing?" You were baffled by the fact of a common thief having a set of ODM gear, but those thoughts were pushed aside when you heard a knock at the door to your room. "Come in." You allowed entry to see who it was.

Watch the door open part way and a foot step into the room, you were surprised to see who was visiting you. Annie had peered into the room and upon seeing that it was her, you were surprised non the less.

"Annie. This is surprising. What brings you here?" You asked as you sat up in your bed while Annie closed the door behind her.

"I ran into the doctor and he asked if I could go and recheck your dressings on your stomach. He felt that they might have been too loose." Annie said while walking over to your bed.

"U-Uh, alright." You said while pushing your blanket off a little and going to lay back down, but Annie spoke up first.

"Take your shirt off. I have to check all around, since he used a large dressing for the wound on your stomach. What happened?" Annie asked while pretending to not know what she had done to you on the roof.

"I was chasing a thief that robbed Reiner. We fought and she had the upper hand." You said while pulling your shirt over your head and laying back down in bed.

"Don't tell me you were going easy on her." Annie said while leaning down to examine the dressings on your wound and she saw some peeling and loosening of the dressing.

"No, she had a few trick up her sleeves, like a set of ODM gear equipped with a full set of Titan killing blades." You said as Annie looked up from her position to you.

"Seriously?" Annie asked, keeping up her act of being surprised, though her face didn't really show any emotion.

"Yeah, she probably stole or paid someone off to get her a set of gear. She was about to finish me off, but something must've caught her attention. I'm lucky to be here still." You said as Annie stood back up and turned around to open a supply cabinet.

"Your tape around the dressings is peeling, I'm gonna replace them really quick." Annie said as she pulled out a roll of medical tape.

"Thanks." You said as you continued to lay there, trusting her to do whatever she needed to do.

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Annie turned back around and pulled up a chair to sit down and get a bit more comfortable for this situation. Leaning back over, she rested her pony tail on her right shoulder, leaving her face exposed where you had a close up view of her. Looking at her, you began to realize how beautiful she actually was. Her icy blue eyes and clear skin that seemed to glow a little encaptivated you a bit and without realizing it, your thoughts had unintentionally came out of your mouth.

"Beautiful..." You muttered in awe, but it wasn't quiet enough as Annie had raised her head and brow towards you.

"Huh? What is?" Annie asked in confusion as you blushed a bit and looked away nervously.

"A-Ah, nothing it's just..." You stammered a bit as you nervously scratched the back of your head while avoiding eye contact. "...You have beautiful hair is what came to my mind." You said as Annie was just surprised by this information and couldn't make any sort of look on her face while you were blushing deep red now.

"I-I see..." Annie just said while trying to go back to what she was doing, but when looking back down, she went wide-eyed at realizing her position right now as a young girl. "D-Dammit...why'd he say something like that? Now that he said something like that, I just noticed what kind of situation we're in...a girl and boy alone in a room...and not to mention..." Annie slowly began to trail her gaze up your well-toned body. "...h-he's quite the catch to a girl's eye also, and not a bad looker in the facial side of things..." Annie thought and without realizing how much she was trailing, the two of you made eye contact once more with deep blushes on your faces. 

"H-Hey..." Annie started as you were shaken out of your trance by her voice. "W-What do you think of me? As a woman I mean..." She asked while spreading out the tape across the dressing on your stomach with somewhat shaky hands.

"Huh? This is surprising. I didn't think you'd be the type to engage in this type of subject..." You said with surprise as she brushed a strand of hair out of her face.

"I'm just curious is all...I'm a girl, also. I have those kind of thoughts from time to time." Annie she said as she rested her hands on your abs as she was done taping your dressing. "So, what do you think of me?" Annie said as you looked to the side.

"I-I don't know...I've never really given it that much thought..."You gave a weak answer, but then decided to say what you felt about her in general over the years you spent together in the cadet corps. "You're quiet." You started as she glanced at you. "You're quiet, but not in a bad way. To me, you give off this feeling of wanting to be around others like normal friends, but you can't exactly express it. Like something is forbidding you from getting close to any of us." Annie lowered her head as she knew the exact reason she couldn't risk getting emotionally close to anyone within the walls. "However..." You began as she glanced at you once more. "...You're a great warrior. I've only ever seen two girls who are as tough as you, and they're family to me. You are just so intriguing and whenever I saw you just wandering around the camp alone, I wanted to approach you and get to know you better. I never did though because I felt like that was me invading your personal space. I hope you can forgive me for keeping my distance from you. It's not like I didn't like you or--!" You said before gasping as you felt her hands begin to slowly glide up your stomach and to your chest.

"Do you think...I'm beautiful?" Annie asked as she began to grow closer to you.

"Huh?" You asked in shock of her question.

"What do you think of me as a woman, Y/N?" Annie asked as she began to lean over closer to you, now off of her seat.

"I-I don't know what to say..." You said as you seemed to have fallen for a spell and unconsciously began to move closer towards her as the distance between yours and her face began to close. "What's going on...Why...Why do I feel like putty in her hands...Was Annie always like this...?" You thought as you remembered how cold she was in the cadet corps. "I-I've never felt any sort of romantic feeling for anyone, at least not that I know of, but why is Annie making me feel like this? Am I crazy? Am I looking for something to help me emotionally after everything that's happened? Is this what I want?" You thought as you couldn't look away from her beautiful icy blue eyes. "...I don't know...but right now...I don't think I want this to...stop..." You thought as you had given into the outburst of feelings that stirred in your heart.

"Ahhhh...what the hell am I doing? Not too long ago, I was just trying to kill this Eldian, but now...What's gotten me so infatuated with him? Is it just a girl's instinct to be attracted to strong men...?" Annie thought as you two were sharing the same breathing area now. "This is messed up...I know it's messed up, but..." Annie thought as she cupped your cheek with one hand. "Right now...I don't care about anything else...This war and the mission...They can all wait...I just want one moment right now where in this shitty world, I have something to savor...something precious for myself..." She thought as your lips connected and you felt a jolt rush through the both of you. "I know my mission as a warrior...but if there's one thing I wanna save from this place...it's you..." Annie completely let her guard down as she took both of your hands and interlocked her fingers with yours as she climbed into the bed, and the passion between the two of you began to increase with your heated kiss, and two of the most broken and torn people in this cruel world now began to comfort each other, forgetting everything else in the world to enjoy this moment of relief and comfort.

"This world may be cruel..." You thought while wrapping your arms around Annie.

"The people of this war, in both sides, may all be horrible..." Annie thought while she swung her legs over your waist and wrapped her arms around your head.

"But...If there's one thing I wanna save from all this cruelty...It's you..." You both thought as the two of you disappeared under the sheets and you two continued to hold onto the warmth of one another, not wanting to let this feeling of safety and happiness go.