Chapter 49: Chapter 48

...Returning...

Zeke lit Magath's cigarette, then his own.

It was considered insensitive since they were standing right in front of the Jaeger's burnt-to-ashes residence. But the damage was irreversible, so no point in fretting over manners anymore.

They'd received intel in the middle of battle. By the time they returned, all that was left was only an array of rubble, smoke, and dust. The neighboring houses were lucky enough to still be standing.

The elderly Jaeger couple had been out of the house when the fire burned, and the other Jaeger had been away in battle. The fourth person who lived under that roof was nowhere to be found.

Dr. Jaeger barged through the blockade, demanding to see Magath. Magath complied and waved his officers away. "Have you yet found her?" asked Dr. Jaeger. "Is she well? Or is she hurt?"

"Maybe she left the house just in time," said Mrs. Jaeger, clasped hands shaking. "Have you conducted a search? Maybe—maybe she's terrified and chose to hide—she's a child, for god's sake! Please tell us something, Commander!"

The distress was evident on their aged faces. But that wasn't enough to make Magath sympathize with them. So he broke the news head-on. "We did find a body. Y/n Fritz-Ackerman is confirmed to be deceased. I am incredibly sorry, Dr. and Mrs. Jaeger."

Dr. Jaeger fell to his knees. His wife held him, desperately trying to soothe him. "First Fey...and then Grisha...and now Y/n? What grave sins have we committed that must be shouldered on these innocent children?"

Deciding his task was finished, Magath left them grieving by themselves. He passed by Reiner, who was too busy comforting two Warrior candidates to mourn by himself—a girl who was crying her vocal cords out and a boy who was weeping silently.

"Getting killed by her own fire," muttered Pieck, a twist in her stomach. "Ironic as it is. But still, what a cruel way to die. It's like suicide."

They've been told that some accidental action must've activated the blood bags that caused this disaster. A box of bullets infused with a drip of blood was deadly. Two full bags was a whole other story.

"I just hope she went painlessly," said Porco. Neither of them was very close to you after you lost your memories a second time, but they still knew what sort of person you were. An impressive soldier. An amusing mentor. A really enjoyable and good friend.

Magath found Zeke by the wall, who watched the smoke stream out from the ruins of his childhood home. They shared somewhat of an understanding look, giving each other the green light to talk.

"Looks like we've both been played for fools," said Magath. "You, more than me."

"I apologize profoundly for my error." There was no earnestness in his voice because apologies were what someone was required to make to their superior.

He was not sorry for making this mistake. He created this mistake. He'd never felt so stupid in his life before—he quite literally planted this memory deception act in the first place, and he was a fool not to have previewed it'd one day be used against him, biting him in the ass.

"Why did you tell them we found a body?" he asked.

Magath blew out a puff of smoke. "Our incompetence should be kept to ourselves. Imagine the distrust and inconveniences it'd cause if it got out that the most prized resource had infiltrated, deceived not once but twice, conformed into our society, and successfully escaped right under our noses. Not really the type of mistake I'd prefer to risk resignation."

From the moment they arrived at the scene, it was evident what had truly happened. Neither raised concern with anybody else.

"But she can't possibly think we'd buy this childish ruse," said Zeke.

"I don't think she was very concerned if we believed it or not. I think she was just getting desperate," said Magath. "But she's not stupid. Certainly, no. She picked a damn good time to do this. With our trouble overseas, the board will not approve if we put our focus on pursuing Paradis again. Unless we tell them the truth, which is out of the question."

Zeke gave him an incredulous look. "So we just let her go? Return to that uncivilized land with all the knowledge she gathered from us?"

"I can't say I expected this to happen, but I wasn't unprepared. There's a reason why I had Dr. Galliard speed up the phlebotomy to twice per week instead of once every few weeks. With that precaution, we at least have gathered more than enough supply of her blood to last us this war. Don't worry over the small amount of knowledge she carries. Paradis is a hundred years behind. They will never catch up."

"And when we run out of supply?"

"Then we retrieve her along with the Founding Titan. Saves us a trip. We have all we need from her for now, Zeke. Let her run free for as long as she can. The youth desires joy and happiness for survival. She'll have had enough of that when the day comes for her return to Marley."

* . * .

You did your best to keep your head down and stay out of sight.

Though you weren't widely known by civilians, you were aware you must be somewhat memorable, judging by how many times you've been called out for being "attractive."

There was a captain on the ship, but the tall, blonde woman acted like she was in charge of the operation, with the dark-skinned man as her right hand. That meant keeping clear from their vicinity but maintaining a safe distance to learn about anything important.

You set a crate on top of the stack and wiped the sweat off your forehead. The helmet hid half your face but still couldn't block the scorching sun. As you hauled up one after the other, you noticed your arms slightly trembling. This wasn't new—during the weeks building up, you became aware of the gradual decline in the strength of your muscles. Worsened every time after a blood draw.

"Need some help?"

The dark-skinned man came over. "Uh..." You turned your face away, coming off as shy. "Yeah, that'd be great. Thanks." You could've turned him away but you wouldn't mind some assistance.

He took the crate off your hands. "Freya, right? I'm Onyankopon."

"Nice to meet you." You shook his hand quickly and got back to work. Out of curiosity, you peered into a crate. You picked up a tiny box of bullets, but they didn't have the same engravings you expected to see.

Onyakonpon chuckled. "Trying to get a glimpse of the Devil's Bullets?"

You placed the box back and faked a polite smile. "Doesn't hurt to try."

"No worries, everyone wants to see it for themselves if it's true that its trajectory is enhanced or if it actually lights on fire that's blue. Unfortunately, they won't be up here on deck. They've made a scarce number of these, so they need to be treated it as such."

That meant they were still on board. "Really? That's so interesting."

He nodded agreeingly, not noticing your blatant sarcasm. "So, you new to all of this? Military stuff, I mean?"

Your eyebrow quirked up. "Excuse me?"

"I'm sorry—I don't mean to offend, but you seem like you've never carried those before." He pointed to a crate in your faintly shaking arms. "Again, don't mean to offend, but doesn't come as you're very trained."

He didn't sound like he had malicious intent, just genuine wonder. "You're right, I'm not very trained." You have no idea.

"I assume you've never been in battle either?"

You snorted and shook your head. "Nah."

"That's alright, it's not a place for young people like you who deserve a future anyway," he said reassuringly. "Any reason you chose to become a soldier?"

"I wanted to travel."

He let out a laugh in disbelief. "So you sign up for the military? You do realize that our traveling is vastly different from a vacation, do you?"

"Yeah, but what vacation ship offers a route to the Island of Devils, right?"

"Again, what we're doing is vastly different from a vacation." A smile still resided on his face, which either meant he found you interesting or he thought you were bullshitting. "Hope you're prepared for what you're getting yourself into."

You set the final crate down. "Don't worry. I know."

When the tall woman who you learned to be Yelena eventually came on deck, you headed to the dining room. Storing some food in your system to build up some energy seemed like a good idea. The room was near empty except for the few Marleyans, throwing their dishes at him to catch while scolding the blond chef for making the food undercooked and bland, even though it tasted great to you.

When they left, you went over to the counter to help pick up some things from the floor. "Bunch of assholes." If you weren't keeping a low profile, you would've told them off.

The chef muttered a "thanks" as he took the dishes. "It's not like I can fire back, even if I want to."

"Just ignore them. Their opinions don't matter," you said simply. "'Cause this was the best meal I've had in ages."

He managed a small smile. "You're very kind. I'm Niccolo," he said, shaking your hand. "Marleyan."

"Freya. Not Marleyan."

You spotted a small, distinct change in his face to what looked like skepticism. "Are you're Eldian?"

"Not from Liberio either." That was true. "I was just a visitor in Marley. Signed up to be a volunteer to do something with my life."

"Oh, I see." After he heard you were just a foreigner, he visibly relaxed. "How did you like the Motherland?"

You loosely shrugged. "I think I've stayed there for way too long. If I liked it in the beginning, I don't even remember anymore."

He made a hum of agreement. "It's not as great as they promote to the world. Too many people there are selfish and unappreciative."

"But you know, where I come from, people aren't like that there," you said. "And in fact, I know one friend who would adore your cooking. Absolutely fall in love with it. All of them would." It'd been such a long time since you could talk to somebody about any of your friends, and it was filling you with easy joy.

"Sounds like a really nice place. Where are you from again?"

"Small place. You've probably never heard of it before. But it's not as far as you may think, actually. I'm sure one day there'll be a chance you can meet my friends." Very, very soon.

At sunset, you tried locating Yelena below deck, not for interaction but for your own assurance. It didn't take too long to come across her office with the door ajar.

"Yes, Zeke. I understand."

You carefully peeked into the room. She was communicating by using the radio phone. Shit.

"I think I may have passed somebody fitting your description. I will make sure she doesn't–" A pause. "Oh. I see. Then I will make sure she is taken care of before she even steps foot onto the island."

That was all you needed to hear. You came for assurance, but left as silent and quick as you could. Your heartbeat quickened with your pace as your mind repeated over and over again—He's coming to kill me. He's coming to kill me. He's coming to–

Around the corner, you stopped to focus on steadying your breathing. You had to get ahold of yourself. He can't. He's not on the ship, you countered against yourself. You told yourself you weren't dead yet, and that you wouldn't be.

When you were calmed enough, you continued your way, subtly glancing over your shoulder every minute.

But you so desperately wished he were on this ship so that you could choke and squeeze the life out of that bearded bastard. Of course he still wanted you dead. You'd almost let yourself forget the lesson you learned through literal blood, sweat, and tears.

You just had to survive a few more hours.

* . * .

A Scout burst into the tent. "Commander, Captain, there's a ship incoming! And it's way bigger than the one we're trying to build!"

Hange and Levi followed the Scout up the hill. Surely enough, a single battleship resided on the horizon, its course headed for the island.

Levi shot Hange a wordless look of alert, to which she responded, "I don't know. We can't even be sure where it's from. Much less who we think is on it."

"What should we do, Commander?" asked the Scout.

"Inform the Levi Squad first, then the rest. Prepare enough firearms, but make sure not to engage. Not until we know who's coming and why. Oh, and get Eren over here."

"Not engage? They could be back to massacre us!"

She turned to him, astounded. "If a horde of titans are coming at you, do you kill them?"

The Scout outmatched her with an appalled expression. "Of course I would! I don't want to die! None of us do!"

"Oh," she said, thrown off, like she didn't believe anyone could say that. "I would've opted for capturing and experimenting first."

"Possibilities are endless. It could very much be a ship full of enemies," said Levi. "Or they've brought a hostage to bargain with."

. * . *

To your luck, the assigned room you shared with four bunks was empty upon entering. You reached under the mattress of your lower bunk for your bag, blunging your hand in to check if everything was there.

Best case scenario, you stall these last few hours and arrive on land unharmed. Most likely case, you fight your way to survival. Worst case, you might have to take a dip in the water. That meant your belongings would get drenched, most importantly the journal that you must bring home.

There was no harm in preparing for the worst. You tied the leather gloves around the small journal and put it in an empty pillow case, folding it deep into the fabric as an additional layer of protection. If that still wasn't enough, you could steal one of those life vests from the Marleyans, too.

As you put it back in the bag, your finger grazed something cold and solid. You took out a bejeweled, gold time locket—the gift from Willy Tybur. That's strange. You didn't remember packing it. You'd forgotten it even existed.

Oh well. You stuffed it back in. It was still a gift, nonetheless.

Doors slammed and footsteps pounded outside. You strapped on your helmet and bag, peeking through the doorframe. Soldiers were barging open doors down the hall, entering and demanding everyone to get out. When they entered to search, you sprinted down the opposite end.

On the next floor, you concealed yourself behind a mountain of barrels in the corner as other soldiers marched through, bringing someone detained.

"I swear, I didn't know she had devil blood!" cried Niccolo. "I'm not lying! I didn't know!"

"Never said you had to," said a soldier. "What would a lowly chef know anyway? Send him with the others on the first boat to Paradis. He's no use."

"You can't send me as a lamb for slaughter! I didn't do anything wrong! I serve food for a living, for god's sake!" He continued his pleads as he was shoved up to the deck.

He'll be fine.

You held your breath and stayed still as flashlights continued roaming the floor. They shone at the mountain of barrels. And then they started approaching.

Goddamn it. Once they got close enough, you kicked down the barrels onto them. Missed shots fired behind you as you fled. A soldier raised his rifle at the entrance, but you ducked his shot and swiped him off his feet with your leg. His head banged against the floor and he stopped moving. You snatched up his gun and fired back at those chasing after you, dropping the first three to the ground.

You tore off the unconscious man's life vest, putting it onto yourself. You grabbed one of the corpses you shot by the collar and shielded your backside as you made your way upstairs.

As soon as you stepped outside, a horde of soldiers was waiting, positioned with their firearms, ready to fire.

You clutched your human shield and gun tighter. The ship was starting to stop. Just a little bit longer—you were almost to the finish line. If you had to, you'd slaughter every person on here because you were not dying on this boat.

Just as you raised your gun, the ground abruptly quaked. You grabbed onto a pole while several soldiers slipped off balance as the ship levitated into the air.

"It's a devil!" screamed somebody.

You barely registered what you heard when a bullet struck the pole, missing your hand by a finger's length. The shooter reloaded his rifle as he clung to the side railings. You reloaded yours but found it was out of ammo. So you chucked the gun at his forehead, and he toppled over into the sea.

The rest of the soldiers were steading their footings and getting ahold of their weapons. It became clear that it didn't matter if the boat was flying in the air, sinking upside down in the water, or being carried closer to the Island of Devils. They must have you killed.

So you made a choice that only someone defenseless could do, someone so desperate to survive that it became borderline cowardice. Retreat from a fight. As shots fired, you dove for the railings and pitched yourself into the sea.

In that brisk window of time, you recognized in a heartbeat what carried the ship on its shoulders. The Attack Titan. Him.

"Hello, ladies and gentlemen of Marley!!!" echoed out a familiar, unhinged voice. "Welcome to the Island of Paradis!"

Upon splashing into the water, the life vest kept you afloat, and luckily you clutched the bag into the air before it could sink completely. You've never swam in your life, but you instantly got the hang of it. Ackerman genes, probably.

Another splash was heard. Two soldiers had thrown themselves into the water after you.

"What the fuck is wrong with you people?! Just leave me be!" In order to swim faster, you stuffed the fabric-protected journal in your uniform and ditched the bag. It sunk with the other useless trinkets that were comparably no longer in need.

You hauled yourself onto the jagged rocks, dealing with the fact that you felt twice as heavy getting out of the water. You saved yourself a moment to cough out the salty seawater and rub your glassy vision, making your eyes sting even worse.

The two men soon crawled up on shore. It was clear all three of you were exhausted. "This can be really simple," said one, panting. "We can make it quick and painless. Or we waste more time playing tag and end up with the same result. Decide for yourself, woman."

You scoffed. You could take them out, no problem. There were rocks sharp enough to do the job. And if not the rocks, then with your hands. You glanced at where the ship had been put, then back to the two men. Then again at the ship. There were so many people. So many Scouts. Fuck it. I can make it.

You took off sprinting without another word. They chased you like prey, but you were always one of the faster Ackermans. As you got nearer, you could finally discern certain features of faces, so you cupped your mouth and shouted for their attention. They responded immediately by directing their flashlights your way.

But before you could yell at them, it's me, I'm back, Yelena stepped out of the crowd, raised her pistol, and fired. You threw yourself down, rolling across the jagged ground. Just as she was about to fire again, her weapon was kicked out of her hand, and she was forced to the ground.

You'd barely gotten to raise your head when your helmet got yanked backward, your hands flying to grapple at the straps choking you.

"This would've been easier if–" You jabbed your elbow into the guy's face with a loud crack in his nose. You unbuckled the helmet, your drenched hair spilling down your face as you coughed uncontrollably.

"Put your hands in the air!"

You ignored the Scout and lunged at the other soldier with a punch that sent him straight to the ground. You stomped him in his stomach, making him spit out blood and curl up on his sides.

The one with the broken nose tried tackling you but you threw him to the ground, ignoring the Scouts who screamed to put your hands up with their guns pointed at you. You dug your knee into his ribs, keeping him in place, and punched him in the face. When he spat out blood, you clutched him by the collar and threw another punch. Then another. And another.

How does it feel trying to be killed? How does it feel to be prey? you wanted to ask but were too focused on savoring the defeat on his smudged, bloody face. Every punch counted for every ounce of rage pent up for so long, enduring so much.

Before you launched your fist again, somebody caught your arm. You tried thrashing them off but they held it firmly in place, forcing you to whip around to meet a familiar eyes of grey. You froze. He stared back with paralleled surprise. You reached out and tugged a piece of his hair.

"Hey–" He slapped your hand away, but that scowl was unmistakable.

You flung yourself onto Levi in a hug, uncaring that he disliked physical touch. Thankfully, he didn't push you away; he tore off his cape and draped it over you. "It's her."

A chorus rippled through the crowd, passing on the words—Her Highness Y/n Fritz-Ackerman is back.

You reached for Levi's hair again but he backed up. "Alright, that's enough."

"Is this real?" you asked, eyes wide. "Am I dreaming?" It did feel like a dream very much.

His typical stern expression softened. "Yeah, it's real–"

"Y/N!!" Hange practically jumped over Levi to engulf you in her arms. "Thank god they didn't dissect you into a thousand pieces to feed as nutrition for their titans!" she cried. Then she sniffed at your hair. "You smell like seaweed."

"Just had my first swim," you told her, brushing your drenched hair back, finding it so much easier to smile now. They insisted to on helping you up, putting your arms around their shoulders even when you said you could walk by yourself. Which wasn't true—once the adrenaline left your body, you felt so impossibly drained of energy.

"Wait," you said, stopping in your tracks. "Wait, hold on." You took off the vest and stuck your hand down your shirt.

Levi whipped his head away, pulling his cape around to cover you. "What the hell are you–"

You shoved the journal into Hange's chest. The pillow case fortunately still had dry spots, meaning the journal itself would be in slightly better shape. "For you. My life in Marley. Information I learned. Answers. Everything."

She wailed so sharply that it pierced your ears and hugged the wet bag like it was treasure. "Oh, you sick genius!"

As she shook your shoulders, showering you with her frantic praises, Levi turned to the nearest Scout. "Get the rest of my squad. Now."

The Scout raced up the hill where the Levi Squad was stationed, ordered to keep watch. Their spot had the Marleyan ship perfectly blocking their view of the turmoil down there.

"Guys! She's back!" yelled the Scout, flailing his arms. "The Princess is back!"

Mikasa almost twisted her ankle hopping over a boulder to sprint down the hill. Armin stopped in his tracks and let Connie and Sasha pass him, scanning his surroundings. "Wait, where's Eren?"

"Up there, that dramatic ass." Jean pointed up to the cliffside, where Eren stood facing the sea. "You go ahead, I'll get him."

Where are you, Y/n? wondered Eren, watching longingly at the horizon. How much longer do I have to wait until you're back?

"Eren! She's back!"

Eren turned over his shoulder, letting the words sit in his mind. Next thing he knew, he'd already passed Jean, racing down the hill.

"You can't just–" Jean groaned, following last.

"What the hell happened to you?" asked Levi while Hange gave her orders to keep the Marleyans detained. Especially Yelena and those two men you fought.

"Oh, you know." Your eyes traced each step you took. "Trusted the wrong people. Dealt with the consequences. Learned some lessons. No biggie."

He frowned. He knew you to be annoyingly nonchalant about your life, but your answer couldn't have been all that happened. He saw how you beat up those two guys, fighting like you'd die if you didn't win.

When they let go of you, two other pairs of warm arms suddenly enveloped you, burying your nose in a fuzzy red and brushing your cheek against a tuft of blond hair. You collapsed on your knees, locking your arms tightly around them, overwhelmed by relief.

Mikasa couldn't hold it in anymore, letting tears freely stream down to her chin. It was like losing Eren during the Battle of Trost, except it took him a few hours to return and nearly a year for you. Armin sobbed shamelessly, uncaring of who was watching. He out of everyone had hidden it better how much he missed you, and now he couldn't hide it anymore.

Connie and Sasha piled themselves on top, their collective wailing powering over Armin's. Sasha must've not had a good footing, as her weight completely crushed Armin to the ground. Mikasa had no problem holding up Connie, who practically threw himself onto her back.

And then you heard your name being called by the one voice you'd been wanting, been yearning to hear.

You frantically sought the source through their crowded heads. Found you. After being a whole ocean away, there he stood just a few feet away. Eren, who'd halted to bask in the glory of seeing you, alive, breathing, and far more wonderful than he'd remembered.

You both lunged at the same time. He, who was slightly faster than you, who somehow was slightly more desperate than you, slid to his knees so that you wouldn't have to get up.

Falling into Eren's arms suddenly became your new, unparalleled favorite feeling in the world. You'd never imagined simple hugging could feel so special that you wanted to savor every second. He had to control himself not to squeeze the life out of you.

"Is this real?" he asked by your ear, voice breaking.

You laughed, tightening your embrace as tears welled up. "I just asked Levi the same thing." His breath hitched and his shoulders shook. At this point, you could both die from suffocation.

At last, after nearly a year of this journey of infiltrating, deceiving, conforming, nearly dying, and ultimately escaping, you had finally fought your way back.

You had returned home.

*

yayyyyy, congrats on completing ur side quest in marley! i know some of u must be real happy about it being over

just so yall know, this chap and the previous chap were both 2 chaps combined into one each, so yall just got overfed 2x.

but guys im actually DREADING writing fluff again. like do yall rly deserve it? of fucking course. yall hav been amazing. gotta make yall happy for the moment so enjoy while it lasts <3.