After weeks of careful watch over a girl who remains unmoving in her crystal chrysalis, after not having spare scouts and thinking it was a waste of taxpayer dollars to continue issuing military police to stand guard over her, they had left Annie mostly unguarded and to collect dust. As a thank-you for humanity’s hospitality, Bertolt leaves the corpses of the two unarmed guards splayed out on the first few steps of the stairwell to serve both as an obstacle and for warning. He steps over them, careful not to slip on stone floor slick with spilled blood. He doesn’t allow himself to linger, but descends slowly and steadily, simultaneously glad and dreadful for the stark silence that greets him instead of agonized wailing.
Relief floods through his nervous system when he sees Anne’s serene face immortalized in pink crystal, physical body intact. There are no marks indicating injury aside from faint scars near her eyes where tendons once connected her to titan flesh. Bertolt allows himself release the guilt that has been festering and eating away at his insides. It’s selfish not to let her sleep when she looks so peaceful, but they can’t stay here in human territory for much longer. There is little they can salvage without getting caught up in the chaos that is about to erupt within the walls, but he can bring her home… and to not leave her behind, even if in the safety of her crystal. He and Reiner owe her at least that.
So with great trepidation, he bites his hand and keeps his tongue firmly against the roof of his mouth to minimize the taste of iron, wincing as teeth penetrates the flesh of his palm. Fingers grasp tightly around her and the room overflows with titan vapour as crystal hisses and melts.
Annie gasps, her breath stuttering almost as if she was caught mid-sob, for the first time in weeks.