crown. 𝙡𝙚𝙫𝙞 𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣 ✓

𝙨𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣. checkpoint

"Stop it, Isabel!" Y/N whispered yell, they were now in the capital and ever since they woke up, Isabel has been teasing Y/N with Levi because they were by each other's side.

"Can you two shut up? Stop attracting unnecessary attention" Levi grumbled and looked at them with a scowl in his face.

"I swear last night was just a dream, he's nothing like that Levi I talked to" she mumbled.

"Tch, what a kill joy" Isabel rolled her eyes while Y/N suddenly searched her pockets then the different parts of her clothes before muttering a curse.

"What's wrong?" Isabel questioned.

"My hairpin, it's lost" she replied. "It was my favorite design, and Armin gave it to me, argh where did I lose it? It's the only hairpin I have left, now what will I use? " she got really annoyed.

"Armin? Who's that?" Isabel peered.

"He was my personal guard and friend, Eren, Mikasa, him and I kind of sticked together like glue. And he even gave that on my 18th birthday, ha...now I have two things to apologize to him when we-" she paused, a crestfallen expression formed on her face as she realizes that there's no chance that they will ever meet again.

"Huh" Isabel had an epiphany.

"We could find it!" Furlan exclaimed and this earned him a deadly glare from Levi.

"Idiot, we couldn't go back to where we went, we're wasting time and we've already walked far" he said.

"He's right" Y/N said, but she was clearly sad and disappointed. "Let's not waste time"

Levi sighed in annoyance. "Wait here" he said then dashed away.

"Huh, where's he going?" Furlan blinked rapidly as his master was gone in a blink.

"You know Y/N...this Armin guy you're saying must really like you then" Isabel commented, but Y/N only gave her a confused look.

"Huh? Don't you know that a man gifting a woman a hairpin means he likes or even more-loves her?" Isabel questioned.

"I know that, Isabel" Y/N replied. "But actions with no words mean nothing to me" she said. "And vice versa. If you can't tell it to me straight, I'm not assuming things"

And just in time Levi arrived and shoved a silk pouch to Y/N.

"Hope that would do its job, let's go" he said and walked forward, leaving them again behind to follow.

Y/N furrowed her eyebrows at Levi before opening the pouch, both her and Isabel's eyes widened upon seeing what it contained.

A golden lotus hairpin.

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Meanwhile, back in the forest, three people arrived at the spot where the four of them slept in last night.

"Someone camped in here" Armin said, as he saw the ashes and a subtle smell of smoke was still coming from the bonfire.

"Armin..." Mikasa called for her comrade, she picked up something from the ground.

"Isn't that...the hairpin you gifted to princess Y/N on her 18th birthday?" Eren asked.

At this, Armin immediately grabbed the hairpin from Mikasa. "It is" he said. "Does this mean..."

"She's alive!"

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"Ouch! Why did you stop walkin-" Y/N complained but was shocked as Levi suddenly pulled her close to him.