Afterward | ReiBert

01. A twist

Third Person POV

After finishing Armin off with the burning steam attack of his colossal titan, Bertholdt turned his gaze towards the other side of the wall. "It's over... Now for Eren and the horses." But his eyes widened in shock seeing the hole in the wall, completely sealed with the shell made from Eren's attack titan's hardening.

"That's..." He paused for a moment and looked closely. "... Hardening?" Bertholdt's eyes shot wide realising what just happened.

Before he could even move a muscle, eren approached him from behind, holding his sword upwards and ready to cut open the nape. "Gotcha!" Eren yelled before maneuvering closer to the colossal titan's nape, and slashing it off.

The titan started to fall forward. And with great struggle, Eren pulled Bertholdt out of the titan's nape. Bertholdt's face was flooded with disbelief and surprise, and his limbs were missing and those parts were bleeding. But Eren glared at him with full rage. What Bertholdt and Reiner did was unforgivable to Eren and the others.

"It was a trap!" Bertholdt thought. "Eren was faking his infirmity from the start... And Armin's true goal in clinging onto me... Was to buy time for Eren to harden." The colossal titan's body was falling, and Bertholdt was still deep in thoughts. "They wanted me to think none of them were anywhere near me. And I fell for it... And lowered my guard."

After that, Bertholdt had fallen unconscious. Eren pulled him along the rooftop of a house by his collar. Eren stopped his steps when he was standing in front of Armin, who were burned to a crisp. Eren looked down at him. "I've always knew..." He dropped down to his knees. "...That you were the bravest... Out of any of us, Armin."

𓇢𓆸

Even though Bertholdt was unconscious, he could hear Eren and levi talking. Maybe Mikasa and Hange too. He couldn't make out what they were actually talking about, but he was sure that it was something serious.

"... We'll.... Serum... Armin..." Bertholdt was not sure who said that, but it kind of sounded like Eren. "...Feed... Bertholdt..."

Bertholdt could've swore that he heard them mention his name more than three times. Armin's name too. But how was he hearing those? Maybe he was regaining his consciousness. He didn't know. But he knew for sure that right now wasn't the best moment to open his eyes.

After quite a while, everything got quiet. And the next thing Bertholdt heard was the sound of transformation. Though it startled him, Bertholdt still layed there, not moving an inch.

Bertholdt slowly opened his eyes when he heard some wooden pieces being moved by something. Or maybe... Someone.

His eyes shot wide when he saw a titan somewhat the same height as the building he was on top of. It had a weirdly built face, like a skeleton's, and it's hair reminded him of Armin. It was exactly the same hair as Armin, blonde in color, and length that reached the shoulder.

The next thing Bertholdt knew was that the titan had picked him up. Bertholdt struggled, but since he had no arms or legs, it was no use. He screamed and screamed, and tried to move in the titan's grasp. No use.

The titan slowly moved Bertholdt closer to its mouth. Bertholdt looked around, and saw Eren, Mikasa, Jean, Connie and sasha, watching him from a distance. He smiled to himself, thinking that his 'friends' are still here.

"EVERYONE!!" Bertholdt yelled. "HELP!" He had the tiny bit of hope that they will save him, but he was then hit by the harsh reality. They were enemies. Not friends. The smile of his face had faded away the moment he realised that.

He continued to struggle in the titan's arm. As he was getting closer and closer to the titan's mouth, Bertholdt was losing his hope.

He didn't want to die like this. His father... Is back home... And is sick. How will he pay for his father's treatment now? The choice he made for being a warrior will go to complete waste now. What happened to going back home with Reiner? What will happen to Annie?

Bertholdt's mind was going crazy. Yet, it was empty.

Meanwhile, Eren who was watching them from a distance with the others, gasped, seeing something that might be shocking. "Eren, what is it?" Mikasa asked, touching his shoulder.

Eren pointed to the distance in front of them. "Look, everyone." He said, his eyes focusing on something- Or rather, someone, running towards the titan. "Who... Is that?"

Mikasa, Jean and connie also noticed that person. Their eyebrows furrowed, curious on who it was. From the distance, the person seemed like a girl, about Mikasa's age.

Bertholdt was almost inside the titan's mouth. But, the girl had already reached near the titan, and leaped off from the building roof. One thing they noticed, is that her feet... They were missing.

"How did she run here when her feet are missing? Is she also a titan shifter? No... That doesn't make sense..." Mikasa thought.

Her eyes were focused on Armin's titan. Once she was high enough on the air, she pulled her arms backwards, and said, "Bara bara no..." She then curled into a sphere, before bursting into pieces and them flying around Armin. "...Dance!!!" Her body parts hit Armin multiple times.

Armin's titan lost its grip on Bertholdt, and Bertholdt was falling down along with the titan. But the girl was fast enough to rejoint her body parts together and send her both arms flying towards Bertholdt. She catched him in her arms without fail, while Bertholdt had lost his consciousness again.

The rest of her flew towards the arms and the arms jointed back to her body. Eren, mikasa and the others' eyes and mouth were wide open from the surprise of what they had just witnessed. "What... Is that power?" Eren mumbled in shock.

She was now standing in front of the scouts with a proud pose and Bertholdt in her arms. "Looks like your plan on feeding him to your friend didn't work out." She said and let out a chuckle.

Mikasa was about to attack the girl with her sword, but eren stopped her by holding her arm. "Who are you?" He asked.

"Who I am isn't the matter right now. And about your friend... You should find another person to feed him. Or not do that at all. It's none of my business." She looked at Bertholdt, then back at the scouts before continuing, "But, I'm taking him with me."

She turned around the other way, about to leave. "Well then. See ya." She said before jumping off from the roof and going up in the air. But her feet stayed on the ground, which confused mikasa even more. She was already confused with the girl's power, but now she's more confused.

The girl flew over Shiganshina with Bertholdt in her arms. She tried to hold him as gently as possible. Once they reached a safe distance from the scouts, she landed on another rooftop.

"Don't worry, Bertholdt-san. They must be waiting for us." She said and looked up at the walls, expecting for her 'friends' to be there, but there was no one.

She felt a pit forming in her stomach. They have agreed to pick her and Bertholdt up and leave together. But they aren't there now. "Did they... Leave us here? No... They won't do that. But then, where are they?" She let out a shaky sigh, she was really nervous. "What will i do now?"

Meanwhile back with Mikasa and Eren, they were in a serious talk about the mysterious girl that suddenly appeared then disappeared. "Mikasa... That was... Not my imagination, right?"

"No, Eren. I saw her too."

"I wonder who she is... And what was with her body??"

"I think it's the devil fruit." Jean said, which attracted Eren's interest.

"Devil fruit? What is that?" He asked, sounding curious. He wanted to know what it was.

"Well... I don't really know what it is myself. But I've heard people say that it gives you some sort of power. What I'm saying may not be correct, since we don't know what just happened.."

"I too wonder...." Mikasa said quietly and looked out to the distance.

Chapter end.