Call Your Name

Chapter 1: Frozen

Once again, Eren was wide awake into the deep hours of the night. His eyes gazed blankly at the ceiling, while his mind tried to sort out his recently jumbled ideals. Ever since they had reached the ocean, he had found it harder and harder to see what was right. He thought that the realization of Armin's dream would reinforce his ideas of freedom. The moment had, however, done the opposite. Eren realized that the enemy had changed. They were no longer just mindless shells of flesh. They were a group of people with dreams, motivations, and ideas. They were humans. They were like Annie, Eren thought regretfully.

Why did I have to think about her? Now, Eren would never find sleep tonight. With a deep breath, he closed his eyes. He saw her face clearly. Her porcelain skin. Her adorable nose. Strands of blonde hair falling over her hauntingly beautiful, ice-blue eyes. Eren opened his eyes, and the image was mercifully lost. Why did everything always come back to her? This is a disaster. The ocean fulfilled Armin's dreams, but I lost mine. Eren rolled to the side of the bed, pushing himself up into a sitting position. His eyes came to a stop at the window, gazing at the stars in the blackened sky. The dim moonlight shimmered through the open window, glistening on his unnoticed tears. A breeze gusted, shifting the drapes and meeting coldly with Eren's cheeks. Haltingly, he raised his fingers to his face; feeling the moisture of his sorrow. Why am I crying?

He looked off at the setting sun with his emerald eyes.

"But hey am I a good kicker or what", he blurted excitedly; recalling Jean crumpled on the floor of the mess hall. "I picked it up from watching you at it but it worked out great, I'll say". Annie's sharp eyes focused intently on his back. Closing her eyes, she let out an almost inaudible laugh of mockery. She opened her mouth again, responding in an amused tone,

"That was hopeless..." She paused briefly, thinking over her words carefully, "... a complete train-wreck." Eren turned quickly, looking deep into her eyes, and responding in disappointment.

"Why..." He hesitated in surprise, seeing her as he never had before. Her face. Her personality. And most of all her eyes. "... Where did I get it wrong?" Annie, looking up into his face, recognized his discouragement. Looking deep into those endless green eyes, she felt sorry. Eren saw her blush momentarily, turning her gaze down quickly. Had she really blushed? Or is that what I wanted to see. There was a seemingly endless space of silence between them. Remarkably, it was broken by the usually stoic Annie Leonhart.

"If you like that technique so much..." Annie paused again, contemplating. Eren watched with curious excitement as her trademark frigidness gave way with a small smile. The corners of her mouth went up so sparingly, yet Eren thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. The last time I saw her smile was at the steps, and that wasn't Annie. Then Annie shifted her eyes directly to his, overtaking Eren with their crystal-blue radiance. "...Maybe I can teach you" Eren couldn't hide the sheer surprise that came onto his face. Annie's eyes caught this, and he watched as her mood visibly plummeted. Why did I do that? Why had I frozen like that? Eren blurted out his first thoughts to ease the growing tension.

"Uh? Thanks, but I'll pass." How could I be so stupid. "Those kicks in the legs hurt, you know." Annie's eyes quickly reverted downward. Eren couldn't mistake the hurt and disappointment on her face, immediately regretting his response. Unsettled by his own foolishness, Eren maintained silence. With the remnants of her hope and excitement, Annie turned her eyes back up to his, looking at him with a mixture of sadness and expectance.

"Come on, you don't have to hold back one bit." Looking straight into her eyes, Eren heard words that in the moment had pained him deeply. They would to this day. Even though he had quickly changed his mind, he would never forget the dejection on her face. How could I do that to her? She put all her trust in me, and I hurt her. But she hurt me too.

This pulled Eren back from his conflicted reflection. He looked back to the window, watching as the first light of dawn crept over the distant mountains. The light sparkled on the nearby lake, giving Eren a cruel reminder of what had passed. Sighing, Eren closed his eyes again. He saw her face again. But this time, it was different. Her pale blonde hair was untied and fell over the sides of her face. Tears ran down her face from tightly sealed eyes. Eren felt fresh tears run down his own face, as he choked out to himself

"Why... why were you crying?" He began to shake, his emotions crashing together and overpowering him. "Why did you have to kill them, why did you do it?" Eren snapped his mouth shut, weakly attempting to push down the anger and sadness boiling within. This was to no avail, as thoughts of Annie ran wild through his fractured mind. Her face was there again, and then there was a sudden brightness. Blue light nearly blinded him. Translucent matter advanced gradually over her features, trapping her in a crystal prison. Why are you still frozen? Annie, I need you.

Eren mustered his will and reassured himself. Tomorrow, everything would change. Since the return to Shiganshina, his titan abilities had improved. The survey corps had finally decided that it was time to bring Annie Leonhart back into this cruel world. Whether he was prepared or not, Annie would be freed from her crystal tomorrow. Free from the crystal, but never truly free again. Eren stood up from the bed, glancing outside to see that night had transformed into day. Today, I have to face the female titan. Today... I have to face the woman I love.