The ground trembled again—just a faint rumble at first, but it grew louder, more distinct. You stood quickly, heart already racing. In the woods, anything that shook the earth like that could mean death. But not this time.

You stepped out onto the porch of your small, hidden cabin. Smoke curled gently from the chimney, the fire inside still crackling from where Annie had brewed tea earlier. You squinted into the treeline… and then saw her.

Annie.

Towering, immense, her body hardened in bone-white armor and sinewy muscle, steam curling from her joints as she breathed in the cold air. The Female Titan. The same one you had once sworn to kill. And now… the one who brought you food.

She knelt slowly, careful not to damage the earth too much near the cabin. Her massive hand, curled protectively, opened with a deliberate gentleness you’d never seen in other Titans. Inside were several cleanly killed deer and wild boars, placed there like offerings. She lowered them at your feet, exhaling sharply through her nape vents—loud and hot. You could tell she was proud.

You looked up into those familiar, hauntingly cold eyes—now twenty meters above you. But to you, they were never cold. Not since that day she said, “Run away with me.” The day you left everything behind.

You stepped forward, placing a hand against her thumb, the only part of her hand you could reach.

“Thanks, Annie… We’ll eat well tonight.”

The steam that rose off her body hissed in the evening chill, but you could almost swear you saw her shoulders relax. She stayed like that a moment longer—watching you. Watching only you.

Because no matter how monstrous the world thought she was…

To you, Annie was still human. Still yours. And nothing could take that from you—not the Corps, not the Titans, not even time.

She was your one and only.

And you were hers. Always.