The next day
It was a rare day of rest in the lives of cadets.
Due to the heavy snowfall, the further training for the day was postponed in the middle.
And everyone was given a rare free day.
Eren, Mikasa, and Armin, the trio, sat by the side of the campfire.
Eren, while making compelling gestures, was telling Mikasa about his dream of last night.
Mikasa was listening to Eren with rapt attention; a worried expression was present on her cold face.
Historia and Ymir, wearing heavy clothes, were both seated by the other side of the campfire, enjoying a hot, steamy vegetable soup.
Connie, Marco, Jean, and others were fully enjoying their day, building snowmen and playing with snow, throwing snowballs at each other.
It was a rare, comforting day in their busy lives.
Some of the cadets were playing out in the snow, while some others were spending the day in the comfort of their beds, making up for the lost sleep.
As everyone was enjoying themselves, a figure sneakily moved away from the camp and moved towards the woods.
The figure was hooded, face covered, occasionally revealing strands of golden hair.
After carefully checking out if someone had noticed or not, the figure moves deep inside the woods.
The hooded figure soon reaches a particularly tall tree and waits there.
Just after some time, another two figures also appeared there, revealing Reiner and Bertholdt.
Seeing the approaching figure of Reiner and Bertholdt.
The figure, uncoveres the hood, spilling out a head full of golden hairs.
"Annie, you came." Reiner, looking at the golden haired Annie, greets her.
Annie with her piercing ocean blue eyes- coldly looks at Reiner and Bertholdt and with an icy tone, said, " despite knowing how risky meeting at this time can be, you still called for this, so it better be some thing important, Reiner."
Annie curiously looks at Reiner.
It was almost five years since they, the warriors of Marley have inflitirated the paradise island.
After orcheasting the fall of shinagishma district, they expected the founding titan to reveal itself.
But after waiting, probing and searching for the traces of founding titan, they didn't find a single clue about founding titan, and it was even more surprising, when they found out that the peoples inside the wall are unaware of the human presence outside the wall, and not only that, the people inside the walls, didn't even know about the history before the appearances of wall.
Bewildred about what to do, they follow the protocol of instructions they get from their Marlian suppervisers.
They enlist in the militiray ranks of the paradise island.
And now after three years, as their Cadet training was about to end, it was a crucial moment, any slip or mistake will cost them very much.
So that's why upon knowing that, a secret meeting was going to be held, Annie was worried about the potential leaks.
"Annie" Reiner looks straight at her with a stern expression on his face and said, "It is about the founding titan."
The next moemnt Annie's eyes contracted, and an equally if not more serious expression than Reiner and Bertholdt appears on her face, her eyes becoming more dark.
Annie carefully looks at Reiner and Bertholdt and then says in a chilly voice, "What about founding titan?, what have you found?"
"It is actually releated to Eren." This time Bertholdt speaks, although the introverted nature of his makes him less conspicuous and rarely did he interject in the conversation, but now, with his own people, he initiate the converstation on his own.
"Eren?" Annie quostioned.
"Yeah, Eren, the actual situation is that- Eren had a dream last night." Bertholdt speaks with an under edge in his tone.
"A dream?" Annie had a puzzled expression on her face, thinking how the dream can be related to the founding titan.
"A dream?...no, it should be a revelation." Bertholdt speaks with conviction and continues, "In the middle of last night- Eren wakes with a terrified scream, and when we rushed to his side and asks him what had happened, he said 'he had a nightmare' -in his dream, he saw the walls crumbling, destruction everywhere, and in the midst of chaos, a strange titan appears."
"Then?" Annie asks imperatively.
"Well, till then, it was just a normal 'nightmare' as Eren said, but, when he describes the strange titan, who looks like an animal, and the sudden appearance of another titan with a flash of lightning, the 'nightmare' changes- at least for us."
"What?"
It was startlingly shocking for Annie.
"but how can this be real, how can he dream of something like that." Annie asks encredulously.
"It can be possible." Reiner, who was silent for some time, speaks with confidence. "If it is founding titan, than it can be possible."
"Founding titan!" Annie gasps and then with a sudden realization, she hurriedly says, "The founding titan had manipulated the memories of everyone inside the wall."
"Yeah, if the founding titan can wipe out the memories of everyone inside the wall, than, manipulating the dream of someone isn't a big deal for it."
"Wait a moment!" Annie suddenly interjected with a frown on her face.
"I understand that the founding titan can manipulate the memories and dream, but how did the founding titan know about the beast titan, even if it wants to show someone in the dream, it should be either you or Bertholdt."
Gears were quickly turning in Annie's mind, analyzing and forming various speculations to understand the situation.
"Only if the founding titan knows that the beast titan will be here, that's why it specially shows the beast titan in the dream."
With each second, realization was building upon her face, but suddenly a frown crept on her.
"But, if that is true then that means the founding titan can foresaw the future." A sudden chill crawled upon her spine.
"We can't come to that conclusion, it is the founding titan we are talking about, much of its abilities are unknown to everyone."
Reiner's face turns ugly, thinking about the power of founding titan.
"I don't think that the founding titan has the ability to foresaw the future." Bertholdt strongly interjected.
"Then what do you suggest." Annie looks at Bertholdt, who calmly replies.
"It is better to say that the founding titan already knows that we have infiltrated the walls, so it may be just sending 'signals' to prepare others."
"But then why Eren- why of all peoples, the founding titan sent that 'signal' to Eren." Annie asks the question.
"Eren! Yeah...Why him?" Reiner also asks puzzled.
"Because Eren is special." Bertholdt replied, "Haven't you guys seen enough, what kind of person he is, stubborn, he doesn't give up and on the top most- he hate the titans most, he didn't fear them." Bertholdt spots out the major points of Eren, to which both Annie and Reiner have realization on their face.
"Eren, whenever he talks about titans, the look in his eyes is full of hatred, it sometimes even unsettled me." Reiner said with some discomfort in his voice.
"You are right, he does hate the titans to the bones." Annie also afirmed.
"Well, whatever it is, now we have to decide what should be our next action, should we eliminate Eren?" Bertholdt gives his own suggestion, talking about eliminating Eren like he didn't know him for three years.
"No! We can't make any movement for now." Hearing Bertholdt talking about eliminating Eren, Annie instantly rejects the idea.
"Just some more time and we will be admitted into the militiary, than we will be able to search for the founding titan,"
"If we expose ourselves now, then the past years of planning will go to waste."
"You are right." Reiner nodded heavily and said in a serious tone. "What we should focus on now is why the founding titan made Eren dream of beast titan?"
'The dream of Eren' - after almost five years, it was the first sign of the founding titan presence, that they have found, to which all three of them attach great emphasis to it.
After a few more minutes of discussion and making plans for the future, they stop and disperse, carefully avoiding being noticed, they return to the camp.
After Annie arrives at the camp, she finds Eren playing in ice with Armin and Mikasa and others.
"Huh" with a shout Eren throws a snow ball at Yumir, who easily dodges it.
"Thwak"
Suddenly a ice ball arrives and struck Eren in the head.
Confused, Eren looks back and sees Historia, laughing and with another ice ball in her hand ready to throw it at him.
looking at the happy faces of others, cold emptiness bites at Annie's heart, her face turning frosty.
"Huff"
Exhaling deeply, mist blowing out of her mouth, Annie snuffed the turbulent emotions in her mind.
Just then.
"Annie!!"
Historia, who has noticed her, calls out, gesturing with her hand, inviting Annie to also come and join them in playing with ice.
With a blank mind, and an empty heart, Annie walks towards them with heavy steps, leaving behind the cold depressions on ice.