Historia couldn't sleep.

She lied on one of the pews, with her head resting on a small pillow and her body covered in a short blanket that Armin supplied for her and the others. She stared at the ceiling above while the blizzard outside continued on and on. Not only was she uncomfortable from laying on wood, Historia couldn't stop thinking about meeting her father for the first time. She wondered how he would react, how he looked like, what his voice sounded like. Historia tried to paint a picture of the scene, but couldn't seem to create him in her head.

"Do I really want to meet him?" She suddenly thought. What if Armin was right, that her father would try to kill her and her friends? How would Frieda react if she never got to see Historia ever again because of it? As bad as they fought that day, Historia knew Frieda was worried sick. Eventually, Historia wondered what Frieda was doing. Then, she wondered what her mother was doing. If they cared that she was gone. Then she wondered if Petra was watching down on her from somewhere, trying to warn her. Then she wondered if Armin was trustworthy, despite him coming off as gentle and kind. Her mind just wandered.

Soon, Historia sat up. She looked over at the pew in front of hers and saw Ymir sleeping soundly on it. Armin was sleeping in the other room where there was only one small bed fit for him. Historia stood up to stretch and decided to go look out of one of the stained-glass windows to see if it was still snowing. But when she turned around, she noticed Eren sitting upright way in a corner near the exit. She went over to him as quietly as possible, tip-toeing in order to keep Ymir asleep. "Hey," Historia whispered. Eren jerked his head up after staring at the dagger in his hand for an uncertain amount of time. "Oh. Hello." He raised his voice, surprised.

"Shh!" Historia hushed him. "Why are you awake?"

Eren softened his voice and shrugged. "I can't sleep."

"We have a long day tomorrow."

"I know, but…" Eren paused.

"You aren't used to it, are you?" Historia asked.

"What?"

"Resting."

Eren shook his head. "No, it's not that… it's something else." He looked at the floor again and Historia went on her knees in front of him. "Then what is it?" She wanted to know.

"I know I said I'd go with you to Sina," he replied after a sigh. "But I've been thinking about how everything will unfold."

"You're worried." Historia smiled. "And it's okay. I've been thinking about the same thing… but if this king really is my father, then maybe I would be able to talk to him instead of fighting with him."

"Historia… he is not who you think he is," Eren spoke softly.

"Right, but…"

"What if what you're wrong?" He stopped after realizing what he was saying. "I just don't want to lose any of you… you are all I have left."

Historia frowned and understood his fear. But she believed he had nothing to worry about. "Listen, Eren. From the day we met, we've defended each other and protected each other from danger. You've saved my life more times than I could even count… and it's time I repay you for all those times. And if we work together… me, you, Ymir, and Armin… then I think we'll be fine. But you just have to trust in me." She took his hand.

"I do trust you," Eren said in a heartbeat. "I just don't trust the future."

Soon, the two teens noticed rays of colorful bright lights, coming from the stained windows. The both stood up to investigate what was out there. But it wasn't something that was simply outside: it was something in the sky. Her body suddenly filled with astonishment, Historia smiled and went to the chapel doors. Eren quickly got a hold of her hand before she could leave. "Wait! We are not allowed to leave."

Historia gave him a sly grin. "I won't go anywhere… I'll sit right outside the door. Come on, I know you want to see it too!"

"Fine," Eren whispered and tip-toed with her through the doors. Once they stepped outside together, they were met with cold air. The blizzard had been long over, and what was only left of it was an inch of snow that went up to their ankles. The sky was clear, the stars were out, and when Historia and Eren looked up they saw the green northern lights, illuminating the white earth. The snow glittered as the lights in the sky danced and wiggled.

Historia closed the chapel doors and walked into the snow alongside Eren. "It's so beautiful," she breathed, ignoring the cold.

"Wow." Eren had no words and stared at the aurora as if he never laid eyes on it before.

"I'm so glad we came out in time… Frieda and I used to watch this every winter!"

"Do you think she's watching it right now?"

"I hope so." Historia replied and decided to lay herself down on the snow, regardless of its temperature.

"You'll get sick," Eren advised. But Historia told him not to worry and to join him. So he did; he lied on the snow beside Historia and watched the lights with her. It was a much better way of viewing the lights, rather than straining their necks. For a moment, Historia felt as if she was at home again with her sister, as if all of her problems did not exist. She wondered if she should wake Ymir and Armin, but she couldn't allow herself to miss the lights. Historia turned her head to see if Eren was watching the aurora and enjoying it, but realized he was not... instead, Eren was watching her.

"What is it?" Historia asked, not thinking anything of it.

"Nothing." Eren blinked and looked back up at the sky so that she wouldn't see his face.

"Oh," she replied. Suddenly, she developed a feeling that she never felt before. It wasn't fear; it an instinct that was trying to tell her something. But she couldn't figure out what it meant.

When morning came, Ymir and Armin were already ready to make the journey to Sina, along with Historia and Eren who were standing in the snow with them. Ymir wore a heavy fur coat that Armin preserved for her, and she had put her sword in the scabbard hanging off of her waist. Armin wore the same heavy white cloak around his body, and underneath was a silky blue tunic. For Historia, Armin gave her another one of his heavy cloaks to keep her warm enough. And for Eren, Armin let him use an old sheath so that Eren wouldn't have to keep holding his dagger in his hands. Historia appreciated Armin's generosity, and wondered how he didn't end up like those other evil men she came across. "Thank you," Historia beamed at him.

"It's no problem at all!" Armin giggled after blushing slightly.

"Did you make these cloaks yourself?"

"No, they were actually my parents'. I'm not sure where they got it but… they always wore it for the winter time. These should keep us both warm, just as they kept my parents warm."

"They already do!" Historia felt the cloak with her face, and Armin giggled at her again.

"Shit." Ymir glanced at the vast, seemingly infinite field of sparkling snow. "It's going to take ages for us to walk to Sina like this." She glanced at her boots, which had sunken into the snow that reached up to her ankles. "I just hope we'll make it before it snows again."

"It is pretty bright right now." Armin looked up and saw few clouds in the sky, while the sun peeked through. "It shouldn't snow again, at least until the sun sets."

"I must say," Ymir glanced around again. "I haven't seen this much snow in a while. It really is lovely." She inhaled deeply, taking in as much freshly cold air as she could, and then let it out.

"It's my favorite time of year," Historia soon spoke her mind. "Both me and my sister's. We used to make angles in it."

"Well…it's the most annoying time of year, for me. It'll be such a pain in the ass to walk through this. But we'll have to suck it up, for you. And for this world, I guess…"

"Wait. Where is Eren?" Historia realized that her friend was not beside her anymore. She glanced around and followed his footprints left in the snow. But she didn't get too worried, for he was only a short distance away; he just remained there with his back facing the others, and his eyes were shut. Historia went up behind him, along with Armin and Ymir. "Eren, what are you doing?" she asked. He ignored her and squeezed his eyes shut a little bit more, focusing on something in particular. Maybe he's calling animals over to them, Historia thought. But why? And what kind of animals would be out here at this time?

"You might want to hurry, Eren." Ymir said, becoming a little impatient.

"Quiet," Eren whispered sternly. "Just be quiet. Don't speak."

"Fine." She folded her arms. Historia and Armin suddenly hushed Ymir, and she smirked, for she was just trying tease him. Soon came an awkward silence that didn't last very long. Historia heard the sounds of several animals running towards the little group in a distance. She squinted her eyes at what seemed like not one, not two, but four canines that were larger and taller than normal grey wolves. Ymir and Armin frowned in shock as the four huge canines arrived before Eren, while Historia couldn't help but walk towards them. They were dire wolves; something Historia never thought she'd see in her life. She'd read about them in books and knew they were rare to find in winter. Each one of the four dire wolves varied in color: one was onyx, the next one was a smoky silver, another was an icy white, and the last was a mix of all three. Each of their eyes had glowed a golden yellow, and they stood proud and tall as if they each had been leaders of their own packs. They were much higher than Eren was, and he was the tallest amongst his friends.

Historia walked up to the dire wolf with onyx fur first, and reached out her hand to pet its snout. It blinked and nuzzled its face against Historia's cheek after giving her a kiss. "I never thought I'd see one… never!" she cried.

Eren exhaled and opened his eyes, having successfully called the dire wolves over. "I knew these would help us get to Sina… so I searched, until I found them and brought them over. They are not as rare as they seem. They just like to hide during the winter," he explained.

"Thank you Eren," Historia happily gave him a quick hug and went back to petting the onyx dire wolf. "I don't know how you do it! They're so beautiful!"

"I think she likes you," Eren said, noticing how attached the canine already was to Historia.

"You think so?"

"Yes. All I did with my powers was to make them obey us. Since they are dire wolves, they still have their own temperaments and preferences."

"I see…I love her already," Historia replied. The black dire wolf laid on the snow and allowed Historia to climb on her back. When she stood back up, Historia had to lean forward and hold onto a chunk of fur to stay balanced. She was amazed at how high up she was from the ground.

Ymir cautiously approached the silver dire wolf. "Impressive. Very impressive. I didn't think you could do it," she told Eren and pet the silver wolf's snout.

Eren narrowed his eyebrows. "You seem to underestimate me."

"Relax, I'm just making fun. You solved our problem." Ymir grinned at him, while the silver dire wolf allowed Ymir to climb on its back.

Armin knew it was his turn to pick a wolf, but he seemed too nervous to do so. He was still at a loss for words. "Wow…" he just whispered.

"What's wrong?" Eren asked.

Armin swallowed and tried to make light of it. "Nothing… I just… never rode a giant animal like this before… perhaps I'm a bit intimidated…"

Suddenly, Eren came over and grabbed his hand. He brought Armin over to the white dire wolf. Eren made Armin put his hand on it's snout to get his scent. "She won't hurt you," Eren told Armin softly. "Just pet her."

"Okay," Armin sighed and pet the wolf's snout. Soon enough, she smothered Armin's face with kisses. "Oh, she really does like me!" He giggled.

"I told you." Eren smiled gently and soon climbed up on the multicolored dire wolf.

Once everyone was on their dire wolf, Armin decided to direct the others north where Sina would be, according to the little map that he occasionally stopped to look at. And when it was time to leave, the group of four held on to their wolf's fur to keep them from falling off. The dire wolves rushed without hesitation, each running at about twenty-three miles per hour. They jumped over every obstacle like giant rocks or fallen trees, and pushed through the snow as if it were nothing. Occasionally Historia and Eren's wolves would try to race each other to see which could go the fastest while the others had to catch up, and Historia couldn't stop laughing at how determined her wolf was. She had the time of her life sitting on her wolf; she thought that she was flying because of how fast they were moving. When they were side by side, Historia tried to wave at Eren but it proved to be a dangerous idea for her; she wasn't good at keeping balance yet. Eren just smiled and waved back at her for a moment, until he frowned again.

It had been another two hours since their last break, and already Eren's wolf was beginning to slow down. They sensed something approaching them, something sinister and possibly life threatening. Eventually, Eren's wolf began to snarl at something and the three other wolves followed along. In the distance there was a noise that sounded oddly like whistling. It grew closer and closer, until the dire wolves surrounded Historia's group as if to protect them. "Hey," Armin spoke, nervous. "Where is that howling coming from?"

"That sound, I know that sound." Eren said, feeling a little better now even though he stood with Historia's help.

"Are you making them do this?" Historia then asked.

Eren shook his head. "No. All I did was make them believe we were their owners… and I think they're protecting us from demons…"

"You've got to be kidding me." Ymir interjected.

"What kind of demons, Eren?" Historia grew worried and rubbed her arms. The wind suddenly picked up and snow surrounded them as if they were stuck in the middle of a blizzard. The whistles did not come from the wind; it sounded man-made. Eren noticed several silhouettes and he pulled Historia close to shield her from whoever, or whatever it was. Armin stood close by Ymir, who got her sword ready on the defensive. The dire wolves growled and barked and did everything they could to scare off whatever was threatening everyone.

"A-are you going to answer her, Eren?" Armin questioned, fearing what was to come.

Eren didn't seem afraid at all. It was as if he'd seen these demons before. "In this region… they appear. The Frost Spirits."

The silhouettes, all seven of them, approached the group and the wolves. They converted from hovering shadows to apparitions of people with severe frostbite on their bodies. The spirits stood at seven feet and intimidated Historia as she watched, but felt no reason to fear just yet, because they did not attack. Eren told everyone to stay behind him as he carefully stepped forward to the spirits. "Stop, what are you doing, you idiot?" Ymir cried, concerned for Eren's safety. He just ignored her and looked at the male, burly spirit standing in the middle of his squad.

"Boy," the Frost Spirit said in a deep voice that echoed. "Why have you returned?"

"I can explain." Eren looked up at him in the spirit's white eyes. "These people and I, these wolves… we mean no harm to you. We desire to reach the Land of the Failed."

"And for what?" the spirit questioned him again.

"It's urgent that we visit the king… extremely urgent."

"You know the rule, boy. Nobody crosses this region alive… not unless a sacrifice is made."

Ymir was losing her patience. "What the hell is he talking about, Eren?! Have you been here before?!" she shouted. Armin took her arm to hush her, but she shook him off.

Eren glared at her for a moment. "Ymir, shut your damn mouth."

"The last time you came to this region," the spirit began, "You were weak and afraid. We had given you one chance to escape this place and never come back. That was our only leeway. And yet you return to risk it all again. Why?"

"To save her," Eren admitted, pointing at Historia. "I'm trying to save her. We are trying to save her."

"From what? From whom? Do you really think the place past this point can rescue her?"

Historia suddenly realized something about the spirits. She ran over to where Eren was and knelt before the spirits. "If I may," she began. "Were you all once human? Were you once humans who were trying to escape and died without peace, because they abused you? That must be why you made this rule, because you are all broken. You want to be at peace, isn't it?"

The spirit frowned and glared at Historia. "You dare question our intentions?"

"I'm just saying that… you gave Eren a chance because there was good in you. And I know there is still good in you." Historia clasped her hands together and bowed her head. Eren watched what she was doing in both amazement and shock, because he had no idea how the Frost Spirits would react. Ymir and Armin watched anxiously from behind, hoping that there wouldn't be any reason for a fight to occur. Each of the dire wolves had calmed down, yet they held their guard up as they watched the demons.

"Please let us pass. And after that, we'll never cross over her again." Historia said.

The Frost Spirits looked at each other and nodded. The burly spirit sighed and told Historia to stand up. When she did, the spirit came up with an idea. Soon, he spoke down to her. "You have courage, girl. You must have grown strong, just as the boy. It is clear that you understand our existence. And for that, we won't ask a sacrifice from you. But there is a price for everything."

"What do you want?" Eren asked, although hoping it wouldn't be dangerous.

"We will bring you to The Land of the Failed. In return, you must sacrifice a part of you, or something beloved. Is that a deal?"

"Deal. I'll do it," Eren replied. But the thought of sacrificing something of his filled him with uneasiness. Everyone watched as Eren took out the dagger from his sheath, and held out his hand. "I'll do it so none of my friends have to." He faced the Frost Spirit with determination.

Historia took his shoulder and whispered, "Are you sure about this?"

Eren just took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes." He quickly put the blade against the palm of his hand and prepared himself for the incoming pain. But, before he could successfully slice a thin line down his palm, Eren's multicolored dire wolf walked past him. He paused, wondering why the wolf was suddenly interested in the spirits. The wolf closed her eyes and bowed her head until the leader of the spirits spoke.

"It seems that your dire wolf is giving herself up," the burly Frost Spirit said.

"What? That can't be." Eren tugged on the wolf's tail. "Please get back. Now." His wolf turned to him and she gave him a look which filled him with sorrow. Her glowing yellow eyes were fading back to their original colors, yet she watched him as if she was trying to tell him something; a final goodbye. "Why are you doing this?" Eren asked, putting away his weapon and grabbing a handful of her fur.

The wolf soon came over to face him. She nuzzled her face against Eren's and licked his cheek once, leaving it moist by the time she turned her back on him. She was ready to be sacrificed so that Eren and his friends wouldn't have to. Ymir, Armin, and Historia were startled when the three remaining dire wolves sat down and howled a song for Eren's wolf to hear before she went. Once she was satisfied, she began to walk away. Nearby, a thick cloud of ice and fog formed, spinning and twisting as the wind blew. The dire wolf took her time to enter it, and soon made it far enough that only a shadow of her presence was left.

"It is settled then," the spirit declared. "The dire wolf has made her decision to spare her life."

"No," Eren tried to run after the wolf, but Historia caught his arm before he could get too far. She could see how upset he was by the way he roughly pulled her away. "She didn't have to do that… why her? It was supposed to be me." Eren's voice shook.

The spirit replied, "Sometimes, you do not get a choice. You must understand that."

"It will be okay, Eren. She's in a better world now." Historia smiled, yet pitied him. "Wait," a thought rapidly broke into her mind. "Something doesn't feel right." Historia frowned and looked at all seven of the spirits. "Will you bring us to Sina now?" she asked as politely as possible.

All seven of them answered her in unison. "The price has been paid. A deal is a deal."

"Finally, we're going somewhere!" Ymir exclaimed with relief. Armin nodded and thanked the spirits for helping them. The two climbed on their dire wolves while the teens climbed on Historia's onyx dire wolf. Eren held on to Historia as he stared off into the snow below, distraught that he had to give his wolf up. The spirits raised their hands and chanted a few words in their language. Snow began to rise and spin around the group, as if a tornado was forming around them. The cyclone grew faster and faster, until the group could no longer see the seven demons known as Frost Spirits. They were within the cyclone, appearing as shadows to everyone else. Historia thought to herself again as her hair waved. "Why does this seem… familiar?"

The seven spirits threw their arms down, and just like that, the group along with their dire wolves were brought to a new place before they could blink their eyes. When the cyclone died down and the snow fell back to the ground, the clouds in the sky began to separate. Everyone looked at their surroundings, and the seven spirits were nowhere to be seen. There were ruins upon ruins around them; dead trees, burnt carriages, brick houses missing walls to them. A small chapel missing its roof and scorched black around it. Stones and pieces of metal scattered within the path.

Historia noticed a tall, defensive stone wall past a frozen river in the distance. The wall stretched out for miles around what was likely a city inside of it. Above the river was a drawbridge where people seemingly stood to guard whatever came in and out. She heard nothing but silence; there were no birds to fill it with songs. Historia climbed down from her wolf and looked around. Each object she came across poked at her brain. "I… I have been here before."

"Well, at least we didn't have to continue the long trip here." Ymir hopped off of her wolf and stretched.

Armin remained and looked around out of curiosity. "I haven't seen Sina in a long, long time."

Eren carefully climbed off of the black dire wolf and pet her. "I can't bear to look around," he whispered.

"I've been here before." Historia said, almost too loudly. Everyone looked at her as if she was being foolish. She turned to them and held her breath.

"You and I both know that's false." Ymir replied, an eyebrow raised.

Historia shook her head. "N-no, I'm serious. Everything that just happened. The Frost Spirits. Eren's wolf leaving us. Everything that was said, where we were just brought to… I've been through it before. At least, it feels like I have."

"Well," Ymir sighed. "Perhaps you're being reminded of the stories you read long ago. A coincidence."

"It all just happened so fast… how could that be?" Historia wondered.

Armin soon jumped off of his white dire wolf and walked up to the others with a determined smile on his face. "So, what's the plan for going inside the palace? We can't just walk right in." Everyone turned to him, yet Historia thought it was odd that he changed the subject out of nowhere. He seemed harmless, but for him it was quite abnormal behavior. She didn't think of it too much, though. Historia wondered if said coincidences by Ymir were true. But as everyone began to strategize a plan, she realized that everything they were saying were things she recognized. She couldn't put her finger on where, why, or how and it bothered her.

She hoped Ymir was right.