All We Need Is Each Other

17 "More Experimentation!" -By Hange

"Alright guys, how about a little friendly competition to start us off today?" Hange is as peppy as ever. "The question I'm sure you both a dying to find out, 'Who is the strongest titan?'"

Hange brings the two of them to a remote field at the foot of a mountain range. "Ok, let's start off easy: Find a tree, and uproot it." The two complete the task as expected: without difficulty. "Ok, let's step it up a bit, shall we? Pick up that boulder, and raise it above your head."

Eren lets Annie go first. She positions herself in front of the boulder, bends her legs, puts her arms under it, and hoists it above herself in one fluid motion. Then she puts it down.

Eren saunters up to the boulder, crouches down, and grabs it in a bear hug. He then raises his arms above his head, and moves his hands so he has a better grip.

"Alright, now for the final test, let's see who can throw it the farthest." Eren gathers all of his strength and throws it a good 20 yards.

He struts away, sure that Annie can't beat his distance.

Annie walks over, picks it up, and chucks it a good 25 yards. Eren stands there with his mouth agape, shocked at her strength.

Annie returns his strut, but with even more pride. She pats him on the back as if to say, "Maybe next time."

"Well done, Annie!" Hange cheers. "For your prize, you get to be the subject of my next test!"

"How is that a prize?" Annie broods.

"Ok, we'll test the limits of your deliciously unique crystal abilities now." Hange trembles in anticipation. "Ok, show me how much of your body you can crystallize." Almost all of Annie's body slowly turns to crystal, save for her head.

"Fascinating!" Hange swoons. "Can you move?" Annie shakes her head. "I see, then it must work by super-hardening the muscle tissues. Once they become rigid, they are impossible to move."

Hange takes her sword and bashes it against Annie's arm. It bounces off as if it had hit stone. "Durability is very impressive. Makes up for the lack of mobility." Hange muses. "Eren, give it a try."

Eren walks up to her, looks her in the eyes, shrugs, and punches her straight in the abs. His fingers break and he shakes his hand. Annie decrystalizes and laughs. She grabs his hand and puts the bones back into place.

"Yeah, I think that's enough for today guys." Hange laughs nervously. "Let's get you home and let those fingers heal."