Annie Leonhart

Annie Leonhardt (アニ・レオンハート) is a member of the 104th Trainees Squad who enters the Military Police.

Along with Bertoldt and Reiner, she is a person that possesses the ability to transform into a Titan and serves an as-yet unrevealed group. She comes from a mysterious homeland outside the Walls, and was on a mission to infiltrate the military in search of something referred to as the "Coordinate". Her efforts to kidnap Eren reveal the existence of enemy agents within the military, and leads to her eventual capture.

Personality
Annie is considered to be isolated, exclusionary type and friendships don't come to her easily. She is apathetic and somnolent with little desire to put in any effort into meaningless disciplines or activities, and instead focuses exclusively on making it into the Military Police to obtain an easy life. Yet, somehow she does seem to hold some strange fascination and even feelings of respect towards people that hold a deep sense of duty and righteousness -- in those people who do care and who can devote their lives and even die for causes they believe in.

Human Form
Annie is a girl of considerably short height with a small yet lean build and toned physique. She has moderately short hair that is often tied in a bun, with her right fringe often draping over the right side of her face. She has blonde hair, blue eyes, a pronounced nose, and has pale complexion. Her hair color is noticeably paler than most other blonde-haired characters. Untied, her hair reaches down the nape of her neck. Her eyes, although of considerable size and proportion, often have a sullen vibe to its appearance. Annie's casual attire mainly consists of a hooded sweatshirt underneath a jacket accompanied by dark gray pants. She is often seen in the Training Corps uniform and then the Military Police uniform after graduation. Though Annie often wears hooded sweatshirts as part of her standard attire, she wears her signature white hooded sweatshirt as part of her standard military attire. During her missions as the Female Titan, it is implied that she always wears her ring that has a small fold-able blade on her right index finger; using it as her primary source to cause self-injury in order to transform into a her Female Titan form.

Titan Form
Annie's appearance as a Titan changes quite drastically, though her overall physique and facial features remain mostly the same. Her body consists mainly of exposed muscle, in which there is a noticeable limited amount of skin coverage across her body. Along with a massive increase in height, her face is laden with muscle lining, notably underneath her cheeks, giving her the capability to stretch her mouth far more than it seems. Compared to the majority of other Titans, Annie's Titan form seems much more physically fit and stronger, bearing a lean build with visible muscle definition.

History
Originally from the same village as Reiner Braun and Bertholdt Fubar, Annie had rigorously trained with her father ever since she was young. During a flashback, her father pleads her to forgive him, for yet unknown reasons. Thinking it may be too late, he tells Annie to treat everyone as her enemy and asks her to promise him that she will come back home.

Story
Graduating 4th, a rank below Bertholdt Fubar, Annie chose to enlist in the Military Police. When the Colossal Titan breached Wall Rose, the same way it did with Wall Maria, Annie was assigned to rear guard with Mikasa and a few of the others to help fend off the Titans as the people are evacuated to the safety of Wall Shina. She was involved in helping Jean Kirschtein and the other retake the supply unit to restock the gas canisters for their gear. While watching Titan Eren fight off the other titans, Annie overhears Jean and Reiner arguing and so she think that he may be their ally. She learns about Eren's shapeshifting ability.

During hand-to-hand combat training, Annie easily bests Eren and Reiner with a kicking technique her father taught her. Later on during dinner, she watched as he used the same technique to subdue Jean when he tried to pick a fight again. The next day, Annie and Eren were watching him as he practice hand-to-hand combat. She noticed that Jean's only taking it seriously just to pick a fight again and doesn't see anything positive from it. Annie points out something wrong in how Eren handled the kicking technique and offers to teach him the proper techniques. Soon the two titans captured for research are killed and the Military Police check the Three Dimensional Maneuver Gears from the trainees. During that time, Armin, Annie and Connie Springer discussed which military branch they want to join. When Annie reveals that she will go to the Military Police, Connie considers joining them too and asks for her opinion. Annie responds telling him that it's his decision to make, not hers. When she learns Armin plans to join the Scouting Legion, she asks him what he would do if he was ordered to die. He tells her if the reasons are good, then he'll do so. Annie thinks he's weak physically, but yet he's very strong at heart. Later we learn that she had offered Marco Bodt's 3DMG for inspection as her own, and that had prompted Armin to become suspicious of her. Ultimately during the Scouting Legion draft, Annie leaves to join the Military Police.

During the 57th Expedition of the Scouting Legion, Annie makes her first appearance in her Female Titan form as she leads a group of Titans to capture Eren, wiping out the majority of the scouts on the right side of the Scouting Legion's formation. Advancing further inside the formation, Annie encounters Armin. Although she corners Armin, recognizing his face under the hood she decides to spare his life and continues her search for Eren. Armin, Jean and Reiner join together and deduce that she aims to capture Eren, realizing that Annie may have acted upon false information as part of Erwin's plan. The three are able to deduce that it is more likely for Eren to be within the center column; the safest location in the formation.

Armin, Jean and Reiner coordinate a plan together in an attempt to distract Annie to buy the other soldiers some time to regroup, but before they are able to attack her, she is able to outmaneuver them in which she manages to incapacitate Armin. Although Jean engages her in combat, her resilience and awareness of a Titan's weakness allows her to gain the advantage as she is constantly covering the nape of her Titan form's neck. Before Annie is able to kill Jean, a bloodied Armin attempts to distract her by refering to Eren by the nickname of "suicidal bastard" while falsely claiming his death. This causes Annie to halt her movements in state of hesitation and confusion, allowing Jean the time to escape just as Reiner attempts to attack her. Annie manages to catch Reiner in mid-air, holding him up to her ear, and seemingly crushes him. Much to Jean and Armin's surprise, Reiner breaks free and manages to come to Armin's aid leaving Annie as she sat motionless. Just as the trio attempt to flee, Annie begins to head in the direction of the Scouting Legion's center column formation, in which Armin deduced that Annie may have learned of Eren's position in the formation.

Annie continues to head in the direction of Eren's location, coming across various soldiers of the Scouting Legion, killing them in various brutal ways. Though the formation heads into the Forest of Giant Trees, Annie follows suit and eventually catches up to Eren and the Special Operations Squad as they are attempting to flee on horseback. Annie is eventually lured into a trap in which her movements were halted by artillery fire armed with harpoons. This causes Annie to temporarily halt her pursuit as Erwin and members of the Scouting Legion attempt to damage her hands in various ways with the intention of pulling her out of her Titan form. Constant provocations by Levi caused her to let out a roar which caused multiple Deviant Type Titans to converge on her position. Much to Erwin's surprise, the roar was intended to provoke the Titans to devour her Female Titan form, thus causing Annie to escape from her Titan form undetected via use of her 3D Maneuver Gear. Just as Erwin orders all personnel to retreat, Annie later dons a Scouting Legion cloak as a form of disguise, signaling a green flare so as to lure Eren and the Special Operations Squad towards her direction.

As Annie meets up with the group, she is mistaken for Levi though not for long, as Gunter questions her identity. Annie makes quick work of Gunter, killing him using her blades. As Eren and the Special Operations Squad continue to flee, Annie transforms into the Female Titan for a second time, thus continuing her pursuit to capture Eren. Although Eren initially wishes to engage her in his Rogue Titan form, the Special Operations Squad manage to convince him to put his faith in them as they begin to engage Annie in combat. Although seemingly gaining the advantage to the point of injuring her and cornering her onto a tree, the Special Operations Squad are suddenly outsmarted by Annie as she displays her ability of selective regeneration and her ability to generate a crystalline substance to protect her nape.

Annie systematically kills Erd, Petra and Auruo, causing Eren to turn back and finally engage her in his Rogue Titan form. The two engage in a brutal fight, at which point Annie succeeds in incapacitating Eren's Rogue Titan form with her signature kick. Tired and exhausted from the battle, Eren is captured by Annie by keeping him inside the mouth of her Female Titan form. Although Annie begins to flee, Mikasa gives chase while continuously attacking her in a fit of rage after having witnessed Eren's capture by her Female Titan form. Mikasa is then joined by Levi, with the two working together to wound Annie as she continues to flee. Though Annie attempts to fight back, she begins to get overwhelmed by the barrage of attacks inflicted by the two, allowing Levi to incapacitate her while gaining the chance to slice her Titan form's mouth and rescue Eren from within. As Mikasa and Levi decide to retreat with the unconscious Eren, Levi witnesses Annie's Female Titan form as it sat motionless while crying. It is assumed that Annie returned to the Military Police after the incident.

Annie awakens in her room in the Stohess District of Wall Shina. Her hair is depicted as having the same appearance as the Female Titan's when not tied up in a bun. Upon arrival with other rookie members of the Military Polic, Annie is teased by Hitch and Marlo, but a member tells them to leave her alone believing that she hasn't recovered from battle and is the only one who has real combat experience. The group is then given an assignment in which they are to guard a Scouting Legion convoy with permission to use their 3D Maneuver Gear. Soon after departing for her assignment, Armin approaches her and asks for help in hiding Eren until they can convince the king to better protect the walls. Annie reluctantly agrees whilst putting on a ring and escorts them to a place where they can hide.

When Eren and Armin attempt to convince her to join them in an underground passageway, she refuses for supposedly feeling frightened, all while expressing her suspicion towards their plan. As Eren and Armin continue to plea for Annie to join them and prove herself innocent, Mikasa, growing tired of their discussion, takes off her hood and draws out her blades while revealing her 3D Maneuver Gear. She openly refers to Annie as the Female Titan, taunting her to fight just as two had fought before. Their suspicion is confirmed when Annie noticeably smiles in relief and acceptance of their discovery of her identity as the Female Titan; further proven by her refusal to enter the passage, where she cannot transform. Annie praises Armin's efforts for betting on his plan, declaring afterwards that her gamble has only just begun. After Armin fires a signal, disguised Scouting Legion members come out of their hiding places, and restrain Annie. Seemingly captured and immobile, she still manages to flick her thumb to open a small blade hidden in her ring and wound her self, thereby allowing her to transform into her Titan form; thus killing those restraining her in the process. Now, resuming her attempts to capture Eren, Armin and Mikasa realize how desperate she is, and try to get him to fight her. Overcoming his initial hesitation, he transforms into his titan form and takes Annie on.

Annie takes flight towards the wall soon after Eren transforms. She is pursued by him, Mikasa and several Scouting Legion squads. The chase continues until Annie reaches a flat land with no buildings. Having nowhere to hook their 3DMG anchors, the Scouting Legion squads and Mikasa are forced to take a long detour, while Eren gives chase alone. Annie uses this opportunity for one last ditch attempt at capturing Eren, a brief struggle between the two of them ensues, but she fails again. After that, she continues to try and escape by scaling the wall. Armin, upon realizing that catching up with her by using 3DMG gear would be impossible, instructs titan Eren to throw Mikasa upward, towards Annie. His plan works and Mikasa reaches Annie moments before she is about to reach the top of the wall. Not hesitating in the slightest, she cuts off all of Titan Annie's fingers, leaving her struggling to hold on. Mikasa then tells her to fall down and pushes her off via the head. Eren, in his titan form, hold down the body as both the military police and the members of the Scouting Legion, cut into the flesh and try to extract Annie. Upon extracting Annie from the titan body, they find out Annie is completely enclosed inside a (presumably indestructible) crystal.

While Annie is trapped inside the crystal, one of the Scouting Legion members tries to break the crystal to extract her, but Hanji stops him (thinking that if the crystal is destroyed, it would kill Annie) and tells both the Military Police and the rest of the Scouting Legion to take her underground and detain her. Meanwhile, Jean, who went into the town supposedly posing as Eren, learns the truth about Annie being the female titan.

Ultimately, Annie has been desperate to kidnap Eren and reasons for that remain unknown.

Abilities
Annie is one of the strongest fighters alongside Mikasa and Eren. She was ranked as one of the top 5 trainees at 4th position, implying a degree of skill in other military combat forms such as the use of 3D Gear.

Martial Arts
Annie is noteworthy for her unique fighting style, with a strong focus on minimizing the advantages of larger, stronger opponents through kicks, throws, and holds. She notes that her father taught her this style, and during their time in training together, she teaches it to Eren Yeager.

Titan Shifting
Like Eren, Annie displays an ability to transform into a 14 meter titan. She uses this form to wipe out military formations the Scouting Legion uses during their attempt to retake Wall Maria. It is unknown how Annie acquired her titan powers and how she became so proficient with using them. She is far more experienced in using her titan form compared to Eren, who had only discovered his titan powers recently. She is one of the more skilled titan shifters, sporting a variety of presumably learned powers not exhibited by any other titan shifters.

In her titan form, she is able to selectively regenerate certain parts at a much faster pace as opposed to the automatic, simultaneous regeneration of all the damaged parts. She can selectively harden parts of her skin to protect it from damage or to enhance her offensive strikes. Uniquely she can perform a shout that can attract regular titans. Unlike most titan shifters who tire to the point of collapsing, she is able to preserve stamina and is fit enough to utilize the 3DMG to kill experienced soldiers before transforming for the second time - something never seen done by any known titan shifters thus far. Upon capture and extraction, she is able to generate a cocoon of incredibly hard and durable crystal, something that no known technology can yet break into, to trap herself in so as to avoid being interrogated.

Relationships

 * Eren Yeager - During their time in training, Annie and Eren developed a mutual respect and fascination with each other. She trains him in her unique fighting style, and he is one of the few people to have managed to make her genuinely smile. When her mission required it, she ruthlessly pursued him and fought him twice. Her betrayal deeply shakes Eren.
 * Armin Arlert - She has a deep respect for Armin, recognizing his strong will and treating him well. This results in her sparing his life during her rampage, which later allows him to discover her true identity. She admits to not being sure why she didn't kill him, and is seemingly bothered by his willingness to manipulate her into a trap.
 * Mikasa Ackerman - Their interactions suggest some level of rivalry, with Annie once describing Mikasa as a "beast". This only worsens when Annie's true identity is revealed, with Mikasa aggressively confronting her and later aiding in Annie's defeat.
 * Reiner Braun and Bertholdt Fubar - Though they are accomplices, little is known about her actual relationship with them. Annie acts as a lone wolf, and her few interactions with Reiner have resulted in her acting coldly towards him. It is hinted that Bertholdt may have feelings for her. Both react with shock and anger upon learning of her capture.

Trivia

 * Annie-Chara_Design.png Episode 2 of the anime, Annie can be seen in front of the line receiving her bread rations. This scene was not visible in the manga.
 * It is implied that Annie and Mina Carolina were close friends.
 * The name "Annie" ultimately derives from the Hebrew word "grace", while "Leonhardt" means "lion-hearted" in German.
 * In Chapter 18 of the manga (Post-Trost battle clean-up), Annie found a body of an unknown soldier. Although the body had a similar hairstyle to Mina Carolina, it's face was mauled beyond recognition.
 * During the incident of 57th Expedition of the Scouting Legion, it is heavily implied that Reiner may have been the one to offer Annie the information that Eren is located on the right side of the formation, as evidenced by his initial knowledge of his supposed position. Due to Annie acting out on false information, it is highly likely that Reiner may have also relayed his newfound knowledge of Eren's true position in the formation during his encounter with Annie's Female Titan form when he was seemingly killed by her.
 * In Episode 23 of the anime, the scene in which Annie's identity as the Female Titan is exposed has been slightly altered. Instead of smiling while slowly forming a grin, she is depicted as laughing out loud as Eren, Mikasa and Armin tensely watch in silence. This change was pushed by Hajime Isayama with the intention of depicting Annie as more of an "average person" as opposed to simply being a "bad guy". The laughter is meant to convey a sense of relief on Annie part, depicting her feelings of “sadness,” “shyness,” “openness,” mixed with “guilt,” “lonesomeness,” and “fear”.