Hello, it's Chocolatelove~with a new story. This is the edited and altered version of chapter 1. Thank you so much for the reviews and favorites! Chapter 2 should be out sometime next week, so stay tuned!
As I mentioned before, this story takes place after the titans have been defeated. Mikasa, Eren and Armin are 22 years old.
Disclaimer: I do not own Shingeki no Kyojin.
CHAPTER 1:
"WE DID IT!"
The cities within the walls were deafening with boisterous cries of people who were drunk with their newly-won freedom. Christa couldn't help but smile as she stroked her horse's mane. It was the first time she had felt so eager to embark on an expedition. This time, all three military divisions were participating and would not return for months. Their goal wasn't to kill as many titans as possible, because that mission had been completed. Their ambition was to explore the world beyond the walls, to bring back knowledge of the lost land of their ancestors.
The cities within Wall Maria were crowded, for people had traveled far and wide to send the brave soldiers in dark green cloaks off into the unknown. The streets of the Shiganshina district were bustling with the troops making final preparations; checking supplies, feeding horses and loading carts.
"I still can't believe," Jean stretched his back after he had tossed his luggage into a cart. All soldiers had been permitted one leather sack containing spare toiletry, clothing and memories. "that we're finally going to see the salt water Armin's been preaching about for years. Hell, does it even exist?"
Christa shrugged good-naturedly before looking around her. There was no sight of the blond genius. "By the way, do you know where he is? I haven't seen him or Eren for a while now."
Jean pointed behind him. Christa turned around and saw a mass of unfamiliar looking soldiers. She guessed that they were Military police members, because they didn't have the determination of Scouting Legion soldiers or the diligence of Garrison members. They didn't look excited at all. In fact, preparing for the expedition had worn them out. Christa wondered how these pigs from Wall Sina would be of any help.
"He was there fifteen minutes ago with Eren." Jean frowned, craning his long neck to look beyond the Military police members behind them. All he saw was a mob of citizens who had come to cheer them on.
"We're leaving any second now." Christa said worriedly.
"I'm sure they'll come soon." Jean hoisted himself onto his horse.
Just as the tower bells rang, signaling for the soldiers to move into their formations, Eren and Armin made their sporadic appearance.
"Excuse me!"
The Military police soldiers shot them dirty looks as they grudgingly made way for Eren and Armin, who were already on their horses. Armin had a worried crease between his distant blue eyes. Eren's usual scowl was darker than usual. Christa wondered what could've made both of them so upset so early in the day.
"Sorry we're late." Armin forced a cheerful smile. "We were saying goodbye to Sasha and Connie."
"Didn't you say goodbye to them an hour ago, with us?" Jean pointed out.
Armin shrugged. "Couldn't hurt to do it again."
Christa was about to ask why he was lying; it was obvious with the constant shifting of his body and faraway look in his eyes. But her question was interrupted by the Commander's cry of "Onward!" His authorative voice carried over the cheers of the citizens and reached her ears clearly, although he was at the very front while she was near the rear. With determination and anticipation, Christa kicked her horse to a start.
The weather was in their favor. The sun peeked above the walls, its' rays leaving trails of buttery gold on the ground. The spring breeze was cool and blew her hair away from her face. The ideal weather, the exciting expedition…She should've been happy.
But for some reason, Christa couldn't help but feel uneasy as she left the walls.
…
"Into your formations!"
The Commander held out his arm to the left, the signal for the soldiers to separate and move into their respective positions. Christa waved goodbye as she and Jean headed to the right. Eren jerked the reins of his horse to go the other way while Armin followed suit. Soon the noisy clatter of carts and the thunderous thumping of over two thousand horses faded away and he had only Armin for company.
Eren's foul mood had worsened considerably. The glaringly hot sunlight made him sweaty and irritated. The bumpy ride was making his limbs ache. The dry landscape and sparse trees was making him feel anxious, even though there were no more titans left to fight. Yet he couldn't stop himself from glancing over his shoulder every now and then.
"I think you were too harsh with Mikasa." Armin said seriously as he brushed a lock of hair away from his eyes. He had forgotten to get his hair cut before the expedition; he had been too busy planning with the Commander.
Eren let out a short bark of laughter. "I was harsh?"
"Let me rephrase that." Armin said hastily. "I don't think you should've left on bad terms with Mikasa. After all, you won't be seeing her for at least a month now. Probably even longer."
"Didn't you hear what she said?" Eren clasped his reins so tightly that his scarred knuckles turned white. "She lied to me all this time. She promised me that after we won, we would go see the ocean together."
Armin noted how Eren used 'me' and not 'we'.
"And now suddenly, this morning, she told me that she wasn't going to go." Eren said bitterly. "No explanation. She told me that she had to stay. I asked her why and she replied with a load of self-righteous nonsense."
"I'm sure she has a reason," Armin said. "Mikasa always does."
"Then why didn't she tell me?" Eren exploded, his wide forest green eyes a myriad of emotions; barely contained rage, shocked betrayal, unbearable frustration and fragile hurt.
"Perhaps she's not in a position to reveal her motives." Armin murmured thoughtfully. Mikasa wasn't staying inside the walls out of her own will; she had wanted to see the ocean just as badly as they did. Someone had asked her to. But for what purpose? What could possibly more important than her childhood dream?
"Forget it, Armin." Eren snapped before abruptly pulling on the reins. With a startled neigh, his horse accelerated, leaving Armin to cough in the cloud of dust it created. Staring at Eren's rigid profile, Armin sighed tiredly.
'Somehow, you and Mikasa always manage to hurt each other.'
….
"Carla."
Mikasa stood in front of a stone cross standing at the top of a hill, under the shade of a tree. It was a place Eren and she had often visited as children, to spend lazy golden afternoons reading or taking naps, in Eren's case. The swaying grass and dense soil cushioned her knees as Mikasa knelt in front of her adoptive mother's grave. Her body wasn't actually buried; she had been swallowed alive by a titan in front of Mikasa's eyes. The cross was an honorary tombstone.
"It's been a while." Mikasa spoke softly, her words carried by the wind up to the heavens, where both sets of parents were watching her. Her mother with her tired smile and kind words. Her father with his secure hugs. Grisha with his proud smiles reserved just for her. Carla with her heart the size of a universe.
"Eren left his morning," Mikasa continued, the words bitter in her mouth. She remembered the argument they had that very morning, the ugly words they had exchanged. "You must be so proud of him. He's grown so much that sometimes I don't recognize him."
To Mikasa's dismay, Eren had several inches over her. From the arduous training, he had gained muscles. No longer could she play the older sister role, not when she had to crane her neck to look at him in the eye. No longer did she force him to eat or knock sense into him when he was being reckless. Eren had become the older brother, which bothered Mikasa. He was the one who made sure she was eating properly and wouldn't allow her to do strenuous work.
"You must be wondering why I didn't go with him." Mikasa plucked a blade of grass and rolled it between her index finger and thumb. The vibrant, dark green colour reminded her of Eren's eyes. "Commander Erwin came to me with a proposal that I couldn't refuse."
Mikasa hung her head, her dark hair veiling her face. "He offered me a mission. As long as I stayed inside the walls and protected the citizens, I would be allowed to track down the human traffickers who killed my parents. I would get my revenge."
She remembered the words Carla said to her that night, when she had first joined their household.
'Mikasa,' Carla said, placing a hand over where Mikasa's heart was. 'Hate is an ugly thing. Let go of it.'
Mikasa raised her head, her dark eyes unreadable and her expression blank. "Forgive me, Carla. But I can't."
She rose to her feet and made her way down the hill with her fists clenched tightly, feeling guiltier with every step that she took.
…..
"Mikasa. I heard the story about your parent's deaths. I'm sorry. You must have been traumatized."
"Thank you, Commander Erwin."
"You must be wondering why I called you here. I have an interesting proposal for you, one that will require you to make a difficult decision."
"What would that be?"
"In the upcoming expedition, all three military divisions are going. You know of this, yes?"
"Yes."
"Because of the greater numbers, we will be able to cover more ground. But in doing this, we sacrifice the security of humanity."
"The titan race has been eradicated, sir."
"That doesn't make us safe, Mikasa. You yourself know best that humans can be just as dangerous as the titans. You saw what they did to your parents. Now, with the titans gone and the military unavailable, what do you think is going to happen?"
"Criminals will be on the rise."
"Exactly. Human traffickers, gangs, thieves, murderers, criminals of all kinds will see this as a window of opportunity. With the military gone, there will be no one there to stop them."
"What do you plan to do, sir?"
"Here's my proposal. If you are willing to stay inside of the walls and protect the citizens, you are free to look for the human traffickers who took your parents' lives."
"I'm afraid I must decline, sir. I need to be with Eren and Armin."
"Are you afraid that they might be in danger outside of the walls?"
"Partly, yes."
"You have no need to worry, Mikasa. In fact, you would be the one in danger. Not them."
"I still must decline, sir. I haven't forgiven the murderers for what they've done, but I no longer seek revenge."
"Think not only for yourself, Mikasa. Think of the children who are at a potential risk to face the same horrors that you did. Think of the children that are being abducted and tortured by human traffickers. If you stay here, you can protect them. Think about it."
Mikasa wondered if she had made the right choice by staying in Shiganshina. Of course, for the longest time she had wanted to seek the human traffickers that had wrecked her family. But as time went by that thirst for revenge slowly faded. But it had been rekindled by Erwin's words.
Yes, she chose to stay partly because she wanted revenge. She wanted those murderers to face a death worse than her parents'. But she also chose to stay because she didn't want children to face the same fate that she did. She didn't want anyone else to feel the panic and fear she had thirteen years ago, when she was nine years old.
Aimlessly, she walked down the cobblestone streets of Shiganshina. It was late afternoon, judging by the soft orange strip of light peeking above the walls and the darkening of the sky. She should've probably gone home. But her footsteps carried her all around the city, anywhere but home. Because her home was empty without Eren and Armin.
"Mikasa!"
Her trail of thoughts was interrupted by a screaming of her name. Looking up, she saw a mountain of paper and a pair of legs speeding her way. Upon closer inspection, she concluded that the pair of legs belonged to Sasha, and she was holding a pile of cards.
"Mikasa!" Sasha repeated in a breathless pant, halting abruptly in front of her. Her chocolate brown locks spilled out of her usual ponytail cheeks puffing from exertion. "I've been looking for you all day. I heard from Armin that you weren't going on the expedition either. So take a card!"
Mikasa gingerly picked up a frilly lacy folded piece of paper from the top of the pile. "What is it?"
"It's an invitation to my wedding." Sasha beamed proudly, the happy glow of a wife-to-be radiating from her. "Will you be my maid of honor?"
Mikasa blinked at the foreign term.
"You're job will be to make sure that I don't trip on my way down the aisle and you have to hold my bouquet." Sasha picked up on the rare clueless look on Mikasa's face.
"I'm not-"
"Please?" Sasha seemed on the verge of tears. "We're best friends!"
Mikasa hadn't classified them as best friends, but they were certainly close. After all, she had saved Sasha's life several times and Sasha was one of the few people that could make her laugh. So Mikasa nodded hesitantly.
"Thank you." Sasha squealed. She would've pounced on Mikasa if it weren't for the stack of cards she was carrying. "I'll come by tomorrow to give you more details."
…
It had been a long and weary day. Mikasa felt like a zombie as she wandered aimlessly with a bag of bread in her arms down the streets of Shiganshina once more, this time at midnight. She felt unsteady on her feet from fatigue and hunger. The last time she had eaten was last night, the last meal she had with Eren and Armin. The last time she had slept for more than three hours was a week ago.
Sasha's impending marriage was still on her mind. Everyone seemed to be in love these days, preparing to marry. After all, they were adults now, at the age of twenty two. Marriage had never been something she had thought about. Eren and Armin didn't seem interested in it either, so she had figured that the three of them would grow old together.
Speaking of Eren, Mikasa was doing something that would've given him a heart attack. She was walking around alone at midnight, unarmed, to hand out bread to those whose homes had been destroyed by titan attacks. Of course, her hand-to-hand combat was lethal, but in her current fatigued state it was unreliable.
She peered into another alley and saw a few haggard looking people hunched against the grimy walls. Their weary gaze focused on her as she silently slipped in and began handing out loaves of bread. Some snatched it from her hands; some murmured their thanks and some merely smiled toothless smiles at her. The very last person she reached was an old lady crouched in the corner, covered in shabby shawls.
"What's your name, girl?" The grandmother croaked as Mikasa held out a loaf of bread to her.
Mikasa hesitated and decided not to answer.
"Listen, girl." The grandmother gripped her wrist tightly. Mikasa nearly recoiled in surprise, but the grandmother's grip was firm. One wide, dark eye peeked out from the black shawl that covered her face. "It's not safe to wander alone at night. Especially not for you, Oriental."
"I'm fine." Mikasa pried the older woman's bony fingers off her wrist before placing the bread onto her hand. "Please take this."
"Leave!" The grandmother hissed, curling her fingers around the crusty loaf. "Before they come—"
"Ho ho, what have we got here?"
Mikasa froze. The raspy voice came behind her. Three men in torn black clothing stood at the entrance of the alley, blocking any form of exit.
"A little girl all alone." The man in the centre grinned wickedly, his bleeding lips curling into a leer.
Mikasa knew that she had to drop the bag of bread and fight. Her mind was racing with instructions, devising a strategy that would use minimal energy but get the job done. But her body stayed still as the three men advanced slowly, taking their sweet time.
"What a pretty little thing you are." They were close enough that Mikasa could smell the sour stench of alcohol emanating from their breath. "We'll have lots of fun with you tonight."
All three laughed boisterously. Mikasa felt her stomach turn from nausea.
"Come here," One of them reached out to touch her face. Before she could even land a punch on the pervert she heard a familiar sound. The sound of crunching bones, a sound that she had heard often during hand-to-hand training sessions. Mikasa turned her head slowly to look at the man, whose outstretched hand was frozen in mid-air. His wide eyes rolled to the back of his head as he collapsed to the ground. Behind him were the two slumped bodies of his comrades. Who had done it?
"Ackerman."
That voice. She knew that voice very well.
"Corporal Levi." Mikasa acknowledged her superior's presence, her voice steady but quiet. She turned around fully to face her former commander. She was slightly taken aback by his appearance. Gone was his soldier uniform and replaced by a crisp white dress shirt and khaki pants, the ever-present white cravat still at his collar. Yet his expression of indifference and bored tone hadn't changed one bit. "You knocked three men unconscious."
"I'm aware, Ackerman, I'm not an idiot." Levi drawled languidly. "But evidently, you are. What are you doing, walking around at midnight?"
She glanced around her. All the homeless people who had been there previously were gone, most likely because they had seen how easily the corporal had knocked out three men in a blink of an eye.
"I was handing out bread." Mikasa felt the weight of the bag in her arms as her rigid arms regained feeling. When he opened his mouth, she interrupted quickly by saying, "Don't order me to go home. Because I won't."
"No, no, do your Good Samaritan thing." Levi brushed her comment off with a lazy wave of the hand. "That's none of my concern. What I'm wondering is why you didn't attack those men. A soldier of your skill could've decked them out with both hands tied behind your back."
Mikasa couldn't think of any excuse as to explain her sluggish reaction but didn't want to admit that she had been tired to move. Even now she was steadily growing dizzier. Casually, she placed a hand on the wall, hoping that the corporal wouldn't notice. Of course he did. He was a man who noticed every single little detail.
"You look like hell." His dark eyes studied her for a fleeting moment, taking in the dark bags under her eyes and sickly pallor of skin.
"Thank you, sir." Mikasa couldn't help the sarcasm.
"Go home, Ackerman. Rest." Levi ignored her curt tone.
"I told you, sir. I'm not going home until I've finished my daily round." Mikasa didn't know why she was being so stubborn. Clearly she was in no shape to walk around. Even one of humanity's strongest had their limits, and she had passed hers hours ago. She wondered if she was even capable of carrying herself home. She lived on the outskirts of Shiganshina, in a cottage in the woods. A good half hour's walk away. How many steps was that?
"When was the last time you slept?"
"Pardon?" Mikasa snapped out of her thoughts.
Levi sighed in irritation. "The last time you slept, Ackerman. When was it?"
"That is none of your concern, sir." Mikasa pushed herself off the wall and tried to walk as steadily and confidently as she could. Before she could pass him Levi caught her by the wrist.
"You're trying to kill yourself." He estimated that she hadn't slept or eaten for a while now, yet was running around at night to help others. Foolish girl. He contemplated on shoving a loaf of bread into her mouth, but she probably wouldn't be able to swallow it. But he couldn't let her go alone, she would collapse after a few steps. As annoying as she could be, humanity still needed Mikasa's services. Sighing internally, he made his decision. He knocked the bag of bread out of Mikasa's hands.
"What do you think you're doing—"
"Arms or back, Ackerman?" He cut her off impatiently, demanding an answer.
She blinked.
He cursed under his breath as he knelt in front of her.
"What are you doing, sir?" Mikasa sounded shocked, which was rare. Nothing ever seemed to faze the girl.
"What does it look like I'm doing, dumbass?" Levi snapped. "I'm carrying you home. Now get on."
Mikasa looked at him as if had gone mad. "I'd rather walk, sir."
"Get on before I force you to, Ackerman."
Mikasa's eyes flickered to the street. In terms of speed, she and the Corporal were pretty similar. If she could catch him off-guard and sprint for her life, how far could she get?
"Don't even try," Levi warned her. "Get on or I'll carry you in my arms."
With a moment's hesitation, Mikasa lowered herself onto his back.
"Wrap your arms around my neck. If you try to choke me I will make you regret it, Ackerman."
Damn, how had he known? Sighing, Mikasa laced her arms around his neck loosely.
"Why are you doing this?" She murmured softly.
"What, do you think that I want to do this?" Levi stood up with ease and shifted her weight on his back before walking. "I expect full reimbursement for this, Ackerman."
"Money?"
"No. I'll think of something for you to do on the way."
And so began the strange relationship between the prodigy and the Lance Corporal.
