Chapter 1: Her

Levi knew there was something special about her the first time he saw her in the field. She flew through the air on her 3Dmg as if it were an extension of her body. She instinctively knew what angles would send her flying in what direction and knew exactly where obstacles laid in relation to her own body. When she had first vaulted off of her horse at the 10 meter class titan Levi had cursed her under his breath. Her grappling line had landed directly in the titan's chest and he was certain it would grab it or her when she landed on her target. But instead of launching herself onto the titan's chest she swung under its legs, her green cloak dragging across the ground as she swung too far out of reach for the titan to grab her.

Most soldiers even after becoming accustomed to the gear still relied on the lines too much, unwilling to retract a line before their other one made contact or unless they had plenty of room to fall freely. But she retracted her line the moment she was past the lowest point of her swing. And for one horrifying moment she was in free fall, flying parallel to the ground not a full meter above it. Her second line shot out and pierced the titan's back, pulling her directly towards its neck and in a flash she chopped into its nape, striking twice to get the cut deep enough to bring it down.

The titan crashed to the ground and she leapt off casually, running gracefully to her horse and leaping effortlessly into the saddle. Levi's eyes followed her thin frame as she rejoined Hange's squad, his eyes narrowing in annoyance at the overly enthusiastic squad leader's whoops of celebration at the returning member of their squad. Levi hadn't seen the girl before and he wondered where Hange had pulled her from. Although never one to be overly interested in new recruits, Levi usually kept an eye out for those who displayed special talent. All he could think of was that this must have been a fluke and she had gotten lucky. Shaking his head Levi turned his attention back to his surroundings and his own squad. They were nearing wall Rose and it was possible they would run into more titans upon their return to Trost district. For now he filed away his curiosity for a later date.

Milcah stared wide eyed up at the sky that stretched around them for miles before lowering them to accept the darkness of the tunnel that led back into wall Rose. Her heart was still pounding hard in her chest as they returned and she could hardly believe she had made it back alive. Her squad leader Hange was babbling excitedly about the different titans they had encountered in their short expedition beyond Rose and Milcah couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. Her leader's creativity and excitement helped take the edge off of the adrenaline which still pumped through her body and the groans of the wounded from the wagons behind them. Fortunately the trip had taken minimal casualties and Milcah thought it could be considered a successful first trip beyond the wall as a member of the Survey Corps.

It had been hard to go outside again, the last times she had been beyond the safety of Rose she had been fleeing for her life. Milcah quickly shoved those thoughts out of her mind, intent on not dwelling on them today. Instead she rode contentedly behind Hange and among her other squad members who were congratulating her on her impressive first kill. Milcah tuned them out suddenly as he sidled up next to Hange and they engaged in their usual banter; him stoically and perpetually annoyed and Hange ignoring his pessimistic demeanor. Her eyes burrowed into the back of Lance Corporal Levi's head, appraising his strong shoulders and agile frame. Much to her surprise Levi turned his head and caught her gaze out of the corner of his eye. Milcah quickly glanced away, hoping she hadn't been found staring at him. By the time she worked up the courage to look back at him he had returned to conversing with Hange and Milcah let out a relieved but bewildered sigh.

Levi had never noticed her before today and she couldn't decide from his glance whether he had come to remember her or not. Before today she had been invisible to him for months even though she had tried her hardest to be noticed by him. It was true Milcah's ranking in her graduating class from the 102nd Trainees Squad was only in the 12th position, due to her lower strength and hand to hand combat skills, Milcah had hoped that her skill with the 3Dmg would have gotten his attention. She had been recruited into Hange's squad for over a month now and despite their squad's close affiliation, he had yet to look at her once. It was hard to believe that someone who had once inspired her so much had no idea who she was or that she even existed at all.

Levi could practically feel the girl's glance return to him after he had looked away and he struggled to contain an exasperated sigh. He knew that he was often a focal point of wonder and admiration for the new recruits, at least before they found out about his shitty attitude. Levi's eyes widened in disbelief as he heard familiar giggling come from behind him and swiveled in his saddle to see Petra chatting amicably with the new recruit. Petra smiled up at him before her face crumpled into confusion at his scandalized expression; it was clearly not their first time talking. Turning back around, Levi clicked his tongue in annoyance, ready for an overdue shower.

Milcah dropped onto her bunk the moment they all entered the HQ barracks, her entire body ached from riding for hours without rest. The only thing that got her up again was the putrid stench of her own body and the knowledge that if she kept laying here the smell would never come off of her sheets. Dragging herself up she slipped out of her 3Dmg and stumbled out of the barracks and towards the showers, gingerly stripping out of her clothing and plunging into the cold water of the showers which shocked her body into greater alertness. The showers were full of women cleaning off after the expedition outside of Rose. Quickly unbraiding her long braid Milcah let the hair fall down her back in a long sheet. She normally kept it braided and wrapped around her head to keep it out of the way of her 3Dmg. Massaging her skull she enjoyed the feeling of it being released from her braid. Milcah let out a sigh of relief as the grime that coated her body slowly washed away.

Turning off the shower all too soon she stepped out and began squeezing water out of her long ashy brown hair and wrapped a towel around herself. Before Milcah could take a step to grab her clothes, Hange barged into the showers excitedly.

"Milcah!" She exclaimed excitedly, grabbing the girl's hand and dragging her out of the room at breakneck speed. It was all Milcah could do to clutch the towel to her chest tightly as her squad leader dragged her across HQ into a private room. As soon as Milcah saw who was in it she turned a vibrant shade of red and felt as if she would die of embarrassment. Commander Erwin was sitting at his desk in front of them, looking at the two bemusedly.

"When I asked to hear the proposal of your subordinate immediately, Hange, I did not mean that you shouldn't give her time to put something on," he remarked casually and Hange turned and looked at Milcah as if she were seeing her for the first time, eyes widening in the sudden realization that the only thing Milcah was wearing was a towel, wrapped around her body, water still running down long bare legs.

"Milcah!" she exclaimed apologetically as Milcah attempted to look less embarrassed than she was.

"Tch," came an annoyed noise from behind them and Milcah froze as Levi moved into her field of vision, appraising Hange with an annoyed expression. "Idiot."