Time slowed down for you - you saw his arms reach for you and you tense yourself to duck, to twirl or to dodge. But his arms go around you in something like an embrace, and he tugs your body away from the edge. Time is still crawling past, and you can't move from where you are being pushed between his chest and his arms, which now enclose you.

You feel trapped, unable to move from the position you were in. You felt trapped, and angry that he had surprised you enough so that you were still startled, too startled to move...

And maybe a little bit happy? Was that what the fluttering in your stomach was? Was that what the heat in your cheeks was? You brush away those thoughts, and finally time snaps back into its correct speed.

Levi pulls you away from the edge and twists his body in such a way that he falls down to the path on the top of the wall. He lands on his back, hugging you to his chest, protecting you from the impact. And yet, even though the fall must have jarred his spine a little but he doesn't make a single noise to suggest that he's in pain, or that it hurt. You look up to where his head is, and freeze as his eyes meet yours.

"Are you alright, Y/N?"

Your name. He had said your name. Not brat, not L/N, but Y/N.

"That's miss L/N to you," you whisper, remembering his sassy line from before when you had called him Levi. 'That's Mr Ackerman to you.' He fought a smile and rolled over to the side so that you fall from his body and onto the ground. You lie there, dazed, and meet Isabel's wide green eyes in astonishment. She's also on the floor, you realize, next to Farlan - who was peering over the edge of the wall in an emotion only described using the word mortification. You glance to your side and see Levi in the same position, glaring at something over the wall. "What in Titan's name are you doing?"

He didn't move, so you do instead, wriggling next to him and peering over the edge. At first, you spot nothing, but then you see several black figures approaching the wall far below. And by several, you meant that you could count at least fifty of the figures as they approach the wall directly below you. You understood why Levi had grabbed you now - where you had stood, perched on the edge, it would have been only too easy for the figures to look up and see you.

"Who are they?" Levi said softly, and Farlan answers immediately.

"I have no idea. They aren't exactly holding a neon sign saying 'Yeah, we're this company and we want you to try our free samples', are they?"

"I know what they are," you say, your voice blank and your eyes entirely focused on the figures. "Isabel? Do you remember our plans for this?"

"Y/N, are you kidding me? Of course I do – all of them. Which one do you mean?" Isabel asks, entirely focused on you. You nod and hold up three fingers on one hand, and she immediately starts running back to where the ivy ladder is. "I'll be there within fifteen minutes on Strawberry."

"Make it ten," you order, standing up and running along the wall. Levi and Farlan follow you, confusion dancing across their features as they begin sprinting. "I'd suggest not asking questions," you managed to say, around your pants for breaths.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Farlan said, frowning at you. "Who are they?" He pretended not to see the look full of ire on your face, ducking his head and focusing on the light sprint you were all doing.

"Your question shouldn't be 'who' are they – to ask what they are would be more accurate. Haven't you ever seen titans before?" Your voice freezes and the boys glance at each other before turning their attention to you. "They have black cloaks and they had a wagon behind their main party - they use it to transport their food everywhere. I thought that was common knowledge."

"Their... Food?" Farlan repeats.

You roll your eyes, keeping a very firm distance from yourself and the edge of the wall. "The dead that they've killed, or tortured, are in that wagon. You get the idea." You sprint across the wall, thanking Isabel for choosing today to take you to the wall.

"So what are we doing?" Levi shot, barely winded from the high-pace running that your light jog had turned into.

"We're going to stop the big, bad beasties." You grin, knowing that you looked like a maniac. Levi grinned back.

{Months before}

You sat in the room on the posh chair in front of the mahogany desk, waiting for the headmaster. A fire roared a few meters to the left of you. The room was dark otherwise, with the heavy curtains drawn across the long windows and the wide double doors both firmly shut behind you.

The ceiling to floor bookcases loomed far above you, with many leather backs jumping at you. In the world that you were in, you'd never had much time or respect for books, but the sheer number of the things was enough to daunt you. You sighed and looked down at your skirt, where a paper note was still laying.

'Dear Y/N L/N.

Please come to the headmaster's office today at two o'clock for a private meeting regarding your future with Survey Corps. We hope you can attend; if you fail to do so, the consequences will be severe.

The Headmaster'

You glance at the clock - five past two. You had not been late, he was. And you already knew the reason why; the smell of alcohol suffocated the room, and the drinks cabinet that you knew was hidden behind the bookcase on the far right was an immediate giveaway.

"Y/N L/N, correct?"

"Yes, sir," you respond, not jumping, not stiffening - you just carried on without showing him any move of fear.

"Do you know why you're here, Miss L/N?"

"I can probably take an accurate guess, sir, but I do not know for certain."

The man laughed, and you faintly saw his name tag glimmer in the firelight. Dot Pixis, it seemed, was a very alcoholic headmaster. "You amuse me, Miss L/N. What would be your guess?"

"Well, the time of the meeting - two o'clock. Everyone else is in lessons, and all the teachers that aren't teaching at this very moment have all gone for their lunch break in the staff room, which is on the other side of the school. That was my first clue - you do not want this meeting overheard, Mr Pixis. You have also disabled the five different cameras that are hidden around the room, all of which I spotted immediately," you said, loving the slight look of shock on your headmaster's face, "and so you what you really want is to make it seem as though this entire meeting does not exist, not even to your fellow staff. That means that you aren't giving me an official warning or expelling me, because you would need the video records of that to prove that you had done it. It's not Monday, so I am not being chosen to be the murderer for this Friday activity, and so that really only leaves one option."

"And what is that?"

"You want to make an unofficial request about the titans. You have my specific file hidden between the two books behind you, meaning that you want someone with my skills at assassination, and not some other kid who only just learnt which end of the dagger to hold. And," you continued, "that file means that you know my past, something only very few people know. And that means you want someone with my expertise on titans. If you put all of these factors together, the reason for this meeting becomes quite clear. You want to make an unofficial request regarding titans. Am I correct?"

Dot Pixis looks at you for a while, and then he smiles. "Amazing. Your file wasn't lying when it said that you were the best."

"No. My file does not lie about most things, apparently."

"So it seems. You are quite correct, Miss L/N. I want to tell you something."

You inclined your head, narrowing your eyes at the man. His bald head was leaning back in his expensive chair, and his clothes were rough and dirty - if you looked carefully, you could spot spills and stains of past drinks that would never wash out. "If the titans ever attack - and they will," he said, slowly, quietly, "I want you to judge the situation. You're the best, your file says. You agree with that statement, obviously. If you want to go far, you're going to need the first-hand experience. I want you to get out in the front lines, ignoring all other authorities if they claim that you're too young or too inexperienced. I want you to assess the situation and then direct the rest of the school into the formation that they need to be."

You leaned back in your chair. "Why me? Why not some third year prodigy?"

"Because you're better. There are some second years who I considered, but they have jobs and obligations elsewhere." Pixis's eyes sparkled, and you knew instantly that there was an inside joke somewhere there. "But, as good as they'd be- they don't have your past."

"Lucky them," you had smirked. "Not many people would want to have my past."

"No," he agreed, "they would not."

"Why would you trust me with the fate of the school? Why would you trust me and not the authorities? Why trust me to kill the titans?"

"Because the students are more loyal to you than they are to the teachers. I've taught them never to get close to teachers by having them murder one every Friday night. They have more loyalty to you than they have to the teachers, or the military authority. If the titans attack, they'll follow you. And, as to why I trust you to kill the titans..."

He faded off, looking you straight in the eyes. You didn't flinch, didn't look away. You met his stare right on.

"There is no one in this school, I think, who hates those titans more than you. There is no one who has the right to destroy them as much as you."

You nod as he continues. "You will prepare strategies and formations on your own. Do not fail."

You stood up, brushing off your skirt and walked slowly to the bookcase that you knew concealed the booze. The headmaster merely watched you as you swung it open, and grabbed one of the many bottles off the shelves that the bookcase had concealed. "What are you doing?"

You set the bottle on the desk next to him as you walk towards the door. "That's the one that has been poisoned. Its scent is dominating the room's air, and that's why you've been having headaches for so long. I'd kill the person who gave it to you, if I were you."

"How did you know that I've been having headaches?"

You look over to where several shelves were, and point towards the medicines. "All of those medicines have one thing in common. They all treat headaches."

And with that, you walked out of the room into fresh air, smiling at the man behind the desk because his expression was priceless.

In the end, you had done one thing wrong since that day. You had tried to prepare strategies in your room once all of the lights went out, but all of them were too difficult... Difficult in that they often required you to be in two places at once. So to keep it brief, you had disobeyed Pixis and had recruited Isabel to be your second. She knew all of your strategies off by heart - codes, which were graded by the number. There was one, two and three, as well as ten. You felt better knowing that Isabel was helping you.

You ran along the wall, the sun beating down from high in the sky - it must be midday. This plan required you to get to the gates, the only place where the titans could get in without climbing the wall. You had already looked them over, and they had lacked the necessary equipment to do any such climbing.

So that meant their target was the gate.

It wasn't as though the gate was unprepared – but the guards posted there were fools, and cowardly fools. They were only meant to live long enough to sound the alarm and alert the school.

So the gate was virtually unprotected and unprepared.

You could see the gate in question; it was now directly below you. There were steps leading from the top of the wall down to the bottom, so you raced down as fast as you could without falling. You skidded to a halt just outside of the gate, where you scanned the immediate defences such as the locks and cameras were still intact. Farlan and Levi panted behind you.

"W-what are we doing?" Farlan said, tugging the collar of his shirt away from his neck in an attempt to cool himself down. An idea struck you.

"Alright, Farlan, here's what you're going to do." Farlan muttered something regarding the lack of proper answers you were giving him, but you hardly cared right now. "How's your aim with a bow and arrow?"

"Erm –"

"Oh, that's right," you remembered, whirling around to the gate. "You're a swordsman, not a bowman."

"W-wait! How would you know that?" Farlan said, looking at you as though he was seeing you for the first time.

"When you took my hands," you hurriedly said, "I felt the blisters on your hands - in all the places that a sword would go."

Farlan and Levi shared a glance, and you marched up to Levi. "Levi, you claim that you're amazing at everything."

"Yes, what about it?"

"Great. We just have to wait for Isabel to get back. She should be back in two minutes at the most."

"It's not great, brat, if Farlan and I have no clue what we're doing!"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" You said softly, looking them both in the eyes. "We're going to hold off the titans. There are only forty three, and most of them are females who can't fight. Levi, you and Isabel are going to team up and cover Farlan and me with bows and arrows, whilst we'll have swords. Farlan, you'll be on horseback and you'll circle around the entire party to herd them closer to me, and then we'll knock them all down. No killing - Levi, I want you aiming for the least vital parts. Like their arms, or feet. Farlan, knocking them on their heads should knock them out. If you have to kill, don't hesitate, but don't aim for that outcome. Is that understood?"

Both boys looked shocked, but Levi was the first to snap out of it. "Brat, are you allowed to do this?"

You reach into your pocket and drew out a badge that you carried everywhere. "Hell, of course I am. This is Dot Pixis's seal badge."

"Then it's understood." Levi said, turning to where Isabel was flying towards you on her horse. She leaped down with her arms full of weapons. You tossed Farlan a long sword, and swiped the air in front of you with the katana.

"Thanks, Isabel," you said. "Levi's in your team. Climb back up the wall now, and complete code three. When I make the sign, join Farlan and I with swords. Also alert the officials, while you're at it."

"Okay, Y/N," she panted, watching Levi climb back up the stairs with a full quiver of arrows and a bow clutched in his hand. "Good luck, don't die!"

You laughed, and hugged her hard. "There's no way that I'll die when I still have to kill you for getting me up early!"

"That's the spirit - wait, WHAT?"

You and Farlan neared the gates, Farlan perched on Strawberry's back and looking down at you. You smile through the gaps in the gate, watching as the black cloaked titans neared closer, and closer.

"Is that a little girl I see?" A voice said, and your blood chilled through the vicious sound of it.

"And a little boy, on that horse. But he has meat on him... Lovely meat..."

You held your sword and swung it up to point it at them. "Are you sure that you want to attack us?" You called with your voice strong and defiant. Farlan grinned from where he was, and you could feel his laughter even though you couldn't see it.

"Quite sure, little girl. We need more food, and your body looks delicious. Yes, very sure!" The rest of the black cloaked people laughed, and you smiled as you flicked a button on the wall to the left of you, which made the gates swing open.

"Fine. Just remember that you chose your fate when I offered a better choice - to leave us alone."

"And why would we leave you alone, little girl?"

You felt your face grin, and knew that you looked quite mad. "Because this little girl is capable of murder."

As soon as Farlan kicked Strawberry's sides and the horse cantered past you, you lightly stepped away from the gates. You heard the slight click of the gates closing behind you and knew that it would be okay, now.

The titans who had spoken to you glanced wearily at each other before grinning at you. They were still grinning as you sliced their heads from their necks, the smiles forever frozen on the faces that rolled in the dirt. The titan gathering behind them took a breath in as there was a beat of silence.

You smiled and began your dance. The world seemed to pause as you ducked a sword that appeared there, a dagger swiping for your legs. Here, your mind seemed to be at peace.

That was very odd sounding, as you danced through the bodies everywhere with your daggers in your hands, an eternal dance of destruction. Silver flashed everywhere but you hardly cared as you ducked and dodged and twisted, hitting out with your hands and legs. Landing powerful kicks and blows was just a sequence, as ordinary to you as breathing. Thinking of breathing, your breaths came faster and deeper now, and you made yourself move slower so that you could prolong the whirlwind of hatred and power that you had become.

In between blows and the falls of the titans around you, you could hear hooves and arrows flying above your head, proof that although it felt like it, you weren't fighting alone. Yells and screams were echoing in your ears, but you blocked those useless sounds out and focused entirely on listening for the swish of a weapon, and the stomps of the footsteps. Not many of the titans had weapons – as you had noted before, they had mostly been females without such finery. It made it easier for you to make sure that your dagger handles found their way to the right places to their temples, to their weak points.

Black cloaks fluttered around you, and you froze when you realized that, somehow...

You had beaten them all.

All of the black cloaked people lay around you in heaps, not moving but still breathing. You panted from where you stood, and you slowly gathered your wits from where they had been discarded in your attacks.

You were still gripping your daggers by their blades, and they had sliced your palms from the intensity in which you had gripped them. Whilst one would call you stupid for fighting with just the handles, you hadn't wanted to kill anyone of them, and by merely knocking them on their skulls with just the right amount of pressure, you hadn't killed a single one of the disgusting creatures – you hoped. Dealing damage to the skull was always dangerous, and there was no attack that came without risk.

You slid your daggers back into your weapons belt, and you glanced up. Farlan still sat astride Strawberry, and it only took a few seconds for you to realize that he hadn't touched his swords - at all. They were still in the scabbards at his side.

"Y/N..." He said in amazement, looking at you with an emotion that you were surprised to see in his eyes - fear and envy. "How did you move like that?"

"Move like what?"

"Move like… That. It was - you were..."

"I know what I am," you said, anger now creeping up on you. "But what are you, Farlan? You left me to do all of this alone? It wasn't hard for me, as you probably saw, but I could have gotten hurt."

"I would have helped you!" Farlan shouted, slipping off Strawberry and walking up to you. You didn't move as he approached, within touching distance. "I would have," he said again, gentleness now creeping up in his voice, "but they wouldn't let me."

"They? Who are they?" You asked.

"They as in Levi. Every time I tried to get close to you, he'd fire an arrow at me."

That sounded right - you remembered hearing arrows during the fight, but none of the bodies surrounding you had a single arrow wound. "Why the hell would he do that?"

"I don't know," Farlan whispered, agitation clear on his features. "I'm sorry, Y/N."

You turned to survey the wall again. You had travelled a few hundred meters from where you had started at the gate, and now stood on the grassy fields. If you squinted, you could see two people approaching you - and you had half a mind to kill one of them.

"Y/N!" Isabel was yelling, waving her bow at you. She sprinted the remaining distance and hugged you furiously, giving you plenty of time to see that she still had a full quiver - she hadn't fired a single shot. You tapped her shoulder and she finally stepped back, beaming at you. "That was awesome, as always. You've been practicing, haven't you? You weren't that bad-ass last time you had a go at those creepy dummy things."

"I'm always practicing, Isabel," you sighed, "because then at least I can fight forty enemies at once without getting a single ounce of help."

The sarcasm in your tone alerted Levi's attention, and he glared at you - as per usual. "You were doing just fine by yourself."

"I know that!" You yelled, punching him on the arm. "But it would have been nice to know that you were helping so that I didn't get carried away!"

"Oh? And that," he spat as he gestured to the circles of unconscious bodies surrounding you, "is not getting carried away?"

"No, it is not!" You yelled, and Isabel grabbed your hand before you could punch him again. "If I got carried away, I'd still be in my blood frenzy, and I'd start killing them without even realizing what I was doing!"

"Tch," Levi scoffed, pinching the bridge of his nose in derisiveness. "That would never happen. Stop being dramatic."

"That would never happen, would it?" You repeated, a deadly calm freezing your body.

"Y/N," Isabel said, gripping your hand tighter.

"Then, Levi - if it would never happen, perhaps you'd like to –"

"Y/N!" Isabel shrieked, swinging your hand around and pulling you away from Levi. "That's enough." She whimpered in your ear. "Telling him about... Your ability to lose control in a fight... It wouldn't be useful information for him to know. Calm down."

You breathed deeply, and after a while you nodded to Isabel. "Thank you."

"No problem."

Standing up straighter, you turn back to where the boys were waiting in silence. "Alright, see what their wagon has."

Farlan turned without hesitation towards the wagon, and Levi followed in a surly silence. They ripped the blanket off, and you only had to wait a few seconds to hear their yell.

"They've got people on here!"

"I know that," you said, although a shiver of disgust wrapped itself up your spine, "I told you that they had their food on that wagon. Throw the remains out; we'll bury them later."

"No, they've got live people on here!"

That was enough to send you sprinting towards the wagon. It wasn't far, only a few meters away, but you still felt sick. Were they alright, or had the titans hurt them? Were they actually titans themselves in disguise? You had no idea.

But when you reached it and peered in, you could just make out three silhouettes around your height in the doorway. A frightened but loud voice rings out from the dark confines of the wagon. "S - stay back! I have a knife, and I'll u-use it if I h-have to!"

You sigh, even as amazement dispelled the disgust you had felt. "Please, kid, you're safe."

"Liar!" The voice rings out again. "You're just another titan, trying to have some fun before you kill us and eat us!"

"Kid," you say with enough ire to make Isabel flinch, and step back to show them the pile of titans on the ground. "I've just taken down the entire titan party that kidnapped you. If I were a titan, why would I do that?"

"Titans are stupid. What they do never makes any sense."

You blinked and smiled. Maybe you liked this person. "That's true, I can't argue. Just keep holding that knife and come out. We're going to get you to a safer place."

Slowly and carefully, a boy climbed out of the wagon. He was around Y/A years old, with brown hair and teal eyes that were darkened with anger and fright. The hand that was holding the knife, surprisingly, was steady and sure - he knew what he was doing, with his grip correct. He faced you from where you had backed away to allow him space, with Isabel, Farlan and Levi behind you. The boy that climbed out of the wagon after him, however, was most definitely not like the first; the knife that he gripped tightly was at an awkward angle, and he held it so that if he tripped, he'd impale himself. Fear danced in his ice blue eyes, but you knew immediately that he was smart. Unrivaled intelligence shone within the blue orbs, and you couldn't help but remember Erwin Smith. This kid was much like him... But with less eccentric eyebrows.

And then came out the girl. She was beautiful, even though dirt was on every part of her body. Her hair was a glossy black even through the layer of dirt, and it reached just past her shoulders. Her face was pointed and a creamy white; her eyes were often on the boy with the green eyes.

"Who are you?" The green eyed boy asked, the knife still pointed at you.

"My name is not important, kid." You said, turning back towards the gate. Isabel was already perched on Strawberry and was slowly trotting back with Farlan and Levi at her side. "Follow us."

"My name is Eren, not kid," the boy - Eren - sneered, unwillingly following you with the girl hard on his heels. "And I want to know where we're going!"

You fixed a gaze that was as hard as diamonds. "And I want to know the ultimate secret to destroying titans. Do you ever stop asking questions?"

"No," the girl said, her voice soft but with a twinge of amusement. "He never shuts up."

"M-Mikasa!" Eren yelled, a faint blush appearing on his cheeks. "You may be my sister, but that does not give you the right to say those things!"

Ah, you thought as you continued to walk to the gates. So Mikasa and Eren were related... Not that they looked anything alike. That left the blond boy, who was nervously trailing after you.

"I - I would also like to know where we are going..." The blond boy said softly as you passed through the gates. You flicked the button again, and the gates jammed closed, leaving the countless number of titans beyond.

Horse's hooves alerted you to other people's presence. The officials – actual trained guards, which were a rarity in your school – dismounted from their steeds as they took in the sight of forty unconscious titans beyond the gate. One of them gave you a nod and began talking to the others. You heard words like 'wagon' and 'get them away' before you dismissed them. You'd done your duty and now they'd do theirs.

You turned to where Isabel was now waiting with Farlan and Levi all on top of their horses, with Skira waiting behind them - Isabel must have cantered ahead to lead all of the horses to here. The bushed around the gates whispered, and you almost could have sworn that there was someone there - but then Eren claimed your attention again by tugging on your sleeve for an answer.

"'We're going to see someone who has the power to give you safety," you said, exasperation creeping up onto your voice. "Is that enough information for you?"

"Not really," the blond boy said, causing Eren to turn and grab his hand.

"Calm down, Armin. This place can't be worse than being in the wagon waiting for the titans to eat us alive." At this, your eyes met Levi's, and your lips unwillingly curled into a smile. This place could be infinitely worse than that - this place teaches you to torture and to kill people. It teaches you to kill your soul, which can be way worse than death itself.

Apparently, Levi thought this humorous as well, as his mouth quirked at the corners. You both looked away quickly, and you climbed onto Skira. "Well, the way that I see it, you can either go back out there," you gestured out to the mass of titan bodies, 'or follow us in here and have a decent chance at living. But just know that they'll be waking up soon."

Eren looked sure as he climbed up on Strawberry behind Isabel, and he glared at Armin until he climbed behind Farlan. Mikasa was already seated behind you on Skira, her arms gently circling your waist to secure herself.

Levi lead the party with his stallion, with Farlan close behind with Armin clutching him. You caught his 'help me' gaze before you grinned and saluted him as you followed with Isabel beside you.

"So, what are your names?" Eren asked, pretending to not see the dramatic eye roll that you and Isabel gave each other.

"I'm Isabel Magnolia!" Isabel said, making the peace sign with her fingers and winking at the boy. He beamed at her before looking at you eagerly.

"Y/N L/N," you said, without any of the bravado that Isabel had shown. Mikasa laughed silently, and you could only tell because you could feel her body shaking behind yours. "And just a heads up, the person who we're going to see is Dot Pixis, and he's a raging alcoholic."

"And he's said to be insane," Isabel chipped in.

"Rumour has it that he's killed people after they hid his favourite brandy." You chirped, enjoying the look of fear settling on Eren's face.

"His office is a maze of traps that are all designed to kill."

"He's said to be one of the best assassins in the world."

"I thought that he often kills people if they wake him from his afternoon nap."

"And he's just about your only hope if you want to be safe here," you finally said, grinning at nothing in particular.

"WHAT TYPE OF PLACE IS THIS?" Eren yelled, and Mikasa tightened her arms around you as Skira began galloping down the hill road, which lead straight to the manor. You passed several groups of students just lazing around in the sunshine, all of whom looked startled to see three newcomers gripping the waists of students.

"Did we not tell you?" Isabel said, twisting and looking at Eren as he furiously shook his head. "This is a top secret school, and we're the students."

"What do they teach?" Mikasa finally said.

You and Isabel glanced at each other, a gesture going unmissed by the girl's sharp eyes. "This is Survey Corps," you finally said as you dismounted from Skira at the front of the manor. "This is the assassination academy that teaches children to kill titans so that one day we can take the world back from them."

And with that, Levi held the door open for all of you to enter, and you walked along the large corridor to the double doors at the very end, knocked twice, and waited.

Your arm stung suddenly, and before you could identify what was happening, the blackness rushed in.