Survivors

Elle never thought of all the things she could ever find difficult, that breathing would be one of them. It was like her lungs had shrivelled up in her chest, she was holding her breath so long but still she didn't dare to take another breath. She didn't want to move or make a sound as she stood ridged in front of the desk, her skin prickled with the feel of those sharp eyes on her and her throat started to close in on her- panic was taking over- she wasn't ready for meeting him.

Levi's dark gaze never left Elle from the moment she'd entered his vision and he'd instantly recognised her, yet the odd niggle of doubt that was tugging away at him still. It forced him to double check as he carried himself with slow, cautious steps, taking in every detail that came clearer as he walked back into her line of sight.

"What did I do this time?" Came the well known voice of Niki, giving Elle the opportune moment to turn away from Levi just before he got a clear view of her face and she his. She gave him the back of her head instead while she looked to Niki with the most pressing wide eyed look she could manage, screaming at her with her eyes alone to both shut the fuck up and say something to save them.

"Can't enter normally, Niki?" Their superior, Roscoe Beech, signed. He gave a shake of his head before he continued. "As much as I'd love to watch you all stand here and squirm," he motioned to them all as Niki assessed the situation as best she could while she silently came to stand next to Elle. "I'll cut right to it!" He then nodded and the three turned their gazes back to him and never before had Elle given this man such undivided attention. "Niki Holt, Elle Hart, Martyn Wyre, you're all being transferred to the elites." He stated as he looked at each of their faces, Niki was unimpressed, Elle confused, and Martyn horrified.

"Why?" It was Martyn that questioned first, completely aghast at the idea.

"Well, considering your performance in last weeks expedition and previous track record-"

"Sir, we have nothing to do with the expedition, so why are we here?" Niki interrupted as she motioned between herself and Elle, gaining nothing more than a slow sigh from their superior and unimpressed flick of a brow from the Captain.

"Well, about that-" He started, wanting to address Niki's attitude and her audacity to interrupt him but he just wanted rid of the woman quickly and so he went on to explain. He missed as both Niki and Elle turned to shoot Martyn betrayed scowls at what they thought was about to come. "Martyn's name flagged up for obvious reasons," He motioned toward the younger man who then instantly held his hands up with a shake of his head.

"Sir, honestly, I don't deserve such an opportunity because it wasn't my doing-" He'd meant to continue but the hearty slap Elle gave him as she patted his back knocked the rest of his words out of him in a great breath.

"Still so humble Martyn!" She spoke with a cheery tone but tight grin. The smile didn't reach her eyes, instead they were set in a warning, daring him to risk his life if he continued, but she was partly thankful for the moment of distraction as it her mind brought back to keeping their involvement quiet.

"And our names?" Niki pressed, shifting her weight to rest more on one leg.

"To join the elites you have to be exceptional," He looked between Niki and Elle, noting both their brow raises, "And trust me, I pressed how unexceptional the pair of you are!" His words brought nothing more than nods of agreement form the women. "But, you've both survived more outings than most and on more than one occasion you've been the only ones to survive out of your whole group!" He spoke with a small shrug, "You are both survivors and what ever you're doing, you're doing it right, so Erwin Smith thinks you're worth an evaluation." With that he gathered three rolls of papers from his desk, holding one to Niki first. "Here are your transfer papers." He spoke, giving them to each of the three as he spoke, "From this day on, you'll be under Captain Levi's command." He motioned to the shorter male and stepped aside so he could take the floor.

Elle lowered her eyes to stare at the roll of paper in her hand, her brow creased with confusion as she thought how this moment could even be possible. All the things they hadn't done, the people they hadn't helped, the lives they didn't save just to keep a low profile and they still get noticed- for surviving?

Anger was next to start bubbling away in her, everything she'd turned a blind eye to, the countless times she didn't swoop in to try and help because it was too last minuet or too risky. The times she'd only got herself to safety and didn't go back for others because their survival rating wasn't high enough- but that didn't matter, none of it did, so long as she was invisible she continued that way, completely unnoticed so she'd never get flagged up to meet the likes of the Captain. Yet here she was, stood before the very man she'd avoided for years, blood on her hands and heartless- all those lives she'd willingly wasted was for nothing.

Levi noticed Elle hadn't met his eyes a second time and he wasn't sure what the reason for that was. Either the woman in front of him bared a striking resemblance to the one he knew, or she'd forgotten him completely. "Alright, listen up." He called for their attention, deciding now wasn't the time to be solving the mystery that had just appeared in front of him. "I'll be the one to evaluate what skills you do and do not have." His eyes finally left the familiar face to take note of the others he'd been lumped with. Levi noticed that Martyn was giving him his full attention- out of fear of course- but the auburn haired woman was looking to her friend in the corner of her eye and Levi could tell by the studying look on her face that she'd noticed something was off with her friend. "If you don't impress me you'll be back here shovelling horse shit with in the week." he crossed his arms over his chest as he studied the three and their reactions, for the most part Elle and Martyn where too busy drowning in their separate pools of shock and despair which left Niki.

"Or we could just show you what we're made of here and save the trip back?" She muttered with a roll of her eyes. Her attitude was present but her tone quiet as she was unsure on how the Captain would react, but still she tested the boundaries.

"I say when and where your skills will be tested!" He fixed those deadly eyes on her and hers narrowed in response. Niki was unsure of the dominance she was receiving, it was as if it was the first time she'd ever been challenged for it. "I also say when you can address me, so speak out of line one more time Holt." His tone was strong with both his authority and challenge, daring the auburn haired woman to talk back to him, a threat implied but not needed to be spoken, baiting her to find out what would happen.

After a suitable amount of silence as Niki struggled with herself it was the moment her eyes flicked away from Levi's to glare else where, backing down but showing him that although she didn't challenge him further this time, she would no doubt test his patience other times. "Pack your things, we leave first thing tomorrow." He clipped, throwing a quick glance over the three, watching as they all gave a nod of understanding, saluted and turned to leave. "Elle Hart?" Levi then called, pausing the woman.

Her skin prickled at the question in his tone of voice. It wasn't in the way of asking for her attention but more of the questioning of her name. With a deep breath for strength she spun back around and stood up straight, giving a salute and standing to attention. "Sir!" She replied, her eyes finding a stern, confident and concentrated stare at the wall just to the side of his head, only looking towards him but not at him.

"Oh, favourite already?" Niki scoffed from outside in the hall way and instantly the Captain's eyes flashed to her while he spoke to their former superior.

"Remove her before I contemplate leaving her here." He all but growled and with a hasty nod and salute Roscoe rushed forwards and closed the door of the office behind him much to Elle's dismay.

Silence fell after the argument outside faded away down the hall and Elle used this time to take in and list every detail she could see on the wall behind the Captain.

"My eyes are over here, or is your aim a little off?" he clipped at her, telling her he knew she was avoiding his eyes and asking for her to look at him.

Elle instantly dropped her gaze for a moment as she took in a refreshing breath- there was no escape now and no more hiding in the ranks with the rest of the plain soldiers, this was the moment she'd always avoided because no matter how much she prepared herself she'd never be ready. "My aim could be better, Sir." She spoke as she lifted her gaze to finally meet his, no shock in her eyes this time, just uncertainty.

They stood in silence for what felt like an eternity. Elle didn't know what she wanted to say and she was the one that knew this meeting could be a possibility so she could completely understand Levi's silence on the matter. "I thought you were dead." He finally found his voice and words to speak, but it was a statement rather than any question that came to him first.

"Sorry to disappoint you." She uttered in response, a small smile curling at her lips but neither of them felt any humour. "But you shouldn't be surprised, just because you haven't see someone in years doesn't mean they're dead... then again in a way I am!" She then lifted a single shoulder to give an almost carefree shrug. The person she used to be was long gone, as was her life.

"Your house was brought to the ground in ashes." Again that was a statement, but anger came to his tone- annoyed by her casual attitude.

"You came to the house?" She questioned, a look of surprise lightening her features as she regarded him. She watched as he broke eye contact and turned his head away from her and she was unsure why- was it that he felt embarrassed or stupid he'd gone all those years ago? "I'm not your responsibility, Levi, I never expected you to come for me." She shook her head gently as her gaze wandered off, unseeing as he turned back to her, his brows knotted in question.

"What happened to you?" he tilted his head a faction to observe her, seeing as she turned from him a little more when he asked her, her eyes taking on a distant gleam and face relaxing of emotions as she dropped into her own memoires for a moment before her brows creased with a light frown. The look showed that she didn't want to be looking back.

"The story is a tad long and I have to pack." Elle looked back to him with a shake of her head and again that empty smile came to her face. "If that's all, Sir, I'll make a start on packing." She motioned to the door as she managed an air of casual calm and with only the stretching silence as her approval she eventually turned and headed for the door, opening it wide and stepping free of the office.

"Eloise!" He called back for her attention but the name alone caused her blood to freeze, her body unable to take another step as she slowly looked back over her shoulder, her face carved with a deep aching hurt that came with that name.

"It's been a long time since I've heard that name." She replied, her voice feeling odd in it's unsteady weakness as the back of her eyes began to prickle.

"This isn't the end of it!" A single brow flicked up as he fixed her with a stern look while a short breathy huff of a laugh escaped her- she knew he wouldn't just drop this situation.

"I gathered." She nodded in reply before continuing on her way, her forced smile easily slipping from her face with each step she took. She felt oddly lost as to why she wanted to cry, it'd been so long since she'd shed a tear and she was sure they'd dried up but after hearing that name, her name, it was like it'd brought back a part of her she'd shut away and ignored. Eloise wasn't strong, she didn't have to be, it wasn't until everything changed that she then had too, Eloise was left behind that night she burnt her house to the ground, walking away with next to nothing as Elle.

The afternoon air greeted her like a welcoming embrace as she stepped outside. The cooling breeze calmed her burning lungs as she took the first pain free breath since she'd gotten free of the office and the Captain. Her hand came up to push her hair free of face before she then pressed the heel of her palm against her forehead to battle against the building pressure in her skull. "I was not ready for this!" She groaned, a look of pain cringing on her face. "I was never going to be either." She added at a whisper, "You're such a fucking idiot." She sighed as she hung her head and continued her dejected walk.

Why the scouts?

Again that question came to her.

Why avoid Levi?

That was another thought that came to her sometimes but she never gave it much attention and tended to ignore it and soon enough avoiding him was something she just did it and the longer it went on the more she felt she couldn't come forward.

"Hey, Elle!?" Niki's voice called through her haze of confusion and self loathing, instantly adding to the growing hate for the day.

"What?" The called woman hissed as she turned to look at her friend.

"What the hell happened back there?" The auburn haired beauty questioned with a raise of a slim brow.

"Exactly that- hell." She groaned, pulling her hand back down her face before taking another refreshing breath and looking to the transfer paper in her other hand. "What are we going to do about this now?" She questioned as she held the paper up. "Are you ready for Erwin to find out about you?"

"Oh please," Niki scoffed with a smug grin. "He'll never know about me!" She crossed her arms, fully confident in the matter, "We've hardly been pulled up because of our outstanding skills," She then rolled her eyes, "Nor have we been pulled for any fake details or past deeds!" She threw in a shrug as she spoke. "We simply had a curious pattern for survival, that's it, that's all we've been pulled for."

"If you say so." Elle sighed.

"If we keep doing what we're doing, we'll be sent back here in no time!" Niki gave a carefree smile while Elle shot her a frown.

"Letting people die?" She questioned.

"You rather take their place?" The forest eyed woman threw back. "Because if you die, then I'm going to struggle with my hobby and I'm not going back to that place just so I can keep it up!"

"Why keep it up? What do you owe Erwin?" Elle shook her head, of all the years they'd been together she never knew her reason for being a shady little kiss ass for the Commander, and she'd never really asked because it meant Niki couldn't ask about her.

"Some times there's no reasons for why we do the things we do, Elle!" She answered with a shrug and a sign.

"But there is a reason for you risking your life and mine to bring him information." Elle stated.

"Don't be so sour, we hardly do it often!" Niki waved way with a tut, before walking away, forgetting the fact she didn't get much information out of the woman regarding her little meeting with the Captain. Elle knew she'd be instantly side tracked the moment she brought up the Commander.

"I guess as long as the Commander doesn't know our faces we can scrape by." Elle then signed, the great thing about being unexceptional is no one remembers your face. Niki and herself could stride past influential characters in plain clothes one day and their uniform the next and they wouldn't even be taken any notice of.

It was how they survived.