HELLO! I will not be able to get back the 30,000 bloody words I've written, but do not worry! I am not giving up on you people and because I have been absent for so long I have made this chapter almost 2,000 words long. (PS If you have no idea what I'm talking about see the author's note at the end of the last chapter XD)
Well! That was a bit of a saga. So so sorry you had to wait like, a MONTH for this, I hope it doesn't disappoint.
I ONLY OWN SOME OF THE PLOT AND KAMOKU, NO ONE ELSE. (well, apart from 3 unnamed scouts featured in this chapter) ;)
We sat in silence.
'Tch. Don't ever judge me again.' Levi growled, rising.
'What?'
'All that 'you wouldn't understand'. Bullshit. You don't know me.'
I stared at him, thinking: he's right. I assumed he knew nothing of the pain and loss I knew, but who was I to assume that?
'No, I don't. I apologise.'
He scoffed. 'You say some kid gave you bread?' I nodded silently. 'Huh, I remember giving you that. You've changed a lot. Stables tomorrow.' He walked off into the darkness, leaving me to take in what he had just said.
The next morning was chilly, a cold breeze whipped around the castle. I made my way to the stables; no one was there. Well, I was half an hour early. I set about sweeping the floor, concentrating on only that. It was rather therapeutic… Well… As therapeutic as therapy can get with me.
'Oh, you're here.' I jumped out of my skin. Seriously, is he TRYING to give me a heart attack? I saluted,
'Morning Captain.'
He sighed. 'Let's get this over with brat.' I raised my eyebrow. Brat? What was I, five? How bemusing. I continued to sweep the floor as the captain scrubbed the walls with his bandanna and face mask. He really was obsessed, and he was REALLY repelled by dirt.
I worked for about two hours, scrubbing away every bit of dirt I saw. Levi finished his side of the stables before me, despite me getting a head start, and leant against a pillar, arms folded, while he waited. When I'd done and he'd checked my work, I decided to ask him about something that had been bothering me the whole time:
He looked sad.
'Sir?' I enquired. He glanced over at me.
'It probably isn't my place but… What's wrong?'
He immediately went on the defensive. 'Wrong? There's nothing wrong. You are dismissed you know.'
'I understand If you don't want to tell me Captain, but I don't appreciate being lied to,' I said bluntly. He frowned angrily, creases appearing around his eyes.
'What are you on about?'
'You look sad, but you told me there is nothing wrong. That makes your statement a lie,' I explained slowly. He looked a little taken aback by the statement 'you look sad'.
'Ok fine, I lied, but it's none of your business. Just… Get out of my sight!' He snapped.
'Of course, Captain,' I nodded and wandered off nonchalantly. Wow, someone isn't used to people knowing what's inside their head. I must admit, his expressions ARE hard to read, even for me. He seems extra irritated at the moment, I can tell he's not always like this by the expression on his squad's faces when he snaps at them. Hm. Maybe it's me pissing him off.
For every day of my "punishment", Levi was not happy. He was quiet and brooding, and a melancholy feeling hung in the air around him. I wracked my brain trying to think what it could be, and, on the last day, when I'd finished before him, I sat contemplating it.
'What's that face for?' I looked up at the source of the voice, who'd stopped cleaning and was glaring down at me. I realised I'd been frowning in concentration.
'I'm just thinking,' I replied.
'About what?'
I shook my head dismissively. 'You wouldn't like it.'
'Oh yeah?' He challenged. He folded his arms.
'I was just wondering why you are so unhappy at the moment.'
He scowled. 'Would you drop it already?'
'I told you you wouldn't like it.'
'Maybe it's because I'm a HUMAN with actual emotions!' He hissed. I frowned.
'Was that meant to be offensive?' I asked innocently.
He deadpanned, looking guilty. 'It's ok sir, I can't be insulted.' The Captain sighed. 'Look,' I began, 'no one else asks whether you are alright because of your unapproachable scowl, but I'm afraid it doesn't work on me.' An idea suddenly struck me as to why he could be so miserable. He's been this way ever since…
'Sir, I think I've got it. It's me. You mentioned that I don't know what you've been through, and I don't. But maybe since I told you about my…' He shook his head and I trailed off.
'You some kind of bloody mind reader?'
'Um, no…'
'Tch. Well congratulations Kansten, you've cracked me. I hope your happy. Now shut it before I-'
Make you clean? Yeah, doesn't exactly work on me as a punishment.
He sighed wearily. 'Just go.'
I nodded and trudged off. He was a difficult character.
The following week, things brightened up. We were on our lunch break outside, and I was quietly listening to Eld and Petra's conversation. The Captain sat next to me at the end of the bench. He didn't speak. Suddenly, from the other side of the bench area, we heard yelling. Two of the new scouts had broken into a fight. A dark haired freckled girl and a taller boy were shouting down at a smaller guy, and they crowded him threateningly. My initial thought was: he's gonna get hurt. I jumped up from my seat and bolted over as the couple began to close in. I dived in the way, my arms outstretched.
'Huh? What are you doing? Get out of our WAY!' The girl snapped at me. I stood there defiantly.
'I can't let you hurt him, now calm down please.' The guy cowered behind me; I noticed my squad rushing over. A crowd was beginning to form around us.
'If you don't move…' The girl warned, 'We'll beat you as well.'
I shrugged. 'Fine.' She swung a fist at me, which I blocked lazily. Her friend joined in, shoving me. I was a hell of a lot smaller than him, and staggered backwards, losing my footing. Landing on the ground, I raised my foot ready to push him away as her towered over me. Suddenly he stumbled backwards. Then I realised that Captain Levi had dragged him away, but he was so small in comparison that I hadn't initially seen him. I got to my feet as the squad incapacitated the couple. I stared down at them, satisfied. The girl was screeching at them angrily. The smaller guy was fine, luckily. The Captain came up to me.
'You ok?' He asked me.
'Yeah, I'm fine.'
'Good. And well done, not many people would protect someone from two people that were twice the size of them.'
I shrugged. 'Can't have innocent people getting hurt.' He nodded approvingly. Honestly, his mood swings confused me. Well at least the rest of us enjoyed the view of the couple running around the castle for the rest of the day.
After our lunch break we went to the yard to train. We stood in a semi-circle around the Captain, who explained the activity.
'We're practising hand-to-hand combat this afternoon. No weapons, use classic combat techniques. That means no biting, scratching or any of that shit. The goal is to floor your opponent, whether that's with judo-like techniques or simply beating them down.' The captain stated. 'There's an odd number of us so I'll have to join in. Get into pairs.' Everyone scrambled to find a partner. I just stood there blinking as they rushed about, fighting over each other. They settled down eventually.
'Right, Kamoku, you're with me then. Start.' He came over.
'I've heard you are exceptional at combat sir.' I commented. There was no WAY I would be able to stand a chance. 'Tch. Just do your best ok?' He said. I nodded and stood en guarde. He stood in a ready position, but a very different one from anything we learnt back in the cadets. He didn't even protect his body. I went for it, diving in quickly, but he lazily blocked me, grabbing my arm and throwing me over his shoulder. He was so quick he didn't even NEED to bother holding his arms up to protect himself. I managed to land on my feet, and surprised him by elbowing him. I swivelled around, dodging his kick. Skipping around him nimby, I circled him and tried to get to his face. It was impossible, and what's more, every time he blocked one of my attacks, he would turn it on me. He was getting the better of me. I tried to pick up some of his moves, ducking under his punches and twisting his arm. I could tell he wasn't letting me off easy, and he was tiring me out.
'You're good Kansten.' He remarked dryly. I kept my gaze on his eyes, and realised something. He was looking where he was about to hit. Huh, I could use that to my advantage. I followed his eyes, block, circle, attack, circle. I jumped, throwing a kick at him, it was daring, but worth a try. I stuck my leg out, only to hit air as he bent himself backwards to dodge it. It barely missed his nose. As I landed, he and I both knew I was in a vulnerable position, and he leapt at me, pinning me to the floor. I fell hard on my back. 'Damn,' I muttered. He stood up and brushed himself off as I got to my feet.
'Well done Kamoku! I've never seen anyone last that long!' Petra squeaked. The Captain and I looked around, and the squad were all stood there watching.
'Hey. Back to work.' The captain grumbled.
'Y- yes sir!' They all scattered sharpish.
'Tch. Where'd you learn Kamoku?' He asked me.
'Um, the cadets, like everyone else sir…' I raised an eyebrow.
'You don't learn what you know from the cadets.' Wow. He's attentive.
'I learnt as a child. I had nothing else to do.'
'Huh. I wanna see you fight one of the others. Hey, you lot, partner swap.' He called. He muttered to me, 'Gunther's the best at this, try him.' I nodded and asked Gunther politely to be partners with him, which he accepted.
I stood opposite him, fists raised. He kept his gaze on my eyes. I didn't have that advantage this time. As he threw attacks my way, (which didn't hit me), I learnt that his style was very textbook. He became quite predictable. He kicked me in the stomach and winded me, catching me off-guard. I wheezed, gritting my teeth through the pain. He was taller and stronger than me, but I was faster. I ducked under a punch, hitting him in his solar plexus. He stumbled, and I took the opportunity to kick him in the leg. He fell forwards, and I darted behind him, hitting the back of his knee. He fell into the dirt, and I wiped my brow. 'Well done Gunther, you did great.' I told him monotonously, pulling him to his feet.
'Wow, you're amazing Kamoku! You DESTROYED me.' He replied, a bit breathless.
'Er… Thanks.' I said awkwardly.
'Yes, well done.' A cool voice said from behind me. It startled me, and I turned around sharply. Captain Levi raised an eyebrow at me. 'You jump easily.' He remarked.
'Yes, I do, but YOU keep appearing out of nowhere.' I could've sworn I saw a smirk flash on his face at that comment. Wait, I thought, isn't he meant to be fighting Oluo? I peered over his shoulder and Oluo was grumbling as he brushed dirt off himself. Well, he didn't last long.
It was at that moment that something crazy happened. Hanji came running over to us, screaming and waving her arms. She was red in the face and looked very stressed. We all looked over at her in surprise.
'THE TITANS!' She screamed. 'MY TITANS HAVE GOT AWAY!'
