Hello readers. I'm sure you've all heard the news about Levi.***has something to do with his name cough*** If you haven't I'm surprised but won't spoil it for you. It certainly threw me off. Hajime Isayama is quite the writer and this anime/manga is becoming my all time favorite(sorry Naruto Shippuden but your fillers are pushing me away). Anyways. I'm madly awaiting the next chapter of SNK and of Levi's side story because a time frame has been revealed and that will most certainly affect my fanfic. I plan to do a timeline of Caria's life and Levi's life together eventually. And speaking of those two. I'm working on the cover picture. I have to say that I surprised myself with how it looks so far. I'm using Adobe Illustrator and so far so good. Hopefully the author of SNK will reveal more about Levi soon. Anyways on the 11th chapter. Tis long. I hope you all enjoy it.
Italics- added emphasis
Bold = sounds
Chapter 11
The battle had lasted for almost half an hour before Levi eventually won. He nearly broke my neck when he put me in a suffocating headlock. It was either give in or die trying to beat him. Common sense won over pride. I tapped him twice to indicate my surrender. His arms released me and I collapsed on the carpet. I felt a bit sore in places that were sure to flare up in pain the next morning. I sat up and turned my neck from side to side and contorted my back until I received a satisfying pop. Levi looked down on me in a way that wasn't condescending but appreciative. He admitted to my delight that I had actually pushed him further than he thought possible although I was still no match for him in the end. I had spent most of my time countering and blocking him while he had been on the offense throwing kicks, punches, sweeps and the occasional cheap shot. The bastard.
"Keith Shadis told me you graduated at the top with some other girl," Levi stated blankly. I zeroed in on his mouth and noticed a bruise on his lip from our fight. A satisfied smile broke across my face. "What's that smirk for?" he asked, face impassive as usual.
"Nothing nothing," I got up from my laid back position and stretched. "What time is it?"
"Probably close to midnight," Levi answered.
"Hey, why haven't you grown any since I last saw you?" I questioned curiously. He had said that he wasn't eighteen so I had assumed him to be younger. Although if I really thought about it, the age to enroll in the military was around twelve and their was training which most people graduated from at age fifteen or later if they hadn't signed up for the military as soon as they were of age, such as myself. I actually didn't know much of the Captain's history so it was impossible for me to pinpoint when he had joined the military or to estimate his age.
"You ask too many questions." Levi responded. "I'm a lot older than you think I am." His stare suddenly made me feel smaller. It was telling me not to delve any further but I couldn't help but wonder. I was still curious like the little girl that Levi had first met about six years ago.
"I never said anything about age," I said playing coy.
"No but you were thinking it," Levi sighed.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." I retorted while fluttering my eyelashes innocently. "Besides, I just find it strange that I'm eighteen now and I'm 5'1" and you're still at an unimpressive 5'2" and you're..." I motioned with my hand for him to finish my sentence but he didn't take the bait. Instead he did an about face and walked up the stairs, leaving me clueless as to how old he was. I sighed in defeat. I'd just have to coax it out of him with careful planning and good strategy. For now, I'd drop the subject, or ask someone else he knew about it. I decided to go up the stairs and ask him about my addition to the Survey Corps instead. There were five rooms on the second floor including a washroom facing a bedroom; the kitchen which faced the sitting room; and a giant closet near the staircase to the third floor with loads of cleaning tools. I shook my head and rolled my eyes upon seeing the various brooms he had stored away. "Levi! Where'd you go?!" I hollered. I went up to the last level of the house which consisted of four bedrooms. The last room on the end had a close door. I tiptoed up to it and put my left ear against it. Was this Levi's room?
"What the hell are you doing?" sounded a voice from behind me. I hopped up in shock. Apparently Levi had been in the room across from the one I was leaning against. He gave me a bored expression which I returned with my own sheepish grin. "Hmph. You haven't changed much either. I can't decide if you're just as obnoxious as you were or more so. Oh and it's 5'3". You've always been off by an inch," he said crossing his arms.
"5'2", 5'3"; you're still short and I have changed! Your heads just too far up your ass for you to notice," I said, lowering my voice on the last part.
"I'm still taller than you and while your physical changes are more than evident; I'm not convinced when it comes to everything else," the Captain remarked. I ignored his no doubt baited comment about my body.
"Alright fine. I understand. So then, my hair has to be cut doesn't it? How low?" I asked crossing my arms.
"Right here." Levi's hand went five inches past my shoulder. I frowned at the position of his hand. It had been at that height back before I enlisted. As my hair was now, it was just above my rear when out of its customary ponytail. Levi watched me carefully; waiting for me to protest. Instead, I conceded with his decision.
"It's just hair. I'll live," I said evenly.
"Glad you're on board. You'll be sleeping in the room across from mine." I strode past the Captain into a cozy room with ample candlelight, a freshly made bed, and polished stone floors. Everything smelled so fresh. "The Trost HQ is undergoing a small renovation so you and I will be staying here for tonight. I retrieved your belongings as well. They're on top of the armoire. Tomorrow we leave at 800 hours. Four eyes was tinkering with a clock on the second floor and it's set to chime at 600 hours. It's fucking noisy so it should wake you up."
"Yes sir," I inclined my head and turned towards the bedroom.
"One more thing... tomorrow is our expedition beyond the wall. Your first excursion. Simulations put you to the test but they're still not the same as facing the real thing. Casualties are normal so don't try to play hero if someone is in trouble. It's best to leave the saving to more experienced soldiers. Even I was assisted with my first Titan kill." Levi said.
"Really? By who?" I asked. It was hard to imagine Levi ever needing help, but I suppose it was unrealistic for me to think he popped out of his mother's womb wielding swords with 3d maneuver gear strapped to his little baby waist.
"Never mind who helped me. Just don't screw up," he said curtly.
"I appreciate your concern Captain, but I'm not at the top of my class without reason. I could have given up and ran away, but I'm here aren't I? I promise, I won't get in your way or anyone else's way," I assured him.
"I guess I'll find out if you're bluffing," he blinked. Levi opened the door to the closed room and slipped inside without another word.
"Goodnight Levi!" I called knowing he wouldn't answer back.
DONG DONG DONG DONG DONG DONG DONG
"Ugh make it stop!" I groaned. I covered my ears until the loud chime died down. Levi hadn't been kidding about the chiming. Rubbing my eyes vigorously of grogginess, I forced myself out of bed. I groaned in pain. I was right about feeling sore in the morning.
Today was the day to prove myself. My first day as a Survey Corps soldier. I shivered with excitement. Walking across the hall, I stopped at Levi's door which was still closed shut. I knocked on the door a couple of times. Silence. Repeat. Still no answer.
"Levi, the clock went off, are you in there?" I asked. I put my ear to the door but couldn't hear anything. Sighing I decided to open the door without confirmation. Hopefully I wouldn't be killed. The sun was just rising, with small rays of light beginning to shine through the window. I looked in the corner of the room and saw the sleeping form of Levi.
"How the fuck did he sleep through that?" I deadpanned. He was the one who warned me the clock was noisy in the first place. I stepped over to his bedside. He looked so peaceful. I watched the silent rise and fall of his chest, his breathing controlled and even. The more I looked at him, the more that was revealed to me. His attire had been a black overcoat, a pressed white shirt and black pants last night, but it wasn't until just this morning that I took note of it. I didn't hate his undercut either. If anything, it was a signature style of his that I liked. For the first time I noticed that he was actually quite a handsome man. Sure he always looked troubled and annoyed but if you looked past that, his features were enticing. The thought made me slightly uncomfortable since Levi had been more like an older brother to me throughout the years. Minus the perverted stares. His hand laid strewn across his waist, and his arm was rested behind his head. It didn't look like a particularly comfortable position to sleep in but whatever floats your boat. He hadn't even bothered to change his clothes. I had at least changed into my sleeveless night gown before falling asleep. I felt a bit guilty for keeping him up for so long with our sparring match. "Hey, Levi, It's time to get up." I said bending down over his face. My hair pooled around his head, falling in with his locks of hair. A foreign urge to touch his face came over me abruptly but left just as quickly as it had come. Maybe he needed more sleep. As I was about to walk away, I felt a hand gently tug mine.
"What time is it?" came the sleepy tenor of the Captain.
"The suns just rising, so it's a bit after six." I looked over my shoulder at his sleepy eyes. "How did you sleep through all that chiming?"
"I learned to tune it out. I haven't slept here in years and usually someone's around to get me up." Propping himself up his elbow the captain turned to the window, running his hand through his locks carelessly. I turned away blushing.
"Well, if that's all. I'll be getting ready then," I said, excusing myself nervously. I skipped out of the room and shut the door behind me. Why was I finding him so attractive all of a sudden? Must be the air in this house or something...
I went down to the second floor and found an oak vanity in the bedroom across from the washroom. There was a couch, a couple of bookcases and various drawers. Setting my uniform and scrubbing cloth down on the couch, I went to the washroom to pump water into the bathtub, but stopped upon hearing movement in the kitchen and peeked in to see Levi already in uniform and heating up tea.
"I'm surprised you didn't clean yourself before getting dressed in uniform," I commented. He turned his head side ways looking at my still gown wearing form.
"I did, you just move at the pace of an old woman nearly on her deathbed so you didn't notice," Levi said cleaning a tea cup. "There's tooth powder in the washroom. Use it, get dressed and wait for Hanji or Petra to arrive so we can get your hair taken care of. Don't waste you're time washing in the tub, just use the basin and cloth, you can bath properly when we return.
I sighed but quickly followed his instructions. Just as I slid my tan jacket on, I heard knocking on the door. "Answer it." Levi ordered from the kitchen. I flew down the stairs, looked out the window, and saw Petra and Hanji standing next to each other chatting. Sure Levi and I were in the house, but I had developed a habit of always looking out the window before opening the door. You could never be too careful.
"Good morning. I suppose you guys brought your tools with you?" I pouted. Hanji all too readily held up the metal shears to my dismay. The creepy smile she gave me didn't help either. I brought them to the kitchen where Levi was already leaned back sipping his cup of happiness. Hanji and Petra greeted him politely while he looked at all three of us with an expression of boredom before setting his cup down and rising mechanically. As he passed us, I noticed Petra give a salute although I didn't imitate her. I would probably have to start doing it more even though I knew Levi only cared about rank when it meant he could be a pain in the ass. At least in my case.
"Set her down here," the Captain ushered me into a chair in front of the vanity. He watched me in the mirror, my hair proudly touching my thighs. "Hmm, cut it right here." My face heated up as his hand touched right above my breast.
"Oh, that's a lot to be cut off. Sorry Caria." Hanji apologized.
"It's all right, let's just get this over with." I closed my eyes to the sound of snipping scissors. My brows furrowed imagining all the dark strands of hair falling to the floor. Hopefully Hanji and Petra knew what they were doing.
"Done!" Hanji exclaimed. I opened my eyes to see their handiwork. The ends of my hair were smooth and stopped right where the Captain had ordered. No extra hair seemed to be missing either.
"You look beautiful," Petra smiled at me in the mirror.
"Thanks," I replied. After a few moments of examining the cut, I noticed Levi was no longer in the room. I looked around in confusion.
"Seeing all the hair on the floor made Levi uncomfortable so he left," Hanji said seeing my bewilderment.
"Figures," I commented inwardly. I helped the girls gather up the all the hair that had been snipped away. Nearly a foot of hair lengthwise, was now on the ground.
"We'll go dispose of this and be on our way. We brought along two horses for you guys for the expedition. The Captain has to be near the head of the line so leave as soon as possible," Hanji instructed. I saluted her and walked them downstairs as they left the house with a sack of my old hair in tow. I closed the door and stretched happily. It was actually nice to get a hair cut. I felt a bit lighter and could no longer fathom why I had even the slightest opposition to it in the first place. I heard soft footsteps stop behind me and felt the Captain's hand run through my freshly cut tresses. The hand that wasn't in my hair rotated my body around slowly to face him. His grey eyes met my hazel ones. He examined the hair twisted around his fingers before looking back at me.
"You look striking," he said. My mouth dropped at the compliment. I didn't say anythings for a few moments before eventually stuttering out a response.
"Y-yea, I guess getting a haircut wasn't such a terrible idea after all..." I mumbled slightly unnerved under his intense stare. "They did a good job, it's not as bad as I thought it would be." The Captain's fingers ran through the waves of my hair until he eventually retracted his hand though his eyes still lingered on my form.
"Well... umm Hanji said that you have to be at the front of the line so we should leave now..." I said shifting uncomfortably. He hummed in agreement, but it was obvious that he was thinking about something else. "Levi?"
"What?"
"Are we ready to go?" I asked.
"Yea... go ahead and open the door, I have to go grab something," Levi said
I curiously watched him walk up the stairs before turning around to let sunlight spray in the doorway. Stepping outside, I breathed in the crisp air as a light breeze blew past me. Tied down to a post outside the house were two steeds, neighing as I walked up to them. My blood began to pump. Soon I would earn my place as a soldier. Levi walked up to the horse next to mine. It nudged him, seemingly familiar with the Captain already.
"We'll ride to a supply station to do a maintenance check on our gear. From there, we'll go to the gate. The expedition will take place outside of Trost in Wall Maria. Here, this is the official Survey Corps cloak. You'll want to slip that on and I brought you something to put you're hair up with since it still might get in the way." Levi explained handing me the green garment and black tie.
"Wow, this is so cool! My own cloak!" I cooed hugging the cloth closely to my chest.
"Just put it on so we can go," the Captain said rolling his eyes. I slipped the hooded cloak over my head and climbed my horse. I checked my person to see if I had everything. The 3d Maneuver gear latched around my waist was so light that I barely felt it. The technology of it still amazed me even after several years of practice with it. I couldn't wait to exercise it's capabilities in real combat.
"All right, Let's go!" I shouted. I got Levi to lift the corner of his mouth a bit with my eagerness. He steered his horse in front of me and together we headed down the road. Finally, the moment I'd been waiting for.
Chapter End
Well I shall update again sometime after the new chapter is released around May 7thish. Hopefully another Levi side story chapter will be out around then as well. Well, ciao.
