Chapter 38 – Fire Fire

~ Levi ~

"Your telling me the fucking thing spoke to her?" he asked in staunch disbelief.

Currently, Levi stood against the wall by the window in the officer's meeting room. The table in front of him was filled with Erwin's most trusted, which was admittedly few. There was The Commander at the head of the table of course, then Hange, Miche, and Rin.

"That's exactly what I'm telling you," Hange said confidently. "According to Isle's last written words, the titan we killed in the forest was capable of speech. It referred to her as 'Ymir'."

"Or it let out some hot air…" Levi grumbled flatly. "This all sounds like the fever dream of someone who was scared out of their wits and half-starved."

"He does make a good point Commander," Miche said softly.

"Yes, it is possible for this account to be somewhat inaccurate…" Hange admitted. "Langnar would have been dehydrated and alone for days at this point. But, everything else up until she meets the talking titan seems perfectly lucid, I can't discredit the woman based just on how unbelievable her account sounds."

"Also a good point…" Miche admitted with a nod.

"Bullshit, I think it's a perfectly good reason" Levi quipped. "That titan was already an abnormal, her mind could have exaggerated its behavior easily."

"Just because we've never heard one speak before doesn't mean they can't..." Rin interjected, finger to her chin thoughtfully. "They don't seem to want to communicate with us, but that could be because it's difficult. Or it could be a learned behavior, something they are starting to pick up from us."

"That's it Rin! You're thinking like a scientist now!" Hange exclaimed happily. "We have no way of knowing exactly what this could mean yet, I propose that we do further research by capturing one and attempting communication!"

"Look, I'm not saying it's impossible for them to speak…" Levi said with an aggravated sigh. "But, the insane ramblings of one half-dead scout, is not enough to risk lives over. We need more to go off of than just this… but I do think it's worth considering further."

"Oh… well good then…" Hange replied meekly, caught off guard by his suggested middle ground. "What do you think Erwin? Is what we have here important?"

Erwin sat at the head of the table for a moment in deep contemplation. "Incredibly so… but what exactly this means I am not sure."

"Oh! That's still good though!" Hange said happily while clapping their hands together. "Something is always better than nothing! This could be the first step of many!"

"I agree, but lets not get ahead of ourselves here..." Erwin warned, his face deadly serious. "This could be an incredible leap toward humanity understanding the titans, but I am also greatly concerned… I am unsure if I should report these findings or if I should keep this between us."

"Well, unfortunately, Bozado has already been running his mouth," Levi informed them bitterly, thinking of how he had smacked Oluo just earlier that day for recounting the tail to a couple of young female scouts. "So the cats out of the bag on at least the discovery of the journal its self."

"But what exactly we found they can't know," Rin said. "Oluo didn't know what was in the journal, none of us did at the time other than it being her last few days."

"Well, this is good to know…" Erwin muttered, slipping deep into thought for another long moment.

It was times like this that made Levi regret the absence of Lieutenant Ishida. He could clearly picture the woman standing at Erwin's side, putting a small hand on his shoulder with a worried face. Her presences had always seemed to keep the commander steady, and even though he was still made of stone the years sometimes showed on him now that she was gone.

"This could be an opportunity to learn who our real enemies are…" Miche said.

"That's exactly what I was thinking…" Erwin muttered back, his blue eyes narrowing. "I will pass this information on honestly, and see how the government responds knowing we have it. That will determine my next course of action for the scouts."

"You really think those pigs are trying to cover something up?" Levi asked.

"I do… I just don't know what yet. But what I do know for certain is that they posses information about the outside world and the titans that we do not. Something tells me that the information we have discovered in this journal will come as no surprise to them, but that they won't be happy we have it."

"Well tough shit..." Rin growled back. "They can't exactly wipe it from our memories, can they?"

"No, but they can kill us…" Levi said in a sharp tone, though he found her naivety endearing it was also dangerous. "Or worse, disband the scouts."

"They won't go that far," Erwin assured. "It hasn't come to that yet, we don't know nearly enough. But Levi you are right to be wary. We all need to proceed with caution from here on out, and nothing said in this room is said beyond it, understood?"

"Yes Sir" the room chorused.

"Good, then you all are dismissed. We can meet again once I have heard back Darius on how to proceed," Erwin said.

The lot stood from the table with the obnoxious sound of scraping table legs. Hange came around to Rin's side of the table as she was standing and threw their arms around the shorter woman excitedly, nearly knocking them both over. Levi pulled himself off the wall and started toward them as they headed for the door with the others.

"Hey, four-eyes!" Levi called, which made them both pause and look at him in suspicion.

"What is it?"

Levi stopped in front of the two and crossed his arms. "You really think capturing a live titan is worth the effort?"

"Yes, I do" Hange replied without hesitation.

Levi sighed, knowing he was going to regret this decision later. "Fine, then I'll help."

"What?... really?"

"Yeah really, you seem so dead set on this stupid project, I figured it's the only way to keep you from getting yourself killed."

"Well… that's very much appreciated, Levi. Thank you" Hange said in earnest, seeming a little touched by the gesture. But a second later they grew excited, starting to shake feverishly at the prospect. "This is great! With your help, we can bag one for sure!"

"Don't get too excited, we still have to get Erwin to agree to your plan" he said while holding up a hand. "But if he does, my squad will assist you. If these bastards can actually talk, I've got more than a few questions I'd like to ask them."

"My thoughts exactly…"

He looked at Rin then, who had stood by defensively ready to intervene in a heartbeat. "Miss Sato, are you heading to dinner?"

"… yeah," she replied apprehensively, her eyes narrowing.

"Good, I am as well. Let's go," he ordered. Then strode past the two and out into the hall, not waiting for her to respond. Though she did catch up a moment later, jogging slightly.

"You're feeling pushy tonight," she said as she came up on his left and slowed her pace. "And also oddly generous, why did you offer to help Hange? I thought you hated their idea."

"That was before the journal. Besides, I needed to figure out a way to keep you both from going off on random suicide missions."

The woman looked toward the ground sheepishly, blushing slightly. Then looked up at him through her lashes, obviously ashamed.

"Yeah, sorry about that... I just really didn't want them to get hurt. Hange has been a little wild lately…"

"Well, I really don't want to see YOU get hurt. So I'd appreciate it if you would just let me handle it the next time they fly off the handle like that."

"Yes sir" she replied, a small smile sneaking onto her face. She cast him a funny glance as if looking for something. "Sorry to worry you."

They arrived at the mess hall to find the remainder of their squad waiting, drinking tea and talking jovially. Levi took his spot at the head of the table and Rin to his left as usual.

Over the years they had fallen into somewhat of a pattern. Eld on his right, as was fitting, and Rin on his left. Then Petra next to her and Oluo either beside the ginger or beside Gunther who always sat next to Eld. The only time it changed up really was when the lot was drinking or in the middle of a tiff when some of them would refuse to sit next to one another in some particular fashion.

Levi enjoyed the order honestly, the predictability giving him a sense of comfort he hadn't known in a very long time, not since he had lost Furlan and Isabel. He hadn't spent enough time around anyone else to know them as well as he had the two of them. Levi had known their habits, their likes, and dislikes. Hell, even the difference in their breathing after some time. But after they passed he had pulled fully away from everyone around, only starting to come back out of his shell at all when Erwin formed the Special Ops Squad.

Now he had spent enough time around this unruly bunch that he had gotten to know them all pretty well, despite himself. It was nice to have people around he could predict and count on. But it was also worrying, as it meant losing anyone of them would be incredibly difficult at this point.

Levi looked around at the faces of his squadmates, all laughing and eating while currently content with the world. Oluo accidentally flicked potatoes onto Rin while playing with his spoon and she smacked him in the hand like a child, then laughed and started using her napkin to wipe the stuff off her face. Petra scolded Oluo while Eld and Gunther laughed at them, all smiling.

Ancient words of Erwin's flittered through Levi's head then, spoken at some big fancy event.

"We do this to remind ourselves we are human."

Levi sat back as his squad continued to enjoy themselves rather loudly, hiding his smile behind his teacup.

~ Rin ~

She was awoken in the middle of the night to insistent knocking on her bedroom door. The ungodly strong smell of smoke filled her nostrils as she sat up in bed. Finding the room pitch black with no moon shining that evening.

Suddenly the door flew open violently. It hit the wall with a crash, filling Rin's room with a soft orange light that illuminated Levi's silhouette in the doorway, his leg still raised from the kick.

"Castles on fire…" he said flatly as she blinked at him. Then he turned and walked out of sight, the flicker of distant flames dancing on the stone in the hall as shouts started up.

"What?" Rin gasped, though there was no one left to ask. She climbed out of bed and started to grab some of her things swiftly, not bothering to get dressed in her uniform though. Figuring if it was a SUPER big hurry, Levi would have been a bit more urgent sounding. Plus the shouting wasn't too excited yet.

Rin grabbed her mother's box out from under her bed, her silk robe, and threw on Isabel's necklace. Then she ran out into the hall just as some of the voices really started to become frantic. There were no flames from what she could see, but the orange light was coming from the far end of the hall and smoke was billowing from that way as well, indicating that the fire was just around the bend.

Petra came running up to her, still in sleep clothing and ginger locks sticking up wildly.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked blearily, obviously also just having been awoken. "The Captain said the castle is on fire?"

"I don't know, that's all he said to me as well."

Rin looked down the hall and saw Eld and Gunther emerging from their rooms looking just as sleepy and confused. A moment later Levi emerged from another room dragging Oluo on his ass by the back of his collar.

"Come on! We don't have time for your lot to be sleeping in!" he hollered, dropping the near to the others.

"What the hell is going on!?" Oluo shouted as he looked around and started to get to his feet, eyes barely open and tone frantic.

"How many times do I have to say the castle is on fire!" Levi growled. "Now can we all get outside before we are roasted the fuck alive!"

He led the way down the hall away from the flames, all of them following swiftly after him while still in their nightclothes. Once outside, they joined the other scouts milling about in the grass some distance away by the tree line. Even though there was no moon in the sky, the field was well lit by the raging fire, the extent of the damage becoming more obvious now that they could see it from a distance.

The entire back of the castle was completely ablaze, which was odd, as the kitchen would be the most likely source and it was on the other side. But it seemed to be the ballroom and barracks that had caught and must have been burning for some time before anyone had been awoken by it.

"Whoa, how the fuck could that happen?" Gunther mumbled, the flames reflecting in his dark eyes as he stared at the destruction.

"The better question is, who started it?" Levi quipped. "Something of that magnitude is either an incredibly stupid mistake or very intentional."

"Why the fuck would anyone set the whole castle ablaze… and how?" Rin said as she too watched it burn. A terrifying thought occurred to her suddenly and she scanned the scouts. Not finding what she sought though, fear started to mount.

"Hold this please" Rin grunted as she shoved her belongings into Petra's arms. The girl looked startled but quickly grabbed the things as Rin moved away from her and started to shove through the crowd.

Rin searched through the many gathered faces, growing more frantic with every redhead that didn't turn out to be Hange. The scientist's absence only added further fuel to both her wild-running imagination and growing theory on how the blaze started. Seeing Moblit brought a momentary flash of relief, until Rin saw that her friend wasn't with him.

"Miss Sato! Have you seen Squad Leader Hange?!" Moblit cried when he spotted her, tears streaking lines down the soot on his face. "I haven't been able to find them!"

"No I haven't," Rin said as she jogged up. "When did you see them last?"

"They came and woke me up, told me to tell the others there was a fire in the lab!" he said hysterically. "Then they just took off! I had to wake the others so I couldn't follow them, and I just know they went back to do something reckless!"

"It's ok, I'm sure Hange it around here somewhere…" Rin said as she started to look for them once more. But her heart only fell further and further as her eyes did not find them. "Dam it Hange, where the fuck are you!"

The rest of Hange's squad appeared through the crowd a moment later, also looking concerned and covered in soot.

"Luietenant Moblit, have you seen Commander Hange?" Rashad asked.

"I saw them heading back toward their lab on the way out!" Nifa said, eyes wide. "They were screaming about a journal. I tried to stop them but they just shoved me off and told me to leave… I knew the Commander's notes were important, but of all the things to go back for, a journal?."

"Oh no…" Moblit muttered.

He locked eyes with Rin, and they both knew what they were about to do without speaking. Turing the two of them set off at a dead run back toward the castle, which was now raging fire from its back-half like some gate to hell. They went in through the large front doors, as there were no flames there yet. Then ran through the castle toward Hange's lab, reaching the fire before the wing itself.

Without any hesitation at all, Moblit dived down the hall engulfed in flames. Rin followed behind him as quickly as she could, immediately starting to sweat from the sweltering heat inside. They made it to the lab swiftly enough, dodging a few falling timbers and bursts of flame along the way. But the doors were a problem, the wood too charred and burning for either of them to get close enough.

"MOVE YOUR ASSES!" Levi bellowed as he barreled between the two of them and right into the burning doors, smashing them apart in spectacular fashion.

"Squad Leader!" Moblit yelled, rushing into the room behind the captain.

The room was so engulfed in fire, that it actually gave Rin pause. The sight of fifty-foot-high flames billowing out across the ceiling and walls were a little too shocking to not stare for just a second, the roar of the inferno deafening. But Moblit hauled ass across the room, dodging the multitudes of flaming garbage and discarded experiments like a professional. Stopping before Hange's office door, which was still surprisingly intact, as the flames were mostly encompassing the left half of the room. Hange's long-forgotten fake titans seemed to be the main source of fuel for the blaze.

But the flames were beginning to lap at the door, and the ceiling was starting to groan, meaning they needed to move fast.

Moblit tried the door handle, but cried out in pain and let go, his hands blistered and bleeding. So Levi kicked his third door of the evening in, this time splintering it down the middle and sending it crashing across the room in a busted heap.

"Levi!" Hange exclaimed in a muffled voice from under their desk. They were curled up with their legs drawn to their chest, shirt pulled up over their mouth in an attempt to filter the thick smoke.

"Come on Squad Leader, we have to get out of here now!" Moblit demanded as he rushed toward them.

Hange scrambled out from under the desk in sleep clothes, covered in black smudge, and their hair an absolute singed bird's nest. They clutched Isle's journal to their chest protectively, eyes wide with an unusual amount of fear.

The three of them ran as fast as they could back across the ballroom, making it through the doorway just in time for the ceiling to give and come crashing down where they had been only seconds before. All relieved, but having no time to rest, as the rest of the castle wing was still an inferno.

The hall was now ablaze the way they had come, cutting off their exit route. So Levi turned and punched out the closest adjacent window, the thick glass shattering with a shower of glitter. Swiftly they each hopped onto the safety of the grass, then ran some distance away before stopping to breathe. All now covered from head to toe in soot and sweat.

"Oh! Rin your hair!" Hange exclaimed suddenly.

Next thing Rin knew she was being smacked repeatedly in the head by both Moblit and Hange while they shouted frantically.

"Ok! Dam it was just smoldering!" Rin cried out as she tried to defend herself against their worried onslaught. "Stop! It's fucking out already!"

The two halted their violent attempt to save her as she swatted them off. Levi beside her was trying desperately to wipe the soot from his face, but with only his equally filthy hands he was only succeeding in smearing it around. After a moment he gave up and growled like a displeased cat, stomping off toward where the others still stood by the tree line, the three following behind quickly.

"Fucking fuck Hange.." Rin grumbled. "Why the fuck did you go back for that stupid thing? That's twice in the same week you've almost killed me."

"Not my intention I swear," Hange said, sounding shameful. "I couldn't leave such an important discovery behind. I thought I had time to get it, I guess I was wrong…"

Rin stopped suddenly and stepped in front of Hange to face them. The scientist almost ran into her but managed to stop and stare at her in surprise. Rin slapped them then, clean across the face and hard enough to jerk their head to the side.

"Miss Sato!" Moblit exclaimed.

"What the fuck were you thinking!" Rin screamed at them, furious beyond reason. "I know this stuff is important, but so is your life! No one else is crazy enough to do your dam job! So stop trying to get yourself killed! Because it would be really fucking hard to replace you!"

Hange just stood for a long moment, looking down at Rin in surprise. Langnar's journal still held to their chest tightly, as if worth all the currency in the known world.

"I'm sorry Rin… all of you…" Hange whispered. "I'm willing to risk my life for my research, but I'm not asking you all to do the same."

"URGH! Whatever!" Rin snapped, then turned and stomped away from them, back toward the gathered scouts.

It was incredibly frustrating being close friends with Commander Hange Zoe. They were such a lovable soul, and honestly good-hearted, but the borderline pure insanity and absolutely no regard for their own life were very trying qualities in a friend. It made for a turbulent and stressful friendship. She never knew if Hange's next crazy antic would be their last.

Rin was looking for a place to sit, as far away from Hange and her squad as she could manage when she spotted a familiar blonde head. A tall woman stood watching the blaze with their arms crossed, three shorter figures lines up to the right of her. Rin saddled up on the woman's left side, elbowing her to get her attention.

"What's up squirt? Been awhile…" Addie said with a smirk, side-eyeing her. "Do you know what the fuck is going on?"

"No idea, unfortunately.." Rin muttered back, feeling the heat on her face as she watched the castle burn.

"My money is on Hange having started it…" Addie said wisely. "Probably one of their whack-a-do experiment gone wrong."

"Probably…" Rin said back softly.

"…well… looks like we'll be getting that new headquarters we've been beaking about for years now."

"Yeah, looks like it."

"Hey, Rin!" Lina said from Addie's other side, leaning around her to wave and smile happily. "How have you been?"

"I'm good, it's nice to see you," Rin said with a smile, noticing Alma and a boy she didn't recognize standing on the girl's right. Rin narrowed her eyes at the girl as a thought occurred. "…you didn't do this, did you Lina?"

"Me!" Lina exclaimed in shock, making Addie laugh. "How could I have done this?"

"You are like, the biggest klutz..." Alma muttered. "I could totally see you burning the castle down on accident."

"You guys are so mean," Lina whined, sounding genuinely hurt. "I'm not that much of an idiot, jeez, give me some credit..."

"Oh shut it, I know it wasn't you," Addie said. "This is far too big a fire to be an accident."

"You think so, uh?" Rin asked, lowering her voice despite the noise around them.

Addie hadn't taken her eyes off the flames for even a moment. "Yeah, I just got a hunch… I don't know what you all found in that little book, but I don't think the big guys like it very much."

Rin looked back toward the castle, where the blaze was finally starting to die down. Causing the orange light to become dim and a chill to begin creeping into the crowd.

"…yeah, I don't think the titans are our only enemies..." Rin whispered to Addie, the woman's face darkening at her words.

"Well, they can bring it the fuck on..." she growled lowly. "These sons of bitches don't know who they are fucking with. Got to be hard as a coffin nail to be a scout."

"Dam straight…" Rin chuckled back, despite the ill-feeling in her gut.

Though their words were tough, it was hard to hold faith with half of their headquarters currently smoldering in the cold night air with the entire scouting legion shivering on the wet grass in their sleep clothing and bare feet. Even Erwin and most of the other officers were out of uniform due to the odd hour of the night the blaze had suddenly started up.

As unfortunate as it was, the situation was definitely starting to look intentional.