Chapter 3: The Jacket
Amelia carefully avoided Captain Levi for the next few weeks. The most dangerous period was over, as his nose was now mostly healed and the swelling and massive bruise covering his face had gone away. But she doubted that his grudge against her would dissipate quite as quickly. Word had gotten around about how his nose had gotten broken and most of the Survey Corps seemed to think the entire event was extremely hilarious. Each snicker behind Levi's back just meant more pain on her end. Hange certainly hadn't helped matters, laughing hysterically when Levi had shown up to dinner that night, his nose bandaged by the triage nurse who had informed him that he was lucky it had been reset so quickly and precisely. Amelia had still been running laps at that point and continued to do so well into the night.
By the time the moon had set and the stars were shining their brightest, Amelia could barely stand and had long since given up on running, her feet were dragging at a slow shuffle and she was beyond exhausted. She hardly felt the kick that landed square in her back, but she certainly felt the ground rush up to meet her. She groaned when his toe sharply prodded her stomach, rolling her onto her back. Amelia was left to look up at Levi and grimace at the large white bandage across his face and the obvious bruise that was darkening under and around it. It made the bags under his eyes even more pronounced, and his already intimidating gaze more fearsome.
"Dismissed, Private," he told her coldly, walking back into HQ.
Every time he saw her after that, he would immediately have some task for her to do. Pull ups in full gear until her arms felt like jello, cleaning out the attic of the HQ alone which probably hadn't been touched since its creation, tuning up the 3DMG gear of the entire Corps, and on and on the list went. So she found that the best thing to do was to know where he was at all times and avoid anywhere he might be. This had resulted in her skipping meals, taking extremely roundabout routes to get where she was going, and generally trapping herself in Hange's lab and working on her design for the 3DMG belt. It was a bittersweet activity because she was certain that even if she could create a prototype, there was no way Captain Levi would be willing to test it now.
But that was ultimately how she had found herself sitting on the roof with Petra, enjoying a cup of tea and watching the sun set. Petra was one of the few female recruits in the Survey Corps, and Amelia had immediately been drawn to the strong but incredibly kind woman. They had met when she was moving into the barracks at HQ, and Petra had shown her around, helping her to get acquainted with everyone in the first few weeks. They had since frequently enjoyed sipping coffee or tea together and chatting about the day. Since Levi was out for Amelia's blood, they'd had to find more creative places to hang out than the mess hall. Petra, the wonderful soul that she was, had frequently brought her food when Amelia had been unable to attend meals.
"What do you think the sun set looks like from the outside?" Petra mused as they watched the clouds turn a golden orange, the wall already beginning to eclipse the sun. Petra hadn't joined the Corps in time to go on one of the expeditions beyond wall Maria.
"I'll bet it's beautiful," Amelia could only respond. She understood what it was like to be trapped in a cage, she wondered if going outside of the walls would feel like it had to leave the Underground.
"I can't wait to see it someday," Petra smiled, "I've always wanted to get outside of the walls, ever since I was a little girl. It's why I joined the Survey Corps."
"I hope when that day comes, we can see it together," Amelia agreed avidly, sipping on her tea contentedly. Even with the knowledge of the titans pressing down on them, there were still moments that even they couldn't steal, and Amelia was taking full advantage of this one. They sat together in amiable silence, enjoying the last rays of the sun disappear behind wall Rose.
"You know Mia," Petra broke the silence hesitantly, "If you want to get better at hand-to-hand combat we could practice together."
"I would love to… but," Amelia hesitated, "I'm worried Captain Levi will kill me if he sees me again."
"He's not that bad," Petra laughed, her eyes shining at the mention of her squad leader, "In fact, I think it would improve his opinion of you. You just have to show him that you're not afraid of him, and you're willing to do all you can to be the best you can be."
"Well, I'm willing," Amelia said with a small smile. "But I am a bit terrified of him."
They both laughed together at that, and Petra stood up and stretched, staring up into the dimming sky. "I know with him we can take back wall Maria."
"I hope you're right," Amelia agreed.
It was obvious Petra greatly admired her squad leader, and Amelia could empathize. Hange had been her driving force when she was thinking about leaving training after the terrifying and disastrous attempt to reclaim wall Maria almost two years ago now. Amelia had still been a trainee at the time, barely done with her first year of basic training. She still wasn't sure how she had managed to make it back alive, but she knew Hange was a huge part of it. It was then that Hange had begun to take an interest in her, coming around more during practice and observing her. When they had stumbled upon Amelia working on her design for the double belt 3DMG system they had offered her a spot in their squad when Amelia graduated.
"I think I'm going to head down," Petra said, breaking through Amelia's thoughts. "Don't stay up here too long, you don't want to get caught past curfew."
"I'll be down soon," Amelia promised, laying back against the roof and watching the stars begin to come out. The feel of the warm summer air against her skin was hypnotizing and, Amelia yawned, closing her eyes.
Levi was walking into the mess hall, looking for a comfortable place to go over some paperwork. He was sick of sitting in his office for hours and needed a change of scenery. The downpour had started a few minutes ago and it sounded like a symphony against the roof. Sitting down at the far end of the hall, Levi jumped when he heard a sneeze come from the kitchen. Squinting his eyes in the direction of the noise, Levi made his way over, cautiously peeking around the corner. He immediately regretting his decision to see who it was.
Amelia was heating up a kettle of tea, dripping wet, her long hair plastered against her neck and back, shivering from the cold and wet. She'd removed the jacket of her uniform, and the white blouse she wore was slowly being turned transparent by her soaked hair. Looking down at the floor, she cursed quietly with another sneeze, grabbing a kitchen rag and trying to mop up the puddle her hair was making. Levi almost snorted at this. He must have trained her well to have her cleaning up so quickly with such a look of fear on her face.
"Private—"
BANG
Amelia jumped as soon as Levi spoke, her head slamming against the overhanging corner of the counter she had crawled partially under to dry up the puddle. With a pained groan, Amelia fell back onto her ass, clutching her head in pain, her toes curled in agony. Removing a hand, Amelia glanced at it and immediately returned it to her head, blood was already coating her palms. She grabbed for the rag she'd been using to staunch the bleeding.
"Tch, not that one idiot," Levi stopped her, grabbing a new one out of the drawer and tossing it to her. "It's filthy."
"Thank you," she mumbled, still wincing in pain as she pressed the clean towel against the back of her scalp. With a sigh, Levi walked over to her, kneeling beside her.
"Let me see," he said, annoyed at the wide-eyed look she gave him. Did he really scare the kid that much?
"Let me see it, brat," he reiterated, much more firmly, and she immediately pulled her hand away from her head.
"It's not bad," he reassured her, the cut was small and already had mostly stopped bleeding.
With a nod and a wince, Amelia pulled herself up and wiped her hands clean before disposing of the rag. Looking back at him uncertainly, Amelia hesitated as the kettle began to whistle. Levi raised an eyebrow at her mockingly, and Amelia jumped to pull it off of the stove top. He leaned back against the counter and observed her while she pulled out two teacups and a strainer. Her hands trembled while she filled the strainer with tea leaves and poured the hot water into the cups. Hesitating again she looked up at him and when he made no move to collect the teacup from her, cautiously walked across the kitchen to him. Taking a deep breath, she extended the teacup towards him, not taking her eyes off his. He reached out and grasped it, his fingers splayed out around the rim of the cup. Raising it to his lips, he let the scent of the tea waft up to him.
"Your nose looks a lot better," she blurted out awkwardly, instantly wanting to die as his eyes flashed. Amelia immediately made her escape from the kitchen, abandoning her tea and her military jacket where it had fallen from the counter onto the floor. Levi sighed in exasperation. Idiot. He'd told her before not to leave it on the ground, and here she was wasting tea again.
…..
Amelia's head was pounding early the next morning when she sat up in her bed and dazedly pulled herself to a standing position. It was still too early for most people to be up, but there was no way she could sleep any longer. Her head was killing her. Slipping on her uniform, Amelia groped around for her jacket, frustrated and confused when she couldn't find it. Then she remembered her embarrassing flight from the kitchen last night and hurriedly made her way there in search of it. After scouring every inch of the kitchen and dining hall, her search turned up fruitless.
A horrifying thought crossed her mind—Captain Levi was the last person who had been here. Heart racing, Amelia knew she had to get her jacket back. It was a mandatory part of their uniform, and she wouldn't be able to get away with not having one. Her feet dragged against the floor as she made her way to Levi's office, wondering if it was too early to wake him. Standing outside of his door, she shifted back and forth uncomfortably, battling within herself as to whether to knock or not, but he must have heard her.
"Come in or leave," came the flat voice from inside. Breathing in deeply, Amelia stepped inside his office. It was the first time she'd been in here. The area was absolutely spotless, everything organized precisely, papers stacked neatly on his desk, a pen clutched firmly in his hand as he continued to fill out paperwork. Her jacket was folded neatly on the corner of his desk.
"Sit." He commanded, and Amelia immediately dropped into the chair in front of his desk, staying silent as he finished up what he was doing. She took the time to observe him steadily, his dark hair falling across his eyes which were surrounded by dark circles from sleepless nights. She found herself admiring the graceful curve of his neck and his long pale fingers as they masterfully wrote out neat script. It made her embarrassed to think of how clumsily she was still attempting to master simple lettering.
"The next time you leave your uniform on the ground, I'm going to burn it." He told her finally, his dark eyes locking with hers. With anyone else she would assume they were joking, but with Captain Levi she wasn't sure and decided to air on the side of caution.
"Yes sir, it won't happen again." She replied, and Levi frowned at her before motioning to the jacket.
"Go on, get out." He told her and she hurried to grab her jacket and stand up, but she must have gotten up too fast because the world began to spin. Stumbling, Amelia fell into something warm and firm and looked up in confusion to see Levi looking down at her. A bright red blush colored her cheeks, and Levi tried to ignore how innocent that expression made her look. Grabbing his lantern off the desk, Levi brought it closer to her face. Amelia squinted in pain, turning her head because of how bright it was.
"Tch. Go get some sleep dipshit, can't you tell when you have a concussion," he drawled in annoyance, helping her steady herself and get to the door.
…..
Things became more tolerable between the pair after that. Though Levi would still often give her odd tasks—usually involving physical exercises, it was far less frequent. Amelia decided that she just wasn't going to avoid him anymore and hoped he'd eventually get over his grudge. That was why on this particular afternoon, she didn't make a break for the door when Levi entered the mess hall. Instead, she buried her head deeper in the book she was reading and tried not to look uncomfortable.
"Must be a damn good book," he said, pouring himself a cup of tea from the kettle sitting beside her. "It's the only one I ever see you with."
"It's… okay," she said, glancing up at him as he sipped the tea. She expected him to make a face—the tea had been steeping for awhile and was quite strong. But he didn't seem to mind.
"Why keep reading if it's shit?"
"Well, it's one of the only ones I can read at the moment. Hange has offered to let me borrow some, but they're too advanced," she answered, her face coloring. A flash of comprehension crossed his face, and he quickly excused himself.
Amelia felt her stomach clench in shame. Had her inability to read really thrown the man off so much? It was a skill she really hadn't needed growing up—not beyond the basics anyway. Who was he to judge her for trying to learn now? After several minutes of being unable to focus, she stood and headed out of the mess hall. Maybe she'd be able to concentrate if she headed back to her barracks. Levi's reaction had made her too self-conscious to continue her attempt around other people.
When she arrived, Amelia was surprised to find a book sitting on the pillow of her bunk. With a growing sense of wonder, she picked it up and examined it, flipping through the pages. It seemed to be a book of fairy tales. Settling herself on top of the covers, she began to read the first story, a wide smile crossing her face. Who knew Captain Levi had a thoughtful side? She became so caught up in the story that she didn't stop to wonder why he would own such a book to begin with.