LEVI'S P.O.V.
Fuck! She is frustrating!
Levi cursed her over and over in her head. He couldn't figure it out. Who the hell is she and what is her game? What is her reason for being here!? Does she even have a fucking reason or is he making something out of nothing? He couldn't get his head wrapped round it. Was she even suicidal? One would have to be pretty sure of themselves if they would jump of a building, interpreting that the person they had known for less than 48 hours would catch them. No. She was smart, she wasn't insane. That had been real. She wanted to kill herself. But why? What was he missing?!
Levi clenched his fist and tried to calm down. Mike gave him a look as they got back to the others and Levi gave him a look back not to mention it. He hesitated but dropped it and turned back to the squad.
"You're dismissed for lunch. Meet at the horse stables later. We need to practice some formations. Remember tomorrow is the last day before the expedition. I need you all to work your hardest." He said seriously. The squad nodded and saluted firmly.
"Yes sir!" They replied before jogging back to headquarters.
"You two. Erwin wants a word." Mike said before walking away. Levi spared Dilan a glare before following him. What did eyebrows want him for now? He wanted a fucking break.
They walked in silence and quickly arrived at the door. Mike knocked and Erwin told them to enter, his voice oddly excited. They did and Levi saw both Erwin and Hanji already inside. Erwin spotted them and stood up, a wide grin on his face.
"Dilan! My favourite fresh cadet!" He smirked. Levi rolled his eyes and dropped down in the armchair.
"Why am I here?" Levi questioned.
"We will get to that Levi." Erwin shushed him, gesturing to Dilan for her to take a seat. She did so, albeit reluctantly. Erwin sat back down and sighed a breath of content. "I'm told by Mike-"
"DILAN BROKE THE RECORD FOR TITAN KILLS DURING TRAINING ON HER FIRST RUN!" Hanji screamed in excitement, laughing manically. Levi glared at everyone. What was the point of this?
"Technically it was her second run." Mike pointed out. Dilan looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Ah! Yes, yes. Levi had held the record of 110 titans during training until Dil broke it." She nodded to herself, scribbling something on her paper. Levi rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. Where they trying to make him feel like shit on purpose?
"Aw, don't get upset Levi. I'm sure you'll get to my level one day." Dilan dropped the uncomfortable look and smirked wickedly. Levi had to refrain from strangling her. Her mood swings are insane! Does she have a split-personality disorder!?
"BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! THAT WAS AMAZING!" Hanji cackled loudly. Levi growled. "Shut the fuck up shitty glasses!" Levi warned and Hanji flinched, shutting up.
"As I was saying. I have been informed that you both have a similar level in skill when it comes to fighting titans." Erwin explained. Levi grimaced but nodded for him to hurry the fuck up. "So, I have a plan to create a new squad, with Levi as captain and Dilan as second in command. This squad will be comprised of the best of the best. With you two in command I believe you could train up some marvellous soldiers." Erwin smirked, extremely pleased with himself. Both Levi and Dilan's jaw practically dropped open in shock.
"Are you fucking kidding me Eyebrows!?" Levi snapped, completely done. It took him over 2 years to gain second command and this brat gets the job in two days. She's a mass murderer!
"Settle down Levi, there's a catch. We will assess Dilan during the next three expeditions. If she shows the same level of skill on actual titans as she did during training, we will move forward with the new squad." Erwin proclaimed. Dilan's eyes widened to the size of saucers.
"Sir, I really don't think-" Dilan tried to protest but Erwin cut her off.
"I have things to discuss with Hanji and Mike. I suggest you two find a way to get along as you may be working together very closely soon. Dismissed." Erwin said seriously. Neither of them moved in shock. "I said... dismissed." He repeated lowly. Levi scrunched up his nose in irritation, giving the man a furious glare before storming outside.
"Fucking bullshit!" He hissed under his breath, raking a hand through his hair. Dilan came out a second later looking equally dazed. Levi growled and slammed her into a wall by her neck. "Who, the fuck, do you work for?" He said dangerously. Dilan's eyes widened.
"No one!" She croaked, grabbing the back his hair and pulling his head back in an iron grip. Levi scowled and tightened the hands around her throat.
"I don't believe you! What do you want?!" He hissed. Dilan's face twisted in pain.
"I want to go home." She choked out, tears collecting in her eyes.
"Bullshit! Don't start with that innocent façade again. I don't buy it!" He pushed her against the wall again and she winced.
"Get off." She said seriously, pathetically pushing against his chest. Levi rolled his eyes. "Please. Get off." She gasped. "I don't... care if I die... but... you kill me and your... life here is... over. Don't be the... criminal... people expect... from... the... underground..." She spluttered, her face turning slightly red. Levi's eyes widened as he realised what he was doing and let go causing Dilan to gasp and cough painfully, falling to the floor.
"You don't know shit about me." Levi said quietly, unbelieving of what he almost did. Dilan took a few large shaky breaths before replying.
"You don't know shit about me either." She said in a hoarse voice before clawing herself upwards and stumbling away. Levi grit his teeth and cursed. That's only the damn problem.
Lunch passed and Dilan unsurprisingly stayed away from the mess hall. He couldn't blame her really. Her superior just tried to kill her. The thought still made him cringe. If Erwin found out... well... he could kiss this Captain's job goodbye. Who knows, maybe the brat would even take his place the way things were going. The thought made him cringe even more. He worked so hard for this. If Dilan hadn't stopped him, he would have flushed it straight back into the underground. She knew too much. She had too much dirt on him and it was freaking him out. He had nothing on her. Absolutely nothing. He felt weak for the first time in a long time. The brat had the power to black mail him. Why wasn't she?
Lunch finished relatively quickly, and the group walked to the stables. Levi grabbed Johnson on the way.
"I'm fully aware it's been less than a day. Have you got anything out of her?" Levi asked seriously. Johnson sighed.
"I'm sorry sir. There hasn't been much opportunity." He explained. Levi frowned.
"Make some." He ordered, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Johnson paled and nodded quickly. "Good." He replied and they kept walking, arriving at the stables a few minutes later where the brat was already waiting for them. Levi blinked at the rust orange scarf wrapped around her neck. What the fuck? His eyes widened a fraction when he realised, he must have left a pretty ugly handprint on her throat and gulped unconsciously. Why was she covering for him? Was it only to use him later? Mike seemed to notice the new accessory too.
"Cadet? Are you feeling well, it's the middle of the summer?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow. Dilan nodded, opting not to speak and Levi knew the reason. He was pissed and confused and regretful and he refused to meet the brat's fiery eyes. "Hm. Well, we're choosing you a new horse today. How do you feel about that?" Mike asked and Dilan frowned slightly. Now she had to speak.
"Go-" she coughed. "Good." She managed to force out hoarsely. Everyone looked at her curiously and Levi cringed internally.
"Are you alright?" Mike asked. Dilan nodded. "Burnt." She croaked, pointing at her throat.
"Ah. I see. Hanji made you try her new spicy tea huh?" Mike chuckled and walked down the paddocks. Levi let out a breath of relief as did Dilan. He glared at her subtly. What was her motive? She gave him a bored glance back before following Mike.
The tall blonde stopped outside the stall of a white and grey stallion.
"This will be your horse. Try to bond with it today. You lose your horse on an expedition and it doesn't come back to you. Your dead. Understand?" Mike asked.
"10 shillings say she shits herself on the first titan sighting." Tabitha whispered to Brand. Brand grinned and shook her hand. Levi rolled his eyes at the pair. Dilan simply ignored them if she heard and nodded to Mike.
"Good. Let's saddle up and run some drills."
The rest of the day was running drills with the horses. As it turned out, the brat had no idea how to ride a horse and Johnson had to give her the crash course. She adjusted relatively well for her first time. Mike told her that she would need to practice more tomorrow during her free time if she wanted to be prepared in time for the expedition.
Dinner was a relatively drama free event. The brat simply grabbed an apple and a bread roll and left before any more trouble could find her. Levi was getting anxious and he hated it. What was with her?
An hour passed curfew and Levi was walking back from Mike's office where he delivered the paperwork he finished to his desk. However, as he walked down the long empty hallway, he was pulled into a room by someone and the door was closed, plunging them into darkness. Levi's body immediate went on attack mode and he dealt a fatal blow in the space he knew his attacker was standing. Before he could kill them, a candle was lit, and he almost fell over stopping his foot so abruptly.
"Fucking hell! Shitty glasses, I almost killed you!" He yelled in frustration. It had been a hard day and he was not in the mood for her volume. But to his surprise, Hanji didn't start laughing, she didn't even crack a smile, her face remained serious and unamused as she set down the candle on the desk of the empty office and crossed her arms.
"I know what you did Levi." Hanji said in a calm but stern voice, for once, acting like the superior that she was. Levi crossed his arms back, not letting her know how freaked out she was making him.
"And what did I do?" He repeated, mockingly. Hanji's nostrils flared with agitation.
"Don't play games, Levi. It's pathetic. You want to know what's also pathetic? The fact that you strangled sweet little Dilan to the point where I could have done your palm reading on her fucking neck!" She hissed. Levi's eyes widened a fraction. That little bitch actually snitched on me.
"She told you?" He asked. Hanji rolled her eyes.
"She came to me, begging for something to cover her throat since she has no belongings. I wouldn't let her have the scarf to cover her purple neck unless she told me who did that to her. She agreed, as long as I promised not to tell Erwin. And I was going to break that promise until I found out it was you. How could you be so fucking stupid?" She asked, completely exasperated. Levi grit his teeth at the new information. Why was the brat trying to protect him? It didn't make any sense.
"I snapped." He ground out. Hanji scoffed.
"The hell you did! How many years here Levi? How many years gaining respect and you almost threw it away because you fucking snapped?! What if Dilan had told Erwin? What if she had told the entire regiment? Do you know what Erwin would be forced to do?" She hissed. Levi didn't answer. "He would send you back down to the underground. Being humanity's strongest won't save you. Erwin would be forced to drop you rather than risking a lawsuit. Are you understanding me?" She said sternly. Levi swallowed.
"Yes." He replied.
"Good. Now get your fucking act together and apologise. Thank fuck she's not a spiteful bitch and thank fuck I care about your short ass. Get out of my sight." She ordered, pinching the brim of her nose in utter annoyance. Levi did so, not without muttering a string of curses under his breath. He raked a hand through his hair and sighed. Was he wrong? Was the brat a good person and he was just blowing this thing way out of proportion thanks to his own past experiences? Only one way to find out. He needed some more information.
Turning on his heel, Levi jogged to the girl's barracks. Technically he wasn't allowed in here, but he didn't care. Answers were more important. He walked up to Dilan's room and pushed open the door, not caring for knocking. He didn't want to wake anyone else up. Levi ducked as some sort of weapon was thrown at his head upon his instant enter and looked at the weapon bobbing up and down, embedded in the wall, finding it to be a large splinter of wood.
"Oh. It's you. Come to finish the job?" Dilan asked from somewhere. Her voice was still deeply scratched up, but she could form coherent sentences. Levi took his hand off of his knife that he had grabbed at instinctively and looked at the various beds before finding her huddled up in the corner with a blanket. The moon was bright, and he could see her well enough.
"The fuck are you doing on the floor?" He muttered.
"The bed was too soft. The fuck you doing in my room?" She shot right back. Levi's eyes softened a bit in realisation. Him and his friend had the same problem and ended up sleeping on the floor the first few days. He sighed and raked a hand through his hair.
"Look. We can't keep going like this. One of us is going to end up killed." He said logically, looking at the spiky bit of wood. Dilan took a moment and sat up a bit, hugging her knees to her chest.
"Agreed." She replied after a long moment. Levi nodded in approval. It was a good start.
"So. We need to come to an understanding before the expedition. As much as I dislike you, teammates can't be at war at each other on the battlefield. Trust me. The outside is much worse than the underground." He stated. Dilan didn't look so sure, but she didn't retort.
"So, what do you suggest?" She asked.
"You answer my questions. I'll answer yours. No bullshit. Then it's all out in the open." Levi offered. Dilan took another long moment.
"I'll agree if you drop that superior bullshit. We're the same age and it's stupid." She huffed. Levi rolled his eyes.
"For tonight. Fine." He gritted out. Dilan nodded in approval.
"Guess you should sit down then." She shrugged. Levi nodded. He pulled out the wooden spike and threw it back over to her, figuring she'll want the protection, before sitting down on the end of the bunk bed. The brat stayed where she was on the floor.
"Why didn't you tell anyone today?" Levi started straight up.
"No point." She replied. Levi gave her an annoyed look to elaborate. "You belong here, unlike me. I don't know about you, but I don't get off on ruining other people's lives." She said simply with a shrug. Levi pursed his lips. Say's the mass murderer, but he decided not to say that out loud. He guessed it was an explanation. "How old are you?" She asked. Levi gave her a deadpan look.
"Of all the fucking questions-"
"Just answer it." She hissed. Levi sighed.
"23." He answered. Dilan nodded. Where to even start with his next question. This girl was such a mystery. "Are you really suicidal?" He wondered. Dilan frowned.
"Not exactly. I just don't give a shit what happens to me anymore. I don't get scared of death." She replied. Levi raised an eyebrow.
"Then why did you jump off the roof?" He prodded. Dilan tensed slightly.
"I don't want to talk about that." She admitted. Levi gave her an unamused look. "No bullshit doesn't mean you get to dive into my darkest secrets. Unless you want me diving into yours." She snapped. Levi grit his teeth, but he guessed the brat had a point. "When did you come up?" She asked after a moment of silence. Levi hesitated.
"3 years ago." He replied and Dilan looked slightly surprised for a second before she pushed it back. "How long did you work for Kenny the ripper?" He asked, in a low voice. Dilan's face darkened.
"Too long." She mumbled.
"And how many did you kill?" He persisted. Dilan looked him straight in the eye.
"Not enough." She sighed, raking her fingers through her long black hair. Levi was taken aback by her casual tone. They were both talking about murder, weren't they?
"You enjoyed it?" He frowned. He'd killed too but never once did he enjoy it. Dilan licked her lips.
"They enjoyed themselves in the worst ways. I enjoyed ending their fun." She shrugged. Levi shifted.
"You mean to say they deserved it? Every single one?" He questioned, wanting to see what she was. Dilan pursed her lips.
"It's my turn to ask the question. The survey corps caught you too, didn't they. For the same thing as me, that's why you're so good with the gear. That's why Erwin was smiling like it was all some sick joke?" She asked grinding her teeth. Levi hesitated again. He didn't like answering the questions, but he wanted answers more than he cared about his discomfort, also noticing the girl was incredibly good at connecting the dots. She had got it spot on, after all. Levi forced a nod and Dilan scowled at the floor. "Bastards." She mumbled under her breath and Levi raised an eyebrow at her. "And you haven't escaped yet? Why?" she questioned, genuinely curious. Levi blinked.
"Are you saying you're planning on escaping?" He retorted. Dilan rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
"I'm saying you've been here long enough to escape. You have the skills and the money. Why don't you disappear?" She explained. Levi noticed how she didn't answer his question but decided not to persist.
"I have a job to do. You don't understand because your just some assassin. Humanity needs soldiers. I happen to be a damn good one." He replied. Dilan observed him.
"Bullshit. That's not why you fight. There's a real reason, a selfish reason. Tell me." She provoked. Levi clenched his fist. How did the girl read him so easily? Her burning amber eyes seemed to light up in the darkness like a predator.
"Pass." He said finally. Dilan looked irked but dropped it. "Did you work alone in the underground or did you have a gang?" He asked. Dilan bit at her lip.
"I was alone." She whispered. Levi felt like he should back off, but he couldn't. "No family?" He kept going and Dilan almost winced.
"Pass." She regained her composure. "When you were captured. Was anyone captured with you?" She asked seriously. Levi felt his pulse raise a bit.
"Pass." He replied and they narrowed their eyes at each other. "Guess we're at a stalemate." He said after a while.
"Guess so." She replied. Levi hesitated before standing up.
"I should leave then." He said and Dilan nodded. He reached the door before she spoke up.
"One more question. Why were you so quick to expect I had a motive to be here? Because I'm from the underground? I thought of all the people here, you wouldn't discriminate because of that." She pointed out; resentment clear in her tone. Levi gave her a glance.
"It's exactly because I'm from the underground that I expect you have a motive. I know first-hand, how desperate people are to get out. How they will do almost anything. That's how I know." He replied before leaving, shutting the door behind him. He breathed out as he walked back to his room. Some questions had been answered and Levi felt he knew her a bit better, but he knew he barely scratched the surface. The girl was still a mystery and he wanted to know why.
DILAN P.O.V.
Dilan got up the next morning with a new determination in her eyes. Last night had been unexpected but useful. Levi came up three years ago. The same amount of years he did. There was a possibility however small that they knew each other. And if they did Dilan wanted to ask Levi how he went out. She wanted to know how bad it was and if he was in pain. Sure, it would hurt like hell hearing the answer, but she had to know. Because if it was bad like she expected it must have been she had a new motivation for being here, essentially making Levi right. She was going to kill the bastard that took him. She was going to kill Erwin smith for taking everything from her. It doesn't matter how long it takes or how long she has to stay in this pathetic regiment for her to do it. He will die by her hand.
But to kill him she needed to get closer to him. And that meant climbing the ladder.
Dilan got up early to train. She grabbed her horse from the stable and spent the whole morning running drills with him and making sure he came back to her if she whistled, no matter how far away she was. Every time she rewarded him with an apple since she had stolen a bunch from the mess hall. It felt nice to steal again, her fingers had been twitching lately.
When she was satisfied with the bond between her and the horse, she had decided to name Stealth, she brushed him down and mucked out his stall before running to the showers. Thankfully they were empty, whether she was late for early, she didn't know or care. She showered quickly, dressing and remembering to wear her scarf before she walked down to the mess hall, seeing everyone was eating breakfast. Feeling particularly motivated she dropped down on a seat with the squad, smiling as everyone looked at her with surprise.
"What? I'm part of this squad, right? We're going on an expedition tomorrow so we probably shouldn't hate each other. So, vent it to me now. Why do you hate me? Brand, you go first." She explained and everyone balked at her except Levi who had gotten over the surprise and rolled his eyes at her brattiness.
"He hates you the same reason as the rest of us! You're from the underground and you aren't trustworthy!" Tabitha answered for all of them. Dilan flicked her eyes over to Levi and he glared at her.
"Okay... well. Let's pretend for a quick moment I am not from the underground. Is there any other reason you hate me?" She asked and the girl looked stumped. Mike hid a smile which Dilan felt oddly proud she pulled out of him.
"Well... you fight like an animal!" She said eventually. Dilan cocked her head.
"Me and Levi have a similar fighting style. Are you calling him an animal too?" She twisted her words and she gasped.
"No! No, no, no. I did not say that!" She defended quickly, despite the fact that Levi was glaring at Dilan not herself.
"So... you only hate me because of where I was born. You know I can't help that, right?" Dilan said, adding a twinge of sadness to her voice which made Levi glare harder since he knew it was fake. Tabitha froze slightly, guilt crossing her face.
"I..." Dilan sighed dramatically.
"You don't know what it's like. You had to fight to survive every day. Imagine going on an expedition every day. I-I'm sorry if I offended you for acting like an animal. But being an animal was the only way to survive. Are you asking me to die?" Dilan made her voice waver and tears form in her eyes. Three of the boys looked so regretful Dilan had to try hard not to outright laugh.
"Of course not." Toby reassured quickly.
"Maybe we judged you too soon." Brand added.
"Yeah, we have no idea what its like. Right Tabs?" Johnson grit his teeth at the last bit, the boys turning to glare at Tabitha, willing her not to be a bitch again. Dilan bit back a smirk but did send Levi a smug look while no one was watching her. Tabitha hesitated but sighed and scratched the back of her head.
"I've only been in the underground once. But it sure as hell didn't look like a picnic. I don't trust you and I won't lie and say I will ever trust you but maybe I could be less of a bitch. How about this. I'll try harder to find a solid reason to hate you?" She mused. Dilan chuckled and wiped the tears out of her eyes.
"Sounds good to me." She smiled. The boys smiled back.
"Great! You should sit with us every lunch. We are a team after all." Brand said kindly. Dilan smiled and nodded.
"Thanks. I'd like that."
"Well I'm glad this is over now. Let's go train." Mike stated and stood. The others stood too.
"Come on Dilan, we can give you some tips from our previous expeditions." Toby offered. Dilan sent Levi a look, ignoring the fact that he was literally about to rip her head off.
"That would be great! Thanks guys!" She grinned, standing up and walking in pace with them.
"Yeah, I'm so knowledgeable." Brand boasted and Dilan laughed as Johnson wacked him up the back of the head.
"Shut up Brand. You forgot three of the emergency drills and almost got us all killed last time." Johnson scolded and Toby laughed while Brand blushed red with embarrassment.
"I keep telling you... I couldn't hear you guys over the wind!" Brand whined.
"Yeah right, stupid." Tabitha chimed in and the group laughed while Brand groaned and hung his head. Dilan smiled. Step one completed. That was almost too easy.
The rest of the morning was spent with drills and the horses. Dilan was proud to say she impressed everyone, including Mike, with her new horse-riding skills. Mike had to leave them after that, telling them to do some individual training since him and Levi had paperwork to do. They left Tabitha in charge.
"Okay so! Since I'm in charge of you shits, I think we should do some laps and then some sparing until lunch." Tabitha said decisively. The boys whined.
"Laps are you serious!?" Brand complained.
"Yeah come on, Tabs." Toby sighed. Johnson did not look happy either.
"Laps are actually a good idea. Running will help build up our stamina which I assume is good for expeditions. I used to do a lot of running in the underground to build up my core." Dilan shrugged. Tabitha gave a small nod of approval.
"See new girl agrees and she's not even used to military training." Tabitha scolded. Dilan found that the girl still disliked her, often throwing her backhanded comments every now and then, calling her new girl or underground girl but she wasn't outright cursing her anymore. it was a good step in her opinion. The boys sighed in defeat as they got to the track and lined up, starting to jog in pace with each other.
"So, Dilan? How are you so good with the gear?" Brand asked curiously. The others looked for the answer too. Guess this was her chance to answer their questions so they trusted her more.
"I found some in a dumpster. I fixed it up and started using it-" Dilan started. "For crime." Tabitha cut in.
"Yes. For crime. Apparently, I got too good as the survey corps started chasing me." Dilan continued.
"But how are you so fast on it? You were faster than Levi!" Toby questioned. Dilan shrugged.
"I developed my own style. Didn't get much gas down there so I had to preserve what I had." She explained. The others scrunched up their faces in confusion.
"So, you're not even using that much gas?!" Johnson asked. Dilan nodded and they all stopped.
"What's wrong?" She asked, stopping herself too.
"Show us. We want to see." Tabitha said curtly, crossing her arms. Dilan blinked as the others nodded in agreement.
"Now?"
"What better time? We have an expedition tomorrow and you have a technique that could save our lives if we learn it." Brand replied and the others nodded in agreement again. Dilan guessed that's what happens when you become part of a squad. You start developing the same thought processes, having been round each other all the time. Dilan guessed there was no harm.
"Sure. It's pretty difficult though." She warned. Tabitha scoffed.
"If you can do it underground girl, so can I." She huffed and started walking away. Dilan smiled and rolled her eyes. One step at a time.
20 minutes later they were all geared up and resting on a tree branch. Dilan was about to explain her method.
"So, technically, I am falling." She tried to explain. "Falling?" Toby questioned. Dilan nodded.
"The aim is to be falling more than flying. That way your only using gas for the little things, like moving left and right or under and over. You also use the objects in the way to your advantage. But most of the time I'm using the gear itself to propel myself. You have to let the momentum take you." She continued and they all blinked at her. "Maybe it would be easier to show you. I'll go straight, you guys watch to my left and right, yeah?" She offered and the others nodded.
Dilan took a breath, focusing up, before hooking her grapple into a high tree branch and propelling herself through the air. She flipped over a tree branch and did the same thing again. It was basically a slingshot situation. She only used gas for emergencies. Dilan forward rolled onto a tree branch and ran to the end before shooting her wires again and using a spurt of gas to duck under a tree branch.
"HEY!" A voice yelled and she landed, looking back to see everyone was very, very far away. Oops.
Dilan came back towards them and they landed on a tree, breathing heavily. Dilan wondered why they were all so worn out.
"The fuck... underground girl." Tabitha panted, hands on her knees. Dilan blinked.
"You said you wanted to learn." She shrugged.
"That method is insane! Your escaping injuries that could be fatal every 5 seconds by a hair. Are you suicidal or something?!" Brand hissed. Dilan sighed. He wasn't far off, but she didn't want them to know about that.
"Sorry guys. That's just how I learnt." She shrugged again. The group composed themselves.
"Well, thanks for trying Dilan but I don't think we can learn that." Johnson chuckled, pushing the sweaty hair out of his face.
"Yeah because we value our lives." Tabitha mumbled, sending her the stink eye. "Tabs!" Toby scolded quietly. Tabitha rolled her eyes and Dilan laughed.
"No, it's cool. Sorry I couldn't be more help." Dilan apologised and the group smiled at her, except for Tabitha. She hadn't exactly won her over yet.
"Don't worry about it." Brand said cheerfully, putting an arm around her shoulder. Dilan's breath hitched in her throat and she had to remind herself not to freak out. She forced a smile, panicking internally and formulating a plan of how to get the guy to stop touching her. She didn't want to outright tell him to get off. The others were starting to get more comfortable around her and that worked well with her plan. She needed trust, even if she wasn't worthy of it.
"Race back to the compound then!" She laughed, diving off of the branch, hearing the 'no fair' and 'wait up' behind her. She let out a shaky breath and calmed herself down. Sometimes she just wished people would mind their own person space.
Levi P.O.V.
The day had been a long swirl of memorising formations and doing paperwork. The squad had trained by themselves most of the day and Levi couldn't deny he had reservations about leaving the brat with them. It was fine when they hated her but now... the boys were wrapped around her finger and Tabitha was even easing up on the threats. The brat was a sly fox and she was manipulating them, Levi knew it. He had seen those smug looks she threw in his direction during breakfast and he had barely managed to refrain from finishing the job he started the day before right there. Although he didn't think Hanji would be impressed about that. Shitty glasses had been sending him dirty looks all day and it was starting to bother him. He had no idea until he was here that he preferred annoying loud hanji to this quiet and disappointed one. He wasn't sure how to make it right with her. As much as he hated to admit it, the woman was his friend and he was pissed at himself for making her mad.
He didn't make it to lunch since he was so busy. But he did grab a snack and he saw the squad laughing at the table. Dilan laughing along with them. He didn't like how close they were getting. And he sure as hell didn't like the look in Brand's eye. Why was she trying with them? What was her motive? He couldn't get his head around it.
A few hours later and curfew had just passed. He looked up from his desk when he heard a knock on the door. He stood up cautiously, hand on his knife. Being above surface didn't take away his survival instincts from the underground. Nothing would take those away. Walking to the door he was about to open it but hesitated.
"Who is it?" He asked.
"Johnson sir." The reply came and Levi let out a breath of relief and annoyance, opening the door.
"Johnson what the fuck are you doing here at this time of night?" He scolded. Johnson paled slightly but remained where he stood.
"You said t-to report. If I found anything out?" He squeaked. Levi's eyes widened a fraction, intrigued, and he opened the door for him. Johnson stepped inside and Levi sat down at his desk.
"Tell me." He ordered. Johnson nodded.
"Well, she told us she developed her 3DMG technique by herself and that it depends more on falling than flying." Johnson started. Levi was slightly curious but not surprised. Suicidal maniac.
"Anything else?" He asked, impatiently.
"Well I asked her who taught her to fight and she got this weird expression on her face and tensed up. Then she told me she taught herself." Johnson explained. Levi nodded. So, someone taught her how to fight. Someone she didn't want others to know about.
"Good work. Does she expect anything?" Levi asked. The girl was quick, she may have figured it out already. Johnson sighed.
"I'm not sure, sir. But... I feel kind of bad. She seems-"
"Exactly. She seems. We aren't sure. And we can't let our guard down till we are. You are a soldier, correct? You want to protect the squad, correct?" Levi asked sternly, standing up. Johnson gulped and nodded. "Then you won't let your feelings get in the way of your duty." Levi reminded.
"Yes sir." Johnson nodded firmly.
"Good. Get some sleep, we have a big day tomorrow." Levi ordered and Johnson nodded, saluting and leaving the room. Levi sighed and sat back on the bed. Everything about her was a mystery. Why couldn't he crack it?
