The dead forest swallowed Elsie. The temperature dropped to bone freezing, sucking the color out of the trees and giving the moss a grey tinge against the many silver rocks they grew upon. Babbling brooks filled with polluted water created cracks in the forest, a beautiful melody harmonized by the tweeting of low flying purple herons. Frogs croaked and branches shook overhead. Not once did the sun peak through the thick, pale leaves. The wildlife took no notice of her hard footsteps, the branches cracked, or the curses beneath her breath when she tripped on a surprisingly slippery rock in her upward trek. In the distance, a wolf howled and a herd of deer made Elsie fall to her knees in surprise. They raced past her, easily jumping onto moss blanketed trunks and unstable rocks to disappear into the grey heart of the forest.
The forest continued on as if Elsie were not there. Her feet carried her in the direction of the deer. She knew where she was going without having been there. Her soul remembered the path to Ymir's pond. Elsie took in the tall trees encircling her. It's easy to get lost in here. How desperate had Ymir felt to summon a Goddess' help? The Lady Seer could barely keep her footing in the dark forest, she could only imagine how far Ymir had been able to get, being chased by evil King Fritz's arrows, before Freyja had to step in.
It took two miles. Ymir had run hard. Elsie was panting and leaning against the first tree on stable ground. The upward climb in the forest was killer. She looked down the upward incline she'd unknowingly began, panting from the change in elevation. If someone had sent dogs after her, Elsie wouldn't have made it. There was no way she would beat the stamina of a four-legged trained killer.
Elsie wiped her brow and turned from the hill, realizing that the moss was healthy on the rocks surrounding the pond. The vibrant, blue water gave the same light as the sun, the lily pads in the water plump and supporting water frogs decorated with black dots along their strong legs. They stared at Elsie, the intruder, and croaked in warning before slinking into the clear water. She watched in wonder as they swam to the bottom of the pond, the water rippling from their suave movements, and when she blinked they were gone.
She walked to the grass edge to get a better look. No frogs were in the small circle. The lily pads floated and the water lapped in disruption against the slicked rocks, proving that they were there. She took in the crooked tree digging its roots into the muddy undergrowth of the pond.
A scent similar to her father's filled the meadow. Elsie stumbled, overcome with memories of her childhood, suddenly thinking of riding her bike on stark black pavement, with her scoffed Vans' laces getting stained from the petals, her mother sitting in the front yard talking to the neighbors. Dad fixed his truck, bent over the open red hood of his favored Ford (so American) and Tucker chased the dog after Elsie, and it came back to her so fresh and so vibrant in her mind's eye that she was reduced to tears. The pond made her feel like she was coming home, finally, after over a year, and that she was seven again and her family was together like they should be.
But she stood at the cusp of the extraordinary pond and knew that this wasn't home. It was a fake feeling, a fraud trying to make her comfortable, and Elsie wasn't a dumb blonde. This was Ymir's bond, the supposed beginning of the titans, and the clear water rippled with a power that sang to Elsie like family. Maybe a part of the Lady Seer returned to the pond when they died. Would she end up here one day, a memory for one of her nieces to pray to just as she was to her mother? Too much and too little but Elsie wasn't bold enough to step into the water. It shimmered beneath a luring ray of sunshine, coaxing her to take a nice soak after her long hike, an oasis encouraging her to delve into its hallucinations.
"Alright then." Elsie exhaled, shaking out her hands and walking to a rock that seemed the driest. She sat and rubbed her shoulder blades, inspecting the calm water.
Thinking of Eren seemed to be the trick. What was he doing? Did he still want to destroy the people who killed his mother? His heart was so golden when it came to Annie. Was it because she hadn't been involved with the attack on Shiganshina? Her head lulled back, relaxed by the sound of birds cooing to each other and squirrels shaking branches when they shifted positions.
Annie and Eren working together might be the best thing for Paradis. He would listen to her reasoning and one day, even an idiot could dream, understand why it happened. Annie could possibly stop the anger growing inside of him. Elsie knew that she'd only prevented deaths until Zeke and Granfer arrived. The last attack must've hit the Scout Regiment hard but it didn't include a friend's death, like Hannes or the squad again. This attack on Ragaku, on turning people into titans, could feed the fire in Eren.
Elsie hated herself for not stopping Zeke and Granfer. But what could she have done? Her position here was purely based on Willy's protection. The day she lost his trust was the day she'd be fighting for her own life. Elsie planned to leave Marley before it came to running for the border like Florence and Grisha. All she could do was make the men in power happy and pray that a chance to get the hell out of here came. A chance that didn't involve murder. If she could get a boat with a friendly crew that gave a nice little farewell on the coast of the island, that would be fantastic. It'd be really handy to have a gift that made her wishes come true, even if it was a little trick of the tongue like Florence's.
She couldn't wait four years for Eren to arrive on Marley. Elsie wasn't the damsel in distress type. There was a way to get back but she wasn't seeing it. The two months wasted here were long enough to make her skin crawl and lose her patience. She needed to focus, be in the moment, and figure it the fuck out. She was heading to the Mid-East, no doubt, and Granfer and Zeke were heading to Paradis. She had no other allies- wait.
Yelena.
Elsie's tight grip on her knees slackened. An odd obsession tied her to Zeke and it irked the sunken-eyed soldier that he'd left without a note. Yelena had no idea how long Zeke's been gone. She could say that Zeke was in trouble (the man was - once he met Levi again, it would be over. If he wasn't prepared with an army of titans, Zeke wouldn't be strong enough to take Levi alone) and depending on Yelena's belief system, Elsie would say that she'd seen it in a vision. And it was true, even if the timeline was a bit screwed with Elsie's interference. Although if Yelena proved to be a straight-arrow type like Sasha, then Elsie could simply refer to a letter Willy and Commander Magath were going to discuss after their meeting. The threat of Zeke's life should be enough reason to make Yelena head to Paradis Island.
Thinking of Yelena also reminded Elsie that she didn't have all day to pray for a vision. She sighed and opened her eyes, giving up for the morning, and screamed with all her might.
The Armored titan sizzled on the other side of the pond. His red, tendon exposed feet singed the grass, golden jaw opening to allow steam to race out of his mouth. His eyes glowered, furiously bright in the grey forest, and his large arms, the size of trains, swung out to clap Elsie between his palms.
She yanked at the switch controls, felt the surge of the grapple hooks peeling out of the machine and latching onto something meters behind her. Elsie never got to pushing the triggers. The Armored titan's burning hot hands encased Elsie, devouring her in a pitch-black sauna. Her skin burned, she couldn't breathe. She couldn't see, it was too dark in the palm of Reiner, too hot, and she knew that this was it. He'd followed her all the way to Marley to get his revenge.
It was only until her depth perception told Elsie that she was falling backward that she realized Reiner wasn't there. She'd pulled the triggers unknowingly and the harsh reel of being dragged backward had yanked her out of the fake reality Freyja had tossed her into. Elsie would've screamed in pain if she remembered how to breathe. Her entire body felt electrocuted, tingling and numb and not of her own, roughly dragged backward like a rag doll until she reached the tree with grapple hooks.
Steam rose from her hunched figure. Elsie shakily raised her hands in disbelief. Her skin was red from the heat. She looked at the pond, still strikingly beautiful and still, and no Armored titan insight. Elsie tried to stand but her arms gave out and she landed on her shoulder.
She covered her face. What the fuck was that? And just as fast as she asked herself the question, Elsie knew that she'd taken the Armored titan. She sat up, not caring for the pinch in her leg or the jab in her rib, and walked towards the pond. Her wires retracted with a sharp snap into her machine.
"I took the Armored titan when I killed Reiner," She said to the pond, invigorated. "I ended the chance of someone else having it! Didn't I?" She laughed, madly. "It all makes sense now! After I killed Reiner I started to have visions in Stohess. I thought it was because I began to pray but no, it was because I'd taken a part of Freyja, wasn't it? That's what you've been trying to tell me."
The blue water did not answer Elsie. The words were not her own when they slipped from her tongue, "You want me to take the titans back."
Elsie had it in her mind. She could see it as clearly as the formation plans on Erwin's desk. Freyja only meant to help and humanity had used her gift as a weapon. It was all wrong, so wrong and so sad, what they were doing with her titans. For a hundred years she's watched humans twist and vile her present and finally, Elsie came. She could do what the others couldn't. She could fight and create, survive.
"Stop," Elsie clutched her forehead. A heavy pressure began in the base of her skull before crawling upwards. "I can't do that."
She could. She's done it already. Didn't she feel the desire when looking at the vial? The vial that held part of Zeke's spinal fluid? It held a part of Freyja, a part of Elsie, and it belonged to them. Humans had trashed the beauty of titans and for that, they will go down in history.
Elsie found herself nodding along just to get the pressure out of her head. It slowly ebbed away, as well as the presence of something larger than life itself hankering down on her, and eventually, she could see straight.
Her legs went numb and a cold sweat broke across the back of her neck. Elsie swayed and sat once more on the rock. She took a moment to get her barrings.
Fuck.
Elsie woke up slanted in the backseat of her carriage when the tires shifted to gravel. She rubbed her crusted eyes, watching Tybur Manor grow as they parked in the drive. The last thing she wanted to do was dress pretty and impress someone but life in Marley was anything but simple.
She missed walking up three flights of stairs instead of the spiraling one in Tybur Manor. The cold draft in Levi's room had never been a problem with his chest pressed against her back. And her clothes were never mysteriously rearranged by color here, and it was rather annoying that she couldn't nag at Sif for moving things around in her room. She grew tired of making the sheets every morning and had to pinch herself to do it. She missed coming out of the shower to a triangle tucked bed and Levi berating her over how she folded her pants. Gods, she'd taken so many things for granted even with the threat of death looming over her.
The worst part of Tybur Manor was the silence. There was no impromptu fistfight happening or a food thief making everyone shield their plates with forks for spears. Elsie left her bedroom, heels clicking ominously off the white marble, feeling better after splashing her face with cold water and changing out of her dirty outfit, leaving her memories in her room. She paused at the end of the stairs, listening, before stepping off and heading for the dining room.
"Where's Willy?" She asked Daisy, one of the kitchen staff.
She paused in picking up a bowl of half-eaten grapes and said, "He's getting ready for the trip to Lakua. He should be in his bedroom."
"I'll finish this," Elsie grabbed the plate of toast before heading for the hall. "Where would I find a bottle of wine? I can't seem to find my servant."
Not that Elsie looked for Sif. The servant usually appeared bright and early to aggravate the Lady Seer on her own time. On a normal day, Elsie would consider this strange and perhaps send out a search party but, for this moment, it worked in her favor. She'd prefer not to answer Sif's curious, and endless, questions about where she'd spent her morning.
"The wine cellar." Daisy tried not to sound mean but really, it came out blunt and Elsie swiftly left to find the newly discovered wine cellar. It would be too much to ask.
Sif found Elsie loitering near a narrow staircase leading to a dark basement. She stood at the top, her heels staying in the fine line of light, and bleakly tried to convince herself to go down. Her heart tried to break through her spine to get away from the enclosed space.
"What are you doing?" Sif asked from down the hall.
Elsie curled her fingers, "Is this the wine cellar?" If it was, she'd throw herself just to get down. Where had this sudden fear come from? She refused to let it keep her from the sweet relief wine provided.
"No, it's in the kitchen. Honestly, how long have you been here?"
She gratefully stepped away from the cliff. Elsie brushed past Sif and called, "Where were you? We have a guest coming, don't you know?"
"You're the one who missed breakfast. I did my chores before coming to wake you, but surprise, surprise, you weren't in bed," Sif fixed a portrait as they walked. "Where'd you run off to?"
"To meet my secret lover." Elsie found it hilarious of Zeke to call Freyja that. The joke did little to brighten Sif's grumpy attitude.
"You won't get a real boyfriend saying things like that," Sif snapped her fingers when Elsie walked past the kitchen hall. The dark-haired woman led the way, her nose raised in a dignified way like she had so much expertise on the subject. "You need to start thinking about marriage. Once you're Ambassador it'll be nice to have someone to go home to and have babies so you're not alone when you're old," Sif dodged the staff cleaning plates and opened a backdoor that Elsie assumed would only be a pantry. She disappeared and Elsie followed, wide-eyed at the large cavern that chilled the aged bottles of wine. "You know, I didn't think you were the mom type, but I can see it now. Doesn't that sound like a good life, Lady Seer?"
"Sure, if I wanted that. Maybe I want a dangerous lover," Elsie examined a red that had a label similar to the one she liked. Both were imported from Hizaru. "And to live in a house by a dump and feed stray cats."
"If you want cats and a horrible house, just move to the Internment camp," Sif followed Elsie out of the cellar, through the half-emptied kitchen, and towards the dining hall. "There's a bunch of soldiers out there. It's a draft, don't you know? They're all dangerously thick-headed."
"They're not to my liking. I'll know when I find him."
"And how will you know that?" Sif raised an eyebrow. She began to walk around the table, clearing the extra plates that Daisy had previously laid out. Only two were left on the table.
Elsie filled her wine glass halfway and said with sincerity, "By looking into his eyes. He could make me feel safe with just a look as if he would destroy my biggest fears before I had a chance to realize they were there."
"Charming but I prefer personality to a look," Sif snorted. "Love doesn't work like that. You have to know someone to love them."
But did they? Levi protected Elsie from the beginning. At the beginning of their 57th expedition, Erwin had said that Levi had been too soft with her and she knew then that there were more questions he'd wanted to ask that Levi refused. All those months with the original Levi Squad were meant for Levi to question her, not entirely to train her as a soldier, and reveal all she could to the military. Barely had Elsie been bothered due to her side effect.
So why had Levi done that for her? She knew, back then, that it had been out of sympathy. She was lost in a strange world, with a strange backhanded gift, and Erwin was hungry for information. She'd seen the extent he'd go to, after her coma, and felt grateful that she'd been placed under Levi's protection. It was the beginning of love, she'd like to think. He'd let her into that little part of his heart, in a way, by not asking her any more than what she tried to tell him.
"It can begin as caring for another person and grow into something more. I'm not saying it's love at first sight but that I'll know when I look into his eyes. I just will."
Elsie couldn't miss Levi in a crowd. Meters away, inches apart, she'd see the narrowed, grey slant of his eye and be dashing in his direction. It wasn't something she could explain to Sif, who only had moony eyes for Porco because of his fine complexion and the 'personality' she oh so adored.
"You're what people call a hopeless romantic," Sif snorted and Elsie laughed because that would be the last thing she called herself. "If only we could find our soulmates like that."
"You believe in soulmates?"
"I wish they were real."
Gustavo the butler entered with a tall, sunken-eyed blonde behind him. Elsie instantly stood and greeted Yelena, smiling and shaking her larger hand with excitement. The reality of her situation set in; Elsie invited a soldier for a secret meeting. She truly felt like an Ambassador when she gestured for Yelena to sit and Sif asked what she would like to drink. Albeit her tone could've been a tad bit politer.
"How was your first trip through the gates? Exhilarating?" Elsie joked. It fell on deaf ears for Yelena barely glanced at Elsie, far more intrigued with how Sif poured the water. "Oh well, how was your morning?"
"I didn't come for chit-chat, Elisabeth."
"Mine was rough, thanks for asking," Elsie muttered into her glass. She swallowed before meeting the woman in the eye, deciding that honesty was the best route. "Do you want to travel to where Zeke is?"
Yelena's thin eyebrow rose, "I don't have the superiority to make that decision. I'm only a grunt in the grand scheme of things."
"Yes, but with the right support, you could make it to where he is."
"Like a soon-to-be Ambassador's support?" Yelena guessed with sarcasm.
Elsie grinned, "Exactly."
"I have no reason to go after Zeke," Her fingers deceived what she said. She nervously twitched. Yelena desired to tell Zeke something. How important was it? "Why are you desperate to get us together? Don't tell me you have it twisted in your head that I'm his pregnant mistress."
"He needs to have a wife to have a mistress," Elsie leaned forward with eagerness, embarrassed that it had been her initial thought. "Does he have a wife? Oh, that's juicy gossip."
"No, he doesn't," Yelena scoffed and turned away. "Answer my question."
"I only want to help Marley succeed," Elsie said sickly sweet, filled with conviction. "The way it's going, we won't have enough people to cover all sides of the nation. The whole world hates us and why is that? Because of the titans. Because the government puts Zeke out there to be the big bad guy and they lock the Eldians away to show that they have them under control. I don't want to be the Ambassador for a nation like that," She held Yelena's attention although she tried not to show it. "I want world peace and to get there, we need to put an end to chasing after a little island and focus on our own Eldians. I want to free the people, Yelena, and I need Zeke here to do that."
"Free the people?" She echoed, faint. She looked at Sif, stone silent in the corner, before shaking her head. "No one wants to free the Eldians. They're the kicking bag of society, how else would they make themselves feel better? They'll turn on the small villages like they did to my home town. They'll force other nations to fight for them. It'll never end."
"So why does Zeke fight for it?" Elsie rebutted. "If there's no hope, why do you have so much faith in Zeke?"
Yelena clenched her knee, "You know of Zeke's plans?"
"I'm the Lady Seer. I thought you knew." Elsie knew little of Zeke's personal life. So little that she couldn't even decide if Zeke was fighting for the freedom of Eldians or if he only wanted the Founding power.
"The Lady Seer who kisses Lord Tybur's ass. You only care for yourself, that's what Zeke said. He tested you and you failed."
"I have a feeling our zodiacs don't align," Elsie said with a dry sense of humor. Yelena pushed out of her chair and began to pace the length of the table. Elsie crossed her legs and watched the caged tiger. "I understand that Zeke has a power no other Warrior has possessed. He's ingenious, he's changing the world, and he can do it, but he's taking forever. I'm ready to change things now."
"Now?" Yelena laughed. "You're in way over your head, kid. This isn't something you can just talk about. A revolution takes action, control, radicalism-"
"I want you to go to Paradis Island with your most trusted crew," Elsie stood as well, silencing her. She stood no more than her chest yet she held all of Yelena's attention. "Zeke will face an obstacle that he cannot beat and he will need you to help him. The one man team they sent him with is not enough."
"So you send another fleet to join their doom?" Yelena remarked, listening, but not convinced. Her feet continued to point at Elsie and that was a good sign. She wasn't half out the door yet.
"I send another fleet to make contact with the Queen of Paradis. Zeke will want to work with them, I promise you, Yelena, and by doing this we take four years off of his plan. He is a smart man," Elsie's tongue burned with the compliment but the soldier's eyes sparkled. She knew the way to her heart was the Beast titan. "He has the right idea but he didn't have a Seer before. If we make contact with Paradis, Zeke will have all the power he needs to make his move."
"Why doesn't Zeke make contact now?"
Elsie sighed, "I don't know. Maybe he thinks that he can defeat his enemies before facing the Eldian problem. Or maybe he just wants to take the Founding Titan for himself without considering other solutions. But that's what I'm trying to say, Yelena. I have other options that I know can work."
She ran a hand through her short hair before beginning to pace again. Elsie refilled her glass and glanced at Sif across the table. Sif's eyebrow quirk clearly asked Elsie what the hell she thought she was doing. Elsie's tip of her glass said that she had it perfectly under control. She hoped. It would be highly disastrous if Yelena decided not to work with Elsie and still told Zeke everything. Elsie told herself that was a problem for another month and faced the pacing woman.
"Tell me again what your intentions are." Yelena requested.
Elsie cleared her throat, "I would like for the Eldians to be released from the Internment camps. As of right now, yes, I am training to take over for Willy, and as part of that training, I will be traveling to Hizaru to make an importing deal. I know Zeke has an interest in the Azumabito family, and with your help, I can handle that portion of his plan when I leave. However, he will be in Paradis and I don't see him getting out of it alive," Yelena tensed, focused on Elsie's slow drawl. "The island doesn't know anything outside of its ocean. They have no idea of the war or the Warriors, and if you just took a moment to explain, perhaps you'd find that they'd be willing to help you and Zeke."
"You sound so sure of it." Yelena tried to read Elsie's face. What did she see? A calloused, hard set Ambassador? Or a little girl playing dress-up, scared to be found out?
"I'm the Lady Seer," Elsie tapped her forehead. "I know everything."
Yelena rolled her eyes, "I'm starting to believe it. I know for a fact that Zeke never mentioned any of this to you."
"He's very secretive."
"When would I leave for Paradis?" Yelena asked.
Elsie grinned, "Give me a day and I'll have it all sorted. See you at the stables tomorrow night?"
"Zeke isn't going to be happy." Yelena said in forewarning, although she agreed just as much as Elsie that things were moving too slow.
She tried not to count her wins before she had them but Yelena listened and she shook Elsie's hand at the doorway. Sif stood at her shoulder, the duo watching as the giant slid into the backseat of a carriage and drove out of the gate. Once the thick metal clanked shut Elsie turned and sighed.
"Thank Freyja that wasn't as bad as I thought it could be."
Sif said nothing. Elsie paused, briefly taking in the girl, and seeing more than her servant. She saw a Marleyan deeply infatuated with an Eldian, a woman who would put herself before ever being in Jonas Friedan's position. When had Elsie given her a decent day of work since she arrived? She was risky, and Elsie wouldn't have anything holding her back from Paradis.
Elsie opened her mouth to say something when the servant beat her to it. Devoid of light in her eyes, Sif said, "For Marley to succeed, right?"
"Right," Her tongue felt thick and dry. "For Marley to succeed."
Sif's hair burned an odd mix of brown and red in the sunlight, the crown of her bun glistening when she turned to take in the expanse of Tybur land. The corners of her pale lips turned down, revealing the inner turmoil she felt. Could she sense that change was coming? Did she consider telling Willy?
Elsie hesitated and Sif lowered her chin with a hushed, "I think you're doing the right thing, Lady Seer."
And that was all she needed to hear. It was scary being this way, having these thoughts in her head that weren't her own, leading her in a path that she wanted to head in the opposite direction of. She hated being alone in this decision. She wanted Levi to tell her that she was making the right one, even if it wasn't because having him behind her was all that mattered. She was scared to make the wrong decision, scared Freyja would lead her to the same fiery end as the titans, scared she wouldn't recognize herself when she looked in the mirror. So much laid in the unknown, only Freyja having an inkling of what would transpire.
The unknown wasn't so scary when a hand reached out to hold Elsie's. Sif met her gaze, reflecting the terror in Elsie's, and she nodded in finality with a clenched jaw. They held hands until Elsie pulled away, pushing a strand of baby hair behind her ear.
"Where do I find a corkscrew in this place?" She asked as she opened the door, clearing her throat as she went.
"You're hopeless." Sif groaned and followed Elsie into the white manor.
"She's right, you know!" Willy called as he cascaded down the spiral staircase. Elsie huffed in annoyance, stopping in the center of the foyer as she waited for him to meet her. "Look at your dress! You have no taste, what so ever! We are going to see the Commander, and-"
"Yes, yes, I've realized that you want me to dress like a pretty, innocent girl when dealing with him. I'll find my rosiest pink gown with my poofiest bow." She growled and used the banister of the stairs to dig her nails into.
Willy cheered her on, "More than perfect!"
Lakau resided two hours away. In a carriage, with the comfort of four wheels and a window separating her from the driver and wind, Elsie leaned in the velvet red seat and flipped through one of her mother's last journals. Her entries fizzled in and out near 835, understandably distracted by her plans with Grisha. Never once did Florence dare to write about her secret meetings.
February 835
I bought flowers for the Internment children and they stared at my roses like they were the nastiest thing they'd ever seen. "What do they do for us?" They asked. Did they not know what Valentine's Day was? I was so surprised that I had no answer for the little brat and he took off with his friends, crumbling my rose and laughing about the outlander's odd quirks. Jonas told me not to feel bad and I don't; how else were they supposed to act? A day meant for love didn't exist here. How stupid could I be to forget that?
I guess I've been caught up in my head lately. My nightmares have returned, as they do every spring since I've come to this world. At first, Cat thought that it was my gift of Sight presenting itself, but we weren't so lucky. The nightmares of Freyja standing on an impossibly tall wall slowly disappeared by April. It wasn't until the next year, and the next, and the next, that I realized something else could be happening to me. I try not to think about what being Lady Seer will mean for me. I try to think that once I settle the issue between the other nations and Marley Lord Tybur will fulfill his promise of sending me back to my time. I try not to remember what happened to Johanna.
It's been three years. Will my children remember me? Elsie will be turning ten on March Twenty Third, and Tucker turned five on January Sixth. I wonder how Damien handles their birthdays. I'm sure his mother and sister do it all because he can't handle more than one task at a time, and poor little Elsie is stuck in a house full of men. I wish I could be there to hold them, just for one minute, or even give them the gifts I've bought over the years. I found a colorful skirt that Elsie would love if she's still into Little Mermaid that is, and a journal for her to write in, just in case that she likes to jot down her thoughts as I do. There's a fantastic wood maker here that personally designed a figure that looked like Buzz-Lightyear and a red cape he could run around in. I'm sure by now he's a little tyke and running around causing trouble like Damien.
I miss my husband and kids. I just want to go home. I don't want to think about what these nightmares mean for me. Cat believes Johanna killed herself but I think there was something else happening. I'll find more about Johanna's life at Seherin Manor even if Cat says there's nothing there. Something happens to the Lady Seers, I know it, and I refuse to let it take me before I make it home.
"We're here!" Willy exclaimed, kicking his feet and pressing his straight nose against the window to peer at the square, lackluster building to their left.
Elsie dog-eared the page and placed the journal in her lap, exhaling and straightening the cuffs of her pink gown. Lace decorated her pale arms, choking her at the base of her throat, itching down her spine to wrap around her waistline. Elsie felt like a tart with her thick skirts and heart-shaped neckline, but it made Willy smile for the first time since her disastrous meeting with Commander Magath.
She wanted to be as excited as Willy. He held the energy of a puppy released in a new field of green grass. He bounced on the balls of his feet, fixing his white jacket and eyeing the empty expanse of the training base. Elsie's nude heels sunk into the grass instantly and she frowned, holding the edge of her dress to keep from staining. She'd known better than to wear this.
The door opened briefly for a shaggy light brown head to poke out. The soldier briefly took in their appearance before disappearing with a snick. Elsie and Willy glanced at each other. Hadn't she been in this situation before? A sense of deja vu trickled down her spine; Oulou opening the door, Levi rolling his eyes at her red dress getting covered in mud the moment she stepped out of the horse-drawn carriage.
A second passed before the door opened again. The blonde returned with another to back him up.
"Lord Tybur," The tall, brunette snapped in half. "It's our greatest honor to welcome you to the Lakau training base. I'm not sure if you remember me but we met last year at the Induction ball-"
"Colt Grice, how could I forget a face like yours!" Willy vehemently shook the boy's hand. Elsie couldn't contain the roll of her eyes. "You've grown since then."
"The doctor says I won't stop for another year. This is Walden Rassers, he'll escort the Lady Seer to the barracks."
"What do you mean? We are both meeting with the Commander." Willy looked backward as if Elsie could solve the mix-up.
She shrugged helplessly as Walden said, "He wants to speak with you, Lord Tybur. He said that the Lady Seer would find it interesting watching us train in the mean time."
It'd be much more interesting if she could watch the Commander choke on his drink but she'd take the outside time. Especially if it meant less time with the Commander. Elsie didn't bother putting up a fight and Colt led Willy down a path that led up cold stairs. Walden and Elsie traveled to the right, a tight hallway lit by gas lanterns, her gown swishing with every bold step. A small door at the end of the corridor grew, the light coming from the end, a rectangle that would open up to something similar.
Dirt filled the air. Bodies were slammed. Grunts were ignored. Elsie breathed it in, standing at the edge of the training ground, watching as hundreds of soldiers practiced their hand to hand combat. There were more than the entire Scout Regiment put together in this field. Not even the wind could keep the flying dirt stable. The movement was constant, an arm spinning, legs kicking, bodies flipping. Walden led Elsie around the circular patch, her smile growing the more she could see.
"I don't know why the Commander wanted you to see this but here it is. The training ground for all the recruits joining the military. We try to separate twenty thousand soldiers between the three major training towns, Lakua, Fort Salta, and Acirfa, but it's been hectic this past year." Walden awkwardly explained.
Elsie spoke without moving her eyes, "How long is the training?" Twenty thousand? Had she heard right?
"Six months. After that, they choose their specialty and are sent for their specialized training."
Pathetic. Elsie only saw mistakes and flaws and ways to take them down one by one. She tried to memorize their postures, seeing new moves that were similar to the one Annie used to take Eren down in the Titan forest. Lots of leg work, that was for sure.
"Interesting." She drawled, scheming a way to kill them all.
Commander Magath spitefully kept Willy for three hours. During that time Elsie spoke to a majority of the people in her vicinity. She learned that seven brothers came from Acirfa, off the northern coast, and all were planning to join the Navy. Walden came from Fort Slava and had no intentions of coming back. Elsie became a reason to take a much-needed break and she was swarmed, smiling and laughing at whatever was tossed her way.
"At least tell us that you know how to throw a punch!" Gangly Max called from over her shoulder.
Walden waved him off with a scoff, "She's a Lady, they don't throw punches. They break your heart!"
They laughed and it was forgotten in the fray of some other Lady joke that went over her head. She disappeared beneath the mass of soldiers and she found herself laughing. Laughing without trying to impress or use someone or get on their good side. She made rude comebacks and they insulted her back, and it was fun and games. She lost track of time, the sun setting without her notice for once, the worry of reaching her bed in time to think of Levi disappearing with another wisecrack from Max. It faded into the background, lost in watching men fight and squabble and bicker so loud that her ears rang, and she forgot that a silent mansion waited for her.
"Lady Seer!" A shrill voice called from the outskirts of the rowdy circle.
Elsie's head appeared between two elbows to see Willy and Commander Magath hovering at the base door. Commander Magath hovered over the Lord, shadowed, a devil on Willy's left shoulder. He did not seem surprised of his men's fancy with Elsie, faceless when Willy seemed more than insulted that she'd taken on so well.
"Are you done with your meeting?" She broke from the swarm to meet the men. She stood at the line between sun and shade, not wanting to leave. These soldiers held nothing on the ones that she missed but they could fill the hole in the meantime.
"Yes. I see you've done well with speaking to the soldiers. Are they happy with their accommodations?"
"There are certain living conditions that we can improve on. I'm thinking another bathroom." Elsie suggested.
Commander Magath snorted, "Sure. I'll put that on the list of renovations we're planning. Just below the sauna."
"Don't be so quick to say no! We can do it, tell them we'll have it done in a week," Willy winked and gave Elsie an encouraging thumbs-up. "And tell them to support their next Ambassador while you're over there!"
She would never do such a thing but the horrified gape on the Commander's face gave her enough courage to say, "Absolutely!" And dash off to inform her new friends they would be receiving a third bathroom.
They settled in Commander Magath's office once Elsie made the soldiers shout in victory. Her name echoed in the halls on their path up the stairs, not even Commander Magath snappily slamming the door as Elsie stood in the near-empty office.
"Did you have a rough day, Commander?" Elsie asked when he rounded the desk to sit in the dark chair.
He growled through clenched teeth, "My night could be going better. Willy seems to believe that you only care for Marley."
"It's the truth. I love her dearly." Elsie tried not to sound sarcastic. She hoped she passed. She could barely think straight with the Commander's glare trying to burn her into a puddle. He saw through her, she kept thinking, he knew every lie before she told one.
"I'm sure. He also thinks that you are ready to make a diplomatic trip."
Elsie's nails dug into her palm from how tight her fists were, "I am ready."
"I figured you would say as much. You two seem to have the same mind," Commander Magath flipped through a few papers on his desk before handing her one. "This will be your crew and ship. The goal of this trip is to create a functioning, monetary gain through importing. Once Hizuru officially opens its port for business they won't be able to secure a side without taking a huge hit financially-"
"To secure a side for a war between Marley and the Mid-East?" Elsie quipped.
"Potentially," Commander Magath drawled, annoyed that she interrupted his spiel. "Either way, if things did get a bit testy between us and the other nations, we will make sure we give Hizuru the best. They are essential in the other villages deciding who they are loyal to, which will be the one supporting their economy."
"If I can ask, what will this war be over?"
Commander Magath snorted, starting to become a pig, "The war? This war has been going on for a hundred years. It never stopped. No one wants us to have the power of the titans."
I wonder why, Elsie thought. She looked back at Willy, who kept his mouth shut for once, and the realization came crashing down on her. This was her first task as Lady Seer, future Ambassador of Marley, and no one would be holding her hand. She read the list of names, not recognizing one from the people she jsut met or knew, and suddenly was scared of going to a new place. Priestess Catharina wouldn't be there and Sif no doubt would opt to stay in Tybur Manor. She was all alone making these big world decisions, and the burdensome weight of a nation laid heavy on her shoulders.
"I won't let that happen." Elsie promised.
Commander Magath leaned back in his chair, "Of course not. Marley would be nothing without her titans."