Not really much to say this week darlings. I hope you're all enjoying summer and that you're all happy and healthy!
As always my lovelies, go ahead and enjoy this chapter and don't forget to toss me a little review, to let me know what you think~ ;)
P.S. All Attack on Titan characters belong to Isayama Hajime. I only own my OCs.
18. More important than us
~ 850 ~
"Captain! Captain Levi!"
Looking up from the papers he had been reading, upon hearing the voice calling to him from the hallway, he waited until a frazzled looking Scout burst into his office.
"Captain! Commander Erwin..." the man gasped, heaving for air. "He's awake...!"
Biting back the urge to sigh in relief, having initially thought the man might've come to announce Erwin had succumbed to his wounds, he got to his feet and dismissed the soldier telling him to inform Hange about it before heading off to the hospital. He would have gone to look for Natalie first, but he was certain she was still there where he had left her the previous evening. So far the Military Police had made no moves against the Survey Corps, to try and take her and Eren by force. That, however, didn't make him any less anxious about leaving her alone anywhere outside the barracks.
But when he entered the room to see Erwin sitting up against the bed's headboard, with Natalie standing by the window and Pyxis seated by his bed, he at last did breathe a sigh of relief.
"You sure slept a lot this time." he said, moving to pull up a chair next to the redhead. "How are you feeling?"
"I've had far better days, I assure you." Erwin replied with a faint smile. "I trust the Survey Corps is doing well."
"Other than being worried sick about their Commander, yes."
"Good. Levi... why is Natalie still in Trost?"
"She didn't tell you?" the Captain replied, exchanging a brief look with the young woman who had moved to stand next to him. "She believed that moving both her and Eren at the same time would just arouse unnecessary suspicion. And she didn't really leave your side much this week."
"I see..."
"Eren and Historia are out of the district already, with the rest of the 104th. And thanks to Commander Pyxis, we're aware that the Royal Council want them both, along with Natalie."
"What do you think, Levi?"
"Huh? Why even ask the question? Of course we're not turning any of them over. I know what happened out there... and that you figured things out. I'm not handing her over; I don't care what deal you made."
"I see." Erwin replied again, this time with a knowing smile playing on his lips. "Of course, it would be a huge loss for the Survey Corps to hand Natalie over to those naïve politicians. On that thought... Levi, I'm putting you in charge of the 104th; they'll be your new squad. They have proven that they have the ability to survive some of the worst odds. I think they'll do well under your command."
"Very well..."
Though his reply came without hesitation, Natalie could sense the tension in his body by the way he had pressed his back to the backrest of the chair. She couldn't blame him for being nervous about taking on subordinates again, even if his position demanded him to. More so, when those subordinates were still children.
"They'll do well with you, Captain." she encouraged him, resting a hand onto the chair where he could feel her fingers pressed against his back.
Though he didn't look at her, only acknowledging her words by momentarily turning his head towards her, she knew it had helped just by seeing how his shoulders relaxed. A knock at the door drew her attention just when she had noticed Pyxis' knowing smirk as he watched them.
"It's Hange." Levi stated, knowing the Section Commander would come to visit as well. "Come in!"
"Pardon the interruption, Erwin..." they greeted, entering the room followed by a dazed looking Conny. "Commander Pyxis, I'm glad we arrived while you're still here. This is..."
"A Scout from the 104th." the boy replied, offering a salute. "Conny Springer."
"Conny comes from Ragako Village."
"The village the recent Titan invasion originated from?" Pyxis asked, straightening in his seat.
"Yes. Actually, I confirmed with him the results of our investigation on what we found in the village. This only brings further credibility to that hypothesis. He's come to report."
"The results of the investigation..." Conny stated, his voice sounding hollow like he didn't really believe the words coming out of his mouth. "That is to say... we believe the Titans were the villagers originally living in Ragako Village."
"Say that again!" Pyxis gasped. "The Titans responsible for this incident... were the citizens of Ragako?"
"In other words, the true identity of Titans... is humans?" Erwin concluded.
"We don't... have proof yet." Hange replied, looking to Levi's horrified stare.
"So you're telling me... I wasted all this time and energy... running around killing people?" the young Captain retorted. "Is that right?"
"I said we don't have proof yet. We'll investigate further..."
"Agreed." Erwin concurred.
Excusing themselves, the two left the room along with Pyxis who requested a full report on the matter, leaving behind a deathly silence.
"Captain..." Natalie whispered, this time moving her hand to his shoulder.
Was she weird for not being as shaken as he was? Did that mean she was losing touch with her humanity? Or had she simply conditioned herself to believe she wasn't human anymore, and thus couldn't relate to that as strongly as he did? Letting go of him when he stood and walked to the window, she turned to look at Erwin only to gasp upon seeing the smile playing on his lips.
"Hey... tell me..." she heard Levi speaking and glanced back to see her voice had drawn his attention to the Commander as well. "...The hell you smiling for?"
"It's nothing..." Erwin replied, his humor fading upon seeing them both watching him in shock. "More importantly, we've taken yet another step towards the truth of this world."
"Just one step, huh? At this rate, we'll run out of people before we find out the truth. It's not worth the cost."
"But it is a step towards the truth. One day, we'll tear down this wall hiding it."
For a few minutes, that to Natalie felt like an eternity, silence reigned in the room until Levi seemed to come back to life and moved towards the door.
"Let's go."
His words startled the redhead, but she was left with no choice other than to salute Erwin and hurry after him.
"Captain..." she said, silenced by the look he gave her.
'Is he... angry with me?' she pondered, following him towards the barracks. 'Does he think I knew about this and didn't tell him?'
As they made their way to his office, she couldn't help the quickening of her heartbeat. It was true that she'd had no idea of what Hange had revealed earlier... but would he believe her? The thought that she had no way of proving she hadn't known was actually scarier than anything. When he closed the door behind them and slammed his hands against the wall beside her head, startling her, she couldn't help trying to swallow the knot in her throat.
"Did you know?"
At least he wasn't beating around the bush, and for a moment her mind raced wondering how she should react to ensure he would believe her.
"No. You already know everything I do." she replied.
"Do I?"
At his reply her eyes widened and her heart leapt into her throat choking her... he didn't believe her!
"Wha— what would I stand to gain from lying to you?"
"Who knows? You lied to those brats a few days ago... makes me wonder if you ever lied to me about anything."
"...Why are you doing this to me?"
She could understand that he had expected her to know, but she had told him the truth. Why did he keep pushing her into a corner like that?
"I need to know if you knew about this... if you just kept quiet to try and spare my feelings. It wouldn't be the first time you'd be stupidly kind like that." he retorted, narrowing his eyes at her.
"I said I didn't know! I know I can't prove it, but..." she snapped back, before she choked on her own words. 'Was I an idiot to think you believed me?'
She had never told him, instead choosing to push it aside all the time, but the thought that he didn't trust her had always stayed with her. Since that snowy day at the castle, since she had first shown him her Titan form, since she had told him everything she knew. That fear had never given her pause... the fear that he was only pretending to believe her... the fear that he had afterwards sought to get close to her only to ensure she stayed on their side. And right now he was only confirming all of those doubts.
"Or maybe you got too carried away with emotions, to remember to tell me." he said in the end, his words striking her worse than any blade. "Maybe sleeping with me was more important than that bit of information."
The sound of colliding flesh startled even him, before his mind caught up with the fact that her teary frown was no longer in front of his eyes and that his cheek was stinging.
"Did you always think I was lying to you?!" she spat out, the tremor of tears and her attempt to keep herself from yelling at him underlining her words. "Was there even one point where you actually believed me? Or were you just pretending all this time? Were you afraid I would turn against everyone, if you didn't pretend to trust me? I already told you things that would get me killed, if the wrong people heard them! Why would I keep this a secret?"
If he'd had any doubts that she didn't know, her reaction and the sincere offense he could see in her eyes told him everything. Had he gone too far? Perhaps, but shock therapy was often the quickest way to get the truth out of people. And he knew for certain he had gone too far when she tried to push him away so she could leave, only to whip around and slap him again when he grabbed her arm.
"Alright, I deserved that one..." he retorted, trailing a hand along his cheek where the skin was burning. "I believe you; I just needed to be sure and I didn't have time to coax it out of you."
His words were the only thing that stopped her struggling to escape his iron grip, allowing him to pull her closer.
"I'm sorry..." he said in the face of her disappointed frown, sighing and kissing the side of her head when she looked away from him. "I'll make it up to you, when this madness is over."
"Will that be all, Captain?"
'Well, what did I expect after that?' he mused before speaking up again. "Go ready the horses. We're going out..."
Knowing she was about to argue when she looked back at him, he pressed his thumb to her lips and lowered his voice to almost a whisper.
"Now that Erwin's awake, those pigs won't wait around anymore. I'm getting you out of Trost while I still can. Obey your orders."
Nodding she stepped away from him and left the office without another word, the young Captain sighing again in her wake. He had fucked up, he knew that... he'd cornered her too tightly.
'I know they say you learn from your mistakes... so then how do you still repeat them?'
Hadn't he done the same thing back when he had threatened to expose her to Erwin? Hadn't he used her feelings for him against her then, as well as before that when he had forced her to choose between him and her brother?
'I'm a fucking moron...' he berated himself with another heavy sigh, deciding then and there to settle the matter as soon as he caught her alone and hopefully in a somewhat better mood.
~ oOo ~
Had anyone told him Natalie was so adept at avoiding him, even in the tiny space of the cabin where their new squad was hiding, he would never have believed it had he not seen it with his own eyes. She had done anything and everything to keep herself busy with any of the kids that day, claiming that good teamwork only came from the bond that squad members developed with one another. Discussing the plans for getting Eren to Shiganshina, with Armin; accepting Mikasa's challenge on who could finish cutting wood first; berating Jean for being inconsiderate of Eren's hard work to clean the place and forcing him to join in as punishment; helping Sasha and Conny cook their dinner that evening.
He had eventually given up on trying to get her alone and decided to let her talk to him on her own terms. In the end, it wasn't a bad thing that she was bonding with those brats; at least they would be more willing to listen to her if he needed to leave her in charge of them.
"Um..."
Turning his gaze from the twilit sky he found Historia watching him from the doorway, holding a cup of tea.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Natalie asked me to bring this to you..." the girl replied, approaching him hesitantly where he was sitting on the porch stairs.
With a nod he accepted the steaming cup and set it down next to him, only to realize she was still standing there.
"Um... did something happen? To Natalie, I mean..."
"Why do you ask?"
Had Natalie talked to the girl about it? He didn't know how to feel about that... was she so upset with him that she wouldn't even talk to him directly?
"No, it's just... the air between you was... different somehow, today. Heavier... colder, I guess. I don't know how much the others noticed, but..."
'I don't know how much they've been in love, either.' she finished in her mind, unable to say it aloud under his piercing stare.
"If you're that worried, tell her to come talk to me about it." he retorted after a long silence that nearly had the girl squirming on her feet.
While she hurried inside, relieved to be dismissed, he huffed with a trace of a smile and reached for his tea.
'To think even that brat noticed...'
Well, not that he expected Natalie to actually come talk to him; reading her as well as he was able to, she was still too upset for that. And yet, not too long after darkness had fallen and everyone had gone to bed, he was still sitting out there. Unable to sleep, he had decided to make use of the full moon to get some reading done, when the sound of the door opening drew his attention. Looking over his shoulder he spotted Natalie stepping outside careful not to make any loud noise.
"Come sit with me." he called out, startling her while he closed the book and set it aside.
Though she approached, she didn't sit leaving him to huff at her stubbornness and reach up to grab her wrist.
"Sit. Don't make me order you." he said, tugging gently on her arm only to stop her when she made to sit at his side. "Not there... come here..."
Though she frowned at him, in the end she did as he asked and moved to sit on the step below his, between his legs where he could wrap her in his arms.
"I'm sorry..." he whispered in her ear, pressing soft kisses to her cheek even when she deliberately looked away from him. "I know I fucked up... I'm sorry..."
"Do you really believe me?" she at last said, keeping her eyes lowered despite turning towards him.
Rather than answering he reached to cup her cheek and gently turn her to face him properly.
"Look at me... Natalie, look at me..." he said, only speaking again when she raised her gaze to his. "I do believe you. I just needed to be certain you didn't try to spare my feelings. I know that's the only reason you would ever lie to me, but... I want you to promise me something. No matter what, even if you're not sure and you just suspect something might be true, you tell me. Do you hear me? No matter how fucked up it is, you tell me; don't even think about sparing my feelings."
At that he leaned forth to press a kiss to her forehead, knowing from the look in her eyes that she was displeased with his words.
"I know you love me; I know that's what makes you so stupidly kind. But this is more important than you, or me, or our feelings. This is about humanity's future... that's more important than us."
"But it's not..." she sighed. "You know we're not the last ones."
"The people on this island are still more important than us." he huffed, his other hand finding its way to her cheek as he lifted his head to look her in the eye. "They're the ones we fight for... I don't care if you lie to everyone else, or if you try to spare their feelings. Don't ever lie to me, no matter what you find out. Promise me... hm? Natalie, promise me!"
"...I promise." she eventually replied, an almost unsettling mixture of sorrow and dismay in her pained stare. "But I don't think I'll ever be able to choose humanity over you."
At her last words he released a soft sigh and leaned in to claim her lips.
'You would do it... you're just that stupidly kind.'
He knew her too well to doubt that she would choose the greater good, even if it meant sacrificing everything – including him. His heart assured him of that. She had known from the start that he had always put humanity above himself. That the reason he had even fallen for her, the reason he had eventually agreed to have a relationship with her, was because she had done the same, because he could trust her to do the same no matter what. That despite their selfish desire to live a long life together, they would still be able to put that aside and serve the greater good.
"I'm sorry you had to fall in love with a man like me..." he said, holding her dearly to him, feeling her hands curling into his shirt. "I'm sorry I can't give you a long, happy life. I'm sorry I can only give you pain and heartache."
"Shut up..." she whispered, tugging on his shirt until he yielded and kissed her again. "I'm the one who wanted this. I wanted you with everything you give me."
Though her gaze hadn't changed, her tone admitted no argument from him and he huffed again with a faint smile that died swiftly at her next words.
"You showed me what it feels like to be important to someone... that's more than enough. Even if you never gave me any love, it would still be enough. I'm not some ditzy girl anymore, who dreams of a perfect man or a lifelong marriage. I'd rather have you and be important to you, than have a perfect husband who would only want me for my wealth or my body."
Unable to say anything more to that, he only pulled her closer and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead.
"Will you regret this in the future?" her words echoed in his memory, and he leaned his cheek atop her head.
He had never really believed in the concept that someone could be 'made for' another person, finding it to be a childishly romantic notion. But now he very much felt like Natalie had been made exactly for him... now he was certain beyond any doubt that he would never regret his choice.
~ oOo ~
"Are you alright?" Natalie inquired, startling the blonde sitting on the porch that afternoon.
Walking over to the girl, she sat down with an inquisitive look on her face. Historia hadn't talked much since telling them about her past and by now the redhead wondered if maybe she had something on her mind.
"Did you two... um make up?" the girl asked in the end. "I noticed you were more... relaxed this morning."
Blinking in surprise at that, Natalie then chuckled softly and turned her eyes to the clear sky with a long breath.
"I'm guessing you tried asking Levi about it yesterday." she said with an amused tone to her voice. "Did he stare you down until you ran away?"
"K-kind of..." Historia replied nervously. "I know the Captain doesn't mean it... but he's really scary sometimes."
"Yes he is." Natalie chuckled again, with a playful wink. "But I'll tell you a secret... he's very soft and caring under that scary gaze."
Though she smiled at that remark, the blonde's humor faded soon after she turned her eyes back to the forest.
"It must be really nice to be able to share that with him..." she said, drawing Natalie's gaze to her. "I just... wasted all that time we had."
"You really cared about Ymir, didn't you?"
"Yes..." Historia whispered, as though afraid to acknowledge it aloud. "And I don't understand why she left me. After all the struggles she went through for me... why...?"
"Because she was stupidly kind." the redhead replied softly. "I'm sure at the end she pitied Reiner and Bertholdt; I still do, despite everything they've done. I'm sure she felt the same... she was incredibly selfless, to give up her own happiness with you for their sake. Try not to be angry with her, hm?"
At that she scooted closer to wrap an arm about the girl's shoulders, her gesture making Historia curl into her chest.
"It takes great courage to give up the one you love, for something greater than yourself." she said, her own heart squeezing painfully at the sound of the girl's soft sobs.
The fear that one day she might have to give up Levi for the greater good would forever haunt her, now that they had both acknowledged it. But in the same regard, she felt she understood Ymir's gesture more than probably anyone else did.
"All you can do is try to be strong, try to live for her like she lived for you, try to keep her memory alive in yourself."
Falling silent afterwards she sat there, stroking the girl's back gently until she at last calmed.
"I'm sorry... I cried all over you." she sniffled, wiping her tears on her sleeve.
"Don't even worry about that." Natalie chuckled, reaching to gently tousle her hair in true Levi fashion. "Sometimes crying is the best way to relieve stress. I'm sure it's not easy for you, going through all of this right after Ymir left. Just know that we're all here for you... even Levi, as scary as he seems."
She would have said more, had Hange's arrival not interrupted them. The Section Commander looked more than a bit frazzled and hasty as they dismounted and ushered them into the house.
"He's dead..." they said, once Levi had gathered everyone. "Pastor Nick... he was murdered last night in the Trost barracks. I'm sure it was the Interior Military Police who did it. I figured the Church would want to deal with Nick, since he was cooperating with the Scouts. That's why I hid his identity and had him stay in the barracks, but... to think they would use soldiers to kill him. I was too careless; it's entirely my fault."
"Did the Military police torture Nick... just to find out what information he spilled to us?" Armin inquired in the heavy silence.
"Most likely." Levi replied. "But it was the Interior Military Police; which means Pyxis' warning was true. There's something more behind all this. So how many nails did Nick have peeled off?"
"Huh?" Hange jerked, having been lost in thought.
"You saw him, right? How many?"
"I only caught a glimpse of him... but all the nails I could see."
"People that talk, talk after one; if they don't, peeling off any more is pointless. I thought Nick was an idiot... but he didn't turn away from his beliefs, until the very end. In other words, they have no idea we've caught wind of the Reiss family. However, someone in the government has their eyes fixed on us."
"Could it be someone who knows Historia?" Natalie at last spoke up from where she was standing at the window, while Nifa arrived with a message for Levi. "She said her father was a regional lord... could he have gotten a position in the government, since their last meeting? It makes sense why they would ask the Survey Corps to turn Eren and me in, but I found it weird ever since Hannes-san told us that they want Historia as well."
"It's certainly possible." Hange agreed. "He could have already been in the government even back then."
"Everyone out!" Levi ordered out of the blue, startling both of them. "We leave now! Leave no trace that we were here."
'Don't tell me... did they find out?' the redhead pondered, getting her answer from the look Levi offered her.
Within an hour, the group had emptied the cabin to follow Levi up onto the hills surrounding it, into the thick forest.
"That was close..." Conny sighed in relief, as they watched the Military Police raiding the empty house.
"But what would make Commander Erwin..." Armin gulped.
"Official orders came from the government." Levi replied. "There's been a freeze on all Survey Corps activities outside the Walls. They're telling us to hand over Eren, Historia and Natalie."
"Speaking of... right after he gave me the message, the Military Police came for the Commander." Nifa chimed in.
"That's treating him like some sort of criminal!" Hange protested.
"Someone's not working from the shadows anymore." Levi concluded. "They're moving for everyone to see."
"To think they'd go that far to protect the Walls' secrets... what's more, why do they want us to hand over these three? Not to kill, but for them to obtain?"
"Who knows? Anyway, it's clear whoever's behind this is after them. Loitering around here is dangerous. We're moving them to Trost."
"Why?" Moblit inquired. "That's the same place Pastor Nick was killed."
"It's worse to head towards the Interior. And we need to figure out who's behind this... with Trost in a panic, it should be easy to slip in. And if it comes to it, we can use the gear in the city. Hange, lend me some of your squad."
"Of course. Alright, I'll go after Erwin! Moblit, you're with me... the rest of you stay with Levi."
They were just about to mount, after Natalie had asked them to make sure Ran and Ada were delivered back to the stables at the barracks, when Eren spoke up approaching them.
"Hange-san... here." he said offering the Section Commander a folded paper. "I remembered a conversation between Ymir and Bertholdt. Didn't get the time to tell you, but it's all there."
"Alright, I'll take a look at it later. You guys be careful..."
~ oOo ~
"Will it really work?" Eren wondered for what felt like the hundredth time.
"Give it a rest, will you?" Natalie sighed, tousling his hair.
"But... that horseface looks absolutely nothing like me."
"I think he does..." she retorted, moving up right behind Keiji to take a peek at the busy street outside, whispering to the disguised Scout. "How is it?"
"It's busy, but nothing out of the ordinary." the man replied, keeping a careful eye on their surroundings.
Upon reaching a larger group of people blocking the street, however, Natalie patted his back in response and withdrew back into the cart.
"Hey, get out of the way!" she heard him calling out to the crowd.
They had started moving again for a couple minutes, when gunshots echoed over the city alerting them.
"What's going on?" Eren gasped, leaping to his feet.
"Dunno... stay inside!" Keiji retorted, spurring the horses to a gallop.
Natalie had just gotten behind him and managed to ready her gear, when the cover on the wagon was torn apart. In the split second when the three of them stared at the woman chasing them – more so at the unusually looking gear she was wearing – the redhead saw Historia falling to the floor next to her.
'Sleeping darts?' she scowled, spotting the small needle sticking out of the girl's neck. 'We should have had them wearing their gear...'
Eren's gasp drew her attention to him to find he had already collapsed as well, and it was only her reflexes that saved her from sharing their fate, when she raised one of the hilts to block the incoming dart.
"Look out!" she called back to her colleague, before anchoring into the nearest building and drawing her blades.
She needed to get airborne if she wanted any hope of taking on those bastards, but the sight of the man's head exploding in a shower of blood distracted her momentarily.
"Keiji!" she heard herself screaming almost like in some nightmare.
Spotting the woman taking his place on the wagon to drive the horses on, she clenched her jaw and went after them.
"Natalie!"
The call drew her gaze upwards to see Levi trying to catch up, and she felt a wave of relief surging in her only for it to shatter when she saw the two shadows coming up behind him.
"Captain! Behind!" she yelled, only luck making it so that she noticed her own opponent rounding a corner.
Switching one of the blades backwards in her hand, she caught the man off guard when she rushed him head on narrowly avoiding a bullet to the head.
"Don't kill her, idiot!" she heard another one calling out from somewhere to her left. "Catch her!"
But it was too late for his comrade who had no more time to dodge the slash across his stomach.
'...I just killed a man.' she berated herself, an overwhelming mixture of emotions surging within her. 'No! Focus now, be sick later!'
She couldn't see Levi anymore and assumed he'd been forced to take a detour to escape his pursuers; so she was on her own for now. Perhaps she could use the fact that they didn't want her dead, to her advantage.
"Hey! There goes Eren!"
The familiar voice drew her attention to Conny and the rest of her squad catching up to the wagon. Moments later Levi showed up again, followed by one of the armed men and instinct drove her to change course midair upon seeing the blood staining his face and realizing he was injured. Coming up behind his pursuer just as Levi managed to avoid a bullet, she saw the split second in which the man noticed her. Her brain registered the growing horror on his face almost in slow motion, as her blade came slicing through his neck until she lopped his head off.
"What the hell?!" Jean gasped somewhere behind her.
"Chase the wagon!" Levi ordered. "Listen up, they're used to fighting people; they already got three of ours. If we're going to get those two back, you can't hesitate! If you get the chance, you kill! Understood?!"
With more pursuers catching up, he was forced to order Armin and Jean to secure the wagon leaving him with the others to try and cover for them. But even so they were fighting a losing battle, when Mikasa was the only one who seemed able to kill without hesitation among the kids.
"Don't move!" Jean shouted at the woman Mikasa had knocked off the coach box to let Armin take control of the wagon.
His hesitation would have cost him his life, however, when she knocked the sword out of his hands and leveled a gun at his face.
"Jean!" Mikasa called to him, trying to change course and head back.
With Natalie closer, the redhead directed an anchor at the woman and took the shot hitting her in the stomach at the same time when Armin whipped around with a pistol and nailed her in the head. Using the reeling cable to pull the woman's corpse off the wagon, Natalie tried to join them only for her inattention to land her right in the arms of one of the men chasing them.
"Gotcha!" he grinned at her, while below on the street Levi and Sasha narrowly managed to grab Armin and Jean off the wagon before they were shot to death.
'Shit...' she scowled, seeing Levi charging after them at full speed the moment he noticed she'd been captured. 'At this rate someone's really going to die!'
Looking around for a chance to get away, she suddenly realized they were heading for the district gate leading into the wilderness of Wall Rose. If they left the district, there was no way Levi and the others could chase them anymore. If anything, she had to figure something out in the few seconds she had left.
'Fuck it all!' she gritted her teeth.
Eyeing the buildings across the street she anchored one of the hooks into the wall, instantly reeling the cable back in the hopes that the force from the mechanism would pull her free of her captor's arm. For the split second that he managed to put up a fight she panicked, thinking it wouldn't work. But then as soon as she felt his grip failing she anchored into the wall behind him and turned the blade backwards in her hand, driving it into his back and releasing it from the hilt to let him fall with it.
It was in that same moment that she saw a chance to get to the wagon, to hopefully get at least one of the two back. But when she anchored into the wall near the gate, one of the men landed in the cart and immediately leveled a gun at her.
"Natalie! Fall back!" she heard Levi calling out behind her, knowing he was too far to reach her in time.
She knew she had no way of fully avoiding the shot, not with the wall restricting her movements on one side, and two other pursuers approaching on the other. But at least she could still take out one more of them. On that thought she raised her second sword, releasing the blade from the hilt at the peak of her throwing motion and watching as it impaled the man through the chest. In response all sounds died out for a moment in her mind, only the gunshot echoing as she saw the flash of the bullet leaving the barrel. To her great fortune the round missed the mark on her head and she instead felt it hitting the side of her abdomen, the searing pain nearly making her black out.
With the other pursuers giving up on trying to add her to their capture, and only following the wagon out of the district, she was left to lower herself to the ground trying to breathe through the pain. She heard Mikasa screaming Eren's name and looked over to see Levi fighting to hold the girl back from chasing them anymore, just before Conny at last reached her.
"Are you alright?" he inquired, his eyes immediately going to the growing bloodstain on her shirt.
"Yeah... somehow..." she heaved, trying to slow the bleeding with her hand. "Armin and Jean?"
"They're alright. We need to fall back somewhere safe and take care of that wound. The Captain too—"
Glancing back as he said that, he drew Natalie's attention to Levi approaching them. Without a word the young Captain pulled her cloak aside to see the blood spilling between her fingers, and his murderous scowl told her more than anything he could have spoken aloud.
"I'm alright..." she said, unable to hold back a pained smile at the warm feeling his reaction had stirred in her.
"Tch..."
His irate grimace was followed by him picking her up and ordering everyone to fall back to the warehouse where they had earlier rescued Armin and Jean. He was fuming and yet Natalie couldn't help but find his reaction endearing. There weren't many things that got Levi so riled up and despite their connection she had never considered herself to be one of those things.
'I guess I am, after all...' she mused as she heaved through the pain, eventually speaking up when she noticed his concerned side-glance. "I'm alright. I don't think the bullet's inside... I think it shot clean through. So I should be good as new in a couple of hours. It's already healing... see?"
At that she briefly lifted her hand to show him the thin wisps of steam coming from the wound, even though she knew he would keep worrying no matter what she said, until he saw her fully healed.