There will be a lot of dialogue in this chapter! It is kind of slow-burn, but I just don't want it to be too fast-paced. Please keep in mind, I am NOT following the AOT plot. This is my last warning that when I say I'm changing the plot, I'm changing it. Also, there will be a POV shift in this chapter. It will be indicated. As always, feedback is always welcome.
Levi and I sat in the newly cleaned abode of the old Scouts Headquarters. The building gave an air of coldness and secludedness, with its dull peeling walls and untouched furniture looming all around us. It's been a long time since anybody has even stepped foot into this building, well, that we know of. My body was buzzing with anxiety that I could feel it in my nerves. Being here with Levi made me nervous.
I have an idea of what he brought me here to speak about, but I have no actual inclination of what he's truly going to say. The way Levi acted yesterday... he made it seem like I'd stumbled upon something I was never supposed to see.
"I said... you're frazzled. I said... I don't believe you. Don't say anything more. I want to hear nothing of it. Not on this battlefield."
Well, we're off the battlefield now, and I can't wait to get answers to whatever the fuck that was that I saw. Levi makes me so nervous. Yesterday, he beat Eren to a bloody pulp to prove to Zacharius that he would be the one to keep Eren in his place. He repeatedly stomped on his head and even kicked out his tooth just to show that Eren could be controlled. There were those among us that decided to act out and couldn't see the bigger scheme of what Levi was doing. Then, there were those of us that realized that Levi saved Eren's life.
I'm not angry with Levi for what he did to Eren, he saved him from being murdered right where he stood for all I'm concerned, but if that's how far he's willing to go to get what he wants, what will he do to me?
The Captain bored holes through my skull with his intense, monotone stare while he sipped his tea. It's quite strange how he goes about drinking it, but I thought it was cute and distinctive. He's different, I'm different. I like it. A steaming cup of oolong sat in front of me as well, the sweet smell tantalizing my senses, beckoning me to just have a taste. However, as on edge as I was in the moment , I don't think I could have kept anything down.
"So, you have questions. I have questions. Who goes first?" Levi asked me cooly.
"Heichou, please go first. It is completely up to you. I'm just a cad-" I said, but the captain cut me off before I could even finish my sentence.
"You're not just a cadet. You're someone that claims to have seen something I'm very interested in. So, as I said, who's asking first?" He said with a domineering power in his voice. I could tell that Levi wasn't in any mood to play games. He wasn't in any mood for any of the rank bullshit. He truly just wanted us to discuss what happened out there.
"I'm... I'm going first then. I'll ask first. Heichou, how do you know my last name?" I asked cautiously. I don't want to offend him, but he opened the floor for this, and I don't want to hold back from this open offer.
Levi's eyes widened a bit, and if I hadn't been staring at him so intensely, I would have missed it.
"Huh?" he asked.
"My last name. You said it a couple times, yet we've never met. How do you know it?" I asked.
"I... heard it in passing. That's how," he said. I heard a bit of hesitance in his voice that made me question his answer.
"Heichou, please forgive me, but what's the point in this if we can't be honest with each other? I'm not going to lie to you, I would never want to do that, so can you please not lie to me?" I asked. I needed him to trust me, otherwise, this conversation was for nothing.
Levi sighed heavily and ran a hand down his face.
"I can't tell you how I know your last name. That's an honest answer. Next question." he said.
"Why can't you tell me how you know my last name?" I pressed. I can respect him not answering, but I'll be damned if I don't even try to get him to.
"If I told you why I can't tell you then I'd be telling you what I can't tell you, which I can't do," he said with a handsome smirk. This jerk thinks this is funny.
"Okay, fine. How about you ask me something then since there's so much you can't say." I said angrily. So much for getting answers from the Captain.
"Where are you from?" he said without missing a beat.
"Wall Rose, sir."
"Why are you black, then?" he asked. He stared into my eyes harder than ever, trying to catch any reaction I may have revealed.
"I don't know, because my parents are? The same reason you're white is the same reason I'm black. You tell me the reason" I answered angrily. While Captain Levi doesn't seem like the type to be prejudice against me because of my race, I can't help but feel hurt flare in my heart.
'Why are you black?', as if that's something you do unto yourself. As if it's something that shouldn't have been done.
"Okay. Let me ask it differently. Why are you black and no one else is? Why are you and your family arguably the only black people within the wall?" he asked calmly. That's not asking it differently, that's a completely new question!
"I don't know. Maybe whoever built these damn walls wanted to keep people like me out, and people like you in. Or, maybe, it's the other way around. Maybe the walls were built to keep people like you in to protect people like me" I answered mischievously. I had no real answer, at this point Levi and I both are asking fruitless questions. At least my answers aren't being withheld, I just don't have them.
The room hummed uncomfortably with the sound of silence, and the Captain stared at me with wonder and utter confusion in his eyes. He looked conflicted, and torn as if he had something he wanted to say to me, but couldn't decide if he should or not.
"What's wrong Heichou?" I asked.
"Nothing... what regiment are you planning on joining Dinan?" There he goes, beautifully rolling my last name off his tongue that I don't know how he knows.
"I wanted to join the Scouts. I love you guys, but the incident in Trost taught me enough. I don't belong in the same regiment as you and others like you. Hange. Erwin. There's nothing in this world I could add to the scouts that you all don't already provide." I said despondently.
"Your friend, Eren. He's joining us in the scouts, though you already know that, clearly. You brought him back to his right state of mind, you helped him help us. I think you're strong, no, I know you're strong. Eren could definitely use you out there, if it means not losing his mind and going beserk on us." Levi said. It seemed like he had more to say, but he held back.
"I want you to join the Levi Squad. I want to keep you close by Eren, and by me. That's the only way you'll ever get answers, Dinan. I won't force you to join, and won't even ask you to consider it. Just know that the offer stands, and just know what's at stake for us both. Don't keep me waiting though, I hate waiting on others." Levi said, and then he walked away from me and left the room completely.
When I made it back to the barracks, I stared up at the ceiling and could only see Levi's face. Why was he so confusing? The Levi Squad? Me, of all people, on the Levi Squad sounded utterly ridiculous and unrealistic. I don't know how Levi knows me, and I don't know why I have to join him to get answers, but... I feel like now that I know him, I can't just let him go. There's something about him, but what is it? I don't know.
Third Person POV
Levi played with the crystal locket in his hand. He rubbed it between his fingers, sighing and staring at it with wonder. He popped it open, like he regularly does, needing to see the girls face once again. He needed her to calm himself down. He gazed at the girl's picture and caressed it affectionately.
"Now that I've found you, I'll never let you go again. I won't let them take you a second time."
Author's Note: I hope you liked this chapter! I leave clues to the mystery in almost every chapter. I am interested in seeing which of you guys will catch on to things I leave in plain sight! It may depend on how far in the show/manga you've gotten. Let's see who the geniuses are!