Chapter two:
When a tragic event occurs, you shouldn't let it get you down.
Their conversation interrupted, Levi and Armin looked up and, as the scream seemed to come from the area where the captive titans were held, Levi grabbed his weapons as he hurried outside, followed by Armin. Arriving on the scene, they found two burned titan bodies and one crying Hanji. Petra was trying to comfort her, but it didn't seem to work. ''Who is responsible for this?'' Levi asked, but the person who had been guarding them hadn't seen anyone. Hanji cried out; ''Poor Bean! Poor Sonny! What kind of heartless jerk would attack those sweet titans, they were so kind. And they were very important! What kind of idiot is sabotaging my research!'' Armin felt bad for her, and joined Petra in comforting Hanji, putting his hand gently on her shoulder. He said; ''It sounds like they were very nice. Why don't we hold a small ceremony to honor them, and afterwards, you can tell me all about them.'' Hanji looked up. ''Usually we don't have time for such things, but that would be very nice.'' she said with tears in her eyes. They both turned to Levi, wondering whether or not he would agree. ''Make it a short one, and make sure that this area is cleaned up afterwards.'' he told them.
Then they heard a battle cry as Eren charged towards them. Mikasa sedately followed the screaming boy. ''Where are the titans, I will kill them!'' the boy yelled, as Petra and Hanji stared confusedly at the angry boy, and Levi and Armin gave him an 'are-you-serious?' look. Mikasa caught up, telling Eren that there were no titans harming them. At that, Eren calmed down a little as he asked, ''Then why did I hear a scream, coming from here?'' Armin explained, ''Sonny and Bean were killed, Hanji screamed because of that.'' pointing at the huge bodies behind him. ''Oh, ehr.., ok. So.., who attacked them?'' Eren asked, at which Levi thought 'If he really is this dumb, he is not going to be of any use to me in the field'. ''We don't know who is responsible for this atrocity'' Hanji sobbed. ''I promise you, Hanji, that when we find the person responsible for this, we will attack him and then you can finish it off'' Eren said, as he tried to comfort the Titan-crazy woman. Levi frowned at Eren's presumption.
Mikasa motioned Armin to follow her, to which he nodded, and they slipped away as everyone's attention was still on Eren. They walked along the roads near the compound, until they came to a small bridge, where Armin asked, ''Did you want to ask me something, Mikasa?'' as they rested against the railing. Mikasa replied, ''I just wanted to talk. Eren mentioned you thanked Heichou after the trial?'' ''I did. It seemed the right thing to do'' Armin answered. Mikasa frowned, ''I see... Armin, I'm concerned about Heichou's recent actions.'' Armin's eyes widened a little, ''How come? Do you think he is up to something that could be a threath to Eren?'' Mikasa shook her head as she pointed at him, ''I think he is up to something, and I believe it has something to do with you. He is constantly around, and acting nice only to you. Haven't you noticed?'' Just as Armin was about to reply, they heard yelling coming from the compound. They recognized Eren's voice among the clamor and hurried back fearing that he had got himself in some kind of trouble.
As they entered the compound, they spotted a red-faced Eren, screaming at Levi, ''It's already clean! I am not going to clean that hall again!'' Levi folded his arms as he calmly told Eren''Yes, you will, and you will keep at it until I am satisfied with the result.'' ''Can't you two leave it alone?'' a disheveled Hanji said, ''Just do as he says, Eren, Levi is your superior. And Levi? Don't abuse your authority, that hallway looks plenty clean to me.''
A tense silence developed before both of the stubborn young men nodded curtly and went back to their respective tasks. Hanji pushed up her glasses and sighed as Mikasa asked, ''What was all that about?'' Hanji adjusted her glasses before answering ''You missed the fight they had before? I really thought you were there. Oh well, when Eren comforted me by saying that he would find and attack the culprit, Levi declared that it isn't Eren's task to decide those things. Then Eren grumbled something, and they started fighting. I stopped them, and gave them both a task, to clear their minds. Eren was cleaning the hall, and Levi was cooking, but Levi decided it was a good idea to supervise Eren, just as the boy was finished. Of course Levi didn't think it was clean enough, because it never is... and he told Eren to do it again, which caused Eren's temper to flare up again.'' She breathed in before asking ''But where were you when this happened?'' Mikasa answered, ''We had to go to the toilet.'' leaving Hanji more than a bit confused.
''Eh,.. right.'' Hanji answered and then turned to Armin. ''About that ceremony. I was really suprised you got Levi to agree. But it will have to be a small one, and I believe you have to return to your compound tonight. So, how about this afternoon? We bury them, and say our prayers?'' Armin nodded. ''Sounds good to me, a small one is enough to give them the respect they deserve.'' Hanji smiled as she rejoined two other surveyors digging graves for Sonny and Bean. ''Ceremony?'' Mikasa asked Armin as they went to see how Eren was doing. ''Well,.. Hanji was really close to the titans, and was upset this morning. So, I thought a ceremony would be a good idea.'' Armin answered while they went upstairs. Mikasa nodded. ''This is exactly what I was talking about. Heichou gave permission because you came up with the idea, but Eren's suggestion led to fighting. Even Hanji said she was suprised, so he does act different around you. Don't you think it is a odd at all ?'' she said, just as they happened upon Eren, grumbling as he scrubbed the floor.
''How are you doing Eren? It looks really clean here.'' Armin said. Eren looked up at his friends, before answering ''Hey, I couldn't find you guys earlier. I've had a fight with Levi, and now I am stuck cleaning a hall that I've cleaned already.'' Mikasa waved dismissively, ''Hanji told us already. You should watch out and behave yourself, Eren. Levi hired you under certain cicumstances, and can harm you whenever he wishes to.'' Eren grumbled, ''I know, Mikasa. You don't have to remind me, I seriously don't like that bastard'' he did so a little louder then intended. ''Nor do I like you.'' a voice said behind them. None of them had heard Levi coming, but he didn't seem too pissed off. ''You're done cleaning. You're to help Hanji with the preparations for the ceremony, so we can get it over with'' Levi told Eren. Eren nodded and left, with Mikasa following her brother. Armin wanted to follow as well, but Levi stopped him. ''Shadis responded to your message, he needs you and Mikasa back for training. He expects you two to be back tonight, before ten o' clock.'' Armin replied, ''Ok, thank you, Levi. And thanks for having us over. Please forgive Eren for what he just said. He is a good friend, and a better soldier.''
A short silence fell as Levi paused for thought, before he answered, ''I suppose I can forgive his transgression, see it as a personal favour to you.'' ''Thank you, Heichou'' Armin said, before he ran after Mikasa and Eren. Levi smiled to himself, and wondered how often he would have to tell Armin that his name was Levi, and not Heichou. He went, to take a shower before the ceremony would start. He undressed, and as he turned the shower on, he wondered why the boy was so damnable formal with him, and why the hell that bothered him. Then another thought occured to him, why was he thinking about Armin at all? In fact, the blond boy had been on his mind a lot lately, he wondered why. Why not Eren, his new asset, or his friend, Mikasa. What did Armin have, that drove his mind to wander to Armin several times over the last few days. It didn't make any sense.
Levi turned off the water, and grabbed a towel. After he dried himself, he got dressed. Then he dragged himself to the ceremony he had promised Hanji. As promised, he made sure the ceremony was a short one. A sobbing Hanji led the ceremony, as she told about how kind these two innocent victims were, and how much they had contributed to the body of knowledge concerning titans. True heroes, in their own, limited, way. Most of her collegues sweatdropped, as Hanji talked a little too enthousiasticly, and probably forgot all the times that Sonny and Bean had tried to attack her during her research. During her speech, an uncomfortable silence grew. Levi noticed this, and when Hanji spoke the words, ''Does anyone like to say something about them as well?'', he was the one that stood up, and stepped forward. He explained that times were dire, and not everyone could be given time to speech, but he was sure everyone grieved with and for Hanji. Everyone hurriedly agreed, and gave their final salute to Sonny and Bean, and then took off to their respective tasks. ''That was beautiful, Levi. I really appreciate it, and I think Sonny and Bean would have as well.'' Hanji said and left, a happy smile on her face.
Armin too walked up to Levi. ''That was a nice ceremony. It was really kind of you, to give a speech as well, I believe it meant the world to Hanji. Thank you for allowing this, Levi'' he said with averted eyes. ''It was your idea, Arlert, and may I add, it was the right thing to do'' Levi said. Armin smiled, before he replied ''Thank you, Mikasa and I are going to gather our stuff, before we head back to our compound'' Then, Armin walked towards the room that they had shared, but not before looking back once, and telling Levi he should call him Armin instead of Arlert.
After Armin and Mikasa gathered their gear, they mounted their horses. Eren and Levi watched as the two made sure they were ready to depart. ''Thanks for having us over'' Armin said, to which Mikasa nodded. Eren said, ''It has been nice seeing you guys again, I hope we will rejoin forces again soon'' ''We'll be back, within two months, and then we, too, will have joined the survey corps'' Mikasa said. Levi walked up to his office, as the three friends made their extended goodbyes. Then Mikasa and Armin headed back to their compound, and Eren went back to his training. Levi glanced out of his window and spotted the two leaving, and couldn't help but look forward to when the next trainees would join the survey corps.
Mikasa and Armin had a safe trip towards their compound. They arrived just as supper started, joined their friends, and enjoyed the food. During supper a lot of questions were asked. Christa asked how Eren was doing, while Sasha wanted to know how the food they ate there had been. Connie asked what the other compound was like, but the most suprising thing was that Jean was silent, watching Armin carefully. After supper, Jean pulled Armin away, to the sleeping quarters.
''What's wrong?'' Jean asked, as they sat down on Jean's bed. ''Nothing, why do you ask?'' Armin replied. ''You're not a very good liar, Armin, I can see it when I look at you. You have these little wrinkles, you usually have them when you're worried about something. And since Eren isn't around, you probably will try and keep it to yourself, but it's better to share your worries. It will be a relief, Marco told me to do it as well, and it really helped.'' Armin smiled, before he tucked some hair behind his right ear. ''I suppose you're right'' he said and then sighed, as he leaned against Jean's shoulder. ''I just feel somewhat confused about certain events that occured in the past two days'' Armin said. ''What do you mean?'' Jean asked. Armin told him everything, about the dinner, Mikasa who warned him for the Heichou's behaviour. And how nice Levi had been to him. ''Sounds to me that the Heichou is kinda fond of you, that makes sense, because you are a very likeable and smart person. I mean, even Annie likes you.'' Jean said, causing Armin to blush. ''That's very nice of you to say, Jean. You should be like this more often, I mean, you're very likeable as well, you just don't like to show it.'' Armin said.
Jean shook his head. ''No can do buddy, I've got a reputation to maintain.'' he boasted, making Armin giggle. Which made Jean smile, seeing Armin in better spirits. ''Thanks for listening to me, Marco is right, it does help'' Armin told Jean. ''Maybe I should go to him, next time'' Armin teased. ''Oi, I helped you'' Jean said, pretending to be in a huff. Armin leaned a little closer. ''There's something still bothering you, right?'' Jean asked uncertainly, while stroking Armin's soft blond hair. ''Yeah'' Armin sighed. ''Well... I can't help you, unless I know what is going on in that brain of yours, but unfortunately, I can't read minds.'' Jean said, in an effort to make Armin smile again. ''I know Jean, but this is rather personal. I can tell you, but you have to promise me you won't laugh.'' Armin said. Jean nodded, as Armin sat up straight, and looked him in the eyes. There was some uncertainty in his eyes, as he spoke ''I do feel strange when I am around Levi. I know I am not the most outspoken person, but being around him makes me even shyer then usual. And my stomach just flutters when he speaks to me. The others seemed to fear him, or to dislike his efforts, but he is really nice, and seems to do what is right. But I don't want to have a fight with my friends about liking a person that they have such strong feelings against''
Before either of them could continue, Marco and Reiner entered the room, and the two friends moved apart. ''Something wrong?'' Marco asked them right away, as he sensed the mood his friends were in. ''Nothing, I was telling Armin about what he and Mikasa missed these last days, and he was a little tired, so he leant against me a bit.'' Jean said. ''I see. I would be tired as well, maybe you should go to sleep, Armin. Shadis is planning quite the training for tomorrow'' Reiner said. Armin nodded. ''I could use some sleep'' he said with a yawn, and walked to his bed. Soon enough, it was time to sleep for everyone, and the compound turned silent and dark. The only things making noise were the wind, and some people snoring. When Armin finally fell asleep, he started dreaming right away.
Everyone was shouting, as Eren sat there, listening to what everyone had to say about him. Even though they didn't know the real Eren. It pained Armin to see his friend like this. But his voice wasn't loud enough to tell everyone to shut up, let alone to tell them what the real Eren was like, a good person. But then the court abruptly fell quiet as a small man walked towards Armin's chained best friend. You could hear every step Levi took, before he came to a stop beside Eren. He told the court that if they feared the Titan in Eren, they should fear this trial more, for if anything, this trial should anger Eren. He told everyone he trusted Eren, before he started kicking Eren's head. When he finally stopped, he told everyone Eren could be trusted and would be an asset to the Survey corps, and if Eren should prove to be a danger, he would kill Eren personally. Nobody dared contradict him, and all agreed this might be for the best, and then it was over.
The crowd dispersed, chatting about what had just happened. Two women in survey corps livery held Eren between them, as they walked him of. Mikasa followed the rest of the trainee group, and Armin spotted Levi leaving as well. He was supposed to follow Mikasa with the rest of his group, but both his head and heart agreed on following the man that just saved his friend's life. He ran into the direction where he had seen Levi leaving, and spotted him a short distance away. Armin's heartbeat accelerated, as he walked up to Levi, and put his hand on Levi's shoulder. Levi turned around, and came face to face with Armin. ''What do you want?'' he asked. Levi wasn't blind, the insignia on Armin's shirt indicated that he was a trainee. ''Aren't you supposed to head back to your training?'' Levi asked. Armin hesitated before answering Levi's questions. Why had he followed Levi? Why didn't he follow his group, like he was supposed to? ''Out with it boy, or has the cat gotten your tongue.'' Levi spoke somewhat harshly. ''I-I wanted to thank you.'' Armin blurted out, gaining a confused stare from Levi. ''What do you mean by that?'' Levi asked. ''You saved Eren, Eren is my best friend.'' Armin said. ''I want to thank you for saving him, and accepting him into the Survey corps.''
''Weren't you the boy standing next to that girl that was giving me the murderous looks. I suppose she is a friend of Eren as well?'' Levi suddenly mentioned. Armin's heart dropped as Levi started talking about Mikasa. He nodded, while his fear grew. Fear that Mikasa would get accepted into the survey corps as well, before he did. Fear that he would not get to see Eren or Mikasa for two months. Fear that either of them could die, before they had a chance to see each other again. But Levi's voice broke his chain of thoughts, as he said ''... and tell her that Eren will be fine with us'' Armin nodded, and then heard Mikasa calling him. ''I have to go.'' he told Levi, but before he headed back, Levi said ''You'll see Eren soon enough''.
As the dream faded, Armin settled into a deep slumber. Under the same stars, at another compound, Levi was sitting in his bed, thinking about the events of the previous two days, or rather, the company he'd had. Hanji came in, spotting him deep in thought. ''Something wrong, Sir?'' she asked. Levi looked up, before shaking his head. ''No, I am fine'' he told her. ''Ok.'' she said awkwardly. ''I just wanted to say thanks for the ceremony, and the things you said for Sonny and Bean. It suprised me that you would allow such a thing, but I am thankful for it.'' ''That's all?'' Levi asked, and she nodded, before going back to her own room. 'I did it for someone else, though. Couldn't care less about her pet Titans.' Levi thought, before he too went to sleep.
The next morning, Levi was among the first to rise. He got dressed and decided to start the day by drinking tea while cleaning some tables, so he headed downstairs to the kitchen. But before he could start cleaning, Eren walked up to him. Levi frowned right away, as he spotted the taller boy. Eren didn't seem too happy either, ''Levi'' the boy said, in a spiteful tone. ''What do you want, brat?'' Levi replied. ''For starters, a room would be nice.'' Eren said. Levi sighed, as he answered ''I'll try and see what I can arrange for you.'' Eren's frown turned into a glare, causing Levi to sneer and say, ''Well, what are you waiting for, what more could you possibly want from me?'' Eren snorted, before saying ''I want you to leave Armin alone. I've seen your behaviour, and even though I have no clue what your plan is, I sure as hell don't like it. So I want you to know, if Armin gets hurt, Mikasa and I won't hesitate to kill you.'' Levi got up, pushed Eren up against the wall, and put his arm across Eren's throat. He held him there for a while before saying, ''Sure, go ahead. I'd like to see you and your girlfriend try. But allow me to tell you this, moron, there is no plan against your blond friend. I was just being nice, because unlike you, he's a likeable fellow'' and then he let go of Eren, who slid down against the wall, gasping.
Levi, on the other hand, left the room to see what his subordinates were up to. He spotted most of them training, and then met up with Erwin. ''Things are looking up, we haven't had a titan attack in a while'' Erwin told Levi, who nodded before replying. ''Commander, I also look forward to meeting the new recruits in a while. I have heard they are well-trained, and have a lot of potential'' Erwin's eyes widened, Levi had never shown any interest in new recruits before, so why did he now? After mulling that over for a bit, Erwin finally replied, ''Shadis told me the same thing, most of them are even planning on joining the Survey Corps. Usually the majority chickens out, but Shadis said they were quite determined.''
''That's a good thing, we need more men, to replenish our recent losses.'' Levi said, then went to his office to get some paperwork done. Before Levi was done, hours passed, and he decided to get something to drink. But before he reached the kitchen, Hanji and Petra intercepted him. ''I heard you had an encounter with Eren this morning...'' Hanji said. Levi didn't exactly care what she was going to tell him, but it wasn't a good idea to piss her off, so he nodded. Hanji continued, ''...there was absolutely no need for violence. Anyway, the matter about him getting a room has been settled. But I must ask you to not threathen Eren any more.'' before she walked away. Petra gave Levi a worried look. ''Something wrong, Petra?'' Levi asked her. ''I am worried about you and Eren fighting. It could escalate one day, and to be honest, the two of you fighting scares me. I mean, it doesn't even have a good reason... and both of you have such a temper. Please take care'' she said, blushing, then ran after Hanji. Levi frowned, as he muttered, ''That was odd.'' Besides, his fighting with Eren had a perfectly good reason, he hated the boy's guts. That and Eren implied Levi would hurt Armin intentionally, just because he had been nice to Armin, couldn't he act nice every once in a while? He was their boss, after all. Then he walked into the kitchen and enjoyed some tea. And much like before, even before he had time to sip, Eren walked in, and sat across from him.
''For the love of god, now what!'' Levi exclaimed. ''I wanted to say I'm sorry, for what I said this morning. I am kinda protective of my friends, and I still don't quite trust you. But you have been nice to them, so my reaction was unfair. So, how about a truce?'' Eren proposed. Levi thought about it before shrugging non-commitically.
When it turned night again, Levi lay on his bed. He wasn't thinking about anything in particular, just the ruckus with Eren, and the truce Eren had proposed. 'Things still were tense between them, and what for? The wretch was terribly ungratefull after being saved.' He decided to stop thinking about the matter, and then his mind once again drifted of to the blond friend of his least favourite asset. 'Would he be able to see Armin again soon, to talk to him, about his vision of the ocean?' And soon enough Levi fell asleep. He awoke to the sound of Petra's voice, yelling ''Levi, wake up. There is an attack coming!'' He could hear a panicked Hanji commanding some soldiers outside. ''An attack.'' he said to no one in particular. ''How bad is it?'' He asked Petra while he put his gear on. ''From the looks of it, pretty bad. It seems like they are planning to attack the great wall of Maria. The female and the armored titan are among them.'' Soon, the whole corps was on its way to stop the attack from the titans. Many casualties were expected due to the large number of titans reported.