*This chapter has been rewritten for improvement purposes! All grammatical errors are my mistake and has been un-beta'd.
*All credit goes to Hajime Isayama and I do NOT own Attack on Titan/Shingeki No Kyojin. I only own Alice Arlet.
"Eren! Are you fooling around!?" I screamed as I see Eren dangling from the maneuvering device.
"YOU THINK THIS IS A JOKE JAEGER!?" Keith yelled from behind.
Today was supposed to be the maneuvering device training for these young cadets to test out their balance. Apparently, Eren can't seem to get the hang of it while everyone else mastered the skill.
"No! I'm not fooling around Alice! I keep flipping over on this thing!" Eren shouted as he tried to regain his balance.
"My goodness" I said while shaking my head. Keith was standing there, unhappy from Eren's failed attempt.
I helped Eren down as I hear other cadets taunting him and mocking him.
"Ha! Serves you right for being all braggy about becoming the best soldier Jaeger!"
"What's wrong? Can't handle a few ropes and strings?"
"You're all talk. You're not special!"
I was getting annoyed at all of these taunts that I started to yell at them.
"Listen up!" I screamed "If any of you decide to make fun, taunt or mock at my kid again, I will make sure you will never, EVER, graduate here. GOT THAT!?"
Everyone was speechless and I felt Keith's hand on my shoulder. "Miss Arlet. No need to raise your voice at them." He said to me quietly. Keith then stepped forward and I could hear him taking a deep breath. "YOU PATHETIC CADETS THINK THIS IS WORTH MOCKING!? I DARE YOU TO GO OUTSIDE THOSE WALLS IF YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE IT!"
All eyes were wide from Keith's yelling and I stood there and gawked at this. After being silent for a long minute, all the cadets saluted towards us.
"WE'RE SORRY!" Was the response we received.
"Better. I want to see true soldiers in all of you. I know some of you wants to be in the same position Keith Shadis and I are in now, just know that it takes a lot of hard work and skills to get this far." I said while pacing back and forth.
It's only been a few months since the first day at the academy. Armin, Mikasa and Eren were doing well here so far until today. Eren just can't seem to get the hang of these devices.
"Jaeger! I will give you one more chance after lunch! If you fail again, then I will send you home!" Keith said to Eren.
Eren didn't say anything. He just nodded his head and looked disappointed in himself. I couldn't help but to frown slightly. Eren, I know you can do this.
After the cadets were dismissed for lunch, I approached the three kids.
"Geez Alice, you didn't have to be so scary to everyone." Eren said with a frown. "Especially from Keith's yelling."
"Lighten up Eren. I just don't like how they were treating you. You're my kid now." I said while patting his head.
"Oh come on! You're gonna embarrass me" He said while trying to move away from my touch.
I couldn't help but to laugh. It's fun messing around with kids as much as possible before they graduate.
"Hey Sis, I don't think anyone will mess with Eren again. You and Keith are tough instructors." Armin said.
"That's how it's going to be for the next few years" I said with an evil grin.
"You need to do better Eren" Mikasa said to Eren. She was brushing off some dirt from his jacket.
"I know. I just don't understand why I can't get the hang of it" Eren said in disappointment. "It seemed so easy seeing you guys on it."
"It's all about balance Eren. You need to be well balanced in order to work with the device well." Armin said.
"Yeah well its a lot tougher to me than you guys" Eren said with a defeated sigh.
"Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it. Go and get some lunch you three. I'll see you guys tomorrow." I said, getting ready to head off.
"Where are you going Alice?" Mikasa asked.
"I have to go to headquarters. Have fun with Keith for the rest of the day" I said. Just as I was about to walk away, I stood next to Eren and gave him a hug. "Good luck Eren. I know you'll accomplish this difficult task. Just believe in yourself."
"O-Okay." Eren said quietly. I could see the boy blushing from my motherly affection towards him.
Letting out a chuckle, I waved goodbye to the kids and made my way to headquarters.
"You're done?" Levi asked as I entered his office.
"Yeah. Somewhat. I got a bit annoyed at these young ones so I needed a little break" I said as I sat on a chair across from him.
"Oh? What did they do?" He asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"They were taunting Eren because he couldn't use the maneuvering device correctly. I sort of yelled at each of them. So I just need to cool off." I said with a faint smile.
"Tch. You get annoyed at stupid things." Levi said as he pulled out some papers and started writing.
"Hey! No one messes with my kid!" I defended myself.
"I know." Levi sighed. "I know" He then grabbed a stack of paper and shoved them towards me. This time, my eyebrow was raised and I looked at him in confusion. "What are all of these papers for?"
"Throw them out for me. I don't need them" He answered.
"Why do you have so many?"
"Hange wanted me to look through it. It's too troublesome to look at them. Just throw them out." He said as he sat back on his chair.
I couldn't help but to chuckle. "Okay Captain." I said with a smile and left his office with the stack of paper in hand.
I headed to the garbage area just outside of the headquarters and tossed the papers inside the dumpster. One paper managed to slip out of the pile and landed on the ground. I bent down to pick it up and I ended up reading it.
It had musical notes on it. It looked pretty interesting. I know how to play a piano so this piece would probably be something worth practicing. If I ever had the time.
I folded the piece of paper and placed it in my breast pocket. This is something I want to keep. I stood up and started to head back until I see Erwin leaving the building.
"Hello Commander Erwin" I said while saluting to him.
"Oh. Alice. Finished teaching?" He said, nodding towards me.
"Yeah. I just want to thank you again for giving me this opportunity" I said with a smile. "I really appreciate you letting me spend time with those kids."
"It was nothing." Erwin said nonchalantly. "I just wanted to make sure you spend as much time as possible with your family. Who knows what unfortunate even might happen in the future."
"You're right Commander." I said with a smile. "If you ever need my assistance on future expeditions, just know that I'll be ready at your service Erwin."
Erwin remained silent and stared at me. I could see an unusual expression written on his face but I couldn't tell what it was. "We'll see about that" He said as he smiled and patted my shoulder. Erwin smiling is something I'll never used to. It's kind of weird to never see him smile around others.
"Where are you heading to?" I asked curiously.
"I'm going to speak to Commander Pixis. We have some important things to discuss" He answered.
"Oh okay. See you later Commander." He and I saluted each other and went separate ways.
"Levi." I spoke my Captains name while putting books away on his bookshelf. "You never really told me how your life was before the Survey Corps."
"Why do you want to know?" He asked. I could tell his eyebrow was raised behind me.
"Well, I know that we all have a life before the military. I'm just quite curious to know how your life was." I said as I turned around and shrugged.
He looked at me for a good minute before responding. "My previous life is private. I don't want to talk about it."
I could sense that Levi was uncomfortable with the thought of his life before the military. Feeling bad for making him think of possible bad memories, I walked up to him and gave him a warm smile. "That's fine Captain. You don't need to say anything." I then sat at the same chair across from him and let out a yawn. "Well, I am curious to know how Commander Erwin's life was before the military as well."
Imagine a young Erwin Smith. It's pretty funny seeing his usual serious expression on his younger self. I can't imagine it!
"You seemed to be amused" Levi said, interrupting my train of thought.
"Yeah. I just imagined a younger Erwin. That's all" I said with a slight smile.
Levi sat there and stared at me. He then cleared his throat and looked away. "I know this is a serious topic I'm about to ask." He began to speak, catching my attention. "What will you do after those kids graduate? They'll be on their own. They may survive, they may not. Have you thought about that yet?"
I sat there in silence and let the thought sit in my mind. Actually no. I haven't really thought about that yet. Knowing that they will probably be out there fighting, I'm scared to think that they will die young.
Thinking about this made me feel anxious. I could feel my hands shaking a bit as I gripped onto the armrest to calm myself. "Now that I think about it Captain. I'm sort of scared to know what'll be their outcome in the future. I don't want to lose them. Those kids are the only family I have." I looked at Levi and let out a sad smile. Then I got up from my seat and walked up to the window, staring at the sunset "They're grown ups now. So I guess I'll just have to respect whatever decision they make."
I didn't hear a response from Levi. All I could hear were quiet footsteps approaching me. I slightly turned my head to see Levi standing close to me.
"Is something wrong Levi?" I asked, surprised to see him at close proximity. Why is Levi standing so close to me?
He stood there and remained silent. Suddenly, Levi wrapped his arms around me and embraced me into a hug. I couldn't help but to widen my eyes in shock from his action. Is Levi really hugging me? Am I dreaming? He's really hugging me?
This is so unexpected of Levi. Why is he hugging me? I could feel my face flushing and heart beating rapidly. I shouldn't be complaining, I'm really glad this is happening between Levi and I but I am extremely shocked to see him act this way.
"L-Levi?"
"Whatever happens Arlet..." He began speaking. "Don't lose hope. Got that?" He pulled away and stepped back. "Have trust in those kids. Be confident that they'll survive the real world after those three years."
I could still feel my face feeling hot and I tried my best to regain my composure. This is the reason why I love Levi. No doubt about it. This is a side of him no one has ever seen. I'm really glad that he and I have gotten closer. "You're right Captain. I should have trust in those kids."
He crossed his arms and sent me his usual stoic expression. "Feel better now?"
I returned his gaze with my bright smile. "Thank you Levi. I won't lose hope."
I hope the next three years will be something worth remembering.