Mask-An Attack on Titan Fan Fiction

Chapter Thirty-One

My first experience cleaning Corporal Levi's office was an exceedingly unpleasant one. The second I arrived at the Corporal's office, a rag and broom were shoved into my arms, and I was ordered to clean. From then on, there were no formalities, simply sharp orders.

Over the course of two hours, I swept, dusted, scoured, and polished the office, all the while painfully aware of the Corporal's presence. I had expected that the Corporal would leave me alone to clean in peace, but this was a vain hope. He sat at his desk for the entirety of the session, poring over documents and sipping his tea peevishly. He paid me little attention, unless he felt that my method of cleaning was incorrect, through which he made known by a series of sharp criticism and a brief, irritated demonstration of the "proper" way to dust a bookshelf.

By the time the Corporal's office was cleaned satisfactorily, I was grumpy and longing for any company but the Corporal's.

"I shall see you the same time tomorrow, then, Larrson," Corporal Levi said, looking up from his papers, "And don't forget to stick you broom and supplies in the closet across the hall."

I left, muttering darkly about where the Corporal could stick his broom.

"I heard that, brat," came the voice through the closed door.

I sucked in my breath through my nose, trying to control the simmering irritation rising in my chest. Exhaling irritatedly, I returned the cleaning supplies to the indicated closet with a bit more vehemence than necessary.

I was in a foul mood as I headed back to the training facilities. I ignored the people glancing up at me as I stormed through the sparring cells, looking for Jean.

I found my friend in combat with a potato sack punching bag, focused and determined. Sweat drenched his shirt and flew off of his hair in droplets  as he sparred.

Jean's concentration was broken only when he almost kicked me in the stomach. With a yelp, I jumped back, and Jean staggered away, surprised.

"Sorry, Ilsa," he gasped, "I didn't see you there. I thought you were...um...doing the thing...with Levi..."

I let a huff of air angrily escape my nostrils. "You'd better not be being ambiguous on purpose, you little-"

The sly grin creeping across Jean's face was answer enough for me. I took a threatening step toward him, but he put up his hands in truce, still grinning. 

"Sorry, Ilsa," he said, wiping sweat from his face, "Sooo...how was it?"

"I'd rather stick pins in my eys," I moaned, dropping onto a bench outside the sparring stall. "It's like I can't do anything right. Nothing I do is good enough for 'Humanity's Strongest'."

"Tough luck, mate," Jean said, giving me a pat on the arm.

There was an awkward pause, and it took me a moment to realize why. Jean had spoken to me the way he had when I was disguised as Igor. I turned and gave Jean a look. His embarrassment was apparent in the uneasy twitch of his lips, and the way he quickly removed his hand from my shoulder. He shrugged apologetically.

"Sorry," Jean said, "I forgot."

"It's fine," I replied, "You can still call me 'mate', if you want. I've actually sort of missed it."

Jean opened his mouth to retort, but from the opposite end of the sparring facility came the clicking of boots. We both jumped to our feet and dove into separate stalls, not wanting to be caught idling. I was in enough trouble already.

By the time the leader passed by the sparring cells, I was doing my usual warm-up stretches. I removed my jacket and rolled up the sleeves of my grey sweater as I turned to face the sack dangling from the ceiling.

The most of the afternoon for me was spent training hard. I strengthened my sparring skills for a half hour, then moved on to the strength building area of the facility. During my years as a cadet, I had been told that I had to keep my muscles in shape between missions. The 3D gear put quite a strain on our bodies, and one way for us to resist such strain was by building muscle mass.

My irritation towards Corporal Ackerman drifted away with each blow I delivered, every push up I performed. By the end of my regime, every ounce of anger I had was wrung from me like water from a rag. I left the facility feeling exhausted, yet satisfied. 

Mikasa was nowhere to be found when I arrived at my room. I assumed that she was probably off sparring, so I kicked off my dusty boots and laid down on my bed, inhaling slowly. As I lay among my untidy bedding, I felt exhaustion pour into me, and I felt myself drifting off into sleep. 

I shifted my body slightly, and my elbow came into contact with something cold nestled among the sheets. I snaked my fingers across my abdomen and dug beneath my arm. My fingers closed around the object and drew it out so I could see what it was.

My breath caught in my throat as I surveyed the wing pendant dangling from a narrow chain. I had taken the necklace off after the Survey Corps' most recent expedition, and it must have fallen out of my jacket pocket. 

Gunther's words echoed through my consciousness as I gazed at the pendant, pulse racing.

I may be dead tomorrow, so you may never hear from me again, but I want you to know that I am forever loyal to you.

I closed my fingers around the necklace, taking a steadying breath, remembering my initial anger over my brother's protectiveness. Regret crashed over me, drenching my soul in a whirl of emotion. 

I longed for him to be there next to me, to protect me. My soul was waiting, crying out for him to come and surround me with his reassuring warmth. 

Reality drove itself between my ribs, ripping my breath away, shredding my pleas to ribbons of hopelessness. I lay back onto the pillow, hoping that if I closed my eyes, the pain would stop. 

Images smashed the sides of my head, rendering physical pain each time I caught sight of them.

Nori,spinning like a pinwheel, limbs flailing.

En's face wrought in terror, sliding down a Titan's throat.

Gunther, neck askew, eyes barren.

Hansi lying quietly on the floor, his face chalky white.

The Female Titan, calmly picking away her victims one by one.

A short, dark figure, enshrined in shadow.

"That necklace has a twin, and if you ever need help, the owner of the other necklace will be there for you."

My eyes flew open. Tears left burning trails down my cheeks. The edges of the necklace were digging into my palm. The necklace fell from my numb fingers onto the mattress. 

I sat up in bed and returned the necklace to its place around my neck. The wing pendant rested just above my heart, moving rhythmically as I lay back down and drifted into a fitful sleep. 

----------

Hi! I just wanted to connect with you all! Congrats on getting this far in my incredibly long book! I love you guys sosososososo much!! <3