Daisy | Levi Ackerman

Chapter 23 - The Cross Trial

[Naomi]

"Take care, Naomi." Connie reminded me as Moblit came towards the entrance of the storage house, pulling Finn behind him. I smiled at all of my fellow scouts, while they stood there in preparation for our fateful operating day.

"How many times have I heard that from you guys today?" I asked humorously, looking at their distraught faces.

"It just seems like a much rational reminder than 'be smart', because, well, you are." Jean replied, scratching the back of his head. The remark made me smile, as I was about to answer- but then Levi and Hanji approached the group from behind.

"Go get 'em, Naomi." Hanji cheered on, putting her hands on her waist in a proud stance. "Thanks for the bombs."

"Anything I can do to help, Corporal." I replied. Levi walked in closer to me, as I regarded my comrades again.

"All of you, be safe." I told them, and they nodded in assurance to me.

I turned back to my horse, and was faced with Levi, who was looking at me with his same cold, deadpanned stare. I smiled softly at him. "You worry too much you'll get a heart attack. Lighten up, soldier."

I leaned up on my tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek, and I pat him on the shoulders in assurance. He followed me with his eyes for a moment as I mounted Finn. The last thing I heard as he looked back onto his soldiers, my batch mates, was a chilling, deep: "I want no questions asked.".

I could only imagine the silenced confusion in the faces of my friends after seeing me do such a move to our most respectable Captain. It made me smile warmly as I rode on towards the Smith Manor to prepare for my intervention that afternoon. There were moments that were wholesome enough in the middle of chaos to make you remember there was still some pure friendship beneath everything.

As I arrived into the humble estate, the same place I grew up in as the place my life almost ended at the hands of another human- a soldier, just like myself- I got reminded of the reality I lived in again. I took a deep breath and climbed up the stairs, headed for my bedroom. I had to gather my thoughts and keep myself together to make sure this scheme would be a success. It was the only way I could save my uncle from that frame-up.

I put on one of Lady Mila's dresses, a dark blue one with white lace accents. It was the most elegant one that I could easily hide my uniform underneath. If there was an emergency, I could just rip it off and attach my gear and then I'll blast off with the Scouts.

I hoped there'd be no such incidents.

Before I headed over to Mitras, to the palace where my uncle was just going to be trialed for supposed murder of the aristocrat Reeves and monopolization of Eren as a titan-shifter, I went back to the tavern where Kenny had cornered Levi and almost killed him. It dreaded me so much to think that the man I loved had a brush of death with the same man who almost took my life. I couldn't imagine Levi cornered, thinking that one wrong step and he'd die, while hearing from Kenny that I myself was dying at that very moment, too.

Fuelled by my immense hatred directed to Kenny for threatening me and Levi, I persuaded the tavern keepers; that if it should ever come to that, they'd speak upon my side to prove that they'd witnessed how violent they were, and how their leader admitted to compromising my safety. As a noble. They were quick to comply, my last name set the foundation for it other than my natural agreeableness.

As I recalled what Levi told me about these allegations against my father-figure, and the corrupt government's plan against me, I began the speech over and over again in my head, the pattern of my thinking altering with every word I concoct in my head.