Aimilios: (eh-MEE-lee-aws) Typically a boy's name derived from the Greek language meaning strength and rivalry. Usually seen as a formal and serious name in the upper class.
Mid-June
Day of the 24th Expedition
Your POV
My eyes flutter open to the hot summer sun peaking through my windows. Looking over to the clock I see I don't have to be up for another hour. "Ugh." I throw the blanket over my head, last night I slept terrible. For some reason our argument kept replaying in my head. It was a relatively short disagreement, so why does it bother me so much?
Maybe it's the fact that I know a lot more about him than he thinks. How am I supposed to tell Levi that I know almost everything about his family history and the fact he was practically raised by Kenny? From what I can tell, Kenny is a sore subject because Levi has never mentioned him, not once. Not only that, but his suffering was brought on by my descendants.
When he stormed out I couldn't help but feel sad. It was nice when he stayed over, even if he was just sleeping on my couch. I felt comforted knowing he was just outside my door.
I groan and get up, I can't fall back asleep so I may as well get ready. As I shower I stretch out my limbs and try to relax. My nerves these past few days have gone down, I'm not too worried about my secret getting out. If Kenny didn't know what happened to my family, than it's most likely that Reiss didn't order the hit, which was my first guess. All the trafficking businesses my family owned are now run by local gangs. As far as everyone knows, the (L/N) family is no more, they're all dead.
My name is (Y/N) Johansen. I grew up in a secluded forest outside of Shiganshina to a hunting family. My dad served in the Garrison and died when I was 10. My older brother died from a hunting accident. My mom died from pneumonia a year ago. This is my life and has always been my life.
Everything's fine, I should be fine. Right?
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Trost District
Approximately Noon
We all sat on our horses, wagons ready, prepared to venture out into the land some used to call home. But that land has now fallen to the mercy of the titans, forcing us into further submission.
Erwin is situated front and center, with Hange and Mike to his left and right. I'm behind their squads, with Levi to my right. All morning he's been ignoring me unless it's work related and refuses to make eye contact. I wanted to ask him how he is feeling before this expedition, considering what happened last time.
But all I got was a "I feel fine."
Copenhagen trots in place and lets out a whine of impatience, I pat his head reassuringly. The Garrison soldiers shout to each other, and the sound of a metal crank and stones rubbing together signals the rise of Trost's gate. I watch as dirt falls from the bottom of the gate and a gust of wind blows across the rows of Scouts. And just like that, we start our 24th expedition.
Other than some titans gathered around the wall, we haven't seen many on our ride so far. We're about halfway to the city when Erwin tightened the formation so we could take a break. We stop at a small town along the river to give our horses and ourselves some rest. I'm quite proud of my team so far, together we took out five titans along the way, Levi and I each earning a solo kill.
I was brushing Copenhagen's mane when Erwin approached me, "(Y/N) can I speak to you in private?"
I bat my eyes at him, "Finally going to confess your love for me?"
He just grabs my hood and drags me over to a secluded spot behind some trees. He looks around to make sure we're alone. I cross my arms, "So are you here to tell me that Levi is planning on killing you again?"
He shakes his head, "No, nothing like that. Technically I'm not supposed to even know this... but on the night Shiganshina fell, noblemen Rod Reiss and his family were praying at their church when a group of bandits broke in and killed his family along with burning down the church. Only Lord Reiss survived."
I furrow my eyebrows, "What motive would bandits have killing the family there instead of their mansion? Unless... it doesn't seem like a coincidence they were attacked on that night."
Erwin tilts his head, "What do you mean?"
"Think about it, that family obviously knows more about humanity's history and the titans, at least according to my third party source," which happens to be me, "So it only makes sense that when two very abnormal titans appeared and broke through the walls someone went to confront Reiss and his family. But I don't understand why it would just be some bandits and what they gain out of killing everyone."
This is bad, this is really bad. Something way larger than humans vs. titans is going on, I just know it. Kenny used to talk about how threats greater than titans lurked outside the walls, that if we found out the truth humanity itself will be doomed. Damn that bastard, he's been hiding all of this from me. He didn't even care to mention the murder of his boss's family when we met.
Erwin shakes his head. "I don't understand either, none of it makes sense. I heard the Military Police aren't conducting an investigation. My old friend Nile Dok is their Commander, and even he isn't being briefed on what happened."
"That's probably because Reiss is doing an internal investigation with his own men. The Internal MP's technically don't report to anyone, however, I'm pretty sure Reiss dictates everything they do." I rub my temples, so much as happened in the past year, my family, the titan attack, and now this. A gut feeling is telling me it's all related, but how?
"So basically they're gonna do what they normally do and take care of things on their own, making whoever was involved 'disappear'?"
I sigh. "Yeah most likely, and what's even worse is that they don't file action reports or anything official like that, so there wont be any record of what happened."
Erwin looks up at the sky. "Everything always has to be difficult when it comes to the government, we'll continue on with this expedition and see if we can find answers. Go let Mike and everyone know we're leaving soon."
"Understood." I salute and trot back over to my squad. Meena and Aris were talking while Chris and Eld walked over to the supply wagons. Levi was in the middle of brushing the jet black mane of his horse Aimilios. After I killed his horse from the last expedition, I let him pick out his own. It didn't take him long, the second he saw the midnight colored horse he immediately chose him. The two work very well together and Aimilios is very attentive to his owner, he rarely got spooked during this expedition so far.
When I asked Levi how he chose that name, he said it was from the hero of a story his mom used to read to him. It was about a man who saved the world by killing the root of all evil with his own bare hands, freeing the world from darkness.
That night I had a weird dream about titans fighting... but they were different, sort of like the Armored and Colossal titans. Some resembled closely to humans feature-wise, but were covered in muscle, others were smaller and very agile, and one looked closely like an animal. The whole dream felt surreal, almost like I was actually there. Before the fight ended I was pulled out of my sleep and woke up in my room as usual.
Why, why am I remembering this dream now?
"Um Captain can I help you? You've been staring at my horse for a minute straight." Levi's voice forces me back to reality.
I perk up and straighten up. "Huh? Oh no I'm fine I just got lost in thought that's all. Anyways Erwin said we'll be departing soon. Is everyone good to go?"
"Yeah, Eld and Chris are refilling our gas cannisters and then we should be ready." He turns back to brushing Aimilios's coat.
I want to talk to him more about last night because he still seems mad. But he always looks mad or irritated so it's hard to tell. I'll save the conversation for later. Maybe I'll ask him about Mikasa. Walking up I pet his horse a couple times before turning to him. "So did you and Mikasa find out how you're related?"
"No." He says curtly, "Is now really the best time to talk about this?"
I throw my hands up defensively, "Geeze I was just trying to make conversation." I walk over to my horse and mount the saddle. Soon the rest of my squad is ready and we make our way back to formation. Erwin shoots off a flare and all squads break off into their respective spots. We ride for about another hour, only having one titan encounter so far.
I was focused on surveying the land ahead of us when a black smoke signal to our left grabbed my attention. My head snaps to the direction and in the distance I can see a flock of birds fly away from some rustled tress, along with dirt getting kicked up in the air. "Eld, shoot a black flare!" I yell.
The abnormal titan is probably drawn to the middle, considering there's four squads each with at least six people. God damn those bastards, they always go for groups of people and will completely ignore someone right next to them.
The booming sound of footsteps is getting closer and Eld fires off the flare. I hear Aris yell, "Captain! What are your orders?"
I curse under my breath, we're in an open field right now so our gear is practically useless. The titan breaks through the tree line and I can see it's a 15 meter class, flailing it's arms wildly back and forth as it sprints, we have about 30 seconds before it reaches us. Luckily, I only need 15 seconds to come up with a plan.
"Okay! Everyone draw their blades, we're going to split into two groups of three, Levi, Eld, you're with me. Aris, Meena, Chris you're together. On my say, split away from each other. Aris's side is responsible for taking out the Achille's heel, Eld and I will distract, Levi you take it out."
"Roger!" They all say in unison.
Just then the titan tramples the last tree next to us. "GO!" We break off and immediately the blonde and I soar up and spray gas in it's face while Aris and Chris slide across the ground slicing it's tendons. Chris laughs as the titan falls to the ground, "Oops! Did I trip you?"
"Grayson now is not the time for jokes." Aris scolds him.
Before the titan had a chance to cover, Levi spun down and took out it's nape. Everyone mounts back on their horse and I fire a green flare. We quickly catch back up to Erwin's group and take out a few more titans until Shiganshina peeked over the horizon.
During our whole ride here, we haven't found any survivors. Either everyone has already escaped behind wall Rose, or they were devoured. We ride closer and closer, and soon Erwin is telling everyone to switch to ODM gear as we near the city.
My squad and I grapple to the top of the wall. I look down at the ruins of what was once a bustling city full of life, but now not a single soul inhabits these houses. An eerie feeling washes over me the more I take in the destruction: houses crushed by rocks, buildings reduced to ashes, and the gaping hole of where a gate used to be.
I feel the warmth of a hand on my shoulder followed by a light squeeze. I don't have to look to know who it is, I'll always recognize his touch. "I guess it's my turn to ask how you're feeling. I know this is the first time back since..." His voice is soft and quiet.
"I'm okay Levi, it's hard coming back here but I won't let that distract me." I turn to him and give a reassuring smile, he nods in response.
Some titans remain in the city, however most of them have migrated North towards wall Rose and the other populated cities. Hange's squad and I's make our way to the Garrison HQ, a tall square-like building located near the center. Commander Pyxis, a friend of Erwin's, asked us if we could retrieve some documents that got left behind.
According to him, the documents cover an important investigation the Garrison and Military Police have been working on. I scoffed when I heard about this, those cowards always criticize the Scouts, yet here they are, asking for our help. On the bright side, the Survey Corps is getting a decent payout not only in money but also in food.
We broke off into two-man groups, each covering different hallways. I am currently rummaging through the desk of a high-ranking captain when a locked drawer caught my eye. I fished out some pins and carefully started picking the lock. An audible click could be heard as I slowly turn my metal pins, fully unlocking the drawer.
At first glance the drawer appears to have some random items such as pens, an unloaded pistol, and some random paperwork. But as I investigated more, I saw it had a false bottom. Underneath the thin piece of wood was a rolled up document. The words 'Case X-456-MP' was printed on one line and 'Highly Classified' was printed in red ink underneath.
Highly Classified? What is a document like this doing way out here? Nothing interesting happens in Shiganshina. These types of cases are usually handled in the Capital, or at least inside wall Sina.
I know I really shouldn't, and I could get into enormous trouble for reading this, but curiosity got the best of me. I untie the twine keeping the paper rolled and slowly unravel the document. My heart sinks when I read the first line.
Levi's POV
(Y/N) and I split up the rooms to search through. Just being in these offices irritate me. Garrison and MP soldiers always pissed me off, most of them are just a bunch of drunks who tend to do whatever they want.
Out of the rooms I searched through, I haven't found anything useful, except for a few satchels of gold coins that I pocketed. I guess old habits do die hard, but it's not like anyone's missing it. Maybe with this money I can buy two nice headstones for Isabel and Farlan. Their bodies, or I guess what was left of them, were burned along with the other scouts.
Erwin gave me the patches from their uniforms to keep as a token. One day I want to give them their own burial, with a casket and everything. Even if there's nothing physical left to bury, I still have some of their personal items.
I call out into the hallway, "Hey I'm done with this room, you find anything?" I start walking towards the office she is in and I hear a loud thud followed by her cursing. I peak my head in and saw she practically has turned everything in the room upside down. Papers strewn everywhere, chairs flipped over with their cushions ripped open, and desk drawers dismantled on the floor.
She slightly jumps when she sees me standing in the doorway. "Oh hey Levi, I didn't see you there." She smiles awkwardly and runs her hand through her hair.
I look across the room and then back at her. "So how come this room looks like a titan just ran through it?"
Her smile falters for a second. "Oh you know, just being thorough," she clears her throat and straightens up, "Anyways I didn't find anything important so we should probably meet back up with Hange's group."
Something seems off about her, she almost seems paranoid again. None of the other offices she went through were torn apart like this. I cock an eyebrow at her, "Really? You took apart this entire office and didn't find anything?"
She ignores my question and just strides towards me and pokes my chest. "C'mon Lieutenant, let's go."
I don't budge. "You're hiding something, I can tell."
"I'mmmmmmm not," she wines and stomps her foot on the floor, she's getting mad.
I tap my chin, "Hmmm, so then you wouldn't mind taking off your scout cloak so I can check your pockets?" As the words left my mouth I instantly regret saying it because now I just seem like a pervert. However instead of being mad, she actually seems amused.
She takes a couple steps forward and lightly places her hands on my chest. I can practically feel the heat rise to my cheeks and tips of my ears as my chest tightens under her touch.
She giggles and plays with the straps of my harness. "First you storm out of my office, then you ignore me, and now you want to undress me? You're quite the confusing man, Levi Ackerman." She says my name in a somewhat seductive tone and looks into my eyes.
Hearing her say my name like that sent my heart racing, all the sudden I completely forgot where we are. My mouth feels dry and I nervously gulp, "T-that's not what I meant, I-I um -" I clear my throat and step out of the way, "Fine we can go."
Relief washes over her face and she pats my head. "See, was that so hard?"
I just 'tsk' and start walking, not wanting to make eye contact. We walk in silence for a couple minutes until she speaks up. "So are you mad at me?"
I pause for a moment and tilt my head, "Why would I be mad at you?"
"Well you seemed mad last night and you've been ignoring me all day, except for now. I just assumed."
I shake my head. "I'm not mad, more of just uneasy. I'm not used to people being able to read me like that, it's the reason why I rarely open up about anything. I was always taught to never show any weaknesses, that's the kind of shit that would get you killed in the Underground."
She purses her lips. "I didn't mean to make you feel vulnerable, it's my job as a Captain to evaluate not just the physical well-being of my team, but also their psychological state."
"I know, and I shouldn't have stormed out like that."
She stops and places a hand on my shoulder, mimicking my action earlier. "Hey, it's okay. I don't blame you I would freak out too about whatever Mike wrote for my psych eval, no one likes it when others read them."
We finally reach Hange's group at the end of our conversation. They found some documents but not pertinent ones. I guess whatever Pyxis needed isn't here, someone must've lost it in the evacuation. All the Captains meet with Erwin to decide what to do next. After (Y/N) grappled up to the wall, I couldn't stop thinking about how strange she acted earlier.
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Author's Note: And the plot thickens, DUN DUN DUN. What do you think is in that document?
Also for those who reached season 4, does Levi's childhood story remind you of anyone?