[Levi's POV]
I do not know what overcame me last night, but it is even more embarrassing the more I recall. Sina saw a new side of me that very moment when I confessed my true feelings and it is impossible to forget the shape of her lips. I usually have control over my emotions, but when it comes to her, she makes me go insane for all the good reasons. It feels like I have more to live for, all because of her.
This morning, the Military Police has been summoned to the Survey Corps Headquarters and Sina is about to depart soon. Of course, I will be accompanying her along the way to the Capital Mitras, and aside from being her captain, she trusts me the most.
I wait for her at the headquarters' entrance and Erwin stands next to me. "Levi."
"What?" I respond bluntly.
"I have noticed how differently you act around, Sina." Erwin suddenly brings up, which causes me to glare at him. It makes me curious as to why he is saying all of this to me.
"What do you mean by that?" I ask, trying to keep a straight face.
"Every time you see her, you get out of your comfort zone just to be with her. You are quite expressive when she is with you and it looks like you have grown soft because of that. Is there something about Sina that makes her stand out?"
"That's a bunch of nonsense," I say defensively. "Self-expression is not my strong suit. And I do my best to avoid forming personal relationships."
"Well, your eyes say otherwise. When she looks at you, does it not affect you at all?" Erwin brings up, knowing Sina is someone to whom I devote myself.
"Well, I have this unexplainable feeling every time I am with her." I let out, feeling vulnerable at this point.
Erwin puts a hand on my shoulder. "Levi, just listen to what your heart tells you. I know it's not easy to confess, but Sina deeply cares about you."
"Is it because I'm not experienced enough?" I ask since I am not the best with words, unlike Erwin. "I'm trying... really. But nobody recognizes that."
"Not even Sina?"
I paused for a moment, then relaxed my shoulders. "Well, she's different."
Erwin sighs at me. "You really could use some pointers on understanding human emotions, Levi. You are cold on the outside, but pretty thoughtful on the inside. I am glad Sina can see through that."
"What's gotten into you? Got a lover or something?" I suddenly change the topic about me and shift it over to Erwin, which takes him by surprise. Erwin takes a moment to think until there is a bittersweet smile on his face. "I once loved somebody until I had to make the most important decision of my life..."
"What a pity." I did not want to push it since it sounds personal. But now that I think about it, he chose to fight for humanity over his lover. That is a huge sacrifice to make indeed. "Is this really how you want to live?"
"Well, who knows how long we are going to live. If we become stronger, will our future become more promising?" Erwin asks. "If you have a lover now, think about how you want to spend the rest of your life with her. Will you become kinder? More compassionate?"
When I first met Sina, I didn't fall in love. She was only my comrade in my eyes. After some time, this weird feeling towards her started to blossom. Never had I felt this kind of sensation in my heart. As time went on, I liked everything about her. Her voice, her smile, her eyes, the way she talked... everything made me go crazy about her. The most beautiful thing about her is her heart, and it is obvious that I have fallen in love.
"I... want to understand her," I confess, but this world is far too cruel for us to find happiness.
"There's a language to her that you'll need to learn. Don't just make her happy. Try and understand why she smiles." Erwin takes a hand away from my shoulder. "If you truly love Sina, you wouldn't hesitate."
⚔︎
[Sina's POV]
In a few minutes, I will be escorted out of the Survey Corps Headquarters. After changing into my uniform, I gather my hair together to tie it into a ponytail.
"Sina." A voice called, the source was from the doorway on my right and the door was slightly opened. I faced my right side to see Levi walking in. His presence alone had sent me to venture into the skies above. "We don't have all day."
"I'm coming." I fix the collar of my uniform and walk over to where Levi is standing. We absorb each other's faces, recalling that embarrassing moment from last night when we locked lips. I shyly look down at my feet and hear him let out a slight chuckle.
"Don't worry, I'm not here to do that again," Levi says. "Listen, I know you are nervous about meeting the King. But do not worry, I won't let anything happen to you."
"Are you calling me weak?" I ask teasingly. "You know, I am a little more familiar with you now. I can probably match your skills."
Levi rolls his eyes at my remark. "Don't get cocky."
In our winter clothes, we make our way out of the headquarters and walk through the snow to reach the Military Police. They brought a somewhat luxurious carriage as a transportation for us. The Military Police assist me in climbing up the carriage and Levi follows up. From the window next to me, I notice Viktor, Zaiya, and Abel waving at us in the distance. I hate to say farewell like this, but they are aware of our return before the upcoming expedition.
The carriage is pretty spacious, but that is because the King is expecting many to attend this meeting, but it is just Levi and myself. When the reins crack, the horses drag the carriage through the snow and we sit in silence for the trip.
⚔︎
From Wall Rose, the trip took us nearly four days and we finally saw the gate to Wall Sina. The whole time, Levi and I kept each other entertained by chatting away, mostly about our lives before joining the Survey Corps. I have learned more about Levi's history and how his life went in the Underground District. From his deceased mother to a man named Kenny who taught him how to survive in the underground cities, Levi has quite a difficult past. The idea of Levi spending most of his life beneath the capital city of Mitras while I had spent most of mine above him pities me. Yes, I lived a life where I was surrounded by knowledge and wealth, but none of that mattered when I walked on this land as the titan's child.
Aside from our history, we were starting to understand each other better within the four days of our long trip. What we like to do during our free time, what we like to eat, what our likes and dislikes are, what our favorite hobbies are, and what our weird habits are. I already knew Levi strangely held his teacup, wielded a blade in a reverse grip, and had an obsession with cleanliness. There is nothing so special about me, but the things that I find enjoyment in are books and ballet. Those are the things that help my mind forget about the cruelty of this world. Aside from that, I am very fortunate that he allowed himself to journey with me. Without him, I would've been bored out of my mind.
As our carriage enters through the gate of the Wall Sina, I can already feel the horrible memories flooding in. Levi seems unbothered, but deep down, he hates being here too. He is staring out the window in disgust. "I almost forgot this city is filled with a bunch of hooligans, filthy rich peasants, bloodsucking capitalists, and spies."
The luxury that these people lived in pained Levi to the core and the rich environment sickened his stomach to the point where he wanted to ignore everything. Aside from the bricked houses within Wall Sina, there are stone streets where the wealthy civilians are clothed in fancy winter coats and boots. There were also herbalists where all the medicinal herbs and roots found outside of Wall Sina were sold. There are shops like barbers where they wash and shave their clients and shops where they sell fresh food and drink. There is a lot of firewood and charcoal to keep everyone warm for the winter. There were very pleasant snowy gardens, but no flowers. Our carriage finally comes to a halt when we reach the front of the royal castle.
Of course, this place is heavily guarded by the armed Military Police and our weapons are far inferior compared to theirs. They wear vertical maneuvering equipment that is modified to work with firearms, which are meant for killing humans. So what will they do when the titans reach Wall Sina? Hopefully, the titans do not pursue any further knowing that Wall Rose is already overpopulated with Wall Maria refugees. The poor did not have much to lose, but their losses were more disastrous.
Levi dislikes the Military Police because compared to the Survey Corps, they are nothing but greedy soldiers who dedicate their lives to the almighty King and the wealthy. To sum it up, they are useless pieces of shit. From the Military Police's point of view, they also dislike the Survey Corps because they see us as suicidal for venturing out of the walls. They believe we are wasting money and resources due to our lack of definite, decisive successes, and high losses of lives. With the support of the royal government, we remain intact from the greedy bureaucrats and hostile conservatives.
When Levi and I are being escorted by the Military Police into the royal castle, my eyes widen at the halls made of marble and gold, and that the floor mats are red with a hint of gold as well. As we walk into the massive throne room, I take in the pillars that lay in a single-file line down my right and left. I glance around nervously, expecting the King to be on his throne as we have just gotten here. But he is not present.
The doors behind us close and I look back to see two soldiers guarding the door. I then glance over at Levi who also appears to be puzzled. "Did they forget we are coming today? Where the hell is everyone?"
Now that I think about it, was the letter written by the King just a scheme? Is this a setup?
"The King will arrive shortly." One of the Military Police soldiers announced.
"Hmph. I'm assuming the King is getting his ass wiped by you morons as we speak." Levi sounds impatient at this point.
Then, we hear footsteps coming from the side of the throne room and it appears to be a formally dressed man. This middle-aged man gives a wide smile upon our arrival, chuckling under his breath. "Greetings. My name is Marcel. I am His Highness's royal advisor." He then respectfully bows with a hand over his heart, then straightens up again to look at me. "Thank you for coming. You must be Sina and...?"
"Levi." He spat out and Marcel chuckles through his teeth. "Ah, yes. It is the Levi Ackerman! I've heard a lot about you—you've got quite a reputation."
Marcel is now standing in the middle of the throne room before us. "I was expecting a larger group, but that is alright. I am aware you all have other important matters to attend. But on behalf of the King and his people, thank you for putting an end to the titan cult."
"Forget that. Where's the damn King? Didn't he summon us to be here?" Levi rudely interrupts.
"Actually, I was the one who wrote the letter. I brought you all here today." Marcel corrected, which made me wonder why.
"The King is here!" A soldier shouts from the doorway next to the thrones and Marcel hurries over to the man in an elegant white robe, typical of a king, and he possesses a crown, but he has a tendency to not wear it. We watch when Marcel leads the old man to one of the two thrones in front of us. The man's wide-brimmed beard obscures his face, but his glowing dark eyes tell you who he is.
The king's presence is now upon us and we kneel before him, with one knee on the floor. So this is King Fritz.
King Fritz has straight white hair and a beard that covers his chin and his lips. His face is full of wrinkles and he seems slightly fatigued, assuming he had just woken up from a slumber. He rests an elbow on the armrest of the throne and propped his chin on his hand, scanning me and then Levi. "Well, what do we have here."
Marcel greets the King with a slight bow. "Your Highness, I bring Sina and her captain, Levi to you. We are gathered here to discuss an important matter."
"What is this important matter you want to speak of? Because we've been dying to know." Levi, including myself, is ready to see how this meeting unfolds.
Marcel averts his gaze at us. "I will say this: Sina's situation being the titan's child is indeed one of the goals of this meeting. In my capacity as His Highness's advisor, I request that Sina must be turned over to Wall Sina."
My heart sank to my stomach at his words and so did Levi's. "Why are you requesting such a thing? Is this about me running away from my crimes?" I ask out of anger and Marcel bitterly stares at me.
"We have a responsibility to cooperate with the Survey Corps, so I would like to resolve your situation," Marcel adds, which causes me to take a step back in fear. I had a gut feeling from the beginning that this was all a setup to lure me back into the capital, but I was given no choice but to refuse.
"So you brought her here to confess?" Levi questions Marcel, and I notice his fists clenching on his sides. "All she's doing everything in her power to survive."
"We will use our judgment to decide whether or not she can be trusted, but we would like to hear from Sina herself," Marcel says rather sternly. "And if she is no threat to humanity, she will no longer be known as the titan's child."
"Since when did she become a threat? She has nothing to confess either." Levi takes a step forward to speak for me. "She is sacrificing her own life for mankind. Doesn't that already prove she is not one of those man-eating bastards?"
Marcel takes this moment to think as King Fritz watches us with his eyes remaining slightly open. The King does not talk much, and he seems to have a carefree attitude due to his lack of interest in this heated conversation. This meeting is getting more thorny than it appears.
"Yes, she is indeed a brave soldier, but also a cold-blooded murderer of her father, Aziel Vogel," Marcel says, and the atmosphere in here just took a turn for the worse.
My jaws tighten at the horrid name and his uncalled-for remark, so I speak for myself. "That monster is no father of mine. He was a murderous savage who engaged in cannibalism. I am the victim."
"You slain him like a damn dog."
"It was out of defense!" I raise my voice in frustration. "He attempted to kill and eat me alive!"
"That man Aziel definitely sounds like a titan to me." Levi lets out, glaring at Marcel.
"Seems like Aziel hid the fact that he was a member of the titan cult from you," Marcel mentions, which is also a surprise to me. It's starting to make sense, but I need to hear more from Marcel.
"I assume you and Aziel were close since he worked as a doctor for Your Highness," I say, which leads to him nodding in agreement.
"Yes, we were indeed friends until I found out about his suspicious practice outside the capital. Shortly, I found out he was a member of the restored titan cult. The cult saw our powers ruling over humanity as a threat to their shady business. They were definitely troublesome within Wall Sina, so we demanded to eliminate every single one and it is all thanks to the Survey Corps."
"Now that you've said it, does that give you a better idea why I am not at fault here? You wished to eliminate all members of the titan cult and I did just that by killing him without a second thought." I say boldly. "You are welcome."
Levi cracks a slight smirk on his face at what I just said, and some things in this world must be done by yourself. Marcel claps his hands together, slowly applauding. "You are quite a lady."
"I am not the titan here. I am a flesh-and-blood human like anyone else. You people have not seen true horror." My voice begins to shake a little since I am suppressing my rage. "You have no idea..."
"At least now, in my eyes, you are just a normal human being with strong emotions," Marcel says calmly. "I will say... your effort in convincing that you are not a titan is admirable. But if you want to prove it even further, I have a proposal."
Levi glances back to see my unsettled expression and I try to simmer down. "What is it?"
"I would like King Fritz to consider taking you in as his queen." Marcel abruptly suggests. "Think about it. Your title as the titan's child will be no more, but instead will be Queen Sina."
Levi's expression changes in an instant at the proposal and our skin turns pale. It almost seems like his feelings for me were slightly hurt by all of this. I let out a slight laugh, finding amusement in those words which startled everybody in the throne room. Then, I unashamedly cease myself. "And if I refuse?"
Marcel smirks wickedly. "Then we will turn you in to become our slave."
"I'd rather die than live under the King's dominance," I say through my clenched teeth. "I was originally sentenced to death from the start, but instead, you want me to marry the King?"
"I am giving you the freedom to choose how you want to live, Sina. And execution will be the last resort, so what will you choose?"
"Freedom? I do not see freedom in those choices controlled by you. They do not matter to me, because as a scout, I will die either way." I remind him. "If I do my duty, that is serve myself, I shall serve the innocent lives as a member of the Survey Corps."
"You may command as you will, but you shall obey me." Marcel seethes, his fists clenching to the point where his knuckles are white."Rest from the hardships of your journey and the battles which you have fought, for I know full well of all that has happened to you."
"I will not settle for being a coward." I retort, causing Marcel to stare at me fiercely but I no longer find him intimidating.
"What? You look rather constipated." Levi speaks with a hostile expression. "Unless my memory fails me, we have barely spoken two words to each other during this meeting, but would you care to enlighten me as to how this will benefit your shitty government?"
As we shift our attention over to the silent and unbothered King Fritz, he is nearly falling asleep. This old man was careless, apathetic, lazy, and possibly alcoholic. He seems pretty unconcerned about the critical situation in this room and the ongoing deaths within the walls. At this moment, Levi and I are musing about whether or not the royal government can be trusted.
"Her beauty matters more than anything. Of course, I will gladly take her as my queen." King Fritz finally spoke, his dark orbs locked on my presence. "Bring her to me."
"It's time to run, Sina. We do not have time to interact with people like them." In a panic, Levi takes me by the hand and turns us back to where we came from until the two Military Police officers step in our way, preventing us from exiting.
"You're not the one to decide," Marcel growls as he watches us attempt to escape at a hurried pace. "This is the crown's order. Cease her!"
"Back off you scums!" Levi shouts, taking a step forward to protect me from the Military Police who were about to put their hands on me. The more we resist, the more Military Police surround us with firearms and we freeze at a 'click' sound echoing behind us. We find Marcel standing by the throne with a handgun after pulling back the hammer, narrowing his eyes at his outstanding target, Levi.
"Do anything. Otherwise, I will have to resort to other methods." Marcel threatens. "Just to be clear. I do not care who you are, Levi... our rules make no exceptions."
Levi steadily turns his head back, restricting himself from making too much movement, and raises his hands to appear less of a threat to the royal government. "You will not gain anything from this..."
"Blood for blood," Marcel utters, gently placing his finger on the trigger and his eyes are still locked on him. "Once I kill you, Sina's future will be shifted by fate."
"You are the one deliberately obfuscating her fate," Levi argues. "Once you kill me, I will be waiting for you in hell."
"That's enough, Levi!" I mutter out, tugging his arm to silence him. If Levi continues to piss Marcel off, his life will be handed over too easily and I refuse to see him die a meaningless death. This quarrel is creating a perfect storm of uncertainty for us all.
"You have quite the nerve. It seems like someone's gonna have to beat some sense into your thick skull until you finally learn to respect these grounds!" Marcel readies himself to pull the trigger and in the heat of the moment, I pluck up the courage to step on the frontline in front of Levi, preparing my body to take any bullet that is about to come our way.
I know how to put an end to this risky situation and to make Marcel listen, I call out with every painful emotion bottled inside of me. "I'll do it!" I surrendered for his life to be spared. "If that is want you want, then I will become the Queen!"
"Sina!" Levi is deeply shocked. "Stop trying to act brave! You do not need to take on that role to protect me!"
"Silence, you rat!" Marcel growls, then lowers his handgun in the satisfaction of my words. "Sina will seize control over the world once she is crowned. Take this man away before I decide to blow his brains out."
"I'm sorry, Levi. It's the only way to save you." I whisper, but Levi takes ahold of my hand and begs me to stay by his side with an obstinate demeanor. I have never seen him like this before and witnessing it for the first time must mean he is overcome by fear. Fear of losing me. His responsibility of protecting me is becoming slim, and I am the one to blame for dragging him into this mess. We are about to be separated by the Military Police and Levi attempts to lean forward.
"Be patient, Sina... I will come back to get you." Levi promises, clinging onto my hand with all his might until the Military Police jerk us apart.
"Don't... you're only going to waste your life because of me. It's not worth it." I implored, knowing this is where our paths diverge at this very moment. I thought we were going to fight side by side forever, but I am the one who keeps putting him in danger.
"Am I not already risking my life?" Levi asks, reminding me that he is a relentless soldier. "Trust me, I will get you out of here."
"Enough with this pitiful conversation. Take him away. NOW!" Marcel waves as a gesture to forcefully drag Levi out of the throne room and my eyes begin to form tears that contain my most intense emotions, knowing my life is now heavily shackled by the corrupted royal government.
I now feel like a caged bird once again.