Blue and White - Levi Fanfiction

Ch. 42 - Afternoon Sun

"Listen up, everyone," Hange said, standing from the table and commanding the attention of everyone else in the room. 

We were in the mess hall for the morning meal, and at once, all the chatter died out and was replaced by a sudden silence and stillness that came only with the attention of well-trained soldiers waiting for orders.

"Your assignments today will come directly from your squad leaders," Hange continued, sounding less and less like my best friend and more and more like Erwin's true Number Two, his second in command.

Though Hange really was one and the same, I was definitely proud of them for stepping up even when it must have been so incredibly difficult to. What with Erwin's sudden and continued absence from injury, and such a bad injury at that, it was hard for all of us - us commanding officers especially, because we were expected to keep things going around here. 

"Expect more general training and equipment maintenance," Hange went on to say, "and don't forget your horses. Additionally, anyone who has seen that hairy Titan, please come see me before leaving the hall."

Hange sat back down with a sigh, and I looked over at them, concerned for more than one reason. "Hange, are you alright?"

"Oh, there's just a million things to think about now," Hange told me. "That's all." They ran a hand down their face, and when they cupped their hand beneath their chin and set their elbow on the table, they looked at Levi. "You two will take care of the new recruits again today, won't you?"

"Of course," I said with a nod when their eyes passed over Levi then settled on my face, searching  for something unseen, perhaps support and perhaps nothing more than just an ear to listen for now. "And we can take over running something else for you, too. Just say the word."

"Reassignments are surely coming soon," Hange said rather absently, their warm brown eyes of honey, reminiscent of amber in the sunlight in color found the grain of the table before them. "And a general reshuffle for the rest of us, too. It's probably best to start thinking about who you two want."

"I have a few ideas," I said simply, and that was true.

The ones from the 104th showed incredible promise. Whether we took them all or only a few or even none, that remained to be seen, but Levi and I would surely discuss it later. Of our veteran forces, there were quite a few soldiers likely to move up into a commanding position, or at least a vice commanding position, perhaps even lieutenants. It was our younger scouts we would have to look at to refill our squad. 

With our numbers thinning out, we had to look to the recruits, because what few soldiers we'd had before they joined us were either dead or experienced enough by now to be looked at for a commanding position.

Besides, it wasn't like the recruits weren't deserving of a spot on our squad; they're already battle-hardened, and they work well together. But - and allow me to think like Erwin - if we were to keep looking after Eren (because who better to keep him from getting nabbed by the government and MP's than a couple of thugs who used to evade them on the daily?), we were probably going to be forced to take in his friends, too. They kept him grounded, they motivated him, and they all seemed to support each other.

Hange nodded, not quite listening to what I was saying, and I bit back my sigh. Hange had been so distant these past few days, and it was tough to watch. Hange was tired, as we all were; of course, Hange was exhausted both emotionally and physically, but they were also tired of not having enough information on who we were fighting. We already knew next to nothing about Titans. Now, we had a group of people who had infiltrated our ranks and attacked from within.