The Captain and the Assistant

Chapter 15: Small Men

You stare at yourself in the mirror. It feels nice to be in the peace and quiet of a room by yourself. The last few hours have been hectic. That's what's to be expected after you stage a coup and then have to defeat a massive titan and have the queen crowned within twenty four hours.

You sweep your hands up to your neck and see the bruises that you hadn't had time to notice until now. They are relatively deep purple and make it clear you've been strangled. You debate covering the bruises with makeup, but decide they look pretty badass. You were able to fight someone off, thanks to Levi's teaching, and you were proud.

You throw on your fancier scout uniform, used for ceremonies and special occasions. Erwin ordered that everyone be in uniform today at Historias coronation. The uniform was a bit boxy, so you decide to wrap a belt around your waist. You do your hair in the same half up-do you wore the night of your one and only date with Levi. You smile to yourself. So much has happened since then. You have a new air of confidence about you. You feel important. Not just some stupid girl tending to Erwins needs, but truly someone he recruited to work under him. Now your only goal was to train more on your ODM gear, so you would be cleared to go out on your next mission.

You head out the door when you're ready. You'll be a bit early, but you like to be punctual. You also have someone you are hoping to run into.

You enter the hall of the castle and feel slightly intimidated by its grandeur. Everyone is so used to living very fiscally safe lives, it's hard to imagine what it must be like to be a royal or even just to be an official. You don't envy Historias position though. You would never want to be in charge of everything. Your small slice of the scouts it's plenty enough for you.

No one has arrived yet and the halls are quiet. You see the door to the great hall hasn't been opened yet, so you decide to take a lap. You walk the carpeted halls and turn the corner when you spot another early bird. Levi.

"Hey," you calmly call after him. You're over everything that happened between the two of you. You understand where he's coming from, especially after the last few weeks, but you definitely miss him. Your heart skips a beat when he turns to you, your eyes connecting. You try to shove down the feelings from before. You can't seem flustered or he won't agree to the favor.

Levi stops and waits for you to catch up to him. "There's the girl that overthrew the government," Levi says, almost smiling.

"Hey it's really no big deal," you say giggling sarcastically. "Nice job stopping the whole 'Historia eating Eren thing'," you laugh and punch him on the shoulder lightly. It feels almost too nice to make contact with him. You feel almost greedy for doing it, but you are trying to let him catch on. You're just friends.

Levi chuckles, "A lot can happen in three weeks." You notice Levi's eyes trained on the bruises on your neck. They are more noticeable than the night you had met up with Levi after Rodd Reiss first turned, and even more noticeable than yesterday on the walls of Orvud.

People start meandering into the halls and government officials finally open the grand hall.

"You fucking bitch!"

The voice of a very angry man echoes through the halls. You feel goosebumps trail your body. You know that voice. Fuck. You swivel your head in every direction, frantically, and lock eyes with Harry. He's barreling down the hallway towards you. His hands pump as he walks. He has that evil look on his face.

You're terrified, but you stand tall and hold your ground.

"I bet you murderers and traitors are real proud of yourselves!" Harry yells inching closer to you. You wonder if he notices Levi there. You urge your body to keep your feet planted.