[DISCONTINUED] Entangled in the Strings of Fate ~ Attack on Titan (Levi x OC)

05.5. Reunited Again

"Finally, tomorrow is the expedition, huh..." Isabel crossed her arms behind her head, gazing lazily at the sky.

Farlan nodded beside her. "Yeah. But no thanks to that man... our plan is screwed," he sighed heavily.

"The plan will work." Levi said firmly.

"...Hey, have you noticed that the HQ is oddly quiet today?" Isabel glanced at the two with questioning look.

Farlan looked around. "Yeah, I heard since tomorrow's the expedition, everyone's visiting their relations or something else. After all tomorrow could be their last day of life."

Levi glanced to his side. He spotted Aile was walking from the horse stall with a black horse. She wore her usual clothing, which consisted of a dress beneath a blue vest, a white napkin veiled her hair and a pair of leather boots.

"It's Aile, huh," Isabel commented. "We haven't talked for months... It's kinda lonely without her around."

"I admit you're right," Farlan sighed. "Was I going too far back then? I thought she would immediately stuck herself with us, considering what she said back then."

"Why are we talking about her?" Levi scoffed as he averted his gaze. "You said the right thing about her, Farlan. She's got nothing to do with us anymore,"

"Aniki, you're so cold..." Isabel shuddered. "I always thought you two have some kinds of special relationship..."

"Someone, please stop them!!"

The three turned around to the source of the voice. From behind Aile, two horses rushed past her, running defiantly towards the three.

"O-Oi, aren't they coming towards here?!" Isabel panicked.

"Crap, there's no time to--" Farlan trailed off, while Levi quickly jumped ahead of his two friends and braced himself, his glare focused toward the horses.

Suddenly, one of the horse neighed loudly. A rope was circling its neck, forcing it to stop and raised its forelegs up, while the other horse collapsed. Levi took a glance at one of that horse's hindleg, and found an arrow was stabbed there.

"Hey! Hiah!" Aile came from the back riding her horse. "Calm down, now!" She shouted.

The tied horse struggled, then it slowly it put its legs down and eventually calmed down. Aile dismounted her horse and approached it.

"There, you're free now." Aile said as she untied the rope and caressed the horse. The horse neighed, feeling comfortable with the woman. Aile then focused her attention on the other horse, which was neighing weakly. "I'm sorry, I had no choice..." She apologized guiltily as she pulled the arrow from its leg.

Levi, Farlan, and Isabel watched as the woman stroke the horse's fur gently. "Ah, Aile! It's good you're still here!" The cadet who shouted before came rushing to her.

Aile replied him with a glare. "Thanks to you, I was forced to hurt this poor little thing."

The man chuckled awkwardly. "Uh... weren't you planning to hunt, anyway? That's why you had those arrows with you, isn't it?"

"Aile, you saved us..." Isabel suddenly said slowly.

The man and Aile turned around, and Aile looked surprisedly at the three. "...You guys?"

-------

"So... you're going hunting?" Farlan tried to strike up for conversation with Aile.

Aile smiled thinly while glancing at her bow hanging on her back. "Yeah. And what about you guys?"

"Nothin', just wandering around here," Isabel chuckled lightly.

"Ah, I see..." Aile smiled thinly, then averted her gaze from the three. The atmosphere quickly fell into silence.

"...Forget it."

Farlan, Isabel, and Aile turned to Levi, who was crossing his arms. "What's with this conversation? If you're not gonna say anything then I'm out from here," "Oh come on, aniki!" Isabel waved her hands in front of him repeatedly, while Farlan just sighed at the two.

Aile peeked, and she slowly chuckled at their action. "Hehe, you guys are as adorable as always..."

The three noticed her comment. They raised a brow at her, who was quick to hide her reddened face. "I mean, uh..."

"You, too," Farlan said with a smile. "You're still the Aile we know. What we don't know is that you can do something like that."

Aile looked surprised. She slowly looked back at them, but quickly dropped her head, looking straight to the ground. "Guys, I..." Aile hesitated for a moment. "I've never had the courage to say it, but..."

"Spit it out already," Levi demanded. "Before I change my mind."

Aile took a deep breath, and looked the three straight in the faces. "I'm sorry!! I'm really sorry!" She shouted while closing her eyes.

The three exchanged looks. They silently smirked. "Whaat? It took you more than a month just to say that?" Isabel said as she crossed her arms.

"You're slow on something like this. I'm disappointed," Farlan narrowed his eyes. "Months had passed already, ya know."

Aile sighed heavily as she stared down again. "I know... I'm dumb."

"What was that?" Isabel looked at her, a smirk on her face. "We couldn't hear you!"

"...I'm dumb." Aile said louder.

"Look at us when you talk to us," Levi crossed his arms, a bored look adorned his face. "And we still can't hear you, scum."

Farlan and Isabel smirked. Those sentences were what their 'superiors' always told them in their training.

Aile paused. She suddenly raised her head and saluted to them with closed eyes. "I'm dumbass, a complete dumb! I only-- ow!" Aile felt a finger suddenly flicked her forehead. She slowly opened her eyes, and saw the three were smirking amusedly at her.

"We know you're dumb, but not this dumb," Levi said.

Aile rubbed her forehead. "Umm, so?"

"This conversation is boring. Let's just do something else somewhere." Levi walked away from there. Farlan and Isabel went up after him, leaving Aile behind with widened eyes.

Just when Aile thought that the three just rejected her apology, Isabel suddenly gripped and pulled her arm. "You are coming with us, silly!" Isabel grinned. Behind Isabel, Farlan and Levi smiled at Aile.

Aile dropped her jaw in surprise and grinned widely. "Yeah!"