Bonds of Steel and Blood

CHAPTER 7 - Rivalry and Resilience

          "You look like shit."

Rei raised her eyebrows at Levi, who was sitting opposite her at the round table in the meeting room with a cup of tea in front of him. His bored expression, arms crossed over his chest, and those cold gray eyes were the last thing she wanted to see first thing in the morning. She offered him a smile that was more of a threat than an act of kindness.

          "Good morning to you too, shorty."

Levi's gaze narrowed on her, a reaction satisfying enough. Levi must've been just as tall as Rei's 170cm, if not taller, but she could see he didn't like his height made fun of. So she noted down to do just that.

Jasper and Aiden walked into the room next, followed by Miche. Immediately after seeing Rei's undereye bags and pale face, Jasper's face flooded with worry. He sat beside her and opened his mouth to ask if she was okay, but she shot him a warning glare, and he smartly remained quiet.

The last two people to join them were Erwin and a woman with glasses, whose face was full of anticipation and excitement. Rei's gaze first rested on Erwin. His soldierly composure was the same as eight years ago when she met him first, but there was no denying he truly grew into a commander. He was even taller and powerfully built, his gaze sharp and determined. That annoying determination that makes him look like he's always one step before everyone else. Determination that Rei wanted to slap off his face.

          "Good morning to everyone," he said with that deep, calm voice as he made his way to the spot beside Jasper, who uncomfortably shifted in his seat. Miche had already taken his place beside Aiden, who looked anything but pleased by that. And the woman, instead of taking the last spot between Levi and Miche, made her way to Rei's side of the table and grabbed her hand.

          "Hello there, stranger! I'm Hange Zoe! I'm the one that does the experimenting 'round here, so if you also love Titans, you should stop by my lab sometime!" she sang out, excitedly shaking her hand.

Rei looked at her with wide eyes, shocked by her eccentric introduction. She gave her a skeptical nod.

          "Rei Agnar. The one who very much doesn't want to be here," she replied and shook off her hand. Jasper and Aiden smirked while Levi scoffed, seemingly not wanting to be there too.

          "Leave the pleasantries for later, Hange," Erwin reminded her. Hanje gave him a disappointed frown and walked to her seat. Erwin cleared his throat and looked at the new trio.

          "The meaning of today's meeting is to discuss your integration into Survey Corps. Let me begin by introducing others present more formally," Erwin said, first looking at Miche. "This is Miche Zacharius, section commander and captain of Miche Squad here in the Corps. One of our strongest soldiers."

Miche gave a slight nod to the three, who offered no reaction.

          "Hange Zoe is a squad leader and the one in charge of inventing and conducting research on Titans for us to understand them better," Erwin continued. Hanje offered an ear-to-ear smile.

          "And this is Levi, squad captain of our Special Operations Squad we recently formed and another of our strongest soldiers."

Rei met Levi's stare. He didn't nod or smile, only coldly looked at her. She scoffed.

          "Him?" she asked, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. "I understand Miche, but what's special about him?"

          "Want to find out?" Levi said, voice unchanging. Their cold stares made the atmosphere of the room even heavier. Rei grinned dangerously, popping her knuckles.

          "Gladly," she purred.

          "There's no need for that," Erwin raised his voice just enough for Levi to look at him and see the warning glare. The black-haired man scoffed and relaxed into his chair.

          "There's a matter of your skill to discuss," Erwin continued. Rei raised her eyebrows.

          "You're questioning our skill? After practically crawling on your knees to the underground to get me to join you?"

Miche shifted in his seat, clearly disapproving of Rei's attitude. Erwin himself didn't react to her teasing.

          "I'm more than aware your skill is incredible. But there's a procedure to be followed. You'll have to prove yourselves at hand combat, ODM management, and Titan combat so we can decide into which squad you should be placed," he explained.

Aiden scoffed.

          "Do we have to be part of squads?" he asked through his teeth, not even looking at Erwin. "Just call us when you need us, and we'll do some Titan killing."

          "There's a system here," Erwin explained patiently. "You're either a captain, or you have a captain. It makes organized fighting outside the walls much easier."

All three of the newcomers frowned at that information. But they all agreed, even Aiden, that they must adjust to their new surroundings. So, no one complained; Rei just stood up and looked at Erwin.

          "Then let's get this over with."