You were asked to join in on the meeting between the leaders of the military, excluding Nile, and including the Commander-in-Chief, Darius Zackley. The same person who dictated what would happen to you at your tribunal. You stood in between Erwin and Levi, with Hanji and Pixis across from you.

"I must say, I didn't expect you to settle down the way you did," the Commander of the Garrison said, his kind eyes staring into yours.

"If you're saying I've calmed down, I was always calm. I wasn't in the best of moods, then," you replied, your arms crossed.

"If I recall, didn't you call Commander Erwin and Commander Nile fuckfaces?"
Your eyes closed when you felt the blond turn to look at you.

"I stand by my words."
The older man just smiled at you. The door opened, and Darius walked in, shutting it behind him.

"Sorry I'm late," he spoke. You opened your eyes and gazed at him, as did everyone else. He walked over to the table and sat down on the chair. No one was in the other. He rested his elbows on the table and interlaced his fingers together. "Well? Have we discovered what's in the container?" 

"The thing is..." Hanji spoke up, "With our technology, I'm afraid we can't dig much deeper. Like we've heard from Eren and Historia, it seems to originate from some sort of human bodily fluid. However, it vaporizes when exposed to air, making analysis difficult. Whoever made it must have had technology far superior to ours."

'I wonder if Amalasanda can do it. She has several advanced inventions.' You thought, looking at the box of serum. Then again, what she was doing was illegal.

"If it was the Reiss family, I can't imagine how..." She trailed off. Darius hummed in thought.

"In that case, instead of tampering with it, we should use it to achieve our current objective," Pixis spoke up.

"But who do we entrust it to?" Darius inquired. He then turned his head to look at Erwin. "Erwin, to you?"

"No..." He replied, bringing his hand up to grab where his arm use to be. "I'm no more than a wounded soldier. This box belongs with one of our elite soldiers who has the best odds of survival." His head turned to Levi.

"Levi, would you keep it?" He asked. Levi raised his head to look up at him.

"If it's an order, just say so. Why even ask the question?" He inquired. Erwin looked away.

"We can't predict in what situation we'll have to use this. We'll be relying on you to make a decision on the fly. Judging when and who to use it on will be for you to choose."

'What a burden.' You thought, opting to not talk.

"Can we leave that to you?" He finally turned to look at the short man.

"If this dream of yours comes true, what will you do then?" Levi asked, though he didn't answer the question.

"I... don't know. I won't until it happens," he replied softly.

"I see... all right. I'll do it," he answered, leaning over the table. He closed the case lid and picked it up before placing it in his pocket. He returned back to his original place.

"By the way, I'd like to unveil that work of mine soon. Have you given it any thought?" Darius asked seriously.

"You still haven't given up on that?" Pixis inquired, "If the public saw that repulsive display, trust in the military would hit rock bottom."

"You don't know art when you see it," Darius accused.

"Are you talking about that shit eating machine?" You finally conversed.

"Yeah, have you seen it?" The older man asked.

"I've heard of it."

"So? What do you think?"

"Why does it matter what I think?"

"Well, for someone who engaged in torture everyday, I figured it would be good to have an expert voice their thoughts," he smoothly replied. You thought for a moment.

"There are many forms of torture. People have their own ways. You've found your personal style of torturing. Making people eat their shit is your calling, I guess," you replied. Darius let a smile slip past his lips.

"It seems it is."

"Don't encourage him."

~
Back in Trost District, Erwin had called a meeting with the Survey Corps squad leaders, plus you. In his office, there were only so many chairs and one, two-person couch. With eight people in the room, you had to stand. Not that you minded. You didn't like to sit for a long period of time.
You glanced down at Levi who didn't seem to be paying attention. You nudged his leg with your knee, raising your brows at him when he turned to look at you. He just subtly nodded his head at you. You didn't believe him.

"... in other words, Eren's father, Grisha Jeager... is likely a human who came from outside the walls."
You zoned back in time to hear Erwin say that.

"Yes," Hanji spoke, "Just like Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt, he possessed the Power of the Titans. But different from those three, he was supportive of humanity within the walls."

"If he was so interested to know about the Scouts and such, we could've used more of that support of his", Klaus commented, his arms crossed.

"I wonder..." Hanji trailed off, "From the moment he entered the walls, he was searching for the royal family all alone, I'm sure. And that..." She, as well as everyone else, turned their heads to look at Erwin.

"That's not something you do without incredible resolve. That same father wanted to show his ten year old son, eager to join the Scouts, the basement of their house."
Your eyes turned down to Levi who was, once again, not paying attention. You let out a quiet sigh. If something was bothering him, you can't do anything about it now.

"On death's door, he said the truth of it all was... in the basement. What in the world do you think is down there?" She ended on a question.

"Things which mustn't be said. No..." Erwin corrected, "Things Grisha Jeager couldn't say, even if he wanted to. That which the First Reiss King wiped out memories... memories of our world... is what I hope, but... pondering about it here won't accomplish much." A certain look crossed his face. Sort of melancholic. He then looked up, his face hardening once again.

"The preparations finished today. The operation to retake Wall Maria starts in two days. Want to know what's in the basement? Let's go see for ourselves. Isn't that what Scouts do?" He encouraged, a small smile on his face. "Let all your squads know." The other squad leaders slowly stood up.

"Right. Keeping it secret of course, yeah?" Klaus said.

"On a day like this, we deserve some meat, right?" Harold asked.

"Good idea. Gotta show those kids us adults can be counted on," Dirk added on.

"What about Commander Shadis keeping secrets from us?" Turning to look at Hanji before they all began to walk to the door.

"Forget about him. We don't have time to deal with it," she replied. You followed after them slowly.

"I'm shocked, Hanji. You used to adore him!" Marlene teased as they opened the door.

"Shut up!" She hissed. You were the second last to leave. You felt the door being pushed closed behind you. You looked over yourself and noticed Levi was the one who closed it. He remained in his office. The others were already walking down the hallway, but you stayed, leaning against the wall.

~ 
It was only a few minutes before Levi emerged from Erwin's office.

"Did you get your shit together?" You asked, your eyes shut.

"Sort of," he half-assed replied.

"I don't know whether to be concerned or not," you voiced, opening your eyes and pushing off of the wall to stand in front of him. "But what you're thinking is, you don't want Erwin to participate in the operation, right?" You could see his eyes widen a fraction, though overall, his face remained unchanged.

"How did you..."

"It's obvious," you interrupted, "Maybe not to the others, but I notice. You respect Erwin and his decisions, even when you disagree. You don't want him to die." You flashed him a smirk when he tried to open his mouth.

"It's indisputable. So don't retaliate."

"Tch."

Ja ne!

{Ruby Red}