.˜"*°• L I T T L E M O N S T E R •°*"˜.

          Missy found herself tucked into the corner of the mess hall a little while later, surrounded by her friends as they took turns playing card games and snacking on fruit. As soon as she'd arrived at the table the group had bombarded her with questions about her conversation with Levi, which Eren had so kindly opened his big mouth about. She explained the entire thing to them after Ymir had insisted she not leave out a single detail. The group seemed satisfied with Levi's approach to the conversation, and the topic circled back around to what Armin had said about cutting Levi some slack.

"The entire situation is still sickening," Jean muttered. "But it seems at least Captain Levi is trying to go about it the right way".

"At least he wasn't just hiding away for the past three days, he was trying to do something to change the King's mind," Connie had said, resting his chin on his upright arm. "Not that it made a difference, but hey, at least he wasn't just ignoring you".

Missy agreed but made it very clear to them all that she didn't want them to worry about her right now. They had a mission coming up that was way more important than what was going on in her life, and she didn't want it to take away their focus on preparing for a mission that could very well cost them their lives.

"You can't just expect us not to worry about you," Historia frowned. "You're going through something awful right now and it's our job as your best friends to do whatever we can to help you".

"Missy's right," Mikasa interjected, causing the group to turn their focus to her. "You're allowed to be worried, but nothing is going to change the facts right now. We need to focus on the mission, and then worry about the rest later".

"You and Levi have never sounded more related in your life," Connie replied, earning a glare from the girl.

"I appreciate that you all want to help," Missy said, leaning her head on Connie's shoulder. "Mikasa and I are truly surrounded by the best people right now, but she's right, let's leave it to Erwin and the higher soldiers. We need to make sure we come back from this mission alive".

Missy just wanted a little bit of normalcy back in her life. The stares, the whispers, and the smart-mouthed comments she had been receiving had been grating on her lately, and it was clear that nothing in her life was ever going to be the same again. She hoped that she could at least pretend things were a little more normal within her friendship group though. She wanted to focus on work, not the fact her life was being turned upside down. She didn't think she could cope with many more sleepless nights wondering what life would look like for her in five years.

Throughout the rest of the week, the Levi squad continued their training. Thankfully, Levi had not forced them to partake in any more ridiculous training activities. Missy found herself breathing a sigh of relief when she turned up to the next training session and was told she would be doing obstacle courses and hand-to-hand combat. Even though he had dropped the creative training games, it was clear that Levi was still very stressed about the mission.

"Your strike depth was a centimeter off," Levi called, swinging down from a tree with his ODM gear to inspect the wooden, make-shift Titan. "You've never had an issue with your blows before, so don't start now".

Missy sighed, wiping the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve. "Yes, sir".

Levi was not settling for anything less than perfect, and although it was tiring having to practice the same maneuvers over and over again, Missy couldn't deny that his persistent training was polishing her skills to the point of genuine perfection.

Towards the end of the week, Missy found herself in a small cafe in Trost with her two sisters. She sipped on her tea, listening to Circe rant about the Capitol.

"It's so tense in the palace right now." She groaned before taking a bite from her chocolate chip cookie. "The King bumped me up a few ranks, so I'm around the palace a lot more than I was before, but even I can tell that the atmosphere is just different".

"How is Achilles doing?" Hera asked, a look of concern on her face as she asked about her younger brother.

Hera and Achilles were only a year apart in age, having the closest age gap within the family other than Missy and Apollo, who had a whopping three minutes between them. The two had gone through great ordeals together, both during their childhood and in their career as Scouts. Hera felt quite lost without Achilles around, they had probably achieved the closest sibling bond between them, even if it wasn't much.

"He's working around the clock right now," Circe sighed. "He looks like he's not slept in weeks, so he must have a lot going on".

"Babysitting the King 24/7 doesn't exactly sound like a relaxing task," Missy mumbled, glancing out of the glass window as a couple of children ran past. "Especially when it's a King who does nothing but grin like a little kid and let everyone else make the big decisions for him".

Her sisters nodded in agreement, Circe continuing with. "Speaking of, I haven't seen Father around the palace since after the meeting we had at the Scouts HQ. If I had to guess, he's probably gone back home for a bit to continue training Acrisius".

Missy felt her heart sink. It seemed she had the same reaction every single time her little brother was mentioned. "Why can't we just go and get him?".

"It's not a good time, Missy," Hera replied, placing her hand over Missy's clenched fist. "So much is happening right now, it's not the best time to be giving Father more reasons to be angry with us".

Missy's jaw clenched, her empty teacup shattering within her grasp.

"Missy, be careful!" Hera frowned, grabbing Missy's wrist and using a tissue to wipe the small shards of ceramic from her palm. "I know you're angry, we're worried about Ace too, but we have to be so careful".

It seemed that the current events had been exactly what the Rhydduch siblings had needed to snap themselves back into reality and realize that something needed to be done about the way Alec Rhydduch had treated them.

Circe sighed, her eyes flickering from the broken teacup to the large window beside them, looking less than bothered that her little sister had just disintegrated a cup with her bare hands. "The riots have stopped at least, I think people are more occupied with the news of the Duo guard being reinstated".

The sisters parted later in the day, waving goodbye to Circe as the other two made their way back to the Scouts HQ. The mission began tomorrow, and Missy could feel the nerves bubbling within her the more she thought about it. She had never been beyond the walls, so she truly had no idea what to expect. She had asked Levi about it, but he'd given her nothing to go by. Hange had been a little more helpful, eager to tell the girl all about the Titans they'd come across beyond the walls. Missy had come into contact with Abnormals during the mission to retake Delegade, but hearing about how much more common they were beyond the walls had left her with a lump of anxiety in the pit of her stomach.

"You not coming in?" Eren asked, raising an eyebrow at her as she paused in front of the doors to the mess hall.

"I just don't know if I'm feeling up to big crowds right now," Missy admitted, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "You go have fun, I'll come and join a bit later".

Eren shrugged, ruffling her hair before turning to walk into the crowded mess hall. She rolled her eyes, pushing her hair back out of her eyes before turning on her heel and walking in the direction of the stone staircase. The Scouting Region was throwing a 'going away' party in the mess hall tonight. In other words, it was an excuse for them to drink, laugh, and eat before potentially dying out on the battlefield. After the week she'd had, the last thing Missy wanted right now was to sit in a hall with the same people who had been whispering about her and coming up with all sorts of rumors. Missy had heard many incredulous lies over the past few days, including that she and Levi had been in a secret relationship for the past 3 years. It was stupid. People were so stupid. She would join her friends later because she did want to relish the last few hours she would have with them until they were separated for the mission. The only person from her training class who would be in the same group as her for the mission was Apollo, and that was possibly the worst outcome she could have received.

She climbed the stone steps towards the library, pushing the heavy, wooden door open to the inviting smell of old books. Missy had discovered the library not that long ago, but it had quickly become one of her safe places when she just needed a place to sit and think. No one else came in here, so it was like Missy's personal little happy place. The room had two separate floors and a wooden spiral staircase linking the two floors together. The first floor was filled with bookcases that were stuffed with books that didn't look like they'd been touched in years. Small, circular tables were dotted between the shelves, layered in a coating of dust. The walls were peeling from the old paint, but the large, glass windows that covered the left wall filled the room with bright, natural light during the day. However, it wasn't daytime, so Missy walked through the room, turning on the brass, wall lights to lighten it up. The second floor was her favorite. It was half the size of the first, with a balcony that overlooked the first floor. It too had large, glass windows that covered the left wall, but also a set of doors that opened onto a small outdoor balcony. It wasn't big enough for multiple people, but Missy enjoyed sitting with her back against the glass, her feet dangling freely through the metal railing which kept her from falling.

She grabbed the book which she had left on an empty table the day prior, before climbing the spiral staircase and opening the doors of the balcony. She sat down, glancing up at the dark sky. The stars couldn't be seen through the thick clouds that crowded the night sky, showing promises of rain. Missy opened her book, relaxing against the cool glass as she picked up where she left off.

It was a miracle that Missy could even read. It hadn't been something her father had found necessary to teach her during her childhood, which wasn't completely uncommon in many families. She knew for a fact that Connie couldn't read, not that she would ever judge him for it. She taught herself how to read when she was small, taking her mother's books from the small shelf in her family sitting room and hiding them beneath her pillow until she got a spare moment to look through them. Reading was for Missy what it probably was for a lot of people: an escape from reality.

The sound of the library door opening pulled her away from the pages, her eyebrows furrowing as she leaned to the side to look behind her. Who would be visiting the library at this hour, when there was a whole party going on elsewhere?

She released the breath she had been holding once she saw Levi emerge at the top of the spiral staircase, holding two teacups in his hands.

"I knew you'd be in here you brat," He muttered, making his way towards her before handing her a teacup.

"Have you been looking for me?" She asked, taking the cup and blowing the steam over the rim as she let it warm her hands.

"Didn't need to look," He replied, sitting down beside her with his back against the same glass window. "This is the first place I checked, you're not as discreet as you think you are".

Missy pursed her lips before taking a sip of the sweet tea. "You made me tea".

"Well spotted," He said bluntly. "Good to know you're not going crazy just yet". 

"You said you never make anyone tea," She replied, raising an eyebrow at him. "I thought it was only a one-time thing because I was a spiraling mess back then".

"Yes, well," Levi started, letting out a scoff. "Don't get used to it. I had half a mind to spare the milk".

Missy rolled her eyes, tapping the ceramic cup with her pointer finger. "There's nothing wrong with milk in tea". 

"Tch, maybe you are insane," He mumbled, turning his attention to the book in her hands. "What crap are you reading?".

"It's not crap," Missy defended, handing him the leather-bound book with her free hand. "It's a beautiful love story between two soulmates".

"Sounds riveting," He replied sarcastically, scanning the cover over with a judgmental gaze.

"I thought you liked reading". 

"I do, just not crap like this,". 

"So you hate the way I drink my tea and you hate the books that I read," She muttered. "Is there anything about me that you do like?".

She had meant it rhetorically, but Levi leaned his head back against the window as he let out a low hum to signal that he was thinking. "Nope, not a single thing". 

"Wonderful," Missy grumbled, taking another sip of tea. "Spending the next two weeks with you is going to be so much fun". 

"How are you feeling about the mission?".

She shrugged her shoulders loosely. "I'd feel better if you hadn't been criticizing me all week over my maneuvers". 

"They've been sloppy," Levi replied. "You've been wearing your gear loose and you've been slow on maneuvers, but i'm just putting it down to nerves". 

"I'm trying my best".

"Then your best isn't enough," He responded, picking his teacup up by the rim and taking a long sip.

Missy scowled at him, heavily debating knocking his elbow so that his tea would spill all over him. "You're impossible". 

"So I've been told".

Missy let out a breathy sigh, watching the orange sky in front of them as a comfortable silence filled the air. Missy didn't mind, she wasn't used to domestic conversations with Levi just yet. 

"You know, that's probably the most normal conversation we've ever had," She pointed out. "Even if it was just you complaining about me the entire time".

Levi hummed in agreement. "How did you find it? Leave a review on your way out, if you don't mind".

Missy snickered at his joke, raising her hand to hold up three fingers. "I'd rate it three stars".

"Only three? You wound me, woman".

"Well, the overall experience was fine. A little stubborn, here and there. There were a couple of mean comments that didn't need to be made, too".

"Is that right? I'll take note for next time then," He responded, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "No promises, of course".

She let out a laugh, and Levi found himself tensing up at the sound. Artemis didn't laugh often. Maybe a chuckle here and there, but never a laugh. He forced his muscles to relax, pondering the fact that he had been the one to emit that sound from her. The both of them flinched upon hearing the library door swing open, hushed voices and giggles filling both floors of the room.

Missy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and gave Levi a look, who just put his finger to his lips to tell her to stay quiet. The two of them moved to the door of the balcony, peering over the side of the second floor to see two figures by one of the tables below. Giggles and soft chatter echoed through the room as Missy strained her eyes for a closer look. She almost gasped when she realized the two figures were kissing, rather aggressively.

"What the fuck?" Missy whispered, glancing over to see Levi with a strange look on his face.

She looked back at the couple as he pushed the woman against the table gently, enticing her to fall back onto the chipped wood. Missy felt her cheeks grow hot as she watched him crawl on top of her.

"Damn brats," Levi grumbled, making an attempt to stand up but Missy quickly reached out to pull him back down by the sleeve of his jumper. "Artemis, what are you doing?".

"You can't go and lecture them now, they're clearly busy!" Missy whispered, placing a hand on Levi's shoulder to keep him from getting up again. "Leave them be".

"I'm not going to sit here and listen to people have sex," Levi stated, narrowing his eyes at her.

Missy gave him a stern look. "They're going on a mission tomorrow that could kill them, Levi. They might never get the chance again. We'll just shut the door and let them get on with it".

Levi muttered something under his breath as he watched Missy pull the door closed gently, locking the both of them outside on the balcony. She turned back to face Levi. "Let's hope we don't have to hide out here all night".

"I couldn't think of anything worse," He grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.