Still waiting for Rico to be recognized in the character list. I've sent a request to the staff, but no response yet.. D:
Oh well. Here's chapter 2 for you all~
"Don't be an idiot," Rico muttered, pulling on the reins. The grey mare tossed its head back and forth and flicked its ears. Rico gently nudged at the horse's flank with her foot and, this time, the mare obeyed by moving forward. But it was snorting its disapproval.
They say pets are like their owners... Rico grimaced. She's as stubborn as I am but-
"Lacks discipline."
Ugh, him. Rico couldn't help but growl like a canine, even letting her teeth show... It was if Levi had read her mind. She flashed a sour look down his way. He hadn't mounted his black horse yet; he was standing before it and brushing the knots out of its mane. He didn't even give Rico the courtesy of facing her when he spoke. If there really was any dog around here, it was Levi's horse. It closed its eyes, looking blissful, with every stroke of the brush. Rico even saw it lick Levi's hand at one point.
Rico decided she wasn't in the mood to argue; she just shook her head and urged her mare on. Outside the stable the midday sun was shining brightly, and the four selected squad members, Jean, Connie, Armin and Sasha, were pottering about.
Jean, with his long face and sharp features, was considerably strong and always spoke his mind. The latter wasn't always a good thing though, upon their first proper introduction Jean had commented on Rico's height, calling it "mouse-like". Rico had made sure to step on his toes when she had walked passed him.
Rico's first encounter with Connie hadn't gone too well either. It had involved Rico accidently slamming a door into Connie's face. At first Rico felt embarrassed and apologetic, but she quickly realised Connie, though determined and skilled, was a pretty reckless soldier. He was even worse around his friend Sasha, the only other female soldier attending the mission.
Rico hardly got any words out of Sasha; instead she received muffled responses and flying crumbs of bread.
Last but not least: Armin proved to be a respectable soldier. Rico found herself taking a liking to the blonde-haired recruit. But she felt a nasty pang of slight fear in her chest when Armin admitted that his fighting skills weren't anything to gawk at. What he lacked in brawn he made up with brains, but Rico couldn't help but think of Levi's squad, and this whole mission, as a circus. And she was now a part of it.
"Joy." She muttered to herself.
Connie, who was preparing his horse's saddle, heard her and looked up from his handiwork. "You say something Miss B?"
Rico did all she could to avoid rolling her eyes. "We'll be leaving soon."
"Alrighty, we're nearly ready, right guys?"
"Yeah!" Sasha replied enthusiastically. She was stuffing a handful of raw potatoes into a rucksack.
Rico pinched the bride of her nose. It was actually happening. She was going on a life-threatening mission with a bunch of kids and an ex-thug who was as short as his temper. How did I end up agreeing to this?
"If you keep looking at my soldiers like that I may just end up kicking you in the face," said a voice from behind.
Levi was finally on his horse; his dark stallion walked up at a calm pace. It paused when Levi tugged at its reins, right alongside Rico.
"You couldn't see my face back there, how do you know how I was 'looking' at them?" Rico asked irritably. She felt uncomfortable with the cold, threatening stare Levi was giving her... Before he just looked annoyed, but now there was something, given away by his icy eyes and tight lips, that made him look deathly serious.
"The disgust is practically radiating from you." He told her. "Don't underestimate these soldiers, for they are truly soldiers and not the children you make them out to be."
Rico turned away and said no more.
Levi trotted on and called out to his squad. All four of them went into a flurry of activity; each one mounting their steeds and cramming last-minute necessities into their bags.
The squad had spent all morning preparing: going over maps and strategies with Commander Erwin and Hanji, saddling up horses and collecting supplies. Armin had said his heart-felt farewells to Mikasa and Eren, promising to return alive. Jean had also attempted to say goodbye to Mikasa, but his words had only come out in incomprehensive stutters.
Before Pixis had left he had put a hand to Rico's shoulder and given it a comforting squeeze.
"Good luck," he had said.
A whinny from Rico's mare shook her out of her thoughts. She gave the horse a gentle rub and scratch on its neck...
It was time for the Hunt to begin.
They rode for hours. Before long they had passed through the gates of Wall Rose and were dashing through the Titan-invested territory of Wall Maria. They travelled over seemingly endless green fields that were dotted with trees, stumps and flowers. There were shimmering rivers snaking their way through the fields, abandoned crops full of overgrown vegetables and weeds scattered all around. Every once in a while the squad came across old abandoned farmhouses and wandering domestic animals. There was a feral population of sheep roaming around weed-invested ranches, but they fled on sight of Levi's team. Occasionally mindless titans would appear off in the distant, but Levi strategically led his team away from the monsters. They needed to avoid the regular titans, for the sake of saving energy, time and supplies.
All the time spent riding made Rico appreciate just how enormous the Maria territory was, and why losing it to the titans had been such a huge blow to mankind. The trip to the target location – a barn once used to store food for farm animals – was mostly quiet, save for Sasha questioning about stopping for snacks and Armin and Jean conversing over the experiments Eren would be enduring.
It was afternoon by the time they reached the barn. It was a sturdy building, albeit rusty from disuse, big and windowless, with vines climbing up its sides as evidence of its long-term abandonment. There was a large pond nearby, lined by long grass. Levi bought the team to a halt near the body of water. The horses, who were all glistening with sweat and snorting tiredly, were given the chance to quench their first before being tied to separate trees to rest and nibble.
Meanwhile, the squad members unpacked their bags and investigated the barn for any enemies. The barn had a harsh concrete floor, full of cracks and crevices where vegetation sprouted from. There were bales of mouldy hay and Lucerne stacked against the wall and piled in corners; they were home to dozens of scampering little rodents. But there were no enemies as far as the squad were concerned.
Levi got to work on barking out orders. "Sasha, you'll be the first on lookout. Armin and I will scout the area. The rest of you tend to the horses..."
Everyone quickly got to work. This was to be a temporary stop only: to allow time for the horses to rest and the riders to snack. Plans were to ride late into the night; they needed to cover as much ground as they could.
The squad had eaten well in the morning to prepare for their journey, but for this afternoon all the team had were wafer sticks. They had other food of course – namely vegetables and fruits – but they were not for tonight.
I've never really liked these things... Rico thought as she munched on her third wafer stick, her back to a tree. There was a gentle breeze, but it was difficult to appreciate it when the thought of being in Titan Invested Lands was knocking at the back of one's mind like an unwelcome guest at a door.
"Hey..." Rico was suddenly pulled out of her musing; that was Jean's voice.
The boy had his head buried in the vegetable rucksack, searching for something. He pulled up, looking confused. "Someone's been in here! I know for sure that I tied it up properly before we left!"
Rico and Connie turned to Sasha who was trying, indiscreetly, to sneak away behind the barn.
"Sasha!" Jean and Connie shouted together.
The brunette-haired girl stopped in her tracks and starting trembling, "Y-yes?"
"What did you take?" Jean asked irritably.
"Nothing!" Sasha protested.
"You're lying," Connie said, deadpanned.
"It was one carrot!" Sasha admitted, flailing her arms out frantically. There was a half-eaten carrot in one hand and her eyes almost wet with guilt.
Realisation suddenly hit Rico square in the face. She froze up. Sasha's meant to be on sentry duty. Rico recalled. But if she's hear, then-
"Sasha!" The name slipped out of Rico's mouth.
The brunette turned to Rico curiously. "Yeah?"
"Who's on lookout?"
Thump...
Everyone stood deathly still.
Thump!
"What the hell is that?" Jean breathed, though the tone in his voice seemed to say he already knew the answer.
THUMP!
"Draw your weapons!" Rico ordered. She pressed her finger over the triggers on her manoeuvre gear. Hooks shot out and quickly attached to the sloping roof of the old barn. The grapples pulled Rico off the ground she soared towards the building.
I'll get to the top and have a look- she told herself as she flew effortlessly through the air. She landed on the barn roof with ease, but in that moment the light from the sun vanished. She felt a horrible chill run through her blood; she was under the shadow of a-
"TITAN!" came a collective scream from below.
Rico looked up. Two enormous, dark brown eyes were staring down emotionlessly at her. And a large hand was poised above, reading to come crashing down right on her head. As quick as lightening, Rico back-flipped straight off the building. The huge beast's hand collided with the barn: it smashed straight through the wood, causing it to splinter in all directions, and broke the barn in two. Dust rose up from the rubble.
Upon hitting the ground Rico somersaulted backwards and staggered to her feet. She felt Sasha's hands on her shoulders, helping her steady on her feet. The team stared in shock: it was a thirteen metre Titan with short dark hair and an elongated jaw that swayed with every move the monster made. Its hand was steaming from the collision with the barn, but it took no notice.
"Scatter!" Jean yelled.
"I'll distract it!" Connie announced, standing his ground and poising his swords.
The others rocketed out in different directions, leaving trails of steam in their wake.
"We'll go 'round and slash its neck!" Rico shouted.
Jean and Sasha swung out wide at the titan's left, Rico went out to the right. The long-jawed titan was eyeing up Connie on the ground; it stomped towards the bald boy with heavy, slow steps. Connie gradually backed away, but continued shouting obscenities at the titan and waving his swords about madly. The monster had eyes only for the crazed human on the ground.
From a distance Rico, still flying through the trees, could see Sasha racing ahead of Jean. The brown-haired soldier latched onto the side of the titan's shoulder with her gear and expertly wheeled herself around to the back, readying for a slice.
Rico attached her hooks to a tree branch and brought herself to an abrupt halt. She straightened up, letting her swords rest at her sides, and watched the younger female cut into the titan's nape. Blood and steam spurted out everywhere. The titan groaned in pain, its eyes lolled into the back of its head and it dropped to the ground with a loud crash. Sasha landed on the titan's back and began dancing on the spot; singing of her victory.
But something didn't sit right in Rico's stomach; she felt an odd sense of dread wash over her. There was a cold wind at the back of her neck and a voice calling out to her, but she couldn't make out what it was saying. She propelled herself off the branch. In mid-air she gave a fleeting look behind her; a huge hand was outstretched, reaching for her, clasping down on her... Rico released her hooks and spun herself about wildly, letting her blades stretch out and cut everything surrounding her. The swords slashed through the fingers, making them recoil and spray blood in all directions. Next, Rico was falling. She shot her hooks for a far-off tree. The grapples connected, Rico pulled with all her might, trying to reel herself away from the danger, but the titan's other, uncut hand was already swinging around, ready to grab her...
An angry cry went out; there was a sickening rip of flesh. The looming hand went limp, followed by the titan. But Rico did not look back, she catapulted downwards and skilfully skidded to a halt on the ground. But the momentum made her lose her balance; she continued falling forwards, her hands shot out in front of her. She managed to catch herself against the ground, but her fingers dug through the dirt, leaving them raw, bruised and bloodied up to the knuckles.
She forced herself onto her feet and whirled around, the second titan laid dead before her. A huge chunk had been taken out from the back of its neck. It was already starting to evaporate, as all dead titans do.
Standing before the corpse was Levi. His cape was blowing in the wind and he seemed occupied with something in his hands...
He... saved me? Rico realised. Her eyes widened and she felt her jaw slacken.
"Are you alright?"
Rico nearly jumped. Armin was standing beside her, looking sincerely concerned. When did he get there? Rico wondered.
"Y-yeah..." She told him, keeping her hands hidden under her cape. "That was Levi who took out that titan, right?"
Armin nodded. "He beat me to it! I see Sasha got the other titan... We were just heading back when we heard a huge noise! I was so worried! But-" he smiled "you're all safe."
Rico let the corner of her lip curve up, only slightly, showing the smallest of smiles. Her gaze trailed back over to Levi. His head was still lowered to his hands. It made Rico's gut twist with worry. Had he been hurt? She left without saying another word to Armin.
Levi heard the footsteps coming his way, but didn't look up. Soon, Rico was standing in front of him. She opened her mouth to speak- to ask him if he was injured, to thank him for saving her life... But then she noticed something. He was cleaning the handle of his blade. Rico nearly choked. Any inclinations of saying "thanks" or asking about his condition went out the window.
Instead, she blurted out; "Are you serious?!"
Levi looked up from his work nonchalantly, "What's your problem, Midget Four-Eyes?"
"What's your problem?!" Rico shouted, pointing a bloodied finger at Levi's face.
The Corporal flinched, "what the hell happened to your hands? They're filthy! Don't put them near my face."
Rico pressed her whole, red, blood-smeared palm against Levi's cheek. She smirked when he angrily pulled away and obsessively rubbed at his dirtied face, all the while muttering curses.
"That's for saving my life." She grumbled.
Levi sheathed his swords and crinkled his nose at the shorter soldier. "If that's the thanks I get, next time I'll leave you to become titan shit."
It seemed nothing would wipe the pleased grin off Sasha's face. She was quite proud of her titan kill, so proud in fact that she hummed tunelessly during the next horse ride. The squad abandoned the broken down barn, they galloped onwards for hours, until the moon was high above them.
They came to rest at an open, levelled out area encircled by pine trees. The horses were once again tied up and the team settled down for the night. They only had extra clothes for blankets and pillows, but weariness had hit some of the members so hard that they fell asleep the moment they were on the ground. Armin curled himself up into a little ball in the grass and snoozed quietly. Next to him was Sasha, draped in an extra jacket, her limbs sprawled out all over the place and drool dripping from her mouth. Connie was snuggled alongside her in a similar fashion, snoring loudly. Jean had propped himself up against a tree nearby with his hands folded behind his head. He was using his cape as a blanket.
Rico sat a little further away. She was also leaning against a tree, wrapped up in her own cape, but she couldn't sleep as easily as the younger soldiers. She lifted her hands out of the warmth of her cloak and held them up in front of her. She had bandaged them up in soft cloth, leaving only her fingers protruding. Much of the cloth was sprinkled with dried blood, and her fingers all ached horribly. She flexed them slowly, flinched at the pain, and withdrew them into her cape.
She thought back to the barn breaking to pieces, the shadows swallowing her surroundings, the urgent cry before those titan fingers curled over her... Was that Levi calling? She mused.
She inclined her head to the silhouette standing among the tree branches. Levi was surveying the area attentively. There would be no sleep for him, not yet. Titans were inactive at night, but there was nothing to stop titan shifters from ambushing them, should their location be discovered. There always had to be someone on guard. Levi had appointed first watch to himself, Rico was scheduled for the second round later in the night, followed by Jean. Come daybreak and they had to be on the move again.
Rico sighed. Not sleeping in a bed was going to take some getting used to, but what other choice did she have? She definitely couldn't sleep on a guilty conscious. Her mind seemed to constantly remind her that the man pacing about the pine trees had saved her life earlier. I have to thank him properly... she thought drearily.
So up she got, and dawdling she went...
A twig snapped under her foot. It attracted Levi's attention immediately. He looked down at her, looking somewhat annoyed. That was when Rico realised she didn't have her gear on her. She had no way of getting up to Levi's level. She stared up at the dark-haired soldier, feeling a little stupid... She didn't want to yell – in this quiet forest it would be like announcing your position to the entire world.
Levi narrowed his eyes at her. He grappled onto the branch at his feet and lowered himself down. He stopped before hitting the ground and left himself dangling just above Rico.
"What do you want?"
Ugh, that tone in his voice... Rico considered spitting in his face and returning to bed. But she thought the better of it. She breathed out her nose heavily. "I just wanted to thank you, properly, for saving my life back there... I... appreciate it." She looked away, feeling a bit shameful for the way she had acted before.
Levi stared at her briefly, expressionless.
"Hm." He said.
He went zipping back up to the branch without another word. Rico stood there, mouth agape, dumbfounded. Levi ignored her and pretended to scrutinize the horizon, but eventually he glanced back down. Rico was still there, unmoving, her face a mixture of surprise and anger. Levi almost, almost, smirked. He dropped back down like a spider spinning a web, and paused just in front of her.
"What do I need to say to make you stop staring at me like an idiot?"
Rico scowled at him. "Maybe something like 'you're welcome' or 'yeah, don't mention it' would be nice?"
"Don't mention it."
Rico couldn't tell if he was mocking her. She raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously... His hand suddenly made its way to the back of her head, where it tangled into her hair. He pulled her closer and stared evenly into her eyes. Rico, taken aback by the move, only stared back perplexedly.
"Go to sleep," Levi ordered, though not too unkindly.
He released Rico and clicked down on his trigger, making his gear heave him back up to the branch. Rico absentmindedly rubbed the back of her head where Levi's fingers had curled into her locks. Her brows knitted together in disapproval over being handled like that, but the time for snarky remarks was over. With an exaggerated sigh, she plodded back over to 'her' tree, curled up against it and, after a long time, drifted off into a light sleep.