Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan.

CHAPTER 5: A NEW CHAPTER

When writing the story of your life,

Don't let anyone else hold the pen.

-Anonymous

1 YEAR LATER

"Move it, slowpokes!" The rain pounded down on the cadets as they ran through the forest, carrying large supplies on their backs. Levi and Scarlett were naturally in the front, leading the group, Levi just a few steps ahead of her. Hanji and Mike ran behind them, Hanji with a wide smile on her face and Mike scrunching up his nose in disgust at the muddy scent.

Scarlett's breaths started to become uneven and her pace slowly faltered. "WHAT'S WRONG, CADET SCARLETT? TRAINING TOO HARD FOR YOU?!" Instructor Shadis' loud voice boomed over the thunder. Levi spared her a glance and her heart skipped a beat at his steely eyes that pierced with a challenging look. Scarlett gritted her teeth and pumped her arms back and forth until she once again returned to her rightful spot next to Levi. She beamed at the approving gaze that was sent her way.

From behind them, Keith Shadis rode horseback and watched with calculating eyes. 'It seems that Cadet Levi serves as an energizer or motivator towards Cadet Scarlett,' he thought, watching as the two easily kept their place in the front.

As the usual four sat in the cafeteria, the doors opened. The cafeteria went silent as Erwin Smith, commander of the Survey Corps, stepped into the room, Keith Shadis following close behind. "May I see Cadet Levi?" Commander Erwin requested. Said cadet stood, Scarlett doing the same. "Alone, please?" An affronted look spread over her face. She was about to protest when Levi leaned down and whispered into her ear. Her enraged expression contorted into a disgruntled yet slightly placated one. She pouted and whispered something back before slowly and reluctantly taking her seat. Her crimson eyes shot daggers at Erwin, clearly saying, 'Harm Levi and I'll make sure that you don't live to see the light of day.' He nodded his reassurance for Levi's safety and the three disappeared from sight.

SCARLETT P.O.V.

I listened to Hanji jabber on and on about how she was gonna kill all the Titans as I lazily laid my head on Levi's shoulder. A hush fell over the cafeteria as Commander Erwin strolled in the room. "May I see, Cadet Levi?" I automatically stood up when Commander Erwin spoke again. "Alone, please?" I felt offended that the commander had just told me not to come along. I opened my mouth, about to give him a nice, long argument about why I should be able to listen to their conversation when Levi leaned over and whispered into my ear.

"It's fine. I'm not a child. I'll be back before you know it." I scowled at him before whispering back.

"Fine. But you better tell me what happened." He nodded before leaving with the commander and instructor.

"Oh, I wonder what happened," Hanji, the ever-so-curious one pondered. "You two are pretty close to the commander, aren't you? Well, I guess that's to be expected considering he was the one that recruited you." I nodded. "The only people who knows about our thug life are you, Mike, Commander, and the other higher ups. But rumors have been spreading lately."

"Is that alright?" Mike questioned. I just shrugged.

"I don't care. It's not as if we were intentionally trying to keep it a secret."

"It's rare that Commander Erwin would speak with just Levi. Usually, whatever he tells Levi, he can tell you." I furrowed my eyebrows. Rare, indeed…

I shot my head up at the sound of the door opening. Levi entered. He bore his usual stoic expression, but his eyes looked vacillating. As he took his seat, I tilted my head questioningly. He shook his head and mouthed the word, 'Later' to which I responded with a nod. I was still confused. What had happened? Why did Commander Erwin want to talk with just Levi and not me also?

AFTERWARDS

Levi and I were in our room. The bed was set in the corner of the room, so I sat sideways, my back resting against the wall. I absentmindedly stroked Levi's hair as he laid his head on my lap. That was how I knew something was wrong. Levi rarely did such a sweet action like laying his head in my lap. He only did that when he was upset.

"What happened?" I finally questioned. He was silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"Well…"

FLASHBACK

"May I see Cadet Levi?" I stood up as Scarlett did the same. "Alone, please?" I heard Scarlett gasp quietly. I mentally sighed and leaned over before she released a very colorful variety of words.

"It's fine. I'm not a child. I'll be back before you know it." I assured. She turned and scowled.

"Fine," she whispered back, "but you better tell me what happened." I nodded, hoping she wouldn't cause a scene. She reluctantly sat down, all the while glaring at Commander Erwin as I followed him out. He took me out into the hallway and Instructor Shadis followed behind. The three of us entered the instructor's office. The two stood in front of me as I waited for them to speak.

"Cadet Levi," Commander Erwin began, "you have showed stellar performance during your training." I didn't like where this was going. "And you are obviously capable of taking the #1 spot. Now I have a question for you. Are you certain that the branch that you would like to join is the Survey Corps?" I felt an ominous feeling rise in my stomach, but I gave my honest answer.

"Yes." The commander smiled.

"Then we're all on the same page. I have a request… I would like for you to graduate early and join the Survey Corps." My eyes widened by a millimeter. Shit, Scarlett was not going to like this. Now that I think about it…

"What about Scarlett?" I asked warily. "She's clearly in the 2nd place and her skills are just slightly behind mine." Erwin sighed.

"Yes, Cadet Scarlett also certainly has the skill to be in the Survey Corps… However, the real question is… Do you want her to?" I stiffened. "I don't believe that when you agreed to join you wanted Cadet Scarlett to do so also." I lifted an arm and weaved my hand through my hair.

"No, I do not wish for Scarlett to graduate early. I would rather that she hadn't joined at all, but she's persistent."

"Would you like to think about it?"

"…Yes."

END OF FLASHBACK

REGULAR P.O.V.

"…And that's what happened," Levi concluded, making sure he omitted the part about Scarlett joining.

"Oh…" Scarlett said. "That's… great." Levi raised an eyebrow. Usually, she would have thrown a tantrum by now.

"Is that all you have to say?" She smiled, though it looked forced.

"That's what you came to do, right? Join the Survey Corps and relieve your boredom? I… don't want to be in the way of your goals... I want to support you, not hold you back. So… take the offer. Join the Survey Corps… and earn your Wings of Freedom." He looked taken aback. "You didn't join because you were bored, did you? You wanted to be free, to see what's outside those walls… and share your findings with everyone. So… do that. Join, I'll… come right after you." Scarlett had tears in the corner of her eyes. A tear finally fell from her eyes and hit his cheek.

"Scarlett, I-"

"Good night, Levi," she interrupted and gently laid his head on his pillow before crawling into her own bed.

Levi knew right then. He had his final decision.

THE NEXT DAY

"Where were you?" Scarlett inquired as Levi took a seat next to her in the cafeteria.

"I went to talk to Commander Erwin," he answered.

"Why?" Hanji asked. Scarlett smiled.

"You went to accept his offer, right? To graduate early and join the Survey Corps?"

"You're going to join the Survey Corps? You better not get eaten," Mike warned.

"So when are you starting?" she asked. Levi stared at her before answering.

"I refused the offer."

"…..YOU WHAT?!"

FLASHBACK

LEVI P.O.V.

"Commander Erwin." Said man looked up.

"You've come to a final decision, I presume?" I nodded.

"I've decided… to reject your offer," I told him.

"Did Cadet Scarlett beg for you not to leave?" he questioned knowingly.

"Actually… she encouraged me to accept the offer." He looked surprised. I didn't blame him. If I were him, I wouldn't have believed me either. "But… who's going to keep Scarlett in line if I'm not there?" The commander chuckled.

"She certainly is a handful… and very unpredictable. I asked if Cadet Scarlett would accept you leaving her… but in reality, it was you who couldn't accept that you would be separated from her… Am I correct?" I scowled at his slyness. "I didn't expect you to accept my request anyway," he admitted. "You and Cadet Scarlett are too tightly knitted to separate after all."

"So… you just asked me… to see what would happen?" I concluded. His response was a smirk.

"I still can't believe you refused the offer!"

"How long are you going to go one about that?" Levi groaned.

"After that pep talk I gave you, you still refused!" He sighed, finally having had enough. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"Who's the one that said she's always be by my side?" he reminded. Scarlett froze. "You can't do that if I joined. Did you really want me to join?" Tears dripped from her eyes as she shook her head. Then she jumped into his arms and sobbed.

"NO! I didn't want for you to leave me! I wanted for you to stay with me and protect me like you've always done! Don't leave me alone! I don't want to be alone again…." Levi patted her head.

"I know… It's true that I want to see what's outside those walls… but we'll see one day… together."

Instructor Shadis observed all the cadets as they swung with their 3DMG from tree to tree. The first one he saw was a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. She ran across a thick branch before leaping and making a clean cut across the fat slice of meat that symbolized the Titan's neck. 'Marie Reynolds. Her strongest area is hand-to-hand combat, yet because that is not included in the grading, she doesn't bother to show off her talents. She's distant and tends to like being alone, something that dos not benefit her in group training.'

He then laid his eyes on three other cadets. A petite blond with chocolate brown eyes. 'Laura Brown. Her small stature gives her the advantage in speed with the 3D Maneuver Gear, but her landings are often rough.'

A scrawny, green-eyed boy with wavy, blond hair. 'Max Humphrey. Not the best with the 3DMG or combat, but has an impeccable memory and is a great strategist.'

A brunette with dark eyes, almost black. 'Gizthrot Fread. Fast and strong. Tends to immediately go for the kill. However, based on his test scores, he's not the brightest of the bunch. If his run and kill methods fails, he most likely wouldn't have a strategy or plan afterwards, contrasting greatly with Humphrey, making them a good duo.'

"Move out of the way, Cross!"

"Why don't you, McDouglas?!"

'Speaking of good duos,' he thought as he watched the two swing by. 'Alice McDouglas and Damien Cross. McDouglas has speed and is excellent at making sharp turns. However, she lacks power and often can't make the cut to kill. Cross seems to be her complete opposite. Amazing power, but lacks stamina and speed. The two have seemed to have dubbed each other as rivals against each other and also Cadet Scarlett and Levi. Although they always seem to disagree, the two actually make quite the pair.'

"Wa-hoo!" An excited cry ripped him out of his thoughts. A brunette girl quickly spun out and happily cut out a piece of the meat.

'Ahh, Hanji Zoe. Although her combat and 3DMG skills are notable, her real talent is her intelligence. She's extremely enthusiastic about learning and would make an excellent researcher after her graduation.

Right after Hanji came the familiar blond. 'Mike Zacharius. Doesn't tend to talk very much and his face is indifferent. His nose, however, is a whole different story. His sense of smell is fantastic. If he smells it once, he'll never forget the scent again. Good for scouting out Titans.'

Two blurs whipped past the instructor and he sighed. '…And who could forget about these two? Cadet Scarlett and Cadet Levi. The two excel at everything, especially the 3DMG. Out of all the pairs, they are obviously the best. Instead of being each other's opposite and helping each other with their flaws, they instead are both so skilled that all they need is the deep trust that they already possess. They also seem to be extremely overprotective of each other. Although Levi bores a stoic expression, he holds a burning passion in his eyes. Scarlett is very talented, but it seems Levi is her only motivation to join the military. Wherever Levi goes, Scarlett follows, so the two will most likely join the Survey Corps and become Humanity's Strongest. I have high hopes for them.'

"I present to you, the graduating class of the 98th Cadet Corps!" The top 10 graduates stood proudly on stage.

10. Marie Reynolds

9. Laura Brown

8. Max Humphrey

7. Gizthrot Fread

6. Alice McDouglas

5. Damien Cross

4. Mike Zacharius

3. Hanji Zoe

2. Scarlett

1. Levi

"These cadets have spent the last three years training to learn how to kill humanity's greatest enemies: the Titans! They now have three paths in front of them.

The Garrison: They are in charge of the walls and fight when combat is necessary.

The Survey Corps: They go on expeditions outside the walls and make it their mission, their goal, to learn more about the Titans.

The Military Police: The branch that is only available to the top 10 graduates. Their job is to protect the king and the citizens of the inner walls.

Which will you choose? The choice is yours!"

Scarlett smiled proudly and giggled as she draped her arms around Levi's neck. "We did it, Levi… We graduated!" A hint of a smile could be seen on Levi's lips.

"…Yeah."

AUTHOR'S NOTE: If you liked this chapter, FOLLOW, FAVORITE, and REVIEW! I actually really liked this chapter. I wasn't sure how to add Levi being offered to join the Survey Corps early because I wanted him to graduate with Scarlett, but my friend, CJBean, gave me the idea of giving him the offer, but rejecting it. I hope you guys liked this chapter also!