Later that evening, Captain spoke to you privately. 

"You're strong, but I noticed some things you are still lacking." He started off by getting straight to the point. 

"I'll keep this brief. I now know why Commander Erwin wants me to train you, he sees potential in you. But he also trusts the words rather than the actions. And seeing what I just saw today, I too see potential in you."

Your eyes widened a bit. That phrase seems familiar to you somehow. 

"However, just combat training with other scouts doesn't prove all that you're worth."

You lowered your head; you knew he was right. 

"The combats skills you have, keep them. It will help you when fighting titans. As of right now, I want to see your skills on odm gear. Tomorrow, I'll be watching. I trust that you'll do well." 

You nodded in response. 

"Good, rest up. Your training starts now."

And just like he promised, the area you were in was already set up for you. 

Captain Levi and the rest of your squadmates watched as Captain ordered you to maneuever in while in the air. 

"On your left!"

"To the right!"

"Slow down!"

You barely managed to keep up, and ended up falling last second. 

You grunted as you slowly sat up, Petra rushing over to your aid. 

"Y/n! Are you alright?" 

"Mm-hmm."

Captain made his way over and examined your form. 

"You're not bleeding. Think you can go again?"

Petra jolted a bit, as if she wanted to protest. 

This was the fourth time you fell last second, and Petra was starting to get worried. 

But you knew it had to be done. You nodded. 

"Good, now on your feet."

....

"Agh..." You groaned as you rubbed your bruised and aching body. 

Training with Captain is no joke. 

Yet it still wasn't done, Captain wanted to speak to you again about what happened. 

You gulped, this couldn't be good. 

You stared blankly at the journal below you as Petra hummed slightly while getting ready for bed. 

"I'm sure everything will be okay, Y/n. The worse the captain might do is--well--I'm not sure."

"Hmm..." You groaned, becoming more worried. 

"Ah--! Sorry, I made it worse, didn't I?"

You sighed and began to scribble your pen on the page of your journal. 

You still had time before meeting up with the captain later, at least try something to calm your nerves. 

"What are you doing? You seemed focused in something."

You smiled lightly at the picture you drew, it brought warmth to your heart. 

Petra peered over your shoulder, her eyes widening slightly. 

"Wow...did you draw these?"

The pages she was looking at were drawings of Eren and Armin. You've been told before that your artistic skills are amazing; you were surprised yourself on how much you improved over the years. 

You thought drawing them would make you feel better. It worked a lot. You were surprised you were able to capture them so well. 

But your little friend group wasn't complete without Mikasa, who you were currently drawing right now. 

"Who are they? Are they your friends?"

You looked up at her and nodded. 

"You must miss them a lot, huh?"

You looked back down and nodded again sadly. 

"They were like family to you, huh? I know what it's like. Being too far from your family is a scary thing. But what's good about it is that they're always thinking about you and supporting you from afar."

You repeatedly her words inside your head. 

Are they thinking about you right now?

You hope they were. 

Petra continued to look at your drawings. 

"Could it be that you admire that boy?" She pointed at the picture of Eren. 

"Or do you have a crush on him?" She pointed at the picture of Armin. 

You instantly flinched and closed the book, shaking your head furiously. 

"No need to deny it. I won't tell a soul~"

Your face read deep discomfort as you tried to hide your embarrassment, 

Eren could never like a mute girl like you...

Not even Armin...

Or could they...? Armin did seem pretty flustered when you kissed his cheek. 

As for Eren...he definitely grew more...affectionate. Your mind flashed to when he nearly fought Jean after he insulted you. 

 It then began to make a bit of sense to you. Armin and Eren had some kind of attraction to you. 

You on the other hand, you definitely admired them both back. 

Even Mi---

"Oh! It's getting late, now! Should you meet the captain now?"

"Shit!"

She was right. 

You quickly closed your journal and made your way out of the room. 

"Good night, Y/n. Good luck."

"Hmm..." You nodded. 

You needed it. 

....

You wandered the dimly lit hallways. It was right now becoming lights out for everyone, so there were still a few scouts wandering the halls. Either saying goodnight or doing some last-minute business. 

You were about to past a hallway when you noticed a familiar figure standing there. 

Captain...

You immediately froze in your tracks and turned to face him. 

"Glad to see you didn't fall asleep already." He spoke. 

You shook your head in response. 

"I'll keep this brief. You overall did well, but not perfect." 

Understandable coming from Humanity's Strongest. 

"You were nervous, you hesitated. I could see it."

Shit...was it really that obvious?

"On the battlefield, you can't be nervous. You can't hesitate for even a second. Or else you'll get killed."

"But I also noticed something else. You're determined. No matter how many times you made the same mistake, you still kept going, pushing yourself up."

It went quiet for a moment. 

"I'm not one to give this kind of pep talk, but keep that determination with you. If that what keeps you going, don't get rid of it."

"Understood!" You nodded and saluted. 

Finally, he turned to you. 

"You don't need to keep saluting me."

"Okay..." You put your hand down. 

"Truth is, I thought you might struggle with the training today. But I'm impressed you managed it well. You only made the same mistake of not knowing how to land correctly. But if I don't push you, then what's the point of me training you." Captain continued. 

"It's clear both you and me have different techniques. I understand that now and will try to change up your training. So from here, your training will be slightly more intense."

You gulped nervously at that. 

"I have high hopes for you, as does Erwin. Don't let him down...as well me."

You nodded. 

What was in store for you in the next training session?

While getting a good look from the captain, you were surprised how young he looked compared to his actual age.

You were surprised to hear from Petra that Levi was somewhere in his 30's, when he certainly doesn't look his age. 

"Good, now get some rest. We start early tomorrow."

....

Like Captain said, you were up early the next following mornings with training. 

And it was rough. 

Captain was patient for the most part, but as the days went pass, he started becoming sterner. 

Petra was the absolute best, making sure you were okay during break times. 

Gunther and Eld helped too by giving you some advice and tips on what you should improve. 

Oluo...well, he was forced by Petra to be a bit kinder to you. 

You both didn't like each other that much and that was pretty much it. 

You didn't hum, but instead stared at his face. His face...why does it...?

But recently, you've been feeling unwell with the training. 

You were starting to get, flashbacks...?

Flashbacks from memories from years before living with your grandparents in Wall Maria. 

And they were getting slightly more severe. 

As you were practicing sparing with Oluo, a flashback happened. 

You were younger and going against someone, there was someone yelling at you to finish it. 

You looked at the opponent, you were already badly injured from the fight. 

"FINISH IT!!"

You gasped and stumbled, throwing off your guard. Oluo managed to hit, and you fell to your knees. 

You started to gasp and sputter, clearly not feeling well. 

"Enough!" Captain noticed immediately and stopped the fight. 

Oluo didn't say anything, although he often picked fights with you. He was mature enough to know that right now wasn't the best time. 

Captain got down to your level. 

"What happened?"

You looked up at him, you were breathing heavily and...crying?

You felt tears streaming down your face. 

Why...?

Why were you crying?

Captain just examined you, seemingly concerned and worried...?

"We'll take a break for now." He ordered. 

You shook your head, quickly wiping your tears. 

You let out a sob as you tried to argue. 

No! You can keep going!

"That's enough."

You shook your head again and tried to get up. 

"I said that's enough!" He grabbed you and made you sit down. 

"I don't push my cadets past their limits." He was stern. 

You let out a choked sob, wiping the unnecessary tears. 

"...You're doing well." He somewhat softly spoke. 

Your eyes widened at the kind words he spoke. 

It made you feel better. 

Captain gave you some space while Petra immediately went to your aid. 

....

Captain looked over at you, Petra trying her best to comfort you as you wiped your tears. 

He could tell you were frustrated, that meant you were taking the training seriously. 

He remembered his conversation with Erwin prior before you came. 

"I still don't understand, why do you want me to train her?" He asked. 

Commander Erwin stayed quiet for a moment. 

"You can sense it too, don't you?" 

"..." He remained quiet. 

"You should know Shadis doesn't just tell us a recruit is unique. He fought her himself and was still able to win. And when we met her, there was a glint in her eyes." He continued. 

"I sense something within her. The look she had in her eyes reminds me of when you first joined."

Captain Levi couldn't deny it either, he did sense something in you. 

"Great potential like that deserves to be trained by one of our most skilled soldiers in the Survey Corps." He spoke. 

"But she's also a child!" Hange spoke up, after staying quiet for so long. 

"Erwin, you can't be serious! I've known you long enough to know what you're trying to do."

"...Captain, you can leave now."

Captain Levi began to leave without another word. 

"Train her well. To live up to her potential..."

"...Yes sir."

He left but could overhear Hange's sharp tone and words. 

"I am not going to let you turn a child into some kind of weapon. I am not going to let you treat her and use her the same way you use him!"

"She's possibly our next best hope."

He heard Hange gasp. 

"You're not saying--!"

"I'm doing whatever it takes. Whatever is necessary--"

"So that's what this is about---!?"

He walked further until he couldn't hear their voices. 

"Captain?" Eld's voice brought him back to reality. 

"I know you said it was Commander Erwin's orders to train her personally. But it concerns me if you're pushing her too much. She's still a child and--"

"If you have a problem with it, then I suggest you take it up to the Commander then."

"..." Eld went quiet. 

Captain's eyes turned back to you, he let out a sigh. 

Something in his mind, told him this wasn't right. 

He felt...guilty almost. 

He felt bad for treating you like this. 

But he knew he had to push these emotions down. 

For the sake of humanity.