Underground - Chapter 33: Chapter 33

The next day went by quickly.
Just like I had promised myself, I did nothing with my time. I stayed in bed until I couldn't put off getting ready for the banquet any longer. When the slanting rays of the sun began to pour through the window in orange and red tones, I knew I had to get ready. Erwin had said we'd be leaving for the inner city at sunset. If I was late, he'd probably have my head.
With a heavy sigh, I rolled out of my bed, leaving my warm blankets behind, and stood, stretching my arms over my head. I winced slightly as the tired, aching muscles protested the movement and then stepped over to the mirror in the corner of the room, running my gaze over my body as I stood there silently for a moment in my underwear. I wasn't too worse for wear from yesterday. There was some bruising around my hips starting to appear from wearing the 3DM harness for such an amount of lengthened time, and there were a few scratches on the skin of my arms and face from travelling through the branches of the forest at high speed, but other than that, I had escaped the whole venture remarkably unscathed.
Stepping away from the mirror, I opened my wardrobe chest that sat at the foot of my bed and began to rummage through the clothing heaped inside, throwing various outfits onto the bed as I muttered under my breath, slightly irritated. "Where in the hell is it?"
Finally, at the very bottom of the chest, my hands came into contact with a silken material, unlike any of the other materials I had passed by in my search through the chest. I let out a triumphant noise as I pulled the outfit out from underneath everything else, holding it up in the light from the window as I looked it over.
Damn. I hadn't seen this in years. I hoped it still fit.
I slipped into the smooth, cool material, pulling it up around my hips and then finally over my shoulders. I reached over my shoulder and did up the row of buttons at the top of the material, before taking in a deep breath and turning to face my reflection in the mirror.
I grinned at myself as I took it all in. I couldn't help it. It'd been a long time since I'd had an excuse to wear anything that made me feel like a proper lady and not a generic killing machine. And whether I would openly admit or not, it felt good.
The dress was a deep red, and it fell to the floor around my feet in gentle ripples of shiny, satin fabric. It was gathered at my waist and tight on my hips, accentuating my curves, which after many years of being a stick, I was finally glad to have. The neckline was low, not uncomfortably so, I was too modest for that, but low enough that a bit of cleavage showed through.
I turned, looking over my shoulder to admire the back of the ensemble in the mirror. The dress was pleated just above my waist, pulling it in slightly to once again show off my small waist, and the back of the dress, unlike the front, was plunging. It dove into a deep v of red fabric that showed my skin down to the middle of my back, and the fabric flawlessly flowed off my shoulders, fluttering down around my elbows.
"Holy hell. I actually look like a woman." I said to myself under my breath, a smile flashing across my lips as I spun, just once, in front of the mirror, the dress flowing around my legs like water as I did so.
Pulling myself away from my reflection, I found the pair of shoes that had been made at the same time as the dress, and slipped my feet into the delicate pair of slippers, adorned with flowers the same shade of red as my dress. I marveled for a quick moment at how much lighter my feet felt in the slippers than they did when I was wearing my thick soled combat boots.
Turning back to the mirror once again, I quickly styled my hair, and when it was to my satisfaction, looked over myself once more.
Perfect. Everything was perfect.
I felt butterflies begin to dance in the pit of my stomach. Despite what I had told Levi the night before, I was actually looking forward to visiting the inner city. Maybe I'd get a chance to feel like I finally belonged aboveground after all these years.
There was a light knock at my door and then I heard Hange call out, "(F/N)? Are you ready to go? It's almost time to leave!"
"Coming!" I took one last final look at myself in the mirror, gave myself a confident smile, and hurried out the door, to where Hange was waiting for me in the hallway.
When I emerged from my room, shutting the door behind me, her eyes lit up and she grinned at me, looking me over as she let out a low whistle. "Holy hell, (F/N). You look amazing."
I blushed at her compliment. "Shut up, Hange. You look just as great."
She laughed and hooked her arm through mine, pulling me down the hallway with her as she said, "Well, we both look fabulous. Let's go show those boys how it's really done."
We exited the officer's quarters and headed toward the commons, where Erwin had told us we'd meet as a group to leave for the banquet. As we walked, some of the cadets paused in what they were doing to watch us go by, and we earned some appreciative whistles from some of the boys as we walked through the barracks.
When we reached the commons, Erwin was already there, along with Levi, and Squad Commander Lewis. They were all gathered around the wagon we were to take to the inner city, talking amongst themselves intensely.
Hange called out to them as we approached. "Oi, boys. We're here. You can stop talking about us now."
The three men looked up, pausing their conversation, and my eyes were immediately drawn to Levi as his dark eyes met mine before dropping down to look me over. I suddenly felt nervous. Would he like it? What if he hated it all? Oh hell, I'm going to be sick.
We stopped beside the wagon and Erwin gave us both a slight bow as he said, "You too look lovely. I'm glad some of my commanders are worth looking at." He glanced over at us and gave us a wink.
I glanced over at Levi again, who still hadn't said anything since we had arrived. I felt nervous butterflies in my stomach as he watched me, staying silent. Why did I care so much about what he thought? I wasn't doing this for him. This was for me. So why did I have to keep telling myself that it didn't matter if he liked how I looked or not?
Hange sidled up to Levi and elbowed him playfully in the side, glancing over at me as she said, "Rivaille. Doesn't (F/N) look great?"
Levi finally stopped his scrutiny of me and dropped my gaze, scoffing slightly as he said flatly, "Tch. She look slightly less boyish than normal if that's what you're getting at, four eyes."
I felt a sharp pang of disappointment in my stomach and dropped my gaze to my feet, a slight blush creeping over my face at his words. Suddenly, I wasn't quite as excited to go to the inner city as I had been before.
Erwin climbed into the wagon and offered me his hand, giving me another small smile as I allowed him to help me up after him. He helped Hange up after me and she sat down beside me, putting a comforting arm around my shoulders as Lewis and finally Levi jumped up into the wagon as well, sitting down beside Erwin across from us.
The cadet whipped the horses into a gallop and we took off toward the inner city. The ride was silent, and I took the opportunity to steal a glance at Levi, who sat across from me, dutifully ignoring me.
I swore silently to myself as I let my eyes rove over him. Damn, why did he have to be such a good-looking, irresistible ass?
He wore his black suit, the one he had wore a couple months earlier for a few days when he had been injured on one of the missions and couldn't participate in objectives. It was freshly pressed, his white cravat folded neatly down his neck in crisp lines, the dark lines of the suit hugging his body perfectly. The top button of his shirt was undone, his shirt wore loosely under the cravat, the collar open, showing just a bit of his neck and upper chest He wore shiny dress shoes which I had never seen before, and black gloves pulled tightly over his hands. Normally, I would have made a snide comment about him wearing the gloves to avoid getting dirty, but I couldn't think of any words as I studied him, in all his perfection, acting like I didn't even exist.
I finally dropped my gaze from him, just as the cadet called back to us, "Approaching the gate, Commander Smith!"
I looked up, just in time to see Wall Sina looming before us, the giant gate creaking as it was raised into the air to let us through. The wagon clattered through the gate, and the cobblestones underneath our wheels quickly turned limestone slabs gleaming brightly in the torchlight as we entered the inner city.
I caught my breath as we approached the large palace that dominated the middle of the small central city. Say what you want about how the king was selfish, I still couldn't help but admire the beautiful, majestic, peaceful view before us.
The wagon came to a stop before the front entrance of the palace and immediately, several footman stepped forward to help us all down, bowing to us as we stepped down onto the ground. One of the footmen stepped forward and motioned to Erwin as he said in a polite tone, "Please, Commander Smith. You and your comrades may follow me to the dining hall. The king is awaiting your arrival."
We followed the man through the ornate halls of the palace, and I heard Hange say excitedly under her breath to me as we walked, "Damn. I bet I could get so much funding for my studies here."
I glanced behind me to look at Levi, who followed behind the group, looking decidedly bored and unimpressed with our surroundings.
The footman reached a large pair of double doors and pushing them open, motioned for us to enter the room. As we passed him, he called out, "Your majesty, the commanders of the survey corps."
Our group entered the room and a small gasp escaped my lips at the view before us. There was a long table, piled with all types of fancy food and dishes, and candles glittered on all of the walls, held in ornate sconces. A line of regal looking men sat down one side of the table, looking our way, and at the head of the table, sat a tall, distinguished looking man with a jeweled crown upon his head. The king.
The king gave us a smile as we entered the room and waved us over to the table and the side of empty chairs as he said in a booming, warm voice, "Please! You are our honored guests this evening! Take your seats and make yourselves comfortable."
We all pulled out our chairs, but Erwin walked to the head of the table first, kneeling at the king's feet as he leaned forward to kiss his hand and said, "Your majesty. Thank you for this opportunity. It is an honor."
The king laughed and waved Erwin to his feet. When he had taken the seat beside him, the king looked all of us over and said, "Please. You are the guests of honor here. You have achieved greatness with your troops and we are very pleased with your results."
The men across the table from us all muttered amongst themselves in agreement and nodded at us.
My heart was pounding in my chest as I glanced at all the food set out in front of us. I felt overwhelmed and flushed. I didn't know how to act in a situation like this. Where did I start? What if I offended someone? What if I offended the king?
I hesitated for a moment as the others began to dish up plates for themselves. Finally, I began to take small amounts of some of the dishes and place them on my plate. The smells were heavenly, and my mouth began to water as I looked at the food. Lamb, veal, vegetables, bread....
After a few moments of silence had passed as we all began to eat, some of the men from across the table began to address Erwin, asking him details about the mission we had carried out the day before.
I listened to them talk for a few moments as I chewed. The men were obviously generals of the king's men. They seemed to know their military tactics.
"Corporal (L/N), if I'm not mistaken?"
I was pulled out of my thoughts by the man directly across the table from me addressing me. He was older, a gray beard covered his features, but he had kind eyes, and the lines that creased his forehead reminded me of a caring grandfather.
I nodded to him and said politely, "You are not mistaken. It's a pleasure to be introduced..." I hesitated, realizing I didn't actually know who he was.
He laughed pleasantly. "Serpico Atwood. I'm one of the directors of his majesty's war counsel." He raised an eyebrow at me. "I'm so sorry for my indecency. I would offer you a hand, but this table is rather wide and we are both rather indisposed at the moment." He motioned to the plates piled high with food in front of us.
I offered him a smile. "No need to apologize. It's a pleasure, General Atwood."
He waved a hand at me. "Ah, please. Call me Serpico. We are both leaders as I hear. We do not need to bother with formalities." He took a bite of his lamb and then said, "From what I have heard from Commander Smith, you are one of his most trusted leaders among the scouting legion."
I shot a glance in Levi's direction. He was dutifully ignoring everyone and everything as continued to eat his food in silence. I turned back to Serpico and said in amusement, "Please, you flatter me. I am only as good as those who came before me. They taught me everything I know."
Serpico laughed warmly and raised an eyebrow in my direction. "Ah, so you're humble and beautiful. They're lucky to have you." He gave me a wink and a kind smile.
I laughed, finding myself more at ease the longer I talked to him. "Some would disagree with you. But I thank you for your kind words."
I talked with Serpico a bit longer, starting to actually enjoy myself and forget about the hurt Levi had caused me before coming. Who cared if he wanted to be miserable tonight, like always? I wasn't going to let him drag me down with him. I was going to enjoy the one night I had to get out and not worry about whether or not we'd all come home at the end of the day.
I took another bite of the rich fig pudding, and began to feel a little nauseous. It was warm in here, and I wasn't used to all of this fancy food. My stomach was feeling unsettled.
I took a small sip of my wine and gave Serpico a small smile as I pushed back from the table, saying, "I think I need a bit of air. I'll be back shortly."
He nodded to me as I exited the dining hall.
I left the brightly lit hall and trailed through the darkened corridors of the castle for a few moments, trying to find the balcony that I had seen when we were walking to the dining room with the footman earlier.
As I passed what looked to be the kitchen, I saw two maids standing outside the door, whispering to each other. I caught a bit of their hushed conversation as I approached.
"Did you see her? Dressed like that? Trying to impress everyone?"
"Honestly, she can't fool anyone. Even if she is some bigshot corporal, everyone knows she came from the underground. She doesn't belong here. Once trash, always trash."
The maids grew silent as I walked past them, their cold eyes settling on me as I hurried past. Once I had rounded the corner, I heard them burst into a fit of giggles behind me, and as tears started to fill my eyes, I broke into a run, bunching my dress in my fists so as not to trip myself.
I burst through a pair of doors at the end of the corridor and was lucky enough that they led out onto the balcony I had originally been trying to find.
My vision was blurry with tears and as they finally broke through my eyelashes and began to drip down my cheeks, cool against my flushed skin, I leaned over the railing of the balcony, clutching at the cool stone with clawed fingers.
Nothing, no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, no matter that I gave everything I had, would ever allow me to fit in here. I was from the underground. And like the maids had said, "once trash, always trash."
And unfortunately, trash couldn't just wish itself into a diamond to fit in aboveground.