'What is it? What has happened? ' you asked uneasily.

Dr. Helfen cleared his throat and avoided your gaze. He spoke to the floor. 'You will no longer be working beside me. You are now the exclusive attending physician for the Survey Corps. '

The room tilted. Your mouth tasted of pennies.

'Excuse me? ' you said blankly. 'I 'm what now? ' You were certain you weren 't hearing him correctly.

'You are to be enlisted in the Scouting Legion as our physician and field surgeon, ' Erwin repeated instead of your mentor. 'And you will report directly to Captain Levi here."

Your gaze immediately snapped to the captain that stood beside the commander.

'Levi? ' you repeated dumbly. You took in his appearance. The dark cut of his hair, the tired skin beneath his eyes, his height, his demeanor. It clicked in your head then, your patients ' stories, how it fit all the descriptions you 've heard about the man. '

The

Captain Levi? You 're 'you 'fucking hell, ' you mumbled. You slumped against the surgery table you had scrubbed clean. You couldn 't help but laugh. The sour man that you had thought handsome - Levi! And they wanted

you

in the Scouting Legion?! You were a doctor for God 's sake, not a soldier! A doctor trained for a practice, not for the field! Not to mention they already had enough trouble bringing soldiers back home who had trained for years to survive out there - how were you going to make it more than an hour?

You gave them a doubtful expression. 'You don 't really expect me to keep up with a squadron associated with

Levi

, do you? '

'I don 't, ' replied Levi dully.

That struck a nerve.

Sure, he may have been right.

You may have minimal experience when it comes to fighting '

'or reconnaissance '

'or Scouting in general '

But a little confidence in you would have been appreciated, especially considering they apparently wanted you to join their ranks for whatever reason.

Besides, he didn 't know you. He didn 't know what you were capable of learning. You 've always been a quick study. If you could be a doctor here, then why couldn 't that be translated over into the field?

You mentally shook yourself. Why were you even entertaining this idea?

Whether you joined as the position of doctor or no, this whole situation was absurd. The only connection you 've ever had to the military was tending to the soldiers who managed to arrive on your doorstep, bloodied and exhausted. Was it merely because of that experience they wanted you? That didn 't seem right.

You crossed your arms, eyes narrowed as you glared at the three men before you. 'I am not joining the Survey Corps. My place is here with Dr. Helfen. '

'I 'm afraid we don 't have time for this, ' said Erwin a bit impatiently, readying himself to leave. 'I expect your appearance tomorrow afternoon at the courthouse for the court-martial. You will then set out with Levi 's squad afterwards. Your compliance during this time would be most appreciated. '

'Court-martial? ' you repeated, puzzled. 'For what? '

'Your primary patient, ' was all Erwin explained. 'Now, Helfen here has already assured us of your joining and we- '

Your eyes shot to Dr. Helfen. 'You agreed to this on my behalf? ' Anger began to roil deep in your belly. Your hands trembled. 'You have no legal control over me. You have no right to enlist me without my consent! '

Helfen 's mouth opened, then closed, uncertain of how to reply.

'A fair point, ' said Erwin smoothly. 'An oversight on our part, I suppose. It 's helpful to no one if you do not wish to be with us willingly. So, I shall formally ask you to join us and our cause. ' He extended a hand out towards you. 'Will you join the Scouting Regiment and accept the position as our field surgeon? '

You looked between him and his hand, dumbfounded at his audacity. 'No! '

Dr. Helfen looked anxiously between you and the commander.

'You cannot force her to join, Erwin. We 're wasting our time, ' said Levi, sounding annoyed. Erwin dropped his hand back to his side.

'Happy to know someone here has some sense, ' you said bitterly.

'Excuse us for just a moment! ' Dr. Helfen said, pulling you away from the two men. 'Please, don 't go anywhere! I promise we 'll be just a minute! ' Your mentor closed the door of the study, shutting out the displeased expressions of the scouts. He took a deep breath. 'Now please listen for just a- '

'What on earth has gotten into you? ' you interrupted. 'Why are you trying to pawn me off to them? Without any consideration for what I think? '

You didn 't know what was more overwhelming at that moment: your anger or confusion. Your temper encouraged you to pick a fight with Dr. Helfen for thinking he could choose your fate for you without your involvement. Then you were going to give those two military men a thorough thrashing for having the gumption to think they could just waltz in here and destroy the life you were comfortably building.

On the other hand, that small, scientific part of you wanted to know more. Beneath the roiling anger licking at your veins, curiosity sparked. Questions flooded your mind. Who was this primary patient? What does this court-martial have to do with them and why did Commander Erwin want you there? What exactly would be expected of you in the Scouts? Was there more to this than just tending to those injured during expeditions and patrols?

You imagined yourself out there, outside of those walls. The cases you would experience could be incredible - the best you would ever see in your entire career. The Survey Corps patients you tended to in Sina were those who had already managed to survive and just needed patching up. But what if you could actually save a life out there? To prevent a death, rather than just fix the wounds of those who were lucky enough to evade it? That is, if there was anything left of them to save after a Titan was finished with them.

'Explain. Now, ' you seethed at your mentor.

Dr. Helfen threw up his hands, waving them nervously about. 'An opportunity, darling. I always knew you would do great things in your life. Even better than me! Now is your chance to- '

'You cannot make such a decision without my consent! ' you retorted, voice rising as your temper overrode any bit of excitement you had felt a moment earlier. 'What would even cause you to do such a thing anyways?! '

'I, uh, well 'remember how you once told me you would do anything for me, for this practice? How you always wished you could help pay off what I owe so we could move ' ' He peeked up at you from under his bifocals.

The betrayal you felt washed over you fast.

You blinked at him, astonished.

You unleashed your temper.

'You SOLD me?! To pay off your debts?! ' you said furiously.

'You should take it as a compliment, dear, that they would pay such a high price for your skills! '

'Oh, yes, I 'm so flattered, ' you spit at him sarcastically. You began to pace the room.

Dr. Helfen had always been a man you could trust. He had nurtured your talents. He always took into consideration your feelings and opinions. Never had he forced you into a situation you had no desire to be a part of. This was so unlike him. Money was never his primary focus. It was about the lives he made a difference in, whether that was his patients or yours. And now to be sold off to the Survey Corps so his debts could finally be paid off? It was insulting. Was that all his value was to you? Someone he could train and then pawn off at the first opportunity? No, that couldn 't be right.

Dr. Helfen placed his hand on your shoulder, halting your pacing. You shook him off.

'I 'm sorry- '

'I don 't want to hear it anymore, ' you seethed.

'Please, let me explain, ' he said, his tone desperate. 'It wasn 't about the money. '

You couldn 't help but scoff at hearing that. Why else did he do it?

'I want so much more for you, darling, ' he began again. 'Life is comfortable here within Wall Sina. And while we do make a difference in the lives around us, it 's on such a small scale. Every life saved is still precious, but how long must we go on placing a temporary bandage on a problem that requires a bigger, better solution? Not to mention, with the breach of Wall Maria and now Rose, it 's only a matter of time until the problem reaches us here too. '

Your mentor placed his hand back onto your shoulder. This time you let him keep it there. He turned so you faced him.

'Erwin and Levi have presented an opportunity to do work greater than just us, don 't you see? While they may not have divulged specific details, I 'm well aware of their goals and aspirations. You will get to partake in change that is bigger and more meaningful than if you stay here with me, in this small practice. Just imagine it, getting to play a part in not just saving a few humans, but humanity itself. '

His voice soothed the anger that roared in your head and heart, but there it still lay, egging on your temper.

'I 'm being sent off to be eaten by a fucking Titan! I won 't make it one minute out there! '

Dr. Helfen chuckled in good humor, patting your shoulder. 'I have good faith in Captain Levi and his squadron. You know they 're regarded as the best in the Survey Corps. They 'll keep you safe. '

'Is that what they promised?" you asked, eyeing the doctor suspiciously.

He shrugged. 'More or less. It 's better protection than most get in the Scouting Regiment. '

You huffed, crossing your arms. 'He 's so small. It makes me doubt all those stories we 've heard from our patients. There 's no way he does all the things they say. '

The surgeon laughed again. 'Never underestimate someone by their size. Whether that 's Levi or a Titan. '

You sighed, the last of your anger fading into resignation. 'You could have come to me first. I wouldn 't necessarily have said no if you had just involved me in the discussion. '

Guilt clouded your mentor 's eyes. 'I regret the way I went about things. But they wanted a decision then, and I knew you would eventually come to terms with it. '

A thought seized you. 'If I die early in my deployment, do you still get the money? '

Dr. Helfen shifted awkwardly on his feet. 'What a horrible question! '

'Just answer it, please. '

'I believe so, yes, ' he said uneasily. 'Per our agreement, should you enlist, then the debt would be cleared. '

'Well, at least that 's another positive to all this. Although it would mean they made a terrible business deal on their end. ' You shook your head in disbelief. 'I will be a hindrance to them out there in the field. Captain Levi is going to have his work cut out for him. '

Your mentor gave you a sad smile, then enveloped you into a hug.

'You will do fine, ' he said into your shoulder. 'I know you will do great things, little bones. '

You started. He hadn 't used that name for you in years.

Do great things, huh? You let him go. Were you really about to agree to this? You touched the handle of the door, prepared to turn it. You willed yourself to stop, but you already knew it was too late. You turned the handle.

You stepped out of the study and saw that Erwin and Levi had made themselves comfortable as they awaited your decision.

'About time, ' Levi commented, either boredom or annoyance plastered on his face. Both, you decided.

You swallowed. 'Alright. I 'll join. '

'Good, ' said Erwin, rising from the stool he was perched on. He extended out a hand towards you. 'Welcome to Survey Corps. '

You eyed it, not wanting to shake it.

Your mentor nudged your side. You sighed and reached out, accepting the offer.

'You criticized my casualty numbers earlier, Doctor, ' said Erwin, releasing your hand and turning his back to you as he walked towards the exit. Levi followed close behind. 'Now 's your chance to improve them yourself. '

Indeed. A chance to improve those horrid causality numbers. You weren 't so arrogant to assume that the addition of your abilities out there would make such a significant difference, but even if you could prevent the deaths of a few soldiers, then wouldn 't it be worth it? For a mother to have a son to return to her hearth or a lover to have their partner return to their bed? Even if they didn 't always return in one piece, they could at least be alive. If you could at least do that for a few more people in this hellhole of a world, then wouldn 't it be worth the risk to yourself? To leave the comfort of your own life so that others could return to theirs?

'Wait! ' you called out. They paused. You still couldn 't believe you were actually going through with this. Your hands now shook for a different reason. 'I want to know more about this primary patient. What is their condition? '

'I assure you, you will learn everything tomorrow, ' Erwin said unhelpfully. 'Oh, it also wouldn 't hurt to bring along some supplies you think you might need while with us. '

You watched in stunned silence as the commander and captain took their leave.