"-oung Lord!"

whoever you are you need to shut up

"Young Lord!"

i think you have the wrong person- please leave

"Levi-"

"Shut up," I groaned, rolling over in bed, "you know I hate that name- don't wake me up with it."

seriously- if you're going to play a joke on me at least make it funny

"Are you-" the voice hesitated for a second. "Did you drink at the ball last night?"

the ball?

"No, of course not."

are you new?

"Are you sure?"

what are you even talking about-

"Of course I'm sure," I grumbled, pushing myself up out of bed, rubbing my eyes. "Are you new? Don't talk about him in front of m-"

"Levi- do you need to see a doctor?"

"Levi? What are you talking abou-" I opened my eyes, freezing at the sight in front of me. "Who are you?"

-    10 hours earlier     -

"Historia, do you think he's going to be there tonight?" I asked, my gaze trained on the gardens passing outside the carriage window.

"Of course, he's going to be there," she hummed.

"We should turn this carriage around."

"You can't- we're right at the gates," Historia responded, her eyes glimmering with excitement.

at least someone's happy

"Tonight is going to be awful."

"It's not like you even have to talk to him," she shrugged. "I don't even understand why you dislike each other so much-"

BECAUSE I DO ???

DO I NEED A TRAGIC REASON TO HATE SOMEONE ??

MAYBE HE'S JUST AWFUL

"He hates me so I hate him, it's really that simple."

i won't accept any of that 'he just doesn't know how to communicate his feelings' bullshit

Levi Ackerman hates me.

and i hate him because he's a dick about it

"I can't believe I ever thought the two of you liked each other," she laughed. "I thought that the two of you were definitely going to get engaged when we first met."

WHEN WE FIRST MET ???

"WHEN WE WERE EIGHT???"

"Well- Ymir and I met when we were around the same age-"

"You and Ymir are special-"

and also the most disgustingly in love couple i've ever met

i love it <3

but please stop being in a relationship in front of me

"We're here," the carriage rolled to a stop, Historia eager to get inside exited the carriage aided by her guard the aforementioned Ymir.

"You look like you were talking shit," Ymir muttered to me as I joined the two of them.

"Never," I grinned, pulling my thin shawl further around my shoulders. "Let's get inside, I'm freezing."

"I'll go on ahead," Historia waved goodbye to Ymir and I, making her way towards the ballroom.

"You aren't going with her?" I asked Ymir, watching as Historia walked away, her dress a lavender gown that swished along with her movement.

"I should," Ymir excused herself from me, "don't get into trouble."

of course not

"Lady L/N." A servant came up to me as soon as I was alone. "If you have a moment his Lordship would like to speak to you."

and i thought i was going to be able to enjoy myself a little

"Does he want to speak to me or is he interested in my family?" I laughed. "I'm afraid my dear friend Lady Historia is expecting me to check in with her." I waved goodbye, walking towards the ball.

i want nothing to do with politics

As a member of the neutral faction, the L/N family was careful to avoid aligning themselves with the Imperial faction or the Aristocratic faction.

both of whom try their hardest to change that

"Introducing Lady Y/N L/N!" A guard announced my name as I stepped into the large ballroom.

there goes my plan of hiding away

Of course, my family isn't sworn into neutrality or anything like that-

moreso we don't have strong ties to either the imperial family or the current aristocracy

We lack a debt to the royal family and while we're certainly wealthy it's not anywhere to the extent of those in the aristocratic family.

a household of nobles without any real ties to nobility

So the reason why I can't find a moment of peace in this ball is because-

"Lady L/N, how is your father doing?"

none of your business

"He's recovering," I plastered on a smile, attempting to escape from my assailant.

"I was shocked to hear of his condition," the nobleman continued.

which one is he again?

"I'll let him know of your concern," I hummed, focusing my attention on Ymir and Historia dancing together at the center of it all.

"I was wondering what might happen to the Rose Guard now that he is unable to watch over them," he muttered in faux concern.

"There is no need for you to concern yourself with our family matters. I'll excuse myself," I bowed slightly making my way to the nearest balcony.

the rose guard are the name of my family's knights- the very reason why i can't find a moment of peace

my father has been ill for several months, and my mother passed soon after giving birth to me

a typical angsty backstory-

so the fate of the rose guard, a powerful group of knights responsible for watching over Trost- an expansive magical forest that takes up over half of the L/N family lands- is up in the air

we're a household without any ties to royalty or nobility

with one duty that has been passed on for generations

it sounds like a total bore doesn't it?

don't get me wrong- i completely understand it

the forest is dangerous

too dangerous for the aristocratic faction which has a tendency to prioritize profit over the needs of the people

certainly too dangerous for the royal family which struggles to control the aristocratic faction

so we as the l/n family have to resign ourselves to neutrality-

HERE'S THE PART THAT I DON'T GET

IF WE REALLY WANT TO BE NEUTRAL

I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO GO TO THESE STUPID GATHERINGS IN THE FIRST PLACE

I'M GOING TO TAKE OVER THE KNIGHTAGE

WHY EVEN MAKE ME GO THROUGH PRETENDING TO BE POLITE TO A BUNCH OF STUCK UP RICH PEOPLE

IF WE'RE NEUTRAL CAN'T I JUST BE AN ASS TO EVERYONE???

WHY DOES NEUTRALITY MEAN BEING ON GOOD TERMS WITH EVERYONE

I WANT TO CURSE AT THESE PEOPLE

THEY ALL SUCK

calm down babe you're hot when you're angry but you have an image to maintain

thanks babe let me continue to pretend to be the dutiful daughter <3

you know this place sucks but at least i haven't had to run into lev-

"Doesn't look like you're checking in with Historia," a voice that made my blood boil cut through my respite.

bitch

___________________

publishing the first few chapters in one go! ill have a more substantial author's note at the end of that (:

- a(w)mi