I put a hand to my chest, feigning being hurt by his words - the act beginning.

"Too much time," I echoed. "My goodness, I didn't know you felt this way." I heard him chuckle, and I took that as a sign that not only did he know it was a ruse, but that he found it amusing - and so I continued. "But if that's the case, then I guess I'll just spend the next few nights elsewhere - or maybe kick you out so you can go to your own office."

He met my eyes then, his eyes narrow and all but challenging me to press the issue further. "I don't remember suggesting that, you brat."

I let out a dramatic but completely faux, playful sigh. "It was implied," I lamented dramatically. You didn't need to say it, because it was written between the lines. But it's fine, I get the picture. I'll just leave, then," I said, setting my teacup down atop the desk.

Levi watched my actions closely but made no move to stop me. More than likely, he was waiting to call my bluff. If I knew him, which I did, then I knew that he would not move to act unless he knew I really was going to leave, because more often than not, when I messed around like this, I would give the ruse up quickly to drape myself against his chest and pepper kisses on his cheeks to get him to "forgive" me.

So, it didn't surprise me when he didn't move, not until I turned away from the desk, but it did surprise him that I actually went that far. Oh, and by that far, I mean to say that I took only one step towards the door before he wanted the gig to be up, because that's when he stepped behind me and set his hands on my waist to pull me towards him.

Only once I was close enough did his hands wind around my body to clasp over my stomach. In a rather instinctual yet entirely wanted response, I leaned into his embrace, pressing my back to his chest as he, now content I wasn't going anywhere, comfortably set his chin on my shoulder.

When he spoke against my ear, his voice was low, nearly sultry. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To look for a man who won't tire of my company," I said, leaning my head away from him as if to get away, though surely he knew that I wasn't going anywhere right now.

There was no way he didn't feel the way my very skin was alight with his touch, and there was no way he didn't hear the love within my voice, and there was no way he didn't see the way my chest rose up as though my very heart was fighting to make itself known.

"Tch," he uttered. "The only man you need is right here, idiot."

He pressed his lips to my neck and I couldn't help but sigh contentedly at the feeling. I reached up with one hand, running my fingers through his hair as though to anchor him, or at least keep him close. Besides, I knew how much he liked his hair being played with, and if he was in such a playful sort of mood, why not run with it and give him what he wanted?

His hands withdrew from my stomach to hold firm to my waist, though his hold was gentle. The juxtaposition of his soft hold and his hard chest was wonderful, as was that of the gentleness such hands could muster when I knew damn well they could take someone's life, and I closed my eyes to allow myself entirely to drift away into the moment, taking in each and every single detail, from the biggest and most obvious to the most minute. Emboldened by my simple actions, or perhaps thinking it was a continued reward for what he was doing, he kissed and nipped and sucked against my skin until I knew he left a mark, a physical reminder of his words - and only then did he pull away.

I knew he so loved his marking; he'd certainly opened up more and more over these past few days, and though I didn't know the reason, I knew I did enjoy it. He'd always loved marking me, though he was incredibly awkward at first - but before, he never would do it in such a spot so easily visible. If my collar tugged to one side during training today, the mark he left behind just now would be visible. Normally, he loved marking lower on my neck and chest, and his favorite spots seemed to be anywhere on my thighs.

I think for one thing he liked how soft the skin was there, and how intimate it was in general. Beyond all that, while working there was never a chance that anyone would see such marks other than if I got injured out in the field and the uniform got ripped or needed to be ripped in order to access an injury.

Regardless, I forced myself back into the current moment and I turned in his arms, draping my arms loosely around his neck while his arms now wound around my waist. His hands found the small of my back and he pulled me closer, so we were flush against each other. I leaned in to kiss him and was met with a low, content groan from him. I smiled into the kiss, feeling a flurry of butterflies alight in my belly.

Goddesses, he still made me feel so giddy. Of all the women he could be with - and that could be any woman - and he chose me...

He pulled away for air and I allowed him only a brief breath before taking his face gently into my hands and pulling him to me again. He chuckled into my mouth, and let me walk him back against the desk. I leaned my weight against him, adjusting my hands to link comfortably behind his neck.

When he pulled away once more, I let out an impatient sort of noise. "Levi," I huffed when he pulled away again. "Kiss me again." He did as told but pulled away again. "Again," I said, my breath barely a whisper against his lips. "Please."

At my words, I could feel a shudder run down his spine, and his body reacted accordingly, pulling me ever closer. Despite the clear reaction my words got out of him, when he spoke, it was confident and clear: "Someone's needy, hm?"

"So what if I am? Are you trying to tell me that you aren't? I can feel that you are, my love."

I opened my eyes and looked into his, cupping his cheeks gently in my palms. I could see every beautiful shade of gray and blue in stunning detail and I felt as if I could just stare into his eyes forever. If I had the chance to... I would.

"You're just so fucking handsome," I continued. "It isn't my fault."

He rested his forehead against mine in place of replying, and he retracted his hands from my back to find my waist once more. His thumbs began rubbing back and forth on my waist, soothing arcs that very well could have lulled me to sleep if only we had the time to. Hell, even if we didn't, he might lay me down in bed if I did fall asleep, because he loved me so and if it was between making sure I was comfortable or dragging me out for routine training, I figured that following a moment like this, he might be inclined to do the former.

I closed my eyes for a moment, smiling softly as I took in the feeling of him against me, and at last he spoke. "So, this is all my fault, now?"

I laughed quietly, lowering one hand to his chest and letting the other run into his hair and opening my eyes all the while. "Yes," I pressed. "Your entire damn body is so perfect, and I just want to kiss all of it; is that so wrong? How can a woman like me ever hope to deny myself the chance? Humans are greedy creatures, after all."

Levi let out another chuckle, his breath washing over my face. "There's time for that later," he said, but he made no move to pull away.

"I'm taking that as permission to worship you later," I said cheekily, though not disingenuously. "I've somehow been entrusted with the single most desirable man within these walls and out. I have a responsibility to make sure he feels loved."

"Do you, now?" He asked, a smirk reaching his lips.

"I do," I confirmed. "You're a beautiful man, perfectly clever and wonderfully funny, and a million other things... and it's my job to make sure you feel like it."

He, surprisingly, let out a snort of a laugh, and I smiled at the reaction. "You're a real piece of work," he said with a small smile. I looked at his smile closely, and incredibly lovingly, then met his eyes once more. These smiles were rare, but oh so worth it. "But dammit, I love you."

I grinned then, feeling those damn butterflies erupt again. Goddesses help me, I'd never tire of hearing the words come out of his mouth. "I love you too, Levi," I said, planting a kiss on the tip of his nose. "So, so much."

His eyes closed briefly as I kissed him, but opened when I pressed my forehead to his again. "I know we should probably go break the news to the kids that we're bringing them into our squad, at least for now, but..."

"They can wait," he said, holding me more comfortably in his arms, tucking my head against his neck. I went willingly, closing my eyes and sighing wistfully, because it seemed we really were on the same page. "I'm good right here for now."

—

The time before the lunch hour - and the lunch hour itself - passed by quickly, and we found ourselves having to pry ourselves away from each other to head outside where we knew the kids were waiting for us. Hand in hand, we left his office and went out to the training grounds after stopping by the barracks to put on our gear. When ready for the second half of our daily training to begin, we made our way to one of the forests for gear training, where we'd told the kids to gather after lunch. As ordered, they were waiting here in a group, talking amongst themselves and waiting for our arrival.

"Good afternoon," I said, waving to them once we were close enough. After putting our gear on, Levi and I had made sure to maintain what was a professional amount of space between us. "Hope you all had a light lunch."

"Before gear training?" Eren asked. "Of course."

"Good," Levi said. "It's time for a test."

"A... test?"

"Gear training will be a little different from normal, today," I told them.

"All you have to do is keep up with us," Levi said simply, leading us towards the forest. "That should be easy enough for you to understand. Even you, Eren."

There were confused whispers rippling between them, and I smiled as we passed them by, growing ever closer to the line of trees. "Uh, captains, what-"

"No questions," I interrupted, removing my controller grips from their holsters. "There may come a time where we tell you to run, and you just have to go. No more talking."

I looked at Levi, who met my eyes and nodded. In sync, we ran forward a few paces before jumping into the air. Their surprised shouts came all at once and soon faded far behind us, and I grinned. Already, they took to the air, as was evident by the sounds of their grapples being shot out. I sent one out to a branch far in front of me, letting the winch pull me towards it. Adopting a regular sort of gait and pace, I matched Levi, ducking under him as he shot himself higher.

Levi and I were fast - very fast. That was a fact that no one could dispute. Our years of using the gear, having to forgo formal training to instead figure it out on our own, meant that we had strategies that others didn't typically employ.

We had used gear to escape trained Military Policemen, who had apparently at some point been at the top of their graduating classes - but we had always outrun them. The kids were fast, too, but weren't quite with us, yet. Mikasa was quickly gaining on us, but she seemed to reach her top speed already in trying to catch us, but right now, this was a good thing, because it was a good chance to gauge her skills and her decision-making skills.

Would she maintain her speed, or try to go even faster, even if it meant trying something new which was risky in its own right? Would the kids learn from each other, or fend for themselves? Would they give up, because who could keep up with the so-called Wings of Freedom?

I turned over myself, maintaining my speed while now going backwards, watching them progress. Mikasa was still leading the pack, but Jean was next, and was steadily gaining on her and in turn, us as well. Was he watching us closely then, and observing our movements? Perhaps so - the sudden change in his speed was evident enough of that.

Eren's eyes were narrowed with concentration, but flickered often towards Jean. From what the evaluations said, Jean was one of the best technicians with the gear. Was Eren watching him to learn from him, then? Was he perhaps envious that two of the people he trained with had passed him, even when he had an extra month to train directly under us?

"Judging on speed alone, if we were after you, you'd all be dead," I called out to them. Some smiled at my words, emboldened by them; others narrowed their eyes and doubled-down on their efforts. "Come on, catch up!"

I turned back around and suddenly swung low, just to swing back up and do some unnecessary flips... just for fun, of course. They cost me some speed, but I made it up quickly, still a few yards in front of the pack that was after us. I could see the edge of the trees coming up quickly, marking the edge of the forest and the end of our little track. But if they thought we might ease up on them at the end, they had another thing coming.

Levi glanced back at them over his shoulder, now. "You brats gonna show us something impressive, or what?"

He was met with a few battle cries, and some futile attempts on their end to speed up further, and I couldn't help but laugh quietly. I worked myself into my specialized gait, the one where I could go even faster than Levi unless he suddenly found himself in an impossible, life-or-death situation. I passed him, and the distance between me and everyone else increased. Levi flew hot on my heels, but even he couldn't quite catch me as I reached the end of the forest.

I swung low once I reached the last tree of the forest and let myself slide to a stop once I released the grapple. Levi landed rather gracefully next to me once I slid to a stop, and after a moment, the kids landed too, all breathless and all heaving and all of them, I relished in admitting, were losers.

Heh.

As was expected, Mikasa was first, followed by Jean. Sasha landed just before Eren did, with Connie, Christa - dammit, Historia - and Armin bringing up the rear. Armin fell to his knees with a huff, and Mikasa bent over next to him to pat his back lightly. Connie and Sasha, smiling, collapsed to the ground in a heap. Jean was hunched over, hands on his knees, heaving. Historia was struggling to steady her breath from where she stood with her hands on her hips, and Eren had his hands on his head, sucking in deep breaths of air.

I sent a smile Levi's way. They might not have caught up to us, but they had certainly kept up well. Levi met my gaze and gestured with a nod of his head for me to break the news. I cleared my throat, calling their attention to me. I took a moment to let them catch their breath some more, and then for me to take in their faces in turn - the faces of the new Special Operations Squad.

"Congratulations, kiddos," I said, setting my controller grips in their holsters and linking my fingers behind my back. They all looked at me, confusion written plainly on their faces.

"Welcome to the Special Operations Squad, brats," Levi spoke up, even finding it in him to sound somewhat amused by their reactions. They were quiet for just a moment, as if it took them a minute to just process the information they'd just been given - and I suppose it might have.

"For the time being," I elaborated, "until stated otherwise, you are hereby the members of the Special Operations Squad of the Survey Corps."

"Wait," Sasha said first, "you guys mean..."

"We're in," Connie exclaimed, jumping to his feet. Historia beamed and did what she could to hide her excitement but all of it was clear on her face. Jean and Eren looked confused still, but gradually smiles made their way to each of their faces. Hell, even Mikasa had a small smile on her face too. Armin looked dumbfounded, like he still couldn't quite believe it. Connie and Sasha were... doing an odd little dance together.

"Come here," I said happily, opening my arms out wide. Connie and Sasha ran to me first, hugging me back. I grinned as Historia joined in. When they pulled away from me, they started babbling excitedly to themselves and I was swept into another hug. I was lifted off the ground by an excited Jean, and I laughed once he put me back down and ran to the others.

I looked over at Levi once I was back on the ground. He looked as bored as usual, but I could see that his eyes were lighter, they were happy - oh, yes. He was happy. This I knew for sure.

Together, we watched them celebrate. I was happy that after so much confusion and loss and grieving that they had this chance to be happy. Honestly, this was so foreign to us, it was strange. When was the last time we had been so excited for something with regard to work? When was the last time they had been so excited for something? I wasn't sure, but this past few weeks had been hell for everyone. It was good for them to still be able to get so much enjoyment out of something.

"You mentioned," Jean piped up, "that this is just until stated otherwise. What do you mean by that?"

"Well," I said, "until Commander Erwin wakes up, nothing can be set in stone. We can sign you in, but Erwin can veto it - not that I think he'll do that. Despite what the royal government wants, Eren is still in our custody, and we're not giving him up without a fight. Based on how you all seem to flock to him, taking you under our wings as well seemed to be inevitable."

Something about my words, about what I'd said about refusing to let him go to the royal government if we had anything to say about it (which we did), must have hit Eren hard because his eyes widened. His brown hair, disheveled from the race, fell towards his face but now he drew his bangs back, holding his hand to his forehead as though shocked. I smiled at his reaction, meeting his gaze surely.

"It's why we were summoned to the capital in the first place, of course," I continued, "but Eren isn't our hope for nothing, and I don't care if it's selfish, but I'm going to fight to keep him here." I turned now to look at Jean steadily. "You all seem to balance each other out, and you're all incredibly talented. Where Eren goes, you all go. Am I right?"

"I suppose," Armin spoke up. "A lot of the cadets in our class were inspired by Eren to join the scouts in the first place..."

"It's perfect, then," I responded. "It's not just because of your relation to Eren that you're here - your achievements and talents speak for themselves."

"Thank you, captain," Jean said, and now, unlike before, they all seemed content to let him speak for them all. I stepped close to Levi's side, crossing my arms over my chest. He met my gaze, and then we both turned to watch the kids - our squad now, I suppose - continue to chat happily amongst themselves.

—

We spent dinner that evening with our new squad, and goodness, that was still so strange to be able to say. Instead of sitting with the other higher-ups, we commandeered a table that usually wasn't ever full anyway, and set up there. Levi and I sat on either end of the table at the heads, the kids lining the benches on either side.

I had, admittedly, gotten lost in the conversation a while ago, and they had split off into having several separate conversations. It was a bit chaotic for one table, but I wasn't going to be the one to tell them to calm it down. They were excited, it was absolutely understandable, and I didn't want to be the one to pull them from their high.

"Right, Captain Amaya?" I heard, pulling me from my thoughts as I cut into my food.

Uh, oh. What the hell did I miss?

"What?"

"Oh, wow," Sasha said. "She wasn't even listening."

"And here we were, singing her praises," Connie teased.

...something told me I wouldn't be able to keep up with these two in particular.

"I only zoned out for a minute," I said to defend myself, and I wondered if they could hear the lie in my words. While I may not be able to keep up with them, I knew better than to take something lying down at the very least. "I was thinking about very important, very professional things... Things recruits like you wouldn't know about."

"No, I don't think so," Connie said. "That doesn't sound quite right."

I couldn't help but smirk; the boy had spunk, that was for sure. "Get to the point, you two," I said. "What were you asking me?"

"Oh," Sasha chimed, as if suddenly remembering what it was that she had wanted to say, and only because I reminded her. "Isn't it right that you and Levi had a combined seven hundred Titan kills?" Sasha asked.

My eyes widened, purely reactionary. I knew how rumors went; hell, even my nickname was the result of the rumor pool working well enough to make it a widespread thing. God, I thought that it was lofty enough being seen as the Blue Wing, but this?

"Seven hundred? That seems like a bit of a stretch, don't you think?"

"Well, you've both been in the scouts for what? Fifteen years?" Connie asked, resting his cheek on his hand.

My eyebrows furrowed and I sat up straighter, suddenly quite offended. The hell did they mean, fifteen? How old did I look?

"Fifteen," I echoed. "Fifteen? How old do you think we are?" The two snickered and I huffed a little haughtily. "We've been here for only around... six years by now, I'd say."

"Okay," Sasha considered. "Let's say you get a combined hundred kills a year, then. I still think it's reasonable for you two."

"I'm not too sure," I said, shaking my head. "We kill as many as we can, but one hundred a year is a large sum. Erwin's scouting formation is meant to avoid Titan encounters, remember? So even when we were on the front lines in the vanguard for a time, we've probably killed far less than what you two think."

"So, what then? Like four hundred total kills?"

I shook my head once more, this time with a laugh. "Sorry, I don't keep count," I said. "That sounds more reasonable, though."

"The vanguard," Connie said. "What was that like?"

I thought it over for a moment. "Nerve-wracking at first," I told them, "but fun all the same."

"You somehow found being on the front lines fun?"

"Well, Levi and I were younger then, of course," I told them. "And we've always been quite good at fighting Titans. There was something incredibly fun about having each other's back, I mean I've always loved flying as soon as I learned how to, but there was something really exhilarating about fighting."

"Oh, right," Sasha said. "It must have been like your rumored beginnings as a high-roller in the black market..."

I sent a look Eren's way, but he was deep in conversation with Levi, who seemed to be mostly listening. Had he told them, or had that rumor somehow gotten out, too? I'd have to keep a close eye on these two, and talk with them often, if only to keep a good hold on what exactly was going around the rumor mill.

"How many of you were there?" Connie asked, and I wondered if it was because he was just curious, or because he knew that I might start interrogating Sasha on where she heard such a thing, but I was grateful for it nonetheless.

"It started with quite a few," I answered. "Maybe eight? But for the most part, it was only Levi and myself."

"So, just the two of you," Sasha said slowly, "riding along, fighting together..."

Oh, goodness.

"Through the rain and in the sun..."

I knew where this was going.

"How romantic!"

"Yes, yes," I said, laughing lightly. "It was very romantic with death breathing down our necks the whole time."

Sasha giggled. "You said it yourself that you found it exhilarating, but look at you now!"

"Mm," I hummed, considering it, a smile reaching my face as I looked down the table at Levi. "I suppose it might've done something for us."

The two began chatting to themselves again, and I returned my attention to my food. Noticing someone's gaze on me, I looked up, smiling when I met Levi's waiting eyes. He was done with his food and was just sitting here, probably just waiting for me to finish up. I took a bite of food and kept my eyes on his. I winked at him and one of his eyebrows arched upwards.

I refused to be the first to look away, something he picked up on rather quickly.

Why are you staring at me? That's what his eyes almost asked, and I responded with a playful look of my own that must have told him, Because I want to!

This is stupid, his eyes seemed to say, and I certainly agreed, but when I shrugged, I let him know quite simply that we're too far in to stop now.

We kept up the staring match as I continued eating, and I was only barely able to register my name being called again, and then again.

"Captain Amaya!" I kept looking at Levi. He smirked, wanting me to be the first to break. "Captain Amaya?" The voice belonged to Jean and I could see out of the corner of my eye as he looked between me and Levi. "Oh, boy. Never-mind."

The kids around the table seemed to fall quiet as they realized that something was happening. "Eren," Armin piped up hesitantly, "do they do this a lot?"

"I don't think so," he answered, uncertainty lacing his voice.

"Are you two ok?" Sasha asked.

"Break," I said to Levi, ignoring them all. "You know you want to."

"We're not ending in another draw today," he responded coolly.

"Oh," I said, setting my chin in my hand. "So that's how you're playing this?" He leaned back in his chair, the very picture of nonchalance.

"This is intense," Sasha said with a grin.

"So, this is the Special Operations Squad, huh?" Jean asked.

I was distracted from the game by a soldier walking by and tripping over something, right by our table. The scout fell, and I instinctually glanced over at the soldier to see if he was alright. It was quick, but I knew I had lost, and I huffed.

"Dammit," I hissed, and all the while, Levi smirked. I stood from my chair and glared at the poor soldier who fell. "Next time, don't trip!"

The scout got to his feet quickly, a nervous look on his face as he saluted quickly. "Oh! Um, yes ma'am! Terribly sorry, ma'am!"

"You'd better be," I mumbled, then snapped my eyes back to Levi. "I don't wanna hear a damn word about this from you," I said. I was met with some poorly concealed snickers and some amused looks from around the table, and I looked at them all in turn. "I will give you laps. Don't think I won't. I'm off to go do some paperwork, so no one come and bother me."

I could hear the chuckle from Levi as I walked past, and he was clearly pleased. Despite losing, I really could not help but find amusement out of the whole thing, too.

—

There was a knock on my door, pulling my attention away from my paperwork. Didn't I say for no one to bother me? I looked up from what I was writing and frowned slightly - it was a knock I didn't recognize.

It wasn't Levi, that was for damn sure. He never knocked when he entered my room. Why would he? This was basically his office, too, and besides, he was always welcome. No, it wasn't Levi. It was someone else, someone new.

"Name and business," I called.

"Jean," came the answer. "Here to offer help."

I couldn't help but smile. The boy was too damn sweet. "Come on in, Jean."

The door swung open, and Jean stepped in with a smile. "Good evening, Captain Amaya."

"Hello, Jean," I replied. "You're here to offer help, you said?"

He approached my desk, almost hesitantly. "That's right. I was thinking you might've needed help with that paperwork you said you had to do," he offered.

I leaned forward in my chair slightly, setting my pen down and linking my fingers together. I set my elbows on the desk and rested my chin atop my hands, my smile very quickly becoming sly. "So you remembered that part of what I said, but couldn't have remembered that I told you all not to bother me?"

The boy flushed completely, taking a step towards the door as though to leave. "Oh, I'm sorry, I can-"

"I'm only joking, Jean," I told him. "If I didn't want you in here, I wouldn't have said you could enter, now would I? Go ahead and take a seat."

"I suppose not," he said, crossing the space and settling down in the chair on the other side of the desk. "Do you need help, then?"

"Oh, I can find something for you to do, I'm sure," I told him, sorting through my documents. "You can't really help with what I'm working on now, but if you could sort through this pile by what I have and have not done, it'd be a great help. It got all mixed up when we came back from the other base."

"Yes, ma'am," he said, accepting the pile from me when I found the correct file and held it his way.

I continued on with my work, and he got to work sorting through the pile. We didn't speak much, we just worked in a comfortable sort of quiet. He finished sorting through what I asked of him and I then asked him, if was willing, to look over what I'd written for one report regarding what happened on the wall.

Jean happily obliged, reviewing the document for me as I continued on with another one. We worked in that companionable sort of silence, the only change coming when I finalized my last report I'd delegated for myself today.

With a certain sense of relieved finality, I set my pen down and put it on top of the pile of completed reports - ones I'd need to eventually bring to Erwin's office - not that they'd get taken care of anytime soon. Jean seemed to finish reading over my report of the past week's events by then, and now he looked up at me rather expectantly.

"I found a few things to be fixed," he said, "but otherwise, I'd say it's a very solid report."

"Excellent, thank you," I said, reaching across the desk to take it from him, only he didn't hold it towards me. I faltered, searching his eyes curiously for an explanation.

"I can redraft it for you," he offered, and his generosity warmed my heart, and so did his sudden hesitation and shyness. Oh, puppy love. "I mean, the commander won't notice, right? It's still your work."

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time we've submitted a report not written by me," I said, not even realizing what I was saying before rising from my chair. "Thank you very much for your hard work, Eld-"

I cut myself off right away, hoping he wouldn't be offended. Maybe he hadn't heard it? Oh, of course he had. Goodness, how could I do that to this poor boy? To call him Eld, after he worked so hard for me, offering me help, and good help at that, and all from the kindness of his heart...

When my brows furrowed and an apologetic look surely found my face, I looked to Jean, ready to apologize - only, he looked up at me, still seated in the chair, and he only looked confused, not offended or hurt.

"Eld," Jean repeated. "He was in the Special Ops Squad before, right?"

"He was, yes," I said, decidedly answering his question and not pushing the issue. No, actually, I would push the issue. "You don't... Jean, you don't sound offended," I said, disbelief lacing my voice as I slumped back down into the chair. Jean's eyes followed me closely, and the poor boy looked even more confused, now. "Why aren't you offended?"

"Offended?" He shook his head. "No, of course not. Why would I be offended?"

"I..." I shook my head, probably just as confused as he was now. "I don't know. I'm..."

When I trailed off, Jean spoke. "He was your aide, wasn't he?" I nodded, not quite able to meet his eyes at the moment. "In that case, how could I be offended?"

"I'm sorry," I said. "For not calling you by your name, I mean. You just... You remind me of him."

"And... That's a good thing, right?" Jean asked, a smile curling on his lips.

I let out a quiet breath of a laugh, meeting his gaze now. "It is," I assured him. "He was a good man, a great soldier, and a close friend." I met his eyes more surely now, offering him a warm smile. "Thank you for your hard work, Jean, truly. I appreciate your help. You're dismissed, unless there's something further you wish to discuss."

"No," he replied, standing from the chair. "And you're welcome."

He saluted, before turning on his heel and taking the report with him as he left the office. I took a deep breath once I was alone in the office and released it slowly, leaning back in my chair and letting my head hang back.

The old group... I missed them all so dearly. Has it even been a week yet? I wasn't sure. It certainly didn't feel like it. In reality, it likely had been more than a week, right? But it felt more like an entire decade had passed, but at the same time, it also felt like no time had passed at all.

The hurt was so fresh, the grief still so heavy o n my heart. When working, it was easier to forget about it, but now that I was alone... Even being here in the office with Jean, in the quiet, companionable silence...

It was odd, not having them around. Extremely odd. Yes, we had our new squad now. But I still expected to see Petra, Olou, Gunther, and Eld in the halls. Eld would be in my office often, helping me with my paperwork. To have Jean take up that role now... I appreciated it, yes, but hopefully, wherever they were, if they were perhaps watching over me, they weren't offended or upset that we had refilled our squad so quickly. Surely they would understand, right?

Thankfully, I wasn't alone for long. Levi entered my office shortly after Jean left it, and I watched as he came around the desk and sat in his usual chair. Drawing a file of documents close to him, he glanced at me sidelong to greet me, only to start slightly at the way I was already looking at him.

"What is it?"

"I was just thinking," I said to him. "I might've said it already, but I'm happy that after everything, we're still alright. And that... even if our squad isn't the same as it was, we've got another great group of soldiers."

"We do," he agreed.

For a moment we just looked at each other, and for a moment that was all we wanted or needed to do. But then I was reminded of the work we needed to do, and so I gestured towards his paperwork. "Want some help? Jean helped me, so I finished mine already."

"Picked out a new aide already, have you?"

"More like he chose me," I corrected. "Haven't you heard? Apparently he's had a crush on me since his days as a cadet, maybe before."

"A crush?"

"Yeah, you know. Like puppy love, in this case."

"He... likes you?"

"Maybe it's just simple admiration," I said. "But based on what his friends say, he loved telling stories about my achievements with the scouts."

At my words, Levi sat up a little straighter, but he said nothing.

"It's cute," I said, seeing the chance to tease him a little bit. "But he should know he's got no chance." Levi's eyes found mine sidelong, and I carefully trained my smile to remain small, sweet - not a mischievous grin like what wanted to break out onto my face. "I mean, how could anyone else stand a chance when I've got you?"

Instead of dignifying my words with an answer, he slid a document towards me. Wordlessly, I set it before me and took my pen in hand, smiling with self-satisfaction.

Of course, I couldn't just leave it at that. I had to fluster him a little.

"We need to get this done quickly," I told him. "The sooner we do, the sooner I can worship you."

He nearly choked, but managed to get it together enough to say, "whatever you want, brat."

—

We had our evening tea, and all of the paperwork had been completed. We'd bathed together and had gotten ready for bed, and all that was left to do was turn in for the night. I stepped out of the bathroom in a set of his clothes - something that I learned he loved.

It was a simple sort of comfort for me, to wear his clothes, and on his end, it was something deceivingly simple that showed I was his - even if there was no one here to see it but us. He enjoyed seeing me in his clothes, and I certainly enjoyed wearing them, and so when before our bath he laid out two sets of his own clothes, I didn't protest, nor comment on it in any way.

Honestly, I just think he found it hot when I wore his clothes, but I'd be hard-pressed to ever get him to admit that.

Anyway, I yawned as I headed to my - sorry, our shared bed. He was on his back already, one arm draped over his head to cover his eyes, with the other resting across his stomach. I smiled and perched on the edge of the bed beside him. His eyebrows furrowed at the feeling of the slight dip and he lifted his arm away so that he could open his eyes. He looked up at me and I could see the silent question in his eyes, one that he didn't need to voice.

"Did I not say I was worshiping you tonight? It wasn't that long ago, don't tell me you forgot."

"Amaya," he groaned, letting his arm join the other across his stomach, "I'm tired."

"And that's fine," I said softly. "I wasn't implying anything like that."

He lifted his head slightly, clearly confused. "What the hell are you on about, then?"

"I explained it earlier, didn't I? I want to make sure you feel loved."

"Amaya, I-"

"Let me do this," I said quietly. "After all that we've lost... I think it'll do us both some good to remind ourselves what we still have." To supplement my words, I ran a gentle hand through his hair, and as expected, he melted further against the pillow. His eyes closed at the feeling, giving himself into it entirely - into me, entirely.

I loved that I could make him react in such a way, I did. The usually stoic, stone-faced man, melting like butter in my hands. So long ago, all it had taken was one experimental hand of mine to run through his hair, and he became a noisy mess in my embrace.

I wasn't sure what it was about the feeling, but he enjoyed it, and so I made sure to do it often. It even worked to help him fall asleep... though keeping him asleep was often the problem. Even after nightmares, I could lull him back to sleep with soft words and a soothing hand in his hair, and hell, when he was stressed, I'd do it, and even when he was relaxed, like this.

"Where should I begin?" I asked, and as though thinking I really was waiting for an answer from him, he opened his eyes and met my gaze. "Shall I start with your eyes, then? Your eyes are beautiful, Levi. Did you know that? I probably don't say it enough, and it's not like you bring a mirror with you everywhere. Underground, I could never really tell what color your eyes were. All we had was lamplight, so your eyes usually looked gray. But that first night you took me to see the stars..."

I trailed off, noting that his eyes seemed to glaze over slightly as he recalled the memory. Goodness, we were so young, then. Things were so simple. And I hadn't even admitted it to myself that I felt something for him, let alone revealing it to him. If memory served me, it was before Isabel even joined us.

"That was the first time I had really seen the color of your eyes, and they're this gorgeous blue. If being in the city did anything for us," I went on to say, "it was giving me my family, and letting me meet you, and of course making me appreciate being up here so much more. Oh, I wish you could see yourself in the moonlight. I think it was made for you, love."

"Oh, please," he protested.

"Eyes so expressive, but only if you choose to learn to read them," I mused. "And of anyone, of all things to look at, you choose to look at me." I laughed quietly. "You don't know how grateful I am for that."

"Tch," he uttered, as though I'd said something incredibly stupid. "Who else would I look at?"

"I don't know," I said, "but you could have your pick of anyone. But let's see..." I ran a hand down his jaw. Adopting a more playful tone, I said, "No man should have a jawline like this, it's not fair."

He chuckled. "Not fair?"

"You could cut through so many things with it," I said with a faux sense of seriousness. "Far too much power for one man. I could talk about your face for hours, Levi. It's perfect. You're too damn handsome for your own good." Levi chuckled and I knew at once he didn't believe I was telling the truth. "You may think I'm lying, but if we put out a poll for the best looking soldier in this army, you'd win by a landslide. And to think, I have you all to myself."

I leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips. I pulled away slowly, his eyes fluttering open as I did. I smiled at the sight. A night of gentle love and devotion, that's what this one was shaping up to be. It was the kind that didn't come around often but were so incredibly special whenever they did.

"What else do I love about you? Well," I said, running my hand down his chest to stop on his heart, "you have this big, strong heart. You love so much, though you do show it in odd ways. But I love that, too. I love that you give your heart to the scouts, for the good of humanity. We've come a long way from being a couple of thugs, haven't we? And-"

There was a knock on the office door, muffled for the door leading to it from the bedroom was closed too, but it was clear that someone needed to speak with us. I closed my eyes and dropped my head onto his chest. Levi chuckled once more, patting my back with one hand as though to make me feel better, though it felt a bit patronizing, to be honest.

"It's Hange," we heard.

"We'll continue this later," I promised, standing from the bed and going to see what the hell it was that Hange wanted now.

—

The very next day, I found some time to kill in the morning before lunch, and so I did what any responsible woman, responsible soldier, and responsible captain would do: I took a nap.

See, there had been paperwork to do, but I figured I could get it done before dinner, so I put it off, for now. But Levi, the stubborn thing, had sought me out and just as I was yawning and leaning back against a tree to daydream and then fall asleep, he did something that surprised me: he sat down next to me. Setting the paperwork in his lap, he started to do it, and I cozied up against him, closing my eyes and getting some shut-eye.

And what a wonderful nap it was, within the shade of a tree, the far-off sounds of training and horses and birds and nature all around us. I figured it might have been a nice environment to do paperwork in, but I didn't want to test that for now. No, I was perfectly content to lay against him, my head against his shoulder, an arm of his around me as he used the other to sign off on page after page.

When I woke up, it was natural. It wasn't that something woke me up, no, my body just decided to rouse me from my sleep. I lifted my head from Levi's shoulder, stretched my arms above my head, and then relaxed, slumping back against the tree. I turned my head to look at him, finding that he had long since finished his paperwork, or at least what he'd brought with him. Now, he was reading.

"Did you bring that out here with you?" I asked through a yawn. "I don't remember..."

"No," he answered. "Armin came by."

"And?"

"He wanted to talk to you," he told me. "But I told him not to bother you." I almost cooed, for how cute was this man, when he continued: "And then I told him to make himself useful and get me something to read."

"That was almost sweet," I said with a laugh.

"Wasn't it?" He asked. "It took a lot out of me."

That made me laugh some more. "How about we get you cleaned up, love? I'm sure you don't want to be sitting on the ground any longer."

He agreed, and as soon as we started to get up, someone approaching distracted us. Levi stood first, and though I was preoccupied with Moblit who was rapidly approaching us, I did take Levi's hand when he held it towards me to help me up. I let him pull me up, and we watched confused as Moblit came to a stop before us.

Slamming a salute to his chest, he said: "Captains, urgent news!"

"Speak," I pressed immediately.

"Commander Erwin has woken up!"

My eyes widened and I grinned. I squeezed Levi's hand almost reflexively and neither of us needed more convincing than that. We hurried to Erwin's quarters, not stopping for anyone or anything. I knocked on the door, hearing his voice quietly ask who it was.

"Amaya and Levi," I answered, bouncing lightly on my toes.

"Come in," he said, and no sooner after he said it did I rush in, letting go of Levi's hand to dash to the bedside. Erwin smiled at me as I approached, crossing the room in only a few paces, and I heard him chuckle indulgently as I threw my arms around him for a hug. He hugged me back with his arm - god, the only one left that he had - and I could feel tears well up in my eyes with relief.

Erwin and I had, of course, grown unbelievably close over the past few years, closer than I thought possible. He had taught me what he knew about history and tactics and often shared his wild dreams about what was beyond the walls with me often. He didn't have to teach us what we needed to know about military tactics after our first expedition. He didn't, but he had, out of the goodness of his heart.

He was almost like a big brother... At least, he was what I assumed a big brother would be like. And what we had was what I assumed a sister and an older brother would have.

Either way, I was so relieved to know that he was alive and safe. I held him closer, half-suspended over the bed, and spoke against his shoulder. "Don't do that shit ever again." I had no way of knowing if he would even hear it, not until he responded.

"I won't," he said, if only to satisfy me. It didn't matter to me; I only needed him to say it. The words meant something to me, even if they didn't mean a damn thing to him. Regardless, after a single moment more, I pulled away from him, sat up straight, and set my hands on my hips.

"What if I hadn't been there to save you?" I demanded of him. He only smiled up at me, and I didn't have it in me to chastise him further, so I sighed and let my hands fall to my sides. "I'm just so happy you're safe."

"I have you to thank for that, Amaya," he said, bowing his head slightly to me to thank me.

I felt Levi pull me away from the bed, clearing his throat, and it was at that moment I realized we weren't alone in the room. My eyes didn't find Levi's who was still standing just behind me and had pulled me away, but instead I looked across the bed to look at the other person in the room, who I hadn't noticed until this very second. I started with a gasp, saluting to the bald man.

"Good morning, Commander Pixis," I said politely, perhaps a bit over-excitedly.

Pixis smiled good-naturedly at me, and I relaxed within his warm gaze. "Good morning, Amaya," he said smoothly. "Still as lovely as ever, it seems. Helping lead the scouts seems to be treating you well - though I'm certain having a woman like you on my arm would make all those fools in the Garrison fall in line."

I smiled at the compliment and went to reply but was startled by Levi pulling me by my waist down into his lap. He'd sat in the chair by Erwin's bed, and consequently pulled me to him and set one hand on top of my thighs. He even narrowed his eyes at Pixis - a shocking display of possession that was for one thing incredibly out of place for such a man and for another, incredibly inappropriate in the present company.

"Levi," I hissed, looking back at him. I felt my face heat up in embarrassment as Pixis chuckled and I stood up, sending Levi a look that told him we were gonna talk about that later. It was very unprofessional and incredibly embarrassing to boot.

I looked around and found an extra chair in the corner of the room. I walked across the room to grab it, before returning and setting it down next to Levi's. I sat down, crossing one leg over the other and willing my heart rate to slow. Honestly, men could be so unprofessional.

"How are you feeling, Levi?" Erwin asked. "Are your injuries healing well? Have you returned to your training already?"

"I have," he said, putting one elbow over the back of his chair, angling his body towards me slightly.

That very topic had sparked an argument about whether or not he could go back to training. He was still getting over that injury; I hadn't wanted him to push himself, that was all. He had insisted it was fine, and he'd wanted to keep his training up.

Knowing it was worthless to argue, I had given in, but made him promise to let me know if there was any pain. I also made him go to the infirmary several times throughout the week for regular check-ups with the doctors, who were very against his training but also knew better than to argue with him.

"You need to shave," Levi said, and I rolled my eyes at his comment, though a small smile found my face all the same. "You look like shit."

Erwin laughed, running a hand across his stubble. "Thank you, Levi."

There was a knock on the door, startling all three of us. "It's Hange," Levi said, looking to Erwin for permission to let the new company enter. Seeing no protest in Erwin's eyes, Levi turned back towards the door. "Come in."

The door opened, and in came Hange, along with... Connie. "Pardon the interruption, Erwin." Hange saluted. "I'm glad we came here while you're here, Commander Pixis. Good timing. This is..."

Connie saluted and introduced himself. "A Scout from the 104th. Connie Springer."

"Connie comes from Ragako Village," Hange said. That caught our interest.

"The village the recent Titan invasion originated from?" Pixis asked.

"Yes," Hange answered. "Actually, I confirmed with him the findings of our investigation on the village. This only brings further credibility to that hypothesis. He's come to report."

What Connie reported surprised me. Apparently, he had seen a Titan that looked like his mother. I couldn't really wrap my head around that. Titans had a lot of variability in their face. Odds were, you'd see one that shared some similarities with someone you knew... Right?

Well, Connie seemed adamant that the titan he'd seen was his mother. It had the same eyes, cheekbones, facial structure... If that were the case, that'd mean...

"Say again?" Pixis requested. "The Titans responsible for this incident... were the citizens of Ragako?"

"In other words," Erwin said slowly, piecing the words together as he spoke them aloud, "the true identity of Titans... is humans?"

I felt my heart leap up into my throat. It suddenly became difficult to breathe and I took a deep, shaky breath in, futile though it was. There was no way. It was impossible. It just... No, it didn't make sense.

"We don't have proof yet," Hange said, but somehow, the words didn't help. Actually, despite the words, the truth of everything seemed to settle on all of our shoulders. If this was true, which we all seemed to feel deep down that it was, then...

I shook my head, willing myself to find something, anything, to the contrary, so that I could deny this. But my heart had no sway on my brain, and I couldn't think of anything else.

"So," Levi spoke up, "you're telling me... I've spent all this time and energy running around killing people? Is that right?"

"I think I'm gonna be sick," I said. "I can't... I've killed so many..."

These past few years, justifying killing Titans had been easy because they weren't human. They were mindless creatures with the sole purpose of eating us. And that was all. That was it. It's why it was so easy to make a game out of it, because they hadn't been human. We were turning predators into prey, for they were mindless animals who only wanted to kill us and so it was self-defense... It wasn't like when we were underground, it wasn't. But... it was. It was like when we were underground, killing almost indiscriminately...

And... if they were humans, well, what if they weren't mindless? If in fact they were made from... people, they might still have memories, a consciousness we weren't previously aware of. It'd explain the weakness of the nape, of course, with the shifters like Eren controlling from the nape where they sat, which we only just learned too.

But... we'd killed people before, but they'd done something against us. There was a reason for it. But these people, before they became Titans, hadn't done a damn thing to us. But we'd killed so many by now. And if there was a way for shifters to exit their Titan bodies, then maybe...

Oh, goodness.

I was going to be sick.

To murder so many people...

"I said we don't have proof yet," Hange reaffirmed, as though sensing my inner turmoil, "but there is some evidence to back it. We don't know for sure, yet. That's all we had to report, for now."

"You're dismissed," Erwin said. The pair left the room, and I let out a quiet breath. We sat silently for a few minutes, just going over what we had just heard in our heads, trying our best to rationalize it. Levi stood up and looked out the window. He turned then, wanting to say something, but whatever he wanted to say died in his throat as he looked at the commander.

"Erwin," he called. But he didn't answer. I looked up at him, then, growing suddenly very confused. He was... smiling. He had this odd, dazed look on his face. "Hey. Tell me. The hell you smiling for?"

The smile faded from his face. "It's nothing," Erwin said.

"Clearly," I said, not at all convinced.

"It's just... with this, we've taken one more step towards the truth."

"Just one step, huh? We'll run out of people before we learn the truth. It's not worth the cost."

"But it is a step towards the truth," Erwin countered. "One day, we'll break it down. This wall hiding the truth... will fall."

"So long as you're there to lead us," I said, forcing a smile to my face. I'd have to come to terms with this news at some point, but I could recognize the importance of it from a scientific standpoint for now, at least. Knowledge gained was powerful, especially when we already knew so little, and I barely registered it when Pixis left the room, muttering something about getting a drink. "It's good to have you back, Erwin."

"It's good to be back," he spoke, then cleared his throat. "Now, on what I missed... I know the royal government is itching to get Eren back, but I have a plan."

"Oh, good," Levi muttered.

"Let's hear it," I said, excitement swelling my heart. It really was good to have him back. Our commander had come back home to us. He was in his rightful spot leading us, and despite the heaviness of the news we'd just received, being in his presence made it easy to dream for the future.

Because with Erwin, the man with a plan, our commander and trusted comrade to lead us...

Things were no longer in our hands. They were in his. We could only hope that he knew the game were being tossed into, and knew how best to play his hand - but again, it was no longer up to us. No, it was up to him.

We were dutiful soldiers to the end, and he was our commander - to the end, and whatever comes after that.