Levi was nearly fuming. The worst had come true and he desperately needed to take a piss but Erwin's arm was over him and it took too much effort to move the large limb.

“Erwin Fucking Smith,” Levi whisper yelled, hitting his arm repeatedly. “I swear I'll take a piss on everything you love if you don't let me go NOW!” 

Erwin didn't even twitch, oblivious to the smaller male’s crisis. Levi was done. He was frustrated from being literally held down and there was only one thing he could do. 

Without hesitation, he turned his head, stinking his teeth into the sleeping male’s shoulder, effectively waking him with a start.

“What the hell?!” 

“That's for keeping me captive all night,” Levi snapped, taking the opportunity to scramble over Erwin and dash to the bathroom. 

Finally, after way too many hours of being held down, Levi was free. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t done that before. Did he really not have a good brain process during the night or did he subconsciously like being held even if it was being held down?

“I can't believe you bit my shoulder,” Erwin whined, placing his hand on his bruised area once Levi appeared in front of him with a smug smile. 

“And I can't believe you held me all night.” 

Erwin grumbled a half-assed apology, getting ready for another day of teaching in which he would drag Levi with him. The good thing about that was the fact that he actually did manage to fall asleep at random times until being woken again.

._._.

“Why is he here?”

“I could ask you the same.”

“But I'm a student and you're not. I belong here!”

“You could easily be at home or off having an uneducated job,” Levi snapped.

“And you should be having an actual jo-”

“That would be enough, Mr Jäger,” Erwin interrupted before his student and friend would get into a heated battle in his class.

Knowing both of them, they wouldn't back down easily once started and that meant it was his duty in keeping them under control. He didn't wish to see his class in shambles and he didn't wish to see any of them hurt.

“There he goes, taking his side again,” Eren muttered in disgust. “I’m so telling Mikasa about this attitude.”

Erwin ignored the comment, starting his first class of the day by greeting everyone and getting all of them under control.

Levi got comfortable in Erwin’s seat. He hadn't eaten that morning but he was feeling completely fine and he wasn't feeling sleepy which was a bonus. He decided that the only thing he could do since he didn't have his clothes was to wear something from his new ones.

He hadn't planned on wearing them yet but it seemed he had no choice but to do so. That day he decided to dress in what was considered masculine by society and headed to the school with Erwin in a suit, once again being free of charge.

He didn't really listen to the class, knowing he wouldn’t learn anything and much more immersed in trying to figure out what time he should head back home or if he should remain a day longer but stay with his Uncle. Eventually, he opted on going back home during lunch hour. 

His Uncle was probably wandering around to other cities again for whatever reason anyways.

He spun around his chair, swinging his legs absentmindedly the entire morning, occasionally doodling on pieces of paper he found and judging the grades the students got. He couldn't believe some of their grades and couldn't believe some of the answers. He was bad at history but not stupid enough to completely fail a test with the most ridiculous answers he had ever seen.

The only times he had spoken to Erwin during the day were during break and when he suddenly needed to use the bathroom. The journey to the bathroom deemed difficult considering it was a time where classes were switching which meant he nearly bumped into Hanji, just barely managing to escape before he could’ve been attacked.

Those were the only times during the course of the entire day where Levi had a source of verbal communication. And although he rarely spoke, it was still a bit more than when he lived at his castle all alone. 

The situation then made him think. The more he thought, the more he realized that he wasn't that shy compared to others who had lived in the active world all their life. He wondered just how verbal he would be if he had been living around others all his life but alas, he would never know, especially considering the fact that he lived far away and had no intentions of really moving.

The emotional attachment, the quiet and solitude, his library of books where he lived in the fantasies. It was all that he was used to and there was no reason to move from it unless something big would happen but in the world Levi lived, there was nothing big enough for him worth moving for. Even his friendship with Erwin was nowhere near enough considering they just met.

By the time it was lunch, Levi was just about dizzy with the amount of times he had spun on the chair. It was ridiculous how a small repeated movement could make someone feel so bad. Even simple things like poking someone could make someone feel bad which was just incredible and hard to believe that the human body was truly terribly weak. Pushing the feeling aside, he got up and headed towards Erwin’s side in order to bid his farewell.

“Going already?” Erwin asked as his students dissipated out of the classroom.

“Yes, Blondie. I can't stay here in this place all my life. I don't have a house here, nor do I know everything else,” Levi explained. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t forget me and visited me though.”

Erwin laughed at the ending remark, delicately placing a large hand on the short male's shoulder. There was no way he planned on forgetting Levi any time soon. He’d hold true to that.

“Of course. I'd never leave you all alone in that giant castle. You’ve been there for lord knows how long,” Erwin stated, shaking his head a bit to make a point as his neatly kept blond hair moved side to side. “Wanna say goodbye to Hanji?”

“Haha. You're funny as shit,” Levi muttered. “If anything, I want to get out without seeing them.”

With a fond shake of the head and a small push to indicate they were heading outside, Erwin guided Levi through the rowdy students, forming a type of plough that allowed his giant stature to make his way through while allowing the other to follow closely behind without getting stepped on. Levi didn't plan on sticking around for long so the moment he approached his horse, he took a deep breath before attempting to hoist himself on the horse, ending with a rather frustrating and embarrassing result.

“Do you need hel-”

“No Blondie. I can do it.”

“You sure?”

Levi looked up at Erwin with a soft glare, determination in his eyes as he placed his foot in the stirrup that was much too high. And just as he was about to stomp on the ground like a cranky child, he was grabbed around the waist and hoisted on the saddle seat with little difficulty.

“Have you been eating? You don't feel as concerningly light as the first time I lifted you on a horse,” Erwin commented, suddenly noticing the weight shift he hadn’t realized from the night before, Levi huffing down at him the entire time. “I think that's good. Keep on eating.”

Levi, in an attempt to stay serious, couldn't handle the praise and his face twitched with a faint smile. Oh how that one comment was sent straight to areas it probably shouldn't have been felt in at all.

Such as certain areas of his brain─ Ventral Striatum─ where his pride would slowly start to consume him. Such little words were enough to make him excited which was concerning in a way.

“Oh. Thanks?” Levi managed to choke out in more of a questioning voice. “I've tried eating but I thought it wasn't working.”

“It has,” Erwin reassured. “Now you know your efforts are paying off.” 

Levi stared down at Erwin, his heart racing and thumping soundly within him as he gripped the reins. Boy did he not know he was actually a sucker for praise. Or at least from Erwin, that is, he didn't know if he liked praise from others.

“Anyways,” Levi said, trying to distract himself. “I'll be going now-”

“Leaving without telling your newly discovered cousin goodbye?” a female voice asked, causing Levi to turn and be met with Mikasa approaching him, Eren void of sight.

“Didn't know where to find you and nor did I want to walk through a sea of grimy brats.”

Mikasa smiled at the response, shaking her head as she patted the horse's side.

“I hope you'll be allowing me to visit you.”

“Just bring Blondie with you to show you the way. I hope he doesn’t mind being dragged around.”

The two glanced at Erwin for an answer, hoping he would accept although it was practically a given. Mikasa, at least, could easily see the way Erwin would follow Levi to the ends of the Earth if asked although she didn’t think Levi had reached that stage yet, that’s if he ever would.

“Of course. I wouldn't pass up that opportunity, though I wouldn't want to bother you,” Erwin said, pausing for a brief second before continuing. “I'll just have to ask for permission to go hunting in the meantime.”

“Not a problem.”

And so it was settled. With an urge to trot away and a last farewell, Levi headed in the direction of home, fully ignoring the students that whispered about him. It wasn't as if he cared anyway. His bags were held onto the side of the beast, his feet dangling high above and his hair that simply bounced with each trot, and the way back home engraved into his mind after asking for so much help the day prior. It was refreshing and the castle never seemed more welcoming in his mind than it did now.

._._.

Clothes removed, bed dusted off just in case, feet cleaned, all the requirements needed were carried out before Levi allowed himself to crawl into his bed and wrap himself in the cool sheets. Oh how wonderful they felt on his nearly completely bare skin. But the longer he rested, the more he realized that his house was nothing like Erwin’s in regards to the home feeling.

It was cold and dark and utterly lifeless. Not to mention the bed itself lacked the comfort he had felt laying in Erwin’s one all night. It was empty. Just plain empty and no feeling of having been used enough to the point that it was inviting. 

He wanted it to feel used, feel comfortable, feel soothing to his limbs.

That was now a problem. He had tasted the life out of what he had grown up with and he wanted what he couldn't have. The experience he had during the course of one night had fucked him over so bad, he couldn't accept his own home.

“Seems like remodelling is first on the empty agenda.”

With a new goal in mind, Levi decided to set out on giving his living space a makeover the following day, taking that evening to plan out what he wanted to do in the castle like mansion and laze around from returning back after having ridden in the hot sun.

Considering Levi cleaned a lot and was constantly reorganizing the articles of the house to his liking, it wasn't hard to get everything out of his way in an orderly fashion in order to be able to stare at his blank wall which held nothing more but several candle holders. Said candle holders had probably been there since before he was born which just indicated how fucking hold the place was.

“What the hell do you even have to do to model a house?”

Without a clue on how house modelling worked and how he could improve the blank walls, Levi sat on his sofa. Arms akimbo with only pants on, he tried to think of ways to improve the dark rusty looking walls when a sudden idea came to mind.

It was such a contrasting plan to what he had now but anything to make his house feel more like a home. The biggest problem in all that was getting his house exactly the way he wanted but he had time anyways. There wouldn't have to be a problem if he did everything slowly.

“Yes, yes, someone will pay for the supplies but not me,” Levi sighed fifteen minutes later as he talked on the phone with the owner of the store he was ordering his remodelling supplies from. “No I don't want anyone to re-do my house and yes I'm sure sage green and cream is my final choice.”

He was getting tired of the man continuously chatting away after he had given his name in order for them to take his things. He should have really given them a fake name. Why the hell was he even excited? Had his name spread to shop owners due to his Uncle’s blabbermouth? Didn’t matter anyway, it was whatever now that his name had been leaked into the real world.

“Yes, yes, thanks,” Levi ended quickly, slamming the landline down against the receiver.

He walked around the living room and kitchen, trying to figure out what else he could do to improve the place. He kind of wanted to surprise his friend when he would eventually visit and he wanted to make sure the castle didn’t look like shit when Mikasa came over. It’d make him seem like a slob when in reality he was the complete opposite. 

It was until he walked past the fridge that he suddenly realized he hadn't eaten that day even though he had promised himself he would. He still wasn't hungry but thinking of the praise he had received from Erwin was enough for him to gather the willpower to eat something. 

Oh well, at least he was gathering nutrients thanks to the blond.