Elizabeth tossed in the bed, rolling over and bumping into the strong, toned chest of her captain. All of a sudden, her aqua eyes were open, and staring into his grey orbs.

"Good morning, Levi..." She spoke gently into his ear, pecking his ivory cheek with her soft pink lips.

He sighed and sat up, dangling his feet off the side of the bed. He stared at the ground for a moment. "Morning, you beautiful brat," he spoke, craning his neck to face his lady. He didn't mean this in the slightest bad way, as his eyes were soft. The faintest little smile appeared on his face, a gesture that only his favorite cadet had the pleasure of viewing.

Levi stood, giving Elizabeth a full view of his muscular back, in all its beauty, before he grabbed a shirt and tossed it over his body. "Are you getting up, or do I have to make you scrub the floors again?" The Lance Corporal sat on the edge of the bed, where the younger girl still rested. Somewhat nervously, he moved his light hand to Elizabeth's cheek, brushing some of her stray caramel hairs from her eyes, for a better view. For a moment, they were lost in each other's gaze.

Captain Levi loved those eyes. He loved everything about his partner, really, but her big, gentle blue eyes sent him overboard every single time he looked into them. In that moment, he couldn't resist planting a kiss on her still, slightly parted lips, causing her to smile into his touch.

~

"Cadets! Please turn your attention to your new superior, Lance Corporal Levi Ackerman!" Commander Erwin introduced Captain Levi, who stepped out.

He was shorter than Elizabeth had expected, though he still was taller than her. His hair was raven black, and very shiny. It fell above his undercut, and a few strands of his hair hung down in his eyes. His eyes. They were lifeless and uninteresting to everyone but Elizabeth. To her, they were masks, the veils which camouflaged his emotions, that through years of heartless killing sprees had developed.

"When I pass by, you are to salute and state your name and home district, brats." The Captain earned groans from the crowd as he began to make his rounds.

"Connie Springer, hailing from Ragako, sir!" The short, shaven boy exclaimed, saluting to Levi. Levi scoffed and continued down the line.

"Armin Arlert, from Shiganshina, sir," One of Elizabeth's greatest friends saluted to the Corporal as well, earning the same dead-panned expression from his superior.

"Tch," Spat the Corporal.

And now, it was Elizabeth's turn, the last of many to go. Levi made his way over the shorter girl, looking down upon her in a bored manner, as he did all the rest.

Elizabeth lifted her head to look her captain in the eyes. It was the very first time that Levi had come into view of such gateways, so full and sparkly as they dazzled in the evening sunlight. He tilted his head back slightly, as if to get a better look at those eyes.

"I'm Elizabeth Wren, and I'm from Shiganshina as well, sir." Levi still looked down upon her, with curious eyes. He did not move, only stared. At what, he didn't know exactly, All he knew was that he couldn't cease.

"Sir?" The girl repeated, concern lacing her gentle voice.

The corporal snapped away from his trance and frowned, scoffing. "Tch, idiot... You have something on your face." He left abruptly, but as he walked away, Elizabeth was certain that something was off about him. She checked her face, but nothing was there.

Elizabeth rose from the bed, stretching, before throwing on a long shirt over her underwear. Levi had already made his way to the bathroom, and was cleaning himself for the day's activities.

Elizabeth watched him from the bedroom, waiting for him to hop into the shower.

"You know..." Levi began, "we'll save water if we only take one shower." He made his way to Elizabeth's short form, pulling her toward the bathroom by the waist. She blushed intensely. She wanted this, but her innocence always got the better of her whenever the couple had an intimate moment.

She tried to object, but Levi had already moved his nimble fingers to her white blouse, removing the shirt she had just become comfortable in. She covered her chest and looked away. "I'm embarrassed..." She said, heated cheeks.

Levi assuaged her guilt by planting light butterfly kisses all over her jawline, trailing down to her collarbone. "There isn't a single thing about you that isn't perfect, you brat. Never hide yourself from me." He took her wrists, moving them to his neck, where she grasped securely. With one swift movement, the captain had rid the weightless girl of her underwear, and was carrying her toward the bath.

It wasn't always this way. Before the two had met, Levi was a rock. Seemingly no emotion, and along with such, there came no fear. He had been here before. He was innocent before that day, before the world had turned for the worst.

That day was the end of his innocence, and the end of his love. For Levi had been taught early on the very definition of loss. His family, what little love his life held. Everything he knew, ripped from the very fibers of his being. All at the hands of the Titans. From that day he swore to kill every Titan that ever crossed his path, and never to let his guard fall so easily. Never again would he love something, someone, so temporary.

How could he love again? A soul that could be jerked away so easily, its thread of fate snapped in the blink of an eye. Yet, somehow, she had once again softened his steel heart.

"100 laps for you, Cadet Wren! Jäger! Knock them out as well, brat!" Levi scolded the two for improperly cleaning the stables, both of the young cadets earning themselves a few hours of sprinting, at least. Jäger always groaned when he received punishments, but complied as he began to run with a sloppy salute.

Elizabeth Wren, however, had always shown her intense respect for Levi. "Yes, sir!" the light-haired girl gave a dazzling smile, which nearly made the corporal regret giving her laps. "My apologies, sincerely." She flashed her eyes up at Levi, and began her laps.

What was is about her that interested him so? Perhaps it was the fact that she never once complained. She was the second highest ranking cadet in the entire squad, behind only Mikasa Ackerman. She also happened to be the third most-likely to receive punishment, falling in after Jean and Eren. This greatly puzzled the man. She wasn't a trouble maker, nor a goody-two-shoes. So what was she?

The two finished their shower, drying themselves off and dressing in their uniforms. It was the day of the expedition, the one that could change all of their lives forever. It was up to Levi's squad to back the titan-shifter to the edge of the gates. Neither Elizabeth nor Levi had ever been more nervous, for now it was not only their lives that they were worried for... but each other's.

"You look nice today..." Levi said, looking at the newly dressed lady.

She gave a slight chuckle, blushing. "I've done nothing differently, it's my normal uniform..." She looked toward the ground.

"I know." He sighed, as if he were thinking about saying something else, and decided for it. "You look beautiful every day."

This caused Elizabeth to slowly tilt her head upwards, her eyes meeting his as her cheeks spread into a wide smile. It wasn't often that she heard such compliments...especially not from him.

It was only when Levi was sincerely worried about their safety, little did Elizabeth know.

She instinctively wrapped her arms around her captain, burying her face into his chest. "You've changed so much..." She noted, making small talk.

"I did it for you. You changed me...brat." He assured, petting her hair soothingly. His cheeks showed the faintest whisper of pink, and he knew that only she could do this to him.

"I love you, Levi." She whispered, her heart beating against his. Her heartbeat sped up, at the first time she had truly confessed this with all her heart.

He froze on the spot. The last time someone had expressed this to him, she had been crushed between the teeth of a 10 meter titan, her crimson blood spewing from her waist. It was the last thing she had said to him, those three haunting words that could be a burden, rather than a vow.

He didn't know how to respond, he hadn't prepared. The sincere feelings that he felt for Elizabeth Wren could be expressed easily through three words, but he couldn't muster the strength.

"Don't die on me out there, Wren." He said rather coldly, though he meant it in the best of ways. He couldn't say it, he didn't have the ability to show her how much he cared. He was strong, but he wasn't strong enough, just like he hadn't been when his family was slaughtered.

Elizabeth's heart sank to her stomach, hearing the way he avoided those words. She knew what he felt, she knew that he loved her, but he had never given her that confirmation. Never had he spoken those three words, and not hearing them spoken made her wonder if this love was real. She felt the tears swell in her blue eyes, and she fought hard to keep them from spilling over.

The Captain responded by pulling her close. Say it, you idiot, say it... It pained him to see her this way. He wanted to tell her... how much she meant to him... but he couldn't.

It had started that day when she first made his tea. The other cadets had tried and failed miserably to please Levi with their tea skills, however, all of them had assumed that he was not a sugar person, and some even assumed that he was a sugar addict. Arlert always put way too much sugar into his tea, and normally, it would end up all over his face after Heichou took a sip. Jäger, on the other hand, was not generous enough with his sugar. The ratio between tea and sugar had to be perfect in order for the captain to have a normal day, but most of the time he had to make it himself, and this pissed him off.

And then, one quiet morning, there was a pitter-patter on Captain Levi's door.

"Name and Business," he stated plainly.

"It's Cadet Elizabeth Wren, sir. I've made you some morning tea..."

"Enter." He sighed, the girl's form entering the doorway. He expected this tea to taste like dirt, much like that of the others'.

She sat the teacup upon his desk, observing the odd way in which Levi picked it up and held it. He drank a small sip, an unknown emotion washing over his features. She prayed, for her sake, that the tea was at least drinkable, and that it wouldn't end up on her clean uniform.

"Cadet, how many sugar cubes did you put into this?" He questioned, his plain and disinterested face giving Elizabeth no indication as to whether he liked it or not.

"One and a half, s-sir." She stuttered regretfully, nervous.

Too many.

But oddly enough... The Captain enjoyed it.

Levi stared into the drink for a moment, before snapping his steely vision to Elizabeth's ocean blue ones. "I expect this same cup of tea each and every morning, Cadet Wren." He said bluntly, taking another sip.

Elizabeth let out a breath of relief. "S-So, you like it, sir?" She confirmed.

"It will do, compared to what I've been getting." He scoffed, though he actually found the beverage surprisingly well sweetened, and also the perfect temperature.

"Captain Ackerman!" a loud bang resonated from the door of their quarters. "It's time!" Commander Erwin himself had knocked.

"Give me a moment!" He yelled furiously, muttering under his breath, "Not even he will ever understand..." He sighed, kissing Elizabeth's head. He had a deeply concerning feeling in his stomach already. He was scared, for the first time in all his years, he was terrified, but not for his own life. For her's. He knew she was strong, but things can always go wrong.

"Corporal, I have paperwork from Commander Erwin." Elizabeth knocked upon the captain's door, trying not to disturb him.

"Come in, Wren." He'd scoffed, knowing that voice. It had been a few months since she had joined the corps, and under Levi's watchful eyes, she had flourished into a great soldier. He had considered taking her into his squad , under his wing, for reasons that he wouldn't yet admit to himself.

She came in, her cheeks forming a light pink at the sight of the tired Levi, who had raised his head to look at her. She sat the papers down sadly, and proceeded to leave the room.

"Wait." He spoke. "I didn't dismiss you."

She turned around, nodding. "Sorry, sir." She smiled, even though it pained her to do so. The sorrow that buried itself in her mind and heart was enough to kill her at that moment.

Levi had always kept close tabs on Elizabeth, and had therefore been notified about her recent losses. He rose from behind his desk, his legs carrying him toward the shorter cadet. For the first time since Levi could remember, he dropped the formalities, and truly connected with another human being in a way that could only be mended through sympathy.

Elizabeth watched him, as she always did, with caring eyes. However, those eyes had lost a bit of their light that day, and even the captain had noticed the gates beginning to close in fear.

"I'm sorry about your family." He said in the gentlest code that he could achieve, though it wasn't much due to his experience in shouting orders and commanding the troops of the Survey Corps.

Elizabeth's eyes began to water, making Levi cringe only slightly. Her family, her mother and little brother, the only two people left in this world for her to love, had been murdered. In cold blood, not at the hands of the titans, but the hands of a bloodthirsty human killer, which only made the intense pain of Elizabeth's woes sting worse. She found herself trembling in Levi's presence as the images of them flowed steadily through her mind. Seven. Seven years old, trying to help his feeble mother through life without dad, who had died years before, fighting in Shiganshina.

Dead.

She barely kept the tears from falling onto the floor. Captain Levi would see her weakness, scold her, and perhaps assign her stable duty for a month, but she couldn't care about that right now. She couldn't care about anything.

Levi's eyes softened, leaning in toward the watery eyed girl. He'd never felt this way, what was it? Sympathy, or something deeper... It consumed him. He tried to stop his arms from reaching out, but they disobeyed his mind and listened to his heart. Before he could tell what was happening, he held Elizabeth in a warm embrace, his strong limbs wrapping around her and pulling her light body into his.

This took the younger cadet by such surprised that her eyes widened in shock, and some of the memories, not all, vanished from her mind. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around her captain's stout body, simply thankful that she had a shoulder to lean on at that moment. She kept her form only just long enough.

Suddenly, a very concerned Hanji Zoe burst through the door, without knocking, as usual, to see the two in a passionate embrace. Levi stepped away, breaking the hug at the wrong time, though his heart wanted it to persist.

"You are dismissed, Cadet..." He spoke harshly, running a hand through his ebony hair as he gave the wide-eyed Hanji a deadly stare.

Elizabeth glanced at the corporal, who had looked the opposite direction intentionally. And then she hurried out of the room, tears finally able to fall from her cheeks as she was no longer in the captain's presence.

Hanji looked at the Captain, and then down the hallway at the retreating cadet.

"Awww....." She began, her eyes twinkling.

Levi knew what was coming, and he fought hard to conceal the light blush that threatened to creep onto his pale cheeks.

"Shitty-Glasses, don't-"

"That was so sweet!" She exclaimed, walking toward the man. "Shorty, you do have feelings!"

Levi scoffed, and looked away to prevent embarrassing shades from being seen.

"What do you want, shitty-glasses?" He growled, but she persisted.

"Why would you dismiss her like that?!? I could have waited!!! You two could have kissed and been happy together and-"

"SHUT THE HELL UP!!!!!" Levi roared, raising his fists, causing Hanji to flinch.

"One word about this to anyone and I'll slaughter all of your damn titans!"

Hanji's eyes widened, and she hunkered.

From that day forward, the Captain did his best to avoid Elizabeth. He requested to have his tea brought by someone else, but to have it still made by Elizabeth's nimble hands. He requested that she should not bring him papers, that it should be Arlert or Braus.

Those things kept her out of his office... but not out of his mind...

And certainly not out of his stony, cold, but, somehow softened heart.

He still saw her in the courtyard, pushing herself to the limit in training, and he still saw her other places.

Most notably, in his dreams, when he rarely slept.

And so, began the old things. He allowed her to re-enter his normal days. And soon, her visit to his office every morning, with her sweet and captivating smile became the best part of his day.

The other squad leaders began to notice the Captain's fidgeting when she was in his presence, and many began to question his attitude.

Others simply thought he was sick, or going insane.

But no matter what they all thought, Levi was trapped within his own mind, with his own thoughts. And he thought that Elizabeth Wren was different. Different in the way she made him feel, the way she made him act. Different in the way she smiled and the way she moved. Different altogether.

And then, after all the little morning conversations... the times when she needed him, came the night when he finally needed her.

They were all dead. One. Two. Three. Four.

Levi stared at the shadowed death papers of Petra, Oluo, Eld, and Gunther. His squad. His friends.

They weren't coming back.

The lightning cracked outside, in the wee hours of the dark night, and it nearly muffled the quiet sound of Elizabeth Wren's knuckles upon the door.

"Captain..." she spoke ever-so-softly.

There was no answer, and Levi hadn't even cared to listen.

"Captain." She beckoned again.

No answer.

"Levi!"

Suddenly, the man looked up at the door, his eyes suddenly going wider than before. His name. His real name, not Captain, Heichou, or Corporal. His name... Levi.

Unacceptable. Except when it was her.

He ruffled his hair, and returned her calls with a scoff.

"Go away." He said lowly.

She persisted softly, with a crack in her voice. "Sir.. please."

The wheels inside his head were turning at a slow pace, and he gave an affirming grunt as she opened the oak door, then softly closed it behind her. His head remained buried in the papers and he refused to look at her. There was nothing but the moonlight shining into the window to illuminate the room.

Elizabeth padded to the edge of his desk, and her hand reached shakily to the papers that the Captain had been staring at for hours in disbelief. She turned the over and he grunted, but gave no moving motion.

"Go back to bed." He spoke groggily in the lowest possible vibration.

"I can't sleep." she spoke, trembling slightly as her small form took a seat across from him. "It haunts me too."

He made no motion, but he was hearing her.

"Go away. Wren." He fought against her sympathy but she wouldn't give in. She knew what that felt like. She knew that the worst feeling in the world was losing everyone you loved, everyone you cared about.

"I can't do that, Captain... I just.. can't." She said firmly but as soft as a butterfly's beating wing.

He remained in silence for the remainder of his thought process.

Until, suddenly, he felt heat on his arm. A very soothing, tickling heat that caused him to snap out of his lonely trance, even if only for a brief second.

Elizabeth took a deep breath as her fingers moved to the hand he had laying upon the rough surface of his desk.

His lifeless grey eyes drifted to the place where her fingers rested, and he could not pull away. She looked for any signs of his discomfort, but she did not find any.

"Captain..." she began shakily. "I know what you're going through... and... I understand your pain."

Levi stared at his hand as she squeezed it, and he was mesmerized by the simple fact that she was here. With him. That she actually.... cared; something that no one else had shown to him in a very long time.

"I want you to know that..." she paused, gathering her thoughts. "You... don't have to be strong right now... not for me. The others look to you as a symbol. A symbol that cannot be broken... you are the Wings of Freedom... and I know that means you must be strong in all situations. But right now... as you and I sit here in this dark office... and for as long as your eyes stay open this night... you do not have to be strong... you do not have to be that symbol. You do not have to absorb their pain. Like you have all of these years..."

Elizabeth was on the brink of tears herself. It pained her to see him this way. It pained her to know that he was alone in this. She knew that was why she was here.

Levi remained cold. But he heard every single word, every syllable, and with each breath she took she pushed him closer to the boiling point of everything he had stored within him his entire life. He'd never had this, he'd never had that shoulder to cry on. He'd never had.... her.

"Levi..."

There it was again... the thing that only she could say to break through his steel barriers.

"Just... let me soothe your demons... just like you hushed mine. Let me... be strong for you." She whispered with the only breath she could muster before a crystal tear fell from her eyes, and it felt like a drop of Jupiter on Levi's skin.

Elizabeth held her head low, as if she were waiting.

It felt like an eternity before Levi finally lifted his head, his eyes soft, and his heart aching with the emotions that he felt. His eyes met hers and she looked deep within his hooded irises as he drifted slightly closer with each beat of his heart.

And then... the unthinkable happened.

The Corporal's eyes swirled with emotion as a single droplet of sadness drifted down his porcelain cheek and burst onto the wood below it.

She'd done it. She'd broken him. He knew that... but in all the things he had heard that beautiful voice of hers speak, he couldn't care about his image as a leader. He believed her. She would be strong for him.

Elizabeth climbed over the desk and threw her arms around him, unable to stop her emotions from overflowing. She wanted his happiness, his only. He hugged back, and couldn't feel angry at himself for doing so. He wanted it. He needed it... and he would have it.

Elizabeth's heart felt as if it would stop beating, and she couldn't think about much else but the three words he had not returned. Were it not for the banging of the Commander upon the door, she may have never broken from it.

"Coming!" Levi shouted, fastening his belt into place. He glanced at his lady, who was looking out the window, while braiding her own long hair.

That hair. It was so beautiful to Levi; he loved it. He had the pleasure of releasing it from her normal braid every evening when it was time to settle down for bed. Her soft lochs between his fingertips as he kissed her brought him back to reality every time he threatened to stray.

But it was a hazard. He had been so reluctant to tell her that it needed to be cut. It could be grabbed, tangled, or caught by a titan. But he knew how much that would hurt her, and it would pain him too. So he waited.

He felt guilt enter his stomach as she turned away from him to tuck a few stray pieces of hair into the band she used to hold it in place.

He'd deprived her of the things she desperately wanted to hear... he knew that.

Levi awoke to the rise and fall of the covers next to him. Was it not a dream?

No. It was real. His squad, the titans.... and her.

He rose up quite abruptly, and in the process, he startled the lady next to him. She jumped up, giving a slight whimper, and looked at him wide eyed. The two were still fully dressed, minus the jacket that Levi seemed to have shed.

"Ca-"

"Get out." His eyes did not lie, as they stared Elizabeth down with no sympathy. Why did he act this way? He hadn't wanted to come out like this but he couldn't stop it, and Levi knew that.

She looked surprised- no, confused... and hurt.

"But s-sir, I-"

"Get out!" The captain hollered more harshly, raising his hoarse voice, and pointing to the door across the room. Elizabeth made it quick, and she didn't waste any time.

Her heart felt all but ripped in two.

She got up fast and turned to him as she reached the door, trying to keep her knees from buckling under her weight.

"Captain, I'm sorry-"

Levi raged up from his bed and stomped. "You god-forsaken piece of trash, just GET OUT!"

Before he could stop his lips from releasing the first angry emotions that came to him, he saw the person who had cared for him through the cold night, who had healed him and silenced his demons in the dead of night and forsaken her own sleep for his terrors, be broken in two by his words.

Why was he like this... he didn't know.

Her eyes watered and time slowed as her tears fell to the ground, each shattering like glass upon the stained floor of his empty room.

His heart rocked in his chest and he wanted to punch himself for hurting her like that. She didn't deserve it. She didn't deserve anything he had done to her... she deserved nothing but love... but peace and happiness. Yet, all he could do was watch as Elizabeth flung open the door and took off down the hallway, her tears floating in her wake.

He let his legs straighten and take off for her.

She sped to her room, but Levi was already hot on her trail. He had to right this immediately. She was leaving him, and he couldn't have that. She slowed as she neared her corridor, little knowing that the Captain had followed her without a word.

Elizabeth slammed the door with all of her might, but suddenly, something stopped it. With his strong arms and emotions flying high, Levi Ackerman pushed the door back, taking Elizabeth greatly by surprise. Without a word, without even closing the door, he stormed her room, taking by force the thing that he had longed for since the very moment he'd met her on introduction day.

A kiss.

He pressed her passionately against the wall, restraining her hands at her sides with his firm grip. Everything within each fiber of his being shook with wild emotion and pleasure as he moved his lips against hers.

She was surprised, but her tears stopped and she enjoyed the sensation that flooded her senses. Soon, their eyes closed and Levi let his mind drift away, to only her, only what was happening between them right at that moment.

Elizabeth heard footsteps coming down the hallway and began to panic, as the door was still open. She fought against Levi desperately to try and close it, to try and hide the embarrassing things that the Captain would most certainly not want anyone to know about.

Levi broke his stream of lengthy kisses to say one husky sentence.

"Let. Them. See."

He then resumed his course upon the small girl's lips, causing her face to heat in the hottest manner.

Their emotions were exchanged as he led her to the small bed at the corner of the room, where he gently pressed her onto the sheets.

He planned to, without objection, show her how much that she did mean to him. He would make up for everything. Right then, and there.

It was time. The horses were saddled and the men were ready.

The expedition was about to begin.

Elizabeth had stepped into the washroom for a last look at herself, while Levi was left to his thoughts. He sat down in his chair and opened his desk drawer, reaching within to pull something out. As he looked down at the black box in his hand, the soft-mannered lady entered his mind once more. All the things she had given him. All the joy she had brought to him. The only person on this horrendous earth that could give him a reason to live. The only person who could make him smile again. He couldn't let that go, he couldn't ever let that go.

Elizabeth Wren.

He opened the black case, and revealed a beautiful ring that caught the light in the most perfect manner, its dazzling diamonds reflecting into the man's eyes.

Soon to be... Mrs. Elizabeth Ackerman. Or so he hoped. As long as she said yes, it would be so.

And then, only then, could he finally tell her. Those three words. The three words she had waited for, forever.

He sat the box back down in the wooden container and nearly choked on his own heartbeat.

Elizabeth came into the room and smiled her best smile.

Now was the time.

Now, only prayers and their will to live could save them from what was to come.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, what did you think? I hope you liked the first story in this book!

A Part 2 or no? Tell me what you think in the comments below!

Thank you! :)

~Mac