"Are we there soon?"

"Just a little bit more."

"You've said that already?"

"Well, it may be that I had forgotten this path," Levi explained in amusement that soon took a layer of nostalgia, melancholy even. "Haven't been walking up here for about five years or so."

"Oh..." Petra let out, feeling that there was something odd in Levi's voice, something she had never heard. But she didn't want to urge him to tell her right now - when he feels he's ready to, he will.

"So this was unplanned?" she said, hoping to divert his sadness away.

And she succeeded to some extent by just that one sentence. "It wasn't," Levi answered in slight amusement, a ghost of a feeling slowly but surely dissipating.

After about a minute of climbing and jumping above the holes made out of neglect of the bricks of stone the stairs consisted of, they finally reached an old, wooden door, a lock over it rusty and so weak that one press of a finger would be enough to break it.

"It looks so ancient," Petra said as she stepped forward, carefully brushing the metallic lock and details. "How is this possible?"

"Years of neglect do wonders," Levi said, invoking a picture of shiny, polished metal and sturdy, hard wood. It now looked ancient as Petra said, flimsy and sad. "And weather conditions."

"So this leads outside?" Petra asked, turning to look at Levi who stepped up beside her, taking the lock in his hands, inspecting it meticulously.

"Yes. It was a good way to block the head during summer and freezing coldness during winter. The room at the bottom we had passed after the first small set of stairs was situated not close to the ground and not too far from the top of the castle," he continued, taking a small, polished key from his pocket he had taken from one of his desk drawers.

"Stone saves the temperature and the air that manages to pass through these doors aids the circulation of fresh air in the pantry!" Petra exclaimed, all the pieces coming together. Now her gaze slid from the doors and down the gaping set of stairs they left behind. "Amazing construction."

"Indeed," Levi said, turning the lock once again, allowing the lock to fall down with a clank, making Petra jump in place.

"What is it, Ral? Afraid of the sound?" Levi teased, smugness only in his eyes.

Pursing her lips, Petra dramatically threw her head upwards, pushing the door open. "And yet I step out first."

Levi smiled behind Petra's back, amused, thrilled and delighted at the same time. Having to be with her like this, even when they ostensibly bickered, was so overwhelming that he didn't want to trade anything in this word for that.

Once Petra set her foot outside, she looked up and let out a gasp.

Levi followed after and stood beside her, looking up as well.

Petra didn't know what to say. It wasn't like she never was on the top of a building at night or that she never chatted and laughed through the night with her friends beneath the starry firmament. However, when she was on top of the building, it was either not very visible dus to town lights or clouds. When she was with her friends, they were busy with each other's jokes and stories, never with their surroundings that much.

Now, it was all different and she could only stare in awe at the clear, wide sky from everywhere around her, littered with thousands, millions of lights, some standing in rows, some in swarms, shapes even. Moon wasn't visible enough to steal their shine, so they all could be seen clearly and beautifully, making her wish for the moon to never return again.

"Levi... this is... this is..." she whispered, unable to describe the feeling that overwhelmed her.

How? Why now? How did you know?

"This is one of the rare days when this is possible to be seen," Levi explained, warmth enveloping his heart, ready to answer every question she couldn't utter herself.

Raising his arm, he swept over the town in front of them. "Everyone is asleep so there is no light," he said and pointed up at the sky, Petra following his hand.

"There is no moon to hide the stars and..." he said and looked at Petra. "There was a windy storm an hour ago that dispersed all the smoke from fabrics and houses."

Petra's shiny eyes were looking up, stars almost reflecting in them. She was experiencing something so beautiful and not quite mundane, even though she was looking at something that was always there, just for the ones who paid close attention.

"This is so beautiful..." she let out, taking a few slow steps forward, eyes never moving off the stars.

But not as beautiful as you, Levi thought, watching how she closed her eyes and inhaled with a blissful smile on her face.

She then extended her arms and spun one, two, three times before she halted and let out a laugh so sweet that Levi almost didn't notice how her legs were still unsteady and how her right knee suddenly bent, making her start falling forward.

"Aaah!" she let out a surprised yell before she flopped into Levi's outstretched arms.

Never letting out a hiss when his knee collided with the hard stone, Levi chuckled, brushing her bangs from her eyes.

"Be careful my dear, I don't want you to fall and get hurt," he said, suddenly aware of how close their faces were. However, he didn't pull away.

Surprise passed and Petra blushed, giving Levi's lips a small peck. "Understood, dear."

Helping her stand up, he couldn't help but to feel loss when she parted away from him, making him almost let out a sigh.

"Are you really sure this was unplanned?" Petra asked, moving to the edge of the balcony, touching the old stone, feeling comfortable coldness spread at the tip of her fingers. "For coincidences had strangely decided to group just this day."

"I've told you, it really wasn't planned," Levi said, shrugging. "I'm just good at improvisation. That's all."

Hearing a bit of shyness in his voice, Petra really couldn't find this not adorable. And on top was the fact that Levi became more open with a lot of things. Some of them were displays of both affections and emotions and some were bolder statements regarding himself.

I am so glad you started valuing yourself more, Levi. Even if it is just something as being good at improvising, Petra thought contently.

Simply, she was glad that she managed to help him feel he could say those things to her. It made her feel acknowledged as a person who doesn't judge, who thinks and who is ready to listen even to some hard truths.

"Indeed..." she whispered so nobody but her would hear and turned to Levi with a small, somehow sad smile.

"What is it? Are you ok?" Levi asked in concern, taking both her hands into his once he got to her with gait quicker than usual.

"I'm fine, just... thinking how you became more open now with a lot of things and... thinking how it must have been to bear it all alone and hide it even," she said and Levi's face stiffed before melting in relief and odd serenity even she got to see rarely.

"For a moment I thought I said something I shouldn't have," he said and sighed. "But about that... I was managing and... I was as good as I could so there should not be so much worry coming from you."

"But-"

"I know it may be hard to not worry, especially to you who always worry about others," he said and lightly squeezed her hands to which her heart did a small, sweet flip. "But now... I'm happy as I can be. And it will only get better."

"Only if..." Petra started then clenched her jaw, not wanting to say it out loud.

"If everything goes fine tomorrow, right?" Levi finished her sentence, a worried, thoughtful expression on his face.

Nodding, Petra soghed. "I don't know why this came to me now. We were supposed to at ease here after you showed me something so beautiful and I-"

"No, don't feel sorry," Levi said, squeezing her hands. "Worry is natural, we would be fools to be oblivious to what can happen. But... let's forget about it, we can at least try it, only for today."

In his voice was so much longing and heavy feelings that remained unsaid, but perfectly understood to Petra. She wasn't around him for years, being there to see his flaws and virtues, frowns and smiles to not know him for who he really was - not a Captain, Humanity's strongest soldier, an Anchor of Hope for the world, but a man with so many on his heart and shoulders, longing for love, for warmth, for people he won't lost in the end.

Moving her hand to cup his cheek, she leaned in and kissed him between the eyes. "We can, and we will pay it no heed. It will be just us today, just us," she whispered, wrapping her arms around Levi tightly but gently.

After a few seconds he stood still, his posture seemed to melt slowly as his shoulders relaxed and he hugged her back, burying his face into her hair.

"Just us," he whispered and they stayed like that until all their worries dispersed, just to come together again, but later, when they allowed them to do so.

Because now, nothing of it mattered.

They held hands as they sat in each other's embrace, gazing at the stars and pointing at shapes, laughing and retelling stories from their childhoods, as merry as they could be. A lot of things they had learned about each other, a lot of new details, likings and dislikings.

Levi had teased Petra for her dislike of cat fishes while Petra did the same regarding lizards.

"You don't have to eat them, you know," Levi said.

"Of course I won't ever again! But now that I had, I can't help but remember its taste even when I spot it swimming in the river! Yuck!"

But still, there was a time when they had to go back to reality. Sleep was a treasure before missions and they begrudgingly had to oblige to it.

After hours and hours of oblivion, they walked back, hand in hand, but not before Petra cated one last glance to the starry sky, gazing and searching for something far beyond that.

Please, let nobody we care for die tomorrow. Please.

As she prayed, she closed the door, inhaling, feeling like she managed to ameliorate everything even a little, more than she ever would by worrying endlessly.

.

.

.

Eyes unable to focus on anything but Levi's relaxed, almost vulnerable face, Petra didn't want to think how they had to get up soon and march out of Walls.

Sometimes she hated it. The anticipation, the fear, now when she had a lot of people dear to her. She hated how much they cracked jokes about it, bragging to themselves of their strength and skill, when nothing of that mattered outside.

And yet, she many times found herself unable to do the opposite. She just couldn't. If only... something would happen, when they would win against all the titans, wipe them all and save humanity.

If only... it would come faster and sooner.

They would all be free.

"You are thinking."

Orbs shooting up, she found Levi staring back at her, looking awake like he hadn't slept at all.

"Don't think too much, it'll be alright."

It should be alright...

Smiling, half as fake and half as genuine, Petra sighed, glancing down, noting how they both fell asleep in their regular clothes and have to change into clean ones now.

"We'll be close, so don't worry," he said, brushing her locks from her face.

Even with dozens of worries and thoughts, she found herself unable not to trust him. She had faith, she did, in her friends and in herself - she couldn't let herself down like that.

Pushing gloomy thoughts aside, determination and strength flashed in her eyes, making Levi's light up as well.

They both got ready and exited the room, locking it and heading to the meeting room where multiple elite squads were, alongside their Commander Erwin.

It will be alright, Petra reassured herself, a hard gaze locked on the doors they were approaching, some kind of coldness creeping up her spine and setting in her stomach. It will be alright.