A/N: This is Reknownst here, and I've caved on another front and have decided to throw a few SNK one-shots out there. While these will be around, I doubt that it'll interfere with Phoenix for those of you that read it. This will be my first fic of the SNK universe and I would be deeply appreciative for some constructive criticism, especially in the characterization. Without further adieu, here's the story.

Armin blinked tiredly. She had started hours ago and she showed no signs of ending. Eren had told him about this once. Once Hanji began her Titan talk, there was very little one could do to stop it.

"Did you get all that?" Armin nodded slowly, hoping that he still appeared even the least bit interested. It had started with a conversation about Eren. Did he ever show any signs of titan behavior? Did he ever display a titanic appetite and so on and so forth, inevitably leading up to where he was now. Hanji called after him again. He willed himself to stay awake, if just a bit longer.

"Huh? Oh...yeah... I understand..." Hanji let out a laugh.

"Well, then! That's a relief! for a moment I thought that you had began to doze off!" Armin sighed inwardly. If she only knew... "Well, for now, I'll listen to any of your theories on the Titans! I do think I've covered most of it, but it'd be nice to hear about them from another's point of view." His face must've been a sight as Hanji's excited expression drooped a bit. She probably hadn't noticed until just then how tired he had been. Armin struggled for his words.

"Well...I...er-"

"It's alright, Armin." Her decision caught him unaware. They had been talking for this long, so why did she decide to stop now? "I know what you're thinking. You never really expected me to stop talking about those Titans..." She looked off a little ways with a small smile. "Truth is, I really just want to know what I'm missing. Moblit is a great assistant and he helps tremendously, but..." She paused, gauging Armin's reaction as she held his eyes. He had barely said a word this whole time. "I need someone with an even sharper mind." The last words seemed to give him a start.

"Well, with all due respect, I don't know if I'm actually suited to be praised so highly..." He looked away timidly. It was a bit nerve-wracking under the eye of a superior, even if he had gained quite a bit of confidence in himself.

"You're just being modest," Hanji remarked warmly.

"Well... I suppose so..." She motioned to a seat closer to her. He was a bit hesitant at first for whatever unknown reason but adhered to it nonetheless.

They sat there quiet for a long few moments in silence. He would've figured it would've been more than enough time to doze off and be relieved of such an awkward situation. Instead, Armin found himself wide awake and sub-consciously studying the squad leader a few inches from him.

"I do know that you've earned that praise," she said suddenly. "Pixis had divulged the plan to recapture Trost, but he made sure to give credit where it was due." the focus in her eyes grew and Armin felt the sudden urge to keep his eyes averted. "Not only that, but even when things didn't go according to plan, I had heard that you somehow managed to talk Eren down from rampaging."

"I...don't really know if I did all that..." Armin sounded unconvincing even to himself. There were those rare snippets he'd hear from people these days. Instead of being called a heretic and a bad influence, he was being praised for that same intellect that had once gotten him into so much trouble. "Irony is a strange thing," he thought to himself. Still, it was nice to hear some of those things. He heard Hanji's low chuckling.

"It's always nice to know that there's other sharp minds out there. With people dying left and right, it's nice to be able to sit down and chat rather than mourn." Her hand thumped solidly on his shoulder then. "You're a good soldier, Armin Arlert."

He became aware of the sudden thumping in his chest just then, as his squad commander looked on him. She was such an eccentric woman, but was only so in the pursuit of knowledge. Rather than strange, he found that it made her interesting more than anything. She stood up suddenly then, stretching her arms out with a tired yawn. She looked to the castle window slits; the sun was peering just over the horizon, which prompted her to give another tired smirk.

"Well, it's daybreak, and I do think you need to get some sleep. You're still a growing boy." Armin watched as she turned her back to him, walking just out of sight before he found himself addressing her.

By name.

For a moment, the doorway was empty before Hanji slowly appeared.

"Armin?" He paused for a moment.

"Please forgive my insolence but... I guess I do have a theory on the titans..." Her eyes widened a bit, and her face changed, into that strange craving for knowledge as Armin noted so often. The thumping in his chest sped up a bit. "The details are a little hazy, but... I had noticed something about one of the Titans we captured, Bean." Armin took a breath. "He looks strikingly familiar to one of my comrades..."

"Here in the Legion?" Armin shook his head hesitantly. Hanji frowned. She had caught how he had stiffened up then, how his eyes had changed into something so sullen and haunted.

"...A fallen comrade, Nic Tius..." Armin's breathes grew heavy then as he felt his disappointment rising back up to the fore. Why couldn't he save them? Mylius, Nic and Mina? He had stood there and watched them all be eaten when he could've saved them. Unlike Eren, they weren't shifters. Unlike Eren, they didn't have a second chance. He had been useless. Despite his intellect, he had been...

"Armin!" There was that same solid clasp on his shoulder then; he blinked and his breathing slowed, settling to short but calmer,shallow breaths. His eyes settled on Hanji, who sighed in relief. "That's enough. There's no need to discuss this theory, not if it puts you through that kind of pain."

"...It could be sometime before I'm ready to speak of it then..." Armin shivered at bit, the images still in his mind, although they were abating. Hanji nodded in understanding.

"Soldier or not, people need their time to grieve." It was his turn to give her a hollow smile. "Poor kid. He's in so much pain..." she thought gloomily. Hanji didn't smile, but offered her hand to him, pulling him up to his feet. "I do hope you find the strength to carry on, Armin."

They held each others eyes for the second time; Armin felt his chest thump a third time.

It had happened in such a way, such a rush that not even his mind could understand, that Hanji couldn't have understood either. Armin noted every bit of texture on her lips, cracked and a bit rough as they pressed against his own, scratching his lips a bit. He had felt oddly warm, oddly comforted with his arms on her shoulders, holding her into place as if he feared she would be gone from him.

It was an odd feeling.

It was a good feeling, impossibly natural.

It was an even better feeling, shamefully so, when Hanji had responded surprisingly well to him, exploring each others lips and mouths. It was him that pulled away with a face of utter shock and embarrassment. His mind was rushing and his heart was pounding, making each shade of red over his face thicker. He became frighteningly aware of the growing ache in his body as well.

"S-Squad Leader! I-I don't know what came over me… I—"

"Armin, Armin," He quieted down, her voice low and soft. "It's okay."

"But this...this is a scandal..." Hanji's eyes fell to her feet, a strangely girlish notion, something that he never would've never expected from a grown woman and especially not from Hanji, who was often always literally drooling over Titans.

"Yes, that's true, but it's something that you...wanted, right?" Armin, stunned, kept his words to himself, only managing a small nod. She tugged him suddenly forward, hugging his head close to her chest lovingly. "So in these times, you can only have things for so long..." She made a brief note of Armin's face then, something slight donning his features that could've been anything. Worry? speculation? Disgust? Relief? It was impossible to tell.

But one thing was for certain: This would be one hell of a problem if the Legion found out.