Had the sudden urge to write Rivamika the other day, and when I asked my friend for a prompt she just said "cherry blossoms". So this is what I came up with :)

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

As a young child, Mikasa loved to look at cherry blossom trees. She had only a few small books where the magnificent pink trees could be found, but every time she looked at them it was as if she was seeing them for the first time all over again. Her mother would occasionally paint them for her and hang them in her room. As she aged, she was taught how to paint them as well, and in her spare time she would find herself entranced in her own brush strokes. Eventually she would place the finish product among the rest of her paintings and stare at the pink and white hues that blanketed her bedroom walls. She longed to actually see one in person.

As time passed and the actions in her life took her away from her beloved cherry blossoms, Mikasa rarely thought of them anymore. She had more important things to concentrate on, and didn't have the time to entertain her childish dreams. However, upon her wanderings throughout the Survey Corps Headquarters tiny library, she found a book about the trees she had never seen before. It was beautiful. There were so many new pictures and facts that she couldn't resist barrowing it. She couldn't put it down. She even took it with her to lunch that day, almost completely ignoring her food and those around her. However as the days passed she was forced to abandon her precious book. Months went by without her so much as looking at the it, during which both Eren and Armin, and several others, had received life threatening injuries during an expedition into Wall Maria.

Mikasa was utterly consumed by stress. Her two closest friends, whom she considered family, were hardly responsive. Although her remaining friends tried to comfort her, it did nothing. No matter how hard she tried to focus on the positive, her heart always hurt and felt incredibly heavy. It was becoming to much for her.

"Mikasa?" A sudden voice brought her back to reality. She looked up from her seated position on the ground and was met by a pair of cobalt eyes. Her body immediately relaxed.

"Levi."

He joined her on the ground and she rested her head on his shoulder. He had been the only one who could truly make her forget about the constant anxiety she felt, especially over the past few weeks.

"How long have you been out here?" He asked after a few moments of silence.

"I don't know." She shrugged and he sighed. He hated seeing her like this and she knew it, but she couldn't help her worrying. Suddenly he stood, taking her hand in his and lightly tugging her upwards.

"I want to show you something," he said as she got to her feet. Hand in hand he guided her into the forest just outside of the Headquarters, and as they traveled deeper into the trees he asked her to close her eyes.

"Why?"

"Just do it." He said, "it's not like I'm going to lead you face first into a tree, if that's what you're afraid of."

After a few moments of hesitation she closed her eyes and covered them with her free hand. He continued to guide her over what felt like a small hill until he finally came to a stop. She felt him let go of her hand and walk behind her, resting one hand on her shoulder and using the other to gently grab the wrist that covered her eyes.

"Alright, Mikasa," he whispered against her neck, pulling her hand away from her face, "open your eyes." Not sure what to expect, she slowly obeyed, taking a nervous peek through her lids and seeing nothing but pink and white ahead of her. She would have gasped had her breath not caught in her throat. She blinked over and over again, unable to believe what she was looking at. It can't be…

"I had it imported from Wall Sina almost three weeks ago," Levi suddenly spoke. She couldn't take her eyes off the blossoms in front of her. She took a step closer and reached out, gently rubbing her fingers over one of the cherry colored petals. It's so soft…

"H-how…did you know…?" She trailed off, titling her head back to look at the top of the tree.

"I saw you reading this book once," He reached back and pulled out her library book from beneath his cloak, "you were so focused on it you hardly even glanced at your precious brother, so I figured whatever was in this thing must have fascinated you."

"I…" She took a step back to look at the entire thing. It wasn't very tall, only a few feet higher than her, but it still left her in a state of awe.

"I'm sorry it's so small." Levi took a step closer to her, "they didn't have many at all, and this one looked the healthiest. It's still really young, so it-"

"I love it," she cut him off, finally turning away from the tree to look at him, "when Eren and Armin would dream about seeing the sea, I would dream about seeing this…I never thought I would live to see one…" She trailed off again, turning back to the tree and thinking how excited her friends would be if they knew about this. Especially Armin…

She felt Levi wrap his arms around her from behind and rest his head on her shoulder. It was rare for him to act this affectionate other than behind closed doors, but he knew how much she loved to wrapped in his arms, and she needed it now more than ever.

"Thank you, Levi," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his for a brief moment before turning around and hugging him properly. She hugged him tightly, burying her face into his neck as he returned the tight embrace.

"I know it's getting late, but…" She pulled away and took his hand in hers before stepping closer to the base of the tree, "can we just…sit here for a little? I still can't believe-"

She stopped as Levi removed the cloak from his uniform and splayed out beneath the tree. After spreading it out completely he sat down, motioning her to join him. She happily laid beside him, resting her head on his extended arm and staring up at the cherry tinted petals she always dreamed of.