Attachment

Author: Cigamina

Fandom: Shingeki no Kyojin

Protagonists: Irvin Smith and Levi are the main focus

Part: 4/?

Warnings: violence , foul language

Rating: will be M

Disclaimer: Characters unfortunately aren't mine, therefore no money-making~ XDDD

Notes: Not too much yet, story starts a few years before the plot in the anime/manga evolves, in year 835.

Please forgive me for making so many mistakes, English is not my native language and I'm sure you will find plenty of mistakes in there! _

Songs I heard while writing the story below:

Flying Steps – In da arena

Music Instructor – Rock your body (Brainbug Remix)

Schiller – Schiller

Have fun reading! 3

Attachment– Chapter 4

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The sun had long sunk below the horizon and he had ignited the lamps in his temporary office, submerging the bleak room in flickering, warm light. He was sitting at his desk, reading through a file that had been delivered to him not long ago. At was actually very interesting to read as it contained an essay-like text about titans, assumptions were being made and ideas had been written down, Irvin was rather impressed. The author, a Hanji Zoe, seemed to have given the things she wrote there a lot of thought. The woman was a few years younger than Írvin and a part of the Recon Corps – he didn't know her personally but she seemed very capable to him from what he read in the file. Hanji Zoe had dedicated herself to the study of titans and Irvin had been rather delighted to hear about it, requesting her essays right away. He, and he was sure that Hanji Zoe agreed whole-heartedly with him, was certain that they had to study the titans a lot more to learn about them, they would never find their weaknesses and habits of they didn't start watching them closely.

Maybe he should meet up with Hanji Zoe once he was back at their main quarters, he would arrange for that once he had caught up with the work that he was sure was already piling on his desk at the headquarters. Being away for a week indicated night-shifts during the next.

He looked up and put the file to the side, rubbing at his eyes. He had been reading all the time ever since returning from meeting up with his sister – and it was about 4 hours later already. The clock had just indicated that it was way past 11 already.

Irvin sighed and seriously contemplated just going to bed, he had done all the work he could do while being here and he felt tired so he probably should take up on the opportunity. He knew that once he got past being tired he would be awake for another few hours without any chance to fall asleep then – so maybe going to bed now was not an entirely bad idea.

He got up and stretched, moving his head to the left and to the right to make his bones crack before pushing the files littering his desk together, attempting at making his chaos appear… less chaotic.

It was already two days since he had met the boy on the street – and he hadn't heard of him since then. Part of him was a little concerned but he had told the boy how long he would stay here – and chances were high that IF the boy came to see him it would be on his very last day here. Or night to be more precise because Irvin didn't think the boy would just tell the guards watching the front door to take him to the commander. No, if he came he would more likely try to get in unnoticed – which Irvin didn't think he could manage as he had told the guards to watch out for him.

That concerned part of him nagged at him a little but he fought it off. There was no sense in worrying – if the boy really didn't come he wasn't worth the trouble.

Irvin was just about to take off his jacket as he heard voices outside of his door, loud voices, and a few of them. Wondering what the ruckus was about he frowned and went over to his door to open it, peering into the corridor that was lit by oil lamps from his doorframe. And he felt a smile tug on his lips when he saw four man walking down the corridor, three of them handling the forth one that was distinctively shorter and resisting greatly.

"Let go of me you shitty bastards, LET THE FUCK GO I'll kill you the moment I-"

"A very good evening to you, too."

Irvin leaned against the doorframe, crossed his arms in front of his chest and smiled at the men that had almost reached. The boy had stilled upon hearing his voice and blue eyes were staring at him, his face that had been contorted with rage relaxed a little.

"Tell them to let me the fuck go!"

Irvin turned his attention to the guards, looking them up and down.

"Is somebody hurt?"

He had briefed the guards that there might be somebody trying to get into the headquarters unnoticed and that they had to be very careful because said person didn't look like it but was probably going to do anything it took to free himself.

One of the guards sneered und pointed at the boy with his chin.

"Nah, as we knew what we were facing he didn't stand a chance. Kicked me in the shins, though."

The boy sputtered and struggled against the three men and Irvin sighed, raising a hand.

"Let him go, then. Thanks for your alertness, I appreciate it greatly."

He had also ordered them to bring the intruder to him directly, no need to bother the commander in the middle of the night, and that he was not to be hurt no matter what. What he needed the least was to increase the boy's grudge against the Military even more.

The soldiers did as Irvin had told them and released the writhing boy. Irvin took a step back and opened the door a little wider, causing the boy to glower at him. Blue eyes flickered along the corridor, obviously searching for exits and possibilities to flee, and Irvin waited. The boy had come here on his free will whatever his intentions might have been, fleeing now didn't make any sense. And Irvin knew that the boy also knew that.

In the end the boy sped past him into his office, huffing and glaring at him. Irvin chuckled and looked at the three guards, one of them holding a bundle out to him.

"He carried that with him, corporal."

Irvin took the bundle of cloth, knowing what it was and smiled at the men.

"Thank you. You may return to your duties. But please stop by the kitchen and tell somebody to bring some soup and bread." He was sure that the boy was hungry – and soup was a perfect start into regular nourishment. People not having eaten properly for a while had a hard time handling more food as their stomachs needed time to adjust to the change. Giving them rich and greasy food right away would only make them sick to their stomachs.

The three guards saluted and returned to their positions, leaving Irvin alone with the boy. He closed the door and turned around, looking for the younger one for a moment – and found him standing close to the window, arms crossed in front of his chest. He was returning his gaze, blue eyes were glowering at him and Irvin smiled.

"You came." He pointed out the obvious, masking his excitement and still lingerie feeling or surprise perfectly. Irvin went over to hang his cloak up onto the coat rack and then returned to his desk, sitting down in his Spartan chair. He was aware of the blue eyes following him around and he looked back at them once he was seated. The expression in them had settled into the bored look he had given Irvin before, seeming entirely uninterested in everything. The tension in his body was giving him away though, the terror of having been caught and dragged off was still clinging to him.

"You're very clever."Irvin smirked and watched the boy's eyes flicker through the room, taking in his surroundings. Maybe checking for exits again. "I came to give back your cloak."

Irvin smiled and inclined his head, lifting one leg to place his ankle onto the other leg's knee, making himself comfortable and showing the other that he wouldn't hinder him do anything.

"That's very considerate of you. How is the wound?"

He hoped that it hadn't become inflamed… it didn't seem to hurt too much as the boy moved around with only a minimal limping to his stride.

"It's fine."

The boy finished his inspection of the sparsely furnished room, returning his gaze to Irvin and arching one of his thin eyebrows.

"That's not much of a fancy room… you're really the corporal?"

Irvin chuckled und put his hands into his lap.

"I am. I'm sorry to disenthrall your expectations but pomp in military quarters is very limited. In addition this is just an emergency quarter that we get to stay in for a few days; at the head quarters I'm the proud owner of a couch, a bookshelf and a painting."

The boy snorted and threw a glance over his shoulder, out of the window before returning it to Irvin.

"Sounds impressive." His voice was as bored as before, his blue eyes not giving anything away. Now that he was done showering people with insults he appeared to be very composed and Irvin took it as a new challenge to break through the act. He wasn't just here for returning the cloak, as much as he wanted to make him believe that. He could have let it at the doorstep or handed it over to one of the guards if he wasn't here to talk to Irvin.

Blue eyes rested on him, narrowing just the slightest bit when he spoke up again.

"You told them about me, right? They knew I was coming."

Smart boy, Irvin thought to himself. Being the skilled criminal he was he might have been able to sneak in unnoticed (after all who would want to break into a Military quarter?) as it usually wasn't guarded heavily – but with guards on the watch out and patrolling the corridors he didn't have a chance. Besides members of the Scouting Legion were in average stronger even than other soldiers as they fought much more and the boy had thus faced opponents that were much stronger than what he was used to.

Smiling at him he gestured for him to take the seat on the other side of the desk.

"Yes."

He shot him a glare, his brows furrowed and he made no move to join Irvin at the desk, choosing to stubbornly stand by the window.

"You didn't know I was coming."

No… he didn't. He had hoped he would but he wouldn't tell him. He merely smiled, not intent on starting an argument.

"I told them there might be somebody trying to sneak in. I thought that was more your style than just giving the cloak to one of the guards to pass it on to me."

Blue eyes were still glaring daggers at him and Irvin held his gaze, not about to lose this staring contest. The boy eventually huffed and looked to the side for a moment and set to say something when there was a knock on the door. He tensed and fixed the door with alarmed eyes, obviously not keen on the prospect of more company. Irvin got up from his chair and walked over to the door, opening it and finding the expected sight before him: an elderly woman that was looking at him tiredly, the guards had probably stirred her from her slumber. She was holding a tray in her hands with the ordered soup and bread on it, gazing at him. Irvin smiled sympathetically and took the tray from her hands, bowing to her slightly.

"I strongly apologize for troubling you in the middle of the night. I won't make it a habit, I promise. Thank you."

The woman laughed a little and returned the bow, waving him off.

"I've been through worse, corporal. Don't work too much, it's already late."

She actually patted his cheek and then turned to walk down the corridor, leaving Irvin with the tray. He blinked and shook his head a little, returned into his office and kicked the door shut carefully. Walking back to his desk and placing the tray down on the polished surface he shot the boy at his window another look, smiling at him.

"Maybe taking a seat seems a little more appealing now?"

It didn't take the blue eyes long to analyze the situation, taking in the big bowl of soup and the two smaller ones, obviously Irvin wasn't the only one supposed to eat. And it took him even less long to stalk across the room, dropping onto the chair on Irvin's opposite and grabbing for one of the bowls hungrily. He started immediately, inhaling the thick soup rather than just eating it. Irvin pushed the small basket of bread over to the boy and it was plundered just as mercilessly, the bread and the soup disappeared in the boy's belly faster than Irvin had ever seen anyone eat. On the other hand… he hadn't ever seen anybody almost starved to death. At least not this close, at the same table as he was sitting at. He was looking at the other in amazement, eating a little from his own share of soup. He wasn't really hungry, he had eaten when meeting his sister even though that had already been a few hours ago. Usually he didn't stay up that long, he rather was a morning-person. He liked being up early when the rest of the headquarters was still asleep, providing him a few hours of peace and quiet where he could get some work done.

The boy was still shoveling food into his mouth and Irvin started wondering where the boy all stuffed it. And came to the conclusion that it didn't matter, he just ate as long as he had the opportunity.

Irvin leaned back in his chair, neglecting his half-empty bowl.

"If you don't stop soon you're going to be sick. You shouldn't stress your stomach right away."

Blue eyes shot him a glare. "I don't care."

Figured. Irvin cocked his head to the side a little, crossing his legs at his ankles below the desk.

"How long has it been since you really ate the last time?"

The boy didn't need to search for an answer very long.

"Never?"

Made sense, though… if he had been living on the streets and stealing his food for a while, maybe years… he had never really had the opportunity to eat as much as he wanted or to take his time with eating, enjoying it. He had eaten to stay alive, no matter where the food came from or what it was. He nodded and watched him a little longer, it didn't take him long to just finish everything that had been on the tray. Irvin even pushed his own bowl over for the boy to finish if he wanted to – and of course the boy did. Irvin just hoped that his stomach would handle bread and soup in that quantity… it should be used to bread but hot food with proteins in it was a different matter. He would just hope for the best.

"Would you tell me your name?"

He had noticed at some point that he had never asked for it and it got tiresome to only think of him as 'the boy'.

The boy looked up from the bowl he was just finishing and paused for a moment, eying Irvin warily. He held his gaze until the boy lowered his eyes, shifting his attention back to the soup.

"… Rivai."

Irvin smiled and then frowned, finding the name the boy had given him a little strange. There was something about the way he pronounced it that was a little odd. When he thought about it, the way the boy spoke was a little odd altogether. He hadn't really thought about it yet because he had just assumed that it was due to the boy living on the streets, that altering his language. But… he was doing something with the R-sound that Irvin couldn't even pronounce. He tried, though, vocally.

"Li… Leva-i."

Blue eyes stared at him and he set the bowl and spoon aside, a scowl settling on his face.

"Why can't you people pronounce it properly? Riii-vaaiii. It's not so hard, really."

It was hard, though. Making a sound that usually wasn't needed in a language was something that needed practice and time. Irvin wondered where he got his name from and why the boy knew how to pronounce the sound properly. And came to only one possible conclusion.

"You weren't born here, am I right? The pronunciation and the way you speak… it reminds me of the people around Karanese district. Have you immigrated here?"

The frown on the boy's face even deepened and he leaned back on the chair, placing his hands on his stomach that was BOUND to hurt. After having eaten so much in so little time Irvin was just waiting for him to be sick.

"…how am I supposed to know? I've been here as long as I can think."

Irvin nodded and thought for a minute, inclining his head a little.

"And how long is that?"

The black-haired boy shrugged and pulled his legs up, curling up in the chair. Irvin mused it that position was comfortable, it had never occurred to him to sit a chair like that. Blue eyes flickered around his office again, looking at nothing in particular.

"I don't know. I've carved something into… a column for every spring that I've seen. To… keep track."

He couldn't help but feel a dull stab to his heart when listening to the boy's words. His voice was indifferent, nothing in it gave away that he was bothered by the fact that he had… carved a sign into a column for each passing year instead of celebrating his birthday, getting presents. He had most likely been all alone for years. That… was bitter. And it meant… that he didn't know his exact age.

"And how many have that been?"

Blue eyes shot him a glance before wandering around the sparse room again.

"11."

Irvin nodded, putting the pieces of information he had gathered together in his head.

"So… you might be around 15, 16 maybe."

The boy shrugged again and watched Irvin when he reached below his desk, conjuring two cups and a clay jug from there. He poured them each a cup of water and the boy reached for it, drinking it at once.

"Maybe."

Irvin refilled his cup and put the jug to the side, taking a sip of his own water.

"You've always been living out there? Alone?"

It still seemed like a miracle to him… how the boy lived through years on the street without somebody looking after him. 11 years plus some years when he had been too young to remember them… that was an awful long time spend alone. He was very, very lucky to have survived.

A thin black eyebrow was arched and he shook his head a little, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Do I look like somebody's spoiled brat to you?"

Irvin looked at him, taking another sip from his cup.

"Not exactly, no." He looked like somebody who had been alone for a lot of time, mistrusting everybody and seeing them as enemies. Irvin had achieved quite a lot, gaining a little of the boy's trust. He had, the black-haired boy would have never come to him if he didn't somehow think that Irvin wasn't worth his trust.

He looked at the boy, thinking that he just didn't look his age… he still looked like 12 to him, small and haggard and unkempt as he was.

"What did you come here for, Levai?" He still didn't have an answer to that, but he was very interested in hearing what the boy had to say.

He shot Irvin a glare and then rolled his eyes.

"RIVAI."

Irvin tried it again, silently, and failed. He couldn't pronounce it correctly in his head and much less with his mouth. So…

"…I'll just stick to Levi, okay?"

Another glare was thrown at him but for some reason if softened a little after a while.

"Fine."

A little surprised that the alteration of his name was just accepted without any protest Irvin smiled softly. Back to the topic of his interest.

" What are you here for?"

Levi rolled his eyes and unfolded from his position on the chair, placing his dirty naked feet back onto the wooden floor. Once again his eyes went wandering through the room, Irvin's desk and the things littering it seemed to have caught his attention this time.

"I came to return the cloak."

Irvin watched him, suspected that the blue eyes tried to encipher words and numbers written on some of the papers on his desk – but then it occurred to him that Levi most likely didn't know how to read. Having spent all his life on the streets caused lacking education, of course.

"You did that quite successfully."

Levi shot him a glance and tugged a strand of dirty black hair behind his ear.

"Yeah…" His files seemed to have caught his attention, his eyes were brushing over them. Irvin was a very diligent man… but it wasn't showing on his desk. He always had some kind of… chaotic order in the places he worked, always finding what he needed – but to the eyes of others there were just sheets and files littering his desk. Thin lips were pressed together for a moment before the boy spoke up. "What are these?"

He sounded genuinely curious and Irvin decided to answer his question even though he was aware of the fact that Levi had once again changed the subject when he had asked him for his reason to be here.

"They're reports."

A thin eyebrow was arched in his direction and the boy leaned forward a little.

"About?"

Irvin cocked his head to the side, letting his own eyes roam over the stacks of paper, folders, quills and ink.

"About about everything. I need to look at quite a lot of things, read and stamp, give my approval or decline, file my own reports for my superiors. It's quite a lot of paperwork actually."

"Sounds thrilling." Levi nodded and his eyes fastened on Hanji's essay.

"What's this?"

Which didn't surprise Irvin at all, the folder was flipped open and its pages were decorated with little drawings when Hanji wanted to make something visibly clear. Of course that would catch Levi's attention the most.

"It's something one of my soldiers wrote, a collection of information about titans that she put together during her research. That's indeed rather thrilling I have to say."

He nodded slowly and let his eyes roam over the untidy handwriting before looking up at Irvin.

"So… you don't just kill titans?"

Irvin inclined his head a little, still willing to answer the boy's questions. He showed a genuine interest in the whole matter and he took that as a good sign. If he was really interested in signing up for the military he would have to do a whole bunch of learning anyway. This year's trainees had already been in their camps for a couple of months by then.

"The term 'just kill titans' is not the coherent one, I'm afraid. You don't just kill titans… they're rather hard to kill as they have very little weaknesses. But no, we run a lot of research during the missions outside of the walls, trying to get as much information as we can possible get. We're named recon corps for a reason – instead of… elite titan-killing legion or something."

The boy nodded slowly and pulled up one leg to tuck it underneath him, taking in another position that Irvin had never even considered taking when sitting on a chair.

"So you go outside and many people die… and sometimes you don't even kill a single titan?"

Blue eyes were watching him intently and just like two nights ago Irvin was a little amazed about how Levi's brain worked. He was quick-thinking and Irvin genuinely liked that. Whatever had happened to him on the streets for all these years it hadn't cauterized his mind.

"That happens, yes. It's unlikely as we don't get round meeting titans the moment we step out of the gates and mostly we have to kill them to not get eaten; but back when we didn't really know how to kill a titan it was grim reality."

The fatality rate of the scouting legion had even been higher than it was now. With finding their ultimate weak spot they had advanced a lot on their way to free mankind from suppression – and yet it didn't get less dangerous to face them.

Levi watched him again like he was processing everything that Irvin said and put the knowledge somewhere in his mind. Maybe he was doing just that or Irvin was lead by a strong wish that the boy really did.

"Hm… what are they like?"

Titans seemed to become the topic of their meeting today – but Irvin didn't mind at all. He took another sip of his water.

"They're huge, they're mostly grinning and they chase after you the moment they smell you. Their bodies are very hot, making our blades go dull when cutting through their flesh. They ignore about everything except for human beings, as far as we can tell we are their only food. They're terrifying and we still have to learn so much about them."

Levi nodded slowly to himself, was silent for a minute. When he spoke up again he was looking directly at Irvin, keeping his voice just as indifferent and unattached as before.

"Terrifying… are you afraid of them?"

It didn't take Irvin long to answer his question, having answered that a lot of times before. But that was something he didn't really have to think about, it just rolled off his tongue naturally because he really meant it the way he said it.

"No. It would be a lie to say that I don't feel any apprehension when facing them but it's not fear filling me."

Nobody could face a titan without feeling anything, Irvin was convinced of that. It was just the question if you let yourself be swamped by fear or stay calm and deal with the situation rationally. That was what he did, the moment panic clawed at you it was most likely over.

Levi watched his eyes intently, maybe searching for signs of Irvin lying to him, but he wouldn't find any.

"What are their weaknesses?"

Irvin smiled, Levi really did a great job luring him away from the question that was still unanswered. And still managed to stay genuinely curious.

"They only have a few. The problem is that no matter which part of them you hurt or even cut off, it regenerates. You can blind their eyes to make targeting them less dangerous, you can cut their Achilles tendon to slow them down or even make them fall but then you have to be very quick to take them out as they'll heal within seconds. And the only way to kill them is to cut out a large piece of flesh from their neck."

That made the boy frown, he eyed Irvin up and down and then cocked his head to the side a little.

"And how… do you get up there? Or do you make every single titan fall to cut its neck?"

Irvin smiled and pointed over to where he had placed his 3D-manoeuver gear on the floor, ready to be put on in instants if the situation required it.

"That's why we have that."

The frown creasing his forehead only deepened and he looked back and forth between the direction Irvin had motioned to and Irvin himself. Eventually he got up from his chair and went over to the weapon, eying it cautiously. Irvin joined him there, catching the boy's eyes when he looked at him curiously.

"And how does it work?"

Irvin pondered just how detailed he wanted to talk about the 3D-maneuver gear – it was a military weapon and civilians shouldn't be made familiar with its employment, for various reasons. But… he still believed that the boy had come here for a reason that night… and in that case he could tell him exactly how the weapon worked.

He decided to spill, in the end. He explained the whole functioning of the gear, what the wires where there for, the gas, why they needed to carry several blades with them, how they moved when having switched to 3D-maneuver gear, how it was attached to their uniform.

In the end he had the boy staring at the weapon that looked more or less unimposing when it wasn't used.

"That sounds… very complicated."

He chuckled and put the weapon back down, returning to his chair at the desk and expecting Levi to do the same.

"We don't train our recruits for the whole of three years for no reason. A big part of the training is getting familiar with using the 3D-manoeuver gear – even though most people won't use it after graduation."

He watched the boy when he moved over to the window, sitting down on the broad window sill while Irvin spoke. Blue eyes looked at him sharply when he heard the last few words.

"Why is that?"

Irvin helped himself to another cup of water.

"The 3D-manoever gear was exclusively designed for killing titans. The Military Police and the Stationary Guard don't face titans as their jurisdiction in within the walls. Every soldier carrying the gear within the walls needs special permission to do so. It's mostly the scouting legion carrying them when traversing a city on their way outside."

Levi nodded in understanding and tugged his legs underneath him. He seemed to get more comfortable in the room, Irvin noticed. He had his attention fixed on Irvin the whole time, not caring about finding possible emergency exits and such.

"The trainees choose their branch of the military at the end of their training?" "How many join the scouting legion?"

He almost sighed upon hearing his question, the situation regarding that was a little problematic to put it mildly.

"Knowing the fatality rate of the Recon Corps most soldiers prefer to join the Stationary Guard. To get into the Military Police is rather difficult as only the first 10 of a trainee squad are given the chance to join. Given that most of them choose the safer alternative."

While he didn't want people not entirely convinced of their choice in the scouting legion because it would only cost them and maybe others their lives – as harsh as it might have sounded, he didn't need people who felt obliged or pressured to join the recon corps, he needed people who WANTED to be there and give everything they could – it wouldn't hurt for them to have more supply, given the fact that most people joining the scouting legion didn't last long.

"Who would want to stay near nobles and the king anyway…"

That muttered thought of the boy caught his interest. It wasn't too surprising that the boy didn't like nobles and their kind too much because in his eyes those were people who had everything while he and many others had to deal with hunger and poverty everyday– but there was something to his words that he found astonishing.

Irvin looked at him, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"People who prefer leading a safe live without having to fear death every day."

The boy snorted and leaned back against the glass, his thin eyebrows furrowed.

"Such cowardly pricks."

Irvin watched him, thinking about what he said. While it wasn't Irvin's place to judge other people's decisions the boy just spoke his mind freely. And quite clearly… it didn't matter if Irvin approved of people's decision on which branch to choose, even if he had an opinion about it he would keep it to himself. Each soldier needed to choose what he was comfortable with and how he wanted to spend his life, it was a fundamental right to do so and as he was occupying a high position he wouldn't say anything – he didn't need to as his choice of branch already expressed enough.

But the boy's intensity in the way he spoke surprised him – and he liked it. Because he was recognizing a pattern of thinking that he found within himself – less aggressively.

"You think it's cowardly to preserve your own life?"

Blue eyes stared at him, and for the first time that night Irvin saw something burn in them. They had glowered with fury, mistrust, pain two nights ago, but in that moment… it was different. There was a certain determination to them, a rock-solid conviction that Irvin couldn't quite place yet. But he was sensing where they were heading.

"I think it's cowardly to hide and let other people die for me. It's cowardly to watch them fight without helping. Nothing can be changed without sacrifices and people who're ready to risk everything."

He was silent for a while, just looking at Levi intently. A smile tugged on his lips, a most sincere one as there were real emotions altering his features.

"That does suspiciously sound like something I said two nights ago."

It did. There was only one conclusion to all of his even if Irvin was still threading around it carefully.

Blue eyes watched him, the burning in his eyes quickly replaced with his usual bored expression.

"Aren't you smart."

Irvin unfolded his arms and put them on his desk, still watching the boy. Maybe it was time to finally name it, confirming that his expectations were not wrong and that he had done right when inspiring the boy two nights ago.

"So… I take it that, apart from the returning of my cloak, you came here for another reason."

Blue eyes narrowed and shot him a glare but it didn't last long, Levi lowered his gaze and plucked at a thread on his sleeve.

"… three meals a day sounds very good."

The smile on Irvin's features widened and he couldn't help but chuckle. That was all the confirmation he needed; his plan was a success.

He addressed him again, feeling the need to remind him that this decision was a rather meaningful one as it would most likely change the whole course of his life. And that was not to be taken lightly.

"Did you think about it thoroughly? It's a decision that will influence your-"

Levi shot him another glare and unfurled on the windowsill, putting his feet back to the floor.

"Don't make me change my mind." He actually fidgeted for a few moments, for once at a loss of a smart remark. The situation just didn't call for one. "It's not as if I had better things to do."

Irvin smiled at him and got up from his chair, walking over to the boy. Due to his size Irvin towered over him, making the haggard boy look up at him. It failed to slip his perception that he didn't back off at all, holding Irvin's gaze evenly. He held out his hand for Levi to take it.

"I'm glad to hear it. I welcome you to the military, then."

There was a little hesitation to the movement but Levi did take his hand, sealing their contract. And Irvin couldn't help but feel delighted about it all. Because his strategy had worked out just the way he had wanted it to, and because he might have preserved the boy's life for the next few years to come – and because he had, if the boy turned out the way he expected him to, gained a great soldier for their fight against the titans.

Irvin let go of his hand and smiled, thinking through how he should proceed further. There were some things that needed to be done even if the night had advanced a lot.

"We need to go see my commander, he's already waiting for news upon you. But before that-"

He was cut off when the boy jumped off the windowsill, glowering at him and clenching his fists.

"You told him? Damn you, you didn't even know I was coming! I'd just-"

Irvin didn't even let him get into his tirade, he raised a hand and returned the favour of cutting his words.

"I merely took precautions for the case of you showing up. Makes it easier to explain why I would want to take a civilian with us when we leave Hermiha in a few days, don't you think?"

He quieted the boy successfully.

"…"

Irvin nodded and continued, the boy would have to cut back on his habit to speak whenever he wanted, especially when dealing with a superior. But that wasn't Irvin's to take care of, he would learn quite a lot about discipline in his military training. His job was to take him there – and maybe prepare him as well as he could.

"But we need to get you tidied up first. Follow me, I'll show you the bathroom."

The boy stared at him when Irvin walked past him, he could feel his eyes on his back as he crossed the room. But he assumed the boy would follow him when he opened the door leading to his private quarters. He had his own bathroom connected to the small room where he slept, one of the few luxuries his position came along with.

The boy had indeed followed him, eying the new room warily when he crossed it. Irvin showed him the sparse bathroom, including a toilet, a sink and a tub. Nothing fancy but it had all the things needed.

Irvin turned to leave Levi alone when he caught the wary look on the boys face, causing to gaze curiously at the boy. Blue eyes stared at the door, than up to Irvin.

"There's no way to lock it."

He frowned a little and couldn't stifle a laugh, amused by the fact that a boy that most likely hadn't seen the insides of a bathroom for a decade would ask for that much privacy. Usually (and Irvin suspected that he had indeed done that because he didn't know any other way to wash when not living in some kind of house (and the boy wasn't as dirty and smelly as he would have been when not having washed for over a decade)) he wouldn't be able to lock anything when he washed in the river that traversed the town.

Keeping his thoughts to himself he just smiled at the boy.

"I usually don't need to. Don't worry, I'll watch the door."

There might have been the tiniest tinge of sarcasm to his voice but the boy caught it, shooting him a nasty glare for it. He was about to slam the bathroom's door into his face when Irvin walked over to the wardrobe, pulling out a stack of clothing and handed it to the stunned boy.

"Here, I hope they're about your size. I didn't know exactly and got them relying on my visual judgement."

This time the boy did slam the door into Irvin's face and he grinned a little to himself before leaving the room. He knew why the boy was so worked up – but he would have to learn to cope with it. With the knowledge that he was here because Irvin wanted him to be. He was here because Irvin had decided that Levi belonged here – and had somehow managed to manipulate the boy into coming here all by himself. He had to be furious… and Irvin was certainly hoping that Levi was going to turn all his pent-up frustration against the titans.

He went back to his desk and pulled Hanji's essay towards him, continuing his lecture of her research. He would wait for the boy to clean up (he was sure that would take a while) and then they would go see Dallis Zacklay.

Ouf… that was a hard one. 8DDDDD

They're both just so talkative… |D

Next chapter is coming up very soon, I just have to finish the last few paragraphs!

I hope you enjoyed reading! XD