WARNING: Extreme fluff. Y'all probably thought I was gonna say smut lol.

The room was quiet for a moment while Erwin processed her words. His brow furrowed and Aubrey could tell that she'd confused him. Eventually, though, he spoke up.

"A name change?"

Aubrey nodded.

"Yes."

Erwin continued to stare at her, unsure where this was going.

"And what about your name would you like to change?"

Aubrey squeezed Levi's hand. He was the only one who knew what was coming.

"My last name. Daremo is a fake, an alias. It's not my real name."

Erwin's eyes widened and he glanced at Levi. There was no surprise on his face. Aubrey must have already told him. Hange seemed intrigued but not shocked and Erwin realized he was the odd one out.

"What is your real name?"

Aubrey took a deep breath. Somehow, the word still seemed taboo. She'd spent so long hiding it that it automatically froze on her tongue. She forced her mouth open.

"Hilmar. My real name is Aubrey Hilmar."

Erwin was still. He was having trouble forming a response. Eventually, he settled on another question.

"Can I ask why you've decided to tell me this now?"

Aubrey leaned back. Her eyes went to Levi. He was the reason she'd decided to reveal her name, to change it even in the records. She was sick of running from a person she hadn't seen in years. Telling her story hadn't made her upset, it had made her mad. She'd exhausted so much of her energy on a person that had only ever shown her hatred. By running from him, she was letting him win.

"I've grown tired of hiding it. I chose the name Daremo so I could escape my father. But, if he wanted to find me, he would have by now, so there's no point anymore."

"Your father?"

Aubrey turned her head as Hange spoke up. Her expression was as curious as ever but Aubrey could detect concern, too. Her friend was worried about her.

Aubrey sighed, realizing that it was time to tell her story for a second time. Her eyes went to Hange, then to Erwin, and then finally to Levi. He stared back and Aubrey noticed that his usually neutral expression was replaced by a look of assurance. He nodded at her and gripped her hand tighter. If she needed him, he'd be right there.

Aubrey turned forward again, her gaze landing on a dent in the floor. Her mind was already taking her back.

She started off the same way she had with Levi, explaining where she was born, who her family was, what they did. Then she moved on, describing the abuse and torture of her childhood. Every so often she would peek at Hange or Erwin, taking in their expressions. Hange just looked horrified with the occasional addition of disgust or revulsion. But Erwin's expression worried her most. His eyes were closed and his brows lowered. His mouth was set in a permanent frown and it stayed that way for the entirety of Aubrey's speech.

Finally, Aubrey told them about how she'd run away, changing her name in an attempt to avoid her father. She briefly went through her time in the Training Corps but that was less important and her story soon came to an end.

As soon as the last word had left her mouth Aubrey took a shuddering breath. The story had been slightly easier to tell this time but it still put her on edge. Again, she didn't feel sad, just bitter and angry.

The room was silent for a long while as everyone processed what had been said. It was a painful story and Aubrey could still see the horror on her friends' features. Perhaps she'd been too detailed. But even if she had… she didn't really care. It was the truth and she would rather have them know too much than too little.

"Anyway, now you know."

Aubrey finally spoke up when she couldn't take the quiet any longer. Her words seemed to shake her friends from their shocked states and after a few seconds Hange answered her.

"Aubrey, I-... I'm sorry."

Aubrey shook her head, a humorless laugh leaving her lips.

"Don't feel sorry for me, Hange. It's over and done. I don't need pity, I need to move on."

Hange's eyes went dark and she nodded. She couldn't believe that someone so happy and kind had gone through such horrible things. It was… disturbing.

Aubrey turned to Erwin. His eyes were open now but the frown was still plastered on his mouth.

The two of them looked at each other, the intensity in their stares more meaningful than words.

He was, of course, upset to hear about the pain she'd endured in life. But, he was also relieved to know who she was and how she'd come to be the person she was. From the day he'd met her, he'd wondered how she could be such a good soldier, such a natural talent. It didn't seem possible. Now he knew that it was the result of a lifetime's worth of practice, effort, and… pain.

"Erwin." Once again he was broken from his thoughts at the sound of Aubrey's voice. "Will you do it?"

Erwin had to backtrack to the beginning of their conversation to recognize what she was referring to. The name change.

"Of course, Aubrey. I'll have the books updated immediately."

Aubrey nodded and leaned back, her shoulder brushing against Levi's. He'd been there the whole time, holding her hand through it all. She couldn't have been more grateful for his presence.

The room fell silent again and everyone sat in their own minds, thinking and rethinking.

Finally, the scrape of a chair across the floor filled the air.

Aubrey looked up to see Hange dragging her spare chair back to the corner of the room.

"I, um… I'll go now. It's getting late. Thank you, Aubrey, for telling me."

Aubrey stood from the couch, glancing out the window. She hadn't realized just how deep into the night they'd gotten. It must have been close to midnight.

Aubrey pulled her gaze back to Hange, making her way over to her friend and wrapping her in a hug.

At first, Hange didn't know how to respond but after a few seconds, her arms moved and she hugged her back.

"I'm glad I could make good on my promise. Sleep well, Hange. I'll see you tomorrow."

Aubrey pulled away and Hange nodded before she made her way to the door, slipping out silently.

Aubrey stared after her for a moment. It was strange to see Hange be anything but her frenzied self but she also knew that her friend had a serious side. She figured if anything called for seriousness, it was probably the discussion of her past.

"Oi, we should go, too."

Levi spoke for the first time since Aubrey had started her story and she turned to see that he'd already stood from the couch. She walked to him, placing a comforting touch on his arm. She knew he was right. It was late and they needed to sleep, especially if they were going to training in the morning.

But before she could go, she had one last goodbye to take care of.

Aubrey walked to Erwin's desk, moving behind it until she was next to his chair. She met his eyes and felt them piercing through her. He always had a way of seeing directly to her soul.

Slowly she leaned down, placing a kiss on his cheek.

"Goodnight, Erwin. Don't stay up too late."

Erwin couldn't help but smile. Even after everything they'd been through she still cared about his sleep schedule.

"Goodnight, Aubrey."

With a last glance, she turned away from him.

She made her way to Levi, taking his hand and pulling him to the door. In just a few seconds, they'd left the office behind.

Aubrey let out a breath the moment they stepped into the hall. The stress of the evening's events had all been pent up in that room and, the moment she escaped it, she felt a weight lift from her chest. She'd done it. She'd talked to Erwin and told him everything.

Aubrey felt a small smile come to her lips. The worst was over.

She led Levi back through the corridors of the castle and headed for their room. As they walked, her eyes went over the endless amount of doors and hallways. It was strange to her that her last night in the barracks had already passed. Soon, she'd be cleaning out her old room and moving her things into the castle… with Levi.

"Oi, how are we supposed to pick?"

Aubrey glanced at him and saw that he, too, was surveying the doors as they walked past.

"Pick?"

"Yeah, there's so many shitty rooms in this place and they all look the exact fucking same."

Aubrey laughed loudly, the sound echoing off the walls. She thought she heard Levi mumble a 'shut up, brat' but she was too amused to really notice. Apparently he'd been thinking about their moving, too.

When she finally calmed down, she managed to get an answer together for him.

"Yes, well, the doors all look the same but the rooms themselves are different. But these aren't bedrooms at all, they're for storage mostly."

Levi gave her an annoyed look and she had to work to not start laughing again.

"Then where do they keep all of the bedrooms?"

Aubrey paused, an idea coming to her mind.

"Well, should we go shopping?"

She raised an eyebrow, a playful expression taking over her features. She was willing to wait on sleeping if Levi was.

"Shopping?"

Aubrey nodded.

"Yes, shopping for a room."

She giggled when the realization hit Levi's eyes. He didn't say anything but she saw a twitch on his lips. That was enough for her.

She held his hand tighter and dragged him along as she picked up their pace.

"Oi, slow down!"

Aubrey practically had them running through the halls but she still ignored his comment. She was a little too excited.

Finally, they rounded a corner and Aubrey came to a sudden stop. Levi had to dig his heels into the floor to avoid slamming into her.

"Tch. Watch it or I'll run you over."

She ignored him again. At the moment, she didn't really care. They'd gotten to their destination.

"Okay, do you have anything specific in mind? I just want a shower."

Levi felt a jolt in his heart. Suddenly, it all seemed so… real. She'd already thought about what she wanted. It took him a moment before he could speak but he eventually got his lips to move.

"As long as it's clean I don't give a shit."

Aubrey scoffed.

"Oh, come on. There has to be something."

Levi smirked.

"Fine. A big bed."

Aubrey rolled her eyes as she started to pull him down the hall.

"You're impossible."

She ran through what she knew about each of the rooms. Most of them were very similar but there were a few that differed from the rest. The bigger rooms were in a separate wing but she'd avoided it on purpose. That was where the rest of the Special Ops Squad lived. She didn't mind them but, if she could, she'd avoid living next to them.

Finally, she came to a stop in front of the very last door in the hall. If she remembered correctly, it was slightly larger than the rest because of the way it was angled against the outside of the building.

She turned the knob and pushed open the door. She'd been right about it being larger but, other than that, it looked almost identical to the room they were currently occupying. Same desk, same bed, same fireplace, same everything.

Aubrey stepped in, heading for the bathroom. If there was no shower… that was a dealbreaker.

She opened the door and peeked in. Just a tub.

She sighed.

"Not this one."

Levi grunted in agreement and the two of them quickly left, heading on to the next room.

Aubrey took them from room to room only to find that nothing was quite right. Levi was surprisingly picky. Even when she found a room with a shower, he said no, claiming that the fireplace was too small and the desk creaked too much. She'd laughed at him but moved on anyway. She didn't know what they were looking for but they definitely hadn't found it yet.

After a half-hour or so, Aubrey felt like they'd exhausted all of their options. She couldn't think of any other rooms that were different from the standard layout. She was starting to think they'd just have to settle.

But, just as she was about to give up, she remembered. There was a room she'd visited only one time before that might just do the trick. She'd forgotten it until now because it was on the other side of the castle, away from everything else. It had served as the Commander's quarters many years ago when the cabins were still in use. Someone had still needed to stay at the base in case of an emergency.

Erwin had forgone it in favor of a room closer to his office. He'd never needed much luxury in his life. He was much more about practicality.

As far as Aubrey knew, nobody else had occupied it. Probably because they didn't know it existed or because it was an extra five minutes of walking to get there.

"Would you mind going a little... out of the way? I have one last idea but it's a bit far."

Levi glanced over at her, curious about the excited look on her face.

"Lead the way."

Aubrey squealed and yanked his head down far enough to give him a quick kiss. She was sure this would be the one.

She dragged him along until they'd reached the other side of the castle and came to a stop when she finally found the right hallway. It was dark and empty with only the moonlight lighting their way. But that's what they wanted. The fewer people around, the better.

Aubrey searched for the right door and picked it out easily. It was slightly larger and more elaborate than the others. She couldn't believe it. If there was no one using it, they'd really hit the jackpot.

She approached slowly and lifted a hand, knocking hard on the door.

No response.

She smiled. It looked like they might be getting a new room.

Aubrey turned the knob and pushed, stepping in as soon as she could.

The room was huge. A fireplace even larger than the one they currently had was set into the wall to the right. The mantle was made out of wood and had been carved with intricate designs so detailed they almost made her head hurt. Aubrey's eyes slid over and landed on the bed. She turned to Levi.

"There's your big bed." She laughed and slapped his shoulder playfully. She still couldn't believe he'd said that.

But if a big bed was what he wanted, then that's what he was getting. The thing was so huge that Aubrey could hardly believe it had ever been used for just one person. It was large enough that the two of them together would have plenty of room.

Aubrey continued to scan the space. The far wall had an impressive window that would have shown the setting sun had there still been any daylight. In front of the window was a small table with a set of chairs. It looked like a mini dining room and suddenly Aubrey was searching for something completely different. She looked to her left and found a doorway into another area. She pulled Levi along behind her as she went to investigate.

She had to stop herself from jumping up and down when she saw what she'd found. The room was a small kitchen. She could hardly fathom that the room had such a luxury. But, then again, there was only one Commander. If anyone was going to have a private kitchen it would probably be them.

Aubrey looked around, a grin on her lips.

"I could teach you to cook if you'd like."

Levi scoffed.

"I can cook."

She rolled her eyes.

"Alright, chef. Whatever you say."

Aubrey pulled them back back out to the main room, looking around until she found another door. She pushed it open to find the bathroom. There was a shower and a tub. She grinned. The best of both worlds. Other than that, the bathroom just looked like a bathroom. Though, Aubrey figured she wasn't really all that picky. After she'd seen the shower, she was sold.

She shut the door and turned to see what she was sure was a closet. But there was another door. Just how big was the place?

She walked toward it and didn't hesitate to look inside. It was a study or a personal office of some kind. There was a large desk at the center of the room and book shelves lined the walls.

Aubrey wasn't sure what they would do with so much space but more was better, right?

Finally, she couldn't find any more doorways and she came to the conclusion that they'd seen the whole thing. She turned to Levi.

"Well, what do you think?"

He raised an eyebrow.

"You're sure we can actually have this one?"

Aubrey smirked and moved closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Well, Erwin did say to choose any room we liked and I think I like this one." Her mouth was just a few inches from his as she spoke and Levi could feel her breath on his face. It was intoxicating.

A smirk came to his own lips and Levi pressed even closer, his arm sliding around her waist.

"Then let's take it."

Aubrey's smirk turned to a smile and her lips hit his.

Levi kissed her back, setting their pace slow. In that moment, his pain disappeared. The grief lingering over him, the guilt he was sure would stay with him forever… all of it was gone for just a second. In that moment, all he could focus on was Aubrey. She was all he could see, touch, feel. She was everything.

His hand raised to her cheek, his fingers sliding behind her ear and into her hair. Her arms wrapped tighter around his neck and soon they were lost in each other completely. The world could have been collapsing around them and they wouldn't have noticed.

Eventually, Aubrey had to break away for air and Levi paused. He wanted more but he wasn't sure if he should keep going.

He pulled away to look Aubrey in the eyes, a silent question on his features.

Aubrey understood what he was asking and pressed her forehead to his.

"Levi…"

She paused, feeling his breaths hitch at the sound of his name on her lips. Aubrey brought her mouth to his ear.

"I think we should make use of that obscenely large bed you wanted."

Levi didn't need to hear her say it twice.

A/N: Okay, so FLUFFY. I know. I LOVE FLUFF. Especially after so much sad in the last chapters. Had to take a little break, okay?

But, I have a question that I seriously need y'all to answer. Do you want smut in the next chapter? Lol. I don't want smut to become the center of this story but the opportunities keep arising. Plus, they're kind of in a "honeymoon" phase, I think. They spent so long trying NOT to get together and now they have a lot of pent up energy lol. Anyway, if y'all want me to keep the smut coming I have no problem with that. I've already become surprisingly desensitized to writing it. PLEASE let me know, though, because I need to know how to structure the next chapter.

I am glad to hear that so many people are just as HYPED for Book 2 as I am! It's gonna be great, y'all.

Also, I might not be able to update tomorrow because I'm traveling but I'll try! If I don't update tomorrow, it will be the next day.

If you have comments about anything else, please leave them. Like I always say, I am a comment PIG and I will never stop begging for them so… thank you. Every word is very much appreciated :)