Chapter 33

Sieglinde XII – Green-eyed Monster

"… Baby… Baby… Babe?"

A shuffling of paper.

"B-Babe… What the hell… Baby…?"

Sieglinde wakes up to the sound of Levi Ackerman grumbling from his office. Last night was physically and emotionally draining, and she was out the moment her head hit the pillow. She stretches across the length of the bed like an indulgent cat, and then stands up. The necklace is between the valley of her breasts, a bright purple-white hue under the morning light.

She stalks to the door and leans against the frame.

Her Captain is seated at the desk again, glowering at a piece of paper in his hand. Levi notices her and angles his head a little towards her. "Hey."

She smiles and yawns. "Good morning. What are you doing?"

"Tch. Shitty Four Eyes told me pet names are mandatory, so I'm running through her suggestions."

"Pet names?" It amuses her that the Captain is muttering cheesy pet names at barely seven in the morning. She tiptoes to him and ruffles his black hair, still rumpled from sleep. She presses a light kiss on the hair, smelling so much like the Levi she knows.

His hand touches her by the waist, tugging at her thin nightgown. Sieglinde raises her skirts over her thighs and slides to the Captain's lap, straddling him. Levi lets out a little growl and tips his head backwards for her. Unable to resist, she leans down to press another chaste kiss between his eyes.

"What else do you have on your list?" she asks.

"I have a lot, actually." He stretches out the paper.

"That's longer than my mother's shopping list!"

"I know, right?" He chuckles and starts poring through the list again. "I have the first two down."

"Oh, yeah? Hit me with your best shot."

Levi takes that as a challenge and smirks. He wraps his arms around her waist and tugs her flush against his body, planted firmly on his lap. He gives a predatory growl as he starts ravishing her exposed neck, alternating between kisses and little nips.

"Baby," he breathes against her skin, sending shivers down her spine. He swipes his tongue before biting softly. "My baby… Oh, babe…"

Sieglinde shuts her eyes and runs her fingers through his black hair. She is torn between goading him on and pushing him away, but his lips−oh, his warm lips−on her skin make it such a hard decision. His deep voice rumbles from his chest, whispering huskily in her ear and over her neck and collarbones.

"Levi…" She fists his shirt, gasping.

"What's the matter, babe?" Smirking, the Captain stops his ministrations and peers at her flushed face.

"You're getting too good at this," she scolds him.

"I was just practicing the suggestions, as you told me." Levi rolls his eyes and leans back on the chair. His steely gaze is sweeping over her neck, fingertips brushing over the bites he left behind. Then he checks at her face again and she pouts at him. His smirk widens. "I have more here, if you want to hear them?"

"What else has Hange suggested?" Sieglinde is not sure whether to thank the researcher for this or not.

"Let's see…" He hums and strokes his chin. "Ah, here's one−my sweet."

Sieglinde grimaces.

He chuckles. "Not a fan of that one, my sweet?"

"No." She pouts, childish.

"Okay, then. There's more where that came from." He consults his magical list again and raises his eyebrow at the next suggestions. Clearly, he doesn't approve of the others. "Well, there's honey, sugar, cutie pie, honey bun, sugar muffin baby cakes−what the genuine fuck? Am I gonna go baking? I might as well call you oven or something."

"Levi!" Sieglinde throws her head back in laughter.

"Well, it sounds fucking stupid," he points out, grumpy as always.

"Keep reading." She is still laughing. "There might be something better."

"Fucking hell, I didn't leave the Underground for this."

Always contradicting himself, he pores over the list again with a thoughtful hum. His eyes blink at the next ones. "Darling…? That's a thing? What the fuck…" He drawls out the word, rolling it over his tongue. "Darling… Come here, darling…"

She stops laughing when the Captain tilts her neck to plant an open-mouthed kiss under her jaw. She hums at the wonderful sensation, running her hands up and over his neck and shoulders. What did she do to deserve such an affectionate Levi today? Was it because of the birthday party last night? The gifts? Well, whatever the reason, she basks in his affections and pulls herself closer to him.

Levi is peppering full kisses from her jaw to the slope of her neck, to her collarbone, and then to her shoulder. He bites there, and then laves at the spot with his wet tongue running in slow circles. The delicious friction could only send more shivers down her spine, and it elicits a rather needy whimper from her.

She immediately slaps a hand to her mouth. Levi draws back to see her reaction.

A triumphant smirk graces his handsome features. "Well, that was something else."

"Shut up," she says under her breath, resting both hands on his shoulders.

"Do it again," he whispers against her throat. "Do it louder this time, baby."

"Damn you. You're just−" She swallows back another whimper as he kisses the hollow of her throat. Another unbidden gasp when Levi takes her by the hips and pushes her down against his crotch. "You're just teasing me at this point, you… bastard…"

"What can I say? You're an easy prey." He consults the list again and says, "Kitten."

She shoots him a deadpan look. "You did not just call me kitten."

He shrugs, not troubled at the slightest. He bounces her on his lap. "It was listed here. Along with darling, dear, little bird, little dove. Wait." He squints at the paper closer. "Is it dear or deer?"

"Oh, my god, Levi."

"Tch. If I'm going to call you an animal pet name, I might as well call you something I'm comfortable with."

"Oh, yeah? What is it?"

"Bitch."

"Levi!"

He actually laughs−a rich, hearty sound coming from his chest. This must be the first time Sieglinde hears him laugh without checking at himself. As soon as the laugh slips from his lips, she glomps down on him and rubs her cheek against his own. She ignores him struggling under her as she chuckles and draws back again.

And he is back to glaring. "What's the deal, brat?"

"You were laughing! You look so cute when you laugh!"

"I'm not cute." That murderous glare again. "I'm manly as hell."

"But you laughed!"

"Of course I laugh," he grumbles. "I'm not made of stone."

"But this is the first time."

"And it will be the last."

"No, Levi! I'd love it if you laugh more."

"Whatever." He rolls his eyes and pats her on the thigh. "Are we done here?"

"But you haven't even decided with the pet name."

"Fuck pet names. How about I call you with names I like using?" Levi wraps his arms around her waist again, looking up at her with a smug smirk.

"Brat." He closes his eyes as Sieglinde kisses his forehead.

"Idiot." A kiss on the eyebrow.

"Stupid." Another kiss on the left temple.

"Scrub." Kiss on the bridge of his nose.

"Dumbass." He chuckles when she pounds his chest. He opens his eyes again and strokes her silver hair.

For once, his eyes are soft. "You are my idiot, do you hear me?"

"And you are mine." She kisses him full on the lips, arms around his neck, as he inclines his head to deepen the kiss. She pants as she pulls away from his mouth, catching up with her breath. Another wince tears through her throat as he dips down for more kisses on her neck, tugging at her hair and exposing the white line of her throat. His lips feel so good against her skin. She whimpers again, helpless, even though she's the one on top and he is the one holding onto her.

This feels so good and strange, but still good. She could tell Levi is enjoying himself with this, the growing bulge in his pants a clear indication of his increasing desire for her.

Growling in the back of their throats, their hips start gyrating against one another.

"Levi," she gasps, right in his ear. "Oh, Levi… Levi…"

"Sshh, I know," he whispers back, groaning. "Signe…"

She clings around his neck for purchase, nervous and excited at the same time. "L-Levi…"

The Captain pauses and withdraws to check her face. His eyes soften−kind and understanding. He presses a soft kiss on her swollen bottom lip and gingerly pulls her back to his thighs. "That's enough for one day," he decides, stroking her chin.

She looks at him with heavy lidded blue eyes.

"Tch. You're such a virgin, Signe."

"Like you aren't," she retorts with full force.

"What?" He blinks. "I'm not."

"Wait−" The warm feeling in her stomach turns ice-cold. "What did you say?"

"Oh, look at the time." Levi peels her off his lap and nonchalantly adjusts his uniform and cravat.

"When did this happen?" Sieglinde panics, waving her hands in the air. "When−How?"

"Fix the bed before you leave, Signe. Take the laundry basket down to the laundry room as well. I have a meeting with the Squad Leaders." He smooths down the black hair Sieglinde ruffled throughout their session, and saunters over to the door. "See you later−"

"I'm asking you a question!" she yells, pouting. "Levi, come back here! Levi Ackerman!"

"Bye, Signe!" And with that, the Captain is gone.

The young woman groans and drops herself back on his armchair. It is still very warm and smells like him, as his scent permeates gently throughout the entire room. Sieglinde leans over the table and rests her chin on her forearms, staring at nothing. In fact, she is still catching her breath from the last half an hour or so of messing around with the Captain.

Pushing the wild hammering of her heart to the back of her mind, she pushes herself off the table and sets to the bathroom. Shivering or not, she has everything to do today, even though she is sure that they are not having any more training sessions for now, considering how drunk the cadets were last night.

She takes a shower and changes to her usual uniform with a green scarf thrown around her neck, to ward off the chill−and to hide the bite marks left by Levi. Her cheeks are enough to overheat for another wintry morning, blushing scarlet. She gathers all the used clothes and decides that changing the bed's sheets, pillowcases, and even blanket might delight Levi. She chucks them all in the laundry basket and walks down the hallways.

It is a quiet morning. She is not surprised if the cadets are still snoring in the dormitories. An open window is left downstairs, blasting cold wind on her face and making her skin crawl. She tugs at the scarf to make sure it is not slipping, embarrassed that someone might see the marks. Then that someone would certainly know what she and Levi have been doing so early. She flushes again and makes her way to the laundry, room, thoughts too occupied by the feeling of Levi's lips on everywhere on her, by his deep voice murmuring endearments and quiet growls in her ear, and his hips−

She bumps onto another soldier, shaking her from her−lewd−thoughts.

"Whoa there!" A dark blond head peers over the mountain of dirty clothes and sheets. "You all right?"

"Oh, Eld!" She laughs sheepishly. "I didn't see you there!"

"You looked too preoccupied with something. Can I help you with the load?"

"Thank you." The pain in the muscle of her back ebbs away. "You're up early. Are you in laundry duty?"

"Not me, but some pair of kids in my squad." Eld smiles over his shoulder as he leads the way into the laundry room. More baskets and piles of clothes are gathered here like small mountains. "Got too drunk last night, and I don't think Captain Levi will appreciate them vomiting on the clothes. Are these all your stuff and the Captain's?"

"Yes. Look, you don't have to−"

"It's fine. Gives me something to focus on than the hammer in my head."

"Have you drunk anything hot? Tea or coffee?" Perhaps she could serve him some while he's working.

"I'm all good, Instructor." He chuckles when she rolls her eyes.

Eld Jinn is about a few years older than she is, and him calling her an instructor like a cadet is amusing. He rolls his sleeves up to his elbows and sets to work around the spacious room, effectively making her feel useless. He senses her fidgeting by the doorway.

"If you want, you can help with the detergent."

"Yes, please!" she singsongs and fetches one that smells of lavender and jasmine.

They work together for quite some time, exchanging family and expedition stories along the way. Eld shares that his family lives here in Trost, and he would have gone home for the night yesterday if he did not know about the late-night winter solstice party. Instead of heading back home, he decided to stay here and got drunk. A decision he doesn't regret, apparently.

Sieglinde regales him of her training days in the Corps, some of her earlier misadventures. Some pranks she pulled on her fellow trainees, fistfights and broken fingers to the boys who tried groping her once. Eld is throwing his head back and clutching his stomach by the end of her story.

"I wish I have the same guts as you, Sieg," he says.

They finish with the washing part and proceed to the hanging the clothes part. Eld carries the heavier loads while Sieglinde cradles a smaller basket to her chest, humming as she follows behind the taller soldier. Behind headquarters are long rows of clotheslines. They hang the sheets and pin the shirts and pants. With the weather too cold and the sun not even peeking from the grey clouds, it would take a longer time for these to dry.

On their way back inside, they round towards the front of the headquarters and Sieglinde notices a civilian peeking between the iron gates. She slows down to a stop, senses hitching up another notch to see someone poking their nose into Scouts business.

"Sieg…?" Eld murmurs, following her line of sight.

"I'll catch up with you," she says, never taking her eyes off the person. "I have this."

"Of course." The soldier nods and goes back inside for more chores.

She jogs over to the gates and blinks at the person.

A young woman, although perhaps a few years older than Sieglinde, is waiting on the other side. She has a mess of bright blonde hair, long and curling down to her waist, and clear green eyes. She is as short as Sieglinde. Where the combat instructor has lean muscles all over, this woman is petite and soft, like some highborn girl's porcelain doll. She is wearing a dark blue coat and kirtle, red scarf, and muddy brown boots.

"Um, hi," Sieglinde greets. "Can I help you?"

"Hello, good morning," the other greets, smiling gently. "I was wondering if Captain Levi is in?"

Sieglinde blinks. Levi never mentioned having anyone as a guest today. "Yes, he is, but he is in the middle of a meeting with the other soldiers. Perhaps I could pass a message?"

The woman shakes her head. "Oh, that won't be necessary. I'll just wait for him out here."

Both of them are actively aware of the falling snow.

"You could wait for him in the lobby," Sieglinde offers. She might be okay starting fistfights, but her mother did not raise her to be that rude. She already feels guilty thinking of making this girl wait out here. She opens the gates and lets her in. "I'll get him for you."

"Thank you very much." She bows her head a little.

"My name is Sieglinde, by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Sieglinde." She holds out her hand. "I'm Eloise."

"Oh, that's a pretty name." Why didn't Erwin name me after something more girly?

Sieglinde ushers their guest into the lobby, thankfully cleared out of mess by whoever is thoughtful enough to clean. Her brain wants to think it's Levi who cleaned up here before proceeding to his meeting. The lobby has dark maroon leather couches and a varnished wooden coffee table. Sieglinde weaves in and out of the lobby to serve Eloise warm black tea and the warmed leftover fruitcake from last night.

Excusing herself from the guest, she races across the stairs and knocks on the meeting room door.

Her brother's voice sounds from the inside. "Yes?"

"It's Signe," she says, poking her head round the door. All the ten Squad Leaders and the Captain are here.

"What's the matter?" Erwin asks, fingers laced together at the table.

"Can I borrow the Captain for about ten minutes?"

Levi narrows his eyes in suspicion, and then glances at Erwin for permission.

The Commander nods. "Go on ahead."

When Levi shuts the door behind them, he rounds on her with a feral scowl. "What now, you brat?"

She crosses her arms and lifts her chin up, defiant. "Listen, I know you're busy and all, but there's a lady waiting for you downstairs and I don't think it is very nice to keep her waiting."

"A lady?" Levi snorts and rolls his eyes. "I don't remember having more friends than this idiotic bunch."

"Apparently, she knows you and she's here. Don't keep her waiting."

"Tch. What the shit." He runs his fingers behind his undercut. "Did she say a name?"

"Eloise."

And she gets a front-row seat to watch his blue-grey eyes narrow in realization.

Wordlessly, Levi growls under his breath and hurries down the staircase. Sieglinde chases after him, uncertain if he is upset or what with that menacing look always gracing in his features−but she finds out soon enough when the Captain immediately snarls at his female guest, his sharp gaze oozing murder.

Yet Eloise surprises them both when she throws herself into the Captain's arms, eyes shut and lips trembling. Levi's eyes widen as he stumbles backwards from the added weight, before saving themselves from falling on their asses. His hands are up in midair, as if uncertain what to do, and then hold Eloise by the waist to push her away from him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he demands, voice grating. "How did you find me?"

"Is this your way of greeting an old friend?" Eloise's bright green eyes are glassy with tears.

"Please don't fucking tell me there's a five-year-old brat waiting outside."

Sieglinde catches on to the words, putting two and two together. She observes from the sidelines, the way Eloise clings around Levi's neck and how, despite his constant sneer, he is holding her away by the hips. He is not pushing her away, but he is not telling her to leave either. Eloise's teary eyes, her beautiful face marred with anxiety and relief of seeing Levi, her very body language−and the Captain's own, too.

It took Sieglinde three full months to be able to get close to Levi. Eloise did that in five seconds flat.

She doesn't realize that she has been staring until Levi casts a furtive glance at her direction. She stiffens−standing there and watching them is just plain rude−not to mention the blossoming sharp pain in her chest. The way her stomach drops and her knees weaken. She should not be invading their time together. Clearly, they have personal important matters to discuss.

Levi wriggles free of Eloise's embrace. "Wait, Signe… This isn't−This isn't what it looks like!"

Sure. That's what they always say.

Frowning at him, Sieglinde turns her heels to exit the lobby. Dita Ness bursts through the door.

"Ah, Captain, Sieg! Excellent timing! I need help!"

"What happened?" Levi demands.

"The locks in the stables broke! The horses are running free across headquarters!"

"Oh, no! Who's out there?" Sieglinde joins the Team Leader out into the open fields.

Sure enough, a dozen or so horses are having a blast running across the courtyard. Good thing their Trost headquarters is enclosed inside walls and gates.

"Can you send people to round up the horses? I can take a look on the locks, if you want."

"That's-That sounds great." Dita sighs and wipes the sweat off his brow. "Sorry to trouble you, Sieg!"

"No, it's fine." She smiles, glancing back to where she left Levi alone with Eloise. "I needed the distraction."

She and Dita separate ways at the courtyard. Holding onto her green scarf, she hurries to the stables behind the dormitories and crouches on the massive wooden gate. The hinges are rusty and askew, the steel lock mechanism itself also rusty and hanging off in a strange angle. One mere kick from a cadet is enough to remove it completely. She removes the entire gate and checks inside the stalls.

A dark mare is behaved enough to stay put. "Good girl, Layla."

Layla whickers and dips her great head to drink water.

Next to her pen, a great palomino head stirs and pokes out of the fence. Sieglinde gives a gasp of delight and embraces her old stallion's flaxen mane.

"Hello, Enzo," she coos, running a hand up and down. The stallion whickers and moves closer, bumping his nose against her shoulder. She laughs. "I've missed you. Did you miss me?"

The horse blinks its hazel eyes at her in response.

"I'm sure you did," she says, matter-of-fact, and lets go of the stallion.

She fetches the gate and carries it to the workshop. She passes by under Levi's window and notices shadows moving to and fro inside. Her eyes narrow, but she sets the suspicions aside and drops the gate on the floor. If Levi feels comfortable enough to bring Eloise to his office−their quarters−then, perhaps, he still feels something else for the young woman.

That heaviness in her chest returns. Sieglinde peels off her black gloves to reveal her scarred, burn-marked hands and decides to work on the hinges first. Screwdrivers, steel wool, carbonic acid formula to remove the rust, clean warm water, and towels. She sets to work on the hinges, and then leaves it inside a container with the acid to dissolve the rusting.

This will take three hours, she muses. What should I do then?

She unscrews the locking mechanism next. This is too old and rusty for repairing.

She ignites the forge and throws in the coal, coating her fingers with dark soot. Anvil, hammer, tongs, a steel plate she hasn't used in a while, and a hacksaw. Without the machinery to aid her, a homemade lock should do the trick.

Ah, but shit. I forgot my extra screws in the pouch upstairs. Her eyebrow twitches.

No way is she walking in on Levi and Eloise in their quarters.

Stubbornly, Sieglinde throws more coal into the fire and leaves the headquarters. She touches the bill in her pocket and grasps it tightly.

I sure hope this is enough for a small bag of screws for the latch and hinges.

The streets are frozen from roofs to the paved roads, making them slippery under her boots. Her breath fans over her face in white smokes. Despite the coat and the scarf, she still shivers violently.

I wonder what they're talking about. Her teeth chatter from the cold. Eloise would still be up there with Levi.

Judging from the blonde's words and reaction to Levi's quick denial, they know each other long before Sieglinde came into the picture. An acquaintance from the Underground for sure.

An ex-girlfriend, perhaps? The one with whom Levi spent his earlier years and spent in the bed?

Her stomach coils at the thought of Levi in bed with another woman. She has never really thought of it until now−and it hurts. Eloise must have been Levi's first in everything, while Sieglinde has never really shared anything first with Levi except her first kiss.

Eloise must be Levi's own first kiss.

Sieglinde feels the rush of tears behind her eyes. Why is she thinking about this now?

This is madness, she scolds herself. I really shouldn't be making myself jealous on purpose.

She shakes her head. Anyone can have their moments of jealousy to the ones they love. It is a natural human feeling. No reason to be ashamed for feeling like a human every once in a while, she wants to convince herself.

Besides, Erwin himself said that having all sorts of feelings makes them human. They are not only dedicated soldiers who feels no remorse when slaughtering Titans left, right, and center.

Turning to a corner, a large black horse rears at her right. Sieglinde's eyes widen as she gasps, for once caught off guard in her surroundings, and throws herself out of the way of the carriage.

"You wench!" the coachman shouts at her. "Watch where you're going!"

"Sorry!" she sputters, shrinking in shame under her coat.

"If you wanna kill yourself, feed yourself to the Titans, you damned Scout!"

Normally, she would have flared out, but the fire in her has gone out. She watches, helpless and powerless, as the dark-faced coachman spits near her feet−his obvious indication of his disrespect for her as a human and a soldier of the Scouts−and drives his carriage forward and away.

She watches the carriage disappear without much confidence in herself.

I should really get going.

She spots a small hardware store in the center of town, buys her bag of screws and some extra keys in case of emergency. She lets the cold winds stir her long silver hair as she wanders around town, passing the time alone. Her feet take her to the wishing fountain, her favorite spot in Trost.

The area is empty, but for the old man who always sells candles. The fountain is frozen from its angel ornament above, down to the lowest rim, the water solid and hard as the ground itself. No candles, too. She supposes no one wants to wish for anything in a cold winter solstice. The lone old man curled up on the bench, holding out one arm to his cart of candles, is a sight that makes her heart ache even more.

Does he not have a family to go home to? A warm house in this cold weather?

She is grateful for the last handful of pennies left in her pocket. "Can I have some candles, Wilke?"

Wilke, despite his missing teeth, smiles cheerfully up at her. "Haven't seen you in a while, Sieg."

"Scouts are busy these days."

She gives him everything she has left. She picks three blue candles, one red candle, and one white candle—for those who died during the Military raid the other day. She still feels the guilt from killing them, even though in official records, Lussier was the one who killed them.

"Aren't you going home for the day? It's too cold to be camping out here."

"I'll go home," he promises, "once I sell all my candles."

"Oh, I understand." As far as she could see, there are still many candles left. "Well, I have to go back."

"Be careful out there, Sieg." Wilke waves a hand.

"Thank you! You, too!"

When she returns to the headquarters, she passes under Levi's windows again. This time, there are no shadows moving around.

Perhaps Eloise has gone? And Levi took her somewhere else?

She bites at her lower lip, mentally berating herself for making herself jealous again. She sighs and returns to her still blazing forge, lays out the tools she bought, and starts working on the gate.

Eight hours later, hunched over the forge, she finishes with everything she has to do. The hinges are free from rust and very smooth to the touch. The locking mechanism is switched from a simple latch to a more secure proof deadbolt, with the key handed over to Dita Ness later.

She sighs and collapses back on her chair. Her fingers are tingling from the constant hammering. Her hands up to her elbow are covered with dark soot. She is aware that a soot must be clinging on her cheeks as well. She smells of smoke and coal dust for sure. Sweat rolls down the length of her back.

Ugh. I feel disgusting.

A hot shower should make her feel better.

She throws cool water to the forge, throwing more thick black smoke in her face. She coughs, tears stinging her eyes, as she drags the gate with the newly installed deadbolt and hinges.

The night is colder, the snow falling heavier. Dita Ness is at the stables waiting for her, and she helps him attach the gate to the post, before calling it a day and trudging back to the private headquarters with the worst back pain and shoulder ache known to mankind.

The door to her shared room with Levi opens. He didn't lock it?

Peering inside, there's no one home. Nothing out of place either. I wonder where Levi is.

She tiptoes across the room as if she has not slept the last week here. She is afraid to breathe louder than she should or knock a furniture an inch from its rightful place. Levi would know at once if something is amiss. She dares not incite another bout of anger if she messes with his furniture.

He's not here, she assures herself. He's probably out there entertaining Eloise.

She removes the leather harnesses and toes her boots off. Coat, shirt, and pants neatly to the side. Levi would not want to return and see a pile of dirty clothes on his clean carpet.

She rakes her soot-covered fingers through her hair and steps into the bathroom. She is bare from head to toe−except for the purple-white rock dangling from its thin silver chain, nestled in the valley of her breasts.

The hot water feels so refreshing against her skin. She closes her eyes and sighs in satisfaction, imagining the dirt from the workshop melting away from her body and swirling down the drain. It feels so heavenly that it feels like the tension from today's long day is seeping out of her pores, too.

Just as well. She needs to release some steam from such an exhausting day.

She is too engrossed in soaking herself with the hot water that she doesn't notice someone entering the bathroom until the door clicks shut behind her.

With a start, Sieglinde whirls around, grabbing anything she could use as a weapon−but this is a bathroom and the only plausible weapon at arm's reach is the soap. Can a soap break someone's skull?

Let's find out.

Then Levi himself pushes the shower curtain aside. His face is devoid of any human emotion.

Sieglinde gasps and backs against the stall. The bathroom itself is small, and the shower stall even smaller. It could hold no more than two persons inside, but somehow, the Captain makes it seem more cramped. She gulps, the hot water pattering above her head, as he draws the curtains close behind him again.

They stare at each other for a few dumb moments. Sieglinde's eyes are locked on his steely gaze, and then travel lower−to his neck, broad shoulders (stitches from the last expedition and all), his chest and the tight muscles rippling on his stomach. Then she immediately blushes at the realization.

Levi is naked.

Author's Notes: Hange is the official MVP for telling Levi the existence of pet names.

Also, I'm updating this story while in a middle of a roadtrip. I would just like to explain the basis of Levi having been with "another woman" during his Underground days. I know some people think that Levi is a virgin, that he hasn't been in any relationships whatsoever, etc. While I do believe that Levi hasn't had a real romantic relationship, I could still imagine him having been with someone else before. He had been a teenager once. He might have had a curious phase (with Furlan, LOL). You know... like a one-time occurrence with a woman. Since he used to work as a thug, he might have taken the advantage and used his good looks to charm a lady for information. However, I don't think he would be the kind of going around the city, sleeping left and right with others. He's still a germaphobe, after all. But of course, this is just my opinion.

Many, many thanks to all the kind reviews! Your reviews are always a highlight of my day! I'm sincerely grateful to everyone taking their time to read and even review. I'm glad that you're liking the relationship between Sieg and Erwin, and especially Sieg and Levi so far! Special shoutout to: Ridethelightning26, starrat, lizyeh2000, Crazy Devil Girl, and to my unnamed guests!

*rixelvelt - Thank you! I'm glad you like the portrayal of Levi so far! Erwin being the big brother and giving his blessing. I do miss Erwin as well. It's been a year or something since he died, and it still hurts.

*bernard.f - Oh, yay! Welcome here! I'm happy you moved over here from AO3! I sometimes forget that I have that account so I barely update there, haha. Thank you for coming over! I hope you enjoy the chapters!

*kksambo - Yes! An Erwin/OC story! Actually, I've had a really rough idea for an Erwin/OC last year, but now that you've mentioned it, I took a week to polish it out. I currently have the story's plot, characters, settings, and everything else planned out. I'm just not sure if people would be interested to read an Erwin/OC story. And I agree with you: I cannot see Erwin with a tavern girl or an ordinary girl from somewhere. His character is really deep and fleshed out, his flaws are one of the best I've seen in manga, and there's no way he's gonna be with an innocent girl. Erwin's girl needs to be as intense as he is!

*MordredVisor - Hey there! Thank you so much for ALL the reviews you've left! I saw you had some concerns about little details, but I'll try my best to address those. Firstly, the shower. The AOT/SNK world is seemingly set in the older times, but not too old. Paradis, at least, is advanced enough to have printed newspaper. They have a canal/waterway system and river gates for their boats. Not to mention the invention of the very complex 3DMG more or less twenty years after King Fritz moved his people from the main continent to Paradis Island. So yes, if they could have all these items, I'm sure they can have something a simple as a shower.

About the castle establishment outside the Walls, I heavily based the first few chapters of this story to the 'No Regrets' manga. During Levi's first expedition with Furlan and Isabel, they stayed in an abandoned castle outside the Walls. They stayed there for a night. Also from what I barely remember from the manga's early days, they explained that humanity was "pushed back" by the Titans that they created the Walls, meaning they had more lands and establishments before the "Walls were built".

As for the wrist blades, I've not played Assassins' Creed (shame on me), but I've based her wrist blades on an Asian movie that I don't remember. I'll have to look it up. LMAO. But good job on pointing out the guns' connection to Nifa! Yes, Sieg did provide some hand on developing those guns, which eventually get to Nifa (RIP).

Again, thank you so much! If you have any more questions/concerns/anything else, feel free to review or message me! I'll be more than happy to explain or give more details. I can see that this has become half a chapter in itself. My bad! But again, THANK YOU!

P.S. Thank you for reading this far, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! A little Levi and Sieg lovey-dovey to lighten up our day! The next chapter will be from Levi's POV, and it's gonna be intense. Please let me know what you think! And if you'd like me to do an Erwin/OC story too, I'd love to hear your opinions! Take care all! Lots of love from me! ❤️