Chapter 35: School – Part 3
"Levi, am I stupid?" Eren asks as he sit down next to Levi on the roof of the dining hall. Their monthly-full moon-meeting is today.
"What, no. Why? Did someone call you stupid?" Eren sees it in Levi´s eyes and warmth spread in his body. If he would name someone that isn't treating him right the man would jump up and pull that poor soul out of bed and punish him or her.
"No, not really. Its just that they think I am … wrong. I don't know what they mean with it but they say that me happily training and looking forward to join and everything I do is not normal." Levi sights.
"They are not wrong. You are different because you grew up outside. You never felt imprisoned inside the wall. You never feared what they have feared their whole life. You never lost something to the monsters that awaits them at the end of this training. You never felt hunger or cold like them because many joined to avoid it." Levi looks up at the full moon.
"Is that a bad thing?" Eren watches the captain that is so much more than his mentor, he is more then a friend. He is his family and these months and even years they already spend together showed him that. They can´t really be just Eren and Levi while they have training and Eren misses their time together in the forest, even his time in the castle was different. There were always other people and at the beginning it took Levi a long time to even think about relaxing around other humans. Now they are surrounded by people who think of them as different people and it didn't take Eren long to dislike undercover missions. Still he is here for a reason.
"No Eren, it´s not bad. Be like you always have been. I like you different. Different doesn't mean bad. Its something else then you normally expect. I am also different. I told you about the underground city, about the world with no sky and crimes around every corner. Where life is a survival game and you have to make out your own rules to be able to get up the next day. Today they give me the title humanities strongest. A few years ago I was the demon of the underground. A monster to be feared. You are not wrong and can be happy because your heart is full with freedom and you share it with everyone. Stay like you are." Eren smiles and rests his head on Levi´s shoulders. "But stop growing. You are already taller than me." Eren giggles.
"Can´t help it the food is too good." Levi looks at him with a huff.
"Brat you are not eating." That gives him a full-blown laugh.
"Yeah, but Armin told me to say that." Eren counters.
"Oh, did he? That little shit will run some extra rounds tomorrow." Eren let his laughing slowly die out.
"I still think they are here. But I can´t tell who. It all smells the same in some way and Mikasa told me not to sniff on people. If I had to say something, I would say there are more then two. At least three, if not more. I never met them in their titan form, so I don't really know. Do I really have to stay here when the three years are over?"
"No, you will come back with me and hopefully they will join us as well. So we have them right under our nose." Levi pets Eren´s hair. He misses this feeling and is already counting the days when it is time to return to the castle.
"I miss the outside." Eren didn't want to say it but it slipped out, it doesn't matter anyway because Levi understands what he means.
"I know. I can´t wait for our next mission. They are almost done with the titans inside the wall. Shitty Four-eye will let me know when it is done." They both know that it will take months to clean out inside of Wall Maria. They already invested lots of resources for it and the graduation isn't so far off. Maybe both will be done at the same time. Eren hopes so. He wants to out again, riding his horse next to Levi and feel the wind. He wants to take out Armin and Mikasa and find the ocean and the field of sand and the earth of ice and the lake of fire. So much he hadn't know exists outside the walls, outside his territory and the forest. So much to see and Eren wants to see it all. Feeling the freedom.