When they arrived at Shiganshina, the moon was already shining in the sky. As they walked through the gate, still on their horses, it looked like they had entered a horror movie set.

Everything was abandoned: the houses, the streets, the stores… There was no one else in that District anymore. At least, no humans, apart from the soldiers. The silence was disturbing. But worse than that, some grunts could be heard in some areas. These were Titans. They stood motionless for lack of sunlight, but still made some eerie sounds.

Levi approached Hange with his horse. She had a dark expression, her glasses reflecting the moonlight. Sitting on the saddle with Levi, Lara was curled up, practically hiding inside the Captain's green cloak.

Noticing her fear, Levi hugged her, pressing her against his chest, in an instinct of protection. The horses' hooves sounded like explosions in that silence, and you could hear the nervous breathing of some soldiers.

Everyone tied their horses to the stables that were close to the gate and soon gathered at the Headquarter based in this region of Wall Maria. Erwin summoned the soldiers to a meeting in the refectory.

"Unfortunately, we lost four of our colleagues on the way here. This will affect our performance directly," said Erwin, staring steadily at the soldiers. Everyone looked very tired and sleepy. There were thirty-six soldiers there, apart from Lara.

"Our mission here is very simple, but has its difficulties," continued Erwin. "We came here only for reconnaissance. We need a complete survey of the District's situation and most importantly, we need to explore the houses and stores, looking for something that can be useful to the population of the other Walls, like clothes, tools or any other material. Who knows, we might even find some preserved food? That'd be great. We'll start early tomorrow. You're all dismissed to go to bed."

"Commander," a dark-haired soldier with short hair raised her hand. "I know we are tired, but wouldn't it be better to continue the mission now? While the Titans are not so active?"

Erwin thought for a moment and looked down, then replied wearily:

"I see your point, Müller. I would also prefer to do everything as fast as possible. But just by taking a quick look at each of your faces, I can see that the mission would underperform. Which one do you think it's better? To use a time period where we know we have a little peace, to recover our energies with more tranquility, or to try to sleep in the middle of the day, knowing that a Titan can open the roof of this Headquarter at any moment?"

The soldiers looked at each other, looking tired. Gradually, they nodded in agreement. Müller also nodded, crestfallen. This was the least worst-case scenario.

"Besides the fact that even today, not everyone will be able to sleep," continued Erwin, "because I need at least ten of you to be on guard, and I include myself in this list. Please, decide among yourselves who will take the first shift and take your positions. Tomorrow I'll give the rest of the instructions."

The soldiers dispersed, talking among themselves who would take the first shift, and soon, the refectory was getting empty. Hange and Levi were next to Erwin, with Lara holding Hange's hand.

"You worked very well today," praised Erwin, addressing Hange and Levi. "How are you doing, Lara?" He bent down to the girl's height. "Were you scared of that abnormal Titan?"

"I almost threw up, sir," replied Lara, raising her eyebrows, "it was disgusting! I feel sorry for the two soldiers who died trying to protect us… They seemed to be nice…" Lara lowered her head, sadly.

"Yes, they were excellent soldiers," agreed Erwin, gently squeezing Lara's shoulder. "You've done well so far. I hope to count on you for the rest of the mission." He concluded, with an encouraging smile.

Lara lifted her chin and hit her right hand on her chest, doing the typical Survey Corps salute.

"You can count on me, sir!" she exclaimed, looking audacious. "Captain Levi has already promised to teach me how to use the ODM gear just like him!"

"Hey!" exclaimed Levi, giving Lara a little push. "I didn't say any of that. I said we would talk, two years from now!"

Erwin chuckled and stood up. Then, he wished a good night to his friends and headed to one of the guard posts for the first shift.

"Alright, young lady," said Hange, rubbing Lara's shoulders, "it's bedtime! You've gone through a lot of emotion today." Hange signaled her to start walking towards the bedrooms, accompanied by Levi.

He decided to be on guard in the first shift and said bye to the girls. Hange and Lara crashed out in less than two minutes in their beds.

Lara spent the next day locked in the HQ, feeling extremely useless. She begged to help with something, but Hange and Levi forbade her to even step out of there.

She spent the day exploring the HQ, feeling out of place. Every now and then, a soldier would run past her, visibly scared by something or always in a big hurry. She even tried offering help to load the carts with the utilities the soldiers were able to collect from the District inspection, but even that they wouldn't let her do.

At one point during the day, Lara heard a lot of screaming coming from somewhere in the District. That made her anxious, because, from the sounds, it seemed like a great battle was taking place outside. She tried to peer through one of the windows, but her view was blocked by the houses and buildings.

At nightfall, she was sitting on the bed in her room, watching some ants line up on the window trim. She was just about to fall asleep when she heard a buzz coming from the corridor and instantly recognized the voices of Hange and Levi.

Hange walked through the bedroom door accompanied by Levi, who had an expression of deep pain. Lara jumped out of bed.

"What happened?!" she asked, startled. Hange guided Levi to sit on the bed.

"He made a very deep cut on his arm," explained Hange, worried, "Lara, please... Go to the second room on the right of this corridor and get the first aid kit."

Lara complied immediately, running out of the room. Sitting on the bed, Levi gritted his teeth. Hange took off his green cloak and saw the deep gash on Levi's left forearm. The wound had ripped through his light brown jacket and gray shirt.

Gently, Hange took off Levi's jacket, helping him remove the belts that held the ODM gear off his upper body. Lara arrived with the kit, agitated.

"What now?!" she asked, heading to sit on Levi's side, staring at the wound. "What do I do?"

"Nothing for now, dear…" replied Hange, helping Levi to unbutton his shirt, kneeling on the floor.

When Levi took off his shirt, Lara startled, her eyes widening. She felt a great pang in her heart, seeing that he had many bruises on his body. His chest and back were heavily bruised from previous injuries. In addition, there were also marks of the belts of the ODM gear. Lara felt like crying when she realized that Levi's gaze was very downcast. He might be in constant pain, but he didn't complain to anyone.

Lara also noticed that, as Levi's shirt was being taken off, Hange blushed and looked away from the Captain. That made Lara hold back a giggle, looking from one to the other.

She was amazed to see how skilled Hange was in first aid. Quickly, she cleaned up Levi's wound and began to stitch it up. He was quiet, only expressing a grunt of pain here and there.

Hange was still blushed and noticed that her hands were shaking a little. She didn't understand what was happening to her, as it was not the first time she took care of Levi's injuries. She took a deep breath and tried to focus as much as possible on her task.

The mood between them was awkward. Hange still looked embarrassed and Levi grimaced in grumpiness. Lara watched him closely and noticed that he was also a little red in the cheeks. Analyzing the situation, she thought that maybe it would be a good time to make a joke, to lighten the mood.

"This is funny…" said Lara, pretending to be thoughtful. Hange and Levi looked at her, curiously. "I didn't know married couples would still seem embarrassed with each other."

At the same time, Levi and Hange stared at her, puzzled.

"W-What?!" exclaimed Hange, laughing nervously. "M-Married? Me and Levi? Ha-ha-ha! Where did you get such an idea, kid?"

"Oh… So, you two are not married, then?" asked Lara, pretending to be surprised. "I thought you were." She lied, looking at the ceiling as if there was something very interesting up there.

"Do you really think someone wants to marry this four-eyes?" asked Levi, pointing at Hange with his thumb. "I mean, look at her."

Right there, Levi realized the nonsense he had said and instant regret hit his heart. Hange looked crestfallen and she lowered her head, pretending to concentrate on the wound. The suture had already been finished and all that remained was to bandage it.

Lara stared at Levi, with an expression that clearly said, "Dude, you got into trouble!" Levi swallowed hard and looked at Hange, who had her bangs covering her eyes. Was it his impression, or were there tears in Hange's eyes?

"I-I…" said Lara, getting up from the bed, slowly, heading towards the door, "I need to go to the bathroom… Be right back!" And she ran the corridor away.

Silence reigned in the room, and the mood, which before was bad, was now terrible. Levi was visibly feeling uncomfortable. Hange continued to focus on her task.

"Children…" said Levi, looking at Hange, "and the things they imagine, huh?"

Dead silence.

"Hmm…" mumbled Levi, scratching his head. "Thank you for taking care of m–OUCH!" He exclaimed, frowning. "Hange, it hurts! Don't tighten it too much…"

Hange was finishing bandaging Levi's arm. Then, she stared at him with extreme indifference.

"Well…" she said, shortly, "Apparently, I'm not even good for putting dressings, either."

Hange tied the final knot in Levi's bandage (who exclaimed another resounding "ouch!") and stood up, starting to collect the blood-stained gauzes, to throw them away.

"Hange…" Levi followed her with his eyes, looking sad. "Wait… I…"

"I'm done here, Captain," Hange stared at him. "I wish you an excellent recovery. Next time you get injured, make sure you choose someone more qualified than me, please."

As Hange started to head for the door, Levi got up from the bed and grabbed her wrist, pulling her closer to him. The two stared at each other, their faces very close.

"Hange…" Levi spoke softly. "I… I…" He was getting up the courage inside himself. "I didn't mean to say that, really. Please, forgive me…"

Hange stared at him. Now, Levi could see the tears in her eyes and it broke his heart even more. It was more painful than the gash on his arm.

"So… Why did you say it then?" asked Hange, with a daring look in her eyes.

"Ah!" Levi clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes, nervously. "Dunno! I have no idea why Lara made that random comment. How can I know what's going on inside a kid's head?" Levi looked at the floor. "I didn't know what to answer and... I said something stupid," he looked at Hange from below "will you forgive me?"

That look made Hange's heart melt and for a millisecond, faster than a flash, she and Levi stared at each other's lips. Quickly, they noticed and let go of themselves.

Hange took a deep breath and slowly nodded. She had known Levi long enough to comprehend he has difficulties in expressing his feelings. That was just another moment it happened.

"I forgive you," said Hange, with a small smile, and then she pointed to the bandage, "is it hurting? Do you want me to loosen it up a little?"

"No, no," replied Levi, gently rubbing the bandage, "it's okay."

Hange nodded and headed towards the door, but was stopped again by Levi.

"Hey, four-eyes…" he called, sitting on the bed. "Just one more thing."

"Yes?" asked Hange, looking dreamy.

"Don't call me 'Captain'," he asked, "you know that, to you, I'm just Levi."

Hange slowly blinked.

"Yes, I know…" she said, smiling, "Levi."

He gave her a small smile and blinked back.

As Hange turned to walk out the door, she bumped into Lara.

"Oops!" said the girl, looking at them, happily. "I'm back! Did I take too long?"

"Were you doing Number Two?" asked Levi.

"Yes…" replied Lara, skipping to the bed where he was sitting down. "It was tough… Worse than killing a Titan."

Hange rolled her eyes, chuckling as she walked out the door.

"Oh, God!" she exclaimed, "you two are unbelievable!"

Little did Hange and Levi know that Lara didn't go to the bathroom at all. But, let's keep this information just between you and me.