Slowly but surely both the shop and home above it began to change.

It had taken three days of intense cleaning for Levi to finally deem the shop okay by his standards. Dust had been expected; in fact, a mere coating of dust would have only taken them a day to rid the place of. But Petra quickly learned that it was not just dust that littered the soon to be tea shop.

If not from the musty smell or shattered bottles and mugs, the broken, decrepit decor was enough of a giveaway to the young woman that an ale house was the last business to have thrived in the venue. She knew Levi well enough to know just how disgusted he must have been with the place, profanities slinging from his lips with each new cleaning task he took on, damning Flegel and the previous shop keepers. She could not blame him though; she had never come across a place so filthy, and could have sworn she would never come across anything stickier than the male trainee cabins.

But after three days of nonstop cleaning, three days of bathing and passing out immediately after just to wake up and continue, the shop had transformed, drastically different from what she had stepped into initially.

After the cleaning of the shop came the preparations, Levi removing built-ins no longer needed as Petra set to work with her sewing. It was a bit repetitive, she had to admit, napkin after napkin, tablecloth after tablecloth; thankfully he was planning to place glass toppers over the tablecloths, otherwise she'd most likely need to make a dozen for each table.

By the time Petra had started making the curtains for both the shop and their home, Levi had already replaced the old built-ins with a wall of cubby like shelving, each big enough to hold and display a canister of tea leaves.

"You look like you could use a break," she said to him as he leaned against the remaining portion of the bar top he had planned to keep. She knew he would never admit it, but she could see the tire in his eyes, a sure sign of his hard work and effort.

"If you want, we can have an early supper and finish up down here afterwards."

He remained silent, his eyes boring into the fabric she had been working to hem, spilling out of her lap. She watched him, waiting for an answer, and partially wondering if one would ever come.

It did, of course.

"We can call it a night here, and get dinner at the pub," he said, slightly taking her by surprise. She did not object, simply nodding her head and pulling the thread through to finish the stitch.


It did not take them long to reach the pub, Petra enjoying the walk that helped to stretch her legs after sitting most of the day.

Upon entering, they took their seats at a table in the back, far away from the after work crowd gathered at the bar top. Their server was quick to take their drink orders, and pointing to a hanging blackboard sign the length of the bar, detailing what foods they were serving.

There were so many things listed, at least half of which available now due to the accessibility to the outside world. They remained quiet, reading, before Petra leaned closer for Levi to hear.

"Captain," the habit struck yet again; she supposed it will take her a bit of time still to break it, "what's a 'tuna?'"

His brow quirked, glancing towards the board where sure enough, he saw the letters T-U-N-A.

"Not sure..." he responded, continuing to stare at the word. In all honesty, he wasn't sure what a quarter of the menu was. With new foods came new dishes, and with new dishes came...well, the question of whether one would care for it or not; a gamble, so it seemed.

But he was not in a gambling mood, and neither was Petra, as when their server explained what tuna was and how they prepared it, she responded with a light 'maybe next time,' and ordered a simple bowl of stew and bread; Levi the same.

They did not linger at the pub after their dinner, as more patrons began to crowd the inside, having closed their shops and finished work for the day. The sun had set by the time they stepped outside, a light wind passing through the streets to cool the town.

"I don't know how they keep up with all the people that come in," Petra said as they began their walk back home. "I'm surprised we were even able to squeeze out of there."

"Probably used to it," Levi responded, his hands slipping into the pockets of his trousers, "Doesn't seem like they've ever been slow." He recalled the handful of times going to the pub with his squad and other corps members, enjoying a well-deserved break after training or even an expedition. It was one of the few pubs that were still in business at the time, others abandoned (as was the case with their shop,) or even destroyed during the attack on Trost.

Petra did not speak, but rather hummed in agreement of his observation. A comfortable silence fell over them, the two continuing their walk home.

They were about half way there when she gave him a side glance, and as if on impulse, stepped closer and latched herself onto his arm.

It had taken him by surprise, a glance of his steely blue eyes confirming what he had felt. But he did not pull away, he did not say a word, for he had no desire to ruin the moment (and knew very well his mouth was capable of just that.) A part of him wished their walk home was a bit longer, and he wondered if leading her down a different path to extend their travel would be obvious.


Their evening back at home had been quiet as it usually had been since they began living there. Petra and Levi had settled into the dining room of their flat, a cup of steaming tea in each of their hands helping to shake loose the lingering chill that remained in their bodies.

Levi had been planning to have the shop ready for opening by the end of next week, as their progress on remodeling the former bar had gone far better than anticipated.

It was exciting to Petra, this new prospect, this new life, this new breath of fresh air that had gladly taken the place of her military career; a career she had never truly expected to come to a close.

But as excited as she was for the shop to open, she could not help but to be slightly happy all the preparatory work would soon be finished.

"When you're finished your tea, I have something for you."

His voice summoned her from her thoughts, the young woman looking up from the half-filled cup in her grasp.

"What is it?" She asked him, taking a sip.

He set his down on the table, giving her a half shrug.

"Can't tell you; gotta finish your tea first."

A slight pout came to her lips as she glanced from the man to the cup in her hands.

"If I down it all at once, would you think any less of me?"

"Only if it dribbles down your chin," he responded, sitting back comfortably in his chair.

Petra paused, her eyes flickering to meet his gaze. A silence fell over them both, a few moments passing. Levi sighed through his nose, and as if obliging to her, rolled his eyes and turned his head.

She grinned, drinking down her tea without so much a drop falling. She sat the cup back down, making sure it produced a clank against the wooden table to indicate to the man she had finished her tea.

Levi looked back to her again, amusement clear in his steel blue eyes. "S'on your bed...I suggest you give it a try as well."

Petra's brows furrowed slightly, and without so much as another inquiring word, she stood from her place and disappeared into the bedroom.

Immediately as she stepped into the room, she caught sight of a dress lying across the mattress. It was mostly black (save for the orange and yellow apron overtop,) a beautiful yet subtle hand printed pattern on the fabric. Crimson embroidered the front of the dress and up into the neckline, while a ribbon laced the bodice; a stark contrast to the white blouse that lay beneath it. A solid wood hanger had been slipped inside the dress, and upon further investigation on Petra's part, a matching black and crimson choker necklace hanging from it.

To say she was in awe of the dress was perhaps an understatement. She could tell it was not something he had just picked up from a tailor, for as common as dresses in this style were, it was the quality of both fabric and craftsmanship that said otherwise.

And it certainly had not been the first time the man had gifted such for her.

Petra turned back towards the doorway, stopping at the frame.

"Levi, you absolutely didn't have-"

"You're going to need something to wear when we open shop; so go try it on and make sure it fits."

She sighed through her nose, his back facing her as he washed their tea dishes. There were just some arguments she knew she could not win with him before they even started.

By the time the dishes were washed, dried, and put away, Petra had emerged from the bedroom once again, this time wearing the dress.

Levi's eyes softened as they befell upon her, slowly folding the dish towel and keeping his gaze fixated.

Petra smiled, smoothing out the apron over the dress with one hand, while the other held the choker.

"I have trouble clasping these things without a mirror...always easier to take off than to put on." she said, taking a mental note to purchase one next time she was out.

Levi said nothing, setting the folded towel aside, and stepped towards her. Gently, he took the necklace from her hand, observing it before looking back to her.

It took Petra a moment before realizations dawned, turning around so that he may clasp the necklace for her to try on.

He brought the necklace around her neck, goose-bumps taking over the skin of her arms as she feels his fingers against the back of her neck, pushing her hair aside, and clasping the choker together.

Levi's fingers linger at the nape of her neck a moment longer, reluctant to pull away from even the slightest touch of her skin.

He swallowed, slowly bringing his hands down and away from her, thinking perhaps she might think him odd should he stayed as such a bit longer.

Before he had a chance to step back, however, she turned to face him, a smile on her lips as she brought a hand up to touch the golden pendant of the choker.

They stood there in silence, proximity close, yet neither willing nor wanting to bring distance between one another.

Petra kept her gaze locked with his, and despite the low lighting of their flat he swore he could see her honey colored eyes glimmering.

He did not move.

And when it was clear to her he was not going to, she finally spoke, smile still as bright as when she first gave it.

"I think everything fits well..." she said, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. Her eyes glance to the floor a moment, as though thinking of something else to say to him.

"You didn't have to...," she said, looking up to meet his steel blue eyes once more.

Levi looked at her curiously, hesitation eminent in her current demeanor.

But before he could say anything, the young woman took another step forward and kissed his lips chastely.

"Thank you," she said, stepping back and heading towards the bedroom once again.

"Petra..." he gently called out, though not entirely he did so of his own free will.

She stopped in her tracks, just before the frame of the door, and turned to face him.

"Yes, Captain?"

He looked her over again, his mind a flurry of wanting to tell her she was beautiful to apologizing for not pulling her close and kissing her back.

"...good night," was all that he could manage.

A simple 'good night'...

And yet despite his lack of words, his lack of emotion, his lack of reciprocation, she somehow knew what he really meant.

She smiled again, nodding her head.

"Good night, and sleep well."