Krolina requested a continuation of shy!reader in which 3 year old Reader gets a fever!
Please visit me on archiveofourown if you would prefer the reader insert version and if you want to read it before it is posted here! ID Koyukiy! For these imagines, I will be using the same name, Snow, so that I don't have to think up a new one for every chapter. Different people every chapter, same name for convenience. I hope that makes sense.
Fever
It's been a week now, since Hange accidentally turned Snow into a three year old. She had predicted that by the week, she would turn back into the fifteen year old, abled soldier that she was before Hange came around, but Snow had yet to turn back. Much worse, she had started acting a bit strange, which had both Hange and Erwin concerned. Erwin was paying special attention to her since she stuck to him more than she stuck to Hange. Lucky for him, the most he had to do lately was paperwork, since there wasn't any scouting scheduled lately, only mild planning.
Hange had informed him that because Snow was young and technically still growing, she needed to eat more often than everyone else did. Thankfully, she wasn't a big eater as a three year old, so Hange or Erwin would usually take her to get little meals when she was feeling hungry or Hange would feed her a bottle of milk, the bottle she got from Mike, who had picked it up, thinking it would come in handy. What's been concerning the toddler's stand-in parents the most is her loss in appetite. It wasn't normal to her week long feeding pattern.
Snow walked hand-in-hand with Erwin to the mess hall to get her a little something to eat, despite the fact that she had told him she wasn't hungry when he asked her about lunch prior. It hasn't been too long since she ate, but with her loss in appetite, he wanted to get a little something more into her stomach. Erwin always had to slow his stride because she couldn't keep up with his normal pace, but today the babe seemed more sluggish than normal. She wasn't feeling good, that much was certain, but the last time he and Hange checked her, she weren't ill. Erwin didn't have the slightest idea what was wrong with her.
"Daddy..." Snow called in a pained tone, walking even slower.
He looked down at her and her complexion seemed paler than usual. He stopped in his tracks and knelt down, putting a hand on her forehead.
...Damn it, damn it all!
Erwin quickly scooped her up and hastened his walk. He has to get some cold water into her.
A fever. How did he not notice sooner? She was usually so cheerful, especially when she was around her inner circle of friends. He suspected something was wrong. He should have been more careful with her!
"Here. Drink." Erwin put a cup filled with water to her mouth and she obediently drank.
The water was so refreshing she went in for seconds after she caught her breath from the first drink. Erwin found a clean rag—which he assumed belonged to Levi, he'll return it sometime later on—when he shifted her to hold her like an infant, wet the rag with cold water, wrung it out as best he could with one hand, then placed in on her forehead as he made his way back to his bedroom. It hasn't been too long since she ate and she now had some water, so what she needed was rest.
He lay her on his bed, covering her with a blanket and now she realized that she was feeling cold and tired, so she buried herself further into the blanket. Erwin sat next her, thinking about what he needs to do to keep her temperature down. He should bring up a bowl with cool water in it. If he wipes her down with cool water, that should help with her fever. Snow had started to fall asleep as he was thinking, so he waited until she was fully asleep to get up and get everything ready so she wouldn't fuss about him being absent.
"Snow's sick?!"
"I'm afraid so." Hange responded.
The 104th had noticed she hasn't been running around today, like she had been for the past week and they also haven't seen her inside. When they spotted Hange and Snow wasn't with her, they didn't think of it as a big deal since she was more attached to Erwin, but they haven't seen much of the Commander either, so they decided to ask.
"Erwin is taking care of her as we speak." Hange added. "I was just on my way to check up on them."
"May we come with you, Lieutenant?" Mikasa spoke up.
Having become close friends with Snow in camp, she wanted to check on her. She has never seen her sick, not even that time in camp when everyone seemed to be catching a cold, she had seemed perfectly fine.
"I'm not sure if the Commander will let you. Let me talk to him and I'll let you know."
A bit saddened, Mikasa nodded and watched Hange go on her way. When Mikasa turned, most of Snow's other friends were behind her, now muttering about how bad they feel to hear she was sick. At least she wasn't the only one worried.
"We should get her gifts. If we don't get to see her, she could at least receive some "get well" gifts." the ever kindhearted Krista had suggested.
"We could go to town tomorrow and pick something out." Sasha added excitedly.
Mikasa let a small smile rest on her lips. She knew you would appreciate that.
Hange knocked on Erwin's door and waited for either him to open the door or for his verbal permission to let herself in.
"How's she feeling?" Hange asked as she closed the door softly behind her after Erwin verbally called her in.
She found Erwin sitting on the bed beside the babe. Hange has never seen Erwin so worried over one particular person before.
"She's better. I've made sure to keep her temperature down."
"She ate?"
"A bit. She still doesn't have much of an appetite, but she's drinking well."
"That's good." Hange hummed and found a chair to pull up and sat closer to the bed. "I'm surprised she's in bed and not in your arms."
"She'd be fussy over that if she wasn't sleeping."
Hange chuckled. "I wonder why she clings to you so much."
"I'm not sure of the real reason, but I do have an idea."
Erwin reached over to replace the now warm rag with a face cloth he found earlier. It's been resting in a bowl filled with cool water on the small beside table next to his bed. He wrung it out, folded it, then rested it on the babe's forehead. He put the rag that was one her forehead in the cool water. When the face cloth on her forehead gets warm, he's going to rinse and repeat with the rag.
"After talking with the cadets, I learned that her parents had passed just before she enrolled into the military. They didn't disclose how. I was thinking that she misses them and, perhaps, she was just as close to her father as she's projecting onto me."
"It could be." Hange answered, looking at Snow.
She was sleeping deeply, and her face looked peaceful. Hange counted her breathing and was relieved to know that it was normal for her current age.
"If you need to rest, I can watch over her." Hange offered.
As worried as he was, Erwin was feeling a bit fatigued, so he nodded.
"I'll be in my office."
Hange nodded back, taking his spot when he got off the bed. He's been by the toddler's side for hours, he deserves a break.
The next day, Snow had woken up whimpering and crying. She was feeling weak and thirsty and hungry and just all around terrible. Both Erwin and Hange were there for her, showing her TLC as if they were her real parents. They made sure she had something in her stomach and kept her hydrated and Hange gave her a nice lukewarm bath before putting her back in bed. Her fever was kept down and it seemed she was making a slow yet steady recovery, which Erwin was relieved about. For a small child, a fever can be as bad as the common cold, if not, worse. They simply don't have the medicine they need for a fever and that made Erwin very worried, but he and Hange were managing the fever well. Snow was doing so well in fact that her friends gained permission from the Commander to finally visit her. Erwin sat at his desk, but kept an open ear for any distressed sounds from her. They crowded Erwin's bed and she shyly hid under the blanket.
"Aw! She's hiding!"
"Don't be so loud!"
"We must have crowded her too fast..."
"Snow." Mikasa kneeled on the side of the bed closest to her and rubbed her side through the blanket. "It's just us."
Slowly, she peeked out of the blanket and her face was the first thing in hr line of sight.
"Hi, 'Kasa." Snow softly greeted, her voice slightly muffled by the blanket and Mikasa resisted the urge to pull her into a tight hug. She made a note to give her one when she was back to normal.
"Hey, Snow." Armin spoke softly, but gained Snow's attention. "We brought you some presents to help you feel better."
"You got presents?" the babe asked, still half hidden.
"We did." Krista spoke up, placing a small box next to her. "Here's what I got you."
Snow slowly sat up, the blanket falling onto her lap, and she took the small box. The lid came off easily and she pulled out a silk ribbon in her favorite color. Her entire face lit up.
"So pretty!"
"What do you say?" Erwin's voice floated into the room and her friends looked to the doorway to find him leaning on it.
"Thank you, Kwista!"
As the days turned into a week, Snow had started referring to everyone in the old way she used to before her transformation. It seemed that her memory slowly returned, but it would only be certain things. Perhaps her three year old mind was protecting itself from the horror that was titans as nothing about them had surfaced to her mind, save for the fact that every once in while she would wake up from a nightmare, crying about how a monster was trying to get everyone, including her. Erwin and Hange deduced that her mind was indeed trying to protect itself. For now, they thought it was for the best.
"Look, Daddy!" the toddler held out the ribbon towards him, so he walked over to her to get a closer look.
"That's very nice." he responded and looked at Krista to thank her.
"It was no problem, Sir. It was fun shopping for her."
Her friends gave her their gifts one by one and she thanked each of them, some with a reminder from Erwin when she got too excited about the gift itself to thank the person who gave it to her.
Armin gave her a children's book for her current age. Holding the book in front of her, he very slowly read the title out loud, which she mimicked and everyone practically melted. She just about wanted to read it then and there, but Erwin turned her attention back to her friends.
Conny remembered Snow absolutely loved sugar candies. They were small, multi-colored star shaped candies made of sugar and she couldn't get enough of them before. He found some and had bought a small bag filled with them. Since she was still not at one hundred percent, Erwin took them for her to give to her when she got well.
Jean got her a stuffed toy bear that was almost as big as her. As far as Jean could tell, it was very rare to find a bear that big, but when he saw it, all he could think about was how big that smile of hers would be when she saw it. To him, it wasn't very big—although it was the biggest one he had the fortune of finding—but compared to her, it was huge since as a three year old, she was pretty small. When he presented it to her, the smile on her face was the biggest, brightest smile he had ever seen on her, he found himself smiling with her. As soon as she had it in her arms, she hugged it as hard as she could and she would not let it go. As far as she was concerned, that was the last of the gifts. It was the best one so far, so that must have been the end of it, right? Although, there were more gifts, she had decided the bear won, so Erwin took the liberty to gather the gifts she hadn't yet looked at, so he can give them to her later when the bear had lost a little bit of her attention.
Some of the left out cadets pouted at Jean for stealing all of the spotlight while he smirked and walked taller, proud of himself. Eventually, they came to the conclusion that Erwin would make sure she would get their gifts and she was feeling better because of the items she did see.
In all the commotion, Erwin nearly forgot that he had a meeting to go to and if he didn't leave soon, he will be late. He had to think. Besides Hange, who will Snow be the most comfortable spending an extended amount of time with?
Hange was buried up to her chest with the work she had been neglecting in favor of taking care of the toddler. He can't let any of the cadets take care of her, they're too young, they have other responsibilities they need to attend to and he knows it will be difficult to juggle her and their duties, especially with how ill and extra clingy she was being. He can easily give her to Mike or even Petra, as the red head had expressed she would be happy to help in any way she could, but he remembered how she hid from the red head every chance she got. Erwin was sure that if he gave her to Petra, she would be an excellent caregiver, even Mike would be good to her, but he was sure that if she got upset and wanted her "Daddy", she would get herself so worked up, her fever would probably spike up again, even with Hange's help.
"You want me to what?" Levi narrowed his eyes at his Commander as if he just accused him of being filthy.
Erwin had called him to his office after he remembered that Snow had no problem with Levi being around, even on the first day.
"I believe you are the only one, besides Hange, that can care for Snow and can make sure she won't overwork herself worrying about where I am."
"Are you hearing yourself? Had she not been glued to your side since day one? She'll worry about where you are regardless who has her. What the hell do I have that the others don't?"
"Well, I thought as "the strongest knight" you would be able to handle anything."
Levi glared at him and crossed his arms. "A child's nickname is not enough to tie me to the job, Erwin."
"Levi, you are the only one she answers to without complaint and without hesitation, besides Hange and I."
"Really? What the hell was that reaction to me on that first day?"
"You opened the doors so hard, they hit the wall, the sound startled her. I remember it didn't take much for you to get her to answer to you."
Levi scowled. He's right, he knows he is, but damn it, Levi does not want to spend all his time for the foreseeable future taking care of a toddler who wasn't supposed to be a toddler! Snow was supposed to be with the other cadet brats! What the fuck was Hange doing anyway? Wasn't she supposed to fix this mess she's made?!
"Fine." Levi finally grounded out after a moment of irritated silence. "She's sick, right? What does the brat have?"
Erwin chose to ignore the "brat" comment. "She has a fever. You know as well as I do that a fever in a small child is not to be taken lightly."
Levi sighed. Why did she have to have the most burdensome symptom?
"We managed to keep the fever down, so she's stable for now, but we still need to be careful." Erwin continued to explain as he started to gather the rest of what he needed for this meeting.
Levi rose an eyebrow. "Are you sure you're not the mother?" Then, he quickly headed for the bedroom after he thought he heard a whimper.
Erwin paused. He does sound like a mother, doesn't he? He doesn't believe he's ever been this thorough with one of his underlings. Then again, he's never had someone cling to him like she does. She's spend seventy percent of her time with him for the past week and frankly, he's started to find himself out of place when Snow wasn't with him.
He can't; he can't get used to this. Sure, she's a day late of her supposed day of turning back, but eventually, she will turn back to her fifteen year old self. Then, "Daddy Erwin" will have to disappear forever and he will have to treat her like he treats everybody else, just like he used to.
...
If he didn't know any better, he would think that the thought bothered him.
"I'll be back in a day." he called out to Levi.
"Leave already." Levi appeared at the bedroom doorway. "Before she wakes up."
"I'll inform Hange on my way out."
"Don't you worry, "Mother", I'll keep your little chick safe." Levi disappeared back into the room before Erwin can turn around and shoot him a dirty look.
"I have to leave. I've left Snow in Levi's care in case you're too busy." Erwin poked his head into Hange's study room and with luck, found her there, bend over a couple of research materials.
"Levi?" Hange looked at him in surprise.
"She doesn't have a problem with him."
"Ah." Hange had also seen how Snow usually shies away from people, but Levi seemed to be one of the only exceptions. "Have a good day, Erwin~" she called after him as he turned to leave.
Hange poked her head into Erwin's bedroom about an hour later and saw her sleeping with her new teddy and Levi sat near her, reading and sipping on what she assumed to be tea. Levi looked at her, having sensed someone creeping up behind him and Hange smiled at him, quietly making her way into the room. Hange went over and put a hand on her forehead, then let out a soft sigh.
"She still feels a little warm, but she seems fine otherwise. Did she wake up at all?" Hange asked in a soft voice as to not wake her up.
"She was thirsty." Levi nodded. "She went right back to sleep after having some water."
"Poor dear..." Hange cooed and reached over to pull the thin blanket higher up on her tiny body.
Hange then informed Levi that she was going to get Snow some soup to eat before leaving the room. She returned after ten minutes, letting Levi step away from the babe to do whatever it was he wanted or needed to do. Hange woke her up to eat—which she protested and cried weakly about. Afterwards, she had her use the bathroom and Snow wanted another drink of water before Hange sent her back to bed. She checked her temperature one last time before she called Levi back, so Hange could return to her work.
Levi wished he had asked about lights out. Snow's stand-in parents are very worried about her and as her superior, so was he. He assumed her stand-in parents wanted him to keep an eye on her throughout the night as well, but he wasn't really inclined to sleep on the wooden chair he had next to the bed. Would it be OK if he slept next to her? After giving it a couple of seconds of thought, he decided against it. However, after almost falling over while dozing off, he abandoned that decision and carefully slipped onto the bed, trying to not wake her. He didn't bother going under the covers with her and just lay on his side facing her and fell asleep. The short man awoke to Snow seemingly having a nightmare. She tossed around a bit and the lieutenant felt bad for her. Perhaps rubbing her tummy will calm her, even if just a little? It seemed to calm her enough to keep her from tossing, but she instead starting muttering in her sleep. Levi continued to soothingly rub her tummy slowly, even as he started to doze off, but was half awakened when the babe muttered a pained, "Mommy..." He didn't respond and decided to wait. Perhaps that was all?
"Daddy...?" Levi heard another mutter. "Don't...die..."
Levi perked up to that, awake enough to pull her to him, gently pressing her against his chest.
Losing a loved one is never easy, but learning that a three year old—even if she were actually a fifteen year old—was having a nightmare about losing her parents, pulled at Levi's heartstrings. He was glad he was here with her while she went through it and that he could, at the very least, offer her moral support. After holding her against him, she seemed to finally settle down. Before going back to sleep, he checked her temperature, but didn't like what he felt, so he reached over to pull the wet face cloth out of the small basin of cool water, tried his best to wring it out without waking her (which he was convinced he didn't do a good enough job, since the cloth was still a little more than damp) and placed the haphazardly folded face cloth on her forehead. He thought having her against him while she had a fever was most probably not a good idea, so now that she had calmed down from her nightmare, he put some distance between her again and tried going back to sleep. Usually, he hated being a light sleeper, but in this case he was able to help her.
Hange showed up in the wee hours of the morning to find Levi laying next to Snow with a hand on her tummy. She tried her hardest not to squee at the cute sight and instead burned the image into her mind. That was just about his equivalent to hugging her in his sleep. Then, she quickly checked her temperature, felt that it was still present, but still under control and smiled. She softly called Levi and his eyes sleepily fluttered open. She told him that she can take over now, so he got out of bed and headed to his room. Hange took his place and ended up dozing off.
Hange woke up to her whine, as she woke up to discomfort. This is a huge concern, now that she has time to think about it. Why did she still have a fever? Was she simply suffering through a child illness or was her body perhaps trying to turn back? The only way she can find out is by some simple hands-on. She let he have some water, then carried her to the bathroom, had her use it and then gave her a bath with lukewarm water. After that, she called Levi once again, so she can step away to make her soup, since Snow seemed to enjoy it last time, plus it's good for her weakened stomach.
She didn't seem to weigh more nor did she seem to be taller. No signs of transforming back, meaning she had a child illness, which means she's worse than she originally thought. Hange would have much rather preferred Snow'd be on her way to going back to normal. At least then she would have gotten better when it was over...
"Hello, Knight Levi." the little girl greeted him to fill the silence that settled when Hange left, squeezing her new teddy to her chest.
"What happened to "Sir"?" he raised an eyebrow.
"Sirw Knight, Levi." she responded.
Good enough, Levi mentally shrugged. Silence momentarily settled in once more when she broke it again.
"Whewe is Daddy?"
There's the golden question.
"He's on an important job."
"When is he coming back?"
"Tomorrow."
"Oh." Another moment of silence. "Whewe did Mommy go?"
"Shi—" Levi stopped himself short, he almost referred to Hange by the very "affectionate" nickname he gave her. "Mommy is getting you food."
"Okay."
Silence settled in once again. Good talk, Levi almost sighed. He remembered Erwin mentioned how quickly the little girl can pick up irritated or worried signs. He didn't want her thinking he was worried about something, even if he was worried about everything, but that's besides the point. At least she's eating. It's a good sign, she's on the smooth road to recovery.
"Why do the monstews want to huwt us so badly?" she suddenly asked.
The monsters? Was she thinking about the titans? It made sense, he guessed. If she was having nightmares about her parents, it was only logical that she may have had nightmares about titans as well.
"They're monsters. That's what they do." he gave her a moment to soak that information in, before he continued to speak. "Do you dream about the monsters?"
"Sometimes." she nodded, playing with one of her teddy's arms.
He thought so.
"You're safe here."
"'Cause you'we pwotecting the castle." she nodded again.
Goddesses bless this child.
After another moment, Hange returned with her hot soup, sat next to her and started feeding her. Levi stayed seated, reading a book he brought with him for quiet moments like these.
"Your friends want to see you." Hange spoke as she was feeding her the last couple of spoons. "Would you like them to visit?"
"Yeah! I want to see Sniffy, too." the little girl responded with a big smile.
"Aw, sweety~" Hange cooed, with a giggle. Snow has been having little conversations with him here and there and she got along with him pretty well. It seems she grew a little bond with him. Unfortunately, Mike had accompanied Erwin to the meeting, so hopefully she'll be happy with just her friends.
Levi silently stood up, gave Hange a look that said "I'll get them" and then left the room. Hange smiled after him. He, too, seemed to enjoy keeping her company, even if he wants to deny it. He came back quickly with her friends trailing excitedly behind him and she shied away a bit. Hange mentally shook her head as she chuckled. She said she wanted to see them, what was she getting so bashful for? Mikasa sat down beside her with a small smile.
"'Kasa." Snow acknowledged her.
"How are you feeling?"
"I'm full."
Huh? Perhaps she misunderstood her question?
"Snow just finished eating." Hange explained with a smile and a ghost of a laugh in her voice and there were scattered chuckles among her friends.
"That's good." Mikasa spoke up again with a small smile, placing a hand on her small one.
She felt a little warm, but not enough to cause concern, she noticed, her shoulders losing their bit of tension. This might pass faster than everyone thinks if her health keeps this up. At some point, she wanted Hange to hold her and once she did, she wasn't letting go for anything. Although she doesn't have any children of her own, she knew and heard enough stories of how particularly clingy small children are when they're sick. In her case, she's always clingy, but not to Mommy, so this is taken into consideration. Hange has a feeling she won't be escaping her for a time, but she still has work to do. The scientist was so close to finishing!
Now that the excitement of seeing her friends wore out, fatigue caught up to her and Levi ushered her friends out of the room. They quickly said their goodbyes and get-well-soons and headed out. Hange gave Levi a look as she started to fall asleep on her.
I have work to finish! She stared at him.
That's too damn bad. He stared back.
Hange sighed, thinking the short Lieutenant was going to let her handle the little girl and up and leave the room to attend to his own responsibilities, but he stayed, waiting for Snow to fall asleep. Then, he came up and gently picked her up, holding her instead. Snow whined; protesting, then clung to him, pushing her face into the crook of his neck. That seemed to be her favorite thing to do when she clung to anyone.
Levi smelled faintly of soap and black tea. She became sad. This wasn't what her Daddy smelled like at all! Levi said he would be here today, where was he?!
"Snow." Levi called softly, sensing her mood suddenly drop. "What is it?"
"Daddy..." she whined.
Shit. Levi knew this moment would come. This is when she'll probably start to stress at the fact that "Daddy Erwin" isn't with her.
"He'll be here soon." Levi replied.
He knew the Commander was most likely on his way, maybe even almost here by now, so at this point, it might be safer for her to let Hange hold her after all. There's only so much "the strongest knight" can do; "Mommy", however, will most probably be able to calm her down the most. Before Hange even had a chance to stand up, Levi shot her a warning stare.
Don't you dare leave this room.
Hange wanted to slam her head against the wall. The longer she waits, the more work she has to finish!
The only good thing here is regardless of the fact that Snow's fussy, she couldn't keep her eyes open. When it seemed like she was sound asleep, Hange shot him a look that said, 'I'll be right back.'
'You better.'
Levi thought he might as well get comfortable since he knew that she will most probably wake up and fuss if he tried to put her down. This was probably not ideal for her fever, but he doesn't seem to have a choice on the matter. He sat down and leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the night stand, then he shifted her slightly, so she wasn't literally breathing down his neck and put an arm around her. If she shifted, she wouldn't fall.
Levi woke up to the door of the bedroom door opening. He doesn't remember falling asleep, but it explains why his body felt a bit stiff. He looked up and found Erwin looking at him.
"About time." Levi lightly scowled at him and put a hand on her back while he shifted himself to sitting position.
"How was she?" the Commander asked softly to not wake her.
"Fine, for the most part. She started calling for you earlier today."
"Good." Erwin replied, picking her up when she started whining.
Snow shifted her face into the crook of his neck, something that he didn't know he missed until he felt her do it.
Missed? He internally scolded himself. This is temporary, stop getting attached!
"Erwin." Levi called, staring at him. "She won't be three for much longer."
Levi must have noticed his inner conflict with himself. He often forgets how perceptive he is. When you think he's not looking, Levi has already analyzed the whole picture.
Her fever was still present, judging by how warm her face felt against this neck, but it was still, thankfully, under control.
Erwin simply nodded as a response to Levi, then placed the toddler on his bed and pulled the covers over her. Hopefully, she'll feel much better tomorrow.
An almost frantic knock rapped on Hange's door. The noise snapped her out of her thinking spell and as the knocking continued, she stood from her seat to get the door. As she was about to grip the door handle, it openly rather roughly and Hange let out a sound of surprise as her name was called with a sense of urgency. Erwin looked at her, a look of worry on his face and a bundle wrapped in a blanket in his arms. Before she could utter his name, Erwin interrupted her with a simple sentence.
"She's gotten worse."
Instantly, Hange put two and two together, quickly gesturing to her bedroom. She was quick in taking the babe and unraveling her from the blanket.
"She's unresponsive. What should we do?" Erwin asked.
"We can't stick her in a bath to cool her down, I'll have to wipe her down. I'll need cold water and towels."
Erwin didn't even respond, he was out of the door as soon as she finished her sentence and he was back as quick as humanly possible. Hange ushered him out of her room when he gave her what she asked for, telling him that if she needs anything else, she'll call for him. She expects him to stay out of the room while she works? She was already in this state when he woke up, what if he didn't get to Hange in time? And if he did, what if Hange can't bring down her fever? He'll be damned if he let Snow go after a week and three days of taking care of her like she was his own. However, Hange had already kicked him out and started working with her. She put towels under her, undressed her and started wiping her down with a cold wash cloth and just like Erwin said, the babe didn't even flinch.
Erwin was unsure for how long he waited for, but he thought he couldn't wait there any longer when he caught himself a couple of steps mid-pace. He gently knocked on Hange's bedroom door.
"I will be in my office if you need anything."
He waited for any kind of response and when he heard a soft 'Alright', he left the room. He can't stay there. He needed something to distract him and he thought a bit of work was what he was looking for.
"Hey."
Erwin was a couple of pages away from finishing a pile of paperwork that had accumulated while he was busy taking care of Snow when Levi walked into his office without even knocking.
"The door was closed." was Erwin's response, code for: Knock.
"And now it's open." one of Erwin's eyebrows twitched. "Your little chick's awake and she's asking for you. Get your ass up and go see her."
Levi didn't even wait for him and left as quick as he entered. Erwin stood faster than he should have, but the thought was gone as fast as it flashed through his mind as he made his way out of his office and to Hange's. When he got there, he gently knocked on Hange' s open bedroom door, quickly catching Hange's attention. She smiled softly, motioning him closer.
"Daddy." Snow whined, when he came close enough.
Erwin sat down next to her, knowing by the tone of her whine that she wanted him to hold her.
"Her fever broke." Hange happily said, while wiping her forehead with the damp face cloth she was holding. "She's still a little warm, but she should be better in no time."
Snow slightly pulled on the sleeve of his shirt, so he finally reached over and pulled her into his lap, the toddler happily burying her face into the fabric of his shirt. He shared a look with Hange as he regretted picking her up. She was most probably not going to let him go anytime soon.
"Are you hungry, Snow?" Hange asked and she nodded her head.
"Hungwy." she repeated.
Thank the Goddesses her appetite seemed to be back at full force. Hange smiled, stood and left the room to grab her a bite to eat. Levi entered the room after she left and sat down in the now empty seat, glancing at the little girl in Erwin's lap.
"How is she?"
"Her fever's broken. I've made the mistake of holding her."
"You either have no self-restraint or you're spoiling her."
"I'm afraid both might be the right answer."
Levi shook his head in disapproval. Why is Erwin doing this? He knows not to get attached. It didn't take long for Hange to return with soup for the little girl's weakened stomach and she happily ate without leaving Erwin's lap. Before Levi left the room, he informed his Commander that he'll be turning in early. He did not get the uninterrupted sleep he was supposed to get and it was affecting him in the worst ways. Erwin approved and Levi left to finish a little something before he turned in when evening rolled around. Snow finally left his lap when Hange quickly scooped her without giving her a chance to cling. She let out a whine that had Erwin's fingers itching, almost getting him to pluck her out of Hange's grasp.
"Bath time." Hange cooed. Snow was slightly sweaty and Hange was sure that giving her a nice, warm bath will get her feeling better in no time.
"I'm returning to my office." Erwin said, moving to stand a bit awkwardly. He was at a lose as to why he felt awkward in the first place.
Hange nodded, taking her away before she decided she really didn't want to go. She waved at Erwin from over Hange's shoulder and the Commander couldn't help but smile at her. Thank the Goddesses that fever mess was finally over.
Full and clean, she didn't want to spend anymore time away from her stand-in Daddy, so as soon as Snow was dressed, she practically pulled Hange all the way to Erwin's office. She was at his side as soon as the door was open. Erwin had just finished the last of his documents and had let out a long, relieved sigh right before the door was opened after a knock. He suppressed another sigh. At least she was her old, bubbly self again.
"Daddy!" Snow happily greeted. He put a hand on her head, her smile growing just from the contact.
"Well, I'm off!" Hange all but said, but was stopped short with a call of her name.
"Thank you." Erwin genuinely expressed.
"Of course, Sir." Hange smiled at him.
Snow was a bit sluggish, as expected from laying in bed for three days. She seemed elated to be out and about, but she didn't have much energy and she refused to be in bed when Erwin tried to lay her down. He didn't learn his lesson from last time and picked her up to attempt to put her in bed, but she were clinging once again.
"No bed." she whined.
"Snow." Erwin was exasperated.
What was he supposed to do with her now?
He thought about laying down with her, but he's busy. There are things he needs to do around the castle that he's been overlooking in favor of her. So, his only option is to take her with him. Once she ends up falling asleep—because he knows she will—he'll put her to rest comfortably, so he can work in peace, without having to work around her.
It was such a relief to see the Commander walking around her. It meant she was well enough to be out the room, possibly even rid of her fever. The blonde man seemed busy, so her friends didn't approach him for fear of interrupting him, but after being stared at, he eventually approached them, telling them that her fever was broken and that she'll be running around again in no time. They had to celebrate quietly, because just like he predicted, she fell asleep, her head resting on his shoulder. He quickly returned to his room, lay her on his bed and went on his busy way. He'll deal with her fussiness when he's finished.
Erwin awoke in the middle of night. Strangely enough, he didn't feel like anything woke him up, so he couldn't figure out why he awoke so early, when he was feeling plenty fatigued just a few hours earlier. He searched for the little girl in the darkness of his room, extending his arm and reaching for her. He stalled his search when he found her, but his eyebrows furrowed as she felt strangely different. He sat up to attempt to look at her properly, the dim moonlight pouring through the windows of his room offering slight assistance for his eyes. She seemed bigger? His half asleep brain was slow to process what his eyes were telling him, but when it finally registered, he took a minute to think before moving into action. It's only been a few hours and she seemed to be around five years old now. If she was to keep this steady growth, she'll probably be stunted by those tiny clothes she's wearing.
He stood from his bed and proceeded to rid her of her three year old clothes in the darkness, noticing that her clothes were already very tight on her which only further proved his stunting theory. She whined at him, a plea to stop waking her, but he quietly settled her, trying to work quickly so she can go back to her deep slumber. He made sure to afterward keep the blanket over her, she will have to sleep naked. If her growth stopped by the morning, then he at least avoided her extreme discomfort. If she were going to be back to her original age by morning, then he can't be caught in the same bed as her, no matter the circumstances. Especially with her naked. So, he took out an extra blanket he uses for cold weather and left the room, turning the door knob to silently close the door behind him. He'll sleep on the couch in his office.
Erwin checked on her once he woke up again in the morning and noticed that the little girl had grown to just about to her original age. He can tell that she wasn't quite there yet, probably missing a couple of years off fifteen. He usually wakes up before some of his lieutenants—save for Hange and sometimes Levi, who were natural early birds—and before the cadets, so she has plenty of time to grow to her original age between now, while he goes about his morning routine to when the cadets go about their morning routines.
"She's growing." he told Hange when she visited about an hour later.
Excitedly, she peeked into his room and sure enough. She was a bit disappointed in a sense. She rather enjoyed being called a mommy and taking care of Snow and vaguely hoped that if she has a child, that child will be just like this little girl; adorable and well behaved. Knowing her luck, her child will probably be hyperactive, but she could see Erwin really having a child like Snow. He seemed like the type to have a calm child. Erwin neither agreed nor disagreed and asked her if she was finished with all her work. It's just like him to change the subject, she laughed, then told him that she'll be back later to leave the girl some clothes before excusing herself and leaving the Commander's office.
Snow awoke suddenly, feeling like she's've experienced the weirdest dream. Sluggishly, she slowly took in her surroundings and recognized this to be the room of a father figure's. She sat up and stood carefully, quickly spotting some clothes folded neatly on a wooden chair near the bed. Curiously, she looked down.
*Why am I naked?*
She picked up the folded clothes, finding that they were her clothes, even finding some underwear. She got dressed, but feeling a little chilly, she grabbed the thin blanket from the bed and draped it around herself before reaching for the door.
"Daddy?"
"Yes?"
Snow froze. That's not her father. She spoke without thinking and now she and her Commander stared at each other in awkward silence. She hoped to the Goddesses that the floor would open up somehow and just swallow her whole.
The Commander hadn't expected he'd answer to that. Having learned to at least respond to it for the past week and a half, it just kind of happened. Now, he stared at one of his cadets in stunned silence, until her face suddenly flushed red.
She abruptly saluted her Commander, effectively startling him out of his stunned state. "I'm so sorry, Sir!" the cadet threw her head back, not wanting to look at him as she vibrated in nervousness and embarrassment.
"Snow." he called her attention after a moment and she slowly looked at him, a bit confused that he didn't call her by her last name as he usually does. "At ease." he paused, as she released her salute. "You dropped the blanket."
"Huh?"
Not expecting him to say that, it threw her for a loop until she looked down. She jumped upon seeing it, quickly bending to scoop it up, but then she merely stood there, not sure if she should enter the Commander's room to return it, even if she just emerged from said room. With a small eyebrow raise and a flick of his hand, she startled, jumping once again with a small noise and disappeared into the room to return it. It's not like she needed it anymore, anyway, she felt plenty warm. She all but threw it on his bed, then quickly exited the room and closed it behind her out of habit. When she didn't move, he called out to her once again, motioning to the wooden chair in front of his desk.
Still emanating embarrassment, she moved away from his bedroom door and sat in the motioned chair. she sat there and watched him work on what seemed to be a new document for twenty minutes in what she perceived to be deafening silence, until she started to sweat. Was he not going to address the elephant in the room? Were she in trouble? Is he just going to work? Why wasn't he saying anything? She shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
"D—S-Sir?"
Snow very narrowly called him Dad again, her face flushed once more. He hummed, not even taking his eyes off of the document.
"Uh..."
She didn't know what to say next. She had a bunch of questions, but she didn't know how to present it to him without sounding desperate.
"Just a moment." he said.
Perhaps he wanted to finish his work? After he left her to her thoughts for another five minutes, he finally put his pen down and stared at her. She stared back, nervously playing with her finger nails.
"What is the last thing you remember?"
Confused, she searched her thoughts. "Lieutenant Hange asked for my assistance with an experiment."
"Tell me what you remember following that."
"Ah..." she rubbed the back of her neck as she thought. "She had me drink this strange liquid. I remember feeling strange and kind of drowsy. I guess I fell asleep after that."
"Do you remember anything after that?"
"After that...After that, I..."
Her mother was holding her in a blanket and her father was standing behind a desk like the one in front of her. She was scared because she didn't know where she was, then the door slammed open...
"My mother and father..."
Her mother and father would have no reason to be in an office like this one...She looked at her Commander for a moment as the pieces in her head started falling into place. Erwin exhaled from his nose. You don't remember. He's going to have another talk with Hange about experimenting on his soldiers. He looked to see your face once again flushed and your eyes watery. Perhaps you remembered something?
"Snow."
"I thought you were my Dad..."
You did remember. Or perhaps you put two and two together somehow.
"Tell me about him."
You seemed to hesitate, but you soon started to speak as you lowered your head. "He was blonde and had blue eyes. He was a proud man, very prideful of his work and he believed in sacrifice to achieve. He was strong, but he was gentle. He was a very serious man and he was a great father. I couldn't have asked for anyone better..." your voice cracked, so you stopped talking for fear of crying.
He now understood. It seemed like Erwin and your father shared enough qualities that you projected everything your father was onto him. With that information, he can only assume your mother must have been an intelligent, energetic person filled with compassion for you to project her onto Hange. Erwin nodded, going through a drawer at his desk and he walked around, placing a hand on your shoulder. You startled once again, looking up at him. In his hand, he held a small cloth bag, which he held out for you. You held your hand out, so he placed the bag in your hand.
"This is a bag of sweets a friend of yours picked out for you. You weren't feeling well at the time, so I put it away for you."
"Th-Thank you, Sir." you sniffed.
Erwin motioned to follow him, so you stood up and trailed beside him as he walked. To feel less awkward, you opened your little bag and found sugar candies, your favorite treat. Placing one in your mouth, you barely held yourself back from humming happily.
"Sir?"
"Yes."
"Thank you for taking care of me."
"You chose me. I didn't have much of a choice in the matter."
The fact he said that with such a straight face, made you want to laugh. You held a snicker behind your hand.
"My apologies, Sir." you said as he raised an eyebrow. "This is going to seem strange, but can you hold your hand out for me?"
That was certainly a strange request, but he did it anyway with curious confusion in his eyes. You placed a small handful of sugar candies on his palm. He gave a blank expression.
"They're good." you smiled, almost snickering at his expression again.
You plopped another one in your mouth before sealing the bag again and he tentatively did the same. Yup, that's sweet. They're not half bad. Your smile widened at his expression, then you looked away and found yourself at Hange's office. Hange looked up from her work when she heard footsteps, her facing lighting up when her eyes landed on you.
"Snow!" she cried happily, practically running up to you and grabbed your hands to hold. "Let Mommy look at you!"
You smiled at her antics, also feeling a bit embarrassed.
"Hi...Mom." you replied with a blush.
Hange couldn't help but squee at you. She pulled you into a tight hug, a wide smile on her face.
"They grow up so fast! Don't they, Erwin?" Hange continued as she laughed a little and you couldn't help but laugh yourself.
Erwin sighed. Hange's ridiculous...
"I want you to check her before I take her to the infirmary wing."
"I have to go to the infirmary?" you asked as Hange led you to a wooden chair and she sat at a chair in front you.
"Daddy just wants to make sure you're completely fine, sweety." Hange responded.
"Stop that." Erwin sighed once more.
Hange laughed and you joined her. Erwin was almost inclined to leave. Hange checked your movements and reactions before deeming you OK. She gave you another hug and you shared a small handful of sugar candies as thanks for taking care of you, before Erwin led you out and headed for the infirmary. Hange practically glowed in happiness. At the infirmary, they also gave you the OK to go back to your life as a cadet after a couple of tests. With that, Erwin was confident enough to let you go back to your friends, parting ways with you to get back to other matters.
As soon as Mikasa spotted you, she pulled you into an embrace, thankful that you were alright. Your friends took turns giving you a hug, which you immediately returned. You found your reversed roll a bit funny, you were usually the one giving out hugs. You picked up from where your friends left off, but since they were already paired for training, you decided to save your strength and sit this one out. After, Levi had called the cadets for a roundup. Upon seeing you among them, he stared, approached you, then put a hand on your head.
"Welcome back, little chick."
Little chick?
"Proud to be back, Sir Knight." you replied with a soft blush on your cheeks and a smile.
"Smart ass." he scoffed, flicking your forehead lightly, before promptly getting on with business as usual.
You startled awake from a nightmare. Sitting up, a cold chill ran up your spine and you shivered, noticing you had a cold sweat clinging to your body. Half awake, you got up from your bed and traveled to the Commander's office. You chided yourself, under your breath. There's no way he'd be awake, it's the middle of the night, but just the thought of the possibility that he'd be up spurred you to lift your hand and lightly knock. You waited and listened, hearing nothing but silence. Of course; you don't know what you were expecting. You thought you should go back to your room, when the door opened.
You stared surprisingly at the disheveled blonde man. His hair was down and slightly messy, his shirt was untucked and unbuttoned lazily at the top and he wore pajama pants.
Crap. Did you wake him up? You don't even know what you were doing here. You should just apologize and go back—
"Did you have a nightmare?" he asked, speaking softly.
Surprised that he guessed right, you nodded slowly. He paused for a moment, before moving aside and signaling to come on in. Surprised yet again, you took a second to move and hurried in when he raised an eyebrow. He closed the door behind you when you entered. You followed him to his desk, watching him walk past his desk to a small table with a tea set up under one of his windows. He poured a cup and handed the cup to you.
"Drink." he still spoke softly. "This tea is good for calming the body."
The drink was hot and smelled good, sweet like apples. He must have made it not too long ago. You took a sip and instantly started to feel better, a small smile playing on your lips. You remembered your mother used to make you this tea, Chamomile, when you had a hard time sleeping as a child.
Looking up, you saw Erwin with his own cup, gazing out the window, his expression solemn. It looked almost sad.
"Thank you." you found yourself whispering.
You had to say something to shift his attention, maybe that will make his expression change. He turned his head to look at you.
"For the tea." you finished in a soft voice.
He merely nodded and you could have sworn his expression softened.
"Take your time." he replied.
"Aren't you tired?" you inquired. You were still pretty tired yourself and you still felt as if you woke him up. You still aren't sure why you walked here fresh out of a nightmare in the first place.
"Very. But, I'm having trouble falling asleep."
"I didn't wake you, did I...?"
"No. I was making tea."
"R-Right..." Now you felt silly.
Silence settled between you two, serene and comfortable. Now that he eased your doubt, you felt completely at ease, a soft sigh leaving your lips after another sip from your cup. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that he was your father for a time, even if for a little while and his presence was a comfort thing for you now.
That could be it.
"Snow." Erwin's voice was sharp in the silence and it made you jump.
"Yes, Sir?"
"No need to be so formal." he said with a ghost of a chuckle in his tone.
"O-Oh?"
"How are you feeling?"
"M-Much better now."
"Good."
A moment of silence passed as you took a long sip of your tea, now noticing you were just about finished. You thought perhaps you should head to your room now that you were feeling relaxed and your drowsiness was starting to hit you hard. You downed the rest of your tea, walking up to your Commander to return the cup.
"Thank you again for the tea."
"It was no problem." he paused, then spoke again. "If you have another nightmare, feel free to visit."
You looked at him in pleasant surprise, then smiled.
"Ok. I will."
You headed toward the door and put a hand on the handle, then you paused, thinking, 'what the hell'.
Once more.
"Good night...Daddy."
It was something Erwin didn't think he missed until he heard it for most probably the last time.
Missed? For once, he allowed himself the feeling. He's earned that right, hasn't he?
"Good night, Snow."