When I grow up I want to be intuitive.
"You guys are aware, aren't you? The reports cover everything we know now. Well, I doubt she'll stay put either way. But she might go too far and she end up killing you Eren."
The captain's voice, in a meeting with the whole team, came to her from beyond the massive wooden door, quiet and quite bored.
"Who do you mean by 'she'?" asked a second voice who she recognized as Eren.
Elizabeth had been busy helping Hange with the two specimens they had captured, which the squad leader had also taken care to give names. It was Hange herself who asked for her support for the various times she had done it and for how her mind was always looking for other stimuli. However Elizabeth still continued to think about why Zackly had called her back to talk to her privately, but she was so busy with other commitments that she was no longer able to see Levi or talk to him.
Nobody knew yet except Hange who, taking advantage of a moment of solitude of the two, thought of telling her about it.
Hange lost her balance with the thrill of being able to meet again the boy capable of transforming himself into a titan, of whom she wanted to find out everything, and falling right on the door with a thud.
When it was opened, allowing the two to enter, the squad leader just rubbed her head.
"Good evening members of the Levi Squad. How's it feel living in a castle?"
"Hey." Elizabeth smiled next to her, greeting the whole team with whom she had already agreed that she didn't want to be treated differently for that role. On a mission she would have fulfilled her duties but when they weren't fighting they were friends, beyond anything.
"Liz!" Eld answered, remembering later that this was unfortunately a professional opportunity and, in fact, he earned a bewildered look from Eren.
"Sorry for being late. In fact, I have to talk to you." Elizabeth said turning her gaze right on the captain who seemed to have already understood the topic of conversation and a shiver ran down her spine.
"Yes." Levi answered, then turning the subject over to Hange to avoid the blonde having uncomfortable questions that she did not want or could not answer. "You're early."
"I didn't want to leave you too alone."
"Squad Leader Hange." Eren greeted her without stopping to stare at Elizabeth. When he had first seen her, she had been tasked with killing him and had also blocked him twice with physical force alone, while now she looked like a completely different person. She didn't look like their superior but just a teammate.
"Sorry for the wait Eren." Hange answered adjusting her glasses to her nose. "I'm in charge of investigating two titans we captured in the city and I want your cooperation for tomorrow's experiment. I came to get permission for that."
Eren shivered for a moment, looking perhaps out of habit at Elizabeth as if asking for help but this time the blonde could do nothing against the curiosity of the squad leader, who would soon find out too. She could only reply with a shrug as if to apologize. After all, she was sorry for that boy...
"An experiment? What would I..."
"Well, it's the most exciting thing ever."
"We really have different ideas of what's exciting..." Elizabeth commented with her eyes blank, more to herself than to the others but her voice came out too loud for anyone not to hear. And in fact Levi was forced to warn her before he too caught the mischievous glances of the teammates.
"Elizabeth..."
"Sorry. I had to." she answered, waking from her thoughts and holding back a laugh.
"U-uhm." Eren interjected feeling slightly uncomfortable about the subject touched by the blonde. It was difficult to frame. He thought he had already succeeded with everyone but not with her. "I can't grant you permission myself. I don't have any authority over my decisions."
"Levi what is Eren's plan for tomorrow?" Hange asked as Levi quietly sipped his tea.
"Cleaning the garden."
"Perfect then!" she exclaimed in response, her eyes already sparkling at the thought of being able to work with him and find out what his DNA was hiding. "It's decided! Eren, I look forward to tomorrow."
"Y-yes sure." Eren was in awe, the squad leader was scaring him but the thing that worried him most and he didn't know what to think about it was that no one seemed to notice the madness of that woman. That, or maybe they were just too used to it. "But what exactly are we going to do? What do you mean by experiment?"
"Hey stop, don't ask." Oluo shook his head, standing up with the rest of the team, as Levi silently ordered, to leave the room and leave the two alone.
"Oh I knew it. You sure look like you wanted to know." Hange concluded and it was the last thing they heard before leaving the two alone.
Elizabeth was the last to leave the room, giving Eren one last look of sympathy: this was going to be a really long night for him.
"You've been incredibly busy lately Liz. We almost don't see you anymore. " Eld asserted, ruffling her hair a bit, genuinely happy to have her there with them, sitting at a table in the castle's kitchen. Gunther had offered to make tea for everyone and Levi had stayed with them too. In the end, by now, there was nothing more to hide, at least from the four of them.
They already knew everything and it wasn't a problem.
The captain also remembered well how, after that revelation, Eld felt compelled to take Elizabeth's side as a brother, taking the place of the biological one.
"Captain, I have immense respect for you but if you ever hurt Elizabeth I hope you understand that I will have to take her side."
The man swallowed a little frightened as he uttered that sentence but in the end it only served to increase Levi's respect for him.
"Of course. Someone thought of promoting me." Elizabeth answered turning slightly towards Levi who was sitting down.
"You say it like it's a bad thing. We are all proud of you and there is no better person for that role." Petra said smiling sweetly at her. She had missed it, she had to admit.
Since she was promoted she saw her friends far less outside the battlefield and strategic meetings, always busy with Erwin or Levi. And the night was dedicated to her private relationship with the Captain so even the evening chats had decreased and were no longer held every night.
Yet Petra had never complained a single time, rather she looked forward to the day when the blonde freed herself from all her commitments to take the place again in that bed that she no longer used and they talked endlessly like two sisters.
"She's right you know." Oluo added just as Elizabeth took advantage of the table to rest her head on it, using her arms as a pillow. But hearing those words the blonde stopped in the act, raising her head to focus her eyes on her companion. A shocked look with a raised eyebrow.
She hadn't teased him for too long and now she had to make up for it.
"I have been absent for too long..." Elizabeth murmured, blinking and managing to make the others laugh too, except for Levi who just gave a lift of the corner of his mouth.
"In fact yes, now that you are vice captain I can no longer make fun of you."
"You couldn't even do it before."
"Anyway, I think I really speak for everyone when I tell that you were exceptional in Trost. I just think it's a lot harder for you two now as…" Gunther didn't finish the sentence, not sure what words to use but it wasn't hard to guess what it meant.
Levi felt warmed by the affection that ran in that team. He had chosen them for their worth and their cold mind, he had made them a team, while she had come and made them a family.
"I honestly don't mind hiding it." Elizabeth answered smiling then seeing Levi, decidedly uncomfortable touching that speech with anyone, got up from his chair grabbing a cup of freshly poured tea and going to his room after having just caressed his woman's blond head.
"Did we make the captain uncomfortable?" Gunther then asked in a low voice so as not to be heard.
"But now that he's not here, I can ask you." Eld said instead with a seraphic laugh, a look they had all come to know by now. For them, sex was not a taboo, it was a natural thing and, although they did not go into details, there was also talk of that without problems. And with a few lines from a certain recently promoted blonde. "The other morning you arrived at the strategic meeting with some difficulty walking."
Elizabeth, who had thought to start sipping her tea, almost spat out all the liquid on the table on impulse, trying not to laugh.
"Oh my God, I'm not going to have this conversation."
"You're not denying it." Eld said laughing but being careful not to drink so as not to make the same mistake as Elizabeth.
"But I haven't even confirmed it."
"Have you ever called him 'captain' in bed?" he tried again in the mood for laughter and to provoke the girl. They were always comfortable joking with each other, regardless of the subject, and she had missed that. She had been in that position just from some days but it seemed like an eternity considering what she used to do every day.
"He means while having sex." Oluo added without bothering to hide his laughter but moving his elbow away from the table to rest it on the back of the chair, a posture that Levi often assumed.
It had been a long time since Elizabeth had noticed his crush on Petra, aware, however, of the incredible respect and admiration she felt for the Captain, and therefore tried to imitate him to arouse the same attention in her.
She didn't know if she was right or not but usually her instincts were never wrong. And Petra was unwilling to be in a relationship at the moment, not only because of her young age and her father who didn't want to see her as a bride yet, but also because she was afraid of hurting someone if she fell in battle.
"No way... I didn't understand." she sarcastically replied without blushing. One of the reasons why it was fun to use certain arguments with her was that it was not at all easy to embarrass her, but also to get something out of her mouth.
"Speaking of other things..." Petra interjected going to her friend's rescue. "When we return from the mission with Eren, the Commander said he would give us a couple of days off. I have often spoken to my parents about you and the bond that unites us, I would like to introduce them to you."
Elizabeth was speechless. It wasn't the first time she'd hinted at such a thing but asking her so openly was a whole new thing. The blonde was moved, taking a deep breath before answering. She had never had any parents, and knowing Petra it was not a detail she had omitted in talking about her with her parents, but somehow it didn't bother her. She did not perceive what had happened as a lack of respect for her privacy but only as an affective gesture.
"Are you serious?"
"Oww Petra..." Gunther commented instead, leaning over the table with his head resting on his hands.
"I can't tell you no. I'll do it." Elizabeth replied earning a happy smile and a hug from Petra.
"Thanks."
Elizabeth took leave of the rest of the team after an hour of chatting. Those moments lightened everyone's heart.
She walked slowly past the same room where she had left Hange and Eren, hearing the squad leader still talking, and shook her head, amused and a little sorry at the thought of the poor boy who was listening. Zoe Hange was a peculiar type and at first glance she made a strange impression on everyone. But that was exactly why she was her best friend. They understood each other with just a glance.
Everyone had been assigned alone rooms, taking advantage of the size of the castle to ensure that everyone had their own but Elizabeth did not go to her own, instead heading towards the one occupied by the Captain who, she knew perfectly well, was waiting for her.
When she entered she found the light of a candle burning to illuminate a desk in front of the window. The moonlight was dimmer, due to the waning moon, while the cool night air was beginning to make her shiver slightly.
"You never stop working, uh?" Elizabeth asked as soon as she closed the door behind her, leaning on it for a moment as if to catch her breath. The last few days had been really heavy for her, tired not only physically but also mentally, so much so that she just had to lie down next to Levi with him who gave her a few caresses to fall asleep instantly.
"That brat is more problems than he should, there are a lot of things to report." he answered putting aside his work which was almost finished but which, in any case, he could not have finished that evening for lack of information.
"Definitely things that don't do for me..."
Elizabeth's comment did not escape the Captain who had noticed a change in attitude towards her since Eren's trial, indeed after the alleged conversation she had with the General.
"What do you mean?"
"The reason Zackly asked me to speak privately." she admitted glad to be able to take that weight off her chest with him too. They had no secrets, they told each other everything. He had told her every aspect of his past and present, there was no longer anything about him that she was not aware of and vice versa. "He wanted me to create a new team, leading it myself, with the new cadets who would choose the Survey Corps."
Levi looked at her for a moment with great satisfaction. He had never hidden his pride in her achievements and the thing that most destabilized him was precisely the fact that she did not seek fame and glory within the army. She just wanted to live.
One thing that distinguished her from him.
True, he had not sought that role with all of himself, he had been entrusted and he had accepted it as he had accepted to follow Erwin, while she had made her choices all by herself without anyone putting them in front of her.
She had always proved mature enough to take whatever path she chose. And in the end she had chosen to stay close to him.
"It is a very big thing. And I bet you refused."
"Levi, it's not for me. I am not a commander." she replied seriously, in a way that hardly seemed like her, but the Captain now knew it was just dictated by frustration. She hated being told what to do and how to feel, she was extremely honest: if she was sick she didn't hide it unless she was forced to, but only if there were lives in between.
"Are you sure you made the right choice?" he asked as she walked away from the door to join him, but instead of sitting on his legs as she usually did, she stopped behind the back of the chair running her hands over his shoulders, just rubbing them.
The moment her hands touched him he took a moment to observe her before closing his eyes and relaxing at the kind attentions she was offering him.
Always beautiful and so woman that it made too many heads spin, but also herself, despite all the bad things that had happened to her. And she couldn't help but think about the news she'd given him when Hange told her of her infertility. Even now Levi didn't know whether to be relieved or sorry; he was both and he couldn't stop thinking about it. But he didn't want to do it now that she looked like a lost sheep. She was human too and she needed him.
"He gave me availability in case I want to reconsider."
"It's not like him to do such a thing. If you miss the opportunity, it usually doesn't happen again. He must particularly care."
"I'm not made to be at the top and give orders to everyone." she answered extending her hands along his chest and lowering herself to lean against him, thus embracing him from behind with extreme sweetness.
"Are you sure? Because on the last mission you did pretty well. And you were also pretty sexy while giving orders to the soldiers."
Levi saw her smile with her eyes closed, without moving an inch from that embrace that not even he wanted to break. He had never wanted physical contact with anyone until she showed up... he raised a hand up to reach her blonde hair, thus moving his fingers to caress her.
"I didn't want to be sexy."
"You are for me." he concluded, even managing to make her open her eyes, the same eyes that, in reality, he had never forgotten since their first meeting. "I don't care what others think."
"So... did you miss me?" she asked suddenly feeling lighter and all the tiredness had left her.
"Not at all."
"I know you missed me."
She replied taking advantage of the position to blow near his ear, where she knew he had a sensitive spot. Levi moved his neck to the side as Elizabeth's caresses began to get bolder, climbing up his chest to return to his shoulders but without the same sweetness as before. This time the intention was to touch him.
"Do you really want to hear that?" he asked as he felt her hands begin to undo the buttons of his shirt, stopping only to take off his tie with extreme delicacy. She knew well how much he cared about that particular piece of cloth and each time he showed extreme care even in taking it off.
"No, I want you to show me."
Elizabeth's voice had dropped, becoming more seductive and he liked it when she did. She had a usually sweet intonation, which almost clashed with her role as a soldier, but when she deliberately turned it down to provoke him, she managed to make him shiver.
"About before…" he asked when she finally moved around the chair to take her place in his arms, sitting on his swollen erection in his pants. "What's exciting for you?"
Elizabeth sneered mischievously bringing her lips to his and joining them in a hungry kiss with the tongues that immediately ran to look for each other. Levi pushed her harder from the nape of her neck, as she finally freed him of the white fabric that covered the captain's defined muscles, baring them to her waist. A paradise for the eyes but a damnation for her hormones.
"Definitely this."
Levi took advantage of her distraction to take the lead and play with her as he hadn't done for days now. He began to undress her slowly, making her sit on the desk, and filling every inch of her body with attention while with one hand he went down to penetrate her with two fingers.
If there was one thing he loved to look at, no matter how seriously it troubled him, it was her who was holding back her moans and moving in search of a foothold.
Levi took advantage of a ribbon that, he didn't care why, was right there and tied her wrists, bringing them on her head.
If this aspect was born to convince him, now she liked it too, not disdaining when he wanted to take her that way. It was torture not to be able to touch him but he also knew how to be forgiven.
Elizabeth's brain was completely clouded by Levi's fingers moving wisely inside her that she didn't even realize how or when he had undressed, naked in front of her taking place between her legs.
With a push he filled her instantly, causing her to groan and arch under him. A few seconds to get used to his intrusion and he began to move inside her, holding her still by the belly with one hand and climbing up her chest with the other. The hand reached her throat, where he didn't push not to leave marks but stopped her enough to make her feel how much he wanted to dominate her, how much he liked having her under his complete control. And he already anticipated the moment when she would assert her authority over him by towering over him like the goddess she was, but that was not the moment; that evening he commanded.
Two fingers went up to her chin and touched her mouth from which only disjointed moans came out, caused by the pleasure he was provoking, and she took the opportunity to take them between her lips and make him feel her teeth and tongue.
That sight was enough to make the captain lose every shred of common sense and he lowered himself to her, removing his hand to replace his fingers with his own lips, kissing her and continuing to push until he felt her tighten her thighs around his hips.
It didn't take her long to come and he followed suit, getting lost in her and forgetting the whole world.
"Sawney! Bean!"
The desperate screams of squad leader Hange reached every soldier in the area, drawing their attention now that the laziness of the morning had left them all. A decidedly eventful awakening for everyone. "It can not be! Someone tell me it's not true!"
Ahead of them, where Elizabeth herself had helped to bind the two titan taken from Trost now stood only their lifeless bodies, their nape cut too neatly to be the work of someone who was only scared of titans.
Also, she understood, it had been done at night, so taking advantage not only of the dark to avoid being seen but also of the fact that they did not move without the sunlight. Shot in the back when they were more than helpless, but now completely useless for Hange's research.
"They were very precious, it was definitely a soldier." Gunther said, observing the scene with some displeasure. Seeing the way the squad leader was getting desperate wasn't a good thing.
"Sure, but we have no suspicion, they killed them at the same time just before dawn and immediately afterwards they left with the 3DMG." Eld added in response, while Elizabeth beside them just listened and observed. There was something her instincts were telling her, something Erwin would not like.
"Which means at least two people are involved right?"
"Look, squad leader Hange is losing control." Bossard commented instead, crossing his arms over his chest and managing to make Petra lose patience, who looked at him grimly, and Elizabeth who decided to advance until she reached the squad leader to give her a minimum of comfort.
"Come away, there is nothing more we can do now." Levi murmured taking Eren by the shoulders who looked at the scene with an astonished air. He had spent the sleepless night listening to Hange and his projects, at times intrigued, but he had not heard the slightest noise that could suggest an attack.
"What do you see Eren?" Erwin asked instead, coming behind the boy but with his gaze fixed on the two titans now deceased. "Who do you think the enemy is?"
Even Elizabeth did not escape those words and had confirmation of their meaning just when he looked into her two-tone eyes. A slight shiver ran down her spine at the thought of what she had guessed. If he had seen that detail too, it meant that it wasn't just in her mind and that, unfortunately, she was right.
"Sorry, too strange a question. Elizabeth, I'd like to talk to you."
"Yes." she concluded, giving Hange a final pat of comfort before following the Commander, leaving Eren even more upset than before.
For that boy it was just the beginning.