Note: I wanted to some fluff for my Attack on Titan OTP. Some angst worked its way in there regardless, but I still hope it's mostly fluff.
This is my first time writing these two and they're both such complicated characters with complicated pasts (and presents XD) so I'm very nervous about attempting this. O.o
I love these two. So much. I do like Eremika as well, but Erehisu has increasingly become my favorite.
"Historia…" Eren frowned, dismounting from his horse. His boots crunched the snow underfoot. He grabbed its reins, looping them quickly around the nearby post.
He squinted his eyes and tried to see what was so special about this place Historia had brought him to in secret. Nothing stood out to him outside of the snowy, white expanse of fields and the frozen lake. "What's so special about this place? I don't see anything."
Historia slid off of her horse and turned to face him. Her cheeks were pink from the biting cold, but her eyes were alight with mischief.
"You'll see," she said. She threw the horse's reins around the post and undid the straps of the saddlebag. From inside, she pulled two pairs of the most unusual shoes Eren had ever seen, boots with blades strapped to the soles. They look more like weapons than any sort of footwear, though Eren couldn't imagine how one was expected to walk in them much less fight in them. He tried to imagine slicing open a titan's neck with them if the blades were sharper.
Historia noticed his confusion and offered an explanation. "Ice skates," she said and she held a pair out to Eren. He accepted them carefully. "When the pond froze over, Frieda would take me out here." Her eyes were more unfocused as her mind wandered back to a distant- and perhaps a happier- time. "She taught me how to use these." For the first time since they had embarked, Historia looked the slightest bit uncertain. "I hope they fit. I did have them refitted, but perhaps… I wanted it to be a surprise, but maybe that wasn't the wisest."
"No, I'm sure they're fine." For some reason, Eren clenched the skates harder against his chest, breaths coming in frosty puffs. He wasn't sure why he had spoken so quickly, but he was starting to realize that he hated to see her in distress. "So you… you skate on… ice?" he ventured.
The concept was strange to him. Why would anyone skate on ice when it was hard enough just to get by once winter had sunk its claws into the earth?
Although he supposed that life was different for members of the Reiss family and the others whose dwelling was behind Wall Sina than it had been for others.
They probably had time for plenty of frivolities outside of ice skating as well.
Though that wasn't exactly fair, was it? Because Historia… Historia had not had an easy time of it either.
At least he had never had reason to doubt that his mother loved him.
But Historia… Historia had never had a reason to believe her mother loved her in the first place.
He watched her as she fit the first one over her snow boot.
Armin, Mikasa… So much of his life, his energy had been dedicated to protecting those two. Now, he wanted to protect her too.
He couldn't undo what the world had already done to her, but he would fight like hell to keep it from ever touching her again.
"Eren?" She jerked him out of his thoughts. She had pushed her hood back and her golden mane, unobstructed by any elaborate hairstyles or ornate headpieces, tumbled down her back.
He liked her best like this, free of the obligation, the burdens, that the queenship placed on her shoulders.
Right now, there wasn't a care in the world that could reach them and he was surprised by how good it felt.
"Aren't you going to put them on?"
"Oh…" Coloring slightly, Eren looked down at the skates in his hand. They looked simple enough to put on. Just slide them over the bottom of his boots and fasten the straps. He fumbled with them for a good minute before he finally managed to successfully get the first one on.
The second one proved to be more of a challenge, but he had mastered maneuver gear and so he was determined not to let this best him.
Still, balancing on a sliver of metal was more difficult than he had imagined. He wobbled, tried to catch himself on his horse, failed, and fell flat on his face.
He sputtered around a mouthful of snow, raising his head in time to catch Historia's peals of laughter.
He spat out the snow and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.
Historia trudged to his side, wobbling slightly, but she didn't fall.
It wasn't fair.
Sure, she may have learned how to do this before, but it had to have been years since she had even looked at a pair of skates.
Was it really that easy for her?
"If you're already falling over, should we really be putting you on ice?" she asked, hovering over him.
"Come on, Historia," he groused. "I'm just not used to these, alright?"
She didn't say anything, simply offering him her hand with a smile.
"Aren't you worried I'll pull you off your feet?" he questioned, but he accepted her hand.
"No…" She looked mildly cautious now.
A spark of mischief came over him and he decided to make his move before she grew too suspicious. "Maybe you should be." He grasped her with both hands and yanked.
With a startled squeal, she fell forward and Eren learned that he had miscalculated either how much strength he was putting into the pull or just how much one petite young queen weighed because instead of tumbling over his head to land in the snow on his other side, she landed in a small heap directly on him.
"Oof!" Her elbow plunged into his gut, driving the air from his lungs. "Historia!" But he was laughing so he didn't think there was any danger of her thinking he really was upset with her.
"Eren!" She was laughing too. "What are you getting mad at me for? You did this to yourself!"
Their eyes met and they seemed to understand the awkward position they were in at the same time.
Historia scrambled off of him and Eren hurried to push himself upright.
"If we're not… careful," she gasped between giggles, "we'll be too cold and wet to skate before too long."
"Yeah," Eren agreed around his own smirk, "I guess we will."
He was pretty sure he might get killed if the queen fell ill because he was traipsing about in the cold with her.
Not that they could kill him.
Or would.
It might be worth it to see Levi's expression though.
He sat up, brushing the snow from his clothes.
Watching Eren was like watching a newborn foal before it found its legs.
He had no idea what he was doing, that much was clear.
And Historia, it turned out, was a terrible teacher. She was nothing like Frieda, who had only ever been gentle and patient with her.
Historia did her best to channel her memories of Frieda into her time with Eren, but it was no use.
She wasn't Frieda Reiss. She was Historia.
Historia had started slow, unsure of how she would be on ice after so many long years without it, but it didn't take long for muscle memory to kick in and she found herself gliding along.
It was nowhere near as difficult or as thrilling as mastering the maneuver gear, but it was remarkably similar if she thought about it.
It was far too easy to lose herself on the ice.
Eren was not half as graceful, but then, he had never had someone to teach him before and Historia herself was a rather sorry excuse for a teacher.
Really, she wasn't even attempting to teach him, rather than just letting him figure it out for himself, with a few shouted words of encouragement for good measure.
She finally came to a stop, watching as Eren teetered, arms extended in a desperate bid to keep himself on his feet.
Grinning widely, she decided it was time to tease him a little. Cupping her hands to her mouth, she shouted, "Go, Eren!" Jumping up and down in her enthusiasm might enhance the effect, but it would also ruin her balance so she kept both feet planted firmly on the ground.
"You are not as hilarious as you think you are." Perhaps it would have been easier to take him seriously had he not been as ungainly as a newborn foal.
When Frieda had first taught her, she had been as unsteady as Eren was now. Except Frieda had taken her by the hand and gently guided her along the shore where she felt safest.
She hadn't doubled over, so overcome with laughter that she had needed to hold her stomach.
Which was exactly what Historia did the next time Eren's legs slid out from under him and he landed flat on his back in the snow.
"Here." When she had sufficiently recovered herself, she skated to his side and offered him his hand. She remembered what had happened the last time she had offered him her hand and considered taking it back, but he had already gripped it.
"Thanks," he said gruffly and she was surprised when he didn't drag her down into the snow to join him.
She didn't let go of his hand once he was on his feet.
"Historia?" Eren looked at her, surprised.
Historia couldn't explain her reluctance to release his hand. Maybe it was the ability to enjoy his closeness without the visions that have accompanied contact with each other in the past.
She wanted to savor it.
Historia froze, suddenly self-conscious.
When did touching Eren become something she wanted to savor?
She lifted her head.
Eren stared at their hands a moment longer before meeting her eyes. The look he gave her was questioning. "Historia?"
Historia swallowed and tightened her hand around his. "I'll help you," she said, still desperate to hold on.
How selfish was it of her to crave this?
She was Historia Reiss now, not Krista Lenz. This wouldn't be the same as it had been with Ymir.
She was the queen of what was left of humanity behind the walls. She shouldn't even be thinking about this… whatever this was.
She had responsibilities that went beyond simply dying when called upon to do so.
People looked to her for leadership now. For favors. For other things.
Being Historia was freeing, yes, in its own way, but wasn't it also a cage? Had she simply traded one metaphorical prison for another?
Historia pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind.
She was the queen, yes, but even queens needed to escape sometimes, didn't they? And she was so, so tired of all the talk of signing laws and of taxes, of political unrest and treason and the threat of possible assassinations.
She pulled gently at Eren's hand, a silent request that he join her.
He doesn't pull away.
Historia almost wondered if he wanted her touch just as much as she wanted his. She pushed that thought away too, though her heart ached to explore it more deeply.
Carefully, the two of them moved across the ice in a sort of slow and graceless waltz. She was careful to keep them close to the pond's edge- though Eren's face was scrunched up in concentration.
Or maybe it was just his "I'm a titan, I'm not afraid of anything" look.
Either way, it was cute. She liked it.
Too bad he couldn't use it to intimidate the ice. .
"Whoa!" Eren gripped her hands harder when he slipped.
"Eren!" Historia gasped, when she realized he was at risk of upsetting her balance as well.
She stumbled forward, falling against his chest.
He caught her, wrapping his arms around her waist, but gravity was already pulling him back.
They toppled over, landing in a jumbled heap in the snow. They were laughing, but Historia had no recollection of when they had started.
"I give up," she said, shaking her head. "You're no good at skating. We can add that to the list of things Eren is no good at," she teased lightly.
"What? There's actually a list?" Eren was surprised- and offended- enough to stop laughing. "Maybe you're just a terrible teacher!"
Historia stopped laughing as well. "Hey," she protested, although she knew it was true. Being good at something didn't necessarily mean you would be good at teaching that same something.
She sat up, pushing herself off of him. "Am I selfish?" she asked abruptly.
"What?" Eren's face scrunched up in some measure of surprise at the sudden change of topic. She didn't blame him for being startled. "Historia, why are you talking about this?"
"I…" She was hesitant, but Eren had always appreciated her honesty, and who she really was, above anyone else. If there was anyone she could confide in about this, it was him. "I know I was the one who chose to reclaim my identity, but…" she swallowed and fear tasted strong and bitter on her tongue, "but everyone is so expectant of me and I… I wish we could have this more often."
She might be of royal blood and she might have been hailed a hero after the defeat of her father, but there were plenty who still remembered she was a teenage girl and who weren't happy that her own rise to power now threatened their own.
She had known from the start that it wouldn't be easy, that she would face opposition, and she had accepted that, but it still overwhelmed her. There were days when she just wanted to run from it all. Even days when she wondered if it hadn't been better as Krista Lenz. Except she had left that name behind to remain true to herself and she didn't regret that.
Eren listened to her quietly and, when she had finished, he remained silent.
Historia felt a sudden pang in her heart.
"I'm sorry, Eren!" she said quickly. "I know this must sound incredibly selfish of me."
"Historia…" He surprised her, dipping down and pressing his lips gently against hers.
She melted into the kiss and he slid his arms around her waist, pulling her closer against him. Something about him warmed her all over and she longed to be held in those arms forever.
She was the one to break the kiss, though she didn't pull away. "Can we?" she murmured, more to herself.
Would they insist on a political match? If there was anything she had become increasingly aware of since her coronation, it was that politics were absolutely ruthless.
"Why couldn't we?" he answered going in for another kiss and she let him.
In an instant, Historia decided it didn't matter what anyone else wanted of her. It didn't matter what destiny anyone else tried to thrust on her.
She would be their queen, but Eren was her choice.
The queen of humanity and the king of the titans.
"They're watching me," she whispered. Her hand slipped into his. She was surprised by how instinctual the action had been. "Waiting for me to make a mistake."
Anything that would give them an excuse to dethrone her.
"Let them watch," Eren's hands buried themselves in her hair and his eyes focused on hers with a strange intensity, "because you're amazing."
Note: Historia, handing Eren ice skates: Do you know what these are?
Eren, with complete confidence: murder shoes.
Historia is amazing and I love her, but I imagine there are days when being a queen (especially a young one) i g.
So yes, while this was born from my serious need for some Erehisu content, I also wanted to explore how Historia might be feeling a bit uncertain with her new position as the queen. She's gotta be feeling apprehension at some point, right?