Author's Note: I saw a request to update so here it is. Also, to Atreides03, I seee you're really thinking ahead hehe. You'll find out;) And yes, I made up Die Kussende Nacht although Martinstag is an already established holiday on its own. Thanks for your question haha it reminded me to clarify.

Chapter 14: A Cold Night

Calling the weather merely cold would undoubtedly be marred a heavy understatement.

It was downright freezing.

And Petra realized that only after seating herself on the stone step a comfortable foot away from Levi. She brought her arms around her knees in an attempt to shield herself from the chilling wind, realizing the gown she had been wearing since the start of the night was not at all designed to be worn in such breezy temperatures, the sleeves paper thin silk.

"I thought you..." She played with the tiny gold shimmers on her dress, her fingers fumbling and delicately pressing into the seams that held in whatever inner secrets lay in them - the labor used to make the dress or even more, the most likely tainted fortune used to pay for it.

My apologies you had to be in the presence of such a dangerous savage, Vlak's voice hummed, uninvited.

A dangerous savage? Petra turned her head to peer over at Levi, finding him looking away into the distance. Her honey orbs came to rest on the intricate glitter that had been etched onto that side of his face, forming gold swirls around his cheekbone, stretching out from the corner of his mouth, stopping just beneath the sharp line of his jaw. With the sunset light of the walkway lamps, the design was intensified tenfold, shining like illuminated signs on an even more beautiful manuscript. What she saw was not a savage at all. She had to keep from opening her mouth in awe.

"Why did you come back?" She finally asked, quickly, identifying that as the first question on her mind worth tackling, amongst others, while also not wanting the impending silence to reveal her astonishment. Get ahold of yourself, Petra! You might have been saved from Vlak but you still don't/know/this man.

"I'm tired of taking orders from that sick excuse of a commander." He practically spat the word 'commander'.

"You mean Vlak."

"He has more than he knows what to do with. And that includes rogues like us to do his illegal bidding. We couldn't say much before but none of that matters now." Levi turned his head to look at her and she noticed without a sliver of doubt that over the past few days, he hadn't gotten much sleep. Not that he ever seemed to sleep before, either. Despite the proof through the intoxicated yet alert way his heavy lidded eyes lazily focused on her, she thought she could spot a decipherable ounce of relief on his countenance.

"Ask what you want." He already knew what it was that she had been waiting - patiently yet despairingly - to know.

"Did you mean what you said back near the train when you said what happened to my Mom hadn't been your fault?"

"I meant that." He added after a short pause, "Your mother was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Petra released a short breath, laying off the heavy past for a moment, having no clear sequence to her questions. "And...and if you had decided you weren't going to follow Vlak's orders from the beginning and not take me to him then—"

"It wasn't from the beginning. The plan was to give you to that dam*ed aristrocrat." He paused, regarding her squarely. "But halfway through, we decided against it."

"But then at the train-"

"We didn't expect Vlak's lapdog to be there. The plan was to take the next train to a boat to Poland."

Petra stared at her hands wide eyed, feeling like her fingers would get frostbitten if she didn't wiggle them around. Then, what made you decide you didn't want to give me away?

Levi's head had turned away from the ginger-head but his eyes slid to regard her, watching - not cautiously but - truly curious what could possibly be going through her mind. She almost seemed lost now, unsure of what to think. He imagined it had been easier in the beginning to know everyone after her was dangerous and to treat them as such. It felt almost like yesterday that the girl has stabbed Shane in the arm, moving on to look for him next. He could only imagine her next question would be about how he was linked to Vlak in the first place-

"I'm glad...you came back."

It was Levi's turn to be surprised. His eyebrows drew low over his eyes as he festered on the concoction of words still hanging in the air.

Deciding her last comment revealed more than intended, Petra quickly re-coursed, "This holiday you were talking about, Levi, I didn't think it would be this lively. Everyone is all dressed up and in good spirits for the occasion even though they're all going through so much with the war and what else. It's so crazy to me. Only in Rostock." She let out a breath of laughter, a cold puff of air gently leaving her lips in its wake. Yes, she could distract herself from the other millions of questions still swimming within her...after she came to terms with what she had found out already. But until then..."Where do you even find people like that anywhere else..." Petra forced a smile, biting the tip of her thumb in extreme concentration at her own profound wonderment.

Levi stared into the air at nothing in particular. Yes, he could go along with whatever this was. "I see people like that outside of Rostock."

"You do? Where? Which other city could possibly have such stro-"

"Right here." Levi had leaned towards her, grabbing her head to turn it towards him and where he sat staring at her solemnly to make his point, she had her mouth slightly agape, ginger locks framing her stupefied expression.

Petra stayed still even after the dark haired male let go and stood up.

"What the hell are you standing there for, four eyes?"

Four eyes?

Petra turned to look in the supposed direction of company and found none other than Hange, grinning rather wickedly. "Briefed our new member in now, Levi?" She held up a scroll. "Plans get rolling from tomorrow."

New member?

Plans?

Levi looked down at Petra simply, answering her confused expression with a question of his own,"So you want to get back home, don't you?"