A/N: I took the liberty of changing the name Kaney to Kenny, since that's the official translation and it was kind of bugging me so I needed to fix it. Just thought I'd point that out to avoid confusion. :x


Hovering her knuckle against the door, Mikasa sucked in a breath and held it in her throat. After giving herself a second, she tapped in a gentle string of beats. "Sorry for disturbing you, Captain. I'm coming in." She spoke up against the door and gave warning of her entry before twisting the knob with a rusty click.

In preparation for an exposed display, she had shielded her eyes with her palm, but she feared her small hand wasn't enough to conceal the flaming tint dying her cheeks. This part wasn't in the mission briefing at all, nor was it in any of her years of training. This is a scenario she quite frankly felt unprepared for, despite it being her own idea.

To put it simply, she felt awkward about walking in on Captain Levi while he's half asleep and in the nude. Never had she imagined being in his presence during such a vulnerable state.

At Mikasa's arrival, Levi groggily peeled his head off the pillow and sat himself up so that his back reclined against the head board. When he had noticed the bashful gesture, he adjusted the blankets and covered his chest. "I'm decent, just so you know. I wouldn't just lay here naked without any covers on."

Anxiously, she made an incision through her fingers and peeked through the slit, cautiously checking on his exposed state for herself.

Levi found that unbearable endearing, but managed to keep his default expression, which was a damn miracle. For such a pretty girl that attracts so much male attention, she sure does get flustered easy—but Levi knew she was reacting shyly simply because he's a boy and she's a young girl, not because she was getting flustered at the thought of him.

After clicking the door shut with her back, she rove into the dim bedroom, burning a path with the flickering candle in hand. Her eyes flitted everywhere around the bedroom, avoiding Levi's direct gaze. "I'm sorry if I woke you up. But I heard you coughing so I figured you were awake. I washed your clothes, by the way. They're nearly dry."

"Thanks."

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked the oil lamp on the dresser, still not brave enough to look directly at him.

He sighed, shaking his head. "As you heard, I have a cough now. Judging by the symptoms I think it's pretty clear I have a full-blown flu. I'm not sure if my fever went down—I doubt it."

She finally looked at his disenchanted expression with bowed brows, but now he was looking away, into his lap sighing.

"Let me feel."

Gulping stiffly at the offer, Levi cornered his eyes to the side as she approached with her hand leading the way. With the furry blanket, he covered himself up to the neck defensively as her slender fingers reached out to him. After setting down the candle on the nightstand, the tips of her nails traced above his brow. Levi's eyes hooded contently when she pushed up his bangs and pressed her hand firmly over his burning forehead.

He had plenty of other places to set his view, but with Mikasa leaning in close range as she were, his perverted gaze remained centered on her chest as she determined his temperature.

He knows damn well that he's taking inappropriate advantage of the situation; for someone in his position, that's truly disgraceful—but he couldn't deny that he was glad (and disgusted with himself for feeling glad) to have a fever right now because it meant he could relish the tender touch of Mikasa's hand on him, even if it's just for a brief period.

"You're still burning up." She pulled her hand away, curling her fingers with a look of concern. Levi's head dropped weakly without the aid of her hand supporting the weight any longer. Her features drooped, along with her posture until she forced her stance high again. "I found some fever reducer last night, I'm not sure how well it works but it might help."

He had started to reply but choked on the header of his sentence. He rubbed at his watery eyes, peeved. "It's worth a shot."

She backed up promptly as if he gave her a direct order and blindlessly headed toward the door. "I'll get it, stay here."

The covers sagged off his chest as he hunched forward to cradle his head. He kept his gaze on the blankets short-hair fur pooled in his lap. "I don't have a choice. I'm naked, remember?"

"Oh. Right." Holding onto the slab of the opened door, Mikasa ran her eyes over his covers, looking at them as if he was covered with an invisible cloth.

Feeling insecure, he peeked at himself to make sure no part other than his chest was exposed, because judging from her reaction you'd think he had his piece springing through the fabric—luckily, he had more self-control than that.

The sight of Levi bare of a shirt made Mikasa want to dash for cover and bury her head outside; with how flaming hot her head is, she wouldn't be surprised if that alone could melt all the snow away.

Mikasa knew that Levi was ridiculously strong, so naturally he had a body like herself to aid in the strength—but it's difficult to accept that a man she deemed as small packed overwhelming amounts of thick muscle. Hell, his muscle had muscles. She's never saw a body filled out as fully as his, even her own ripped and overworked body dulled in comparison. His body would have looked stunningly flawless if it weren't for the splotches of purple bruises spotting on his pale skin and deep trail marks from the gear harness that had dented deep into him. Also, there were fresh scars that had made a permit home on his body, including the deep one across his face that mirrored her own.

Before leaving, she pointed aimlessly out the door and tamed her tongue enough not to stutter. "I'll...get that medicine now." He gave her a solid nod and she took off to retrieve the medication.

He ruffled up his hair and let out the breath he'd stored while she stared at him with unreadable eyes. Well, that certainly was the most awkward five seconds of his life.

Levi flopped back down on the bed, arms sprawled while sending dirty looks to the creaky ceiling. He lost his spirit the moment Mikasa clicked the door behind her, but the room still had a diluted aura of her presence. With the image of her dimming from his mind, all motivation and will left him. He just wanted to lay there and savor the warm tingles that manifested when she touched him. At least he got a tiny glimpse of how she'd be if she was his wife taking care of him. That's about as close as he'll ever get.

It appears she would have been a suitable wife after all—he cringed bitterly while downing a gulp just as sour and pinched the bridge of his brow. He's a dirty old man for thinking these things. He's taking her pure intentions and turning them into sick, selfish delusions. He's disgusted with himself for thinking that, and also at the far away cobweb-ridden images revealing from the back of his mind. Rolling to his side, he suffocated his frown in the pillow and punished himself in the only way his weak self could manage right now.

Another knock and a confirm to enter later, Mikasa returned with a bundle of his folded clothes draped over an arm that she set on the dresser before sitting on the end of the bed, denting the mattress with her weight. A glass of water was placed on the nightstand and the bottle in hand shook out two capsules. Levi peeled himself off the mattress and watched her read the label in silence, double-checking the dosage, then she passed two pills to him.

He glanced down at the pills thoughtfully, rattling them around in his palm. Before popping them in his mouth he said, "Sorry for getting sick like this. You already have enough on your plate, you shouldn't have to take care of me on top of it."

Watching him carefully, Mikasa reached for the glass and held it out to him. "It's no trouble. Besides, its not like you can help it. It happens to everyone whether we like it or not. Here, drink."

He took a small sip, enough to just wash down the pills and nothing more. He had a bad case of cotton-mouth, but strangely enough, he had no thirst for water—it actually made him sick thinking of swallowing an entire mouthful. He was about to remove the rim from his lips, but the bottom of the glass tilted up and a flow of water traveled down his windpipe like a raging current. His brows scrunched as he tried to reclaim control over the glass, but Mikasa was the one assuming direct control now.

"Keep drinking." Mikasa said motherly as she kept tilting up the glass with a press of her fingers. "Fevers dehydrate, you'll need to drink plenty of water tonight."

Levi felt more like a drowning victim than someone with the flu. He gasped when his mouth finally escaped the glass with a slight shove. "You could've told me that instead of drowning me."

Mikasa just realized something. This isn't Eren or Armin she's dealing with, but her Captain—how did she manage to mix that up? She scrambled to justify herself. "Sorry sir... I get forceful when I worry. Bad habit."

It's always been like that—when Eren or Armin get ill she does the same; hovering over them and forcing them to drink, eat and take their medicine while staying dehydrated. It takes a good fight sometimes for them to do as she says in their sickly states, but she always gets the job done. Even all these years later she still will shove a loaf of bread in Eren's mouth when he gets too carried away and forgets to eat.

That was the first time she's ever displayed that worrisome quirk to anyone else, though, and surprisingly enough Levi, of all people, was on the receiving end. She hadn't expected that. Not even her other teammates on the squad got that treatment from her, she always told herself it was their problem or someone elses, not hers. She established some time ago that there was a limit to how many people she could care about at a time—she already had two reckless boys to look after and she couldn't possibly afford to make any room for more.

But—she had just proved herself wrong. She had even just justified her actions with saying she was worried. Does this mean she's starting to care about Levi? Maybe...there is a tiny Captain-size space left after all.

Staring off, Mikasa started to ponder the relationship between her and her Captain. She's not as close to him as Eren and Armin, but there's no denying that they've become close since she joined the Survey Corps. They work great together, which is surprising since the two of them don't exactly mark teamwork as their strong points. On top of that, she admires him greatly—but she still can't label the relationship between them.

Friends? No—that's pushing it. They aren't on a personal level with each other, except after recent events, perhaps. His last name being revealed and their relationships with Kenny could be deemed personal, but it didn't feel like enough to consider them as pals.

They're more than just acquaintances, since they work together every day and live together—so he's more than just some stranger she bumps into some times.

Subordinate and superior comes close to describing them, even though they've been through quite a lot to be strictly that, in spite of Levi supposedly seeing them as just that and that only. However, there's a flaw in that—she's not some cowardly follower that obeys him like a dog and he's no authority figure to begin with, so that can't be it either. She looked back to him puzzlingly, filtering through a string of descriptive words and disregarding them all. What in the world do you call the relationship between them?

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Levi's squared his bare shoulders defensively under the crushing stare she set on him. She's been staring at him blankly for the past few minutes. It's kind of creepy, but above all he wondered what her head was mulling over.

She brought herself back to reality with a quick shake of the head. "Sorry, I was spacing out. Drink more," she motioned the glass to his mouth again and a moaned echoed into the cup like a child, but he still did as he was told—until he pulled back and wheezed uncontrollably into his hand.

Mikasa thought he was choking on the water at first, but it was similar to the coughing attack she heard earlier, but this time it wouldn't let up.

"Ugh..." Levi's coughing finally subsided long enough to let out a painful groan. He collapsed backwards onto the bed, squishing his features bitterly at the stinging in his throat.

Mikasa's brows curved upwards as she watched her suffering Captain. She tried to recall if she had anything to help him, but in terms of medicine she had nothing to reduce the symptoms other than the fever. "I wish I had something for your cough. But I could make some tea if you think that will soothe your throat a little."

"Sounds good to me." His spirit lifted a little, because in Levi's perspective tea cures just about everything; headaches, depression, insomnia—you name it and tea could fix it. Just that small list alone should justify why he's so addicted to the choice of beverage given the life he leads. "I'll be out there in a second, after another coughing attack and getting dressed I'll be good to go."

She offered him a thin wary smile and readied to leave, but with a sudden thought popping in her mind, she stopped short and spun on her heel, sucking in a breath but not letting out a word. Levi noticed her hesitation and lifted his head from the pillow. "What is it?"

"It's—it's nothing. Nothing important."

Anything she had to say was important, but instead of saying something sappy like that, he let out a strict, "Do I really have to pull the whole 'I'm your superior and I order you to tell me' speech? I hope not, it's getting quite tedious, Mikasa."

She rolled her eyes in jest, escaping his gaze. She caved with a sigh. "Kenny and I had a long talk about you, that's all—about when you were a boy living with him. And he told me you always got sick as a kid. I don't know, I just suddenly remembered. Like I said, it wasn't important."

Levi sealed his eyes closed, his lip curling in disgust as he cocked his head to her with disapproving eyes. "You're suppose to be questioning him, Mikasa, not talking about me."

"I tried," she snapped her chin up at the accusation, her eyes flared defensively from her efforts being discarded. "I tried for a few hours, actually. But he kept dodging my questions. He...He kept wanting to tell me about you." When Mikasa saw him cringe again, this time more gravely, she assured, "All good things, I promise. Well, mostly."

Levi didn't like how she said mostly. Knowing Kenny, he probably told a number of embarrassing tales about his upbringing, and likely went into detail about how big of a crybaby he was as a child. Now that is a version of him he'd like to forget permanently.

Or worse—maybe he told her about that...

Panic struck through him when he recalled exactly what that is; he wasn't even brave enough to ponder how that truth would carry out. But based on how calm Mikasa has been with him, he figured Kenny didn't speak a word about it, thankfully, because surely Mikasa would have something to say about it if she found out.

It's for the best if Mikasa never finds out. Or at the very least, he hopes she doesn't find out through a third party. If she must be filled in about that, then he'd like to do it on his own and keep the discussion between them privately, but he hoped the day never came that he would have to tell her. He pushed the thought away, hoping he didn't have to dig it back up again anytime soon.

She took a tiny step forward, her cold hands tucking under her biceps. "For someone who tried to kill you, he sure does speak highly of you; like how a proud dad talks about a successful son. If he wasn't, you know, insane he might've been a cool family member."

Now he knows for sure; she still doesn't know—she probably wouldn't speak highly about Kenny if she knew of the past plans he made. "Believe it or not, Kenny does actually have some good qualities about him, if you look passed the whole 'homicidal manic' thing." And that is quite a tricky point to look over. Nothing about his personality could redeemed his sins, but Levi still considered him a decent person during his upbringing. He wasn't the best father figure, but a father figure at all is better than none and if it wasn't for him, he'd never be as strong as he is today. The hell he endured during his training was worth it, because it means he could protect the people he cares about—and also, he could still keep a decade-old promise.

A blurry memory passed through his mind—and then it was gone.

It's not until he learned Kenny's true nature that he lost all respect for him. Levi used to be so shamefully loyal to him and the memory still sends him dishonor. It's still hard for Levi to hate him truly, though, even after all he's done. That alone makes him feel guilty, but it couldn't be helped given their history together.

Now that they were on the topic of Kenny and himself and Mikasa now involved in the whole affair, Levi couldn't help but to feel uneasy. Being in this tight space together will not only rise conflict, but it may eventually let other issues rise to the surface. Maybe he's just being paranoid, but when you have a secret and you're trapped with the sole person who knows about it (who happens to be untrustworthy) and also the person you absolutely do not want to find out about it all together under one roof, it's only natural to start fearing the worse.

Levi couldn't just order Mikasa not to speak to Kenny. That would be suspicious on his end. Their whole purpose of being here is to talk to him, after all. And if he went ahead and warned Kenny not to tell her, he might do just that out of spite, or he'll remind the old man after he might've forgotten after all these years.

At this point, all he could do is sit back and cross his fingers. He sighed with a grimace as he turned his head to the frosted window. A cold hollowing draft slipped in through the cracks. He's already got enough to worry about, but now that this paranoia settled on him, he realized this Ackerman reunion wasn't the greatest idea, but the realization came too late. Now there's no way out of it.

~x~

Feeling slightly better with clean clothes on and some medicine activating in his system, Levi stumbled in from the icy bedroom, stupor powering his steps. The sudden draft gusting through him forced him to rub his hands together to charge some heat.

After a quick glance lat the stock of wood left by the fireplace, it became clear that they'd be running out soon.

He made a face, cursing the wood for burning so fast. The pile is quickly disappearing while the snow outside is far from thawed, making it impossible to go out and replace what they used. This might be their last night with some warmth—surely it will run out by tomorrow night no matter how much they cut back.

"About time you woke up, lazy lump."

When the hoarse voice hit his back like a sparing icicles, Levi strained his eyes skyward with a clenched jaw. "Excuse you, but I haven't slept in God knows how long and I'm sick with the flu."

"Boo-hoo. Man up."

With a twitching lid, Levi stomped his foot in irritation. How foolish of him to think Kenny would care to listen to his reasoning and offer any sympathy. Not even when he was a child would he nurse him back to heath. He'd tell him to sweat his fevers out with training and kill the cold with exertion. Given that he got sick often, like Mikasa had mentioned, it wasn't easy getting through the winters and made his training ten times worse (and the sessions were already shitty to begin with). Sick or not, Levi wasn't allowed to sleep in. Never. That was the first strict rule on the list of many. He'd be up until the wee hours of the night, whether from getting home from training late or waiting for Kenny to get home. And God help him if he didn't wake up before the sun the next morning.

It was a strict schedule that was tough to break once he grew into an adult, but now he can't help but to sleep when he can. Even if that means wasting the entire day in bed and rising for the first time in the evening like right now. The life he leads now doesn't offer much time to relax, so he can only take advantage of the free time given to scavenge some sleep.

Kenny didn't have to say another word, it was clear to Levi that he disapproved, but he didn't care. He's not his child, not his successor, not anymore or ever again. Him sleeping in would've been a grave offense in the past, but his opinion didn't matter anymore.

Feeling riled up, Levi turned with a pointed finger and expected to jab it right in Kenny's face as he sat there defenselessly—but he disregarded the insult storing in his throat when he met a broad chest. His gaze followed up the man lumbering over him like a Titan as he searched for his face high in the clouds. Levi's arm fell slowly to his side.

Trying to play it casual, his hand was moved to his hip as he inspected him. "Why are you out of your cuffs?"

Kenny stared off to the side, his voice went flat with indifference. "Mikasa said if I could manage to escape in this weather she'd be impressed enough to let me go on my merry way. Obviously, I'm not suicidal."

Levi could feel his face tightening at the thought of being disobeyed, not merely because he cares so strongly for order right now, but Mikasa's safety is a top priority of his and for her to be so reckless and free a prisoner from his restraints could have created a deadly outcome. "That wasn't my order. I'm the one in charge here."

"But Mikasa said—"

"I don't care. Do I look like Mikasa to you? "

"A little. I'm kind of buzzed."

"Please, don't."

But he didn't take Levi's warning and instead continued on with intentions of sending Levi more annoyance. "Come to think of it, you're not actually that much alike. Mikasa actually slaved away while you were sleeping on your face: cleaning your clothes, cooking, cleaning the house so you wouldn't bitch like a wench—"

Levi leaned in, glaring up with an offended gleam in his eyes. "And I appreciate that. Yet according to you, praising her is flirting."

"A pathetic attempt at flirting, you mean. You were much better with her when she was a tyke. Pretty pathetic that you get all flustered at the sight of a grown woman."

With protruding eyes, Levi rushed his head around, darting his sight to all corners of the room, fearing he wasn't the only one to hear what Kenny just carelessly blabbed out. When he realized she was in the kitchen preparing his tea, Levi turned back to him.

"Would you be quiet?" he hushed urgently in a whisper. "She might hear us and she doesn't need to be reminded, if you catch my drift."

Kenny adjusted his hat with a careless shrug. "Whatever."

All the fuel he acquired during his daytime nap had burned out faster than the fire. With a sigh, Levi's eyes followed the man as he walked around the coffee table and took a seat on the sofa.

A brow rose as curiosity showcased on Levi face. On the table, a ray of scattered playing cards sat. He looked down at what looked like fifty-two pick up from the way the cards sprawled everywhere like they were thrown around in a competitive rage.

"We were playing Go Fish..." Kenny noticed his gaze and filled him in."There was nothing else to do," seemingly ashamed, he explained further, typical for a criminal that's used to fast talking his way out of binds.

Arriving with a tray holding three tea cups, Mikasa walked in from the kitchen and right into the flow of conversation. "He's a no good cheater, though." She glared grudgingly at her uncle.

Levi squinted at the two, feeling like he just entered an alternate universe. A serial killer and the worlds strongest woman playing Go Fish? This mission couldn't get any weirder. He shook the thought from his head. There were more pressing matters to tend to. He hooked a stern gaze over his shoulder, feeling her presence approaching behind him. "You." He bit back at her, annoyed with her carelessness. "Explain why our prisoner isn't handcuffed."

Once she placed down the tray on the plane of the coffee table, Mikasa spun back to her Captain, looming over him with a bite just as sharp as his. "Take it easy. Everything is under control. He just kept complaining, saying he felt stiff sitting in the chair. I couldn't take another second of it."

"I don't give a shit if the old man is having a heart attack, don't disobey my orders."

For a few passing moments a silent staring contest as hard as steel ensued between them, but Mikasa blinked first and cornered her eyes away. She decided to keep a cool head and explain herself maturely. It's not wise on her part to get on Levi's bad side and lose his trust, especially under these circumstances. They all need to work together right now; the worse case scenario would be fighting in the confinements of this small cabin. She saw her mistake and his reason for being angry at her carelessness was understandable, but she can't allow this grudge to prolong or else their situation may become worse and she won't be trusted with responsibility anymore.

"Technically..." This reaction of his was foreseen and she had prepared. While he was asleep, she searched for a loophole in his order. Now was the time to let the loophole be voiced, just as she recited in her head. "You only told me to watch him. I have been. Whether he's locked up or not doesn't matter."

With a wide, elongated stance, he folded his arms. "You're getting a little better at coming up with excuses, but I'm still going to give you a low score of three out of ten, for effort."

"Captain..." she could tell Levi was peeved, and he had right to be; Kenny is a dangerous man, but she knows she could take him and handle any situation she found herself in. He seemed more interested in talking about his family all day, anyway. Ashamed to admit it, she enjoyed a few of the conversations they held, mainly because he brought up her parents a few times. She enjoyed hearing about the relationship between her father and Kenny. Also, some of the embarrassing stories he told about Levi wasn't bad either. She found herself chuckling at some stories and frowning at others. Levi lived a very isolated childhood much like herself—but she at least had a close bond with her parents. Levi didn't have anyone but Kenny (which she thinks might have been worse than being alone).

After gaining a deeper perspective, it's not surprising that Levi filled the role of a lone-wolf and always looks as cranky as he does. She always assumed that he simply handled his stress that way; that keeping it all bottled up was a characteristic that formed after he joined the military. But that side of him manifested long before. He was robbed of his childhood, untimely death took his birth parents away long ago, and he was forced to become a begger as a child until Kenny took him in. He may have been off the streets, but judging by their hostile relationship, Levi probably never got one moment of peace his whole life.

Recalling all that helped her deal with the situation in front of her—or rather, she decided to let it go completely to save them both from a headache.

"I was out cold and you were alone with him. He could have tried to hurt you."

Dismissing the prolonged topic, she breezed pass him with a subtly bump into his shoulder and took a seat on the floor, picking up her cards and seemingly set on starting a new card game with her uncle. "I'd like to see him try," she shot a glare over her fan of cards. While shuffling his deck, Kenny smirk proudly at the challenging glow in his nieces eyes.

Instead of pushing the topic, Levi let it go and sat beside Kenny, propping up an elbow on the rest—but this gnawing in the back of his brain just wouldn't let him rest. He still felt the need to continue their prior debate. "You can't even beat him at Go Fish. If he pulls a ruse with a game imagine what else he could do."

"That's awfully sweet of you to say, Levi. You know me too well." Kenny was about to say more, but Levi, still holding his pain-ridden head, hovered his other hand in his face, gesturing him to not continue.

"Just be quiet and Go Fish."

"That's my line." Mikasa then repeated, "Go Fish."

Sometime in the night, when Levi grew frustrated of seeing Kenny play unfairly game after game against Mikasa, Levi joined in. After losing, (and then childishly accusing Kenny of false bluffs) he suggested a new card game, one he couldn't cheat at. Levi removed one of the queens from the deck and gave Mikasa the duty of the dealer. The room grew pathetically quiet as everyone focused on their hands and discarded the pairs in the middle of the table.

Mikasa ran out of cards first. The game continued and after setting down his final pair, Levi declared his and Mikasa's victory and pointed out Kenny's lone queen card.

"Old maid."

"You're an old maid."

Levi could have swore he just saw Mikasa smirk in the corner of his eye, followed by what sounded like it could have been a chortle. He would have lectured her not to encourage his awful sense of humor, but if she's finding joy in any way (no matter how inappropriate), he'll be damned if he's taking it away from her.

They continued playing through dinner and after a number of card games that became boring over time, Mikasa and Levi found a better use for the deck and silently worked together on a house of cards; folding the cards at the tip and balancing it carefully together to create a new floor. The structure became massively tall after a while, tall enough to force Levi to stand to reach the top, but with one intentional gust of air from Kenny's mouth, the house of cards crumbled faster than Wall Maria.

Previously Levi had been ready to place two more cards to the tower, but with fuming temper he let the cards fall from his steady hands to join the rest of the pile. "Must you be unnecessarily evil?" Levi swiveled back and blared at his ex-mentor, and the man simply grinned happily, satisfied with his evil deed.

Mikasa lost count of how many times they fought this evening. You wouldn't think two grown men would fight over childish games, but they found a way. When she saw another dispute forming on the horizon she intruded and tried to sway the conversation somewhere else. "I haven't heard you cough in a while, Levi. Is the tea helping your throat a little?"

Levi took a while to reply, not knowing how to reply to the sudden benevolence. He let out a string of awkward words, then gave a decent response. "Oh, right, yeah. It helped. Thanks."

Kenny thrusted out his chest with air in preparation for a blaring groan. "Ugh. You two act like an old married couple." His slit eyes popped open a little in recall, then contently closed again with a grumble, "Hm, I suppose that's appropriate."

Mikasa tilted her head with a flicker of question in her eyes. "Why would that be appropriate?"

The sudden dangerous and unperceived turn in conversation had Levi straining his eyes between them, his chest thumping like a guilty accomplice withholding information from the MP. How the fuck did the subject of tea derail the whole flow of conversation and lead them here?

A line of a smile stretched across Kenny's cheeks. His intentions were clear to Levi before he even spoke. "Well, the two of you—AH! You little runt!"

After stomping on his foot like he was crushing a pesky cockroach, Levi bared his teeth, like an animal warning another not to cross its territory.

Fed up, Mikasa tossed down her cards in a fit. "That's it. What's going on," she said and it wasn't a question. It was a demand.

"I lost the motivation to help you two idiots. Suffer in oblivion."

Mikasa sunk her brows at her uncle, confused and angry by his vague phrasing, but it was completely crystal clear to Levi—and yes, he's completely content with Mikasa staying in oblivion.

"Captain."

Levi heard her, but never took his eyes from Kenny's lips, fearing he'd speak if he removed his watch from them. "He says weird things because he's a weird man. Don't pay attention to him."

"I'm the weird one? Tch, is this a cabin or a damn fun house? I'm trying to be helpful and you nearly broke my foot."

Helpful? With what? Mikasa focused on getting to the bottom of this. "Kenny." Levi wont give her the attention she begged for, so she'll work on him. The look on Levi's face displayed a type of fear she hadn't witnessed before, but this only encouraged her further and she went on to say, "You and I are family, so if you got something to say, then tell me."

Kenny peeked over at Levi and the man glared back, steaming like a block of dry ice in boiling water.

"Not another word," he said flatly, but his words still penetrated like a whip.

"Levi, let him talk," Mikasa narrowed her eyes, almost in disbelief. What the hell has gotten into him?

"Oh, I'll let him talk alright," his expression turned deadly on Kenny, "May I speak to you in private?" The combination of the polite phrasing and the way he hovered over the man like an ominous black cloud, ready to strike him with a deadly bolt, sketched a terrifying image before her.

The man chuckled but was cut off abruptly when Levi forced him to his feet with a strong tug of his collar and escorted him down into the dark hall.

Levi didn't even know he still remembered—he figured he forgot about it. After the scene he pulled, he knew that wasn't the case and that was enough of a scare to set him into action and make sure the truth never came out.

Assuring Mikasa didn't follow, he surveyed the length hallway, then shot his head up at Kenny's grin. "Do not tell Mikasa about that. Do you understand? Don't."

Kenny peered down at him, showing zero fear of the undertones of Levi's demand, like what would happen if he disobeyed. "You'll have to refresh my memory and be more specific."

Levi didn't have time for his games right now. He readjusted his hold on him and pinned his hostile stance against him, close enough to make sure Kenny heard every sharply whispered word. "You know damn well what I'm taking about. I'm not your successor anymore. I'm never going to pass down your work so there's no point in bringing that up ever again. Give it up."

"Mikasa is a sweet girl, why won't you tell her about it?"

It's because she's a sweet girl that he doesn't want to tell her. She'd probably feel disgusted or betrayed if she knew—besides, like he said, there's no point anymore. All it would do is stir up a headache for all involved and maybe even ruin the relationship they formed. What they had wasn't much, but he still held what they had very dearly.

"There's nothing between us, that's why. It was a long time ago and it's time to forget it. It doesn't matter now. Besides, I'd never force my subordinate to go through with some scheme that was made without her consent."

"You can ask her for consent. She's of age now..." Kenny looked off in the direction of the living room wistfully. Paranoid, Levi followed his gaze to double check, making sure Mikasa didn't just appear. Being on edge as he were, he jumped a little when Kenny continued, "But she needs to know about it in order to give that answer, Levi."

He hissed back up at him, gripping the collar of his coat tighter. "Just shut your fucking mouth. If I even suspect you will mention it to her you won't get a warning with a simple kick next time. I'll rip your tongue out so you'll never speak again."

"Think, runt. Is your brain as undeveloped as your body? If I wanted to tell her badly enough, I would have explained the whole thing earlier while you were sleeping your face off, but I didn't, so back off. I was just trying to give you a little boost. But fine, be alone and miserable. Don't come crying to me years down the line."

"I won't. Now let it go," he shoved his grip off his collar and stomped down the hall, mumbling incompetently under his breath.

Levi walked off, but paused his steps when Kenny added, "She'll find out eventually, you know. You can't hide it forever."

He scowled under a casted shadow as dark as his guilt and drove into the well-lit living room.

"You can't hide what?" Mikasa stood.

Shit. She caught that? That bastard and his big mouth.

"Nothing. Sit down." He gestured to the floor with a pointing finger, but much to Levi's surprise, the usual obedient Mikasa disobeyed.

"No." She approached him fiercely. "Tell me what's going on. I feel like I'm being excluded from something."

"Well, don't place the blame me, dear niece." Kenny finally returned to the family feud belatedly. "You can thank that midget for that."

"What did I just say?" Levi whirled back, looking a second away from snapping his ex-mentors neck.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he returned to his spot on the couch. "I won't say another word, I like my tongue where it is."

Mikasa forced herself in Levi's sight, her arms folding. "Telling our prisoner not to speak? Nice one, Captain. Really, great job. Tell me what the hell is going on." What excuse could he possibly have for getting so worked up? Is Levi withholding critical information because of his past with Kenny? She started to wonder if he could even be truly trusted due to his relationship with him.

"It doesn't concern you, Mikasa." He walked off, trying to escape to the kitchen, but it was impossible to escape from her in this tiny cabin. She stalked closer to him than his flickering shadow casting off the walls. He wished he could take a long walk outside, but he's trapped in his damn cold forsaken house.

"Like hell it doesn't." Mikasa powered her step and spun him around with a powerful pull, "What are you hiding? Tell me or I'll tell Hanji you're withholding information as soon as we get out of here."

He removed her hand from his shoulder hostility, his eyes warning her not to do that again. She backed off and took a step back, but still stood her ground with balled fists, waiting for the answer she deserved.

"Why the hell would I care if you tell that freak?"

"That freak is our Commander now."

Levi held his head. Shit. She's right. He almost forgot that shitty-glasses has been promoted to Commander. Erwin not only lost his arm, but he lost his God damn mind too for putting that titan-loving scientist in charge. He's not saying Hanji isn't capable of filling in the spot; she definitely does suit the role of Commander—she's always been much more of a leader than Levi. But taking orders from that Titan-loving idiot has got to be the biggest mindfuck of his whole military career.

"Mikasa, must I remind you that I don't have to tell you something if I don't want to? I'm sure I made that clear yesterday. If I tell you to drop it, you better do just that or I'll have to write you up for insubordination." What a pathetic threat, it actually stung his tongue. He never thought he'd resort to such a cowardly thing.

She flicked her bangs with a tsk. "Please, spare me. Do you think I care about formalities anymore? We aren't soldiers anymore, we're all wanted criminals. We're in this together now and we have no reason to hide anything. You need me, you made that clear, so write me up all you want. It won't make a difference in my standing."

Not able to look her in the eyes, he lowered his head. She's so painfully right. She's a valuable solider and even if she became a no-good nuisance that disobeyed every order, he'd still need her on his side because she, much like himself, is an irreplaceable white knight on the board. There aren't many pawns left and most of their important pieces, like their queen and coordinate king, are always in check and the rest are in captivity and no longer playable.

Regardless, they will always need Mikasa to continue playing. If they lost her it would be game over because there's only so much weight that Levi's shoulders could bear before crushing under all the responsibility. In other words, there's not a damn thing he could say to whip Mikasa back in line and do as he says.

The problem is, the information he held from her had nothing to do with their current situation. It's an old issue that died long ago and now it has unfortunately resurrected. He wants nothing more than to put it to rest again and forget about it for good.

"Don't make me repeat myself." He replied stubbornly and Mikasa, finally having enough, stormed off to the bedroom, leaving a trail of stomps behind before finally slamming the bedroom door hard enough to quake the houses foundation.

". . . . . ." Levi frowned at the door, regret settling on him.

"That didn't go too well, if you ask me. Shit, I never had any luck with women but you're a fucking lost cause."

Levi spun back slowly with vile intentions. For the first time, Kenny's eyes revealed a tiny hint of fear.

The sound of deadly threats and a rumbling ruckus blared in from beyond the door. Mikasa did her best to tune them out by folding the pillow against her ears. Let them kill each other, for all she cares. It's not like it mattered. Whether Mikasa respectfully stood up for Captain Levi or behaves disobediently made no difference; he still treats her the same. She knows he's much older than her, but he doesn't need to treat her like a baby. Her, along with her follow comrades have been through too much to still be considered children.

She should have known begging that stubborn shorty was futile, but some stupid part of her thought they became a little closer lately, but apparently she's just a nuisance in his eyes, but for the life of her she can't figure out why. She had stuck up for him when others doubted him, always trusted his judgment and battled at his side countless times. She can't think of one time that she went out of line or refused to work with him. Even during the times that she had to sacrifice Eren's safety just because she strongly believed that her Captain knew what he was doing. And after all that, this is how he repays her: by keeping more secrets from her and treating her like a child.

~x~

After a never-ending battle with Kenny to vent his stress, Levi threw him down into the basement and rewarded himself with some silence so he could think. After much pacing and racing thoughts, he cleared his head and came up with a decent excuse for his behavior.

Levi appeared before the bedroom door, summoning up the strength to knock. When there was no answer, he rested his forehead against the door, closing his eyes. "Can I please come in?"

Mikasa stirred in the blanket, frowning at the tone. "Do I have the permission to say no? Oh, wait. Scratch that. You just do whatever you want regardless of what I say."

When she heard the door creak open, Mikasa rolled over to face the wall. Light spilled in and the sound of heavy footsteps followed and caused her to pouted into the press of the pillow. She traced her eyes over the cracks and nicks until his shadow grew and covered the designs of the floral wallpaper.

"Easy there," he tried to tame her as he crossed the room. Before she could rudely remark back he added, "I'm sorry," he said like the word poisoned his tongue. "Kenny was just trying to bring up something from the past, and I lost my head. Not a lot of people know anything about me—you and him are the only ones who currently know my last name, even." He invited himself to sit on the edge of the bed.

With curiosity fueling her, she stealthy shuffled to face him and bundled the blanket passed her nose and opened her ears to what he had to say.

"I'm not used to being around people that know about my personal shit—shit I don't want coming to the surface. He's kind of like a father that way, he tries to embarrass me and say irrelevant shit in front of others."

"But..." Her gaze wandered as she tried to recall. "I thought he was saying something about us—he said we were like a married couple, then he said that seemed appropriate...but you cut him off before he could explain and you seemed desperate to keep him silent. It made me feel like you're hiding something from me—and at a time like this, that's not a wise idea. We need to stick together, Levi."

He gaped at that. His stunned expression highlighted for all to see from the glow rising off the candle in his hands.

Now, judging from that reaction, Mikasa knew for sure that it did involve her somehow. That's all she needed to know.

He set the candle on the nightstand, trying to hide himself in the shadows, but it was too late. His reaction already gave away an answer.

Damn she's sharp—just like her mother.

"It has something to do with me...doesn't it?" She sat up dizzily, her head spinning from the sudden shift. She leaned in, balancing on herself on her hands as she tried to force a confirmation out of him.

He didn't answer. He came in here with a vague, yet loosely honest excuse, but he wasn't prepared to lie right to her face—and especially not let her in on the truth.

Since asking directly won't work, she'll get it out of him with a new tactic. She whispered softly, "Tell me, Levi."

Tingles surged through him from that precious tone, but the calming effect was burned away with the recall of Kenny's harsh words: She'll find out eventually, you know. You can't hide it forever. He tensed up, his lips pressing together as his knuckles turned white in his lap.

Levi had tried so hard to hide the connection from her and him all this time; his last name, her relation to Kenny—but the truth came to light regardless of his efforts. Their past and the arrangement made between them likely will too, no matter how hard he tries to dodge it. If she must know, he wants her to find out the right way.

"I'll tell you," his voice nearly cracked at the commitment it took to say that. "When the time is right. I promise." His heart raced at the thought, hotness rushed to his face from the adrenaline. But—it's the right thing to do. Now that she knows practically everything else he hid from her, there's only one thing left to reveal. He turned to her, meeting her gaze. He softened up his hard features the best he could. "Just...not right now. I swear, it's nothing serious. It could be easily solved, you have nothing to worry about. Trust me, I wouldn't hide something vital from you."

Closing her eyes, she channeled the impatience from her mind and nodded solidly. She huffed, relived he set aside his stubbornness and at least gave a promise. When it comes to Levi, his promises are nearly set in stone. Never once had he failed to accomplish something he gave his word on, not unless the matter went out of his hands.

"Okay. I trust your judgment—but I'm holding you to that. You will tell me."

Levi took a deep breath, nodding with a painful swallow down his sore throat. There's no way around it now—eventually, sooner rather than later, he'll have to tell Mikasa about their engagement.