"I'm still not forgiving you," Levi muttered to Zoe. "We were waiting for you for over three hours. It was awful hanging around that spoiled brat." Levi and Zoe were walking through Trost. The district was bustling with people, and for the first time since the Colossal Titan appeared, things actually had a pretty positive vibe. Levi, however, found it slightly unsettling. Such a long-lasting calm seemed a bit too good to be true. He was almost certain the time of peace would soon come to a screeching halt.
"Oh, he's not so bad," Zoe smiled, folding her arms behind her head and leaning back leisurely. "I think he's just been through a lot, you know?"
"His mom was eaten, right?" Levi asked. Zoe nodded with a melancholy smile on her face.
"I'm sure that the titan had a good reason," Zoe sighed. "They're so misunderstood."

Out of the corner of his eye, Levi caught a glimpse of a trio he'd known for years, now. He knew those three. Zoe looked in the same direction, and a smile spread across her face. Levi sighed as she began to yell and wave at the three of them.
"Speaking of whom- Eren, Armin, Mikasa!" Zoe waved to them excitedly. Levi rolled his eyes at Zoe's display, acting like a child. She was embarrassing him. Eren, Mikasa and Armin all turned to see them. Eren smiled at Hange and waved calmly back. He made his way over, Mikasa and Armin at his heels. Mikasa glared at Levi, but he didn't even falter. He knew his intentions were to help Eren's case in court, and if Mikasa couldn't understand that, then that was her problem. Her stare only darkened when he acknowledged her. Levi got a slight thrill out of her hatred toward him.
"Commander Hange, Commander Levi!" Armin smiled sweetly, and his blue eyes sparkled in the sun. "It's nice to see you! What are you two doing out today?"
"We were just taking a walk!" Zoe replied before Levi even had a chance to respond. Levi looked over at Eren; his green eyes were glistening in the sun with a beautiful glow, giving their attention to Hange's conversation. Levi saw a small amount of melancholy in his bright eyes, and suddenly understood what Hange was saying. Eren was only 17, and lost his mother at 10 years old. Maybe he was being too harsh on Eren. The fate of humanity pretty much rested on this brat's shoulders, so maybe Levi should let up on the poor kid.

"Oi, Eren," Levi called out to him. Eren turned, slightly surprised. "Good morning." Levi tried his best to sound pleasant, but he still felt he was being bland. Nevertheless, Eren still gave a warm smile. Levi felt strange. Why did that make him feel so excited and so… happy?
"Good morning, Commander Levi." Eren replied. As he finished greeting the corporal, his cheeks began turning a bright shade of pink.
Suddenly, Levi found three new members to their little group. Armin and Zoe were speaking about different tactic possibilities for new missions, while Mikasa was walking alongside them, not saying anything at all. She just looked around, with her burgundy scarf covering the collar of her white blouse. Levi couldn't help but stare at the wrinkles and the parts of her collar that were peeking out from under her scarf. It seemed extremely sloppy.
He turned to Eren once again, who was staring straight ahead, not saying anything. Levi walked ahead of him, turned to face Eren, and stopped dead in his tracks. Eren stopped walking, at first looking up at Levi, then turning away.
"What are you doing?" Levi asked him. Eren's face turned bright red and his shoulders hunched up.
"W-what?"
"You're scared of me, aren't you?" Levi asked him. Eren furrowed his eyebrows in a distressed expression.
"W-well, it isn't fear so much as…" Eren's voice trailed off. Zoe, Armin and Mikasa passed by and stopped, looking back at them.
"Levi, quit pestering Eren," Zoe said. Levi sucked his teeth and turned, continuing to walk. Zoe sighed, placing her hand to her forehead. Eren looked from her to Levi, wondering if he was angry or disappointed.
"Don't hold it against him," Zoe said with a sad grin, "he's had bad experiences with people."

Levi leaned against the wooden pillars of the Survey Corps stables, his arms crossed. The morning light had changed to the bright midday sun. Since Levi didn't want to be around Hange or Eren anymore, he had taken it upon himself to feed the horses. The day was hot during this time, and the stable smelled horrible. Even though he wanted to clean it, he had no materials with him at all. He would leave it to the Equestrians. Even though they left terrible messes, he still cared about the horses. He sometimes felt a bit bad for them; they were often in the crosshairs during battle, and they were such amazing creatures. But he never said anything to the other squad leaders. They'd never let him hear the end of it. He made his way over to a light brown horse with a dark burgundy mane. He stroked the horse gently.
"Squad leader?" Levi heard a voice come from the stable entrance. The horse whinnied, but allowed Levi to continue petting it. Levi turned toward the entrance, where Eren stood, peeking inside. They locked gazes, and Eren's eyes darted away. "Er, squad leader Levi, Hange wanted me to find you."
"She couldn't find me herself?" Levi asked. Eren didn't answer; he only looked down awkwardly at the hay on the floor of the stable. Levi sighed and brought a hand to his forehead. "Listen, why don't we just leave each other alone? I scare you anyway. It's fine."
"You don't scare me," Eren blurted out defensively. Levi looked at him, shocked. "Or rather, unless you want me to be afraid of you, then…"
"No, I don't."
"Anyway, it's not that you scare me, you just… you intimidate me is all." Eren explained. Levi raised an eyebrow curiously. "Your ability to fight titans surpasses everyone and no matter how much I try, I…" Eren brought a hand to his face, laughing sadly. "I can't be as good as you. I want to wipe titans of the face of this planet, and I can't even fight titans the way you do." Eren made his way inside, sitting on a stack of hay that was set near a horse's stable. He placed his elbows on his knees and supported his head. Neither of them said a word to each other. Levi could tell Eren was really upset.

"You don't need to be like me," Levi said finally. "Just do your best." Eren looked up at Levi. His big, green eyes looked swollen and puffy, like they were holding back tears. Levi didn't meet his gaze- He couldn't stand seeing people in pain, especially not one of his squad members. He sighed and made his way over to Eren. Eren looked up at him curiously. Eren's heart skipped a beat as Levi wrapped his arms around him, hugging Eren. Eren's arms dangled limply, and his face felt hot. His breath was short as his head leaned on Levi's strong, warm shoulder. Tears came flowing through his eyes. He had never felt such kindness in a long, long time. Levi seemed hard and tough, but he'd never noticed what a tender, sweet man he could be. Eren let out a cry as he wrapped his own arms around his squad leader. He wept on Levi's shoulder, letting out his emotions he had kept hidden for so many years. Levi's hand crept onto Eren's hair, petting and stroking his soft, brown hair, letting him cry. As Eren's shoulders shook, Levi could smell the warmth on Eren's skin and his hair. He smelled so soft and soothing. Then he realized what he was thinking. No, he thought. I'm Eren's commander. It's inappropriate for me to be thinking these things. As Eren's cries slowly stopped, Levi gently pulled away from Eren. Eren's face was puffy, his eyes swollen. But Levi noticed his squad member's cheeks were flushed.