Attachment

Author: Cigamina

Fandom: Shingeki no Kyojin

Protagonists: Irvin Smith and Levi are the main focus

Part: 6/?

Warnings: violence , foul language

Rating: will be M

Disclaimer: Characters unfortunately aren't mine, therefore no money-making~ XDDD

Notes: Not too much yet, story starts a few years before the plot in the anime/manga evolves, in year 835.

Please forgive me for making so many mistakes, English is not my native language and I'm sure you will find plenty of mistakes in there! _

Songs I heard while writing the story below:

Christian Toth - Minimal Set 2013

Daniel Portman - Galvanized

Flying Steps – In da arena

Music Instructor – Rock your body (Brainbug Remix)

Schiller – Schiller

Notes²: I want to thank all people who write me comments and just everybody who reads this story! I really appreciate that and I'm happy about the attention this story is getting! I love you all!

There's a lot more coming up, I'll do my best to update as fast as I can!

Be patient with those two! They still have a very loooong way to go! XDDDD

Attachment– Chapter 6

He didn't really know what woke him up but when he opened his eyes he knew that it was too early. Usually the first sunrays woke him – and it was still very dark outside. He also didn't feel reposed at all – which he hadn't expected since he knew that between his going to bed and morning only were a few hours of sleep. Which had just been interrupted even earlier than he had liked.

Sighing he decided to just turn around and go back to sleep for a little longer – when he heard a very ugly noise that came from somewhere behind his back. It made him sit up, turning his head in the direction of the noise when he heard it again, clearly coming from his bathroom. He blinked, throwing a glance over to the second bed in the room where he saw tangled blankets and nothing else – and when his still befuddled brain finally put two and two together he darted out of his bed and into the bathroom. The pale moon rays shining into the room made it easy to make out Levi's silhouette in front of the toilet, hunched on the floor and obviously the source of the ugly noises that were so much louder now that Irvin was in the same room. Also considering his position and the smell that hung in the air made it quite easy to understand what the boy was doing here. He was being really, really sick.

"Levi…"

The boy's head shot up when he heard Irvin's voice and dark blue eyes stared at him, but not for long. Another wave of nausea seemed to crash down on him and he threw up again, his whole body convulsing. He heard him whimper and breathe harshly, his hands gripping the edge of the toilet tightly.

Irvin turned around and went back to fetch the mug from the little table by the window, filled it with water from the jug on his nightstand and returned to the bathroom. He cautiously crouched down and placed the mug on the floor next to him, seeing the boy look in his direction warily before bending over the toilet again, retching. Irvin stretched out his hand and gently put it onto the boy's back, feeling him flinch violently underneath his touch. The boy's body tensed up and Irvin already expected him to crawl away but another wave of nausea kept him rooted to where he was, he threw up again. Irvin, rather immune to the acid smell of it as he had smelled things way worse, kept his hand where it was und gently rubbed up and down the boy's back. He had found that comforting when he had been sick as a child and he tried it with Levi, knowing that he boy needed to relax and to breathe. Tensing and panting only made it worse.

The boy clung to the edge of the toilet, made a weak attempt to shrug Irvin's hand off but instantly started retching again so he stilled. Irvin looked at him, still gently rubbing his back and felt the muscles underneath his hand unclench a little more with each passing second.

"That's good, relax… and breathe. Is it over?"

The boy shot him a weak glare and shook his head very slightly, afraid to cause another wave of nausea, but tried breathing calmly. Which only made him be sick again, Irvin supposed that it was the smell.

"Wait."

He got up from the floor and used the bucket to get a little water from the pump they used to get water from the tanks stored underneath the building up into the rooms. With the bucket in his arms he went back to Levi and bend over him to pull a string that made the toilet's ground open, pouring the water in to flush the former content of Levi's stomach down the drain. Setting the bucket aside he let go of the string and sat down next to Levi again, looking at the boy.

"Better?"

The boy hesitantly nodded, still clutching the edge of the toilet. But he took a few deep breaths and with the smell mostly gone it didn't cause him to throw up right again. Irvin extended a hand and put it back onto the boy's back, resuming the task he had discarded a few minutes ago. Levi looked at him and tensed a little but when Irvin just continued the rubbing motion he relaxed soon, bending over the toilet again. He didn't let go yet, it seemed as if his stomach was still unsteady.

"I told you you were going to be sick… your stomach just couldn't handle all of it."

There was another glare shot in his direction and the boy opened his mouth to say something but instead he shuddered and bent over the toilet, violently throwing up again. Irvin doubted that there would be anything left in his stomach by now and the only thing coming up was gastric acid, which, he knew, burnt like hell. The boy was panting and Irvin did feel sympathy for him even tough Levi had basically done this to himself. But who could blame him, Irvin was sure that he would have done exactly the same in the boy's place.

They sat there in silence for a while, Levi clutching the edge of the toilet and Irvin gently rubbing his back. He retched once in a while but finally he had nothing left that he could throw up. It took a little time until he slowly unclawed his fingers from the wood, lifting his head. Irvin's hand stilled and he looked at the boy.

"Do you feel better?"

Levi hesitantly nodded and Irvin moved his hand away from his back, reaching for the mug instead and eased the mug into the boy's hands.

"Here, drink a little water."

Levi accepted the mug and took a sip, moved the water around in his mouth and spat it into the toilet. He repeated the action a few times before actually drinking a little water, waiting a while after that as if to see whether that would make him throw up again or not. But apparently it didn't, his stomach seemed to have steadied a little. Thank god… as far as Irvin knew such reactions were acute and violent but were over as soon as the cause for the convulsion was out of the system. Which it was now, in Levi's case. He should be fine… and Irvin needed to think about what to feed to the boy. They would have to build up his stomach slowly and carefully – but that could wait until morning. What they needed right now was get back into bed and catch another few hours of sleep.

He looked at Levi and took the empty mug from his hands, rocking back onto his heels.

"Feeling up to getting back into bed?"

The boy shot him another nasty glance, Irvin supposed it was for good measure, and hoisted himself off the ground. He seemed a little unsteady and Irvin got up as well, eying the other skeptically. Knowing that trying to help him back to bed would only end in the other battering his hands off, they had already had that two nights ago, Irvin nodded at him, repeated the action of flushing away what had been in the toilet and walked out of the room then, placing the mug where he had taken it from and sat down on his bed. He waited for the boy to return to the room as well and Levi did a few seconds later, thudding back to his bed and crawling underneath his blankets. Irvin did the same, watching the boy huddle into his blankets for a second before he turned his head to face the ceiling, closing his eyes. The exhaustion washed right through him and he almost missed the boy speaking up, his voice very soft.

"…thank you…"

That was very surprising and Irvin couldn't help but smile in the darkness, turning over onto his side.

"Anytime, Levi."

They boy fell silent after that and Irvin just gave in to his fatigue, being fast asleep only seconds later.

When his stomach rumbled he clenched his jaw, hugging himself around the stomach tentatively. He really didn't want to be sick again… but the nauseous feeling of before failed to reappear, he just felt dull in general. He was exhausted, this had drained the last energy from his body – and he still couldn't sleep. It was still his head keeping him awake, now his thoughts mainly wrapped themselves around the man whose back he was staring at. Who had just spent like an hour with him in the bathroom, comforting him while he was being sick to his stomach.

Levi pulled the blankets more tightly around him, huddling into the warmth he had created inside of his cocoon. He had been scared when the man had touched him so suddenly, bare-chested and muscular and over-powering as he was. But his body had decided that he still wasn't a threat, had relaxed. Because… it HAD felt comforting to have his back rubbed like that. Which confused the hell out of him as he had never enjoyed someone else's touch – he couldn't recall anyone wanting to touch him in a comforting way for the past seven years, though. He shivered and felt the need to feel for his knife again, making sure it was still there. Which it was.

Staring at the man's broad back he couldn't help but frown, chewing on his lip. He just couldn't figure him out. Why was he doing all of this…? Being sickingly nice to him, looking after him, GETTING HIM HERE in the first place. It didn't make any sense to him… and he knew that he would have to ask the man. It was driving him crazy. He didn't seem to want anything back in return, he had just asked for his trust. Which he had, apparently. He was still here. In the same room with him and he hadn't killed him. Didn't intend to kill him, either. He had done a great job manipulating Levi, he thought darkly to himself.

He tried closing his eyes but found that he just couldn't keep them shut. Suppressing a frustrated growl he sat up, rubbing his face. He just didn't feel calm enough to fall asleep. Still listening to each and every sound he just couldn't let go, he felt exposed and vulnerable. This had nothing to do with Irvin Smith's presence – it was the fact that he wouldn't have time to hide or escape through the window if somebody just barged in, he would be caught within a second. That was what haunted him and he knew that it wouldn't let him go for a while, until he had adjusted to being inside at night.

His eyes wandered through the room and finally fixed on the high, broad wardrobe. It was massive and it almost reached the ceiling, creating an alcove between the wood and the stone. Levi blinked and didn't hesitate a second, grabbed his blankets and the knife and stood next to the wardrobe. With impressively little noise, without much strain and only a little use of his knife he scaled the wardrobe, crawling back until he met the wall. Lying down and pulling the blankets around him he overlooked the room and found this way better. It wasn't as comfortable as the mattress but it rendered him out of reach for most people who weren't giants like Irvin Smith, he wouldn't be seen at the first glance thrown into the room, and he could see the most part of the room. That was WAY better. He could feel his alert senses dim a little immediately and when he huddled closer to the wall, curling up into a tight ball, he was sure that he could fall asleep here. Giving closing his eyes a shot he took a few deep breaths, feeling rather safe where he was. It still wasn't ideal, but it had never really been ideal.

It didn't need him long to fall asleep, curled up on top of the wardrobe, finally knocked out by his exhaustion. The knife clutched tightly in his right hand he lost consciousness, finally drowning in blissful darkness.

When he slowly woke up he felt the pale rays of the autumn's sun caress his face, confirming that it was indeed morning this time. Grumbling softly he raised a hand and rubbed his eyes, slowly opening them. Rolling onto his back he decided to stay in bed for another couple of minutes, taking his time to wake properly.

His slumber hadn't been interrupted again so he assumed that the black-haired boy had been fine after the incident in the bathroom. He would go talk to the ladies in the kitchen as soon as possible, making them prepare something light and edible for Levi. Military kitchen mostly consisted of nutrient food that gave the soldiers lots of energy and kept them fed for a while, and that was impossible for Levi to handle. He needed light soup, a little bread, maybe a few vegetables, meat, fish, milk, eggs. While knowing that he wouldn't get any of that during military training he could make sure Levi ate properly while he was with him and he would do just that.

Turning his head in the direction of the boy's bed he expected him to be still fast asleep – and frowned when he found the bed completely empty. The blankets were gone and so was the boy, the only remaining thing was the pillow. Irvin sat up, looking around the room in search for the boy and almost felt the urge to jump out of bed to start looking for Levi immediately – when he caught sight of the corner of a blanket that was hanging down from the wardrobe. His frown deepened and he did get up, standing on his toes – and really found the boy on the wardrobe. Curled into a tight ball with the blankets wrapped around his slim body, fast asleep. Irvin stared at him for a few seconds, wondering why he had chosen to sleep up there – and only found one solution to the riddle: he had fled to the only place where he couldn't be reached easily. Even Irvin, being quite tall, would have to climb onto Levi's bed to be able to touch him.

Shaking his head lightly he went over to the wardrobe, silently opened its doors and fetched himself a shirt to shrug into. Slipping into socks and shoes he decided to let Levi sleep a little longer; the boy was probably even more exhausted than Irvin was.

He left the room after a quick trip to the bathroom to make himself look presentable and made a little tour, dressed casually. He wanted to wash before getting into his uniform and he wanted to take care of a few things even before that.

He went to the kitchen and talked to the ladies who were busily preparing the soldiers' breakfast, explaining briefly that he had a boy with him who needed some special nourishment, and they eagerly assured him that they would whip something up. They only begrudgingly released him but not without giving him a slice of freshly baked sweet bread on which he chewed while heading to the garrison's entrance to see the guards there. They greeted him cheerfully and he gave them some instructions, as to letting Levi leave and enter as he pleased. He was sure that the boy would spend the day somewhere outside, being inside all day would only bore him. But he wanted to give him the possibility to return whenever he wanted, independent on Irvin's being here or not.

After a quick check-up in the stable to see if they had a suitable horse for Levi and to feed a few carrots to his stallion Flakes he returned to his room, entering it quietly. He confirmed with a curious glance that the boy was still asleep on top of the wardrobe, and got his things together to go wash in the bathroom.

When he reappeared a little while later, clad in his uniform and his hair in neat order, Levi was still sleeping. Irvin mused that he had to be deeply asleep when nothing woke him. He wasn't necessarily noisy but he couldn't avoid all noises he was due to make.

Stepping onto Levi's bed with socked feet he reached for the boy, his hand hovering over one of his lower legs. He was well aware of the knife in Levi's hand and he would rather avoid being slashed so he stuck to trying to startle the other as little as possible. He only lightly touched him and chose to address him in addition.

"Levi."

It didn't take the boy long to react, the moment Irvin touched him his eyes flew open and his upper body jerked up as far as it could as the alcove between wardrobe and ceiling was rather narrow, the knife clutched tightly in his hand. He stared at Irvin who took a step back, holding up his empty hands in a defensive gesture and smiling tentatively.

"It's just me."

It took the other a few seconds to click into place, remembering where he was and who he was staring at, but eventually he blinked and slowly lowered the knife. He drew his legs towards his body, out of Irvin's reach, and raised a hand to rub at his face. He looked exhausted, his eyes were heavy-lidded and the dark circles underneath them had become even darker. Irvin stepped off the bed, giving the boy the space he would need to climb back down.

"How are you feeling? You didn't have any more seizures, did you?"

The boy shook his head, still wrapped in the blankets. He was looking around the room from his spot on top of the wardrobe and Irvin smiled.

"That's good. You care for some breakfast? I told the nice ladies in the kitchen to make you something that will stay in this time, so don't worry."

The boy stared at him, his eyes narrowing the slightest bit. His voice sounded hoarse, maybe his throat was still a little tarnished from the throwing up and sleep.

"So… it was your food that caused… that?"

Irvin inclined his head, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"It was, yes, but not because there was anything wrong with the food. I ate it too, remember? It's just that… you're not used to eating regularly and your stomach couldn't handle that variety and amount of food, so it did the only thing it could: reject what it couldn't process. And that's basically what happened."

The boy stared at him, Irvin wasn't sure if he was getting what he was saying. He was sure that the boy had never even thought about what his organs did and didn't do, that was something he had never needed. His object had been getting food whenever he could lay his hands on it, end of story.

Eventually Levi nodded and peeled the blankets off his body, leaving them on the wardrobe when he set to come back down. He did so rather gracefully, Irvin was sure that if it wasn't for the injury on his thigh he would have even been more subtle in his movements. He was used to climbing, Irvin realized. Maybe that was what had driven him up there, on top of the wardrobe: the feeling that he was safer the higher he was up somewhere. It made sense to him, his whole behavior. The boy had to get used to a lot of things first and Irvin had to be indulgent and patient during this process, which he was prepared for. It seemed that Levi was willing to make an effort, he didn't flee from the room to find another place to sleep, most likely outside. He stayed even though he had obviously felt uncomfortable - Irvin gave him credit for that.

He smiled at the boy and nodded in the bathroom's direction.

"Get ready then, I'll wait for you in my office."

He left the boy alone, entering the office and walking over to his desk. He would do a little reading and stamping until the boy was ready so he sat down on the chair, taking up one of the reports. Even though this wasn't his usual office and he had only spent a few days here there were a lot of things on his desk – he had to finish all of this before going back to their headquarters.

He tried concentrating on the report but his thoughts just didn't want to stick with it, they wandered off successfully until Irvin sighed and set the report aside. Not yet having had the time to reflect on the events of the previous night his thoughts were constantly going back there. To where the evening had taken a violent turn in a direction Irvin hadn't expected. He didn't know WHAT he had expected – but Levi freaking out somehow hadn't been in the picture. He didn't really know why as it seemed perfectly understandable for him in retro perspective. The boy had snapped, something had been too much for him. It had dawned to him that signing up for the military wasn't just a spur-of-the-moment-thing… it was a long-term commitment and most likely going to change his whole life. He wouldn't see Hermiha for quite some time, would be in a completely new environment, with people around him all the time. He would have a rigid schedule, a whole bunch of rules and so on.

He hadn't expected the boy to fight him, either. He had already gotten used to the boy's calm part and had somehow forgotten about the vicious, dangerous and efficient side of him – yesterday's fight had been a reminder that the boy still was a wild animal, a spooked but dangerous one. And Irvin was glad that it had turned up already instead of boiling inside of the boy for some time. Irvin had taken care of it that way – he thought that Levi was okay now. He had explained to the boy where he stood and Levi had made a decision – Irvin expected this to be settled. At least for now. He was certain that it would take Levi time to get used to everything but as long as the boy told him what was bothering him (or at least let him know in some way) it would be fine. He assumed that, deep down, the boy was glad to be offered a chance. He just had to come to terms with it.

He didn't want to interpret that fact further than so much but – the boy hadn't used his knife on him. He hadn't even reached for it during their fighting. Irvin somehow took that as a good sign; Levi hadn't been planning to KILL him at any point. He had just been very angry, afraid and insecure and furious about it all.

It took Levi a little while to appear but when he did so he was dressed properly, neatly even. His black hair had a rather healthy shine now that it was clean and dry even though it still was unruly, reaching his shoulders and with the absence of a haircut. They would have to fix that before the boy started military training, when using the maneuver gear long hair could cause severe accidents.

Irvin smiled at him and got up from his chair, nodding in the door's direction.

"Let's go downstairs."

He lead the boy to the room where they all ate together, finding it appropriate to take him there. He assumed the knowledge that the corporal had 'adopted' a boy must have spread within their little special squad by now and he was proven to have guessed right, they didn't receive as many curious stares as there could have been.

They entered the common dining room and Irvin was glad to see that it wasn't crowded, most soldiers seemed to have already eaten. There were only three other soldiers and Irvin offered Levi a seat at a table on the opposite side of the room. Judging from the boy's tense shoulders Levi didn't feel comfortable, which was understandable, but he had to get used to being around people, around other soldiers.

Levi took the seat, crossing his arms in front of his chest and looking up at him. Irvin smiled and briefly looked over to the other men, recognizing one of them to be Mike Zacharius. He raised his hand in greeting and the other man did the same. Irvin turned his attention back to the boy who had followed his eyes to see who Irvin had greeted.

"I'll get our food."

The boy looked at him and nodded, turning his attention back to the other man. Irvin was sure he didn't do it because they were especially interesting but to watch them, just in case.

He left the room and went over to the kitchen where the nice ladies were apparently happy to see him again. Irvin smiled and let the woman wrap him into a brief conversation before asking for their food. He was eagerly given a tray filled with several things and an elderly lady explained what he was supposed to give to Levi. After being made promise to bring the 'poor starved boy' with him next time he went to the kitchen he was allowed to leave, a little giggling and hushed voices dying when the door closed behind him.

It was always the same with woman, he mused. Of course it was flattering him even though he knew that it was his looks and rank that caused the woman's excitement. He was always polite and charming, too, he had been educated that way. It was still overly superficial, this whole inner-wall-society, and he knew that he didn't miss it when being far, far away from all of it. He liked to be judged by skill, honor and success, not by his looks, social background and rank. Those very stupid, subjective values that he didn't pay any attention to.

When he reentered the common dining room he was more than a little alarmed when seeing that Levi was no longer alone at their table. Someone was sitting across from him, an elbow propped up on the table and his cheek resting in his palm. It was Mike Zacharias and he was looking at Levi who stared back at him, his arms still crossed in front of his chest. Noting that Levi didn't look anywhere near ready to kill Irvin relaxed, making his way over to them.

Mike looked at him when he reached the table and Levi threw him a brief glance before turning his attention to Mike again. Irvin saw that he was tense but he didn't reach for his knife; Mike got up from his chair and nodded in Levi's direction.

"He smells good. But he doesn't seem to like me."

Irvin's lips twitched and he set the tray down on the wooden table.

"Don't take it personally. Mike, this is Levi. Levi, Mike Zacharius."

The blond man extended a hand and held it out to Levi.

"Welcome to the military, Levi. I heard this guy converted you?"

The boy stiffened even more and he didn't make any movement to take Mike's hand – maybe he didn't even know what the gesture meant. Irvin decided to dissolve the tension and elbowed Mike lightly.

"Don't make it sound ruthless… I'll see you in a few? I suppose you're coming with us to meet Lord Asphyx?"

It was a polite way to tell Mike that he should leave them alone for a while, and that Irvin would talk to him later. They exchanged a short look and Mike nodded slowly, Irvin knew his friend had gotten the message.

"Sure. I'll meet you outside. It was a pleasure meeting you, Levi."

He put two fingers to his temple in greeting and turned around, leaving the room. Irvin watched him go for a moment before sitting down in the seat Mike had left vacant, starting to distribute the food from the tray. Levi slowly relaxed now that Mike was gone, leaning back in his chair and watching Irvin put several bowls in front of him.

"Mike is a good friend of mine, he was part of my squad when I was still squad-leader. I always appreciate working with him; he's great fighter, too."

Levi's eyes followed his hands and Irvin knew that he just waited for him to finish before he would dig in, he had that same hungry expression on his face like the previous night when he had devoured the soup.

"What… he said I smelled good."

His eyes stared at Irvin, the food forgotten for a few moments. Irvin inclined his head and smiled when he poured the boy some tea. Judging from the smell it was chamomile.

"Ah, that. Mike has a very sensitive nose. He smells people's intentions; so by saying that you smelled good he expresses that he likes you."

The boy arched a thin eyebrow at him, taking the mug when Irvin handed it to him.

"You sure have strange people here…"

Irvin couldn't contradict him, he merely smiled and took his own mug into his hands. He had chosen coffee, feeling the need for its energizing effect. Adding a little sip of milk to the dark beverage he leaned back in his chair, nodding towards the food.

"Dig in, it's all for you."

Most of it at least. Irvin had scrambled eggs and a little sausage; Levi had braised vegetables, a little fish, a boiled egg, some clear soup, a mug of milk. They had a basket filled with fresh bread that came with butter and jam that they were supposed to share. Given the little time they had had the ladies had done a great job whipping up some light food for Levi. He could devour all of it and wouldn't be sick; Irvin would just have to stop him when he went to eat ALL of the remaining bread.

The boy did just that, hungrily starting with the soup and eating bread with it. When he was through the bowl he took the fork and poked the vegetables cautiously, shooting Irvin a questioning look. He grinned and took a sip of his coffee.

"It's vegetables. Try them, they're healthy. And that's fish. You're supposed to eat those together. And don't worry, it won't make you sick again. I advised the ladies in the kitchen to give you food your stomach can handle."

Levi poked at the mostly green vegetables again but then took a bite – and then devoured vegetables and fish just as quickly as the soup. Irvin smiled and ate his eggs, helping himself to a little bread.

They mostly ate in silence, apart from Irvin explaining to Levi how to eat the boiled egg, showing him that he had to peel off the hard shell first. He told Levi to be mindful of the amount of bread he consumed and despite being glared at the boy did comply, slowing down a little.

Irvin was having his second cup of coffee and Levi was sipping his milk when he addressed the boy again.

"You might grow a little during the next few weeks. Your being short might be due to the malnourishment."

Levi frowned at him, putting his mug down.

"Is that supposed to be an insult?"

Irvin chuckled and shook his head, pouring a little more coffee into his mug because he had added a little too much milk, making his beverage too mild.

"Not at all. I think your body didn't get all the things it needed to grow. But you're probably not the age to be full-grown yet, maybe you will gain a couple of inches now that you get proper food."

The boy still frowned but took the mug back in his hands, taking another sip of his milk.

"Hm."

Irvin finished his coffee and set the mug aside, leaning back in his chair and looking at Levi.

"Let me tell you about today's schedule."

He was having the boy's attention, the arched eyebrow indicated it, and he smiled slightly.

"I'll leave with a few of my men to see an important noble a little outside of the town which will take all morning. I don't have any meetings this afternoon so I'd like to grab the opportunity to get you used to being on a horse's back."

The boy blinked when he heard the last part but he didn't say anything, just nodded. Irvin smiled, he was already curious to see Levi ride a horse. He guessed that regarding Levi's motor skills and advanced body control he would be fine.

He reached into his chest pocket and put a few coins in front of Levi, adding another two after thinking briefly.

"I would like you to get yourself a few more clothes. A cloak. And shoes. Do you know the tailor just down the street? I got those clothes there." He pointed at the tunic Levi was wearing. "She's a friend of mine, tell her I sent you and give her my best regards. If she doesn't have anything else in your size, which I assume, tell her she's got only two more days to make some clothes. She'll curse me and tell you to tell me that she hates me but that's fine." He smiled upon seeing the boy's slightly incredulous stare. "Apart from that you're free to spend the remaining time the way you want to. You'll maybe want to get another few things, just get whatever you need. I don't expect you to return the change." He smiled at the boy. "I'd like you to meet me here for lunch around one."

Levi stared at him, then down at the money Irvin had just given him. He didn't make any attempt to reach for the coins, looking back at Irvin instead. His expression was carefully masked when he spoke.

"Don't you worry that I will just run off with all that money?"

Irvin looked back at him, inclining his head a little. Watching him for a little while he smiled just the slightest bit.

"Do I have a reason to?"

He didn't answer the question, he just glanced down and took the money, safely storing it away in his pocket. Irvin's smile only intensified.

He waited for Levi to finish his mug of milk before putting all the empty dishes back onto the tray. The boy helped him, making him blink and say 'thank you' when they were done. They got up and Irvin carried the tray back to the kitchen, excusing himself politely when the woman once again wanted to make him stay a little longer. He spared Levi the experience of being fussed over by a bunch of woman that way, he would save that for the next day. Returning to Levi who had waited in front of the door they made their way to the entrance of the garrison. Irvin smiled at the boy and pointed in the direction of the stables.

"I'll go outside and get my horse ready. I'll see you later, Levi."

The boy nodded and then turned to leave the garrison through the front entrance. Irvin looked after him for a few moments before directing his steps to the stable. He was sure that the boy would be fine out there, he had been for years. Irvin had to concentrate on their meeting with the lord, he would meet his commander and another few soldiers in a little while to go there. And then he would have lunch with Levi and teach him a little riding – he was already looking forward to it.

And on to the next~

I hope you enjoyed reading this!

XD