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She stared at the letter from Erwin, her heart hanging in a heavy sadness. She never knew her impact on her living with him or even the comfort she brought him from just sitting next to him. She touched the paper and sighed. Why couldn't she just love this one man and let it lie?

Ingrid,

I know you may find it a bit unorthodox of me to be writing you with no objective, but I need the person I can rely on to hear my thoughts. Since you have left, the snow has come and with it cold and lonely nights. I may have taken your company for granted, but I assure you, I was successfully able to iron my own shirt. I thought you would smile at that.

That is another thing I wonder if I will ever see again or if I have permanently wiped it from your face. I never meant to do so. Levi tells me that you are very melancholy and snappy with the squad. I wonder if it is because of our marriage. I am sorry.

I dreamed that you were older and had a child with long curls like yours and the look of happiness of your face made me happy. If we ever have children, I hope that they will bring you the happiness I have failed to provide for you. Remember, you are not a piece in this reckless game I play. If I could visit you, I would, but for now, I suppose a letter will do.

Your niece Emilia requested that I send you a picture of us holding hands. She drew it herself. You were right, a conversation with a small child can make you smile.

Best regards,

Erwin

And behind the letter was the said picture. Emilia's drawing of them holding hands, but neither of them had a smile. It was amazing what children noticed.

"A child's drawing? What, do you have kids now too?" Connie snatched it from her and looked at it. He then smiled. "Kinda cute."

Ingrid hit him over the head and snatched it away from him. "For your information, dumbass, I have an abundant amount of nieces and nephews. Erwin and I some times take care of one, Emilia." She sighed and remembered the tiny hugs and sloppy kisses. The innocence of a child was refreshing.

"So gross, mushy letters between you and the commander. Ick, I don't want to know what you do behind doors." Jean's face twisted.

Sasha's face also flinched and she shook her head. "It isn't our business and I think that letter is for her only, not us." Mikasa said next to her. "He is our commander, but her husband and we must respect that."

Ingrid almost crumpled the paper in her hands, the anger welling up again. "I almost wish you wouldn't..." She murmured and stuck the letter in her pocket, turning away from the table to continue with her cleaning.

Armin shook his head at Jean, stopping another comment.

"Aw! I bet they are so romantic!" Hange cooed. "The commander, strong and brave, but with you, so vulnerable and sweet." She nudged Ingrid's shoulder.

"That's enough." The captain's voice came from behind them. "We have things to do and so does she. I want the squad on double patrol and keep off the ground. Hide the horses and pack up the supplies. We may have to evacuate this evening."

Ingrid turned to see Levi staring down with his good eye at the paper in his hand. The commander must have sensed or heard something that may have tipped off their location.

"Yes, sir!" The squad responded and moved quickly out of the room.

Ingrid turned her back on the captain, concentrating of the floor she was scrubbing. She didn't want to talk to him and she wasn't sure she had forgiven him for what he had said to her. She had successfully been avoiding him up until now.

"You. We need to talk."

She stopped and sighed. "I don't want to here about how much of a treacherous whore I am today, captain." She continued to scrub the spot. Damn Eren and Jean. If they had taken off their damn boots...

She was suddenly lifted off the floor and face to face with the captain, who had a tight grip on her arm. "I said, we need to talk."

She tried to jerk her arm out of his grip, but with out prevail. She glared at him. "Let me go."

"Not until you listen to me." He looked down right scary at that moment. She felt herself cower slightly. "I wanted to apologize, for the night I mistreated you and I want you to stop acting like some stupid woman." He let go and she stumbled back slightly.

She grabbed her arm and kept her glare at him. "You're not sorry. You wanted to hurt me as much as I hurt you. You wanted to get even. You did, so let it go. And I am a woman, you nit wit."

He crossed his arms and lifted his chin at her. "Shut up. That is not what I am talking about. Erwin may have taken your title as a soldier, but you are still part of this squad and I expect you to act as such."

"Like hell I am part of this squad." She snapped. Her face turned into a hurt expression. "I am not their comrade any more. I am just a woman who is married to their commander and I have to be respected like I am some damn royal. I am not one of them any more."

He shook his head. "What did you expect from them? Erwin is their commander, the ultimate head of this whole corps."

"I thought I was their friend and nothing would change."

Levi's arms dropped and he closed the gap between them. She tensed and hugged herself. She couldn't. She couldn't betray the commander, even with the man she loved the most. "Then you need to be their friend as well." He touched her cheek. "And I need you. Damn what Erwin says, I need some one who can help." His fingers dropped and clenched into a fist at his side. "Take the extra gear and blades and do what I need you to do. I know what he said about protecting you, but I don't think you are a damsel in distress like everyone makes you out to be."

"You're the worst. You always saved me." She touched her cheek, a slight blush spreading over her face.

He smirked slightly. "Because you are pathetic and I know you are stronger than you seem. Now, I want you to finish up this floor and then I want all the rooms primped up. If we have to run, I don't want any clues of what direction we are going. Your gear is waiting for you in my room. If we are not back by sun down, take it and head towards the southern tree line." He turned and walked toward the doorway. He looked back. "Do not die or get caught. I won't be able to fight like I need to." He tapped his bandage.

"Yes, captain."

If there was anything she hated more than titans, it was washing clothes. Her hands were bright red and raw from scrubbing the stains out of the clothing. She understood the boys and their knee and sleeves getting dirty, but Mikasa's clothes were always covered in blood and dirt and it took her twice as long to scrub them out.

The silence was also terrible. She still heard the birds, a sign that there was nothing a miss out side of the castle walls. The silence also gave her time to think. There were somber thoughts and a couple of times tears sprang to her eyes. She missed Petra. She missed the encouraging words and the way they would tease each other.

She was the only one that accepted that Ingrid wasn't strong, but was willing to do what was ever necessary. The respected each other.

Petra always talked about her father and how her mother had died of a horrible disease. She also told Ingrid that Levi used to be one of those thugs on the streets that robbed people. Petra said she didn't really believe he did that horrible of things, but Ingrid could see it. He was ruthless when he wanted things done or if he wanted information from some one.

Petra was her only friend then. She was friendly with her brother's friends, but they were his, not hers. Reiner was always making slight passes and Berthold occasionally smiled at her kindness. Annie...well, Annie never said anything crass to her. Secretly, she thought Anges and Annie were in love, but when she revealed herself as the Female Titan, Agnes's betrayal was beyond the other's. She could barely talk to him the few days after.

But Petra...her undoubting love and devotion to the captain surpassed any one else's and some times, if Levi ever had feelings for her friend. It would have been almost cruel if he did. Even worst if he didn't.

She looked at the corner and saw her gear sitting patiently for her. It was starting to get dark and she would have to hang the clothes down in the basement, so no one knew they were there.

Humanity used to fight each other. Then they put their differences aside and battled one singular enemy: the titans. Who is the real enemy any more? Who am I fighting against? Whose side am I on?

The door slamming open made her spin, still crouching and her fists coming up in a defensive mode. Levi stared down at her with his one good eye and scoffed. "As if you could take me."

Her glare hardened. "You may have apologized, but that doesn't mean I don't want to take off your head." She turned around and continued to scrub the cloth.

He walked past her and plopped down in a chair, sighing loudly. "Is there any tea?"

"There is always tea." She mumbled, still not looking at him. "Where is everyone else?"

She heard the chair scrape across the floor and foot steps. "On patrol. My shoulder began to hurt and Hange said if I didn't come back, she would make a scene. I wasn't in the mood."

"Hm." She continued, grabbing the next article of clothing to be washed. She growled slightly. Underpants...

"Those are mine, for the record."

She dropped them as if they had caught on fire and she turned and sneered at him. "Seriously? You want me to 'accidently' spill shoe polish on your beloved handkerchief?" Her face was beat red and she could feel the pit of her stomach churn.

For a minute he looked amused, then his usual expression came back as he poured himself a cup of tea. He stood there for a couple more seconds before turning around. "What was it that you were thinking about when I walked in? It seemed pretty depressing."

She stopped and let her hands drop into her lap. She didn't want to talk about it. She had never heard him talk about it. Was it time? Would he even be a man for a moment or just the captain who would say his comrades fought bravely and leave it at that? They were people, with families and friends, dreams, and thoughts. They were not just those badges he collected and stored in his possessions.

She bit her lip. What was the point of talking about it? "Nothing."

"You don't cry and look like some one killed your beloved pet and say it is nothing. Fucking brat, come out with it." He went back to the chair and sat down. She noticed a slight limp. He was getting worse...but there was no time for rest, so it was harder to recover from injuries. The whole squad was beginning to suffer.

"It is nothing you, of all people, will want to talk about." She bit bitterly at him. It didn't matter any more...it was the past and he was the captain. He wouldn't let her know how it personally affected him.

"Woman problems? Miss your dear husband?"

She froze and set her jaw. He was still on about that? "No." She stood up and wiped her hands on her pant legs. "He isn't my husband. He is just a man who married me as a favor to my brothers and the closest I have ever been to him was in the same bed. He barely looks at me, so shut your damn mouth about it already." She picked up the basket and set it up on a chair. Wet clothes were so heavy.

"You could have wrote me."

She turned and tightened her fists, her face filled with fury. "I told you I was getting married as soon as I left! I told you that if I went home, that is what would happen. I had no idea until I went into my room to get ready who the next day I would be giving my life too! And what if I wrote you? What if I told you? What difference would it make if it was another man?"

His eyebrows rose slightly, but his posture remained lax. "I could kill him then."

She rolled her eyes and picked up the basket of wet clothes. "I have to go hang these up. Just sit there and be pissed off for all I care." She grunted. They were heavy. These were going to take forever.

Suddenly they were tugged out of her arms and she looked down at her empty hands before jerking her head up. "Captain! You are going to make your shoulder worse!" She rushed after him as he turned and walked toward the basement door. She grabbed one-side of it and stopped him. "Here, at least let me take one side."

He made a sound that was almost like a growl and let her carry the other side his bad shoulder was on. With little effort and amazingly great coordination, they were able to make it down the stairs together with out even tripping. In unison, they dropped the basket on the stone floor and made sure all the lines were tight. They didn't speak while they worked. It was almost funny that Levi, a man, could hang clothing in a much better fashion that she could. After a while it was like he was following her around to fix her mistakes.

She stood up on her tip toes to hang a shirt that was ironically Levi's. She was shorter than the rest of the squad and she made Levi seem of normal height. He actually wasn't even that short. Every one was just so unnaturally tall, that is what she told herself anyway.

"You are going to give it wrinkles if you do it like that." His gruff voice came from behind her and she felt his body heat. Two hands placed on hers to show her the right way, taking the clips and in a neat order, hung the shirt. She felt her heart speed up and she began to tremble slightly. His breath was brushing against her cheek and he didn't move back.

His hands took hers and placed them on her chest and abdomen, lacing the fingers together, his embrace tightening around her. She hung her head and took deep breaths. Who did her heart belong to? The man waiting for her back behind walls or the one who held her against him like he was afraid she was going to disappear, like Petra did?

"Does this feel wrong, Ingrid?" His lips brushed against her ear, making her skin prickle with goose flesh and it felt like electric shocks were shooting across her body.

She lifted her head and turned it to look at him. He was so intense and overwhelming. His clean scent was intoxicating and his touch was rough, demanding, but careful. He was so possessive. Whose heart would break if she gave in? Did Erwin want her like Levi did? She was married to Erwin, but...her heart wasn't with him.

"No." She whispered softly as he held her tighter, his face burrowing in her neck. It only felt wrong because of an empty vow. It wasn't enough to hold her down any more.

His hands gently skimmed over her collar bone and up her neck to her cheek. "Then I want you to kiss me."

She felt her chest swell. Yes. This was wrong. But didn't feel like it and she belonged to this man. She belonged to the one who laid his life on the line for her. To the one who made sacrifices to make sure she breathed another day. The one who had kissed away her tears when Agnes was killed.

She brought her hand up and entangled her fingers in his hair and brought him closer to her, closing the gap between their lips. She had missed him and her heart stopped aching as soon as his lips touched hers. This was the man she wanted.

It didn't take long for the kiss to deepen and hands gripping at each others bodies. She tried not to arch and break the kiss between them. She was on fire and his fingers ignited feelings that she had kept locked away and now exploded.

"Levi..." She gasped when he broke away from her, both of them gasping and clinging to each other.

He looked like he was staring at something beautiful and his face was almost in bliss. She had never seen that look before and he wasn't as callous as he tried to be. But he looked to raw and real to her. She was scared of losing that. "You will never belong to him." His lips pressed against her temple. "You're mine, damned the marriage."

She went to turn around and continue with what they had started, but a loud banging noise interrupted them. They both froze and looked up at the door. Some one was upstairs and the multiple voices did not sound like their comrades.

"Shit." Levi hissed and grabbed her hand, pulling her toward the darker part of the room, finding refuge in a dark spot under the stairs.

She fumbled for the knife she kept in her boot and held on to the hilt like it was the only thing keeping her alive. They found them. If they saw her face, they would make the connection to Erwin and everything would fall apart. Levi also unsheathed a small dagger from his belt and remained still as a statue, his eyes plastered upward. He was listening.

"They're going to find us." She whispered nervously. "I suck at hand to hand."

He held a finger to his lips and took her hand with his free hand. "Do not leave my side." He looked at her. "I'll protect you."

She felt guilt come over her. He was always protecting her and keeping her safe. Will she ever be able to take care of herself? The door slammed open above them and Levi's posture tightened even more.

"There were people here! There is laundry up! It's wet too." The footsteps made Ingrid jump slightly, but she prepared herself to defend herself and the captain.

"I want every crack and hole searched in this shit hole, ya hear me? Find them!"

The intruder was at the bottom of the stairs, gun in hand. Ingrid fought to keep herself calm. She could fight. She survived training and the Survey Corps this long, she could fight.

The man turned so fast and she couldn't handle it. If Levi died because she was a failure of a soldier, she would never forgive herself. Her brother died because of her. She moved close to the ground and came around the staircase and jabbed the knife up into the man's sternum, punching his mouth when he went to scream. The man fell and she took the knife from his body and turned and looked up the stair case. No one was there. She looked to her side when she heard movement, relieved to see Levi standing there.

"Now they definitely know we are here." He glared at her.

She felt the adrenaline come down slightly and took deep breaths. "He was going to find us any way. Now he can't."

He raised a brow at her and leaned closer. "I thought you said that you sucked at hand to hand."

"I do." She said quietly as he leaned down and quickly took the gun and some bullets from the body on the ground. He grimaced when his hand got blood on it. She was about to ask if it was necessary, but then she remembered that is how Levi got hurt.

He grabbed her arm and started up the stairs. "I guess we have no choice but to fight out of here. We are trapped rats if we don't move." He moved so quick and if she didn't have any training, she wouldn't have been able to keep up with him.

"What about the squad?" She asked as they reached the top of the stairs, finding no one. Levi yanked her into the hallway and ran towards the kitchen, where her 3dmg was waiting for her.

"Worry about them later." He shouldered open the door, gun up and aimed at any threat to them. Thankfully, the room was clear. "Get your gear on quick. We are going to make a break for it." He went back to the door and stood there, gun up and his eyes burning with rage.

She quickly began to assemble her gear, making sure the gas tank was full. She ran over to Levi and checked his tanks quickly, earning her a glare, but he said nothing. She stood next to him, her blade ready. "If these people made it past the patrols..."

"I said worry about them later." He looked back and made eye contact with her. "Do not leave my side, under any circumstances. Obey me, this once." His voice was pleading, but firm. "These are the military police or the central military police. These are people who are here for the bounty on my head. Who knows what kind of training they have, if any. Regardless, do not let your guard down."

They moved quietly down the hall they had previously came up from and past the basement. She was assuming he wanted to get to the roof, so they could see their surroundings more clearly. She would just have to follow him. The castle was big enough that they should be able to avoid the intruders until they got to the roof.

"Hey!"

Damn, she spoke to soon. She heard a gun shot and debris from the wall spray her. She clenched her teeth and ducked down slightly. Her hair was in the way again. Levi spun on his heels and it the same motion, shot back at the enemy. She slid to a stop and turned just in time to see the man's head explode in half.

She was mortified. They were soldiers of humanity. They fought titans. Not people. Levi didn't even blink and began to run again, jolting her out of her frozen state. She could tell that Levi's leg was bothering him as they ran up a flight of stairs. He was slowing down.

Luckily, they didn't come in contact with any one else and they burst onto the roof top, Levi tossing the gun and pulling out his blades. He turned and looked around. She ran to the other side and ducked down enough where she could see, but not be seen. There were 2 on her side on horses. They also had 3dmg and she felt her blood boil. The military police were handing those out? Or was it like in Levi's younger days when he stole them and used them to rob people?

"Ingrid, how many?" He crouched behind her.

"2, with 3dmg." She said in a low tone.

"Fuck. There are 3 on my side. I believe there is 3 inside, not including the 2 we killed." He hissed and looked at her. "We are going to have to take a chance and move very quick. I know you can. You may not be much for combat, but you can fly like a damn hummingbird." He rested his forehead against hers. "If anything happens-"

She shook her head. "Don't, please."

"Shut up and let me finish." He pressed his cheek to hers. "Don't look back. You keep going and don't stop. Get back to Erwin. Do not let your emotions get the best of you."

She clenched her eyes shut and buried her face into the crook of his neck. She wouldn't loose him. He was too strong and she was fast. They were going to make it. "Same to you captain."

He pulled back from her and nodded to the trees. "On my mark."

She stepped back and readied herself. She hadn't used her gear in such a long time and it was a gamble to use it with out an inspection. She prayed that it would work well and nothing would happen.

"Now." Levi took off, pulling the trigger on his gear. She followed his lead and soon, she was in the air, flying towards the trees. She heard yelling and gunshots, but they missed their mark and her and Levi flew threw the trees. She smiled. She had missed moving like this.

Levi looked back and slight relief slid over his face when he saw her. The voices and gunshots getting fainter. She caught up to him, her hair flowing behind her. "We did it!" She laughed and maneuvered between two trees.

"We aren't out of danger yet, stay on guard!" He snapped at her and picked up speed. She also picked up her speed and the trees became a blur.

Suddenly, one of her triggers didn't release and she heard a strange noise coming from her gear. She gasped as she dropped to the ground. "Levi!" She held out her hand as she descended. She was up to high. She was for sure going to break a bone or worse...

The man looked behind him and his eye widened. She was falling to fast. "Swing from the other wire! Break your fall!" He turned around and sped to her. His words didn't reach her in time, as a blur of red and white fell to the ground, rolling and tumbling in a heap. "Damn it! Ingrid!"

She groaned. She couldn't move. Breathing hurt and she was sure she had twisted her ankle. If that was all, she was lucky really. She rolled onto her side and reached for her swords. That was the only defense she had.

She heard a thud next to her and she was suddenly on her back, Levi over her. "What the hell happened?" He bit at her. Concern was all over his face, but he sounded angry.

"It..." She winced. Even talking hurt. "Faulty trigger..."

She heard her growl. "You have got to be fucking kidding me. What hurts?"

Before she could say anything, a loud bang rang threw the forest and it looked like Levi's chest exploded. She watched in horror as his blood sprayed all over them. He grasped his shoulder and tried not to fall on her. She cried out as he fell on his side, looking at her with fear and anger. Not anger at her.

"No, Levi." She tried to reach him, but he was just a touch to far. She couldn't loose him. Not now. Not ever. "Levi, please."

He tried to reach out to her but she could tell he was loosing consciousness, as was she. As her vision blurred, she heard her and Levi's name being called out and figures flying above them. She felt herself go under as some one picked her up.

You're too late.

Thanks guys for all the follows! I am sorry for the wait. Moving, baby, being sick...bleh, but my husband likes this story, so I don't get to slack to much!

I based this story off of the song Mirror by Ellie Goulding. I think it just fits this couple.

Anyway, leave a review on how this makes you feel and your predictions ;)

-Jane