Thank you for all of your kind words, follows, and favorites.

Oh god, I wasn't expecting any of that type of feedback.

I'm completely undeserving, you guys are ridiculous.

Anyway. Please try to enjoy chapter two.

Rules held a position on Levi's list of priorities.

Naturally, he was rebellious, and naturally, his first years as a soldier weren't optimal—he didn't even graduate in the top ten of his class. But he had been broken and exposed in his most raw state, with special thanks to Commander Erwin. He had been built from the ground up, a respect for the rules rising from the rubble of the old Levi.

Without rules, the world was chaos. People would die at the hands of others, boys lost their mothers and mothers lost their boys without rules. Levi thrived in an existence that followed laws. The laws of physics, the law of conservation of energy, the law of equal exchange, laws made by the kings and laws that destroyed the kings. They were logical, they made sense. There was no room for error, no question of what to do. Rules were apart of the ebb and flow of life.

But, he was rebellious down to the core. Breaking the rules just came so easily to him. So easily that Mikasa stared at him as he handed off a horse to her. "You know what you're doing," It wasn't a question. Levi knew what he was doing, because rule-breaking was in his genetic code.

It was against the rules to be out past curfew, and it was especially against the rules to go AWOL. These rules applied, despite the rank of the offending solider. But here he was, and there she was, saddling up to ride out into the night. Levi didn't think much of it.

Levi straddled his own horse, a black beast of a creature with an unbreakable spirit, motioning for Mikasa to stay close behind. He could tell she was ready to talk, and knowing that making noise was a sure way to get caught, he turned at the waist to look behind him, a finger pressing against his lips. "Shh."

He led her out of the gate that protected the Recon Corps castle, down the dirt road into the darkness. There was nothing but the shining of the moonlight to keep them company.

"Can I talk now?"

"Sure, but it's not like you have anything important to say."

So she didn't talk anymore, the hooves of the horses patting against the dirt being the only sound hanging in the air. Levi wished he hadn't been so unintentionally rude—he was trying to extend himself out to her, not give her that much more reason to spit in his eye. But Levi wouldn't apologize, so he moved past his little remark, promising himself that that was the last time he would be such a dick to her. He knew this promise was as empty as a gun barrel. And a gun was probably a lot safer than what Levi was capable of saying.

The ride was brief, no more than twenty minutes. It would have been shorter, but they didn't push their horses so hard. During the day, they were the strongest soldiers—they cleared obstacle courses fast, they ran laps fast, they fought fast. Not only did they need skill, they needed speed. But that was during the day. There was a spell of lethargy settling into their bodies at night. There was no need to rush, no need to stand on edge. This wasn't titan territory. This was just Captain Levi and his subordinate riding into town at a pace that was leisurely comfortable to them.

"Where are we going?" Mikasa had finally asked, the first words spoken for a while.

Levi dismounted his horse, leading the animal to a tree. He hitched her to the trunk, giving enough slack for the horse to roam comfortably. Without verbal direction, Mikasa copied Levi's movements. Once everything was said and done, they walked up into the roads of the town.

"These towns are where the people live," Levi studied the different houses nestled next to one another. This house had a garden, that house had laundry hanging on a line. Some were stone, some were wooden, but they were all so beautiful. Levi really wished he'd be able to buy his own house someday. "They all commute into the city for their work, which is at the center. That's where we're going."

Levi led the way. The walk to the innermost part of the city was long, but not unpleasant. It was just simple and quiet, which Levi had started to associate with Mikasa's company. Well, her company in the night at least.

It was dark outside, but the city was illuminated with the nightlife of the locals. Mikasa observed with wide eyes and an agape mouth at her surroundings, which Levi assumed she was having sensory overload. He knew this was the case because even though Levi had been raised in a city atmosphere, being exposed to it after so long in the Survey Corps, he was having a sensory overload of his own.

Music was coming from somewhere, the sounds of horns and strings combining into something completely decadent to their ears. The smell of different foods and sweets for sale wafted all around, which was so much more appealing than the stale smell of bread and stew in the castle. The colors of the lights were bright, the crowds of the people in the streets were suffocating. But there was nothing uncomfortable, there was nothing to fear. This was a place where titans were a campfire scary story, and pleasure wasn't forbidden. Neither one of the two smiled, but they stuck close together and Levi was actually mildly enjoying himself.

For an attempt at bonding, they weren't doing much talking. Levi noticed this and tried to remedy that. This sort of peacefulness he found in Mikasa was as close to solace he had been in a long while, and this was nothing like his nine o'clock tea. "You like it?" He asked after trying to find the perfect question to break the ice.

"I do," She was drawn to a peddler's table of wares, running her fingertips along the surfaces of the different carvings and stones. Mikasa looked into Levi's eyes, which were still as heavy-lidded and narrow as ever, but that didn't mean he wasn't having a good time. "But why did you bring me all the way out here?"

"If we have to work together, we might as well play together."

Mikasa didn't think much of what he had said, but Levi kicked himself for letting something with such heavy innuendo slip—he didn't even mean it like that. She was still a kid, after all. Or was she? Levi hadn't bothered to look at her file at the time of recruitment. He had no clue.

"How old are you, Ackerman?"

"Seventeen," Mikasa answered after a while, her focus completely devoted to the various fabrics of the scarves hanging on display.

He was right. A kid.

Levi watched the way she was almost hesitant to touch anything, but when she did, she would handle the object with great care. The hands of a killer were so tender. "Why don't you get a new scarf to replace that ratty one?"

Without even hesitating, and without even thinking, she clutched the red fabric hanging around her neck into her fingers. "Never."

He left her to her ministrations, not minding the way she bounced from this peddler's table of wares to that artisan's crafts. Levi didn't even know why they were in the city, or what he had planned exactly. But he was plenty satisfied with this activity. He let her roam at her own pace. Every time she stopped and observed a certain object with just a little more admiration than the rest, Levi would consider purchasing it for her. It wasn't a gesture of anything but simple chivalry. The Survey Corps paid exceptionally well, especially when a soldier was as high in ranks as Levi, but he never found any marginal utility from the extra pay. Aside from the occasional alcoholic drink, he never splurged on much. So he might as well give it to her.

"Do you want that?" He pointed to the necklace in her hand. It wasn't gaudy or extravagant, a simple silver chain with some sort of gem dangling at the end.

"What, no—" Mikasa looked almost embarrassed, dropping the necklace back down onto the display it came from. "Sorry, I was just looking."

Without a single dip or rise in his demeanor, he picked up the necklace into his own hands, motioning at the operator of the table. He didn't bother asking for a price, just reaching into the depths of a pocket to grab a generous amount of money. Levi had probably spent more than what it was worth, but he wasn't one of much frugality, so he let it go. "Here," He tossed the necklace into Mikasa's hand.

She was obviously taken back. Captain Levi had bought her something, and he had spent more than what was necessary. It was ridiculous to think about. He didn't even consider it an act of kindness. He didn't think much of it at all, actually.

Mikasa didn't say anything for a long time. Levi was ready to venture onward, but she finally started moving that mouth of hers. "Thank you, Captain Levi."

"Come on," Levi tugged the hem of her Survey Corps cape, motioning for her to follow suit. He lead her into the depths of the crowd. It must have been the weekend, considering how many people were out and about so late. In the castle, time meant everything, but no one seemed to pay much attention to the dates. It could have been a Monday or a Saturday, it didn't matter to a Survey Corps soldier. Every day was a work day. But out here in the real world, it was probably the end of a stressful week for all these people. They were just looking to have a little fun and spend time with those close to them. Levi was surprisingly empathetic in that regard.

They had passed through the worst of the crowds, mindlessly loitering up the street. Then a voice caught their attention. "You guys Survey Corps?"

"I used to know a guy who runs shit in the Survey Corps now," Another voice added. "We did business back in Sina, way back in the day."

"Was his name Levi?" Levi asked, fist tightening ever so slightly. So slightly, that his tension would go unnoticed to an untrained eye.

"As a matter of fact, I think it was," One of the two men spoke, both voices too deep and burly to be able to differentiate. "You know him?"

Levi had never been one for the theatrics. He liked to get straight to the point. And he was about to reveal that, surprise, he was Levi, but then Mikasa of all people entered the conversation.

"I know Levi," He was mildly impressed that she could smell bad news in any situation, but he knew this was far too much for her to handle. Her training went to the extent of titans, and he knew she had no idea there was a whole new breed of monster within humans. He had to intervene at some poi—

Mikasa flew back, just barely avoiding a potentially fatal blow. "Well, if you ever get back to him, give him this for me," He swung again. This man was beefy, and he was angry, which was a terribly dangerous combination.

Without much time to think, Levi watched Mikasa grab the wrist of the offending man, other hand on the inside of his elbow. And in one fluid, well-trained motion, she sent that fat forearm hurdling into the top of her knee. Levi winced at the sound of the crack. Mikasa's expression hardly moved an inch.

There was a loud scream, the crowds of onlookers coming to a halt in front of the scene. The man clutched his own broken arm. "You bitch!"

Levi saw the second man, frozen in his position, trying to come up with a means of action. Levi thought much faster than him, initiating an attack on the man. No intent to injure, just enough force to knock the man back in order to abscond from the situation entirely. The last thing he and Mikasa needed was to be caught by the Garrison Police for disturbing the peace. Levi hooked his foot onto the ankle of the man, giving a swift kick to knock the man's balance. He was down, and Levi grabbed Mikasa's wrist, pulling her into the direction of safety. Not that they were in imminent danger, but they would be if they were to get caught and reported back to Commander Erwin. Superior or not, Levi was in for a heat of trouble if this escalated any further.

"Wait!" Mikasa freed herself from Levi, turning back.

He watched the girl going back to the man with the broken arm. "Hey, Ackerman—"

She sent an elbow into the jaw. Levi was at a loss of words—how was she so cruel? Not that he was admonishing her actions, he just genuinely was under the impression that she had more regard for human life. But she was taking this too far, despite the fact that he attacked her first. Levi was pretty sure he had never seen either of these men before, regardless of their knowledge of him, but that wasn't enough grounds to justify kicking the shit out of them. Mikasa broke his goddamned arm, after all.

"Ackerman, we have to go," Levi warned, patience quickly diminishing from his voice. "Prioritize your objectives, you fucking brat."

But it was too late. There was a sharp pain in Levi's side. Instinctively grabbing the source of injury, he felt the warm wetness of blood, and a rip in the fabric of his shirt. The man he had tripped had a knife, and now there was a knife wound in his ribcage. It, thankfully, was not a stab, more of a gash that wasn't too detrimental, but it still hurt and it was something he'd have to explain to Hanji when he would get stitched up later.

"Captain—" Mikasa was in some form of a shock. It wasn't a big deal, since she had seen him undergo worse circumstances. But that was at the hands of a titan—humanity's sworn enemy. But to get attacked and hurt by another human? She hardly knew the half of it. And it was with that realization that Levi lost all patience with the girl.

"Listen, Mikasa," He hissed through gritted teeth. "Stop pretending you know what you're doing—"

His statement was emphasized with Levi trying his best to ignore the pain in his side as he raised a leg to kick the knife out of the hand of his attacker. The knife went flying, and without any of the dramatics, Levi managed to catch the guy square in the nose. A textbook punch, matched with a textbook nosebleed.

"Ackerman, we're leaving now."

And when he pulled her this time, she actually followed.

They were running through and dodging the crowds. A bad time for a conversation. But the girl spoke anyway. "I-I'm sorry, Captain. They just—they reminded me of these men that had made me suffer—and I-I—I-I'm sorry—"

Levi wasn't in the mood for it. "Can it, princess. You don't know shit about suffering."

There was something wrong. Because this was Mikasa Ackerman he was dealing with, and there was something always wrong. He had been told that teenage girls were exceptionally hormonal messes with personal vendettas that ran deep, and he had thought that Mikasa Ackerman was an exception. She was trained and refined and her teenage years were unlike those that these rumors stemmed from, and yet, here they were.

"Thank you," He bowed his head to the old woman who owned this restaurant. She had just finished bandaging his wound, although she wasn't nearly trained enough to perform stitches. But it was enough to hold him over until he was at the mercy of Hanji.

Hanji was going to end his life. Not necessarily for breaking the rules—she had her own fair share of misdemeanors—but because Levi allowed for things to get this bad between himself and his one and only subordinate. But he didn't want to think about that at the moment. He could deal with that later. Right now, it was about Mikasa Ackerman.

When was it not?

The old woman had poured him sake into a simple, white ochoko, leaving the tokkuri behind for him to serve himself as he so wished. But he wasn't thirsty, and in an attempt to achieve even the slightest bit of reconciliation with the pouting girl, he placed the drink on the table in front of Mikasa Ackerman with a thud. A dull thud that echoed in the otherwise empty restaurant, which only enunciated the tension of her silent treatment. Yes, she was giving him the silent treatment.

He wondered why he was so affected by this. It was probably because it was something as asinine as the silent treatment, but it could also be because it was Mikasa Ackerman that was punishing Levi. He had taken a knife wound for the girl, managed to sneak out of the Survey Corps headquarters for the girl, and had even bought a gift for the girl. They were all actions that didn't seem to hold much sentiment to Levi, but they were starting to add up.

"Drink," Levi commanded after a while.

Mikasa stared at the ochoko, then away. Here he was, offering alcohol to a minor, and she was passing it up. Levi tried not to get frustrated. That would only deepen whatever resentment she was harboring, and there was still far too much training ahead for her to be kicking and screaming through.

Levi sighed. If he had to deduce down to what she could have been so upset over, it could have been the stupid suffering comment he made. Recalling Eren's words of Mikasa going through hell in her past, he probably hit a sore subject. With all due respect to her teenage angst, she needed to learn to get over whatever troubles it was that haunted her. He took a seat in the wooden chair opposite to the sulking girl. She wasn't sulking, really. As a matter of fact, Levi could not translate her facial features into any sort of emotion at all.

It was almost doll-like, watching her. That face was handcrafted by the gods, Levi concluded. He was sure that she was made out of porcelain, and those eyes were luxurious drops of dark ink. Those pink lips were painted on, perfectly proportionate to her nose. A doll, perfect for selling at top-dollar, a doll perfect for touching and holding and looking. That scar was still there, staring straight into Levi's eyes. The scar, although considered a flaw, it wasn't one on her. It was just an extension of who she was, and it separated Mikasa from being a doll entirely.

She wasn't a beautiful toy designed to sit on a shelf.. She was human, and she was his soldier.

And she was still mad at him.

It made him feel somewhat guilty. Guilty enough to swallow his pride, and guilty enough to open his mouth. "I'm sorry, Ackerman. For whatever I said or did."

He made it light, casual. Captain Levi was apologizing, ridding any sarcasm from his voice, and he truly tried to maintain a level of authenticity. He was sorry for not being the leader she needed, and sorry for trying to forcing some contrived relationship out of the two of them in the first place. But he still held onto that tone of voice that sounded almost disregarding. Because he was prideful, and he could never be truly sorry for anything. He had tried, and he thought that should have counted for something.

Levi wanted a response from her. He needed it, actually. Closure was a part of his nature, and if there were ever any loose ends to tie up, he would be the one to do so. Comrades died, he'd mourn and move on. Missions failed, he learned from them and never made the same mistake twice. When there was an issue, he would deal with it, then file it away forever. But here he was, trying to seek closure with Mikasa—closure that would allow them to never stray away from a professional relationship ever again, and closure that would allow for training to go on as planned—and she could not even bother to look in his direction.

But then, she did look in his direction. "Training at dawn tomorrow."

He was familiar with that voice of hers. Not necessarily the tonal quality and pitch of her specific voice, but that empty voice that was held so painfully steady, so emotionally void. It was a voice he had perfected himself, a voice that only a specific breed of humans were capable of. A human like him. A human who understood the tragedies of the world, and a human who knew how to block it all out. He was just one more thing for her to block out, and in an attempt to not show how surprisingly upsetting that was to him, he reciprocated the voice.

"Dawn. No later."

It was nearing the complete and utter dead of night by the time the horses were back in their stables and Mikasa Ackerman was back in her room. Levi was a rule-breaker by nature, and this was one of his easier offenses to commit. Aside from the cut in his side, there was no evidence that they were ever gone in the first place.

He was back in the world he had grown accustomed to, back in the world of order. Rules had once again taken control over his priorities, and life would go on. He would wake up to train his only soldier, and he would go to sleep to repeat that process. There would be no more field trips, no more attempts at reaching out. Levi had tried, and it was a bust. Hanji, in this case, had no idea what she was talking about.

There were footsteps following behind Levi, and for the first time within the walls, he felt uneasy. It was that sort of drop in the stomach that occurred when a kid was caught with their hand in the cookie jar. Levi had all of the cookies, and now there was someone to catch him. And since he was never one to turn away from his fate, he deviated from his path to his room, rotating direction to face whomever it was that lurked behind him.

"Captain Levi!" It was a low-ranking solider. A nameless, faceless soldier who had been more startled by Levi than the other way around. "What are you doing out?"

Levi wanted to go to bed. "I orchestrated my entire evening's plans to lead up to this moment. I purposefully stayed out this late just to come into contact with you, because I love the sensations of a low-ranking private questioning the actions of their much older, much wiser superior. And I love kicking their ass into next week for thinking they possessed the authority to take record of what I do with my time, and where I choose to be at any point of my existence."

He had taken his frustrations out on this poor boy. He scoffed. Poor boy. Pity was a waste of his time, and he was cranky because it was far past his bedtime. So he turned away.

"C-Commander Erwin sent me to retrieve you, sir!" The soldier called, right when Levi thought he was in the clear for the night. "Th-That's why I was so surprised to already see you out of y-your room..."

It had to be at least two or three in the morning. This was odd, Levi was never summoned in the middle of the night. It was only in an event of emergency that Commander Erwin would need him so urgently. Great. "Did he tell you what he wanted with me?"

"No, sir," The boy was fidgeting, tripping over his own words. Levi hated it. "I-I was on guard d-duty for the night and h-he ran into me and t-told me to get Captain L-Levi immediately. A-And you're Captain Levi so—"

"Enough," Levi put his hand up. So much for bed. "Return to your guard station. I'm going to Commander Erwin now."

The soldier saluted and ran off, leaving the hallways empty again. Levi stifled a yawn, taking each step one at a time as he headed for the office of the Great Commander Erwin. It must have taken him an hour to get to the double doors that led into his office, and without even bothering to knock, he let himself in. He made sure that his knife wound was concealed behind the fabric of his cape.

"You rang, your majesty?"

Erwin looked up from the papers before him, taken aback by Levi's fully-dressed state. "I'd assume you would be in your sleeping clothes at this point in the night."

"I had to dress for the occasion," He didn't waver in his eye contact with Erwin. He wasn't about to look suspicious of breaking the no-leaving rule. "My best friend only deserves me in my most presentable condition."

Erwin had relinquished his scrutiny, taking it for a joke. Levi was able to stand a little easier."With your cape, too?"

"Especially the cape."

"I'm flattered, Levi," Erwin leaned forward, resting the enormity of his upper body onto his forearms. Out of nowhere, the image of Mikasa breaking that man's forearm came into his head. "But I hardly called you in here to discuss wardrobe."

Levi noticed the heavy lines of the usually handsome man's face. This job as commander was certainly taking its toll him, and Levi was too tired to express immediate concern. "Darn."

"Have a seat, Levi."

"Sitting would imply that I will be here for a while, so I think I'll remain on my feet."

Erwin smirked, moving to press the heels of his palms into his eyes. He let out a groan. "I'm going to keep this short, Levi. I'm concerned with the way you're handling Mikasa Ackerman."

So that was why he called Levi into his office. Levi was annoyed. This definitely, one-hundred percent could have waited until a time that wasn't three in the morning. He had also known that he was hitting a rough spot as Mikasa Ackerman's leader, but he didn't think it was bad enough to warrant Erwin's intervention. "And what is it that I'm doing that is so concerning?"

"May I remind you, Levi, that humanity is at war? I put Miss Ackerman under your command because I know you are ruthless as a teacher and as a leader. I knew you would be able to refine her natural genius into something unstoppable."

If there was one thing Levi hated, it was being reminded of something he was acutely aware of. Levi knew what he was doing, and he didn't need to be watched over like a child. "And I'm doing that. We haven't been training for very long, so I don't know what it is that you already expect."

Erwin remained silent, clearly mulling something over in his head. Although they were old friends, there was still a position of power to respect. "Fair enough, Levi," He finally said, voice even. "I'll tell you what I'm expecting from here on out. I'm expecting you to take her way farther than I took you. Make her hate you because of how far you'll push her."

Levi nodded, turning to leave. "Consider it done, Erwin. I trust your—"

"I'm not done yet, Levi," He was firm, almost angry. Levi turned back to face Erwin once again. "I expect one more thing."

Levi hardly blinked. "Anything."

"I expect you to get that goddamned cut in your side stitched up."

There are many flaws with this chapter that I need to fix.

But I'm not gonna, due to inherent disregard for quality. I'm so sorry.

There's a poll on my profile, you should definitely go vote.

It may or may not dictate the outcome of this fanfic in its entirety.

Also, feel free to review and let me know what could be done better in chapter three.

I love you guys.

Oh, and follow me on tumblr if you want.

It's sortasupersam over there, too, because I lack creativity.