A/N: If you guys are interested at all, I recently made a song-parody-tribute-to-levi/eren that ended up doing EXTREMELY (can i say that) well within the yaoi fandom... ahah 8'D There's a link to my YouTube channel in my ff profile, and you'll be able to find it from there /o/

IV

"We're cleaning today."

With those three words, a mop, and a bucket, Eren found himself scrubbing away at the estate's marble floors.

At first it wasn't even that bad; Eren was used to manual labor, considering his background. However, he inevitably heard himself grumbling and groaning when the duke - who seemed more devil than human at this point - shook his head once again as he ordered for the room to be redone.

"I promise you, Yager, that pain in your back will be significantly worse if you do not listen to my orders."

Eren, no matter how much he despised his work at the moment, did not doubt the duke's threat in the slightest. And so he kept his mouth shut, took a deep breath, and started over from the beginning. The work wasn't that bad, he tried to convince himself. Besides, he was finally able to meet some other people after an entire week of receiving nothing but close and personal attention from the intimidating man.

For instance, Eren was able to strike up some conversation with a golden haired maid named Petra in the current room. They had been making some small talk before Levi interrupted, and Eren, in his state of extreme cautiousness, waited a good five minutes before speaking up again.

"Petra... is the duke always like this?"

Petra answered with her ever-present kind smile. "You mean, so harsh on the cleaning? Yeah... We actually do this every other week. He's definitely what you would call a clean freak."

"A clean freak," Eren repeated. Seemed suitable enough. Still didn't change the fact that the man was acting like a sadistic bastard-

"But if you're thinking that the master is a cold hearted jerk," Petra continued, as if reading the brunette's mind, "I'll have to disagree. You can ask any of the workers here. We're fed well, given very generous holidays, and he truly does his best to make us feel at home. Even for you - I'm sure that, despite the threats he's said to you, he hasn't ever touched you, has he?"

Eren thought back to the times when he got on Levi's bad side and realized with a start that Petra was absolutely right. He had insulted and yelled and stared Eren down with various degrees of venom and contempt, but had yet to actually lay a finger on him.

Well, except for that one time...

"Eren? What's wrong?"

"E-eh?" Eren sputtered, quickly turning to the girl. He hadn't even realized that he had spaced out. "Oh, n-nothing! Sorry about that. And you're right. He's never done anything to harm me."

Thankfully, Petra let it go without another thought. "Nothing to apologize for! And that's great to hear. You'll grow to love master one day. I'm sure of it."

Eren grunted in response. Would he really come to feel that way? What about right now then? He certainly did not hate Levi - Eren was hardly in any position to do so. He was just confused, really, and frustrated by the fact that Levi had the power to just rip him from his previous life and dump him into a new one, and frustrated by his own ignorance at why-

"Say, Petra," Eren started, after picking up his tools, "do you know why I am here?"

"Mm?" Petra looked to him with golden eyes. "Because the master said he'd break your back if you weren't...?"

"No, no," Eren corrected, though he had to crack a smile at the statement, "I mean, why I'm here. In the estate. Living with you guys."

"Oh... No, no I don't. The master just told us that you would be a long term guest at the estate. I'm surprised to hear that even you do not know. Why don't you ask the master?"

"I see." Eren looked to the ground and resumed the scrubbing. No, he had not asked Levi - honestly, Eren was frightened to ask him anything, and he had the feeling that this was one question Levi would be extraordinarily displeased to hear. But then again... Levi had to tell him at some point, didn't he? "Yeah. That's a good idea. I'll ask him."

Petra flashed a "I'm glad I could help!" smile at the boy and the two continued working.

In the next room he was to clean, Eren met a reddish-brown haired lady with glasses who seemed a bit too excited to make his acquaintance. She was also performing strange lab-like experiments on the counter instead of cleaning, which confused the brunnette.

"So you're Eren Yager!"

Eren was not too sure how to answer to that, so he just smiled. "Yes, I am. And you are...?"

"Hanji Zoe." The woman was next to him and clutching his hands in an instant. "The residing pharmacist, and Levi's friend."

"Ah." That would explain why she was doing... whatever she was doing. Eren couldn't tell, and honestly did not want to know. "It's very nice to meet you."

"You know," Hanji began as Eren took up the mop and began to work, "Levi really doesn't like having guests over. He even kicks me out from time to time." She paused here. Eren thought she was done, but as it turns out, the woman really liked talking. Not that Eren minded too much; it kept his mind off the tedious job.

"It's rare that even one of the 30-something guestrooms are ever occupied, and if it is, it's usually the Princess. The two are second cousins, did you know? They're very close though, but very scary to see together. I hear that she's the only one who can make a scarier face than the duke." Hanji laughed as she said this. Eren raised an eyebrow.

"But anyways, it was quite a shocker to hear that Levi brought home a guest! And such a cute boy at that-" Hanji grinned as she saw Eren try to ignore her statement "-so of course, you became the talk of the estate! Some say that you tried to steal from him and now he brought you here to slowly and thoroughly punish you, others say that you rescued him from bandits and the two of you fell head over heels in love-"

Eren coughed rather loudly at the last statement. "I-... what!"

"Hey!" Hanji retorted with an exaggerated pout, "Don't blame me, it gets kind of boring just gossiping about the people inside the estate, you know!"

Eren sighed in defeat and said no more.

"So... what was it actually then? You will tell me, won't you?"

"Ah... sure," Eren replied hesitantly. Somehow, he doubted whether the lady would even be able to stop talking long enough for him to relate the tale. He was also worried that the duke would walk in on them conversing, and thus, he decided to make it short. "Basically, Duke Levi broke into my house and took me."

"Whoa! No way?" Hanji stared at Eren as if he had just said the most outrageous thing. Once again, the boy was at a loss for how to react.

"Then I must be right..." The woman mused to herself. Eren's ears perked up. Something sparkled in Hanji's eyes and she slammed one fist into the palm of the other hand. "It must have to do with Princess Mikasa!"

"The princess?!" Hanji's unexpected train of thought had Eren's full attention now.

"Yes! That girl is the only person on this planet who can make Levi do un-Levi-ish things. Eren!" She whipped her head around to face the boy. "Has Levi said anything about Mikasa to you!"

"U-Uh..." Eren thought back, all the way to their first encounter. "Yes, actually, just once... He asked me if I wanted to meet her."

"And what did you say?"

"That uh... I had never heard of the princess, nor knew her name," he admitted shamefully.

"I see." Hanji sat back in her chair and clicked her tongue. "Well, I can't blame you Eren; you came from pretty far away from what I know. But still, this fits with my hypothesis! For whatever reason, Mikasa really wants to meet you, but Levi is checking you out first! That man's always been protective of the princess, I tell you. What other reason could he have to bring you hear and treat you like a noble?"

Like a noble? Eren laughed inwardly, reflecting at how he was currently on his knees, scrubbing the floor. Then again, Levi was doing the exact same in some other part of the house, so it wasn't inaccurate. Eren knew what Hanji was talking about though - the fancy guest bedroom, the quality clothes, the private dinners with the duke.

"Well... if you say so." Needless to say however, Eren wasn't completely sold on this theory. He knew nothing of the princess, after all. Perhaps he should ask Levi if he could meet the princess; if Hanji's idea was correct, it would surely spur some reaction from the man. Furthermore, it seemed like a safer question to ask than "Why did you bring me here?" seeing that the duke himself had touched on the very same question previously.

"Yes! Still don't know what that man is hiding though..."

Just then, the door swung open with a loud bang!, causing Eren to nearly jump off of the ground. Only one person ever opened doors like that around the estate, and that was the duke himself.

"'Well, speak of the Devil..." Hanji said loudly, adjusting her glasses and looking over at the shorter man who just entered.

Eren scrambled around desperately, picking up his tools and desperately tried to look like he was working. He had been slacking off and he knew it, and surely Levi could see right through it as well. However, the next words were not what he expected to hear.

"Yager. Go to your room. Now."

Eren peered at eye at the older man cautiously. "Sir, I'm not quite done with this room yet-"

"Didn't you hear me!" Levi interrupted, quite forcefully. "I said to get to your room!"

Eren was still too confused at the command to do anything except stand up. Hanji must have been equally confounded about the situation, for she asked, "What's up, Levi? Something happening?"

Eren thought he saw the man's eye twitch. "Visitor..." Levi grumbled out.

"Visitor! Who, who?!" Without waiting for an answer, Hanji darted to the window, opening it and craning her neck out. When she closed the window, a large smile was painted on her face. "It's the princess!"

At this proclamation, Levi's face grew darker as Eren's eyes lit up. The princess was coming...! And yet, Levi had ordered Eren to leave. What did that mean? Regardless, now was the perfect chance to ask the question.

"Sir, may I meet the princess?"

A sharp glare that reeked of malice was soon turned upon Eren, almost making the poor brunette wish to take back his words. But no - Eren had meant the request he made, and so he stood strong, returning the duke's look with equal intensity.

"Absolutely not," Levi said flatly, though not without the faintest grin tugging on the corner of his lip. It was as if he relished in denying Eren the request. "Now if you would please, I do not wish to dirty my boot with the likes of you, especially not before meeting a guest of such importance."

Eren gritted his teeth as he suppressed a frustrated growl. Levi's answer had not satisfied him in the slightest. And what was up with that mysterious, unreadable attitude anyways? He opened his mouth to say more, but the other man cut him off.

"Yager!" He sounded almost desperate. "If you want to talk you may come speak to me later. But now is not the time."

Eren closed his mouth. That man was toying with him. For what or for who, Eren knew not, but he knew that Levi was keeping him in the dark and it suddenly pissed him off to no end. Without so much an acknowledgement to his superior, Eren pushed past the duke and stalked up angrily to his room.

~ o ~

A/N: Tension! ... tension. Can we call this tension? What are plot devices anyways...

Thanks for keeping with me thus far! I hope I can say that things will be getting more interesting after this!