A/N: Another update? What is this sorcery you speak of?! *Shot*

Anyway, hi guys. ^^ I hope your weekend is going well! If not, does this help at all? :) I want to say really quick that, as a reminder, this is a slow build type of story. It's going to kick up again, no worries. There's just a lot to cover before that happens (You'll see what I mean at the end of this chapter). There's a lot that needs to happen in order for things to build to the drama (and angst *shot again*). With that being said, I want to thank you for being so patient with it so far, and I hope you have some more to handle just a bit longer. ^^ We're almost there! I promise!

I feel like, as I say this, things will just kick back up again and be thrown into motion. Maybe?

-Misty

P.S. Time

By: Hans Zimmer

P.S. Since I haven't said it in forever and I feel terrible or it, a big thank you to Lady Mari chan for the Betainginginginging!

The Change You Wish to See

(Original summary, but screw the stupid character limits) Levi's never put much care into things. He doesn't put much care into things at all. Nothing ever peaks his interest. Well, that's until he meets Eren Jaeger. Levi isn't sure what it is that's so interesting about him, and it irritates him to feel these feelings he's never felt before. Regardless, he goes to talk to the boy. When he doesn't receive an answer, he just thinks that the boy is rude; however, he understands why when Eren doesn't answer him. Eren is deaf.

Rated M for sexual content, adult language, some violence, mild character death
Main pairing: Riren with some side pairs
Anime: Shingeki No Kyojin (Attack on Titan)

Chapter thirteen: Silence is Golden

Later that evening, when Eren was able to get home through the blizzard with Levi and inside his home, his destination was Armin's room. He had been mulling over Armin's sudden explosion earlier that day, and he wasn't going to leave the blond alone until he got some answers.

Well, that was the plan at least.

When he got inside and shrugged off his boots, jacket, and scarf, he immediately made a B-line for Armin's room. The only thing that got in his way was Mikasa, who was home relatively early, unlike the usual.

"Hi Eren," She said softly, her fingers graceful as she signed. The usual, and he was in no mood for it.

"Mikasa, is Armin in his room?" Eren asked, no patience saved for small talk.

"Hi Eren," But Mikasa had a lot of patience, patience she would use to annoy an easily angered Eren Jaeger until she got what she wanted. With it already running thin, Eren had no choice but to give in.

"Hi…" He grumbled in defeat.

"Yes, he is." Mikasa answered immediately, proof that his response was all she wanted. With that, Eren nodded his head, prepared to leave again. "I wouldn't go in there though."

"Why…?" Eren was stopped by her sudden words.

"It's nothing but doom and gloom in there. He's really upset." Mikasa responded while filing away bills she had been holding this whole time.

"Did he tell you why…?"

"Yes, and he swore me to secrecy that I wouldn't tell you." Mikasa signed and sighed.

"Shit, I was too late." Unless it was a matter of life and death, if Mikasa was sworn into secrecy, she never told a soul. To this day, Eren never did find out what it was Jean Kirstien, a kid from middle school, had said to her on the jungle gym when they were kids. She was so quiet about it, so she never needed to tell, and it wasn't like she was an overly emotional person, so it never showed.

"Did something happen today?" Mikasa asked, but she knew what happened. She wanted to know what Eren knew, however; to hear his side of the story.

"Some lady in the store was talking to Levi and Armin, and Armin started yelling at her for some reason. Levi started talking after he made him stop, but then the lady left really angry." Eren's hands were a shaking mess as he signed, trying to put two and two together while trying to talk to her all at once. "The lady kept motioning to me, so I think it was something to do with me."

"Maybe. You'll have to talk to Armin about it."

"You just said don't go in his room." Eren accused.

"I didn't mean right now. I meant later, when he isn't running people over in video games."

Eren was determined to talk to Armin. So much that he did exactly what he did with Mikasa and stayed up late. Armin would have to eat, would have to drink or go to the bathroom at some point, and when that moment came, Eren would strike.

When that moment came at three in the morning, however, Eren was more than tired.

His head was bobbing up and down, his eyes half lidded, but falling shut with each blink. It was getting harder to stay awake, and even if he stood up to stretch or jump in place, it wasn't helping. That just seemed to make him more tired, and sitting on the couch to rest didn't help.

Could it have been possible that he had just fallen asleep while playing video games? Armin hadn't played video games in years, let alone violent ones. The last time he had though, he barely made it past nine before he was out like a light, hanging upside down from the recliner. However, when things tended to be on his mind, he found it hard to sleep, so Eren could see where he wouldn't fall asleep. Then again, he could see Armin playing video games as his reason for falling asleep.

Eren sighed. He should have thought this through better.

He stood up and stretched one last time, his back and knees popping in ways that actually felt good. He felt a rush of air pass through his lips at how good it felt before grabbing his cell phone from the coffee table and heading upstairs. Mikasa had warned him not to go to Armin's room, but he just wanted to see if the blond was even awake let alone gracing the world of his happy presence. He had a fleeting thought of knocking, but just before his knuckles hit the wooden door, he reconsidered.

Waking Armin up was about as dangerous as waking Mikasa up. It was like a suicide mission, like something from a video game similar to something Armin would play.

He was quiet. He made sure of it himself. He couldn't judge entirely without his hearing, but he based it off of vibrations, and going off of them told him he was relatively silent. At least this way he could say he tried in case he did wake Armin up, because the boy was not a heavy sleeper.

He poked his head into the room to find it dark, but Armin's tiny television from the eighties was on and glowing brightly in the room. It shone down on Armin, curled up and sleeping in his bean bag chair on the floor, hair furled in all directions and feet dangling off of the edge. His hands were tucked into his lap, the controller to the gaming console tucked under his hand. Like that, the little character on the screen was endlessly spinning around in a circle, all thanks to the press of Armin's thumb into the left analog stick.

Eren smiled at the sweet sight, thinking that it had been years since he had last seen Armin like this. Granted, Armin didn't play video games much, but that wasn't the sight that made him smile. It was the sight of Armin looking eight years old again. It was the sight of him looking like a child who had played until their heart was content, and after spending a full day of hard play, was spent and ready for a good, long nights rest.

It brought back a lot of memories; of course it did. It reminded Eren of all of the countless times the two had together, even long before Eren had lost his hearing, and thinking about it, he could still hear Armin's baby voice in his head. After years, it must have distorted itself some. Eren could imagine it any way he wanted, but the way he had it now seemed to be what he remembered. However, his smile was taken away when a brief thought entered his mind.

'I'll never get to hear him talk…'

Had Armin's voice changed? It had to have. It must have been deeper now, more masculine, but if Eren thought about it, he could think that it may have just matured more. He couldn't picture Armin's voice being too deep, especially with his body and figure. He just didn't seem like the type of person to have a deep voice. It would seem too out of character for him. As previously stated, Eren could easily think of Armin's voice and then try to mature it twelve years, but he'd never know.

He'd never know.

Eren found himself smiling bitterly. He had to push those thoughts away. He had faired with it for now, and he'd have to keep doing it. If being deaf didn't bother Mikasa and Armin now, that meant that he was putting up a good act. If he was happy, then so were they, and that was all that was important to him.

After thinking about all of these things in only a possible thirty seconds, Eren had forgotten what it was he had come in here for. He would blame it on sleep deprivation and lack of care later, but for now, he needed to get Armin into bed and himself sleeping. He needed to sleep.

So, after quietly moving further into the room and to where Armin was, Eren carefully pulled the controller out from Armin's lap and set it down by the consol. He turned the television off, letting the room plummet into pitch black darkness. Eren's only light source was the light from the hallway, which was okay. With the door cracked open, the light peered down on the bed, and that was enough to show him where he needed to go.

The brunette was careful to push his hands under Armin's body and wrap his arms around him, one under his boney knees and the other against his back. His friend seemed to recognize the motion in his sleep and shifted, moving closer to Eren than away from him. This startled him some, but when he realized that Armin was just trying to get more comfortable, Eren sighed and went about picking him up.

When was the last time he had done this? He could only wonder. He just remembered that the last time they had done this, Armin weighed a lot less than this. How old were they the last time; fourteen, maybe fifteen years old? The memories were fuzzy.

Eren yanked the blankets back before setting Armin down onto his bed. Like a baby clinging to its mother, it didn't surprise Eren when Armin's hands were tangled into his sweater and wouldn't let go. He tried unraveling his fingers, but they were tangled tight, one hand holding onto his hood and the other a mess of zipper and drawstrings. When had Armin's hands even done this? Eren knew he had no sense of hearing, but was he losing his sense of touch as well.

The brunette grumbled to himself quietly, trying to free himself from Armin's firm grip, but his efforts were in vain. He didn't even think about just sliding out of his sweater and letting Armin sleep on it for the night. He simply pushed the teen over onto the bed to make room for himself. Armin's bed had always had better support, better because of Armin's terrible sleeping habits, so it wasn't like Eren could complain. He was quite content yanking the blankets back over him and Armin, wrapping his arms around his childhood friend, and falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.

That morning when he woke up, he was alone in Armin's bed. The spot beside him was still warm, but the covers we neatly placed over him, as if Armin had tried to make his bed while Eren slept there. He internally groaned, maybe even did it out loud, before slowly rolling out of bed. His hands made contact with the floor first before the rest of him did, and after some serious self-motivating, he managed to convince himself up on his feet and to the kitchen, where Mikasa was standing and making breakfast.

"Morning…" Eren mumbled just to get her attention. Mikasa turned around and smiled lightly at the sight of Eren's disheveled form and terrible excuse for bed hair.

"Good morning, Eren." This was a simple statement, one Eren could easily read by her lips, so signing wasn't needed.

"Are you making breakfast?" Eren asked and sat down on top of the counter.

"Yes I am, now get off of the counter." Mikasa signed, her eyes only leaving the food on the stove for a moment to look at what he was saying, but then going back.

"What about class?"

"Today my classes are later."

"Is it Wednesday already?" Eren asked, and his sister wordlessly nodded her head. Eren nodded his head and looked around, eyes looking for that tuff of blond hair and those blue eyes that should have been in bed with him this morning, but wasn't. "Where's Armin…?"

"He went to class."

"But even this is early for him." Eren signed with a pout.

"He did leave early today…" His sister agreed.

"Mikasa, please tell me why he's so upset." Eren pleaded with her. "If I did something wrong, I want to fix it."

"It's not you, Eren. You didn't do anything wrong." Mikasa turned away from the food to give her full attention to Eren, because at times like these, Eren was very stubborn and hard to convince of anything. She needed to make sure his attention was on her just as much as hers was on him, or else he wouldn't focus at all.

"It has to deal with me though, doesn't it? He keeps avoiding me."

"Yes, it's about you, but you didn't do anything to upset him. He's upset about other things."

"So why can't he just tell me? Since when is Armin the type of person to bottle things up like that?"

Mikasa sighed.

If only Eren knew.

Eren had no choice but to go to work after he finished his classes. He couldn't not go just because Armin was ignoring him. After all, it was Levi who picked him up, and he didn't feel like getting on anyone else's bad side this week.

Work was slow, slower than the usual slow. It was snowing again today, though it was a lighter fall. However, after the accumulation the day before and through the night, Eren couldn't help but feel envious as school buses went by, indicating that children were being sent home early. Would Armin and Mikasa's classes be canceled early again? Would they be allowed home early?

Eren could imagine a very nice image of them at home, relaxing on the couch, watching TV or talking to each other. That would be, of course, if Armin would talk to him at all.

"Hey, brat," Levi spoke up behind him, followed by a tap against his shoulder, because Levi knew Eren wouldn't hear him. The brunette turned back from the window and smiled at the man, waiting for something more than just a tap against the shoulder to tell him what he needed to say.

"Hm…?" Levi held up a piece of paper with writing on his, his hip cocking to the side and a scoff leaving him. He hated doing this, but he didn't have a choice.

"Hanji needs help with something on the computer. She says she downloaded some program she can't get rid of, and she thinks it's a virus."

"It sounds like one." Eren signed without thinking of it. He didn't even seem to notice that he did it, but for Levi, he could only understand "sounds like one." It wasn't hard to put together what he was possibly saying.

Eren didn't bother to say more though. He left on his own and back to the office where Hanji was, leaving the older man alone. Levi sighed to himself when the room fell quiet, though it had already been quiet before. This time around though, Eren wasn't there to breathe through his mouth while he swept and make sound. He wasn't there as a dilatory distraction, which didn't help Levi and his thought process at all.

He simply sighed again as he walked over to the door and opened it, letting in a gush of cold air and flurries of snow that scattered across the carpet.

"Hey, are you going to stand out there forever, or are you going to come in?" Levi asked while squinting to keep snow from flying into his eyes.

Standing against the side of the building stood Armin, dressed in his heavy winter gear and barely recognizable with his hat and scarf bundled up so tight. The only reason Levi had known that was him was because Armin had called the store, asking for Levi to meet with him, without Eren. He said he wanted to talk to Levi, but he didn't want Eren knowing about it, for whatever reasons. Hanji firmly agreed to distract Eren by saying there was something wrong with the computer, though Levi didn't doubt that she intentionally installed something with a virus to buy them time, because she was just that type of person to do that.

And now here they were.

"Thank you," Armin mumbled into his scarf as he walked inside, but only enough for the door to shut behind him. The older man got the feeling that Armin was making sure he wouldn't stay long.

"What is this about, Arlert?" Levi wouldn't lie and say he wasn't trying to sound annoyed, because he was. He was very annoyed. Pissed off really, and he was going to show it. Eren had been upset by this whole ordeal, and when the brat was upset, then he was unfortunately upset as well.

"I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. I shouldn't have lashed out like that at one of your customers, and it was completely wrong of me to do." Armin said, though it was still muffled by his scarf that he refused to remove.

"You're right. You really shouldn't have."

"If there's any way I can make this better, I can-"

"Armin, you were standing up for Eren. It takes guts to do that for someone, so you shouldn't be so upset that you taught a bigot a lesson."

"I still shouldn't have yelled the way I did. It wasn't right of me…" Armin shuffled on his feet for a moment, eyes adverted to the floor as his voice trailed away.

"What isn't right of you is ignoring Eren the way you are." Levi daringly corrected him. That got more of a proper response, one he was looking for, which was Armin's guard suddenly dropping, surprise evident. He wasn't expecting that.

"I-I'm not ignoring him…" Armin mumbled with wide eyes.

"Bull shit." Levi quipped. "I'm not standing up for you here, Arlert. I shouldn't have to have Eren leave the room so you can cowardly apologize for the shit that doesn't need an apology for. He trusts you, and all you're doing him is treating him like a child, the same as Mikasa."

"I don't do that!"

"Then what the fuck are we standing here arguing for?" Despite their difference in height, it was Levi who stood taller for the time being. "If you didn't do that, this problem wouldn't even exist, but you do. You may be more lenient towards him, but you're still just as protective of him. One thing doesn't go right though, and you feel the need to hide from it all."

"That's not true…"

"Why though…? Why can't you just talk to him about it? Why can't you act like an adult with that good guy act and just talk it out with him?"

"I-I want to, but I-"

"Are you jealous?" Levi asked, and all fell silent from Armin after that. His expression was full blown shock, with a mixture of hurt and disbelief, like he hadn't expected Levi to even mention the word. "Is that it? Are you just jealous of Eren and I?"

Armin looked away, his breath picking up faster. His fists clenched by his side, and for a moment, Levi wondered if he should step back. He wasn't sure if Armin was the type of person to hit people when he was seriously angry, but should he take the chance?

No, he wouldn't do that. That would just be backing down, and to what? A small nineteen year old who knew nothing? That wasn't going to happen.

"It would make sense, after all." Levi continued. "You have work and school, and while you're doing both of those, Eren is here with me. He sees me now more than he sees you or Mikasa, and he spends more time with me than he does with you guys-"

"Shut up!" Somehow, Armin's outburst was more frightening than the one from yesterday.

Yesterday he was standing up from someone. Now he had nothing to lose.

"Armin…?" Their conversation was cut short when Eren spoke up from behind them. Even Levi was a little surprised to see the boy, but he saw Hanji standing behind them, looking awfully guilty, and maybe he understood why. After all, the two of them were having a full out battle of yelling out here, and if Hanji had heard them from back there, she had probably gotten worried about them.

"I'm leaving," Armin stated abruptly and turned to leave.

"Wait…!" Eren called out, but he was beaten to it.

Levi kicked out his leg in front of the blond, quickly stopping him from leaving by pressing his foot into the archway of the door. Armin sent him a glare, but the glare was easily challenged and defeated by Levi's own. Armin was fifteen years too early to challenge him.

"I won't let you walk out of here and hurt him again." Levi growled lowly, quiet enough for Hanji not to hear him. "Now fix this before I do," And with that, Levi pushed Armin aside with his leg, knocking him back away from the door.

"Hey!" Eren shouted, old instincts kicking in to protect his friend, even from Levi. He was quick to Armin's side, to hold him up, his arms wrapping around in a protective barrier as he shot a glare at Levi. Levi wasn't interested in him for the moment though, only looking at the blond who had taken to hiding his face in Eren's sweater and clutching at the material until his knuckles turned white. "What are you doing?" Eren asked, pulling the boy closer. Levi scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest, his hip cocking to the side again.

What was the teen thinking he was doing? Did he just plan to hide behind Eren until this was over? If he thought that was going to end this, he was wrong. This wasn't going to end any problems anyone had, only prolong them and the inevitable.

Levi thought he was smarter than that too.

"So what…?" Armin hissed into Eren's sweater, inaudible to the brunette, and even so to Hanji, but Levi could hear it from where he stood. His eyebrows raised in mock interest.

Maybe he was right.

"Arm-!" Eren stopped when the teen forcibly shoved at his chest, putting space between the two of them. It wasn't Eren he wanted to confront though; oh no. He wasn't done with Levi yet.

"So what if I'm jealous?" He spun around and asked the man behind them, his eyes brimming with tears just threatening to fall. "I'm human aren't I?" His voice cracked, betraying any façade he may have been holding up, just for the sake of his sanity and for being in front of Eren, but he didn't realize that had long since lost that battle.

Levi was silently thanking their luck that no one else was in the store. An outburst like this would surely upset anyone, not just them. If it wasn't for the snow, Armin could easily have gotten them into trouble.

"Armin-?"

"Eren and Mikasa are all I have left! I've got no one to call a family in this world besides them! They've been with me through everything, and if something ever happened to either of them, what do I do then?" A tear managed to break free from his restraints, and when it did, so did the others. Armin wasn't done fighting back though. All of the pent up anger, frustration, and pain he had been holding in for who knows how long was finally overflowing. Any walls he had put up with restraints were crumbling apart fast, and to see him go from fine to broken so fast was unnerving.

"I can't lose the one thing that has more meaning to me than my own life! I just can't! If it's selfish to be jealous then fine! I don't care anymore!"

"Armin!" Eren yelled over him. Eren seemed to be the only thing that could calm the blond down at this point, and when Eren yelled at him, Armin's anger seemed to fade away. Though he was still tense, everything that had been anger dissipated into this air. His face contorted into an expression of regret, his shoulders relaxed, and his fists unclenched, showing off the red indentations in his palms made by his nails.

It had become painfully obvious to him now that, even though Eren couldn't hear him, he had seen everything. He had seen him break and be defeated, but for what? All Armin had done was expose a side to him he'd promised he'd never let Eren see. That weak, defenseless side to him that could do nothing but cry and get beaten down by someone bigger than him was still there, and it showed.

What was he doing? Armin thought that he had buried these emotions away long ago to avoid upsetting Eren, but that was all he was doing. He was only upsetting him further by lashing out the way he was. Levi was right. The only thing he was doing was upsetting Eren, which wasn't what he was supposed to do. He was the one that was supposed to carry him when he was down. He was the one that was supposed to lend a hand and carry Eren when he couldn't do it himself, and he wasn't doing that.

And it was like a switch had been flipped inside his head.

Since when was he supposed to carry Eren? Since when was Eren so helpless that he couldn't carry himself?

Eren wasn't a child, but he was still treating him like one, wasn't he?

"… I-I'm sorry…" Armin apologized, lips still parted in surprised. Surprise over himself. Surprise that he could let himself be compromised so easily. He turned back to Eren, trying to find the words to say, to sign, to do anything, but nothing seemed to come out except for tears. "Eren…"

The brunette reached out and pulled Armin close, knowing nothing else to do besides that. He'd never needed to know what to do at a time like this, because a time like this never happened before, and it was never even an idea to be an issue. Eren looked up at Levi with concerned, gold eyes, boring holes into the older man's head for answers, but he knew he wouldn't get any. All he got was a blank stare back and felt Armin shift within his arms. He could feel the tears soaking through his sweater and shirt, Armin's grip on him shaking and flimsy, but also strong at the same time.

He was trying his best to hold on to any sanity he had left, but he was failing miserably at his job, and the chances were high that Eren had never seen him like this.