Humanity's Strongest Woman

by xDollfie

In every empire, there is an epic era that defies the boundaries of time and immortalized itself in the history books. For mankind, an epic era they will never forget has finally emerged. The war between humanity and Titans has finally come to a head. Love cease to exist in a time like this, but they found it, and promised that it'll be worth it. Every stubborn inch of it [LEVIXOC]

19. Awkward Feelings

Chapter Revamped: 21 March 2020

---

Humanity's Strongest Woman by xDollfie

Chapter 16 — Awkward Feelings

---

2 Days Later.

Commander Pixis sighed as he walked through the narrow hallway with his trusty assistant by his side. Ever so often, he could feel her staring disapprovingly at the alcohol bottle in his hand. He was aware that his drinking habits could get out of hand at times — but it was times like this that he desperately needed it.

Reaching his designated location, he spied the Survey Corps guard by the door. He passed by him and knocked before entering the room.

"My, my..." Pixis raised a brow when he saw a redhead sleeping with her head at the edge of the bed. She hasn't even had a change of clothes and dried blood still stained her uniform.

Ida Starke stirred awake when she heard noises. Rubbing her eyes, she spotted the Garrison Commander by the door. "Commander Pixis," she greeted respectfully, trying to get up from the ground to salute.

"Sit, child. No need for formalities here." Pixis waved his hand in the air with a cheeky smile. "You really should get some rest, there's no use in staying here. Erwin wouldn't be pleased when he realized you haven't left his side since he was admitted. Just what is your Captain doing letting you stay here all this time?"

Ida frowned, looking back to the unconscious Erwin's pale and unshaven face. The Commander had miraculously survived despite having his right arm torn off and losing a copious amount of blood, but he had yet to wake up.

"I want to be by his side when he wakes up," Ida admitted softly, reaching out and holding his large hand in her own. She wanted to apologize to him. His hand was much bigger than hers. It felt foreign and warm. Ida began to think about how strange it was that she had never once held it.

Pixis looked amusedly at her, pulling a chair out so he could sit. "Erwin would be delighted to have such a filial daughter."

She snapped an acid glare at the elderly man. Because of her outburst at the Wall, the secret relation between Erwin and her had been leaked. Thankfully, Levi had made it a point to reaffirm everyone's doubts about it on her behalf since there was no point in denying it now, so she didn't have anyone coming to her questioning the credibility of it. But Ida couldn't help feeling uncomfortable.

The revealment of her blood ties to Erwin couldn't have come at the worst timing when so many people were out to get him. Hanji had recognized that she could very well be in danger and after much discussion, concluded that it was better for Erwin and her to be under guard for now.

Pixia raised his hands defensively in front of him. "Oh don't get me wrong, I knew that you were his daughter all along."

"He told you?" Ida inquired suspiciously, surprised.

"Contrary to what the public knows, we're quite close. He would always talk about you whenever we met. He was so proud that you became the magnificent soldier you are. Though I have to admit, it'd become occasionally annoying whenever he complained about how you were still ignoring him. Your strained relationship is settled now, I presumed?"

Ida pursed her lips, regarding the question carefully. 'Settled' was a strong word to describe their relationship.

"There's no point hating him for what he did, what is done is done," she answered. "No point dwelling on the past. Nothing can change the fact that he left my mother and me, but he moved on to be a great father figure to many brave soldiers."

Pixis looked surprised. "You don't know? Elsie never told you?"

She captured his gaze immediately with her own. "You knew my mother?"

"Of course I did." Pixis snorted, bringing his alcohol bottle to his lips. He took a few good gulps before sighing in satisfaction. He shuddered inwardly when he felt Ida's intense gaze, obviously still demanding for further elaboration. "Erwin would probably kill me for telling you."

"Tell me," she demanded.

"Haha, you really do act like Elsie." Pixis chuckled lightly at her headstrong personality, smiling to ease the tension. "You see Erwin and you see an ambitious man. But once long ago, he was willing to drop everything; his dreams, his hopes, his ambition. Erwin had agreed to elope with Elsie, it was your mother who suddenly backed out on the plan. Elsie was originally engaged to be married off in order to seal political alliances. But she got pregnant with you."

"Elsie backed out?" she repeated for clarification, shocked.

Pixis nodded grimly. "Yeah, and it was her plan from the start."

Ida felt a bullet of guilt shot through her heart as she sank into realization. Horrified, she looked back at Erwin's sleeping face in dismay.

Perhaps if she had known, things would've been different between them. She would've definitely tried harder to mend their relationship, perhaps they could've even functioned as a normal family now.

There were so many 'maybes' that Ida couldn't help but grimace.

Why didn't Erwin say anything? Surely he should've known how she felt about him, how much she despised him. So why didn't he defend himself? And her mother, why did she set out a path for a young Ida to hate him unconditionally? Why did she not tell her this? Why did she steer her into hating her missing father? It was obvious that Elsie knew about her silent hatred for Erwin as well.

How wrong she was. How susceptible. How foolish.

Her head started to pound from the influx of questions and theories. Something about her situation sparked a nerve within her — a guilt-filled nerve. A guilt-filled nerve that remained a question mark for her.

The mother she knew loved Erwin with all her heart and she was a kind empathetic woman, always reminding her not to hate her missing father but never explaining why she shouldn't…

So why didn't she?

"Don't get all guilty now. Erwin didn't want you to know," Pixis said reassuringly when he noticed how tears were collecting in her red-rimmed eyes. "At least you found out in the end."

"All this time..." she cursed with utmost ferocity. "I knew nothing."

"Mhm?" Pixis raised a brow. "Elsie didn't tell you as well?"

"No…" Ida answered, her confusion still marking her features.

Pixis laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't dwell on it. Go get some proper rest now, I'll stay here. You should go back to headquarters. Everything's a mess now, we're about to release the refugees back to Wall Rose. There's much conflict with the refugees and the stationary guards that its chaos out there."

"From what I heard, it's like all hell has been unleashed," Ida spoke flatly, letting out a sigh. The guards on rotation outside the room had kept her well informed on the state of affairs and things were certainly not looking good within the Walls from what she heard. "There's no doubt about… If Wall Rose ever falls, people will start turning against each other for land and food."

"The food storage for the refugees will only last a week. It's either they plunder to survive or starve to death. We're planning to declare safe before the situation turns sour, it's not like we have a choice anymore." Pixis said, taking another gulp of his alcohol bottle. "Have you heard about the Survey Corps' situation?"

"What about it?" Ida inquired, leaning in with interest. "I know that most of the battle-tested veterans were eaten during the last mission, the casualties were heavy, but I haven't heard anything else yet."

"Well, regarding the sudden appearance of Titans in Wall Rose… Hanji had pointed out a possibility that the Titans were turned from the human residents since there wasn't a breach. They are going to investigate it soon," Pixis informed her. "All Survey Corps activities are also currently placed on hold by order of the royal government."

"What?" Ida gasped in dismay, the news slapping her in the face. Dread indignantly percolated in her stomach. "Titans are originally humans…?"

"It's a possibility, there isn't a confirmation yet." Pixis sighed deeply, rubbing the creases in his wrinkles. "There still isn't much that Humanity knows about Titans."

"Jaron Starke might know," Ida stated, gaining the unwavering attention of the elderly commander. Just thinking of that name bought a layer of hatred and disgust on her tongue.

Taking in his appalled expression, she decided that it was safe to tell him. He looked reliable since Erwin trusted him. "…The Wall Cult priest, he knows something about the Starkes… It's probably something related to the Titans in the Walls or perhaps even the truth of humanity's true history. But I don't know for sure yet, he made a slip of tongue. For all you know, he could be just blabbering shit to stall us."

Pixis rubbed his face with his hand, the reek of alcohol streaming from his mouth as he exhaled. "This is getting more confusing by the hour…"

"Why are the Survey Corps activities placed on hold?" Ida questioned, frowning. "We did nothing wrong — they're treating us like criminals."

The Garrison Commander shrugged. "Orders from the Royal government. Even I can't say for sure the reasoning behind it."

Standing up, Ida took her cloak by the side of the table and fastened it around her neck. "I'll go back to the headquarters. I can't stay here any longer."

"You're right." Pixis nodded in agreement, peering up at her. "You better get some rest though. How's your fractured arm?"

Ida moved her arm effortlessly to show him her condition. "It's almost all healed. All the more I shouldn't just stay here, right? The legion needs me."

Pixis smiled at the determination in her emerald eyes. "Haha. Go then, I'll keep Erwin company."

"Thank you," Ida replied, saluting before she hurried out the door. "Take care, sir."

The Garrison Commander looked back at his sleeping friend. "You really got a brilliant daughter eh?" he chuckled, taking another gulp of his alcohol. "She's like the exact copy of Elsie, you're going to have your hands full."

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Walking through the headquarters door, Ida was keenly aware of how everyone was staring at her. The mummers didn't even cease even when she briefly stopped in the hallways, horrified at the sudden attention. She guessed it was due to the recent shocking revelation that she was Commander Erwin's daughter. No doubt that it had spread like wildfire. No one asked her any questions though and Ida was grateful for that. She wasn't in a mood to answer anyone's questions.

Stubbornly, Ida paid no mind to the whispers and hastily moved towards the infirmary and pushed the door open. Eren gasped when he saw her, jumping out of his seat. He hadn't expected Ida to come back to the headquarters anytime soon. The last he heard, she was adamant at staying by Erwin's bedside.

"Oh! What are you doing here Ida-san?" he inquired, looking nervous. "H — Has Commander Erwin woken up yet?"

"No… he has yet to wake up," Ida told him flatly, her voice as bitter as it always was. She walked towards Mikasa lying on the bed, observing her physical condition. Her quick eyes scanned through her body for any obvious wounds. "How are you?"

"Fine," Mikasa muttered simply, her gaze still focused on Eren.

Ida nodded her head numbly. She certainly did look like she was recovering well. "That's good to hear." She moved towards Eren and Jean in the room and said, "I need a report on the current situation."

"...Hanji-san and Connie are scheduled to go to the Ragako village to investigate," Jean answered in a sour note, leaning on the wall. "When we were hiding out at Castle Utgard during the siege of Titans, a really large aberrant Titan that looked like a monkey appeared. We had a hunch that he was the one that turned the humans into Titans."

"Ragako Village…" Ida repeated, rubbing her chin. "Isn't that Connie's village?"

Eren looked disturbed when he confirmed it. "Yeah, it is…"

Ida exhaled sharply, dropping her hands back to her side. The poor boy was probably devastated. She didn't need to ask about the state of the village, Jean's tone was a clear enough indication of what happened. She took a mental note to subtly comfort the boy later.

"I see…" she hummed. "Well, that's shitty… Anything else to report?"

Jean and Eren locked eyes with each other briefly. Eren nodded softly as if passing the message Jean that it was fine to tell her. Making a frustrated noise with his nose, Jean compiled, "We're assigned to be under Levi's squad."

"What?" Ida was stunned that they were appointed to join her squad. "Erwin didn't give that command..."

"Captain Levi did," Jean told her, his eyes narrowing. "It's a confidential matter. We're going to hide Eren, Krista and you at a hideout tomorrow actually."

"Hideout?" she echoed for reaffirmation, appalled.

She wondered why Levi had yet to inform her of this matter. She could easily derive something serious was happening if Levi had decided to make such a critical decision regarding the composition of their new official squad by himself — surely there was a reason behind it.

"Captain Levi didn't inform you because he didn't want to disturb you," Jean told her reassuringly when he saw her contorted expression. He picked his words carefully, not wanting to upset Ida because of her father's condition. "Actually, we were all told not to bother you. I figured Captain would've informed you by today."

Frowning, her fingers rubbed her nose bridge tiredly. "I see… Thank you, Jean." Ida glanced at the injured Mikasa lying by the bed. "Take care."

Ida walked towards the door. Her hand was on the knob when Eren called out to her loudly. "Uh, Ida-san!"

Turning back, her brows clashed together when she saw the guilt clouding the young boy's eyes.

"What?"

"I — I'm sorry about Erwin! It was my fault that I was caught in the first place!" Eren apologized with a veil of regret, bowing his head. He was still filled with guilt after learning that Erwin was her father. Never in his life could he expect the fearless soldier like her to cry like how she did back on the wall.

Eren had always respected Ida, feared her even, but he had come to realize that there was a softer side to her as well.

"Eren, it isn't your fault." Mikasa chided him disapprovingly. Eren shouldn't blame himself for their Commander's condition — Erwin was the one who recklessly charged towards the Titans. She wasn't about to let Eren feel like he was responsible.

He frowned. "Yes, it is, Mikasa."

"Yeah, it's your damned fault." Ida interrupted coldly, her eyes apathetic as she continued. "It was your fault that this happened in the first place."

"Don't blame Eren! He couldn't help it! We were outnumbered!" Mikasa snapped at her the redhead, lifting herself up from the bed and shooting an acid glare in her direction. "Don't go blaming people for—"

Eren stopped Mikasa with his hand, his imploring eyes begging her to stop. Mikasa grunted, resigning reluctantly. Sighing, he moved his attention back to Ida and apologized again. "I'm sorry…"

"You're sorry…?" Ida echoed as if it was the hilarious thing that she had heard so far. She released her grip on the doorknob and walked intimidatingly towards the boy. Eren didn't run this time, but he stood still, waiting for the punch to come. He deserved it. He deserved every bit of her hatred. This wasn't the first time people died because of him.

Jean looked away, not wanting to see the impending beating.

But the punch never came. Instead, Ida placed her hand on the taller boy's shoulder, meeting his gaze. "Then save humanity if you're sorry."

"Huh?"

"Do I need to repeat myself twice?" Ida said stiffly, her grip clenching down hard on her shoulder. Her voice grew harder as she regarded him with cold eyes. "I heard that you had this miraculous ability to control Titans. Do it. Control the god-be-damned Titans and fucking seal up Wall Maria."

Even when she released her grip on his shoulder, her glare never left him. "Every soldier went out there knowing what they were sacrificing their lives for. Because of that, people died in order to retrieve you back. It depends on you to make their deaths meaningless or not," she told him. "So do it Eren. We can only count on you now. No more trying, no more false claims, no more promises, you have to do it."

Eren couldn't help but smile softly, he knew that it was just Ida's way of telling him to not give up and blame himself. Over the months Eren had come to learn that, like Levi, Ida just didn't know how to phrase her messages properly. While caring at heart, it was their brash personality and way of speech that made them unapproachable and easily misunderstood.

"I'll capture Reiner and the others and make them pay. I'll see to it that the sacrifices of everyone are recognized as a service to humanity. I'll not let them die in vain," he promised, clenching his fist and thumping it over his heart.

"I'm holding you to that statement then." Ida nodded, a secret smile playing on his lips, amused of the younger boy's determination. She ruffled his hair fondly. "I look forward to seeing your accomplishment."

Walking back out to the hallways, Ida headed towards her room to pack her belongings. After she was done, she trekked through the hallways, ignoring the curious looks that the scouts were throwing her as she looked for Levi.

"What are you doing here?" Levi's voice entered the vicinity and she stopped in his tracks to address him. He zeroed in on the bag that was slung across her shoulder.

She found it hard to keep eye contact with him, feeling awkward and confused with her feelings. But before she could allow it to consume her, she re-prioritized and forcibly slid the weight of her anxiousness off her chest. This was not the time to be unnerved.

"I came back, you'd need someone else to look after the brats," she told him in a suggestive voice, subtly hinting that she knew about his plans to hide Eren and Krista. Ida knew that there was a chance that people might be eavesdropping on their conversation and she couldn't take any chances.

Thankfully, Levi seemed to have grasped the situation quickly. "It's safer if we lock them up for now, who knows what trouble they might get themselves into," he replied, looking visibly frustrated.

Trouble?

Ida raised a curious brow at him. Krista was the key to rooting out every organization that possessed knowledge about Titans; she was an important figure, a clue to the unraveling of the mysteries surrounding Walls. The same goes for Eren. His ability to transform into a Titan meant that he was a trump card, not to mention Hanji's theories about the possibility of mending Wall Maria with hardened Titan's skin rested on him and his ability to control the Titans.

The Survey Corps couldn't allow such important figures to fall to the enemy's hand, no matter who the enemy was.

Seeing how Pastor Nick knew about Wall Titans. Ida figured there's a high likelihood there are enemies in the Walls looking to undermine them as well.

She contemplated on the matter for a brief moment. Then, it struck her.

"That idiot outside Erwin's room..." Ida murmured softly, looking at Levi for confirmation.

Of course, why didn't she think about it before? It was puzzling that someone would establish a guard outside their unconscious Survey Corps Commander's room. Why were they so anxious that Erwin might escape? He was never one to ignore a royal summon in the past.

Someone in the higher-ups was getting anxious, but why?

Levi looked vaguely pleased with her quick hypothesis and nodded stiffly.

"I understand. I'll start making arrangements," Ida quickly stated, growing consciously uncomfortable under the watch of Levi's haunting cool gray eyes.

Trying to hide her awkwardness, she quickly maneuvered herself away from him. Things were just so awkward between them that she couldn't even hold a proper conversation with Levi now without feeling like she wanted to bolt out of the door.

When Ida finally disappeared by the corner, Levi hissed out his collected frustration, irritated at the obvious tension between them. He racked his finger through his hair, scowling in cold displeasure.

Damn it.

He thought back to the casual talks with Erwin in the past, about his reasons for not marrying and starting a family. Of course, this was before Levi had discovered about the commander's secret love child. The risk for emotional attachment was just too great — one couldn't afford to think about things like relationships.

It was known to every soldier that the moment one puts on their uniform that it was highly likely to be their burial clothes as well. Things like love was a luxury many could not afford.

Close bonds and attachment only lead to a hollow gaping hole in their heart and no one wanted to subject themselves to such painful agony after knowing what was install for them. Once the path of being a soldier was chosen — and especially when you are a scout in the Survey Corps — the moment you take your oath to swear loyalty to humanity, all freedom and rights were stripped from you, especially the freedom on how you were to lead your life.

This line of hazardous work was all about painful sacrifices; sacrificing the warmness that you desire from a loved one, sacrificing the sleep that you missed out on due to work, sacrificing your comrades to further a cause, and when the time calls for it, sacrificing your life.

Levi Ackerman's life did not belong to himself — he had dedicated his life, blood, and sweat to his fallen comrades and humanity. He had offered up everything he had and cast away any luxury for the betterment of mankind.

This was his job, his life, his duty, his everything.

But, not anymore…

Because as he pondered over it, a mental imagery of a grinning Ida chewing on sweets popped up in his mind and Levi found himself frowning at that image, desperately trying to wipe it away from his brain.

You're being irrational, Levi told himself firmly, allowing the voice of reason to take over. Stop thinking about insignificant crap.

Damn moral dilemmas. Ida was his direct subordinate and she worked under him for more than a year already. A kiss shouldn't affect their relationship. Soldiers slept around all the time. In fact, Levi was aware that scouts often went out to town to find some company before an expedition. Not a lot of them, but enough for it not to be uncommon.

Relations between superiors and subordinates were not as simple to dismiss compared to those of the same rank. Or even in the same squad. But his and Ida's situation wasn't messy because neither of them held any feelings for the other person that could've caused problems. Plus it was just a damned kiss, it couldn't be compared. That kiss was just commiserating with each other.

Really, it wasn't such a big deal. Yet he had worried and fretted over it so much.

Indeed, it was easy to downplay it now, it was just a stupid kiss. It didn't mean much.

Yet, despite the time spent overthinking everything the past two days, worrying about the implications on their relationship and the changed atmosphere between them, Levi still found a small voice talking in the back of his mind.

This voice knew better. Ida was part of his life now, and somehow, it had convinced Levi that he had dedicated his life to her as well even when he knew that his resolve was taking a traitorous turn.

But Levi also realized that it wasn't a good sign, he had allowed himself to fall too deep.

How was he going to dedicate his life to humanity if he's tied down by personal attachment to another person?

How foolish and irrational.

With a tangible menace, Levi stormed away to the other side of the hall and re-prioritized. He didn't have time to think about things like this, not when humanity was amidst a war, not when Titans threatened to wipe out mankind every day, not when there was danger lurking in every shadow.

But still, Levi found himself still stuck in a mental debate. Erwin, the man he had grown to respect, had a love child. Surely at some point in his life, he had given in to his emotions and ignored the consequences, perhaps he had enjoyed loving someone and living a normal life even if it was temporary, maybe he had wished for a long life with his lover.

However, Levi quickly decided that Erwin was an idiotic fool to give in to his petty emotions.

And just look where it had gotten him; a deceased lover to grieve about, an estranged relationship with his daughter and now that he was hospitalized, a heartbroken family member filled with nothing but immense regrets and despair at his sickbed.

As he trekked through the hallway, Levi made a firm resolution to be no fool.

Levi Ackerman was no Erwin Smith and he wasn't going to let history repeat itself.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Worn out from a long ride, Ida glanced wearily at the large house by the distance. Her newly assembled squad had arrived at their newest hideout. The place Levi had taken them to was an isolated cabin near a forest, and it was far away from civilization and deep in the mountains.

"Uh Captain… is this…?"

Levi stopped his horse and turned towards Eren. "You've got a problem with it, Eren?"

"That's not it," Eren defended himself. "But I mean, we're sitting out here in the open where anyone could easily find us..."

When Levi scoffed he seemed almost amused. "They could, but they won't, not for now at least."

Leaving no room for protest, he continued. "Those royal pigs are too focused on the situation of Wall Rose, they won't bother with a simple cabin. You have no idea the kind of things going on in a place like this without the Military Police investigating."

Ida agreed with Levi silently. She remembered all those times in the past when she escaped from the Underground City to Wall Sina momentarily to conduct her 'assignments' at cabins just like these when she was a still wandering mercenary. The sight of the secluded cabin made her uneasy when it brought up unwanted memories.

Memories when she was a different person.

"Like human trafficking?" Eren asked bitterly. Ida saw that he was darting a nervous glance towards a stoic looking Mikasa. She didn't seem affected by the conversation.

"Sometimes," Ida answered for Levi. She would know, being a victim of human trafficking in the past. "Smugglers would capture children with special physical traits to take them to the Underground City to be sold to the highest bidder."

Eren felt like he was going to be sick at the thought. Meanwhile, Ida didn't seem too concerned with it, since she kept talking, unperturbed. "The highest bidders are mostly from the capital with at least good connections to the government, but since this is Wall Rose, we don't really have to worry about that here."

She could tell that Levi was looking at her when they alighted in front of the yard. But she paid it no mind and continued talking, "In any case, the government is profiting from the way things are, I'm guessing."

"Why?" Eren couldn't help but ask, confused. "Human trafficking is immoral… They shouldn't be—"

"Leave people to stew in their own corruption and hardships and everyone will be too preoccupied to even realize they are being manipulated and kept in line," Levi explained briskly, pushing open the door. "That leaves only to snip the ones that put a damned toe out of line."

"Meaning us." Ida smiled wanly, throwing Eren an assuring look. She followed Levi into the house. "Don't worry too much about it."

"Tch." Levi immediately decided that while it was an ideal place to hide Eren and Krista, he just couldn't stand the miserable state of the house since it was isolated for a long time.

"This place is a filthy mess," Levi grumbled grouchily, looking increasingly irritated at the state of their hideout.

The new squad excluding Connie — who was still back at the headquarters with Hanji — trailed behind their two superiors slowly, scanning their surroundings. Sasha's eyes glinted when she saw the interior and she gasped in joy.

"Wow!" she gasped. "It's been such a long time since I've lived in a house like this. It's just like my house back at home!"

"It belongs to a small group of hunters back in the days," Ida informed her, looking around the dusty place and cringing. Levi was going to make her clean again for sure. "Guess this is going to be our home for the time being."

"Let's assign the rooms first. Since we have yet to purchase provisions, we would've to survive on those shitty emergency rations for the time being." Levi grimaced at the thought of eating the disgusting plain tasting rations. "How many rooms are there?"

"Three. We have to share the rooms." Ida murmured, popping her head into one of the long hallways. She made a face at the grim state of the furniture. Even the wallpaper was peeling off. "Girls in one room, boys in another. Levi can take one for himself. I'll sleep with Mikasa, Sasha, and Krista."

"You're not going to share a room with Captain?" Eren inquired innocently with raised eyebrows. He paled when he saw Ida shoot a poisonous glare at him, a clear sign for him to shut up.

Ida flushed red at that thought and quickly covered up her embarrassment with anger. "N — No. Do you know how hard is it to share a room with him? He cleans even in his sleep."

Levi raised a brow at her comment, looking visibly offended at her comment. "You wake up in the middle of the night to eat those god-damned sweets that you love so much and go back to sleep without brushing your fucking teeth."

She gasped, horrified when Levi revealed her little embarrassing habit. "I do not do that!" she cried in protest, shooting steely daggers at his head. "You perverted midget jerk!"

The recruits could only look at Eren as their two superiors continued exchanging insults about their embarrassing sleeping habits as though to say: Is this normal? How have you been coping with this all this while?

The Titan Shifter only shrugged, to be frank, he wasn't even sure himself.

Then, the door behind them slammed open. "Hello, Levi Squad! How are you settling?"

Immediately, Ida and Levi snapped their attention at the unexpected visitor. "What the hell are you doing here, shitty four-eyes?" he demanded, growing increasingly irritated by her unwelcome appearance.

Hanji's face was crestfallen for a moment at her hostile welcome but an annoying overly joyful expression soon returned to her face. "I decided to drop by! We decided to put the investigation on a halt since we need the Garrison's green light to confirm that all the Titans had been completely eradicated. Apparently, they found a lone Titan at the southern part of Wall Rose."

Connie appeared shortly behind Hanji, followed by Moblit. "Hi, guys."

Ida rubbed her face in annoyance, much preferring to have the psychotic scientist as far away from her as possible. "God damn it, and here I thought that I would've peace for the meantime."

"Oh don't be like that! I even bought some provision!" Hanji chirped cheerfully, gesturing to the heavy carton that Connie and Moblit were carrying. "It's not much, but it's all that I managed to sneak out from the headquarters pantry without raising suspicion."

"Woo!" Sasha's eyes expanded as she cheered, ecstatic that she didn't have to eat emergency rations for the time being.

"Don't even think about it, potato girl." Jean had to hold the drooling brunette back from charging towards Connie and devouring everything inside the carton. It had been a long trip and Sasha was famished. "Shit! She has the I-am-so-hungry-I-can-eat-a-whole-cow face! Someone subdue her!"

Ignoring how Jean was practically holding a rabid Sasha back, Hanji moved further into the room.

"Mikasa, how's your injury?" Hanji inquired when she saw the silent girl standing by the side.

Mikasa pulled her red muffler over her mouth and replied in a small voice. "Better."

"She's still recovering." Armin pointed out with a smile.

"Tch. Whatever." Levi grumbled, his patience swiftly running dry. He knew that Hanji and her idiotic antics would only mean a hectic day ahead. All Levi wanted now was get into cleaning so that he could get far away from her and turn this dreadful place into a certified clean freak territory he could approve of. "Let's get to cleaning."

Ida exhaled a long breath knowingly. There was no way Levi was going to slack off on cleaning even after traveling on horseback for half a day.

She turned to the recruits with her arms crossed. "Split yourself into groups, either help out to cook dinner or clean up the place."

"Man you two are too strict for your own good," Hanji commented lightly, shaking her head.

The recruits meekly nodded their head in agreement with her. They wanted to take a rest after their long travel, but it seems that their superiors were certified slave-drivers.

Levi threw them one last glare as if to say 'get to work' before disappearing into one of the rooms. Ida signaled for Moblit and Connie to bring the provision to the kitchen. After placing the provisions in the cabinet, she began to work on dinner for the squad.

As she chopped the vegetables, Ida couldn't help but thank Hanji for conveniently bringing the provisions, at least this would give her an excuse to skip out on cleaning duties for a while.

However her reason this time for skipping was not because she hated doing the chores, it was because cleaning would only mean interaction with Levi, something that she would much rather avoid at the moment.

This is a disaster, Ida thought wryly. Things were going to end in a disaster if the tension between them keeps escalating. And now, she was trapped in a cabin with Levi and a bunch of noisy kids. Ida knew she had to put an end to the weirdness that had started festering between her and Levi once and for all, and she had to do it soon.

Pushing the chopped vegetables into a simmering pot of broth, she proceeded to make gravy when Hanji, Sasha, and Connie came into the kitchen to help out.

"Haha, I know right? Ida-san and Captain—"

"Nothing happened between us!" The flustered red-faced woman suddenly exclaimed when she overheard their conversation, pointing a ladle threateningly at their faces.

The recruits raised their hands in the air as if to surrender, stunned by her sudden outburst. Hanji blinked at Ida's uneasy demeanor before a wide joyful grin flashed on her face.

"We were just talking about the way you two wield your blades in a similar fashion…" she clarified slowly.

Ida mentally slapped herself. She had thought that they were gossiping about Levi and her again. Crap. She had been too on edge lately. Clearing her throat in an attempt to hide Hanji's awkward chuckle, she went back to stirring her broth.

"Say…" Hanji scooted closer to Ida, her fanatical eyes silently scrutinizing her. "You've been acting weird lately, did something happen?"

"I don't know what you're trying to say," Ida grumbled grouchily.

She tried to sound like she was in a really bad mood, hoping that the eccentric scientist would just drop the subject and leave her alone but this was Hanji she was trying to get rid of, she would've better luck trying to chase away a Titan.

"We're all girls here! You can tell us!" Hanji was persistent. She chuckled when Connie snapped his eyes towards her accusingly. "Well, apart from Connie, but he's practically a girl!"

Connie balked, offended. "HEY!"

"Why don't you go fuck a Titan, Hanji?" Ida spat hotly, knocking her by the shoulders as she went to the other side of the kitchen to prepare the potatoes. She began peeling them.

Hanji stalked Ida all the way to the other side of the room. "You two have been acting weird lately. I asked Levi the same thing and he launched a kick at my face," she pouted, fixing her glasses on her nose bridge.

Ida immediately pointed the knife at her in a threatening manner. It was much easier to cover up her embarrassment with anger instead. "I'll smash your face in as well if you don't stop asking ridiculous questions. If you're not here to help, screw off."

"But it's true!" Hanji retorted when Ida went back to peeling the potatoes. She turned to busy recruits by the corner for support. "Don't you two think so as well?!"

"Well, I did realize that Captain and Ida-san were kind of avoiding each other!" Sasha pointed out happily, oblivious to the annoyed look on Ida's face. "Usually they'd ride side by side, but when we were traveling here, Captain was all the way in front awhile Ida-san was at the back!"

"See! You can't deny it!" Hanji turned back to Ida, who frowned at her quick analysis.

She placed down her potatoes in exasperation. Hanji's series of persistent attempts to squeeze information out of her had sparked Ida's intemperate personality. She had just about enough of the brazen scientist.

"Look, I don't know what the hell you are trying to say. But if you want to fucking listen to yourself talk shit, go bother someone else."

"Oi Ida," Levi popped into the kitchen holding onto his broom.

"What?" she replied snappily in a sour note, facing her back towards him to avoid eye contact.

"I'm hungry, how much longer?"

"Just be patient and wait, I just started."

Levi frowned. "Hurry up."

She sighed, pointing towards the cartons of provisions by the corner. "I saw some crackers and cheese there, have that first and wait."

"Hand it over," he demanded.

"Take it yourself," she snapped back.

"That's not fair!" Sasha cried out in protest. "Give me some too!"

Ida glared at the food hoarder. "No, you just have to wait until dinner."

"What?! No!" Sasha whined, tugging onto Connie by her side. "Connie! I can have some too right?!"

"Captain is a special case!" Connie replied hastily, trying to get away from a rabid and whimpering Sasha.

Levi sighed in annoyance at the noise generated by the pair and walked into the kitchen. He cringed when he saw the microscopic dust on the counters. "You're fucking cooking in this obscene place? Everyone will have diarrhea for the rest of their fucking lives."

"Shut up, midget." Ida spat hotly in reply. "Why don't you cook then?"

"Are you trying to poison us?" Levi bit back harshly, pushing his white mask down with his index finger, clearly showing his disapproval.

"Then clean this stupid place yourself!" Ida turned around and threw a ladle towards his direction. It was bad enough to have Hanji breathing down her neck, she didn't need another annoying pest around her.

Levi dodged the ladle, glowering fiercely at her insolence. He clenched his fists in anger the moment their eyes met. "You're a filthy pig, you know that?"

"Well, you're a grumpy midget imp!"

"Are you two fighting again?"

"No!" Levi and Ida answered in the chorus as Hanji sounded behind them.

Ida immediately rolled her eyes away from him. His persistence was just too overpowering. "Whatever, just go and clean this place up before you start any of your lame shitty toilet jokes again."

Channeling her frustration into peeling the potatoes, her cuts started to get more messy and dangerous. "Ow!" Ida cried loudly when she accidentally sliced her finger. She gripped onto her finger, warm blood oozing out of it.

"Idiot." Levi scowled when he saw the pain written on her face. Storming over, he grabbed her injured hand. "Let me see."

Ida peeled back her hand from the sliced finger, her palm bloodied. Levi frowned when he saw the wound and his cold gray eyes narrowed down in concern. "It looks deep. Hanji, go get the first aid kit."

"N — No! I will do it myself!" Ida hastily stuttered, nervous at their close proximity. She roughly yanked her hand away from him and ignored Levi's intense glare when she quickly stormed her way out of the kitchen and into one of the vacant rooms.

Slapping her cheeks to regain her composure, Ida realized that things were just never going to be the same between them again — she couldn't even continue on their usual verbal banter without thinking about that damn kiss!

A couple of days had passed since their awkward kiss — which Ida thought went far better than she had imagined it would. What was she even thinking of kissing him in the first place? Ida never cursed her stupid uncontrollable emotions more than now, it was what got her into this awkward predicament in the first place.

Because truth to god, no matter what she did, she could not wipe away the memory about that stupid kiss. It sometimes led her to curse out of mortification when she was in private.

"It's nothing, we do not like each other. We're just comrades, enemies, Captain and subordinate…" Ida mumbled quickly to the air around her as soon as she slammed the door shut behind her. "Get a hold of yourself, Ida."

This was just so frustrating!

Why did she even have to do that back at the Wall? She had to be out of her mind asking him to promise something like that and then kissing him!

And now in the aftermath, every time their hands brushed or when they looked at each other, Ida felt the spark. She wondered if the physical attraction went both ways.

She closed her eyes and pressed her back to the door miserably. As much as she wanted to bitterly object it, deep down, Ida knew for quite some time and it was clearer now more than ever.

She had a little crush on her Captain.

The thought of this revelation only served to magnify her frustration and she found herself groaning out loud. Because behind that burning anger for even thinking she felt strongly about him, there was a current of excitement pulsing through her veins as the raven hair and cold gray eyes came to her mind.

It made sense — even with her resolve taking a traitorous turn — with everything she'd been feeling around him. Ida recalled the countless times she adoringly sneaked glances at him when his attention was somewhere else, the weird fluttering feeling in her stomach whenever he was too close for comfort and not to mention that outrageous audacity of hers to muster up the balls to actually kiss him.

This type of thing did arise from being hopelessly in love, right?

She slapped her cheeks furiously in a futile attempt to clear her head.

You're being ridiculous, get a hold of yourself! Ida berated herself, allowing the voice of reason to take over. There's no way you like that disagreeable midget clean freak of a bastard!

Unfortunately, that statement sounded half-hearted, even to her.

Ida didn't know if she should call what she felt for Levi love. The statement held too much heaviness and too many complications. She couldn't even bring herself to try and explain why she felt such a connection towards him. He was annoyingly stubborn, rude, disagreeable and he never listened to other people. Furthermore, he had a great penchant of pissing her off and they certainly do not click well together.

Though... His impeccable looks and glorious abs easily squashed half of those exasperating qualities.

She groaned under her breath when an image of her shirtless body came into her mind and she kicked the door in exasperation. Ida was hell-bent on being rational and unclogging her mind from all these traitorous thoughts.

In addition, it wasn't even possible to say that Levi was the least bit interested in her! He acted as indifferent as always! Ida grumbled out an annoyed sound when she thought back to the time where he admitted that he kissed her only because he wanted for her to shut up.

"Who does he think I'm?! That short asshole!" Ida screamed angrily towards the wooden wall, crossing her arms.

She kicked the door again, aware of the loud sound that it made, but she didn't care — it infuriated her that her rage was reduced and contained to the confinements of this room — Levi should've been here, in front of her, receiving the full brunt of her fury.

What was she even thinking?

Ida quickly decided she shouldn't be trapped in her room, worrying over a trivial matter like this. She shouldn't be embarrassed and avoid him! Why should she even be affected when Levi was basically prancing around as if nothing had happened?

Making her resolve, Ida dug through her bag to extract out a clean set of clothes and a first aid kit. She was determined not to be affected by her Captain ever again knowing that he would only find amusement out of her misery. Quickly, she bandaged her sliced finger and moved on to changing from her riding clothes.

Placing her clean set of clothes by the side, she proceeded to change into it. Grabbing the ends of her dirty shirt, she started pulling it upwards until…

The door opened and Jean popped into the room. "Ida—"

Stunned by the recruit's appearance, Ida was rendered paralyzed in shock. Jean flushed red and instantly launched into a defensive explanation, waving his hands frantically in the air.

"I wasn't trying to— uh! I'm sorry!" The poor frazzled boy helplessly stuttered, embarrassed at walking in on her changing. He slammed the door shut as quickly as he opened it.

Then, Ida heard him yelped.

"Levi?!" she gasped, opening the door just in time to witness Levi gripping the luckless scout shirt and pulling him away. Jean desperately pleaded and tried to explain that it was an accident, but Levi was having none of it.

"C — Captain! I — It was an accident! I s—swear!"

"Hey! What's going on?" Hanji came running into the corridor when she heard the noises. She gasped when she saw an extremely pissed off Levi practically dragging Jean out of the hallway. "Gods, what did Jean do this time? I asked him to look for you to tell you that your gravy was boiling over!"

Ida scratched the back of her head in puzzlement. "Well, I was kind of in the middle of changing..." she admitted, cringing at Levi's treatment of the boy. That looked painful.

"Didn't you lock the door while you were changing?" Hanji asked, understanding the situation.

"I must have forgotten," Ida pursed her lips and shrugged. It wasn't like Jean saw anything. The shirt was just pulled up to her stomach area when he came in.

"Well, this is an unfortunate misunderstanding," Hanji analyzed, laughing boisterously. "Levi is pretty protective of you huh?"

Ida blinked. "What?"

"He's jealous, can't you see that?"

Her eyes widened at her analysis and she stared back at the intimidating Captain glowering unforgivably at the Jean who was screaming for help now as he tried to run away.

Levi's cold eyes narrowed in menacing fashion when he picked up Jean by his collar again and dragged him roughly through the corridor. "You're fucking sleeping in the damn stables tonight."

Ida couldn't help but let a laugh bubble out from her throat when she saw his irritated expression. "He's kind of cute when he's jealous huh?"

The sounds of Hanji falling to the floor choked her chuckle midway. Ida raised a brow when she saw the bespectacled squad leader gaping at her in disbelief on the floor.

"Why on earth are you looking at me that way, Hanji?" she inquired curiously, bewildered.

"Y — You… just called Levi cute!" Hanji stuttered out in shock, pointing a finger at her in disbelief. Never in her wildest dream did she expect anyone to find that disagreeable Levi cute and she certainly did not expect it to come from Ida!

Ida burned bright red right up till her ears when she realized that she had said it out loud.

Damn it.

"Shut up," she spat, whipping around and bolting back into the room in livid embarrassment.

Hanji's boisterous laughter was heard filtering through the door when Ida slammed it shut behind her. "Your gravy is still over boiling by the way! HAHAHA!"

"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!"

Outside the hut, Eren gaped when he saw the unconscious body being dumped on the hays stacks — poor Jean had passed out from fear.

"Uh... Captain... is that?"

"It's trash, Eren," Levi grumbled, going back to the hut.

Eren silently debated on helping his classmate, but he merely snickered when he decided the horse-face belonged in the stables.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

The new composition of Levi's squad sat around the table as Ida went around and served them dinner on metal trays. She bit her bottom lip when she placed the tray noisily in front of Levi, rolling her eyes away is secret amusement.

"Ida, what the hell is this?" Levi demanded furiously when he saw his tray.

She smiled sweetly at her Captain, fluttering her eyelashes as she responded in a sarcastic innocent voice. "Your meal, sir."

He picked up the half piece of bread on his tray, cringing when he saw its pathetic state. "This is a meal worth for a damned dog, why the fuck are my portions cut in half?"

"Because…" Ida pursed her lips, pausing for dramatic effect. "You're practically half the size of a normal man, so you should only eat half portions."

The recruits muffled their smiles, stuffing their faces with food in hopes to choke down their laughter.

Studying her rigid posture, Levi almost wanted to smirk at her flippant remark. He realized he was soon becoming fond of her simple but witty comebacks. "Tch. Says the one that has thighs huge enough to kick a Titan to death."

Ida gasped out in shock in her seat, horrified at his ridiculous comment. The scouts coughed awkwardly, each trying to look away as they tried to hide their smiles. Reaching over the table, Levi took her bread in replacement for his and glared at her annoyingly.

If it wasn't possible, she flushed even redder, not sure if he just did what she thought he did. For some reason, the act of him sharing her food was more intimate than a kiss.

It made no sense to her.

Nothing made sense to her anymore when it came to Levi.

Ida steeled herself, inwardly reminding herself that she made a resolve to no longer get flustered around him. She reached out to grab the salt, only to meet with Levi's hand when he reached out to do the same thing. It sent a current of electricity up her fingertips and she gasped, instantly reeling her hand back in.

"S — Sorry!" she stammered, hastily looking away.

Levi stared at her with a frown at her reaction. He could swear there was tension between him and Ida, and he had a good idea why. Damn it. He was trying to maintain his stoicism and nonchalance around her, and yet seeing her flustered had stirred something within him.

A crease appeared in her brow and Levi found himself fascinated. A shiver went down his spine when she bit her bottom lip a little. There was nothing seductive about it, it was a common thing that Ida did whenever she was nervous, but it was still wildly distracting.

Heartbeat picking up, he cleared his throat and focused his attention on the recruits. Get a grip on yourself, Levi chided himself inwardly. He was a man in his thirties, he should have better control over himself.

By the time Ida peered back at him, Levi was now eating silently beside her as if nothing had happened between them. Crap. Their hot kiss had been on her mind the whole day. Ida still couldn't believe it happened, nor was she willing to acknowledge her wanton response to him.

"In a few days' time, Wall Rose will be declared safe before the food supply runs out and the situation gets any shitter at the refugee camps." Levi started in a low calm voice. "Krista… Or Historia, I'd need you to tell me what you know about the Reiss family and the Wall Titans."

Historia had been hauntingly quiet lately, her once bright blue eyes suddenly turning vacant and lifeless after they had returned to the Walls without Ymir.

Placing down her spoon, she moved her gaze on the steamy gravy in front of her before she started talking. "I was born on a small farm in the northern part of Wall Sina…"

Unfortunately for Ida, she was too distracted in her own dark cloud of thoughts to hear the narration going on. Occasionally, she threw stealing looks at the intimidating man beside her surreptitiously and she began to wonder about how he felt about her.

Ida finally admitted to herself, what she had not allowed her thoughts to linger on, that if Levi were to make love to her, he would be an ardent lover, holding nothing back.

Wait.

Why the hell was she even thinking about something like that?

Jabbing the piece of vegetable with her fork, Ida glared at it awhile silently berating herself for thinking about scandalous things. Just how perverted could she get?

Heat pooled in her cheeks. Ida felt like a teenage girl, debating over her feelings about her first crush. She couldn't recall ever feeling so anxious about the opposite gender. It was as if Levi had the complete power to give her heaven or hell. Ida didn't know how she had become so vulnerable, but she did. The realization left her feeling a bit uneasy, but also very thrilled.

"Ida, what are your thoughts on the matter?" Levi's low deadpan voice suddenly tugged her away from her own world.

But unfortunately for her, Ida was still half-stuck in her cloud of thoughts.

Before she could even hold her tongue back, Ida found herself distractedly speaking out loud in response. "I don't know how I feel about him…"

A deafening silence echoed through the table as everyone looked at the female soldier who was still fully immersed at glaring at the piece of potato on her fork. It took Ida a few seconds to realize what she had just said aloud and to acknowledge the shocked looks she was getting.

Shit! Shit! Shit!

Ida scrambled to find a way out of the awkward situation. "A — Ah! Fuck. Sorry, I wasn't even listening! What were you guys saying again?"

Levi cleared his throat uncomfortably, playing along with her desperate attempt to chase away the awkward tension. "Quit spacing out and listen," he chided her in a rough tone and averted his eyes away. "We were talking about Historia's upbringing."

"Uhm, could you explain it to me again?" Ida brought her tea to her lips to hide her growing blush behind the cup.

"No time." Levi deadpanned, frowning. "Since you have a similar background like her, you would know how those damned fat pigs in Wall Sina function. What's your opinion on it?"

Ida exhaled a long sigh, placing down her cup. "It's different for me. Historia's noble blood comes from her father. I wouldn't say there's anything suspicious with Rod Reiss demanding that Historia changes her name and not acknowledging her as his daughter since she is an illegitimate child. In my case, it's different. My mother was noble by birthright. There was no way to deny that I was her child. To put it in simpler terms, my uncle, Jaron Starke was practically forced to acknowledge me as a member of the Starke family."

Levi's frown deepened when he listened to her explanation. "I see. Forget that. The real shitty question lies with why the Reiss family is privy to the secrets of the Titans in the Wall." He locked his fingers together, balancing his elbows on the table. "Also, there's a chance that the Starke family knows something about the Titans according to the idiot Pastor."

"Krista, do you know anything about Titans in the wall?" Mikasa inquired. "Anything would be helpful."

Historia shook her head solemnly, her eyes still vacant and dead. "Nothing."

"Tch. That's a good way to start off things." Levi said sarcastically, grimacing. "There's nothing we can do at the moment other than to wait like useless idiots for Hanji's investigation to conclude before we proceed."

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

She could hear the distant chattering coming from the doors. Sighing, Ida stood outside the door, hesitant to open it. Her red hair slung over her shoulder, still damp from her recent shower. She couldn't remember the last time she had shared a room with a female, perhaps it was months ago when Petra was still alive.

Clutching onto her towel, she felt herself suffocate from the memory. Petra Ral used to come to her room for a sleepover at times, especially before expeditions. They would share late nights together, toasting on wine from the military's pantry in secret while they empathized with each other.

Those were good times, but the sweet memory seemed so distant now that Petra was no longer around.

Petra, Eld, Gunther, Oluo — they were no longer around.

This was her new squad now.

Opening the doors, the recruits halted their conversation as they turned to regard her. Ida moved towards the center of the room, feeling very much out of place. The girls were huddled up in the space between the bunk beds in their nightclothes, snacking on the food that Sasha had stolen earlier.

Sasha paled when she saw Ida, praying that she wouldn't get maimed for stealing some cheese that she had found. Thankfully, Ida merely ignored the mess that they had made in the room.

In all honesty, they hadn't really expected Ida to come. From what they heard from Eren, Ida was adamant about having her own personal room. Additionally, she had always come off as distant and unapproachable, so it was a great surprise to the recruits that she was actually willing to share a room with them.

"Where am I sleeping?" Ida asked flatly, breaking the awkward silence.

The recruits look at each other, tense and silent. Mikasa, being the brave one, was the first to speak up. "Anywhere. We aren't picky, take your pick."

"The top bunk then," Ida replied, slightly taken aback by Mikasa's hostility from her tone.

She wasn't exactly close to her new squad members, usually speaking to them only when she needed to or whenever she reprimanded them. Even back in the days where she would share a table with them during dinner, she would always remain out of the conversation, distancing herself from them.

She moved to the table and sat down, giving them some privacy. Ida busied herself with towel-drying her damp hair. Perhaps sharing a room with Levi was better after all. She didn't feel a tad bit welcomed here. At least she was comfortable with that disagreeable man. Here, she just felt out of place.

"You can continue on with your conversation, don't mind me," she spoke evenly when she noticed that the three recruits remained silent, merely giving each other shifty eye signals. "I won't say anything about what you do, so just pretend I'm not here. Don't make any noise while I'm sleeping though, that's my only condition."

Sasha exhaled loudly in relief, she was so afraid that Ida was going to hand out a punishment for stealing food again.

"Do you still want your cheese, Krista?" she asked, leaning over like a wild rabid wolf. "Oh wait, it's Historia now right?"

Historia kept her strong silence, pushing the tray towards the brunette. She huddled her legs together as she watched Sasha gobbled the cheese up in one go. Ida watched Historia curiously. Historia used to be so bright and happy, but she had changed completely after Ymir left.

Silently, Ida empathized with her. She knew how it felt like to lose someone precious to you and seeing how close the pair was before, the blow must have hit her hard.

"Oh god, I'm still so hungry!" Sasha complained out loud, hugging on her stomach.

"I've got some sweets in my bag, you can take some." Ida offered, pointing to her backpack at the corner of the room.

"Really?!" Sasha's eyes lit up, excitement infused in her voice.

"I said some, Sasha. Not all," she reminded her sternly.

Mikasa raised a brow, surprised that Ida was actually sharing her sweets. She had always thought she was a disagreeable and uncompromising person, what had caused her to suddenly become softer out of a sudden?

Sasha already had her cheeks stuffed with sweets by the time Ida was done with her hair.

After she was done with her snack, Sasha focused on the Asian beside her. "Mikasa! Don't think you are going to escape again!"

"Leave me alone," Mikasa snapped in a stern tone, hiding her face in her red muffler, but Ida noticed the faint blush on her cheek.

Wait a second… the moody brat was actually blushing?

"What are you guys talking about?" Ida couldn't help but ask, positively intrigued at just what had caused the stone-faced Mikasa to actually blush beet red.

Sasha snorted out in laughter. Her broad grin widening, almost too wide for the expanse of her face. "Oh, we were just talking about—"

"Shut up, Sasha." Mikasa slapped her hand over the brunette's mouth, glaring at the confused Ida in front of them. "It's none of your business."

"That's mean of you, Mikasa!" Sasha cried, pulling Mikasa's hand off her mouth. "She could give you some advice you know!"

Ida cocked a brow, her curiosity building by the second. "Advice on what?"

"Girl problems!" Sasha answered excitedly, yelping as Mikasa tackled her to the ground while shouting at her to shut up.

Ida still didn't understand what Sasha was trying to say. She looked at the quiet blonde in the corner for an explanation, which Historia obediently gave in a soft disinterested voice. "Mikasa likes someone, but she won't tell us who."

Mikasa gasped in horror when her secret was spilled. Historia had been so silent ever since they had gotten back from the Wall, she hadn't expected her to betray her!

Ida looked amused when she regarded the flustered recruit. "Tch, who would've thought that a moody brat like you would actually take a liking for someone."

Mikasa gritted her teeth in anger and embarrassment, wrapping her red muffler tighter around her face.

Ida sat down on the floor with them, crossing her arms. "So is this the reason why you guys are so noisy in the middle of the night?"

Sasha nodded her head enthusiastically. Ida exhaled loudly. Guess she wasn't the only one with boy problems at the moment.

"Who's the guy?" she asked, though she had a hunch it was Eren Yeager.

"We don't know! She wouldn't say!" Sasha explained.

Of course, she wouldn't, Ida thought bitterly. Even if someone were to threaten her at knifepoint, she was sure that she would never admit her feelings for her Captain openly.

"Well, you guys are on your own when it comes to the love department." Ida shrugged her shoulders. How could she give advice to someone if she didn't even know what to do with her own feelings? She glanced at the brunette. "Oi Sasha, pass me my sweets."

Catching the brown bag that Sasha tossed her, Ida began indulging in a little midnight snack. Meanwhile, Sasha and Mikasa continued on with their conversation. Ida zoned out eventually, submerged in her thoughts before the silent companion beside her spoke in a soft voice.

"…How was it like for you?"

Ida blinked, not understanding what Historia was trying to say. "What?"

"…Your family…" Historia murmured softly again, hugging her legs tighter to her chest. "You're like me, aren't you?"

She felt herself pause at that question, feeling the scarred part of her heart throb painfully in a reaction. It was a sensitive question for Ida, one that she would rather not answer. But looking at Historia again, she couldn't help but make an exception this time.

"…Family huh?" she started, popping another candy into her mouth. She allowed the sweetness to soothe her palette as if to mask the bitterness from her words. "Well, I was the disgraced bastard of the Starke family, the unwanted child. I lived at the family estate until I was twelve, listening to how the servants gossiped and badmouthed about my mother and me... I knew my existence was not desired, but my mother loved me regardless, so I guess it wasn't all that shitty."

She dejected her gaze to the ground, debating if it was insensitive to bring her mother into the topic. Historia's mother certainly treated her differently from what she had heard. With a loud exhale, Ida decided to continue.

"I was not acknowledged by anyone apart from my mother. My uncle loathed my existence — he found me to be a stain that could not be removed from the household's reputation no matter how much he tried. It didn't matter much to me though, I was satisfied with just being with my mother… Years passed, and suddenly one day, my mother told me we were going to live somewhere else…. We left for Shiganshina District, Wall Maria fell, my mother died, and that's pretty much it."

Her heart twisted and turned at that memory, but Ida allowed none of her emotions to show on her face. "It's nothing compared to yours, but at least you are still alive now. You've comrades that care about you, a place that accepts you regardless of your origin… Isn't that good enough?"

Historia remained mute, her vacant eyes staring lifelessly at the wooden floor in front of her. Ida reached out and ruffled the crown of her blonde hair. "People at the Survey Corps come from all walks of life, so don't fret yourself over something shitty like this. It doesn't matter where you came from, or who you are, you decide who you want to be and what your purpose is."

For the first time, there was a small upward tug on Historia's lips. She thought back to Ymir who told her that she should live and decide for herself. Ida was pleased with her reaction but decided not to urge a reply from her.

Ida stretched her arms, yawning. "Hey kids," she stared at Mikasa and Sasha who was still engrossed in her loud bickering. "I'm going to sleep. Not everyone is as young as energetic as you. Jean and Armin are pulling an all-nighter today to stand guard, so you better get some sleep awhile you can."

"Understood! Good night!" Sasha laughed, as cheerful as ever while Mikasa scorned beside her, clearly irritated.

Ida shuddered inwardly at her jubilant tone. Somehow, the compulsive food hoarder reminded her of Hanji. Ida could only pray that she wouldn't grow up to be like that idiotic scientist, having just one obsessed fanatic freak in the Survey Corps was enough. She was sure she'd resign on the spot should another one appear.

As she climbed up her bunk bed and sank into the softness of her mattress, Ida could hear the conversation still going on between Sasha and Mikasa, but she didn't let it bother her.

In fact, she found their presence soothing.

She couldn't remember the last time that she slept comfortably. Ever since her squad died, sleep was a luxury, but tonight, she slept well despite the noise. Perhaps it had something to do with sleeping in the same room with them.

Because the truth was, it was comforting to be in their presence, it reminded her of the times with her deceased squad.

Before Ida drifted off to sleep, she prayed that this time, she would be able to protect her squad.

She was hellbent on not making the same mistakes.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Being one of the leading soldiers in the Survey Corps, Ida Starke was regarded as one of humanity's greatest soldiers. She's a natural when it comes to slaying Titans. Her gear work was flawless, her cuts lethal and deep, her agility was astonishing and she could easily adapt to any situation.

Though she had a tendency to disobey orders, and at times, allow her emotions to cloud her judgment, there was no doubt to anyone that she deserved all the praises that came with her title. But Ida felt that one of her well-honed skills set was deteriorating over the past year; her hand-to-hand combat skills.

Fists were practically useless when it came to Titans but it could be of use to humans, and with the danger lurking at every corner, just waiting for the chance to grab Eren and Historia, it was a skill set that could mean life or death. So with that thought in mind, Ida had set out early in the morning for some training.

She dodged a swift jab coming from the male in front of her.

Fast, she thought, but reckless.

Taking advantage of her momentum, she swiped a fast kick towards the weak point behind her opponent's knee, causing him to fall to the ground. A hiss of pain escaped his lips.

"You're fine when it comes to your punches, but you leave yourself open," Ida told him while she wiped the dust off her hands, standing straighter. She proffered her hand out for Jean to take and pulled him up. "You can not afford to lower your defense."

"Damn it," Jean grunted out, embarrassed with his defeat.

This was the sixth time that Ida had handed his ass over to him this morning.

Clearly Jean had underestimated her small stature when she came to him this morning requesting that he be her sparring partner. He had honestly thought that he could have easily subdued her, but Ida was incredibly agile and clever when it came to fighting — her powerful punches and kicks always seem to aim for the pressure points of the human body.

Ida watched the boy wobble in front of her, weakened by her blow. "Tch. I told you, you need to exploit the vulnerability in the human body in order to gain an advantage over an opponent." Returning to a defensive stance, she signaled for him to start attacking her. "Again."

"Just where the hell do you learn this stuff?" Jean huffed in exhaustion, wiping the slight sweat sheen off his forehead. They certainly did not teach this back at training camp.

"I used to fight a lot in the past..." Ida admitted, looking relatively distracted. Then, her expression changed, her piercing eyes never wavering as she concentrated on her opponent.

Taking in a deep breath, Jean put up his fists and bent his knees.

He charged at her. With plans to take her off guard, he crouched down slightly when he reached her, launching a powerful punch towards the direction of her lower jaw.

Ida managed to drive her head away just for his knuckles to graze her skin. Taking advantage while he was distracted, she launched a straight punch to the middle of his chest. Jean groaned in pain, clutching his chest, but Ida wasn't done with him yet and proceeded to slam her elbows at the back of his neck.

"Argh!" Jean groaned in agony when the blow knocked him forward. He stumbled, holding his neck in unbelievable pain. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Don't be a brat," Ida growled with a sharp edge. "You need to learn how to exploit your opponent's weakness and to adapt. Like for example, I make up for my lack of strength with speed and precision."

Yeah right, you've got the strength of a man, he cursed silently. Jean gnashed his teeth together, humiliated at being beaten again. He knew that he lost to her when it came to maneuvering, but he never thought that he would lose to her in hand-to-hand combat! She was way shorter than him! Her stature certainly did not match her strength!

"Again," Ida ordered, earning a groan from him.

"Again?!" Jean repeated incredulously. He was tired and he was sore all over! Pain pulsed in his arms from trying to block her attacks. "Shouldn't we take a break?"

"The enemies won't take a break," Ida deadpanned, already in an attacking position. "It's my duty as your superior to ensure that you kids stay alive, so again."

Jean gritted his teeth and obeyed. He charged at her. Ida moved back when she dodged his roundhouse and pushed in. He lifted his hand up to block her attacks, pain searing in his arms. Before he could try to push back, Ida had already stuck her leg between his and tripped him.

"Fuck!" Jean cursed on the ground, battered and bruised.

Ida hovered over him, looking slightly unamused when she offered a helping hand. "Come on Jean, try harder. I need to ensure that you're capable of defending yourself should the situation arise. Stand up and try again."

Again?! He mentally groaned when she pulled him back up. Jean wanted to protest that he was exhausted and that the match was clearly unfair to begin with, but before he could Levi's distinct low voice came from behind them.

"You're making the entire damned male population look bad if you keep getting your shitty ass whipped like that."

"What are you doing here? Want to get your ass handed to you as well?" she taunted snidely when she saw him.

Dry amusement glinted in his gray eyes and he scoffed. She was glaring at him with the same damn expression that never failed to make his blood boil. That disrespectful, indignant stare that he virtually mirrored. "Fight me then. You won't be making any progress if you train with someone like him. Quit wasting your time."

"Oh?" Ida's felt her lips twitch at that offer.

The prospect of sparring with him delighted her. A few days ago she was constantly frustrated because of that stupid kiss and Levi's blatant indifference towards it. Not once did he even mention it, probably figuring that she would forget about it in time, and as the days passed, her control around him was getting better.

Things were finally back to normal and she was grateful. There was no lingering awkwardness between her and Levi. She could finally lock eyes with her Captain without feeling the blood starting to rush to her cheeks.

But it still infuriated her that she seemed to be the only one affected by it.

"That's fine with me." Cracking her knuckles, Ida felt exhilarated just by the thought of kicking Levi's ass. "Jean, you can go now. Go see to your wounds."

"Yes ma'am," Jean mumbled bitterly, walking back to the small house.

With that recent beating he got, Jean finally understood why Eren would always avoid training with these two psychos — Ida's blows were merciless, never holding anything back even though it was a friendly spar. Those two psychos and Mikasa were clearly inhuman.

"Sure you up for this, Captain?" Ida smirked, a murderous expression on her face.

Levi raised a cocky brow. "Since when are things so formal between us, Starke?"

"Since now."

It was always good to have the element of surprise whenever you're engaging in a formidable opponent, so without further warning, Ida went for the blow while he was off guard.

"Too slow," Levi grunted as he caught her fist in his palm. Before she can wrench it away, he twisted, forcing her arm and the rest of her body to turn with it before pinning her arm to her back and subduing her.

Ida smirked, maintaining her composure. "Not bad," she said, spinning herself so that she was facing him and did a sweeping kick. Levi's reflexes were as quick as ever when he released her hand and barely dodged her kick.

She hissed when he dodged it. Levi was no easy opponent, but neither was she.

Getting pumped up from having a skilled sparring opponent, Ida swiped the sweat gathering at her temples before shrugging off the sweaty jacket that she was wearing, tossing to the ground. She was finally getting serious.

"I expect nothing less from you, Captain, don't hold back." Ida taunted snidely, feeling much cooler now that she had gotten rid of her jacket.

"I don't plan to, Starke," Levi replied evenly, loosening his own cravat. She averted her eyes away bashfully when she saw his well-defined collar bone. Unfortunately, her nervousness did not go unnoticed by Levi. "What will I get if I win?"

"Anything you want. That is — if you can beat me though." Ida stated haughtily, resuming a defensive stance. "I'm going to beat your midget ass until you can't take a proper shit."

Levi observed her with some amusement, she was just as confident as ever. "Tch. Defeat me then."

Without a hint of remorse, Ida attacked with all her might after his snide remark. The sparring session kicked up a notch, as Levi blocked all her incoming attacks no matter how sharp her strikes were or how powerful her kicks.

"Still, too slow."

Ida cursed inwardly, gritting her teeth. She knew that the blocked hits would cause some bruising, but Levi was composed and calm, showing no sign of pain. Worst still, he wasn't even attacking. All he did was defend or dodge her blows courtesy of his gift of implausible speed.

Was he going easy on her?

"Don't tell me you don't hit girls now," Ida growled, exhaling loudly as she tried to calm her breathing. She was getting worn out from unleashing a roundhouse of unsuccessful jabs and kicks.

"I didn't say that," came his simple reply, accompanied by a handsome smirk.

This sparked her anger to an entirely different level, she hated how calm he looked — he was underestimating her.

Channeling her anger into her blows, she ultimately lost their composure after a bout of unsuccessful but powerful punches. Ida was finally taken off guard when Levi suddenly attacked and she was forced back by a powerful kick straight to her stomach. The blow was so strong that she temporarily lost her sense of balance.

Ida gritted her teeth, her face briefly flashing a mask of pain, but to her credit, she made no noise. "Not bad, but not good enough."

As they continued their intense sparring session, Ida grew increasingly irritated at the lack of progress, only managing to knock him backward once with a punch to his chest.

"You let your emotions control you and your attacks become more predictable," Levi said insultingly, countering another attack.

"Shut up!" Ida snarled, aiming her clenched fist straight for his face. Levi swiftly grabbed her wrist mid-air, twisting it while pressing on her motor nerve center to subdue her. She hissed in agony, the vivid pain traveling from her wrist to her shoulders.

Swooping in for the chance while she was off guard, he did a sweeping kick to her legs. Falling to the ground, Levi got on top of her and pinned her shoulder down with one hand. He clenched his fist, going straight for an impactful punch to her face.

As a natural reflex, Ida closed her eyes in defeat, but to her surprise, the punch never came. When she opened her eyes again, she found his clenched fist right in front of her eyes. She blinked, confused at why he stopped. Levi regarded her with his usual arrogant expression, clearly amused by her defeated state.

He bent over with a triumphant smirk and spoke in a slow deadpan voice. "You're too slow, Starke."

A spark enlightened back in her emerald eyes, offended by his insulting remark. "You seem to like being on top of me, sir," she muttered with a slight sexy glint to her tone. "Are you going to let me up or shall we continue with what we did at the Wall?"

Levi's eyes widened as amusement flickered in his gray eyes. There it was, the intended effect she wanted. She used the opportunity. Seeing the chance for a counter-attack, Ida rammed her forehead on his. It wasn't exactly martial arts but Levi was ridiculously strong and she had to use anything she could.

Following the momentum when she felt his pin on her loosen. She roughly pushed him off her with all her strength and immediately got on top of him, straddling him. Using the center of gravity as he had done, she used her hips to hold him down.

But before she could claim her victory and launch a punch, Levi grabbed her wrists and pulled her downwards so that her hands were pinned to the ground on either side of his shoulders.

"Slow," he murmured, his cold gray eyes locking with hers.

"Damn it," she cursed, breathing out heavily.

Levi released her wrists. The tension left his muscles. Ida did not count the pin as too much of an accomplishment. She knew how outrageously strong he was. If he gave it his all, she would never be able to beat him, must less distract him.

Stupid perfect man...

"You seem to like being on top of me too, Starke," she heard him mutter with a dangerous glint in his voice and her eyes went expanded in shock. "Are you gonna let me up? Or shall we continue?"

Instantly, her cheeks turned a million shades of red, his words sending her heart racing. Ida became conscious of the intimate position they were in and their close proximity.

Her heart was pounding so loud on her ribcage that she wondered if Levi could hear it. The pounding in her chest was different than it usually was. It was thrilling and terrifying at the same time, almost like it felt during a battle. In fighting, it was just adrenaline, but this… it was different.

And she kind of liked it for some reason.

"S — Sorry!" Flustered, she immediately scrambled off his lap, biting on her lips.

Shit! Even if she did want to win, what was she thinking to mention something like that to throw him off guard?! It was a bad idea, she shouldn't be teasing him! This was a disaster! It had taken her four full days to not act so fidgety around him and there she was, teasing him out of all things! Ida miserably concluded then and there that she was an idiot.

"Tch. You're doing the damn laundry today." She heard Levi grumble and she turned her eyes back at him to see that he was dusting the dirt off his white shirt.

"W — Wait! W — What are you doing?!" Ida cried anxiously, flailing her arms in the air when Levi started to undo his cravat and shirt button. Tanned muscle and scarred skin were revealed underneath the clothing, memories from years of fighting Titans and she had to cover her mouth to keep herself from letting out a strange inhuman sound of horror and glee.

Her blush did not go unnoticed by Levi. "Undressing? It's filthy. You took off your jacket too."

She could practically feel the amusement radiate off of him and Ida shut her eyes in embarrassment — he was definitely enjoying this.

Get a grip, Ida! A voice inside her screamed. It didn't have to mean anything! Just playful teasing, that was all it was!

Alas, even with that resolution set in her mind, she couldn't help but be anything but flustered.

"I — I was wearing something underneath!" Ida retorted but she found her eyes opening slightly and watched in pure admiration as the material peeled away from his skin. She found it hard to admit, but she was getting increasingly hot at watching his slightly tanned skin stretched out over his well-defined muscle.

He turned to face her and raised an eyebrow when he caught her stare. "Stop staring, it's creepy."

"I'm not staring!" Ida defended immediately, hastily averting her eyes away.

Levi observed her with a hint of amusement when she subconsciously touched her flushed cheeks. A pulse jumped in his neck. He frowned when he realized he was growing all the more entertained with her flustered state — it only made him want to tease her more. Fuck. This was not good.

"Whatever! I'm going back inside!" she shouted.

Titans, Eren's nasty socks, Hanji's dribble of fanatical drool... Ida did not want to spend another day with her mind stuck on dirty things and forced herself to think about gross things instead.

Ida was about to run back to the house and curl in a corner, embarrassed at getting caught, but something caught her eye on the ground.

The object gleamed in the sunlight, it's beautiful pastel colors shining in pride. Curious, Ida bent over to pick it up, attracted by the colors. "What's this?"

It was a beautiful charm bracelet. Pastel-colored charms of candies and cupcakes hung from the gold band. Ida gasped at how adorable it looked. But why was a charm bracelet doing out here in the courtyard? It looked new, or at least it was taken care of properly.

Did Jean drop this awhile he was fighting her?

Levi's eyes widened in shock when he caught sight of what she was holding in her palm. "Give that to me." He roughly grabbed the bracelet back, hoping that she didn't realize what it was.

"Wait, it's yours?" Ida was flabbergasted. She knew that Levi had a few loose screws here and there, but she certainly hadn't expected him to own something like that. "Where did you get that? It looks really familiar…"

Where had she seen it before?

Levi glowered menacingly at her, hoping to scare her into dropping the topic. "It's none of your fucking business."

The realization hit her when she noticed how uncomfortable Levi looked. "Wait… Wasn't that from the candy store at Wall Rose…? The one we went together to after my first expedition?"

Damn it!

"No." Levi denied flatly with a formidable scowl, stuffing the bracelet back into his trousers pockets.

But the rising anger on Levi's face only further confirmed her suspicions. She knew him better than that.

"You can't lie to me! I've been to every candy store in Wall Rose! That bracelet was selling at the boutique sweet shop in Karanese District!" Ida called out his lie instantly. "I'd know because I went back to purchase that bracelet a year ago after I saw it, but it was sold out!"

There was no way a sweet fanatic like her wouldn't know. No wonder that bracelet seemed so familiar.

Levi cursed her good memory. "Tch. You're noisy, shut up," he rebuffed her accusation with a grimace. He found it hard to keep his gaze with her so he averted his gaze away. "I'm going back inside."

But unfortunately for him, Ida wasn't planning on letting him escape just yet.

"Did you buy that for me?" she found herself shamelessly asking before she could stop herself. Ida's breath seized when she locked her eyes with him for an answer.

A small part of her heart couldn't help but feel hopeful. What other explanation was there? Levi certainly wasn't the type to buy useless stuff like these and there was no way he was going to wear that. Indeed, why was he even carrying it around in the first place?

"Tch. Don't be ridiculous," he spat annoyingly, cursing inwardly at her persistence. The dark frustration in Levi's eyes deepened.

Damn this. Levi cursed himself for buying the gift a year ago on impulse and carrying it around with him ever since. He silently damned Ida to the depths of hell for having such a good memory.

"Oi—"

Ida shamelessly shoved her hand into his pockets and extracted the bracelet before Levi could even stop her. He opened his lips to curse at her, but he paused when he saw the bright smile on her face.

Ida hardly smiled, but she was beautiful when she did.

Couldn't she smile more often? He found himself wondering, subconsciously holding a breath. Smiles like that could warm a frozen heart or even end wars.

"Wear it for me," she proffered out her wrist with a sweet smile.

Levi had another thing to be surprised about when he felt his own heart skipped a beat, he had to recoil a bit at that, but he found himself following her demands. Wordlessly, he took the bracelet from her and closed the clasp around her wrist.

"It's adorable!" Ida exclaimed joyfully, instantly falling in love with how it looked. She held it up closer to the sun for inspection.

As Levi watched her squeal, he found himself staring at her in a mixture of surprise and irritation. He never expected her to react that way and this was one of the first times she looked so genuinely happy — was it that easy to get her to smile after all?

Levi found it hard to admit, but the truth was he was carrying the bracelet around after he got it but his pride never allowed himself to give it to her. So for the past year, he held onto it like it was a lucky charm.

"Whatever, if you want it so damn much. Keep that shitty thing." Levi grumbled grouchily. He scowled and turned his heel, walking back to the hut.

Since when had he gotten so bad at lying? Ida found herself asking herself in silence. She followed him, attacking him with a hug when she reached him. "Thank you!"

"Get off me you damned brat." Levi scowled, trying to shake her off him, but Ida held on tighter.

She rolled her eyes, letting his insult slide off her. "You know, you could've just given me this a year ago. Are you being shy now for once, sir?" she teased, laughing when she felt Levi stiffened.

"Ah!" Ida cried in surprise when Levi suddenly turned around and tripped her. She fell to the ground.

"If you have time to say nonsensical stuff then go and do something about your shitty fighting skills. It's an embarrassment to even call yourself a soldier." Levi glared threateningly at her. "Don't forget, you owe me something now."

With that said, Levi stormed his way back to the house, leaving a flabbergasted Ida in the courtyard, still sitting on the ground.

"Men and their arrogant pride..." she grumbled underneath her breath as she pushed herself off the floor.

Though dreading what Levi had in store for her, the fluttering feeling in her heart masked the ominous feeling well. She held onto her wrist where the bracelet was now clasped on, grinning like an absolute fool.

---

If some of you had forgotten about that bracelet that Levi bought. It's in Chapter 06 - Delusions of Strength. Thank you for your reviews, favs and follows! Have an awesome day and do R&R!