Chapter 1

It was lovely, the night sky. Sasha wasn't normally patient enough to just lay down and stare at it, but tonight she felt so at peace that it came naturally.

The war was finally over.

Unconsciously, her hand reached to touch the scar on her side. She had almost not made it back from Marley six years ago, being at death's door for months, but in the end, she'd pulled through, she'd lived. By the time she'd woken up from her coma a lot had gone down, including a coup led by Eren that was more or less a success. While she was a little angry with her old friend after she'd heard what happened, the coup had done its job and allowed the angry teen to follow his own plans, which had eventually brought the war to a standstill. And now, six years later and with Eren already gone, came peace. The other nations had finally gotten tired of the threat of the rumbling, offering peace to Eldia. When the newly formed nation had accepted, Marley had no choice but to start peace negotiations as well. And now they were finally complete, making the peace official.

Sasha smiled, looking around herself. There had been a big celebration last night, and now her closest friends were laying around under the stars, vast asleep. The sight filled her heart with joy; she couldn't believe they'd made it, all of them aside from Eren. Of course, Armin, who was little ways away, asleep next to Mikasa, would follow him in a few years, but at least he got to see peace. Same with Historia, who'd inherited the Beast titan. She'd die young as well, but with the knowledge of peace.

Searching around with her eyes, Sasha looked for the commander before remembering that Levi had dragged her away after she had passed out, from exhaustion or alcohol, the woman wasn't sure. The short captain himself hadn't returned after that either, having probably gone to sleep inside.

Searching some more, she was able to find Jean leaning on a tree, definitely asleep. To his right was Hitch, leaning on his shoulder, also asleep. A bit to his left was Connie, laying on the ground. It kind of looked like the guy had been leaning on Jean but had gotten pushed off. She wondered if Jean would've done it on purpose or while he was still half asleep… hang on.

Sasha came to a sudden realization: if Connie was over there with Jean and Hitch, then who was it that she could hear breathing by her side? Who was lying right next to her? Slowly rolling around, she relaxed as she saw it was just Nikolo, the cook being in a deep sleep just like everyone else.

Right, Nikolo. There was another guy Sasha had been disappointed in after recovering from her injury. She still had trouble believing that the man she had come to know as so kind and caring had beaten up a pair of kids, not to mention had gone around poisoning soldiers for years. He had regretted it of course and helped the scouts to fix things, which was mostly the reason as to why he wasn't dead yet, executed along with Yelena and other dangerous prisoners. According to Jean it had been a really close call, but they had managed to save the guy. He'd spent a few years in a cell though, literally. Sasha had been worried about him during that time, visiting the man as often as she was allowed to and she had time from all of her duties, but it seemed her worries had been unneeded. When Nikolo had been let out, but under strict supervision of course, he had seemed just fine, if not a bit crankier than usual. But that was normal; Nikolo was cranky often. Not as often as when they first met though; it seemed that he had completely set aside the fact that they were Eldians and he a Marleyan by now. It didn't seem to bother him or, if it did, he didn't show it. Sasha was grateful for that, for she really liked the man. She enjoyed his cooking, but it wasn't just that. She liked talking with him, messing with him, just being with him. He was her dear friend, very dear, although in a different way than Jean or Connie. She couldn't quite place it, but she knew something was different.

Not that any of it mattered anymore.

The war was over, meaning that most of the war prisoners would be sent home. Nikolo was going to be one of them, so the chances that she'd see him again after the next few days were slim. She was happy for him of course, happy that he'd finally get to go back home to his family, but even so, she was sad to see him leaving. In fact, even though he was right there, she already missed him.

"I wonder if he'll miss me too…" she thought as she absents mindedly reached out, her hand slightly caressing his face. Sasha honestly didn't know. While she was convinced that the man no longer hated her or the others simply because they were Eldians and that he cared on some level, she didn't know how much. Was it only a little bit, forced to be so due to the circumstances? Would he forget them completely, never missing them, once he got home to his family and friends? Just the thought alone made Sasha even sadder. Lost in thought, it took her quite a while to notice that Nikolo had opened his eyes. In fact, she didn't realize he was awake until he laid his own hand on top of hers, removing it from his face.

Sasha felt her face heat up in embarrassment and shame. Looking away, she muttered quietly: "Sorry. Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, but it's fine" he whispered just as quietly "Are you hungry?"

Sasha's head shot up, fixing a heated glare on Nikolo's face. Hint of anger in her tone, she asked: "Why do everyone always assume that I only think about food?"

Nikolo blinked in surprise before raising an eyebrow at her, giving no other explanation, clearly waiting for her to come to her own conclusion. Sasha pouted, but got the message anyway "Actually, don't answer that."

Nikolo chuckled, seeming to be making an effort to do it quietly. Sasha actually hoped he wouldn't; she liked the sound of his laugh, as weird as it sounded. She could've laid there listening to it all night… even though it was starting to get a bit cold. Where had she left her jacket? Certainly not anywhere where she could reach it from right now. Shivering a little, Sasha pulled her arms closer to herself before wrapping them around her body. Maybe she should just go inside? But she wanted to stay here with everyone else… maybe she'd just go and fetch her jacket, or someone else's or a blanket or something, anything to keep her warm. That would work. Before she could get up to retrieve anything though, she felt something land on her. Directing her attention upwards, the woman saw that Nikolo had taken off his own jacket, putting it on her frame.

"Thanks" she said, pulling the jacket closer but frowning as a thought occurred to her "Aren't you cold though?"

Nikolo shrugged before laying back down on his side, still facing Sasha "I can manage."

The woman frowned. This wasn't okay; what if he caught a cold? It would be unfortunate if his return home would be held back because of it! …Well actually, as horrible as it was to admit, Sasha would prefer things that way for she'd get to keep him close just a little bit longer, but she knew he wanted to go home and didn't want to disappoint him. So, letting him catch a cold wasn't an opinion. And yet she didn't want to be cold either, nor did she want to go back inside. What should she do, then?

"Well, we can just share the jacket and it's warmth" she realized, pulling off the jacket and bundling it in her arms. She caught Nikolo's confused expression, but paid it no mind as she rolled over a few times, coming right next to him. If she nudged her head forward just a little bit, their foreheads would touch.

"What are you doing?" Nikolo asked, and Sasha could swear that his red face looked slightly panicked as well. Shrugging as well as she could from her position, she spread the jacket over the both of them before saying: "It'll be warmer this way."

"But this is-! It's not-!" Nikolo stuttered, but seemed to be unable to find the right words. He was getting a little loud too; hopefully he wouldn't wake up the others.

"What are you so embarrassed about?" Sasha asked, laughing at the blush on the man's face that just kept growing "C'mon, it's no big deal, we're already adults anyway. Don't tell me you're still afraid of cooties?" she teased, continuing: "Connie's never minded you know, and even Jean stopped complaining years ago."

As soon as she finished, Sasha got the sinking feeling she'd said something wrong, at least if Nikolo's face was anything to go by. The blush was gone and in its place was an annoyed frown, but for the life of her, Sasha couldn't figure out what she'd said wrong. Did the cootie comment actually struck a nerve? Wait, was he uncomfortable with this because she was an Eldian?

"No, that can't be; we've been over this countless of times already" she told herself, deciding to ask outright: "What's wrong?"

Nikolo stared at her for a while before sighing, his face softening "Never mind; just go to sleep. It's getting late."

Sasha frowned, not convinced. However, she felt like pushing him wouldn't be the best idea, so she decided to let it go.

"Okay" she said "Goodnight."

"Night" Nikolo answered. Sasha closed her eyes, already quite tired. Right before she fell asleep, she felt an arm wrap around her, bringing a smile to her face. Yeah, whatever it was that was bothering Nikolo, it wasn't her bloodline. He would've taken off ages ago if it was. Relieved by the realization, Sasha let herself fall to peaceful slumber.

XXXXX

Waking from his slumber, Nikolo came face to face with Sasha. Apparently last night wasn't a dream, then. It brought a smile to his face, but it faded a little as he recalled what Sasha had said. He was nothing special; apparently, she did things like this with Connie and Jean, too. It made the man feel torn; on one hand, he was jealous that he wasn't the only man she allowed close to him this way, that there were others, but on the other hand he was pleased to know that he was, in at least some way, on the same level in her eyes as her precious friends Jean and Connie. Yes, Nikolo knew how close the three were, what the two men meant for Sasha, and he felt like being compared to them like this meant that he had to be important as well, then. Not on their level, he knew that, but important none the less.

Still deep asleep, Sasha snuggled closer to Nikolo, grabbing the front of his shirt in the process. The man chuckled, pulling his dear friend closer as his arm was still over her. When he'd laid it there last night, he had honestly feared that Sasha would push it away or worse, leave, but it seems it hadn't been too bold of a move. It hadn't seemed like she minded… or maybe Connie and Jean, probably more the former than the later, did similar things, causing her to not think about them that deeply. Again, Nikolo frowned, shaking his head lightly. He shouldn't ruin this morning by being jealous of Sasha's bonds with the other two men, especially since he knew that they were good guys who did deserve the company of a great woman like Sasha.

Probably more than he himself did.

It's not like Nikolo thought of himself as a horrible, despicable man. No, he was just a normal human, affected by normal human desires and feelings, one that made his mistakes and after noticing them tried to fix things the best he could. Still, he wasn't sure if that was good enough for someone as pure as Sasha. Of course, while he'd never seen it with his own eyes, he was well aware that the woman had killed people before, but that alone didn't change her to something impure. No, despite the fact that her hands were bloody, her soul wasn't. She did what she did to protect, not to hurt others. She mourned for the fallen without relishing the feeling of revenge. Nikolo himself was different; even to this day he sometimes felt the urge to go after the one who had harmed Sasha so badly once, almost killing her. While he understood Gabi's motives, he still hated her. And for that, he hated himself even more. He doubted he could ever be what Sasha deserved. But that hadn't stopped him from trying so far, and he'd continue to do so… even though he was going home in a few days. While he did miss home and was eager to go, he was also sad that he had to separate from Sasha. Still, it was probably for the best for the both of them, and it's not like they had to forget each other. Even if he'd never see her again after boarding the ship three days from now, he'd make sure to become a better person, for that's what he had to do in order to deserve to call himself her friend.

Seeing a strand of Sasha's hair fall on her face, Nikolo gently brushed it back, smiling at the sleeping woman. The sight was almost as sweet as the one that met his eyes when ever the woman ate something new that she found very delicious.

"I still have to try make something new before I leave" he thought "For one last special smile."

Suddenly Nikolo blinked as a shadow fell over them. Looking up, he nearly got a heart attack as he saw Mikasa looming over them with a deadpan look on her face.

"Am I interrupting?" the woman asked, making Nikolo scowl at her after he recovered from the surprise.

"Yes, you are!" he hissed, careful not to disturb the sleeping woman next to him as he got up "What do you want?"

"Just making sure there is nothing indecent happening" the Asian woman replied, making Nikolo blush. Looking away to hide it, he said: "Well, there isn't."

"I know" she said "You don't have the guts to even admit your feelings to her, after all."

Nikolo's mouth dropped open. He wanted to snap something back at Mikasa for that comment, he really did, but he couldn't come up with anything and the woman was already walking away. Damn it.

But of course, he knew she was right. He had feelings for Sasha, strong ones, he had stopped denying it years ago, but still hasn't gotten together the courage to confess. And it seemed that Sasha hadn't noticed a thing either, unlike everyone else. If she had then certainly, she would've said something, right? In fact, Sasha was a very straight forward person who, when wanting something, went and just got it. If she had feelings for him then wouldn't she have made a move already? The thought was depressing since it led him to the conclusion that she wasn't interested in him… not that he could say he'd be surprised; he knew Sasha had lot of admirers, both inside and outside the military. It wouldn't be odd at all if one of them had caught the woman's interest. Or perhaps she had no interest in men at all; with Sasha one could never know.

But maybe it was better this way; he was going home soon after all. It was good to do this now before his feelings got any deeper. Besides, Sasha would be happier with one of her own, a man who wouldn't cause her so much trouble, of that he was sure.

It was definitely better this way.

XXXXX

"Well… take care of yourself" Nikolo said, awkwardly scratching his head as he stood in front of Sasha, Connie, Jean, Mikasa and Armin, saying his goodbyes. The ship would be leaving soon.

"You too" Jean said "Do the world a favor and don't turn back in to the asshole you were when we first met, okay?"

"…I'll try not to" Nikolo said with a grimace, not really promising anything. As much as he hated what he had once been like, he couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't become like that once again after he left Paradis.

"C'mon Jean, have some faith in him" Connie said with a laugh "Surely he could never go back to being that bad."

Nikolo sure hoped not.

"I'm sure everything's going to be fine" Armin said "The world is changing."

That it was, but would it continue to do so?

"Yeah!" Sasha cheered with a bright smile "Who knows, maybe in just a few years we can all have a picnic together and the times when people minded the differences between Eldians and others will be just a memory!"

Try a few hundred maybe, but few years was completely impossible. Not that Nikolo would ever say that and ruin Sasha's good mood.

"I certainly hope you aren't leaving behind any regrets" Mikasa said suddenly, getting everyone's attention. Nikolo stared at her in confusion along with the others, almost missing how Armin was subtly pointing at Sasha, who didn't seem to notice a thing. The cook's face gained a red tint as he understood what they were saying. To make matters worse, it seemed that Connie and Jean had caught on as they glanced down at Sasha before looking at him with smirks. The former war prisoner just scowled at them; couldn't he catch a break even on his last day here!?

"Is there something I don't know?" Sasha asked suddenly, looking at her friends in clear suspicion.

"Yes" the four answered, but gave no further explanation. Blinking, Sasha turned to Nikolo: "What is it that I don't know?"

Nikolo swallowed, looking at the rest instead of Sasha. Connie stood there with his arms crossed, still grinning along with Jean, and upon noticing his gaze, Mikasa simply raised an eyebrow while Armin just pointed his finger at Sasha, who was thankfully watching him and had no idea. Returning his gaze to Sasha, Nikolo's mind wavered. He'd already made his decision, hadn't he? He shouldn't say anything; it was better for both of them. But maybe-

No.

He couldn't; it would just ruin the moment. She'd reject his feelings and feel awkward while he'd just be plain heart broken. It'd make their final memories of each other to be bad ones. He couldn't do that.

"It's nothing to worry about" he said, giving Sasha an awkward pat on the shoulder "Take care of yourself."

With that he turned around to walk away, but not before catching the unapproving, disappointed looks on the faces of the other scouts.

He had to fight to keep his tears at bay.

XXXXX

Sasha watched Nikolo leave, walking up the ramp with tears freely flowing down her face. She had tried to keep them at bay of course, but she'd never been any good at that. Usually she didn't mind being unable to control her tears, but right now she was ashamed of herself. She shouldn't be crying, she should be happy for her friend who was finally getting home after all these years! There must've been times that he was lonely, scared, angry… of course he wanted to leave Paradis behind, leave them, leave her who reminded him of those times. Sasha also couldn't understand why she was overreacting like this; even if they never saw each other again, it wasn't like he was dying. No, he was going home and he was going to live.

Seeing that he had stopped on the ramp and was looking over his shoulder, Sasha waived frantically at the man. She couldn't see his face, but she could imagine what it looked like since he seemed to hesitate but waived back anyway. However, way too soon he lowered his hand and started to walk again. Sasha held back a sniff; this was it.

"He's not gonna forget you, you know" Connie told her, laying a hand on her shoulder "No one can forget someone like you."

Sasha smiled at him after that, wiping her tears, but then she paused, thinking his words through.

"I can't be forgotten, as in a good or a bad way?" she asked. With a grin, Connie said: "Both."

"Definitely" Jean agreed and Sasha lunged at both of them, first at Connie who just ended up keeping the woman at an arm's length, then at Jean who did the same. Damn boys and their growth bursts. If only her target had been Armin. He wouldn't have been able to do that; he was too short!

"Sasha" Mikasa said suddenly, gaining her attention "Look."

Sasha saw the taller woman pointing at the ship and, with slight hesitation, she did look. She saw Nikolo, who had just reached the deck, but what got her attention was the fact that he had stopped just before he stepped on board and was now just standing there. What was he doing?

Suddenly he spun around, running straight down the ramp and racing towards them. Sasha could only stare, shocked, and while she was too distracted to check she was sure the others were wearing similar expressions. When the man finally reached them, he was breathless, barely holding himself up as he struggled to breathe.

"Nikolo…?" Sasha asks, getting out of her shock enough to put a supporting hand on his shoulder "Are you okay?"

"Yeah… I'm fine" he says after a while, still breathing hard. Swallowing, he continues: "But… I can't leave like this, there's still something…"

Sasha blinked, biting back an impatient string of questions, wanting to know why Nikolo ran back here. She knew he'd tell them after catching his breath, but she really wanted to know, she wanted to know now.

"What? What is it?" she finally gave in to her curiosity, leaning closer. Nikolo still took a few deep breaths before straightening, startling Sasha as he took a hold of her shoulders.

"I… there's still something I need to tell you" he said, his grip on her shoulders tightening, but not enough to be painful "So I…"

Sasha just stood there, stunned, waiting for the man to speak. He seemed nervous, hesitant, like he wasn't sure if he should really say what he had in mind. That made the woman even more curious, but she had a feeling that if she tried to press him now, he'd close up and wouldn't tell whatever he had in mind.

"I'll come back" he finally let out, looking at her straight in the eyes "I don't know exactly when or how, but I'll come back, and when I do, I'll tell you, so… wait for me."

Behind her, Sasha could hear Jean groan and Connie mutter the word "coward" under his breath. The woman frowned, realizing that whatever it was that the man wanted to tell, her friends already knew. And they were expecting him to say it.

"Why can't you just tell me now?" she asked, but Nikolo shakes his head "Can't, not now" looking over her shoulder, most likely at Connie, he adds: "Guess I am just a coward."

"But- "

"You'll be here when I come back, won't you?" Nikolo interrupts. When Sasha nods, he continues: "So wait for me; I'll make sure to return to you."

"But why would you even want to come back?" she asks "You don't like it here and have been waiting for so long to get home, so why- "

"I'll tell you then" he says, cutting her off "So wait for me."

Sasha's not a patient woman, she doesn't want to wait, she wants to know what's in his mind now, but it doesn't seem like he'd tell her even if she demanded for an answer, so finally, she nods.

"Okay" she says "I will."

Nikolo smiles. It's not like Sasha hasn't seen him smile before, but this time it seems different somehow. It seems more genuine, happier, like he's not trying to force it or hold anything back.

"Great" he says and, before she can react, quickly pecks her on the lips. Then he turns around to walk away, calling over his shoulder: "I'll hold you on to that!"

Sasha doesn't answer, too stunned to do so. She just stands there, her hand finding its way to her lips as she watches him walk away, speechless. As he boards the ship Sasha finally returns to reality, remembering that there had been others around as well. Everyone had seen what Nikolo had just done.

Turning around sharply, she saw Connie and Jean look as stunned as she felt, although they did have huge grins on their faces. Mikasa was smiling a little, holding a hand out to Armin's direction as the boy stood there, mouth hanging open as he dug through his pockets before handing some money to the taller woman's waiting hand, making everything click in Sasha's head.

"Did you guys give him a dare to kiss me?!" she screeched at them. Connie and Jean stared at her for a while before groaning, chorusing: "No."

Sasha didn't quite believe that, but maybe it had been just the other two, even though they didn't seem like the type. Crossing her arms, Sasha turned to them, waiting for an explanation.

"We didn't" Mikasa said "But I did tell Armin that Nikolo would definitely kiss you before he left. He didn't believe me so we made a bet."

Sasha had no idea what to say to that. Why had they made a bet like that? Why would Mikasa believe Nikolo would kiss her? How on earth had she been right about it!?

"You guys should've let us in on that bet!" Connie told them, but Sasha barely heard him. Shaking her head, she asks: "Guys, what is it that I'm missing here?"

The four of them looked at her, their faces clearly asking her if she was an idiot. She was not; it was their fault for not letting her in on this, whatever "this" was!

"Just ask Nikolo when he comes back" Mikasa said "He'll tell you."

"And if he doesn't, I'm kicking that chicken's ass" Connie muttered and Jean and Armin nodded. Sasha pouted, realizing she wouldn't get an answer.

"The ship is leaving" Mikasa suddenly said, and Sasha turned her attention to the ship again along with the others. She could see Nikolo standing on the deck, and while seeing him leave made her a bit sad she didn't really mind, for he had promised to come back to see her- ahem, them some day. And then she'd get her answers…

…not that she cared about that all that much; she just wanted to see him, talk to him again. She already missed him.

"I'll wait for you"

A.N: Starting the year with some NikoSasha! I haven't found any other multichapter stories about them, which is a pity. I hope someone else will start one at some point too, preferably one where Sasha (or Nikolo) doesn't die.

And no, this isn't going to end in the next chapter with Nikolo coming back and the two of them living happily ever after. No, there will be some drama first.

And since I'm so used to doing this:

Disclaimer: I don't own SnK

Do people still do this though?