It starts to snow as they head back to the wall. An uncannily smooth-going expedition probably helped by the thick layer of cloud. 'You read the weather well, Hange. Any later and we would have been stuck in it. ' Erwin strokes his horse 's neck, smiles. 'Another season over, my friends. '

They do not scout in the winter, except in exceptional circumstances. Snow, ice, treacherous conditions ' it would make a poor success margin worse. Even low-risk operations like todays can become catastrophic with the wrong conditions. Most of those left at base take leave to visit their families, while they still can. Erwin should visit his mother. He 's been meaning to, in fact. Every year there 's another reason not to go home. Cousin Jenny 's just had a baby ' they 've called her Erwina. A terrible name, but still, a better man would go home and give her his blessing. And of course, his mother being how she is. Really. A better man would go home.

'Captain, ' Shadis flags him down as they pass under the gate, 'your formation held up well yesterday. Remarkably well. If we keep up results like this ' '

Yes, if they kept up results like this, money would keep rolling in and progress might actually be made. They will not keep up these results. Erwin knows it, only Shadis would be fool-hardy enough to believe it.

'Thank you, Commander, ' Erwin says anyway. He does not dislike Shadis, only pities him. The man has his heart in the right place. 'Who knows. Come spring, this all might change. '

'Perhaps, ' Shadis agrees, and Erwin almost can 't bear to keep looking at him, all that stupid optimism with no basis, just hope built on hope. 'We 'll be needing to do the rounds again at the New Years festivities. I 'm sorry, ' he says, 'if you had plans ' '

'I don 't, ' Erwin says, easily. 'I 'd be honoured. '

'Good man. You know they like you more than they like me. ' The Commander 's eyes move forward, catch onto Levi 's back. 'And him, ' he says, 'they want to hear more about him. '

'I 'm not sure ' Levi has a difficult history with the Interior, for more than one reason. It may be too early to put him in a suit and expect results. ' Erwin has his own reservations, of course ' Shadis may well be happy, with a successful expedition and funding rolling smoothly, but that 's only because he does not have to dirty his hands with it. Erwin suspects Levi will not be welcome in the capital for any length of time so long as Morely remains head of the council. It all feels a little dangerous, cat and mouse. Morely should not know, theoretically, that Erwin 's source is Levi. But turning up with him at a season 's event feels a little like rubbing his nose in it. Inviting trouble, even.

Shadis tugs his cloak tighter around his shoulders. 'Well he 'll just have put on a show. He 's starting to make a name for himself ' if he can give the brass and their wives a good story, then what he wants isn 't really my concern. Talk to him, ' he orders, and spurs his horse on down the cobbled lane. Erwin doesn 't doubt there will be rumors later ' the Commander will be heard drunk and raving about non-existent past glories or found fighting ghosts in the gutter. He might visit a brothel, or mope around the bar where the woman he loves used to work. Yes, Erwin pities him, mostly.

Mostly.

'Levi, ' Erwin presses, trotting his horse up alongside his, 'you did well yesterday. '

Levi isn 't looking at him. He 's looking

up.

Erwin has to yank back his reigns,

hard,

to avoid him running over a couple children in his path. 'Watch where you 're going, ' Erwin snaps at him, 'are you paying attention? '

Levi looks dazed. 'Hmm? ' He says, 'I was just ' what do you want? ' He frowns.

'You nearly killed some kids. '

'Did I? They should watch where they 're going then, shouldn 't they? ' Beneath the hood of his cloak, Erwin can only see his chin, tipped upwards at the sky. He 's collecting snowflakes on his shoulders.

'I have a favour to ask ' well, the Commander does, in fact. There 's a question of whether you were taking leave, but I don 't think you 've filed any with me. You weren 't planning to take leave, where you? ' It all feels rather stupid, him asking that, as if Levi won 't be curled in his bed later tonight, likely ranting about whatever technical issues he thinks they ran into during the expedition. Not that Erwin doesn 't value his input, of course ' he 's getting better at understanding what he means when he offers the advice, even if Levi often doesn 't even know himself.

'Where would I go? ' Levi asks, and Erwin can hear the scowl in his voice. 'Is there something you want, Captain? '

Levi looks at him directly. The tip of his nose is flushed with cold ' yes, it 's only Levi 's extremities that flush, as Erwin knows so well. He finds himself stumbling. 'Uh, ' he says, intelligently, 'perhaps it can wait. I imagine we 'll be seeing enough of each other if we 're both at camp for the season 's end. '

'Of course, Captain, ' he says distractedly, 'you know there 's nothing I love more than serving the Corps. '

They pass below the inner gate, out onto the Trost road. It 's disorientating, stepping out from the dark into all that white, but it frees them from the formation a bit. 'It 's so ' ' he hears Levi saying. He 's stalled, facing out parallel to the wall.

Erwin frowns. He looks out at the rolling fields, lightly dusted white, the silver-capped trees in the distance, then back to Levi 's face.

He 's never seen snow,

he realises, abruptly.

His eyes are wide, his mouth slightly open. ' ' Clean, ' he says. 'It just goes on and on. '

Erwin watches him, and then tries to see whatever it is he sees. He tips his head. 'Yes, ' he frowns, 'yes, I suppose it does. You should join us, later, ' Erwin invites. 'We drink to celebrate the end of the season. '

'Yeah, ' Levi agrees. Erwin suspects he 's not paying attention. 'Sure. Course. '

He loses him among the rest of the green cloaks, all of them with their hoods up, heads bent against the snow. He doesn 't see him amongst the soldiers vying for space in the baths, and he does not visit him, as has become their tradition after an expedition. Later, he asks Mike if he has seen him, and he scoffs, as if to say,

how the hell should I know?

Hange is more accommodating. 'Stables, ' they say, 'always the stables with him, right? '

Well, he 's not in the stables, but his horse is gone. Erwin could curse him. It 's not the first time Levi 's taken fancy of a ride, especially after an expedition, but he 's not familiar with the snow, and worse, it 's getting dark, with only an hour or so of sun left. His horse will be tired. Erwin can just picture it slipping in the dark, ramming into a tree. He considers following on foot, but after a brief consideration saddles up after him. 'Easy, ' he tells his horse, patting his neck, 'we 'll go slow boy, won 't we? You can take your complaints up with Levi. '

He hasn 't gone far. Erwin follows his tracks fifteen minutes up the main road, finds him in a small clearing amongst a collection of trees. He dismounts some way off an approaches quietly, standing away, watching him kneeling in front of a small pond that 's iced over. His horse is tied to a tree, pawing inattentively at the snow under her hooves. 'Shh, ' Levi is saying, 'it 's colder for me than it is for you, you know. '

Erwin does not move. His breath fogs in front of his face.

'What do you think? ' Levi asks her. 'Too much? I guess I 'm not one for art, really. Unless I 'm stealing it, ' he mutters, absently. 'Furlan was good. He had an eye for it. Always knew the fakes from the real deal. '

He 's carefully piling snow in front of him, whatever he 's building obstructed by his body, his cloak spread out behind him. Erwin can tell he hasn 't even changed his clothes yet, which means he hasn 't washed, either. Highly irregular Levi-behaviour. 'You 'd laugh at me if you were here now, ' Levi mumbles, 'wouldn 't you? '

Erwin realises he is about to overhear something is not supposed to overhear. Carefully, he raises his foot and pointedly brings it down on some twigs. Levi jerks with shock and twists; in his panic, he knocks loose the snowy structure he 'd been building. 'Who '

you, '

he snarls. 'Don 't you know when to just leave well enough alone? How long were you standing there?! '

'I wasn 't. I just ' parked my horse, ' he explains, gesturing with his thumb. 'I followed your tracks. '

'Obviously, ' Levi spits. 'I just spent three days following you around with titans snapping at my ass and what, I 'm not allowed to ride out on my own? '

'It 's going to get dark, ' Erwin explains, patiently. 'Your visibility will be poor, the snow will keep falling. It 's treacherous. '

Levi stands, rolling his eyes hard enough that Erwin is surprised they don 't snap out of his head. 'Oh, of

course, '

he drawls, 'yeah, it would be easy for me to get lost in all this fucking

space,

in this giant fucking

soup bowl

we live in, it 's not as if there aren 't any ' I don 't know,

walls, '

Levi looks fit to combust, 'as far as the fucking eye can see that I could follow, no, because if there were, ' his fists are balled by his hips, his shoulders straining, 'then Captain Erwin Smith wouldn 't have to

follow me

asking to hold my cock every time I tried to take a fucking

piss! '

He screams all of this, pretty much, mouth twisted with anger. Erwin blinks. More irregular behaviour. 'I see, ' he says, slowly, 'I 'm sensing some frustration. '

'Go

fuck yourself, '

Levi seethes. He 's says some other things, too, curses that aren 't fit to repeat.

'Well, ' Erwin shrugs, 'if you insist. ' He turns to trudge back to his horse. 'If you 're not back tomorrow morning, I 'll assume you fell through the ice. '

Levi is entitled to privacy as much as any other citizen. Perhaps Erwin is too ' what? Precious? He doesn 't know why. He just worries, he thinks. They all have vulnerabilities. He doesn 't know why he 's more attuned to Levi 's, or why he cares as much as he does. Maybe he just wants to possess him, he thinks morosely. Maybe that 's the truth of it.

It hits him square in the back of his head. Erwin thinks: ouch, and then, that 's cold, and then, snow? He smacks at his hair, pulls back his fingers to stares at the icy water on his glove. 'Levi? ' He demands, turning on his heel. 'Did you just assault ' '

Levi is gone. Gone? Erwin recoils, lets his eyes adjust. The pile of snow Levi had been working on is still lying in front of the pond, and there 's a shallow indent where he 'd been sitting, but Levi has disappeared. He 's thrown a snowball at the back of Erwin 's head and vanished.

I 'm in danger,

Erwin thinks, mildly. He takes a step back. 'Levi, ' he says, 'this is ' not appropriate behaviour. '

Out the corner of his eye he sees a flash of green cloak, but when he turns to face it all he gets is another ball of snow, smacked into his nose.

The trees!

He realises,

He 's hiding behind the trees, and he 's too damn fast.

He 's seen Levi move in training ' when he doesn 't want to be heard, you will not hear him, not until it 's too late.

Erwin brushes down his face, spitting out some of the dead leaves caught in the snow. 'Levi, ' he commands, in his best Captain 's voice, 'I insist that you put down your ' ' what, his weapons? His

snowballs?

' ' arms, and in return, I won 't make you clean the stables with a toothbrush. '

Silence. Wind whistling. Errant flakes of snow drop off from the branches above his head. The horses huff, calmly.

'Levi, ' Erwin tries again, near-enough genuinely unsettled by the total, unnatural, quiet. He turns towards the tree where the last assault had come from ' he checks for tracks in the snow. Carefully, as noiselessly as a man his size is capable, he creeps towards the tree, braces his hands on the trunk.

He jerks, fast, checks round the other side. Nothing. He stares at the prints in the snow, two feet that must have silently tracked their way from the pond to the edge of the clearing. But the tracks stop right there. Unless Levi has spontaneously developed the power of flight in the last two minutes '

The snow fell from the trees,

he realises, eyes widening. Quickly, he starts to backtrack over himself, stumbling over his cold feet. He looks up. Levi is perfectly balanced, two boots planted squarely on the wide branch above his head with eyes that could kill. 'Erwin, ' he says, politely, and jumps.

He shakes the snow ' every inch ' covering the firs and the branch, down onto Erwin 's head in a heavy 'whupf '. 'How 's that for plosive? ' He asks, landing lightly in front of him with a swagger that Erwin can only describe as triumphant. 'Are you cold? ' He presses. 'Well, it can get cold, you know, in the winter. ' He shakes his head in mock disapproval. 'Tsk, tsk, tsk. If only you 'd paid more attention, then you too might have realised this very simple and obvious fact. '

'Alright, alright, ' Erwin relents, hastily brushing his soaking hair back from his head, 'you 've made your point, you damn ' psychopath. I 'm a patronising bastard, is that what you want to hear? ' He wipes snow out of his eyes.

'Try again, ' Levi tells him politely, and another ball of snow smacks him in the face, the chest, in quick succession.

Erwin stumbles back. 'Levi! ' He cries, tipping into genuine irritation, 'Are you trying to kill me? ' He demands, holding up his arms in front of his face. 'I 'm defenceless! '

'Well, that 's your mistake, ' Levi says smugly, 'that 's rule number one, Erwin, you should never be defenceless. ' He scoops up snow in his hand, doesn 't even bother rolling it into a ball, just compacts it and throws it at Erwin with a wet 'thwack '.

'Levi, ' Erwin placates, palms outstretched and fingers spread, 'peace, okay? You 'll scare the horses. '

Levi is poised, snow in hand above his head. 'Go on, ' he prompts.

'Truce, ' Erwin tells him. 'I shouldn 't have followed you. I 'll turn around right now. I 'll even tell the others that you 've been called in on business to the Interior so you won 't be able to make the party, even though I

know

how much you wanted to go, ' Erwin tries.

Levi narrows his eyes. 'Apologise, ' he demands.

'I 'm sorry, ' Erwin says, easily. 'I shouldn 't have followed you, ' he adds, again.

Levi slowly drops his hand. He sniffs with the cold, brushes his nose with his thumb. It 's bright red. 'Yeah, well, ' he cleans snow off his hands, 'you apologise pretty. '

Erwin holds out his hand. 'Shake on it? '

The look on Levi 's face is, Erwin imagines, the same a farmer gives to a lamb he needs to kill. But he relents, and grips Erwin 's hand.

Erwin smiles. Maybe, there 's ' what, a split second where Levi realises his mistake? His eyes widen almost imperceptibly, start to focus, but it 's too late; Erwin 's already got his leg swiping Levi 's ankles out from under him, arm twisted behind his back. They both fall, crushingly, into the snow, rolling a little down the bank towards the pond.

'Bastard! ' Levi screams, 'Cheat! '

Erwin tries to sit himself on Levi 's hips, fumbling between their two cloaks, wrapped inconveniently around their arms. 'Do you think it 's funny?! ' He demands, 'To get me ' all cold? And wet?! '

'Yes! ' Levi shouts, slapping his hands in the snow, drawing it towards his head, 'I think it 's fucking hilarious! ' He cries, thwacking snow backwards into Erwin 's face.

He splutters, half-blinded, and tries to find Levi 's hands. If he could just pin him ' this is the only way to get him, Levi could never shift all his weight once he 's laid out on him. 'I 'm your ' ' Erwin dodges another wodge of snow, 'commanding officer! I reserve the right to ' ' Levi 's kicked his heel up into the small of Erwin 's back, and he yelps. 'You little fucking bastard, ' he seethes, pushing his chest forward into Levi 's back and shovelling snow into his face with a mindless fury, Levi wrapping his arms over his head to protect himself from the blows. 'I have a right! ' Erwin cries, shoving snow down the back of his shirt, 'To be

concerned! '

Levi is shaking beneath him. Erwin recoils. Has he hurt him? Has he crushed him? Is he

crying?

Erwin pushes up onto his knees, takes his weight off of Levi 's back. 'Levi? ' He asks, tentatively, 'Are you ' '

He twists beneath him. His hair is soaked through, plastered to his face as if he 's taken a dunk in the pond, icy flakes frosted to his eyebrows, nose bright red. He 's shaking and shaking ' no, there 's a word for it, it 's not a word Erwin has ever really associated with Levi, but '

He 's laughing.

Laughing,

raising his hands in front of his face, bracing for another assault. His eyes are crinkled ' there, Erwin thinks with wonder, he 'd have laugh-lines if he was the kind of man to smile. Levi 's laugh is chesty and breathless ' it 's not a man 's laugh, the kind you hear in bars and clubs and over a game of cards, it 's a boy 's: high and carefree. '

I, '

Levi is mocking him, wheezing, '

have a right! I am your commanding officer! I am concerned! '

But it 's infectious. Erwin hears himself break down, slowly, first with a snort, and then a laugh from his chest. He lets himself fall back on his ass, legs flat in front of him. 'Okay, I 'm pathetic, is that what you want to hear? ' He puffs.

Levi is laughing so hard he 's struggling to sit himself up, his hand slipping out from under him, the other pressed to his face. 'You 're so ' ' he 's choking, 'you 're so damn ' '

'What? ' Erwin grins. 'Pedantic? '

'Intense! ' Levi laughs. 'Lunatic! '

Erwin grabs a handful of snow. 'Watch yourself, ' he warns, but Levi is already standing, scampering away and ducking behind a tree. 'Come out and face me like a man! ' Erwin demands, shaking snow off his legs and throwing the ball aimlessly at Levi 's tree. He collects some more. 'No tricks, Levi, we fight like men. '

'Don 't you dare, ' Levi is saying, half his head nudging out from behind the trunk. 'Erwin, I don 't like the look in your eyes ' ' he frantically kicks up some snow in Erwin 's direction, rolls round the tree to avoid his blows, 'don 't you fucking dare, ' he says again, but his laughing betrays him. He cackles and takes flight, slipping in the snow in his haste, uncoordinated.

'What happened to humanity 's strongest? ' Erwin asks to the tree Levi has taken up residence behind, 'Afraid of a fair fight? '

'There are no fair fights! ' Levi calls, reminding him. 'And you have the advantage. '

'Do I? ' Erwin asks.

Levi dares to poke his head past the tree trunk. 'You have snow legs, ' he says, like that 's a real thing.

'Levi, ' Erwin scoffs, feeling his eyes water with laughter, 'what the fuck are snow legs? '

'Big legs, ' Levi is panting, 'big ' big tree-trunk legs. With feet like ' duck 's feet, ' he accuses, 'you don 't slip in snow, you crush it. '

Levi 's breath fogs in front of his red-tipped nose. He looks better like this. Erwin wishes he was like this all the time ' flushed and smiling. He wonders if there was ever a chance he could have met a Levi that didn 't hide knives in convenient places or scowl when people sing. That Levi might be softer, or smile more often. He might even laugh. That Levi might have someone who loves him, and who he loves in return, and might have never seen a titan in his life. He might have had a childhood. He might have been happy.

Maybe, he thinks. But then, he doubts he 'd be half the soldier he is now.

'Well alright then, ' Erwin hears himself relenting. 'I suppose I shouldn 't be harassing my subordinates with snowballs with my clearly unfair advantage of

snow legs

' '

'Wait, ' Levi asks, face puzzled, 'are you my commanding officer? You 've never mentioned that before, that 's crazy ' '

Erwin raises his snow above his head, ready to strike, and Levi giggles, hiding himself behind the tree. Erwin is freezing, his back aches, and his extremities are numb, but he wants to indulge this, he realises. He wants Levi to laugh and laugh. He thinks ' if he could bottle the sound of it, put it down to memory. He 's poking half his head past the trunk, daring him, and when Erwin throws '

He leaps, skidding, his cloak flapping behind him as he falls ass-first into the snow with a squawk. 'Oof, ' Erwin winces, sympathetically, bounding over to help. He thinks Levi has a point ' he really does smush the snow beneath his feet. But Levi is already standing, half-propped against a tree with a look like sheer determination on his face.

'Wait, ' he demands, magnanimously, arm extended. He braces each boot in the snow like a colt taking its first steps, then pushes himself off his back leg, skidding through the crushed snow. He gets a good distance to it, Erwin thinks mildly, fairly impressed.

'You 're going to hit your head on a tree, ' Erwin warns. 'I 'll have to carry you on the back of my horse. '

Levi isn 't really listening to him, apparently trying to perfect the technique, skidding left and right, trying to beat some personal record. He dips in and out from between the trees, cloak slashing green in all that grey, collecting snow on his shoulders.

'Aren 't you cold? ' Erwin asks.

'I 'm always cold, ' Levi replies, tongue stuck between his teeth the way it does when he 's puzzling out letters in Erwin 's office. 'Excuse me, ' he scoffs, rolling his eyes at the incredulous look on Erwin 's face as he slides his feet through the snow, knees bent, flattening to the grass. 'I only have about twenty-five years to catch up on. '

'Are you ' building some kind of flight path? '

'What the fuck 's a flight path? ' Levi calls over his shoulder. He 's going to take a running leap at it, Erwin realises.

'Careful ' ' he starts, but Levi has already charged, belly-flopping onto the ground and propelling himself along the ground like an otter through water. He 's worked up a good speed, but Erwin 's nerves can 't really take it ' he is absolutely certain he 's going to crash head-first into a tree. 'Levi, ' he tries, scampering to keep up with him, 'don 't you think we could do something a little less dangerous? '

'Dangerous? ' Levi scoffs, and picks himself up like he 's ready to go again. 'I just spent three days fighting titans. '

'Well sure, but it 's getting dark, and I knew a boy once who slipped on ice and knocked his brains out his ears. He ended up a vegetable, Levi. Do you want to end up a vegetable? '

'Goddamn are you my mother?! '

Erwin wraps his hand in the end of his cloak to stop him from launching another offensive. 'If I have to be, ' he insists.

Levi gags and tears himself free. 'Well fine, ' he demands, 'what do normal people do when it snows, then? '

'Sit by the fire, drink tea. I like to read, ' Erwin supplies, and thinks it 's probably an un-subtle suggestion.

'When you weren 't an old man, though, ' Levi presses.

Erwin shrugs, braces his hands on his hips. 'I 'd build snowmen, I guess. '

'Men of snow? ' Levi looks a little taken aback. 'Why? '

'Why not? '

'So ' what, you can make anything, and you choose to just make ' a man? '

'Not really, ' Erwin says, a little defensive, 'it 's just three balls stacked on top of each other. And I 'd stick my father 's hat on top, and steal his scarf, and one time my mother threatened to send me to an orphanage because I plucked the buttons off her coat to use them for eyes, ' Erwin remembers, fondly. She had been in one of her better moods, though. Snow did that for her. It 's strange what it does to people ' all that white must feel like a fresh start. He frowns. "No offence," he adds.

Levi has his hand extended, is watching the flakes settle on his bare skin. Erwin tsks, takes his hand between his gloves. 'Levi, ' he admonishes, 'your fingers are blue, they 're going to fall off. '

'Well they haven 't yet, ' Levi scoffs, and then ' again, look at that, look at what it does to his face ' he grins. It turns him into a different person. He takes his other hand and holds them up to his mouth, breathing hot air over them frantically, although Levi seems unbothered, more amused by his ministrations.

'You 're soaked, ' Erwin mutters, rubbing his hands between his gloves. 'You 're going to catch your death. '

'What else? ' Levi asks him. 'I mean ' what else would you do, when it snowed? '

Erwin exhales his breath over the tips of Levi 's fingers. 'Uh, ' he thinks, distractedly, 'my mother would make cinnamon milk. It just a bit of sugar, cinnamon, obviously, warmed over the stove. '

'Woah, ' Levi says, earnestly, 'that sounds good. '

'It was, ' Erwin agrees. When was the last time he had cinnamon milk? He thinks his mother still made it for him, after father died, but he imagined himself too old for it, too grand. He 'd left it, undrunk, which was about as cruel as he could get. His poor mother. And it seems such a flagrant waste now, in the face of Levi 's sincerity, his amazement at a thing Erwin just took for granted. 'If it snowed like this, ' Erwin explains, 'that means school would be cancelled. My father and I would have the whole day to ourselves. Sometimes he would organise snowball fights, for the children, ' Erwin smiles recalling it. 'Other times we 'd just ' walk. '

'Walk where? '

Erwin shrugs. Levi 's fingers have turned raw red, but the blueish tinge has faded. 'Just walk. Along the creek, to the next village over. Probably for the same reason you did. It 's a novelty, I guess, when it 's this fresh. ' He looks up at the sky, at all those fat fluffy flakes drifting down around their heads.

'Erwin, ' Levi asks, breathless, hand held up with wonderment. 'How long does this last? '

Erwin stares at him, the breath that fogs in front of his face, the red-tipped skin, soft eyes. He 's never seen Levi 's eyes so soft. 'The snow? ' He hears himself stumble, stutter.

'Yeah. How long does it stay for? '

Erwin shrugs. 'Depends. Sometimes it stays the whole winter. In milder years, it thaws and melts and snows again. First snowfall tends to be heavy, though. '

'We only get slush, under the ground. Cold sewage, ' Levi says, and his nose wrinkles. 'It clogs the cisterns, and when the thaw would set in ' anyway. You 'd never know something so beautiful could make something so disgusting. '

Erwin raises his brow. 'Oh? ' He says, 'Beautiful? Are my ears lying? Did Levi just express

admiration

for something ' '

'Shut up, ' Levi mutters, and it 's not the snow turning the tips of his ears red. 'What, I 'm not allowed to find things ' nice? I 'm not a savage, Erwin. '

'Of course you 're not, ' Erwin agrees, taking his horse 's reins and brushing down his coat. He mounts and watches Levi feed his horse ice from his palm. 'We should go before it gets dark, ' he says, regretfully.

Levi dutifully mounts and walks his horse to the edge of the clearing. He looks back over his shoulder, frowning. 'I 've been here before, ' he tells him.

'Really? ' It 's just trees and a marshy pond. 'How can you be sure? '

But Levi looks sure. 'The first time I went Above ' Kenny, ' he explains. 'We stopped here that first night, ' he says, looking up at the branching canopy of trees.

'Oh, ' Erwin replies, because he doesn 't know what else to say.

'Yeah, ' Levi agrees, absently. He clicks his tongue, spurs his horse into a trot. 'C 'mon, ' he says, 'I 'll race you. '

Erwin blinks, takes off after him. 'It 's not safe, ' he hears himself saying, 'if we hit ice the horses will slip. '

'So let 's not hit ice, ' Levi teases, with a sly look from the side of his eyes. Beyond the clearing, everything is grey; grey and white. From here, with the walls capped with snow, they 're almost invisible. You could pretend they didn 't exist at all, if you were that way inclined.

And Levi is laughing again, carried fast across the fields, the snow crumbling against his skin. 'Look at it, Erwin! ' He cries, his arms outstretched. 'Look at all this

space! '

Erwin watches him. Head tipped back against the slanting whorls of snow, and cloak soaked dark green around his shoulders, and through clouds, a sharp slit of setting sun cutting across his face. He could be a bird, Erwin thinks, about to take flight. Or ' no, not a bird. Levi is steadfastly grounded, and beautifully human.

He 's more human than any of us

, Erwin knows, and doesn 't know why he knows it. His thighs dig into his mount 's sides, urging her faster; his cloak whips behind him as he rides, perfectly balanced, a crack of green against an endless grey sky and perfect white fields.

It hadn 't occurred to him, is the truth. Erwin has visited almost all the land between the walls and has never really seen it, he realises. Levi sees this world with fresh eyes: isn 't that such a thing, that despite everything, Levi can find childish delight in the things Erwin takes for granted? A sky, fresh air, snow.

'Yes, ' Erwin murmurs, staring at him, 'yes, it surely is something, ' he agrees.