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It was the first warm day of the year. The temperature had reached twenty-four degrees Celsius but a soft breeze kept the two men sitting on the side of the hill feeling comfortable. It carried the sound of the raven's teasing grumbles and the blonde's resounding laughter down to the river that trickled by. The reeds tentatively reached down to dip their feathery fingers into the water before jumping back up again, quivering almost excitedly as ripples spread across the glassy surface.
"You can't say that to Nile, Levi, regardless of what you think of him," Erwin reprimanded half-heartedly. "We have to maintain a professional relationship."
All he got in response was a scoff as Levi plucked a daisy from the swaying grass by his side. They'd had many conversations about how Levi conducted himself, but the commander supposed that it didn't really matter anymore. Everyone knew that it was simply the way Levi was so most didn't take offence to his unrestricted words and opinions.
Erwin laid back on the grass as he watched Levi fiddling with the flower, carefully pulling each petal off before moving on to scrape the seeds away. Only when the stem had also been snapped and split did he throw it in the direction of the river.
"Erwin." The smooth voice hit his ears and he brought his gaze up to Levi's unexpectedly soft eyes. Moments where the petite man displayed his emotions so openly were few and far between and Erwin always held onto them; cherished his relaxed facial expressions and the way the rigid set to his shoulders seemed to ease. "Do you think that we'll be the same when we escape the walls?"
"What do you mean?"
Levi seemed to consider the question as he moved to lay beside Erwin, steely blue eyes now on the sky rather than his superior. "Well... at the moment our conversations tend to revolve around our work. The titans, strategies, our duties, etcetera." He paused. "When we kill the last titan we won't have that to talk about. We might not even be the same people anymore when we don't have that pressure. Do you think that... I mean... will you still love me?"
Erwin would have answered straight away if it wasn't for the fact that he knew Levi wouldn't believe him if he didn't think about it then explain. A quick answer would only receive a raised eyebrow and sceptical look. So he stayed silent and pretended to think for a while.
"I do think so, yes. Parts of us may change but the basic foundations of who we are will remain the same. You will still be you. Intelligent, crude, good... all of the qualities that draw me to you will still be there."
He moved his hand from where it rested on his stomach to lace his fingers with Levi's, and his lips twitched when he felt Levi respond by gripping his hand. He'd come a long way since Erwin found him in the Underground. He was no longer a closed off thug. Not towards Erwin, anyway.
"I believe that I'll love you until I take my dying breath," he said softly, his smile growing as he felt Levi squeezing his hand.
"Me too, Erwin."