Will you catch me if I should fall?

Hanji leaps aside as a broken rod plunges to the ground where she had been sitting. "Looks like they broke another."

"At this rate, they'll have to end sooner than usual," comments Armin. His eyes stay fixed on the treetops where Levi and Mikasa weave around branches thick as a titan's torso.

After the retaking of Wall Maria and clearing all remaining titans, the Scouting Regiment had found themselves a little out of work. They were currently preparing for an expedition to finally see the ocean, and Grisha's notebooks were being thoroughly studied, but otherwise, the Scouts had little to do except help keep down civil unrest. Much of their abundant free time is spent on weapons testing and training - that's what this is. Captain Levi and Mikasa had both long since tired of fighting against their comrades, having to hold back their considerable strength. So little is known about the Ackerman bloodline they share, so who better to test against than each other?

They come out here a few times a week with fully stocked ODM gear - Hanji uses their sparring matches as a testing field for her prototype improvements to the gear. They don't use proper steel swords, no that would be a waste; instead, they use sparring swords of lashed-together bamboo that break far too easily. Levi tends to be the victor of these sessions, but more often than not they come to a draw when both are out of swords. Both come out with their fair share of bruises and cuts.

Eren, Armin, and Hanji watch their duel from the safety of the ground as Mikasa grabs another sword - they keep a stockpile nestled in the lower branches. She's barely taken to higher ground before Levi is on her, weapons clashing together.

He has unmatchable speed on his side and years of battle experience while Mikasa's strength may surpass his own and her attacks are more than wholehearted, not bothering to save her stamina. They each have their strengths and weaknesses but in the end, they consider the other an equal match for their abilities.

Both have grown immeasurably now they can train to their full ability. Against an opponent as good as himself, Levi has come to quicker recognise openings in his target's defences. Mikasa, for example, has a temper just as hot as her adopted brother; she is usually smarter about using that to her advantage, but when she gets really fired up then she starts throwing her punches without giving much of a damn where they land. And she always drops her guard when she does.

He spends the first half of the battle parrying her attacks, getting her blood boiling. All he needs is to get her going and then he has the advantage.

And when Levi gets her how he wants her, he attacks in full. Their swords bang together again and again and again until they snap and clatter to the ground fathoms below them, leaving their audience on high alert for falling debris.

As well as Mikasa can match the strength of Levi's blows, his speed is too much for her. She grits her teeth after a particularly hard hit to the shoulder and resolves to end it. Today doesn't end in a draw. Today she plans to win.

She intentionally lets the next few blows land, watching his movements to glean some of his technique to use against him. But Levi's agility is too much, hardly giving her a moment to study him before he's on her again. She grits her teeth and instead turns her attention to the lines of his gear. Levi may be quick but his gear is only made to work so fast.

Her next attack is not to the man himself but to the hook digging into a tree trunk, The line snaps under her strength.

Levi barely has a moment to react before the ground is coming up to meet him a lot faster than he would ever like. The wind rushes past his ears but even through it, he can hear the telltale click of jammed ODM gear as he pulls the trigger on the good line. "Fucking- son of a-" And all he can do now really is resign himself to this fate. He isn't going to die by the hand of a titan as he tries to save his comrade or the Marleyians across the sea. Nope, he's going to meet death in a lame ass training sessions like a fucking pussy. Here lies Captain Levi, went out like a little bitch. Humanity's strongest? Bullshit. He got his ass beat by a little Asian girl-

Light flashes and then Levi's back hits something - not the cold dirt he expected but something almost verging on hot with a bit of give to it. It still knocks the wind out of him and he lays there for a moment, coughing and gasping as he struggles to refill his lungs.

Blinking away black spots, Levi slowly gets to his feet with a bit of difficulty; the yielding surface is hard for his unsteady legs. Then he realises what he is standing on and snorts. He looks up at large green eyes that almost seem to glow, a disconnected line of teeth that are made just for devouring mankind. "Last I checked no one gave you permission to shift, Eren."

It's a light-hearted jab as Eren has proved time and time again that he is humanity's saviour but it still has Eren making a disappointed rumbling noise in his chest. He brings his hand up for Levi to stand at eye level - fuck, his big green puppy dog eyes are just as adorable now blown up five times the normal size as they are in his human form. Levi sighs and pats his nose; his hand looks dismally small against it. "Fine, thanks for not letting me become a grease stain on the dirt, I guess."

Eren perks up immediately and grumbling he makes in his throat is like the whining of a happy dog. Levi can't help the smile that pulls at the corner of his thin lips. Even as a fifteen-meter class titan, his mannerisms are undoubtedly Eren. Ever the annoying but endearing little brat. Levi steps forward in that giant palm to press a kiss against the defined edge of his cheekbone. "You're such a big fucking sap."

And maybe Levi is too because he loves the way Eren wears all his emotions right there for everyone to see; how his ears wiggle happily; how he's more like a giant puppy in this form than a horrific man-eating beast. So many pompous shitbags in the interior may still think he's a monster, may still campaign for him to be put down, but no matter what form he's in Levi will always be drawn to him because he is the one insufferable brat that managed to worm his way into Levi's guarded heart.

"Eren!" Hanji squeals below and they both shift their gaze down to her as she all but drools over the titan in front of her. She could work with him countless times but she would never lose her fascination, it seems. "That was so quick! I barely even realised what happened!" She tentatively touches his ankle, her face flushed with excitement. "Is your titan perhaps a little smaller than usual? Such control, Eren! We'll have to see how much you can control your size-"

"Oh, keep it in your pants, four eyes," scoffs Levi with a roll of his eyes.

"Think of the advantage we could have if Eren could will himself to only four or five meters!" she prattles on. Levi clicks his tongue. A man who openly gambled with human lives, a woman who becomes a drooling mess in front of man-eating monsters, and a boy who can turn in to one of such monsters at will; sometimes the thought crosses Levi's mind that he might consider getting better friends. "It's certainly worth working on at the very least, wouldn't you agree?"

"Hanji, you'd eat titan shit in the name of science. Stop trying to present your insanity as reasonable," Levi shouts down. "And if you say anything about-" He breaks off when something wet and slimy pushes flat against his back and drags upward, causing him to stumble forward in the process while it soaks through his uniform. Regaining his footing, Levi whirls around to glare at the titan. "I know you did not just fucking lick me, Jaeger," he snarls.

Eren lets his tongue loll out before he flicks the end of it against Levi's polished boots, leaving them covered in slobber. Hanji screams as she dances from foot to foot. "Levi! You must collect a sample of his saliva!"

This time the tip of Eren's tongue brushes against Levi's cheek and he splutters, stepping back in the titan's palm quickly. "Disgusting. I get it, you oaf, you want attention. Quit fucking licking me."

A whine rumbling through his chest, Eren pushes his nose gently against the captain in apology. Levi keeps up a steely glare but then scoffs and scratches his coarse skin. "Really, who needs a dog when you're around?"

The familiar whir of ODM gear drones through the air as Mikasa comes to land on Eren's shoulder. She drops the controllers in their sheaths on her chest and grabs a thick, dark strand of hair. "Captain, I-"

"Pretty cheap move there, soldier," Levi cuts in while his hand moves down Eren's cheek to scratch at his jaw, the titan groaning when Levi comes across a particularly good spot. "But those who fight fair rarely taste victory. You bested me, Ackerman; this round goes to you."

Mikasa beams at the pride in Levi's grey eyes, quick to bring her fist over her heart in salute. "Thank you, Sir."

"I'll be watching for such a tactic next time. As for now, why don't you and Arlert get to the mess hall? About time for supper."

"Sir!" Mikasa salutes again before she takes off, swinging to the ground.

Levi watches the two walk off with Hanji. He experimentally squeezes the trigger of his gear only for it to click ineffectively. "Damn thing," he mutters but wastes no more breath on it. He won't be able to fix it until they're back to headquarters. His gaze turns to meet Eren's bright green eyes, only made more vibrant by the dark skin around them. "On to you then."

Eren nods; he kneels and brings his hand to his shoulder. Levi carefully steps onto the ridge of his clavicle and treads across his shoulder blade, drawing his swords. "Keep still," he says before cutting through the flesh of Eren's nape. He turns his face away at the steam that pours from the wound, giving it a moment, then pulls Eren's body from the muscles that wrap around his limbs.

He helps Eren off the carcass as it begins to steam and evaporate - though Eren has gotten better at staying coherent during and after his transformation. "Thank you, Sir," he says when Levi offers him a waterskin, chugging it quickly.

Levi examines the burns below his eyes that run down the length of his cheeks. "You shouldn't have done that. You're supposed to be recovering. But… Thanks for covering my ass."

Grinning at the acknowledgement, Eren shrugs. "You're lucky I managed it in time; I was a little preoccupied."

"Preoccupied?" Levi raises a thin brow in question.

Eren's grin gets wider as he meets his superior's eyes. "You look dead sexy when you train."

"Of course, I don't know what else I was expecting." The captain may scoff in response but there is a bit inside of him that preens in response.

"Well," Eren laughs. "I oughta at least help you out of these wet clothes, right?"

Staring at him, Levi crosses his arms. Finally he clicks his tongue. "Tch. Meet me in the showers in ten minutes."