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As the days grew colder and snow covered entire towns in a white, powdery blanket, the annual winter holidays were finally announced for the Survey Corps. Cadets and officers alike packed their belongings and loaded them on hired carriages with enthusiasm, the thought of warm home-cooked meals and the smiles on their family’s faces by the fireside clouding their minds.
Gazing at the departing crowd through the frosted glass of Erwin’s office, Hange hummed.
“The year flew by real fast this time. Say, what are you both going to do for the next fifteen days?”
“There’s a lot of paperwork I have left to do,” Erwin said, buried in said paperwork, “Including the signing of the official death certificates of the soldiers who died in the recent expedition. Needless to say, I’ll be coming here everyday, holiday or not.”
“Being a commander sure is tough, huh… What about you, Levi?”
Levi did not look up from the three steel mugs he was pouring hot tea into. “I don’t have anywhere to go other than the training grounds.”
Hange raised an eyebrow, “Even during the winter?”
“Of course. The holidays are not an excuse to dawdle around. A soldier must be prepared at all times. You best keep that in mind, Shitty Glasses.”
“Who do you think I am?” Hange protested as they saw Levi place a cup of tea next to Erwin, who muttered his thanks while poring intensely on a document. “I too have grand plans that I’m working on.”
“Is that so? And what might those be?” Levi asked, eyes narrowed as he handed Hange their cup. The heat of the piping hot tea seeped through the mug, warming Hange’s cold fingers instantly. They took a long sip, relishing the searing heat on their tongue, as they let Levi’s question simmer in a dramatic pause.
“It’s top secret.”
“Knowing you, it’s yet another reckless plan to get a pet titan for yourself.”
“Hange is tasked with the development of a special target restraining weapon that can capture titans alive without any casualties,” Erwin replied without missing a beat.
“Too soon! Erwin, I was planning to let him go in circles for a while! Stop ruining the fun.”
“Sorry.”
Levi hummed, refilling Erwin’s half-empty cup before taking a sip from his own. “How far is it coming along then?”
“I just got done with the test blueprint and approved it from our trusty commander here," Hange lightly patted Erwin's head, "I’ll be working on the nitty-gritties of its construction and figure out what materials we’ll need so that we can calculate the number of sponsors we’ll have to lick the boots of to get it done by the next expedition.”
“Sounds quite troublesome.” Levi refilled Hange’s cup. “I don’t know how you two manage to get out of those meetings with even a shred of your dignity intact.”
“You know how it goes, Levi," Hange shrugged, "Anything for the cause, dedicate your hearts, yada yada.”
Levi let out a sarcastic huff as Erwin shot Hange his steel sharp ‘Commander’ glance before returning to the contracts on his desk. Hange stared at the tendrils of white steam from the surface of the golden tea curl in the air. They opened their mouth, hesitated, and closed it again, wondering whether they really wanted to go ahead with what they had in their mind or not.
“Why do you look so constipated all of a sudden?” Hange’s indecision was not missed by Levi. “Spit it out.”
That was enough for Hange to gather their courage.
“Say, are you both free three days from now?” they posed a nonchalant question.
“Mmm... not really,” Erwin hummed thoughtfully as he approved a receipt. “But I must be done with the immediate paperwork by then.”
“You, Levi?”
“Depends on why you ask.”
“You’re free then!” Hange blatantly ignored Levi’s narrowed gaze. “Great! I recently came across a research that said that working in one place for too long can dampen productivity. So, in order to get us all fired up again, I propose a short trip!”
“A trip?” Levi repeated unsurely, as Erwin paused his paperwork and turned towards Hange, wondering what they were up to this time.
“Where?”
“To the illustrious hub of science and engineering,” Hange beamed at them, splaying their hands forward and accidentally spilling some tea on the carpet, much to Levi’s dismay. “To the Industrial City!”
—
Levi was sick and tired of being packed like luggage in a cramped, shaky carriage on the way to the Industrial City. Of course, Hange had to bring a huge trunk of materials and belongings with them. What he did not expect was Erwin following suit, bringing a suitcase with an intent to finish some long-pending work he had with the engineers as well. And now, there was not even an inch of space within the carriage to move his butt.
To make matters worse, Erwin and Hange did not seem to be bothered by that at all. In fact, they were happily discussing his ears off about some incomprehensible technical details related to the device they were constructing, leaving behind a bitter aftertaste of jealousy in the back of his throat- that he immediately shut out. Levi disliked that feeling of inferiority that still creeped up within him in the presence of well-educated people like Hange and Erwin. At moments like these, he felt as illiterate as he was back in the underground.
Choosing instead to stare outside the window than to ponder about his insecurities, he watched a blurring montage- of children throwing snowballs, overworked mothers purchasing vegetables, and a group of friends jogging in the light snow- playing in front of him until the blabber in the ratty carriage was interrupted by a growl of hunger from Erwin’s stomach.
Levi glanced sharply at him. “You skipped breakfast for work today yet again, didn’t you?”
Erwin looked sheepish. “I wasn’t going to, but I had an urgent request from the Premier himself.”
Hange suddenly seemed interested in the view outside.
“Oi, Four-Eyes, don’t tell me that you too-”
“Oh look, we have arrived!” they yelled, drowning the rest of Levi’s words as they pointed out to a large iron gate that stood a few meters away. The door was flung open before the carriage came to a complete halt, and Hange dragged a grateful Erwin outside, away from Levi’s reproachful glare. Sighing, Levi stepped out of the carriage, stretching his aching bones as he got down.
“About time,” he grumbled, his eyes tracing the impressive view that lay beyond the iron bars of the main gate.
The Industrial City was a major hub of military production located within Wall Rose. As the center of production of all weaponry- including the ODM gear, blades, guns, and iceburst fuel required for the military- along with uniforms and other equipment, the city was teeming with MP patrols who maintained very high security. Its location itself was a secret, unknown to common people, but being higher ups in the military, Erwin and his section commanders were privy to the exact location of the Industrial City.
Leaving Erwin to pay for the carriage and Hange to register for entry, Levi stood outside the giant iron gate, looking into the fenced city sprawled in front of him in a haphazard pile of stacked, gray buildings and stone paved streets. The workers milled about in soot-stained sweaters, some driving open carriages filled with wooden crates and frozen metal junk. In some distance, factories lined the streets, their tall chimneys shooting thick black smoke into the sky, like a signal flare made for titans.
Once the formalities were done, Erwin and Hange joined him and strode into the city, the latter being excited to be back there yet again. Out of the three of them, Hange was the one who had been to the Industrial City most often, thanks to their domain of work. Levi had heard about the Industrial City before, but this was the first time he was actually paying it a visit in-person. Like the under Underground City, it was a world of its own. However, it was well-maintained despite the old and oddly shaped buildings that were so prevalent. The streets were wide enough for two carriages to pass side-by-side easily. Workshops were melded together with homes, and Levi noticed two children in dirty clothing taking a peek at them from below a worktable.
As they strolled through the street, another growl- this time, from Hange’s stomach- interrupted them and Levi came to a halt.
“You know everything about this city, right?” Levi frowned at Hange, “Then you must also know a decent restaurant we can head to right now.”
A five minute walk later, they were sitting inside one of the small restaurants that lined the streets. They ordered some food and made themselves comfortable on a table by the fireplace, removing their thick cloaks and hanging them on the back of their chairs.
“This city stinks to high hell,” Levi put forth what he thought was a perfectly good conversation starter.
“That’s the smell of the chemicals,” Hange waved off his complaint. “You’ll get used to it.”
“I know I will, considering I’ve been working alongside you for so long,” he retorted.
“Hahaha, there’s no way I smell half as bad! However, at least it looks like I’ve trained your noses well.”
Erwin chuckled, “Out of everything you’ve done, that’s not something to be proud of Hange. Once every three days, I find myself pitying Miche.”
“Erwin, stop taking Levi’s side!”
“I’m just telling you as it is,” their Commander said with an easy shrug.
The food arrived- a plate of vegetable stuffed omlette, a bowl of salad and some tomato soup each. While the food wasn’t the best they had ever tasted, anything was better than the thick gruel and the dry biscuits they were used to in the military, so they polished it off gratefully.
Erwin raised a well-groomed eyebrow at Levi’s plate, which contained the smallest portion of them all. “Is that enough for you?”
“Unlike the two of you, I had some breakfast before coming here.”
Hange was already digging into their food like it was the most delicious thing they’ve ever had. “Carebul, Lebi,” they said with a full mouth, trying their best not to spit food all over as they talked, “We hab a vong day ahead of uf, ib you don’ hab enou’ bood, you’ baint.”
“You are the one to talk, Shitty Glasses,” Levi pulled a disgusted face, “If I didn’t drag your drowsy ass away by your collar that day, your pet titan would have been chomping on you this exact same way.”
After they were finished with their lunch, Hange led them to one of the bigger factory buildings where they met the Head of Engineering to discuss the feasibility of the blueprint for the Special Target Restraining Device with her, and to know the extent of raw materials required to make them for the Survey Corps. The meeting lasted around two hours, after which they left to address the engineering team in their workspace and briefed them about the creation of the weapon.
As the Commander, Erwin had to join Hange and the Head of Engineering in their address to the rest of the engineers who had gathered around them as the three stood on a small podium next to a chalkboard. Levi, however, declined to join them, since he had nothing to do with the creation of the weapon anyway. Instead, he chose to remain in the opposite corner of the room where he stood listening to them explain the process and clarify doubts that the rest of the engineers had about its creation and functioning, trying to learn something himself.
An elderly man came and stood next to Levi, who shifted, giving him space. The man seemed to be in his late sixties, rather slender for his height, his bony frame dressed by a shirt that seemed rather loose for him. He scratched his graying hair thoughtfully as he stared at the podium where Hange and Erwin stood along with the head of the engineers, addressing the employees. Then he leaned towards Levi, who stiffened at the unwelcome attempt at conversation about the technicalities of whatever machine they were building.
But to his surprise, the old man simply said, “Do you know Hange well?”
Levi turned towards him, keeping his face neutral. “I’m their comrade in the Survey Corps.”
“Ah.”
“Is there something you need from me?”
“Nothing much,” the man looked like he was rolling the words around in his tongue. “It’s just...I’d like you to watch over them for me.”
Levi blinked. This was an odd request for a stranger to make, so he decided to pry out some information from him.
“That goes without saying. But why ask this from me all of a sudden? What are you to Hange?”
“Just their father’s old friend,” the old man smiled sheepishly, straightening his crumbled and grease-stained shirt. “I’ve known Hange since they were a curious little child who tinkered with toys and swallowed a key they stole from the Military Police once.” He let out a short laugh at Levi’s concerned expression. “It’s okay, they turned out alright.” Gazing at Hange, who was answering the employees’ questions animatedly, he continued, “Seeing them like this in the company of people they fit with and doing things they love makes me happy. Their old man must have been happy too.”
“Hange’s father?” Levi guessed, very intrigued by this new piece of information. “What happened to him?”
“The MPs took him away years ago. I don’t know if he’s alive or dead right now. He was a good man, and he made it his mission to make people’s lives easier using technology. He and his wife would create experimental artificial limbs for the members of the Survey Corps who lost theirs during expeditions. In fact, they are the reason the Industrial City has indoor plumbing in every house. Things were going fine until the MPs arrested him one day. The reason is still unknown, but I remember him mentioning that he was working on making guns that were better than the ones we have right now.”
He sighed, slouching against the wall next to him. “That was around fifteen years ago. After their father’s arrest by the MPs, Hange became a little… unhinged. They often got into trouble with the MPs- and even the Order of the Walls- by doing something stupid like digging at the wall with a shovel or stealing their keys. I once saw them throwing snowballs at the patrols from the roof while cackling hysterically in the middle of the night and I realized why the whole city called them mad. It worried their mother to no end. Even the MPs started avoiding their place.”
For a brief moment, Levi was silent. If there was one thing that hearing the story made him realize, it was how secretive Hange truly was about their past. Despite their talkative nature, Hange never went into any detail of their family or events of their childhood.
“I see,” Levi’s voice was barely a whisper- for he was talking to himself more than he was talking to the man next to him, “That must be Hange’s goal then. They pretended to be insane so that the MPs would leave their mother alone.”
The old man’s story made sense. It must have been risky for Hange to continue their love for science and research at home with the MPs' scrutiny on them, so that must have been the reason they enlisted in the Survey Corps in the first place- for the opportunity to secure research funds directly from the military, in a regiment furthest away from the MPs. And being a part of the Survey Corps eventually gave them the incentive and purpose to use their talents for the betterment of humanity.
“Either way, I feel proud to see them standing tall and looking ahead like this.” The old man’s brown eyes darkened, “I still hear the MPs spewing the cruelest rumors around them and their work. At the very least, I want you and your commander to know that Hange is not that kind of person.”
“Don’t fret about it, we know that much already,” Levi waved off his concerns. “Why else do you think they’re a trusted Section Commander?” He looked up at Hange who was drawing the structure of the weapon on the chalkboard, their brown mop of a ponytail bobbing as they did. “While they still haven’t toned down that bat-shit-crazy aspect you were talking about, and even if that makes my hands itch to pummel them sometimes…”
He thought about the first time Hange had met him- back when he was with Furlan and Isabel- and how they were the first person to extend a hand of friendship, while the rest of the SC were actively avoiding the three of them. He remembered the shock he felt when Hange complimented him about his techniques and gushed over him so freely, when he was outright ready to stab them with a knife in case they had heard his plan to assassinate Erwin. They had handed Isabel some cookies and had promised to take the three of them out for dinner after the expedition, a promise they managed to keep after pursuing him for a long time, even if it was him alone- out of the trio- who appeared for the dinner in the end.
“...I’m yet to see anyone with a kinder heart.”
—
Erwin was standing outside a hardware store with Levi, both of them waiting for Hange to purchase whatever items they needed to make a prototype of the device. As Erwin was going through the approximate budget plan that was handed to him earlier by the Head Engineer as he waited, he felt Levi shuffle closer to him, kicking at the brown snow slush below his feet.
“It will be difficult to find a carriage that will take us back to the Headquarters so late in the evening. We should find an inn to stay in.”
“Oh don’t worry about that, Hange has us covered.”
“Hange has booked an inn?”
“Even better. We are crashing over at the Zoe household tonight.”
“At Hange’s place?” Levi gaped at him in disbelief, “How far is it from the Industrial City?”
Erwin nonchalantly pointed to a building at his back with his thumb. “We’re standing right in front of it, Levi.”
He watched Levi open and close his mouth soundlessly like a goldfish for a moment. Then the Captain got his bearings together.
“You’re telling me Hange used to live in the Industrial City?”
“You’re telling me you don’t know even after five years of working with them?”
“How can I when Hange tells me more about the titans’ digestive systems than themself?” He gritted his teeth. “Wait, how do you know this?”
“Well, Hange invited me over to their place once when I was their section commander a couple years before you arrived in the SC.” The corner of his lips lifted at an old memory of headpats, warm hugs and hot potato stew. “Their mother is a very generous woman.”
Levi massaged his temples with his pale fingers. “For some reason, I never imagined Hange having a normal family or a home that still exists.”
“Then what did you even imagine?”
“That Hange just popped up out of nowhere when the Survey Corps started existing. Like a mascot or something.”
Erwin blinked and then his whole frame shook. He laughed loudly, startling the oblivious, grumpy man next to him.
“What’s so funny there?” Hange’s voice cut through the night as they walked out of the shop, their hands filled with multiple cardboard boxes of all sizes stacked on top of each other, covering their face.
“Levi said that it never crossed his mind that you might have a home of your own,” Erwin chuckled, much to Levi’s utter embarrassment.
Hange poked their head from the side of the boxes to see them and grinned, their eyes sparkling in amusement. “I don’t blame you, Levi, at times I do forget that myself. I spend most of my weekends at the military research facility or the library after all.”
“Whatever,” Levi tried to brush the incident off, “Is that all you wanted to buy?”
“Yep. Let’s go!” As Hange tried to do a happy little skip, one of the boxes thudded on their head and hit the ground, its fall fortunately cushioned by snow. “On second thought,” they winced, “If you both can hold on to some of these for me before we go, I’ll be grateful.”
Hange’s home was on the second and the topmost floor of a rickety old building, with a narrow stone staircase worn with time that allowed only one person to climb through it at once. Erwin let Hange lead the way, and they waited as Hange knocked at the wooden door thrice. After a few moments, there were muffled footsteps and the door was cracked open by an elderly woman.
Erwin smiled at Fonsa Zoe, who looked almost the same as the last time he had met her- around six years ago. Her salt and pepper hair was put up in a messy bun, her brown eyes and hooked nose bearing a striking resemblance to Hange’s. She grinned- a few teeth missing- as she opened the door wide.
“Ah, look who finally remembered their address!” she beamed.
“Hi, mum,” Hange’s attempt to hug her was thwarted by the boxes on their hand, so they sighed and decided to take care of them first.
“Erwin! My, you look more tall and handsome than ever!”
Erwin reciprocated a warm hug from Mrs. Zoe, remembering that she had previously asked him to address her by her name. “It’s lovely to see you again, Fonsa.”
“I’ve always been meaning to ask you but what pomade do you use?” Fonsa asked, reaching up to give him a head pat again.
“Usually the one from Reeves,” Erwin indulged her, “It’s not too heavy on the pocket, but I do quite like the finish.”
“Mum, you have another guest too,” Hange’s muffled voice came from within their room. As if on cue, Levi appeared from Erwin’s towering shadow. Fonsa looked at the man who was the same height as her and lit up like a lamp. “You must be Captain Levi!” she exclaimed, “Forgive me, I didn’t see you before, but Hange has written a lot about you to me in their letters.”
Fonsa was looking up and down at Levi like she was examining a specimen. Erwin found her resemblance to Hange’s behavior uncanny. “Although, I must admit,” she continued thoughtfully, “I pictured you a bit differently in my mind, like a grumpy little cat or something-”
“Mum-” Hange warned from inside their room.
“-Then again, Hange is the kind of person who would make titans sound like cute little critters…”
Levi shot him a glance that said Quick, tell me what to do now!
Erwin felt a slight twinge of pity for him. This was probably the first time he was meeting a parent of a person he could call his friend. And it looked like he had no clue how to behave in such a situation.
“You’ve nailed his true nature alright,” Erwin supplied helpfully to Fonsa.
“Is that so?” she laughed, “Well then, boys, make yourselves at home! I’ve prepared some dinner for you.”
“Is it the Zoe family’s special potato stew?” Erwin had caught the smell of spice and the bubbling sound from a closed cauldron as soon as he had set foot inside.
“Yes, indeed!” she laughed, “You’ve got a good memory! In this home, it’s a tradition to welcome members of the family from a long, cold trip with some hot potato stew by the fireside. You won’t believe the wonders that some good food and a nice long chat does.”
“Mum’s potato stew sure is amazing,” Hange added, back from settling the goods in their room. “But I doubt this family recipe would be passed down in all its glory.” They shrugged, “I can’t cook to save my life.”
“Oh, don’t you fret, little one,” Fonsa affectionately pinched Hange’s cheek, their relationship making Erwin wish he too had a mother who’d be so free with her love for him. “I’m sure one day you’ll make a potato stew so good that it will bring a truce among humans and titans.”
“I should master that quickly then,” Hange laughed, “Well, all this chat about stew is making me hungry, so why don’t we dig in?”
Sitting at the dinner table, they all gorged on some stew in the warm glow of the fireside. The conversation flowed like a river, with Fonsa and Hange talking in a stream of words so rapid and animated that all Levi and Erwin were able to do was to sip on their stew and listen. Occasionally, Erwin contributed to the discussions about the Survey Corps and the state of the military. Levi gave brief answers to whatever questions he was asked, a visible awkwardness still in his posture. However, Erwin wasn't concerned about it; he knew that Levi would gradually get comfortable in a while. That was just the kind of person he was. Fonsa and Hange knew it equally well too.
In the middle of the dinner, Erwin was reminded of the gift he had brought for Fonsa. He pulled out a couple of intricately carved wooden hair pins from his pocket and offered it to her, much to Fonsa’s delight.
“I have met him only once before, but Erwin is already like the son I never had,” Fonsa said kindly as she rested her palm on Levi’s shoulder, “You too, Levi. Welcome to the family.”
Levi’s eyes widened in the slightest, and he nodded with a strangled little grunt.
After dinner, the three of them headed over to Hange’s room- the only bedroom that existed in the house- to settle in their luggage for the night and change into more comfortable clothing to sleep. Even if Hange wasn’t home most of the time to use their room anymore, it was still as messy and cluttered as the last time Erwin had seen it. It seemed like Hange had inherited their messiness from their mother, amongst many other things like curiosity, kindness and determination.
There was one charcoal sketch framed by metal strips on the wall that was new to Erwin. A beautifully drawn sketch portrait of him, Levi, Hange and Mike standing together. As Erwin stared at it in wonder, Hange’s voice came from behind him.
“It’s one of Moblit’s drawings. I requested one from him to send it to my mother along with a letter when she asked me how the new team of section commanders were doing a year back.”
“I see,” he said, “Remind me to tell Moblit that he’s very good at this.”
Since they did not bring pajamas with them to reduce their luggage, Hange offered them some clothes- a smaller shirt for Levi and a big, loose one for Erwin.
Erwin pulled it on and it was a perfect fit. “This shirt is too big for you or your mother,” he said as he buttoned it up. “Did you borrow it from one of your neighbors for me?”
“Not really,” Hange’s hand went up to play with strands of their brown hair, “This is… um… my dad’s actually.”
“Oh.”
“I know what must be going on in your mind right now,” Hange gabbled on, without much of a pause, “What’s this old shirt doing here even after fifteen years? Well it’s kinda loose and comfortable, and I like wearing it sometimes before going to sleep since it’s so airy-”
“Hange,” Erwin stopped them. “I get it.”
“Right.”
Hange left the room abruptly, and Erwin respected the fact that they needed some space. After all, he knew very well how missing one’s dad felt.
A few minutes later, they were back with Fonsa, with a stack of warm, thick and musty smelling blankets on their hands. Fonsa stubbornly asked them to occupy the only bedroom that they had for the night, declaring that she was comfortable sleeping on the couch in the hall.
“Don’t stay up too late, kids,” she said before closing the door, “You have a long journey back tomorrow. Good night!”
It tickled Erwin immensely that he, a man who was in his early forties and the commander of a whole military regiment, was still a kid in her eyes. The love of a parent was truly something special. It did make him feel warm inside, to be taken care of by someone once in a while.
Once Fonsa was gone, the three of them stared at the small bed.
“The bed can hold two people,” Hange said, “You both take the bed, I’ll sleep on the floor.”
“I have a better proposition,” Erwin did not want Hange to sleep alone on the cold floor while he and Levi selfishly savored the warmth of the bed. “We’ll all sleep on the floor.”
“Eh,” Hange blinked at him. “That’s a waste of a perfectly good bed. Just sleep over there comfortably, won’t you?”
But Levi had already dumped his blankets on the floor and sat down to spread one on the floor. “Since when have our backs been trained for comfort anyway?”
Watching Erwin follow suit and help Levi out, Hange sighed, before plopping on the floor as well, “Have it your way then, Commander.”
The three of them huddled together in the comfortable darkness of the room, with Erwin in the middle, sandwiched between Levi and Hange.
“You’re so toasty, Erwin,” Hange said, snuggling up to him like a friendly cat, “Do you mind if I use you as a pillow? Or does that come under disrespect for military superiors?”
He smiled and slid an arm under Hange’s head, “I can let that pass for just this one night.”
“Aw, you’re so generous! Someone needs to learn something from you,” they added a bit more loudly.
“I don’t enjoy being woken up at the ass-crack of dawn with your head right on the middle of my stomach,” Levi growled from where he was curled in his corner, his back facing them both.
“Learn to appreciate the small things in life, Levi,” Hange retorted, “You might come to miss this someday.”
“It’s the one thing about you I wouldn’t miss.”
“Oh, does that mean you’ll miss everything else about me?”
“Stop talking like you’re about to die anytime now, Four-Eyes. And remove those glasses before you sleep.”
“Don’t worry, you aren’t going to get rid of me this early. Not when there’s still so much left in this world that I want to experience with you two.”
“You could start by experiencing the joys of regular baths and a clean room then.”
Erwin huffed out a laugh through his nose and looked up at the dark ceiling, the corners lined in cobwebs. For a second, he let himself believe that they were just a group of friends having fun- with no responsibilities, no ranks, and in a world with nothing to fear.
He twisted his head to see the stars outside the window- that almost seemed to twinkle to the sound of Levi’s smartass comments and Hange’s giggles- and sincerely hoped that in the absurd chance that other lifetimes existed, the three of them would always find their way back to each other.
Not through necessity, but through their own free will.