The stale air of Erwin's office hung heavy, thick with the unspoken tension that crackled between the two men. Levi leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed tight across his chest, his gaze unwavering and sharp. He watched Erwin, head bent low over a stack of papers, his posture rigid despite the bandage that wrapped tightly around the stump of his missing arm.

Just days ago, Erwin had nearly died outside the walls, losing an arm to a Titan's maw. Anyone with a shred of sense would be resting, recovering, reassessing. But not Erwin, no. He was already planning, scheming, his mind racing towards the next expedition.

"I'll do anything to go through with this expedition, Levi," Erwin had said earlier, his voice a low rumble of conviction.

It was that unwavering passion that Levi both admired and feared. It was the fire in Erwin's eyes, the relentless drive to uncover the truth that captivated him, but it was also the same force that pushed him recklessly toward danger. It was a double-edged sword, and Levi felt as if he were constantly walking along its razor-sharp edge.

He pushed off the doorframe, the sound of his boots echoing in the tense silence. "Oh really?" he retorted, his voice laced with the customary sarcasm that was his shield. "And when will you stop, Eyebrows? When you're devoured?"

Levi needed Erwin to understand, needed him to see that this obsession with truth was slowly consuming him, and in turn, threatening to leave Levi behind.

Soon enough, raised voices could be heard in Erwin’s office with words of agitation and frustration swelling up with intensity until it was halted by a booming,

"And that’s an order, Levi!"

The words hung in the air, heavy with authority and frustrated anger. Suddenly, the fire was gone, they were left with the embers of their heated discussion. Silence descended, a suffocating blanket that neither man seemed willing to lift. Erwin stared down at the paperwork, pretending to be engrossed in the mundane details, while Levi’s gaze drifted to the ground.