Chagara - Chaos in the Darkness (Levi x OC Fanfic / AttackOnTitan)

75. "Happy Birthday, Papa!"

Levi closed the front door behind him and raised his eyebrows. Did he smell black tea? "And green tea?" Slowly, he approached the stairs. He had already been outside. At the baker's. And at the cheesemaker's. "Do they like cheese?", wondered Levi as his right hand moved through the bag loops and reached for his walking stick again. With his left hand he held on to the railing. His first breakfast with his children. Levi chewed nervously on his lower lip.

"Natsuki, get up already!," he heard Naoki shout.

"I'm already awake," Levi heard his daughter's tired voice.

"But you should be in the bathroom by now," Naoki shouted irritably.

"Papa's not back yet either," Natsuki grumbled.

"The front door had just been opened," Naoki said emotionless.

Then Levi heard only quick footsteps along with whining sounds. And finally the bathroom door slammed shut. Naoki was about to take the pot of black tea to Steve at the dining table when he noticed his father on the stairs.

Levi looked at his boy in surprise as he stood in front of him and held out his hand. Was he going to help him?

"Morning, Papa," Naoki said sheepishly, taking the walking stick from Levi to reach the shopping bag. Then Levi had his walking stick in his hand again.

"Morning," Levi replied just as shyly, slowly following his son. "Almost as tall as me."

"What are you doing?," asked Levi sceptically when he saw the drawing lying in front of Steve. "Is this my attic?"

Steve nodded and put the ruler and pencil away. "Yeah, I took a look. Say, Levi," Steve cleared his throat, "Do you want me to start building rooms in the attic?"

But Levi was distracted. Naoki had poured tea. While Steve and the cup next to Levi's seat had green tea, Naoki poured black tea for his father and himself.

"You prefer black tea?," inquired Levi with interest.

Naoki nodded.

"You know the black tea with the hint of vanilla?" Levi continued the conversation, raising his eyebrows. Had his son smirked?

But before Naoki could answer, the bathroom door opened. "Morning, Papa!" said Natsuki cheerfully, running to the empty seat next to her father.

"Morning," Levi replied, placing a half of a bun on her plate. To Naoki he handed the other half. "Do you have anything to do or can we leave right after breakfast?," his son wanted to know.

"No, we can leave after breakfast. What I was wondering," Levi began, reaching for his teacup. "Do you actually have a school there? Who's going to teach you if Steve stays here now?"

"There is a school in the area now. But there is no class for their age at the moment," Steve answered and when he saw that Levi didn't like this answer, he added: "Since the two of them are much more ahead with the school material than their peers anyway, Ayumi wanted to wait for the next few months. When I have established myself here in the city, the two of them should come to me and attend school here."

"Then we shouldn't stay in the valley for so long at all," Levi thought, placing the cut slices of cheese on his children's plates.

"You definitely want to live here?," Steve inquired, cutting off another piece of the cheese.

"Yes," was Levi's brief reply. His children should have it better than he did. And if a decent education wasn't possible in their valley, they needed to get back to the city as soon as possible.