The Ereri Project!

Snowballs (Werewolf)

"Snow!"

Levi looks up to see Eren staring with wide, excited eyes out the back door. He smiles at the way the tiny brunette's tail wags happily.

It's been snowing since yesterday afternoon so the amount piled in the backyard is probably enough to go over Eren's head now.

"It might be too deep for you," Levi says.

Eren runs over and jumps on Levi's lap. "Can we please go play in it?"

"I dunno," Levi replies, smiling slightly. "You almost knocked my coffee off the table."

Eren looks down at the coffee table he jumped over to get to Levi.

Indeed, the liquid inside was sloshing slightly from impact. "I'm sorry," Eren says. "I didn't mean to."

"I know," Levi replies. "But what I mean is, you have to be careful. Jumping around like that can get you stuck in the snow."

Eren's tail wags again. "Does that mean we can go out?"

"Sure."

Eren runs over to the door again. "C'mon!"

"Hang on," Levi replies. "Unless you want to go out like a puppy, you have to put more clothes on."

"Oops," Eren says and runs to his shared room with Levi.

Levi started looking for a bigger place a few months ago but once winter started, they got busier so he had to stop looking for a while.

Not that Eren minds though, he likes cuddling in his sleep so sharing Levi's bed is actually very comfortable for him.

Eren leaves on his pajamas while he pulls on another pair of sweatpants, jeans, and then his snow pants.

Next is a sweater, a hoodie, and his parka. Levi helps him put on his boots, gloves, hat, and scarf before putting on his own.

Eren's movement is only slightly hindered by the many layers of clothes; his enthusiasm carrying his movements.

Levi lets him outside and the first thing the child does is run and jump into a pile of snow.

Levi laughs when he comes back up and shakes some off his head. Levi remembers playing in the snow when kid.

He remembers snowball fights with Isabel and Farlan (his childhood best friends and neighbors), building snowmen, making igloos and snowmen, less layers but stinging wet skin when he finally went back inside.

He remembers his mom shouting at him when she thought he got frostbite on his ears and the tips of his fingers.

He remembers running his own bath so he could warm back up when he went back inside, making his own hot chocolate, and putting lotion on his cheeks because of how dry the wind made them because no one would do those things for him.

He makes a mental note to do all that for Eren when they're ready to go inside.

Eren continues running back and forth across the yard, kicking up snow happily.

Levi smirks to himself and bends over to pick up snow to make a snowball.

Swiftly, he throws the ball and lands a hit directly on top of Eren's head.

The child shoots a look at Levi, but grins and shrieks happily, making his own snowball.

"Uh oh," Levi says, running for cover behind a tree in the yard.

He forgot how hard it was to run in snow so he barely make it before Eren throws the ball, hitting the tree.

The child giggles, making more snowballs while Levi tries to formulate a path around the yard. He's glad for the number of trees he can use for cover.

They play like this for almost fifteen minutes before Eren has Levi backed up against the shed in the back of the yard.

Eren grins and runs before jumping on Levi. "Gotchu!" he shouts.

"You did," Levi says, laughing.

He loses his balance and slips, his back colliding with the wall of the shed. "You 'kay?" Eren asks.

"Yeah," Levi replies, trying to regain his footing, still giggling slightly.

But then he hears it. The snow begins sliding off the roof of the shed. Levi only has a moment to react, he drops Eren and uses his own body to shield the child as the snow blankets them.

Eren, still disoriented, holds onto Levi and tries not to cry from the sudden overwhelming activity.

Levi tries to regain his bearings, getting a good hold on Eren before pushing against the snow to stand again. "Are you alright?" Levi asks.

Eren hugs Levi's neck, nodding. "Scary," he says.

Levi looks at what landed on them. "How did that much snow stay up there that long?" he asks himself as he walks toward the house.

He tries to put Eren down at the back door but the puppy-boy doesn't want to let go. "C'mon Eren, I have to get your coat off before he go inside."

Reluctantly, the child lets himself be set on the ground and let's Levi help him take his gloves and cost off. Levi lets him inside before taking off his own.

They make a pile of wet clothes inside the door that Levi decides he'll clean later because right now he's a little more interested in getting them warm.

He starts running a bath, Eren shivers while he sits on the closed toilet seat.

Levi debates for a moment whether they can take a bath together or not but decides Eren's young enough it won't matter so he sets the child inside while he finishes undressing.

"Ow," Eren says. "The water's sting-y."

"It'll feel better in a minute," Levi replies, getting some hit water in the child's hair to warm his head up. "That's just your skin warming back up."

Eren sits facing Levi, who has his knees drawn up a bit because despite his short stature, this tub is still too short for his legs.

Eren cracks a smile and then starts giggling. Levi smiles as well, happy to see the boy isn't still upset. "What?" he asks.

"Your thingies," Eren says, gesturing to his own nipples. "They're pointy!"

Levi makes a face. "That's what happens when you get cold."

Eren looks down at his own chest and notices his own doing that too. He gasps and pokes them. "Cool!"

Levi snorts. "Little boys are weird."

"Not weirder that big boys!" Eren replies. "I thought grownups aren't s'posed to have snowball fights."

Levi cocks an eyebrow. "Who told you that?"

Eren shrugs. "My dad."

Eren doesn't talk about his dad much, and the only times he does are if Levi asks a direct question.

Levi decides not to question further, the last time he did Eren had a nightmare.

"Grownups like to have fun too, sometimes," he replies instead.

Eren yawns and moves to sit on Levi's leg so he can lean on the older man. "Do grownups like naps too?"

Levi chuckles. "After they get out the bath and put clean pj's on, yes."

They wash quickly and get out of the bath.

Levi makes hot chocolate while Eren takes a nap on the couch.