Characters are not mine. Hajime Isayama owns them, the lucky boy. More chapters might be to come. Also, I'm obviously French.
Humanity's Strongest's Hope
"You're not a monster, Eren."
The voice was calm. So very calm it was almost brutal for him to hear it. He fought back the tears, just so he could look the Corporal in the eye. The harsh and bitter features – the cold, hard steal of his eyes – confused him a little. Was this man the real owner of the voice he just heard? There was no sign of comfort on his thin lips – just disapproval. Damn everything, the tears were back.
"Hey, quit being dumb. I won't be soft if you keep assuming I'm currently lying to you."
Eren tried the "Yes, Sir." reply, but nothing else than a strangled sob came out of his mouth, setting his face on fire. It took him a few minutes to finally settle down, but not a single time did Levi show the tiniest sign of impatience. He was just there, back against the wall of the cell, looking intently at the trembling teen. Waiting.
"I may not be a monster, but they see me as one, Sir."
Eren saw the Corporal's lips twitch a little in annoyance. Sure, the kid was stubborn and seemed to enjoy self-despise. Levi did not answer right away, lost in thoughts. Maybe he shouldn't tell Eren what he was about to say. Maybe he should leave him self-depreciating, since he liked it so much. Maybe the calmness in his voice was to disappoint him again.
"The only reason why they're so afraid is because you are something we've been denied for more than a century – they just don't understand how you can be here."
Green, watery orbs met his silver cold eyes, filled with incomprehension. Levi did not even let out a sigh, though Eren was acting like a complete dumbass. Right. He could waste a little more time for him.
"When you lose something, you never think there might actually come a time when you find it again. And when this time eventually comes, well – you're scared. You deny it, you fear it. Sometimes, you even hate it."
His voice sounded well too broken, but his face was still unwavering. The words were softly hitting Eren, just like fresh droplets of summer rain, washing away the dirt. He couldn't do anything but stare, in complete astonishment.
"Hope. It's been a long time since anybody's heard of it."
And with that, Levi left his support on the wall, walking toward the door. Eren was hope in so many ways, and, just like the others, he feared him, deep inside the blurry mystery of his inner self. It wasn't for his ability to turn into a Titan, no. Eren made him recover something he thought was lost and could only catch a grip on in battle.
Fire.