A/N: Hey all! This is my very first SNK fanfic and I'm honestly very excited about it. WARNING, if you have not read the manga up to chapter 115, do NOT read this one-shot. This is not entirely canon to the story, but it will have significant spoilers if you have not read this far. It's been quite a while since we last saw what happened with Levi, and I wanted to explore where this storyline could go. So, if you're wary of spoilers, please do not continue reading.

Once again, if you haven't read the manga up to chapter 115, do NOT read this one-shot.

For those of you that stayed, welcome! This is an idea that has been swirling in my mind for quite some time. We haven't heard much since Zeke used the thunder spear to blow Levi and himself up, and I'm dying—no pun intended—to find out what happens next. (Isayama will probably do something much more sinister in the original manga, and not at all an emotional/heartwarming LeviHan moment.) Levi is very clearly still alive, or else Hanji would not have tried to escape with him… right? Even so, he's really badly injured, so what's going to happen? Will the two manage to successfully escape, and what does Levi's fate hold?

Dark clouds in the sky slowly begin to part, shining small streams of light into a seemingly empty forest, dominated by dense trees. Commander Zoë Hanji runs through the forest, panting relentlessly. Cradled in her arms is the Captain of the Scout Regiment, Levi Ackerman… alive, but barely. With Levi's ODM gear strapped on, Hanji now has some sort of equipment at her disposal. They're low on blades and gas, but it's better than nothing.

Hanji's been running with Levi in her arms for quite some time, trying to elude Floch and the other Yeagerists that have been pursuing them. Not only that, but she's completely soaked to the bone. The only means of a quick escape was via the riverbank that she found Levi lying alongside. Not the most ideal method of escape, but she had to do something. The rain has stopped, at least, but she's still worn out and drenched. If she had the choice, she'd collapse on the ground right now and sleep for a hundred years. But she doesn't have that luxury right now. Her only goal is to get Levi to safety without getting caught.

"Finally, we lost them. I think we're safe now. But dammit, if Zeke and Eren actually make contact…" She can't think about that right now; there's nothing she can do about it at this point. As Hanji continues onward, she looks down at her friend lying helpless in her arms. Unconscious, but somehow still alive. "C'mon, Levi. Time to wake up..." No response, of course. Hanji chuckles dryly. Maybe taunting him will work. "You know, I just saved your ass from getting a bullet in the head. So, you're welcome." Still no response. "Also, do you have any idea how hard it is to swim with 140 pounds of dead weight? I could've drowned, you know. You seriously owe me one when we get back. Now, wake up!"

Almost as if on cue, Levi responds with a quick and forceful spurt of blood from his mouth. Hanji gasps intensely; he really is alive! She doesn't even notice that the blood sprayed up onto the left side of her face. "Levi! Are you okay? What happened?"

"Bearded… bastard..." Levi gurgles, as more blood spills out of his mouth. He tries to open his eyes, though he can only barely open his left one. Over his right eye is a deep gash that reaches all the way down to his chin, across his entire face. Can he even see? Shrapnel protrudes out from all over his body, and it's unclear if he has any broken bones. His right arm, which is missing two fingers, hangs down, swaying with each step Hanji takes.

"What on Earth happened to you? An accident with a thunder spear?"

Levi barely shakes his head. "No… accident." His voice breaks. Not an accident? This is troubling to Hanji, considering Zeke appeared to have made it out of the exchange without a scratch. How did Levi manage to let Zeke get the better of him?

"And the other scouts? What happened to them? Surely Zeke couldn't have—"

"Wi… ne…" Levi wheezes.

"Heh?!"

"The… wine…" Without Levi saying much, Hanji is able to put two and two together. She knows that the wine laced with Zeke's spinal fluid has the power to transform humans into titans. And if the thirty scouts in the forest with Levi really had drank that wine, then it's possible that happened. In that event, Levi wouldn't have any other choice but to take care of that problem, even if they were his comrades.

"Levi…! Don't tell me you…"

"Hanji…" Levi wheezes again.

"What is it?"

"Leave… me."

"Nope. I'm afraid I can't do that." She denies bluntly, looking forward once again.

"I'm… dying…"

Hanji's voice softens. "Hey, now… don't say such things." Hearing something like that from Levi is especially concerning. The Captain has never been one for dramatics, so she knows he says that in all sincerity. Without any medical supplies, though, all she can do is try to reassure him of something she's not even sure is true. "It'll be alright. We'll get you some help."

Ignoring Hanji's words, Levi uses what little strength he has to push himself away and roll out of Hanji's arms. "Hey, hey! What are you doing?!" He successfully detaches himself from Hanji's grasp, falling to the ground with a deep thud. Levi groans in pain. "Let me help you."

"Don't." He hisses quietly, through clenched teeth. There's a firmness in his voice that he didn't have before. "A serum… won't work. I won't… make it."

"You don't know that. We might not even need a serum. We just need to get you someplace safe for the time being." She urges. "C'mon, Levi. This is not the way you go out. I know it isn't."

"I… should be… the one… to decide… that." Levi grunts with each breath as he tries to pull himself along the ground, away from Hanji. His eight fingers sink in the mud, unable to get any traction, and his legs are completely useless.

"True, but when have you ever known me to leave a comrade behind?" Without consent, Hanji forcefully grabs Levi from under his arms, flips him onto his back, and starts dragging him along the ground, continuing onward.

"Let me go… Three-eyes."

"Hmph, not your best jab, I gotta say. Now, quit your yapping and let me help you." Levi reaches up with his left hand, grabs Hanji's right wrist and twists hard. "OOOOWWW! Son of a BITCH!" Hanji drops Levi on the ground, clutching at her pained wrist. Levi pulls himself up and sits against a nearby tree.

"I'm not… going with you." He declares firmly, yet breathlessly.

"Oh, shuddup already!" Hanji yells, stomping her foot to the ground. "I hate to break it to you, but you don't have a choice in the matter. I swear, if you weren't so injured right now, I'd knock you back unconscious!" Hanji exhales, exasperated, trying to calm herself down. "I see so much of Erwin in you. Both of you, stubborn as all hell. I don't get it." Levi is silent at this. "I'm taking you to get help and that's that."

"I'm not… leaving. With the time I have left… I have to…" Levi struggles to get the words out. He looks up at Hanji, determination plastered on his face. "I made… a vow. I swore to him…"

"Zeke's dead." Hanji blurts out with her best poker face on. This was a lie that could either put Levi's mind at ease or get her in serious trouble with him later. Whatever the reasons, Levi has been spurred for the last four years by the promise he made to Erwin Smith—the promise to kill the Beast Titan with his own hands and avenge the deaths of his comrades. Hanji knows Levi would never be able to die satisfied with himself if he didn't fulfill that promise he made all those years ago. So, to cover her bases, she has to lie to him. "That explosion must have been what did him in. He was already dead when I found you."

"You're a… shitty liar." Levi coughs, barely able to chuckle. "No… that bastard's still alive… He planned it. And you just… happened to find me… on your own? I don't buy it."

"It's the truth. You kept your promise to Erwin, Levi." Hanji gets down to his level, knees in the mud. "But as Commander, I have to think about the lives of everyone. So, I'm not gonna let you die alone in these woods, covered in filth." Hanji pulls a somewhat-used handkerchief out from her inner jacket pocket and tries to wipe Levi's face clean to the best of her ability. "I won't allow it. You hear me? Humanity can't lose you too, dammit."

These words strike Levi to his core. This compassion and fierceness from Hanji reminds him of something… It reminds him of the way he's always been with his own comrades, as well as the hearts of so many of the comrades he's had to leave behind.

The strength of Miche.

The kindness of Petra.

The loyalty of Farlan.

The spirit of Isabel.

The leadership of Erwin.

The lives of all his comrades live on in the two of them. And they have a duty to carry on, for the sake of all the ones who didn't make it. To make sure their sacrifices weren't in vain.

"Tch," Levi spits. "That filthy thing… won't do the job." Levi objects, slapping Hanji's hand away. "I need… something sterile."

"That's the spirit!" Hanji cackles, with a dopey grin. "Think you can walk?" Levi shakes his head, admitting his current weakness. "Alright then." Hanji turns her back to Levi. "Grab on, then." Embarrassed, Levi reluctantly puts his arms around Hanji's neck, and she lifts him up to carry him on her back.

"Let's get you outta here."

A/N: Ahhh! What do you all think? I'd really appreciate some feedback. Thanks so much for reading!