I've had this idea for months and I finally managed to get it written out! Not entirely proud of it though, this fic is a train wreck
~~~KMD~~~
"Pick me! Pick me, please! See how cute I am! I know I'm not as small as the other puppies, but I'm well behaved and super gentle, I swear! Please pick me!" The puppy barked, running around the small pen he was being kept in.
Those humans just wouldn't pick him, they always chose the other puppies. At twelve weeks old he was getting pretty big, and he would only get bigger, seeing as he was a German Shepherd, a pretty big breed of dog. His fur was a golden brown colour, and he had a large black patch on his back, as well as a black muzzle. Typical GSD markings, but his eyes were bright green, not the usual blue or brown colour.
Young kids were starting to have trouble holding the puppy, and he was getting worried. The other puppies were always super tiny and they were bought within days. What if he got too big and no one ever bought him? What would happen then? There's no way he'd stay at the pet shop, they only sold puppies and other baby animals. He knew that it was only a matter of time before he was fully grown and considered an adult, then he'd probably never find a home with a loving human. The other puppies always told him that no human ever bought an old dog.
So he had to do his best to look cute, he had to bark and pant and wag his tail, he had to look happy and playful, he had to do his best to be absolutely irresistible to anyone who entered that door. One day his efforts would pay off, they had to.
Luckily, that day came sooner rather than later.
~~~KMD~~~
The small puppy was tired out from his days work of trying to act cute and get bought, the shop was about to close and the humans that remained were slowly beginning to leave one by one. He was curled up in a corner of the pen, away from the other puppies, when a woman came bursting into the pet shop.
She looked a mess, her hair in a half-assed ponytail and the glasses on her face looked slightly bent out of shape. Her outfit looked as if it had been hastily thrown together too, a bright yellow jacket with faded and ripped jeans and black boots.
The puppy watched her for a few moments as she headed towards the food section, before deciding that he was too tired to try and grab her attention.
After a little while of trying to fall asleep he could hear some voices next to the pen, he recognised one as being one of the humans that worked at the pet shop, but the other was new. He cracked an eye open and saw the woman with red hair from earlier talking to the worker.
He ignored the conversation and focused his eyes on the finger that seemed to be pointing directly at him. Was the woman asking about him? Did she want buy him? The puppy stood from his corner and wandered over to the other side of the pen closer to the humans, letting out a small whine as he looked up at them.
"Ah, he's the cutest! May I hold him?" The slightly crazy looking woman asked.
"Sure go ahead." The worker replied.
The other woman squealed and reached into the pen, lifting the small puppy into her arms.
He couldn't believe it! She really did want him! He let out a small bark and started licking her face, his tail rapidly wagging back and forth.
"Yes, I am the cutest! Please take me home with you! Please!"
He was too excited to pay attention to the rest of the conversation the two humans were having, he just wanted to show this woman how much he loved her right now. A few minutes later the conversation ended and the red headed woman was turning back to the puppy, "You hear that? You're gonna come home with me tomorrow! Ah, I can't wait to introduce you to Erwin and Levi, they'll love you!"
After hearing that, there was no way the puppy could have slept that night. He stayed up all night playing with toys and running around the small pen until the morning came and the shop opened again.
True to her word, the woman entered the shop the next day and before long the puppy, now named Eren, was on his way to his new home.
~~~KMD~~~
"Welcome, to your new home, Eren!" the woman, or Hanji as Eren had learned her name was, said, placing the carrier down on the floor and letting Eren out.
Eren immediately began running around the house, checking out all the new smells, amazed at how much space he now had to run and play. When he'd decided he'd had enough of exploring, he went to find Hanji.
He found her putting his new toys in a pile beside his new bed. Eren ran up to her barking and wagging his tail.
"Thank you so much, Miss Hanji! I love this place! Thank you!" He barked, licking at her hands and face. Too bad she wasn't able to actually understand him, he'd just have to hope that his actions would show how grateful he was.
"Alright, Eren, I get it!" Hanji laughed, trying to get the puppy to stop licking her. "Once you're used to this place, I'll take you to see my friend Erwin, he'll love you! I can introduce you to Levi too!"
The puppy barked again happily, "I wanna go now!" He ran over to the front door and scratched it, "Come on, I'm ready! Let's go!"
"Hey, just because you've had your vaccinations doesn't mean you can go out straight away, get back here!" She laughed, stepping over to Eren and lifting the puppy into her arms, "I said soon, be patient!"
~~~KMD~~~
A week passed by and Eren was more than used to his new home, with every day that passed he was just becoming more eager to go outside. When was he going to be able to meet this Erwin and Levi that Hanji talked so much about? He finished up his breakfast quickly and drank some water before sitting at Hanji's feet.
Hanji looked up from the paper she was holding and spotted Eren, "What?" She asked.
Eren barked and ran in a circle before looking at her again.
Hanji just smiled and shook her head, "You really want to go out don't you? Well, luckily for you, we're going to see Erwin today, just gimme a little while, OK?"
Eren barked again and followed Hanji around the house as she got herself ready, he got in her way more than a few times, but he just couldn't sit still! He was going to meet another human, maybe even another dog!
"Hurry up!" Eren whined, "You're taking too long!" He scratched at the front door and barked until Hanji came running over with Eren's carrier.
"Alright, alright, calm down, Eren! I'm here, now get in the carrier and we can go!"
Eren eagerly climbed inside, his tail quickly swaying from side to side.
~~~KMD~~~
The car journey didn't take long, and soon enough Hanji was carrying Eren into her friend's house, the carrier left in the car. Eren fidgeted in her arms as she unlocked the door with her spare key.
"Erwin! You home? I brought Eren with me, come meet him!" Hanji called.
"What did I tell you about using your keys to get into my house?" A blonde man asked, stepping out of the kitchen and into the hallway.
"Only to do it if there was an emergency, and to wait for you to let me in if it wasn't. I know what you said, Erwin, but look at Eren! Isn't he cute?" Hanji said excitedly, holding the puppy out for the taller man to see.
"Hiya!" Eren barked, wagging his tail, "I'm Eren! Nice to meet you!"
"I guess, you know I don't like dogs that much."
Hanji pouted and held Eren against her chest, "How could you? He's one of the cutest things you'll ever see! And he's so well behaved, unlike Levi! Oh, that reminds me, where is the little devil? I want to see if he can get along with Eren."
"He's sleeping on the sofa in the living room, I wouldn't disturb him if I were you, you know how he gets." Erwin warned.
"You're no fun! They're gonna meet sooner or later, might as well get it over and done with so they can be friends." Hanji said as she opened the door to the living room. "Oh, and can you make me some coffee while I'm here?"
"Don't blame me if he scratches you or Eren." Erwin sighed and shook his head, but Hanji noticed noticed the fond smile he wore before he turned around and re-entered the kitchen.
Hanji stepped into the living room and looked around until her eyes settled on a bundle of black fur. The small cat with a white collar was curled up on one of Erwin's feather cushions in the corner of the sofa.
"Oh, Levi~!" Hanji called in sing-song voice, "I have someone for you to meet~!" She placed down on the sofa beside the black cat, then crouched down in front of them. She reached out a hand and nudged the cat slightly, "Hey, wake up, Levi."
Eren leaned over and pressed his nose against Levi's cheek, sniffing him. "Hey, Mr. Levi! Wake up!"
The cat let a soft 'mrrow' sound and slowly blinked it's eyes open, lazily focusing them on Hanji for brief second before coming to rest them on Eren.
"Hi, I'm Eren! It's nice to meet you, Mr. Levi!" The puppy barked.
"What the fuck?" Levi hissed, jumping up. He swiped at Eren with his paw before darting off towards the kitchen, "Erwin, there's a dog in the house! Why the fuck is there a dog in the house?!" His claws dug into Erwin's clothes as he climbed up the large man to rest on his shoulders.
"Ow, hey! Levi! Stop freaking out!" Erwin said, reaching up a large hand to scratch at Levi's chin. "It's just a puppy Levi, he's pretty harmless."
"Harmless, my ass!" Levi hissed again, batting Erwin's hand away.
Hanji entered the kitchen with Eren in her arms, "Aw, Levi! Don't be such a sour puss and say hello!" She held Eren out towards the cat and Levi hissed and swiped at him with his paw again.
"Oi, Levi. Eren's going to be sticking around so I suggest you play nice." Erwin scolded, tapping Levi's nose, "If you behave while Eren's here I'll give you those treats you like."
"Fine, I suppose I could tolerate him for an hour or so." Levi settled himself on Erwin's shoulders and focused his silver eyes on the puppy, "Alright, dog, here's how things are going to work. This house is clean and it's going to stay that way, do not make any kind of mess, you will do your business outside and if you get dirty, you aren't coming back in. When I'm sleeping, you will not disturb me. Do not touch any of my things. My toys, my bed, my food etc etc. are off limits. And lastly, don't touch me. Got it?"
"Um, yes, Mr. Levi." Eren said slowly.
"I think we're going to get along perfectly." Levi jumped down onto the floor and padded back into the living room.
"Hey, wait!" Eren barked, fidgeting in Hanji's hands until she put him down. "Wait, Mr. Levi! I've never met a cat before, sure there were a lot of kittens in the pet shop, but I never actually met them!"
"So?" Levi said as he jumping onto the sofa, curling up on the cushion he was on previously before he was disturbed.
"What do you mean 'so'?" Eren asked, trying, and failing, to jump onto the sofa, "This is exciting for me! What breed are you? Do cats even have breeds? How old are you? You sound like an adult, but you're really small! Are you supposed to be small because of your breed? Hey, Mr. Levi-"
"Shut it!" Levi growled, glaring at Eren. "Enough with the questions, and stop calling me 'Mr. Levi', you're making me feel old, just Levi is fine."
"You gotta call me Eren then, instead of just 'dog', and at least answer the questions I've already asked!" Eren said, finally succeeding in jumping onto the sofa.
"Will you shut up and let me sleep if I do?"
"Of course!"
"OK, yes, cats have breeds, I'm a British short hair. No I'm not small because of my breed, I was a runt, and I'm five years old." Levi meowed, before settling his head on the cushion and closing his eyes.
"That's cool!" Eren barked, panting happily, "Wait, what can I do now?" He asked, lying on the sofa, nose pretty close to Levi's head.
"I don't know and don't care as long as you aren't near me, wait-" Levi's whiskers twitched and he lifted his head and started to sniff at Eren's fur, "Ugh, you smell disgusting, has Hanji even given you a bath yet?"
"Um-"
"Don't bother." Levi meowed, "Now sit up, if that woman can't keep you clean, I'll just have to bathe you myself."
"Wait, what do you mean?" Eren asked, sitting up.
"Exactly what I just said, now sit still." Levi hissed, batting Eren's muzzle with his paw.
Eren did as he was told, sitting perfectly still as Levi began to lick the fur on his head and ears. Every now and then Eren moved away from the rough, sand papery tongue, only to have Levi bat him gently with his paw until he sat still again.
All of a sudden they heard a gasp, and Levi only glanced up briefly to see Hanji stood in the doorway before returning to his task of bathing Eren, "Ah, Erwin! Come quick! Levi and Eren are being super adorable!"
Erwin appeared in the doorway behind Hanji and started laughing at the sight of the two animals, "I don't think you washed Eren well enough if Levi's decided he needs to redo the job!"
"Oh, please! Levi's just a clean freak! He'll probably give Eren a bath himself every time I bring him over, might be a little difficult when Eren's fully grown though." Hanji laughed.
"That doesn't sound like a bad idea." Levi mused, "That way I'd know that you're definitely clean."
"This is embarrassing." Eren whined, "I think I'm clean now, can I go?"
Levi leaned back and looked Eren over, then leaned forward a little and sniffed at his fur, "Alright." He finally meowed, "I suppose you're clean enough now, I'm going to take a nap, try not to disturb me."
Eren barked out a quick, 'Yes, Mr. Levi!' before jumping down from the sofa and rushing over to Hanji.
~~~KMD~~~
A few weeks passed by and Eren was definitely enjoying his new life outside of the pet shop. Hanji was the nicest human he'd ever met, she made sure to play with him every day and she took him on long walks all around the town, once a week he'd even get to go to the park and play with other dogs. Hanji spoiled him a little when it came to food and treats as well, always buying the slightly more expensive stuff.
Eren loved learning new tricks too, and not just because Hanji rubbed his belly and give him his favourite treats when he got something right.
He hadn't seen Levi in a while though, not since they'd first met. He really wanted to see the somewhat grumpy cat again, but he wasn't entirely sure why. Eren did want to try and befriend Levi though, if that was at all possible, he'd even put up with the baths.
~~~KMD~~~
Eren didn't get to see Levi again until another week had passed, Hanji had taken him on a walk and instead of heading home, they'd gone straight to Erwin's.
Hanji let herself into the house again, but wasn't chastised by Erwin. Either he wasn't home or was busy somewhere else in the house and hadn't heard her.
When the pair had entered the living room, they'd found Erwin sitting on the sofa watching TV and stroking Levi, who was curled up in his lap, purring loudly.
Eren rushed over to the blonde man and the cat and nudged Levi with his nose, "Hey, Levi! It's been a while! How have you been doing?" He barked.
Levi cracked his eyes open and the purring quietened down, but didn't completely stop as Erwin continued his ministrations, "It was peaceful without you here." Levi replied, "I trust that you're clean?"
"Yep! So you don't have to bathe me right?" Eren barked.
"Hmmm,"/ Levi leaned over and sniffed at Eren's fur, "You still smell but not as bad as last time, so I suppose you're clean enough."
Erwin leaned over Levi and began stroking Eren's head, "Why do you always bother Levi? I'm sure you can find better things to do than hang around with this little sour puss." Levi hissed and scratched at Erwin's arm, but the blonde man only laughed, "Hey, I'm only joking, you're a delight to be around, Levi."
"Sarcastic bastard, I'll claw your eyebrows off when you sleep." Levi growled, climbing off of Erwin's lap and moving over to a large bookshelf, tail swaying behind him. He sat on the arm of the sofa before leaping up on top of the bookshelf and disappearing from sight.
Eren quickly followed, jumping up onto the sofa and scrabbling at the side of the bookshelf, too small to actually be able to get up there. "Levi!" Eren barked, "I don't care what Erwin says, even if you are grumpy, I still want to be with you!"
Erwin and Hanji had started talking, but Eren and Levi ignored them.
"Don't care, I'm sulking now. Let me do it in peace." Levi hissed.
"Then Erwin was right! You are just a little sour puss!" Eren growled back.
Hanji and Erwin moved towards the kitchen and Eren quickly followed after them. Hanji seated herself in a chair at the dining table and Erwin leaned against the counter.
"He's probably gonna sulk for the rest of the week now!" Hanji laughed, "Aw poor thing, he's so sensitive." She lifted Eren into her lap and stroked him as he curled up.
"He's not even upset, he's just acting so we'll leave him alone," Erwin said, "He'll be fine if I get him some treats." He turned around and opened a cupboard, pulling a packet of cat treats out. He shook the packet ever so gently, producing only a quiet noise of crinkling plastic and shuffling treats, but before he'd even finished, Levi was at his feet.
The black cat meowed, looking up at Erwin as he rubbed himself against the blonde man's legs.
"Oh, you like me now, huh?" Erwin laughed, reaching into the packet to grab a few treats, before crouching down and offering them to his cat.
"I suppose I can forgive you." Levi purred as he munched on each of the little treats, one by one. "And that, Eren, is how you get humans to give you treats, it may take you a little while to master it the trick, but it's worth it in the end."
"Wait, you weren't mad at Erwin?" Eren asked, cocking his head on confusion.
"Of course not, he and Hanji call me sour puss all the time, it's nothing new. Just thought I'd teach you something for free."
"They always say you're mean, but I think you're pretty nice, Levi!" Eren barked, wagging his tail.
"Whatever dog, I'm going to take a nap."
~~~KMD~~~
The next time Eren saw Levi was only a week later, and the puppy had a new toy to show off.
"Hey Levi!" He barked, "Look what Hanji got me the other day!"
The black cat blinked his eyes and looked over towards Eren. On the floor in front of the puppy was a small rope dog toy, he picked up one end and trotted closer to Levi, tail wagging, before dropping it again.
"Can we play with it together? Please?" Eren asked excitedly.
"Ew, no, it probably has your slobber all over it." Levi replied, stretching out before curling up again, "I was about to take a nap anyway."
"All you do is sleep! Come on! It's not as fun by myself, and I don't want to bother Erwin or Hanji."
"Fine, but if I get any weird dog diseases from putting that thing in my mouth, I'll claw your balls off." Levi grumbled, jumping down from the sofa and picking one end of the toy up.
"Best two out of three!" Eren called, before picking up the other end and tugging on it.
Levi managed to win one round by tugging Eren over, but ultimately Eren won, being slightly bigger and stronger than the cat.
~~~KMD~~~
Hanji visited Erwin almost every week without fail, and always brought Eren with her so he could see Levi.
As the weeks passed, the dog and cat had become quite close, though Levi refused to call them friends. Sometimes Eren would bring a toy with him and they'd play together, other times they'd just talk or even just sleep next to each other.
On Eren's first birthday, they had a little party at Erwin's house.
~~~KMD~~~
Hanji had put little party hats on Eren and Levi as she and Erwin sang happy birthday to the dog. Levi wasn't particularly happy with it, but he dealt with it for Eren's sake, the dog was so happy and excited that day that Levi just couldn't find it in himself to upset him in anyway.
For presents, Eren got a few new toys and treats, as well as a new collar, though his favourite by far was a large bone treat that'd probably take him weeks to devour. Levi couldn't have gotten any presents for Eren, but the dog was fine with that, a simple 'happy birthday, dog,' was all that he needed from the cat.
When Erwin and Hanji were done showering Eren with love and gifts, the two animals moved into the living room. Levi jumped onto the sofa, and Eren, being almost fully grown, was able simply step up onto it.
"I liked you better when you were small." Levi mused, batting gently at Eren's nose.
"You're such a liar, we both know you love me more than your treats." Eren said, nudging at Levi with his muzzle.
"You wish! I could never love anything more than Dreamies." Levi purred, rolling onto his back.
"You just keep telling yourself that, but we all know the truth." Eren flopped onto his side and moved his paw to shove Levi gently.
"Oi! If you knock me off this sofa I'll claw your eyes out." Levi hissed, swiping at Eren's paw before moving to curl up against Eren's neck. "I'm taking a nap, don't knock me off."
"Sweet dreams, Levi."
A few moments later, after they'd both gotten comfortable, Eren pushed Levi off the sofa. It was definitely worth the scratches and silent treatment he got after.
~~~KMD~~~
When Eren was one and a half years old, Hanji decided to take a break from work and go on holiday, sadly she couldn't take Eren with her.
"You be good for Erwin, OK?" Hanji said, scratching Eren's cheeks from where she was crouched down in front of him, "I'll be back in a week and I'll make sure to get gifts for everybody, even you Levi!" She turned to the cat and lifted him up, kissing his nose and then holding him tightly against her chest.
"Ugh, let me go!" Levi hissed, fidgeting until the woman put him down.
"My flight's leaving soon, I gotta go, goodbye Eren!" Hanji gave her dog one last kiss before opening the door, "Bye Erwin!" She called out and then she was gone.
"I've never been away from Hanji for a week before."
"You'll be fine." Levi said, getting to his paws and heading towards the kitchen. "Besides, I do believe it's breakfast time and neither of us have actually had breakfast yet."
"But will she be OK? She's gonna be all by herself... Couldn't she have taken me with her?" Eren asked, slowly following after Levi.
Erwin had already poured Eren and Levi's food into their respective bowls, and they had been placed on the floor for the two animals. Levi immediately began tucking in, but Eren just sniffed at his food before turning his head away.
"I'm not that hungry, I think I'll just go to sleep or something."/Eren was about to leave, but he was stopped by Levi hissing.
"Look, I know this is hard for you, but I know it's hard for that four-eyes too, she's probably worrying herself sick, I'm actually surprised she hasn't called Erwin yet. If she does call sometime soon and Erwin tells her you aren't eating she'll cut her holiday short and catch a flight right back here, so you need to eat. That way she doesn't have to worry and she can actually enjoy her holiday, which is what she deserves after all the hard work she's been doing recently." Levi said as he rubbed himself against Eren's legs.
Erwin crouched down in front of Eren and stroked his the dog's head, "Are you worried about, Hanji? C'mon, you know her, there's nothing for you to worry about, the week'll be over before you know it."
Eren let out a long whine, "But I miss her so much already..."
Levi stood on his hind legs and rubbed his face against Eren's, "Like eyebrows said, the week'll be over before you know it. He'll probably take you on a nice long walk later, maybe I'll even come with you."
"Sure you will, you know there are dogs outside right?" Eren said, licking Levi's cheek. "Big ones, like Great Danes and Rottweilers and Irish wolfhounds."
"That's disgusting Eren." Levi growled, ignoring what Eren had said about the dogs and licking his paw, so he could clean his face, "Forget it, I'll just stay home."
Eren barked out a laugh and wagged his tail as he began eating his breakfast.
"There you go, buddy." Erwin smiled, giving Eren one last pat, "We can go for a walk later, but I need to get a few things done first."
~~~KMD~~~
As Erwin and Levi had both said, the week had passed rather quickly. Erwin took Eren on two walks a day, and Levi always accompanied them, sometimes he'd just walk beside Eren, other times he'd sit on Eren's back, earning them more than a few weird looks.
Playing tug o' war with Erwin was probably Eren's favourite part of the week. The man was strong a lot stronger than Hanji, and it was definitely a challenge trying to pull the rope out of the blonde's hands.
On the day that Hanji was supposed to return home, Eren waited by the door. The second Hanji stepped inside, Eren jumped, his front paws resting on her shoulders as he licked her face.
~~~KMD~~~
When Eren was two, he finally realised how much he really liked Levi and gathered up the courage to tell him.
"Levi."
"Yeah, dog?"
"I like you."
"I like you too."
"No, I mean I like you, as in I want you to be my mate."
Levi lifted his head and stared at the dog beside him.
"I know it's weird! You're a cat and I'm a dog, and we're both male... but I can't help it..." Eren looked away from the small cat, ears pinned back against his head.
"Idiot." Levi growled, batting at Eren's muzzle with his paw, "I like you as a mate too." He purred fondly, rubbing his head against Eren's cheek, "We're one odd couple, that's for sure, but I wouldn't have it any other way."
~~~KMD~~~
In the original ending that I had planned, Levi was going to die (Of old age, I'm not that mean!) but seeing as my own cat died yesterday it was, uh, too soon, so luckily for you guys, you get the nice/cheesy ending!
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