Eren gawked dumbfounded at the oak door that had all but slammed in his face. "But, but sir! Stay…"
The boy's quiet words seemed to echo in the now lonely kitchen. This, this was simply uncalled for. Even when Eren had received punishments in the past, Levi had always been right there with him. His presence, his touch, no matter how rough or reprimanding it might have been, was still comforting.
But here was Eren, alone, burdened with this arduous task to complete away from the captain's supervision. The boy couldn't help but sniffle a bit as he gazed at the door, at the glaring barrier between him and his captain. It made Eren's heart twinge with a strange sort of pain, the dull ache concentrating solely within his chest. Even in his anger, Levi had always stayed. To scold Eren, to discipline him. No matter the circumstance, he had at least been there.
The boy knotted his brows, forlorn, as he squatted pitifully in the middle of the floor. To what degree then, had the captain's fury risen to? That he would rather rid Eren from his sights than watch as the boy's punishment was carried out, as he always did? Eren grimaced and sighed as he shifted his weight on the balls of his feet, his hands splayed out on the floor in front of him in an effort to keep balanced. His only option was to whip the kitchen back into shape and hurry up to the captain's quarters. The sooner the boy finished, the sooner he could crawl into bed and take refuge against Levi's chest for the night. Yes, the captain would be so pleased with Eren's job well done that all would be forgotten and forgiven.
Eren soon woke from his thoughts however, tearing his gaze away from the heavy door before letting his eyes fall onto the wide circle of glass on the marble floor, the shards twinkling almost mockingly under the kerosene lamps along the walls. Gritting his teeth in determination, the boy scuttled awkwardly forward, careful not to allow the broom to drag on the floor as it protruded painfully out from his backside before he settled into a deeper squat than before. Eren winced and drew in hasty breaths as he wiggled his behind, the broom handle poking and prodding his insides as he rocked his rump stiffly back and forth, sweeping the glass into as neat a pile as he could manage. Tears trickled down the boy's cheeks before he knew it, the handle nudging slightly deeper into his body when his backside had fallen unconsciously lower to the ground.
"Haa—." The boy hissed and tightened the muscles of his thighs as he raised his behind up quickly, a slight burn blossoming deep within his legs. Eren shuffled along, sobbing pathetically amid hiccups as he tried to manipulate the dust broom as best he could against the blinking fragments littering the floor. He just couldn't understand. Why now, had Levi abandoned him to carry out this miserable chore alone? Maybe…no, that was silly. The captain loved Eren, he was just cross is all. Soon Eren would be wrapped tight in the captain's arms, enveloped in Levi's warmth, safe and sound and loved. The boy shook himself abruptly out of his musings, biting his lip and setting his jaw, his backside swaying awkwardly to and fro as he rushed to carry out the captain's orders, his calves and thighs tingling with fatigue. But the boy pushed on and managed to coax every last sliver of glass into a small, orderly pile on the marble floor before he dropped to his hands and knees with a sigh of relief.
Eren crawled forward to the supply cabinet beneath the sink and fetched the small dustpan, grunting and gasping as the dust broom bobbed slightly with each movement. Once he had succeeded in guiding the glass into the dustpan and disposing of it, Eren made his way doggedly out of the kitchen and up the stairs, stopping finally to stare up apprehensively at the captain's bedroom door. There, in all reality, was nothing to worry about. Levi's anger had most likely dissipated in the time that it had taken Eren to tidy up the kitchen, considering the fact that his circumstances hadn't helped in any way to speed up the process. Why, the captain was possibly even lonely, wanting so much to bring Eren close against his body as he did every night without fail. But that was no matter, all Eren would have to do was open the oaken door, offer up one last apology and the captain would gladly remove the intrusion from Eren's backside before welcoming the boy graciously back into his affections. Yes, it was as simple as that.
But the brass doorknob did not give when Eren knelt up and reached to turn it. That was odd, maybe it was stuck, jammed or something of the like. The boy wrinkled his nose and tugged at the knob again, the handle refusing to budge despite the extra effort he had put in to move it. "Sir, I'm finished cleaning," Eren called through the wood, "but I—," he gave another mighty pull, "I can't open the door." The boy sat back on his knees, waiting, his head tilted to the side. Levi hadn't said a word. Nor had there been any rustling or sounds of movement coming from inside the room. Eren leaned forward, plastering his ear to the door and giving it a tentative knock. "Sir, won't you let me in? I did what you asked, sir, I'm sleepy, I want to go to bed with you, please, captain."
Still nothing. Perhaps Levi had not yet retired for the evening, though he and Eren would have been sleeping soundly by now had this night gone without incident. The boy shook out his hair and crinkled his forehead, his lower lip pushing out slightly before fell onto his hands and began padding along through the hallway. If the captain was not in his bedroom then he was surely occupying his study, or the bathroom possibly. Eren gritted his teeth as he crawled, wanting nothing more than for his behind to be ridden of that damned broom, though he didn't possess nearly enough nerve to fish it out himself. The boy stopped at the threshold of Levi's study and poked his head inside, his eyes sweeping throughout the empty room before he sighed and crept over to the bathroom, finding no captain there. Eren let out a bewildered whine and turned away to slink back to the bedroom. That was the only option, Levi couldn't be downstairs, Eren would have undoubtedly heard him had the captain decided to leave his quarters.
The boy kneeled once again at the bedroom door, glaring at it in frustration and pounding against it fervently. "Sir, please! Are you in there, please let me in!"
Levi sat up in bed, the mattress creaking slightly, and sighed, rubbing his temples firmly. Eren was indeed merely a child, but that was by no means an excuse; he would have to learn. What the boy had done was no small offense; merely cleaning the kitchen was hardly an act of penance. Still, Eren needed his sleep, and he had always done so in Levi's arms, as he never could without him, the boy lying awake through all hours of the night when the captain attended to paperwork, only allowing himself to fall into slumber once Levi joined him. However, these were the consequences that Eren had accepted when he had decided to go against Levi's wishes. He would simply have to learn.
The boy's eyes widened at the subtle squeak of the bed. The captain was indeed in his room! And…Levi had been ignoring him. Eren fell forward against the door desperately, crying out and beating his fists against the polished wood. "Sir! Daddy! Why won't you let me in? I cleaned the whole kitchen! Just like you said! Why?" Eren shook his head in confusion and hurt when only silence reached his ears, tears beginning to crawl out from the corners of his eyes. "Daddy, daddy! I want to sleep with you, please! Why won't you talk to me?! Please! I love you, I told you I was sorry for eating the cake and breaking the glass and lying to you and—and—pleaaase I'm sorry!"
Levi sank back down and let the back of his head slump into the pillow, his fingers lacing atop his chest, not a word escaping his mouth as they did so. It was all for Eren's own good, he had to punish him in this way, the captain could not afford to create an environment that fostered disobedience. The boy was his responsibility and it was on Levi's shoulders to bring Eren up correctly. And discipline was the only way in which to do so.
The boy sobbed against the polished wood, his shoulders heaving as he weakly thumped the door with his palms. "Talk to me, sir, don't you love me?! I'm sorry! So sorry, just please, let me sleep with you! I'm tired and I'm cold, I want to go to bed, don't ignore me, sir, please!" Eren moaned and whimpered, distraught, furiously pawing and scratching at the door that stood between him and his comfort, his tears clearing paths through what was left of the icing on his cheeks. The boy slumped forward against the door, his wails reaching a higher pitch in his despair, his nerves completely strung out and shot. "Daddy, please…"
Levi rose out of bed shortly after dawn, striding to the bedroom door and gently swinging it open before he bothered to rub the sleep from his eyes. There at the threshold lay Eren, the dust broom sitting snuggly still in his backside, his thumb tucked between his lips and his brows rutted slightly, even in slumber. "Precious thing, tuckered himself out making a mess of my door…" the captain murmured as he crouched down to sweep the boy into his arms and saunter over to the bathroom. Levi then slid the sleeping Eren down into the large tub and rolled up the long sleeves of his nightshirt before turning the faucet and letting the water warm.
The captain's eyes narrowed as he squatted down and spread the boy's legs, Eren's ankles hanging over either side of the tub, and gently wiggled out the inch of the broom handle that had resided in Eren's backside since last night. The puckered mouth closed immediately, though the delicate opening remained slightly loose. Levi pursed his lips and dug what was left of the icing out from the boy's insides, guiding a stream of water onto Eren's bottom with his hand to rinse the mousse all away before he brought the boy's legs back down to rest them in the water as the tub filled. He thankfully hadn't stuck Eren too far in with the broom, seeing as he hadn't wanted to deflower the boy completely. That would be in due time. But for now, Eren's backside would just have to bounce back.
"Wake up, Eren, come now pup, wake up." The captain held a small wooden bowl under the tap before spilling its contents gently onto the boy's hair, Eren's eyes flitting open groggily. "Ca—captain…" he mumbled quietly, sinking down wearily into the water, relieved to feel the newfound emptiness in his behind, "do you still love me? Are you still mad at me?" Levi lathered his hands with soap and dug his fingers into the boy's wetted locks, scrubbing away intently before he finally spoke. "Yes, I love you Eren, and as for being mad at you…we'll see precious," the captain supposed, dumping another bowlful of water over the boy's head, the suds sliding down Eren's cheeks and over his closed eyes. "Though I can tell you that you won't be getting as spoiled as you're used to, my dear."
The boy let out a dejected sigh and slumped tiredly beneath Levi's fingers as they ran over his body, stirring up a heavy lather along his skin, kneading and loosening his muscles gently. But Eren's body spurred abruptly out of its fatigue, the boy whirling around and lunging over the rim of the bathtub to throw his arms around the captain's shoulders, showering the man with soapy water. "I don't care, sir, I don't need gifts, I don't need to be spoiled," Eren dug his sopping face into Levi's neck despite the man's agitated growl, "as long as you love me still, I will be happy! I never want to make you angry, I don't ever want to leave you!"
The captain's lips formed a thin line before he let out a single breath through his flaring nose. "Oi, oi, Eren! You've gone and gotten daddy Levi all wet," the man breathed, wrapping his arms nevertheless around the boy's wet back and pressing his lips to Eren's temple, "enough with all of this silly talk, pup, there's nothing to fret over. Now be a good boy and get out of the tub. We have to get you dried and situated before I prepare for the dinner tonight."
Eren scrambled immediately out of the tub and onto the small towel the captain had laid on the floor, eager to reside once more in Levi's favors. The boy hiked his bottom in the air arched his back, stretching away the last bits of sleep (despite how shallow and broken it had been) from his body before he shook out his dripping hair, splattering the captain kneeling beside him once again with water, cringing with a sheepish smile as Levi glared daggers down at him. "Sorry, sir." The man pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes before he gave a heavy drawn out sigh. "Out of all the puppies in the world…"
Levi spread another larger towel out in his arms, his eyes rolling despite themselves. "Come here, you naughty little thing." Eren giggled and pounced into the man's lap, squirming happily under Levi's hands as the towel was dragged luxuriously all over his body, his lips pecking away fervently at the captain's neck, jaw, and cheeks. "Alright, alright," the man coaxed, pulling a corner of the towel over the boy's damp hair before tucking Eren's face into his collarbone, "off to the bedroom with you, Eren, let's go. I need to get out of these—," Levi knotted his brows in annoyance, "wet nightclothes."
"Yes, sir!" Eren grinned up at the captain as he stood and folded the towel before draping it over the side of the tub and making his way out into the hallway, the boy padding along at his heels.
Levi stood facing the dresser and shed his dampened clothing as the boy knelt patiently at the foot of the bed, staring entranced as he always did at the man's naked form. Eren's eyes focused and his head leaned to the side as he beheld the captain. It was almost unsettling, seeing him bare and exposed completely like this, just as Eren was. It was during these times that he and the captain were the most similar, at least in their nakedness, the only difference being the captain shed his garments only willingly. Eren however, had never been given a choice.
"Oi," Levi turned to face the boy slowly, slipping on a crisp white button up and tucking it into his trousers, "my little pup has such a peculiar look in his eyes," the man muttered nonchalantly, his expression growing cold, "I wonder what he could be thinking about…"
Eren shook his head abruptly, the captain's low voice bringing him back to the present. "Nothing, sir, nothing," the boy quipped, crawling over to Levi to slink between his legs, "my mind was just wandering is all."
The captain arched a thin brow and slid open the dresser drawer to brandish Eren's leash before he knelt down to take the boy's face in his hands. "I see," Levi breathed, blowing in Eren's ear as he rubbed the boy's cheeks with his thumbs, Eren giggling happily at the tickle of air from the man's mouth, "well, you'll have plenty of time to let your mind wander while I attend the dinner tonight." The boy's eyes immediately lost their cheerful crinkle, instead widening in bewilderment, the beginnings of anxiety bubbling up within his body. "Wait, sir, you're taking me with you, aren't you?" he prompted as Levi hooked the leash to his collar, "why would my mind be wandering at dinner?"
Levi rose slowly up to his feet and twined the leather cord around his wrist. "No, precious, you'll be staying home tonight," the captain said, tugging the leash and moving slowly towards the bedroom door, "I can't be sure that you'll be a good boy for me in front of the supreme commander after your little incident yesterday, so I'll be leaving you here while I'm gone. Perhaps it will allow you an opportunity to reflect on what you've done." Eren furrowed his brows and steadied himself against the leash, pulling back stubbornly as the captain made to move forward. "But sir, I said sorry!" the boy stammered incredulously, "I promise I'll be good, please, captain take me with you, I don't want to stay home alone!" Eren bounded forward quickly and rose up on his knees to bury his face in Levi's hip, wrapping his arms tightly around the man's thighs. "Please sir, I want to stay with you!"
"Now, Eren," Levi's voice quieted as he narrowed his eyes, "I'll only be gone for a little while. You can lay in the nice little bed I made you and think about how you're going to go about behaving yourself for me from now on. Understand?"
Eren's eyes fell as he slumped against the captain's legs in defeat. He had only just been separated from Levi merely hours ago, and here now, the man was leaving him once again. That peculiar feeling of pain was welling up in his chest again and the boy couldn't help but desperately hug Levi tighter. "Yes, sir..."
The captain's lip turned up slightly as his slitted eyes flashed fleetingly. "That's my good boy."
To Be Continued :)