Continuation of "Lights"


"Levi! Levi, Levi, Levi, Levi! Are you ready to go?"

He cast a glance over his shoulder as Eren bounced around, their brilliant green eyes alight with excitement. With every pirouette the hem of their mid-thigh length dress fluttered up, the soft yellow catching the light. Flowers - peonies, tulips, and roses in delicate pastels grew along the bottom, matching the necklace of soft pink blooms around his neck, tiny roses that he had grown in his little window box.

That was something that had amused Levi the first time he had visited Eren, seeing the hundreds of plants that littered his flat, all of them in soft purples, pinks, blues, yellows, oranges. A pastel domain befitting of his soul mate.

Eren twirled again and Levi caught their wrist, tugging them into his body with a soft squeak. He kissed Eren's chin and smiled a little at the perfume that clung to their skin, of lavender and chocolate and fresh air. And of the roses. Sweet. Familiar. A scent that made his chest ache a little more than he liked.

"Of course I'm ready," he murmured against Eren's collarbone, lips skimming across that smooth skin he had memorized. It brought on a tiny shiver, one that made his lips tug up into another smile. Those had become all too familiar since Eren had plunged into his life, grabbed his hand, and dragged him down into depths he hadn't explored in years. Maybe ever. He couldn't remember.

Eren tugged at his tight light blue V-neck, giggling as they nuzzled the top of Levi's head. "I was about to say, you already looked great. You didn't have to change. Though…" A soft kiss was pressed to his forehead, then his cheek. Fingers fluttered across his arm before twining with his, curling into his palm. "Your ass looks spectacular in those jeans."

"Thanks," Levi snorted with with a playful eye roll as he butted his nose against Eren's chin. "Like you're gonna get a piece of it."

"But I can check it out."

"Maybe." Levi kissed the corner of Eren's mouth before he pulled back, just far enough to see Eren's face. "Sides, I've been waiting on you to get your scrawny ass ready."

Eren shot him a sheepish grin as they tugged on the roses around their neck, gentle enough that they wouldn't tear away. "Sorry, I just really wanted to grow these. I thought it wouldn't take long, honestly!"

He ruffled Eren's hair with an easy hand. "Shut up. It's fine. If I really minded, I'd be a shitty boyfriend. Besides..." His hand dropped to thumb a rose, the pink petals velvety beneath his finger. "They look good."

That earned him a brilliant smile, so big, that his heart fluttered against his ribs, familiar in its tempo. Eren's eyes danced as they leaned closer, their foreheads bumping together as Eren gently squeezed his hand. "I made you a flower crown if you want one. It's blue!"

Levi shrugged, the smile coming too easily. "If you made it, then I'd wear it." Eren shot another radiant smile Levi's way before they flounced out of the room. Levi waited, patient, idle, mulling over things as he listened to Eren rummage around.

The thought of wearing something that his other had taken time and magic to make, a veritable token of his love and affection... Soft golden light pulsed from his chest, so faint that it nearly wasn't visible through his clothes. Even so he clutched at the fabric above it, cheeks flushing as he glanced between the doorway and his chest. It was so fucking embarrassing, watching the fabric of his being pulse with life. Love. And it sure as shit was embarrassing, such a blatant declaration of everything. But... it was also warm. Welcomed.

"Leeeeevi!" A warm body hurled itself into his arms, heavy enough that he staggered back a step or two as hands automatically came up to encircle Eren. A light weight settled on his head, familiar from the countless times Eren had grown and woven flowers with magic, be it crowns or necklaces or other such things. Sometimes he let them wilt but others he saved, a sturdy preservation spell keeping them intact for years on end, though the oldest one was only two years old. Funny how he marked the passage of time with flowers now, memories lingering with them.

A crown of white roses from their first date - the first one Eren had given him - with reminders of how awkward it had been, but then how sweet Eren's laugh had been and how things had eased after that. One of blue-purple asters that Eren had set onto his head with a kiss and an "I missed you" after a long week of not seeing each other; something that had hurt far more than it should have. The slim band of bluebells that Eren had presented to him after he had grabbed their hand and pulled them away from a gaggle of nitwits who seemed set on making Eren's life a veritable Hell. Flowers, flowers, always flowers. And he loved them.

Levi caught Eren's hand again and pressed a chaste kiss to their cheek. "Thank you." He could feel the heat from Eren's cheek as their fingers wound together, familiar and comfortable.

It was easier now than it had been at first, especially as they emerged from Levi's apartment. Eren craved touch of any kind, seeking out a hand to curl their's with, a cheek to kiss or one from Levi, a hug. Even the faintest brush of his fingers along Eren's arm left them ecstatic. Eren was a person who thrived on physical contact and Levi hesitated with it, unsure of how to even begin to give Eren what they needed. The price of being terrible with people he supposed.

Eren clung to his arm as they walked down the streets, the amount of people roaming the streets less at twilight. Even in the realm of magic they had reason to fear the dark. Most of the people - mundanes and wizards alike - were indistinguishable and, sometimes, that made it all far more dangerous, especially when wizards and witches of the new generation melded better with mundanes. Proven in part with how Eren and be could easily be students at any school in the country. But they weren't.

"So," Levi murmured as he pressed closer, "What's got you so hyper?"

Eren was practically vibrating on his arm, impatiently bouncing on their toes every time they had to stop. It was almost surprising they hadn't sprinted on, dragging Levi behind him. "Sorry, sorry," Eren mumbled back with a swift squeeze to Levi's hand as they continued to bounce, impatiently shifting from foot to foot. "I'm just really excited! I mean, we haven't been out in so long!"

"Too long."

For the last three weeks Eren had frantically crammed as much information as they could in preparation for their finals - all seven of them. They had spent their time at one flat or another, Levi drilling Eren and their roommates, Jean, Armin, and Marco when they were at Eren's flat over the history of magic, the uses of herbs, the mythical creatures that roamed their world, hexes, charms, potions. Stuff that Levi hadn't even bothered to look at since he had graduated and yet now he felt like he had memorized all of their textbooks. And, thanks to the relentless cramming, the four had passed all of their exams with good grades - for the most part anyway. Jean had, somehow, managed to fail his History of Magic exam quite spectacularly.

"Even the breaks we took when we were studying… those weren't anywhere near enough."

"Damn right. Since we we ended up studying there too half the fucking time."

"At least I passed! And now we can go on all sorts of dates again!"

"Oh darn."

A swift jab in his side had him doubling over, even as Eren laughed loud enough that people turned to stare, bemused or confused or irritated. Levi couldn't even give a damn about all the eyes focused on them, not when he looked up and Eren's face was crinkled with laugh lines, those beautiful green eyes scrunched up with delight as they threw their head back and laughed, loud and carefree. Beautiful.

He stretched up onto his toes and kissed Eren's cheek as red snapped to green. They kept walking, slow and steady, as though they had all the time in the world. And, in all honesty, sometimes Levi thought they did. They would live longer than humans, on average twenty to thirty years longer. Old man Pixis was two away from one hundred and fifty and he wasn't even the strongest wizard or witch out there. In a way, they did. They had all they could ever need.

Eren swung their hands once, twice as they walked, before their hands swung up high enough for their lips to skim across their knuckles, warm as ever. Thankfully, the pale pink lipstick Eren had put on didn't come off on their fingers, though he certainly wouldn't have minded. Better to be on his neck or cheek - those marks he wore proudly, welcome the mouth-shaped stain of pink or lavender or whatever color Eren chose to suit their outfit or mood. Yet another thing he hadn't been accustomed to that Eren had changed, as he had with so many other things.

The park gates rose before them, pale stone mortared together with elegant swirls of wrought iron stretched between the pillars. It made the city more bearable than it would have been otherwise. Though, Eren's flat was a paradise of green and life, mixing well with the chrome and books and other assorted things from his three roommates.

He didn't have the space that the park allowed and Levi might have been biased, but he adored the flowers Eren grew far more than the ones Eren would fawn over in the park. Lilies, carnations, morning glories, cornflower, cowslip, poppies, roses, and dozens more. Eren had taught him the names from visit after visit and slowly, slowly Levi had learned. He couldn't put meanings to them like Eren could but he could certainly think of the potions that some of plants and herbs there could make.

Lights illuminated the cobblestone pathways as sunlight seeped away, streaking the sky with lavender, cornflower, vanilla. Eren tugged Levi off the beaten path traversed by so many before them and beneath a tree, a massive oak that stood dozens of meters tall. Gentle hands tugged him in to a solid chest as lanky, warm arms looped around his waist. A nose bumped against his temple, then further down until their lips met, slow and soft. He let Eren tug him up with fingers curled beneath his chin, one hand firm on his waist, as his own arms wound around Eren's neck to clasp at that warm flesh.

So much had changed in the last two years since they had met but there was one thing that was better than the flower crowns - Eren's kisses. Slow and sweet. Hot and fiery. Passion and patience and energy in every one, even when Eren had dragged through a long, rough day. There was always life to find in those touches, those lips, those soft sighs.

Something wrapped around Levi's leg as Eren pressed back against the tree. He smiled into the kiss as the thin tendrils crept higher and higher, winding from ankle to his knee and inching further upward even when they parted, breathing a little harder than before. "Eren..."

Soft giggles burst forth and they both looked down at the vines that had sprung from the ground, pale pink and white morning glories wrapped stark against his dark jeans. "Sorry, sorry. I..."

"I know. I like them."

Liked the way that Eren's magic went out of control when they kissed, making nearby plants grow frantically - or unconsciously summoning them and urging them to grow. Sweet in a way that made his heart thump hard against his ribcage, made his mouth go dry and his stomach do flips. He couldn't do anything like that. He couldn't make the plants go wild and cling to the person he loved - because fuck, if it wasn't love he didn't know what it was.

But he could do other things. His fingers were practically burning from holding it back, from containing the sparks that wanted to fly. Eren nosed back at him, bumping their cheeks together with a soft, warm sigh. "I adore you."

"I cherish you." Because "I love you" wasn't enough sometimes.

They pulled apart far too soon, fingertips catching, then releasing as Levi raised his hand, sparks pouring from his fingertips. Once they had been dark, greens and reds and blues. Now they were softer, lighter. Pastel pinks, yellows, oranges, blues, purples, all pouring from his hand and rising to float around them, touching cheeks and sliding through hair and illuminating their faces. The sparks danced around them and Eren smiled. Warm. Bright. Familiar.

"God, you're amazing."

"Not as much as you."