Comrade

The throbbing in his head was the kind that made him want to put a bullet through it and to hell with what came next. It was like there were knives in his head, ruthlessly carving out his eyes and stabbing through his skull. "Shit." Levi groaned into his pillow, tearing at his hair with shaking hands. "Shit, shit, shit. Holy, god dammit…."

He didn't remember making it back to the barracks, he thought. Or leaving that tavern for that matter. Or really much of anything that happened last night. Crushing the heel of his hand into his eyes, he rolled groggily onto his side, propping himself up on one elbow. His hand was still shaking, he noticed, and he was going to need a quart-give or take-of some very strong tea to wash down that sour taste in his mouth.

Except the thought of eating and drinking induced a vile feeling in his stomach that made him want to curl up into a tight ball and shut out the world. He flinched at the light when he dared opening his cold, black eyes, blinking rapidly and squinting at the room.

This wasn't the Survey Corps barracks.

A fresh wave of pain washed over him and the room spun violently as he forced himself upright. The room was small and smelled strongly of its more consistent occupant, someone he assumed had been displaced last night. Levi frowned and held up his hand, critically observing the shirt he was wearing was definitely not his. Not with how the sleeves trailed well over his hands and the unacceptable ink and coffee stains dotting the cuffs.

He was in Karanes, he remembered, rising unsteadily to his feet. Where at in Karanes, though, he couldn't fathom. The floorboards were old and creaked under his bare feet when he crossed to the window. Pulling back the thin curtain, he winced at the light but confirmed he was still in the city and hadn't made it back to the barracks last night. Another pang of nausea teased his stomach, but nothing came of it after he took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

It had been four days since the Scouting Legion had returned here after its most recent expedition beyond the Wall, and six since he lost Isabel and Farlan. Six days. He let the curtain fall back, dimming the sunlight, and stepped toward the door. Only six days, and yet it only felt like hours the memory was so fresh. Levi hissed a foul word as he stumbled into the doorframe, clapping a hand over his forehead and groaning. A strong sense of nausea coiled in his gut and threatened to press against the back of his throat, but a couple steady breaths calmed the feeling before he found it in him to raise his head.

Several moments passed before his eyes adjusted to the morning light streaming in through the windows, but when they did he saw that four Scouts seated at a small table were watching him. Levi tensed, but he only saw mild concern and maybe a little surprise in their expressions. "And the Wall Sina rogue lives!" A dark-haired man shouted with a laugh, which made him wince at the volume and put a hand over his head again.

Across the room, he heard a small clatter and flicked his eyes to the right where two civilian women were standing in the kitchen side of the main room. The younger of the two offered an empathetic smile, but her senior was standing over a large cookpot and hadn't seemed to notice him.

"How's your head?" The lone female Scout asked, leaning backward in her seat to see around her much taller companions.

Levi said nothing, casting a suspicious look at all of them. He didn't recognize anyone, though with his headache it was pretty damned impossible to think straight. If he had seen them before, it might have been during the expedition. Not that it mattered if they were familiar. What mattered is why he was here and what did these people know about it. The front door was across the room, he thought, his black eyes rolling indolently as he examined the room. And there's a window there...and there. One in the room behind me, too.

"See, this is what happens when you pick random vagrants up off the street." The eldest of the group said, almost sneering.

"Hey, come on, Bozard, he's had a rough night, that's all." Admonished the third man in the party, who then turned to address Levi with a cheerful smile, kicking the empty chair beside him out from under the table. "Have a seat, why don't you?"

Levi glanced around the room, again surveying possible escape routes, then, prepared to run if the situation turned ugly, sat down between the the blond man and the dark one. "Who are you people?" He automatically cleared his throat, coughing slightly as his voice came out ragged and harsher than he expected, the rasping whisper of a man who hadn't spoken in years. The elder of the two civilian women approached the table with a mug of what he hoped was water and set it before him, patting his shoulder with a compassionate smile. Slowly, Levi took a sip and nodded his thanks. It was water, cold and sweet and a welcome relief to his dry throat. Personally, he preferred tea, but he could consider this an adequate substitute.

"I'm Ral." The auburn-haired woman announced in answer to his question. "Petra Ral. Those two are Gunther and Oruo, but I don't think I got your surnames."

"Schultz. And he's Bozard." The dark-haired one introduced them with a nod.

"And I'm Eld Jinn." The blond man smiled, then gestured to the elder woman standing at the table. "This here's my mother and my girl Karoline."

"Nice to meet you." Frau Jinn said, nodding politely. The younger woman, Karoline, came to stand beside her but said nothing, quietly drying her hands with an old towel.

"Likewise." The Scout woman-Petra-answered, "It's very kind of you to let us all stay here last night. Even if it's a little unorthodox. I hope you don't mind my asking, but does your family always let random strangers spend the night in your home?"

"Ah, that's my old man's philosophy for you." Eld said, leaning back in his chair. "He always told me every beggar's an honest man and every whore's a lady 'cause they've enough dirt in their faces without the rest of humanity shoving them into it. He was always letting all kinds of folk into the house whether they were soldiers or thieves or hunters. Mom never complained and just set an extra plate at the table. You could never tell who we were gonna find on our sofa the next morning." Frau Jinn gave a comfortable smile yet said nothing when the others turned to her in surprise.

Levi blinked twice but took another drink of water in favor of speaking.

"No kidding." Gunther nodded. "What happened to your father?"

"Same thing that happens to all of us eventually." Was the subdued answer as Eld took on a more serious countenance. "Figure doing what he did best kinda keeps him with us in a way. Speaking of, your color's looking a little better now, friend. Not so much like the entire Scouting Legion trampled you on its way out the South Gate."

Levi glared at him, but the expression hurt too much to maintain for very long and left him pinching the bridge of his nose to quell the pulsing. "Anyone want to tell me how I got here?"

It was Petra who spoke. "I was leaving that pub by the outer gate and I found you collapsed in the alley."

"Right, and Miss Ral is a small woman, so it would be hard for her to carry you around without dragging you," Gunther continued her narrative. "So she asked Oruo and I to help her out as we were leaving the tavern."

"And may I say, for such a small man, you are incredibly heavy." Oruo shook his head in disbelief.

"They were going to bring you back to the barracks out of town." Eld continued, nodding sagely. "Except you dumped a pretty hefty load on the ground, which reminds me, your uniform's hanging up outside." Levi twitched. "You looked awful, so I offered everyone a place to stay and here we all are."

Clearly, this wasn't the first time this had happened, but Levi just nodded and was just about to stand and show himself out the door with a snarky, 'Well, this has been a truly fascinating morning, but I think I'll be on my way.' when Eld's mother suddenly clunked a bowl right in front of him. He jumped, whipping his head around to face the woman and gritting his teeth as the Jinn family's kitchen spiraled. Son of a bitch, that hurts! What the hell was she doing? Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of what looked like some kind of oatmeal, then cast a questioning look at their host.

"What's with that face?" Frau Jinn asked, laughing incredulously. "You look as though you've never had a home-cooked meal in your life! Don't you fret about throwing up now. I spent my entire marriage perfecting a good breakfast for hungover young men like you."

Levi leaned forward a fraction and sniffed at the bowl, somewhat relieved when the mild smell didn't trigger another queasy feeling. Granted, he felt his stomach twinge at the thought of eating, but whatever it was actually smelled pretty good.

"Dig in, everyone." Karoline smiled gently, coming to the table with two more bowls of the same meal and placing them in front of the other Scouts.

Oruo cast the woman an odd glance, but Petra thanked her and scooted her chair forward, inhaling the vapor rising up from her bowl. "Mm, that smells good!"

Gunther rose to his feet as Karoline circled the table with the other bowl and a handful of spoons. "Here, let me help you with that, miss."

"Sit down." She laughed, putting a hand on his shoulder and gently pushing him back into his seat. "You're a guest."

She could not, however, stop Eld from standing to help his mother with a heavy, cast iron pot full of the same porridge substance. Some bread and cheese was set out, along with a pitcher of water and several mismatched cups. Actually, Levi noted, none of the dishes matched now that he thought about it. Some were made of tin, others ceramic, and two of the cups and a bowl were carved from wood. Even the silverware alternated between wood and metal.

"Go ahead, eat up." Karoline told him as she placed a knife for the bread on the cutting board.

Feeling awkward with the whole situation, Levi picked up his old, tarnished spoon and took a small bite. He couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten something that hadn't tasted like shit. Decent food was impossible to come by in the slums and while military rations were a significant step up, they certainly weren't the best available fare. He himself wasn't particularly skilled at cooking and Isabel and Farlan….he swallowed and let the thought wither.

"Damn, you ladies weren't kidding." Gunther complimented, waving a spoon at their hosts. "Top notch, right there."

"Aw, danke!" Frau Jinn smiled. "There's plenty to go around, so help yourself to seconds if you like."

Petra immediately shoveled another ladle of oatmeal into her bowl and reached across the table for a few slices of bread and cheese, much to her comrades' dismay. Levi wondered how quickly she'd put away her first serving but shrugged off her questionable table manners and asked, "So why did the rest of you stay here?" Before anyone answered, he quickly took another bite, realizing how hungry he was. He might as well finish the bowl before leaving. It was a free meal, after all. No harm in passing that up. Just as long as he could keep it down, he amended as he felt his stomach twist.

"Didn't feel like heading back out to the barracks." Oruo answered around a slice of cheese.

"I thought this was your home city." Petra pointed out through a full mouth, frowning at him. "Couldn't you stay with family or a friend maybe?"

"It's always so damn noisy in my brother's house you can't get a minute of peace. Paid 'em all a visit yesterday and cleared out while the going was good." He waved a dismissive hand. "What about you, Ral? I know your parents live here and you're an only child."

The woman swallowed and turned away. "I haven't been on very good terms with them since I joined the Scouts. Not that I'm unwelcome back home, it's just different."

"Yeah, same here." Gunther reached for the water pitcher. "They talk to you the same as they always did, but right behind their eyes, you can see them begging you to transfer to the Garrison. Or the MPs if you qualify. Am I right?"

"Yes."

A brief silence fell over the table, aside from quiet chewing. Eld reached for a slice of bread and handed a wedge of cheese to a hesitant Petra. "Well, you're always welcome here." Karoline said, seating herself between the two. Her….Levi frowned as he wasn't entirely sure what Eld was to her. He called her 'his girl', but that could mean any number of things. The man wrapped an arm around her slender shoulders and planted a quick kiss on her cheek.

"Thank you for the offer." Petra answered her. "But I wouldn't want to impose. I feel as though we've already overstayed our welcome."

Levi said nothing and reached for a bread slice, tearing off a sliver of the crust and nibbling at it in small bites.

"So, do you have a family name?" Petra asked him suddenly. "It's a little presumptuous calling you by your first name, so-"

"Levi's fine."

"Oh." She blinked, looking befuddled. "Okay, then, if you're all right with that."

"I've got one more question. Why didn't you just leave me in that alleyway?"

"Well," Petra began. "If you'd been an MP or just some old vagrant, I'd have just liberated whatever money you hadn't used to drown yourself and left you there for the rats to chew on." The straightforwardness of her declaration, or perhaps the way she delivered it with a sweet and sincere smile, disturbed him a little. "But I saw you were a Scout and I don't like abandoning comrades, whether they're in the field or at home."

"Exactly." Eld agreed with a grin. "If we can't get along inside the Walls, how can we expect to work together outside? You're one of us now, like it or not."

Levi scowled. "Ow…."

-0-0-0-

Author's Notes: So this is a series of drabbles and oneshots involving the original Levi Squad. They're not in any particular order, though a few may be companion pieces to one another.

A note on Karoline: I didn't think she had a name, but if she does, please let me know and I'll gladly change it.

Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan is owned by Hajime Isayama.