Levi didn't know how he had gotten into this.

Oh wait; yes he did!

It had started that day in the Underground. He and his friends, Carmen and Roy were going along, minding their own business, when one of the idiots bumped into him. He yelled at the shorter male to apologize, snapped profanities, but he had long been accustomed to being called such things.

Levi was no stranger to the 3DMG. He had seen the belts and straps and the contraption strapped to the soldiers and police he encountered. Once, he had found such gear, thrown in the trash. Whether by a retiree or a soldier who had had enough of the life they had, it didn't matter. The gas propulsion was missing, but that didn't matter either.

Levi managed to fix the gear up and taught himself how to use through quite a few trial and error and many, many bruises. But eventually, Levi was able to use the gear to a whim. His skill, plus the fact he was already a skilled fighter, made him infamous. Carmen and Roy both beamed whenever they saw him use it.

"You're really something else, Levi; I wish I could move like you do!" Carmen teased, before her expression would become softer and she would say, "I'm really proud of you, y'know?"

Roy simply smiled and offered to get them some food after their jobs.

However, when Levi flew up into the air and slammed the man down with the heel of his boot, he didn't know just what he had done to screw(?) his life up more than it already was. As he followed Carmen and Roy away, he became aware of someone watching him. He glanced back just for brief moment. A man with blond hair slicked back, light blue eyes, and a soldier's uniform, as well as his own 3DMG was looking at him. But that wasn't what made Levi nearly stop.

It was the emblem of a white wing and blue wing intersecting with one another.

It was the small smile on the man's face.

It was how those sky-blue eyes held his gunmetal-grey ones with such an intense gaze for just a few seconds before the young man disappeared.

Even now, weeks later, Levi couldn't get the scene out of his head. Really, when he thought about it, it made sense; of course the one soldier who would actually see him using the 3DMG would be part of the faction that used it on a regular basis!

"Hey, what's eating you?"

Levi glanced from where he was sitting to see Carmen look at his with a concerned expression. They were in their usual place, the three of them; underneath a crumbling, gaping hole that showed the sky up above them blue and with barely a cloud.

"It's nothing," he said simply.

Carmen looked at him a bit longer but simply shrugged. "If you say so."

"Guys," Roy said in a soft but excited tone, "I've got great news."

"Oh yeah?"

Roy withdrew a small purse as he said, "I've been setting aside some bits of money for a while and I got enough to get some meat!"

"Seriously?! That's great!" Carmen exclaimed, smiling widely.

Levi was silently impressed. Meat wasn't rare in Sina, but it was pretty expensive. He wondered how long Roy had been saving up.

"Who's going to get it this time?" Carmen said, Levi knowing exactly what was coming up.

"Onetwothreenotit!"

Levi remained silent, because Carmen's idea of deciding who would get the food was stupid. Incredibly so.

"Welp, it's your turn now," Carmen chirped at her friend.

Roy shrugged at Levi helplessly. The raven-haired male sighed and took the purse from his friend.

"The butcher's is only opened till evening, so you won't be able to go out during night," Carmen told him as Levi left, "Be sure to come back as soon as possible is it's still warm!"

The sun was slowly setting.

Levi gripped the package of the meat beneath his cloak, his other hand gripping his dagger tightly. The people were few and far between now. That was fine with Levi. Less people around to see him.

As he rounded another corner, Levi became aware of someone's eyes on him. He kept his pace steady before he walked in front of a glass window, glancing at his reflection.

It was the soldier from before.

He was looking straight at Levi's reflection from where he was. Almost immediately, a sharp shiver went up Levi's spine. He forced himself to keep walking at his regular pace, giving off a totally calm aura as he continued to walk, still feeling the man's eyes on him.

He rounded another corner by an alleyway, and Levi broke into a stealthy run. He rounded another few corners, climbing up walls and dodging under low roofs. He then flattened himself against the wall after the last corner. He stole a quick glance from the corner, pleased to see that the man was gone.

He turned to leave, only to slam into a wall of flesh, knocking him back a step. "What the f-!"

Levi's curse was cut short as the blond man loomed over him.

The first thing that Levi processed of the situation was that the man before him was a giant. Now Levi was all too (painfully) aware of the fact that he wasn't exactly the tallest person in Sina. Hell, he was barely as tall as his friends and he was the oldest by nearly two years!

But this man's height was simply ridiculous.

Acting on nothing short of instinct, Levi's knee shot out, slamming the blond soldier in the groin before he he raced away. However, just a few seconds later, the man was back on trail. Levi gritted his teeth as he quickly activated the gear. The cables and hooks shot out, embedding themselves in the stone house by him and, with practised ease, Levi swung himself up onto the roof like an acrobat.

Let him try to keep following me, Levi thought, hearing the man's own gear activate, I know Sina's rooftops better than anyone.

Indeed he did. When he was just starting out, he was often commissioned to burglary and theft. He had long ago mastered such skills in scaling rooftops, and with the gear, he was untouchable and untraceable.

Thus, began an intense game of cat and mouse, as the two males shot, ran, leaped and danced over the rooftops of Sina in the light of a dying sun and under the first stars.

Levi was both irritated and impressed; no matter what maneuvers he pulled or how fast he turned or where he went, the man was never more than a short distance away from him. Still, it was to be expected of a soldier of the Survey Corps, especially since they used said gear on a regular basis.

The sun was nearly eclipsed by the night sky and Levi was silently grateful. Let him try to follow him in the dark. Levi knew that the Survey Corps almost never stayed outside the walls for more than a day, always returning at sunset. It was only a matter of time before the son-of-a-bitch tripped over his own feet, or slammed into a chimney, or missed a foothold, and fall off the roof, skid against the tiles or get tangled up in someone's laundry line.

Speaking of lines, Levi spotted one a few roofs in front of him and a wry smirk crossed his face. He put in anther burst of speed, gaining a few more yards. He released another cable, the hook burying itself in the stone of the house and he swung up to the line and grabbed it. As the man came to him, Levi yanked it back as far as he could and when he was close enough, Levi let go.

The man had too much momentum to dodge or stop himself and he went straight for the line. However, at the last moment, the man grabbed his swords, spun himself around like a propeller, and shredded the line and clothing, actually giving himself more momentum so he was barely a yard or two behind Levi.

Now Levi was starting to feel nervous and against his better judgement, stole a glance behind him. The sky blue eyes he saw were now the iciest blue that nearly froze Levi where he was.

What, Levi thought, the nervousness intensifying, what it he?

However, that proved to be Levi's downfall because that split second lapse was what caused him to miss his footing on the roof and send him sprawling. His face and front body slammed against the tiles, the jagged concrete cutting into or bruising his skin and his head whacked against part of the stone house, leaving him even more disoriented.

He finally came to a halt just near the edge of the roof. His entire body ached and his head was pounding and rushing and the young man could barely comprehend what was around him except the stone beneath his body and the throbbing of his muscles, sinew and head as blood began to pump out through the injured skin. Even then, Levi soon lost that as well...

The first thing Levi sensed was the smells. It was linen, medicine and a softer, more subtle smell that he couldn't place. He tried to crack open his eyes, only to see a white ceiling above him. The light was grey, soft and muted. Levi tried to get up, only for his muscles and body to scream in protest and his head to throb painfully. A pained growl hissed past his lips.

The next moment he heard a rustling, then, "He's awake!"

Carmen and Roy both enter his line of sight, looking down at him. Carmen looked happy but he could see how red the skin around her eyes were and how her lips trembled when she saw him. Roy looked so relieved, it almost hurt.

"How are you feeling?" the other boy asked.

Levi tried to speak, but all that came out was a hoarse groan. Carmen turned away for a few second, and Levi heard some water being poured. A moment later, Roy carefully tilted his head up and Carmen gently set a glass to his lips. The cold liquid slid down his throat, wetting his lips and bringing a bit more coherence to Levi's world.

As Carmen withdrew the glass, Levi tried to speak again.

"Where...?"

"Hospital," Roy said softly, "That man brought you here. We just found out yesterday."

Levi didn't understand. What man? Then, it all came back. The entire chase with that soldier, his lapse that led to him being all but splattered on the rooftops of Sina.

Wait.

"'Yesterday'?" Levi managed to get out, "How long have I been here?"

"A little over two days," Carmen told him, before she looked guilty.

"We would have been here sooner, but we had no idea where you went. When we asked around, we found out about what happened to you. Some people even swore they saw him carrying you over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes."

A choked chuckle came from Roy before he looked down in shame. Levi didn't pay him any attention.

"When we found you, we tried to get you out of here because, technically, you were in custody," Roy told him after he got over himself.

"But you know that guy?" Carmen said, "He said that he wouldn't stop us from taking you but to wait for you to heal. Hell, he's even wasting his own money on us so we can be with you!"

Levi stared. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. That man was the one responsible for making sure he was healed?!

"Who... is he?" Levi wondered aloud.

Carmen looked thoughtful before she said, "He said that if we needed anything, that we should ask to see Erwin Smith. He says that you have a lot of potential."

So this was on my mind.

Carmen and Roy are the names I gave those two kids with Levi in the first chapter of the Attack on Titan backstory on Levi.

I don't own anything but the two names used.