Hello there! Here is some Levi angst because there isn't enough. I hope you enjoy it!
(I do not own Attack On Titan, or the characters. This has no happy ending, no fluff, just angst. You've been warned.)
Levi didn't know how he got in this mess.
It was a regular mission. Drive back the more dangerous Titans and collect more for Hanji's research.
So how did it go so terribly wrong?
There were 34 Titans. 34 blood thirsty, flesh hungry, Titans.
Levi didn't know how many people died already. He had one goal in mind, really. Keep everyone safe in this quad, and kill the Titans.
He launched himself up, graceful and strategic, as his gear connected with the trees, lifting his body in the air. He aimed for the arm of a Titan, everything a blur as his mind went into hyper-focus survival mode. He sliced through rough skin, blood gushing out of it and splashing. The beast didn't have time to react as the soldier cut through the weak point in his neck.
He moved onto the next one. And the next. And the next.
He didn't know how many he killed in the process. It felt like 13. He didn't stop. Didn't dare to.
He kept slicing, kept cutting, kept moving, kept surviving.
14.
15.
19.
23.
His cold grey eyes focusing on another target, analyzing it before it got time to realize the attack.
But what broke his focus, wasn't the cruel reality of the fact that the others might be dead. It was a cry for help, one close to him.
It was one of his brats.
Well, fuck.
As he re-calculated his next move, he saw the reason. It was the Eren boy, on the ground. His sister, Mikasa, next to him. It wasn't a fatal wound, but he would be out of combat for a bit. He paused, relief flooding through him. As much as he disliked them, he did care about them. After all, they were humanity's last hope.
And that was his mistake.
He didn't know what happened. It was all a blur. Slow motion, yet too fast for his brain to catch up.
He was falling. Falling to the ground that used to be so far away. Falling to a doom he couldn't comprehend. There was a pain in his side, a scream in his ear. He wasn't screaming, it was Hanji. They saw his fall, saw his cut, saw the deep bite mark in his side.
But that didn't change the fact that he was falling, getting faster every second. He could see Hanji try to catch him, see their desperate attempts to keep him afloat. They tried to get there fast enough, tried to save their last friend.
As his body hit the ground with an ugly crunch, bones cracking, and pain blossoming, Hanji rushed to the ground. He was on his back, in agony as his bones and muscles move against him.
"Oh my fucking god, Levi! Shit, it's ok. You'll-uh-you'll be alright." the panic in his friend's face was immediate.
"So, shitty glasses. Funny seeing you here." he saw a grim smile form on their face, and denial in their eyes.
Hanji tried to apply pressure to the cut in his side. Or was it a bite mark? He didn't know. Brain warm, thoughts fuzzy. What he did know is that his back hurt like a motherfucker and that the ground was wet. And sticky. Oh, and also red. Very red.
"Stop, it's ok." he tried to reason. They both knew he wouldn't survive this. Couldn't survive this.
"You'll be alright. You're gonna be ok." Hanji muttered, a plea that the universe was too cruel to accept.
"We both know that." Levi stopped the sentence short. He didn't want to admit it yet. Admit defeat. He looked up at the blue sky, clouds dancing as the wind blew.
"I miss them."
"Miss who?" Hanji questioned. They wanted Levi to keep talking, because he'll be alright. He'll be-
"Isabel, Farlan, my mom, Erwin." he replied. His voice held no emotion, yet all of them. His eyes burning with fire so weak, it's threatened to blow out. As his blood was pooling around him, he knew he didn't have much time left.
"Don't be silly, tea-guzzler, Erwin is still here. He's waiting for you, at base." they told him. Hanji didn't want Levi to start talking like that. "He'll be waiting for you, and he'll be there when you retu-"
"I wish he was here. I wish they were all here. I wish they were by my side, fighting. Surviving. I'm glad you're here, four eyes." he closed his eyes, cutting them off from their previous sentence and changing the topic. Dark circles underneath blue-grey orbs, and as Hanji truly looked, they saw what he was.
He's tired.
Levi realized how cold he was. He moves his limp arm with great difficulty, wincing in pain as him obviously broken arm aches in protest. He takes Hanji's hand, pulling them close.
"I..I don't have much time left. Don't give me that face, we both know it's true." he forced out. It was hard, accepting death. But death greeted everyone with open arms, and he was waiting for Levi. After all, he was the bird that escaped his grasps. Death won't let that happen again.
"Tell Erwin I'm sorry. Sorry I didn't hug him more, sorry I didn't kiss him more." Hanji scooped up his small frame, holding him close to them. He whimpered pathetically as his body screamed in pain and agony, but he was grateful for that, he was starting to get really cold. He wanted to be close to someone in his final moments.
They were silently crying, wishing it wasn't like this. Wishing he had more time. But birds don't fly forever, and neither will he.
"Tell him I love him. And as much as I don't say it, I love you too, Hanji." they both knew it was a different love. The type of love he had for Isabel and Farlan.
"You need to go, shit face." he loosened his grip.
"I'm not leaving you, fucker," they choked out.
"Hanji, it's like you said. I'll be alright." he smiled. They both know that wouldn't be true. Hanji would come back to his cold body, lips blue, skin white like a sheet, and blood red around him.
But they complied, knowing it would be harder if they resisted. Knowing they would just make Levi more upset, and Hanji knew that you should follow a man's last request. Tears dripping down their face, the smile on their lips not reaching their sorrowful eyes.
"I'll...I'll be back, ok?" they stood up, gently putting their final friend down, wiping their tears as they stand on wobbly feet. They realized the blood stained on their clothes. Levi's blood.
They wanted to gag.
Levi nodded, wincing in pain at the sudden movement. He laid there in the soft grass, fingers playing with the flowers around him. He hummed a lullaby, the one his mother used to sing him. He heard the noise of gear being launched. Heard the noise of Titans falling, orders being given.
He didn't want to leave. Didn't want to leave people alone, leave Hanji and Erwin alone. He decides that he'll miss them the most when he's gone.
He smiles as he hears laughter in his ears. A soft, energetic laugh that sounded so familiar and so, so, close. He wanted to run to that laugh, the one he associated with red hair, pigtails, and bright green eyes.
He wanted to see the bright blond hair of his friend. Wanted to see his cool and intelligent gaze. It's pathetic, how much he wants to be in his mother's arms. How much he wants her to hold him, hold him close. To have the feeling of love and warmth wash over him.
He felt cold. Really cold. But the breeze was warm, and the air was perfect. His mind was starting to drown in the darkness threatening to consume it. Fuzziness flowing through him, as if cotton was stuck in his blood. He felt tired. So, so, so, tired.
As much as he hated to admit it, he knew that if he slept, he wouldn't wake up.
But as the time slowly ticked by, he wasn't afraid of sleep. He wanted it, wanted the cool, refreshing feeling of rest.
So as he closed his eyes, and took a deep breath as he finally relaxed, he thought 'I'll see you soon.'
And the darkness consumed him.
And the bird was no more.
I'm sorry.
