"Promise you won't leave me, Levi?" she giggled, taking hold of his hand. Her smiled shone through her tears on her face.
"I promise." He smiled at her. Holding her hand, she took her back to their hide out.
"Captain Levi! She's hurt really badly. What are we to do?" came the voice of Mikasa Ackerman, but it didn't penetrate the thoughts of Captain Levi Ackerman. For the girl who had just emerged from the Underground city, bloody dirty, was someone he knew. Her long white blonde hair spilled out of her cloak. She was rolled onto her back, and there was a patch of blood slowly growing across her stomach. Levi snapped into action. Kneeling down, he tore open the top, using some lose fabric from it to put pressure on the wound.
"Ackerman! Quickly, get Hanji! Ready a cart!" he calmly demanded. On the surface, his impenetrably stiff demeanour was the same, but underneath he could feel his heart hammering, his gut twisting. "This is what you get for leaving her down there alone, idiot. This is your fault."
He saw her eyes flutter. His grey, steely gaze met her green, and he found in her eyes a pleasant shock. And the same happiness he found the day he pulled her out of the gutter.
"Le… Levi! You found me!" she smiled. A tear rolling down her cheek, mixing with the blood on her face.
"Tell me, who did this?" Levi demanded.
"It was… the man on the stairs. He attacked me. I paid my way to get up the stairs, he said I under paid him. I hadn't, and he attacked me. All I wanted to do… Was find you." It's been eight years…" she coughed, blood coming from her mouth.
At that moment a horse and cart, with Hanji riding it pulled up. "Put her in the back, keep her neck supported on your knee Levi. And keep pressure on that damn wound."
With help from Mikasa, Levi carefully placed her into the cart.
"Stay with me."
Her eyes where heavy lidded, and Levi could tell she was fighting to stay awake.
"Levi… Why didn't you come back?" She whispered weakly. Levi's heart sunk. He couldn't tell her what had happened to Isabel and Farlan. He couldn't tell her that after seeing the sun for the first time ever, he couldn't bear to walk back down those steps, even while in uniform.
"Just… Just stay with me, Luna."