I forgot to say this in the previous chapter but Eren is currently seven. Someone asked, so there you go ^^

Farlan is fifteen and Isabelle is thirteen for those who would like to know.

Levi was not soft hearted. In the sixteen years he had been alive, he had spent ten in the underground city of Oz, running away from criminals and stabbing those that got in the way. He was one of those who lived, standing on a pile of corpses. He was aware of it. And maybe it was his own fillthiness that had prompted his hatred of dirtiness. There were no laws that said you could not hate something that you lived with. Even if there had been, it wouldn't apply to Oz anyway. For Oz was one of those places where evil was in the air you breathed, in the blood that ran through your vein and in the one that flowed on the street. It wasn't that the crime rate was high, it was that innocence did not exist. How many of those living in Oz had never stabbed someone for a piece of bread? How many had not walked past the starving children dying on the roadside without so much as a glance? How many had yet to taint themselves for a few coins or food to put on the dinner table? Not many that was for sure.

Some pretended. They would act as if they were complete strangers to crime, murders and violence. But in the end, they were just running away from reality. Levi was not one of those. He knew what he did and he did willingly. Blaming criminals and seeking justice was a luxury only those of above could afford. In the lower floors of Maria money was as rare as flowers in winter. Kill or be killed was the only rule that went. And Levi would rather kill.

This complete acceptance of his darker side had made him strong. Strong enough to become well-known in the underground city. He had started off as a simple thug. A thief who would get into fights to gain some respect. There hadn't been much to live for in those days. Where he had found the drive to fight for his life was a mystery even to him. But he had somehow. And before he knew it, he had caught sight of a starving girl and took her with him. Had he felt pity then? Or had he seen his own six year old self in her, dying like a rat in the sewers?

Later the two had been joined by Farlan, a thief who was a year younger than Levi. They had been living together ever since. Farlan had trained Isabelle in the art of thieving, and he had made more blood flow dark red streams in the dirty streets of Oz.

And then, that boy had come.

Levi had found him being beaten up by some random scum. Why had he even bothered helping? There was no reason to involve himself. Well, he supposed it had paid off in the end. The boy was entertaining and had ended up helping out Isabelle too.

There was definitely something weird about that kid though. The brunet wasn't exactly a saint. Levi had seen him fight a lot more violently than most boys his age. He had a raw anger, a blazing fury which made him look like a demon. Yet, he could produce such a brilliant smile.

Strange kid, thought Levi as he glanced at the bandages the child had expertly wrapped around his shoulder.

"Who're you?"

Farlan's exclamation made him turn towards the cave's entrance. The blonde man was standing there, having been on the verge of going out, and opposite him was…

"What the fuck are you doing here, Shitty Brat?!" snapped Levi looking disbelievingly at the turquoise eyed boy.

"Good morning Levi!" chirped Eren, the picture of innocence.

"Eh? You know each other?" asked the Farlan bewildered.

A heavy sigh escaped Levi's lips. Why the hell had he bothered helping that damn brat?

After he had first met Isabelle, Eren had gone back to the cave many times. He had met a blonde man called Farlan with whom he got along very well. He didn't get along as well with Isabelle as the girl was constantly picking fights with him. They ended up arguing a lot. Levi never involved himself much with them. He would stay in a corner, going about his own business, harshly refusing Eren's company. If the brunet had taken the rejections pretty hard at first, he had gotten used to it. He hadn't given up though. Levi intrigued him more than anyone else he had ever met.

To pass time and give himself a reason to be around the trio, he had asked Farlan to teach how to fight properly. The blonde had agreed immediately. Levi seemed to disapprove for some reason. Sometimes, Eren would meet the hard silver gaze fixed on him and it always felt like the raven haired boy was against his presence and even more so the fighting classes. Yet, he never said anything. At least not while Eren was here. He probably hadn't said anything to Farlan though, as Eren suspected the lessons could have ended with just one word from the raven haired teen.

The blonde respected Levi a great deal, as did Isabelle. Though in the girl's case it was more adoration than anything else. She saw Levi both as her saviour and elder brother after all. Farlan seemed to be more of a close friend of Levi's.

Truth be told, Eren was a bit jealous of the two. Levi never addressed him if he could help it and when he did, it was generally to insult him and tell him he was filthy. He wished the raven haired boy would let him come closer. But that Eren knew, was probably just an unattainable wish.