It was an old doctor with infernal hands who tended to him, not Hanji.

Hence, Levi didn't cooperate with the infuriating commands to hold still until at least five of them forced a vile tasting liquid down his throat that made him instantly drowsy. Getting stitches on his side was unpleasant but what they did with his throbbing hand was much worse.

He cursed at them when they set the bones so he didn't have to scream but his tongue began to form strange knots as his mind became muddled. His eyelids got incredibly heavy too and despite great resistance on his part, they fell shut.

He dreamt of killing hundreds of people with his blades, the streets were awash in blood and gore as the force of violence coursed through him.

When he awoke, he was in considerable pain and in a foul mood. He was also alone: Hanji still hadn't come! Either the Church asshole had lied to him and she wasn't here at all - or was but she didn't care how he fared. Both possibilities bore unpleasant potential consequences that he brooded over for a while.

Well, it was easy, he concluded in the end. If she wasn't here, he would have to go find her.

Getting up proved to be a bit tricky though. They had fucking bound him to the bed! His right arm was completely immobile but he could move the fingers on his left hand at least. Deftly, they began to work on the knots they could reach. Finally, the hand was free. But by that time, Levi's mouth was so dry his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. His roaming eyes located a bottle next to the bed - could be anything in there, but he was too thirsty to care.

It took him way too long to free the whole arm, blast it. Besides, he was so exhausted after the ordeal, he nearly dropped the bottle. Which, he belatedly realized after emptying it all into his mouth, would have been fortuitous - because it contained that vile sedative that knocked him out immediately.

This time, he dreamt of fires - the entire world burnt as nine gigantic Titans looked on with blank faces.

He awoke sweating and shaking, his head feeling like a gigantic ball full of air. But someone was sitting next to him.

"Hanji?" he croaked, feeling a strong rush of relief when he recognized the familiar shape.

"Hey," she seemed to jerk awake, then bent forward, "how are you feeling?"

"Hanji," Levi wanted to grab her hand but someone had tied him up and covered him with a blanket again. "Hanji, take those off me!"

"Hmmmm," she peered into his face. It was rather dark in the room, but there must be a single flame somewhere behind her, creating a faint corona of light around her head. Strange, yet eerily beautiful. "Nah, I think it's better if you keep lying down for a bit."

"But I want to sit up!"

"Shh," she said, brushing her fingers over his forehead briefly, "you really need to lie still and mend. Don't fidget."

Her touch was light and fleeting and gone too soon, but his heart began to beat faster. How could he get her to put her hand back?

"I'm goddamn thirsty," he articulated with difficulty. His tongue felt like a bloated, uncooperative slug. "I want water! Not that stuff," he disdainfully pointed his chin at the refilled bottle on the bedside table.

"There's water here," she turned to the table behind her. The candle on there illuminated her face: She looked very tired, Levi realized with a pang, exhausted, actually.

"Here," she poured something into a glass from a pitcher. "Do we have to be careful because of poison?"

"No," he croaked, "I know who the person behind the poisons is. We can leave soon."

"That I doubt," she said, lifted his head with a hand and put the glass to his lips. The lips stung hellishly but it was water, plain and simple, and it felt good as it went down his hurting throat. Water she shouldn't drink before boiling it twice because her stomach was not accustomed to the water in the Underground and he was worried it would make her sick. He told her that and she listened patiently to his ramblings.

"I waited for you," Levi blurted out when she had put the glass back on the table, "what took you so long?"

"I was in the lab," Hanji answered a little distractedly. What lab? Why? He suddenly feared she was only staying out of politeness.

"I'm still thirsty," he murmured. The answer to why she had not come earlier was plain and simple: A lab trumped everything. It was even likely she would die in a lab one day, from dehydration and starvation. Did someone take care of her here to prevent that?

He gritted his teeth when he realized who the most likely candidate for that role was. Anxiously, he watched her drawn face as she poured him a second glass. Her hand at his neck was cool and firm. Levi drank very small sips so she would keep it there longer.

"They didn't tell me right away that they found you bleeding on the streets," she said. "But I heard them talk about the ensuing mess and put two and two together eventually."

Levi smiled, well, tried to, but his lips stung too much. So… maybe she hadn't valued the lab more than him, she just hadn't known he was back? Good.

"Are you going to tell me what happened or not?" She asked after a moment of silence during which he got lost staring at her face.

"I needed to find out who the go-to poison person is nowadays," he explained.

"And that involved getting stabbed and beaten?"

"No," he shook his head. "But it involved getting Annika out of prison."

"Annika…," Zoë's eyes transformed into angry slits. "Don't tell me this is her doing?"

"She has temper issues," Levi thought that summed it up well. "Your ex was there. I hope he's going to make it."

"My… what?"

"Treibel," Levi explained patiently. "The idiot followed you down the stairs and happened to be the one trying to apprehend Anni. And me."

Hanji stared at him, her face shrouded in an abundance of shadow. He felt an urge to look into her eyes, not quite remembering their color. But he did remember that they always showed exactly what she was feeling, he liked that. A lot. Especially in the Underground, honesty was priceless.

"Anni killed one of the military officers," Levi continued to explain. "I prevented her from killing Treibel too. Then she got away after hurting Esmelda badly."

Hanji rubbed her face with her hands, groaning.

"Treibel promised Esmelda would get proper care. She should have been taken to a hospital too, at least… I hope he kept… we need to check," he said, suddenly feeling cold dread shoot up his spine, "what if he didn't keep his word?"

"Levi," Hanji said darkly. "Are you fucking insane? Focus! A member of the military police was killed in front of you? Did Treibel see you?"

"Yeah," he frowned. "But he doesn't know who I am."

"Fuck," she moaned. "You're pretty memorable, don't you know?"

"Hm, no," Levi mumbled defensively, "it was dark, there was a lot of blood and… he will not recognize me."

"Let's hope that's true," she said darkly. "It seems Renzo managed to quiet everything down - for the moment at least."

Gah, Renzo. Just hearing her say that name made him angry. "Why the fuck did you let that slimy Renzo get his hands on you again?!"

"To get away from Xandra," Hanji shrugged. "You weren't there, remember? And I thought he would be reasonable, which he was: He got me all the equipment I need to analyze the antidote! Maria thought she was smart, bringing several vials, but I had already spat parts of it on a piece of cloth. I could determine by smell which concoction was the right one and now that I have a microscope and…"

She went on and on about equipment and labs and how she was trying to break down the different components. Hearing all those complicated words made Levi dizzy, but he was content enough looking at her mouth, seeing the lips move.

"... but I better go," she said, snapping him out of his trance-like state, "it's late and you…"

"No!"

Hanji blinked, looking puzzled at his outburst.

"Don't… don't go," he felt very displeased at the thought of her walking out that door. "There is more to discuss."

She shrugged. "More?"

"The guy's name is Oliver."

"That's what I said," she nodded.

"Er, no," Levi frowned. "The guy who makes the poisons. His name is Oliver and he will tell you which poison they gave you and how to make the antidote."

"Huh," Hanji narrowed her eyes at him.

What now? Levi had expected a bit more enthusiasm for all the effort he had put into getting that name.

"Levi, did you not listen to what I just said?"

"O… of course I did," he lied.

Hanji shook her head at him. "You like to pretend you're so tough. In the end, you're as human as the rest of us and need to sleep."

Fuck. She was really going to leave.

"But we need to go threaten him!" again he pulled at the bonds that kept him down.

"Be quiet," she chided him sharply. "If you had listened, you'd know that he is here."

Huh?

"Renzo got him to help me in the lab."

"But he's the one…"

"I didn't know that, Levi. But he has, indeed, been helpful," Hanji mused. "I'm not dead yet, as you can see."

"That lying old geezer! He has been leading you on!"

"Hahaha," Hanji pushed some hair off her face, "what a prank! He's getting paid handsomely by Renzo."

"I can't leave you alone with these people," Levi murmured. "You're not depraved enough to understand how they operate. Renzo fucking knows that Oliver is behind this. They're both playing you."

"Don't worry. I'm a fast learner," she chuckled and patted his good arm. Not worry? Oh, but he worried. He worried more and more… and remembered something important.

"Can you… can you check whether they undressed me?" Levi asked hurriedly.

Her eyebrows went up, that was obvious even in the dim light. Okay, that had sounded a little strange.

"I stole some pretty important documents in those headquarters," he ventured to explain, feeling heat in his cheeks. "I put them underneath my shirt, now I wonder where they are."

"Of course they undressed you. They needed to stitch you back together," Hanji shook her head at him. "Oh, and Renzo has asked about the necklace. Where did you put it?"

"Asshole," Levi grumbled. "He won't get it back for nothing."

"He's been pretty helpful," Hanji sounded a little snappish. "Can't claim the same about you."

"Me?" Levi frowned. "What did I do?"

"Apart from nearly getting yourself sliced up and killed by your ex-girlfriend? Hm, let me see…," she made a dramatic pause. "Only that someone seems to be after you because of some kind of experiment? And you conveniently forgot to tell me about that. Kinda makes me wonder whether you trust me at all."

Expe… what?

"What a load of bollocks," he protested. That sounded like one of those outlandish ghost stories that the underground cooked up about people. Thunderstruck Hans. One-Eyed Jonas. Kenny the Ripper. Levi the Experiment?

"Xandra said you're worth an astronomical sum."

"That's the biggest shite I've ever heard!"

"She claims she made your mother leave the establishment for protection. Because they were onto her. Or rather… onto her having you."

"As I said," Levi felt anger in his stomach, "can't leave you alone with these people. I told you to kill her but you listened to her, and worse, believed her?!"

"It sounded convincing to me," Hanji stubbornly moved her chin up. "What else do you think is going on?"

The usual shit, of course. People fighting and killing each other over territory and power. He had watched it happen around him all his life. A pointless, depressing struggle.

"Xandra and Renzo hate each other," Levi said. "Both want to control the underground economy."

"And they need you for that?"

"Well…"

"A little full of yourself, are we?"

Levi glared at her. Frankly, he hadn't bothered thinking about the details. He had simply concluded someone had called him back out of spite: Because of the 'nobody leaves'-rule and all that bullshit. Had he not been called a traitor several times since coming back? Of course, she was right: nobody needed him to behave stupidly. But people still didn't leave him in peace, didn't they? Spite. Hatred. Jealousy.

"What they told you is all nonsense," he repeated more forcefully. "And now my head hurts because of you."

"Yes, I'm sure it hurts. I'll let you sleep."

"No! Goddammit, Hanji…," her innocent face gave him the rest. "Do I really need to beg you?"

"Beg… for what?"

"To stay with me," he pressed out. "Is that too much to ask? I thought about you all the time."

"Oh," she sounded surprised. Why did she sound surprised? Wasn't it clear to her that they had unfinished business? "You're high as a kite, Levi. You have to rest more. It's only been two days and you're…"

"TWO DAYS?!"

"Shush, don't shout like this, you'll bust open the stitches."

"Two… Hanji, if it's been two days we have to fucking hurry and…"

"I'm on it," she said quietly. "Do you think I've been sitting around twiddling my thumbs? And I told you that Renzo has been hard at work to smooth things over. Not sure what he's going to do about that lunatic girlfriend of yours but I guess that's not our prime problem."

Levi groaned. Two days. Two days! So much could happen in two days! "Untie me!"

She laughed. "No. Nice try though. It's for your own protection."

"I need to find those documents, Hanji. Did Renzo take them? We have to get them back. There was a symbol on them, something like a black cat. I didn't have time to study them enough, but there is information in there about several noble families and their dealings with the underground, Renzo for example, and…"

"Calm down, Levi," now, finally, finally, her hand came back to his face, brushing hair away, stroking down his temples, his cheeks. It did calm him down, even if he didn't want to calm down. Worse, his eyes wanted to close, but he kept them open forcefully, staring at her shadowy countenance. The documents… it was … important.

"You idiot," she said quietly. "Don't endanger yourself for me like this ever again."

"But I…"

"No talking, okay?" she kept up her soft strokes over his face. He wanted to purr. And then a strong sensation hit him out of nowhere. Disturbing in its intensity but he'd think about that later when his thoughts were less jumbled.

"Lie down with me," he blurted out. Gods, how he needed her.

"What? No," she frowned. "The bed is much too narrow. I will hurt you."

"You will never hurt me," he urged her. "I really need to feel…"

"Levi," she chided him with a small giggle. "Whatever you're thinking about, it's idiotic."

"Untie me. I want to touch you."

She lifted the blanket to look at his bonds, tilting her head a little as she studied them.

"Just… do it!"

"Okay," she agreed breathlessly, her eyes glued to whatever she could see of him underneath the blanket, and began working on the knots. As soon as his left arm was free, he cupped her cheek.

"I want to kiss you."

"Levi," she gasped, putting her hand on top of his. "We can't."

"Yes, we can."

"But your face…"

He pulled her down and promptly yelped when her lips touched his. She disengaged hastily.

"Your upper lip is a horrible mess," she sounded chagrined, "didn't I tell you? No kissing."

"Come here," he patted the bed next to him.

"Levi," she giggled again, making him very impatient. He grabbed what he could reach and pulled her down once again.

"You idiot!" she avoided falling on top of him by twisting to the side and came to a rest with her back to the wall. Good enough. Turning to the side as far as he could, he began to stroke her hair, her chin, her nose, her lips. Her face was very close to his and he smelled a bit of wine on her breath and vegetable stew.

By the Walls, how he wanted to lose himself in the scent and feel of her.

She bent forward and gently kissed the corner of his mouth where it didn't hurt so much. His heart picked up speed. Those lips… He stroked them with his thumb until she opened them. Wet. Moist. Soft. He shuddered when she began to lick and suck his thumb, wanting that tongue and that mouth on him and his on her, a need that took shape in his head, grew, and began pulsing in his veins. With a groan, he moved the wet thumb down her throat, where her pulse beat fast like an echo of his own, over her collarbone and up the small mound of her breast.

"Levi," her breath caught, "this isn't a good idea."

"Who gives a fuck," his thumb brushed over her nipple, once, twice, feeling it stiffen underneath the rough fabric, a little peak of pleasure.

"Hmmm," she breathed.

Eagerly, his hand fumbled for the buttons of her shirt. Which were damn hard to open with just one hand. Impatiently, he pulled at the fabric, hard - that's how you dealt with recalcitrant buttons. His hand moved through the gap, onto her skin. It felt soft and welcoming against his calloused fingers, he thought he had hardly ever touched anything more pleasant. And that tight little breast of hers… he stroked it from all sides, took its measure. it was simply perfect. He wanted to know how good it tasted and felt in his mouth.

His nether regions tensed in anticipation. He moved closer, tried to turn… which made his right hand shoot red hot pain through him. With a grunt of pain, he shifted to the side, almost fell off the bed in the process, twisted abruptly - it was like the knife was back in his side, grating against his ribs. He yelped and gritted his teeth, which helped exactly nothing.

"Told you so!" Hanji scrambled up, looking horrified. "This can wait a bit longer."

Oh, but she was mistaken. He very much did not want to wait.

"What if we both die tomorrow?" he said darkly.

"Then we're dead," she answered, resting her warm hand on his stomach, "and won't care. Take some more painkillers, will you?"

"No," he turned his head away, feeling frustrated.

"You're like a little boy," she grinned, "they're the worst kind of patients. But I hear certain men are even worse."

"Am not," he grumbled. But goddamn, now that it was awakened, the pain was getting worse by the second.

"I'll do something really nice if you take the painkillers."

That got his attention. She must have seen the greedy expression in his eyes when he imagined that she would move her hand down from where it currently rested, because she laughed merrily. But no such thing. She just climbed over him carefully to sit on a chair again.

"This," she smiled. "I mean this."

And her fingers stroked his forehead, his eyebrows, his temples. It was gentle, so very gentle, and so soothing. His jumbled thoughts became even more jumbled. When she put a glass to his lips, he drank without resistance. He meant to ask her to stay with him while he slept but no words left his mouth, because the darkness claimed him fast and merciless. This time, there were no dreams.

###

It took less than five seconds for Levi to go under again. Zoë stared at the bottle in her hand, sniffed at it, then put a finger in to taste a drop of the liquid.

She gagged.

"Vile," she muttered.

And strong, had to be, to knock him out like this. She looked at Levi's tranquil face, feeling… well, she was feeling - even though she shouldn't be. You shall have no attachments to your fellow soldiers beyond the absolutely necessary. The rule was so simple and made so much sense. And in their profession, when sense battled against feelings, sense had to always win, there was no other option.

"You're an idiot," she murmured and kissed Levi's warm forehead. He was a little feverish, she realized. She hadn't allowed herself to worry too much, and had been kind of glad they hadn't told her about the state they had found him in. But now, here in this room with him, worry was threatening to overpower her. He was in so much pain. She wanted to kill Annika for hurting him like this. She also wanted to be angry with Levi for saving Treibel's life at such a high cost. Instead, she let her lips linger on his skin, breathing in the signature Levi scent that was tinged with the smell of clotted blood today.

Slowly, she righted herself, put her clothes in order and took a deep breath.

So he didn't know about being 'an experiment'. If she hadn't seen him in action out there, she might simply have dismissed Xandra's cryptic words at this point. But because she had watched him every day for months, she knew with certainty that Levi was not like other people. It had nothing to do with talent either. It was something that ran deeper, something the scientist inside of her craved to uncover.

"Get well," she whispered, "as fast as you can, you hear me? And then we find out who 'they' are and send them packing. We cannot allow anyone to hunt you. Humanity needs you. I…," she took a deep breath, steeled herself. "We, the Survey Corps, need you."

Levi sighed as she turned away, but he didn't wake up as she went to the door on tiptoes and stepped outside.

"And?" The dark form of a man pushed himself off the wall and stepped into the light impatiently.

"Nothing," Zoë shrugged, quickly closing the door behind her. She was exhausted. But she couldn't let down her guard with this one, not for a second.

"Come on. I heard you talk."

"You drugged him senseless, idiots. Logically, it was predominantly gibberish."

"I don't believe you." Renzo narrowed his eyes suspiciously. Zoë became all too aware of a missing button and a gaping hole in her shirt but refrained from tucking at it.

"Well, he knows nothing," she frowned, "I think Xandra is full of shit."

"That she is," Renzo chuckled. "But this tale doesn't sound like she made it up. It sounds like something that explains a lot of strange things."

She hated that she agreed. But she hated other things more. "Do you know it was Annika who went berserk?"

Renzo nodded. "Are we changing the topic? As if I'd forget why I let you see him in the first place."

"We're done discussing that. Levi knows nothing and we're as smart as we were before. But she … she killed a military officer."

"Depends on whom you ask."

"Is Treibel alive?"

"Treibel?"

"That's the guy she didn't manage to kill."

"Yes, he is." Renzo nodded. "You know him? That is interesting."

"Not really," Zoë pressed her lips together angrily. "He saw everything."

"No. He saw nothing."

Zoë stared into the calculating blue eyes, wondering what it was that had bought Teddy's silence. Money? Blackmail? Levi was right. She wasn't equipped to deal with these people and their quicksand schemes.

"And the girl?"

"What girl?"

"There was a girl there, too. She was hurt because of Annika."

Renzo shrugged like he didn't care in the least.

"Find out for me," Zoë commanded. "Her name is Esmelda and Treibel promised she'd get medical care."

"An underground girl in an upstairs hospital? Then she has no name anymore, I'm sure you know that. If she survives, a rich sponsor can do with her whatever he wants."

"Let them try," Zoë hissed, "I'll not allow it."

"You're a fierce one, I like that," Renzo chuckled, "I see a lot of your father in you."

Her… father? Zoë suddenly felt cold.

Renzo tilted his head to the side to study her reaction. "I talked to him earlier today. He's not pleased about your recent adventures."

Was her father here? In the underground? Because… because of her? She balled her hands into tight fists to stop them from trembling.

"Don't worry. I bought you time," Renzo said, "but I do nothing for free, it will cost you. And him." He pointed his chin to the door behind which Levi slept. "He still is in my debt, now more than ever. My conditions have changed. The gamble went awry, no problem. But he owes me that fight, and now also a kill - and then we're even."

"Kill… kill whom?"

"Like I'm telling you, you fierce kitten," Renzo looked much too smug for her liking, obviously pleased about some other scheme of his.

"I know that Oliver guy is the one who makes the poisons down here. Why did you get him to help me? To keep me here with you?"

"So it wasn't all gibberish after all," Renzo grinned. "Levi caught on! Yes, it's true: Oliver is Mr. Poison. Nothing sinister about me paying him to help you. I just haven't seen anything as charming as you getting all excited over a microscope and there are so few pleasurable things in my life."

"Fuck you. I don't need this condescending shit."

"You don't? Hmmm…," Renzo tapped a finger against his lip. "You're free to leave anytime you get sick of me."

"Then you can say your goodbyes right now," she huffed and wanted to brush past him.

"Not so fast," he said, catching her arm. There was considerable strength in those long, artistic fingers. "If it turns out Levi isn't worth as much as Xandra claimed, I will be more than happy to let him die. My brother's debt isn't worth that much to me after all."

"Levi isn't dying."

"He will be as soon as Annika gets through the perimeter I put up. I doubt he can defend himself with all the drugs in his system. You know, she hates being denied things. Just like me."

"Let her come," Zoë exclaimed, "it will be my pleasure to fucking kill that menace."

Renzo laughed. "I knew you didn't want to leave just yet! Ah, a shame you weren't born as one of us. You'd have made the perfect wife for me."

Zoë made a gagging noise.

"Don't worry," Renzo grinned, "Upstairs flesh doesn't survive long enough down here. I don't want another woman dying on me too soon."

A tragic backstory? No thank you. "Are you trying to get my pity?"

He shrugged. "That works on many women. But no: I want your cooperation. I want to know what Xandra knows about Levi. And I want to know what is in those documents she claims she has."

"Levi said he had some documents on him?" She confronted Renzo, remembering Levi's urgency. "Did you take them?"

"Documents?"

"Yes, documents."

"What kind of documents?"

Zoë shrugged. "From the MP headquarters. Sounded similar to those documents Xandra spoke about. Levi said there was something like a black cat emblem on them?"

Renzo froze, even if just for a second. Then, his eyes became hard and dangerous. "That's the kind of information I sent you in there to get. I don't have the documents. But I guess I know who took them."

Who?

"Get some sleep," Renzo said over his shoulder as he hurried away, "your face is beginning to scare me. And close that blouse, for crying out loud. It's unfair to tempt men like this."

Zoë's hands flew to the gap in her shirt and he laughed, already disappearing into the shadows at the end of the corridor. She really needed sleep, Zoë thought. But first… there was something else she needed to take care of. With a last glance at Levi's door, she hurried down the corridor in the opposite direction of where Renzo had gone.

Maria scrambled up from the bed at the sound of the key in the lock.

"What are you doing here?" she grumbled at Zoë, who poked her head in. "And how did you get in?"

"I made key duplicates," Zoë beamed.

"What do you want?" Maria crossed her arms in front of her breasts, looking belligerent. And dishevelled. And heartbreakingly young.

"To free you," Zoë said and made an inviting gesture towards the empty corridor.

"What's in it for you?"

Ah, but Zoë was beginning to get sick of this mentality. Nothing for free, always an ulterior motive. It was very tiring.

"You people," she sighed. "I want nothing from you. Tell Xandra that I have the antidote and she has no power over me anymore. Also tell her that Renzo has Levi and means to test his real value."

"The fight?"

"What fight?"

"The fight with Levi three nights from now. The posters are all over town."

Three…? Zoë suddenly felt sick. Maria observed her with a puzzled expression, then shrugged.

"Fine, I'm off. Happy to never see you again."

She even poked her tongue out at Zoë as she hurried out the door.

"Wait!" Zoë managed to press out.

Maria looked back. Zoë's legs were shaking so much she needed to sit down. Renzo meant to send Levi into the ring three days from now? He'd be massacred in this state.

"I need a favor after all," she informed the girl.

Maria nodded.

"I need you to get something at our headquarters upstairs. Quickly."

Maria gnawed her lip. "Okay. It can be done. What is it?"

After Zoë had given her instructions and Maria had disappeared, she just said there with no strength left. She even considered lying down on Maria's bed to get some sleep, or go back to Levi's room and sleep on the floor. But she noticed the bitter taste in her mouth that became stronger. Great. She needed another dose of the antidote soon. In the middle of the night. An antidote she hadn't figured out yet, despite what she had told Maria.

"Up, Zoë!" she commanded herself. "We have work to do."

There was always some strength left in a body if you just pushed hard enough.

"Don't you worry, I've got this," she murmured as she passed Levi's door. For a brief moment, she was tempted to go inside and kiss him again - but that was a silly girl's notion. She couldn't allow herself to be that.