A/N: This is my first Attack on Titan fic, so characters will most likely not be perfect. Also, this is an Eren/Levi shipping with adult language. I'm not up to date on the series so that may influence the story. If this isn't your thing, I understand. For those of you sticking around, thank you. Rewritten from my other account which I can no longer access.
To say that Levi was pissed was an understatement. He shoved his hands into his coat pocket, making his way over to Hanji's place. The streets were deserted and silence filled the air. He trudged through the newly fallen snow with a heavy sigh.
Winter had never been particularly easy as far back as Levi could recall. This one however had brought everything to a standstill, leaving everyone to wonder about the outcome of their increasingly harsh conditions. The snow and ice brought with it an epidemic that swept over the town faster than anyone had anticipated with devastating results.
Levi arrived shortly after his journey began, he knocked loudly on the door and waited. The arctic wind stung his face as it rushed over his body, sending a chill through him. After another moment, Levi pushed open the door and stepped inside.
The room, much to his dismay was a complete mess. Papers, charts, and books were scattered throughout the space, among them was the occasional file folder. Just as he was about to call out, a soft rustling sound caught his attention. Hanji emerged from what appeared to be a backroom, closing the door behind her, her eyes glued to the folder in her hand, she hadn't even noticed his presence.
"You mind telling me what the hell is so important that it couldn't wait until after the meeting? I've got ninety present of the damn corps down with this thing and the other ten tied up in looking after everyone else and doing shifts in the infirmaries." He grumbled. Hanji immediately raised her head, moving to stand in front of him.
"That's not our only problem. I've been up for the last three days looking through all this and trying to find any information I can that's helpful. So far nothing new's come up. The longer we let this progress, who knows how far it'll go. We had our first fatality this morning."She shook her head. "But this, you'll want to see it. This is what couldn't wait for your meeting." She offered him the folder. Levi skimmed its contents, his heart sank.
"Where-"
"Back there." Hanji gestured to the room behind her.
"When did this happen?"He asked as he handed the object back and began crossing the distance to the door.
"This morning. I told him you'd want to know and to send someone to tell you, but you know how he is. The other two are in there with him."Levi paused to collect himself before entering the dimly lit room. The pale figure on the bed instantly caught his attention. He ignored Mikasa and Armin, who were now on their feet, offering a salute. He moved to stand at the bedside.
"Take a break," Levi instructed. "Looks like you've been here a while. You won't be any good to him if you're depriving yourselves of sufficient rest, get yourselves something to eat first."
"With all due respect," Armin began. "We'd like to be here when-"
"That wasn't a request, it was an order," Levi replied sternly.
"Honestly, I'm not sure either of us could rest. After what happened today and how quickly-"
"You two know better than anyone that he's too damn stubborn to let this keep him down." Eren shifted slightly in bed and attempted to open his eyes. Levi nudged the bedpost with his foot.
"You dead yet, Jaeger?" the cadet gazed up at the older man.
"Thought I'd stick around a while longer, just to piss you off. You should really work on your bedside manner...Sir."Eren replied, his voice came out in a strained whisper.
"Eren, don't."Armin pleaded, concerned for his friend's safety. Eren simply ignored him.
"You got a smart mouth on you, Jaeger, one day it's going to get you in trouble. It doesn't matter to me if you're sick or not, I'll still kick your ass." Eren scoffed weakly.
"One little cough and you'll be running for your precious cleaning supplies. You cringe every time someone coughs or sneezes near you. You couldn't-"
"Eren, please just-"
"Keep digging yourself into a hole, you'll be in a whole new world of-"
"Captain, please, Eren has a fever a-and he doesn't know what he's doing right now. He needs rest and-"
"Bullshit, Don't make excuses for him, pretty much everyone has a fever. You know how many of them give me crap? Just this little bastard. He can't be feeling too bad if he's got the strength to talk back. Now I told you two to get moving."
"Eren needs someone to-"
"I'll be here a while." Armin and Mikasa hesitated but decided to comply.
"We'll check in later, try to get some rest," Mikasa advised.
"And please, Eren, just...be careful."Armin followed the dark-haired girl from the room. When they were out of sight, Levi reached down, pressing a hand to Eren's forehead, frowning. To the teen's surprise, Levi lowered himself onto the edge of the bed.
He took hold of one of the cloths on the bedside table, soaking it in the container of tepid water, and squeezed out the excess liquid before using it to gently wipe away the beads of sweat from Eren's pale face.
"You don't have to-"
"Quiet, Brat," Levi said, this time in a more gentle tone. "I need you to save your strength." After a moment, the titan shifter visibly relaxed into his pillows.
"Shouldn't you be at a meeting?"Eren asked.
"It's not your problem, don't worry about it, just rest. Why the hell didn't you send someone to tell me when they moved you in here, I told you if anything changed, I need to know and I find out hours later that you-"
"Y-you heard about that?" Eren turned away to cough harshly. Pain exploded in his chest, back and belly, causing him to cry out.
"Damn right I did. I told you not to be out there today. You never do as your told and this is exactly what happens. Right now, I need you to focus on your health. How are you feeling?"
"Not great. I feel really weak, pretty much everything hurts just taking a breath is painful. "Eren admitted.
"It's going to be a long day tomorrow for both of us. We're pretty low on supplies and with everyone stuck in bed, I'm taking a few people out. While I'm gone, I expect you to-"
"You know better than to expect me to do anything you say." Eren smirked. Levi ignored the comment.
"Stay in bed and get as much rest as you can. If I find out you were messing around-"
"If I feel like this tomorrow, you won't have to worry about that." Eren's smirk faded. Levi brushed back a few strands of hair from Eren's face. "I don't think I have in me to even think about it."
"Hang in there, Brat. I'll be back in a few days, we'll see what we can find out there and we'll get everyone back on their feet soon." Eren could hear the change in the older man's tone, he was worried.
"Hey, what's wrong with you?" he asked, Levi scoffed.
"Seriously? You mean aside from having a vast majority of the corps down, being low on supplies, having next to nothing to work with and having to be around an entire city of people spreading their germs everywhere?" Levi asked.
"Yeah, you wouldn't be like this if that was all that's bothering you."
"How much time do you have?"
"I'm not going anywhere for a while."
"Good, cause I have to tell you about this little asshole I work with. He never does what he's told, he's reckless, can't stop talking back to save his life and he's a damn thief."
"Really?"
"Damn right. then, as if that wasn't enough, little bastard goes and gets sick."
"Sounds like he keeps you busy."
"He annoys the hell out of me some days. I would've taken him out a long time ago except for one thing."
"What's that?"
"He stole my heart." Eren smiled faintly.
"That's weird, didn't know you had one in the first place. You should do something with that guy."
"I intend to. I'm not going to let him get away with his shit, I have a few things in store for him."
"I bet you do, Captain Germaphobe."Eren turned once again, coughing hard, wincing in pain. Levi again dipped the cloth in the water and repeated his earlier action, gently wiping the teen's face.
"Take it easy, Eren. Do you want me to get some water?" Eren shook his head.
"I know you have a million things to do, could you just...stay?" Levi leaned down, kissing Eren's head softly.
"Yeah, Brat. Get some rest, I'm not going anywhere."