I don't own SnK

"The strongest love is the love that can demonstrate its fragility."

–Paulo Coelho

~Chapter Twenty-Eight: Love Conquers All~

Hanji had seen many couples in her life, at high school, at the university, and she thought that they were such ignorant, lovesick fools. And she envied them. She was jealous of them for many reasons—because she wasn't capable of understanding completely what love was and she wasn't sure if anyone would be able to put up with her odd personality that seemed to fend off anyone who came close to her within a feet radius. It was ridiculous, but Hanji remembered falling in love once. It was scary; because the man named Moblit had somehow interested her more than how science and discovering new things could fascinate her. She thought it was utterly ridiculous. She attempted to come up with any scientific explanation for one individual's attraction to another, but it was really incomprehensible.

Moblit died protecting a child during one of his squad's operations.

And Hanji never thought that she would feel an immense pain after hearing the news. That was why she couldn't even begin to imagine what kind of suffering was Levi going through right now. Or what Eren Jaeger had gone through during those five years he had lost his memories.

Mike's team had successfully infiltrated the underground business. Rod Reiss was successfully captured. Eren and Historia were safe. No one died. No one on their side, at least. Hanji knew that Levi's heart had dealt a grave injury because he lost his only family right in front of his eyes. Levi and Eren were forcibly ripped away from each other afterwards because of the great alarm that they triggered in the building, and all of them had gone through the scrutiny of the police department but with a lesser degree because of Mike and Erwin.

They were protected, but Levi had already suffered.

It was Eren who called her after the third day they all hadn't seen each other, and he immediately asked her about Levi.

"Have you talked to Levi? Please, Hanji, tell me. I haven't seen him and he hasn't answered my calls—"

"Eren. Stay away from Levi for now. Give him space and don't come anywhere near him. He needs it. If you really care for him, then you'll do that."

She hadn't meant for the kid to not show up for two weeks though. She might have been a little more solemn than her usual attitude, which was what had most likely worried Eren, but she just wanted Levi to be alone. That wasn't what she believed he needed though, but she knew him—that stubborn man would probably say something that he would regret later on if he were to meet Eren in his current state. But she also knew that he would overthink things, and she just wanted to bet that Levi would come around soon.

It wasn't after those two weeks that Levi hadn't interacted with anyone—having him brought his work to his home during that period of time—that Hanji had finally went to his house. She remembered being roughly kicked out the first day she tried to comfort the lawyer with a case of beers and some expensive wine. He told her to leave him alone and not to bother him for a while, and now… that 'a while' wasn't exactly telling her any good. So she broke into his house. You couldn't possibly call it 'breaking in' though—she merely used the key that Levi gave Erwin in case of emergency.

There was no mess in the living room when she arrived there, which spiked her curiosity since the last time she was here, the place was in utter disarray. The lights were not turned on but there was a dimmed light in the kitchen. It could only mean that…

She nearly screamed when Levi appeared behind her, standing on the last step of the staircase and looking at her but… not really looking at her. Her lips formed in a tight line as she watched Levi stare at her without light in his eyes.

"What happened to you? Did you suddenly become inspired in cosplaying as a caveman? I thought you hated cosplaying?" she joked, forcing her lips to tug upwards into a grin. Not of that was returned as Levi merely swiveled around and went on his way to the kitchen. Hanji could really use some Erwin sense right now—she assumed that she would be able to handle this man but she guessed that it would be harder than she thought.

Two weeks. Her mind clicked on that fact and she wondered if Eren had already come by, because no matter how ridiculous she thought it was to be in love with someone, those two were probably close to making her believe otherwise. That it was possible to love and be loved with all your heart, to erase all the doubts away and the clouds of despair when that person was by your side—that it was okay to believe that you could trust someone completely.

She wanted to put her confidence that Eren and Levi were destined to be with each other—because they had risen up against any obstacles that were presented in their way. Because she wanted to believe that it was possible for two people to obtain complete happiness.

"Do you want water or something, Glasses?"

His jab is too weak, she mused. Her eyes flew on the shoe rack by the front door and they widened as they saw a familiar pair of green sneakers, situated next to the rack haphazardly. Why didn't she notice it? A pair of house slippers was missing, which could only mean that someone took it by accident and left his shoes here.

"Eren was here, wasn't he?"

Her tone was accidentally accusing and she saw Levi freeze in the corner of her eye. Tch. Was I too late?

"…What of it?"

Her eye twitched and her chest began to heave up and down. She couldn't take it anymore. She strode to the raven who was about to continue on his tracks and she grabbed his collars, half-expecting some kind of resistance from him but nothing came. It was like he was just a ragged doll, not caring if he were toss around.

"YOU LET GO OF HIM?" She shouted at his face but he didn't give away any emotions to her and it made her grip his shirt tighter. She noted how he was unshaven and was looking rather a miserable hobo—if given another circumstance, she would've laughed because there was no way that Levi would just take this kind of uncleanliness. But that same person she knew, the one who would whack her in the head if he were to find out that she didn't wash her hair for two days, the one who would smile fondly at their memories even though his smiles were supposed to be a secret from them, the one who thanked her when she gave him the push to get the person he loved—that Levi was gone.

"Why…?" She couldn't control the tears that sprung up to her eyes. "Didn't you say that he's your everything?"

She was met with silence but it wasn't for long that she got to hear his answer.

"Because I failed. I couldn't protect him, Hanji."

His response sounded automatic and she expected herself to feel pity for her friend but rage was the one that came coursing through her veins. She gritted her teeth and yelled, "YOU'RE AN IDIOT! EREN DOESN'T NEED A FUCKING CAPTAIN AMERICA OR A FUCKING SUPERMAN! HE JUST NEEDS YOU, LEVI!"

She roughly let go of his collars and wiped her snot away, not giving a damn that she was in front of the former clean freak that she once knew. She looked at him with spite sparkling in her eyes, letting him know how angry she was because he's just stupid as fuck.

"Eren called me two weeks ago, asking me how have you been but I told him not to come and talk to you," she told him. She noted how he was downcast, but she knew that he was definitely listening now. No matter what happened, Levi had always been the first to wish Eren's safety and whereabouts. Even if he had turned Eren away, Hanji knew that he would never cast Eren aside. These were the two people who had given their hearts to each other, and she doubted that there would be anything that could stop Levi from caring.

She closed her eyes and took off her glasses, listening as Levi silently dropped into a squat, probably staring at the glass windows where the darkness were only saved by a couple of fireflies in the back garden. She didn't think that there could be anything worse than the situation she had arrived at when Eren broke up with Levi, but this time proved otherwise. She'd never seen Levi as closed-off as this, and she wondered if the light that could light up the darkness that he was in would be able to come back in Levi's arms. He needed Eren, any idiot could figure that one out—but the main idiot here was wallowing in his own self-hatred and regret. How could she possibly bring him back?

She then remembered the one thing that she hadn't told anyone. She figured that Mike or Erwin probably knew already, but she was one of the few people who had witnessed it.

"That kid…Levi, he cares about you more than anyone else. He wouldn't care if you weren't strong; did you honestly forget that he broke off your relationship because he was trying to protect you? He loves you that much," she told him sincerely, opening her eyes to see Levi sitting on the carpeted floor with his eyes unblinking and staring forward.

"He didn't tell me everything. He lied to me," Levi silently muttered.

Hanji felt a sting sent to her chest and she said, "You and I know that that's not the reason. You're just bullshitting around now. You've already settled on this just a couple of weeks ago, Levi."

It was true. And Hanji knew exactly why he was saying this.

It was his excuse.

She continued when she knew that she wasn't going to get a response from the man. "You're trying to blame the fact that no one trusted you enough to tell you what was truly going on, because you hate it. You hate how you seem powerless because you had been protected all this time. It's not because no one trusted you—it's because you didn't get to do anything for them."

Levi looked at her slowly and she readily returned his gaze with intensity enough to light up the other's eyes. She wanted him to argue with her, fight her like he used to, because that was Levi. He wouldn't take shit from anybody and he wouldn't go down without a fight. But there was no immediate reply from him, like he was just taking everything but not giving anything. Hanji grew frustrated.

"What did you tell Eren, Levi?" she asked, afraid to hear his answer because if Eren was distraught enough to not take his shoes with him, then that could only be a bad thing.

She thought Levi wasn't going to respond at all, that was why she was a bit startled when a spark had lit up in his eyes, as if recognizing—remembering—something, and he told her, "I told him that we will never be happy, that our pasts will always catch up to us. And it's fucking true."

Her heart squeezed. She clenched her fists by her side even though she wanted nothing but to punch the daylights out of Levi. She couldn't help the words that came out from her mouth afterwards. This was the only way to knock some sense to this idiot.

"I saw Eren after Kenny's funeral. And guess what he was doing, Levi," she asked with a sad smile on her face. Levi was visibly paying attention to her now and the tears that were kept at bay rolled down her cheeks once again, but she rubbed them on her sleeves hastily. She resumed, not bothering to wait for a response, "He threw it away, Levi. The flash drive."

Levi's eyes widened in shock, lips were parting and hands suddenly came to grip his knees. He was staring at Hanji with emotion in his silver eyes now—disbelief was the one that she recognized. He was probably willing her to retract her previous statement but Hanji couldn't do that. She kept that information from everyone else who was involved in the case and she knew that Mike and Erwin would come up with something to explain that to the people who knew. That flash drive was priceless evidence, and the young man at the center of all of it had thrown it away.

"Do you know what he did, Levi? Eren threw it away because he wants to start over again! He's not going to use it against Rod Reiss. He did it for YOU! Because he…" She swallowed the lump in her throat and dropped down into a squat because her knees suddenly gave away. "He loves you that goddamn much."

Hanji looked at Levi, lips were quivering, and watched as tons of emotions came flickering across his face and she was sure that this was it. This was the push that he needed. Even though he already acted against his will and because of his conjectures, Hanji hoped that Levi would be brave enough to turn the situation over.

"I…I told him that…" Levi's voice cracked and she saw his gray eyes glistening, making her eyes grow big. Seeing him crying twice in a row made Hanji realize that Levi was as fragile as any other human being—that he wasn't as strong as he made out to be. But that's because Eren is not by his side.

"It doesn't matter, does it?" she asked, smiling at him with hope written all over it. "Eren will be waiting for you, Levi. It's not that he's throwing away his past, but he doesn't want it to bring him down. He doesn't want revenge to cloud his heart because he knows what he has right now. He's happy because he's with you, and I think… I think that's really what matters. The present. The past may hurt you from time to time but you two have each other. The future may be scary and unpredictable but you two will overcome it if there's a challenge ahead of you. The present is what matters because you still can do something to change your course. You can't be held back by the past or be frightened by the future; you have Eren, and Eren has you. You have me, Erwin, Isabel and Farlan. You have the whole operation crew and your own squad, Petra, that Auruo, Gunter, and Erd. We're all here for you."

Levi was sobbing audibly now but he hid his face from her, tucking it away in his arms resting on his knees. Hanji moved closer and patted his hair. Her own tears were falling but she paid no heed to that—she knew that she finally got through Levi. Finally. And she wanted nothing else but to paint his face with a smile, just like he had been when Eren was around.

If Levi, the unthinkable enemy of all in the court, could crack down into this crying mess of a fool because of one bright-eyed brat, then Hanji really believed that love could change anything. She realized that the words that she uttered were one of the truest statements she'd ever said in her life.

The first and foremost being those three words she'd said to Moblit.

Love conquers all.

Hanji had somehow—barely, even—calmed down Levi. He was a mess earlier and she really expected him to run after Eren just like last time, but he couldn't even look at her. She knew why—he was ashamed of what he had done. He was venting his grief, his frustration, and his anger on the people who didn't deserve it but Hanji understood. She knew that Eren also understood that, being the one to go through the similar situation. She was more worried about the fact that Eren hadn't called her. She was, after all, the one who had forbade him to see Levi but he actually broke that rule just hours ago.

She made tea for the both of them, a bit surprised that Levi allowed her to do so; he wasn't really too keen about other people, besides from Eren, making his tea. It made her smile because one of the personal privileges was bestowed upon Eren, the college kid who surpassed Hanji and Erwin in terms of coaxing Levi out of his bubble.

She almost dropped the cups on the way to the living room when she heard Levi speak.

"Do you think he'll forgive me? I said some shitty things to him, Four-Eyes."

She sighed and smiled. Setting down the cups on the center table, she proceeded to reassure him, "Eren would want you to be happy, Levi. Just like why you thought that letting him go would make him happy. But both of you are stupid lovesick fools, obviously." She huffed and looked pointedly at the impassive man. "You're too blinded by regret, which is why you failed to see that being by next to each other is what gives the two of you the strength—to remain strong."

Levi looked thoughtful for a moment and he reached for his tea. Hanji took a sip as Levi did and she watched his reaction over the rim of her cup. As expected, his face scrunched up like he had just tasted the newest flavor of all time.

"This is shit," he commented. Hanji laughed heartily but careful not to spill her drink.

"Because you look like shit," she retorted. It was true though, and she almost commented 'that's why Eren hurriedly left the house' but she knew when to stop pushing his buttons. She already got to witness his crying face, and that was enough blackmail material for him. She would be expecting him to return the favor when she needed it—the thought made her smirk mischievously.

Suddenly, her phone rang and tore the tranquility that had settled over them. She picked it up from her back pocket and turned to the window that showed her that she should really be getting home soon.

"Ms. Hanji?"

It was Armin and Hanji frowned the slightest because she had been getting a lot of phone calls regarding the big incident recently, but none of them were from Armin.

"What's up?" she asked, putting up a cheery mood. She didn't want to ruin the whole calmness that she finally achieved. Levi was one difficult man to deal with.

"…Actually. Have you talked to Levi?" Armin Arlert sounded nervous and even though it sent a trickle of nervousness behind her back, she maintained her persona and completely swiveled around from Levi before standing up.

"I'm just gonna talk to this dork," she told him over her shoulder and Levi merely gave her a glance. She took that chance to go to the kitchen again and finally spoke on her phone again, "What's going on, Mushroom?"

"…Mushroom? Wait—That's not why I called you. You're with Levi, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am. And Mushroom because it's cute. C'mon, just spill the beans."

"This…This is kinda an emergency. I don't know if you've heard but it's highly likely that you have not."

Her smile faltered. "What is it, kid? You're making Mama Bear nervous."

"Ms. Hanji. It's about Eren…"

She looked at the back of the head of the raven. She was sweating profusely now; just having to process Armin's words just a few minutes ago took an effort to swallow it down. She began biting her thumb. How the hell was she going to break the news to Levi? The man had already gone through mental and emotional breakdown just thirty minutes ago for Christ's sake! How could she possibly be cruel enough to damage him any further?!

Hanji let out a big exhale, closing her eyes because she thought that maybe a three-minute meditation would actually help. She wasn't finished counting to fifteen when someone blew on the back of her neck and she screamed bloody murder.

Right behind her was Levi and she felt her temple twitch because that was twice in the row now, too. He was looking casual and ever-so-Levi now, which was a good thing minus his shitty humor and shitty surprises, but that was better than the moping Hamlet-like person she'd encountered just half an hour ago.

"You made me remember why I tried to make you dress up as Dobby two years ago for Halloween," she simply told him. That earned a kick in the shin and she yelped. Well, old Levi was definitely back.

The only problem was that she knew what would make him revert back to the depressed moss he was earlier, and she'd rather not have that.

"Who was that?" he asked and Hanji was reminded that she was awful at lying. Her lips trembled and she snapped them shut. How would she tell him?! He would freak!

"Oi. I'm talking to you, Glasses," Levi said, narrowing his eyes on her. She almost forgot that there was a reason why this man was feared inside the court. He would pull everything out of you without effort and that was only because he was cunningly clever like that—all for the people he believed had deserved justice.

"A-Armin," she stuttered out. Levi didn't leave his eyes on her and she knew that he was expecting her to say more. It was now or never, and Hanji would bet that her life would be on the line if she were to remain quiet now.

"…You're not hiding anything from me, Hanji, are you?"

Boom. Of course, he would pull out that dreaded question. If there was anything that Levi was sensitive of right now, it would be lies. Hanji didn't want to press on a fresh wound any further but the truth that she was about to give to Levi would be ten times painful than the other simple lies he'd heard. Hanji opened her mouth, a cease between her eyebrows was forming, and she carefully observed Levi's reaction as she repeated the words that Armin had said.

"Eren… Eren is packing his bags to go to Japan. Levi," she looked at him apprehensively, "Eren is leaving New York."

Levi's eyes widened, shock was obviously written all over his face, and his mouth kept opening and closing as if he couldn't find the words to say. He then bent his head down, preventing Hanji from seeing his expression any further but she could only imagine what emotional turmoil he was going through right now.

He had already sorted out everything inside him but then this bomb came and Hanji wasn't sure anymore of how could she possibly fix it.

But then, Levi spoke with utter certainty present in his voice and Hanji was surprised at the gravity of his conviction.

"Hey, Hanji. Can you accompany me?"

She smiled fondly, nodding and saying, "Sure thing, Shortstack."

There was that determination in those gray eyes that were dull and lifeless just a while ago. There was that fire that was blazing bright and Hanji could almost pat him on the back, but she didn't want to taste one of his infamous moves right now. She'd rather continue being Levi's most helpful friend at the moment.

"I'm gonna go get Eren."

Just two weeks ago, Eren was the one who called off the relationship he had with Levi. And now that it was Levi's turn, Hanji couldn't help but think they have a very rocky future ahead of them. Everyone in their group of friends would think that if they were to look at the victims of the situation they were put under, and Hanji didn't doubt that a certain dark-haired girl would be the first one to raise her hand to object to this ill-fated relationship that Eren and Levi had.

But the thing was, everyone also knew how much they loved each other. They knew that Eren would sacrifice everything for Levi and Levi would give everything to Eren. That was why Hanji wasn't surprised at the current circumstance that she got herself into.

She dropped off Levi, which was something that made her jaw drop and stare at the raven for a good minute because Levi is actually agreeing to get inside my car, like what the fuck. Are the birds migrating backwards now? She couldn't help but appreciate the moment and there was also that very fact that Levi put a plastic bag under his seat because he was afraid to touch your fucking germs. God knows what else are in here. She was very amused nonetheless, no matter how much they were in a hurry.

She kept things light during the ride, by saying that Eren couldn't possibly go on the plane at such short notice and that maybe Armin hadn't said it right because he was lacking details. But even Hanji didn't know what was really going on; Eren was just there at Levi's house early this evening! How could everything go shit right away? But everything probably went shit already the second Levi pushed Eren away.

Levi didn't say anything back but he scrunched his eyebrows together and threatened Hanji that he would kick her out of her seat and throw her on the street if she didn't keep her eyes on the road. There was a nervous jitter around them and Hanji kept her mouth shut the rest of the ride afterwards.

When they arrived at Eren's apartment complex, Levi immediately unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped out of his seat. Hanji couldn't help but smile at the sudden analogy of a hero rescuing his damsel in distress, the very same thing that she just mentioned earlier to Levi. The only thing that Levi could do in this situation was to stop Eren from leaving, after he had told the brunet those inconsiderate things that he didn't mean.

She was all alone in the car when her phone rang again and this time, she looked at the caller ID and was glad that Armin was calling again. She wanted to ask the mushroom blonde about what he had just said earlier; she didn't manage to call him back because Levi was trying to get to his destination as fast as he could. Hanji couldn't help but feel surprised—she'd never seen her friend act that desperate before. Only Eren could make Levi a mess.

She didn't bother with the greeting as she picked her phone and began talking, "Armin! You should've told me what time is Eren's flight! You're totally freaking me out—"

"Uh… about that. I'm guessing that Levi is already there?"

She was confused. "Yes, he is."

There was a sigh on the other line and Hanji grew a bit impatient, about to ask the blonde what was going on and to answer her question earlier.

"Sorry. But Mikasa and I devised a little plan…"

Everything clicked then. Of course, it wasn't believable that Eren was leaving in a matter of hours and there was no way that he would be doing that without telling Levi, no matter what state their relationship was. But it was credible in the lawyer's eyes—because Eren meant so much to him. Hanji never thought that such trick would work on Levi, of all people, but she would be more shocked if he were to sit around and do nothing if that kind of news about Eren were to be served to him.

They used Levi's desperation. And I can't say that it's not the quickest way to bring the reunion of the two.

"…Eren's not leaving tonight but…"

Uh—

"…He's leaving next week. That's why, Levi better get Eren back or else… It's now or never."

Well, holy crap.

A/N: *looks away* Next chapter may be where everything will finally be all good :D Btw, I finally graduated from high school :) College will be the next stop! I really wanna know if some of you guys are nearby XvX This is an early update because i dunno if I'm gonna be free this week at all..or the next week,,,
-CrimsonHazelEyes