From that day on, Levi finds himself seeing much more of Miss Ackerman then he'd prefer. The newspapers feature an article about the young woman and her protests against the recent construction project, calling her a "passionate antihero" and "a rebellious spirit."
Levi thinks she's plain irritating.
He's lost count of how many times Erwin has sent him out to drag the dark-haired teen out of the same goddamn tree. It doesn't help that she's got a mouth on her, either.
"You're such a dick, you know that?" She snapped once when he was handcuffing her. Levi had found himself smirking as he pushed her into the backseat of his cruiser, bending down to look her in the eye before he slammed the door.
"Took you long enough to figure that out, kid." He snorted, and the indignant expression on her face was enough to make the older man laugh, though he shut the door before she could see his smile.
Indeed, Mikasa Ackerman was certainly a pain in his ass, but he found that he didn't completely resent her company as time went on.
He's waiting her out at the base of the crooked oak one day when he asks about the crows nest again.
"Why the hell are you so determined to protect those damn birds?"
Mikasa offers him a rare smile, the type that causes Levi's heart to trip and stumble as he tries to focus.
"Don't you listen? I told you before, you wouldn't understand." Her tone is almost teasing as she hangs from a sap-covered branch, barefeet kicking the air leisurely. Levi rolls his eyes, watching from the ground below.
"Tch. How can you decide that on your own, brat?"
He finds himself bantering with the girl until sunset, when mosquitoes begin to emerge and harass the both of them. Mikasa begrudgingly leaves the safety of her tree's branches, muttering that she forgot her bug spray at home as Levi cuffs her.
"Yeah yeah yeah, tell it to the warden, brat." He scoffs, although they both know she won't be in jail for any longer than an hour or two; Armin would always faithfully be at the station with her bail money as soon as she got word of her arrest.
Mikasa slouches in the solid plastic seats, dark eyes glancing longingly out the window as Levi slides into the front seat.
She abnormally quiet, he notices. Usually she would have made a comment about his work ethics by now.
"Hey, Levi," She suddenly asks, still looking outside, "Have you ever been in love?"
The man nearly chokes, attempting to hide his shock by feigning a coughing fit. Clearing his throat, he starts the car and glances hesitantly into the rear-view mirror.
"What kind of shitty question is that?" He demands, pulling away from the curb.
Mikasa shrugs a shoulder, leaning her head against the cool glass. "I don't know. I was just curious, I guess."
Levi frowns and reaches back with a single hand to rap the plastic divider with his knuckles.
"That's a damn lie. What's wrong, did that shitty kid Armin break up with you?"
"I've told you before, Armin isn't my boyfriend! He's one of my best friends!"
"Fine fine, so it's another boy, right?" He means it as a joke, an attempt at lightening the mood, but his heart drops when he sees her sink lower, smokey eyes flickering to her hands.
"Oi, wait, it really is a boy?" He stumbles to makes things better, because something about the way Mikasa bites her lip like she's about to cry hurts him more then he'd admit.
"Yeah, it's a boy." She finally sighs, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "My brother, really."
Once again Levi finds himself coughing violently to cover up his surprise, and this time Mikasa picks up on it. Rolling her eyes, she slaps the transparent divider between them and scoffs.
"Calm down, he's my foster brother."
"Oh." The officer replies lamely.
A few minutes later Mikasa comments on his driving ("You almost hit that squirrel, asshole.") and Levi finds himself arguing with the teen like usual. The subject of her brother and love vanishes quickly, to both of their relief.
Levi's half-listening to Hanji ramble about a recent drug bust in a nearby town when the doors fly open, the bells Petra had insisted on hanging from the top jangling obnoxiously.
Both officers turn to look at the boy who's just burst in, brown hair mussed from the summer wind and turquoise eyes alight with something akin to rage.
Storming up to the desk, he slams his palms down on the wooden surface, clenching his teeth as if to bite back a snarl. Levi frowns as he reaches for the taser at his hip, and Hanji snorts in amusement as they swats his hand away, warily approaching the boy.
"Can I help you?" They offer, and the stranger fishes a crumpled check out of the pocket of his jeans to slap on the desk.
"I'm here for Mikasa." He growls, and Levi whips his head to stare at the angry boy, face impassive.
"What do you want with her?" The dark-haired man snaps, and he internally curses when he receives twin looks of confusion from Hanji and the boy.
"I'm here to bail her out…" The young man says slowly, narrowing his eyes at Levi. Hanji laughs nervously and waves their hands flippantly.
"Not a problem! I'll go and get her, I'm sure she'll be happy you've come to get her." They babble, fiddling with their glasses. "Are you her boyfriend?"
In an instant, the boy has transformed from a trembling embodiment of rage to a clumsy teenager. "Oh, oh god no, I'm not, she's my-" He fumbles with words, fingers flying in an attempt to explain what he cannot voice.
Something clicks into place, and Levi stands up from his office chair, crossing his arms.
"She's your sister?" He finishes drily, and the boy relaxes, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips.
"Yeah, yeah she's my sister."
Hanji nods like a bobble-head doll before skipping towards down the hall. "Siblings, that's wonderful! I'll get the little lady right now!"
The two men are left alone to size each other up quietly.
He's looks to be about Mikasa's age and height, although the goofy grin on his face is so unlike the small, secretive smiles the young woman dons occasionally it'd be hard to call them siblings.
Foster siblings. Levi reminds himself, just as the boy opens his mouth.
"Aren't there like, height restrictions to be a cop?" He blurts out, and Levi inhales sharply, clenching his fists.
"Listen here you little shit-"
Unfortunately he's interrupted as Hanji makes a reappearance, this time with a familiar dark-haired girl at their side.
"Eren?" Mikasa whispers, and the horror is apparent in her dark orbs.
The boy, Eren, immediately tenses up as he wheels around to throw an ugly look her way.
"Are you stupid?" He shouts, and Mikasa wilts like a dying flower, pulling her scarf up to cover the way she bites her lip anxiously.
"Where's Armin…?" Is all she says, staring down at the glossy linoleum tiles. Eren exhales in frustration, crossing the lobby to grab his sister's arm.
"He's sick, so he called me and asked if I would drive down to the police station to bail my sister out of prison." Venom laces every word, and Levi watches intently as Mikasa shatters more and more as he continues to rant.
"I'm sorry." She whispers, nervously reaching for Eren's hand. He pulls away, scowling.
"You told me you stopped these dumb stunts! You promised me you'd mind your own business!"
"But Eren, there's a bird nest-"
"I don't care!" The boy explodes, and Levi catches sight of the moisture gathering at the corner of Mikasa's eyes. Suddenly he is lightening, one second at his desk and the next between the two quarreling teens.
"I think she understands you're upset." He says coldly, and Eren blinks, taking a step back.
"What?" He looks genuinely confused, until he glances over at his trembling sister. "Oh no, Mika, no, I didn't mean to-"
Hanji pulls her comrade aside as the boy wraps Mikasa in a tight hug, holding her head to his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Mika, I'm a huge asshole." He mutters into her raven locks, and Levi scoffs when Hanji murmurs a small "Awww."
"You have your sister, now get out." The older officer demands, and Mikasa pulls away, cheeks flushed as she nods silently.
Eren throws an arm around her shoulders as they walk out, still muttering apologies even as they get into his car.
"I love happy endings." Hanji hums contently, "Now where was I before I was interrupted? Oh yes, of course, they found out the dealer was actually the mayor's mother-in-law, so that was crazy-"
Levi nods, attempting to pay attention, but his mind is elsewhere, specifically on a dark-haired girl and her bright-eyed brother.