Together Again

Chapter 4: Union

Carla hummed a soft song as she kneaded dough, one eye trained on Levi as he sat in his highchair, gradually and meticulously colored in a picture book. Currently Levi was coloring a rabbit, its fur being a bright purple while its eyes were solid black and Levi was working on coloring the tips of the ears a light yellow-green color. Carla watched in amusement as Levi frowned every time the color ended up outside the lines, causing the young boy to mutter to himself for a few moments before continuing.

Carla glanced at the clock; it was nearly five o'clock, which meant Grisha would be returning soon. Carla rolled the dough up into a ball and pried her fingers from it, washing them off quickly before grabbed a towel and a bowl to deposit the bread in. She placed the bread in the light still streaming through the window. It would take longer for the bread to rise since the sunlight was still weak with its early-spring rays, but that didn't really matter.

"Darling, I'm home!" Grisha called as he closed the front door, setting his bag down as he took off his hat, jacket, and scarf. Carla waited for him in the doorway to the kitchen, a cheery smile on her face. "Welcome home dear," she said. Grisha wrapped her up in a hug before pulling back and inspecting her face for a moment. "What is it?" Carla asked, a small note of panic in her voice, "Have I got something on my face? You know, blood, dirt, paint or anything?"

Grisha chuckled a bit and licked his thumb, swiping it across Carla's cheekbone, "No, just a bit of flour." Carla smiled and pressed her lips against Grisha's gently before pulling back. "Oh, the Smiths want to know if we're available for dinner on Saturday." Grisha hummed thoughtfully for a moment, "Yes, I do believe the hospital gave me this weekend off. I'll have to check tomorrow to be sure, but I think that we'll be able to make it." Carla grinned, her eyes scrunching up, "That's great Grisha! I can't wait to let Meredith know!"

Grisha smiled softly as Carla turned away and he reached into the pocket of his black slacks, fingers gently caressing the smooth black box tucked within. Now he needed to do was stop panicking at the mere thought of his plans.

Levi was irritated by the use of the highchair but it was necessary; he was barely able to reach the tabletop unless he had a stack of books or cushions underneath him. Luckily Irvin was confined to a highchair too, so that evened things out a bit. He pushed some beans around on his plate before spearing them on the small green fork, eating them with swift and delicate bites.

Not much of the conversation his mother and father were holding with the Smiths made sense, but that didn't really matter. He listened to Irvin's chatter, which ranged from words and phrases that either didn't make sense or weren't understandable, to things like fish and clocks. The older boy was occasionally talkative, making up for his lack of words during the times that he did talk.

Levi grimaced as a small pain laced through his belly before disappearing as quickly as it had come. Irvin didn't seem to notice, and neither did his parents or the Smiths, which probably was a good thing. Had they noticed they probably would have been asking him questions, certainly more than ten, which was the largest number that Levi could count to currently without making any mistakes. Levi sighed and looked up, watching as the adults lapsed into a comfortable silence.

Then his father cleared his throat, "I… I have something that I would like to say…" He spoke stiffly, as if he was afraid of something… or someone. Levi watched, semi-interested as his mother looked questioningly at his father, who slowly stood, reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small black box, getting onto one knee as he did so.

"Carla Marie Cole, will you marry me?" His mother's mouth dropped open and she stared at his father in shock. Mrs. Smith was grinning from ear to ear while Mr. Smith was chuckling, but both had looked of tension on their faces. "Grisha you moron, I thought you'd never ask," his mother whispered, "Of course I'll marry you!"

May was humming with life as the sun warmed and the spring rains fell. The rosebushes in the garden were going wild and the birdfeeders that Levi's father had hung up had trouble keeping up with the ravenous bird population.

Levi awoke early in the morning, his head a mass of pain and his body chilled to the bone. He shook violently, the fever and chills fighting for dominance over his body. He opened his mouth to cry out for someone, anyone, but the only sound that passed his lips was a hoarse whimper, muted by his constricted throat. The pain, oh God the pain was awful. It was a blinding pain that centered at the base of his neck and the sides of his forehead, spreading through the rest of his skull.

Levi gripped his head, as if digging his fingers in could drag the pain away. Tears streamed down his face and his spine locked into place, preventing him from moving aside from his arms and legs. Black spots swam into his vision and he was sucked down into the bliss of unconsciousness.

Large fingers approached his face; fingers far larger than any humans could ever be. Each finger was longer than he was, and the skin radiated more heat than his own body, but not so much that it was burning. The massive hand flattened down onto the ground and Levi stepped up onto the palm, which slowly and delicately raised him until he was eye-level with the owner of the hand. Green-gold eyes stared at him through the strands of dark brown hair that hung in its face, intelligence and awareness lurking in their depths. Levi stretched his hand out until it rested between the creature's smoldering eyes. There was no need to fear this creature; he could be trusted, and Levi trusted him with his life.

Levi jerked upwards, his breath coming in short, quick gasps. A damp washcloth landed in his lap and there was a rustle as someone stood. His mother came over, her eyes bright with worry and relief. "Oh Levi, thank God you're alright."

Levi found the clothing that he was required to wear very uncomfortable. His parents had rented the suit for him, but Levi found himself wishing that he could have just worn shorts and a shirt; he had. When he had emerged from the changing room his mother had beamed at him as he turned obediently, showing off the black and white outfit. However Irvin had looked even more awkward if possible, so that had cheered Levi up a bit.

Now they were waiting for the music to begin playing. His father stood on a little raised platform, with Mr. Smith to his right and a priest to his left. His father shifted nervously, tugging on his collar and attempting to look calm. Levi and Irvin sat in the front on the uncomfortable wooden pews; only Mr. Pixis was sitting beside them. The rest of their neighbors and his parents' friends and fellow workers had filled in the pews behind them, all of them dressed up.

When the first notes of the piano rang throughout the chapel everyone fell silent and turned to look as the doors in the back opened. Levi longed to stand up to see; he was barely tall enough to see over the back of the pew, let alone through the crowd of people. There was a flash of white and the music continued, soft and sweet in the silent air.

He tracked the flash of white through the crowd until his mother was visible. She was beautiful; her hair was pulled up into curls on the top of her head and she was wearing a long white dress that flared slightly at her hips. Beside her walked Mrs. Smith; she was wearing a soft yellow dress that matched the roses in the bouquet.

Levi watched as they walked up to the platform where his father stood, moving painstakingly slowly. The pianist fell silent and the chapel descended into silence for a few moments before the priest began to speak, reading from a Bible for ages before he finally reached the main part of the ceremony.

"Do you, Grisha Erik Jaeger, take Carla Marie Cole to be your lawfully wedded wife, to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish; from this day forth until death do you part?" The words rolled out, fluid with practiced ease. Levi watched with renewed interest as his father swallowed nervously, "I do." The priest turned to his mother then and repeated the words. "I do," his mother's voice was confident and strong and Levi smiled at that.

"Then I now pronounce you husband and wife," the priest said, "You may kiss the bride."

Levi spent a week under the Smith's care as his parents flew to Paris for a few days to celebrate their honeymoon. He and Irvin ended up sharing the older boy's bed, which was more than big enough to accommodate the two children.

They managed to put together three puzzles during the first two days; one was of Big Ben, one was of some palace that Levi couldn't remember the name of, and the last one was of the Queen. They only glued one of the puzzles; Big Ben had been the mutual agreement between Irvin and Levi.

The Smiths had taken them shopping for too; Irvin would be starting kindergarten in two weeks so school supplies were a must, but they had also bought Levi a pack of coloring pencils.

He spent nearly an hour the same night drawing a clumsy picture of two people; one was taller than the other and had brown hair and green eyes while the other was black-haired and gray-eyed. Levi had drawn the two people holding hands and had carefully printed their names in the top right-hand corner. Eren and Levi, 851; there were arrows drawn to each respective person, Levi being the darker haired of the two.

It hurts Eren, it really, truly hurts.

Chapter 4: End

Hello again~ I hope you all are enjoying so far and thank you for the comments! (It's really giving me drive to keep writing, knowing that people actually like this.)

But yes, Levi is starting to remember things~ The marriage scene was short cause I was feeling lazy and I'm not really a person for long-winded speeches and prayers and stuff. Anyways, I will be unable to upload tomorrow due to sports but I should have another chapter out on Sunday! Until then, thanks for reading!