O.O

You ready? You may need to buckle your seatbelts for this one too friends...But hey baby soon right? Can't be much more angst once we get there :)

Read and Review and tell us how badly you shit your pants ^ o ^ Love all of you who keep up regularly with this story, you make us so happy my darlings...and if you are sad that this is slowly coming to a close (about two or three chapters left!), don't be because we will be making an extension story with Eren and Levi's adventures in parenthood! Its already in the works :)

Disclaimer: We do not own Attack on Titan. All rights to Hajime Isayama!

~Aria

-GhoustiesandGhoulies

She was running as fast as her legs would take her, but dammit it wasn't enough. Eren was in labor. He needed her now. But she had to find someone - anyone really - who could relay the news to Captain Levi. Hanji knew well enough by now that the stoic man would never forgive himself for missing his own child's birth, and would probably also ring her neck a bit if she didn't at least try to send for him.

So she ran. He would last for a few minutes, but Eren needed her back soon.

The scientist practically tackled the first soldier she saw.

"You! I need you to do something urgent for me!" she screamed in his face.

The soldier cowered a bit under her intensity, "Y-yes, ma'am!" He saluted.

"Go catch up with the deploying group and tell Captain Levi labor has induced. Now!" she shoved the cadet off before he could ask questions.

Hanji sprinted back in the other direction.

Corporal Levi looked around boredly at the usual scenery. Horses whinnying and chewing on their bits, townsfolk gathering in gossip circles, whispering and pointing, and newbies quivering in their boots. Typical. Only this time it was even more annoying. Why the hell did he even have to go on this mission? Erwin had forced him to move to the most protected ring in the formation, commanding that he not take any "unnecessary actions" this time. So basically he was just supposed to stroll around on his horse and catalog flowers while his men fought for their lives; his favorite thing in the world.

"So fucking stupid," he muttered sourly as the gate began to rise.

"Captain Levi!"

He ignored the call. It was probably just some stupid civilian trying to yell at him about some dumb shit or another. So goddamn annoying…He spurred Magnolia and started a slow trot forward.

"Captain Levi! Please, I come with urgent news!"

Levi snapped his head around. Who the hell was talking? He couldn't see anything through the crowd of faces. His heart became a little tight in his chest.

"Sir!"

A sweat riddled cadet burst forth through the crowd. Levi stared at the man callously, his filthy disheveled appearance offending his OCD.

"What." he growled as the soldier performed a rushed and sloppy salute. How rude-

"Sir, I was told by Squad Leader Hanji to inform you that labor has been induced!" the soldier shouted.

His eyes grew wide. No, that couldn't be possible. Eren wasn't supposed to be due for at least another month...No. Fuck, this is-

"Scouts! The 79th Expedition begins now! Move out!"

Hanji didn't need to ask Eren how he was doing when she burst in the door; she had heard his screams of pain from three halls over. The shifter was writhing, coated in sweat and tears, and screaming nonstop. The pain must've been utterly unbearable in order to make the teen react so strongly.

"Eren! Hey, hey it's okay! I need you to breathe for me okay? This'll be a lot worse for me if you don't calm down," she soothed over his cries, grabbing his hand in hers.

Eren groaned and whined in agony, his breathing still ragged.

"Hey, I need you to try to breathe. You have to breathe through the pain okay? It's...it's going to get pretty bad but I need you to stay strong and at the end of this you'll have a beautiful little baby to call your own so just-OWW!"

Hanji yelped as Eren gripped her hand harshly through the pain.

"I-It hurts so bad!" the shifter cried through a broken gasp.

"Eren!"

The young man looked to her, eyes filled with pain and tears.

"Do you remember everything we've talked through about labor?"

His face went as pale as his sheets and he gasped in another breath of pain.

"N-no! You can't cut into me...m-my baby's not done yet-" he let out another groan of pain, "it h-hasn't been nine m-months!"

"Eren, if we don't do it now, bad things are going to happen. The baby's in distress. We need to do it now."

That only made his cries louder and more gut wrenching.

"I'm g-going to lose it!" Eren choked as he clung onto Hanji's arm in desperation, "I'm going to lose my b-baby...and L-levi...oh g-god no…"

He was wrecked with yet another stab of pain in his stomach and hunched over with a scream. Hanji flinched as he yanked on her hand.

Eren wasn't listening to reason anymore. His pain was too great, and his mind too full of guilt and fear for both his lover and child in distress. He choked on a painful sob and looked again to Hanji with desperate eyes.

"We have to do it now." Hanji said definitively.

Teal eyes filled with fear as the scientist flung open a series of drawers to reveal the medicinal supplies she had stockpiled within there. Gauze, towels, salves, a syringe with clear fluid, and a scalpel.

"No...I don't want to... my baby!" Eren splurted in tearful horror.

"I ordered a soldier to go get Levi. Hopefully he should be here with you soon, Eren," the scientist voiced over his distress, "I also sent a request for some experienced midwives, but I don't think we can wait for them any longer."

She flit her brown eyes to Eren's swollen stomach with a sympathetic frown. She lifted the syringe and locked her hand on his wrist.

"I'm sorry, Eren. I'll see you in a bit my little titan."

He gave one more agonizing cry before Hanji pushed the sleeping serum into his system.

He could hear wild screams and shouts attacking him from every side. Where are you going Corporal? What's wrong? Even Humanity's Strongest is terrified to go out there now? Where is he going? Corporal! Corporal Levi!

Levi went past all of them, steering Magnolia back through the crowds and away from the rising gate. No one stopped him. And thank god they didn't because he probably would've shoved a blade down their throat and kept going. Eren needed him; he had to get back to his husband in his greatest time of need. This is bad…

Eren wasn't due until July-that was a month from now. This was really bad. Levi had seen plenty of babies born premature in his time in the underground, and most of them didn't live past the first few days, if at all. His kid...was that going to happen to his child? Fuck, no, please... He bit his lip as he spurred Magnolia to a faster pace. Why was headquarters so far away?

His child was going to die. Babies born premature never lived long in this era, in these harsh times, there was just no way. And Eren...what was he experiencing right now? Hanji had said the pain would be bad-really bad. No doubt he was miserable and in pain, which only made Levi feel even worse about his absence.

His absence...an awful feeling rose in his stomach as he realized that was probably the cause of Eren's early labor. Hanji had often reminded them that too much stress could cause the baby to go into distress. And it wasn't at all a coincidence that just that happened the day Levi left to go on another expedition.

This was his fault. His not being there had caused Eren strife and anguish, which had led his baby to be in danger. He was going to be the cause of his baby's premature birth and likely death. It was all his fault. He should've just told Erwin he was staying back.

As he came upon the building, he didn't even bother to put his horse in the stables. He jumped right off of Magnolia's back, wrapping her reigns around a post with haste, and rushed inside. Levi took the stairs two, three at a time, sprinting toward the room with his heart hammering hard in his chest.

"Eren!" he reached the door only for it to be flung wide open.

The short man was about to rush in when a young maid stopped him.

"I'm sorry, sir, but Miss Zoe has asked me to stop all from entering until the procedure is done-"

"That's my husband in there," Levi growled with uncontained fury and emotion, "Now let me in."

The girl gulped a little and took a step back before strengthening her resolve.

"No, sir. Any interference now could corrupt the health of both the baby and its-er-father. So I please ask you to stay back and we'll update you as we can."

The raven haired man was stunned silent. She had the audacity to tell him no…? His shoulders slumped in defeat and though he wanted to argue and force his way inside, he knew that would only cause more problems for his husband and child. Levi bit his lip and took a step back, glaring at the floor.

The maid sighed softly, nodding before stepping a foot back in the room.

Levi grabbed her wrist before she could leave, however. She turned to him in surprise.

"Please, just make sure they get through this," he begged, voice barely a whisper.

Blood. Everywhere. Up her arms, down her sleeves, coating her white gloves and apron. Hanji hated the sight of it. Eren was bleeding so much, but really that was only to be expected with such a procedure. She wiped her sweaty brow with her sleeve and began cutting into the makeshift womb that had formed in Eren's abdomen.

"No...something's wrong here…" she muttered as she dug into the warm flesh.

"Miss Hanji?"

"There are way too many limbs...this is too many for a human child. Shit! This is wrong, wrong, wrong…"

Hanji spared a glance at Eren's sleeping face, contorted in discomfort even in slumber. She grit her teeth and wiped her brow again.

"How are his vitals?"

A maid reached out and checked the pulse in his wrist, "Strong, but a bit erratic."

"Okay." Hanji swallowed the lump in her throat. If this child really is a titan... "We're pulling it out, whatever it is that's going on. Make sure to watch his signs as we do."

"Yes, ma'am."

After a while, he had to put his hands to his ears to stop the noise from reaching him. It wasn't that Eren was shrieking, in fact he wasn't at all-a fact that made Levi worry even more. It was the disgusting sounds of cutting and slurping coming from the movement of Eren's innards that he couldn't stand. Filthy, disgusting noises. The sound of that shitty woman digging around in his husband's guts…

The whispers were also unbearable. The tiny little snippets of conversation gave him nothing but fear and anguish.

"Check his vitals. Too many...That's bad. Good, good."

What was going on in that damn room? He couldn't stand not knowing.

He stood a couple of times and approached the door, only to remember the maid's words and sit down against the wall. If he interfered things would go worse; but all he wanted right now was to see his lover and hold his hand through whatever may come.

"Okay I think I've got it...here, okay! Okay! Here it comes!" the sound trickled through the door.

Levi held his breath. His baby. They were talking about his baby. He listened patiently. Why couldn't he hear it crying? Didn't babies always cry when they were born…

"Shit! Oh my god...I never thought that this would happen...! Get another towel, shit!"

What was going on? Why was there cursing? Something bad was happening. Something was wrong with his child; his child wasn't crying. Or Eren. Something could be wrong with Eren too; why did they need more towels? He could be bleeding out or bleeding in or something terrible-

But with a little cry, the earth stopped spinning.

Hanji snipped the thread with a pair of sheers and collapsed into a chair with an exhausted sigh. It was done. Labor had gone-mostly-smoothly. Eren seemed to have relaxed in his sleep and the baby…

"Clean them up, real quick," she instructed the midwives, "I'll go talk to Mr. Grumpy Pants."

Shitty glasses stepped out of the room with a solemn look on her face. Levi could hear the soft whines of his child behind the closed door. His heart clenched in anticipation.

"Eren…" he started in a hoarse voice.

"Is fine. He'll recover pretty quickly. The procedure was a complete and total success," Hanji quipped with a smile.

Levi's face softened and he leaned back against the wall in relief. He couldn't even help it-tears began sliding down his flushed cheeks and he grinned like a goddamn idiot. It hadn't registered until now, but he was a father. He had a child, a little person to teach and show the world, to love and fawn over like a maniac. His husband was alive and healing, and they would live a long and happy life together with their little mismatched family. He let out a sound somewhere began a scoff and a sob.

"There's just one thing."

His eyes snapped to her in irritation.

"What?" he asked.

"You're gonna need twice the diapers."

The words didn't sink in.

"What the hell is that...supposed to-" Levi's eyes widened, glancing to the door in complete and total shock.

Hanji smirked and turned back toward the door.

"I asked the midwives to clean them up so they should be nice and pretty to your standards. You can come on in now, just try not to rustle Eren too much when you-"

"Hanji," Levi interrupted.

"Hmm?"

"Y-you-were serious? There's two…?"

She grinned and winked at him.

"Seeds planted really well," she provided with a shrug.

Authors' Notes:

See ya next week ;)

~Aria and the Ghosts