AN: Slight gore towards the end, please skip the last section if you feel uncomfortable.
Part VI
Why? He pleaded on his knees,
"Precariously, God stacked your atoms,
crafting a bright, broken creature,
loving it in the dark."
-S. T. Gibson
"Sir? Is everything alright, I heard a-"
Armin hasn't even fully opened the door when he spots his previous mentor on the floor: crouched over, face scrunched up and a clear substance falling down his face. He looks like he is in great physical pain.
The blonde freezes for the briefest of moments.
He has never seen his mentor cry, not when taking punches, not when mourning, not ever and now the unfamiliar sight scares him.
Immediately, he pushes past the door and his brain goes into overdrive- thinking, thinking as hard as he can. His eyes analyse the room at a break-neck speed, taking in what he needs to know. Knife, torn sleeves (no signs of blood), shaking – it's clear that he was having some kind of mental breakdown.
Did he seriously just try to- no, that's not it- he couldn't have-
…tried to take his own life?
He shakes his head free of such a morbid and almost wrong thought – there is no blood and his former teacher is far too stubborn to let anything have such a toll on him.
"Sir! What's going on?!"
Pulling his mentor towards him by the shoulder, he kneels beside him, only to be pushed away.
"…I-I'm fine."
Armin knows that that's a lie, a common, clichéd lie repeated by many to hide their crippling anxieties and scars. It shakes him to think that his mentor- infallible in strength and mind- is torn so deeply that he can't even lie properly.
He reaches forward again.
I can help I can help let me be useful please I won't drag you down I won't-
Sniffling, Levi tries to stand, leaning on the countertop. Armin stands a few feet away, arms ready. Brushing away the offensive substance on his face, Levi is almost able to play it off. Armin's nerves come close to calming until he falls forward. Armin is quick to react; catching his superior and helping him sit up against the drawers.
"H-heh. My legs… fucking useless at a time like this." Levi curses, close to smirking at his failed attempt to hide his crumbling façade. He never did have an affinity for lying.
"Just… Leave me for a second, would ya?"
Armin is almost offended and a little hurt; was he that useless?
"N-no! Sir, wait here, I'll get some help, Eren-"
Levi throws a swift glare in Armin's direction, shutting the boy up immediately.
They don't need to know.
Armin throws him a look back, almost pleading with him.
After an impromptu stare down, Armin concedes.
Levi relaxes. He lets out a sigh of relief and focuses on his breathing.
I don't need any more brats coming to see me like this.
"I… I suppose I'll tidy up then." Armin stands, collecting the warped knife off of the ground. He doesn't even try to hide his shock as he studies it. It is a thin chopping knife, its edge blunt and bent in such a way that it looks like it had been slammed into a slab of concrete so hard; it had no choice but to bend that way. Slowly, he turns to the now silent man on the floor.
"Sir… just what is this…?"
"It's a cheap-ass knife that can't cut meat for shit." Well, he isn't lying, it couldn't cut through his arm, but that is to be expected now that he is… well.
Levi winces at the thought.
No, not right now, his head hurts like a bitch and he doesn't want to go through that again.
"And your sleeves- sir, what were you-"
"Collateral damage, they were annoying me and that shitty knife wasn't helping – so I tested it out on this shirt." Goddamn, I hope this kid buys this bullshit- he thinks, trying to keep as cool a face as possible.
Then again, this kid is supposed to be the genius of the group, he'd be pretty disappointed if he couldn't see through such an obvious lie.
Armin only frowns – obviously dissatisfied with the answer – but decides not to press further. He knows that there's something more to this, more than a mental breakdown – after all, what kind of a mental breakdown happens as a result of faulty cooking equipment?
Levi keeps his eyes glued to the knife, the only proof he has that he's really wrong about himself… that he was a… ghoul. Currently held in the hands of a kid who has more than enough power to rat him out to the higher ups – he'd be taken down by those he has only recently sworn (by force) to fight with.
God, he thinks, rolling his head back, I can't catch a fucking break anywhere, can I?
(Of course not, you're humanity's hope!)
He almost weeps at the irony.
Shutting his eyes, he hopes that by some mercy of the beings above that he won't wake up to this- this shit.
He is just so tired of it…
So… tired.
And then a void within him, comforting and empty, calls to him. He can't refuse.
-x-
Emerging in front of the exhausted man, seemingly from nothing, comes himself. Rather, someone that that looks very much like him, but very different in mind and in being (he is of course, not present in body- what was once his body now lies before him).
"That's right… get some rest. You'll need it." He looks down on his physical self, battered and broken, both physically and mentally. "Doesn't look like you've picked a side yet either..."
He leans down, extending his arm; he taps the sleeping man's forehead. He sighs.
"I'm too fucking nice."
-x-
Unsure on whether to throw the object away or keep it, Armin places it on the counter to come back to later. First he needs answers.
With a determined look on his face, he turns to his superior with new-found confidence – only to find him with his eyes gently closed, lips slightly parted and breathing short shallow breaths.
…He fell asleep?
His determination slips away, and he kneels back down to inspect him. Placing a hand on his forehead, he feels warmth on his palm.
So he's ill.
That would certainly explain the physical hardship. A temperature, shaking, high heart rate – chances are, the stress has just got to him – Armin doesn't think he'd fare much better had he been in the same position. Waking up to a world that he doesn't believe he was part of and then being handed copious amounts of responsibility off the bat… He doesn't give his senior enough credit.
He'd try to manoeuvre him to his room himself, but… he isn't exactly known for his strength.
Tidying away the knife in the back of a cupboard, and hiding the remnants of his mentor's episode, he calls for the other two. Not long after both come rushing in, not really sure what to expect.
"Hey, what's up? Where's the food- Holy- What happened to the Heichou?!" Eren is quick to run to his side, concern and astonishment dripping from his face.
"Armin? What's going on?" Mikasa is a little more hesitant, but worried nonetheless.
"He's ill, he passed out just now- help me get him to his room?" Without a further word, Eren hooks an arm over his waist, the other around his shoulder, Mikasa following suit as they begin to carry him to his room.
The three are silent; only speaking when their charge is at risk of knocking into a table or a doorframe, they're oddly focused.
Upon reaching his room, they lay him down on his bed, removing the silly apron he was adorning (they'd of laughed at the sight but this was hardly the time) as well as his shoes which were placed neatly at his bedside. Tucking him into bed, Armin came in with a wet towel in hand and placed it on their mentor's feverish head. Glancing at him one more time, they all turn to leave, shutting the door behind them; giving their respected leader time to recover.
God knows what he's been though.
-x-
However, after a few seconds, the body in the bed starts to shuffle. Reaching up, he plucks the towel from his forehead and opens his eyes. One glows red.
"…The little shits never did this when I was ill." He curses silently, sitting up and taking notice of his shirt sleeves.
"Really did a number on this one didn't you?" He clicks his tongue in brief annoyance. Unbuttoning the remains of his shirt, he reaches for a nearby drawer, pulling out a black V-neck. He quickly changes in case one of the three thinks to check on him. As much as he doesn't care what they think of his body, he doesn't need things to be awkward either.
Lying down once again, he gets comfortable, preparing for sleep when his stomach cries in hunger. Pulling over the blanket he stares down at his stomach, sighing. Things just have to be difficult for him.
Slipping on his shoes and grabbing a jacket nearby, he silently stalks over to his balcony door. Turning towards the door inside, he can bet that one of them will come check up on him in a few hours, if they don't fall asleep first. He considers locking the door, but that would just mean more repairs later.
He clicks his tongue again. "Looks like I'll have to be quick." Good thing Anteiku wasn't far from where he lived, he'd be back in thirty minutes tops.
Sliding open the large window, he looks down at the dark alley bellow. Focusing on a passing figure he sees the large briefcase and rolls his eyes. He rubs his temples lightly.
Maybe an hour would be a safer bet.
-x-
"Ugh, my head." I groan, sitting up in bed.
"Oh! You're awake!"
Oh how I love to wake to the sound of titan boy's voice in the morning.
"We've made you breakfast sir! I mean, we're not good cooks or anything," yeah, I'll bet "but it's edible!"
I look over the plate in his hands: eggs, bacon, with a side of toast. Even they couldn't fuck this up. I take a piece of the eggs in my mouth.
Oh fucking wait- I can't eat this.
Immediately I swallow it down, not wanting to spit it back out.
Ugh, I feel sick.
"Aren't you going to have some more? C'mon Heichou! We worked hard!"
To fry eggs and bacon? How fucking basic are you?
I take a second to notice it but… I'm full? I feel it at least, and I decline the breakfast. Titan boy looks pissed, but he manages to hold it back (I'm tempted to applaud his control) and walks off, grumbling to himself.
When the door closes, I get up and walk towards a wardrobe, picking out a decent suit for the day, at least I'd fit with whatever image this CCG is going for.
Leaving my room and going towards the lounge area I see a little more than the trio. Apparently my morning is going to be filled with shit.
"Hello Levi, sleep well?"
"Erwin. What do you need?" I take a seat on my couch, not even bothering to offer Erwin or his little entourage a seat. They can keep their filth to themselves.
"We're going to need you to come with us." Two of the men come to my side, grabbing an arm each and pulling me to my feet.
"What the fuck- you couldn't ask?"
"Levi Ackerman…" He says with a sorrowful look on his face, eyes locking with mine. "I regret to say this, but you are under arrest."
I stand there in shock. What?
The three stand behind him, also deep in confusion.
One of the men next to me pulls up a large, pulsing blade to my neck. The smell of the blade reaches my nose, and the mystery of those suitcases is solved. They house fucking weapons. And not just any weapons either. These… were specifically designed to kill ghouls.
He was the one blackmailing me to join, this-
"What the fuck did I do-"
"You are suspected to be the ghoul previously dubbed 'The Crow' and are now under our custody."
I haven't done shit, this isn't right, that wasn't me-
"We expect full cooperation. Be warned that anything you say can and will be held against you."
I look over at the three, close to yelling at them to do something – tell him he's wrong; punch some sense into him – anything!
They simply look away.
Why…? Why aren't they-
Oh that's right.
Armin Artlert.
I look over at the blonde, who looks guiltier than the rest.
He's staring intently at something. I follow his gaze to the table next to us.
The knife.
…he figured it out in the end, huh?
I curse myself for letting this happen.
"Also, I am sorry." My head snaps up at Erwin. Did he just-
I feel pain blossom at the top of my head and my vision darkens; I can hear screams of protest in the background, Eren obviously struggling against his friends and I see their worried faces one last time.
-x-
…
Blinking, I wake in a field of white flowers, shaped almost like birds in flight. Above me an expansive white space. It looks endless.
"I have to say, a field of fringed orchids… fucking ironic."
I hear movement behind me, and the tugging of one of the nearby plants.
"…My thoughts will follow you into your dreams."
Excuse me?
"What?"
"It's what these mean."
"Sentimental are we?"
"I said ironic."
"…and why is that?"
A silence follows. I can't tell whether it's because it's a touchy subject or if he wants me to figure it out; I'm not up for mind games right now.
"So. They got you."
No shit.
"I can't say I'm not surprised, you made yourself an easy target."
"And who do you think you are-!"
I sit up and search for the voice.
"Turn around idiot."
I turn and I see a back. A familiar looking back, I can guess which fucker it is.
"What? Didn't get to shit this morning?"
I smirk. Of course it's him.
"You mute now? Or do you just prefer to listen?"
I don't reply.
"Alright, how about this?" He snaps his fingers and we're in the old dining room, voices laughing in the background. Standing, I see them, my old team.
"Oulo! Please stop trying to imitate the Heichou!"
"Huh? What? This is how I always am."
"Don't lie Oulo, you're just trying to look cool."
Other me circles them, looking very curious. "Friends of yours?"
I frown. "You don't know them?"
"I do, but not as the people we're seeing now."
"…I see."
"What were they to you?"
The corners of my mouth tug upwards. "Hmm. Comrades."
He chuckles after a few moments. "Right."
"Why did you show me this?" I ask, and he stops. Turning away from me, the scene disappears.
"You'll need it. You'll need them, very soon."
-x-
I wake to pain.
A searing pain in my arm and I almost scream out.
"Ohoho! My guest has finally awoken." A shrill, eerie voice coos and I'm awed as I look up.
I'm buckled into a metal chair, arms and legs restrained and my shirt and shoes have been removed. I look around to see I'm in a tiled, white room, fairly large with only one exit, as well as one wide window. On the other side, I can see silhouettes, and a familiar head of hair.
Motherfucker.
"I am Mai Furigawa - and you and I will be spending a lot of time together, Mr. Ackerman!" The woman cackles as she cracks her neck loudly, shoving the syringe in my arm as deep as possible. "Why don't we get started?"
I narrow my eyes. There's an almost sickly euphoric look on her face.
There's something fucked up in this woman's head.
"How about you remove me from this thing and I can talk with my commander?" I spit out, glaring at the figures behind the glass.
She doesn't seem to like this, as I soon find a small scalpel embedded in my arm. I try to move my arm until I realise that it's gone straight through, my arm shaking and blood already spilling. I bite into my lip, not giving her the satisfaction of hearing me scream. She frowns, displeased.
"There. Now, I'll be the one making the demands here. So don't even try to act cocky with me. Okay, ghoulie?" I glare up at her, as she grabs the handle of the scalpel. "Now hold still, annnnd-"
"Aghh! What the fuck!" I yell out this time as she holds the bloodied scalpel in her hand. Blood is pooling around my arm and drips off of the armrest.
She closes her eyes in glee as she giggles softly.
What the fuck is wrong with you?
"Ohoho… Didn't like that did you?" Fucking course not you crazy bitch- "Then maybe, you shouldn't kill people's husbands!"
Yelling in complete rage she starts slashing at my chest, and I can feel the muscles tear under her knife. The pain is excruciating as I struggle in my confinement, and I don't care that she's a woman- I'm going to beat this bitch into the next century-
"Miss Furigawa, please refrain from using unnecessary force." A voice rings out, deeper and more stoic compared to Erwin's. I can't recognise it. "We wouldn't want him dying without obtaining any new information."
This stops her mid-cut as she composes herself. My body screams in pain as I look at the extent of her damage, several shallow cuts and at least three larger, deeper gashes litter my chest. I can feel sweat dripping down my forehead and I'm breathing heavily.
"Oh, right. Sorry sir, I got a bit carried away." She chuckles, cracking her neck again. The once white room is starting to flood with red, and Erwin has disappeared from behind the glass.
Fucking coward.
The woman goes over to a nearby table with all sorts of metallic tools, some I'm sure have no medical purposes whatsoever. She picks up what looks to be bolt cutters and walks over to me with a wide, wide grin on her face.
SNAP! SNAP!
Testing the bolt cutters as she approaches me, my blood goes cold.
This crazy bitch- she's gonna-
"Time to begin our questioning, Mr. Ackerman." She smiles."I hope you know your numbers."
Numbers?
"It's an old technique, taught by a man I didn't really like, but was supposedly very effective…"
She takes a step towards me. "It's supposed to help you out, actually- see? Aren't I nice?"
She giggles again. The open bolt cutters resting just beneath my index finger- I can feel the sharp cold metal barely cut into my skin.
I wasn't prepared for this.
"We're going to have so much fun!"
Extending the handles as far apart as they can go, her eyes are open in a wide excitement and her grin encompasses her entire face. She looks up at me one last time.
"What's a thousand minus seven?"
And done.
So, we're finally digging into the darker side of Tokyo Ghoul and Levi gets to experience it first-hand. I feel kinda bad for it, but it is the world of Tokyo Ghoul- what were you expecting?
I thank all those who've decided to follow, favourite or review- whether I write or not is pretty dependent on this. So as a friendly reminder:
Please feel free to leave a comment/ review! Any criticism helps, and even general comments make my day!
MUCHAS GRACIAS TO IDOUBT FOR FIXING THINGS. I'm bad at tenses and punctuation okay.
(Also, for those who noticed, I can't input full stops in my title, so its a little unclear where each sentence ends, I'm sorry! I can't do much about that :s)
StgMc98 – Thanks bruhh! Again, I appreciate it, I'm glad that you're enjoying it as of so far, it's a lot of work to get this guy in character and to try and get his personality down, but its working apparently!
MewMew – Thanks for the review, and I did go back and make a LOT of changes to the last chapter, especially the last bit. I definitely saw the errors- thanks for pointing them out! If you have the time, can you go back and tell me if it's done any better?
Guest – Ah, right. Sorry about that, he has to go through quite a bit more hardship... Sorry. :s
IDoubt – Domo arigato! I haven't had the time to flex my Levi sass muscles much this chapter; as you can tell it's pretty heavy going, but I have tried fixing up some of the phrasing. Also, Shush. Don't remind me about revision that I should be doing, let me revel in my art of procrastination, gawsh.
BleeBlahBloop – Ah, timing! I finished this chapter a few hours after your review came through! I hope you enjoy this one!
(Added A/N: So, this came out later than expected, excuse the outdated replies :s)