Thanks to my shitty time-management skills, it's been a bit of a wait for you guys, and I'm sorry about it!
Anyways- this is the squad's reaction. It's mostly fluff, but I wrote it, so... I'm posting it.
"Captain- I-I know it doesn't mean shit right now, but I swear to god- I never meant for this to happen." Gunther managed as he looked down at Eren's still form, intense brown eyes clouded with concern, arms at his sides, fists clenched.
"Don't blame yourself. None of us had any idea how unstable he really was- if anything, the blame falls on me. I'm his caretaker- I failed. Not the squad. Understand?"
Gunther blinked, not confirming or denying the statement. But he knew- somewhere within him- that everyone on the squad had failed Eren for not helping him, not reaching out, more.
"How is he?"
"That's to be determined." Levi sighed, running a hand over his face. "As you can see- he'll be needed care for awhile. I'll be with him for a time- Eld is in charge. Have him run drills and keep the squad functioning as usual."
"Of course, Sir." Gunther frowned, finding the floor interesting for a moment, before he looked up, gaze meeting Levi's. "Has he shown any signs of waking up?"
"No."
Gunther looked down at the boy, wincing as his eyes landed on the massive, mottled bruise on the boy's chest, the blood stained bandage on his arm- the man quickly turned and limped out of the room as fast as humanly possible- he took a long walk, trying to gather his thoughts. One thing was for certain- when Jager woke up- if he woke up- he would kick the kid's ass for making him worry so much. And he'd keep a careful eye on him- he'd never let a teammate fall through the cracks like this again.
Auruo peered into the room from the hallway, before he quietly materialized in the doorway, frowning. He took one look at Eren and winced slightly, seeing the rough shape the boy was in.
Levi had been dozing lightly, and he kept his eyes closed purposely, hearing Auruo cross the room in two brisk strides.
"You'd better wake up soon, greenhorn. We have a ton of simple chores that you need to fuck up." There was silence for one moment, two, before slow footsteps as Auruo turned and left- still, the man paused in the doorway and threw a hesitant glance over his shoulder, as though hoping to hear Eren moan or mutter something. When he was met with nothing, he pursed his lips and turned, walking down the hallway, footsteps echoing.
Light footsteps in the hallway around dinner time alerted him to someone approaching, and he wordlessly lifted his chin from where it'd been resting his chest to see Petra standing in the doorway, biting her lip uncomfortably, a tray balanced in each hand.
"Come in, Ral."
Petra nodded, stepping over the threshold and handing Levi one of the trays, biting her lip. "I-I brought you some food- and some for Eren, incase he was awake…." she bit her lip again, looking over at Levi for a split second before setting the second tray on the bedside table.
The girl suddenly looked down at the ground, finding her boots incredibly interesting.
"You can stay for a few minutes, if you'd like."
Petra nodded, still not looking up, grabbing a chair and pulling it over to the opposite side of Eren's bed.
She took his hand as one point, darting a nervous glance at his face before she simply sat in silence. Her golden bangs fell over her face, hiding her expression.
Still- her posture was rigid, like she was fighting off guilt and tears.
She leaned forward at one point, whispering something in Eren's ear before brushing his bangs away from his face with shaking fingers, before she strode briskly out of the room.
The torches that lit the castle had been lit, and though the room was relatively bright, Levi didn't jump when Eld materialized from the shadows.
"How is he?"
"No sign of waking up." Levi said simply, used to the lack of formality between him and his second in command. They seemed to function on their own separate wavelength- there was no need for him to call Levi Sir or Levi to remind him of his status- it was all in their gestures.
"The squad is in rough shape, Sir. This is hitting everyone pretty hard…." even as Eld reported what'd been occurring within the squad to Levi, he was still scrutinizing Eren, brown creased with concern.
"But if I had to speculate, I'd say this is hardest on you, Sir."
Levi's eyes widened slightly at Eld's insight.
"And why is that, exactly?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow and looking at the blonde, baffled.
"Out of everyone in the squad- you're the closest with Eren. You spend the most time together, he's nearly always with you, for safety reasons, of course, and you took responsibility for him. So… how are you handling the situation, Captain?"
"I'm fine, Eld."
"Really?"
"Yes, really. I don't want to see Jager die- I wish I'd realized what was going on before it came to this- but Jager is far from the first soldier I've seen try to end themselves."
Eld's eyes widened in surprise, and Levi looked over at Jager's pale face, sighing.
"He is the youngest, though. Most of the ones I saw die were veterans who'd lost everything…."
Eld was staring at the ground, slightly ashamed he'd even brought the subject up. He'd wanted to make certain his Captain was alright, not bring up more painful memories.
"What if he dies, Sir?" Eld asked, shooting a lingering glance at the crimson stained bandages.
"That depends who you ask. The nobles will be relieved- the Military Police will use it as ammunition as they speak of our incompetence-"
I'll never be able to walk into the dungeons again without remembering the echoes. I'll never be able to look into a cell without imagining a bed with that brat in it, tangled up in the blankets and slobbering all over the pillow, snoring like a fucking train….
"Humanity will have lost a major asset-"
There will be no green eyes or stupid-ass smiles in my office anymore. There won't be anyone to yell at for fidgeting while I try and do my paper work….
"And I will most likely be court-martialed."
"What!?" Eld looked horrified.
Levi looked over at him calmly, as always. "What did you expect? The boy was my responsibility, if he dies I'll have to answer for it."
"But- they can't!" Eld was still looking horrified. "You're Humanity's Strongest soldier!"
Levi rolled his eyes. "You're naive. I'll probably be reprimanded severely- they won't jail me. I'm needed on the front. Even the nobles know it. But humanity won't be the only one losing if we lose Jager…. The unit will have lost an amazing kid."
Levi fell silent, pursing his lips and looking over at Jager, pissed that the boy hadn't even twitched. He rarely admitted his true thoughts on Jager's worth, and now that he had, the brat wasn't even awake to hear it.
Eld had fallen silent, staring straight ahead, uncertain.
"Eld. Not a word of this to the squad- everything is still so uncertain, they shouldn't worry themselves over hypotheticals…."
"The squad might lose Eren, Sir. But losing you as well- that would be the killing blow." Eld looked serious.
"You aren't going to lose me."
"You just said-"
"Hypothetically, Eld. It's all speculation." Levi said, shooting his comrade a sharp glance. "Now head back to your quarters."
Eld's lips formed a firm line, and for a brief moment he looked as though he was going to protest before seeing the edge in Levi's expression. There would be sharp words if he protested.
So instead he turned, heading down the warmly lit hallway, his footsteps echoing off the empty stone hall.
Levi sighed once he was gone, turning back to look at Eren, smoothing the boy's bangs from his face. "I'm not going to wait forever, you know. Even my patience runs thin- I know you think you don't deserve to live, but I honestly don't care right now. Open your eyes."
There was a groan- Eren's eyes darted around beneath his eyelids, fingers of his hand twitching slightly, before he was still.
Levi's eyes widened slightly. He hadn't expected the boy to actually respond to his voice, but it was the most response he'd gotten all day.
"That's satisfactory. Gather your strength- I expect you to be conscious when I speak to you tomorrow."
Eren's head lolled to the side, falling still except for the somewhat hitching rise and fall of his chest.
Levi nodded to himself quietly- Eren was responding, even if he wasn't exactly conscious. "Not bad." he muttered to himself. It wasn't momentous- but it was a start.
Alright- so I don't really have time to do a mailbag today, but I wanted you all to know I read each and every one of your reviews and cherish them, so please continue with feedback! :)