Tainted (Levi x Reader)

Chapter 3

You spent several uninterrupted hours alone in your room, pouring over your friend's dying words and trying to hold back the tears as you imagined her, scared and alone, but still fighting to leave something useful behind. I'm so sorry, Ilse.

It was painful, to say the least. You'd gotten about 3/4 of the way through when you had to put it down, placing it carefully in an empty drawer beside your bed. Outside, the daylight was fading fast, so you got to your feet and made your way out of the building, to the forest that surrounded the castle-like headquarters of the Scouts.

Heart aching,  you wandered until you found a glade of wildflowers and knelt to start gathering some. Having gotten as many as you could carry, you headed back to the base. You left the trees behind, clutching your bundle of flowers to your chest as you braved the strong breeze. Howling fiercely, the wind threatened to knock you over. But luckily for it, something else beat it to the punch.

You were thrown to the ground forcefully by a large hooded figure, struggling against his weight to writhe free as he fought to bind your hands and ankles. You pulled all the stops, clawing at him and biting when you could get a chance, but he had the upper hand in strength and size, and it didn't help that you had been completely ambushed.

Your assailant shoved a rag in your mouth and held it there. He abandoned his attempts to tie you up, choosing instead to put you in a headlock in hopes of knocking you out. You screamed as hard as you could against the rag, screamed until it felt like your throat was on fire, but it made little difference. It didn't take long before the lack of oxygen caused your muscles to tire and your vision to falter. You watched dully as the wind swept away the flowers meant for Ilse and the rest of your fallen comrades...

Suddenly, the weight on top of you vanished. You rolled onto your back, staring at the night sky as you coughed and gasped for breath.

You heard the gut-wrenching crack of bone as punches and kicks were thrown, grunts of rage. Then, silence. Footsteps over soft grass.

A scowling face peered down at you. And in that moment, it was the most beautiful face you'd ever laid eyes on. Well, not only in that moment. You'd always found your Captain objectively handsome.

"Captain," you croaked. "You look tall from down here."

Levi rolled his eyes and knelt to help you to a sitting position. You stared at the slumped over shape of the man who had attacked you. "Is he..?"

"If not, he'll wish he was." Levi pulled out a white cloth and cleaned the blood from his knuckles before folding it back up and putting it away. He stood and turned the body over so both of you could clearly see his face. "Familiar? HQ is pretty remote just to ambush a trained, not to mention particularly skilled, soldier."

Trying not to get caught up on the rare compliment, you shook your head. The man's nose was badly twisted, and not from Levi, either. You would have known right away if you recognized him.

On a nagging suspicion, you crawled closer and folded back the man's cloak. You lifted his shirt to reveal a large branding on his upper abdomen. Two daggers crossing over each other.

Levi crouched next to you for a closer look. "Now that," he flicked a hand in its direction. "Had to have hurt."

You nodded, giving him a sideways glance as he studied the mark. I should know.

"Definitely the mark of some gang. Who exactly did you piss off, (Y/n)?"

"Who haven't I pissed off at some point or another?" you muttered.

Levi eyed you with that sharp, steely gaze that left you wondering exactly what he was thinking. "Why were you out here on your own, dumbass? Can't you tell it's nighttime?"