Porcelain : Levi x Reader (Royal AU)

T h r e e : The Value of a Life

Before it gets too close to lunch at 12:30 you order Levi to carry all the books you had collected to your room and lead you back to freshen up. Levi leads the way silently and although he's balancing over twenty books he walks at his usual fast pace, however, you're more prepared now and keep up. It occurs to you that perhaps at the times when Levi has to follow behind you he becomes annoyed because he thinks you're walking too slow. You don't give the idea much thought because it makes you nervous that he could be criticizing your every move from behind.

In about a good ten minutes you reach your door and Levi expertly balances the stack of books, opens the door for you, and gives a slight bow as you walk through the door. You had of course offered to carry at least half but he grabbed all of the books wordlessly and ignored your attempts to lighten his load. Once inside with the door closed you step into the bathroom to check your appearance and make sure you're still presentable to dine with the royal family in a few minutes.

Levi places the stack of books on your desk and then resumes his usual position standing facing the door and his back turned towards you. You hum the tune of a familiar lullaby your mother had sang to you so many times before when you were a child. You on the other hand had no talent for singing but you could manage a decent hum. She hadn't sung it in a long time but the night before you departed she sang it to you a final time and now you couldn't get it out of your head. 

You apply a bit more color to your lips as you look at yourself in the vanity in the main room. You don't notice Levi turn his head slightly and watch your reflection through the mirror. You weren't the first Asikan he had ever seen but you were the first he had certainly spent more than a few minutes with. His eyes rake your body from behind, he didn't find anything particularly special about you at all. Nothing was notably striking or beautiful and he wondered if that was perhaps why Eren had taken no interest in you.

Would the boy have reacted differently if you had been some fair-skinned, light-eyed beauty sent to marry him instead? He couldn't tell, he had only met Prince Eren on very few occasions but he seemed like a spoiled royal brat. A royal pain in the ass, he thought to himself. The thought forces his lips to turn upwards in a small smile but he quickly composes himself. For all that it was worth he had to admit that at least you weren't ugly, just regular. The only thing that was slightly interesting was your skin and hair but again that wasn't quite new to Levi.

You finish freshening up and make eye contact with Levi through the mirror. You hadn't expected him to be watching you and his judging eyes send a shiver down your spine. Surprisingly he doesn't turn around when you find him staring but again, challenges your gaze. You turn to fully face him and he still hasn't turned towards the door.

"Is something the matter, Levi?" You question with a frown. You didn't like the way he had looked at you. Was it with hate because you were of a different kingdom, indifference because he didn't care much about this job, or maybe even a sense of unease because he didn't trust you?

He takes a few seconds to think carefully, you had gotten used to how he always weighed his words before they passed his lips.

"Your ribbon," He points out, "It's beginning to come undone." He finishes and finally turns back around to face the door, on guard once more.

You gasp, here you were thinking the worst about him but it was probably one of the nicest things he had done for you. What if you had walked into the dining hall just for your hair to come undone? You're sure Zeke and Eren would not have had some nice words to say and you would have been the butt of another joke.

You try and fix it but it's no use as it's hard to adjust when you can't see the back of your own head.

"Levi," You say and he doesn't answer but turns around to face you, "Would you mind helping me tie it back, it's much too difficult to see it."