ONE ʙʏ ONE

ᴛᴡᴇɴᴛʏ-ғᴏᴜʀ

Connie helped Hange carry Eren into the base. It wasn't a high-tech place, but it was hidden and vacant. Hange had a small set up there and used it when she needed space; however, Levi had no idea about it.

The two placed him on a rickety metal table, and Hange went to work examining the injuries. Zeke had finished parking in a secluded area and made his way in the base. Connie nervously retrieved Hange's instruments and laid them out for her.

"Jeez, Eren, I didn't think Levi had gotten to you this much," Hange muttered to herself, grabbing a rag to wipe the blood away. "I'm sorry for not stopping him sooner."

"Don't worry. We'll fix you up and make sure Levi never bothers you again."

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Levi gripped his blade tightly, to the point his knuckles were pale. Armin anxiously waited for Levi to speak. The silence was killing him, but he didn't dare talk first. Kenny was stressed, thinking about how an innocent kid just carved open his wrist to get away from his own nephew. He didn't want to admit it, but it was obvious that Levi was becoming a major problem.

After an agonizing twenty minutes, Levi finally growled softly, "Not only did Eren escape me, but now, he's with a human-experimenting, betraying, psychotic thief!"

He slammed his fist on the kitchen island, making Armin jump out of his skin. The raven manically chuckled, "After all I've done for him! I've been nothing but patient! First, I got back at his bully, which now he's getting way too close with. Then, I chased off a fucking rapist to protect him and his mother. Not to mention how I took care of Girsha too!"

Armin tried to ease the situation by pointing out, "H-He has t-to come back to school. H-He can't s-stay with Hange forever."

"Arlert, go home," Levi commanded. "We'll talk tomorrow."

"Yes, sir."

Once the front door opened and closed, Levi snickered, "It's a crying shame what I have to do to the people I love."

2 Days Until The Red Room

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Eren's head was pounding as he came to. He sat up on an unfamiliar bed and rubbed the exhaustion from his eyes, trying to make sense of where he was. The room was old, and there wasn't a window to let any light in. It was almost pitch black besides the glow that was stretching from under the door.

As Eren lifted his arm, the sting had started to burn again. His right forearm was bandaged tightly, and a few scratches he got from falling were covered. The teen pulled his arm towards his chest and climbed out of the blanket.

Cautiously, Eren opened the door, being slightly blinded by the light. Hange was sitting with Connie and another boy he assumed was the Zeke Hange called out to earlier. The three of them were chatting merrily and cracking jokes. Hange looked back and noticed Eren staring over at them.

"Well, I'm glad you didn't bleed out, mister-mister. You gave me quite the scare." Hange joshed, pulling up a chair and gesturing for Eren to sit. "How are you feeling?"

Eren nervously sat next to the girl, replying, "My arm hurts."

"Not surprising, considering you sliced it up like fucking fruit ninja." Hange chortled. "Tell me, what did Levi do to make you do that?"

Connie and Zeke's expression darkened at the mention of Levi. Eren glanced down and wistfully admitted, "He's changed in a bad way, and Armin's gone nuts! He attacked me for becoming friends with Jean, and Mikasa tried to kill Levi! I feel like I make everyone I know crazy!"

Hange glanced at her friends before confessing, "Eren, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the actions of Mikasa and Armin– it's all Levi's fault...and mine."

The boy gaped and sputtered out, "W-What do you mean?"

Hange turned her chair to face him, a guilty expression on her face. "He planned to turn them against you, " she began. "First, he went after Mikasa by tricking her into attacking him. He made sure Armin would stay asleep for a while to give the impression that he was kidnapped, and then he told her to do it."

She paused before murmuring, "And it was me who gave him the anesthetic."

Eren stared at the ground for a moment, taking it all in. He chose the wrong person to side with and even lost Mikasa as a loyal friend. Tears brimmed his eyes, thinking about how Mikasa was only trying to protect Armin. His words he screamed at her that day at the park replayed in his mind.

"Oh my God, Mikasa." He sniffled. "I-I'm so sorry."

Hange bowed her head sorrowfully, continuing, "And about Armin, I'm sorry, but he's gone."

Connie furrowed his brow, explaining, "Levi is extremely manipulative, and Armin was extremely susceptible. Levi saw his chance to corrupt and took it."

Tears dripped down Eren's face and off his chin. He couldn't believe what Levi had done to his friends and how the snake had tricked him into believing the protector facade. He was disgusted with how he slept next to the person who took away two of his greatest friendships.

"W-Why? He took my friends and beat the living hell outta me, but why?" Eren lamented, running a hand through his hair. 

Hange debated whether to tell him, but she believed he had the right to know. After all, she could tell he had been through so much. The least she could give him was the truth. 

"Eren, you matter a lot to Levi," Hange stated, leaning her elbows on her knees. "You can say he's a bit obsessive of you, and he wants you all to himself, no matter the consequence. I'm not sure why he wants you; I just know that if he doesn't get what he wants, people are going to get hurt."

Suddenly, Eren remembered, "If that's true, then he's going to hurt Jean! Jean was the reason that whole fiasco went down."

"Don't worry, we'll take care of it," Hange assured, standing. She looked towards her small crew and beamed, "Alright, men! Let's go get him to safety."

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Let the war begin!

Thanks for your patience! And I wanna hear what you think about the rivalry between Levi and Hange. Who do you think will win? 

Toodles~