A tail for an eye - Eren x Levi

Chapter 13

'Learning'

The morning approached at last, Levi unfortunately wasted the night half asleep and half awake, never quite fully in either. It left its effect on him through exhaustion and darker bags around his eyes than usual, but by now it felt like a normal night to him. His emotions were flying all over the place for multiple reasons; having captured a merman felt victorious, however they weren't yet home and anything could happen at any moment, but also that merman couldn't leave his mind and not for the reasons it should be. Eren ... he had a delicate face but that innocent front was nothing but a lie. Thankfully, no funny business had occurred in the night. In fact, Levi hardly heard a splash all night, he'd behaved well. Perhaps too well. 

Levi fiddled through his notebooks and maps, deciding to mark down where that island had been and also where they'd captured Eren. Vital information such as this could sell for money and fame, it could imprint a legacy on their last names. A bigger one than already existing, it would act like a gift to his grandparents and his father for their early deaths. As well as the revenge on his grandparents' killer. For such a youthful looking face, Eren sure knew techniques to kill pirates and lure them in. However,  Levi couldn't help but think that Eren should've killed him by now. During that time when he'd tipped the smaller boats over, there were many chances he could've just grabbed him and drowned him, or tipped the boat over again. Mer-people were mysteries, that was for definite. 

Grabbing one of the photos along the wall, Levi leaned against where it had previously been and looked down at it, staring into the gleeful eyes of his grandparents. Now he's thought of them, he wanted to see them up close again. They were good people, good pirates. Wise, gentle, calm. A beautiful atmosphere trailed with them wherever they went. No matter the type of day Levi encountered as a kid when they were alive, they both knew the way to cheer him back up and make him forget about his worries. Levi wished he could be like that, but that just wasn't him. 

An aggressive splash sounded from next door, alerting Levi. Muffled talking and bashing against the wood followed it straight after. Levi rushed to the room, keeping hold of the photo. A cold breeze ran through his body when changing rooms and just before entering, Levi heard voices,

"Come on, stay still! I promise it won't hurt!" A determined, feminine voice ordered, sounding a little frustrated. 

Levi entered the room in silence, spotting Zoe hunched over with items scattered all over the floor. Books, paper, pens, knives, gloves, tweezers, plastic bags and containers ... all sorts of medical experimental equipment. Inaudible muttering sounded from her, clearly all unfinished sentences as she focused on whatever she was doing. In her hand, some sort of blood extractor was held, and in the other a tube to hold said blood in. 

"Zoe?"

She screamed, tossing the blood extractor.device to a side as though a kid caught stealing sweets, "I'm not doing anything!" She turned around, placing down the tube on a small metal stand, "Hi, Captain. Sleep well?"

Now that she'd adjusted her positioning, Levi held direct eyesight with Eren, who looked rather restrained. A gag had been placed on him to quieten his protests and a metal devices was placed around his neck and upper arms then attached to the wall to hold his neck and shoulders in place as she performed her little experiments. The brat almost looked attractive so helpless like that.

"What are you doing?"

She let out a nervous chuckle, "Well, just ... a test or two?"

Eren produced muffled squeaks, pure panic set within his eyes and flustered cheeks looked oddly prominent on his skin tone.