Blue and White - Levi Fanfiction

Ch. 19 - Sunrise, After Tragedy

I was able to distinctly pick out the motion of riding on Levi's horse, in the saddle yet supported in his arms for nearly the entire way back to the walls. The movements weren't as jarring as I anticipated they would be, and I thought that I might have a harder time sleeping, but as a matter of fact, the opposite was true: I managed to find sleep quickly - or rather, it found me quickly.

I was only ever roused from sleep once, and that was at a break in the riding to allow the regiment to regroup once the rain stopped. There had been a conversation happening around me, but while the rest of my senses woke up and got to work, I kept my eyes closed.

"While we're stopped," I heard Erwin say, "you should bring her to one of the carts for the injured." Levi did not respond to him. "I understand you want her close, but she will have a better shot of recovering if she gets checked out now. They can start working with her now."

"Don't act like you care," Levi snapped, and I fought the urge to chastise him myself. I likely would have, if I had the energy to spare, but as it was, I didn't, and so I did not expend the energy. Besides... he was defending me.

"Levi, be reasonable," Erwin requested simply. "She is my comrade now - I care for her wellbeing a great deal."

"I wasn't there," Levi finally decided to tell him. "I don't know where she's hurt."

"Then it is best if she gets seen by a professional," Erwin noted. "And the sooner, the better. We're not maintaining the long-distance formation for the ride back. We'll be going in a tighter formation, so you can ride along the cart if you want."

Levi seemed to consider it. "Alright."

Gently, very gently, Levi dismounted with me in his arms and I felt more than ever as though I felt like only a feather for all his strength. He carried me to the cart then, and when he put me down I was struck with the sudden chill of being without his steady warmth at my side and holding me close.

It was only then that I opened my eyes, and at last I found the strength to speak. "Are you staying here?"

"I can," he told me, just as a scout crouched down on my other side. "Where are you hurt?"

"My left ankle," I said, "and my chest."

"Alright," the medical scout said, unclasping my cloak for me. "Can you tell me how you got hurt?"

"Ah," I said, trying to recall it, "I was skating through the mud with the gear, with my feet in the mud I mean, and I think my left foot got caught on a rock. And for my chest... A Titan caught me and slammed me down, kinda held me in place for a while, too. I don't think anything is broken, but..."

"They may be bruised," the scout said when I trailed off. "Still, the recovery process for both is the same, in essence. I'll take a look. What kind of pain do you feel?"

"Ah," I considered for a moment. Was "it all hurts like a bitch" an acceptable answer? Probably not.

"It hurts when I breathe," I finally answered as the Scout began to feel around my ribcage, searching for movement or anything out of place. "It's a sharp pain, but as far as I can tell, it doesn't feel like anything pierced my lungs or anything."

"You'd be having a lot more pain if that was the case," she said, nodding surely as though coming to a decision. "I've a feeling they're only bruised, so your recovery will be far simpler and shorter than if they were broken."

"Good, then," I said, relieved.

"There's not much to be done about it now," she said, "but I'll take a look at your leg, too. But for now, I would like to take a closer look at your ribs. I'll need to unbutton your shirt." She glanced up at Levi pointedly, who got the hint. He cleared his throat, then made to stand, but I took hold of his wrist to hold him in place.