ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴍᴇʀᴄʏ {ʟᴇᴠɪ ᴀᴄᴋᴇʀᴍᴀɴ}

A Merciful Stranger's Return

{Mercy's POV}

I stepped out of the house to see six slain bodies scattered in the vacant street and shot a look at Levi who stared forward into the darkness.

His eyes were tired and far away and I could see his brain putting in overtime as he took several steps forward. He didn't understand anything that was going on, and I didn't know how to tell him about my past or about the truth. I was surprised he believed me when I told him that my injuries would heal.
I thought back to the desperation in his voice and his pleading eyes as he begged me not to leave him. I felt awful for how scared and panicked he was, but seeing it showed me just how much he cared for me.
"Can you walk?" Levi asked quietly as he continued to stare forward, ignoring the bodies that glimmered red around us. "My horse is in the market side of this district."
I glanced over at the carriage beside the building.
"If my ODM gear is in the carriage we'll travel on the rooftops. It'll be faster."
He quickly turned around and I snapped my attention to him. His face was cold. He didn't look angry or upset, but he was definitely serious and concerned. He had been so gentle with me after I killed Vinson, and before that he cried against me after seeing the injuries to my body, but I could tell that the severity of the situation had finally set in as the softness in his expression had faded. He was confused about it all, and had every right to be.
"Not in that condition," he said flatly and his eyes glimmered with melancholy as he glanced at my bloody chest. They held regret, but also showed his contempt toward Vinson and his team for boring such wounds into me.
"I'm okay, Levi," I said softly and he subtly shook his head. I stepped closer and lifted my shirt to reveal my stomach. "I am. Look."
His eyes widened as he took it in.
My entire stomach was covered in dried blood, but every stab wound had closed itself. Any organ that was grazed had regenerated.
"What about your chest?" he said flatly and lifted his gaze to me as I let my shirt fall back down.
"The entry point is almost closed up..." I pulled down the neckline of my shirt to show him my wounds, ignoring the fact that my cleavage showed unapologetically.
He was never going to believe me if I didn't show him.
His eyes moved down to look at the stab wound in the center of my chest that was nearly healed and would be a scar within the hour. He stared straight at it for a long time, his face expressionless.
"My heart was grazed, but I think my body healed that first," I laughed nervously as he continued to stare, his eyes growing softer but more confused with each passing second. "The upper part of my diaphragm was hit too, which is taking a while to heal. Every time I breathe it feels... Well, I don't know how to describe it, but it's manageable."
I pulled the neckline of my shirt back up.
"Mercy," he began as he lifted his eyes to mine, "None of this makes any sense, and we need to talk about it."
"I-"
"But first," he raised a hand and took a deep breath, "We need to get back to base and report this to the MPs before that."
I nodded my head and crossed my arms over my body as my eyes fell to the ground.
I wondered what they would do to me if they found out my abilities. Would they lock me up again? Experiment on me?
I wondered if they would find my father and have him arrested, and what mess that would make.
I looked up to Levi who tilted his head slightly.
"If you're thinking I'm going to tell the MPs the truth you're wrong," he said sharply and turned back around to face the darkness that waited for us. "As far as they're concerned, you were abducted by a group of filthy sex traffickers, but managed to escape. They will not know anything about your father or your abilities, and I'll make sure of that."
"Why would you do that?" I asked.
"This is something that the Scouts need to handle. Anytime the Military Police get involved it just makes things worse, and I know for a fact they would lock you up in fear of what you're capable of. We aren't going to tell them about your injuries," he said as he glanced back at me. "As far as they're concerned, I killed every one of your kidnappers and the blood on your shirt is not yours, just the aftermath of my slaughter."
I let a laugh escape my nose at his words.
"Take the credit for my murders all you want, but it still doesn't wash their blood off my hands," I said guiltily.
"They were bad men with bad intentions," he said sternly. "They were doomed the moment they laid a hand on you, whether it was you who sealed their fate or me. Regardless, their deaths were not a mistake. They were necessary."
"Did you see how awfully they were killed?" I argued and stepped toward his turned back. "Levi, I'm a-"
"A monster?" he said as he turned around and let out a hollow laugh. "No, you kill monsters. You did what was right."
I suddenly remembered how my father told me that I was made to kill monsters, but deep down I knew this wasn't what he meant. I was never meant to slay Titans or brutally murder my kidnappers. I was meant to kill people I didn't know, and my memories failed to reveal these "targets" to me.
All I knew for sure was that my father was the true monster, and wanted me to be one too. Knowing his vicious will and relentless aggression there was no possible way that the reason for my abilities was a good one.
"Mercy," Levi's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and his sky-like eyes stared into mine. "You defended yourself, and I'm so proud of you. You aren't a monster for keeping yourself alive," he reassured and took a step closer to me. "Do you really think a monster would have a heart like you?"
His words hung in the air and fell on my skin like a heavy mist. I soaked them in.
"I don't know," I said as my eyes stung with tears.
I was so tired of being conflicted. One moment I would feel more like my mother with a giving heart and humble nature. The next I would feel like my father with his vicious tendencies and his brutal mannerisms.
It was as if I was born from an angel and a demon and couldn't pick which side I truly belonged to.
Heaven or Hell?
"On the rooftops of the stables you asked me what I saw in you, and I told you I didn't know. Well... I'm able to answer your question now," he said as his brows furrowed with seriousness and his eyes shifted between both of mine. "I see a good person. A selfless, intelligent, caring and funny pain-in-the-ass who refuses to quit no matter what."
With each word his voice grew more serious and angry. It was as if he was chewing me out with compliments.