In Another Life || Levi x Reader/OC

New Beginnings

You were having a dream - a very strange dream.

Light was burning your irises from above, the gentle breeze tickling against your skin, and the color purple overwhelming your vision.

Campanula. More of them again.

Immediately, you could feel your heart race as you sat up, shuffling away from them due to fearful memories of the other dream you had not so long ago.

But then you saw your mother's shadow, and that was when you knew for sure that this was only just a dream, because it wasn't everyday you saw the silhouette of your dead mother towering over you.

It was either a dream, or you were dead.

"You're not dead, my love," came your mother's words to reassure you. There was no doubt this was your mother; the tenderness in her tone said everything.

She made her appearance, kneeling down to pick a bundle of flowers and twirl them around by the stem. She looked as beautiful as ever, glowing like an ethereal being. "There's no need to worry."

"W-What's going on?" you asked her. You couldn't remember what led you up to this point, completely surrounded by a field of campanula again with your mother shifting her body to sit crossed legged next to you.

"Something like a dream," she responded, passing you the flowers. You grabbed them from her hesitantly, dissatisfied with her response. When she noticed the questionable look on your face, she spoke up again. "You have a chance to live."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, it's up to you." She turned her gaze to face you. "Do you want to live?"

That question bothered you. Wasn't the answer obvious?

"Well, of course I do. I need to go back to Paulina and make sure she's okay. I also need to keep an eye on Zeke to make sure he doesn't-"

"No," she interrupted. "I'm asking if you want to live. Not for Paulina, not for Zeke, but for you."

Your breath got caught in your throat. You pulled your knees into your chest and hugged them tightly, pondering her question.

"I mean... I've never been able to live for myself, have I? What difference does it make if I choose to live? I'll just keep living the same way I always have - as a tool for Marley to use at their leisure." A harsher breeze hit your skin, goosebumps emerging. "But the least I can do is make sure Paulina doesn't have to suffer what I had to. I don't want her to feel used. I don't want her to feel like she's only good for her strengths and not as a person. I want her to live a life where she can at least feel like her own person."

"And that's admirable, but what about you?"

"Well, what about me?"

"You say these things like you don't have a chance to make a difference for yourself either."

"How?"

She sighed, turning away to look out into the field. "You are much more capable than you give yourself credit for, Eden."

"I've done nothing to be proud of. All I've done is hurt people over and over again."

"You can't change the past, but you can move forward to change the future," she continued. "If you really feel remorse for your sins, then the only way to pay it back is by striving for change."

You huffed. "Sure, but I deserved to be punished."

"My dear, you've already been punished. You lost all your true friends, your lover, and there is still more to tackle back at home that you haven't even the slightest clue about yet."