Wings in the Dark

Chapter 35: Soul to Soul

*Levi's POV*

Levi had no idea how deep into the night it was when she seemed to have finally spent the last of her tears and bled out the pain she'd been trying to suffocate. He didn't let go of her through the whole thing, making sure she didn't lose that bit of human contact he needed to give her to let her have something to anchor to. Even though he was stiff and sore by the end, he waited until she'd gone silent, and even then he waited several more long moments to make sure she really had gotten all of it out before he moved.

Her body had been heavy against his, enough so that for the first few seconds he thought she'd cried until she'd passed out. However, when he pulled back her eyes were open, still shining and bloodshot from the harsh cry she'd just struggled through.

He'd take it. It was much better than the look that had been in her eyes what felt like hours ago but may have only been a few painfully long minutes ago, and it meant he was doing something right that she still had a semblance of herself.

He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing while he was trying to comfort her. He had comforted her before, but he'd never had this kind of relationship with someone on the bloodier days, had never tried to comfort someone he was this intimate with after one of the horrific operations that gave the Scouts such a bad reputation amongst the population. He felt like more than his usual was needed, that he needed to put in more effort than normal, but he couldn't quite decide what that was supposed to look like, unsure in his actions and what the right move would be.

He knew what he'd do if they were just comrades, just friends, he knew the kind of silent support he would give, then.

This was different. This was her, and she was suffering.

And he needed to try and make it better. He knew he couldn't fix it–there were enough broken shards in his own soul that was a testament to just how many things couldn't be fixed–but here with her, unlike up on that damn wall, he could do something.

For now, he could start small; start with what she needed physically, and go from there.

Once he knew that she was awake, and the shuffling back to let him move let him know she was responsive, Levi carefully brushed the hair back from her face before reaching over to start working on getting her out of the excess layers of her uniform, undoing her ruined cloak and helping her slip free of the jacket beneath before he started in on the straps, loosening them from the back plate and shimmying them off her shoulders.

"You're a filthy mess," Levi muttered as his fingers worked blood and mud stained leather off her bit by bit. "The gear can wait for tomorrow: once we get this off you, I'll draw a bath, and you clean yourself up, okay?"

The fact he said we seemed to clue her into the fact she could help undo her own gear, working on the straps of her inner thighs and waist, undoing the main unit, and pulling the bloody and possibly ruined wrap around her waist free to lie carelessly atop the growing pile. Levi's practiced hands had her free of the upper half of the harness in no time, and he had already started getting her out of the boots by the time she was ready to pull free of the straps around her legs and feet.

When all that was left were her socks, pants, and ruined white shirt, he got up and headed for the washroom, not saying a word about the haphazard mess the pieces of her uniform were lying in at the moment considering the miserable state she was still in.

He'd take care of it before he headed to his quarters to wash up. She didn't need to worry about anything else tonight, no matter how small a task it may be–she had enough to deal with. They all did.