Moments

Chapter 7 part 2: Filth and fury

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Maybe I should've said this earlier, but there will be some swearing, especially in the chapters that follow Levi. Though I guess if you are here from my Facebook page than you already know I don't exactly censor cursing XD

I hope you don't mind though. Enjoy the chapter!

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Levi woke up around four hours after he had fallen asleep to the soothing sound of harmonized snoring, courtesy of the filthy pigs that he shared a dorm with. His tired eyes gazed at their beds as he considered killing them in their sleep or dragging them to the showers. However, both of these alternatives implied having to actually touch them, and there was no way in hell he was ever touching the mix of sweat, dirt, food, unevaporated Titan blood and probably shit that was most likely coated all over these walking heaps of filth. Sadly, he was the only person in the whole Survey Corps who tried to shower once a day. Or at least who seemed to understand the basic concept of hygiene.
If he got to obsessed with the filth, he would snap and have a general cleaning in the middle of the night.

He was still very tired, but the thoughts about cleanliness had succeeded in waking him up just enough that he couldn't possibly fall back asleep again. Fine then. He wasn't expecting to sleep a lot anyway.

The snoring was starting to really piss him off...

Maybe if he choked them with their pillows there wouldn't be any direct contact with them...

He couldn't stay there for much longer. Outside it was raining but... at least he'd get a second shower. Anything was better than staying locked up in that shithole of a room.

He cautiously made his way through the dark corridors. As he knew the way, finding the staircase was an easy task.

When he made it to the door and opened it, he normally would have taken a very deep breath, the fresh smell of rain being one of his favorite scents; but this was not the case that night, because what he saw in the rain was the blurry silhouette of a small person, sitting on the ramparts. Who the hell would-? He didn't have time to finish his question that he answered it himself. What other small person is awake well after midnight and would be crazy enough to just sit there in the middle of a downpour?

...Don't say him...

He considered leaving her there, not having enough willpower nor kindness to drag her inside, but then he remembered he was responsible for her. And what shit would they both be in if she got sick again...

He tried to call her but the rain was louder.

So he rushed out and when he was right next to her he shouted, asking what the hell she was doing. There was no reply, though it was a very legitimate question seeing as she was sitting, her knees up to her chest, holding a pencil and a soaked piece of paper, full of unintelligible scribbles and close to tearing, with her eyes staring blankly at nothing. Oh great, he'd lost her again. He shook her as he called out her name yet again, and she looked up at him, utterly confused. He didn't have time for this... He grabbed her by the waist and carried her under his arm. It proved slightly harder than he had expected...

As Levi started to go down the staircase, Ivy suddenly realized where she was and what was going on. She started writhing. She didn't want to go down and there was no way he was taking her! Levi, taken by surprise, tried to hold her as best as he could, but it was hard to keep his footing on the slippery, narrow steps. What the hell had gotten into her?! He tried to lay her down, more or less gently, but her constant fidgeting wasn't allowing it.
It ended up with Ivy almost having a broken neck if he hadn't quickly caught her arm as she started tumbling down the stairs.

They were both now immobile in the strangest positions, his feet two steps away from each other, his upper body slightly tilted backwards for balance and her body beautifully sprawled over the staircase, one arm firmly lifted in his tight grip.

"- Do you have a death wish you idiot?!" He spat, catching his breath.

"- Could you... Um... Let go of me now?" She asked quietly, ashamed that he went through this trouble for her.

He gazed at her intently then sighed, exasperated, as he loosened his grasp.

She scurried downstairs, despite her fresh bruises, retrieved her pencil which had rolled down, then hurried back up, took her wet piece of paper and sat down in the doorframe.

"- Come on." He said as he took her by the wrist and pulled her.

She retaliated, and screamed:

"- No!

- Shut up." He hissed. "If this commotion hasn't woken up everyone already, then your screaming will.

- Fine, but I'm not going downstairs.

- Yes you are." He said, getting more and more pissed by the minute, as he pulled her again. He didn't even have the thought to ask her why she was hell-bent on staying there, his explanation for everything Ivy did being: "She's weird or she's crazy. Probably both."

Ivy, being light and not that strong, couldn't resist the pull, but she said:

"- If you move me one thumb from where I am, my screaming won't wake up the whole Survey Corps. Rather the entire population of Wall Rose.

-So what would you suggest that we do?" He asked while thinking about the level of damage his fist would get if he smashed it against the wall compared to the level of satisfaction. Probably equal. Then again instant gratification wasn't his problem, consequences were.

"- You go to sleep and leave me alone or we both spend the night here." She was interested to see which he would pick, because he couldn't enjoy staying in his room to come up here in the first place, but at the same time she got him angrier than he already was. Levi considered the two options. At least Ivy was only figuratively obnoxious and she wasn't loud... He sighed.

"- Wait here, I'll go get towels and a change of clothes."

He returned, dry and wearing fresh clothes, and she dried and changed herself while he looked away. They spent the night silent, sitting in the small hallway between the door and the staircase, facing each other, their backs on opposite walls, looking at the rain that poured all night long and letting their thoughts drift away.