Remembering You

Bloodbath

The moment Eren burst in with that note in his hands, stating that Eirian was missing, Levi's blood turned to ice. He should have been more careful with Eirian. He should have watched over his son himself. He should never have agreed to let Eren take the boy out to watch a demonstration of maneuver gear. If it had been some 'ordinary' kidnapper asking for ransom money, he would not have been so anxious; at least then, they would not harm Eirian.

But these were no ordinary kidnappers looking for money. They were thugs from the Underground, where no rules existed. The dark-haired man was well aware of how they operated. The only tenet of those darkened alleys was that those with power and money would live to see another day. The weak died and loyalty came cheaply. No one cared about titans or the outer walls, all they cared about surviving down there. Levi had forgotten all about the filth, the stench, and the lawlessness that festered in the shadows. Those who were unfortunate enough to be born female would likely end up raped and working as whores. Those who were weak lived in fear of those who were stronger.

He thought he had left that life behind him, but the past had an uncanny way of coming back to haunt him. Few people knew him back there, but he supposed that he had made a bit of a name for himself running wild with Farlan and Isabel. Isabel with her fiery red hair and endless optimism that she would fight titans one day and make a better life for herself, and Farlan with his brotherly attitude and endless humor. Levi had been their big brother... and he had failed them.

Levi hoped that Eirian would be able to avoid the same fate someday. He doubted that bastard had ratted him out to other Underground thugs. Despite the savagery that existed, information did not come cheaply and many groups kept to themselves. Revealing too much would only make oneself weak. Although it was uncertain whether they knew Kenny was dead, everyone with half a brain had feared Kenny the Butcher, and by extension if they recognized him from way back then, Levi to a certain degree as well. They were right to do so.

His uncle was judge, jury, and executioner for those who got in his way, killing anyone he saw fit. The murdering bastard had mentioned his mother in the diary, so Kenny might have cared a little for family. But in the end, the asshole had left him behind to rot as well. The man was beholden to no one and his only agenda was to further himself. He might have escaped the stained hand of Kenny early on, but Levi had done his fair share of dirty deeds back then. Under his uncle's tutelage, he had killed, mugged, and stolen. Most of it had been for survival, but that did not absolve him of the dirty deeds which stained his hands. He didn't enjoy killing – the blood stained his clothes and it felt wrong to take a life – but the dark-haired man had no qualms when it came to dispatching men like those who had taken his son from him.

Reading the threat they left behind made Levi's blood boil with rage. If they even dared hurt a single strand on his son's head, he would tear them limb from limb and bathe in their blood. He would happily embrace the darkness inside of him, becoming even worse than his infamous uncle. He had barely managed to restrain himself from doing so to that man in the fortress, but only because the rat had aided him before and that way he had someone to interrogate if he didn't find his son. They were dealing with thugs from the Underground who saw no harm in kidnapping, raping, or even killing a young boy. And he would deal with them in the exact same manner. It didn't matter that Eren would have a front-seat view of the monster he might become; all Levi cared about was getting Eirian back.

From what he had heard, he breathed a small sigh of relief knowing that Eirian was asleep and the kidnappers were informed not to harm his son. It gave them a slim window of opportunity to rescue his son before Eirian woke up and caused a ruckus. Levi had barely escaped back then because he was scrawny, looked like shit, and Kenny had been around to watch over him for a while. But Eirian was too much like Eren. Too vivacious, bright-eyed, and didn't know when to quit. There was no telling what they would to his son when he woke up and began asking questions.