Soldier Child (Attack On Titan/Shingeki No Kyojin Fanfiction)

Chapter 8

"How is Petra today? Has there been any changes?" Levi asked as he and Eld sat in the dining room. Both sat with a cup of tea before them as they enjoyed the quiet. The room was empty except for the two men, for now.

"She complained of a stomach ache this morning but other than that nothing has changed, Captain." Eld answered with a sigh.

"Hmm."

"I miss Petra." Eld admitted. "I am quite fond of Petra now. She's quite adorable but I do miss her older self."

"She'll be returned to her former condition. I'll make sure Hanje fixes this."

"I hope so... Why don't you talk to her, Captain? She doesn't seem as afraid of you anymore." The blonde man wanted his Captain to at least try to befriend the little girl. "Petra's not messy or filthy. She bathes every day. She's also pretty well-behaved."

"I'm not the type that should be around children."

"Why not? I'm sure she'll like you, she's very friendly. And her older self respects you highly."

Levi didn't say anything in return and Eld left it at that.

**********

Petra stumbled as she walked beside Gunther. She ginger haired girl quickly righted herself and continued on. Gunther had seen what happened though.

"You alright, Petra?"

"Yeah!" She responded brightly.

"Do you want some water? Maybe you've been walking too much, did you want to sit?"Gunther asked worriedly.

"I'm fine!" Petra lied. She really didn't feel that good but she didn't want to bother anyone. Her head and tummy had been hurting since she woke up this morning.

"Are you sure?" Gunther asked, trying to figure out if she was lying. Petra nodded and grabbed his hand to pull him forward towards the kitchen. Maybe she just hadn't eaten enough at breakfast.

**********

The soft afternoon light shone through Levi's window, onto his desk and the papers he worked upon. As Levi read, he could hear the footsteps of soldiers outside his door. The dark haired man sighed as he finished the first of several stacks of paper. Most of his paperwork required a fair bit reading and Levi had long since grown bored.

As Levi lost himself in the next document he heard soft, but quick footsteps nearing his room. Then a thump. A small cry got him up from the desk to find out what had happened. He briskly walked to the door and opened it up.

Levi stepped into the dark hallway to find a small figure on the ground, clutching her leg. Startled, Petra looked up at him with wide eyes. Levi took a look around and, to his dismay, found that there was no other person in sight. The man heard Petra whimper as she tried to get up.

"You alright?" Levi asked quietly. Petra nodded and scrambled to her feet. She flinched when she put weight on her legs. Levi could see the glimmer of tears in the girl's eyes and a dark stain on her the knee of her left pant leg. She was lying, of course. Probably to try and get away from him as fast as she could.

"You're hurt." He stated. The dark haired man had some supplies in his room that he could use to help her, he remembered.

"I'm sorry, I tripped." Petra apologized. "I'll just go and-"

"I can bandage it for you, if you don't mind." Levi interrupted, not really expecting her to say yes. He did want to help but he doubted she would accept it. If she preferred to find someone else to help her then he would at least try to escort her there. He would not allow a hurt child to wander around.

Levi watched her face as she thought about it. He was surprised when she slowly nodded her head.

**********

"Thank you." Petra finally spoke once Levi had finished cleaning and bandaging the scrape on her leg. It was the first thing she said after coming into his room. She sat on a chair by the desk while Levi sat on another as he tended to her. She had lost some of the fear she felt towards him, he now noticed.

"You're been awfully quiet. Don't you normally talk more?" Levi wondered as he returned the medical supplies back into a drawer in his desk.

"I thought... It would bother you." Petra shyly admitted.

"You're surprisingly considerate for a brat." Levi bluntly stated. She looked up at him with a tilted head, not quite sure how to respond to that statement.

"Umm. What are you doing?" Petra asked instead, after noticing the piles of papers on the desk. Levi gave her a quick glance and saw that she was looking at his desk.

"Just some paperwork." Levi responded. "Give me about ten minutes to finish and I'll take you back to your room." The dark haired man loathed leaving things unfinished. It wouldn't take him long to finish reading and signing the next document.

"Okay but.. What are they for?"

"Nothing that would interest you."

"Oh..." Petra caught sight of something near her. It had many names written on it. "Are these all soldiers' names?"

Levi looked over at the papers and nodded. The document contained the names of every soldier that had joined the Survey Corps in the last ten years. Petra gingerly touched it and took a look at a few of its other pages. Levi didn't stop her until she tried to read what was written beside the names. He gently pulled the document away from her and placed it back in the stack.

"Sorry." Petra smiled sheepishly. She placed her hands in her lap and tried to remember not to touch things that did not belong to her.

"There are that many soldier here." The girl spoke again, shocked at all the names she had seen on those papers. Levi didn't say anything as he sat down and began to work again. Realizing she may be beginning to annoy him, Petra just quietly watched him.

After a few minutes, Petra yawned and rubbed her eyes, wincing when her head began to hurt again. She lifted her legs onto the chair and rested her head upon them. As Captain Levi continued to read, Petra's eyes began to close. The little girl tried her hardest to keep them open but she failed. A minute later and she was fast asleep in the chair.

***********

Levi intertwined his hands, stretched them before him and cracked his knuckles after he finished his work. The man picked the document up and placed it onto his finished pile. He would walk the girl to her room now. It would be a nice break from all this goddamn paperwork.

Levi turned to look at her and frowned. Petra had fallen asleep in the chair. Had she not been sleeping well lately?

For a moment, the Captain was at a loss. Should he wake her? Carry her to her room? Find someone else to do it for him?

Thankfully he was saved from making a decision by the arrival of Nifa. Since Levi had left his door open, Nifa glanced inside while she was walking along and stopped when she noticed Petra.

"Can you take her back to her room?" Levi asked.

"Ah, yes, Captain!" Nifa rushed inside and gently picked up the girl with a fond smile. She didn't ask any questions as to why the girl was in his room in the first place. "I'll let your men know where she is, sir."

"Thank you. Shut the door on your way out."

"Yes, sir!"