A Heart's Dedication

Chapter Ten

The next morning, Y/N finally accepted a bowl of porridge. Levi, however badly he wanted to hide it, was an excellent cook, and had made the best dish he could muster with the limited ingredients he had. Of course, Y/N could only move her arms a few centimeters, so naturally, spoon-feeding was necessary. The gelatinous material was bitter from the wild rices, but she was so hungry, she could've cared less. Levi's touch was warm and gentle on her chin as he lifted the spoon to her lips, and Y/N wasn't quite sure how she felt about the sudden touch. The entire time, his expression remained set in stone, but Y/N knew Levi. Somewhere in his head, Y/N knew he was relieved she was finally eating.

Unlike the past few days, he spent most of the seventh day with her, still not speaking, but in her sight. For hours, he went through the process of roasting meat over the fire and packing it in some sort of burlap to preserve it. Several times throughout the day, he would depart into the woods, and after a few minutes, he would return with full waterskins for Y/N, the horses, and himself. Levi had also retrieved Y/N's ODM swords, and had made a point of sharpening the two blades to perfection. He worked tirelessly all day, never seeming to rest, little beads of sweat always on his brow.

Interaction between the two was little, but the aura inside the camp was far from what it had been. While there had been a feeling of tension or anger or bitterness before, now, there was an unspoken sense of serenity. The rest of the day was calm, the birds tweeted excitedly in the grass, the wind swishing past every individual stem. Y/N enjoyed the landscape, always thinking and remembering to breathe in the fresh air.

On the eighth day, Levi decided to go on a short expedition to the nearby empty plains to the southeast, hoping to find some sign of help. He returned in only a few hours with nothing to report. Communication had improved between them both; he was finally talking to her, although it was very minimal and unlike the way she had ever been with him before. After some prodding, he explained to Y/N what had happened to her the night of her attack, that Titans were to blame for her pain. He expressed his concern to her, wondering where the fiends had come from, considering the island was supposed to be "liberated" from the rogue Titans. Levi also explained to her the severity of the injuries she had obtained, a conversation that made her grimace. Her legs, ribs, and forearms had received the worst of the blows, and were broken in several places, and her spine and neck had both sustained partial fractures. Alongside various bruises, scrapes, scratches, and a pretty severe concussion, her body was slow, but still functioning. The damage could have been worse, he had said.

Y/N knew Levi was probably leaving details out in order to keep her anxiety at bay and she appreciated the thought of it. However, one thing kept circling in her mind. She was very curious to ask how Levi had found her, but figured that it was none of her business; when he was ready to divulge the information to her, he would.

 .     .     .

Finally, on the ninth day, Y/N was able to move just enough to lay down or sit up against the log on her own. Granted, her arms raked across the earthy floor and her legs were dead weight under her, but she felt extremely accomplished to do the tiny task. Levi had been very proud of her, and hadn't hesitated to hold back his smile.

"I knew you would do it."

The little phrase made her heart warm, and without even having to think, she smiled back. He spent the entire day sitting with her, his speech finally not limited by social unease. In the beginning, it was very awkward and one-sided, but the more the two spoke, the more they fell into a familiar groove. Obviously, the entire topic of Erwin and the war was intentionally avoided, so instead, they talked about the last two years that they had been apart. Y/N talked about Hange, her crazy tendencies and insistent pestering, and about the Harbor, why it had been built and the little mishaps that had happened along the way. She talked about how nervous she had been to be working on the field again after so many years of being in the walls, about the visitors from overseas and how much their cultures and ideas had been weaved into her life. Levi talked about his time in the walls, the boring court appearances (which he couldn't believe she had tolerated for so long), the never-ending training of the scouts that he had to oversee, and the tolerating of stuck-up authorities who constantly tore him down every chance that they got. The two talked late into the evening, and for a while, everything seemed to be as it had been a time ago.

Right as the sun was setting, Y/N curled up under the bearskin, Levi adjusting the makeshift blanket to assure she was comfortable. He had the remnants of peace on his face, tucking her in. That was until suddenly both of them heard it. The dull thudding, far inside the forest of dark trees. Both recognized the sound immediately; years of fear had engrained it into their memories.

Titans.

Levi flew quicker than Y/N had ever seen a human move towards his blades, strapping them on as if he was born to do so.

"Stay here." He ordered, and she obliged, not having much of a choice. He was inside the barely lit trees in a moment's time, the thudding getting progressively louder. Y/N's pulse began to beat in her throat. She worried for him, there was no denying it; because he had been looking after her for over a week non-stop, he hadn't slept or even remotely rested the entire time. And while it was unlikely, even humanity's strongest soldier could get tired and careless. However, she believed in Levi, and while the cannibalistic monsters were getting ever closer, she knew he would never let them touch her again. She knew that however much he hated her, he would always protect her.

She heard a crash in the woods behind her, followed by an eardrum-rattling screech from one of the creatures. The thudding became erratic, ever more noisy, then suddenly, a second earth-shaking tumble ushered in the silence once again. It was a few more minutes more before Levi returned.

His swords were still unsheathed, the blood of his victims and long beads of sweat pooled on his forehead. He put away his weapon when he arrived back at Y/N's side.

"Two more of the little scrawny things. About twenty meters each I think; stinking, ugly things. Good riddance."

He knelt down to her, putting the back of his hand to her head.

"You're a little warm. Drink some water." He retrieved a waterskin and held it up to her parted mouth. Y/N was in shock. Was he just going to move on, pretend like nothing had happened?

"Remind me when we get back to ask Hange about this. Maybe I could come back here with some of those new little shit recruits to-" He stopped mid-sentence, his face frozen on hers.

It seemed that without even realizing it, the fragile-bodied girl had begun to shed silent tears. Y/N didn't understand why, but they wouldn't stop flowing. Big, salty, crocodile tears. Levi immediately crouched and reached his hand out to wipe the water droplet off of her cheek.

"What's wrong? Are you in pain? Did you get hurt?"

"No, it's not that." She said, blinking down another tear. He looked at her with compassion, unbuckling his blades and settling down beside the log next to her. She liked the proximity, she could feel his warm body next to hers, a comforting proof that he had made it back alive. Levi pushed the gear away, then placed his hand lightly on top of hers, looking deep into her E/C orbs.

"What's wrong?"

Y/N didn't answer, only continued to cry harder. It wasn't loud or obnoxious, but it was full of emotion, both of relief that he had returned, and of fear of losing him again. She turned her head into his jacket, burying her nose in his scent, soaking a section of the brown fabric. Levi didn't know how to react at first, and simply let it happen. He sat there, wondering, when finally, he did something he never thought he would do again.

He wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders, embracing her in a half-hug, and he left the other right where it was, stroking her knuckles ever so tenderly.

"Don't worry Y/N, everything is okay now... I'm not going anywhere."

A/n: Page breaks... don't know 'em. Also, slow burn... I love it.