Dantelaurent

They shouldn’t have been skating. They knew the ice was thin. But it was winter, and everything looked so magical, and they just wanted to have some fun. Luckily, Levi was nearby. He jumped in, enduring the freezing water that felt like a thousand needles stabbing his body, and saved the one cadet who hadn’t made it off the ice in time. When they broke the surface, a rescue group was already waiting on the riverbank. Levi dragged the cadet to shore, slowed immensely by the numbing effect of the water. You grabbed Levi’s hand yourself, tugging him from the river and wrapping him in a blanket. “We need to get you inside,” you murmured, leading him away. “T-the c-c-cadet,” Levi stammered quietly, so cold that he could barely speak. “The cadet is being taken care of,” you assured him. “And I’m going to take care of you.” Levi could barely move his legs, but you waited until you were both out of sight to lift him in your arms. “I c-can w-walk,” Levi insisted faintly. “No, you

“Of all days to be running late…” you muttered to yourself as you hastily checked your watch. Once you read the time, you heaved a sigh, then continued walking right past the mess hall. “Guess I’ll have to skip lunch today…” This afternoon, the four military regiments – the Scouts, the MP’s, the Garrison, and the Trainee Corps – had scheduled joint training exercises with each other. A handful of squads from each regiment had been chosen to participate, including the Levi Squad, of which you were a part. Then again, if you embarrassed your captain and your regiment by showing up late, you doubted you would be part of the elite squad for much longer. You picked up the pace, jogging the rest of the way to the training grounds. The weather was abnormally hot, even for summer, and you felt sweat prick your skin almost immediately after setting foot outside. Inwardly, you marveled at your bad luck for having to do joint training in such unforgiving heat. If you’d only been with the

Everything hurt. And he was cold. So, so cold. He was horribly aware of the grime coating his naked body – a mix of sweat, blood, and whatever muck was covering this stone floor. Yet, he couldn’t wipe it away. Even if there hadn’t been chains around his ankles, wrists, and throat, he wouldn’t have been able to move. His muscles had no strength left. He was trembling from head to toe, and while his body felt cold and clammy, his head was unbearably hot. A fog had taken hold of his brain, making it difficult to think. Yet, he was coherent enough to consciously recognize that he was sick, and that it was serious. He may have escaped the Underground, but decades later, in this dank cell, contagion had finally caught up with him. All his efforts, his obsessive cleaning, had been for naught. He was going to waste away, slowly and messily, just like his mother. His eyes stared straight ahead at the iron bars of his cell, at the hallway beyond, not really seeing them. Of course, there

“Eren, go clean the stables,” Levi instructed, intently focused on the smudge he was scrubbing from the windowsill. “And remember to wipe off your shoes afterward. I don’t want you tracking in dirt like last time.” “Yes, Dad.” Levi paused, then glanced over his shoulder. Eren, who seemed to have realized his mistake a second after the thoughtless words slipped from his mouth, looked absolutely terrified. His eyes were wide as saucers as they stared at the captain, his hands clutching the broom in a white-knuckled grip. “I…sir, I’m so sorry!” the teenager sputtered, practically shaking in his boots. “I didn’t mean…it just slipped out…I know you’re not…that is…” Levi sighed, wondering what on earth he was going to do with this brat. ------------------------------------------ “Wow,” you murmured, working hard to suppress your giggles after Levi told you about Eren’s little slip-up. The two of you were alone in his office, having established a routine of meeting there for tea

You nearly cried when you reached Wall Rose – having been stranded in enemy territory for the past week. After your convoy had been ambushed by a horde of titans during a recovery mission, you’d stayed behind to buy your comrades time to escape, slicing nape after nape until your gas ran dry and your blades snapped to pieces. Somehow, you were the last one standing, but by that point, the Scout Regiment was long gone. You passed out shortly thereafter, exhausted from the rush of adrenaline your body had used to survive this nightmare. When you awoke, the sun was shining – though you were fairly certain it wasn’t the same day. Your body still ached from the exertion, so much so that you could barely move. On top of that, you were parched and starving, but you supposed you should at least be grateful a titan hadn’t come along and eaten you. Alone and without resources, you staggered into the nearest house and lay low until night arrived. Then you traveled by moonlight, repeating the