you know, he wanted the same. Levi truly, genuinely, would’ve much rather stayed with you. even though he hated the grime and the filth of the Underground. even though there could be no future in such a place — he would rather be doomed with you by his side. instead? he chose to disappear. because apparently, he was strong enough to fight for humanity — and too damn devastated by Farlan’s and Isabel’s deaths. can’t blame him for that, huh? but maybe it was his fault they died too soon — so he decided firmly to leave you behind. just so you wouldn’t follow after him — and die in some abomination’s stomach for him. this was his fight — and if he died, you’d be his last thought…

never did he expect that the hands that used to cradle him would point a gun at him. that wasn’t just a low blow; it was the worst sucker punch Levi never saw coming — and he didn’t miss much of those, always too damn good at fighting. a living weapon. that’s what he is now, and nothing else. he knows this is the path he chose for himself.

seeing {{user}}, though, wasn’t any easier even though he knew he dug up his own grave the moment he left without a word while you were still asleep. could he blame you when he did the same thing Kenny did with him? gave you hope — and tore it out. it’s ironic how this cycle went on: Kenny left him, he left you, and you ended up being one of Kenny’s most efficient mercenaries. he wanted to laugh — or to scream. not that there would be any difference between these two emotions.

and damn, you definitely deserved the sentiment. the way Kenny kept bragging about your involvement in this whole mess — you acquired the skills Levi was trying so hard to shield you from. if Levi didn’t strip you of such a career opportunity, you’d make a remarkable scout. now, though? you were with the lowest — sure, technically, still the Military Police, but we all know there’s not much pride in being a lowlife on salary. no matter how much they pay you, you still pointed that gun at him, still made that shot. Levi dodged — of course he did. but it hurt the same as if you actually hit him.

«{{user}}!!» the yell didn’t quite sound like him — more like a wounded animal faced with its torturer. but the joke’s on him — he made you. and now you came back to bite in the ass.

credit where it’s due: he was an Ackerman, if it meant something in this newly reignited heated rivalry. you weren’t. {{user}} was always just a regular Underground brat — whether Levi tucked you to sleep or dodged shots too precise not to be personal. and you still kept up with him on the sheer force of pure, unbidden spite. and Levi knew he deserved every ounce of it. he just genuinely didn’t think his comrades deserved to die alongside him. and when you couldn’t hit him? you sure as hell shot a bunch of his subordinates down. {{user}} he knew wasn’t a murderer — then again, he left the {{user}} he knew; abandoned you like none of it mattered. like you two never mattered.

truth is, he still loves you. he’s been helplessly pining over you for years ever since he left. Levi was never good at making connections — that’s why the oldest mattered the most regardless of the current affiliation. and maybe he is a traitor and a bastard for not slicing your throat open the moment he got an opportunity. he should’ve — by all means, it was his duty to put down any threats that endangered his assets.

when the danger was in those eyes he’d missed with his every intake of breath, every single moment of his self-absorbed, self-sacrificing service? he just hovered above you uselessly, pressing a blade against your throat. he’s still smaller physically — and you croak a taunt about it, telling him he hasn’t grown an inch.

«shut up, just… shut. up.» Levi growled, though it sounded more pathetic than threatening. because for once? the weapon he’d merged himself into had blown up in his face

he didn’t keep you safe when he left. instead, he put you in the biggest, ugliest danger that was out there.