With Shiganshina in ruins, only a tenth of the original Scouting force left alive and Armin recovering from the serum on top of the wall alongside an injured Sasha, the other 8 living soldiers traversed the district for survivors.
Levi and Leah were quick to move Erwin's corpse into one of the nearby houses, carrying him carefully between them. Leah reassured Levi that if they blockaded the house they wouldn't have to worry about anyone returning to it.
They lay the Commander onto one of the beds upstairs and while Levi tended to the body, Leah gathered some wild flowers from the street and arranged them into a vase on the bedside table.
Their work had been done in silence, and eventually Erwin was covered with Leah's Scout cape that had been returned to her by Eren.
The female held the man's cold, lifeless hand in hers and shut her eyes. "Goodbye, Commander."
-
When Leah returned to searching for bodies she purposefully stuck to the outskirts, walking the perimeter of the wall for her sweep. Her thoughts were driving her crazy and regret constricted her throat. What if they'd made the wrong decision saving Armin?
Leah knew there would be time to grieve Erwin - she'd probably mourn her friend for the rest of her life - but right now they had to complete the mission and get home. Zeke was still out there, along with Reiner and the quadruped titan who was most likely also a titan shifter. They wouldn't be safe until they managed to get back to civilisation.
When Leah spotted half a Scout jacket poking out from the rubble of a building, she dived forward and began digging it out. There were no remains attached to it and as she held the material in her hands, her eyes scanned for any way of identifying who it belonged to.
Embroidered into the left breast, just above the Scout wings of freedom, were the words:
Executive Officer Moblit Berner
Leah's heart sank. She's noticed the absence of Moblit earlier, but hadn't mentioned it in the hopes he was just elsewhere. Leah folded the jacket over her arm and continued on with her search.
In the distance Leah noticed that everyone had congregated on the wall where Armin and Sasha had been left and so started her way over.
She landed elegantly off to the side of the group and ran a hand through her coppery hair as she approached them.
"Now that we know Armin's alright, let's check out that cellar," Hange stood and turned in Leah's direction as they spoke. When they spotted the jacket in Leah's arms and the sympathetic look on her face, they froze and their eye not covered with a bandage widened.
Hange edged forward and tentatively reached for the jacket but paused. The red-headed Captain moved the rest of the way and handed them the jacket. "I'm sorry, Hange. This was all I could find." She whispered to them, resting a hand on Hange's arm.
The newly appointed Commander of the Scouts gulped thickly and closed their eye. "Thank you, Captain." Hange held the jacket to their chest and turned back to the group which Leah moved over to join.
"Leah, Eren and Mikasa, since you know the area well you can guide Levi and I to the cellar. The rest of you stay, keep an eye out for hostiles from here on the wall."
"Got it." From Jean.
"Right." Said Connie.
"Eren, do you still have the key?"
Though the question seemed stupid, panic coarsed through Leah at the prospect of Eren having lost it. In all honesty, with everything she'd been through thus far, Leah was sure she'd find a way into that basement with or without the key.
"I do. Let's do this."
Walking through the streets of Shiganshina was something Leah had been avoiding at all costs and was just as haunting as she'd anticipated.
Once familiar streets were now just the shell of what they used to be. And the more familiar things got, the harder Leah found it to breathe.
It had been a while since she'd had one of her 'episodes'. She had a feeling if it was going to happen at all, it would be here; at the setting of the most traumatic day of her life.
With her attention too focused on the passing buildings and memories flooding to her as they strolled through the district led by Eren and Mikasa, Leah didn't notice when they turned onto the street she had once lived on. In fact, it wasn't until her eyes fell upon the wreckage of her childhood home that she caught on. Her fingers tingled unsettlingly.
Her legs felt like they were made of lead, and despite her best attempts, Leah couldn't manipulate them into working again. She stood stock-still on the dusty street, imaging the house in its former glory.
Just as the tightness in her chest became unbearable, the sun reflected off some metal in the debris and a sparkle caught Leah's eye, helping her regain control of her legs and step forward.
She crouched on the spot and cautiously picked out the metal with her index finger and thumb and as she stood up she gazed at it in wonderment. Dangling down between her fingers was a begrimed silver chain necklace, with a charming silver heart pendant.
Leah remembered receiving this necklace from her mother as a naive 12 year old, unaware of the fact the woman had been saving up to get her this for this for years. It was beautiful then, and still beautiful now.
Leah dropped the necklace into the palm of her opposite hand before closing her fist around it. She lifted her hand to kiss her knuckles and gazed back at the building one last time.
A hand gently pressed against Leah's back and combated her approaching wave of vertigo. Her black-haired co-Captain had appeared yet again just in time to stop the rush of dangerous nostalgia that left her unconscious and drowning in a tsunami of memories, and for the first time Leah realised this crippling flashbacks wouldn't be an issue anymore as long as she had Levi. He didn't have to say anything, his presence was enough. She allowed him to lead her away and back towards the rest of the group a couple yards ahead.
Though Levi's hand had lingered on her spine, he eventually dropped his arm and walked alongside her in silence. He didn't have to ask if that was her house; he could tell by the range of emotions playing over her face that there was a historical significance there.
"Are you doing alright?" He asked unsurely. The last time Levi had sounded so unsure, Leah remembered, was the last time they'd guarded Annie's crystal. That day felt like such a distant memory now. And as she thought about it, a lot had changed between them since then.
"Not the best." She replied wistfully, letting her gaze drop to her feet as she walked. "I thought I'd accepted Erwin's death... but I miss him already."
Levi wasn't one for spur of the moment decisions, but this was one of his best. Innately, Levi's hand found Leah's as they continued to walk side by side and he gently interlocked their fingers.
Leah, though not protesting one bit, looked to Levi with large, dilated pupils. His gaze was fixed firmly on the Scouts ahead of them, though Leah noticed the muscles in his jaw flex slightly. Levi fought the urge to meet Leah's beguiling emerald eyes. When she looked away again, a faint pink spread across her cheeks. "I miss him too." Simple as it were, Leah found comfort in his words and in the fact she wasn't alone in this.
The pair didn't walk hand in hand for long. The second Eren glanced over his shoulder to check the duo were still dragging along behind them, their hands flew apart as if magnets repelling. The heat in Leah's face rose again when she caught sight of Eren's curious gaze. Friends held hands all the time. Why did the very idea of Levi's hands touching her make her blush?
After a climb up steps Leah vaguely recognised, the five of them arrived outside the remains of Eren's house. A boulder similar to the one that desicrated Leah's own house five years ago, perched right over the majority of the plot.
What wasn't pummelled beneath a boulder, had been turned to ash by the fires that were spread through Shiganshina by the colossal. Eren swept the cinders and dust away at the base of a smaller rock to reveal a wooden trapdoor.
"This is it. The stairs to the cellar are beneath this door." He explained. At first glance it was clear the hatch wouldn't open in its current state. The smaller boulder sat directly over the handle, preventing it from lifting completely.
"Alright, this looks like an 'Ackerman-Titan shifter' kind of job... right Hange?" Leah shared a look with Hange and backed away from the trapdoor slowly.
"Tch. That's right, you just stand there and look pretty, carrot-top." Levi said non-chalantly before hauling one of the beams into his arms with incredible ease. Leah felt the heat rise in her cheeks as Hange smirked knowingly and elbowed her in the side while wiggling their eyebrow suggestively.
With the help of Eren and Mikasa, and eventually Hange and Leah, the group soon rolled away the main rock blocking the hatch handle. Then Eren dived forward and scooped away the remaining dirt to reveal a tarnished golden handle.
With one powerful tug, the boy swung the hatch open and let it hang there. The stone stairway revealed disappeared down into a dark abyss, a problem quickly solved by Hange retrieving their crystal torch.
"That's a relief. I was worried it might've flooded by now." The Commander mused.
Mikasa placed a hand on Eren's shoulder, "Let's go." She urged. The boy nodded and followed after Levi who now held a second torch and led the way down.
The world grew even quieter the further the descended and the air soon became stale and stuffy. Leah's nose crinkled in disgust as the stench of dampness met her nostrils. At the base of the stairs, where the smell was most pungent, stood a proud wooden door with a padlock seemingly tailored to the one around Eren's neck.
"Do it Eren." Levi encouraged.
"Yeah, please. This place stinks." Leah concurred, pinching her nose. Levi rolled his eyes, but silently agreed.
"Right."
The brunette lifted the key and soon the soft clink of metal filled the landing they stood in. The sound became steadily more desperate until Eren let out a panicked gasp.
"What is it, Eren?" Leah took a step but hesitated.
"You okay?" Hange caught on too.
"What's wrong?" The worry in Mikasa's voice was evident.
"Hurry it up." Said Levi impatiently.
Eren stopped fiddling with the padlock. "I... can't." He breathed. "The key, it doesn't go to this door."
After words of confusion and panic, Levi pushed to the front. "Step aside. I'll open it."
"Wait, what-"
With a focused kick to the lock, Levi caused the wood to splinter and break away, allowing the door to be swung open.
"That'll do it." Hange seemed impressed.
"Look, if you ever need help with anger management-"
"Oh, shut up." Levi, who was holding the door for everyone, cut Leah off and nudged her the final way through the threshold.
The room itself was pitch black until Leah managed to strike and oil lamp situated on Doctor Jeager's desk. The walls were lined with bookshelves and cabinets full of viles.
As Hange rambled about how all the medicine in his possession was widely available and how everything checked out, Levi flipped through one of the books on Dr. Jeager's desk. Leah peered over his shoulder inquisitively but he soon pressed it shut again and sighed.
"Don't just stand there, get to work. Erwin's hunches are rarely wrong."
At Levi's words, Leah, Eren and Mikasa began shuffling through anything they could get their hands on, looking for the slightest thing out of place or any oddities that could rouse suspicion.
"Eren, look. I found a keyhole." Mikasa voiced suddenly. When everyone turned they spotted what she was referring to. In the side of Dr. Jeager's desk, positioned just under the corner was a keyhole, suspiciously akin to the key Eren had.
They all gathered round Eren as he knelt at the height of the desk. "Try it." Hange said. Eren inserted the key into the hole and it slide in with no resistance.
Click.
"That got it." Eren drew out the hidden drawer to reveal... nothing. "It's empty?!" He shouted in anger which was soon calmed by Levi leaning over. "Look closer. There's a false bottom."
The male ran his fingers over the base of the drawer until it tilted at an angle with a gap wide enough for him to pry up the plank of wood. "Wow. Your Dad is full of surprises." Leah said in awe, patting a hand to Eren's head.
The drawer held three books, each of a different colour. Red. Black. And green. At closer inspection, it was clear the books were of high importance, having been embedded in cloth soaked in peppermint oil and charcoal to prevent the dampness from rotting them away and insects eating at the paper.
Levi placed the first green book before them and stepped back to allow Mikasa and Eren to flip open the cover. Leah shifted nervously from foot to foot in anticipation as the two teenagers worked up the courage to open it.
"After all this time, Dad might finally explain himself."
Space around the desk was tight, or so Leah reasoned as Levi placed a hand on her waist for balance as he craned over her shoulder to get a better look at the book.
The cover fell open to reveal a plain page with a single drawing stuck in the centre. Leah squinted her eyes. The drawing was so detailed, unlike anything she'd seen before. "What the...?"
Eren picked up the picture. "Is this... a painting?"
Hange extended a hand. "Let me look closer." The image depicted a man, woman and child in black and white. The man stood while the woman sat on a comfortable armchair with the small boy perched on her knee. Their clothing was extravagant and somewhat pompous, but Leah picked up on how the male vaguely resembled Eren. Was that his Father? But that definitely wasn't baby Eren in the picture...
"No, this is far too detailed to have been drawn by a human hand."
"Uh- hey, there's writing on the back." Mikasa pointed out.
Sure enough, before Hange could flip the picture Leah caught a glimpse of neatly slanted handwriting across the back.
Hange narrowed their unbandaged eye and read out what was scribed on the back:
"This is no illustration. It was made by gathering the light reflected off the subject and burning it into an image on special paper. Look quite nice, right? Where I'm from there are many amazing technologies like this. Mankind isn't gone. Beyond the walls, countless humans live in comfortable refinement. I pray the person who finds this book will be a fellow patriot..."
-
The sun had just about peaked over the horizon when the surviving ten out of the original two hundred Scouts returned to Trost.
Leah's body ached, her limbs burning with every movement, as the lift finally lowered herself and her horse onto the cobbled streets of Trost.
Her gaze was distant as she stepped clumsily forward, her mind stolen by the secret revealed in Eren's basement. Leah could hardly believe it. A whole civilisation outside the walls, thriving with unimaginable inventions like the photo of Eren's father - all while those living inside the walls fought for their freedom against the titans.
Eren squeezed Leah's forearm to get her attention and the woman's tilted her head to look up at him. For a split second Eren's face was the face in the black and white 'light' photo.
"Captain, are you okay?"
The corner of her lip tugged up slightly into an open mouthed grin. "We just retook Wall Maria. Of course I am." Leah patted the teenager on the back, "You did great, Eren."
Eren frowned and watched his feet as they moved through the streets. "If I was that great, less people would've died."
Leah pursed her lips and grinded to a halt. "If it weren't for you, we would've all died today. Don't sell yourself short, kid."
His dejected persona remained despite her encouraging words. "Eren, are you okay?" Mikasa's voice distressed, noticing how blue he looked. "Yeah." He mumbled, quickening his pace to walk ahead. Mikasa followed suit, leaving Leah alone with her horse. She decided to leave it between them, and watched as Mikasa fawned over the retreating brunette boy.
By the time the Scouts were approaching the Trost Barracks the crowds of civilians that had been cheering them down the streets had dispersed to continue their celebrations in the nearby taverns.
Celebration sounded appealing, but the idea of the warm bed waiting in Leah's quarters was pure bliss and the only thing that kept her stiff legs moving.
"Anderson," Levi called from a few meters behind where he walked side by side with Hange. The bronze haired woman spun to see them continuing towards her. She gave Levi a questioning look. "You dropped this."
Levi had his hand extended and entagled in his curled fingers was her necklace. Leah's eyes widened, a hand flying to waistband where she'd supposedly secured the necklace. "Oh- thank you." Leah gushed, reaching out to accept it from him.
Levi jerked his hand back. "You should be more careful." He gave her a stern look. Hange skipped passed them, humming a jovial tune and Levi rolled his eyes.
"Tch. Just turn around."
Leah's brows knitted together in confusion and she opened her mouth to inquire further, but Levi brandished his necklace and Leah caught on, letting her mouth take an O-shape as she turned her back to Levi.
"This thing is filthy," He was right behind her, his arms reaching over her shoulders to get the jewelry around her neck. "When we get back, I'll clean it for you. I've got polish in my room."
"Thanks. It's been sat in the rubble of my home for the past 5 years, so it might take a while."
Levi's slender fingers wrestled with the clip and soiled chain to secure the necklace. "That's okay." He hummed softly before biting down on his lip in concentration.
Leah shifted slightly, her feet stabbing with pain now that she'd halted. "Hey- stop moving. I've almost got it."
"Sorry."
There were a few moments of silence where Leah focused on the heat from Levi's hands as they pressed against the back of her neck. "There." His breath tickled her ear as he retracted his hands and placed one on Leah's shoulder to turn her around.
His gaze loitering on her chest where the heart-charm rested and Leah felt her face flush slightly. "Thanks."
Later that night, after all the reports were hurriedly written up and the newspapers and government informed of the missions success, Leah finally retired to her room after being awake for over 48 hours straight.
Her eyes fought to remain open, fluttering heavily as she bathed and changed into bedclothes. She'd missed feeling clean, having a bed and not having to wear those military boots that made it feel like she was walking on broken glass. Now she was ready for some well earned rest before returning to her duties the next day.
A soft knock sounded from outside her dorm door. She held back a groan as she pushed herself off the fresh sheets on her mattress and slumped to the door to open it a crack.
She peered out into the darkness of the hallway to see Levi standing there with a bottle in one hand and a cloth in the other.
"Sorry, did I wake you?" He said as Leah fought a yawn. She shook her head and chuckled, "No, no. Come in."
The woman stood aside and opened the door further for Levi to enter before pressing it shut behind him. Her gaze studied the items in his hands, a small smile on her face.
"Polish- for your necklace." He explained, placing them both down on the small desk in Leah's quarters. He turned slowly on the spot, taking in the woman's room.
The air thickened with awkwardness.
"Do you-" Leah started.
"Who dr-" Said Levi simultaneously. Both adults shut their months in embarrassment. "You first."
The man shook his head. "What were you going to ask?"
Leah pointed to the drinks cabinet beside her desk. "Do you want anything to drink?" Levi shook his head again. "No, I'm fine. Thanks."
Again the with the silence. Leah felt like the seconds were dragging on. This was the first time Levi and Leah had been completely alone in a long time.
"Who drew that? Was it Isaac?" Levi moved towards Leah's beside table where a framed drawing sat. He gently picked it up and admired the artistry.
Leah let out a soft laugh. "Em- yeah. He drew it for me before one of my expeditions outside the walls. That's meant to be a horse," She walked over to Levi and tried to explain the child's drawing. "And that's me, obviously. See the resemblance?"
Leah leaned back slightly and posed like the girl in the drawing. Levi's lips twitched, curving to resemble a smile. Both of them turned back to the drawing when Leah continued translating.
"And here, that's Isaac. He's wearing a Scout cape too because he always said he'd become a one just like me..." The ginger female's smile faltered slightly as she became transfixed by the doodle. The smaller stick figure's head was covered in a mop of hair, detailed with a yellow crayon - his green cape stuck out behind him in a cartoonish way. Most notable though was the toothy smile on the figures face. Leah's grin faded into a sombre look as she lowered herself onto the edge of her bed and sighed, resting her head in her hands.
"That's why I left. The idea he'd never get to achieve that dream hurt too much." She muttered.
Levi placed the frame back on the bedside table and in a fluid movement, perched beside Leah, placing a hand on her back.
Words weren't Levi's friend. Subconsciously, his hand trailed up and down her back in a comforting motion as he wracked his mind for something to say.
Before he could spit anything out, Leah's face resurfaced, her eyes glazed with tears. She sniffled and let out a pathetic chuckle, wiping the tears from her eyes with her knuckles. "I'm sorry. I-"
"It's okay." Levi interrupted, running his hand up her spine to the back of her head. "Don't apologise." His fingers caressed her scalp.
Her lips shaped into a grateful smile as she dabbed her face dry with the back of her hand. "Isaac would've loved you."
Levi was stunned. He blinked dumbly at Leah, but thankfully her attention was elsewhere, captured by the stars sparkling in the inky nights sky as she stared out the window.
"He never really had a man to look up to in his life. His Dad, my stepdad, had been in the MPs. But he died while on patrol down in the underground when Isaac was just a baby. He admired me, but you would've been an idol to him."
Levi stiffened slightly, dropping his hand from Leah's hair and resting them on this thighs. He'd never killed an MP. And neither had his friends Farlan or Isabel. But he knew of gangs that wouldn't hold back, gangs he'd done work for. Levi clasped his hands together and tried to change the subject from the underground.
"How old was Isaac when Shiganshina got breached?"
Leah shuffled back on the bed until her back was pressed against the wall. She tilted her head back and focused her attention on the ceiling. Levi twisted his body to watch her, propping himself up with one arm.
"Hm. I was 25, so he must've been 14." The gray-eyed man hummed in thought.
"I mean, Isaac liked Erwin enough... but he definitely would've preferred you." Leah stopped talking to laugh, tilting her head back to look at Levi. "He always made fun of Erwin's eyebrows."
The laugh that left Levi was low and silky, like music to Leah's ears. There was a pause of silence where the two just looked at each other, smiles on their faces. Leah, trying to hide the pink tint to her cheeks from the prolonged eye contact, reached for a pillow and hugged it to her chest while Levi removed his shoes - placing them neatly at the foot of Leah's bed - before maneuvering to sit next to her. Their shoulders pressed against each others, they both stared up at Leah's white painted ceiling. Levi's hand danced the line between his thigh and hers as their legs lay parallel on the mattress.
"What about your Dad?" Levi had decided that at this point, he might as well find out as much about this woman as he could.
Leah held back a sigh. "He ran off with some woman from Mitras when I was eleven. Probably for her money. He was a shitty person. But hey, who needs Dads?"
Levi scoffed slightly. "I never knew mine." He murmured after some hesitation. Leah's head swivelled to look at him. For a moment her breath left her lungs, mesmerised by the prominence of his jaw as he craned his head back. His eyes were narrowed, still fixed on the ceiling. His tongue ran across his lips before he gulped, his throat bobbing subsequently.
His eyes fluttered shut and Leah looked away. "I'm sorry." She muttered, resting her head on his shoulder, which shook seconds later when Levi laughed cynically.
"Like you said: who needs Dads?"
Their steady breaths filled the room as Levi built up the courage and composure to ask his most desired questions. "How did you know the beast titan?"
Leah lifted a hand to muffle a yawn before answering. She explained how he'd bumped into her at the market, Isaac had liked his glasses and the two boys hit it off. From there she explained how she never saw him after that and assumed he'd died in the breach.
"If only I'd known he was the one behind the breach. I could've stopped him-"
"There was no way of knowing." Levi comforted softly.
"I'm sure he was there to feed information back to Reiner and Bertholdt, learn the lay of the land and how to perfectly execute their plan." Leah continued, feeling herself getting riled up,"And I just helped- I- I showed him around!"
She jolted upright and turned to Levi with a look of horror. "This is all my fault."
Levi scoffed and rolled his metallic eyes. "Don't be stupid."
"But it's true- I caused to my mother's death-- and- and my Brother's death- and I caused Erwin's death. They'd all still be alive if- if I'd just never been born!" Leah threw up her arms in anger and she watched as Levi's pupils dilated in shock. His face became hurt. He blinked at her in disbelief as Leah gulped in air to her lungs after her fit of emotion. Then he recovered, hardening his face into a cold glare.
"Don't say that."
Leah knew she'd crossed a line. Levi, for the first time that night, had spoken to her in the same tone he spoke to everyone else. The tender way about him had dispersed in a flash, replaced by this callous attitude.
She faced away from him, choosing to direct her attention at her lap as she picked at her fingers. His hand clasped over both of hers, putting a stop to the anxious habits. "You're exhausted and not thinking straight. Go to sleep, Leah." He muttered the final sentence, his true affection leaking through.
The two of them couldn't deny they were tired. Leah had never wanted to sleep more in her life, a desire not helped by the comfort of having Levi next to her. She returned her head to his shoulder with a sigh and his head dropped to rest on hers.
"I really miss them." Leah mumbled as her eyes finally grew too heavy to keep open. Levi's thumb stroked the back of her hand ritualistically. He lifted his head from hers to press a kiss to her crown. "I know." He muttered into her hair.
There was a muted shuffle as Levi wrestled to get something out of his pocket, and Leah raised her head curiously, heaving her eyes open. "I went back and got this for you. It's Erwin's."
He tried to act indifferent as he offered
Leah the roughed up embroidered wings of freedom he'd torn from Erwin's uniform, but the quiver of his hand gave him away.
Leah gazed at it as she reached out uncertainly. Just as Levi thought she was about to lift the fabric from the palm of his hand, her fingers instead curled around his and folded his hand closed.
"You keep it."
Leah pushed his hand away until it pressed to Levi's chest. "You were special to him too, he'd want you to have something to remember him by. I have over 15 years of memories with him, please, you keep that."
Levi's bangs fell into his face as he stuffed the fabric back into his pocket. "Thank you." He mumbled.
Without thinking twice, Leah reached over and cupped Levi's cheek furthest away from her, to guide the one closest to her towards her lips. His skin was soft and flush as she pressed a kiss it, and his hand caressing hers intertwined their fingers in response to the action. "It's okay." She whispered, her plush lips brushing his burning cheeks.
(5048 words)