"Jaeger, I will literally cut your toes off if you don't back your lanky titan ass up..."

Eren gulped as he backed away, opting to circle around me instead of walking the usual path. He was carrying a tray full of tea to take out to the others, whilst I was sitting in the middle of the hallway, of all places, making flower crowns using my last floral haul.

It had been several weeks since the battle for Trost, and Levi had decided to bring another strange cadet under his wing. That cadet being the angsty Eren Jaeger. He wasn't all that bad, but I just wasn't a fan. That boy was so hellbent on killing titans, it made for very repetitive conversation.

Gunther and Levi had been the ones to drag me away from my safe space in Marco's room. Something about training some snot nosed brat and me having to be hauled along for the ride. Safe to say I was less than impressed, but at least I got to spend some time with Eld, someone I trusted without question.

The others seemed to have their suspicions about the two of us, but we weren't exactly sneaking around anymore. If I was feeling especially down, which was more frequently, I just waddled over and requested comfort, be it a hug, a pat on the head, or just leaning into his side. Levi seemed disgusted by my behaviour, but I didn't care. Not one bit. I was at least a little thankful that he didn't seem all that phased by my floral decorations anymore.

As far as I was aware, they were trying to help Eren control his newfound abilities. Hange had tagged along to be her annoying, typical self, conducting experiments on the poor boy, and a few men from her squad came along, just in case things got out of hand. They didn't seem to be having much luck.

Then, of course, that was when I heard the large, earth shattering sound.

Bitch gone and done it...

Heaving a sigh, I stood up and wandered outside, leisurely strolling through the courtyard and down to the grassy area by the trees. There was Eren, alright, trying to tear his arm out of what looked to be a humongous titan one.

Petra, Eld, Oluo and Gunther looked like they were ready to strike the boy down, but Levi was trying to calm them like wild horses. It was the most entertaining sight I had seen in a long time, and I managed to crack a smile.
"Shit, Jaeger...Been beating the meat a little too much, have we?" I snickered, sidling up to the giant arm.

"Sh..shut up and give me a hand!" He snapped, which made me snort so hard I almost popped a valve.
"(Y/N), get away from him!" I stopped when Eld yelled out at me, looking terrified for my wellbeing. Rolling my eyes, I took a rebellious step closer to the steaming titan flesh, poking it with my finger.
"Ew, it's all slimy..." I muttered, shaking said finger and scrunching my nose up.

It was safe to say Hange was all over him, begging to cop a feel and collect samples, and all the while I just shaved years off Eld's life by getting far too close for his comfort. I could understand why they were scared. Truly, I could. I likely would have been too if I hadn't seen the terror in Eren's eyes. He wasn't a threat to us, that much was certain.

"Hey," I climbed up the steaming limb, ignoring the searing itch and using his shirt as leverage to hoist myself up beside him. "let me help, Jaeger..." He nodded slowly, refusing to make eye contact as I tried to yank his real arm out of the titanous wad.
"Thanks..." He murmured, leaning back along with me as we struggled. He finally came loose, and the pair of us flew back, landing on the ground in a tangled pile of what Levi would later call 'fuckwits'.

Choosing to avoid any possible conflict, I lead Eren off, ignoring Hange's whines of complaint as the arm began to evaporate.
"Give them a chance to wrap their heads around it." I sighed, noticing he still hadn't wiped that pathetic frown off his face. "They're trained to react on instincts, so it's only natural that you'd make them all nervous." He glanced up at me and cocked a brow.
"Then why aren't you the same?"

Good question...

Shrugging, I wandered alongside him into the castle, straight over to my unfinished pile of flower crowns, and sat down, patting the space beside me against the stone wall.
"I'm just odd, I suppose. Plus, you sealed the wall. That's good enough reason to trust you, in my opinion." I hummed, picking up the red floral arrangement I had woven and picking off some stray thorns.
"Why would I side with titans..? They destroyed everything..!"

Here we go...

"...Humanity is the only side I'll ever fight for!" Rolling my eyes, I shut him up by placing the crown on his head, adjusting it so it sat comfortable against his dark hair.
"I don't side with either, if I'm honest." I explained, which seemed to confuse the poor boy.
"Wh..what do you mean..?" He just sat there, staring at me as I started working on Oluo's violet accessory.
"Humanity has hurt me more than titans ever have...But titans also took away the life of my closest friend, so..." I popped my lips and spared him a quick glance. "...I fight for what I think is right at the time. I dunno, I just don't like being branded as a solider at all..."

He didn't really talk much after that. I just let him sit by me until the rest of the squad had cooled off. By that point, I had completed eight beautiful crowns, and Levi had whisked the titan shifter off for a quick chat. I found the others in the dining hall, sitting around as Hange yammered on about specific research.

"You certainly made yourself scare." Gunther pointed out, leaning down and allowing me to place his pink rhododendron crown on his head.
"Yeah, well, you guys were acting all angsty, and I didn't really like you taking my job, so..." I joked, heading to place Oluo's on, having to fight him a little.
"You need to be more wary, kid..." Eld mumbled, accepting my offering. "You've lost all sense of fear..."

My hands lingered against his golden hair for a little longer than I had intended, mulling over his words before leaving him with the marigold headpiece and shifting towards Petra.
"Titans are piloted by instincts. They don't concern me because I know what to expect..." I explained, slightly smiling as Petra thanked me for her freesia crown. "...Humans, on the other hand, are completely different. You never know what they could be capable of...but their eyes can give that all away. Eren was shitting himself out there. He's just as scared as you guys are, and that tells me he's fine."

"Aw, see?! (Y/N) gets it! I completely agree with you!" Hange hopped up and down on her heels, donning her daffodils proudly. They all froze when Eren and Levi entered the room, but I just skipped over to the stoic captain, presenting him with the final crown.
"What's this?" He muttered as Hange began to address Eren, placing a spoon upon the table.

"Peonies, duh." I poked out my tongue, nearly biting it when he took it out of my hands and sat it on his head. It was obvious he was just going along with my childish bullshit to shut me up, but it still made me happy. It was a delight knowing I could somewhat soften the little asshole.
"...with a goal in mind." I zoned back into the conversation, and it was safe to say I was clueless.

"I...think you're onto something..." Eren lifted his hand, staring at his palm with knitted brows. "This last time was a lot like the time with the cannon ball...I..I transformed into a titan just to pick up a damn spoon..? That's insane..." I kind of pitied the guy. He was obviously clueless, and couldn't even begin go imagine what was going on inside his head.

"So...uh...what I'm getting out of this is what you pulled isn't something you did on purpose..." Gunther was the first to respond, and I had to fight the urge not to smack myself in the forehead.

No fucking shit..!

"N..no, sir..." Eren replied quietly, and I scanned the room as a second bout of quiet set in. My squadmates all nodded to each other, then, completely out of nowhere, they all bit themselves. Blinking owlishly, I slowly raised my hand, opening my mouth to chomp down as well, but Levi smacked my hand down with a sharp whack.

No fair...

"Ow...Okay, that hurts like a son of a bitch...Damn kid, I'm impressed you can sink your teeth in that deep without shrieking..." Eld muttered, wincing at the deep indentations his teeth had left behind. I took a few steps back, realising what they were trying to prove to the boy. It was their strange, dramatic way of offering their apologies, and to gain his trust. Normally, I could have laughed at their choice, but it really meant something in this scenario.

Feeling out of place, I drifted out of the room, deciding to give Boy a brush down. When I got to the stables, I quickly greeted each of the other horses before slipping into Boy's stall, pressing myself into his dark coat.
"Wanna go for a ride, buddy..?" I asked softly, earning myself a forceful nudge. "I'll take that as a fuck yeah..."

I wouldn't have said I enjoyed the dark, but it wasn't the worst thing in the world. I could barely see a foot in front of me, but I knew I was safe, feeling the rhythmic movements of Boy's muscles beneath me. The moon was only slightly peeking out from behind a thick gathering of clouds, and the scent of impending rain was strong. You learnt those things when you spend so much time in the unknown, trying to survive.

When I heard the thudding of a second quartet of hooves, I first assumed it was Eld, trying to keep an eye on me. Then, after they didn't say anything, I realised it wasn't him. He would have spoken up the second he caught up.

If it's not Eldy, then..?

"You can't just take off without a word, brat."

Ah, Ackerboy.

I slowed Boy down so he could catch up, and I could slightly make out his silhouette in the still night.
"You guys were all having a moment, so I politely withdrew." I retorted, a little confused about his reasons for following me. It wasn't like it was a new occurance, me sneaking away to go for a ride.
"It was your moment, too. I just thought it was stupid for you to go auto-cannibal like those idiots..." He sighed, easing Mire into a walk to match.

"Actually, I had my moment with the miracle boy while you were busy calming their farms..." I pointed out, smirking to myself when I heard his tongue click against his teeth. "What are you doing out here, anyway? Don't tell me you were worried about little old me?" I feigned a gasp, and I get his leg swing out to kick me in the calf. "Ow! Hey!"

"Don't be ridiculous. I wanted to discuss the new arrangements regarding sleeping quarters, considering the new brats will be arriving any day now." He explained in a grumble, and I remembered that would mean I would have to share a room with somebody.

They were supposed to arrive two days beforehand, but when Hange's little titan pets; Sonny and Bean, were murdered in cold blood, they had stayed behind to have their gear checked.
"I thought you'd just lump me in with Sasha or Mikasa or something..." I mumbled, surprised he'd even consider giving me any chance at sone kind of input.

"The thought crossed my mind, but then I realised that I would be the one having to suffer through your intolerable bitching..." He growled, causing me to utter a short laugh.
"Okay, rude, but you aren't wrong." I chuckled, thinking for a moment. "If Petra's up for it, I'd like to bunk with her. I mean, gossip is better than rotting food stashes or likely getting stabbed in my sleep, right?"

I wasn't sure that the shock i felt was from the fact that Levi actually reacted positively to one of my jokes, or if it was the sound of his husky chuckle, slightly muffled by his closed hand.
"Right...I'll mention it to her, then..." He cleared his throat, and I could hear him adjusting his grip on the reins. "That would mean no sneaking off into Eld's room, considering he's sharing quarters with the other two..."

I had to squeeze my knees around Boy's middle to stop myself from falling to the ground when he said that.
"Wh..why the hell would I do that..?" I stammered, knowing I was only digging a deeper hole for myself.
"Because the two of you make those disgusting googoo eyes at each other. It makes me nauseous." I could almost hear the obvious roll of his eyes as he called me out, and I halted Boy, swivelling to face his general direction.

"We...I don't know what the go is between me and Eld..." I sighed, knowing he was giving me his full attention by the prickle up my spine. "I mean...there's something...but...I'm not sure if I...y'know..."

Man, this is awkward...

"Look, this type of thing makes me physically sick, but it's obvious he wants some sort of...ugh...relationship with you. The amount of times that idiot has said he'd die for you...tch..." There was a mildly bitter tone to his voice, and the air was thick with a sort of tension I couldn't quite understand. It didn't only feel wrong that Levi was giving me such advice. It made me feel a little disheartened. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why.

"I know he does...but...I don't know...I'm..." There wasn't a word that could properly describe my feelings. I knew I cared deeply for Eld, and just having him in my line of sight gave me peace of mind, but I was also terrified. "...What if he ends up like Marco..?"

Levi stayed quiet for a while, and I shrunk down in the darkness, hoping and praying that he wouldn't chew me out for my idiotic thoughts.
"That's always a possibility...but if that's why you're avoiding it, then you'll end up regretting it if it ever does come to such a grim conclusion..." Levi said in a gritty mumble, clearing his throat and turning Mire around to face the direction of the castle. "Don't you dare get me wrong...It's disgusting to me...but I respect Jinn, and I know he's already hellbent on looking out for you. Either accept his...feelings...or set him straight. Don't be the kind of woman who fucks with people's heads."

Did he just..?

"Did you just call me a woman..?" Of course, that was what I chose to focus on in his little speech, and I yelped loudly as he reached out and smacked me up the back of the head.
"Slip of the tongue, kid..." He grumbled, gathering the reins and puffing a short gust of air from his nose. "If you can manage to beat me back, I'll let you off cleaning duties tomorrow. If I beat you back, you're in for a world of pain. Do we have ourselves a wager..?"

Why is Levi...being so nice to me..? I mean...this is completely out of character...

"You're on, Ackerbitch..!" My laughter was boistrously loud as I kicked Boy off into a breakneck gallop, hearing the ravonet curse under his breath as he fought to catch up. I never thought I'd be having so much fun with Levi, but here we were; racing through the dead of night, wind in our hair and worries non existent. At least I wasn't worried until Levi rode up beside me, a little too close for my liking.

W..wait, what the-!

I shrieked out in shock as the bastard jumped ship; or rather, horse, and forced his way in front of where I sat, taking Boy's mane from my hands. What threw me even more was that Boy didn't even flinch.
"WAIT...WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!" I barked, slapping at his back, which actually hurt me more than it did him.
"I never said this would be a fair race, did I? Your horse is faster than mine." His voice was as steady as ever, and it absolutely floored me.

Completely taken aback, I had no choice but to wrap my arms around his waist and cling on for dear life until we came to a skidding halt about four minutes later, right in front of the dimly lit stables. I almost fell off as Levi jumped down, and I just stared at him with wide, (E/C) eyes as he brushed himself off.
"Y..you cheating little prick..." I stammered out, still awkwardly perched on the curve of Boy's rump.

"You never stated there to be any rules, did you? Besides..." Levi turned to me, his lacklustre blue eyes dazzling in the faint light, and offered me his hand. "I always catch you in the end, don't I..?" My throat grew tight as I stared down at him. The memory of him swooping down and snatching me up that fateful day was wildly vivid, and I felt my legs tighten against Boy's flank as I slowly took the captain's hand.

"D..don't read into it too much..." I murmured as he helped me down, completely lost in my dizzying thoughts before he pulled his touch away from my hand and moved it to the top of my head. Looking at him in the light, I could see he had kept his crown, but it was now doubled around his wrist rather than atop his raven hair.

"If you actually care about him, don't let the lovesick fuck suffer any longer. He's a pain in the ass when he mopes." His fingers tangled in my ruffled (H/C) hair for a lingering moment before he pulled away, turning around and making his way out of the stable. "I'll see you at dawn, loser."

He sounds...grim..?

It took me longer than I would have liked to get myself out of my stupor, but once I did, I made quick work of watering both Mire and Boy, putting them into their respective stalls, and hurrying inside, all the way up the stairs, only to freeze up outside a large, wooden door.

Okay...I gotta do this...I can't worry about something that probably...definitely won't happen...I know what I want...

I stared at the shadow my fist made against the wooden door as I poised to knock, swallowing down all my fear and pride before I let my knuckles make contact. I nearly shat my britches when a shirtless Oluo opened up.
"What?" He asked rather bluntly, scrunching up his nose as I averted my eyes.
"Uh...is...um...is..." I couldn't spit it out, and I felt like a complete moron.
"Oi, Eldy! Your missus is at the door!" Gunther called out from somewhere inside the room, and I felt my legs buckle.

Oh god, shut up! You're making this harder!

Eld pushed past Oluo quickly, smooshing his hand against the man's face to shove him back inside before closing the door abruptly.  Cheeks flushed pink, he looked down at me and gave me one heck of a wonky smile.
"E..evening!" He greeted, obviously embarrassed by Gunther's terminology. Without a word, I took his hand and led him further down the hall, away from any possible eavesdroppers.

"I wanted to...talk to you about something..." I murmured, leaning my back against the wall and fiddling with the hem of my shirt. "It's...pretty important..." Eld's expression dropped immediately, but he tried to keep his posture straight and tall.
"Oh...sure...I mean, I kind of expected this, I guess..."

Wait...does he think I'm gonna..?

Shaking my head frantically, I reached out and grabbed his hand in mine, too riddled with nerves to meet his earthy eyes.
"N..no...I think you're thinking of the exact opposite..." As I spoke, I assaulted my tongue with my molars, crushing it to try and distract myself.

Eld pulled me closer, but still left enough distance between us do he could see my burning face.
"Seriously? I mean...I was starting to think that maybe you were having doubts that we could...you know...be anything..." He admitted in a soft murmur, and it hurt to think that he had been keeping quiet about his concerns.

"No...The only thing that scares me is..." I trailed off, not wanting to let the word come out of my mouth. "Well...I think you know...E..even so...I...wanna be with you..." Levi's words of regret swam through my head, and I squeezed my eyes shut tight. It really was what I wanted. I had to believe that Eld's promise was actually able to be kept.

His fingertips brushed gently across my cheek, and I opened my eyes to meet his soft, loving smile. It was something I hoped to see every day until I was old and decrepit.
"Then it's settled. I'm yours..." My breath hitched in my throat as he stole my lips away, and the warmest sensations fluttered about in my chest. Standing on my toes, I curled my arms around his neck, savouring the moment.

"Called it! You owe me twenty marks!" Eld and I parted and directed our attention to the two men, who were not so subtly leaning around the corner of the hall. Oluo looked absolutely defeated, smacking away Gunther's beaming face. Eld turned back to me, smirking and motioning his head in the opposite direction.
"Wanna go cuddle up in your room?" He asked, slinging his arm around my shoulders. Nodding happily, I gave him my biggest smile, skimming my fingers across his forearm, which dangled over my chest.

"Definitely. I need all the relaxation I can get before tomorrow comes..."

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***ELD IS LOVE ELD IS LIFE

Okay, so I heard a few of you wanted some Levi fluff? Here we go, then! This is still a multiple x reader, of course. Things happen than change the tides, as we all know...

I chose to make the currency german marks (just marks in this) due to the whole German vibe of AoT. It felt right, since there's no official currency to my knowledge.

ALSO HELP WHY DOES LEVI LOOK LIKE DOES JUMIN HAN IS GAY?! ***