Chapter Text
It was evening when Hange sent a soldier to inform Eren to meet her in one of the empty rooms in the castle. Thinking that it must be an emergency, Eren quickly put down her duster and left. When she opened the door, the first thing that caught her eye was a frail, thin black haired boy standing at the corner of the room.
"Who's this?"
She looked at Hange for an answer. Hange smiled at her gingerly, not saying a single word. Eren turned her head over to the black haired boy. He looked like a five year old child dressed in dirty, ragged clothes. What Eren couldn't comprehend was that the castle was very far away from the town. It wasn't possible for a child to wander that far off into the woods. The black haired boy stood there as he studied the two women. He looks like... Eren stood at the doorway, shocked as she looked at the boy's familiar face.
"Captain?!"
She immediately dashed to the little boy. Her face paled as her mind raced with possible reasons to explain what had happened to him.
"It was an accident. I wanted to try this experiment out on you actually, but he refused, saying that it was too dangerous. He was going to leave, when the solution got spilled on him, and he..."
Eren's eyes started to tear up as she listened to Hange's explanation.
"Now he's a five year old, both physically and mentally. I tried speaking to him, but he hasn't said a word since morning. He doesn't seem to have any recollection of us, or of his past memories."
Hange's face darkened.
"I'm not even sure if I can find the antidote for him. When he transformed, the pain made him crash into my equipment. The list of ingredients I used to make the solution was destroyed."
Captain...!
Eren kneeled in front of him, and grabbed his arms gently. No... You're humanity's hope. We need you. Humanity can't win without you! Her arms started shaking as she clung onto his shirt. Tears started rolling down her cheeks. Panic flooded into her heart.
"Why are you crying?"
Eren felt something warm pat her head. She looked up. The child was patting her head softly, "Did someone bully you?" Her eyes widened. It was the first time he spoke throughout the entire day. She quickly rubbed her eyes, "N... No. No one bullied me." The boy smiled, "Okay. Tell me if there is." In an instant, all her insecurities melted away. The captain everyone loved was still here. Eren rubbed the last of her tears away, the panic she felt earlier was gone.
"Eren. I might not be able to find an antidote, but..."
Eren turned to look at Hange, anxious to know what she was going to say next.
“The good news is, Levi will be able to grow up like a normal child.”
“Huh?”
Eren slumped onto the floor. She doesn’t know what she should be feeling. Should she feel relief? Or should she feel devastated? Humanity’s strongest has become a child, both mentally and physically. The good news was that even without an antidote, he could still grow up and become a healthy man. However, it would take years before he could finally become the disciplined, talented man that he was.
Slowly, she reached out for his hand. The boy jolted, but didn’t pull his hand back.
“I’ll take care of you.”
Eren carried the boy in her arms. Her heart ached as she felt the thin bones of the boy—
Was the young captain mistreated as a child?
Hange watched as Eren left the room with him. It was Hange’s own fault that things had ended up that way. She felt worse when she saw how devastated Eren was. It was like all hope had been drawn out of her. She could feel the panic, the despair, and the pain that was written all over her face.
Eren sat on her chair quietly, listening as the boy sipped tea from his cup.
“What’s your name?”
Eren jolted from her seat. She turned her head, and met the eyes of the child. His pair of silver eyes stared at her curiously.
“My name is Eren Jaeger.”
He placed his cup on the table. He smiled happily at her.
“I’m Levi.”
She nodded. Levi continued drinking his tea, sipping it sweetly like nothing had happened. Eren didn’t know what to do, or what to say. He may be a child now, but deep down he is humanity’s strongest, Captain Levi Ackerman. She couldn’t help but not know what to talk about. She looked out the window. It is night now, and the moon is up.
What will tomorrow bring us…?