Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

With March approaching, it was time for the customary Joint Military Conference. It was a gathering that occurred each trimester, bringing together all of the military branches for three days of coordination and strategic planning.

From each division, only a select few were called upon to attend. That made Commander Erwin and the squad leaders the sole representatives of the Survey Corps. It was a delight that everyone looked forward to, except for one dark-haired individual.

The last place Levi wanted to be in was the royal capital. Watching those people's extravagant lifestyle while knowing full well what went on beneath their feet in the underground frustrated him deeply. But his rank as captain, or perhaps his unofficial title as the commander's right hand, had earned him his first invite. Granted, an indeclinable one.

The workday was painfully lengthy before the after-party could begin. Levi found himself in a foul mood, watching all of the unnecessary spending on what looked like a feast. He even butted in two mocking military police officers' conversation, bursting their bubble with their uselessness and calling one of them a pig.

It didn't get too heated, but he had to be personally escorted by Erwin who grabbed him by the upper arm and dragged him to the bar where Mike and Dita sat. Levi seethed but held it back. So much for being a representative.

"How about a drink? The wine is so good in here." Erwin suggested, holding an understanding gaze that Levi did not expect.

He was aware that Erwin wanted to make use of their presence in Mitras to paint a good picture of the scouts to get more funding. The scene he made certainly was not helping the case. Levi accepted the offer nonetheless, trying to discard the bitter taste the spat had left him with.

A drink didn't help —Levi came to realize after he was done. Erwin had already left to socialize with others. And Mike and Dita, while it consciously seemed like a nice thing to hear them bicker, Levi was consumed by an installed ache that only worsened his temper. His stomach increasingly ached since he finished the wine that at one point, he told them he would leave.

Last time Hange glanced their way, she noticed Levi looking pale and unsettled. But engaged in an interesting conversation with Commander Pixis she didn’t get to ask. Only when she went back to her group and noticed his absence that Mike told her he’d just left. She frowned, recalling his color, and tried to take a look outside to see if she could reach him before he moved too far.

Hange stood at the terrace, eyes staring down the neat street. It was completely empty, until she spotted Levi walking out the entrance of the building underneath her. Satisfied, she grinned, filling her lungs with air to yell out his name.

Before she could call, an MP rushed down at full speed Levi’s way, coming down on him with the ODM gear like an eagle on their prey. 

Levi, who was not expecting this, found himself crushing to the ground as a sudden weight with huge momentum laid over him. His left side scratched dust on the floor for a few meters before it came to a halt. His cheek and upper arm burned from the friction, and he twitched, feeling dirt fill his left ear. 

Before the slipping could even end, two other MPs fell from the roof to join the one on top of him with impressive coordination. Levi found a cloth placed over his nose, suffocating his breaths with an acrid strong smell that burned his throat. It all happened in a matter of seconds, fast and efficient like it was trained for intensively. They all pinned him down, suppressing his struggles as the chemicals took effect.

Levi could feel the hand of the person holding the rag shake, he could sense him being nervous. With one sudden jerk, he pushed through all of them, countered by the huge weight of three bigger men. Nonetheless, he almost broke free, but as he tried a second attempt, his body felt weaker.

Hange looked with wide eyes. “Levi!” She meant to yell but it came out as a shocked mutter. She had no ODM gear on and was two floors up to offer any help. Just as she turned to ask for help from the inside, a weight fell down on her too. It was another MP with ODM gear, who placed a cloth tightly on her nose.

Both of their struggles didn’t last long, when within seconds, their eyelids grew heavy and all of their muscles surrendered to an overpowering weakness...

Chapter Text

Hange sat at the corner of the room, back against the wall, knees brought up, thighs against her stomach, arms around her legs. Her heart thumped as she stared at the barred door ahead of her.

The room she rested in was lit by a single torch on the wall illuminating the stone patterns around it. Apart from a thin layer of dust beneath her, it contained nothing else.

It hasn't been long since she woke up from her drugged state. She found herself alone in the room and wondered if Levi was left in a different one when a succession of loud thuds brought her out of her daze.

Hange didn't even realize what those thumps were, until she heard a suppressed moan from a voice she knew too well. Levi was outside, they were torturing him! And he didn't even make a sound! Sometimes, a thud grew louder and she heard him groan more clearly, and one time, she heard him scream. And now he was back to the silence again.

It never stopped since. Every few moments, the sound of a violent thump abused her ears again.

Hange sat with her body trembling. With every thud she heard, her eyes shut tightly as her entire body flinched in place. It tightened her heart and she felt herself wanting to cry at whatever atrocities Levi was going through outside. Just sitting there, hearing this felt like the worst amount of torture to her.

Her turn would be next, she expected. She wasn't sure she could contain herself like him. But maybe she should, when hearing this felt like the worst amount of torture to her, she wouldn't want him tortured by her screams on top of what he'd been through.

Another yell from the stoic man and Hange leaped to her feet, unable to hear this any longer. Her face twisted with agony and she brought a hand to cover her mouth. The thuds went on, steadily and not giving a chance. Eventually, she closed her ears with shaking palms and turned away from the door to the furthest point at the opposing wall. Three meters weren't enough to take her away from the sound but she couldn't take this anymore.

"That's enough for now, take him back." A voice ordered. She let out a breath she was holding and rushed back towards the door, placing her hands around the cold metal bars to listen clearly.

Even when she thought it was done, she heard yet another thud followed by a suppressed groan.

"You thought this was done, huh?" A second voice spoke with a hint of a smile.

"...eat...-shit." Hange could hear Levi's teeth clenching in his voice.

Another thud, but this time it was silence again that followed. She could just imagine it filled by a daring glare from the grey-eyed.

Hange closed her eyes, wishing that was the end of it. She would not be able to take this any longer. At this point, she was ready to go out and take her turn of torture over having to hear Levi being tortured anymore. She knew that he had an abnormal ability to metabolize through drugs, so whatever they've used on them, he must've been awake way before her. She doesn't even know how long this has lasted.

Her ears picked the sound of shackles, then the sound of steps, it was growing louder, approaching. When they came close enough she realized they were coming to the room she was in. Instinctively, she took a few steps backward. And there appeared a tall well-built man, holding Levi's arm around his neck. 

Hange gaped. He was walking along the man's steps, at least that was good. Other than that, his head was lolling heavily downwards, with saliva coming down his mouth. The left side of his hair was grey with dust and he had multiple scratches along his cheek and upper left arm that were full of dirt as well, she associated that with the way he was abducted. She wondered what happened underneath his clothes after all of these thuds.

She was so concerned about him, gawking his way that she forgot to brace herself for her turn.

Another man appeared from the side, unlocking the door with a key and swinging it fully open. The tall man went on pushing Levi to the inside, who took a few staggering steps in before he could hold himself to a halt.

"Levi." Hange called, rushing close to him. She heard the door close shut. When she turned she saw the shorter man locking it and glaring at her, she glared at him back before she turned, internally thankful they didn't take her away now.

Levi let out a shaking breath. He sniffed, taking two steps to the corner on the right where he carefully sat.

"Are you okay?" Hange asked concerned.

"...I'm fine." Levi didn't look her in the eye, merely staring ahead of him.

Hange turned around, the room too small for her to move away but granting her space to walk in a circle.

"That was a stupid question to ask." She turned back to face him. "And that was a stupid answer."

When she turned, she found he had taken off his cravat and was wiping his mouth with it. From the look of it, she could tell that saliva was due to a blow to the jaw, a recent one, probably the last thud she heard before they brought him in that caused him to groan.

"I've been through worse, nothing that wouldn't heal."

Hange kneeled near him. "Can I take a look?"

Levi met her eyes for the first time, shifting his weight slightly.

"There are no open wounds, just bruises. Nothing you can help with. It will heal fast."

"If they don't make it worse that is." She spoke, heart tightened. "And what do you call these, closed wounds?"

She pointed her finger towards his upper arm where his green coat had been ripped from friction.

Levi went on, dusting off his hair from the dirt that turned his left side grey.

"They are slight. And it still holds that you have nothing you can help with cleaning them."

Hange sighed. He was right. But she was glad that at least he was fine. 

In surrender, she brought her knees down to the floor and turned around to rest her back against the wall, sitting next to Levi and staring at the barred door ahead of them.

"What did they want?"

"Nothing."

"What?" She turned to him confused.

Levi shrugged. "I asked, they said nothing."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"The only thing that makes sense now is for us to get out of here. The room outside is bigger than this one. It has a barred door and no windows either. I take it we are in a basement of some sort. The outer door is locked too and we are dealing with four MPs. The man who unlocked the door earlier is the one who holds all the keys, he also has a gun he likes swinging. The third guy you didn't see, tall and skinny, I seem to give him the creeps. He's avoiding me whenever I meet his gaze and if it was him who had drugged me, then he was shaking while at it. He was great with ODM though, so maybe that was the reason he was part of this. And a fourth always guarded the outer door, I didn't get to see his face. If we are to escape, we need to get rid of the gunned guy first, but—"

Levi's lips shut tightly as his eyes widened. From looking at one another, he and Hangi turned swiftly to the door from where they heard sudden metal sounds followed by steps approaching. They waited in silence, till the tall man from earlier showed up holding a plate in hand. He unlocked the door to their cell and threw the plate to the inside, causing two pieces of bread to roll off of it into the dusty floor. From the side, he brought a ceramic pot and had the courtesy to place it on the floor with care. Hange figured it must contain water.

She felt relieved to see him lock the door again, when she was expecting they were coming to take her for questioning.  

Once they heard the outer door get locked, they turned back to each other.

"Food and water, that means they need us alive for something. They want to question us they just wouldn't say what first."  Hange reasoned before she crawled towards the pot sat merely two meters away.

"Why's that."

She turned around with it in hand, sitting across from Levi.  "I don't know. But if they had all of us in the capital, why do you think they chose us? Why not Erwin?" 

He thought for a second.  "Who's to say they don't have him too?"

Hange looked careworn, that was plausible. "...I surely hope not." She muttered, taking a look inside the pot.

Through the sound of a sigh from Levi, her voice rose again.

"Now I have something I can help with." She told him, raising her eyes back to meet his gaze. "It's better than leaving that dirty dust in there. Can I?"

Levi nodded. He stood up gingerly, unbuckling his coat and taking it off. Hange followed him to a standing position. The cold of the basement hit his skin, she noticed when she saw him wrap an arm around his front instinctively. Levi stared at her with hesitation, as if he was thinking twice about whether he should take off his button shirt or not.

"You have to take your shirt off. Unless you want to die of hypothermia overnight, you can't risk getting it wet. I promise I'll keep my hands to myself, pretty boy."

"That -wasn't..." Levi trailed off. Hange smiled, she could've sworn that was a blush forming on his cheek if only the light around them wasn't fire reddened, hindering her from telling the difference.

Levi sighed and grudgingly took it off. He still kept a shirt under with a flexible material which sleeve he raised to his shoulder.

The smile wiped from Hange's face, realizing the reason behind his hesitation. From the wider neck opening of this one, she could glimpse a particular bruise on his chest. It was red, with part of the center growing into a darker shade. She wondered what more he hid under.

Her face twisted and she raised her eyes back to meet his gaze, finding him looking at her uncomfortably.

"Let's just get this done with." Levi muttered.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take a look at the rest?"

Levi shook his head, eyes mentally begging her not to push it.

Hange understood him well. She closed the distance, starting with his cheek. She poured the cold water on it and rinsed all of the dust and tiny rocks that stuck to it off. Now that it became clear, the scratches were superficial and covered a smaller area than she had initially thought.

His upper arm, however, seemed to have taken all of the weight of the fall upon itself. It had a bigger area scratched that reached deeper into his skin. Luckily the coat protected it or it would've been even worse. Hange poured the remaining water on it, getting it thoroughly cleaned.

"Thank you." Levi said, soft. 

He soon retreated back to his corner, where he used his cravat to gently wipe the excess water before he rushed back into his clothes, feeling the cold reach his bones. Levi slowly succumbed to the floor, watching a restless Hange continue to walk in circles.

Trying to figure out who could be behind this was a hopeless case for them, the survey corps surely had a long list of enemies especially in the royal capital. They tried to plan what to do too, but the situation didn't seem in their favor with the gunned man being present and having the capacity to incapacitate them from afar.

Eventually, Levi told her they should take a moment of rest. They didn't know when those MPs could come back so they better made use of this time.

Hange laid on her side at the opposite corner, back against the wall and eyes on Levi's back. He had turned to face the wall on the right to keep his hurt arm above. 

As her gaze lingered on him, she noticed that he was shaking slightly. Hange believed it would fade in time now that he was wrapped in his warm coat again. What concerned her more was the way he succumbed to the ground this fast, not even caring to clean the dust underneath him.

She shut her eyes tightly, internally wishing Erwin would come to their rescue before they get a second round. It hurt her heart seeing Levi like that, and chances are she will be like him soon. The least she could do now is rest her bones and enjoy this painless state before the kidnapers appear again. 

Chapter Text

Levi felt his body being lifted up to a standing position. He opened his eyes with difficulty, finding the floor beneath him. He could barely hear a thing over the ringing in his ears, but he could see drops of blood dripping down from him to the ground, staining both the floor and his shoes with a constant rate. His greys slowly widened at the sight.

"...the runt is so heavy for his size. Give me a hand, Hans."

He could finally hear again through muddled consciousness. Soon, another man appeared to his right. He did as the other by wrapping Levi's arm around his neck.

"You idiot, you were not supposed to do that. What if he loses so much blood and dies?"

They were both so tall, hovering over him on either side despite bending. Levi had no strength in him to do anything but stare at the floor beneath him. His head felt so heavy to lift, his arms loose, kept only by the men's tight grips on them.

"We were told to let him taste hell, it's not my fault that he looked bored for the past hour."

"He didn't look bored."

Levi stared at his feet, taking small, almost shuffling steps to follow where they guided him. He barely had the power to keep up and not crumble to the ground. The drops of blood still fell down, marking the path they walked with a crimson trail. 

As though emerging from unconsciousness as well, a pain grew around his hairline corner. It intensified with every second, echoing, throbbing, radiating, aching... Levi closed his eyes and took in a breath. His entire body hurt, but nothing like that one.

He'd been outside with the assailants for about an hour. They beat him up like the previous time. He contained himself through it all, until a last blow to his head with something hard muffled all of his thinking for a good minute. When he retrieved his consciousness, he found himself in this position being dragged alongside them.

He could feel his hair drenched with blood. A few strands stuck thickly to his forehead where more of the red liquid oozed, soaking his temple and eyebrow and bending with his cheekbone to drop down to the ground. 

Just when he thought it could not hurt more, it continued to grow even more painful as though a piece of his brain got exposed. Levi opened his eyes briefly before closing them again. His vision was clouded, and he felt disoriented and weak. He didn't know if it was the pain or if he had suffered a concussion.

His eyelids were so heavy, a magnetic feeling of wanting to crumble down to the floor and sleep seeming so appealing. He only opened them again when the men stopped walking. He wanted to raise his head to look around and see where they brought him but found no strength to do it.

"Levi." Hange's breaking voice reached his ear.

Realizing where he was, Levi swallowed thickly and gathered all the strength he could muster to look at her sound source. His neck shook slightly in the process, barely holding his weight.

Hange closed her eyes to get rid of the excess water that blurred her vision. Locking her gaze on Levi with a clearer view, she felt her heart sink to her stomach; his dark hair looked soaked all along the left side, matted strands of his bangs clung to the skin on his forehead, fully wet. Not only that, but that entire side of his face was covered in blood, some of it dried, some of it still oozing, all of it gathering down to create a tiny puddle of crimson drops on the ground. Either way, it looked terrifying! 

All this time, she was bracing herself for her turn of questioning, but they had taken Levi again. She had to endure hearing him being tortured again, had to hear him ask why, and not get any answer no matter how many times he had asked. She couldn't stand the sounds she had heard of them inflicting pain on him, enjoying making him suffer. It felt agonizing for Hange, so much that she had cried through the entirety of it.

Levi was a complete mess. She should've seen that coming after everything she had been hearing and crying through, nevertheless, it shook her to the core to find him this bloody and weak! Now that he was in front of her, her helplessness had morphed into a seething anger.

Hange strode to the bars, grabbing them tightly and bringing her head as forward as she could manage, forehead aching against the cold metals. 

"You animals! What do you want from him?" She seethed, breathing shallow.

The shorter man approached, following from behind the three with a cold, stern gaze and a gun. "Get back." 

"No!" Hange frowned, losing every last bit of reason as she stared at him daringly.

"I ain't got time for this." The man stepped forward, drawing his gun grip closer to Levi's wound. "Get back or I make him suffer. You already know I will love to do it."

"...Hange." Levi whispered in an attempt to calm her. The least he wanted was for the MPs to separate them for causing trouble while being together, or for the gunned man to convey his threat.

Not like she had much of a choice, Hange stepped back grudgingly, eyes drifting back to her friend, face twisting back with pain, the urge to cry regrowing back into her after hearing that unfamiliar weakness in his voice. 

As soon as the door swung open, the taller man threw Levi to the inside. He fell to his knees, barely finding the strength to prevent  himself from meeting the floor with his face. His right arm had already betrayed him, if it weren't for the left to gain him his balance at the last minute.

Hange rushed to his side, tears remerging with the men disappearing.

"What did they do to you? Those bastards." Her voice broke again. She couldn't remember the last time she cried like this.

"It's not as bad as it looks, I'm fine." Levi rushed to reassure.

"You're not fine, Levi. Stop with that bullshit."

Levi let out a shaky breath. He remained in that position on hands and knees, head tilted down, still leaking blood. He felt Hange grab his arm and pull him up, helping him to stand. He was relieved that she did, when he didn't wish to verbally ask her but found no power in him to stand otherwise.

Hange walked him to his claimed corner and sat him down carefully. Feeling the huge weight he laid on her, she realized how much of a wreck he was. He rested his head against the wall behind him heavily, eyes meeting her browns as she kneeled right in front of him.

Levi hated that look Hange gave staring at his wound, it stung him like hell he was certain nothing good could come from that. When she moved a hand to examine it, he raised his hands up in reflex, grabbing her wrist between both of his palms, one over the other. As tight as he could manage in his state, he used what little strength he had to prevent her from touching it.

For once, no mask hid what he felt. Levi's eyes showed agony, breathing shallow, greys on his friend helpless and silently begging. It hurt him so much he wouldn't stand anything touching it, he might as well end up passing out.

"It's covered with hair. You're losing so much blood, I need to examine it." She told him, tears blurring her browns again. 

Levi tightened his grips against her wrist for a second before he let his hands fall down, silently giving his agreement. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the upcoming.

Hange moved her fingers forward and started parting his matted strands. She was gentle, yet as soon as she touched him there he couldn't contain a goran escaping his lips. How he hated that he didn't even have the strength to move his head, instead of resting it against the wall pathetically.

"I'm sorry."

"How bad is it?" 

Hange tried to part the hair again, some areas clinging dry. Levi shut his eyes, gripping his pants into tight fists. It felt like she was cutting through his brain with each movement, it was too much.

The movement had finally ended and he opened his eyes again to look at her. He found her looking like she was the one wounded, face twisted, eyes still glimmering with tears. He hated that he burdened her with the sight of his pain.

Hange placed her hands on his shoulders. The image of the deep wound that looked like he got hit with a solid, sharp rock troubled her mind. It was too deep, too painful. Her lips parted to say something, then she shook her head. 

"It will be fine." She told him briefly, instead.

If only she had a first aid pack, she would need a disinfectant and some bandages. She hoped he hadn't suffered a concussion considering the deep impact, she would have that to test later. But now, she needed to come back to her senses and get herself together.

Hange unbuckled her coat. She cut a part of her button shirt underneath then cut the cloth in half. She pressed a part on Levi's head to stop the bleeding, watching him wince in response. A muffled grunt escaped him as he turned his head to the wall on his right to avoid her gaze. 

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Hange muttered, feeling the warm tears that had been blurring her vision take the trip down her cheeks...

About an hour had passed when the usual MP brought them food and water. Bread was on the menu again, this time it remained on the plate. It was placed next to the dusty two loaves from the last time.

Hange had managed to stop the bleeding. She semi forced Levi to lay down and attempt to sleep. She knew that he failed to when soon as the sound approached, he was back to a sitting position.

Once she made sure the man had left the outer door, she turned to him.

"How are you feeling now?"

Levi loosened his tense posture. His back rested against the wall that faced Hange, legs forming two mountains in front of him. He was facing her, staring at her intently. The pain had subsided around his body with the one in his head remaining the most stubborn. Some of his strength was restored so there was that.

"Better."

Hange approached him, handing him a piece of bread. "You should eat."  When he stared up at her, he looked like he was about to decline so she added. "You'll need it to recover. You lost a lot of blood."

"I will do later." 

"Okay then. We got water, do you want me to clean that blood for you?"

It's true that his head felt dirty and disgusting, but by all means, Levi did not want anything coming near that area now. He shook his head instead, eyes widened even at the thought. Thirsty from the blood loss though, he grabbed the water pot she offered and drank for a long while. Hange sighed, succumbing down to sit in front of him.

"I was thinking, Levi." She started once he was done. "I think these guys are not after the Survey Corps. They're after you. That would explain why they hurt you without questioning you about anything, and why they took you twice and not me. They said someone told them to make you taste hell... I was thinking back to the day we were abducted, everyone was in the reception hall and none were outside. I only happened to go out by chance. I think I may have been present in the wrong place at the wrong time to witness them taking you, so they only grabbed me to stop me from telling what I saw." 

Levi looked thoughtful, his stoic face betraying but a slight hint of pain.

"If my theory is correct." She went on, voice heavy. "It would mean that hurting you would be their only goal."

Levi sighed, escaping her gaze to process the idea. Internally, he was relieved that Hange was out of this. He wasn't going to allow them to take her anyway, even if it costed him a bullet. But the fate that awaited him didn't seem so appealing.

He looked at her again. "What is the plan here?"

This time, it was Hange who avoided him to the floor. She shook her head slowly.

"I don't know. We have nothing, I guess. They outnumber us and the gun is unbeatable. We have nothing but hoping that the others have noticed our absence and are looking for us." 

"If that's the plan then we're as good as fucked. What are the chances they'll even know we're here?"

"It's Erwin we're talking about." She met his gaze again. "Have some faith in him. And look at the bright side, if this isn't about the Scouts, then he will be free and looking."

"Yeah." Levi muttered silently, voice worn out. He rested his tired head back and closed his eyes, letting the idea sink in.

"Does anyone come to mind?"

Grey eyes tiredly reopened. "Huh?"

"I mean, who would want to do this? We're in the royal capital, who hates you so much in here and has the will and power to want for this to happen?"

Levi closed his eyes again, thinking. He'd been a pain in the ass for the MPs since his days in the underground, it didn't cease when he came up to the surface. And apart from them, he had a few nobles who hated his guts as well. His greys opened. "I can't think of someone sick enough to want to do this. But if they were, then I know plenty."

His eyes fixed on Hange for a few more seconds silently. Levi looked hesitant to continue talking. She remained silent, sensing that he had more to say.

“Hange, if we are to get out of here, we need to do it soon. Just sitting here, waiting doesn't seem right. We need to come up with a plan.” His eyes drifted away as he went on, face unusually showing concern. “...I'm afraid that if this continues any longer, then I won't be able to help." 

"You—" Hange started. It's not like him to admit weakness, even when he was down on the floor with his head split earlier he told her he was fine. To actually admit that...

"—I'm sorry..." He cut her off. "For dragging you into this."

"What are you talking about? You didn't drag me."

"If it weren't for me you wouldn't be here."

"Idiot, it's just a theory."

"Your hunches always turn out to be right. I'm trusting you on that."

"I hope this one is not." Hange muttered, gaze steady. "But even If it is, then I'm happy that they brought me. I wouldn't be any happier knowing you're alone in here." 

Chapter Text

Time passed painfully slowly inside the cell. Too slowly. Hange couldn't tell how much of it had passed since she and Levi were brought here, there weren't windows for her to even distinguish day from night. The only markers of time she got were the MP's visits. If she considered each time they came and took Levi away, and gave them a meal after to be one day, then today should be the third—but maybe that was her mind playing tricks on her, maybe the time just felt too dragging and between a session and the other only half a day had passed. She could not tell anymore.

Right after their last talk, Levi laid down and fell into a deep sleep. Hange couldn't, she only leaned against the wall and watched him.

Or maybe the time was dragging because Levi slept and she was left alone. He had been sleeping for what felt like an eternity now, waking up occasionally with sharp gasps as though from nightmares, before he would shift gingerly and fall immediately back asleep. This wasn't like him—and it began to worry her.

When he gasped and squirmed a third time, Hange almost wanted to ask him to stay awake and keep her company. Had he not been hurt, she would've totally did. To her surprise, he didn't turn to sleep this time. Instead, he searched for her. 

Maybe those dragging hours had an advantage, seeing how Levi came up with a plan and explained it to her then... They both knew of its numerous flaws, but they were too desperate to have any other alternative, and it was worth the try.

"I hope when they come, you will be feigning sleep and not really knocked out to leave me to fight them alone."

"Once in my life I get to sleep more than two hours and you have to give me shit for it." 

"I do feel happy for you when you sleep well—I just hope it was under better circumstances, and not because you lost half a liter of blood. Anyway, let's hope this works, it kind of reminds me of the time when..." Hange went on gushing about an old story she and Mike had shared before Levi came to join their ranks.

Levi stared at her attentively for a while before he looked away. He still felt a strong magnetic urge to fall asleep, and he didn't want to resist it when being awake made him feel every throbbing pain in his body, every radiating ache from his stomach, from his chest, from his ribs, from his jaw...almost every part of him was sore, the spot on his head being the most stubborn bitch of them all.

"Hey, are you gonna sleep again!?" Hange exclaimed as soon as she saw him lay down, sounding like it was the worst thing that could happen.

Resting his cheek on his upper arm, Levi's answer came too lazy, eyes already closed. "Hmmm." 

She may have accepted it because he was sick—but only grudgingly so. Hange crossed her arms on her chest, lips almost forming a pout.

"Noted." Levi heard her mutter. "Half a liter of blood loss. Now I know what it takes to put you to sleep..." 

A light snort escaped Levi at her words, pale lips twisting into a smile as his tired greys remained shut. Well, he did knock her out to get her cleaned, it was only fair she did the same to get him to have some sleep.

Watching his very rare response, Hange weakly smiled herself. His smile felt like sun emerging from behind thunderclouds, very rare and very precious. It melted her irritation like ice in the sun, growing a warmth inside of her chest instead.

Time dragged too long for her after, so much so that she suspected more than one day to have passed since they last saw their abductors. Hange's heartbeats grew wild as soon as she heard a noise outside, iron hitting against iron, the lock being handled. Then some steps followed, those of many feet, deep voices of men talking, laughing... and then, the three familiar MPs appeared at the door. 

The shortest, oldest of them aimed his gun in Levi's direction as the tallest one got busy unlocking the door.

"Rise and shine, princess." He taunted, keeping his gaze on the balled form that laid motionless at the right corner of the cell.

Hange still sat at the other corner, unmoving as well, her arms wrapped around her legs tightly.

"Enjoyed your beauty sleep?"

"He can't come with you." She intervened, voice broken. "He had lost a lot of blood, he can't move."

The man glanced at her, his slightly wrinkled eyes reflecting disbelief, before he turned back to Levi. "Hey, Levi...Levi..."

Receiving nothing, he motioned to the man who unlocked the door to go in and check.

The MP walked in carefully. He approached the body by the corner, only then realizing how small of a space the captain occupied despite being the most stoic person he had ever tortured. Levi was completely covered by his trench coat. Bull bent down, placing a hand over Levi's shoulder and pulling the fabric away. Beneath, he found a pale form, eyes closed peacefully as even breaths escaped slightly parted lips. What drew most of his attention, however, was the white cloth surrounding the captain's head. It was completely soaked in dry crimson blood around his hairline corner.

Bull shook him up, Levi did not even flinch. He swallowed hard, feeling his heartbeats grow faster, fearing his rushed do of yesterday backfiring. The noble who hired them was coming today to see Levi, he had asked for him to be tortured—not murdered. If anything happens to the captain, it would be on him having hit him yesterday with a rod. The master will kill him!

"What?" The short man asked with impatience, gun not giving trust in Levi even as he laid motionless.

"He's asleep."

"Well then, wake him."

Bull shook him again without getting a response. He looked back at his boss, not knowing what to do.

Albert gritted his teeth. "Fucking idiot." He stared his subordinate back with growing rage before he went on. "Bring him out."

That was the first set back in Levi's plan; two MPs were supposed to walk in to check, and Levi and Hange will attack them simultaneously and use them as shields from the gun. They trusted themself to be capable to do it easily considering their training, but now only one was inside and he was getting Levi to the outside. 

That didn't deter the raven though—not when he wasn't sure he could fight again once they hurt him another time. He wanted to take the chance, anything better than sitting here obediently, waiting for their deaths... Levi was heavy and limp between the tall man's arms as he lifted him up, letting his feet drag behind.

Just before they reached the barred door, he opened his eyes and swirled around, startling the MP and lifting his arm very fast to lay it around his neck and get behind him. Hange jumped to a standing position, ready to join behind his cover with a silent agreement. Levi ignored all of the pain around his muscles as he forced them into overwork.

The sound of a bullet breached the silence, leaving a loud ringing to follow in everyone's ears. It didn't even hesitate, a mere split second after Levi's movement for it to leave the gun. A loud thud followed. Levi gaped, heart dropping to his stomach and neck cracking as he turned Hange's way. Fast.

A deep hole settled in the wall right where her head had been. Hange was sitting on the floor, legs sprawled uneven, eyes wide and lungs breathless. She could've died, she could've died right now. Some of the hair in her bun leaked a stinky burnt smell, showing just how close the bullet had come to her. It made her shake, legs giving out beneath her thinking she was already dead. She wasn't even sure whether the man shot over her on purpose, or had the intention to kill her and only failed for lack of accuracy. 

Albert kept his gun aimed her way, hands too steady, face too cold as he stared at Levi.

"I need you alive, Levi. Never said I needed her. One other wrong move and the next bullet will be between her eyes. Now Keep your hands up and walk out. "

Chapter Text

Pain shot through Levi’s head, an agonizing throb at his hairline corner. His muscles felt sore, weakened to a point he had never experienced before. It made each movement of his a struggle. He barely had the strength to keep his arms raised as he walked with the MPs to the outer room —whether it was from the blood loss or the muscles being beat, he couldn’t really tell.

Either way, the cold bite of iron scraped at his skin as Bull shackled his wrists. Cuffs dug in mercilessly deep into his flesh, stretching his arms wide apart to leave his core vulnerable and exposed.

Levi watched as the senior MP checked his gun, the chamber clicking as he quickly replaced the spent bullet. His grey eyes shifted to the third MP, standing silently in the back, posture stiff and reserved. As soon as their gazes met, the man immediately dropped his eyes to the floor, and they never flicked back up as long as Levi held his stare. And then appeared Bull with his huge built before him again, blocking the view with his wide chest.

Levi had to twist his neck to look at him. He glanced a slight sneer on his face as he adjusted the shackles to make him stand straighter. That only took him a second, then he was moving away, and right behind him appeared Albert, gun tucked safely at his waist now that Levi no longer constituted a threat, wrinkled eyes fixed sharply on the raven.

Levi returned the sharp gaze, not liking the way he was looking at him. Albert's lips were twisted with a sense of unimpression and pensiveness. He moved forward, coming to a stop right in front of Levi, both standing at the same height for their eyes to be locked directly. 

The older man's gaze shifted away from the greys, drifting upward to the corner of Levi's hairline. Before Levi could react, the MP's hand darted forward, ripping away the cloth that covered his wound with one brutal yank —the fabric that was stiff and crusted with his blood, dried from long hours ago, now torn to reopen everything that Hange had painstakingly worked to close.

A deep, clenched-teethed yell escaped Levi’s throat, involuntary and raw. It felt as though Albert had torn a piece of his very mind away along with the cloth. His head dipped forward instinctively, his knees buckling beneath him, making him held up only by the cuffs, digging the iron deeper into his wrists.

For a moment, the world around him blurred into white, and he couldn’t see anything anymore, couldn’t focus anymore...The pain was stabbing, searing, sharp. It consumed him full, expanding from the wound's depth to radiate in all directions.

"F-uck." Levi strained. 

"This doesn’t look presentable." Albert complained at the same moment, assessing the blood-dirtied cloth in his hand with a look of slight disgust.

The white haze faded gradually from pained greys. Levi slowly restored his vision. All he could make out at first was the floor beneath him, sparse drops of crimson speckling it, dripping from his head with a steady rate like a recent vivid memory.

Staring at them, he worked hard to steady his breathing. He could not think through the distracting pain, he could barely hear what was said around him. The blood continued to drip from his head, but it was nothing near the speed of yesterday. He will be fine. He will be fine and make these bastards pay. He will not give them the satisfaction of watching him crumble.

Trying hard to push through, Levi gathered all of his strength to get on his feet again and stand up straight, to regain a hint of control. His legs shook beneath him as he did, and he realized then that the weakness that overcame him was certainly due to the blood loss rather than being beaten.

Raising his head up, Levi was surprised to find a fourth person standing inside the cell—the first he saw not wearing a Military uniform. Levi swallowed the hint of pain that twisted his face, fixing an expressionless stare on the newest guest instead. 

The man looked strikingly young he could barely surpass twenty-one years of age. He had dark brown eyes that almost looked black, contrasted by a clear white sclera, his hair was dark and shiny, neatly brushed back behind his ears, and his attire seemed to have cost the equivalent of two hundred meals in the underground. 

He would've been considered handsome had the expression on his face not look this twisted; Standing at the cell door, his head was tilted forward slightly, eyes locked onto Levi with a predatory intensity—a gaze almost feral, hungry... Hatred radiated from him so strongly it felt tangible just like sparks leaping from a blazing fire. His eyes were unnervingly wide, his breathing harsh and audible, filling the tense silence.

The three MPs stood in the back as the young man strode closer to Levi, steps confident and deliberate. He stopped right in front of him, his expression twisting further as he came to stare him down so closely, his mouth curling into a disdainful frown.

Twisting his neck to look him up, Levi remained quiet, only staring back in response. Excruciating pain in his head still fought to take half of his consciousness away, but he knew better than to surrender to it now.

"Levi." The man called, breath hitching, stare constant, voice venomous.

Levi only stared back steadily, fighting with his legs not to give way. 

"No, it should be Captain Levi now." He corrected. "So I take it you don't know who I am?"

Levi stared a little longer. He had no recollection of seeing this man before, and he never forgot a face he'd seen. What he did recognize, however, was the overwhelming resentment this person held for him, almost suffocating in the air.

Resting his neck, he wondered what could he have done to spark such abhorrence from someone he had never met before. Then again, trying to guess who this person was connected to among a long list of old enemies would be pointless.

Levi sniffed, quickly looking back up. "Why don't you say whatever shit you got rehearsed and get this over with?" He uttered, stare impassive.

The man’s eyebrows shot up in response. "Over with?" He scoffed. "This is far from being over. You're gonna wish that it was, but I’ll make sure to drag it long enough that you’ll be begging for a quick death. And I will ensure to make it as slow and painful as possible." 

Levi closed his eyes, giving in to the throbbing pain for a brief second. He was never proud of the things he had done in the past—he always had a feeling they would one day come back to bite him in the ass. Maybe he shouldn't be so surprised to get into such a situation, maybe he did deserve it... He remained quiet, eyes still on the man trying to decode whoever the fuck he was. He still got no clue. Then the answer came his way with a further twist of the man's face, the further widening of his eyes.

"I'm Lovof's son." He announced, his dark eyes flickering between light greys. "Rings a bell? The man you betrayed two years ago to earn your Captain title. He gave you a job, and you turned on him to follow the man he sent you after. You exchanged my father's life for a shitty promotion."

"I didn't expose your father, he was already-"

Levi stopped talking mid-sentence, a sharp crack against his cheek cutting him off, four knuckles digging deep into his skin and leaving it to prickle and sting, blow hard enough that his ear on that side began to ring. His neck twisted with the force of the slap, his head snapping to the right where it hung heavy with gravity. 

"I didn't grant you permission to talk." The man said. 

Forcing in a few shallow breaths through his nose, Levi looked up again, unwilling to lose. With the wound on his hairline, the slap made his head feel like a box of tools that had been shaken. His teeth clenched as he glared the man back, sensing a taste of iron slip from the corner of his lip to his tongue.

"Do you know what happened to my father after the documents reached Zachly? He was killed. Hanged in front of everyone in Seena for violating clause six of the charter. Hanged in front of me, while I stood there, helpless." His voice hardened to the recall of the memory. 

"Your father-" Levi stopped talking mid-sentence again. A choked breath escaped him as a strong grip tightened around his throat. It gripped his windpipe so intensely that it threatened to collapse. Grey eyes grew wide as they stared at dark browns, locking onto him with pure abhorrence. 

"I said I did not grant you permission to talk." The man calmly repeated, as if he was not murdering Levi.

The sound of shackles rattled in the room as he continued to grip him tight. Levi struggled for breath, none able to reach his lungs. He thrashed around helplessly, meeting resistance from the cuffs on every limb of his body. His heart pounded so violently it felt like it would burst from his chest, and he looked at the man before him with eyes growing redder and redder...

Lovof's son watched him with a constant, detached stare. 

Failing to get a spec of air to enter his lungs, Levi's knees buckled beneath him, his irises disappearing under his eyelids. He was crushing his throat...He was gonna kill him...

"Master." Albert called from behind. 

The young man withdrew his hand at once. As soon as he did, a loud, desperate inhale filled Levi's lungs, before a strong fit of coughing took over him. 

"Oh, I'm sorry. I got taken away a bit. I don't want you dying on me so soon." 

Levi still coughed hard, chasing the desperate inhales between each fit. Lovof's son walked to an old chair at the corner and dragged it along, setting it right in front of Levi to sit on. 

"So tell me, what did it feel like to become captain? Was the title worth it? Was it worth my father's life?"

Levi's head hung low, lolling over his chest as his coughs became lighter, more exhausted. He felt a burn all along his throat, an ache that traced his neck to add to his misery.

"Hey, answer the damn question. You can run your mouth when not asked but now you cannot? I know we haven’t exactly gotten acquainted, but you know what I hate more than people running their mouths without permission? It's them keeping quiet when asked to speak."

Levi swallowed hard, feeling it burn all along his throat. It felt too dry and harsh and sore. His Adam's apple bobbed with another hard swallow, then he raised his head, meeting browns.

"I didn't trade-" He stopped to cough briefly. His voice came out broken and hoarse, his vocal cords already damaged. Even his previous swallows seemed useless in lubricating them. "-Your father was already exposed...the documents...had already reached Zachly when I joined."  

"This' the best you can come up with?" The dark-haired taunted. "You had joined the Survey Corps for a full month, and my father only happened to be exposed by the time you came back from the expedition—the same week you got announced a Captain. It's not even a real title, Smith has made it precisely for you for being such a good lapdog, yeah?"

Levi's adam apple bobbed again, and again. He believed that the man had already made up his mind, and that nothing he could now say could change it. He tried to think of his next words carefully regardless—whatever he could say to make him know the truth. 

"...Ewin made me Captain, because I did so well on the expedition...to teach recruits..."

"Bullshit. Are you trying to insult my intelligence? You wouldn't even have the decency to admit your do, it's too much to ask from a turncoat like you anyway." The man got to his feet. "Deny it all you want, I'm gonna punish you regardless."

Hange's face twisted horrifyingly at those words. Her hand tightened around the cold metal, mouth forming a wary gape.

"Bull, bring in the box." She heard the voice of the man claiming to be Lovof's son say. 

For the next hour, the room was filled with the sickening sound of violence. Hange heard loud thuds echoing, sharp punches reverberating, something cutting through the air at terrifying speed, and then landing unmistakably on Levi's skin... He remained silent through most of it, save for a few times when a pained grunt would escape him.

Hange couldn’t close her ears and run this time, rather she stood there,  listening and sharing his torment, feeling each impact cut deep into her chest like the blows did her friend's flesh, despising both his pain and her helplessness.

Then, for a while, there was no sound of a punch anymore, no crack of a whip or a stick slicing through the air to strike Levi. All that remained was a chilling, complete silence.

Yet, somehow, only then did a horrifying sound of Levi screaming shatter through the stillness. It was loud, hoarse, agonized, unmistakable, continuous... Hange's wet eyes grew wide, heart clenching too much it made breathing hard.

"Stop it!" She yelled. 

There was absolutely no sound again, so they were not hitting him. But again, he screamed, breathless and raw. It terrified her—not knowing what they were doing to him. What in the world were they doing to make him scream like that? When he would always be so stoic to make a sound.  A thousand scenarios raced through her mind, none better than the other.

"Ahhhhh." Levi's voice rose again, and this time, it refused to come down.

"Stop it!" Hange screamed, nausea rising in her throat. Her hand shot into a fist, slamming into the metal door with a force that made her teeth grit. The sting of the impact seared through her skin, knuckles threatening to turn blue soon, but in that moment she didn’t care to register it. Both her logic and rational thinking had completely abandoned her. She just wanted out—she needed out,  no matter what or how, to get to him, she was too desperate to do anything. 

"Ahhhh..."

"You fuckers stop! Stop! Stop! Stop!" Hange yelled hysterically through the sound of his scream. 

"Ahhhh...Ahhhh..."

"Stop..." Hange whispered, losing her voice as her entire face twisted in surrender, tears blurring her vision completely to pour generously from her eyes corners. "...Please stop..." She whispered.

Chapter Text

Hange could not stand the sound of Levi's screams. He had always played fine, always kept his complaints to a minimum, for them to actually make him scream like this—she did not want to know what was happening outside.

All her feral yells at the MPs to stop made no difference, the raw sounds continued to reach her regardless. Eventually, she could not take it anymore. 

Hange retreated to her corner, sinking to the ground heavily. She pressed her palms over her ears, squeezing her eyes shut. It was as if she wanted to block out the world, to transport herself somewhere else—anywhere else. But Levi's cries were still there, real and hoarse, filled with agony. She felt his pain reach her through them. It felt burning and unbearable, searing through her core and lodging behind her ribs. It racked her body with heavy sobs, twisting her entire face.

The screams lasted only a few minutes, maybe two at most. To her, it felt like an eternity. Then she heard the sound of shackles being moved, Levi's screams quieting into low, shallow whimpers, the men's footsteps approaching the cell, and within a moment, the MPs appeared in her view, dragging her friend's small frame between them.

Levi's head hung low over his chest, his legs trailing uselessly behind him, immobile and lifeless.

Hange's heart dropped to her stomach the moment she glanced him. Her tear-filled browns widened in shock, mouth falling agape. She couldn't even spare looking at his face—not when a thick trail of blood following behind him grabbed all of her attention, like an abnormal Titan warning flare. 

"Levi." Her voice betrayed her, coming out shaky and whispered.

Only when she tried to stand did Hange realize that her legs were shaking. Albert unlocked the door before she could reach it and the two MPs holding Levi threw him to the inside instantly, dragging the ugly red trail even longer.

Levi collapsed onto his stomach with a sickening thud. His left arm twisted before him to save him from the impact, but it didn't have any strength in it to. He remained like that, motionless in the middle of the cell, face buried in the cocoon of his forearm.

"Fuck!" Hange muttered as she took in the long trail of blood behind him. It was coming from his right foot—which was lacking a boot.

Her knees shook against the stone floor as she rushed to kneel beside him. Hange felt the urgency of the situation. She still couldn't spare to search Levi's face, not to assess his other injuries, not to ask if he was okay... She needed to stop the bleeding and she needed to do it now! 

Her heart thundered inside her chest as she placed trembling hands on his waist and thigh. Carefully, she turned him onto his side, bringing the injured foot to the top. Her face twisted further in horror; Levi's smallest toes were missing —a gush of blood was spilling out of their empty space instead. 

"Fuck!" Hange semi-yelled, feeling her heart clench tight. For a second she couldn't bear to look there, her head jerked to the side instantly, teeth gritted.

She was surprised to find Levi —now turned to lay on his side— silently crying. It shattered her heart! His reddened skin, his darkened lashes, his twisted lips, his glistening tears so abundant they drenched his nose. 

As quickly as he could manage, Levi turned his head to face the floor, hiding his face into his arm again.

Hange was stuck, overwhelmed with the heavy realization, and then she remembered that she needed to stop the bleeding. That's right, she needed to get herself together! He had already lost too much blood from his head wound, she could not afford him losing any more now!

As though she was just brought back into the room, she looked around the cell and jumped to Levi's corner, snatching his cravat that was thrown on the floor there and jumping back with it to where his feet laid. Hange placed it on the bleeding wound and pressed hard, feeling her own heart clench with the movement. 

A raw grunt escaped Levi at the contact. His free hand squeezed into a tight fist and he slammed it on the dusty floor.

"I know it hurts, I know. I just need to make the bleeding stop." Hange spoke, squeezing her hand even tighter despite his pain. She despised it! But she couldn't afford him losing any more blood.

Levi laid in his place, legs steady on the side as Hange had turned them to be, his upper body turned to face the floor where he kept his face buried. His foot hurt him, a lot, more so with Hange's excruciating squeezing —but it wasn't the only reason he cried. 

Tears bled from his greys pathetically, making his core shudder with each silent sob. He had held himself together when he was out with the men, but not in here he could not. Levi cried from the pain, from the way they had cut a part of him while he watched helpless and tied, from the way they had snapped his flesh and crushed his bones. He cried because he had lost a part of his body irreversibly, because it would make him a worse soldier when he had too many responsibilities on his shoulders to attain, too many promises to fulfill. He cried because they may do it again tomorrow, and he wouldn't be able to stop them, because next time, they may take off something more important and render him crippled, because they may cut off his fingers and then he wouldn't be able to use ODM at all! He wouldn't be able to protect the people that he loves. And he cried because it fucking hurt.

"Hmmm." A sound escaped him as Hange's grip grew tighter, pressing hard on his crushed bones and cut flesh.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry...." He heard her whisper repeatedly.

As the bleeding began to lessen, Hange rested from the uncomfortable kneeling position and sat down on the floor. She didn't dare ask Levi anything, not when he still shook. She understood that he wouldn't want to meet her gaze now, he wouldn't want her to hear his broken voice. He didn't even make a sound to show he cried if it weren't for his shuddering and some occasional wet sniffs giving him away. And so, she waited. 

Levi kept his face buried. His tears had stopped once Hange's grip grew less tight, but he still felt their wetness on his cheeks, still struggled to keep his shaky inhales at bay. He probably looked like a pathetic piece of shit. He probably shouldn't look Hange in the eye ever again. He knew if it were Kenny, he would've cut his other toes just for being this pathetic.

"It's stopped." Hange's voice rose through the silence. Her tears had ceased for a while, so at least there was that. She wrapped the cravat tightly around Levi's toes and crawled near his head. She found his face still buried in the cocoon of his arm, meeting only his dark hair and a slightly fading undercut. "Levi?"

He was still shaking, Hange's eyebrows twisted upwards in response. She had been compressing his wound for twenty minutes —she didn't want to imagine how much it hurt for him to cry this long. 

Placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, she cooed. "Levi, please answer me." 

"...'M c-cold." Levi stuttered, voice barely audible through the coat's fabric on his forearm. 

Hange's eyes widened to a realization, that he was not shaking because he was crying! It's because he was cold! Of course, he would be. He had lost a massive amount of blood yesterday, and again now. This couldn't mean any good! 

Her heart began thumping fast as she worked to turn him around on his back. Hange made sure to keep his hurt foot steady as she did. For a second, she was met by weak resistance from Levi who still preferred to keep his face burried on the floor. 

"I need to turn you. You lost a lot of blood, we need to keep your legs raised up." 

Levi loosened his stance in response, letting her handle him on his side and then on his back. His head turned to face the right side as she did, grey eyes looking at the wall across and leaving Hange behind.

Hange sat by his feet, raising his legs on her lap as she searched his gaze. All she found was his jaw, tensed and turned in the other direction. 

She watched as Levi continued to shake, the extent of it soon reaching his tensing jaw. She wished she had something to tuck under his legs, but there was nothing like that inside the cell. Hange wiggled beneath him instead, keeping one hand on his legs to steady them as the other worked to take off her coat.

The coldness of the stones hit her bones at once, it did not make her regret the decision in the slightest. As accurate as one hand could manage, she threw her trench coat on top of his trembling body. 

It has been half an hour since the men returned him to the cell—this was the first time Levi turns her way. Grey eyes met browns, questionable and shiny.

"What are y-you..?"

"It's fine. I'm not cold." She told him.

"No. It's freezing here. T-take your coat back."

"Levi, I'm not. You're freezing because you lost blood. I didn't." She lied.

Levi looked at her for a long moment, assessing if she were telling him the truth. And he only looked away when he was satisfied. Maybe if he hadn't lost such a huge amount of blood, he would've been able to see right through her lie. 

His head soon turned to the right again, and then the sound of the outer door being opened stole both their attention. 

Hange made Levi drink the full pot of water they recieved, insisting that it would help restore his blood loss. She denied herself even the last sip and insisted he drink it even when he told her he couldn't anymore. 

That night, Levi remained in the center of the cell instead of moving to his usual corner. Hange kept his legs raised as he fell into a deep, recuperating sleep. She caressed his shin and guarded his wound from touching anything by mistake. The cell was freezing cold in the middle of the winter, yet she sat there, battling her shakes not to wake him up by accident.

When the hours dragged on and she grew too cold, Hange started worrying about herself suffering from hypothermia. She gently withdrew from under Levi's feet, resting them softly on the floor. Hange contemplated taking her coat back, but she worried he would be cold without it. She crawled beside him instead, lifting her coat up and joining him underneath the warm blanket.

The last she remembered seeing was his face, plagued by hints of the pain he had suffered, yet looking too peaceful like a child as he slept. Levi was too pale, too sick, it worried her too much, but she knew that he could pull through, if only Erwin would come to their rescue now.

Hange's hand traveled downwards, grabbing her friend's hand and squeezing it tight. It still felt cold. She closed her eyes before her mind could dwell on the alternative.

"How are you feeling?" Levi heard as soon as his eyes flickered open. He was barely lucid enough to comprehend the words after a long, deep sleep. "I didn't want to bother you by asking too many questions earlier." Hange added, her voice reaching him from the left corner of the cell.

At once, all the memories poured into his consciousness and he winced at the reality. The pain around his foot was reminder enough. 

Levi let out a deep sigh, feeling the inhale tug at his ribs. It wasn't just his foot —almost every inch of his body felt sore and aching. He continued to stare at the ceiling above.

"I'm f-ine." Even he wouldn't believe himself when he sounded this pathetic. His voice was hoarse and low, throat harsh and burning still.

"Still cold?"

He was, but he wouldn't tell her that when her coat was still above him. She must be freezing. 

"No. You can have your coat back."

Levi sniffed, fixing his gaze on a stone where firey light flickered in a dancing motion. Hange's face suddenly appeared above him, blocking the view.

"Sure?" She asked.

"Mm-uh." He murmured, staring at her back.

Hange grabbed her coat and got inside it fast, her hands feeling like two pieces of ice. She sat against the wall to Levi's right with a self-hug, trying to gain back some heat that the hundred laps she did around the cell failed to gain.

"What did they do to you?" She asked, gaze resting on the wall across. She didn't want to hear it, but he wouldn't let her look beneath his clothes.

Levi continued to stare at the ceiling. 

"It's Lovof's son, the man who-"

"I know who he is. I just asked about what he did."

Levi let his head turn to the side again, leaving her behind him. He thought for a moment in silence. "...It doesn't matter what he did, we need to get out of here."

"I don't see us having many options and slacking off, Levi."

"It doesn't matter." He repeated, his broken voice coming more steady and determined.

"They have a gun, they outnumber us, you are hurt-"

"Yeah so what? Should we just sit our asses here until they kill us?"

"You know what happened last time we tried something. We are not doing nothing, we are waiting. You trust Erwin to come find us, don't you?"

"No, I don't." Thin eyebrows joined together in a slight frown, voice coming out too hoarse again. "He has no clue to lead him here. Had he had one, he would've been here days ago."

"What do you suggest?"

Levi thought a moment in silence before he attempted to sit up. His muscles betrayed him, but Hange was soon by his side, pulling him up. His lips twisted with a wince as pain seared through every inch of his body. His foot was throbbing and radiating up his ankle, his head still played a nasty game on him, shooting to the back of his eyes, the rest of his flesh, sore and raw.

Hange helped push him back to lean against a wall. Once he settled there, he let his eyes meet hers with intention for the first time since they had brought him back, greys looking as cold and reserved as Hange knew them to be despite his pain.

"I'm gonna wait till they drag me out, then I'm gonna attack the MP with the gun...get hold of it. He wouldn't shoot me somewhere vital because he needs me alive."

"That is absolutely out of the question! You can barely stand straight!"

"I can now, but maybe I won't be able to tomorrow." Levi spat, staring intensely into her eyes before he looked down at his drawn-up knees. His eyes wandered to his right foot, scared to even look at it. A blood-soaked cloth covered it and the possible lack at that crimson corner unsettled him deeply. Levi's adam apple bobbed with a swallow. His voice came out low and deep as he spoke his next words, eyes not raising back. "...I've lost two of my toes, I won't be able to maneuver the ODM gear as efficiently."

Hange shook her head, knowing how much that meant to him. "Two smallest toes, I've read books on anatomy and I assure you they don't help with anything. You wouldn't even feel a change."

"For now yes, but maybe tomorrow they will cut the rest." Levi felt his breath harden, his entire body prickle and sting merely from the thought. His mind wandered to the worst scenario, as it always did. "Maybe they will cut my fingers off next, and then I won't be able to use ODM at all."

Hange shook her head again. As much as his concern was reasonable, she refused to think about that outcome. "They won't. They-they cannot. You said it; they need you alive, so they won't risk making you lose more blood in such a short time."

Levi's greys glared fixedly on his foot as she spoke. He seemed fightened from his thoughts about the future, enough that Hange watched his pale skin turn even paler, his lips turning chalk white. She felt her heart shake with his change of expression. 

"Maybe they will kill me next time." Levi's voice was too hoarse and broken again, as it came too low and unsure. "Then what will happen to you? Do you think they'll let you free to wander the streets after knowing what they did? This was supposed to be my fucking problem, but you are here now, and I have to get you out before it gets to the worst. I will get his fucking gun, and you are going to run to the outside without looking back behind you. Then maybe if you find Erwin you can bring him back here with help. But don't wait for me when the opportunity comes, I cannot run and will be a burden."

"Enough!" Hange silenced. Her eyebrows met up in the middle, unwilling to accept. She brought herself down to kneel right in front of him, searching his gaze that still glared at his injured foot. "Is this the best you can think of? Using yourself as bait to have me flee?.. Me being here is not your fault, Levi, and I am happy that it happened. You would've died of blood loss had you not had me here to stop the bleeding. Twice. We are in this together now, so let me help you, and let us wait. Don't risk it."

Levi's breath reached her ears, irregular and hitching. His grey eyes raised up slowly, meeting Hange through a shield of dark lashes. She knew that she hadn't convinced him, and she knew that he was in pain merely from that look.

"The Scouts need you. You're the smartest scientist we have. If something happens and they lose you, it'd be a grave loss to humanity." He tried to convince her.

"Those words can be said to you. Levi, you are our strongest soldier. We have other scientists, many bright minds that I work with and trust to continue my job as efficiently. You on the other hand are on another level from any of us! If anything, I would rather give myself up for you to leave. So no, I will not flee from here if you try that reckless plan. I already told you that I accept it, whatever comes. As long as I get to be here with you to help, I wouldn't have it any other way."

Levi stared at her so closely for a moment, eyes flickering between her browns in thought. Willing to stop his mind from scanning for other arguments -because they would be useless- Hange leaned forward and pinched his cheek. It felt unfittingly soft.

"Come on, loosen up little soldier." 

Levi turned to the side to free his skin from her hold. He looked at her from the corner of his eye, taken aback slightly. "Did you just pinch my cheek, and call me little?"

"Yeah I did." She grinned. "I bet no one else would have the balls to do that to humanity's strongest soldier, right?"

Levi's head lowered a bit. "You're damn lucky I'm injured."

Hange's smile weakened slowly as she returned to reality. "...Aren't you gonna tell me what they did?" She asked him again, voice slow and regaining its tone, serious and wary. She wished she didn't have to know, but she needed to assess his condition.

Thin eyebrows twisted slightly at the question. Levi's greys looked down, letting the shield of dark lashed cover them again.

"There's no point." He muttered, mind still burdened about what they'll do to him tomorrow. 

His eyes wandered warily to his foot, scared of what laid under the reddened cloth. Slowly, his fingers wandered towards there —but Hange stopped them in their tracks, cupping his cold hand in hers.

"What are you doing?"

"I wanna see."

"No." She fronwed, scared of the bleeding to recommence. The cut was deep enough that it still dripped slightly even after all the time that's passed.

"I want to see." Levi repeated, raising his eyes at her with a stubborn, determined look that she knew too well. 

Levi freed his hand from her despite her protests. He opened the knot on his foot carefully, hissing between his breaths at the aching sensation, a burning of his flesh, a throbbing of his bones. He uncovered his toes to find flesh and skin, cut unevenly, bloody, swollen and bluish, a small fading bone in the middle of it, blood oozing still around it. And no matter how much gore he had seen in his life, seeing a part of him lacking made nausea raise in him at once, his eyes closing and head snapping to the side in reflex. 

Levi's breath compressed, a deep pain of having lost a part of him. The memory of how excruciating it has been, to have them press on his skin, cut through it, seperate his raw flesh, crush his bones and snap a part of him... It felt too unbearable he couldn't contain screams. And now, he was left with an ugly, aching, lack. He was never getting these toes back. Ever. And the potential of rendering him a worse soldier killed him, the potential of losing more and growing crippled killed him even more, the thought of what may happen to Hange after, because of him, even more, more... It felt too visceral, all growing a knot in his stomach. Levi felt an unfamiliar urge to cry tug at his eyes again after long years of having not cried. 

A hand laid on his shoulder, squeezing it tight. Levi felt like he was brought back to reality through a thinly connected rope. His greys opened again and he turned them slightly to look Hange's way. He found her staring at him closely.

"You don't deserve any of this." Hange said, face twisted with his pain. She couldn't look at his injury as well, she only watched his face snapping to the side, thin eyebrows twisting, skin paling up despite it being already pale. How she hated their situation.

Levi took in a deep breath, hoping to retain his nausea. He shuddered, reaching down and covering back his foot without looking at it again. His teeth gritted tightly and his eyes turned back to the wall on the side, only then realizing that his hands had grown shaky.

Chapter Text

Hange couldn't get the chance to warn Levi of the new company they had. She did call his name, but with the way his sleep had grown too deep since the blood loss, it barely even made him flinch.

He only realized it when he inhaled sharply, grey eyes snapping suddenly open to the sight of the roof before them. Levi was getting closer to it, at a very fast speed. Then the room spun around him so fast he was seeing the stone floor beneath him instead.

He let out a sharp breath, heart beating so fast at the way he was suddenly awoken, two strong hands holding him on each side to keep him up, and before Levi could get time to get over the disorientation, he found himself being pulled forward.

His legs lagged with the impatient movement. His forefoot twisted sluggishly to follow. His lacking toes screamed once they contacted the floor, only then waking him back to full awareness.

"Ghhhhhh." Levi grunted deep, teeth grinding intensely as his grey eyes shut tight.

He felt pain hit him like electricity, shooting from his recently cut toes like a bullet, enough to make him feel nauseated. Levi pulled his foot up reflexively, barely having the strength to keep it there as his other leg continued being dragged behind him against stone. If he were to have kept his eyes open, he would've seen the new circle of fresh blood forming on his cravat. But he did not. 

So long for his plan to attack the man with the gun, now all that was on his mind was the consuming pain — nothing else. Levi kept his eyes shut, his body shuddering between the two MPs who dragged him until they held him by the shackles, forcing his limbs into the familiar cuffs.

There was barely a second passing after the click — when he felt a harsh hand grab his chin and snap his head up so quickly his neck could've cracked.

Grey eyes forced open with the sudden movement. Levi joined his wincing lips, trying his best to straighten his pain-tainted face into a neutral position once he found Lovof's son before him, standing a good head above his height and staring deep into his eyes.

"Enjoying your time here, Captain? Think I brought you here to take naps?" He asked, digging his fingers deeper into Levi's chin they felt like a vice, raising him further up he felt his nape about to crumble on itself.

The young man brought his face closer to him, his brown eyes growing wider with a brief joining of his lips. "Wrong! I brought you here to suffer, and I'll ensure that's what happens from now on. Been going too easy on you, it seems." He said, shoving Levi's chin to the side harshly where his face remained turned.

Robert looked down at him, his lips twisting with disdain. The fucker looked too short, too fucking small to have caused such grave damage—so not worth the loss of his father's life and fortune. How he wanted to grab him right now and wring him in a fist that fits his size. But no, he needed to make him taste a slow death. He needed him to suffer.

Looking further down, Robert noticed his right foot being lifted, kept up and close to him in protection as it trembled with fading resistance to stay in place. 

"...Let us talk! Please! You have never let us talk. I know you want to torture Levi, but please give me five minutes of your time first to speak..." Hange's voice echoed through the cold cellar, reaching the five men standing outside. Robert huffed, looking unimpressed. He kept glaring down at the raven, completely dismissing the woman's incessant invites that had begun the moment the MPs went in to grab him and still continued to this very moment, like background air pollution.

"Hey, I'm talking to you." He uttered above Levi, his breath so close it hit the shorter man's scalp.

Levi's head snapped back up at once, eyes staring at the ceiling as his lips shut tightly in resistance to something that he wasn't sure he could contain. A fancy, shiny black brogue had hit him, falling on his forefoot to fix it to the ground and press on it. Pressing. Twisting from side to side and pushing down against severed, bloody lack of two toes.

It felt agonizing! Like he was ripping his very soul, digging into his bone with an ODM hook, sharp and deep and incessant. Robert was right there before him, but Levi's eyes failed to see him completely. His pale face had heated, growing a flush of red from holding a breath and a fucking long scream. The taller man kept looking down at it with a hint of a smile as he twisted and pushed his foot deeper, enjoying the specs of red tainting the pale skin.

It was fucking torturous, but Levi was not willing to give him the satisfaction of hearing him crumble. Only sharp breaths left him, cut by the shackles' loud clicking from his arms' unconscious attempt to push back and make it stop.

Hange knew that these moments of quiet never meant any good. Levi would try to remain silent as long as he could—doesn't mean that the men were not doing something to hurt him. It ached her heart knowing that they were, just from that repetitive clicking of shackles. They were fucking doing something to him!

Her voice rose back with another attempt. "Please! I'm a section commander at the scouting legion. I have been there when he was recruited; Levi is an exceptional soldier by all accounts! You can go around and ask about him, and you will realize that he didn't need to pull any strings to deserve his title. He was naturally far superior to any of us who had years of experience, it was a waste to keep him low-ranked. Erwin wanted to make use of his skills by having him teach others how-"

"Won't you SHUT-the FUCK-UP!" Robert screamed suddenly, his usually calm voice ripping through the room with a frightening energy.

Hange flinched backward, feeling the loudness like a literal vibration slapping her, too strong it startled.

That didn't stop him from pressing Levi's forefoot, however. Robert continued to, pressing more forcefully now that a spark of anger ignited within him.

Eventually, what gave Levi up was something involuntary. He heaved forward with a hum, feeling like his stomach was about to empty, bumping the top of his head against the taller man's wide chest. 

Robert retreated, afraid for his nicely ironed suit from getting ruined by a flow of disgusting vomit. He sighed boredly, almost like that angry yell just now was a mere act. He pulled the chair he had placed in front of Levi last time and sat comfortably on it.

Levi swallowed hard. He swallowed again, fighting to retain the bile that filled his stomach—nothing else inside it. His body shuddered against his will, a blend of blood loss and painful bruises.

"Please!" Leaning back against his seat, Robert heard the woman's voice come from the side room again, too damn emotional.

"If you say another word, I'm gonna come there and shoot you in the head." He uttered firmly. "Damn annoyance. That was all you damn fault Albert for screwing up what I ordered you to do."

"Mr Robert, I already explained to you that we made sure no one sees us. The hotel the scouts resided at was across the street, so we didn't have much of a space to act. It was a perfect moment then, one extra addition is better than losing the chance of bringing him to you entirely."

"Yeah, that's right. I wouldn't even mind more if it means I get to torture him. Just...keep her damn voice down." The dark haired said, looking truly annoyed this time.

Levi shuddered again, raising his head up slightly with these words to check the room, see if anyone would head towards Hange. His eyes met the browns of Robert sitting right before him, and they fixated there, not deviating. He did tell Hange there was no point talking to this man—if there's anything he could do well it would be reading people, and that look on the man's eyes; hungry to inflict pain, seeking to put blame on something else to keep clean the picture of his father, not having to face what an awful human he had been—it was cristal clear for Levi. He hoped Hange would keep quiet before she got herself in trouble, because he would never stand her being hurt in any way. He would accept anything coming his way, but not her.

"You liked that, Captain? It's better than a nap, isn't it?" Robert coldly asked him.

Levi just sniffed, not expecting it to come all wet and loud. His greys didn't deviate regardless, like a bold dare. 

"Were's my fucking box?" Robert asked, not breaking eye contact too. For looking quite impassive and ignoring his question -which he knew the man despised- Levi knew that he was triggered.

"Right here, sir." The biggest man of the three MPs placed it before him, the sound of metal clicking loud as it hit the floor.

Brown eyes didn't look at them, they remained on greys.

"Take off his coat." 

Bull moved forward, unbuttonning the only thing that prevented Levi hypothermia. It was barely enough to keep him warm after the amount of blood he had lost. Even with he addition of Hange's coat earlier, he was slightly cold. Now, he would be greeted by frost.

Levi felt it already hit his chest the moment the buttons were opened and the air hit his inner white shirt.

"Ah, sir." Bull hesitated. It has been a hassle to fix Levi up to shackle, now he would have to undo it all. "I'll have to uncuff him."

"No you don't. There's a pair of scissors in the box, just cut it off." Robert voiced, sounding particularly irritated by this MP.

Making use of the moment the huge body of Bull came between him and Lovof's son to break the eye contact, Levi let his head fall down, looking at the floor as he heard the sound of scissors run on fabric smoothly. Every inch exposed of him made a chill run up his spine. By the time his coat was a torn green pile on the floor, his forearms budded with goosebumps.

"The shirt as well." Robert added, staring daggers at the greys as soon as Bull stepped away.

Levi found himself tight with his trunk naked, cold winter air hitting him from every direction, too chill against his skin that was damp from the sweat of the earlier pain.

Nausea raised up his throat again once he saw the tool the dark haired had pulled out of the box next. Levi swallowed against burning throat, neck straining to remain up and look. Fuck, he was hurt there, he cannot...

Robert rose to his feet, walking slowly his way like he wanted to torture him mentally as he did physically. Levi felt his heartbeats fasten each time he stepped closer. 

Raising the rope up high, the tall man whipped it through the air, making the distinct sound of air particles moving aside to make way to the fast moving embodiment of agony, before it landed on the floor with an ugly slash. 

Levi jumped in his place, pulling slightly back with reflex and making the shackles click. He was expecting him to hit him, his front, his arm, his face, anywhere. The crazy bastard didn't care where it landed, only that it would hurt. It was engraved in Levi's brain that each time he heard that sound, pain would follow, so much that it had him flinch with power he didn't have. It earned him a smile from Robert, who thoroughly enjoyed the view.

"You piece of shit." Levi hissed, not looking away. 

"Well Levi, it's gonna be much more fun now that your clothes are off." Even as he moved behind him, Levi still heard the sound of the smile in his voice. "Now I can watch your skin break in life time."

Glancing at the naked back, Robert licked his lips, finding red horizontal lines that had grown into fading purple. A particular bruse that had an oval shape occupying all of Levi's right flank. He didn't remember landing that hit, but he was happy the boys had kept him good company in his absence, just as he told them to.

He couldn't help but pass a finger over the reddened lines, digging deep into each slash that protruded from Levi's skin, feeling the heat emanate from them, getting slowly lost in the coldness of the room. Levi hissed, moving forward where the shackles limited. So that's what his last session has caused—these burning bruises beneath skin... This time, he will watch them break.

Hange kept both her shaky hands on her mouth, barely holding back from either screaming at the men to stop or breaking into loud sobs. She heard the ugly sound of slashes lay against skin. Over and over and over and over. Sounds of shackles moving after each hit. Sounds of Lovof's son mocking snorts from a time and another. No sound of Levi at all.

She hated hearing him scream. Now his silence terrified her more!

Hange pressed against her skin so much she almost broke through it. God, how she wanted to yell for them to stop—but Levi had warned her against playing stupid games, and she still remembered the time the oldest MP shot her head. The unevenly cut part in her hair still held up witness to how close they had come to ending her life. So she stood in her place instead, shuddering as she pressed her hand further against her lips.

How she wanted to scream at Robert to hear her. For just five minutes. How she wanted to get down on her knees even when he couldn't see her, and beg him, beg him to listen to her before he left, when she heard him announce that he was. But she was a coward. She could not. His last words hung in her ear like a threat, and Levi's words repeated. She cowered up, standing in her place like a statue instead, heart burning inside her chest as it clutched too tight she could barely breath.

Robert was gone, then there was silence. A terrifying silence now that she couldn't hear Levi's voice or whimpers in a long time. She heard the sound of tools shaking, probably the MPs organizing the box the bastard has spoken of. She heard the sound of their steps, ones of more than one man. Levi... utter quiet—not even his shackles moved.

More movement, then she finally heard him—

"Stop-" He was straining. "S-stop."

Silence, movement, then his shackles were shaking slightly. "Wht'r you doing?...'M gonna fuckin' kill you..." God his voice broke her. What the fuck were they doing to him?

"Shut up-" This was the voice of the man who'd tried to shoot her. Albert.

"- 'M gonna fuckin' kill you!..." Levi repeated without even pausing, panic clear in his tone, tongue heavy with pain.

"Please stop!" Hange succumbed, words escaping her without any ability to hold them. She felt panic rise inside her the same way it did in her friend, her heart hammering against her ribs. It didn't seem like they were doing something to hurt him; he had never given them the satisfaction of knowing they did before. For him to threaten them this now—this was something else.

The sound of the movement continued. "You're lucky Robert isn't here, or this would've been your last day in life. Better keep that mouth quiet or I'll have to come shut it up for you." Albert said, and now Hange was definitely sure it was that older man's voice. She heard a strained grunt escape him next, like he was squatting and changed to a stand up position. Then he was addressing Levi.

"Robert said no more naps, didn't you hear? This will ensure you stay up till I come back." He remained quiet for a moment. "Well, it isn't necessary, but you know the saying, the more the merrier."

"You piece of utter fuck! 'M gonna fuckin' kill you!" For the first time since they were brought here, Hange heard abhorrence in Levi, burning bright despite his exhaustion, despite his feeble state since he had lost blood. She didn't want to think about what was happening to him to get like this. God she wanted to shut her mind up.

When she heard the men leave and the main door lock after five minutes, she frowned. They were supposed to bring Levi back to the cell. By saying he wouldn't nap, they didn't mean they'll keep him hanged outside, did they?

Hange remained silent, sticking her ear through two metal bars to listen. The room outside was eerily quiet. Had they all really left? And left Levi there?  She swallowed, feeling her heart shake.

"Levi." She called with a low voice, almost shaking in synchronization to her state. She got no answer, not even from one of the men. They really were gone.

"Levi." She called again, louder.

Again, Levi did not answer her.

Hange began to panic, brown eyes widening as her hands pulled her closer to the metals.

"Levi, are you okay?"

Silence again. Weak movements of shackles. 

"...H-hang-" It was shaking, too broken and weak. God no. "Hmm...'M f-ine."

Hange's entire face twisted, hands pulling her to the outside like she could somehow get through metal.

"Did they leave? Are they really gonna keep you outside? What, what, what did they do to you?"

She heard low movements of shackles again. " 'M jus...gonna take a nap. We'll talk after." 

Hange felt her heart sink into her stomach. She heard the strain in his voice clearly. He was slurring with pain, barely able to bring words out. But he did for her. That idiot just wanted to reassure her and play tough. But he just straight up lied to her! Levi, in his normal shape, would never make such a clear, idiotic lie. She just heard them say they were going to prevent him from sleep —for him to say he was going to nap, it means he was pained and didn't want to talk, and instead of admitting it, he took the only way out to keep quiet without worrying her.

Hange didn't want to push against his lie when he sounded this exhausted. What did they do? She stepped back, walking to the opposite wall and back. God she was growing insane in here now that they were separated. Till Levi could speak to her again, Hange felt like she was waiting on flaming coal...

Chapter Text

Levi felt exhausted — every fucking inch of him aching.

It was a miracle that he still managed to stand at all, to keep his weight up to this moment without collapsing. Barely an hour had passed since the MPs left and he already felt his legs burn enough to wobble.

How he wanted to just surrender. Just let his body hang by the cuffs to give his knees a fucking break. But he could not—not when his back burned him like hell.

Bloody slashes ran along it, swollen wounds broken by merciless leather. Levi felt them tighten with every movement, like his skin was glued to leave no place for elasticity. He tried his best to keep them stable, but it was impossible considering how weak he'd grown with the blood loss and how long he'd been standing. Each time he slipped even an inch, his teeth would grind, every time feeling like stitches were ripping across his spine.

He turned to the right, burying his face against his shoulder. Levi's fists tightened—he could've sworn another cut had reopened on his back. Still, he did not regret moving; it was all that he could manage with his arms cuffed high and apart, and he had more problems than only his back.

Ragged breaths hit his naked skin, echoing back to his ears with clarity. Warmth brushed that tiny spot on his shoulder with each exhale, but it was not remotely enough!

Against all logic, Levi pressed his face harder, seeking more of that sensation. The cell felt frigid when he had his coat on, it wasn't helping his case now that he stood in the middle of it stark naked. That fucker Albert had cut off his pants and underwear after Robert left. It wasn't required to make him any colder, the bastard had done it deliberately to humiliate him. And as much as Levi knew it was all a mind game, he couldn't help but feel that the bastard won.

He felt ashamed, just thinking about having to see them tomorrow while he was like this. Just thinking about being brought back to Hange in this state. Or of Erwin coming here to rescue him, with a dozen other Scouts, only to find him like this. A pathetic, useless, good for nothing piece of shit.

More time had passed, Levi's legs couldn't take it anymore. His knees suddenly buckled beneath him, shaking the shackles above him in a loud dance. Like a chain of falling dominoes, the injuries on his back ripped open, each barely dried line growing separate to erase everything his body had done to heal. 

"Nghhh..." Levi's eyes shut tightly, teeth grinding against an incessant jaw shake.

For a moment, all his other bruises became background. Nothing but the burning on his back registered, the blood wetting his skin anew, burning like harsh salt. He couldn't register the cuffs' pressure that surrounded his wrists, pressing too tight his hands were about to be dislocated from their place. For a moment, all Levi could do was dangle in the air, feeling more of his skin rip open, but finding no strength at all to stand and fix it.

All he got were wobbling legs, burning with spent energy. He could not remember the last time his body betrayed him like this...maybe never. Regardless, he pushed against his limit, bringing himself back up arduously after a long moment. 

Levi closed his eyes, inhaling in short breaths that left him out shakily. It seemed like doing this alone took away much of his energy enough that he was panting. He remained like that, head lolling forward, legs barely carrying his weight, muscles shuddering uncontrollably.

Only when the blood on his back dried and the burning calmed did Levi open his eyes again.

Twenty more minutes passed, Levi's legs gave out again. Fuck, it felt agonizing! But against any fiber of his being, he forced himself to stand back, again. 

"Levi." He heard Hange call for him.

She did that every time he moved the shackles, but he was too exhausted and in too much pain to answer her. It was good that she never insisted, only called him once and didn't do it again once she received no answer—

"Levi?" She called again.

Levi rested his head against his shoulder, jaw trembling. 

"Levi......Levi..." 

Fuck.

"Yeah." He strained.

"Are you okay?" Hange asked, her voice coated with concern. "—I know—I know you're not 'okay', but you do know what I mean."

Levi closed his eyes, turning his face to bury it against his skin. He was not fucking okay. 

" 'M fine...Mhm..." He replied, voice trembling, a mere pained breath.

"What?" 

Levi swallowed. " 'M f-ine." He repeated louder.

"Are you shackled standing? Your legs must burn by now."

Levi let his head loll against his chest, looking at his feet again. He didn't want to talk, he did not feel like talking. He was pained and exhausted and he did not want to talk when he looked this pathetic. Hange couldn't see him but he felt ashamed from her regardless, even from standing here by himself. Fucking useless piece of shit.

"Levi?"

"Hm-m." His voice shook again. At this point, he wasn't sure anymore if it was the cold or the pain.

"Do you not want to talk to me?"

Levi closed his eyes, returning his trembling head back to rest against his shoulder. His face twisted slightly, eyebrows meeting up in the middle  as his lips curled down.

"...'M jus...tired." He strained, sincere.

"Okay." Hange replied, her voice low and disappointed for holding back much more she wanted to say.

The next hours had grown into hell. Levi's legs kept giving out beneath him many times that his wrists got scraped bloody. At one point, he gave up entirely and remained hanging by the shackles for two hour, knees bended and weight dangling in the air. His legs refused to respond to him whenever he tried to lift, refused to carry him with their strengh fully depleted. By the time he managed to stand, he could not feel his hands anymore. His heart started playing nasty games on him, beating too loud, too irregular. At some point, he believed he was going to die of that, but the outer door shook with a key insert, before it bulged open.

Within a second, the three usual MPs entered the cell.

Robert entered behind them, his steps slow and deliberate. His dark eyes fixated on the captain as soon as he glanced at him —like a predator sizing up its prey— then their shape mooned slightly in a rare display.

"Hmph..." A light snort left the young man, sounding foreign even to the MPs who knew him longer. "...Who did this?"

Albert stopped near a wall to the side, Hans and Bull following near him. "I did." He answered, a little unsure. "Not to be creepy or anything. I just thought it'd make him colder."

"Yeah it's fine, I don't mind." Robert's voice swirled with cheerfulness that had never been heard from him before. He continued to approach Levi, stopping before he reached him in the middle of the cell. The raven kept his head down. Usually, he would keep it up with his damned greys glaring, now, he bowed low enough that his bangs fell like a curtain over his face, hiding every detail. Good.

Levi stared at the floor beneath him, legs heavy with cuffs, everything fucking aching. The air in the cell was still biting, but he could've sworn he was heating up. He didn't dare raise his head, but still felt the weight of every eye in the room falling on him, gawking at him, like some fucking zoo animal. 

Robert looked at him in silence, almost like he was waiting for him to say something, before he went on.

"Well, that explains a lot of what I hear about you, Levi." He noted. "How bout we cut that off next?" Robert threw, like it was nothing, just as he turned casually to the side to order, "Uncuff him."

As soon as he heard those words, Hans looked up. "Sir, he's highly dangerous!" He rushed.

"He's not." Robert replied confidently, motioning to the eldest who held the keys to do as he said.

Albert handed them to Bull, who started with Levi's left hand, digging the key in and taking his sweet time to unlock the cuff. He unlocked the right one next.

Soon as both hands were freed, Levi collapsed to the floor, his knees hitting the ground first before the rest of his body followed with a heavy thud. He remained there, motionless, cheek pressed against the stones, legs utterly spent.

Robert's neck bent down, following the limp body.

"See? Told you he's not." He remarked, the sound of his shoes clicking to approach the raven. "What is it, Captain? Missed taking a nap? Trying to get one again?"

Levi felt his legs scream with relief at the new position, his wrists, Fuck, this felt so good. But he knew it wouldn't be lasting long. Heavily, he turned his head to place it on his arm, hiding his face away from Robert. Even if it was for a short moment, he was going to make use of this. He sensed it was about to end,  in a second, with the next moment of silence and a shoe sole hitting the floor again, then another second, another hit... He was coming closer, steps getting louder—

"Nghhh..." A pained grunt escaped Levi when Robert reached him. A thick brogue plunged into his flank, turning him to lay on his side.

He felt the barely closed wounds on his back tear at some places, his side ache like a dagger had been plunged into his kidney. Before another moment could pass, a second kick hit his abdomen and he was turned to lay on his back.

Levi closed his eyes tight, lips twisting down with a barely contained scream. He felt the slashes on his back burn against the floor, abused skin scraped by harsh stone. Then a weight came above his chest.

Robert looked down, all signs of previous cheerfulness leaving him. His juvenile brown eyes fixated on Levi, usually met with stubborn gazes but now finding only a shield of thick lashes. 

"Look at you. All that mighty strength you've been going on about, claiming it got you what you have." He uttered, lips twisted with disdain. Robert pressed his foot further, sinking into the raven's chest, squeezing all the wounds he had created yesterday and scraping them against the dirty floor. "Where is it now? Why can't you use it to get out from under my foot?"

Levi felt his ribcage about to collapse on itself. He couldn't fucking breath in, each inhale feeling like a pointless struggle gainst an opressing weight. The breaths hardened, the pressure grew, his skin was tearing, then everything suddenly lifted and Levi inhaled in sharp like he was just returned to life. 

Before he could fill up his lungs entirely, another kick hit his flank, this time hitting the side with the oval bruise hard and turning him to lay on his side again. 

"Ghhh..." Levi barely withheld, feeling nausea raise up his throat. If the other one felt like a stab to his kidney—this one radiated all the way to his armpit and hip.

"All that strength you have, why didn't you use it to protect my father the way he had ordered you to?" Robert asked, and with it, Levi felt the shoe hit his back.

"Ahhhh!" All that he was holding back crumbled with that movement. Levi yelled, filled with agony. Cut flesh seperated with the strong leather, melting together into a wide opening of blood.

Robert looked down at it, seeing red both literally and figuratively. Before levi could process it, he raised his leg back and sent it forward again, watching his brogue scrape more skin, creating a wider pool.

"Ahhhh!" Sounds of agony escaped the raven, sounds that Robert liked hearing. Levi felt his abused skin tear, unbearable, nauseating. It was too much he couldn't process it. Too much.

Robert raised his leg and did it again, and again, and again, and again. His lungs panted as his fists tightened at what he had lost because of this runt, it was almost like a demon had possessed him.

Levi could not breathe. He could not think to fill his lungs with air for survival anymore with all that he was feeling. The brogue was hard, Robert's hits were harder. He kept on sliding him aside with each hit, one shackle at his ankle keeping him in place. It felt like too much, too much he was gonna die. 

By the time he gathered the strength to turn, Robert's shoe tip had turned bloody. Levi laid on his back, feeling it burn. The dust of the floor was harsh against it, but he was willing to take that to protect it from another kick. His entire body shook as he stiffened against the floor, completely forgetting about his being naked and exposed. He just hardened like that, grey eyes meeting browns above them, lips sealed and squirming like he was fighting a flood of tears.

Robert looked at him for a long moment, lips twisted downwards, before he raised his leg and kicked him hard a last time, too strong it made his short frame slide a good meter.

"Hmmmm—" Levi closed his eyes hard, feeling more skin dissociate from his flesh. Burn on the way. Blood printed the area he slid against like a testament, as his body was sent into an intese shuddering wave.

His grey eyes opened again, exhales leaving him in successive, shaky breaths. Robert was talking above him. The Mps were talking. Levi could not hear a single thing. And when a stray tear fell from his right eye down his temple, he did not care to consider it, just like he didn't care he was stark naked for them to see anymore.

Hange stood in the cell. Like a coward. Like a worthless, useless tool. Levi was being tortured outside, and all she did was listen.

She didn't yell for Robert to listen to her. She didn't curse him or the MPs. She was just passive, silent, quiet as Levi had wanted her to be, cowardly as Robert had instilled in her.

She thought it was the right thing to do while the visit lasted, she did not want to risk losing her life and not helping her friend. But the longer the time extended since the abductor's leaving, the more she deeply regretted it. 

If only she knew, she would've risked and yelled at them, at the full of her lungs. Even if they came to her, even if they hurt her, if it meant one minute less of hurting Levi. She almost pulled some of her hair with the strengh she tugged at it, too hard and yet it wasn't enough punishment for what she had allowed and hadn't tried to stop; 

It has been about two hours since their abductors left. She heard their steps, the lock, the following silence. And she never heard the sound of levi since.

"Levi." She sniffed through a new wave of tears, voice weak and hopeless. "Please say anything."

Still, silence was all she revceived. 

He would usually do his best to respond, he would never make her worry. She was certain if he had an atom of strength or awareness, he would've. She had called him about a thousand times, and each time, no sound reached her. Not his voice. Not the shaking of shackles. Not of moving his legs...

Then the first idea that came to her mind was that he— No, no, no, no.... 

Hange shook her head, a flow of more abundant tears leaving her eyes as she turned in her place like to run away from her own thoughts.

"Levi." She tried again. Again, nothing.

Nausea twisted her stomach, fear gripping it even more. He had lost a lot of blood, it was only expected. Another session, another loss of blood with her not being there to limit the damage, and he will— No, no, no, no...

"Fuck." Hange punched the wall before her. Her knuckles ached but she deserved it. "Fuck! Fuck—fuck—FUCK!" She repeated, punching it again hard enough to bruise. "Levi. If you're not—if you cannot reply, then at least make a sound. Any little sound."

Laying down on his stomach, back completely ruined, Levi's lips pursed slightly like he wanted to say something. No sound managed to escape him. No movement. 

He heard Hange's forced breath, unmistakable of a diaphragm contracting and exhaling all air along with tears. 

"If you can hear me but cannot reply, then please hang in there. Just a little longer. Someone has got to come." Hange stopped, inhaling through a wet nose, a shaky breath. "Please Levi."

Levi's hand twitched before him, unable to move more than that mere spasm. Fucking weakling, causing her worry, fucking good for nothing piece of shit. His swollen eyes remained on his hand, watching it attempt to click the ground but fully fail, like he was trapped in his own body. He was lucky to even be able to see through the narrow slits his black eyes left.

The sound of the door behind him filled the air. Someone was in. They went on, to the cell, to Hange.

Hange rose up immediately and waited by the door to the sound. It merely took a moment for Bull to appear before her.

"Hey, how is Levi? Where is he? Did you take him away?" She asked.

"Why would we take him away?"

"Please tell me how he is!" Hange's eyebrows twisted, both begging and scared. 

The MP was very quiet. He kept his gun pointed in one hand, the other one passing the water pot and a piece of bread past the door before he turned to close it.

"Please don't leave me like this! You know if you want to torture him long he should be alive. Bring him back, I'll patch him up so it lasts longer, please!"

Bull snorted. "Not sure if that can help him now."

Hange’s eyes grew wide, frantic. “What does that mean?” She asked quickly. The man turned around and aimed his slow steps towards the outer cell. “What does that mean!?” Hange repeated with a yell. In a second, only the MP's shadow remained, before it disappeared completely to the side...