Chapter Text

- — ·:*¨༺♱✮♱༻¨*:· — -

Unlike the wings of a bird, soft, free; lies as red and hot suffocating the atmosphere.

The cold swarms around every area, to every corner. It grows close and thicker until red light shoots in the center of your vision.

Rubbles, debris and blood everywhere.

And little slipping hope; people screaming, and running away from the very scene.

You squint your eyes open, only to see hazy swirls all over the place. You had hit your head, hard. When you attempt to pull yourself on your feet, to fix your lying position, your lower-half disobeys you. More like, you’re disobeying your aching body.

A boulder is against you, pressing your legs against the solid and the dirt ground. A sharp cry leaves your lips the moment your arms extend out to prod the boulder in effort, an attempt to push it off of you, yet your head is still spinning.

How long has it been since you were knocked out cold?

Your comrades. Where are they? The ringing still hasn’t subsided in your ears, nor is your concentration tugging more towards your pained heart beating. You sluggishly dart your eyes when you were only presented by dead bodies everywhere. 

Many of them.

Everywhere.

Swords, guts, decapitated limbs.

The thick walls from above have been crushed to the earth just as the enemies are regulating more chaos in the island. The sky is pure red, just like the scenery around you, just like.. his body.

His body curled right in front of you.

Levi.

You glimpse at his outstretched arm, his sword stuck between the boulder and your body, almost like an attempt to stop it from squishing you to death.

You hear a gagged cough.

“Levi!” 

He takes what little strength left in him as he jerks his head to glance up at you. You spot it, a hint of relief glinting in his iris, on his blood stained face. It makes a few hair strands sticking onto his face in discomfort, his shoulders moving wearily to indicate he’s still breathing, or what little air is leaving in his lungs.

“Levi.. you stay there, I’ll be there.” You hear your own voice echoing in your ears, like you’re in a dream, or a nightmare.

He responds with a grunt, already slumping against the ground like a ragdoll. “You’ll be here..” 

“Levi!” You call, vision getting blurry, you couldn’t see his curled body slightly other than red, red, and red everywhere. “Levi! Stay awake!.. I’ll find help! I-, just–”

You feel the bile sticking back up in your throat, feel the blood staining your quivering lips.

You knew from the start that the world is done for, your island is done for. Yet, the determination towards the people you trust has been contagious enough for you all to step forward. But today, there’s no more strength and no words articulating out left, you wail, loud. 

In desperation.

Louder than you ever could. It doesn't bother you when your sob cracks between the suffocating breaths you heave.

Under the rubbles shook with your sorry body.

Just a short moment ago, before the invasion, you had wished your blessings for him the moment he mentioned something timid about opening a Tea shop when the war’s over. Maybe just by the street, not far away from your cozy house. You had wished your blessings to all your friends about their future plans if your country would’ve won. 

But there's no winning or losing at all. It’s all carnage.

And at last, you wished your blessings to yourself once the war ends—you’d stick to Levi by his side. If he ever retires from the military, you won’t hesitate to do the same. If he can finally open his cute shop, you’d chirp up and happily be by his side. You’d do anything just to be next to him.

He might acknowledge it or not, you’re just happy that he’ll be by your side, alive.

And now he’s there beneath the red sky, sprawled and lifeless. Along with multiple dead bodies.

Such a cruel world.

It is a cruel world.

Yes, it is. 

After all the things you’re meant to do good deeds, to be selfless, to have the act of making the world better, this is how the world repays you? Your friends are dead, the island is about to collapse until nothing is left but wrecked crumbles and you’re dying.

But such thoughts had made you realize, it’s not your own thoughts at all, it was lured.

Your sense of hearing reaches a deafening ring.

Here, my Star.

You snap your eyes open.

The dizziness and ache detects are no longer there. No longer causing you pain. You’re standing on what seems like the surface of the water, ripples constantly echoing the room. It’s not a room, but a void, perhaps.

The space is never-ending, the more your eyes reach ahead along finding the ends of the water, or some sort of a land, it’s beyond your sight, it’s too long and far for you to know what’s out through the outstretched water.

Dread shivers all over your body and when you look down, you’re all clean and pure. Likely, a silk fabric covering from your collarbone to your ankles. It looks like it has been recently sewed.

There, in front of you where the glow reflects against the water underneath. A tall blond man with his pure white cape dragging against the watery floor.

“What is it that you’re looking for, my Star?” His calming baritone rumbles the ripples beneath the water.

“..W-what I’m looking for?”

He only nods once.

A soft wind echoes near your ear, you stumble on your feet and glance down at your hand.

Smooth, bright and red.

A long red string is tied around your pinky and leads through the never-ending void, yet it’s glowing faintly.

You drag your other hand to the soft string, like memorizing the comfortable material and the glow of it, until the string instantly goes loose around your finger as it whips off from your touch.

It caught you by surprise.

You gasp and hastily run after it, the blond man stays where he’s standing and observes you with his sky-blue like irises.

“..Wait! Levi!” That came out of nowhere.

Levi?  Where did that come from?

You continue running towards it, desperation is in your sweats as the ripples beneath your feet echoes more annoyingly loud.

“My Star.” 

The blond man echoes his firm voice through the void.

“No! I-.. I can’t– I want to see him.” 

“Who is, my Star?” He calmly strides by your side as if your little run is nothing strong to overpass him.

You are sprinting, your legs moving hastily on its own but his walking is from a different time in contradiction.

“You don’t know what you’re risking for.” He implies.

“But I can’t just leave him alone in this dark, empty place.” You grunt once you feel your feet get pulled by the dark water, you slipped. “...He needs light.” 

“Is that so?”

The whipping string still ahead in your sight and just as the beaming red string is about to disappear into the void, the tall man had his grip at the tail of the string just in time, speaking of his dominant and strengthened presence.

“My star, you wished to take care of this.. Torn string despite its fate might possibly have to whip into the darkness.”

You huff a breath, your wide eyes darting between the string then up to the man’s domineering but calm blue eyes. “I can’t just leave it behind.”

Behind? What’s in it for you, though?

But there is a purpose laying beneath your words, your thoughts.

The string must’ve tug you deeper to its existence.

“For your determined yet unbroken intention,” He sighs. “Take care of it.” Then his hand swifts in the air like he’s running a hand in the water, smoothly floating the string back to your open palm.

“Take good care of it.” He hums, stepping back to calculate your reaction. “Then we’ll see how determined your new sole goal is.”

With a snap of his fingers, you feel a hole swirl inside your chest then the red string hooks around your body like a halo. As the wind suffocates the void, you shut your eyes at the gushing presence in you as the string that stays attached to you.

- — ·:*¨༺♱✮♱༻¨*:· — -

Your eyes snap back into the light. Profound light. The light hits you until the smell of something metallic and sounds of rustling and clanking echoing the white pale room.

You’re in a hospital, but a bit modern in the interior of its construction.

And what you’re facing right now is a wide window, displaying multiple newborn infants to their respective small cribs. There, is where your attention landed, a name tag on one of the crib that’s written with fresh ink; Levi Ackerman 

Oh my God.

“Oh my God–” You were about to run into the glass stupidly until you caught sight of yourself.

Wings. Undeniably white feathered wings behind you.

You yelp and spin like a dog chasing its tail. White feathered wings like a dove. Pure clean white that starks a contrast of your natural skin. You flail your arms around your body to inspect yourself further. White robe that reaches below your knees, gold belt and barefoot.

Barefoot inside a hospital? You nearly laugh if it weren’t for the context of the situation. You look around if any audience would be flabbergasted at your new appearance like your reaction, however, many are looking elsewhere but you, unintentionally, unbeknownst to your presence.

You discreetly look upfront again to see a beautiful woman leaning near to the baby’s crib of where your attention first landed earlier.

She must be his mother.

The same silky ebony hair and calm steely like gaze.

Hers are more peaceful and submissive. While the same feature you knew from the past was full of scowls and glares. You nearly missed it.

That’s when it hit you, the statement that blonde man said, to take good care of him. That newborn baby who’s in his mother’s arms. And you, nothing but a spectacle. Or is it only just that? 

You didn’t know by now your angelic-like wings are tucking to your sides like shields, now self-conscious.

But no, you had that sole intention, when you point it out loud without a single hesitation or thought. You will take care of him, and protect him as you are right now.

A guardian angel.

Back then when you were “Alive” —You’re still in disbelief that you encountered death then came back alive as a different being— You and your crew never thought deeper about heaven and hell. Those beliefs were nothing but words to you. Hence, now? It’s almost laughably your existence has become new. Reincarnation, perhaps? But that’s from a different belief, anyway.

Your wings flap lightly to your sides when the woman presses a feathery kiss on top of his soft forehead, whispering barely audible words where he couldn’t quite hear it enough.

It’s so strange to see him this much vulnerable. This young and this.. Carefree. A baby.

He’s literally a baby, you can’t believe it from how you’ve been seeing that usual old frown. And now, he’s a soft-faced baby.

You place your palm hand against the glass, your eyes softening at the motherly bond of his mother giving her affection to her child.

Times like this, you’re going to have to get used to this.