Someone Just LIke You. Levi x Titanshifter!reader

      “You can do this, (Y/n).” Eren said, “Just breathe.”


      You stood in the center of a field, only a few miles from the Recon Corps Headquarters. Eren stood in front of you, with Hanji and Levi a fair distance away on horseback. You took a deep breath, shuddering slightly on the exhale. Slowly, you lifted your hand to your mouth, letting it rest on your lips for a moment.


      “Remember,” Hanji called from her horse, “You’ll need a clear goal before transforming, so focus on the idea of picking him up.”


      You glanced up at Eren, who stood calmly in front of you, as if you weren’t about to turn into a giant Titan. Though, he would be more used to it than most. And of course if anything went wrong he could transform. Gathering your resolve, you opened your mouth, closing your teeth around your hand in one quick motion. You waited for the spark that signaled the transformation. Nothing happened. Confused, you tried again.


      ‘Maybe I didn’t bite hard enough.’


      Still nothing happened. You looked up at Eren, a panicked expression on your face as you bit again, this time leaving a small trail of blood down your palm. He held out a hand cautiously toward you, as though calming down a wild animal. Seeing as you could taste the blood on your teeth, you probably looked like one.


      “Oi, what’s going on?” Levi called out to the two of you.


      Eren turned to face him, “(Y/n) can’t transform.”


      The Lance Corporal spurred his horse forwards, quickly closing the distance between you. As he came to a stop, his gray eyes glanced up and down your form. After a moment he turned back to Hanji, who had followed him over, exchanging a few quiet words.


        He turned back to you, “You’ll be sleeping here tonight.”


      Your eyes widened, “Here? In the middle of a field?”


      “If you go back to base, you may accidentally set off a transformation inside. Which would be rather problematic. So you will stay here tonight. Do I make myself clear?” He asked in a low voice. You cast your eyes downwards.


      “…Yes…”


      “I’ll send someone out later with blankets and such.” He said then turned to Eren, “Go find your horse, the rest of us are heading back.”


      Giving you one last sympathetic glance, Eren followed the short Captain to where both of your horses had been tied up. Only a few minutes later, the entire party- including your own horse –was on its way back to headquarters. You watched as the mass of horses and soldiers slowly faded from view before plopping down onto the ground, resting your head on the grass.


      “Well this has just turned out to be a fantastic day.” You groaned to yourself.


      If only you had been able to transform. Now thanks to that stupid Lance Corporal, you were stuck sleeping outside tonight. Though, you didn’t really hate him that much for it. He did have the best intentions for everyone at heart, even if he didn’t show it. The way he cared for his men was rather admirable, and may have been part of the cause of your teeny tiny crush on the man. Of course, you haven’t told anyone about it. Half of the people you knew would laugh at you, and the other half would try to set you up with him. Neither option was really that desirable.


      Levi was never really one for emotions, and you doubted that he would even consider liking someone in the Corps, let alone someone like you. So you settled for trying to hide your growing crush from everyone. This had become increasingly difficult after you all figured out you possessed the same shifting ability as Eren. How you had gained this ability you didn’t know. The only clue you even had it was when you had fallen from the roof when cleaning the windows last week. Your leg was broken during the fall, and multiple deep cuts had dotted your arms. To everyone’s surprise, yours included, your injuries had healed in a matter of hours. Hanji immediately jumped on the opportunity to experiment on you, and so you became her test subject. You had yet to even transform once, and you were still doubtful you even had the ability. However, Hanji was insistent that you could, so you were stuck being her guinea pig. And wherever Hanji was, Levi was usually nearby, whether by his own will or not.


      You let out a sigh before rolling onto your side, curling one of your arms under your head. If you were going to be stuck outside by yourself, you might as well use the opportunity to catch up on sleep. Under the setting sun, you let yourself slowly drift off.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


      “Oi, brat. Wake up.”


      “I said wake up.”


      You yelped as a foot connected with your side. Still disoriented from sleep, you staggered to your feet, assuming a (probably pitiful looking) fighting stance. As you blinked, you slowly realized who had been the one to wake you. You straightened, giving a rigid salute.


      “Sir!”


      Levi rolled his eyes before tossing you one of the bundles he had under his arms, “Here, you’ll freeze without a blanket.”


      You dropped your salute to catch the bundle, “Thank you.” You glanced to see that he still had a second bundle, “Who is that one for?”


      “Me.” He said bluntly.


      You blinked, “You’re sleeping outside too?”


      He scoffed, “I’m the only one who could take you down if you transformed. Until we get this sorted out, you’re staying by my side.”


        “O-Oh,” You stammered, “That makes sense I suppose.”


      You stood there staring at the wrapped up blanket in your hands, “…I’m sorry about all of this.”


      His expression didn’t change, “It’s not your fault. Now get some sleep.”


      You nodded laying down on the ground and pulling the blanket over yourself. Levi moved to do the same, settling down to your immediate right. You blushed slightly before rolling onto your side, hiding your face from the Lance Corporal. You stammered out a good night before closing your eyes and falling back asleep.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


      ‘This blanket is really warm…’


      Your eyes slowly fluttered open in the morning light. Despite the cool air you felt on your face, you were surprisingly hot. You shifted slightly, confused when something seemed to be blocking your movements. You froze as realization dawned upon you.


      You were curled up next to Levi, arms wrapped around his middle. His arm rested underneath you, pulling you to his chest by your shoulders. Your legs were tangled together, and the scratchy blankets were pulled over the two of you.


      Your face burned red, and you were glad that he was still asleep. Slowly you tried to pry yourself off of him, but he let out a mumble and pulled you closer. You were petrified. Not only were you in a rather… intimate position with your crush, you also had no way of getting out of said position.


      ‘This is it, this is how I die.’


      You stiffened as Levi began to stir. Slowly you moved your gaze to his face, freezing as your eyes met his. There was an awkward silence until you felt his arm disappear from your shoulder. He moved to stand, and you quickly scrambled off of him. He stretched his muscles, arms extending high into the air, before wordlessly collecting the blankets and striding over to where his horse was tied up.


      ‘Is he not going to say anything?’


      He folded the pieces of fabric, stuffing them into a side bag on the saddle, “Hanji and the others will be here around noon to bring us food and continue the experiments.”


      “Er, understood, sir.” You fumbled out, still flushed from earlier.


      “Until they arrive, you and I will clean up around here.” He ordered.


      “But we’re outside.” You protested, standing up. He turned to face you.


      “Not an excuse. Now go collect those fallen branches and move them out of the way.”


      “Y-Yes, sir.” You said, reluctantly moving to complete the task while Levi did god knows what.


      It ended up being far more difficult than you anticipated. While the branches were pretty small, they were hopelessly entangled. You spent a good chunk of time getting tiny nicks from snapping branches as you struggled to pull them apart into more manageable pieces. Luckily, the cuts seemed to heal quickly, leaving only small red marks behind. When you had finally managed to break them apart and pull them out of the way, you were exhausted. You trudged over to where Levi’s horse was tied up, plopping down underneath the shade of the tree.


      Levi stepped in front of you, “What do you think you’re doing?”


      You wiped the sweat off of your forehead, “Taking a break. It’s hot out, and that was tiring.”


      “Tch.” He looked up in the sky, noting the sun’s position, “It’s getting close to lunch. Hanji and the others will be here soon. I suppose a break is permissible.”


      You let out a sigh of relief, cutting it short as Levi moved to sit next to you. It seemed like no matter what he did made you flustered, especially after waking up so awkwardly. You prayed the others would get here soon, hoping that their presence would lessen the tension.


      “Do you regret joining the Scouting Legion?” Levi asked abruptly.


      “W-What?” You stammered, caught off guard, “Why would you want to know something like that?”


        Levi stared straight forward, not saying a word.


      “Well…” You thought for a moment, “Sure things are hard here. I have to live knowing that this might be my last day, that I might not see my friends again tomorrow.”


      You paused, “But I don’t regret my choice.”


      Levi turned to face you, curiosity in his eyes.


      You continued, “People live every day in fear of the future. They’re scared that they might be in an accident, or that they might get sick and leave their loved ones behind. Yet they still keep living on. Here it’s not a matter of if, but when. In a sense, that’s almost easier to cope with. And in the meantime I’m part of a great cause. One day we’ll be free of the Titans, and that’ll be one less thing everyone else has to worry about.”


      You looked back at Levi, shocked to see his eyes slightly widened at your answer. After a moment his stoic expression returned.


      “I see.” He said simply, “So you have no regrets in life then.”


      “Of course I do.” He raised a brow, “But my biggest regrets are when I didn’t take action, not when I did something wrong.”


        “What if those two are the same?” Levi asked quietly.


      Now it was your turn to be confused. Until you remembered what had happened in the last expedition.


        “Captain, what happened in the Forest of Giant Trees was not your fault.” You said, “There was no way you could have known something like that would happen. Your squad wouldn’t want you to beat yourself up over their fates. If you hold yourself back because you’re afraid of the same thing happening again, then what did they die for?”


      He was silent for a few moments, “So you’re saying it would be better to make rash decisions than to do nothing?”


      “I wouldn’t word it like that, but I guess so.” You said, “After all, we’re only here for so long.”


      “That’s all I needed to know.”


      Before you could ask what he meant by that, you found your lips otherwise occupied. Once the shock wore off, you closed your eyes, returning the soft kiss. Eventually, he broke away, your foreheads resting together. You opened your mouth to speak, but Levi cut you off.


      “No regrets right?” He said softly.


      You let out a slightly dazed giggle, “None at all.”


      “Am I interrupting something?”


      You jumped backwards with a yelp as Hanji walked over to the two of you. Your face was bright red, but Levi seemed as emotionless as ever.


      “Yes, actually.” He said simply.


        “Well too bad, it’s time to work on (Y/n)’s transformation again.” She said, a huge grin on her face. She turned to you, her expression shifting to one of concern.


      “(Y/n)?”


      You were sitting there, a mortified look on your face. Good god you were so embarrassed you could die. You weren’t lying when you said you didn’t regret it though.


      “(Y/n)? Your skin is starting to… steam.” Hanji said cautiously. You looked down at your hands, realizing what was about to happen.


      ‘Oh shit.’


      KABOOM


      Soldiers went flying as a bolt of electricity danced around your figure. In your place rose a 15 meter class Titan, with long ragged locks of (h/c) hair blowing in the wind.


      “(Y/n)!” Levi called up to the figure once he regained his senses. The Titan looked down at the small ground of soldiers.


      “This is great!” Hanji squealed, “Now we’ve got two Titans on our side!”


      The Titan lifted its foot high into the air.


      “Squad Leader! Look out!”


      Moblit quickly pulled Hanji out the way moments before the giant foot came crashing down. Stunned, Hanji’s look of amazement switched to one of horror.


      “Oh god, she doesn’t have control over it.” She realized, “Levi! Get (Y/n) out of there!”


      Levi was already strapping on his 3DMG when he heard Hanji’s call. He was nearly knocked off balance when giant footsteps began to shake the earth. He looked up, prepared for a fight, before realizing that you were running away from the soldiers. Not wasting any time, he mounted his horse, taking off after your retreating figure. With growing horror, he realized where you were heading. The headquarters was just beginning to appear in the distance, unaware of the threat heading towards it. Spouting off curses, Levi urged his horse to speed up.


        “(Y/n)!” He called out again, only this time you didn’t respond.


        He shot out his wires, embedding them in your shoulder. With a grunt, he leapt off his horse and shot towards you. Placing his feet on your burning muscles, he used his wires as anchors to support his weight. He was just about to go for your nape when you turned your head to face him, skidding to a stop. You extended your arm behind you, seizing the Corporal before he had a chance to escape.


      You moved your closed fist in front of your face, staring down Levi, who attempted to break free from your grip. Seeing as he couldn’t even move his blades, cutting himself out wasn’t an option. At the very least you didn’t seem to be doing anything other than stare at him, but he had no idea how long that would last.


      “Oi, you little shitty brat.” He called out, “I know you can hear me.”


      You made no response.


      “Now, come out of the titan and I won’t punish you.” He ordered.


      He gasped slightly as your grip tightened, cutting off his air. Spots swam in his vision as he struggled to breathe. Despite his struggles your face remained emotionless.


      “(Y/n), this isn’t you!” He wheezed, “Snap out of it!”


      Your hand trembled slightly, as though silently debating. Slowly your hand opened up, giving Levi room to stand on your palm. Other than that, you remained still. Levi remained on your palm as he gasped for air, worried that if he moved you would simply grab him again.


      “Oi, did you hear me? Come out!” He called again.


      Your hand began trembling violently, forcing him to crouch to maintain his balance. Your eyes slid shut and you threw your head back, letting out an earsplitting roar. Levi staggered from the concussive force. It cut off as quickly as it started, and he felt your body begin to drop. He quickly leapt off your body, managing to get out of the way just before you hit the ground. Though the body began to disintegrate, nothing appeared at the nape.


      “Shit.”


      Levi quickly climbed over the mass of muscle, rushing to the base of the neck. Carefully, he positioned his swords at the skin, cutting off a slice in one swift motion. Underneath you lay unmoving, despite the intense temperatures surrounding you. Dropping his swords, Levi plunged in his arms, wrapping tightly around your middle. With a sickly tear, the flesh relinquished its hold on you, sending him tumbling backwards off the corpse with you in his arms. He landed on the ground with a thud, cushioning your fall with his back. The sound of hooves quickly began to approach.


      “Levi!” Hanji called out, slowing down her mount.


      “Over here!” He sat up, cradling your head in his lap.


      She dismounted, running over to your position, “Is she okay?”


      He watched your chest rise and fall, “She’s not waking up, and her breaths are shallow.”


      “We need to get her back right away.” Hanji said.


      Levi nodded, standing and lifting up your body into his arms. He quickly strode over to his horse, placing you on the saddle and hoisting himself up. Once you were secure, he gave Hanji a nod, and the group took off back to the old castle.


      “Hang in there, (Y/n).” He muttered, urging his horse as fast as it would go.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     

      “Ungh.” You groaned as you forced your eyes open. You glanced up at the plain ceiling above you, confused as to how you ended up in a bed. The last thing you remembered was-


      You let out a gasp, shooting up from your pillow and swaying slightly when a wave of dizziness overcame you. Something tugged at your wrist, and you glanced down to your hand where someone’s fingers were intertwined with yours. Your eyes traveled up the person’s arm, stopping on their sleeping face. Levi’s head rested on the mattress next to you, half buried in blankets. You felt tears begin to sting at your eyes. He had almost died, because of you. If you had squeezed just a little harder…


      You lifted your free hand to your mouth, attempting to quiet your sobs. It didn’t work for long, though. Levi’s eyebrows furrowed slightly as his eyes opened, quickly catching sight of your tear stained face. Without a word, he let go of your hand, leaning over the mattress and enveloping you in a hug. You quickly returned the embrace, burying your face in his chest and letting your tears fall. He said nothing, continuing to hold you even after you stopped crying.


      “I’m s-sorry, Levi.” You said, your breath still hitching in your throat.


      “For what, idiot?” He asked, running his hand through your hair, “You had no control over yourself.”


      “That’s exactly it,” You pulled yourself away, “I nearly killed you. Just because I couldn’t control myself.”


      “But you didn’t.” He reminded you, “I’m still here.”


      “But I- mffph.”


      You were cut off as Levi smashed his lips onto yours, effectively silencing you. After a few moments he pulled away.


      “It’ll take more than a near death experience to get rid of me.” He said, “What exactly do you think I do during expeditions?”


      You gave a dopey simile, “I guess you have a point there.”


      The room lapsed into a comfortable silence before a question began nagging at you.


      “…Levi.” You started, “How long have you… er.”


      “How long have I had feelings for you?” He finished. You nodded.


      “I don’t really know,” He admitted, “Does it really matter?”


      “No, I guess not.” You said, “I was just curious. It just all seems rather sudden.”


      “I suppose I was just afraid before.”


      You raised an eyebrow, “Humanity’s Strongest, afraid?”


      “Afraid of losing you.” He confessed, “Afraid to start something, only to have it ripped away.”


      You were silent for a moment, “Well, if Eren is anything to go by, titan shifters seem damn near impossible to kill. You won’t be losing me anytime soon.”


      “I’ll hold you to that.” He mumbled, closing the distance between the two of you once more.