Dormant Wings | A Levi Fanfiction

三十二 The Ambush

~32~

"Hurry, get in. You'll be safe here."

I trail behind the mysterious boy, practically stepping on his heels to rush through the door after him. Slamming the unstable door behind us, he sets Atlas' panicked body down on a nearby cot. When he moves away to go fill an empty bucket with water, I sit by Atlas' side in order to hopefully bring her back to consciousness. She must've passed out during all the commotion.

After getting knocked out myself by Albrecht, the boy had shaken me awake persistently since he couldn't carry both mine and Atlas' bodies alone. We got out of there as soon as possible, with me blindly following this random stranger who I seem to trust.

"Thank you for saving us," my voice comes out in a cracked whisper, and for a moment I think that he didn't hear with his back turned to me.

"Tch. I didn't exactly do it for you," he finally returns, carrying the full bucket of water to the bedside. He wets a rag, unexpectedly pressing it to my burning and injured side that was stabbed not too long ago. I let out a hiss at the pain. "That man's been stealing my stuff for the past couple of weeks. You guys just happened to be there when I chose to make a move against him."

"We still appreciate it," I insist, taking the rag in my own hands so that he can press another to Atlas' head. When Albrecht threw her against the wall, it looked pretty rough. She may have a concussion.

How could this have happened? How could the two of us have fallen so low? We're constantly trying to avoid danger, on the run from my crazy brother-in-law, and still mourning the loss of my family above. This was the only place we thought that we could hide from Albrecht. Clearly, we were wrong.

The boy shakes his head, not making eye contact with me. "What are you two doing in a place like this, anyways? You can't be more than ten years old."

"Nine," I answer, ignoring his question.

"You're handling a stab wound pretty well for a nine year old."

I sniff a little, trying to contain the tears that threaten to pour from my eyes like a flood at any moment now. If he knows that I'm weak—more so than I already appear—he may not think us worthy of helping. He may decide to toss us back to the streets like lost causes.

"My name's Kaira," I blurt out. "This is Atlas. She's ten."

He nods absentmindedly. "Levi."

"Kaira! Wake up!"

"Get up, Kaira. Now."

The two mixed voices of Mikasa and Levi uncomfortably close to my ears cause my eyelids to lift slowly and painfully. When the distorted shapes and colors in front of me finally clear, I'm able to make out the concerned face of Levi melting into one of relief.

"What happened?" I grumble incoherently.

My head shifts to the side a bit, catching a glimpse of another limp body a few feet away from my own. I let out a small gasp when I recognize that he isn't breathing.

"This maniac came barreling in through the window and caught you by surprise," Mikasa answers, starting to help me up. "Levi killed him, but based on the sounds coming from outside, it seems that there's more where he came from."

"Grab your bag if you can steady yourself," Levi adds, checking the window cautiously. "We're leaving sooner than planned."

I do as he says, casting one last glance at the man lying dead in the center of the floor. Following the two Ackermans out the door, I start to wonder when in the past I've seen the dark uniform of the unknown man.