Angel With A Shotgun [Levi Ackerman x OC] / Attack on Titan / Shingeki no Kyojin

Code XXVIII: Alleviating the Pain

The next time Xora woke, it was because of an immense pain; her own yelp startled her awake.

"Oh, I'm sorry," a soft voice apologized, gentle hands around her stomach rubbing some kind of soft cloth against her skin. Xora blinked her eyes into focus and was surprised to find Mikasa wrapping bandages around her torso.

"Wa—ter," Xora croaked, noticing the dry patchiness of her own throat.

"Eren, you heard her." There was some restless shuffling from the other side of Xora's bed, where the young man was sitting. Socked feet scuffed across the carpet floor and out of the room, returning after a couple of short minutes.

"Here you go, Archangel," Eren offered, handing over a glass of water. "Drink slowly." Xora attempted to grab it, but she flinched when her shoulder moved, another spasm of pain shooting up her arm. Eren placed one hand behind Xora's back and lifted the glass to her lips. Once her cracked lips graced the cool rim, she downed the entire glass, soothing her dry throat.

Once the glass was empty, Eren placed it on the nightstand. Mikasa finished wrapping Xora's new bandages and stood, one hand holding long strips of bloodied ones. Her gaze was fixed on Eren, where Xora's own eyes drew. It was then that she noticed how tired he looked, the dark bags underneath his set of evergreen eyes much darker than she remembered. The whites of his eyes were tinted a slight red, and they were noticeably puffy.

"It was not your fault," Xora reminded him, a slight scratch to her voice. Though it ached to move, she placed a hand on his arm. "Eren, I know. Do not blame yourself. I was there, too. Their deaths were not your fault. Turn this grief into something else. Something greater."

Eren looked at Xora with an expression of reluctant surprise, but it fell into a small, forced smile.

"Thanks, Archangel," he said quietly, lightly brushing his fingertips over the white strips of bandages wrapped around his temples. "But... how is that possible when I'm the reason why you're here now? Like this—with four bullets in you? Goodness, how are you even alive?" He shook his head and held his face in his hands.

"Worry not. I'm like this because of mistakes I made myself; it was my job to protect you, Eren. If only I had done something different, I could've been able to save everyone. So please, I ask that you don't fret and leave it to me. Perhaps I'll have the slightest chance of alleviating the pain that you suffer. You're much too young to be this sad, Eren."

"Aren't we all?" He lifted his head and flashed Xora another smile, and although it was miniscule, this one was genuine. Placing his hand on top of Xora's, he was silent for a few moments. "I should leave you to rest. Mikasa and I were only in here to change your bandages." Mikasa readjusted the gown upon Xora's torso to cover the bandages.

Eren stood and exited Xora's room, Mikasa trailing quietly behind without making a single sound. Once she was at last left in solitude, she could do nothing but stare at the ceiling; she didn't know how much time had passed, or what had happened in between then and now. Her memory was only vaguely filled with lots of pain, exchanges in dialogue between others, and medicine—mounds and mounds of pills. She suspected they were mostly painkillers, but she'd been secretly hiding them under one of her pillows. One by one, she was weaning herself off of the drugs; she refused to take any more painkillers, knowing that very soon, she would begin to experience true pain.

Of course, there was a very clear and distinct memory of a warmth that enveloped Xora like a blanket, offering comfort with just its presence, but she chose not to brood over it too much. With wandering eyes, her glittering hues finally landed on one of the digital clocks installed on the far wall of her bedroom. They widened when they spotted the date displayed beneath the large numbers; the date of this day was exactly twenty-six days since the start of that night.