Recall - Levi Ackerman x Fem OC (An Attack On Titan /// Shingeki No Kyojin ff)

Chapter 8 - Trauma

"Leah!" Levi threw himself off his horse and fell to his knees beside the unconscious female. His hands took hold of her face as he lifted it up to inspect it. Her eyes were closed, lips parted slightly. He gently placed her head to rest on the ground and moved an ear to her chest.

B-dm B-dm B-dm.

Levi let out the breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding in. I'm going to keep at least one of my squad alive he thought as he hauled the girl into his arms. With a slight struggle he mounted his horse, propping the unconscious girl behind him and holding her arms in place around his midsection to prevent her from falling again. In the position she was resting against him in, Levi could feel the rapid but reassuring patter of her heart against his back.

He took in the strangely comforting feeling for a moment before, "Hyah!" Levi kicked off and his black stallion surged forward. Surprisingly quickly they caught up with the rest of the Corps. The Karanes gate was only a couple hundred yards away now. He raced to the front, soaring ahead of even the leading lines.

"Levi!" Erwin called after him, but Levi rode swiftly forward, deserting the regiment and bolting for the gate. "Something's wrong with Leah, I need to get her to safety!" Levi's voice carried back to his Commander. Erwin's brow furrowed in concern, worried for his friend, but his soldiers needed a Commander right now. This was up to Levi.

The gate to Karanes was already partially open in preparation for the Scouts return and this meant Levi was able to gallop straight into the town without a second glance at the guards who were shouting after him. He kept moving until he found quieter streets, ignoring cries from the gathered civilians as he rode at full tilt past in his Scout uniform.

"The Scouts are back!"

"Is that Captain Levi?"

"Who's that he's got with him?"

"What happened? Where's the rest of the Scouts?"

"Is she dead!?"

"Wait, here come the rest!"

Levi rode further into Karanes until the wailing of the crowd had faded out completely. He'd arrived at a small, empty market square, in the middle of which sat a moss-ridden water fountain. Levi was quick to check that the female was still breathing, which she thankfully was. He didn't know if he could handle being the only member of his squad to survive this expedition.

He moved them both off the horse's back and onto the cobbled ground next to the old fountain. Levi cradled the unconscious body of his Co-Captain in his arms until he grew uncomfortable with the proximity. He propped her limp body against the lip of the water fountain. Her head lolled awkward to the side so Levi, feeling irked by the angle her neck was at, sat down next to her and shifted himself so their bodies were touching. Her head now rested against his shoulder and Levi found himself internally praying nobody would show up and witness the sight.

"Hurry and wake up, will you?" Levi sighed at the unconscious woman next to him. He hesitantly reached up his hand to sweeped away the bronze hair from her face before pressing the back of his hand to her forehead. Your temperature's perfectly normal and you don't seem unwell... maybe this is all just mental? A soft groan came from the woman's parted lips. He retracted his hand immediately, his body jerking back, not wanting to be caught so close to her. "Leah, are you awake?"