What Lies Beyond || AOT Boys x Reader

Chapter 14: Fever Dreams

When Erwin had asked Corporal Levi to look for you, he thought he meant inside the castle.

Yet here he was, already drenched from just taking a simple step outside. He shot a glare at the taller man next to him. "This brat better be worth freezing my ass off, Erwin." He grumbled, pulling up the hood of his dark green cloak.

"(F/n) is probably in the forest. I want you to search a part of it while me and Hanji search other parts." Erwin ordered, ignoring Levi's previous statement and trudged father into the mud.

Levi sneered in disgust at the muck that stuck to the sides of his boots. Hanji giggled at his obvious distaste and pulled him along after their Commander. "Let go of me, Shitty Glasses."

"C'mon, (F/n) is probably a human Popsicle by now!"

Levi rolled his eyes. "What does everyone see in that brat? She's not that great."

Hanji raised an eyebrow, a sly grin forming on her lips. "Ohoho, is someone jealous?"

The Corporal scoffed and ripped his arm from Hanji's hand. "No."

"Ahuh." The brunette snorted in disbelief. "I think you're jealous because (F/n) is the talk of the town, not you."

"I am not jealous of a shitty brat who has some skill. I don't see what the big deal is."

The Corporal saw Erwin glance behind his shoulder, a slight hint of disapproval inside his eyes, but quickly gazed ahead once more when their eyes met.

"You just haven't gotten to know her yet, Levi! (F/n) is such a great girl!"

Levi didn't respond, letting the conversation drop off into silence. The muddy trek continued on like that until they reached the dense forest. Lighting flashed in the sky, followed by the rumbling thunder. Levi swore it started to rain harder, the chilly drops seeping through to his skin, making him numb.

"If you find (F/n) bring her back to base." Erwin commanded, turning to the left side of the forest and releasing his hooks into the trees, soon disappearing from sight.

On the right, Hanji did the same and left Levi by himself. He stared into the dark, looming forest and grumbled out some complaints. Soon he was moving through the forest with speed and ease. His grey eyes squinted in the dark and the heavy rain. How the hell was he supposed to find you if he could barely see?

It had already been almost an hour and Levi was tired of looking. But as if Lady Luck was on his side tonight his steely eyes caught the slight movement of a small mass huddled on a tree. Not sure if it was a wild animal or a human being, he landed a few meters away and watched.

A loud boom of thunder reverberated the air and the small blob on the tree shot away with the familiar whir of machinery following. But suddenly she was falling much too quickly, her hands reaching for anything to break her fall.

Springing into action, Levi sped up to you and buried his hooks into a near by tree and swooped down. His hand snatched your arm, his fingers wrapping around your wrist like an iron shackle. The heaviness of your body and the added weight of the maneuvering gear jarred his arm, his teeth clamping down on his lip harshly from the jolt of pain.

When your eyes slowly opened and looked skyward, another flash of lighting ignited the sky and illuminated your face. From what Levi saw, your (e/c) orbs were alight with a hint of panic from falling, but mostly filled with surprise when you saw him.

"You're a stupid brat." He hissed, readjusting his body so that he could grab you with both arms instead of one.

You scowled and let him hoist you up on a thin tree branch. "It's not my fault it started to rain." You muttered, trying to put some distance between Levi's suspended form and you. His sharp grey orbs eyed you from head to toe, noticing how violent shivers raked through you, your lips tinged blue from the chilly rain.