Attack on Titan: Beyond Canon

Tell You | Fem!Levi x Petra

Why can't I move? She'll be on me in a second! Petra's panic rolled off her face, her usual determined expression replaced by horror. The bodies of her comrades were fixed in the front of her mind and a despondent voice accompanied the frozen images. This will be you. You'll be wiped out. This is your time. Someone was shouting somewhere far off. She thought she recognized elements of Oluo's voice but it was muffled by the slamming of her own heart against her ribcage. Each slam seemed to shoot the same message through her blood. You're going to die. In those awful seconds, Petra really believed it.

I never told her. The thought that passes through her brain has nothing to do with this fight, this expedition, her mission. The soldier within her scoffs. Ever the professional, huh? Can't even die without her distracting you.

But, her heart reasons, even while panicking, if she had to die, then why not think of her? Why not fixate on those eyes, the colour of water in a storm, of unpolished sapphires still wrapped in the darkness of earth? Why not imagine brushing her fingers through that silky dark hair, and feeling thin lips caressing hers? Why not cling to the image of the one she loved the most?

There was a thin sense of peace in that.

It was broken immediately by the impact of a body slamming into hers, knocking her sideways. The motion broke through Petra's panic and instinct took over once more. Her hooks released from the trees as her fingers jerked on the triggers and then she was falling. Her eyes fixed on the figure that had knocked her, who had taken her place as the female titan bore down on them.

Petra recognized Oluo a second before a gigantic foot smacked him against a tree trunk. The sound of impact along with white-hot rage cut through Petra at once as she plummeted to the ground,

That's three times, you've asked to die, she thought, snarling as she fired her hooks towards the titan. The hooks connected and Petra was jerked upwards and forwards by her navel, flying towards the titan, more specifically her nape. I'll cut every one of your hands and legs, monster. That's a promise. Faster and faster, she soared towards the creature. The world around her turned crimson in her hatred. Come on, come on, give us this.

She was almost there when a giant hand clamped over the nape. Petra continued her advance. She'd slice the hand off if she had to.

The hand swept backwards in a motion so sudden and so fast that Petra's attempt to dodge was somewhat late. Her body dodged the back of the creature's hand but the fingers bashed into her whole body, stealing all of her breath and yanking her backwards through the air. Pain spread through her.

Her hooks released again and the titan charged ahead, free from attachment. All the while Petra flew backwards for a few seconds. She slammed hard against solid bark. The pain swimming through her intensified in a second, accompanied by a shoot of bile flying up her throat. Vision blurred, Petra released a groan as her body tumbled forward, dropping onto a massive branch. Pain turned into agony which turned into oblivion.

—

I never told her. Levi cursed as she and Mikasa sped away from the slumped female titan. I never fucking told her.

The only body not accounted for in the massacre of the original Special Operations Squad was Petra but the likelihood of her being able to take down this titan alone was slim and Levi couldn't see Petra giving up the fight that easily. Plus, the captain couldn't shake the terrible possibility from her mind that there may be no body because Petra had been eaten entirely. The forest floor was drenched in enough blood for that to be true.

It was just as well that Mikasa was the one carrying Eren's filthy, slimy, unconscious form right now. Levi's grip on her equipment was brutal. Pain throbbed in her head as memories poked at her wall of resolve. Grieve later. Get the brat to safety first.