Remember Your Promise - Levi Ackerman

Chapter 20

Dedicated Chapter Song: Resurrect The Sun - Black Veil Brides

For the darkness has broken our homes. All that we wished for, like fools on a rope.
I can feel it- the desperate control. A burning passion when love takes its toll. Yet souls have a reason and I won't let go!

(Anna)

Levi kicked the pastor in the back when he'd paused for a moment in shock to see all the refugees from the nearby towns. "No one said stop," he said. "A rolling stone gathers no moss." For the first time Anna had seen, Pastor Nick talked. "This is..." he tried to say. Levi leaned close to his ear. "Maybe you expected to see something quaint?" he growled. "This is what happens when the Walls give." Thousands of people were crying, or just downright terrified from what they'd seen. Some young kids were crying for their parents. Pastor Nick gasped, ready to run out into the crowd. "No," Levi spoke, grabbing Nick by the shoulder with one hand to hold him back. "Take it in, holy man. These are the faces of human beings who've lost everything they ever had." Anna watched from the stairwell, knowing the feeling all too well, for she was once one of them hundreds of years ago. "Human beings you and your kind abandoned incidentally. Hard to look at it, I'd imagine, but if the Church had its way this would be all of us."

"Reasons like this are why fewer people are inclined to believe in the Wall Religion. Wouldn't you say there's been a tremendous decrease in believers since the Fall of Wall Maria?" Anna crooned. "Titans would pour in and make a feast of what's left," Levi warned the pastor. "Shoveling man, woman and child down their putrescent guts. All humanity digested as one." Anna didn't need to see the man's face to know that Levi was probably making him piss his pants. She grinned. "That's my Levi," she mumbled under her breath and headed down to Hanji and the rest of the crew.

"I'm not a child anymore, Rose! You don't need to protect me! I can handle myself!" Ruby yelled at her sister. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm still alive! No thanks to you." Rose slammed her foot on the ground. "Dammit, why won't you listen to me, you ignorant brat?! You go out and fight those demons, you're going to die for certain!" Ruby clenched her fists. "Maybe you should have a little faith in me instead of remembering me when I was in the Underground! I've killed more Titans that you've probably ever seen! I have 20 kills and 23 assists! What do you have?!"

Rose glared at the stubborn girl. "It's my job to look after you and I said you're not going on this mission." Eren walked over to them. "Why not? She's clearly an experienced fighter. If we get ambushed again, we're going to need all the help we can get." Ruby motioned to Eren. "See?! He agrees with me!" Rose rolled her eyes. "Eren will agree with anyone who speaks in his decibel level, Ruby. That doesn't mean he's smart." Ruby kicked Rose in her shin. "Damn you! I'm doing this with or without your permission! The fate of humanity depends on it! I'm not going to just cower back into the Underground like you did!" she stormed off. Rose pursed her lips in anger. "There she goes again."

"You two should really get some counseling..." Eren thought aloud. "Oh, like you and Mikasa are any better." she scoffed, walking away. "Hanji wants to see you, by the way." Eren looked over as Anna and Hanji were looking over the battle plan. "You wanted to see me, Section Commander?" Hanji nodded. "Eren, good, you're here. Now pay attention," she said, reading from her clipboard. "Once we leave Ermich we'll be in Titan territory proper." she began to walk away, so the two of them followed her. "Eren," Moblit called. "Well enough to ride a horse yet?"

"Yeah, should be able to manage one without much of a hassle," he replied. "Saddle up, then, soldier. There's a mount waiting for you on the left lift." Eren nodded. "Right." Anna breathed out as she caught a glimpse of Levi watching her. She broke away from the group and walked over to him. "You've got something to say or are you just going to continue giving me death glares?" she crossed her arms. "The latter," he replied. Anna narrowed her eyes. "Okay, what's really wrong here?"

"What's wrong is that you've supposedly remembered everything, but you act like nothing has ever happened." Anna stared at him before laughing. "So this is about us?! Why didn't you just say so?!" she cackled. Levi's eyes held their stoic expression. "You're amused by your recent actions?" Anna chuckled lightly. "I'm amused by your actions, Captain. Have you forgotten we're in the middle of a war? We can't spare a second for foolish endeavors." Levi's eyes flashed at her. "...foolish endeavors? I never imagined you, of all people, would call them such things." Anna sighed. "Levi, as much as I wish we could live a decently normal life and just be together, we need to wake up and face reality. Look around you." she motioned to everyone scrambling with weapons, supplies and battle strategies. "Does this really look like a peaceful life?"

"No one ever asked for this." he retorted. "And if they did, they deserve to rot in hell for the millions of lives they've cost us." Anna smiled faintly. "There's your head. Always thinking like a soldier. It's one of the things I love about you." Levi glanced at her. "Tell me honestly, have your feelings changed at all?" Anna's dropped her hard shell of emotions, letting him inside her wall of vulnerability. "Of course not. Levi, I'm still very much in love with you. I always will be, no matter what happens to either one of us. I'm just trying to keep everyone alive right now. More importantly, I'm trying to keep myself sane." she turned around and slammed her back against the wall beside him. "This sucks," she mumbled.

"Yeah..." Levi agreed with a sigh. He reached down and gently took Anna's hand, intertwining their fingers. "We'll make it through this together. This I swear." Anna gasped softly, looking over at him to see his entirely stern expression. "...swear...?" she whispered. "Everyone's always promised but...never swore on anything." she looked ahead, her eyes filled with determination. "Then I swear it, too! When this is all over, we can finally settle down and be a real family. Mark my words..." her eyes flashed. "Those Titans will pay."