You woke when Levi started to stir. The arm that was wrapped around your back tightened, his chest pressing into your own before he loosened his grip slightly.
He was so warm, you almost didn't want to get up. But the ship had stopped moving, and you assumed that you were docked.
You detangled yourself from him, sitting up and stretching your stiff limbs. Your ribcage still hurt and your head was pounding, but you pushed it all aside.
Levi stirred when you got out the bed, his arm outstretched to pull you closer to him. He frowned as he woke up, his eye fluttering open to see you pulling your boots on at the end of the bed.
He sat up onto his elbows. You turned when you heard him moving, smiling when you saw his hair disheveled, a sleepy look on his face.
"Hi," you whispered as you padded over to him. He looked up at you as you sat on his side of the bed with him.
"What're you doing?" he asked, his voice deep and gravelly from just waking up.
You smiled and leaned forward to place a kiss on his forehead. "To see what's going on," you murmured against his skin. "Go back to sleep."
Levi frowned and sat up a little more. "You're leaving me?"
You sighed and kissed his bandaged cheek. He was so adorable when he was clingy. "I'll be back in a few minutes."
This time, it was you who frowned when Levi started to get out of the bed. You put your hands on his shoulders and pushed him back down. He wrapped his arm around your waist to pull you on top of him, minding your ribs.
"I'm coming with you," he stated, and you raised an eyebrow at the confidence in his tone. He still needed help with walking. It would've been faster for you to go alone.
"You need to rest a little more, Levi." You pulled yourself out of his arms and stood, looking down at him in the bed. When he looked down in defeat, you kneeled next to him and placed a hand on his jaw, turning him to face you. "I'll be gone for a few minutes. I'll come back to you once I find out what's happening."
Levi wrapped his hand around the nape of your neck and pulled you into him. His lips pressed against yours, and you smiled against him. He was going slow, his movements still groggy and laced with tiredness.
He pulled away, but not fully. "Come back to me after."
"Always," you whispered.
Levi's grip loosened on your neck, and after giving him one last smile, you left the room.
The hallways were silent and dark. You navigated your way through the ship, stopping when you saw Hange leaning against one of the walls. She looked up when she heard you, the corner of her lips twitching slightly.
She opened her arms, bringing you in for a hug. "You okay?" she asked.
"Mhm. You?"
"I'm good."
"Do we have a plan yet?" you asked, taking a small step back to try and have a serious conversation with her.
Hange sighed. "We need to wait for Yelena to wake up."
You crossed your arms, annoyed that this was taking so long.
"I have to go and check on Yelena. I'll see you later," she said, placing a hand on your shoulder before turning away and walking up to the deck.
You were about to ask if you should go with her, but a ruckus from behind you made you turn. Levi was trying to walk down the stairs, holding onto the rail for support, with Armin trying to help him regain balance and he walked on shaky legs.
"You should still be in bed!" Armin pleaded.
"Stay in bed?" Levi scoffed. "If I lie down any longer, you shits are gonna forget about all about me. And that bearded bitch who passed out after her arm was broken is awake," he growled. "I'll be damned if we don't make her tell us where Eren is going."
You didn't think they saw you. Once you stepped forward, Levi froze. He tried to straighten up, looking at you with his eye wide open, as if he was a child that just got caught doing something they shouldn't have.
You walked towards Levi, your eyes on Armin as you spoke. "I've got him, Armin. Thank you."
Armin looked visibly relieved as he sighed. He nodded his head in your direction and turned on his heel, going back up the stairs.
Levi fell into you, and you struggled with holding him up. "Why aren't you in bed?" you asked as his chin rested on your shoulder.
"I should be helping. Not lying in bed like some old man," he grumbled.
"You're injured, Levi," you said softly. "It's completely normal to rest. Your body needs it."
Levi sighed, knowing you were right. You frowned as you thought about what he must've been going through. He felt as though he had to be constantly helping; it's what he'd been doing practically his whole life. But he was injured, and you didn't want his health to worsen, just because he felt obligated to help.
You sighed, your grip tightening protectively. "Let's go see what's going on, hm?"
Levi nodded against your shoulder, and tha two of you made your way to Yelena's room.
¤¤¤¤
"What's the plan?" you asked Hange.
"Take off's in about an hour," she said, checking over her gear and encouraging you to do the same. "Annie's staying behind, with Gabi and Falco. Reiner and Pieck are coming with us."
You nodded along as she spoke, trying to hide your skepticism about Annie. You could deal with that later. It was irrelevant right now.
You looked down at Levi, concern evident on your features when you heard him grunt in pain. He had the handle of his gear in his injured hand, trying to press down on the handle with his remaining fingers.
Everyone watched in silence. When Levi finally got the hang of it, his eyes flicked up towards you. "Two fingers is all I need... I'm ready."
You bit the inside of your cheek to stop yourself from smiling at the small joke that was obviously directed towards you. Instead, you reached towards him and placed your hand on his shoulder, silently telling him you were proud of him for still being up to fight despite his injuries.
From the corner of your eye, you saw movement over by Annie, Pieck and Reiner. Hand still on Levi's shoulder, you turned your head to see Annie and Reiner in a friendly embrace.
Your heart clenched. They were all just kids, trying their best to survive in the middle of a war.
Annie turned and started to make her way back towards the boat. "Annie!" Connie yelled, his hand outstretched and waving at her frantically. "Take care!"
"See you later!" Hange was doing the same animated wave, while Jean's was a little more subtle. You squeezed Levi's shoulder when you felt him tense. He was quiet, still unforgiving for what happened five years ago. He looked at her from the corner of his eye, a hurt but understanding aura radiating out of him.
Armin raised his hand slowly, his fingers opening to wave slowly over at Annie.
You could tell by the look on her face that they were in love.
Your heart seized as you leaned down to place a kiss to the top of Levi's head, comforting not only him, but yourself as you tried to swallow the lump in your throat.
"Are you two sure you want to come with us?" Hange asked Reiner and Pieck as they approached. Pieck's eyes looked sunken, and there was a sag to her figure that made you purse your lips. How long had she had her Titan for? "Assuming the rumbling stops, Eldians won't find themselves in a great position..."
"I hate to admit it, but you were right, Hange," Pieck said, her eyes shining with sincerity. "General Magath was leaving us a final order to work together and do what needs to be done."
"Pieck," Hange breathed in awe. "I'd love to ride on the Cart Titan's back sometime and feel its body heat as we-"
"No." Peick stepped to the side. "That took a sudden, creepy turn," she mumbled.
You grinned at Hange's defeated look as she watched as Pieck walked away. She poured at you, and you rolled your eyes as you grabbed her forearm and yanked her into you, hugging her tightly. "When this is over, we're drinking champagne till the sun comes up," she mumbled into your shoulder.
You smiled. "It's a date."
When you pulled away, you figured you should've been helping the others with getting ready for takeoff. You squeezed Hange's shoulder and turned, kissing Levi on the cheek before walking over to your friends.
"I see your love of Titans is still unrequited, Four-Eyes..."
"We'll be pals soon enough," Hange replied.
You walked a little more, a smile on your face until you heard Hange speak again.
"Tell me, Levi. Do you think they're all watching?"
You froze, your heart dropping into your stomach.
"You think we can stand proud before our fallen comrades as we are now?"
"Don't go and start sounding like him."
Somehow, you regained control of your body, your legs moving on their own as your mind wandered. Could they see you? Were they proud of what you were doing?
Jean handed you a flask of water from the table behind him. You took note of the many knives on it, probably being used to cut up rations. You looked up at him and smiled, taking the flask from him. "You okay?" he asked, eyeing your trembling hands.
You nodded and took a swig of the water he'd given you to save yourself from talking, afraid your voice would fail you.
There was a splash behind you.
You turned, your hands reaching for the swords attached to your hips.
Is that- Is that Floch?
It was definitely Floch, wearing the black Scouts uniform all of you had ditched, dripping with water. He raised his gun.
Shots were fired, almost hitting you, and definitely hitting the aircraft you were supposed to be escaping on.
You didn't even think. You grabbed a knife from the table, the glint as it reflected the sun fuelling your confidence to throw. He was far away from you, but your aim was perfect. You threw the knife.
It landed in the middle of Floch's chest, and he stumbled. Mikasa took the finishing blow, rushing towards him with the help of her gear and using the hook to sink it into the right side of his chest.
Everyone rushed towards him, staring down at him with their mouths agape. He was on the floor, bleeding out. But it was too late.
"There are holes in the fuel tank!" Onyankopon shouted.
You face went slack, all the fiery hope that had been in your chest being put out with his words alone. You weren't going to make it out of there.
Some of the Azumabito rushed towards the plane, pulling out tools to fix it. You stood, frozen. Never in your life had you felt so defeated.
The ground started to shake.
Reiner ran outside, with you and the rest of your friends on his heels.
Titans.
There were hundreds- No, there were thousands of them, stomping across the mainland. They were huge, and they were coming straight towards you.
"Armin," Milasa murmured softly. "Do you have any ideas?"
He was quiet for a moment. "Only one."
You knew what he was going to say. You knew what had to happen. So you decided to take the burnen upon yourself to save him the heartache. "One of us has to slow them down."
"I'll do it," Armin stated, his gaze not leaving the Titans before him.
"No! Not you!" someone shouted. You turned your head to see Reiner. "You're our only trump card for stopping Eren." He turned, determination shining in his eyes. "I'll do it."
Why weren't you volunteering? A chance to save your friends and the man you loved. You should've been jumping at the occasion. Why couldn't you form any words?
Your ring burned on your finger. When you looked over towards Levi on the other side of the dock, he was touching his ring.
"That's out of the question."
Your heart stopped. Hange.
"We can't afford to expend another shred of Titan power. I'm the one who led you this far," she stated, the shine of the thunderspears strapped to her waist practically blinding you.
"No." You stepped forward. "No. You can't."
"We killed many friends and comrades to get here," Hange said, and the realisation that you were going to lose her made your whole body shake with fear. "I'm taking responsibility for that."
She walked forward, stopping in front of Armin. She was distracted. You could've grabbed some thunderspears and taken off, saving her and everyone else.
But you kept your eyes on her, your body completely shutting down.
"Armin Arlet," she said firmly, and you couldn't help but notice that she was very pointedly avoiding your gaze. "I hereby designate you the 15th Commander of the Scout Regiment. The position calls for a certain quality - a mindset of continuously pursuing understanding. There's no one more suitable than you. I leave everyone in your hands."
You finders were twitching, practically begging you to reach for the handles of your gear to take Hange's place.
Hange grinned. "Well, that's that. See ya, everyone!" She turned, then paused. "Ah! Levi and Y/N are your underlings now! So make sure you really put them to work!"
Then she started walking away.
As if your body finally registered what was happening, you stumbled after her. "Wait!" You fell against her, your legs failing you as you gripped onto the clothes around her waist from behind. "I'll do it!" She turned in your arms. "I-I can do it, Hange."
She smiled at you and gripped your face in her hands, placing a gentle kiss on your forehead. "I can't let you do that," she whispered. "You know I can't."
A tear slid down your cheek. "But- But we're supposed to make it out of this together..." you pressed. "We're supposed to-"
"You and Levi are going to make it out of here," she interrupted, her thumb brushing against your cheekbone. "You're going to open your tea shop, and you're going to have children, and you're going to name one of them after me." She thought for a moment, then grinned down at you. "Well, maybe just a middle name."
"Hange..." you whispered. "Let me go."
Your best friend shook her head and smiled sadly. "I love you."
No. She was saying goodbye. Your lips trembled as you opened your mouth to say something. "I love you."
Hange turned and made her way towards Levi. A part of you felt relieved. He would stop her. He would stop her and you wouldn't have to lose your best friend. Right?
"Hey. Four-Eyes."
Hange stopped next to him. "You understand, right, Levi? My turn's come at last."
Levi stood still, his gaze on the ground in front of him. Why... Why wasn't he stopping her?
"I have the urge to make a supremely cool exit right now. Don't stop what I've got going," Hange said, her shoulders shaking with excitement.
And then you saw it.
Acceptance. And it was coming from Levi.
He raised his fist and placed in on her chest, right over her heart. "Dedicate your heart."
Hange's chuckle filled your ears as she dropped something into Levi's hand. She started walking away. "That's the first time I've heard you say that."
You looked at what she gave him, and your heart shattered.
Her badge.
You looked up, but she was already gone, her gear carrying her further and further away from you.
A cry ripped itself from deep inside your chest as you reached for the handles of your gear, fiddling with them with shaky hands. But you couldn't grip them in time. Levi gripped your wrist and started dragging you away.
"No!" you cried, trying to pull away. "Hange!" you shrieked. "Hange! Hange!"
Levi pulled you against him as you kept struggling. Your ribs were burning with pain, but you didn't care. Your best friend was flying away, and you'd never see her again.
"No!" you howled. "No!"
Levi couldn't hold you for much longer. He was too injured. He practically shoved you against someone else as he went to help with getting the plane ready for takeoff. Your cries were too much. If he listened to you any longer, he would've broken down himself.
Connie held you against him, but it wasn't forceful. You'd given up. You squeezed your eyes shut, unable to see if your best friend was nothing more than a spec in the distance.
Your body felt numb as Connie and Jean dragged you into the plane. You fell to the floor, curling in on yourself as the two boys sat on either side of you, frantically trying to find a way to comfort you. It was ironic, really. You'd comforted them when their best friend died, now they were doing the same for you.
The plane took off, and your body slumped against the wall, your eyes staring out the window at the sky blurring past.
Levi's quiet voice rang painfully through your ears.
"See you, Hange. Watch us."
She was gone.