Chapter IV: My love
"Eren!" Levi is whirring by his own squad, trying to get to the other leader as fast as his wires can take him.
The rain pours down in buckets as Eren struggles to keep the titan's jaw open while holding Ymir against his chest. They are about to be swallowed up and all he can think about is dropping Ymir to one of his cadets. "Captain!"
"Hold on, Squad leader!" Armin and Mikasa fly through the air simultaneously, trying to get to the titan's nape in time before Eren is killed. The rain is coming down harshly, blurring their vision as they try to get to Eren, nearly colliding with each other. "Captain!"
Petra reaches the jaw, preparing herself to carry both Eren and the infant alone if she has to. "No, take the infant first, don't worry about me."
"Sir, you are our top priority though, I'm only following Captain Levi's orders." Petra can't say anything because then Eren is shoving Ymir to her and there is a loud snap of teeth.
Just like before, the rain continues to pour loudly as all scouts freeze entirely. Petra's face pales, her hands trembling while Ymir starts to wail loudly. Mikasa and Armin are frozen, eyes wide as they see their squad leader gone in a matter of seconds. Levi dangles in the air, everything slowing to a halt in his eyes at the sight before him.
No, not again.
All Levi sees is red after that.
~~~☺~~~
A day before
The sounds of birds whistling signal dawn approaching, the sun starting to rise. The impact of sleeping in his gear takes a toll on Eren, feeling metal dig into his thighs and arms. He wraps his scarf hastily, being careful of the netting under his weight. Taking in his surroundings, Eren sees the captain watching the sun rising with Ymir in his arms, watching the captain. From the looks of it, it seems like Levi is talking to Ymir too, but quietly to not wake anyone. It's an adorable sight that Eren never expected to see on the captain but lately, he's witnessed many surprises.
Yesterday's events were still a bit confusing to him since he transformed into a titan. When he did that, he was suddenly back in the Paths, noticing Ymir standing there by herself as usual. But when she touches his forehead, it's almost like he fell asleep. Ymir uses his body to speak directly to her children, regardless of whether or not they know what truly happens to them in the future. That is if Eren didn't come back to change everything to avoid the Rumbling.
"Eren, I want to be free of this just like you, I want to come with you."
He blinks a few times at her words, was it even possible to leave the Paths? If so, why didn't Ymir try doing it sooner? Perhaps she didn't have the motivation to, but she also wasn't in the right mind. Ymir had been following the order of the royal family for over two thousand years, like a slave. They both were a slave to a fate that they couldn't control until death.
Even with those words, he didn't expect for her to emerge with him, like a newborn that was sleeping peacefully in his arms. Hot steam rose from his skin as he held her cautiously, too surprised at the time to notice Levi or Hange calling to him.
"Eren, you're finally awake."
"Yes, sir. Would you like me to take her now?" Levi hums, giving Eren the infant while he finally stretches his aching muscles. The infant coos in Eren's arms, making him smile, something he hasn't done in ages. Levi notices, of course, eyeing the younger man as he set his harnesses up, seeing that familiar twinkle.
"Leviiiiiiii!"
"Oi, shitty glasses, shut it will you?"
Hanje realizes what they've done, quickly tipping over to get a closer look at the infant in Eren's arms. They coo at it, seeing Ymir's eyes widen a fraction at the intrusion Hanje makes, eyes close to the baby's face. Eren smiles when suddenly, Ymir starts wailing, her wails echoing through the entire forest quickly. The scouts around them suddenly become alert, watching down below if there are any signs of titans yet.
"Jaeger, get to a higher branch, immediately, that's an order."
Eren flies to another branch just as the sounds of rumbling are heard through the forest. Looking back, he sees Squad Levi flying in the air, meticulously slicing through each titan's nape.
A loud snap is heard in the air as he's suddenly falling at a fast pace, holding onto Ymir tightly. He hears his name being called but Eren collides with the earth before he can even move. The air is knocked right out of him, ribs threatening to give under the sudden pressure from the hard fall. This can't be the end already, he thinks, getting his blades ready with one arm, the other holding Ymir tightly.
He flies through the air in seconds, making sure Ymir is strapped to his chest tightly. Eren snarls, his blade cutting through the nape of a titan. Swirling through the air, he dodges the fingers trying to catch him like a fly, his grappling hooks attaching to every tree in reach. There are three-meter titans running after him though, arms flailing as they run.
"Eren!" Mikasa snaps out of her daze, wires connecting to trees to follow her leader through the forest. The rest of the squad follows quickly, taking each titan as they get closer to Eren's proximity. There are too many titans that Eren's squad can kill alone though, like a swarm of bees going for honey. Levi and his squad, trying to catch up as other squads follow closely behind, killing titans as they go.
Eren slides onto grass, his boots digging into the muddy parts. "Ymir, I know I shouldn't do this, but stay here, don't move." He wraps his cloak around her, placing the hood over her small head to keep her hidden enough.
He runs back in, flying through an entire entourage of titans, slicing through them all. His body twirls gracefully, titan blood steaming on Eren's face as he passes. But the hard part of all this is that these titans were once people, fellow Eldians that were punished by Marley for different reasons. Part of him likes to think that he's taking them out of their misery, being trapped in a body they never deserved.
Hot, steaming blood drips down Eren's face, blinking it away from his eyes. It stings but Eren tries not to let the pain distract him as he lands on the ground again. He can see titans forming in a circle around him, gnawing their teeth, fingers trying to reach Eren's position. They're closing in and Eren only has blunt blades now, sure they could work for now but they can't hold for very long. Taking a chance, Eren pushes off a nearby tree, spinning in a full circle while nearly hitting all of his targets' napes at the same time.
Panting, Eren stumbles as he manages to get back to where Ymir is, hands trembling slightly. She starts to tear up though when a drop of blood touches her small forehead. "Shhh, we can't have you screaming anymore, otherwise more titans come. We don't want the titans now, do we?"
A small whine is his answer, a good enough one for Eren.
Behind him, waves of steam roll off into the air, the bodies of once titans now disintegrating. The sounds of wires moving fill the silence, coming closer to Eren as he holds Ymir. "Eren!"
Hanje is the first to run, followed by Levi and his own squad. Levi practically sprints to Eren's side, a hand gently moving to touch the shifter's lower back in support. "That was a close call, Jaeger, must have been the brat."
Eren hums in agreement, rocking Ymir to get her to fall asleep, clutching her tightly. "Her wails might've called for the titans since she was in distress for a moment. Though I'm not entirely sure yet."
"We have to be more careful than with her, otherwise we could have a massacre on our hands."
~~~☺~~~
Utgard Castle is cold and empty as their welcome, water dripping from the rain the other day. The horses are given water and some hay for the night while the remaining squads went inside. The place was pretty dusty with plenty of cobwebs and dirt mixed in. No one has the energy to start cleaning to the captain's standards any time soon though.
Eren stumbles up the flight of stairs, his body aching as he reaches his assigned room for the night. Levi is not far behind him, tutting about all the cobwebs and the dirty windows. He places a wiggling Ymir on the bed, taking off the many straps that tightly wrap around his body. He falls face-first on the nearest pillow, feeling the weight of the baby crawling on his back. Eren's down to his long sleeve shirt and a pair of cotton underwear.
"Ymir---"
The baby rolls onto his spine, wiggling her way up to his head, refusing to move from her position. Eren grumbles, trying to lift his head under her weight when the door opens. He doesn't move, giving in to Ymir's wiggling little arms as she lays down finally, spread out completely.
Levi can't help but watch the scene, finding it adorable in some way to see the baby laying on the squad leader. She's already drooling on Eren who seems to not care whether he's slobbered on or not. "Eren---"
"What?"
"Those sheets are dirty and I brought new ones for you."
"Try getting her off me first and we'll go from there."
Ten minutes later minus a few sniffles and protests, Eren is resting on new, fresh cotton sheets. Ymir lays next to him, eyes wide open and puffy from her few tears. Levi sits in a chair, watching them attentively while also doing some paperwork on the day's events.
Eren watches as Ymir tugs on his finger tightly, babbling something as she stares. It's clear she won't go to sleep anytime soon if he doesn't do something soon. So Eren does the only he can remember from his own childhood.
A dream is a wish your heart makes
When you're fast asleep
In dreams you will lose your heartache
Whatever you wish for, you keep
The lullaby continues as Eren sings the words quietly, watching Ymir's eyes start to close completely. He can't help but watch, a small smile forming on his lips at the actions.
"Goodnight, Ymir."
~~~☺~~~
The next day is uneventful as the scouts clean every inch of the castle until it's sparkling. There are various members that grumble and complain while washing the stone floors. Eren has nothing to complain about though, taking his time to clean each room to the captain's standards. He doesn't even know that Levi watches him from the corner of his eyes in approval that someone got it right.
Ymir is being watched by Mikasa and Armin, doing everything they can to keep her attention away from wondering where Eren went.
When evening comes and dinner is prepared, Eren finally takes care of her, humming the song quietly. He eats with Ymir in his lap, a hand running through her soft blonde tufts of hair. Conversation goes on quietly while everyone eats, enjoying some sort of peace. Levi grumbles, drinking his tea next to Eren and keeping an attentive eye on the brats across from them.
Connie and Jean are arguing about something while Sasha tries to steal their food.
Everything is good until it isn't which Eren understands in some way. He learns to not get his hopes up that much because titans are not easy to get rid of.
"Captain! There are titans surrounding the castle."
Levi curses, already ordering his squad to get their gear on as quick as they can. Eren can tell it'll be a long night already, feeling Ymir start to fuss. He peeks out the window, surprised to see the rain pouring down in buckets, pattering against the stone.
Yes, definitely a long night again.
~~~☺~~~
If there are titans surrounding the castle, that means Zeke is nearby. Which means Eren has a chance to find him before anyone else. He stumbles down the stairs, running into the rain and out of sight. This is a bad idea but Eren needs to find where Zeke was. His voice would call for titans and they came in swarms so this is was something.
They slide through the rain, slipping in the mud and running with blurry vision. He curses, holding Ymir tightly while trying to find the large titan form of his brother. But all the rain makes it ten times more difficult, setting everything in a blur.
There's a silence that follows as he finally gives in, puffs of air showing how cold it was outside. Eren stills, almost feeling a looming presence behind him. Ymir starts to whine in his arms as his eyes widen, hearing the familiar rumble of feet coming. He pulls a blade out, looking around for something to happen.
A gasp emerges as large fingers engulf Eren, fingers squeezing him in a vice grip. His breathing picks up, fists banging against the titan's hand. "Wait--!"
Growling is heard from above as the smell of titan breath comes closer. Eren thrashes, feeling his sides being squished by the large fingers, hands trembling around Ymir. Ymir wails loudly, using her little lungs to fill capacity as the titan holds them.
"Ymir no—-"
Other titans start to come forward, running full speed to where Eren is. But the titan holding them has their own ideas, raising the shifter to their mouth, ready to eat Eren and Ymir away. Raindrops down on his face as Eren is lifted, staring down the large teeth and throat of the titan. Within the blink of an eye, he falls, barely holding on to Ymir as they reach the open jaw. The mouth is warm and sticky at the same time as Eren uses his blade to keep them from sliding down further. He uses the titan's teeth for his wires to connect, crashing into the ivory bone with force.
Eren pushes on the teeth aggressively, kicking as hard as he could. Ymir's small, chubby hands cling to him as he hears cracks spread through. The cold air is inviting enough though as they reach the surface. Seeing Levi and the squads flying in is relief enough for Eren as he sticks a blade between the titan's jaw to keep it from closing.
"Eren!" Levi is whirring by his own squad, trying to get to the other leader as fast as his wires can take him.
The rain pours down in buckets as Eren struggles to keep the titan's jaw open while holding Ymir against his chest. They are about to be swallowed up again and all he can think about is dropping Ymir to one of his cadets. "Captain!"
"Hold on, sir!" Armin and Mikasa fly through the air simultaneously, trying to get to the titan's nape in time before Eren is killed. The rain is coming down harshly, blurring their vision as they try to get to Eren, nearly colliding with each other. "Captain!"
Petra reaches the jaw, preparing herself to carry both Eren and the infant alone if she has to. "No, take the infant first, don't worry about me."
"Sir, you are our top priority though, I'm only following Captain Levi's orders." Petra can't say anything because then Eren is shoving Ymir to her and there is a loud snap of teeth.
Just like before, the rain continues to pour loudly as all scouts freeze entirely. Petra's face pales, her hands trembling while Ymir starts to wail loudly. Mikasa and Armin are frozen, eyes wide as they see their squad leader gone in a matter of seconds. Levi dangles in the air, everything slowing to a halt in his eyes at the sight before him.
Their eyes meet briefly and he knows that this may be the last time, whispering the captain's name solemnly.
Levi lurches forward, blades slices through every part of the titan's body. All he sees at that moment was when he couldn't save Furlan or Isabel when they needed him the most.
It's a blur of silver flashing through the sky and dark green with red eyes. The titan biting down on Eren falls to pieces, bringing the shifter down with them. Levi snatches him out of the air though, landing a few feet away safely. Smaller hands tightly grasp Eren's waist as he tries to look at the captain but Levi looks away already.
"We need to get back to the walls already, Hange's squad is already there."
The scouts agree, quickly getting on their horses to follow their captain and leaders. Eren stays silent the entire rest of the way.