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heybeybey · 3 years

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Hey there! I just read your newest story, your heart on the line, and even though I avoid nsfw like the plague, I read and loved it so much, it was so beautiful, i legit cried! If you are taking requests, could you write something short with slow dancing rivetra (no nsfw)? Slow dancing fics are my weakness. Once again, great job on your last work!

Helloooooo I'm so sorry this took a week! I'm glad you liked ‘and it was your heart on the line’. That means so much to me and I'm glad I made you cry 🧡 Anyway, I decided to also use this prompt for this Mother's Day. Hope that's alright and thanks for sending this over!

I was also listening to pov by Ariana Grande. I think this fits Levi's feelings for Petra so much.

I wanna trust me The way that you trust me Ooh, 'cause nobody ever loved me like you do I'd love to see me from your point of view

Anyway, Happy Mother's Day to Petra because she did act as the mother to her team lol

Words: 1,307

Genre: Romance, Fluff

Rating: G

Canonverse, set around 7 to 8 years after the rumbling. Other than the slow dancing, this fic also features wheelchair Levi because I love him so much + a 6-year-old Ackerbaby.

When Izzy asked her father what their plans are for Mother's Day, Petra said that she'd be happy with just staying home and ordering something for the three of them. While they did have enough money to splurge once in awhile, their modest income from the tea shop she and Levi established four years after they left the military was only enough to support the basics.

It's been three years since they opened the store's doors and while the tea shop has been picking up, they still have to take into consideration their future savings for Izzy's university tuition years from now. Not to mention that they were trying for another child.

So, of course, Petra insists that she would be alright if they had a simple celebration instead.

But Levi, who has the tendency to dote on his family and often insists that they get the best of the best, took them to an establishment that's situated in the city's more upscale neighborhood. He said that there's a restaurant there with live music, and it passes his standards of cleanliness so he's sure that Izzy won't catch something.

And while he hates these kinds of establishments and would prefer if they just drink tea—

"Like an old man," Izzy huffs at his initial suggestion, way too blunt for her own good and not hesitating to call out her father on his tendency to be boring.

—both Petra and his daughter loved singing and dancing around their house that he thinks it doesn't really make much of a difference. He'd already resigned to his fate but hell, it's Mother's Day. Petra's excitement when he mentioned what they'll be doing for the day was more than enough to make up for the next few (probably chaotic) hours.

And now here they are, enjoying the last few plates of their dinner while Izzy bounces around along with the upbeat songs played by the band.

"Oi, don't stray too far." Levi scolds his daughter. Petra was quick to pull Izzy back so that she'll stay next to their table, while still being able to enjoy the music.

The band eventually shifted to a slower tune, urging couples in the room to grab their partners.

"I miss slow dancing," Petra fondly says. "Remember those balls we had to go to Levi? You hated those so much."

"Tch, yeah. Those parties were just a fancy way for the Survey Corps to beg for funds," Levi notes. "But I bet you and the three idiots loved getting dragged to those events."

"Who would've thought Gunther would be great on the dance floor," she laughs at the memory.

Their 6-year-old tugs on Levi's sleeve eagerly, eyes looking between Levi and the dancing couples. "Papa, dance with mama!"

Petra pats her daughter on the head. "That would be nice Izzy, but your father-"

"Sure."

Petra's brows shot up at that. She and Levi rarely danced. In fact, the only time they were even at a dance floor together was back when he had to save her from a creep of a noble who won't stop hitting on her.

"Are you sure Levi? You said your knee hurts if you stand for too long." Petra takes his hand, thumb grazing his. "We can just sit here and watch."

"It's the least I could do for the mother of my child," Levi says, shrugging. Deep down, he's already dreading the fact that he has to dance in public. But again, this is Petra's day. She'd always strived to make him happy and he'd want to do the same for her.

A corner of his lips tugs up slightly as his own unique way of smiling for her. He then places all his weight on his arms to push himself up using the arm rests, grabbing one crutch to support himself. Petra stands with him, ready to assist in case he needs her while Izzy claps in excitement.

"If you're sure..." Petra says, face starting to light up with a stupid smile. She starts to lead him to the dance floor with Izzy in tow, used to following her parents around whenever her father needs to stand and her mother needs her help in supporting her dad.

When they've found a spot not too far off where his wheelchair is, Petra directs her husband to put both his hands on her shoulders, grateful that they were almost the same height, while she wraps her arms up his back so that Petra would be the one supporting most of both of their weight together. They fumbled around awkwardly at first, especially since their form was different from the other couples around them. When they're both sure that Levi won't fall over, Petra takes the crutch from him and hands it over to Izzy, while the little girl enthusiastically takes it to watch her parents dance.

The band plays a slower song, same as the previous track. The mellow tune and heartfelt lyrics carries throughout the room and Levi can see how the couples all fall into step with the rhythm. He suddenly feels a little self-conscious, a bit bitter that he can't be the one guiding Petra on the dance floor. However, he softens at her smiling face, knowing that such a thought wouldn't even cross her mind. She did marry a retired soldier who now can't even stand properly and giggled the whole night after he proposed, despite people saying that she could've enjoyed her younger years with someone else.

What a peculiar woman.

They start to sway to the music, a little bit more sure with each step they took, and looking more like they're just hugging and rocking from side to side. He eventually leans his forehead down to press it against Petra's and he breathes in her vanilla perfume.

"Oi, Petra." Levi whispers. "Thank you."

Petra hums, eyes closed as she takes in this soft moment between her and her husband.

"What for?"

"For this. For sticking with me 'til the shitty end." Levi coughs as a way to cover his awkwardness. "For Izzy."

She opens her eyes at his words, eyes and heart melting at the fact that Levi was pushing himself to express his feelings vocally. Petra allows him to continue, knowing that he might shut up if she started talking.

"I never expected a family," Levi continues, voice starting to stutter and eyes starting to shift away from hers. "But I'm... grateful that I got the chance and that it's with you. Uhm... Happy Mother's Day, I guess?"

Petra starts to tear up, tilting her head slightly up to give him a kiss on the tip of his nose.

"Levi, I wasn't kidding when I said that I wanted to devote myself to you." She only gets a soft kiss from Levi in return with that statement. Petra smiles against his lips, cupping his cheek while still making sure she's supporting his side with the injured leg.

They eventually slow their swaying to a stop once the band starts playing a faster song, Izzy popping up once again next to their side and asking her parents to dance with her. Levi, whose knee was starting to ache at the time he had to stand and even dance, had to sit back down. He still urges Petra and their energetic daughter to enjoy the night.

He watches from his wheelchair as the two most special girls in his life light up on the dance floor, Petra spinning Izzy around in her arms as their daughter giggles out loud.

#rivetra #levi x petra #ackerbaby #rivetra baby #petra x levi #rivapet #mother's day fic #rivapeto

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lenacker · 4 years

Text

To Raise an Eaglet

Kuchel and Levi’s life in my Meet The Ackermans Modern! Rivetra AU

This is my longest work yet, Word count : 2654 words

"So you're not coming here for Christmas?" Kuchel holds her phone to her ear with her shoulder, while cutting the vegetables on the cutting board. She was preparing some special stew from her beloved son’s cute, little family.

"No, I’m working on a very important case, Mom. I.."

"Wait, wait," Kuchel wiped her hands to her apron, re-do her ponytail, and now holding her phone with her hand, meanwhile the other was on her hips. "don't say you're not even coming home to Petra for Christmas Eve? For fuck's sake Lev, that's intolerable! That’s your very own birthday! Don't put your work before your family! If they're gone then who are you working for?! What's the use of money when you have no one to spend it with? Seriously, I don't remember raising a man that's ........"

Levi took a deep breath, putting his phone on the desk while his mom kept rambling here and there. He loves her so much, but she always talks too much for her own good. Sometimes he even wondered how they share the same genes with the difference between their amount of words they can say in one breath.

When he put the phone back to his ear, he didn't hear the nag of his mother. Instead, the woman he heard since he remembered sounds like she's on the verge of tears.

"..... but I guess it can't be helped, huh? It's okay then, it doesn't like I've prepared anything, anyway. Say hi to Petra and the boys for me."

Kuchel sighed, pushing herself with her hands against the countertop, and looked to the ceiling to prevent her tears from falling. Why is she crying, anyway? It's not going to be her first alone Christmas! She spent plenty of them alone, trembling from the cold (and starvation if there are not enough customers in the brothel).

Until one Christmas when she’s 20, she got a great gift she never even dared to imagine, a beautiful, little bundle of joy she named Levi. He came with such unbearable pain, blood, and tears but the moment she heard him scream and laid her eyes on him, no, even from the first time she felt her baby's move, she knows she wouldn't be alone anymore.

I'm gonna protect you, she whispered while cradling Levi's tiny head against her chest, tears streaming from her tired eyes, We’ll live a better life together.

Life felt less ugly for a while. She had to hide her baby whenever a customer came, but it gets less lonely with a cute baby looking at you with such wonderful blue eyes. She hopes he doesn't grow up so he won't understand what kind of world they live in.

But of course, he grows. And in the process, Kuchel saw how unfit the environment they're in for a child's development. She saw how Levi started to laugh less, his skin pale and almost translucent. He stopped saying 'I love you' back when he's around four, instead, he would just hug her silently. He stopped moving when he had to hide from her customers in the tiny cupboard, not moving an inch. Not making any sound. It made her worried sick, she couldn't see if he's ok from the bed. Can he breathe properly? Is it normal for a 4 years old boy to stay still for hours?

At the age of six, he looks like a very malnourished four years old vampire-boy. His voice became raspy, his eyes darken, his cheeks sunken. In their city, it's difficult enough to find decent food when you have money, it's even harder when you don't. Sometimes he would give her some crumpled money he somehow finds, tells her to keep it to buy a new house so no scary men come to hurt mommy. That's also the year when she realized she has the disease that has been spreading around. Of fucking course. The disease takes over her entirely. In just a month, she can't even get up from her bed, her body feels like it's on fire.

And the worst thing, she can't work nor provide food for little Levi. But he never asks for it either. He stayed with her on the bed, caressing her face with his bony hand. Around midday, he would get up, go for an hour or so, and come back with some half-decent food and bruises. Her heart ached every time he put the food inside her mouth, whispering 'please get better, mommy' with his raspy voice.

She hoped she could ask him where he got the food and the bruises, tell him there's no way she could get better without any treatment, or simply say thank you because she's the one who was supposed to find food, but she couldn't force any sound out of her throat. Sometimes she sheds some tears, which Levi always reacts with a sad 'sorry mommy, I can't find better food'. It hurts even more. Sometimes she wondered if keeping him and bringing him to this cruel world is a mistake. Or if she's being selfish to want a friend in her lonely life.

Then she decided to give up. She kept her eyes shut, feeling how her body struggled to keep her alive. She let the darkness consume her.

But she didn't die. She didn't know how much time was passed but when she started to gain consciousness she heard the beeping sound beside her.

Where am I? Her body does not hurt as much. She opened her eyes and was welcomed with Levi's beautiful blue-grey eyes right in front of her own.

"Levi?"

Wait, did she just talk? Did she really make a clear, understandable word? Well, that’s the first.

She observed her baby's face and noticed how he looks .....more like a normal child. She raised her hand to touch his surprisingly slight chubby cheeks, but he's faster. He moved down to hug -more like crushes, actually- her. He buried his face to her cheeks, mumbling long incoherent words to her cheeks. She felt how her cheeks moisten by his warm tears, how his body trembled, and wondered how she even thought of leaving this precious boy.

"There's Kenny," Levi said once he calmed down, "he brought Mommy here and taught me to fight" then he proudly showed her some of the moves she recognized as Kenny's with a paring knife.

Kenny was a weird one, he always was. He's her only brother, but he never acted like one nor was there for her. He went to jail for killing some folks when she’s about ten. The last time she saw him was when she's pregnant, and he told him to abort her pregnancy. Of course, she refused, so he left without saying anything.

"What did you do with Kenny, baby?" Did he teach you anything bad? killing people? He's a little bit psycho. Much to her relief, they just have some knife and martial arts training, then eat whatever food Levi wanted. Well at least her brother gave him food and brought her to the hospital. At least he keeps Levi alive even though he never approves of his presence.

A few weeks later, she's allowed to leave the hospital. She has been unconscious for three months, apparently. Kenny came, he took care of the administration and payment, drove them to a simple-clean apartment, left some money then left without any unnecessary words. They have never been a normal sibling with a heartfelt relationship but still, Kuchel hoped he would say something, where does he live now, why did he come, does he have any wife and kids, anything.

And so, their brand new life began. In the morning Kuchel would bake some simple cookies, walk Levi to school while giving her cookies to shops along the street then she went to a supermarket near their home, where she worked as a part-time cashier. Then when her shift has finished, she picks her son home and takes her money from the shops.

Years passed, their life gets better every day. Levi had poor social skills, but he managed to befriend two nice, orphan kids; Farlan and Isabel. Like everything he loves (Kuchel herself, a hand knife he got from Kenny, multi-functional stain remover, etc.) he was a bit overprotective. She had to meet the headmaster more than three times during Levi's first two months because her son 'created a commotion' when the only thing he did was protect his friends' dignity with his fists. She didn't think it's bad. Kuchel always knows Levi is such a kind and sweet boy, he just prefers to show his crude side (from Kenny or their previous place, she's not sure). So instead of telling him to stop fighting bullies, she told him words can hurt more than any blow. And it turned out surprisingly well, he never 'created trouble' again. (Saying hurting words is not considered trouble, how weird).

In the blink of an eye, Levi became a handsome man wearing an immaculate suit, kissing Kuchel's cheek before leaving to go to his office for the umpteenth time.

"Don't forget to find me a daughter-in-law," she said teasingly, handing him lunch. Her son pretended to look disgusted, then smiled softly "I don't think I can find someone as pretty and amazing as you, Mom. See you!"

Ever since he turned 30, she kept reminding him that 29 is the average marriage age for a male and he would answer with the answer he just gave her this morning, or "Nobody would want to marry a grumpy, constipated looking man, Mom" or, "I will once I find the right one".

Kuchel knew her son was admired by many (he always bring home at least two bags of chocolates on Valentine's Day), he's good-looking (not that tall due to the malnutrition in his early years, but still, even the old lady next-door had mentioned that he's hot). His salary as a detective at the Criminal Investigation Department is high enough to afford both of them that he forced her to quit working and enjoy life. But she's as stubborn as he is, so she sneakily still bakes some cookies and sells them to a bakery far enough from his office.

About two hours later, right as her oven timer rings, the front door of their apartment opened, revealing a furious Levi. He only wears his shirt and trousers, the suit he initially wears this morning in his hands. Thankfully he didn't notice the freshly baked cookies because he’s too busy muttering curses angrily, something about an airheaded, bitchy woman.

Woman? Well, that’s interesting. Kuchel couldn’t recall when’s the last time her son mentioned anything about women (never). Aside from Isabel and Hange 'shitty-four eyes’, that is. She raised one of her eyebrows, wondering if this could be the beginning of the hater-into-lover relationship she often watches at Korean dramas.

“Oh, you’re home early. Something happened?” she asked as neutral as possible despite her giddiness, leaning against the doorframe of Levi’s bedroom. He was buttoning his white shirt, annoyance still clear on his face. However, he forced a grin.

“Nothing, Mom. Just a friend of Hange’s. She smeared some cake cream on my suit. Don’t know what she’s thinking.” Kuchel nodded understandingly, what a daring girl to do that.

“Is she pretty?” She asked once more, already imagining a scheme upon how they would fall madly in love.

Her son looks surprised, or somehow like someone who just remembers he forgot something important. He took his tie and walked to her, letting his mother tie it around his collar. (She secretly appreciates how he let her do it, despite knowing how to do it himself. It makes her feel needed) While she ties the red garment, Levi looks intensely to her eyes and mumbles, “ShehasbigeyeswiththesamecolorasyousoIguess.…”

Throughout the years, Kuchel noticed that despite being sweet and kind (to her, at least), her son has difficulties showing feelings he deemed ‘bad’ or maybe ‘weird’. He usually mumbles lengthy sentences that she learned to interpret. Like that time when one of her customers hurt her, 4 years old Levi tried to wash the blood and mumbles how he wanna be stronger and hurt the man back, and how he loves his mother. Or when she woke up in the hospital. Or when everybody in his class praises him for shaving his head when one of his classmates had cancer. Or every time he presented her with a bunch of flowers on Mother's Day. That habit is still there, evidently.

She simply smiled, deciding to not tease him any further. She patted his chest, telling him to go back to his office, and let the topic go.

But apparently, the Hange’s airheaded friend story doesn’t stop there.

About a month later, Levi went to watch a musical titled Hamilton with Hange. He always likes musical shows, mainly for the elaborate choreography. She didn’t expect her son to get home so late, and grumpier than ever. She asked him why, but he dismissed her. She didn’t need to wonder for long, because Hange called her (it’s not even a rare occurrence, they’re so close that they often call her randomly in the middle of the night).

"I tried to set him with my roommate," they said, "Petra is a very sweet girl, not to mention that she's clean and pretty short. She's pretty much perfect for him. I tried to push them into the stuck-in-the-elevator scenario, but I guess Levi ended up saying the wrong thing that Petra smeared her cake -that I ordered- to him. Of course, I didn’t just give up. So, I ordered two Hamilton tickets -it was soo expensive and hard to find!- anyway, I gave one to Levi and another to Petra, and pretend that I'm the one who'll go with them" They talked in a very Hange way, fast and passionate. They sounded really proud of their plan. “Do you want to meet her too? I bet you two will connect instantly, Imma send you her bakery’s location, how’s that?”

So, the next day Kuchel visited Petra’s bakery and immediately fell in love. She’s like….a sun personified. Like, even her entire appearance was so bright and fun. Her hair was shoulder-length wavy hair, the root was strawberry blonde and it got lighter that the tip was light blonde. Her eyes are big, round, sparkling light brown eyes, and freckles peppered her cute face. She wore an ankle-length light yellow sundress with small blue flower patterns that complement her pale skin perfectly. She talked with a lot of hand motions, and she slips her hair behind her right ears every once in a while.

Yes, this one’s definitely perfect for her Levi.

December 22, 5 days after that (surprisingly) emotional phone call. Kuchel woke up to the loud sound of her doorbell. Seriously, the shameless guest was ringing the bell like some kind of madman in the middle of the night. Wait, what if that's a real madman?

Ah, screw that, she thought sleepily, whoever that is they definitely need to be taught some lesson. She got off her bed, picked a frying pan from the kitchen, and then opened her door.

It's not a shameless nor mad man.

In front of her door, Leo was sitting on Levi's shoulders while still ringing the bell vigorously with a big grin. Beside him, Petra was fixing her hold to Liam, while the ginger-haired toddler calmly eats his lollipop.

"Gran-Gran!" Leo greeted (gosh, that boy has too much energy for his own good), while his little brother just waved his hand that wasn't holding the lolly.

Kuchel put down her frying pan, "Hey, guys! Come in!"

She moved to the side, letting the little family inside. Leo immediately ran off to his favorite playing spot, the cabinet under the stairs. His brother tottered sleepily behind him.

“So…...what happened to the case?”, she asked with as much sarcasm as possible, while locking the front door again, “Finally realizing your family’s more important than some ruthless murderer?”

A/N : I love Hamilton.

#rivetra #petra ral #levi ackerman #kuchel ackerman #my OC ackerman babies #Meet The Ackermans AU #rivetra fic #more like backstory actually #this literally took years #this one was abandoned for like 2 years?#anyway I love mamachel #hange zoe #the ultimate rivetra shipper

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sparkywrites25 · 1 year

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Hi, I know people oftenly compare Rivetra to Levihan but I’m a fan of Hange soooo I don’t really like their fights 😭😭 what if a Rivetra au where in Levi introduces Petra to his friends and then Hange started crushing on her and Levi is just so annoyed and jealous because Petra’s obliviously reciprocating Hange’s flirts

Hi hi! I am so sorry that this was so late but I kept starting it and changing my mind about what I wrote. I was also waffling on way too much and, honestly, if I'd have let myself, and didn't already have a million WIPs, I could have easily turned this into a chaptered piece. It did turn out rather different than planned though but I hope you're okay with this.

I really love the idea and I absolutely support you in that I don't like seeing shippers fight over ships. Rivetra and Levihan are both awesome. As are most Levi ships, let's be honest.

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Summary: Levi tries to bury his jealousy when his new friend Petra is getting on swimmingly with Hange. But a game of laser tag leads to some interesting revelations.

Pairing: Levi Ackerman x Petra Ral

Taglist: @youre-ackermine @lunar-rainclouds @captain-natey

Notes: If you like my work and want to see more then please join my taglist. Form is pinned on my blog.

“Leeeviiiii, Petraaaaaa!!!” Hange’s greeting bounced all across the bowling alley parking lot as they jumped up and down, arms wafting through the air like those of a windmill.

Levi clicked the lock on his car keys, the answering click of the vehicle almost drowned out by Hange’s echoing voice. He pocketed the keys and reached up to rub the bridge of his nose. They were giving him the beginnings of a headache already. He could feel it beginning to sprout up between his eyes.

“Yoohoo!!!” Hange continued as if a dozen people weren’t already staring at the spectacle they were making of themselves. “Come on slowpokes. We’ve got asses to kick! Right baby?!” they yelled. Levi didn’t have to ask who they were shouting at now. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Petra laughing and waving back at the messy brunette.

“Too right!” Petra cupped her hands around her mouth and called back as she and Levi headed over to where the group was meeting. “We’re gonna smash them!”

“Damn straight we are!” Hange cackled back, equally as loudly. Some of the stares in their direction were turning to glares now, Levi observed. Hange really needed to grasp the concept of not showing themself up by being so loud. He and Petra were closing in on the group within seconds now.

Irritation gnawed away at him as he looked between Hange and Petra’s laughing faces. He hated the feeling because he knew it made no sense, that he had no right to it. Petra could laugh and play around with whoever she wanted. It shouldn’t bother him. He’d wanted her to get along with his friends, hadn’t he? So why was he this annoyed that she had? Even Hange, for all their lack of volume control, was not irritating enough for him to want to keep Petra away from them all the time. They were an acquired taste to be sure but even so, their relentlessly enthusiastic interactions with Petra grated on his nerves.

“Bold words,” Erwin greeted, his voice carrying naturally without feeling the need to project himself across the parking lot. Dressed in his usual favourite colours - a baby blue short-sleeved shirt and beige shorts - he looked as friendly and harmless as he intended to look. It was all a front of course. Levi had seen the man plan many times by now and he couldn’t fault the man’s talent for still being underestimated despite repeatedly thrashing other people. That charming smile and enchanting blue eyes really did wonders for the man. Or he was just a natural-born deceiver. That was equally possible too. “But we’ll soon see who is going to be laughing at the end.”

“Not many,” Levi quipped, eyeing the rainbow psychedelic monstrosity that was Hange’s shirt, “judging by the headache that everyone’s gonna get from Hange’s shirt. Is that your latest strategy?” he mused.

Hange grabbed their shirt and held it out with a puffed up chest and a grin. “Wha-? This ol’ thing? Of course not!” They declared in mock-outrage, only to grin at Petra almost instantly afterward which provoked a laugh out of the shorter, red-haired woman.

“As if you’d ever do something like that, Hange,” Petra teased affectionately. As soon as Petra was close enough, Hange slung an arm around her shoulders and began to walk towards the entrance with her. Behind them, Miche and Nanaba followed, their hands linked quietly. Moblit and Nifa brought up the rear with Levi and Erwin.

“I guess Hange had Skittles for fucking breakfast again,” Levi grumbled quietly.

“You can scoff,” Erwin answered. “But I saw them doing just that this morning. Quite a sizable bowl too.”

“Jesus fucking christ.”

Levi’s attention lingered on Petra as she snuggled into Hange’s arm, chatting animatedly with the brunette as they left the rising heat of the parking lot. Her yellow t-shirt clung to her thin frame, rising up above her denim shorts. She wore brown sandals through which her colourfully painted toes peeked out. There was no pattern to the nails. One blue, one green and three orange sat on one foot while the other boasted a yellow, a red, a pink and two browns. Levi had long since given up on questioning Hange’s design logic.

He himself had opted for an outfit as low-key as always; he wore a plain black t-shirt, dark jeans and boots. Miche had offered for something similarly unobtrusive - a brown t-shirt that said “Everything smells great from here” above a picture of clouds, paired with some sandy slacks and simple flats. Nanaba contrasted brightly in her baby pink shorts and t-shirt and matching sandals. It was an unusually gentle look for her and Miche kept smiling over at her. Levi wondered how attentive Miche was going to be in the match when he couldn’t stop looking at his girlfriend. Meanwhile, Nifa and Moblit had gone, whether intentionally or unintentionally, with matching red flanel shirts. While Moblit had paired his with some ripped skinny jeans, Nifa had opted for denim shorts that showed off her newly tanned legs from her trip to Marley recently.

———————————————

The refreshing air-conditioning wafted over the group like a wave as they all stepped inside. Rows of colourful lanes and even more colourful balls, shirts and shoes greeted them. Hange was already pointing out a good lane to book only to stop and point out another one. Moblit, despite his years of experience arguing with Hange, was discussing it with them. Levi watched Hange’s gesturing become more and more dramatic, their eyes gleaming behind their filthy glasses. Levi would be amazed if they managed to get any pins down if they were refusing to clean their glasses even for this.

It took them about fifteen minutes to pick a lane, agree (with much reluctance on Hange’s part) that they were not doing bowling shirts today, get their shoes and some snacks and settle down at their two lanes. Hange set up the two computers so that their teams were competing.

“Team Captain!” they declared, punching their fist in the air. They faced little opposition. Miche and Nanaba weren’t particularly concerned, nor were Moblit, Nifa, Petra or Levi. Erwin watched everyone for a moment before offering his own services. Then he made the mistake of giving Hange first selection over their teammate.

“Petraaaaaaa!” they beamed instantly.

Levi felt his mood plummet even more and inwardly cursed himself for that reaction. So what if Hange picked Petra? This wasn’t elementary school where such choices were usually personal slights towards someone else. What’s wrong with you? You don’t own Petra. So what if she’s on Hange’s team? You don’t want to be on Hange’s team. And yet, as he mused over this, he couldn’t help but feel that Hange’s team, even with the loudness that came from the captain, held a bit more appeal now. He shut down those thoughts for now. There was no point in them, especially with the way things stood. Anyway, he wasn’t entitled to anything like that from Petra and he wasn’t chasing it either. He was just being foolish.

Erwin looked around at everyone carefully before making his selection. “Levi,” he chose finally.

There was a relief in Erwin’s selection breaking up Levi’s thoughts although the certainty that he definitely wouldn’t be on the same team as Petra now, lingered. Even so, the promise of trying to beat Hange’s team filled him with some satisfaction. He could feel his blood pumping at the thought of beating them now.

Hange and Petra whispered together for a moment. “Miche!” Hange announced.

There were some raised eyebrows among everyone since normally Moblit was next to be chosen by Hange. Miche was always on Erwin’s team. Still, he smiled and went to sit next to Petra. Levi looked over towards Hange’s team and caught Petra’s surprise on her face. She grinned across at him and Levi felt his own lips tug upwards into the briefest and thinnest of smiles before he looked away from her. Hange immediately threw their arms around Miche and Petra and Levi ignored the irritation burning away in his stomach.

“Moblit,” Erwin didn’t even hesitate once Miche had taken his seat with his new team. Hange spun round with an impressed smile and Erwin shrugged. “You surely weren’t expecting me to pull any punches if poaching is the name of the game?” he challenged.

Hange clapped their hands once. “There’s my conniving rival!” they declared.

They eyed the remaining two to be chosen - Nifa or Nanaba. Their face contorted into annoyance as they eyed the two of them. By the way their gaze continually lingered on Nifa, the short redhead was clearly the favourite. But with Miche on Hange’s team now, Nanaba would be a double asset now too. But equally having someone’s partner on the opposite team could make a player ever more competitive. Which way did you play it? Keep them motivated by having them on the same team or raise the stakes by making them serve on different teams and risk competition improving or wrecking their games. Levi could understand the principle of this.

Although he had no partner in that sense, he was quite looking forward to competing against Hange and their team. Especially Miche. Levi pretended not to notice the amusement that tugged on his lips whenever Levi stepped up to bowl. It was even more amusing to watch that smile dip whenever Levi’s natural strength gained him a strike.

Just as it was quite entertaining to watch Hange peruse and debate their options in their own head as a few minutes passed. It was equally so when Erwin cleared his throat and prompted Hange to make a decision. She chose Nifa and so Nanaba joined Erwin’s team and promised her new teammates that they were going to crush their opponents.

“I don’t suppose you and Miche have a secret agreement that he’ll throw the match if Hange ever snatches him?” she queried with a grin.

Erwin chuckled. “That would be poor sportsmanship,” he chided her although there was no real firmness in his tone. “But had I such an agreement with me, it would count for nothing now that you’re on our team instead.”

Levi huffed with a slight smirk. “Yeah he’s not gonna lose face in front of you,” he remarked and Nanaba chuckled, running a hand over her face.

“Ahh well, I guess we’ll just have to play fair then,” she mock-complained and took one of the seats. “All right then, let’s take ‘em down.”

———————————————

Despite the teams switch up, the groups were still relatively evenly matched. Levi and Miche proved to be the better players on their respective teams. Erwin provided solid advice to his teammates on maximizing the scores if they didn’t get a strike. Hange provided similar tips for their team although whenever they stepped up onto the lane, they played rather gung ho and their balls constantly slammed down on the lanes before they rolled. Moblit turned out to be something of a dark horse whenever he stepped up to bowl. He was a master at securing half-strikes each time even without Erwin’s tips.

“Hange, I don’t really want to be paying for any damage,” Erwin called over to them when one ball landed with a particularly deafening crack that had several members of staff looking over. Hange, to their credit, held up a hand in apology before continuing on with their game.

Strategy-aside, Erwin was a considerably good player himself. He made a lot of good shots although his determination to play around with angles and muse over how much arm strength to commit poked continually at Levi’s patience.

Petra herself wasn’t a bad player either although on most of her turns, Hange stepped up to speak to her. Levi would watch them gesture and enthuse about something or other. At one point they wrapped their arms around Petra and demonstrated posture and technique. As if the woman had never bowled before or been part of a winning team. More irksome was the fact that Petra seemed to let her. She laughed and patted Hange’s cheek then hugged her whenever their advice actually paid off.

Levi knew it shouldn’t bother him but despite that logic, it did. Knowing that just left him feeling even more pissed off. So he focused on what he could control which was his own performance (as well as pointing out things that his teammates were doing wrong). Making quips whenever “the great Erwin” got less than a half strike as well as suggesting to Nanaba and Moblit that they imagine Miche and Hange’s heads on the pins did make for comfortable distractions though.

Regrettably Hange’s team claimed the first victory and then a second victory after lunch which consisted of fast food that Levi considered too fast to justify being cooked properly. Even so, he ate his meal for energy if nothing else.

After lunch, Nanaba suggested they opt for something a bit more aggressive, throwing a smirk Miche’s way as she did. A lot of eyes lit up when she suggested laser tag. Even Levi had no objections to the prospect of taking aim at people and adding points to the team collection. Especially if it meant wiping Hange’s bragging smile of their beaming face.

Hange drove Petra, Nifa. Moblit and Nanaba to the laser quest hall while Erwin drove Levi and Miche. The car journey was perfectly peaceful without Hange shouting and pointing at everything and punching people whenever they saw a yellow car. However the drive was not without it’s nuisances. This one came in the form of a very tall, blue eyed busybody in the driver’s seat.

“You know, Levi,” Erwin remarked as he navigated them around a roundabout, “I hate it to say it but you’re going to need to act faster this time.”

“Excuse me?” Levi grumbled from the back seat. Even Miche shot Erwin a curious look.

“Speed doesn’t guarantee a win in bowling,” he remarked in some confusion.

“I’m not talking about bowling,” Erwin explained and raised his eyes to meet Levi’s in the rear view mirror. “I’m talking about getting Petra on your team,” he told Levi.

Levi’s grumpiness quickly transformed into a scowl. “Did I say I wanted her on our team?”

“You didn’t have to,” Erwin replied. “The look you gave Hange’s team after Petra joined. Thankfully looks don’t kill or we’d be burying Hange soon enough,” he continued. He smiled and Levi wanted to punch it, to knock that smug look right off his face.

“I was glaring at Hange because they’re too fucking loud,” Levi lied.

“They’re always too fucking loud,” Miche laughed. “Today you were giving death rays out with those eyes of yours.”

“Smell that did you?” Levi grumbled.

Miche shrugged and gave the air a sniff.

“Please, Levi,” Erwin interjected as he pulled off the highway onto a quieter road that led to the outskirts of Mitras, “let’s not dance this dance. You care deeply about Petra.”

“That’s because we’re friends. Presumably you care about your friends, Eyebrows.” Levi argued.

“I don’t get grumpy when my friends get flirty with other people.”

“I told you-”

“Spare me the lies,” Erwin sighed. “There’s no shame in liking someone, Levi. I don’t know why you’re fighting this so much.”

“You know, just because you think you can read into my head doesn’t mean that you can,” Levi folded his arms. “There’s a word for what you’re doing, you know.” He remarked, tilting his head slowly as if realizing something. “You know what… yeah, I think that’s exactly what you’re doing,” Levi’s tone turned taunting at once. “And you accuse me of lying.”

Erwin’s shoulders tightened a little. “If I knew what you were talking about, I might be able to answer that.”

“You’re projecting, Eyebrows. This is about Hange,” Levi pointed out.

Miche snorted and side-eyed Erwin. “Is it your turn to play denial?” he asked.

Erwin’s grip on the steering wheel had strengthened. “I’m not denying my feelings for Hange,” he finally said after a significant pause. “But I can admit it, unlike some of us. This isn’t about me not facing up to that.” He looked back at Levi in the mirror again. “I can’t project what I’m willing to acknowledge.”

Levi’s lips tightened and he exhaled through them thinly. “However I feel about Petra, that’s my business.” Levi kept his answer sharp. He averted his gaze to the window and watched the city thinning out into suburbs quickly. “Anyway I know a lost cause when I see one,” he mumbled, “even if I did have those kinds of feelings for her.”

Miche was back to looking confused again. “Why?” he looked over his shoulder at Levi before the shorter man’s meaning began to land on him. “You think Petra’s flirting with Hange for real?” he questioned. “I don’t know about that. Hange’s leading the way in flirting with her but I don’t know if Petra’s into it.”

“There’s only one way to find out for sure,” Erwin cut into the conversation once again, causing Levi to roll his eyes.

“Let me guess. Wear my heart on my sleeve and see if she bites? Worst case scenario, I get my pride stamped but hey it’s all just personal growth right?” Levi drawled. “If that’s what you’re gonna suggest then that would be some pretty shitty advice, Erwin.”

“You’re right. That would be bad advice,” Erwin agreed, not taking his eyes off the road now as the speed limit lowered. “You should credit me with more sound judgment than that,” he added. “All you need to do is see if she’s interested in Hange. What happens next is up to you?”

Miche let out a short laugh. “You manipulative bastard.” Erwin glanced at his friend with a frown and, from the backseat, Levi scoffed too.

“So I find out Hange’s situation for you at the same time?” the raven-haired man questioned. “Yeah, this definitely sounds like a you plan.”

“It has to be better than you stewing over there like a poisonous mushroom not knowing Petra wants to be with Hange or not,” Erwin argued. He slowed down once more as a sign for the laser quest hall appeared. He steered the car into a left turn, into a large retail park. In the middle of which, the laser hall was marked by a scarlet hall and the word LaserQ hanging in rainbow lettering above the roof. “But if you’d prefer to stew, that’s your business?”

“You’re assuming, in all this, that I actually fancy Petra,” Levi grumbled quietly.

“If you want to stay in denial, Levi, that’s your business,” Erwin shrugged and pulled into a parking space.

Levi said nothing, abandoning the discussion in favour of leaving the car and waiting for Hange’s arrival which was not a long wait considering the speed at which they entered the retail park and swung into an empty spot a few spaces from Erwin’s. The parking lot for the retail park in general was fairly empty today, Levi noticed. Unusually so. Still, if it meant less of a cue and less screaming kids to contend with while waiting for their slot then all the better.

“How do you still have a license?” he quipped as Hange and the others joined them.

“I’ve been asking them that for years,” Moblit chuckled, shaking his head at Hange. “You drive like a maniac.”

“Like a maniac?” Levi smirked over at Hange. “They are a maniac.”

“And proud of it,” Hange snapped their fingers into a finger gun at Levi. “The world needs some good maniacs in the world. You’ll be thanking me when I make significant scientific advancements in pharmaceuticals.” They declared, chin raised high in determination. “I’m coming for you, Common Cold!” they added, pointing ahead of them.

Petra fell into step beside Levi, shooting him a serene smile as she did. “I expect your ride was quieter.”

“You’d think,” Levi mumbled, shoving his hands into his jeans pockets, “except I had Erwin yapping some life advice at me for the whole journey.”

Petra laughed again. The sound made Levi’s chest feel less constricted. It filled his eardrums with pleasantness. “That’s pretty deep for a Saturday afternoon,” she mused. “What was he trying to advise you on?”

“Just some general decision-making,” Levi answered with a shrug. “I can’t say his advice was that helpful.”

“Maybe you should pretend that it was,” Petra snickered, “otherwise he’ll keep trying.”

Levi huffed out a small laugh. “That’s not a terrible idea.”

Yet even as they continued their walk towards the laser tag hall, Levi couldn’t help but reflect on Erwin’s advice and the opportunity he now had to ask Petra about Hange. Hange was hanging onto Miche and Erwin up ahead while Moblit, Nifa and Nanaba were discussing game tactics just behind them. He could stop Petra for a few moments and ask.

He could do. It wasn’t the worst advice that Levi had ever received. It was fucking awkward though because then it invited the question of why he was interested in the first place. If he played it off as curiosity then she might smell a rat anyway. It wasn’t like he usually sought out any gossip about other people’s relationships. He, honestly, couldn’t spare the interest and the time to waste on such things. Which left very few plausible possibilities left and generally they lingered far too close to a result that he wasn’t going to like. That awkward rejection. After all, Levi considered himself a good reader of people. He was fairly adept at getting the measure of people and he was sure that if Petra did feel something then surely she’d have shown something of it by now. She wasn’t like him, a hider of emotions. She wore hers in a way that Hange would call “healthy compared to Levi”. So that only left the conclusion that Petra only saw him as a friend.

With that in mind, why would he want to draw attention to it and make their friendship uncomfortable. Surely his feelings would eventually disappear. He would learn to ignore them. Better that than living with perpetual remembrance and awkwardness. So, no, he didn’t need to hold her back for a conversation about that. He could live with things like this and leave that unspoken. It was unusual for Erwin to not account for that when he gave Levi the advice although perhaps that just wasn’t something that would concern him.

“Are you all right?” Petra’s question surprised him out of his own inner monologuing.

“Yeah,” he semi-lied. “Just enjoying the quiet while I can.”

Petra laughed softly. “Yeah, not a bad call. I love Hange to bits but they should really come with volume control.”

“Or a mute button.”

“Don’t be mean,” Petra elbowed him a little. “You don’t need to pretend that you don’t like them. They’re one of your best friends.”

“I can care and still think that they’re noisy as fuck,” Levi quipped as the pair of them walked through the doors into the facility.

“Better hope they’re not on your team then,” Petra teased.

Levi cringed as he imagined Hange’s tendency to whoop alerting the enemy to their whereabouts. “I can only pray for that,” he muttered.

Petra laughed once more as they quickened their pace to join the others who were gathering at the counter.

Hange was already talking with Erwin who briefly caught Levi’s eye for a moment. “As you and I were both team captains last time, Hange, perhaps others can take those roles this time,” he suggested quickly. Levi buried the satisfaction that was attempting to show itself on his face. If Hange wasn’t captain, they couldn’t choose their team members.

“Yeah, okay,” Hange agreed and stepped to one side with a grin. “So who wants it?”

There was a scattering of conversation between them all before Nifa raised her hand as did Petra, to Levi’s surprise. He eyed her with one slightly raised brow and it lifted even higher when she winked at him before looking away and gesturing for Nifa to make her selection first.

“Hange!” Nifa pointed dramatically at the brunette who cackled and did a victory dance on the spot.

“Dream team alert!” Hange declared before bouncing over to Nifa like a hyperactive five-year-old.

Levi fought back an eye-roll and prayed that Nifa wouldn’t make him her second selection. He focused on Petra who was gazing around thoughtfully at everyone. Then, her attention snapped to Levi in a second. “Levi,” she declared.

His heart did a strange motion in his chest and he pushed down the feeling, chiding himself for being ridiculous. He did, however, lean in to Petra’s ear as he stepped up next to her. “Appreciate it,” he murmured. She chuckled softly.

Nanaba joined Nifa’s team next and Erwin joined Petra’s. Moblit was selected for the final member of Nifa’s team while Miche joined Team Petra.

Hange evaluated Petra’s team as they all began to put on their battle vests. Petra’s team was lit up in purple light while Nifa’s team was lit up in green. Hange quickly unfastened their hair from the ponytail then shoved it all up again into one that was - to Levi’s frustration - even messier. “Y’all are going down in ways you can’t even fathom yet,” they cackled as they finished their own straps and began to help Nifa with hers despite the girl’s laughing insistence that she could manage. Levi was quite convinced at this point that Hange was just incapable of staying still.

“We’ll see about that. You’re not the only strategist in the room, Hange,” Miche fired back with a smile.

“No, but I’d watch your back. Who says he won’t throw one of you to the wolves to protect his own score?” Hange teased, wriggling their eyebrows.

Moblit eyed them with some suspicion. “You jumped to that strategy awfully quickly.”

Nifa laughed. “Okay maybe don’t get too close to Hange guys!”

“Hey! I would never!” Hange slammed a hand over their heart exaggeratedly. “Tut tut tut, such little faith in your comrade.”

“That’s not exactly something that you would never do,” Moblit smirked at them. “I still remember the February 2021 incident.”

“I apologized for dislocating your shoulder,” Hange pouted with folded arms. “And I was not pushing you in front of me! That kid, Stephen, was all lined up to hit you. I just got carried away in moving you,” they recalled.

“You think?” Moblit laughed and slung an arm around Hange. They leaned into his hug with a grin.

“I feel like that is gonna be on your tombstone, Hange,” Nifa said in a loving voice. “They got carried away.”

Hange’s grin seemed to stretch even wider. “That would be a fun - and apt - epitaph for me. Although Saviour of Mankind from the Common Cold would also be good too.”

Laughter bubbled through the group as they stepped into their teams so that the attendant could lead them inside their room.

“Good luck,” Nifa and Petra declared and shook hands.

They were led into a darkened arena with multi-coloured lights projecting on different areas. Across the middle of the floor rose many tall walls, some of which had holes cut into them of various shapes. Lines of thin little lights illuminated the pathways around the walls.

The two groups stared down at the layout as they began to descend the stairs leading into it. Nifa’s team walked ahead. Petra slowed down so that her team was held back a bit. Concentration burned across Petra’s eyes as she stared down at the arena. Beyond her, Levi could see Hange’s eyes scanning over it all. He didn’t doubt for a moment that they would memorize at least most of it with their impressive memory. They may be a noise nuisance but their intelligence was not to be underestimated here.

He focused on looking back at Petra who was slowly stepping down, observing as much of the set up as she could. He could see her lips pressing into a thin frown as she did. “Hey,” he said quietly, putting a hand on her shoulder, “just do your best. We’ll figure it out.”

“Yes, don’t worry. They only change the layout a finite number of times,” Erwin added as he leaned over Levi’s shoulder. “We’ve probably played in this one recently.”

Petra nodded and was silent for a moment before she exhaled. “Thanks guys.”

“I’ll be able to sniff those guys out no problem,” Miche added and Petra laughed softly.

“There’s perks to having a sniffer dog,” Levi muttered and heard Miche huff out what sounded like a laugh.

“Okay teams, take up positions,” the attendant called once they’d all reached the bottom. She pointed to a gigantic clock on the wall, glaring down with red light. “When the timer starts, the game begins and points will begin to count. You have three minutes to get yourselves into positions,” she added.

Now that they were on ground level, everything in the arena rose up imposingly. The two teams began to move out along different pathways, spreading themselves over the space. Levi hurried swiftly along several paths before ducking behind a short wall that jutted out on two sides, providing excellent over. He crouched down and pointed his gun up, ready for anyone that might use common sense to check this space. He listened to the shuffling of feet as teammates and rivals similarly found spots in which to hide or launch their attacks. Staring up at the scoreboard that had now appeared below the clock, he tightened his grip on his gun.

“Woohoo! Let’s go!” Hange cheered.

“Shut up!” Levi heard Nifa hiss although there was a giggle in her voice.

He refocused on the clock again. 60 minutes was frozen to the screen. He steadied his breathing, waiting for that number to shift.

Come on. Come on.

59:59

There was a scuffle of movement from all sides and almost instantly Levi heard the first sounds of shots being fired followed by increasingly hurried footsteps moving around the arena. Here, there and everywhere they ran. He looked in the different directions, trying to focus on the immediate threat. His senses snapped into place, focusing on those noises nearest to him. His body stiffened and, tightening his grip, he remained in a crouch, waiting with baited breath.

He rolled his eyes as Hange’s triumphant cheer accompanied a grunt of disappointment from Miche. However Hange’s cry soon turned into a yell as their vest beeped with the sound of a hit. By the sounds of the feet hurrying away, Levi would guess that Erwin had landed a hit.

A blur of green light rushed past Levi’s spot and he wasted no time in opening fire. Moblit stumbled to a stop as his vest announced his hit. He glanced back at Levi and then rushed off again. Levi instantly moved away from his hiding place and crept around a corner. There was a long stretch of unattended space so he hurried along it. At the last second, Nifa jumped out and fired at him. He leapt aside just in time and took a shot at her. It missed and she darted down another path. He began to pursue when the hairs on the back of his neck tingled. He spun around only for Hange’s shot to hit him in the chest.

Hange cackled and threw up their hands in the air in victory. Suddenly their vest lit up again and they turned around, fuming when they saw Petra appear behind them. “Traitor!” they exclaimed in mock outrage before rushing off once more.

Petra grinned and strode up to Levi. “All’s fair in laser tag,” she called back to Hange.

“Nice shot.” Levi said, pushing her back out of the line of sight they were stood in. He cast a glance up at the scoreboard which proclaimed that Petra’s team were ahead by ten points so far. However the sound of another blast quickly brought Nifa’s team up another ten points, signaling a draw. “Come on,” Levi urged Petra to follow him down a diagonal path that cut across the arena.

They made it down the path and along another before they rounded the corner and came face to face with Nanaba who opened fire with a grin. Petra cursed, laughing, as she was hit but Levi dodged and fired squarely at Nanaba’s chest.

“Nice one,” Nanaba smirked before dashing off down the way Levi and Petra had come.

Petra and Levi quickly made their way up the path, with Levi following behind Petra in side-steps, keeping his eyes on anyone who might come up behind them. As they reached the corner, Petra looked around and raised her gun as blaster fire sounded. Across the room, at the opposing corner, Moblit was opening fire. The pair of them dodged each other with nimble side-steps. Levi stepped in next to Petra and joined in. As Moblit stepped side, he fell into Petra’s line of fire and she got him square in the chest.

Petra cheered before her own vest lit up. She spun around to see Nanaba facing her back the way she’d come. The tall blonde took a shot at Levi who immediately began to pursue her. She laughed and darted away. Grinning, Petra began to chase down Moblit. Halfway down that path, another one opened out and Nifa sprung out firing her shots.

Petra dodged but one of them managed to hit her and she playfully cursed. “Damn you ninja!” she cried out. Nifa gave her a grin back and half-bowed before scurrying off towards where Moblit had been, only to back away when Erwin appeared in the corner instead. “No, no!” she cried out as he opened fire on her and got her in the gun.

“Vengeance is mine!” Hange roared from somewhere behind Erwin and he turned with a smile, opening fire on wherever Hange was.

Petra gave chase to Nifa who ran into Levi as soon as she was able to shoot again. He shot her in her chest and she complained again and dashed off.

Levi and Petra glanced up at the scoreboard now.

Team Petra: 200 Team Nifa: 190

“It’s gonna be close,” Petra panted. Despite the fact that running wasn’t allowed, everyone was moving at a quick enough pace to tax themselves.

“You okay?” Levi asked, turning his back and aiming his gun at the sound of nearby movement. Hange appeared at the end of that pathway and he shot at their back. They immediately flipped him off and he smirked back, watching them flee the behemoth that was Miche.

“I’m good,” Petra told him and readied her own gun.

She set off again, taking turn after turn, quickly growing suspicious when she didn’t run into anybody for a few minutes. She spun around, keeping her gun level. She jumped over a cylindrical obstacle and, as she was in the air, she spotted a familiar blonde head crouched nearby. She reached the corner and saw Nanaba with her back to her, crouched behind a low barrier and firing across a space at Erwin who was also ducking behind a barrier. Neither of them found it particularly easy with their height.

Crouching low herself and keeping her body mostly hidden around the corner, Petra angled her gun towards Nanaba and, after a moment adjusting her precision, shot her in the back. Nanaba swore and fell forward from the shock. Petra rose up and backed away with a smile until her back hit a gun. She turned around with a yelp and Nifa grinned as she fired into Petra’s chest.

“Nice shootin’,” Nifa teased and raced around Petra. She began opening fire on Erwin only to yelp when her vest took a hit. “Damn you Miche!” she laughed.

Petra hurried back down the path she came down and then took one to the right. Halfway down that path, a hand reached out and grabbed her, pulling her into a small space, boxed off on three sides. She opened her mouth to point out the no-contact rule but Levi raised a finger to his lips and pointed towards the entrance to their spot with his gun.

Petra was about to say that she didn’t hear anyone behind her but seconds later, Hange appeared and Levi fired as soon as they spotted Levi and Petra.

“Damn you, Levi!” Hange cried out. Even so they grinned like a hyena and ran off cackling, making Levi instantly torn between suspicion and exasperation with Hange’s manic ways. Did they know someone else was coming along or were they just being insane as always? He stepped in front of Petra automatically.

“Levi,” she murmured but he hushed her.

He stepped back, lightly pressing her against the back of the space with his back. Petra’s hand dropped from the gun, instinctively touching Levi’s side. She felt his taut muscles pressing lightly against her chest. She felt the movement of his body as he breathed and a flicker of pleasure shot through her like lightening. This close to him she breathed in the subtle aroma of his aftershave mixed with the ever-so-slight tinge of tea. The back hairs of his undercut were millimeters from her face. An odd thought that she could lean in and press her lips to his neck with very little effort came to her and so her already heating cheeks inflamed even more. She suddenly found herself with the itch to reach up and play with the longer strands of his hair. She pushed that urge away - she was getting good at such things by now.

Her mind wandered, praying that nobody did come along to disturb this moment, that she could keep Levi here against her like this. There was no Hange to play along with and distract herself with now. There was no big group to hide the glances she gave Levi. There was no one she could gently nudge into telling her more about Levi. There was literally nothing between her and Levi and her heart recognized that, pulsing hard in her chest. Her brain was sending dizzying sensations all over her body in collaboration with her pounding heart. She wanted to kiss that jawline, to make her way up to those lips. She wanted to feel his arms around her, to be pressed against his lean, muscular form. She wanted her hands in his hair and to look into those perfect grey-blue eyes and see if what she felt was reflected in there.

She wished it was as easy to hug Levi as it was to wrap her arms around Hange. She wished that she could hold Levi’s hand and snuggle into him. She loved Hange to bits and they were a dear friend but Petra desperately wanted to transfer that physical affection towards her and Levi instead. But Levi wasn’t very demonstrative about what feelings he had full stop never mind public displays of affection - if he even felt affection for her.

Being pressed together in that space brought it all home; all the weeks of uncertainty since they’d met and never quite able to get a read on what Levi might feel. You haven’t made things easy for yourself, Ral, she mused. Yet, all the same, the situation seemed to offer itself up to her and, in those lingering seconds of silence and darkness, Petra felt every ounce of uncertainty slip away, to be replaced by sheer determination. I have to know, one way or the other.

“Levi,” she whispered, letting her gun hang down her front from its straps.

“Someone’s coming,” he muttered.

To hell with this game. Petra thought as her hands took hold of Levi’s shoulders and pushed hard, turning him towards her. His head jerked around, eyes confused and annoyed as they sought out her own. Before he could object, she moved her hands and pushed him against one of their hiding spot’s thin walls. Barely a breath left him as he hit the wall.

Petra leaned in before he could snap out some sarcastic comment or whatever. Her lips touched his in a second, soft but firm, pressing against his. He stiffened beneath her, or at least his body did. His lips seemed to relax under her touch. His eyes widened for a moment and then his lips lowered. He breathed out, moving his lips against hers with no effort to shove her off. Instead his hands, which had let his own blaster dangle between them, found her shoulders and clutched onto them.

Seconds later, his lips began to move against hers. He was kissing her back! Euphoria and victory danced together in Petra’s chest as she leaned into Levi, feeling his hands move to the back of her head and her lower back. The sounds of hurried footsteps and blaster fire disappeared under the heavy drumming of her own heartbeat against her ribcage.

His hand on her lower back moved to her right hip so that his arm rested at her back. His fingers on her head began to stroke her hair and Petra hummed into the kiss quietly.

He held her like she was precious. Like they were in a real war zone right now and he just had to keep her safe. He stepped forward and, for a moment, Petra expected to be pushed off. Instead he turned them so it was her with her back to a wall and it was Levi’s body protecting hers. She gasped a little and pulled away only for his hand on her head to move to cup her cheek instead. She lifted her soft amber eyes to his and began to smile up at him. He brought a finger up to touch her lips.

Behind Levi, a figure rushed past their hiding spot, apparently too intent on where they were running to or from to notice two hits they could have landed just not. But even so, right now Petra wasn’t concerned about hits or scores or hiding. Her thoughts lingered on the feel of Levi’s mouth on hers and how much she wanted to feel it again.

She reached her hand up to cup his cheek and jaw, pulling his face back towards hers again. He leaned in a little and they were kissing again and everything was sweet and simple. The world beyond them blurred into the darkness they hid in and Petra’s hands held his sides, their guns pressed against each other in a clatter of plastic.

The sound snapped Levi out of the kiss and for a moment he appeared dazed, looking into Petra’s eyes and then down at the guns. The remembrance of where they were seemed to hit them at once. Petra glanced up at the scoreboard and then the time above it.

35:27

Nifa’s team score was 60 points higher than theirs. Petra remembered that she was supposed to be the captain of this team after all.

Levi’s hands gently moved to cover hers, his eyes staring into hers for a moment. “We need to-”

“-get back to the game,” Petra finished for him. He stepped back from her and regret filled her chest at the absence of him. However, she stamped it out with the reminder that their teammates needed them and 35 minutes was not really a lot of time to unpack what had just happened and still try and win the game.

Levi nodded and picked up his gun. “Ready?”

Her head was still in a daze but Petra concentrated on the part that was still thinking logically. “You go one way, I’ll go the other,” she said. Already, Levi moving away was forcing her mind to clear which could only be good for their team in the long run. But they would talk about this. They had to.

The pair of them returned to the game quickly, racing through the arena and making use of obstacles and hiding places to defend themselves and launch sneak attacks.

The scores for both teams continued to fluctuate with each team taking the lead at different points. Hange’s amused reactions were so loud that most people had a good idea of where they were. Occasionally Nanaba would cuss out either Miche or Erwin. At one point Moblit was chasing Hange down accusing them of being a maniac. Petra and Erwin chased down Nifa and Hange until Nanaba and Moblit arrived as back up. Levi took the least amount of hits and his record of hitting his targets before they could respond to his presence helped him to continue this streak. Nifa and Hange managed to ambush Miche until Levi arrived to balance things out.

He and Petra bumped into each other only a few more times during the rest of the game. He placed a hand on her back to slip past her and, for a second, she was distracted by the tingling sensation that flowed through her. She barely managed to snap herself out of it enough to dodge Moblit’s next shot.

Those 35 minutes flew by and with a final shot by Miche to Hange, the game was claimed by Team Petra by 10 points.

Sometime between removing the equipment and heading for the exit, Hange slumped sleepily against the wall. There was laughter all around as Erwin lifted them into his arms and carried them out of the room. “The perils of having a big bowl of sugar for breakfast,” he remarked with a smile as Nanaba held the door open for him. Chatter lowered in volume for the sleeping Hange’s sake as the group made for the doorway. Replays of the best and worst shots were followed by ribbing about tactics and sneak attacks.

Levi and Petra hung back from the rest of them and the dissection of the mask. They walked in silence throughout the building and across a fair stretch of the car park.

Petra looked over at Levi with a thoughtful expression. Her lips parted as she tried to summon up something good to say in this situation but then remembered the audience of whoever was going to be in the car with them. She lowered her gaze and began to play with her fingers. Nerves crawled all over her body. This wasn’t something she wanted to sleep on or ignore until the next time they saw each other.

Meanwhile Levi was staring ahead of him, mostly anyway. In the corner of his eye, he could see that Petra was fidgeting. He could feel unease creeping around inside him as his thoughts were dragged back to that moment in the arena - the pleasant pressure of Petra’s lips on his, twice. The way she’d held onto him. The way she looked at him. It was like she was staring into his soul and that should have been something of a red flag. It was troublesome to have someone know you so intimately wasn’t it? That’s what his childhood self and his teenage self were screaming. But something stronger and deeper inside him was saying something else. It said that Petra was different.

Up ahead, Hange was being laid across Moblit and Nifa’s legs in the back of their car while Miche took the wheel with Nanaba next to him. Erwin turned to Levi and Petra.

“I’ll drop you two off.” His eyes looked between the two of them, his expression unreadable. If he detected anything, he made no comment about it. Levi simply nodded and Petra murmured a quiet thank you as they both climbed into the car with Erwin.

It was a long and mostly quiet half-hour journey back to the neighbourhood where both Levi and Petra lived. As Erwin began to pull onto a street several blocks from their apartment complex, Petra leaned in and asked him to stop.

“We’ll be fine from here, Erwin. Thank you so much,” she insisted as Erwin slowed to a stop.

Erwin smiled at her then at Levi. There was knowing gleam that Levi didn’t entirely like. “Okay if you’re sure. I’ll see you both soon.”

“Sure,” Levi said as he followed Petra out of the car. They waited for Erwin to drive off and Petra slowly began to walk with Levi moving quietly alongside her as she did.

“I thought we should talk about before,” Petra admitted, wrapping her arms around herself. “I don’t want this hanging over us and I just want to be honest.”

Levi fought back the emotions that were trying to show on his face. She regrets it. She thinks it was a mistake. His brain began to ramble. She’s trying to let me down gently. Well, let’s just stop that right here, shall we? Sourness flooded him. He should have pushed her off not allowed himself to wonder. This was a stupid fucking mistake. “Then just say it,” Levi shrugged, his tone hard and he hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans. Get it over with.

Petra faltered, stopping immediately and staring at him. “You- you knew?” she asked quietly.

Levi stopped a few paces ahead of her, his tired eyes looking back into her pretty ones. “Yeah, it’s pretty obvious,” he told her.

Pink blossomed in her cheeks and spread over her face rapidly. “I…” she murmured as her brow pinched in annoyance, “I thought I was hiding it pretty well.”

“Well it’s crystal clear now.”

Petra bit down on her lip. “So… I guess you don’t… I mean…” she huffed in impatience at herself. “Is this you making your point without actually saying the words? Cos I kinda need to hear you say it, Levi. I can take it. I’m an adult. You don’t need to soft-soap me on this.”

Levi fully turned to face her, unhooking his thumbs and lowering his hands by his sides. “What the fuck are you talking about?” His brows lifted and some of the sharpness of his frown softened. “You’re the one stumbling over telling me.”

Petra looked baffled. “Eh?”

Levi lost patience with this little back-and-forth. “You’re trying to tell me that you regret the kiss. Don’t pussyfoot around it, Petra.”

“I don’t regret the kiss,” Petra answered immediately, silencing Levi. “If anything I regret not kissing you sooner,” she added, her hands grasping her elbows. Caution was clear in her eyes but her lips pursed with determination. This conversation had to happen one way or another.

It was Levi’s turn to wear confusion all over his face. “But you like Hange.” As he said the words, his mind was already flashing through images of the two of them together and the way it had made his stomach burn to watch that easy affection, to feel resentment for the fact that that affection wasn’t being displayed to him. He had tried to logic his way out of such thoughts and when that didn’t work, burial was always something he had made a half-decent job of. Now he was stood here being told that he’d gotten it wrong?

“I love Hange,” Petra agreed, “as a friend.” She began to smile again although he could see some unease gathering in those perfect amber eyes of hers.

Levi pursed his lips. A feeling of utter stupidity began to weigh down on him. He should have considered that this was just an affectionate thing between Petra and Hange. Hange was always hanging off their friends and hugs were their favourite way of greeting. He couldn’t remember them ever flirting with any of them though. Well, perhaps Erwin and Moblit but honestly those felt more like play than anything else. Of course, clearly his detection for such things wasn’t as good as it could be so perhaps he was just wrong about that too.

“Does Hange know that?” The question was not the thing Levi had intended to ask and yet it slipped out far easier than anything else he was thinking about asking.

Petra lifted her shoulders a little then lowered them as her smile widened. “If it comes up, I’ll put them straight.” She stepped closer to Levi. “I’m more interested in you… how you feel about me,” she confessed. “I’ve liked you a lot since the day we met at your mother’s garden party. Since we spent the whole afternoon talking,” she recollected with a reminiscent smile.

“The afternoon that you mostly spent talking,” Levi retorted although his lips twitched into a smile.

“You could have walked away. You’ve never been shy of doing that before,” Petra began to grin.

“I never said I was bored listening to you.”

Petra shifted from one foot to another, tilting her head with a bolder smile. “You let me kiss you again.”

“I never said I didn’t like you kissing me, either.” Levi argued.

“I guess there’s a lot that you’ve never said,” Petra mused, stepping even closer now, lowering her arms so they were almost chest to chest. “I’d much rather listen to what you do have to say,” she told him. “Because I don’t make a habit of crossing that line and I just really need to know if there’s something there for you too or… if I just need to forget this.”

Levi lifted his hand and inched his fingers towards her face until they slid over her smooth, round cheek. The words he wanted to say but had struggled with for so long rose to his throat as if summoned by some spell-caster. He leaned in a little until their noses were touching. “I care about you, Petra,” he told her. “You’re not just my friend.”

Petra exhaled softly and her hands lifted to hold onto his hips. “So… you…?”

Levi’s smile turned teasing. “Do you want me to spell it out for you?” and with that question, he leaned down to kiss her lips.

She smiled into it, and once again the world melted into the blazing golden light of sunset and the blurry shapes of an empty, quiet street.

#my fics #fic: crossed feelings #attack on titan #attack on titan fanfiction #shingeki no kyojin #shingeki no kyojin fanfiction #one shot #levi ackerman #levi ackerman fanfiction #petra ral #petra ral fanfiction #levi ackerman x petra ral #levi ackerman x petra ral fanfiction #rivetra #rivetra fanfiction

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