Chapter Text
In a world filled with countless of pernicious people, very much like our world. It is to kill or be killed. We humans fight for what we believe in, some for the right reasons and some for the wrong. We won't be able to tell what length a person can actually reach or go to, to strengthen their own beliefs and points and to make everyone believe in them. But one thing is for sure. There is no good in this world. All human beings have their individual monstrous side, whether they be a priest, a police, a doctor, a mother, a father, a child. Anyone. No one is pure, not even the gods and saints we worship.
That is why for Levi Ackerman, it is very easy to kill. Because deep inside he knows, no matter what kind of people he kills. They are all just like the rest of them. Vile and disgusting. So, why not get rid of them before they show their true colors, correct?
Although, he is very much aware that to the eyes of the government, the law, and those vile people. He is a criminal. A cold-hearted killer who kills for money, a person who has no regards for other people. And that is true. Indeed, he is a person who kills for money, he kills both men and women, both child and adult. Can you blame him, though? That was what he was raised to do, after all.
But he wasn't alone with that line of work as he had other people beside him doing it. Of course, there was his boss and uncle. Kenny Ackerman.
Next to him were his own 'team' which consisted of his so-called 'friends.'
They were all well-known together, known for their cunning skills, known for their talents, known for not being known. They were all good and very skilled with their jobs, no one has been able to catch them. After successfully killing a person, they'd disappear without a single trace or clue.
That is why they had gained the name...Macabre killers.
And with Levi gaining the title 'the raven king' from the people in the underworld, also known as the dangerous part of the city where thugs, criminals, and scoundrels do their dirty work.
The main fact that actually struck almost all the criminals and people they've killed were their ages. Yes, the macabre killers were all just young teenagers.
With Levi only being sixteen, and the others' ages are within 15-18. Did that stop them, though? Nope. Not even their age could stop them for what they do, what they believe in, and what they think they're fighting for. Because all their sense of justice is long gone now, especially Levi's.
Besides, age didn't really matter to him.
"Tch." Levi clicked his tongue in annoyance as he vigorously washed his hands that were covered in dark crimson. "I should've just fucking strangled him to death, if I had done that then I wouldn't have been filthy. Fuck." He mumbled under his breath, narrowing his eyes a bit.
Behind him, there was a man lying on the floor, barely alive as he was whimpering silently in pain. "P-Please. Lad, s..spare me. Pl-..ease." He whispered, tears continued to flow out from his eyes. "I..have...ch-children...wi--" he coughed out blood. "Wife.." His voice was cracking, his breathing was uneven. It was obvious that he's already on the brink of death. Levi almost wanted to snort once he heard that. He had children? He had a wife? Well, he should've thought of that before trying to inappropriately touch him.
Levi had went to the store to get some new windex because they had ran out of it, but on the way home there was a disgusting looking man who was following him. Suddenly, the raven found himself being pushed inside an alley and forced on the ground. Of course, Levi didn't let the man have his way as he kicked the man hard on the balls until he was writhing in pain.
After that, he brought him in an abandoned building near the alley and decided to get revenge for even thinking of touching him.
That is why the man had ended up with no hands, and no dick. Because Levi had cut them off and shoved the man's dick inside his own asshole to make him feel humiliated before dying.
"A wife, huh?" Levi asked, closing the faucet as he walked towards the man again; standing right above him. "What do you think her reaction will be once she finds out the reason you're in this situation? Let me think..." He pretended to think for a moment, then gently placed his fist on his hand with a small 'thump' then said. "Ah. She'd probably hate you, and your kids will end up growing up far away from their father."
He took something from his pocket, a small bottle filled with gas. He keeps it just in case something unexpected happens and he ends up killing someone. It was quite useful, especially for someone who has huge anger issues. No one messes with him and gets away from it. Alive. After that he took the he man's handkerchief, inspecting it slightly.
"So instead of that happening, I'll just let them see you dead. A death of a person is easy to move on from, I'm pretty sure she'd wish this kind of death upon you once she ever did find out." Levi uncapped the bottle and poured it's liquid content on the fabric as the man watched him in fright. "I'm doing her a favor."
"W-What..are..you.." The man couldn't finish his sentence as he grunted in pain again, but Levi already knew his question. Instead of answering, he just kicked the man on his stomach earning another howl of pain from him. Levi's face remained stoic and expressionless, although he did show a little hint of amusement. "-lease...h..have....mercy..."
Mercy? Levi almost wanted to laugh once he heard that. Almost. But he didn't. He just bent down and shoved the gas soaked handkerchief inside the man's mouth.
"Mercy. Sorry, sir. That is not in my vocabulary." Smirking, stood up straight again and gathered up all the things he had brought. His knife, his bag, his jacket which he had removed to prevent it from getting dirty, and his plastic filled with windex. "Death is in it, though."
The man's eyes widened, they almost bulged out when he saw Levi took out yet another thing from his pocket. It was a lighter. It had only sunk into him what the Raven was going to do, he was going to burn him. With that thought, he thrashed around, trying to scream. Sadly, he couldn't because of the fabric stuck inside his mouth.
"Mmhmph! Hmph! Nwo! P-Peas!" He yelled, shamelessly sobbing now.
Levi rolled his eyes as he opened the lighter. "Au Revoir, you filthy pig." He whispered, throwing it directly at his mouth where the fabric was. The man's mouth immediately flared as the lighter's flames came in contact with the gas. The man screamed in excruciating pain, his body shook as he desperately tried to do something to save himself. But he and Levi both knew he wouldn't be leaving this alive.
Turning around, Levi decided to finally go home. He needed to have a long bath and then get some sleep. This day was a pain on his ass. He wanted a fucking peaceful day, so now he was going to get it whether life wanted it or not.
He headed towards the exit of the building and almost immediately got out, he couldn't also risk staying there for too long because he had also covered the whole room with gas.
Levi checked his surroundings to make sure no one saw him come out from there, it was almost midnight so he was sure that no one would really be around but he couldn't risk it. Once he deemed it safe, he started to walk towards the direction of his house, hoping there weren't anymore casualties.
Alas, faith wasn't really kind to him.
He lets out a small sigh as he looked around the empty streets. Occasionally, cars would pass but as usual they wouldn't pay any mind to some random teen walking about at night. It was a very quiet night, and Levi was very thankful for it. Closing his eyes, he inhaled and exhaled. He really liked peaceful moments like this, especially after murdering someone. It gives him a sense of comfort.
Though, that sense of comfort didn't last as he heard small rustling.
Instinctively, Levi stopped walking once he heard something move. He stayed still for a moment, brows furrowed as his eyes tried to look for a sign of something alive. It was silent yet again for a moment, but then another rusting noise was heard.
"What the.." He mumbled under his breath as he followed where the sound was coming from, he realized it was coming from a trashcan right in front of some random store. "Tch. Must be some filthy rat or something. I got fucking worked up for no damn reason. " he rolled his eyes at his own idiocy, though you can't blame him. With his line of work, he needs to be aware of his surroundings at all cause.
With a small grunt, he began headed home again.
"H-Hewp.."
What? Levi stopped dead on his tracks as he heard a small voice whisper. More rustling sounds from the trashcan was heard, now there were even more sounds. Now it sounded like someone was knocking on it. Could there possible be someone inside...?
"Pwease..h-hewp me." Another whispered was heard by Levi. Out of curiosity, he went closer to the trashcan and that's when he saw it. Rocks, there were a lot of rocks on top of the trashcan, almost as if it was trapping something...or someone. "D-Daddy, anyone, pwease..."
"Shit." Levi frowned, taking the rocks off from the lid, then opened it.
Once the trashcan was open, it fell over. A child suddenly popped out from inside. Levi's eyes widened a little more when he saw the kid, he looked around to check if there was anyone else who might've just accidentally put the child there.
Levi mentally face palmed. Seriously? Someone accidentally putting a child inside a trashcan? Has he officially became an imbecile? Never mind, that.
"Oi. Brat. Why were you in the trashcan?" Levi suddenly asked, making the child flinch.
The child was quiet for a bit, his head was still bowed making Levi clueless on what he looked like. He could only see his chocolate brown hair, and his bruise covered arms.
'Bruises?' Levi thought to himself, snickering. 'How typical.'
Abused children were quite a thing in their city, it wasn't a surprise for anyone anymore whenever there was another report about a child being abused and is found randomly on the streets. That's how messed up their city was, but it's not like Levi really cared. To him, they were all just nuisances anyways.
When the child didn't answer, Levi decided that staying was useless now. He wasn't even gonna help the boy, anyways.
Well, he can help him end his pain by killing him or something.
But since the child seemed to be uncooperative, Levi turned around without any word and started to walk away again. That's when he heard a small gasp. "W-Wait!..pwease! Mistew! D...Don't weave.." The child sniffled from behind him, but Levi ignored him. "Pwease..I'm...scawed..."
"So?" Levi asked. "Does it look like I care?"
The child was quiet once more, but after a few seconds he spoke again. "N-No.." He mumbled. "B-But...but..pwease don't leave! Pwease..pwease hewp me!"
"Help you?" This made Levi turned around, his eyebrows raised at him. "Kid, as you already know. I don't really care, you're just one of those stupid children that whine because their parents abused him. Grow a pair, kid. Those are just bruises."
"Bwood.." The child mumbled again. "I..I covewed..in bwood. It scawy, it scawy...p-pwease!" Tears fell on the ground and the Raven could only assume that the boy was crying. He kept blubbering stuff under his breath how scary it was, how gross it was. Levi wondered what the hell was this 'it' the child was talking about. He strangely kept pointing at the trashcan again, which weirded Levi out a bit.
Once again Levi searched the child's body, and he was indeed covered in blood. Why hadn't he noticed that before? Oh, well. The only assistance he could give was end this brat's pain and kill him. Levi took out his knife for the second time today, then walked closer to him. "Alright, brat. I'll help you end the pain." He said.
"W-Weally?"
"Yes, really. Now stay still and let me help."
The scene was like a predator and it's prey, Levi smirked as he slowly stalked towards him with his knife. Although, he was aware that he was going to get dirty, that didn't stop him. Call him messed up, but killing would always be fun for him. This was going to be very, very easy.
As soon as he was right in front of the boy, Levi already readied himself to stab him. But this time, the little boy decided to look up.
And the Raven couldn't help but freeze.
His breathing hitched, his heart felt like it was about to explode. This boy was gorgeous. He almost looked like an angel. His face was so small, but it looked like it was a sculpted masterpiece. Levi didn't know how but seeing his face made him look smaller, he looked so innocent, so helpless. And Levi couldn't help but feel angry when he saw a bruise on the child's beautiful face.
What had him at awe the most was the child's eyes, his goddamn eyes.
They were both like a pair of jewels, the color was like a mixture of green and blue. Despite it being a little dark, the light of the moon made his gorgeous eyes sparkle. Literally sparkle. It was absolutely breathtaking.
Someone inside him told him to take this child, take him and seclude him from everything. Levi couldn't help but let the knife fall from his hands, as he sat on the ground in front of the boy; who was staring at him curiously. Though, he still looked a little scared.
"W-What..that..?" The small boy asked with a small whisper, Levi almost laughed. Because the kid's grammar was so adorable. Keyword, though. Almost. It was a bit weird how despite being scared, he can still be a curious little shit. The child was about to touch the knife, but Levi immediately took it and hid it inside his behind pockets.
"A sharp object that can kill you if you touch it, so don't. You brat."
Pouting, he lets out a small huff. "M-My name is not bwat! I-It's Ewen!" He glared up at him. When Levi glared back, Eren immediately stopped with a small whimper. "S-Sowwy..." He mumbled.
"Hmm. Ewen, huh? That's a weird name, don't you think?" Levi asked a little thoughtful, talking to the child like he wasn't planning on killing him.
"No! I-Its Ewen! It's Ewen!" The child repeated.
"Ellen?"
"N-No!"
"Eden?"
"What? D-Das..not even c-cwose!"
Levi thought again for a bit, he remembered the brunette's speech problem. He can't pronounce the letters R and L properly. He had already said Ellen, so...
"Eren?" The child's face finally lit up a bit once Levi had finally said his name right, then nodded enthusiastically. A little too enthusiastic for a child who was inside a trash can not too long ago and was now wounded. The raven was silent for a bit, just staring at Eren while the child stared back.
Their mini staring contest lasted for about five minutes, until Levi broke it with a groan. "I can't believe I fucking had a staring contest with a child. God, this is ridiculous." He mumbled to himself, with a sigh.
Eren tilted his head to the side, but that was a bad idea. Especially, since he was still badly bruised. He lets out a pained cry.
Hearing that sound oddly made Levi angry, the fact that this child was in pain yet he still looks strong. It was unfair. He did not deserve this.
What?
Does Levi actually pity this boy? Ha. Ridiculous. Levi had seen battered children and killed them without batting an eyelash before, so what makes Eren so different?
'His eyes.'
Levi furrowed his eyebrows when a voice whispered inside his head.
'They've got light.'
True. He had encountered many children before that were close to Eren's situation, but all of them already looked dead inside. They had already given up on life. Which makes them useless and pathetic in Levi's eyes. He laughs at children like those.
'He's different.'
Indeed this child in front of him was different, very different. He's bleeding for god's sake, yet he still has enough strength to be curious. He can still fight Levi into saying his actual name. If it were any child, they'd cry like a bitch until they fucking die. Yes, this boy was different. He hasn't given up on life yet, he still remains pure despite how he looks.
Suddenly, Levi sees light. He doesn't know how it's possible, but looking at Eren makes him see light. He was starting to wonder if Eren was an actual angel. Though, that would be ridiculous. Angels don't exist.
But this, this boy in front of him does.
A living, breathing boy. As pure as the sun was sitting in front of him, staring at him with his big, bright eyes. Looking at him like he was the most interesting person in the world.
Without even noticing it, Levi had unconsciously reached for the boy and gently carried him inside his arm. He wanted to scold himself, he shouldn't be doing this. He shouldn't be picking this boy up. He should just leave him there.
'He's mine.'
But Levi wanted to keep him, he wanted to take this boy and shield him away from the world.
Eren was different, Eren was like an endangered animal that needs to be protected. And Levi knew he is capable of doing that.
What was he thinking?
He can't take this boy, this was not like him. He cannot. He refuses to. This was all bullshit, it was ridiculous.
'I want to--'
He is going to put this boy back on the ground, turn around and just leave him. That was the best thing to do. He was not going to involve himself in something so bothersome. He already has a lot of other shit to deal with, he doesn't need anything else.
Levi already settled that inside his mind, but he was wondering why he still hasn't put Eren down. Instead, he continued to walk once more towards the direction of his house.
Eren placed his cheek on the raven's shoulder, staring up at Levi with a frown. "W-Whewe awe we going...?" He asked, he didn't look frightened that a random guy he just met was carrying him at all. Eren just looked genuinely curious, and almost willing to go with him.
"I'm taking you home.."
"H-Home? T-To my daddy? Pwease...no, no." The small brunette's eyes widened, tears flowed out from them again. This shocked Levi a bit, just a few minutes ago he was only just curious as to know where they were going, but at the mention of home he suddenly looked panicked.
He lifted his head up again, a bit abruptly. Which made him wince out in pain again. "O-Ow!"
"Brat, calm down." Levi frowned. "I'm not going to take you to your home, we're going to mine. And stop moving too much, as you can see you're pretty banged up, right? " he grumbled, placing his hand on top of Eren's head; lowering it down to his shoulder again. Eren obediently did so, sniffling still. "Good."
"Is your home that bad?"
Eren slowly nodded, his body was still slightly shaking. "Nevew..want t-to go back.." He mumbled. "Nevew evew."
"Alright..."
The walk was finally silent again, the sound of a few cars passing by, Eren's sniffling, and the faint sounds of their heartbeats were the only things that could be heard.
Levi closed his eyes, for a moment trying to think of all the bad things that could happen after all of this. A lot of things are bound to happen, and they weren't all too good.
He silently concluded, that he was definitely going to regret this later on. There was another thing Levi had been thinking about and bothered him a lot.
Eren smelled like shit.
+++
Have you ever experienced that moment where you went home late after some party, or you secretly went on a date with your boyfriend or some shit? So you had to sneak in inside your house quietly to avoid your parents? That's exactly what Levi was doing right now.
Except, his situation was different. Very, very, different.
He wasn't sneaking in after going to a party or doing god knows what with a lover, he was sneaking in after picking up a bruised child he found. And it was shit.
He wasn't even hiding from any proper authorities as well, he didn't have parents. There are absolutely no proper adults living under the same roof as him. But that's what makes it dangerous for him. Knowing them, they'd make a fuss on having Levi having a child with him. It'll surely be a headache for Levi, so he'd very much want to just clean this child's bruises and sleep. He had a long day, he really wanted to sleep.
So, very quietly, he tiptoed inside the house with Eren in his arms being covered by a jacket just in case someone was still awake. Sweat dropped from his forehead as he stealthily tried to walk pass the living room, silently cursing to himself and questioning why he was doing this on the first place.
"Damn, brat. Damn this. Why do I have to fucking do this anyways, and what did I fucking do to fucking deserve this, huh? All I want to do is take a huge shit and sleep. Is that too much to ask? Goddammit." He grumpily mumbled to himself once he had managed to get to the stairs without sensing any other presence except his and the small brat's.
Speaking of Eren, Levi hadn't felt him move ever since he told him that he wasn't taking him to his father, he had gone quiet.
Levi wondered if the brunette was dead? He could be. He was pretty banged up, he had blood stains, too. Maybe..he was? Suddenly, fear rose inside of Levi as that thought came to him. Without even thinking he had rushed upstairs and darted towards his room.
All of the things he complained about had been thrown out of the window as he headed inside his room, locking the door in the process.
He sped walked to his bed and quickly yet gently placed Eren down on the bed, removing the jacket that was covering him. Levi then lets out a breath of relief when he saw two precious jewels staring at him, with a hint of curiosity and confusion.
'He's alive. Thank the fucking god.'
Wait..
Was he actually glad that Eren was alive? That was absurd. Levi never cared so much about anything or anyone before, nor did he want to. Caring for someone is pointless, caring for someone too much can lead to one's downfall. Caring for someone is stupid.
But yet, he couldn't explain why he had suddenly feared that Eren might've died on the way there.
Was it just because he didn't want to risk getting caught carrying a dead boy? Possibly. Or was it really him caring for the boy? Possible. But that will never be admitted.
Levi stayed still for what felt like years, just staring at the child on his bed. He pondered if he was sick or not. The things he was feeling at the moment were not normal, they were not normal at all. He also wondered if he was going insane? Maybe killing that guy earlier was the reason he'd gone mental.
Or maybe he was just a complete idiot, who knows?
Not, him apparently.
"Damn it." Levi finally tore away his gaze from the quiet boy then sat back down on the bed. "Why did I do this...?" He asked himself for the millionth time today despite knowing only him could answer that question. His lips formed a frown on his face as he buried his face on his palms, rethinking his life choices.
To his surprise, though, a warm hand touched his arm and a tiny body was suddenly next to his.
The raven turned his head to see Eren looking up at him with a big smile, which made Levi's heart stop, literally stop. "M-Mistew, p..pwease do not b-b..be sad! Mistew saved Ewen! S-So..Ewen make mistew h-happy with hug!" Eren stuttered out, his grammar was still off, but it was obvious that he was trying very hard to say the words correctly. But Levi didn't mind that, what Eren did next was the most shocking thing ever.
He hugged Levi.
This child. This sweet, innocent boy. Had hugged the man who had attempted to end his life earlier, this battered child who didn't even think that he was the one who was actually hurt and not Levi.
Levi questioned this boy's existence once more. A child like this was rare, he wasn't like those snotty brats.
This child deserved the world.
And that's when it finally hit Levi..he did want to protect this child. Eren was precious, he had only known him for almost an hour but his eyes. His eyes had already shown who he was.
He was not like them, at all. He still hasn't been exposed to the real horrors of life, he hasn't been tainted too much yet. He was still strong.
Levi wanted to preserve that, he wanted to keep that innocence.
For years, he thought he had seen it all. He believed no one could be innocent, there was no good in this world. But now he finally saw it, one beautiful angel. An angel who had his arms wrapped around him now, an angel so pure that other filthy creatures shouldn't even be allowed to look at him. And Levi had that angel, he had that all for himself.
Something inside him snapped, a small growl left his lips as he wrapped an arm around the child's waist and pulled him close. He placed his chin on Eren's head, not even caring if he had been inside the trashcan. The sudden feelings created by this boy were starting to take over.
With only a small gesture, Levi's eyes opened. He knew what he had to do.
He was going to keep him.
"Levi." The Raven whispered to the small angel.
Eren squirmed a bit, looking up at Levi with a confused face. "Huh..?"
"My name is Levi, not mister." The brunette was silent for a moment, he stared at Levi like he had said something in greek. He seemed to be internally processing what the older boy told him. Until finally, a few seconds later his face lit up like a christmas tree. 'Did he really just get what I said now?'
"O-Oh! Hello, Wevi! My..My n-name is Ewen!" A small giggle escaped from Eren's lips as he tried to hold out his hand so he and Levi could shake hands, but he whimpered in pain. "Ow.."
The brightened face had turned into a pained expression.
Levi clicked his tongue. "I already knew that, brat. Now before I forget, c'mon..let's fix up your wound, clean you, then go to bed. I'm tired." He got up from where he was sitting and then carried Eren inside his arms again.
"O-Okay." Eren mumbled, burying his face on Levi's shoulder again. The raven heard him mumble something, but he wasn't able to catch it.
"Oi. What? Speak louder."
"Th-Thank you, Wevi. You..You awe so nice." The brunette repeated with a small yawn, rubbing his eyes with his fist.
Nice? Levi wanted to laugh at what he was just called, but he didn't bother to correct the kid. One thing he told himself is that if he was letting Eren's stay here, he won't let the boy see his true colors. Eren didn't need to know that he was gonna be taken care of someone like Levi.
He didn't need to know that the one who saved him was almost the devil himself.
"You're welcome." Levi replied deadpanned and headed to the bathroom where he keeps his first aid kit. Eren gave him a tired smile, then nuzzled his nose on Levi's shoulder again; clutching on his shirt tightly. "Oi. No sleeping. It's gonna be really tedious to clean a sleeping child's wound."
"What does t-tedous..tedyus....t-te...te.....Pah!" Eren huffed, annoyed, when he couldn't pronounce the word Levi used.
The raven silently snickered in amusement, patting Eren's soft hair. "It's tedious. Now, now. No need to be so grumpy, you'll learn how to say big words soon." He assured him when he saw the child pout. "Right now. We really have to clean your wound, brat. Okay? Your stomach is bleeding, it's quite a shock that you're not dead...hmm. Come to think of it, maybe I should've taken you to a hospital?" He face palmed, he was such an idiot. How could he not think that Eren might need proper medical attention since he was bleeding? Jesus christ.
Eren tilted his head a bit like a puppy, then looked down at his shirt. "This." He pointed at the blood stain. "N-Not Ewen's"
"Oh?" Levi knitted his eyebrows in confusion. "Then whose is it?"
"Inside twashcan. T-Thewe was...dead kitty." The brunette answered with a small voice, his face dropped at remembering the dead cat that was inside the trashcan with him.
Come to think of it. Eren did stunk, Levi noticed that earlier. He wondered what caused such foul stench. And when Eren had told him before about being covered in blood, he was probably trying to tell the older man about the bleeding, dead cat. So that's why he kept pointing inside the trashcan. Now, he knows...
Levi's scowl worsened as he placed the child inside the bathtub. "Alright, brat. Wound cleaning later. You need a fucking bath." He mumbled as he narrowed his eyes at the blood stain.
"..o-okay"