A one-shot for the Levi Ackerman x Fem!OC series, North Star
Tags: fluff; post-Rumbling world; postwar!Levi feeling the healing power of nature
Author's note: While this one-shot is part of the North Star world, it can still be enjoyed without having read the series.
But the story is best enjoyed while sitting under the trees.
Levi can’t recall ever enjoying summers in Paradis. It had always been unbearably hot and humid; every shred of his uniform sticking to his body making it difficult to move. Not to mention that summer was the busiest time of year for expeditions. Riding for hours in the heat, the only time he felt a cool breeze was when he was flying through the air on ODM gear. The sound of nearby thunder from a summer storm would mingle with the footsteps of titans, and the flowers that dotted the forest ground were often splattered with the blood of his comrades.
No, he had no good memories of summer.
He’d arrived in Mursa at the peak of the season and with no knowledge of mountain summers. But the moment he’d moved into your home he saw how much you treasured it: the fresh flowers neatly displayed on the breakfast table every morning, and the basket of vegetables from the garden under your arm. You opened every window in the house to let a crosswind cool the rooms, the gossamer fabric of the curtain blowing in the wind.
He started his walk to his job at the stables in the early dawn hours, when the sun had not yet burned off the heavy dew collecting on each leaf and flower, the birds just beginning their songs. He noticed that the air was cool and crisp in the mornings and evenings here, and you’d given him a jacket when you’d seen him bristle at the chill.
If people could be seasons then he’d decided you were summer. You were bright and warm, and had a bustling energy about you. He could hear you humming in your garden when you were pulling weeds, humming when you put laundry on the line to dry. Always humming, always singing…
“Come ride with me,” you said one day while visiting the stables. You were brushing your horse, Astrid, and she seemed to snort in approval. “You were saying you need to ride Demon more anyway, right?”
It’s true, he needed to get the stallion out and stretch its legs.
“Ok, but just for a quick ride. I need to get back and do the rest of today’s chores,” he answered.
“Pfft, you’ve done most of them already, the rest can wait. Besides, it’s summer!”
(This was something you often said, he’d realized - when you wanted to sleep in a little longer on the weekends, when you’d eat an extra helping of strawberries with cream, when you’d stay up too late reading a book - as if summer was some magical pass to do things you don’t normally do.)
“He’s fine to leave for a few hours, right Mathieu?”
The old man smiles, the deep wrinkles around his mouth deepening. “Levi works so efficiently, I barely have anything left for him to do today.” He grabs a saddle and gives it to Levi. “Go, enjoy the summer’s day.”
Once both horses are saddled, you and he ride out of the stables and into the meadow.
“Where to?” he asks, having a feeling you’ve got something in mind.
“We’re gonna ride up into those mountains a bit.” You point to a mountain range just to the west of the stables. “I have a place to show you that I think you’re gonna love.”
You look at him with a gleam in your eye. “Wanna race to the foot of the mountain?”
He liked this competitive side of you. “You know Demon and I will beat you.”
“Not if I get a head start!”
A gentle prod to Astrid’s and you’re off in a flash. Levi smirks and pets the side of Demon’s neck.
“Time to show off a little, eh?” Levi clicks his tongue and taps Demon’s sides, just as they’d practiced over the past week. The black stallion snorts, stomping the ground before he starts his cantor. It doesn’t take long before they’re neck-in-neck with you, but he says a command and Demon goes even faster. By the time you and Astrid reach the foot of the mountain, the other two are relaxed, Demon nibbling on some blades of grass.
“What was that about beating me?” Levi smirks.
You roll your eyes before moving past him, starting up a narrow trail that leads into the trees. He follows behind, welcoming the cool shade as you ride further up. There’s a rustling in the bushes and Levi whips his head toward the sound, suddenly on alert. A deer’s head rises, seemingly unbothered by their presence.
Levi sighs. Even after all these years, it’s hard not to think that any movement in a forest is a possible threat. He keeps his eyes on your back as you ascend, the trail too narrow for you to ride side by side. But it’s a well worn trail, Levi notices; whether it was you or someone else that created it, it’s been used often. You don’t speak a word the entire trek until suddenly the ground evens out and you stop.
“Here we are,” you declare in a sing-song voice, “my little hideaway.”
The dense foliage of the pine and elm trees has given way to a small clearing dotted with white and blue flowers, their petals open towards the sun as if greeting its warmth. It was almost perfectly circular, like it was cleared of trees and specifically made.
“Martin and I would come here when we were kids.” You step into the clearing. “We thought fairies made this place - it’s always felt so magical.”
“Magical beings that live in the forest.” Levi looks at you, perplexed. “There aren’t forest spirits where you’re from?”
“Not that I’m aware of. But there were plenty of things that wanted to kill us,” he replies.
“Fairies can be mischievous, but they’re usually kind and benevolent. Especially if you give them a gift.”
You take out a peach and a small bottle from your saddle bag and place it under a large tree next to the clearing. “They particularly like wine and fruit.”
“Who doesn’t,” Levi says, slightly to mock but he must admit, his interest has peaked. “Now what happens? Do they jump out of the trees or something?”
“No! That’s silly,” you answer. Your eyes shine as you take his arm and pull him into the center of the clearing. “I know you don’t believe in any of this stuff, but..”
You sit down, pulling him down with you. “...you’ll see, there’s something special about this place.”
Before Levi can respond, you’re lying down in the grass, your face towards the sky, just like the flowers around you. “Just lay down. Close your eyes. Listen.”
There’s something about the calm and confident way you voice those three commands, and the next thing he knows, he’s lying beside you, his arms crossed against his chest.
One final sigh of resignation, and he closes his eyes. He waits a few seconds, wondering if something will happen, and laughing at himself internally for even entertaining these kinds of foolish thoughts.
But then his breathing steadies, and he notices that it’s in rhythm with the breeze blowing through the trees around him: an in and out, as if the trees are also breathing.
He feels a tiny insect - probably an ant - walking across his hand, the tall grass brushing against his body.
He smells the scent of pine in the air, sweet and woody.
He hears the bird song around him - the same melody he hears every day, but now, he notices every note. It’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever heard.
There’s another sound - a voice in the air, but it’s not yours.
Levi opens his eyes to the sound of you humming in the distance. He sits up, blinking a few times to adjust to the changing lighting.
“You felt it, didn’t you?”
You’re picking some flowers next to a tree, twisting their stems into a flower crown.
He rubs the back of his neck before standing up and wipes off the grass from his pants. “How long was I out?”
“Oh, for about an hour. I didn’t want to wake you, you looked so peaceful.”
Levi walks over to the tree you’re sitting under and leans against the trunk. You look up and smile at him.
“The fairies tend to give us what we need most. Apparently, you needed rest.”
Levi does a mental scan of his body. He does feel rested, more than he has in a long time. His muscles are relaxed, and even his knee isn’t aching as much. He’s never been a superstitious person - he believes what his eyes and other senses tell him - but he has to admit, there is something special about this place.
He wants to ask you what you were given during your time in the clearing, and what you need most. And why you brought him, of all people,here.
Instead, he looks away, his face apathetic. “Yeah, well, an afternoon nap is never a bad idea.” He glances down to see you smiling at him. “What?” he asks defensively.
You smile so sweetly at him, he feels a slight heat to his cheeks.
“Oh…nothing…nothing,” you reply, standing up as you hold the flower crown. “Thanks for coming with me today.”
“Would you…come here again with me some time?’
He can feel the blush growing across his face now and he turns away, walking towards Demon, who’s grazing nearby. “Sure.”
He looks back at you to see that you’ve now put the crown upon your head. The breeze blows some of your hair across your face, and he almost reaches out to push the strands behind your ear, but you beat him to it. Of all people, why would you want to spend time with him? You'd only just met him a little over a month ago. And what is it about you that makes him want to say yes to whatever you ask?
He can’t explain what it is about this place that makes it feel so special. Maybe it’s some natural phenomenon, maybe it is fairies.
He reaches out and straightens the crown on your head.
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