#found father

This is my first post and I am mainly doing it out of struggle with my C.AI recovery and I haven't really gotten into CoD yet so the characters might see ooc at some times (im trying )

Reader is a neglected teenager who lives in a small town in the middle of nowhere. Their parents don't give a damn about them and are borderline abusive. They'd rather get rid of them entirely.

Meanwhile Ghost just moved in because it was the perfect place to be when off base. His new house was near the forest and it had a big enough terrain for Riley, the retired K9. But he needed someone to feed the beast when he was away (and also walk her). So he put some posters up.

Reader walking around even in the cold cuz it's better than being "home" at dinner time. They come across the poster and are like "omg finally a source of money so I can get tf out when im 18" and don't even think twice about it.

And Ghost who hears someone ringing his door and didn't expect a teenager holding his offer. "Probably the best bet" he thought and let reader in.

Ghost discussing his conditions and reader fricking noting it down on paper (he thought the teen was bonkers not to use a phone. Little did he know they didn't own one :( )

Reader being extra invested offering to walk the beast at least twice a day and even promising to keep a booklog. (Anything that would keep them out of their "home"...)

And when talking about prices, reader asking for the bare minimum like a poud per day or something. And Ghost managing to bring it up to 3.

Reader firsthand getting to know Riley and seemed to get along okay. And Ghost having to leave for deployment, leaving the german shepherd in the hands of the teen for a few weeks.

And when he comes back, he is greeted with a very healthy (and happy) Riley and a notebook on his kitchen counter ( he had of course given the teen a set of keys). Inside was a record of Riley's walks, entertainment and meals. Sometimes accompanied with a doodle or two and some anecdotes.

The next day he almost got a heart attack when the teen came unannounced (not like they could give notice) Turns out the teen wanted to take Riley on a walk while he slept (he didn't sleep in).

He didn't want to brush iff the teen. Especially since they did such a remarkable job. So he offered to go with him. Good occasion to tell the teen that the price they set is too low compared to the effort put in.

He learned a bit about reader's parents. And understood their whish of qwqqthe money remaining secret. He hid it in a locked drawer in his house.

The money barely budged deployment after deployment. It had a small logbook with the teens expenses (they made it themselves)

One time, in the middle of winter, he came home a bit earlier from deployment and found the teenager trying to sleep in his couch half frozen to death. She had walked Rilwy a bit later than usual and their parents locked them out of the house (on purpose) and they had no choice but to crash at Simon's to avoid dying.

The hypothermia being lowkey bad and Simon having to take care of reader almost debating going to the hospital but not wanting anyone involved. So he let the teenager sleep in his clothes, in his bed and forced them to stay over for the next two days.

Reader being extremely embarrassed about being dependant on someone. Especially since it was considered a flaw to her family. Having to be reliable was their worst scenario. They ended up opening uo more to Simon during these few days. And being cared for, for the first time in years

Blood and ash were your oxygen.

You inhaled the impurities every day, streets painted with the scent of urine, dirt and metal. This was the underground, the place you were forced to call your home. Kill or be killed.

True survival of the fittest. The smartest. The most skilled. So why were you still alive?

A mere child having grown used to returning to a corpse and a shaky building, floor creaking and groaning with every step.

No mother, no father, no sister, no brother. There was no one and nothing left for you to see.

Levi hesitated returning to the underground.

A place of filth, disgust and despair. It wasn't a home. But to the people, it was.

They had nowhere else to go. No escape routes, none that you could leave without support. No good people, all on the brick of either madness or death.

It reeked of corruption, a smell he had grown accustomed to. For those in need, he kept thinking. But he knew Erwin was searching, analyzing.

Scouting for soldiers. The Regiment offered food and fresh water, starved people crowding them as they handed it out. They didn't care if it was poisoned or tampered with. They were hungry and desperate for the taste of something new, something fresh.

He couldn't bring himself to stay long in the crowd. That's when he found you in an alley.

Not scared, not afraid, but empty.

Eyes holding a void, evidently malnourished. You weren't alive. You didn't move reactively fast. Slow, even. But not hesitant.

You were simply existing.

A glint of metal shone near your throat, and only then did he realize you were holding a blade to your skin.

He was used to death, and he doesn't know what made made him move so quickly, but he snatched the weapon from your hand, grip tight on it, silent at first, the heavy tension ticking by before he asked your name.

He has no prior experience with kids. Only with a squad that behaves like children, but get serious when the situation calls for it.

But he saw a part of you in him. Something stood out about you, even while you were hiding.

You were like any other underground kid. Dirty, uneducated, alone. Maybe it’s the fact that he almost saw you take your life is what made him take you in.

He didn’t bother asking for Erwin’s permission either. “A perfect candidate,” is something he would probably say.

You hesitated at first.

You had seen your fair share of death. In alleys, on the streets, heard from other houses. Death was all you had known.

But he had wings on his back. He had the gear to fly. He had hope.

Before his arrival, you only heard word of the Wings of Freedom. The Scout Regiment. Soldiers, children, daughters, sons. People that fought against the abnormal creatures dawned Titans.

And there was a look in his eyes. One of understanding, as if he knew what was happening every other minute in the underground. He knew, he understood.

That’s what made you take his hand. And the moment you left, you knew you owed him your life. He had shown you the sun and the moon.

The first days of living together were awkward.

You, walking on eggshells. Him, unsure on how to manage his life with a girl to come home to. Neither of you were used to family. The presence of another person in a household.

Baby steps, Hange told him. Take it slow. It was a new experience for you both.

So he did. He didn’t hover, but he made it clear that he was there. He didn’t push answers out of you, he waited for them. He gave you time, one of the most underestimated things in the world. And slowly, but surely, you both began to warm up to each other.

He would brush back your hair and help you tie it. He would teach you on how to keep the place clean. He would make food for the both of you, gather what he can and make something of it.

He bought you your first ever toy you were admiring from afar. A horse plushie. And he let you name his horse, Midnight.

You waited for him, even when he came home late at night. And even though he would scold you, you would both end up admiring the night sky together later on.

Though, his most important lessons were always his combat lessons.

You were quick to learn, he realized. Quick to pick up on small details that weren’t perceived at first. That’s when he began to teach you.

Not just in the wood of your house or on the grass of the backyard, but under the sky of the training fields he used to tell you about.

Erwin earned your respect from youth, and Hange loved sharing their knowledge with you. Levi, at first, thought that things like Titans were too graphic for you, but you listened.

You hanged onto every word they said, even asking questions of your own. You were gathering knowledge, a deadly thing to do in this type of world.

“She’s a spitting image of you.” The air tensed between the Commander and Captain, the words hanging over them. It was true, even if he hated to admit it.

You began to reflect him in every way possible. Maybe because you spent every day side by side, maybe because you admired him. Maybe both. Probably both.

The gleam in your eyes when you struck with a blade, when you pulled the strings of a bow, when you fought hand to hand combat.

The same childhood, the same training, but he made sure to always give you more. To be better than Kenny, to make sure you have more than he did.

The first time ODM gear was given to you, you did the same thing. You changed your hold on the swords, holding them backwards.

Keith Shadis was there at your first tryout with the gear, and he recognized Humanity’s Strongest in you. The skill of using it came naturally to you.

After being given a rundown of the manuals and protocols, you zipped through trees, flying in the sky, launching yourself up and shooting down with proficiency.

You sliced the neck of every fake Titan in sight, leaving none behind. One even losing the entire wooden head.

All without wasting much gas.

“I shine only with the light you gave me,” your words cut with the harsh veracity. “If I hadn’t taken your hand that day, I’d probably be dead by now.”

Levi was never good with words. Neither was he really with actions. That was until you came into the frame.

Despite your deafening silence back then, you showed warmth to one another. You had your own system of communication. You learned what each other’s silences meant, to decipher each other’s eyes and movements.

You learned about one another through each other.

So, in the comfortable silence, he set his hand on your shoulder, squeezing it gentle. His way of saying that he heard what you said, and that he’s proud of you.

The first time you called him “Dad,” it slipped out. Almost naturally, almost as if it were normal.

He froze, having just set down a tea cup for you after an exhaustlong day of training, muscles sore, eyes heavy. Only seconds later, you realized it too, hands tense while holding the ceramic.

You almost stuttered your response, forming the start of an apology, but he cut you off. He was smiling, you realized. Levi Ackerman, smiling and shoulders relaxed. From then on, you got used to referring to him as your father.

You didn’t join the scouts, not at first. Your dad made sure to keep you away from the gear and away from Hange and Erwin when the recruiting started.

At first, you wanted to argue with him, but that only would’ve set fuel to the fire. So, you asked one day at dinner. He avoided the question, attempting to change the topic, but you didn’t budge.

That night, he was vulnerable. He told you about Isabel and Farlan, about his mother, about his fears. You were the only person left that he considered true family. He wanted to do everything to make sure that you would stay alive for as long as possible.

But life as an Ackerman didn’t allow peace.

So, after a heart-to-heart conversation, you convinced him. And rumors started the second the news of the Captain’s daughter joining hit them.

They weren’t even able to comprehend that he had a life outside of being in the Wings of Freedom.

And they soon realized, you were just as dangerous as him. Just as deadly, just as sharp, just as swift.

You didn’t mean to mirror your father, you simply did. It was too late to change who you were.

Like him, you at first struggled with socializing with others your age. But you managed, finding a balance and what it means to have friends.

Word reached him that other scouts wanted to, in Hange’s vocabulary “Get a taste of her,” in the romantic sense of courting her.

As your father, he couldn’t allow that, naturally protective over you.

But you managed to handle it on your own. Rejecting them coldly, you called them out on their focus on the future when there wasn’t even a confirmed future with the walls falling. After calling them morons, you stated that you didn’t need a man to find value, and he couldn’t have been more proud.

You didn’t show it, but you were hesitant. To infiltrate Marley and cause the same harm they did to you years ago when Wall Maria fell.

The war would continue, but it brought you to the conclusion that they weren’t going to stop either.

Your father was set on beheading Zeke Jaeger, and you didn’t try to convince him otherwise.

When Sasha, one of your closest friends was shot in front of you, you paralyzed. Every part of you froze, stilled, as she bled out. You knew death. You had brushed shoulders with it so many times.

But it had no right to take your friends from you.

You lost it when you heard of your dad being dead, apparently.

You shouldn’t trust Floch, he’s a liar. You kept repeating those words in your head. That was until you went on a rampage.

You killed every soldier in sight. Cruel, merciless, swift and brutal. Your friends and family were falling all around you, and all you could do was watch and hear.

You were done with freezing up, you were done hesitating. You shot, struck, punched and killed. One by one, more blood stained you, your hands became more calloused, but your rage still simmered.

You truly were his daughter in every way. Leaving bodies behind, splatters of blood and haunting ghosts following you. You vowed to die your father’s daughter.

You hugged him when you saw him again. Both of you covered in bandages and scars, shaped by so many experiences alike, unraveled by the world and wrung of innocence. And he embraced you.

You broke down, sobbing into his shoulder, hands shaking, and like a true parent, he shushed you gently, helping you calm down, even when you both buckled and fell to your knees.

You didn’t flinch when you saw him murder Zeke Yeager.

Only supporting when you thought he needed it, which was almost never, you watched him fulfill his promise. He successfully beheaded the brother of Eren Yeager, a scout who he never thought would start a genocide.

You both wanted freedom, both curious to see not just what’s beyond the walls, but what lies beyond the horizon.

Eren’s curiosity lead him to death.

When the war officially ended, you took three people into your care. Gabi, Falco, and of course, Levi.

He nagged on you for not finding a home of your own, to not bother pushing him around in a wheelchair. But you always countered his arguments flawlessly.

You enjoyed spending time with them, especially after warming up to the two kids after the war. It would only hurt you to leave them behind. You still regularly saw your friends while taking care of your family. Your life became balanced.

No one mourns the wicked, you told yourself. You held empathy for the families that got news of their son, daughter, mother or father to have died in the war.

But a genocide could never be ended without bloodshed.

* Ha ha ha! — Merry Christmas!

(And happy holidays) !