#send them hate

To answer the first part of your question, I’m not sure if I even understand Levi and Eren’s relationship from Levi’s perspective in canon. From what I understand, Eren admired and looked up to him because he was Humanity’s Strongest, and Eren was obsessed with exterminating all the Titans. I’d say he stopped blindly admiring him as an idol of sorts when they actually met and he got to know how….rough Levi actually is. I think his feelings turned to that of respect, because Eren actually values and complies with military discipline. I think eventually they formed some sort of comradeship? But I think that changed after the whole Erwin/Armin fiasco, especially on Eren’s end.

Now, in terms of what I mean by not understanding Levi’s perspective, I’m not sure I get why Levi got interested in Eren in the first place. When Eren says that stuff about murdering all the Titans unabashedly, it’s very obvious that Levi takes an interest. I’m guessing it’s because Eren was honest, and in a way, they shared the same goal because even if I’m not 100% on board with ACWNR, Levi in canon has made it clear he doesn’t want them to live in a Titan-run world. If I take into account those audiobooks and stuff, apparently Levi viewed Eren as a monster and waxed some poetic shit about it, which I guess is compliant with what he says to his squad when Eren was about to fight Annie on his own. But Eren surprised Levi with his decision, and I think it’s after this that he started viewing Eren as more of a human. 

Judging by how he’d always check up on Eren [contrary to Hanji who would just use him with no regards to his well-being :))))], and how he ruffled his hair after the whole Erwin/Armin fiasco, I think Levi does view Eren as a comrade of sorts. Or at least, he feels responsible for him on more of an emotional level rather than being tasked to keep him in check as was the case originally.

But yeah, I’m not sure if I interpret their relationship properly…If someone has something to add on to this or debunk it, I’m open to discussion, cause it’s actually something I’ve been confused about for a while (like WHY did Levi go “not bad”).

Moving on to the shipping part of your question, I used to ship Eren and Levi, but I do find it kind of creepy now to be honest. Especially when people turn it into a situation where Levi is abusing his powers…I don’t know, it’s a complicated topic. I think we’re free to have our kinks and stuff when it comes to fiction, but a lot of people project this onto real life and I think that’s the concern. Also, I think it’s one thing to have those thoughts, and another to act on it? If we were to judge everyone by every fleeting thought they have, I’m pretty sure we’d all belong in Hell. There’s also the fact that humans have the tendency to get off on taboo or basically, doing things that they’re not supposed to do, whether it’s because it’s against the law or due to religious beliefs. I guess it’s that “evil” part in us that always wants to “sin”.

Okay I got off topic, but I’m not sure why you find Reiner/Eren weird when they’re actually close in age and had a close relationship before shit went down. I personally like it, and I think in an alternative universe, I can see something happening between them, considering the emphasis that’s put on their relationship in canon. If you couldn’t already tell, I have a thing for rivalry-based relationships lol. But I mean, it’s really to each their own and I think we shouldn’t shame others for their ships even if we don’t understand them or find them disgusting. We can all have our own interpretations. That’s part of the reading process. 

P.S. In case you’re curious, this scene is one of the reasons why I love Reiner and Eren’s relationship prior to the betrayal.

     I should’ve listened to Mom and not watched Spongebob :/