Attack on Titan- Levi/Eren (M) Cleaning with the Captain 1/?

[aliasnz]

First fanfiction in agesss, so please be nice in the comments ^^; 
This is definitely a pretty indulgent but not outwardly impossible scenario? IDK we'll see lol. Part 1/? Will be continued!
Reader learns how to clean a room properly with Captain Levi. Things go awry when there is too much dust and only one cleaning mask.
Part 1 is mostly just establishment and therefore only has Eren. The rest will be all Levi though ❤️ 

<fic begins>

1 P.M. It was week 1 day 3 of training and time for the afternoon session to begin.

The morning session had been fine. You felt it was odd that one of the first stations of Survey Corps orientation was a 4 hour lecture from Hange. You were intrigued by titans, at least you were or thought you were, but such a long class that dragged with such detail made even you feel bored. Maybe the lecture had a hidden purpose of identifying those with genuine curiosity or short attention spans. Certainly not careless timing with Commander Erwin in charge.

After the AM session, there was an hour for lunch. Lunch was uneventful. Fellow recruits were trying to mingle but were clearly nervous. It was the first-day-at-a-new-school feeling. Friend groups from the 104th training days were still set. Eren, Mikasa, Armin together. Sasha, Connie, Jean nearby. The pairs Ymir and Christa, Reiner and Bertholdt were considerably away. You took a seat at the Shiganshina table.

As you sat, Armin gave you a smile, "Hi (y/n), nice to see you." Mikasa said nothing, staring intently at Eren. Eren had extra napkins on his tray and Mikasa had even more in her lap. You glanced up from your food to greet the two but only saw Eren's head tilting back, mouth parting, nostrils flaring...
"Hah'aesshh!! Hatch'shh!!"
"Here! Eren..." Mikasa thrust some napkins to Eren's face.
"Ih... I'b fide, Mikasa!" Eren waved her hand away, "stob treating me like a... a... Hah'Kschh!"
Armin looked back at you knowingly, "this is what we have been up to. It seems Eren has come down with a cold. It has been this dynamic since day 1." He gestured his head toward the concerned Mikasa and annoyed Eren.

You grimaced slightly and sifted away from Eren as subtly as you could. The first few days had worn you out enough, you couldn't afford to be slowed down any more by a cold. But now that you had sickness on your mind, your ears couldn't help but start to hear the symptoms all around you: nose blowing, coughing, sneezing, and an endless loop of sniffling. Soon after, you lost your appetite. Who knew how many contagious hands had brushed your bread roll already? 

To avoid a rude impression, you stuck around for as long as you could bear which was only a few more minutes. Eren and Mikasa at it with their independent/dependent back and forth, Armin observing them with familiarity. You just wanted out of that cafeteria and to hurry to Captain Levi's cleaning lesson where you could hopefully start sanitizing this place. When you saw Eren's eyes start to water and his nose start to twitch, you immediately stood up and grabbed your tray. 

"H-hey! See you, (y/n)! Sorry that I.. ih-heh... I couldn't...Hah... Ahh!" Mikasa reflexively caught his sneeze with a napkin in her hand, "HAH'Ekksh!!" Eren could no longer deny her care, whether he wanted to or not.
"It's fine, Eren! Feel better soon!" you flashed a smile but darted off towards the library for your afternoon session. Captain Levi was intimidating, but not in the same way as whatever was spreading around the 104th.

You looked over your shoulder to see Eren sneezing helplessly into Mikasa's held stack of napkins. Even this many meters away from the table, you could hear "Hah'Ittch! Heh'Aesch!! Hahh'Ktschh!" 

Oh no...

.
---------------------------

 

Once you got to the library doors, however, the nervousness of a one-on-one training with humanity's strongest soldier and humanity's toughest cleaner started to catch up to you. You checked the time, 1 P.M. exactly. It was time to head in, you wouldn't dare be late.

Nudging the heavy door open, you saw Levi in his cleaning outfit: a white button-up, starch pants, a cloth for his head, a cloth for his face. Despite the domestic outfit, he still had the belts and leather wrap of the ODM gear on.
He's ready for action, you thought, Is he required to be dressed this way at all times? Should we be expecting an attack? Is it just habit? Wandering thoughts? Not now... 
You darted your eyes back to him, he was folding washcloths with utmost precision. Corners to corners. He did not even turn his head at the sound of the creaky door or your footsteps, entrenched in his cleaning preparation. After a few seconds of staring at him with your hands folded, waiting for his acknowledgement, you cleared your throat, "Captain?"

Levi turned his head, "Hey... you must be one of the new recruits." 

You felt your heart was in your throat, but still managed your rehearsed, "Yes, sir."

"From the 104th, right?"  Levi grabbed a clipboard off the table and flipped through some pages. Eyes on the training schedule, "Name?"

You introduced yourself, but in the presence of such a superior, your intonation rose unintentionally such that you sounded unsure.... of your own name.
Get it together!   

"Right, you're in the right place." Levi's eyes met yours for the first time. He folded his arms, "before we can think about sending you beyond the walls or fighting titans, I want to make sure you know how to clean a room properly. That's why we have this station, a one-on-one station at that." 

"Of course," you nodded.

"Alright…. Don’t dwindle. Grab a rag. This place needs a good clean."
You grabbed one of the dozen perfectly folded washcloths and clenched it in your fist. You realized your hands were sweaty. The rag helped.

"Why are you holding it like that? If you bunch it up, you shrink the surface area. Use all five fingers and your palm." blushing, you relaxed your fist, "right… there you go." He seemed to display a hint of satisfaction. It was hard to be sure with 70% of his face covered behind the mask. 
"I’ll start you off easy. Can you-" Levi cleared his throat quietly, "First, dust the bookshelves in the loft. Come get me when you think you're done and I'll tell you what I think."

Rag in hand, you hurried upstairs. The last thing you wanted was make the Captain have doubts about you.

 

---------------------------

Part 2 coming soon! ❤️

Edited February 17, 2020 by al(i)as

[aliasnz]

Part 2/? 
Like I said, totally indulgent. This has some of you/reader sneezing so hopefully that isn't too off-putting. There is some slight Levi x Reader care-taking and bless-yous that start here which may make up for it ^^; Levi himself will start sneezing in part 3! ❤️

<Part 2 begins>

Upon entering the loft, you wondered if Hange knew that this abandoned hideout had a library. There were hundreds of books that looked like they had not been touched in years. Hange must not have known, or else every one of them would be sprawled out on the tables. Bookmarked, underlined, in disarray with research.

The shelves were taller than you. Deciding to work from top to bottom, you grabbed a step stool and dragged it to the leftmost stack. You stepped up. Eyes now level with the highest shelf, you knew just how long it had been since this room got a clean. There was no less than 1/8th inch of dust not only on the shelf but also on top of all the books. This would take a while. You realized why this training was scheduled for the whole afternoon. Sighhhhh

But that sigh was not the best reaction. The deep inhale through your nose let the dust in. The exhale through your mouth made the dust float through the air, so much so that you could see it in the sunlight. At this sight, you suddenly remembered your inconvenient allergy. It did not bother you in the every day. After all, how often are you in an abandoned, dusty, sunlit loft? It only flared up in the... when the...! You caught yourself by pinching Levi's rag to your nose, halting the irritant.

Once you got started, it was hard to stop, you would do almost anything to delay the sneezing fit. You held the cloth there for a few seconds, took it off, and instantly had to put it back. The tickle would not go away, it could only be stopped temporarily with a tight pinch from the rag. But what were you to clean with then? Your eyes began to sting and water. 

You could go get another rag from downstairs? Keep one held to your face and clean with the other?

The thought of heading back downstairs, crying with irritation, you worried that Captain Levi would have none of it. God forbid he thought you hated cleaning so much that you were in tears. What a berating you would get for that pathetic showing... No. You transferred the rag from your non-dominant to dominant hand in preparation to start the task. Even in this half-second transfer, you felt a sneeze coming on. Jeez. It's really this bad, huh? Before the build-up, you pinched your nose with the open hand's thumb and pointer finger to once again quell the tickling. Then, you slowly began dabbing at the shelves...
 

_____________

 

Cleaning this whole loft with one hand... it would take forever. Everything was getting blurrier and blurrier as your eyes overflowed with tears. You wiped your eyes with your sleeve in preparation for the retreat. This was an endless battle and you needed to call in the reinforcements... no matter how much you did not want to. 

Returning to the main floor of the library, you were intensely relieved. It was much better down here than it was up there. Captain Levi was wiping down reading tables that looked much more recently used than the ones upstairs. His eyebrows angled downward enough to suggest intent, not anger. Although, seeing him in person, your plan seemed much more daunting to execute. You took a deep breath. You needed a hand with the loft even if it meant asking for the help of humanity's strongest.

You took a deep sniff first, "Ahem, Captain Levi?"
His arms still scrubbing circles on the tables, he merely looked up from the table and to you in acknowledgement, saying nothing.
"Could you look upstairs?"

"You say you’re all done? Let’s take a look…" Levi tucked his washcloth into his back pocket and started toward the loft.

Actually, you're not even close to done. Regardless, you followed him up the stairs with your head toward your toes.

Just as you immediately felt relief heading downstairs, you immediately felt irritation heading upstairs. The tickle was back, but this time, you felt self-conscious with the Captain around unlike when you were by yourself before. Maybe you could keep it together while he was here? 

Levi's eyes narrowed at you, "Tch… did you even start?"

Before you could begin to feel shame from the scolding, a feeling of familiarity came over you. A flame ignited in the back of your sinuses and your nose started to twitch. Already? It hasn't even been a minute...! The last thing you wanted to do was make Captain Levi think that you were weak enough to be brought to your knees by dust. But... but...
"I had a feeling you were rushing it." Levi placed one hand on his hip and tapped his foot.
You tried to keep your eyes met with his to show your attentiveness, but they were tearing up and drawing shut in preparation for the inevitable. If you had the ability to think of anything but the itch in your nose, you would be mortified. However, the sneeze had been delayed enough and would not let you have a thought more. You lifted your elbow ever-so-slightly.
"First and foremost is -"
"Hi'tchh!"
"Hmph… bless you. First and foremost is quality. Every inch needs to be spotless-"
"Hih'issh!
"...Bless you. Every inch needs to be spotless. Thennnn you can start thinking about speed." 
Oh God... Oh no....
"Hih'Itchh! Hi'Kischh! Ah'etch!!" 

Levi crossed his arms and scowled, "Hey, Cadet… have you caught the cold going around?"
Ahh...phew... The itch left, but you worried it would not be the last of it. You kept your eyes closed and took a second to catch your breath but kept your elbow in place just in case. You were sure you looked silly, but accidentally sneezing on Captain Levi... just the thought made your cheeks even redder.
"All you new recruits… you all seem to get sick at some point in the orientation. Contagious colds, spreading to each other, it’s disgusting." 

Well, this definitely isn't the cold you thought, cold symptoms do not come in and out with the appearance and disappearance of dust. You shook your head no.

Levi raised his eyebrows, arms still folded, "Oh? It's not a cold you say? What is it then? Why are you sneezing so much?"

"It's just allergies, sir."

Even with his nose and mouth covered, the look of suspicion on the Captain's face was obvious, "Huh? Allergies? Reallllly? The whole bunch of recruits is a snotty mess, but you just so happen to have an allergy to dust?"

If only he could feel the tickle in your nose right now, he would understand. You put your tongue to your teeth in an attempt to subtly stop it, but it was futile. Your throat tensed and nostrils quivered rapidly. Three interruptions? That wasn't enough? No, your nose insisted on interrupting him even more.

"And to think that it’s your cleaning training day... how convenient... How can I know you’re not-?

There was no more holding it back, the tickle was back again, and even if you respected Captain Levi's authority, it did not mean that the itch had to. Your lips parted and eyes squeezed shut...

"hnngg'sch!"

"Bles-"

"Hih'itch!"

"Bless-"

"Hih'kish! Nn'tshu! Hah...Ah...Hah'ah....."

Oh my God please just let it... You opened one eye towards the loft's skylight.

"HAH'ESCHH!!" 

The last one of the fit nearly knocked the wind out of you. Sneezing this loud in a library felt wrong, even if it was just the two of you not reading. More or less wrong than getting the shit kicked out of you by some microscopic dust? In front of Levi nonetheless. You brought your face up from your elbow and looked at Captain Levi with teary eyes.

His doubt had cleared from his face and been replaced with acceptance, "Okay, okay... I get it. Bless you. Since you have allergies, did you at least bring a face mask? I find that that helps."

Shit. As if I didn't look foolish enough. You stared at your toes.

Levi sighed again, "You knew you were cleaning with me today, right? And you probably knew that you had allergies before this. And still, you didn’t bring a face mask, handkerchief, tissues, or anything? You sure have a lot to learn, Cadet. Would you go outside the walls without ODM gear? What about without a horse or blades? Get it? The same goes for cleaning."

That was it. You contemplated throwing yourself down the stairs and landing yourself in the infirmary. Any situation would be worlds better than this, even if it meant a broken leg. Your face felt like fire and your throat clenched. Head pounding, you began to forget why you called the Captain up here in the first place. Your eyes were still full of tears, but you could no longer tell if it was solely from the allergies. 

When you wiped your eyes with your already-wet sleeve, you saw that Levi was no longer annoyed or mad, rather, his face was one of neutrality.
"Tch. Alright. Alright. Here…" Levi lifted his hands behind his neck and began fiddling, "You take mine for today."

You stammered, "But... but-"

Levi held his mask out to you, revealing his whole face for the first time all afternoon, "It’s just for today, got it? Consider it an investment... If I put you off towards cleaning today, you will do a hasty job and hate it forever. I would rather you not hate cleaning and do good work always than for you to have a bad first day and do poor work in the future." He flicked his wrist, further offering you the barrier. When you hesitated with shock, he swiftly reached his arms around your neck and tied a simple yet sound knot that placed the mask at the bridge of your nose and below.

"Th-Thank you."

"There you go… keep that on. I’ll show you how to dust shelves properly. Try to keep your composure this time." Levi gave a slow blink.

Even with the thorough explanation of why he offered you the mask, you were still in disbelief about the gesture. Levi was known as a strict disciplinarian, kicking Eren's teeth out and all. He had the most titan kills of anyone in the Corps. There were also the rumors of his time as a criminal in the underground, which had yet to be confirmed or denied. Regardless, you would not have guessed he was the type of leader to do such a thing for a new recruit like you.

Already, you could feel the irritant die down, almost like smothering a candle where the flame slowly dies out. There really was some merit to this cotton dust barrier. The relief was overwhelming, but a glance at Captain Levi provided a look of disdain. Your vision was still somewhat blurry, but you swore you saw a tinge of pink forming on his nose.

_____________

Sorry for the tease! It is time to go to bed but I will update as soon as possible ❤️ ^^ Thanks for reading!!

 

[Pyrus_Fangmon]

I don't neally like being the first commenter, but this is really good! It looks very promising if you wish to continue.

[aliasnz]

@Pyrus_Fangmon Eeee! Thanks for commenting!! It really means a lot and motivated me to continue...even if it did take the whole work week ^^;

[aliasnz]

Part 3 has arriveeeddd! Thanks for reading and the moral support ❤️

Levi sneezes alert alert the time has come...

<Part 3>

Just like that, with a simple face mask and a few meaningful sniffs, your allergy symptoms had nearly completely subsided. Your sneezing fits would last for a half hour on average, but with this aid, it was all over in less than five minutes. You made a note: You would really have to get one of these, especially since you were in the Survey Corps where cleanliness was an order. 

However, with the beginning of your relief came the onset of another’s misery. Now that your vision was unblurred, you took a moment to observe Levi’s uncovered face. The edges of his nose were growing pink already, so quickly after giving his mask to you, and the dusting lesson had not even begun.

Levi grabbed the rolling ladder of the bookshelf you had first attempted to clean and dragged it next to your step stool. He gave the ladder a quick shake to ensure its steadiness, then swiftly climbed up to the second-highest rung. You climbed your step stool, but this still kept you about 6 inches below him. Looking upwards to Captain Levi was a rare sight for anyone. The sun from the loft’s skylight made the view all the better. He reached his arms to his elbows to fold his sleeves up, revealing his outlined forearms. When his gaze towards his cuffs came close to meeting your gaze towards him, you abruptly ended the daydream, grabbed your rag, and gave your attention.

“As I mentioned, grab the rag with all five fingers like this.” His forearm flexed as he thrust his proper grip towards you in demonstration. It was hard not to admire the art, the rays of sun hitting him like a spotlight, “you want it spread out wide so you can pick up more dust in one sweep.”

You showed him your hold. He examined quickly yet thoroughly, “Yeah, like that… Start with the very top of the case. Work from side to side. Don’t let up.” 

With care, you swept the top of the case. Levi’s stare seemed to burn on your skull, but you felt confident in your job this time. This was a much simpler task when you weren’t simultaneously trying to hold back a sneeze. The rag picked up most of the dust, but you could see some spring in the air as you met the end of the surface. Without this mask, you were sure you would be a hot mess.

Levi cleared his throat, “Hmph, better….” 
He gave a slight nod towards the next shelf which was full of books, “This next one, you’ll have to take all the books off. Some cadets try to skip this. Don’t let me catch you doing that.”

Moving the books to the reading tables meant moving the dust atop them to the reading tables as well. I understand why he says this is a never ending task. Once the dozens were off and the shelf was empty, you once again looked up to Levi for instruction. With the back of his wrist and eyes closed, he was rubbing his nose vigorously. When he opened his eyes to meet yours, he quickly stopped, bringing his hand down to reveal a flushed face. 
He sniffed, more subtly trying to shoo the irritation away, “It can get dirty beneath and between the books. Every inch needs to be spotless, so this is a necessary measure.”

“Of course, sir.” You once again wiped the shelf down, treating it like an important mission. From your pathetic showing before, you wanted to satisfy, dare impress, the Captain with your capability at full capacity. 

“Alright… you keep working. I am going to…” 
He sniffed, “...step back, watch you carefully, and…” 
He sniffed again, longer this time,  “clean the floor around you.”
Levi briefly grazed his hand against his hip, “Don’t slack (y/n), I will notice and I will not hesitate to let you know.” 
The harsh tone of his voice clashed with his soft appearance in the sunlight. Chills ran down your shoulders. “y-Yes, sir!” You scrubbed vehemently as Levi dismounted the ladder with an effortless pivot that made your hair wisp. He smelled nice. 

Just as odd as it was to look up to a towering Levi, it was likewise odd to look down on him, especially like this. Such a humiliating position and task: on his hands and knees scrubbing the floor. You did not stare too long, but took occasional glances. He too glanced every so often to judge your cleaning, but with all the intent you had to do well, there was not much to criticize. You two worked in silence, except for some occasional voices from the hall outside the library and his not-as-occasional sniffling. These minute attempts for relief were becoming more and more frequent. 

Surprisingly, his voice interrupted the constant sniffling and made you jump a little, “This room is filthy…. The Scouts haven’t been to this hideout in over a decade and it shows.” His voice caught on the last syllable and he gave two light coughs. 
Acknowledging his opinion, you gave a smirk, “I wonder if the last Scouts here even tried to clean it at all. Tch…” 
Your smirk grew to a grin. A regularly silent Levi was choosing to speak to you! Minor as it may seem, he was quiet and terse with most, it was admittedly made you feel a little special.

“What stations of training have you completed so far?”

“Just Hange’s lectures, sir.” 

Levi’s eyebrows knit together in disdain, “Hange’s lectures? Tch, I think I am allergic to those.” His callblack to your earlier episode made your cheeks turn bright red. Oh no, I thought he might have forgotten that already. Thankfully, the face mask he gave you hid any sign of embarrassment. 

“Listen, I know you had a rough start to today’s training, but I bet this is better than listening to her rambling titan thoughts. I-” 
You thought he had just paused to think, but it was an abnormally long pause. From your step stool, you turned your head down and left to look at him. Knees to the ground, hands on his thighs, he jolted his head into his left shoulder, lifted slightly for a second, and shot back down without making a sound except for a shaky exhale.

“-wouldn’t be surprised if some of you new recruits dozed off and she was too carried away to notice.”

What was that? A weird twitch?.... What were we discussing again? You chuckled nervously. The pattern of silence interrupted by his sniffling returned.

After a few minutes, Levi groaned, “Ugh… this floor is so… it’s….. sooo…. ahh- hah-”. Once again, he turned his head away from you and ducked into his left shoulder. His upper body shuddered twice in succession. He exhaled again, his breath wavering, “-so dusty… it’s disgusting.”

Unsure of what was going on with him, you gave Levi a curious stare. His nose was certainly more red from before and his eyes were shiny. His eyes met your impolite stare briefly. Just as you picked a hint of “Can I help you”, his eyes fluttered shut and he turned his face towards the ground. This time, he brought the back of his wrist to his nose and once again sneezed silently twice. He nearly managed a silent bout except for the third, “-ngtch!”

Suddenly, you realized what was seizing Captain Levi’s routine. Without thinking and with genuine concern, you softly said, “Oh no… Levi, are you?”

Before he could answer, two more sneezes escaped his stifling attempt, “...kgntx! Hehh- tchih!” An exasperated exhale. “No. No… I’m-” A hearty sniff. “I’m fine.” His cheeks were flushed pink. 

In a short attempt to return to the subject of your training schedule, he continued, “So… you haven’t heard Erwin talk about formations yet? Because unlike Four-Eyes’s blabbering, that is a talk you will actually n’need before… be...fore!” Levi warily brought an elbow to his face, “hit’tchih!”

“Le-” you cleared your throat, “Captain Levi, maybe you should-”. 

He cut you off, “No! No. It’s just a stupid coincidence, really. I-I” Levi stammered, “hnnkt’Chu!”

Looking below you, seeing humanity’s strongest soldier brought to and kept on his knees by dust, it pulled at your heartstrings. Not only out of respect to your superior but also due to genuine sympathy, you unhesitatingly reached around to the knot behind your neck...

“Hey... “ Levi’s voice was irritated and commanding, “Don’t you even think about handing me that mask back. I, unlike you, *sniff* hah am not a helpless sneezing heap without it. This room needs to be done today and I hah- ahhh… would rather *sniff* have your help than not.” I have cleaned many more rooms than you so trust me when I say I can handle this. I can handle this much better than you.”

Despite the scolding, you still did not remove your hands from your nape.

“Seriously, keep it on, or else I will just knot you up tighter. Understand? *sniff* It’s an order… and I do not tolerate disobedience.” He warned you with a glare which, under any other circumstances would have made your heart leap in your chest, but there was something less intimidating when it was accompanied with watery eyes, a leaking nose, and a pink flush through the middle of his face.

Finally, you brought your hands back to the rag and shelf in obedience, “Yes, sir.”

“You understand. Good. Anyways...Ah-hah-!...Ahh… A-heh-” Levi was clearly trying to hold back a mockingly-timed sneeze. 
“Anyways…. I hope that you are not turned off... *sniff*-heh turned off by hah…” You gazed at him with pity in time for the helpless fit:

“hehhh HAH- K’chht! nnn’tCh! Hah’ahh! kitt’Ch!” the rather-loud stifles echoed in the loft, “turned off by  Ah-Hange’s… Ah’! boring lectures…”

The comedic timing of his sound refusal of help followed by an uncontrollable sneezing fit, you could not help but half-smile. 

Cheeks red with embarrassment, allergy symptoms, or both, Levi scowled breathlessly, “What? Stop staring at me and get back to work, Cadet.”

Levi reached into his chest pocket for a tissue, blew his nose and coughed twice, “I said I’ll be fine… I brought my tissues, my handkerchief, and, well, I did bring my mask but… tch… whatever.”
 

[Pyrus_Fangmon]

Dear heavens! That was so deliciously made! Trying to keep his pride while over and over being corrected by his own body! I love it, pure priceless! I could never get enough of Levi, he's too cute for his own good.