"Luna" for Exbrodokills
Levi was busy tying up his horse in the stables when he came across it. He heard a quiet meow, and instantly headed towards the noise. A cat? What’s a cat doing here? He wondered, scanning the stables for the small animal. That’s when he saw it: a small gray and white kitten, big blue eyes with black pupils staring up at him.
“Aww, aren’t you a little thing?” Levi kneeled in front of it gently, reaching a hand out towards it cautiously.
He didn’t want to scare it away. It was so small and precious, and it looked hungry and weak, as if it was missing its mother. Levi knew what it was like to be tiny and without a mother to look after you. He wanted to help, to nurse the poor little thing back to health.
“Come here, little one,” Levi cooed, and the kitten curiously crept up to his hand, sniffing at it and nuzzling into the warmth his hand provided. He carefully pet its head, and the kitten let him, mewling quietly at the action.
“Where’s your mama, little thing?” Levi asked, picking up the small kitten and holding it to his chest. The kitten whimpered softly, licking at Levi’s hand. His little barbed tongue was so soft against Levi’s skin, and Levi could feel his heart melting at the affection the cat was giving him.
“Don’t you worry,” Levi whispered, planting a kiss to the top of the kitten’s head, “I’m going to take good care of you, little one.”
The kitten pawed at Levi’s cheek, and Levi giggled a little, kissing it again and feeling its little paws on his face, swatting at him weakly. Levi opened his coat and tucked the kitten into his inside pocket, knowing he’d have to hide the cat from his comrades. They weren’t allowed to bring back animals to the base, but Levi was insistent on keeping this kitten and taking good care of it.
He brought it back to his personal room after sneaking into the kitchen and finding some milk, pouring it into a dish. The kitten was mewling in his pocket, and he shushed it to keep it quiet, even though the effort was futile. The little thing was just so hungry and alone, it couldn’t help but cry. Levi’s heart went out to it, and he set the kitten on his desk before putting the dish next to it. The baby kitten crawled over to the dish and started lapping up the milk, and Levi pet its back affectionately.
“That’s good,” Levi whispered, “Eat up, sweetie. I told you I’d take care of you, didn’t I?”
The kitten let out a small meow as if responding to Levi’s question, and Levi couldn’t help but smile sweetly at it. The kitten appeared to be a girl, though he wasn’t sure how to tell really. He just assumed that it was, as he didn’t see any indication of it being a boy.
“I think I’ll call you Luna,” Levi decided, “Because the full moon was out when I found you. Luna means moon. Did you know that, little one?”
The kitten was too busy feasting on milk to answer Levi’s question this time, and Levi let her eat until her little belly was full and she couldn’t take anymore. The kitten let out another mewl at Levi and he held his hand out, watching Luna snuggle up to his warm hand sleepily.
“You’re so cute, little Luna,” Levi smiled tenderly, picking her up and carrying her to his bed, “You can sleep here with me. I’ll keep you nice and warm.”
Levi got out of his uniform and into pajamas, cuddling under the covers with Luna and falling asleep with the kitten on his chest. He usually didn’t sleep much, but with the small cat perched on his chest, he was knocked out for the full night.
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The next morning, Levi awoke to find Luna pouncing around the bed, trying to get at his legs and wake him up. He giggled softly, sitting up and petting her back. She arched into the touch, meowing happily at the feeling.
“Alright, alright,” Levi smiled, “I’m awake. I’m assuming you’re hungry again?”
Luna played with Levi’s fingers, swatting at them with her paws. Levi figured she was probably hungry anyways, and soon got up, ready to go out and find her some more milk. But as soon as he got out of bed, there was a knock on the door, and Levi quickly threw the comforter over the poor little kitten so that she wouldn’t be seen as he called out ‘come in’.
The door opened, Erwin standing there. The two of them were close, but Levi still didn’t want to risk his commander finding out he had a stowaway in his room. He put his hands behind his back, trying to remain as unsuspicious as possible.
“Is there something you needed, Erwin?” Levi asked.
“Someone must’ve snuck into the kitchen last night, I was wondering if you knew-”
There was a loud meow from under the covers, and Erwin paused mid-sentence, looking down at Levi with some confusion, “Did… Did you make that noise?”
Levi could feel himself turning red, and he nodded, “Y-Yeah. Sorry.”
But there was another loud mewl from under the covers, and Erwin glanced suspiciously at Levi’s bed, “Is that a cat I hear?”
Levi sighed heavily, knowing he couldn’t keep this a secret anymore. He walked over to the comforter and pulled back the sheets, revealing the tiny gray and white kitten to Erwin. His commander just stared for a moment before a grin appeared on his face.
“Aww,” he cooed, walking over to the bed and picking up the small kitten, “Where did you find this cute little baby? He’s so adorable!”
Levi rolled his eyes at Erwin’s predictable reaction. He was sure once all was said and done, Erwin would refuse to have the kitten allowed in his quarters. But Erwin was petting the small cat gently, hugging it to his broad chest and letting it paw at him.
“She,” Levi corrected, “Is mine. Her name’s Luna. I found her in the stables last night.”
“She’s so precious,” Erwin murmured, realizing himself for a moment and clearing his throat, “I-I mean… this is serious, Levi. We can’t have pets in our quarters like this.”
Levi sighed heavily, crossing his arms, “I realize that. Why do you think I was hiding it from you?”
Erwin handed the kitten back to Levi, “You have to get rid of it.”
Levi frowned, holding the kitten close to his face and giving Erwin the best puppy dog eyes he could muster, “But… But look at her, Ervy. I can’t just get rid of her.”
Erwin bit his lip, staring between the two of them and letting out a deep breath, “God dammit. Okay, fine, you can keep her. But just… try to keep it between us, okay? I don’t need our comrades complaining to me that ‘Levi gets everything he wants’ again.”
“I do get everything I want,” Levi noted, knowing how easy it was to convince his commander of anything he needed.
Erwin chuckled softly, “I know. But we can just keep that between us, can’t we?”
Levi nodded, petting Luna affectionately and kissing the top of her head. Erwin smiled at them tenderly, “You’re a good cat dad. I can tell. You’re very sweet with her, Levi.”
Levi could feel himself blushing again, mumbling a ‘thank you’ to his commander. He knew Erwin had a soft spot for him, and he had a soft spot for Erwin too, though neither of them would admit it. They were both too proud and too stubborn for that. But the way Erwin was beaming at him right now, well, Levi could’ve kissed him right then and there.
Erwin walked closer to them, petting the kitten and leaning down to kiss its head. Levi was getting red and hot from how close Erwin was, and suddenly there was a kiss on his own cheek, causing him to stare at Erwin with an open mouth.
“I… sorry,” Erwin laughed nervously, “Couldn’t resist. Anyways, um… I’ll go find some milk for her. You stay here, okay?”
Levi nodded, closing his mouth and not saying a word. Erwin left, and Levi felt a giddy feeling rise in his stomach. He hugged the kitten joyfully, “See, little thing? Erwin’s not going to kick you out. He’s… He’s a good man. He’s a very good man with… with very soft kisses.”
Levi smiled as the kitten mewled back at him, and he didn’t know why that happy feeling in his heart wouldn’t go away. He must’ve really enjoyed that kiss, and was craving for Erwin to come back so he could give him one in return.
Erwin soon came back through Levi’s door with a dish of milk, and set it down on the desk while Levi set Luna down next to it. The kitten clambered over to the dish and started drinking from it while Erwin and Levi looked on lovingly.
“We make good parents, don’t we?” Erwin said suddenly, wrapping an arm around Levi’s shoulder.
Levi didn’t think he could get any redder, but he shrugged out of Erwin’s hold in embarrassment, crossing his arms and muttering, “I… I guess so.”
His idea to give Erwin a kiss back was fading from his mind; he was simply too nervous to follow through with it. But he felt Erwin place a couple of fingers on his chin, and tilt it up so their eyes met one another’s.
“Levi?” Erwin uttered quietly, “Can… Can I give you a real kiss?”
Levi stared up at him; those blue eyes were mesmerizing. He hadn’t realized how much he’d wanted something like this to happen between himself and Erwin. Had this simple moment with a kitten brought them together, finally?
Levi didn’t even answer, he just grasped Erwin’s collar and tugged him forward, squeezing his eyes shut and giving him a deep kiss on the lips. Erwin squeaked in some surprise before kissing back, the two holding each other and caressing their lips on one another’s.
They pulled away after a brief moment, their cheeks brushed red with embarrassment and likely some arousal as they’d finally done what both of them had been waiting to do for ages. They leaned in to kiss again, when there was a loud meow from the desk.
The two looked down to see Luna meowing up at them curiously, her head tilted to one side. Levi couldn’t help it; he started giggling at the cute kitten, Erwin joining in the laughter.
“Looks like someone got jealous,” Erwin chuckled, petting Luna’s head, “It’s okay, little Luna. We’ll give you plenty of affection, don’t you worry.”
Levi rested his head against Erwin’s chest, sighing happily as he watched Luna lean into Erwin’s touch. He couldn’t believe this was finally happening, and all because he’d found a poor little kitten in the stables last night.
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