Authors Note:

So...

I'm taking liberties with this. Many, many liberties. So it's non-canonical at this point. Which I hate and may change if the story deems it unfeasible as it progresses.

Also, it's the END!

I'm kinda sad about that.

This chapter will be told in "present time" with TONS of flashbacks to fill in gaps. Normally I hate this style of writing but as an ending I feel like it works.

He strode up the winding path, his shoes causing small pillows of dust to gather in the creases of his pant legs.

It had been a hard, painful day. His aching shoulder and his burning eyes could attest to that; yet somehow he felt lighter as well. Almost free in a way. For so long he had been shackled to his duty and now...

He hated that she had to see that part of him, the part of him that was violent unforgiving. His booted foot rested against the titan shifter's face. Levi didn't have time to worry about what Bernell would think, her trial set to immediately after this. He knew she was in the stands watching form somewhere; lost in the sea of faces. He could feel her gaze - the only one that mattered to him right now. the only one he could feel through the flush of adrenaline and the guilt of his orders. Levi's eyes rested on the tooth he had knocked loose for just a moment as he turned to face the council; the judge.

Brat. He thought.

Later that evening Bernell had hesitantly approached him, scared not by his actions but by the callous uncaring with which he preformed.

"They've declared that I'm free of all charges." She whispered, sitting across from him. Her hands knotting in the dimly lit house. "They've given me a settlement sum for my time and trouble as well. I can buy my own house. And I have my job... And, Levi-" She bit her lip, her neck flushing. "I-I spoke with Erik last week. He wants to pursue me and I-"

Levi couldn't help his reaction - visceral, possessive. Jealous. She started when he stood, his chair toppling over in his haste.

"No." He growled as he approached her. His hands moved to her hair, "No." He repeated as he pulled the pins out.

She shuddered, burying her face in his abdomen, clinging to his shirt as tears leaked from clenched eyelids. "Good." She whispered, rising her face, "I was hoping you'd say that." She let him plunder her mouth ravenously, returning his passion with equal fervor. "I said no ,too." She responded with a sharp grin, breathless and needy.

He shuffled past one of the neighboring children, "Brat." He growled under his breath as the heathen knocked into him without so much as a backwards glance.

His leg didn't work like it should have. He'd ignored it for too long. His hand rubbed at his thigh. The break had been messy, shattering in multiple places; ligaments had torn. He frowned, fingering the permanent scar. It had been a humbling, ironic coincidence that Archer had been the doctor to perform the operation. If it had been anyone else he may not have had a leg still. Sometimes he wished he didn't. Movement would have been easier without one.

He paused at the gate. It was white washed, the little house was alone - a gift from the nobles for the trouble they had caused. Historia had been more the quick to right many wrongs done to the people she ruled over. The house was small, quaint. a little table set out in the sun accompanied by two seats sported a variety of flowers and dirt clumps. The sounds of children's laughs and screams and one woman's familiar, exasperated, beautiful yelling. It hit him as somehow wrong, despite the years of visiting and the family he'd come to know as his own. His hands trembled as he lifted the latch of the gate.

Could he... do this? His eyes raised to the familiar sensation of being watched. A smile ghosted his features as the shadow turned away. He was grateful she knew when to leave him be; when to let him take his time coming around to things.

"Levi?" She was breathless as his mouth settled on the nape of her neck, planting a kiss.

"Hm?"

"I'm pregnant." She whispered, grabbing his hand and settling it over her stomach.

He rested there with her, cuddled against her, holding her bare form to him like she was an anchor in his crazy world. So many had died. He closed his eyes, shuddering at the mental images, terrified at the prospect of bringing his own child into this world.

"I know." He finally skimming his fingers and lips over her skin.

They settled in the silence for a while.

"They're just teenagers," He continued finally, knowing she was waiting on his confession. "These children, these babies, are dying - sacrificing themselves and... So many died and there's no one to blame but youth and this constant war-like state we live in." Her fingers caught a scrape on his forearm, tracing it lightly as he spoke. As he confided about everything - his fear of raising a child in this world, of the choices that child would have to make.

And she listened, waiting for him to unload the burdens that had been weighing on him since the last time he had seen her. She spun around to face him, her feet rubbing against his ankles, her hands running over his chest. She captured his gaze, held it in the liquid depths of her nearly violet eyes.

"You're an amazing man, Levi." She kissed his jaw gently, though the emotion she put behind it struck his heart nearly as hard as when she'd confessed her love for him. "You are talented, strong, caring, sweet - but you can't save the world. Not the whole world. Not everyone in it. You're there when it matters, you're always there for the important parts."

His hand drifted back to her stomach, his heart twisted painfully. "What if I don't-"

Her sardonic gaze cut him off. "You will be. You're too full of piss and vinegar to die, Levi."

He swung open the gate, letting it fall closed behind him on its own. The click of the latch seemed symbolic.

A delighted series of squeals greeted him as he rounded the rose bushes. Two little girls; one with brown hair the other with black, raced at him, clinging to his leg. He bore the pain of the sudden impact with a grimace and a stern look that made both girls burst into giggles. His gaze swung up as the door banged open.

"Girls!" Bernell admonished. "Get off your father right now. You know he's getting too old."

He snapped his gaze to her just in time to catch her exaggerated wink. Terra, being older, obediently let go. Elise followed suit dutifully, her large water blue eyes moved from Levi to Terra as the girls trotted back off to play in the yard. He watched them for a while; something new blossoming in his chest, something softer. He turned his gaze to Bernell. Her hip propped against the door frame, her arms crossed under her chest. She was smiling widely, a different energy about her today than usual. He moved towards her, his hand clutching the small box in his pocket. He noted with dismay that he was abysmally nervous.

Her grip on his hand was bone crushing. He winced as she let out a wail that was between a grunt and a scream; unearthly. Her head kicked back against the pillows, her heels dug into the mattress.

"T-that's it." Lisa's face was screwed into a frown as her hands moved between Bernell's legs. "There's the crown, keep pushing." She urged, wiping her forehead on her sleeve. "Push." She commanded.

"I. Am." Bernell spat through grit teeth, "This stubborn child is taking its sweet time." She moaned again, her hand tightening once more on Levi's.

"Shoulders are through!" The grin was in Lisa's voice. "Oh boy do we have a full head of hair!" She nearly laughed, "One more good push, Bernell. One more-"

The woman on the bed took a deep breath, her hair matted with sweat and tangles. Just as suddenly as her body relaxed she tensed once more. Levi watched in wonder as she bore down, her face reddening as she pushed; teeth sinking into the tender skin of her lip. Slowly her body relaxed, she sank into the bed, eyes closed breathing. Levi couldn't look away. She was amazing, incredible. He had never wanted her to be a apart of his life as much as he had right then. A small, impossibly tiny wail cut through the temporary silence - the only thing that could have made Levi look away.

"It's a girl." Lisa whispered, tears in her eyes as she cradled the swollen, bloody, purple mass of skin.

He watched as Lisa set the alien creature at Bernell's breast, watched as the tiny thing moved somehow to wrap its impossibly toothless mouth around a nipple and nurse. Bernell gasped, her eyes shooting open as she paled, obviously in pain. For a wordless moment she just gaped; her mouth opening and closing in wordless agony.

"Take her." She whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Levi, take her!"

Quickly, more out of instinct than anything, he pulled the baby out of Bernell's quivering arms, watching as she shuddered and shook under the blankets from the pain. the little thing gave a small cry, then nestles into the heat of his body. A slow understanding washed over him as the baby blinked, her eyes a deep blue that reminded him of the ocean's depths. He touched her delicate face with his finger. She was less purple now, her skin looked normal, her deep black hair was raised along the top of her head. She yawned, her small toothless mouth letting out the tiniest of breaths.

That was all it took - he was in love. Awe consumed him as he sat, cradling the infant in his arms.

"She's perfect, Bernell."

He turned his gaze to Bernell. Her hair sported grey now that she was in her late thirties, his own was similarly peppered at just over forty. She still held on to her figure, though she had thinned down some chasing after the girls.

"Levi." She smiled softly, watching as he limped the last few feet to her. "Were you there when Gabriel-?"

She couldn't finish the question, her eyes filling with tears of pride and sorrow. Levi nodded.

"He is now Squad Leader." Levi nodded, "there will be a recognition for him and a select few others held within the next month. He's done well, Bernell. He will continue to do so." He grabbed her hand to reassure her.

Gabriel had joined the Scouting Regiment at 15, serving under Levi for a brief two year period before Levi had to move him to a different squad where he quickly climbed the ranks. Levi couldn't help the feeling of pride he got even now at the memory.

"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." She quipped, "He always wanted you to like him more than Ezra."

"I liked him just fine." Levi complained, "Just as much as the rest." He rubbed his arm.

It was true that he and Ezra had always had a common bond. Ezra had also joined the military, though not as a soldier. Instead he had been hired as a stable boy. Quickly he moved to tackle, then training, finally breeding. The rumor was that his skills had produced 1/3 of the animals the Scouts used - though no one really was keeping track. Not really.

Terra had grown into a fine young girl, her coppery brown hair just a touch lighter than her mothers. Her large dark eyes always appeared brown. She was something of a wild fire, unpredictable and strange. She loved her siblings, showering her last at home sibling with attention and affection. The two girls could not have looked more different, nor more similar. Bernell indeed had strong features - all her children were shadow replicas of herself. On the same token they looked so different. It was the coloring, Levi decided. Pulling his hand from his pocket.

"Bernell," He began, struggling to fall to a knee as her eyes widened with shock and hope.

"I'll marry you one day." Levi promised, batting away her snort of disbelief. "If I live to retirement-"

"Like you'd retire." She laughed, setting the book down in her lap and looking at him closely. "You're married to the Corps first. Always. I've come to accept that."

"Have you though?" He pinned her with his questions. "Do you really not desire to marry me?"

"We make one another happy enough as is." She smiled, turning her gaze to the fire as she leaned into him. His arm went around her shoulders automatically. "The only promise I want from you is that you'll always come home to me." She craned her neck to look at him.

"Always." He promised, running his calloused fingers over her jaw, dipping his head to capture her lips.

"Bernell." He grunted when he finally settled to the ground, "Will you do me the honor-"

She fell to the ground beside him, tenderly helping him down to both knees. They sat in the dirt together, her hands holding his, ring exposed and waiting. It was a simple gold band; neither of them being overly extravagant people.

"Of course I will, Levi." She grinned, laughed. "I can't believe you. On the day of your retirement-"

He shrugged, struggling to stand again, grateful when she offered to help him back to his feet. "I said I would."

She froze, then shrugged, "I suppose you did." Her eyes dropped for a moment; emotions flooded over her - memories like ghosts in her eyes. "Of course I'll marry you." She whispered.

"Oh good." He sighed, "I didn't know how to run my tea shop without a woman there to spend all my hard earned money." He threw the comment over his shoulder as he crossed over the threshold into her home.

His home.

His freedom. At last.

THE END!

So probably most def. not canon but. Meh. It's over now. So hate me if you want. In one version of this she does go on to marry Erik, despite being pregnant with Levi's child. Erik raises the baby as his own and Levi dies on the battlefield. Much more AoT.

I like the happy ending a bit more even if the style is a lot different than normal for me.

I like the idea that they both finally found their freedom and happily ever after with one another.