[closed] hange, yes: vol.2 (the apothecary)

[wingbound]

WHO: shingekis
WHAT: turns out the people who never talk about their feelings is extra susceptible to the heartfreeze disease. everyone is shocked.
WHEN: july event!
WHERE: levi & eren's apartment
WARNINGS: shingeki no kokoro

::

Extra OOC information:
Known afflicted: Gabi, Reiner, Historia?
Surprise afflicted that will be revealed in log: Eren
Surprise afflicted that may or may not be revealed in log: Levi
Non-afflicted: Jean, Mikasa, Hange?

::

[ After Gabi scares the shit out of Levi during a quest, and he turns to Hange as he already knows they're part of the potion brewing crew, it doesn't take too long to find out that Gabi's not the only one suffering from the disease... ]

[ As the completion of the cure draws closer, they figure to start gathering the afflicted Scouts and those willing to ease their suffering in Hange's apartment, however as it turns out, running an alchemy lab from an apartment leaves very little leg (or butt) room, so in the end, everybody who showed up (and their +1s...) get shuffled into the much more unencumbered apartment next door belonging to Eren and Levi. ]

[ The ground rules will, of course, be laid out before entering as to avoid another sand incident: outside clothes and shoes must be left in the wardrobe by the door, absolutely no exceptions, unless somebody wants to be folded twice and thrown into the hallway. Any snot covered handkerchiefs must go into the special basket marked "biohazard", and there's several hand sanitizer spray bottles around just in case. ]

[ Assuming everyone is capable of following basic hygiene procedures, eventually they will all get served tea (yes, even Reiner, though he's probably getting an extra long stare in the face as the cup is being set down) at least once, possibly more, depending how long it takes. (Those shivering will also receive a throw blanket or two with the implicit instruction to not get disgusting body fluids on it.) ]

[ The apartment is clean and has little furnishing, but there's a nice big couch with some armchairs and a soft carpet in the living room, and of course a wide screen TV picture box. If anybody wishes to tune in to the latest Annika episode, they're free to do so. There's... maybe some leftover food in the kitchen, most notably stew in the fridge that seems to contain little pizza squares?.. but the pantry and most of the other cabinets are instead filled with tea, if anybody goes looking around. ]

[ There is also a (secretly cursed) Roomba that seems especially keen on hanging out on the walls today, and a terrifying cute Yamask shyly hanging about. A void cat might also join the party at some point and yowl until it receives a share of the pizza stew. ]

::

(( ooc: this is a mingle! toplevel, tag each other, thread out whatever you'd like. eventually, everybody who needs it will receive a cure potion one way or another, and the day will be saved! ))

Comments

[wingbound]

Levi frowns slightly. Reiner doesn't mention it, but he can practically sense the unease. He thinks back to his conversation with Gabi. Reiner must still be scared, huh.

He takes a slow, leisurely step back to give him a little more space without necessarily drawing too much attention to it.

"It's fine," he mutters, and it's as fine as it's going to be, because while Reiner is not wrong about the scrubbing, it's just par for course regardless of who was sitting or touching anything. Levi just likes his space thoroughly scrubbed every few days, it's not personal.

Unfortunately, he figures he should try to lighten the mood while he's at it, so he adds, with perfectly straight face, "Unless you're planning to shit on it."

[hometown]

The extra space is appreciated, the tension in Reiner's shoulders unwinding minutely. Realistically, that space won't make much difference if Levi decides to attack. But every little bit helps. Reiner knows that even fractions of a second can mean the difference between survival and death; it's a lesson still fresh in his mind.

Then Levi continues speaking, saying … what he says.

And Reiner just. Stares. Completely bewildered.

What. Was that a joke? Is Reiner supposed to laugh? Does Levi really think Reiner would shit on the floor? Is it some jab at how frightened Reiner is? Does he look like he's going to shit himself, just like Levi said on the beach? Why does Levi keep talking about shit?

"I'm not—," Reiner starts, then he just stares at Levi for a moment more, comically confused. Brows furrowed, he speaks slowly, utterly unsure how to handle this. "I'm not gonna shit on your floor."

[wingbound]

All good questions, honestly. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like Reiner will be getting an answer to any of them, as Levi seems to simply accept his answer with that same annoying blank stare.

(To be perfectly honest, right now, he does kind of look like he's about to shit himself, but Levi is starting to suspect that's just default Reiner expression nowadays. At least when he's nearby.)

"Good," he says. "Then you should have nothing to worry about."

[hometown]

Nothing to worry about. What a load of shit that is.

Reiner refrains from launching into a list of all the things that he, specifically, has to worry about. (Where would he even begin?) Instead, he gives a slight nod of acknowledgment, still bewildered but not breaking eye contact. Looking away from Levi right now feels like looking away from a crouching cat; he'd just be asking for Levi to pounce and dig claws into flesh.

Does Levi have to look so blank, too? Is this where Eren learned that infuriating indifference? Briefly, Reiner tries to picture Levi with a different expression—

And then he drags his mind away from the precipice, the memory of Levi's face as he dropped down from above flashing through his thoughts.

Bad idea. Fuck, this is such a bad idea. But Reiner remains where he is, maintaining eye contact, controlling his breathing. He can lose his shit later. Right now, Gabi needs him.

"… All right." An awkward pause, then Reiner adds, "I'll move to the carpet."

[wingbound]

A good thing he does, since Levi might not have too much patience for what he deems to be bullshit. Technically, they have a lot to worry about too -- Reiner could kill them all right here with one transformation -- but they choose to acknowledge him as not an enemy, and the least he can do is extend the same courtesy.

His expression may resemble Eren's at times, but anyone looking at it long enough would notice the differences. For all his stoicism, Levi's eyes had never stopped being expressive, the subtle shifts obvious enough to anyone who knows him. Eren's had been dead for a long time, had been when Levi first arrived to Ellipsa, though recently it was starting to show life again. It's a good development.

Did he learn it from him? No, not exactly. But Levi certainly thinks some blame lies with him for... one or two convictions that ended up helping shape Eren into what he would become. Him refusing to ask them for help had been one. He can just hope he can still learn differently.

Reiner maintains eye contact, so Levi does too, not entirely sure where this is going. The teen seems to be sweating more again, somehow -- or maybe it really is some stubborn shit that just won't come out -- but it's probably nothing to worry about. The awkward pause stretches... and stretches... and stretches...

"I'm making tea," he finally announces. "Do you want any?"

[hometown]

Throughout the awkward pause, Reiner continues to control his breathing, refusing to bow to fear-driven impulses. Even so, he can't help but wonder if this level of staring can possibly be normal. It must be an intimidation tactic, right? Or does Levi stare at everyone like this?

Reiner nearly turns down the offered tea, preferring coffee now that it's readily available in this world. However, he thinks better of it. Any hot beverage is better than nothing. He doesn't think that Levi would poison him, either. (And if Levi were to try it, Reiner doubts it would be with Gabi around.)

"Sure," he says. Then, again, "Thanks."

we can wrap up if they're done talking ig :' )

[wingbound]

Honestly, he kind of does, but it is also true that he's somewhat wary of Reiner, considering his place in the timeline. So there may be some intimidation there, too.

It seems that he made the right choice, as Levi simply grunts in acknowledgement and leaves.

He'll return maybe fifteen minutes later with a tray -- Gabi, of course, gets a cup of tea without asking for it, unlike Reiner who doesn't deserve tea but will still get some thanks to the circumstances -- and sets Reiner's cup on the end of the coffee table that's closest to him. It doesn't look like he's going to say anything else for now; he simply delivers the steaming drink and leaves to hand off the rest of the cups.