Skilled enough|005

Mimi was currently multiple feet in the air, clinging onto the silver-eyed man and trying her best not to die.

She didn't know if she was screaming or not, there was just too much happening. The height, the speed, the wind blowing harshly in her face, not to mention the annoying tiny insects that were flying up her nose. And then there was him. God, did he smell good. He smelt so clean...minty! Yes, that was the scent she was looking for. Levi Ackerman smelt like mint, a pinch of disinfectant and subtle undertones of the leather of his gear. The combination sounded crazy, but goodness, it worked for this man. Mimi was too overstimulated.

So overstimulated, that she had almost forgotten the reason she was so close to this man in the first place; the heavy footsteps of the titan echoed through the maze and vibrated through the walls. They were still being chased by that nightmare of a thing.

"Oi, you awake?", came his voice. This was the loudest she had ever heard him speak. He was almost screaming at the top of his lungs, trying to cut through the loudness of the wind. He glanced back shortly, trying to see how much distance he'd been able to put between themselves and the beast. It wasn't much, but enough to keep them alive.

She screamed back, "I don't know, am I?!"

"Yeah."

Wow, how reassuring that one word was. Honestly, the way he said it with such dryness and seriousness calmed her and scared her at the same time. It meant one: she wasn't dead, which was good, and two: she wasn't dead, which was bad, because it meant that monster was definitely real and chasing them.

"Oh, okay then!"

"Hold on, idiot. Falling will be a more embarrassing death than being eaten by that thing.", Levi, being the enigma that he was, completely contradicted himself when they came across an obstacle they wouldn't fit in together. If he dropped her, she would probably fall and the titan would reach out and catch her, crushing her with its hands in a second. So, there was only one way to go, and it was up.

He threw the girl, maneuvering himself through the tight passage. God, he could hear her screams and could feel her sweaty paws on him already. When he caught her, she didn't seem all too happy about what he had done. The thought of it alone made him almost want to smile, but just almost.

Full of fear, she screamed at him, "You said 'Hold on, idiot'. I'm the idiot. Me!" She screamed. Levi could feel some saliva on his face...he cringed. "How's the idiot supposed to hold on when they're thrust into the sky?!"

"Spit on me again and I'll drop you into that beast's mouth.", as if on cue, the titan roared, its footsteps drawing closer and closer.

"Oh shut up and fly me to safety, bastard!"

At that, he shortly let go of her, quickly catching her again. It was a threat and Mimi almost pissed herself. "Big threats for someone whose life depends on me." Oh God, he was going to kill her, wasn't he? This imbecile was threatening her with death whilst they were multiple feet high and on the run from a monster.

"Levi I swear to God if you do that again-", she didn't even get to finish her sentence. He did it again.

"Oops.", came his voice, "my fingers slipped."

She opened her mouth to retaliate, but it seemed he had finally had enough of her voice, now snapping at her, "If I hear anything from your mouth I promise by these walls, Mimi, I'll drop you and get on with my day!"

So she shut up. She tried not to take his words to heart; the situation they were currently in was quite a scary one, after all. However, she didn't want to call his bluff, not at all moment like this.

"Levi!", came a voice. It was screaming, but also sounded like it was...singing? Now there could only be one person who would be excited, almost turned on, even, in a situation like this.

"Oh my God, Hanji", she screamed, hitting Levi's chest multiple times in excitement, "It's Hanji!"

Hanji screamed, then cackled, and then screamed some more, their glasses fogging up and a rosy blush adorning their cheeks, "Yes, child! It is I."

Levi, seemingly uninterested in the sight of them, joined in. There was a look on his face, one that showed he had a plan, and Hanji seemed in on said unknown plan too. "Oi, four eyes?"

"Yeah?!", they screamed back.

"I go up, you go down. Got it?"

"Yeah! Drop her!"

Mimi, completely astonished by the audacity, faced Levi, "Drop me? What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!"

He turned his attention to the girl in his arms and Mimi could've sworn his eyes had softened a bit in what seemed like empathy? No, that wasn't it. It was almost like he was silently apologizing for something! Yes, that was it. Levi was apologizing with his eyes. But wait, what for? Holy shit, he was going to drop her, wasn't he? And Hanji? They were supposed to catch her.

Now, was that a great plan? She didn't know, only those two knew what they were doing, they were communicating in some cryptic manner, after all. Mimi, however, preferred not being dropped to her potential death. What if Levi threw her too hard? Or worse? What if Hanji, overexcited as they were, missed their queue and let her slip from their fingers? She knew Erwin said trust was important, but she had only known these people for what? Three, or four days? Not enough to trust them with her life, literally!

"Hey."

She snapped back to reality at the sound of Levi's voice. He was adjusting her in his arms whilst swinging, ready to drop her. She looked down and Hanji was doing the same, just instead of preparing for the drop, they were preparing for a hopefully successful catch.

"Try not to die."

Why did this man always speak so cryptically? Well, that was a lie, he spoke pretty straightforwardly, but in a way that people still needed to think before they were sure of what he said. Did that make sense?

The confusion, however, didn't last long. Before she could even annoy him with her next question, he glanced one time at Hanji, nodding his head, to which they nodded theirs back in response. It didn't take too long for Mimi to know what was going to happen. This fucking bitch.

"Oh my God, Levi! Wait-"

She was cut off mid-way by the overwhelming loss of gravity, and then the stomach-dropping feeling of, well, her getting dropped.

She dared not open her eyes, the feeling of the wind rushing through her body and her screams in her ear were too much. And God, the titan. She had almost forgotten it was there out of the pure fear of death by falling multiple feet from the sky. It made sure to make itself known again, however, as it let out another bloodcurdling roar. The sound of that roar made goosebumps erupt on her skin, and she couldn't help but force her eyes open. The scream sounded too close for her liking.

Lo and behold, she was a few feet away from the titan, falling as it stretched its arm out to grab her. The view from this close was even more frightening. There was dried blood and what seemed like flesh between its teeth. The air leaving its mouth smelt rotten, causing the girl to gag mid-flight. She shut her eyes in fear, tears escaping and dripping down her cheeks. This was how she was going to die then; scared and with two people she barely knew. If she was unlucky enough, she would end up just like Marco; half eaten, or even worse; fully consumed without a body left to bury.

She had accepted her fate when she felt the palms of the titan nearing her, threatening to close shut with her body inside. The air around her felt hot now, but not too uncomfortable. At least, she would die in warmth.

But death never came, at least not for her.

Hot, thick liquid splashed on her face before she was caught by strong hands and a reassuring "I got you, Mimi."

She had opened her eyes just in time to catch Levi slicing off the titan's hand in one clean motion. That must've been where the blood on her face came from, she concluded. It felt like the air had been sucked out of her lungs and she wheezed, trying her best to get it back. She would take working in the blood house over this any day, and that had to mean something.

"Let's get you out of here, Mimi."

"But Levi-"

"He's skilled enough. He'll find us."

Deciding she didn't want to spend any more time in the proximity of the titan, she nodded in agreement, clutching onto Hanji for dear life as they flew her away, further from Levi and the titan. They locked eyes briefly, then he turned, his concentration now fully focused on slaying the beast.
———

Hanji and Mimi had found refuge in the corner of one of the many walls in the maze. This particular corner had lots of vines that were perfect for hiding. Especially dead bodies, as it seemed, because if one glanced up, they would find Marco's half-eaten body dangling from the vines. Mimi let out a gasp of horror and stepped back, placing her hand on her still-racing heart. The sight of death would never get bearable for her.

"We have to be quiet, Mimi. Don't know how many of those fuckers are out today."

When Mimi didn't reply, Hanji, confused, put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay to cry, y'know? That was a terrifying thing to experience, Mims."

Mimi choked back a sob, "The thought that this could've been us today-" she turned to look at Hanji, tears now welling in her eyes. She was a crier, she couldn't help it. "And Jean. Oh my God, Jean."

She could still hear his screams for Marco. She could still see the sight of multiple Gladers holding him back because if they hadn't, he would've been the first one to jump into the maze. He was going to be so heartbroken.

"And the body. Do we...what do we do with it?"

At that, Hanji offered a small smile, "Levi insisted we take him back. So that Jean could at least say goodbye."

Mimi choked back a small laugh, her heart warming at the kind gesture, "Who knew Ackerman was so sentimental?"

"Wait till he tries good tea! If you look hard enough you'll see him smile a bit.", Hanji laughed, and Mimi couldn't help but join in. They were trying to cheer her up and it was working.

Mimi laughed, "Tea?"

"Yes, tea! Crazy, right? That man has an obsession with it. Black tea, green tea, ginseng tea...any tea, really. I remember-"

"The time I smacked the shit out of you? Because I'll do it again if you don't shut that mouth of yours."

Levi was back, and just like Hanji had said, he was skilled enough and found them in the maze.

Surprised, Mimi asked, "Oh my goodness, how did you find us so fast in this...", she gestured wildly around her, implying the maze, "And is that blood on your shirt? Is that yours? Fuck, why is it evaporating?!"

Good to know that Titan hadn't sucked the dryness and sarcasm out of him, cause that was what he was right now: dry and sarcastic. If Mimi wasn't in a state of shock right now she would've rolled her eyes at his answer, "You both have zero survival instincts. You're loud as fuck, hard to miss crying and Hanji thinking out loud."

She had no energy to respond to his digs at them, there were more pressing matters. "And the blood? Why is it evaporating?" Levi looked like he couldn't give a damn about why the blood on his body was evaporating. And Hanji didn't seem moved by it either. Was she the only one panicked by this whole ordeal? Had they done this multiple times?

"You guys don't even seem to give a shit. How many times have you actually done this?

Levi, now leaning on the in what Mimi thought was an attempt to catch his breath, sighed, throwing his head back in annoyance, "How many times have we done what, braids?"

She scoffed, "Oh I don't know, fleeing from monsters, killing said monsters...evaporating blood, maybe?"

"Told you already, did it once, reported to Erwin, and then did it again.", he glanced at Hanji briefly, urging her to continue so that he could finally stop talking.

"Runners undergo special training with titan dummies, Mimi. You would've known this and many more if you hadn't refused to shadow Grumpy over there.", Hanji explained, nudging their head toward Levi at the 'grumpy' comment. The man didn't even react to the statement.

"Training?", she asked, "What training?"

To that, Levi responded, "Classified runner information. You don't run, you don't get to know."

Sighing in defeat, Mimi backed up the wall, making sure to avoid the hand dangling from the vines above them. It was only now that she realized she too was covered in blood, Marco's blood. Assumably from her weak attempt at trying to help Hanji and Levi carry him. Nobody was talking right now. Everyone was just exhausted. And Mimi hadn't even done anything. She could only imagine how spent Hanji and Levi were.

She closed her eyes once, then twice, and then they shut permanently. She didn't know if it was actually sleep that overcame her or if she fainted from all of the events of today finally catching up on her. The latter seemed to be more suitable.

Sleep did not last long enough, however, because it seemed the darkness always had a way of finding Mimi, conscious or not. She woke up in a panic, almost sweaty and heavy breathing, and to absolutely nobody's surprise, it was dark.

Hanji, she assumed, was the one currently snoring. She didn't take Levi as the snoring type. Her suspicions were confirmed when she heard a quiet 'my titan babies' from their mouth. She had come to learn that Hanji had some strange tendencies that she best not questioned, but this? Yeah, she needed to know and she made the mental note to tease them as much as she could.

"Hanji has a weird obsession with titans. Finds those fuckers fascinating, almost.", a quiet voice came, trying their best not to interrupt Hanji's sleep. She couldn't see him in the darkness, but she knew he was close to them. She could also feel the weight of his stare, despite the place being dark, there was a subtle glow from the moon that shone upon the maze. It wasn't bright enough for her to feel completely comfortable, but it was bright for her to see the outline of Levi's and Hanji's bodies and a bit of their features. She was okay with that. She could deal with that.

Deciding she wanted to take her mind off of the darkness for a bit, she decided to engage in conversation with him, hoping he would entertain her. She asked, her voice a bit rough and scratchy from just waking up, "Did you get any sleep?"

There was a brief pause before he answered, "No. I don't really sleep."

Who would've thought, "You're an insomniac, Ackerman?"

"I'll sleep when we're out of this shithole."

"The maze, you mean?"

He breathed out, "Nah, the Glade."

She decided now was as well the best time to ask questions about him as a person. It's not like he could just up and leave if he didn't want to answer like he normally did when the Gladers were around the fire pit. This time, he was quite literally stuck with her, a snoring Hanji, and well, whatever was left of poor Marco. After a long pause, she settled on three words, "What's your story?"

She couldn't see his face, but she could only imagine what he looked like right now; eyebrows raised in question, arms folded and shirt straining against his biceps. When she realized he hadn't answered her, she figured he was telling her to be more specific. "When did you get here? Let's start with that."

"Was brought up about two years ago."

She sighed. It didn't seem like Levi was overjoyed by her attempt at making conversation with him. All his answers were short and dry. Mimi knew when to give up, so she just let him be, trying her very best to concentrate on Hanji's snoring instead of the darkness. It seemed like Levi, however, had other plans.

"I know what you want to ask. Leave the small talk bullshit and ask me, I'll answer.", he spoke.

Mimi thought for a second. She knew the question she wanted to ask, what she didn't know, however, was how to ask the question without being too invasive or pushy. Normally when she was clueless, she would ask the question in a playful or teasing manner. That was her way of coping with things. But this question specifically, she couldn't ask that way.

"Hanji said you insisted on bringing Marco back...", she started.

Levi finished her sentence, "You want to know why."

She nodded, then answered "yes" when she realized he might not have caught the action.

"We're in a shitty enough situation right now...we don't know where we're from, some don't know if they have family, significant others, friends...", he paused, his voice now heavy with an emotion Mimi wasn't familiar with when it came to him, "the least we can do for each other is make sure death isn't lonely."

There was a hidden message in what he was saying, one she easily picked up on. Levi didn't want to die alone. And in his thinking like that, believed that nobody in the Glade deserved to die alone either. He was telling her that if he ever got to that point, he didn't want his body to be left behind.

"You're not scared of death, are you? Just scared of the thought that you might die alone."

He didn't answer, but Mimi knew his silence was all the answer she needed.

———

Mimi lost track of how long she stayed awake with Levi. Hell, she didn't know if she even fell asleep after she woke up. After Levi had explained why he needed to take Marco's body back to the Glade, they didn't speak anymore. They sat there in silence, waiting patiently for the sun to grace them with its presence so they could go back to the Glade.

Currently, Mimi and Hanji were holding Marco whilst Levi led them out. He had a photographic memory, according to Hanji, so it made sense that they would take Marco and leave the wayfinding to Levi. She didn't know how long they walked for, but she was sure it was hours. During these hours, Mimi hoped and prayed that they wouldn't come across another titan, because if they did, she wasn't sure she had the will to even run this time.

"Levi how long till we get there", Hanji whined. Mimi couldn't help but giggle at their antics. They sounded like a child.

Levi, completely unphased by their behavior, asked, "Do you see a gate, Hanji?"

To which they answered "No?"

Another question, "Do you see Erwin's bushy eyebrows and annoying blonde hair?"

"Erwin has great hair, Levi!", Hanji defended.

"I don't give a shit if his hair is great or insanely damaged. If you can't see that blonde mess, then it means we aren't there yet. Shut up."

Hanji grumbled under their breath, visibly annoyed that they weren't there yet and also annoyed at Levi's answers, but they couldn't really say anything. Mimi had been quiet the entire time, only answering short 'yes' and 'mhms' when Hanji asked them a question. Her mind was preoccupied by the fact that they could face another titan. Not only that, but the fact that if she did make it out alive, her welcome back to the Glade wouldn't be as warm as the first time. She did break what? All of the rules and then some. Erwin sure as hell wasn't going to be happy.

Levi found the fact that she wasn't speaking at all very weird. She wasn't as chatty as Hanji or even Sasha, but she wasn't this quiet. "You good, braids?"

She snapped out of her trance, answering with a short "concerned for me now, Ackerman? I feel special."

Hanji seemed to have caught on too. "Yeah, Levi. Why don't I get concerned for too?", she playfully whined.

His back was facing them but she could feel that notorious eye roll from miles away. Levi Ackerman was many things she had yet to find out about. But one thing she already knew; he was sassy.

"You didn't foolishly jump into the maze hoping to be a fucking hero, Hanji.", he spoke, then turned around briefly to point his head at Mimi, "she's got to face Erwin and potentially a lot of angry Gladers."

And it seemed like that was happening sooner than later, because they had made it to the gate and Erwin was in front of it, alright. His face was the same expressionless face he always bore, but anyone with eyes could tell that Erwin was not impressed by the sight of her at all. How could she tell? Well, apart from the fact that his stance mirrored that of a disappointed father, his eyebrows were furrowed and his pointed gaze remained only on Mimi alone.

Some Gladers rushed into the Maze, taking Marco from them and rushing him into the Med-jack hut, not knowing it was too late for him. Or maybe they did know and just wanted to believe their delusions. Whatever it was, Hanji had to go with them, so they apologetically glanced at Mimi, to which she offered a small "I'll be fine".

Now left with herself and Levi, the duo was now standing face to face with Erwin.

———

It was safe to say that the standoff between Erwin and Mimi had gone exactly as she expected; bad. He was angry, annoyed, disappointed, and worried. He wouldn't let her speak, not that she even wanted to. She knew what she had done and Erwin was extremely intimidating by nature. And the fact that he was upset and one would understand Mimi's caution.

Mimi had been in the slammer for two days now. That was her punishment. Three days in the slammer with no food, and nobody to talk to. Just a small torch light and a hay bed she was expected to sleep in. In those two days, Sasha and Hanji had made it their mission to visit her six times in total. They were so dramatic about this whole thing, that Hanji had even made her a 'prison basket to ease the pain'. She didn't get to see Jean, which, for now, was a good thing. She couldn't fathom seeing him right now in the light of everything that had happened. It would break her heart. But Hanji and Sasha had told her a bit. After barging in on Hanji cleaning Marco's body, he completely shut down and refused to talk to anybody. Connie was now overseeing the builders as well, seeing as Jean had now self-isolated himself after the funeral was held. Her heart ached for the boy.

The duo had promised to fill her in on everything that was happening in her absence, but it didn't seem like they were going to make it this time, which she understood. They had their jobs to do, after all, and it was her stupidity that put her in this position in the first place. To distract herself, she started taking out her braids, hoping the tedious task would distract her from the fact that it was slowly getting dark.

"You need help with that?"

Levi was standing in front of the slammer, eyes fixated on the braid in the girls hands, "Do you even know how it works?", she asked him, amusement clear in her voice.

Levi shrugged, "I'm a fast learner. Teach me."

Snickering, she asked, "And I should trust you with my hair because..."

"I can just leave."

"I'm not stopping you."

There was a pause. They were staring at each other, Levi's eyebrows now raised. It was almost like he was waiting for her to take it back. Mimi held her own, not backing down. She silently prayed however that he would call her bluff. She didn't mind him staying, she just wanted to tease him a bit, and that was it.

After a while, he agreed with her, "You aren't.", and then he turned his back, signaling his leave.

She counted up to three, seeing if his steps would falter. She should've known better. This man didn't hesitate when it came to anything. But she was way too competitive for her own good to stop him immediately either. Maybe he would stop himself? She scoffed, of course, he wouldn't.

Levi couldn't give two fucks about whether or not she wanted him to stay. The only reason he actually offered to help was because Hanji had harassed him into checking up on her. They were preoccupied with the lab and Sasha was busy cooking. They had offered to take three of his Runner shifts if he checked up on the unfortunate girl. Now to that, he simply couldn't say no. That would give him more time to clean his hut. He hadn't done a deep clean in so long, it had been a week, almost two. He was too preoccupied with his thoughts that he almost missed the two words he was secretly hoping to hear.

"Fine, stay."

When God made Levi Ackerman, he made sure to add tease to the ingredient list. "You speak like a scared little girl. I didn't hear shit."

"You want me to scream at you, Ackerman? Because I gladly will."

Ignoring her, he opened the door to the cage she was being kept in. "Move.", he told her.

Mimi rolled her eyes but moved regardless. "So demanding."

He jumped inside the cage, landing only a few feet away from her. He closed the door to the cage, putting the key in the pocket of his jeans before folding his arms and looking at Mimi. His gaze was so heavy she felt as though she could melt.

"Are you even allowed to be here?", she asked him, trying her best to calm herself.

"Don't know, don't care.", Fair enough. He probably had some special runner privileges she knew nothing about. She imagined it was going to be harder to punish Levi Ackerman, mostly because he was the main runner and the Glade desperately needed him. He knew this, though, and Mimi was sure it stroked that ego of his.

She sat on the hay that was serving as her bed, then gestured to him to do the same. When he wasn't moving from his spot, she eyed him and gave him a short "I'm not going to kill you, idiot."

Levi scoffed at the sentence. It wasn't him sitting with her on her "bed" that made him uncomfortable, but rather him sitting in the dirt. He wasn't going to tell her that, however. As he made his way towards the girl, he spoke, "Your weak ass would be six feet under before you could even touch me."

"Is that a challenge?"

"Do you want to die?"

Something about this felt so...domestic. So soft and intimate. Him on her bed with a single braid in his hand, the bickering...the proximity. She wouldn't dare say it out loud but it was nice. Levi struggling to unravel a single braid was not on her bingo card for the night. Him struggling didn't even matter for long, because the bastard had already gotten the hang of it after two or so braids. Was 'too good at everything' a valid reason to hate someone?

"You do this often, Ackerman?", she asked, amusement clear in her voice. It meant she hadn't noticed that the sun had set. Good.

The man huffed, and if she didn't know better, she would've thought it was a laugh. "Every day. Got all the ladies in the Glade lining up for an appointment.", he muttered dryly, fully concentrated on the task at hand; Mimi's hair. God, she had a lot of it.

"And I'm here without one? Lucky me.", she snickered, now leaving Levi to do all the work. It wasn't every day that someone volunteered themselves to take her braids down. She had to take advantage of this opportunity and she couldn't even lie, Levi was skilled with his fingers. The speed in which he took her braids out was astounding.

"Mhm.", That was code for 'shut up and let me do my job.'

When Levi held another one of her braids, her mind went blank shortly. Then, there was a girl instead of Levi holding her hair.

"Rat tail comb", she whispered, more to herself than to Levi, confusing him even more.

"Rat tail comb...?" He repeated, more like a question than an actual answer.

Memories flashed through her eyes; one of her with another girl. She seemed genuinely happy in those memories. No confusion, no wariness, no angst. Just...happiness.

Levi seemed to catch on to what was happening to the girl. It was a common occurrence here; at some point, everyone would get some fragments of their memories back. Some were meaningful, like their names, birthdays...if they had a sibling or family member, a significant other. Others weren't as groundbreaking. Simply a favorite color or food. The most important memories were those that were made a few days before the Glade. So far, only Reiner and Annie had those memories revealed to them...or better said, blurry fragments of those memories. They had mentioned a lab, but apart from that, nothing else that could help them unveil the whole truth.

"Memories?", he asked shortly.

Mimi turned around, a confused look on her face as she looked at him, "Yeah...how-"

"Did I know?", he finished her sentence. She nodded. "We all get some of our memories at some point. You had this look on your face-"

Mimi rolled her eyes, "Levi I swear, if you tell me I looked constipated-"

"I was going to say nostalgic, but yeah, shit face describes it too."

"Gee, thanks.", came her sarcastic reply. Was everything about this man sarcastic and related to shit?

It took a bit before he spoke again. His mouth opened and closed, but no words would come out. He was looking for words that would sound a bit...respectful, maybe? But since when did Levi Ackerman give a shit about whether or not he was respectful? So eventually, he just settled with "What was the memory about?". At least his tone was a bit more lighter....he thought.

Mimi, deciding she was going to use this as an opportunity to actually get to know this man, answered; "What were your memories about?"

He rolled his eyes, "You don't answer a question with another question, brat."

"Then I'm not telling you.", she teased, sticking her tongue out at him. She grimaced at the action.

"Put that shit back in your mouth."

"Or else what?"

"I'll cut it off."

She squirmed at the thought of her tongue getting chopped off. That wasn't an experience she wanted to make. "Well, this is going on my list."

He sighed, "What list?" To which he got no reply. Her shoulders were shaking gently, however, so he knew he heard her and knew she was having way too much fun with this. Levi's eyebrows rose, he gently tugged at the piece of hair he was currently unbraiding, "Oi, you little shit. What list."

There he went again with the shit jokes, or rather attempts at jokes, "Should Levi Ackerman be trusted; greens and reds.", she spoke in an animated voice, raising a finger to give it a more dramatic flare.

"After I saved your life a brought you to safety, you still don't trust me?", he asked, voice dry as he feigned a hurt expression.

Mimi scoffed, "Well, do you trust me?"

"No, and I would've thought you an even bigger idiot if you did trust me."

"Whether or not I trust you is still for me to judge, dumbass."

"As if I would listen to anything you have to say."

She paused, then grumbled, "Your actual line was 'what's on your list.' God, are you always this boring?"

He scoffed, "Are you always this childish?"

Aha! Oh, how Mimi loved using people's words against them. It made her feel so, well, good. "You don't answer a question with another question, brat.", she repeated what Levi had said to her prior, her voice dropping a few octaves to impersonate him the best she could.

Levi, absolutely dumbfounded by this girl and her antics, could only roll his eyes in response. "You just keep proving my point."

"What point?", she asked. Levi didn't miss a beat to respond. "You're childish."

"Is that a bad thing, though?"

"What?"

Mimi looked back at him, "being childish, I mean."

He stared at her, his eyes briefly scanning her face, "do you think it is?"

She shook her head in response.

"Then it's not, dumbass. The only opinion about yourself that matters is yours."

A/N:

The new chapter! I might edit it once I'm free, as I was quite literally rushing to get this done, but I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter! Don't forget to vote xx