Walking Among Spirits (Levi x Reader) [REWRITE]

Content Warnings:

•Season 4 Part 3 Spoilers
•Mentions of Death
•Strong Language
•Narcissism
•Violence
•Needles
•Blood
•Panic
•Guns
•Gore

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Flashback

It was only your third time practicing sewing, and it still wasn't great. Yes, you had improved since your very first attempt, but you were still nowhere near seamstress level. Everything had started fine, you took your seat and got to work with the steps you remembered from the other day. Tamara was to help as little as she could to make sure you fully grasped the talent by yourself.

Thread knotted, fabric ready (unlike you were), you began sewing, but not for long. The dread started to build up when you felt her eyes burning through you. At any moment, she would find something to scrutinize you for. Tamara had never been the kindest when it came to teaching, neither did she have any sort of patience. Your entire time at the Girls Home was simply a disaster from the start. Any task was bound to end in tears. The littlest of things set her off and you would never hear the end of it. Of course, that was only in private. Never in front of the other "mothers" and their partners, being the girls.

You would have rather refused to do something than to think you did well, but be told otherwise. That way, at least, you were not doubting yourself. You were only preventing what could have been an outburst once it was just the two of you alone.

"Why won't you join the others and cross-stitch?" Tamara had asked- well, more like threatened, the next day. "I just don't want to today." Was all you offered her. You didn't feel the need to prove your case. With a heavy sigh, the woman pursed her lips tightly and scanned the empty room you accompanied. The others were all outside to take advantage of the sunny day after a week of rain. Your first mistake. When she deemed it clear of any possible witnesses, she lowered her tone, even though it was just you two. "Don't you see that you'll make me look bad? Are you purposely trying to do this to me?" She made a certain face, one you grew to recognize. Any time she narrowed her eyes like she was attempting to calmly reason with you- which really was just a manipulation tactic, you knew what she was up to. She needn't say any words, because you already knew what she was saying with that expression alone.

The second greatest mystery besides the existence of Titans was how could such a nasty woman have had such a sweet and caring daughter who was the complete opposite of her? You would never know the truth behind that, as bad as you felt for that girl and what she undoubtedly endured at home.

With the growing experience of socializing with Tamara, you learned to just stay quiet, not to fuel her arguments any further. However, this pissed her off even more. Your silence killed her inside. She wanted nothing more than to rile you up and quickly change moods to make you look crazy. She loved doing that to you and it took longer than you liked to admit to catch onto that pattern. You so badly wanted to shake her around and scream in her face about how horrible of a person she was, why she couldn't just be normal, but you knew you could never do that. It was all she wanted out of you. To make you look crazy.

The cornering and interrogating developed into noises of displeasure when others were around to witness. Any time you did something "wrong" or not in the way she liked, that little huff was an irk of yours. So much so, she knew it would trigger you. Tamara had officially succeeded in tormenting you once her words weren't the only thing that scared you. Body language, an expression, and now a subtle little noise that no one else would think twice about. She had gained all control of you. You became her puppet.