something something something loki's love for sylvie more appropriately manifesting as platonic rather than romantic because his love for her is a lesson in healing--particularly the inner child that still holds resentment towards a lying, unaffectionate father. loki's heart breaks for sylvie because it breaks for him too. he sees her and views the version of himself that is still angry and deeply, deeply wounded. his affection stems from the empathy of understanding what it is to have had a narrative for their life controlled/manipulated for them. in their sameness, loki offers the compassion he wishes he would've gotten or would've been able to receive. and because to turn back on her would be to turn back on himself. loki allows himself to be something other than the trickster god he made himself out to be in a desperate plea at taking back control. it is mobius that tells him he can be other than what he was and offers him another mode of survival, all of it a lesson in love. sylvie teaches loki radical self-love, how to show up for himself and others, and mobius is the conduit through which loki practices this healthier way of loving.
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Levi and physical touch
Levi didn’t realize he was starved for touch. He would receive touches sometimes, like when Hange would try to hug him from behind, but he would quickly shrug her off. Or Erwin would give him a congratulatory pat on the back once a while. Levi didn’t touch anyone else unless it was necessary, or if he felt like it (which was very rare). But that would look like ruffling some brat’s hair if he felt they did a good job, but that was it. He didn’t need touch. He learned to live without it. The last time he felt a touch that was comfortable was his mother’s. She would cradle him in her arms, humming his favorite tune as she was stroking his hair. But soon after she was gone. And Kenny was definitely not one for affection. The only thing he had learned from Kenny in regard to touch was how to hurt people. He knew where to place his hands and the perfect spots to target on the body in order to cause pain. With no guidance, he was forced to learned how to self soothe, placing one hand into the other and holding on tight, squeezing so hard he felt he might snap his fingers. His touch was the only touch that he needed. But then there was you. He remembered the first time he felt your touch. Your hand briefly touched his shoulder as you asked if he was okay. He must have been lost in his thoughts or something, but the sudden contact startled him. If you had been looking close enough, you might have seen him flinch. It wasn’t like Erwin’s touch, which was strong and firm. Or Hange’s touch, which was overbearing. But your touch? Yours? Your touch brought comfort. But still, it was a strange feeling for Levi after not having received it for so long, and you knew that. You understood Levi and respected his space but of course there were times when you wanted some skin to skin contact with him. He would never deny you of this. You’d do things like place your head on his shoulder affectionately or light place one soft hand on his rough one and just hold it there, just for a few seconds.
What broke the camel’s back was when you came for a surprise visit during lunch. He opened the door to see you standing there. He’ll never forget it, you cupped his cheeks with both hands, smiling as your eyes looked into his cloudy ones. “Hi.” You greeted him. “Hi.” His greeting came out more as a sigh, his tone light and airy. You had never touched him like this before. Your hands were so warm. He instinctively closed his eyes and let himself lean into them, the combination of your touch and sweet scent creating an oasis for his mind to retreat to. There was peace for him for a brief moment in time. There was that feeling again, just like when his mother used to hold him.
Ever since then, he would try to recreate that moment with you, over and over again, in any way he could. He would never ask for it directly, of course. But you knew when Levi wanted touch. He’d rub up against you at the most random moments or hold out his hand awkwardly on a random surface, hoping you would notice his lonely appendage. You always did notice it; and you would never deny him, like him with you.
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