Private Detective Levi x Reader (AU) Part 1

((Contains Swearing))

She’s been taken.

Your flatmate. Sasha Blouse. She’s gone, and you’re terrified.

It was only half an hour that you were at the shops. But when you returned, the door was open… and the flat was in complete disarray. Desperate claw marks on the walls, shattered glass embedded into the carpet, blood. You find a note, stuck to the back of the front door. The words are written in red. No, not ink. Blood. It is hers? The thought makes you dazed. The note is demanding for sickening amounts of cash, and for every day that the money is not sent, you will receive a pint of her blood. They are going to drain her body till there’s nothing left. Then dispose of the corpse.

You panic. You sob. You don’t have the money. You don’t know what to do.

You snap out of it, pull yourself together and call the police. The letter is passed to the head officer, and, after some deliberation, you are quietly referred to a private detective agency in downtown Chicago. You are told that, in this agency, there is a man who can help. He is the best in the city, and although his methods are not exactly… humane, he gets results. Because of this, he has solved some of Chicago's most bloody and abominable crimes. You’re told that, apparently, he will be able to solve your case a damn sight quicker than if the police where to take up the investigation.

That is, if he decides to take the case.

You're told his name is Detective Inspector (DI) Ackerman. Levi Ackerman.


You drive straight to the building (a cement block of offices planted in the seedy back-streets of lower chicago) and manage to catch the man’s employer, Detective Superintendent (DS) Erwin Smith, as he is locking up the office for the evening. You apologize for not booking an appointment and beg the man to have a meeting as soon as possible.

The man is reluctant but finally accepts, telling you to come back four hours later, at 9pm.

You do as he says and after an anxious wait, meet him back outside the office that evening.

You run up just as DS Erwin Smith is collecting the office key from his pocket. "Miss (L/N).' he smiles warmly, seeming to be calmer than the situation calls for. "Please come in. I’m just opening up."

"Thank you," you huff, slightly out of breath from running up the fire exit stairs. As if the agency wasn't already remote enough, they had decided on opening up shop on the 28th floor.  ...Which was just great, when the lift was out of order. "Thank you so much! Obviously, I am more than concerned."

The superintendent nods quickly "Of course, Miss (L/N)! We’ll assess the situation as quickly as possible and see what can be done."

Then you remember.  "Ah, I was referred to one of your men, DI Levi A-"

"Ackerman, yes…" The superintendent says the name almost reluctantly as he unlocks the door "Yes, well, obviously this meeting was a little last-minute, and he wasn't supposed to be in the office this evening… Not that he’d be here anyway. The man’s a wreck, really. Never turns up when you need him."

What? Now you’re worried. No! He's supposed to be the best, isn't he?

Your expression turns to slight panic. "But I was told that he was th-"

"The best, yes." The DS seems weary, almost as if at his wits end. He smiles though, trying to keep your spirits up “When he puts his mind to it and gets out of bed, he is. Just unreliable, is all. I did call him straight after I saw you earlier" his smile slips a little "...No response. ...Still, one can hope!" He opens the door to a pitch-black room and tells you to wait outside for a moment whilst he turns the light on. He flicks the main switch, but the bulb refuses to work. Smiling back at you he gingerly makes his way into the darkness and fumbles around for a minute until he finds his desk lamp. The light comes on, illuminating not much more than the desk and a chair either side. The man apologizes for the electrics and gestures for you to come in and sit down.

You carefully make your way into the gloom, trying not to bump anything in the process.

Once you’re sat down, the DS clasps his hands on the desk. "Now, Miss (LN), how can I help?"

You smooth a quick hand through your partially disheveled hair and breathe a sigh. "I... I came back from buying groceries this morning, before work, and my apartment door was open. There was stuff all over the floor... broken glass, coffee table turned over-"

"Oh dear, dear…" the man murmurs. His face, a picture of concern.

You continue. "And then I found a letter stuck to the wall, saying that they wanted money." you hesitate "And... I don't know, I thought it looked like it might have been drawn in blood-"

"Blood?" he says suddenly.

"Well," you say "...I thought it might have been her blood, but the police dismissed that. So-"

"Tch."

You jump then, because that sound did not come from the superintendent.

It came from behind you.

You think for a moment, that the sound must have been made from something falling in the dark. However, as you look at Erwin's face, his polite expression quickly falls into one of contempt and his eyes lock onto the corner of the room. Frowning, you follow his line of sight and peer into the darkness.

Nothing. Nothing but moonlight and dark shapes.

Just then though, a shape near the corner window shifts and you hear an sharp click. For a second, a pair of piercing eyes suddenly appear from the darkness, their gaze not directed at the cigarette being lit, but straight at you. The lighter flame is quickly extinguished and Erwin sighs audibly, reaching for his desk lamp and swinging its light into the corner.

Suddenly, a man is illuminated. His slender, solid frame is lent back against the window, one hand in his trouser pocket and the other at his side, cigarette nonchalantly held between his fingers. He is dressed in black trousers and black brogues, with an open, dark grey waistcoat and open-neck white shirt, sleeves rolled up to expose muscular forearms. He would have looked distinctly handsome, you note, had his appearance not been so disheveled. In fact, his attire is so unkempt, that it almost appears as if he has slept in the very same clothes he now wears. By the superintendent's description, you don't doubt that this is probably the case. Adding to his bedraggled appearance, his facial features are sharp and well-defined... However, his clear-cut cheek bones are considerably tainted by his somewhat disturbed gaze. His crystalline hues are marred beneath by fierce, dark furrows, something which gives the impression that he is severely sleep deprived.

Or... almost as if the man is plagued by terrible thoughts...

"Jesus Christ, Levi." Erwin growls "How long have you been in here?"

The man shrugs, inhaling the toxic smoke as his eyes briefly dart to the liquor cabinet in the opposing corner. "Thought I’d help myself." he says, the corners of his lips flickering slightly as he exhales, a ghost of a smile crossing his expression. "Didn’t expect you to have appointments this time of night."

It’s at this point that you notice the almost empty glass decanter of whisky, balanced on the windowsill beside him. Severely sleep deprived? Scratch that. The man is an alcoholic!

The superintendent stares at his subordinate in slight bafflement for a moment, before sighing resignedly. "This is a special case." he says, then gesturing towards you "This is Miss (F/N) (L/N). Miss (L/N), allow me to introduce you to DI Ackerman, our... lead, detective."

Levi takes a puff of his cigarette and nods a courteous 'hello' to you, but you don’t fail to notice the way his eyes quickly flicker over your body before his gaze flashes away.

Fighting back a small blush, you attempt to return the greeting, but can’t help the frown that slowly spreads across your expression. This... shambles of a man, is their lead detective? This is the man that had finished up some of the city's most infamous cases? ...They can't be serious!

When you don’t respond, Ackerman raises an eyebrow, following your line of sight to the near-empty bottle beside him. A small grin flashes onto his lips and he inhales a last puff "Sorry." he says, reaching over and snubbing out the cigarette on the windowsill "I think clearer when I’ve had a drink."

"Or five." Erwin interjects dryly, his distaste for the man evident in his tone.

Levi shrugs again, his lips still curled in a slight smirk.

"Well," the superintendent continues "At least you’re here - something which I can hardly believe." You turn back and Erwin smiles apologetically "He’s a wretch to contain, but unfortunately the man gets results." You raise an eyebrow, utterly unconvinced.

"Really." You say, all pleasantries gone from your voice. This is unbelievable. You are tired and worried, and the only man that you can supposedly depend on to solve the case is a damn wreck! "He gets results does he?" You say, clearly irritated "But only when he can be bothered to drag himself out of bed without a hangover?" You refuse to address the detective personally "So he sleeps all day, drinks all night, and when he does happen to accidentally be in the same room as his client, can’t even be bothered to dress for it?"

Erwin now looks worried, his eyes widening as it dawns on him that they are losing a possible client. "Well, to be honest," he says quickly, frantically trying to find something redeemable about the detective. "I know it’s unbelievable now, but he usually dresses better than I do. Impeccably so. ...Actually," His brow furrows, his gaze shifting to the man behind you. "Why are you so unkempt?"

You don’t hear a response, so you quickly flick your head round.

The detective is slowly shaking his head, with an expression so dark, you wonder what in the hell could have happened. Whatever the reason is though, he's clearly not intending to part with the information.

Just as he notices you looking, you swivel back round. "Doesn’t make a difference." You say, getting to your feet. "This is the man that I’m supposed to bank an innocent life on, and he’s an alcoholic, to say the least. Call me crazy, but he doesn’t seem like someone I can trust to do his job when my friend is slowly dying! I mean, do you seriously expect me to hire this… this, unreliable mess?"

The superintendent makes to vaguely respond, but before he can, Levi decides to interject.

"Hey. Princess." You hear the man snap. "This 'unreliable mess' has a name. And look, I may not be the man you expected, but I’m the only one who’s going to be able to get this damn thing done."

You don’t reply. Your back is still to him. You don’t want to dignify him with your attention.

There’s silence for a moment, until you hear him exhale harshly.

"Levi!" the superintendent snaps "Don’t yo-"

But his reprimand is cut short as the detective swiftly advances over and yanks open the office door, looking back at you as he holds out a hand to the hallway. "By all-fucking-means, find someone else. You walk out that door though, don’t expect me to feel sorry when this friend of yours washes up on Loyola beach with a bullet through their brain and no blood left in their god-damn body."

This makes you angry. Really angry. Partly because you’re already scared about the prospect of this happening, and partly because how dare he make such a coarse remark! As white-hot rage begins to boil in your stomach, you fix him with a fierce glare, hoping that he might back down.

He does no such thing. Instead, he stares right back, his expression level, his gaze not wavering for a second. He’s done this before, clearly.

"Ackerman!" Erwin barks "Stand. Down! If-"

"Quiet." Levi says flatly, his eyes not shifting from yours. He’s waiting. He wants to see how you’ll react.

Before you decide to walk out - or at the very least, throw something - you quickly close your eyes.