[ He feels the little hands clutching at him, searching for stability, maybe. In a world before the disaster, he might have told him to stop wrinkling his jacket, but those days are long gone. Whenever he finally passes out he frequently wakes up to sticky hands tugging on his face and he feels nothing but gratitude they all get another day. ]

[ He briefly moves his other hand to cover Eren's, squeezing gently in reassurance, then returns to his task. ]

Exactly. And you'll have a good story for when you want to impress someone, huh?

[ As he talks, he gently cleans around the cut, wiping off mud and blood, making sure Armin's calf is as clean as it can be before he starts pouring things on it. Armin nods shakily, but the snot now runs down his chin and doesn't make him look particularly brave, though of course Levi won't mention it. ]

This might sting. You should bite down on something. [ He offers a belt from his holster, then while the kids get it in place he opens and sniffs the antiseptic to make sure that's what it is. They're in luck; this should do the trick. ] Mikasa, on three.

[ She's the most cool-headed among the kids; it's her and Jean that Levi teaches the most about battlefield medicine -- or their makeshift kind of it anyway -- though of course everyone got the first aid crash course. ]

[ Once the blond boy's biting down and Mikasa is holding both his arms -- assuring but restraining -- Levi carefully grips his foot and then finally washes the wound clean. ]

[ At least the screaming is muffled. ]