It was after dark and Roderich had been wandering around the World Academy. He was amazed by all the beautiful arches and curves the walls had, and he couldn't wait to explore. So he wandered for several hours, until it was dark outside, and all the exits had been locked. Obviously frightened, his shoes slammed against the sparkling tiles that framed the dark and twisting maze he was trying to navigate. It was no use, and he would have to wait till morning to be let out.
Just as he turned a corner, he almost ran into what seemed to be another student, dropping all his sheet music. "Why on earth are you still here?" he asked the Prussian staring back at him
"Why don't you ever leave on time?" asked Gilbert in an annoyed tone, but still sarcastic and playful like normal. The bright moonlight streamed through the windows placing shadows and reflections on the marble tiles and bouncing against the walls. "I said, why are you still here?" Roderich's voice sounded shaky, mostly because he had been running around the halls for hours, and he was surprised and somewhat relieved to see Gil.
"I saw you wandering around the halls near lock up time, so I decided to stay. It looked like you were half asleep, looking at all the walls and stained glass. I decided not to disturb you because I knew that I would 'ruin it' and I know how much you like that artsy-fartsy crap"
"And why would you ruin it?" the fear fading from his voice, he gently cocked his head and stared back waiting for a reply.
"Well because you hate me! You're annoyed at the very thought of me you know that's true" his voice rising and echoing through the crystal halls before dulling into a soft whisper.
"Gilbert, do not ever say that I hate you" his tone turning stern as he took a step towards Gilbert. About an inch from this face, he whispered, "Gil, I told you never to tell lies."
"Wha-mm"
Gilbert tried to speak but was interrupted by Roderich diving in and lightly pressing his lips on the other's. Gil stared back, almost unable to comprehend what had happened. Just before he could question the Austrian, he was interrupted again.
A light blush slipped onto Roderich's face as he put a finger over the others lip. "Shh... You talk too much.."
Gilbert staggered back a bit as soon as he was released. He was staring back at Roderich, eyes wide as he tried to process what was happening. The look that the other was giving him made a blush creep on to his face, almost the same shade as his eyes.
Roderich stepped up to him once again, repeating his actions, and held him in the warm kiss once again. Gilbert's blush continued to spread across his face, his eyes wide as his heart sped up. He almost fell backwards as Roderich pulled away. "Heh... You forgot to breathe, didn't you?" Roderich chuckled. Amused that he had that power over him, he stood, grinning and waiting for Gilbert's next move.
"I... I did not forget.." his voice trailing off the same as he eyes that traveled to the floor. He felt sort of defeated, that if this ever were to happen that he should be the one in Rod's position. Gilbert's head was spinning so fast that he thought he might pass out. He couldn't wait any longer, and so he leaned in and their lips met. As soon as he did, it sent a warm shiver through Roderich that almost made him collapse on the floor. Hanging his arms around Gil's shoulders and letting them hook around his neck to give him support, he slowly opened his eyes revealing the dark amethyst slits that stared back at Gilbert. Gilbert reacting, almost like he was snapping out of a trance, pulled away and whispered a just few words.
"This isn't right."
Roderich suddenly woke up, immediately sitting up and breathing heavily. He observed his surroundings and found that he was in his bedroom.
His heartbeat slowly toned down as he collapsed back on his bed, curling into a tight ball. Tears beginning to well up in his eyes he closed them and tried to go back to sleep.
"Only in my dreams..."
"Roderich? Roderich! Wake up, it's seven o'clock at night!" Ludwig scolded.
"No... It's too stressful to leave" he said quietly, rolling over and covering his head with the sheets. "You can't make me."
"You've been in bed all day. For the love of god, you slept in later than Gilbert..." Ludwig scolded, still trying to get the brunet out of bed even if there wasn't much daylight. They had guests, and it was awfully quiet when Roderich didn't entertain. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's fine. Leave me alone", he said hastily. He shifted and pulled his pillow over his head and held it there. Giving Ludwig an opening where he grabbed the other's wrist and attempted to drag him out of the covers.
"Get up or I use force" Ludwig said plainly, grabbing his wrist and twisting it.
"ow ow OW! That hurts, damnit!" He yelled, trying to kick Ludwig but missing. "Fucking let me go, you're hurting me!" He screamed as Ludwig released him but grabbed his arm and dragged him up into a sitting position.
"Watch your mouth" Ludwig scolded, letting him go but staying cautious in case he decided to do anything stupid. "What are you? My mother? I'm older than you" Roderich snapped back. His face was red in the fact that he was angry, but most noticeably, the areas around his eyes were red as well.
"Roderich... have you been crying?" Ludwig asked with worry upon noticing. "Tell me what's wrong."
"I... had a bad dream" he said quietly. He looked away, embarrassed, as he must've sounded extremely childish.
"Would you be able to tell me what happened in it? It often helps to discuss it... what was so bad that you stayed in bed all day?"
Ludwig was used to comforting people. He had helped many of his friends through difficult times. Even though he looked scary sometimes, he was fairly sweet inside. He was a bit astonished because he had never seen Roderich like this before. No one had, really. He had so meticulously maintained an image for himself as a flawless, polite aristocrat; perfect in every way. He never seemed to let others know that he, like everyone else, has many flaws. Because of this, it seemed as if he had kept it all bottled up inside him, and Roderich turned to Ludwig with his soothing, warm voice. In a way, he cracked.
He started crying as he put his head into his hands. Barely understandably, he tried to tell Ludwig all about his dream the night before.
"It was about Gilbert, and we were in a school. I was lost, but then he found me. We talked, and I said I loved him... Then we kissed but in the middle, he just turned on me. I woke up after that... The dream was long, but I've been trying to forget it". Roderich seemed to go on and on, as he desperately wanted Ludwig to make him, somehow, feel better about it.
"Have... Have you ever thought about telling Gilbert how you feel?" Ludwig said sympathetically.
"A little. But I always assumed he would just tell me I was hilarious and then he would brush it off. I never really thought that he would accept me" Roderich said as tears continued to stream down his face.
"I could" Ludwig said quietly. "I would accept you" he said as he blushed and looked away.
Roderich stared back at him, stunned at what he had heard. His tears ceased, and he stopped crying.
"You would?"
The brunette tried his best to avoid the German's piercing, ice blue eyes. They seemed cold, strong, and maybe a little frightening. Through all of that, only certain people would be able to tell that the same eyes were the calmest, most caring eyes that you would ever see.
"I know t-that you're only saying that to make me feel better..." he sputtered. The words sounded difficult, like they rendered his ability to breathe. Hesitantly, he turned his head away to try and hide the dark blush growing on his face.
Ludwig sighed a little, and chuckled lightly. "Think what you want, but I'm saying because it's the truth" he said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. This made Roderich flinch, as he wasn't expecting his touch at all. "You really are adorable when you get all flustered" Ludwig said with a gentle smile.
Ludwig cupped the other's cheek with his hand and turned the bright red nation to look at him. "Although you may not realize it, you're one of the most talented and charming people I have ever met. And I like you a lot for more reasons than one..." Lud said. "It would mean the world to me if I could help you".
Roderich shuddered when he slowly rubbed a familiar spot with his thumb. "Something wrong?" Ludwig asked a little too casually. Did he forget about that dumb mole or is he doing this on purpose?, Roderich thought to himself frantically.
"I'm fine" he said softly. "But t-that's... that's my erogenous zone" he murmured, looking embarrassed. "I know" Ludwig said quietly.
"You can tell me to stop" Lud said, continuing to press on the spot, gently. Aside from his heavy breathing, Roderich stayed silent. After a while, he spoke up. "Only stop so I can do this" the brunette said quickly before he grabbed the other's collar and dragged him down, bringing him into a heated kiss. Ludwig staggered forward a little and lost his balance, and he would've fallen on top of him if he hadn't caught himself by putting his hands on the bed.
His eyes widened as he gazed down at the Austrian under him. As so he wouldn't fall of the bed, Ludwig was forced to crawl onto the bed and position himself on top of the more submissive of the two. Ludwig pulled away and left both of them panting heavily. The German made a disappointed sigh. "I must look like a huge pervert right now..." Ludwig said regrettably.
"No one's watching you, either" Roderich said playfully.
"Stop it... now's not the best time" Ludwig said in an overly guilty tone. "But you said you would help..." Roderich said with dissatisfaction.
"I would think that every ounce of your dignity and respect for yourself would not allow you to just throw your body at me... am I not correct?" Ludwig asked with a bit of disgust. He carefully got off of him and stood up beside the bed. Roderich sat up from the bed, feeling ashamed at his behavior.
"You probably hate me, right?" He asked the blonde. "I would never hate you, that just seemed a little soon" Ludwig said. It's true, he wouldn't have ever hated him. In fact, he did love him, but felt strongly on the concept of at least dating someone before you go and fuck said someone.
"Um... Ludwig? What are you doing?" Roderich asked anxiously, looking over to the tall German. He chuckles a little. "What does it look like I'm doing?" He says drowsily. "I'm getting ready for bed, dummy" Ludwig says, a little bit perplexed.
"But why in here? This is my room, dummy" Roderich says mockingly. Ludwig ignores him, and Roderich sighs and slumps down on the bed. Roderich pokes his head out from the blankets to see Ludwig walking out of the bathroom, combing out his hair. The brunette smiled weakly and blushed, but hid it with the provided blankets around him. He liked it when that tough German didn't have his hair slicked back.
"Now, you do know that because of that supposedly huge party that we have planned, we have a lot of guests. Mostly people we know, though" Ludwig said. "In order to accommodate all of them with places to sleep, we needed to bunk together... and since we're dating and all... I found it was perfectly acceptable to sleep in here."
Roderich sighed. "I guess you're right..." he said meekly. "But... why with me?" He whined, throwing the covers back over his head. Ludwig laughed to himself at the embarrassed Austrian that was hiding from him. Ludwig walked over to the door and flicked the switch on the wall, turning off the lights. Soft moonlight filled the room, pouring in through the window.
He walked over to the bed, tossing back the covers on his side and crawled under them, making himself comfortable. A little curious, he flipped the covers off of Roderich's face. He sighed again and took off his glasses, setting them on the bedside table. Ludwig smiled again, finding his little fit humorous. "It's funny how this damn house has a ballroom but doesn't have enough bedrooms for ten or so people" the brunette said.
"You know, this party is mainly for you" Ludwig said. "I'm probably not supposed to be telling you that, but promise to act surprised, ok?" He said quietly. "I figured that it would be a good time to tell them"
"Tell them what?" Roderich asked, not quite wanting the answer. "Well... that we're dating" Ludwig said softly.
"Are you out of your mind? Who knows how they would react to that..." Roderich said, his anxiety returning to his voice. "...And how I would suffer..." his voice trailed off as his eyes trailed to the window. Ludwig wrapped an arm around the Austrian and hugged him close. "...they need to know sooner or later. It'll be fine. Better than avoiding everyone's questions all the time, right?" He said gently. Roderich's face was burning red and his eyes widened as he was pulled closer to the German. Without a word, he hid his face in his chest and allowed himself to be comforted by him. After a while, Roderich broke the frail silence. "... I'm just scared..." he said softly.
"I know, I know. It'll be fine, I promise" Ludwig said, tilting his head and embracing him as much as he could. Just the way it felt, made Roderich want to kiss him in that moment, but he was too afraid about the coming day and all he could do was shiver in his warm hold. With that, they both drifted into sleep by the warmth of each other.
Roderich awoke with a small groan to the response of an annoying alarm clock blaring in his ear. Eight o' clock sharp, just like always. He snapped awake immediately as soon as he realized that his leg was wrapped around the leg of a certain sleeping German.
"L-ludwig get up... and let go of me..."
Getting a little irritated, he raised his voice. "Deutschland! Zeit aufwachen, now get off of me!"
Realizing that Roderich only called him by his name in their native tongue when he was scolding him, or they were making love and he simply forgot English, Ludwig woke up as he was ordered by the aristocratic Germanic yelling in his ear. "... Guten Morgen, Österreich..." he muttered with a gentle smile. Lifting his arm, he flinched a little as Roderich flipped over and smacked that annoying alarm clock off.
Both sitting up, Ludwig yawned as he stood up from the side of the bed. Roderich picked his glasses from the bedside table and pushed them to his face, rubbing his temples. "Headache?" Ludwig asked upon noticing.
"Yeah, it's that damn alarm clock... it's too early for this shit..." he grumbled irritability. "Oh, lighten up, will you? Also, put on something nice" Ludwig said sweetly, making a mock of a smile.
"That reminds me, you never told me what this party is for, nor why it's for me. Explain." The brunette demanded. "Well, I figured that it would be a nice little time to cool down. Everyone's been stressed out with politics and I thought it would be nice to invite some nations over. And, it is our one year anniversary..." Ludwig said.
"Wait, what? How was I completely unaware..." Roderich said, glad that he was turned away from the German because he blushed at the fact. Roderich got up from the bed and headed to his closet, digging around for something more formal than what he usually wore. Even though his regular clothes were pretty formal or traditional, he managed to find something different. Ludwig walked to the bathroom to get dressed as well. He stopped at the doorway. "If you could, stay in here after you've gotten ready. I'd like to walk you down there."
Roderich shot him a suggestive look and proceeded to get dressed as Ludwig walked into the bathroom and closed the door. He removed the large, violet overcoat from the closet and held it to his chest. "Hm.. still fits..." he murmured to himself as he picked out the various items that went with the coat.
Ludwig walked out of the bathroom as he fastened on some cufflinks to the sleeves of a black suit. Roderich still hadn't noticed him and continued to try and get on a corset. "I didn't know that you still wore that" Ludwig said, startling the Austrian a little and making him jump. "So you mean you couldn't tell..." he said with a sigh, frowning a bit. Ludwig chuckled. "You look alright without it" he said, combing back his hair.
"Do you need any help with that?" Ludwig asked as he eyed the laces on his back. "I'm fine" he said quickly, putting the finishing touches on and picking up a white dress shirt. Doing the buttons, he hummed softly to himself. He pulled on the deep purple coat and fastened the buttons on it. "So what's your plan? Tap on a wine glass and announce that we've been dating for a year or what?"
"Not necessarily. I don't really have a plan, I guess it'll just happen"
"Ok then... and who all is coming to this?"
"Well, I invited Kiku, Elizabeta, Feli, Lovino, the Allies, Gilbert, and Antonio. I've also arranged it to be all weekend, hence couples sharing rooms"
"... How do you think they'll react? Wouldn't it be a little too much information? I mean... no one really knows that I'm gay, and... it's been a year. I know we're nations and that shouldn't seem like so long but-"
Ludwig hugged him tightly and rested their foreheads together. "Don't worry about it... I promise it'll go perfectly. Anyone who has a problem with it can talk with me about it, ok?"
Roderich smiled and giggled a little. "If you insist..."
Ludwig slowly and somewhat cautiously moved a hand to tilt the brunette's chin up a little and kissed him gently. At his touch, Roderich's face flared up to a burning red as he kissed back. He frowned when he was cut off as Ludwig pulled away and patted him on the shoulder. "Do what you need to finish getting ready, they'll be expecting us."
Roderich nodded and walked into the bathroom, getting out everything he needed to fix his hair. Trying to be quick about it, he combed out his hair quickly, grabbing a dab of hair gel and styling it as he normally did. If there's one thing he hated, it was looking plain. He grimaced as that annoying little curl bounced back up a little unnaturally. "Damn it..."
He washed his hands and stepped out of the bathroom. "Well, shall we?" Ludwig asked with a smirk. "Yes, let's"
Opening the door, Ludwig laughed to himself as Roderich nervously clung to his arm. "What's so funny?" He asked hostilely. "Oh nothing... you're adorable though..." he replied. "Deal with it, I'm walking there like this whether you like it or not."
They walked through the halls with Roderich still attached to him.
"Luddy, there's only about fourteen of us, so why is it in the ballroom?"
"Well, I intended for there to be some dancing, plus I moved your piano in there. I figured you could show off... I also invited the Vienna philharmonic orchestra too... it's a ball, so to speak..."
He lit up at the fact that Ludwig had gone through such lengths. Roderich sighed. "Why all of this just for a party? Seems a little excessive..."
"But you like it, do you not?"
"It's very nice... thank you..."
Reaching the ballroom, Roderich straightened himself up but still held his hand. It seemed unusually loud in the large room, guests chatting and instruments tuning. Ludwig turned towards him and wore a grin that would be much more suited for Gilbert. "May I have this dance, my lady?" He said, proud of his little joke.
Roderich scoffed but blushed like an idiot nonetheless. "Fine... but only if you wipe that damn grin off your face, you look like your brother..."
With that, Ludwig led him to the center of the floor, spinning him in front of him and putting a hand on his waist. He flinched and glared at him when he realized he was in the female position. Roderich was perfectly capable, if not better than Ludwig when it came to the waltz. Nevertheless, he huffed and accepted it. The rest of the guests gave a questionable look, but other than that they didn't say a word. Most, then divided into pairs. Gilbert with Matthew, Elizabeta with Francis, Ivan with Yao, Alfred with Arthur, Feliciano with Kiku and Lovino with Antonio.
Roderich put a hand on his shoulder and a familiar piece in 3/4 time started up. "Oh hey, I know this one..." Roderich murmured, glancing to the grand piano placed on the other side of the crowd. "You wanna play it?" Ludwig asked, noticing the glint in the other's eyes. The brunette nodded and looked back to him, a light blush dusting his cheeks. His bright violet eyes almost appeared misty as he peered through them. They suited him so well...
They danced across the floor and the others naturally parted for them. Reaching the glossy black instrument, Ludwig closed his eyes, grabbing the back of Roderich's head and pulling him into a kiss. Roderich's eyes widened and his face turned deep red instantly as Ludwig forced his lips apart and slipped his tongue inside. He circled around his a couple of times before pulling away and leaving the Austrian to pant and gasp for air. "You forgot to breathe didn't you?" Ludwig said in a little singsong voice.
The rest of the crowd stared in shock as Roderich wiped his mouth, still glaring at Ludwig. "Shut up, I did not" he mumbled before he glanced back to the crowd. "Oh fuck..."
The rest stayed quiet, save for a couple of murmurs and Francis shouting, "Ehvousdeux!Ilvousfautunechambre?" Which made Elizabeta, Gilbert, and Antonio chuckle.
Roderich's eyes widened in panic as he stared nervously at them.
some translations~
Zeit aufwachen- German phrase for "time to wake up"
Deutschland - Germany in German
Guten Morgen - Good morning in German
Österreich- Austria in German
Eh vous deux! Il vous une chambre?- French phrase for "hey you two! Need a room?"
"This is a disaster..." Roderich mumbled through his hands. Soon after what had happened, he headed to a small, round table at the back of the room to hide. Ludwig had followed, a tiny bit amused from his behavior, constantly reassuring him that everything was fine. Roderich had his face in his hands and occasionally, his sulking mumbles were understandable. "Here, can I get you something to drink?" Ludwig asked, putting a hand on his shoulder and squeezing softly. "...Yeah, red wine" the brunet murmured, putting his hands back on the table and sighing. "Congrats, Roddy!" Gilbert said excitedly, grabbing his shoulder and following it with a trademark snicker. Roderich jumped up a bit and turned towards him, groaning very exaggeratedly when he saw Francis and Antonio trailing behind him. Like many, he wasn't too keen on the idea of his ex's banding together to speak with him about current relationship status.
Roderich slumped down in his chair and tried to look small when the three pulled out chairs at the small table and sat down, purposefully leaving a seat next to him. "What are you doing all the way back here? You're finally back in a relationship and the rest of us don't get to see you two flirt? How unfair..." Gilbert said with a little 'tsk tsk' motion of his finger. "We just made out in front of you, what more do you want?" Roderich grumbled quietly, looking up. "Well, I don't think you want to ask that to us mon cher..." Francis said suggestively, eyeing Roderich and making him grimace slightly. "One more vulgar comment and it'll be your last, frog" Roderich shot back at him, blushing furiously. "Ah, that shade of red suits you" Francis said in a delighted tone, cupping Roderich's cheek before he was swatted away almost instantly.
"Well, what did you three come here to say?" Roderich asked defensively, silently praying that Ludwig would get back soon. "Does it bother you to talk about it?' Antonio asked, tilting his head to the side gently. Roderich sighed. "Trust me, you never make me that uncomfortable, it's those two I'm worried about" Roderich stated simply. "I'm right here..." Francis said with a fake pout and Roderich scoffed. "Well Roderich, I didn't know if it was true til now, but it's apparent that once someone has a Beilschmidt, they develop a taste for them" Gilbert said his usual 'know-it-all' tone, Roderich turning to him and giving him a simple smirk. "Are you trying to say that you're anything like your brother?" Roderich asked, laughing a little as Gilbert quickly turned dissatisfied. "I didn't know you had it in you to be a smart ass..." Gilbert mumbled. He crossed his arms and settled for leaning back into his chair instead of arguing with the priss. "Speak of the devil" Francis said, looking over the brunet's shoulder. Roderich froze with a small kiss to his cheek, Ludwig pulling out the chair next to him and sitting down. He set a glass in front of Roderich, along with a bottle of wine and six cans of beer. "No no no... if you bait them then they'll never leave" Roderich muttered regrettably and panicked a little by quickly downing half of his glass. Chuckling a little, Ludwig reached to caress his cheek. "Careful, the last time you got wasted, you couldn't walk in a straight line for two days" Ludwig said gently, letting a dangerous glint adorn his features. Thinking over what he had said, Roderich glared up at him but smiled. "You're welcome" Roderich said softly, his cheeks tinted a little from a certain memory and the fact that he was slightly intoxicated.
They distributed drinks between the five of them, refilling Roderich's glass, Antonio and Francis chose the wine, and the Beilschmidt's took the first two cans. Roderich darted his eyes around the table, cupping the bottom of his glass with two hands. Slowly taking another drink, his brain sorted through the chatter in the large room and gently swayed his head to the faint music.
"You guys are so cute!" Antonio blurted out, breaking the fragile silence between the five. Roderich flinched and snapped out of his little trance. "Haha.. I suppose..." Roderich muttered, his words slightly slurred together.
The night continued for hours, taking turns to go and get more drinks throughout the night, cracking the occasional perverted joke, little drunken spats between them every now and then until everyone else had called it a night and left for bed. The last thing Roderich remembered was softly setting his head in his arms and falling asleep around the other four.