Thanks for clicking on my story! This is Part 2 of a Series- The Differences Series, but reading Differences: Childhood isn't compulsory, only if you want to read it and preferable like FrUK.
Warnings for the Whole Story: Character Deaths, Self-Harming, Near-Rape, Homosexuality and Homophobia, and several others. To sum it up: You have to be mature and serious to read this. There will be some comedy at times, but not as much as there is serious topics.
The blonde haired woman smiled softly as her three year old son scrambled into her arms. Her precious chid, Gilbert Amery Beilschmidt. The young boy was a spitting image of his father, a patriotic German soldier who had sadly passed away just a couple of days ago fighting for his country.
Gilbert had all of his father's looks, none of his mother's bar her soft skin, including his enchanting crimson red eyes, his platinum blond- slowly turning white- mop of hair and albinism, but she wouldn't change him for anything. He was perfect in her eyes.
Heidi Beilschmidt, despite losing her husband, was a happy woman, living with her father who she adored, the silent serious Amery Germania (whom Gilbert's middle name had come from), in an out of the way house in the English Countryside, although all of them were German through and through, with strong ancestry from Prussia. There was only one other house connecting theirs, and bar Gilbert and their daughter Elizabeta, neither household bothered with each other. Elizabeta, who originally came from Hungary, was only a couple of months younger than Gilbert, and she was mature for her age.
Amery had found friendship with Romulus Vargas as a child, a slightly dopey Italian with a talent in art, design and cooking. He was now a top designer, living in the heart of Rome, where he had grown up before the two both went to a college in Austria. No-one had a clue how the silent, serious German and the crazy, wild Italian got on (Amery wondered himself sometimes), but they somehow did. Amery did consider strangling him near enough every day, and sometimes even attempted to do so. Romulus however never freaked out or even flinched, the German always wanted to know how.
Romulus was now living happily with two fully grown daughter of his own, who had long moved out. Jeanne, the eldest, was married to a Frenchman and now had a son, Francis, whom Heidi had only seen pictures of. Recently though, Pascal, Jeanne's husband, had been struck with a rare cancer and would probably only survive to around his son's fifth or sixth birthday. Francis was already two, nearing three, Gilbert only being just under five months older than him.
Maria, the younger, seemed a suspicious type, though nobody knew if it was just her personality or there was a reason. She had one son, born somewhere in between Francis and Gilbert called Lovino, and she was pregnant with another.
Heidi snapped out of her daze as she saw two pale-skinned feet nearly, the body they were attached to trying to escape and make a dive for the floor. She grabbed her son by the ankles, the younger yelping, writhing around a bit and eventually giving in.
"Gilly." She started, using his pet name as she used her hand to stroke through his platinum blond hair. Gilbert stuck his tongue out, he hated his nickname! "I have something important to tell you."
"What?" He said irritably, looking into his mother's eyes because he knew if he didn't she'd say he wasn't listening to him. His German accent could be heard around his childish lisp, and he was already learning German on top of English.
"How would you feel if you were going to have a little bruder in a couple of months' time?" She said, a smile on her face. Gilbert had been saying a lot, especially more recently he wanted a little sibling, especially a brother.
Two red eyes widened, looking her straight in the eye for a few seconds, before everything came out at once. "What's his name going to be? When's he going to be born? Is he going to be as awesome as me? Wait, that's impossible! He'll have to be the second most awesome?"
"I was thinking of giving him a nice German name." Heidi mused, ignoring the last part of her son's questions, but she couldn't help but giggle softly at them. "He'll be born sometime at the end of April or the beginning of May."
"But that's ages away! It's only February! Can't he be born sooner?"
"I've known since November, how do you think I feel? Did you think a baby just pops out straight away? It's got to grow inside my tummy, it takes nine months. If he was born now, he'd be small and unhealthy and you wouldn't be able to play with him."
"But that's not awesome! Romulus told me that Mumie's can buy seeds from a baby shop, eat it and then out pops a baby!"
"Well, you'll have to find out when you get older." Heidi knew she shouldn't mention how a baby was actually born, let alone conceived. A three year old didn't need to know that!
Heidi started rubbing her stomach softly. Luckily, Gilbert usually sat at the side of her or on the end of her lap, so her unborn child wouldn't be squashed by his brother already before even seeing him. Feeling a kick at the action, she grabbed her son's hand and placed it where she had been kicked. "Can you feel anything?"
Gilbert shook his head, his hair flailing wildly, but once the baby kicked again, he nodded.
"He kicked your belly!"
She nodded. "All babies do it. He kicks stronger than you did."
"You're lying to me!"
"Nein. The doctor said so as well. And it's fibbing, not lying."
"You're still fibbing." He muttered, before brightening up. "I'm going to be the most awesome big bruder you have ever seen!"
"I know you will Gilly. No-one can be such an 'awesome' big brother as you."
~x~
If you ever met Amery Germania, you'd realise that he like to grumble. A lot.
He was grumbling now, but with good reason. Since baby Beilschmidt was to enter the world within the next twenty four hours, he was worrying over his daughter, as well as an albino almost jumping off the walls in excitement, and he had nothing else to do with him since he was already gone and told Elizabeta.
Amery kept one on the mischievous boy, currently watching some of the fish in their fish tank, his nose right up against the glass, and the other one of the phone. A friend of his, a midwife, had promised to call him as soon as the baby was born. Heidi had been complaining of back pains for most of the morning, and soon after, her waters broke.
Amery had wanted to go with her, since her husband nor her mother was present due to her passing away suddenly before Gilbert was born, but she asked for him to stay with Gilbert, and he couldn't say no to that, despite knowing the child would be so excited.
"Can you stop being so energetic for five seconds and go and find something on the television?"
"Nein!" Sometimes it was so tempting to strangle his grandson. And now was one of those times.
Bri-
"Hallo?"
"Congratulations, he's beautiful Amery! He's definitely got your look."
Amery sighed with relief, but after a couple of seconds he realised that there was a tense aura on the other side of the phone. "Is something the matter?"
"I'm so sorry Amery. There were…complications, we- we couldn't save your daughter."
That second broke everything, including Amery's heart. First Armen in January, now Heidi, exactly three months after. How was he going to break the news to Gilbert?
"D-did-" Amery's voice broke and he was almost crying. But he couldn't let Gilbert see him. "Did Heidi name him before she-?"
"Yes, she did. He's called Ludwig Alan. Though she didn't know whether he should have her surname or his fathers."
"Let me get my other grandson sorted, I'll come to pick him up now."
"Thank you. And Amery?"
"Yes?"
"I know how much losing a child breaks your heart. But you've got her children to think about, they're orphans at a young age and they'll need you now that they don't have their parents. Make sure they love you and you act like the father that Gilbert hardly, and Ludwig never had."
"I-I will. Thank you."
~x~ THREE YEARS LATER ~x~
"Gilbert, stop kicking me! You're hurting my shin!"
"I wasn't kicking you in the first place!"
"Could you two stop arguing until at least when the meal ends?! I don't care what happens after, but I want my meal in peace!"
"He started it though!"
"No, you did! Stop trying to get on opa's good side!"
"Gilbert Amery and Ludwig Alan Beilschmidt! You're purposely trying to annoy me, aren't you? And Gilbert, when you're both like this, neither of you are on my good side!"
"Nein, I'm sorry opa, I won't do it again."
"Ja, obviously."
Daggers were shot at Gilbert from both his Grandfather and his younger brother. The three of them sat quietly around the dinner table on the cold night in late January, picking at and eating parts of their food.
That was when the doorbell was rung.
"Nobody ever comes around here, especially during winter. And it can't be the Hérdévary's, Daniel rings twice and Elizabeta knocks." Amery muttered to himself as he excused himself from the table to answer it.
As soon as Amery left the dining room to answer the doorbell in the hallway, Gilbert and Ludwig gave each other the stare. "It's your fault I got into trouble."
Ludwig gave his brother a cold stare. "You learnt that off opa." Gilbert remarked, and it wasn't the sort of reaction Ludwig wanted, the younger staring for a couple more seconds, before shrugging and going back to his dinner.
"I hate the fact that I'm always the one who-"
BANG.
"What was that?!" Gilbert said, racing for the door.
Just before he went to open it, he heard it get locked from the other side. "Was?!"
He knew there was no chance of it opening, so he turned around to look for his brother. The younger German was nowhere to be seen.
"Shizer." Gilbert cursed, though he only did so because Amery had gone to using it a lot recently, so he had picked it up. "Ludwig, where are you?!"
The younger appeared from under the table, as curious from the noise as the elder but even more shaken up.
The door unlocked and a man walked in, a pistol in each hand, aiming both at the two boys.
Ludwig screamed.
"Get out of here and never come back and your lives will be spared. If you ever return, feel free to join the rest of your family in the graveyard."
Gilbert felt a cold sweat cover his forehead.
"Hurry up you two little shits! If we killed two kids for no reason, we'd be as sure as dead as well. You'll have to climb that fence of yours in the back."
We can't climb that! I might have a chance to but Ludwig never will! Come on Gilbert, you can't let Ludwig see you like this, you've got to think of an awesome idea!
"I've got a better idea!" He suddenly braced himself. If he was an adult, he'd probably already be dead.
"Ohoho, have you you little brat? Go on, show me."
I can't let Eliza and her Dad get involved or they might get shot as well! We'll have to go through the forest and try and find a way out!"
"But first, where's my opa?"
"Sorry kid, but you won't be seeing your opa for a long time. If you want to, then I suggest staying there."
"Nein, I've got a life to live first!"
Gilbert was surprisingly mature when he needed to be, so quickly grabbed Ludwig's hand, before racing for the stairs. Luckily for them, Amery had redesigned the house so the staircase was no longer in the hallway, so they could get up them. In the background, both heard a vehicle drive off, but refused to look back.
Due to Ludwig's height disadvantage, Gilbert could run up them while he still had to scramble. Gilbert was already standing in the doorframe of Amery's bedroom once he reached the top, the one closest to the fence.
"You have to climb out of the window, Ludwig."
"But I'll fall!"
"Ludwig, it's do it or die. I'll follow you straight after, I promise."
The younger shook slightly, still traumatised, but after taking one final look at the drop, he eventually climbed out of the window and onto the windowsill. Since he was only nearing three, he didn't have much trouble with his small feet. Gilbert struggled at first, but once he got used to it, he was fine. The six year old was holding the maturity of an adult at this point, trying to look for anywhere, anywhere he could push Ludwig off and then jump and they'd both be safe.
"Ludwig! Gilbert!"
The two looked around to the Hérdévary house, where Daniel, the single father of Elizabeta, was yelling at them.
"Hold on! I'll come around and grab you!"
The Hungarian obviously knew what was going on, and using his back gate (Gilbert wished they had one now), he ran around to the outside of their fence.
"I'll grab you! I promise I won't let you fall! If I saw my Eliza fall to her death, I'd never cope, and I can't let you two end up the same way!"
Gilbert knew Daniel wouldn't lie to them like that, so before Ludwig could react, he felt himself falling. He yelled, almost screaming in shock, before he felt him slam into the Hungarian man, almost sending them both flying into a tree, where a forest surrounded them. Once he calmed down, Daniel let Ludwig down, and after staggering a few paces, the contents of Ludwig's dinner were now all over a bush.
Once Daniel's arms were out again for Gilbert, the albino braced himself and after a couple of seconds, he jumped.
He knew now how Ludwig felt. Falling from a second story floor at an awkward angle, with so many dangerous things he could have misjudged and slammed into, his life going with it.
He felt himself slam into hard bone, and he knew then his life wouldn't end just yet.
"I'm so sorry boys, but I can't stay with you. I knew this was going to happen, so I got you both a backpack each. They have warm clothes, food and I managed to squeeze a tent in, but unfortunately only sleeping mats and not bags. You'll have to walk through the forest."
"If it means keeping mein bruder safe, I don't care."
"You're such a lovely boy, Gilbert." Daniel smiled. "Now, I don't know about anyone else, but near the other side of the forest lives a man named Vash Zwingli with his sister Lili. He's a bit tight with his money but loves children so you shouldn't have too many problems with him. If you don't find him, I wish you the best of luck and if you somehow find contact with me or Elizabeta in the future, contact us. I'm so sorry about all you've been through, and I'm just going to tell you once you make it through this forest, you will be fine and a new life will happen."
"Danke." Gilbert breathed, taking his own backpack as well as Ludwig's, who was just recovering over his vomiting and was about ready to get going as well. Once the two turned, ready to leave, he also let out a soft "Auf Wiedersehen…" As the two German boys walked into the forest, unsure of what was going to happen to them both next.