"Bruder!"
Gilbert turned around just in time to catch a runaway football under his foot and an enthusiastic Ludwig in his arms.
"Easy kid," Gilbert chuckled, balancing Ludwig back on his feet and picking up the football, "What are you even up to, anyway?"
The blonde-haired child quickly reached up and, much to the his surprise, snatched the football out of Gilbert's hands, smiling broadly.
"I'm playing Fußball. Play with me, bitte." Ludwig said, backing up and dropping the ball to the ground. He eagerly looked up at Gilbert, rocking back on his heels and waiting for the cue to kick the ball, but it never came. Gilbert only blinked.
"Ludwig," he said calmly, "I've told you, you can't play football in the house. There are too many breakables. You have to play outside."
Usually, Ludwig was quiet and obedient, doing as he was told and not making much of a ruckus. He preferred books to little toy soldiers, and discussing military strategy with his older brother rather than playing children's games. But if there was one thing Ludwig did love to play, it was football, and, much to Gilbert's delight, he was pretty damn good at it too.
Gilbert expected Ludwig to simply say 'okay' and go find something else to do but, taking his older brother off-guard once again, Ludwig instead stomped his foot on the ground and pouted.
"But it's raining outside. I want to play football," Ludwig said firmly.
"Then find something else to do until the rain stops, kid. You're not playing football in this house," Gilbert replied, slowly folding his arms over his chest.
Ludwig opened his mouth to speak but wisely decided against it. Instead, he frowned and mumbled a quick 'fine' before picking up the ball and walking away.
Gilbert was certainly still taken aback, but pleased when Ludwig finally caved in. He watched his younger brother disappear around a corner before continuing on with his day.
One overwhelming stack of paperwork and several beers later, Gilbert found himself finally finished with his work for the day. He stood up and stretched, cracking his back and yawning before loosening his necktie. It was dinnertime now, and he was definitely hungry. Blissfully unaware that anything was off, he made his way out of his office and into the kitchen, pulling out pots and pans and utensils and setting off to cook a meal.
It was rare for Gilbert to have enough free time to do any cooking himself. Usually this sort of thing was left to the servants throughout the house while he was away or working, which was often the case. But when he did have time off, all he cared about was taking care of his little brother's needs himself. Doing domestic tasks, especially cooking, brought him a lot of stress relief. It was a nice change of pace from a world of constant political unrest and fighting. Unconsciously, Gilbert began to hum.
Before long, Gilbert was finished, wiping his hands with a towel and setting the table.
"Ludwig!" he shouted, "Abendessen ist fertig!"
He waited a few moments before calling Ludwig's name again. And again. And again. Each time, he got no response.
He must not of heard me. Gilbert told himself that as he left the dining room, but he had a bad feeling that that wasn't the case.
He fell silent after that, no longer calling his younger brother's name as he checked each room of the house. Even after a sweep of every room on the first floor, Ludwig was still nowhere to be found.
At this point, Gilbert was growing annoyed. He made his way up the stairs pausing when he got to the top and looking both ways down the hall.
He started towards the right when he heard the faint sound of a door creaking somewhere behind him. Without missing a beat, he turned on his heel and headed that way down the hall.
When he turned the corner, he was greeted by a broken vase, scattered across the wet floor, its shattered pieces resting among tangled flowers. Only a meter away sat the football.
Before he could say anything, Ludwig stepped out of a room down the hall, hurrying towards the vase with a towel in his hand when he realized his older brother was standing there. He stopped, eyes wide as they locked with Gilbert's.
"B-Bruder!" he squeaked, "It was an acci-"
Gilbert simply held up his hand. Ludwig immediately fell silent.
"Ludwig," he said slowly, "What did I say to you earlier?"
At this point, the blonde began tearing up, squeezing the towel hard in his hands.
"N-Not to play... football... in the house..." Ludwig stammered.
"And how did this vase break, Ludwig?" Gilbert said, his voice unnervingly calm and collected. It hadn't taken much to put two and two together.
Ludwig glanced quickly at the football, tears spilling over.
"I... I didn't listen," he whispered, sniffling and slowly looking back at Gilbert, "Es tut mir leid..."
Ludwig's heart dropped as he watched his brother grab a decorative chair from its spot along the wall, dragging it to the middle of the hall and sitting down.
"Ludwig, come," is all Gilbert said, holding out a hand.
"N-Nein!" Ludwig sputtered, "Es tut mir leid, I won't do it aga-"
Before he could finish, Gilbert stood up, undoing his belt and doubling it over. He didn't have to say a word for Ludwig to know that he had made a mistake.
At the site of the belt, Ludwig began crying, reluctantly making his way over to his brother. He knew better than to fight him any further.
Gilbert sat back down, lifting Ludwig up and laying him across his lap. Ludwig cried louder, clinging to his brother's legs. Gilbert took a deep breath, his heart breaking a little under the sound of Ludwig crying. A part of him wanted to just toss the stupid belt to the ground and hug the kid, but he knew he couldn't. Leniency was not a word in Gilbert's vocabulary.
"Ten licks, Ludwig," he said, placing his free hand on Ludwig's back and raising the belt high above his head in the other.
He brought the belt down hard on Ludwig's bottom, immediately sending the boy into hysterics. Another swat and Ludwig was already squirming in a meager attempt to get away. Another three swats and Gilbert paused, rubbing circles into Ludwig's back before speaking.
"Ludwig, I told you not to play football in the house," he fell silent for a moment before continuing, "Was that too much to ask?"
Ludwig buried his face into Gilbert's leg and shook his head, his sobs muffled now.
For a moment, Gilbert's own insecurities took over. "You... You know I love you, don't you? Ludwig?"
Ludwig cried a little louder, his hands squeezing his brother's pant leg tighter.
Gilbert sighed, ceasing to rub Ludwig's back and gently tapping his bottom with the belt to let him know he was continuing.
The last five swats Gilbert delivered with much less force, but Ludwig still wailed and kicked with each one. By the end of it, Ludwig was sobbing, incoherently babbling apology after apology into Gilbert's now tear-stained pant leg.
Gilbert hastily tossed his belt to the ground, carefully sitting Ludwig up and wrapping his arms tight around him. For a few minutes they sat like this, the only sound being Ludwig's crying, which eventually trailed off into shaky breathing.
When it quieted down, Gilbert held Ludwig away from him, looking him in the eye and giving a weak smile.
"All that I ask is that you do as I say, Luddy," he said, "You're a good kid, you know that?"
Ludwig nodded quickly and threw his arms around Gilbert's neck, burying his face into his shoulder.
Gilbert slowly rose to his feet, holding Ludwig in one arm and sliding the chair back to its place with his free hand. He picked his belt off the ground, the clack of its metal causing Ludwig to jump a little before settling down once again.
"You made quite a mess for the maids to clean, huh kid?" Gilbert chuckled, looking at the shattered vase and its flowers. Ludwig turned around and looked too.
"... And I think our dinner's probably cold now."
Ludwig mumbled an apology only to have Gilbert wrap both arms around him, squeezing him in a tight hug.
"It's okay, I wasn't that hungry anyway." That was a lie, but it made Ludwig smile a little thinking that he hadn't caused too much upset after all.
Gilbert leaned back a little so he could look Ludwig in the eyes.
"If it's not raining tomorrow, how about we play football?" Gilbert inquired. Immediately Ludwig perked up, smiling and nodding.
"Ja, I would like that," he said, softly yawning and rubbing at his eyes.
Gilbert picked up right away on how tired Ludwig was from all of that crying. "And why don't you sleep with me tonight?"
Ludwig shook his head, surprising Gilbert one last time that day. He raised a brow.
"Oh? And why not? You don't like me anymore?"
Ludwig shook his head again.
"You always steal all the blankets, Bruder."
At this, Gilbert laughed, hugging Ludwig once again.
"Let's go get some extra blankets, kid."
Translations
bruder - brother
fußball - football/American soccer
bitte - please
abendessen ist fertig - dinner is ready
es tut mir leid - i'm sorry
nein - no
ja - yes
i finally worked up the motivation to write a spanking fic! this was actually
more fun to write than i thought it'd be. i'd appreciate any reviews, comments, or critiques,
and if you guys want more from me or want to make requests, just let me know!