Ludwig sighed with exhaustion, he needed a secretary badly.

The blonde took a swig of lukewarm coffee and frowned at the résumés of work on his desk. There were far too many papers and appointments for one man to take care of on his own, and something had to be done.

He had tried to find a competent assistant many times before, only to have it end in disaster. When he asked coworkers to recommend someone, they assumed 'secretary' meant 'under-qualified bimbo who'll do anything for a raise but work'. And when he looked for one himself, the girl rarely lasted two weeks!

They either didn't understand his system, tried to completely take it over, or cried when he got angry. This is so frustrating! Ludwig was going through assistants like breath-mints!

Suddenly one of the papers caught his attention, this résumé was a dark pastel blue and composed very tastefully. It was eye-catching, but not obnoxious, a rare thing these days, with job-competition so high.

Let's see…almost twenty years of managerial service for two international businesses…very good references…

Ludwig was impressed, certainly he was going to give this person a call, he glanced at the name and his eyes widened. It was his brother!

It was true that the Prussian wasn't the incompetent lump people often mistook him for, his eye for talent was flawless. Two internationally acclaimed bands came from his side of the border, Rammstein and Tokio Hotel, had risen to fame with his sibling's help. Of course, Gilbert was quick to brag about stories from fans about how they couldn't get their favorite CDs if it weren't for his amazing online store. It seemed like in some places, you had to get up pretty early or have very good friends to get a copy of Rammstein's Sehnsucht.

Another example was the 2010 Eurovision song contest. The blonde was too wrapped up in overseas problems to deal with the issue and shuffled the responsibility to his brother. To his amazement, Ludwig returned to find out that his country had won first place!

He gathered the papers and stepped into the living room to find his sibling lounging on the couch, as usual. "I'm not going to go easy on you because you're my brother." The blonde had sent many a girl home sobbing from the intense pressure of working for him.

The Prussian arched his back to grin at him "I'd only get pissed if you did."

Ludwig smiled back and unceremoniously dumped the load of work onto his lap, sending the papers everywhere. "You've got the job. Sort these by subject and level of importance, I'm going to get a cup of coffee." Gilbert yelped at the onslaught and his sibling said with hint of condescension "And don't forget to pick up my dry-cleaning."

….

Blue eyes scanned a newly reorganized office with suspicion, Gilbert wasn't known for orderliness. His hands were folded behind his back as he inspected the area while the elder brother watched with bated breath. Drawers were opened and sifted through to make sure everything was correctly placed and alphabetized. The older sibling had added some personal touches to the place, a few brightly-colored folders broke up the sea of manila ones and a glass chick-shaped paperweight rested on a neat stack of papers.

Gilbert was growing impatient, "Say something dammit! Did I do good or not?"

Ludwig said nothing as he turned over the artificial bird in his hands, observing it with a critical gaze. "I like it."

He threw his hands up and cheered gleefully, any form of complement from Ludwig about organizational skills was like an actor winning a Grammy.

….

The blonde took a childish sort of amusement from an elder sibling being bossed around by his younger brother. The crueler side of him wanted to call Kiku up to design a uniform for Gilbert to wear for his enjoyment, preferably something in the 'maid' or 'butler' category. The idea of the proud nation being reduced to wear something lacey and feminine for Ludwig's enjoyment made him cackle like a cartoon villain, when the door opened.

The white-haired German stepped inside to hand him his afternoon briefings and a can of beer.

Germany cracked open the can and asked with the devilish smirk still plastered on his face "How would you feel about me implementing a uniform for you?"

Gilbert folded his arms with a smirk of his own "How would you feel about me going to one of your meeting in that uniform carrying a pink Hello Kitty lunch box declaring how my baby brother forgot his PB and J with the crusts cut off?"

The blonde's face fell. "Uh…Your normal clothes are just fine."

"That's what I thought." Prussia turned on his heels and walked away.

…

The Prussian secretary was also quite useful for stress relief. He could shoo away silly Italians when he was busy or let them in if Ludwig on the verge of throwing his country back into the dark ages to avoid more work. At the best of times however, Gilbert himself was the distraction.

After a particularly harsh week, the blonde was being torn apart at the seams from every direction. It was dark, cold and raining while Ludwig sloshed through muck to reach the restaurant on time. He wasn't certain who he was scheduled to meet, he only knew that he couldn't afford to let this person down. All he wanted at this point was to get this over with so he could go home. Ludwig's mood brightened at the thought of curling up on the couch with his brother in his arms and watching a cheesy movie together.

He shook the droplets off of the umbrella as the Host led him to a candlelit table in the back.

The décor of the place was elegant and refined with its deep reds and warm hues, because of this it was a romantic hotspot for couples. The German arched a brow at the flickering candles and hoped that it wasn't Francis waiting for him, cloaked in the dim lighting. He eased himself into the booth carefully and let his eyes adjust to the light.

At first he was confused at Gilbert sitting across from him and wondered if his guest had to cancel, but that didn't make sense because he could have called instead. Then a pale hand reached to hold Ludwig's as his older brother smiled warmly. "You don't have to carry the world on your shoulders West, I'm here for you."

The blonde chucked and kissed his cheek, grateful for the privacy before moving to take his lips. "I should have known it was you…" Gilbert nipped at his sibling's ear "Damn straight, I only share my awesomeness with my cutie West."

The Prussian made a very good secretary.