Right, this is my first ever Fanfic, so if you say its rubbish, I don't mind :P though tell me how to improve it maybe..? I wrote this as an extended ending to the one that's in the book, and because I had to reunite Rudy and Liesel in the end. I cannot believe Rudy had to die! It killed me that part. I love the Book Thief! I think Markus Zusak is a genius , and he owns all of the characters mentioned in this. Btw, sorry its so short!

From what The Book Thief told me when I took her away, there were three parts to her life.

From when she was born until her brother died, when she lived with her Papa and Mama until the bombing on Himmel Street and the rest of her life.

One Small Note

Each part ended with Me.

After I returned her book, I asked her the question I had wanted to know since I read her story. I knew if I didn't ask then, I never would. I knew her Mama, her Papa and her Rudy would be coming soon. They were three of the few souls who stayed with me. These souls are the ones who can't find it in them to leave, as their pull towards one of the living is too strong for them to fight. They were with me in during the few times I visited Liesel; when I watched her cry over their dead bodies, when I took Alex Steiner in my arms and when I took Max in my arms, which was only a few years ago.

The One Small Question I Had To Ask

How did you cope?

At first she had no answer for me. She just stared at the ground, eyes salty.

"I didn't. I've thought about them every day of my life, every day waking up, thinking it was all a dream. How wrong I was."

If Death had a heart, I'm sure mine would hurt at that moment. I was hoping to say she was fine, that she didn't hurt anymore, but I knew that she wouldn't. Seeing her face when she looked at Rudy, her Papa and her Mama that dusty night many years ago, I knew she would never quite get over it. She kept talking, however.

"As I'm sure you know, I used to have nightmares about my brother every night at Himmel Street, and my Papa would sit with me. After the night that everything changed, I had a different kind of nightmare, one which scared me even more. I dreamt of that night, over and over again, every night of my life. I knew I was too old for nightmares, but, when I woke up, a different man sat in the seat by my bed. A few times, I thought it was Papa, but it was actually Max. Every day since he came back we have been together, as best friends and husband and wife, but he knew I always loved Rudy more than I loved him, but he didn't mind. In truth I was scared to leave him, and I think he was too. That was, until you collected him in your arms. I was the last person living who lived on Himmel Street during the war, and that thought pained me. So I decided to visit the street one last time, just to see. I went, and I couldn't find it. It had been built over. Himmel Street was gone, everyone who had lived on it too. Except me," she whispered.

In truth, I didn't know what to say. Without me, she would have been happy. Without death and war, of course her Mama, her Papa and her Rudy would still be alive.

"Do you know what I dreamed last night?" she asked, as though I would know.

I shook my head.

"I had the first good dream I have had for as long as I can remember, or rather, it was good until the end."

"Would you…can you tell me?"

She sighed, and drew her hand through her hair.

"I dreamt of my Saukerl, my Rudy. I only discovered I loved him a few days before the bombing, you know, and I did nothing about it. I don't know if he loved me, but I did. And I did with all my heart."

"He did, Liesel. He did, and he always had since that first day. He told me, though he didn't need to. The world didn't deserve the kind of love you had. And then I had to come along, with war."

Something Irrelevant

Not only did I know, but I think everyone who knew

Them when they were best friends knew too.

It was so obvious.

I looked at the Book Thief, and I saw a tear glistening on her cheek. She took a deep breath.

"In the dream, I was lying there, by his body, crying, willing him to awake. And do you know what? He did. He sat up, and looked me in my eyes. He stood up and held his hand out for me to take. I was stunned, and as I took it he smiled that crooked smile I had missed so much…too much. We walked, hand in hand, and as we did, Himmel Street became as it always was, before the enemy aimed the bombs of course. We even saw Tommy Muller playing away, twitching helplessly, and we saw Frau Dillers too. Basically, we saw everything exactly as it was. We kept on walking, no talking was needed. We kept on going for a while until we came to the Amper River. You can probably guess what he did. He waded into the River, a book forming in his hands. I came with him, as I didn't want to let his hand go in case he disappeared. My Rudy was here at last. My Rudy, the one I had missed so much. He stopped suddenly, and slowly turned towards me. I knew what was coming, something which I had been waiting for, waiting for a long time. How about a kiss, Saumensch? He had asked, daring as always. And, for once, I didn't laugh at him, I didn't mock him. I took a step towards him. Only for you, my Saukerl, I said. He smiled at me, slightly shocked, and touched his lips gently to mine. What a strange sight we must have been, standing waist deep in the Amper River, kissing. His lips tasted dusty and sweet, just like they had the first time I kissed him, though it didn't really count, as I was kissing a body, not a person. I opened my eyes when he stopped. My legs were suddenly dry. I was leaning over him, my tears dripping over his dusty face. Himmel Street was bombed again. Rudy was lying there as he had been, all his breaths gone, never to wake up again. And then I woke up, and cried. I cried like I did that night years ago. Max wasn't in the seat beside my chair, Papa wasn't either. There was no one to sooth my nightmares now. No one left."

I didn't know why she told me this, but I'm glad she did. I'm sure she thought she would never see her loved ones again. But what she didn't know was, that if the dead want to see the living that much, they will. In the end, once both are dead. This time was different, one of a kind for me. This time it wasn't one person waiting. The book thief was needed by 3. All three I remember distinctly collecting; Hans with his sitting-up soul, Rudy hugging his sister, dreaming and Rosa, her mouth shaped as though I caught her halfway through a snore. They had to come now, the book thief had gone through enough grief for a lifetime.

"There are some people waiting for you, Liesel. Max wanted to stay, he really did, but he was too tired. He needed a rest. There are some others who waited though…"

The book thief was still for a moment. She looked up at me, eyes full of hope.

"Papa…Mama…Rudy?" she whispered, eyes widening.

"Yes, Liesel, and you have no idea how much they have missed you," I answered, a little louder. I was surprised at myself. Who knew that death could so much about one girl, one book thief?

Before she could reply, she stood up slowly, eyes widening even more than they already were. I knew what she was seeing. Before my eyes, I could see the years of grief fall off of her face like water. She was a fourteen year old girl again. She ran towards them, her Papa, her Mama and her Rudy. She reached her Mama first, and held onto her as though afraid to let go. Both had tears streaming down their faces. They had waited too long for this moment.

"Mama, mama, mama, oh mama…I've missed you so much," she cried.

"I know, I know, you little Saumensch. I missed you too," she said, smiling.

Liesel muffled a laugh.

If death could cry for happiness, I'm sure I would be now.

They stood there for a long time, until Rosa stood back.

"Now, come on. I won't be leaving you this time, never. And your Papa's behind me you know," she said, a smile playing at her lips.

"Papa!" screamed the book thief, and ran to him. They hugged tightly, spinning round and round.

"I've missed living with you, I've missed your music, I've missed rolling your cigarettes, I've missed you being there when I woke up from a bad dream…I've missed you," she said, her voice thick with tears.

"Oh, but Liesel, I was there when you woke up. Sitting on that chair, I was. You couldn't see me, though. But I could see you, and I stayed with you all the time, my little book thief," he said, smiling that crooked smile of his.

"Oh Papa…play for me. I've missed your music. I haven't heard music as great as yours since. Play for me…" she said, smiling, through the tears streaming down her face.

"I will, but later. There's someone else here who has missed you as much, maybe even more," he said, winking like he always used to.

And there he was, standing behind Hans, playing with his hands nervously, the boy Liesel had loved like no other. He looked exactly the same as she remembered; lemon hair, sparkly eyes, cheeky smile. They stared at each other for a moment, before Liesel ran at him and threw her arms around him. They swayed, in that same position, both with their eyes closed, both with tears leaking out them.

"I watched you that night. I watched you kiss me. I watched you tell me that you loved me, and I hope you still feel the same, because, Liesel, I love you too. I watched you grow up, I watched you cry. I was with you all the time, even at night...watching you wake up from your nightmares pained me, knowing that I couldn't comfort you," Rudy whispered into her hair.

"I do love you, more than the world. I dreamt about you too. I dreamt of that time in the Amper River, remember?"

"How could I forget? The last time I asked you for a kiss, you Saumensch. That is, until now," he added, a smile playing on his lips.

She smiled up at him, and looked into his blue eyes, knowing this was the moment she had been dreaming about for so long.

"How about a kiss, Saumensch?" he whispered.

"Only for you, my Saukerl," she said, quoting from her own dream.

And Rudy Steiner got his kiss, the one he had been waiting for since he was nine.

A Thought of My Own

I had just realised.

Rudy Steiner had loved Liesel Meminger since that first day, when she was the goalie.

He would always remember that day.

And they stood there for a long time, lips locked as though stuck together, the moment they had both been wishing for. I knew that this was the happy ending they were suppose to have when they were alive, but now they could live it forever…