1. Schlag: Wer Gutes tut, dem wird vergeben

Hello there, I rewrote chapter 1 again and mapped out the story. I know where I'm going and I really apologize for making you wait for so long. It hopefully won't happen again.

One more thing: If everything goes as planed this will be a huge thing. It has three timelines and they're all important. I'll try to make it as understandable as possible, but please point it out if something makes no sense! thanks

xXx

Seht ihr mich?

Versteht ihr mich?

Our world, not as it seems, is a world caught in an immortal war. Demons and angels battle each other for dominance over the human kind. Demons want to corrupt us and lead us into pain and despair, while angels want us to be safe and sound. There are different kinds of both demons and angels though. Some kinds nicer, some kinds worse. Some powerful and godlike, others weak like a leave in the wind.

One kind of angels are the guardian angels:

Humans who die for loved ones. If you die while unselfishly saving another person, that person will be appointed an angel for the rest of their life. Their angel will look after them and make sure your sacrifice was worth it. You, however die and instead of going to heaven you turn into one of those angels yourself. You are stripped off your memory, only keeping the feeling you died for: selfless love.

That love will be all you are. God's love will flow through you and you shall eternally help humans who've been protected by another human. Guiding and watching them till they happily die of old age. Then another charge, another life will be given for you to protect and your memory will reset, starting just with the feeling of love once more.

Our main character, as you maybe already guessed, is a guardian angel. But before he came to be an angel he'd had a normal life, living in Venice, Italy:

Muss ich auch mit der Ohnmacht kämpfen

One. Two. Three. Hit after hit fell onto Romano's back but it was Feliciano who was sobbing and crying silently. With every new impact he shuddered and new tears streamed down his cheeks, while his eyes bored into Romano's.

Feliciano was a frail boy, the younger of two, now 16 years old and completely useless according to his father. He was a sweet boy, innocent and naïve despite all the hardship he had already lived through. He was kind as an angel and loved his family dearly. Both his drunken father and his protective twin brother, who was only older by a couple minutes, yet tried everything in his power to keep Feliciano as innocent as he was. Their mother had died on their birth bed and according to stories their father hadn't been the same ever since. The once loving husband had turned to despise his children for they had taken his wife away. His beautiful, auburn haired, hazel eyed wife, who had always loved him with all her heart. He turned to the alcohol soon after and let his wife's parents take the children in. He didn't care what would happen to them.

Romano and Feliciano were raised with a strong hand, yet loving words. Their grandma Elizabeth was the one with the loving words, while their granddad Roderich, an Austrian businessman, who had settled in Venice for work, was the one with the strong hand. As soon as they were old enough he had them work around the house to earn their right tot stay. To any outsider it was obvious that he also held a grudge against them for his daughter's death.

Elizabeth, called Lizzy by both of the boys, however was a kind woman. In Romano she saw the son she never had, while Feliciano, who she liked to call Felicia, was a splitting image of her daughter. It made her sad, yet she also thanked God for the second chance she had received. She liked to make him wear her daughter's old dresses and taught him to sew and cook like a woman.

The upbringing of the boys was the main cause of the constant fights between the two adults. Roderich argued that when they were seven they were old enough to help at the docks, loading and unloading his trading ships, while Lizzy wanted to keep them in the house as long as possible and disapproved of the man's methods of punishment. He hit both boys with his belt whenever they did something wrong; drop a plate, forget a corner on their cleaning duty or just generally disobey in any way. Thriven by that both twins were very quick to learn the rules and do everything as expected of them.

Or at least Romano was; Feliciano on the other side tried just as hard but simply wasn't as successful as his twin. The punishments hit him more often until at one point in their early years Romano started taking them for him. Roderich didn't care who had actually done it as long he had someone to punish, so when Romano had stepped up for Feliciano he just shrugged and had taken the slightly older boy into his room with him.

By the time they were nine Roderich finally compromised with his wife and took Romano to the docks with him, while the more fragile Feliciano continued to help Lizzy around the house. She had argued that the weak and female looking boy would cause more trouble than good at the harbor and would be more helpful in the house. She had to agree though that the older boy, who had always been more muscular and rowdy, would be an asset at the docks.

Wir teilen Zimmer und das Bett

So, by age nine the two boys who had been near inseparable by then were separated. Like always it hit the more sensible Feliciano harder and on the first day he wasn't able to work at all, crying in his and his brother's room until Lizzy came and talked to him about how they couldn't always be together. That evening when Romano finally returned, dirty, sore and tired, Feliciano flung himself at his brother and didn't let go of his hand until the next morning. Romano tried to seem annoyed by it and shook him off in public, but once in their room he didn't argue when Feliciano climbed into his bed and cuddled against him.

It had always been the two of them and even through Romano was barely older he saw it as his duty to protect his fair skinned little brother. And after today he was certain that he never wanted Feliciano to work in the docks. The men there were rude, dirty and hungry. Hungry for women, but he knew that they certainly wouldn't say no to his or his brother's pliant bodies. He had seen it in their eyes and he knew that the only one protecting him was Roderich. Roderich as the one paying their wages was completely different from them: sophisticated, intelligent and rich. Yet Romano had also seen the greed in his grandfather's eyes. Roderich was always looking for more profits to earn.

Romano was just glad that today hadn't been the first time he had left the sheltered house. With only Feliciano's knowledge he had snuck out before, wandering through the brutal yet beautiful city of water. From time to time Feli, as he called his brother, had asked if he could tag along, but Romano had always forbit it. Feli was too innocent. As long as Romano could help it Feli didn't need to see how life was really like.

Therefore, it wasn't surprising that Romano didn't mind at all that he was the only one working at the docks. In the following weeks Feliciano and Romano found a new routine, they learned to be separated during the day but at night in their room they always shared a bed, whispering to each other about their day before falling asleep. Romano got more tanned due to the hard work in the sun, more muscular due to the strength he needed to carry the cargo and his language got rougher due to the constant company of the sailors.

Feliciano also changed though. His language got even fairer due to Lizzy's manner and social speaking lessons, his body got lean and he shed his baby fat due to fencing lessons he was to attend, and Roderich finally made him stop wearing dresses. However, he kept his long hair, that by now hung until the mid of his back and wore it in a pony tail. He helped Lizzy with paper work, had learned to read and write and got accustomed to social events. With his beautiful face and his light voice, he easily swooned the older businessmen and -woman. Besides the politics he got involved into for Lizzy and Roderich he stayed innocent and only did what he was told, not actually knowing what power he held.

By the time they were thirteen both Romano and Feliciano were well accustomed to their lives. However, they saw less and less of each other. Romano starting his day in the early morning, while Feliciano often attended events until the middle of the night. It was hard on their nerves but more even on their bond.

The older one, who had never learned to read and knew nothing about politics, hardly understood what Feliciano was talking about anymore. Feliciano on the other hand was repulsed by the way Romano had gotten used to speaking. His voice rough and his words rougher. Feli didn't understand any of the dirty jokes nor the hardship his brother endured. Besides all that both loved each other dearly. Romano still glad that he had kept Feli out of the world he lived in, while Feliciano showed a patience that was unnatural when it came to Romano's quick temper or his hardship at understanding his younger brother's world.

Everything had a routine and overall their lives were good. Romano had found his place among the sailors without losing his pride, but rather with fight and therefore had earned their respect. Feliciano loved being close to Lizzy and using his natural charm, just being friendly with everyone.

Vor dem Bett ein schwarzes Loch

However, their comfortable life ended abruptly when a greedy and envious enemy of Roderich's had an attack committed that took both the mans and his wife's lives. Feliciano and Romano had been named heirs. But since they hadn't reached legal age yet someone else had to take care of it for them. That's when their father stepped back into their lives.

The man had lived from one day to the next and spent all his money for alcohol barely able to pay for the pothole of apartment he lived in. He was constantly in debt and hadn't seen his sons since his wife's death. So, when the responsibility for his sons felt back to him one would think he would welcome the chance to better his life and change his ways. However, one would think wrongly so. Giuseppe Vargas was a man of many flaws and his heart had turned cold ever since his wife had died. No positive emotions were left. So, his first act as Feliciano's and Romano's guardian was to sell everything. The house, the company, the ships, everything. And all the twins could do was watch as the man who hated them destroyed everything that they had known in their life.

They had to move into the Giuseppe's little apartment: A kitchen with a table and one chair, a bedroom in which an old bed stood and lastly a tiny bathroom with only toilet and sink. It was barely big enough to turn around in. On their first night they slept on the kitchen floor, curled together, trying to warm themselves. Giuseppe was cold and rude towards them, throwing a small piece of bread on them in the morning.

"Wake up you lazy bastards" he yelled at them and kicked Feli's back to get them to move. Feliciano groaned and startled up, Romano already throwing daggers into their father's direction for daring to hurt his twin. Everything that Romano had done to keep Feliciano from experiencing bad things, would now be in vain.

"If you wanna stay you'll have to work. I don't care what, but I want 5 pierro a day." their father continued in a monotone voice, just not bothering. Yes, the boys had earned him money but that didn't mean that they could freeload of him.

Now it was Romano's turn to groan and jump up, his temper fiery: "You bastard! There's no way that's freaking possible! Didn't you get fucking enough for selling everything?!" His eyes were already burning with hatred after such a short amount of time. He hated the man with a passion.

The man however looked at his sons with a dark expression. His lips thin and angry "for each of you." he then pressed out. His voice nothing more than a hiss "I want 5 pierro a day from each of you." at that his eyes wandered to Feliciano as well, fixing him with his stare.

"The first night you can't pay, you won't get food. The second I'll throw you out!" His words were painfully true and had no doubt to them.

He then turned his back towards them, setting some water onto the stove to boil. He showed that he was in control, no fear of the brothers attacking his vulnerable back. The atmosphere was tense, the silence between them almost tangible. Only when the boys father finished his coffee, the mood changed like a switch had been flipped.

With a bolt he turned around and startled both of his boys. Romano stood in front of Feliciano protective and ready to fight, his nerves on edge. At the same time, he was held back by his twin, who hid behind him with a whimper, but didn't want them to fight. "Get out!" the words suddenly ripped through the silence "and don't come back empty handed!" Giuseppe's words sent the boys bolting. Romano ready to fight first, needed only one look into his brothers terrified eyes to know that they should leave. The youngers pull on his shirt made him realize that his first priority was Feliciano's safety. And none of them knew how the man would react if they didn't obey.

Ist es hoffnungslos

Sinnlos

Hilflos

Sie sind gottlos

So they ran. Ran from the room, the apartment. Finally ran from the house. Feliciano had started sniffling as soon as they had left the kitchen, letting Romano lead him down the stairs in a hurry. He tried to control himself, but once they were outside he couldn't hold it in any longer. His tears exploded out of him and he couldn't help but throw himself into Romano's arms.

"W-why is" sniff "why is he sooo mean?!" he cried, his tears soaking his brother's thin shirt. Romano held Feliciano in a strong hug, his mind trying to figure out what to do.

"He's a bastard" he just snarled, not knowing any better answer to his twins question. They were still hit by their grandparent's death and now this…

"We'll be fine… We'll figure something out" the older brother soothingly tried to calm his younger sibling.

Sah' Sonnenkinder im Gewimmel

Around 400 years later the same words were spoken in a tree house in Switzerland. Vash Zwingli hugged his younger sister who had just turned nine. It was her birthday but instead of their parents a note had greeted them this morning, stating that they had to cancel the trip to the amusement park due to work. At that Lily had started sniffling and crying.

Vash had also looked forwards to the trip, even though he secretly told himself he was already too old for amusement parks anyway. He had just turned 14 and already thought of himself as a big boy, almost grown up. His sister wasn't too old though and had looked forward to the trip for weeks. Their parents worked a lot but were overall very loving people. They liked to make up for the time spent working through family dinners at least once a week and different trips to parks, zoos and other fun places.

So when this long awaited trip on her birthday had been cancelled Lily had been heartbroken. She refused to eat and hid away in the treehouse they had in their garden.

Vash left her for a while, knowing that she needed some time to herself but then packed a couple peanut butter jelly sandwiches and made his way up into the treehouse. Lily was curled up in a fortress of pillows and blankets and only her blonde hair was visible.

For her age she was a small girl with pale skin and light blonde hair. It went up to her mid back and she mostly carried it in two braids. She was shy and timid and had trouble speaking her mind freely. Vash knew all that and helped her as much as possible. He stood with her at school and kept bullies away. He was very protective of her and tried to be the best brother possible.
So when he saw her so sad he felt a pull at his heart and took her into his arms „I'm really sorry Lily. I'm sure Mama and Papa are gonna make it up to us…. You know how busy their work is… it's not their fault" he tried to soothe her, but she just clung to him and cried harder. "We… We haven't seen them in four weeks Vash. I-I just really miss Mama!" Vash nodded and stroked her hair "It's gonna be alright. I'm sure they'll be home soon"

Lily sniffled and nodded, looking up at her big brother with teary eyes "Will you spent the day with me?" she asked with a puppy dog look. Vash smiled warmly at her and nodded "of course. I'll always be with you." He assured and then added "Why don't we go to the swimming pool today? I'm sure Gretta will allow it since it's your birthday" Lily's eyes brightened at the good idea.

"You know I love to go swimming" she agreed and even smiled a bit. She really hoped that Gretta, their maid, would allow it. She was rather strict but kept an observant eye on them at all times and only wanted their best. Lily knew that and tried to be a good girl for Gretta, her brother and her parents. It saddened her that their parents couldn't be here today, but she was very glad that her brother was with her. He always took care of her after all. Just as she thought so her belly grumbled in hunger.

Vash just smiled and reached his sister one of the sandwiches he'd brought with him "Here, I know you haven't had breakfast" he said as he offered it to Lily. She smiled and took a healthy bite out of the sweet bread. "Thank you" she smiled once she had swallowed, her manners ingrained in her well. She cuddled back into the pillows as she ate the sandwich and the siblings continued to talk throughout the morning. Safe and sound in their little treehouse.

Wenn sie Brust schwimmt ist das schön

They ended up being allowed to go to the swimming pool around noon and by then Lily had almost forgotten about their parents. All she needed was her brother anyway. They had moved a lot already because of their parent's work and the new maids came and went with new schools, friends and houses. But her brother was always with her. So he was all she really needed.

They spent the day at the pool and while Lily didn't like the people there, she knew that her brother would protect her if anything happened. She was happy and content, loving the water to swim and play in. It always soothed her and made her forget about her surroundings.

Her brother swam with her at first but then just kept to the sideline and watched her. He knew his sister loved the water, so he had begged Gretta to drive them to the swimming pool. She had been reluctant at first, but then allowed it. She'd known the siblings for two years now and she tried to make their life's as easy as possible. So she had made this exception on Lily's birthday and allowed them to go out alone. Gretta knew how responsible Vash was and was certain the boy would take good care of himself and his sister.

When it was time to go back home again, Lily was tired and exhausted from spending the day outside. Her normally pale face was flushed red and she had a happy glow to her "This was the best birthday!" she smiled thankfully at her brother as the boy took her hand to walk towards the parking lot with her. "Thank you Vash." She added and skipped happily beside him towards Gretta's car.

At home they had dinner and then went to bed, but before Lily could be tucked in, Vash snuck into her room and handed her a small present. It was poorly wrapped with a gold-yellow paper and green dots. It was a cute wrapping paper and Lily beamed at him.

"It's for you." Vash smiled lightly "I hope you'll like it." he added sheepishly. He had selected the gift with care at the mall after Gretta had driven him there. But he had decided on it on his own and had also paid with his own saved up pocket money. He had wanted something special for his sister.

He watched her carefully unwrap the paper and then saw her eyes light up as she saw the beautiful violet bluish ribbon. She gently took it into her hand and stroked over the soft silk, making a happy humming noise "It's really wonderful." She softly exclaimed and then looked up at him "Thank you brother, it's perfect!". Now it was Vash's time to blush "No problem, I'm glad you like it" he said a bit flustered and looked at the ribbon in his sister's hand.

He knew that she mostly braided her hair, but he liked it open and thought the ribbon would be a good mix between both. Lily could carry a part of her hair open and the other put back in the ribbon. The color would match her eyes and the fabric was nice and soft.

Lily smiled and hugged him to her chest "You're the best, brother. Thank you Vash." She whispered softly and thought of the presents that were downstairs; left by their parents. Lily hadn't even opened them, because she knew she would just find whatever was bestselling for girls her age right now. She knew that their parents simply didn't have the time to buy things themselves, but she wished they'd at least ask her about her wishes… She didn't care about dolls or make up.

The things would just lay around without ever being touched. Lily wanted to read, to learn and to spend time with her family. That's all she truly wished for. But to actually get a well thought of present from her brother made her really happy.

They cuddled and talked a bit longer, before Vash went back to his own room. He hoped Lily had had as good a day as he had had. With that thought he fell asleep.

Wer Gutes tut, dem wird vergeben

The siblings didn't know that the next day their relatively happy life would be ripped apart… while playing ball in the garden, Lily ran after the ball. Onto the street.

But before the oncoming car could crush her, her brave brother pushed Lily out of harms way.

Only to be dead the moment after.

Die Menschen strömen gleich zuhauf

From then on a guardian angel watched over Lily's life. Feliciano the caring, loving angel was always with her and saw only her pain at the beginning.

The pain of a little nine-year-old girl, who'd lost her brother. The only constant in her life.

This is where our story starts.

xXx

I really hoped you liked it and are excited for more. I know it might be kinda confusing right now so if you have any questions feel free to ask.

Oh and yes, Roderich is their grandpa in this one, I know it's normally Romulus, but this just fit better.

Another thing: Do you want the German translated? It's not really important to the story, just a little 'artistic' element of mine…