Hello! This is my first Hetalia fanfiction, yay! Couldn't resist making it a somewhat semi-AU... Well, this fanfic is AU, but if I'm making a sequel it's gonna be semi-AU. How does that logic work? Uh... You'll see I guess...
Anywho, a couple of thing before we start:
Slight pairings, but most of the time it's suppose to be just friendship. Unless you want to see it that way...
Canada / Matthew's William's name here is Acero M-B. Williams. You'll see why sooner or later. Just don't get confused, okei?
A couple of swear words lounging around.
There might be character death. I'm not really sure but in future chappies there might.
Uh... I've shrank their ages xP With good reason, I swear! So with the characters introduced here...
Gilbert: 9 years old
Ludwig: 8 years old
Acero: 8 years old
Feliciano: 7 years old
Lovino: 7 years old
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia in any shape, way, and form. And I'll never will. Ever. EVER. So now I'll stop with the disclaimers cause they make me sad...
Hum... So I guess that's all you should honestly be concerned about. I TRY my best to keep the characters in character... But, uh... I think I've failed. Like, majorly.
Anywho! Please enjoy!
Ooh, some random line thingies used to separate other thingies!
Raindrops dripped of the houses. Everyone had protection and shelter... It's not fair...
Gilbert felt shivers all over his body. But he paid no mind to them. He spared a glance at his younger brother, Ludwig. Ludwig was covered by a thin blanket with a bunch of holes torn open. They walked through the streets, everyone eyeing them with distaste. They were used to it. After all, they were just a 4th grader and a 3rd grader, all tattered and dirty. Gilbert would freak out every time someone approached them; generally by picking a fight with them then run away. He didn't trust anyone. Everyone betrayed them, after all. He would do whatever he can to make sure Ludwig wouldn't go down the same past. He needs a bright future!
"Gilbert..? I'm hungry..." whimpered Ludwig, seemingly embarrassed for admitting it. Gilbert nodded, forcing a smile.
"Don't worry! We'll find a warm home where we both can live in and you can eat all you want!" exclaimed Gilbert, waving his hands about.
"Are you sure..?" asked Ludwig, clutching onto Gilbert.
"P-Positive!" lied Gilbert. He hated lying to his brother, but he doesn't need to know the truth. They were abandoned long ago—All the food they've gotten so far was from pickpocket, stealing, begging, or looking through the trash. Gilbert's paced slowed down a bit, feeling his legs weakening. The bitter wind made him feel frozen all over. And the rain isn't exactly helping him.
"G-Gilbert!" said Ludwig in worry as Gilbert has stopped moving. This is no good. Gilbert feels like having a massive headache. He inwardly cringed as a woman approached him. She looked like a rich woman, judging by her overly-cleaned clothes and expensive accessories hanging by her neck.
"Are you okay little boy?" asked the woman, though she's probably just doing it out of politeness. Everyone does.
"SHUT UP AND STAY AWAY FROM ME!" shouted Gilbert all of the sudden. He broke into running, dragging his little brother with him. The world was blurry and Gilbert felt his footsteps stumbling a bit.
"Gilbert! Slow down!" shouted Ludwig, but his shout fell on deaf ears. Gilbert couldn't concentrate. The rain felt like daggers and the wind were ice pelts thrown against him. Everything felt so heavy. Why did he yell again? Oh, right, that woman was approaching him. That woman had a kind voice, but Gilbert knew better. And he is always right for he is awesome. That woman would have tricked them. Like every other people did. It's not fair. Not fair at all.
Ludwig's voice slowly faded away. The last thing Gilbert remembered, before everything faded into black and he collapsed...
"Will you play with us again?"
"Of course. No matter what."
A bitter smile graced Gilbert's face.
He may have been his friend, but he was like all the others. He never came back.
The mysterious boy that went by the name Matthew Bonnefoy never came back.
Seeing Gilbert fall to the ground made a shocked expression dawn onto Ludwig's face. He has never seen Gilbert so weak.
"G-Gilbert?" questioned Ludwig, lightly poking him. Gilbert didn't respond. That was when Ludwig went into full panic mode.
"Brother? Bruder? älteren Bruder?" shouted Ludwig, shaking Gilbert ferociously. No response. Ludwig then began sobbing.
"BRUDER!" cried out Ludwig. He knew that Gilbert told him to never cry. He knew that. But now that Gilbert has turned so helpless... What should he do? The rain kept on dripping and they had no place to stay. Ludwig then heard footsteps, but he didn't know what to do. Should he ask them for help? Or should he go fight them like Gilbert always had? Ludwig is good at fighting, but didn't do it a lot because Gilbert always feared that he would have gotten hurt. But... He had to protect Gilbert. Ludwig prepared fighting stance, but then lowered his guard when he had realized who the footsteps belong to. It was a kid, probably around Gilbert's age. Tears were streaming out of his eyes.
"Are you alright?" it was an innocent question, but the results were surprising. The child looked up into his eyes, and smiled.
"You... Can see me..?" asked the kid. Ludwig nodded, not comprehending what he meant by that. What, was he a ghost or something?
"T-Thank you... I-I'll do anything! As a favour!" exclaimed the child, looking very determined. As a favour for what? Seeing him? Ludwig decided not to question him but instead glanced at Gilbert. The child followed his lead and gasped. Showing back his determined face, the child hoisted Gilbert on his back. It looked very weird, mostly because Gilbert was bigger than the kid. But the child didn't seem to notice that and walked away. Ludwig followed his lead into a street with old houses crowding around. Most of the houses had the paint peeling off the walls. This must be the poor side of the city.
"My madre and padre aren't at home right now, since they're at work, but I have my adoptive fratelli. One of them is kind of rude so just ignore him, alright?" asked the kid.
"What's fratelli?" asked Ludwig. Though he was engaged in the conversation with the child, he still couldn't help but watch Gilbert for the whole time. Is he alive? Is he comfortable riding that kid's back? Is he okay?
"Oh! It's Italian for brothers. Sorry about that, I'm so used to calling them fratelli." Explained the child sheepishly.
"Where are we going? To a hospital?" asked Ludwig. It must have been a very old and cheap hospital if they were going to one. The kid shook his head.
"To my house. The hospital is too far away." Explained the child.
"Oh..." stated Ludwig. So the kid's poor then? Let's just hope they won't be too much of a bother...
The rest of the walk went on in an uncomfortable silence. Both children were lost in thought; the two worrying about two separate things. The child's voice, however, broke off their train of thought.
"We're here." Stated the kid. Ludwig inspected the front of the house in childish curiosity. It was painted white, but it's peeling off showing wooden brown. The front door looked like it hasn't been replaced in years, though strangely enough there were some strange markings on the door. And they don't look natural. The stairs seem to feel like they would break any second.
"Is this your home?" questioned Ludwig. The child nodded, crossing the stairs in one big hop then kicking open the door.
"Geez! Be kinder on the door next time!" shouted an annoyed voice. In the hallway behind the door was a kid about their age with dark brown hair. A child that looked exactly like him (except with paler hair) however brightened up with their appearance.
"There you are, Acero! We were worried because it was raining! But of course Lovino was probably just hiding it." Grinned the child, nudging his twin. Lovino grumbled, but didn't protest.
"Do we still have our medicine in the cabinets?" questioned the child, whose name is apparently Acero. When Lovino and the other kid got a good look at him, the kid timidly nodded and Lovino went right away to grab some. Acero gently placed Gilbert onto the couch.
"Is he going to be alright?" questioned Ludwig, feeling emptiness inside of him that he hasn't felt before. It was sort of frightening, not knowing what has happened to the person that took care of them for their whole life.
"He'll be fine. While Lovino is off getting medicine, I'll bring some spare bed sheets and an icepack. Feliciano; you stay watch. Alert us if he's not feeling well." Explained Acero. The child, Feliciano, nodded happily. Not wasting a minute, Acero left the room. Ludwig watched Gilbert with a depressed look on his face. Will he really heal?
"Hey, why are you so depressed? Cheer up a bit! My name is Feliciano, Feliciano Vargas! What's yours?" asked Feliciano. Ludwig watched Feliciano with a weird expression, but decided in the end to trust him.
"Ludwig." Replied Ludwig timidly. Feliciano grinned at the answer.
"Ludwig, huh? That's such a cool name! Lud-wig, Lud-wig, ha ha!" grinned Feliciano. But Ludwig didn't really understand why the other was so happy. It's just a name, after all.
"So what is his name? Is he your friend?" asked Feliciano, pointing towards Gilbert. Ludwig fidgeted nervously.
"He's my bruder—My older brother. His name is Gilbert." Explained Ludwig.
"Wow! You two have cool names! Hey, you're friends with Acero, right?" questioned Feliciano.
"Acero?" repeated Ludwig.
"Yeah! Acero M-B. Williams!" exclaimed Feliciano cheerfully.
"Is it the kid that brought Gilbert in?" verified Ludwig. Feliciano nodded cheerfully.
"He really is a nice brother!" exclaimed Feliciano.
"We just met. I didn't know him before a few minutes ago." Explained Ludwig.
"Oh." Stated Feliciano. He suddenly turned oddly quiet. Ludwig didn't mind the silence. His thoughts already blocked up any outside sound, anyway. He hoped that Gilbert will be okay. He has to be. He promised!
Ludwig inwardly cringed. He should have known that everybody would break their promises eventually.
But this is his brother they're talking about. It'll be fine.
It'll always be fine...
"...ud...g!"
Ludwig twisted and turned. Everywhere was darkness.
"L...wi..!"
Those monstrous eyes, ready to attack—
"LUDWIG!"
Ludwig's eyes snapped open. He was lying on a pretty comfortable couch. A blanket, much more warmer than the one he had earlier, covered him. In the foggy state his mind was in, he vaguely remembered what has happened earlier. In front of him was Gilbert, worried eyes scanning him.
"Gilbert..?" questioned Ludwig slowly, curling himself tighter in his blanket. Gilbert let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness you're okay. So do you know where we are?" asked Gilbert. Ludwig didn't know if he should answer or not. Gilbert was always so fidgety every time a stranger would approach. In the end, Ludwig decided to tell the truth, unsure of his brother's reaction.
"You collapsed. I got scared and then a little boy gave us shelter." Explained Ludwig blatantly. Gilbert flinched, remembering how he fell to the ground while running away.
"...I see. But we better run away now. Those strangers might go and do bad things to us!" exclaimed Gilbert.
"But they seem like nice people..." muttered Ludwig.
"Yes, but less people we know, the least amount of chances we'll get betrayed! Everyone gets betrayed in the end, Ludwig. Remember that." Stated Gilbert.
"Remember what?"
A high-pitched voice broke them out of their thoughts. Gilbert quickly turned around, going into defence mode. But he visibly relaxed when he saw the child. It was just Feliciano. You can already tell just by glancing at him that he wouldn't even hurt a fly.
"Yay! You're awake! I'm gonna tell the others!" exclaimed Feliciano, ready to speed off.
"Don't." Said Gilbert's disarming voice, "It's probably like what, 3 in the morning? We're going to leave soon anyway."
What Gilbert wasn't expecting, though, was tears threatening to spill from Feliciano's eyes.
"Why won't you stay?" pleaded Feliciano, looking like an injured puppy. But somehow, Gilbert resisted it.
"No. We are... g-grateful ... that you've helped us, but we need to keep moving on." Stated Gilbert firmly. It was pretty obvious that Gilbert wasn't used to thanking someone.
"B-But... I'm sure Lovino and Acero would be happy to know that you're well... You can't just leave, at least not yet!" begged Feliciano. Ludwig then shifted a bit, seemingly uncomfortable about this situation.
"Gilbert..." Started Ludwig, unsure how he's going to phrase this. Gilbert's attention then immediately flicked towards Ludwig.
"What's wrong, West?" asked Gilbert, concern flooding his voice. Ludwig fidgeted, his hands fiddling with the blanket he had. It was nice and warm.
"I'm... Still tired... Can we stay here longer? Please, bruder?" asked Ludwig. Gilbert seemed shocked for a moment, but then his lips curved into a content smile, eyes softening and filled with a caring emotion.
"Just for awhile. We're leaving in two days. I heard it's going to rain again tomorrow." Stated Gilbert. Ludwig nodded. Feliciano seemed to be filled with glee.
"Ve~ That's great! That's just as great as eating pasta for a whole week! We'll tell Lovino and Acero in the morning!" exclaimed Feliciano.
"Uh... Feliciano... Why are you here in the first place?" asked Ludwig. Feliciano's face then looked oddly sheepish.
"I... Uh... Got sort of worried that something wrong might have happened to the two of you..." explained Feliciano, looking embarrassed.
"We're fine. Just go back to sleep." Stated Ludwig. Feliciano nodded, seemingly happier, then skipped away.
"I still don't trust them..." muttered Gilbert.
"Gilbert, they're around the same age as us. I doubt anything bad will happen. Besides, we can handle them, right?" asked Ludwig.
"'We?' Oh, no, I'm the person handling them. You escape. I'm the awesomest person alive and your brother, so don't worry about things like that!" exclaimed Gilbert. Ludwig tried his best not to frown, so he nodded instead. He wanted to protect his brother too, one day. He doesn't think lowly of him, no, it's just that if he bears all the pain—
"Hey, West, you okay? C'mon, we finally get to sleep! And not just a couple of minutes, too! You're the one who said you're tired, you know, not me!" grinned Gilbert. Ludwig laughed softly and nodded. Soon, the two brothers were fast asleep.
Feliciano waited for a few seconds, lingering in the hallway... Before hearing light snores from the two brothers. Asleep already? Huh... Perhaps he really can't get much information about them after all... Sighing softly, Feliciano made his way back to his room. He shared the same room as his brother, Lovino. Acero takes the same room as their i genitori (parents) since they're not home very often. And when they do come home, it's just for short visits. If in one of those very, very, very rare moments they actually sleep in this house, Acero sleeps on the couch. They don't have many rooms in this small house, since that's the best they can afford. And when two other mouths to feed... At least it's just for two days.
Speaking of which, how is Acero doing? Is he also asleep? He should be, since it's like 3 in the morning... Well, Feliciano's already up anyway, so he might as well just take a little peek.
Opening the door to make sure it doesn't creek, Feliciano crept inside. He blinked stupidly as he saw the blanket tidied-up.
But Acero was nowhere to be found.
Was he kidnapped?
Panicked thoughts infiltrated Feliciano's head as he began to think of all the worse-case scenarios. He was about to run to his brother to help, but then a furball as white as snow caught his eyes. Kumajiro, Acero's polar bear, slept contently on top of the neat bed. That means Acero is safe. If Acero didn't tell Kumajiro that he was leaving, Kumajiro would be tearing the house into two looking for him. Even though they've forgotten each other's names a lot, they still trusted each other a lot.
Wait, so that means...
Feliciano's face turn into a frown, eyes showing deep worry.
Not again...
"Fratello... Fratello wake up..." whined Feliciano slightly, nudging his brother awake.
"Ugh, what is it now?" asked Lovino, groaning. He was actually surprised Feliciano didn't pounce him awake, but he didn't question it.
"Acero's gone again. To that place." Stated Feliciano, pouting.
"Damn! I've forgotten it's that time of the week. I got so fucking occupied about those potato bastards..." muttered Lovino.
"Don't say things like that about Ludwig and Gilbert. C'mon, it's stopped raining outside but it's still pretty cold." Stated Feliciano.
"Can't you go yourself this time? I don't feel like getting out of bed..." complained Lovino.
"C'mon Lovi! I don't wanna go outside all alone! It's dark and scary and ghosts are everywhere!" whined Feliano.
"So why do I have to come with you?" shouted Lovino.
"Because I can't go alone! It's a whole fifteen minutes walk!" pouted Feliciano.
"Well, you should have stopped him earlier, then!" complained Lovino.
"But you forgot about it too! It's also your responsibility!" shouted Feliciano.
"Why can't you just ask those two potato bastards, then!" stated Lovino.
"Because they need sleep right now!" complained Feliciano. Suddenly, another voice broke in.
"Hey, we're not THAT weak, you know." Commented that certain voice. It was Gilbert standing in the doorway. Behind him was Ludwig. They both seem to have recently awakened. Has their yelling waked them up?
"Too late for not waking them up. Now leave me alone." Muttered Lovino, wanting to go back into bed.
"Lovino!" whined Feliciano.
"What is the problem, Feliciano?" questioned Ludwig.
"Uh... Well... We don't know why but every Friday Acero would wake up in the middle of the night and go to Seamoore's Cliff. Well, precisely right next to the ocean near Seamoore's Cliff. Whenever it was snowing, raining, even when he gets very sick, he would always go there. We would usually stop him, but today we got sort of distracted..." explained Feliciano. Gilbert and Ludwig tensed up at the name of 'Seamoore's Cliff' but didn't comment on it.
"Then me and Feliciano will go to Seamoore's Cliff. Ludwig, you stay here with Lovino." Stated Gilbert. Ludwig knew that Gilbert is serious if he didn't call him 'West'. And yet, he protested.
"No, I'm coming too!" complained Ludwig.
"But Ludwig—"
"It's not fair if only you go." Stated Ludwig, crossing his arms. Gilbert frowned, facing defeat.
"Fine. But you better stick with me at all times, alright?" asked Gilbert. Ludwig nodded.
"Uh..." started Feliciano, "You don't really have to come if you don't want to." Gilbert grinned.
"Nah, it's alright. Besides, I'm curious to know how this 'Acero' person looks like!" exclaimed Gilbert.
"Ugh... If everyone is going, I might as well go too..." grumbled Lovino, getting out of bed.
"Yay!" exclaimed Feliciano, "That's the spirit!"
When everyone got ready, they marched out of the house and into the woods. The forest is a bit dangerously near the edges of the cliff, but wide enough for two people to walk in between of both the forest and cliff safely. Running in those parts is quite dangerous, however, for there are no fences or metal bars to keep you from falling over.
When they reached to the area near Seamoore's Cliff, Gilbert and Ludwig ignored the cliff and focused more on the boy with golden-hair. He slumbered on a curved rock, expression neutral. Gilbert felt an odd sense of nostalgia, but shrugged it off.
"So that's Acero? He looks sort of familiar..." commented Gilbert.
"Maybe you've met somewhere..?" offered Feliciano.
"Probably, since I think he looks familiar too..." murmured Ludwig.
"Well, what are you guys waiting for!" exclaimed Gilbert, carrying Acero on his back. The three nodded and head back to the Vargas household.
Ludwig lagged behind, taking a risk by glancing at the cliff. And he remembered that one time when he...
Fighting back tears, he rushed ahead.
The past is the past.
No use in helping it now.
There had been things that have been bothering Gilbert the moment he saw that golden-haired boy named Acero. Maybe it has been because they were so close to Seamoore's Cliff. Or that he's in the same spot where he first saved him. Either way, something was bothering Gilbert, but he didn't even tried to figure out what it was.
"Which room is Acero's?" asked Gilbert, eager to finally have him get off his back.
"At the end of the hallway, parallel to ours." Stated Lovino. He immediately went inside his room to finally get some blissful sleep and Feliciano followed him. It's soon 4 in the morning for crying out loud! Gilbert nodded and walked away. Ludwig then decided he could greet Acero tomorrow morning and went to sleep. Opening the door to Acero's room, Gilbert gently placed Acero onto his bed. Unfortunately for him, Kumajiro was on that bed.
And Kumajiro doesn't like being squished.
"Argh! Get him off me!" shouted Gilbert, trying to get the small polar bear off him. Kumajiro had jumped onto Gilbert in rage, claws extended. The shout had woken up Acero. Kumajiro was gripping onto Gilbert's shoulders as they both watched Acero sit up, dazed.
He may have been his friend, but he was like all the others. He never came back.
Violet met red.
The mysterious boy that went by the name Matthew Bonnefoy never came back.
"Um... Nice to meet you?" stated Gilbert sheepishly.
But what really happened?