Author's Note: Hey guys! Second Chapter, YAY! Its a bit longer then the first, I hope you don't mind...

Anyways, Thanks to everyone who reviewed or alerted my story and such! I appreciate it a lot, and I'm very grateful! Congrats to everyone who won the game (and even those who didn't!). It was Poland (the bard), Turkey (the merchant), and Greece (the merchant's rival) who were in the last chapter.

Well I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

He had stayed longer then usual at the factory, after a minor incident had required him to stay behind and clean up. He didn't quite understand what had happened, but it still took forever to get whatever it was off the floors. It wasn't necessarily his job to clean up after such messes -In fact, he was just another one of the many people who worked at the assembly line-, but he ended up playing the role of janitor quite regularly despite that.

He didn't enjoy his new job, in fact, he absolutely hated it. It wasn't the repetition of the job, no he was very good at that, it was more the impact that his work had on the world. Or lack there of. Ludwig was a man who liked to feel that what he was doing was important, which was hard to feel making cuckoo clucks for a living.

He supposed he had been happier working in the Archives, sorting out data from around the country. Back then he had been doing something worth while. The Archives were an integral part of the government, containing information and important files of the past and present.

But he had had to leave that job, and Ludwig wasn't the type to dwell on the past. He needed this job for his livelihood, and the best thing to do right now was to look forward to going home after a long day at work. Which was what he was doing now, of course.

Keeping his eyes straight ahead he continued walking on the path home. The street he was walking on was known to be on what could be considered the wrong part of town, and while he was used to going this way in the late afternoon, it was now very dark out. It had been a long time since he had been out this late, and he was in a hurry to get home.

He avoided looking at the lying forms on the ground. Even though times had considerably improved since that of the Fall, it was still hard to find jobs and a secure source of income. Ludwig did feel for those less fortunate then him –he still remembered the time when that had been him- but he really did not have any money to spare at the moment.

He kept up a brisk walk through the troubled street when, all of a sudden, he found that his path was blocked by a young man lying across the sidewalk. He stopped for a moment, and was about to politely ask the man if he would move, when he noticed that the man was asleep.

The sleeping man was cleaner then most of the people around this area, and Ludwig briefly wondered if this was his first night out here, before trying to walk around him. After making sure that it was empty, he stepped onto the road and walked passed him and back onto the sidewalk. He was about to continue on his way, when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

Hoping that he had not woken the man up, he felt inclined to turned around, and saw that the man's hand had moved to rest on part of the road. He didn't know the man, but that didn't mean he wanted his hand to be run over by a passing car. So he walked back up to the him, crouched down, (and feeling very uncomfortable doing so) grabbed the man's hand and moved it towards a safer resting place.

This woke him up.

Brown eyes glanced up at him, before Ludwig quickly looked away. The sudden eye contact was incredibly awkward, especially considering how close he was to the man's face. Embarrassed at being caught in such a strange position he quickly shot up, and without a word, began to walk -quickly walking is not running- away.

Ludwig hoped that walking away would prevent any further contact. "Hey! Hey Mister!" No such luck. The young man quickly caught up to Ludwig. Oh great, now he's following me. "I need some help!" Ludwig kept on walking, but the man followed. "I'm very sorry, but I have no money on me." He hoped that would stop him.

"Money? Ve~ I just want directions to the Train Station." Ludwig stopped walking and faced the man, slightly relieved at this but still wary. "The Train Station you say?" The man nodded. "It's closed at this time at night." The man looked crestfallen at this, making him feel slightly guilty –it wasn't really his fault, but the man's expression made him feel bad nonetheless-. "Its open tomorrow morning though." Ludwig said, hoping this would fix the man's problem. He did indeed look brighter at this, and smiled gratefully. "Thanks! I'll just go back to sleep then."

Ludwig looked on in shock as the young man began walking to his previous spot on the ground. An involuntary "Wait" left his mouth before he could stop, and the man turned back and looked at him.

Ludwig cursed inwardly as the man's attention was put back on him. Now he didn't know what to say. "Um… Your going to sleep out here?" Was all he managed to think of. The man looked at him, looking slightly confused, and replied. "Of course. It makes no sense to walk all the way home now. I'll just go to station in the morning."

So he did have a home. That made it even more confusing as to why he would choose to sleep on the streets, unless his home was really that far...

Ludwig still remembered what it felt like to sleep on the cold concrete, and he felt bad for the friendly-looking man. And there was something about him, he couldn't quite put his finger on it...But he found himself wanting to help this person he had just met.

It wouldn't be the smartest thing to do, but if he was going to leave in the morning…

"You could stay at my house." It felt strange saying that, it really did. Letting someone who he had just met sleep under the same roof as him? He would probably steal some of the few things he had. But something told him he could trust this man. Maybe he had met him before? He doubted it, unless this man was someone he had worked with in the past, that he had simply forgotten about. Even if he rarely socialized with his co-workers he would still be willing to help them if they had fallen on some hard luck.

"Ve! You would do that for me? You're so nice!" The man jumped up and down, and began walking back towards Ludwig with an incredible happy look on his face. Well its too late now Ludwig thought as he began heading home, now with the man following him.

Not wanting the entire walk home to be awkward, Ludwig wondered if he should say something. But he didn't have to wonder long before his new companion began an outburst of nearly incomprehensible "thank you"s.

"-your one of the nicest people I have ever met! Ve~ Thank you so much! I'll forever be grateful-" "Its fine." Ludwig interrupted, tired of the constant praise. "Just please don't take anything from my house… um" He realized he hadn't learned the man's name yet, and hoping that he would not feel too offended -in case he was an old colleague- , he decided it would be best to ask now rather then later.

"…What is your name, by the way?"

"I would never take anything from you! Oh! My name is Feliciano, though some people call me Feli. What's yours?" "Ludwig."

So he isn't an old co-worker Ludwig thought, not sure how to feel now that he knew for sure that he was letting a complete stranger in his house.

Feliciano waited for Ludwig to speak again, but after he remained silent, Feliciano began rambling again. They continued walking like this till they finally reached Ludwig's house.

Reaching the door Ludwig realized that the it was slightly open. Today was just not his day. Besides having an unexpected guest –well, it was his fault for inviting him- now he was going to have to deal with a potential break-in. "West! Your home! What the hell took you so long?!"

His worry quickly turned into exasperation when he heard his brother's familiar voice use that stupid nickname (coming from the kitchen it sounded like). Ludwig sighed and turned to who he thought was going to be his only guest that night. "I apologize in advance for my brother." Feliciano was only able to let out a small "huh?" before Gilbert walked out of the kitchen to greet Ludwig.

"Dude, you really need to go grocery shopping. There's like no food in there. Oh, and I drank all your beer. Hey, who's your friend?" Ludwig sighed. "Gilbert, what are you doing here?" Gilbert switched his attention from Feliciano back to Ludwig. "I gotta talk to you about something. It's gonna be totally awesome." Gilbert, not explaining any further, then proceeded to head back into the kitchen.

Ludwig could already feel a headache coming on.

"You can sleep in the guest room. It's the second door on the left, if you want to go there now." Feliciano shook his head and followed Ludwig as he made his way into the kitchen.

"Your brother seems nice! Do you two live together? Is it just you guys, or do you leave with some other people too? Your house is very clean! Have you eaten yet? It's been a while since I ate so I'm a little hungry-" This guy sure does talk a lot Ludwig thought, not really paying attention to what his guest was saying. He was too surprised by the sight waiting for him in the kitchen to pay Feliciano any mind.

The kitchen was a complete mess.

"Gilbert, what did you do." He really shouldn't have expected any thing less, as his brother always seemed to make a mess every time he visited.

"Huh? Oh yeah. We got hungry waiting for you, so Francis here made us some dinner." It was only then that Ludwig noticed the blond man sitting at the kitchen table. Oh great. He brought over another "guest". His house really seemed to be getting full as of late.

"Gilbert said you wouldn't mind if we used your food." The blond man –Francis, if he heard Gilbert correctly- said. Ludwig really hoped that his brother and his friend hadn't wiped out all of his food supply. He hadn't eaten since this morning when he left for work.

Walking up to his refrigerator, however, revealed that the contents of it were indeed devoid of any food. He didn't even think that was possible.

"Did you really have to use all of my food?" He knew he didn't have that much food to begin with, but there should have been enough left over for him and Feliciano, if his brother and his friend had eaten a regular dinner.

"I make it a priority to always make exceptional meals when cooking." Francis said, thinking that this was enough of an excuse for using up so much food.

"Ve~ Ludwig, if you don't mind me using the kitchen, I can make some dinner for us." Feliciano remarked, pulling something -was that pasta?- from his coat.

"Feliciano, why were you carrying around a packet of pasta?" While he was grateful that he was going to at least eat something tonight, it still didn't make any sense.

"I always carry some pasta with me! Why would I leave home without some food?"

And with that, Feliciano began to make a meal for the two of them. Ludwig just sighed and sat down at the kitchen table with Gilbert and Francis.

"Seriously West, who is that guy?" He hadn't answered him the first time Gilbert asked. Ludwig decided it was probably best that he satisfied his brother curiosity.

"Feliciano. He's staying over for the night." Knowing his brother would probably make some perverted joke over the situation he quickly changed the subject -though that didn't usually stop Gilbert-. "So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Whatever. Look, West-" Gilbert then looked over to Feliciano, who seemed to be totally engrossed chopping up some tomatoes -where did those come from?!- before he continued in a lowered voice. "Have you heard about the announcement that the government made a week or so ago?"

Gilbert took Ludwig's strange look as a no. "Well, have you at least heard of the Runaway Princess or whatever they're calling her now?"

"Yes, but, Gilbert where are you going with this?" Ludwig didn't understand why his brother was seemingly so concerned about Feliciano overhearing them.

"You see- The government hasn't touched the inheritance that the old king left his daughter. And for some reason or another they made a public statement asking the princess to come forward and collect her money before the month ends!" Gilbert waited for the realization to settle in. "Don't you see what this means?"

"No. I don't." Ludwig didn't understand why his brother was so concerned, unless...

"What your brother is saying is that he's thought of an idea to collect the money." Francis said, confirming Ludwig's thought that it involved another of his brother's hair-brained plans.

"Your seriously not thinking about trying to trick the government, are you? Gilbert, that never works for you." Ludwig really wished Gilbert would just get a job, so he wouldn't have to give him money when his cons didn't work.

"This isn't like the other times! This one is gonna be totally awesome!" Gilbert said a little too loudly. He checked around to make sure Feliciano was still pre-occupied before continuing in a quieter voice.

"Me and Francis rented out a theater. We're gonna hold these auditions, you know, find us a girl and present her as the missing princess."

"Gilbert, this is the government we're talking about. You can't expect to just show up with some girl and have them hand over the money to you." Ludwig had to talk some sense into his brother. If he could come up with this idea, then there were surely others who had thought the same thing. The government wouldn't make such a claim without first being prepared for fakes.

"That's the beauty of it West! You see, Francis used to work for the Government before he was fired off his ass-" Francis shot him a glare."...uh...put into early retirement. He was still working for them when they planned out this whole thing."

Francis took over explaining then. "Before leaving my employment, I thought I might take some souvenirs to remember it by. Just some copies of papers and such that I thought might prove to be useful to me one day. When Gilbert came to me with his plan, hoping I could assist him, I searched through the files to find something that could assist us. Surprisingly I found multiple notes on the project, including some of the trails the future "princess" would be put through to show her authenticity."

Ludwig still looked skeptical. Gilbert decided it was time to hammer it home.

"We'll know what questions they'll ask us and everything! We'll be more prepared then anyone else trying to get the dough. We'll also have something else that no one else has."

Gilbert had a strange, almost excited, look on his face. Realizing that his brother was waiting for him to make a comment, probably so he could make a dramatic statement -His brother tended to make most of their conversations more dramatic then he would like them to be when it came to his crazy plans-. He decided to bite the bullet. "And what would that be?" He really hoped this wasn't going where he thought it was...

"You." Gilbert had a confident smile on his face. He really thought Ludwig wouldn't refuse to join him on this crazy plan. Here we go.

"No." Ludwig sighed. "I told you before, I work for my money. I won't help you on some crazy scheme to con money from hard working people."

"The money doesn't belong to any one, it's just lying there, waiting for someone we both know will never come. Come on Ludwig! I-We need you for this! You used to work in the Archives!" He didn't see how that was relevant to their conversation. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Don't you see? You, more then any of the people in this kingdom, have had access to all the available information about the princess! You have to remember some of the information you organized on them. Besides, I know for a fact that you still have some of your notes on the Royals, I found them in your bedroom while you where gone."

Ludwig probably should have been angrier with Gilbert for touching his belongings, but he knew what his brother was like. He was more disappointed in himself, how he had kept those notes around for so long, even though all they did was cause him headaches.

Gilbert had expected his brother to yell at him for that, but seeing him make no comment, he continued on."You could teach all your information to the girl we end up getting, and we'll be prepared for whatever those government guys throw at us!"

He didn't say anything. "Ludwig.... I'm really serious about this one. It won't work without you." Even though he didn't quite believe it, he had to admit that this was more thought out then anything else Gilbert had ever come up with. He is serious about this Ludwig realized, though he was still not sure whether or not that was good.

"Just look around this place! There's even less stuff then the last time I came here. Your new job obviously isn't paying you enough. You could use the money. Not to mention, since we already know the questioning that the gov. guys will put us through will take place in the Archives, you could get your old job back again if you came with us!"

His brother had a point. Ludwig was running out of money. The factory wasn't enough to support them both -since Gilbert refused to get a job, and none of his previous cons had ever worked- not like his old job had. Ludwig still remembered what his life was like back when he worked in the Archives. He had been happy there, in a manner of words. Even if his brother's idea didn't work -which it wouldn't, he was sure of that- it might still be worth it to tag along if he could get to the Central City again. Though he would obviously have to quit his current job to go on this charade, and that made him financially vulnerable...

"I'll think about it."

"YES!" Gilbert loudly jumped out of his seat in excitement, sure that he had won over his brother.

"What are you guys talking about?" While also forgetting that he was trying not to get the attention of the previously-busy-cooking Feliciano.

"Uh-"

"Oh, don't worry. We were just discussing whether or not Ludwig over here should join us on a trip of ours, and Gilbert here got a little overexcited." Feliciano's mouth made an "O" shape, and brought the pasta he had finished cooking over to the table.

It's a good thing that Francis is such a smooth talker, or we might have had to split the prize money again just to keep this guy quite. Gilbert thought, though by the looks of it, it wouldn't take much of Francis' skills to trick this guy.

Ludwig could smell the pasta that Feliciano now handed toward him on one of his own plates. Being as hungry he was at that point he immediately dug into the meal, not looking up as Feliciano sat down on the last of the available chairs at the table. "So your planning on traveling soon? Me too! When are you all planning on leaving?"

He barely heard Francis reply, as occupied as he was with his food. Ludwig was impressed. He thought it was incredible that anyone could cook something this good with so little resources.

"-we plan to get out of here late tomorrow actually, We're catching a train to Central City." Ludwig looked up from his food to glare at his brother. "You didn't say it would be tomorrow." Gilbert returned the stare with a shrug. "What did you expect? The latest someone can make a claim for the money is only till the end of the month, so we have to move fast." Ludwig sighed, that gave him even less time to decide.

He finished the rest of his meal, idly listening to everyone else talk. He only heard periodic bits of the conversation, as he was mostly busy trying to weigh the pros and cons of going along with his brother's crazy request. He had almost missed his brother's offer to clean the kitchen that night -trying to kiss up no doubt- so occupied was he in his thoughts.

Ludwig was still unsure what to do by the time he had went up to his room for the night. He would just have to sleep on it.

Author's Note: Well that's the end of Chapter Two! I hope I got Ludwig's personality right... I worry sometimes that I write these guy's out of character, which something I strive to avoid.

I think I might start getting in the of writing each chapter in a different character's perspective. I didn't plan it that way, but I guess its starting to turn into that

Okay! I got another game for you guys! What do you think the mess was at the factory? Feel free to guess, since I'm too lazy to think up of what it was. XD

The next chapter should be up around the weekend, so see you then!