July 4th, 1942: continued

Ludwig turned away. He didn't care; he did not care about what they were thinking. This was his duty to his country, to be loyal at all costs and he wasn't going to let his brother get in the way of that. His feet brought him to the coat rack in which he discarded the coat on its own hook and the hat on top of it.

He hadn't noticed that his legs were carrying him up the stairs. Ludwig had been too engulfed in the furry of his own mind, drowning in the waves that pushed and pulled him back and forth. If only he could escape this world to a better one. The closest thing to that was his bedroom but honestly it was just escaping to a cage full of memories and his mind would close in around him. Either this or Gilbert, and he didn't want to feel the guilt of his brother.

The disappointment and shock did not fade from Gilbert's eyes as Ludwig stomped up the stairs. When the albino turned his head back to Francis, a hint of betrayal flashed in his eyes.

"Stop," Gilbert growled, "I didn't know Ludwig was insane."

Francis gave a cruel laugh. "Insane? Ha. He's a Nazi, Gilbert, get it through your head. They're more than insane."

Gilbert ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He loved Ludwig didn't he? Then, why couldn't he get the feeling of flaring red hot furry and pangs of guilt? He was doing this for Ludwig, for all of them, for everyone. Then why did Ludwig betray him?

"There's no such thing as a good Nazi," Francis continued as his blue eyes grazed over the German, "you should know that."

"Shut up, Francis. You came here to discuss plans and that's what I plan on doing! Ludwig isn't down here now, is he? I haven't even told him what I'm doing." The German retorted and sat, staring at the papers.

"I'm surprised you wouldn't want to go through with this now. You're betraying your family; you're betraying your brother."

"Don't you think I know that?"

It was an hour later when Antonio arrived at the home in Berlin. When Francis was alone with Gilbert it looked as if two friends were gathering, welcoming the soldier home from battle. But now that Antonio came, they had to close the curtains. It wasn't good if the whole neighborhood was suspicious and they had a SS officer in their house nonetheless.

It was also that Ludwig had never emerged from his bedroom. For in fact, he had sat in the window sill in his bedroom the whole time. The dull colors of Berlin set him inside some trance of thought. Sometimes he latched onto words his brother and his friends said when they spoke too loud. Any ever time it made him flinch.

Francis and Gilbert were seated on the couch, papers scattered in their laps along with all over the table. Antonio had chosen to sit on the floor, his crossed legs underneath the coffee table where they had stationed themselves.

His grandfather kept himself occupied by tending to the garden. He came in every now and then to roll his eyes at the boys as they discussed, but normally to clean off vegetables that he had grown from his garden.

But their talk grew quieter.

"Feliks Łukasiewicz was captured recently by the SS." Antonio spoke. "I guess they found out he was working with Toris. But they don't have Toris, just Feliks."

Francis sighed, pulling his locks back into a pony tail but letting his hair fall again.

"Who is Toris spying for and who is he spying on again?" Gilbert asked with a groan.

"Arthur Kirkland. He's a Captain for the British Army," Francis answered quickly but ended up coughing when the Spaniard and the German looked oddly at him.

The Frenchman rolled his eyes at them before continuing talking. "He's spying on Ivan Braginsky and his sister Natalia Arlovskaya, Feliks was spying on a group of SS officials in Poland. And now they've caught him."

"They're having two brothers named Feliciano and Lovino go to Poland. I got Toris' letter that they just passed Elizabeta. Feliks has been there for two days actually, but they captured him awhile they just hadn't had the time to bring him back to the headquarters here."

"That asshole, we need that information more than the Nazis do. We don't need more people to get captured, danke." The German murmured sarcastically.

"What information?" asked a shadow whom had been standing in the door frame from the kitchen, the cold piercing eyes of Ludwig.

Antonio's green orbs spread wide open as Gilbert's hardened.

"None of our business, Ludwig, go back upstairs."

When Ludwig wanted to be intimidating, he could pull it off as he emerged from the shadows. There was no sign of an expression on his face besides his eyes flickered and contrasted with a threat. A threat for anything, just so that he knew what they were talking about. Nonetheless, the German had gotten what Gilbert had said. Ludwig was not a Nazi. He did not support the party, he hated them for that matter of fact. So why was he trying to get the information out of his brother and his older friends? Curiosity perhaps. More that he was yearning for Gilbert's trust once again even if it meant that he was going against the SS. He loved his brother and he wanted the other to know that and for him to love him once more. Gilbert did still love him but Ludwig didn't know that, no. He wasn't the best at understanding his own emotions nonetheless others.

"I deserve to know. This is my house too." Ludwig said sigh internally at how childish that had sounded.

Francis nervously shuffled through the papers, connecting eyes with the Spaniard which screamed desperately not to tell anything. No spoken words but Ludwig could read them like a piece of paper. Gilbert had stood up now and had nudged Francis with his shoe once he had seen his brother's brilliant blue eyes flash to the Frenchman.

"Nein. It doesn't concern you." Gilbert coolly said.

The younger brother slightly flinched before he narrowed his eyes and took a step forward. Ludwig was only wearing a black tank top as well as his uniform pants and boots. The kid was muscular for the matter of fact and it clearly shone in the light. He could probably kill anyone in one second.

Ludwig stared at him with unwavering orbs. "I can report you for suspicion. I am a Scharführer."

"I'm sorry, bruder, its for your own safety."

Ludwig continued to stare at him before blinking dully. He turned on his heel, departing from the living room. His big hands gripped onto the collar of his uniform, slipping one arm into it after another. The hat soon followed after. He moved the coat rack to get to the mirror that was hiding behind it. The hat was a little crooked so he fixed it along with the skull on top of it which made him stare uneasily stare at himself in it.

The German let out a small sigh, turned around, and opened the door.

"I'm not safe if I'm in the SS."

July 5th, 1942: Berlin, (Nazi) Germany

Feliks had his arms and legs chained to the wall he was mounted on, his head bent forward and staring dully at the ground. Two days ago he had been taken by the SS and tortured all night long for the matter of fact. But Feliks refused to spill his information, he was doing it for Toris, the man he loved. He didn't want anyone to end up like this. Hanging from a wall, broken.

A couple of men stepped into the room. They were talking in German.

"If he doesn't break, Hauptsturmführer says we ought to transfer him to the Gestapo." One of the men announced, leaning against the cell's bars.

"I plan on breaking him," snarled another man, reaching forward and grabbing Feliks' hair, pulling his head up with a snap.

Feliks murmured something as a trickle of blood came from his nose before spitting out some blood onto the floor.

"I've been appointed to do it today, leave." Another man said in a stern tone.

"Fine, hotshot," the eager one snarled back before leaving.

The two other men had kicked Feliks for good measure before finally departing and closing the door behind them. Their booted feet clicks down into the hallway and not until the sound stopped did the other German move.

The light caught on him, showing slicked blond hair and blue eyes. He crouched onto the ground underneath the Pole, staring up at him. "Feliks, I'm not going to hurt you. I just need your information."

Feliks thrashed a bit, his breath becoming hard and ragged as he tried to reach out to do some damage to Ludwig who remained in his position.

"Feliks, the sooner you tell me the sooner this will be all over. You know that. Tell me." Ludwig persisted with a small sigh.

He stood up and paced for a moment.

"You're not like t-them," Feliks shakily spat before coughing up a pool of blood that splashed onto the ground.

"Ja. I don't want to be like them. My bruder taught me better."

"T-Tell Toris I love him, please-e if you are really good..." The Pole weakly hushed.

Ludwig stared at him with piercing blue eyes before nodding. "Ich will."

A small content expression flashed onto Feliks for a moment. He wanted this German to tell Toris he was alright. He hadn't said a word, yet. But one of the Germans had enough sense to actually know and conscious of what he was doing. Until all the other men with their cruel words and tortures. No, he was the best of them so far. It relieved him to say so because none of them knew his relationship with Toris and if they did, he would get unlimited battleground of words thrown at him. They might even throw him into a camp.

Ludwig's orbs lingered onto Feliks before he turned around and his hands gripped tightly onto the cell's doorknob. He jerked it backwards and closed it quietly behind himself, walking down the hallway. He rounded a corner and went down that hallway also. At the end of the hall was a room where all the hustle and bustle was coming from, all his fellow officers who he would indeed like to smack them all up the heads.

The eager from earlier spotted the German first and approached. "I didn't hear any screams." He hissed.

"He talked to me." Ludwig pushed him aside followed by the man cursing loudly at him in pure jealousy.

Ludwig came over to his presiding officer, the man he reported to. His name was Nagel, an older gentleman who wasn't so mean. The man had been in the Nazi party for about twenty years and experienced a lot going through. He didn't carry out any of the interrogations surprisingly and when he saw his men doing something other than orders he punished them. Ludwig was the only one he could connect to- not only the one there who enjoyed bullying and torturing other people.

"Hauptsturmführer Nagel," Ludwig addressed him, "Feliks spoke."

The Hauptsturmführer turned towards him from the conversation he had been having with another man, waving him away at Ludwig's words. "Was? Was did he say?"

Ludwig wasn't going to tell him what he said. Yes, he was going to lie. And if they found out. If they found out. Ludwig was risking everything on the line. If they found out he would be dead, his brother and grandfather and another relatives he had no idea would be wiped completely off the map. Just like that. He didn't even know if the Pole would go through with his plans.

"He said that he was employeed by another SS officer in Poland to spy on the others and gather information. Feliks did not say the name. He said that the officer planned on assassinating all of them." Ludwig lied perfectly. Too easy.

The Hauptsturmführer Nagel sighed with a nod. "Danke schön, Ludwig. One more thing today, please escort a new arrival to a cell."

Ludwig accepted the orders with a quick nod before heading back the way he came and to the entrance of the building.

A trunk was parked in front as his feet carried down the stairs. The warm air hit him constantly as he cocked an eyebrow and rounded the trunk. A few other men were standing out in the back, barking to each and such in instructions. One of the men approached Ludwig. "Here to get him?"

"Ja."

"From Poland as well as the other. His name is Feliciano Vargas. Italian. So far he only speaks Italian too. But a couple interrogations and he'll be screaming fluent German."

Ludwig's breath hitched in his throat as he saw them drag the other from the trunk. His throat ran dry, his heart thumped unevenly in his chest. Pangs of guilt drowned him as well as a warmth that stormed through his chest. He grabbed Feliciano's arm which the other yelled and flailed lightly, fear brimming in his eyes which made Ludwig flinch. "Quiet down or it will make it worse," he said.

Feliciano quieted down to whimpers as the German brought him up the stairs and into the building. "Tirarmi fuori, per favore..." The Italian said. Ludwig didn't understand besides that he said please and it sounded like a plead. Like any other prisoner said when they brought them here. But the plead twisted the SS officer's gut in awkward ways. He didn't want to feel like this! What was the feeling anyways and towards a total stranger?

Ludwig brought him up to the less populated floor. Why? He again was not sure. He felt like he should protect the other from as much as he could. What was wrong with him!? What were these feelings!? Not many of the officers came up here due to these were the people who weren't very interesting to interrogate. They weren't a challenge for them. He gingerly, he felt like he could break Feliciano with his hands so easily, placed the other in the cell with no restraints.

The Italian had the most beautiful colored hair as well as glossy amber orbs probably from the crying which was visible around his eyes had gotten red. His eyes stared up at Ludwig, pleading and pleading that caused the German to back away unevenly. "Entschuldigung." Ludwig said and departed.

July 5th, 1942: Berlin, (Nazi) Germany: home

"Gilbert," Ludwig spoke once he had gotten home and found the other at the coffee table once more but this time no Francis and Antonio. The two had decided to stay at a hotel a little ways down the road.

"Was?" Gilbert asked, not straying his eyes from the paper clamped in his hand.

"Feliks was there." This caused his brother's red orbs to flash up at him.

"Did you torture him just like the rest?" Gilbert snarled with narrowed eyes.

"Nein, he told me to pass on the message. Tell Toris that he loves him."

Gilbert did not reply and continued to read the sheet of paper.

"Another boy came from Poland. Feliciano Vargas, the other one you and your friends were talking about."

His brother set the paper down and stared up Ludwig.

"Get them out of there Ludwig." Gilbert said all of the sudden.

Ludwig's eyes widened despite trying to have them not but the surprise was certainly...Surprising? "Was?"

"You heard me. Get them fucking out of there. You've seen what they do, get them out."

"I would be putting your life and grandfather's on the line. They will follow me to the ends of the Earth and hunt every single family member down!"

"Ludwig, more and more people are going to die because of the SS. We need to do as much as we can now."

Dinner that night was lifeless and cold, tensions high across the table. A rebel and a monster. The fate of his whole family, his brother's friends, Feliciano and Feliks rested in the palm of Ludwig's hands as he stared at the meal. It had grown cold before his grandfather scolded him. But the German didn't notice. His feet carried him up to his bedroom without him noticing, crashing down onto the bed.

Guilt and nerves entered his stomach. He would get them out.

July 9th, 1942: Berlin (Nazi) Germany

It had been three days since Feliciano cracked. All it had taken was three dunks into the freezing water before the broke the truth out.

"You're very nice Ludwig," Feliciano smiled from his position sitting on the floor, looking up at the German through the bars.

Right now Ludwig looked like he was calculating in the surprise. He could tell he always thought before answering, probably because he wasn't suppose to be talking to him.

"Um, danke Feliciano." He stiffly replied, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"Ludwig..?"

"Ja?"

"Why are you with the Schutzstaffel?" The Italian asked, his pronunciations of the German warped on his tongue.

Ludwig couldn't help but chuckle at the mispronunciation. "I was with the Heer until I was promoted into the Schutzstaffel."

"Oh." was the only sound Feliciano uttered, tugging at the hem of the clothing he was given for spilling the beans.

Ludwig leaned against the bars on the side which the bars gave a small groan under his muscles. "I'm sorry Feliciano, for all this."

Feliciano blinked. He was quite sure he never imagined a Schutzstaffel Corporal apologizing to him. "Oh, Ludwig, you already apologized earlier."

"Was? That was in German." Ludwig blinked, raising an eyebrow as he turned his head slightly to the side to met the Italian's amber orbs. Feliciano met his gaze with another smile and a nod.

"I only know," he put pressed his index finger to his thumb to represent just a little, "that much."

"Enough to get you in trouble, ja?"

Feliciano nodded frantically at his answer. The kid seemed to bounce right back from getting his head soaked in freezing cold water. Only had the day after been a little dimmer and distance, his step drowsily and such. Ludwig hadn't been present for that. They were still cracking down on Feliks but the German somehow found a lot of time to hang around Feliciano's cell who in fact enjoyed the German's company though at first he had found him sorta of scary but once he had apologized when he brought him to his cell for the first time, he found himself taken a liking to other. Feliciano always got nervous in his company and an excited bubble in his stomach when he heard the deep heavy accented German voice from down the hall.

"Sì! When I was in Italy, there were Germans one time and I ran into them with my bag of tomatoes! Anyone would get mad if you ran into them, sì? But they are scary so I tired to say in German and then-then they started laughing and ended up stepping on some of my tomatoes! Oh, Ludwig, it was scary! My family's friend knows German so I told him what I said when I got home and I had said a bad word wrong so that's why they laughed at me!" Feliciano rambled on, flailing his arms everywhere to explain how scary those Germans were. Not as scary and brave as his, not his, Ludwig was though.

"He should probably teach you more words then." Ludwig chuckled softly.

The deep, laughter from Ludwig made Feliciano smile even wider. "I'm stuck here~."

Ludwig turned around from the cell, wincing a bit and taking a deep breath. he knew. He had developed feelings for for Feliciano. Nein, he had feelings for the other once he saw him come out of the truck. Not until today had he figured out what was making his heart act like this. Love. And the one thing he wanted to avoid especially on prisoners.

Feliciano gasped at a sudden idea. "You can teach me German!"

"Oh ja?" Ludwig replied with a raised eyebrow. Teaching Feliciano German? It would be like attempting to have Ludwig learn Italian. Impossible.

"Yeah! Give me simple phrases and I'll repeated them back." Feliciano beamed.

"Okay. Guten Morgen, Guten Tag, und Gute Nacht."

Feliciano tried out the words on his tongue with laughter, trying to mock the way Ludwig had pronounced them. The Italian frowned, looking up at the German hopelessly before giving pleading eyes for more words. Ludwig's bright blue eyes met his before he sighed.

"Auf Wiedersehen... Bitte schön. Bis morgen.."

Feliciano repeated them, this time a better which made Ludwig's lips twitch. Not into a smile quite yet but a small twitch. The smile never felt quite comfortable on his face thus never came enough for him to get used to it.

"Sehr Gut. I thought you said you knew German?" Ludwig questioned. He shifted his position from leaning to the side on the bars which had started to become painful. He was getting a little nervous, since he hadn't seen anyone in a while. Besides the other prisoners on the third floor, listening to their conversation if they understood English.

Feliciano laughed. His laughter made Ludwig's heart swell just a bit. "Just bad words." He said like they should never be uttered to the human ear with a small childish giggle. Ah, the kid was so innocent it made Ludwig's heart just get a bit larger and softer.

The German froze once he heard distance shouting from the ground floor, his eyes flickering over to Feliciano before they softened in the Italian presence.

"Auf Wiedersehen. Bis morgen." He said quickly as he pulled away.

Goodbye. See you tomorrow.

"Bis bald, Ludwig." came from the Italian as he watched the German leave. Ludwig was slightly surprise. He hadn't taught him that.

See you soon, Ludwig. He swore he could hear a few words uttered after.

Bitte, bitte kommen Siebald wieder. Please, please come back soon.

Ludwig concluded he was just hearing voices.