His brother was shocked when he saw the blood on Feliciano's clothes. Feliciano smiled at him and greeted, acting like nothing unusual happened.
"What happened to you?! You looked like you killed someone!" Lovino freaked out.
If only he knew the truth...
"When Ludwig and I went home, we took the short cut through the dump; then we met two scary men who tried to take our wallets and when we refused, they attacked us." Feliciano said, no fear in his voice; only an innocent smile on his face.
"Wait, you were what? And how can you take this so calmly?!"
"Don't worry, I took care of them. They won't try to attack us ever again." Feliciano said, the smile still present on his face. "If you would excuse me, I'll go and change my clothes."
Lovino stared bewildered at his brother as the other left. He was really puzzled. "Man, what is up with him?" he asked himself. Feliciano was acting unusual right there. What person can stay calm after being attacked?
He was confused about his brother's behavior. But a part of him wished not to know the answer.
Feliciano was laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He can't believe that he actually did that. He have killed someone, not just one but two people. He haven't thought that he would ever do such thing. But it was necessary. If he didn't stopped them, they would have done something horrible to him and Ludwig. He had to do something to defend themselves.
While he was surprised with himself, he must admit that when he ended their lives, it gave him some kind of excitement. The shocked expressions on their faces, the screams when he pieced the blade through them many times, their eyes wide and almost lifeless as they begged for mercy before he ended them for good.
The fact that he enjoyed it both scared and excited him.
He have never thought that it could be fun to kill.
The incident made him realize one thing: dangers can lurk in every corner, waiting for the moment to strike on an unsuspecting victim.
It also made him realize that he can't always rely on Ludwig. Just like him, Ludwig can be in danger too. He could have been put in a worse situation if Feliciano hadn't think fast. It was this moment Feliciano had to rely on himself. It was clear to see that while Ludwig is strong and independent, he is still a teenager.
A thought came to Feliciano's mind. Yes, that is true. Ludwig is still young. While he is seventeen, almost reaching adulthood, he is still vulnerable. Many teenagers are. He and Ludwig are no exceptions. In a way, he should thank those men. If it weren't for them, Feliciano wouldn't have realize something important. Ludwig needed someone who can take care of him too.
Ludwig have always been on his side. He have done so much for him and now it's time to return the favor.
"Ludwig, are you okay?" Feliciano asked Ludwig when he saw him. It had been a day after the incident. "That mean man did hit you hard on the head."
"Yes, I'm fine." Ludwig told him.
Feliciano smiled, glad to hear that his friend was okay. "I'm glad that nothing worse happened to you."
"That is true. But I think we have to be cautious for now on. We don't know if it might happen again."
"Don't worry. Even if it does, I promise you that I will take care of you. After all, we are best friends and friends help and protect each other, right?"
"Uh, right." Ludwig said, unsure by Feliciano's statement. He can't help but feeling that there is something odd with his friend. He didn't know what it was but something didn't feel right.
His thought got interrupted when he felt someone pushed him. "Hey!" Ludwig exclaimed when he saw it was a young boy, who was around same age as them. The boy seemed to be in a hurry as he quickly disappeared. "That was rude of him." Feliciano frowned when the boy was out of their sight. "He could at least say 'excuse me' before he pushed you." he looked up at Ludwig. "Should I teach him a lesson?"
"What?" Ludwig was surprised by the question.
"You know, teaching him not to be rude."
Ludwig shook his head. "No, I don't think that is necessary."
Feliciano didn't respond but knew what Ludwig meant. The boy may have been rude but he have probably his reason. It could be that he didn't want to be late for something. He figured that he should focus more on people who would hurt or say something really mean and hurtful to Ludwig.
It reminded him of one person. There was a guy who would often make offensive jokes about Germans. Feliciano thought that it was unfair that he would make such jokes to Ludwig, just because he happened to be from Germany. He have seen how Ludwig often get bothered by those comments, even though he tried to assure him that he have gotten used to it.
Perhaps it was time to teach him a lesson.
Nobody should get away with hurting Ludwig's feelings.
Feliciano waited until he made sure that his brother have fallen asleep. He can't let Lovino get involved into what he was going to do. Lovino had been through enough when he took care of themselves after their parents passed away, the last thing he needed to worry is if he witnessed Feliciano doing something horrible.
His brother is fast asleep. It gave Feliciano the chance to sneak out. He quietly walked to the kitchen and opened the drawer. He gazed at the silverware until he found the one he was looking for. He grabbed a knife and took it out of the drawer. After the incident at the dump, he got rid of the other knife. Ludwig was already worried when he saw him covered in blood, he didn't want to make him more concerned.
But if Ludwig do find out, surely he would understand that he was doing this for his sake.
He was doing this because he cared about him. Because they are friends. Best friends.
The boy groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. At first, his vision was blurry but when it became cleared, he realized that he was in a dark room. "Where...where am I?" he looked around. He got confused when he learned that he couldn't move his arms or legs. He looked at himself and saw that he was tied to a chair.
"H-hey. W-what's going on?" he asked.
"I see you finally woke up."
"Who said that?" the boy asked as he tried to search after the source of the voice. The light turned on. The only source of light came from a small lamp that was on a table. There wasn't much to see but it was enough to give him the impression that he wasn't alone.
"Good evening." Feliciano smiled at him. "It wasn't easy to find you since I didn't know where you live. But luckily, you didn't give me much trouble. I saw you leaving from a party that you attended earlier. You are an easy victim, all it took was following you and knock you out." his grin widened. "Maybe you should have stayed home."
"W-why are you doing this?" the guy was scared. He didn't know what is going on and he didn't like it.
"Why?" Feliciano said like he didn't understand the question. "Let me answer that with another question: why do you make those mean jokes about Germans? Why do you like to make Ludwig feel bad about his own nationality? What do you gain from that besides making someone feel bad about themselves?"
"It was just innocent jokes, man!" the guy tried to defend himself. "I'm just a silly boy, I didn't know better. Will you please let me go? I promise I won't ever make German jokes again."
"That would be nice but there is one problem." Feliciano began. "How do I know that you will keep the promise? How can I know that you won't do it again?"
He looked away from the boy as he reached after the knife on the table. He have a sinister grin on his face when he grabbed it, then he looked at him again.
"Hurting Ludwig's feelings is unforgivable."
The boy's eyes widened in fear. He screamed but nobody heard him.
Blood was everywhere when Feliciano was done. The blood was on the floor, on the knife and on his own clothes. He will have to wash his clothes again but it was a small price to pay. He stared at the boy's bloody and lifeless body.
The look of fear on his face and screams of agony with each stab... It was satisfying.
Ludwig will be happy. He got rid of the nuisance. They will never have to deal with that jerk again.
Feliciano smiled to himself. Yes, this is his duty. His duty as Ludwig's protector. They are best friends after all. It would make sense if he protected him from everything that is evil. He is willing to do anything to make Ludwig safe and happy, even if it would get him in trouble or even cost his own life.
Ludwig have always protected him. It's time to do the same for him.
Damn, Feliciano is only seventeen and he already killed three people! Ludwig will be terrified when he finds out.