I say don't expect many updates, and then I update o_O This story seemes really popular so far XD

"He's out cold..."

"I knew it...I knew I should just hide when you and Arthur-san have guests..."

"You don't have to do that, Kiku. I mean, how were you supposed to know he could see you?"

"Exactly. There's no way for me to know. Maybe I should just hide in the attic, where I won't bother anyone. It's not like I need food or water anymore. I could just stay there forever and never have to leave..."

"Dude, I'm not letting you go into solitude or become a hikikomori or whatever just because you made some guy faint."

Gilbert groaned, wondering what the hell those voices were talking about. And why was he on the floor? He was going to see that Alfred guy, and then...

"Hey, I think he's waking up" the German opened his eyes sluggishly, blinking at the light. Two people were looking down at him worriedly. He recognised Alfred...And the Japanese guy was...

He sat up suddenly, jumping away from the two men "Y-you're..." Gilbert pointed a trembling finger at Kiku. "You're a ghost...You're dead!"

"Y-yes, that's true..." Kiku edged away from Gilbert slightly. "I used to live here on my own a long time ago. But one day I tripped and fell down the stairs" Kiku bit his lip. "I woke up afterwards and I was surprised to find that my house was full of people in uniform. I suppose that they were probably the police. I didn't understand why they couldn't see me, but then I heard one of them say my neck had snapped when I hit the floor, and that I had died instantly..."

Gilbert's eyes widened "S...So you're the ghost in that story...?"

Kiku frowned. "I thought that story was about someone who was pushed down the stairs?"

"Ah...J-just forget about that! I...I couldn't ghosts before this...Why can I see him now?"

Alfred looked thoughtful for a few seconds but then shrugged. "Not sure. Arthur said that pretty much everyone has the power to communicate with ghosts in some way, but that they usually need something to unlock that power" he smiled slightly at the way Gilbert was still staring at Kiku. "Until about five years ago, I couldn't see ghosts either. But then..." the American's expression seemed to darken, but he shook it off and smiled again. "Anyway, suddenly I could see ghosts as if they were normal people. But I've been scared of ghosts since I was a kid, so let's just say I didn't take it well..." Alfred laughed, a little awkwardly.

"I..." Gilbert scowled in confusion. "Wait, you said you could see them like 'normal people', but the Japanese guy looks kind of transparent or translucent or whatever to me"

"Really?" Alfred glanced at Kiku. "He looks solid to me...Maybe your spirit seeing powers are just weaker or something..."

"...Weaker?" Gilbert couldn't keep the offended tone out of his voice.

Alfred didn't notice. "Yeah. Okay, maybe we should tell Arthur about this. He's better at explaining that whole 'ghost seeing' thing..."

"You mean that old British guy can see ghosts too?"

"Yep. But he said he's been able to see them ever since he was little"

Gilbert stood up slowly, trying to keep his distance from the Japanese ghost. "I guess asking him about it couldn't hurt...Um...The Japanese guy can't possess me...can he?"

Kiku shook his head quickly "I...I can't...At least I don't think I can...I haven't tried..."

"Don't worry, he's harmless" Alfred laughed. "He's just as scared of you as you are of him"

"...I'm not a spider, Alfred-san..."

"So why did you move here?" Ludwig asked when Arthur came back with two cups of tea.

He set them down on the small wooden table, sitting down next to the German. "Well, I only lived in a small flat in the city with Alfred before, so I've wanted to move somewhere bigger" Arthur explained, sipping his tea quietly. "I saw this house was for sale. It was unusually cheap, and the area around here is much more quiet then where I lived before, so I figured I should buy it"

Ludwig nodded thoughtfully, drinking his own tea a little cautiously. "So...This might sound a little strange, since we've only just met, but what about your job? Did you keep the same one from where you lived before, or did you get a new one when you came here?"

"Ah..." Arthur started embarrassedly "I kept my old job...It's sort of a business I started...I help ghosts move on from this world"

The German blinked at him. "Isn't that...a little..."

"I know it sounds weird, but it really does help people. Although, at my old home everyone described me as the 'crazy guy who talks to ghosts' because of it" Arthur laughed nervously. "But...It is a useful job...Some ghosts who are in this world can turn violent. This can either make them dangerous or extremely annoying..."

There was a sudden thudding down the stairs, followed by a call of "Artiiiiie!"

"Speaking of annoying..." Arthur muttered under his breath.

"Hey, Artie!" Alfred yelled as he burst into the room. "Gilbert can see Kiku!"

Arthur was about to make some kind of sarcastic remarke about this, but then remembered who Kiku was. Or rather, what he was. "He can? But..."

He stood up as Gilbert entered the room, slower yet somehow more urgently then Alfred had "Why can I see that Japanese ghost guy?" he asked immediately, gesturing to Kiku who was dithering slightly by the door to the living room. "And how can I not see him? I mean, being able to talk to ghosts is probably pretty awesome, but seeing dead people is still kind of freaky, and-!"

"Brother" Ludwig cut in. "What are you talking about?"

"The ghost that lives here! I just met him. He's some super polite Japanese man called Kiku! See?" Gilbert pointed at Kiku, who had somehow found the courage to go into the room fully.

Ludwig looked at the place where Kiku was standing blankly. "But, brother...There's no one there..."

All eyes in the room turned to the blonde German in surprise, causing Ludwig to wonder what he had said to make them stare at him like that.

"You really can't see him?" Gilbert finally asked.

Ludwig shook his head. "No...I really can't see anyone there..."

While Gilbert and Ludwig were still half talking, half arguing about whether Kiku was truly there or not, Alfred stepped towards Arthur.

"Artie, shouldn't Ludwig be able to see Kiku too if Gilbert can?" Alfred whispered.

Arthur shrugged. "I'm not too sure about how psychic powers work. What could be a trigger to allow someone to see spirits could have absolutely no effect on someone else. Take you and your own brother, for example"

Alfred nodded, a little stiffly. "Hey...um...is it okay if you don't use my brother as an example? You know that I've not spoken to him in about...four years..."

"Ah...right..." Arthur said sheepishly. "Sorry..."

"It's fine...it's just..." Alfred sighed sadly. "I never told him I went to live with you...I didn't even tell him we moved out here...And I kind of miss him..."

The Brit looked at him, almost sympathetically. "Alfred...You should probably know...I've-"

"Hey, you two!" Gilbert yelled suddenly. "Tell him I'm not crazy!" he whined as he pointed at Ludwig, sounding very much like a small child on the loosing end of an argument.

"Gilbert-san" Kiku said nervously "I don't think you're crazy, so..."

"Hey, you're the reason he thinks I'm insane!" Gilbert snapped, causing Kiku to shrink away in alarm.

Ludwig stared at Gilbert worriedly, wondering why his brother was shouting at air. "I don't think you're crazy" he said slowly. "But most people would think that you need some kind of help if you start talking to...well...nothing"

"I'm not!" Gilbert moaned. "Alfred, Arthur, tell him!"

"Brother, maybe we should go home...Maybe you're just tired..." Ludwig grabbed the albino's shoulder. "Thanks for the tea" Ludwig said to Arthur, ignoring his brother's complaints.

"No problem" Arthur said simply. He looked at Alfred and gestured to Ludwig. The American smiled as he understood what Arthur meant, for once.

"Yo, Ludwig! You should come visit some other time! You know..." Alfred chatted to the German rapidly, barely letting Ludwig get a word in edgeways.

"There are only a few things you need to know" Arthur whispered to Gilbert while Ludwig was distracted. "First, ghosts like Kiku, who hold no malice, are generally safe to talk to. Try and stay away from restless ghosts. They're the ones who usually died in fear or saddness, and they can turn violent easily. If they start following you around, then they probably want your help. And you really need to stay away from ghosts who died full of anger. They're almost always dangerous, and will most likely try to kill you"

Gilbert stared at Arthur, trying to find any sign that the Brit was joking. "But...how can I tell which is which-?"

"Brother" Ludwig cut in "We need to go" he managed to pull Gilbert into the hallway, even though the slightly smaller German was struggling as hard as he could. "I'm sure you'll be able to visit then again another time" he nodded a goodbye to the two he could see, closing the front door behind him.

"So..." Alfred said after an awkward silence "Kiku, want to go back to playing Mario Cart?"

This chapter was half planned, half made up on the spot XD But I do have plans for this story ^0^ One day, we'll go into detail about Alfred and why he hasn't spoken to his brother (Matthew, in case you don't know XD) in so long XD And about Arthur's past too, and how he and Alfred started seeing ghosts and how they met...Anyway, please review and tell me what you think ^_^