A/N at bottom
May 30, 1631
Matthieu and his friends sat in the cool May air, waiting for their brothers to pick them up. They had spent a full together, and they were all tired. As Matthieu looked out into the distance, he made out the shape of Gilbert and Antonio, but no Francis. As the duo approached, he voiced his concerns.
"Hey, where's Francis?" Gilbert and Antonio looked at each other, nervous expressions on their faces. Antonio bent down to Matthieu's eye level.
"Today, Romano and I will walk you home."
"But why?" Matthieu asked, concern creeping into his voice.
"Francis just had a lot of meetings today. You shouldn't worry about it," Gilbert answered.
"Oh. Okay then. Bye Ludwig." And with that, Matthieu turned and walked away with Romano and Antonio.
"Hello? Is anybody home?" Matthieu opened his front door and walked into his house. Receiving no answer, he called out again.
"Hello? Francis?"
"In here!" Francis responded from his bedroom. Matthieu followed the sound of his voice and found him sitting on his bed.
"Francis, are you alright? You look tired."
"Oh, I'm fine Matthieu. I just had a lot of work today. Now, how about I made us some food?" This was met with great enthusiasm from Matthieu, who ran to get ready for dinner.
That night, something woke Matthieu while he was sleeping. Matthieu hid under his blankets, hoping it would go away, but his curiosity got the better of him. He quietly got out of bed, determined to find the source of the noise. He crept throughout his house, careful not to wake Francis. When he passed his front door, he realized that it was open. Standing on the threshold, he peered out into the darkness. He could vaguely make out the shape of his brother, hurrying along in the distance. Fighting the urge to run back to his bed, he stepped out into the night.
He followed Francis from the shadows, determined not to be seen.
"What could Francis be doing alone in the dark?" Matthieu thought. Eventually, Francis came to a halt. They had been walking for some time now, and Matthieu was glad for the break. Francis stood in front of a gravestone, looking down. After a minute, his shoulders began to heave. Matthieu had never seen Francis cry before. As far back as he could remember, Francis had always been smiling and happy. The sight of him this upset deeply unnerved Matthieu. Deciding to break the silence, he approached his brother.
"Francis, what's wrong?" Francis turned around expectantly, as if he know Matthieu had been following him. He didn't, however, answer Matthieu's question. He asked again:
"Francis, who is this?" Francis looked down at the gravestone, a look of devastation on his face.
"She... was the woman I loved." At this, Francis began to sob. The two sat for a moment, the only sound being the Frenchman's cries.
"What was her name?" Matthieu whispered.
"...Jeanne. Jeanne d'Arc," choked out Francis.
"What happened to her?" At this, Francis began to cry even harder. Recollecting himself, he said:
"She was burned at the stake." Matthieu gasped in shock.
"What? Why? When? That's terrible, to die like tha-" Matthieu was cut off by another sob from his brother. He waited a moment before asking his next question.
"Who did this to her?"
"Oh, my dear Matthieu. I don't want you to end up like me. Vengeful with so many enemies."
"Please Francis, I want to know." Francis let out a long breath.
"Arthur. A man named Arthur Kirkland. Now please, no more questions. I just want to sit in silence for a while." Wordlessly, Matthieu hugged his brother, and they sat in the quiet night for hours.
And already, Matthieu had made an important decision. He hated Arthur Kirkland. He hated him for what he did to his brother. This "Arthur" was the only man who had ever made Francis so upset. Matthieu didn't even know if he was still alive, but he made one vow to himself.
If he ever met Arthur, he would refuse to look him in the eye, and he would never forget this night spent in darkness.
And that's your chapter! As always, criticisms are very welcome! South Italy and Canada have each had a chapter, so Germany might have one next! Next chapter next Friday!