Lovino was the first to step into the farmland, wasting no time looking back as he continued his walk along the now dirt road. He did, however, keep his guard up, taking glances at the corn stalks that grew to each side of him. In this world's silence, he would have no warning before something attacked. And he wasn't sure they were safe in this part of the world. Hell, he wasn't entirely sure they were in his world anymore. Everything looked like a normal farm he would find along in the countryside, but a nagging feeling in his gut told him it wasn't. Lovino both hated and loved how his gut had a keen instinct on being right.
Matthew followed behind, taking the glance behind him that Lovino hadn't. The glance turned into a long stare. He hadn't taken two steps and the city they had once occupied had now vanished. The same fields that surrounded him seemed to go on forever behind him. He quickly looked around him for his friends, a small bit of relief filling him when he saw they were still near. Lovino continued to walk ahead, but didn't seem to be gaining much distance from him. Gilbert remained at his side, staring at the same spectacle Matthew had.
"Freaky..." The albino mumbled as he looked around at the crops that surrounded them. "We should catch up, yeah?" He sent Matthew a small smile that did a worse job at hiding his nervousness that he would of liked. Matthew nodded, beginning a slow jog to catch up with Lovino. Gilbert waited behind a moment, his hand roaming to his pocket to insure that its contents was still there. He wasn't sure how it could have fallen out in the few steps he had taken, but he suddenly felt the need to check. The feather was still there, having notably grown warmer. He concluded that it was most likely because of his body heat and made no other assumptions. He rubbed the soft object with his thumb before catching up to his friend, and then to their companion.
"Have you ever seen anything like that before?" Matthew asked as he arrived at Lovino's side, happy that his pace had finally slowed to one that he could keep up with. Lovino scowled.
"I've seen my share of strange shit in this world, but nothing like that." He glared at their surroundings, seeming to inspect each row of corn they passed. His high defenses were not over looked by the other two.
"How safe do you think we are here?" Gilbert asked, now also feeling the need to watch the multitude of stalks around them. The road seemed to grow thinner as they moved, the crops coming closer and allowing the trio to see how tall and tightly packed they really were. They easily rose above all three men, having the ability to hide anything among them. They would have no idea if anything, or a pack of anything, was watching their every movement.
"I honestly have no fucking idea." Lovino sighed, returning his eyes to the road before him. He took in the sight of the barn that sat in the distance. They hadn't been walking long, but it should have been closer by now. Yet it still stood at the same distance away from them, maintaining the same run down look. He had seen many buildings like it before, and could easily conclude that the owner had become a beast many years ago. The building was left to rot, with no one able to go out of their routine to do anything about it. When they finally arrived at it, it would be long empty, dusty, but not looted. Perhaps there was a farm house around that went along with it, in the same situation but with more valuable items for them. Lovino continuously told himself all of this, but remained intimidated by its presence.
"What should we worry about? There aren't any beasts in the day." Matthew smiled, hoping to rationalize the group's fears.
"I haven't been to an area like this. It's unlikely, but there could be something other than beasts here." Lovino explained, leaving Matthew with more worry than before.
"Like what?" Gilbert asked, still scanning the fields around them for any and all movement.
"I don't know. I've never seen anything other than people and beasts here."
"Then how do you know there is anything at all?" Gilbert's eyes rested on Matthew, growing slightly angry with how scared the boy seemed. "If you haven't seen anything, then we're probably fine, right?"
"I know more than you do, but I don't know everything about this world. A prime example is the change between city and farm." Gilbert sighed, knowing fully well that Lovino's warnings were justified. He walked closer to his Birdie, placing an arm over his shoulder. Matthew lightly smiled at him before returning his watch to the crops.
As they continued to move, the crops thinned and shortened. They began looking unhealthy, bending over and beginning to wilt. Though it was now easy to see that there was no danger surrounding them, the sigh was still unsettling to the group. There had to be some reason for the crops death, and poor soil didn't seem to be a believable option. The sky was growing darker as evening approached, encouraging the three to walk faster towards the barn that had since become reasonably closer.
"We'll spend the night there." Lovino stated, having explained that it would be empty. "Unless you want to keep mov-"
"We're staying there." Matthew cut him off, his eyes continuing to check around them for anything that could harm them. Lovino nodded as they finally reached the old barn. It was large, pain peeling and holding a sinister aurora. It most likely held many things back in it's day, some of which were most likely still inside. It dawned on Lovino that he didn't know the exact purpose of barns. Holding crops until they were shipped? Then they wouldn't be as fresh... He pushed the thought away, continuing to look over the building.
It had begun to fall apart, holes in the roof being easily visible and stray wooden boards surrounding the area outside. The trio could only pray that it was stable as they worked to open the large doors. Before it had opened an inch, a putrid smell reached the three. They stopped their work, each taking time to cough and recover.
"We would hear a beast." Lovino looked at the building in disgust, unsure of what could cause such a smell. "We would have disturbed it by now."
"Maybe we should go somewhere else?" Matthew suggested, looking around the barnyard for any other building. In the late evening, he couldn't see much but faint outlines of crops and fences. A loud, menacing growl from the path they had walked encouraged them to continued working their way into the barn, horrible smell or not.
They entered in, shutting the heavy doors firmly behind them and inspected the area with their last amounts of daylight. The source of the smell was now obvious, as they saw each stall in the barn hosting two or more dead and decomposing animals. Cows, pigs, horses, sleeps, all normal farm animals that had been starved to death in the absence of their owner. Lovino walked past the stalls slowly, looking over them in shock.
"You act like you've never seen a cow before." Gilbert laughed as he sat himself down on a pile of hay. Lovino looked over to him, them back to the animals. Gilbert's laughter faded when he didn't receive the sarcastic answer he was expecting. "You haven't?"
"No, I haven't." They were of his world. He could tell by the lack of color they had. They were just something he had never seen before. "Cows..." He thought aloud, looking at the animals that laid before him. If only he had seen some alive...
"They aren't all cows." Matthew arrives at his side, a small smile on his lips as he readied himself to teach his friend something else that seemed so simple. "The spotted ones are cows. The ones covered in wool are sheep. The taller ones are horses and the smaller ones are pigs. Their all farm animals."
"Animals," Lovino repeated, taking in the new information. "So that is what a barn is for." He turned away from the death and pretended as he if didn't care much about what he had learned. Matthew said farm animals, so there were more animals? He wanted to see them, alive preferably. He lit his candle and laid it safely away from anything that could catch fire. He sat on the same pile of hay Gilbert did, leaving room in between them for Matthew.
"How come you've never heard of them? It's obviously not something that isn't here." Gilbert asked, looking up at the sky through one of the many holes on the roof.
"I just haven't." Lovino sighed, closing his eyes to rest. "I've just never been in a barn to see them, I guess."
"We learn a lot about them when we're little in our world." Matthew explained, taking his place between the two. "Helps us learn how to read, learn colors, bunch of things. And most people want to know where their products come from. Like milk from cows, bacon from pigs. You have all that here, don't you?"
"Of course. Just never thought about it, I guess." Lovino sighed loudly. These things seemed so simple and yet he didn't know them. He always thought of himself as a man to seek answers. Apparently he wasn't asking enough questions.
Lovino and Matthew fell asleep rather easily, despite the many noises from outside that were strange even to this world. Lovino leaned back into the hay, his arms crossed and legs stretched out. Matthew was curled up, his head resting on Gilbert's arm. Gilbert couldn't help but smile at them, noticing how innocent they seemed as they slept. Had he not been here with them, he never would have guessed what the two were actually like. Lovino, a rude and annoying man born into a horrible, colorless world. And Matthew, a quiet boy who almost died and ended up here, wanting nothing but to go home.
Gilbert sighed, his mind wondering just to Matthew and his life before all of this. He knew a small amount about his family, yes, but not much else. He wondered where he lived, where he went to school, what his daily life had been life. More on his mind, he wondered what tragedy brought his Birdie here. This world was cruel. Yes, they couldn't die here, go hungry or feel as much physical pain as they should, but that didn't make it anything spectacular. It shouldn't be a place for Matthew to end up.
Gilbert remembered the car accident that brought him here. His father was driving, he sat in the passenger's seat and Ludwig in the back. They were on their way to see their mother's grave. He couldn't remember much before the impact, just the picture of the speeding truck going the wrong way towards them and the feeling of his father's arm across his chest. Then he was there, alone in the highway, surrounded by his own blood. His first thought had been of Ludwig. He had screamed his name, not even noticing that both his father's truck and the one that hit them was gone. His realization had been slow, first noticing how much blood had coming from seemingly nowhere. He should have been in more pain, had more cuts and bruises, something. It was then he noticed the striking contrast between him and the monochrome world around him. It took a while for it to set in that he was no longer home in his world. Evening had set on the world by the time he moved from his spot on the highway.
But Gilbert could understand his place here. He wasn't a model student, far from. He had spent a good amount of time getting to know the local police when he was a younger teen. And not because he had been aspiring to become one. Anything he thought of not to do, he could remember a time doing it. Karma had brought him here for his bad deeds, he was sure. But Matthew wasn't like him. There was no way he could ever be as he was. As far as Gilbert was concerned, this world was fit for the people karma selected.
Or those who tried to take their own life. Gilbert pondered the possibility a moment, of Matthew committing such a deed. No, impossible. Matthew was far too sweet and caring. He wouldn't cause his family that pain, even if he hated his life. Gilbert smiled at his Birdie, relived at his conclusion. He hated those who committed suicide. Life was a precious gift that could be stolen at any moment. He had learned that when his mother died. It had left his family so broken, a wound that could never fully heal. A person taking their own life is selfish. They don't think of what they leave behind. The people who will mourn over them, day after day after day. They can't see the pain it causes. They hate themselves, while there is always someone that still loves them. It's so stupid.
Gilbert was pulled from his thoughts by a growing warmth in his pocket. He pulled out the feather, surprised that it could grow so warm. He was sure it couldn't be his body heat. No, the feather had grown warmer throughout the day, as they progressed to the barn and settled down. Gilbert couldn't help but become worried by its purpose. His first thought had been that it grew warmer as they approached something, perhaps the object. Yet its heat still intensified now that they were done moving. What if, whatever it was leading them to, was coming to them...? A bright yellow warning sign.
Morning came, leaving Gilbert without any sleep. The light trickling in through the holes in the roof and the new silence brought him a feeling of safety. Matthew mumbled beside him, the light hitting his head in such a manner to wake him. He tossed and turned for a moment, before coming to and sitting up. Gilbert watched as he rubbed his eyes, hay sticking out from his slightly messy hair. He chuckled as he began brushing his friend's hair with his fingers, removing what didn't belong as he did.
"Good morning." Matthew stretched and yawned, taking in the sight of the barn and remembering the day prior. Gilbert patted his head when he finished.
"Good morning, Birdie." He responded with a bright smile, standing from the pile of hay and popping his back. "Wake up Lovi and lets get out of this smelly place." The feather's warmth spread across his torso. Gilbert acknowledged it, but decided not to tell Matthew just yet. As long as they moved, they should be alright. He could inform him and Lovino of what he thought its purpose was later.
"Gilbert," Gilbert turned back to his friend when he noticed the worry in his tone. Matthew now leaned over Lovino, his hands on his shoulders. "He's not waking up." He stated quietly, lightly shaking the man.
"Damn it, Lovino..." Gilbert moved to his side, ushering Matthew to step back. He uncrossed Lovino's arms, finding that his blood had soaked his shirt and the hay below him. Gilbert cursed under his breath, quickly checking his pulse. It was weak, but he was still miraculously alive. Gilbert would question how when he knew he would be alright. He roughly shook Lovino, the man remaining limp and unconscious. "Wake up, damn it!" He began shouting, continuing to shake and hope.
"Gilbert, you... You're smoking!" Matthew pointed to Gilbert's pocket, causing him to stop his attempts to wake Lovino and attend to the burning material. Though not on fire, the feather quickly burned a hole through his pocket and too his stomach, making him hiss in pain. He tossed it onto the ground before it could burn his hand or anything else. Before he could return to Lovino's aid, s sudden loud shriek radiated through the the barn. Gilbert looked up to the roof, finding the silhouette of a massive wingspan above them. "We need to grab Lovino and go." Matthew stated, ready to help carry the man.
"We can't run from that thing, Birdie." Gilbert looked down to the feather, internally cursing himself for being right about the it's purpose. He needed a plan, quickly. He bit his lip, looking around the barn as they heard the winged creature landing on the roof. "Help me hide Lovino in the hay."
A/N: Holiday break is coming up soon, so the next chapter could be up really quick. Or all of the holiday madness could keep it from coming until next year. If the second is the case, then I wish you all a happy holidays!