It was that time again. Germania had risen from bed earlier than usual to prepare himself for the day's events. It was boar season and each family was preparing to send their men off to bring back a beast for food and other such necessities. Seeing as both Gilbert and Roderich were far too young for the trip, they were to stay home. Dressed in a heavy tunic for the cold day ahead, he prepared his quiver and bow, making sure the arrows were sharp to pierce through the boar's thick hide. Those that didn't pass the test were sharpened by running them across a strip of leather; he prayed to the goddess of bow hunting, Skadi, to bless his arrows. He needed this hunt to go well. The meat would easily feed the family for months, providing food for the night's festivities, fur for warmth for the coming winter months, and smoked meat to be eaten later.

And even though he had attempted to be as quiet as possible, the little ears of his children picked up on the movement without much effort. Rising from his shared bed with Roderich, Gilbert sat up and rubbed his eyes. "M-Mutti..." he mumbled out as he slowly reached for his wooden sword. The other slowly stirred as the warmth left the bed.

"It's alright Teuton. Go back to sleep. It's not even sunrise yet." Germania did not look up from his preparation as he tied his belt on.

"Nein! I want to go with you. "Gilbert grabbed his dirty tunic and sleepily attempted to put it on to join the tall blond in his hunt. "No boar stands a chance against the awesome me."

Germania picked him up and set him back into the bed, not letting him get away. "Your job is to protect Ostarrîche. I thought we agreed that." The stubborn child instantly sat up and tried to get out of the bed once more. "When you are much older I will take you on the boar hunt, but for now your job is to watch Ostarrîche. I can't trust anyone else with that task but you."

Such words were just enough to keep Gilbert at home. "Ja Mutti…" He sat in his bed as Roderich stirred to life.

"Mutti? Why are you leaving?" Roderich looked up from his pillow with sad purple eyes. "Do you not love us anymore?"

Germania slipped on his cloak, setting it on with the bronze pin. "Teuton will be taking care of you today. I will be back before nightfall with food." With that, he leaned down and kissed both of their heads.

Both children watched as he walked to the door to finally leave with the rest of the men. Just before the door shut behind him, Teuton was there to bid farewell.

"Bye Mutti! Don't die!"

Germania instantly stopped and looked back at the child. He always said something along the lines of that before he left to do anything. Before he turned back around to leave, he gave one last message to Gilbert in case he attempted to leave the house. "Goodbye Teuton. May Woden look after you and Ostarrîche. There is a large wolf hunting the area and taking little boys away that step outside without their parent's permission, to drag them off to the forest to feast on their flesh as they cry out in sheer agony." With a look of horror, Gilbert shut the door and barricaded him and Roderich inside.

Ja. That worked.

No one entered the forest together. To each man, their responsibility was for their own catch. Germania entered at the farthest reaches of the village. He preferred to hunt alone. It was not that he didn't trust anyone, it was his time to be alone. While he was hunting, he was no longer a physical manifestation of a nation, a father of two small children, nor the enemy of the Roman Empire. He was just a hunter. Animals did not bow to those of higher rank. All were equal in Teutoburgerwald.

With his long hair tied back to keep it out of his face, Germania crept though the bush, silently stalking his prey. Broken branches were his guide to his prize. As the sun sluggishly moved through the thick canopy, the animals in the forest stirred to life. Birds sang, squirrels leapt from branch to branch and finally… There it was. The entire reason Germania had come. A large brown boar scraping the tree with its long sharp tusks took little to no heed of the Germanic nation. Out of stupidity or other, he did not seem to care. Moving closer, he slipped the arrow into the bowstring and pulled back. The sinew rolled gracefully off his fingers and sent the arrow flying towards its target. In the whistling noise, he could hear Scandia's voice…

"Don't leave me alone!" Scandia cried as he held onto his brother's shirt. "What if a wolf tries to eat me?"

Theodericus stared at his little brother as he grabbed the small woven basket, left to them by their mother. "Niklas, I am going to get dinner. I won't be long. Stay by the tent and I told you to start calling me Ulrich. I don't like that name!" The blond children looked at each other with similar emotions. One was sad the other irritated, but they were both worried.

"Just ask the people to share some of their food with us, that way you won't have to leave." Scandia wiped tears from his face. The brothers lived in a small tent, away from the rest of the villagers. To tell the truth, Ulrich had no connection to the people. He felt like he didn't belong and that was not his teenage hormones talking. Niklas had warmed up to them instantly. Having a better understanding of their powers and duties as nations, Ulrich knew these weren't his people and he would have to leave soon to find his land, just like their sister had done…

"I'll be back before dark. I am only gathering nuts and rabbits for dinner." Ulrich pointed to his small hunting knife on his belt. With that, he was off into the forest. His small rabbit traps worked…in a sense. The animals had been lured by berries and fell into a pit due to an unstable top, hidden by foliage. They had been stuck, until they jumped out of the shallow pits. Ulrich cursed at the gods loudly and bit his lip, trying to keep the tears back.

It was while he wasn't paying attention that something sneaked up on him from behind. Ulrich's tears and sobs made it impossible to hear the sound of something moving through the bushes. A loud squeal caught his attention. A small baby boar moved towards the crying child in curiosity. This had to be a gift from the gods. Pulling out his small hunting dagger, he grabbed the piglet's ear to keep it from running. This squeal was much shriller and louder than before. Before the boy could even react, he watched as the mother boar, tusks sharpened, charged at him to protect her offspring.

Ulrich had no time to move. Dropping the knife and letting go of the boar, he ran as fast as his small legs could take him. But it wasn't fast enough.

A searing pain moved up Ulrich's back as the boar gave one last squeal. Walking over to his prize, he retrieved the arrow and looked down at the animal. It let out raspy, shallow breathes as it struggled to stay alive. He knelt down next to the creature and began to gently stroke his head. "I thank you for helping to keep me and my sons alive. May your spirit find peace and rest in the next world." His knife moved swiftly across the animal's throat and with that, the forest was silent again.

With his prize on his shoulders, he walked back towards the village. Towards home. But as he came within view of the house, he saw something strange. Something different, but familiar. The horse at the door way was not his, nor anyone else's that lived in the area. Setting down the boar, he got a small glimpse of the bridle, and the elaborate decorations finally told him who was here. Throwing open the door, he found his boys sitting near Rome as he told a story.

"And then I stood up and declared 'Veni, vidi, vici'!" The Roman looked up just in time to see a boot flying in his face. Before he could react, he was on the floor with the boot pressed against his face.

"What did I tell you? Stay the hell away from me and my family!" Germania's voice thundered in the house as he pressed down harder. The boys didn't say a word or protest their father's actions. They knew better than to say anything when Germania was this mad.

Rome turned his head to the side to try and save his nose from being broken. "I didn't come for the boys! I'm here for you!"

Bad choice. Germania ground his foot harder into the olive skin. It never struck him that Rome was not fighting back. That he was just laying there without drawing his weapon. "You're a disgusting pervert!"

"I need a bodyguard! I am willing to pay!" Rome grunted from the force of the boot.

"What makes you think I have need of your Roman gold?"

"It doesn't take a genius to see that your barely making ends meet."

Germania stopped and pulled his foot away, although this time, it came to rest on Rome's chest. "My life does not concern you."

Rome's face did not stop showing pain as the boot removed itself from his skin. There were marks and dirt on his face. "Is it wrong for a person to worry about their friends?"

With that, Ulrich stepped back and stood in front of his children as Rome finally stood back up. He couldn't help but look at him with a confused look on his face. Friends? Since when were they friends? Germania had completely massacred the Roman legions over a decade ago. Could he have already forgotten? "So you want me to come live with you in your capital as your bodyguard? What of my children? What shall I do with them?" The last thing he wanted to hear was that he would be allowed to bring them with him.

"No. Just you Germania." Rome gave him a smile and started walking to the door.

"And what would you have me do with the children?" Germania didn't know if he liked that answer or not. Alone with Rome… That could lead to a number of things; none of which Ulrich wanted to experience.

"I recall that you have a sister. Leave them with her. From what I know, she has a son of her own so they will have someone to play with." He opened the door with a smile and peeked back in. "I'll have your villa ready by the month's end. Vale Germania~"

And with that, the Roman was gone.

Germania stood in his house completely speechless. For once, the encounter with Rome hadn't ended with sex or a fight… Though Rome had a point. He was in desperate need of money and farming wasn't going to cut it this year. Only a few families in the village would be able to feed every family member.

"Mutti?" Gilbert's soft voice finally broke through the silence in the house, terrified to even speak up. "Are you going to leave us?"

Germania looked down to the two small boys and felt that pain from the looks in their eyes. It was something he had not been prepared for. Kneeling down, he scooped both of them up into a tight hug. "I must. I don't have much for you two to eat and with this job, I would have enough for that." He didn't want to leave, but in reality, he had no choice.

Within the week, both boys had their things packed into the wagon and the home was left in the stead of a local family.

"How long will you be gone then Mutti?" asked Gilbert as his wooden eagle was busy getting pecked to death by Roderich's two headed one.

"I imagine a few years. Not very long. Just enough to get through the hard times." Germania honestly had no idea how long he would be gone. After all, employment didn't last a lifetime, did it?

Through the forest they traveled and over the Rhine. With the boys settled at Gaul's house, they quickly became friends with the woman's son, a blonde child that looked very similar to his mother in every way.

By the end of the month, Germania was in Rome. A place he had never hoped to see again in his lifetime.

( I would just like to apologize to my readers for my severe lack of updating. The story has been worked on in a sense, but I have just had difficulty with everything. I moved to a new city and started at a new school so that has been… fun.

A special thank you to all those who have stuck by me and will continue to read. Hopefully I will be able to get back into the swing of things and get this back on track.

A Merry Christmas to you all. And thank you. )