"No!" Feliciano leaped out of his seat. "I can't stay here! This world is a nightmare!"

"Excuse you," Lutz crossed his arms. "It's our world."

"Look how weird you guys are!"

Kuro gave his housemate a blank look. "According to Feliciano-san, we are the weird ones."

Oliver snickered. "I think it is more understandable if you ever experience his world through your own eyes, or shall I say the eyes of your counterpart?"

"What is all this hype of the other world?" Lutz asked, "What is so amazing about it that made Luciano leave us?"

"What is not amazing?" Oliver sighed dreamily. "There is free art! There is no fear to laugh and show happiness! Not to mention the grass!"

"Grass?" Lutz echoed.

"It's green!" Feliciano chirped, but then frowned. "I made myself sad."

Oliver rubbed his back, coaxing him to take a seat again. "One of the most luscious greens I have ever seen. You would never find a vibrant color like that here."

"That's not true," Feliciano piped up. "Many people looked drained and duller than usual, but you and your bakery have bright looks unlike the others!"

"Aren't you sweet?" He turned to Kuro and Lutz. "It remains a mystery why you two want him gone so hastily."

"The crying," Kuro simply said.

Oliver ignored him to face Feliciano. "You are one of the few people brave enough to compliment someone. It is dreadful to say that my appearance made me a victim of harassment in my youth."

"That's awful!"

"It was, but you know what? All those silly children are bums at the moment." Oliver glanced to the table's other occupants. "Most of them, at least."

Feliciano giggled. "I thought you were kind of scary at first, Ollie! I didn't know you were in my world!"

"They say you learn something new everyday!"

"I have learned that you two can jabber all day if given the chance," Kuro hissed, reminding them of his presence. "Since you liked that world so much, why did you not stay in it?"

"That is harsh!" Oliver chided. He rose to his feet and walked to the main counter in a great huff. "Arthur and I had an altercation about the switching process. He said if I wanted his body so bad, then I had to fight for it."

"Did you?" Feliciano's eyes jumped from the baker's face to the dark cupcakes he set on the table. The other two men leaned back on their chairs, giving the treats distasteful glares.

"Yes, and I lost. However," Oliver's nose crinkled as his grin died. "I am not ashamed. Arthur won fairly, and I am glad I even had the opportunity to lay eyes on a place like that!" He grabbed a cupcake and peeled off the wrapper. "Talking about it is rather upsetting, and I could only know how much pain it brings to you, now that you know you cannot return to it."

Feliciano slumped in his chair. "What am I going to do?"

Kuro shot up. "Since Luciano-san is not going to come back, then you will simply need to take his place."

"No!" Feliciano cried out. "I can never be someone I am not! I don't belong here!"

"Then you better learn how!" Kuro seethed, "Rather than bawl your eyes out all day about something you cannot change, be useful!"

"Luciano left for a reason," Lutz sighed, unwillingly coming to terms with the lost. "He will not want to come back. Like Kuro said, crying will not get anything done. The world is still turning."

Oliver feverishly nodded, gulping down his pastry with a little giggle. "It will be splendid for little Feliciano to show the ways of his world to the people who need it!"

Lutz put in, "He will need to be integrated as a normal human of society first."

"None of that crying either," said Kuro.

"I think if we could keep the friendly aspect, but train him in weaponry, our lives will be a little easier."

"W-what?" Feliciano quietly gasped. "Hey, you guys!"

"Hai, he will need to learn not to scream at the sight of a blade," Kuro put his fingers to his mouth thoughtfully.

Feliciano slammed his hands on the table and wailed, "Why are you talking about me as if I am not right here?!" The two men jumped back. Oliver nearly dropped the cupcake he held up to his face. "I don't want to change anything I am just to fit in!"

"Feliciano, this is important," Oliver patted one of his hands. "Perhaps not a complete personality change, but it will be best if everyone else around you keeps thinking you are Luciano. Dream worlds leading to alternate universes? Someone will cut your tongue out for talking like a mad man."

"N-no!"

"Yes, my dear Feli," Oliver sounded like he was becoming irritated. "This world is fragile. If you want to be yourself, it will have to be a little at a time. Let people get used to things like smiles and unmasked tears of sadness. It will make their lives and yours from here on out much better." Feliciano did not say anything; he gazed down at his hands with watery eyes. Oliver picked up a new cupcake from the tray and held it up. "Eat something. I'm sure with the whole worldly switching occurrence, you did not find the time to put something in your tummy."

"W-wait, Oliver," Lutz started.

The fresh scent made Feliciano's stomach gurgle, and he plucked the treat from Oliver's hands. Lutz and Kuro stared at him in horror as he nibbled at the strangely colored pastry before exclaiming in surprise. "It tastes good!"

"Of course it does!" Oliver chuckled, and murmured in a lower voice, "They are my cupcakes, after all."

"N-no...you shouldn't..." Lutz held a hand out toward Feliciano, but the Italian pulled away and chomped on the treat more gluttonously.

"Let him eat it," Kuro sighed, looking away from the sight. "Half of it is already in his stomach."

Feliciano shoved the remaining treat in his mouth. "What's wrong? Don't you guys want any? They're delicious!"

"Yes, something is wrong," Oliver narrowed his eyes, and edged the plate of cupcakes closer to them. "You fellows do not have cupcakes in your hands!"

Lutz pushed the tray toward him. "Nor do we want any."

Oliver pushed it back. "Why? Afraid something will bite you?"

"I am not stupid," Lutz shoved the platter more forcibly. "I know what is in these."

Feliciano guessed, "Cupcake batter?"

Kuro huffed, putting a hand against his forehead. "Enough squabbling already. What are you two, children?"

Lutz leaned over to Feliciano. "There's people inside of these things."

Feliciano's mouth gaped open. Violet crumbs tumbled out of his mouth and onto the pastel blue table.

Oliver chuckled as if he were in pain. "Is that the new thing? No wonder business has been slow lately." His fingernails dug into the table. "First I used my own spit to clean the floors and now I put human body parts into my recipes. Splendid. Absolutely splendid."

"S-so I am not eating dead people?" Feliciano squeaked, looking at the cupcake in his hands.

Lutz reclined on his chair. "Not this time."

"It was only once!" Oliver spat, his cheeks flushing red. "And that was an accident!"

"Right, accident," the other man nodded.

Oliver's arms shot out to latch onto Lutz's ears and pull them from the sides of his head. "You rude, little, cupcake-hating wanker!"

Lutz batted him away easily with a strong arm. Kuro looked on in vague amusement. "That is not something you hear everyday. Lutz-san being a cupcake hating wanker."

Oliver slapped a hand over his mouth and plopped in his seat, his entire face growing red beneath the flurry of freckles. Feliciano nudged his shoulder, and offered him the last cupcake.

"You know what I think, Kuro?" Lutz nudged his housemate while rubbing an ear.

Kuro leaned in and sighed. "Not that many things, I am sure. What is it?"

Lutz snorted, ignoring his comment. He glanced at Oliver, who was cupping his face in his palms while Feliciano patted and rubbed his shoulder in reassurance. "Oh, gosh! I have such a potty mouth! What would mother say?"

"Ve, it wasn't too bad! I heard worse from my brother!"

With a rumble of amusement, Lutz continued, "I'm thinking that without Luciano being up our asses all the time anymore, things will become more bearable. I mean, we did not completely lose him..."

"Yes, we can still look at Luciano-san, only we will not deal with him being a brat. Lutz-san, you may be right for once."