Apology time~! I'm sorry I haven't updated in almost two months! There are plenty of good reasons I haven't been working on this in my loads of free time. Seriously. Mostly I've been applying to colleges early and working on some original stuff I hope to be mostly finished with by the time school starts back. But I still haven't given up on this fic, so don't worry! I'm just being really lame and slow. XD

On another note: THE FAULT IN OUR STARS THE FAULT IN OUR STARS READ IT READ IT REEEEAAAAD IIIIIIIIIT.

Nianzu- Macau

Chapter 21-

Feliciano bit his lip as he twiddled his hair. He just couldn't get used to the darker shade, even if he saw it all the time on Lovino's head. His eyes flickered to Ludwig, anxiously mouthing out the Dutch sign posts, trying to decipher it. He was failing miserably. Feliciano opened his mouth, but shut it, well aware that his input certainly would not be helpful. But he had been trying so hard to keep it in.

What was he thinking. He couldn't hold it in any longer. "…I think we're-"

"WE ARE NOT LOST," Ludwig cut Feliciano off before he could even ask the question. Kiku and Lili shared the same look they been giving one another all morning. They were definitely lost, worsening Ludwig's already sour attitude. They couldn't exactly blame him for being angry, though- when they realized that all maps and directions had been in Matthew's possession, everyone pretty much exploded. It was thanks to Lili, too terrified of her father to be affected by this sort of revelation, that they made it out of the airport and away from Vash and Lovino's clutches. As for how they escaped detection on the plane….

Well, they made a mutual agreement to never speak of that ever again.

Ever.

Lili set to mediating between Feliciano and Ludwig, assuring them that they would get through to Alice soon. She would be able to help them find their hotel, and everything would be fine! Plus, it was nearly impossible for Vash to find them while they were on the streets. They would be safe, and Lovino would never have to know about their hideous alibi.

The mere thought of their kiss made Ludwig blanch. He took a deep breath, taking Lili's words of assurance to heart. She was right, of course. Even with this minor setback, the odds were in their favor. "Kiku, has Alice answered her phone yet?"

"I'm afraid not," he reported, putting his phone back in his pocket. "I also have yet to receive any word from Matthew and Alfred after that last message. As such, we don't know if Monica won the poker competition or if Francis and Therese arrived before the match was over."

None of them had really discussed Monica's frightening poker skills after listening to Matthew's voicemail, and then re-listening to it again just to make sure they had heard everything correctly. After Ludwig dropped them off, Matthew, Alfred, and Monica found a restaurant to wait in. Inside, the local poker champion, a prestigious business man from Macau named Nianzu Palmeiro, was hosting a poker match. Since it was all very laid back, there was hardly any money involved in the betting. Monica fell in love with all of the cards littering the tables, and it was all Matthew and Alfred could do to hold her back.

Obviously their efforts were in vain, for Monica eventually escaped their clutches and demanded to play. Nianzu humored her while they were between games, playing along to keep her happy.

To put it simply, she totally creamed him. Matthew and Alfred joined the game, as did a few of Nianzu's friends. Monica still won. The three-year-old still mock competition restarted, with Monica in the running for new champion. Game after game, she raked in spare change, packs of gum, and cans of soda. The restaurant staff actually gave them a free meal to celebrate Monica's awesome talent.

It was almost too much to believe. Then Alfred sent the pictures.

Kiku was startled when his pocket began vibrating. He couldn't hear his ringtone over the racket of the city. He broke into a grin at the caller-id. "It's Alice! Hello?"

Feliciano squealed, bouncing and tugging on Lili and Ludwig's sleeves. "It's Alice! It's Alice!" he excitedly sang. Lili giggled, taking his hands and joining in his happy dance. Ludwig refused to engage in such behavior, but he did crack a smile. As Feliciano and Lili cheered and Kiku set about getting directions, Ludwig looked out at the city. There were few cars on the road compared to the hundreds of bicycles. A long canal split into the street. Houseboats floated on the edge while small boats ferried tourists up and down the river. Everything was covered by tiny white petals, making buildings, streets, and the water look like it was covered in fresh snow. Ludwig could almost understand why Brandon would stay here. It was so clean and beautiful.

But that still didn't excuse him, nor did it make Ludwig change his mind about punching him the first instant they met. Hopefully he wouldn't have to wait much longer. Feliciano had spent nearly every waking moment off the plane texting Heilrich, keeping up to date with their progress. Since they were in Luxembourg, Roderich decided it would be easiest to simply drive to Amsterdam. They should have been here already. Ludwig had the sinking suspicion they were hiding from him.

"Of course," Kiku said, still grinning in triumph. "We'll be there soon…. Oh? The others have arrived?"

Three heads snapped towards him. Feliciano sucked in a breath while Ludwig narrowed his eyes. "Luddy," he slowly began.

"I'm okay," Ludwig sighed, gathering up their luggage. Kiku hung up with Alice after reconfirming the location of their hotel. He followed Feliciano's example and asked if Ludwig was okay. Again, he promised he was. He made no promise that Brandon was going to be okay.

Easily falling into line with the boys, Lili marveled at the scenery as they walked. "At least Vati and Lovi haven't caught up to us yet," she shrugged.

Ludwig nodded in relief. A showdown with her father would ruin everything, and they were still unsure of whether or not Lovino would help them or Vash because of Lili. Thus, it was their main mission to avoid both of them as much as possible.

The walk to their hotel was mostly uneventful. They didn't run into Vash and Lovino, nor did they receive any new word from Alice or Alfred and Matthew. Really, it was a bit unnerving to get silence out of the two of them. The folks back home must have been pretty angry- especially Francis. Ludwig shuddered just to think of how the Frenchman was no doubt still foaming at the mouth over the news. He could only hope no one had informed Gilbert of their plan. His mother had promised to keep quiet, so Ludwig didn't have to worry about her. Francis and Antonio, though? If they spilled the beans to Gilbert, Ludwig was sure he would wring their necks the second he got back in the States.

As if some cosmic force was purposefully torturing them today, their hotel didn't have elevators. Feliciano dumbly stared at the dark winding staircase leading to the second floor. He peeked back to his suitcase, then to Lili with hers. Ludwig sighed, starting up the stairs. "I'll carry up your things. You just stay here and wait on me."

"Wait wait wait!"

They turned to see a man rush up. Ludwig cocked his head at his familiar appearance. He was certain he had seen this man before. He wasn't from America, if his accent had anything to say. Probably a local. Maybe Ludwig had seen him on the street earlier? "You don't have to carry all of that by yourself. I'll help you," he offered with a grin. "I was going back to my room anyway, so it's not a bother."

"Oh," Ludwig blinked. "Um… thank you." As the man took Lili and Feliciano's suitcases (all the while giving Feliciano an odd look like he should have recognized him from somewhere), Ludwig still couldn't shake the feeling that he knew this man. He had graying, tied back hair, but he didn't look older than forty. His eyes were bright blue and happy, reminding him of Alfred. "If you don't mind me asking, what floor is your room on? I wouldn't want to inconvenience you- ours is on the fourth floor."

"Well, what a coincidence. Ours is too."

Coincidence indeed. Ludwig didn't want to be rude, but he caught himself periodically looking back at the man, still trying to recall his identity. He could feel his name on the tip of his tongue. When he noticed the man had an iron cross necklace, it finally dawned on him. "You look like Frederick the Great!" Ludwig burst.

The man laughed. "Yeah, I get that a lot. You actually look a lot like my dad did. It's like you could have been his twin. My nephew kind of resembles you too, now that I think about it."

They both slowed until they came to a halt in the middle of the stairwell. They were almost to the fourth floor. Ludwig slightly frowned, a new wave of recognition crashing into him. His father and nephew… looked like him? Ludwig was sure that in Europe of all places there would be tall blue-eyed blondes like him, but his grandfather and Heilrich kept invading his mind. Sure enough, the three of them looked scarily similar. Everyone in the family basically looked like them, except Roderich, Gilbert, and….

"…What's your name?" Ludwig slowly asked. Now that he thought about it, he did look a little like Brandon did from the videos. Of course, there was no way this guy could be his uncle. He was with Heilrich and Alice at the restaurant, waiting for them to arrive. But what if Brandon had run away again, hiding away from his nephew and the freaky Italian kid that had recently acquired quite the unhealthy obsession with him?

The man was taken aback. "Uh… B-Brandon. What's y-"

"Brandon Beilschmit?" Ludwig demanded, cutting him off.

The fear in his eyes disappeared when he blinked. "Ludwig?"

Well, that was an interesting last word. Ludwig dropped his suitcases, riling up with pent up, suppressed anger. This guy was freaking Brandon? The worry was back. Brandon let out an uneasy laugh, nervously stepping away from him. "W-well, this wasn't exactly how I wanted to meet you, but… um… I-I didn't write the letter?"

"You made Vati think you were DEAD!" he roared. Ludwig would have tackled him then and there had he not restrained himself. As much as he would have liked to kill Brandon, he had promised Feliciano he wouldn't, and had promised himself to bring him back to Gilbert in one piece. "I saw the video Arthur made! I know that letter was yours! Who else would write something like that?"

"Arthur made a video?" he asked. Ludwig's growl whipped him back on topic. "I honestly didn't know about a letter until I heard about it from Elizabeta. I swear! I… I never went back to America because I had a son to look after!"

"So what!" he snapped, fingers just itching to curl into a fist that would look lovely imbedded in his face. "You could have sent him letters! You could have called him!"

"I-"

"You've screwed over everyone! You ruined their lives! Vati doesn't even acknowledge you exist! I only found out about you when I found your stupid videos! There is no reason you couldn't have maintained contact with them, son or no! And now Vati's probably dying, and he still won't talk to me about you! He blames himself for your suicide, and it's killing him!"

Brandon flinched at every flaming word hurled his way, face darkening with the piling guilt. When Ludwig mentioned Gilbert, though, Brandon snapped his head up. Probably dying? Cold fear dug deep into his chest. Ludwig's voice trailed off when he noticed Brandon's face. Concern was practically radiating off of him, eating away at any trace of contempt Ludwig had for him. He tightly sighed. There was no way he could continue yelling at him while he looked so pathetic.

While he looked so much like Gilbert.

"…I'll explain everything when we get to my room," he softly said.

((((()))))

Julio almost didn't want to interrupt the story time happening in Gilbert's room. A crowd had agglomerated around his bed. Alfred and Matthew were there, slowly explaining to everyone what their trip to Amsterdam had really been about. Julio rolled his eyes to hear the bogus lies spewing from their mouths. They heard about a miracle cure for Gilbert? Geez. They really needed to work on improvising. When he couldn't take any more of their pathetic attempts, Julio sauntered inside with a grand smile. He politely shoved Alfred out of his way so he could talk to Gilbert face-to-face. He tried not to let his worry leak into his smile when he took in how extra-pale he looked this morning. "Hola, Señor Gilbert!"

"'Sup, Julio? Everything going okay at the Beilschmit casa?" Julio barely caught himself before he cringed at Gilbert's voice, so tired and wispy.

"Sí. I already walked your dogs and helped Helda clean a bit. She told me to come and tell you Ludwig called. They're finally in Amsterdam! Also, I think we can all agree Alfred's story is full of crap," he reported, casting the stupid American a sidelong glance.

Alfred puffed up defensively. He opened his mouth to retort, but suddenly caught himself. In that very instant, Alfred felt his entire life shatter. Everything he had ever believed was a lie. Julio spoke English? THIS ENTIRE TIME? Good Lord, what was next? Lovino was secretly part of the mafia? Ivan was actually Carl the Llama? Alfred's brain was melting as he helplessly stuttered,"W-WAIT A MINUTE! SINCE WHEN DO YOU KNOW ENGLISH?"

"Since I was… five? Six, maybe? I lived on the border, amigo, and had family that spoke English. You pick up a few things after a while. But anyway, messing with you got old ages ago. Flirting with your girlfriend was a lot funnier," he chuckled. When Alfred's face turned red, Julio's grin only grew. Matthew yanked Alfred away before he could inflict any bodily harm on the Mexican boy. It didn't matter if they were in a hospital or not- it was impolite and unbecoming of an upcoming soldier. Alfred decided to leave him alone after that. Julio turned back to Gilbert. "Lo siento. Anyway, they got there safe. Did I already mention Alfred's full of crap?"

Gilbert rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but it's okay. Ludwig's gotta be having the time of his life right now. He needs to loosen up, embrace his inner awesome. Helda can chew him out when he comes back, if he hasn't already beat himself up about all of it. Francis, you need to go home and take a nap. Tonio, you too. You guys are being severely unawesome right now."

Antonio shushed Francis's exclamation of, "I DO NOT NEED BEAUTY SLEEP. I AM PERFECTLY OKAY. TOTALLY AWESOME." He nervously promised to get him home before he exploded into a thousand frazzled nerves. Francis had pulled an all-nighter freaking out over the recent turn events, in turn keeping Therese, Michelle, and Matthew wide awake throughout the night and morning. Monica, of course, completely ignored Francis's fatherly ranting and went to sleep almost instantly after being secured in the car. She was probably still asleep at home with Therese and Michelle. Matthew felt sorry for them, because he knew their well-deserved sleep would be disturbed as soon as Francis pulled in the driveway.

They waited until Antonio and Francis's footsteps faded down the hallway. Julio despondently dropped in the chair beside Gilbert, dropping his chin in his hands. "So, you guys have really messed things up now, huh?"

"No," Gilbert sighed. "They're looking for my brother." He flicked his eyes upwards to meet Alfred and Matthew's stunned gapes. "You didn't think I'd figure it out? All of my videos were nicely dusted, and Ludwig's been acting weird for days. And anyway, Helda told me all about your plan to smuggle Feliciano on the plane. That was the icing on the cake."

This was going to be a long conversation. Alfred and Matthew pulled over their own seats, their every movement weighed down with guilt. To be honest, this wasn't how Alfred thought things would go down. He expected Gilbert to get furious with them, or to start crying. Just some kind of exaggerated outburst he was famous for.

But Gilbert didn't say another word. He didn't really need to hear anything from Alfred and Matthew. It was all self-explanatory. They went to Europe to find Brandon. As soon as they found him, they'd drag him back home to Gilbert. It was exactly what he knew Ludwig would do if he found out about his uncle. What bothered Gilbert the most was the fear that maybe… maybe he didn't want to see Brandon again after all. It had been twenty-five years, and, although he didn't want to believe it, Gilbert could easily fool himself into thinking he had forgotten about him. He had been doing it for so long that now he wasn't sure if seeing his brother would be best. Francis had already opened the floodgate by bringing him up in simple conversation. If Gilbert had reacted so badly then, what would happen if Brandon was standing in front of him?

He was scared.

Gilbert missed his brother. He loved his brother. But, deep down, he resented him, too. Brandon had abandoned him, no matter what his story begged to differ. He had no right to try and make amends now. The thought tore at Gilbert. Being able to think that ripped at him with pain ten times worse than his sickness. Didn't he want to see Brandon more than he hated him? Didn't he need to forgive him, and get his forgiveness too? He put his arm over his face, trying to quell the shudders. "Just make sure they get him here soon, okay?" he asked, voice cracking. "I… I don't think I can wait much longer. Dr. Zwingli said I have to do this surgery thing soon, but… they're afraid that'll go wrong. Apparently I'm almost too sick to save. So you have to get Brandon and Ludwig back here as soon as possible. B-before…-"

"You'll be okay," Julio firmly promised. He had no idea what half of this was about, but whatever. He'd beat it out of Alfred later. He knew that he had to whip Gilbert back into shape! That's what really made him think something as absurd as that- he was starting to lose his touch. "You're too awesome to let something like this take you down, Señor. There are too many people depending on you to pull through. You have family and friends that love you too much. You can't possibly leave them behind."

Alfred couldn't believe he was agreeing with this jerk, but he nodded. "It's just like you always tell us, Gil! You're just having a momentary lapse of awesome! And just between you and me," he said more lowly, "I've seen a little bit of heaven already, and I can assure you there was no DDR. They're definitely not ready for you. I think God needs to prep heaven a little more before you can kick open the gates."

Gilbert offered a tiny smile at that. "Y-you two are right," he conceded with a sniffle he kept hidden beneath his skinny arm. "I gotta get new material if I'm going to compete with Angel Boy. Though I'm a bit offended Jeanne hasn't stocked the place with my DDR and Cheetos yet."

"Maman isn't as shallow as you," Matthew teased, lightly picking his arm away. He fluffed up Gilbert's pillow and pulled his covers up. He tried not to smack Gilbert when he sweetly asked if he was going to get a good night kiss, too. "But I suppose we should get started on pulling Ludwig and Brandon back home. So while we tirelessly poke and prod at them to get a move on, you just get your beauty sleep. You are going to need it, because I think you owe Helda one heck of a romantic dinner after this."

"It has to be something more than just a dinner, kiddo," he muttered. "I'm gonna need Francis to cook for us and Antonio to sing some sappy love songs while I sell my soul to my wife to cheer her up. And then I'll still have to walk through hell and back to keep her satisfied."

"I wish you all the good luck, Señor, when you must face Helda," Julio saluted. He kicked Alfred, giving him a pointed look. Alfred stuck his tongue out at him before following suit. He then kicked Julio back. Matthew ushered them out the door before they could break into a fight reminiscent of one of Raymón and Alfred's. They chorused their respective farewells before turning off the light and softly shutting the door.

Gilbert faintly smirked. Noon light filtered through the lightly flapping curtains, dimly illuminating the room. Rainbow hues of cards and gifts littered the place, and last night's untouched cookies and cake almost made the place smell like home. When he closed his eyes, he was almost able to picture home. Everything was pristine and airy throughout his quaint little house. Brooklyn, Astro, and Rose nipped at his heels, demanding attention. Helda sat in the armchair by the window reading, and Ludwig stood in the kitchen baking his second cake that afternoon. Francis and Antonio, because they never left him alone for a second, sat on the couch, bickering over who should have TV remote privilege.

He didn't just think of his home now, though. As he really lay there thinking about it, his house started to look more like the house he'd grown up in. Ludwig and Helda were still there, but so were Roderich, sitting by the piano, and Elizabeta, grinning as she leaned over his shoulder to watch him play. Arthur had joined Francis and Antonio, yelling at them for something or another. Vati gruffly watched the scene play out from behind his daily newspaper, drowning out the chaos by focusing on the crossword puzzles. Heilrich and Feliciano spastically ran around the place until they finally decided to pop in and bother Ludwig for a while. Kiku was there to quietly smile off to the side with Lovino, arms stubbornly crossed as he glared at everyone that entered his line of sight. He loosened up when Lili came up and hugged him.

Gilbert himself stood in the doorway, cackling at the familiar madness. He was filthy, covered in mud and grass stains from an afternoon soccer practice. He was tired, too, but he wasn't about to let the party go on without him! As he ran in to invade their little bubbles, he felt a shadow moving along with him. Brandon laughed at all of his corny jokes, spewing out even worse when he could. Gilbert finally introduced him to Helda, who instantly loved him, and Ludwig, whom he knew would eventually get along with his uncle.

The only missing from the perfect picture was DDR.

As soon as Gilbert was done with this being sick thing, he was going to throw that kind of party. Vati obviously wouldn't be there, but he had never been one to party anyway. To have him included, Gilbert supposed he could dig out one of his old pictures and hang it up. Everything would be absolutely perfect. Maybe, for just one night, his old band could get together again. Arthur still had it in him- Francis's wedding had been awesome. Gilbert just hoped they could get Arthur to play without getting him intoxicated first. He was sure Helda was going to set fire to every ounce of alcohol within a fifty mile radius of him, so Arthur's sober cooperation was imperative. Eh, they could just throw Samantha and Alfred at him. Maybe Aria, too, if he was still being stubborn.

But first, he had to survive the next couple days.

The pleasant grin slipped away as grim reality rudely shooed his daydream out the door. "Well, dang it," he muttered.

((((()))))

Feliciano was bored. He sat beside Lili, occupying herself with a book, waiting for Ludwig and Kiku to return. What was taking them so long? Ludwig had been gone for close to fifteen minutes already, and Kiku had left to take a call from Xiao Mei in private. His expression had been worried when he walked away, so Feliciano hoped everything was alright. He absently kicked his feet, peeking over to skim across Lili's book. It seemed funny, whatever it was. The boy and girl were apparently going to Amsterdam for some reason or another. The boy told her about it via Dutch-themed date, complete with oranges and Rembrandt! Maybe she was reading it for the irony. She and Lovi were both in Amsterdam, and Feliciano guessed their situation was… kind of romantic? Maybe?

He turned back to look at the people in the lobby, and the people walking quickly outside. It was pretty to look at all the people. He wondered how many of them were tourists, and how many of them were locals. They all looked the same to him. He wondered if he could pass for a local to someone looking in at him. Probably not, since he kept staring at everyone like a dork. Feliciano quietly chuckled, eliciting a grin from Lili.

"It's kind of hard to remember that those people have lives, too. Like, they're not just something in the background to make you feel unalone," Feliciano softly said.

Lili nodded, marking her book before putting it back in her bag. "Yeah, I know. It's funny, but kind of sad, too. You can't know what someone's thinking and how they're feeling when they're so far away like that. But sometimes it's people closest to you, too. You don't understand why they can't understand you."

Feliciano frowned. Of course she was thinking about Vash and Lovino. It plagued all of them, wondering whether or not Lovino was on their side or Vash's, and whether or not he'd make them go home without Brandon. He just didn't get it! He didn't understand why Brandon was so important to Gilbert, even after all these years! Feliciano wasn't sure Lovino even understood that Feliciano could relate. He had waited ten years to meet his brother and dad. He wondered what they were like, if they loved pasta as much as him, and if they thought about him, too. But at the same time, he wondered if Mamma was right, and they didn't care about him. It wasn't like they really had gotten to know him before the divorce, so it'd be easy for them to forget about him, right?

He figured the same went for him, but he couldn't help but spend each day wondering what if. That's why it was so important. That's why he absolutely had to do this, regardless of whether or not Lovino approved!

"But I guess that's okay, too," Feliciano decided, pushing his frown away. He didn't have a reason to be sad anymore. He had finally found his answer, and it was his job to give Gilbert an answer too.

Feliciano perked up when he caught sight of Kiku walking back to them. "Kiku! Hey… what's wrong?"

His lips trembled when he whispered, "I… Yong Soo and Emil found out who's been stealing from us. I-it was Bong Chung. She's been taking money for three years to pay someone back. She and mother left town earlier."

Lili covered her mouth when she gasped. She stubbornly shook her head. "N-no," she burst, "it couldn't have been her! She would never do that to you!"

"She hurt my brother!" Kiku snapped. Both Lili and Feliciano flinched at his anger. "He won't speak to anyone after telling them what happened, and he's so banged up from falling down the stairs that my father is considering taking him to the hospital."

"But it couldn't have been her!" she argued, jumping to her feet. The look on her face was almost as scary as the one on Kiku's face.

Feliciano felt himself backing farther away from them as he twittered out, "Um, guys, maybe you should be a little quieter."

They ignored him. Lili had to cough before speaking. Her voice had a raspy lilt to it as she spewed, "I talked to her a week ago and found out that she's the one who got us started on finding Brandon! In order to repay the guy she's indebted to, she had to get us to Luxembourg to look for him. She told Tavian about the house, which led us there! She hid Arthur's video in his old house for Alfred and Natalya to find! Almost every lead we got came from her. She just didn't want to come clean to you all because she was afraid Yong Soo would think she didn't really love him. But she does, and she would never hurt him!"

"She could have been lying to you too," he said, though the conviction in his voice had begun to wane. The evidence for her was overwhelming. But Kiku knew what Yong Soo had said, and he would believe him over anyone else. "Perhaps telling us about Brandon was part of the deal, but there was money involved. Money that she stole from us. Do you know that we have been on the point of bankruptcy? We're about to lose the restaurant! Did Bong Chung tell you that?"

Lili's face was red, but Feliciano didn't know what from. Anger? Embarrassment? Maybe both. He tried again to come between them, finally standing himself. "Neither of you know who she owed the money to, right?" he pointed out. "If he knew Brandon was in Luxembourg, that might mean he's in Europe- maybe in Luxembourg himself! But if he knew what happened to Brandon, then he should be able to tell us who this man is. We can convince him to not take the money and we can fix things!"

"But how will that help Yong Soo?" Kiku tiredly asked. "If we find out who this man is, we might be able to save the restaurant. Although I do not think he would simply return all of that money if we politely asked him. But it wouldn't change the fact that they hurt my family and broke my brother's heart. If she really loved him, Bong Chung would have told him the truth. We would have done anything to help her. Instead, she lied and stole from us. That is something I cannot easily forgive."

"…What if her mother stole the money? What if they were given a choice to either get us to Brandon or to pay him back, and her mother thought that getting the money would be easier?" Lili proposed. "I am certain that Bong Chung was not lying to me. You know that she really did care for all of you. This might be her fault, but the blame shouldn't fall on just her."

"What's going on?"

Feliciano turned to Ludwig, throwing a hug at him. It wasn't until he pulled back that he noticed the man that helped them was hanging back. The man lightly waved to him. "Uh, hi. So… you're Feliciano?"

He dumbly nodded.

"I'm Brandon Beilschmit. It's nice to meet you."

He blinked. Then, in one rapid lunge, he was squeezing him tighter than ever in a hug while excited Italian spewed from his mouth. Ludwig shrugged, offering him no help. Brandon tried to pry Feliciano off of him, but it was no use. This kid was clingy. Lili and Kiku also gaped, their argument temporarily forgotten in favor of gawking over this latest revelation. "…You're Brandon?" Kiku repeated, just to make sure he had heard correctly. He looked the man over and realized he had a remarkable resemblance to Frederick the Great. But when he looked closer, he could almost see the resemblance between him and the Brandon from all the videos he had watched.

"The one and only, I suppose," he grinned. He slightly stumbled when Feliciano constricted tighter around his torso. Forget clingy- this kid was a boa constrictor! "Hey, uh, think you could let go of me?"

"Nope," he cheerfully answered.

This was going to be a long day. Brandon sighed, trying his best to avoid their awkward stares. He cleared his throat and started, "I, uh, guess I have a lot of explaining to do. I've already told Ludwig most of what happened, and we decided it would be best to meet up with the others first. I have a lot of questions for Mr. van Houten."

"Sebastiaan, Alice's brother?" Feliciano asked in confusion. He finally pulled away, and Brandon gave a sigh of relief.

"Uh… no. He's my son. He doesn't know what's going on any more than you and I do. I meant Lars. Apparently you all knew him when he lived in America?"

"Lars?"

This was going to be a very long day. He miserably nodded. "I met Lars twenty-four years ago. I actually knew his mom first, but I really don't want to get started that unawesome jerkface. He helped me out of a tight spot his mother got me into. I sent him and Alice to America to keep them out of trouble, but we weren't able to send Sebastiaan over with them. So I took him in. But while he was in America, Lars neglected to tell anyone that I was very much alive in Luxembourg, nor did he bother to mention to me that everyone was alright. That's why I'm probably going to kill him later."

Well, at least Feliciano knew he and Ludwig were really related. They made death threats in the same cheerful, easy way!

Brandon suggested they head back to the restaurant so they could clear up some of this confusion. Feliciano nodded enthusiastically, grabbing Ludwig and Kiku's hands. He led them outside the hotel.

"W-wait a minute," Ludwig suddenly said, holding back. "I need to take some time to think all of this over, so I'll meet you at the restaurant later. I'll call for directions."

Brandon nodded. Honestly, this was all a little too much for him, too. If he hadn't promised himself he would finally learn the truth, he'd want to drag this out as long as possible, too. "Do you want us to order you something? I'll pay."

"No thanks. I'll catch up later." When he started off down the street, Feliciano hurried after him, shouting his intentions to do the same. He waved widely to Kiku and Lili. Ludwig wasn't surprised that Feliciano had chosen to tag along with him. Even though finding out what happened was so important to him, he put Ludwig's wellbeing first.

Amsterdam was beautiful in the late afternoon. Feliciano walked with a skip in his step, looking up at his darker hair bouncing along as he went. He had a feeling that Antonio and Aria had seen past the astounding transformation to recognize him, but had let him go anyway. Maybe, like with Arthur, they believed Brandon was alive too? But now wasn't the time to think stuff like that. He had to keep Ludwig in high spirits, despite everything he had heard. Feliciano had no idea what Brandon had told him, but he could see that Ludwig was bothered by it. Of course, Feliciano couldn't let him go out and mope on his own. What kind of best friend would he be if he left him alone to deal with this?

Ludwig paused in his lookout, stopping for a moment at a bookstore. All sorts of old books were on display in the window. Neither could read the Dutch, but by the look of things it must have been an antique place.

Books were boring to Feliciano, so he spun around and looked across the street. A lovely Italian restaurant was just begging him to come and order some pasta. Feliciano caught himself before he ran off. If Feliciano got lost in Amsterdam, Lovino would do terrible things to Ludwig, like force-feed him Arthur's food!

But it was pasta. And he hadn't had dinner yet. If he didn't eat soon, he would explode! Besides, everyone would love him if he brought back pasta! Even Ludwig wouldn't be too mad.

Since it was just across the street and Feliciano had his credit card handy, he snuck away. Not two steps on the crosswalk did he catch sight of a beautiful girl. She sat outside the restaurant, reading the newspaper, sipping at some coffee.

Oh, how he would love to share a cup of coffee with that goddess.

"Hey, pretty lady! Would you like some compa-"

"Kid, watch out!"

As soon as the shout reached his ears, he heard the screeching brakes of a car. Before he could turn and look at the car, he was pushed forward, slamming hard on the asphalt. The new scrapes on his arms immediately flared to life, bringing tears to his eyes. Above him, in screamed Dutch, the driver cursed at him. Feliciano pushed himself up, head reeling.

Ludwig entered his line of vision, grabbing at his shoulders. "What were you doing?" he demanded. "You could have gotten hit!"

"S-sorry," he sniffled, biting down on his lip. He could not cry- not in front of Ludwig! Even though they had found Brandon, he was still sad about Gilbert. Feliciano couldn't make him even sadder by showing him he was hurt.

His eyes suddenly went wide. He was hurt, but he hadn't gotten hit, because someone had pushed him out of the way! Feliciano whipped his head around, locking eyes with his savior.

In his throat bubbled up a scream. However, his mouth was clamped shut, preventing it from breaking out. Feliciano found himself shaking something terrible, new tears springing to his eyes. Terror gripped at his heart, moving his arms to clench at his sleeves. He made himself into a ball, trying his best to meld into the pavement so the man wouldn't see him and would go on his way.

But it was too late, for the man's eyes were now wide and his mouth agape. "F-Feliciano?" he shakily asked, seemingly almost as terrified as him.

That couldn't be right. Why would he be afraid of Feliciano? He hadn't done anything to this man. Everything that had happened to him was brought upon as a result of his actions. Feliciano shook his head, unable to break his gaze away. Why was this happening? Why was he here? He was supposed to be gone! Feliciano was never supposed to see him ever again!

Finally, Feliciano figured out how to move his lips again. Instead of the scream that was echoing all through his head, there came a shuddered whisper:

"…Marco?"