9/16/1944
Dear Ludwig,
I'm very sorry to announce you the death of your father. He was found yesterday night in his house, and since he didn't have his wand by him, I can safely assume that it was Grindelwald's doing.
I really am truly sorry. But make no mistake: I decided to go and track down Grindelwald myself. Now that he has the Elder Wand, I can't let him roam free.
Do not fear that your father's death has been in vain. I will personally make sure that Grindelwald doesn't get off scot-free. And please, forgive your father if you can.
My most heart-felt condolences,
A. Dumbledore
Ludwig held the letter for a long while, a completely blank look in his eyes.
Father had died.
Father was no more.
Father had never talked to him willingly in two years.
Father had died without ever meeting Fritz.
Father had died while still thinking that Ludwig was no son of his.
Father had not accepted Feli.
It was all over.
There was nothing that Ludwig could do. All his hopes of making up with father had been in vain. How could Ludwig have let it come to this! ? He knew that a crazy murderer was on father's back! Why had he not tried harder to make up with him? How could he not foresee such a thing? How could he make it right now?
He suddenly felt very weak. He slid against the wall until he was sitting on the floor, the letter still in his hands.
It was all over. There was nothing he could do anymore. He had lost both his parents. He was an orphan now. And his father had died hating him.
He felt tears come up to his eyes. He rubbed them forcefully.
He suddenly felt angry. Why should he feel like that for a man that had disowned him? That had told him "You're dead to me" "You're not my son anymore" "Fuck you to hell and back"! He was not going to cry over that son of a bitch! Ludwig didn't care one fucking bit that he had died! Why should he? It wasn't like his father had died! Who died was just a bastard, a Muggle-hater that could not get over something so trivial as his wife's blood status! Gerhart didn't deserve his tears! He could fucking burn in hell now! Ludwig suddenly got up and started walking nervously around the room. Right. No need to cry. His father had died on his seventeenth birthday. He had cried already over that, shit! He was not going to give that old bastard the satisfaction of crying again!
But his treacherous eyes didn't seem to have heard his reasoning. Ludwig gave a frustrated cry and rubbed his eyes forcefully. Damn tears! He must have gotten something in his eye...
Feli got in the house while balancing a grocery bag and Fritz in her arms. Today, Gerhart was going to visit them! He was finally going to ask for Ludwig's forgiveness! She knew already that she would cry a river. She smiled and called out "Hi Ludwig, I'm home!"
But she didn't hear his answer. She frowned and put Fritz in his stroller and went to the living room. Ludwig was lying on the couch, his arms folded over his face, an empty bottle of Firewhisky next to him.
Feli immediately ran to his side. He reeked of alcohol. "Ludwig! Ve, are you okay? You drank all of this on your own! ? Hey!"
Ludwig groaned and said in a slurred voice "Leave me alone, will you?"
Feli frowned. When Gerhart came and saw Ludwig in that state, what was he going to think? "Ve, Ludwig, come on, you have to get up! I told you, we're going to have a visit today..."
Ludwig snorted. "Tell them to fuck off. I'm not in the mood."
Feli didn't know what to do. Ludwig sounded as if something terrible had happened. "... ve, but this visit is just too important! Ve, you'll regret it forever if you don't..."
Ludwig cut her off. "Well, then tell them that I just became an orphan, so they'll back off!"
Feli's eyes widened in horror. "What! ? Don't say that, ve!"
Ludwig groaned and slurred "But it's the truth. Father died yesterday. I'm sure that whoever the fuck wants to see me today, will understand that I ain't in the mood to be making small talk."
Feli stood up at once. Her voice was shaking. "What? ! Are you serious! ? Your father died? !"
Ludwig turned around on the couch, lying on his side and burying his face in a cushion.
"... yes, he did. I just received Dumbledore's letter. He got killed by Grindelwald. He died hating me. He died thinking that he had just one son. He wished I was dead."
Feli couldn't hold her tears. Ludwig suddenly sat up. He looked angry. "Don't you dare cry over him! That bastard hated you! Don't you cry! Stop right now!"
But Feli couldn't. "V-ve... just now that he... he was going to come and see you... ve..."
Ludwig slumped against the back rest. "No, he wasn't going to. He just tried to have a sneak peek of Fritz. He didn't want to see me. Hell, I'm sure he pretended that he was Gilbert's son, and not mine!"
Feli was sobbing now. "N-no, ve... I... I went to see him yesterday, ve... he... he's the visit, Ludwig, he was going t-to come and see us today, ve..."
Ludwig suddenly sat up straighter. He looked at Feli as if she had lost her mind. "... what! ?"
Feli hid her face in her hands. "I-it's the truth, ve! Y-yesterday I went to his house, ve, t-to show him Fritz, and ve, he decided to come and s-see us today! He... he wanted to ask your forgiveness, v-ve...!"
Ludwig got up. He couldn't stand up really straight, but he clutched Feli's shoulder to help him stay upright. "Feli, this is a lie! It can't be!"
Feli kept on sobbing. "V-ve, Eliza was with me, she w-will tell you... I'm so sorry, Ludwig, ve, your father was such a good man, ve, y-you should have seen him with Fritz... he was so happy to s-see him, ve... he even said sorry to me, v-ve... that I am a good wife for you..."
Ludwig felt his legs give out under his weight, and he knew that it wasn't because of all the Firewhisky he had drunk. He fell back down on the couch, dragging Feli along with him, since he forgot to let go of her shoulders. She fell on his lap, but quickly adjusted and straddled him. She hugged him very tight. She didn't know what else to say.
Ludwig let Feli wrap her arms around his shoulders. He weakly said "... Feli, if you're saying all this just to make me feel better..."
Feli sobbed and said "No, ve, it's the t-truth! I wouldn't lie on something l-like this, ve!"
Ludwig felt like he would die if he tried to hold back his tears a second more. "... After all this time, he finally saw reason..."
Feli buried her head more in his chest. "V-ve, yes, he did! He never really h-hated you, ve! Oh, thank God I went to see him yesterday, v-ve, or you would never know that he had ch-changed his mind, ve..."
Ludwig let out a sob.
Gerhart had died.
But not hating Ludwig, his wife and child.
He had died with all the intentions of coming to his house and asking for his forgiveness.
Ludwig wrapped his arms around Feli's waist and pulled her closer to him, buried his face in the crook of her neck, and cried.
Because his father had died.
And as his son, he didn't have to feel ashamed of crying over him.
Yeah. Uhm... sorry. I just felt really bad about killing Gerhart after reading your lovely reviews...