Chapter Thirteen

Three full days of traveling by foot and the couple were getting closer to the boarder. They completely avoided any city or urban area. They kept to the forest and mountains. It was hard terrain to get through, but they managed. Matthew insisted on carrying Gilbert for the first two days. The third day, the albino talked Canada into letting him walk.

The pair had settled down for the night. It was a cold and damp night. Matthew wrapped himself around Prussia to keep him warm. The albino snuggled closer to him humming quietly. They managed to fall asleep quickly with the sounds of the forest surrounding them.

Hours later, Canada was awoken by Prussia. He nudged him carefully. "Vogel?" The albino asked quietly. The Canadian was barely awake. "Matthew?"

The Canadian opened his eyes and blinked in confusion still half asleep. "Hmmm?"

"I don't feel vell. Something's off." Gilbert said. Matthew was immediately awake when he heard that. He shifted back to look down at him. His eyes widened in surprised. "Birdie?"

"Gil, your eye." Canada said in disbelief. He quickly scented him properly. He couldn't believe what he was seeing or smelling. He suddenly realized how Gilbert had got the wound on his back.

"Liebe, what's going on?" The albino asked confused. He shifted nervously as the Canadian watched him. He seemed to be in shock. He nudged him gently again and it seemed to pull him from the stupor. "Mein Auge?"

"It's, umm." Matthew trailed off trying to figure out the best way to tell the Prussian. "Your right eye looks like a ghoul's."

"Was?" Gilbert asked sitting straight up. The Canadian sat up with him. He reached up to his face instinctually to see if he could feel anything different. He didn't believe him at first, but he knew Matthew wouldn't lie about something like that.

"You smell like a one-eyed ghoul." Blackbird said carefully. He wanted to hug and reassure him, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to be touched. "It's okay. We'll figure this out."

"Ja." Gilbert mumbled turning and crawling into his arms. The blond hugged him tightly as he buried his face in his chest. "I know, I trust jou." He sighed shakily. "I'm just a little scared. I don't vant to hurt anyone."

"You won't, I promise. It's okay to be scared." Matthew said as Prussia looked up at him. He wasn't used to his eye, it still surprised him. "We don't know how much this'll affect you. Who knows? Could just be the eye and scent. Everything else could be normal still." He said trying to be optimistic.

"Maybe." The albino mumbled hiding his face again.

Canada's eyebrows furrowed. He pressed a kiss into his hair. He was already blaming himself for this again. He hated knowing that he didn't protect Gilbert and he was like this because of him. He pushed it to the back of his mind focusing on reassuring his partner.

"How do you feel?" Matthew asked.

"Just off. I don't know. Everything smells different, it's more intense." The albino explained. He pulled back to look up at him again. "I can smell jou a lot. I mean, I could smell jou always, but it's more now. I don't know, it's hard to explain."

"I understand." Canada said.

They sat quietly as the sun started to come up. Blackbird rubbed gentle circles into Gilbert's back being careful of his wound. He knew the Prussian was thinking by the look on his face. It was a lot for him to process.

"Birdie?" Prussia asked breaking the silence. The Canadian raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry if I said something offensive. I'm just a bit nervous about all this."

"It's okay. You didn't say anything." Canada said reassuringly.

"I'm not scared of being a ghoul or one-eyed ghoul or whatever. I trust jou more than anyone and I know jou'll help me." Gilbert explained. "I don't vant to lose control and hurt or kill someone. I don't trust myself."

"It rarely happens. As long as we manage our hunger that probably won't happen." Matthew said reassuringly. Prussia nodded. "I'll be with you every step of the way. I won't let you hurt anyone."

"Danke, Vögelchen." Gilbert said with a small smile. "And please, don't blame jourself for this." He pulled the Canadian into a hug. Matthew hugged back tightly and nodded. They stayed like that for a moment before pulling back. "How do I get my eye back to normal?"

"Well, ah." Matthew sighed. It was second nature to him and explaining it was hard. "Just focus on having your eyes be normal and it should change back."

Prussia nodded and furrowed his eyebrows. The Canadian knew he was trying, but it didn't seem to be working. He huffed and tried again looking up at him. He raised an eyebrow asking if it worked. Blackbird shook his head. Gilbert groaned in frustration.

"It could take a bit to figure it out I guess." Matthew suggested. The albino shrugged and nodded. "I doubt we'll sleep more. Wanna start walking?"

"Ja." Gilbert sighed standing up.

The Prussian offered a hand to Canada and he took it. He pulled him up and kissed his jaw. The Canadian smiled and returned the kiss. Gilbert smiled brightly and started walking holding his hand. He seemed to act like nothing was different.

Matthew spotted some wild huckleberries along their walk. He thought about pointing them out to Prussia, but he seemed content with walking. He was humming quietly. Gilbert noticed that he was looking at him. The albino looked over and smiled. Canada smiled gently back at him.

"Vhat are jou thinking about, liebe?" The Prussian asked raising an eyebrow.

"Not much. Just saw some berries, are you hungry?" Blackbird asked.

"A little I guess." Gilbert shrugged. "Berries?"

"Yeah." Matthew smiled pulling him over to a bush he spotted just ahead. He pulled a few from the plant and handed them to the albino. He looked hesitant. "They're huckleberries. My mother loved them. I think they're just like blueberries."

"Oh, okay." Gilbert mumbled. He sniffed them and wrinkled his nose. He looked the berries over before tossing two into his mouth. He bit down and immediately made a face. He quickly spit them out. "Those taste terrible!"

"What do they taste like?" Matthew asked as the Prussian was rubbing his tongue on his sleeve.

"Rotten food." Gilbert said still wiping his tongue. "It's disgusting."

"Shit." Blackbird cursed quietly. "The ghoul must be there fully."

"Vell, I guess I'll have to figure out vho to eat." The albino shrugged casually. He started to walk again. "Coming, Liebling?"

"Wait, what?" Canada asked in surprise. He was in shock from how casual Gilbert had been.

"Jou know? Valk home?" Prussia asked raising an eyebrow.

"Non, the other part. The first part." Matthew said stumbling over his words.

"Oh!" Gilbert said realizing what he meant. "Vell, I've been in love vith a ghoul for decades, so it's not that foreign to me." He shrugged. "How am I less awkward about this than jou are?"

"It's not exactly something ghouls like to talk about." Canada grumbled. The Prussian smiled and took his hand pulling him along. He walked by his side. "It's weird to hear someone be so casual about cannibalism."

"Is it really cannibalism though?" Gilbert asked. "Ghouls aren't human. Vhould jou call a human eating an ape cannibalism?"

"No?" Matthew sputtered. "I don't want to talk about this."

"Vhy?" The Prussian questioned stopping and standing in front of him. "Birdie, I'm not scared to talk about this kind of stuff. It doesn't freak me out or make me scared of jou." He smiled gently. "If I'm part ghoul now, it's stuff ve'll have to talk about."

AN: Please stay safe guys! Follow what your local medical professionals are saying and stay home.