Pairings brought up/mentioned: GerIta and FrUk

-2.22-

"Alright, so today my new delivery of très beau vases will come in, and none of you are going to smash them!" Cousin Francis points to Toni and fratello, "Especially after that tomato fiasco! These are gorgeous, priceless vases and I will not stand for this- this disorderliness!"

"Aw, come on Francis!" Toni groans.

Lovino huffs, "Well, maybe you shouldn't have hid tomatoes in them, bastard."

"And maybe you shouldn't have eaten so many of our tomatoes, so that we needed to hide them in the first place!" Arthur glares.

"I think Francy-Pants just needs to stop buying such fragile vases!" Gilbert guffaws.

"I think some people need to be more responsible," Uncle Roddy sends the arctic wolf a pointed look.

"What- hey! I didn't break any of them! That was all Toni and Lovino! I'm innocent, I swear-"

"What about the vase in the hall, the one when you first showed up?" Ludwig interrupts.

Gilbert freezes and laughs sheepishly, "Um, ja, that was me."

"You see?" Francis sighs dramatically, "This is why I need to inform you of this! From now on, all vases of mine are off-limits!"

"Fine," Fratello states, "But no more hiding tomatoes in them."

"Deal," The rabbit spirit of the group agrees instantaneously, "You can have all the tomatoes out of the kitchen you want as long as you quit smashing vases. These things are bloody expensive, you know!"

"Well, now that that's sorted out," The Frenchman lifts a glass of local wine, "I'm going back to my trés importante business. Call if the delivery truck arrives~!"

Chatting amongst themselves, the others begin to disperse, each leaving with the one they normally hang around. "Ve~ Luddy!" I instantly latch onto the younger of the two wolves, "I want to go paint some roses from cousin Francis's garden." He makes a sort of humming noise and goes along with it, not even trying to remove me from his arm.

I like Luddy! I think happily to myself, and why wouldn't I? He's big, hunky, he helps me tie my shoelaces, and he spends time with me! It gets awfully lonely sometimes, being the only one in my family who doesn't have a spirit animal, or at least a close friend. But then Ludwig came along, and I finally have someone to hang out with! I excitedly drag him through the manor, into the sunroom, and then burst out from inside, chatting animatedly about this and that. "-And later today, I want to make some pasta. Then tomorrow, I'm going to paint you-"

"Wait, why do you want to paint a picture of me?"

Because you're handsome. "Because you're my friend!" And handsome. Seriously, he's one attractive-

"... 'Friend?'"

It feel like my heart's jumped to my throat, "Well, si! Aren't we friends, Luddy?"

He blinks, "I guess."

Despite the bottomless pit in my stomach, I quickly bounce back, plastering a slightly strained grin onto my face, "Ve~ Anyways, back to those roses!"

I set up my paints and canvas in front of a lovely, cerise pink bushel of flowers, then begin to paint. Today's not my best day. The strokes are splotchy, the colors just a little bit less accurate than usual, and I really don't know where I'm going with this. I scrunch my eyebrows in frustration. As I near the point of tearing my hair out at the ridiculousness of the situation, apparently me being lost is noticeable, for the other decides to comment on it.

"Is this because of the friend conversation earlier?"

I freeze, "No."

"You answered that much faster than you normally do."

I wilt, "I just- I don't know. Today's not really a good day for painting I guess."

Now that I think about it, there's not very much to like about me.

I feel tears prick at my eyes. Of course he doesn't see us as friends. Why would he? I may annoy him of my own accord, but Ludwig's only here because he's still recovering… Well, that and because his brother's here. He's been here a full week by now; it's really not going to take much longer for his shoulder to heal. His knuckles are already good as new from when he punched a hole in the wall! Soon, he won't need to stick around anymore, and I'll be all by my lonesome again. What will I do when Ludwig's gone? I won't have anyone to hang out with! I mean, sure I could bother Toni and fratello, but they always get distracted with each other and forget I'm here! Uncle Roddy and Gilbert are also a big no-no too, because all they ever do is play piano, drink coffee, snack on frilly finger food, and other boring things like that! And as for cousin Francis and Arthur-

"Feli, stop." I look up to see Ludwig staring at me intently, his rough hand hesitantly placed on my shoulder. Then I notice the faint blush on his cheeks.

Oh. Oh.

A broad beam slowly stretches itself across my lips, before I nearly force the wolf to the ground in a hug.

"YOU CARE ABOUT ME!"

"What- Of course I do!" He shouts indignantly, "I mean, didn't we just agree we were friends?"

At the expression on Ludwig's face, usually hard features ruffled and loosened with surprise, I simply can't restrain a jovial laugh, the sound bubbling out of my mouth and spilling throughout the air. After that, I don't have any problems finishing my painting.

"Can you move over a little bit?"

I patiently do as I'm told, slightly unnerved by the short Italian's unwavering gaze. "Like this?"

"Si! That's exactly what I want!" He cheers blithely, "This is going to be such a great painting. I can see it in my head already."

I shuffle in place, seated up a red, velvet armchair in the formal lounge. He only pauses in his gander to blink and glance at the canvas before him. "So, what do I even do?"

"Not much, you just sort of sit there and look handsome while I do my thing."

My jaw drops, "Did you just say 'handsome?!'"

"Oh, did I? Whoops, it must have slipped out I guess!" He giggles innocently. "But, it's not like I'm lying or anything; have I ever told you you're very handsome?"

I don't know how to respond to that, so I look away, face gradually warming.

The human gasps, "That's perfect! Yes, just like that!" The exclamation is followed by the sound of furious, passionate painting, his brush making energetic movements across the blank linen.

"Wait, what?" Oh mein Gott, if he paints me blushing-

He squeals, "Luddy's so cute when he's flustered!"

"I can't believe I'm letting you do this."

"But Luddy, we're friends, remember?" Feliciano smiles, "So you have to let me use you as a model!" He turns back to his paints, "Besides, you're different from other people I've painted. You're more…" He frowns, looking at the ceiling in thought. "You're more… oh, what's the word I'm looking for?" A few short moments later, the redhead perks up, "Oh, that's right! You're more sturdy."

"'Sturdy…?'" I echo.

"Si! Francis, Arthur, Toni, Gilbert, and uncle Roddy are all much looser than you, and fratello's just plain grumpy." He continues happily, "Everyone tends to have a different demeanor to their character, and you're just more sturdy than the others."

"Huh, I suppose I never thought about that before."

What's this swelling in my chest? That's probably not normal. I should see a doctor or something, especially seeing as this has been happening surprisingly often. I'll just be spending time with Feliciano, as per the routine I've figured for myself, when my body will start acting weirdly for no apparent reason. My brain becomes fuzzy, my face feels warm, my heart speeds up, my stomach doesn't feel too good, and or my muscles become much more tense than normal. I'm fairly certain I'm coming down with a fever of some sort, or perhaps an infection? After all, it's not like I received professional treatment for my shoulder and hand. It's not impossible for me to have gotten infected at some point. I'm sure that bacteria and viruses would just love to be a massive nuisance, right when my shoulder's in the process of healing and my knuckles are perfectly fine. That's just my luck.

Maybe Gilbert will know what's going on with me?

"Ve~ I guess I just pay more attention to body language than most people!"

"Hm."

"HEY IDIOTA," I cringe at the sound of Feliciano's twin.

Right as I do, the door to the room slams open to reveal the fuming Vargas, Antonio peeking his head in from behind the other. "WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU PAINTING A PICTURE OF THIS ASSHOLE?!"

"Ve~ Fratello! I like to paint my friends, and Luddy's my friend, so-"

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," He growls. "You know I hate this guy's guts, so why are you still pursuing this?!"

"But fratello-"

"No. He's going to leave as soon as his shoulder's done anyways! I mean, that shit can heal in a couple of weeks for spirits, right?"

"Actually, I'd say it takes a little less time," The Spaniard of the family chimes in unhelpfully. Do they really need to bring this up?

"Why can't we just worry about that when it happens?" I frown slightly.

"Shut up, you," Lovino points at me angrily before facing his brother once more, "And as for you, you do realize he probably doesn't even want to be here, right?!"

"Wait a minute, don't just-"

"I said shut up. I didn't ask you, potato bastard! Hell, no one asked you!" He throws his hands into the air in exasperation, "As I was saying, he really doesn't need to stay once he's better! Even if the testa di cazzo somehow does like being here for whatever stupid reason, no way in fuck am I letting him live with us! I will drag him out the door by the tail if I have to."

Feliciano whimpers softly, his eyes brimming with salty water. "Fratello, that's mean! Why do we have to talk about it now?"

"Because I don't want some stupid bastard taking advantage of you!"

"Alright, Lovi, time to go." Antonio puts a hand on his shoulder.

"FUCK NO! I'M NOT DONE YET, YOU FUCKING- HEY! PUT ME DOWN!"

Before anyone can really stop it, the fox lifts Lovino into the air and slings him over one of his shoulders once more, a clueless yet tired smile on his face, "Well, see you guys later! I promise mi tomate will be much calmer by then!"

"ANTONIO, YOU FUCKING TOMATO BASTARD! YOU'RE WORSE THAN BOTH FILTHY GERMANS COMBINED! YOU PUT ME DOWN RIGHT THIS INSTANT, OR I SWEAR-"

He simply laughs merrily and continues down the hallway, "Okay, Lovi~"

"Your family is so weird." I watch their retreating forms, until Antonio turns into a pathway leading towards the kitchen. They're most likely going for the tomatoes again.

When Feliciano doesn't respond, I face him once more, only to find he's crying. "Oh- sheisse- are you alright?" I rush to his side.

"It's just- and fratello-" He cuts himself off, then wails, "I don't want you to leave!"

I awkwardly place a hand on his back and pat it a couple times, "Um… there, there?" I grunt as he latches his arms around my waist, still bawling his eyes out.

"Waaaahhhh and- and I just don't want you to leave and- once you do, I'll be all lonely again be- because everyone else has someone to hang out with but meeeeee-"

Oh sheisse, what am I supposed to do in this sort of situation?!

Maybe we can get pasta to cheer him up? Feliciano really loves pasta, so- wait, no, that's a terrible idea. Antonio dragged Lovino off in the direction of the kitchen. If we go there to get some cheer-up pasta, we'll surely run into them again. For the sake of his emotional stability, it's probably best to not interact with the tomato raiders for a while.

Oh Gott, how do you cheer up someone who's almost always happy?!

Okay, okay, let's calm down and think this through. What do I know makes Feliciano happy? Well, he likes food, which is a massive no-go at this point. Alright, what else? Painting? No, he's far too upset for art right now. Oh, I know! Cute things! He's got to like cute things, ja? But how do I get a cute thing to make him feel better when he's hanging all over me?

Sheisse. This is not going to end well.

There are only two ways this can go as far as I can see. Either I let him cry his heart out and be miserable, or I suck it up and make this crucial sacrifice. But is this really worth it? What am I thinking; of course it is.

And even if it isn't I'm still going to do it anyways, My mind tacks on cynically. I mentally sigh, what have I become?

I gently remove his arms from their state of winding about me, then take a deep breath and stand back.

I can't believe I'm seriously doing this.

As the human begins to freak out at the loss of contact, going into some ramble about the deeper meaning behind me pushing him away for a mere moment, I begin to reluctantly transform. After an aggravating moment of having my entire biology changed, I sit on the floor obediently, blinking up at the now taller other. He tilts his head in confusion, having stopped his aimless blabbering.

"AW, YOU'RE SO CUTE!" I'm swept up into his arms, nearly suffocating at the force of the Italian's hold.

The things I do for this kid.

"Hm? Is something wrong? I heard crying and- wait, what's going on here?!"

"Ve~ Arthur, look; isn't Luddy cute?!" I grin at the rabbit spirit.

"Ohonhonhon, looks like someone's been busy," Cousin Francis flows into the room, "You spirits are so lucky. I bet you get all les belles personnes with the cuteness and cunning of your animal forms."

"Oh shut up, you frog!" Arthur gets that funny look on his face again, that one emotionally confused expression that somehow crosses exasperation, horror, and a strange feeling of attraction.

"Ve~ so cute~ Ve~"

Francis sighs, "So lucky…" Then, he lights up once more as he pulls Arthur into his arms, "Ah, mais mon cher! You love me, don't you?"

From his shoulders to the tips of his ears, Arthur turns bright red. Francis sleeps on the couch that night.

A/N:

Bonjour! Hehehehe, yeah, I couldn't pass up the chance to throw some obvious romance-related bullshit into that last scene with Francis and Arthur. X3 Anyways, I just realized that I completely forgot to explain the language thing! And by that, I mean what language people are probably speaking in. The vast majority of this fanfic is written in English, seeing as that's the only language I can speak and understand fluently. However, in the context, it really doesn't make much sense for the characters to be communicating in English, does it? No, no it does not. Basically, it's safe to assume that most of the time they're speaking in French, but if it's just a couple of people in the conversation, they're possibly using a different language. If it's only Ludwig and Gilbert talking to each other, especially if they don't want anyone knowing what they're talking about, they're probably speaking in German. If it's only Feliciano and Lovino having a private conversation, they're probably communicating via Italian. Pretty simple.

By the way, who wants to guess how long it'll take for Ludwig to just suck up and bind himself to Feli? Two sub-parts, that's how long. In their time, it'll have been exactly two weeks after they first met. Get hype. Sadly, I'm not going to write about the actual experience of their binding. I don't know; it just seems kind of redundant, seeing as Ludwig hasn't led a very interesting life until now, and I already went into detail about Romulus and Aldrich's bond in part 1.

In other news, I think I kind of know what's going on in the sequel. Again, this is a long ways off, but not too long in all seriousness. After all, I plan on just doing the second half of part 2, the rest of the intermission, part 3, and that's it for this fanfic. I'm actually really hype for the sequel, even if I have no idea what it's going to be called! X3 I have a few scenes in mind, but I'm not quite sure yet how to fill in the blanks. However, like I said, I do have some time. I'll probably figure it out.

Responses to review(s):

Yeah, about this... I very clearly remember getting an e-mail about someone reviewing, but when I checked the review section of this fanfic, something really weird happened. It said under 'manage stories' that I have seventeen reviews on this fanfic. I went and counted myself, but there are only sixteen. There are no reviews listed for chapter 11 (sub-part 2.2), even though I remember getting an e-mail about one. I am so terribly sorry about this; I honestly have no idea what's going on here! To whoever it was, allow me to apologize; I really don't understand this.

Anyways, see you! Have a great 2016!

(Oh, and P. S., in the scene in which Feli's painting Ludwig, one of his lines is actually a recycled line of Romulus's from part 1. GUESS WHICH ONE IT IS. SERIOUSLY, IT'S REALLY FUNNY WHEN YOU PUT IT IN CONTEXT.)