BANG! BANG!
Machi groaned at the sound, trying to bury himself further in Daryan's bare chest to block it out. It was disturbing his dream, an encore of what he and Daryan had done just hours ago, and he didn't want anything stupid to ruin that perfect dream. He pulled himself closer to the dark-haired man, feeling a dark lock brushing against his cheek as his face buried into Daryan's neck.
BANG! BANG!
Daryan woke a little from the noise and blinked sleepily. "Mmf... whassat?" He was surprisingly tired and the banging noise was bothering him. He looked down at Machi and kissed his cheek before hugging him close.
BANG! BANG!
Finally, Machi couldn't take it and reluctantly disengaged himself from Daryan's arms, grabbing the first thing that looked like a shirt that he could find on the floor. He buttoned up Daryan's white shirt, thankful that it at least went past his hips since he didn't feel up to wearing anything else just for the sake of cover when something like this was involved. A frustrated growl escaped the tousled blond as he opened the door.
"*What the hell are you doing?*" he demanded toward the group of protesters surrounding his ramshackle of a house.
The protesters laughed a little and the leader stepped forward. "*What do you think we're doing?*" He shoved Machi and took another step, almost inside the house. "*Fixing what the government fucked up.*"
Machi fell backward, landing hard on his bottom and quickly pulling his shirt down a little to prevent exposing himself to those damned rioters. It was likely he bruised his tailbone, but he still got up and pulled the door shut to keep them out of the house.
"*You're wrecking my house! Do you think that's fixing everything!?*" the teenager yelled angrily toward the group.
"*And the government is wrecking our lives!*" The leader yelled back, shoving Machi against the closed door. "*They fucked up justice and now they're gonna pay!*" The rest of the large group cheered in agreement and tightened the semi-circle around Machi's home.
Daryan heard the door slam and he sat up, noticing the warm body beside him had vanished. He grumbled and got up, pulling on his pants and picking up his gun - he never liked using it because of the amount of fighting that could erupt from shooting someone. He gripped his gun and opened the door.
Machi winced from being pushed against the door, getting the wind knocked out of him from being shoved hard against the door before moving out of the way to let Daryan move out of the door. He just gazed toward his best friend/lover, unsure of what to say or do when he saw him in only his pants and carrying a gun.
"D...Daryan..."
"The fuck is going on...?" Daryan rubbed his eyes and glared at the group of men outside the door. He pointed the gun at the obvious leader who was now taking a few steps back. "*Piss off.*" He growled, shooting at the ground in front of the man.
The leader jumped a little and glared before trying to keep some dignity and walk away proudly, though Daryan saw him sprint once he left the sidewalk.
"You okay, kid?" He dropped his gun and knelt to hug Machi. "Sorry.."
"I'm okay." Machi held onto Daryan tightly and buried his face in the older man's shoulder, kissing it briefly before looking up at Daryan. His breathing hurt just a little from the shove into the door as well as his bottom from his less than graceful landing as he grasped onto the man's bare back.
Daryan sighed softly and kissed Machi's cheek. "Good." He murmured before leading the blond back to bed. "We need to get out of here soon..." He told himself quietly, deciding to figure out just what would happen when he fully woke up.
"Yes...I wanting to leave," Machi said honestly, his head resting on Daryan's chest to be able to hear the man's heartbeat, the sound managing to lull him back to sleep, forgetting for now about the protesters and just enjoying the feeling of being in his lover's arms.
********
"... I'm sorry." Diederich mumbled for what must've been the third time already as he set down a tray with soup and a roll on Ramón's lap. He had been told why Ramón was ignoring him and why he was coughing up blood. Diederich had sobered up and was trying to help Ramón get better, sitting at the edge of his bed and looking at him.
"What do you have to feel sorry for?" Ramón asked, sounding rather surly to show his surprise for Diederich sounding remorseful. He also didn't understand why the man was insisting that he stay in bed when he was feeling all right despite the blood he'd been coughing up.
"My sister was like this... I-I think you might be sick..." He shivered a little in fear and nodded at the soup. "That'll help... She got through it, she's better, you're going to be fine..." In truth, it sounded as if Diederich was more worried about it than Ramón. ".. I'm just sorry it might be my fault..."
"'Might?' You could have told me you were a walking bag of fatal germs," Ramón snapped toward Diederich, slamming the tray on the bedside table to look at the man angrily. "I can't even afford cough medicine let alone the antibiotics for tuberculosis. Mierda...I'm going to fucking die because you kept your mouth shut about this." He couldn't help himself for being angry, but this was something he could have been told about earlier.
"I didn't realize... I'm sorry, Ramón!" Diederich was upset that it probably was entirely his fault. He gripped the bedsheets and frowned. "Y-you're not going to die. You'll be fine, I'll get the medicine..." Diederich folded his arms and looked pointedly at the soup. "Just... eat for now, it'll make you feel better."
He didn't want to go to the apothecary. He didn't want to look in his pocket and find this month's rent to use for the medicines but he didn't want Ramón to die. He bit his lip, wondering if Dimitri could help him get cheaper medicine or find more money somehow.
"...Your optimism had better be the only thing contagious for now," Ramón murmured coolly toward Diederich before picking up his soup bowl and reluctantly sipping it to at least make the man shut up and stop looking like he was about to cry. Making Diederich cry would end up making Ramón feel guilty and he hated feeling guilty more than anything.
Diederich sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It's not optimism... You're going to be fine, Ramón. I'll make sure." He rubbed one eye and wished he had some cheap wine with him... But he refused to get it. He didn't want to start getting drunk when things were going wrong again and he also didn't want to spend any money that could be used for medicine.
"If you're thirsty, there's a bottle of wine in the cellar. Pick whatever you like," Ramón said, somehow able to tell that Diederich was itching for something to drink. He was blinking a few times after finishing the soup, surprised that it was actually quite filling and felt good to drink.
Diederich sighed and shook his head. "Non, it's fine, I don't..." He tried to refuse then swore and stood. "... Which do you want?" He asked, feeling guilty for drinking so often as a solution to his problems.
"Some white wine would be good." It was nice and light, which meant Diederich wouldn't be drunk so easily and the red wine reminded Ramón too much of the blood he'd been coughing up lately. He quickly turned his head and coughed into the sleeve of his black shirt, the blood absorbed into the dark color except for the smear of it along his lower lip and chin.
Diederich frowned and moved back over to the bed. He leaned over Ramón and kissed him to wipe away the blood on his chin. He didn't care if he got sick - if he was going to get sick it was going to be from Ramón and no one else. He straightened silently and left to find the wine.
Diederich returned shortly with a bottle of wine and two glasses. He popped the cork and poured both glasses before handing one to Ramón.
"...You're shameless." Ramón couldn't help but smirk a little when Diederich handed him the wine. By now, he'd been used to those kisses of Diederich's and didn't bother to push him away since the man had already been exposed to the disease destroying Ramón's body. It was highly unlikely that Ramón would pass it onto Diederich at this point, but it didn't matter as he leaned over to briefly kiss the man's lips before heading back to his wine.
"I just love you." Diederich corrected with a smile before sipping his own wine. He felt a little guilty for drinking even now... Ramón was sick and it'd be hard to get the medicine and Diederich just wanted to drink until he forgot it all. He sighed and crawled onto the bed to sit next to Ramón, ignoring the possibility of getting sick. "I'm sorry." He said softly again, touching the side of his head to Ramón's shoulder.
"It can't be helped now." Ramón put his glass on the table and played a hand through Diederich's hair, placing a brief kiss on top of his head. "All we have to do is work with what we have." He smiled just a little and closed his eyes to rest in the bed with Diederich next to him.
********
Trucy exhaled and kept working on trying to shovel out land mines on the field. She tried avoiding the gaze of Kristoph Gavin, which seemed to be darker than ever, and he had been ready with his whip to punish anyone for the littlest thing. All she could do was keep working and pray with all her heart that the man could find no reason to punish her for anything.
Kristoph glared at the children working, hating his post. He didn't want to be watching the stupid kids, he wanted to find who made Liese pregnant... and then shoot him.
"Herr Gavin!" One of the officers trotted up to him, clutching papers in his hands. "Jeder verweigert, Geschlecht mit Liese zu haben." He reported. Kristoph swore and whipped the man violently.
"Fräulein Liese zu Ihnen und selbstverständlich würden sie es ableugnen!" He yelled, whipping the man again. "Fragen Sie sie ab, quälen Sie sie, erhalten Sie mir korrekte Antworten einfach!" He whipped the man a third time before he stumbled then sprinted away to retake the survey.
"Und fragen Sie die Hunde auch ab!" He yelled after the man, suspecting a few dogs in particular.
Kristoph looked at the children, a few of which had paused to stare at him, and started whipping them again. "Zurückgehen dar Arbeit!" He commanded angrily.
Trucy winced at the sight of the whippings, bending down to keep digging up more mines and trying her hardest to avoid anything that would set off Kristoph, but one of her nearest co-workers had found a land mine that hadn't been deactivated and a long bang echoed in Trucy's ears. She closed her eyes and felt a thick amount of blood splattering her gray outfit and face, hearing an agonizing scream coming from her co-worker that was now missing his hands and half his forearms. Out of natural fear, Trucy began to scream, half-sobbing for help to have that boy taken to sick bay as soon as possible.
Kristoph groaned at the noise and rubbed his temple before storming over to the horrified boy.
"Unbeholfen Idiot, was für ein Dreck!" He kicked the boy to his knees, "dick dumm Abschaum!" He drew his pistol and pointed it at the boy's forehead who was now sobbing and pleading, the pain in his arms ignored by the fear of death.
Kristoph turned a little and shot at the ground near Trucy and another screaming child. "Ruhe! Meine Gott meine Kopf...." He rubbed his temples and closed his eyes, trying to massage away the headache.
"S...Sir, he needs a doctor. He...He's dying," Trucy tried to beg politely, looking toward the boy on the ground as he quietly sobbed in pain, his green eyes scanning back and forth between his ruined bloody stumps and his hands on the ground. "Please...take him to sick bay..." She shook her head a little, trying to hold back on vomiting at the sight of the boy's ruined arms.
Kristoph looked at Trucy and frowned. He pushed the sobbing boy away with his boot and walked towards Trucy, glaring down at her.
"Did I tell you to speak?" He asked, his voice deathly quiet. Before she could answer he slapped her with the butt of his pistol. He then kicked her down and flipped the gun around to point at her.
"You filthy slut, do you want to die?" He spat on the girl and cocked the pistol.
"N...No..." Trucy whimpered and dug her dull nails into the dirt, scared for her life once again. She didn't care that she had been spat on, only that Kristoph was possibly going to kill her where she stood, and she closed her eyes and trembled badly from being at his mercy.
Kristoph was about to pull the trigger when the officer returned, sprinting over to him and bowing a little with his head. "Herr Gavin, ein… 'Hund' Verleumdung Ihren Familiennamen." He tried not to notice how Kristoph seemed in the middle of shooting a child.
"Scheiße... Namen?" Kristoph frowned angrily, upset that someone had such gut and he was being interrupted.
"Ach, Claus Sommers?" He glanced down at his papers.
Kristoph gave a hollow laugh. He had been mistaken - that boy's father was still alive.
He looked down at Trucy and snatched her up by her collar and brought his face close to her ear.
"Don't disobey me again." He hissed lowly before shoving her towards the ground and muttering for the officer to watch over this post while he went to deal with the prisoner.
Biting down on her lower lip, Trucy watched as the new officer began escorting the boy toward sick bay so that he could die away from the others. She had never been so scared before in her life...Kristoph could have done a lot worse than hit her with his gun...if that officer hadn't arrived, she could have...died. Trucy shook her head and carefully began working on removing those mines, trying to avoid looking at the hands and forearms of that boy as she worked.
********
Daryan had taken to shopping for groceries ever since Machi had the scare with the protesters. He was in the middle of picking out a few apples when he heard the familiar language of English spoken in an American accent. He turned to see two U.S. military talking about how funny the shape of a Geoduck is. How mature.
He still walked up to the pair and tapped one on the shoulder.
"Hey... I didn't know we had guys down here, was I on the right flight?" He frowned, wondering if he was supposed to be on duty.
"Huh...?" One of the soldiers glanced at Daryan, scratching his head in confusion as if he didn't recognize him. "I dunno..." The other one smacked his shoulder a little.
"You're Crescend, right? Nah, you're not supposed to be here," he said, maintaining a little professionalism in the situation. "You should be in London, man. Why are you in Borginia?"
"My flight fucked up or something... I dunno." He shrugged, "I didn't know anyone was going to Borginia, why are you two here?" He frowned, wondering if he hadn't been informed of something.
"The riots are getting out of control. The embassy decided to ask the US for some military help. But, yeah, you weren't supposed to be here. I'm real sorry about the mix-up, man. If you want, we can take you to the military base and get you on the first flight to London in the morning," the more professional soldier offered as his slightly dimmer companion muttered about wanting to get out himself.
Daryan smiled thankfully and nodded. "That'd be great, thanks..." He then shook his head and changed his mind. "Actually, could I leave at the end of the week? I have... some stuff to sort out here..." He glanced around then smiled again at the man.
"Sure. We'll see you on Saturday. Bright and early." Both soldiers saluted Daryan, then began heading back to work over at an upcoming riot that was beginning to get violent.
Daryan smiled and saluted them back before returning to the fruit stand and paying for the food. He returned home quickly, glad to tell Machi of the fortunate news.
Back at the little house, Machi had managed to fix up some of the damage that the protesters had caused to the outside the best he could when he saw Daryan arrive and look rather happy. The teenager's smile widened and he looked over at Daryan, pleased to see him in such a good mood.
"Something happening?" he asked.
Daryan scooped Machi up and hugged him tightly, still grinning.
"I ran into a pair of U.S. military guys... They'll have a plane to London for Saturday." Daryan kissed Machi's cheek and sighed happily, glad he didn't have to worry for their safety for too much longer.
"We going to leave soon?" Machi asked, his hands cupping Daryan's face as he smiled down at the man, this smile one of the widest ones he'd ever given to anyone. His glasses hid his eyes from view, but they were shining like Christmas had come early to the boy. For a long time, he'd thought there would be no escape from Borginia, but now...he would leave this country forever with the best friend he'd ever make.
Daryan nodded and smiled, hugging him tighter. "We can go home." He promised, extremely happy that he could leave this horrid place and live with Machi in peace.
Machi hugged onto Daryan tightly and looked at him when he said those words about going home. He just smiled and shook his head, letting his forehead rest on Daryan's since the man had decided to not wear any hair gel today.
"You being my home, Daryan," he said honestly as he looked down at the man from his position in Daryan's arms.
Daryan smiled and kissed Machi, "Thank you, Machi... Wherever you go is my home." He promised quietly. He kept the teen in his arms and stepped inside from the cold.
********
"...It's so warm," Yuri said, opening the window and feeling the sultry air hitting the living room. Seeing all the colors outside, though, made her feel a lot happier compared to when she had seen nothing but four walls, but she did wish it would be snowing soon. She had been sick the last winter and had missed it entirely, which made her sulky and reclusive toward her brothers until she got over it.
"Well, one of these days, you'll see the snow," Dimitri promised, placing a hand on Yuri's shoulder and looking outside with her. "I promise, Yuri, you'll get your own winter wonderland."
Diederich opened the door and yawned as he entered with a bottle of wine in his hand. He had stayed up all night to make sure Ramón was okay and not choking on his blood in his sleep. He had brought wine home with him to avoid getting drunk at the Spaniard's home.
"Morning." He mumbled before sitting down and uncorking the bottle.
"Good morning, Diederich," Yuri said, smiling at her brother kindly and noticed the bottle of wine in his hands. "Do you need a glass for that?" She decided to volunteer herself to get one for Diederich, trying to play the good little sister since she never did to spend much time with him even during her illness.
"How's he doing?" Dimitri asked Diederich, sitting down next to his younger brother. He noticed that the bottle was of a top shelf white wine rather than the cheap red wine, which showed a sign of slight improvement for his drinking problem. "I still can't believe he got it...and we didn't. We spent almost ten months with Yuri while she was at her sickest and we never even coughed, but Ramón spends two weeks with us and he's coughing up blood and already starting to deteriorate." The eldest sibling shook his head and sighed. "I guess this makes my decision easier."
Diederich shook his head and mumbled for Yuri not to bother. He uncorked the bottle and took a swig before glaring at Dimitri and kicking him weakly from his chair. "Don't fucking describe it." He murmured before taking another swig and groaning.
"What decision?" He frowned at his brother in confusion.
"This city's been ruined when I brought Yuri here. She's never been able to enjoy Paris because she got sick the moment we arrived and we spent almost a year trying to get her to recuperate and pull her out of the brinks of death. And now that Ramón, the one friend we make, is...either way, this city is only going to bring back terrible memories and...I bought three tickets to Moscow. The train leaves on Saturday." Dimitri pulled out three pieces of paper, holding them in his hand to show Diederich.
"Diederich, I got you your glass," Yuri said, handing over a drinking glass rather than a wine glass.
Diederich sighed softly and couldn't help a smile at how adorable his younger sister was. He stood and kissed her cheek. "Would you like some too? You shouldn't strain yourself..." He motioned for her to take a seat.
Upon hearing what Dimitri said he frowned at his brother.
"... Three tickets? T-to Moscow?" He repeated slowly. "... What about... Ramón...?" He asked quietly.
"I'm sorry, Diederich...but...we have to go back for Yuri's sake. She's better now and we don't want her to remember this place as the place she'd been sick in for almost a year. I don't know what we can do about Ramón. Maybe we can come back after the war is over and Yuri is fully independent, but he can't leave because of his illness." There was a law on the railroads that forbade anyone who had a life-threatening illness from traveling and risking passing on the illness to the other passengers.
"Wait...does that mean...Diederich, I won't be able to see the snow on top of the Eiffel Tower?" Yuri looked at both her brothers in sadness and confusion, remembering what Diederich had promised her.
Diederich's eyes glistened with wet for a moment and he rubbed it away. "... Of course." He nodded as if it was fine then looked at Yuri.
"Non, non ma chérie, you will see the snow, I promise... I... I said you will see snow and you will." He nodded definitely though he was entirely unsure if the weather would ever cool.
"Diederich..." Dimitri hated being the bad guy, especially when he saw Yuri's gray eyes fill with latent tears. "I'm sorry...but we have to do what's best for Yuri. And...as for Ramón...maybe it's best for him if we leave. He's sick because of our germs." Yuri then looked at Dimitri, trying not to cry.
"It was my fault, wasn't it? Did I get your friend sick? I didn't mean to, honest!" Yuri vowed, looking at Diederich and clutching his hands. "You shouldn't have to leave Ramón behind because I got him sick."
Diederich hugged her and kissed her cheek again. "Yuri, don't cry, it's okay, it's not your fault. I got him sick." He sighed and looked over at Dimitri to frown again. "It was an accident, Dimitri. What's best for him is if I take care of him..." He sighed and rested his head on Yuri's shoulder, still hugging her.
"... But it'll be fine. It's fine. We'll go..."
Yuri smiled and hugged onto Diederich, still feeling terrible for knowing that Diederich didn't feel happy, and kept hugging onto him to make sure that he wasn't sad. Dimitri just gave Diederich a sad smile and patted his brother's black hair, knowing that it had to be a hard choice for Diederich to make.
"If...you want to go see him, go ahead," he said, his usual teasing gone for now and replaced by the elder brother who wanted only the best for his younger brother and sister. That was the reason for going to Moscow in the first place: it wasn't just for Yuri, but for Diederich, too. He wanted his younger brother to try and be happy again despite Ramón not being there, to start anew without the disease holding them back. "By the way...it wasn't anyone's fault that Ramón got sick. That's just...the way things go sometimes."
Diederich sighed softly and shook his head. "No... I've been absent from my family." If not physically, mentally. "I'd like to spend some time with you." He left to the kitchen and brought back three wine glasses for them and a smile.
********
A messenger informed Kristoph that their side seemed to be losing the war. Everything was falling apart and Kristoph felt like the walls of his home were knocked down when he heard that Germany was being beaten.
He had to get out. He needed a plan, some way to make sure he didn't have to suffer like a fool in their prisons. He dug through the boxes and bottles in the sick bay, knowing there was some form of 'quiet death' he never bothered to use - ah, here it is.
Kristoph pulled out a small bottle of cyanide pills. Perfect. He shoved them in his pocket and walked back to his quarters, wondering if they would work properly.
A group of young children trotted by towards their working site, lead by one officer. Kristoph snatched the collar of one of the little boy's dirtied uniform and he yanked him away from the group. The boy was about to say something but Kristoph popped the lid, took one of the pills and shoved it into the little boy's mouth.
He squirmed but swallowed and shivered, afraid of Kristoph's constant stare. Within a minute, the boy shuddered and squeaked before falling limp. Kristoph dropped the corpse and smiled as he returned to his cabin. This would work perfectly.
Klavier approached Liese's cabin and knocked on the door. He stomped out his cigarette, not wanting to smoke near her if she was pregnant, and frowned nervously. How would she take to it? Would she tell him who it was? Did she even know? Shit... if she never... did someone rape her? Klavier worried over her as he waited for Liese, afraid he'd have to burn the entire camp just to find who hurt her.
"Klavier?" Liese opened the door, a towel wrapped around her body and another around her head, having just stepped out of the shower. "Was is los?" She opened the door a little more. "Come in, come in...it's cold outside." Klavier never came over to her cabin, which meant something had to be wrong.
Klavier stepped in and tried to smile. "Ich... Liese, I figured out what was wrong..." He decided to speak in English as it was a little easier for him to tell people problems in English.
"You..." He glanced down at a small box of tools in his hands nervously. This was so wrong...
"I wasn't aware there was anything wrong to begin with, Klavier...except for that incident with Kristoph's group," Liese said coolly, remembering that Kristoph had been assigned to the teenagers picking up land mines and one had detonated and taken off a boy's hands. Because Kristoph had been negligent in his duties for some unknown reason, the boy ended up dying of gangrene in sick bay. He was going to die anyway, but it had still been a terrible thing that made even the hardest soldiers wince.
Klavier made a noise and nodded. "Ja... that was... upsetting. One dead and one nearly traumatized." He grimaced, remembering being brought to the field to make sure Trucy was okay.
"But your stomach pains and vomiting... I know what caused it." He shook his head and looked at Liese.
"Oh?" The blonde began shaking the towel around her head to dry her hair a little before removing it, then headed into the bathroom to change quickly into her underwear and a shirt so that she wouldn't have to go around naked as she put on her pants. Liese did wonder what the cause was...probably just a little flu since she had been nauseous off and on all day.
Klavier nodded slowly. "You're pregnant." He sat down in one of the chairs and looked down at his little box of tools he brought so he could see how old and how healthy it was.
"P...Pregnant? Klavier, that's ridiculous..." Liese shook her head and laughed as if he were joking, but she saw the tools and the serious look on his face and frowned. She shook her head, remembering all the nausea, the two missing periods, and all the sex she had with Phoenix without even thinking about any form of birth control. "Y...You really think I'm...? Are there ways to check?" Now she felt worried, even distressed at this as she looked at her younger brother.
Klavier nodded sadly. "Ja, I can check, I'm pretty sure you are, but... Liese... do you know how it might've happened...?" He frowned, worried about who exactly made her pregnant.
"A toilet seat," she replied with a bit of dry sarcasm, then shook her head. "Nein, it was...the normal way. I'm a grown woman, Klavier, I'm capable of having sex." Liese sat down on the bed, lying down on it a little as she sighed, then went back to the bathroom to vomit quickly when she felt nauseous.
Klavier frowned and shivered a little when he heard her vomit. "Liese... I mean who do you think it might've been?" He asked, standing with a stethoscope to put on then wait for her to return.
"Does it matter? You're likely going to be an uncle, so start looking for a good baby shower gift. Just check and make sure your wild theories are correct," Liese said stiffly, heading back into the room and sitting down next to Klavier, nearly praying that it was wrong and that Klavier would leave her alone.
Klavier sighed, "Liese... I need to know... Please?" He wanted to know who did this to Liese... He wasn't sure what he'd do with the man but it wouldn't be congratulations.
He put a hand on the small of her back and the other hand held the end of the stethoscope he pressed gently against her stomach. He moved it around and frowned - young babies were hard to detect but he really wanted to try.
"Someone who loves me...and someone I love in return," Liese told him, not wanting to reveal the name to Klavier. "It doesn't matter. He's not going to be here for much longer anyway." She glanced at the calendar. Wednesday. In three days, she had to come up with a plan to get Phoenix and Trucy out of the camp to prevent Phoenix from being killed by the chemicals. Less than three days. Shit.
Tears were beginning to run down her eyes and she sponged at them with the heel of her hand.
Klavier glanced up at Liese as he gently moved his hand to try and find the heartbeat.
"Liese... is he an officer?" He tried to guess, wondering what she meant by 'not going to be here for much longer'. Dear Gott if it was one of the prisoners... He tried not to think about it and moved his hand again.
"The only officers that are relatively good-looking are us and Kristoph," Liese said, her Gavin-like narcissism coming naturally to her despite the situation at hand.
"Well," Klavier was about to agree when he looked up with a frown. "It's not... Meine Gott that's disgusting." He laughed lightly and shook his head, knowing Liese would never touch Kristoph.
"Just keep finding the baby, you perverted little ass," Liese said, trying not to laugh despite shuddering and gagging in disgust at the mere unspoken suggestion Klavier had said. "It doesn't matter who the father is if there's no baby."
Klavier laughed again and shifted his hand. His laughter ceased almost immediately when he heard a faint thumping.
"... Here." He shifted his hand a little again then nodded. "He's right here... or she... barely the size of a pinhead, but here..." He took the stethoscope off and touched Liese's stomach.
"My baby...is there?" she asked, touching her stomach briefly at the spot Klavier had pointed, her blue eyes widening slowly as she looked down at herself. "Mein Gott..." Liese felt like crying at this point, but quickly stood up and decided to leave the quarters and head over toward the excavation site and saw Phoenix working, feeling the tears coming back to her eyes.
Klavier watched Liese leave and frowned. "Liese...?" He sighed softly and left to the sick bay to put away his tools.
Phoenix looked up and noticed Liese walking up and he punched another man quickly. What was wrong? She looked like she was about to start crying.
The officer on duty yelled and hopped down from his chair to go break up the fight.
"I'll take care of this one," Liese said, pulling Phoenix over to the sheds and then looked at him. "There's...something I have to tell you..."
Phoenix kissed her and put his hands on her waist, their foreheads barely touching. "What is it?" He frowned a little in concern.
Liese simply took one of Phoenix's hands and placed it on the spot Klavier had pointed at a while ago, unable to control her emotions as she felt the tears running down her face.
"There's your baby," she said, her voice wavering softly.
Phoenix stared for a moment, almost not understanding, then kept his hand on her stomach and kissed Liese. It wasn't planned but it wasn't unwanted.
"... Our baby."
********
Daryan blinked sleepily and grinned, rolling over to poke Machi.
"Machi, wake up... c'mon, kid." He shoved the blond gently, impatiently begging for him to wake up. They had to leave for their flight and the few bags of possessions sat at the door, ready.
Machi rubbed at his eyes and groaned, glancing toward Daryan and about to ask why they had to be up so early, but then he remembered what today was. Saturday. They were going to leave Borgina today. He kissed Daryan's forehead quickly and sat up.
"Good morning," he said, a smile going to his face and his blue eyes lighting up gently.
"Morning." Daryan grinned and kissed Machi's cheek before sitting up and stretching. "You ready?" He was excited to leave this place with Machi.
"Yes." He stood up and dressed in his traditional lacy clothes before putting on his sunglasses and extending his hand toward Daryan. More than anything, Machi wanted to leave this horrible place. Yes, he had been born here, found in the alley in his mother's arms, nearly blue from lack of oxygen...this place had orphaned Machi, hurt him, forced him to be an adult at the tender age of fourteen. The only good thing was that he had found Daryan and was going to leave.
Daryan stood and got dressed in a simple shirt and pants and threw one of the jackets displaying his last name and badges to show his rank in the military. Not extremely high but not a boot-shiner either.
He lead Machi outside when they were both ready and he carried the bags out. The base wasn't too far from the building so they walked.
"I hear London's great, Machi. They've got really nice houses..." Daryan smiled, thinking about what they would do when they arrived.
"Hopefully, we getting warm house," Machi said with a laugh as he took Daryan's hand after taking his bag back to free that hand and they continued to walk. Just when they were a mile away from the base, there was a protest group rioting wildly outside one of the buildings. The teenager tensed and gripped tightly onto Daryan's hand, stopping as he saw the group and frowning deeply. "No..."
Daryan slowed his pace a little, frowning at the rowdy group, but then shook his head and kept walking, still holding Machi's hand. "Don't worry, it's fine... they'll stop." He murmured, squeezing Machi's hand reassuringly.
"...Okay." Machi smiled slowly and continued to walk, barely passing by the group when he felt a sharp yank to his free arm pull him backward, instinctively releasing his grip on the bag that he carried and he quickly grasped Daryan's hand tightly.
"*Hold it! You were the little bastard who made us stop our free expression!*" the man accused, yanking Machi back hard enough for the teenager to let go of Daryan's hand.
"*LET GO!*" Machi screamed, struggling against the man and even daring to bite him on the arm until a fist slammed into his face from one of the other protesters.
Daryan tried to pull Machi away but the group of protesters were stronger than the single man and they pulled Machi into the centre of the group to begin beating the poor boy, kicking and punching and biting, screaming obscenities.
Daryan tried to get rid of the large group of men but it was hard to get through the first three protesters but the dark-haired man continued to beat through the throng.
Machi screamed and sobbed as he kept getting attacked and pounded by the protesters, crying Daryan's name throughout this despite the soreness in his body from what were likely a handful of broken ribs. He heard the ripping of fabric from his clothes being wrecked and ruined, but he didn't care about that.
Hands slapped, punched, pinched, and pulled...feet kicked and stomped his vulnerable body...at some point, Machi lost his sunglasses and he could see bright sunlight from the sunrise streaming into his blue eyes. Even through the pain, he couldn't stop screaming that name:
"DARYAN!!"
Luckily, nearly half the protesters saw it was a lost cause and they ran like cowards, leaving the confident ones to Daryan's angry punches. He finally got through them all and dropped to his knees in exhaustion from fighting as best as he could. He saw Machi's glasses broken on the ground and he frowned in worry as he picked up the broken lenses.
"Machi...?"
The teenager was huddled on the ground, his clothes torn and blood beginning to pool below him. He didn't move a muscle and his face wasn't visible to Daryan, his entire body turned to the side and facing away from the older man. It was unsure if he had lived through the beating or succumbed to it.
The snow started to fall and made a beautiful contrast to the blood pooled on the ground. Daryan crawled forward and touched the boy's shoulder, almost afraid to find out what had happened.
"Machi, I'm sorry... Please be okay..." He prayed quietly, squeezing Machi's shoulder gently.
"...D-Daryan..." Machi couldn't turn his head, but he could hear the voice. Those broken ribs hurt so much that he couldn't even speak right or even turn the rest of his body...but he was alive despite his intense pain. Pain meant he was alive...even if his body was covered in bruises, bites, blood, and cuts.
Daryan felt his eyes swell up with tears and he carefully turned the boy over onto his back.
"Ar-are you okay?" He breathed, trying to wipe away the blood on his face.
"Yes." Machi smiled weakly toward Daryan, reaching up to sponge at a tear with his thumb. "No crying...I not dying yet...I still alive." He tried to laugh, but his ribs hurt too much to do that and he simply kept his smile, glad that his mouth had been spared in the beating. Bruises were already darkening around his clear eyes, which continued to sparkle despite his battered face and body.
Daryan tried to smile at that and nodded. "Y-yeah... fuck, Machi, I'm sorry..." He hugged the bloodied boy and heard a hummer roll up, having seen the fight, and wait for Daryan and Machi.
"You're fine... You'll be fine, I promise..." He kissed Machi's cheek and let out a broken sigh.
Machi smiled back at Daryan, unable to shake his head or nod at his apology, keeping himself close to Daryan until her wrapped his arms shakily around the older man's neck to pull him close. His eyes closed shut as he whispered in Daryan's ear:
"I love you, Daryan."
Daryan felt a tear roll down his cheek and he hugged him back tightly. "I-I love you too, Machi..." He whispered, burying his head into the crook of Machi's shoulder.
He finally picked Machi up and brought him over to the hummer to bring him into the base.
Finally, they could go home.
********
Diederich sighed softly and finished putting together their bags at the door. He didn't want to leave... he really didn't want to leave, but... They had to. And he hated it. He had tried buying medicines for Ramón but they were cheap black-market stuff he could barely afford.
"Ready?" He called out, his voice hoarse and his eyes red from crying. He felt a little peckish and wasn't sure why but he ignored it and waited by the bags at the door.
"Ready," Yuri said, bundled up in a coat since Dimitri had already gone ahead to flag a taxi and he told Yuri to wear something warm. For the first time in a long time, it was actually cold and gray and the young woman prayed that it was actually going to snow. Maybe it wouldn't be too late to see a snow-covered Paris after all. She looked at Diederich and saw that he had been crying, wiping a stray tear with her mitten. "I'm sorry, Diederich. I know you miss him."
Diederich turned his head away and sighed quietly, shaking his head a little. "It's fine. Don't worry." He put on a smile and kissed Yuri's cheek. "Don't apologize. Hey, maybe it's snowed." He suggested, pulling on his jacket. He picked up the bags and opened the door, holding it for Yuri first.
Yuri walked out the door eagerly, hoping for even a few flakes of snow but found none and frowned softly before heading into the taxi where Dimitri had already resided. The eldest sibling saw Diederich's red-rimmed eyes and the disappointment in Yuri's expression, but merely shook his head and told the driver to head for the train station.
Diederich remained silent throughout the ride and kept his eyes out the window during the ride. When they arrived Diederich stepped out and pulled out the bags from the trunk. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, wishing he had brought some cheap wine with him.
"...Are you looking for this?" a tenor voice with a foreign accent asked, holding a bottle of white wine and a bottle of red wine in his hand, which he showed to Diederich. When the man turned his head, Ramón barely smiled at him, but it was still there. He was so much paler than he'd ever been before and he looked thinner, but he was there and ready to see Diederich off.
"Monsieur Mendez, I'm glad that you came," Yuri said, smiling toward him briefly before going off to join Dimitri in getting the tickets checked.
"You called me, chiquita," Ramón replied simply with a mild shrug toward the girl as she left.
Diederich's eyes lit up and he rubbed at them again before hugging Ramón and pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Ramón..." he murmured, feeling like he was about to cry again. "I- th-thank you for coming... I missed you..." He kissed him again and sighed sadly into the man's shoulder.
"...I missed you, too," Ramón admitted, deciding to push the bottles of wine into Diederich's bag to be able to hug the Frenchman properly, patting the back of his head and inhaling the flowery scent of shampoo. "I can't stay long, though. Your train leaves in ten minutes and this weather is hell." Honestly, he wasn't even supposed to be outside when the temperature was so low, but he risked it and did it anyway to at least say good-bye to Diederich.
Diederich kissed Ramón's cheek and sniffed, feeling a tickle in his throat and a tear in his eye. "Y-you need to come to Moscow once you're better." He suggested, a sort of happy sadness filling his heart. He didn't want to say good-bye for so long or possibly for the last time. He wanted Ramón to come with them but... those damned rules...
Diederich pressed his lips against Ramón's, "I love you, Ramón..." He murmured through a deep kiss with a few tears running down his cheeks.
"Diederich, the train is leaving in five minutes!" Dimitri warned, yelling toward his brother, which gave Ramón very little time to pull the man close, stroking his hair and kissing gently, not saying anything until they went to the train. That was when Ramón gave Diederich a searing kiss and smiled the most that he had ever done so toward anyone, his dark eyes still holding a heavy sadness to them.
"Te amo, Diederich," he said, knowing that he would understand what he meant from the way he held Diederich tight. "I'll see you in Moscow one day." The train let out a warning whistle and Dimitri shook his head a little before going over to them, kissing Ramón on the temple.
"Get better, Ramón," he said before taking Diederich and Yuri into the train.
Diederich's eyes were wet with tears but he rubbed them away as he hugged Ramón for the last time, nodding and murmuring that everything would be wonderful in Moscow. He let Dimitri lead him and Yuri onto the train and he sat down in their car, taking one of the seats next to the window to look out and try to see his friend and lover.
He sighed and rubbed the tears away as the train began to move.
As the train pulled out of sight, Ramón shivered a little as he felt the wind get colder, blowing some snow into his hair. Shit. Too cold to be out here, but he had to make sure the train left Paris safely. He watched the long train move east, away from the city until it disappeared from sight. The snow was beginning to come far too quickly for some reason and Ramón went to his knees, feeling a coughing fit begin as he nearly gagged into his hands. Ramón looked at the blood, feeling dazed as he stared down at it until it became too much, his head spinning from the intensity of the coughs.
When did I get so soft? I blame you, Diederich...stupid, lovable whore...gonna miss you until I get to Moscow...
He exhaled a little and felt his body buckling until he passed out at the station's dock, the snow caressing his dark hair and ruffling it softly.
"Look!" Yuri looked out the window and smiled when she saw the snow beginning to fall, covering Paris in a thin blanket. "It's snowing...it finally snowed..." She was ecstatic to finally see the beautiful city covered in snow, especially on her last day seeing it. Maybe it wasn't the Eiffel Tower view she wanted, but it was still beautiful.
Diederich looked up at the snow and smiled weakly. He rubbed away his tears again and felt that tickle in his chest that had been bothering him for a short while now. He coughed into his hand and glanced at it, noticing the too-familiar sputum in his hand. He swallowed thickly and found a handkerchief to wipe it off his hand and keep the cough confined as he looked out the window at the snow.
"You okay, Diederich?" Dimitri asked, glancing toward his younger twin, who quickly nodded as he looked out the window, then smiled at his siblings.
"Ouais," he said. He wouldn't tell them now...they weren't ready yet...
********
Liese was up over an hour before the bugle, trying to prepare to orchestrate her plan to get Phoenix and Trucy safely out of the camp. It didn't matter if she got out since she was in no danger at the present time, but Phoenix...if she didn't get him and Trucy out of here, he would be dead before lunch. She got up, holding down her nausea, and began heading for the eastern barracks where Phoenix slept, knowing the place by heart at this point.
Phoenix was barely able to sleep the night before, extremely worried for his and Trucy's safety... and now Liese and their unborn child. He heard the door open and he got to Liese quickly, hugging her and kissing her almost desperately.
"Liese, I love you, it's going to be fine..." He had stayed up trying to think of a plan and found nothing, deciding to instead rehearse an 'it's okay' speech for her.
"Go to the sick bay," Liese hissed, placing a hand on the back of Phoenix's spiky head to kiss him briefly. "Cut through the barracks here and then pass through the cabins. There aren't any guards in that area. I'll be there in a hour with a surprise." She smiled at him, placing a kiss on his cheek as her smile strained. "It's...all going to work out...some way."
Phoenix stared for a moment, almost unable to believe she planned it all out so well. He kissed her again and sighed, hugging her close for a moment.
"Damnit, I love you... Be careful." He kissed her once more before reluctantly pulling away from her and slipping out the door.
Phoenix carefully made his way to the sick bay, finding Liese was right about no guards in the area. He opened the door to the sick bay and closed it behind him, letting out a sigh of relief.
"I didn't know dogs were allowed off their leash at this time." Kristoph crossed his arms and frowned at the prisoner.
Phoenix moved to open the door and get out but Kristoph cocked his pistol and pointed it lazily at Phoenix. "Don't move, dog." He hissed, watching the prisoner slowly let go of the door and turn to face him.
"I have a name."
"I'm sure you do."
"I'm not a dog."
"You're lower. But let's not get technical." Kristoph stepped forward until the barrel of the gun was pressing against Phoenix's chest.
Before Kristoph could continue with how low Phoenix was, the dark-haired man grabbed Kristoph's gun and twisted, moving behind him to wrench the gun from Kristoph's hand and press it against the blond's head.
"Don't get in my way." He growled, not about to let Kristoph destroy his life any more.
"T-tch." Kristoph attempted to pull away but Phoenix just held him still, much stronger thanks to the work.
Phoenix shoved Kristoph away and kept his gun, pointing at the blond.
"Get out... don't come near me..." He watched Kristoph growl and reluctantly back away until he left the sick bay.
Phoenix ran a hand through his hair and groaned, uncocking the gun and dropping it to the ground.
Trucy blinked her eyes, wondering why she was being awakened when it was so dark outside. It wasn't time for the bugle to go off yet, which made her look at the blonde in surprise.
"Is it time to work?" she asked in confusion, but the woman shook her head.
"Nein. It's time to go," Liese said, lifting Trucy up by her arm to yank her toward the sick bay, but the girl began to struggle.
"No! I...I don't want to die...please...!" she begged the woman that had saved her life once before, but Liese just shook her head and kept walking toward the sick bay, noticing Kristoph walking past, too focused on cursing under his breath to notice the two of them.
Phoenix heard the door open and looked up, about to reach for the dropped gun in fear of Kristoph returning but he saw Trucy and ran up to hug her. He lifted her off the ground and held her tight, thanking God she was alive and well. He looked at Liese and smiled thankfully.
"Daddy! Daddy!" Trucy sobbed, having not seen her father even once since they had arrived in the camp almost three months ago. He looked so strong while she had lost weight and been beaten by Kristoph, but seeing him now...it didn't matter...she just wrapped her arms around Phoenix's neck and sobbed happily. Liese watched them with a soft smile on her face, wiping at a stray tear that ran down one of her cheeks.
"Trucy... Trucy are you okay?" Phoenix kissed her cheek and set her down, kneeling himself, to make sure she was all right. A few signs of beatings from Kristoph - he wondered if any other officer even thought about whipping the children - and a little malnourished but still alive and well enough. He kissed her forehead and hugged her again, looking up at Liese.
"... Trucy... sweetheart..." He turned his head again to smile at his daughter. "You're going to be a big sister."
"A...A big sister...?" Trucy looked toward Liese and noticed the way Phoenix was looking at her. "You and Daddy...?" Liese just nodded a little, her smile hard to hide as Trucy placed a hand on Liese's stomach, the teenage girl smiling. "Hey...I can feel it." She laughed and kept moving her hand around. "My baby brother's in there, isn't he?"
Phoenix smiled and nodded. "Yeah..." He smiled and kissed Trucy's forehead again before standing and wrapping an arm around Liese's waist and pulling her close for a kiss.
"Scheiße, Liese...." Klavier stared from the doorway, having come in early to check on one of the prisoners currently sleeping with a broken arm and leg.
"Was... Ihn!?" He wasn't sure whether to be upset or happy or disgusted as he remained still near the hospital bed.
"Klavier..." Liese looked at her younger brother and the stunned expression on his face, unsure of what to really say to him, but to confirm what he had seen and nodded. "Ja...it's him." She hadn't anticipated this, but she decided to keep being truthful about this. "You can't let Phoenix die...if you do, Trucy will be an orphan and my baby, your nephew, won't have a father." The blonde moved between Phoenix and Trucy, taking both their hands. "They're my family, Klavier...I love them as much as I love you and Kristoph..."
Klavier grimaced a little and looked down, considering this.
"But... Liese... they're dogs..." He said slowly, feeling a little odd for having two of them staring right at him as he said it. "It just isn't right..."
Phoenix frowned and held Liese and Trucy a little closer, unsure if Klavier would end up trying to kill them like his insane brother.
"They're people like you and me, Klavier...mein Gott, you sound like Kristoph. You're the one who wants to be a doctor and you took care of patients that were claimed as 'dogs,' but if I begin to love them, you see them as dogs. Why are you doing this? Just...let them get out of here," Liese said, whispering the last sentence. "Before Kristoph shows up...let them live...get them out of here..." She hated being weak like this, but she had a baby to think of that needed its father to be alive...the baby was her highest priority.
"Liese, they're..." he sighed, realizing that there really wasn't much difference. "I'm sorry... Kristoph is persuasive..." He murmured, a little upset that he was even speaking like his brother now.
"But he'll kill me if he finds out they escaped... He'd kill you too." He frowned at Liese, "Please, I want to help but... I can't with this... it's-"
"Disgusting." Kristoph leaned in the doorway opposite Klavier, trapping the family between the Gavin men. "Liese, please don't tell me you feel sympathy for such rats." He gave his sister a commanding look and glared at Phoenix and Trucy.
"I don't feel sorry for them, Kristoph," Liese said coolly toward Kristoph. "I love Phoenix...and Trucy...and I love our baby. They're the most important people in my life...and I'll be damned if I let anyone try and take them away from me, especially if it's you!" She glared at Kristoph heatedly, tightening her hands into fists.
Phoenix shifted and held Liese and Trucy behind him, not allowing Kristoph to hurt any of his family any more.
Kristoph glared back at her and his left eye twitched a little. "I don't believe I heard you... Did you imply your child belongs to that rat?" He had upgraded the insults to a worse rodent and Kristoph was disgusted at the very thought of Liese doing such things with a pile of dirt like that.
"Kristoph, stop-" Klavier stepped forward but his brother drew a new pistol and pointed it at the blond man, making him step back again quietly.
"Don't even think about it." Liese pulled out her own pistol and aimed it at Kristoph, cocking it toward her older brother and aiming it precisely at his collarbone since she knew it was one of his weaker spots. Trucy whimpered at the thought of Liese or Klavier being killed and buried her face in Phoenix's gray shirt.
Kristoph smirked and shifted his arm so it pointed right back at Liese. "Sie würden Ihre eigene Bruder schießen?" He asked mockingly, focusing more on the spot where his barrel was pointed at than his sister.
Phoenix held Trucy close and touched Liese's shoulder in worry as Kristoph's smile was rather unnerving.
"D...Daddy...Mommy..." Trucy shivered between Liese and Phoenix, wishing that she could wake up from this horrible dream and be back in her own bed in her own house.
"Ich war nicht bewusst, dass ich einen Bruder hatte, um zu schießen," Liese said, her tone just as mocking and her smirk just as cold as she tossed aside her hat, sunglasses, and the Swastika bands around her arms as well as her jacket despite the snow falling down. "I don't want to be in this war anymore...and I don't want to be a Gavin if it means having to give up on the war." She began heading toward the main gate with Phoenix and Trucy, deactivating the electric current going through the fence.
Phoenix followed quickly, trying to stay in the line of fire for Liese and Trucy, not wanting either of them hurt. Once they passed the gate he sighed in relief and wrapped an arm around Trucy and Liese thankfully.
Kristoph growled and tossed his pistol to Klavier as his hands went frantically to his pockets, trying to find the cyanide pills. His easy way out.
"Scheißen, Klavier." He ordered as the younger hesitantly caught the gun.
"Bruder... Nein-"
"Scheißen, Verdammt!" Kristoph shouted, popping the lid and pouring the entire amount of pills into his hand.
"Bruder, anhalten-!" Klavier tried to move away but Kristoph was quick and caught his brother by the arm.
"Scheißen-" He tried to force Klavier's arms up in order to shoot and half the pills spilled onto the snow. There was a gunshot, but Klavier's focus was only on his suicidal brother, unable to do anything as he watched Kristoph emptying the pills still in his hand into his mouth.
"Mein Gott, Kristoph...!?" Klavier frowned as the man slowly sunk to his knees and mumbled nonsense.
"Ich gewinnen." He mumbled slowly as Klavier's arms wrapped around him and pulled his older brother's cold body close to his warmer one.
"Ich gewinnen..."
"Nnn..." Liese was on her knees, holding onto her arm as she felt the blood pouring down from the gunshot in her left bicep. There wasn't any blood anywhere else, meaning that the baby was still alive...good, it wasn't dead yet...
"Mommy..." Trucy tore her gray top to expose her battered midriff and wrapped Liese's arm to try and stop the bleeding, thankful that the bullet wasn't too deep, but the middle Gavin sibling went back in to see Klavier and Kristoph. She saw Kristoph in Klavier's arms with his glasses discarded and his hair loosened from its atypical spiral, the perfectionist now in disarray.
Klavier looked up, his eyes furious and a little confused. "Verlassen, Liese!" He yelled at the approaching woman. "Verlassen! Sie töteten Kristoph und Sie sind verliebt mit einem Hund…" Klavier held Kristoph closer to his chest, the elder's body as cold as the snow falling. "Sie zerstörten diese Familie..." He started to shake from silent tears and he simply looked down at his brother's face and hugged him close.
All Liese could do was stare at her brother with sympathy, unsure of what to really say to him. He sounded so angry, as if the hatred Kristoph had for everything imperfect and out of order had already passed down to Klavier, and she knew it was time to leave him behind, placing her good hand on Klavier's cheek to kiss him on the forehead and put Kristoph's glasses in his pocket.
"Es tut mir leid für dass...aber diese Familie bereits zerstört wurde. Auf Wiedersehen, Klavier." She said no more than that and headed out of the gate where Phoenix and Trucy waited for her.
Klavier watched the last link to the Gavin line other than himself be joined by Phoenix and Trucy as they supported the wounded woman, Phoenix's arm around her waist and Trucy holding her good hand. He felt a mixture of jealousy and pride as they walked away toward the gate, then noticed Trucy's head turn as she smiled toward Klavier and waved a little.
"Good-bye, Uncle Klavier," she said, turning ahead and walking out of the gate. Klavier exhaled, feeling the tears running down his cheeks as he held Kristoph's rigid body, then noticed all of the other prisoners of the camps and the guards coming out of the various cabins, sheds, and barracks. He looked toward the family leaving, shielding his eyes as the sun rose, then lifted his head up and let the snow hit his face and join his tears, a bare hint of a smile going over his full lips.
"It's over..." Klavier whispered through his sobs, letting Kristoph's head rest on his chest as he stroked the cold cheek with his tan fingers. "It's finally over..."