Yay! Chapter 3 is up! This one is happier than the previous chapter, so ENJOY!
Don't Forget to Review! Vielen Dank!
"Why didn't you run?" The question was sudden, and Ludwig knew it. Gilbert was shocked by the random inquiry made by his brother.
"When did I not run?" The albino gave his little brother a concerned looked. He reached to touch Ludwig's shoulder to try and comfort him, but the blonde slapped his hand away. Gilbert did not know what to say or do. All he could do was stare at his brother, who was growing angrier and angrier. He watched as the icy blue eyes filled with hate.
"When I told you to take him and run!" Ludwig shouted furiously at the stunned albino. All these years he had forgotten that it was Gilbert who could have saved the small Italian boy if only he had ran like he told his elder brother to. If that had happened, then they would not be in this mess right now.
Gilbert still could not understand what his brother was talking about. Who did he tell me to take and run? And when did this happen? He did not say that out loud, knowing Ludwig could snap at any moment. He only stood there waiting for the blonde to continue.
When Gilbert did not respond, Ludwig continued his rant, "You knew he was injured severely! You knew and you still came back! If you ran like I told you, then Feliciano would not be with them right now!"
It was the first time in decades Gilbert had heard his brother say the small Italian boys name. He knew how Ludwig felt about the boy and how devastated his little brother was the days following the Italian boy's capture…..Wait! Is that what he is talking about? When I came back to help him instead of leaving him behind? Then it clicked inside the albino's mind, and his stunned expression became furious. "How could you expect me to leave you behind like that, brüderlein! I knew Feli was injured, but So Were You! I couldn't leave mein brüderlein like that! That would not be awesome at all!" Gilbert was getting fed up with Ludwig. Too many times had he seen the normally very stoic blonde man break down over this.
Ludwig was pissed, "I could have stopped them, Gil! Then you could have escaped with Felici…" Gilbert punched his brother across the face causing him to fall to the ground. Ludwig's blue eyes met Gilbert's red ones. He could tell his brother's patience with him had finally ran out.
"West! Listen to me! I did the best I could! Alright! You forced me to choose, so I tried to protect you both! However, they were just stronger than the both of us! Now, Alfred has set this whole thing up so you and Feliciano can see each other again!" Gilbert held out a hand to Ludwig, "So are you ready to see him." Ludwig looked at his brother's hand then back at the red eyes.
"But what about….." he started to say, but Gilbert firmly cut him off, "Nein, brüderlein! He will understand!" He took Ludwig's arm and pulled him to his feet. "You were the one so keen on getting there on time, West." Ludwig couldn't help but laugh.
Feliciano kept on running. He didn't want the blonde man to be mad again. He turned to see if he was being followed. He saw Arthur and Alfred trying to keep up with him. Feliciano yelped and continued running. As he ran, his leg started to hurt more and more with each step, but he did not want to stop. Ludwig told him to run and he ran.
"Feliciano! Stop!" Arthur cried out after the Italian, "We are not going to hurt you! Please Feliciano!" However, the boy kept running. Arthur knew this might happen, but yet he still ignored the facts. He looked up and saw Feliciano starting to slow down. His strides were becoming more sporadic and each step looked more painful than the previous. "Feliciano! Stop!"
Alfred took a bit of a more direct approach. He saw the Italian boy take a turn at the intersection, and the American took a short cut through an alley. Alfred was able to stop the boy as he turned the corner. Feliciano screamed trying to free himself from Alfred's grasp. "Feli! It's only me Alfred! Calm down! Arthur and I are taking you to see a surprise remember!" The Italian boy stopped screaming and looked at the dirty blonde boy's face.
"Una sorpresa?" Feliciano said quietly and stopped struggling completely. His leg gave out, and he crumbled to the sidewalk. Alfred caught the boy before he completely fell to the ground. "Ve~! You did say there was a surprise waiting for me."
Arthur turned the corner just in time to see Alfred catch the small Italian boy. He sighed in relief and walked up to Alfred and Feliciano. "How is he?" Arthur asked quietly as he reached Alfred, "Do you think we should continue with this." He was concerned for the small Italian. If this is how he was reacting to a memory, how was Feliciano going to react when he sees Ludwig again.
Alfred picked up Feliciano, who was murmuring in Italian about the surprise, and turned to Arthur. "He's fine, but I don't think all that running helped at all. If they see him this condition…." Arthur placed his arm around Alfred's shoulder.
"They are probably already on their way," the British man rested his head on the American's shoulder, "If we do not show up, Ludwig is going to think we lied to him. Plus, we already told Gilbert that we would not do anything to hurt his brother, and not showing would definitely be something along those lines."
Alfred sighed, "I guess are right."
They continued walking toward the meeting point. Alfred carried Feliciano piggy back as Arthur walked by his side. Feliciano was getting excited about the surprise and would not stop going on and on about it. Just then he heard a familiar voice. A voice he had not heard in years. Feliciano jumped down from Alfred and walked toward the voice. When he heard the voice laugh, Feliciano knew who it was immediately.
"Ve~! Ludwig!"
Vielen Dank: Thank you very much
brüderlein: Little Brother
Una sorpresa: a surprise