The very, very few times Julius could coax his brother to embrace the world outside their apartment, there were certain rules he must abide by.
First rule, Ludger absolutely refused to leave the apartment unless Julius went with him. When asked, he'd stare at his hands, then look up at Julius; he had an assumption what that may mean, though it was clear Ludger wouldn't go anywhere without his older brother for the time being and that's what mattered. When they were finally outside, an unspoken addition to this rule was Julius must always stay within sightline of Ludger. The one time Ludger lost sight of Julius, he frantically searched everywhere until he spotted that familiar white coat, clung to its sleeve, and quietly sobbed into it. Suffice to say, Julius learned his lesson.
Second rule, if the duo were going any considerable distance away from their apartment, Ludger must bring (and hold) Lulu with them. Julius thought about trying to convince his brother out of this rule, although maybe not for the reasons people may think.
When they were still close to their apartment, Ludger acted relatively normal and kept calm as they passed by other citizens, occasionally looking back to see if their fluffy companion wasn't lagging behind. Once they reached an arbitrary marker in Ludger's mind, he'd scoop Lulu off the ground and hold her in a tight grip that'd grow tighter each time someone walked past. Given Lulu's humongous stature, a few squeezes every now and then was fine. When the days were busy though… Julius questioned how Lulu never popped with Ludger squeezing her so hard.
And the last rule, Ludger was under no obligation to speak to anyone who wasn't Julius, Lulu, select neighbors, or maybe a few vendors they frequently visited for groceries. For anyone else, Ludger would stare at his brother to indicate he must do the talking since he was too nervous and distrusting of others in this current day and age to converse with strangers. These rules were somewhat restrictive to what sort of outings he'd be able to bring his brother along for, though it was already a blessing he could get Ludger to come out of his shell before he forgot what sunshine was like.
On one such occasion, Julius, Ludger, and a somewhat distressed Lulu were out shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables (read: tomatoes and whatever else they could think of) when Julius spotted a stand practically dedicated to tomatoes and a few other vegetables mixed in. Naturally he was drawn to it, Ludger following behind him and repeating his routine of squeezing-loosening his living stress cat ball.
The stand was run by two women a good deal older than Julius who prided themselves as "one of the select farms that survived through the spyrix energy crisis", so their products were known to be of quality through thick and thin in their words. When they finished introducing themselves, both of them were focusing on Ludger and how just utterly adorable he was.
"You act like I did when I was your age." The younger of the two women mused out loud to herself, leaving Ludger looking confused and staring at Julius for an answer he didn't have. "I'd always follow Roberta wherever she went and let her do the talking. Take it from me, young man: you'll hassle your older brother here to death if you rely on him to much!"
"Y-Yeah… I… I'm just trying to get over something, that's all." Something must have sparked in Ludger's mind, as he suddenly burst into conversation. "B-But I've been doing better thanks to his help. Soon I'll… try to do more for him."
It seems "soon" was synonymous for "right this second" as Ludger set Lulu down to make room for the basket he snatched from Julius' hands and filled it with tomatoes, celery, carrots, basically one of everything from the stand in varying amounts. Julius didn't comment, although he couldn't stop himself from adopting a smile as he watched his brother not rely on him to death. His brother always put him first, didn't he?
"Are you harassing that poor kid, Stephanie? Shame on you!" Roberta lightly popped her younger sister on the crown of her head, pushing through her to near the feverishly working Ludger. "Don't let my little sister work you up, sweetie. I'm sure your brother appreciates you already. Isn't that right?"
Julius flinched as he realized he'd suddenly been prompted to offer his input. Hopefully none of them noticed it was because he'd been staring at his brother… "Oh, of course. I keep the bills paid and Ludger keeps us from eating and living like rappigs. I couldn't imagine life without my precious babybrother."
"J-Julius!" Ludger buried his face in his hands, although not before letting out a loud huff in Julius' direction. "You're cruel…"
Everyone except the terribly embarrassed Ludger burst out laughing; every second that was spent laughing, Ludger curled more and more into himself until his body somehow curled into a perfect circle. Well, as perfect of a circle a human body could fold itself into without obviously breaking a couple bones in the process. This was cue to leave, most likely.
"Thank you for the pleasant conversation, but I believe my brother and I should be heading home." Julius handed Roberta a fair amount of gald without truly counting if he'd given the correct amount. From the women's faces, it must have been the upper limit, though that was perfectly fine to him. He'd consider it his way of thanking the two for coaxing Ludger to speak to a stranger for once and for relaying the message he could not say face-to-face: in his condition, Julius needed a little help every now and then.
"Let's head back, Ludger." He called after taking the first few steps towards their apartment. It took Ludger a moment to realize Julius spoke to him and he rushed to his brother's side, their basket of tomatoes and a few other assortments cradled in his arms. Lulu, who was inherently thankful to be able to travel back the "normal way", trailed behind Ludger and occasionally meowed when he saw stands containing cat-related products.
He could consider this outing a huge success.