Gilbert (April 3, Tuesday)

There were lots of things that pissed me off but the worst was when I had a story to tell and no one would listen until they realized that my story might actually have fact in it. I didn't normally outright lie about things, although I sometimes stretched the truth. This time, I didn't have to stretch any truth to make an interesting story and no one was listening to me. I knew that Antonio, Lovino, and Feliciano wouldn't have Mr. Kirkland's class until second period which meant I had to wait until lunch before they'd listen to me – if Mr. Kirkland wasn't there and I suspected he wouldn't be. That was a really long time for me to have to wait. I didn't like the idea. I wanted to tell them now because it was a good story. I knew Feliciano would have the appropriate reaction and maybe Antonio. That's what I was waiting for. I couldn't care less about the story itself. I wanted to see their reactions.

I frowned as I left the auditorium where our group always sat in the mornings and wandered to my first period class. I had English for first – I didn't know whose bright idea it was to have a class like that so early but I'd decided I was rather grateful it wasn't math and so my English teacher didn't feel my wrath most days. I was setting out toward the English hall when Mathias caught up with me. I didn't mind him so much. He was less annoying than some of my friends. But we were both proud kids and sometimes we didn't get along very well because of that. "So, got another story to tell but no one's going to listen? Try to stop playing the boy who cried wolf and you might get somewhere faster," he commented snidely. That was what I was talking about.

I snarled. "I'm not the boy who cried wolf. I'm smarter than that." He snorted. "I am! I'm flipping awesome, dang it! I'd never let some stupid wolf eat my sheep!"

"Well," Mathias started thoughtfully. "I do actually believe that. Except you have no sheep to look over." I punched his arm. "And, anyway, like that would ever stop you. You'd still scream wolf if you thought people would listen."

I shrugged. "Maybe." He laughed again. "Get to class, Mathias." I shoved him into a nearby wall and, in return, he pushed me into a wall of lockers – which, in my opinion, hurt worse than bricks. "Autsch..."

"Who made you Nazi hall monitor?" Mathias grunted, sprinting ahead of me before I could slam him against the wall again. I frowned unhappily at his back but couldn't dwell on his comment long as I entered my English classroom. Glancing around, I noticed the substitute and glared at him. I disliked subs because they generally had no idea what was going on and they made my whole day suck more than usual. This substitute seemed younger and more skittish because, as I passed him, he flinched under my stare.

That made me smile.

X x X

"How'd you know Mr. Kirkland wasn't here today? You don't have him until tomorrow," Lovino said in one of his more annoyed tones. We had just gotten our lunches and were walking toward our table where Ludwig was already sitting.

I shrugged. "I just had a hunch," I replied in my most casual tone. But I was oh so pleased because now I knew he, Antonio, and Feliciano would listen to my story.

"You're lying," Antonio declared as he sat down. I watched Feliciano set his tray down and then sit in Ludwig's lap. My brother looked less than thrilled but not dissatisfied. I didn't understand their relationship. "For real – how did you know?" He sat down next to Lovino, leaving me to choose between sitting next to him or my brother.

I sat next to my brother for safety reasons. "I tried to tell you this morning, you know. His sons are home." It was quiet all around the table for a few moments while I calmly mixed my rice and chicken together. Then they all started talking at once. I paid them little attention as I ate my food. When it finally quieted, I said, "I met them."

"How are you sure?" Ludwig demanded as Ivan and Mathias came and sat down. "I mean, it is you, after all."

The "boy who cried wolf" conversation popped into my head and I frowned in annoyance. Mathias must have remembered too because he laughed. "I'm sure because I heard Elizabeta talking to Mr. Kirkland. And said teacher is missing today."

Everyone was silent as they considered this. Then Feliciano cried enthusiastically, "Tell us everything!" He grinned in that annoying way of his. But that was all the prompt I needed. I told them about how I'd met the boys first – pointedly not mentioning their names – and then how I'd eavesdropped on Elizabeta's phone call. I told them everything I could remember about what Elizabeta had said.

Lovino still looked rather skeptical. "You're holding back, Gilbert. What's the moral of the story?"

"Moral?" I inquired, grinning. "There is none." Lovino glared at me with a very annoyed expression on his face. "But you're right; I am holding back. I haven't told you why you should care."

"No, you haven't," Lovino replied, his voice a tad bit more bitter. "Don't hold back, now. Please, tell me why the frick I should care about my teacher's personal life!" Antonio glanced swiftly at him, his expression torn between annoyed, amused, and worried.

My grin spread wider. "His kids are Alfred F. Jones and Matthew Williams – used to be Andersons." Or maybe they still were. I wasn't actually sure if they would take on their parents' last name or not. But I didn't have to say that. They all got the picture.

"Bugiardo!" Lovino shrieked, slapping his hand onto the table. This startled Feliciano into almost falling off Ludwig's lap. If it wasn't for the fact that my brother cared, he probably would have fallen.

"Lovi..." Antonio whimpered, resting a hand on his boyfriend's forearm. Lovino seemed to visibly calm down though he was still glaring intensely at me. Antonio then looked at me. "It doesn't make sense." But he seemed unable to expand on why it didn't make sense. I smirked at him.

"I did not think you cared," Ivan said to me thoughtfully. Mathias agreed warily, as if he was afraid of why I did care. He of all people knew that it would all come back to benefit me in the end and I was sure he was trying to figure out how.

"I don't," I finally admitted. "I care about your reactions and they were worth it." I grinned again. "Plus, I could get a bonus if Alfred and Matthew end up coming to this school and join the ballroom team."

"How...Why would that be a bonus to you?" Feliciano asked, seeming to be trying to understand my reasoning. He never did understand what went on in my head – no one really did and I liked it that way – but I never got why he kept trying to see my logic when it was generally very obscure. Feliciano was someone I didn't quite comprehend. Somewhere inside my head, I realized that that was probably a reason Ludwig loved him so much.

I sighed and opened my mouth when Mathias said, "It's because if the Andersons join the ballroom team, the team might actually improve and you guys will stop complaining about how you all suck so bad. You know, there's a reason I stopped coming to your shows." Lovino's jaw dropped and I felt an explosion coming on. But Mathias shrugged. "I personally think all your newbies need to be cut and you should try to find people who will take the competition seriously. You know – the ones that actually want to make it to nationals."

Antonio sighed dejectedly. "I thought about that, too. But the harsh truth is, these are the best people our school has to provide. Ballroom isn't big here and those who care only think they're good enough for regionals. We've tried almost everything we can – sometimes it seems like it's lack of motivation and other times, it's like they refuse to practice to get better. It's so frustrating. I'm not sure that even if the Andersons joined that they'd make much of a difference to our team. It's a depressing thought, really."

"It's true," Feliciano agreed glumly. "So don't hold your breath, Gilbert." I rolled my eyes at him. I wasn't hoping, necessarily. I just figured that if they even had the idea in their heads, I might be able to escape their insistent whining – even if it was just for a little while. There was a little part of me that knew I was probably setting a death trap for myself in the sense that their hope could make them chatter more about their team than usual. But the conversation turned after that and so it was mostly forgotten.

~XxX~

Matthew (April 3, Tuesday)

I stared out the window, wishing for something other than sunshine outside. It was such a contradictory scene compared to what I was feeling inside. I was sitting in a police station with Alfred and the Bonnefoys, trying to sort out our story and what should happen now. I'd convinced everyone earlier in the day to get DNA tests – just so we'd have it for reference if the police needed it later. There was a part of me that was fretting over those currently unknown results. But most of me was terrified of the officer in front of me. Apparently, Francis and Arthur knew him and it was because of that that we'd gotten him to deal with our case. He was tall and built with shaggy blonde hair and serious blue eyes. When he'd first seen Alfred and I, he'd studied us for a few dragging minutes and that made it increasingly difficult to not give into my anxiety now.

At the moment, he was talking to Alfred about our life at the Andersons. I knew my turn would be next and so I was trying – really hard – to keep myself in check. It wasn't that I'd always had issues with anxiety or that it was generally this bad. It was that I wasn't used to people paying me any sort of attention. I'd never done well under pressure though. When people waited for me to say something, I always had issues not giving into a quick panic attack. This was a bit much for me. Everything was happening way faster than I'd anticipated and I wondered what exactly I had thought would happen.

When Alfred stopped talking and Officer Basch looked at me, I fidgeted before getting out of my seat and stepping into the hall. It took me a second to realize I needed to breathe. I closed my eyes and leaned against the wall, knowing I couldn't escape out here for very long. I knew I'd have to go answer for just leaving. Someone opened the door and I opened my eyes a little warily to see the officer closing it behind him. He didn't smile but he didn't look as stern as before. "I was waiting for you to run, actually," he admitted, not really looking at me. "You looked too tense."

"Sorry," I muttered, not exactly sure what he wanted me to say or if he wanted me to say anything. I didn't like dealing with police. I'd never been sure why but they always intimidated me.

A moment or two passed before he walked over to the wall opposite me and leaned against it. Carefully, his eyes met mine and they didn't look very strict – not like what I'd been staring into for the past hour or so. I felt myself relax a little more. "You know, your case is rather interesting. I've known the Bonnefoys for as long as I can remember. My sister used to babysit you and your brother all the time before you vanished. I think she was just as devastated as your parents were when you two vanished. I think it was because of the people involved that I worked so hard for so long to try and bring you guys back," he explained, his voice taking on a slightly regretful tone. "For five years, I tried to follow a trail I'd found based off the information Arthur gave me. But then it suddenly died and my boss told me to leave the case. I didn't want it to be cold. I wanted to keep looking…

"But I couldn't do much. There really was nothing more I could go off of. I kept looking in my free time, hoping to find new information that would help. In the meantime, I helped your parents with advertisement where I could to bring what little awareness was possible to you two. Nothing happened for seven years after I was forced to say the case was cold." He paused and there was an expression on his face that suggested he was distracted with remembered emotions in his head. "I think that we all kind of just wanted a closure." He looked at me again, his eyes holding some of the sternness he'd had before but not so harsh. "Suddenly, you're both back with such a…an interesting story to tell. I still can't think of how those people managed to do so much and keep you so sheltered that you didn't even know you were missing from anyone else's lives."

That struck me harder than I'd expected. He was right: I'd never imagined that anyone could be missing me. I'd never considered the possibility that anyone would be willing – or in this case, unwilling – to give me away. My story was odd. It was something someone would never think possible. Yet, I was here, standing in front of someone with his own story involving me. He'd known me and I'd just learned his name. It was slightly overwhelming. "Well…I have some theories about that, actually," I found myself saying in one of my softer voices.

"Willing to share them?" Officer Basch inquired in a formal tone but with heavy casualty. He made no movement toward the office we'd just left.

I bit my lower lip and then said, "I guess. It's nothing fantastic or anything. David worked at a car dealership so I figured that he'd know a lot of people coming in and out. He must have met someone who mentioned something about their work. If that was the case, he probably just talked them into helping him with some paperwork. Once he and Kimberly had the paperwork, they'd just need to hide it. They'd really only need the birth certificates for things like school and to prove we were alive – though the adoption papers were probably for security reasons. If anyone ever questioned why we didn't look like their children, they'd just pull out the papers."

Officer Basch studied me for a moment and then said, "Yes, that's probably true. You didn't have any idea you were 'adopted' before you found the papers less than a month ago?" He seemed wary about that and I knew why.

"It had never occurred to me. They never said a word about it," I told him honestly and then added, "I came up with my theory after I dropped one of my after school hobbies. I had a lot of free time and I'm one of those people who thinks things to death. It wasn't hard to come up with something like that; find something that was actually feasible and wouldn't make the whole situation seem so ludicrous."

He nodded, obviously thinking something over. "That's what I don't understand. You figured all this out in less than a month. And you came looking for Arthur and Francis. I don't understand how you could believe so quickly something that seemed so unbelievable."

I paused at that, debating whether or not to tell the truth. It seemed safer to not lie and Officer Basch seemed rather truthful himself. "I didn't like the Andersons very much. I'm sure that there was a fear inside me that I refused to acknowledge and when I saw the adoption papers, it all kind of made sense in my head. You know, all that shallow and obvious stuff. And then Alfred decided to look into it…" For a minute, I didn't say anything. I wasn't sure I could because the hurt was still there. It was embers of a betrayal I hadn't liked to face since Alfred had brought it up. There hadn't been a lot of time to think things over completely. But eventually, I finished, "And that made sense too. It made sense because the Andersons used to be so terrified when anyone outside our community recognized us; it made sense because they'd never told us we were adopted. Stuff like that. There was that fear inside of me that made it so easy to know that if I looked at it from every angle, I would see the same thing: the signs make sense but the story doesn't. I didn't know who I was and I wanted to find out."

Officer Basch just stared at me for a moment and I felt some sort of sympathy radiate from him. I lowered my eyes. He surprised me by saying, "Yeah, I've been having that issue with your story, too. It makes sense at the same time that it really doesn't. I wish you'd thought to bring the papers so I could see them. I mean, not that they'd do much good because if they're not on my files, they don't exist. And you have no idea how frustrating that is for me. Your schools shouldn't have processed your existence, technically. I can understand trusting the birth certificates but…" He shook his head and, true to his word, he looked insanely frustrated. "I guess I'm still glad that they're not in my files, though. If they were, that would make believing your story much harder."

I laughed emptily. "That's true. It's hard enough for me to accept that I'm not who I thought I was. Who knew that a piece of paper could carry such a big lie?" My laugh died and we stared at each other for a moment.

"Could I ask you to come back into my office so I can take some notes?" Officer Basch asked, his voice so much less harsh than earlier in the day. He was probably just as tired and confused about the whole thing as I was. The difference was, he had to look at the story more after this whereas I had other things I had to do. I nodded and we walked back into his office. Alfred looked up first, concerned, and then Arthur and Francis. I just sat down and looked at the officer as he scribbled something down and then started tapping his pencil against the desk. "Okay…That makes sense. And it makes my job so much easier." He sighed and nodded contentedly. "Anything else?" He looked at me when he said it.

I thought about it for a minute, trying to determine if there was anything Alfred might have missed or hadn't known. But I couldn't think of anything. I shook my head. After that, another half hour was wasted away with the Bonnefoys talking to Officer Basch a little more about the case and other legal matters that I had to tune out so I wouldn't get too overwhelmed again. There was so much we still had to do before life could really start again. At least, that's how it felt to me. I knew Arthur and Francis felt differently. To them, the moment Alfred and I had shown up, their life had started again. I couldn't imagine what it had been like for them for the past twelve years; what it was like for them now.

When we were all sitting in Francis's car after leaving the police station, I felt myself calm down a little again. It was still a lot for me but I was trying really hard to keep together. Arthur sort of turned in his seat and asked us where we wanted to go for lunch. I stared blankly at him, wondering how he could think of food. But Alfred's exclamation of, "McDonald's!" brought me back to life and I realized I really was hungry. I laughed and shoved him into the door. "You always want a cheeseburger."

He grinned and I was very thankful that my brother was the way he was. We did end up going to McDonald's – partly because I agreed with Alfred and partly because it was on the way to somewhere else. Francis and Arthur wouldn't tell us where we were going but their satisfied smiles told me the day wasn't even close to being over.

~XxX~

Lovino (April 3, Tuesday)

The end of the school day had finally arrived, much to my relief. There were only two things I didn't like about this time of day: I had to say goodbye to Antonio because Marcus disliked me and he rarely let my boyfriend come over on weekdays; and it meant hours upon hours of just Feliciano and Marcus. There would be no Antonio to keep me from getting frustrated at my brother and grandfather. That was always my least favorite part of my favorite part of the day. Then again, I always went by the idea that with every good thing, there had to be a bad part of it to balance it out.

I frowned as I wandered to my bus with Antonio's hand wrapped in mine. I liked the idea that he was my anchor in a world I couldn't control. Even though I put up such a fight with him constantly, I was always grateful to him and I always felt guilty for never being able to tell him that. Try as I might, the words never made it to my lips and I had a hard time giving him any other clue as to how I felt about him. Still, there were moments like this – where we wandered through a crowd together and didn't need to say a word to each other – that I believed he knew me well enough to figure me out when I tried hard to keep him out.

When we climbed onto the bus and were sitting down, I leaned my head against his shoulder and stared at our hands. He gave mine a small squeeze and I smiled. "You know, your smiles are so rare, I know I'm doing something right when I see one," Antonio commented lightly. I tilted my head up to look at him and wasn't surprised to see him staring down at me with a smile of his own. Defiantly, I frowned. "Oh, come on, Lovi!" he whined happily. It was hard not to smile at that.

"I don't see what there is to smile at right now," I replied, looking out the window instead of his face. I generally had to do this when I was trying hard not to give him what he wanted. If I could see the outside world, I'd remember that there was very little to smile about. But if I looked into his eyes, I'd forget that.

"You're such a pessimist," he teased in that light tone he had. "I don't know how I can put up with you." I let out a huff and was about to pull away when he let go of my hand and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "I'm kidding. I love you, Lovino. Wish you didn't have to doubt that." In a way, I hated it when he said that. He wasn't trying to make me feel bad – in fact, it was really his way of passing off the way I was as something he could handle. But it did make me feel horribly guilty. I pursed my lips, wanting to reprimand him for the comment and explain the way I felt. But not only was I unable to say anything, he didn't give me a chance. "So, Saturday… I was thinking we could do something fun. I know you don't like hiking but the weather is warming up and I know an amazing little trail with a perfect place to have a romantic picnic!"

I snorted. "There's nothing romantic about a picnic, I'll have you know," I informed him rudely. Instantly I felt guilty about saying that aloud. Grudgingly, I said, "But, yeah…I guess you could drag me to wherever this place is, if you really want."

Antonio laughed cheerfully. "I want," he replied and ran his free hand through my hair – much to my dismay. I jerked back but kept close enough that he didn't drop his arm from around my shoulders. "Don't be so grumpy!" he teased and kissed my cheek. I calmed down and leaned into him again. I heard Feliciano chattering away behind me at Ludwig and Gilbert muttering in the seat next to mine. Suddenly the bus started and lurched forward.

"The day's almost over," I muttered, my voice as close to wistful as I would ever manage to make it sound. I looked up at Antonio and he smiled brilliantly. That kind of made it okay. It was an assurance that if I woke up tomorrow morning, and put the effort in getting to school, he'd be there waiting. So I smiled for him and I could tell by his expression that it made his day. We spent the rest of the short bus ride in relative silence. I knew that even if he wouldn't admit it, he liked the moments that I was quiet and didn't argue with him about everything.

When we got off, we kissed goodbye for the day and then I marched ahead of Feliciano. I tried to extend the silence before I had to step into my chaotic house. I couldn't wait until I was old enough to leave and not have to put up with my brother and grandfather every day of my life. But Feliciano caught up fairly quickly and started rambling about something "horrible" that had happened to him today. We turned the corner to head down past the three houses to our home when my brother suddenly shut up. Blinking, I looked up and noticed the car parked in our driveway. "You're kidding, right?" I asked to no one in particular. "Why today?"

"They'd never come over to our house if you had your way," Feliciano whined in his annoying voice. He didn't ever seem to have a problem with anything and sometimes wasn't cautious enough for my liking. I disliked my brother but he was still my brother and so I tended to attempt to look after him sometimes. Generally, he was just too naive for me to be able to do anything for him and he got into trouble anyway. That was part of the reason I disliked him – because he was so frustrating.

I scoffed. "You're exactly right," I said and pushed him into a neighbor's grass. He whined but got back up and trotted to my side again. I rolled my eyes as we turned and went up our walk. I reached for the doorknob but Marcus suddenly threw open the door with a wide grin on his face. It wasn't just any grin – it was the one he used when something good happened to him. I instinctively took a step back. "What's going on?" I demanded as Feliciano peeked inside.

"We have visitors!" Marcus boomed joyfully and I scowled at him, already aware of this fact. "Come in, boys. Why are you just standing there?" He moved aside and Feliciano darted inside.

"You were in my way!" I shouted at him and marched definitely inside. Mr. Kirkland and his husband were sitting on our couch. But two boys were seated between them. They looked familiar at the same time I knew I had no clue who they were. They looked similar but their personalities showed through enough that they looked completely different. One seemed rather uncomfortable – and I sarcastically thought, I can't imagine why – and the other seemed more confused than anything else. The perplexed one looked at me and I nearly shouted, "You're Alfred Anderson!" Instead, I settled on saying, "So Gilbert wasn't lying…" That wasn't very comforting, actually.

Author's note: German:

Autsch... – Ouch…

Italian:

Bugiardo! – Liar!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia or characters thereof.

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