A/N: HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN? Long enough to make some people think this story has been discontinued, apparently. I really am very sorry and deeply ashamed for taking so long with this chapter. I'm afraid my inspiration to write anything at all has been dwindling, but I'm not ready to discontinue this fic quite yet. If any of the old readers are still interested in this fic, thank you very much for your patience, and I hope you will continue to enjoy the story.
Also, special thanks to the reviewers - VampireNaomi, Linda, Pretty Punch, SilversShadow13, Capricarin, Silver Anon, Hopeful Anon, and Kelsey - and to everyone who has faved/added to alert/read this fic!
– CHAPTER 16 –
Trials
"You want to switch places again?"
"Hush, Feliciano!" Lovino threw a quick glance at the closed door of his brother's bedroom, hoping that no one was eavesdropping or passing by. "This time, I have a specific task for you."
"Oh?" Curious, Feliciano leant forwards so that he could whisper, "What kind of task?"
"I want to test Antonio."
"What do you mean?"
"I want to know if he could be fooled by you." Lovino smirked. "He's known me since I was a little kid, so one would think he'd be able to tell us apart. On the other hand, he's an idiot, so he just might completely miss the differences between us. I want to know which one is stronger in him – his friendship with me or his denseness."
"Okay, sounds fun," Feliciano acquiesced, with a tentative smile that was short-lived. He seemed to think about something for a moment. "Say, were you with Ludwig when we switched places the other day?"
Lovino hesitated, wary. Had Ludwig talked to Feliciano about that conversation? He had been counting on Ludwig's penchant for reticence and ineptness in dealing with personal or emotional situations, but maybe the brawny idiot had actually decided to open up to his master for once.
"Yes," he admitted, voice cautious.
"And... was he able to tell it wasn't really me?" Feliciano asked timidly, fidgeting like a little child.
This time, there was no hesitation on Lovino's part, and he was quick to respond, "No, he wasn't. He never even suspected a thing." In reality, Lovino wasn't certain that Ludwig had never suspected anything, but he was feeling spiteful and this was the perfect opportunity to show Feliciano that his manservant was no saint. "I guess I'm a really good actor, or maybe Ludwig"—he pronounced the name slowly, mockingly—"doesn't really know you that well. Hopefully, Antonio will turn out to be a little better than him."
Red tinted Feliciano's pale cheeks and for a moment he looked like he was going to tear up, but for once he managed to hold back his oncoming tears with a few quick blinks, though not without a soft sniffle, and he even got a little smile on his face. "Yeah, I hope so."
Lovino felt a little disconcerted at this, remembering his dream. His brother was obviously hurt, and it was Lovino's... No, no, it wasn't his fault. He had only answered a question honestly. Ludwig hadn't realised the truth, or else he would have definitely called Lovino on it. Ludwig was the only one at fault here. He was the blind, oblivious idiot who couldn't tell his master from his brother, despite the numerous differences between them. In fact, Lovino had just done his brother a favour. If Feliciano realised that Ludwig wasn't fit to be his friend, he would stop clinging to him once and for all and find someone better. Lovino was really saving his naïve brother from that brute!
With the nagging guilt now out of the way, Lovino addressed Feliciano again. "And no cheating! You must absolutely do your best to imitate me!"
"Of course, Lovino!" Feliciano reassured him.
"And keep close to Antonio, no matter what! Do not get away from him under any circumstance! And if you see those creepy men again, come back right away, as quickly as possible."
"Okay! Don't worry!" Feliciano paused. "By the way, what are you going to do in the meantime?"
"Oh, I'm still feeling a little tired," said Lovino, in a casual tone. "I'll just take a siesta or lounge in your art room while you're gone, don't worry."
And so they swapped clothes and parted their hair accordingly. Lovino waited until Feliciano left before going to talk to Ludwig, once again making a perfect imitation of his brother's squinting, smiley look and skipping gait.
"Oh Luuudwiiig!" he called out in a high-pitched, singsong tone. He found the man in one of the sitting rooms, mercilessly nitpicking at the maids' cleaning work.
"Yes, Master, what can I do for you?" he replied in that grave voice of his.
Lovino suppressed the shudders that voice sent down his spine and giggled. "Oh, you silly, I've told you a million times to call me Feliciano," he said, merely to keep himself as in-character as possible. "Anyway, I have a little favour to ask of you!"
"Anything, Master."
"You see, I'm feeling very inspired! I want to paint something!" Lovino made some wild, expansive gestures, which he knew confused and annoyed Ludwig.
"Very well...?"
"But I need reference! And I need it right in front of me to keep my inspiration alive!"
"I understand, sir. What do you need me to fetch you, exactly?"
"Ten peaches!"
Ludwig's narrow eyes widened just a little bit in surprise. "Ten... peaches?"
"Ten perfect, spotless peaches," affirmed Lovino, nodding resolutely.
"But... My Lord, how am I supposed to find ten perfect peaches at this time of the year?"
"I'm sure you can do it if you try." And then, because Ludwig was so efficient that he really might be able to accomplish such a feat after all, Lovino hurriedly added the first thing that came to his mind, "And a nightingale!"
"What?"
"A nightingale. A female nightingale. And ten perfect, spotless peaches." Lovino was beginning to sweat a little. "Please, Ludwig, you need to find them and bring them to me as quickly as possible, or else I won't be able to paint and I'll lose all my inspiration, and I'll never be able to smile again, and... and..." He lowered his head and sniffled pitifully.
"All right, all right, I will do as you wish, My Lord!" said a very flustered Ludwig. "Don't... don't cry! I promise I will be as quick as I can!"
"You can do it, Ludwig! I believe in you!" Lovino shouted dramatically as Ludwig rushed out of the room.
The maids exchanged amused glances, but seemed to shrug the whole thing off. Feliciano had always been quite the eccentric character. Lovino himself had to hold back a chuckle as he wiped his crocodile tears and made his way upstairs, where his accomplice was lurking and waiting for him.
"How did it go?" Elisabetta asked him in a whisper.
"Perfect. They're all gone. Only the maids are left."
"Good job, Lovino!" She grinned and thumped him in the arm, a rather masculine gesture that took him aback briefly. "Now, are you sure the maids are still coming up to clean the bedrooms?"
"I'm sure. I don't know if they still have to clean Feliciano's room, but they'll definitely come to clean mine. I was there all morning. Even if no one walks in on us right away, someone will definitely overhear us and come to take a look..."
Elisabetta nodded in approval. "Okay, let's go, then."
Lovino felt his heart pound in excitement. He could barely believe this was happening. He leant forwards and lifted his hands.
"Before we get started," she said, making him freeze, and held him by the shoulders as if to keep him still, "There are some rules you have to keep in mind. One, don't touch me under the waist. Two, don't touch me in the breasts. Three, don't look at my cleavage. Four, don't try to take off my clothes. If you break any of these rules, I'm going to amputate your hands, and then I'll castrate you and force-feed you your own dick. Do you understand?"
Lovino was still frozen like a statue, except for his eyes, which had widened considerably.
"Um... um... o-okay..."
And before he could attempt to say anything else or even have second thoughts about this plan, Elisabetta was all over him, her moist lips on his, her hands travelling his body. Her breath came in increasingly harsh pants, and soon he was following her example, with the only exception being that his hands were carefully placed in safe areas and there they chastely stayed.
She stepped back towards the door behind her, pulling Lovino along, and she made a point of making noise when she pushed the door open and then kicked it back so that it was half-closed again. She pulled back from the kiss for the first time, took a quick breather, and dragged Lovino to the bed.
Feeling a little dizzy, Lovino suddenly found himself crouching on top of a panting, sweaty, red-faced Elisabetta while she worked on unbuttoning his clothes and making a mess of his hair and her own. He held still, a little uncertain. It felt so odd to be on his brother's bed with a woman, and he couldn't even touch her the way one normally would in this kind of situation. What exactly was he supposed to do now?
"Just kiss me!" Elisabetta said, as if she had read his mind. "Make some noise! Pant, moan, gasp, say sweet and dirty things to me, make it look like we're about to have passionate, mind-blowing sex!"
Suddenly, Lovino's body seemed to move of its own accord, and he didn't even have to force himself to do most of those things Elisabetta had asked of him. If not for her threats still very present in his mind, bringing him less than pleasant memories of Natalia on their honeymoon, he might have lost himself completely in the heat of passion.
It wasn't long before they were interrupted by a soft gasp from the door. Elisabetta smiled, her eyes twinkling at the ceiling.
"We've been found!" she said gleefully.
Lovino was uncertain again. "What now?"
"Let's keep it up. She barely saw us. Maybe we can get more witnesses. I want them to see us."
So they kept going for a while. Eventually, Lovino began to feel a little frustrated. Sure, it was very enjoyable to be on top of a beautiful woman in bed and kiss her while she made the most delightful noises, but he wanted to go beyond. He could barely touch or look at her! It felt like they weren't going anywhere, like they were stuck in some sort of cycle... God, if they didn't get past this in a minute, he was going to go crazy and—
"Feliciano's brother, are you—" came a loud, raspy voice accompanied by a loud bang that made Lovino jump a little. "Whoa!"
He looked in the direction of the door and saw Gilbert standing there, for once gawking like a complete idiot, his eyes full of uncertainty and disbelief. A moment later, Gilbert frowned and blinked. "Feliciano's... brother...?"
Elisabetta nudged him, urging him to respond, but Lovino was still too shocked by Gilbert's unexpected and abrupt arrival. She then resorted to more drastic measures and grabbed... him in her hand. One could say it had the effect of a bucket of cold water, but only in the sense that it woke him up. It wasn't fair; why could she touch him when he couldn't touch her?
"Oh, h-hi, Gilbert!" he gasped in his brother's high-pitched voice – given the circumstances, it was even less of an effort than usual. "Sorry, I'm a little... busy right now, but if you..." He paused to take a deep, shaky breath, struggling to keep a cute smile on. "If you're looking for my brother... he left a while ago..." He bit back a moan and closed his eyes. He was mortified and wished the floor would open up and swallow him whole, and yet, at the same time, he felt like he was one step away from heaven.
If possible, Gilbert paled even more, and his red eyes were impossibly wide. He backed away, looking as if he were in a daze. "Right... I gotta go... Sorry for, um, interrupting..."
Lovino sighed in relief when Gilbert finally left, and he turned to look at Elisabetta again, hoping they could go on with what they had been doing. However, what he met was a sadistically gleeful Elisabetta, just barely holding back a laughter.
"Perfect, just perfect," she whispered breathlessly to herself, her eyes glinting maniacally at the door. "It went much better than I hoped for!" With this, she shoved Lovino off her, jumped off the bed, and hurried out of the room without another word to Lovino, who was still feeling very hot and bothered.
She wasn't coming back, was she?
"Fuuuuck..." Lovino moaned and collapsed on the bed.
oOo
Antonio had always been the eternal optimist, and although he was aware of Lovino's faults, he had always been confident that he could trust him. Well, okay, he didn't trust Lovino to give him a gratuitous pat on the back and not surreptitiously relieve him of his pocket money in the process, nor did he trust Lovino anywhere near anything breakable. But he knew that Lovino was a good person deep down and could be trusted when it came down to it. He was a good friend.
However, he couldn't deny that Lovino was no saint, or that he had indeed been acting a little... odd. He was more high-strung than usual and seemed to be avoiding Antonio, not to mention spending too much time locked up in his house or in his room. Back when they had lived in Monterosso, they would be together almost the entire time, and Lovino would go outside at every chance he got, even if he had to break some rules. He had always been more of an outdoors kind of person who enjoyed the feeling of the sun on his skin, the fresh wind blowing on his hair, and the admiring, less-than-chaste gazes of young women on his person. He claimed that spending too much time inside made him look pale and sickly, not to mention it bored him to death.
Was it the change in scenery? Was he feeling ill at ease because this city was so much larger and chaotic than Monterosso? Or was he really in some kind of trouble, like Ludwig had suggested? Whatever his problem was, why wouldn't he talk to Antonio about it? Lovino had never had any qualms about telling Antonio at length about every single thing that bothered him, no matter how petty or inconsequential. Why would it be any different now?
"Um... say, Lovino," he ventured, hoping that with some coaching, he would eventually be able to get his friend to open up.
Lovino had apparently been distracted with something, for he quickly turned his head and his eyes widened for a split second, as if he were startled. Then he squinted his eyes – was the sunlight bothering him? – and averted his gaze again, with a grunt. Antonio had known Lovino long enough to recognize that as a sign he was listening.
"You're not still mad about what happened, right?" Antonio asked, attempting to smile.
Lovino hesitated.
"I'm... not sure what you're talking about," he gruffly admitted. Then, almost like an afterthought, he added, "Dammit."
"Well, I'm not entirely sure, myself." Antonio laughed. "But I was wondering if maybe what happened back in Pontebianco was still bothering you? You know, that... fight?" Antonio cringed a little at having to say it out loud. He was so stupid; maybe Lovino had already forgotten about it and now Antonio had just gone and reminded him!
Lovino looked slightly nervous. After another brief moment of hesitation, still avoiding Antonio's gaze, he responded, "Uh, no, that's stupid. Fucking stupid, I mean. Just forget about it. Dammit."
"So, you're not mad about that?" Antonio breathed a small sigh of relief, but he knew it was too soon to feel reassured. "Are you mad, though? About something else? I know I'm stupid sometimes and I say things that get you mad without even realizing it, but..."
"Uh, no, I'm, uh, already used to your stupidity," replied Lovino.
"Oh! So, you're not mad at all! That's great..." Antonio laughed weakly, but then reminded himself that even if he wasn't in trouble, himself, Lovino might still be. He sobered up and leant a little closer to Lovino, putting a warm hand over his friend's shoulder. "So, we're friends, right? You know you can count on me. I know I'm not too bright, but I know how to... say, keep a secret. And how to forgive a friend's mistake. N-not that I'm saying you've done anything wrong!" he hurried to add. "But, you know, no matter what kind of trouble you get into, I'll always stay on your side and... do my best to help you... And I'm sure your brother would, too."
"Hmm," was the non-committal reply. Lovino looked a little worried; his shoulder had got progressively tense during Antonio's speech. Rather than remove his hand, Antonio only squeezed his shoulder, in a supportive way.
"You haven't got into trouble, have you? Please, just tell me. I won't... I swear I won't judge you for it, whatever it may be. You can count on me. Please... just tell me... if you really trust me..."
"Antonio..." Lovino whispered. Antonio thought he could see tears budding at the corner of his eye. He looked touched by Antonio's words. "Th-thanks, but... I'm not in any trouble."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Lovino even smiled a little, and it didn't even look as awkward as usual. "If I were in trouble, you'd be the first I'd tell, Antonio. I've always known that. I mean... shit!" he burst out and punched Antonio on the side, not painfully. Antonio knew this was just a weak attempt at distracting him from Lovino's embarrassed face. "We've always been there for me, even when my brother wasn't... It's only natural... dammit."
Now it was Antonio's time to feel the sting of touched tears in his eyes. He had never expected Lovino to be this honest with him, especially not after so little prodding. Suddenly, he felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders and he could see the world more clearly, with brighter colours. Even Lovino looked lighter, though it could very well be just the effect of the sunlight on him, the way his hair reflected it.
Except... now that he was taking a good look at Lovino for the first time during this whole conversation, there seemed to be something... off about him. Antonio couldn't put his finger on it, but Lovino looked... wrong. Maybe if he had observed him for a while longer, he would have figured it out. However, before he could even give it further thought, a smooth voice, as laid-back as its owner, cut in to greet them:
"Well, well, if it isn't my little star and his knight in shining armour."
"Francis?" yelped Lovino.
Francis arched an eyebrow suggestively. "I do believe this is the first time you've called me by my first name. Should I take it a sign of your desire for more intimacy? Because I wouldn't be adverse to the idea at all..."
Antonio didn't really understand what Francis had just said – he seldom did, really – but Lovino blushed, looking confused for a moment, before he muttered, "Shut up, bastard. What are you doing here, anyway?"
Up went that eyebrow again, though this time it denoted a hint of confusion. "I work here." Indeed, now that it had been brought to his attention, Antonio realised they were in front of the opera house. "The better question is, what are you doing here? I can only assume that you weren't serious about quitting, after all. But that was to be expected. I knew you could not bear to stay away from me for long and would come back to my sweet embrace sooner or later."
"Quit?" Antonio blinked and turned his gaze on Lovino. "Were you going to quit singing, Lovino?"
"Quit?" Lovino echoed, mirroring Antonio's expression. "Of course not! He—I can't quit! This is my true calling!"
"Antonio, even I have already learnt that our dear Mr. Vargas spits fire, but he's really a little lamb deep down, scared and unsure of himself," said Francis. Antonio waited for the carnage to commence, but to his great surprise, Lovino did not react at all. "He just needed some time to recover his self-esteem, I'm sure. So, now that you have come back, why don't we resume our rehearsal?"
"You mean you want me to sing? Right now?" asked Lovino, looking quite pale.
"Yes, of course."
"Um... I can't!"
"Why not? You're already here, anyway."
"Yeah, Lovino, and you just said you're not going to quit."
"I..." Lovino fidgeted. "My throat... is... sore... yeah... I can't sing right now."
Antonio hummed in sympathy. No wonder Lovino looked paler and more subdued than usual, if he wasn't feeling well. Francis, however, clucked his tongue impatiently.
"I told you to be careful! Very well, you can have another day off, but please get some rest! You must recover as quickly possible."
While Francis went on and on with his lecture, Antonio's attention was briefly caught by something else. Or rather, someone else. He thought he had seen a familiar face among the busy crowd in the street, but it was only for a moment. A woman's face... He hadn't even been able to see it very well, for she had been wearing a hood that cast shadows on most of her face, but still... Had he met her before, or was it just his imagination?
Well, maybe he had seen her around in the city before. It didn't matter, anyway. He had to take Lovino home now.
However, for the next hours, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was forgetting something important.
oOo
The day before had definitely been one of the most frustrating in his life, and that was saying something. He had even gone to bed earlier than usual, hoping that it would end faster and be forgotten by morning. How could Elisabetta abandon him like that? Not to mention that Gilbert had chosen the worst possible time to come back and caught them in that compromising position.
And then, because things could always get worse, Feliciano had come home to lecture him for even thinking about quitting his singing career before it even started. Then he had had to explain why Ludwig had deemed it necessary to bring him ten peaches and a nightingale. That bastard. He had actually done it. He had actually managed to get the ten perfect peaches and the female nightingale, defying the very laws of Nature. How could anyone be such a resourceful, reliable bastard?
Although he had gone to bed earlier, he had been unable to fall asleep. All the frustration, the embarrassment, and above all, the massive headache resultant from that awful day plagued his mind and left him restless. It was certainly past midnight when sleep finally came to him. Of course, even his sleep wasn't very restful. He had some strange dream in which a nightingale with Ludwig's face and Gilbert's voice kept throwing peaches at him and Elisabetta while they were trying to get cosy in bed. God, it was just so horrible. But it didn't last long, for he found himself being shaken awake by someone in the wee hours of the night.
That someone happened to be Gilbert. This did not reassure Lovino in any way. In fact, he felt very justified in screaming. Or trying to, since Gilbert was muffling his mouth with potato-smelling hands and just about smothering him in the process.
"Be quiet!" said Gilbert in his raspy whisper. He didn't seem to have his usual tongue-in-cheek attitude, but looked about as cranky as Lovino felt. "We can't make any noise."
"Where the hell have you been?" Lovino whispered back, as loud as a whisper could be. "You were gone all day yesterday! You were supposed to protect me, not ruin my life!"
"Yes, well, I needed to report the murder attempt to Il Sadico," replied Gilbert, his frightfully pale making him look like a ghost in the feeble candlelight. "I didn't think it'd take so long."
"And couldn't you wait until morning to tell me that? I'm trying to sleep here!"
"Sorry, brother dearest," said Gilbert, unusually grave. "But we have work to do. Il Sadico told me you have to work for him until you can pay your debt, so you're coming with me."
"What? Right now? But it's the middle of the night!"
"That's exactly why we have to do it now. The sun will rise soon. We have to hurry. Come on, get dressed, and be quiet!"
oOo
He was shivering in the cold early morning air. Because he was cold, of course. It certainly had nothing to do with the fact that it was dark and some annoying owl kept hooting creepily. Nor had it any relation to the two shady men that he and Gilbert had met up with in a dark alley. None of them bothered with introductions or other pleasantries. Rather, they all looked as if they dearly wished to be somewhere else. Lovino took a little comfort in that; at least he wasn't the only one who felt that way.
"We have to dispose of this," said one of strangers, indicating a large bag that he and his partner were carrying, with some difficulty.
"Do we really have to? Can't we just make it look like an accident or suicide?" grumbled Gilbert.
"Afraid not... What kind of accident would cause this?" said the other man, opening the bag to allow Gilbert and Lovino to take a look.
"Oh, my God!" Lovino gasped, horrified at the tortured, mutilated body inside the bag. Bile rose in his throat and he felt as if his blood were draining from his body, leaving him cold and dizzy. The horrible sight faded to black.
A blissful moment passed.
A hand was slapping his face, dragging him from the wonderful depths of unconsciousness. A raspy voice kept muttering at him to wake up, that they didn't have time for this sissiness.
"Ugh, what happened?" Lovino asked, struggling to articulate his words.
"You fainted like a girl," answered Gilbert. "Now get up. You can sleep later."
Feeling like he was about to throw up any minute, Lovino struggled to his feet and helped the other men carry the bag across the city. He had no idea what they were doing and he decided he didn't want to know. He just prayed that this horrible night would end soon, or even better, that he would wake up in his brother's bed, next to Elisabetta, because that was how things should have gone that day.
So hazy was his mind, so unfocused on his task and surroundings, that next thing he knew, he and the other three men were throwing the bag into the river that crossed the city. He blinked down at the river, with its rapid current, and wondered if this was a good time and place to relieve the sick feeling in his stomach. Then, he decided he would rather not humiliate himself further in front of Gilbert and those other men.
As if reading his mind and being thoughtful, the three of them left his side. Of course, Lovino knew better than to think this was anything in his favour, but before he could figure out what was going on, an exclamation from the opposite direction startled him.
"Hey, you there! Halt!"
Naturally, Lovino had no intention of staying where he was, and his instincts finally kicked in to make him run after Gilbert and the others. But he never had the chance to follow his instincts, because a fraction of second later his arm was caught in the unrelenting grip of two very strong hands. Lovino just screamed.
"Hey, what were you doing here? You look very suspicious!" said the person who had grabbed him. It was a young man, with blond hair and blue eyes.
"Who are you? Where am I? What's going on here?" Lovino shrieked, and all of these questions were honest, because he really had no idea what district this was or what was happening. Where was Gilbert? He was supposed to protect him!
"Don't play innocent! I saw you and your cohorts being all suspicious! You can't fool me! Do you know who I am? I'm Alfredo, the great hero of this town! And I'm going to take you straight to the headquarters for an interrogation!"
"Please, sir," Lovino begged, now shaking like a leaf, "I really don't know anything! Y-you see, I... I sleepwalk sometimes, and..."
For once, his day was saved from getting any worse when a shadow came up behind this Alfredo guy and hit him in the head, knocking him unconscious. Lovino took a minute to recover from the fright and stare down at the young man's lifeless body before he turned to glare daggers at a smug Gilbert.
"You idiot! What took you so long?"
Gilbert shrugged. "Not my fault you were too stupid to run when someone was approaching. I thought for sure you'd be right behind me."
Lovino would have loved to yell till he was blue in the face, but he was just so exhausted, both physically and mentally, that all he wanted to do was crawl under a rock and sleep there forever. He even went with Gilbert's idea to force-feed the unconscious Alfredo some rum and leave him at the curb hugging the half-empty bottle of said drink. That way, Alfredo and everyone else would assume he had just had a little too much to drink and would never suspect either Gilbert or Lovino had anything to do with his condition.
"There, that wasn't so bad, was it?" said Gilbert on the way home. He seemed very pleased with himself.
"This was a complete nightmare!" contradicted Lovino. "I can't believe I've been dragged into this whole mess..."
"Hey, you shouldn't complain. You got the easiest part. I mean, at least you didn't have to do any of the dirty work, if you know what I mean. You're very lucky."
"Very lucky, my ass," Lovino snapped, but the energy to keep the argument up was really failing him. He was certain of one thing, though. If this was the kind of work he would have to do for Il Sadico in order to pay his debt, then he would absolutely have to come up with another way to get money and get this hell over with as soon as possible. Even if that meant he'd have to start stealing again.