Carefully, she grasped the cold metal doorknob and twisted it. She heard the click of the latch releasing, and she gently pushed the door open. It swung freely on its hinges, not squeaking at all. The hallway was dark, but she could see a bit of light from the stairway. She turned back one more time and looked out at everyone standing in the yard. They had returned to their original spot and were looking at the ground again, eyes closed. Everyone, except for two. Francis and Antonio were still looking up, watching her. As she made eye contact with them, it was clear that they were both dealing with an immense amount of pain. As Elizaveta turned away and quietly entered Gilbert's house, a single tear slid down Francis' face before he and Antonio joined the others and closed their eyes.

Elizaveta closed the heavy door behind her. She didn't feel right leaving it hang open. She hesitated for a moment before continuing to the stairway. At the bottom, she could see that the faint light came from the right side.

Her hand began to shake as she grasped the railing and lifted her right foot onto the first step. The gulped, and brought her left foot up onto the second step. Right, left. Right, left. Right left. Right, left. Her whole body was shaking now. The air in the house was just as warm as it was outside, but she still felt cold. Trying to focus on where she was going, she looked down the hallway to the right and saw the only room illuminated at all was the second one on the left. One tentative step after the other, Elizaveta made her way down the hall.

She stood outside the lit room, still facing down the hallway. She didn't want to turn. She didn't want to know what was waiting for her inside, but she knew that she had to look. She squeezed her eyes shut as tight as she could, and turned to face inside the doorway. Forcing herself to open her eyes again, she looked into the room that the small amount of light had brought her to.

Five backs faced her. She recognized all of them. A tall blond in a dark green uniform, a lightly tanned brunette with a distinctive curl in blue, another tall man with dark brown hair in purple, and two with shoulder length blond hair, one in a green uniform and the other in a pink dress with a purple bow. Ludwig, Feliciano, Roderich, Vash, and Lili. Each one of them appeared to be holding a candle of their own. One larger candle stood on a table on each side of the doorway, illuminating some of the hall and the stairway, bringing visitors to the correct room. On the left side table, there sat a second candle. This one was smaller, the same size as the others' candles. It was not white like the rest, though. This one was a light blue instead, and burned brighter than the candles held by her friends. She picked it up and held it close to her chest. She felt like the warm glow of the burning wick would keep her safe. Careful to make sure the candle stayed lit, she walked and stood next to Lili. In this room, no one had their heads down. They faced straight forward, their heads held high, their eyes closed. They faced a bed with Prussian blue blankets. Feliciano had tear stains on his cheeks, and Ludwig's frown was deeper than usual.

"He's been waiting for you, Elizaveta." Lili whispered to her. Elizaveta had no idea how the young girl had knows she was standing there, but nodded. She rounded the bed to the other side, facing the five standing there. As she reached the front of the bed, she kneeled down and set her candle down next to an identical one on the nightstand.

Gilbert's head rested on the pillow. He was pale and cold, his eyes closed and lips parted slightly. All the color had drained from his cheeks and his skin was almost as white as his hair. She felt tears well up in her eyes, but held them back. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and realized that the blanket was moving up and down. It was moving slowly, but it was moving. That's all that mattered to her.

"G-Gilbert?" she whispered to the Prussian lying before her. Slowly, his eyes opened. They were no longer shining. They were dull, the color not nearly as bright as the day before. He turned to look at her. He seemed to have to struggle to do it, the simplest movement a strain on his body. His voice was hardly more than a horse whisper when he managed to speak to her.

"Elizaveta." He smiled. "I knew that you'd come." Elizaveta let the tears that she had been holding back go. They ran down her cheeks and dripped onto Gilberts blankets. "Don't cry, my love." Gilbert said to her.

"You didn't tell me." She managed to choke out. Breathing was becoming difficult through the tears staining her face. She tried to calm down, but only gave herself the hiccups.

"I didn't want you to worry. I knew today was coming. Everyone knew today was coming. I just asked that they not tell you." He looked up into her deep green eyes. Her's sparkled with life while his were glazed over and dull.

Elizaveta spoke through her hiccups as the others stood watch over them.

"I don't want you to go." As she said this, her face scrunched up and she let the tears come faster. Her hiccups ceased and she clutched at Gilbert's blankets. He slowly lifted a shaking arm from under the covers and held it to Elizaveta. She took his freezing hand in her soft, warm ones. His fingers were clammy and sweaty, but she held on to them despite how they felt. She refused to let Gilbert go. It was too soon. It wasn't fair.

"I have to go. It wasn't my choice, but it's what I must do. Just remember one thing for me." His voice was quieter now.

"Y-yes, Gilbert?" Elizaveta wept.

"Just remember that I'll always be at your side, no matter what." Elizaveta tried to hold back her cries but couldn't manage to do it. With his free hand, Gilbert reached up and pulled the Iron cross from around his neck. He reached over Elizaveta and let the silver chain fall around her head and land at her shoulders. "I'll always be right here." He whispered.

Gilbert closed his eyes and Elizaveta squeezed his hand.

"Gilbert…" she whispered.

Then, he died.

The flower Elizaveta had tucked behind her headband was crinkled, dry, and brown. She stayed there on the floor, crying quietly, still holding Gilbert's hand in her's.

Ludwig was first. Without opening his eyes, he blew out the flame that had been dancing upon his candle. Feliciano did the same. Then Roderich. Then Vash. Then Lili. Outside, one by one, candles were blown out, filling the air with a pungent smoke. Ludwig and Roderich walked over to the doorway and blew out the larger candles as well. The only ones still lit were the blue ones, the candles belonging to Gilbert and Elizaveta.