Ludwig stared out of his window at the morning sky. Looking down, he could see the imprints on the ground where his brother had landed last night. Leaving. Without telling him.

"Verdammt!" he growled. "When I find that brother of mine..." He strangled the air briefly.

Ludwig's companion, Felix, lumbered up to him, pushing his head into the Fortis' hand.

Ludwig sighed as he stroked the bear cub. All he could do was wait... Wait for him to come back.

If he comes back. A voice seemed to whisper the worry darkly.

"He will come back!" Ludwig told Felix fiercely, refusing to believe the thought. His bear regarded him, confused, as Ludwig got to his feet and paced around the room agitatedly. "Gilbert, you dummkopf!"

The reason Ludwig was this upset was because he and Gilbert had almost never been apart for the fifteen years that the Fortis had been alive. Gilbert was extremely overprotective of his brother, so for him to run away without a word, or even a note, to Ludwig was very worrying.

Ludwig could hear a faint voice ordering to 'get his butt down now' from below him. He sighed, remembering that there was training today, and he would have to explain Gilbert's absence to the instructor. Lovely. He knew what was coming next.


Arthur once again stormed ahead of the group, his anger palpable in the air. Lizzie glanced at Francis, seeing his equally frustrated face.

"What did you do this time?" she sighed, shaking her head.

"It wasn't me!" Francis snapped. "It was our leader's wonderful sense of tact. He decided it was high time to comment on-"

"You know what? No one cares," Gilbert interrupted. "We're sick and tired of your stupid arguing."

Francis bristled. "He seems to hate me," he hissed. "I did absolutely nothing to make him act this way towards me!"

Lizzie was about to reply, but before she could, a yell and a splash echoed from up ahead. They watched, frozen, as Arthur dragged himself out of the small stream he had just tripped into.

"What are you staring at?" he shouted at them, dripping wet.

Gilbert failed to suppress a chuckle. "Oh, Artie. What have you gotten yourself into?"

"Don't laugh at me! Or call me that ridiculous nickname!"

Francis crouched down next to Arthur, who lay sprawled on the ground, trying to pull off his sopping cloak.

"Do you need help?" Francis asked quietly.

"Not from the likes of you, frog!"

Finally, Lizzie couldn't help it. She began to laugh. Soon, she was clutching her sides, tears streaming down her face. Her laugh was infectious, and Gilbert was soon joining her.

Francis held back a smile as he watched them. Without asking again, he reached out and removed the cloak from Arthur's shoulders. Arthur didn't struggle this time, and was oddly quiet as he observed the other two as well. At last, he cracked a reluctant grin, his emerald eyes bright.

"Well, well!" Francis exclaimed. "The impenetrable wall breaks at last!"

Arthur punched him lightly. "Shut up."

Francis smiled teasingly. "Make me."

Arthur narrowed his eyes and stood up. As soon as Francis straightened as well, the Omnes pushed him into the stream vengefully.

"Hey!" Francis spluttered.

"Serves you right!" Gilbert jeered, just before Arthur came up behind him and shoved him into the water as well.

Lizzie eyed Arthur suspiciously, taking a defensive stance. "Well?"

"A gentleman never pushes a lady," Arthur replied.

"Ha! You call yourself a gentleman!?" Gilbert yelled as he spit out water.

Lizzie smirked. "I may be a lady, but I'm just as capable as you at doing this!" With those words, she pushed Arthur back in the water.

The Omnes resurfaced, alternating between spouting water and curses.

Francis winced. "That display is not very gentlemanly," he commented, referring to Arthur's foul mouth.

Gilbert hauled himself out of the water, shaking himself like a dog. "Well, now that this wonderful misadventure is over, how about some food? I'm starving!"

Lizzie pulled some food out of the thankfully dry packs. "Enjoy," she said, tossing it to him.

Gilbert began to stuff the food into his mouth ravenously as Francis and Arthur clambered out.

"My hair!" Francis lamented.

"We have more to worry about than your stupid hair!" Arthur retorted, trying to dry his clothes off in the weak evening sunlight.

"So," Lizzie began once they all settled down, "I was thinking."

"Good for you," Arthur muttered sarcastically. Gilbert glared daggers at him.

"Anyway, as I was saying, I was thinking. We will most likely encounter members of the Shadow Army. We'll need ways to defend ourselves," the Bellator finished.

"Oh, don't worry!" Gilbert exclaimed. "I totally have that covered. Me and West live in a building with plenty of weapons; we can swipe some from there."

"Also, I have my tome, so we're not completely defenceless right now," Arthur reminded her.

"Tome?"

"Magic book. I can use spells in combat."

Lizzie nodded absently, glimpsing the setting sun. "Looks like this is where we're making camp."

Gilbert stood, now dry. "I'll go gather some firewood."

"Good. Francis, Arthur, you two set up camp. I'll prepare dinner for the rest of us," Lizzie instructed.

Francis started laying down the bedrolls. Arthur cleared away a spot in the centre of the clearing, getting it ready for the fire.

Soon, Gilbert staggered into the clearing, hauling several pieces of wood. Lizzie helped him form a pile in the spot Arthur had prepared, and the Fortis set it aflame.

"Nothing left to do but sit, I guess." Gilbert gestured to the logs set around the fire.

Everything was quiet for a few minutes while they ate their food. Gilbert, having already eaten, stared into the fire, bored. He glanced at Lizzie, and recalled how he felt when he first saw her in the forest. He had had the strongest sense of familiarity when their eyes met. Almost as if they had met before...


Lizzie felt Gilbert's gaze scorching her all through dinner, but had refrained from commenting on it. However, after Gilbert had claimed first watch and once Francis and Arthur had both dropped off to sleep, she went to sit beside him.

"Hey," he said, his eyes focused on the ground. "You should get some rest."

"I need to talk to you," she said firmly.

Gilbert was uncharacteristically quiet as he scraped the ground with a stick. "What about?"

"You know what. You were the one staring at me."

"I had a good reason."

"Then tell me!" Lizzie could feel herself losing her patience. He kept dodging the point of the matter!

"I was thinking about a few days ago."

"When we met." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes." He turned to look at her for the first time since she sat down.

She was struck with an odd feeling. Those unique crimson eyes... had she seen them before?

"I... I felt like..." he stuttered.

"Like I know you," she finished for him.

His face showed relief. "You feel it too? Then it's true! We have met before!"

"But how?" Lizzie pondered. "I don't remember anything but the sense that we've met."

"Yeah, and we presumably grew up in completely different areas, so how is that possible?" Gilbert mused. "What was your childhood like?"

Lizzie chuckled. "Messed up. I realized pretty early on that life was survival of the fittest, so I had to be the fittest. I used to think I was a boy, until I realized that girls can be just as strong, or even stronger."

Gilbert sat up excitedly. "Wait! I remember something now! When I was just a little kid, I met a really odd boy on the border. He had a strange personality. He was all gung-ho about everything. We knew each other for only about a week before I was forbidden to go to the border anymore, but he was always talking about waging war on some guy named... 'Sadiq', I think. I joined in because I was a pretty fierce fighter as well." He sighed, reminiscing. "We never did get to carry out our plan."

Lizzie's eyes widened. "Gilbert," she said slowly. "That 'boy' was me."

Gilbert tilted his head. "So...I do know you!?"

"Seems like it." Lizzie smiled as she finally remembered her childhood friend, the only happiness in her otherwise lonely life. When he had stopped coming to their meeting place, she had moped around for a week. Once she had pulled herself together, she had vowed to find him, even if it took the rest of her life. Well...mission accomplished.

"Well, I guess I should wake up Francis for his watch, huh?"

"It's that late already? I was supposed to get some sleep before my watch after Francis', not stay up..." Lizzie groaned.

"You'll be fine. My awesomeness must be rubbing off, kesesesese!" Gilbert smirked.

Lizzie yawned in response, and dragged herself to her bedroll, falling asleep almost immediately. Gilbert crouched down next to Francis and whispered in his ear, "Afwachen ..."

Francis twitched, but did not wake.

Gilbert frowned, and hauled Francis into a sitting position. "Get up, lazybones! You've got a duty to do in this here camp, and there's no sleeping on the job!"

The Docte's eyes blinked open sleepily. "I will if you let go of me, " he said with a yawn.

Gilbert gave a snort of disgust. "How deep in Dreamland were you? It took me forever to get you up."

"I was having a nightmare," Francis said heatedly. "It was the kind that keeps you asleep."

"Whatever, sleeping beauty," Gilbert sniggered. "Just keep watch, and wake Lizzie when it's her turn."

Francis scowled at Gilbert, who waved cheekily and lay down. Cursing the Fortis, Francis sat on the rock he had been occupying before. He hadn't been lying: his dream really was confusing. Many dark shapes had been flying all around him, and a creepy voice had been cackling. Pondering his vision, he failed to notice a shadowed silhouette obscure the moon for a moment, then pounce.


Ahhh this chapter is so short ;-;. I'm sorry for that, but it seemed like a good time to end it. I dunno... I'll write another chapter quickly to make up for this short one! So, until next time, arrivaderci!