The next morning, I wake up to the sound of movement. Everyone's up and getting dressed and fixing their space.

"Guten Morgen, Williams. You have three minutes to get dressed und fix your space before breakfast." Braun says.

"Th-three minutes?" He nods. I quickly get dressed in the uniform Generalleutnant Beilschmidt gave me. It takes me a minute to get the shirt and jacket over my sore shoulder, but I'm able to manage it and fix my cot before we leave for breakfast.

Since we sit in ranks, I sit with Gruber and Schäefer. I'm not exactly sure what breakfast is supposed to be, but it's ok. Though, I bet it would be better with maple syrup. That makes everything taste better.

After breakfast, I go with Gruber and Schäefer for training. We have to run a course, and when I see it, my spirits plummet. I'm still sore, and the course looks nearly impossible to go through. Beilschmidt is the one running the course. Two people go at a time, and the one who finishes last has to run it again in a certain amount of time. Everyone was able to make it in the time limit.

Then my turn comes.

I have to run the course with Gruber. When GenLt. Beilschmidt has us start, Gruber dashes off ahead. By the time I struggle through the first three obstacles, Gruber is halfway done. By the time I'm halfway through, Gruber has been done for a minute and I'm exhausted. When I finally finish the course, my muscles are worn out, and I collapse, breathing heavy, at the end.

Someone picks me up by the back of my uniform and stands me on my feet. It takes pretty much all of my remaining energy to stay up.

Prussia POV

I stand in front of a weary Matthew, barely able to stand on his own two feet. It makes me feel kind of bad for putting him through this training, but he has to be trained like everyone else.

"Try again. You have six minutes to complete the course." He looks at me with tired dread. "Come on, you can do it. Just try hard. It's better to complete the course." I tell him quietly as I walk him back to the beginning of the course.

He nods wearily, but there's doubt in his eyes. I pat his back. "Just try your best."

He starts the course again, and I time him. I watch in concern and pity as he stumbles his way through the course. He goes even slower than before. And then, the poor kid collapses after scaling the wall. It took him longer than six minutes to just do that. I go over and bring him out of the course. I give him to the first one to finish.

"Bring him to the medical tent. I'll deal with him later." The soldier leaves.

I observe the rest of the troops go through the course, my mind always managing to go back to Matthew. I don't know why, but it bugs me a bit. It's like I can't get him out of my head.

After the last person finishes the course, I walk around to try and clear my head. Out of habit, I guess, I end up at the medical tent. I don't mean to eavesdrop, but I end up doing it anyway.

"You're pushing yourself too hard." I hear a nurse say.

"I know." I hear Matthew's soft voice. "But he wants me to make him proud."

"That doesn't mean you have to overwork your body. You just woke up yesterday."

"Yeah, but I gotta work hard." He sighs. "Even the weakest person here is stronger than me."

"Matt, not everyone's strong."

Matthew mumbles something I can't make out. The nurse replies a minute later.

"Just practice." Her voice is quieter now. "Go out at night while everyone's sleeping then. Train and get stronger, OK?"

I don't hear anything after that, and a minute later Matthew comes out and nearly runs into me. His hair is pulled back, with a few stands of it hanging in his feminine face. There's also a band aid on his check.

"S-sorry G-generalleutnant B-Beilschmidt." He has a bit of trouble stuttering out the German.

"It's alright. Uh, listen. You won't make anyone proud if you push yourself too far. I d- uh, they wouldn't want you to do that. It wouldn't be awesome."

"O-ok." He walks off, and I watch his short ponytail gently swing back and forth as he does.

- That night I go out and hide somewhere where I have the training course in my view, but remain hidden. I'll watch him…, just to make sure he doesn't overwork himself again.

Canada POV

That night, after I'm sure Braun, Gruber, and Schäefer are asleep, I sneak out to the training course. If possible, it looks even more intimidating in the dark. I'll finish the course in an acceptable time eventually, even if it kills me.

I start by doing laps around the course. After a few, I rest for a minute before I go onto doing push-ups and sit-ups to improve my strength. After a few minutes, I stop and rest. I repeat the process for an hour or two. Then, I go through the course again. I go slow, taking my time to ensure I don't overwork myself. It also makes it easier to go through it this time.

By the time I finish, it's around two or three in the morning. I'm exhausted. I drag myself back to the tent, collapse on my cot, and instantly fall asleep.