A/T: Sorry about putting this chapter up so late...I'll put up the next one on schedule. Hopefully.

Pinkdoughnuts, thank you so much for your review! I missed this story, and I miss you, TheEnglishMuffin and all the other people who would review as and when they read the story. Hopefully, there will be more people hopping along this time!

I guess this story's history is like that - I started it three years ago, and left it at the first chapter. Then I picked it up again, almost a year after starting it, and the reason for the pause back then was because my life was absolute shit back then, too. And then, the most recent pause for the same reason, although the most shittiest time I've had in my life definitely goes to the time between writing the first chapter and picking it up again - the recent one comes a close second or third. It's kind of opposite to the first fanfiction I put up here, My Friend Natalia, because there, I was a stickler for schedule - just comes to show you that some things, no matter how good, can't be replicated. Like sticking to schedule. Sorry about that ^-^'.

Story's mine. Characters I've come up with are mine. Everything else is Hetalian property.

Mein Gott - Ger - My God

Frau, Fraulein - Ger - lady, my dear lady

az istenit - Hun - goddamit

ich leibe dich - Ger - I love you

Chapter 24

The two men stared at each other, so shocked that they didn't know whether to run to each other or fall to the ground in shock. Everyone just looked at the two of them, unable to assess the situation or even understand it.

"T-They s-s-said that y-you were dead," the tall blond man, Ludwig, spoke. "T-T-They couldn't f-f-find" -

"Mein Gott!" Gilbert exclaimed, and rushed to the man, flinging himself at Ludwig, who struggled to stand straight. Tears were streaming profusely down Gilbert's face, and he was bawling like a baby. Ludwig's stern face broke down, sobbing quietly as compared to the man in his arms.

"What's going on?" Natalya whispered quietly to Mathew, who shook his head confusedly, not understanding the situation himself. Eliza's face, however, told a different story.

"T-That's his brother, Ludwig," she said, quietly. "But he's supposed to have died, during the Wars."

"I would like to know what's going on," Roderich said, but his voice had none of the sternness that it had usually. Instead, it was soft, revealing his confusion.

"Me, too, comrade, me, too," Ivan said silently.

"They need some time together," Shree suggested quietly. "Let's leave them alone."

Nat showed her agreement by walking into the adjacent room. The others followed silently not really sure what to say about anything that had just happened.

"What was Gilbert saying?" Alfred asked Eliza as they walked.

"He's talking in his native tongue," Eliza said. "He usually does, when he's excited."

"You understand it?" he asked her. Eliza nodded.

"Is that really his brother?" Matt asked. "He never, ever talked about a brother."

"When I first met him," Eliza said slowly, "he was repulsively louder than he is right now." Matt and Alfred, walking on either side of Eliza, chuckled. Eliza, who was also smiling, thought about the past, and as she thought, her smile faded. "But, every night, he would cry. He would say, 'Ludwig' in his sleep, again and again. Most of the times, he would have nightmares, and wake up, screaming. When he finally came to trusting me, he told me that he'd lost his brother in the Wars, and all of Johnny Doe's men couldn't find him. He's never told me how, though."

Alfred and Matt mused silently, and turned around to see Roderich and Ivan speaking to each other in their common language.

"The plan was to fill up on supplies, and leave here once Matt was feeling better," Ivan said. "But it would be foolish of me to assume that this…meeting, of sorts, doesn't change anything."

"If that is his brother, Braginsky," Roderich said, "then there is no way of saying how this will go."

"How did you find the boy?" Ivan asked.

"Do you remember how that had teams of priests travel to the war torn areas to help the survivors? They had sent me, along with a team, to the place they now call Eren."

Ivan winced at the memory. "I'd been there once as well," he said knowingly.

"Probably one of the worst hit areas," Roderich agreed, his tone the same as Ivan's, full of muted horror and painful memories. "I found the boy lying on the side of the road, barely breathing. He had frost bite on some of his fingers, and we didn't think he would survive even the amputation. We could not have waited to see who he was if we had to save his life, but one of the priests remained back, in case someone claimed the boy. We'd finished the operation, and the boy still hadn't gotten out the the anaesthesia completely, but he got up, yelling, and ran out. We searched the entire city for Ludwig's brother, but we didn't find him. We couldn't wait, because we had to leave for Jezu. We asked him if he wanted to wait or come along, and he agreed to come along with us."

Roderich ran a hand wearily over his face. "It was a horrible time. He would scream in his sleep, but awake, he refused to say a word about it. It took him so long to open up finally, but he just told us the bare basics, no details." Rod looked at Ivan. "How did you come to be with the brother?"

"One of Natalya's friends," Ivan said. "He used to work for Johnny Doe."

"No wonder those two looked so familiar," he said, his eyes narrowed on the three walking in front of them.

"You have met Johnny Doe?" Ivan asked, his interest piqued.

"Not met, but I've had the chance to observe the man," Roderich said. "The energy he possessed wasn't human, even back then, but I could never have put it down to demonic."

Ivan pressed his lips in thought. "Thanks to the Wars, our generation had the chance to meet, or at least be close enough to observe him first hand. Maybe events would not have unfolded the way they have if we had noticed back then, but it wasn't as if we were expecting to see a demon's energy when we looked at the world's most powerful man."

"We didn't think that we would find it there, any ways," Roderich said, and looked at Ivan. "How is Natalya in all of this?"

"Surprisingly receptive," Ivan mused. "I'd have expected her to react, even to break down or freeze in the face of some of the situations we've been in. But she's kept her calm - it's characteristic of her, but considering the circumstances…"

"It isn't what you expect," Roderich agreed. "A strange set of people you've found yourself associated with."

Ivan chuckled, but sobered at the thought that ran through his head. "But now, it's hard to say how many are going to remain associated with us."

The first thing that greeted his eyes was darkness. He blinked a few times, and he could see silhouettes of objects in the room. He didn't know for a moment where he was, and then it all came back to him in one thought flow.

He groaned. He wished he hadn't gotten up - in fact, he wished he never got up again. He was tired - not just in a physical sense, due to his illness, but also mentally.

"You're up?"

He turned to the sound of the voice. He couldn't see her clearly, but he could sense her presence. "Yeah," he said, surprised at how hoarse his voice was.

He heard her get up and putter around, and soon, she was holding the side of his face. "Drink," she said. Mechanically he obliged, opening his mouth and gulping cool water down. It tasted funny, like it had for the past two weeks, since they'd been adding some of his medicines in his water, but he'd begun to tolerate it. One day he'd refused to drink it, and he fell unconscious four times in three hours. After then, he'd never protested.

Absently, he thought about the feeling of the hand holding his face. It was calloused - the fingertips, the roots of the fingers, the bony parts of her palms. They were strong, like her personality, like her. They weren't gentle or soft - they were strong, hard, rough and firm. And he thought about how similar, yet how different, it was from the hand that had held him, nursed him to health.

"Are you hungry?" she asked him, wiping his mouth after she moved the bottle from his lips.

He shook his head, and listened to her settle down. Soon, there was silence, one that comforted him like nothing else. Somehow, he had always found comfort in her presence, even though she had never meant for it to be that way. But, he figured even if she ever did, she'd feel so awkward that she'd end up being comforted, than the other way around.

"I'm tired," he blurted out, and she was so silent it was almost as if he was speaking into the darkness. But he knew she was listening. "I'm so tired, Nat. Of all of this."

She didn't respond immediately, and he gave her the time she needed without saying anything. Finally, she spoke. "I came into all of this, wanting answers to questions that had arose from…incidents in my life. But, the more I get into this, the more questions I get, and the questions I came with remain unanswered.

"How do you continue?" Matt asked. "How do you go on, knowing that everything you know is going to change, as you know it?"

"That is how you feel?" Nat asked.

"I don't know my father, and I realised I didn't know my brother. I've come to know my brother, but my father…" he trailed off.

Nat kept quiet, and Matt let his racing thoughts bombard the sides of his head, bouncing off and into one another. Nat's voice finally broke through his confusion, and the words she told him were ones he would always carry with him. "Until I find the answers - and the right ones - I will not stop. If I get tired, or people try to stop me, I will not stop looking for the answers. And no matter how painful the answers are, I will learn to accept them."

Matt sat in silence, letting her words sink in. He didn't know how she did it, every time - her words cleared his confusion and cut through his frustration, every time. Her words brought clarity to him, a new perspective on the situations they had to face. And it helped him see that no problem, no situation was as difficult as it seemed in his head.

"Someone I knew while growing up taught me this," Nat said softly. "He believed in this, all his life. And I believed in him and his ways. I learnt it early on, when I was playing hooky way too often, but only now…only now is it being tested. We all need answers, Mathew. But how far you are willing to go for those answer…that is what will drive you forward."

Matt slowly digested her words, letting them carefully run in his head and fully impact his mind.

As he mulled over them, the door opened, and light flooded the room. Matt squinted, and recognised Shree's silhouette as his eyes adjusted to the light. A lightness filled him instantly, a freedom that came with the recognition of familiarity.

"Oh, you're here," Nat mumbled, and got up. "Work is going well?"

Shree hummed in agreement.

"He's up. Do you want me to check on him in a while?"

They were talking in their common tongue, but Matt could follow them most of the time, since between the two of them, Nat spoke slowly. Nat generally spoke slowly, regardless of which language she was speaking in, so it made Matt's understanding easier of the different languages all of them spoke in.

Ivan and Nat -and before, Katyusha - spoke in a language peculiar to them. All the Head and Deputy priests and priestesses spoke a common language. There was another language which the rest of the priests and priestesses spoke, which seemed to be a crude form of the language the higher ups spoke. It was fascinating to listen to all of the languages, since they were all so wonderfully unique, but at the same time, they seemed to have a very far off common ancestor. The language which Nat and Ivan spoke had more of harsh consonants, whereas the language of the priests was very calming. And the person whom he spent hours talking about this, and so many other things, was Shree.

Shree was so well read it was crazy how her head didn't burst from the overabundance of knowledge in her head. Not only was she well read, she also managed to recover all the information she had ever read, heard or learnt - and it was fascinating. During the course of his training as his father's successor, Matt had to amass a wealth of knowledge in a time span so short it was inhuman. Most people in their lifetime would never have known as much as he knew, but he never complained about it - in fact, he loved it. He loved knowing things so much that his father, who initially tutored him, realised his level of discipline was far too little compared to what someone of Matt's intelligence required. After teaching Matt everything he knew, Alfred Sr. Immediately hired tutors, and then some more, when Matt quickly overtook his tutors. And it wasn't just bookish knowledge - arts, music, dance, martial arts, literature, language, sports - everything one could think of, Matt learnt. Of course, he couldn't claim himself to be good at everything - he was a terrible dancer, and he didn't like most sports except for ice hockey and basketball, and he preferred to listen to music as opposed to singing; however, he was good at playing the piano. Neither did he like a lot of things he could do, and he had his own interests. But he grew more convinced, day by day, that if there was someone who was more knowledgeable than him, it was Shree.

But there was something delicate about her, underneath all of her knowledge, something gentle and beautiful. She wasn't fragile or breakable- she was strong and her passion burned like a conflagration, but at the same time, she was humble about her abilities and her intelligence.

He loved talking to her. About everything. But, for some reason, there was one thing they never spoke about - each other. She never spoke about her life outright, although he was able to piece things together from her anecdotes and the offhand comments she unconsciously would make while sharing something she knew. She never asked about him, either, and it wasn't that she didn't want to know, because whenever he did relate an anecdote, she would listen to him with rapt attention. It wasn't bad, or anything like that…

He just wanted more.

He wanted to know everything about her. What made her the way she was, what she liked, what she loved, everything. Her life, her family, her emotions - he wanted to know everything. But, he didn't know what it was - every time he felt like asking her, he felt himself face to face with the proverbial wall - proverbial in word only, since it felt like a solid wall in every other way. And he felt like if he crossed it, there would be no coming back. And if he ruined it, somehow, he would hate himself. If something happened and he would have to stop speaking to her, he would never forgive himself for it.

He watched Nat leave and close the door behind her. He rose from the bed, his body creaking and aching. It was much better from what it had been, though - but still, he hurt everywhere.

"What's going on?" he asked, sitting up.

"Stocking up on supplies," Shree said. "Ivan's with Rod - Ivan and Alfred. Eliza and I were overlooking the supplies - Nat went to take what I was doing."

"And Gilbert?" Matt asked.

"He's still in there, talking to his brother," Shree said. "I asked someone to go give them some food in there." She sat down next to him. "Is that really his brother?"

"I think so," Matt said. "I wouldn't know for sure, since Gilbert and I never really spoke about our personal matters. But he wears a dogtag - it's at the end of the chain he wears. It has two dates on it - I know one date is the day Dad found Gilbert. And the other…I think that it's got something to do with his brother. When I asked him what the second date was, he had thing look on his face," Matt said, frowning at the memory, trying to recall it to his best ability. "He was happy, and sad, at the same time. And he was in a lot of pain. I asked Eliza, and she told me it had to do with his brother, who had died in the Wars. I don't think she knows - or knew, at least, back then."

Shree kept quiet, then began softly. "Eliza's been unusually quiet."

Matt looked away from the lamp he'd lit in the time he had been speaking, and turned to her. "What do you make of it?"

Shree shrugged. "I tried to talk to her about it. I told Nat, but all she told me was that she needed her silence, and we need to respect that. Eliza didn't divulge much, but I think, whatever Gilbert's decision is, she's going to follow him."

"She's devoted to Gilbert," Matt said, almost in continuation to Shree's words. "True, they fight all the time, and it can be pretty violent, but…there isn't a lot she wouldn't do for him. I don't remember the details, but she once walked out on dad because he was going to fire Gilbert or something like that. Dad apologised to both of them that day…since then, he let Eliza handle Gilbert."

"Will he stay back, here?" Shree asked.

"Will Roderich allow that?"

"I don't know - I mean, if it was anyone else, I would say a definite no, but this is his Deputy we're talking about, and also his student. So, honestly, I really don't know."

"I didn't think he would allow it for anyone," Matt murmured. "How well do you know his Deputy?"

"Ludwig? Not very well, I'm afraid," Shree said. "He and Nat were always close - at least much closer than I ever was. Why do you ask?"

"Would he leave all of this for Gilbert?"

Both of them sat in silence, pondering over the possible answer to the question Matt had put out in the open.

"I…don't know, Matt. Would he leave his way of life, one he has been leading for the past twenty, twenty-five years?"

"I did," Matt said quietly. "I left it for Al."

"But would he? It's not…it's not the same circumstances, even though the situation comes up to be the same. And Alfred would never ask you to leave anything for him - I don't know what exactly happened, but what I know of Alfred now" -

"No, no, he never asked me," Matt agreed. "I offered. Nat wanted to take only him - I offered to come along."

"Do you think Gilbert will ask?"

Matt sighed, and leaned back on his outstretched arms. "Who knows?" was all he could ask. He honestly didn't know the answer to that question, although he wished he did.

Honestly, though…who truly knew?

"What are you going to do now?"

Gilbert closed the door behind him, and looked at Eliza, who was standing across the room. "What do you mean, frau?"

"Will you stay here? Or will both of you go back home?"

Gilbert looked at her, his expression inscrutable. "Our home was destroyed in the time of the Wars. My home is Fitzgerald, and his home is here." He frowned. "What's wrong, frau?"

Eliza's face grew pensive, and she bit her lower lip.

"Elizabeta."

Her head came up, but she still didn't meet his eyes.

"What are you thinking, fraulein?"

"I'm wondering - no, no, I'm not wondering - I want to know…whether you're leaving or not." At his blank expression, she continued, "Us. Leaving us. To be with your brother."

"...You feel I will leave this…journey to be with Ludwig?"

"I don't know, Gilbert! Why aren't you able to understand?" Eliza cried out, the agitation within her bubbling and finally bursting out.

"Frau, you aren't making sense," Gilbert said, uncharacteristically patient. Something didn't seem to be what it was, and Gilbert had a feeling the more patience he had with her, the less complicated to would be to get the answer out of her.

"Okay," Eliza said, exhaling heavily, trying to calm herself down. "Okay. Are you going to leave with Ludwig, or are you going to stay…with Mathew and Alfred and the priests?"

Gilbert didn't answer immediately. He kept looking at her, and she continued to not meet his eyes. "And you?"

"Huh?"

"What about you, fraulein? You didn't include yourself with the rest of them." Gilbert walked towards Eliza slowly. "Fraulein, what are you thinking?"

Eliza looked like she wanted to cry. Gilbert stood right in front of her, but didn't touch her - somehow, he knew she would break down if he so much as held her hand. "What if I leave?" he asked, out of the blue, right off the top of his head.

Eliza's eyes flew wide open, and her head shot up. She momentarily searched his face before looking away, her eyebrows drawn together. She whispered something so softly that Gilbert, standing as close as he was, couldn't hear her.

"Frau?" he asked her gently.

"I don't want you to go."

Gilbert's eyes flew wide open, and he blinked. "What?"

"I don't want you to go, az istenit!" Eliza yelled, and turned away from him. "I'll go with them, because I need answers, and I need to be here, with Matt. But…but…"

Her voice broke, and it suddenly became clear to Gilbert. Without waiting for her to continue, he spun her around and caught her in an embrace so tight she couldn't even squeak in surprise.

"Frau, I'm not going to leave," he murmured into her head, hugging her closer to him. "I'm not going to leave all of this. I'm not going to leave."

Eliza began shuddering in his arms, and Gilbert knew she was silently crying.

"Frau, how long have I known you?" Gilbert said gently. "You were the first person I met after Johnny saved me. You were my first friend. You and Antonio, Eliza -you're my family. And now…all of these people have become family. But, frau…" he said, letting her go just enough to be able to see her face, his arms still around her, "you are my constant. You have always been my constant. Elizabeta Herdevary, you are the most awesome person I know." He smiled as she chuckled through her tears.

"You are my awesome person. Elizabeta, ich leibe dich."

Eliza's eyes flew open, and Gilbert chuckled. "Frau, don't tell me you find that surprising. I know I've been late in telling you, and it's not a very awesome thing to do, but…I'm telling you now. I love you. I have always loved you. And I will always need you in my life."

He wiped her tear stained cheeks, and smiled at her with such gentleness Eliza's breath left her. "I…I knew," she mumbled, "but I never…I did not think you would…say it. I never would imagine you telling me - telling anyone…those words. I love you, too, Gilbert," she said, in a much stronger voice. "I've always loved you."

"I know," Gilbert said, grinning, and brought her face close to hers so that their foreheads were resting against each other. "It's because I'm so awesome, isn't it?"

"If I could hit you right now…" Eliza growled, and Gilbert chuckled. "That's why I'm still holding you, so that you don't have any space to hit me. I think of all these things, Eliza, because I'm so awesome."

"Yeah, yeah," Eliza said, rolling her eyes, and yelped when Gilbert suddenly yanked her against him.

"That wasn't the only reason, though." He cupped her cheek, and angled her face towards him. "I wanted to do this, too." And before she could understand, he reached down and kissed her.

Eliza squeaked, bur Gilbert had a good enough grip on her to prevent her from reflexively backing away. One had gripped the front of his shirt, and the other went into his silky silver hair. Her lips moulded against his, drawing his lower lip into her mouth, allowing his tongue to slip into her mouth, running her tongue over his. Her brain turned to mush, heat pounded through her body, and she could think of nothing but the man holding her, the wonderful person who knew her so well, whom she loved so much. Her teeth grazed his lips, her tongue delved into the hot moistness of his mouth. When his hand found the firm roundness of her behind and squeezed, her moaned into his mouth.

She pressed harder against him, grinding against him, heat shooting right through her. Suddenly, she wanted him, all of him, all at once. He groaned, pressed against her, responding to her urgency with urgency. Suddenly, his hands were all over, touching, grabbing, squeezing. She moaned, biting, licking, grabbing whatever her hands and mouth could find. She wanted him. She wanted all of him.

They parted, panting, and looked at each other.

His crimson eyes were almost red-black, clouded over with his burning need for her. She didn't feel like she could stand after that - her legs were shaking, her heart was racing, and her mind was so hazy she could see nothing beyond him, and think of nothing other than how much she needed him. Their mixed scents hung around them like a hazy of lust and need, and Gilbert leaned down to kiss her again.

A loud clang startled both of them right out of their haze, and they parted. The clanging continued periodically, and both of them realised it was the large tower bell which was clanging.

"What's going on?" Eliza said, frowning. The two of them walked to the door and opened it. Outside, in the corridor, there were people running around, their faces tense and intent.

"It's almost like a red alert," Gilbert said as they watched people passing them without paying any heed to them.

"There you are!"

They bother turned, and saw Alfred and Nat jogging towards them.

"Hey! What's going on?" Eliza asked.

"Guys, go get ready," Nat said, and the two of them began walking. Gilbert and Eliza stumbled behind them, and finally caught up.

"W-What's going on" -

"Go get your fighting gear," Alfred said.

"It's in the car," Eliza said.

"Oh, great," Nat said. "We're going to the car as well. My keshi are there, and the things Ivan made for Alfred are also there."

"Hey! What is going on!" Gilbert yelled, and it was more a demand than a question.

Nat stopped, and looked Gilbert dead in the eye. The sinking feeling that had manifested when he'd seen people running around grew into an iron cannonball, dropping into his gut.

"We're under attack."

A/T: And...yay! Stuff!

I'm sorry I can't spend more time right now...I have an assignment which I need to finish in the next twenty minutes, so I need to skedaddle.

See you guys soon! And please leave reviews - they really make my day!

All my love,

R. K. Iris.