After Christmas, everything seemed to change, but in a strangely distant way.
Tino and Ludwig seemed almost afraid to go outside anymore. Lukas wasn't, and he made a point of it. While Germany was occupying his homeland, the Norwegian government was technically now here in Britain. Lukas often wondered if that wasn't part of why they had come; Emil had never given him a real reason. And then without a real explanation, he informed them that they would, at last, be going to Iceland.
British troops had been previously stationed in Emil's home although the country still declared itself neutral, but they had been replaced with soldiers from the United States, because they had also been a neutral nation. Since they had entered the war earlier in December, however, the Marines they had originally set to occupy Iceland were moving out, and new soldiers were coming in to replace them. Somehow, Emil reasoned this made it a good time to go.
It was strange to pack up their small house with the knowledge that they wouldn't be going home. Well, Emil would be, though he didn't seem very happy about it.
But Mathias was happy enough for everyone.
That damn Dane was bouncing around more than the puppy was. And that wasn't all he was doing, either.
It had been clear to Lukas that Mathias hadn't been quite as drunk as he had hoped that fateful night a few weeks before Christmas. He hadn't confronted him directly, as he had expected, and instead chose to try to get Lukas to admit recalling the event in subtle ways. It was probably very obvious that he remembered something, but he'd be damned if he'd admit it. Still, Mathias smiled in that knowing way that made the Norwegian want to stab something with the butter knife Tino had given him, especially when he occasionally tried to lean over to him smoothly, looking the way he did when he hit on women. Lukas would try to hit him with anything he could get his hands on, but Mathias seemed to be careful about when and where he made such moves. It was severely unlike him.
And yet, sometimes he was the same as always; oblivious to everyone and everything around him. Lukas wasn't sure if it was a clever part of whatever game he was trying to play with him, or if his attention span simply ran out a times. But the more this went on, the more it put Lukas on edge until he could hardly sit still, much less stand to go to bed with the unpredictable Dane. He had considered asking Tino to switch rooms so he could instead sleep with Emil, but he knew that Mathias was hard to get used to as a sleeping partner, and didn't want to subject anyone so innocent and passive to his loud snoring and total disregard for personal space.
As Lukas was nearly finished packing up his things, he heard someone pause in the doorway. In truth, he had heard the heavy boots the moment they started up the stairs, but he pretended he didn't. However, no immediate words came from the newly arrived figure.
He tried to ignore it as best he could, but after a few minutes of feeling the weight of eyes on his back, he turned sharply.
"What do you want?" he snapped.
Lukas' mouth went dry as soon as his words left his mouth, however, because there in the doorway stood a rather startled looking Berwald.
"We're leavin' in a few," he shifted awkwardly on his feet after bowing his head in an apologetic manner. "You ready?"
He nodded slowly, able to feel his cheeks burning with his embarrassment. "Almost,"
The tall Swede looked like he might have wanted to say more, but he only nodded before leaving.
Lukas took a deep breath, rubbing his face as he turned back and finished shoving the rest of his belongings into his pack. It couldn't be healthy to be this tense for so long. He tried to tell himself to relax, and took a few deep breaths. As soon as he finished packing up, he glanced around the room with a sort of farewell in mind, and then slung his bag over his shoulder and turned to leave.
"Hiya Luke," Mathias' figure had seemingly materialized in the doorway; a lesser man would have screamed.
Lukas' body froze as his heart sputtered back to life, but it was only before he was able to actually register what he was seeing, and then his stomach sunk coldly. Mathias was smiling that smile. It was something between a friendly grin and a fucking smirk. It seemed to encourage the Dane's voice to dip lower as his eyes blinked almost lazily, but this only heightened the sensation that Lukas was under a predator's gaze. He felt as though Mathias was able to notice every detail about him and he decided that a Mathias that was cognizant of his surroundings, of himself in particular, filled him with a strange feeling of terror. The kind of terror that gave rise of ancient instincts.
Lukas was certain he would have jumped out the window to escape, if only it wouldn't involve having to turn his back to the sly Dane. So instead he was figuring where he'd have to kick him in order to knock him back hard enough for Lukas to be able to get out the door, when Mathias chuckled, and somehow crushed his train of thought.
It was enough of a jolt to get him to speak, however.
"What do you want?" he asked a second time, the sharply spoken question finally demanded of the intended person.
He shrugged coolly, but his eyes still held that damned smirk. "Nothin',"
His tall frame was still blocking the door. Lukas swallowed without meaning to. Mathias saw it. When he show that smile again, it showed off a bit of his teeth.
They stared at each other intensely for a moment before Mathias took a deep breath, and then stepped into the room fully. The casual way he was trying to move only seemed to enhance the predacious accent that now surrounded him entirely.
Lukas took a step back, even though he hadn't intended to. Ancient instincts. It made him want to cover his throat.
Mathias looked like he was about to speak, or was perhaps just smiling wider, but the something sliced so cleanly through the tension that Lukas almost choked.
"Time to go!" Emil's impatient voice hollered up the stairs.
When the wild-haired Dane turned to throw a glance at the doorway, Lukas saw his opportunity. He quickly ducked around Mathias and almost ran to the door, feeling his lungs constrict at the feeling of turning his back to him. He hated turning his back on anyone he felt a threat from. Except, he always turned his back to Mathias because it was a pointed way of ignoring him. In other words, he had never felt this from him before.
He hadn't moved as far away as he had meant before he heard a solid footstep that signaled Mathias turning to follow him. It only took him one long step before he was behind Lukas, and when he felt his long arms wrap all the way around him, pack and all, he honestly felt as though he was about to shriek.
But, Lukas somehow managed to let out his breath as a heavy sigh rather than a scream. Idiot.
"What are you doing?" he demanded, although it sounded less irritated than he felt.
"Huggin' you," Mathias told him from the back of his neck and gave him a harder squeeze for emphasis.
Lukas wasn't sure why, but it felt like the coldness that had caused his stomach to sink had changed temperature, and was now instead rising up towards the back of his throat. Was a hug from Mathias enough to make him sick now?
"Let go." he ordered, twisting in his tight grasp until he could push on his face.
He laughed, but held on a moment longer before relenting and releasing him.
Lukas stumbled a bit as he fell back, and then sniffed in an exasperated manner before readjusting his pack on his shoulder and marching to the stairs without Mathias. He wasn't far behind him, however; he could just feel those eyes on his back. He was enjoying this in the same sadistic way a cat would enjoy toying with a mouse. But Lukas was no mouse, and if Mathias kept this up, he'd find that out the hard way.
When he made it to the front door, Mathias in tow, Berwald stared them down as if they were children arriving home passed their curfew.
"What?" Mathias jeered at him.
Lukas had no intention of going along with whatever what happening, and bypassed the Swede without saying a word, heading out to the taxi cab that was waiting for them outside, already loaded up.
Emil, Tino, and Ludwig were standing outside of the car, but had yet to get in. How the hell were they all going to fit?
"Emil, you can sit on my lap," Tino was saying with that blissfully ignorant smile.
The boy in question frowned and crossed his arms. "I'm bigger than you,"
It was true. He had grown since the last time they had all been together, and Tino was very short. He used to joke that it was because his brothers had taken all the height, but this joke seemed to make him sad, and so he stopped telling it.
"He can sit with me," Lukas said as he walked up.
Emil looked at him like he wanted to complain, but didn't. Maybe because he was looking at him and thinking that if he did complain, he would make him sit on Berwald. Emil just might have picked up on that.
Lukas then stepped forward and opened the door, which was enough to usher Tino into the middle, and Mathias after he came sprinting out to get his designated seat beside the Finn. Lukas got in with a quiet curse while Ludwig got in on the other side, next to Tino. Emil didn't get in until Berwald finished locking the front door and headed down to the car, tiny Hana in his arms. He might have seemed surprised that they all got in the back, but then again, he had been the one to take the lead since the beginning; it would feel weird if he sat in the back. Besides, if anyone else were to sit up front, say a particularly annoying Dane, their driver might just pull over and kick them out before they were half way there.
It was a little uncomfortable with Emil on his lap since he had indeed gotten bigger, but more uncomfortable than that was the strangely smug way Mathias grinned as the sides of their bodies were pressed together. Lukas wanted to hit him, but couldn't get his arm up high enough with them packed in so tightly. So, he settled for childishly pinching him if he moved around too much. It was enough to sate him for a few miles at a time.
Their driver seemed to want to chat, though. He commented on the war and Berwald said something curt in Swedish. Their then driver stopped trying to chat. He could see Emil trying to smother a grin and found himself trying to do the same.
The fucking people he got mixed up with…