Don't I just love harassing you like this? Yes, I do! Well then…is this the chapter that finally has Charice in it?
/= [DAY 100] =/
/= "In Your Arms" =/
Arthur stared at the lake before him, frozen from the cold and scratched by the kids ice-skating themselves to their heart's content. It was strange being back here, and the moment itself left a strange taste from the back of his throat. He could only imagine how the others thought of this place…
"Hey, Iggy! You here?"
He turned his head just as Alfred came through the bushes and saw him staring back at the American. He blinked in confusion as he saw Arthur look back to the lake in a daze, his eyes narrow and unfocused. Alfred was really starting to get worried at this point, so he approached him slowly.
"What's going on?" He blinked. "What are you doing here, anyway? Is it because of Peter?"
"No. Not just that. I thought you'd remember this place for life." Arthur turned back to the place. "I was drowned here. You found me in a body bag that was tied to some weights."
Alfred turned his head away, cringing.
"I wanted to forget that, Arthur. You're alive now, that's all that matters."
"Yes, but…I have a feeling that I have actually seen the murderer with my own eyes. That's why I want to remember." He turned his head back to the frozen water. "There are just bits and pieces now…but I think I can remember how he lures them in…"
"You…you remember…?"
Arthur nodded slowly before sitting quietly on the frozen bench. Alfred quickly jumped to his side, drenching his arm around the Englishman as he continued to gaze at the lake. A small sigh escaped his lips as he turned toward the right until he couldn't see his face anymore.
"I had a research project that I had to do. The murderer offered to help me with it, and told me that they were going to meet up with me here." He looked up to the lake. "I was here first and he wasn't here…so I stood here to wait for them. Before I knew it, someone called out to me. I turned to him just as he threw something around my neck…"
Arthur fell silent, and almost in a panic Alfred tightened his grip on his shoulders. He froze before relaxing and leaning back on Alfred's shoulder.
"My whole life flashed before my eyes as it happened…and the sick part was that he enjoyed killing me. He was laughing the entire time, saying how I deserved it for all the sins that I have committed. Before I knew it…I was dead. I sure felt like it."
"And how are you so blunt about this…?"
"Because…like you said. I'm alive, right?"
"Still! A rape victim doesn't go and talk about the incident after the abuser goes to jail! They wait, don't they?" Alfred turned him around, seeing Arthur bob his head a little. "Seriously…"
"…that's why I'm waiting until now to talk about it." Arthur looked up, a smile on his face. "You're actually smart enough to listen."
"…is that why you haven't said anything…?"
"No…it's because I haven't remembered anything. What use would I be then?" He chuckled. "At least my information is helpful now."
"Why do I have the feeling that you're lying to me?"
Arthur didn't say anything, turning his head back to the lake and seeing as Adriano tackled into Peter and skidded almost the entire way toward a huge pile of snow. Wy had skated closer to them and started laughing, much to Peter's dismay, and began chasing her through the ice.
"Alfred."
"Yeah?"
"What kind of sin do you think he was talking about? Am I really a sinful person…?"
Alfred was silent, holding his hand on his chest and feeling as Arthur was stroking his fingers as if there was nothing else in the world that he could hold. He could feel the fear in his voice, and he didn't like it at all. After a few minutes, Alfred could only chuckle.
"Well, if you count the time that we almost got caught in the boy's locker showers in that-"
"I'm being serious here, bloody git!"
"Oh…well then…" Alfred chuckled at the blush on his face. "Yes. You are a sinful person. But that doesn't mean you're the only one."
Arthur looked up.
"We've conquered over people's lands…fought other countries for selfish reasons…harassed our own citizens for our benefit…even killed innocents all for the sake of 'peace'. And we were forced to do it under our leader's orders…less we get punished ourselves."
"We're immortal, Alfred. We do it because a part of us wants to. Our leaders may have a position over us, but we can choose to ignore it if we wish to."
"…you obviously haven't been paying attention to the war, haven't you?"
Arthur looked up as Alfred shook his head. The story will be told another time…perhaps in a quieter place…where there wouldn't be a risk of other people listening in. But whatever it was, Arthur knew that he knew of it because he was sticking his nose in a place where he wasn't supposed to be looking in.
"Are you all right, Alfred?"
"Yeah. I was just thinking about something." He answered. "Then again, I should be asking you that question."
"I'll be all right."
Arthur sat up and looked deep into his eyes, catching all the sun's rays bounce off his sapphire irises and noting just how much he had changed over the years. It felt like yesterday that he was holding a tiny boy in his arms, oblivious to the world. And now here he was, being the protector…and Arthur the protected. He couldn't help but smile.
"You've changed so much…from that oblivious young boy that I held in my hands…from my younger brother…"
"Arthur…you're not my brother anymore…" Alfred leaned in. "You're just mine."
That sent full chills down his spine. The only thing that kept them from full-blown making out where their Persona cards coming out and changing into an emerald sparkle before sinking back into their chests. The chuckle from the Englishman could only mean that he knew what just happened.
"Explain, please." Alfred stated.
"It's a way of connecting hearts. Soulmates." Arthur smiled. "A soul that is free from all burden is able to connect themselves to others without fail…"
"So we're soulmates?"
"…I-I didn't say that…"
"Awwww…I think little Iggy likes me~"
"I am not li- mmmph!"
Whatever the heck he was thinking at the moment stopped when they crashed lips on each other. There was a strange hesitation in the kiss, making Alfred stop and back up. Arthur was turning his head away.
"What's wrong…?"
"…I was lying to you."
"About what…?"
"I remember something about the murderer, but…"
"What? What about it?"
"…he had red eyes."
/= "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" =/
Feliciano looked beyond the snowy landscape toward the people standing beyond them. They were so in love, sparkling with young radiance and being as naïve as the world around them. He couldn't help but wonder if he looked like that with Ludwig. Charice wasn't really trustworthy with anything that pertained to gay relationships. She just ends up drooling and it scared him just a little bit.
"Ve~~~I should go find Doitsu~"
He skipped down the hallways toward where he would usually find him. But upon arriving at the newspaper room, he didn't find anyone there. He left confused and started wandering around the school, calling for him and looking in every nook and cranny for the German. He even asked around to people that were around.
"Ludwig? No, I haven't seen him."
"I think I saw him, but then again I was probably seeing things."
"Uh…I'm not really sure."
"Nope. Not even once."
"Dude, I've been standing here all day like an NPC. I haven't even seen a bathroom nearby. Dammit, where the hell is one?"
"Have you checked his room?"
That was one thing that Feliciano didn't bother to check up on. So with a grin the Italian skipped back to the dormitory, up the stairs, and finally back to Ludwig's room. He knew where the place was in a heartbeat…for reasons that shouldn't be stated in this rated T fanfic. He knocked on the door.
"Ve~~~~! Doitsu! It's me. Are you in here?"
There was no response. Feliciano blinked.
"Doitsu?"
Still nothing.
"Doitsu?"
He took a deep breath, something he learned during his training. He was probably out at the school, looking for him. He took a deep breath and headed out into the snow, continuing to call for him.
W-what if something happened to him…?
There was a murderer out on the loose, after all. And he had used Ludwig as a distraction while he did whatever he wanted on Feliciano's body. He shivered in terror as his footsteps suddenly started slowing down, getting deeper and deeper into the snow. Feliciano looked down and shivered.
W-why is the snow getting deeper…? Where's the school? He looked up. The school was just in front of me! I just saw it…!
A pair of red eyes glared back at him, causing Feliciano to shiver. He tried to scream, but no sound came out. The red eyes narrowed as he felt something warm and wet drip down his face and wrists. He looked down and saw that there were blood drips on the untainted snow. His stigmata had just reopened.
N-no…no, Feliciano! Control your thoughts! He heard himself think. Perhaps it was his unused Persona? The murderer's going to get you if you keep panicking! You're probably under a spell, so…keep going.
He shivered, the wind around him suddenly turning into a storm, before forcing himself to continue on. The blood started dripping faster and faster, the snow coming down in heavier chunks, until he couldn't move anymore. He collapsed onto the snow, feeling the wind getting harder and faster. The snow around him started turning into a bright red.
No…he got me again… He tried desperately to crawl forward. But I…I haven't given him his present yet…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
Warmth sank through his bones, stirring him from the ice coffin that he had been trapped in. His eyesight was blurry and messed up, but there were no longer dancing whites and blues. Instead, it looked more like the browns that were in the school. He slowly drifted his head to the bottom and saw that someone was replacing the bandages around his bleeding wrists.
"…mmn…"
"Y…re aw…ke…" The voice was blurry…distant… "Th…god. You…in…so much…..scared…"
"…Doitsu…?"
"Shhhh…" He was leaning over his head. His voice was suddenly clearer. "You lost a lot of blood. You really need your rest."
"…o…kay…"
Feliciano was silent as his neck was lifted and Ludwig replaced the bandages around his head. He could barely see just how much blood was on the marks, but from what he could see it was way too much. He was quietly lowered back down onto the couch that he was on and watched as Ludwig knelt down to his level.
"What were you doing out there?"
"…I…I was looking for you…" He stated. "No one saw you…I thought that the murderer had attacked you…"
"Shhhh…" He caressed his hair.
"D-Doitsu…Doitsu…" He felt hot tears flow with the blood. "He went after me again…"
"What…?"
"He…he was out there…did something…trapped me in the snow…" Feliciano was shaking. "He…he wanted me to bleed…"
"That would explain the sudden blizzard we had…but that just means that whoever is behind this is definitely a Persona user…" Ludwig looked back down to Feliciano. "It's all right now…I'm here. He won't hurt you anymore…"
"I…I thought I lost you again…"
"You didn't. I haven't left you. I never did. I never will." Ludwig leaned toward him. "Please…don't cry…"
"I…I'm sorry…" Feliciano cuddled the German's hand on his cheek. "I'll try…"
"Seriously. You've lost enough blood to kill an adult male. Any more blood loss and you'll die yourself…" Ludwig kissed his forehead. "I'm right here…I'm not leaving."
"…ve…Doitsu?"
"Yes?"
"Can you check my pocket for a minute…?"
Ludwig stared at him for a few minutes before proceeding to do so. The minute he felt through it, he found a strange object: a ring, bearing the Holy Roman Empire sigma. He looked back at Feliciano, who was looking at him with a blank look that seemed to hide a whole bunch of fear underneath it.
"Do you…do you know what it is?"
"It's my old ring. Back when I was Holy Rome."
"I…I thought that you would want it back…"
"I thought I lost this during the war…" He smiled. "Thank you."
Feliciano could only chuckle cutely as he finally sat up, the stigmata closed. Ludwig stood up and saw that he had recovered from the wounds: enough blood was in his veins for him to move. He stared at him, neither smiling nor frowning, scaring Feliciano until he lowered his gaze.
"Your scar still bleeds."
"…ve?"
"I think it's time for me to show you mine."
Feliciano froze as Ludwig sat down next to him, his breaths deep. He took the Italian's hand and lifted it to his temple, hoping that he would find it himself. And he did. His breath slowed to a halt as Feliciano's fingertips slowly brushed his hair away and revealed that there were burns hidden in the hair…in the shape of a gun barrel.
"…Ludwig…? Wh-when was this?"
"The Second War. After my leader rose to power. According to custom, I was supposed to reveal myself to him after he had obtained that status…" He shook his head. "I could see it in his eyes before he was even leader…he was crazy. But after that, I had no choice. I told him who I was shortly afterwards."
"Doitsu…"
"He took it surprisingly well at first…and then took a strange fascination. Around the height of the war, he took it to the next level."
"The height…that's when you stopped talking to me and Kiku."
"Hitler…he…he learned that I wasn't lying and that I really was Germany. He started asking me about everything, from where I was made to how I lived. It all went downhill the moment he realized that I was immortal…" He shook his head. "That's when he developed this obsession…he wanted to be the next Germany. And in his mind, that meant that he had to kill me."
Feliciano's fingers tightened.
"I lost track of how many times I had been attacked. I was shot, gassed, drowned, burned, sliced open, experimented on…anyway that a human can die, he tried on me." Ludwig sighed. "And every time, I was forced to return to work with the same soldier etiquette as if he hadn't tried it, even if I was still bleeding and had scars."
"Doitsu…"
"Most of them had healed…these two are all that I have left." He pointed to his temples. "But they should be gone in a few years…once I no longer have to-"
The hug on his back grew tighter, almost choking him. Ludwig had to squiggle out of the grip just as Feliciano looked at him with puppy dog eyes.
"I-I'm so glad that you got out of there alive, Doitsu! I…I didn't want to lose you!" He sobbed. "I didn't want you to die during the war…I just didn't think you would die under these terms…"
"…it was because of you, really."
"Ve…?"
"I mean…without me, where would you be? You would be lost in the war as well…gone, or worse yet just like me." Ludwig sighed. "The only thing he didn't know was that the only way to kill me was to dissolve the land he ruled…if only he knew…"
Feliciano's grip grew even tighter as he sobbed openly. Ludwig turned to him and saw the hazels that were just shining into topaz, and he couldn't help but try to kiss the tears away. He heard the Italian "ve" in response before he heard a light chuckle.
"…Doitsu."
"Yes?"
"…you missed…"
He lightly cooed as they pressed lips together, before a warmth erupted from both of them. They looked up and saw that their Persona cards had emerged, turning into a light yellow before returning to them. Ludwig looked up and saw the smile that he would kill millions for. The smile that would make him forget just what the world did to him over the years. The smile that, more than anything, he would live forever with.
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
"U-um…Doitsu?"
"Hm?"
"W-why is Charice biting my leg?"
"Wha- CHARICE, NO!Get the hell away from- SHIT she's got my leg now!"
"Ve~~~! Doitsu, save yourself!"
/=+=/
NOPE! AHAHAHAHAHAHA~!