Chapter 20

Gilbert stared at the bottle of Spanish rum. Everyone else only had the bottle, his came with a note.

"Come to my room."

He stood slowly, making his way to the door when Alfred noticed him leaving and laughed. "Don't tell me you don't want to drink at school! What are you, five?"

"I need to go do something." he spoke softly before leaving the room. He made sure no one else followed him before knocking on the door, staring down the hallway. Piotr opened the door and watched as Gilbert paled. "You asked me down here?" He spoke softly, honestly worried about his lack of formality. Piotr stepped back, allowing him in, while Arthur sat on the bed, his eyes closed and his fingers flying over words in a book on his lap. As soon as the door closed Gilbert fell to his knees, pressing his forehead to the floor. "I'm sorry, Your Highness. I didn't realize who you were!"

"But you're the only one who figured it out, regardless. That means you're more thoughtful about such things, but you're also very good and catching a lie. Please, stand up." Piotr watched as Gilbert slowly climbed to his feet. "As a member of the Assassin's Squad, you wouldn't just be some random protector. We'd spend a lot of time around each other. We'd be almost like a family."

"Some family." Arthur huffed out. "I haven't met a single member of the current Assassin's Squad at all." He didn't look up from the book at all.

"I haven't gotten them yet. My father's squad is the current group, but each king makes their own squad when they're eighteen. Guess how old I am now, kitten?" He watched as Arthur frowned.

"Somehow I thought you were older than that. Maybe it's the hair." He frowned, thinking.

Gilbert looked up with a frown. How did his hair make him look older? "It's dyed." Piotr chuckled, seeing the confusion. "The point here, I don't' want you to treat me differently. During boot camp, afterward either. The Assassin's Squad is supposed to be close. Don't call me 'Your Highness'. Don't bow to me. It creates a separation." Piotr watched as Gilbert swallowed hard, but nodded.

"This makes that whole comment about when you saw him naked even funnier." Arthur mumbled, trying to hold back laughter when he heard Gilbert start to panic.

"So vicious, little kitten." Piotr chuckled before walking over and sitting on the bed. "You're still freaking out." Piotr's eyes shifted to Gilbert's. "I meant what I said. No matter what, treat me like your friend, not like your king. We've had so much fun so far. I'd like it if that continued." Piotr watched as Gilbert nodded, staring.

"Really? You'd rather me treat you like the farm boy Piotr than the king?" He watched as the other nodded without hesitation.

"Very much." He watched Gilbert for any response. It took a while for the whole situation to really make itself understood to him, but when it did, all he could do was shake his head.

"If that's what you want, who am I to refuse, ja?" He watched the king with a raised eyebrow. "If it's alright, I'd like to go try that rum."

"That's fine. Have fun." Piotr smiled as the other made his way from the room. He walked into his bedroom to find everyone giggling like mad, their bottles barely broken into.

"Verdammt! You're all lightweights!" He watched before laughing.

"Do you think it was alright to ask him such a thing?" Arthur asked and Piotr nodded.

"I don't want them to think of me just as the king. It's a very lonely life, being exalted like that and sometimes the one thing you really need is just a friend, da?" Piotr sighed, looking at the hands he had clasped over his lap. He felt arms slide up his back before Arthur's head rested next to his.

"You always have me, Master." Arthur mumbled, and all Piotr could do was smile.

To everyone's surprise, the next morning Lukas made his way to their breakfast table. He stared at the group, Piotr, Arthur and Gilbert laughing at the rest, who all looked like death. "What's this?"

"Hangovers. We completed a challenge, if you will." Gilbert grinned up at the man, who nodded and stared, in confusion.

"You realize you're not allowed to have alcohol here, right?"

"It's alright for this, right? It was a celebration!" Piotr attempted to give him puppy dog eyes, but the look caused the other to step away, a horrified look on his face.

"Don't do that! It's weird!" He snarled before looking down at Arthur. "I know you haven't had any tea to relieve your shoulder issues in a couple of days. I was wondering how you're feeling."

"I'm good." Arthur smiled softly. "I'm a little stiff, but it's nothing I can't live with." He heard Lukas step closer, his hands moving over his shoulders as he felt across, taking in knots and the jumps and winces when he ran over a tender area. "I'm going to give you another tea. I know how much you liked the last one, so we'll see how this works out, alright?"

"That's fine. Thank you." Arthur smiled, unaware if Lukas could even see it.

When Sasha came out ten minutes later to bring the tea and Arthur's breakfast, Nikolai came with him, each carrying a platter. Nikolai had tea for everyone, and Sasha rolled his eyes when he saw the group.

"You have days left until you're graduated! Could you behave until then?"

"What's the fun in that?" Gilbert grinned and Sasha sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Lukas gave me something for you all, so don't die on me, alright?" Sasha started passing out teacups while Ludwig sighed and thanked him, Antonio half groaned, half grinned.

"We didn't drink THAT much, gracias." Antonio sat up, taking the cup with a 'thank you' and started sipping it.

The day ended out passing with a laziness befitting the group. They worked hard, and ended out finishing their exercises with half of the time left. They sat in the grass inside the running track and chatted happily, just enjoying the day. The warm sun beat down on them, lighting their laughter, and for the first time in his life, Ivan felt what it was like to just have friends and have fun on a normal day. The realization brought a tear to his eye as Arthur leaned against him, feeling the drop hit his cheek. He looked up, wiping away the tears and turned, confused and a little startled. "Master?"

"Sorry, I'm just a little overwhelmed." he smiled, grabbing Arthur and hugging him close. "I'm not used to this, being surrounded by friends, after all." He smiled and Arthur could only nod, hugging him.

"It's fine if it's because you're happy." He smiled, giving him a light kiss to his temple, causing a few of the others to chuckle at the gesture.

"You have a prominent grandfather. You should always be surrounded by friends like this. Don't tell me this is a first for you." Lovino stared, and Piotr nodded.

"I'm very... sheltered. I'm not allowed out without guards, and others are often too intimidated to come near me, so making friends is very hard." He sighed.

Arthur hugged him while Gilbert realized this was the truth. He couldn't hold down a frown at the realization that his king was someone who was, more than anything else, lonely. "That's what we're here for, ja? We'll be your friends. It'll be fun." He grinned and Antonio glanced over, wondering if he'd forgotten in a few days Piotr would be left behind.

At least for a few more days they would be friends, he sighed. They were surprised, therefore, when shortly after Piotr waved over another boy. He stood back, even after approaching, and offered a short bow. "Yes?" He asked with a polite tone, and Piotr patted the seat on the other side of him from Arthur.

Vladimir sat down, looking around at the group who all stared at him a little surprised at Piotr's actions, but curious as well. "You guys are missing something as a group." Piotr spoke. "An information gatherer would compliment your group nicely, Da?"

"What?!" Vladimir looked over, his eyes wide.

Francis stared at the boy with a frown. "What about him makes you think we'd want him in our group? He seems rather... closed off, non?"

"He's trying to keep median. Not stand out, even if he does. He fought to keep his fifty percent, and being suddenly rocketed to a one hundred didn't make him panic or lash out. He didn't point out the scores had been altered, which would have gotten him back to his fifty, but would have drawn more attention. He's better at blending in than I would have thought." Piotr spoke and Gilbert looked at the boy, nervously staring at Piotr in wonder.

"Is it... really alright for me? I'm supposed to be trying out alone, after all, so I won't get rejected with a group." He spoke softly, causing a frown from Alfred.

"Dude! Rude much? Why do you think we're going to fail?"

"None of you even know what you're doing right now, do you?" Vladimir stared around the group, each of them watching back with wonder except one who could only laugh.

"You're one to talk!" Gilbert heckled. "You're doing it too!"

Vladimir opened his mouth to respond before Piotr tapped his shoulder. A short nod informed him Gilbert did, indeed, know they were already acting as his guard. "It's only been a week and a half that we've gotten to know each other, but with the insight I've gotten, I know how this group will go. There are certain... quirks. Things each has a problem with, and things everyone understands. It's better to let those be known quickly so the good within can be seen, Da?" Piotr watched as Vladimir nodded.

"I'm Vladimir Popescu. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He bowed, though it seemed slightly out of place, Piotr noticed it made his introduction to Piotr seem a little less overdone. He couldn't help but smile, realizing Vladimir was better at this than he'd originally thought. He was a skilled strategist.

"Group call!" Lovino walked a few steps away, everyone except Vladimir and Piotr joined into the huddle. "Do we let him join?"

Gilbert and Arthur's answer was immediate. "Yes."

"Why would you two say that so quickly? We don't even know him. He could betray us and use the chance to make himself look better." Feliciano mumbled, an odd sense of unease settling in him.

"Or maybe Piotr knows something else we don't." Gilbert answered with a grin. "He's full of odd information! And he hasn't been wrong yet, ja?"

"Ja, but this is something important." Ludwig replied. "There's only a maximum of twelve. If our group is ten and they decide there's three others they desperately need, we'll be kicked."

"Or maybe he's just what we need to make us get the edge up. Maybe without him we won't stand out enough." Gilbert replied.

"You really think we need him?" Arthur nodded and Alfred sighed.

"I'll trust you. Arthur seems to be a good judge of character. He befriended us, after all." Alfred let out a laugh and Arthur could only stare, surprised.

"Or maybe there is more to whole situation than we know." Yao stared at the two with narrowed eyes. "I have feelings you two know something." He watched as Arthur and Gilbert stared at each other before laughing. "Or absolutely nothing..."

It had taken a few minutes, but with people agreeing one after another, they decided to let him join, but everyone still seemed a little wary around him at first.

Vladimir's group started joining in with theirs, though none of them knew he, or the other group, was trying out for the Assassin's Squad. Vladimir couldn't help but feel an odd sense of unity, even with the group he figured he'd never see again. It was nice to finally have some friends.

Lunch was loud. They had four tables all pulled up around, everyone chatting loudly, happily talking about random plans they had for the future. "I've always wanted to go back to Spain." Antonio smiled. "I was moved here as a child, so I don't really remember much of it. I remember it was warm, and the sunset over the ocean was beautiful."

"We were in Italy." Feliciano smiled brightly. "We were young when we were moved here. A war broke out, and our grandfather had friends up here, and brought us to safety before he went back to fight. Almost a year later we got word he'd been killed in battle. I wanna go put flowers on his grave." Feliciano smiled sadly, Ludwig hugging him close.

"I would like to go back to Germany for a while. It would be nice to go to the bierfest I remember as a child. It seemed like a lot of fun, even if I was too young to enjoy it at the time." Ludwig glanced over to Gilbert, who frowned.

"Maybe fun for everyone else. Last time I walked past that abomination I was nearly hung." Gilbert frowned, in an odd display for himself, he curled himself down, a total lack of the self-confidence he normally had.

"Why?" Vladimir asked, curious as to the total change in character.

"Gilbert's hair and eyes had people think he was a demon. It's why we're here. It became too dangerous for him, so we came to where it was safer for him." Ludwig answered.

"What's wrong with them?" Vladimir asked, staring. Sure, the white hair was surprising, but nothing about it screamed 'demon' to him.

Gilbert smiled at the question. "That's why I'm here. Questions like that. When you have to ask, it's safer, ja?" Gilbert looked up. "Where I'm from, they believe white hair and red eyes are a sign of the devil." He watched as Vladimir frowned.

"And what about your parents?"

"Vatti died when we were very young. Matti died in childbirth with Ludwig." Gilbert answered quietly, surprising everyone with the rare show of sadness from him. "When Ludwig was a year old, we were all alone."

"How old were you?" Arthur asked, horrified at the situation. At least he had the assistance of the church, even if they only wanted him dead.

"Three. I was able to do some cooking and cleaning. We had our house at least, but getting money to buy food was really hard." He grumbled, remembering. "I tried to till the field, but I couldn't do enough on my own. I sold the house and the field and bought a smaller house, and for a good number of years we had enough money to live off of, but eventually everything runs out." Gilbert stared ahead, his arms clenching over his stomach. "I went to try and find a job and... it didn't go well. I was able to gather up a few things and we left in the middle of the night." He didn't feel Ludwig needed to know the house was on fire when they left. They'd tried to kill them in the middle of the night because of nothing more than his eyes and hair color.

"You were always the best older brother. Sometimes things happen, ja? You kept me alive, and you managed to get us this far." Ludwig smiled, patting the other on the head. "I don't know if many of us could have done that."

"I probably couldn't." Vladimir spoke softly, looking away with an embarrassed wince. "I'm the only son of a prominent lord and a member of the City Council. I have my sister, but she's a year older than me. My mother and father are both active in the city. They're trying to set up a garden to help with stores for the winter." He shrugged.

"Your sister works in the castle, Da?" Piotr smiled and Vladimir looked up with a nod.

"She's a maid there. It's a bit of a step down, but at least she's safe." He sighed, a show of relief and the others frowned, the wording confusing them.

"She's safe?" Francis asked and Vladimir nodded.

"My father betrothed her to a man in the far east. His last wife was my sister's best friend's sister. He... beat her to death. I asked the king for help, and he gave her a prison sentence as a maid in the castle. It saved her life." He spoke softly. "I didn't know what to expect from him, he's the king, but somehow he's a lot different than I imagined." He let out a light chuckle.

"Well, she is pretty. It doesn't surprise me she got assistance." Sasha spoke over Vladimir's shoulder, startling the boy half to death. "Here, Arthur. Lukas gave me a new tea for you, so don't cringe at the flavor, alright?"

"It's not another aphrodisiac, is it?" He stared and Sasha laughed, but didn't reply, making Arthur more nervous.

"Does the doctor give you aphrodisiacs often?" Vladimir asked and Arthur sighed.

"Only once so far, but I think he just really likes messing with me." He mumbled as he sipped the tea and cringed. "Needs sugar."

"Hold on." Sasha chuckled as he ran to the table to grab him some, and Piotr looked down. Arthur had lost a little weight since he'd started on the treatments. It had only been a couple of days, so it was a bit faster than he would have liked. He watched as a sandwich was carefully brought between his lips and stared.

Piotr stared, seeing the way he chewed , the way his lips slightly puckered as he ate.

"Calm down, cowboy." Alfred laughed. "You look like you're ready to pounce!"

Piotr turned to him, seeing the eyes dead on himself and felt his cheeks flood with heat. "I- uh..."

"Arthur mentions aphrodisiacs and you get affected! Interesting!" Francis giggled, watching with a mirth that he always seemed to be filled with.

"Don't wanna hear this!" Sasha forced his smile as he put the sugar bowl down. "Lukas should have your test results in the morning. Go there before breakfast, alright?" Sasha spoke and Arthur nodded, an odd feeling of excitement coming over him.

"Yes, quite. Thank you." He spoke, a smile breaking across his face as he took a few spoonfuls of sugar to his cup before taking another sip. "Ah, much better." He smiled.