-Tonight we're going hard, just like the world is ours.-
We R Who We R; Kesha

-Hetalia-

The party was full of fun people. Gilbert grinned to himself as he weaved his way through the growing crowd in the living room, making his way to the kitchen. Matthew was on his tail, subtly clinging to the back of his shirt. Gilbert didn't blame him. The Canadian wasn't very good with crowds, and Francis's house was packed to the point of bursting.

They passed Alfred and Arthur, who were arguing lightly over whether or not they would go into the ballroom. Gilbert smirked, making a mental note to drag the quiet Canadian behind him into the mass of dancers later. Nothing said pick-me-up like dark rooms, loud music, and hot bodies.

They made it through the crowd eventually, breathing a sigh of relief as they entered the slightly less packed kitchen. Francis himself stood by the large kitchen island, where a great assortment of drinks was laid out, chatting with a certain stuffy Austrian. Gilbert grinned mischievously and made his way over to that side of the room, more or less dragging Matthew along with him.

"...crossed the-" Roderich cut off once he noticed Gilbert's presence. "Hello, Gilbert," he said tersely, using English. Gilbert grinned at him.

"Did you say hi to him for me?" he asked in German. Roderich's cheeks turned the faintest of pinks, but he otherwise held his composure.

"I think you could do that yourself," he said calmly, sticking to English. Gilbert snickered, taking a beer from the counter.

"It's not as much fun that way," he said simply, switching back and grinning at the curious look Francis was giving them both.

"Why don't you run along and go grind against someone in the ballroom?" Roderich replied. His violet gaze shifted beyond Gilbert for a moment, the hint of a smirk tugging at his lips as he switched to German long enough to deliver one quip. "I'm surprised you haven't taken Matthew in there yet." The use of his mother tongue emphasized the double meaning behind his sentence and Gilbert smirked in response.

"All in good time, Specs."

Out of the corner of his eye, Gilbert noticed a familiar tan figure. He turned to see if it was who he thought it was and found one Antonio Fernandez Carriedo staring back at him, a surprised grin on his face as he came closer. Francis stepped forward and spread his arms, putting one on each of their shoulders and pulling them both into a group hug. They pressed their heads together, laughing lightly and forgetting all about their respective companions for the moment.

"It's been so long since we've all been together like this," Francis sighed.

"Si, ever since ninth grade, no?" Antonio asked. The question brought up more memories than they wanted it to, though, so they silently agreed to pretend nothing had been said. Despite the four years they'd been kept apart, they could still read one another like a book.

"So this is what you meant. You knew he'd be here and you didn't fucking tell me?" Gilbert said.

"I wanted to surprise you," Francis replied. "Now that we're here," he added, pulling away just enough to break them out of the hug, "how have you been?" As the Spaniard answered the question, Gilbert spotted the shorter, frowning male standing behind his best friend. He looked very familiar.

Antonio noticed him staring at the other and smiled, turning to face the short brunet. "This is Lovino," he said, and Gilbert remembered then where he'd seen the teen before.

"You're Feliciano's older brother...right?" a soft voice mumbled his thoughts from behind. Gilbert looked back over his shoulder at the shy Canadian that was standing awkwardly nearby, clearly still uncomfortable with the amount of people around him.

"I'm going back, bastard," Lovino grumbled at Antonio, pulling their attention back to him. "I don't trust that damn potato eater with my little brother."

Gilbert huffed. "That 'damn potato eater' is my little bruder, so watch it," he warned. Lovino gave him a glare and the hint of a smirk.

"All the more reason not to trust him," he said. Gilbert mirrored his expression.

"You wanna start something?"

"Oh yeah, bring it on, Snow White."

Antonio chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck as he looked between them. Francis looked mildly amused from where he stood beside Roderich.

"Do you really have so little class that you'll be the guy that got into a fight at the party, Gilbert?" the Austrian mocked.

"This little shit's worth it," Gilbert answered, grinning dangerously. He was pretty sure he'd caught a glimmer of fear in the Italian's determined look, and if Lovino was anything like his younger brother, this fight would be one of the easiest Gilbert had ever been in.

"Please don't!" a quiet, desperate voice kept the brunet from replying as Matthew moved between them, holding out an arm as if he could hold back his Prussian friend. To be fair, he probably could. Gilbert raised his eyebrows all the same, trying not to laugh. Matthew had gone so far as to stand at his full height, rather than slouch like he usually did, making the few inches he had on Gilbert rather obvious.

"You gonna listen to blondie, you German pansy?" Lovino mocked, crossing his arms. He flinched when Matthew turned his attention on him, though, and Gilbert cackled, completely satisfied.

"I'm not ready to get kicked out," he shrugged, turning away from them. "Still gotta show everyone how awesome of a band we are, for one thing. I'll see you out on the floor, Tonio," he called with a wave.

"Si, and I can't wait to see you guys go on," Antonio called back.

"C'mon, Birdie, let's get you out on that dance floor," Gilbert grinned as he began walking out of the kitchen. Matthew was left with no other choice but to hurry after him, hating being alone in a crowd. Gilbert snickered as the Canadian gripped the back of his shirt, slouching again as the Prussian led the way through the mass of people and towards the room of pulsing music and moving bodies.

Matthew took one look inside the ballroom and turned a very amusing shade of pink. "I can't go in there," he said.

"Sure you can," Gilbert said, leaving no room for argument as he grabbed the blond by the wrist and dragged him inside.

The music was even louder inside the room, to the point that even shouts were difficult to make out over the pulsing beats. Gilbert kept them at the edge of the crowd with the other dancers who weren't comfortable with being surrounded on every side imaginable. He wanted to cheer Matthew up after the week he'd had, not terrify or traumatize him.

Matthew fidgeted awkwardly in front of him once the albino had finally let go of his wrist. The blond bit his lip and glanced around them, making Gilbert roll his eyes.

"Forget about them, Birdie," he shouted over the pulsing beat. Matthew met his eyes, but his gaze kept darting around the room. Gilbert snorted. "Seriously, just you and me," he said. Matthew gnawed his lip a little more before nodding hesitantly, keeping his violet eyes focused on the albino.

Gilbert took a moment to focus on the beat before he began moving, free and flowing. He kept his movements simple for the blond's sake, knowing that this was the Canadian's kind of thing, if he'd just let himself go. He'd noticed that Matthew's wounds didn't seem to bother him when he was dancing; whether it was because he ignored the pain to grasp onto the freedom the movements gave him, or if by losing himself in the music he forgot all about the sting of the dog attack, Gilbert couldn't say. All he knew was that he had to show Matthew how to let go and have a good time. That, and the blond was good at it.

Matthew watched him but continued to fidget, looking lost. Gilbert sighed and stepped closer to him, grasping his wrists. "Here, I'll help you," he offered in a shout. Matthew nodded, surrendering his limbs to the albino. Gilbert grinned and began moving again, half dancing with Matthew, half dragging him around. Matthew hurried to keep up mainly so he would stop tripping over himself, and soon Gilbert saw his worried frown become the exhilarated grin of someone who'd finally found something they didn't even know they had been searching for. Less than a minute after Gilbert had begun leading, they were no longer a student and his teacher, but two dancers. Eventually the albino released his friend's wrists, but he didn't step out of Matthew's personal space. The blond didn't complain.

The beats of the songs began to change as the night went on, and soon Gilbert was finding it nearly impossible to resist the call of the crowd. Matthew may not have been good in big groups, but the heat of being surrounded by so many bodies thrilled the albino.

He could tell from the way Matthew looked at him as they danced that he knew he wanted something, so Gilbert decided to use the blond's ability to read people to his advantage and changed his steps a bit. He fell even further in sync with Matthew, taking a step back for the blond's every step forward. As soon as he was sure Matthew was watching him, lining up with him, he started to lead them closer to the crowd. The shy teen gave him a curious look but let him lead them in, still keeping perfect beat. With every song he'd become a little less self-conscious, a little more free, and as Gilbert focused on leading them and therefore focused more on Matthew than on his own dancing, the albino was reminded of just how much the blond transformed when under the influence of fast music.

Every part of Matthew moved to the beat, and his every motion flowed seamlessly into the next. As they edged closer to the thick of the crowd, Gilbert knew he wasn't the only one intoxicated with the blond. Other dancers edged closer and closer, and the Prussian smirked knowing Matthew was dancing with him. The people surrounding them on all sides now meant he had to dance even closer to the other, so close they were almost touching. And he kept leading Matthew in deeper.

Matthew's face was rather red by the time Gilbert was satisfied with their location, and the albino couldn't tell if it was because of all the heat and movement, or if it was due to the fact that they were practically dancing on top of one another. And still the blond continued to dance just as rhythmically and completely as he had on the outskirts of the crowd. Gilbert was tempted, not for the first time, to see how far he could push him. There was something about Matthew that made him just too much fun to mess with, and the albino was never one to hold back. So when the next song started, he moved even closer.

Matthew flushed and Gilbert smirked, but neither of them moved away. A few more dancers came in closer and made it impossible to back out if they'd wanted to. And still Matthew moved as if he was entirely comfortable with this, despite the furious blush on his face and the slightly unsure look lingering in his eyes. Their movements were fast as they brushed continuously against one another, the heat almost over powering them, and finally Gilbert began to feel the satisfaction he craved from the crowd.

The music came to a stop not long after, stilling the dancers' bodies and reminding them all of just how deaf the music could have made them as their ears rang faintly.

"Guess it's time, then." Gilbert grinned at the bright red Matthew. Without the music, he looked completely lost again, and Gilbert couldn't help but laugh his ass off, which only made Matthew flush even brighter while they moved with the crowd out of the ballroom and over to Arthur.

"Please don't ever make me do that again," Matthew said. Gilbert only laughed harder.

-H-

After they helped with the instruments once the performance was over, Gilbert led Matthew back into the ballroom, though it took a lot of coaxing and a promise on the albino's part not to drag them into the center again. Gilbert still managed to dance them in further than the blond had originally intended to go, though, and that much was enough to satisfy him.

They left the dance floor when Matthew confessed he was becoming a bit tired out, and Gilbert had to give his stamina some credit. He'd never have pinned the blond as the type to go almost all night on anything but homework, and as his thoughts seemed to get progressively more lewd the longer the night wore on, Gilbert found himself wondering just what else his shy companion could go all night at.

It didn't mean anything, thinking of Matthew in the bedroom. Few of his acquaintances were spared from his less than innocent fantasies. Still, Gilbert couldn't resist eyeing the Canadian ass in front of him that led the way to the kitchen, shimmying its way through the crowd, the beat and high of the music not quiet worn off yet.

"...where Alfred went," Matthew was saying softly to him when Gilbert realized he was at risk of being caught staring. He blinked and improvised with a shrug as he slowly registered the question that was asked of him. He knew better than to let Matthew know he hadn't been paying attention. The blond would take it to mean he was being overlooked again, and then he'd pretend he didn't mind when obviously it stung. Gilbert was no stranger to hiding pain, and he wondered if he could tell when Matthew hid something because of that, or if it was that obvious to everyone. Either way, the last thing he wanted was to hurt his friend's feelings. He wasn't a total ass.

"He better have not taken the truck," Matthew said. Gilbert put an arm around the Canadian's shoulder and steered him towards the table where the drinks were laid out.

"I'm sure he did," he said. Matthew sighed and Gilbert snorted. "Here, you said you were thirsty," he said, pulling a pair of beers forward. He grinned at the labels and made a mental note to thank Francis later for getting German drinks.

"We're underage!" Matthew protested. Gilbert laughed and forced the bottle into the blond's hands anyway.

"We're teenagers, Birdie. And I'm legally an adult, why can't I make my own choices?"

"I'm only sixteen," Matthew said. Gilbert pointedly opened his drink and took a swig before smirking at Matthew.

"There's a first time for everything," he said. Matthew frowned a bit and Gilbert shrugged, taking another swig. His eyes were drawn to Matthew's lower lip as the blond pulled it between his teeth and looked down at the bottle. Gilbert downed more than half of what was left of his own drink and glanced around the room, knowing that drinking while he was already in this mind set was probably a bad idea, but that was what made it so irresistible.

-H-

Eventually he coaxed Matthew into drinking with him, and as was expected, the blond was a lightweight. By the time Ludwig realized Gilbert had gotten into the kitchen, the Canadian was pink in the face and the albino, who had drunk twice as much as him, was cackling at his little hiccups.

"It's time to go," Ludwig said sternly. Gilbert found that rather amusing and snickered, which threw Matthew into a giggle fit. Ludwig looked over at him and Gilbert tossed his arm over the giggling teen's shoulders just in case. He wasn't sure what exactly he was worried about, but just in case seemed like a good reason.

"Are you going to come or not?" Ludwig sighed. Gilbert snorted and leaned close to Matthew's ear.

"He said 'come,'" he snickered, forgetting to whisper. Matthew blushed a little redder and giggled behind his hand, mumbling out giggly apologies to Ludwig every few seconds. Ludwig didn't seem to get the joke, which made it that much funnier in Gilbert's opinion.

Ludwig walked behind them and put a hand on each of their shoulders. "Let's go, then," he said, half guiding, half pushing them towards the door. Gilbert realized suddenly that they were leaving and tried to protest.

"Hey, I'm older then you, you can't tell me what to do!"

"I don't want to have to apologize to the numerous people you'll grope if I let you stay any longer," Ludwig said as he dragged them through the living room. Matthew started to giggle uncontrollably again. Gilbert, on the other hand, became inspired. Ludwig slapped his hand away from Matthew's thigh.

The night air was chilly as they were brought out towards the car. Ludwig pulled open the back door without a word and stood aside for them to get in. Gilbert stood back as well, preparing to argue some more, but he was distracted by Matthew as the blond leaned into the car and crawled across the seats to sit on the other side, giving Gilbert a great view of his ass. Gilbert decided he rather liked Matthew and his graceful hips. He was definitely curious to see how those hips would sway beneath him if he pinned their owner to his bed, he thought as he followed the blond into the car.

A high voice offering them a cheerful greeting told him Feliciano was in the passenger seat, and Gilbert was distracted, wondering if the Italian's voice would go even higher whilst in the throes of ecstasy. Man, he could go for a nice fuck. As though he could guess his brother's thoughts, Ludwig shot him a glare from the driver's seat before starting the car.

"Get buckled," he said. Gilbert ignored him. He was too busy watching Matthew's nimble fingers work on his own buckle. The remaining sober part of his brain, which was rather small and was slowly being drowned out by the rest of his mind, wondered how the Canadian's hands weren't fumbling given his state. The drunken rest of his brain wondered how nice those fingers would feel on his flesh.

The car glided down the road easily enough, and Gilbert enjoyed the free feeling not wearing a seatbelt gave him. He glanced out Matthew's window, but the moving scenery made his head spin a bit too much for his liking, so he took to watching the blond giggle at nothing instead. Matthew was far more interesting anyway.

"Oh wow, Ludwig, it's almost two in the morning!" Feliciano announced. He made it sound like the fact that there were hours beyond midnight was an amazing new discovery. "It's been a really long time since we've all stayed out this late, hasn't it?"

"Ja, well that's because Gilbert is dangerous the longer he stays up after sunset," Ludwig sighed.

At the same time, Gilbert said, "Ja, we should do this more often." He then proceeded to snicker at both the concept of staying out late and the exhaustion he heard in Ludwig's voice. Matthew giggled again, his slender hands making a poor attempt in hiding his delicate lips and keeping the sounds from escaping. Gilbert marveled again at the fact that those hands were so steady despite the Canadian's tipsiness. A question of how soft those partially hidden lips were wormed its way into his head.

Gilbert's curiosity overpowered his rational thinking skills, shoving the remaining sober piece of his mind into a rusty cage it was all too familiar with, and he crawled across the seat to straddle Matthew, smirking down at the surprised expression that crossed the blond's features. Matthew tried and failed to hold back more giggles, managing to mumble something about a curfew as Gilbert took his wrists and pulled his steady fingers away from his lips. Matthew's slightly hazy gaze locked with his own as the car turned a corner.

"Gilbert, get off of him, we're almost at his house," Ludwig said. Gilbert ignored him, because even in this state he could see the longing look in the violet eyes locked on his, and it only made him smirk further.

He couldn't have resisted the kiss even if he were sober.

A/N: I'm so very sorry this took so long! Thank you very much to those who've stuck around, and I'm happy to be able to bring this chapter to you. Thank you very much for all your support and your patience. Another thank you to Hornet394 for your work editing this story, and to ilybakura for helping me get back on track.

I hope you enjoyed another PruCan chapter. These two are definitely the slow burn pair of this fic.

Translations for this chapter:
Si: Spanish; yes
Bruder: German; brother
Ja: German; Yes (used by Gilbert to mean 'yeah')

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this story.

~VV