[AU] He'd been extremely careless back then. Upon being too certain and full of himself, he allowed himself to fall into the enemy's hands.
And now he was being locked up like an animal, after being dragged and chained in isolation. They were smart to chain his arms above him so
he couldn't try to commit seppuku. And the leather band in his mouth. He down on it harshly. Damn. Why were they keeping him alive?
They had made a new prisoner, one that hhe hadn't had the pleasure talking to yet. Allegedly, he was from Japan, the new old island behind
China, where the most beautiful pieces of art came from. He had seen some of the porcelain over at Saxony's, who had 'prettied' them up a
bit and had given him a cup set. It was made of flawless white china, but it had a solid golden handle that he thought looked kind of out of
place, so he thought that his prisoner would be insulted to see it like that. He adjusted his hat and checked the coffee in the cup before
he nodded to the guard to open the prison cell. His pristine boots clicked on the stone ground as he placed himself in front of the prisoner
and sipped on his coffee.
When the door swung open, Kiku's eyes snapped open and he lifted his face to fasten a cold glare at the first person who had entered the
room. A man of impressive built had stepped into the room, carrying with him an air of absolute authority as well as the aroma of freshly
brewed coffee. In the dimly lit room, Kiku caught the glimmer of a familiar delicate white china in his large hand, its beauty tarnished by
that ghastly golden *limb* which had been attached to it. Kiku bit on the leather harshly, his hands curling into balls of fists above him.
set the cup down on the saucer that he had been carrying with him - obviously another thing added by the Saxons - and placed it away. "Good
day," he greeted the other. "My name is Ludwig, nice to meet you... I must admit, I'm a little excited, this is the first time I am talking
to a Nipponjin... But I assure you I have heard a lot about your race."
(( ahahaha, taking this back in time when he was young and... well, not innocent, but oblivious. And less political correct. ))
(( >w<b ))
eyed the chinaware for a moment before he glanced up to meet the steely gaze of this man..'Rudduwigu' or so he had called himself. Seeing
how he was unable to respond back (at least verbally), he simply stared at him in mutual interest. This was his first time meeting a
gaijin after all.
studies him a little. "Ahaha, my bad. Let's free you of this," he said and undid the leather band that prohibited the other from talking.
"That should be better."
spits out the bitter aftertaste in his mouth, a little relieved now that he could breathe freely. He tried to ease the flexed muscle in his
jaw and after a few stretches he was pleased to find it still functioning well. It wasn't long before he noticed that the gaijin standing
before him was staring at him with such an intent look upon his face. And it unnerved him. "What is it that you wish to acquire from me?" he
snapped, his voice was a little raspy from being bound but that didn't deter him from projecting the firmness in his tone.
purses his lips and shrugs his shoulders a little. "I don't know... why don't you tell me a little bit about your home country?"
His eyebrows furrowed together in bewilderment and he scowled to hide the look of surprise which almost crossed his face. "And what purpose
does such a request as this serve to you, *gaijin*?"
shrugs slightly as he picks up the cup of coffee again. "I'm curious."
Curious? Kiku wasn't sure what to make of this answer, let alone respond to it. He deepened his scowl when the man drinks from the
disfigured cup.
having noticed that look, he raises the cup and kneels down then to show it to the other. "Do you recognize this cup? It's been brought here
last century, and one of my predecessors got it from his ancestor... It once was a presence from his king."
averts his gaze, refusing to look at the cup as it pained and disgusted him greatly. "Please do not show me such a marred object, *gaijin*."
"oh?" he asks, looking at the cup as if he had seen it for the first time in his life. "Marred?"
His clenched fists throbbed above him as they shook in repressed anger. "Yes, marred."
blinks. "What about it is marred?"
"That *arm*," he spat out viciously as he glared down at the German. "Have you come here to expect me to revel on such an unsightly thing?"
blinks, turning it to look at the arm, thinking that it does look indeed a little off. "Unsightly? This has been admired for generations."
"To blindly sew the wing of a bat to the body of an eagle is nothing to be admire. If there you have no official business with me *gaijin*,
then I shall kindly ask you to leave," he stated in a clipped tone.
snorts, then smirks. "Well, you are still my prisoner, so you'd better answer my questions, it would be better for you."
narrows his eyes, scowling at the confident smirk which had been cast his way. "I would rather die than betray my country," he hissed.
"Oh, I'm not asking you to betray your country. I'm just a little curious about the ways of your race. For example I already learnt that
this is not an appropriate treatment of this china. I will ask somebody to remove the arm as soon as possible to unravel the true beauty of
this piece," he explained, clapping his hands to have the guard appear and hands him the cup. "Get the arm removed as soon as possible."
(( brb period cramps ;A; /wanders off to find painkillers ))
[.........QAQ... give blanket and hot water to Kiku]
(( *offers feminax, paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin ))
(( cannot find any in the flat! what is this! D; will hold out for now since the wave has passed ))
(( D:!! BLASPHEMY! ))
(( ;n; ))
The ways of his race..? Kiku looked confused as he watched in bewilderment as Ludwig passed the cup to the guard who carried it out of the
room to get the 'arm' removed. He pinned the man with a questioning look. He wasn't sure what to ask, let alone what to expect from him.
raises his eyebrows questioningly, inviting the other to ask the question on his mind.
((sorry! just got back from the uni store to grab some painkillers!))
eyed him warily as he flexed his fingers a little to get some blood pumping through his increasingly numb arms. "..what is it that you want
to know?" he finally asked, albeit hesitantly as he thought that perhaps the German will leave once he has answered whatever questions the
strange man had in mind.
(( no problem, I went to ikea myself. ^^; ))
"I...don't know. Think of me as a visitor. What would you want to show me first, so I will be impressed by your country," he offered.
A visitor..? Kiku shifted his arms a little. Well that was an odd question. What sort of things would interest a *gaijin* anyway? Kiku
thought for a moment and after a while he finally spoke. "*Sakura*."
"Sakuhra?" he repeated, rolling the foreign word with the completely wrong emphasis. "What is this?"
"*Sakura*," he nods. "It means 'cherry blossoms'. In Nippon, sakura viewing...is beautiful during spring."
nods slowly. "We have cherry blossoms, too. But we don'T have time to sit down and watch them."
That was odd and before he could stop himself, a question blurted out of his mouth. "Why not?"
shrugs. "There's too much to do every day. Taking care of the house, taking care of your job, taking care of everything..."
His eyebrows furrowed together a little as he grimaced in discomfort at the strain in his arms. "Do you not have a day to spare in a year
for the sakura viewing?"
shakes his head. "Why? It happens every year, it's nothing special, so we usually do not sit down and watch the cherries blossom... we would
rather eat them in autumn, before the birds got them."
How odd. Kiku never realised how vastly different countries could be even if they both had the same plants. "It is something we look forward
to. It gives us purpose. A symbol of life" He simply left it at that. He wasn't sure how to convey such importance of the flower to a
foreigner.
"Interesting... how can a small white flower be like that?" he asked, more rhethorically than actually expecting a real answer.
A small silence fell between them and Kiku wondered if he should bring forth a question as well. It wasn't in his nature to be pry into
matters which did not concern him after all. At a loss at what to do, he simply watched the man.
(( omit the 'to be' ))
(( I kind of hoped he'd prod into the "why are they white? They're pink!" bit. ))
"So, you have a day you take off and just... watch the Sakuura?"
(( I noticed that but the white ones also exist in Japan so I wasn't sure if I should point it out. Sorry if you were expecting it! >_<;; ))
"It depends on duration of when the sakura blooms but yes, we do try to take a day off to appreciate the beauty of the flowers.." There was
a ghost of a wistful smile upon his face as he thought back to his fond memories of *hanami*. Yes, it was truly a magnificent sight.
(( ^^;; I haven't seen many white Cherry blossoms in Japan. PLum blossoms, yes, but really... I don't think any Japanese would think that))
(( there are white cherry blossoms. ))
nods. "There are some regions of my country where they celebrate the blossoming of... apple trees. With lots of wine."
(( XD;; /fails ))
"Apples?" He couldn't help but perk up slight interest. "So..apples blossoms are also your source of *ki*?"
(( I wouldn't say they don't *exist*. ^^; ))
"Apples yes. They have a nice white blossom at the end of may... *ki*? What is that?"
frowns in thought as he rakes his tired mind for the right word. "*Ki* is..power? No, spirit. ..Apple blossoms are your source of spirit
energy?"
starts laughing, amused by the thought of that. "No, I wouldn't call it that. It's much rather the wine than the apple blossoms."
deepens his frown, a little confused with why the German was laughing at him. Had he said something strange..? "Then what is your source of
*ki*?" he couldn't help but ask.
"We... well, we don't have that. If we need to 'recharge', we sit down with our family, or a good book and... have some alone-time."
Well that made some sense but "What about during war?" he found himself asking again, much to his own surprise. "What is this 'alone-time'?"
"During war... well, that's the time you have to yourself when you're on watch," he explains. "Alone-time is when you're on your own."
"I see.." he nods. He winces a little when he shifts, one hand going completely numb for a brief moment and he tries to flex his fingers a
little, grimacing when they tingle much to his displeasure.
"That must be the same for you," he asked, completely ignoring the discomfort of the other.
"It's to be expected of a soldier," he simply said. "We are united by the *sakura* and we disperse like the *sakura*."
blinks, that revelations sinking in slowly. "Disperse like... Hm... I never looked at it like this."
There was a slight quirk in his mouth. "Does it puzzle you?"
"A bit," he admits. "But I will not be a problem."
snorts softly at this. He was a little disturbed with how increasingly relaxed he was becoming within the presence of this man.
(( ...it will not be a problem. ))
(( damn typo ))
"What else... is there to see. Do you have a wife who is waiting for you at home? Children maybe?" he asked.
falls silent for a moment. "..I had a mother. *Nippon* waits for me now." There is a dull ache in his hardened heart at this but his face
betrays nothing.
nods solemnly. "I see."
"And you?"
looks pointedly at Ludwig. "And you?"
((sorry stupid phone caused my to press enter >-> ))
shakes his head. "My brother is my only family. He's on the other side of the front though, leading his regiment for our forces."
The reality of war echoes throughout the room and Kiku averts his gaze. There were a lot of things which found himself wanting to ask the
German, such as literature and the arts..but they were enemies. What use was it to learn about each other when they were meant to kill one
another? "Your superiors..will they not be expecting you soon?"
shrugs it off. "I'm the most superior here, my superior is a few km up North and the his superior is in Berlin. It's my duty to interrogate
you, because you're so special."
wonders if the German knew his position. He narrows his eyes. "So you have decided to interrogate me. I assure you that you will get nothing
from me."
"Well, I *have* to interrogate you, but I'd rather chat with you. If we become friends, I may make your stay here much nicer for you," he
offers.
stares at him. "...you are a strange man." Really, what man would make his enemy a friend? Was not such an act going against his country?
chuckles. "I've been told that a few times, but I am where I am, so it must have been a good path that I took."
For the first time, a small smile surfaces on his lips. "Perhaps."
smiles back as he salutes slightly with his hand on his hat. "I'll be leaving you for today...I'll have some food prepared for you," he says
as he gets up and stretches slightly. "I'll be back tomorrow to talk to you. It was nice to meet you..." he started, hoping that the other
would provide him with a name.
looks at him, puzzled, when he notices that the German had paused and was now looking at him expectantly. "..what is it?"
"Your name. I haven't asked for it yet," he elaborates.
stares at him a little incredulously for a moment but then he recalled that the man had presented his name at the start of their odd
exchange and he hesitates for a moment. "Kiku." A first name is safer than a family name.
nods. "Kiku. It was nice to meet you. I will have somebody prepare some food for you."
slowly nods in return. "..thank you.." he struggles to form the sound in his mouth, "R-Ruuddu..ruudduwiggu..?" Was that even right?
chuckles softly. "It's 'Ludwig'. Lud-wigg. Without any other vocals," he explains.
frowns in stubbornness and he watched the way Ludwig's shapes his lips to produce that fluid sound. "Rudduwig..gu." He clicks his tongue
in annoyance at vast difference of their pronunciation.
chuckles and sits down again, even though Kiku was getting better at this. "Lud-wig."
furrows his eyebrows in concentration and he tries his best to engrave the sound in his mind. "Ruudu-wiggu."
sighs softly, very patient, but wonders whether he should just let it be. "No, not Rud, it's an L... Ludwig."
blinks at him, looking surprised with this new sound. "Erru?" he parroted. Was it this sound which was hindering him? He began to mull over
this, raking his mind through the Japanese syllabary for a *kana* which matched this. After a while, he shook his head. "We do not have this
sound, Ruuduwiggu."
"Really?" he asked. "Well, it's an essential letter in our languages, maybe I can teach you about it tomorrow, if you want?"
was beginning to think this man was actually more eccentric than he had initially thought. "..I..I don't think that is really necessary,
Ruuduwiggu.."
knows he will wince after a week hearing this name. "Hm, well, think about it," he said and got up again. "A demain."
(( and yes, Germans liked to throw in random french ))
(( lol xD ))
"Un.." He simply watched the German leave the room, mixed feelings were left in his wake for the Japanese to muse on. "Ruuduwiggu, huh.."
The door slammed shut and Kiku was left in the dark. It was then did he realised how terribly quiet his cell was.
(( Now, continue here or in another plurk`? ))
(( We'll just continue here - still a lot of space xD ))
(( hoi~~ ))
Returns the following day with the same cup as before, but without the arm. He also carries a second cup and a can with coffee. "Good day,"
he greets him again, sitting down.
lifts his head and blearily looks at Ludwig, the aroma of coffee wafting throughout the small room, waking him up a little. "..Good day," he
nods in acknowledgement and he notices that there were two cups instead of one. Oh? "It's gone.." he murmured to himself.
nods. "It is. But there's only one of them, so one of us will have to do with this one," he nods and nods to a Meißener porcelain cup.
is at a loss. He really didn't expect the German to actually remove the arm. Oddly, he felt a little touched by this but he didn't think it
was wise to comment on it. Instead he decides to place his attention on the cups, intrigued with the hand-painted design upon the new one.
(( ..it is hand-painted right? Not the plain one? 8D;; ))
(( *nod* PRobably a floral pattern ))
unlocks one of the other's hand so that he can move it, but not both, because that would be too reckless. "There you go."
(( phew~ nice, very manly 
))
))
blinks, astonished by the German as he flexes his fingers and wrist. "Rudduwiggu-san.." he pins him a questioning look. "..you do realise
that you have just given me an opportunity to hurt you, don't you?"
(( Pfffffft. Or blue and white ))
nods with a small smile. "I do. But a little trust is always good, right? Coffee?"
(( Aww, keep the flowers. It suits him. XD ))
eyes the drink. *Kohi*...he's heard of the drink, touched the roasted beans before but he's never had the chance to taste it. It smelt nice
though. Would it taste pleasant..? "..it would be a waste to leave it cold," he answers hesitantly. "Thank you."
(( blue and white would be more for holland, tbh ))
(( Precisely. You read my mind. =w=b ))
nods and fills both cups with the black liquid. "Be careful with the ground, it tastes a little bit like sand," he warns as he hands him the
Japanese cup.
finds a little to difficult to handle to cup with one hand, seeing how he is used to customarily handling with two but he tries his best and
brings the cup closer to him. He peers at the black liquid, taking in the rich earthy aroma for moment before he raises to his lips to sip
it. His eyes widened and he coughs a little, startled by how intensely bitter it was.
chuckles a little. "Careful... have you ever had coffee before?"
grimaces at the aftertaste his mouth and he shakes his head vigorously. "..'s strong."
"Oh, really? Well, people like to drink it like this here a lot. In the morning, for tea time - we call it coffee time - to stay awake..."
Well, Kiku could definitely see why. The taste literally jolts you awake! Bracing himself, he takes another sip of the coffee, only to
grimace once more. "Do you always drink *kohi*, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"Most of the time, yes," he admitted, sipping on his own cup without pulling so much a face.
gives him a small wry smile over the rim of his cup. "I applaud you for having such a strong tongue. Japanese green tea is bitter, but not
as robust as this."
chuckles. "You'll learn how to drink this stuff without tasting too much of it," he admits, raising his cup in a toast.
notices this and in his amusement, he also raises his cup to clink it against Ludwig's. "*Kanpai*," he quietly said.
"Kambai?" he asks, curiously.
"*Kanpai*. It's like.." He tries to find a suitable word for it but upon finding none, he clinks their cups together once more. "This."
Seeing the puzzled look on his face, Kiku clinks their cups again. "We say *kanpai* and then we drink. It's to wish each other good health."
"Oh, like our 'Prosit'!" he exclaims, raising his cup again with a small smile. "Seems like we are not that different after all."
muses a little over this new word. "Puro..shittu..?"
blinks, then laughs softly upon the other'r pronounciation. "No, not 'shit', 'sit', like, Italian for 'yes', 'si
'."
frowns and he tries his best to parrot this sound. "Shi."
"Si," he makes and corrects.
He tries to mimic this sound, only to fail once more. He shakes his head. "Forgive me Ruuduwiggu-san. But we also do not have this sound."
He thinks hard to refer to the kana that exist in the Japanese syllabary. "Just 'shi'."
"But you can say 'sa', right?" he says, having rad a bit on the Japanese language.
nods in affirmation. "Yes, we have 'sa', but not a 'shi'..."
"But it's the same sound... Try to say si after sa," he suggests.
(( oh god it's like a real German talking to a real Japanese - *wait*. /ironic ))
"Sa..shi..?" Kiku was starting to feel a little frustrated with his incapability to produce these new sounds. It was like that 'erru' Ludwig
had introduced to him the day before. "Sa, sa..*shi*!" Damn.
is intruiged and fascinated by the other's inability to pronounce these rather simple sounds. "Sa, si..."
sighed a little and he looked - really, really looked - at how Ludwig shaped his lips to make that one simple syllable. "*Shi*!" he tried
once more, the exasperation was clear in his voice.
"try... try with your tongue more at the front of your mouth... not so much at the back," he explained, making some exasperated movements to
demonstrate what he meant.
stretched his lips into a awkward line, gritting his teeth and pushing his tongue a little to front to make the sound. "Shi.." It managed to
muffle out the 'h' a little..but it was still a 'shi' unfortunately. He shakes his head. "I apologise for producing such malformed sounds."
"It's getting better. With a bit of practice you will be able to say these sounds easily," he tried to encourage that other, sipping on his
coffee.
merely hums. He wondered why he was even going along with this strange 'language class'. Following Ludwig, he also sipped his coffee and
finished the cup, only to grimace at the *horrid* taste at the end. He hunched his shoulders. The taste became worse!?
chuckles at the other's antics. "That bad, huh?"
'It's absolutely disguting!' is what he wanted to say honestly but he was polite and there was a possibility that *kohi* could be one of
Ludwig's favourite drinks so he simply gave a small smile. "Well, it's..tolerable," he stated diplomatically.
nods back. "That's good... Now, back to our topic from yesterday... Are there Sakuuura trees everywhere in Nippon?"
was surprised and impressed that Ludwig actually remembered the Japanese word for the flowers. "Yes, almost the whole of Nippon has sakura.
So it's convenient for everyone to view them."
"...And what do you do when they are not in bloom?" he asks, curiously even though he felt a little stupid.
shrugs as his fingers absentmindedly stroked the side of the cup. "We simply carry on with our daily activities, as always."
"No breaks?" he asked, sounding impressed. "No weekends?"
"We do have days off and annual holidays but we work long hours during the week.." Kiku murmured. To be honest he wasn't too sure, seeing
how he went to military school and chose the path of a soldier rather than a white collared worker.
snorts. "Much the same as we do. Well, at least that's what everybody thinks of Prussians, discipline, honor and steadiness."
(( excuse me, I'm failing at some vocabulary at the moment. ))
(( don't worry about it~ ^^ ))
(( it annoys me. *sob* ))
(( /pats ^^;; ))
muses over this and is a little confused. "Do you not?"
"They also know how to enjoy a beer at night," he confesses and chuckles. "My brother is the role-model Prussian. But you've never seen
somebody as full of himself as he is."
smiles a little when he notices the glint of fondness in the man's exotic blue eyes. "He sounds like an interesting man."
"He told me a lot about the time when he was in Nippon and Yeddo," he explained.
perks up in interest at this. "He's been to Nippon? Ah, on what business, may I ask?"
frowns as he tries to remember. "Business... He was there at Yokohama to... help with the trade agreements back then."
"Eh~" he hums in amazement. "You have an admirable brother, Ruuduwiggu-san. He must have possessed such diligence to study our language."
chuckles. "I... wouldn't say it like that," he explained. "And that's not how he explained it to me."
"Eh? Did I assume wrongly?" Kiku stopped stroking the side of his cup and peered down at the German, curious.
"They had interpreters, and... well, the Nippondschin did everything to prolong the negotiations, while they enjoyed the wine they had
brought with them," he explained, chuckling softly.
"Is..is that so.." he smiles a little sheepishly, his lips curling up a notch when he catches the exotic flavour of Ludwig's pronunciation.
"Apparently," he chuckled, sipping again. "They had taken a great liking on everything that the Prussians brought with them to Nippon."
"I suppose that is one of our faults. We like new and unusual things," he said with a wry smile and he extends his hand to pass his cup back
to Ludwig. "Thank you for allowing me to taste your *kohi*, in spite of the fact that there really was no need to."
"Do you want more?" he asked, taking the cup carefully.
"Perhaps another time," he declined politely, which in his words meant 'No'. After he had said that, he paused for a moment to rethink on
the words he had just said. Did he just say 'another time'..? Kiku was surprised with himself. He had just unintentionally made a promise
to meet and talk with Ludwig - the enemy - in the near future. How incredible.
smiled. "Is there something more to your liking?"
blinked, surprised by the question. "Eh?"
"To drink," he asked. "I can't bring you wine though," Ludwig laughed slightly.
To drink..? Kiku was starting to feel even more confused with this man's friendliness towards him. Why was going to such lengths..? He
frowned a little. "Ruuduwiggu-san, really, there is no need to.."
"Oh, but I insist! Maybe some tea would be more of your liking," he offers.
The sincerity in the German's voice made it difficult for him to decline and he sighs a little. "Perhaps..tea would be nice," he finally
said and he looks at him for a moment. "You aren't getting into trouble for this, are you?"
shakes his head. "No, I'm in charge here, I told you," he smiles. "And an ally is always better than an enemy."
"An ally, huh.." Kiku falls silent for moment. "If..we were allies, why won't you stop fighting and just give us Kiauchau..?"
raises his hands in defense. "I can't do much about it, it's actually still in China's hands."
stares at the ground, furrowing his eyebrows in thought. "Hn." He figured that although they were on supposed friendly terms right now, it
was better to not push it. So he left it at that, feeling a little awkward since he was standing with one hand still chained above him.
sighs. "I'm sorry, I can't help you with this."
"Ah, please do not worry too much about it, Ruuduwiggu-san," he said as he gave the German a wry smile. "Please forgive me for saying such
odd things."
shakes his head. "No, it's my fault for forgetting that we are not having a chat among friends, but that there's still a war going on out
there... which brought you here."
Yes, in this cell with you. Kiku wondered what the situation would have been like if he had been captured by someone else. Would they be as
friendly as Ludwig? Probably not. Strangely, Kiku actually felt a little relieved that he had been captured in this time..somehow. He
wasn't sure why, but he just was. He watched Ludwig, just as Ludwig watched him.
notices a small change in the Japanese' eyes, and smiles gently. "Well. It's time for me to leave again. Again, it has been nice talking to
you, I will get you something good to eat again for the night. I'll meet you again tomorrow."
"Yes.." he nods and he realises how strangely heavy that one word was. "...thank you, Ruuduwiggu-san. Um.." He lifts his unchained hand a
little awkward and waits for the other to lock him up once more.
nods and gets up to put the shackle back in place. "I promise... this will change soon," he mumbled as he had to get up close.
stares up at him and for the first time, he realises how young Ludwig actually was in spite of his tall built. They were probably more or
less the same age. "Change..?"
nods. "Those shackles. It's dishonorable for both you and us," he explains, once he is finished.
shifts a little to adjust the chain and he leaned on his other leg to ease the strain in his left arm. "Dishonourable..?" What a strange
thing to say. "Then how will you treat a prisoner of war in a mutually honourable way?"
chuckles. "Actually provide him with a *bed*." He was finished and stepped away again.
blinks and when it sinks in, he couldn't help laugh softly at this. But of course, who wouldn't like to lie on a bed?
smiles back. "Au revoir," he nodded and left.
"*Ja*..*mata ne*.." he murmured with a small smile as nods in return as Ludwig makes his way out of the cell, the door closing behind him.
sighs as he leaves, marching back to his office, preparing the necessary papers to move the prisoner to a better cell.
was left in darkness once again. Although this time, there were two empty cups left on the floor to accompany him.
(( I
will go on tomorrow, I'm a little tired today. ))
((alright~ have a good rest~ <3 ))
(( thanks~ ))
The following day, Kiku was escorted to a cell with a simple bed, but without a mattress. Due to the resistance he had put up when he was
captured, the guards made extra sure that the shackles on his feet were secured, and handled him none-to-gently, despite Ludwig's orders.
Still, it took Ludwig about a week to return to his special prisoner, as there had been changes in his superior's tactics that he had to
personally make sure that they were carried out acocordingly. The next time he found the other, he had a set of Japanese cups and plates
each a slice of blackforest cake on them.
Although he hadn't appreciated the rough treatments he had been getting from the guards, Kiku was nevertheless grateful for the transfer.
The cell was a little smaller than the room he initially been confined in but it was comfortable and he allowed to walk around it freely,
well as much as the shackles around his ankles allowed him. At least he didn't have to suffer any more shoulder and back pains from being
chained overhead. He sat on his bed, eying the chains on his feet and around his wrists. He hadn't seen Ludwig since the last time they
talked and truthfully, it worried him a little. He wondered if the German had gotten into trouble because of him.. But if that was case,
wouldn't he be tortured or executed by now..? He absentmindedly tugged the chains, frowning in thought when he heard the door being unlocked
and not long after, the door swung open to reveal Ludwig, dressed ever so immaculately in his uniform, a tray of steaming tea and cakes
balanced in his gloved hands. Kiku staggered to a stand as his face lit up in recognition and slight relief. "Ruuduwiggu-san!"
smiled back at the other as he closed the door behind him, unable to really convey the happiness that went through him when he heard the
relief in the other's voice. "Kiko, it's been quite a while," he said, unaware of his slip in the other's name.
was too (oddly) happy then that he also hadn't realised the mispronunciation made on the German's part. Instead, he stood there, torn
between the strange urge to run up to him and sitting back down on the bed because his legs felt a little wobbly then. "Yes, it has been a
while! Where-!" he stops himself and clears his throat, embarrassed with himself. "I..I mean..it's good to see you again. I pray that you
are in good health..." he slowly chose his words, feeling a small blush rise on his cheeks. Good heavens, he was acting out of line..
smiles softly as he pulled a chair closer. Another amenity of this cell. He handed the other one of the plates. "I'm sorry for my long
absence, but there had been things to organize... and I was needed at the front lines all time last week. Do you like your new...
accomodation?"
accepts the plate and peers down at the cake. A western cake..? "Ah, yes!" he sets the cake on the bed and he gives the German a bow. "Thank
you very much. I..I feel greatly indebted to you..even if..yet you still..."
raises a hand and shakes his head, meaning that he doesn't want anything in return. "I enjoy talking to you. To be true, I missed out little
exchanges quite a bit. By the way, this is Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, it's been made for the banquet with my superior earlier."
raises his head and he sits down on the bed, blinking at the new word which he had been presented with. "Shuwa..?" He turns his attention to
the cake and picks the plate up to peer at it. "You mean this *ke-ki*?"
"Yes, er, Black Forest Cake in English," he explained. "The Schwarzwald is an area from my country," he explained.
looks at the cake in astonishment. "Eh~ so there is a black forest in your country? So inside this *ke-ki* are ingredients from the forest
you speak of..?"
"I... no. Not in this cake," he chuckled. "But it's made the way that it's usually made in the area where this forest is," he explained.
"Ah, I see..so it is like *akumaki*. We also have a delicacy that is made in certain areas of Japan," he shares with a small nod.
He looks at the cake. "Is..is it really alright for me to eat this, Ruuduwiggu-san? It looks too beautiful to do so.."
laughs again. "It's fine, really. It would be worse if you didn't eat it." he poked a fork into his slice and cut off a tiny piece from the
tip of it. "What does *Akkumakki* mean?"
leaves the cake for now since it was a difficult for him to eat due to his bound hands. Instead he turns his attention to the question that
Ludwig was presented him with him. "*Akumaki*..it's.." he tries to find a word. "I don't think there is a meaning to this name. But it is
usually made in *Kagoshima* for a special festival in May."
blinks when he realizes that the other's hands were still bound. "I see..." he mumbled, even though he didn't understand a word. Wordlessly
he put his plate aside and unlocked the handcuffs.
"Ah! There really is no need to.." he trails off when Ludwig unlocks the handcuffs anyway. He gives him a shy nod of thanks. "Th..thank you,
Ruuduwiggu-san.." he mumbles a little awkwardly.
shakes his head. "No, how are you supposed to eat this with your hands tied? I'm sorry for not loosening them earlier."
"R-Right.." he picks up the fork that was situated next to the cake and he stares at it, a little at a loss. What was he supposed to this
*to do with this piece of metal..? "*E-Etto*.." He looks at Ludwig inquiringly.
lifts his fork and demonstrates the movement: Cut a piece off with the side of the fork just to pick it up with the fork itself and eat it.
watches this and he follows suit with less grace. He prods the cake a little awkwardly before he tries to scoop it up. He lifts it slowly to
show the German. "Like..this?"
watches how the cake falls off the fork and chuckles softly. "Yes, like that, but you have to eat it a little faster, or it will fall down."
"Eh~*muzukashii*.." he mumurs and he repeats it once more, managing to scoop up the cake and he shakily brings it to his mouth, only to have
it fall before he could eat it. "Please excuse me, Ruuduwiggu-san. We do not have these..um.." he waves the fork a little, unable to place a
name for it.
"Oh, this? It's a cake fork," he explained. "And you'll get the hang of it, all it takes is a bit of practice."
"*Ke-ki fo-ku*.." he cuts the cake and picks it up before he quickly shoves it into his mouth. He perks up a little, surprised with himself.
"Ah, I did it.." he says in amazement.
"See? I knew you could make it," he praised, "is it good?"
smiled and he nods at this. "It's really good. The texture is like *kasutera*..do you..like sweets, Ruuduwiggu-san..?"
"Hm... Yes, you could say that. I like chocolate a lot, but don't tell anybody," he chuckled.
"Chiyokore-to?" Kiku takes another careful bite of his cake, nibbling it in thought. "Ah..*chiyokore-to*.." He chuckles. "I don't think
there is anyone who I can tell this to. So it is safe with me..?"
"Oh, who knows? There are a lot of people who are interested in these kinds of things," he said, sipping on his coffee.
quirks his brow at this. "Really..?" Kiku thought how strange it was for another to take note of such small facts. "Such as?"
"such as hobbies, likes, everything that they could use to... Promote or demote you," he says.
"Ah..*chiyokore-to* has the power to do so? Eh~how dangerous.." he comments around another piece of cake he managed to scoop into his mouth.
"Not *chocolate*, but all those little things that are thought of as little sins," he explained.
"Sins..huh.." Kiku mused on this. For many soldiers like himself, to go against the ideals of what were thought best for Nippon and the
Emperor were sins. Kiku tried to piece what Ludwig meant with what he already knew, only to find himself getting more confused. "..I see."
"To me, liking chocolate is nothing bad, but some people see it as a weakness, so they may inflate it to something worse, making me seem as
weak in general," he explained, javing picked up on the other's non-understanding of the situation.
"Ah, *naruhodo*.." Kiku's face lights up in understanding as it clicks and he nods furiously. "But, nevertheless Ruuduwiggu-san, I will not
tell this matter to anyone else. In return for your kindness, I will keep my word until death." He looks at Ludwig with seriousness.
Chuckles, "Don't take this too seriously, I just ask you to keep this from my subordinates."
"It is because of this that I must take it seriously. Please place your trust in me!" Kiku states with firmness. There was an awkward pause
for a moment and then he realised how unbelievably *weird* that sounded. For the first time since he began his path in the military, he
feels a blush rise on his cheeks. "Ah, that is-*chotto*-*sore wa*-!" An incoherent string of Japanese left his mouth as he tried to explain.
laughs softly, amused openly by the other's embarrassment. "Don't worry too much about it," he tried to calm the Japanese.
instantly clamps his mouth shut and he looks away in embarrassment, brows furrowing. Good heavens, what was *that* all about?
licks some of the cream off his lips, wondering where the other's embarrassment was rooted. "Um...is there anything you like? Some, er, food
or drink... something that's considered 'unmanly'?"
frowns in thought, still avoiding the man's gaze. "I..I'm not very sure if..but I do like to eat *kakigori*..it's a.." His blush deepens a
"*Category*?" He asked, a little confused.
little. He was a little shocked that he was telling Ludwig this. "..like ice? With syrup and milk. A little childish but.." he trails off.
(( sorry! finger slipped on phone ^^;; ))
"Oh... Like early versions of ice cream," Ludwig replied. "Still, I think *Category* is a strange name for it."
"*Ka-ki-gori*," he tries to correct him and he tilts his head curiously at this new word. "*Aisu kur*..?"
"Ooh," he makes. "Sorry, I misheard that. And Ice cream is something make out of...milk and other flavors and then it gets frozen," he tries
to explain.
tries to imagine this mixture. "Frozen..so it becomes like snow? Is it different than *kakigori*..?"
nods. "A little, yes, since you mix the flavor before you freeze it," Ludwig says."
hums in acknowledgement and a small boyish smile blooms on his face. "It sounds delicious. Perhaps one day I will try to make them."
"Mhm, you can also try to freeze fruit juice like orange or apple juice," he suggested. "It's a common treat during summer time."
"Ah! Like *kakigori*! We have different flavoured syrup for summer as well," he nods. "Is *chiyokore-to* your preferred flavour for your..
'snow', is it?"
blinks, trying to decypher the word. "Oh, no, it's Vanilla, actually. But chocolate is very close behind."
It was Kiku's turn to blink owlishly at this. "*Banira*..?"
nods with a small smile. "It's... Hm, I can't really... it's a pod, that grows on bushes and it's kind of sweet...§
furrows his brows in deep thought and he muses over this exotic description. "*Pod-do*.." He shakes his head. "I don't really understand
but, if it tastes good for you then it must be delicious," he simply observes with a small smile.
laughs softly, "Well, the taste is in the cream of the cake, but it's so light, I don't think you can taste it," he says. "If we get a
delivery, I can get you a scoop of Vanilla ice-cream."
"Ah!" He raises his hand and waves it before him, declining such an offer. "Please do not trouble yourself with a such a thing, Ruuduwiggu-
san! This forest *ke-ki* is more than enough!"
"Well, I need to bring you something new every time I visit you, so I'll put it on my list," he laughs.
"But.." he falters because Ludwig look so keen on the idea. Kiku felt spoiled, really spoiled. So much so that he felt guilty. "*Mou*
you're quite persistent aren't you?" he sighed.
chuckles. "It got me where I am now," he says. "Persistence is a good treat in the military."
"And it could eventually get you into trouble," he wisely states. "*Kaden rika*"
"ah, well, you need to know when to be persistent and when not." he admitted.
nods. "Indeed." He picks up his fork and cuts another piece of cake to eat. He was starting to like the taste of this forest cake. "*Ano*.."
finishes his cake and sips his coffee. "Hm, yes?" He started to understand what he meant by a few of his little words, that seemed not to
any other meaning besides that.
"Is it alright if I asked..that is..*e-etto-sono*-" Kiku feels Ludwig's gaze on him and he starts to feel embarrassed. "d-do you..animals..
like.." He looks to the floor, his words beginning to taste weird on his tongue and he swallowed them back.
blinks. "Animals? Like? If I like animals?" he repeats, wanting to make sure about the question first.
nods at this. "Un."
"Oh, I have three dogs, yes," he smiled, remembering the weird bunch he called he's own. "How about you."
"Ah! You have dogs, is it?" he perks up in interest, a smile stretching across his lips. "I also have a dog at home. Alongside a rabbit and
a.." he searches for the word, "*Pini gigu*..?"
"...a what?" he asked, but he was fascinated that this man also had pets. Which meant that there was a lot behind his image, that would
certainly stop him from harming this man any time in the future.
frowns in thought. "*Pini gigu*..? It's a little like a *hamusta* but bigger..is it? *Pini gigu*..*Gini gigu*..?" What was the name again..?
"...Guinea Pig?" he asked, out into the blue, guessing only because it sounded like that.
brightens at this, delighted with Ludwig's help. "Ah! That's it! *Gini pigu*! I have a *gini pigu* at home."
laughs softly. "You like cute things,huh?" he asked, thinking that this would be more befitting of a girl than a soldier.
flushes bright red at this. "I-I do not!" he says a little too defensively and he scowls at the Ludwig as he laughs.
laughs a little more. "It's okay, I won't tell it to anybody."
purses his lips into a thin line, his cheeks were still red. "*Yakusoku*!" he couldn't help but demand as he raised his hand, his pinky
finger in the air.
blinks, tilting his head slightly.
(( you and your head tilting. /squishes cheeks ))
(( ^^;; I think it's because I watched too much star trek in my youth. I'm glad I got rid of the *raises eyebrow* ))
huffs and he gets off the bed a little awkward before clumsily placing himself in front of the other. He raises his hand once more, with the
outstretched pinky finger. "*Yakusoku*. Like this," he demonstrates to Ludwig, hoping the other will follow this.
thinks that he had heard about this before. Slowly he raises his hand with his out-stretched pinky.
nods. "*Yakusoku*," he reaches over and wraps his finger around Ludwig. "*Yubikiri genman uso tsuitara hari sen bon nomasu*.." he murmurs to
himself, looking at their joint fingers with a grave expression.
looks back at the other, with a rather blank look, not understanding anything of what the other said or *why* he said it.
notices the look. "We have made a promise to each other to not tell. Ah, *yubikiri* is a..song. It means 'finger cut'," he tries to explain.
raises his eyebrows, looking at the other questioningly. "What do the words mean... Exactly?"
"*Yubikiri-tte*..the song is means that if you break this promise, you will be swallow a hundred needles and your finger will be sliced
off.." he grimaced a little at the imagery he had just given to Ludwig.
stares at him wide-eyed, appropriately scandalized by the image. "...I hope that's just an image..."
laughs a little sheepishly at this. "Ah, it's just a superstition, Ruuduwiggu-san," he said.
He then notices that their fingers were still entwined to each other. "Ah.."
lets go of the other's pinkie awkwardly.
"Sorry," he mumbles as he retracts his hand back and he falls silent, wondering if he should go back to sit on the bed or just stay there.
"No need to be," he shakes his head.
"For saying such an odd thing," he covers up to stave off the awkwardness between them. "I hope I haven't frightened you. It's just a song
after all.." he smiles sheepishly.
chuckles softly. "No, that's alright. We have this tale about a guy who didn't want to eat his soup... He died a horrible death."
His eyes widened at this. "Eh? How so? Was he poisoned?" Kiku couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.
shakes his head. "No he started growing thinner and thinner and thinner... until he died from not eating anymore."
visibly blanched at this. "That is..very unfortunate," was all he could comment.
"It's an old folk tale... it's told so that little children eat their soup," he explained, "It's from a collection of a lot of those kinds
of stories."
"Ah, like *yubikiri*. It is sung so that children will learn to keep promises," he adds, pleased with the connection he had managed to find
between the two.
nods. "It seems that we both have quite a lot in common..." he notes with a wry smile.
returns this smile with a small one of his own, "I suppose we have, Ruuduwiggu-san.." he peers up into Ludwig's eyes curiously. "Does your..
name have a..meaning in your language?"
"I think it has... it was the name of a few kings, but I've forgotten the meaning," he answers a little sheepishly.
"A name for a king? *Sugoi*.." he murmurs in amazement. He scrutinises him for a moment and nods decisively. "Well, it certainly is suitable
for you Ruuduwiggu-san."
blinks. "Well, thank you," he says, inclining his head slightly. "I assume *your* name has a better meaning?"
"Ah..*ma, sono*..*sore wa*.." he blushes a little at this. "It's the name of a flower. An important flower in Nippon."
"Oh? A flower?" he asks, surprised. He would have thought that a man would have been named... after a mountain, not a flower.
nods shyly at this. "A yellow flower. It's the symbol of the Emperor."
"Oh, you mean the Chrysanthemum?" he asks, having made his homework.
"Why, yes.." Kiku is surprised that Ludwig knows this and he is a little impressed and intrigued with how much Ludwig seemed to know.
smiles gently. "Remember my brother? He gave me notes about what he could find about Nippon's history."
Ah, of course. He shifts his weight a little since he had folded his legs beneath him. He nods. "Yes I remember him," he replies with a
small quirk on his lips.
"Good," he said, "I liked the era of the Warring States, it reminded me a bit of the German states."
His eyes widened at this and his face brightens in interest. "*Sengoku jidai*? Eh~you also have such a time period in your country?"
"Yes, we called it 30-years war. Nobody really knows anymore why it got so bit, but by the end, everyone had fought against everyone."
leaned a little closer in attentiveness. "And then? What happened? Who triumphed in the end?"
"...No one," he sighed. "Other than Nippon, Germany... was not unified until 2oo years after the end of the war."
Two hundred years..? That was an incredibly long time. "Then, how was *Doitsu* united in the end?" he asked. It must have been a trouble.
"It was... well, more a mental act, combined with some political tricks. Germany was united with the effort of Prussia and thankful for that
, the united German Empire announced the Prussian king as its Kaiser," he explained the history shortly.
"*Kai-sa*..?" he rolls this exotic word around his tongue. "Germany's king is called *Kai-sa*..you say that your brother is from Prussia, so
that means you are from Prussia?" he frowns in thought. So Germany is two countries in one..?
"I... no, I'm from Germany," he said, with a slight sense of pride. "And a Kaiser is an emperor, but his role is a little bit different than
that of an emperor, so we keep calling him Kaiser."
hums. "*Kai-sa desu ka*..In Nippon, we address His Imperial Highness the Emperor as *Tenno*," he states.
"Tennoh, huh? I remember reading about that," he admits,
.
couldn't keep the smile that erupted across his face. "I am impressed with your depth of knowledge Ruuduwiggu-san. So much so that I feel a
little flattered," he scratches the side of his cheek a little awkwardly
.
smiles at him again, almost softly. "I like reading a lot... and Nippon... fascinates me. ))
"
"Ah, so Ruuduwiggu-san also appreciates books?" He is pleased with this. "I like reading as well, although the only books I have managed to
read are scholarly articles during my training. It's difficult to get many English texts in Nippon, or any other language." Upon hearing
Ludwig's feelings towards his country, he feels a swell of pride and a strange warmth bloom in his chest. "Perhaps you can come and visit..
once everything is over..?"
feels a big smile spreading over his lips. "That would be very nice," he smiled. "I could get you a few books later, if you wanted," he
offered.
blinks, surprised at this offer. "Eh? Is that...really alright? Is it not wise to do so? I am your prisoner after all.." he replied, looking
concerned.
chuckles. "Of course I wouldn't give you books about the military. We have a small collection of fairy tales that we are allowed to give to
prisoners who are interested.
"
tilts his head. "*Fe-ri te-ru*..?" he mimics.
"Um... folk tales," he tries to explain, "old stories that parents tell their children."
"Ah, I understand," he nods in affirmation. "Like the story of the *Momotaro*."
"Uh... yes, I think," he confirms, thinking that he had heard that name before, but isn't too sure.
gives Ludwig a small, almost childlike smile. "I think..I would like that. Although I don't think I can understand German text very well.."
"Some of them are in English," he noted, "I think it will be best if you start with those. Or those in Dutch," he added.
"..is it..alright if I can borrow from both texts?" he asked shyly, unable to hold back the excitement in his voice.
nods with a small smile, "Of course, I'll get both versions for you."
"Thank you Ruuduwiggu-san," he smiled kindly. "In exchange for your kindness, please tell me what you would like me to give you in return...
although..I don't think I have anything of value or any use on my person to give you.."
laughs softly. "I will ask you to tell me some of your stories when I have a little more time, but I fear that our time is coming to an end
again."
His shoulders sagged a little at this. "Is that so..right, of course.." He looks up Ludwig, his brows pinched together a little. It was too
early, no..?
smiles at him with a bit of pity. "It's been four hours already," he explains. "It's late."
nods with slight reluctance. "I understand," he replied softly. Slowly he stands up and he turns to sit back to the bed, looking a little
dispirited. Of course, how had he forgotten that this was meant to be an interogation.
wonders what's on the other's mind. "I'll be back tomorrow," he promised as he got up, inclining his head slightly. "Thank you again."
returns the polite bow. "No I should thank you, Ruuduwiggu-san. For everything." He lifts his wrists and the handcuffs, indicating the other
to lock him up again.
shakes his head. "I'm sure you'll be fine without them," he smiled. "Have a good night."
wanted to protest but he kept quiet when Ludwig gave him that smile. *Hora*, were they growing soft to one another..? He gives the German a
wry smile. "*Ja, oyasumi nasai*."
blinks, but doesn't ask what that meant. "Gute Nacht," he said instead and closed the cell's door behind him.
"*Gu-te na*..?" he tries to repear these words softly to himself. Good night in German, huh..? Smiling a little, he touches the handcuffs,
his fingers tracing the chain. "*Gu-te na*.." he slips his eyes closed and he allows the silence of room to continue after Ludwig has left,
his pinky finger tingling from where he and Ludwig had touched.
As promised, several books get delivered with Kiku's breakfast, one of them being the Struwwelpeter, the anthology that has the folk tale
about the boy who doesn't want to eat his soup. Ludwig only manages to come over late at night, looking tired and worn, but he tried to keep
an immaculate exterior anyway.
had been preoccupied with the books Ludwig had kindly sent him. He was delighted to be able to hold a book after so long and in spite of
them being children stories, he marvels at the illustrations and the tales that were presented before him. He hadn't realised how late it
was until Ludwig entered the cell, looking visibly tired. He glanced up at the man and almost instantly, he set Struwwelpeter aside. "Ah,
Ruuduwiggu-san!" he greeted as he stood. "Are you alright? You look a little-" Kiku's eyes widened a little and found himself leaning
forward, tipping into nonentity as he forgot his feet were shackled together. "Ah!"
"Careful," Ludwig made and made a quick dash forward, unable to catch the other correctly. Instead he cushioned the other's fall, but ended
up on his ass as well, wincing visibly. Damn this tiredness. It was getting to him.
"Ruudu-san! Ah, please forgive me!" he exclaims, bowing his head repeatedly as a string of English and Japanese apologies left his lips as
he awkwardly lifted himself off the other as best as he could. It was a little difficult with his feet chained together. "Um, *chotto* - ah,
*sumismasen*!" he blurted out when his hands planted themselves awkwardly on Ludwig's shoulders and arms, making the German grunt in pain.
winces as he tries to sit up again. "Don't move," he mumbled and got up into a sitting position, helping Kiku to get up as well.
stills and he allows Ludwig to do take control. He didn't go very far though but it was better than what Kiku would've been able to achieve.
Disentangles their limbs carefully before he gets up and helps the other stand. "Are you alright?"
nods wordlessly at Ludwig as the other helps him to stand and he mentally berates himself for acting out of place. He balances himself.
"Un, th-thank you," he mumbles out of embarrassment.
"Don't worry about it," he says, still holding his arms out to catch the other should he fall. He only lowers them when he is sure about his
stance.
lowers his head to hide the growing warmth on his face. Once Ludwig had lowered his hands, he turns on his heel and makes his way back to
the bed, picking up the book as he plops a little gracelessly on it.
"...Did you enjoy the Struwwelpeter?" he asked, lips curling a little.
looks up at Ludwig briefly before he drops his gaze back onto the book, his fingers tracing the cover as he smiled. "Yes, it was a very
enjoyable read. Although the story of *Konrado* was a little disturbing.."
snorts then laughs softly. "They're all a little disturbing, don't you think?"
"Yes you're right about that," he couldn't help but agree with a chuckle. "Your stories are very different than what we tell in Nippon."
"Most of these stories are there to teach children the valuable lesson of fright, but...well, most parents disagree with the purpose of that
nowadays. I think in a few decades... they may be forgotten," he explains.
hummed at this. This fact made him think of Nippon, especially with the growing influx of the western culture in the country. Would they
also one day forget the tales of *Momotaro* and *Ojizo-san*..? He shook the thought from his head and instead focused on Ludwig who stood
by. "Please take a seat, Ruuduwiggu-san. You look tired. Are you alright?"
Does as he is told, sitting down on the less than comfortable looking chair. "I'm... well, I didn't get much sleep last night. And my duties
were quite exhaustive, too... I'm sorry if I'm not much of a talker today."
"*Hora*, you needn't to visit me today. You should use this time to rest, *ne*?" he chastised softly as he looked on the man with slight
worry when he noticed the small uncharacteristic slouch in his posture.
shakes his head, rubbing his temples. "No, I wanted to talk to you."
"Surely sleep is more important than myself Ruuduwiggu-san," he tries to reason. "We can talk tomorrow. I won't run away," he laughs softly.
joins the laugh. "That is true. But my mind comes to rest when I'm talking to you."
is stunned with this statement and he stares at Ludwig, unable to filter the look of unadulterated surprise on his face. Well..that was..
unexpected. "Um.." he didn't know to respond to that. "Well I..."
leans back in his seat, smiling a little at that looks of surprise. "You look surprised."
"I...I..." he couldn't muster up any words, let alone any thoughts in his mind. He swallows back the lump in his throat. "..speechless," was
he manages to choke out.
laughs softly at that. "Really. Well, I guess it doesn't happen too often that an army officer says that a prisoner, huh?"
willed himself to regain back his composure. "No..not really, no.." he softly said as he avoids the man's eyes. Are Germans always
this straightforward..?
chuckles. "I'm sorry, it's a bit off for me as well," he yawns. "I'm curious... can you tell me something about... Momotaro?"
"Momotaro?" Once again, Kiku was surprised with this man's memory. It was no wonder he was the superior here. "Alright." He notices the yawn
and how sleepy those blue eyes were. "Are you comfortable there Ruuduwiggu-san?" he couldn't help but ask, idly wondering if he should lend
his bed to the man.
nods weakly. "I'm fine, please... I'm curious. What was Momotaro?"
didn't seem too convinced but he let it slide for now. "Momotaro means 'Peach boy' and, well, it's a story about a boy who was born from a
giant peach," he begins, "He was sent from Heaven to an elderly couple who were childless and lonely."
"Oh? So kind of like the Däumling...Was he the size of a thumb, too?" he asked, forgetting for a moment that he was supposed to be grown-up.
"*Da-un-ringu*..?" he shakes his head, "No he wasn't small. He jumped out of the giant peach before the couple could eat the giant peach and
he grew up as a fine boy."
"Oh... and that's all?" For some reason, he had expected something more spectecular.
chuckles lightheartedly. "There's more. After Momotaro grows up, he decides that he feels the need repay back the kindness of the elderly
couple, so he sets off on a journey to *Onigashima* to fight the wicked demons who have terrorised the people and bring back the treasure
they have hidden there."
"Oh? There was a demon? *Ohnikasshima*? What does that mean?" he asked, tapping his index finger on his leg.
"*O-ni-ga-shi-ma*," Kiku repeats, amused with how Ludwig watches his lips carefully at this word. "It means 'Demon Island'. And there were
many demons. Momotaro wanted to fight them so he could establish peace, even though he was still a boy. He was very brave."
snorrts softly. "Or reckless, for a boy, to fight those things..."
"Ah.." Kiku scratches the side of his cheek. "Perhaps.. But he went to the island with his father's armour and dumplings tied to his waist,
for him to eat that is. Along the way to *Onigashima*, he met a dog, a monkey and a pheasant - who all despite being enemies, became friends
and helped Momotaro defeat the demons."
"...how?" he asked, then snorted. "Sounds almost like an as weird party as the Musicians of Bremen."
"*Bu-re-men*? *Miyu-ji-shiya*..?" he repeats these words, puzzled.
"Ah, the animals helped Momotaro slip into the fort where the demons were. And they all fought the demons alongside Momotaro until they were
all defeated. The dog went *gapu gapu*, the monkey went *giri giri* and the pheasant *taku taku* on all the demons," he said with a smile.
stares at the Japanese as if he had just grown a second head or something. "gappu gappu??"
blinks, puzzled with the look on Ludwig's face. "Un. *Gapu gapu*. Like.." He makes a biting motion with his mouth. "*Gapu gapu*."
Starts laughing this time, because it does not only *sound* funny, but it looks ridiculous this time around.
reddens at this and he frowns, feeling rather embarrassed now that the German seemed wide awake and was laughing. "O-Oy..Ruuduwiggu-san!"
It wasn't *that* strange now was it?
"I'm sorry, really, but it just sounds so funny. As if you are acting out a story for a group of children," he explained, wiping his eyes.
His cheeks turn bright red at this. He was used to telling folk tales to the children in his area that he hadn't realised.. He felt even
more embarrassed now that Ludwig had pointed it out. He had gotten carried away. "*Mou*, please stop laughing!" he whined when Ludwig only
seemed to laugh harder.
"I'm trying, I'm trying," he chuckled, clearing his throat from a few chuckles.
"You're not trying hard enough!" he couldn't help but add a little shrilly than he intended. "Stop that or I will throw this book at you!"
starts laughing again, because now he sounded like an old housewife. "No, no~!"
"Please get a hold of yourself!" Kiku told him. Instead of throwing the book, he tossed his pillow at the man, his scowl deepening when the
German easily evaded it. "You're unbelievable!"
hides his grin behind his hand. "And you are acting like a woman," he jests back, which is probably not a good idea.
looks at him incredulously. "What? I do not!" he retorted a little heatedly. "You're the one who can't stop giggling! Stop that now or I
will have to come over there and quieten you!"
Oh god, maybe it was the lack of sleep, but Ludwig's laughter became almost hysteric. He tried to calm down, but the angry pink on the
other's cheek made him look quite adorable.
Alright, enough was enough! Kiku was so riled up that he didn't care if he was staggering awkwardly over to Ludwig (it was difficult walking
chained up after all). Once he reached the laughing man, he reached out and pressed both of his hands against Ludwig's mouth, muffling him.
"Be quiet now!" he ordered.
sputters, eyes widening in shock as he stared up at the other. He stopped laughing immediately, but his eyes also hardened, too.
glared down at Ludwig, pleased that he had gotten the man's attention. That will teach him- he noticed the way those blue eyes narrowed at
him and his eyes widened in shock. His heart stilled. What..? And then he realised his hands on Ludwig's mouth and he couldn't help but
stare at him in mutual shock. "..."
narrowed his eyes and pried the other's hands away. "I stopped laughing," he dead-panned.
retracts his hands back and he swallows back the lump in his throat. "..R-Right..I.." he trails off, unable to muster up any words as he
stands there and continues to stare down at Ludwig in disbelief. Did he just touch..no, *order* Ludwig to shut up..?
gives him a look that is usually reserved for those who have majorly disappointed him. He pushes himself up from his seat, adding his
towering height to his intimidating look.
felt his heart wrench at the look Ludwig had given him before he suddenly towered over him. What was that..? Feeling ashamed of himself
for stepping out of line, he avoids the man's gaze. "..please excuse me for my...it was..uncalled for.." he apologised softly.
"You are right. I am sorry for laughing. Never do anything like that again," he said calmly.
couldn't look at him. Although Ludwig's voice showed no malice, he didn't want to look up. He didn't want to see what was reflected on them.
He forced himself to nod as he tried to calm his pounding heart.
"...I think I should go now," he said and turned on his heels.
was rooted to the spot. He wanted to stop Ludwig, grab his arm and then..and then what? He turned on his heel. "Ruuduwiggu-san!"
turned his head, raising a brow expectantly, but also with a hint of 'I don't beliebe you can say anything that'll stop me.'
Seeing how he manages to get Ludwig's attention, he bows deeply. He doubted Ludwig would understand but it was worth a try. "I'm really
sorry. I had gone too far with my bold actions, so please punish me as you see fit."
looks at him for a while, then sighs. "I'm tired. I will sleep now. Auf Wiedersehen."
remains bowing. "J-Ja..*g-gutte nak-ku..*," he tries to say, cringing at his terrible pronunciation.
"Gute Nacht," he added as he was turning back to the exit.
When Ludwig finally left, it was only then did Kiku straighten himself. He wasn't able to shake off how unsettled he felt, even as he
cleared up the room. He sat on the bed and flipped Struwwelpeter open, hoping that it would distract him to sleep. It did not.
could not find sleep either, but had to anyway, thus he concentrated on his work again. He didn't return the day after that, but only the
day after that. He returned with a collection of Grimm's Fairy Tales.
had been drifting between sleep and consciousness and he had not touched the meals which had been sent to him. Instead, he continued to flip
through Struwwelpeter aimlessly. When Ludwig finally entered the celL, Kiku had drifted off to a light sleep, curled on the chair with the
book loosely held in his hands.
finds the Japanese asleep and puts the thick book onto the bed, pushing a stray strand out of the sleeping man's face.
feels something brush across his face and he reaches up to bat it away, Struwwelpeter dropping to the ground. The sudden noise wakes him and
jerks awake, blinking away the sleep in his eyes. He lifts his face, peering blearily up at the figure standing before him. "... " He blinks
once, feeling a little disoriented.
straightens as the other wakes up, holding his arms behind his back. A tiny amused smile is on his lips. "Guten Morgen."
blinks up at him, adjusting to sight and he rubs the side of his face, humming in acknowledgement. He stretches a little, groaning softly at
popping of his joints. "Ruudu..wiggu-san..? Is that you?" he croaks out.
"Yes, it's me," he confirmed and sat down on the nearest surface.
shifts in his seat and he rubs his eyes. "Please forgive me, I'm a little slow right now," he murmured as he shook away the grogginess.
"You don't look like you slept a lot," he notes, picking up the Struwwelpeter from the ground.
"Not really, no," he mumbled truthfully as he blearily watched Ludwig and he accepted the book he handed to him.
"This has a lot of the tales I told you about," he explains. "There's another one with the other tales I told you about, but it's not yet
here yet. It's getting delivered tomorrow."
has to tighten his fingers around it to prevent it from slipping. He looked at it, raking his fingers through his tousled hair. "*Te-ru*..?"
"Fairy tales," he repeated, pointing to the book in Kiku's hands. "Those are the most popular ones from Germany, from the Brothers Grimm."
flips it open, blinking at the illustrations. "*Gurimu*..do you like this book as well, Ruuduwiggu-san?" he asked.
"I couldn't put it away when I was a child... It was my favorite book and I used to carry it around where I walked," he chuckled.
"Eh~ *so desu ka*..then what was your favourite story?" he asked with a small smile.
"I... I can't quite decide, there are so many that I like," he admits, "I like The Brave Little Tailor a lot."
sifts through the pages before he stops at the story and folds the bottom corner of the page. "Then I shall read that first, since it is
your favourite."
"It's just one... I like quite a few. I think it will take you some time to read through them... did you finish the Struwwelpeter?"
"Hm, it is a thick book.." he mused. "And yes I finished reading it. On the very day you had sent it to me. It was an enjoyable read."
"I found it too scary to read again, even as an adult," he admitted. "I think it's a good thing that you got some new material."
"Ah..yes it was disturbing. But intriguing. It was much different than ours. Speaking of which.." Kiku closes the Brothers Grimm and he
fastens Ludwig a grave yet rueful look, "About the other day.."
shakes his head. "Don't mention it. It's forgotten already."
did not feel satisfied with this. Surely there must be some way to make up for his folly. "I cannot accept this," he reasoned. "Not with the
look you had given me..you were upset." His fingers curled into the material of his trousers. "I cannot forgive myself for betraying you."
musters the Japanese, then snorts softly. "It's nothing, really. I was upset, yes, but I was also extremely tired. I shouldn't have come."
"Hn..then please allow me to formally apologise to you," he straightens in his seat, hands pressed against his thighs before he bows. "I'm
very sorry Ruuduwiggu-san!"
"I am also sorry," he gives back, accepting the apology with a small inclination if his head.
of*
is not entirely pleased but this will do for now. He lifts himself up and he gives Ludwig a smile. Forgive and forget, right? "And thank you
for the book," he gesticulates to the Brothers Grimm. "It was very kind of you."
smiles back. "You're welcome. I hope you will enjoy it."
"I will, though..I wonder if I can finish it in one night..?" he murmurs, eying the spine in contemplation. "Maybe two nights."
smirks. "I would be surprised if you'd manage it that fast."
looks up to see the smirk and he couldn't help but allow the upturning of his lips. "Is that a challenge Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"The fastest time I read all of these was about 5 days," he smirked.
"Huh..and if I manage to finish this book in two nights? Will I receive something?" he asked, his eyes lighting up a little.
"Do you want a treat?" he snorted and thought about it.
simply chuckled, amused at this thought. "That would be nice, wouldn't it? And should I lose, would you like something?"
"Well, there's not much that you can offer me, or that I can offer you at the moment," he states the facts.
"Ah.." Oh yes, that was true. He hasn't got anything on his person ever since he was captured. Except for his body and identity. He rubs the
back of his neck sheepishly. "*Zannen desu*.."
smiles softly. "It's okay. Sometimes you face a challenge only because you want to win. I can bring you another piece of cake if you manage
to do it."
waves his hand before him. "*Iya* please don't trouble yourself Ruuduwiggu-san! There really is no-!" At that moment, his stomach growled
and Kiku's face flushes red in embarrassment. "Ah.."
blinks. "What is this? Did you not have anything to eat today?" he asked, because he had ordered to give the Asian enough to eat.
"I haven't eaten- no, I did not eat today," he corrects himself. "Forgive me, my mind was occupied the whole day that I had no appetite."
"I see... I'm sorry it occupied your mind this much," he said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
"No, it's all my fault! Please don't worry about it!" he reassures with a Ludwig a small smile. "If anything, this is part of being a
soldier. I'm used to skipping meals so it isn't that much of a bother.."
"Apparently it is though... Why don't you eat something now?" he asked.
"Eh? But meal times are over, isn't it?" Kiku clarifies. There wouldn't be anymore food delivered to him until tomorrow's breakfast.
"You've still got leftovers, don't you?" he asks and points to the tray next to the door.
"Ah.." he follows the man's gaze to the tray, eying the soup but he didn't seem to have much of an appetite to eat it or anything else now.
"Please do not worry about me Ruuduwiggu-san. I will be fine," he reassures him.
Looks at him with an raised eyebrow. "You don't want it? I mean, yes, it's cold, but it's something."
"I do want it but I will eat it later! Please, I'd rather enjoy your company now since you had kindly made time to come by!" he replied.
"But I'd rather not be disturbed by a growling stomach," he said gently.
feels his cheeks redden at this. "Then I will try my best to contain it!" he said stubbornly, although the gentle look Ludwig was giving him
made his resolve waver. After a moment of staring at one another, Kiku sighs in resignation. "You are persistent as you have claimed."
"I wasb't lying to you when I said that," he chuckled. "Please don't hold back."
sighs. "*Wakarimashita*.." He gets up from the chair a little awkwardly before he picks up the tray and brings it back. "Please excuse me."
"Don't worry about it," he smiled, "go ahead"
sits down and stirs his soup a little before eating it carefully. It felt strange eating under Ludwig's gaze. "..H-How was your day?"
is a little surprised at that question. "Oh, long, tiring, but today was better than yesterday."
eats another spoonful. The soup was slowly raising his appetite, which was good. "Hm? How so?"
"Because I slept more than the day before and... well, our tactics are finally paying of."
"Tacti-" Kiku stops himself and he sat there, his spoon pausing midway to his mouth. Was it wise for him to pry into their military matters?
"Tactics. I can't give you any more information, I hope you understand. All I can tell you is... things are going for the better," he said.
nods wordlessly at this and he resumes eating, the taste in his mouth was bitter. So they were winning..?
"The fighting, it's going to be over soon, I hope," he sighed, unable to hide his relief this time.
stares at his soup, his gaze hardening. Nippon was losing? And once it was all over.. "Ruuduwiggu-san.." he calls softly.
"Yes?" he asked.
He looks up at him, a solemn look on his face. "Please, can you tell me how my men are?" he asked quietly, sincerely. He needed to know.
looks at him long and intensely, then sighed. "They're better than you think they are. Tough fighters, gave us some problems. It's a pity
that they throw themselves into fights they cannot win, just to kill as many as they can while they go down... Gave us some problems, but we
managed to avoid that most of the time. Our higher-ups are currently negotiating, that means the fights have calmed down a bit."
There is a bitter smile on his lips and he gives his silent condolences to the fallen, praying for their spirits to rest in peace. "Is that
so..that's good. They have fulfilled their duties, I'm glad.." he whispers, almost to himself. He was proud that his battalion were fighting
hard. It was incredibly frustrating how he wasn't able to - he *couldn't* do anything except read fairy tales. He grips his spoon tightly.
"...Don't worry. We're currently at some kind of stalemate, neither moving forwards nor back, until the negotiations have come to a result."
keeps his gaze on the German. "Then once it is all over, may I ask a favour from you, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"What is it?" he asked, eyebrows raised curiously.
"Will you bring my *katana* to me?" he states his request.
blinks in surprise. "Why?"
remains serious, but there is a look of sadness lying underneath. "Because I will take my life."
blinks. "Excuse me?" he asked before thinking, even though he knew that this was a common practice among the Japanese.
"I will take my own life, Ruuduwiggu-san," he repeats with firmness. "A soldier such as myself has no place to return to except to move on."
"Excuse me, but I cannot allow that," he said in a no-back-talk voice. He respected other cultures, but taking your own life, he could not
allow that.
"What?" he stares at him in disbelief before he scowls back. "May I ask why?"
"It would be a loss if you killed yourself, that's why," he gave back.
sets his spoon down. "It is not a loss for a soldier to die for his country."
"But it is a loss for the country to lose a good man," he gave back. "And a soldier's first duty is to serve his country, even in the time
of peace."
"But I cannot return!" he suddenly finds himself shouting. "You do not understand Ruuduwiggu-san..a captured man is considered a dead man!
Why allow the dead to wander uselessly when he can be reborn useful as the sakura!?"
"I don't think that petals of a tree are more useful than a man who can tell stories of the other side and help rebuild the country," he
gives back, not budging from his position.
"And if Nippon denies me, a cowardly man, from going back into her arms? Then what?" he shot back.
"You can act as an ambassador for me," he blurted out, faster than he could think, which was completely against his usual self.
blinks at this and he stares at him, bewildered. "*Amubasado*..?"
"A... a connector between out two cultures. So to say," he gives back, a wild plan forming in his mind.
A connector of two cultures..? Kiku has never heard of such a thing and his face shows this as he continues to stare at Ludwig, looking
utterly nonplussed.
moves his hand. "We have very different and difficult cultures. And you are very knowledgeable of both by now... It would be bad to lose
that."
He tries to piece together the details Ludwig was providing him with and after a while of hard thinking, it strikes him. "You..want me to
work with you..?" he slowly asked.
nods slowly. "If... when this is over," he said.
blinks owlishly at this. He couldn't go back to Nippon but Germany, no, *Ludwig* will accept him..? A prisoner of war..? Was there even such
a thing..? He tries to understand this but the more he thinks of it, the more confused he becomes. "Why?" he couldn't help but ask. Why him?
"Isn't it obvious? I like your company and I dislike losing a good man, no matter if they're on our side or not," he said.
was stunned. At that moment, he couldn't help but think Ludwig was an unbelievably bizarre man. His words made sense yet they did not at the
same time. There was something about Ludwig that Kiku couldn't help but feel attracted to. But.. "What about your superiors?"
"Let that be my problem," he gave back. "At the right time and place I will tell them about it."
studies him for a moment but all he could see was Ludwig looking back at him, his resolve firm in his eyes. "And should they object?"
"I said, let that be my problem," he repeated firmly.
"It cannot solely be your problem if it involves me, Ruuduwiggu-san," he says with a frown.
"Their objection is nothing that is to concern you," he gave back curtly.
"Their objection may jeopardise your position! Am I really that valuable to gamble your position with..?" his tone turns soft at this
question and he drops his gaze to his soup, furrowing his brows.
his features soften at the concern that he is faced, and smiles, patting the other's leg. "Let that be my concern, too. I can handle this."
Before Kiku even realised it, his hand had reached out to grab Ludwig's and he firmly clasped it in his own as he glanced up to meet the .
other's reassuring gaze with his worried one. "Ruuduwiggu-san, please..I..I.." he trails off, his throat felt constricted.
squeezes back Kiku's hand. "Don't worry about me."
swallows back the lump in his throat and he leans forward, pressing his forehead against Ludwig's shoulder. "..Sorry, will you..just for a
while, let me stay like this for a while..." he softly tells him as he slips his eyes closed, trying to calm his thoughts.
nods gently, then sighs, his other hand coming up to put it reassuringly on the Japanese back.
"Sorry." He repeats this softly, over and over again up to the point where he wasn't who or what he was apologising about. He relaxes under
Ludwig's hand, allowing himself to stop thinking for that moment. He felt so worn then and after a while, his body sags a little as he gives
in to the sleep which had finally caught up to him after he had denied it the day before.
shifts a bit to cradle the other against him a little longer until he was entirely sure that Kiku was asleep. Easily, he lifted him up and
placed him back on his bed, making sure that he was tucked in nicely.
Watching him a bit longer, he was sure that he wouldn't wake up any time soon, so he wished him a good night and left again.
When Kiku wakes up, he is puzzled to find himself lying on the bed. He sits up slowly glancing around the room and he finds his breakfast
sitting by the door. Or was it lunch?
He couldn't tell and he makes his way over, head feeling a little heavy to pick up the tray. Breakfast. So he woke up early, like usual.
He sits down to eat, his eyes dropping to the thick book Ludwig had given him the other day. Reaching over, he pulls it towards him and
starts to read.
(( I have a plan, not sure if it's a good one, though ))
(( what do you have in mind? owo ))
(( It involves beer and, let's say, surprise sex. I'm not sure if it's a good one. ))
(( beer and sex. lol why not? XD ))
(( well, beer only on Ludwig's side though. ;x; ))
(( aww. xD im good with it. ouob ))
returns late the following night, smelling of alcohol and cigarettes, and his hair does look quite disheveled and his uniform is not as
pristine as it usually is. The door falls loudly back into its lock and he drags the chair loudly to a spot next to the bed.
looks up from the page he was reading in Grimms, startled by the sudden slam of the cell's door. He peers through his bangs, his face
brightening up at the sight of Ludwig as he plops down noisily on the chair before him. "Ah, Ruuduwiggu-san! It's nice to - eh?" he blinks,
surprised to see how flushed the German was and how his uniform was lacking its usual crispness. He picks up the scent of alcohol and
tabacco smoke from the other and he looks at him, puzzled. "Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"Kigu," he drawled and pulled the chair so close that, when he sat down, his knees touched the small bed. "Did anybody ever tell you that...
you have skin that's as pretty and soft as that of a woman?"
blinks at this. "Eh?" The question throws him off a little and he feels a small blush rise on his cheeks. "Um, no. I do not believe so.."
he answers slowly and sets Grimms aside to turn his full attention on the man.
extends his hand and brushes the backside of his fingers almost lovingly over said soft cheeks, tugging a strand of hair behind the Asian's
hair. "Soft like a flower petal..."
"Flower petal..?" he flinches at the gentle touch on his face and he wonders if he should pull away or not. He peers up into those blue eyes
trying to bring some focus towards him. "Are you feeling alright, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
he cupped his cheek, running his thumb over his cheekbone, not reacting to the question he was asked. "Flawless, even, perfect..."
His shoulders stiffened and he shudders at the touch of his calloused fingers across his cheek. "O-Oy.." he protests softly.
"So soft..." he whispered, gently scratching him behind his ear.
He leans away from the touch, his nose scrunching a little when he feels Ludwig's beer-tinged breath sweep across his face. "I..I think
you've drunk a little too much. Perhaps you should take a rest tonight, Ruuduwiggu-san."
"I will take a good rest," he husked, his hold tightening, giving the other no chance to move away.
"Th-that's good, um," he tries to shy away from the other but Ludwig wasn't having any of it as his hand cradles his face. "Aren't you.."
leans in without further warning, pressing his lips to the other's.
His eyes widened in shock. What..? What was Ludwig *doing*? His hands reached up and he pushed against the German's chest. "Ruuduwi-!"
raised his other hand as well to the Asian's cheek, pulling him closer again for another kiss.
gasped in surprise as Ludwig draws him back into another kiss, one more bolder than the last. Kiku presses his lips firmly together.
keeps pushing forward, making sure that the other cannot breathe enough through his nose and has to gasp for air eventually.
manages to push him back a little and he gasps in the little space which he had wedged between them, his cheeks flushed from lack of air.
"S-Stop, Ruuduwiggu-san," he manages to utter out through his panting. "Wh-What are you-"
"Your lips are just as soft," he mumbles appreciatively, licking his own swollen ones.
The comment embarrasses him greatly and his cheeks deepened in colour as he tries to get his thoughts in order. "Ruuduwiggu-san!"
"Just let me kiss you," he growled, almost possessively, leaning in once again.
"O-Oy-stop it you're-!" Kiku wasn't able to finish his sentence when Ludwig leans in to claim his lips once more. He struggles against the
other, hoping it would knock some sense into that drunken haze of his. He was startled when the man's tongue teased across the seams of his
lips, seeking entrance which Kiku denied on instinct.
tried a few more times before he broke the kiss, looking into the other's eyes heatedly. "I want you," he husked.
"Ha?" The sudden proclamation shocks Kiku as he stares up into those darkened blue eyes. His heart quickens at this and he wonders if he was
just hearing things or Ludwig had really, actually uttered something which was both brilliant and preposterous at the same time.
"I-I don't think that's a good idea, Ruuduwiggu-san. P-Perhaps you should really get some rest, you're not making any sense right now.."
shakes his head. "No, I want you now," he repeated and gently pushed the other back against the bed.
couldn't help but gasp in surprise when Ludwig pushes him back and onto the mattress, his body hovering over his not long after. He stared
up at him in disbelief, his hands still planted on the man's shoulders and forces him to remain at arm's length. "Th-thers must be some
mistake!" he reasons, pushing aside the fact that his heart had skipped a beat when Ludwig stares heatedly down at him.
shakes his head. "No mistake. Your beauty had captured me the first time I saw you," he mumbled, brushing more strands out of the Asian's
face, before he started to unbutton the shirt the other wore.
He feels flustered with this and acting on the panic which rose within him, he grabs Ludwig's wrists to stop him from advancing. He wets his
lips, trying to buy some time to talk some sense into the man. "I thank you for your compliment but I think you've mistaken me for a woman."
"I know exactly what you are: An excellent soldier in my hands," he husked, finishing unbuttoning his shirt.
"But this cannot-" Kiku freezes and a sharp gasp leaves his lips when Ludwig's pries his shirt apart, those blue eyes lighting up.
"I want you," he repeated, leaning in to kiss and bite the other's neck, careful not to leave any marks.
stiffens under the ministrations, his hands tightening around his hold on Ludwig's wrists as he releases a shuddering pant. "Ruudu.."
"Kiku..." he mumbles against his neck, finding his pulse and lapped over it.
He grits his teeth and tilts his head to the side in embarrassment, although this only gives Ludwig more access to the column of his neck.
licks along the now exposed neck and nibbles the sensitive spot just behind the other's ear, his hand moving over the now exposed side of
the other.
loosens his clasp around Ludwig's wrists as he screws his eyes shut, his face contorted as he represses the shudder which courses down his
spine. He feels Ludwig's fingers skirting across his quickly warming skin. "Stop.." he hisses out, biting by a sound.
moves on nevertheless, taking the Japanese' earlobe in his mouth to suckle on it, hand squeezing the much too thin body.
"Ah!" His blush deepens immensely at this and his hand flies up to slap across his mouth, muffling his cries. Damn, how could his ear be
*that* sensitive? This was ridiculous. This was *not* happening. He lifts his other arm and he forces his forearm against Ludwig's chest.
That soft cry is all that he needs to continue molesting the other's ear, despite the arm that keeps pushing on his chest.
Another sensual lick across the shell of his ear causes Kiku to twitch and he shies away from that wicked tongue, breathing raggedly.
"No, don't," he grumbles and moves his hand from Kiku's body to his cheek, keeping him in place so that he could keep up the molestation of
his ear.
"*Kus*-!" Kiku cries out loud at this and he squirms against the mattress when Ludwig's latches his lips around his ear and teases it
mercilessly.
lowers himself down on the other, letting him feel his arousal and feeling the other underneath him.
hisses at the touch, feeling a little disturbing at the hardening length against his own growing one. He pushes his arm against Ludwig's
chest, albeit a little halfheartedly. In his frazzled state of mind, he couldn't help but notice the impressive erection.
turns Kiku's head again, searching his lips for another kiss, grinding down on the other.
The sudden bucking of hips causes Kiku to gasp and almost instantly Ludwig's mouth was on his and his tongue slithers in.
explores the other's mouth, despite his drunkenness making sure that he didn't suffocate the other.
The strength in his arm falters a little and Kiku finds himself being swept aside by the onslaught of sensations. A muffled protest is
swallowed between them.
rolls his hips against the other, a low groan rumbling in the depth of his throat. He swept his tongue over the other's throat down to his
chest.
Another gasp is won and he throws his head back, gasping at the wet trail Ludwig's tongue was making down his neck and onto his chest. Upon
instinct, he shoves his arm against the German's chest when his mouth hovers over his nipple. "S-Stop!" he chokes out.
laps over the nipple in front of him before he looks up. "I don't think you want me to stop," he husked and let his hips roll again.
is taken aback by the lust in Ludwig's eyes and his face heats up when he groans at the delicious friction of their clothed erections.
"I don't want to stop... I want you," he said, no, drawled once again, pushing his hips down further.
The arm against Ludwig's chest gives away but it is replaced with his hand and Kiku curls his his fingers into the material of the man's
uniform, tugging it slightly in hidden want. He gasps once more and in spite of himself, he bucks up against Ludwig, his own erection
seeking for relief.
licks over his lips before he descends on Kiku's nipples, gracing his teeth over the small nubs, hand reaching down between their bodies to
cup the smaller erection pressing against him.
(( brb! doing laundry! ^^;; ))
(( hai~! ))
flinches at the touch and he squirms against it, embarassed yet inwardly pleased with the hand on his crotch. "Ruuduwiggu-san.." he gasps
softly, arching up into the touch. His mind reeling at the teeth against his chest.
softly, arching up into the touch. His mind reeling at the teeth against his chest.
feels how the other slowly melts under his hands, a triumphant smirk spreading over his lips that adds to the flush from the beer. He
squeezed the Japanese tightly, rolling his hips against his thigh so that he could get more friction himself.
He softly cursed at the squeeze and he bucks up into the hand once more, his back arching a little towards the man. He grits his teeth at
the sensation of Ludwig's hard sex against his leg and he growls a little, feeling an uncharacteristic sense of frustration rise in him.
decides this is enough "teasing" and pushes himself up, shifting a little so that he can pull Kiku's pants off, hungry to see the other
completely naked underneath him.
opens his eyes and sound of protest leaving his mouth as he tightens his grip on Ludwig's uniform. He glares at him, confused with why the
man was pulling away from him. He tries to move his legs a little but the chains around his ankles prevented him from doing so.
left*
"I'm not going anywhere," he reassured the other as he ran his hands over his back, just to have them sneak to his front again, reclaiming
his hold on the other's manhood.
His features relax at Ludwig's words and he gives in to the hands that sweep across his skin before they applied pressure against his front.
He trembled a little at this and he pulls Ludwig closer to him, pressing his lips against the other's.
kisses back, pouring emotion into the kiss that he could never express otherwise. Gently he coaxes the orther into full erectness before he
guided a much smaller hand to his crotch as well.
He moans into the kiss, parting his lips a little more to accomodate Ludwig's tongue as it explores his mouth. He feels his hand press
against the man's clothed erection and he moans once more as he curls his fingers against it, almost possessively. "Ruudu.."
smiles into the kiss and bucks into that hand, while his own crawls a bit lower, cupping and massaging Kiku's balls.
pulls out of the kiss and he throws his head back, gasping out loud when Ludwig fondles his sac, causing him to grab onto the man's arousal
harshly as he leans up to the touch, whimpering at the way it makes his skin tingle in pleasure.
hisses at the suddenly too tight hold onto him, but moans lowly in the back of his throat nevertheless, bucking a little harsher as he kept
curling his fingers into the other's soft skin.
His hold weakens with each passing moment as Ludwig continues to stroke him and he moans wantonly as he rocks his hips forward, wanting
more. Another foul curse falls past his lips and he reaches up to thread his fingers through the blonde hair.
chuckles softly, finger slipping lower as he searched for and found the other's hidden entrance. Gently he massaged the puckered entrance,
waiting for a sign to move on.
"Ah! Ruuduwiggu!" he cries out as he struggles to sit up in order to avoid the fingers that were rubbing such a private place.
pulls his hands away and starts to unbutton his already badly buttoned jacket and shirt.
stares up at him, his eyes hazed over with desire as he appraises the pink flush of Ludwig's skin. He licks his bruised lips, panting.
works off his pants as well, gently directing the other to lie back on the small bed.
blinks at him, a little slow with what Ludwig wanted since most of his blood had run southwards. After a gentle nudge to his side, Kiku
finally understands and in a series of sluggish movements he settles in the middle of the bed, moaning out Ludwig's name softly. The creak
of the bed was all he hears before Ludwig is above him, blue eyes gleaming. He reaches up to bury his fingers into the man's tousled hair
once more.
leans down to reclaim the Asian's lips, only breaking the kiss to offer the other his fingers, so that he can coat them with saliva.
stares at the fingers before he looks up at Ludwig inquiringly. "Wh..what is it?" he asks, voice slightly thick.
"Suck them," he husks, leaning in to nibble on the Japanese' ear again. "I don't have any lube with me."
His breath hitches upon the contact of teeth on his ear and complies to the other's request in his state of insensibility by parting his
lips and allowing those long fingers to slip through. His fingers curled against Ludwig's scalp as he slathers the digits with his saliva,
sucking on them like he would with the shaved ice of *kakigori*. He sucks particularly hard when Ludwig's tongue flickers across his ear.
"Oh yes, just like that," he husked, continuing the on the other's ear as he felt his erection twitch between the two of them.
Slipping his eyes closed as he tries to keep himself together, he traces his tongue up and down the fingers, lapping the wedges between
before he bobs his head a little, pushing the fingers in and out of his mouth, producing wet sloppy sounds.
"I think... I think that is enough," he mumbles, feeling like he is going to come quite soon.
His eyebrows pinched together at this suggestion but he releases the fingers with a 'fwah!' sound, a string of saliva snapping between them.
"Good... very good," he said and lowered his hand between the soft white legs, searching for the entrance again. Once found, he presses his
finger against the entrance and pushed it in, slowly, carefully, but steadily.
His eyes widened at this and Kiku tugs Ludwig's head towards his neck as his back arches up like a bow. He clamped hard on the finger,
denying it further entry. "Ruuduwiggu-! St-stop!" he chokes out, wincing at the alien feel.
"Sh," he husks, pressing kisses and little bites where ever he could reach. "Shh... Relax... it hurts more when you clamp down like this."
"B-But.." he stutters out, trying to even out his breathing as he lowers himself back on the bed, giving in to the attention on his neck.
"Relax... I know what I'm doing," he kept reassuring the other while he kept suckling on the other's neck.
tilts his face up a little, groaning a little as he submits to Ludwig, his muscles relaxing around the finger. "Un.."
"Better..." he mumbles, finger wriggling a bit to get further inside.
He tugs on Ludwig's hair, gasping at the intrusion but he wills himself to stay with the man until the finger is deep inside him.
pushes himself up to place kisses on the other's forehead. "It'll get better..." he mumbled, curling his finger slightly to look for a
certain spot.
Suddenly the tip of Ludwig's finger brushed against *something* and a strangled cry was torn from his throat, his body jerking up in
response. "R-Ruud-!"
smirked and kissed his face again, the finger prodding Kiku deeper.
gasped when the finger rubbed against that spot, over and over until Kiku was gasping out broken incoherent sentences.
waited until the other felt relaxed enough before he inserted another finger, repeating the movement over.
He felt the next finger slip in and he tugs on Ludwig's hair once more, hissing. He does his best to not clam his legs together though.
As it slips in and out of him, Kiku presses his head back against the mattress, panting and moaning softly. "Ruudu.." he calls hoarsely,
rolling his hips up to meet the thrusting of those fingers against that pleasure-inducing spot within him.
laps over his ear again as he keeps brushing against that spot, by now careful not to stimulate him too much, so that there's still some fun
left for him later.
cries out at the lick across his ear and he curses once more as the pads of Ludwig's fingers continue to prod against that spot. He growls a
little, lost in his arousal, and bucks up against the man, silently demanding for him to give attention to his neglected weeping sex.
holds himself up with one hand while the other is between Kiku's legs, and rubs himself against his thigh. Carefully he uses another finger
to widen the Asian's hole..
His fingers played with the tufts of blond hair at Ludwig's nape but his ministrations stop when he feels a *third* finger start to slip
into him. Turning his face away, he grits his teeth and swallow back a cry as he feels unbelievably *filled*.
moans as well when he feels the tightness of the other around his fingers and growled. He flexes his fingers a bit more before he feels
confident that he had widened the other enough and pulled out his fingers.
At withdrawal of those fingers, Kiku protests, grabbing onto the hair by Ludwig's nape possessively. "No," he growled and lifts his hips,
pressing his erection against Ludwig clothed one, acting on the desire to want *more*.
"I was not planning to fuck you with my fingers alone," he growls and works on the fly of his pants, pushing them down enough to free his
aching erection.
The comment flies over his head as he rolls his hips forth once more, a sluggish attempt to entice him back. However when Ludwig tugs his
his arousal free from its confines, Kiku felt his mind come to a standstill and he stares at its sheer size, wetting his dry lips. "Ruudu.."
spits into his hand to coat himself with it, repeats the movement until he feels confident with his slickness. "Relax," he warned as he
nudged Kiku's legs apart further.
(( ah, aren't his ankles still chained up ? owo; ))
(( ah, then, make that that he pulled him down and sat down between his legs to wrap those around his waist. ))
(( so it's like ludwig is between kiku's chained legs and so kiku would have to lift his hips to allow ludwig into him? ))
(( yeah, that or Ludwig is going to lift his hips for him. ))
(( okay cool ^w^ ))
blearily peers through his bangs as he watches Ludwig slicked his sex thoroughly and he flushes in embarrassment at how exposed he feels
with Ludwig between his legs after the man had looped them over himself so they rested around him. When Kiku shifted a little, he realised
he couldn't go anywhere, especially since his ankles were still bound behind Ludwig. He knits his brows together and he tensed when the
German shuffles closer and parts his legs as much as those chains allowed him to, the tip of his erected member nudging against him. He
visibly blanched at this, his heart pounding against his chest - both in excitement and trepidation.
"Hush... It won't hurt," he husked as he leaned in for another quick kiss, before one hand lifted the other's hips, the other hand guiding
himself against his widened entrance, pressing and pushing with a groan until the head of his erection was inside the other.
His eyes widened and Kiku's hands grabbed at Ludwig's shoulders, choking at the sudden stretch his muscles were forced to do in order to
accommodate Ludwig's size. Mustering up his willpower to get used to it, he tries his best to allow Ludwig deeper into him, biting his
bottom lip harshly until it bled. He fought back the sting in the back of his eyes as he breathed heavily through his nose. *He's huge*.
"Relax," he chanted and waited until he felt the muscles around him give way before he pushed in deeper, slowly, but steadily until he was
in as far as he could go.
listened to Ludwig and he did as he was told, easing up to the other as he pushed into him deeper, in spite of just how *uncomfortable* it
was. He held back the sounds by sinking his teeth deeper into the soft flesh of his lip, tasting the coppery tang of blood.
(( 1000th post, yay! ))
"Don't bite your lip either," he mumbled, prying Kiku's hands away to kiss the blood off his lips. He rolled his hips, trying to find the
perfect angle for hitting the other's prostate again.
(( Whoa! Congratulations to us! XD ))
(( yay~ 
))
))
flinches at the soft touch of Ludwig's lips across his pierced skin but the tongue which laps the blood calms him a little oddly enough and
he swallows back the lump in his constricted throat. He was about to reply to the man when Ludwig makes the first thrust into him and he
hissed at how unbelievably *weird* it felt. He grunts in discomfort as Ludwig's weight stifles him a little, especially since his hips were
being lifted. After a few awkward rocks, the head of the German's sex brushes against that spot his fingers had abused earlier and an
unmanly squeak is forced out of him. He looks up to stare at Ludwig, a little horrified with the triumphant look on the man's face. "What.."
smiled rather triumphantly at him, rolling his hips at that angle again. "It feels good, doesn't it?" he husked, suppressing a small moan.
He clamps around Ludwig when he prods against that spot once more and he gasped, clawing the mattress underneath him as if trying to find
his bearings. The jolt which sings up his spine was painful yet pleasurable, making his call out to Ludwig in a hoarse whisper.
him*
keeps moving, slowly prolonging his movements, the other's sounds being music in his ears.
Somewhere along the way, Kiku's hips had started to move on its own accord and he groans in pleasure as his spine tingles whenever they
meet, their heated skin slapping noisily against each other.
grunts, making pleasured sounds when he concentrates on his own pleasure. He steadies the other's hips with his hands, lifting them up a
little, soon letting out some pent-up frustration by slamming into the other. He cursed ad moaned, knowing that this wouldn't last too long.
His back arches in pleasure and his cock twitches between them as it rubs against Ludwig's lean stomach. It was maddening, his ache for
relief and he moaned a few incoherent words to Ludwig, bucking up enthusiastically as his nails dig into the mattress. "Ruudu...please.."
grunts, thinking that he is complying to the other's request by lifting one of this hands to wrap around the Asian's smaller erection,
tugging on it harshly.
makes an appreciative sound at this and he flashes Ludwig a rare, delighted grin. He rocks up harder against the man, gasping in pleasure.
grunts when the tunnel around him tightens again, tugging a littler harder as he slammed in harder. His thumb pressed to the head of the
other's erection.
cries out loud at the prodding against his sensitive head. His body jerked under Ludwig and he reaches up to pull man into an awkward kiss
hoping to distract himself from the gradual tightening of the coil deep within him. He wasn't sure how long he can hold on.
grunts into the kiss, feeling the chains clatter as the angle is changed and he tugs harshly on the other.
moans into kiss and he feels as if Ludwig had moved even deeper into him.
comes after a few more thrusts, grunting as he comes deeply inside the other, all the while keeping up his tugs on the other.
The sudden twitch within him and a final mind-reeling thrust was Kiku gets before he feels Ludwig release himself deep within him. Kiku
pulls out of the kiss and he throws his head back to release a sharp cry as he clamps around the other to keep him as deeply buried within
him. It was long after a few tugs that Kiku also comes, his hot white sticky essence splattering up his chest. He shudders violently before
he flops back against his mattress, feeling utterly boneless yet incredibly sated as he pants harshly, gasping for air.
flops down with another moan, panting heavily as his much larger frame covers up the smaller asian, uncaring if the sticky liquid between
them was starting to get annoying.
grunts when Ludwig's weight crashes on him but he pays no mind to this. He was far too sated as he tries to even out their breathing as he
comes down from his high. He moans softly as he feels Ludwig soften inside him but he clamps on tightly to keep him inside.
moans softly but it turns more into a sigh as his eyes fall shut. He hugs him loosely, breathing slowing down after a while.
"Ruudu-san.." he murmurs softly as he nuzzles into the man's hair, taking in the distinctive scent of the other.
"...Kiku...." he mumbles, sound like he was about to fall asleep.
hummed lazily at this as he too was starting to teeter off to sleep. The cell was silent save for their breathing and the clink of chains as
Kiku shifts his legs a little before he sighs and succumbs to sleep.
knows somewhere in the back of his mind that he should leave before the guard comes in during the day and pushes himself up after Kiku had
fallen asleep, pressing another kiss to his forehead before he dressed again, tidied the JApanese up as well, cleaning him as well as he
could and redressed him. He tucked him in carefully before swayed out of the cell and into his own room.
When Kiku woke up the next day, he felt strangely rejuvenated. He felt a little uncomfortable after the unexpected tryst last night but it
was shower day and he took one quietly, glad that he was alone save for the guard standing outside. He blushed whenever a dull throb of his
rear strikes him and he quickly cleaned himself, a little horrified with the faint bruises on his hips where Ludwig had held tight. For the
rest of the day, he sat on his bed reading Grimm, although this hadn't done a good job of distracting him.
comes to visit the Asian the following evening, nowhere near as energetically as usual, no, this time he is rather shy. "Kiku. How are you?"
looks up from his book and he shifts on his bed a little, wincing when the pain sears up his ass. "Ah, Ruuduwiggu-san..I'm..I'm fine." He
watches the way the man walks in, avoiding his eyes just as Kiku was avoiding his. "Um..what..what about you, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"I'm fine, a little... hung-over, so to say," he explained, sitting down rather awkwardly on the chair in the room.
"Ah..yes..you were..you had drunk quite a.." he draws circles with his finger on the cover of Grimm before he wets his lips in awkwardness.
He could feel the small scar on his bottom lip from the harsh bite he had done to himself the night before.
"Y-yes... I had," he admitted with a sigh, feeling extremely awkward. "If... I did something to hurt you... I'm sorry."
He waves his hands before him. "N-No, you haven't! It's-um-well-*sono*-*ma, sakuya wa*.." he trails off, blushing.
sighs. "It does hurt, doesn't it?" he asks, clenching his fists, head lowered. "I apologize sincerely for forcing myself onto you."
"I.." Kiku thinks for a moment. This was the first time he was dealing something like this and he wasn't sure how to act on it. Yes it did
hurt and he was sort of forced into it but he didn't feel betrayed at all. "Please do not worry about it Ruuduwiggu-san," he gently says.
"Why... I... I feel..." It was hard to explain, he didn't feel exactly sorry for it, just bad that it had happened in such a way.
"Um, well.." he knits his brows in thought, groping around for the right words. "I..it's a little strange but..I don't think you have done
something to hurt me." He wasn't sure if Ludwig would understand what he was saying but that was the best way for him to say it for now.
"...Have I not?" he asked, incredulous. Surely, if this man wanted to take his life for being captured during the war, being... used by
another male must make him want to throw himself off the next cliff or something. SO this revelation came as a suprise.
shakes his head. "Because I do not believe Ruuduwiggu-san would do something to intentionally hurt me," he allows himself to say this as he
looks at the man in the eye.
raises an eyebrow, but he has to look away after a while, embarrassed to his bones, even moreso than before. "..I don't deserve that trust."
purses his lips a little and closes the book in his lap. "Someone has once told me that 'a little trust is always good'..
perhaps that someone should think on these words and act on them as well?" he says with a small smile.
snorts softly. "I don't trust myself when I'm drunk. I'm sorry you had to see that side of me," he clarifies. "I'm... glad that you are well
though."
"Please don't worry about me," he reassures once more with a soft chuckle. "Although..please excuse me for my intrusiveness, but..may I ask
what the occasion was?" He decided to steer away to another topic to ease off the awkwardness between them.
"For drinking?" he snorts. "Something as mundane as somebody's wife gave birth to a baby. Which resulted in a discussion about my non-
existing wife and me trying to steer around the topic at all. Apparently I had a few too many beers while I tried to avoid the topic."
"Eh~ *so desu ka*..Nipponjin would also celebrate such events with beer as well," he adds before he raises an eyebrow. "Why did you 'steer
around' your nonexistent wife?" he couldn't help but ask in curiosity.
"Because I don't have one and... probably won't have one in the future. I'm one in every 1000, one who has absolutely no interest in the
fair sex," he sighed.
blinks at this and he takes his time to decipher the meaning behind Ludwig's words. So he would remain single for the rest of his life?
"Won't it be a lonely?" he blurts out this question much faster than he could think.
"...Probably," he sighs. "I don't expect finding someone to share..." He frowned before he continued. "In any way it will be hard to keep
the truth hidden, so it's better being alone."
simply nods at this, not really knowing what to reply back to this statement. Ever since his mother died shortly after he began fighting in
the war, the thought of coming back to 'someone' had never crossed his mind. He wasn't sure what to expect after the end of this war. His
initial route had been death, since he believed he should pass on to the next life but ever since Ludwig intercepted this decision.. He
frowned in thought. "Huh..perhaps I would be alone as well."
feels his brow twitch into an incredulous stare, but snorts softly, "I think a lot of... wait..."
He looks up at him, catching the odd expression on his face. "Hm? What is it?"
"Nothing," he sighs. He wasn't made for relationships, he knew it.
With his interest piqued, Kiku wasn't satisfied with Ludwig suddenly dismissing the subject. He leans a little closer. "What is it?"
"I... no. It's nothing important. How did you find the fairy tales?" he asked, trying to change the topic again.
narrows his eyes, giving him a look which would hopefully coax an answer out of the man. "It was good. I'm almost towards the end of the
book, actually. I am true to my word after all. Please tell me what is on your mind Ruuduwiggu-san," he says without batting an eye.
"Did you like the stories so far?" he asked, wondering if he could get away with simply ignoring the question.
"They were all very intriguing, a little disturbing and dark but I really enjoyed them all. Especially the story of Rumperusuteirisukin," he
answered, almost mechanically but that deter him from going back to his initial question. "What were you thinking of Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"Rumpelstilzchen, huh?" he asked, snorting softly. "If you think about it, he's a pretty pitiable person, isn't he?"
nods in agreement. "*Kawai sou*. And a little lonely perhaps. Aside from that, please tell me what you were thinking of, Ruuduwiggu-san."
"...No.Even..If I would be delighted to have you by my side, I could not live with the word going around my back due to it," he said firmly,
revealing half of the process that had gone on in the back of his mind, imagining him in a relationship with Kiku (or any other) and the
pessimistic outcome that he predicted due to circumstances and cultural prejudices.
blinks at this and he tries to process the words which Ludwig had presented him with, looking a little puzzled. "Around your back..?"
"...Behind my back, rumors spreading... I'm not confident enough for this."
Ah. Of course. To stay with another man was controversial of course, but for a man of such rank like Ludwig would make it even more
scandalous. Especially since he was - Kiku stopped that train of thought, backtracked a few steps into their conversation before he stared
at Ludwig, blinking stupidly at him. "..forgive me Ruuduwiggu-san, please correct me if I'm wrong, but had you just mentioned that you'd
like it if I had stayed by your side..?" Now that the words left his mouth, it tasted even stranger than before. Could it be..that Ludwig
had fallen for *him*?
blushes faintly. "I did say that."
blinks a few more times and when those words finally sink in, a furious blush erupts across his face. Like a light bulb blowing out, all the
thoughts that were sprouting up in his mind had just died off and he simply sat there, utterly nonplussed as his cheeks redden a tenfold.
"I... must admit, when I offered you to stay as my... assistant, translator... right hand after this is over, it wasn't exactly unselfish."
traces his finger on the book in his lap, as a mild distraction to the thoughts which suddenly started screaming through his mind. "I.." he
started off intelligently. "Um..that is..well.." He couldn't even sum up a proper reply because he was downright stunned.
"...Forget it about it please," he sighed, running a hand through his hair.
clamps his mouth shut and he stares at his fingers which were splayed across the cover of the book. He couldn't forget it, he didn't want to
forget it. Why was Ludwig dismissing the matter so easily? Had the man assumed that he didn't understand, that he didn't care, that he
didn't - Ludwig was-! "I like you," he said. The words were quiet but they had a sound clarity to them.
blinks, stares and realizes that he held his breath after a while. His hand moves from his neck to cover his mouth, cheeks coloring up
uncomfortably. "I... I... Thanks," he sighed.
simply hunches his shoulders a little, his hands fidgeting as he gives a small nod in reply. His cheeks were still red.
is probably just as red, awkwardly rubbing his chin as he wondered what to do now.
When Ludwig sits there, looking at a loss, Kiku searches for something creative in his mind. It was starting to become really awkward now
and after some wild thinking, he picks up Grimm and shoves it under Ludwig's nose. "I-I'd like to hear you read something in German!"
blinks, staring at the other. "What? ... I mean, really?"
nods enthusiastically at this. "Please do!"
"Uh... Okay... Which one do you want me to read?" he asks, holding out his hand for the book.
He hands the book over and he knits his eyebrows in thought for a moment before his eyes lit up. "The Brave Little Tailor."
"Oh, that one, okay," he smiled and took the book flipping through the pages until he found the page.
settles himself comfortably on the bed and he curls his legs by his side, a small smile on his lips as he waits patiently for the German.
"An einem Sommermorgen saß ein Schneiderlein auf seinem Tisch am Fenster, war guter Dinge, und nähte aus Leibeskräften," he read, focussing
on the text before him instead of the myriads of thoughts running through his head.
watches on, intrigued by the variety of exotic sounds which fluidly rolled off Ludwig's tongue. He pays particular attention to the man's
mouth, carefully taking in the shaping of those lips, the flicker of his teeth in the dim lighting, the bobbing of his Adam's apple as he
swallows...it was like meeting an entirely different person, only that he wasn't. "*Sugoi*.." he couldn't help but murmur.
"'Als es abzog und zählte,' ...Excuse me?" he asked, having heard that sound Kiku had made.
blinks and he looks up, finding himself meeting the other's inquisitive look. "Eh? Ah, please don't mind me!" he says sheepishly.
"No, er, what did you say just now?" he asked, feeling a little weird switching between all these languages.
"Um, well, I just said 'amazing'," he slowly replied, feeling his cheeks warm.
"Oh... okay. Why?" he asked, a little surprised and embarrassed still.
"Why?" For some odd reason, a short bark of laughter escaped from Kiku at this and he had to stifle it behind his sleeve. With a chuckle, he
simply replies: "Well, because it is. You speak your language very beautifully, Ruuduwiggu-san."
snorts softly, breaking out into a crooked smile. "I just... speak it like I always do. Well, no, that's not true, it's a bit different
because I'm reading a story like this..." And he had been exaggerating some expressions more than others to put emphasis on them.
leans forward a little, a cryptic smile stretching across his lips. "Nevertheless, it is still beautiful. *Totemo suteki desu yo*."
frowns a little, thinking that he had heard that phrase somewhere else before, that it had some meaning that he should remember, but he
couldn't. "...What... was that? That certainly wasn't close to what you said before."
"Ah, this is another phrase. I've used another word here. *Suteki*. It generally means lovely, I think. I'm sorry about that," he apologised
as he scratched his cheek.
"...Is that so," he noted, chuckling a bit. "So my reading to you is 'lovely', huh?"
smiles at this. "Apparently so. It's strange, Ruuduwiggu-san. I used to think that your language was too harsh to my ears but listening to
you read, it's soothing."
chuckles. "Yeah, I was told that German sounds like you are cursing all the time, but... well, I think Russian is worse," he admitted. "I'm
glad you like it though..."
boldly shuffles forward a little, until his knees almost touched Ludwig's. "Ah, forgive me for interrupting your reading. Please, carry on."
blinks at the almost touch and blushes before he kept on reading. "Um... 'Als es abzog und zählte, so lagen nicht weniger als sieben vor ihm
todt, und streckten die Beine.'"
slips his eyes closed and he sat there listening to Ludwig's voice as he read on, a soft smile on his lips. Ludwig sounded really good..
"Das Schneiderlein zog weiter, immer seiner spitzen Nase nach. Nachdem es lange gewandert war, kam es in den Hof eines königlichen Pallastes
, und da es müde war, so legte es sich ins Gras, und schlief ein," he continued reading, clearing his throat after a while since it had
gotten a little dry.
tilts his head to side a little to hear Ludwig better and the soothing quality of his deep voice sent a small shudder down his spine.
gets a little insecure towards the end after he had been able to read the story out more for himself.
When Ludwig had trailed (has the story ended?), Kiku opens his eyes and he looks up and he finds Ludwig looking down at him. It was only
then did Kiku realised he had leaned in a little too close and their knees were touching. He blushes. When..?
"...'und keiner wollte sich mehr an ihn wagen. Also war und blieb das Schneiderlein sein Lebtag ein König.' The end," he mumbled, unable to
comment on the other's proximity.
wets his lips as he peers up into Ludwig's eyes. "..you read very well," he says a little lamely, voice thick.
"...Thank you... Though I believe you already said that," he said, trying to lighten the suddenly very thick mood a little.
"Ah..is that so..forgive me for being absentminded, Ruuduwiggu-san..." he murmured, eyes still locked with the other's. "..it's the truth."
cleared his throat again, absentmindedly licking his lips to moisten them and stimulate the saliva-production.
mimics Ludwig and he wets his lips as well, thinking of what to do now since the awkward atmosphere was back once more.
continues to worry his lip as he leans back in the chair, handing the book back.
blinks at the book and he accepts it. "Thank you," he said unthinkingly as he places it on his lap, caressing the cover a little. ..Now
what?
Exactly. Now what. "Um..." he started, rubbing the back of his head.
"Ah.." Kiku sets the book aside. "In exchange for your reading, w-would you like me to show you something? Um, do you think you might have
any spare paper?" he asked a little shyly.
"Uh, I don't have any with me, I'm afraid," he answers, even though he is curious, so he starts rummaging through his pockets, producing an
old, pointless and crinkled piece of paper.
"That will do," he says with a smile. "..is it..alright if I use it, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
nods as he hands it over. "Of course, I don't need it anyway. I'm sorry it... looks like this."
"*Kore wa daijoubu desu yo*," he reassures and he takes the paper. Using Grimm as a platform, he smoothens it down a few times before he
starts to fold. He notices Ludwig's curious gaze but he pays it no heed for the moment as he makes more folds over the previous folds,
flipping the paper over a few times as he folds and unfolds various flaps here and there. It was a little awkward since the paper was
crinkled but after stubbornly smoothing it, he managed to get the paper to work. A final flip over and he pulls two folds apart and the
shape of crane is born from it. Smiling at his handiwork, he holds it up and shows it Ludwig. "It's a crane."
"Wonderful," he praises, unable to remember half of the steps necessary. "Can I hold it?" he asked, afraid that he would destroy the fragile
looking object.
"Of course you can," he hands the crane to Ludwig, amused with the fascination in his eyes.
takes the paper bird into his hands and turns it to all sides. "Amazing. You must show me how to do this."
"If you would like, but you would need get some more paper for practice.." he said. "We call this art *origami*."
"Ohrikami?" he repeatedly stupidly, while he still examined the paper crane, then snortted softly. "We have a similar art, too," he said,
searching his pockets for another piece of paper. He found a very small one an quickly folded it into a boat. "There. Not as pretty, but it
It's a boat."
nods. "*Origami*..eh?" he perks up at this information. "You also have *origami* in your culture?"
"Well, not under this name, but... Well. I used to make those kinds of boats from papers... That I didn't use to write my homework on."
laughs at this. "Is that so? Eh~ *omoshiroi*..my mother taught me how to fold. I didn't really enjoy it when I was a child but after folding
it for you Ruuduwiggu-san...I'm glad I've learned how to."
"Really? It looked so easy when you did it," he mumbled, picking up the crane again.
"Well, it takes a lot of practice. Since I am an only child, my mother makes sure I master this and a few other things.." he replies, a
small fond smile on his lips.
"A few other things?" he prods, curiosity peaked now.
"Ah.." Kiku's cheeks warm at this and he silently chastised himself for talking too much. "Yes, a few things but they're not particular
*particularly useful so it isn't that interesting.." he tries to swing around the subject to move to a new one.
"Not particularly interesting?" he snorted softly, interest peaked. "What kind of things were these then?"
"Folded paper?" Kiku replies, feeling a little embarrassed.
"Only that?" he prods more.
"..paper shaped into different things.." he finishes lamely when Ludwig keeps looking at him.
"...I don't think you are telling the truth," he says, smirking slightly. "What's so embarrassing about it?"
frowns a little at the smirk that was cast at him. "..it's nothing spectacular."
"Then why is it embarrassing?"
"Because it's not very spectacular. If you are really curious, my mother made sure I was skilled with house-keeping.." he finally admits,
his cheeks reddening immensely. "..please do not tell anyone of this." It was embarrassing enough for Ludwig to know, he didn't know how he
would live if everyone else did. He understood what Ludwig meant about that matter with *chiyokore-to* now...
"Is that so? That is very useful though," he said. "It's... not really something to be embarrassed about to be good at cooking."
At the mention of cooking, Kiku hunches his shoulders and he pursed his lips. He fought the urge to hide his face then. "I cannot help but
wonder if my mother had wished for me to be a girl," he mumbled.
blinks, frowns a little and puts a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It doesn't matter. You've grown into a fine man."
"This body is too thin and frail for a man. Even though I've studied hard and push myself to do all of the harsh training in the military..
it's still not *enough*," Kiku said with a sigh.
*frustrated sigh
"Your body is not frail," he says, blushing a bit.
"What makes you so.." Kiku trails off, noticing the blush on Ludwig's face. Almost instantly, his own face turns crimson.
"It's lean and very durable, I bet you have more stamina than half of my men," he admitted.
The compliment from Ludwig makes him feel self conscious and he fidgets a little in his seat. "I..thank you, Ruuduwiggu-san."
"Don't thank me, it's the truth," he shook his head. "You should have more self-confidence."
could only nod at this. Hearing Ludwig praise him like this was..nice. There was no familiar trace of the contempt he was used to, it was
pure and honest from Ludwig's end. The words felt good. Kiku smiled and he gestured to the crane in Ludwig's hands. "You know in Nippon,
we have a belief called *senbatsuru*. If you fold one thousand cranes, your wish will come true. It's also used to bring good luck."
"Oh really? You have quite some interesting believes," he said. "What would you wish for?"
blinks, taken aback from the sudden question. "For Nippon to continue to prosper."
"...Ah, yes... Well, to be honest, I was hoping you'd wish for something more... selfish," he confesses. "I... I know what I'd wish for."
"A selfish wish..hm.." he thinks for a moment but he decides to not answer this first. "What will you wish for, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"I'd wish I wouldn't have to hide myself from society's eye," he says quickly, but surely.
stares at him, trying to catch the rush of words. "That is..a wise wish," he agrees with a nod of his head.
rubs his cheek a little. "Yeah... It won't happen in a thousand years though."
"Times change. Perhaps society will as well," he says reflecting on how much Nippon has as of late.
"Maybe. But it will take a long time and I will probably not be able to see those times," he sighed.
"Then..in the next life.." he replies as he picks up the crane and places it on Ludwig's head. "We would meet in better circumstances."
looks a little confused as the crane is placed on his head. "The next life?"
"I... don't believe in that. I believe that if you die, you will end up in either heaven, or my case, hell."
"We believe that if you are not blessed in this life, perhaps the next will be better. If not the next, the one after or the one after it.."
Kiku tilts his head. "Why do you think you are going to hell?"
"'Thou shalt not kill,' and 'thou shalt not lie with men as you do with women,' are two of the main rules that I broke. I don't think He
will bless me with forgiveness," Ludwig sighed. "I'm not even really religious."
"War is an exception is it not?" he frowns, blushing at the mention of the second rule before he grabs Ludwig's hand. "Then, let's go to
hell together."
flinches slightly, but doesn't take his hand away, instead he sighs. "I would like that..."
His lips quirked into a smile. "That's good..I'm glad.."
turns his hand and entwines his fingers with Kiku's. "...this... will not end well," he mumbled. "It's too much like Romeo&Juliet."
feels his heart quicken when Ludwig laces their fingers together. "*Romio*?"
"It's... oh, it's an English play about an old Italian story about a pair of lovers whose families were at war... And in the end they killed
each other... I'm sure you heard of Shakespeare?" he asked.
"*Shiyakusupia*..I think I've heard of this name but I don't recall reading his stories.." he watches their joint hands. "What a tragic
story..but I think they will see each other after death."
"It's... a basic story, you see those kinds of stories a lot these days, but it's always the drama that makes it more popular," he sighs,
squeezing Kiku's hand as he thinks about it.
"Hm..*dorama*..perhaps this story might happen in Nippon as well.." he said, almost absentmindedly as he rubs his thumb shyly across the
back of the other's hand.
"It probably did," he sighed, resting his cheek on his other hand. "It's a story that happens everywhere... at any time, because there are
always families at war...."
"Mm..is your family at war as well Ruuduwiggu-san?" he asked, catching the crane which toppled off Ludwig's head before he placed it on his
lap.
"My brother is the only one still alive, yes," he admitted with a small yawn.
notices the yawn and he wonders how long they've been talking. "Are you tired, Ruuduwiggu-san?"
"A bit, yes," he mumbled, squeezing the other's hand.
"Perhaps you should retire for the night," he said as he squeezed in return. "I don't want you to get into trouble for not performing your
duties well."
nods. "I should," he sighed, but looked reluctant to let go of the other's hand.
chuckled at this. "I won't be going anywhere now, Ruuduwiggu-san," he reassured.
"That... is true," he gave back, albeit a little sheepishly.
"*Sa*, get some rest now. Shall I see you tomorrow?" he asked a little awkwardly. He wanted to see Ludwig early but he didn't want to
want the man to neglect or rush his duties just so they could see each other.
"I'll come over when I have time," he nodded, but also sighed, still reluctant to leave this warm place. He pushed himself up on his feet,
fingers still interlaced and hesitated, wondering if he should or could get a good-bye kiss.
looks up at him, his lips quirked up in amusement. Upon seeing how reluctant Ludwig was to leave him, he tilts his head up and shyly offers
his lips with a small blush.
leans in quickly and catches the other's lips before he lets go and straightens again. "I'll see you tomorrow."
nods, a little astonished with the kiss that was given to him
nods, a little astonished with the kiss that was given to him. "I look forward to it, Ruuduwiggu-san.."
"Good Night," he said and left.
(( Theoretically, in every good story it would end up with Ludwig never returning. But I haven't plotted that far. ))
(( Yes it would and it would be tragic. ;w; I just got back to my dorms. Sorry I didn't reply earlier - phone died ;A; ))
(( No problem, I disappeared as well. ^^;; ))
(( Yes, yes and yes. I'm not sure if I can (or want to) do that. ))
(( ;w; Do you want to continue this to a new thread? It's starting to load rather slowly now ;w; ))
(( Yeah, we should. ^^; ))
(( I should, huh? ))
(( If you'd like to. Or should I? ))
(( I don't either. ))
(( Alright, I'll start. ^w^ ))
(( ok~ ))