Chapter Text
A day before his death day, Gilbert did the same thing like how his little bruder, Ludwig did–hiding in his house
Gilbert frantically knocked on Ludwig’s door as his death day was tomorrow. “West!” he yelped. “Let me in!” he kept frantically knocking–knowing that he couldn’t see his bruder when he died anymore.
Ludwig, who was sitting on the couch, reading his book–heard his frantic knocking, went to the door and opened it to see a trembling Gilbert. “Big Bruder?” Ludwig questioned, “Was are you doing here?” he asked again “Ah! West! I’m glad you answered!” Gilbert exclaimed as he suddenly pulled Ludwig into a tight hug.
“E-eh?! Bruder? What's the sudden hug?!” Ludwig exclaimed
“Oh, West, you don’t get it!” Gilbert cried. “I’m gonna disappear in a few days and I’m not gonna see you anymore!”
Ludwig frowned immediately, sharp and offended, as if Gilbert had just insulted his uniform.
“Unsinn,” he snapped. “You are standing right here. You are speaking. Therefore, you are not ‘disappearing’”
Gilbert laughed–too loud, too quick. “Man, you always do that. Logic this, logic that.” He waved a hand dismissively, though his grin didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Some things don’t listen to logic you know.”
Ludwig crossed his arms. “If you are attempting humor, it is ineffective.”
“Tch. Figures.” Gilbert leaned back against the table, boots hooked around the chair legs like he had nowhere else to go. “Just–listen for once, yeah?”
“I am listening,” Ludwig said, Instantly. That seemed to catch Gilbert off guard
For a second, the room felt oddly still. The house creaked softly, settling into itself, as old houses did. Ludwig did not notice how no shadow followed Gilbert’s movements, how the light passed through him just a fraction too cleanly.
“You remember dissolution,” Gilbert said, voice lower now. Casual, but careful “What happens when a nation stops…being needed.”
Ludwig stiffened. “That does not apply to you.”
“Doesn’t it?” Gilbert tilted his head. “No territory. No people. No seat at the table. Sounds pretty textbook to me.”
“You are Prussia,” Ludwig said firmly. “You always were.”
“Was,” Gilbert echoed, softer.
Ludwig stepped forward, “You are here. That is enough.”
Gilbert stared at him for a long moment. Then he snorted. “Man, you’re stubborn. Guess that’s my fault, huh?”
He reached out–Instinctive, brotherly–and clapped a hand on Ludwig’s shoulder.
Ludwig felt it. Solid. Familiar.
See? his mind insisted. Proof.
Gilbert pulled back, grin back in place. “Relax, West. I ain’t goin’ anywhere today.”
“...Good,” Ludwig said after a beat
Gilbert turned away then, gaze drifting toward the window. Outside, the sky was dark, Indicating it was at night time
“Oh yeah, what time is it?” Gilbert asked
“10 PM, why?” Ludwig responded
“I thought we were supposed to be asleep-”
“AH, shit. I forgot about that. Come on now. you can stay here.”
“Danke!” Gilbert responded
“Gern geschehen.” Ludwig responded back.
Little did Ludwig know, Gilbert lied about his death day being near, It turns out his death day was tomorrow, but Ludwig had no clue as he trusted Gilbert too much.
Around 0:05 AM, Gilbert felt really uneasy and sick–so he snuck to the bathroom to not wake Ludwig up. He successfully reached the bathroom, he looked into the mirror–just for him to find out that he was dissolving.
Gilbert was stunned.
He brushed his dissolving cheek in shock–knowing that he couldn’t see Ludwig anymore
Unfortunately–Roderich was also awake at that time. He was just about to get milk from the fridge when he saw a source of light coming from the bathroom.
“Who are you?!” Roderich shouted as he went to the bathroom and hesitantly opened it–only to discover a dissolving Gilbert in there.
“R-Roderich?!” Gilbert exclaimed as he was caught red-handed to be dissolving. “Y-you weren’t supposed to see this-!” “Oh, I see it now, motherfucker.” Roderich cuts Gilbert as he almost finished his sentence
“D-Don’t tell him though!” Gilbert pleaded as he dissolved into ashes. Roderich–for the first time–was actually stunned at the sight before him.
“Oh crap. What should I do?!” Roderich whispered as he panicked. Then an idea suddenly came up into his mind–Though, it will kind of risk him.
He gathered his ashes with his trembling hands and put them in his secret urn that he hid under his bed. He sealed the urn shut and hid them under his bed
Gilbert’s ghostly form made him look solid–but he isn’t. He crept up back into the bed where he and Ludwig were sleeping.
The mattress did not dip beneath his weight.
That alone should have been enough to wake Ludwig.
Gilbert lay on his side, facing him, propping his head up on one arm out of old habit. Ludwig slept rigidly, as always—on his back, hands folded neatly over his chest, brow faintly furrowed even in rest. He looked younger like this. Less like a nation. More like the boy Gilbert remembered raising.
“Still sleep like a corpse,” Gilbert muttered softly, though there was no bite in it.
He reached out, fingers hovering just above Ludwig’s shoulder. For a moment, instinct urged him to shake him awake, to complain about the cold, to demand coffee like he used to.
His hand passed through.
Gilbert froze.
He stared at his fingers, half-expecting resistance that never came. Slowly, he pulled his hand back, clenching it into a fist. The sensation—or lack of it—settled heavy in his chest.
“…Right,” he murmured. “That.”
Ludwig shifted slightly in his sleep, lips parting as he exhaled. His breath fogged faintly in the cold room. Gilbert watched it rise and fall, steady and real.
“You’re still here,” Gilbert whispered. “That’s good. That’s enough.”
He lay closer, aligning himself beside Ludwig out of muscle memory more than reason. Their shoulders overlapped, one solid, one illusion. If Ludwig noticed the chill that crept into his dreams, he did not wake.
Gilbert closed his eyes.
Sleep did not come—ghosts did not need it—but he stayed there anyway, counting breaths like he used to count borders, time slipping past unnoticed.
“Don’t wake up,” he muttered under his breath. “Not yet.”
Outside, the wind brushed against the house, slipping through cracks in the old walls. The sound carried through the room, low and hollow, like a warning no one wanted to hear.
When morning came, Ludwig would wake alone.
But for now, the night remained kind enough to pretend.