Gilbert gasped softly as the warm sunlight covered his pale body in its bright rays. He raised a blood stained hand to shield his eyes from the light, squinting as he took it all in. There was a dirt path that cut through the seas of green grass that drifted like waves in the wind. That was another new thing, the wind. It's soft, gentle caress pushed through Gilbert's silver hair like a gentle stroke of another persons hand. The air was fresher and everything seemed more alive. The albino spun around to stare at the walls that loomed over him and Ivan, casting a shadow over the village that sat in its interior.

"Do the walls still give you a sense of comfort?" Ivan's soft voice pulled his gaze to the taller male who had remained silent as he took in this new world.

"I don't know... they seem much more ominous and scary now that I no longer am inside of them, but it could also be because I don't feel as safe as I used to. I don't know what's out here. All my life I have been told that everything beyond the walls is dangerous, and that there are criminals that lurk about because they could not stay inside with the rest of the villagers." Gilbert nervously fidgeted in his spot beside Ivan, becoming uncomfortable in his presence.

"I am not going to hurt you. If I wanted to hurt you I would have done it inside the walls instead of risking my life to get you outside of them where you would be safe. Come on, we should get your arm bandaged up so you don't pass out from blood loss." He gently placed a hand on Gilbert's shoulder and guided him to the dirt path. The dust kicked up around his feet, illuminated by the sun that seemed much too high for early morning. The world was way too bright for this time of day and it confused Gilbert who turned back to Ivan with a frown.

"How come everything is so much brighter?"

Ivan gave him a look that clearly said he thought the pale man's question was stupid, but he answered him anyways. "Because there are no walls to block the sun from touching the ground directly. It takes a very long time for the sun to rise above those high walls and give the village inside its borders light. Here day lasts much longer than it does there, and the nights are shorter as well. You will have to adjust to it, but you will be fine." They walked in silence after that, Gilbert brushing his fingers through the waist high grass so it swooshed and swayed as he passed. The world outside the walls was very similar to that of the one inside, but the minor details took Gilbert's breath away. There were plants and animals he had never seen before. A large caramel-colored animal with a long snout, almost like that of a dog's, looked up with large startled black eyes when they came too close. It turned and ran through the grass, prancing with an elegance that left Gilbert watching in wonder.

"It's called a deer. The people in the walls hunted them to extinction long before you or I were born, but out here there are still plenty of them. There used to be pine trees there too.." Ivan pointed to a large green tree covered in branches that made it look almost like a circular triangle. "but they were all chopped down and used to build houses and supply wood for the fires in your homes. Eventually they will run out of trees to chop down for fuel and they will be left with the decision of leaving the walls or start to destroy homes so they can create heat in the winter. The walls are stupid, and people knew that when they created them, but I guess everyone has forgotten..."

Gilbert stared at Ivan, curiosity getting the best of him. "What do you mean when the walls were built? We were always told that the walls have always been there and that they are the only reason why are safe and alive. There was a time when there weren't any walls?" Ivan's violet orbs shifted down to look at Gilbert as if he was trying to decide whether or not he should try and explain any of this to the albino.

"I will explain it with time. If I throw a bunch of information at you at once then I'm sure you will never fully understand. It will be just words from a stranger that you will not like to hear or want to understand. Once you have less loyalty to the walls and those inside of them, then I can explain all of this to you. Just know that you are not some ordinary person, you are very important and people will want to use you. They want to keep you and everyone else in the dark."

"What? Ivan that doesn't make sense! Can't you just give me a straightforward answer?" When the other male didn't reply he huffed and plopped down onto the path, crossing his arms over his chest with a slight wince since his arm was still very much injured. "I am not going anywhere until you explain this stuff to me!"

Ivan gave him a blank look and easily picked him up, carrying Gilbert over his shoulder like he weighed nothing. "You're very stubborn you know that?"

"It's one of my more awesome traits. Now put me down!" He whined, trying to wiggle out of his grasp, but a small whimper of pain fell from his lips when he put too much strain on his injured arm.

"Stop moving so much, alright? I am not putting you down. We are almost to town, and once we get there I can bandage you up and maybe answer some of your questions. For now you just have to trust me." Gilbert glared at the ground that passed under Ivan's feet as he walked, staring at the soft indents in the dirt. There really wasn't anything he could do other than just let Ivan carry him and sit back and enjoy the ride. Try to at least. The faint sound of voices, laughter, animals, and many other noises slowly started to filter up to the two males as Ivan slowly started to descend down a hill, being careful not to go too fast in case he were to bounce too much and hurt Gilbert. The albino had other plans as he once again started to wriggle around in his grasp, trying to see the town that Ivan had mentioned.

"Put me down, Ivan! I won't run off or anything! I don't want to be carried around like some child!" He complained, a soft noise of exclamation breaking through the peaceful sounds of civilization when Gilbert was dropped to the ground unceremoniously. Luckily it seemed no one, but Ivan of course, had heard him. The other male was chuckling softly into his faded scarf, trying to hide a small smirk into the material. "Jerk." Gilbert grumbled, scrambling to his feet. Ivan just laughed and led him down into what appeared to be the market section of the town. There were vendors and small shops everywhere. A few pubs were buzzing with laughter of drunk men and women, and the doors to Inns were wide open so anyone could walk in and book a room. Ivan kept Gilbert close, carefully weaving his big body through the throngs of people until made it to the end of the street. He walked into a worn down Inn, nodding at the caretaker as he made his way to his room.

Ivan held the door open for him, directing Gilbert to sit down on the bed while he grabbed medical supplies. The albino looked around the room, noticing that everything looked neat and hardly used. It was probably because someone had cleaned while Ivan was away, but still, it was all very orderly. The taller male returned, pulling his bottle of clear liquid out of his coat once again. "It's going to sting a bit, so bear with me. You can hold my hand if you need to."

"I don't need to hold your hand! I'm not pathetic!" Gilbert protested loudly, but the moment the alcohol touched his skin, tears sprang to his eyes and he gripped onto Ivan's freehand as tightly as he could.

Ivan didn't say anything about Gilbert holding it, just giving his small, pale hand a gentle squeeze before pouring more of the alcohol on the cut. Once he was sure that the wound was clean enough he used a towel to wipe up the blood and placed a clean cloth to his arm, wrapping it in bandages. "Hopefully we won't need to stitch you up, but until we're sure, I'm going to keep putting bandages on your arm. You like alcohol right?" Ivan stood and quickly cleaned everything up before returning to Gilbert's side with an outstretched hand. "How about we go to the pub just down the street?"

Gilbert nodded and slowly took hold of Ivan's hand, letting him lead him out of the room and back through the crowded streets. The pair received curious looks, but no one stopped them or asked any questions, which Gilbert was quite alright with. The loud laughter and cheer that resonated from the pub made Gilbert smile softly. It reminded him of home and the nights he and his friends went out to drink together, which was almost every night when he thought about it. It was nice and relaxing to have something so familiar after the hectic morning he had been having. Ivan walked up to the counter, quickly ordering Gilbert a beer, and something called vodka for himself. Not to his surprise, when Ivan returned he had a glass of the clear alcohol in his hand once more. "Ivan, what is that?"

The other male raised an eyebrow, shock and disbelief covering his face. "You have never had vodka? Oh my dear friend you must try it." He thrusted the alcohol into Gilbert's hand, making him almost drop it on the floor. He slowly brought the glass to his lips and took a drink. He started coughing and his nose scrunched up at the strong bitter taste. "Hmm.. Maybe it is too strong? The alcohol behind the walls is very weak and does not taste very good." Ivan gently patted his back, taking the vodka and raising it to his own lips. The alcohol all but vanished as he drank, only stopping when he was sure there was no more.

Once Gilbert's throat no longer burned and his stomach had settled he took a drink of the beer that Ivan had gotten for him. It was just a bit stronger than the beer behind the walls, but it was nothing he couldn't handle after drinking the alcohol of Ivan's choice. "That is better, yes?" Ivan asked out of nowhere, smiling down at the albino.

"Yeah, it's much better." Gilbert returned the small smile, bringing the bottle back up to his lips. The two drank for a few hours, starting a casual conversation. The albino talked about his brother and two friends back inside the walls, and in return Ivan told him about his sisters. The other male hadn't seen his family in a very long time, but he had faith that the two of them were fine. "They're strong and smart." Is what he kept saying. Even with the buzz of alcohol in his system, no matter how hard Gilbert tried to coax answers from Ivan, the man just wouldn't explain what made him so important. Every question was brought with a quick subject change which only upset and confused Gilbert even more.

Finally they left the bar, heading down the mostly deserted road. It was late and Gilbert was tired, hardly able to stay upright with the alcohol running through his veins, and the exhaustion that weighed him down. Ivan helped him stand, leading him back to the Inn and to their room.

"There is only one bed. I can sleep on the floor if yo-" Ivan was cut off by Gilbert sleepily shaking his head.

"Just sleep in the bed, I don't care as long as you don't do anything stupid." He sat on the corner of the mattress staring up at Ivan with slightly fogged crimson eyes.

"Alright, but first lets get you changed." Ivan helped him up and into the bathroom, handing him a shirt that was obviously the larger males. Gilbert slipped on the soft material, folding his dirty clothes and setting them down on the top of the dresser.

"We can buy you some new clothes tomorrow." The albino turned to look towards the sound of Ivan's voice, smiling lightly when he saw that he had already changed and crawled under the covers, but his scarf never left his neck.

"Alright, thank you." Gilbert slipped into the bed beside Ivan, facing the wall. "Goodnight." He whispered softly, struggling to keep his eyelids from falling closed.

"Goodnight Gilbert." Ivan whispered back, and just as Gilbert closed his eyes and fell asleep, he saw a face flicker across the wall. It was too blurry to make out, but he figured it was just the alcohol playing tricks on his mind. With that he slipped into unconsciousness, the sound of Ivan's soft breathing soothing him into sleeps comforting embrace.

This is my longest chapter so far, kind of sad right XD I need to write more, but hey I updated lol I really hope you liked it! I hope to have the next chapter up sometime soon!