A/N: *EDIT* Okay, so 300 years is really too small for the amount of lifetimes i have in store, so nope, bumped it up to 500.

Over 500 years in the past...

I had known him. He probably hadn't known me, but that wasn't really the point. The point was, I saw it happen, I saw how he changed.

The change happened when he was only fourteen and I was twelve and a half. He was a very rich prince, and his land was well cared for. Where he would wear silks and brightly dyed leather, I would wear crisp linens and dull deerskin breeches. He was very rich and a prince, I was very poor and the son of a servant.

He had pale skin, blonde hair, and bright dazzling blue eyes. He refused to grow out his hair as was the fashion, and decided to keep it short, letting it give him a ruffled look. His favorite color was red, yet he wore lots of blues, blacks, and sometimes crimson. How did I know? I was one of his personal servants.

On his fourteenth birthday, his father died. He died killing a raiding Sicilian Mafia group. We didn't know he had died until his birthday party was in full swing. Then the page comes running in, a terrified expression mingling with deep grief.

I remember how Prince Gilbert's face had drained of color, how rage flared to life in his eyes. The page hadn't announced it to the whole room so it was only him who knew. His gaze had flashed to his younger brother, Prince Ludwig, whom was drinking and laughing with a pretty brunette boy.

I knew the boy, his name was Feliciano Vargas, and he was Sicilian. A powerful one at that, since his father ran the mafia. I saw his gaze then flash to Feliciano's brother, Lovino, who was drunk and making out with his best friend Antonio. I saw hatred flash in his blue eyes, hatred for them and their father.

He had growled out to the page a horrible order: "Lock those two brothers up, put them in the torture chamber. But not now, after the party."

I remember their screams as they were dragged away, and his brother, Ludwig crying out as the guards knocked him out so he wouldn't interfere. And now, years later their cries and pleads still came to me.

Prince Gilbert had tortured them personally, I was forced to watch.

When Antonio heard what had happened, he declared war on us. On Grundstücke der Teufel.

This war was terrible, but we won, defeating the Tierra Del Oro, or Oroans.

Prince Gilbert was never the same, and Prince Ludwig never forgave him, stealing his Sicilian lover away in the night, leaving the castle forever.

Lovino was left, and King Antonio grieved for him, cutting off from our kingdom.

Prince Gilbert, now King, fell into despair. He threw himself at dangerous things, allowing vanity and arrogance to guide him. He dismissed his advisers, knowing that he wouldn't listen to them anyway. The only joy he seemed to have was in his casual sex and watching the roses grow in the gardens.

All this time I watched, intervening when I could so that he wouldn't go too far with Lovino, and when the time came, freeing him in secret and leaving the castle with him for a week that I claimed for vacation. I delivered him back to Antonio, and he thanked me, asking me what I wished.

"Stop attacking us, try to reason with him. King Gilbert has gone mad from the grief of his father's death at the hands of the Sicilian Mafia." Antonio had exclaimed in surprise, having never been told why his love had been tortured in the first place.

No one knew, not even Ludwig apparently. They thought that he had been lost at sea.

When Ludwig had found out, he still demanded that Gilbert apologize to his lover for almost killing him in that torture chamber, but of course the King refused, claiming he was doing what he thought was right for his country, to keep Ludwig safe as well.

Instead Ludwig declared that he wouldn't set foot in the castle again until his brother apologized. It was years ago that the promise was made.

King Gilbert was in his early twenties now, and I was a meager twenty.

A terrible storm was raging outside, and he had just gotten done with a lavish party. I stood at his side as he watched the guests leave in carriages from a second-story window.

He turned from the window as soon as they had all gone, and I followed him.

A few hours later, there came a knock on the gate, or at least, a page ran and got the King up to answer the door. King Gilbert was infuriated, but went anyway, with me traveling beside him the entire time.

When the door was flung open, King Gilbert had to step back, his blonde hair ruffling in the strong breeze, his ice-blue eyes squinting. In the doorway stood a hunched old woman, whom hurried inside.

"Thank you my Lord..." she rasped, bowing low.

King Gilbert roared in anger and slammed the doors closed. "Get out of my castle!" he bellowed, towering over the smaller woman.

"My King please..." I said softly, touching his elbow. He knocked me back unsurprisingly and I got quickly on my feet again, grabbing for his elbow.

"Leave me servant! I will deal with this hag myself!" he commanded. Even though he had ordered it, I didn't leave, but backed up enough that he wouldn't notice me standing there anymore.

The hag noticed though, and gave a brief smile. "My Lord please... I am traveling and my husband's horse is tired, he stayed with the beast and sent me to find shelter, please let me stay for the night..." she begged, bowing her head.

"No! Get out of my sight you grisly hag, you are dripping all over my finery. I care not whether you die of cold and exposure out there! Get out!" He yelled.

I gave a small cry of protest, "Majesty please! What harm will it do to have her stay the night? It will not empty our coffers of even a penny... please Majesty have mercy on her." I pleaded, forgetting that I was supposed to be gone.

He rounded on me, slapping me smartly across my face. My head snapped to the side and I heard a sickening snapping sound, my body going limp beneath me.

"Leave peasant woman before I have a guard drag you out." King Gilbert seethed.

My already poor vision was fading, so I saw the hag stand straight instead of hunched, and the cloak that had been covering her face was thrown back to reveal a man's beautiful face. Short blonde hair fell around his face, flaming green eyes blazing at the King. Light seemed to bend around him, and he glowed, stalking toward the King, whom cowered back.

"How dare you. You King Gilbert Beilschmidt are unfit to rule! Not even allowing a poor old woman into your house because she woke you from your beauty sleep? Pathetic! Killing your best servant for trying to stop you? Sinful, you shall be punished for your impudence Gilbert Beilschmidt!" the man cried, glowing brighter.

Kill? I'm not dead...

Gilbert was cowering against the wall, and as the creature in front of him spoke of me, his eyes flicked over to inspect me, and they widened in horror before quickly flicking back to the creature. "Please! I beg of you powerful being! Have mercy!"

The creature's laugh was cruel, "Like you would have had mercy on the woman? Like you had mercy on your servant?" it asked, closing the distance.

"Please!" He begged, shrinking to the floor.

The creature scowled, "As you wish." and he began to turn away. As Gilbert stood again, bowing to thank him, the creature spoke once more; "Here is a little gift Gilbert." and outside a maple tree sprang into being in the middle of his garden. Gilbert looked a little confused, but let out a cry as the creature swung around and slapped his face.

Lightning lit the room, and Gilbert's already blonde hair looked even more bleached.

"When this maple tree dies, you will as well. So take good care of it." It hissed and strode over to me, seeing my eyes widen he let out a choked sob. "You poor girl..." Huh? "This man was cruel to have broken you so." He touched my forehead and I screamed. It leaned down close to whisper in my ear. "Save him while he has time, you will be reborn when you are needed."

With the next flash of lightning the creature of Light had disappeared. Gilbert crawled over to me, his hair glowing white in the darkness.

"M-Matthew?" he asked, looking at me as he knelt next to me. My eyes must have showed my fear, and he recoiled. His eyes glowed bright red, and his fair skin had turned deathly pale. "M-Matthew please... you have to know I didn't... I didn't mean to...!"

I tried to move something, but even concentrating was hard. When had the ceiling gotten so close? Why was I so light? What was wrong with my head? How come it was blurring together? Why...?

A/N: Am I stupid? Yes. Is publishing this story right now stupid? Yes. Do I really care? Nope!

Alright, so the translation of the Kingdoms:

Grundstücke der Teufel, it means (roughly): Land of the Devil

Tierra Del Oro, means: The Land of Gold

Crap translations I know, but all I got is Google, sorry.

Reviews are appreciated, and cherished. They help me update.