A/N: Finally~ I've got the next chapter up for this story. ^^ Many, many thanks to everyone who has been reading and I thank you for your patience. Please know that without your support, this fic would have been abandoned a while ago~ But I mean to see it to the end, as I've got the major framework already planned out.

At the end of this chapter, I've got a little poll, or rather a question for you all. It'll make more sense after the end of this chapter, but your opinions on this will definitely affect the structure of future chapters. So if you have the time, please the let me know your thoughts on that. Thank You

Disclaimer: Hetalia does not belong to me, nor does the song "Who Knew" by Pink. As such within the story, technically this song doesn't belong to Feli…but it is fiction therefore it belongs to him within the parameters of this story.

Warnings: Light Yaoi/Shounen-ai,

*~::||*||::~*Around the World*~::||*||::~*

Part I: Italia and Germania

Chapter IV: Links to the Past
*~::||*||::~*

Feliciano led Ludwig out of the sitting room and down a hallway in a tour through the maze-like mansion. However, with Ludwig being Ludwig, the German had pulled out his journal and begun to take notes so not to forget where everything was. He felt that perhaps this information would come in handy as he might come over here again. Feliciano smiled, but didn't say anything about Ludwig's note-taking, and animatedly led him to a number of rooms. A Ballroom, Julian's study—where a desk was put to the side for Feliciano's study—a game room—which held a billiard's table among a mountain of board games—and a quick peek into the maid's quarters were a few of the things Feliciano showed Ludwig.

In the maid's quarters, Gaea had caught sight of the two of them as she sat embroidering a handkerchief. Warmly she greeted the two, "Oh...so Lukas and little Ludwig have arrived?"

"Mhmm." Feliciano happily nodded as Ludwig approached the head maid to shake her hand. She pulled him into a hug instead.

"It is very good to see you." She smiled cordially, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes showing that her smile was something seen very often. Despite her age, she appeared not much older than Julian or Lukas, who were both in their mid-forties.

"Pleased to meet you too miss...?" Ludwig awkwardly hugged back before stepping away.

"Call me Gaea." She then looked at Feliciano, who gave her a habitual hug and a kiss on either cheek. "It seems you're showing him around Feli?" The younger nodded. "Mn, good. Well carry on and enjoy dinner. I've got a few more things to finish before the day's done." Shooing them out of the room merrily she sat back down with her needlework once they were out of sight, shaking her head slightly. Hmm, Ludwig has grown so much. Though it hurt a bit when he didn't recognize me...I can only imagine how dear Feli must feel...

*~::||*||::~*

From Gaea's quarters, Feliciano then led up the stairs, purposely not going through a particular doorway, saying he was saving that for last since he figured Ludwig would like that room the best.

"This...is my room." Feliciano proudly opened the door for Ludwig and followed him into his room, which was surprisingly neat if for a few clothes on a nearby chair as well as scattered papers and sketchbooks littering the top of his desk, a closed laptop placed on the made bed. "I'm sorry for the mess." Feliciano sheepishly smiled as he turned on the lights.

Ludwig looked around at the tastefully decorated room. Being in here felt very comfortable and that comfort put him on edge. "It's alright. It's a very nice room." He smiled a bit as he looked around and came to his desk. "Ah...that's right. You draw as well don't you?"

Feliciano came to stand by him as he peered over the sketches. "Mhmm." Grinning he picked up a sketchbook that looked familiar to Ludwig; it was the one that had a sketch of him in it. "Would you like to see a few more sketches?"

"Sure, why not?" Ludwig felt Feliciano lightly take his arm and lead him to sit on the side of the bed. As Feliciano sat next to him and gave him the sketchbook, he tried not to think of the proximity between them as he flipped open the art book. Blinking, he could feel a smile spread on his lips as he went from page to page of beautifully sketched drawings, Feliciano providing a bit of commentary about a few pieces until he came to the sketch of his profile. "..." Even from first glance, he could tell that Feliciano had worked on this piece longer than the rest.

As Ludwig became preoccupied with staring at his paper doppelganger, Feliciano took the chance to look at Ludwig from this proximity. A heavy feeling welled up in him as he could practically feel the invisible wall between himself and the German thanks to those lost pieces of Ludwig's memory. He would have to be satisfied with just this kind of closeness until, somehow, he could help Ludwig's memory come back to him.

"..iano—Feliciano." Ludwig stared at Feliciano, who happened to be gazing at him intently. Blinking, he hesitantly shook the Italian's shoulder, causing him to sit back suddenly, wide eyes opening and closing rapidly.

"Eh? Hmn? Yes, what is it?" Feliciano didn't seem aware of the fact that he had spent a good bit of time looking at Ludwig's eyes, examining the details so he could draw them later.

Ludwig raised and eye brow but held up the sketch. "...Is it possible for me to have a copy of this sketch?" He flushed slightly at the request, hoping it didn't look too narcissistic.

It certainly didn't seem that way to Feliciano, who lit up at the request. "Of course!" He took the sketchbook from Ludwig's hands and headed to a side table on the other side of the room that held a scanner and printer combined. Pressing a few buttons, Feliciano put the picture on the flatbed scanner and a moment later, came back with a printed copy. "I'll put it in a plastic cover and put it here so you can take it when you leave. Sound good?"

Seeing Feliciano put the covered copy on his desk, Ludwig smiled. "Feliciano." He noticed a slight flush cross Feliciano's face at the mention of his name, but brushed it aside. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Feliciano's smile came back and he headed towards the door. "Shall we continue our tour then?"

"hmn? Oh of course." Ludwig stood and followed Feliciano to the room next door, where the Italian hesitated slightly at the door.

His hand on the door, he looked up at Ludwig. "This is Lovi...ah Lovino, my elder brother's room...he's studying in Spain so I don't often come in here..."

"...If you don't want to go in there. It's okay." Ludwig couldn't help but feel a little worry for the lonely face that Feliciano showed to him in that moment. "It's probably empty isn't it?"

Feliciano blinked then smiled to match Ludwig's reassuring expression. "You're right...well in that case we'll just pass by the guest rooms and Papa's before heading back downstairs."

As he led him down the passage, Ludwig happened to look inside an empty guest room because its door was halfway open. A chill went through him as he stared into it, stopping suddenly. It took Feliciano a moment, but he stopped when he realized Ludwig wasn't following him. Turning around, he looked warily at Ludwig, who had stopped right by the guest room he normally slept in whenever he had slept over in the manor many years ago. "Is something wrong Ludwig?" Feliciano walked back up to him and put a hand on his upper arm when Ludwig didn't answer.

"What?" Ludwig suddenly snapped his gaze down to Feliciano.

"I asked if you were alright...you just froze up." Feliciano's grip on Ludwig's sleeve tightened slightly as he pulled him down the hall and towards the stairs.

Ludwig allowed himself to be taken away from that room. ...Why...do I feel like I know that room... His head had begun to hurt, a dull pain overtaking him. He hadn't experienced a headache like this for a long time. "I'm alright...it's just ." Ludwig pulled back, stopping Feliciano where he stood at the top of the stairs. "Feliciano. Have I been here before. To your home? Some eight years ago perhaps?" When Feliciano's eyes widened and he stepped back, Ludwig got his answer and he took Feliciano's shoulders firmly, "Answer me Feliciano."

His bottom lip quivering slightly, Feliciano shook his head. "I-I..." Lowering his gaze he let his head drop down slightly as he nodded. "Yes...you have." Still not looking up he crossed his arms, looking as if he was holding himself.

Why...won't anyone tell me? Ludwig became frustrated and tightened his grip, not aware of his strength causing Feliciano to flinch, but his headache had begun to throb from his trying to remember his visits here to no avail.

"...ahn...L-Ludwig...it hurts..." He had tried to take a step back, but found himself stuck in Ludwig's grip. He looked up at him with tears building up from the pain. "L-Ludwig!"

Something in Ludwig's eyes had changed. He blinked down at Feliciano's wide eyes and quickly released him. "I'm sorry..." He brought up one hand to rub his temple. "It's just..." The headache had suddenly become acute and when he blinked, parts of his vision were starting to look black. "..urgh..." Stepping back, he felt his knees buckle.

"Ludwig!" Feliciano rushed forward to pull on both of Ludwig's arms in an attempt to soften his fall. Though he did soften the fall as Ludwig came to a sitting position on the ground, Feliciano was also forced to bend his knees till he was sitting on them in front of the German, still holding onto Ludwig's wrists. "Are you alright? Should I get some water or something." His voice became increasingly panicked. "Say something, please! Ludwig..."

At that point, Ludwig had closed his eyes tightly and blinked furiously to get rid of the black spots in his vision, with only little success. Struggling to keep conscious as he was, the headache escalated to an unbearable point until something seemed to click in his mind. This place...I remember... Images floated into his mind. Someone had tightly taken his hand and was pulling him up the stairs...the two of them had stopped at this very point in the mansion...

*~::||*||::~*

"Ludwig. Ludwig." And excited and high pitched voice called to him. He could only see the back of this child's head. "Come this way~"

"ah..okay. Slow down!"His voice sounded so much younger. How long ago was this?

"Geez...what are you two doing?" Another boy had come down the hallway from his room. A long curl, much like Feliciano's bouncing as he walked towards them. Clearly appearing a few years older than both of them, he frowned at the two of them. "You better not be causing trouble."

"Lovi!" The shorter brunette whined, his own strange curl, one that Ludwig finally noticed, also bouncing as he faced the one called Lovi. "We're only playing...besides. Ludwig is sleeping over today."

Despite the excited voice of the younger, Lovi just frowned and ploughed past both Ludwig and the boy, right through their held hands. As he passed by Lovi sent down a chilling glare at Ludwig. "Don't hold Feli's hand so casually...stupid potato. Hmph."

"Ludwig." A worried voice caused him to look away from Lovi to the other boy...Feli...Feliciano? "Please don't mind...big brother's always like that...you know that."

Ludwig blinked as Feli took both of his hands this time. Hazy though this memory was, it was almost as if he could feel the soft grip. "..."

"Besides..." Feli blushed lightly. He looked no more than eight years old. "I like holding Ludwig's hands. Lovi can't stop me from doing that." His smile was infectious...this little Feli...

Ludwig could feel himself laugh along with Feli and squeeze his hands back. "Me too Feli." Somehow, it wasn't as embarrassing to blush, since he could see Feli's own face turn a delicate red. The seeds of a warm feeling had spread in his chest and got all the more warmer as he looked at Feliciano.

*~::||*||::~*

Blinking, Ludwig looked down as his vision cleared, the new ...or rather old memory renewed in his mind. For the first time in his life...the memory had stayed. Many times in the past, mostly when he lived in Germany, he had spent hours on end trying to concentrate on the past...only to black out due to this headache and waking up with no memory of the time he was knocked out, often with his mother, father or even Gilbert worriedly looking over him.

"...Ludwig?" A tentative voice called out to him just as he felt his hands lightly squeezed in the grip of a set of another's.

So soft...just like... His gaze fell on the pair of hands that held his own, both sets of which rested on the other's knees where he sat in front of Ludwig, who was more sprawled out where he sat, his knees slightly bent—one more than the other—on either side of the speaker. Trailing his eyes up from the hands to the arms and then the speaker's face, Ludwig let slip. "Feli?"

*~::||*||::~*

Feliciano held onto Ludwig's hands as the German fell silently into his thoughts. The moment his wide, blank eyes began to have a little more light in them...the moment they began to blink and he shifted around, Feliciano had tentatively called out, tightening his grip. He couldn't help but hold his breath as Ludwig slowly looked up and finally spoke.

A light gasp left Feliciano's lips, his eyes widening with surprise at the familiar nickname. "What?"

I haven't heard him call me that since... Tears were threatening his eyes but he blinked and kept them at bay as a sudden, tickling warmth began to touch his cheeks.

The warm feeling in Ludwig's chest that rose up from the memory overcame him. Without answering he leaned forward, slightly shorter than Feliciano due to the fact that the Italian was sitting on his knees.

Instinctively, Feliciano had leaned back slightly, but not so much. "...Ludwig. Are you okay?" He felt one of Ludwig's hands loosen itself from his own and silently come up to touch the side of his face.

Sharp blue eyes gazed up at Feliciano's, almost as if examining them as the German came closer. Feliciano had begun to hold his breath again. Despite the blush that graced Ludwig's face as well, he continued observing Feliciano from this proximity, enveloped completely in the feeling that stemmed from the memory, the dear and only memory of his life before age ten. Lightly his finger tips went from touching the side of Feliciano's face to slipping further around his head and combing into his hair. The hand was on the right side, where it brushed against the hair curl for just a moment, yet that moment was enough for Feliciano to jump slightly, his hand tightening once more around Ludwig's left. Curiously he looked from Feliciano's deepened blush to the mysterious curl, but he figured he would find out what it was as well as what it did later. Instead he returned his gaze to the brown eyes, his fingers now enveloped in the soft hair. "I remember..."

Feliciano blinked as he realized that Ludwig had gotten so close that he could feel his light breath on his skin. Swallowing and forcing himself to take a breath, he wondered for a moment what Ludwig had remembered, because there was a new look in his eyes, one that made Feliciano both hopeful...and nervous. His heartbeat had begun to pound in his chest to the point where he could feel its every beat. "...R-Rememb-?"

Ludwig must not have heard his now diminutive voice as he closed the distance between them. Though Feliciano's eyes widened at this action, Ludwig's had closed peacefully, his mind single-pointedly focused on the feeling of Feliciano's lips. From the feeling in that memory, he did not know if this was the first time...but he would certainly remember this.

One. Two. Feliciano counted the tears that fell as he closed his eyes, enveloping himself into the moment, pressing back against Ludwig's soft kiss. What had he remembered? What caused him to suddenly do this? Question after question whirled past Feliciano's mind, pushed aside by this intimacy. Letting go of Ludwig's left hand, Feliciano brought up his hands, guiding them above Ludwig's shoulders and lacing them together behind his head.

Both succumbing to this moment, neither wished to pull away, but as they did, Feliciano retracted his hands, lightly putting one hand's fingers on his lips, which were parted slightly in surprise and to retrieve fresh air for his lungs. Before pulling away his own hand Ludwig silently wiped away the remnants of those two tears. A few moments of awkward silence passed as Ludwig kept a steady gaze on Feliciano, who—albeit with many blinks—did the same.

"Feli—"

"Lud—"

"Ah.." Both of them stopped at once, suddenly smiling sheepishly. Without warning, Feliciano began to chuckled and Ludwig joined in until their laughter had cracked through the awkward air. As Ludwig sighed, his shoulders relaxing, Feliciano spoke up. "What did you suddenly remember?"

Gently Ludwig took Feliciano's hands in his. "You once told me: "I like holding Ludwig's hands. Lovi can't stop me from doing that." He looked up from Feliciano's hands and smiled. "I only remember that moment...It must have been a long time ago..."

Feliciano listened quietly and smiled as he remembered saying that to Ludwig, but after a moment he blinked and tilted his head. "...you only remembered that?"

Ludwig nodded. "Yes." Then at Feliciano's worried look he shook his head and smiled. "For right now I'm happy just remembering this. I won't ask about the past right now...because I might have another fainting spell. Right now I want to keep this memory."

"You've fainted before?" Feliciano only looked more anxious at this fact.

"Yes, but it's alright now. Because, well, because now I know I've met you before and a lot of things make sense now..." Ludwig swallowed as he realized something. "I only wanted to ask one thing. You recognized me all along didn't you?"

Sadly Feliciano lowered his gaze and nodded. "But I was happy just to see you again."

"Were we close?" Ludwig pressed, unable to help himself, but he wanted an answer for this warm feeling in his chest, both in that memory and this moment. He couldn't help but feel Feliciano was someone much more dear than he indicated.

Smiling Feliciano looked back up. "Yes. You were...are my best friend." Although there was still a tinge of sadness in his smile, Feliciano began to stand up, pulling on Ludwig's hands. "Well then...do you want to continue the tour?"

Ludwig allowed Feliciano to pull up as he brought himself to stand, squeezing Feliciano's hands before letting go and hugging him, partly in apology, but mostly because this warm feeling compelled him to. "I'm sorry...for forcing myself on you..." His blush returned full-force as he remembered less of the kiss and more of how he enjoyed it.

Feliciano's chuckling did little to allay that as the brunette hugged him back. "It's alright, but if you call me Feli from now on, I won't hold you against it."

"hmn.." Ludwig couldn't help but chuckle; Feliciano was more crafty than he appeared. "Alright. Feli it is then."

"Now." Feliciano pulled away and grinned. "I want to show you the best room in this house."

*~::||*||::~*

Animatedly Feliciano led Ludwig all the way to what he called the "rehearsal room". Dramatically he stopped and faced Ludwig in front of two double doors near the front side of the first floor. "I am about to reveal to you the one and only Rehearsal room. The pride and joy of my family."

Ludwig smiled with some amusement at Feliciano's announcement. "I can't wait." Certainly he couldn't, but the incredulity that he felt when he saw the Vargas mansion was absolutely nothing to what he felt when Feliciano opened the double doors.

The room was less of a place of practice than of a museum; it even had a recording studio attached through a side door, as Ludwig would later find out. Organized around the entire room was a vast assortment of instruments: a grand piano, two electric keyboards, guitars and basses of all shapes, violins, a cello, and Indian sitar, a Chinese Mandolin, as well as many other instruments from around the world, too many for Ludwig to count easily. That and the overwhelming collection was a bit much to take in at the moment.

"Papa collected quite a bit when he was younger, and he hasn't stopped really." Feliciano explained somewhat proudly.

"Does he play all of these?"

"He won't admit it, but papa knows at least the basics of playing pretty much all of them, except maybe the newer ones."

"And you?"

Feliciano laughed, "Well not all of them, but some." He admitted modestly, pointing to a few as he led Ludwig inside, going in a big circle around the room. "My favourites are the flute and guitar."

Ludwig nodded as he surveyed the room in a wide arc, walking alongside Feliciano. His eye eventually fell on a gleaming drum set that was set in a corner across the room from the grand piano. As he started to drift towards the percussion instrument, Feliciano followed before going up and grabbing a set of drumsticks. "Do you want to play?" he held out the drumsticks.

"Is it really alright?" Ludwig reached out for the sticks, but not before pausing to wonder how Feliciano knew that he played the drums, he had never told the shorter Italian that he did so. He opened his mouth to ask, but remembered how he promised both himself and Feliciano that he wouldn't keep asking questions. For all he knew, the answer was some event that took place eight some years ago. Closing his mouth, he silently took the drumsticks with a small smile.

"Of course it's alright. Instruments are meant to be used not just to sit there and look pretty. They are meant to be tools to creates something more beautiful." While Ludwig too a seat behind the drum set and started to play a few beats, Feliciano took one of the acoustic guitars from the stand. He looked over at Ludwig who had paused for a moment. Smiling he tuned up the guitar. "Say, could we try something?"

"Sure."

Feliciano's smile grew wider as he quickly went to a nearby shelf filled with what Ludwig presumed was just lots of sheet music. Retrieving a few papers, Feliciano set them on the music stand in front of the drums where Ludwig could see it. "This is a song my brother and I wrote a while ago, and I finally figured out how to perform it…I'd like to try it out." He flushed slightly as he quickly set up one speaker with a mic and its stand so they could hear his voice over the drums. As Feliciano did that Ludwig took a look at the music and smiled. It didn't seem all that hard.

"Ready?" Ludwig nodded at Feliciano's question, very much interested in how well Feliciano could sing.

After a moment or so, Feliciano was ready and he tapped out the initial beat, saying he would strum out the first two measures before Ludwig would come in, and that he would start singing when he felt they were together. As they started, they came to be on the same beat surprisingly quickly the guitar and drums locked in together properly. Their eyes met and Feliciano took a deep breath, looking away.

"You took my hand. You showed me how. You promised me, you'd be around. Uh huh, that's right." Ludwig picked up a strange nostalgia from Feliciano's voice as it started off softly, somewhat shyly, but soon gained strength as he took another breath.

"I took your words and I believed in everything you said to me. Yeah huh, that's right." Feliciano's hands continued to strum the guitar, but his eyes increasingly held a rather distant look. Somewhere between that verse and the chorus, Ludwig got mesmerized by that distant look and the sudden increase in volume of both the other's voice and guitar. His hands slowed until the drums became silent; Feliciano didn't notice.

" If someone said three years from now, you'd be long gone. I'd stand up and punch them out; cause they're all wrong." A strange smile came to Feliciano's face as he sung the last line, almost as if he was the one in the wrong, not "they."

"I know…better, 'cause you said forever…and ever." Feliciano shook his head wistfully, and Ludwig saw him swallow before singing the last two words of the chorus. "Who knew?"

The guitar returned to a softer strum as Feliciano moved onto the next verse. Ludwig felt himself lean forward ever so slightly when the singer closed his eyes and took another breathe. He would never have expected Feliciano to put so much of himself into the singing; it was almost as if he had lost himself in it.

"Remember when we were such fools, and so convinced and just too cool? Oh no, no, no." A shakier breath punctured through, but Feliciano refused to let himself stop. "I wish I could touch you again. I wish I could still call you a friend." Somehow, as silly as it sounded to Ludwig, he felt as if Feliciano was trying to communicate something of vital importance, at least, the other looked that way like a man desperate to convey emotions so inexplicable that they can only be alluded to; perhaps it had something to do with how he responded to Ludwig's question of "Were we close?". Ludwig's thoughts paused as he heard Feliciano continue. "I'd give anything."

If anything he sounded like he truly would, and as he went on, Ludwig sorely wished he did not hear the helplessness in the Italian's voice. "When someone said count your blessings now, 'fore they're long gone. I guess I just didn't know how. I was all wrong." He showed no signs of stopping at this point, his mind must have flown back to whatever those distance eyes saw, maybe the past, some distant memory best left untouched...and a distant memory Ludwig wished Feliciano would tell him.

"But they knew better." Feliciano blinked when his eyes suddenly began to cloud, becoming shinier from Ludwig's viewpoint. His voice had even begun to have the slightest tremor, but he fought it down; the song had to finish. "Still you said forever and ever…Who knew?"

As he continued to strum, Feliciano gave his head a small shake and looked over at Ludwig. He looked surprised at first then pulled off a rather bright smile that caused Ludwig to feel a tad disconcerted; the smile was too fake for comfort, but it stayed there, even as Feliciano looked away. Somehow, this song seemed to mean something more and more to Ludwig...as if it truly were about something more. "I'll keep you locked in my head until we meet again." The voice softened, and it was all too obvious to Ludwig that Feliciano appeared to be remembering someone apparently important; (he couldn't help but hope that he was the important person.) why else would so much emotion pour into his words? "Until we…Until we meet again. And I won't forget you, my friend…What happened?"

The moment he sung the question, the smallest of frowns tugged on the singer's lips, but it quickly turned the other way when uplifted eyes brought a more determined expression, the voice somehow regaining vigour. "If someone said three years from now, you'd be long gone. I'd stand up and punch them out! 'Cause they're all wrong and-!" His voice had easily reached an almost yelling level, but as clear and beautiful as it was, emotion-laden as it was, Ludwig got pulled in, irreversibly. There was no doubt that Ludwig would admit that Feliciano easily met the requirements for a talented vocalist as the next lines Ludwig would remember to be the most emotional of the entire song.

"That last kiss, I'll cherish until we meet again, and time makes it harder…I wish I could remember!" So desperate those words sounded, a wish Ludwig had wished too many times to count, and to hear them from Feliciano now…He couldn't help but feel his throat tighten.

"But I keep your memory. You visit me in my sleep. My darling, who knew?" Suddenly a thought came to Ludwig, as ludicrous as it was to him, it couldn't help but make sense, at least to this gut feeling. It didn't feel like Feliciano himself was singing those last few lines; it was someone else; he was conveying someone else's emotion, one who couldn't do so, not yet. Even as the strumming quietened again, and the voice followed suit, Feliciano's pride as a singer did not let his voice quiver, despite his now furious blinking to fight away his blurring sight and his tightened throat. "My darling…My darling, who knew? My darling, I miss you. My darling, who knew?...Who knew?"

A single, final, chord rung out and lingered in the air even after the voice died away. So perfect the ending seemed to Ludwig, he found it hard to decide whether or not to mar the sudden silence with applause, so he stood up silently instead, setting the drumsticks down as he went. He crept around the drum set warily, looking down at it, so as to not trip over something in haste. He only looked up when he heard Feliciano make a small noise, something that sounded too much like a sniffle for Ludwig's comfort.

"Fe-Feli?" Ludwig approached him cautiously, waiting for him to turn. When he did so, Ludwig suffered a mild shock when he saw silent tears trekking down Feliciano's widened eyes. "Ah…Oi, are you…okay?" Well before he could comprehend what he was doing, Ludwig found himself standing in front of Feliciano at a compromising distance, wiping away the unsightly tears.
"Don't cry like that…it doesn't suit you at all." He said without thinking; the words just rolled off his tongue effortlessly and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why.

Feliciano blinked, surprised at first but now rather red. Before Ludwig could also blink a few times before coming to his senses, stepping away, and opening his mouth to come up with a potentially intelligent, and hopefully cohesive, response, the clear and tell-tale voice of Julian Vargas ran right across the room and bulleted through both of the boys, who became petrified where they stood.

"Alright then lovebirds—Dinner's ready!"

In record time the two of them backed away until they were a good five feet from one another; interestingly enough—to the two fathers anyway—it was hard to discern who's face was more red. Feliciano was the first to at least partially recover and put away his instrument before rushing over to Julian. "Papa! We're not-!"

Julian just laughed. "Just kidding! Just kidding! But seriously, dinner's ready."

Somehow Ludwig found it in himself to head towards the door and upon seeing his father's small smile he couldn't help but trail behind the avidly talking Italians and ask Lukas, "Vater, how long have you and Herr Vargas been standing here?"

Lukas slowed his walk to be by Ludwig. "For the entire song." At this comment, Ludwig severely wished he hadn't inheirited his father's ability to blush an embarrassingly deep red.

*~::||*||::~*

Dinner was, in a single word, pleasant...for Feliciano anyway. Although he noticed that the two fathers carefully avoided any talk of affairs before the last nine years he was satisfied enough just sitting by Ludwig. Somehow as dinner went on, their conversation turned to Feliciano's impromptu performance in the rehearsal room. Julian, with a bit of difficulty, swallowed his smile and asked if Ludwig enjoyed playing the drum.

"Yes, very much so." Ludwig nodded, fighting down the blush at the mention of the earlier events.

Juian grinned broadly. "Well then you're welcome to come any play if you like, anytime at all. Our doors are open to you." He paused slightly as he looked over at Lukas, who was in the middle of taking a bite of his dinner and comically enough, froze slightly with his mouth ajar. "—and you of course."

Carefully the elder German avoided Julian's eyes and nodded, taking the bite. "Mhn."

Appearing satisfied with that Julian turned his attention towards Ludwig again. "You know, from the little I heard you play, you're very good—Sehr Gut!"

Ludwig flushed slightly at the compliment in his native tongue. "Danke."

Julian then indulged in a bit of musing. "Wouldn't it be good if we could start a band with you and Feli?" His grin widened as he practically felt Lukas freeze next to him. "It may have only heard a tad, but it's amazing that the two of you could play together properly so easily and quickly." Out of the corner of his eye he glanced at Lukas, who had sent him a warning glance and was about to open his mouth to voice his disapproval when Feliciano beat him to it.

"Ve! I think that's a great idea! I…" He hesitated for a split second as he looked up at Ludwig. "I always wanted to be in a band like Papa was…um…What do you think Ludwig?"

Ludwig busied himself in chewing his dinner as he avoided the overly hopeful eyes; he felt that if he looked into those, he'd have a hard time saying no. "Erm…perhaps. I'll have to think about it." He hoped that this response was evasive enough. Truthfully he was very interested in this; it would give him an excuse to come back to this home...where memories upon memories were probably stored.

Dinner ended up rather uneventful after that, but Feliciano was satisfied; when Ludwig said he would do something, the Italian could rest assured that he would.

*~::||*||::~*

After a brief goodbye, or rather a long goodbye cut short by Lukas smartly manoeuvring around Julian's attempt to get them to sleep over, Lukas led the way to their car. Without looking at his son, Lukas started up the car and buckled up. He only began to speak when Ludwig followed suit and he began to drive. "Are you seriously thinking about making a band?" As much as Lukas tried to sound neutral, he was sure that some disapproval crept into his voice unintentionally. He was more apprehensive about this idea, for many reasons, one of which stemmed from the fact that he knew Julian too well, much too well. That idealistic Italian would likely create a record company from scratch and drag Lukas into it; the worst part happened to be that he would go along with whatever hair-brained scheme Julian would somehow come up with.

"I'm not sure, but for some reason, I found it fun to play the drums with him. And that singing…" Ludwig tilted his head back on the seat, closing his eyes. "…It pulled me in. I don't know how or why, but it just felt that way. That and..." Ludwig hesitated, wondering if it would be a good idea to tell his father.

"..and?"

"I remembered something." Ludwig admitted, looking down at the scan copy that Feliciano had given him before they had said good bye.

Stopping at the end of the driveway, Lukas looked at Ludwig with wide eyes. "...you.."

"...remembered something? Yes." Ludwig swallowed. "It was a very, very small moment...but I remembered Feli," He blushed as he remembered that moment. "I want to know more...but I don't want that headache to come back...so I won't ask, but when I'm ready Vater, will you tell me what I want to know?"

"I will tell you all I can...after that, you must wait for Gilbert."

"...eh?" Ludwig didn't expect an answer as his father's tone seemed final.

Indeed, Lukas didn't respond and the rest of the drive home was spent in silence; both took advantage of this and delved into their own thoughts. More than anything else, Lukas hoped things would turn out for the best, one way or another.

A/N: Alright now that the chapter is over, here is the question that I mentioned at the beginning of the page:

Would you all prefer to have the song presented as it was in this chapter, with the lyrics and actions put together? Or in future chapters that have significant songs, would you rather not have the entire lyrics and just have me hit the key notes?

Also, it's likely that I'll ask for certain song suggestions, particularly those in different languages as the story goes on and I need to find songs that help fit the situation the characters are in, so please look forward to that~

In the next chapter after agreeing to practice some music with Feliciano, Ludwig finds himself agreeing to one performance; of course, he is not the only one Julian manages to convince into joining this small wave into creating a band.