The gold pocket watch sat in his palm ticking every second as it was made to. It was a calendar clock, one that marked both day and time. The cursive like numbers,1 through 31, were arranged in a circle just as the ones used to tell time were, but they were closer to the edge, pushing the 1 through 12 toward the center. Since it was also used to tell what day it was, the watch had four hands. The hand for the calender was thin, only slightly larger than the one that ticked constantly. It grew larger toward the end though, eventually turning into a large circle before straightening out once again. The other two were the appropriate size and shape of a normal analogue clock. On the face of the clock, there was a very faded and outdated world map.

Ludwig closed the lid over the face before slipping it into his pocket. He ran a hand through his already slicked back blonde hair, nearly ruining the uniformity of it. Have I made a mistake? he thought to himself.

It had not been the first time that he had made a wish like the one that had crossed his mind only moments before. He had actually made a similar wish on a star. Ludwig cared deeply for his friend Feliciano, but there were times when he found him to be too much to handle. His brother was even worse. Lovino was another topic all together though.

The blue eyed German was unsure what had driven him over the edge this time. Feliciano's habits had been the same as they usually were, but for some reason, he found it to be irritating enough that as soon as he was given the chance, he had to make it as far away from his friend as possible. His thoughts ran rapid then. They were streaming so fast that before he knew it, he was imagining how easy life would be if Feliciano was more uniform, more logical, more by the book, more...like him. There were even thoughts about how simple life had been before he meet the Italian.

Having no real destination, he pushed open the door to an old antique shop. If he had been paying more attention, he would have noticed that the shop seemed run-down, enough so that it was a safety hazard. Standing behind the front desk of the shop was an older gentleman. He peered at Ludwig over his half-moon spectacles, hazel eyes seeming to be all knowing.

"Can I help you?" he had said, addressing his newest customer.

Ludwig paused, taking himself out of his thoughts to give the man a simple shake of his head.

"You seem as if you could use some help keeping track of your time," the elder told him with a slight smile. He maneuvered around the counter much more nimble than the average man his age. The man began shifting through his wares then as if looking for something specific. After a few more minutes, he finally found what it was that he was searching for. It was a golden pocket watch on a rusted chain. "Here you are," he said, handing it to Ludwig.

Ludwig was not overly interested at first, but decided to look over it nevertheless to be polite. He opened it to see the faded map and the many numbers and hands on the face of the clock.

"A beaut', isn't she?" the man asked him.

He nodded in agreement. The craftsmanship of it was exquisite. Ludwig was positive that he had never seen anything like it. Its beauty seemed to draw him in and before he knew it, he had offered to buy it.

At the thought of money, the man shook his head. "In return for my products, I ask for nothing."

His blue eyes focused on the man for a moment as his brows furled. "Nichts?" he asked, switching to his native tongue in his confusion.

"Yes, nothing." A crooked smile found its way onto the shopkeeper's face. "Just allow me to write down what it is that you are taking and you are free to leave."

He hurried behind his desk then to the leather bound journal beside a cash register that was covered in several years worth of cobwebs. Ludwig wondered if the man ever bothered to clean his store. In the split seconds while he mused, a fast hand scribed notes onto one of the pages of the open book. The older gentleman then bid Ludwig farewell before he left the shop.

A bit paranoid, Ludwig pulled the pocket watch out of his pocket again to gaze at the clock. It was perfectly in sync with the current time despite how old it seemed. The movements of each hand were smooth, but seemed to delay as he stared at it longer. Time itself seemed to slow as he stared, a bit mortified at the picture on the face of the clock. A very light shade of red had bled into the section marked as Italy.

He blinked a few times, figuring that it had merely been his imagination playing tricks on his mind. The color did not fade though. Still not believing that it had happened suddenly, even now as the red seemed to bleed brighter, he figured that he must not have noticed it when he had first gaze at the watch. Finally, Ludwig slipped it back into his pant's pocket once he had checked the time.

His footsteps grew hurried now that he knew how late it was, eventually growing into a full run. He had promised to meet Feliciano later that afternoon and having relaxed some since his silent outburst, he needed to meet with him again.

At the park where they usually meet, he searched around frantically for the Italian. Feliciano always managed to find himself in some kind of trouble. Although, trouble often meant that he was unable to tie his own shoelaces.

"You're late!" Feliciano shouted at his friend. His voice was at the same pitch as usual, but it seemed to be more demanding. If Ludwig had somehow been late to any of their meetings, he had always assumed that his friend would cry, upset that he had not shown up sooner before he would immediately hug him. This, however, seemed to be the exact opposite.

The brown haired minor tapped his foot impatiently and his arms were crossed as if he were waiting for some kind of explanation. "Feliciano, I-"

"Komm!" he shouted at Ludwig. "We're running laps today."

Utterly confused, the German's eyes widened some as he blinked three times consecutively. He knew that Feliciano had never managed to speak a word of German. His pronunciations were always off when he tried and he could never master the almost throaty and commanding sound of the language. Yet, he had just ordered Ludwig to come with a perfect accent.

Feliciano dusted his friend, running several feet in front of him while he stayed behind in shock. The blonde hurried after. He pulled the portable clock out of his pocket and took a second look at it. Italy was now a bright red in color so much so that he knew for a fact now that it had not been like that when he had first received it.

For the next few days, Ludwig had tried his hardest to return his friend to his normal self. He had at one point volunteered to make pasta before being turned down. Feliciano had then proceeded to ask if he would be willing to make wurst.

"What have I done?" he asked himself with a shake of his head.

His thoughts returned to the 'purchase' he had made just before the Italian's sudden change. He pulled out the pocket watch once more before the thought struck him. Ludwig burst through the front door of his house before dashing down the street to the run-down shack of a store. Throwing manners aside, he slammed open the glass door, causing its frame to thump against the wall as the bell, which he had not notice on his first visit, rang.

"So you've returned," the shopkeeper purred, the noise sounding rather odd coming from his rasped voice.

"What have you done?" Ludwig asked, knowing that he had something to do with his friend's odd behavior.

"Mein Junge, what is it that you speak of?"

"Feliciano!"

"Ah...I said I asked of nothing and I do. I do, however, take that which is mine, that which is most valuable to you. Is this not what you wanted in the first place?"

"No. I want Feliciano to be Feliciano!" the blonde minor shouted at the man. "I wish for a refund."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that. I have a strict no returns policy," the older gentleman answered.

Ludwig slammed his fist on the counter, startling the man into a frightened jump before leaving.

His fingers curled around the watch. He threw it at the concrete sidewalk in hopes of smashing it, but the metal did not yield. When he picked it up again, the German found that there was not a scratch on it. Figuring now that he was stuck with his purchase, he shoved it down into the pits of his pockets again.

Unable to sleep, he found himself staring at the watch. Its blotched red face stared back, mocking him. Fingers curling around it again, he tapped the top knob at the end of it that was used for adjusting the time and date. It gave way some while the spinning part of it was pushed back to the hour before. Ludwig continued to turn it back furiously as if he wanted the power that Father Time held so he could take back his mistake.

The hands spun round and round, soon returning to the date he purchased the pocket watch. Slowly, the crimson coloring of Italy faded away before returning to the dingy brown of the map's background. His brows furled again at the change.

There was a sudden knock at his downstairs door. He let the watch fall onto his bed as he walked down the steps to answer it. The knocks, persistent at first, had paused for a moment before returning, this time softer. The pause had fooled him into thinking that the person left, but upon hearing them again, he returned his hand to the knob.

"Ludwig!" Feliciano shouted, happy to see his friend. There were slight tears at the edge of his eyes as if he were prepared to cry. "I'm so happy that you answered!" He immediately embraced the German. "I had the strangest dream. I was acting just like you! It was terrible."

Pushing aside the fact that his Italian friend had called his habits terrible, Ludwig returned the embrace. "Feliciano, I would prefer it if you would never change."

"Really?" Feliciano asked.

Before answering, the German gently grabbed hold of Feliciano's chin. Allowing himself one moment, he then pressed his lips to the Italian's only to pull away a few seconds later. "Yes...really. Never change."

Translation Notes:

Nichts - Nothing

Komm - Come

Mein Junge - My boy

Author's Notes:

I have a fascination with older looking clocks and I feel that time goes hand-and-hand with wishing. When you make a wish, there is likely going to be a time when you'll want to take back what you had said. This particular pairing seems to deal with that often as anything Ludwig says can hurt Feliciano's feelings while Feliciano doesn't always really take the time to realize how some of his sentences (and actions) may be taken by Ludwig. Also, although Ludwig sometimes does not like Feliciano's habits, I can't see him really getting along with him were he not to have them.