Cross-posted from tumblr
Title: Manly Tears
Author: kira
Genre: slice of life
Characters: Germany, Prussia
Pairing: Germany/Prussia
Rating: PG13 for language & Prussia’s bit of suggestive dialogue
Word count: 1495
Warning: none
Summary: Prussia and Germany spend the day watching some holiday themed movies…
Author’s Note: Thanks to my beta Kat for looking this over for me as well as helping me with a title. Also the author would like to thank whoever drew the pic of the brothers Beilschmidt in their Christmas sweaters for the bit of inspiration.
For Dylan, Merry Christmas…
They sat on the sofa in the den, watching the Christmas DVDs their friend Alfred, a former American GI who had been stationed in Germany, had sent them. All were in English, but the brothers Beilschmidt were fluent in it; Ludwig because of his job in an import/export company and Gilbert because of his job as a university professor, not to mention years of taking it in school. Some of the movies were funny, some cute, some sappy, and the one they were watching now was called Lassie. It was a relatively new movie compared to some of the others, being from 2006, and it was about a collie that braves it all to return to the family she loves. As both brothers loved the book it was based on, Gilbert had popped it the DVD player as break from the silliness of Elf. The dogs lay at their feet, except Berlitz, who was curled up on the sofa next to Gilbert, much to Ludwig’s annoyance. The new Pomeranian puppy that Gilbert had gotten his brother for Christmas finally settled down and was sleeping peacefully next to Aster. Gilbert’s pet bird sat on his shoulder and chirped softly in his ear.
About halfway through the movie, Gilbert heard a muffled sniffling. He looked over at his brother. Ludwig ignored him, refusing to make eye contact, while he pretended to be unaffected by the heart wrenching scene. Gilbert made a small sound midway between a chuckle and a cough. His brother was not amused and briefly glared at him.
“What?” Gilbert’s question was met by stony silence. “Grown men are allowed to cry, West.”
“So assholes can make fun of them?” Ludwig wiped a stray tear from under his eye.
“Well, yeah,” his brother smirked, “but when brothers do it, it’s called ‘teasing.’ Anyway, if this movie’s too much for you, we can always watch Old Yeller”
When Ludwig’s expression darkened, Gilbert reached for the remote and paused the movie. “Look, I’m sorry, West. It’s just a big brother’s job to tease the younger one.” He smiled. “Remember what I always told when we were growing up? Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?”
Gilbird chirped in agreement.
Ludwig heaved a long suffering sigh.
“So being teased about getting emotional over a movie that’s supposed to tug on your heartstrings isn’t going to kill you.” Gilbert grinned. “Hey, West?”
Ludwig reluctantly had to admit he had a point. “Yeah?”
“Remember when we used to go with Vati into the woods and cut our tree?”
“Yeah.” Ludwig smiled.
“And how that one year, I saved your arse from being crushed by the tree Vati was cutting down?”
“Funny, how I seem to recall me saving your arse.”
Gilbert laughed. “Whatever. In the end, Vati kicked both our arses for getting in the way.”
“Yup!” Ludwig laughed, the earlier tension gone.
“Hey, let’s go make some hot chocolate and have some of that cake Specs sent us, or we can eat that cake log thingy Francis gave me.”
“That cake log thingy as you so elegantly put it is a Bûche de Noël. It’s a French cake that’s supposed to be a Yule log.”
“Yeah?”
Ludwig nodded.
“That explains why he made a couple of them for his classes’ holiday parties. I think he bakes as much as you do.”
“Didn’t you say he wanted to be a pâtissier and open his own bakery or something?” Ludwig patted his German shepherd Blackie on the head, when she put it on his lap.
“Yeah, something like that, but after tutoring some of the kids at my school in French, he decided to become a teacher.”
“Aaah…”
“Yeah… I can’t believe they hired him just like that! I also can’t believe he’s been working there for six years now, it seems like he just started yesterday.”
Ludwig nodded. His brother always talked about Francis and the mischief they used to get up to at work. When he finally got to meet him, Ludwig felt like they had been friends forever.
They both got up off the sofa. Gilbert put his bird back in his cage, before heading to the kitchen with his brother. They reminisced about Christmases past and life in general when they were younger as they puttered around the kitchen.
“Which cake do you want? Francis’ or Specs?”
“Surprise me.” Ludwig heated up some milk and cocoa powder in a saucepan.
Gilbert closed his eyes, spun around slowly, and felt along the countertop for the cake boxes. His hand coming to rest near one of them, he moved his fingers, and brushing them up against a box, he opened his eyes. “Spec’s cake it is!” he said, drawing the cake box with the Apfelstrudel in it towards him. Opening the cake box, he took out the pastry and set it on the counter. After getting a knife from the drawer, Gilbert cut two slices, which he put on two plates. He brought them, along with a pair of forks, over to the table and sat down. Gilbert slid a piece over to where Ludwig normally sat and waited.
Ludwig, meanwhile, had finished making the hot chocolate and was busy pouring the cocoa into two mugs. He added marshmallows and whipped cream to his brother’s and a touch of whipped cream to his own, before bringing them over to the table. He sat down and sipped his hot chocolate.
Gilbert ate a bite if the strudel. “Specs really out did himself this year! This is good!”
Ludwig finished eating his own bite. “Yeah. By the way, I got the recipes for those latkes he made at his Hanukkah party; you want me to make those for dinner?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Gilbert grinned and had another bite of the strudel, which he washed down with some hot chocolate. “Why don’t we invite your friend Feli from work and I’ll call Francis and Tony and who else?”
“We could invite Roderich and Lizzy.”
“Or we could just hang out by ourselves and watch movies and have everyone over for New Year’s.” Gilbert grinned.
Ludwig took a minute to think it over. “That sounds better.” He finished his strudel and cocoa.
Gilbert laughed. “That’s cuz you don’t want anyone to see you in that sweater!”
Ludwig looked down at his “ugly Christmas sweater.” It was red and green and had a reindeer head on it along with the words “Jingle my bells.” He found the matching stocking cap a bit much, but Gilbert insisted he “take the stick out of his arse” and wear it. “It’s not any worse than yours. And don’t get any ideas about jingling my bells. I’m perfectly capable of jingling them myself, thank you very much.” A faint smile tugged his lips upwards.
“You wanna?” Gilbert waggled his eyebrows and tugged on his own sweater.
Ludwig rolled his eyes. “And no, I don’t want to suck it,” he said, referring to large candy cane on his brother’s sweater and the words “Suck it.” It was just like Gilbert to find such suggestive sweaters, although, Ludwig secretly liked the red and white one with the little humping reindeer on it that Gilbert gave him for Christmas, not that he would ever admit it. Gilbert’s black one with the mistletoe hanging near the hem in the front, with the words “Kiss me under the mistletoe” on it that he wore to Roderich’s Hanukkah party was so him. “Are you ever going to grow up?”
Gilbert thought it over. “Nah! I’m having too much fun being an immature asshole!”
They laughed as they got to clear the table.
“Leave them for later, West,” Gilbert said, referring to the dirty dishes they put in the sink. “Let’s go finish the movie. I wanna see if Lassie makes it home or not.”
“You’ve read the book a million times, Gilbert, so you know how it ends.”
“I know, but let’s go watch it anyway. It’s not a bad movie.”
“Okay.”
The two of them made their way back to the den and sat on the sofa. Berlitz curled up in the space between the brothers, while the rest of their pack lay at their feet. Gilbert picked up the remote and hit play. They sat there and watched the movie. By the time they reached the end, both brothers were crying softly and ignoring the fact they were.
“That was a good one, eh, West?” Gilbert wiped his face with the hem of his sweater.
“Yeah…” Ludwig wiped his face with his fingertips.
“Wanna watch another one?”
Ludwig nodded. “How about Home Alone? It’s supposed to be funny.”
“Okay.” Gilbert got up and changed the DVD. He sat back down on the sofa. The two of them settled back and Gilbert hit play. It was not long before their tears were forgotten as the opening scenes of the movie had them laughing and reminiscing about similar Christmases they had growing up.
Author: kira
Genre: slice of life
Characters: Germany, Prussia
Pairing: Germany/Prussia
Rating: PG13 for language & Prussia’s bit of suggestive dialogue
Word count: 1495
Warning: none
Summary: Prussia and Germany spend the day watching some holiday themed movies…
Author’s Note: Thanks to my beta Kat for looking this over for me as well as helping me with a title. Also the author would like to thank whoever drew the pic of the brothers Beilschmidt in their Christmas sweaters for the bit of inspiration.
For Dylan, Merry Christmas…
They sat on the sofa in the den, watching the Christmas DVDs their friend Alfred, a former American GI who had been stationed in Germany, had sent them. All were in English, but the brothers Beilschmidt were fluent in it; Ludwig because of his job in an import/export company and Gilbert because of his job as a university professor, not to mention years of taking it in school. Some of the movies were funny, some cute, some sappy, and the one they were watching now was called Lassie. It was a relatively new movie compared to some of the others, being from 2006, and it was about a collie that braves it all to return to the family she loves. As both brothers loved the book it was based on, Gilbert had popped it the DVD player as break from the silliness of Elf. The dogs lay at their feet, except Berlitz, who was curled up on the sofa next to Gilbert, much to Ludwig’s annoyance. The new Pomeranian puppy that Gilbert had gotten his brother for Christmas finally settled down and was sleeping peacefully next to Aster. Gilbert’s pet bird sat on his shoulder and chirped softly in his ear.
About halfway through the movie, Gilbert heard a muffled sniffling. He looked over at his brother. Ludwig ignored him, refusing to make eye contact, while he pretended to be unaffected by the heart wrenching scene. Gilbert made a small sound midway between a chuckle and a cough. His brother was not amused and briefly glared at him.
“What?” Gilbert’s question was met by stony silence. “Grown men are allowed to cry, West.”
“So assholes can make fun of them?” Ludwig wiped a stray tear from under his eye.
“Well, yeah,” his brother smirked, “but when brothers do it, it’s called ‘teasing.’ Anyway, if this movie’s too much for you, we can always watch Old Yeller”
When Ludwig’s expression darkened, Gilbert reached for the remote and paused the movie. “Look, I’m sorry, West. It’s just a big brother’s job to tease the younger one.” He smiled. “Remember what I always told when we were growing up? Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?”
Gilbird chirped in agreement.
Ludwig heaved a long suffering sigh.
“So being teased about getting emotional over a movie that’s supposed to tug on your heartstrings isn’t going to kill you.” Gilbert grinned. “Hey, West?”
Ludwig reluctantly had to admit he had a point. “Yeah?”
“Remember when we used to go with Vati into the woods and cut our tree?”
“Yeah.” Ludwig smiled.
“And how that one year, I saved your arse from being crushed by the tree Vati was cutting down?”
“Funny, how I seem to recall me saving your arse.”
Gilbert laughed. “Whatever. In the end, Vati kicked both our arses for getting in the way.”
“Yup!” Ludwig laughed, the earlier tension gone.
“Hey, let’s go make some hot chocolate and have some of that cake Specs sent us, or we can eat that cake log thingy Francis gave me.”
“That cake log thingy as you so elegantly put it is a Bûche de Noël. It’s a French cake that’s supposed to be a Yule log.”
“Yeah?”
Ludwig nodded.
“That explains why he made a couple of them for his classes’ holiday parties. I think he bakes as much as you do.”
“Didn’t you say he wanted to be a pâtissier and open his own bakery or something?” Ludwig patted his German shepherd Blackie on the head, when she put it on his lap.
“Yeah, something like that, but after tutoring some of the kids at my school in French, he decided to become a teacher.”
“Aaah…”
“Yeah… I can’t believe they hired him just like that! I also can’t believe he’s been working there for six years now, it seems like he just started yesterday.”
Ludwig nodded. His brother always talked about Francis and the mischief they used to get up to at work. When he finally got to meet him, Ludwig felt like they had been friends forever.
They both got up off the sofa. Gilbert put his bird back in his cage, before heading to the kitchen with his brother. They reminisced about Christmases past and life in general when they were younger as they puttered around the kitchen.
“Which cake do you want? Francis’ or Specs?”
“Surprise me.” Ludwig heated up some milk and cocoa powder in a saucepan.
Gilbert closed his eyes, spun around slowly, and felt along the countertop for the cake boxes. His hand coming to rest near one of them, he moved his fingers, and brushing them up against a box, he opened his eyes. “Spec’s cake it is!” he said, drawing the cake box with the Apfelstrudel in it towards him. Opening the cake box, he took out the pastry and set it on the counter. After getting a knife from the drawer, Gilbert cut two slices, which he put on two plates. He brought them, along with a pair of forks, over to the table and sat down. Gilbert slid a piece over to where Ludwig normally sat and waited.
Ludwig, meanwhile, had finished making the hot chocolate and was busy pouring the cocoa into two mugs. He added marshmallows and whipped cream to his brother’s and a touch of whipped cream to his own, before bringing them over to the table. He sat down and sipped his hot chocolate.
Gilbert ate a bite if the strudel. “Specs really out did himself this year! This is good!”
Ludwig finished eating his own bite. “Yeah. By the way, I got the recipes for those latkes he made at his Hanukkah party; you want me to make those for dinner?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Gilbert grinned and had another bite of the strudel, which he washed down with some hot chocolate. “Why don’t we invite your friend Feli from work and I’ll call Francis and Tony and who else?”
“We could invite Roderich and Lizzy.”
“Or we could just hang out by ourselves and watch movies and have everyone over for New Year’s.” Gilbert grinned.
Ludwig took a minute to think it over. “That sounds better.” He finished his strudel and cocoa.
Gilbert laughed. “That’s cuz you don’t want anyone to see you in that sweater!”
Ludwig looked down at his “ugly Christmas sweater.” It was red and green and had a reindeer head on it along with the words “Jingle my bells.” He found the matching stocking cap a bit much, but Gilbert insisted he “take the stick out of his arse” and wear it. “It’s not any worse than yours. And don’t get any ideas about jingling my bells. I’m perfectly capable of jingling them myself, thank you very much.” A faint smile tugged his lips upwards.
“You wanna?” Gilbert waggled his eyebrows and tugged on his own sweater.
Ludwig rolled his eyes. “And no, I don’t want to suck it,” he said, referring to large candy cane on his brother’s sweater and the words “Suck it.” It was just like Gilbert to find such suggestive sweaters, although, Ludwig secretly liked the red and white one with the little humping reindeer on it that Gilbert gave him for Christmas, not that he would ever admit it. Gilbert’s black one with the mistletoe hanging near the hem in the front, with the words “Kiss me under the mistletoe” on it that he wore to Roderich’s Hanukkah party was so him. “Are you ever going to grow up?”
Gilbert thought it over. “Nah! I’m having too much fun being an immature asshole!”
They laughed as they got to clear the table.
“Leave them for later, West,” Gilbert said, referring to the dirty dishes they put in the sink. “Let’s go finish the movie. I wanna see if Lassie makes it home or not.”
“You’ve read the book a million times, Gilbert, so you know how it ends.”
“I know, but let’s go watch it anyway. It’s not a bad movie.”
“Okay.”
The two of them made their way back to the den and sat on the sofa. Berlitz curled up in the space between the brothers, while the rest of their pack lay at their feet. Gilbert picked up the remote and hit play. They sat there and watched the movie. By the time they reached the end, both brothers were crying softly and ignoring the fact they were.
“That was a good one, eh, West?” Gilbert wiped his face with the hem of his sweater.
“Yeah…” Ludwig wiped his face with his fingertips.
“Wanna watch another one?”
Ludwig nodded. “How about Home Alone? It’s supposed to be funny.”
“Okay.” Gilbert got up and changed the DVD. He sat back down on the sofa. The two of them settled back and Gilbert hit play. It was not long before their tears were forgotten as the opening scenes of the movie had them laughing and reminiscing about similar Christmases they had growing up.