The Toy Solider

4. Adore

"Adore" – Amy Shark

~~~~~

The next morning Arthur rose before the sun did. He crept down to Berwald's woodworking room and took both a small log and a chisel before making his way back up the creaky stairs. Berwald wouldn't mind, would he? Arthur took his time closing his door as quietly as possible and settling himself in his chair. Arthur's room was one of the most decorated out of all the bedrooms. Not only did he have the biggest bed, but he also had a desk and chair, an elegantly carved wardrobe, a small chest at the foot of the bed and a small braided rug. Once he was comfortable, Arthur, although very rusty from years of neglecting his skills, began haphazardly knocking off chunks of wood.

Several times Arthur stopped and swore under his breath, this was harder than he remembered. By the time the rest of the house was awake and busying themselves with their usual morning routine, Arthur had acquired himself quite a few cuts on his hand and was extremely frustrated. Peter's knocking could not have come at a worse time.

"Hey, Artie!" He yelled, skipping into the room.

"Do not call me that," Arthur said sternly, quickly stuffing both the deformed log and carving tool under his blankets.

"Why not? We're friends and friends can call each other whatever they want." Peter's puppy-dog eyes bore into Arthur. They were big and one of the richest blues Arthur had ever seen. Even he had to admit that Peter was cute, not that he would ever say it out loud.

Arthur just tsk-ed and shook his head.

"What do you want, Peter?" Arthur asked.

"Nothing really, I just came to say hi," Peter replied, bouncing slightly on Arthur's bed.

"Well you have, so are you going to leave me alone now?"

"No. I want to talk to you some more," Peter whined, "Please!"

"Why would you ever want to do that?" Arthur was genuinely confused.

"Because you seem like an interesting person."

"I guess..." Arthur eyed the young boy suspiciously, "What do you want to know then?"

"How do you know Papa?"

"Papa?"

"Berwald." Peter clarified.

"I met him at a bar one night. We talked and had a few drinks and realised that we both wanted to own a business. So we gave it a shot and so far it is working out." Arthur smiled fondly at the memory. Berwald wasn't the type of person to trust just anyone, so Arthur felt honoured that he would be invited by him to run a business with him and his 'wife'.

"Peter," Alfred said, suddenly appearing at the door, "Tino wants you."

Peter nodded and hopped off the bed, skipping back down the hallway. Alfred paused in the door and locked eyes with Arthur, but it was over just as quickly as it started. He turned and left and Arthur found himself releasing a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He had only known this man for four days but yet he seemed to have such a profound effect on him. Arthur shook his head, don't be stupid, he means nothing.

The rest of the day pasted through a matter of exasperated sighs and painful hisses. By the time Tino had called everyone in for dinner, Arthur looked like he had spent a day out on a farm. His hair was tousled and his eyes were bloodshot. Everyone stared at him as he sat down but no one dared to say a word.

Peter watched as Arthur aggressively stabbed his food. Tino and Berwald shared a nervous glance. They had only seen him act like this once before, and they had found it better to just leave him alone. Tino ushered Peter out of the room and Berwald got up to take the food to the other two. That left Arthur and Alfred.