Berlin was never easy [Lathinen]

[olivervontrapp]

Place: Berlin, Germany
Time: 11:34 A.M
Weather: Terribly frosty.

Vroom, came the engine sound of the cars that drove past. He could hear the beeping of the car horns everywhere. He could see Jewish people being moved into trucks due to their insignificance. Berlin was horrid that day. There was not a day of safety for the young boy. He collapsed onto the sidewalk. He had the least of money. He had the least of food. He knew where his parents were. They were in jail. Those bastards. It turned out that they had betrayed Hitler. Good thing Oliver wasn't there when his parents were taken away. He certainly did not want to see any of that.

He watched a woman walk by. She looked like a Jew. She had a head scarf and she looked as if she were in quite a hurry. Oliver was a tab' confused. He then noticed a few soldiers running toward her. Poor woman, Oliver thought. She had no use for life. He then noticed the woman tugging on his shirt. Oliver glanced up at her with fear in his eyes. Wretched woman. All of a sudden, the Nazi soldiers pushed her away from Oliver and roughly pulled her into the van. His eye pupils dilated. Were they really that cruel? Why? Why dear god? Why Germany? He asked himself.

The views were much too much for a young child like him and he just could not take it anymore. Those rotten bastards were treating people like scum on the street and all they could do is follow orders and push people around. Oliver disliked this, oh, he disliked this very much. Oliver managed to push himself off the sidewalk. He began walking down the streets hurriedly. He was a street boy and he luckily enjoyed it. He then stole an apple from a nearby basket of a woman and began running for his life.
He could hear people complaining in the background but Oliver couldn't care less. He just kept on running.

The delectable Berlin. So many streets to explore. That was the only reason why he loved it. He was Austrian. Not German. Well, to be quite honest, he was half German but it didn't matter to him. Anything was fine. He ran towards the market square and leaned upon a willow tree, sitting down. He took a bite from the apple and set it next to him. He glanced around. Too many people to be precise, and not a Jew in sight. It was sad really.

[eerolahtinen]

It was horribly cold and Eero shivered as he walked down the street. He didn't have too much warm clothing on and his ears and nose were red from being outside in the cold for such a long time. Being a Finn, he was somewhat used to being in a frosty climate, but that didn't mean he wouldn't freeze if he had to endure it for a long enough period. Eero really hoped that he would find some warmer clothes soon and also a place to stay and rest properly. It would not have been so horrible to be all alone if the weather had been warmer. It was enough work coping with hunger and loneliness, anyway.

The boy kept sneezing and glancing around, keeping an eye for any inviting opportunities to snatch some food or other things that might help him get by in the huge city. Over the time he had been forced to survive in Berlin, he had learned some basic things on what he should watch out for. It was a good thing to try and be as invisible as possible, to keep a low profile. And you should never get in the way of any soldiers or the police. He also knew that he was lucky to posses a light sandy hair and grey eyes instead of dark hair and brown eyes. While he had been attending the lessons of the Hitler-jugend, he had been told about the Aryan race, which apparently was much better than any other races. The Aryan people were smarter and stronger than others and the really exceptional ones had light hair coupled with blue eyes. Eero's eyes were not blue and his hair was not that light, but they were close enough. Sometimes people had even given him food just because he looked like "a proper Aryan boy". Eero only cared about getting fed.

The boy did not really have an opinion about the Aryans. Back home in Finland he had had many friends, some with dark hair, some with fiery red hair and some with hair as white as snow. Their appearance had not mattered to any of them and silly thoughts about something such as the right and wrong colour of hair would have never even crossed their minds. They still had fun together and nobody was there to tell that something might have been wrong with any of them. The teaching of the Gruppenführer at the Hitler-jugend had just made him confused and even made him feel slightly guilty. He was told to hate certain people and he did not want to. How could he just hate someone he had not even ever met?

He brushed some dirt off his cheek and dodged the people on the street, as sudden yells from nearby caught his attention. "Thief!", a woman yelled and for a moment Eero was terrified, until he realized the shouts were not aimed at him. Eero pushed his way to the edge of the walkway and saw a small boy running away at breakneck speed. A man was giving a half-hearted chase after him before giving up quickly and the boy continued on his way.

Determination and hope filled Eero's heart and he started after the boy, dodging people the best he could. Maybe this boy was all alone just like him and they could help each other! He tried to trot and weave his way around the people on the street and keep his gaze on the boy as he did so. He let out a frustrated gasp as a particularly sturdy woman blocked his path and he had hard time getting around her. As he finally managed to get around the lady, the small boy was already gone and Eero frowned, looking worried.

Maybe the boy had not gone too far? Nobody was chasing him anymore and he might have stopped nearby. Eero pondered for a while and then continued towards the direction where he had last seen the kid. Arriving at the market square, he looked around at all the people hurrying around doing their daily shopping. How would he ever find a small boy in the middle of all these people? Eero sighed and gave up, dragging his feet as he moved to the edge of the market square and away from the path of the other people. From the corner of his eye he could see a tree and sitting next to the tree was a young boy. There he was! Eero smiled slightly at the discovery and hurried towards him.

He took a few tentative steps nearer to the boy and then nodded at him. "Hallo", he said, noticing that he wasn't quite sure of what he should talk about now that he had found the boy. He hesitated, the German words seemed to come to him very slowly. "Ich heiße Eero. Ich.. Ich sah Sie früher", he said with a strange accent, it was impossible to pinpoint it to any certain country. Eero thought for a while again before speaking. "Jene Leute jagten Ihnen. Sie laufen sehr schnell", he tried to smile assuringly as he said so, he didn't want the boy to think that he also was after him.

Translations:

"Ich heiße Eero. Ich.. Ich sah Sie früher."
"My name is Eero. I.. saw you earlier."

"Jene Leute jagten Ihnen. Sie laufen sehr schnell."
"Those people chased you. You run very fast."

[olivervontrapp]

During the next few seconds of his long lasting life, Oliver could see the shadow of a boy approaching him. Bastards! They sent a little boy after him, did they!?! He'll show them! He slightly got up and hid behind the willow tree huffing for breaths. Actually, waiting for breaths. He picked up the apple, and still hid. He blinked a few times before he could turn around and see what was really waiting for him. He clenched onto the tree trunk. He pulled out his slingshot for support and yelled at the top of his lungs - "Gehen Sie weg! Gehen Sie weg! Ich weiß, dass sie Ihnen sandten, um zu kommen, nach mir suchend! Gehen Sie gerade weg, oder ich werde schießen!" Just then, he turned to face the boy, holding his slingshot in front of him to defend his only source of food at the moment. [Translations: Go Away! Go Away! I know they sent you to come looking for me! Just go away or I'll shoot!]

""Ich heiße Eero. Ich.. Ich sah Sie früher."

His icy blue eye pupils dilated as he stared at the boy. The boy didn't seem angst at all. He lowered his slingshot staring at the boy with wide eyes. Even his mouth slightly dropped as he kept his stare on the boy. The boy seemed as if he were the same age as Oliver. His mouth closed shut. He was now a bit interested. The boy seemed very thin, he seemed as if he hadn't eaten in ages. Not only that, but he looked like a mess. He seemed less fortunate than Oliver. Oliver began feeling a little sympathetic toward the boy as he slightly approached him lowering his slingshot even more.

"Jene Leute jagten Ihnen. Sie laufen sehr schnell."

He noticed his accent. It certainly wasn't German. It was sort of...Then it clicked. Finnish. Oliver had a few Finnish friends in his past time. That was his past time and now was his present time. Oliver couldn't help but give the boy a small smile of safety. "Mein name ist Oliver." He hadn't seen the boy around before. He seemed a bit new. Oliver kept his small smile on. "Ich denke nicht, dass ich das schnell, aber Danke führe." Oliver replied to the boy's complement. [Translations: [1] My name is Oliver. [2] I don't think I run that fast, but thank you.]

It was then when he pulled out the apple and placed it in the boy's hands within seconds. He put the slingshot into his pocket. Oliver then walked over to a woman, and without her looking, he knicked off a few Euros and placed them into the boys pocket. "Kommen. Wollen wir erforschen." He paused there, glancing back at the boy. "Als Freunde." He smiled. [Translations: [1] Come on, let's explore. [2] As friends.]

In less than a second, he held Eero's free hand and pulled him with him as he began running down the streets. All of a sudden, he heard a woman scream - "THIEF!" Now, Oliver was in full speed as he ran really fast trying his best not to let go of Eero's free hand. Oliver couldn't help but chuckle as he ran on and on throughout the streets of cold Berlin. He paused near a corner and leaned onto the wall. "Was denken Sie, Eero? Hatten Sie einen netten Flug?" Oliver laughed again, he felt a few raindrops trickling down his cheek. He placed a hand on his cheek. It was raining, oh what joy. [Translations : [1] What do you think, Eero? Did you have a nice flight?]

[eerolahtinen]

Eero flinched back when the boy he had chased after hid behind the tree and started yelling at him. Eero's eyes widened with surprise and he just stared at the boy, noticing that he was also pointing a slingshot at him. He could not come up with any words to reassure the boy of his good intentions and Eero just stood there, blinking at the surprisingly aggressive child.

"Gehen Sie gerade weg, oder ich werde schießen!", the boy yelled and Eero took a tentative step back. Firing a slingshot at someone didn't sound too dangerous, but a well-aimed bullet from one of those things could hurt quite a bit. Eero tried to seem as non-threatening as possible and he told the boy his name in a friendly manner, the last thing he wanted to do was to scare the boy away. "Mein name ist Oliver", the boy answered him and even smiled slightly when he spoke.

Eero smiled back at him and nodded, he wondered what the boy was doing here. He seemed to be doing quite well, better than Eero at least. He was either all alone like Eero was or then he was just one of those boys who stole things for fun. The thought made him frown slightly, but his strain of thoughts was interrupted when Oliver placed an apple in his hand. Eero looked at the apple for a while and then hungrily bit on it, savoring the taste of the fresh fruit. He nodded at the boy and smiled as he munched on his food. "Danke!"

He didn't have much time to react when the nimble boy had already moved towards a lady standing on the market square. Eero watched in horror as Oliver snatched something from the woman. To Eero it seemed that the boy would surely get caught red-handed. Apparently he had been practicing his trade for some time, as the woman was completely oblivious to what was happening and Oliver soon returned back to Eero. The Finnish boy heard the sound of a few coins clinking as Oliver dropped them in his pocket. Eero slipped his hand inside his pocket and felt the cold metal of the coins, he didn't remember the last time he had owned some money. A feeling of guilt surged over him, for all of his short life he had been taught that stealing was wrong and doing so made him feel awful every time. Even if he had to sometimes steal to survive, it didn't make it any different. It was still a wrong thing to do and he tried to avoid it whenever he could.

"Kommen. Wollen wir erforschen", Oliver said and paused for a while before adding something. "Als Freunde." Just the idea of having a friend in a place such as this made Eero smile widely and he nodded at the boy. "Ich möchte gern Ihr Freund", he said in his strange accent and his words seemed sincere. He didn't have time to say anything else as Oliver had already grabbed his hand and pulled Eero after him into a frantic run. Eero did his best to just try and keep up the pace and he almost lost the apple he had been eating. Someone was yelling after them and Eero had to just trust that Oliver knew what he was doing. They swerved around the corners of buildings, dodged people and finally stopped a good distance away from the marketplace. Oliver had been laughing as they had ran and Eero just tried to steady his breathing again, he wasn't even sure where he was anymore. Eero was horrified of getting caught and he was sure that if he did, he would be delivered to those dark-clad soldiers.

"Was denken Sie, Eero? Hatten Sie einen netten Flug?", Oliver asked, laughing. Eero just blinked at him and seemed still slightly shaken by the escape. He just nodded and kept glancing at the direction they had ran from. Finally he calmed down and stared at Oliver inquisitively. "Oliver, wo leben Sie? Wo ist Ihre Familie?"

Eero realized that this boy, being German, most likely knew a lot about Berlin and it's inhabitants. "Meine Mutter wurde weggenommen.. Durch diese Männer, Soldaten. Sie haben ein Zeichen wie das..", Eero drew two sharp S-shaped figures into the air with his index finger. "Wissen Sie irgendetwas über sie? Wo nehmen sie Leute?"

Translations:

"Ich möchte gern Ihr Freund."
"I would like to be your friend"

"Oliver, wo leben Sie? Wo ist Ihre Familie?"
"Oliver, where do you live? Where is your family?"

"Meine Mutter wurde weggenommen.. Durch diese Männer, Soldaten. Sie haben ein Zeichen wie das.."
"My mother, she was taken away.. By these men, soldiers. They have a mark like this.."

"Wissen Sie irgendetwas über sie? Wo nehmen sie Leute?"
"Do you know anything about them? Where do they take people?"

[olivervontrapp]

"Oliver, wo leben Sie? Wo ist Ihre Familie?"

Oliver paused there. He sighed. He didn't exactly know where his family was at the moment. No, wait, he did. He knew exactly where they were. They were in prison. A hard, cold cell. He wondered what they felt. He wondered what it felt like to be in actual prison cell. It must've been pretty interesting. Pretty odd actually. He glanced at Eero with his misty blue eyes. He shook his head. He went pale white at that single moment in time, he gulped. He didn't know how he should've put his words. He didn't know what to say. It wasn't that long since he had lost them. Anyways, he liked being alone. It simply meant freedom. He could do whatever he like. He could go where ever he desired. He loved this sort of life. The free life.

Anyways, his father shouldn't have been sent to jail. Oliver knew what he did wrong. He was a good man, and being a good man in Germany was a crime. It was horrid to be honest, actually. He certainly did miss his family. His mother's hugs, his sister's taunts, his father's comments. He sighed. He wanted the old Berlin. The new Berlin was like living in a sewer. It was that horrid. "Meine Familie wurde zum Gefängnis für mehrere Verbrechen gesandt, die ich im Moment nicht festsetzen kann." He quietly muttered. His father turned out to be a man who risked his life for people like the Jews. He actually joined the Nazi party to get through to the Jewish men and women and save their lives by helping them cross borders and such. His father was his role model. He planned to go save his family, even if it meant death. He would sacrifice it. He wanted to become a martyr. A well-known martyr. Well, throughout his family. [Translations: My family was sent to prison and I can't state any more matters.]

"Meine Mutter wurde weggenommen.. Durch diese Männer, Soldaten. Sie haben ein Zeichen wie das.."

Oliver noticed his hand movements. The SS. Of course he knew them. Who didn't? The Nazi party. The dirtiest party in the world. He sighed glancing down at the ground, slightly frowning. He hated thinking about them. He glanced up and noticed two Nazi officers grabbing hold of a Jewish woman and pushing her into a truck full of other Jewish people. The sight looked pathetic. A disgrace to his fatherland. It wasn't hard to notice them, and anyways it wasn't hard to ignore them. They were practically everywhere.

"Wissen Sie irgendetwas über sie? Wo nehmen sie Leute?"

Oliver nodded. He kept his eyes still on the officer lurring the Jewish race into the trucks. "Ja sind sie die Nazis. Sie mögen weg Ihr Glück sehr saugen." He didn't want to mention that his father was a Nazi. This boy was his friend. He didn't want to be left alone in the world with nobody. "Größtenteils nehmen Juden in Plätze genannt Konzentrationslager weg." Oh, his father had told him many things about Concentration camps. "Wirklich nehmen sie alle diejenigen weg, wer aus dem deutschen Blut nicht gemacht werden." [Translations: [1] Yeah, they're the Nazis. They like to suck away your fun. [2]They mostly take away Jewish people to places called Concentration camps. [2] Actually they take away all those whom aren't made of German blood.]

[eerolahtinen]

The young Finnish boy saw a sudden sadness in Oliver's eyes when the boy was asked about his family. Eero felt sorry for him even before he heard what had happened to them. Eero and Oliver were both all alone in this big city, it seemed. Obviously Oliver had adapted to this lifestyle better than him, but then again Eero just couldn't get past how wrong stealing was. Maybe it also helped to know the people and the language of this strange country better, Eero might not have been feeling so lost if he had been left in the same situation in his own country. Eero decided that it was best to try and hold on to this precious friend and he felt a sense of kinship with Oliver although he didn't even know him too well yet.

"Meine Familie wurde zum Gefängnis für mehrere Verbrechen gesandt, die ich im Moment nicht festsetzen kann", Oliver told quietly and Eero nodded, he was not going to ask anything more about Oliver's family if it made him so sad. He did not know why his mother had been taken away either and he realized he was actually too afraid to even think about it too carefully. The idea of his mother being a criminal of some sort wasn't something he was going to consider, not even for a moment. Eero bit on the apple he had not yet finished eating and felt slightly better as he tried to occupy his mind with something else. Actually the food and a new friend had made him feel happier than he had felt for a long time.

When Eero asked about the strange soldiers that had taken away Herr Thomas and Eero's mother, Oliver seemed to have some information. They were Nazis, Eero had heard the word many times before but had never really grasped the true meaning of the word. Herr Thomas had told him that they were important people and were building a better Germany, whatever that meant. Even though Eero was just a boy, he had sensed a certain tension that seemed to surround the word "Nazi". It was like as if people said that they were a good thing, but were careful and afraid to say much else about them. But who were they? Were all Nazis soldiers or were there some other special Nazis, too?

"Größtenteils nehmen Juden in Plätze genannt Konzentrationslager weg", Oliver added and Eero squinted his eyes as he thought about the boy's words. The Jews.. Concentration camps? Eero shook his head and looked at Oliver. "Ich verstehe nicht.. Welche Plätze sie.. Konzentrationslager sind? Ich glaube, dass es einem Gefängnis ähnlich ist? Wie lange müssen Sie dort bleiben?"

"Wirklich nehmen sie alle diejenigen weg, wer aus dem deutschen Blut nicht gemacht werden", Oliver told him and Eero regarded his new friend with horror. "Sie alle? Denken Sie, dass sie mir jagten, weil ich nicht ein Deutscher bin? Herr Thomas sagte.. dass es ist.. wir sind.. dem nordischen Blut, und es ist ein gutes Ding. Und er war ein Soldat auch, gerade nicht mit jenen Zeichen. Er war deutsch, und sie nahmen ihn auch weg."

Eero's heart filled with hope as he already contemplated his heroic journey to save all the prisoners from these evil soldiers and his eyes glowed with enthusiasm. "Können Sie.. einem jener Lager entfliehen? Wenn Ihre Eltern dort sind, konnten wir sie vielleicht und meine Mutter auch sparen! Zusammen konnten wir einen Plan präsentieren! Wissen Sie, wo ein Lager wie das ist?"


Translations:

"Ich verstehe nicht.. Welche Plätze sie.. Konzentrationslager sind? Ich glaube, dass es einem Gefängnis ähnlich ist? Wie lange müssen Sie dort bleiben?"
"I don't understand.. What kind of places are they.. concentration camps? I guess it's like a jail? How long do you have to stay there?"

"Sie alle? Denken Sie, dass sie mir jagten, weil ich nicht ein Deutscher bin? Herr Thomas sagte.. dass es ist.. wir sind.. dem nordischen Blut, und es ist ein gutes Ding. Und er war ein Soldat auch, gerade nicht mit jenen Zeichen. Er war deutsch, und sie nahmen ihn auch weg."
"All of them? Do you think they chased me because I'm not a German? Herr Thomas said.. it's.. we are of.. Nordic blood and that's a good thing. And he was a soldier, too, just not with those markings. He was German and they took him away, too."

"Können Sie.. einem jener Lager entfliehen? Wenn Ihre Eltern dort sind, konnten wir sie vielleicht und meine Mutter auch sparen! Zusammen konnten wir einen Plan präsentieren! Wissen Sie, wo ein Lager wie das ist?"
"Can you.. at least escape from one of those camps? If your parents are there, we could maybe save them and my mother, too! Together we could come up with a plan! Do you know where a camp like that is?"

[olivervontrapp]

"Ich verstehe nicht.. Welche Plätze sie.. Konzentrationslager sind? Ich glaube, dass es einem Gefängnis ähnlich ist? Wie lange müssen Sie dort bleiben?"

The young German boy watched the boy speak. Sighing, he leaned against the wall inhaling the cold air that swam around him. He kept his gaze forward on the opposite wall of the damp corner. He didn't exactly know where his family were imprisoned at the moment. He knew it wasn't a Concentration camp because only Juden go the concentration camps, or people whom are classified as foreigners and such. He didn't exactly want them at the moment, he was happy with himself. And, not only that, he wasn't exactly lost. He had met Strumfelder a couple of weeks ago and he seemed to get along quite fine with the man. Oliver was perfectly healthy, although he just didn't want to note that. He didn't want to lose a friend. Especially Eero. He nodded and quickly replied - "Konzentrationslager sind Gefängnisse ... für die anderen." He paused. "Und ich denke, dass Sie dort bleiben, bis Ihr Tod ankommt." [Translations: [1] Concentration camps are prisons...for the others. [2] And I think you stay there until your death arrives.]

He continued to listen to Eero's talking. Herr Thomas? He arched an eyebrow. "Wer ist Herr Thomas?" He then glanced at Eero, feeling a little bit more interested in his conversation. He didn't exactly care where Eero was from. They were friends. He wouldn't break their bond at all. "Und er war ein Soldat auch, gerade nicht mit jenen Zeichen." Eero had noted. Oliver nodded, smiling. "Nicht alle Soldaten sind hier Nazis. Einige sind verschieden."[Translations: [1] Who's Herr Thomas? [2] Not all soldiers here are Nazis. Some are different.]

"Can you.. at least escape from one of those camps? If your parents are there, we could maybe save them and my mother, too! Together we could come up with a plan! Do you know where a camp like that is?"

Oliver quirked at these words, he sort of twitched. He slightly turned to glance away. He did not want to find his parents! He DID NOT! He wanted to run free and do whatever he wanted to do. Sure, he loved them, but right now, he didn't. They he betrayed his homeland. Oliver was of the Aryan race. He did as told but was at the same time, quite independant. He was true Aryan. His sister was a brat and he did not want to talk or see her again. His parents were betrayers. He thought of himself as the only normal, and real person of the Von Trapp family. The rest were all bloody scums.

He simply glanced back at Eero and said with a calm voice - "Meine Familie wurde durchgeführt. Der naher Familienfreund meines Vatis informierte mich vor einer Nacht." He lied. "Aber ich bin nicht dagegen zu versuchen, Ihnen zu helfen, Ihre Familie zu finden." He grinned. "Es kann unser eigenes Abenteuer sein!" He glanced around. And then he whispered getting up - "Ich weiß ein nahe gelegenes Konzentrationslager im Südlichen Berlin. Wir können dorthin und Versuch gehen. Kommen Sie heran! Es ist nicht weit von hier." [Translations: [1] My family was executed. My dad's close family friend informed me a night ago. [2] It can be our own adventure! [3] I know a nearby Concentration camp in South Berlin. We can go there and try. Come on! It's not far from here.]

And with that said, he didn't care to wait, he pulled Eero to his feet and began making his way around the corner and began heading South while running on his two feet. He tried to a little bit slower this time so that Eero could catch up. He loved adventures! It was always a good excuse to explore the world. As he headed South, they passed shops and stores, they passed large buildings and tiny little corners until they had reached the woods. He began making his way through the woods, still running. Within a knick of time, he found himself near wired fences that led into a Concentration camp. He knew he shouldn't have been here but he was determined to help his friend. He stood in front of the wires fences, peering inside.

[eerolahtinen]

Oliver was silent and seemed thoughtful for a while before he spoke again. Eero watched the boy lean against the wall before slowly coming up with his answer. "Konzentrationslager sind Gefängnisse ... für die anderen. Und ich denke, dass Sie dort bleiben, bis Ihr Tod ankommt", Oliver said and Eero looked at the other boy in terror.

"Bis zum Tod?", he repeated in an astonished tone. How could they lock people up for the rest of their life just for being a Jew or for not being a German? Even though he had been constantly taught about the pureness of Aryan race right away after he had arrive in Germany, he still could not believe that being from another country or being a little different from others was so bad you deserved to go into jail for it! When he was still living in Finland, he had heard about a local man that had attacked one of their neighbours with a knife and the police had come to arrest him. He had been taken to jail and Eero had been happy about it. Attacking someone was a decent reason to be put in jail but this..? He could hardly believe it, the mere thought made him feel scared.

"Wer ist Herr Thomas?", Oliver asked and Eero sighed, shrugging. He didn't really know who he was either, he had never gotten to know the man too well and he had not wanted to, either. All he knew about Herr Thomas was what he had seen while in Berlin, they had not talked about anything too much. "Er war der Mann, der mir und meiner Mutter hier brachte. Ein deutscher Soldat. Ich errate einen wichtigen, aber ich weiß viel über Soldaten nicht, so weiß ich sicher nicht. Eines Nachts jene Soldaten.. die Nazis, sie kamen zu unserem Haus und nahmen Herr Thomas weg. Ich glaube, dass er etwas Schlechtes tat", Eero frowned and then glanced quickly at Oliver, suddenly much more determined when he continued. "Sie nahmen meine Mutter auch weg, aber sie ist nicht ein Verbrecher oder ein Jude sicher!"

When Eero came up with the idea of going on a rescue mission to save both his mother and Oliver's parents, Oliver's demeanor changed quickly and it made Eero concerned. He certainly hoped he had not said anything wrong and he tried to smile at the other boy encouragingly. His smile quickly faded away when Oliver said his parents had been killed and he looked at the other boy in renewed horror. How could they have been killed? How could somebody do things like that? He had known this country and city was all messed up even before he had arrived here, he had known it! "Es tut mir leid", was all Eero could say, though he seemed genuinely sorry for Oliver's cruel fate. At the same time he was worried about his mother and maybe slightly even for Herr Thomas, also. He had never liked the man but he certainly did not wish for him to get killed, either! Eero sighed and bit his lower lip, he had to find out what had happened to them.

"Ich weiß ein nahe gelegenes Konzentrationslager im Südlichen Berlin. Wir können dorthin und Versuch gehen. Kommen Sie heran! Es ist nicht weit von hier", Oliver said and suddenly grabbed his hand. Eero gasped and tried his best to follow the other boy. Luckily he was not running quite as fast as earlier, but then again they were not running away from anyone for a change. Eero still found it difficult to follow Oliver at such a fast pace and he hardly noticed where they were going as streets and buildings flashed by them in a flurry.

When they finally slowed down and stopped in the forest, Eero just slumped down on the ground and kept blinking his eyes. It looked as if he was going to faint any minute now. He had not eaten too well for many days and this added exertion was just too much for his current condition. The boy closed his eyes and took deep breaths for a while, before glancing at the daunting wired fence that stood before them. So this was one of those camps? Eero swallowed hard and his eyes followed the fence, the perimeter was high and Eero felt his heart jump as he saw the soldiers walking around in the camp. If they noticed them, they would surely be angry!

Eero gasped and scrambled away from the fence desperately, his face was ashen and he shivered in the cold. "Ist das, wo sie sind? Herr Thomas und meine Mutter?", he asked, although he knew that Oliver might not have the answer. It was mostly just him thinking out loud, the whole plan of rescue seemed much more daunting now that he saw the camp for real. He looked around and tried to gather his courage and he nodded as he stumbled up from the ground. "Es könnte schwierig sein.., Aber wenn wir einen Plan präsentieren, könnten wir im Stande sein, es zu tun. Ich gerade.. Ich brauche etwas Rest, ich kann nicht mehr sogar laufen", he admitted and glanced at his feet. "Wo schlafen Sie gewöhnlich, Oliver? Konnten wir irgendwo finden, um das ausruhen zu lassen und zu planen? Wir konnten zurückkommen.. Ich weiß nicht. Morgen vielleicht. Oder wann auch immer wir einen guten Plan haben."

Eero felt ashamed of backing down from the rescue mission, but he knew he would be of no use like this. He needed all his strength and wit to save his mother. He did not want to get caught, he knew that it would spell doom for both him and his mother. He stared at Oliver desperately, hoping that the other boy wouldn't think of him as a coward and a quitter.


Translations:

"Bis zum Tod?"
"Until death?"

"Er war der Mann, der mir und meiner Mutter hier brachte. Ein deutscher Soldat. Ich errate einen wichtigen, aber ich weiß viel über Soldaten nicht, so weiß ich sicher nicht. Eines Nachts jene Soldaten.. die Nazis, sie kamen zu unserem Haus und nahmen Herr Thomas weg. Ich glaube, dass er etwas Schlechtes tat."
"He was the man who brought me and my mother here. Some German soldier. I guess an important one, but I don't know much about soldiers, so I don't know for sure. One night those soldiers.. the nazis, they came to our house and took Herr Thomas away. I guess he did something bad."

"Sie nahmen meine Mutter auch weg, aber sie ist nicht ein Verbrecher oder ein Jude sicher!"
"They took my mother away too, but she is not a criminal or a Jew for sure!"

"Es tut mir leid."
"I'm sorry."

"Ist das, wo sie sind? Herr Thomas und meine Mutter?"
"Is that where they are? Herr Thomas and my mother?"

"Es könnte schwierig sein.., Aber wenn wir einen Plan präsentieren, könnten wir im Stande sein, es zu tun. Ich gerade.. Ich brauche etwas Rest, ich kann nicht mehr sogar laufen."
"It might be difficult.. But if we come up with a plan, we might be able to do it. I just.. I need some rest, I can't even run any further."


"Wo schlafen Sie gewöhnlich, Oliver? Konnten wir irgendwo finden, um das ausruhen zu lassen und zu planen? Wir konnten zurückkommen.. Ich weiß nicht. Morgen vielleicht. Oder wann auch immer wir einen guten Plan haben."
"Where do you usually sleep, Oliver? Could we find somewhere to rest and plan this? We could come back.. I don't know. Tomorrow maybe. Or whenever we have a good plan."

[olivervontrapp]

"Er war der Mann, der mir und meiner Mutter hier brachte. Ein deutscher Soldat. Ich errate einen wichtigen, aber ich weiß viel über Soldaten nicht, so weiß ich sicher nicht. Eines Nachts jene Soldaten.. die Nazis, sie kamen zu unserem Haus und nahmen Herr Thomas weg. Ich glaube, dass er etwas Schlechtes tat."

Oliver shrugged. The man may have done something wrong. Either that, or he was a Jewish man. He picked up a leaf lying on the ground and began to slowly examine it's texture and shape. The boy really seemed lost in confusion. He seemed like he had nobody this world to look up to. He seemed...away. The boy also seemed weak and tired and he had nowhere to go. Oliver felt completely opposite compared to the boy. He was strong and willing, and he would walk a million miles without stopping. He had many places to go to. He went to school. He had a very good Education. He could both German and English fairly fluently. He felt really sorry for Eero.

"Es könnte schwierig sein.., Aber wenn wir einen Plan präsentieren, könnten wir im Stande sein, es zu tun. Ich gerade.. Ich brauche etwas Rest, ich kann nicht mehr sogar laufen."

Oliver sighed. He hated planning. He just loved going straight to the things. He nodded and glanced at another German soldier walking past them both, minding his own business until he kidnapped another Jewish lady. Was Berlin full of Juden or was it just him? He had nothing against the Juden but it was odd. Not many areas in Germany had Juden. They were all taken away. His eyes then darted towards a lost dog. He seemed very lost actually. The dog was walking towards Eero and Oliver. Oliver glanced down at the dog. He gave it a pat on the head. It was lost, just like him and Eero.

"Wo schlafen Sie gewöhnlich, Oliver? Konnten wir irgendwo finden, um das ausruhen zu lassen und zu planen? Wir konnten zurückkommen.. Ich weiß nicht. Morgen vielleicht. Oder wann auch immer wir einen guten Plan haben."

Coward. Oliver thought. He slightly grinned trying his best to get rid of all his troubles. He then glanced at Eero, sighing as he slightly pushed himself up. "Sie, wissen Eero. Sie sind ein Feigling." He laughed as he spoke his words. "Aber ja glaube ich, dass wir es später planen können." He then straightened himself up and began making his way down the street. "Folgen Sie mir." He then entered a cellar that sat underneath a random building, he sat down on a bed and stared at the wall in front him. Oliver noticed how the dog had followed. He would name him Blunds. Yeah, Blunds. "Ja, Blunds." He smiled. The dog was a small, scruffy little dog.[Translations: [1] You know Eero. You are a coward. [2] But yeah, I guess we can plan it out later. [3] Follow me.]

[Daniel Brennan]

Mod Post

Nice posts, guys.

CP:
Eero: 10CP

Oliver: 11CP


~Dan