The first night Connie was gone, Bertolt was torn between being angry and just plain upset. Someone either didn't see him, or they let him out without finding out where he was going. When one day turned into two and two turned into four, he didn't sleep until he was harassed into doing so. Sure, Connie was old enough to make his own choices, but those choices still affected the group.
He felt that Connie and everyone else he and Reiner had met and taken in along the way were his responsibility. Too many people had died and because Connie managed to slip past the guards... He even wondered if it was during his own watch. It couldn't have been his fault, right? Reiner had to reassure him god-only-knows how many times. It's no one's fault.
He'll be okay.
He'll be back.
He thought of Connie huddled in a tiny corner with walkers pounding on a door while he bled from a bite. He thought of him lying in a ditch from a broken ankle. He thought of him coming back to the compound, skin gray and bruised and bloodied. So when Bertolt heard the cries of 'Connie' near the fence, he mentally prepared himself for the worst when he stepped outside.
What he saw left him staring.
Connie was alive. He was alive and he wasn't bitten and he was okay and he was alive he's alive! But Bertolt doesn't move from his spot near the sleeping quarters. He didn't run down and greet him like everyone else did. Was he happy that the younger boy was alive? Of course. He just didn't know how to properly express it. So, he waits. He waits for the reunions to end and the sun to set before he finally makes an effort to track Connie down within the compound. When he finally finds him, Bertolt just sort of watches him.
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Date: 2014-07-21 03:33 pm (UTC)He felt that Connie and everyone else he and Reiner had met and taken in along the way were his responsibility. Too many people had died and because Connie managed to slip past the guards... He even wondered if it was during his own watch. It couldn't have been his fault, right? Reiner had to reassure him god-only-knows how many times. It's no one's fault.
He'll be okay.
He'll be back.
He thought of Connie huddled in a tiny corner with walkers pounding on a door while he bled from a bite. He thought of him lying in a ditch from a broken ankle. He thought of him coming back to the compound, skin gray and bruised and bloodied. So when Bertolt heard the cries of 'Connie' near the fence, he mentally prepared himself for the worst when he stepped outside.
What he saw left him staring.
Connie was alive. He was alive and he wasn't bitten and he was okay and he was alive he's alive! But Bertolt doesn't move from his spot near the sleeping quarters. He didn't run down and greet him like everyone else did. Was he happy that the younger boy was alive? Of course. He just didn't know how to properly express it. So, he waits. He waits for the reunions to end and the sun to set before he finally makes an effort to track Connie down within the compound. When he finally finds him, Bertolt just sort of watches him.
"...Connie."