Schatzi

24

7 months later
17th October 1939

Eli stood in the middle of the square, a pile of leaflets clutched to his chest, the writing printed on them hidden from view. It was a busy Saturday, the air only just beginning to grow colder, the slight bite of the chill on his cheeks. Even though it wasn't that cold, he wore layers of clothes underneath a long and worn brown coat, and a hat and scarf that hid most of his face from view. Across the street, he could see Henry, another kid from their group, also with a pile of paper and also staying hidden, and on the other side of the street was Lotte, just the same.

A couple walked past him, glancing at him and giving him an odd look. He gave them a small nod of greeting and averted his gaze, staring down at the brown and red leaves littering the pavement.

More and more people walked past, and he waited. Kept waiting. People were shopping, buying groceries and clothes, going about their everyday lives. There were no police men, no soldiers, no SS, as far as he could see at least. He'd traveled across the city to get here, to this fancy neighbourhood which needed less monitoring as far as the Nazis were concerned.

So it was safer to do this here than back at home. To be honest though, it wasn't safe to do this anywhere. This was the craziest thing the group had ever done, and they all knew what would happen if they were caught. Death, certainly, in one way or another. How they'd be killed? They'd just have to find out.

He was panicking, a bit. But it wasn't the same overwhelming panic that usually took hold of him in situations that meant nothing compared to this one. In school, before everything got bad, he couldn't even deliver a presentation by himself. And now, he was about to commit treason by delivering the ultimate presentation on the horrors of humanity.

He made eye contact with Henry, and then with Lotte, and then he nodded. And everything else happened very very quickly.

He stood up on the bench just behind him, gripping onto the back so he didn't lose his balance before straightening up and grabbing one leaflet from the pile.

"Jews, Gypsies, Homosexuals, Communists," he yelled, his voice ringing out across the square. "Jehovah's witnesses, Poles, Blacks. Our government is committing mass murder every single day and no one talks about it. Your friends, your neighbours, your fellow Germans, are being taken away and slaughtered! You're being fooled, you're witnessing the death of all moral values in our country and yet you do nothing! You refuse to listen, and you refuse to rebel!"

People were watching. Fucking hell, people were watching. Listening. Whether they agreed with them or not, it didn't matter. They were listening. He grabbed a handful of the leaflets and threw them up into the air.

He jumped off the bench, thrusting more leaflets into the hands of anyone he walked past.

"Listen to us, and think about your duty as human beings to have even the tiniest bit of compassion. Think about how you would feel if that were you. What would you want? How would it feel to know you have been abandoned by the rest of humanity, to know that they don't care about you? Take a second, just a second, to listen to us, to read what we wrote, and think about who you are and what you stand for!" His voice was rising, shaking, but it still carried, and people continued to listen, even though they looked terrified. But he was scared too, and if he could do this, risk his life for the cause, then they could cope with his words.

"If you do nothing in this situation, you are just as bad as them! You are the enemy, and you might as well be the one holding the gun. By remaining silent, you pull the trigger! Do something to oppose the plague infecting this once beautiful country, and no, I'm not talking about the Jews, or the commies, or the Poles like the propaganda you're constantly fed would have you believe. I'm talking about the fucking Nazis, the curse that is ruining Germany!"