Here's my Halloween one-shot. I'm posting it before I go out trick-or-treating with my little sister. We're cosplaying Canada and America.
Warning: Character death
Vampires
"Ve~ It's really cold," Feliciano said to his brother, shivering despite the white jacket he was wearing.
Lovino nodded, teeth chattering. He was wearing a matching jacket to his twin's. "Why the hell did our boyfriends ask us to meet them at this old church? It's as creepy as hell."
"Ve~ I don't know. I want Ludwig to come and then we'll go home and eat pasta," pouted Feliciano. A sudden noise made him turn. "Wh-what was that?"
Lovino peered at the now-open double door. "I don't know… Antonio? Is that you?"
"L-ludwig?" echoed Feliciano. No answer.
The brothers huddled together, watching the door. They could see shadows moving outside like ghosts. Leaves crunched under feet, but no one entered the church.
"I want to go home," Feliciano whimpered, "but I don't want to go outside."
"N-neither do I," stuttered Lovino. "Let's go to the altar. This is still a church. God will protect us for anything evil there."
Feliciano nodded, and they slowly made their way up to the altar, starting at every sound. When they finally reached the cross, though still tense from their walk down the aisle, they relaxed a bit.
Until they saw the open coffin with a body in it. Then they both shrieked. The scream echoed throughout the church's vaulted ceilings, disturbing some bats.
Dark chuckles came from it as a violet-eyed man sat up in it, looking as pale as death. "Kolkolkolkol, are you scared, little twins?" The Italians backed away as the man smiled, revealing sharp teeth. He got out of his box and advanced. "You should be. Fear is a wonderful spice. Gives the blood a nice kick, and the struggles are an important part of it, da?"
Feliciano screamed again as he back up into a powerful hold. Pale hands gripped his shoulders, and he looked up into sad, all-too familiar ice blue eyes. "L-ludwig? Wh-what –"
"I'm sorry," was all the German said. Feliciano struggled to get out of his lover's arms, but he couldn't. He always could before. He could slide out from the hands that were never too hard. But now… the hands holding him were bruising, and Ludwig wasn't letting him go. Adrenaline pumped though the Italian's veins, and suddenly he didn't care about mysterious shadows beyond the doors, as long as he got away from the monster Ludwig had turned into.
Lovino watched in horror as the purple-eyed vampire advanced on his helpless brother. He took a step forward, intending to do something, anything, to help Feliciano. He didn't know what he could do, since his gun was left in his car. Stupid, stupid, he told himself. He should have taken it. After all, this was an abandoned church, and it was Halloween night. A hand caught his, and he turned, trying to pull out of its grip, only to face brown hair and green eyes. He paused in his struggle to ask, "A-antonio? Why…?"
"I, too, am sorry, mi amore," the Spaniard said mournfully. Brown eyes widened in realization that Antonio, too, was a vampire, and he started trying harder than ever to pull out of the grasp of his now-former lover.
"Let me go, bastard!" he yelled. Antonio merely gazed sadly at him, with an emotion Lovino couldn't place in his eyes. It was something akin to lust, and it made him shudder with fear.
Feliciano whimpered, shaking not only from cold but also from fright now. Ludwig looked remorsefully down at him and asked, "Can we not just turn them, Ivan?"
Ivan shook his head, still smiling and showing off his impossibly long canines. "Oh, we can't do that. We need them for the Ritual. After all, that's why I turned you two. I knew there was no way to get the twins without you."
Lovino gulped. Ritual? What the hell was this creepy vampire guy talking about? And why the hell wouldn't he stop smiling that God-awful creepy smile? Another pale man ghosted up out of the night. This one Lovino recognized. Gilbert. Ludwig's brother. I always knew there was something creepy about him, thought the brunette.
Gilbert draped his arms around Ivan, looking hungrily at Feliciano. "I want first taste of that one," he said while playing with the Russian's scarf.
"Now, now, you know we need them both alive and unblooded for the Ritual," Ivan chided.
"Afterwards, of course," Gilbert said.
"Of course, мой дорогой," Ivan replied.
The statement gave Lovino an idea. So they needed him and his brother both "alive and unblooded" for this Ritual? That meant they couldn't kill him or Feliciano if he tried to run. Antonio's grip on him had slackened as he had stopped struggling. This was his chance. He would have to leave Feliciano, but they wouldn't kill his twin. Right? He just had to trust it. He had to go get help.
Lovino's fist swung and hit Antonio square in the face. The Italian pulled his wrist free from the lose grip and ran like demons were behind him. Because, well, there were. Pale forms burst from the pews, trying to grab him. Some he recognized, some he didn't. It seemed like half of the town was a vampire.
"No!" hissed Kiku as his swipe missed.
"Don't let him escape!" a woman with longer blonde hair and purple eyes demanded as he ducked her knife.
"The door! The door!" Lili called from the choir loft.
"He's, like, getting away!" wailed another blonde with green eyes from beside her.
Lovino thanked God that he had kept up running after high school as he ducked hands and tackles as he ran out of the church. Now for the graveyard beyond it. It was now apparent why the vampires had the Italians meet them here. The unsanctified church and the haunted graveyard beyond it. He could see more vampires out there along with ghosts. Lovino took a deep breath and started across it. I just have to get to the car, he told himself as he dodged Vash and Roderich. Just get to the car.
Lovino's hand was on the handle when Elizabeta seized him from around the waist, wrapping her arms around him in a cruel mockery of a hug. What did that bastard do; turn all of the people in our lives into monsters? Lovino asked himself as he struggled against her inhuman strength.
"I got him!" she screeched.
"No you fucking don't, bitch!" he yelled, kicking her in the stomach and wrenching the door open into her face. She let go, yowling, and he scrambled into the red car, locking it. The demons banged on the car, denting it, trying to get in. Lovino was glad that he had the keys in his pocket, and that Feliciano didn't have them. There would be no escape for either of them if that had been the case. He stepped on the gas, and vampires flew off the car. An ugly squelching sound heralded the squishing of a vampire with brown hair and green eyes.
It wasn't until Lovino had left the church far behind him did he feel safe. Safe from everything back there. He stopped on a dirt road, and rested his head against the wheel, adrenaline draining from him.
The sound of an engine made him snap his head up. There were headlights visible in his rearview mirror. Please, God, let it be someone normal, prayed Lovino.
The blue SUV pulled up next to his car, and stopped. Elizabeta's face was visible through the window, and Lovino cursed his life. God just wasn't listening to him at all today, was He?
"Hello, Lovino," she said, getting out of her car. "Come with me and you won't be hurt."
He made no move to obey her, and locked the car. There was no way in hell he was going to be at the mercy of Ivan if he could help it. She sighed, and walked up to his car. "Don't say I didn't warn you."
Elizabeta gripped the handle of the red car, and tore it off, exposing the Italian to the cold night air. She clambered in and reached for him.
Lovino unlocked his door and tumbled out onto the road, terrified of the expression in the looming green eyes. "Shit!" he cursed as he plummeted down into a ditch, landing with a splash in the frigid water.
"You're very naughty, Lovino. Now I'm going to have to punish you," Elizabeta said, her form looming above the Italian floundering in the dirty freezing water. "I don't want to, but Ivan told me to if you did this." She slid down the bank gracefully, and Lovino backed away, shivering from the cold and fright. His jacket wasn't so warm now that it was soaked.
"Leave me the fuck alone!" he shouted, fear evident in his voice.
Elizabeta's hand shot out fast as lightning, and caught hold of his wrist, and pulled him toward her. Lovino struggled, panicking. "Stop fighting me," she growled. "I don't want to hurt you anymore than I have to."
"Let me go," he begged. "Please, Elizabeta… I know you were a good person once –"
"No one is good after Ivan gets to them," she said abruptly, then yanked him into the water. Panicked brown met emotionless green for a second before the muddy water closed over Lovino's head. He thrashed, frantically trying to get above water, getting more desperate for a breath as time went by, but her hands held him down.
Lovino's chest felt like it was going to explode, and he opened his mouth, trying to breathe, but all he got was a lungful of foul water. His struggles died down as he lost the strength to fight, and Elizabeta finally brought him up to the surface. Lovino coughed, gratefully breathing in deep gasps of air.
"Are you going to stop fighting?" Elizabeta asked. He nodded, all of the fight in him gone. "Good," she said, and hauled the limp brunette up out of the ditch. "I didn't want to hurt you more."
The sound of an engine made her look up to see a pair of headlights driving towards them. The green truck stopped just before the two cars blocking its way. A blonde man got out of the driver's side.
"What the bloody hell is going on?" he asked, green eyes flashing at Lovino's state and the grip Elizabeta had on the Italian's arm.
She smiled brightly. "Oh, Lovino here just fell into the ditch, and I had to pull him out. Silly boy can't swim, did you know that?" Her grip tightened, warning Lovino not to say anything. He complied, not wanting to get almost drowned again. And besides, what could this stranger do against a vampire?
Green eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Last time I checked, water in ditches this time of year around here doesn't get above a few feet. Lovino here had trouble swimming in that?"
Elizabeta nodded brightly. "Yep! He panics and can't swim in anything!"
The blonde nodded, but his eyes remained narrowed in suspicion. "Do you two need any help?"
"Nope! I got it under control!"
"Then I shall leave you to it. Are you going to be moving your cars anytime soon, or shall I find an alternate route?"
"We're just leaving. Come on, Lovino!" She tugged him roughly toward the SUV, making him stumble. A new voice made her pause, though.
Another blonde had gotten out of the car and said loudly, "Hey, Artie, the radar's goin' nuts! I think we're close!"
Elizabeta started hustling, practically dragging the Italian, who tripped after her.
The first one huffed. "Alfred, how many times do I have to tell you? My name is Arthur! And which radar?"
"The vamp one! And who're they?" Alfred asked. "They don' look too happy."
Arthur turned to see Elizabeta throw Lovino into the car. "They – what are you doing, lass?"
Elizabeta made no reply, merely getting into the driver's seat, a grim expression on her face. Arthur walked up to the blue car, an unreadable expression on his face. He was toying with something in his jacket pocket. "Are you sure you two are alright?" he asked through the open window, peering at Lovino's frightened face.
"Perfectly," she said, her tone saying anything but.
Arthur's hand quickly flashed out, and a clear liquid sprayed the Hungarian. She howled with pain. "I thought so," the Englishman said. "You are a vampire, aren't you?"
"Holy… water…" she gasped out. "Ivan… will…" She couldn't finish her sentence. Arthur had driven a wooden stake through her heart.
Alfred came bounding up, opening Lovino's door. "Hey, are you okay? That vamp didn't hurt yah too much, did she?" Lovino shook his head slowly, a bit shell-shocked. "That's good. Do yah know why she was after yah? Most vamps abandon a victim once other people show up."
"H-her boss, I guess, told her to go after me. He said he needed me and my brother for some kind of 'ritual,'" Lovino said shakily.
Arthur's green eyes narrowed. "Are you and your brother twins?" he asked.
Lovino nodded, slightly puzzled. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"One of the rituals vampires do to insure their safety from hunters like us involves identical twins," Arthur explained. "It's not pleasant. Do you know where your brother is?"
Lovino paled. "Oh Dio. They still have him."
"Where?"
"There's this old church down this road," he said, gesturing.
Alfred and Arthur looked at each other, and moved simultaneously towards their truck. "We'd better get going, then," Alfred said.
"You're not leaving me here, bastards!" Lovino protested.
"You don't expect to come with us?" Arthur said, surprised.
"Damn right! I'm not letting two strangers go rescue my fratello without me!" asserted Lovino.
Arthur sighed. "Get into the back, then. Can you shoot a gun?" Lovino nodded. "Alfred, get him the extra pistol. You need special bullets to deal with the supernatural. Silver works best for most, and holy water and iron will do for the rest."
Lovino nodded, and hefted the gun in his hands. Not a bad feel. He could get used to this gun.
Feliciano anxiously watched the vampires bustle around the church. He didn't know what they were going to do to him, and the glances some of them kept sending him were scaring him. Some were pity-filled, and some were… terrifying. Very, very terrifying. He was tied to a post at the front, next to the cross that he could now see was decorated in red spots. Feliciano's mind flinched away from what the spots were made of. Ludwig stood by him, but contrary to what the Italian typically experienced when the blonde was so near, all he could feel was pure fear. And the cold blue eyes that seemed so blank weren't helping.
Nearby, Ivan was lecturing Antonio. "How could you have let him get away?" growled Ivan, no longer smiling.
Antonio gulped. "Lo siento, I didn't think he would –"
"You are not supposed to think," snarled the Russian, backhanding Antonio, "you are supposed to obey me at all times, without question! Do you want to be caught by the hunters?"
"No –"
"I don't care. The only reason you are not dead is because Elizabeta went after him. Had she not, you would have outlived your usefulness. In fact, I am still thinking of killing you. You get no more mistakes, da?" Ivan stalked off, a darker than usual aura exuding from him. Antonio shrunk into the darkness, and Feliciano flinched as the Russian vampire stopped in front of him and grabbed his chin.
Irate violet eyes stared into petrified caramel for a few long moments, and then Ivan released the Italian. "You should hope your brother comes willingly with Elizabeta," was all the vampire said before walking off. Feliciano relaxed as the distance between them lengthened.
Red eyes loomed up out of the darkness, and Feliciano squeaked. Gilbert smirked. "Keseseseses! You are way too easy to scare, kid! Too bad your brother abandoned you. He at least had a bit of courage." The albino ruffled the red hair, and Feliciano made a sound of protest, but was muffled by the cloth gag in his mouth. "What? Don't like me telling the truth? Get used to it, Feli. You're not in your safe little world of pasta anymore. You're in the real world."
Feliciano looked away from him, trying to ignore him. A pale finger traced the tear-tracks on his face. "Crying already? Just wait. Whether or not Lovino shows, I get to have my fun with you. I'll give you something to really cry over. Eh, West?" Gilbert slung an arm around Ludwig's shoulders. The blonde didn't say anything. He merely looked away from the other tow, an unreadable expression on his face. "Spoilsport," Gilbert snorted. "Well, see ya, Feli."
As the albino slinked away, the main doors creaked open. Lovino stood in the door way, a gun held in his shaking hands.
"Well, look who showed up," Gilbert said.
"Let. My. Fratello. Go," Lovino said, voice shaking from either terror or rage, as he stepped forward. Feliciano saw movement behind him and tried to warn him, but nothing but a terrified whimper left his blocked mouth.
The vampire with a white mask moved quickly, hooking Lovino's arms up, tearing a hand from the gun. "What the fuck?" exclaimed Lovino, thoroughly surprised, as he struggled against his captor's hold.
"Good work, Sadiq," Ivan said, appearing from the shadows. "Now our ritual can go as planned, da?"
"Let me the fuck go!" growled Lovino, trying to aim with the gun. Sadiq forced him to his knees and held him steady as the Turk relieved the brunette of his gun.
"Out of curiosity, what happened to Elizabeta?"Ivan said idly, tracing Lovino's face, bathing in the terror radiating from the Italian.
"She died," spat Lovino. "Get your fucking filthy hand off of me!"
"Oh? Really now," Ivan said, wrapping his hand around the thin neck. It easily fit all the way around. He could feel the pulse of his prey, rapid with fear. "Why do I get the feeling something else happened?"
"Maybe because something did," said a new voice, a pair of shots quickly following.
Ivan and Sadiq dropped dead, a pair of bullets embedded in their heads. A man helped Lovino out from under Sadiq, and another stood in the doorway, smoking gun in his hand.
"It's hunters!" wailed Lili.
"Brother!" called the purple-eyed woman.
"Damn bastards," swore Gilbert angrily.
Then the vampires were running, trying to get away from the deadly-accurate shots from the hunters and Lovino. They fell, one by one. They were trapped in the church, with no way out save death.
The only ones who did not run were Antonio and Ludwig. They stood side-by-side, heads down, waiting. Arthur approached them, curious. They made no move to attack him, nor resist. "Why are you not running?" he asked.
"We deserve to die," Ludwig said soullessly, and Arthur could see the grief in his eyes, "for hurting our loves."
"We can never be with them again. We are monsters," Antonio agreed, just as depressed.
"I give you a quick death, then," Arthur said, shooting them.
Meanwhile, Lovino ignored the pair, running past them to Feliciano's side. He quickly removed the gag and untied the ropes. "Feli, are you alright?" he asked worriedly.
"I'm not hurt," Feliciano answered softly, and Lovino led him out of the church to where Alfred and Arthur were standing.
"That's all of them," Alfred reported. "Let's get outta here."
Arthur nodded. "We should destroy the church…"
"I'm gonna light it up. Should go up like tinder."
"Very well then. Lads, do you want a lift to town?"
"Yes. Thank you," said Lovino.
"No problem," Alfred assured them. "It's our job."
"Still, thank you," Feliciano said softly as they got into the truck and headed for town, the church blazing brightly behind them.
Red eyes watched the retreating truck, perched high in a tree.
"I'll have my vengeance," swore Gilbert. "Just you wait."
