Chapter 3

England wasn't sure how his friend had managed to rope him into this, but now here he was. As they entered the darkened abandoned hone, England couldn't help but wonder how his friend had managed to live in this place for so long. It looked like it had been abandoned for centuries! The group of nations with him had all but parted ways not long after entering, leaving him and Norway alone. The quiet and shy Nordic took him by the arm and down a darkened hallway to the left of them, squeezing it tighter whenever they were left in total darkness for too long. In any other situation England would have found this to be cute, but now he was simply curious what kind of power the Norwegian held over him, or if he really was that bored he was willing to go into an abandoned house to explore… he really hoped it was the latter.

"Hey Artie, the basement was just down this hallway, right?" England nearly jumped as his quiet friend's voice sounded so close to him and turned his attention to Norway.

"Ah, to be frank I am unsure, perhaps it would be best to head back and get Romania to show us?" England answered.

"Where's the fun in that! Besides we came here for old spell books and maybe a deep dark secret or two! We can't have Vlad come with us!" Norway replied with a smirk.

England rolled his eyes, really his friend was… something else. "Aren't you afraid of the dark love?" He asked, holding back a laugh as his friend jolted and blushed, even in the dark one could see the deep shade of red on the Norwegian's features.

"S-Shut up!"

England chuckled. "Well let's head back, wouldn't want you to get lost and alone in the dark for too long!"

"I hate you and will curse you later." Norway muttered before he sighed. "Fine, let's head back."

England let out another laughed and led the way back, remembering where the front entrance was at least. It was silent the entire trek back and the British man could practically feel Norway sulking beside him, causing him to smirk, glad to have their roles reversed for once, it was certainly nice in his opinion to be the one to cause the Norwegian to sulk and pout. He shot the Norwegian a grin as they got back to the entrance, the only place that was brightly lit and well spaced in this entire house.

"No one's here, what now?" Norway asked.

England sighed, he knew that no one would be at the entrance but he had at least hoped for one of the groups to be nearby. "Now we-" The British man paused, hearing hard, heavy footsteps coming from behind them.

"We…?" Norway arched a brow. England shook his head back at the Norwegian, hearing heavy breathing moving closer. He turned to his friend and ran, gripping the Nordic's hand as they sprinted up the stairs before them.

Without even looking back to check on what was following them he pushed open the first door he saw and ran in, keeping his friend as close as possible as he slammed the door shut and locked it. .

Once the pair had a moment to breathe, Norway looked to England while he sat on the small cot in the room. It was dark in the room, the windows boarded up from the outside, the air musty, really both nations hoped to not have to stay in here long. "Um… Artie? Why did you drag me into a bedroom and lock the door?"

"I heard someone following us."

Norway pursed his lips, "Okay… and what if it was just one of the other nations following us?"

England hadn't thought of that, but rather than look like an even greater fool he said, "Well if that is the case, you go check if one of the others are out there."

"What! No way! If there is something follow us, and I open that door up, I'm dead!" Norway shot England a glare.

"Well I'm not opening it!" England shook his head in refusal before sighing. "Since neither of us want to open it, the most we can do is sit here and wait."

Denmark's POV

Though the Dane had agreed to go here, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. As he entered everyone had parted ways, leaving him entirely alone. The house looked decrepit enough to cave in at any second, the floors creaked with each step he took. He felt worried for his younger brother, disliking the feeling of dread he got over whether or not Norway was alright or not.

He stood rocking back and forth, simply waiting for someone to come by so he wasn't entirely alone here, his mind thinking of how, once he found Norway, he'd simply drag the Nordic home, keeping him safe from whatever could be lurking in these dark abandoned halls.

He was about to give up and leave when he heard England and Norway, the pair walking back toward the entrance. He sighed, glad it was easy for him and headed over to where the pair stood.

The duo had walked past, almost as if he were invisible, talking about what to do now that no one was near. 'Oh come on Nor! I am right here!' He shot his younger brother a glare and walked over to them, frowning with disappointment and sadness as they ran up the stairs and into a room.

Walking up the stairs, the dane couldn't help but wonder if he were indeed invisible. He felt visible at least… but if you were invisible would you know? He shrugged, ignoring how his steps sounded heavier up the wooden stairs, he simply wanted to find his brother.

"Why do you look so sad?" Denmark yelped, nearly falling down the stairs as a sudden child's voice sounded so close to him. He looked down, seeing Moldova standing before him, staring at him curiously.

"Wait… you can see me?" Was all that came out from Denmark's mouth. He felt happy to know that someone could see him.

Moldova nodded in response, still eying him with the same expression of confusion and curiosity.

"Oh thank god! Nor and England came by and totally ignored me! They acted like something was chasing them and ran up here and now I can't find them!" Denmark explained to the child nation.

"I saw them too! They ran in here!" Moldova explained, pointed to the door before them. Denmark frowned but reached for the doorknob, hoping his brother would in fact be in here.

And Eternal Fauna is back! Hope you enjoyed!