CHAPTER FOUR

FOOD

Matthew could easily say that he was always forgotten, not usually, not sometimes, always, until this happened. In this situation he would gladly would want to be invisible, not to be seen by humans and zombies alike…well they weren't exactly calling them zombies, well not the countries anyhow. When ever the countries saw one of their own people as one of those things…they couldn't bring themselves to call them the name of a creature that had haunted the big screens for years.

He was still mildly forgotten. His friends and family that had been stuck at this meeting continued to forget that he was following them around, a gun placed firmly on his belt in case on of the others were too slow to draw against a infected person…that's what they were calling them, denial and hope were strong for a cure in their hearts…but they could all feel it. It was all just a matter of time until they faded or worse, became the infected themselves and completely immune to any weapons that the remaining humans had left.

He was still invisible…even when he had taken out the only zombie they had encountered, except for that one second that Alfred looked at him with betrayed eyes before looking at the floor in acceptance. Then those girls saw him, pulled him into the front of their truck when they could have chosen to keep their friend in there. He knew they didn't do it out of kindness for him…he knew they saw the same thing he saw in them; fear and determination…determination to do what ever it took to survive with their friends intact.

He couldn't help but think the first time he saw them that he had a much better chance, even when he saw their stronghold. These girls however, when once again shoving him into the cab and slamming the door with a firm click of locks, were not fools. They had him there not because they had kinship in these emotions, but because they were watching him.

They were taking no chances, not even when Charm took the wheel and began to drive back to the city; he could feel Bee gently poking him in the side with Charm's shotguns in warning. They would have no issues killing him and he would have none returning the favor if they were foolish enough to shoot. However, hearing his brother exchange a few sparse words with the girl in the back gave him pause. He would do nothing yet, these girls weren't infected and as welcoming as they could have been in the situation.

"You know we are only going to welcome you guys for so long, correct?" Bee asked the question offhandedly.

"I am not stupid enough to think we would be welcomed permanently," Matt chuckled bitterly.

"Good," Charm said sharply, "We made alliances before, let's just say they didn't work out. Neither would you guys staying."

"I thought that you said we didn't need to know anything more about you guys?"

"Just thought that we would explain that we aren't heartless," Bee sighed, the gun poked his side again, "We just refuse to die because we were helping you guys."

"Wouldn't expect you too."

"You'd be surprised what people think now," Charm said in turn.

"People haven't been normal for a long time," Matt sighed, leaning his head back against the small window that they could peer out of and see the others, "I thought that everyone knew that."

"We did," Bee agreed, looking down at her hands as she clenched and unclenched them, "but now it's all in the open…and we don't just mean people eating each other."

"So, hugs?" Matt changed the subject, trying to avoid getting shot while in the cab for upsetting one of the two.

"Do not hug us," Bee said sharply, saying it like something she was used to repeating over and over.

"I'm talking about the girl in the back," Matt explained, "does she not like hugs?"

"Why do you think that?" Charm asked, attempting to sound offhanded, but the tightening her hands on the wheel showed something completely different.

"The face she pulled when Feliciano was hugging her, she was uncomfortable," Matt shrugged.

"She loves hugs," Charm disagreed.

"And we told you, you only need to know what we tell you," Bee growled, another poke of the gun made him release the subject and file it away.

"So where are we going then?" Matthew sighed, crossing his arms, touching his still beating heart as if to reassure himself it was still beating.

"Have you ever seen Eastern Kentucky University?" Bee questioned, her voice a murmur of sound.

"I don't exactly live in America," Matt sighed as his brother's country rolled of his tongue with previous disdain that made him feel guilty.

"As if the accent didn't give that away," Charm chuckled, turning sharply to the left and gaining a loud squeal followed by a chuckle from the back of the truck.

"So take that as a cue to explain," Matt grumbled, rolling his eyes slightly.

"Well the school was cleared out in the first few days of illness," Bee explained in a monotone voice, "most people using it as in excuse to not go to class…but then it changed when a girl in the dorms actually got infected. The army was there within the day for a major cleanout and when we say cleanout…we mean purge."

"What did the army do?" Alfred leaned over to speak into the window. He had caught the words about the army as the car was slowly rolling to it's stop in an almost empty parking lot.

Matt surveyed the area quickly. Three cars, all doors in all of them open to the dead air, the gas lids open which means that someone, most likely these girls had been siphoning gas from them for a while and was continuously checking for zombies within. A dusty, mud covered red truck with wheels that were too large and a small, beat up Buick that looked like it had once been gold were the two that were still whole…a half of a gray Chevy sat in the middle, like someone had taken something and cut it in two.

The question, he knew somewhere in the back of his mind was a bad question for Alfred to ask, these girls didn't know who he was and wouldn't sugar-coat or lie…but maybe this is what the others needed to know? He wasn't sure but he knew that if he asked again someone would answer. He shook his head quickly in Al's direction but his brother glared at him with hard eyes as he repeated the question.

"When a girl got infected they showed up," Storm answered, looking down at her hands before glancing up at Al with soft eyes, "We all thought that they were here to help. They were the army, you know?"

"Of course," Alfred nodded firmly, "They are the government, the citizens are supposed to trust it."

"Well they weren't here to help," Bee suddenly snapped, looking up at Alfred as if he had been living in some sort of dream world for the past few weeks, "they killed everyone on campus and anyone that they could catch up to that went here."

Alfred stiffened, his mouth falling open with shock before he started shaking his head, "That's impossible, they wouldn't have done that," he disagreed weakly, Matt could see the gears turning in his head as if to figure out what he could have done.

"Well the bodies on campus would say something different," Bee said bitterly.

"We were at school that day," Storm added, looking at Alfred as if wondering if he would really believe them, "we just so happened to have finished classes…we were in Bee's car when they showed up."

"We had to outrun the damned army!" Bee burst out, jumping out of the car suddenly and slamming the door.

"Had to ditch the car and make our way back to our apartment," Storm sighed, "the army has only gotten worse."

"Killing any person they see," Charm confirmed with a nod as she followed Bee's lead and slid out, allowing Matt to follow before grabbing her guns, "that's their job now."

"They say it's for the purification of those that could be infected," Bee continued, crossing her arms as she watched the group stare at her dumbfounded, "that includes apparently everyone."

"So if you see them, hide," Storm added firmly, jumping out of the truck and motioning for the others to follow, "if they find you, you won't stand a chance."

The countries stayed silent, exiting the truck and standing in a small group behind the girls. "Stay behind us and be aware," Charm ordered, "If you hear anything hide."

"Because if you didn't hear anything about the government you won't know anything about any type of zombies," Bee supplied, double-checking her knife and sword with quick assured movements.

"And we'd rather you not die from zombie attacks," Storm shrugged, attempting a smile as she stroked the edge of her gun, "heard it's quite unpleasant."

"We will follow your lead then," Ludwig agreed, nodding as he glanced back at the others.

The girls nodded as one before turning away and moving quickly through the parking lot and onto sidewalks that were scattered with black drops that no one wanted to decide what the cause was. The countries fell slightly behind, the aura around them stifling as they glanced at Alfred. "So do you think it is only the burger bastard's army doing this… or is it…" Lovino stopped, looking down with frustrated eyes and a groan.

"I am sure that…" Antonio attempted to sound comforting when he suddenly stopped, biting his lip and eyes wet, "I had a feeling before the meeting…I thought that something was…More people were dying and I…"

"So it wasn't just me," Arthur sighed, looking around the group as others nodded.

"Our countries have betrayed their people," Kiku said, his voice full of disgust, "What type of person can do this."

"People that are scared," Gilbert whispered, looking around at the broken windows of buildings that they were passing.

Doors were thrown open, books on the ground forgotten, glass littering the streets, it was like a riot had taken place…at least until the girls lead them to the cross walk. They stopped, turning to them quickly, before motioning to the street. The countries felt their mouths drop open at the sight that stood before them. Cars were backed up, a line up with busted tires from a line of army issue road spikes. Their windshields were smashed or littered with bullets, students lay in their cars, bodies covered in blood and decomposing…the flies and the smell…the countries were suddenly very glad of their wartime experiences hardening their gag reflexes or there would be a fresh trail for someone to follow.

"This isn't the worse part," Charm sighed, moving quickly to jump over a car to get to a free walking area and giving everyone a clear path.

"Most of the dorms are worse…" Storm agreed.

"We usually don't go too far in or too far up," Bee told them, "It's too easy to get caught by anything…and the…" she stopped, shuddering slightly.

Charm moved quickly, attempting to navigate around more of the glass and lost items, though the countries were thankful for the lack of bodies. She stopped at the shattered door of a smaller brick building, moving through the glass to open the door from the inside for the group. "This was Case Hall," she motioned around her, "Storm used to work here."

"Lost school funding and my job," she said, looking over the desk worker, much in the same position of the students in cars, before shivering, "Never thought I would see the day I would've been happy to lose such an easy job."

"We are going to the third floor," Bee opened the second door in their path, placing the brick that lay near it in it's path to hold it open, "Don't slam doors and don't talk."

"How are we supposed to get in?" Yao asked with a tilted head, losing sight of Storm as she disappeared into a third room and reappearing with hands full of keys.

"Take four a piece and we'll meet back down here in ten minutes," Storm smiled, moving around the group, "We aren't going to stay for too long and if you do we leave you!"

"That would go for any guest," Charm told them as she took her own keys, "We would risk our lives for each other our guests however…"

"So don't be late," Storm reiterated firmly, walking inside first and running up the stairs that were next to the doorway.

Bee followed next, not looking back as she ran up the steps two at a time, keys jangling at her side. Charm looked back at them with a smile of her own, "Please do not take this personally," she said sweetly, "we just can't…we are going to survive."

The countries nodded, they knew they couldn't blame them. They would the same if they were human, they would risk anything for each other, though they would loathe to admit it. They watched as she followed the same path up the concrete steps before following themselves slowly. "Get down sooner if you can," Ivan advised, "I would not doubt that they would leave us."

"I know that they would," Matt interjected.

"Don't worry," Gilbert soothed, attempting to sound cocky, "someone as awesome as me would never be late."

"You had best not be, mon amie," Frances chuckled with a slight smile over at his friend.

The group nodded to each other slightly before making their way into their own assigned rooms. Matt hadn't thought that they were going to a girl's floor, he was even less prepared for the mess in each room of frantic escape…it made his heart hurt to think of someone who could have once slept with one of the teddy bears that was laying on the floor, dead. He ignored the pain, digging through drawers and closets; gathering medicine and food, anything he thought could be useful. He piled the noodles and dried mashed potatoes into a small bag he had emptied for a room along with Tylenol and rubbing alcohol. It wasn't much, but he supposed it was enough for his four rooms.

He had just walked into a hallway when a loud scream echoed through the corridor. He stiffened quickly before rushing towards the sound; he however was not the only one as he was joined by the rest of the countries, bags over shoulders running to the end of the long hall. The screaming continued as the group stopped outside the door, they yanked it open to show Feliciano cowering in a vacant corner of the room.

"What's wrong?" Bee questioned, her footsteps echoing through the hall as she and the other girls stood beside them.

The group looked up as Feliciano pointed shakily at the fallen bunk beds, where a shrill squeal and clicking noise was originating. "Clicker," Storm whispered, "they can't see so they use their sonar noises."

"They have been sick the longest and it only takes them grabbing you for you to die, because you would never be able to get away,'' Charm finished explaining.

The group couldn't take their eyes away from the sight in front of the beds. What lay under it, supposedly half squished by the fallen beds was a woman…or what once was one. It face was bulbous, swollen with infection that turned it both pink and a rotten green color. Its mouth was open wide, showing the group the sharpened teeth that lined the inside of it's mouth drawing attention up to the eyes…or lack thereof. It's hair hang on it's head in random strands, clothes hanging off of the clawing arms in tatters.

"You were lucky that it was trapped," Bee said firmly, moving into the room and unsheathing her sword, "I'll take care of it, you guys get to the car."

"Come on Feliciano," Ludwig called, motioning for the crying man with a small gesture before giving up and gathering the man into his arms.

"Don't worry," Charm whispered, placing a hand on his head, "We won't leave you alone again and we all seem to have enough food for a while."

"Let's get back to the car," Storm whispered, motioning them out with a wave, "before anything else shows up."

The group exited quickly, but Matt looked back just as the door was closing. He saw Bee's eyes harden into crystal before she lifted her arm, the door clicked shut right before the blade made contact. "I'll cook dinner if you would like," he volunteered, feeling a little green.

"As if we would trust you with that," Charm called back as she began moving down the hall, "We'll cook."