Hello again! Happy New Year, and Christmas, and anything else we missed. We are super sorry for taking so long to update seeing that it's been about 3 months. This is a shoter chapter, but it will give you some more insight to Leon. We hope you enjoy this chapter of HVPD!
Leon knew the answer, the most cliché answer. He loved that purple eyed, platinum haired ex-cop.
Well...running out was not a good idea.
He should've never thought that he could've made it through those doors and out of the parking lot without getting jumped by the burly Spanish man.
So now he was here, in Emil's office, strapped down to a chair after being berated by Elizabeta.
"You're not going to go on the case today, Wang," she crossed her arms. "You'll be able to soon, but not now. Not yet."
There was no way he was going to go through a crap ton of photos again, no way in hell. Unfortunately, it was something worse.
After Elizabeta had left, Leon slammed his head against the computer monitor resting on the cubicle wall in front of him. "Why. Can't. I. Go. On. The. Case. Already?!" Each word was exemplified by a resounding thunk on the head with each head-to-monitor impact he received.
There was a stack of papers stacked up inside a yellow manilla folder, with "Stolen Steilsson" written on the cover with black permanent marker. Everything concerning the case was inside; copies of interrogation reports, papers on evidence recovered at the scene of the crime.
Honestly, he wasn't focused on paperwork at all. He took this as a time to think. He had been so overwhelmed last night, what with finding Emil's hidden message in the dust and all.
Emil.
That name still clawed at his insides. He knew that he was close to finding him.
So close…
How long has it been now? How long has he and Emil had crossed that line bordering friendship and something else?
Two weeks, three weeks?
If that was so, how could he feel so...so connected, as if Emil was the very lifeline he absolutely had to hang onto?
He let his eyes fall and scan the documents encased in the manilla folder blankly, his mind was off wandering into an entirely different domain.
It scared him in some ways that Emil had taken such a large chunk out of his life. Well, that would be an exaggeration. That defiant frown and that snarky attitude had disappeared from Leon's thoughts up until Lukas and Mathias had reintroduced him to his lover. Ha. So much for first impressions.
Kiku had always said that a red string would connect you to your destined lover. If that was true, was Emil at the end of his string? Was Emil just another boy destined to another? Leon shook his head clear of his wandering thoughts. If he kept thinking like this, he was never going to find Emil.
"I'm going to find you, Ice; just give me a sign."
-Six Hours Later-
There was nothing. Nothing. Leon couldn't concentrate on anything that wasn't his drifting thoughts, and the documents he received were completely useless. Not to say that he didn't find anything useful on them, of course, because he did find some information regarding Emil's next known whereabouts.
Leon was sifting through the last few pages of an interrogation report when the door to his (and Emil's) cubicle flew open.
"Hola, Leon! How are you doing?" There stood Antonio, his arms full of papers and folders.
"There's barely anything in here I can work with, Toni. I have several theories on where Emil is located, but none of them make sense. I don't think that the Vrede en Liefde is holding Emil in the Asian Sector; so unless you have any other ideas on where he's being hidden, I seriously doubt we're getting anywhere."
Antonio's bright green eyes sparkled, a grin inching its way onto his lips. "I'm glad you feel that way, then. Lovi and I found some more information that you should look into." A beige folder, similar to the one Leon was already studying, was pressed onto the desk, spilling several packets of papers out of its stomach.
"And another thing to suggest, if I may." Antonio drummed his fingers on the door. "I would look into the criminal's' background. I strongly believe that you will find something that you'll find interesting." The glint in the Spaniard's eyes never vanished. The door clicked shut as he left Leon to his workload.
He eyed the new folder suspiciously. "New information, huh?" He took the first document out.
Get your fortune cookies together. -Lovino
Leon narrowed his amber eyes and turned the page. "Don't tell me you guys are kidding around…"
Lovi and I found something that might peak your interest. Elizabeta has the original copy of this, so we were lucky to create a copy beforehand. We hope this proves to be of some help!
Evidence Report
XX XX, XXXX
At about XX:XX at the scene of the crime, traces of L'amour de la Baguette Parfum were found on the diner floor, as well as on several crates. The trail of perfume led to an envelope filled with various addresses, which was doused with the same perfume.
L'amour de la Baguette is an expensive perfume imported from France. No suspect has been identified yet that has been connected to the evidence.
Leon smirked as his eyes read "yet." His fingers tapped away at his keyboard, the monitor listing results on an all-too-familiar name:
Francis Bonnefoy.
"I only know of one person that uses perfume like that…"
Click.
May 30, XXXX
French Chef Francis Bonnefoy's Wife Dies Suddenly:
Francis Bonnefoy, a world renowned French Chef, has faced a terrible tragedy today. His wife, Jehanne D'Arc, also known as Joan, has passed away at the tender age of 19.
As said by officials, Joan died in an almost brutal way that hasn't been done since ages ago. According to criminal experts of the HVPD, Francis Bonnefoy's wife was tied to a wooden stake placed upon a blanket of fire-proof fabric and set aflame. The source of the flame was most likely placed on her feet and the fire made its way upwards. Her ashes were found neatly arranged outside of the stake, forming the letters I.B. Francis was thoroughly shocked upon noticing his beloved's death, and he hasn't been answering any reporters' questions about the incident. The HVPD predicts that the person most likely responsible for Mrs. Bonnefoy's death is Ivan Braginsky, the notorious Russian assassin within the HetaliaVille borders, but Mr. Braginsky has sworn himself into the life of education as an elementary school teacher and says he "does not pursue the path of murder anymore."
It is an unjust shame that Joan has been murdered, and speaking as the staff of the Hetalia Ville Gazette, we hope her to be at peace.
"That's a motive if I ever saw one." Leon laughed humorlessly.
But a motive for what, exactly?
Leon checked the time-9:48. The moon was smiling brightly out of the small window next to the cubicle, seeming to act as a catalyst for Leon's exhaustion. A small yawn escaped Leon's lips. He felt like his small, child-like self again, with Big Brother Yao tying his once-long hair up into a neat ponytail, his fingers tugging at his follicles in a relaxing motion that brought his eyes drooping. He could hear a younger Kiku mumbling Japanese as he fed Pochi. Just the mere thought of those evenings could bring Leon to sleep.
And so Leon fell into a deep slumber.
-linebreaklinebreaklinebreakherewegoherewegohahahaahahalinebreak-
"Leon...Leon wake up."
"Unh…" Golden eyes blinked open, a pair of amethyst eyes stared back.
"I'm guessing you're not an early waker."
Emil.
"Ice!" His hand reached out desperately to hold the owner of that voice, that beautiful boy he knew couldn't be here. He touched nothing.
"Have you been doubting us? Are you giving up?"
Leon frowned. "No! No, of course not!"
"You should just stop looking now. There's no hope for me. I'm probably already dead."
"No! Stop this! I'm not giving up, not ever."
"Why?"
Leon blinked. Why? Well, this was an awfully self-explanatory question.
Why? Why was he still searching for Emil?
"Well...I love you, obviously." That's the answer, right?
"And why is that?" Emil asked.
Leon wanted to say something along the mushy lines of "You're my world, my everything. I devoted all of myself to you," and all of that cheesy crap, but he choked the urge down. "Because I just do. Isn't that enough?"
"I thought that you would've said something a lot cheesier. At least you would've been honest to yourself."
Well, ouch. "Well...I, like...feel something for you, and I don't want that to go away… I guess."
"Listen, Ice, this dream is turning awfully weird, but I know that I love you and that's enough for me to know. So if you'll excuse me, I'm just going to wake up."
And so he did.
-linebreaklinebreaklinebreakblahblahblahblahblahblahblahblahblahblah-
Leon was exhausted with staring at the computer screen all day. Since waking up from his delightful nap, nothing else had come up interesting about these crooks or Emil's current destination. He didn't bother to check what time it was, all he knew was that it was late and his was tired. He still had much to figure out about Francis and Daan, and Ice was still out there counting on him.
"Damn it all, I'm, like, outta here." No, he wasn't giving up, he was just frustrated and in dire need for some sleep.
He exited the station with bloodshot eyes, a small yawn forming on his lips as he stepped his foot down on his car's accelerator. The ride home was less than eventful, save for his slight steering trouble as he felt his eyes droop. His fingers loosened their hold on the wheel, nearly causing his (cousin's) car to swerve into a streetlight.
As he pulled up onto his driveway, he thought he caught a glimpse of a head of silver hair at his window. His logical conscience was telling him, "don't be stupid. There is no way Emil can run from the hands of the Vrede en Liefde and break into your house." His tired and delusional (at the moment) side nearly screamed out, "DID YOU SEE THAT? THERE, AT THE WINDOW! THERE'S, LIKE, SOMEONE YOU SHOULD KNOW RIGHT-OFF-THE-BAT!"
Leon stepped out and headed inside. He nearly went into his "Predator" position when three pairs of bronze eyes jumped him.
"DÌDÌ! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE LAST FORTY EIGHT HOURS?!" His older brother had tears in his eyes, his arms wound around him tightly.
"I was at the police station, teacher. No need to worry."
Kiku, who had been standing next to him instead of hugging him, smiled at him politely. "We hope you don't overwork yourself, Li-san. It is one thing to be passionate about your job, but it is another thing to be obsessed with it."
"Did you find anything, aru? Or did you jump out of the car for nothing?" Yao crossed his arms and a small frown etched it's way to his lips.
"I did find something, I promise. I taught Em something, like, two or three weeks ago, and uh, he signaled me with that."
His older brother's frown deepened, eyebrow raised suspiciously. "And what exactly is it that you taught him?"
"Chinese."
Yao's eyebrows inched up just a smidge upon hearing that. "What?"
Leon turned his head away, and ran his long fingers through his messy hair. "Yeah...um...it's nothing, really."
"Hmph," Yao frowned. "Remember to be careful, dìdì. Those bad European people will do bad Western things to you if they catch you, aru."
Leon nodded curtly. "I know that, but I was trying to look for Emil."
Yao frowned. "Leon, you know that being involved in this case is very dangerous. You already had yourself nearly killed once, who knows what might happen again, aru!"
"Teacher, I can handle this. I need to find Emil." Leon stared down at his toes. "I...I love him, gègè."
Everyone quieted, and Leon found himself more embarrassed than before. Kiku was staring down at his ring, as if remembering the day he told his family about a certain Greek man.
"I love Emil, teacher. I have to find him before it's, like, too late." Leon felt his heart warm up to the sensation of saying those first words. "I love him."
Yao sighed, a resigned expression playing on his visage. "Stupid little brothers growing up too fast, aru…" He mumbled under his breath. "Get some rest, Leon. You can look for Emil some more tomorrow."
Leon was more than happy to oblige, the heavy weight of exhaustion burdening him once more as he trudged his way to his room. He didn't even bother to change his clothes; instead, he covered his body under the thick comforters of his bed, cold from the lack of use, and turned his lamp off.
"Hey, Emil…wherever you are..." Leon closed his eyes. "Just wanted to tell you that I love you. You're sarcastic and easy to tease, but I love you for that. That first day we met, I thought you were, like, an angel or something. Your eyes...your eyes are beautiful, I can see them, even now. And your hair...if I turn my head to the spot next to me, I can see your glowing silver head. Thank you for taking care of me when I was sick, by the way. Thank you for being my angel. It's my turn to return the favor."
He didn't care if Yao or the others had heard his declaration. It didn't matter how cheesy those words were. This was why he loved Emil, and it was time he showed him how much he loved the other.
As he began to fall into the gentle caresses of sleep, a small message chime sounded from his back pocket. Leon, startled, threw the blankets off of him and patted his back pockets in slight confusion. His phone reflected light onto all sides of his room, the eye piercing glow drew a frown to Leon's face.
11:20 pm
From: Lovino Vargas
To: Leon Wang
We found another one of Emil's messages.
Attached to the text message was a picture of a note, neat calligraphy scrawled onto the paper.
Dearest Leon,
I am alright. Do not worry yourself too much over me, I will be here waiting for you. This is the final destination that the Vrede en Liefde is taking. They will be buying a haul of imported drugs west of town, inside the worn down warehouse.
With sincerest love,
Emil
There was two things Leon was sure of. One; Emil was incapable of writing that neatly, and in situation, writing at all would probably a long shot. Two; there were dozens of worn down warehouses west of Hetalia Ville, therefore that letter was extremely vague. Nonetheless, useful information had been shared with him, and Leon intended to use it.
11:33 pm
From: Leon Wang
To: Lovino Vargas
That note isn't from Ice.
11:34 pm
From: Lovino Vargas
To: Leon Wang
What do you mean?
11:36 pm
From: Leon Wang
To: Lovino Vargas
What does the note smell like?
11:38 pm
From: Lovino Vargas
To: Leon Wang
Um...like paper?
11:39 pm
From: Lovino Vargas
To: Leon Wang
Tonio and I will run some tests on this note then. Get some sleep, we will give you our findings tomorrow.
11:39 pm
From: Leon Wang
To: Lovino Vargas
Okay.
Leon powered off his phone and set it on the bedside table next to him. He let his head fall to his pillow, and found himself in sleep's deepest clutches.