Chapter 9-
Lunara: *running away from crazy Russian with Switzerland's peace prize* Hi guys!
Russia: Come back here you annoying ninja thing, da…
Lunara: Now I'm a ninja, that's awesome! I'm over here, now I'm over there, now I'm in you head…weeee!
Russia: *glaring* kol kol kol kol kol kol kol kol kol
Switzerland: *shoots Russia's shoulder* Both of you knock it off and give me back my peace prize.
Lunara: *winces upon seeing Russia's shoulder* Ow! That looks like it hurts! How did you win a peace prize?
Switzerland: I was a peaceful nation. Neutral means stay out or I'll shoot you. You trespassed and stole my peace prize.
Lunara: That makes sense. Though I don't see any peace in shooting people, even if they are psychotic jerks like Russia.
Switz: *shrugs*
Lunara: Well, not much change in the awesome contest so far. I've also been thinking about something. Would you guys like me to start answering your reviews at the end of each chapter? I'd be more than willing; I'm just not sure if I should. Send me a review with your opinion on it and I may or may nor start doing it. Also I apologize for the ridiculously long wait. I've been drowning in homework and whenever I tried to write this I'd hit a writer's block every sentence or so just to change the thing entirely.
Stjarnas: This has actually been done about a week, but I have homework, school, little brothers, and a mother who's almost constantly bedridden from congestive heart failure. That, and I'm a lazy-ass bitch.
"Wait, I want to tell them. I can present this better than you." Austria stopped Germany. All the nations groaned and complained. None of them could handle the suspense much longer; even Japan and Russia were getting a little nervous.
"Just hurry up," Germany sighed.
"The two girls are to be split," Austria announced.
"Ja, the one with long hair is to stay with Japan and the one with short hair is to stay with Russia," Germany continued before Austria could tell them.
"This is due to a tie in votes. Literally half of you wanted Russia, while the other half wanted Japan." Austria and Germany stated at the same time to their annoyance.
"Wouldn't it be wrong to split them up, aru?" China asked, worried. "They're very close to each other."
"We thought about that, but we decided that taking another vote would take too long and a fight would break out over who would go with who. It's the best solution we, I, could think of." Austria said simply, shrugging.
"What do you mean, I?" Germany smacked the other upside the head. "I came up with the idea."
"And I decided who would go with who," Austria retorted pulling out his music baton.
"Shut up." Prussia sighed. "I already have to put up with you two bickering at home. Can't I have a little peace here?"
They both huffed at Prussia and continued to bicker quietly to each other.
"Who's going to tell them?" Italy asked, his eyes as big as a full moon.
"I will," Japan stepped forward, placing a comforting hand on the Italian's shoulder. He whispered softly so only Italy would hear. "Don't worry about them, they're strong."
"As will I, da." Russia smirked. "I wish to meet my new p-friend."
"What were you about to call Kiki-san?" Japan growled, instantly defensive of the girls, turning to the Russian.
"Nothing," Russia chimed as he continued to smirk and proceed to lead the way out of the room.
All Japan could do was sigh and follow, leaving Italy to hide behind Germany. He wasn't looking forward to telling the girls in the slightest bit. It wasn't going to end well for himself or anyone involved especially if Russia was going to come with him to tell them.
-in the hall-
Hikari and Kiki sat in silence, neither of them dared to say a word. Hikari stared at the floor sadly while Kiki glared at the ceiling in attempt to count all the little dots above her head. Their heads shot up into attention as soon as Russia opened the door and stepped out.
Hikari immediately tensed upon seeing the Russian and Kiki glared at him with eyes that could kill. Both clearly didn't like the Russian, or the way Japan followed him with a deep in thought look on his face.
Russia wasted no time in walking up to Kiki and standing in front of her, smiling as childishly as he normally did. He knelt down to look her in the eye and tipped his head to the side slightly.
"You will now come with me, da," Russia announced.
"N-O! What are you talking about? I'm not going anywhere with you." Kiki spat back at him.
"I'm afraid you are," Japan spoke softly from where he stood. "You are going to stay with Ivan for a little while, Kiki. Hikari is going to stay with me at my place for awhile as well. Don't worry, it won't be for long, just a few weeks."
"A few weeks?" Kiki jumped up from her seat and pinned the Japanese man to the wall by placing her hand on either side of him and bringing her forehead almost close enough to touch his. "What do you mean a few weeks? Do I even get a say in this? What is even going on? Why do I have to stay with the pipe maniac?"
Japan cringed at every question and waited for her to finish before returning her cold gaze with his own gaze that was impossible to read.
"You are to stay with Ivan because we need to keep and eye on the both of you and I unfortunately can't look after both of you." Japan sighed before shaking his head slowly. "I wish I could but I can't."
"I don't need you to babysit me!" Kiki growled. "Who says you have to keep an eye on me? Why do I need someone to look after me? I'm not the one who just got out of a hospital!"
The reference to the hospital caused Japan to twitch slightly, his hand instinctively went to his sword to make sure it was still there. He gripped it tightly, almost as a reassurance that it was real, not just a figment of his imagination.
"Those are reasons you don't need to concern yourself with, da." Russia pulled her away from Japan and lifted her up to sit on his shoulder. "You will see your friend soon, I promise. We will have fun and get to know each other until then, da."
"No, I refuse! Hikari say something!" Kiki protested and would have kicked him if she wasn't perched so precariously on his shoulder.
"Y-You can't just take her away from me! She's like my sister!" Hikari shouted at Russia, turning to stare at Japan. Distress and fear made her eyes turn a dark purple. "You can't…Can you?"
"I'm sorry, but we can," England smirked at her, leaning against the door frame. "Oh wait, no I'm not sorry. Not even the slightest bit."
"Arthur, what is it about her that makes you such a jerk, mi amigo?" Spain asked, he looked confused on many levels. "You're usually quite the gentleman."
"That sad excuse for a human being a gentleman? Don't make me laugh!" Hikari spat.
"Hello, being kidnapped by a freakishly large Russian. Don't bother to help at all." Kiki sighed from where she sat on Russia's shoulder, annoyed by the situation.
"Ivan, put her down immediately." Japan growled, his eyes were fiery brown that was almost amber. "You aren't taking her yet. She still needs to gather her things from my house."
"Ah, you really do play a fun game when you allow Kuro to speak, dear Kiku," Russia smiled deviously back at the Asian, though he did put Kiki down.
Kiki ran behind Hikari and glared at the Russian from behind her friend. Her hair was spiking out on its own. She had only seen him once before when they went to rescue Kiku, but his presence still sent shivers down her spine.
"Kuro?" Hikari asked Japan, he looked different. His appearance darker, more evil, than the Kiku she knew. This Kiku looked ready to slaughter anyone who stood against him. "Who's Kuro? Ivan mentioned him before back at the freak's mansion. Which reminds me, you still need to fill us in on HOW you got there."
Japan seemed to glare at the floor; his thoughts were the only thing he heard.
What are you doing? You can't just take over like that!
Of course I can! What would you have done? Sit back and watch quietly like you usually do!
It's better than her fully understanding who you are!
Oh, because she's not going to piece together the fact you managed to separate your light side from your dark side and keep it all in one body. Then started calling said dark side brother!
Would you rather I call you Kuro? I really don't like calling you dark. We agreed on that name so we could explain it to China easier than trying to explain it a different way.
Crap, shut up, the other nations are starting to gather, if we continue to talk like this they'll suspect us.
True, but please, I'm taking over before you do something stupid.
Hey!
"Kiku?" Hikari waved her hand in front of his face causing the other to jump back a little and shake his head. He suddenly looked the Kiku she knew, kind and shy until you make him mad. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about something I forgot to take notes on." Japan turned on his heel towards Russia. "I will bring Kiki to you two days from today as to give her some time to at least say her goodbyes to any family and Hikari."
"No, I will come with you and stay at your place while she prepares, da. I must ensure you don't try to help her run away." Russia smiled in that childish way before turning on his heel and heading back into the conference room.
Japan sighed sadly. He didn't even have a chance to object to the Russian. He felt arms wrap around him as if in attempt to hug him. He tensed and was about to shove the other away when a white scarf floated down in front of his face causing him to freeze and start shaking from the close proximity of the other.
"R-Russia-san, I thought you went back into the conference room," Japan managed to say, only stuttering once.
"Russia?" Hikari looked to Gilbert for answers, but the Prussian didn't say a word so she returned her attention back to Kiku.
"I did, but then I realized I forgot something very important, da," Russia brought one of his hands up to Japan's neck and Japan's breathing quickened.
"What are you doing to him?" Hikari growled from where she stood.
"Just making sure he stays true to his word about Kiki," Russia chuckled darkly to himself as he slipped a black leather collar over Kiku's head.
As soon as the leather touched his skin, Kiku pulled away only to be choked by the collar. He struggled uselessly in the Russian's grip.
"Now now, calm down boy~" Russia purred happily, like a child who just got his first puppy. "This will only be on for as long as it will take for Kiki to be under my possession."
"You don't need to put a collar on me," Japan complained, bringing his hands up to try and find the fastener to the piece of leather.
"You won't find a fastener, da." Russia pulled him closer. "It's specially designed to only loosen if I give the command. Oh, and if you try to release Kiki you'll find that the consequences are rather shocking, da."
"Get that thing off him, he's not a dog!" Hikari glared hatefully at the Russian. "I don't know why you keep messing with Kiku, but I'm sure he wouldn't break a promise. Plus, you're forcing him to allow you to stay at his place. You can keep an eye on him."
"True, but I can never be too carful," He chuckled as he attached a chain leash to the leather collar and released Kiku.
Kiku took a few steps away after he heard a small snap sounded near his ear and the Russian released him. He turned his head towards the noise to see the clasp of a leash connected to a metal loop on the collar. He reached his hand up and tugged on the chain, testing it to see if it were real.
"Russia-san, get this thing off me," Kiku spoke quietly, his words laced with hatred.
"No, I think I'll keep it," Russia smiled and began to try and drag Japan back into the conference room.
Digging his heels into the floor, Japan leaned back against the Russian's pull on his neck. He brought his hands up to the collar to prevent it from choking him. The few nations that were watching started placing bets on who would win this tug of war match.
Hikari took a step towards Japan to be stopped by Gilbert. She shot a glare at him and he shook his head.
"He wouldn't want you to help him." Gilbert commented. He had some German money in his hand for his turn to place a bet. "It would humiliate and embarrass him."
"But Ivan's so much bigger than him," Hikari turned to the Prussian.
"I know, but just watch, Kiku's got more up his sleeve than you think. He's stronger than most take him for too." Prussia smirked as he gave his bet to Spain and told him who he wanted.
Russia had successfully drug Japan halfway to the door. The Japanese man was surprisingly putting up a good fight. He kept his grip firm on the chain with one hand while the other reached for his pipe hidden in his coat. Once he had it out he took aim and threw it at Japan's head.
Japan barely saw the pipe before he jumped to the side being yanked forward at the same time due to Russia's pulling. He landed face first and he saw a few nations cringe out of the corner of his eye. He got up quickly before Russia started to drag him across the floor. He yanked desperately on the collar and twisted his head. The leather was digging into the skin behind his ears causing him to clench his jaw in pain when Russia gave a quick tug.
"Give in, da," Russia called to the other.
"Never," Japan growled through clenched teeth.
Japan brought both of his hands up to the collar and gripped the chain tightly. He heard the leather creak with the strain and it seemed to stretch a bit. His eyes flashed with and idea and he began to look around the room quickly for anything he could use to execute his plan. Spotting a nail that used to hold a painting on the wall behind him; he smirked and returned his attention to Russia. He summoned most of his strength and somehow dragged the Russian far enough back that his back was pressed against the wall.
"You can't go back any further, my dear chrysanthemum," Russia taunted.
"I'm aware," Japan looked up and tensed his legs, ready to jump up to the nail.
"Then why come back here?" Russia asked.
Instead of answering, Japan propelled himself into the air with as much force as he could. He twisted himself in the air so the leather caught on the nail. Japan knew that if he just dangled there he would choke to death before his plan finished so he pulled two kunai knives from his sleeves. He stabbed both of them into the wall and used them to hold himself up enough to not choke, but to still put a lot of pressure on the leather.
"What do you hope to accomplish up there little Kiku?" Russia asked, he yanked on the chain and a loud snap sounded in the hallway.
With that simple yank the collar snapped causing Japan gasp in shock and grip the kunais tightly. He watched with satisfaction as the broken piece of leather fell to the floor below him. With his ninja grace, he pulled the kunais out as he used the wall to jump away and land with a soft click of his shoes next to China.
Russia picked up the collar and smiled evily at Japan, mumbling something under his breath. A few nations close enough to hear jumped back and ran to hide behind the others who were further away from the Russian.
"You shouldn't have done that, Japan. That leather was very hard to come by and I hate wasting reservations." Russia's voice was low and filled with joy that sent shivers down the spines of everyone in the room.
"Japan?" Hikari barely whispered the word. She and Kiki looked at each other in alarm.
The temperature in the room dropped drastically. They all swore this was colder than a Russian winter. Russia continued to chant to himself, a purple aura steadily growing stronger around him.
Japan bit his lip and wrapped an arm around his stomach. Red began to stain the white uniform as Japan continued to glare at Russia. He dropped to his knees with a gasp as the source of the red staining liquid's flow sped up and continued to drench his hand and side.
"Stop, aru!" China shouted, jumping up and slamming his wok into the Russian's head with so much force Russia fell to the ground. "We are supposed to have a truce during world meetings, aru."
"Kiku, are you alright?" Hikari raced up to him and eased him to the ground, wrapping her arms protectively around him.
China knelt next to Russia and whispered menacingly next to his ear. "Don't you ever harm my brother without proper declaration of war ever again, aru."
Russia and China glared at each other with pure hatred before China got up and returned to Japan's side.
"Dude, where'd this wound come from?" America asked. He was kneeling next to Japan and had lifted the Japanese man's shirt to see where the blood was coming from.
"Ivan stabbed him with his pipe during the war between the two aru," China stated simply, pulling a first aid kit out of nowhere and dressing the wound.
Japan hissed in pain when China poured a clear liquid on the wound. The new stab felt different. It was in the same spot as the original and equally as deep, but the pain was more than doubled especially since his brother just poured alcohol on it.
"Do any of you have a stick or a metal rod of some sort?" Hikari asked suddenly looking around and the people gathered around her.
"I've got a flag pole!" America shouted gleefully, pulling a long, adjustable metal rod from who knows where and detaching the American flag from it and folding it the special way American flags were folded.
"Perfect, can you pull off a section?" Hikari asked.
"What hero wouldn't be able to?" America asked, pulling off a piece of the rod and handing it to Hikari.
"Thank you." Hikari took the rod happily and put it in Japan's mouth. "Bite on this, it'll help."
Japan gratefully bit down on the metal as hard as he could. He focused on Hikari and biting the rod while China continued to bandage the random wound that had reopened after already healing completely. He couldn't understand why focusing on her helped, but trying to focus on anyone else didn't block out the pain as much as she did.
"Nice thinking, aru," China raised his eyebrows, he couldn't deny being impressed. "What made you think of that, aru?" He asked, finishing and tying the bandages.
"I don't really know. I was just thinking that if he had something to distract him then he might not feel as much of the pain." Hikari bowed her head in embarrassment.
Japan allowed himself to be helped up by America. The annoying blonde wouldn't allow him to stand on his own, insisting that he shouldn't strain himself.
"Dudes, I think that's enough for one meeting, let's all head home or to our hotels," America announced.
"You managed to say something smart for once." Britain commented with false surprise. "I'll see you all next month."
The other nations nodded and returned to the conference room to gather their things and say their good byes.
"You can let me go now, Alfred," Japan pushed the American away from him and headed into the conference room to get his briefcase.
"Would someone please explain why Ivan called him Japan?" Kiki asked.
"Don't look at me, I have no idea," America laughed nervously and started to walk to the room only to stop next to Hikari who was standing by the door to wait for Japan. He used his hand to turn her face to his. "It was nice seeing you again." He kissed her check and barely dodged her fist.
"Never kiss me again." Hikari snapped, her face was red and she dropped her voice to a whisper. "Nice seeing you, too."
"Sorry," America smirked and went into the room just as Japan, Italy, and Germany walked out.
Lunara: Wow, 9 chapters!
Canada: Congrats!
Lunara: Aw, thanks Mattie!
Canada: You can see me?
Lunara: Of course I can! You're Canada, right above the United States. I think I'm one of the few who even acknowledges your existence. Well, other than Stjarnas and other Canada fans.
Canada: Is this what it feels like to be noticed? It feels nice!
Lunara: Haha, you can be cute, but I still belong to Japan and America. Sorry, they're my favorites overall.
Canada: That's fine.
Lunara: Well everyone I hope to write the next chapter fairly soon. Maybe I won't hit as many writer's blocks this time. ^^
Stjarnas: Birdie! -glomps Canada- I always see you. I want to move to Canada. New Prussia, Canada. Oh, wait... I will kill you, Lunara! I love Kiki! Why? And Japan! Poor Japan!
I have a question for the readers, though. Why is it so easy to make Russia the bad guy?
