I'm done with Chapter 10!

Okay, I am sorry that I wasn't able to finish it yesterday. I do have other things that I must do.

So, Chapter 10! Well, here it is!

Chapter 10: Sneaking Around

A shadow walked into its house, and looked around. It thought that it had heard something, but assumed it was just its imagination. Then, the shadow went over to a cart with bundles of hay and took the handle. It pulled the cart over to the other side of the room, where a huge gate was. It opened the gate, and pulled the cart out into the street. Then, it went down the street, pulling the cart along.

America was deathly quiet. His heart was beating fast, and he couldn't calm himself. England was sitting next to him, also silent.

"Was this really a good idea?" America whispered to England.

"Shut up! How could I predict that the shadow would take the cart?" England hissed back.

The two had hid in the cart, next to the bundles of hay, but to their surprise, the shadow had taken the cart and was walking down the street. America and England could only sit silently in the cart, or else it was over for them.

"We have to find a chance to escape," America mumbled.

"Not now, you bloody idiot. We have to wait until the cart stops," England whispered. He peeked out of the gaps of the bundles of hay. He could only see the ground, since the blanket covered up half of his view.

"I wonder where we're heading," America murmured. England started to stare at the bundles of hay in front of him. 'I honestly have no idea where we're going, and we have nowhere to escape at this moment...' England thought. He sighed quietly. The cart moved up and down as it rolled over the rather bumpy street.

The cart suddenly stopped. America and England instantly froze, glancing at each other. There were a few voices outside. England tried to listen to the conversation as best as he could. Surprisingly, they were speaking English, instead of the unknown gibberish that he had heard throughout the town.

"What…in there?" a low voice asked.

"…bundles…hay...sir," another voice replied.

"Well…..hurry to…palace," the first voice said, gruffly. England widened his eyes. 'Wait, what? What did I just hear?' England thought. America was also shocked. In a few moments, the cart started to move along again. England glanced at America.

"Seems like this cart is heading towards the palace," England whispered. America grinned.

"Exactly where we want to go. I can't believe hiding in the cart would lead us to the palace," America whispered.

"So, let's make a plan. First, when the cart goes into the palace, we escape the cart. We have to be careful, depending on where the cart stops. Then, we have to look for the others," England said. America nodded. The two were silent for the rest of the ride, until the surroundings started to become a little quieter, and the cart stopped again.

"…here….delivery…hay," the shadow pulling the cart said. There was a short grunt in response, as the cart started moving. England could hear the creaks of a gate; he assumed that they were in the palace now. America looked a little anxious. The cart rolled along, and into a little hut. 'Probably a stable…for horses?' England thought, as he saw a few hooves.

The cart stopped again, and this time, the shadow that was pulling the cart started to walk away. England sighed quietly with relief, as he heard the footsteps walking away. He lifted the blanket a little, checking if any shadows were around. 'Nobody,' England thought.

"I think it's all good," England said. Without hesitating, America flung the blanket off of him and jumped off the cart.

"Phew! It feels good to be out!" America exclaimed. England caught the blanket and put it back on the bundles of hay.

"Be quiet Alfred! We don't want anyone to notice us," England hissed. America turned around and grinned.

"Oh right! Sorry Artie," America said. England sighed. England looked at the horses in the stable; they were all black and gray, and had red/scarlet eyes. He raised an eyebrow.

"These horses remind me of that damn Prussian," England muttered.

"Let's go Artie!" America exclaimed.

"Coming, coming," England huffed. The two peeked out of the stable. They seemed to be in one of the corners of the large garden of the palace. Well, except that all of the plants were black and other shades of gray, it looked like a garden. England looked up at the palace that was looming over them.

"So, how the hell are we going to get into the palace?" England muttered. America frowned.

"I didn't think of that," America said.

"Don't worry, I didn't expect you to," England replied.

"Oh how about we make a hero-"

"Shut up," England cut him off, causing America to pout. England thought for a moment. He shook his head.

"I don't know what we should do. We obviously can't go marching up to those grand double doors. There could be a back door, but I'm assuming that it's also guarded…" England mumbled to himself. England and America were hiding behind a gray bush, trying to figure out a reasonable plan, except they weren't doing so well at the moment.

"Let's just go Artie!" America whined.

"Yeah, which would cause us to get captured in the blink of an eye," England snapped. America frowned.

"But are we going to be here forever until we get a plan? That's going to take forever, and we have to rescue the three fast!" America stood up.

"He's right," a male voice said. England and America turned around in surprise, as a person wearing a black coat came to them from behind. The coat covered his whole body, and he wore his hood.

"Oh sh-"

"Don't worry. I'm not a shadow. I'm a human," the man said. England and America widened their eyes. Without waiting for a response, the man threw them two coats, exactly like the one he was wearing.

"Wear the coats," the man ordered. England gave him a 'wtf' look.

"Who are you?" America asked. The man turned to America, a grin forming on his face.

"You don't need to know that yet. Just know that I'm helping you get into the palace," the man said. This made America and England even more shocked. The man frowned.

"You should hurry up and wear those coats or you'll lose the chance to get into the palace!" the man laughed. The two were a little hesitant but put on their coats anyways.

"And put the hood on," the man ordered. America and England did as they were told. The three walked through the garden, and to a tower right next to the palace. England noticed that it was connected to the palace inside. The man turned around.

"Now, we'll be going inside that tower, so be quiet, and don't say anything; okay? I can only take you into the palace, and no further. You'll have to go on your own from there," the man said. America and England nodded, and the three resumed on their way to the tower. The man opened the wood door, and the three stepped inside the tower.

The tower was extremely tall, and a staircase spiraled along the walls of the tower. There were weapons; axes, swords, guns, and etc. hung on the walls of the tower.

"Don't take the weapons on the walls; the shadows will notice instantly," the man said. America was going to say something, when England covered his mouth. England nodded for the both of them. The man grinned.

"Looks like you remembered. That's good. You don't want to talk out loud; only whisper to each other. The shadows will know where you are if you talk out loud with your voice," the man warned. America and England nodded. The three walked towards a red door on the left side of the tower. The man opened the door for the two, and revealed a well-decorated hall.

"Go down this short hall, and you'll be in the grand entrance. You should be careful there; just try to act calm, and pretend that you're a guard shadow of the palace. All of the guards wear this coat with their hood on. Your friends should be somewhere on the second floor. The stairs are pretty obvious," the man explained. The two nodded.

"Good luck, you two. I'll see you later," the man grinned, holding up a thumbs-up. America and England looked at each other, and walked down the hall. America and England soon came to another door, and England quietly opened it. He couldn't believe his eyes, and he froze for a moment.

A large, open space was in front of him, and the ceiling was very high. Two large chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and there was a long, red rug coating the ground. There were large stairs on the right of the hall, which broke into two and twisted up around to the second floor. There were a few guards walking around here, and there, going on their ways.

"Let's go," England whispered as quiet as he could to America. America opened his mouth to shout a response with his loud voice. England put his hand on America's mouth again, saying insults in his mind. The two walked out into the "grand entrance". A few shadows looked their way, but soon looked away. England's heart was beating wildly.

'So, those stairs,' England thought to himself. His body was incredibly stiff, as he walked towards the stairs. America followed him smiling. The tight atmosphere seemed to not bother him at all.

'Alfred still can't read the atmosphere at all…..although it's actually sort of a good thing right now,' England was thinking to himself. The two walked up the stairs in silence, passing by three other guards. England felt sweat drip down his right cheek. They decided to go up the right stairs, and up to the second floor.

Once the two were on the second floor, away from the other shadows, England let out his breath.

"I thought the quiet would almost kill me!" America whispered.

"You're just too loud," England whispered back. America frowned.

"Before you start complaining," England held up his finger and spoke before America could. "…we should look for the others."

This made America in an even worse mood, but he miraculously didn't refuse. The two walked down a long hall, where there were about eight doors; four on each side. England glanced at America.

"Look through the rooms on the right side. I got the left," England whispered. America grinned and nodded. They each went to the first room on their side.

England glanced at the closest door to him. The words, "Storage Room" were printed on the door. He opened the door cautiously, causing it to creak. He peeked into the room. There were lots of cardboard boxes and dust everywhere. England walked into the room and looked around. 'No sign of the three,' England thought, and went out of the room. He walked down to the next door. Since there was no writing on the door, he pressed his ear to the door.

Nothing. England opened the door. There were two bunk beds in the room, and a few cabinets. England assumed that the room was irrelevant. He moved onto the next room, and put his ear to it. Nothing again. England sighed. 'This is going to take a while,' England thought.

-15 minutes later-

"We've looked all over the second floor, and we still haven't found any sign of them," America whispered, looked worn out. England had to admit that he was tired too, but he refused to say anything. They were in front of the grand, double doors of the second floor. They had assumed that it was the room for the king of the palace, or something like that. They both knew that it was probably dangerous to go in there, so they left it for last.

"I guess we have to look in here now," England muttered. America grinned.

"But don't you think we're lucky? We get to see the king's room!" America whispered, excitedly. England sighed.

"That's something only you could think of," England replied. "…because you're an idiot," England said to himself at the end, but America didn't seem to hear it.

"Hahaha! Okay, so, should we go in now?" America asked. England shrugged. He walked over to the door, when he heard some footsteps. England widened his eyes.

"Alfred! Hide!" England hissed. The two hid behind the stone pillars that held the ceiling.

The grand doors opened, and somebody came out with three shadows. England stifled a gasp. 'Natalia!' England narrowed his eyes. The four walked down the hall.

"Artie! Let's go after them!" America whispered. England nodded. Just then, England saw something in the king's room. There was a peculiar pattern on the wall, behind a throne. It caught England's attention; England stopped in the middle of the hall. America turned back.

"What are you doing Artie? We'll lose them!" America whispered. England snapped out of his trance, and ran over to his partner. The two slowly followed Belarus and the shadows with her, occasionally hiding behind the stone pillars here and there.

After a little while, they came to a black door. England frowned.

"What's in that room?" England asked America. America was staring at the door.

"Uh, I think the library?" America murmured. They focused their attention back on Belarus. She opened the door, and the four went inside the library. England and America somehow managed to slip in and hide behind the bookshelves before being spotted. The two watched Belarus.

Belarus calmly walked over to one of the bookshelves. She took out a silver-covered book, and swapped its place with another silver book. Then, she swapped the places of two golden books. The instant she put the books in the bookshelf, the bookshelf started to shake. England and America looked at each other in shock. The bookshelf stopped shaking, and moved to the side, revealing a hidden door!

'What the hell was that!?' England thought. America was wide-eyed. England then noticed that all three of the shadows with Belarus held trays; of food, probably. England stared at Belarus, as she opened the door and walked through it, with the three shadows. The entrance was left open. America glanced at England.

"Should we go in Artie?" America asked. England shook his head.

"After they leave. We know how to move the bookshelf, so we should go when they're not in there," England replied. America nodded. The two patiently waited for Belarus to come back.

After a couple of minutes, Belarus and the three shadows came back. Belarus put the books back to their places, and the bookshelf moved back onto the hidden door. Then, the four walked out of the library. England listened for any more footsteps. When he was sure they were gone, he walked out of his hiding place. That moment, he noticed that there was a security camera in the library. England felt horror creep up his spine, but then he figured out that he wasn't visible to the camera. England sighed with relief.

"Alfred, do you have a gun?" England whispered. America nodded. England motioned his hand for America to give the gun to him. America raised an eyebrow. He tossed his gun to England. England caught the gun in his right hand. There was one more bullet. 'Oh, I thought he didn't have any more bullets,' England thought. He had thought of throwing the gun at the security camera, but instead decided to shoot it. England aimed for the camera carefully. America was watching his every move, and England pulled the trigger.

"BOOM!"

The security camera shattered to pieces, and England ran over to the bookshelf. America got out of his hiding place too and ran after him. England had already switched the books around, and the bookshelf moved out of the way. England put his hand on the doorknob, but the door was locked.

"Dammit! I forgot about this!" England hissed. America pushed England to the side.

"Hahaha! The hero's here, so there's no worry!" America exclaimed, and kicked the door with his right leg. The door broke and flung onto the ground. England watched, rather freaked out by America's unbelievable strength.

"Come on Artie!" America shouted. England ran after him down the hall. They reached a dark room, where a cage was put in the back of the room. England saw China, France, and Russia in the cage.

"There you are! We finally found you!" England exclaimed.

"Hahaha! We've come here to rescue you!" America laughed. The three were surprised at the two's sudden appearance.

"Alfred! Arthur! How did you find us!?" China shouted. England's eyes went to a security camera in the room. He threw America's gun towards it with all his might, causing both the gun and the camera to break.

"Hey! That was my gun!" America said.

"You can get another one! Now we have to free the three!" England snapped.

"I should've thrown the gun! Because I'm the hero!" America complained. England glared at America.

"You have the worst aiming skills ever. There's no way I could trust you to do it," England said. America jaw dropped.

"How do you know that!? I am not bad at aiming! You haven't seen me aim for a while!" America shouted.

"Well-!"

"Just stop fighting and free us-aru!" China shouted. England and America looked at China.

"He's right. Now, we need a key, obviously," England said.

"Ahaha! There's no need for that! I can just break the cage!" America exclaimed. China and France looked pale. Russia was smiling in the cage, a very dark aura surrounding him.

"No thank you-aru. I don't want to get killed-aru," China said.

"I think you're smart enough to choose the right choice, da?" Russia said. England shivered.

"Okay, don't break the cage, Alfred," England said. America frowned.

"Then what? We don't have a key," America replied.

"Are you talking about this?" a voice said. America and England turned around in surprise. It was a guard with his hood covering his face, holding up a small, golden key.

"A guard!" England exclaimed. America was shocked. The guard gave a small chuckle.

"No, I am not a guard. Use this key to unlock their cage," the guard ordered, giving the key to England. England reluctantly received the key, unlocking the lock to the cage. The key slipped in easily, and the lock dropped to the ground. Everyone was shocked.

"It unlocked-aru!" China gasped. The three got out of the cage, and everyone stared at the person.

"Who are you? Why did you help us?" Francis asked. China stared at the person.

"You must be the guard that was helping us and giving us information-aru!" Chian exclaimed. England, America, France, and Russia all looked at China. France and Russia were surprised, while England and America were confused. The person let out another chuckle.

"Yes, you're right, Yao. Exactly what I'd expect of you," the person smirked. Everyone was shocked.

"How do you know my name-aru!?" China gasped. England's eyes were wide.

"That voice…you can't be…!" England exclaimed.

"I'm glad that you remember me, Arthur," the person said, taking his hood off. The five were thunderstruck.

"L-Lukas!?"