Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.
The sunlight peeked in through the curtains on the window. Alfred stretched heavily before opening his eyes. He hated falling asleep in that damned chair! Blue eyes slowly moved towards the bed only to see it empty. Huh, did Arthur go downstairs by himself? He hadn't left Alfred's side the whole time he was here.
The American stood up and looked out into the hallway. Seeing no sign of anyone, he walked to the bathroom. The door was open, so obviously no one was in it. Odd... Said blonde walked down the stairs silently. The two men who had camped out in his living room still asleep and snoring. Or repeating "Ve~" over and over again...
Alfred laughed a bit, but was still slightly worried about Arthur's whereabouts. He turned to go check the kitchen. Maybe he was in there? Maybe he felt better and was cooking his horrible food as we speak! Hopes rising, Alfred made his way to the kitchen. Looking around and seeing no one, the fear and panic in his chest started to rise. The only room he hadn't checked was the guest room where Francis was. But, would Francis be that sick as to take Arthur when he was as vulnerable as he was now? ...Yeah, actually he was. Walking quickly back up the stairs, skipping two steps as he went, he walked towards the guest bedroom. He opened the door and looked in, seeing Francis awake and staring out the window.
"Dude, is Artie in here?"
"Non, but do you always keep your back gate open?"
Tilting his head, Alfred walked over to the window Francis was standing at and looked out. His back gate was swinging back and forth in the light breeze, opened towards the direction of the woods. The two blondes exchanged frantic glances before running down the steps at lightning speed and practically busting the back door down to get outside. Why would Arthur wander outside in the woods at night with Slender after him?! What was he thinking?!
All the chaos had awaken Ludwig and Feliciano who joined Francis in the yard and Alfred made his way for the gate quickly. If Arthur was out there alone, only God knows what could be happening right now!
"Ve~ What's going on..?" Asked a still half asleep Feliciano.
"We think Arthur's out there..."
"In the voods?! Is he insane?!" Ludwig questioned, starting to follow Alfred who was already fighting through brush and fallen sticks to get into the woods.
"I'll go get dressed and help!" Yelled the frantic Italian before running inside quickly and shutting the door.
Francis stared back at the door, "Now, is 'e really going in there to change, or to 'ide...?"
Eventually though, Francis followed the German and American into the woods to search for Arthur. It being morning and all, it would be hard to tell if Arthur was even out here now. Or worse... The three of them walked quickly, looking behind every tree for that blonde Brit they had all come to love. They were all worried, though Alfred considered himself more so. He'd kill to keep Arthur safe and he didn't realize how much so untill this had happened. He hated seeing Arthur sick and he hated it even more knowing that he was out here alone with that...thing. Clenching his fists, he picked up the pace. He wanted to find him, and fast.
Arthur shuddered and opened his eyes. Looking around, he realized that he was no longer in the safety of Alfred's bedroom. No, it looked like a public restroom only all the stalls, toilets and sinks were gone. Where was he? He stood up slowly, using the wall as support. He winced slightly. Why did everything hurt so bad? How did he end up here? And, more importantly, where was here? Using the wall, he started to feel his way towards a door. Any door. His foot touched something soft and he bent down. On the floor laid a jacket and a note with almost perfect handwriting.
'For you. It'll get cold out there once you awaken.'
Was this a joke? Because if it was, it wasn't funny! Nevertheless, he put the jacket on, cringing at the thought of who it might have belonged to once before. The blonde stood back up, walking the perimeter of the room untill his hands landed on a doorknob. Smiling, he opened the door and stepped out. His victory, however, was short-lived when he realized he just ended up in a dark and damp hallway.
Looking to his right, the hall went farther down, branching off into two different halls. To his left was an open door, leading to the woods. Foggy, dark woods. He gulped, mentally battling with himself. Should he venture outside and face whatever danger was out there? Or go down the hall and face whatever horror could be lurking behind any corner?
Somehow, outside sounded safer...
Taking a deep, reassuring breath, he turned to his left and walked out into the foggy forest. He looked around. Nothing seemed familiar. And he couldn't remember if he'd ever been here before. But he'd have to press on! For the sake of seeing his friends again!
He walked down the path for a while, looking around warily. He wanted to be back at Alfred's house so badly. He also wanted to know why he was here. Who brought him here. How he'd get out. If he'd-
His foot kicked something and he looked down. His widened significantly. He knew exactly where he was now...
A flashlight sat in front of him, 'Feliciano Vargas' was etched into the side. It was the flashlight he had dropped when him, Alfred, and said Italian had first ran from Slender. He was in those woods! His breathing started to quicken, his heart beat raced. Panic and fear settling like a rock in his stomach. Slender had yet again lured him out into the woods. Alone this time.
Green eyes darted around the trees as he did a full 360 to find said man. He was not going to be caught this early! He was Arthur Bloody Kirkland! Quickly, he picked up said flashlight and started running down the path. Slender may find him. He may kill him. But he'd be damned f he didn't at least put up a fight!
'You say goodbye and I say hello
Hello, hello
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'
Was that his cell phone? That was his bloody cell phone! He whipped it out quickly and broke out into the biggest smile he'd ever had when he saw "Bloody Alfred" on the screen. He came to a stop to answer it quickly before Slender heard the tune.
"Alfred?" His voice cracked.
"Artie! Thank the lord, where are-"
No... "Please don't tell me..." he looked at the screen as the words, 'call dropped' flashed up, "Bloody hell! Don't do this to me!"
He was so close to tears it wasn't funny. He frantically searched around the area for at least one bar of signal. At least one, one was all he dared to ask for! Finally, a bar popped up after a few minutes of searching. Clearly Slender was onto him by now. Holding it as steady as his shaky hands could manage, he pressed the okay button to get off the menu. He noticed that Alfred had sent him a text a few minutes after the call.
'Artie, we looked something up. Ludwig is still searching for you in the woods. That site said there were eight notes. They had them all at one point, but they went missing. Find the eighth one! NOW!'
Easier said than done, of course. But, it all made perfect sense!
'So, now you know, huh?'
Arthur paled and slowly looked back. There he stood, watching Arthur silently. His eyes grew wide once again as he stared back, not daring to move.
'So you know? Do you honestly think you could find it? What if that flashlight doesn't work now? What will you do then?'
Slender took a step towards Arthur.
'What if I kill you before you find it? Hm?'
Another step.
'You don't think I'll let you do something like that, do you?'
And another.
Arthur started to shake violently. He wanted to run, but he didn't know if he would make it. Slender let his head fall as he shook with what Arthur would assume was laughter. Soon, the chuckling picked up into a fit of uncontrollable, creepy cackling. The man before him looked up in time for Arthur to watch as Slender's face slipt in two, a mouth forming into a sanity shattered grin, sharp teeth bared.
The Brit dropped his phone and dashed down the path quickly. He had no clue that Slender could force mouths and the like onto his face! Slender caught up quickly, wrapping a hand around Arthur's ankle and pulling him to the ground, dragging him towards him. Arthur flipped onto his back and when he was close enough, he grit his teeth and kicked Slender under the chin as hard as he could with his free foot, heel connecting harshly with Slender's chin.
The tall man let out a growling hiss, letting Arthur go. The shorter male jumped up, running down the path without looking back. If he looked back now, he was sure he'd be dead.
"Dude! I've got a plan!" Alfred called out as he walked back outside to see Ludwig and Francis coming back up onto the porch.
"Vhat? Because we need one right about now," Ludwig sighed, looking back towards the woods.
"Well, he's got his phone. I sent him a text and told him what me and Feliciano found out about the notes, but he hasn't texted back. I think if I keep calling him and we walk into the woods, we could follow the sound of his phone!"
Francis and Ludwig stared at the American for a while before Francis cleared his throat.
"Zat could work, but do you know what 'is ringtone iz?"
"Iunno, some weird UK song, I guess."
Francis facepalmed. Alfred was so smart sometimes... But either way, a plan is a plan! The three ran into the woods, Alfred speed-dialing the young Brit. They walked for a while, Alfred stopping every once in a while to re-dial, hoping they get somewhere. After a while though, any ray of hope seemed lost. They had been out there for some time now, dialing and re-dialing but yet, hearing nothing.
Alfred groaned, at this rate they'd never find him! Trying once more though, Alfred re-dialed. Francis stopped.
"Do you 'ear zat..?"
"Is that The Beatles?"
"Artie!" Alfred broke into a run, following the tune.
The other two blondes followed quickly, the tune getting louder and louder untill it stopped. Alfred re-dialed again, keeping up his pace. Soon, the song picked up again, this time, the three men could hear the words!
'You say goodbye and I say hello
Hello, hello
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'
Alfred hit the fence first. He saw the cell phone backlight in the distance between two trees. But no Arthur. He gulped and looked around the fence. No tear. Just like last time. Ludwig followed closely behind, staring at the light in the distance as it died out. For confirmation, he grabbed Alfred's cell and re-dialed Arthur. The screen lit up.
'You say goodbye and I say hello
Hello, hello
I don't know why you say goodbye, I say hello'
"We found him! C'mon!" Alfred said as he started climbing the fence.
"Are you sure this is vise?" Ludwig asked, looking up at the American as Francis caught up, breathing heavily.
"Wise? Hell yeah, dude! He could get hurt! Or worse!"
"I just mean to say, it's very dark in there. Anything could be happening right now. Ve can't just run in, guns half cocked and expect to save the day. Understand?" The German crossed his arms, "If you're planning on saving your boyfriend, ve need a plan."
Alfred blushed a bit but decided not to correct Ludwig. Wouldn't hurt to be considered Arthur's boyfriend for a while, right?
"So, 'e's in zere...?"
The other two blondes looked up at Francis as Alfred landed on the ground next to said German. The Frenchman was staring into the woods beyond the chain link fence with a worried expression. Alfred understood how he felt. The only difference was, Alfred had been over there too at one point.
"Yeah.."
"Let's 'urry up and fix a plan, zen," Francis' expression hardened as he looked at the other two. They both simply nodded in response.
'Don't worry Artie, we're coming.'
Arthur ran into the same building he was sure he woke up in. He ducked inside one of the rooms and slid down one of the corners, trying to catch his breath. During the chase, he made the mistake of glancing back. Slender had not only grown a mouth in Arthur's time of being here, the man had sprouted at least four extra arms! He was running after Arthur like a spider. He was quick and dangerous. More dangerous. Arthur was surprised he had slipped him. The panic rose as the silence outside became almost deafening. Was he not after him anymore? Or maybe he was luring him again... Whatever the reason, Arthur had already decided he wasn't leaving this building for some time.
He let his eyes drift shut as he willed his breathing to steady. All he wanted to do was sleep. For days. Months if he could. Surely he'd be given time off for this, right? Soon enough, he tensed when he heard footsteps right outside the room he had hidden in. His eyes snapped open as he searched the darkness for that eight legged freak of a stalker. He started to shake again as he watched the door frame through the darkness. Slender walked pass slowly. Looking for the small man.
"I know you're here, Mr. Kirkland. I can smell your fear!"
Arthur gulped and waited untill he was sure Slender was further down the hall. He got up slowly and snuck to the doorway. Good thing he was epic at spying, huh? He slid across the wall, watching Slender's back for any sudden movement. He crept closer and closer to the door untill Slender came to a sudden halt. Arthur stopped as well. Not just walking, but breathing too.
"Well, well. I can only expect the best from you, can't I?"
Arthur jumped as Slender turned to face him, one of his many arms reaching out to capture the Brit. He barely dodged it and ran for the doorway leading out, falling face first when both his feet were grabbed.
"Let me go, God dammit!" Arthur yelled out, grabbing onto the corner of the door frame to keep himself from being dragged.
"Let you go!?" Slender laughed loudly, "You belong to me, Mr. Kirkland!
Arthur managed a growl through his fear and as a last resort, chucked the flashlight towards the man, nailing him square in the face. Slender yelped, dropping Arthur. He crawled to a standing position before bursting into a sprint. There had to be distance between them or he'd never find that bloody note!
Oh, the drama! I wonder, will Arthur survive? Hmmm...*thinking*. Looks like you guys will have to keep reading to find out, huh?! ^_^ I hope you guys enjoyed! I believe we'll be coming to an end soon though. Darn, and I was having fun writing this one! Anyway, reviews keep me happy! I love them oh so very much!
Love, ShuChan