A/N: Okay, so this chapter, I should warn you about the slight Dark!Hetalia vibe it has. I wrote it a few weeks ago, and added at least 1000 words now, but it should be fine. It's nearly 5 am! D:

Thank you so much for the reviews, and to Canuck, don't worry, I'm trying to get most if not all canon characters in here, and I'm certainly writing about Australia at some point (I do like to explore his relationship with Wy and England-no, not that kind, you hornballs (just added this beautiful word to my vocab)! No pairings!).

Also, extra swearing!

Anyway, don't mind grammar, and don't mind the dark vibe!

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Chapter 10

No Loyalty

Washington D.C – White House (UTC -4) 6:55 a.m

"-Speaking of overbearing patriotism, America, the embodiment. Apparently, he watches my show, and here I was wondering if I would get any of my predictions right, maybe he's my spirit brother... but then I got this letter! Because it seems they don't like him using emails... And this is all true, I really did get an actual letter, swear to America, I'm not faking it!

'Thank you so much for making fun of me, I've always wanted a comedian to do that directly to me instead of the whole country, it was the best thing ever. Can't write too much 'cuz Senate is too paranoid, but love your show, smiley face.' Aw, he sounds so nice and adorable, obviously a far cry from what I was expecting... But at least he has a sense of humor, also 'P.S, not fat. Just laying it out there.' this time, with a frowny face! It might be pure denial, but maybe he's just as sensitive about this as all of us, I'm still not sure if my diet is even working, have you seen-?"

America chuckled from his seat on the couch, shoulders shaking with mirth. He couldn't quite explain how strange and yet exhilarating it was to know his people were thinking and talking about him, as a person, and not as his whole territory and government. It was a foreign situation, but he's not the type to shy away from new experiences.

It really was a cool idea to send a 'thank you' letter, though, but his Senate definitely wouldn't like it. They always said they knew what was best for him, and it was in their job description to not listen to his whims – Congress was a whole 'nother story. Still, there were no actual laws stopping him – he checked them for loopholes even when he knew them like the back of his hand – so there's literally nothing they could do.

He had his phone hanging from his hand as he expected a call-and speak of the devil, it was ringing... He paused the recorded show, much to his dismay, as he wanted to keep watching – he had no time to watch anything last night – answering the call quickly. "Yeah?" He looked around, despite knowing he was completely alone in the Oval Office. His boss would kill him if he knew about this...

"Mr. Jones, you can talk to him now."

"Ah, thanks, be there in a sec." He ended the call and stood up, adjusting his suit – stuffy, not something he liked to wear often – the space around him shifted and turned somewhat bright and yet bleak, with the faint smell of iron, copper, and maybe other elements mixed in, so faint that only he could catch them.

No windows in sight, no sounds from the outside. There was a constant hum of the fluorescent lights on the ceiling, and the silence itself seemed to make some kind of sound to his ears.

Underground.

He took a few steps forward and pushed a metallic door open, meeting the Director of his Secret Intelligence, a man America commonly referred to as 'Johnny'. The man gave him a cursory glance with a nod, then looked back at the glass window again. A one-way mirror. Beside it, there was another door, that led to the adjacent room, where someone was chained to a chair.

He could see the wounds, reddish marks on the floor and on the person's clothes, knees, legs, and collar around the neck.

"Oookay, who's this one?" America asked, giving the prisoner a look, frowning. He still had that hostile presence that made his skin crawl... America grimaced lightly, nearly let out a disgusted hiss.

"Mr. Terrance Harrison, was a CIA agent. Remember him?" Johnny raised an eyebrow.

"I think so..." America narrowed his eyes, adjusting his glasses. The man was on a chair, his hands cuffed behind him, and feet cuffed to the ground. He had his head down, so America couldn't see his face right, but the name was familiar.

If he already worked for the CIA before, that means America himself must have let him in, he always checks them before hiring, leaving a 0% chance of a terrorist infiltrating his Secret Intelligence. "He was okay when I let him in, that's for sure. Something happened, but what...?"

"He, along with the others, were surprisingly resilient to our questioning." Johnny leaned back, sitting on a table directly behind them. "One, named Mark Parr, couldn't quite take it, and preferred to bite his own goddamn tongue off."

"He died...?!" America questioned, not exactly out of outrage, it was more like plain disbelief. "That's... fanatic." He had no better word to explain why any human would choose death, even if with their cooperation, their chances of freedom were still very minimal. He would never truly understand this kind of behavior...

Johnny shrugged helplessly with a 'meh' noise. "I know that another one, what's-his-name... Frederick something... He actively attempted to drown himself when we tried waterboarding... It's been nearly a whole damn week." The man exhaled heavily in frustration.

America raised a disbelieving eyebrow, scoffing, then looked back at 'Terry', as he would call him now. "Did you guys let him sleep?"

"Not at all. Maybe he's trying to catch a break now..." Johnny's eyes squinted as he tried to see if this was the case.

America frowned, lips thinning. "Let's wake him up, then." He went to the next room, quietly opening the door.

Terry must have fallen asleep, America could focus a little and hear how his heartbeat was much slower, despite the slight strain of his breathing, as if his lungs were having a hard time doing their job. The distinct smell of iron was much stronger now. He closed the door slowly, then crossed his arms and sighed silently. The man didn't stir, so it must be a pretty heavy sleep. His body was most likely desperate for some rest after a whole week of sleep deprivation and questioning.

They couldn't get anything else, and he would most likely be locked away somewhere. America wasn't even supposed to be here... However, he wanted to speak with one first, if only to understand, find some closure...

America crouched with a knee on the ground to see his face. He could see the tell-tale signs of physical abuse, purplish marks and angry red, with the left-over vestiges of blood that weren't completely cleaned off for this meeting alone. Beneath all of that, there were lines of stress, dark shadows beneath his closed eyes and face pale from the lack of food, sleep, and sunlight. So peaceful at the moment. America shook his head briefly.

Too peaceful for a traitor.

He pulled his glove and took a calming breath before backhanding the man. "Wake up!" He held back, he didn't want to break poor Terry's neck after all.

The man spazzed with a gasp as he tried to gather his bearings, wincing when moving his most likely broken or fractured bones, his breathing labored as he looked at everything around him with wide bloodshot eyes. America stood up, and Terry's eyes locked on him suddenly.

He felt hostility flaring up as Terry scowled at him. "...Finally showing your face..." He mumbled. America asked them to not rip any teeth out. It would be difficult to talk...

America tilted his head, feeling confused now that he could perceive Terry's emotions. He grabbed the man's chin, turning him to have a good look. Terry tried prying himself off, but America tightened his grip, making the man wince in pain and stop before anything broke. "Yeah, I did let you in..." He was definitely his citizen, America remembers him now. Each citizen had this uniqueness that America liked to remember. Not something he could quite explain or understand.

This one was a good boy, loyal, with a good head on his shoulders, wanted the best for the country and probably learned that from his veteran father. America was supposed to ask him questions, maybe try to get something more, but now he found himself wondering why... just why, why, why did such a good kid turn against him like this...? "What the hell happened, Terry...?" He questioned, more to himself than to the man.

The man sneered in distaste, probably at the nickname. "...I was shown the truth, you goddamn monster..." Terry hissed. "The whole world will soon follow, your days are numbered...!" Terry gave him a shaky grin, somewhat unstable, and America felt that needle stabbing in the back of his head, the hate. A citizen that hates you, it just hurts...

America frowned, sensing pure unhinged conviction. He usually got this level of conviction and faith from his more... religious people... He let go of the man, who was quick to draw back as much as he could on his seat.

"It's good to know you have friends."

Terry flinched, but decided to remain silent.

"You mind redeeming yourself and telling me about them?" He was met by silence. It was a constant stream of 'no's in his head and America had a feeling that he wouldn't be getting anything out of him. He was like the other two, prefers death, and that disgusting mentality reminded him of terrorists from the Middle East. "No?"

America exhaled, stretching his hand and stopping himself from hurting Terry again. He had no patience for this, he was just a fanatic and fanatics made no sense to him, they wouldn't give him any answers. Tortured for a week, and still nothing...!

America leaned forward, hands resting on his knees as he watched Terry, his brows tilted upwards as he shook his head. "Such a shame... You were such a nice kid, Terry... Your father would be so... disappointed..." He hissed the last word, to emphasize.

"...You don't know anything about us...!" He gritted out, hatred building up. America could sense his aversion to the topic. Shame, the only weak link to his fanaticism was his father, ashamed of what he would think, but certainly deluding himself into thinking the man would be on his side. A great guy, fought in the Vietnam War, America met and fought with him, even shared drinks with him.

He certainly wouldn't side with Terry, and Terry knew that, deep down, he knew it.

"...I really just want what's best for my people, I don't understand why you're so mad at me..."

He hit a nerve. America could feel the man's blood burning, he was already gritting his teeth as he raised his head, scowling, but still avoiding looking at him directly in the eye. "Fuck you...! We're not yours to do as you please...!"

America's expression softened, brows tilting upwards. Oh, no... Is that what he thinks? That he's controlling them? He sighed, the thought of someone out there turning his people against him, it was something out of a nightmare. It was worse than anything Hollywood or anyone could ever come up with for him. "Someone told you things, huh?" Terry wasn't looking at him again, so America held his face with both hands easily despite his struggle. "Messed with your head, made you think you were... fighting for something important, for your freedom from some 'force' controlling humanity... Don't be stupid. My people are free, Terry."

Terry's eyes were wide, he couldn't look anywhere else. America could feel his hesitation and doubt, his conviction challenging America's own words like a bull hitting a wall. "...Y-you're controlling me, now..." The wall cracked, but didn't fall.

Such a pity.

"I never controlled any of you, Terry." America smiled pityingly, shaking his head slowly as he backed away, hand reaching inside his suit, pulling out a heavy pistol and aiming. His glare hardened and Terry froze. "You already had your freedom."

The gunshot sound rebounded off the walls, amplifying it, but America didn't flinch. With a scoff, he walked out, sparing the bloody mess no second thoughts.

He stepped outside, door closing quietly, but leaving the door handle slightly bent under his grip. Johnny remained sitting on the table, offering him a cigarette. "...Did you have to shoot him?" He inquired quietly, but without malice. "Maybe you could have tried something else first?" America knew the man would prefer if he helped them more often with these things, like he used to.

"Oh, fuck off..." America spat, also with no real malice, pacing for a few seconds, then taking one cigarette after some hesitation, also being tossed a lighter, thankfully. "I don't do hurting my own citizen, not like that, even if he's a filthy traitor... There's a fucking preacher out there, turning my own people against me, and their goal is more pointless than I thought. Such a waste..." He went through the door that led to the hallway, Hopping somewhere where he could sit and think. More specifically, the top of the Headquarters – which admittedly wasn't all that high up.

It was good to feel the wind, though. The underground tended to be suffocating and usually got to his nerves. The place was mostly surrounded by nature as well, no civilian propriety too close, so he could just sit there and smoke in peace. It was relaxing, he often smoked when feeling too stressed out...

He laid down, facing the sky with his legs crossed as he lit the cigarette.

He cares about his citizens, absolutely adores the lot of them, even the crazy ones. But he hates traitors. 'Ungrateful bastards...' They didn't deserve the freedom America worked so hard to grant them... He bled and died for it, many times over.

It wasn't for nothing. They have freedom. America wasn't controlling them.

They believe his words naturally. Even if he blatantly lies to their face, they'll still feel inclined to believe. He's not intentionally controlling any human. It might come off as such, but that's nature.

It's how they interact. They're different races, of different origins, but their relations is one of mutualism, or better, a more extreme one-sided version, considering his very existence depends on them, but not the other way around.

It's a partnership where they keep him alive, and he protects them unconditionally.

Terry, and whoever else, simply failed to understand that.

But the man did talk a little because of that moronic idea. America's presence must have been a strong trigger for him to suddenly start spouting useful things, despite the fact that he's never encountered such a devoted fanatism, with a powerful sense of duty that overarched humanity as a whole, just to make things more annoying.

For these ungrateful pricks, this was about his kind specifically. For them, they were the wardens of humanity, like puppeteers controlling the strings and sadistic masters behind all misfortune and grief. He didn't know the actual culprits' motives – the 'preachers' as he was calling them now – they might have the same stupid objective, who knew.

So there were people out there who wanted Nations gone, maybe a whole terrorist group at this point – as if they didn't have enough of those nowadays – and maybe America should have tried to get more information, but Terry really pissed him off.

He runs out of patience way too quickly when angry...

America blinked as a sudden thought hit him. He felt bad for Terry's father now. He was a good man and a good soldier, if he remembers correctly. But he would be getting the news of his son's unfortunate 'accident' soon, and America felt remorseful about causing him pain. The man already lost his wife, he didn't need this crap...

So it's all Terry's fault. 'Goddamn idiot couldn't even think of his family before he'd gone and fucked up.' It made America want to pay the man a visit, but his still youthful appearance might give him a hear-attack...

That matter aside, surely England would know more about these types of enemies. He's always said humans don't really like different things, or big sudden changes. It's a... survival thing, helped them survive long before any Nations were around to help them against nature. Also, England has dealt with humans trying to kill him before, he probably had something or other that could help him out. The idea made him frown in distaste.

America took the burning cigarette from his mouth, yawning, then coughing. He hasn't smoked in a while, now that he thought about it... Last time was... 2001, and a lot more until 2009...

There was a meeting coming very soon, and there were still the other traitors to question... Hopefully, by the time he got to the meeting, he would have enough information to form a decent action plan, and then, he would have to get his allies' cooperation. Dammit... how he hated asking for their help, especially England's help, it stung his pride in a way he wasn't comfortable with.

Not to mention, most of the EU tended to reject his way of doing things. Not fine and fancy, or thoughtful enough. Too crude or harsh. Honestly, he would be much happier if they sucked it up and did something that got them results.

America sat up, smothering the remaining burnt cigarette with his hand until it became ashes, barely feeling it through the glove. He would have to get them out of his way...

Sometimes, he felt like he was the only one who knew how to get anything done.

A/N: Such a happy and positive chapter...

Of course America absolutely hates traitors, I can't see it any other way. I really like to explore America as a character because of his complexity and dare I say, multiple personalities. I mean, the US has many faces, and most aren't fake, from the cruel hidden world behind wars and shady politics, to the bright and creative of many cities and entertainment that everyone loves. I see all sides as real, and as a character, America is honest, no matter what face he's wearing, be it the annoying goof, the caring Nation, or the serious and calculating soldier.

With points of interest (Is this a staple thing of my fic now?):

I mentioned the Senate as something that does not have to listen to America, and it's completely right. The American Senate is not supposed to listen to the people, it's supposed to have this 'we know what's best for you, we do this because we love you' kind of thing, so I imagine they would act like parents to America, not listening to whatever whim or needy request, because 'they know best', so I would say, it IS in the job description to not listen, because America can be very persuasive when he wants to.

Although I see them like a helicopter-parent, who worries too much and puts all sorts of systems and people to make sure he's fine, as well as find ways to pull him out of trouble, if necessary. Congress, on the other hand, it's the opposite, they are supposed to listen (do they, now?) but they should have this... insight to not listen when America is being flaky, which probably happens often...

About torture, well, sleep deprivation is considered a form of torture, and if you research the effects of lack of sleep, you'll see how cruel and taxing it can be on the human body. You stay up all night and you can barely stand still, now imagine that for weeks, but worse.

And then waterboarding... Ah, have you played GTA V? You know that torture scene with the cloth and the water? Well, that. It's supposed to emulate the sensation of drowning and it can cause all sorts of damage that look a lot worse than in the game. Some people throw up and then choke on it, because they can't get up and there's water coming down.

CIA used it on terrorists in 2002 and 2003, if someone says it's illegal, you can roll your eyes, because they still use it (it's very popular around the world, too).

EDIT: Added a few things, mostly because I watched a trailer that had a brief torture scene (Mafia III, can't wait) and remembered that physical torture is a thing. I was too focused on the psychological aspect, and forgot about it entirely somehow. I guess my mind isn't as screwed up as I initially thought.

And finally, people who know their stuff (always very cynical) often say that everything in America is made to manipulate you into buying more and more, and even more than you need it, but I don't think that America, as a character, likes this idea. The thought of controlling his people and obstructing their freedom with tyranny is probably very rage-inducing. But he probably ignores the commercial tactics and instead focuses on the political. I really want to write more about this some other chapter, but for now, I'll leave it like this.

Well, I hope it was a good chapter, I might slow down after a few chapter from now, because I'm not a fast writer (sometimes, other ideas pop up), but I'm still writing.

So fave, follow, or review, and I'll see you guys next week! o/