A/N: Okay! III'MMM Baaacckkkk! Carrying with me a chapter with a whopping 8000 + words. God...17 pages. Eh heh heh...It's hard to believe that this chapter almost got deleted off my computer just as I finished it. I went to save it, then I noticed on the bottom that it said I only had one page of work as I closed it. I reopened it though and found out I was wrong and it said that I had 17 pages. BUT THEN. It started to count down. Seriously. It went 17...16...15... and so on. I screamed. But then I checked and all 8000 words were still there. Even though it said I only had one page. Well, enough of me, begin the chapter! I will see you at the bottom. Eh heh. If there is a bottom.

Gathered together, the entirety of the student council members converged into a lone room, every single one of them, plus an extra, huddled together to outline the final plan of the school's main Halloween event. Arthur alone stood over his desk, confirming each person's roles as everyone nodded, assured of their respective parts.

" MMM HMM! All right! Got it!" Nodding in affirmation, Alfred leaned into the huddle, drawing the attention of the council's vice president.

" Eh...Alfred...what are you doing here again?"

Matthew glanced at his brother, once again concerned that the American was making a nuisance of himself. Despite being the vice president of the council, it seemed that the blue eyed male spent more time in the room than any of the actual members themselves with the exception of Arthur. He was only present when Arthur was.

" I'm being a Hero, of course! Since I'm awesome, I decided to help you guys out!" Responding to his brother's question, the sunny blond grinned, thrusting a thumb to himself as to emphasize his presence. The gesture was ignored as everyone continued to focus on their plans with Matthew's attention itself sidling back to the Brit as well.

" Well then...that's it. If no one has any questions, the event starts after lunch. You can do anything you want before then."

Concluding his plans, Arthur surveyed the room, running over the faces of his student council members for any uncertainty or questions. He nodded at the sight of none.

"Wait, Artie! I got a question! Me!"

Raising his hand, Alfred waved at the Brit, fishing for attention. He was conveniently ignored as the emerald eyed male leaned into his office chair, relaxing as if the presence of the American was non existent. It only took another push and the action of splaying himself on the desk in front of the student president to attain the desperately sought attention he wanted.

" ...what's your bloody question, Jones?"

Eyeing the larger male in front of him warily, Arthur didn't seem to have the energy to bother with kicking the American out from in front him, even when the named teen looked up at him, obnoxiously stretching on his desk and disorganizing his files.

" What's everyone planning to do?" Grinning, Alfred seemed to enjoy pushing the student president just over the edge of his patience, despite the danger of doing so. The sandy blond sighed at the foolish inquiry that had been answered fully moments before as he had gone over all of the day's plans with his fellow student council members.

" Weren't you listening to anything that was said earlier, Jones? I clearly remember you saying that you 'got it' when I finished."

Alfred shrugged, still wearing the silly grin on his face. " But if I said I didn't, you'd just tell to shut up, right?"

Sighing once more, Arthur kicked off from the desk, launching his office chair into a slow spin as he answered. " Correction. I would have told you to shut the bloody fuck up. Or to sod off."

Alfred pouted in response. " Same thing."

" Only if you're an American." Turning his attention to the student council members, Arthur shrugged off the duty of answering the blue eyed male's question to another unfortunate soul. " Matthew! Explain to your brother what's going on, would you? I believe you're the only one here that can speak his language."

Broken from his current conversation with a certain Albino, the blond flinched slightly at being caught off guard though he answered earnestly, glad to be of help. " It's the Halloween festival, eh. It's when the school clubs put up their own events for Halloween." He glanced at Gilbert for a confirmation.

" Yup! We're one of the only schools who's got teachers awesome enough to stop classes for the entire day so everyone can party!"

Rolling around on the desk so he could face both his brother and the red eyed male, Alfred ignored the grunt of irritation coming from the Brit. " So, what're all the clubs doin?"

Finally unable to put up with the increasing mess and the large piece of annoyance on his desk, Arthur swept the entirety of the surface with his arms, clearing it of all garbage. He only answered the American's question when he heard a satisfying fwump signifying something heavy landing on the floor.

" All the clubs are doing a different event. For example, the culinary club is giving out prizes for anyone who could eat the strange concoctions that they made for this day. And the newspaper club is doing horror stories. "

Erecting himself from the ground and pouting, Alfred crawled towards and onto the sofa, brushing the dust from his jacket. " Geez, Artie! Ya didn't have to shove me off! You could've just asked!"

Arthur grumbled, glaring at the American. ' And you wouldn't have listened if I bloody asked, prat." He sighed, moving to pick up the fallen papers from the floor. " Do you understand now, boy?

" Well, yeah. If you put it like that, why not?" The blue eyed male smiled, standing up once more. " So I can do whatever I want around here, right?"

" Correct. As long as you don't get in trouble", Arthur answered, eyeing the other suspiciously. The American seemed too eager to listen to him for his liking. Especially with the grin that was permanently pasted on his face.

" Sooooo~ " Elongating the word longer than necessary, the taller blond contemplated the situation momentarily, his face thoughtful. An expression that was potentially dangerous.

" You're saying that I can do ANYTHING I want, right?"

Arthur narrowed his eyes, understanding the direction where the American was going. Still, he asked. " Your point?"

The grin on Alfred's face widened slightly more. " So, if I wanted, I can hang out with you?"

Arthur frowned. " No."

" But, that's what I wanna do. I won't be getting into trouble! And since you guys said it's free for all, I wanna bring ya out on a date!"

" I refuse. Either way, I'm going to be busy with work."

Emphasizing the point by reaching for the reorganized piles of papers on his desk and ignoring the living irritation, Arthur twitched in surprise when a non-American hand swooped in, grabbing the papers from right in front of him.

" Kesesese! So all you've got to do is calculate the budgets and stamp the papers, right? I could do that shit, easy!"

Spotting a chance to bring the two blond's together and enact his first move in the 'get these two idiots together' plan, Gilbert stepped in, swooping the papers into his arms. Arthur scowled indignantly at the Albino. " What in bleeding hell are doing, Gilbert?

" Being awesome, of course!"

Strutting behind the desk where Arthur resided, Gilbert shoved the Brit's chair with his hip, causing the piece of furniture to slide across the floor.

" We've got this work done, just get out and go hold Golden boy's hand, alright?"

The scowl on the Brit's face only deepened further at the German's command, he scoffed. " We? From the look of it, you're the only one willing to take over."

" Kesesese! Everyone else are gonna help too, right guys?" Winking at his fellow student council members, Gilbert sent a silent plead, gesturing to the two stubborn blonds. Matthew, out of the goodness of his heart, responded first. " I-I'll help, eh."

" Awesome! Thanks Mattie!" Gilbert glanced around. " Anyone else?"

" Hon, hon, hon~ Anything for l'amour, mon ami!" Francis stood forward, taking half the papers from Gilbert's arms. He turned to the only female in the. " Et tu, ma chere, Michelle?"

The girl nodded, seemingly torn by the task of dividing her expression of frowning at the Briton and smiling at the Frenchman. " Fine. As long as it gets eyebrows out the room then I'll help."

Arthur rolled his eyes at the girl, continuing to frown when Kiku himself offered his assistance. It wasn't long before the entire council had decided to kick him out with American.

" Ain't this great, Artie? We've got the entire mornin' to ourselves!"

Feeling himself being shoved out the door, Arthur by his side, Alfred smiled widely at the annoyed Briton. He already knew exactly what he wanted to do.

All with a small pile of divided work in front of them, each student council member except for Arthur were seated, pens to paper. It wasn't long before the Brit and American had left the room, but, in that short time, worries had already made themselves noticed in the mind of Kiku Honda.

" You're sure this is going to be alright?"

Momentarily turning his attention away from the papers in front of him, the Japanese male glanced up at his German counterpart, expecting an answer. The addressed male, absorbed with quickly punching numbers into a calculator and mumbling math equations, looked up, grinning with confidence.

" No sweat! It's all part of the plan!" He twirled a pen in his hand before placing the back of it to his mouth, contemplating more calculations. " The more you spend time with someone, you either love 'them or hate them more, right? Seeing how Arthur hates golden boy with a passion, there's nothing else to do except fall in love with him!" The Albino grinned, finishing up a single paper of work. " It's elementary, my dear Holmes."

" Oh hon hon...May I ask what exact you two are planning with notre cher Arthur?" Breaking from his silent observation from his respective place on the sofa, Francis smirked. " Are you trying to create l'amour between them, I ask?"

Attention diverted to the Frenchman, Gilbert held a blank expression at the question before responding, not to the question, but to the other male's presence. " Hey, Francis. Didn't Arthur already replace you with someone way more awesome?" The Albino gestured to the vice president beside him as he asked the question, earning a blush from the violet eyed male, though the long haired blond only answered with a flick of his hair. " I am present wherever there is l'amour in the air~"

Grumbling, Gilbert left the conversation at that, rushing through the papers with a gusto in hope to finish it early and join into the fun known as Halloween festival. He sighed. " Gott...Eyebrows better be having an awesome time right now."

Arthur Kirkland was not amused. Not in slightest.

" Arrrrtiiiiieeee! It's a ZOMBIE! SHIT! MAN, IT'S A ZOMBIE! KILL IT, KILL IT!"

His arm clung to, a heavy American leaning to his right shoulder, it was a safe bet to say, that Arthur Kirkland wanted to kill something. Just not the zombie.

" Jones, it's a bleeding costume! If you'd kindly remove yourself from me so I can refrain myself from committing murder, it will be much appreciated!"

"Buuuut! It's scary!". Clinging even tighter, it was as if the American didn't even acknowledge the threat of death. Probably too ignorant to have it register in his mind.

Huffing, Arthur grabbed hold of the taller male's wrist, dragging him down the hallway, mentally berating himself. He had planned to ditch the boy the first chance he had. But, no. They had to meet a teacher on the way. And he had to be the gentleman.

" It's Alfred's first time experiencing the school's Halloween festival, make sure he has fun, alright, Arthur?"

The green eyed male muttered to himself under his breath as he dragged the American along. " Yes, teacher. Of course, teacher. I'll make sure he has the time of his life, teacher."

" Hey, you say something, Artie?", Alfred innocently asked, his blue eyes boring into the green. Arthur grumbled. Really, it was the eyes, wasn't it? That made the girls squeal like the little girls they were.

" How many times have I told you not to call me Artie, Jones?", Arthur tore his eyes from the American's, directing his gaze back to the hallway. He couldn't deny that the teen was attractive, he made a bloody living off it, of course. But his childish personality was much too overbearing.

'" But, it's my special nickname for ya! I'm the only one who gets to call you that!"

Really, the boy could be so foolish.

" I only give nicknames to people I really like!"

So stupid.

" And I really like you!"

And idiotic.

" You're special!"

Arthur pushed Alfred into the nearest room he could.

" Hey!" Hearing Alfred let out a yell of protest, Arthur shut the door in front of him, his voice muffling through the door. " Stay at this event for the next fifteen minutes. I'll be back, so you best not have buggered off by then!"

With that, he turned his heel, shuffling towards the cafeteria area, hoping to get a cup of tea. He needed to calm down. He was overworked. That was why he felt feverish. It was the reason there was a small pain in his chest. Arthur glanced behind him, at the door where he left the American behind. He would be back in fifteen minutes. Not that he wanted to of course.

Tales of Horror.

That was the name of this event. Staring above the door, right at the sign that named the event he was currently present in, Alfred reread the name, once, then twice, then three times, before paling.

He was in deep shit. It wasn't that he wasn't scared or anything. A hero never got scared. Ever. He just disliked horror stories with a passion.

Turning behind him, the blue eyed male swallowed, preparing for the hell that would stand before him. He raised an eyebrow when all he saw were several pillows surrounding a single wooden chair. He grinned at the person that was seated on the lone chair. It was Kiku.

" Kiku?" Stepping forward, Alfred visibly relaxed, moving towards the Japanese male. " Aren't you supposed to be in the student council room? Y'know, working?"

Kiku bored his eyes into the American, nodding silently before answering. " Correct. But, Gilbert-san offered to finish alone. So, we left him to his work after we discussed things."

Ignoring the fact that the other male didn't seem too truthful behind his words, Alfred observed the room, noticing that both he and Kiku were alone in the room. |" So, horror stories, huh? You like 'em."

The smaller of the two males nodded. " I do indeed. "

Alfred continued the conversation, taking a seat on one of the cushions. " So...are you hear to listen to them?" He looked around the room. " This is the newspaper club's room? Right? It doesn't look like any of them are hear yet, so I guess I can go! Since no one's here to tell a story! And Artie's probably gonna be waiting for me real soon!" Standing up from his cushion rather hurriedly, Alfred grinned at the fact that he didn't have to live through a single horror story, and, if Kiku didn't stop him, he would have most likely left the room, in search, once more, for the emerald eyed Briton. But the dark haired male did.

" Alfred-san. Please sit back down."

Commanding tone in his voice, the Japanese male gave a small smile, gesturing to the cushion. With the dark stare directed towards him, the American had no choice to obey.

" Soooo...Kiku, wassup?"

Seating himself back down, the blue eyed male grinned nervously, anxious by the fact that the Asian's black orbs seemed to grow dark with sadism.

'" Before joining the student council, I was a former member of the newspaper club...if you'd like, I will be your narrator for the time."

Swallowing, Alfred refused to show his weakness, laughing. " Of course! That'd be great!"

Taking initiative, Kiku took a comfortable position, readying himself to narrate the most fear inducing story he knew. Taking a deep breath, he began." In the darkness of bustling city, a family resided, holding the happiness of the entire world."

Alfred drew a breath, shuddering. He already knew where the story was going.

" Joy. Money. Fame. Love. The family had it all. Until the birth of their third and last child."

" WAIIIIITTTTT!" Crying out, Alfred held a hand in front him, he palm spread out into a stop sign. " That child's a demon, ain't he? He's going to kill the entire family, right? I know it!" Shivering, he cuddled himself into a ball. " Can't you tell a different story? Y'know, one less scary?"

Kiku stared at the American with a small frown, his expression tied between annoyance and amusement at the blue eyed male's strong reaction.

" N-not that the story was scary, or anything! It's just I've heard it before!" Still denying his fear, Alfred sighed in relief when the dark haired male gave a small nod accompanied by his own sigh.

" Another story, Alfred-san?" Thinking, Kiku ran his head through dozens of untold stories . It was then that an idea appeared, a non horror related one, in his mind. He looked up at the boy seated in front of him, expression unreadable. " Then, Alfred-san... Shall I tell you the story of the Witch and the Gentleman?"

It was long.

Really bloody long.

Staring into the cafeteria, Arthur grumbled at the sight of a line up that filled the room, it's numbers passing into double digits. At this rate, attaining tea in a fifteen minute time span would be impossible. Unless, of course, he abused his authority as the student council president. But, seeing how he was a gentleman, he wouldn't.

" Bloody hell..." Turning back, the green eyed male turned back into the hallway in which he first came, heading back towards the American's destination. Alfred was most likely in the midst of a horror story by now. Screaming his lungs out.

Sighing, Arthur continued down the hall. If he entered the room as the boy would probable tackle him where he stood, then most likely attempt to squeeze the life out of him. Running a hand through his hair, Arthur reached the door labelled ' Tales of Horror', making the final decision for his actions.

He'd listen to the story through the door.

Ensured that the American wouldn't interrupt, Kiku made himself comfortable once more, his eyes reminiscent as he began to recount his tale. It was a story of great importance, he couldn't mess up.

" In a town, very similar to ours, there lived a Witch and a Gentleman. Opposite of each other in all ways; looks, personality, and gender...the two only had a single trait in common.

Their kindness.

Even though this one trait was shared, each had their own way of showing it. The witch was openly kind, and she was loved by all. On the other hand, the kindness that was given by the Gentleman was the type that went unnoticed – needed but not known. Thus, the Gentleman was one who was most hated."

" Hey, hey, hey! Isn't that all wrong?" Interrupting the story, Alfred frowned. " I mean, isn't it usually the witch that gets hated by everyone? Not the gentleman guy?"

Lips down turned by the interruption, Kiku silenced the American with a black stare before answering. " This is not your usual story, Alfred-san. Now, please, if you would kindly not interrupt again." He continued.

" But, even though the Gentleman's good doing went unnoticed, by someone who held a kindness equal to his, it was seen. And that person was the Witch."

Kiku took a breath before continuing. " Intrigued by the Gentleman, the Witch gave him her kindness. And, receiving that kindness and returning his own, it wasn't long before the Gentleman was bewitched.

Just like all the others before him.

Loving the Witch and believing he was loved in return, the Gentleman held the most happiness he had ever held. But happiness was a fickle thing, and it wasn't long before it disappeared to another.

The Rose Gardener. One who grew roses and shared them."

A frown graced the Japanese male's features even as he didn't stop to pause his recount. " You see, the Gentleman was someone who was very fond of roses. Thus, a strong friendship between the Rose Gardener and himself was made. But that bond was their downfall. Catching his longest friend and most precious lover among the roses,the Gentleman's kindness broke apart. Along with his mind."

" Hey, Kiku. Is this really a horror story?", Alfred asked, frowning. He was seated cross legged on the cushion, his hands resting on both knees. " This sounds more like those tragic love stories. Y'know, like the ones where the one who gets cheated on kills himself and the other two can't live with themselves so no one is happy. Or the one who gets cheated on kills the other two, am I right?"

Ignoring the American, Kiku went on with his story. " Torn by the betrayal, the Gentleman wished nothing but pain for the two betrayers. But, the Gentleman was kind, and instead, he destroyed the bonds held between them, doing nothing but burying away his own roses and pain. Despite that, the tragedy was not ended. Even with his friendship and love broken, the Gentleman had forgotten that bonds can only disappear when broken by the two who hold it.

And Rose gardener did not want that bond broken. Nor did the Witch. And so, they tried to make amends. But, it was not something fate would allow.

" Hey! It is one of those sappy romance stories, ain't it?" The question was left ignored.

The Gentleman became something he most hated. Untrustful. Hateful. But, despite that, he had hope. And so, he gave both the Witch and the Rose Gardener a single chance. With that hope, that single chance, he waited by a rose garden, for two people that never came. And so, in despair, he left, leaving his hope behind."

" Hey, is that it?" Waiting for the continuation by the Japanese male, who had become silent, Alfred tilted head to the side. " The gentleman just went up and left? That's a bit of a boring ending." Scratching his head a bit, the American looked up when Kiku began to speak once more. " It's not quite over, Alfred-san." The story continued.

" Even lost with hope, the Gentleman still held his kindness. The cursed kindness that gave him doubts. Should he go back? Wait for a moment longer? Trust them once more?

The Gentleman asked himself over and over, torn by what he should do. And, in the end he returned. To a burning rose garden. With a witch lying amon,g the flaming petals."

Alfred remained quiet at the turn of events, listening.

"Confused, the Gentleman tried to save the Witch. He failed.

Panicked, he cried for help. No one came.

It was only when ashes blew in the wind, that the Rose Gardener arrived. Along with the towns people, all of whom were carrying blame in their eyes. The Gentleman was found kneeling among ashes,crying. He was asked.

What happened?

Looking up, the boy responded with a tear streaked face, his words silent.

Did you do this? Did you kill her?

He didn't respond. Because of his silence, all were angry. The ones whom the Witch had bewitched wanted him dead. But still, he did not explain. All the Gentleman said were two words. Two words that went unheard

' I'm sorry'

Kiku closed his eyes, moving towards the conclusion of the story. " If even a single person had listened and tried to understand those words, the Gentleman could have been saved. But, no one did. And the blame for the Witch's death was placed on his shoulders. Holding an overbearing weight of blame, sorrow, regret and despair, the Gentleman lost the strength to stay a Gentleman. And so, overcome by that weight, he became a monster, destroying – hurting,- all that was around him... A monster that to this day may still exist."

" I don't get it." Finally realizing that the story had come to it's end, the American deadpanned, confused by the story's conclusion. " That wasn't scary at all. It was kinda sad actually."

The dark haired male opened his eyes, directing his attention towards the blue eyed male. " Is that so?"

Alfred nodded. " Yeah, it was more like those sappy romances, except it had one of those bad endings where no one ends up with the girl. And it was a bit cliched. Y'know, the loner guy gets with the nice girl but then, she ends up with his best friend. He gets mad, but he doesn't wanna hate his friend and EX..." He paused. " But usually, they all stay alive. I guess that could be what makes it scary. So, the guy was supposed to meet with the two of them but they don't come. He leaves, but goes back and the girl's in some sort of accident I guess...and he got blamed for it. Then the pressure got to him, right?"

" I suppose that's correct in a way." Nodding slightly at the American's summary of the short, the dark orbed male spoke. " It is good that you are analyzing this story, Alfred-san."

" Huh?", Looking up from his thoughts, Al scratched at his cheek, gazing at the smaller male. " Why?"

Opening his mouth to answer, Kiku widened his eyes in surprise when the voice that filled the space was not his.

" It's because he's not used to telling stories like that of course. Tales with darker matters are usually more of his strength. He was merely asking his audience for feedback"

Turning to the entrance, Alfred grinned at the sight of the green eyed Briton, though his grin was not returned. Arthur's eyes were directed at Kiku, along with the frown on his face. " The Witch and the Gentleman, hm? It was an intriguing story. It's not like you to tell one like that though. Did Gilbert tell it to you?"

Swallowing at the numerous questions, the Japanese male shook his head. " No, Arthur-san...It was one I knew myself."

Arthur strode deeper into the room, examining the furniture as if a single chair and cushions were worth his interest. " But, the use of imagery in the tale was most satisfactory. Roses and witches. Gentlemen and Gardeners. And monsters..." The Briton met the Japanese males eyes. " A monster...is that how you saw it back then?"

Kiku's eyes widened at the final question, standing up as if in defiance. " No, Arthur-san! That was not what I meant! I -"

Before he could finish, Alfred interrupted, innocently of course, confused with the two male's current exchange. " Hey, Arthur! You're back now, right? Did you get your tea?"

Arthur's attention sidled over to an American and for a single moment, a dark expression resided in the Briton's emerald orbs, only to be replaced with the usual irritation. " The line was too bloody long. It would have caused me more trouble than not to get it."

" Ah.". Letting out a sound that was possibly a word of agreement, Alfred stood up in the direction of the smaller males. " Hey, what're we going to do now?"

" We may be able to fit in one more club event for you before the main one starts." He glanced up to the room's only clock. It was noon. " Maybe not. Gilbert might start the student council's event now."

As if cued by the Briton's words, the lights shut off, replaced by a booming voice on the loudspeaker. " Kesesesese~ Hi, Little birds and wormies~ It's time for some fuuuun~"

Arthur sighed. " And there he is."

" Alright! It's time for the Awesome student council to show you their awesome stuff!" Beginning an explanation of the council's event, Gilbert's voice was racked with excitement. " Basically, the Awesome me and the council of course, is gonna do a haunted house! An Awesome one! That the whole school is part of!"

Sitting onto one of the cushions in the dark, Arthur muttered quietly to himself. " Excellent way to explain that, wanker..."

" We set out books all over the school. Little black books with nothing inside. All you've got to do is find 'em and bring 'em to the student council room. ' Course we won't let you find them easily. Our members will be out to catch you. And you're dead when they do! Winners get prizes and losers get a punishment game from the prez himself! Everyone's a player. No escaping the game~" The Albino paused for effect over the loudspeaker. " Oh, and one of the books have the school's seal drawn on one of the pages. If you find that one you get a special favour from the president himself. Anything at all. Scholarship recommendations, raising your grade...he'll do it."

With that, the loudspeaker buzzed close, leaving them in the dark until the several lights, not all, flickered on. Alfred looked at the two student council members. " So...what?"

Arthur answered " Our event started. Do you want to play?"

Alfred grinned. " Of course! I -"

"Fraaaaateelllloooo! Where are you! VEEEEE! I'm scared! Ludwig! Help me!"

All three males glanced at the door where the scream resided behind as Alfred's smile fell at the sound of numerous screams. " No, I'm good."

Staggering up from his seat cushion, Arthur strode over to another, reaching under the pillow to reveal a small black book. He threw it to the American. " There. Bring that to the council room and you're a winner."

The blue eyed male stared at the book for a moment before flipping through it. It held no mark labelled 'Hetalia Academy' on it's pages. Pouting, he glanced up at the other. " So, I don't get a special favour from the president? "

"No.", Arthur responded, sharp and straight. " But, at least you're not a loser." He walked towards the door, peeking outside. " You won't have to go through the punishment game. A pity since I was planning on doubling homework for all of them." He paused. " But anyways..." The Briton reached out the door, and in a single, sharp movement, he grabbed hold of something, looking unsurprised that the object he grabbed hold of, elicited a yell. " There will be one less person to capture"

Thrusting his arm back towards himself, Arthur pulled an entirely other body into the room, throwing it to the ground, shutting the door in front of him. If the muscular body and German swears weren't anything to go with, it was the screams outside that gave away the captive's identity.

" Ludwig! Where are you? Where'd you go! Come baaack!"

The body on the floor stood up, only to be held down sharply by the student president. " Ah. I apologize, Ludwig. But you've lost."

" Arthur Kirkland! Let go of me!" Looking up, a scowl place on his face, the German tried to remove himself from the president's grip, to no avail. The Briton's strength was the complete opposite of how he looked.

" Sorry, Ludwig." Face neutral in response, Arthur crouched to the younger male's eye level, staring at the face ohis friend's younger brother. " But, you've been caught. You can't leave this room until the events over. That's the rules."

A German curse became airborne as Ludwig glared at the Briton, who allowed an amused smile to grace his lips. The said Briton then reached into his pocket, retrieving a small black marker. And, taking the German's hand in his, he marked an X on the back of the limb. " This is just to prove that you've been captured. You can wash it off later when the event is over...I'm sure that Feliciano can live without you for a single hour."

Standing up, he made his way to the door, leaving all other males in the room behind him. And, with the American trailing behind him, he entered a semi-dark hallway, void of people.

" Why are you still following me, Jone? Didn't I tell you to bring that book to the student council room? I believe that it is in another direction,"

Glancing at the book, Alfred pocketed it before answering. " Naw, you just said that I'd be one of the winners if I bring it there. So I'll go later."

Silent, the green eyed male continued walking down the hall, close to the wall, as if he was waiting for something to run past. Something did.

Feliciano Vargas. Followed by a grey monster, characterized with an overgrown head, red eyes aglow.

"Veeeeeeeehhhhhhhh!"

Finally making a move, Arthur threw himself in front of the monster's path, effectively stopping it. " Geez, mum! I was about to catch someone!"

Twitching in surprise at the fact that a certain Australian's voice originating from inside the monster, Alfred dipped down in front of the beast, frowning. " Oh, dude, it's you."

Removing the head of his Koala costume, Kyle shook his head, removing several kinks from his hair. " Hi, hero." He turned back to Arthur. " Why'd you have to stop me, mum? I was just about to capture the mate!"

" Where's everyone else?" Arthur stared at his fellow council member, enquiring for an answer that was immediately received."

" Michelle's going after people with a sword fish, Francis is going after her with his hands, Gilbert is preaching to people about how awesome he is and going after them with a sword, Xiao's with his firecrackers and Matthew's doing this awesome invisible thing and catching a whole bunch of guys without them noticing."

Nodding with a muttered ' I see', Arthur began walking once more, leaving the Australian to what he was doing previously. Kyle just shrugged off the talk and run, about to go back after the Italian when he noticed Alfred going back to following the Briton.

" Hey, mate. Wait up a sec."

The American glanced back at the younger male, still frowning. He was still holding a grudge from when the boy kissed Arthur on the cheek. And Arthur was moving farther away from him." Yeah?"

" Why're you following, mum?"

Alfred deadpanned. " 'Cause I can."

Tilting his head thoughtfully, the brown haired male brought the other's hand to his face, his expression blanking. " You don't have a X your hand, so you're not his prisoner. " His eyes landed on the bulge in the American's bomber jacket. He reached for it, procuring the black book.

" Hunh. You found a book. Did mum give it to you, mate?"

" Yeah." Furrowing his eyebrows ever so slightly at the way the Australian was examining the book, Alfred reached for his belonging. " So?"

Kyle looked up from his examination, not allowing it to reach the American's hold. " It's nothing at all. It's just that I find that a little irritating, mate."

Without warning, the green eyed male tossed the book to side casually, earning a yell from the other. " Hey!"

But, before the object could fall to the ground, nor could it be reached by it's owner, it was caught, the catcher stopping only momentarily. Long enough for the American to catch a glimpse of dark eyes and dark hair. It was Xiao Wang.

" Give that back!"

Running after the male, hand outstretcheed, Alfred was about to grab hold of the other when a heavy pressure fell to his side, pushing him down under, onto the floor and into a small, dark room. A storage room, most likely. The last thing he saw was a mixture of pale green and dark orbs staring at him as the door closed shut, locking the male in.

" HEY! What the hell, you guys? ! "

Banging the door, Alfred could barely hear the muffled answers behind the thick barrier.

" Sorry, mate, I don't have anything against you, but, we are the anti-hero faction. We had to make our move sooner or later."

Alfred shouted. " What the hell are you talking about? Open the door!"

An answer, not Kyle's, came after. " Stupid American. What he means is that the idiot president doesn't need a hero."

Walking in silence for several minutes, Arthur scowled, glancing behind him and at the absence of an idiot American. It wasn't that he minded the quiet of course, hell, it was a godsend after listening to the fool blather in his ear constantly for the last few days. Not to mention that it gave him time to reflect on what he should do upon his next meeting with Kiku. Frowning at the thought, the emerald eyed male sighed. Why did the boy tell that stupid story? He Witch and the Gentleman.

It was nothing but a bloody watered down version of the truth.

" Bloody hell..." Muttering to himself, Arthur bit his lip, his eyebrows furrowing. He should be looking for students to capture, not thinking about something depressing. But, that bleeding story wasn't even completely true.

He didn't cry that day. He didn't turn into a monster. He wasn't kind.

Closing his eyes, he shuddered at the memory.

Arthur stood in front of a burning building, staring at the orange flames, enraptured by the sight, the yells that surrounded him falling on deaf ears. This couldn't be happening. He was supposed to wait for them. So they could explain. Make him understand. Francis and Jeanne. But they didn't come. So why was she inside? Why was she dead?

Was it his fault?

He tried to save her. The burns on his hands were proof. Burns left by the scorching knobs of burning doors that he had tried to open.

" Arthur!"

The young Briton looked up, meeting blue eyes and long blond hair.

" Où est Jeanne? ! "

Arthur didn't respond, numb to everything as he stared at the flowing flames.

"Où est-elle? !"

Ah. He should have waited. Then this wouldn't be happening. It was his fault. Arthur closed his eyes, shutting off the entire outside world, leaving nothing but his regret. He heard himself speak, though he wasn't sure to whom his words were directed to.48

" I'm sorry."

Opening, his eyes, Arthur turned back down the hall he once came. He needed to get his mind off these things. And snapping at an idiot American was the perfect escape.

It was really fucking dark.

Hugging his knees, that was the one thought that ran through the blond American thought as he huddled by the door, sniffling. It was a manly sniffle, of course. But still, it was really fucking dark.

Looking up, he could barely make out his surroundings in the darkness. Nothing but shelves and weird objects. To be expected from a storage room, of course. A really dark storage room. Swallowing, Alfred muttered softly to himself.

"This ain't scary...It ain't scary at all."

About to go back to hugging his knees, the blue eyed male froze. Something moved. Looking up, among the shelves, Alfred felt his breath hitch at the sight of short stumpy legs and a long pink dress.

A doll. It had to be a doll, didn't it?

Whimpering, the American brought himself into a tighter ball. Dolls usually started moving in a situation like this, right? They'd go towards unsuspecting victims and kill them, leaving no one but the victim any wiser. Beginning to shiver, Alfred shifted himself away from the shelves, not noticing as his arm bumped into the wall, causing the furniture to move slightly.

The doll fell.

He screamed.

Hearing a scream, Arthur quickly snapped out of his thoughts, his mind clearing. In any other situation, he would have ignored the fearful yell, it was Halloween after all, but, the fact that the scream belonged to someone he recognized irked him,

So did the fact that the owner of the voice was one he found irritating. And someone the was currently searching for.

Quickening his pace, Arthur headed to the source of screaming, coming upon one of the drama classes storage room. He scowled, confused by the younger blond's location.

" Oi, Jones! What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

Swinging the door open, all irritation dissipated, leaving only confusion at the finding of the American. Alfred was present, of course, the screaming proved it, but... the sight of him screaming while trying to slap a doll off of him was something to be questioned.

" ...Oi..."

Raising an eyebrow and calling out weakly, Arthur strode into the space, plucking the doll off the other easily, tossing it out the door and causing the yells to quieten.

Teary blues met green as Alfred jumped at his saviour, making the both of them crash to the floor.

Embracing the smaller male tightly, Alfred snuggled into the crook of the other teen's neck, ignoring the cusses and commands to let go that were elicited by the action. " T-the doll started attacking me! It was so scary! I couldn't see nothing so couldn't use my Hero attack and defend myself!"

" Let go of me, you git!"

Shoving the larger boy off him, Arthur brushed himself off and sitting up. " What the hell are you doing here, Jones?"

The American whined at the lost of contact, lunging back for another hug, only kept back Arthur kept a tight palm on his forehead, ensuring he was always an arm length away. " They pushed me in here and locked the door! And they said I was annoying and an idiot!"

Letting out an irritated breath, Arthur frowned at the American before turning back to the door, silently wondering who 'they' were. He froze. The door was shut. Quickly standing up and allowing the blue eyed male to slip to the floor, the Briton turned the knob. Locked.

" Shit!" Swearing, the green eyed male allowed himself to crouch on the floor, placing a hand to his head to ward off a growing head ache. He glanced back at the American who hadn't moved from the place he left him, though teary blue orbs were staring upward pitifully.

" Oi. I though heroes weren't allowed to cry and be scared."

Pouting at the statement, Alfred brought himself up to gaze into the other's own emerald orbs. "I'm not scared! Or crying!"

Denying the obvious, the sunny blond frowned, shivering and doing his utmost to restrain himself and jump into the other's arms. Despite having the other present in the small space, it was still terribly dark. Quieting significantly, he buried his head in his knees, worrying the other slightly.

" Jones, are you alright?"'

" ...'m fine." Responding with barely a whisper, Alfred didn't speak another word, causing Arthur's worry to increase.

" Oh,really?" The sandy blond's voice held a little anger at the American's obvious lie. " You don't look bleeding fine to me!""

" I said 'm fine!" Mumbling once more, Alfred only served to make the Briton angrier. " You're obviously not bloody fine. If you're scared, just tell me! Jones!"

Pressured by the discomfort and fear of the situation, the American looked up at the angered Briton, his emotions rising as he snapped, standing up and glaring uncharacteristically. " Tell you so you could do what? Say that I'm an idiot again?" He sniffled. " Fine! I'm scared! I'm scared and I wanna hug you and I want you to call me by my first name! Why do you keep calling me Jones anyways? No one else does! Kiku already stopped!" Falling back down, he embraced his knees once more, leaving the shocked Brit silent. " Well, let's hear it. Say that I'm stupid."

Arthur just stood there, unable to speak for the moment. He opened his lips, closed them, and opened them once more after taking a deep breath. " Ah...I apologize...Alfred..."

The American only responded with a small glance at the sound of his name.

" It's just that...you're last name is a lot more easier to pronounce."

Alfred twitched at the strange ultimatum, finally directing his full attention to the other, momentarily forgetting his discomfort. "Say what?"

" You're last name only has one syllable and since I've been using it since the beginning, I was just too lazy to start calling you Alfred."

It was the blue eyed male's turn to be shocked as he stared at the other. " The hell? You mean this whole time I've been thinking you were being cold to me and you've just been lazy?" He paused. " What about Francis? I've heard you call him Bonnefoy and that's three syllables."

Arthur frowned, sensing the beginning of an argument. " He calls me Kirkland at times, so it's only fair if I called him by his last name as well."

" Aren't you supposed to be the posh British dude who's always like the Nazi of grammer? Who's always like ar-ti-cu-la-tion this spell check that?"

Furrowing his eyebrows, the sandy blond glared. " Don't insult me, bloody American! At least I don't go off butchering the queen's language with every sentence I speak!"

Alfred pouted back. " I making it a lot more awesome, unli-"

" Look! Can't you just bleeding shut your trap for once!"

Silencing the American, Arthur dropped downwards, resting his back on the other male's knees. " Tch! I'm too tired to bloody argue!"

" ...what are you doin'?"

Questioning the student council president,though not pushing the other teen away, Alfred stared at the back of Arthur's head, puzzled. Arthur remained silent to the questions.

' I'm scared and I wanna hug you and I want you to call me by my name!"

Realizing his own answer, the larger male let out a prolonged ' Ohhhh', before relaxing his knees and bringing the smaller of the two closer to his chest. The Briton didn't struggle. Alfred chuckled. " Maybe you can be nice sometimes after all Artie!"

Mumbling, Arthur hated the fact that he was beginning to feel a content type of tiredness in the other's arms. The hours of Halloween preparation coupled with school and work were taking it's toll. " Sod off. This is because I'm a gentleman, nothing else!"

Running his hand through the green eyed male's hair, Alfred smiled to himself as he began to feel Arthur's breath slow into a sleepy pace. He gazed at the other's relaxed face, the Briton's last words almost going unnoticed.

' I'm a gentleman.'

Alfred's expression fell slightly as words entered his head.

There once was a Witch and a gentleman.

His expression fell even more.

The Gentleman was one most hated.

He frowned.

Overcome with regret, sorrow,and despair, the Gentleman became a monster.

Shaking his head, Alfred brushed a piece of stray hair from Arthur's face. The teen looked cute, his face free from scowls and frowns. Smiling softly, the American pushed the words out of his mind, focusing on what was in front of him as he himself began to close his eyes.

He would worry about it later.

" Well, this is cute."

Opening the door to the storage room, Elizabeta stared at the two boys, cuddling in their sleep, secretly taking a picture. She had only come to return her Halloween costume, though the pleasant surprise was much appreciated. Reaching into her pocket, she began to text Kiku, letting the teen know that the arduous search for the two missing blonds was over. Smiling at the sight, she looked at the two once more. Arthur was resting his head on the American's shoulder, his hands curled between both his and the other's chest in a comfortable position. On the other hand, Alfred had a hand draped over the smaller male, as if in a protective gesture. The Hungarian smiled once more.

Yes. They were cute together.

A\N: Okay, you guys , that's the end of this chapter. Hope it's good enough to last 'till the next. Eh heh! Well, a little bit of Arthur's past has been revealed plus a little more USUK bonding. But, I bet you've got even more questions now than ever. Oh, and btw, everyone who saw the hetaoni references get cookies! Oh, and on another note, just a question to everyone. I've found out that writer's block dies faster when I alternate between writing two different topics. Because of that I have three-fourths of the first chapter of this weird USUK AU on my computer whose plot bunny has been poking at my head for a while now. I'm probably gonna title it ' You're gonna go far, kid' and it's a Bodyguard/Police officer X Criminal Boss type thing. But, I'm torn if I should post it when I'm done the chapter or until I'm done this first. I kinda wanna post it and see how everyone reacts but...i dunno.