A/N: Hello readers! How are you all? Good? Good. Now then….
We are finally getting further into the story, I'm so happy! Now, if only I could say the same for my playthrough…. I feel like a wimp, but Imma REALLY hating that random chase! Apparently, the Thing would continue to chase you even in cut scenes. *Shrugs* I don't know if that's true or not, you tell me.
Aprincessb, I'll have you know that I ALWAYS feel special. *Winks* But thanks for reviewing anyways!
Narration
"Talking"
"Thinking" or talking in Flashbacks
Letters and Flashbacks
Japan withdrew from the group as silence reined from his statement. He quietly told Germany that he would search for the clock in the room before heading to the shelves of books lining the walls.
"A-Am I wrong," Italy asked, fingers pulling at his hair, "Japan did come with us, right?"
"Maybe correcting time caused some sort of disturbance?" Germany patted Italy's shoulder.
China looked over to Japan.
"You do remember fighting with me, Russia, and Pakistan, right aru?" Japan snorted as he scanned the lines of books.
"I'm not that forgetful yet, you know." Russia chuckled, shaking his head.
"You two are so old~!" China glared at the larger nation.
"I came here with France, didn't I? Or was it Russia, America, and France?" China's attention was brought to the shaking Pakistan.
He patted to the spot on the floor next to him. The Pakistani sat down, leaning into his side as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He quietly whispered to her in Chinese as the meeting continued.
"I came here with Japan, didn't I," England asked, rubbing his forehead, "Or, was it someone else?"
"What on Earth is wrong with everyone," Canada asked, tightly clutching Kumajiro to his chest. The polar bear didn't seem to mind, for he was also watching the argument as it slowly dissolved.
Japan had made his way to a dresser that was along the wall, opening the many drawers. He gave a small smile, pulling out the clock. He then dropped it onto the floor, the glass smashing and the ticking stopping. Everyone looked over before continuing their discussion.
"There," Japan said, "One more to go." He then gasped as orange overtook his vision.
The three look up to the large windows. America waved his arms enthusiastically.
"See, I told you England!" He turned to the Brit, pointing to the building behind him.
"The rumors were true!" Japan smiled, shaking his head. England winced, rubbing his ear.
"Keep it down, won't you? You're so loud!" America scoffed, turning to Japan and grinning.
"I'm not doing anything wrong, am I Japan?"
"No comment," Japan replied. He then led the way into the mansion, pushing open the front doors before the others could reply.
Japan sighed, rubbing his head.
"Yes, it really was England and America I came here with. We said that, then we came in and-!" The memory morphed in front of his eyes.
"So," Prussia said, hands on his hips, "This is it? Are Ita and West really in this place?" Japan nodded.
"Indeed." It was silent before Prussia looked over to the Japanese man with amusement in his expression.
"You're thinking 'This sucks', aren't you?"
Japan stuttered in denial. Prussia laughed arrogantly before leading the way into the mansion.
Japan frowned, rows furrowing. He groaned as his headache got worse.
"No, that's not it…. I came here….. With Prussia-san! We decided to come so that we could pick up Germany-san and Italy-kun so…. No, wait. This isn't it… This memory is wrong."
Prussia was quickly replaced by China and France.
China was staring out to the gates as France and Japan looked up at the mansion and its white walls.
"So this is the mansion that America told us about," France asked, one hand on his hip while the other held a rose he had picked up to his nose. China looked back over to them, nodding.
"That's right aru! Let's hide before the others get here and give them a fright!" Japan sweat dropped.
"China-san…. Even if they didn't do the same to get back at you…. And even if it weren't this mansion, you should at least be a little more reasonable…." China pouted before looking back out to the horizon. He then grinned, grabbing both nations by their sleeves and pulling them to the door.
"It's now or never," he exclaimed, "Time to get ready! He's coming this way with Italy!"
France let out a laugh, looking over to Japan.
"Wouldn't it be nicer if we just made something to eat together?" Japan nodded in agreement, small smile on his face.
"Definitely…"
Before Japan could react, the scene changed again.
"It clearly looks like something is going to come out of it though," Japan muttered, shaking his head. Russia chuckled.
"True~ So, are they really in this place? We should check, da?" Prussia snorted, grabbing Japan and pulling him into a head lock.
"You go ahead Russia," he said, grinning as Japan struggled to get free, "Me and Japan are just gonna chill here and wait for you!"
"Aww~ you're so mean! Come on, if all of us go, then we can give the others a good scare, da?" Pakistan, France, and China all snickered at the thought of scaring Germany.
"Umm, aren't you forgetting someone," Canada's timid voice asked. Japan finally managed to get free, backing away from Prussia until he was next to the Canadian.
"Prussia-san, Russia-san, feel free to go ahead. Canada-san and I will be waiting here while we have some tea." Pakistan let out a loud laugh. She grabbed both Canada and Japan, dragging them to the mansion front door.
"Come on you scaredy-cats! Time's a-wasting!" The others followed, chuckling as the two trapped nations struggled to break free from the Pakistani's grasp.
Once more, the scene changed, and Japan's headache let up considerably.
"Ve~! It's really here~!" Italy stared up at the large marble white building with wide eyes, a hand brought up to cover his eyes from the setting sun's glares. His companions also stared, their own expressions varying from surprise to disbelief.
"I thought it was just a rumour," Japan said, crossing his arms, his eyes travelling from window to window, the dark contrasting with the white. "I never thought that we would actually find it."
"It has such a desolate feel," Prussia added, a grin on his face. "Not bad, not bad at all~!"
"This memory," Japan thought, watching the scenario play out before his eyes. Everything was as he remembered; Germany's reluctance, Italy's and Prussia's excitement.
The memories faded, leaving Japan on his knees as he stared down at the piano room floor. He could feel someone shaking his shoulder, so he looked up in confusion.
Italy looked concerned as the others began to crowd around, also worried.
"Are you okay, Japan," Italy asked, "You kinda just fell down after you broke the clock." The nation thought briefly about telling them about what he saw, but shook his head as he decided against it.
"I'm fine," Japan replied, getting to his feet, "I suppose I just felt a bit dizzy is all." Italy frowned, but nodded. China wasn't as easy though. He pushed past everyone, grabbing onto his brother's hand and pulling him back to the where the circle was.
Pakistan hadn't moved from her spot, so when China plopped Japan down next to her, she immediately wrapped her arms around him in a hug. China then also sat, hugging his brother close as well. The others chuckled as Japan blushed before taking their own seats once more.
"Anyway," Germany cleared his throat, "As I was saying before Japan collapsed, how about we just figure out this puzzle instead of arguing with each other?" He lifted up the taped together papers so that everyone could see.
"If we don't, we might never find the others (everyone noticed how he didn't mention names) or escape."
"Fine," England pouted, crossing his arms.
"The keyboard has four colours," Canada said, "and each of those colours match the coloured rectangles."
"But we only received three phone calls," Pakistan added, her arms still wrapped around Japan, "so we'll have to wait until we get the last one."
Almost as if on cue, Germany's phone rang.
"There it is," Russia muttered. Germany pulled out his phone, yet didn't answer. China got impatient.
"Well, answer it aru," he snapped. Germany then nodded, slowly flipping open the lid. They all waited in anticipation, until the expected sound of a piano was heard. Germany placed the phone back into his pocket.
Everyone stood and began to crowd around the piano. Canada, Germany, Italy, and Japan were carefully examining the keys.
"I feel like we're missing something," Pakistan said after a few minutes. The others nodded in confusion as they continued to stare at the keys. The bright colours distracted them and they couldn't tell which note was which. It would have been very useful if Austria would have been with them.
Canada tapped his chin.
"First," he began, everyone turning to look at him, "What were the notes we heard?"
Dead silence was his only answer before he sighed, turning to Italy.
"Italy," he asked. The Italian jumped before tilting his head questioningly.
"Yes Canada?"
"You used to live with Austria when you were little, right?" Italy nodded vigorously. The others glanced at each other, smiles appearing on their faces as they realized what Canada was asking.
"In that case…." Canada gestured to the piano.
"Do you happen to know anything about piano notes?"
"Ve~," Italy peered down at the keyboard, finger touching the keys. Each one rang out loudly as he pressed.
"These are the notes we heard," Italy said, playing the four notes as a cord, "Re, sol, la, si."
"The numbers on the keys," Canada said, "are four different colours, all matching the ones we have on the paper." He pulled out a pen, taking the sheet from Germany.
"So, the code is 4259," England asked. Canada shook his head. He wrote the colours into their respective boxes, holding it up. Everyone let out a collective 'oh'.
"So, the code is 5294."
"Amazing," Pakistan exclaimed, clapping her hands. The other nations also congratulated Canada for his deduction, making the man blush.
"Well then," Germany said, straightening up, "Let's head back to that safe."
"I agree," Japan nodded before following the nation out of the room. One by one, the nations left. However, Italy lingered, glancing over to the piano with a frown.
"Looks like they solved it after all," he murmured.
"It's strange," he continued, bringing a hand up to his head, "I thought that I had done everything right. I probably shouldn't have helped them… But, well…. No, I'm pretty sure I'm doing the right thing."
Italy sighed, letting his hand drop.
"I'm not making a mistake…. Am I? No, I'm not. I'm not making any mistakes at all! Though…." He gave a soft chuckle, shaking his head as he slowly made his way to the door.
"I wonder if Japan will be mad? Heh, I know Germany will for sure! He wouldn't want to be my friend anymore! But it won't matter… We're almost there…" Italy grasped the door knob and hurried to catch up with the others.
The chest clicked open, Japan reaching in and grabbing the key that was inside. He showed it to the others. They then followed him to the Japanese styled room, unlocking the door that Italy and Germany had found.
The nations all scattered around the room, checking every corner in the room from top to bottom for clocks or any other kinds of hints.
Italy found a switch under the table, making everyone jump in surprise as the bookshelf that Japan and England were looking at moved to reveal a hidden door.
"Nice work Italy," Canada exclaimed. The Italian blushed as they pushed the door open.
Inside was a small cell, too small to fit everyone.
"We'll stay out here," China said, "and double check if we missed anything aru." Japan nodded, entering the room with Italy, Germany, Canada, and England.
The five entered the cell, Italy locking the door behind them as the others took a look around.
"There's nothing in here," England groaned, throwing his hands into the air. Japan had knelt down, checking the floor. His hands were drawn to a key.
"Not quite," he said, holding it up for the others to see.
"What's it for," Canada asked. Japan read the inscription.
Basement key
"It's for-!" Suddenly, loud shouts were heard from the room outside, causing everyone to look to the door. They could hear the faint sounds of battle before the door was flung open. The Thing strode in, dropping Russia to the floor, blood falling to the floor from his skull.
"I…." Everyone turned to Italy, who shook, eyes wide as he stared at Russia, "I think I made another mistake….. I made a mistake again!" The monster had a smirk on its face, but it disappeared as soon as it noticed the bars.
It grabbed them, shaking and roaring in frustration. The ones inside the cell were all paralysed in fear as they watched.
Suddenly, the monster's head slammed against the bars, black blood dripping to the floor. It turned around to face China and Pakistan in the doorway.
The two were bruised, blood falling to the floor from their arms and legs. However, everyone could only see the furious expressions on their faces. China had grabbed Russia, flinging him over his shoulder with a quiet curse of how heavy he was while Pakistan was throwing her knives up and catching them once more.
"Get away from them, mām̐ kamīnē!" She threw another knife, the blade cutting into the creature's leg. It howled in pain. She then grabbed onto China's arm and the two plus unconscious Russia took off, the monster right behind them.
Italy quickly unlocked the cell door, flinging it wide open. Before he could take off after the monster, however, Germany grabbed onto him, holding him in a crushing grasp.
Italy struggled, yelling out in Italian as he tried to break free, but Germany refused to let go. Japan quickly ran out past the German, through the door and into the Japanese styled hall.
He noticed the other door open, dashing through it and running to catch up with the monster's vicious snarls.
"Please," Japan thought, turning the corridor and running towards the kitchen, "let them be safe!"
Japan flung the kitchen door open, startling the monster which was scratching at the cellar door. The Japanese man assumed that they were hiding in there, silently thanking whatever deity that existed that the door had a lock. The creature growled, hideous grin making its way onto its face. Japan turned and ran, the monster chasing after him.
"At least I can give them time to return to the others…"
The kitchen fell into silence as Japan led the monster away from them. China and Pakistan held their breaths, silently hoping that whoever distracted the monster could get away safely. They couldn't hear any sounds of battle, so they assumed that the coast was clear.
China slowly pushed the cabinet door open, looking out just in case. He gave a sigh of relief, climbing out of the kitchen cabinet above one of the sinks and dropping to the floor. He then turned around, helping Pakistan climb out and down to the floor beside him.
She gave him a thankful smile, blushing, before going to the cellar door with her knife. China then knelt down to the cabinet under the sink, opening the doors and started to pull out Russia from the small cramped hiding spot.
With one of her knives, Pakistan unlocked the cellar door, the click making her nod her head in accomplishment before she went back over to China and helped him pull out Russia. The two then flung his limp arms over their shoulders and left the kitchen.
As the three slowly made their way down the hallway, Pakistan and China could faintly hear the sounds of pounding footsteps on the floor above them. Whoever had led the monster away was upstairs, trying to lose it. They mentally thanked him as they entered the silent foyer.
A breeze came through making Pakistan shiver. She then turned to look to her left, and saw that the front door was open.
"Hey China, look!" She lifted her free hand and pointed to the front door as China glanced over.
"The door's open," she continued, grinning, "let's get the others and escape!" Pakistan began to pull both China and Russia to the door, "C'mon!"
"No, wait Pakistan." China came to an abrupt halt, holding Russia up as Pakistan stumbled. She looked at him curiously.
"We can't escape just yet aru," he stated. Pakistan raised an eyebrow.
"Why not?" China dropped Russia's arm, throwing his hands up into the air. Pakistan struggled to hold up Russia. The sleeves of China's World War 2 uniform were over his hands as he looked at her.
"Aiyah! Don't tell me you don't know!" Pakistan drew a blank, sweat dropping.
"…. I don't know…. What?"
China walked over to the door, looking over to her as he lectured.
"It is very simple Pakistan, aru," he said, putting his hand on the door frame, "if we were to leave now, then this story would be pointless and the readers would want to hit the author for her lame attempt at finishing it quickly." He then closed the door, locking it with a clack.
Pakistan felt her jaw hit the floor as China walked past her.
"There, now we can return to the others aru!" Pakistan found that she couldn't speak.
"D-Did he just do what I think he just did?" She jumped, squeaking in surprise as she stared at Russia. The large man was staring at the door in confusion, completely ignoring the shocked Pakistan.
"How long have you been conscious?!"
Japan breathed heavily, pushing open the door and locking it behind him. The other nations sighed in relief. China rushed up to him, hugging the Japanese man tightly, thanking him and muttering about how worried he was in Chinese.
Italy was with Russia, healing the head wound he had sustained. The Italian seemed to have fallen into silence, not saying anything if someone asked him what was wrong. It was almost as if he was running on auto-pilot. Germany was especially worried, though even he couldn't get an answer from the usually hyper Italian.
Pakistan was sitting on the floor beside Canada, Kumajiro in her lap. She was absently petting the polar bear, not quite processing what was going on around her. Much like Italy, she wouldn't tell anyone about what was wrong. She still couldn't figure out why China did what he did and still managed to make sense.
"It's good that you made it back," England said. Japan nodded. The others began crowding around, almost in a semi-circle.
"I wish it had been me instead," Italy muttered before he gave a bright smile, "But Japan is extra, extra fast too!"
"Anyways," Canada interrupted, "We found the next clock!"
Germany held up the ticking device. Russia looked over to Japan from his side of the circle.
"The key that you found leads to the basement, da?" Japan blinked before he realized that one of the others must have explained what he had found in the cell. He nodded. Russia then turned to look at everyone, serious expression covering his usually cheery demeanour.
"Before we go, we should settle this memory confusion." The others frowned, nodding. They all wanted to start, but Germany coughed.
"Each one of you has three minutes," he barked, "If you have something to say, raise your hand!"
No one did. They were all waiting for someone else to go. Slowly, but surely, England raised his hand. Germany nodded. The Brit sighed, crossing his arms and looking down to the floor.
"I don't think it's just me, but…. Didn't you all notice something, anything, when we broke the clocks?"
The silence was deafening. China then gave a slow nod of agreement.
"You noticed it too aru? Then it wasn't just my imagination…."
"So," Russia then said softly, "We all noticed that we get some kind of…. Fake memory whenever we break a clock?"
Once more, silence reined. No one said a word. Germany's brow furrowed in worry, however, he didn't break the silent atmosphere that hung in the air.
"When Japan broke the clock in the piano room," Pakistan then said, "I got memories of coming here with Canada and a few others. But…."
Russia nodded before continuing.
"Our memories are all tangled. Let's first remember how we all started…"
The first thing that came to everyone's mind was the World meeting.
"It all started at the World meeting," England began, tapping his chin, "We were all gathered in that one place, including the ones who are missing right now."
"Hai, there is no doubt that that is where it all started," Japan said, "It was there that America-kun told us about the rumours he had heard about this mansion and said that he wanted to come and see what it was like."
"The meeting had then ended," Canada picked up, "And since we had nothing better to do, I came here with America, China, Pakistan, Russia, France, and England…"
"We also invited Japan aru," China added, "But he didn't come with us. That's why I sent him a text right before I entered the mansion."
At this, the Allies nodded. They could remember China pulling out his cell phone and texting Japan.
"When he saw that message," Germany then said, "Italy began to say that he wanted to come too. So the three of us headed here, along with my brother."
Both of the other Axis members made their agreement heard before England began to speak again.
"But it's weird. I also have memories of coming here with America and Japan, and it was China who got separated from us, not France."
All the nations fell silent as they thought over his revelation.
"Maybe…," Italy began. Everyone turned to look at him as he continued, "Maybe we're getting confused because there are several mixed memories? Since we don't know which one is right, we draw the wrong conclusions."
Russia hummed, tapping his chin.
"That's also an idea…."
"So, when the false memories get mixed in with our real memories, they cover the truth and we get confused and don't know which is real or fake," Pakistan stated. Russia nodded.
"Da, and once you suspect something, everything else becomes suspicious."
Italy smiled, clapping his hands together.
"Well then," he said, "that means that whenever we break a clock, we'll get lots of false memories, but we shouldn't believe any of them!"
The others nodded. After what had happened in the cell, everyone slowly began to notice that Italy was acting a bit strange. But now, he was back to his usual behavior. They could feel doubt creeping into the backs of their minds, however there wasn't anything that they could do about it.
"It we invite confusion…. Right. Then I believe that we should try our best to discard the fake memories without believing them."
China sighed, folding his arms and shaking his head.
"What a bother aru," the Chinese man exclaimed. Pakistan patted his shoulder.
"Well then," Canada said, "I suppose that we should expect to get strange memories whenever we break a clock."
"If you can discard them without worrying," Germany stated, "then please do so." He lifted the clock once more.
"I'll break the clock," he gave each nation a stern glare, "If you get any strange memories, just forget about them right away. Don't forget who you came with or how you came to be here now."
After receiving a nod from everyone, Germany dropped the clock. Glass shattered on the floor as orange overtook their vision.
He panted, turning the corner quickly. Two by two down the stairs he went, the sound of the monster's growls and footsteps rushing down behind him.
No matter what, England never turned around. If you turn around, you'll slow down and the Thing would get that much closer to catching up with you. And if it caught up with you, you were dead. It was that simple. Much like how Japan was dead, and how Russia was dead, and how the Frog and America….
"No," he thought, blinking away wet tears that formed in his eyes. He needed to survive. He needed to run. To survive for them.
They were stupid. Why did they listen to America? Why couldn't he stop him from going?
He took a deep breath, running down the next flight of stairs. The monster wasn't letting up, it seemed to only get closer.
"How was it getting faster?" England flung open the door to the library, rushing inside and slamming the door behind him, locking it. He heaved a large sigh. The sound of footsteps in front of him made him look up.
It was Italy, the other nation looking tired. Sweat was falling down the side of his face. Behind him was Germany and Prussia. Canada was there too. In the back corner, China was clutching onto Pakistan, sobbing. She was too still. Germany followed his gaze, shaking his head.
England groaned, his head falling into his hands. The door behind him shook, making him snap up and slowly step away. The others all froze, the fear appearing on their faces.
The door burst off its hinges, England ducking as it flew overhead. When he stood back up, the only thing he saw was the monster's grey form. A hand grabbed him by his hair, making him gasp in pain. The others tried their best to knock him loose, but it didn't let go.
England could feel blood start to fall down his face and he closed his eyes to blink it away.
The monster had made its way over to China, grabbing him by the hair as well. The Chinese man winced as he was lifted. The monster stared at the both of them, grinning. The others voices seemed to fade as the Thing smashed their skulls together.
Blood flew everywhere, splattering all over the floor as the creature dropped their bodies down. The others ran, crying and never once looking back.
The monster chased after them.
England gasped as he opened his eyes and he shivered, Germany helping him calm down. When he was fine, he waited for the others to wake up, blood and gore the only thing that he could see.
She struggled to keep up with him, China's hand clutching hers so tightly that she thought that he would rip it off. No sounds came from behind them, and Pakistan couldn't help but feel her heart clench.
There had been two others in their group; Canada and France. They had been the group that the others sent to look for Russia and England, who were missing. They should have brought more.
Once they saw the creature, the four took off running. Canada had tripped, losing his glasses almost immediately. France fell behind to help him up. The two would have went back, but the French man told them to run.
So they ran. They ran and they ran until their lungs and legs burned. Everything seemed to hurt.
She thought that they were far enough away. The two had run up to the fourth floor, locking the door to the room behind them. They ignored the lever, it was broken and couldn't help them.
"If that Thing finds us, we're dead," Pakistan sobbed, grabbing onto her hair as she shook her head. China hugged her tightly, his own tears falling.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he kept muttering over and over. There was a knock on the door. Then, a loud banging began. The two had frozen, backing away.
They had found Russia and England. The two were already gone, England's head and limbs ripped from his body, blood everywhere. The upper half of Russia's own body was indistinguishable, so bloody and mangled was it that China had puked and France had fainted.
The Chinese man raised Russia's bloody pipe. Pakistan hid behind him, yet her knives were out and ready to throw once the Thing came in. The door burst open and the creature rushed inside.
They fought their hardest, yet it was in vain. Pakistan cried out when the monster threw China into the wall. The snap was so loud and it rung in her ears. With a grief induced rage, she rushed it.
This was where she fell, down, down, down…
Pakistan let out a sob, her eyes opening, yet blurring with tears. She continued to sob, Germany trying to console her. She crawled over to China's still form and felt his pulse, checking if he was alive. He was breathing, and she stayed there and waited for him to wake up.
He closed the door behind him, sighing. The others looked up wearily, hands coming to rest on their weapons. But when they realized it was him, Canada, they relaxed.
"Canada-san?" The nation looked over to Japan.
"Where is China-san," the Japanese man asked worriedly. Canada could feel himself look down.
"I….."
Silence filled the room as everyone's attention was on him.
He never wanted this. Canada never wanted their attention on him like this. He didn't want to be the bearer of bad news.
Everyone was waiting for his answer.
"China…. Is asleep," he said quietly.
"He fell into a deep, deep sleep."
No one knew what he meant.
"So…." They all turned to look at Pakistan. Tears were in her eyes.
"… China will never say…. 'Aru' anymore…?" She tilted her head.
"….He'll never…. Try to convince me to…. Buy things from him….. Anymore…?" Everyone was here. Canada could feel that they were beginning to get the idea as Pakistan's tears started to fall.
"… He'll never… Take me…. To one of his….. China towns anymore?"
She gasped, not even wiping the tears away.
"I'll never be able to tell him that I….. That I…" The nation let out a sob, falling to the floor, shaking and crying. England rushed over to try to calm his former colony down, yet to no avail.
Canada closed his eyes, wiping the tears away from under his glasses.
He hated being the bearer of bad news.
Canada opened his eyes, blinking and sitting up. Germany was kneeling over him and checked if he was fine before moving to the next person. Kumajiro prodded his side, pointing with his paw. Canada looked.
And seeing Pakistan sitting beside China's still form unemotionally was more heartbreaking than her breaking down in front of him.
He ducked its flailing arms, the claws slicing through the air above him before he ran through its legs and out of the room. China continued to run, his breathing heavy.
His back hurt, his feet hurt, his eyes were drooping… There was no end! He couldn't find anyone, he couldn't tell where they were.
China ran down the stairs, the monster right behind him. The Asian nation turned the corner. He fell to the floor, the other person wincing as they landed.
He looked up and met Pakistan's eyes. With panicked fright, he grabbed her hand, dragging her to her feet and pulling her along behind him. The monster snarled, hideously grinning as it chased after the two.
China flung open the door of a room, pulling the female nation in behind him and slamming the door shut, locking it.
They backed up, the fear cropping in as the monster pounded on the door relentlessly. They didn't have much time.
They pulled out their weapons. They had no choice. They had to fight.
The monster broke into the room, snarling. China rushed it, slamming his wok in its face. It roared, smacking him away. Pakistan responded by throwing a knife into its eye.
Howling, it gave her a murderous glare before charging. She dodged. China slowly stood and the two were once more side by side.
The monster gave out a snarl, picking up the chair behind it and flinging it at the two. They were forced to separate. The chair exploded into multiple pieces, wood flying in all directions. China and Pakistan were up on their feet again, moving out the way of the beast's charge. But what it did next was unexpected.
It picked up the wooden pieces of the chair, sharp and pointed, and flung them. Pakistan blocked the first couple from hitting China, blood coming from her back before she fell to the floor. He knelt down, eyes wide, growing even wider when the next pieces hit him in the chest.
China fell onto his back, breathing heavily. The monster left the room, door wide open.
"Chi…. Na…." He looked over, seeing Pakistan stretching her arm to reach him.
"Pa….Ki….Stan…." He lifted his own arm. Their fingers were just out of reach, yet they kept trying.
"China… I…"
"W-What….? What….. Is…. It aru?"
China saw her tears fall.
"What…. Do….. I….. Mean….. To you….?" China felt one of his own tears slip down his cheek.
" What….. Do…. You….. Mean…. To…. Me?"
"Chi….Na…?"
He could feel himself losing feeling. So, this was what it felt like to die.
"I….. Lo….-" He didn't get to finish his sentence when he saw the light fade from her eyes and her hand dropped to the floor. His tears fell even faster as he sucked in a breath of air.
"All…. I….." He gasped, reaching desperately for her limp hand.
"Wanted….. Was….. To….."
His hand fell and the light faded from his eyes.
All he wanted then was to see her smile.
China took a shaky breath as he opened his eyes. Looking up to see Pakistan's teary face, he gave a weak chuckle, smiling in relief. He wiped the tears from her cheeks. She let out a sob, flinging her arms around him. He held her close, murmuring to her quietly.
She was alive. And even if she never knew how he felt about her, he was just glad that she was breathing.
He opened the door, dropping his bag down beside it. Closing it behind him, Japan gave a sigh. Upon noticing the bump on the bed, he slowly made his way towards the quivering blankets. Just as he was about to uncover the blankets, something slipped out from underneath. Silver caught the light as a sword came down.
("This is when I first met up with Prussia-san," Japan thought as he watched the scene, "But…. I feel as though I am…. Forgetting something…..")
"Who's there?!" Japan gasped in surprise, pulling out his own sword hastily and blocking the attack.
"Doudou, Prussia-san! Calm down, it's only me!"
The German blinked, sighing in relief as he retracted his sword.
"Ah Japan? Sorry 'bout that." Japan nodded, placing his katana back into its sheath.
("Something is different," he thought, mentally tapping his chin, "I reunited with Prussia-san and we went to see Germany-san…..")
"Prussia-san? What's wrong?" Prussia didn't answer, simply staring at the door and tightening his grip. Finally, he spoke in such a low whisper, Japan had to strain to hear him.
"Hey…. Do you hear that?" The Japanese nation blinked and closed his eyes in hopes to heighten his other senses. The door banged open.
(" I-It came in?!" Japan mentally looked around before he found himself staring at the door, "Oh….. The lock….")
The monster ran over to the two, grinning.
"Watch out!" Prussia jumped in front of him, taking the blow himself. Japan gasped as Prussia used his sword, instantly stabbing the creature in the forehead. It gave out a furious cry before disappearing. Prussia fell, holding his wound. Japan fell down beside him, the ex-nation's blood soaking his pants.
"Prussia-san! H-Hold on," Japan tried desperately to stop the bleeding with his hands. Blood flowed out between his fingers.
"D-Don't worry," Prussia muttered, "I'm a nation….. I won't die….."
He then let out a laugh of realization.
"Ah…. But I'm not a nation….. Anymore… Am I? I told you….. That….."
"S-Stop it," Japan exclaimed, hugging the other tightly, "I'll call Germany-san! T-This isn't the time for jokes!"
"Are…. West…. And Ita….. alright…?" Japan fell silent, staring down at the usually cheery albino. The other was looking up at him, his eyes glazing over. Japan gave a soft nod, the guilt of lying appearing in his gut.
"Hai…. Both have already left the mansion…. We'll go home too… Germany-san and Italy-kun are waiting for us." Prussia grinned, coughing.
"Kesese! Yeah…. We'll go…. To your….. House…. And then…. To the hot springs….."
("Because I forgot to lock the door," Japan thought sadly watching as his other-self cried quietly to himself, clutching Prussia tightly, "Prussia-san had to….. But, I-I did lock the door. And… Prussia-san's alive…. This memory… It must be fake. He wouldn't die in a place like this.")
The scene changed quickly. Japan gasped as the sight of an empty, stone walled room appeared. The only ones within were himself and the rest of the Axis. None of the Allies were there.
("T-This room-? W-What is this?!")
"Damn it!" Germany threw a fist at the wall, silent tears falling. His shoulders were shaking as he threw another fist.
"Even when the four of us got together," he continued, "the situation still hasn't gotten any better! We're still locked up in here and that monster is still fucking after us!"
("W-What is this? I-Is this something from… the future?")
Prussia walked over to his brother. Tapping him on the shoulder, the albino gave his younger brother a hard punch. Germany fell to the floor.
"West, don't be so pessimistic," Prussia hissed, "Someone will eventually notice that some nations are gone, even though it's only a few, and they'll come to help…."
"W-We're being eaten one by one," Germany replied, glaring up at Prussia, "That's what I would do if I were the Thing!"
Prussia lifted a foot, pushing Germany down into the ground.
"That's enough West," he shouted, "There are no doubt many other ways to get out of here!"
It was quiet as Prussia took his foot off. Germany stood, rubbing his forehead.
"Sorry," he murmured, "I can't…. Think like that but…. I feel as though I'm on a battlefield. Though, if it was one…. I would be able to keep myself together and protect you…. I want to change this." Japan shook his head.
"You can't help it," he said, "You hate situations like this."
They fell into silence.
"Germany…." The three turned to Italy.
"It's okay," the Italian said, "You'll be okay. You'll be able to get out this time. And if you get out, then run straight ahead. Don't look back, no matter what, and get time-"
("Time," Japan thought, confused, "What is Italy talking about?")
The door behind Italy was slammed open. The Thing walked up until it was directly behind the small Italian, grinning.
Italy didn't seem to be scared. He simply gave them a small smile, tears falling.
"Promise me Germany."
"Japan? Ve~ Japan, are you okay?!" Japan opened his eyes to see the Italian holding him.
"Italy!" He wrapped his arms around the shocked nation, breathing heavily. Italy's expression grew even more concerned as he held his friend.
"What's the matter Japan?"
"Japan!" The nation looked over to Russia.
"Do you remember what we said about the clocks?"
Japan slowly calmed down, closing his eyes as he loosened his grip on Italy's shirt.
"M-My apologizes…. I'm fine. I remember." China came over to him, carefully taking Japan's hands in his own.
"You seem to get a lot more memories then the rest of us aru," he said quietly, "and… They seem to be more intense."
"Are you alright," England asked, thick brows furrowed in concern, "Do you need to rest a little?"
Japan shook his head. China squeezed his hands.
"To be honest," Germany began, "Nothing happened to me. To be truthful, I haven't gotten any sort of strange memory even once so far. Maybe I've just been…. Exempted?"
Canada gave a laugh that sounded forced. Everyone looked at him oddly.
"You're lucky," Canada said, "I-I remember running from the Thing… With….. um…. Italy! And….. I remember coming here with….. my brother….." It was obvious he was hiding something, judging from the way he would occasionally glance at China and Pakistan, though they didn't comment when China spoke up.
"M-Me too aru! B-But when I calmed down, I realized that it was nonsense and I forgot about it right away! Though it was really scary at the time aru…."
"It's like waking up from a dream," Pakistan agreed, "Though it seems more like a nightmare to me…"
"When we go through it again," England said, "we have difficulty separating dream from reality. However, as soon as we calm down…. Our good judgement would come back. T-The first thing that we need to do…. Is calm down."
As Japan looked from each person, he noticed how Canada, England, Pakistan, and China seemed to be acting strange. However, if the others noticed, they didn't show it and just continued the discussion. Japan cleared his throat.
"Did anyone see any rooms that we….. Haven't been in before?"
Everyone fell silent before they shook their heads.
"Nope," Russia said, "I have many memories, but they've all taken place in the rooms we've unlocked so far."
"Did something happen to make you worry?" Japan turned to Italy. He stared before giving a small smile and shaking his head.
"No, I was just…. Curious." When the Italian turned away, Japan frowned.
"When we break the clocks, we receive fake memories that will make us confused. There's no question about it. It's only because I'm confused…. Yes, that has to be it!"
England raised his arm, pulling back his sleeve and looking at his watch. Nodding, he then turned to look at the others.
"Is the time on everyone's watches right?" The other nations checked their own wrists before nodding.
"Then let's get to the basement!"
In twos, the nations left the room. First was England with Canada beside him. Next was Germany and Russia. Finally, China and Pakistan, the Asian nation holding onto her hand. The only ones left in the room were Japan and Italy. Before he could leave, Japan stopped his friend with a hand on his shoulder.
"Italy-kun….." Italy looked back at him curiously.
"What is it Japan?"
"Are you…. Hurt somewhere?" The Italian was silent as he pondered the words. He shook his head.
"…. No. I'm not hurt at all." Japan dropped his hand.
"I see. I'm sorry for asking such a strange question." Italy turned and left the room. Japan stared at the closed door in front of him with a troubled expression.
"It's like seeing many movies and being shown so many things that you end up not knowing what is real," Japan thought. His brow furrowed.
"But if by any chance that room does exist…. Then that means that Italy-kun will….."
Japan exited the room, lightly jogging to catch up with the others. China had let out a large sigh.
"I know that this isn't really important," he said, "But I just wish that I could rest somewhere without having to worry…"
Further ahead, Canada nodded in agreement.
"Yeah… I'm so tired. I just wish that I can lie down for a bit."
"We have to be careful," Japan concluded as he fell into step beside his Italian friend, "We thought that we were being deceived by those memories, but…. Maybe….."
"They could be…. A message from someone?"
Mām̐ kamīnē – Mother fucker (When Pakistan is pissed, she will swear. Though, I'm glad that I can cover it up by using Google Translate. I suppose it's a bit pointless since I tell you guys what the words mean anyway).
Hai – Yes
Okay, just to make things clear. Pakistan managed to lock the door to the kitchen. While China was hiding Russia, he then told her to lock the cellar door in hopes of it believing they were in there. She then locked the cellar door with her knife. The two both then climbed into the cabinet above the sink and closed the doors, just as the monster burst into the kitchen. Quick thinking on China's part managed to save them. Thank. God.
I'm sorry. I had to do it. XD The best part in all of HetaOni had to be the scene where China just closes the door and breaks the fourth wall, all in one go. XD I just changed some of the words to match the scenario.
God, such a long chapter! *Falls over dead*