«Here, America, you can have your cellphone back. » Germany said, very formal, even with Feliciano clinging to his shoulder.
«Thanks man! I bet there wasn't anything wrong with it, right? » Alfred brightly took the object.
«No, indeed, there was not a single incriminating fact that could be pinpointed by this. The last contact you have had with Afghanistan through a cellphone happened one month ago, when you tried to negotiate with him. » The German admitted, graciously.
«I told you so! » The Hero grinned, happy that the suspicions would drop significantly with that. He had told Iggy, everything would be back in place in no time.
«The same goes for you, Australia. » He continued, handing over another cellphone.
«Thanks mate. » The tan man replied a bit fast. He, too, was excited by that new. People couldn't carelessly put the blame on Alfred all of a sudden now.
«Well, that shall be all for me today, I've contacted every country one by one to give them back the belongings that they had lent the investigators. » He concluded.
«But, Doitsu, you still have another one. » Italy pointed at the bulge in his good friend's pocket.
«Hum… that's curious. » The blonde man took out the extra phone and examined it, not sure of how he had come to have one more phone than what he started with. «Well, it matters not. If I really forgot someone, that person can always come and find me. »
And with that, he left, dragging Italy with him. However, the third member of the Axis trio stayed behind, taking place in front of both America and Australia.
«Australia-san, America-san. » He started with a small, respectful bow that was met by a grin and a bear hug.
«Kiku! Why are you also so formal? We're friends, dude! Loosen up! » Alfred said with a smile, barely restraining from giving the other a noodgie.
«A-America-san! » The poor Japanese man flustered in the other's grip. «P-please let go of me. I-I have something important to talk about! »
«Okay, that's enough, Al. He can't breathe properly. » Jack pulled on his chained arm, making the American loosen his iron grip.
«Huh? » Alfred blinked. «Why are you saying that? »
«'Cause Japan is all red. Look at his face. » Jack explained with a grin, pointing at the man that now wanted to die in a hole. There was no way that anyone would believe it was the lack of air that did that.
«Oh, sorry man, I didn't notice. » Alfred let go, sounding a little sheepish. «You okay, Kiku? »
Well, anyone beside America, apparently.
Thanking his lucky star, Japan took a minute to calm down his frantic heartbeat and straighten out his clothes ruffled by Alfred's hug. When he was ready to avoid Jack's playful looks or his American friend's innocent smile, he looked up and talked with a very formal tone.
«America-san, I am alright. I was surprised, that is all. » He began, trying to read the other two's moods. «The reason I waited until Germany and Italy were gone to approach you is that I wanted to ask you a favor. »
«Sure thing, Kiku. What do you want? » Alfred instantly replied, taking Australia by surprise. That was not exactly the wisest thing to do. Usually, someone should wait to wait what the actual favor is before agreeing, just in case it was out of your capacity.
No logic should be wasted with Alfred. Then again, who needed logic when you were a Hero and a friend of yours needed you?
«Thank you, America-san. I knew I could count on you. » Japan thanked him with a small bow.
«Anytime. » Alfred assured, flashing his Heroic grin again.
«Okay, maybe it's just me, but I'd like to know exactly what mate over her just agreed to. Care to explain, Japan? » The Aussie frowned. Sure, he was all for helping other people, but he also liked not to be kept in the dark too much.
«Of course, Australia-san. It is quite simple actually. » The Japanese graciously replied. «I am worried about a member of my family. She has not been well ever since Afghanistan's death. »
«She? » Alfred asked.
«Yes, I am talking about my older sister, Vietnam. » Japan said, ignoring the suddenly distant expression that had painted itself on Australia's face. What he did find curious was that Alfred looked barely concerned with that. Surely, he should react more when one's knew of their history together…
«Oh, Lan? Yes, what's with her? » The American asked, very casually.
It disturbed Japan, to see America shrug that off so easily, it was very uncanny. Perhaps he was not the person he needed to ask.
Except it was too late to stop.
«S-She seems… very disturbed… and she says it's because of you… » He hesitated, pausing awkwardly to find the courage to say it all. «W-would you talk to her, Alfred? »
The use of the more intimate appellation did not go unnoticed, surprisingly.
«Oh, so we're down on the human name, huh? Well, now I definitely can't say no. » The Hero grinned, ignoring the shocked look he was getting from Japan and the concerned ones from Australia. «Still, I wonder why she would think about me now… weird. »
He missed the now emotionless mask the Japanese had protected himself with, partially because that was somewhat the same as Kiku's usual look.
Not letting transpire his mental turmoil, Japan took his leave, without another word.
«Huh? He's kind of running away, isn't he? » Alfred remarked, shooting a glance at Jack.
«Well, of course he's going to run away. You just belittled the troubles that his sister his going through, which is obviously important considering he asked YOU to take care of it.» The Aussie cringed. Really, sometimes Alfred really lack that quality called «Tact».
«Oh… » Alfred said, his eyes widening as he realized his mistake. «But… why would Lan be so distressed about me? I mean, I haven't talk to her in years. Doesn't she avoid me most of the time? »
«She would, after what happened. » Jack crossed his arms… or tried at least (damn handcuffs!).
Now, the hyperactive, always cheerful young man was looking quite guilty, enough to make the Aussie regret his harsh tone.
«Err… sorry Alfred, I know those were complicated times… » Jack apologized, sighing at the obvious pain he had brought to his sort-of brother.
«Nah, it's fine. » The American brightened up, a bit too fast to be genuine.
«Well, I'm going to ignore that and pretend to just go with it. » Jack said, his gaze fixated on the other man.
«Great! Now, let's review how productive we've been today! » Alfred cheered up, raising his left arm high in the sky. For a sole reaction, he got a small grin from Australia.
«Right. We've asked pretty much anyone what they have been doing so far. The most common answer is: «I was sleeping, of course. » However, we've received a few unusual ones like Hungary's or Sweden's answers. »
«Yeah… » Alfred's smile slipped off his face. «I wish he had restrained himself when talking about his night. » At the memory, they both shuddered.
«Too much information, indeed. » Jack approved. «There's also been a few that refused to answer, notably Russia and Belarus, saying they didn't want to be bothered by a killer like you –seriously, you have no self-control Alfred, you know that's what he wanted –, Switzerland, who forbid us from bothering Lichtenstein at the same time, Mexico, who slapped you and went away, Cuba, who tried to attack you, Afghanistan's brothers actually refused to TALK to you, and South Italy, who said it was none of our business. »
«Alright then, among those that have no alibis, who could want to frame the Hero? »
«Russia, definitely. He has been taming down on the hatred, but he's the most obvious suspect. » The Aussie started, frowning deeply. «Mexico and Cuba have pretty deep grudges against you too. Switzerland has a hair-trigger temper, but he doesn't have anything against you… I think. Same thing for South Italy. I don't think Afghanistan's bros would really do that to him, so they're out. »
Alfred placed a hand under his chin, trying to look more interested. He was in a serious superhero mood today.
«Hum… this is complicated. Shouldn't the villain of the story appears with a big explosion and then the hero can start to kick his ass? » America wondered, surprised at how the events were turning out.
Oh, and scratch that serious thing.
«Al, come on! Even you can't be that delusional all the time. » Jack whacked the back of his head. All it did was make Alfred grin stupidly.
«What? What is delusional with wanting a grand showdown with laser beams and cheerleaders? » He asked, as if that was the most sensitive and intelligent thing to say.
«I'm not against the cheerleaders part, but… considering it's you we're talking about… yes, that's delusional. » Jack gave him his best smug smile.
«What is that supposed to mean? » Alfred exclaimed, a bit more high pitched than it was supposed to come out, oops. The fact that the Aussie poked him on the stomach only made his indignation rise higher.
«You're pudgy, Al. » He slid on his shades on his face, showing how much cooler he was. After all, he dealt with the Lord of Darkness every day and never had any trouble with it.
«That's it! No one mocks the athletic body of the Hero and lives to tell the tale! » Alfred lunged on his bro, ignoring the enormous grins that they were both wearing.
The ensuing fight for the title of coolest guy and biggest scone eater then happened, the details of which are too dangerous for the human mind to be revealed casually.
«So much for those two getting along well. » Francis smirked to an exasperated England.
«Oh, frog, won't you just shut up at least five minutes? » The British gentleman sighed, so very tired of this kind of stupidity. The two lads had started a mocked fight in the corridor of the conference building! A place where the world's leaders met!
Where did their education went so wrong? Where?
«Children… they are still little children after hundreds of years… » The poor man shook his head left and right, in an attempt to reject the report he had been given by his lover.
«Oh, but mon cher, they are such vigorous young men, they have to let it out somehow. » He said, wiggling his eyebrows in a very unsubtle matter.
Of course, that earned him a punch he graciously dodged.
«Seriously, is there nothing ELSE on your mind? At all? » Arthur asked in mock disbelief. That had been lost a long time ago.
«Of course, there is l'amour too, Arthur. » he slid his way to the Englishman's side. The poor man sighed. The day he had accepted to go out with him had been quite a mistake. Then again, he could not deny how much happier he had secretly been.
«Better letting it out on a friend than on an enemy, don't you think? Especially these days. » The Frenchman once more let Arthur get a glimpse of his intelligence.
Francis was not to be underestimated. He had won quite a few wars and showed how much cunning he could be, if he so much had the motivation for it. He was perverted, but people often forgot there was more to him than that.
«You are right. » That left him with the impression his throat was going to start bleeding. Quick! Insulting him should make it much better. «Though a frog like you could use this advice as well. »
The Frenchman purred into his ears and made his lover flinch slightly. Was he a cat?
«Jealousy is an ugly thing, l'Angleterre. » France let go of him, seeing as other nations were arriving at the conference room.
«Adultery is just as bad in my book, frog. » England sneered before going to his seat, which, thankfully, was far from the annoying Frenchman's own chair. Francis only let out a simple smile, though his cunning did not leave his eyes just yet.
The meeting had started uneventfully. No new information had been discovered concerning Afghanistan's murderer and the nations were quite uneasy. Germany, however, refused to let this matter disturb the reunions, as they were important enough to overlook such a thing, for a few hours at least.
He had been the one to start the discussion, going on things that now appeared trivial to the most nervous nations. If one person in that room was a killer, then they'd rather stay on their guards, in case they were next.
And America found himself surrounded by a great void. Jack was still by his side, of course, but other than him… there weren't anyone. The closest person was Greece, four seats to his left, who was idly sleeping through the whole thing. If he was not so often glanced at by the rest of the nations, he would have done the same. This meeting was reaching records in terms of uselessness. What was the point of all these exchanges in their boss were not working on it as well? The week off requested by the Afghan government was not over yet.
One nation however had caught Alfred's attention: Vietnam. Quiet, like always, she was fixated on the German speaking, as if resolved not to let her surroundings affect her, the Hero included.
On the exterior, she looked strong, but some details did not escape the normally obnoxious American. For example, her cheeks seemed to be glistening slightly, traces of the tears that had fallen down on them. To see such a thing oddly made Alfred's stomach tighten.
It was odd. He had been the one to end their relationship, yet… he felt remains of love in him toward her. She had truly been a good person and a loving girlfriend.
He hid his face under the pretense of massaging his forehead, which fooled only the ones that didn't know him. Jack pretended not to feel the chain shake on his arm, nor to pay any attention to the trembling chin on his friend's face.
It had been a shock. To find out there were communists in her… It was as if she had betrayed him, as if every smile and every tender word had been a lie. He was at war with them… and she was a part of it.
At that time, he did the only thing he could: he rejected her. He had heard sweet words before, from his father figure mostly, and he knew those could cut through his heart if he so much listened.
So he left, feeling an anger that burned through his veins and left nothing but a desire to destroy.
Why did Kiku have to ask him to talk to her? He was not suited for that task!
Things in the conference room dragged on for a while, before Germany, seeing how distracted his audience was (which was not new, but it had reached extreme levels), he decided to call a ten minutes break in order for everyone to clear their minds.
Judging by the look he received from Japan, it was time. Already, she was moving toward the door, not wanting to interact with anyone. If he was to help his friend, it was now or never.
«Let's go, Jack. » He stood up, imitated by the Aussie.
Ignoring the few looks he got from some of the nations that had not yet decided if they should leave or not, they went toward the Asian nation.
«Lan! » Alfred called loudly, instantly getting the attention of the other nations, but most importantly, getting Vietnam to freeze in shock.
«W-what did you call me? » she asked, her body stiff as if carved in ice. That was the first warning.
«Lan, why? » He instantly replied, completely missing the point of her question.
«Don't call me that. » She whispered, her body trembling slightly.
«Huh? » The American exclaimed, before Jack could stop him from poisoning the situation.
Every eye was on the three of them now. Everyone could see the visible efforts Vietnam was making in an attempt to keep some self-control. It was not hard to see how close she was to failing either.
«I asked you not to call me Lan. For you, it's Vietnam. » She hissed between her teeth.
Really, Jack should have known better than letting Alfred talk more than that…
«Gee, what's gotten into you? » He frowned, displeased by the rude behavior. He was only there to help…
Those words were the only ones, the only ones, she could not ignore.
She turned around to face him, to truly face him, her face distorted by rage.
«What's gotten into ME? I'll tell you what's gotten into me: you! YOU AND YOUR STUPID FAKE HEROISM! »
A deafening silence fell on the room.
«My WHAT? »
«Mate… » Jack pleaded, praying it was not too late.
«Your fake heroism. » She looked about to jump on him and beat him senseless, which should not be too far from the truth. «While you spew that nonsense every time you open your mouth, you fail to notice that NOBODY thinks you're a hero! »
«That's not true! » He yelled, just as angry as she was.
«Look around you. » She opened her arms wide, gesturing him to turn around, just to see the fear and the tension that had taken a hold in the room. It was directed at him, it was all directed toward the Hero.
But that's not how you look at the Hero who saves the day, right?
«Y-you don't think like her… d-do you? » Alfred asked, his voice suddenly wavering.
And he could see it on their faces, ranging from the pure hatred to the stern lack of care to the shivering fear.
A warm hand found its way on his shoulder, giving him a much needed support in the person of Australia. For a second, he wanted to hug him to death… but Vietnam was far from done.
«See? I am right, you are nothing like a hero. You never did any good to anyone! Not even to me! » She continued, her voice reaching higher as her wrath grew, finally being unleashed on the one that deserved it so much!
«I try my hardest to help you! » He protested, though even to him that sounded weak.
«You tried? You tried? » She screeched, making many flinched. «You didn't try to help me, America! You killed my citizens! You declared war on me! You tried to crush anything that was communist in me! When my people were offered the choice, you rigged the votes! » She could not help it, her tears kept falling, no matter how hard she was holding them back.
He was completely silent. He knew it was false, that he was the Hero, but why did the words refuse to come out?
«I hate you, America. We were lovers, yet you went at war with me. You said you wanted to help me and you massacred my people. The second you heard a part of me was communist, you cut all ties with me. There is nothing heroic about you. » Her eyes had changed, they were empty. Empty orbs of numb pain.
«I WAS AT WAR! FOR YEARS! » Alfred finally found his voice and it was a dreadful accusation. «YOU KNEW I WAS FIGHTING COMMUNISTS FOR HALF A DECADE YET YOU NEVER TOLD ME! »
The Asian woman stopped, taken aback by his ferocity.
«Every time I came back, you could have told me! Instead, you just told me to let go of my worries, to enjoy our time together. I was telling you everything, yet you never dare to share a single thing about you! Every time I tried to know you better, you would just fall silent and refuse to speak! WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO THINK WHEN I FOUND OUT YOUR PEOPLE WERE THE VERY THING I WAS FIGHTING AGAINST! »
«Talk to me! Listen to me! YOU LEFT IN THE SPACE OF A MINUTE AND WE NEVER SPOKE AGAIN AFTERWARD! »
Silence returned, thicker and heavier than ever. An uneventful day this was going to be, some had foolishly thought, they had been so very wrong.
The verbal match between the two nations seemed to have taken a great deal of emotion and energy from them, as they were both breathing more heavily than usual and they seemed reluctant to continue.
«I… I used to love you, but now… when I look at you, it's only disgust. »
With that, she turned away and left the conference room, leaving America to his own pain. No one followed her.
That night, Alfred dreamt of war and death.
People running away from him, screaming in fear.
People begging for their lives.
People giving their last breath to let their loved ones live… just a little longer.
NOBODY thinks you're a hero! … Look around you…
And they are there, everyone, accusing him. Their faces are covered with blood and they keep asking why, they keep asking him for his reasons.
«Why did you kill us? »
«What have we done to you?»
He wants to explain, to tell them the truth. Why can't he find anything to say? He tries and he tries and he tries… but no sounds come out of his throat.
He hears the sound of his own weapon going off.
And they run away in fear.
«Don't worry. » A little boy says to a baby he's carrying. He looks barely six years old, but his tired expression shows how little hope he has left. Yet he smiles…
Yet he smiles… «I know a hero will save us! »
«NO! » Alfred jolted awake on his bed, scaring the life out of Jack.
«What? » The poor Aussie glanced around rapidly, trying to find a threat in the hotel room.
It was peacefully empty, with the exception of his koala, sleeping on the couch. Australia frowned, that couldn't be the reason Alfred had screamed, right?
«What is it, mate? » He asked to the panting American, rubbing his eyes and trying not to fall asleep on him.
«A… a nightmare… » Alfred muttered, eyes wide. «It was just… a nightmare… »
«A hero will save us…»
«Alfred? W-what did you dream of? You're crying! » Jack straightened, perfectly awake.
Before he could answer, someone knocked three times on the door.
Both of them glanced at the door before looking at the clock. It was barely five in the morning. Who could have any business with them this early?
Ignoring their doubts, they dressed up, at least to be decent, and went to answer.
Germany was waiting, wearing only his black t-shirt and his boxers, sign that he had also been woken up just recently. This time, he was not accompanied by Feliciano or Japan, but by Russia.
This did not bode well, not a little bit, in Jack's mind.
«What is it? Why are you here so early? » He asked, speaking for the American.
One thing that was the same as usual was Russia's creepy childish smile. It was as if he was not affected at all by this turn of event. Though, if you looked closely, there was something different about it, this time...
Then again, Germany's scowl was the same as usual, if only a bit tighter.
«Vietnam is dead. Her throat has been cut open during the night. »