Alfred and Arthur ran quickly through the forest brush and into town. Just like when this happened to Francis, there were several people circling Antonio, who now lay on the ground.
"Who could have done it?" a woman asked.
"If it's not the demon child…" a man muttered.
"Move, out of the way," Ludwig's voice came in just as Alfred and Arthur came to the outskirts of the circle.
A woman turned around slightly and, when she spotted Alfred holding onto Mathew, she nearly screamed.
"Oh, my God," she said loudly so that everyone could hear her. "There's another one!"
"What?" Ludwig asked. The crowd broke apart and he walked through it, going up to Alfred and Arthur. Upon seeing them, he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why is it all of the recent ones are from you're group?"
Alfred opened his mouth to say something, but Arthur answered quicker. Alfred nearly glared at him before he remembered that he couldn't speak.
"We are not sure," Arthur said quickly. "We do not know much of it ourselves."
Alfred really wanted to interject something about Abigail, but his damn voice wouldn't let him.
"Well," Ludwig sighed, he looked over Mathew and looked up at Alfred. "I take it he was your bruder?"
Alfred nodded his head, hoping that would hide his lack of voice.
"Well, you look similar…" Ludwig muttered. "You can bring him to the house. I will bring the other."
Alfred nodded again, giving out a silent sigh when he looked down at Mathew.
Alfred followed Ludwig, after he picked up Antonio, through town and to that house that Gilbert and Francis were in. Alfred silently set Mathew down on a bed and then turned to leave.
"You're being rather quiet," Ludwig said before Alfred could reach the first step to go downstairs.
Alfred scratched the back of his head and shrugged, not turning around. Before Ludwig could say anymore, he ran down the stairs and back outside, nearly running into Arthur.
"Jesus, slow down before you hurt someone," Arthur said. He took one look at Alfred and his face turned to concerned. "Are you alright, Alfred?"
Alfred couldn't guess how bad he looked by now. He felt like it was all happening again and he wouldn't be able to take it for long. Alfred just looked at the ground, rather than giving a reply. He would give anything to pour his heart out to Arthur right there, but he couldn't do that if he couldn't talk. Alfred could feel himself shaking.
"Alfred?" Arthur's voice was concerned, but Alfred barely noticed it. He was feeling lightheaded and his eyelids wouldn't stay up. His body became too weak for it to keep himself up, and then he crumbled to the ground. His eyes not even stay open long enough to see himself fall.
"Last one."
"Last one."
"Last one."
Those two words repeated over and over again in Alfred's dream. That voice wasn't his, but at the same time it was. Alfred refused to open his eyes, and he felt his hands go to the sides of his head, as if that would get everything to stop.
"Scared."
"Scared."
"Scared."
No, the hero is never scared! Alfred tried to reassure himself.
"Some hero."
"Letting everyone fall."
"You should have saved them."
I couldn't.
"Try harder."
I am!
"Falling apart."
"Everyone's gone."
"No one is left to help."
Arthur's still here. I'm not alone.
"Are you sure?"
"He won't stay for you."
"Who would?"
Shut up!
"Make me."
"I bet you can't."
"Some hero."
"Can't even save your own brother."
I did save him. Once.
"Did you?"
"Or did Arthur?"
"You just watched."
"Then what?"
"You moped in the castle."
"You didn't even care to find him."
Shut up!
"You didn't even try."
"Some hero."
I did try!
"Pathetic."
"Pathetic."
"Pathetic."
The voices all stopped all at once when Alfred felt something collide with his lips. He couldn't even hear his own thoughts, even though he knew they were still happening. Alfred finally opened his eyes, to find Abigail the one kissing him. She was soft, though, kind. Like she almost pitied Alfred. They separated, Abigail opening her eyes with a light smile on her face. All of a sudden, they shrank, to the size of kids. They were standing on the grass in front of that lake they had back in their town.
"You're thoughts are so nasty," Abigail's voice sounded like it did when she was a kid. "I don't think you need to hear them anymore."
"A-Abby…" Alfred's voice sounded like it did when he was a kid, too.
"Is it sad to know you're all alone?" Abigail wrapped Alfred into a hug. Alfred didn't move. Not because he couldn't, but because he didn't know what to do. "I would never leave you."
Alfred felt tears well in his eyes and he couldn't hold them back as they flooded out.
"He left you alone. Several times. I wouldn't trust him to stay much longer."
There was a long silence.
"I will stay."
Another silence.
"No one else has stayed. They've all left. They left you alone."
"They're leaving because you make them," Alfred said.
"I do it with good reason," Abigail still hadn't separated the hug. "Mathew left and lied to you. The Three Musketeers are just thieves that don't deserve you. And Arthur took the world away from you before. And he didn't give it back until you were broken."
"You left, too," Alfred said quicklyc before he could fall for her logic.
"Only because I had to," Abigail said sweetly.
"Arthur didn't take my world away from me, Ivan did," Alfred said. He was talking to himself more than Abigail. He still couldn't hear his own thoughts. "Arthur brought my world back."
"He brought it back a little too late, though, didn't he?" Abigail asked.
"No," Alfred said quickly. "He brought it back just in time."
"Then why are you still broken?"
"Because you're taking my world away from me." Alfred was finally getting his ground again.
"You don't want me as your enemy, Alfred."
"I thought you already were." Alfred grinned.
Abigail separated them. They were still kids, though. So her angry face was far less demeaning than she obviously meant for it to be.
"I was going to give you mercy," she snapped. "I was going to give you back your magic. But you don't deserve it anymore."
"Good," Alfred grinned. He knew that, if he still looked like a kid, it would have that cocky attitude he was looking for right there. "Because I don't want any mercy from you."
"This is your last chance," she warned.
"Good, because I'm tired of saying no."
"Goodbye, Alfred."
The world seemed to fly away like a flock of crows, and then Alfred was left alone, in the dark.
Alfred sat up straight from where he was, gasping slightly. He looked around for a quick second to see where he was, and found that he was in the room where Mathew, Gilbert, Francis, and Antonio were. He got up quickly and practically ran for the stairs.
Don't look at them, don't look at them, don't look at them. He knew that if he were to look at them, his newfound resolve would probably shatter.
As soon as Alfred stepped out of the house, he heard a scream. That only meant one thing at this point… Alone. The voice from his dream reminded him, but Alfred ignored it and started running towards where he heard the scream. He came upon a rather large looking, wood building.
He gripped onto the handle. Alone.
Alfred opened the door and found a rather large room with a lot of benches on the half of the room he was in. The benches separated perfectly to make an isle right down the middle. There was a wood fence, separating the room into halves. On the far half, there were two desks. Sitting in the benches close to Alfred, was maybe half of the town, maybe more. In the far half, standing in front of the desks, as Ludwig, and some people Alfred had never seen before. In the front of the benches, closest to the desks, was Abigail, Feli, and Lovi.
On the floor, slightly off to the side of the desk, was Arthur. His eyes were closed. Almost everyone in the room was in a panic.
Alone.
"Well, it's not him," Ludwig pinched the bridge of his nose. "Calm down, everyone! Calm down! It's not the end of the world that someone fainted." Ludwig looked down the aisle and made eye contact with Alfred. "Alfred, you're awake?"
"Um…uh…yeah," Alfred said, at first not trusting his voice to work. But he was happy noise came out of his throat.
"I bet it's him!" Abigail stood up, turned around, and pointed a finger at Alfred.
"What?" Alfred took a step back in surprise.
"Yeah, he was mad at Arthur yesterday!" Feli yelled out.
"He wouldn't even talk to him!" Lovi yelled out. "He probably did this because he was mad!"
"You have got to be kidding me," Alfred muttered as the crowd started getting excited. "I am not being accused of being a witch."
I'm sorry I haven't updated this story in a while! This is what I get for trying to do two stories at once... I get more interested in the other one and forget about the other one. But that other story is finished and this one is close to being finished. Two chapters left after this one!
I'm sorry my first chapter back is a short one... I really am... But I did my best and the next one will probably be a bit short too, but not short on action, I guarantee. I've been planning this next chapter since I started this thing and I'm excited to put it up! Hopefully, if all is well, I will update tomorrow. It probably will all be well, my finals tomorrow are just P.E.
Anyway, review! So that I will feel good about myself. And, on my profile, I have a poll up right now. Since I have so many stories going around in my head right now, I can't decide what to do next! So please vote on that and tell me what you think I should start next.
America is more likely to give up hamburgers than I am to own Hetalia.