This is it! The last chapter! I would like to thank every follower, favouriter and reviewer who has supported this story and I hope you stick around for the next one.
Additional Character
Prince Marcello - Seborga
So without further ado,
Enjoy!
I do not own Disney or Hetalia!
Chapter 11 : Change and Reunions
Ivan would never know why he did it.
As he felt the knife stab him in the side, he reared back in pain and Matthew reached out and grabbed the cloak he was wearing to prevent him from falling but Luciano lost his grip and dropped his knife as he began to fall and waved his arms, trying to find something to grab onto to prevent his plummet from the roof of the castle.
Ivan's arm shot out and he grabbed Luciano's wrist, preventing his fall.
Matthew pulled hard, trying to pull Ivan onto the balcony but he was hampered by the extra weight and Ivan was slipping from his grasp.
"Dad!" he called out in desperation. "Help me!"
Arthur took out his wand and waved it. Ivan and Luciano were surrounded by a blue glow and they both rose into the air and came back down on the balcony.
Matthew knelt down beside Ivan and began to examine his wound. The two captains immediately grabbed Luciano.
"Is this Luciano Maestri?" Captain LeFou demanded.
"Oui!" Francis confirmed.
"Luciano Maestri," Captain Renato stated. "You are under-arrest for the kidnapping of Prince Lovino of Italy. You will be taken back to Italy to stand trial before the King." Luciano was turned over to the other two soldiers.
Arthur knelt beside Ivan to see his injury and knew it was bad. A touch on Ivan's shoulder told Arthur that Ivan's magic was sealed so he could not heal himself. He began to pull items from his pockets to make a potion to heal Ivan but he doubted his ability to make it in time.
"What about the salve in your pocket, Dad?" Matthew asked. "The one you used on Papa!" Arthur shook his head.
"That's for sickness," he replied as he worked "It doesn't work on wounds."
"Matvey! You returned!"
Matthew turned his attention back to Ivan who's beastly visage was creased in pain. The servants had finally made their way up to the West Wing to the sight of the mob leader in the grip of soldiers and their King dying as a Fae worked to try and save him.
"Of course I did," Matthew replied. "Hold on, Ivan! Dad'll save you. Just hold on!"
But Ivan knew how long it would take to make the potion to save his life and he knew he did not have that much time. Luciano's knife had struck something inside, something vital and Ivan could already feel his life slipping away.
"It's too late," Ivan said, matter-of-factly. Matthew looked at his father and, while Arthur tried to look hopeful, the truth was there in his eyes. Matthew put his head on Ivan chest.
"This is my fault" Matthew blamed himself. "If only I hadn't shown them that mirror. You can't die! I won't let you!" Ivan smiled at his Matvey preparing to stand against the inevitable but he knew fate would not be denied. And Matthew would have more of a normal life without being tied to a beast.
"It's better this way," he said. "Your life will be better without a beast in it."
"Stop talking that way!" Matthew ordered. "You're King Ivan and you're going to be fine. I'm here now and I'm not leaving you again." But Ivan's vision was dimming and he knew his time was coming to an end. He gathered his strength to raise his paw and caress Matthew's cheek.
Captains LeFou and Renato could only look on in surprise. Was that beast really the missing Russian king?
"I got to see you again, at least," he replied. "Something to take with me." Matthew held the paw against his cheek but then he felt it go limp as Ivan fell into darkness and slipped away.
The paw fell from between Matthew's cheek and hand as Ivan's eyes rolled back in his head and he he went deathly still. Arthur looked up from his work when Matthew gasped and he knew that Ivan had gone.
Matthew grabbed Ivan's shoulders and began to shake him and demanding that he wake up. Arthur wrapped his arms around Matthew to hold him still and comfort him.
"He's gone, Matthew!" he said, gently.
Matthew went still. Ivan was gone! How could he go? Just when Matthew had realised that he ….
He pulled out of his Dad's arms and put his head back down on Ivan's chest.
"Don't leave me!" he begged, tears crawling down his face. "I love you, Ivan. Don't leave me!"
Toris, Yao and Eduard watched as the last petal of the sunflower broke loose from the flower head and drifted to the table.
That was that! Matthew had finally admitted his love but the last petal had fallen and King Ivan was dead. It was over.
But it was not!
A spark of life was still lit in Ivan's brain. Matthew confessed his feelings just before the last petal fell and it was enough.
Crying on Ivan's chest, Matthew did not notice at first but the others did. Spots of light fell like rain and where they struck, changes began. The dreary stone of the castle turned to splotches of white that grew into patches. Arthur held up his hand to catch the light and felt the white magic of a breaking curse soak into his skin. As the glittering rain fell onto Ivan's body, it began to glow. And then it began to rise up into the air, the cloak wrapping around it like a cocoon. The two captains stepped back nervously, the servants eyes went wide with wonder and Arthur, who was the only one who knew what was happening, pulled Matthew away with Francis's help.
"What's happening, Dad?" Matthew asked.
"A curse is breaking," he replied. "Whatever magic was cast on King Ivan, it's unravelling."
Ivan's body continued to glow. His claws retracted into his hands and feet, becoming normal finger and toenails. The hair on his legs receded into the skin and his paws became ordinary human feet and ankles. His hands also lost their hair and shrank down to big but human hands. The rest of Ivan's body also lost mass and his face began to reform as the hair disappeared and pale skin showed. The snout shrank and became a normal nose and the horns pulled back into his head. The only hair that remained was silvery blonde on the top of Ivan's head. The was a flash of light and Ivan drifted back to the floor, the transformation complete.
Ivan could feel cold stone beneath him as he woke to find himself lying on the balcony. Wait! Why was he alive? He had been dying, he knew he had been so why was he still breathing?
He moved to stand up but it was a struggle because his body felt all wrong and when he stood up, he seemed to have lost some height. And then he saw one of his paws. Or hands.
He stared at it for a full minute, finding it hard to believe it was attached to him. An ordinary human hand with skin and fingernails. He brought the other one up to look at, as if to confirm what he was seeing was not a dream. He brought them up to his face and felt, not a snout but a human nose but no fur or horns.
He dared to hope what he thought had happened, had happened. Then he turned and saw Matthew who was staring at him like he did not know who he was seeing.
"Matvey!" he said. "It's me, Ivan!"
Matthew stared at the man in front of him. Though not as tall as the beast, he was tall, almost six feet high with silver-blonde hair and a large nose which look strangely in keeping with the rest of his face which was rather handsome but it was the eyes that finally convinced Matthew that he was indeed looking at Ivan.
"It IS you!" he exclaimed and ran into Ivan's arms. Ivan smiled his first human smile in thirty years, a soft childlike smile as he hugged his Matvey close to him and then he did something he had wanted to do for a long time.
He leant down and placed his lips firmly over Matthew's.
Matthew was surprised at first but gave himself up to the thrill of Ivan's kiss. It seemed to him that the sky was lighting up with magic. Not realising that the sky was.
Ivan's magic, having been confined for so long, burst out and up into the sky and fell on the castle as snowflakes that worked with the breaking of the remainder of the curse. The castle returned to its white and shining glory. The gargoyles became angels, the inside of the house became bright and magnificent and the biggest transformation was to the occupants.
The servants began to glow and grow, taking on human silhouettes and there was a flash of light and three people stood there instead. In place of the chinese lantern stood a chinese man who could be mistaken for a girl at first glance because of his long hair that hung in a ponytail over his left shoulder. He wore a chinese tunic with sleeves that fell over his hands and tassels fell down from the frogging.
The clock had become a blue-eyed man with brown, almost shoulder length hair, wearing green. He was looking down at himself in wonder as if he could not believe what he was seeing.
A tall blonde man, dressed in blue and wearing glasses, stood where the teapot had been. He had blue eyes and a surprised expression which mellowed as he adjusted faster to the change than the others.
Ivan ran over and hugged his new restored servants, which was a disturbing moment for them because Ivan had not been know for demonstrating his affection in such a way.
"Brother!" Raivis's voice called out and the little teacup rode in on General Winter and leapt of the footstool just as they glowed and grew. A flash of light left behind a Russian Blue cat and a ten year old boy with short, blonde hair and blue-violet eyes. Eduard picked the boy up and spun him round while General Winter rubbed himself against Ivan leg, purring.
"I told you Matthew would break the curse, didn't I, Eduard!" He exclaimed after Eduard put him down. Eduard smiled and ruffled his hair.
"Toris!"
Toris was almost knocked over as a speeding blonde man with green eyes barrelled into him and tried to hug him to death. The man was wearing an outfit that bordered on cross-dressing. He stepped back and held his arms wide.
"Don't I look, like, totes, fabulous!"
"You always did, Feliks" a girl's voice replied. "You look so kawaii."
An asian girl, dressed in pink with pink flowers in her hair appeared from behind Feliks and ran to Yao who took the girl in his arms and hugged her to him.
"Mei!" he simply said.
Captains LeFou and Renato did not what to make of the magical happenings they were witnessing but they noticed that the Fae did not seemed to be worried by the events.
"Your Excellency," Renato ventured. "Could you please explain what is going on?"
"The breaking of a curse," Arthur replied. "The man you see before you is King Ivan, cursed by his sister over thirty years ago. We've not only found Prince Lovino's kidnapper but also, it seems, King of the Russias."
"Thank goodness, that's over," came a voice from inside.
On the table, over the dead sunflower, knelt a young man with silver-white hair and purple eyes, dressed in a brown suit with a white shirt with a ribbon bow tied round the collar. He climbed down off the table and stretched for the first time in thirty years.
"Emil!" Arthur exclaimed. This was a day for discoveries. First the King of the Russias, now Lukas's younger brother who had not been seen for thirty years.
"Arthur Kirkland!" Emil replied. "Is that you?"
"Wait until Lukas hears you've been found," Arthur replied. Emil pulled a face.
"And tells me to call him Big Brother again."
"And you'll tell him no!"
"Our little ritual!" Arthur laughed. Lukas was going to be delighted (on the inside). Coupled with the knowledge that he now had a solid lead on his whereabouts, it renewed Arthur's hope for finding Alfred.
One last loose end to tie up and Arthur could get back to his quest.
The mob was escorted back to the village, surrounded by soldiers. Luciano in shackles and one by one, his gang was identified, pointed out by those who had been victims of their exploitation and intimidation since their arrival in the village and they were put in chains as well. Flavio was also restrained despite Luciano insisting that he had nothing to do with the kidnapping. The soldiers could not be sure so they erred on the side of caution. They were left in the castle dungeons to await their return when Ivan, having regained his magical abilities, would transport the whole castle to Italy with Arthur's help.
Ivan, Yao and Toris had accompanied the group while the other servants set the castle to rights and on the way, Ivan explained about the curse and why he had been unable to tell Matthew who he really was.
"Your heart really stopped beating until you saw me?" he asked. Ivan nodded.
"It was the most wonderful moment of my life when I looked into your eyes and felt my heart beat again." he replied. "I was cold until that moment."
"That's actually kind of romantic!"
It became apparent to Arthur that the potion Matthew had spilt on himself that day had spread far and wide when the mob began singing some ludicrous song about their woes and how some of them knew the Beast was an enchanted king all along. The soldiers were looking at them like they had lost their minds and Arthur could not stand to listen to it. He waved his wand and the mob stopped in mid lyric and acted like they had not been singing at the top of their voices. LeFou and Renato stared at Arthur.
"I'll explain later," he said, enigmatically.
Ivan, Yao and Toris had also been singing, contradicting the mob's version of events. Matthew could not stop giggling at them.
"Why are you laughing, Matvey?" Ivan asked. Matthew whispered the story into his ear and Ivan went bright red while imagining the others singing as they worked back at the castle, maybe some song such as Human Again!
When they arrived back in the village, news flew around those who had not joined the mob about the arrest of Luciano and his lackeys and the goings-on, leading to the Beast actually being King Ivan. The appearance of Francis's Fae husband had caused a more than a few slices of humble pie to handed out. The Badboy Bimbo Trio wailed on each other's shoulder about how they always fell for the wrong man.
"How tragic!" Jeane said, dramatically.
"How muy triste! (How very sad!)" Carmen agreed.
"How unawesome!" Julchen declared. Then they spotted Captains LeFou and Renato and suddenly it was Luciano who!
A massive apology was given to King Ivan for the assault on the castle. Yao and Toris wondered what Ivan would do but with one look from Matthew Ivan accepted the apology but warned them about judging by appearance and that next time they might not be so lucky.
On the way to the cottage, Matthew was saddened to see the bookshop was closed and a note on the door said it would not reopen, that Hercules had left the village for good. Matthew would miss him.
Arthur, Francis and Matthew were going to pack up the cottage as they were going to Italy as well. Arthur had told Francis and Matthew what he had discovered in the New World which was already being called America by some people. Arthur was not sure the name would ever catch on.
"What are you thinking about, Matvey?" Ivan asked, wrapping his arms around Matthew from behind. Matthew had been packing away his books and had been stood doing nothing but staring into space for the past five minutes.
"I was just wondering," he replied. "Could Alfred really be in Italy? And from what Dad says, Alfred is now four years younger than I am. He was actually older me than me by twenty minutes. It's been twelve years. I wonder if we'll ever find him."
"I have been told many people are looking for your twin," Ivan said. "And now you have me. When I have re-established myself in Russia, I will seek him too."
"It seems the whole world's looking for him now," Matthew commented.
"Then soon he will be found!" Matthew smiled and took another book off the book shelf. He laughed when he saw it was the book that Hercules had given him.
"What's so funny?" Ivan asked. Matthew showed him the book.
"The bookshop owner gave me this," he replied. "It could almost be your life story. When I was looking for a book to read to you, your librarian directed me to the same story."
"Librarian?" Ivan was puzzled. "Matvey, the castle has no librarian." Matthew turned to stare at him.
"But I spoke to him," he insisted. "He was the bookshelf steps."
"Matvey, our librarian was visiting home when Natayla struck," Ivan explained. "He wasn't in the castle."
"But then who ….?" But it could not be a coincidence that they were both called Hercules.
Matthew just smiled.
Having packed everything up onto the cart, they made their way back to the castle. Arthur could have transported them all but he wanted to conserve his magic. Transporting a entire castle was a large task.
They parted company with Captain LeFou and his men as they left for Paris. When everything was ready, Arthur and Ivan prepared to move the castle.
Ivan produced his diamond-topped hooked staff which he had put away during the time his magic was beyond his reach and Arthur readied his wand. Blue magic swirled from the diamond in Ivan's staff and green erupted from Arthur's wand to mix with the blue. The mixed magic grew and and began to flow down the passageways and into the rooms. Eventually it made it's way outside and formed a dome around the castle. When the spell was complete there was a glow, a flash of light and Ivan's castle blinked out of existence.
The Italian Royal Family and the entire population of King Romulus's Castle and the surrounding city had the shock of their lives when another castle suddenly appeared not far from them. The guard was mobilised to defend the castle against possible attack but when people emerged from the new castle, they were lead by Captain Renato.
"What's going on, Captain?" King Romulus demanded, coming through his men followed by Feliciano, Ludwig and Antonio. Lovino watched from the throne room with his nine year old son, Prince Marcello. Arthur and Francis came out, followed by Ivan with Matthew on his arm.
"Apologies, Your Majesty," Captain Renato said with a bow. "I have good news, however. We've apprehended Luciano Maestri and his gang and located some long lost royalty." Ivan stepped forward.
"King Ivan!" Romulus gasped. Ivan stopped in front of Romulus and bowed.
"It's been a long time, Your Majesty," he commented. "You were still Prince Romulus, the last time I saw you."
"That was a long time ago," Romulus replied. "You still look as you did back then. I think I'm getting too old for all this. I'm over sixty now, I'm a little jealous"
"Over sixty and lived a life," Ivan said. "I'm the one that's jealous." Romulus noticed Matthew at Ivan's side.
"It looks like you'll soon have a life to live," he commented. "Would you introduce me to your friend?"
"Da," Ivan answered. "This is Matthew, the son of Arthur of the Kirkland Clan." Matthew bowed.
"It's an honour to meet you, Your Royal Highness," Matthew greeted.
"Matthew finally broke the curse my sister placed on me," Ivan explained.
"Then thank you, Matthew," Romulus replied. "For returning Ivan to us." Matthew smiled and nodded.
"And your companions?" Ivan questioned, looking at Feliciano, Ludwig and Antonio.
"Of course," Romulus replied and put his hand on Feliciano's shoulder. "This is my youngest son, Feliciano. This is Prince Antonio, he's married to my elder son, Lovino and this is Feliciano's husband …. Prince Ludwig." Romulus trailed off, remembering the role Ludwig had played in the destruction of Ivan's sister.
Matthew held his breath as he remembered telling Ivan about what happened to Natayla.
Ivan stared at Ludwig for a long time, the atmosphere got awkward and people began to fidget.
"I know you destroyed Natayla," Ivan revealed. "I don't know what to feel about that. She was my sister but I also know why you did what you did. Had it been Matvey, I might have done the same. We shall just have to wait and see if we can ever be friends."
Everyone calmed down. That was as close as they were going to get to a peaceful resolution right now. Matthew breathed a sigh of relief.
"Please join us in my castle," Romulus invited, wanting to break the tense atmosphere from a moment ago. "Then we can relax then deal with Maestri and his gang."
Everyone retired to Romulus's castle.
Luciano, Flavio and his gang were brought, under guard, from Ivan's castle into Romulus's throne room. What surprised everyone was the resemblance between the Maestri twins and Lovino and Feliciano. They even had the curls.
Luciano stood in front of the others. He looked around the throne room as if surveying it before looking King Romulus right in the eye.
"Hello, Uncle Romulus!"
A cacophony of sound broke out around the throne room as people tried to make head or tail of what he had just said. Romulus called for order.
"What do you mean by that?" he demanded. Luciano sneered.
"Can't you guess," he mocked. "Your late big brother Remus liked his women, didn't he. One of them was our mother." Luciano indicated to Flavio. "Then he disappeared and the royal family just ignored our existence. We were left to struggle when our mother died, not that anybody here cared. Our father should have married our mother. He should have taken care of us but he just left us all behind."
Romulus could not deny that it was possible. The resemblance to his own sons suggested a genetic connection to the family and he remembered that his older twin, Remus, had been something of a hedonist. Pursuit of pleasure was his main pastime, much to the disapproval of their father who felt it was inappropriate behaviour for the heir to the throne. Romulus had been a bit of a pleasure seeker too but all that change when Remus fell from his horse during a race and broke his neck.
From that moment, Romulus's life changed. He was the heir to the throne and Remus's life and death had been a example for him to change and prepare to be a responsible leader. It would not surprise Romulus to learn that he had illegitimate nephews or even nieces littered throughout the kingdom but he had to see if what Luciano said was true.
"Your Excellency," he called to Arthur. "Is there any way to see if this man speaks the truth?"
"A Veritas Spell, Sire," Arthur replied. "He'd be compelled to tell the truth." Romulus indicated to Arthur to cast the spell. Arthur took out his wand and cast it over Luciano. White magic fell over him and Romulus stood in front of Luciano.
"Did you speak the truth?" he demanded. "Are you and your brother my nephews?"
"Yes," Luciano replied, without hesitation. Romulus sighed at his late brother's indiscretions coming back to complicate things. He turned to Flavio.
"Did you have anything to do with the kidnapping my son?"
"No, he didn't," Luciano replied for Flavio, still under the effects of the Veritas Spell. "It was just me and some of my men." Romulus turned to Lovino.
"I never saw that bastard," Flavio stiffened at the word, not knowing that Lovino called most people a bastard and in no way was it a snide remark about the circumstances of Flavio's birth. Lovino did not care about such things.
"I need to think about what to do about this," Romulus replied. "Some serious crimes have been committed but they happened out of a wrong done to these two men." He turned to his newly discovered nephews. "For what its worth, we never knew of your existence. Had we done so, your lives would have been different but Remus never said anything. He may not have known himself."
The Veritas Spell wore off and Luciano snorted.
"Do you really think your brother would have acknowledged us?" he asked, disbelieving. Romulus smiled, sadly.
"Probably not," he admitted. "Remus was self-centred and never thought about how his actions affected others as long as he got what he wanted but my father would never have left any of his grandsons to suffer. And neither will I."
"Luciano and Flavio Maes...Vargas will be placed under house arrest until I decide what's to be done with them," Romulus ordered. "The others too." The group were taken away.
Romulus sat down in his throne with a sigh.
"I'm getting too old for this," he muttered. Lovino snorted.
"Well, you know this family's cursed," he replied. "Go looking for a kidnapper and find two unknown nephews while your grand-daughter's still missing. This family has no luck." Feliciano turned to Ludwig, upset by Lovino's mention of his missing daughter. She would be twelve now and they never even got to name her.
Arthur put his hand on Feliciano's shoulder in sympathy. He knew what Feli was going through and reaffirmed his vow to find both Alfred and the missing princess.
Ivan was given rooms in the palace while the fates of King Romulus's new nephews were being decided. He was sat with Matthew and Francis, sipping wine before a roaring fire. Arthur had slipped out, saying there was something he need to do.
"What's the first thing you plan to do now the curse is broken?" Francis asked.
"I'll need to return to my kingdom," Ivan replied. "I've been gone for so long, there'll be much to do. But I would like to see my sister. Matthew told me she had been found."
"Oui!" Francis replied. "She's married to King Gilbert, Prince Ludwig's brother."
"So Ludwig's my brother-in-law," Ivan mused. Perhaps he should let the thing about Natayla lie, for his older sister's sake. The door opened and Arthur came in.
"Ah! You're back, mon chère," Francis said. "What did you go to do?"
"I went to collect some one," he replied and stepped to one side. There were three people behind him. An albino man, a blonde woman and a little boy. Ivan stood up slowly.
"Katyusha!" he gasped. Queen Katyusha ran forward and wrapped her arms around her younger brother and hugged him tight, crying.
"It's really you!" she cried. "Arthur told me but I couldn't believe it until I saw you!"
"Yes, it's me, big sister," Ivan replied, a hint of a tear in the corner of his eyes. "I'm back!"
Gilbert came forward, ushering the little boy before him. They stopped when they reached Ivan and Katyusha. Katyusha let Ivan go and stepped back.
"Ivan, this is my husband, King Gilbert of Prussia," Katyusha introduced then she pushed the little boy forward. "And this is our son, Prince Frederick. We call him Fritz."
Ivan looked down at the boy who looked about seven years old. He bent down and pick him up. The little boy had his father's white hair and his mother's blue eyes. He could not believe he had a nephew. And heir to the Prussian throne, no less.
"Privet, malyshka (Hello, little one)," Ivan greeted. "I'm your Uncle Ivan!"
"Privet, Dyadya Ivan (Hello, Uncle Ivan)," Fritz replied. Katyusha smiled. She had taught Fritz what to say to his uncle. Ivan smiled at her and then back at Fritz.
"You speak Russian very well for one so young," he praised. The boy smiled. Ivan looked back at his sister and her husband.
"Are you a good husband to my sister?" he asked Gilbert. Gilbert grinned, cockily.
"I'm an awesome husband!" he bragged. Katyusha smiled.
"He is, little brother," she assured. "He makes me very happy."
"Good," Ivan replied and turned to Matthew, indicating that he join them. Matthew stood beside Ivan, smiling nervously.
"This is Matthew," Ivan introduced. "He broke the curse Natayla placed on me." Katyusha came forward and hugged Matthew.
"Thank you!" she said. "You brought my brother back. Thank you!" Matthew returned the hug.
"You're welcome," he replied and they let go.
"Will you stay for a while, brother?" Katyusha asked.
"I must return home soon," Ivan replied. "But I will stay for a while."
"You must visit us when you can," she insisted.
"I will!"
And if Ivan had his way, it would not be alone.
"Are you disappointed that Romulus didn't punish Luciano and his men as much as you'd like?" Matthew asked Ivan as they stood on the balcony from Romulus's throne room. Instead of prison, Luciano, Flavio and the lackeys had been ordered to serve in the army for five years. After that, they could either stay in the army or live their lives in any way they saw fit as long as it was legal.
"Nyet (No)," Ivan replied. "I understand his dilemma. I still don't know how to regard Prince Ludwig about Natayla. She was my sister but she did much harm and Ludwig had to save his fiancé." Ivan put his hand on Matthew's cheek.
"If it was you, I would do the same," he stated. Matthew blushed. Ivan took both of Matthew's hands in his.
"Matvey," Ivan now seemed a little nervous. "Would you do me the honour of accepting my hand in marriage?"
Matthew should have known that was coming but somehow it still took him by surprise and left him flustered.
"I.. I don't know what to say," he stuttered.
"Say da!" Ivan replied. "You made my heart beat again. Now make it dance. Say da!"
"Da!" Matthew replied and threw his arms around Ivan's neck. "da, da, da!" Ivan picked Matthew up and spun him round.
"About time too!"
They both turned to see Arthur and Francis watching them from the door to the throne room. Behind them Lukas could be seen following Emil.
"Call me Big Brother!"
"No!"
"Big Brother!"
"Stop it!"
"Big Brother!"
"I'M NOT DOING IT!"
Nothing had changed!
"I was beginning to doubt your intentions toward my son, Your Majesty," Arthur commented.
"Matvey's my life," Ivan assured him. "You'll never have to worry about him." Francis came forward and hugged Matthew.
"I'm very happy for you, mon fils (my son)," he whispered.
"I wish Alfred could be here with us for this," Matthew said. Arthur came over and hugged all of them.
"We'll find him," he replied. "And the missing princess too."
However, in another four years, they would find them.
Another tale finished! Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who read, followed, favourited and reviewed again. You've kept me going and still keep me going. You rock!
To hannah-kuro no neko – Yeah! It would sting wouldn't it. Be warned! I'm an evil user of cliff-hangers, ask any of my reviewers! XP
To Prosncons1 – You can stop jumping now! XD You're not the only one to say that Alfred might be paired with Kiku but …...No! Who he'll be paired with and in which story, you'll find out at the end of the review reply and I think you'll be surprised. However, one of the stories you guessed is actually HT6. I've no plans just yet to do a story with Hercules but Hercules and Kiku's roles in the stories will be explained at the end of HT5. Enjoy!
To takuya – It's not Kiku and something weird will happen so stay tuned. And would I do that to Ivan? ;)
To fangirlHetalia – Why does it have to end at the most intense moment? Because I'm evil! Muhahahaha! XP
To Shimmy Tsu – Hello to you! Your review is the very first I have received in a language that is not English :). I wish I could do this in your language but I have never been good at learning other languages (and, believe me, I have tried) and Google Translate is not that good so I hope this translates well for you. I am very pleased you like this story. The girl is neither Liechtenstein or Belgium but good guesses anyway. You will find out who it is at the end of this. And it would be so cool to have my tales translated into Spanish and so much easier for Spanish speaking readers because I think the translator does not always get it right. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and stick around for the next one. Adiós, amigo!
To Cardfighter By Maple – Luci will go away! Uncle Romulus will make him, not to mention a certain Russian King with ice magic could do bad things to him if he doesn't. XP
To steelgray – Thank you! I hope you like the next just as much! :)
To grovyleanime – I'll do my best and thank you, I'm glad you think so! :D
To FireFox Vixen – I glad you 'love' my stories :D and, as for Alfred, you'll find out very soon! XP
To themusicalcat – I had fun with Valentine's Day Massacred too! And don't worry! I'm holding on the the fragile threads of my sanity O_o. Luci's concussed because ArtemisIsis13 has been smacking him around with a skillet, so yeah! Deserved! XP. Well, the mob did go expecting to fight a beast and suddenly they're being battered by household objects. It'd freak anyone out. And, despite Luci's interference, Matthew and Ivan finally have their Happily Ever After. Sweet! :3
To Kin of Norway – And a big welcome back to one of my favourite reviewers XD. As you will have just read, I did not kill off Luciano and Flavio and I never planned to. As for Alfred, you'll find out soon and don't disregard anyone just yet as Alfred's love interest because I think I'm about to surprise a few people XP. So stay tuned!
To EverythingMath – Yeah! XD Telling your opponent their outfit sucks will work every time XP. Yup! Enter the Kitchen of Flying Knives. AT YOUR OWN RISK! I wanted to get Russia cat in this and the footstool was perfect. And I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
To Scarlet Phantom – All ideas welcome for punishment for the villain of HT6 (involving fire. It's part of the tale I've chosen). Some lesser punishments for some people who might not behave as they should would be in order too. Twisted fairy tales, huh! You should post yours when it's done, I'd like to see what you come up with. I didn't know, actually! You have to tell me what your new story's called so I can find it. MMD! Have fun! :)
To ArtemisIsis13 – Yeah! Freaky kitchen with moving parts, it would be great for Halloween though :). Ivan really had lost hope but a word from Matthew and he was right back up again. Both being users of magic, I figured Arthur and Ivan would have encountered each other from time to time so Arthur would be able to work it out and I don't think Arthur will worry too much about Matthew and Ivan, I think he'll know love when he sees it. And the explanation for Hercules and Kiku is coming up at the end of HT5 so stay tuned! As for Luciano and Flavio's relationship to the Vargas, this chapter has just answered that question. Remus was a naughty boy, wasn't he XP. But had Romulus known, he would have taken care of them even if their father refused to, it's just a pity he didn't know. But Luci Goosie and Flavio were still out of line with their behaviour so some punishment was due );. Let's hope the army teaches them something. Or maybe your skillet has knock something back into place, we can only hope XP. Let's see if you're right about Alfred's story and as for the one I've paired him with, I think a lot of people disregarded this person because they thought this person couldn't come back so read on and all will be revealed! O_O
This last chapter has become 6318 words long. I never written anything this long before. I've shocked myself.
Now the moment you've all been waiting for. Hetalia Tales 5 will be (expectant pause) TANGLED. And Alfred love interest and Ludwig and Feli's missing daughter is ….drum roll ...BELARUS.
Yes, I know I killed her off in HT1 but right from the very beginning I've been preparing the way for her return. How! It'll all be revealed in Chapter 1 next week!
So till then,
Hasta la Pasta!