AN: Hey everyone, here's the latest chapter. I feel bad for taking a while to post it. But, like always, we really appreciate reviews.

Warning: Character death, the usual.

Chapter 10

Ludwig and Feliciano made it back to the area with the two pedestals. It was lucky that Arthur, Alfred, and Matthew had found the second statue. When they arrived, Ludwig placed the statue on its pedestal. The wall between the pedestals shook and parted, showing a new hallway.

Feliciano's eyes widened and he smiled.

"Wow! Where do you suppose that leads to?" he asked, peeking down the split wall. Ludwig shrugged.

"We'll just have to find out," he replied, leading Feliciano into the hallway. As soon as they entered the hallway, their heads began to ache. Ludwig was not one for giving up and continue on. Feliciano grimaced and touched his head with a groan.

"Ugh...Ludwig? Does your head hurt..?" he asked. Ludwig nodded.

"Yes, but we'll have to deal with it for now," he replied. At the end of the hallway was a door. A sign told them it was the Nurse' Office. There was a piece of paper attached to the door as well.

'Peter,

Cleaning up in the reference room. Please wait here until I'm done.

Mom'

Ludwig hmmed and opened the door. He and Feliciano stepped into the room.

"What do you say? Shall we go on vacation over summer break?"

Ludwig frowned, but they kept going. As they approached the desk the air became heavy and soon, they were unable to move an inch.

"What the hell!?" Ludwig demanded. Feliciano whimpered in fear. The book on the desk flipped open, and the pages turned a few times before settling.

"My dear Peter…my pride and joy…"

A woman in tattered clothing appeared in front of them. Her neck was twisted oddly and her eyes stared unblinkingly.

"He'd do anything for me," she said. Ludwig gasped as he was let go and pushed by an invisible force over to the desk. He looked down at the book.

"A…diary?" he asked. The book was clearly very old. The spine was cracked and the pages were yellowed. However, the words were still legible. "'9/23/1953 – It seems I'm dead.' What…?"

The woman shook slightly.

"I won't forgive you…" she hissed, though it didn't seem directed at either Ludwig or Feliciano. "I'm going to kill you. How DARE you harm Peter! How dare you harm me…us…"

Ludwig was stunned as children began to appear, surrounding the woman. He grabbed the diary and then Feliciano's arm, and ran out of the nurse's office, down the hall, and back to the area with the pedestals. Feliciano bent over, hands on his knees, as he tried to catch his breath. That was one of the scariest things he had seen happen in a long time.

Feliciano looked over at Ludwig and noticed the diary.

"W-Wha? You took the diary!? Doesn't that hold her spirit?! She'll be after us!" he babbled uncontrollably. Ludwig shook his head.

"No, look, she hasn't followed us. I think she wanted us to see, odd as that sounds," he replied. "I didn't get a chance to actually read it, though."

Ludwig opened the diary.

"'9/23/1953 – I talked with the children again today. They are growing up so fast…The younger students are so respectful. It's clear they're parents love them a great deal. But they aren't the only ones. I give my Peter just as much love and devotion. Today is his twelfth birthday. We're meeting after school and going to dinner. I hope he likes the stuffed hamster I got him.

"'I had to stay a little later than intended to finish up some paperwork. While I was working, the principal stopped by. After we talked for a bit, he suddenly came up behind me and pushed me down against my desk and then began to unbutton my blouse. He'd always been so kind before…always listened to my problems….But now he was like a completely different man. His eyes were so cold and empty. I was in such shock. I'm not completely sure what happened after that.

"'I got away somehow, but he was right behind me. I made it as far as the landing on the stairs. Just as I turned the corner, I felt him push me. Suddenly I couldn't move. I was dead. What seemed like buckets of blood spilled from my head…I was slipping away when I was pulled back by the sound of my dear Peter. He'd seen everything.

"'The principal closed in on him. I didn't know what he was planning. I yelled with every bit of strength I had for him to stop. But I was dead. I didn't have any strength. Peter tried to run, but he was easily caught. And then…before my eyes…he strangled the life out of my Peter. How evil….

"'He fixed my shirt, then buried Peter in the basement. I'm positive he'll say this was an accident. And Peter will be reported missing. I'm not a bad person! I don't deserve this! There is no redeeming that man….

"'9/24/1953 – I was right. The police have ruled my death an accident. There hasn't been anything about Peter yet. The other teachers and students are mourning me. They are such kind people.

"'9/25/1953 – There is a stranger in my chair. It must be the new nurse. No one's come to see her. I suppose she isn't very popular. I hate her.

"'9/26/1953 – Little by little, I'm fading away. A dark will that's not mine has begun to invade my mind….Make it stop….'"

Ludwig had to put the diary down for a moment.

"How sad for Peter's madre," Feliciano said quietly. Ludwig nodded. However, something else was bothering him.

"The dates in the diary….Peter shouldn't even be alive then. The kidnappings and murders took place in 1973," he said. Feliciano's brows furrowed.

"So, twenty years later? That is weird," he agreed. Ludwig nodded and looked back down at the book.

"I'm going to keep reading….Most of these pages are very similar, though, about her being lonely and about how she wants to see Peter again…It goes back and forth from being very sad and very angry…Wait, I can't go any further! The pages are stuck," he growled, trying to pry open the blood soaked pages. Ludwig gave up on those and skipped to the last few pages. "Here we go….'7/10/1973 – Peter is my pride and joy. He'd do anything for me. Even kill lots of people just to keep me company. He sends me so many wonderful children. I love them all.

"'7/14/1973 – I have to make him stop. This doesn't make me happy. Peter…please stop.

"'7/17/1973 – His family is just as guilty! I will curse the entire line, forever. I'll burn some sense right into their damned brains!

"'7/19/1973 – How…did this happen? My precious Peter who died with me twenty years ago…has a flesh-and-blood body once more! He kills children and sends me their souls. But that's not what I want! That doesn't make me happy! Peter, please come see me! Talk with me…

"'7/22/1973 – Peter has killed eight more. When they die…it's like their entire existence is removed from history. But…he isn't capable of abducting and murdering children all alone. He makes that man kidnap them for him. Peter…stop…please.

"'7/24/1973 – Peter is no longer killing for me. Now…he's just killing because he enjoys it. When did this happen? The living are such fickle, easily angered creatures. They killed us, after all. I won't forgive anyone who kills another human being. I'll kill them all. I'll kill them. I will show them no mercy.

"'7/25/1973 – Kill more.

"'7/27/1973 – Kill more.

"'9/05/1973 – Bring…me…M o r e!

"'9/13/1973 – Thanks to my Peter…I'm no longer alone. He sent me three more adorable children today. Peter is my pride and joy. He probably doesn't even recognize me anymore. But I will always love him…with all my heart.

"'11/15/1975 – The school's been closed down. The principal jumped off the roof. Serves him right. What a pitiful way to die…Serves him right.

"'11/20/1975 – Peter has been wandering the halls. He kills anyone who enters. People who heard rumors…people who found this place by accident….'"

Ludwig stopped reading. The writing was far too jumbled to make any sense of the rest. Feliciano whimpered once, wringing his hands.

"Wow... That's so sad. So, Peter started to... enjoy killing and his madre wanted him to stop." He looked up at Ludwig. "If his own madre couldn't get him to stop, how are we?"

Ludwig sighed and closed the diary.

"….Maybe the school principal is the way. I think I saw the principal's office in the other building. There might be more information there," he replied, putting the diary in his pocket. Feliciano sighed heavily.

"It's amazing how one person can set off so much evil..." he mumbled to no one in particular. Ludwig gave a noise of agreement, and they walked away from the area with the pedestals. As they walked, Ludwig noticed something peculiar on the ground.

"Is this…a stuffed hamster?" he asked, picking up the plush toy. "I think Peter's mother mentioned something about this…We'll take it with us, just in case it becomes useful."

Feliciano looked at the battered toy.

"I think that is a hamster. I wonder if that'll do the trick." he leaned closer and wrapped his arm through Ludwig's, holding on tightly. Ludwig nodded.

"Even so, we should still go to the principal's office," he said, leading Feliciano along the hallways.

Ivan and Yao had eventually decided to wander out of the Infirmary, seeing as waiting was getting them nowhere. Ivan happily held Yao's hand as they walked through the strange halls.

"Everything looks different, da?" he commented. Yao blushed heavily at the PDA but allowed it with a smile.

"Shì de, it seems that things have changed a great deal," he confirmed. The hallways were complete changed around. Ivan wondered if that made their chances of finding everyone else better or worse. They checked rooms and odd corridors that led nowhere. Eventually, they came to a room that was even odder than the rest. In the center a large pentagram had been drawn on the floor.

"This is strange. It looks like something Arthur would draw," Ivan said. Yao nodded once and knelt down to take a closer look.

"Yes. It is drawn in chalk," he said, wiping his finger across the lines and examining the white powder. Ivan noticed that, even though there was chalk on Yao's finger, the pentagram itself was not broken.

"This room gives me bad feeling. We should go," he said, heading for the second door. Yao nodded and rubbed his hands together, ridding his already pale skin of the remnants of chalk.

"I agree. Let us go now."

He followed Ivan closely. Ivan opened the door and stepped out. Immediately, a force pushed them both away from each other, not allowing Yao near the door. Both doors slammed shut, locking Yao inside. Ivan scrambled up and pounded on the door.

"YAO!" he shouted. Yao fell with a grunt and quickly pulled himself up, looking out the small window.

"It is alright, Ivan. I'm fine."

He gave a weak smile to his Russian lover. Ivan tried to open the door but it was no use.

"Chyort voz'mi!" he snapped. Ivan wasn't going to give up until he got Yao out, even if it took forever. Yao shrank back slightly. He had never heard Ivan lose his temper like this. He raised his hand behind the window, signaling Ivan to stop.

"Ivan, calm yourself. I am not in danger. I'm right here, love," he said, trying to sound reassuring.

"Yao? I am so glad to have found you!" came a familiar voice from behind Yao. Yao froze for a moment. That sounded like... He turned around and his eyes widened.

"Mr. Vargas?" he asked. Mr. Vargas, though he was clutching his side, smiled broadly as he walked through a door that hadn't been noticed before.

"Mio dio! I am so happy to see you are alive," he said. "I am so sorry I was not able to return to you sooner."

Yao blinked a few times. Something seemed off but he couldn't place it. He cautiously approached the teacher.

"Shì de... Ivan has been keeping me safe," he replied. "He is on the other side here... Something stopped us from leaving together."

Mr. Vargas was about to reply when the school began to shake. Normally he would have been able to stand it, but the pain in his body didn't allow it and he fell to the ground. As the building continued to shake, the ground beneath Mr. Varags began to tilt. He tried to move but he couldn't. The floor opened up and he began to slide down the floor towards the black abyss below, however, he managed to grab onto the edge of the floor above.

Yao gasped and ran to grab his teacher's hand.

"Ugh! Hold on, Mr. Vargas." Yao strained as he attempted to pull him up. True, Yao was stronger than he looked, but he wasn't sure he was strong enough. He pulled as hard as he could. Mr. Vargas tried to pull himself up, but his other arm was broken and soon he was only holding on by one arm. The door behind Yao flew open and Ivan rushed in.

"Yao! …Mr. Vargas!?" he exclaimed. Ivan hurried over to help. Mr. Vargas shook his head.

"No! You two, get out! The floor could fall under you as well!" he told them. Mr. Vargas gave a shout as he slid down a bit. He managed to find another purchase to hold onto. Yao reached out to help.

"No, we won't leave you!" he protested. Ivan, being taller, attempted to reach Mr. Vargas as well, however, he was just out of reach. Mr. Vargas shook his head.

"Get out! You are my students and I will protect you until the end! Leave!" he shouted. Mar. Vargas slipped further. He looked up and gave them a small, sad smile. "I know you and the others will get out of this. I have the utmost faith in you. Apprezzo i bei momenti trascorsi insieme."

Mr. Vargas' hand slipped, and he fell into the darkness. Yao's eyes widened and he cried out.

"No!" his breath hitched in his throat and he turned into Ivan's chest. Ivan pulled Yao out of the room and wrapped his arms around him. He didn't know what to say, so he gently rubbed Yao's back. Yao silently cried into Ivan's chest, his hands clenching the light-colored coat tightly.

Ludwig and Feliciano made their way across the walkway. As they neared the doors to the second building, they heard a scream. A shape fell from the roof and slammed into the ground. Ludwig rushed over to the fence and peered over.

"Someone jumped!" he exclaimed. Feliciano gasped and looked away with a whimper. Ludwig watched in shock as the body disappeared. Moments later, the scream came again, and the man fell past them, slamming into the ground.

"I…think it's a ghost…repeating itself. I think I heard Arthur mention something like this before…it's a residual haunting, or something like that," Ludwig commented, leading Feliciano along. However, something glinting out of the corner of his eye caused him to stop. "There's a key out there! Feliciano, wait right here. I'll go get it."

Feliciano nodded and stayed in place, fidgeting nervously. He didn't like being away from Ludwig, even if he could still see him, it made Feliciano feel alone.

Ludwig hefted himself up and over the fence. Instantly he was drenched. Ignoring the cold rain, Ludwig walked over to where the man kept falling. He waited for the man to fall again before rushing over and scooping up the small key. Ludwig jumped back out of the way and climbed back over the fence.

"Alright, let's keep going," he said, leading Feliciano inside. There was a new hole blocking the way to the door furthest from them, so they went through the only available door. After climbing several stairs, they came to a door labeled 'Principal's Office'. Ludwig used the key and they walked inside.

The room felt off, like there was energy swirling about. Not only that, but there were symbols and charms all over. Feliciano gripped Ludwig's arm with a whimper.

"L-Ludwig...I don't like this room."

He pulled on the blond's arm, wanting to leave. Ludwig gave Feliciano an apologetic glance.

"I didn't mean to…." a voice echoed around the room. "It…it was only a momentary lapse in judgment. She's the one at fault! She overreacted!"

Ludwig grimaced.

"Feliciano. We'll look around quickly, and leave as soon as possible. But we have to check this place out," he told the small Italian. Ludwig walked over to the desk and began searching the drawers. Feliciano hesitated then stepped inside. The whole room felt thick and tense. He hurried over to the desk and helped to search the drawers, sticking close to Ludwig.

Ludwig pulled roughly at a drawer that had been stuck and managed to get it open.

"What…is this?" he wondered, pulling out a hemp bag coated completely in blood. Ludwig, having a bad feeling, turned away from Feliciano and opened the bag. As he had feared, there was an aged tongue inside. Ludwig quickly closed the bag. A sudden pain shot through his head and he gasped. Feliciano hurried to Ludwig's side.

"Ludwig! What's wrong? Are you being hurt?!" he asked, fear riddled through his voice. Tears started to gather in his eyes as he got more and more worried. Ludwig had to steady himself against the desk. The room faded around him, as did Feliciano's voice to be replaced by sound of dirt being lifted and dropped. Slowly, an image appeared in front of his eyes. The man – he seemed to be in his late 40's and was balding - who had been falling off the roof was standing in a small, dark room with dirt floors.

"Every damn night I have the same dream!" the man complained agitatedly. "I regret what I did…I'm so ashamed…So how long are you going to punish me for!?"

The man began to laugh madly.

"I get it…I understand completely. You're not really dead. You're just faking it!" the man ranted, pacing in front of a hole. A young blonde boy in a sailor suit lay inside – clearly dead. "But…I can't allow you to tell another living soul what I did. So…heheh….I'm just going to have to make sure you can't say anything to anyone."

The man brought out a pair of scissors. Ludwig watched in horror as the man cut out the boy's tongue, and stuck it in a bag.

"If I ever see you in my dreams from now on…I'll be back. And I'll kill you as many times as I have to."

Ludwig gave a gasp as his surroundings returned all at once. He panted and blinked, reorienting himself. Feliciano had grabbed Ludwig by the shoulders and was shaking him back and forth, with surprising force, and crying.

"Ludwig! Ludwig snap out of it! Come back to me!" he cried. Ludwig grabbed Feliciano's arms.

"Feliciano stop shaking me! That doesn't help," he exclaimed, feeling rather dizzy. Feliciano gasped and stopped his shaking.

"Ludwig! You're back!" he threw himself into the German, crying. "What happened to you?!"

Ludwig wrapped an arm around Feliciano and rested his chin on the top of his head.

"I'm sorry for worrying you. I'm fine. I just…saw some memories…of the principal. But I'm fine," he said. Ludwig noticed something off about the wall behind Feliciano. The wallpaper wasn't quite as faded in one, door sized patch. Ludwig let go of Feliciano and walked over to the wall. Giving it a knock, he noticed it did indeed sound like a door.

"Feliciano…I think this might be a secret passage," he said. Ludwig began peeling off the wallpaper. Feliciano began peeling the paper as well, wiping the tears from his cheeks between yanks.

"You scared me." he whispered. "I thought you were going to... I thought I was going to be alone again..."

Ludwig stopped and looked over at Feliciano. He took the Italian's hands in his own.

"I'm not leaving you, Feliciano. I won't let you be alone here again," he promised, blushing slightly as he leaned forward and quickly kissed Felciano on the forehead. Feliciano's eyes widened for a moment and he smiled, wiping the last of his tears away.

"Grazie, Ludwig..." he thanked him, a small but bright blush evident on his cheeks. Ludwig nodded, expression turning serious once more. He pulled off the last of the wallpaper and opened the door behind it. Ludwig looked down, seeing a ladder leading into darkness.

"Feliciano…would you rather I go first, or would you prefer to?" he asked, not sure which was safer. Honestly, both options were bad and highly unsafe, but one had to be safer than the other, right?

Feliciano chewed his lip slightly.

"You can go first... I'll hurry after you," he replied. Ludwig nodded.

"Very well. I'll be quick," he said. Ludwig turned and climbed down the ladder.

Alfred, Arthur, and Matthew stood in front of a machine labeled 'Incinerator'. Arthur was bent slightly so he could see inside.

"There's definitely something in there. I just can't tell what," he said. Alfred groaned and pulled Arthur away. They had been sitting here just waiting for the Brit to inspect the machine and Alfred had gotten impatient.

"Alright, out of the way. I'll go get it."

He got down on his hands and knees and began to crawl inside. Arthur frowned.

"You're not going alone," he snapped, crawling in after him. Matthew looked around, debating whether or not to wait, before he got down and crawled in as well. As they got closer, they could see it was a blue ribbon.

"Hey…isn't that…from Peter's hat?" Arthur asked. He frowned. "It's out of reach, of course. Our blood luck."

Alfred snorted and shifted his weight.

"Huh, maybe it's out of reach for your stubby, little arms. But," he reached forward and his finger grazed the end of the ribbon and he reached farther, "I can...reach it!"

He made a noise of triumph as he pulled the ribbon into reach.

"Aha!"

Suddenly the floor beneath them fell and the three fell down a shaft. They screamed as they shot down the chute, ominous giggles echoing from above. There was a loud splattering sound as they fell out and into a pool of blood and bodies. Arthur surged up, gasping and crying out, trying to swim out to the edge.

Alfred groaned and sputtered as he looked around. He saw Arthur but not his little cousin.

"M-Matty?! Matty where are you?!" he called, trying to stay afloat. Matthew broke through the surface for a moment, screaming for Alfred and Arthur before submerging again. Arthur tried to get around the bloated bodies, but it was proving difficult.

Alfred pushed the bodies around him aside with impressive force and swam over. Pausing only to take a deep breath, he dove down into the pool of blood. Matthew was struggling to free himself from the body caught around his ankle. He couldn't see properly and he was panicking.

Strong arms wrapped around Mathew's lithe form and, with a tug, he was being pulled back up. Alfred and Mathew broke the red surface of the blood and coughed. Alfred quickly swam his cousin over to the edge and helped him up.

"A-Are you alright?" he coughed. Arthur helped pull Matthew away from the body pool, having managed to get out himself. Matthew coughed and sputtered. Both Matthew and Arthur watched in shock and horror as more bodies came shooting out of the other chutes in the walls. Several of them landed on Alfred, dragging him down.

"ALFRED!" Arthur and Matthew shouted. Alfred grunted from the force, trying to keep his head above the pool of blood. He looked up at his cousin and Arthur.

"Go! Get out!" he cried as he was pushed down under the surface. Arthur jumped back into the pool.

"No!" he shouted, trying to get to Alfred. Arthur was not going to let Alfred die! He couldn't watch another of his friends die in the horrible place.

Alfred struggled weakly against the bodies pulling him down farther into the seemingly endless pool of blood. He was out of air. His mind swam with memories of his cousin, Arthur and the rest of his friends. He prayed they go out alive as he opened his mouth, his body aching for air but only catching blood.

Arthur searched and searched for Alfred, but after far too long, he knew he had to give up. Arthur swam back to the edge and climbed out.

"Arthur! You have to go back! You have to save him!" Matthew pleaded. Arthur shook his head, tears hidden by the blood.

"Matthew…I'm so sorry…" he said. Matthew shook his head.

"No…No! He's still alive! He's got to be!" he cried. Arthur pulled Matthew to his feet and led him out of the room, despite Matthew's struggles. They made it out of the room and through a few tunnels before stopping. Matthew cried pitifully. Arthur didn't know what to do anymore. This was all his fault. It was because of him so many people were dying.

Matthew was startled when he noticed a darkness surrounding Arthur. The Brit's eyes became blank and he started mumbling. Arthur turned and walked off.

"Arthur! W-wait!" Matthew called, following after. However, he soon lost sight of Arthur, and was alone.

Translations: madre = mother (Italian), Chyort voz'mi = dammit (Russian), Apprezzo i bei momenti trascorsi insieme = I appreciate the beautiful moments passed together (Italian)