A few hours earlier

Victor tapped this hands on his thighs that were covered with his thick blanket, his hands stinging a bit as he lifted and dropped them in rhythm. He looked around, bored with staying in bed from his injuries.

He eyed the room, scanning it from left to right. He gave a smiling scoff, closing his eyes in thought.

"Govert! Brother and I made hot chocolate to help you feel better!"

"Well, it was mostly her. I only handed her the ingredients and items."

"...*Sip*... it's good…. Think I'm feeling better already."

"Really?! I'm so glad!"

Victor smirked, his back supported by the soft pillow. A smell lingered around the room, a faded scent of waffles and hot chocolate emoting from the quilts, pillows, and curtains. It was a room frozen in time…

Knock knock

Victor snapped out of his daydream, looking up at the door. The door creaked ajar, Erika peeking in. "Victor…." She began. "Ah! Erika! What can I do for you?" He smiled. "W-Well um…. You have a visitor…" She whispered and opened the door wider.

Victor's jaw unlocked and dropped. No way he was here in enemy territory... A million questions rushed through his mind while at the same time drawing a blank. He didn't even know that was possible! Footsteps on the wood fading out as his visitor came closer, his eyes staring at a thousand-yard distance, mouth trying to form words but just couldn't.

Click click!

"Victor! Victor are you alright?!"

Victor shook his head at the call of his name and the snaps of fingers in his face. He swiftly looked up at his visitor, still boggled by his presence. "F-Feliciano, what are you-" Victor was swiftly cut off by his boss's cries. "Waaaah Victor thank goodness you're alright!" He wailed, wrapping his arms around Victor's shoulders. Victor winced at his injuries, Feliciano gasping at what he was doing and instantly backed off.

"Ve Victor, fratello and I were so worried that you were hurt…" He whined, wiping his tears with the back of his arm. "B-But you're alright! I'm so glad!"

"Feliciano… what are you doing here?"

Feliciano's face morphed into negative thoughts. As he took a deep breath in, Victor could hear the shakiness in the oxygen he had just consumed. "B-Before we get to that… tell me what happened…"

Victor's face hardened at his boss's order. He could feel his knuckles whitening with every second of him gripping the sheets warming his legs. His teeth gritted slightly, looking down with disgust of himself. "Victor…?" Feliciano whispered, placing his hand upon the old Gotts Botten.

"Don't look at me!" Victor thundered. Feliciano retracted his hand back with a whimper, Erica jumping from his sudden outburst. "I don't know where she is alright?! She disappeared into the sea! I tried to find her but Govert stopped me! Now I'm back here and you're here, why the HELL are you here?!"

Victor could feel his chest heaving with his rant. Erika and Feliciano looked at each other, mixtures of fear and worry smeared in their eyes. "V-Victor…" Erika began, as she stepped forward and placed a warm hand on Feliciano's shoulder. "The reason Feliciano is here is-"

"Erika get away from him!"

Before Feliciano could even comprehend what happened, he felt Erika's hand snatch away from his shoulder and a hand on his collar. Vash bored his eyes into Feliciano's shocked and scared ones. "I don't care that you're here or that you're the boss of another family, but stay away from my sister!" He declared, his grip tightening with every second he held onto Feliciano. "B-Big brother it's alright!" Erika panicked, hovering her hands above her brother.

"No it's not! We have no business with the mafia! I told you before, we're only staying here because we were born in this world! But we are not contributing to anything!"

"Hmph, I see you're still as protective as ever Vash…"

Vash's attention turned to Victor, an ice dagger stare clashing with Vash's angry and snarling stare. "You have no room to talk…"

"Why not? Since you're so neutral you shouldn't care about me or this family. Any family for that matter."

"I only care about the safety of my sister. I couldn't care less about you."

"You mean the sister who's not a child anymore?"

"She's fourteen! She shouldn't be exposed to this life!"

"Vash, she's growing up and she already knows what we do!"

"And I keep telling you, she shouldn't be exposed to this life!"

"That's fine, but she needs to start choosing her own decisions!"

"Oh, like you and Bella leaving us?!"

"I thought you didn't care about our decisions Mr Neutral."

"And I don't! All I care about is Erika being safe especially in this world! She is my little sister, I won't let her get hurt!"

"You know if you not careful, she could turn out like Alfred."

The room became dead silent after that last comment. Erika's hands sharply came to her mouth, holding in a gasp. Feliciano was speechless as well, his mouth hanging open. Even though he was not a member of this family, he heard what had happened through Francis. Vash's eyes could not have been any more poisonous at the traitor. His teeth snarled, a growl forming in the back of his throat. "You… You're lucky Feliciano called Union otherwise you'd be skewered with my bullets by now…"

Victor's mouth dropped a little, his attention turning wearly back to his boss. Feliciano only looked down with a sheepish look, playing with his hands a bit. "You….called the Union…?"

Feliciano nodded meekly, looking to the side now. "Si… The truth is…. there is someone out there aiming to cloud us in despair once more… I-I can't put my finger on why but… I think that Bella's disappearance and latest attacks on our families are connected…"

"Feliciano-"

"Feliciano!"

The bang of the door cut off everyone's thoughts. The entrance of the room darkened the silhouette of the man standing outside. The eyes of those in the room adjusted, revealing a ginger haired, freckled face staring right at the Italian man.

"Ve, Seamus?"

"No Patrick!"

"Ve?! S-Sorry I didn't see you clearly…."

Patrick sighed, twitching his fingers to beckon Feliciano to follow. "Ve… sorry Victor, I'll be right back. Please rest…" Feliciano slipped out of his seat and silently followed the Irish man out into the mansion. Once the two slipped out of the room's sight, Victor snapped his head to Basch. The Swiss in return growled back and took his sister by the wrist and left the traitor's room.

Victor kept his dignity by staying silent as they left his vision. He sighed heavily and leaned his heavy head against the varnished bed rest, going back in time once more.

"Ve, Patrick, where are we going?" Feliciano asked, tilting his head slightly. Patrick didn't reply, twisting a corner. Feliciano panicked slightly and picked up the pace. "Ve… Patrick…." Patrick lead him through twists and turns, leading the Italian down into a cellar. Feliciano began to worry slightly. Was he being lead to a torture chamber of sorts? Why did he decide to follow Patrick in the first place?

Feli was considering to run, until the two stopped outside a heavy oak door, greeting them with a creek of the push.

Inside, Feliciano awed by the Holy force. Benches lined up facing towards an altar with beautiful red and gold stain glass windows. Figurines of angels and religious figures were scattered around the tables and pedestals, crosses hung on the walls with paintings of the Virgin Mary and her son. Soft candlelight flickered around, like holy beings guiding lost souls to the afterlife. Wax hung off every candle holder, table and shelf, making Feliciano wonder how many candles Patrick had to go through to get such thick layers of wax.

Patrick barely moved an inch inside before he crossed his chest, and recited the mumble of a prayer.

Patrick stepped in further when done in prayer, letting Feliciano follow. Feliciano's strong Catholic upbringing tugged at him to cross his chest as he entered and closed the door softly behind them. Feliciano slowly looked around the candlelit building admiring the details of the paintings and figurines around.

A soft shuffle scrapped softly behind Feli, catching his attention. Patrick's green eyes flickered in the orange glow, as he was replacing melted candles with brand new ones. Feliciano stepped in softly, eyeing the strong candle that would soon melt into a mess.

"Ve, I didn't know there was a church under the mansion…."

"Mmm. It's been here since our father died."

"Oh I see…. But I thought Ludwig was Protestant."

"He is. But he used to be Catholic. In fact, he was the one who ordered this place built."

"Eh?! R-Really?"

"Yeah."

Patrick groaned as he sat down on the only place cleared of dust, cobwebs, and neglect. He leaned forward rubbing his face with his palms and dragged them down his face. "After father died, Ludwig decided to convert to Catholicism as the public saw us as evil beings greater than God himself. Most of us followed his lead, built this church underneath and all. But one day, he came home distraught, ranting that he didn't want to be Catholic anymore. One by one, everyone stopped coming here until only I remain." Feliciano looked up and around once more. Indeed it looked out of use, but he could sense Patrick was doing the best he could.

"B-But why bring me here?"

"You're Catholic too, not to mention this is sacred ground. Think of this as a neutral area for us."

OST Suggestion: Masamune-kun no Revenge - Heartbreak

Feli stood still for a while, the fluttering dust swirling around his body. The dark room bounced in echos, deep silence between them. He stepped forward, swiping the dust away with his hand and sat down. The paintings and alter flickered in time with the candle flames, the stain glass windows were covered in grime and dirt, but you could see a faint figure kneeling in prayer, or the shape of the cross in some of them.

Patrick reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and dragged out a white plastic cylinder, placing it between his middle and index finger. He lifted the end of the cylinder to his lips and sucked in a deep breath and let it out, his head falling onto the bench. Feliciano watched on, his mind reeling with uncomfortable thoughts.

"Don't worry this is just a Nicorette inhaler. Tryna stop smoking." Patrick reassured with a wave of the hand. "You know even though I hate my brothers, some more than others, I never wish them ill will. Except for Arthur cause he's a pain. Anyway, my point is, I will always defend my brothers and sisters and swore never to raise my gun against them unless they become monsters. Which leads me to my next question…." Patrick tilted his head to the side, his eyes losing their calm shine into a cold daggered stare.

"Do you intend to turn them fully against us?"

Feliciano trembled slightly at his glare and turned his head down into a guilty pout. "N-No, I mean… I… It's just that….W-We received intel that The Gotts were participating in illegal practices, and we were worried that you were going down the same path again… and we sent Bella and Victor because they could speak Dutch and German a-and we weren't going to attack I swear we were only going to talk if you were hiding anything I swear!"

Patrick squinted at the flailing man, scanning his face for any lie or mistrust in his look. He sighed through open nostrils, staring at the ceiling. "I'll believe you this time… but Victor is upstairs injured and Bella is nowhere to be found! She could be lying dead at the bottom of the ocean for all we know!"

Feliciano flinched slightly, trying to hide his face in his shrugged shoulders. "S-She's not! I can feel it, she's alive somewhere. Besides, we're mafia…. We all know that we constantly put our lives on the line. Of course if someone really did die on our watch, I wouldn't forgive myself. I think if something happened to you on a mission, Ludwig wouldn't forgive himself either…"

Patrick's soul bubbled with mixed emotions. He was angry that Feliciano could have potentially sent Bella to her death, but at the same time Patrick understood that each mission could be their last. Everyone in each family knew that.

Patrick growled in confusion, rubbing his forehead with his hands. "I know I said this is sacred ground, but I swear if something did happen to her I will end you with my bare hands…"

The two sat in silence a little longer, until a glitch echoed from the Irishman's pocket. "Patrick, is Feliciano with you? We looked over the house and he isn't anywhere to be found."

Patrick shoved a hand into his back pocket with a sight, pulling out a black walkie talkie. "Yeah, he's with me. We're just…." Patrick sighed stiffly, pulling the black box away a bit before continuing. "Talking is all. Are you guys ready?"

"Yeah, Eduard just decoded the last firewall. Where are you guys anyway, I tried calling your mobiles and it went straight to voicemail. You're not trying to avoid us, are you? I'm hurt if that's the case."

"Shut it Seamus!"

A laugh chiseled through the walkie talkie before Seamus began to talk again. "Anyway, bring Feli with you. I'll see you in a bit."

Click!

The Irishman pushed himself up, dusting his legs. "Come on, before Ludwig decides to have the whole place topsy turvy for you." Feliciano nodded as he stood up. He sniffled a bit, the dust tickling his nose, following Patrick out.

"Ah, Feliciano, Patrick. Glad you're here. Edward just finished the final connection." Dylan nodded to the Estonian who responded with a friendly smile and a wave. Feliciano looked around the room. A camera, table, and chair set up in front of a white wall.

"Feliciano."

"Ve?"

Ludwig towered over Feliciano, wanting to say something. Instead he wrangled out a sigh and looked at the direction of the camera. "You know what you what to say ja?"

"S-Si… I know what I want to say… Even though I'm not good at talking with my own family, this is something different. Everyone is at stake. If one family falls, it won't be long until we fall too."

Ludwig nodded with an agreeing grunt and looked back at Feliciano. "Well, you better make the announcement. Before the families find out we cracked their defenses and we get into another pointless argument."

The Italian sat softly down into the chair, hands firmly intertwined. He stared into the lens, feeling like it was the barrel of the gun. He took a deep breath, his body shaking slightly.

"Feliciano, you'll be live in five…"

"What am I doing? I could be dragging everyone into more danger if I do this."

"Four."

"But everyone's already been attacked, and if I don't do this then…"

"Three."

"We can't let this happen…."

"Two."

"That's right. We are the World. If we back down now, then we'll be putting all our people in danger…"

"One."

Feliciano looked at the blinking red light until it stabilized. He took a deep breath and began.

"Regazzi, as you all know..."