Hi there!

GUESS WHAT THE WORLD ENDS TOMORROW and by the time you read this it will be past Dec. 21, so, SEE YA ALL IN HEAVEN

Mucho gracias to fireflame1801, hetaliaforever123, InsanityAintOptional, Siri Catriona, CelticGirl7, Charlotte and Rashka, and caset290! :D

GUYS I THINK I'M SICK AGAIN

AND THIS IS THE FIRST SNOW DAY THIS YEAR

GUESS WHO'S NOT A VERY HAPPY CAMPER

No your guess is invalid iTS ME

UPDATE: SOS SEND HELP, I REPEAT, SEND HELP SOS SOS SOS

Nah, I'm just kidding. WORST. APOCALYPSE. EVER.

Okay HAPPY 2013 PEOPLE

FYI: Mother North is North America. ^_^

DO YOU GUYS UNDERSTAND THAT I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER OR HETALIA OR BASICALLY ANYTHING SO I CANT BE SUED BECAUSE ITS NOT MIIIINE

Okay okay I shut up nao

Issa's POV

I watch as Norway sets up his magic-thingy to switch back Lauren and England. "You probably shouldn't be in the same room," he tells me.

"Right," I respond.

"And, if you could, would you please smack Denmark in the face until he's quiet?" he adds irately, glaring out the open door, where said country's voice wafts in obnoxiously. The other Nordics, including Sealand, also came over to give their condolences and advice, or, in Denmark's case, wreak havoc with the BTT, Louisa, and Harvey, who is actually quite the troublemaker.

"Yeah, no problem," I reply. I give Lauren and England a slightly amused, slightly worried look and leave the room. Walking down the hall a bit after closing the door, I wander down to the living room, where everyone is.

Iceland gives me a worried glance and scoots away from me.

I just smile innocently at him and sit down next to Matt. Hi, he greets me. England and Lauren getting switched?

Uh-huh, I respond. "Hey, Denmark," I call. "Norge wants you to be quiet," I tell him.

"Heh, no thanks," he responds. He, the BTT, Sealand, Louisa, and Harvey are playing the Human Knot. For those of you who aren't familiar with it, it's where a group of people grasp their hands together randomly in a jumble, forming a knot made of arms. Without letting go of the two people's hands, you have to untangle the knot by stepping over arms, twisting into awkward positions, and other things. I'm surprised Louisa is okay with this; it's a highly intimate game. I know I don't like holding other people's hands, much less making a fool of myself while doing it. It's fun to watch, though.

I wave at Sweden and Finland, who wave back. I don't know why people are afraid of Sweden; he's nothing but a big sweetheart. Another gentle giant, just like Russia. Finland's cute, and I hear he's an excellent shot; perhaps even greater than Switzerland, but I won't tell him that.

Sealand took an immediate liking to Louisa. For about three seconds, he was wary of her because of her skin tone, hair color, and eye color, but then he decided she looks like something from an anime, and he hasn't stopped following her around since. Louisa, on the other hand, finds this attachment awkward. It doesn't really help that the answers all his questions with either "Yes," "No," or "Because I'm awesome."

Finally, Louisa trips over Prussia's leg and falls, pulling France and Sealand down with her. They bring down the other two, and the whole room cracks up. Well, except for the tsundere nations like Austria, Switzerland, and Romano, and then Sweden, who just doesn't show emotion.

"Okay, okay, I'm done, let me up," Louisa finally laughs, struggling under the pile of nations, micronation, and human. They all sit up, and she decides she's going to take a walk. I don't think a few of the more responsible nations trust her quite yet, and Hungary quietly excuses herself, going in the same direction Louisa left.

Lauren and England come back in. Lauren's body comes, sits between me and Mattie, and puts her head over my lap and her legs on his. They're back in their own bodies. But I decide to be sarcastic about this. "Hey, England."

Lauren just giggles, and the real England frowns. "We're back to normal," he protests.

"I know, England," I respond in my "Duh" voice. He scowls at me, but I smile jokingly.

An all-too-familiar fogginess starts developing over my brain: I'm going into a flashback. Sad, I've been enjoying a few days without them. Though my tongue's slurred by this, I force myself to say, "Guys—I'm gonna—flash—"

Mattie nods. Lauren jumps up and hugs me tightly, pinning my arms to my side so I can't freak out and kill someone. From across the room, Harvey has the same glazed look in his eyes as he manages, "Uhm, me too…." Prussia and France grabs his arms and forces them behind his back.

I notice the Nordic's confused expressions, and Lauren explains for them, "These aren't pretty. Trust me." And then I fade out.

I watched silently as the newcomers flooded onto my shores, apprehensiveness taking a hold on me. What did they want? Where were they from? What were they going to do with my land? I had to go get Mother North or Brother right now, they had to help me.

Slowly, so I didn't rustle a single leaf, I scaled down the tree I was hiding in. Once on the ground, I kept a wary eye on the pale-faced strangers, who talked in a strange language and wore strange clothes. That man must have been the chief; all the people were looking to him for orders. He had yellow hair, kind of like me and Brother…. How come my people didn't have yellow hair?

I grasped my hand onto my bow, not to shoot them, but for comfort. I—I could, if I wanted to, but they haven't done anything bad yet. They were just looking, which was fine. But they still scared me…. Maybe I could just have an arrow loaded, just in case….

The Chief of the foreigners had shoulder-length yellow hair, tied into a little ponytail with a purple string. He was wearing… I couldn't even describe it. It just looked ridiculous…. They were nothing compared to my deerskin clothes. His moccasins didn't even look comfortable like mine were.

I was so interested in these people that I wasn't watching where I was stepping, and I broke a stick with my foot. The heads of the newcomers snapped in my direction. Fear filling me, I held my breath, my fingers trembling with my arrow; I was having trouble holding it in place. Slowly, the chief walked closer. I could see his eyes now; they were blue. Like Brother's. None of our people had blue eyes….

He pushed away the bushes that concealed me. I squeaked in alarm and let my arrow fly, but, even though he wasn't that far away from me, I missed. The arrow lodged into a tree. Startled, the man jumped back. I loaded another arrow. I wouldn't miss this time.

The man held up his hands and smiled. That part confused me: why is he smiling at me? I let the arrow creep a little. Suddenly, I really felt his presence. He was different. He was like me and Brother and Mother North, I just knew it.

The man pointed at himself. "Je suis la France." (I am France GUESS WHAT LANGUAGE)

Somehow, I knew he was introducing himself. I unloaded the arrow from my bow and stared at him. His name was "Ji suu la Frahnce?" (This is what that kind of sounds like to me when I pressed listen on Google Translate YAY FOR LAME HUMOR)

I open my eyes. "Meeting France for the first time," I explain immediately.

Lauren lets go of me. "Well, that wasn't so bad," she comments.

"Yeah, it was kinda cute," I reply.

"Cute?!" Harvey echoes from across the room. "You shot an arrow at my face!"

"Canada shot an arrow at your face. You were trespassing on his land," I retort. "No—wait—France was trespassing on Canada's land and he was scared. And it's not like it would've killed him!"

Matt laughs. "I remember that."

I look towards where France was, but he's not there. Instead, Denmark is holding Harvey back. I wonder where he went. Looking around, a lot of the other nations are gone, too. Just the Nordics and Canada are left. "Where did everyone go?" I ask.

"Something's wrong with someone named Rin," Finland supplies.

"Wrong?" I repeat. "How long was I out?"

"About ten minutes," Lauren responds. "Don't freak out."

"I'm not freaking out," I protest. "What's wrong with her?"

"I heard England say something about the riddle-thing," Josh supplies. I didn't notice him earlier, so his presence startles me. "Like—oh, wait—"

"What?" I demand.

"It's that Alex person," Harvey supplies. "He's—"

"He's what?!"

Calm down.

I'm calm!

No you're not.

I scowl at him but remain silent as the lookalikes whose nation can see what's going on "watch" what's happening. "'Kay," Josh says after a minute. "He's fine."

"Thanks," I say at him. "What about Rin?"

"Unconscious, but breathing," Harvey supplies.

"What happened to her?"

"So, like, the riddle, you remember it?" Josh says. When I nod, he continues, "Save both but lose one as close as a brother. It means they have to be, like, mad at each other."

"Not just mad," Harvey interjects. "Furious. They have to want each other dead."

"...Oh, just that…," I say. I don't think I could ever be that mad at you….

Mattie doesn't answer for a while. …It'll be hard, he agrees finally.

So, that's what happened to Rin? Then why is she unconscious?

Good question. Then he asks that.

"Her wounds only went away because she was a lookalike. So, now that she's not anymore, they came back, I guess," Josh explains. "Alex freaked out at Romano, so he's not his lookalike anymore. He'd be in the infirmary with her if he wasn't also Italy's lookalike."

"That makes sense…." Not really, but whatever happens happens….

I've never understood magic….

"S—so, all the injuries we had before'll come back. That means a couple of us will—"

"—be in trouble," Josh finishes. "That'll be Dimah, me, Zack, you…."

"Alex, once he breaks off from Italy…." I can't think of anyone else who was hurt before the lookalike thing happened to them. Dimah has the scars from his dad, Josh was shot twice, but he won't be too bad, Zack was shot in the stomach, and then there's my arm and face. Alex has a lot of wounds, from what I've heard.

I get up and walk cautiously to the infirmary. If anyone questions this, I don't know, and frankly, I don't care. I feel overprotective about Rin a little; we kind of bonded by making fun of Japan and me helping her through her lifelong friends being captured and tortured, so she's my friend even if I'm not hers, and I kind of feel responsible….If that makes any sense….

At school, I had the same kind of feeling, excluding the life or death situations. Like, some people would be friendly to me and talk to me and all that, but I never really thought I was their friend because they always had someone they were closer to they would choose over me. It's not like I cared they had different friends, don't get me wrong. It's just, they way they acted around their friends and the way they acted around me were different; I could tell they'd rather be with their friend. I can kinda see that in Rin before Alex turned up, and I don't really blame her: those three, from what I've heard, have been thick as thieves since birth.

As soon as I open the door to the infirmary, I immediately realize I'm not ready for this. The smell of blood, I mean. Seeing a friend lying incapacitated on a bed. The IV tubes sticking out of her arms. Even the sight of Alex stroking her hand, a worried and tired look on his face, makes me want to run away. I don't know why, but I've been more sensitive to these things since Lauren tried to free Russia and she came back almost dead.

I close the door again as Alex glances up at me, and I turn around and walk away, trusting my instincts rather than my mind. As I walk away blindly, I rub my thumb over the curved line separating different halves of the leaf on my necklace, a habit formed long ago.

I wind up in one of the secret passages of the manor. I don't remember how exactly I got in here, and I don't know where this one leads. For a few seconds, I use the dusty wall to keep myself up, trying to control my breathing. It's just… the blood, and…. I can't explain this overwhelming feeling of helplessness. I feel Matthew hovering in the back of my mind, feebly wondering what he can say to calm me down. It's okay, I tell him, it'll pass soon. I can only tell that he nods in consent, entering a conversation with Harvey. Harvey's just curious about Quebec and how many other provinces of his speak French, and how was the French culture affecting his people. Or something like that.

Finally, the dizziness passes and I remove my hand from the wall. I left a handprint in dust. This entire secret corridor gives off the air of unkemptness and dust, from its dimly lit hanging ceiling lamps to the rotting, unpainted wood from the walls and floors. My footsteps make the floorboards squeak and dust fall from the low ceiling, falling on my hair like snowflakes. This passage hasn't been used in quite a while. I can hardly see in this light, so I just take step after step.

This is kinda creepy…. And to add insult to injury, I've seen a few spiders in here too. I hate the little creepers.

A cold draft washes over me, not helping the scariness factor. I have to stop walking when I run face-first into a door I didn't see because of the muted light. I yelp and flinch back, then fumble around for the handle. There's a little hook in the middle of the barrier, so I grasp it and pull, and it swings back.

I look into the startled faces of England, China, America, Italy, Romano, and Russia. "Oh," I say quietly. "Hi, guys."

Italy gets over the shock first. "Hi, Issa!" he chirps, waving from his spot next to Romano. I smile and wave back, then look at the front of the door. It's the painting of Austria that Chibitalia painted a mustache on, hanging over the mantle in the living room.

"Huh," I say. "Who da thunk it?"

England scowls at the grammar but ignores it. "How did you get up there?"

"Found a secret passage," I respond with an innocent shrug. "I was exploring, I guess. Ended up in here, so I just kept walking."

"Which secret passageway?" asks Russia curiously.

"I dunno. I wasn't paying much attention," I reply. "I'll just retrace my steps, then, shall I?" Before they answer, I swing the painting back in place and turn around, walking back through the musty corridor. I come out a few doors down from the courtyard, behind a long red curtain. How the fudge did I find that without paying attention?!

Beats me, Mattie replies. Your memories of that are fuzzy, so I can't really look into those too well.

I replace the curtain over the opening in the wall and turn around, walking back towards the living room. I flop on the seat next to Russia, curling my legs up and leaning on his chest. He immediately pats me on the head. I'm not this cuddly towards all the nations; just the ones I know like to be cuddled, like Russia and Mattie. England has some personal space, but we're good enough friends I can hug him without an immediate tsundere storm. America is fairly cuddly. Italy is cuddly, and so is Rome and Spain. Romano's not. Austria and Switzerland are not. China doesn't really care. France, well, he's a different story entirely.

"The entrance to the secret passage is behind a curtain in front of the courtyard door," I inform them. "Just in case you wanted to know."

No one really answers, and I look at the portrait concealing the passage. It's fairly high up, above the fireplace. If I wanted, I could climb up there and push through the painting door, or vice versa.

I get up and leave again, just wandering now. I make it down a few halls without seeing anyone when I start feeling foggy. Flashback, I register. Before I can panic about how I might accidentally destroy something, I stop in the middle of the hall and sink to my knees, and I fade out.

This flashback unsettles me slightly. I don't know why; we're just in a meeting place for a while. Then I realize I'm actually seeing everything from Mattie's point of view while thinking for myself, something I've never been able to do before. Mattie's not in my head for now, at least. I can tell I'm not moving where I stopped, that's good.

So, all the countries just sit around a table, just like they did at the world conference. Everyone's looking at the Axis, who guiltily avoid all eye contact. This must be right after WWII.

Then, under the loud shouting of the angry world, I hear whispers. I can't hear them very well; they're coming from way down the table where most of the shouting is happening. I can hardly see what's going on, too; other nations blocked Mattie's view. He tried to see, but he also didn't want to. Although the Axis hurt him too, he can't stand people yelling.

I open my eyes. I'm on my tiptoes in the middle of the corridor, just staring down the hall like I'm trying to see over a bunch of people. Just where you'd turn into this hall, Lauren stands, looking uncertain, like she wants to run, but she's afraid to. That must be scary. I mean, I can't control what I do when I flashback, and that's why I need to be tied down when one happens. To walk in on me having a memory unrestrained must be frightening, because I could accidentally hurt her without a second thought. And, by the way I came out of it; I wasn't doing anything but staring right at her. Maybe like I would attack.

The thought scares me a little. The power I have when Matt's flashbacks take over. I mean, he's a pretty laid back nation, but he really knows how to beat the crap outta someone.

"H—hi," I say, breaking the silence.

"Hi," she responds, smiling, albeit a little nervously. "What memory was that?"

"Right after WWII, I think. Everyone was yelling at the Axis," I tell her. "D—did I scare you?"

"A little," she admits. "I mean, I just walk in here and you're staring me down. You kinda looked like a zombie."

"Sorry," I laugh. "Mattie was trying to see over a bunch of people."

Dimah walks up. He gives a nod at Lauren, like he doesn't know they're switched back and Lauren's still England, and then asks me, "Did you just have a flashback?"

I nod. "Yeah. End of WWII?"

"Yes. Did it seem… different?"

"…Yeah, a little…. Did you hear, like—"

"Whispers?"

"Yeah."

"…I think it was the other lookalikes," Dimah says, awkwardly rubbing at his arm.

"I wouldn't really know; Ma—Canada was behind a bunch of other countries a ways away from everyone else. But maybe you're right…."

Lauren wraps her arms around Dimah's stomach. He kind of stiffens and looks down at her. When he uncertainly looks back at me, I nod, confirming that they were switched back. He smiles and bear-hugs her, then kisses her gently on the nose. Lauren giggles.

Suddenly, I hear raised voices. "I heard her! She's alive; we've got to go save her!"

We run down the corridor and stop before the infirmary. The door itself is closed, maybe so Rin isn't startled too badly. Alex is fighting with the various nations there. Though he is outnumbered, he argues passionately. I don't know what happens, but I think Dimah has a vague understanding; he was closer to most of the whispers.

From most of the dispute, I get that Alex heard Sydney's voice, had a small conversation with her, even, and he wants to go save her from Germany. The other nations bicker about how dangerous it is.

"So you're saying we should just leave her there to die," Alex accuses, stepping into England's personal space and clenching his fists dangerously.

"No, that's not what I'm saying!" he protests, backing away to a comfortable distance, but holding his ground other than that. "I'm saying we should wait until—"

"Until you guys finally get your crap together and attack?!" Alex's face is livid, and a snarl ripples his features when he adds, "Or until Syd dies?!"

"That was uncalled for!" England protests.

"But you're not denying it!" With every word, his Italian accent gets thicker as his distress heightens. "You guys don't do anything here but wait for things to work themselves out! You outnumber those guys by a long shot! And you're waiting for nothing! This whole thing could be over and done with if you just show them who's boss!"

"…It's not that simple."

"What's the problem?!" he exclaims; his accent is so thick it's hardly understandable. Then, he backs down, using the wall to hold him steady, breathing heavily. It's not like something's wrong with him. More like he's so overcome with anger and grief that he needs a time out. "I don't understand why you can't just do something! 'Cause if you won't, I'll—"

"No you will not," England interjects firmly. "You will not go and free Sydney. I know it's hard—"

"If I don't, who will?!"

England ignores this. "—I know this is hard for you, but as long as you're Italy's lookalike, you're an asset. And if you break the connection, you'll be in no state to even try."

"I—don't—care!" he shouts. "I don't care if I die as long as she's all right!" He pauses to take a few deep breaths. "I promised I'd rescue her. And I don't give a flying rip if you disagree. I never go back on my promises." And, still glaring down England and the other nations that must've been in the argument earlier, he backs off into the infirmary and plops down on the chair beside Rin.

England just sighs and rakes a hand through his hair. When he stalks off, I hear him mutter, "Teenagers. They never change…."

For a minute, we all just kind of awkwardly stand there. Then, I break the silence and change the subject by asking Lauren, "Have you seen the roof yet?"

She shakes her head. "No, but it sounds cool!"

"I was up there for, like, ten minutes, then Austria found me there and I left," I tell her with a slight shrug. "It's pretty; you can see all of Vienna."

I start leading the way when Alina runs up and latches on to Dimah, and she starts talking quickly in Russian. Maybe she just wants to show him she still can. Dimah waves us forward, saying, "I'll meet you guys later."

I give him vague directions on which secret passages to take, and then we're off. Lauren insists on stopping at the kitchen for tea, and I make us stop for blankets: it's cold up there.

When I find the passage to the roof, Lauren looks amazed. I am too; it's different during the day. Then, for a while, we talk about random things, like, how France's hair looks fancier, or how England's eyebrows seem thicker and just watch the city. Lauren walks towards the railing and leans on it. A slight breeze blows the blanket back.

Suddenly, she puts her mug in the snow and ties the blanket around her neck. Then, turning back to me, she asks, "Who am I?" while putting her hands on her hips in a very dramatic fashion.

"Uhm, America?" I guess. The pose made me think that. Then, I get a better idea: "No, wait, Rome?"

"Yeah!" she says. Then she adjusts the blanket around her neck; this one is a bit more obvious as she smiles eerily.

"Russia!" I say, laughing.

Lauren unties the blanket and starts to do another disguise when she stops, staring at a dark corner at the far side of the roof. I see her stiffen, brown eyes widening slightly. I also pause, fearing the worst. "What's—…?"

Without warning, something small and black but obviously powerful—Teacup, I think— darts out of the shadows and pounces on Lauren. My natural instinct is to yelp and jump back. For a few horrible seconds, Lauren flails her arms, trying to right herself on the railing of the roof. I lunge forward. "Lauren!"

She tips backward off the roof, unable to control herself.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dimah's POV

While I follow Lauren and Issa, Alina runs up and hugs me around my middle. "Dimah, Dimah, I need you," she babbles in Russian.

I smile at them. "Go ahead, I'll be there soon."

"All right. To get there, it's behind this door with a crystal doorknob. I don't think the doorknob actually works, so you have to push on the door and it'll open, and then there'll be this stairway," Issa tells me.

"Okay," I respond.

As they walk away, I hear Lauren ask, "Hey, let's get some tea."

"Okay, Alina, where's the fire?" I ask calmly, petting her hair. I can tell she's distressed; she's not good at showing emotion. It this thing you can only sense if you're around her long enough.

"It's Vera," she tells me.

"Wh—what's wrong with her?"

"I—I can't—"She shakes her head, trembling. "Just come here, I'll show you."

I follow her as she darts off without another word of explanation. She's sprinting, and my worry increases. Should I come help? Russia asks.

No, it's fine. I can handle whatever she can dish out, I dismiss.

Alina stops at a door that's cracked open, staring at it. She breathes heavily, quivering, and she points at it. I push open the door hesitantly. The light from the hall spills over the inky blackness of the dark room until I see Vera's trembling form against the wall. Tears slide down her face. "Vera?" I ask, stepping into the doorway. "What's wrong…?"

She shakes her head vigorously, mouthing something that I don't quite catch.

"What is it, Vera?" I ask again, going forward to her.

She takes a deep breath and says urgently, "It's a trap."

The door snaps shut. For a second, the only thing I'm aware of is black. Then, something cracks against my head sharply. Immediately dizzy, I collapse and the light turns on. I feel Vera next to me, shaking my shoulder and hysterically screaming my name. I hear Alina on the other side of the door call for the both of us once. I see a pair of shoes step closer and closer. My eyes travel up, and a jolt of fear pierces me.

"Father."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Alex's POV

I stroke Rin's hand, gently moving my thumb around the jagged wound on the back of her hand. She fell asleep before the fight. I'm sure she would have supported me, had she been awake. I mean, she misses Syd as much as I do, and she also must wonder why we don't use our numbers against Germany and Japan….

Suddenly, the door bursts open, revealing a young blonde girl. She pants as if she's been running. "H—help, my f—father's going to hurt my sister and brother…!" she begs. I notice her face remains expressionless even through the urgency in her voice and the terror in her eyes. I think I heard something about her: she's Knife's—Belarus, if I'm not mistaken—lookalike, and she's related to Russia's and Pitchfork's—Ukraine's—lookalikes. I don't know her name, but I think I've seen her around.

I nod and stand up, giving Rin one more glance, and I follow the girl as she dashes to a closed door. After pointing at it, she puts her finger to her lips in a signal to be quiet. I nod, and then whisper to her, "You should clear out of here. Go back to the room I was just in, 'kay?" She nods, backs up a few steps, and darts away.

I eye the door cautiously. I wish I had my gun. But I bet I could just beat him up with this sword. I pull the decorative sword from its place on the wall, take a deep breath, and kick the door in. Alex, wait, that's not a very good idea…!

I nearly drop the sword. "Y—you!" I sputter as I stare horrified into the smug rusty brown eyes of our old captor.

TRIPLE PLOT TWIST who was expecting that because i sURE WASN'T

Question one! Are you good with kids?

Question two! Which lookalike will be the next to break the connection?

RANDOM QUESTION! Describe the clothes you're wearing!

Question four! Are you squeamish about blood?

Question five! When's the last time you fell off of anything?

Okay okay okay I'm really sorry for being late. I started writing this on Dec. 20 and now it's Jan. 12th go ahead and kill me. WHICH REMINDS ME if you read my other story I haven't given up on it I'm just lazy I promise

Okay, so, for my answer to RQ, I'm wearing pink and blue striped booty shorts (I know what you're thinking, but these are my pajamas and I haven't changed out of them all day and it's almost 6 PM) and a purple Aeropostale hoodie over a white cami o3o

And that's it BAI