A/N: WHAT'S THIS?! A CHRISTMAS UPDATE SPECIAL?! YES! I am BACK! Merry Christmas (eve for me) everyone! As a gift for you all, I'm updating as many of my stories as I can! I hope you enjoy this special update, and stay tuned (what is this a show?) for the next update~!

Chapter 59: The Difference in Power

Feliciano sighed as the four of them came up to the Front Door of the Mansion. It looked the same. He could almost forget that he was in the wrong world. He couldn't contact Luciano mentally, but… that didn't really matter much right now.

"Come on, stick by me so you don't die." Kuro rolled his eyes as he looked back at Feliciano.

"I've always wondered…" Lutz started, "what's the 1P world like?"

"Uh… well, I'm not really sure how to explain it… We don't have monsters or Domes like you, and our air… while not the freshest per se, isn't usually toxic." Feli explained, tense and on-edge.

I wonder if it happens in the same order? He wondered.

A crash down the hallway made Klaus and Feli jump, while Kuro and Lutz tensed and fell into battle-ready positions.

Kuro looked like he was going to call one of the others to him, before looking at Feli. "Fine. Come on, we'll all go check it out."

"Normally, he'd just take Klaus with him, leaving me with Lutz." Luciano explained.

"But because I was there, he didn't want to leave me without protection. He only trusted himself to fully protect me from an unknown danger." I explained. "Thanks for that, by the way."

"Shut up. I didn't do it because I liked you or anything." Kuro huffed. "It's starting to actually come back to me… this is weird."

"Ja… It's very strange." Klaus agreed.

The nations turned back to the memory when it blurred to the Kitchen.

"This might help you out a bit." I started. "Our Mansions are set up the exact same, even if the color scheme varies a little and whatnot. But we've got the same rooms in the same locations."

"That's actually rather helpful." England nodded.

"Oh, yes. It'd be terribly confusing if they were flipped or mirrored!" Oliver tapped his chin. "Especially when you've been used to one single layout for so long."

"It's a fucking plate." Memory Kuro said, staring down at the broken plate on the floor.

"But… why?" Lutz puzzled.

"Because something's here, obviously." Kuro responded. "Stay on guard. Whatever broke it is likely close by."

But of all the 2Ps, it was Feliciano who heard it first. His blade was out an instant later, and it blocked a vicious tail swipe that would've decapitated Klaus.

The Thing stood tall and lean, its charcoal colored scales and long whip-like tail that ended in a scythe-like blade easily gave away its element. It was a Fire Thing. The jackal-like face snarled, showing sharp gleaming teeth as flames licked its lips.

It glared at Feliciano in confusion. For a moment, the 2Ps could only stare. They hadn't seen it coming, they hadn't heard the creature move, but somehow, the 1P had. And he just saved Klaus.

Feliciano said nothing as he pushed back, knocking the Thing off-balance before attacking. He ducked under a claw-swipe and narrowly avoided a jet of flames from the beast's mouth.

"1P!" Kuro called out, and instinctively, Feli knew what Kuro wanted. He hit the floor just as Kuro jumped out from behind him, and slashed at the creature's neck, nearly cutting it off.

Feli then pounced from the shadow of the 2P, slicing the Fire Thing's forehead, causing it to vanish.

"What the… hell was that?" Lutz asked, shell-shocked. "I've never seen anything like that before."

"Neither have I…" Kuro admitted, before turning to give Feliciano an appraising look. "Not bad. You move well for a 1P. Not at all like the sniveling coward we keep hearing about."

"People change." Feli shrugged as he sheathed his blade. "Maybe I got tired of being a pushover." He met Kuro's gaze steadily, and the dark-haired nation cracked a wicked smirk before slinging an arm around his shoulders.

"I think you and I are going to get along just fine."

"You got Kuro to like you." Japan stared blankly at me for a moment.

"Yes?"

"That's…" Japan couldn't find the words to convey his thoughts. I snorted in amusement.

"You weren't holding up a façade at all." England observed.

"I figured it wasn't worth the effort. If anything, showing them my strength and value as a fighter would be more beneficial in the long-run." I shrugged. "Though being myself does have some drawbacks, but…" I shook my head as the next memory faded in.

Feliciano was sitting at the table in the Fireplace Room with six 2Ps. Viktor (2P Russia), Klaus, and Jason were missing.

"So let me get this straight." Memory Oliver started, "Viktor, Klaus, and Jason are missing, and before even coming to this place Luciano and his 1P were somehow switched, so we're stuck with Feliciano instead of our knife-happy Luci?"

"Pretty much." Kuro nodded.

"I am not babysitting a fucking weak-assed 1P." Markus crossed his arms, glaring at Feliciano, who glared right back.

"You wanna fight me, Markus? I'll prove you wrong right here, right now."

"Cool it, Feli." Kuro placed a hand on the brunette's shoulder. "He's not a liability. We've run into a few monsters in the day we've been here, and Feli's actually a competent fighter. I trust him in battle."

"That is a very high compliment." Japan noted aloud.

Several of the 2Ps in the memory stared at Kuro in shock, before turning appraising gazes on the 1P in the room.

"All right." Markus nodded. "I'll give you the chance to prove yourself, then. You trip me up or slow me down, though, and I'll end you."

"Since I can't trust a single one of you fuckers alone, we'll group up." Kuro decided. "I'll go with Lutz and… ugh, Li to figure out where this Study is." He held up the key.

"You know you loooove me." Li smirked, but Kuro just sent him a glare.

"Shut up, or I'll shut you up." Kuro promised before turning back to the group at hand.

Just as Kuro finished pairing everyone up, a normal Thing burst through the door to the Fireplace Room. And just like he always did in his own Mansion, Feliciano was the one to block the first hit, impressing several of the 2Ps.

"Go!" Feli ordered, his tone left no room for argument.

"All right, pretty boy, let's see how you fight." Markus smirked as he held his hockey stick before him (which several of the observing 1Ps realized had a blade at the end of it).

Feliciano smirked as the others left the room, leaving Markus, Feliciano, and Louis in the room with the Thing. Louis was in the corner, a gun in his hand.

The observing 1Ps puzzled. I knew they were confused and concerned because Louis was stuck in a wheelchair. But they didn't know Louis like I did. They didn't know that he was one hell of a fighter, chair or no chair. He was a force to be reckoned with, and I was honestly insulted on his behalf that they immediately thought him a liability because of it.

Feliciano's eyes flickered to Louis for a moment, causing the blond to scowl. Feli's eyes lit up in realization, and his smirk became a full-blown grin. He sent Louis a wink before guiding the Thing into the perfect position for Louis to snipe it right to the head.

The beast fell and vanished.

"Okay. I'm impressed. You've been holding shit back from the 1Ps, haven't you?" Markus leaned against the overturned table casually.

"Well, I can't exactly just show up kicking ass one day, and go 'Ve~ Sorry I lied to you all these years about being a weak sissy! I just wanted to be friends~!' Like they'd believe that." Feli shook his head.

"Maybe they would." Louis shrugged. "You never know."

"You're a good shot." Feli noted. "What else do you specialize in?"

"I'm fair with a blade, too, though I prefer ranged combat." Feliciano nodded to Louis' words.

"Hey, look. It's a clock." Markus blinked at the analog clock he'd found in the drawer. "Why the fuck is it stuck in a damned drawer?"

Feliciano winced as Markus accidentally slipped on a broken piece of table. The clock slipped through his hands, and shattered on the floor with a resounding crash!

Again, reality warped and Feli swayed a bit. Louis and Markus only checked out for a brief moment before coming back to themselves.

"It wasn't shown, but I got a few Memory Clock Flashbacks from Luciano's Mansion." I informed the others, who blinked in surprise.

"So the memories triggered by the clocks… aren't necessarily your own?" England tilted his head.

"I believe it may be a case of the memories themselves being held within the clocks. Memories cannot be erased, but they can be transferred. Perhaps they're actually inside the clocks?" Oliver theorized.

"Then why can we remember these things now, if our memories aren't in our heads?" Germany asked.

"Because we escaped, numbskull." Luciano butted in. "The important memories left the Mansion with you, but stayed locked in your subconscious. The irrelevant or mundane ones were either disregarded and forgotten, or still live within that Mansion to this day."

"Wait! You mean that place is still standing?!" America paled, as did several other nations.

"Well, I mean, I'm not exactly keen on sending someone back there to try to burn it, and I'm not about to drop a nuke on the damn place…" I shoved my hands in my pockets as the memory flickered, showing a few scenes of Feliciano and the other 2Ps fighting, before finding Jason and the others.

And Jason and Feliciano hit it off about as well as soda and mentos.

"So what if he can fight? He's a fucking 1P. A wimpy assed one, too. We don't need him. He's not one of us, so don't fucking treat him like one." Jason hissed.

"You wanna talk shit about me, say it to my fucking face." Feli snapped, startling the other 2Ps, who hadn't really seen him angry before.

"You. Are. A fucking liability, and should stay out of my way." Jason glared at Feli.

"Okay, then." Feli gave him the sweetest smile he could, which looked far too innocent for his bloody clothes, before he ruthlessly kneed Jason between the legs. "Then stay out of my way, you motherfucker."

The nations—both memory and present—winced as Memory Jason barely stayed standing.

"YOU FUCKER!"

"Well, you won't be able to do that for a while." Feli replied coolly, causing Markus to snort in amusement.

"I'm going to fucking kill you."

"Oh, that's an original threat. Like I haven't heard that one a million times. Can't you be more creative?" Feli smirked, playing with a pocketknife.

"Damn, he really looks like Luciano, right now." Klaus remarked to the shell-shocked 2Ps. Several nodded.

"Something about this isn't right." Kuro muttered to himself, an unusual shine of concern in his eyes. "A 1P shouldn't be so similar to their 2P unless something drastic happened."

"How do you mean?" Lutz's brows furrowed in concern.

Before Kuro could answer, Markus stepped in, holding Feliciano from behind so he couldn't go through with his threat of castration on Jason. Likewise, Oliver was holding Jason back by the ear.

"Now, children, can we just get along for a little while? I'm not sure if you've noticed, but things are awfully quiet in the mindscape, now aren't they?" Oliver's words caused the 2Ps to freeze up.

"I… can't feel my Network." Markus looked downright terrified for a moment, as did the rest of them. The only one who wasn't phased was Feliciano.

"You aren't scared at all?" Viktor spoke up quietly.

"I haven't felt my people since I came to this world. Don't you remember how disorientated and scared I was when you found me, Kuro?" He looked at the aforementioned nation, who was quickly recovering from his shock.

"Yeah… I'd never seen someone pale so much. I suppose that makes sense, but why didn't you say anything sooner?"

"Just like you've heard stories of my cowardice, I've heard stories of your ruthlessness and bloodthirsty nature. Many of the 1Ps are terrified of you guys." Feli shrugged. "I wasn't about to go out and announce my apparent sudden mortality when I didn't even know where I was."

"I suppose that's fair." Kuro nodded, accepting his explanation.

The memory shifted again, showing everyone tucked safely away in the Safe Room asleep. Everyone except for Feliciano, who went to the Safe Room Bathroom. He hesitated a moment before placing his hand on the mirror.

A moment later, another hand rested on his, and Luci was shown. Feli gave a massive sigh of relief.

"Oh, thank Time." Feli sighed in relief. "I wasn't sure if it'd worked. You're in my Mansion, right?"

"I'm actually shocked that they haven't killed you yet." Luci blinked in surprise, causing the watching 2Ps to snort in amusement.

"Actually, I'm getting along with almost everyone fairly well~! Kuro even said that he trusts me in a fight, and Mark complimented my fighting skills, too~"

"Wait, did you just call him Mark?! He never lets anyone call him that." Luci stared in disbelief.

"How's my group handling everything?"

"Er…" Luci looked away, a bit embarrassed. "They're way to fucking trusting, you know that? I mean, they were really wary of me at first, which was fine, but then they just… Like, as soon as they realized I was on their side against these fuckers, they were all supportive and shit. It's so damn weird!" Luci pulled at his hair in frustration. "They only briefly considered the possibility of me working with these Things! Like, seriously?! I'm the most likely suspect, being an outsider, but they trust my judgment! Your group is so fucking strange!"

"You sound like you're having a grand 'ol time." Feli chuckled.

"Oh, you're both so fucking entertaining right now." Memory Yang materialized on Feli's side of the mirror, leaning casually against the bathroom counter. He was see-through, so he couldn't interact with anything.

"And you're fucking annoying." Luci glared death at Yang. "How the fuck do you handle him in your brain all the time?"

"You mean he's been hitching a ride with you?" Feli raised an eyebrow at his white-haired counterpart.

"What? Thought you'd appreciate a break from me for once."

"Okay, well, I have no idea how the fuck this shit happened, but we need to figure out a solution fast. Because if I have to loop back for you, I'll have to learn how to act like you." Feliciano stated. "Kuro may trust me in battle, but he's been eyeing me lately. I think he's caught on to something being seriously wrong. The others are still in shock that I'm more like them than a normal 1P, but once that shock wears off, they'll know something's wrong, too. They know it's not normal for our personalities to be so similar. It'll make them question things."

"Yeah, I can see that being a major problem." Luci nodded. "Though you might wanna explain everything to them, soon. If I know my group—and I know my group—it won't take them much longer before they start putting the wrong pieces together. They know someone's behind this stupid Mansion bullshit, and the first person they'll logically blame is the odd-man out. You."

Feliciano winced, a brief flashback of 222 playing through his mind. "Right. I'll explain it to them in the morning. Any advice?"

"Call me up if you need added proof. They'll believe it if it comes from me."

"Grazie, fratello."

"Yeah, yeah." Luci waved him off. "Just… be careful."

"Si." Feli nodded. "So about this whole, needing to act like you, thing…"

The scene faded out.

The nations were shown flashes… images of Feliciano sitting down with the 2Ps and explaining about being a Ryuuzu and time travel. As Luci had predicted, he needed to call his 2P up in the mirror to prove the authenticity of his words.

"So he's really?" Kuro stared between the two Italies in shock. "Holy fuck."

"Yeah, I'd say that about sums up this situation." Markus nodded. "Though holy shit, you've been through a fuck ton of shit, haven't you, 1P?"

"I mean, it's really my fault that my group entered the Mansion anyhow. I heard the rumors." Feli shrugged, but the 2Ps didn't look convinced.

"How many loops have you two been through?" Oliver asked.

"This is… 301 for me." Luci admitted, a light pink tinge on his cheeks.

Markus whistled. "I was not expecting that."

Feliciano gave a dark laugh. "This is 13,001 for me." The 2Ps choked on the air.

"How long have these loops been?" Oliver asked cautiously.

"Mine average about 4 months or so." Luci answered.

"Mine vary drastically. Some last only a few days, but I've had several that lasted months. One even lasted more than two years." Feliciano shrugged. "I don't bother to really keep track anymore, even if the Blood Number Room does it for me."

"Oh, yeah. I keep forgetting about that room." Luci tapped his chin. "It's not where the key is typically kept in my Mansion, so I usually don't bother unlocking the Fifth Floor."

"Yeah, well it's typically where mine is, so you'd better get used to it." Feli shot back. "Oh, and be careful not to take too long. I don't think I'll need to warn you after you've seen my Blood Number Room for the first time—the Time-Shards should be enough—but just in case. And don't stay holed up in the Safe Room longer than you need to. Send out scouts." Feli advised.

"I do have your Journal, you know. I've seen the shit you've got written down in there. Your handwriting sucks, by the way."

"Like yours is any better?" Feli held up the black Journal. "I think between the two of us, Kiku's handwriting is the best."

"My 1P was allowed to write in your magic book?" Kuro blinked in surprise.

"Only because I went blind and couldn't see." Feli answered casually.

"I am not processing that right now." Kuro decided.

The scene changed again, showing a montage of Feliciano fighting alongside the 2Ps. Of all of them, Feliciano was notably closest to Kuro, Markus, and Louis.

Finally, it slowed down on one particular scene. They'd been in the hallway of the Third Floor, fighting a Fire Thing, when another, faster, Thing came out of nowhere.

It wasn't covered in scales, like the other Things were. Instead, dark black leathery skin stretched taut across a lean frame that was covered in shadows that danced like fire. Its back legs looked cat-like, and it walked upright on its toes. A long tail ended in a spade shape, and didn't appear to have any kind of blade or spike. Its arms ended in five-fingered hands that looked distinctly human, while the head was also distinctly humanoid, with a section of shadows that spiked like hair. Sharp reddish white eyes followed every movement, grinning when it saw its prey.

I shuddered. "A Shadow Thing."

"I'm sorry?" England questioned, as the Shadow Thing seemed to vanish for a moment before scratching Kuro with its claws that hadn't been there a moment ago.

In that moment, Kuro's eyes seemed to become unfocused, and his head whipped around in confusion and a small bit of fear.

"What's happening?" Japan asked, concerned.

"The Shadow Things… They have the ability to rob you of all five of your senses for ten seconds." Luciano explained. "All they need to do is cut you somehow. Once their shadows get into your bloodstream, it starts. Of course…" He winced as Kuro cried out in pain when the Shadow Thing whacked him with its tail, and Feli barely blocked another strike that would've killed him. "You still feel pain."

Feliciano was also hit by the claws of the Shadow Thing, as he saw several of the other 2Ps run around the corner to come help.

By the time his vision returned, the Shadow Thing looked at Feliciano with a sickening grin. All around him, the 2Ps were dead.

"You… You do not belong here." It spoke. Its voice was layered like many different people were whispering in sync.

Feliciano startled badly. "You can talk?"

"I am an Alpha." It said. "I do the bidding of my master, because I was not strong enough."

"Not strong enough?" Feliciano puzzled.

The Shadow Thing stared at him for a moment. "Never Surrender, Ryuuzu." It warned him, mouth opening to show neat little rows of pearly white razor sharp teeth. It then moved to leave.

"W-wait! What are you?! Why are you doing this to us?!" Feliciano pleaded desperately.

"We are monsters. Demons. Things. We obey his orders." It then vanished.

"His…? So… there's someone pulling the strings?" Feliciano's eyes were wide.

"Woah! Hold up! Back up the fire truck, here!" America held his hands up as he spoke. "You mean that there's a dude who orchestrated this entire clusterfuck?!"

"Yep." I nodded, earning a whack from Luciano. "What?! The memory literally just said that!"

"We can't tell you anything more. Not without incurring…" He trailed off.

"Yeah, just trust us on this one. The memories should eventually explain it, but that won't come up until much later." Yang nodded.

"Well… I suppose there's not much to do but move on to the next round." Feli sighed. "I'm sorry, everyone… I'll be better next time." He nodded resolutely as he found the Grandfather Clock and reset it. "13,002."

The memory faded to black.