++The first half of this chapter contains some violence, just warning those who aren't comfortable with it. I hope not but I really don't want to end up triggering someone so here's a warning for the whole chapter++
Francois woke to a loud commotion coming from what seemed like the kitchen. He let a grin form on his face before tucking it away, letting a sour expression replace it. Andres still sleeping soundly in the bed next to him.
The Frenchman got up to see what all the commotion was, nearly letting out a laugh at what the argument was about.
Allen, Matt and Oliver were standing in the kitchen facing Feliciano, who was alone. The Italian looked terrified at the angry looks he was receiving, not knowing how to respond though.
"I'm telling you! I didn't touch your stuff!" The auburn haired male squeaked out, eyes unbelievably wide.
"You say that one more time and I'll drive my fist into your face you liar!" Allen screamed, making the 1p flinch and take a step back for good measures.
Oliver wasn't saying a word, just glaring at Feliciano disappointedly. Matt looked a little sceptical, but also a little uncertain.
"Maybe he's telling the truth Allen." The Canadian started, but was ultimately stopped when the American turned his glare on him.
"H-he's right! I-I didn't touch your s-stuff!" Feli stuttered, trembling and scared.
Allen didn't say a word, his glare just grew more vicious as he moved forward. Both Feliciano and Matt were confused until the American raised his fists.
The Italian was seriously winded when a fist swung straight up into his stomach, the other colliding with his jaw and knocking him onto the floor, hitting his head on the countertop as he fell.
The blonde Canadian was astounded that his brother had actually hit the Italian, and he saw that he was about to do it again.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The rough blonde exclaimed and moved to grab Allen's fist, although his brother beat him to it, smashing his nose upon impact. He half collapsed in shock, unable to believe that Allen had done that.
"Get out of my way and don't interfere." He hissed. Matt could only watch wide eyed. His brother had hit him, broken his nose.
"What is going on in here?" Francois entered the scene, looking straight at Feliciano in disgust.
"He stole Oliver's supplies!" The American was quick to explain.
"I-I didn't t-touch your things. I-I promise." The auburn haired Italian whimpered from where he had fallen, leaning against the cupboards, there was a trail of blood leading from his mouth, as well as a cut on the side of his head bleeding, slightly staining the white cupboards.
"He's definitely lying. He's the one that probably caused Luciano to start acting weird too. And cut Flavio's shirt." Francois spilled the lie easily, internally smirking at the small figure on the floor.
"That's right! I bet you did all that and more! You're a thief and a liar!" Allen all but screamed, and Matt could see the tears beginning to gather in the Italian's eyes.
He couldn't do anything though, because it seemed Allen, Oliver and Francois all wanted to see Feli suffer, and three against one, especially whilst he was injured, was impossible to win.
Allen slammed his leg down on the auburn haired male's stomach and chest, not caring about the pained screams and moans Feliciano would let out. He just kept slamming his foot down, listening to things break inside. Aiming kicks at his head every so often. Matt couldn't watch any longer, he turned his head away.
"What the fuck is going on in here!" Alfred's loud voice cut through the sounds of Feli sobbing.
"What does it look like?" Allen spat, coming face to face with Alfred, Ludwig, Francis and Kiku. None of them could contain their shock when they saw just what he had done to Feliciano though.
"Why would you do that?! What did he ever do to you?" Francis had nearly burst out into tears, pushing past the three 2p's to help his younger brother.
"What do you think yo-" Allen had began but was ultimately cut off.
"You lay another hand on him and I'll kill you." Kiku hissed in a tone that no one in the room had heard before, eyes flickering with anger. He had pulled his katana out of nowhere and had it pointed towards Allen.
"It won't just be Kiku either." Ludwig's expression was similar to his Eastern Ally's.
Alfred was marvelled that all three nations of what was once the Axis Powers had remained so close over the years, and were willing to do anything for another if the situation arose.
"Why'd you even do this? What did he do?" The blonde American fought to keep his voice calm and controlled. He was also pretty good friends with Feli, so seeing him bloody and hurt was really pissing him off. He knew how Ludwig and Kiku felt.
"Oliver's cooking supplies. He stole them, I know he did! I found them under his bed in our room!" Allen exclaimed, pointing a finger at the half conscious figure.
The room was silent for a moment before the American continued.
"And I bet he was the one who said something to Luciano and Kuro. I bet he was the one who tore Flavio's shirt apart." The room was silent again.
"Your logic is skewed. Anyone could have placed Oliver's supplies under his bed to frame him. And your last two points are complete gambles!" Francis countered, glaring at Allen, Oliver and Francois.
The rougher version of America looked conflicted, but only for a second. His expression turned to disgust as he moved to leave. "As if."
He didn't get very far before Alfred made him pay for ever hitting Feliciano. The blonde swung his fist straight into the side of his counterpart's face, knocking him sideways. The room seemed to freeze at his actions, Allen looking beyond shocked.
The room was even more shocked when Allen just got up and left, not even throwing another punch back in retaliation, not looking at anyone when he did.
Matt couldn't believe his eyes, seeing his brother just walk off without doing something in return. He was grateful for the hand up from the floor, both of his now covered in blood from his still bleeding nose. Kiku had quickly grabbed him a cloth to cover it. He nodded his thanks.
"Get out." Ludwig hissed towards both Francois and Oliver, the two quickly leaving, but not before Matt noticed the smug expression on the dirty blonde Frenchman. It had only lasted a second, but he knew that it had been directed towards Feliciano. The Canadian narrowed his eyes, mulling over why his France would be looking like that.
Once the two were gone, the group had hurried over to where Francis was supporting Feliciano. The Italian looking worse for wear, tears streaming from his eyes and wounds still bleeding.
"I-I didn't touch h-his stuff... I p-promise." Feli muttered weakly, trembling where he lay.
"We believe you. Someone must have framed you. I don't know why though." Francis replied quietly.
"Was there a motive behind why Allen was so adamant that Feliciano committed the theft?" Kiku inquired, not looking at anyone in particular.
"No. Not that I know of." Matt was the one to reply. It was silent for a small period of time afterwards until Feliciano moved to retch, blood spilling from his mouth and onto the floor.
"Oh god!" Alfred exclaimed in horror.
"He must be bleeding internally, someone go and get Yao!" Francis had ordered and Ludwig and Kiku both rushed off to collect those who could help their wounded friend.
It wasn't long before they returned with Yao and Arthur, both male's eyes widening with shock and horror at the sight, hurrying to Feli's side.
By now most of the house was awake, those not currently wary of the 1p's milling about in the lounge room, not wanting to get in the way.
Ivan and Viktor were both seated on the couch closest to the kitchen, often glancing curiously towards the area. Both had thoughtful expressions on their faces.
Xiao had quietly joined them earlier, but seeing what had happened, quickly joined the small group in the kitchen, also knowing some healing methods.
Matt, Alfred, Kiku and Ludwig had been sent away from the kitchen, after the Canadian's nose had been reset. Matthew had also joined them, his expression horrified at hearing what had happened.
When Gilbert, Antonio, their counterparts, and Lutz finally wandered down to find out what all the commotion was about, they were quite shaken.
"Do you know what could have sparked something like that?" Ivan asked thoughtfully.
The room remained silent for a few moments before Matt spoke up. "I know you probably don't know Allen like I do, but I'm telling you, he wouldn't just attack someone for something as petty as taking cooking supplies, and to that extent."
Most of the other's in the room sent him unbelieving or sceptical looks, he was thankful when Lutz added his view though.
"Yeah, I've known Allen for awhile now, we're pretty good friends. I know he wouldn't just do something as reckless as that. I'm certain. It also may have to do with how Luciano, Kuro and Flávio have been acting lately." The German's statement seemed to get more than a few people thinking.
"If what you're saying is true, and the way Allen acted is out of character means that there is someone else behind all of this. I'm not saying I believe it myself but what if someone stashed Oliver's supplies and framed Feliciano just to cause havoc? What if it was the same person to have destroyed Flávio's shirt?" Kiku explained his hypothesis, the room falling silent once more, albeit the Japanese male noticed that they could see the logic in the statement.
"That sounds like an alright place to start. If we're doing so, then Luciano was the first to start acting out of place, Kuro right behind him. Who was the last to see either of them yesterday?" Matthew began, searching the room for an answer, finding one shortly.
"He was with Feliciano. They were painting I think. But asking either of them is a little difficult at the moment." Ludwig replied, light blue eyes revealing worry for his longtime friend.
"Don't worry, I can ask him when I return if you'd like." Francis's appearance made a few flinch, not expecting it.
"Where are you going?" Gilbert asked curiously, eyes only widening when the Frenchman shuddered.
"To wake Lovino. He wants his brother. You better pray that he doesn't kill your America." The blonde Frenchman muttered wearily, not looking forward to waking the devil. Those in the room seemed to realise how bad this was going to turn out too.
"Oh God..." Alfred blurted out in shock, someone would be dead by the time Lovino was done with them. They were all expecting something less than good to go down.
Francis had made it upstairs and to just outside Feliciano and Lovino's momentarily shared room. He knocked before opening the door, finding the male asleep under a disheveled blanket.
He could see that the slightly older Italian seemed to be experiencing some sort of pain, letting out soft groans and tiny sobs every so often. It was obvious that he was feeling Feliciano's pain.
The bright eyed Frenchman reached down to grab the Italian's shoulder, carefully shaking him awake, being aware of the dark bruises staining his skin. It didn't take long for Lovino to wake, jumping up with a start, tears welling in his eyes.
Light blue met olive green and Francis could only sympathise with his brother. He was glad not to be the one feeling Feliciano's pain.
"It's ok. I've been with him the whole time. Yao, Xiao and Arthur are currently with him. Calm down. There's a lot to explain, so if you would follow me." Lovino looked as if he wanted to scream and shout and rip the closest person's head off, but Francis's calming words seemed to do their job, he was still livid though.
He pulled on a shirt whilst following after the blonde quietly, he didn't know if he was ready to face the others yet, but he needed Feliciano, and his brother needed him, so fuck everyone else.
Whilst the group downstairs waited for the duo to return, discussion on the previous topic was continued.
"If you'd like I can speak to Luciano and Kuro. Ask them why they've been acting so strange." Lutz suggested, knowing that if anyone was to try talking to the duo, it would be him. The three had remained great friends over the years.
"Oh yes. If you could, that would be great." Kiku almost exclaimed, happy to have any sort of lead to what was going on. The violet eyed German smiled warmly before hurrying upstairs.
It wasn't long before Francis made a reappearance, Lovino dragging his feet behind him. The Italian looking worse for wear, quiet noticeable tear tracks staining his cheeks. His eyes were full of fire though, a lividness like none many had seen before in the olive colour.
It came as a surprise that the usually loud and angry Italian hadn't made a sound, just glaring coldly, ignoring the stares at the dark, contrast bruises covering all areas of his skin.
"He's in the kitchen." Was all Francis muttered and moved to take a seat in the lounge, Lovino hurrying towards the kitchen, remaining quiet.
The whole time Yao, Arthur and Xiao has been working on resetting the Italian's ribs, and mending the puncture hole in his lung. After the Brit had used his magic to scan for any internal injuries, they had discovered the cause of the bleeding, a lung puncture. He could remedy the wound using a fair amount of magic, but it was obviously worth it, as well as set his ribs back into place. The Chinese counterparts had worked on the head wounds, stitching the large gash, and wrapping it in gauze and bandage.
They'd been lucky that his jaw hadn't been broken, only suffering severe bruising. The task was almost complete when Lovino walked in, just as quiet as he had been all morning.
The trio had been shocked, and also expecting to be roared at, but the Italian said nothing, eyes just continuing to glare at the ground.
Yao, Arthur and Xiao quickly excused themselves after finishing, the emerald eyed blonde removing the sleeping spell he'd casted to keep Feliciano from moving about, and feeling the pain of his wounds.
"Thank you." Was all Lovino said, the words nearly missed by the three. They weren't expecting it, not expecting to see the older Italian collapse beside his brother, tears threatening to fall.
"That was too private." Arthur whispered and only received nods in return. After leaving the kitchen, they quietly shut the door, not wanting to interrupt either side.
"What was wrong?" Ludwig and Kiku almost asked at the same time, both extremely worried for their friend.
"Nothing I couldn't fix with my magic. Broken ribs, punctured lung, the head wound and severe bruises everywhere else." Arthur explained solemnly as he took his seat.
"He'll recover fine now though. Don't worry." Yao tried to reconcile them all, moving to sit. Xiao right behind him, feeling quite shy.
"Now I think we need to be filled in." Th Brit stated and only received nods in agreement.
"This may come as a shock to you, but... we believe we may have discovered something shocking." Matt began.
When Lutz arrived at the door to the room Kuro and Luciano were currently staying in, he gave a quick knock before entering, finding Kuro reading something from a shelf, whilst Luciano was situated over a sketchbook, scribbling absentmindedly.
Both glanced up, looking relieved to find that it was only him.
"Okay, what's going on with you two? I need to know now." The German jumped straight to the point, surprising both Luciano and Kuro. Neither 2p expecting the question, or knowing how to answer properly.
Lutz sighed at the silence, moving to sit beside Kuro. "Look, Allen just beat the hell out of your 1p and we need to know why." This got a reaction.
"What?" Luciano asked, not sure if he had heard him right.
"You're kidding right?" Kuro was on his feet, looking astounded.
"Yeah. The thing is Allen usually wouldn't do something like that. We all believe it has something to do with the reason you two have been so standoffish lately." The German explained, wanting an answer.
Luciano threw his sketchbook to the floor and stood up, anger in his eyes. "Francois told us all about it. Everything the 1p's have said about us. Doesn't that make you angry too?"
"What are you talking about?" Lutz was more confused than anything.
"What?! Don't mess around with me!" The magenta eyed Italian was getting defensive, raising his fists.
"Calm down. Alright. Just tell me what he told you." Lutz could see that his Italian friend was growing upset, his expression softening.
Luciano went quiet, eyes boring into the ground, his fists shaking. It came as a shock to both the German and Kuro when they saw the tears slowly slipping from his eyes.
"Francois told us that the 1p's talk about us, send us condescending looks, said we're irrelevant and pointless. I know you probably don't even give a shit, but I do! Do you know how long it took me to trust you two? I was only just starting to trust them... and then they go and do that..." The auburn haired Italian drawled off with a sob, hiding his face in his hands.
Lutz didn't know how to respond to that. Of course he had known about Luciano inability to trust people, but he had no idea about what Francois had said.
Kuro had already moved to comfort the other, the German quickly following in his footsteps. Once the Italian had finally managed to calm down and look like he wasn't just crying, the German grabbed his arm, smiling warmly.
"I'm telling you, they don't hate us, or look down on us. If you don't believe me, come and ask for yourself. What you told me seems quite strange too. They'd all want to hear it, it could be helpful." Lutz suggested and Luciano had to mull it over for a moment before agreeing to come downstairs.
"Okay, alright. I'll come with you. But you better be telling the truth." The Italian gave in, wiping his eyes dry.
"You said something's going on, what exactly is it?" Kuro asked, confused.
"We'll explain it all when we get downstairs. We believe that there's something bigger at play here." Lutz explained, leading the way from the room.
"Fratello?..." Feliciano murmured, eyes flickering.
Lovino was taken by surprise before reaching down to help his brother sit up, back against the cupboards.
"Feli? How are you feeling?" The older Italian's eyes were full of worry. He wasn't crying anymore though.
"In pain... My head hurts, so does my chest." The amber eyed male wheezed, his voice hoarse.
Lovino grabbed his hand soothingly, closing his eyes. When they reopened though, his olive orbs were full of anger.
"Who did this to you?" He asked calmly, hiding the anger in his voice.
"Allen. Please don't do anything reckless though!" Feliciano explained, looking directly into his brother's eyes.
"Reckless? Pfft. As if." Lovino snorted and Feli only narrowed his eyes.
"Fratello..." The younger auburn haired Italian started weakly. Amber meeting olive. Finally the older brother cursed and turned to look at the ground.
"You know me too well Feli. Okay I promise I won't hurt him too badly." Lovino muttered, letting out a sigh.
Feliciano only poked his tongue out at his brother, looking slightly smug. It was silent before the darker haired Italian wrapped his arms around the other tightly, being careful of his injuries.
"I'm just glad you're okay. We've got something to sort out with the others though." He explained softly, standing and helping his brother up after.
"Grazie. I think we do. I promise I didn't take anything." The amber eyed male leaned against his brother for support, missing the confused look directed at him
"I believe you, and I'm pretty sure everyone else in the lounge room does too. Let's go, I want some answers." Lovino muttered and started towards the door, helping Feliciano to walk.
When the older brother opened the door, all talk in the room ceased for a few long moments before the noise continued, many exclaiming their relief at seeing the younger Italian up and about.
"Quickly come take a seat, we have a lot to discuss."
I really like this chapter, but I'm not sure how the rest of you would perceive it, so I put a warning on just to be safe. Especially after the last few chapters.
Francois's evil plans are about to go down the drain, and everything will most likely be sorted out next chapter.
Thanks for reading and reviewing. I wrote this chapter back in 2018 and I wont be editing it until I finish the fanfic.
-Ella
