Thanks to UniAina and FerayEs for reviewing.
Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.
Chapter 134
When Spain, Guatemala and Norway returned to the camp, to say that there were a few upset nations would be an understatement. About half the camp was in uproar, and Turkey stormed towards Spain. If not for the boy in Spain's arms, Turkey would have grabbed him by the shirt or even the neck.
"What were you thinking?" he snarled. "What made you think that going off on your own was a good idea? And where did you even go? And who are they?"
"How much do you know?" Spain asked.
"Enough to know that you left the country. China couldn't sense you anywhere. Now, where were you?"
"Malta. This morning, I accidentally went beyond the wards. I was visited by my regions, who told me to rescue the ones that were still alive. Now, before you interrogate me further, Murcia needs medical attention. Andalusia said that he was asleep for a long time."
Spain could see Turkey's eyes narrow behind the mask, but the Eurasian nation pulled away. China and France rushed forward, and China's eyes flashed in panic.
"He's in a famine-induced coma," China said, gently taking the boy from Spain's arms. "If he doesn't get nourishment into his system soon, I'm afraid that he will slip away. And something about him seems…"
"He die again, he die forever," Andalusia explained.
Spain shuddered, and China rushed Murcia away, discussing possible solutions with France. Turkey's mask was removed to allow him to massage his temples before he reapplied it and turned to Spain.
"Now, could you please explain why you decided to go after them?" Turkey ordered. "And I'm not buying any 'that's the right thing to do' or 'they're my family' crap. You possibly endangered two other nations, and for what? Because a bunch of ghosts asked you to? Why didn't you go back once you saw you were too far out?"
Spain didn't answer immediately, instead allowing his eyes to roam around. He took a deep breath before focusing on Turkey.
"Costa Rica," he said. "Cuba. Dominican Republic. El Salvador. Guatemala. Honduras. Nicaragua. Panama. Paraguay. Puerto Rico. These are the nations in this camp that were in danger. I would have gone for my regions either way, but if I took too long, then there was a greater chance for them to be attacked too." He looked towards the three girls that they had rescued, and also noticed the wide-eyed look that Guatemala gave him. She hadn't known that she was in danger until that very moment. "I've been waiting for any hint to your location and wasn't about to let it go. I've failed you long enough."
"Okay," Turkey said, reminding Spain that they were still in the middle of a conversation/lecture. "Fine. Other nations were in danger. You could have still told us. What if you were attacked by Requiem?"
"It's also why I wanted to go as soon as possible. It was still night-time, and Malta shares her brothers' hatred of mornings."
Turkey grumbled, but Spain could still tell that he was angry at him. Russia stepped forward, his smile a bit too wide on his face.
"Now then, you had contact with the spirits when contact was supposed to be impossible," Russia said. "And you assumed that their threats could be carried out behind the wards…"
"Trust me, they'll have ways to get inside," Spain said.
"…And you decided to take on a rescue mission without consulting the rest of us. Is there anything else we should know?"
"…Yes, actually. Russia, Turkey, and Saudi, I'd like to talk to you in private. France already knows, and we can tell China later."
The three that formed part of the de-facto leaders exchanged a look, but Spain could tell that they were intrigued. Finally, Turkey sighed, gesturing for the group to follow and shooting a look to anyone else that might be tempted to eavesdrop.
…
"…Slovenia, huh?" Haiti groaned. "Why can't Vlad do this?"
"Because Vlad's been doing a lot of this kind of stuff lately," Portugal sighed. "And I can't ask Will. He and Jeng were only just reunited, and he's in position in case Egypt shows up. We can't afford to lose that strategic position. Themba is missing, and if I ask Anika, Roberto will have my head."
"Okay, fair point. He's a bit clingy at the moment. But… What about Scotland? He's with Matt and the others, right?"
"Sim, but he's not one of us, and he's also still getting used to everything. Unless he volunteers to help, we can't ask him. Ireland made it clear that he had a grudge against Scotland, and we can't afford to drive him away. Or do you want someone else to be tortured and killed by Requiem?"
Haiti remembered the description of what happened to England, and if Ireland was the one that did that, then he knew that his conscience wouldn't agree to allow Scotland in a position where he might be vulnerable. He tried to think of anything else, before realising that he didn't have a good reason to reject the request. Still, he wasn't too happy.
The reason why was sleeping beside him. For the last few days, São Tomé was feverish and lethargic, and very rarely nauseous. Haiti didn't really want to leave him alone, but logically, he knew that there were other nations that could take care of him, such as Príncipe.
"Alright," he said. "I'll go to Canada as soon as I can. Just need to get dressed and tell Tiago where I'm going."
"Obrigado," Portugal said. "How is Tiago? I checked on him earlier and he told me that he wasn't feeling well."
Haiti smiled. While Portugal would regularly check in on the members of Alvora as part of his duties as a leader, he would pay special attention to the colonies that he took under his wing. It included Haiti to a lesser extent, who was still young when he was approached by Portugal. It was one of the reasons why he respected the European nation.
Haiti placed his hand on São Tomé's forehead and grimaced.
"He's a bit warm," Haiti announced. "But there's a possibility that it could just be from the bed."
"Right…" Portugal was not convinced. "Leave him some medicine and instructions to rest. And tell Patricio to keep an eye on him."
"Of course. Tell Mathieu that I'll be there soon. I'll just add telling Patricio to my to-do list."
"Oh, and could you come pick Feliks and Gilbert up? They want to help, and considering they might be waking up soon, a stronger offense could be needed."
"Alright."
After ending the call, Haiti prioritised getting dressed before waking São Tomé. He hesitated, before he went over to Príncipe's room. He glanced towards Equatorial Guinea sleeping next to Príncipe and realised that he was also a candidate to help Canada, but now it was too late. He completely forgot about him. He blamed it on the earliness of the hour.
"Hey, Patricio," Haiti whispered, shaking the other nation's shoulder.
Príncipe groaned. Despite the darkness, Haiti knew the moment he opened his eyes. He could feel the glare.
"What is it?" Príncipe groaned.
"Miguel wants me to help Mathieu out with a rescue," Haiti explained. "And Tiago hasn't been feeling too well the last few days. Could you please keep an eye on him?"
"What's wrong with him?" Príncipe was noticeably more awake.
"He's been nauseous from time to time, but mostly feverish and lethargic. There's always a chance he could get worse. So, if that happens while I'm not around, could you look after him?"
"Of course. He's my brother."
Satisfied that São Tomé would be taken care of, he went to the kitchen to retrieve a bottle of water and a bottle of pills for a mild fever before returning to his room. He placed the items on São Tomé's bedside table before he shook his lover awake. He felt warmer now.
"Agewe?" he asked, his voice a little raspy.
"Sorry to wake you," Haiti said. "Miguel wants me to help Mathieu with something. How are you feeling?"
"I'm… A little warm. What are you helping him with?"
"He needs a lift to Slovenia. I got you some medicine if you think you're getting a fever."
"Oh. Thanks…"
"And you need to stay in bed, alright?"
São Tomé's response came in the form of a groan. Haiti smiled, before he kissed his lover on the head. The strands were already damp.
He hoped that their mission finished quickly so that he could return to take care of the other male.
…
"Okay, I think this is as private as we're going to get," Turkey said. "Now, what's going on?"
They were as far away from the camp as they could get without crossing the wards. Of course, Spain was the only one that knew that the wards were no longer working, so it wouldn't have mattered.
"My regions told me something else this morning," Spain said. "Requiem has a spy among us."
The other three exchanged a look. Saudi Arabia frowned before turning his full attention to Spain.
"How do you know that they were speaking the truth?" he asked.
"I feel it instinctively," Spain said. "I don't know how to explain it. I just know that they weren't lying. Unfortunately, they didn't tell me who the spy is."
"Of course not," Russia said. "That would have been too easy. But it makes sense. After all, you've been sharing information with your brother. Why would it be strange to assume that someone else would be sharing similar information with Requiem? Now, who would be close to a member?"
The other three didn't say anything as they stared at Russia. He looked at each of them in turn with a confused expression on his face.
"What?" he asked at last.
"You do remember that you have a sister in Requiem, right?" Turkey asked. "Which makes you one of the more likely people to be a spy."
"Are you accusing me of something?" Russia's smile was icy.
"Nope. Just pointing out that you shouldn't be a hypocrite. But if we're going according to closeness, Ukraine is another likely suspect."
Russia's smile completely fell.
"Katyusha is innocent!" he insisted.
"We're not accusing her," Saudi Arabia said. "Just pointing out that, according to your logic, it's possible."
"Think it might be a sleeper?" Turkey asked.
"No," Spain sighed. "They specifically said that it wasn't a sleeper. This is someone fully aware of what they're doing. They just didn't tell me who, probably because of the way we're acting now."
There was silence as each of them worked to calm themselves. Saudi Arabia was the first to take a deep, decisive breath.
"Now that the possibility has been raised," he said, "how are we going to go about it? What are we going to do?"
"Those are good questions," Russia said. "Well, I suggest that we not tell anyone else. The way we acted just now… We must avoid the larger group from doing the same."
"That's why I wanted to talk to you in private," Spain said. "I didn't want everyone else to get paranoid. And I especially didn't want us to start fighting amongst ourselves."
"Fair enough," Turkey sighed. "But what are we going to do now? I mean, there are a lot of nations. Anyone could be the spy."
"What about France, Norway or Paraguay?" Saudi Arabia asked, though not without shooting Spain an apologetic look. "They've been captured by Requiem. Who's to say they couldn't be working for them now?"
Despite the silent apology, Spain still shot him an irked look for accusing his lover and his former colony.
"I have two reasons why I don't think it could be any of them," Spain said. "First, I told France and Norway what my plans were, and Guatemala would have told the others where she was going. Requiem wasn't there waiting for us. Even if they didn't care about losing their… test subjects," Spain spat the words, "they wouldn't have missed the opportunity to go after me, like in Madrid."
"You are right," Russia said. "They don't like you very much. They wouldn't hesitate if they had an opportunity to go after you."
"Right. The second reason is Egypt. We were pretty open about Alvora's attack, and especially the fact that Egypt was the main target. Not only is he not dead, but he wasn't where their earlier recons said he would be. He was with France in the Americas, and whenever I ask about it, Portugal says that Egypt is avoiding everyone. He only came out to capture Black and didn't stick around longer than he had to."
"…Exactly how much do you talk to your brother?" Turkey asked.
"There are still a few issues to work out. And I want to know how Andorra's doing."
"How is he, by the way?" Russia asked.
"I don't know if it's because of what Requiem did or our attempt to bring those memories to the forefront of his mind, but he keeps hearing voices and zoning out. They found a way to keep it at a minimum, but they still can't completely fix his mind. And when I asked how he was sleeping, Portugal was quiet for a long time before he said Andorra's been having nightmares and sleepwalking."
Everyone looked uncomfortable, and Spain understood why. They had seen the damage it had done to Andorra first-hand, and the possibility that their idea had made things worse gnawed on their minds. Russia was also worried about Latvia, and Turkey and Saudi had Qatar to worry about. They all had someone that Requiem had manipulated, and knowing that the process had caused them suffering just made them more desperate to free them.
"Okay, so it can't be the three that were rescued the day of the invasion, because the main target was in a safe location," Turkey said. "So then, who is it?"
"Like I said, it's not a sleeper," Spain said. "So Taiwan, Latvia and Qatar are out. And there's a possibility that there are other sleepers that we don't know about."
"And there's another possibility that the sleepers are doing it of their own will, and not as a sleeper," Russia said. "How do we go about it?"
"The known sleepers had their phones confiscated," Turkey said. "Unless they swiped someone else's phone, it's impossible for them to call anyone from Requiem."
"Wait," Saudi Arabia said, his eyes widening. "That's it! Spain, do you know of a good pickpocket?"
Spain flinched. The first person that came to mind was Romano, but a few of his former colonies were also pretty skilled.
"I know a few," Spain said. "Some of the Central and South Americans."
"Then we better hope that none of them are spies," Saudi Arabia said. "If we can look at everyone's phones, we might be able to tell if they'd recently been in contact with a Requiem nation."
"We'll just need to be discreet about it. I don't think a lot of people are going to be happy about us swiping their phones. And what about password protection?"
"No need to worry about that," Russia said. "I'm sure Estonia can figure it out."
Spain was relieved to note that they were taking this matter seriously. Now he just had to figure out how to deal with his unwanted tenant before he did something really bad.
…
"Okay, this seems like the place," Serbia said. "Now, how are we going to do it?"
The Yugoslavians, Canada, Poland, Prussia and Haiti were gathered in front of a computer, watching an image of a house on the screen. Haiti frowned, leaning closer.
"It's going to be next to impossible to teleport inside the building," Haiti said. "I don't know the layout inside. But it looks like it has a decent yard. I might be able to get us that close, and then we can break into the building the old-fashioned way."
"And if there is an alarm?" Croatia asked.
"I can deal with alarms. No need to worry about that."
"What's the time over there?" Montenegro asked. "It's pretty important, don't you think?"
Serbia checked before wincing.
"It's morning," he said. "And they would probably be working on breakfast now."
"Fine," Prussia said. "Better chance to fight one of them."
"Don't act recklessly," Canada warned. "I know you want to avenge Toris, and Tino," he looked pointedly at Poland, "but we can't do anything foolish, and we can't risk anyone's life."
"So, confrontation is unavoidable?" Croatia asked.
"…It looks like it," Serbia sighed. "So, no one should be reckless. We don't know if Hungary, Belarus, Slovenia and Bulgaria are the only people there. And we don't know what Bosnia would be like."
"You all know that this is madness, right?" Haiti asked, looking towards each of the others. "If we could have gone an hour earlier, or if we could have gone tonight…"
"We can't leave Herzegovina there for too long, and we don't know how much damage they'd done to Bosnia. We'd also love to finish this before Toris's funeral, which is tomorrow morning over here, and Matt's still got a few more arrangements to finish."
"Then let Matt stay here and finish those arrangements," a new voice added. "And let me help out."
They turned around to see Scotland standing in the doorway. Haiti sighed in annoyance.
"Where were you before I got that phone call?" he asked in annoyance.
"Sorry to mess with your beauty sleep," Scotland said, before sauntering closer. "Will mentioned that Ireland was in a relationship with Bulgaria, so there's a chance that my brother would be there too. And I'd like to have a little chat with him."
"Are you sure?" Canada asked.
"Sure. Do what you've got to do. And if Ireland's there, then you'll need another magic user to level the playing field."
"…Alright. Then, I guess… All I can say is 'good luck'."