(A/N) Well, hello after 7 months of inactivity, how are you doing?
Okay, I'm sorry for keeping you waiting for this for soo long, and I sincerely appreciate your patience, and those who have added this story to their favourites and alerts. Also, I appreciate those who enjoy this story in general, thank you.
Anyway, my reason was loss of interest in this story unfortunately, but it's back now, and with quite a long chapter. I don't feel like it's the best, but I enjoyed writing it and I reckon it came out fine. I hope you enjoy reading this.
No flames please, if you hate it, keep it to yourself. However, if you think it could be better, recommend improvements, as well as what was good, and what was bad.
DISCLAIMER - I do not own Hetalia, or its characters; it belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya
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Chapter 11: The Disappearance of a Hero
Fury, with a pinch of confusion, regret, horror and anxiety, mixed into the pit of Allen's stomach. He didn't know why that wretched witch wanted to see him, but in the back of his mind, he knew it wasn't going to be for a good reason. Plotting a rebellion against her, and planning to save the 1Ps behind her back; those were serious crimes, ones that he could get exiled, or worse, executed for. The more Allen thought about it, the two punishments didn't sound too bad; if he was exiled, he wouldn't have to put up with the corrupt leader's bullshit, and he'd finally get to see Luciano again, catch up with him, and maybe tell him how he felt; that he missed him, and...cared about him? No, he was being stupid; he didn't care about Luciano, and Luciano didn't care about him. The short-tempered Italian cared about nobody, but himself...though, if that were the case, then why did he put himself at risk to make things fair for the 2Ps? Where was he actually staying? Was he living on the streets; shivering by himself in the cold rain, with nobody to keep him warm?
'Get a grip! Why are you thinking about this now?!'
Shaking those thoughts away, he thought of the second worst case scenario; being executed. If he was executed, again, that would mean not seeing Her again, but then he would be leaving his friends and family to fend for themselves, and not only that, but what was there after death? He didn't know, and he hoped he would never have to find out. But maybe he was over thinking things, there could actually be a chance that she wouldn't have known of his, and the other's, traitorous acts; considering that they haven't even acted on them yet. But from what Oliver had told him and the rest of their team, Loki seemed to be on her side now; creating a higher chance of the fire crazed, Norwegian psychopath reporting them in, since Oliver requested the key to the prison building.
The young American hadn't realised how far his thoughts had taken him away from the present, until his shoulder smacked into someone's side.
"Ah!" the person gasped as they fell to the ground with a light thump. The American, out of instinct, turned to give the fallen person a hand.
"Hey, I'm sorry, are you...?" he trailed off as soon as he saw who it was; a shaky, teary eyed Flavio with a bruised eye, and a scratch on his left cheek. "Flavio...?" Kneeling down to the Italian's level, he placed a hand on his shoulder. "What happened?" he asked softly.
"Allen," the blonde mumbled, looking down at the ground. "Luciano...is here."
"What?"
The American didn't know whether to be elated, sad, shocked, angry, or all of those emotions at once. But then a thought occurred to him:
"How do you know? If you're just shitting with me, I swear -"
"Why would I joke about that?! He's my fratellino, my little brother, Allen!" Flavio cried, pushing the crimson haired male away, before taking a deep breath. "And how do I know? I was told by Her, that self-righteous cow. Apparently, a few of our soldiers had told Her that he attacked them with Alfred's aid."
"So, he...No, he can't be..."
"Yes, he is..." more tears started to fill his eyes. "I'm soo happy, I really am, but..."
"But, what?"
That pause wasn't good.
"You should hear from her...she's waiting..."
"Oh, yeah," helping Flavio up, he asked. "You didn't tell me what happened."
"What does it look like, Allie?"
"Was it her?! Did she do this to you?"
"Allen...?" the Italian whispered shakily, getting as close to Allen's ear as possible. "After you've had your talk with her, I want you to find Luciano, and get out of here, promise me."
"Huh? Flavi, where's this coming from?"
"Leave the 1Ps to me and the others, just get my fratellino and yourself out of here, please..."
"Okay...?"
"Anyway," Flavio started, pulling away and rubbing the tears out his eyes. "I'm going to ask Oliver to put some ice on my eye. Good luck."
He left, brushing him off, not even bothering to confirm his suspicions, leaving Allen alone, and confused. Why did he want Allen to find Luciano and leave so badly? What's going on?
Advancing further, he could see the office door; pristine white with a golden door knob. He remembered her old office in the prison building, down in the lower levels where he found Alfred and Feliciano. It was a nice office, clean and tidy, but She found it too cold. He remembered everyone moving everything out it, which infuriated Luciano, that much that he just stood with his arms folded and a scowl on his face the entire time. He even told Allen not to assist anyone, 'idiotic enough to aid her in something that she can easily do herself;' his reason being, 'she wants a new office, she can move her own god damn stuff, why should we have to do it?!'
He still helped, regardless of what Luciano had said to him, since he, Viktor and Lutz were the strongest of the 2Ps; and they would need the extra pair of hands to get the job done faster. Luciano still refused to help, whilst looking at Allen as if he had betrayed him or something, which he did understand. The Italian despised their 'Leader,' and would do anything to oppose her, show her up, insult her, and get into a screaming contest with her; especially, if she ordered the group of 2Ps to do something unreasonable.
He still remembered the time that he went to 'give her a piece of his mind', and never returned. He never knew what had happened, except the fact that he was gone. Now, he's back, and possibly in the same boat as him, since he seemed to be working with Alfred, based on what Flavio was told. So, that meant Alfred was safe, meaning he had one less thing to worry about. Right?
Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door and waited patiently for the door to open. When it did, he was met with the young, stern face of Elise Zwingli, the younger sister of Voss Zwingli. Her platinum blonde hair was in its usual bob, and her bright blue eyes looked much more dull than they did usually. Closing them with a sigh, she stepped to side and gestured for Allen to enter.
"You took your time, Mr. Allen Jones," she said in a soft, monotone voice as she closed the door behind him. "Our Master has been patiently awaiting your arrival."
"Yes, I have," The American heard the voice of the current Leader of the 2Ps, who wore one of the most fake smiles he'd seen in a while. The enthusiasm in her voice, sounded just as fake. "It's good to see you after soo long, Allen. How have you been?"
"As if you care how I'm doing," Allen snapped without thinking, before folding his arms and sighing. "Cut to chase, what did you really want to talk to me about?"
"Hasty as always, I see," The Leader chuckled, as she sat back in her chair. "Elise, could you please give Allen and I a moment?"
"Of course, Miss Héderváry," the girl nodded, as she left the room before another word could get out, closing the door gently behind her.
Silence filled the room, the ticking of the clock on the Leader's desk being the only sound in the room. This was before, said Leader, broke the silence.
"Well, I have some very interesting news to share with you, would you like to hear it?"
'Okay, here we go...'
The crimson haired male sighed in annoyance, before asking, "Do I have a choice?"
"No, but it doesn't hurt to give the illusion of choice, does it?"
He and everyone else understood why Luciano didn't like Miss Héderváry. She asked pointless questions, just so she can keep you on edge, and she always tried to make you feel small by beating you and yelling at you. Her tricks had never worked on Luciano, in fact, the Italian was a better fighter than her, and he was a master of the art of throwing knives and daggers, which Allen believed were the same thing. That's why she hated him in return; he always showed her up, so she got rid of him, at least that's what Allen had theorised since he went missing. But, Flavio told him that he was back, so is that what she was going to tell him?
"So, some intruders have been spotted going in and out of the prison building, and I think you'd be delighted to know that one of them is your beloved, Luciano Vargas, who's whereabouts at this current moment are unknown," her face scrunched up, like she had just eaten a sour lemon as she sat forward on her chair. Allen's heart sank, 'whereabouts unknown'? She continued. "The other was your 1P, who's location is also unknown, but we know he released Feliciano from captivity, and that Italian's location also isn't known."
"Ha, I guess your plans are now on hold?" Allen looked smug, sure he was worried about the whereabouts of the people mentioned, but at least she didn't know where they were.
"However," she growled, giving Allen a warning glare before continuing. "We found someone else of interest."
Now she was looking smug.
"Who?"
"Arthur Kirkland, Oliver's 1P," she said, almost proudly; taking great pleasure in Allen's reaction.
He was slack-jawed, wide-eyed and stiff. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Oliver's 1P had now been dragged into this!
"Why?" He managed to say, barely above a whisper.
"We didn't plan on involving him, of course," she said, leaning back in her chair again. "But, we actually found him snooping around this very building, and that's where he is now. I don't know how he got here, but he's where Feliciano and Alfred were held, guarded by Gilen."
She looked at the American, waiting for a response, which didn't come.
"Okay, Allen, so the reason why you're actually here is simple; I want you to find Luciano, Feliciano and Alfred, and hand them over to me."
"And what if I don't?" He barked, finding his voice again.
"You're fate won't be very pleasant," she turned away from him, and gestured for him to leave. "Now go, we don't have time to waste."
"What are you going to do with them?"
"I believe she ordered you to leave, Mr. Allen Jones," he turned and saw Elise holding the door, pointing to the exit.
'How long has she been there?' Allen thought, as he left with a scowl.
Shutting the door, Elise turned to Miss Héderváry in confusion.
"I heard you told him about Mr. Arthur Kirkland, but why?"
"I think it'll make things interesting, wouldn't you say, Elise?"
"Whatever you say, ma'am."
(...)
"What? He isn't here, where is he?!"
"I don't know, but please don't yell, they might hear us," Italy whispered shakily, as he and his 2P stood in a corridor; the corridor where he last saw America. "I don't think he's safe, at all. I'm worried..."
"Yeah, for all we know know he could be in serious danger," Luciano turned to look at his counterpart, who just shook his head before turning away from him.
"You don't know that, he could be okay," he started to shake a little. "He's one of the strongest nations I know, he can carry a car with one hand and rarely gets sick...so..."
Looking at the fresh puddle of blood on the ground, Luciano could tell that the moron he had formed an alliance with was not safe, provided that the blood was his, but there was no proof. But regardless, whether or not he was a strong, stable nation had no relevance in this world, they were just humans who didn't age. He didn't want to tell his 1P yet; not only did he feel like his 1P had been through enough already, but he needed the boy to keep his optimism. If he was to find out that he could die here, it could break him; he didn't want to risk it.
"Well," Luciano sighed, pushing his grim thoughts to the back of his mind. "We need to find him quickly, or we won't be seeing him again."
"Oh no!"
"Oh no, indeed," his magenta eyes started to scan the area, until they fell on a familiar knife with his initials carved in. He felt breathless and shaky all of a sudden, as he ran towards it, and picked it up carefully. Blood pumped in his ears and something started to tickle his cheeks, as he clutched the knife for dear life. If the blood didn't let him know of America's fate, since he just brushed it off as being someone else's, as there wasn't proof that it was his, the abandoned knife spelt it out for him, clearly. It was America's blood, and he was in danger.
'Shit...!'
"Hey, Luciano, there's a gun," he heard Italy point out, as he turned to see him kneeling down beside it. "It kind of looks like the one I saw America carrying, before..."
He trailed off, as he looked on in the distance in thought.
Luciano sighed. They didn't have time to sit there thinking about the American's fate, they had to move if they wanted to save him. Standing up, he sheathed the old knife as he approached his other self.
"Feliciano?"
Being addressed by his human name visibly shocked Italy, as his eyes widened and his body tensed slightly. Slowly, he relaxed before replying with, "Yes?"
"Do you know how to use it?" Luciano asked, gesturing to the gun lying next to his 1P.
Closing his eyes tightly, he looked away and folded his arms.
"Yes, I had to use one a few times," he replied after taking a deep breath. "I think the last time I used one was during the second World War. My memories are a little fuzzy, so I might be wrong, but I used one before..."
"Good, so pick it up, now," the darker haired Italian ordered, as he unsheathed his own knife, and turned away. "If we're going to find Jones, you're going to need something to defend yourself with, just in case."
Italy was repulsed. He promised himself that he'd never hold a gun again; instead of war, he'd make pasta, and instead of yelling, there would be laughter, but a nation's life was on the line, a nation who just so happened to be a friend, now. It won't hurt to break his promise one time, will it?
"Come on," Luciano called. "We've got an American to save. They couldn't have taken him that far, and there's a trail of blood, so I think I might have an idea where they've taken him."
"Okay, coming!"
Reluctantly picking up the gun, he followed his copy to save a friend in need.
(...)
"Miss Héderváry, this is Thurston," the Finnish man spoke into a radio, as his soldiers placed the bleeding, unconscious American in the back of a van. "I've successfully captured Alfred F. Jones, and I'm preparing to take him to your desired location...The old building with the conversion equipment, right? Good thing I got a van...Okay, I'm on my way."
(...)
In another area of the structure, an albino male was guarding a cell door, twiddling his thumbs. He wore a melancholic expression on his face, and appeared to not have slept in a long time. It was silent, agonisingly silent, and that filled the man with more dread than he was used to, and he hated every second of it. He didn't see the point in capturing the 1Ps of Luciano and Allen, and he didn't see the point of now keeping Oliver's 1P contained here; sure, he was trespassing and was a threat due to his magic, but could they have just sent him away?
'Of course we can't send him away! He knows where we are located, he can use magic, and he could potentially take Alfred and Feliciano back home. We can't allow that!'
'And why not?! This is all just pointless, Erzsébet! What do you even hope to gain from this?!'
'That is none of your business, Gilen! All you need to know is that Luciano and Allen are going to be disposed of; and after the ceremony that's currently being planned, Alfred and Feliciano are going to be reborn so to speak.'
'You don't mean...?'
'Yes, they'll be the new and improved Allen and Luciano.'
Being hit with sudden light-headedness, he shut his eyes and clenched his teeth; clutching his head, as he slumped against the wall. That conversation he had with Her was still fresh in his mind.
'I understand why you want Luciano gone, but why Allen? He listens to orders.'
'Well, although he follows orders, it isn't an unknown fact that him and Luciano have feelings for each other. In other words, if he found out that I had his lover killed; he would no longer follow orders, like what he did for a time after the guy was exiled. So, it's best we start with those two from scratch now.'
'But what would happen to the 1P's world without their personification of Italy and America? And what are you going to do with Arthur?'
'Country personifications get reborn when they die, so when Alfred and Feliciano become the new 2Ps of Italy and America, new 1Ps will be born, too. Arthur, I haven't thought about, I could get rid of Oliver...'
Resting his head on his knees, he silently wept; praying for it all to be over. How could she think of disposing of them soo easily, the way he saw it, they were family. He didn't want this; he didn't want Luciano dead, Oliver dead, and Allen -
"Gilen!"
His head shot up upon hearing his name. Did he do something wrong?
In front of him, he could see Allen approaching, clearly enraged. Quickly getting up to a shaky stand, the Prussian saluted him, with his head held high and expression blank. However, the American's greeting wasn't pleasant, nor respectful; he gave the poor Prussian a punch in the face. Everything went black for a split second, before he opened his eyes.
"Hey there, Gilen," Allen growled. "We need to talk."
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That was it!
I hope this chapter was worth the wait, and I hope to be faster with updates in the future! Also, sorry for the font changes, too.
Improvements are appreciated, please tell me what I did right, wrong and how I can improve. If you would like, you could also favourite and follow this fic, as well as suggest ideas for future chapters. R&R and thanks for reading!
