A.N. Hey people! Congratulations to Poisonlilie, Naya, dionna, and shoujochan for reviewing and getting the answer to my question correct! The boy Roddy wants to add to his group is Spain! As a reward, I'll be mentioning you guys in this chapter as small bit parts (I hope that's acceptable and I get your genders right). And now, ONWARDS!
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.
Yao kicked a rock off the path the four were traveling and turned his attention back to Matthew, listening to what the blond was saying. The four had exited the forest and were walking along the southern Hearts path, where they could be caught all too easily if they weren't paying attention.
True to what the voice in Matthew's head had told them, the group overheard from other travelers rumors that had made their way down to the southern part of the country of the northern Hearts path having checkpoints and regular searches. Matthew had been talking about how they should try heading deeper into Hearts in search of the person talking to him, and the others agreed reluctantly. The voice had steered them away from danger and seemed to know what they wanted to accomplish.
Looking around, Yao saw Lovino making his way up to him. As he walked next to the shorter male, Lovino asked, "Can we talk? I think I can help with some things."
Yao glanced at Matthew who nodded and dropped back a few steps to speak with Vash.
"Go on." Yao said, motioning for Lovino to talk.
Licking his lips, Lovino began, "Don't start thinking I care or anything, but if we are going to start heading deeper into Hearts we need to stick to the main roads."
Yao was about to ask what Lovino meant by that when the angry brunette continued. "It'll be more dangerous, but nobody would expect it. And the people in southern Hearts are more welcoming to strangers than up north."
Yao nodded and asked, "How do you know that?"
Lovino shrugged, "I was born in southern Hearts but we relocated to the northern part of the country after an accident in our town."
Yao started thinking as he continued down the dirt path. Lovino's idea could work if they played their cards right. Looking about, Yao saw just how tired his group was and how much they needed a break.
"Let's take a rest." Yao said, walking off the almost empty road. Yao sat down and was joined by the other two who were consulting Lovino about how Hearts built their towns.
"The southern half builds them right on the edge of the forests, while up north they stay a bit away. If we did take shelter in a town, it'd be best if we did it somewhere near the forest in case we need a quick escape."
Yao grabbed his knife and turned it in his hands. Normally he would've been paying more attention, but something was bothering Yao. Why was it that they were having such an easy time traveling through Hearts when in Diamonds the four had encountered hunters almost every few days?
"We should move out now. I'm not feeling that this is a good way to be going." Yao stated, standing up. The others seemed to catch on as they walked among the other people on the small road with their hands on their weapons in case they were jumped.
-LINEBREAK-
Roderich had quickly made his way to the brunette boy and tapped his shoulder. The boy whirled around, his wide green eyes betraying his smile as he said, "Hello! May I help you?"
Roderich nodded, and Feli stood on the other side of Roderich as he said, "My name is Roderich, and this is Feliciano. We were wondering if we could join you."
The boy's eyes flicked to Feliciano, and he smiled before replying, "I'm afraid not. I don't think this little one should be with someone like me."
Roderich smiled and pulled his jacket sleeve up just enough for the brunette to see the Jack mark on his arm. The boy's eyes widened and he looked at Feli with a 'Him too?' look on his face. Roderich nodded as he let the fabric fall to cover his arm again.
"I'm Antonio. I'm from Diamonds and I'd be happy to travel with you two!" Antonio exclaimed happily, grabbing Feli's hand he started walking again. Roderich made his way to the front of the two so he was leading the way as he thought about his situation. Now that he had Antonio and Feli with him, Roderich had a better chance at survival.
Feli didn't have any fighting skills, and Antonio's combat style was unknown to Roderich. But he did know that if he polished up on using his dagger he could be able to fight with as much skill as he had developed when fencing during his past as a nobleman. Holding his head a bit higher, Roderich listened in on Feli and Antonio's conversation for a bit before interrupting and asking his own questions.
"Antoino, have you had any experience fighting?" Roderich asked a bit proudly.
Antoino shook his head and smiled, "No, but I did work on my family's farm! I did a lot of the heavy duty work, and after my brother took over the farm I started helping out by building wagons and tools in the nearby town!"
Roderich nodded, so Antoino's family had a farm. It wasn't uncommon for people in each of the countries to have farms and ranches, but agriculture was Clubs' specialty due to their huge land mass and flat lands. But that did explain how Antonio was fit and looked like he could hold his own in a brawl.
"If we can get you a weapon, do you think you can learn to use it?" Roderich asked. Antonio looked unsure.
"I don't know. I guess it depends on what kind of tool you give me!" The happy brunette replied with a smile. Roderich had to force himself not to roll his eyes. Antonio was one of those happy types who always saw things in a good way instead of looking at things rationally.
I can work with this, Roderich thought, analyzing his companions. I just need one more companion to make this work properly.
-LINEBREAK-
Vash stayed in the back of the group in case of an emergency, while Matthew and Lovino were in the middle with Yao in the lead. So far, they hadn't encountered any opposition, just two kind girls named Lilie and Shou who had offered them some of their family's produce that didn't sell very well at the market.
Biting his lip, Vash surveyed the open road in front of them. It was littered with travelers like themselves, farmers selling their wares like Lilie and Shou, a few merchants, and a few horses carrying riders. It didn't look like there were any hunters or soldiers around but Vash still felt uncomfortable.
Striding forward, Vash spoke in a low voice to Lovino, "I don't feel too safe here."
Lovino nodded and replied, "It feels like we're being watched by some freaks. I don't like it."
Vash dropped back to the end of the group where he thought to himself and kept an eye open for anything out of the norm. Everything was going just a bit too well for comfort. What if they were being set up? The blond shook the idea from his mind. That just didn't make sense to him.
Looking around, Vash saw just how many people were on the road. It wasn't enough to actually catch the four, but the amount was still unsettling. Vash picked up his pace, as did the others when they saw him pulling ahead of them. Matthew sped up so he could talk to Vash and asked, "What's going on? Did you notice something?"
Vash shook his head saying, "No, but we keep getting looks from the other people here. I think they're noticing we're not regular travelers."
Matthew agreed, and the others seemed to catch on as well. The people on foot and in wagons were giving them glances of uncertainty, which didn't sit well with Vash who was itching to get away from here.
Yao tapped Vash's shoulder and said quietly, "What do you think we should do?"
Vash thought with a serious face before replying, "Let's keep going this way for now. I don't like it, but we're nearing a town so we can take some time to come up with a cover for ourselves there. We're going to get found out sometime, so we might as well have some kind of backup plan. We can work it out there. For now we should all think of something."
Yao nodded, and Vash repeated what he had said to Matthew and Lovino.
"I still don't like this route." Lovino said, his hand hovering nervously over his blade. Matthew seemed to agree but insisted that the voice told him to come down this way. Vash just kept walking. There was no reason to get into an argument with Matthew about what he was hearing, and besides, if things went well they could lay low for a bit.
-LINEBREAK-
Gilbert snickered as the targets of his prank came into view. They were two Joker girls who had insulted him earlier about his appearance and his power. Gilbert had ignored them then but was always up for pranking someone, and these two girls just happened to be the perfect targets.
The two girls, Naya and Dionna he thought, screamed as they tripped the wire Gilbert had rigged, and a bucket of worms and dirt fell on each of them from the trees around them. Gilbert laughed as the two girls screamed at him and tried to wipe the creatures and dirt off themselves.
The white haired male took that as his cue. Turning, he started running with a grin plastered to his face. As he neared the area where some of the houses were located, Gilbert slowed to a walk. Things were boring in Joker kingdom. They used to be exciting and fun but now the elders and rulers of the kingdom had become more wary of interactions with any of the other kingdoms.
Gilbert slammed the door to his house behind him and trudged inside. The four visitors he had seen in his vision of the future hadn't arrived yet and everyone in Joker kingdom believed that Gilbert was pulling their leg again with his false predictions. The rooms were still set up and ready for when they came. The Joker knew that they would come sooner or later.
Gilbert grimaced as he was going to try to get another two-way connection between him and the more open member of the group. Magic wasn't something that Gilbert should've been good at or even have the talent for, but somehow he was able to lock on to a certain person and communicate with them if he knew where they were. Grabbing his darts off the dartboard in his room, Gilbert tried focusing some of his tracking power into the sharp object as he threw it at a map of the four kingdoms. The dart landed on the southern Hearts path, just a bit southwest of where Joker kingdom was currently located.
Clenching his fist in victory, Gilbert breathed out and opened his mind so he could try to speak through his mind to the open-minded traveler. The Joker had only been able to get a good connection with the traveler once, and even then he hadn't been able to tell the boy what he was trying to do.
The first few thoughts that Gilbert tried to send through usually ended up not making it to the traveler, but after a few tries Gilbert could feel what he was trying to say being received by the other. A sharp pain started in the red-eyed boy's head, but he ignored it. The pain was something that came with learning magic. Only someone who could control their power and not be afraid of it wouldn't experience any pain to their person.
"If you can hear me, try and think something", Gilbert thought to the traveler as the sharp pain started subsiding slightly. A fuzzy reply echoed in Gilbert's mind, and he let a smile of victory creep across his face as what the traveler was saying became clear.
"Who are you? Don't say it doesn't matter, 'cause it does." The traveler's voice said to Gilbert. The red-eyed male calmed himself and thought back, "I'm on your side. You took the path I suggested, so that must mean you trust the awesome me."
"What do you want with me?" The traveler asked. Gilbert cocked his head to the side as he tried to figure how to answer the question directed at him. Finally he came up with, "I know you need help. I can offer you shelter and supplies if you listen to me and follow my instructions."
The other didn't reply, and Gilbert worried that he had broken the connection somehow when the traveler answered. "Where do you need us to go?"
"Start heading northeast. The location I'm at is just north of a town called Runorow. My location is in the forest; if you really need help, you'll be able to find it. Ask for the Black Joker Gilbert and you'll find me."
Gilbert didn't wait for a response as he broke the connection. The Joker was tired from maintaining a constant flow of magic energy, and all he wanted to do was sleep for a bit. Unfortunately, a familiar cold feeling was spreading through Gilbert, causing him to go weak in the knees and drop to the ground. A small burst of pain shot through Gilbert's head and he felt blood trickle from his nose as he was dragged into the vision.
They were in the chamber of Joker kingdom where all visitors had to be vouched for before being allowed refuge in the kingdom. The old elder man and the other Joker officials sat on seats in a half circle around the four dark figures. One of the figures stepped forward and shouted at them while another pulled him back.
The figures started discussing among themselves when one of them cried out and crumpled to the ground. The leader of the group turned and started pleading with the elder fiercely and—
Gilbert's eyes opened as he came into consciousness. Sitting up, he wiped at the blood that had started to dry from his nose. The visions of the future were alike in many ways, but only two things stood out. Gilbert could never move from his position to get a good look at anyone. Unless he knew the people in the visions, they all appeared as black shadowy figures that made muffled sounds instead of talking. But that wasn't what bothered him most of the time. It was the fact that he couldn't see things from a different perspective. The future could hold the answer to stopping a war, and the answer could be on the other side of the room in Gilbert's visions, but he was never able to move. It always irritated the white haired male, but he learned to work with it.
One good thing came from this vision. It meant that they were coming. The travelers, who had been the first and most important thing on Gilbert's mind, were finally coming to Joker kingdom. Smiling in relief, the Black Joker leaned back against the wall of his room and whispered, "Awesome."
A.N. I had fun writing Prussia's part! What do you guys think? Did I keep them in character well enough? Again, congratulations to those who answered the question in the last chapter right and I hope you enjoyed your cameo! Either you were giving food to Yao's group, or you were pranked by the Awesome Prussia! As always, I love reviews and knowing you enjoyed this! Until next time! - Neko