Chapter 20
Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia, these events are fictional, don't use me as a history reference.
We are nearing the end. The chapter is absurdly long, but I couldn't find a good spot to slice it. We are nearing the end of both summer vacation and this story. I hope that you guys like this chapter, read on!
-July 1918-
Ivan leaned back in his chair at his desk and gave his calendar a few looks over. He was finally finished with work for the week. Ivan cracked his neck and swiped a few documents from his desk to take to Lenin before locking his office.
After a few weeks of working, he was a bit unsure of what to think of Lenin. Ivan didn't think that he had bad intentions, but the idea of socialism and communism were somewhat new to him. Ivan sighed and knocked on Lenin's door before he entered. Only time could tell if this new form of government would work.
"Ah, Braginsky. Thank you for your hard work, as always." Lenin greeted Ivan with an outstretched hand. Ivan smiled and handed him the documents.
"It's interesting work. Well, now that I'm done with my work, I will be gone for the next couple of days." Ivan casually informed.
Lenin was careful to keep a frown from forming on his face and acknowledged Ivan with a wave of his hand.
"I see… In that case take a couple of weeks off. You've been bogged down with more work than usual anyway." Lenin said with a smile.
Ivan raised an eyebrow, but accepted the offer.
"Thank you." Ivan left before something could come up. He gave a few nods to people who past him in the hallway and even made small talk with one of the young ladies before he made it out of the kremlin. It was a nice day, Ivan noted as he made his way towards his own house. He just needed to drop a few of his things off before he left to Yekaterinburg.
Ivan sneezed as he opened the door to his house and massaged the bridge of his nose. It seemed like the effects of the revolution were still lingering.
Ivan quickly packed a few things in his backpack. A few sets of clothes, a journal, and some sweets. Ivan checked his watch and swung the bag over his shoulder. He should make it just in time for the departing train.
Ivan wasted no time and jogged out the door. He was anxious to see Alexei. It had already been a week since his last visit.
"Ivan, it's Ivan!" Maria shouted with joy. The guards around them stiffened and one of the soldiers moved to quiet Maria down, but Ivan stopped them.
"I am not going to run away with them, comrade. Let them be." Ivan's tone had a dangerous sub-tone. The senior guard told them to stand down, and the four girls bounded towards him.
The entire family was on a walk in the surrounding fields. The ever watchful guards remained vigilant and wary as Ivan approached the family with a large smile.
"Tanya, Natsya, Olga, Malushka, it has been a while." Ivan gave them an all encompassing hug. Olga smiled and stuck a flower in his hair when he released them.
"You smell terrible Ivan, couldn't you have taken a bath before coming here?" Olga teased. Ivan gently pushed her forehead, "Then I would've had to arrived a day later. Are all of you fairing well?" Ivan asked as he looked over their heads to Alexei, Nikolai, and Alexandra, who were continuing their walk.
Tatiana grabbed him by the arm and lead him to join up with the rest of the family. Maria had the other arm, and Olga filled in the time with idle small talk. Anastasia trotted ahead to announce Ivan's arrival to her parents.
"…How are things in Moscow?" Olga asked. Ivan gave an exaggerated sigh and discretely glanced at the soldiers surrounding them. "It is great. Everything is just perfect." Ivan said in the most unconvincing way possible.
Olga nudged him and Ivan rolled his eyes.
"It is fine." Ivan said. He wasn't about to talk about government here, especially considering the situation they were in. Olga childishly pouted, which was a little cute considering how she could still pull it off as a young woman, but relented.
"How are you doing?" Ivan asked with a little more concern. Olga and Tatiana looked like they had lost some weight. The two merely smiled, it was a smile much like his own, and shrugged.
"You know how it is. We make the best of it." Tatiana said dismissively. She didn't want to turn the mood dark. Ivan was here, and she wanted to have some fun.
Ivan could tell what they wanted and obliged. There was little he could do. He remembered a couple of months ago when the four of them begged him to help them escape a month back.
"Why won't you help us, Ivan? Do we not matter to you now that we aren't royalty anymore?" Maria cried. The guards had temporarily entrusted Ivan with the four girls while they ran a quick errand. Ivan's heart twisted, and he looked away.
"I cannot. You don't understand-"
"What isn't there to understand? They will kill us, Ivan!" Olga said in a hushed, but furious voice.
"If you can't take us, at least take Alexei." Tatiana mimicked Olga's tone. Ivan glanced at the door and strained his ears just in case the guards came early.
"I cannot kill all of them-"
"But you can! I remember what happened all those years ago Ivan in Tsarskoye Selo. You could take all of them!" Anastasia challenged in an angry tone. Her face was red with anger and her hands trembled.
Ivan crossed his arms and took a deep breath to calm himself. "Yes, I could probably kill all of them. However, while I can be shot twenty times and live, you cannot. I would not be able to protect all of you from here to the nearest border. They will not kill you, you are political assets." Ivan did his best
to reassure him, but it did little to calm Olga's nerves. Ivan saw that she understood his reasoning, but she still wanted to try it.
Even if Ivan were to escape with them, he wouldn't wish for it. He didn't want to alienate this new government, much like his old self, he wished to see it grow and prosper. Ivan fought back the pain he felt in his heart and forced a calm smile on his face.
Ivan had already given so much to this family, he had to draw the line. He wasn't human enough to abandon everything for the people he loved. In the end, he had to do the rational thing for a nation in his position and incorporate himself into this new government.
He was a coward.
"It's okay, Ivan. I trust you." Alexei spoke up. The four girls shifted their gaze to Alexei, who had been silently listening to their conversation.
"I trust Ivan. Because Ivan's never lied to us." Alexei said with confidence.
The four girls reluctantly nodded if only to not upset their brother.
The incident had been settled, but it left the four sisters, and Ivan, deeply troubled.
Ever since then, he had made an effort to visit them every weekend. That, and he had to make sure that Alexei had enough contact with his heart. Ever since his absence, Alexei's health had been pretty spotty.
Ivan had contemplated on leaving his heart with them, but he was afraid that the guards might get their hands on it. That would be hard to explain. In the end, he was able to work out a schedule with Lenin, although Lenin seemed nonplussed by it.
The girls never brought up the subject again, but it had been a temporary strain on their relationship. They eventually forgave him, and now things were smoothing out for the most part. But still, Ivan could sense their unease.
"Alexandra, Nikolai." Ivan greeted the two once he caught up. The former rulers of Russia returned the greeting and invited Ivan to sit down next to Alexei.
"Sick of the government already?" Nikolai joked when Ivan plopped down right next to him. Ivan let out a small laugh and hooked an arm around Alexei's shoulders.
"Nyet, not yet. I wanted to make sure you were okay." Ivan drew Alexei's laughing frame into a large hug.
"You have grown, and your complexion looks better." Ivan commented, although Alexei still looked sick- it was better than the last time he had saw him.
"I feel better. Do you have any..." Alexei casually looked around to make sure that the guards were far enough that they couldn't hear him, "sweets?" Alexei whispered the taboo word.
Ivan kept a perfect poker face and casually slipped him and the rest of his sisters cookies wrapped in a napkins. They all hid the contraband item for later, and they giggled.
After that, it was the usual festivities. He helped them clean the house, chopped firewood, and updated them on what was happening in the world. He participated in a few plays the girls decided to put on and engaged in some conversation. A few days passed like this, and after much nagging, intimidation, and bribery, Ivan was able to convince the soldiers to allow him to take the girls out for an evening stroll and go stargazing- all under close supervision of course.
"I can't wait to go on a picnic!" Alexei excitedly threw up his hands in the air as he and his four sisters exited the house. Two guards closely followed the group of six as they walked through the lush green fields. Ivan carried Alexei on his back and gave suggestions as to where they should set up their blanket.
"On the top of the hill would be better." Ivan suggested, "The stars will be much brighter."
The five didn't argue with him and they settled on the blanket. Alexei was so light, Ivan thought as he set him down on the blanket.
"Are you eating properly?" Ivan asked as he gave them the sandwiches that were in his bag. They all nodded, but had grim looks on their faces.
"Whatever rubbish they feed us, we'll eat." Tatiana muttered and pointedly glared at the guards. It was only because Ivan was there that she dared to be so bold, and Ivan laughed it off. "I see, well it's good that I've come. Eat up." Ivan watched as the children ate.
Ivan scanned over the faces of the four girls and rested his chin on his hand. No, he corrected himself. They were children no longer. They were all young adults, young women. Even Alexei was becoming a man, he was already thirteen.
"What's wrong Ivan? Is there something on my face?" Olga said when she noticed how Ivan was staring at them. Ivan blinked and shook his head. He leaned back on his hands and tilted his head.
"You are all grown up now. Where is the Olga who begged me to help her with her French? The Tatiana who would cling to my legs? The Maria who used a pencil to the point of blisters? The Anastasia who would cry every time I left her room? The Alexei who was so frail?." Ivan finally felt his age, and a pang of an unidentifiable pain. There was a heavy pressure on his chest, and his heart beat a little harder.
Perhaps it was a pang of loneliness, he thought.
As they aged, his body would remain frozen in time. They would die, have children, those children would have children, and they would die, the cycle would continue. He would see their faces for many generations- yet they would not know him. Well, he was used to it by now. But it didn't hurt any less.
"Wow, what an old soul. Come now Ivan, that was so long ago." Tatiana gently teased. She grabbed a piece of grass and absently began to tear at it. Ivan leaned back and shrugged, "To you it is a long time. To me it has been too short."
"Ivan, you're becoming depressing." Maria pouted. A gentle breeze swept through them again, as if reprimanding Ivan. Ivan laughed and dropped the subject. "Well, what shall we talk about? Any crushes among the guards?"
The five of them made a face and Alexei swatted Ivan on his arm. "Ivan, that's vulgar."
"Are they really that unattractive?"
Olga laughed, "Ivan!"
"No, there is a cute guard among them. Did you see?" Maria jumped in.
"Maria!" Tatiana playfully scolded.
The six of them excitedly talked about trivial things. How much wood Alexei had chopped, how much paperwork Ivan had done, how terrible the house was, how terrible Ivan's paper work was, things like that. They chatted the entire afternoon away.
They paused in their conversation to watch the sun set. The sky was a stunning red that slowly morphed to purple, and eventually into black. But even in the vast darkness of the night sky, the surrounding area was illuminated by the moonlight and the thousands of stars.
The six of them sat observing the sky for a while, until Anastasia broke the silence. "Ivan, what was your life like before us?" Anastasia asked.
The question took Ivan by surprise. He crossed his arms and tilted his head. "What an odd question. Do you mean with your great grandfather?"
"No Ivan, I mean before all of this." Anastasia gestured to her siblings and then pointed n the direction of their house. It was a vague gesture, but Ivan felt like he got the gist of it.
"Before civilization? Before the tsars, when this land had a scant hundred thousand people in it?" Ivan asked again. Anastasia nodded, and the other four came in closer to hear.
Ivan glanced between the five of them. He supposed that he could humor them until they got tired of it.
"Well, little ones, it was very different back then. Tsarskoye Selo, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, all of those places didn't exist. It was a vast expanse of grass and trees. I used to live with my sisters back then." Ivan began an abridged version of his youthful days.
The children were surprisingly keen on hearing his life story. Ivan had gotten all the way up to Catherine the great before the guards told him to wrap it up.
"…Ivan, we want to give you something." Olga stopped the nation from getting up. Ivan raised an eyebrow and obediently sat down on the cool blanket. "What for?"
The five of them merely shrugged, "We've had a lot of free time, and we wanted to thank you for everything that you've done for us." Tatiana responded.
Olga pulled out a few sheets of paper from the basket they had brought along. Ivan accepted the paper and put it up to the moonlight. "They're poems." Ivan remarked. He couldn't hide the surprise from his voice. Olga puffed out her chest, "They're only the finest pieces of Russian poetry you will find."
Ivan snorted and pocketed the paper, "Thank you, great poet."
Tatiana handed Ivan a hand embroidered scarf. Ivan carefully took the soft cloth. One side had OTMAA embroidered in brown string, and the other side had his name in careful cursive.
Alexei was quick to give Ivan his masterpiece as well. It was a piece of wood that was roughly carved to the shape of a soldier, and Maria sheepishly gave Ivan an IOU, "It's not done yet. It'll be done soon though." She said with a blush on her face.
Ivan pat her head, "Good things come with time." He assured her.
Anastasia stood up and walked over to Ivan with a mischievous grin. "And finally, my present!" Anastasia announced. She leaned forward and captured Ivan's lips, albeit a bit roughly and very badly. Ivan completely blanked out, and the rest of her siblings were stunned.
Anastasia's face was redder than a tomato as she parted from Ivan's lips, "It's my declaration of love!" She proudly announced. But she quickly hid her face in her hands. She had apparently worked up a lot of courage to give Ivan that kiss.
Ivan felt time slow and he began to think. How old was Anastasia? She must've been merely sixteen, maybe seventeen? She was a child. Ivan half-smiled and pat her on the head. Perhaps a century ago he would've thought about it, but she was too young. In addition to that, she was family to him.
"I love you too Anastasia." Ivan responded in kind. His declaration of love, however, was much different than Anastasia's, and she knew it. Olga pulled Anastasia away by her arm and scolded her, "How could you do that to Ivan?" Olga said, aghast.
"Your teasing is too much, Natsya." Tatiana added with a flustered huff.
The young teen childishly stuck her tongue out and bickered back and forth with her sisters as they packed up the remnants of the picnic. The soldiers wearily escorted the six back to the house while Ivan animatedly spoke with the five. Sooner or later, they were right outside of the house.
Ivan looked all of the kids over and gathered them up in a group hug. The five children laughed and wrapped arms around each other. "Why are you so squishy today Ivan?" Olga teased.
"There there, everything will be alright." Anastasia pat Ivan's back.
Ivan wrapped his arms around all of them so their heads touched and fought to keep a smile on his face.
"Everything will be okay." Ivan said more to himself than anyone else.
Tatiana was the first to peel away from the hug, "We know, Ivan." Tatiana reassured him. The rest of the group broke up as well and the guards stepped in.
"That's enough for now. Wrap it up." He gruffly told them.
Ivan nodded and waved goodbye, "I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight."
"Goodnight." The five said in unison before being escorted back in their house by the guards.
Ivan turned around and began his walk to the nearest village, which was about an hour walk. But he didn't particularly mind. The night was beautiful, and he had a lot to think about. Ivan silently walked along side the road and closed his eyes when a breeze passed by. He was feelingly oddly anxious. Ivan grabbed his flask and took a small swig from it before he continued on to his destination.
Maria quickly changed into her night clothes and lit a candle on her worn desk. She sat down in her wooden chair and scooted it closer to her desk. She opened one of the drawers and took out an old water color kit and an old drawing. The page was slightly yellow with age with faint lines from where it had been folded, but it was in remarkable condition.
Maria gently smoothed out the paper and took out a pencil. It was Ivan's old drawing, the one he had thrown away when he had first taught Maria how to draw. She had promised to fix it, and she had intended to only fix it. Maria took her pencil and began finalizing the drawing. She erased her scratchy sketches and began to drew more defined lines.
At first, she had only intended to repair the building she had smudged and fill in the landscape, but the drawing was taking a life of its own.
Empty skies were filled with clouds and birds, and the empty windows were filled with small knick knacks and familiar faces. In the center of her drawing, in the middle of all of this, were six people. Maria took her pencil and began to solidify the rough sketches of these figures. She started with Alexei. His sickly, yet oddly strong demeanor. The trick was his eyes. Even though his body was weaker than most boys, his mind was strong.
Maria moved on to Anastasia and cracked a small smile. She was doing her a favor, Maria thought as she finalized the smooth curves of her younger sister's face. She shaved off some of the fat from her roundish face, but not to the point where it was glaringly noticeable. Her pencil gave life to Anastasia's form. Her slightly ruffled clothes, and her mischievous eyes. The little girl latched onto Ivan's arm, who didn't seem to mind.
Maria moved on to finalize Ivan's form and paused. Ivan, how could she draw him? There were so many faces to him. He was kind, but there was a strange element of danger around him. He was mysterious too. Maria scratched her head with the eraser on her pencil and rolled her eyes. Of course, she thought, there was only one way to draw him. Her pencil traced over Ivan's iconic trench coat, and then his scarf. His soft scarf seemed to blow slightly in the breeze. His gentle, yet mysterious eyes, and his broad and stupid grin. Of all the smiles he had, this one suited him the best, Maria thought with approval. This was the expression that was most true to himself.
She quickly finished her other sisters. Tatiana's shy, yet noble bearing, and Olga's slightly sarcastic disposition. Maria captured them all in her drawing. Once she was done, Maria pushed her chair back and stretched. There, she satisfactorily thought, the actual painting could wait until tomorrow.
As if sensing that she was done, one of the guards quietly slipped into the room and announced his presence.
"Oh! What are you doing here?" Maria asked in surprise. This was the same guard who had given her the water coloring kit- for the price of a kiss. The young man shrugged and peered over Maria's shoulder, seemingly to check to progress.
"Ah, it's nothing. I just thought that you would like to know that Ivan must leave tomorrow morning." The guard nonchalantly informed her.
Maria abruptly stood up in her seat in disbelief, "What? Ivan was supposed to stay for a few days at least!" Maria blurted out.
The guard shook his head and hesitated before giving his response.
"Some urgent business calls him back tomorrow night. Due to this, he will briefly visit in the morning and then depart shortly thereafter." The guard informed her.
Maria shook her head and quickly sat back into her chair. She grabbed her brush and her watercolor set and had a determined look in her eyes. "Thank you, I will finish this by tonight." Maria muttered as she prepared her paint.
The guard tipped his hat in response and quietly closed the door behind him. He rolled up his sleeve and checked his watch. This was perhaps the kindest thing he could do for Ivan, he thought as he walked back downstairs.
Meanwhile, around an hour away from the Ipatiev house.
Ivan let out a forlorn sigh as he made his way back to Nikolai's house. Of all the things he had to forget, he had to forget his wallet.
Ivan kicked a rock off the side of the road. He couldn't believe the nerve of the inn keeper. He had refused to allow Ivan to room because he had no money, and he couldn't trust Ivan's word to pay the next morning because he didn't have any identification.
The Russian adjusted his backpack and marched on. He didn't really mind sleeping outside for a single night, but the nerve of that inn keeper. His arrogant and assuming manner begged Ivan to prove to him that he wasn't just trying to get a free night at his inn. Ivan gladly took up that challenge out of spite.
"The day was going so well… Well, I suppose the guards will just have to pardon my intrusion." Ivan said to himself as he walked along the road.
A little more red, a little more purple, and a touch of yellow, and she was done! Maria put her brush into a cup of murky grey water and fanned her masterpiece with her right hand. While it wasn't perfect, it had to be one of the best watercolors she had done.
It was her style to let the colors sort of bleed out of the confines of the lines she had drawn. With her strong pencil lines, the scenery didn't messily blend together into a blob of paint. The style was just like her. Maria nodded to herself and immediately crawled into her bed. She extinguished the candle with her fingers and closed her eyes. She was relieved that it was done, she was worried that she would pass out on the table. Maria rolled over to her side and hugged a pillow close to her chest with a drowsy smile. What would Ivan say when he saw it tomorrow? She wondered…
Ivan scratched the back of his head once the house came into sight. He had to think of a way to convince the guards to let him into the house, or perhaps bribe them to bring his wallet to them. As he drew closer and closer to the house, Ivan began to walk on the dirt road so that his footsteps would be audible to the guards outside. With each step, he could sense the guards tensing up and waved a hand once he was 10 or so meters away.
"Hello!" Ivan cheerfully greeted them. The guards exchanged glances and one of them hesitantly walked up to greet the Russian. "What brings you back?" The guard sounded more nervous than suspicious, which was a little odd. But Ivan brushed it aside and continued to continue his cheerful act to lessen their tension.
"Well, you see, it is a bit embarrassing." Ivan scratched the back of his head and reached into his pockets. He was surprised when the guards all pointed their rifles in response and slowly pulled his pockets out with a raised eyebrow.
"I left my wallet in the house, and I'm helpless without it. Could one of you retrieve it for me?" Ivan was careful not to change the tone of his voice. The guards, realizing their mistake, slowly lowered their rifles and laughed.
"Ah, forgive us Ivan. We've heard some strange rumors, please forgive us for being so tense. Where did you leave it? I'll go and retrieve it." One of senior guards explained. Ivan stuffed his pockets back into themselves and nodded in thanks.
"I believe I last saw it in the living room on the small coffee table." Ivan said.
The guard nodded and went inside to retrieve it, making sure to lock the door behind him. Ivan was left with the two other guards and leaned against one of the fences across the road from the house.
Ivan didn't miss the forced lightness of the senior guard, he was clearly hiding something. Even in the darkness of light, Ivan could look into one of the few windows in the house. The entire house was dark, not a single soul to be seen. Save for the ruckus the guard was making trying to find his wallet.
Ivan clicked his tongue in mild annoyance, the guard was being rather inconsiderate to Nikolai and his family. Ivan stared long and hard at the second floor and tilted his head, and it seemed like the children weren't too disturbed by the racket. Ivan took a deep breath of fresh country air before he approached the house again.
As expected, the guards tensed up. Even though they knew it was him, even though they knew that he served Lenin, and even though the guard was coming out with Ivan's wallet, they were still tense. There was anxiety laced in every move, in every look. They behaved just like one of the girls when they wanted to hide something bad from him.
The senior guard came out with Ivan's leather wallet, and handed it to him with a smile. "Here you go."
Ivan thankfully accepted it and wrapped an arm around one of the tense guards. His smile was much more convincing than the senior guard's, and he poked his temporary prisoner on the cheek.
"You guys are so tense, you have to relax. What happened while I was away? You plowed through the living room as if everyone were already awake." Ivan teased the guard.
The senior guard seemed to freeze, it was only for a second- but a second was more than enough to confirm Ivan's suspicions. One of the other guards raised his pistol against Ivan, "Step away from him." He commanded.
The senior commander seemed to know that they couldn't feign innocence any longer and also raised his pistol as well.
"Sorry Ivan, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
Ivan rolled his eyes and threw his captive into the senior guard. He quickly knocked out all of the guards and propped them against the wall of the house.
"There, there, bad children deserve a time out." Ivan pat their heads before he moved to the door of the house. He suspected that the family wasn't even in the house anymore. There weren't any traces of life on the first or second floor, and a majority of the guards were gone. Perhaps they were rescued? Or maybe they escaped?
Ivan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. A soft breeze passed through and a bead of sweat ran down his face. His normally violent purple aura gathered as a faint and subdued lavender as he attempted to trace what had happened.
Since it was a fairly recent event, it would be a bit more difficult to find out what happened. Who did he want? Ivan wanted Nikolai and his immediate family, he needed to know where they were right now. Ivan grit his teeth and forced himself to concentrate even harder. Nikolai, Anastasia, Maria, anyone.
The guards, the guards had gone to retrieve the family. They had retrieved the family, and right now they were in the-
Ivan staggered back when Nikolai and Alexandra's 'history' abruptly ended. He heard dozens of muffled gunshots and even saw a puff of rising smoke coming from the entrance of the basement.
They were in the basement.
It was the first time Ivan had experienced an out of body sensation. His body just went on autopilot. He busted down the front door and sprinted to the basement. His mind was still in a daze, so why was he holding this man by the collar? What was he even shouting at him? Ivan didn't come to until Sergey plainly told him what he had done over the screams of pain from the children. Some of them were still alive, actually all of them were still alive. They were shot in nonfatal areas, but they were in the process of bleeding out. There was so much blood.
"You get it? It was an order from above." Sergey said, as if he knew that Ivan wouldn't flee with them. Sergey rubbed his head and shrugged, "This is a pain, they haven't died yet. We need to quickly-" Ivan grabbed the dagger from his coat and planted it right next to Sergey's head. The smoke was starting to clear up, but all Sergey could see were Ivan's purple eyes. The nation's smile, astoundingly, was still in place as he jerked the dagger from the cement and pat him on the head.
"Don't do anything." Ivan's voice commanded absolute obedience, and Sergey obeyed.
Ivan looked around at the blood that pooled underneath his boots. Nikolai and Alexandra- they were already dead. Olga and Tatiana had lost too much blood and were nearly dead. Maria, Alexei, and Anastasia were in shock from their wounds and from the gore. The screaming stopped, it was likely that they didn't even know that Ivan was there.
The Russian knelt down to Olga's fading eyes. Ivan absently moved a bloody lock of hair off of Olga's face and wiped the blood off with a gloved thumb. Ivan's healing magic wasn't potent enough to heal them. He couldn't save them. Even if he wanted to escape with the girls- the trauma was too much. He would have to take them to Arthur if he wanted to significantly alter their memories- and he couldn't ask the nation to do that.
"Ah, Olya, Tanya- it must hurt." Ivan cooed. The girls' eyes were fading, but they managed to look in the direction of Ivan's voice.
"H-Help" Tatiana managed to whisper. Ivan grabbed both of their hands and put them together before he unsheathed his knife once again. He rubbed a clear solution onto the blade of his dagger and pat Tatiana's head.
"Don't worry, it will be over soon." Ivan told them in a reassuring tone.
"Close your eyes." Ivan instructed them. The girls, whether they were obeying Ivan or were simply too tired, closed their eyes. Ivan was quick. With practiced ease, he took his knife and stabbed both of them through the eye. The two of them took two deep breaths before they breathed their last.
"I always feel bad now, when I have to kill someone. That's why I put a special chemical on my blade. It numbs the body for a painless death." Ivan cheerfully informed the onlookers.
"I only put it on sometimes, when I like the person. If it were you I probably wouldn't put it on." Ivan said as an afterthought.
Ivan walked over to Maria, her eyes were wide and empty. Her vision was probably tunneling.
"Maria?" Ivan called out in a gentle voice. It didn't match his image at all. His clothes and his face were covered in the blood of her siblings, but Maria still reached out to Ivan. Ivan quickly took her hand and hugged her in a way so that she couldn't see her dead sisters.
"I-I-I-Ivan." Maria stuttered, as if coming to her senses. Ivan took his blade and lightly cut the back of Maria's neck. Not enough to kill, just enough for the poison to take over. Ivan's blade was so sharp that Maria didn't seem to notice, or perhaps it was the adrenaline. It could've been a combination of both.
Maria wrapped her arms around Ivan with what little strength she had, and buried her face in Ivan's shoulder. Ivan could feel her smile from underneath his coat and knew that the poison had taken effect. Quickly, he took his knife and shoved it up the back of Maria's neck- right into the brain. The girl immediately went limp, and Ivan put Maria's dead body down. It was good- that she was able to feel something other than pain right after her death.
"I-Ivan?" Anastasia called out with disbelief. The girl laid in the pool of blood, unable to move because of the bullet in her leg. She struggled to keep her face off the floor as Ivan walked over. It was strange, Ivan had just killed Maria- and yet she wasn't scared. All noise seemed to be muffled, and there was a strange pressure in her ears and her eyes.
"I-Ivan, p-please." Anastasia's voice hitched. Tears flowed from her eyes, and Ivan picked her up with the same smile on his face. "A-Am I dreaming?" Anastasia whispered.
"Of course, dummy. You should wake up soon." Ivan happily replied. Anastasia felt relief wash over her, even as they spoke- the pain was going away. It actually felt quite good. "Oh, okay. I'm going to c-close my…" Anastasia trailed off, trying to form a sentence. Ivan took this chance and swiftly slit her throat, making sure to keep a hand over Anastasia's eyes.
Blood gushed from the wood. Everywhere, everywhere. Onto the concrete, into her clothes, into Ivan's hair.
Ivan set Anastasia down and moved on to Alexei, who was paralyzed with fear. This was troublesome, Ivan could feel his heart beat even harder. It was trying to heal Alexei, but these wounds were too severe.
"Why? Why? Why? Why?" Alexei repeated like a broken record as Ivan approached closer. Alexei visibly struggled to attempt to move away, but Ivan cradled his head.
"Shh, Alexei. It is but a dream, a very bad dream." Ivan whispered.
"Close your eyes, and wake up." Ivan put a hand on top of Alexei's eyes. The boy eventually stopped struggling, and Ivan finished him off with a stab to the head.
Ivan paused for a minute, and one of the guards threw up in the corner. He took a minute to take in the scent of blood and took in every single detail. Their pale forms and peaceful faces. Ivan carefully set Alexei down and walked over to Nikolai and Alexandra, who had died in the rain of bullets.
"I regret not coming sooner, Nikolai, Alexandra." Ivan closed their eyelids and stood up. He looked at the family once again, their lifeless forms and expressionless faces. He had to take it all in, and burn this image into his mind. This was his sin.
Ivan looked over at the stunned guards and walked over. He sheathed his dagger and in a moment of numbness, licked some of the blood off of his exposed wrist.
The guards scrambled away, they pressed their bodies against the walls of the basement as if their lives depended on it.
"Well, that was unexpected." Ivan said in a nonchalant tone to Sergey.
Sergey swallowed the saliva that had gathered in his mouth, and tensely nodded. "Yes, I suppose it was." Sergey said almost breathlessly as Ivan smeared the family's blood on the side of his face.
Ivan turned and did the same to every guard in the room with his same, fixed smile. No, if Sergey were to describe it, his smile was even broader than before.
"You wanted this, yes? Now you have it."
"Th-Thank you." One of the guards blurted out.
Ivan pat the man's head and left the basement without another word. The guards held their breath. Ivan left like a ghost. His steps were never audible, and they could only breathe once the door had been shut.
"F-Fucking monster. Didn't he love them?" One of the guards shakily stood up and hastily rubbed the blood off of his cheek with his sleeve.
Sergey tried to steady his shaky hands as he lit a cigarette. He took in a long breath and shakily removed it from his mouth. "He did. Quit pissing yourselves and get ready to move the bodies."
When Ivan emerged from the basement, he was mildly surprised to see one of the guards waiting for him. "Eh? You're already up? That's impressive." Ivan complimented. The guard grit his teeth, as if Ivan had betrayed him.
"Thank you, Braginsky. But I have something for you." The young man thrust a large manila envelope into Ivan's hand. "You're a mess, but don't get the contents bloody. Open it up once you've taken a fucking shower or something." The guard quickly passed Ivan to get to the basement, and Ivan carefully held the folder by the corners.
Oh, didn't he have a backpack? Ivan looked for his backpack outside of the house and found it laying right next to the entrance. It was funny, Ivan thought as he placed the envelope in his bag, he didn't even remember throwing it aside.
Ivan scratched his cheek, noticing that the blood was already starting to cake, he needed to wash all of this blood out. Perhaps a river would do the job. Ivan set out to find a river. After some time of walking, Ivan reached a fairly large river and set up camp. Ivan took off all of his clothes and washed them in the river. The stench of blood probably would probably linger for a couple of days, or until he could get it to a proper cleaner. Ivan quickly washed all of the blood off and changed into his spare clothes.
Ivan hung his wet clothes off of a tree and quickly got a fire going. He wasn't feeling up to walking to the inn at the moment.
Ivan dragged a rather large rock over to the fire and used it as a chair.
"Well, let's see what he gave me." Ivan rummaged through his bag and pulled out the envelope. Ivan opened it and extracted the piece of paper from the inside. Ivan froze in place when he saw what it was. He had been expecting orders, or a report. This was very different. Ivan slowly put the envelope onto the ground and stared at the painting in front of him. It was a watercolor painting- it was amazingly done. The page was ever so slightly creased and slightly yellowed with age, but that added to the beauty of the watercolor. It was Buckingham palace, and there he was in front of it. He and all of the children stood in front of the palace as if they were standing for a picture.
This was undoubtedly Maria's work, Ivan could tell. A strange smile came upon Ivan's face as he ran his hand across the paint. "Ah, Maria's signature. So is this what she had wanted to give me." Ivan mused to himself. He absently turned the paper over and read the writing on the back.
"Surprise! I never go back on my word, this is the first painting we've done together! I promised to fix your drawing a loooong time ago, and so I've fixed it! Buckingham palace with family, Maria Romanov & " Ivan stared at the blank space right after the ampersand and carefully signed his name right next to it.
This was strange, Ivan thought when he saw water drop onto the paper. It wasn't raining, so why was it getting wet? Ivan touched his cheek and tried to laugh, but he couldn't. Ah, of course. Ivan moved the painting away so he wouldn't get it wet, he was crying. He hadn't cried in many years, not like this anyway. Ivan wanted to smile, it was just so comical how this had all played out, wasn't it? This would go into the history books nicely, it was a classic tale of betrayal. It was just so comical.
Ivan covered his face and tried to stop the tears from falling, he willed himself to stop hiccuping- but he couldn't. He wanted to laugh, but he couldn't. There were so many things that he couldn't do that night.
"What have I done?" Ivan managed between sobs. In this century, there were only five people who had trusted Ivan so much- who had adored him as much as he adored them. And he had killed them- what a pathetic person he was.
TT_TT I'm still not sure if I'm going to conclude this in one more chapter or two, I guess you'll find out next week. ^^"
As always, constructive criticism and thoughts about the chapter are always appreciated. Make sure to favorite this story if you liked it and follow it to get regular updates :) Hope you guys liked the chapter!
~Preuss
