Thanks to AlexFalk, Dragonfire78, BloodLily16, Don't Insult Oliver's Cupcakes, EverythingMath, Miss Akiyata, WafflePancakes and an anon for reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 46: Curl

The Second Player has been found.

Black makes an excellent Pawn.

…

Antonio watched as Lovino writhed on the bed, crying out in pain every now and again.

She sighed. While Lovino was in the dream, there was nothing she could…

Wait.

Her eyes widened. Jamaica was there. He could do something.

…

Lovino panted out of pain. The knives prevented him from curling up from the pain, and presently, that was all he wanted to do.

He had learned a little trick. Luciano didn't like it if Lovino cussed him out, and would leave Marcello alone in favour of torturing the older Italian. So whenever Luciano used one of his knives on Marcello, Lovino would cuss out Luciano in whatever language he could, with Italian thrown in.

Luciano could also recognise some of the words, having heard them and deduced their meanings at meetings, and was angered every time Lovino would open his mouth.

As long as Marcello was fine, he didn't mind.

"How is it that you know so many swears?" Luciano snarled, as he once again abandoned Marcello in favour of punishing Lovino.

"Che, do you have any idea how many bastards there are in the world?" Lovino asked. "I found it always helps to curse them in their own language."

Luciano removed his gloves, leaned down and, to Lovino's horror, grabbed his tongue.

"I hope you know that there is nothing stopping me from cutting off your tongue," Luciano said.

Lovino tried to pull the muscle free, but the younger Italian had a good grip. He froze when he tasted steel on his tongue.

"Next time, I will cut off your tongue, are we clear?" Luciano asked.

Lovino's eyes started to tear, and he managed to nod shakily. Luciano smirked, letting go of the tongue, and moved to stand, but apparently he got another idea.

Lovino grew rigid when Luciano grabbed his curl.

"Tell me, Lovino," Luciano said, cold amusement in his voice, "have you ever considered getting a haircut?"

"No," Lovino whispered. "Not that, per favore."

Luciano smirked as he cut off only the tip of the curl.

But Lovino had never screamed such a bloodcurdling scream in his life.

…

Everyone in the mansion flinched when they heard the scream. At first they thought it was Feliciano, but those that had gone investigating had learned that it was Lovino.

And no one was in the room with the screaming Italian when a lupine creature seemed to emerge from his body.

No one, except for a Deathplayer.

…

Luciano frowned when he noticed the world suddenly turning dark.

"What the…?" he asked, as he felt as though he was being pulled out of the dream.

…

Feliciano had jumped when she heard the scream, and was about to go to her older brother's room when Marcello jumped, eyes flying open.

"Marcello!" Feliciano cried out in surprise. "What happened? What did he do to Lovi? There was this scary scream. What happened?"

Marcello started crying as he looked his sister in the eyes.

"His curl," Marcello said. "Luciano cut off a piece of Lovino's curl."

Feliciano didn't respond, but started trembling. Not out of fear, oh no. Out of rage.

"Feliciano?" Ludwig asked.

"Ve, I'm going to need to speak to South Africa," Feliciano said. "Then maybe we can find Canada too, si?"

…

Antonio rushed into Lovino's room, Jamaica at her heels. They had also heard the scream, and they feared the worst.

Jamaica instantly rushed forward, and seemed to sigh in relief.

"He passed out," Jamaica said.

"Can someone pass out when they're asleep?" Antonio asked.

"It is possible, yes," Jamaica said. "And in the case of something like this, it's a blessing. One tends to slip into a dreamless state, and if someone is interfering in their dreams, it pushes the intruder out."

"That's good then. That means that Lovi can sleep easy, for now."

"Yes. But now, our greatest concern is finding out what caused him to pass out in the first place."

…

Luciano massaged her temples as soon as she returned to her own consciousness. It was the first time she had done something like this, and wasn't sure if that was normal.

"You shouldn't let them pass out," a voice said from the door.

Luciano jumped and, readying a knife, turned to glare at the person at the door.

"What do you know?" Luciano snarled.

Marius sighed, stepping closer.

"Vlad passed out on me once as well," she explained. "If that happens, you're forced out of their mind, and it leaves you disoriented."

"Would have been nice to know that before I…"

Luciano left it there. She had no intention of sharing with anyone exactly how sensitive the curls were. She couldn't reveal any weaknesses.

"I'll hold down the fort," Marius said. "You're going to need some rest. By the way, the other side knows how to counteract the Bloody Fire."

"I'll keep that in mind," Luciano muttered. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to take a siesta."

She trusted Marius, for the moment. All of the Nations turned into women have a truce of sorts. None of them were going to attack the others. They have other targets to set their sights on.

…

Will's eyes widened when he saw the cookies Mathias had made for him and Poland.

"Well, it's not twice your weight," Mathias said, "but it's a start."

"Thank you," Will whispered, taking a cookie.

"Let's hope this works," Patrick sighed.

…

Antonio looked up when Ludwig entered the room, carrying Marcello in his arms.

"Seborga," Spain said, "what exactly did he do to Roma?"

Marcello flinched at the question.

"Lovino would keep insulting him," Marcello said. "Lovi was keeping him away from me. And every time, he would beat Lovi. The last time…" Marcello swallowed a lump in his throat. "The last time, Luciano cut off a piece of Lovino's curl."

"Is that bad?" Antonio asked, confused.

"Si. Our curls act as erogenous zones. The hair is connected to a nerve that is connected to our entire body. The hair itself is sensitive. And, for something so sensitive to receive that treatment…"

Antonio's eyes widened. Now it made sense. Lovino didn't like it if someone touched his curl, because that would basically be molesting him. And she remembered doing it a few times in the past…

But something that sensitive shouldn't be hurt like that.

"Alejandro was right," Antonio whispered. "The other Italy is the cruellest among them."

…

Feliks was pouting as the magic trio were still trying to remove all the metal balls. But that was not why she was pouting.

Denmark had delivered cookies, and Poland couldn't eat any of them until all of the metal was out of her stomach.

"Like, this totally bites," Feliks said.

"We're trying our best," Vlad said. "But there are still so many inside."

"We really need to put an end to them," Arthur said.

…

Feliciano smiled when she entered the kitchen, seeing both Anika and Matthew, along with other Nations.

This time, Feliciano's smile was icy, and the Nations that noticed that shuddered and gave the Italian a wide berth before they realised what they were doing.

Even the two Nations that she was looking for paused when they noticed her.

"Ciao Canada, Sudafrica," Feliciano greeted. "I would like to speak with you for a moment."

The two exchanged glances, before following the Italian out of the room. Omar, naturally, followed after.

And the rest of the Nations in the room wondered how the three that had just departed weren't affected by the Italian's creepy look.

…

Alfred was showing Miguel, Ivan, Kiku and Leon how to make dream catchers. They had to make them personally, and most of the others were busy at the moment. But it was easier teaching a smaller group.

In the case of the Africans, South Americans and Oceanic Nations, it wasn't really necessary. Their counterparts had no ill-intentions towards them.

…

"What is it?" Anika asked as soon as they were a fair distance away from the kitchen.

"I want you to contact your counterpart," Feliciano said. "I want to help her take Luciano down."

Anika and Matthew exchanged a glance.

"Are you sure you…" Matthew started.

"He hurt my fratelli," Feliciano said. "He even hurt Lovino in the worst way possible. He cut off a piece of his curl."

Matthew's eyes widened, and he let out a small cry under his breath.

"So, you want to be involved directly?" Anika asked.

"Si. I want to help the South of the other world take him down. I will make him pay for hurting my fratelli. Everything that he has done to other Nations, I will do to him tenfold."

To everyone's surprise, Omar gripped Feliciano's shoulder, a smile on her face. Everyone could see the approval in the other's eyes.

"If you want," Matthew said, "I can take you there."

"Ve," Feliciano said, "I would appreciate that."

…

"Are you alright?" Molossia asked.

Seborga sighed, shaking his head slightly.

There was a large cut on his cheek, and then there was the stab wound in his shoulder. Luciano had also carved a line along his collarbone, and had even broken a few of his fingers.

"So not even we Micro Nations are safe," Wy sighed.

"I'm starting to reconsider this," Hutt River said.

"No," Sealand said. "Those jerks need to learn a lesson."

"Peter," Kugelmugel sighed, "don't you see how dangerous this is?"

"Jerk England is scared," Sealand said. "I saw it. And some of the others are scared too. That means that if the other jerks win, then all of us will get hurt. We won't be safe anymore, no matter what we do."

The others all stared at Sealand, surprised by his words, but knowing that they were true.

"Luciano mentioned something," Seborga said. "He said that, when a Micro Nation is hurt, the Nation they're a part of will feel the pain as well."

"Aussie never mentioned that," Wy said.

"I think there's a difference between us getting hurt and someone else hurting us," Ladonia said. "Maybe that's why that rule exists?"

"Lovino didn't know about it," Seborga said.

"But now he does," Hutt River said. "And soon enough, the others will know this too."

…

Alida's eyes widened when she saw the new arrivals, and so did the other Nations in the room.

"Matthew?" Matt asked. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I'd like to speak to you," Feliciano said, walking up to Alida.

"You're the other Italy," Alida said.

"Si. And you're Luciano's enemy, which makes you my friend."

Alida arched an interested brow.

"I'd think you'd like to know of a weakness Luciano has," Feliciano said.

This caught Alida's attention.

"Oh?" she prodded.

"The curl," Feliciano said.

Matt and Matthew's eyes widened, and Alida leaned forward.

"What about the curl?" she asked.

"It's hyper sensitive," Feliciano said. "It acts as an erogenous zone, but if you cut it…"

Eyes turned to Matt, who was holding his hand up to his temple, almost protectively towards his curl. Alida chuckled.

"What brought this on?" Alida asked. "You don't strike me as someone that would suggest something so… cruel."

"He hurt my fratelli," Feliciano said. "He attacked Marcello, an innocent Micro Nation, and he cut off a piece of Lovino's own curl. He's going to pay for hurting them. No one messes with my fratelli."

The other Nations in the room were also surprised by the new development. They had actually gotten to know Feliciano, and this new version was a little unnerving. Feliciano was almost acting like Luciano.

"I'm impressed," Alida said. "Oh, and Anika, it's nice to finally see you in the flesh."

Anika smiled briefly, making herself comfortable in one of Alida's chair.

"There's a meeting of the South tomorrow," Alida said. "If you're serious about helping put a stop to our Italy, you're welcome to join us."

"Ve, grazie," Feliciano said. "You're a lot nicer than Luciano. That means that you can also be more brutal."

"I care about the Nations that rely on me," Alida said. "And when they're in danger, I get dangerous. It seems the two of us have something in common."

…

Lovino groaned when he opened his eyes. His entire body felt sore, and he felt heavy.

"Lovi!" a voice called out, and Lovino groaned.

"No bastardo," Lovino cried out. "Too loud."

"Lo siento," the voice said, a little softer.

Now that he thought about it, the voice sounded female. A face with familiar green eyes came into view.

"How are you feeling?" Antonio asked.

"I hurt like hell," Lovino muttered. "How's Marcello?"

"He's okay. A little shaky, but okay. Germany treated his wounds."

"And Feliciano?"

"She… I'm not sure. She looked a little scary."

"Veneziano has gone dark," Lovino said, understanding the situation. "Nonno taught us how to do it when we were still young. It's like a switch, and we can access our more violent, sadistic tendencies when we're in real danger, or we're incredibly pissed off. We're also a lot stronger."

"Why didn't you use it in your dream?" Antonio asked.

"Do you think I wanted 'Cello to see that? No. I'd rather protect him through getting hurt, than let him see me as a psycho."

"Um, I think Feliciano's already there."

"Then I'll need to make sure that I don't go dark as well."

…

Alejandro was seeking out Kyo. She needed to know when he intended to go to the other world. The best option would be when the others were asleep. That is, if they slept.

"There you are," a voice said, and Alejandro snapped to attention.

Fortunately for her, it was the very Nation she was searching for.

"I need to know something," Kyo said. "Around what time do the others usually go to sleep?"

"They should all be asleep around midnight," Alejandro responded.

"That's still a while away. Tell me, do you know where our target's room is?"

"From the brief images I got from watching Antonio, I think I have a good idea."

"Good. Then I will expect you to lead the way."

"Of course."

…

Oliver finally had the kitchen to herself, as Luciano had chased away everyone else after Turkey had tried to cook.

She was making cupcakes, but this time, it was due to stress.

How long would this spell last? She didn't exactly like being a woman. There was always that one fear, and judging from how the female Nations usually reacted, she had no intention of experiencing that for herself.

William had said that it usually wore off after a few days, and she hoped that was the case. Otherwise, they would have to pay another visit to a certain Welshman.

She wondered how he liked those Bloody Fires that Felic had dropped in his abdomen.

…

Roderich was at home, playing the piano. Elizaveta had been keeping him updated on everything that had been happening.

He was surprised to hear of Gilbert's transition to the fairer sex, and also that his counterpart from the other world had attacked Gilbert while Gilbert's own counterpart came through the mirror, along with a few other Nations.

Roderich was never a fighter, and so knew that he wouldn't be able to do something regarding the other Nations. He was simply not skilled at fighting.

He was surprised when Hans decided to help out as well, and even though he had tried to dissuade the Micro Nation, the other would not listen, insisting on helping. Roderich wouldn't leave things be until Elizaveta promised that she would keep a close eye on Kugelmugel.

But Austria couldn't help but wonder if he shouldn't have joined them anyway. Personally, he was curious as to how a female version of Prussia would look like. He also needed to see what the female version of Italy looked like. Just a little gnawing at the back of his mind for all the years that he had thought Italy was a girl.

If Italy was a girl, what would she look like and how would she act?

…

When Matthew and Anika returned to the kitchen, the other Nations were surprised.

The two immediately went back to what they had been doing, thankful that they hadn't done anything involving heat yet. It would have ended in disaster.

"How were you not creeped out by Italy's strange look?" Turkey asked.

"We became acquainted with the other Italy," Matthew said. "And in case you hadn't noticed, more and more Nations are going dark."

"You know what I want to see?" Anika asked. "When you snap."

…

"There," Arthur sighed. "It's finished."

"Like, finally," Feliks said, reaching for one of the cookies Mathias had brought.

"I don't know what's worse," Alistair said. "The fact that there were so many in your stomach, or the fact that he forced you to swallow them all."

"Like, believe me," Feliks said, "the swallowing was the worst part."

…

Sigurd had been watching Lukas through the mirror. She wondered how Felic managed to keep the fact that she put her counterpart through sleep paralysis a secret from them, especially Luciano.

But after thinking about it for a moment, she realised that it wasn't such a bad idea, especially considering the fact that the only time she could play with Lukas was when the other was asleep, and the other was never asleep when she wanted to play.

Well, she could always go to the other side herself, but that would mean that she had to wait for Lukas to be alone. She didn't think it wise to go there when there were too many other Nations around Lukas.

…

Ricardo sighed, keeping an eye on Roberto. Soon enough, the Southern Nations would make a plan, while the Northern Nations were occupied with the other world. He felt guilty about using Roberto's world like they were, but it was necessary.

The sooner they got rid of the North, the better.

The way I see it, those with curls usually kept the effect of them secret. They also leave the others' curls alone, as an act of curtesy. The fact that Luciano crossed a line justifies why Feliciano is crossing the other line.

Also, I've got a new poll on my profile. While I'm on holiday, I have extra time to write, and extra time to tend to all the plot bunnies that bit me. The only problem is, there are too many of them. So, I wrote the titles of each story down, as well as the summaries, and I need you to vote for the ones that sound the most interesting. There are two votes available. Really, most of the plot bunnies bite me in quick succession, and when I ignore them they keep gnawing. So please, help me take care of them, before they completely consume me. There are even two options with pairings, and the pairings were decided through a list randomizer. According to my friend, I can make any crack pairing work. And there's a CanadaXWorld, so check it out. And there's one for the Egypt fans, and for those that like dark fics, I have in supply. There's also the option for the oneshot 'Scar-Crossed' to be continued. They've each been started, so I know what to do with them. And with the extra time came the overwhelming urge to write, so please help me out. And if anyone wants to see a prologue or a preview, PM me with the title of the story. I'll be writing until I have a decent amount of chapters before I post. I don't want to be like those authors that take months/years to update.