Thanks to Big Eater Queen, EverythingMath, Don't Insult Oliver's Cupcakes, i, jkin6486, Insane-Lane, Dragonfire78, how-the-mighty-fall and Miss Akiyata for reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 47: Surprises in the Night

The rest of the day had passed in relative peace. Alfred had shown the magic trio, the bad touch trio, Poland and Lithuania how to make dream catchers, since it was obvious they needed them the most. Feliks, on the other hand, simply stated that it was useless, since she said that she wouldn't be sleeping. And judging from the amount of times she went to the kitchen to get a coffee, and the amount of sweets she had already consumed, she was serious about the matter.

…

Alejandro jumped when Kyo placed his hand on her shoulder.

"It's time," he said. "Let's go."

Alejandro sighed, nodding her head. Good thing Antonio was asleep.

…

Sigurd chuckled, seeing that Lukas was fast asleep. She had decided on a different approach, especially after hearing about the dream catchers. This time, Lukas will not be haunted in his, her, dreams.

But thinking about it some more, she needed to take care of another problem. Gabriel had betrayed them, and the Icelander should not be permitted to get away with it.

No, he will learn what punishment meant. And if she couldn't get one Iceland, she'll go for the other.

…

Francois smirked, her hand sinking through the mirror. It was about time for her to get a little payback for Francis's actions a few days ago.

If he was serious about being a papa, then Francois would simply remind him of how easy it was to fail.

…

Feliks huffed in annoyance. It was already late, and she had already drunk three cups of coffee, which seemed to go right through her. Seriously, why did she need to go to the bathroom so frequently?

…

Will sighed, looking at the pile of treats in the corner. He had already eaten quite a lot, and was relieved to know that he no longer felt as sick as before.

Still. Twice your weight in sweets is a little overkill.

"Duw fy helpu," he muttered.

…

"This place is too large," Kyo muttered.

As it turned out, finding the room they were searching for was a lot harder than expected. Alright, so Antonio didn't pass the room frequently, and it was a large place.

They turned a corner and stopped. Someone else stopped as well.

The two women were prepared to fight, at least until they recognised each other.

"What the hell are you doing here Francois?" Alejandro hissed.

The Frenchwoman huffed, crossing her arms.

"I was hoping to teach Francis a lesson by torturing his 'petit fils'," she said the last part in disgust. "It's disgusting how protective they are of each other."

"Agreed," Alejandro said.

"So, what are you two doing here?"

"India," Kyo said. "I think we need to take a stand against the Southern Powers, don't you?"

"By attacking the one on the other side. Smart. But, why India?"

"Brazil and South Africa are under surveillance, in case you hadn't noticed," Alejandro said.

"True."

The three stood in silence for a while, trying to listen closely. When they were satisfied that no one else was on their way, they turned to one another again.

"So, any idea where Canada's room is?" Francois asked.

"Around the corner, third on the right," Alejandro said. "Any idea where India's room is?"

"Haven't seen it, but I think it's further down this way," Francois said.

"Fine," Kyo said. "Have fun."

"Merci, and you as well."

"Arigato."

…

Feliciano snuggled into her brothers' embrace. After what had happened, none of the Italians wanted to sleep alone, so the three of them chose to share a bed. Since they did it often enough anyway, it really wasn't a problem.

Well, except for the fact that Feliciano was now a woman, and after the general awkwardness, Lovino and Marcello had no problem cuddling with their sister.

Feliciano herself wanted to cuddle, but knew that it would be a lot harder, considering the others' wounds. So instead, she allowed herself to be their source of comfort, knowing that they needed comfort more than her.

There was also something else that was a huge relief to them all. In the dreams, the Nations that had been transformed would revert to their original gender. So, Luciano was male when he tortured them. And since Feliciano was female outside of the dream, her brothers weren't traumatised by the sight of her, which apparently happened to Japan after his counterpart tortured North Korea.

Lovino grunted in his sleep, hugging her tighter, while Marcello gripped her shoulder. Since she was still relatively new in the female body, it wasn't as awkward as expected. In fact, for Feliciano, this all seemed normal. Even wearing a skirt had become normal, since she did spend a long time wearing a dress, back when she was a servant in Austria's house.

Which reminded her, she probably had to send a photo to him.

…

Sigurd was looking for Emil's room, which she figured would have been close to Lukas's room. Apparently, that was not the case.

"Whoever assigned these rooms clearly has no sense of logic," she whispered.

She rounded a corner, and jumped when she saw two figures approaching. The last thing she needed was to run into anyone else.

As she was about to hide in one of the other rooms, she heard a hissed 'Sigurd?'

Turning, she saw that it was Spain and Japan, but Japan was wearing a black uniform, and Spain wasn't wearing a dress.

"I thought it was the other Spain and Japan," Sigurd sighed.

"We thought you were Lukas, until we saw your hair," Alejandro whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"I think the same thing as you. Let me guess, torturing someone?"

"Hai," Kyo said. "India."

"Oh, I just saw him. Three doors down this way. Have you seen Iceland?"

"On the other side of the hall, fifth door right," Alejandro said.

"Thank you. Have fun."

"You too. Oh, and France is here too."

"I hope she has fun too."

…

Matthew slowly returned to the waking world, feeling as though someone was looming over him. He opened his eyes to see France.

"I see you're finally awake," the Frenchwoman said.

Matthew's eyes widened, and before he could scream, the woman had placed her hand on his mouth. Just from the tone, he could tell that it was Francois, and not Francis.

"Francis thought he could 'teach me a lesson' for messing with 'Papa France'," Francois hissed. "So now, I'm going to show Francis what exactly I did to my colonies."

Matthew's eyes widened. He had heard enough of that from Matt. He didn't want to experience it himself.

…

When Luciano awoke, she immediately went to the mirror. She noticed that the three were sleeping in the same bed, reminding her of when she and Flavio were younger.

Actually, now that she thought about it, she might need to go see her brothers.

As for Feliciano and her brothers…

She couldn't really be bothered at the moment.

…

"Huh," Mathias said. "Lukas was right."

Standing in front of him was a more focused version of the Dane.

"What about?" the other asked.

"You look like the Viking version of me, except you're lacking something."

"And that is?"

"Intent to kill."

"Oh, believe me. I have more than enough of that. The name's Tobias."

"I'm Mathias."

"Then shall we begin?"

Mathias smirked.

"Bring it."

It's been so long since he last was a berserker.

…

When Emil awoke, he wasn't sure what he was expecting. But being gagged with his wrists tied behind his back was not what he was expecting.

He heard a giggle, and a familiar face came into view. He paled when he realised the face was framed by hair that was too light, white, in fact, and there was a twisted smile on the woman's face.

"Oh goodie, you're awake," the girl said with a Norwegian accent. "Now we can start playing."

Emil's eyes widened when he realised exactly who this was. Gabriel's sister, Lukas's counterpart…

Sigurd.

…

Kyo smirked once they finally found the room they were searching for.

Stepping inside, he calmly approached the slumbering figure, slowly unsheathing his katana as he did so.

Spain stepped in after him, and he knew that she was excited about it as well.

Standing in front of India, he pointed the tip of the katana to his neck.

"Wake up," he instructed.

…

Mahesh snarled in anger. He had merely passed by a mirror, on the way to the kitchen to get a snack, when he saw something out of the corner of his eye.

Japan. He managed to get to the other world. And he was with Raj.

"I am going to kill you," Mahesh snarled at the reflection.

…

When Raj opened his eyes, he wasn't expecting to be met with a sword pointed at him. Nor was he expecting to see red eyes glaring at him.

His eyes widened, but he more or less kept calm, trying hard not to panic and make the situation worse for himself.

"How did you get here?" Raj asked.

"I'm glad I don't have to go through formalities," the Japanese man said. "Now, on your feet."

Raj frowned a little when his question was unanswered, but did so anyway. Now that his view wasn't blocked by the Japanese man, he managed to see Spain's counterpart, and pieced together how it was possible.

As soon as he stood, he was suddenly pulled forward, twisted so that his back was pressed to the other Japan's chest. Before he could struggle, the katana was pressed against his throat.

"If you shout to alert anyone, you will be coated in red," Japan hissed. "Now, come along."

Raj had no choice in the matter, and allowed himself to be led out of the room. Japan led him to one of the few rooms that remained ajar.

The bathroom.

He was dragged inside, and in front of the mirror, he could see the face of pure anger.

"Mahesh," he whispered.

"Kyo Honda, you let him go right now!" Mahesh snarled.

Raj gasped when the blade of the sword was pressed closer to his throat, and he saw Mahesh's eyes widen.

"Now, why would I do that?" Kyo asked. "After all I went through to get him. Especially seeing as you care so much for him."

Mahesh growled, and Raj couldn't help but wonder if the other really did care for him, and why that was so.

"If you harm him…" Mahesh snarled.

"My, you're quite different from your usual reserved self," Kyo taunted. "Perhaps this would be an excellent time to have another Japanese-Indian War?"

"That's what this is about?" Mahesh whispered, the anger momentarily disappearing.

"It's always what it's about," Kyo snarled. "And I'm going to repay you for the last one. Spain!"

Raj looked to the side. He had forgotten that she was there.

"Alright," she said, walking closer.

Kyo removed the sword, and Raj tried to run, not liking whatever they were planning, only to be grabbed by the back of the collar of the pyjama shirt he was wearing, choking him a little as he was pulled back. Kyo sheathed his sword and pulled him away from the mirror, and Mahesh's protests became silent. Kyo wrapped his hand around Raj's throat instead, and he was glad that the other hadn't broken skin with the sword.

Alejandro stepped up to the mirror and placed her hand on the glass. The hand slid through. She looked expectantly at the Japanese man, who took her other hand.

Raj had no warning as they fell through the mirror, the hand around his neck tightening, strangling him.

…

Matthew winced as Francois pressed the lit cigarette against his throat again. His hands struggled against the ripped sheets substituting for ropes, tying him securely to the bed.

"You know, I don't think this is working," Francois huffed, pressing the cigarette a final time against Matthew's chest, earning a grunt this time. "You know, I'm glad you're so quiet. Means I don't have to gag you, and your quiet sounds are still amusing enough. And so much more behaved than Matt."

Matthew didn't say anything, not wanting to invoke the Frenchwoman's wrath.

His eyes widened when Francois raised a knife.

"I'm assuming you heard of Bloody Fire?" she asked.

He nodded, not removing his eyes from the blade.

"Well, do you know what happens when heated Bloody Fire is cooled?"

He shook his head.

"It no longer poisons the victim," Francois said, "but it does leave a pretty nasty scar. The damage inflicted is nearly impossible to heal from, even for a Nation. Just ask Egypt."

Matthew's eyes widened as Francois brought the knife closer.

…

Emil screamed into the gag as Sigurd peeled part of his skin off. The Norwegian woman had torn off his shirt, and was proceeding to peel the skin off of his chest.

The worst part was probably when she would eat the skin that she peeled off.

"You know," Sigurd said, smiling a twisted smile at him, "you taste delicious. I should probably take you with me, and then Oliver can turn you into a cupcake."

His eyes widened, and he let out a cry of despair, muffled by the gag. This caused Sigurd to giggle.

"You really are tasty, though," Sigurd said. "But it could use something. I know…"

She raised a bottle, and Emil whimpered in worry.

Salt.

…

Oliver huffed, crossing her arms, a pout on her lips.

She had hoped to pay Arthur a little visit, but something seemed to be blocking her.

Now what was she supposed to do?

…

Lili was pinned down with knives through her usual dress. Standing over her was a girl that looked somewhat like her, but obviously wasn't her.

"Well," the other said, Liechtenstein's sweet voice sounding horribly distorted when the other spoke. "Aren't you pathetic?"

The other, Elise, kept circling her, like some sort of predator, and Lili was her prey.

"Tell me, did you enjoy the company of my brother?" Elise spat. "Because I enjoyed the company of yours. Did he have fun?"

Lili didn't say anything, too afraid to. The other girl clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"Like I said," Elise said. "Pathetic!"

…

Matt decided to go check on Matthew. For some reason, he had the strange feeling that something was seriously wrong.

And he was right.

…

Mahesh stood in shock as his reflection completely vanished. Was this what happened when Nations went to the other worlds?

He placed his hand on the mirror, feeling nothing but cold glass. He couldn't see what was happening to Raj, and there was no way for him to come to the other's aid.

"Another Japanese-Indian War?" he muttered. "What are you up to?"

…

Matthew cried out in pain as Francois started carving patterns into his chest. He wasn't sure what the other was doing, exactly, but knew that the cuts weren't random. There was something being carved into his chest.

Something that, if her words were true, would be there forever.

"There," she muttered. "C'est fini."

She pulled away, and Matthew panted, the cuts burning. Already, he could tell that Bloody Fire was worse than anything his own world had to offer.

"Let him go," a harsh voice said.

Francois jumped and turned to face the speaker. Matthew was relieved when he saw exactly who it was.

"Matt," he whispered.

Francois growled, glaring at her former colony.

"I thought you'd be gone," Francois said, not moving away from Matthew. "When did you become Afrique du Sud's little dog?"

"That's only because she found out about Matthew," Matt said, "and I wasn't about to endanger him."

"And what is this then?"

"In case you didn't know, I fear the Southern Powers more than I fear the entire Northern Hemisphere."

"Pourquoi?"

"Let's just say, the way they do things is different from the North. And if you know anything about the way they fight, you wouldn't want to see that."

"I still see no reason to fear them."

"Let's put it this way then. Brazil and South Africa were Portugal's Crown Jewels. They weren't just the most important of the colonies, but they also were the ones that defied him the most. And frankly, Portugal is worse than you, in case you forgot."

Francois shrugged, not willing to disagree.

"Oh, and let's not forget the fact that they never lost a war in their lives," Matt said.

Francois winced. Apparently, that part was forgotten.

"And as for India…" Matt said. "He managed to beat Japan once. What's stopping him from doing it a second time?"

"In case you forgot," Francois said, "India's actions during war would be considered suicidal. I'm surprised he managed to survive that."

"True. But the fact that he would do that to himself to win a war says a lot. Would you do that?"

Francois hissed, already angry at that statement, and the fact that she wouldn't perform the same actions.

Matt advanced on her, and Francois jumped off of Matthew. Since Matthew was one of the few Nations that had a mirror in his room, Francois made a beeline for that.

Matt growled, watching her go.

"I'll get her later," Matt said, before he turned to Matthew. "You alright?"

Matthew nodded, tugging on his bindings.

"Come on," Matt said, helping Matthew out of the bindings. "We need to get that cleaned. Strange. My France isn't usually one to carve a fleur-de-lis on someone."

"I think that she wanted to hurt Francis," Matthew said. "She mentioned that a few times."

"Speaking of which, I think I may want to have a word with her."

…

Alida had her arms crossed, glaring at the mirror as she waited for Matt to return. She had entered the room just as he had left, and was a little angry that he just left.

When the Canadian returned, she immediately pinned him against the wall.

"If you're going to leave," she said, "you ask my permission first."

"Alright," Matt said, and Alida was pleased to note that there was a faint trace of fear in his eyes. "It's just that our France went to the other world to torture Matthew."

She frowned, moving away, barely noticing Matt's sigh of relief.

"France isn't the only one that took a little trip to the other world," Alida said. "Mahesh called. Japan had taken Raj."

Some things I've noticed while writing the other stories: One, it's fun to write crack pairings. Two, it's fun to make up historic events, and then writing it in Hetalia style. Three, I love writing evil Matthew. Four, I need to read more High School AUs. I've been working on each of the stories that received a vote, but the more votes, the more I work on a certain story. With Mirror History, I'll be retracing my steps with Game of Mirrors, trying to clarify each of the references, such as the Japanese-Indian War. So far, I've written how Omar and Alida met, and what happened to make 2PGreece hate cats. I'll also be rewatching Hetalia to see what I can do differently, such as England and America's history. Also, if you have requests for a certain 2P character's history, let me know.

But anyway, thanks for those who've voted on my poll, and for those who didn't, please do. If I take the votes of my sister and friend in consideration, then I have a five-way tie.

Oh, and for my Egypt story, I've been trying to get my mind to focus on Ancient Egypt again. I used to have a fascination with it when I was younger, even being able to write my name in hieroglyphs. Part of it was to rewatch The Mummy, and I remembered this random slip-up of the actor who plays Imhotep, which is a South African. Instead of shouting the Ancient Egyptian equivalent of 'no', he shouted the Afrikaans word for 'no'. It's in The Mummy Returns, during the fight with the Scorpion King. We laughed when we heard 'nee' being shouted.