A/N: Short chapter is short. Why? Because the next chapter is going to be tediously long.
As he had promised, Ivan didn't show up to school the next day or the day afterwards. He eventually showed up four days later, but Yao felt like he was having a heart attack every time Ivan's seat remained unoccupied in class. Ivan continued to wear baggy clothes to cover up what happened at home during "work". Yao always threw him troubled looks when they passed in the hallway, but he would simply reply with a daunting smile as if silently warning Yao not to tell anyone. As the weeks passed, the stress and worry was slowly digging away at Yao, and he wasn't sure how much he, or Ivan for that matter, could take.
"Nii-san, what's wrong?" Kiku asked one day, while Yao was absent-mindedly flipping through some books. Yao could tell Kiku was worried about him, otherwise he wouldn't have called him 'nii-san'.
"Huh? Nothing." Yao replied with little emotion.
"I'm very good at sensing the mood." Kiku continued, "Something has been troubling you."
"It's none of your concern-aru." Yao stated.
"Is is Braginski-san?" Kiku questioned.
"Of course not! What makes you think that-aru?" Kiku did not reply, but gave him the same uncaring expression he always wore.
"Do you like him?" He finally asked after a brief pause. Yao could feel his face turn red in an instant.
"O-of course not-aru! He's my friend, that's it!"
"Uh-huh." Kiku stared at him listlessly. "What's with all of the books?" Kiku asked, gesturing to the pile of books that lay around Yao.
"I like to read-aru."
"Books about the mafia and organized crime?"
"It's an interesting subject-aru!"
"Yao…" Kiku sat down beside him, an uncharacteristically dark frown on his face. "Stay away from Braginski-san, please. I know you're reading these books because of him, and I'm worried that you might get… hurt."
"Kiku…" Yao sighed. "You're so much smarter than people give you credit for, and that's saying something-aru." Yap ruffled his hair and smiled, then got up and put his coat on.
"Where are you going?" Kiku asked.
"To run a little errand. I might be back late-aru." But before Kiku could say a thing, Yong Soo came into the room glomping him. Yao chuckled at his brothers and silently shut the door before he was noticed.
In the mafia books, it said that leader of gangs often paid authorities money to keep quiet and leave them alone, so it was no use asking the principal for help, Yao figured as he headed away from campus. Maybe if I can find some sort of evidence of crime in the Braginski's house, I can sabotage him… Yao couldn't think of any other ideas, and he knew with his small frame and ninja reflexes, he could easily break in to the Braginski house.
After purchasing a ticket for a train and getting aboard, Yao called Alfred. Normally he'd text him, but seeing his annoying abbreviations wasn't something he needed right now.
"Hello?" Alfred answered after two rings.
"Ni-hao, it's me-aru." Yao greeted.
"Oh dude, it's Yao!" Alfred exclaimed. "What's up?"
"Nothing much. It's just… remember when you beat me up-aru?"
"Y-yeah… but I said sorry…" His voice darkened significantly at this.
"No, it's fine, it's fine. But you said that if I needed anything, I just had to ask you. Can you do me a favor-aru?"
"Whatever you want, dude."
"Great. I'm heading to this address: 565565, зимой Avenue. Copy that-aru." Yao added, knowing that the incompetent American would forget otherwise.
"The name sounds funny. Where is this?"
"It's in Russia." The line was silent, so Yao continued. "Look, if I don't call or text you before eight o' clock tomorrow, then that means something's happened to me. If so… I need you to come over-aru."
"Wait, what's this all about? You're freaking me out!"
"You'll learn eventually-aru." Yao sighed. "See you later, Alfred."
"Wait, Yao-" But he was cut off by Yao hanging up the phone. I'll be back, Yao reassured himself, I'll be the hero so Alfred doesn't have to. Yao gazed out the window and noticed the snow-covered landscaped fade into a howling blizzard.
"Ivan, I'll get you out of this hell-aru." Yao muttered to himself. "That's a promise."
After the train arrived, Yao hailed a taxi and had it stop a few blocks away from the Braginski house so he wouldn't cause any suspicion. It was well past sundown when Yao reached the Braginski house. Nearly all of the lights were off, and the house seemed to emit an ominous glow with the sparkling snow all around it. Yao carefully tiptoed through the snow to the house, barely leaving a mark in the perfect sheet of white all around him. He looked up and noticed an open window on the third floor, so he quickly ascended the side of the building using the protruding bricks as grips. He hopped into the room and made sure to wipe his shoes as to not leave a trace of his entry. I guess I should look for Ivan's father's office, Yao thought. It would probably be on the first floor, I think. He headed out the door and down the hall silently. Where are the stairs? This place is huge!
That's when he heard footsteps approaching. He quietly ducked into an open room with the lights out. He observed the oncoming figure to figure out who it was. The person was to short to be Ivan, his father, or Katyusha, and his hair was too short to be Natalia's. Finally, Yao could clearly make out who it was. He recognized the shoulder-length bright-brown hair, the worried green eyes and the thin frame. It was Toris Lorinaitis. What is he doing here, Yao wondered. He's nice; maybe he will help me. Yao quietly covered Toris's mouth and pulled him into the room, shutting the door behind him.
"Ah! Mr. Braginski, please don't hit me!" Toris shouted as soon as he was released. "I'm cleaning the house just like your father said, and- oh… it's you, Miss Yao." He let out a sigh of relief.
"Toris, are you alright-aru?" Yao could see Toris's body tremble noticeably as he spoke.
"I-it's nothing." Toris replied nervously.
"Fine. Toris, can you tell me where Mr. Braginski's office is?"
"Why do you need to know that, Miss Yao?"
"I need to find… some documents… about crime." Yao said no more, because Toris's pale face proved that he knew what Yao was talking about.
"What do you mean?" Toris finally mumbled, raising his hand to scratch his neck. Yao noticed a dark bruise near his hand.
"Did Ivan do that to you-aru?"
"Y-yes…" Toris replied hesitantly, looking away. "But… I can tell by the look in his eyes that he really doesn't want to hit me…" Without another word, Yao pulled him into a tight hug.
"Toris. Please tell me where they are. If I can find one way to prove what Mr. Braginski has been doing to Ivan… what he's been doing to you, I can help you both out of this-aru." Toris shook uncontrollably, but smiled as Yao released him from his arms.
"Alright, his office is on the first floor to the right. I can't read any of his papers because they're all in Russian, but maybe you can. I'll try to cover for you."
"Thanks, Toris." Yao said as he headed out the door.
"…good luck, Miss Yao…" Toris whispered behind him.
Yao slinked down the vast, dark hallways as swiftly and quietly as he could. He knew that if he got caught, he would surely get killed. He eventually got to Mr. Braginski's office on the first floor. It was a large, dark room, the walls painted an uninteresting dark gray. In the middle of the room there was an ornate wooden desk with a computer and a lamp on it, and behind that there was a filing cabinet. I guess I'll try there, Yao decided. He pulled a hair pin from his ponytail and nimbly picked the lock on the drawers. He pulled out the nearest file, and read the label.
"ха-ха это участок устройства" Yao sighed. "Aiyaa… I'll have to figure out what it says later-aru." He quickly tucked the file under his shirt and left the office. He checked his phone, which read 1:32 a.m. If I leave soon enough, I can get back to the dorm before six… Yao contemplated as he ran down the hall. He stopped as he reached the stairs. Maybe… I can visit Ivan really quick. I've got time. He quickened his pace and ran up the stairs towards Ivan's room.
When he got there, Yao slowly slid the door open and squinted at the bright white of the room. The windows were wide open and the white snow outside seemed to make the room even brighter. Nothing had changed for the most part since the last time he had been here, except for the ceiling. The beautiful sunflower field now had peonies painted with this, the bright pink color making the painting look even happier. Did he add that because of me? Yao questioned wordlessly. He shook his head. That doesn't matter. He turned to the sleeping figure on the bed and tiptoed towards it. How can he sleep with all of this light?
"Ivan, I promise to get you out of here-aru." Yao whispered. He placed his hand on the sheets, and could feel them shake beneath him. "Ivan?" Yao pulled off the sheets only to find Toris, tied up and gagged, staring back at him with worried, tearful eyes. "Toris? What happened to you-aru?" Yao shouted. He hurriedly began to untie him, but was interrupted as someone behind him forced a rag against his face. In moments, the world around him went black.
A/N: DUN DUN DUNNNNN! CLIFFHANGER! ...again. Like I said at the top, this chapter is very very short because the next one will probably be pretty long. I hope you don't mind. It also doesn't help that I'm super duper busy with finals! *dies* ONE WEEK LEFT! I'LL MAKE IT! ...maybe. I want to thank everyone for the faves and reviews, and I also want you to know that the document that Yao took literally says "Ha ha, this is a plot device." in Russian because I couldn't think of anything else to call it. Also, I love Lithuania, so I feel pretty bad for being mean to him. Poor guy. Anyways, congrats to everyone who survived the (supposed) judgement day! :D