Feliciano couldn't be certain on how long it had been since he fled his house; the only sign of time passing as he ran was the lightening sky. The one thing he did know was that he had to get to Arthur's house. The only thing he could find pleasure in was that he was wearing his pajamas, so the people out in the predawn hours weren't trying to pull him aside and ask what happened or request his assistance in one thing or another.

I left Ludwig behind. I left Francis behind. These thoughts swarmed through the Pope's head as he desperately made his way through one of the side streets, stumbling as he went.

Feliciano wasn't sure what happened, but one moment he was trying to keep one foot going in front of the other while trying to fight off the growing haze in his head, then there was a person standing there stopping him before Feliciano crashed into him.

"You're acting like you're late for something," Gilbert's familiar voice said to him.

Feliciano gasped, breathing heavily from how hard he had been running. Under normal circumstances, his guard would've taken him to one of the cars and drove over to Arthur's house while someone alerted Arthur they would be arriving.

But, then again, this wasn't exactly someone would call 'normal circumstances'.

"What's going on?" Gilbert whispered to him, guiding Feliciano into the little pub nearby. It was closed, but Gilbert owned it and had his apartment on the second and third floors. He must've been up bright and early, which seemed quite unlike him.

The pub in question was a typical one. Dim lights, a bunch of chairs and tables had been strewn about and one of the bar stools had been lodged between one of the tables and a wall on the far side.

"It looks like another fight went on," Feliciano muttered.

Gilbert nodded, saying, "Yea, but you know how rowdy they can get. So, what happened? I heard police sirens a few hours ago but the media's been restricted on not revealing any information."

Feliciano looked away from Gilbert as they walked up to the second floor. Gilbert didn't talk anymore, and sat Feliciano down at the small table in a slightly larger kitchen.

Gilbert pulled some wine out of the refrigerator and poured out two cups. One of these, he handed to Feliciano. The only sound was the chirping of the yellow bird, Gilbird.

"The Mafia," Feliciano muttered as Gilbert took a seat across from him.

"Huh?" Gilbert asked, surprised. "But, didn't the Mafia fall?"

Feliciano shook his head. "They got rid of quite a few of the major crime bosses, and some of the minor ones, but the Mafia was nowhere near finished. Last night…" Feliciano choked on his words, and quickly took a sip of his wine, but it was plain that he had started shaking. "Last night…the Mafia attacked the house."

"What about Ludwig? Is he all right?" Gilbert asked, immediately becoming the protective older brother.

"I-I don't know," Feliciano whimpered. "He showed up in my room shortly after two of the Mafia members broke through the window. Ludwig was able to get me to escape but I don't know what happened to him."

Gilbert groaned, slumping into his chair. "Can't you use some of that Pope voodoo or whatever it is to talk to him?"

"Well, yes, but Ludwig said he'd meet me at Arthur's house," Feliciano muttered, looking at the table in disdain. "I figured if I didn't see him there by tonight I'd contact him…"

Gilbert sighed. "Do you have your phone with you?"

"Yes," Feliciano said, pulling his cell phone out of one of the pockets. He chose a good night to wear pajamas…

Gilbert nodded, standing up and saying, "Go ahead and call Arthur. I'll give you a lift."

"G-Grazie (thank you)," Feliciano said, also standing up.

"Think nothing of it," Gilbert said. He neglected to mention the fact that if Ludwig found out he ran into the Pope without helping him out, Ludwig would have his ass.

They walked downstairs, back through the bar and over to a locked door. Gilbert produced a key and unlocked it, opening the door to allow Feliciano through.

Feliciano walked through the door, holding his cell phone up to his ear. He nearly walked into one of the walls because of his lack of attention, but was able to avoid it at the last second.

Gilbert closed and locked the door behind him and unlocked the nearby Jeep. Again, something else he wouldn't like Ludwig knowing was the fact that he'd pick driving the Jeep over anything else in that garage, especially since he had the Pope with him. Though, with the circumstances being what they were, Gilbert felt the off-roader was necessary.

"Ciao, Arthur," Feliciano said after he got in.

"Feliciano, you git!" Arthur's voice rang clear from the other side, causing Feliciano to jump and pull the phone away from his ear.

Gilbert rolled his eyes, starting up the Jeep. Arthur was probably the one and only person who could get away with calling Feliciano a git without having to worry about the consequences. Of course, it was for good reason. Behind Feliciano's own residence, Arthur's home was the one best equipped with security detail.

"I'm sorry!" Feliciano cried. "A lot happened in such a short period of time!"

Gilbert wanted to hear the rest of the conversation, but that wasn't going to work to well considering it seemed like Arthur calmed down and was simply talking, giving Feliciano the chance to put the phone back up against his ear.

"Gilbert's going to be dropping me off," Feliciano said.

A pause, followed by Feliciano saying, "I'm not sure. I haven't tried making contact with him."

"The Mafia."

"Okay. Arrivederci (Goodbye)," Feliciano finally said before hanging up and closing the phone.

By now they had made it halfway to Arthur's house, and it was very bumpy since Gilbert insisted on taking the back roads. The only problem was that the roads either hadn't been repaved in a long time, leading to lots of cracks and potholes, or not paved at all. The plus side was the lack of people around to slow the car any further.

Once he was sure Feliciano had finished talking, he grunted, "What are the chances that you could get some form of contact with Ludwig?"

"I don't know," Feliciano said. "I've hardly ever needed to use it before. It may not even work."

"Why don't you try?" Gilbert asked, sharply turning the wheel to avoid a kid that ran into the road, chasing after his ball.

After a few more quick jerks of the wheel, they weren't in any danger of crashing into anything.

Gilbert took a quick glance at Feliciano, and saw him gripping onto the seat like it was a lifeline.

Maybe Gilbert should've taken Ludwig's suggestion about adding in seatbelts…

Gilbert pulled the car to a stop so he could turn his full attention to Feliciano. "Okay, listen, I'm not going to drive anymore. Try contacting Ludwig and see what's happened to him. Please?" Gilbert almost forgot to add in the last bit and, even if Feliciano didn't care, he'd be hearing about it from Ludwig forever if his little brother ever found out. And Ludwig had quite the mouth on him for such a job.

Feliciano nodded, and clasped his hands together. They started to glow a soft shade of gold, not really noticeable unless you were looking for it.

"I wish to speak with Ludwig Beilschmidt, recognizing the consequences of our conversation being overheard by those who best not hear it," Feliciano muttered. The soft glow covered his whole body, becoming brighter, just enough to notice it without having to stare.

Gilbert looked around nervously. If the Mafia were searching for the Italian next to him, they might be around here somewhere. Gilbert shifted so one of his hands moved to the back where, off the floor, he picked up a gun.

"Just try getting near us now," Gilbert muttered to the empty streets.

/AN

I guess one thing I should've mentioned sooner was that, in addition to Rosario Impale and Sequentia, Italy also has an attack called 'Amen' which summons a cross and the communication method mentioned above, in addition to a few healing spells.

I don't own Hetalia! Or the idea of Pope!Italy!

R&R Please!

AN/