((This is a long chapter! Told you I'd get the plot going, didn't I? I mean, all I had to do was set a main character's house on fire to do it… *Shot* Also your first taste of the Power of Friendship. Yeah!
Also, that was indeed an intentional reference to Paint it White. The reason Matthew didn't recognize it is because Canada only had a very small part in the movie, so he wasn't there during that scene. I was so tempted to have Kiku say "No rikey"… orz And the fact that they were all playing Air Ride was a shameless nostalgia nod. I have a friend who always brings Air Ride when she comes over, and we play it for hours on end. Though I know it's unlikely, I'm still desperately hoping Nintento will remake it someday…))
The group had raced back to their neighborhood as quickly as possible, running through traffic with no regard for safety in their hurry to get to Kiku's house before it was too late. When they arrived, the firetrucks were already there.
Kiku's eyes went wide, horrified and shocked at seeing what destruction had been done to his comfortable home.
"This is terrible…" Alfred mumbled, an uncharacteristic frown on his face.
"I'm so sorry," Arthur added.
Kiku, however, wasn't listening. His face was pale, his eyes focused on a small part of his house that was still burning; His room.
"My… my collection… Miku-chan!" he screamed, running towards the house.
"Kiku, no!" Feliciano shouted, terrified for his friend. Before Kiku could get to the house, Ludwig quickly grabbed him, easily holding back the small Asian boy.
"Let me go! I have to make sure Miku-chan is alright, damn it!" Kiku shrieked, hysterical.
"Calm down!" Ludwig ordered, giving him a stern look. "It's not worth it. Computer programs can be replaced. You can't."
"No! You don't understand!" Kiku insisted, his eyes wide with panic. "Miku-chan is irreplaceable! She is the most perfect girl in the world! She has the voice of an angel! I have to save her!"
"Kiku, look," Matthew said soothingly, gently placing a hand on the terrified boy's shoulder. "The fire is almost out. Maybe your stuff will be ok."
This idea seemed to calm Kiku slightly, his struggling ceasing. After a moment or two of silence, he suddenly began to cry. Tears poured down his face as he slowly fell to his knees.
"It'll be ok, Kiku," Feliciano said quietly, gently hugging his friend.
"No it won't," Kiku whimpered. "My house… all my belongings… my dog…" suddenly Kiku remembered something. "My dog! Where is Pochi?!" he exclaimed, fearing the worst.
"He's right here," Alfred replied, holding a small and terrified looking dog. He put the dog down, and he immediately ran over to Kiku.
"Pochi-kun! I'm so glad you're alright," Kiku said, sighing in relief as he cradled his beloved dog.
"Excuse me," Antonio said to a firefighter, "Do you know how the fire started?"
"I'm afraid not," the firefighter replied, shaking his head sadly. "It'll be a while before we can investigate."
"Ok, thanks anyway," Antonio said politely.
Meanwhile, Arthur was looking over the house, trying to assess the damage. Suddenly something caught his eye. Moving a little closer, he squatted down by a burnt post, taking a small pinch of ash. He sniffed it, rubbed it between his fingers a bit, and frowned.
"Well?" Francis asked, standing behind him.
"Arson," Arthur replied solemnly, "And not just a random attack, either."
"Do you think it could have been them?"
Arthur nodded. "I'm almost positive."
"I never expected them to make a move this soon," Francis observed.
"Nor did I," Arthur agreed. "Things are worse than I thought. Like it or not, they're going to have to prepare for a war."
"They won't agree so quickly, you know," Francis pointed out.
"They have to. They don't have a choice."
"How are we going to break the news to them?" Francis wondered.
"Well, I figure we can just tell them outright," Arthur suggested, standing up. "They're going to have to accept reality sooner or later, no point in sugarcoating things."
"Oui, I suppose you have a point," Francis agreed.
While the two older men discussed dark matters, the boys were trying to get things sorted out and make sure Kiku was ok. Gilbert paced impatiently, holding his phone to his ear as he waited for someone to answer.
"Yao? Ja, it's Gilbert. Listen, I- No, I do not want another panda! I'm trying to be serious here!" he snapped, annoyed at the person on the other end. He sighed. "Yeah, sorry. Listen, this is really important… Kiku's house burned down." A loud exclamation of "Aiyaah! For real?! How could something that terrible happen?!" could be heard on the other end, causing Gilbert to wince. "Geez, no need to blow my ear out! God, that hurt!" he hissed. "Anyway, is it ok if he stays with you until we get things sorted out?" Gilbert paused, waiting for an answer. "Great, thanks. Uh-huh, I'll tell him. Bye."
Hanging up his phone, Gilbert turned to Kiku, who was being comforted by his friends and his dog.
"Kiku? That was Yao on the phone just now," he explained gently. "He said you can stay with him for now, ok?"
"A-arigatou gozaimasu," Kiku stammered, his voice shaking. Gilbert grinned reassuringly and petted Kiku's head.
"See? Everything's going to be just fine!" Feliciano insisted, smiling and hugging Kiku.
"Hey man, if there's anything Mattie and I can do to help, just say so," Alfred added. Kiku nodded silently, sniffling.
"Gilbert and I will do what we can as well," Ludwig agreed. "We all will."
"Me too," Feliciano said. "I'll be sure to make plenty of pasta for you!"
"I'll help out too," Antonio added.
"And if you ever need extra clothes, I'm sure I can find you something perfect," Francis said, smiling confidently.
"Th-thank you, everyone," Kiku said shakily, bowing in thanks.
"You're welcome!" Feliciano replied cheerfully.
"That's what friends are for, right?" Alfred said, smiling.
"Now then, let's get you to Yao's house," Ludwig decided, standing up. He offered Kiku his hand, which he hesitantly took, shakily pulling himself to his feet.
"His house is a bit far for a walk, so we can take my car," Gilbert suggested.
"You can drive?" Kiku asked, suspicious.
"Theoretically," Gilbert replied, shrugging. "I don't think I've ever killed anyone, so it should be fine. Besides, it's either me or Lovino."
"Er, alright then," Kiku said awkwardly, his face going even paler at the thought of getting in a car with Feliciano's hot-tempered older brother.
"Pochi-kun, ikimashou," Kiku told Pochi. The dog obetiently trotted to his side.
"We'll walk with you," Alfred announced, the others nodding in agreement.
And so the group set off, leaving the charred remains of what had once been Kiku's home behind them.
Sunday soon came, and the four boys (Plus Gilbert) had all agreed to stop by Yao's house and hopefully cheer up Kiku a bit. Feliciano had gone over to Ludwig's house first thing in the morning, before he even ate breakfast.
"Buon giorno!" he called, letting himself in.
"Guten morgen," Ludwig mumbled, pouring himself a bowl of cereal. "Gilbert's still sleeping."
Feliciano nodded and opened the cabinet, grabbing a bowl for himself. He took the box of cereal and dumped some in his bowl, then poured some milk on it. He then stared at his breakfast for a moment, trying to figure out how best to go about eating it.
"You forgot a spoon," Ludwig informed him after several minutes of this.
"Ohhh yeah! No wonder I can't eat it!" Feliciano exclaimed, laughing in embarrassment. He opened a drawer and retrieved a spoon, and then began to eat his now-soggy cereal. Meanwhile, Ludwig had already finished his and was washing the dishes. He washed his bowl and spoon, put them in the dish rack, and then put away the cereal and milk. Finally, he wiped up any milk that had spilled on the counter.
"Why do you always do that?" Feliciano asked curiously.
"So the kitchen will be clean," Ludwig replied plainly.
"But then it'll just get dirty again next time you use it," Feliciano pointed out. "What's the point in cleaning it up every time?"
Ludwig shrugged, not really having an answer to that. "I'm going to go wake up Gilbert," he told Feliciano, heading to his brother's bedroom.
"Wake up," he said simply, pushing the door open without even bothering to knock. Gilbert mumbled something unintelligible in German, rolling over in his sleep.
Scowling, Ludwig quickly yanked the curtains open, letting the sunlight pour into the dark room. Gilbert shrieked and put his hands over his eyes quickly.
"Ow! Ok, ok, I'm up! God!" he hissed, sitting up clumsily with both hands over his eyes.
"Hurry up," Ludwig told him. "We're going to be late."
With that, Ludwig went back to the living room. Just then there came a knock on the door. Sighing, he went to answer it. Standing on the doorstep was the Jones twins, with Alfred looking vaguely miserable.
"Good morning Ludwig," Matthew said politely, waving. "Sorry we're late. Alfred's not a morning person."
"Neither is Gilbert," Ludwig replied, giving Matthew a sympathetic look.
"Alright, let's go," Gilbert said annoyedly, stumbling in. He sat down on the steps and began putting his shoes on. Ludwig and Feliciano did the same.
"Ludwig, will you tie my shoes for me?" Feliciano asked sweetly, waving his foot in Ludwig's face. Rolling his eyes, Ludwig reluctantly did so.
"You're sixteen, you should be able to tie your own shoes by now," he mumbled, sighing.
"I know," Feliciano replied cutely. "But every time I try, it comes out wrong, even if I do exactly what everyone tells me to do..."
Having finished tying both of their shoes, Ludwig stood up, followed by Feliciano.
"Everyone ready to go?" Ludwig asked, brushing off his pants.
"Yeah," Feliciano replied.
"I'm ready, as long as everyone else is," Matthew said.
"I guess," Alfred mumbled.
"Let's go!" Gilbert announced, apparently more awake now. He unlocked the car and got in the driver's seat. Alfred climbed over him, sneaking into the passenger seat before anyone else could, while the other three sat in the back with Matthew in the middle and Feliciano on the right. After some difficulty getting the car started, they began driving to Yao's house.
The boys had been at Yao's house for a few hours. Kiku was definitely not his usual self (Which was saying something considering his "usual self" rarely showed more emotion than a small smile), but he had perked up a bit upon seeing his friends arrive. Alfred had brought some of Kiku's favorite video games, and Feliciano had made his signature homemade pasta while Matthew made maple cookies for dessert.
The group sat around in the living room, enjoying their cookies. Feliciano, Gilbert, Yao, and Matthew were all playing Kirby Air Ride, while the others snacked while watching them. Soon there came a knock at the door, as if I haven't written that sentence before, and I'm pretty sure in Japan they have one of those intercom thingies at the front gate rather than knocking on the door, but oh well. So someone knocked on the door, and hopefully that will change when I edit this story, but for now there was a knock.
"What an inconvenient time for guest!" Yao exclaimed annoyedly, pausing the game. He put the controller down on the floor and stood up, running to the door. He opened it and blinked confusedly, seeing the two young men standing outside.
"Hello," Arthur said politely.
"Whatever it is, it was either Ivan or Yong Soo," Yao said upon recognizing his school counselor.
"What? No, you're not in any sort of trouble," Arthur explained confusedly. "We came to see Kiku. That is, if it's alright with you," he added.
"Oh," Yao said awkwardly, slightly embarrased. "Go ahead and come in."
Nodding politely to Yao, Arthur and Francis stepped inside, allowing Yao to lead them to the living room.
"Hello everyone," Arthur said, waving to the others as Yao returned to his game.
"Yo, Francis!" Gilbert said, waving, "Check it out! The Awesome Me is totally kicking everyone else's butts!"
"Of course," Francis replied, laughing.
"How are you doing, Kiku?" Arthur asked.
"I am well, thank you," Kiku replied politely, though there was tiredness in his voice.
"Glad to hear it," Arthur said, smiling slightly.
"Schiess! How the hell did Matthew win?!" Gilbert exclaimed, nearly throwing his controller in frustration.
"Just luck, I guess," Matthew said, smiling awkwardly.
"Aiyaah... I'm usually so good at this game, too," Yao complained, sighing.
"You two look tired," Francis observed.
"Wouldn't be so tired if West hadn't woken me up at five in the fucking morning," Gilbert complained.
"It was ten," Ludwig pointed out annoyedly.
"Five, ten, they're both like... Multiples of ten, right? Same thing," Gilbert said dismissively, shrugging. Ludwig facepalmed.
"I had long night," Yao mumbled, rubbing his forehead.
"Why don't you two go out somewhere?" Francis suggested casually.
"...Why do I feel like you're trying to hide something?" Gilbert asked suspiciously.
"I might be, but I also know a good ice cream place," Francis replied, winking.
"If there's ice cream involved, count me in!" Gilbert decided.
"Ice cream does sound good," Yao agreed. "I'll go."
"Great!" Francis announced, putting one arm around each of their shoulders and practically dragging them away, laughing as he went.
The room was silent for a moment, stunned. Finally, Alfred tenatively broke the silence.
"Did... did he just..?"
"Yes," Ludwig replied.
"Alright then..." Alfred said slowly, confused.
"Now that those two are gone, let's get down to business," Arthur announced.
"But I wanna play more Kirby," Feliciano complained.
"No time for that," Arthur replied seriously. "There are far more important matters to attend to."
"Why do you talk all fancy and shit?" Alfred asked curiously.
"Al, let him talk," Matthew said, giving him a look.
Glaring at Alfred, Arthur continued. "Everyone pay attention, this is very important." Once he was satisfied that everyone was indeed listening, he reluctantly gave the news.
"I have reason to believe that Kiku's house fire was no accident. Rather, it was a direct planned attack."
"What?!" everyone else shouted, shocked.
"But... but why? I do not understand, who would do this?" Kiku stammered, turning rather pale.
"I'm not sure exactly," Arthur explained, sighing. "I suspect it may be the same group that's behind several unexplained events around the world. And whoever they are, it seems they don't plan on staying in hiding. We need to prepare for the worst," he said solemnly.
"This is terrible! Only really bad people would do that!" Feliciano exclaimed.
"Well that's presumably what they are, yes," Arthur said, giving the boy an odd glance.
"So what do we do? Call S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Alfred asked, frowning worriedly.
"For the last time, S.H.I.E.L.D. is not real," Matthew said, sighing.
"Uh, that's just what they want you to think," Alfred said, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. "It's totally real."
"Alfred, do us all a favor and shut up," Ludwig ordered, glaring. Alfred opened his mouth to say something, but then thought the better of it, not wanting to get on the German boy's bad side. Pouting slightly, he reluctantly stayed quiet.
"As I was saying," Arthur began, "You five are our only hope at the moment. Like it or not, you're going to have to learn to use your powers, and you're going to have to do it soon."
"He is right," Kiku decided, and then added quietly, "I do not like it."
"What he said," Alfred agreed. "I don't like it either."
"Hey, haven't we heard this somewhere before? Like in a movie or something?" Feliciano wondered.
"Not that I know of," Matthew replied, shrugging.
"This is ridiculous," Ludwig mumbled, crossing his arms.
"Look, I know it sounds odd, but you have no choice but to believe me," Arthur pointed out, glaring. "Now are you going to sit around being skeptical while more disasters possibly happen, or are you going to do something about it?"
Ludwig thought about this for a moment, considering Arthur's point and whether or not it was logical. The others, however, made up their minds much quicker.
"Count me in," Alfred announced, nodding determinedly.
"Me too!" Feliciano exclaimed.
"Hai," Kiku agreed.
"And me," Matthew added.
At this point, everyone turned to stare at Ludwig, waiting expectantly for his approval.
"Well? Are you in, or what?" Alfred asked.
"Pleeeease, Ludwig?" Feliciano pleaded.
"...If it'll make you all leave me alone, then fine," Ludwig mumbled reluctantly, sighing.
"Yaaay!" Feliciano exclaimed happily.
"Excellent," Arthur agreed. "We'll start training tomorrow."
"Sounds good to me," Alfred announced.
"It will be right after school, I presume?" Kiku asked.
"Right," Arthur replied. "I trust you all remember how to get to my house?"
"More or less," Ludwig said.
"I do," Matthew agreed.
"It's really easy!" Feliciano announced.
"Great," Arthur said. "I'll see you all tomorrow, then."