First his friends, his TRUE friends, and now Peter and his family? Arthur moved his hands from his sides and tangled them in his hair, clutching his blond strands in a death grip. "No...No. No!" He shouted out, his voice echoing throughout the forest. "It can't be!" Arthur never meant for any of this to happen. This wonderful, sweet dream slowly evolved and ended up becoming a terrible nightmare, and Arthur wanted out of it. It was too much for him.
Arthur tried pinching his arm extremely hard, but that failed too quickly. The blond tried to slap himself in the face or rapidly shake his head out of it. Those didn't work either. His eyes gazed over to the small body of water and an idea automatically came to his mind. He dashed over to the pond and dunked his head in the frigid water, holding it there until he thought he can return to his normal life. It proved useless as he began to run out of oxygen. To the point where he is almost drowning, Arthur pulled up and gasped for air, not wanting to commit suicide. Arthur sat back on his feet and stared at the vibrant green grass. Clumps of his wet hair clung to his forehead and slightly hung over his eyes, covering part of the iris.
Just before Arthur gave up hope about ever seeing his real friends and family, he remembered that the doppelganger made a deal with him to bring him to this alternate world. Arthur thought that if he is going to ever get out of this dream, he can get out by asking him. It seemed like a good idea to ask the other.
"Sir, the one who brought me here and looked exactly like me...Please, I wish to return to my real world. Please take me away from this place. I had plenty of fun here with some changes to my life, but I prefer the one I started with the most. I know it is hard growing up there. I understand this now, but I really need to return." Arthur pleaded, calling out to the other male.
For a second, nature all around the Briton continued to chatter on until they fell eerily silent. Every creature, including the mythical ones, that went about on their business halted in their footsteps/tracks and retreated to safety far away from the area where Arthur stood. Arthur flicked his emerald orbs all around the forest, albeit puzzled and nervous as to what might happen. All the insects and animals seem to act as though they were preparing for a huge storm to blow through and destroy the majority of everything.
"So..I see you enjoyed your little dream world that you created. Hmm? Am I correct, poppet?" A voice ripped through the still atmosphere and Arthur whipped around in surprise to find the one he had been calling for.
"I did not create this dream world!" The Briton argued against the look-alike.
Arthur was answered with a another sinister chuckle. "My dear boy, of course you did. You were the one who dreamed of this world before and I made it happen on your behalf."
"I didn't expect to lose my original friends and my little brother! Explain to me why they suddenly changed when I got to this world!" Arthur answered, without missing a beat.
"Don't you realize what you did, Arthur?" The demon questioned. When Arthur didn't reply, he finished. "No? Well- while you were dreaming and thinking about ideas you want to happen, you completely forgotten about them and what to do with them. So, in return for overlooking, I decided for you instead. And this is the result of it all."
Arthur's eyes widened after he realized the mistake he made. The demon was right. He completely forgot about Peter and his friends. He only wanted other things to improve. The overwhelming feeling of guilt washed over him like a tsunami and he bowed his head in shame.
"Don't be so sad over there, boy," The demon rejoiced, laying a hand on top of chest. "You still have a surprise waiting for you!"
The blond glanced up at him, glowering at the red-haired man, and bit the inside of his cheek. "I've had enough of surprises! Take me back now, demon!" Arthur seethed. This only brought another round of laughter from his new adversary.
With a wave of a hand from the doppelganger, the small body of water next to them began to grow murky as if someone had poured milk into water. Arthur's expression of rage lightened to puzzlement and he backed away from the pond; keeping a watchful eye between the now glowing liquid and the creature.
"What are you doing?" He inquired suspiciously.
"Have a look, Arthur," replied the fiend.
Arthur laid his hands on top of his hips and shook his head. "I'm not falling for any of your tricks. Now, I'll say this again. Take me back!"
The demon turned and faced the opposite direction of the human, smirking wryly. "Your choice. If you want to go home, poppet, then take a gander in the pond. If not, I'll leave you here then." Arthur hesitated and the demon sensed his uneasiness in the air, finishing. "It's not that hard, you know. Just take a deep breath, put your head in the water, and watch. Don't worry about air as long as you hold it in. I promise I won't do anything that will involve killing you."
Shuffling towards the small pool, Arthur lowered himself onto the soft blades of grass and inhaled deep breaths. He gulped a large intake of air and immediately dipped his head in the cloudy water.
It was darker than he anticipated. A lot darker. It seemed like he was back in the same screaming void when he signed the contract from earlier. Arthur figured it was some sort of universe of twists and turns. Yet, the pitch black gap soon filled in with assorted colors dripping in, forming a scene.
The scene itself consisted of a medium-sized hospital room with medical contraptions, metal tables, and people. Lots of them. They all crowded the poor patient and observed him carefully. But they seem familiar to the blond. Aside from the white coat of the doctor and the blue scrubs the nurses wore, the patient's family huddled together. Concerned gazes resided on the sleeping form. One of them caught his eye instantly.
"M-Mum?"
Arthur's mother sat cross-legged in a white polka-dotted, green chair with a stack of novels on her lap. Her face was red, stained from previous tears, and her attire consisted of jeans and a navy blue t-shirt- something that she used to consider improper out in public. "When will he be out of this?!" She heard someone growl in frustration and she twisted her head towards the source.
"Father.."
Standing near the doorway, Arthur's father thrusted his hand in the air, disheartened. The doctor that stood next to him simply shook his head and apologized for the inconvenience, clutching his clipboard closely to his chest. "Sir, calm down. Your son is still alive. We're extremely sorry we cannot cure it right away. The technology is not advance this generation. If we could, we'd help your little boy in a heartbeat."
Little boy? Arthur knew it could have been Peter in the bed. He couldn't grab a better look of the patient earlier, for his face appeared blurry. What did that damned demon do to him?! He promised to himself that he will interrogate the sly creature, demanding that revenge comes about soon.
Arthur gulped a knot in his throat and observed carefully, mind running amok with questions. The doctor left to examine another patient while his father brushed his fingers through his own hair with a distinct sigh; silently joining his wife. Arthur's father laid a hand on her back and caressed it reassuringly. Tears prickled in the corners of her eyes. "Is he ever coming back?" She emitted in a sorrowful tone.
Arthur's mother was answered with yet another sigh and a shook of his father's head. "I'm not sure, sweetie." A heavy bang ripped their attentions from Arthur and in came a small figure running.
"Mommy, daddy? Is Awtur okay? And mommy?" The little voice whined.
Arthur furrowed his eyebrows at the recognizable character. Peter? So the subject getting treatment wasn't his younger brother. It was him. He swallowed an acrimony taste.
"Peter, son, Arthur is still sleeping. We don't want to wake him, okay? Your mother will be fine." It only brought some type of sadness to Arthur's heart. Peter was young and to keep his youth from being ruined, their father lied to him. Peter's father picked and held him securely in his arms, carrying him off to the hospital hallways. As the two hurried out, they brisked past a pair coming in.
Kiku and Alfred silently shuffled in and stood on the other side of the bed, nodding to Arthur's mother as an acknowledgment. "Hey, Mrs. K. What's up?" The American spoke up.
The woman shook her head and neither one of them pried. Normally, Alfred would try and press the matter further, but this circumstance is quite different. All three of them awaited in the still atmosphere, peering down the Briton.
Kiku scanned the heart monitor and knitted his eyebrows in puzzlement. Shown on the screen, the bright green line (indicating his heart beat) rapidly bounced and screamed at him. Suddenly, Arthur's real body began to jerk and twitch- surprising them greatly and they reached out to pin him down. Nurses and the doctor from before rushed in to help out. "He's not responding!" Someone shouted out. The Briton, in his dream state, could only study the downing of the scene; bewilderment and guilt nipping at his mind. His mother squeezed her eyes shut, hoping this was only a nightmare.
She gently took her son's hand into her own, raised it to her lips, and planted a kiss on the wrist; whispering against the pale skin. "Arthur. My Arthur." Her voice, barely audible, cracked when she spoke. "Don't go." The heart monitor slowed off into a flatline and the tears began to spill. "Don't..."
Alfred stared nervously at his friend's limp body on the bed while Kiku bowed his head in honor. Their schoolmate fallen peacefully.
After a few seconds, no one moved. Everyone just stood in silence as one of the nurses announced aloud.
"Arthur Kirkland. Time of death: 5:50."
His mother gripped tighter on the blond's hand and dropped her head in her palm, sobbing terribly.
Arthur had enough of it. He wanted their grief to end now, but couldn't. Himself in the real world was….dead... The Briton pulled his head from the pond, pushed himself off of the ground, and pointed a finger at his counterpart. "You lied! You said you'd return me once I dunk my head underneath the water and watched the scene!" His own tears began to stream down his pink cheeks.
The demon tilted his head in one direction. "Oh, but I did." The wicked smirk returned to his lips. "You see- From the beginning, that pond, there, is a portal to your 'wonderful Earth zone.' What I told you before wasn't a lie."
Arthur grit his teeth and screamed between hiccups. "Then explain why it didn't work! My real body is dead because of you!"
"The portal is only active within the first five minutes of the time you watched -what I personally love to call- reality television. Such gap could be accessed when you let out your final breath, like you did when you came to me. But you stayed and it is all your fault for giving me your soul. Which is perfect because I can control you~" Explained the demonic counterpart, grinning excitedly by now.
The Briton fell to his knees, defeated. He screwed up. He screwed everything up. Arthur inclined his head downwards to gaze at his hands, wondering how he couldn't have complete the puzzle. But as he remained focusing on his palms, he found himself turning transparent.
"Ahh. Looks like it's starting." The creature addressed, leaning over to make sure he was correct. Arthur arched an eyebrow and peered over at the demon with an expression crossed between anger and confusion. "The process of you going to hell that is."
"Going to hell?!" Arthur's heart thumped rapidly. He quickly scrambled off of the ground and backed away from the doppelganger; flicking his forest green eyes to his body and to the other. "You can't take me already, you fiend!"
"Oh but I can, and I just did. Say 'hello' to your new home now, my dear boy. You are going to be there for eternity." The other chuckled darkly, snapping his fingers. At the click, the two disappeared from the dream world and to somewhere...hotter.
Hell. Arthur gripped at his sides once he and the demon reappeared in the underworld, casting his dark orbs around at the melancholy land. The image of it sent shivers running down his spine.
Everywhere he looked, skeletons of mythical creatures, animals, and even humans laid on the rusted dirt. The sky above them was dark and grim while down on the ground, torches lit pathways. Various colors of eyes pierced the red, gloomy mist where it hung lowly in certain places. And the smell of rotting/burning flesh and blood was pungent in the air. Overall, it held an unpleasant feeling to it.
"Welcome," The demon chimed in. "To the most hated place in the universe! And here is where we start your torture! ...Aren't you going to say anything?"
The Briton shut his eyes from the terror ringing about on this dimensional world. "Nothing to you. Just take me to the dungeon or whatever happens on this disgusting place" He hissed, shaking his head in annoyance.
"Well then. I shall take you to your affliction, if that's what you wanted." With another snap of his fingers, they moved locations to a pitch black room. "Here we are." The look-alike turned to see a sudden glow and a howl of agony, smirking deviously. Arthur was tied to a wooden stake, pleading and furiously pulling at the restraints as his body began to burn from the surrounding flames. This was not Arthur had in mind.
The being chuckled. "Sounds like music to my ears." Another snap and a mirage emerged in front of Arthur. In the illusion, it showcased scenes of everything that happened before and after he died. Arthur couldn't blink and attempted to moved his head out of view. Observing was too much to handle.
"No, no, no." He spat out. The demon shot a hand towards Arthur and gripped his head, forcing him to watch each and every one of their misery while in this indescribable, excruciating pain. "You're going to watch the whole thing on your stay in hell."
"I'm sorry..." Arthur cried out, hoping that either his friends or family will hear him.
"I'm sorry!"
A/N: And that concludes this story. I really hope you all enjoyed it. Sorry if you don't like it and for the OCness once again. Reviews or favorites help me out a lot. Thank you for your time.