Ten-Faced

Chapter 13 – Lovino

Disclaimer: I solemnly swear I don't own any of it; I'm just in it for the Romerica ;)

Warning: MPD/DID!Lovi, male x male pairings, harsh language, and AU.

So, I kinda sorta maybe got the message that cliffhangers aren't your most favorite thing in the world…so here's your final chapter! I got it out extra-early, just for you guys…because I hate cliffhangers too :P

Here's a list of all the Faces: 1 – Lovi, 2 – Shy, 3 - Charisma, 4 - Tsundere, 5 - Charmer, 6 - Tactician, 7 – Fighter, 8 - Adult, 9 – Sweet, 10 – Broken

oOo

Alfred nearly dropped his own phone, but fear kept it in place.

Get a hold of yourself, Alfred! You're the Hero and you need to save him!

He was far from a professional detective, but with Lovino's life on the line, Alfred's senses became hyper-aware of everything around him. His hearing informed him that Lovino had dropped his phone, but he didn't turn it off. Alfred could still hear the rain crashing around it and something else…something stronger…a river! The American shot off in the direction of the closest river to Lovino's house. He had been fishing there before, so he knew it was about seven minutes away…he just hoped he was in time.

"Call an ambulance!" was all he said to Feliciano before taking off. He desperately hoped they wouldn't need it.

Adrenaline helped boost his speed, nearly doubling it. Alfred ran through puddle-filled streets and sidewalks faster than he ever had at any football game. His heart was beating so fast, he was afraid it would burst before he even got to Lovino.

No matter what...You need to save him!

He vaulted over a low fence and cut through several yards. Everything under his feet was a blur of grass, play toys, and gardens. Not once did Alfred stumble or falter. He raced through everything in his way. Anything to get to Lovino faster. If the neighbors had some problem with that, he'd deal with them later.

By the time he made it to the small wooden bridge overlooking the rushing river, there was no sign of the brunette. Alfred spotted his discarded phone in the center of the bridge and wasted no time diving into the icy waters after him. He was going to save Lovino or die trying.

oOo

After closing his eyes to the blonde angel, another pair of eyes seemed to awaken in Lovino's mind. Everything was so clear. He'd never seen better in his entire life.

He was four years old again. His mother was helping him into his carseat. He hated his carseat.

They were driving down the highway. Little Lovino felt sick to his stomach. Something bad was going to happen, he just knew it. He didn't want to be here! He wanted to leave this terrible memory! Lovino squirmed around in his seat, trying to get away.

Someone held his hand.

Lovino looked up from the ghostly hand clasped around his to see his mirror image. His double was wearing the same white shirt, the same blue shorts, and the same scratch on his knee that Lovino got earlier from playing outside. The boy looked at him sadly and smiled.

"I'm sorry…"

"…Broken?"

The light blinded all of the occupants of the van were all blinded by the bright light of the truck in front of them. Lovino reached for the ghostly image of himself, but Broken was gone. The tires on the van screeched and a roar signaled the impending crash and screams. How many times did the van flip over? Three, four times? Lovino couldn't remember, but he knew what was coming…he braced himself for the ensuing darkness.

It never came.

Still strapped in his carseat, Lovino was rattled, but came to much earlier than he previously remembered. Even with his blurred vision, he could still hear his parents breathing their last.

"D…Dammit…" his father cursed. "N…No…Teresa…?"

"R…Romeo…I'm so cold…My baby…wh-where's my baby…?"

"I-It's alright…Feli isn't here….Feli…Feli is safe…"

"Th-Thank god…" Teresa sniffed.

"Mamma…? Papa…?" Lovino called out, confused. Did they forget he was here too? He had to let them know he was here, so they didn't worry. "Mamma! Papa!"

His father managed to shift his bloodied and mangled body to face Lovino. Watching through older eyes, Lovino realized by his expression, his father didn't think he would live much longer either.

"Papa!"

"If we had to lose a ch-child…it should be you…"

Lovino was shocked speechless.

"It…It's all your f-fault…" his father spat. "W…We wouldn't have…gotten into this van…if not…if not for you…Y-You…don't deserve…to live…"

His mother let out another wail as the metal embedded in her stomach twisted painfully. Eventually, she too was facing Lovino. Her eyes were unfocused and the sight terrified him.

"W…Why did you…d-do this to us…?"

Tears sprouted in the four-year-old Lovino's eyes. Why were they saying this to him? They couldn't really mean it, right? His parents were supposed to love him…weren't they? The lump in his throat kept him from being able to speak. He cried silently for a few minutes.

"I d-don't hear…him….is he d-dead?" his mother coughed out.

"L…Lovino…is expendable…F-Feli…is the future…the future of our family…"

The memory of his own parents wishing him dead to save his brother was too much for Lovino's fragile mind. It was more painful than watching them both die in front of him. When his parents stopped moving, Lovino heard himself call out to them like he had always done. He received no answer until he saw their bodies illuminated by the search lights outside.

"I'm sorry…"

Broken's voice tore him away from the fading memory.

"What the hell was that?!" Lovino shouted at him.

"I'm sorry…" Broken took his hand and the world shifted to black again.

Suddenly everything made sense to Lovino. The memory he just saw was real…he just couldn't remember it until now. It had been kept hidden from him for over ten years. Broken was the one who had kept the memories locked away in a place far away from Lovino so they both didn't have to suffer. Broken wasn't his final Face…he was his first Face, born on the day his parents died hating him.

He never remembered Broken because the Face had slept deep inside him, guarding his most painful memories until the day Lovino's sense of Self further divided itself…the day he thought Alfred rejected him because of who he was. Broken had slept until all of the other Faces emerged. Being the last to wake up, they assumed he was the 10th Face.

Even after all the struggles and the battle over who would win Lovino's body, Broken never played his trump card. Those memories would have been the most powerful weapon and damaged the other Faces and Lovino himself enough for Broken to have total control, but he never played it. He didn't want the power, he just wanted to keep it from Lovino until the time was right and he was ready to face his nightmare.

"Thank you…" Lovino spoke to the darkness, closing his eyes.

oOo

After plunging into the rushing river, Alfred forced his eyes open and swam around desperately searching for Lovino. He couldn't let him die, not like this! Alfred was not about to lose the person he had come to love more than anyone else.

Then he saw him.

The Italian was floating lifelessly several feet below him. His hero tore at the water, swimming furiously towards him. Alfred wrapped his strong arms around the unconscious brunette and swam upwards to the surface. The weight that Tactician had attached meant nothing to the determined Alfred. Lovino was far too important for him to give up on so easily. He was going to save Lovino and not let anything get in his way.

The duo surfaced and Alfred gasped for air. Panicking when Lovino didn't follow suit, the blonde swam them to the river bank and laid the brunette on his back in a recovery position.

Lovino wasn't breathing.

Not missing a beat, Alfred began to administer CPR, now immensely grateful for what he previously assumed was a waste of his time in health class. As the rain poured down on the two, Alfred opened up Lovino's airway and delivered two rescue breaths. Wrapping his hands together, Alfred brought them over the Italian's chest and gave him 30 steady compressions before going back to another two rescue breaths.

"Please…Lovino…" Alfred begged him during the chest compressions. "Open your eyes…Don't…Don't leave me…"

Alfred refused to give up on him and continued the CPR for the longest six minutes of his life until he heard the most beautiful sound in the world – Lovino coughing for air. The brunette took several more gasps until he coughed again and started breathing normally. His green eyes fluttered for a minute, but then closed once more. Alfred checked to find a steady heartbeat drumming through Lovino's chest.

"Thank god…" Alfred whispered, holding him close. "Thank god you're alive…!"

The rain continued to pour down until help finally came. Red lights and sirens broke through the clouds and gloom. As the ambulance took both boys away to the hospital, one of the EMTs offered Alfred a blanket and told him Lovino was going to be alright.

It was the best news he'd heard all year.

oOo

After so much darkness, Lovino was relieved to have his world bathed in light. The storm was over by the time he woke up in the hospital, with sunlight drifting through his open window. Pale curtains fluttered in the surprisingly Spring-like breeze. It was as if Autumn fought off Winter long enough to give Lovino one final warm day before the town was covered in snow and cold; a reward for making it this far. The Italian groaned as he sat up, but was glad he seemed to be in one piece. When he tried to move his left hand, he felt a weight attached.

"W…What?" he blearily blinked his eyes.

Alfred was fast asleep beside him, holding his hand. Behind him was a giant basket filled to the brim with tomatoes.

"Alfred…?" Lovino asked, certain he was blushing.

"Mmm…? Lovino…?" the blonde stirred, then shot up when he realized his Italian was awake. "Lovino!"

Before he knew what was happening, Lovino felt himself whisked up in a hug. He had expected to hear a storm of voices protest in his mind, but heard nothing. It was completely silent, as if all the Faces had disappeared.

"How are you feeling?" Alfred asked, when he was finally ready to release Lovino from his hug.

"I…I don't know…" Lovino answered honestly. When was the last time he was truly alone in his thoughts? It was the strangest feeling. He looked at Alfred with worry in his eyes. "Is this…Is this the real me?"

"I think so…and that's okay," the hero squeezed his hand comfortingly. "The original Lovino is the one I love the most…You don't have to be anyone else. Just you."

Lovino closed his eyes as he felt Alfred kiss him on the forehead. He couldn't keep the tears from running down his cheeks, but this time they were from happiness. He had finally heard the words he always wanted. Lovino wrapped his arms around Alfred, burying his head in his shoulder. Alfred returned the embrace and rubbed small circles on his back.

"B-But I don't even remember how to be myself…"

"Don't worry, we have time. As much time as you need," Alfred assured him. "You don't have to live up to anyone's standards, Lovino. You are you, and I think that's more than enough…"

After the brunette calmed down, Alfred leaned in front of him and kissed Lovino gently on the lips. He brushed several strands of hair from the Italian's eyes and smiled his brightest and most confident smile.

"I promise we'll put the pieces of you back together…no matter how long it takes."

Lovino met him for another kiss, deciding that the truth had never sounded better. He used to be the boy with Ten Faces, but even then he only had one heart. And as of this moment, it belonged to Alfred.

The End

oOo

A/N

Gah! The that last line makes me so eyagh… Any more sap and I'd have a freaking fountain of maple syrup. I rewrote it a few times before settling on this (and I'm still not all that satisfied with it). One day I'll get better at writing romantic pieces, so until then practice makes perfect, right? ^^;

So, all along it was his parents, not Alfred, who caused Lovino's DID. Had they not been such assholes, he wouldn't have created his first Face and set into motion the chance to make more. Without that initial split in his true Self, Lovino would have probably been depressed after chapter 1's initial (misinterpreted) rejection instead of inclined to create other Faces who could help him handle another difficult situation. Of course there were other factors stressing Lovino out (leading to the emergence of the Faces) too. I just wanted to make sure there wasn't any confusion about the true villains of this fic. Because when you think of it, even the most antagonistic Faces wouldn't have ever been created if Lovino's parents had passed on without blaming him for everything.

I know there was a lot of mixed emotions about the Faces, so I tried to write the final fate of the Faces more open-ended, to allow the reader to decide what happened to them, depending on your personal taste. I wrote it so 3 main endings could be possible (maybe even more, depending on how you interpret things).

1 – Because they are fractured parts of Lovino's true Self, the near-death experience caused them to integrate once more and become whole. That means they are still there, but controlled by Lovino, who is now the dominant and only personality. Broken waited until now to reveal Lovino's hidden memory because he knew Lovino was finally strong enough to handle it and that returning his lost memory would allow them to meld back together.

2 – The Faces faded away in a similar fashion to Broken. Lovino's not sure where they went or if they'll be back. Broken waited until now to reveal Lovino's hidden memory because he wanted to help the original Lovino in some way and finally let go of all that hate/self-loathing in the process.

3 – The Faces believed they had died in Tactician's attempt to kill them all and vanished from Lovino's mind, leaving only him. Broken waited until now to reveal Lovino's hidden memory because he thought they were all dying, Lovino included.

Lovino FINALLY got his happy ending! Thanks to everyone who read the story from beginning to end and motivated me along the way! This story got way more love than I ever expected! You guys are awesome!

Just to let you know that if you liked this fic, I will be starting another fic in a similar setting, but with the roles reversed – so Alfred will be the "crazy" one while Lovi tries to help him keep his head on straight. There won't be any Faces in it, but rest assured, craziness will ensue…and with a lot less cliffhangers, because I know how much you all love cliffhangers ^^; It will be called A Fake, Fake Psychotropic. Please keep an eye out for it!

Okay, I'm done with my shameless plug. You can have your internets back now. Have a fantastic day!

-Rajikka

Translations:

Tsundere – A tsundere is a type of character seen in anime or manga known for appearing cold or hostile, but having a hidden sweet side. "Tsun Tsun" is the aloof or irritable side, while "Dere Dere" is the lovey dovey side. (Jp.)

Fratello – Brother (It.)