Training the German Way!
The following day, six students stood outside in warm and comfortable clothing. Five of them were lined up in front of their unofficial "leader", ready for another training session to begin.
"Count off!" ordered Ludwig.
"Uno!" Feliciano said cheerily.
"Ni!" Kiku responded.
"Tre!" Rosaria chriped
"Vier!" Gilbert added cooly.
"No way in hell I'm saying that!" A tired looking Lovino snapped.
"Vould you just listen?" Ludwig stated.
"You're not the boss of me! I'm just here so I can kick your ass in the Tournament!"
"Lovino." Rosaria said, staring at her brother. "Shut up."
"Twenty laps around zhe school!" Ludwig commanded, signalling the start of their training. "Go!"
"How big is the school, again?" Feliciano asked. Kiku sighed.
"Very rarge, Fericiano-san." He answered.
"Less talking! More running!" Ludwig ordered. Nearly everyone had to agree that the German was very serious about the training he put the Axis through.
"Succhiare le mie palle voi mangiatore di patate maledetto!" Lovino snapped. Although he was the same speed as Feliciano.
"Fratello!" Feliciano said, a little offended by what his brother had said. "Sorella aren't you going to-"
"Lovino can say what ever he wants!" Rosaria said, a faint anger in her usually sweet voice. "Whether it's in English or Italian, I don't care!"
"Are you still angry at fratello?"
"Of course! He treats me like a freaking child! SO YES I'M STILL MAD!" Rosaria picked up her pace so she was behind Kiku. Feliciano sighed his usual "Ve~" and continued his run.
Around the tenth lap, however Feliciano subsequently...passed out. Ludwig, as usual, had to carry the unconscious Italian back to where they had begun their training. As the group caught up to Ludwig, they came under a shady spot, where Feliciano was deposited. Gilbert leaned against the tree and slid down.
"He does zhis every single time, Vest." He reminded his younger brother. "I zhought you vould remember zhis vhen you've know him for six years." Ludwig shot a look at Gilbert.
"Stand up. You'll lose stamina faster zhat vay." He said. Gilbert just stayed in his spot and wiped the sweat from his pale face.
"Shut...the hell...up!" Lovino panted as he came running up, sweat pouring down his face, before face-planting into the grass. Ludwig groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"How you two are alike physically, I'll never know. Your sister has more stamina zhen zhe both of you combined!" Rosaria, who had just came running up, laughed.
"Suck it!" She said, finally back to her normal self. She was panting as well, and had slid down next to Gilbert.
"Did you even listen to vhat I said about sitting down?!"
"But my body is that of the female gender! Not to mention I am younger than all of you!" Rosaria stuck her tongue out at the blonde. Yup, she was her normal self again. Ludwig groaned.
"You." He said, pointing to the girl. "Five extra laps. Now."
"Dannazione!" The dark auburn haired girl stood up and began running again. Gilbert and Kiku shared a look before going after her.
"Vhy are zhey...?"
"Shut up!" Lovino shouted, although it was muffled by the grass.
"Vhere zhe hell did zhe frau go?" Gilbert said as Kiku ran beside him. Kiku had once told him that Rosaria couldn't be left alone for a long period of time. He never said why, but Gilbert suspected it had to do with her monophobia, which is the fear of being alone.
"She did start before us." Kiku reminded him. "Rosaria-san can be as fast as Ludwig-san when she wants to."
"Zhat's only vhen she iz frightened und you know it." Gilbert said, clicking his tongue.
"Watashi wa shitte iru, but...what does she have to fear?" Gilbert laughed under his breath.
"You'd be surprised. Zhat mädchen has more fears zhen anyone I know und have ever met." This was true, other than her monophobia-which he didn't know what had caused this fear-Rosaria was afraid of a great deal of things. The dark, losing someone close to her (which I think everyone's afraid of) blood, drowning and fire. The list went on. Why was she afraid of so many things? No one really knew. Not even her family.
"Hai, but..." Kiku trailed off. "What does she have to fear now?" Gilbert shrugged and the two went on running. In the distance, a figure ran towards the "Prussian" and the Japanese. As it came closer, the figure was seen to be Rosaria. She came to a hault in front of the two, who had come to a stop. Sweat was pouring down her abnormally pale face.
"Vhere zhe hell vhere you?" asked Gilbert. Rosaria didn't say anything, but grabbed the two boys' wrists tightly.
"Rosaria-san!" Kiku said, flustered. Kiku really didn't like to be touched by anyone and was rather protective of his personal space.
"Just shut up for a minute!" The girl snapped, her voice wavering. She turned on heel and ran, dragging the two boys behind her. With each step she took, Rosaria shook as if she had seen a ghost.
"Vhat's vrong, Ro-" Gilbert tried to ask before he was cut off.
"If you two would run with me, I'll show you!" The two Axis members exchanged glances before the Italian released them, and all three went bounding off.
Rosaria led the two to a secluded area of the Forbidden Forest, not very far from the school. A good deal of the dirt was stained with crimson red, and the sound of heavy breathing could be heard. Rosaria began to look around frantically, as if she was searching for something. Tears were clinging onto to her honey golden gaze and her face became pale with worry.
"Rosaria-san." Kiku said, trying to get her attention. But the girl ignored him, her speech repeating: "Dove si trova?" rapidly. The boys glanced at each other before helping her search, although they had no idea what they were looking for.
"Hey, Rosie!" Gilbert called to the girl. "Can you tell us vhat ve're looking for?" Rosaria once again ignored him. But the answer is met when Kiku recoiled in horror. The Italian and "Prussian" ran towards him. Bile rose in Gilbert's throat as Rosaria knelt down besides a familiar figure of a girl, a girl bleeding heavily and covered in horrible burns and bruises.
"W-What happened?" Kiku asked, his face growing pale.
"Who zhe hell iz zhat?!" Gilbert asked, trying his best not to vomit.
"I heard some noises while I was running. I stopped and hid. Once the stopped, I came out and found Katyusha like this." Rosaira said as she knelt down and sat the wounded girl up "What are you two staring at? Help me!"
"Hai." responded Kiku as he knelt down and helped bring the Ukrainian to her feet.
"Mien Gott..." Gilbert breathed. His red eyes glazed over as a memory resurfaced in his mind...vivid images of that day...every single detail.
The blood...His brother's limp form...everything.
"Gilbert!" The Prussian snapped out of his trance and stared at Rosaria. "I want you to help Kiku get Katyusha to the hospital wing. I'll run and get the others and we'll go tell Ivan what happened. I think he deserves to know." Nodding, Gilbert came and took Rosaria's place in carrying the girl. The Italian turned on her heels and ran as fast as she could.
The two boys had arrived at the hospital wing soon and were currently standing over their injured classmate. The door to the room opened and three Italians and a German came in and walked up to the bedside, with Feliciano looking like he's about to vomit. Katyusha is bandaged and her breathing, while still heavy and forced, is a steady beat.
"We ran into Yao on our way here." Rosaria explained. "He went to get Ivan and Natalia for us." Kiku nodded in response.
"Shit, vhat did zhis to her?" Gilbert said. His pale hands were slightly shaking. The Prussian didn't exactly do well in hospitals or any place similar.
"Something got loose from the Care of Magical Creatures pens?" Lovino shurgged. Unable to take the sight, Feliciano released his breakfast onto the floor.
"Vas it necessary to do zhat on the floor?" Ludwig asked the Italian. Out of nowhere, Rosaria hit the German on the shoulder. The rest of the group just stared.
"Does it matter? One of our own was almost killed." The fourth year said sharply. "And all you care about is your OCD." An awkward moment of silence followed as Rosaria sat by the Ukrainian's bedside. Kiku cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.
"I'm positive that a creature did not attack her. It had to be a human." He said. "Girbert-kun and I got rook at the direction her cuts are in and the way they were. It rooked rike they were done with a sharp object and most rikely not a claw of any sort." Ludwig leaned in closer.
"Ja, you're right." He said, tracing a finger over one of the bandaged cuts. Gilbert snickered.
"Who?" He asked. "Zhe girl or Kiku?" The younger sibling glared at the older one. Both older brothers began to look at the cuts.
"The cuts are from a knife." They said in unison. The Prussian and Italian stared at each other. More awkward silence followed, which was only broken when the Ukrainian started to move. Her blue eyes went from slowly opening to shooting open as she quickly sat up. Feliciano and Rosaria pushed her back down.
"Please calm down, bella." Feliciano said reassuringly.
"You're safe now, amico." Rosaria told her. Katyusha relaxed her body. Kiku cleared his throat to get the group's attention again.
"If you don't mind me asking Miss Braginskaya, but what happened to you?" The Japanese teenager asked. Lovino facepalmed himself as Katyusha looked down at her sheets, tears welling up in her eyes.
"I-I-I..." She stuttered before her voice trailed off.
"You don't have to tell us if you don't want to." Rosaria said, taking her friend's hand to calm her down.
"Y-Y-You rearry don't." Kiku said rather embarrassed. "I was just curious. You don't have to say anything."
"Nemaye, I'd rather say it then put the other students in danger." Katyusha said, her Ukrainian accent cracking a bit. The Axis looked shocked.
"Ve~" Feliciano sighed, "Then what happened?" Katyusha brought her knees to her chest.
"When Ivan and I lived in Russia," She began. "We were under the care of our father. Our mother was living here, since she left our father. She wanted to visit us. She said so in all her letters...but Mama was afraid. Unlike all of your fathers, ours was a bipolar and abusive man. One moment he would be protecting us but the next, which was most of the time, he would harm us. Ivan received the most abuse out of the both of us."
"Iz zhat vhy he never takes off zhat scarf of his?" Gilbert asked, remembering when someone had tried to get Ivan to remove his tan scarf, only to have them try and pull it off. That person ended up in the hospital wing.
Katyusha nodded. Tears began to fall down her face, but she continued.
"He did it to keep me safe. But one night ten years ago, Ivan came into our room in a horrible condition. That night we vowed to leave to our mother here. So, we took what was necessary and fled. It was hard raising my brother for those few months. But we managed. Six months later we arrived here in England. Ivan found our mother and I told her of what happened. Mama took us back to her home. Ivan and I learned that Mama had married another man, the same man who had helped her escape five years prior, and had Natalia. So, Mama permanently severed all ties to our father and I haven't seen or heard of him since...until a few days ago...He was the one who attacked me. He demanded that I tell him where Ivan, Natalia and our parents were but I refused. I don't even know how he knows about Natalia!"
"He's here?!" Lovino said. Katyusha nodded. The Ukrainian broke down into tears and buried her head into her knees. Feliciano rubbed her back to calm her down. Lifting her head up, Katyusha opened her mouth to tell them who it was, but was interuppted by the door to the room flying open. Ivan, with Natalia trailing after, walked to his sister's bedside.
"What happened?" The Russian demanded.
"Calm down, man!" Gilbert told him. Katyusha, slightly shaking, whispered the answer into his ear. His dark aura slowly began to build as he muttered "kolkolkol" under his breath. Chills shot up the Axis's spines. The pair began to speak in Russian and Ukrainian, which no one understood, very rapidly.
"I think it's best if we leave." Kiku suggested. Nodding in agreement, the Axis left the siblings alone.
The small group of six headed back down to their training session. On the way back a blur of yellow and black crashed into Lovino.
"Watch where you're going!" The Italian said angrily, picking himself off of the floor. The other person was already running back in the direction he was going in.
"I'm so sorry!" He called towards Lovino. "I'll be more careful!"
"Who the hell was that?"
"Matthew Williams. You know, Alfred's twin?" Gilbert answered. A few of the group stared at him. "The Canadian? Mien Gott, he's in your house, Lovino!"
"That kid who got me to do this?" Lovino said. Feliciano nodded. "Didn't recognize him."
"I wonder where he's going?" Feliciano asked. "He seems to be in a hurry."
"Who knows?" Ludwig said as the group kept walking. Suddenly, Gilbert began to laugh silently to himself.
"What are you laughing at?" Lovino asked.
"Kesesese~" Gilbert snickered. I just realized zhat Vest got hit by a girl! Not just any girl, a fourteen year old Italian girl!" Rosaria hits Gilbert on the back if the head (Well, neck since he's seven inches taller than her.)
"Hey!" The Prussian said out of shock and surprise.
"There." Rosaria said, whipping her ponytail off her shoulder. "Now, you're even." She stuck her tongue out at him. Gilbert repeated the same action.
Once the small group returned to their training spot, Ludwig made them finish the remaining ten laps before they could begin the magical portion. Four out of the six sweaty teenagers fell onto a nearby hill in a sweaty mess. Kiku pulled their wands out of their hiding spot (This was done mostly for safety reasons) and looked over at the only teenager standing.
Magic Duel Round One: Kiku vs Ludwig.
"Ready!" Feliciano said once he regained his breath. "Set! Go!" He blew into a whistle he had. It was those little white flags he carried around on occasion. No one knew where he kept them and frankly no one wanted to know.
The Japanese male, however, was skilled in both Magic and combat. He had a katana blade he could summon if necessary, which was rare since Kiku rarely resorted to violence.
Kiku held his wand close to his chest, ready to defend himself, if Ludwig struck first. After a second or two, this didn't happen so Kiku made the first move. With a simple wave, he managed to disarm Ludwig instantly. The German however, caught the wand in midair before Kiku could cast another spell. With a flick, Ludwig attempted to stun his opponent. Kiku jumped skillfully out of the way as the spell hit the ground where his feet were seconds before. Like I said, Kiku was trained in combat. His amazing agility was like that of a spider monkey's. A chunk of the dirt flew out of the ground were the spell hit and into his dull brown eyes. Smirking, Ludwig fired another stunning charm, which hit a distracted Kiku in the chest. The Japanese teenager fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Ludwig won round one.
Feliciano revived Kiku and helped him off the ground. Lovino took his place.
Round Two: Ludwig vs Lovino...this'll be interesting...
"Are you ready to die, bastard?" Lovino said, gripping his wand tightly.
"Save it for zhe Tournament," sighed Ludwig. The pair began to duel.
As the two boys dueled down below, the rest of the Axis were sitting up on tge hill, watching the boys. They were all pretty much interested in how the duel was going to turn out...well...all except one.
Feliciano looked over at his younger sister, who would usually watch these duels with interest, pick at the grass instead.
"Sorella," He said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Is something wrong?" Rosaria blinked twice after a moment of silence.
"What?" She said a little bit confused. "Oh, nothing Feli. I was just thinking."
"Knut for your thoughts!" Gilbert said. He took a bronze coin from his pocket and tossed it to her. The Italian shot him a look
"I was thinking about what Katyusha said..." The girl said before her voice trailed off.
"Did something about it bother you at arr?" asked Kiku.
"No, It just got me thinking." There was a silent pause. "Feli? Why do we live with our grandfather and not our parents like everyone else?" The three boys stared at her, unsure what to say. They couldn't tell her the truth! It would break her heart. The three looked at each other in silence as the sound of Lovino's angry yells and insults could be audibly heard.
"Well?" Rosaria asked, "Feliciano, please tell me. I want to know!"
"Well uh...you see...erm..." Feliciano stutttered, knowing full well he couldn't tell her the truth. "Sorella the reason is um...because..."
"International Standard Secret!" Gilbert shouted. Kiku and Feliciano stared at him. He shrugged and gave them a look that said 'I panicked!'
"How is that an "international standard secret"?!" Rosaria said, offense sewn into her voice, like her accent. "I just asked a simple question!"
"It just is!" Gilbert added to his excuse, if you could call it that. "S.H.I.E.L.D. und zhe Ministry of Magic made it classifed. You must be a Level 10 to know!"
"S.H.E.I.R.D?" Kiku asked curiously.
"Vhat? I heard two people mention it somevhere. I eavesdropped on a conversation, so vhat? Anyvay little Rosie here iz not high enough to know."
"Don't call me that!" Rosaria growled at him.
"Rosie~" The Prussian said in singsong voice. "You can't know until you're older~"
Rosaria snapped.
She forced herself to her feet and faced Gilbert.
"I'M FOURTEEN F***ING YEARS OLD! I'M OLD ENOUGH TO MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS AND KNOW ABOUT MY PARENTS! I SWEAR TO GOD, YOU ALL ARE STARTING TO ACT LIKE LOVINO!" She shouted before walking-more like running- away in anger.
"Sorella-" Feliciano called as he went to stand and go after his sister. Kiku placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"I don't think that's a good idea, Fericiano-san." Kiku said. "Rosaria-san needs a erm...moment to herserf."
"But Kiku-"
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" A familiar voice shouted. The boys turned to see the German dripping blood onto the grass.
"YOU WANTED A FIGHT, A FIGHT YOU GET!" Lovino shouted back. Kiku, Feliciano and Gilbert had gotten wrapped up in their conversation that they had forgotten about the duel going on down below.
"Fratello!" Feliciano said, sprinting, which was more like tripping since he faceplanted into the dirt, down the hill. "Please calm down!"
"He wanted a fight!" Lovino shouted.
"It vas just practice you idiot!" Ludwig snapped towards the Italian.
"I bet zhat Lovino iz going to...too late." Gilbert said before the action was done. The Italian had shot a spell at Ludwig, which directly hit his forehead. Ludwig collapsed to the ground, the red liquid from his face still flowing. The three run down the hill, except for Feliciano who tripped halfway down. Feliciano tried to calm Lovino down, while Kiku revived Ludwig, who leaned on his brother for support upon this action.
Soon, Lovino's rage had faded and everything was calm again.
"Yay! Everyone's happy again!" Feliciano chriped happily.
"Armost everyone..." Kiku pointed out.
"What?" Lovino asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Zhat little schwester of yours asked Feliciano about your parents." Gilbert explained.
"We didn't say anything, I promise!" Feliciano said quickly. "But...she got mad at us and left."
"Where is she?" Lovino asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"We didn't see which direction she walked off in." Kiku said. "I'm going guess that she's in one of the Greenhouses. It's where her favorite crass is."
"Ve~ She could be in her dormitory!" Feliciano sighed.
"But what about that spot on the lake she always goes to?" Lovino reminded them. "She could be there."
"Ja, buy didn't you say zhat she vatches you two on zhe Quidditch pitch?" Ludwig suggested.
"Si! All the time!" Feliciano answered. There was a pause. "Oh no there was practice today!"
"Shit..." Lovino mumbled under his breath. You see, both Lovino and Feliciano play for their house Quidditch team...everyone in the Axis does, except Kiku and Rosaria, who usually sit in the stands. Lovino is one of the three chasers and Feliciano takes the seeker spot for the Hufflepuffs.
"Don't vorry." Gilbert said cooly. "Toni vill forgive you two if ve explai-..." For the first time since they exited the Hospital wing, Gilbert got a good look at the clothes he and Kiku were wearing. They were still stained with large patches of crimson, which were slowly turning brown. Bright red smears streaked their arms and legs. Blood. They were still covered in the blood from earlier. And if they still had blood on them that meant-...
"Rosie, Kiku und I are still covered in blood...aren't ve?" Kiku looked down at his clothing and body. His face turned red with embarrassment. Lovino nodded.
"Zhen it's settled. Kiku und I vill change und zhen Kiku vill check zhe Greenhouses."-The Japanese teenager nodded-"Zhe awesome me vill see if anyone saw a little blood soaked girl."
"I'll check the dormitory!" Feliciano said, raising his hand.
"I get the lake I guess." Lovino shrugged.
"Und zhat leaves me vith zhe Quidditch pitch." Ludwig said.
With the plan set, the Axis split up, with Kiku, Gilbert and Feliciano walking towards the castle, Lovino jogging off towards the lake and Ludwig heading towards the pitch.
I am so evil! I swear that backstory was depressing. But unfortunately my dear readers, it doesn't end there. So mamy plot holes to explain, and so little time. Oh, and there will be hints towards another backstory that I think a few you will agree with, my faithful readers.
But where is the youngest Axis member, exactly? And why did she snap so quickly when the boys refused to tell her about the Vargas's parents?
Next Time on Hogwarts from Around the World!
The Truth is Told!
See you then!