A/N: How is life? Please review!
They had stumbled into camp, just as the downpour began. Elizaveta ran towards the dining hall, dragging Gilbert behind her. Lightning crashed and thunder shook the ground as they ran across the lawn towards the huge log building. They tumbled through the doors in one sopping pile, landing at Mary's feet. The Irish Woman looked at them for a second, before bending and helping Elizaveta up. She brushed herself off, just as Amelia appeared next to her, scanning the faces on in the pile.
"Where is my son?" That caught her and Mary's attention. They searched through the faces not seeing two very important ones.
"Where is Madeline?" She asked.
A gasp came from the pile. Sakura stood up amidst the chaos. "As we were hiking, I heard a scream, but Alfred told us to continue. It was raining very hard, so we continued and that was the last I heard of them." She looked at the ground in shame. Elizaveta pulled her into a big hug and buried her face in her hair.
"It's okay… it's not your fault." She whispered. Elizaveta felt tears hit her already wet clothes and she hugged Sakura tighter.
"Let's get dried up and we can wait for…" She was cut off by Amelia rushing towards the door.
"I am going to find him, He is all I have!" Arthur grabbed her arm and she collapsed, sobbing. "He is all I have…"
Arthur collapsed beside her and pulled her into the a hug, running his hands through her hair. "I know, I know…." He whispered as he stared at the glass door watching the rain pour down. Elizaveta watched as well, but her resolve tightened.
"Guys! Is lying around all wet doing anything?" All eyes were on her.
"Let's get dressed, secure our campers, set something fun up here in the dining hall. We can file a missing person's report, but they won't be able to go out in this storm either. Alfred is capable of helping himself and Madeline, hurt or not."
There were nods and people stood up. Gilbert drifted over to her, as Sakura dried her tears, grabbed clean clothes, a towel and soap and headed toward the showers.
He laid an arm across her shoulders. She leaned against him. He was warm… Hot even. She looked up at him, his eyes were red rimmed, sweat/water dripped down his face, his skin was waxy and he shivered. "God damn it Gilbert! You're sick! Let's get you dry and to bed." He nodded dumbly and she pulled him along. Elizaveta sat him down in a bean bag and rushed back to the pile to grab some dry clothes. "Come now… Don't fall asleep yet." She peeled off his wet layers and dressed him quickly. He was fading. She ran to her bag and grabbed out a bottle of Tylenol, a blanket and water. She shook him awake and forced the medicine down the "Prussian's" throat. Covering him with the blanket, she kissed his head and headed into the dining hall. It was Chaos. Ludwig was trying his hardest to order it but it wasn't working. She thought of a quick solution.
"HEY BURRITO!"
There was an instant response. "HEY HEY HEY BURRITO!"
Elizaveta smiled. "Now that I have your attention, I would like to announce the afternoon's activities, since it is clear that there will be no outside activities. First, we are going to move all the tables to the side and we are going to play some games, then later we are going to transform this into a theater. So, finish up with lunch and we'll get started." She turned to other councillors as the noise consumed the Mess once more. They all nodded in agreement, It was decided.
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Feliciana was scared. Alfred and Madeline were gone. She stood in the corner as Ludwig, Antonio and Ivan helped (See, did it) the campers move the tables. She closed her eyes and let her head rest against the wall sighing heavily.
"Hey Feli? A small hand tugged at her skirt. she opened her eyes and kneeled down.
"Ve~ What is it Bella?" She asked the little girl.
"Will Alfred be coming back?" Tears breached the younger's eyes. Feliciana hugged her.
"Of course! He always does, doesn't he?" She asked and the girl nodded. Feliciana stood up and grabbed her hand.
"Let's get my unit and we can play my favorite game." They skipped over to a large clump, that was Unit 9.
"Hey guys do you want to play a game with me and…."
She leaned down to the little girl. "Uh…. Can you tell me your name?"
The girl nodded."My name is Olivia." Feli laughed.
"What a pretty name!" She turned back to her campers. "Do you guys want to play a game with me and Olivia?"
There was a genral murmur of agreement and Feliciana plopped down. "We are going to play my favorite game…. Mafia!"
There was a few confused faces, but over all, there was sadistic smiles. "Go gather some others too, it makes it more fun."
Pretty soon Feliciana was sitting at the center of a huge circle. She stood up and lead Maggie over to Ludwig.
"You are going to sit by my friend while I explain." Ludwig blushed as the little girl sat in his lap and made herself comfortable. She then walked out the center of the circle once more.
"Ciao~ We are going to play my favorite game. Sorella can you help me?" Lovina drifted towards the center. "We are going to play Mafia!" The two Italians stood back to back, finger guns at the ready.
"Now raise your hands if you know how to play." All children over the age of 7 raised their hands. "Ve~ Then let's jump right in! Everyone close your eyes!" She whipped to Lovina. "What do you want to pick?" She whispered, loudly.
"Be quiet Idiota! I want to pick the Mafia." Feliciana nodded and began to skip around the circle.
Once the two Italians were back in the center, Feliciana was the first to speak. "Mafia awaken." Instantly Sammy, Scott and Olivia looked at her expectantly.
"Now you must choose who shall have an unfortunate "accident" tonight." They all pointed to different people but eventually decided on Ludwig. "Go to sleep, Doctors awaken."
Three more children woke up and it was eventually decided that Addy would be saved. "Good now go to sleep." She scanned the circle for peaking eyes, when she decided it was safe, she called out. "Detectives, Who is guilty?" The three older campers had a silent staring conversation, before deciding on on Peirce.
"Okay go to sleep~" She waited a single second before singing the wake up song. Once everyone had rubbed their eyes, Feliciana began.
"Last night, Ludwig…" She was cut off by Elizaveta who whispered breezily in her ear.
"I will tell this story."
Feliciana nodded dumbly.
"Last night, Ludwig was on his way home from a great day at the archery range with Feliciana and Sakura. On his way back to Tamaray, he noticed a patch of flowers that reminded him of Feliciana, so he picked them. Little did he know, that they were covered in poison and he died."
By the time Elizaveta's monologue had ended, so much blood had rushed to Ludwig's face that it was a miracle he didn't die of embarrassment. Feliciana laughed heartily and kissed him on the cheek.
It was hard to believe that he didn't explode.
The whole room lit up with laughter, and Sakura patted the German on the back while he unconsciously tried to disappear.
Feliciana plopped down next to him and just let Elizaveta take over narrator. She leaned against his shoulder. Her breath tickled his ear as she spoke.
"I want to tell you something later. Meet me at 10:00 at the Widow's Tree."
She smiled.
I wonder how this night will go...
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Chun-Yan was really not looking forward to movie time. It was the first time since Chun-Yan's "Run-in" with Mei's Boyfriend, that she really had time to talk to the girl. Mei really seemed happier now that Jackson didn't come around and that made Chun-Yan think that Ivan's Stitches were worth it. (They weren't really needed but Ivan wanted to be sure.) They had transformed the Mess Hall into a kick ass movie theater. Alfred and Arthur went to the attic and pulled the sail to a viking longship they had built one year, in honor of the Scandinavian Exchange Councillors that had come. It was perfectly white and took up at least half a wall. Mary helped them bring down beanbags, pillows, and mattresses as well. So, in the end, it just looked like a giant cuddle pile. The end vote had decided that The Parent Trap was what was to be watched. The councillors finally sat down in the back, (all with the exception of Elizaveta, as she went to take care of Gilbert) just as the movie began. Chun-Yan sat in between Ivan and Sakura. She sighed heavily. Sakura looked at her, while Ivan just tugged her closer and rested his head on hers. "I should probably tell Mei."
Sakura, who had turned back to the movie, whipped her head to look at her older sister.
"Why?"
Chun-Yan shrugged, "Because she has the right to know." She pushed Ivan off and stood up. Picking her way through the crowd, she finally stumbled upon her younger siblings who were playing cards by flashlight. She sat down next to them. Thai looked up and smiled.
"Do you want to play, the game just ended ana~" She shook her head, but smiled.
"I need to talk to Mei for a moment." She reached out and grabbed the moon eyed asian, before smiling once more and pulling the girl away. "I have something to tell you." Chun-Yan murmured grabbing her hand and pulling her into a closet.
Mei was instantly on her guard. "What's the matter?" She paled just looking at her older sister's face.
"I need to talk to you about Jackson." Chun-yan whispered. Mei was instantly on her guard.
"Nothing is wrong with us! We are getting along just fine! Keep your nose out of my love life!" This is when Chun-Yan lost her cool.
"HOW IS GETTING RAPED, CUT AND BRUISED GETTING ALONG FINE?" She burst out, panting slightly.
Mei covered her mouth with tears in her eyes. "How did you…"
Chun-Yan grabbed the hand away from her mouth. "You think I wouldn't notice if one of my babies was hurt? What kind of sibling would I be if I couldn't notice when you were in pain?" Chun-yan pulled the girl into her arms. Mei cried. "I.. sjdlffajljflja" She blubbered. Chun-Yan carded her hands through the younger's hair and hugged her tighter.
"I made sure that bu yao lian bastard will he locked up for good, he will never harm you again." The smaller asian sobbed harder and they sank to the floor.
They stayed that way for a long time until Chun-Yan took her face in her hands and looked deep into her brown eyes. "Promise me," She looked down for just a second. "Promise me, that you will always tell me when something like that happens, always." She nodded, and Chun-Yan hugged her tight once more.
For about one second.
"Wait did he hurt you?" She turned to the chinese girl, rage in her eyes. This time it was Chun-Yan's turn to look down.
"He did, didn't he!" She stood up, anger leaking from her pores. She slammed open the door, only to walk angrily into a human wall.
Ivan looked down at the angry teenager. "What is the meaning of this?"
Mei glared at him. "I am going to kill the man that hurt my sister."
Ivan laughed. "There is no need to do that, your sister has already put him away. I will deal with your sister, you go watch the movie." She looked at him curiously and then was very cautious. "Touch her the wrong way and I will end you." She tried to glare holes in the Russian's head before creeping out of the room. Ivan chuckled and sat down on the ground next to Chun-Yan and pulled her into his lap.
She looked up at him and smiled lightly. "I think that went better than expected." He laughed heartily. She smiled.
Ivan leaned down and kissed her on the head. She looked at him with wide eyes and felt the rumble of her laughter. He kissed her on the lips. This time she was really surprised. Pulling away quickly, she stared into his hurt violet eyes. "No? Well…" She connected their lips. "No just surprised." He smiled against her lips.
Well I guess this is happening now….
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It was as though Gilbert was high. Everything was spinning in and out of his consciousness. Colours, sounds, smells, temperatures, whirred past his eyes to fast to comprehend. Sleeping was the painless release. The last thing he saw above him before was long brown hair and brilliant blue eyes.
When he did finally awake, he was lying in a pool of blood. The red was slowly starting to stream away, like a crimson wave across an icecap. He opened his mouth and all that came out was a sigh. This time just before he blacked out, he saw long brown hair, but this time, there green eyes widened in horror, the person fell to his side and laid a hand on his too cold skin. "Gilbert…" She whispered before screaming. He fell away to it ringing in his ears.
When he awoke he was lying in a white room with cords hanging from him. He tried to sit up, but was immediately restrained by a heavy hand.
"Rest, you lost a lot of blood and I had to stitch you up..."
Gilbert blinked sleepily up at Amelia's face. She smiled and gently stroked his hair. "We are still at camp, in the tiny hospital, Alfred helped fund. He also sewed you up. It appears as though when you were passed out, someone carved a word into you." Gilbert looked at her confused and opened his mouth, and all that came out was a squawking sound. Amelia chuckled, "Alfred said you might not be able to talk for a few days." The look on his face made her laugh harder. "He said you would be horrified, I think the look on your face is clue enough. I owe Madeline 5 bucks." She looked off into space for a moment, clearly planning out the scene. Gilbert waved his hand to get her attention.
She snapped back to reality. "Oh of course." She gently pulled back the blanket and covering from his chest. Across it, now spelled in neat black stitches was the word Rache. She looked at him concerned when she saw his face go white.
"Does it mean anything to you?" Gilbert opened his mouth, but someone beat him to it.
"Rache, it means revenge." A gruff voice said, there in the doorway was Ludwig.
Gilbert instantly brightened and motioned for his younger brother to come. Ludwig did as told. He sat down next to his brother on the bed.
"Do you know anyone who would want to do this to you?" Again Gilbert opened his mouth, but was cut off.
"I have had my suspicions, I believe that it may be someone in Unit 10. " Elizaveta said almost jogging over. "There are a few campers that have been a little bit crazy in the last years and by crazy I mean actually crazy. There was a girl last year, who said she would kill for me. I think Layla was her name."
Amelia looked at the Hungarian in concern. "Why did you not tell Mary?"
She shrugged. "I thought she was joking, but obviously she was not." Ludwig's eyebrows knitted together in concern.
"We cannot rule out all other possibilities quite yet…" The two women nodded and they all looked at Gilbert. He stared at his brother until he understood. "This must end." Nods. "No more attacks." More nods. "Gilbert has to pee."
"What?"
"He has to pee."
The Prussian nodded his head vehemently. Amelia laughed. "Over there, just make sure to take your pet with you." She gestured to the IV stand.
With the help of his brother he was able to limp his way over to bathroom. It was a quick pee and he was just carried back to bed. Ludwig took one last long look at his brother before sighing and ducking out the door. Amelia followed close behind, leaving Elizaveta and Gilbert alone. She laid down next to him. He buried his face in her hair. He sighed. She smiled softly.
"We'll find them." Gilbert smiled softly and nodded, his eyes fluttering. She smiled, kissed him on the forehead and slipped out of bed, leaving her love to sleep.
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Francis felt like shit, actual shit. He had smiled his way through the day and made sure his campers were all right, before checking out and heading to Tamaray. Lucky for him it was empty. He stripped off his clothes and pulled on some pajamas, before crawling up into his bunk. Francis, who was usually smiling and happy, let tears leak down his face. He slipped into his sleeping bag and curled into a fetal position. My best friends are getting attacked… Alfred, the glue to this place is gone…. Madeline is with him… Arthur still didn't love him... With that last thought, he closed his eyes and let the world crash down around him. This is when Arthur entered the scene.
He heard Francis make a small noise and it piqued his interest. Creeping over quietly, he stood on his bed and looked at Francis between the small beams that provided protection. Francis' face was turned away, but he saw from the way the frenchman's body rocked every once in awhile, he was sobbing, silently. Arthur's face softened. Another round of sobs rocked the teen's body as Arthur tentatively stuck a hand out to stroke his hair. The golden locks were soft against his fingers as he carded through the others hair.
Francis tensed at feeling the fingers in his hair, but eventually went slack as someone began to hum, while going through his hair. Then the humming stopped and a voice replaced it.
"Francis… Come down, I have a surprise for you." That was when the frenchman stopped crying.
Arthur looked nervously at the bundle of blankets, that was until it sat up, revealing a disheveled frenchman. "This better be good, Arthur, you made me end my pity party early." Arthur smirked at that. "I believe that this will be worth it for you, but if it is going to happen you are going to need to get off your bed and give me five minutes."
Francis sighed. "You better not be tricking me…" Arthur laughed.
"You are just going to have to trust me." He stuck out his hand to help the other teen down.
Five minutes later, Francis was glad he ended his pity party early. As soon as he had gotten down, Arthur had tucked in all off Francis' blankets on the guard side and had flipped them over the tiny fence, creating a cave of sorts. This had made the frenchman smile. Just like when we were kids…. Arthur caught the reminiscent smile and shot a grin of his own. He flew around, with an uncharacteristic grace. He opened up his dictionary and flipped the wifi on, grabbed his computer, all of their pillows and disappeared behind the curtain. A few moments later, Francis heard a muffled voice from within. "Come on in Francis!" Francis pushed back the curtain and gasped.
The tiny area with gently lit up with Fairy lights and the end of Arthur's bed had become the ultimate snuggle pile, with pillows, blankets and of course Arthur. Oh Arthur… He was now in his Union Jack pajamas screwing around on his computer.
"Woah…"
Arthur snickered. "You like it? I put in the Fairy Lights yesterday." Francis nodded and sat down next to the shorter Britton.
"So other than the fort like old times, what is your surprise?" Arthur looked at him in sarcastic wonderment.
"There's more? Of course there bloody is! We are going to watch a movie." He pulled up the blankets as an obvious gesture for Francis to crawl under with him.
"The really question is, what do you want to watch…" They scrolled through the list, until they came upon a movie called After the Ball, which they decided upon (Francis is always in the mood for a crappy romance) and settled in for the long run.
An hour into the movie, Arthur had fallen asleep on Francis' shoulder. Francis paused the movie and set the computer gently on the ground. He wrapped his arm around the other teen and craned his neck so he could see him. He sighed. Francis laid his head on the other's messy blonde hair.
"God Arthur, coming to camp with you is just torture. Everyday, watching you get up and grace the world with your presence, the way you smile, the way you argue, god it's not fair. The saddest thing of all is knowing, that one day, we won't be able to come back here… Then the next, you will be married and this will but a distant memory. It's not fair how much I love you…" He closed his eyes and silence reigned.
That was until moments later, his eyes snapped open at the feeling of someone kissing him. He looked at the brit's closed eyes and let himself melt into the motions. He smiled as a hand snaked its way up his neck and his hair. They stayed that way until, they had to break to breathe. Francis panted and ran a hand through his hair, and watched as Arthur looked down, catching his breath and trying to hide his embarrassment.
"How much did you…"
"All of it." Was the stout reply.
"How long have you…"
"Since we shared our first cabin together."
It was Francis this time that initiated it. Long and sweet, trying to make up for all of the years missed. Arthur melted and Francis took control, until they were breathless once more. They broke apart and Arthur busied himself trying to control his blush and straightening the blankets. He glared at Francis' grin, before sitting and smack his arm.
"Don't think that this changes anything!" He said sinking back into a warm embrace.
"Whatever Cher…" The frenchman replied kissing him on the nose. The Brit huffed and closed his eyes preparing for sleep. Francis held him tight and hummed, until he too, fell asleep.
Needless to say, later that night when all of the other councillors arrived, they were not at all surprised, to find them sleeping in their fort. In fact, the room was full of statements such as: "It's about goddamn time!" "Finally…" and "Thank god the sexual tension was killing me…"
Also needless to say, the fangirls of the world enjoyed the pictures a certain spaniard posted online with the catchphrase, The SS FrogKing has Sailed!
Translations:
Cher - Dear
Fairy lights... I didn't know what to call them, where I live, we call them Christmas lights, but I though fairy lights was pretty international. (Maybe?)
Sorry if the romance was not very good in any of the chapters, its not really my expertise. Also for the startling lack of Spamano, I promise it will be in the next chapter. Pretty Please Review... with Snowflakes on top? Or maybe Absolute Zero?