Chapter 3: Hallucinations
It was dark when England awoke. The first thing he noticed was the lack of his friends, with no trace that they had ever been there with him. Perhaps they hadn't. Perhaps it was just his crazy mind. These thoughts ran through England's mind, and deeply saddened him. He could feel a few stray tears fall from his eyes, and he let them. He had no idea how long he had been in here, or where he even was in the small room. He was sure he was in the back, right corner, but there really was no telling. He sat there for what seemed like an eternity, feeling like he may fall asleep again, until he slowly became aware of a smell. It was thick and sickening, sweet and sour at the same time. It filled his nostrils and clouded his senses, and he wanted to throw up. He choked out, shoved his nose into the sleeve of his shirt, but nothing could mask the horrible stench. The stench of blood.
England was positive he was about to pass out, when a miracle happened. A small slider in the door flew open with a bang, allowing fresh air into the awful smelling room. Or maybe it wasn't such a miracle. What he saw was ghastly, and his stomach rose to his throat. Zak the Russian was with him. The terrible thing was, he was nailed to the wall. England screamed and didn't stop, taking in the sight as the ray of light from the door fell upon the slaughtered body of Zak, who's eyes were missing completely. His mouth was stitched vertically, so the corners hung open, and his arms had bloody gashes running up them. England scrambled back against the opposite wall. He squeezed his eyes shut and prayed, incoherent mumbles and bible verses streaming from his lips.
A hearty laugh floated into the room, and the door clanged. It opened all the way, and a uniformed guard stood there. He was tall and bald, and his uniform was stark white, and freshly pressed. A small silver emblem was pinned to his chest, an emblem of two weeping angels wrapped in thorny vines. The guard held a small covered tray, and he was smiling wickedly.
"Hallucinations again Kirkland? My my, you are quite insane, aren't you?" the guard said, walking in without a second glance at the horrible sight on the wall.
England opened his eyes, and the smell of blood was gone. The body was gone as well, and the room was bare once again. He recognized the bald guard. The same guard that constantly harassed and tormented him, seemingly for fun.
"Get the bloody hell out of here Munsun."
Munsun was huge and ugly, and seemed to have taken a liking for bothering England. The man laughed again and set the tray on the floor. England was still shaky, and covered with sweat. Munsun lifted the cover off the tray, revealing a single, crusty sandwich and a bottle of water. England snatched them both without thanks and twisted the cap off the bottle, bringing the water to his dry, cracked lips, sighing in relief as the luke-warm liquid hit his parched throat.
Munsun smiled stupidly and began to talk.
"You know, your Russian friend, Zakhar? We threw him over in Section Four. He should be fairly comfortable over there, he fits right in."
England gasped. Section Four was the worst section in the entire hospital. It was mysterious and always dark. Cold seemed to seep out from under the single security door that led to it, and shrieks of pain or laughter could always be heard escaping it. The worst cases resided there, but there was a thing in there that was only known to some patients in the hospital. Not even the Parliament knew about it. All of the insane patients in there were aloud to wander the section freely. Those who were placed in Section Four must fight for there lives. There was no doubt now that Zak was dead.
"That's right, Section Four! I saw him in there while I was in The Tower, taking pot-shots at those lunies with the tranque-gun. He was still kicking though, too bad," Munsun laughed hard, clutching his sides.
"You bastards had better take him out of there, or I swear-"
"You swear what? We could put you in there if you weren't so valuable. Her Royalty has actually requested that no harm come to you in here, can you believe that? Special treatment from the Queen, eh? Lucky break," Munsun snorted.
"You talk way to much you dumb git," England huffed, taking a bite of sandwich.
Munsun was silent for a moment before he sprang at England, drawing out his club. He battered England in the ribs, and he gasped out. Munsun was enormous, his sheer size crushing the smaller man. He tried to cry out, but it only escaped as a small squeak. Munsun punched him hard in the chest and England's breath shot out of his chest, and he rolled over, trying with all his might to regain his breath as Munsun stood up, laughing and taking the tray.
"Have a fun week in there Kirkland, and don't ever think you have a right to insult me," he grunted, slamming the door shut and barring it violently.
England had no response, other than to curl up on his side. A bit of drool leaked from the corner of his mouth, and he tried to suck in air. It was fairly painful to do so, so he closed his eyes and tried to focus on other things. He thought about the outside world, the world meetings, and his friends. He was faintly aware of a soft glow over him, and a small figure resting its head against his cheek.
"Thank's Tinkerbell... I'm just glad someone is here with me."
XxXxXxXxXx
The Parliament building in Westminster, London was enormous. A large group of men stood staring at it with a feeling of uncertainty. America, France, China, Russia, Japan, Germany, Italy, and Canada began to walk towards it, each silent and wondering what had happened. It was a relief to France that everyone had been able to make it to London. With so many representatives present, France hoped they would be able to convince the Prime Minister and the Queen that England should be released from his current situation. Japan was very hesitant at first, having had personal experience with England's 'condition', though he eventually decided to join the others.
"This should be a snap, leave it up to the hero guys!" America said loudly, leading at the front of the group.
"You watch yourself in there America. If you say the wrong thing, they might kick us out," Germany said, trying to maintain his position as the most sensible of the group.
America just bit his lip, refraining from saying anything else. In truth, he was not as confident as he made himself out to be. He had always been good at containing his nervousness, always putting on an optimistic facade. Lately though, it had been difficult to do even that.
Canada trailed at the back of the group, silently agreeing with Germany. He had come to support France, and he knew deep down that his Papa truly cared for England, even if they fought quite a bit. Italy was nervous as he gazed at the big parliament building, hoping that they could release England and make everything normal again. They stopped at the gate, two guards holding up their hands.
"What business do you have with the Parliament?" One asked in a scripted, monotone voice.
America stepped forward to speak, but France stopped him quickly, stepping up to answer himself.
"We have a ten A.M appointment with the Prime Minister, the Queen should be present as well. Here you go," he said, handing a slip of paper to the guard.
The man read it over, and nodded them in. France thanked him kindly, though he could hear him say something about 'frog bastards' under his breath. He sighed, and the nations continued down the hall and knocked on the large door to the meeting room.
"Enter," a voice said, and they all stepped in solemnly.
An elegantly dressed woman sat in a large chair on a raised platform at the head of the large, circular room. A somber looking, middle aged man stood next to her, dressed in a grey suit. Another man stood alongside him, smiling brightly and folding his arms. He wore a gray overcoat, and his hair was thinning and grey as well. France widened his eyes in surprise.
"Hey, that's Angleterre's doctor!" he whispered to the others, getting raised eyebrows in response.
"Ah, our guests have arrived," the man in the suit said, stepping forward.
France noticed he had bags under his eyes. The weathered man was easily recognized as the Prime Minister, whom most of the countries had met.
"Yes, Sir. It has been some time since we have spoken. I've come on behalf of-"
"We know why you are here," the Queen said in a proper voice, holding her nose up a bit.
"Then you have already formed an opinion?"
At this, the doctor cleared his throat, and all eyes turned to him.
"It is clear why Mr. Kirkland has been hospitalized. The answer is no, Mr. Bonnefoy."
France began to speak, but the Queen raised her hand to silence him. The doctor continued in a soothing voice.
"I am sorry, but this is simply a waste of time and effort. I truly wish I could be of help to you all, but Mr. Kirkland has a dangerous mental condition. Why, just the other night he was pacing around solitary confinement, speaking to an imaginary rabbit!" The doctor let out an emotionless chuckle that outraged France.
"Arthur is perfectly healthy! He has always managed to complete his work, and he is needed at these meetings, they are of the utmost importance to world affairs!" France said, raising his voice in anger.
"Let's be honest Francis, what do you all even accomplish at those meetings? They appear to be a waste of time..." the Prime Minister said, and Germany flushed at this.
"Look everyone, I've kept my mouth shut long enough! Artie is one of the best countries on the planet, and he's my brother. Everyone has imaginary friends, even I did as a kid. Why can't an adult talk to something he finds comforting to relieve stress? He's not crazy!" America shouted, and the Prime Minister winced.
The Queen remained emotionless, and the doctor smiled heartlessly.
"Mr. Kirkland has a severe mental illness, Mr. Jones. I know that may be hard to grasp for some people, but many times, one does not recover from these circumstances. He can be aided yes, and perhaps in several years he will have progressed. In the meantime, he is being contained in one of the safest, highly rated hospitals in the United Kingdom. Try to understand-"
"Safest?" France shrieked, "he has horrible marks on his wrists and ankles from being bound! Clearly, he is not safe in there."
"Would you rather he maim himself in his sleep? He has terrible nightmares, Mr. Bonnefoy. I have seen it with my own eyes, and I shall tell you only once. Mr. Kirkland is a danger to himself, as well as others. If he sees things, then who is to say he wouldn't think twice about harming someone, under the assumption that it is yet another hallucination? What then, Mr. Bonnefoy?"
France glared daggers at the grey man, but fell silent, unsure of what to say. Then, Russia stepped forward. The Queen shifted uncomfortably, and the rest of the nations looked surprised. The doctor remained unfazed.
"Da, but I am dangerous as well, but I reside in no hospital. Hehe, not even a gulag. No, I am just as insane as Britain, but I am free to wander this Earth. Who says I would not kill?" Russia said, smiling gleefully.
"Why isn't this one locked up yet?" the Prime Minister muttered to the Queen, who was trembling.
"I believe you are threatening me, Mr. Braginski. Do not allow it to happen in my homeland again, or you will be looking at imprisonment. The rest of you are dismissed," the doctor sneered.
"I believe that I have the right to allow them here, doctor. I have not had my say," the Queen said sharply, and the doctor looked surprised.
"Yes, Ms. Elizabeth. Continue," the doctor said, retreating.
The Queen cleared her throat, and sat up straight.
"I have known Arthur Kirkland my entire life, and I daresay, I never imagined him to be insane. He is eccentric, yes, but I have never had any reason to believe he was dangerous," the Queen spoke carefully, choosing just the right words.
The countries brightened at the reasonable words.
"However..."
Their expressions were put out like a candle flame swallowed up in an ocean.
"Recently, Arthur has shown signs of severe distress. He often talks to himself, or to others. He claims things are there, when no others can see them. He has lashed out at others who do not believe him. Mr. Honda, I believe you have experienced this first hand."
Japan grew nervous at the mention of his name. He cleared his throat and shuffled in his spot.
"No, I-"
The countries looked defeated as Japan struggled for the right thing to say. The doctor coughed a bit, and made himself heard.
"Mr. Kirkland will continue to reside in our hospital, and you will leave London immediately, before we are forced to have you removed from the premises. I am sorry I could not have been of further assistance."
"But that's no fair!" Italy chimed in, "and even if he is crazy then why can't he take pills to make the scary people go away? I do!"
"Mr. Vargas, I am well aware of your condition as well, a simple case of Attention Deficit Disorder, nothing like Schizophrenia," the doctor said, chuckling lightly.
"Italy has no such issue! I have known him for many years, and I know he may act childish, but he is a good man! Britain has a very high influence on common society, and his presence means much to us emotionally and economically! I ask you to please consider his release," Germany said, trying to be as reasonable as possible.
"Yeah, I know what it like in those hospitals aru. Many patients mistreated, and-"
"ENOUGH!" the doctor roared, cutting China off, who looked infuriated.
"Uh, you guys? I don't think we should argue..." Canada was cut off as the countries became louder and more demanding.
The doctor stood calmly at the head of the room, before speaking sternly over the eruption of opinions.
"Mr. Kirkland is unfit to serve his country, and the United Nations. His release will not be determined until he has shown steady improvement, which he has not. It could last the rest of his life, and he will be contained until his violence has been subdued. I am sure you are all now... dismissed," the doctor said gravely, glancing at the Queen.
She nodded solemnly. France hung his head, sighing, before gaining a determined look once again.
"We'll be back, even if we need to make a court case of it. See you there, eh..." France paused, realizing he did not know the name of the grey doctor.
"Karl Vincent. Have a wonderful day, Mr. Bonnefoy."
A/n: Here's another chapter :) Was this okay? I tried to add all the countries inputs at least once. Hope its good.