"Jeez… How much longer, aru? I feel a bit sick, leaning over your back like this. It feels like your shoulder blades are digging into my stomach and liver, aru," Yao complained. Ivan just cheerily walked along with his usual creepy smile.

"Oh Yao, please do not complain. Otherwise, I will have to adjust your position in my arms to make you even more uncomfortable. You do not want that, now do you?" Ivan asked creepily. But Ivan nonetheless changed their position so that the Russian was now carrying Yao in a bridal fashion. The feminine Chinese man stayed silent and proceeded to let the larger male change their position. Ivan and Yao had been walking for what seemed like forever in this very puzzling cemetery. It had been mostly silent all the way, except for the occasional owl or cricket. Other than those noises, the world seemed as though it had stopped for the worst. Now, Wang and Braginski were making it seem like they were the only two alive in this literally dead place.

"Hey Yao-Yao, guess what? I decided to do some research on this place before we came because I do not trust Mr. Alfred. Do you know what I found out?" Ivan asked in his thick Russian accent. Yao was somewhat afraid to ask, knowing all the outrageous things that happen in the country of America at night. Yao shuddered at the thought but asked anyway.

"What, aru?"

"I heard this really 'cool' folktale, as they would say in the United States. Is that right? 'Cool'? Anyway, a long story being short, a witch in an old town where this graveyard stands beneath my feet was jealous of two young lovers so she killed the woman. The Wikipedia article I read said that you can hear her scream if two beating hearts in the cemetery love each other and are holding hands," Ivan finished with a poker face. He then released an arm from holding his partner and wormed a leather-gloved palm into Yao's hand so that their hands looked almost like a mirror to each other, despite size and gloves. Yao was forming a very obvious blush across his face by then. A question popped into his mind as he stared at their connected hands.

The Chinese man was about to speak before a loud and very feminine scream echoed off of the tombstones like a pinball machine. Yao and Ivan both locked eyes with each other as soon as the sound reached their ears. Yao was searching Ivan's eyes, probing them with his own for a hidden emotion, but could not locate a single emotion.

"Ivan, why did you suddenly decide to hold my hand, aru?" a worried and nervous Yao asked as he embarrassedly averted his gaze to the cold earth. He most likely already knew the answer but decided to ask anyway to hear what Ivan replied with.

"That is simple answer, Yao-Yao. Ya tebya lyublyu," Ivan simply stated as if it was just another everyday sentence. Yao had no idea what this meant and asked for him to say it once more. "Hmm… Let me see if I remember any of my traditional Chinese lessons from my childhood… I believe 'Wo ai ni' was the correct way to say it. My multi-language skills are a bit rusty…"

Yao's eyes opened to their fullest extent as the words escaped the silver-haired Russian's lips. Ivan had just uttered the words "I love you" in two different languages. The shocked Chinese man could only stare at the bright violet eyes in front of him as he searched, searched for some sort of emotion but they only held the ground's gaze. Yao's caramel eyes are deeply searching Ivan's, when he suddenly stopped walking. Yao was taken out of his trance and formed a confused expression.

"H-Huh? Why are we stopped, aru?" he said, looking around at his surroundings. He was frantically looking around when his eyes stopped on a bush nearby. A shadow swiftly moves past it, but that shadow was not human... "I-Ivan, that bush…" Yao sputtered, pointing at the plant.

"What?" Ivan asked, a bit confused. "I'm scarier than anything we'll see in these woods, but just to be safe…" He stealthily draws his pipe and readies it, all the while balancing the smaller man in his grasp. Aiming the rusty weapon at the shivering twigs and leaves, the Russian man called out to it. "Alfred, if that is you, I do not find this very much of the laughing matter!"

The bush shakes, but then the one next to it begins to splutter as well. Then the next, and about five others begin to shake. Then there was the sound of growling. Ivan and Yao stare at the bushes, as if they will give up their contents by merely staring them down.

"Show yourselves, or my pipe will mess up your faces, da?" Ivan said with fake cheeriness and a twinge of intimidation behind the words. The growling moved closer, and the bushes stopped their endless thrashing. Pairs of glowing eyes and snarling muzzles came into view as dark-shadowed hounds surrounded the men.

"Wh-what the hell, aru?!" Yao yelled.

"Get on my back, Yao-Yao. Now, please." The Chinese man complied and quickly scrambled onto Ivan's broad shoulder blades, clinging onto them for dear life.

Ivan immediately swung at the ghostly hound, but the pipe just went right through it. One snapped at his ankle, but made no contact. It caused Ivan to stumble backwards and almost fall. " was shaking for fear of their lives by now, and he was sure the cloth under his nails was ripped or torn. Yao buried his face in Ivan's large scarf and tightened his grip on Ivan's shoulders.

"Calm down, Yao! We'll be fine!" Ivan reassured him. Another set of canine jaws went for Ivan, but this time sharp teeth bit his knee. Ivan jumped back in surprise, but fell on his bottom. Yao slipped from the strong man's grasp and fell onto the cold earth with a soft thud. "…You damned dogs caused me to drop my precious Yao-Yao… and lose the game… YOU… WILL… PAY…" Ivan scarily threatened the hounds. A dark aura began emanating from the Russian's body. His face darkened with an eerie presence and strange mutterings began clacking from his mouth. The expressions on the muzzles of the hounds changed to one of terror, and the entire pack fled the scene within a heartbeat.

Once the duo regained their senses and recovered from the initial shock of being attacked, they both locked eyes, caramel irises meeting deep violet. Ivan was the first to speak.

"Yao? Why are you all the way over there...?" Ivan asked curiously before realizing they had failed the contest. He heaved a sigh before standing and walking towards Yao, who was still seated on the cold, hard earth. Ivan towered over him, extending a gloved hand to him. Yao weakly took his hand and lifted himself up. The two continued their walk towards the center after Yao confusedly asked, "Why did those dogs attack us?" Ivan merely shook his head and began walking.

It was a comfortable silence as they traveled; Yao was walking closely to Ivan, their arms brushing against each other, the only sounds surrounding the pair being the quiet chirp of crickets and the occasional bird.

Yao looked up to see the large Russian's childish-looking facial features glimmering in the moonlight. Ivan's silvery hair reflected the rays of the moon making it look like pure silver atop his head, his bright violet eyes sparkling like the unseen stars behind the clouds in the dark night sky, and his cheeks slightly flushed a light shade of red. Yao found the image to be beautiful, for lack of better words. A sudden urge crashed into the smaller Chinese man as he watched Ivan's while they walked on. He blushed and stopped walking, realizing his body actually wanted to go through with its desire.

"Yao? What is being the matter?" Ivan noticed after walking a couple more steps that his partner stopped walking for some unknown reason. The Russian turned around and walked a bit closer to the Chinese man, looking at him worriedly. Yao's head was slightly bowed, his eyes staring determinedly at the ground. "Yao-Yao?" Ivan asked again. Yao wasn't sure why he wanted it, but knew it was now or never. He pinched his eyes closed, stood on his tiptoes, and planted a quick yet firm kiss on the side of Ivan's cheek, blush spreading across his features as he did so.

Ivan took less than two seconds to register the action, a genuine smile replacing his worried expression as Yao pulled away.

Ivan and Yao continued their walk to the center, but they did so with a very embarassed Yao wrapped around a very pleased Russian's oversized coat sleeve.

A/N: Sorry for the wait, when I re-opened the document for this chapter, half the data was SOMEHOW ERASED. I am very pleased with how this turned out, considering the circumstances.

OH AND WHO WANTS SOME SMUT AT THE END OF THE STORY?! LEAVE YOUR OPINION ON WHO THE LUCKY COUPLE SHOULD BE IN YOUR REVIEW~