England's sleep was short and dreamless, which made sense due to the sleep deprivation he had endured over the past few days. How long had he been awake before that night? Like hell would he know. England awoke to his blaring alarm on his phone obnoxiously playing the Beatles at four thirty in the morning. England groggily reached over and turned it off, rubbing his eyes.
It didn't take him long to remember why he wasn't in his bed or in his home, and for the memories of the past couple days to nearly wash away all hope of getting America back. What could he say, he was a pessimist at heart. He buried his head into the pillows Pennsylvania gave him and sighed, he had to keep his mind off of how lost they were in all of this. But given that Capital personally called him out in that text sent after America's attack, he couldn't help but think how confident they seemed. With good reason too. There were only ten nations, and fifty states who didn't hold any trust for them. Then again, it wasn't like the nations had any trust for the states. How could they when Capital was one of them?
He heard a groan from across the room, "England, while I do consider myself a morning person, don't you think that four thirty in the morning is a little too early? Nice alarm, by the way. Maybe I would appreciate it more if it went off at a decent time."
Pennsylvania covered his face with his blanket and rolled around in the fort he built made of pillows and quilts. The state was usually fairly mild and spoke in a very polite manner, this attitude was different for him, but then again it was four thirty in the bloody morning. He had a feeling that he wasn't going to be greeted with many kind words for what he had in mind for this morning.
After Japan and Russia finally made it to the house, the rest of the night had been catching them up with what happened, and planning on how they were going to watch these states in an orderly manner. They handled sleeping hours in shifts, two states awake at a time to watch both sides of the upper floor where everyone slept. He and Japan had the first shift, which was thankfully uneventful. He figured that the rest of the night was the same since he wasn't woken up, as he told every nation to do if something were to happen.
England lifted his head, and stared at the state. Pennsylvania rolled on his side to face him, his star had the dimmest glow in the darkness, but it glowed all the same, causing a sense of discomfort for England. He sat up and rested his hand on his chin, "There are sixty personifications in this house right now."
"Mhmm," Pennsylvania slowly closed his eyes and let his head droop.
"All of these personifications have to eat breakfast, and it will take quite the amount of time to put together such a large meal." England decided to get to the point before this state fell asleep on him.
"What does that have to do with waking up this early?" He slowly murmured.
England sighed, "Pennsylvania, we're making them breakfast."
Pennsylvania's eyes snapped open and he glanced at him, "Now?" That seemed to catch his attention well enough.
"Yes, my alarm didn't go off this early in the morning for no reason," England's eyes were having trouble focusing in the dark, he really should have gave himself more time to sleep. He forced himself to sit up in the bed. Were his eyes pulsing, or was he so exhausted he thought they were?
Pennsylvania let out another groan, "We're not making food for sixty people alone, are we?"
"No, for now we're waking up every state who is currently rooming with a nation. Breakfast duty will rotate every day, so there's a good chance you won't be helping out again this early in the morning for a while." He slowly brought his legs out from under the covers and planted his feet on the hard carpet, he wasn't looking forward to when it was his turn to sleep on the floor.
The state let out a sigh of relief, "Good. As long as I'm not doing this every morning I don't have much of a complaint." He slowly rolled out of his fort and started folding his handmade quilts, "I figured all these quilts would come in handy, the floor isn't that hard when you pile all these blankets and pillows on the floor. Being a Quaker means I have a never-ending supply of these things."
England almost forgot which drawer Pennsylvania let him keep his clothes in, but he eventually found some clothes to dress in. While Pennsylvania packed all of his extra quilts and pillows in his closet, England threw on a pair of black slacks and a red button-down shirt. He made the bed to give Pennsylvania enough time to get dressed. "Are you ready?"
"Yes," England led him out the door and closed it quietly.
France must have heard them leave the room, because they only made it halfway down the hall before he came around the corner. "Bonjour! Je m'excuse, but I'm certain you two aren't supposed to be out of your sleeping quarters during sleeping hours."
England rolled his eyes, "Frog, sleeping hours are over for us. We're making breakfast, I'm assuming the last shift of the night went well."
He eyes gleamed at Pennsylvania, and he leaned against one of the doors, "Oui, it was very quiet, but when I walked past the windows, the moonlight kept me company. It was nice seeing so many stars, it reminded me of the beauty behind your eye."
Pennsylvania studied the floor and rubbed the back of his neck. England scoffed, "Stop harassing the states. Anyway, is it alright if I wake Massachusetts and New York up to help us throw something together to eat?"
France nodded, "Please wake Massachusetts up as obnoxiously as you can, he's taking the bed for himself for the entire time I'm staying with him."
"That sounds like Mass, I'll see what I can do," Pennsylvania said, wearing a timid grin.
"Who else is on watch right now?" England asked.
"Romano," He said.
England nodded, "Could you tell him to wake up the other nations and their roommates?"
"Why can't you do it?" France asked.
"Romano hates me for no bloody reason," he told him rolling his eyes. That nation either screamed in his presence or cursed him out.
"He hates me too, and I'd be leaving this hallway unwatched!"
Pennsylvania lifted a finger, "How about you just text him?"
England grumbled to himself and sent the Italian a text with his instructions, "Fine. In the meantime wake up the nations on this side of the house."
The French nation grinned and gave him a wink, "Anything for you. Nice suggestion, Pennsylvania. I'll meet you down stairs when la petite déjeuner is ready." He swept past them gracefully, and disappeared around the corner he came from.
England grumbled to himself as Pennsylvania led him to Massachusetts room. He didn't know why France choose him out of all states to sleep with. While it was true they agreed to trust him even to the point of picking up Germany and Italy alone, he still believed that rooming with him was over the top. A lot of the states they were rooming with were questionable, in fact.
Pennsylvania paused outside of Massachusetts' door, and gently placed his hand around the doorknob. Then jerked it open. The door slammed against the wall and he burst into the room with a sudden shout, "THE BRITISH ARE COMING!"
England stood in the doorway and watched Massachusetts jolt. He threw his covers off of him and jumped out of his bed. His wide eyes darted to each side of the room, then landed his gaze on Pennsylvania, who hunched over himself chuckling. Massachusetts growled, "Penny, you scared me shitless! The next Stripe who makes that stupid joke is getting thrown into the damn harbor."
New York squinted against the light pouring in the room from the hallway, "I don't know what time it is, but it's way too early for this bullshit."
"Last time I checked it was almost five," Massachusetts plopped back onto the bed with an annoyed moan and Pennsylvania called out, "Don't go back to sleep! We're waking you up so you can help us make breakfast." New York groaned and tossed his pillow at the state, who easily caught it, "No need to be violent. Just get up, and help cook something."
"What are we even making for breakfast?" Massachusetts murmured.
He shrugged and glanced at England in question, who had no idea, "That is for you states to decide once we all get downstairs."
New York groggily pushed himself to his feet and said with a flat voice, "We'll be ready in five minutes."
"We will?" Massachusetts asked, lifting his head to squint at the New Yorker.
New York strapped a watch around his wrist, "Yes we will. Now get out." He grabbed Pennsylvania by the shoulder, turned him around, and pushed him out the door. England barley leaped out of the doorway before he slammed the door in their faces.
England scoffed and Pennsylvania let out an awkward laugh, "Isn't he great? We should help France wake everyone else up." England shook his head and let the state lead him to the next room.
XXX
These states are going to kill each other.
"Why can't we make grits?" Virginia asked, crossing her arms over her tank top.
"Grits are disgusting!" Massachusetts called.
England rolled his eyes as they continued arguing. He didn't know how long they have been standing in the kitchen debating what should be served for breakfast. He gave up breaking apart the arguments a while ago, only because directly afterwards another argument would start. He was the only nation watching them right now. Romano and France went to catch up on their sleep while Prussia and Japan took over watching the halls. Everyone else claimed they would be down soon, but England knew they were taking their precious time. In the meantime he was left supervising fourteen states alone. He didn't know many of the states well, but he remembered a few of them that stood out while catching up with the others.
"Grits are not disgusting," Maryland claimed. "They're delicious and easy to make."
Nevada cringed, "Maybe we can just give them muffins from Starbucks, I'm sure California bought enough yesterday to feed sixty people."
She tied her golden hair into a loose bun and rolled her eyes, "I didn't buy that many, there's only like, ten left, or something."
"Ohio, do you have enough corn to feed everyone? I bet you can milk some cows to provide enough for us to drink as well!" England noticed that since Canada and Germany freaked out over his preserved eyeball, the state has been sporting a white eye-patch over his severed eye socket.
"Michigan, I am going to strangle you with your own eye-patch if you keep it up." Michigan raised his eyebrow and smirked at the seething state in response, as if silently daring Ohio to go through with his threat.
"What's wrong with seafood in the morning?" Louisiana asked.
Wisconsin stuck out her tongue in disgust, "Everything."
New York raised his eyebrow at New Mexico, "Do you have any suggestions?"
She leaned against the counter. Everything about her posture seemed relaxed, "No, New York. I'm fine with anything we cook, for now I'm just enjoying this fine morning."
He rolled his eyes and jumped back into the argument, "Well, we have to think of something before everyone wakes up. If we don't figure this out soon, then we won't finish breakfast before lunch rolls around."
"England," a stern German accent called. He turned around and was thankful to see Germany staring back at him, "How is everything going?"
He stepped out of the kitchen and left the states to their arguing. "Wonderful," he muttered dryly, "they can't decide what to make."
Germany asked, "Exactly how many different breakfasts can there be among these states?"
"I can give you a bloody list if you want, they've been arguing for so long I think I memorized them."
The German nodded, "I'll handle the situation, and get them started. Canada's looking for you, and he says he wants to talk. He's in the dining room."
England had to stop himself from letting out a loud sigh of relief, "I'll see what he wants. Good luck." After Germany kept so many states under control while they were investigating America's room, it was safe to say England trusted him the most around the states. Even though two states went rouge, and only one was caught, the situation would have been much worse if handled by any other nation. Germany entered the kitchen and immediately began raising his voice in the stern manner only can pull off. England walked down the halls to find who wanted to talk to him.
Canada sat at one of the end chairs of the long dining table, eyes narrowed at a laptop in front of him. He didn't notice England entered the dining room until he sat down adjacent to him. He jumped, then nodded towards him, "Good morning, England. I would have found you myself, but I'm watching Wyoming." He turned the screen towards him to show footage from the camera he installed in the room she was locked in. Wyoming was slumped against the wall with her head buried in her hands. He couldn't tell if she was crying or moping.
He closed the lid to the laptop, "What do you want to talk to me about?"
Canada stared at him, the determined look in his eyes still had a hint of timidness to it, "We have to move forward with this investigation. Every minute we waste is another minute given to Capital to manipulate."
England nodded, "I agree, but we have to look over everything we can do to catch this state, because there are a lot of directions we can take this."
Canada placed his hand on his chin, "I know. We have a lot of rooms to investigate. There's the five rooms we blocked off, and not to mention the entire front part of the house where America..." He shook his head, "Then we also have to question both Wyoming and Colorado. Wyoming didn't respond to any of our questions yesterday, and while Colorado told us everything she knows, we still can't let her go until we're certain she's innocent."
"I know," England muttered. "We should handle the crime scenes first. I have a feeling Wyoming isn't giving much away anytime soon, and we might be able to prove Colorado's innocence from the physical evidence that we collect. Besides, I want our lovely escorts to stop complaining every five minutes about their rooms being blocked off."
"When are we going to investigate?" He asked.
England tapped his finger on his lips, "After breakfast when we decide how we're going to divide the states. We'll make sure there's enough of us to investigate. Is that it?"
"No," He glanced towards the laptop, "Once we clear Colorado, we need to start questioning other states. I'd start thinking about which states you find suspicious if I were you."
"Oh, I've been thinking about that," England growled. "There's too many that I don't trust. Speaking of trust, I'm concerned about New Mexico. I want to keep as many states away from this investigation as possible, and she isn't making it easy after she tagged along after America's room. Romano says he trusts her, but I can't say the same."
Canada knitted his eyebrows together, "That's true, but so far she has done nothing but help us. Not to mention that she's the one who decoded Capital's message. I think we should let her help, but watch her every move. Japan and Russia are going to do most of the work in the lab since they have the most experience, right? I say have her work alongside them, and they'll notice if she is on Capital's side."
He ran a hand through his messy hair, "Fine, but I'm drawing the line there. No other state is getting close to that lab."
"Agreed," Canada said, standing up with his laptop. "I should help with getting this place in order for when the rest of the states wake up."
England nodded, "Alright, I'll join you soon." He left the room, and England dug his phone from his pocket. He opened his messages, his thumb hovered over one contact: America. He bit his lip and hesitated, then pressed it, letting the last message sent to him from the contact fill his screen.
The Personification of the United Kingdom,
I apologize for this. I was not expecting you to insist on becoming involved with this little event. I am not certain if I should invite you to play the game or ban you from it, but no worries for me. No matter how you react to this, Alfred will no longer be the personification of the United States of America. The game will be won by the time you figure out the rules and the players. Don't blame yourself though, that's Alfred's job. It would be much safer if you were to forget about this and return to your country, but based on that friendly chat we just had, that isn't going to happen. If you're still willing to join the game in search for your former brother, then I advise you not to drag anymore personifications you care about into the game with you. After all, everyone who plays the game is going to get hurt, for only one of us can come out on top, and that will be me. I would wish you luck, but the truth be that I do not want you to have any. Goodbye for now, I might see you sometime, but you wouldn't want that to happen, for that little meeting would result in your death.
- The winner of the game.
England was the first nation Capital contacted besides America. That was a fact no matter if Capital was Isolationist, Internationalist, or Neutral. If England didn't get in that stupid argument with America right before he was attacked, he never would have received this text. He, and everyone else dragged into this would be in their own countries, not knowing a thing was happening. He read the message over again for the umpteenth time, listening to his heart beating against his chest. He clenched his jaw, and tried to make sense of the message, so far he has only been semi-successful.
He knew only a few facts about Capital. He knew the state was determined, and believed they were doing this for a just cause. What that cause was, England had no clue. He knew that even though this state claimed they didn't expect him, they were sharp enough to change their plans to fit the nations' involvement. While the last one was more of a gut feeling than anything, England knew that Capital was cautious, and knew how to find the perfect opening for what they had planned. Every action against the nations has been direct and made a loud statement, but they haven't left any tracks as far as he knew. Which meant that every move Capital has made was made when they were sure they wouldn't get caught.
But England knew Capital wasn't perfect, only skilled and full of luck. England locked his phone and stood from his seat, then decided to check on the progress Germany has made while directing the states to make breakfast.
XXX
They barely managed to finish breakfast before the last of the states woke up. England leaned against a wall outside of the dining room, and pushed around his eggs and bacon. Germany ended up splitting the states in the kitchen by region and gave them a specific food to make for a certain number of personifications. He'd have to ask Germany how he pulled it together in full detail later on, because it seemed effective enough. He listened to the endless chatter echo in the halls. Everyone's voices melded together around the dining room table, causing the front of his head to throb.
The noise wasn't the only reason he decided to eat in the corridors. The truth was he felt uncomfortable being surrounded by these states, especially during a time as casual as eating breakfast. He noticed that he and every other nation in the house couldn't do anything without a state's attention. He constantly felt eyes on him, and he didn't know which state was going to greet him with hospitality or hostility.
The fork crudely scraped against the plate pushing around a chunk of the scrambled eggs. The hair on the back of his neck stood up when he felt a pair of eyes watching him. Footsteps became louder until someone was leaning against the wall next to him, "Are you enjoying your breakfast alone, black sheep of Europe?" His voice was smooth as silk, it fit well with his French accent.
England sighed, "I was before you came, Frog. Also I'm no black sheep! I just decided my morning would be much more peaceful without being bombarded with questions from random states."
His smile was soft, "They're not all strangers. You probably met more states than all of us combined since you welcomed them."
He didn't respond, because sure he met a lot of states, but her didn't know them. "I'm guessing that you're here because breakfast is almost over."
France nodded, "Correct. Italy will supervise the states cleaning the kitchen, and Germany, Prussia, Romano, and Spain are watching the states in different groups."
England took his first bite into his food, the eggs were now cold, but he knew he needed the food to get him through the day. "And the rest of us will be engaged in the investigation."
"Oui, everyone who is helping is heading to the lab now. That means you should finish eating quickly."
He shoved another forkful of food in his mouth and rolled his eyes, "I can eat and walk. Let's go." He balanced the plate with one hand and shoveled the remains of his breakfast into his mouth with the other. France walked with him chatting about his breakfast and the states he talked to, not waiting for a reply from the English nation.
England believed he made it two feet into the lab before a steady voice called, "No food in the lab."
When he glanced up from his plate, he saw no other than New Mexico. She was surrounded by the nations who were not watching the other states and one other personification he vaguely recognized. Her short brown hair was pulled back with a clip, and she crossed her arms over a white lab coat, looking at him expectingly. "Of course," England muttered, placing the plate on the first surface he saw. He and France approached the group, "I apologize for our late arrival, did you start without us?"
Canada shook his head, "We were just explaining to New Mexico that we're not allowing any more states to help with this investigation."
England scanned the group again, his eyes landing on the personification he barely knew. It was another state. He wore a matching lab coat and white gloves. He recognized his ashy black hair and scrutinizing eyes from Japan and Russia's group. On the counter in front of him was a thick pile of papers covered in ink.
New Mexico raised her eyebrows at Canada, "I don't see any reason why you wouldn't allow my own lab partner to work alongside me during this investigation."
Damn it, Russia said New Mexico had a partner. "How about the fact that he could be helping Capital? If he's not Capital himself that is," England responded, trying to remain calm. She didn't look like the type of person one would want to argue with. There was confidence braided into every word she spoke, and she seemed convincing enough to turn anyone into a pushover. It was a good thing England was a stubborn mule and everyone knew it.
The state next to her looked at him with curiosity brewing in his eyes, "Since when were we handing nicknames out? And why Capital?"
New Mexico silenced him with a single hand gesture, "You'll have access to that information when you're aloud to take part in examining the evidence." England felt his teeth grind together once she said when instead of if. "I understand that this isn't a preferable time to bring another state into the loop given that it is the first day we're working together trying to identify those working against us. However, Nevada is a very capable scientist who will be able to help us progress until we find America."
"No," Russia said, placing his hands behind his back. "I don't see how he'll be very useful."
Nevada glared at him, "If that were true, then why did you steal the 87th page from what I took note of during our travels? You know, the page that recorded the conversation between the state in charge of this mess and Washington. You were also glancing over my shoulder every time I wrote something down. If I were useless, then would you have took such an interest in what I was doing?"
"What?" England's eyebrows shot upwards, and he stared at Russia. He was given the written copy of the text messages, which he studied intensely of course. However, he wasn't expecting the sheet of paper to come from a state. Now it made sense why he didn't recognize the handwriting. He narrowed his eyes at Russia and Japan, "You two handle this. If you actually believe him to be useful, then we'll work with him. If not, then he leaves this lab immediately. Either way, Nevada, you better watch what you do."
Nevada sent him an enigmatic smile, "I'll do my best."
England rubbed the back of his neck and left Japan and Russia to debate with the two states. He stretched on a pair of white rubber gloves and unlocked the evidence they collected so far from the storage closet. France helped him roll the cart used yesterday towards one of the counters. The evidence they brought with them was carefully stacked on the base of the cart: New York's clock, Ohio's notebook, Wyoming's role of red tape, a clipboard with Germany's role call written down, and the two bugs that were attached to him and France.
England was still seething over the fact that he was bugged. How did he not notice something like that? Some amateur state bugged a former spy and got away with it? Unbelievable. An unsettling feeling rested in his chest while thinking of Capital hearing everything he and France did before they found the bug. Not only were they the first two nations to arrive at the house, but they were the ones who set the ground rules. Not to mention they heard almost every conversation he had with the other nations after they arrived. England was just glad Romano figured out they were bugged before they sorted out how they were watching the states during the night.
France fit on a pair of gloves, and passed the glove box around. When he scanned over the personifications, he was surprised to see Nevada still standing at New Mexico's side. New Mexico pointed the remote at the two large screens attached to the wall and flipped open one of the lab's laptops. "Before I begin, I have an important question; Do I have permission to share with Nevada?"
"No," Japan answered quickly. "It's safer to prohibit any states from using their star, and you cannot be an exception to our rules just because you're helping in the lab, especially since you're the one who deviated from the plan without any warning or notification." England nodded his approval. He was glad Japan was taking this seriously, and was trustworthy to leave in the lab. He was still on the border with Russia, but while the nation was undeniably creepy and mischievous, he could get a lot accomplished if he wanted to.
Nevada wore a hint of a smirk when Japan reminded New Mexico of what she did while traveling alone with Romano. Every state heard of how she went against what was ordered, and most found it amusing. New Mexico moved on without complaint, "Very well. In that case I hope you don't mind a brief overview of Capital's actions. Not only will it be quite the refresher, but it will catch Nevada up."
"Go ahead," England granted. He wasn't a fan of giving Nevada access to their latest theories and plans, but Japan and Russia made their choice. He just hoped it wasn't the wrong one.
The state gestured to the two screens that at the time displayed a few screenshots, and a picture of New York's Toyota. "The leader of these states -otherwise known as 'Capital'- has most likely been planning this for a while. However, we first became aware of their intentions after they attacked America two days ago." The screen zoomed in on the first screenshot, the text that was sent to England. He stiffened and held his breath as New Mexico continued reviewing the day America was taken hostage.
Her tone was neutral, emotion absent in her voice. Nevada studied the screens with narrowed eyes, and rested his hand on his chin. Neither state seemed horribly affected by what they were summarizing. Whether their indifference was a front, or a coping method, England couldn't say. New Mexico calmly ran through a detailed summary of the damage put on New York's car, Capital's orders given to France, the text messages between Capital and Washington, and everything that happened in the house.
When she finished, Nevada glanced down at his stack of paper and blinked at her, "I see. I took note of what I could based on what I knew, but what you told me opens more doors, and closes a lot. So Capital had to be in the house while Wyoming was taping those letters in the escorts' rooms."
"We're unsure of that," England said, crossing his arms. "While it's a possibility, we can't tell. Any one of Capital's lackeys could have been with her before the second role call."
He turned his attention to the Englishman and gestured to the screens. His eyes hardened with a look of determination, "True, but there's a pattern here. Every single one of these plans have been thought out by Capital."
"How would you know that?" Russia asked, tilting his head to the side just enough to look challenging. "We never declared that Capital did any of this besides organizing the attack and texting England. For all we know there could be several states in charge of these plans."
He answered the question with a roll of his eyes, "Oh come on, this is elementary!" He grabbed a pen from who knows where, and wrote in small boxes, drawing lines out to make a web of scribbly handwriting. "Look, every interaction you've had with this 'Capital' is the same state. Compare their word choice with the text messages sent to England and France. They're both too formal; it looks like an email that you'd send to a boss. However, the attitude itself is confident, if not cocky. The only sign of personality this state shows is the winning persona they want you to see. France, you're the one who talked to them, do you have any objections?"
France paused when everyone directed their attention to him. His lively blue eyes glared at the floor when he spoke, "No. That's what I noticed as well when they talked to me." Nevada nodded and tapped his pen against the counter.
England narrowed his eyes, "Get to the point, how do you know Capital was the missing state during the role call?"
His eyes sparked as they scanned over the sheet of paper in front of him, "because their plan changed. Capital was planning on having the escorts' bedrooms marked. That's an inarguable fact, however Capital didn't plan on New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming arriving early. They couldn't have. If any state but Capital was put in charge, Wyoming would have been sent to the dining room with Germany. You know why? Because they wouldn't have had Capital's permission to change the plan. If the state was Capital, and they saw an open opportunity to use Wyoming, they would have given themself permission and jumped at it, just like what happened."
The lab fell silent as his words sunk in. England broke the silence with a sigh, "I'll take your intake into consideration. Now that we're all caught up we should focus on the matter at hand; we have a lot of places to investigate, and we should do it soon before these states bite our heads off."
Russia let out a low chuckle, "They're not too happy with having their rooms blocked off."
"Yes, I heard everyone's complaints," New Mexico said, looking over the cart England and France rolled out. "You make the call, we'll ready everything we need to search for evidence." Nevada followed her into the storage closet.
Canada leaned against the counter, "So where should we investigate first?"
"The front of the house?" France suggested. "Sure, starting with the bedrooms would be more convenient to stop the states' complaints, but we should really focus on what is more important."
"Good point," England said, an icy feeling crawled up his spine. He and France were the only ones who saw what was beyond the caution tape, and he didn't like what he saw. "Even after we look into that place, we're keeping it blocked off. Same with America's room."
Japan nodded, "I have no objections." He glanced over at the two states rolling out another cart full of equipment, "Do we have everything we need to begin?"
"Almost," New Mexico murmured. England narrowed his eyes when he realized there was a pile of white fabric on the cart. She reached in the pile and flung a ball of fabric at him. "They're lab coats, we always hand them out to whoever's helping out during a project."
England held his in front of him and examined the coat before slipping it on. The coat didn't smell old or dusty, meaning that they had states helping in the lab often. He glanced around the room, once every personification put on the lab coats handed to them, they stared at him waiting for his word. Which was odd, since nobody would have done so before. Was he leading this investigation? He didn't feel like a leader. Whether they saw him as a leader or not, England was still the one to give the word. "Right then, it seems that we're all ready. Let's head out."
They filed out of the lab, and New Mexico stepped away from the cart Nevada was pushing and held up a key, "This is the key to the lab, do you mind it being in my possession?"
Japan hesitated, "I don't mind you holding on to it, however I'd like you to make a copy for me to have."
"Sure, I wouldn't have it any other way," She closed the double steel doors to the lab and locked them. England watched her place the key in her coat's left pocket, and return to the cart.
He cleared his throat, "I'm glad we have that settled, let's proceed." England moved in front of the group where France was, and led them towards the front of the house. The walk through the lengthy corridors was silent, the only noise being the collection of murmurs from the rest of the states. He'd bet their chatter was loud enough to blow out his ears if he were the one watching them, but from the other side of the house their voices melted together, creating a soft hum like one a fan would make.
France and England tore down the tape blocking their way. France was the one who thought of the tape, and they found a roll in one of New Hampshire's tool box while waiting for Germany and Italy to arrive. England remembered how they didn't know where to begin with the mess they found, so they taped off the entire section all together. They walked through the halls peaking around every corner, as if Capital was going to jump out and kill them.
England stopped in a middle of a hallway just as long and wide as the main hallway, it was the main hallway before the last few expansions, he remembered one of the states telling him. He glanced down at the first sign that this was where America was attacked: A shattered ceramic plate. He almost stepped on the shards when he first came across it.
New Mexico and Nevada glanced at each other, then crouched next to the plate. "This plate looks like the one from the display in the front living room," New Mexico murmured. "It must have been thrown from that direction," she pointed to her right with two fingers. "We'll dust the pieces large enough for finger prints."
He didn't need to follow where she pointed, he knew the plate came from there, because that was where the most of the damage to the house was. There was a large arc leading to another hallway. The lush rug under their feet cut off to reveal old wooden floors, and at the end of the hallway was a large oak door that could only be the front entrance. The hallway opened up to a living room that England could imagine was very nice, but not any more.
Canada gasped when he looked around. England frowned, "America put up a fight, and it shows." It was true. The second most noticeable thing to England were the curtains being pushed inward by the wind. He didn't want to mention the first. The top of the window still had a single long shard jutting out from it, the rest of the window was shattered against the front porch. Most of the furniture was tipped over, and the wooden coffee table in front of the upside down couch was splintered in half. The rug in the living room was torn and singed, ashes and a few stray logs from the brick fireplace were off to the side. More glass was spread over the ground, mostly from the display case New Mexico mentioned. It was now tipped face down, and every decorative placed on it long shattered against the hard floor by now.
"Hey," Nevada called. England turned to look at him, who stood studying the hallway with his eyebrows knitted together. "Where the hell is the rug?"
"What?" England glanced at the floor, only then did he realize something was wrong with the hallway they were in.
Russia looked at him, "Why is it that this hallway is so clean, while the living room next to it is heavily damaged? If there are as many states who attacked America as you say, then wouldn't have the fight expanded into the hall as well?"
"Uh-" He didn't have an answer. England looked to France, but he returned his confusion with a shrug. How helpful, Frenchie.
Japan crouched next to the rug of the other hall they came from and ran his hand along the lining where the rug cut off. It now looked rough and stringy, "This rug was cut, it looks like with a knife given how uneven it is."
Russia raised his eyebrows, he wore an amused smile, "Capital removed the entire rug in this hall?"
"Why would he do that?" Canada asked, studying the room with a much more cautious look than before.
New Mexico began to roll the cart towards the nations, then stopped when she noticed the same missing factor in the room. "I don't find this too surprising, evidence easily clings to fabric."
"Isn't taking the whole damn rug going a bit too far?" Nevada asked with a dry voice.
France placed his hand on his chin and walked over to examine the rug in the living room, "If the evidence was enough to give away Capital's identity, then they wouldn't hesitate to remove the rug."
Canada gave him a questioning glance, but when England noticed the knowing gleam in France's blue eyes, he caught on immediately. "Let's say Capital was injured, and bled on the rug." He glanced at New Mexico, "If you had a sample would you be able to figure out which state's behind this?"
She nodded, "Of course I could. In fact if we knew Capital was injured earlier we probably could have searched each state for injuries, but they probably healed by now.
"That explains why this rug is burned," France said. "I was wondering at what point of the attack did the rug catch on fire, but Capital must have burned it afterwards to ensure no evidence clung to that rug as well."
"If that's the case then Capital must have stayed in this house a while afterwards to contain the fire and move the rug that was removed," Nevada muttered. "Which also explains when he found the time to make that," he pointed over their heads towards the front door.
England didn't need to look where he pointed to know what he was talking about. More like he didn't want to. Before they found what they did in America's room, he didn't think much of the curve of bullets on the wall above the door. If France didn't point out it was shaped like a 'C' when New Mexico asked, he never would have thought it to be of much importance. Now he knew this was where it began. England tore his gaze from the ground and forced himself to study the large 'C' made on the wall. The shape was made with 8 bullets, that were all spaced perfectly. "This was Capital's first real move against us after they texted me," England said. It had to be.
New Mexico strode forward and snapped a picture of the first letter, "We can probably figure out what kind of gun was used to make those holes in the wall. Also we'll examine every fiber on what's left of that rug to see if we come across any blood. However, I believe most of it was on the rug Capital removed, as I believe America died in this hall." Even Russia took a step backwards when she mentioned America most likely died where they were standing.
England suddenly felt something heavy push against his chest, he tried to distract himself from the feeling, "This is where it all began, there has to be something here that will give us a clue."
Japan stepped into the front living room, "In that case, let the investigation begin."
XXX
Author's Note: I'm still so ecstatic we're in the house! Sorry for taking a while to update! This summer has been the best. I've mostly spent it hanging out with friends, and I went to Montreal! I ordered a maple doughnut in French at a Timmy's and it was by far the most Canadian thing I've ever done. I also have college coming up by the end of the month and I'm so excited! I hope everyone has been having a great summer! And if not then don't worry because it will get better.
I really wanted to show how everyone was settling into the house and how the investigation was being set up. Also we got to see the first true crime scene! So what do you think of New Mexico and Nevada? Can they be trusted? I'd like to thank all of a beautiful reviewers for telling me which states you'd like to see more of. Most of these states will be in future chapters to come if they weren't in this chapter. Don't worry, we'll be looking into a lot of states. I already foreshadowed a few subplots over the chapters if you caught onto them. Next chapter will be told from Italy's point of view, which I'm really excited for. Hopefully I'll update soon!