Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 22

Arthur felt heavy, and his eyes felt even heavier. It was hard for him to even open his eyes. Asides from the heaviness, Arthur was also feeling hot. He felt horrible.

He shook himself when he saw a bright light, and he could keep his eyes open this time. He still felt disoriented, but when he heard heavy breathing, he shook himself and started to look around. He noticed familiar legs, and it took him a few more seconds to absorb the rest of the body and the condition he was in.

"Vlad!" Arthur exclaimed, pushing himself up and crawling towards Vlad.

Vlad's upper body was tied with rope, and Arthur tried to untie Vlad.

"You!"

Arthur whipped his head around, and he saw Miguel, Antonio and Raj a few metres away with burns all over their bodies. All three of their faces were twisted into snarls as they pushed themselves up.

"Okay, never mind," Arthur hissed as he pulled Vlad up. He looked around and saw Lukas a short distance away, doubled over. Arthur pulled Vlad along as Lukas looked up. "Come on!"

Lukas started running, and they could hear an angry 'No!' behind them. When Arthur dared to look back, he saw that the three were having difficulty standing up, as though they were seriously hurt. Arthur looked back in front and focused on Lukas.

"I don't know if we can outrun them," Arthur said. "I'm feeling sick, and Vlad's having trouble with this rope."

"There's more than just the rope," Vlad gasped. His voice sounded pained. "The venom… It hurts!"

"What venom?"

"You're right, we can't outrun them," Lukas said. "Anyone know a good spell?"

"Even if I could, I don't think I have the energy for…"

Arthur stumbled, dragging Vlad down with him. Lukas stopped and looked behind them. He swallowed, his eyes wide and face pale. Arthur could hear it too. Something was coming from behind them.

"We need to hide," Lukas said. "Any ideas?"

"Normally, I would recommend finding a sturdy enough tree," Arthur said, looking up. "But none of the trees here would be able to support our weights for long, or provide suitable coverage."

Vlad whined, and Arthur remembered that Vlad was still tied up. He started trying to untie the ropes but failed. Lukas came closer, removing a small knife from his boot. Arthur eyed him while Lukas cut Vlad's ropes.

"How long have you had that?" Arthur asked.

"I'm a sailor," Lukas said. "It's sometimes necessary to cut away things if they get too tangled or caught on something. But it's flimsy as a weapon."

The ropes fell away, but they could already hear the other three approaching. They needed to find a place to hide. They started to run away again, only to fall down. Arthur looked around.

"We're in a pitfall trap," he said. "This is bad."

"Do you think they made it?" Lukas asked.

"I don't know. I think I know of a glamour spell that would hide our presence here. I don't know how long I'll be able to hold it."

"Just hold it until they're gone."

Arthur was already muttering the spell, and soon enough, there was a green layer at the top of the hole. Light still streamed through, but hopefully no one else would be able to see them. As long as no one stepped on the empty space, they should be fine.

He kept his eyes trained on the green layer, ignoring Vlad's laboured breathing and hoping that no one else could hear that. He could hear running footsteps, and eventually they stopped.

"Where did they go?" Miguel asked.

"They can't be too far," Raj said. "Two of them are weakened. They wouldn't have the energy to run far, or use magic. I made sure to put Vlad out of commission before he used primal magic to escape again."

"We need to find them," Antonio said. "Master is not going to be forgiving this time."

Arthur swallowed. A part of him felt sorry for them, but seeing as the only way for the three above to avoid punishment was to subject the three below to torture at Nemthys's hand, Arthur wasn't going to help them in any way.

Arthur listened for any signs that they were leaving. Once he could no longer hear anything he relaxed, and the green layer disappeared. His clapped his hand on his mouth, blocking the bile that threatened to escape. He waited for a while before he was sure that he wouldn't throw up, and he turned towards Lukas and Vlad.

Vlad was very pale, and even through the gloom, Arthur could see the sweat coating his face. He was curled up, and Lukas was trying to examine him.

"What happened while I was out?" Arthur asked.

"Raj used a snake against Vlad," Lukas said. "It bit him."

"Do you have any idea what kind of snake it is?"

"I think it's a landu serpent of something."

"Laondu serpent?" Arthur smiled. "I know how to make an antidote for that!"

"Are you serious? I know Raj said it's not lethal, but I don't trust any of them."

"We'll need to get out of this pit first." Arthur stood, only to have his legs buckling beneath him. "Bloody hell. I'm still too weak."

"Will you be able to climb out?"

"I don't know. I highly doubt it."

Lukas bit his lip. Arthur sighed.

"I'm sorry," Vlad said. "I'm causing you all sorts of trouble."

"It's not your fault," Lukas said. "It's their fault. If they hadn't arrived, then we wouldn't be in this mess. Do you really think it's a coincidence, like they claimed?"

"I don't know," Arthur said. "Would Nemthys have sent them after us after they failed the last time?"

"It depends on how many followers Nemthys has. If he had a lot of choices, then he wouldn't send them after us. But if he doesn't have a lot of choices, then he might have sent them to find us." Lukas looked up. "I'm going to see if I can climb out and find something that I can use to pull you two out."

"Alright then. Good luck."

Lukas nodded, before he went over towards the wall. He looked around for a moment before he grabbed hold of a root. He pulled to see if it could support his weight before he searched for another handhold.

Once Arthur was sure that Lukas had matters under control, he moved closer towards Vlad. He was very pale, and his breathing was pained. Vlad winced and whimpered. His eyes were clenched shut, but they opened when Arthur got close.

"How are you feeling?" Arthur asked.

"It really hurts," Vlad whimpered. "I feel so hot, and there's this… burning feeling in my throat."

"I have to say, you're handling things well. I remember, a few years ago, Patrick got bitten by one of these snakes too. Within minutes, he was screaming bloody murder."

"I'm used to pain. But it's getting worse. And I'm so thirsty."

"Of course. The venom causes a fever. I think I still have some water. You're going to need it more than me."

Arthur handed his water over to Vlad, who drank it within a few seconds. It wouldn't be enough, but it was at least some relief. And then, when they were out of this hole, Arthur could start searching for the plants and herbs necessary to treat Vlad's condition. The alternative was that Vlad should suffer for four days as the venom ran its course. While it wasn't lethal, it was still torture to be subjected to the venom. And Arthur didn't want to see Vlad suffer like that.

He looked up just in time to see Lukas climbing out of the hole. He had confidence that it wouldn't take long for Lukas to find something. The only thing that he could think of that would make things even more difficult was if Miguel and the others doubled back. They wouldn't be able to escape this time if that were to happen.

They waited for a while, with Vlad curling up tighter against Arthur and gritting his teeth in pain. Arthur wanted to call out to Lukas, but he couldn't risk the chance of being too loud and having Nemthys's followers hear him.

A shadow fell over the hole, and Lukas came into view, but he wasn't alone. A dark-haired man was holding Lukas's arm against his back with a knife pressed against his throat.

"Well now, looks like we have a few rabbits in our trap," the man said. "Lucky us."

Lukas struggled against the rope that bound him, biting down onto the cloth stuffed into his mouth. Arthur and Vlad were in a similar state, though they were too weak and tired to struggle against their bonds.

Fortunately, it didn't seem as though they were affiliated with Nemthys. They appeared to be simple bandits, but how they could proceed from this point, Lukas had no idea. Luckily, they hadn't searched through their belongings yet.

There were four bandits escorting them somewhere, and Lukas would often turn around and look towards his companions. Vlad and Arthur didn't look as though they were doing very well.

"Stop," one of them said. He turned to the prisoners. "We're here."

'Here' referred to a wooden cabin. The bandits urged them to go inside. Lukas glanced towards the bag that one of the bandits decided to carry. He was worried about the money and the music box, but at least they didn't think to look in their pockets for anything. Lukas didn't want to know what would happen if any of these people were to touch one of the jewels.

Lukas's eyes immediately fell on the man seated at the large table, looking through assorted supplies. He looked up and his eyes narrowed.

"What do we have here?" the man asked.

"The three of them fell in one of our pitfalls," the man that grabbed Lukas earlier said. "There's something odd about them, so we brought them along."

The man, who was most likely the bandit leader, narrowed his eyes as he looked between the three of them. Finally, his eyes seemed to focus.

"Kirkland," he said.

Lukas's head whipped towards Arthur, whose eyes widened at the mention of his name.

"What?" one of the other bandits asked.

"It's pretty obvious," the leader said. "The green eyes and the thick eyebrows. That's the mark of the Kirkland family."

Lukas couldn't help but smirk, despite the gag. Arthur's eyes narrowed. Obviously, he didn't think that being recognised by his eyebrows was a good thing. But the bandit leader seemed to know his name. Perhaps there was still a way to turn this around.

"Tell me, are you one of the four sorcerer brothers?" the leader asked. Arthur nodded, and the man turned to his subordinates. "Untie them right now."

Lukas sighed in relief when the rope and gag were removed. He turned to Arthur, whose eyes were trained on the leader.

"I'm sorry, have we met before?" Arthur asked.

"I'm not surprised that you wouldn't remember," the leader said, smiling now. "It was three years ago. Half of my group fell ill, including my younger siblings. We tried to find help, but not many wanted to help bandits, and the few that wanted to help were unable to. My younger sister in particular was doing poorly. And then I heard of a family of sorcerers that could create all sorts of charms and medicines. I decided to take my chances. They were the Kirkland brothers. Not only were they willing to help, but they also did it at a decent price. I thought I would lose my sister, but I'm glad to say that it didn't happen." His smile widened. "I'm really grateful for what you did."

"Oh, I think I remember that," Arthur said. "So… small world, isn't it?"

Lukas recalled Arthur mentioning that he and his brothers would sell charms and things to people, and that they didn't mind the fact that they were buying from sorcerers. The Asucla Forest was by far the most accepting place for sorcerers, and Lukas could only imagine what it would have been like to grow up in a place where he wouldn't have needed to hide who he was.

"Indeed," the leader said. "Now, what brings you to these parts? And… who are these two? Where are your brothers?"

Arthur flinched and lowered his head.

"I'm afraid that's hard to explain," Arthur said. "But, suffice it to say… we're being hunted. One of my brothers was murdered a few days ago."

The leader straightened in his seat. He narrowed his eyes.

"We saw three men running through the forest," one of the other bandits said. "They looked as though they were looking for someone."

"Sorcerer hunters," the leader muttered. "You have no need to worry. You are safe with us." His eyes went to Vlad when he whimpered. "Is something wrong with him?"

"He was bitten by a laondu serpent," Arthur said. "If possible, I would like to gather the herbs for an antidote."

"Of course. You're welcome to stay here for a few days. I know that the laondu serpent has a torturous bite."

"Thank you. I will try to work as quickly as possible."

"In the meantime, we'll get him a room. We'll be having dinner in about an hour or so."

"Thank you very much."

Lukas bit his lip. For now, they appeared to be safe, but was it really wise to trust these bandits? Would they really keep them safe, or would they sell them out to Nemthys the first opportunity that they had? Even if they didn't know what was going on, would their gratitude outweigh their greed, if it came to that?

Vlad was in too much pain to even want to eat anything. He just lay on the bed they offered him, trying to bite down his screams. As a slave, he could never make it clear exactly how much pain he was in, and even now, he had no intention of causing trouble for Arthur or Lukas, or even their hosts.

Yao Wang and his gang of bandits were far more generous than Vlad anticipated. He wasn't paying too much attention earlier, but he managed to hear something about Yao being grateful about something that Arthur's family did for him.

Vlad remembered something that his mother used to tell him. A single act of kindness was like a seed, and somewhere in the future, it was possible to pick the fruit. He wondered if that was what happened now.

He opened his eyes when he sensed someone in the room. It took him a moment to recognise Arthur.

"How are you feeling?" Arthur asked.

"Like everything's burning," Vlad said.

"I managed to get all the herbs necessary, and brewed the antidote. I warn you, it's bitter."

Arthur held a cup, and Vlad tried to sit up, only to feel a wave of pain crashing over his body. He hissed, and Arthur helped him up.

"Do you need help?"

Vlad saw Lukas standing at the entrance. He nodded, and Lukas came over to help. Even though he knew that the contact was light, it felt as though every touch was bruising. Finally, he could sit comfortably, and Arthur handed the cup to Vlad.

As Arthur said, the brew was very bitter, but Vlad didn't mind too much. He'd had worse to eat in the past, and the mere fact that this was made for his behalf made it easier to swallow down. He finished the cup and handed it to Arthur.

"Thank you," he said.

"You're going to need a few more doses of the medicine," Arthur said. "But the first cup should already start to help. Do you think you can get some rest now?"

"I'll try. But I'll admit, this really hurts."

"Just take it easy," Lukas said. "And don't hesitate to call for help."

Vlad nodded and curled up as another wave of pain rolled over his body. Arthur stroked Vlad's hair one more time before he left. Lukas squeezed Vlad's hand before following behind Arthur. Vlad heard muffled voices outside and sighed. He hated that he was inconveniencing Arthur and Lukas. He was also worried about the bandits. Even if they didn't end up selling them out, there was still a chance that Raj and the others would find them and attack them. Then the gratitude for one kindness would turn into hatred.

Arthur went outside with Lukas. The bandits left them well enough alone, though many of them looked over towards Arthur with a tender look. There was one girl in particular that always flashed him a warm smile. Arthur suspected that it was the sister that Yao spoke about.

"We shouldn't stay too long," Lukas said. "Just until Vlad is better. And how are you feeling, by the way?"

"I'm feeling better," Arthur said. "I just have a bit of a headache. I already drank something for that, so there's no need to worry."

Lukas nodded.

"That's good," Lukas said. "I must say, it was a stroke of luck that the leader here happened to be familiar with you and your family, and grateful for a service you've done for them."

"I know," Arthur said. "Though, it's not too surprising. People come from far and wide to purchase our crafts."

"…Do you think they can be trusted?"

"For the moment, I don't think we have a choice. After everything that happened, I don't want to take any chances. We should still be careful with what we say. And under no circumstances should we reveal the Heart or the Mind."

"I know." Lukas looked up. "I wonder what happened with those three. Are they still looking for us, or did they abandon the chase? And would they tell Nemthys about what happened?"

"If he doesn't already know. I almost feel sorry for them. Almost."

Vlad was sick because of them. They didn't deserve any of Arthur's sympathy.