Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 32

"Do you think Nemthys caused this?" Vlad asked.

They managed to get Arthur comfortable. They had each bought a cloak to go with their new clothes, and all of their cloaks were removed to act as pillows for Arthur. Arthur had lost consciousness at some point, but he continued to whimper in what could either be fear or pain.

"If it was Nemthys that you sensed in that town, then it's a possibility," Lukas said. "But why would he only curse Arthur?"

"…Who says it's only Arthur?" Vlad asked.

The two looked towards each other, and Lukas placed his hands on Vlad's head. Vlad felt a tingling sensation before Lukas pulled away.

"I can't sense anything from you," he said. "Do you know how to check someone for curses?"

Vlad thought about it, mentally going through his newfound knowledge, hoping to find something of use. Eventually, he managed to find that nugget of knowledge, and placed his hands on Lukas's head.

"Tell me if I'm doing something wrong," Vlad said.

He could feel the power in his hands, and Lukas winced. Vlad immediately pulled his hands away.

"I'm sorry!" he exclaimed. "I'm doing something wrong, aren't I?"

"N-no, it's fine," Lukas said. "But you may want to channel a little less power into your hands. Keep it moderate. Don't waste your energy. Try again."

Vlad nodded, before he placed his hands on Lukas's head again, trying to follow Lukas's instructions.

"What exactly am I looking for, anyway?" Vlad asked.

"You should see a dark cloud in your mind's eye," Lukas said. "In the beginning, it might help if you closed your eyes."

Vlad did so, and he could feel his magic flow from him and into Lukas, but no dark cloud. He only saw the backs of his eyelids.

"Okay, I think that's long enough," Lukas said. "If you didn't see it, then it means there isn't a curse."

The flow of power stopped as Vlad pulled his hands away. Lukas shook his head, as though trying to clear it of whatever lingering sensations he might have been feeling.

"So, it's just Arthur?" Vlad asked. "But… why?"

"Because Nemthys doesn't want us dead," Lukas said. "He probably wants to keep us busy. And while we're taking care of Arthur… He could send his followers to come after us."

Vlad shuddered.

"How can we stop this curse?" Vlad asked.

"I'm not exactly sure," Lukas said. "Curses aren't my specialty. If I had access to the books my parents left behind, I might be able to find something, but it's not a guarantee."

Vlad cursed, but then something popped into his head. It looked like a memory of a page he saw in a book. And at the top of the page was the title 'Spells to counter curses'.

"I think I might have something," Vlad said. "Let me just…"

More of the contents of the 'page' came into view, until his attention focused on one line in particular.

"I think I've got it!" Vlad exclaimed. "But… It's going to be difficult. We're going to need some things, and I don't know what they look like."

"Maybe I can help," Lukas said. "And hopefully they're close by."

"We need chamomile, feverfew, ginger, garlic and valerian. And we need moonlight, and a bit of Arthur's blood."

Lukas simply stared at him.

"…We're going to need to find an apothecary," he said. "I have no idea what a lot of those look like, and I don't think we're going to get them so easily out here."

"Sorry," Vlad said. "This is just what popped into my head. It looks like a page from a book."

"I don't doubt it. There's a latent spell that all sorcerers have called 'memori libro'. It allows us to remember certain texts we've been exposed to, which we can recall when necessary. The thing is, it depends on the type of magic the individual sorcerer uses. You must have an inclination to healing spells, or maybe curses, for you to have that appear to you."

"But I'm pretty sure I've never seen a book with that page before."

"Well, Lucania gave you the knowledge that you should have had. So maybe it means that your parents had that book in their possession, and you would have been exposed to that if your… you know."

Vlad nodded. He supposed that Lukas had a point. He turned to Arthur when the other groaned. He placed his hand on Arthur's forehead and immediately flinched. Arthur was still very warm. He did not remove his hand, knowing that his hand was currently cool and most likely a source of relief for Arthur.

"We need to get him some water," Lukas said, standing up. "I'll go look for some. Stay with him."

"Of course," Vlad said. "Don't we have any water left?"

"No. I already checked. We already managed to drink all of it."

Vlad watched as Lukas left, before he turned his attention back to Arthur. How did he end up like this, and what would happen if they didn't manage to break the curse? He doubted that Nemthys would have sent something fatal, but what if Arthur didn't make it?

"Arthur…" Vlad muttered. "Please, you need to make it out alright."

Something stirred in his pocket, and he quickly pulled out the jewel. Arthur shuddered, as usual, but Vlad kept his eyes on the jewel. It seemed to come alive somehow, though there was nothing else unusual about it.

Vlad's skin prickled as he continued to stare at the jewel, before a thought occurred to him. He placed it on Arthur's chest, and immediately something changed. Arthur's breathing became a little different, sounding softer and more even, and a bit of colour returned to his cheeks. Vlad cocked his head to the side. In his experience, the gem corresponding to each of them tended to make them sick. But now, the Forest Mind was helping Arthur get better, or at least, that was how it appeared. What changed?

"What exactly are you?" Vlad muttered.

When Lukas returned with a full skein of water, he saw that Vlad had already set up the wards, and that Arthur seemed a bit more comfortable than before. Lukas noticed the Forest Mind on Arthur's chest and reached out to grab it. As soon as it was in his hand, Arthur curled up and shuddered.

"What are you doing?" Vlad asked. "It… It was helping."

"I'm just worried," Lukas said. "I mean… Think about how sick the other one made you."

"I know. I was surprised too. But… I don't understand. Sometimes, it feels like these jewels are bad for us, and other times, it's almost like they're trying to help us."

Lukas frowned. The way Vlad spoke, it was as though he thought the jewels had a life of their own. But when he reached into his pocket and felt the Desert Heart's heat, he had to admit that he didn't exactly disagree with what Vlad said.

"We shouldn't expose him to the jewel more than we have to," Lukas said. "Just in case he gets worse."

Vlad numbly nodded. Vlad lifted Arthur slightly so that he could get him to drink some water. He sighed in relief when he saw Arthur's throat working. At least he wasn't entirely out of it.

"You can rest a while, if you'd like," Lukas said. "You were watching him for a while, after all."

"Are you sure?" Vlad asked.

"Go. Stretch your legs. Clear your head."

"…Lukas, are you mad or something?"

"What? Why do you think I'm mad?"

"You're chasing me away."

"Well, you have access to my emotions. Do I seem mad to you?"

Vlad frowned and shook his head.

"There you go," Lukas said. "I just don't want you to be too exhausted. We also need to see if we can find another town or village. We can't exactly rely on the map without Arthur."

"What if we double back to that town we were at before?" Vlad asked.

"It would take a while to reach it. If there's another one that's even closer, then it would be better."

"But we know which direction to go, and how long it would take. I think it would be better to go back there. And we might even be able to find an inn where we can rest."

"…I'll be honest with you. I don't want to go back to that place. You sensed Nemthys there, right?"

"Well, I don't know what I sensed…"

"But it was obviously a threat. I don't want us to go back to that place if Nemthys or any of his followers are still there. So, we wait for Arthur to wake up, and we can use the map to see if we can find another town. We're obviously going to need those things from an apothecary, so we need to go to a town."

Vlad bit his lip before he nodded. Lukas placed his hand on Vlad's shoulder.

"We will help Arthur," Lukas assured him. "We're just not going to take too many risks to do that. I don't want to see you in trouble too."

Vlad closed his eyes.

"And I don't want to see you in trouble either," he said. "It's just… Having to wait… Not being able to do anything to help…"

"I know," Lukas said. "It's painful for me too. But we have no choice right now."

Vlad wiped some of the sweat away from Arthur's forehead. Was it his imagination, or did Arthur feel hotter?

Lukas watched over Arthur. Vlad had gone to fetch some water. They would give Arthur a few sips every minute or so. Despite his unconsciousness, he was still receptive to drinking water. Lukas decided that it was a good thing. He didn't think that they would be able to help him if he wasn't able to swallow.

Lukas stroked Arthur's hair, his thoughts from earlier clawing towards the surface. He had a feeling that he was attracted to Vlad, but what about Arthur? He looked at the flushed face breathing heavily and his cheeks felt warm. Lukas shook his head. It was just because he thought about it.

The time he kissed Vlad flashed through his mind, and he once again looked down at Arthur. Perhaps the confusion was just because of the kiss he shared with Vlad. But now, staring at Arthur and being alone with him, he couldn't help the burning curiosity.

Before he even understood what he was doing, he pressed his lips against Arthur's. Despite the state Arthur was in, his lips felt soft, and tasted almost minty. It only lasted a few seconds, before he pulled back, eyes wide. He remained like that for a few seconds before he shook his head.

"What is wrong with me?" he muttered.

In the shadows of the trees, just outside Lukas's field of vision, Vlad stood. He had just returned from getting more water when he saw Lukas kiss Arthur, forcing him to freeze in shock. He could feel Lukas's emotions – the confusion and frustration, but there was another emotion that he recognised as his own.

Hurt.

Vlad shook his head. He couldn't quite understand it. But he knew that Lukas would have to wait a while for the water while Vlad went to clear his head.

Arthur opened his eyes, finding himself on the ground. It felt as though a thousand small stones were pressing into him. He was soaking wet, and he felt as though his throat was on fire. He pushed himself up, and it took him a moment to realise that someone was close by. It took him even longer to realise who it was, and that he was speaking to him.

"…Arthur."

"S-sorry," Arthur said, wiping his head. "I feel… I think I got sick. How pathetic."

"…You're not sick," Lukas said. "You've been cursed."

Arthur jumped, and his head whipped up to properly look at Lukas.

"What do you mean?" Arthur asked. "When did I…?"

"It might have been around the same time Vlad sensed that threat," Lukas said. "It's the only thing I can think of. Anyway, Vlad's new knowledge provided him with an idea to break the curse. But we're going to have to get to an apothecary. I don't know where we're going to find a lot of those things."

Arthur wiped away some of the sweat and looked around.

"Where is Vlad?" he asked.

"He went to get more water," Lukas said. "We've been trying our best to keep you hydrated. Arthur, could you look at the map?"

"Why?"

"Like I said, we need to get everything from an apothecary, and I don't want to go back to the other town. There's definitely some influence from Nemthys there, and I don't want to risk us being in even more danger."

Arthur nodded. His mind was still foggy, but it made perfect sense. In the low light, he watched as the blank parchment became a detailed map. He tried to force his foggy mind to focus on the task at hand. After a period that was longer than normal, a spot appeared that showed their current position, and another spot appeared that showed a nearby town, probably only an hour's walk away.

"It looks like it's only an hour north," Arthur said. "Should we go immediately?"

Lukas looked upwards, towards the sky. It must have been close to twilight, based on the light. Lukas worried his lip and nodded.

"We may need to," he said. "The sooner you get the help you need, the better. We just need to wait for…"

"Sorry!" Vlad burst through the trees, his face flushed. "Nature called on my way to get some water."

"Well, you managed to arrive just in time," Lukas said. "Arthur says there's a town about an hour away. I think… this time… we may also need to find ourselves an inn. In case the apothecary is already closed by the time we get there, or if Arthur needs to rest."

"Lukas said you need things from the apothecary," Arthur said. "What are they?"

"Feverfew, ginger, garlic, valerian and chamomile," Vlad responded. "Along with moonlight and your blood."

Arthur frowned at the combination. He nodded his head after a while.

"It sounds pretty standard," he said. "Come along then… Though, I don't know if I'll be able to walk all that way in my current state without help."

"You can get on my back, if you think it's going to help," Lukas said.

"A-are you sure?"

"If you think you don't have the energy to travel that distance, then it might be a good idea. Come on."

Lukas turned his back towards Arthur, who hesitated for a moment. Finally, seeing no other choice, Arthur climbed onto Lukas's back. It took a while for Lukas to adjust his hold, enough time for Vlad to gather all their supplies.

"Please warn me when you think I have to put you down," Lukas said. "I'm not interested in having a back full of vomit."

"I don't fee nauseous," Arthur said. "Just very hot. And foggy. But I don't think you have to worry about me getting sick on you."

"You two should both be careful," Vlad said. "Lukas, if you want a break, I'll be willing to take over."

"It's okay," Lukas said. "I can manage. He's not too heavy."

It could just be the fever, but Arthur was pretty sure that he saw a look of hurt on Vlad's face. He reached out a hand and squeezed Vlad's arm. Vlad smiled in response. It was a small act of support.

"Come on," Lukas said. "Let's get going."

They managed to arrive at a town about an hour later, give or take a few minutes. Lukas had to stop a few times in order to steady his grip, and Arthur asked for some water every few minutes. They managed to pass a stream, which they used to immediately get more water, saving time by not having to look for more water.

Lukas was soaking wet, though it had little to do with the exercise and a lot to do with Arthur's heat.

"Vlad, see if you can find the apothecary," Lukas said. "I'll try to find an inn. You can sense our location more or less, right?"

Vlad nodded.

"It helps if you're feeling a strong emotion," Vlad said. "If you want, you can take off your shoe and stub your toe. I should be able to sense you then."

Lukas narrowed his eyes while Arthur snickered.

"How about, instead, after I find an inn, I stand outside and wait for you?" Lukas suggested.

"Alright," Vlad said. He looked over towards Arthur and all his amusement vanished. "I'm going to see if I can help."

Vlad darted off, and after adjusting his grip on Arthur yet again, Lukas set off. He managed to find an inn straight away, though it was clear they didn't get a lot of travellers. After explaining the situation to the innkeeper, Lukas was led to a room, where he placed Arthur on one of the beds. Luckily, this inn came with four beds.

"Do you need anything to eat or drink?" the innkeeper asked.

"I think my friend would like some water," Lukas said, before his stomach growled. "And… Some food would be nice. I also need to go wait for my other friend. He went to find the apothecary."

The innkeeper nodded, before handing over the key and leaving. Lukas looked over towards Arthur and stroked his hair.

"You're not feeling worse, are you?" Lukas asked.

It would be senseless to ask if he was feeling better. One didn't usually just feel better with a curse. But one could feel worse.

Arthur closed his eyes and shook his head.

"I don't think I got worse," he said. "But I still feel horrible."

"With any luck, you wouldn't feel like this for much longer," Lukas assured him.

"I hope so."