Chapter 54: Unexpected Encounters

The next memory opened up to a montage of loop after loop after loop. Feliciano's silhouette was running throughout the scene. He gradually started to slow down, and eventually, he stumbled and fell. The scene then faded out.

"What was the point of that?" Prussia asked, confused.

"I believe it was a representation of Italy's will to go on." England spoke up. "After so many loops, it's only rational that he'd start to give up."

I chuckled humorlessly. "Start to give up? Arthur... I'd given up after the very first loop." The others turned to stare at me in disbelief.

"Italie?" France turned to look at my guarded expression.

"I went on, originally, just to get the nine of you out alive. That's why I died in Loop 2. I didn't expect to escape. Loop 189 showed me that I needed to escape with you all, but Loop T-two twenty-two..." I shuddered lightly. "It reminded me why I was unnecessary. Why I didn't need to escape. However, I made Japan a promise, and needed to keep it."

"You felt unimportant... unnecessary... betrayed and guilty." Luciano steadied me with a look.

"Yeah. I suppose I really started feeling it back then, but... the longer the looping went on, the less important I felt. The less... nation I felt. I really felt insignificant, like a human. Like I would fade away as soon as we left that place." I sighed.

"Well... Nearly becoming human didn't help either." Yang shrugged, and Romano choked on his spit.

"WHAT?!"

"Well... It's still merely a theory, but... I honestly think that if we'd taken much longer than we did to escape, then I would've permanently become human. After all, it took nearly six months for my Nation Connection to return enough for me to stop aging and regain my immortality." I shrugged.

"S-Six months?!" Romano looked faint.

"W-wait! You mean you were mortal for six months?!" Flavio cried out, sharing a disbelieving look with the other 2Ps.

"No." I stated, and some of them relaxed a bit. "I was human for six months after our escape." I amended, and several became deathly pale.

"Wait..." Louis started slowly, "you mean you weren't just mortal, but human after escaping that place? That it had the potential to make you human permanently?"

"Si. Or at least long enough for me to age and die of natural causes like a human." I shrugged. "I mean think about it! If something had happened in those six months, I wouldn't be here at all right now. Even something so trivial as, say, a stab wound. Something that every nation can just shrug off and move on from—it usually doesn't even kill us anymore."

"Oh yeah!" Yang snapped his fingers in realization. "When a nation is killed by something enough times, they slowly start to gain an immunity to it. So the time between death and revival becomes shorter and shorter until they just stop dying, right?"

"Yep. Pretty much." Flavio grinned. "Most of us 2Ps don't even die when stabbed, thanks to Luci over here."

"They should've learned to dodge better." Luciano shrugged.

"And most 1Ps don't die when shot, either!" America proclaimed proudly.

"That might just be you, mon cher. Most of us avoid getting shot." France pointed out blandly.

"I'm like that, too." Canada pointed out.

"Well you two do enjoy fighting on the front lines during wartime. Most of us just sit back and delegate, or fight in the important battles." South Korea tilted his head in thought.

"To be fair..." I started. "Most nations do fight alongside their people, but Alfred and Matthew in particular enjoy fighting alongside the foot soldiers to give them courage, as fighting alongside ones nation, even unknowingly, gives humans strength."

The scene showed Feliciano walking down the hallway by the Front Door, towards the First Floor Bathroom. A red shimmer caught everyone's eye.

"This shit again?!" Jason cursed, growling in frustration.

It was like a concentrated heat wave, staying only in one place, but instead of being clear, it was tinged undeniably red.

"Like I said earlier; you'll have to wait and see, just like I did." I stuck out my tongue, like the mature nation I was.

Feliciano went into the bathroom, and paused, realizing that the reflection of the mirror didn't reflect a room in the Mansion, but a rather cozy home. The walls were a soft reddish brown, and the carpet was a dark red. There was a familiar man sitting at a desk opposite the mirror.

"L-Luciano..." Feli breathed out, drinking in the scene. 'I'd forgotten... what home looked like...'

"Hm?" Luci stopped what he was doing and looked around, having heard Feli's voice. He finally looked at the mirror behind him. "Oh, Feli. Good to see you again." He smirked, rolling his chair backwards to the mirror. "I still want to ask you about what the hell was going on before." He twitched.

"Y-you remember that?!" Feli blinked in shock.

"My memory's not that bad. You calling me old?" Luci narrowed his eyes.

"But... that doesn't make any sense... unless time really has been passing... but that wouldn't make any sense... you'd be way more worried if we'd been gone for so long..." Feliciano started trailing off into mutters, mystifying poor Luci, who shook his head.

"Oi! Don't ignore me!!" Luci sighed, rubbing his temples. "Perhaps by answering my questions, you can clear that fog in your head?"

"No, no... I just... I just want to talk for a while... Is that okay? It's been so long... How've you been?" Feliciano's smile was tight and hollow, and Luci looked ready to argue for a moment before he caught sight of something in his brother's eye.

"I've been good. I only blew up the kitchen once this month! I'm improving! And the Contaminated attacks have been getting less and less frequent. Things are going back to normal again." Luci smiled.

"Back to normal? Were things odd?" Feli tilted his head.

"Er... for a little bit, the attacks were way more frequent than they used to be. We were getting worried." Luci sighed, running a tired hand through his hair. "But things are cooling down, so that's good."

"And how's Lavi doing?" Feli's smile seemed to slowly warm up as they talked, relaxing into a semblance of how he used to be.

"He's all right. Still designing new clothes and everything. He's opened up his own business, you know~ His boutique and brand are top-of-the-line, and he's the source of most of our income." Luci smirked.

"Ve? Really?" Feli's eyes glistened as he sat there and listened to his brother ramble.

"I suppose after all that time... it must've been so rewarding to just have a normal conversation, aru." China noted, looking at the scene with a solemn expression.

"In all honesty, it was refreshing to have a non-scripted conversation. To just be able to sit there and talk without a filter... to just be... me." I smiled, remembering just how much lighter I felt after that. It stuck with me for a good two hundred loops, too.

"How did you remember?" Klaus asked, looking at Luciano.

"Since he's my 2P, his memories aren't really affected by my time travel in the same way. We don't fully understand it, but it's something along the lines of..." I tilted my head, waiting for him to pick up the explanation.

"It's like a very clear dream. You know those dreams where you swear it happened? That's what it was like before I entered my Mansion. But only when I interacted with Felice." Luciano stretched. "How long has it been since we had a break?"

"I fear a tad too long." England agreed. "Shall I make the room again?"

"No." I interrupted. "Another important loop is right around the corner. I'd rather get it out of the way first, and then rest for a bit."

"It's your call, dearie~ These are your memories, after all." Oliver smiled at me, though it wasn't very reassuring.

"Who gave you sugar?" England scrunched his nose up at his brother.

"Me~!" Oliver laughed with a twirl. "Oh, and the Cyanide went perfectly with that belladonna, just as I thought!! Would you like a bite?" He held out a violently purple cupcake towards England.

"No, I'd rather not die, thanks."

"Oh, don't be such a party pooper." Oliver pouted.

"It's called self-preservation." Luciano deadpanned, causing several nations to chuckle.

Before anything else could be said, the next scene came up, showing a very perplexed and anxious Feliciano pacing around the safe room.

"What's got your panties in a twist?" America raised an eyebrow.

"Who even says that anymore?" Canada questioned his brother, who promptly ignored him.

"Ah... This is loop 6,953." I realized.

"W-we're really skipping a lot, aren't we?" France asked, startled at the abruptly higher numbers. "If I may... how many digits are we talking, here?"

"Oi! Don't go assuming that it'll go beyond four digits!" Romano admonished. "R-right?"

"Er..." I couldn't meet his eyes, but Yang started laughing.

"Oh, it gets more than four digits all right!" He continued cackling until Flavio casually connected the steel toe of his boot to Yang's toe.

"I'll say it for Feli this time—shut up." Flavio glared, and Yang eep'd.

"What a sheep." South Korea sighed.

"Excuse me?" Yang looked over at South Korea, perplexed, as he tried balancing on his good foot.

"Yang means sheep in Korean. So to me, you are a sheep." He smirked, and I laughed.

"I never told you? Your name also means goat in Chinese." I laughed.

"Oooh~ I think I have a new nickname for you now." Luciano gave a feral grin.

"I can't believe this has happened..." Feliciano's voice drew everyone's attention again. "How could I be so stupid... not one but two? Two unpredictable factors... And of all nations... it was them..."

"Who?" Russia tilted his head curiously. Asher looked between us.

"You've been awfully quiet lately." Romano remarked, scratching his ear.

"When you've nothing to say to better the situation, it's best to say nothing at all." The old wolf replied as he laid his head back down on his paws.

"You'll see." I replied darkly.

A moment later, the scene changed to show the group sitting at the table in the Safe Room—minus Antonio and Lovino, who hadn't come that loop. But the two new additions made Russia pale dangerously.

"I don't see why we can't just go out there and kill those monsters!" Natalya growled, sitting next to her brother.

"No, sister!" Katyusha argued.

"Oh, dear." Oliver took a step back alongside his 1P.

"Belarus... and Ukraine?" Russia looked gob smacked. "Nyet..."

"I'm sorry, Russia... I couldn't protect them." I looked down, ashamed. "Belarus was too unpredictable and uncontrollable."

"No... it was not your fault, friend." Russia shook his head. "You did more than was ever asked of you. None of this is your fault, regardless of what we thought as humans."

I smiled at him, but said nothing, even as he hesitantly pulled me into a hug. For once, I took comfort in his larger form. He was like a giant teddy bear, though I'd never be suicidal enough to say that out loud. I closed my eyes and leaned into his embrace.

We stepped apart as the next scene came in, though I kept a hold of his arm, knowing what was coming.

The group was in the Basement, and Natalya was being far too loud as she protested being split up into a group separate from her brother. Unfortunately, the noise drew the Fire Things from their nest, and they attacked.

Valiant though the effort was, nobody would forget the horrified scream of Katyusha as Natalya was killed.

For a moment, all was still. Even the Things seemed to realize that they'd flipped some kind of switch, and slowly backed away from a trembling Katyusha.

Slowly, as if in some kind of trance, she bent down and closed her sister's eyes. She picked up one of her knives and straightened up, sending the Things an unhinged glare. Truly... the resemblance between her and her sister was unmistakable, in that moment.

"You... will die tonight." She promised as she calmly walked towards the Things.

The scene darkened again.

"Was... was that what you wanted us to see, Italy?" England asked, and I couldn't help but snort.

"No, England... The next one should be the one... Loop 10,473. Forbidden Loop #3. The Bloodbath Loop. If you've a weak stomach, I suggest you close your eyes."

"And pray you forget the smell." Luciano shuddered.

"You saw?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Time Shards."

"Ah."

"Time what?" Prussia blinked.

"You'll find out eventually." I smirked.

"I think the larger concern here is that Luciano is traumatized by this same Bloodbath Loop..." Markus pointed out. "This is the same guy that's usually wearing a jacket of blood and gore after a fight."

"Blood of the enemy is different than blood of my allies." Luciano stated stoically.

"Allies? You mean the 1Ps?" Jason scoffed.

"Like it or not, you're all important. Accept that and grow the fuck up, Jason." I snarled.

"Oh, you wanna fight me, bitch?" Jason grinned.

"No." Luciano stepped between us. "You two will drop it, you fuckturds."

"Aww~ But fratello~ We haven't seen a Ying/JJ fight for a while!" Yang complained.

"JJ?" I raised an eyebrow, already filing away the way that the nickname made Jason bristle.

"Jason Jones. It's his initials. Plus, it's kinda cute." Yang gave a malicious grin as Jason turned a darker shade of angry red.

"Now you two are plotting. Should I be scared?" Romano raised an eyebrow at us.

Yang and I turned towards him in unison. "No. Be terrified."

"I am." Luciano shuddered.

"So one more loop, and then a break. Are we agreed on this?" England spoke up.

"Si." I nodded, taking in just how exhausted everyone looked. "Dinner and bed... if you feel like eating after what you see..."

"I know I won't." Luciano looked a little green.

"Damn, just how bad was it?" Markus whistled.

"Worst I've ever seen."

"Then perhaps we should eat beforehand?" Canada suggested.

"Only if you want to risk it coming back up." Yang shrugged. "Just sayin, I ain't cleanin up your timedamned vomit. You make the mess, you clean it."

"Please don't throw up in my head." I leveled a flat look at everyone.

"Well... best get this over with then." England sighed.

"Indeed." I nodded as the next memory faded in.

A/N: Hey everyone! Lookie~! Another Memories of Old update!! Whoo~~ So there's a few things I'd like to let you guys know...

There will be a special twoshot Birthday Special posted on July 4th Pacific Standard Time on all four of my platforms! It's already finished, so it's ready to post on Alfred's birthday!! WHOO~~

Next! I'm hoping to attend Anime Expo in LA this weekend July 5 or 6, it depends on which day I can get my shift covered. (otherwise I won't be able to make it... T_T) Is anyone else comin to Anime Expo?

Also considering going to Sabakon in Las Vegas, NV September 6-8. Anyone gonna be there? ^^ (Fun fact, that was my first con about four years ago, and it falls on my birthday!) [I met Todd Haberkorn there {VA for Italy in Hetalia}]

If you want to send me fanart, please send it to my e-mail, (betweentwoworlds(at)italymail(dot)com for you fanfiction.net readers) Please put 'fanart' in the title so I don't accidentally delete it! And if you send it to me, but don't want me to use it in a chapter, please say so, otherwise I will likely use it in a chapter title (and credit you, of course!)

If you ever wanna see what I'm like as a person, and want a countdown to updates (and thus get the heads up on updates and stuff), then feel free to join our Group Chat on the free app 'Telegram'. It also has a desktop version~ My username is still SilvermistAnimeLover so search that. (You may come up with someone named K. R. Starktower or something, that's still me). We've got a good 32 members, and we have a lot of fun! ^^

Words: 2,437

Pages: 6

Posted: 06/29/2019