A/N: The final prompt that was given to us in the GerIta group. I'm not sure if it's main admin is active on it anymore tbh, but I plan to continue posting because it helps with my writers block. This one is my second longest in comparison to All I Want For Christmas. Third if you want to include Forget Me Not as a whole. I got a bit carried away and just like the Deaf AU, I want to make it a multichapter fic. I might do that but it's also a pretty good idea for an ask blog. Either way, I'll end up writing it once I finish Forget Me Not.

And speaking of Forget Me Not, there is poll about it on my profile. It will stay open for a week so please vote on it! I would like you opinion on what I should do.

Enjoy this one-shot everyone!

The world looked blurry as he tried to open his eyes, eye lids feeling unusually heavy. Blinking slowly proved only to make things worse. The room started to spin and a dull ache from behind his head made its presence known. He closed his eyes once again, groaning as the ache grew into a horrible headache. What happened? He thought as he tried to move a hand to his aching head, but found that his wrists were bound behind him.

"Oi, he's waking up." A deep Italian accented voice spoke. He cracked open his eyes, eyebrows furrowing together. Don't I know that voice from somewhere?

He couldn't pinpoint where the voice came from, but looking around the steadying room he found that he wasn't in a familiar place. The room looked rundown. The walls that were probably white at one time were chipping and had large holes in them. The floor wasn't in any better condition and whoever was in the room made the floor creak with each step. The creaking made him a bit uncomfortable, questioning whether the building they were in was stable enough to be inhabited. Looking around more, he saw a steel door and frowned. Maybe the place used to be a warehouse. He certainly wasn't on the ground floor considering he could see the tops of a few buildings in some of the broken windows…

Suddenly, a cold fluid was dumped down on him. He jolted back, slamming his back against a hard surface and he clenched his teeth together with a small hiss. Opening his eyes once again, he saw two figures in front of him that his eyes couldn't focus on. They were taller than him, but only because he was sitting in a chair. He usually towered above many people and he could bet that if could stand he'd be taller than whoever stood over him.

"Good morning sleeping beauty." One of them spoke with the previous deep voice he heard before and sounded like he was gloating, "Time to talk business!"

"You didn't have to do that Roma." The other figure spoke in a high pitched Italian accented voice, though it was clear the other was male, "He's our friend…"

"Tough it out Vene." The other man growled in irritation, "He's not on our side quite yet."

Wait… Roma? Vene? He focused more on the two in front of him and he was able to see their features more. They both wore red, white, and green outfits. Though the outfits were slightly different in how the colors were represented, it was clear that these two were partners. They wore masks that covered the top half of their faces, but their eyes and hair could be distinguished. Their hair styles were pretty similar, the only difference was where they were parted and the fact that one had darker hair than the other.

One of the men, who had hazel eyes, looked down at him and his annoyed frown became a smirk. "By the look on your face, it seems that you finally realize your situation Germany."

"Romano and Veneziano!" Germany growled, straining to break whatever bound his wrists together.

Now he remembered what happened. Germany had been out on patrol when he spotted those two poking around the Capitol Building. There were rumors that Romano and Veneziano had been planning on kidnapping the Mayor. Since they were his arch nemeses, Germany took it as his job to protect the man that Hetaville came to adore. He was able to surprise them and chase them away, but they turned on Germany when he least expected it and… The headache that he was currently experiencing meant that they hit him with something somehow.

Germany was embarrassed that he was caught by these two. He remembered when he only had to deal with Romano. Those days were easy. Germany was able to take care of Romano easily, though he always escaped using his super speed. Then Romano brought Veneziano into along with him and Germany wasn't sure why, but he would always become distracted around the other. Veneziano must have some sort of power dealing with distractions. It made protecting Hetaville harder, but Germany was still able to stop them from their crimes whether it was robbing banks or sneaking into government buildings. Really, these guys hit the most random places if one were to consider it.

Veneziano smiled at Germany, moving to crouch down beside him. "You're not going to be able to get that off so easily. I tied that especially for you big guy."

Germany glanced over at Veneziano as he squeezed his shoulder. The man's voice wasn't high pitched when he spoke that time. Then again, Veneziano's high voice always did sound forced during their encounters. It wasn't farfetched that he tried to disguise his voice. Germany always made sure to make his voice deeper than what it was in an attempt to make sure nobody could connect the dots. He also went as far as to put his hair down and purposefully spoke with a heavy German accent while being Germany. But why would Veneziano go and speak normally?

"It won't hold for long." Germany retorted, still struggling against the rope.

Veneziano put on a pout, "You don't want to get away from me, now do you?" he asked, his pout becoming a teasing smile as he ran a hand up and down his captive's arm.

Germany paused in his struggles, feeling himself freeze under the other's touch. A shiver went down his spine and Germany roughly shrugged the other's hand off. Damn. Why is this guy always acting like he's flirting with me?!

"Enough Veneziano." Romano sighed, pulling up a chair so he could sit in front of his arch nemesis, "We have business to discuss."

"I have nothing to discuss with either of you." Germany spat as Veneziano made his way over to stand beside Romano.

"Good. We just need you to listen."

"And if I don't?"

"Well, then you're not going home until you do. If needed, we can always locate your brother and take him hostage as leverage."

Gil! Germany thought, glaring at the men in front of him.

"Now that we have your attention." Romano leaned closer, "I'm sure you know who we are. Most people should know considering we based our outfits off of our Grandfather's old one." Germany bit his lip, glaring at him. "Our Grandfather, as you know, is Rome the Great."

"He's no longer fit to hold the title." Germany growled.

"Hey, I thought you said you didn't have anything to contribute."

"He used to be Rome the Great before he betrayed Hetaville!"

"Our Grandpa is a good man." Veneziano spoke up, glaring at Germany.

"He's as good as any criminal is." Germany retorted, causing Veneziano's eyes to flash with sadness.

"Enough!" Romano shouted, glaring at the bound man, "Yes, our Grandfather betrayed Hetaville but you don't know the full story."

"It all ends the same! Rome the Great betrayed Hetaville, but more importantly he betrayed his partner-"

"Your late father." Romano finished, his focus on Germany, "We know our Grandfather was close to Germania the Great. They were the greatest duo Hetaville has ever seen. But again, you don't know the full story."

"Our Grandpa found out something." Veneziano said, "Something that would put Hetaville in despair. But he couldn't prove anything. Grandpa tried to find some proof but he was caught and made to look like the bad guy."

"He didn't do such a good job in redeeming himself." Germany hissed.

Germany found himself up against the wall in a blink of an eye and a fist connected to his jaw. He heard Veneziano calling to Romano and Germany was dropped onto the ground. Looking up, he saw angry hazel eyes bearing down at him. It wasn't the smartest thing he'd ever done, but Germany didn't mind that he angered the man who he butt heads with for several years now. Veneziano's amber eyes soon met his. They were filled with sadness and anger and for some reason, Germany started to feel bad.

"I really don't know if we should keep him alive after that." Romano growled, walking towards a window, "I should throw you out the window and see if you survive to protect your precious Hetaville another day."

"Romano!" Veneziano exclaimed, "We live here! Besides, how are we supposed to redeem grandpa's name if we kill Germany? We'll never be pardoned and never find the truth."

"Killing would be in your blood." Germany stated plainly, "Your Grandpa was the one who killed my father."

Veneziano's eyes widened for a moment and threw out his leg towards Germany. The man flinched and heard the enemy's foot hit the wall behind him. Looking to the side, Germany saw that Veneziano's kick broke the wall. The man never displayed such strength during their previous encounters. Germany certainly underestimated his foes.

"Our Grandpa didn't kill his best friend." Veneziano's voice was filled with anger, eyes glaring down at him. If looks could kill, then Germany would be down for the count. "You should know better than to disrespect his name."

Germany could well believe that his body was frozen in place. He felt that if he moved even slightly, Veneziano would certainly strike him next. Romano, who was also surprised that Veneziano took such an action, slowly moved to his brother's side and pulled him away from their captive. He never was one to use physical violence against his opponents. That was Romano's job. Veneziano was the kind of person who aggravated the enemy with swift movements and simply dodging their attacks. This was one of the few times that he actually attacked someone else.

Veneziano looked away, blinking rapidly as Romano guided him to a chair. "Grandpa would never do such a thing." He said, voice quiet as he hugged himself, "Grandpa has done nothing but speak highly of Germania. He only ever told us of stories of their adventures as The Great Duo."

"There's proof that he killed my father." Germany said, frowning at the two before him, "A citizen took a video of their last encounter."

"You don't know the full story!" Veneziano shouted, glaring at Germany as tears rolled down his cheeks, "Obviously there was some kind of video taken and from an angel that makes it look like Grandpa killed Germania, but he didn't! You didn't see how heartbroken he was when he came home. You didn't see how he cried when that video streamed on the news. He was set up."

"Who would set up your Grandfather?"

"The same person who's going to put Hetaville into despair." Romano spoke up. He walked over to Germany, helping him to his feet and setting him back in a chair. "As we said before, our Grandfather found something out. It was bad enough to go and make it seem like he was betraying Hetaville."

"And what exactly is this person planning on doing?" Germany asked skeptically.

"From what our Grandfather gathered, there's a money scam involved." Romano explained, "There's more, but we're not going to delve into it."

"Why?"

"Because you obviously don't believe us still!"

"Well, you fail to show actual proof that your Grandfather is innocent. You're just expecting me to trust you."

"Why wouldn't you trust us?" Veneziano cried, "Especially me! We used to be friends when we were younger, remember? You wanted to be my partner when your powers finally came in!"

"'Used to' are the key words here."

"Vene, just ignore him!" Romano said, seeing more tears form in the other's eyes. He turned to glare at Germany and stabbed his finger at the man's chest. "If you want proof, look at the video of your father's death. It may look like its proof towards your argument, but if you look closely you'll see that there's more than meets the eye."

"Oh yeah, I'll just go and watch it once I get home." Germany said sarcastically.

"You're really getting on my nerves you bastard." Romano growled, his eyebrow beginning to twitch with irritation.

"That's my job apparently." Germany growled back.

"Romano…" Veneziano spoke up, catching the other two's attention, "We got a copy of the video don't we?"

"Yeah, we do." Romano answered, getting to his feet as he ignored the surprise on Germany's face, "You want him to watch it now?"

"It's the only way to gain his trust."

"Wait, how did you-" Germany started.

"We stole it dumbass." Romano interrupted, "For a guy who claims to be so smart, you don't use that brain too much do you?"

Germany was going to shout something as Romano left but Veneziano stepped in front of him, blocking his view of Romano stepping into another room. The man wiped the tears from his face and set a chair right in front of the captive man and sat right in front of him. He put on a smile, though from Germany could tell it looked forced. Veneziano just sat there, staring at the him and Germany simply stared back.

"How have you been holding up all these years?" Veneziano asked out of the blue. Germany frowned before shaking his head and looked away. "What? Do you not want to talk to an old friend?" The other man stayed silent. "Look, I get that you don't want to trust us. We have been fighting each other for years and well…" Veneziano bit his lip and wrung his hands together, "Considering who our Grandpa is, that's even more reason to dislike us. But we have been trying to gather evidence to prove our case. We've been to every bank that had any bit of information. We broke into insurance companies among other places… The last thing we have to do is snoop into the Mayor's office and home and we should have everything that we need."

"The Mayor?" Germany's head snapped towards Veneziano, "What does he have to do with all of this? The man has done nothing but help Hetaville in his time in office!"

"Yeah, he's the perfect man." Veneziano said sarcastically with spite. He sighed and shook his head before putting a hand on Germany's cheek. "I know Germany. I know that he seems like a good man, but he has evil intentions. It's a bit harder for you to see since that man helped you when Germania died, but he's been deceiving you."

"You say he's the deceiver, but how do I know you're not the one trying to deceive me." Germany asked. He wanted to move his head away from the other man's hand, but his body wouldn't move.

Veneziano sighed, running his thumb along Germany's cheek before removing his hand. "You'll see once you watch the video. If you decide to believe us, then we'll show you more on what we have on the Mayor and that will open your eyes."

"How did you even get all that information?"

"We have a man working behind the scenes." Veneziano winked, "We won't give up his identity until we know for sure you're with us."

Just as Germany was going to question Veneziano more, there was a loud crashing sound. The two of them jumped and Veneziano got to his feet and spun to look behind him. The door was broken down and was broken in half even though it was a steel door. Veneziano stood rigid, staring at the door way and Germany had to crane his head around the man to see that there was someone stepping in.

It was a man in a red, white, and blue uniform. He wore a mask that covered most of his face, but his blue eyes and a cheeky grin were distinguishable. The man looked around, wiping his hands as if there was a bit of dust on them. He noticed Veneziano and Germany and looked as if he was about to say something when Romano came storming into the room.

"What the hell is going on!" he shouted his gaze moving to glare at Veneziano, "I hope you didn't let him get loose of his-" Romano stopped mid-rant when he noticed the door was knocked in and that there was a fourth person in the room. "…Shit."

"Romano, go gather everything we collected!" Veneziano cried urgently, "I'll hold this guy off and then we can get out of here."

"I won't let that happen!" the newcomer shouted, about to go after the fleeing Romano "A hero never lets the villain get away."

The man put up a fighting stance seeing that Veneziano was coming at him. He didn't even bat an eye when Veneziano threw one of his strong legs at him. He caught the other's leg easily and used Veneziano's momentum to swing him across the room and into a wall. Germany sat there, staring dumbfounded where Veneziano landed. The man obviously had the power of super strength.

"Germany!" the newcomer got his attention. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah…" Germany responded as the man came over and worked on the rope that bound him, "Who are you?"

"Freedom Star!" the man replied, laughing as if the answer was obvious, "I came to save you."

"How did you know I needed saving? How did you even find me?"

"Let's just say a concerned citizen was worried when you didn't come home last night." Freedom Star replied. The only person that popped up in Germany's mind was his brother. He must have contacted the Mayor who went and got someone to come find me. He thought and when his hands were finally free, Freedom Star continued, "As for how I found you, let's just say I have a partner that can sense more than just the mood. He's great at tracking!"

Veneziano groaned as he got up from the floor, rubbing the back of his head. "Damn. This didn't go as planned…"

"That's the point of a hero's job!" Freedom Star laughed, walking over to Veneziano. He was quick to restrain him with the rope that was used on Germany and held onto the villain's collar so he couldn't get away. "Now, let's see who you really are you villain!"

Veneziano struggled in Freedom Star's grasp, crying out not to remove his mask. Freedom Star didn't listen though, and easily removed the mask. Germany couldn't believe it when he saw Veneziano's real identity. He wished he could undo the whole thing if possible. Before Germany stood a man who he originally thought was mortal. It was the same exact man that he would hang out with after work and during his lunch break. Veneziano was the same man that made Germany's heart flutter with a single smile. The very same man that his brother would tease him about even if the other was around.

"Feliciano?" Germany was barely able to whisper out the name of his best friend. If Veneziano was Feliciano, did that mean Romano was Lovino?!

Freedom Star laughed as if the situation was only a game. He probably didn't even hear Germany, but Veneziano did and boy did the guy look pale. He stared straight at Germany, fear flashing through his eyes. For a split moment, it looked as if all was good and the only thing the two super heroes had to do was capture Romano before he got away. But Veneziano had other plans. He caught Freedom Star off guard, shoving the man with his shoulder into the wall. The air was knocked out of him and Veneziano took this moment to run, but not before looking back at Germany. Germany could see the confusion in his enemy's eyes before he ran off, yet Germany didn't follow. His body was frozen in place, still shocked at seeing Veneziano's true identity.

Freedom Star finally recovered and growled in frustration, "Dude! You could have got him. Don't let him get away!"

Germany jumped, his body finally reacting to the situation as Freedom Star ran past him. He quickly followed, but Germany knew that it was no use. Romano and Veneziano would have gotten away along with whatever they were storing in the building. Even as they entered the room Romano had originally entered, there was no sign of either villain or the stuff they claimed to have stolen. The only thing that seemed to be left behind was the very same rope Freedom Star used to restrain Veneziano. Germany heard Freedom Star curse under his breath as he looked around the room. There was an open window with a fire escape. Romano could have easily fled through there along with Veneziano soon after.

"They got away!" Freedom Star whined before giving to a frustrated sigh, "Man. I was hoping to catch at least one of them. This is going to look bad on my record." He looked towards Germany who was staring at the open window. "Yo, Germany? You okay dude?"

"Yes." Germany replied a bit absent mindedly.

Freedom Star watched as Germany walked over the window, stepping outside onto the fire escape. Following the other's lead, Freedom Star couldn't help but be filled with hope. Maybe Germany found a trail that the enemy left behind! The man was famous for predicting his arch nemeses plans. Once he got outside, Freedom Star saw Germany crouch down and pick something up. A closer look at the object showed to be a case with a disk that was labeled 'The Duo's Last Encounter'.

"Never heard of that movie before." Freedom Star commented, his voice showing some disappointment.

"…It's not particularly good." Germany replied, shaking his head before turning to the other man, "Thank you for coming Freedom Star. I'm… not sure what would have happened if you didn't come."

"Nothing good, that's for sure." Freedom Star laughed, putting a firm hand on the other's shoulder, "Looks like I came just before anything serious happened. They were trying to get information out of you right?"

Germany blinked in confusion for a moment before he got a glimpse of his reflection in a window. Bruises were beginning to form where Romano had hit him. He pressed his fingers to his jaw tenderly and sighed.

"Something like that." Germany responded.

"Well, try to get your story straight okay?" Freedom Star said, putting on a comforting smile, "The Mayor ordered that I bring you straight to him. Your brother is also waiting for you there."

Feliciano sighed as he rolled on his side. From his bed, he was able to see the boxes that held his stuff. He didn't exactly want to move, but ever since he and his brother captured Germany they couldn't risk staying. Germany recognized him! They had somehow met while posing as mortal men without realizing it and now the Feliciano and Lovino were in danger of being arrested. They had to leave within the next few days and that was pushing it.

Feliciano knew Lovino wanted them to leave by the next day, but that wasn't possible. They had jobs that they couldn't simply abandon on the spot. That would be too suspicious. Especially since the news had gotten a whiff of the story. Germany, the Mayor, nor Freedom Star have revealed any information as of yet. But it was only a matter of time before they do and once the police released a sketch of his face, the two brothers would be doomed!

Feliciano sighed loudly, pulling a pillow over his face. He was tired of packing! He'd been cooped up in his room and the house since the whole thing and hasn't been able to leave the house since. If he did, there was a possibility that Feliciano could be ambushed by an undercover cop. Then they would find Lovino and their Grandfather and everything will be over. No redemption for Rome the Great. No arrest for the Mayor causing an end to his evil schemes. Everything will be lost and it would be because Feliciano's identity was revealed.

"Stupid Freedom Star." Feliciano mumbled, trying to not cry.

The stress was getting to him. Every day he expected the police to knock down their door with warrants for their arrest. Every little noise made him jump. And most of all, Feliciano hasn't been able to visit Ludwig at the shop. Was he worried about him? Is Ludwig waiting for him during his lunch break still, or has he given up on him? Ah, Feliciano needed to go out!

And that's what he did. Of course Feliciano didn't plan on going far. Just a walk around the block. He needed some air and he knew a walk would clear his mind if only a little bit. Lovino would probably get mad if he found out, but it wasn't like Feliciano was going to bump into anybody. He put on a sweater before heading out and just as he walked out the door, Feliciano noticed someone in a sweater was sitting on the stairs leading up to the porch. His heart beat a bit quicker as he thought about going inside but decided against it. He could just pull his hood over his head. It was kinda cool out so there was nothing suspicious about his actions, right?

Pulling up his hood, Feliciano began to walk down the stairs. The person didn't react and Feliciano was beginning to regret his decision. The person was pretty big… Maybe he was there to catch him. Feliciano could feel his fear rising and became more anxious. He internally begged for this man to not notice him, though his steps were pretty loud. Who wouldn't know someone was coming down unless they were deaf?

By the time Feliciano reached the bottom step, relief flooded through his body. He was able to see more of the person before him and one glimpse of those kind blue eyes and slicked back hair Feliciano knew he could relax. If he wasn't so excited right now, Feliciano probably would have crumpled to his knees with how weak his legs were feeling now!

"Ludwig!" Feliciano practically sang as he bent down to practically get in the other's face.

Ludwig jumped once he focused on the other and Feliciano could have sworn that if the other man didn't have his back up against the railing, he would have fallen backwards. The image itself made Feliciano laugh and he watched as Ludwig fixed his reading glasses on his nose.

"Feli, you scared me."

"You didn't hear me coming down the stairs?" Feliciano questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Ah…not really. I wasn't paying attention…" Ludwig examined the house a bit, and blinked. "You live here?"

"Yeah!" Feliciano beamed before his smile slowly disappeared, "Or rather, not for long. We're moving."

"Where? Are you just moving to a different part of town?"

"No. Me and my brother are moving out of state. We put in transfer requests and we're not exactly sure where we'll be going but the first request to be accepted will be the one we go to."

"Oh…"

Ludwig looked down, moving a hand to rub his eye but his hand bumped into his glasses. With a small frustrated sigh, he removed his glasses and put them in his sweater pouch. Feliciano laughed. Ludwig always managed to forget he was wearing his glasses after looking over some papers or reading a book. If the glasses weren't just meant for reading, Feliciano would have complimented on how cute his friend looked with them on.

"I was going to tell you," Feliciano continued, taking a seat beside his friend, "but I haven't been feeling well the past couple of days and with all of the packing we're doing, it's been hectic."

"That's understandable." Ludwig nodded, "I hope all goes well for you."

"Yeah, me too… Why are you here anyway?"

"Oh…" Ludwig paused to think a moment, "Well something happened at work and I took a leave of absence. I took a walk after reading because I couldn't focus and I just decided to sit down to think. I guess I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"What happened?" Feliciano asked, worry filling his voice.

"Well…it's a lot to take in."

"Don't worry! You can take your time with me. How many times have you sat down to listen to my problems no matter how long I ranted?"

Ludwig gave into a small smile before frowning. "Alright…but promise me one thing. Don't run until I explain everything. I…don't want you to leave."

Feliciano frowned himself, "Why would I run?"

Not answering his question, Ludwig put a hand in the pouch of his sweater and pulled out a CD case. Once Feliciano noticed it said 'The Duo's Last Encounter', he flinched before slowly looking back at Ludwig. Examining his friend's face closer, there was a faint trace of a bruise. It was most likely covered up with makeup before getting smudged.

"Promise you won't run." Ludwig repeated, his voice sounding desperate.

That was the only thing Feliciano wanted to do at this moment. He could probably out run Ludwig. He's done that many times when he was just simply Germany. What would be the difference now? But as much as he wanted to run, his body wouldn't move.

"This was dropped on the fire escape." Ludwig explained, "I'm not sure if it was on purpose or not, but I found it. I almost couldn't get it past the Mayor when Freedom Star brought me back to him. My brother was there and I was told to explain everything that happened. I didn't give you or Lovino up. I did my best to be vague and when they asked if I could tell a sketch artist what you looked like, I said that I couldn't remember. I don't want to remember if I'm honest, but due to the circumstances I have to live with the fact I've been fighting my best friend without realizing it. Freedom Star went and described you, but I saw the sketch. It's not even you.

"Once I was able to finally go home, I went to my room and pulled this out. I considered just breaking it, but…" Ludwig paused, not expecting to get this far into the explanation. He'd been planning this ever since everything went down, but he expected that he'd ruin his friendship before finishing. "…I watched it. I relived the day my father died. At first I couldn't see it and thought you were lying to me, but then after watching it a few more times I saw what Lovino was talking about. I'm not sure if someone edited the video or if what I saw was what was actually caught on camera, but your Grandfather didn't move his weapon. The spear moved on its own."

"That's exactly what happened!" Feliciano said, grabbing hold of Ludwig's arm, releasing a breath he didn't realize he was holding, "Someone was able to manipulate Grandpa's spear and made it look like he did. We're sure it was the same person holding the camera and Grandpa said he knows who actually did it."

"Who? Can we put them in jail?"

"We can't." Feliciano shook his head, "You see- wait!" Feliciano looked around before getting up and pulling Ludwig to his feet, "We should talk inside. It's not safe out here."

Ludwig nodded in agreement and followed Feliciano up the stairs before stopping abruptly, "You said that you needed to get into the Mayor's office right?"

Feliciano looked back, confused a moment before it clicked in his head. He had told Ludwig back at the warehouse that's all they needed to do other than snoop in his house. "Yeah, but it's going to be almost impossible now. The Mayor has Freedom Star guarding the building since you last caught us trying to get in."

"After you show me everything you got and once Lovino gets home, let's devise a plan together. I'll get you in and out and then we'll hit his home."