Hey everybody! Here's Chapter 3!

I know this seems late but I'd like to thank Dogsrule,TheDeadOne28, Aniya-chan, Cherryappleblossom9201, and RoxanneTheGreat for reviewing. I'd also like to thank those who favorited and followed as well! :)

Disclaimer: We don't own anything! :(

Elizaveta waved good bye to Ludwig as the German man exited the shop. The woman smiled and rested her chin in her hand. With a small sigh she said, "It was nice to see him. He doesn't come by often. He's a nice young man, right Feli?" Elizaveta listened for a response but she was greeted by silence. "Feli?"

The Italian was nowhere to be found.

Ludwig continued down the road, thinking to himself silently. He had the day off but had made no plans. Maybe he should check on his brother. No, that was a bad idea. He shouldn't have to deal with that idiot on his day off.

"What should I do?" he asked no one.

"We should go eat pasta, ve~!"

"Mein Gott! When did you get there?!" The goofy Italian seemed to materialize out of nowhere behind him.

"Ve, I was here along."

How did I not notice him?!

"So …" began Feliciano. "Did you want to go grab some pasta? Pasta is my favorite food! It's very delizioso~!"

"Um …" What is with this man? He is so strange. And how did he sneak on me? WHY did he sneak up on me? This guy is like a puppy that died, became a ghost, and decided to stalk people! Hold on, he can't be that bad. Miss Héderváry seems to be friends with him … But then again, she likes Roderich so maybe there is something off about here judgment. But then again she can tell something's wrong with my bruder …

"Ludwig~?"

Ludwig snapped out of his trance and faced the little Italian. "Um … What was the question?"

"Eh … PASTA~!"

"Er … right." The stern man thought for a moment. It couldn't be that bad. "Sure, I'll go eat pasta with you."

"Really?! Perfect! Grazie, amico!"

Ludwig didn't know what amico meant but he had heard Grazie enough to understand that at least. "So where is this place anyway? I trust that you will be paying …"

"Don't worry, follow me!"

"I'm really worried about those two."

Toris set down the laundry he'd been folding and asked, "Who?"

"Natalya and Ivan …" replied Katyusha lowering her head slightly. "They have been acting so strange lately and I haven't seen them in days. I'm afraid they've gotten themselves in trouble."

"Oh, I do agree that Natalya has been acting strange lately, but are you sure this behavior is strange for Ivan?" Toris asked her, only caring about Natalya's well-being.

"I'm positive!" she snapped. "Ivan is being colder than usual and Natalya hasn't spoken to me at all recently. Do you think they're involved in something illegal like terrorists … or the MAFIA?!"

"Natalya is too sweet for that and I don't think Ivan would go for the Mafia thing." Although terrorism … Toris kept these thoughts to himself.

Once they finished their stacks of laundry, Katyusha escorted him to the door. "Thank you again for your help and reassurance, Toris," she mumbled. "And if you bump into one of them, tell them I'm worried and I'd like to see them more often."

Toris nodded. "Sure thing, Katyusha." Although I don't think I'd be brave enough to stay around long enough to tell Ivan that, he thought shamelessly.

"You and Ivan must have been very close in college for you to still visit and to have listened to my blabbering for so long."

"Yeah, that's exactly the reason. Yep, we were really close alright." Toris was grateful she hadn't noticed the sarcasm. Oh, they were close alright, if you count having your life being threatened nearly 24/7. "I'll be taking my leave, now. Take care Katyusha."

"I will. до побачення and have a safe trip home!" Once Toris was gone she closed her front door and plopped down tiredly on the couch. It was lonely not having the others around, even if her younger siblings seemed to play cat and mouse all the time. Looking at the clock above the television, Katyusha decided it was time for sleep and retired to bed.

Later that night, as Katyusha was sound asleep, two figures slipped into the house. She was awakened by the sound of muffled footsteps creeping through the halls. She could tell from listening that there were two of them … whoever they were.

Who could it be? The mafia? Terrorists?! No … not her small home. But who? Who had intruded? She obviously didn't have enough money for burglars to take notice.

Katyusha stiffened as she heard her bedroom door click open. She could feel their eyes observing her. She feigned sleep. The intruders judged she was asleep and left her door. After rising from her bed, Katyusha peeked through the cracked door. She saw the two figures exit the guest bedrooms and head for the stairs. Katyusha kept silent until she heard the click of the front door. Quickly she scrambled over to a window.

What she saw was a tall man and a woman with long hair walking from her house. Unexpectedly the two figures turned to look back and their eyes met hers. Soon they continued to walk away and Katyusha carried on watching as they vanished around a corner. It was them… Her brother and sister had returned and she had simply watched them go.

Her throat burned and eyes stung as her tears threatened to fall.

"Чому?"

Out in the city, Ly, a Vietnamese girl with dark brown hair pulled into a pony tail, was looking at pastries through a shop window when, out of the blue, a man with sandy brown hair smashed into her (Like an idiot).

(Author: New Zealand! Stop breaking the Fourth Wall!)

(Awww…)

"Oh, god!" exclaimed the man. "I am so sorry-"

When their eyes met, the two gawked at each other. Then suddenly, "Ly?!"

"Jack …" muttered the girl, with a roll of her eyes.

"Hey! Why did you say my name like that?!" The Australian named Jack questioned.

"Funny meeting you like this. So what are you doing anyway?" Ly asked, ignoring his question.

Jack frowned. "Don't ignore me, mate!"

"Well, whatever, I'm looking for something to eat."

"Again, ignoring me …" Unexpectedly a low growl interrupted the conversation, making the Aussie blush in embarrassment. "Um … I'm hungry too! Why don't we have dinner together! We could split the bill if you want," Jack suggested.

Ly thought about this proposal. After a moment of hesitation she approved. "Sure, but please eat a reasonable amount. You were always a pig."

"Hey! That wasn't nice! You're stiff as ever aren't ya', mate?" Ly made no comment and the two began to walk. "Hey, I heard there's this new restaurant not too far from here with B-B-Q, meat, and everything! I really wanted to check it out!"

"I detest meat," was Ly's reply.

"Well, sorry mate, but that's where we're going!" said Jack dragging her along.

Ly scowled as they entered the restaurant Jack was oh-so excited to eat at. They stood near the door until a waiter approached and led them to a booth in the back. The waiter handed them each a menu at which Ly glowered at upon seeing all the meat dishes. Soon the waiter left.

Jack smiled widely at the menu. "What are you getting Ly? It all looks so delicious! I think I'll get the BBQ steak burger!"

Ly scoffed. "You've been hanging out with Alfred too much."

"Nu-uh!" he grunted. "I haven't seen Alfred in months! Speaking of which, why didn't you show up to the class reunion?!"

Ly did not look up from her menu as she asked, "When was that?"

"Don't play dumb! I know I sent you that e-mail!"

"You should know by now that I don't read your e-mails."

"How cruel!"

Finally the Vietnamese girl glanced up at Jack and explained, "Well, the day I decided to not look at you or Alfred's e-mails was when you sent me a spam."

"I was only kidding. You didn't have to take it personally," Jack pouted.

"I didn't take it personally. I just thought that it was stupid," was her reply.

Jack frowned but did not comment. The waiter from before approached their table with a pencil and pad in hand. Once their orders had been taken, Jack continued from where they had left off. "So, about that reunion … Why didn't you show up?"

"Like I said, I didn't see your e-mail."

"I can't believe you skipped. Surprisingly even Alfred skipped," Jack told her.

This seemed to shock her. "Alfred didn't show? But doesn't he love those things?"

"That's what I thought, too! But he said he couldn't get a day off from work! Also, Benjamin and Alfred's twin what's-his-name didn't show up, either." Jack paused and thought for a second. "Wait, scratch that. Alfred's twin did show up but nobody noticed him until his crazy polar bear ate half of the food! A polar bear! Seriously?!"

"You do realize that you carry a koala bear with you most of the time, don't you?"

Jack seemed offended by the statement. "Leo is different! He has manners!"

Ly rolled her eyes. "Right …"

"Back to the topic at hand, we had a very small group for the reunion."

Ly began to sip from her glass of water the waiter had set down and thought for a moment. "I wonder why Alfred didn't show up …"

"I told you! He couldn't get a day off from work," Jack replied.

"Knowing Alfred, he would've just skipped work anyway and called in sick."

"Wait, are you saying he skipped the reunion on purpose?"

"I don't know," Ly lied. "But he has been acting strange."

Jack cocked an eyebrow. "Really? Have you seen him lately?"

"About a week ago I bumped into him and before that I had called. He seemed really pissed at something and didn't answer my questions as if he were too far above me to speak with me. I swear there's something wrong with the idiot."

" … I guess you're right," said Jack. "That doesn't sound like Al. Maybe I should try calling him."

Ly nodded and as their meals arrived they fell into silence.

A few hours after Jack and Ly had finished their meal and parted ways, Ly found herself wandering the streets of downtown Chicago. The street she was walking seemed very quiet and she liked that. The sounds of car horns now seemed distant. She had decided to head home when suddenly she heard something.

She stopped in her tracks and out of the corner of her eye, Ly saw a familiar figure. She remembered that brown bomber's jacket and golden hair all too well. The figure seemed to notice her presence and it slowly turned to face her. Ly held her breath as the once happy, cheerful face she once knew looked back with a scornful gaze. Other dark figures lay on the pavement, motionless, beside him.

"A-Alfred?"

Kesesese ... Cliffhanger!

If you hadn't noticed already Jack is Australia, Ly is Vietnam, and the other names I hope you recognize.

Until next time!