הבנה
Title: הבנה ("Havanah")
Characters: Diaspora (Ancient Israel), Rome, Poland, Lithuania, North and South Italy, France, Russia, Spain, Prussia, Germany, England, Egypt, America, Palestine and China. PHEW.
Rating: 13
Warnings: Jewish history, so rampant anti-semitism in a historical context (and it should be noted right now that I don't share these views before anyone yells orz), the holocaust and really obscure bible references. Oh, and history too, but it's hetalia.
Summary: Something that came from writing up my notes on Judaism and Jewish History, and turned into a fic.
Jerusalem burned.
The Roman Empire gazed upon her.
And he cast her out.
-----
Rome burned.
Israel gazed upon it.
And set out alone.
-----
"Like, ew, she totally just touched me, Liet!" Poland cried, shaking his hand out like a child believing it had been infected with cooties. "I'm so not even kidding, if I get anything icky..."
Sarah backed up slightly. "Sorry." she mumbled, eyes lowered and hands kept close to her. "Sorry."
Lithuania analyzed her. "Maybe you should just get out of here." he urged lowly.
"Yeah, there's a reason you're in the ghettos, duh! Aren't rats meant to stay in sewers?" Poland called after her, laughing when her shoulders hunched and she started running.
-----
"Ahh! Fratello, fratello, what do we do?" North Italy fretted, running back and forth between the kitchen, nearly in tears. South Italy, sitting at the table with his head in his hands, stood abruptly from his chair, storming towards the door. "Ve, fratello, where are you going?"
"I'm going to get help any way I can." he growled, pulling on his traveling cloak and wrenching the door open with more force than probably should have been applied to such old hinges. His younger brother pursued.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm going to the ghettos." He was forced to a stop when Feliciano grabbed his arm. "Damn it Feli, what do you want?!"
"Fratello, you can't do that!" Feliciano exclaimed. "They're Jews."
"They're Jews with medicine." Lovino countered, looking just as reluctant about this as his brother felt. "And if we want to keep our king alive we're going to get a doctor that knows what they're doing!"
The two brothers argued all the way to the ghetto, and stood there arguing even outside the high walls and large wooden door. Eventually, their argument was interrupted when the door creaked open, Sarah peaking her head out. North Italy jumped behind his brother.
"Can I help you?" she asked in heavily accented Italian. Lovino swallowed.
"I-It's not like you're helpful or anything!" he blurted. "It's just we need a doctor and yours are cheap and kind of alright with medicine so you're going to help us!"
The older Nation blinked. "Uh, okay?"
"Good!" the two Italies started backing up. "J-just send him to the royal palace as soon as possible. Your best one, got it?!" And then they fled.
-----
The clouds rolled ever forwards across the sky. It would probably rain tonight, not that either of the two sitting on the hill cared. Late summer brought storms all the time, it was nothing new or special, not when they had seen so many of them over their long years.
"I wonder," said France, propping himself up on his elbows and watching the ghetto town busy about and prepare for the rain. "how it is that you are still here, Israel."
"That is not my name anymore." She didn't look at him, but instead at the sky. "But... perhaps because I am still dearly loved of Addonai?"
France laughed. "Really. Well, I suppose it might be possible, even if he cast you out of your land and destroyed your country?"
"My country, yes, but not my people." Sarah replied. On the road to town, a small boy with a cart made a mad dash for the gates before the rain could start. "No matter how we are preserved, we are still here."
The blonde man made a thoughtful noise, letting the quiet continue for a moment. "Do you think, that since I let you out of the ghettos, your people will merge with mine and start to fade?"
Thunder rumbled distantly. "You would hope so, wouldn't you?" Sarah said, no hint of bitterness but rather just of acceptance. "I hope they don't. I don't think they will." She smiled at him and peeked out from behind dark hair. "And no matter how much you want me to become one with you, I refuse."
France looked a little crestfallen. "Darn. One day, mon petit, one day." The first drops started to fall, round and fat and heavy. He stood, offering her a hand. "Until then, will you allow me to walk you home?"
She got up herself, brushing grass off her dress. "Why not?"
-----
Blood pooled. She spat it from her mouth. Her shawl had been lost at some point, hair spilling everywhere, sticky red and black. A hand grabbed it, large and strong, and she bit back a scream.
"France may have lost his mind, let you out of the ghettos." whispered a voice in her ear. She would have opened her eyes to see, but they were swelling shut. "But I know better. You and your people are nothing but blights on my land. On Europe." The grip tightened, and a few hairs ripped loose. "Why do you not go back to your own country, hm?"
"I do not have one." she rasped.
The voice, at times so kind and yet now so cruel, chuckled. "That is too bad for you, da?"
Her head hit the wall, and she knew only blackness.
-----
"And then you add the thyme, just a little sprinkle, and the rice." Spain instructed Sarah, who had her shawl pushed back around her shoulders as the heat from the stove and the Iberian sun got to her. "Bueno, you're doing great!"
"You know, I could teach you how to make some of my food next." she offered, half expecting rejection. Spain gave her a wary look.
"It's not strange or anything is it?"
"You won't know until you try it." The paella sizzled in the pan, and she drew her hand back reflexively as the oil spit. "Portugal eats it."
"Alright then!" Antonio chirped happily, satisfied that if his brother could eat it, he certainly could. "Ah, got to add the spices next..."
-----
The streets of Berlin were crowded and busy, people going back and forth about their daily lives in the hurried way that only city people could pull off. Everyone dodged and moved through the human ocean in sync, and it was always obvious who was unused to it. One such person bumped into Sarah, sending her stumbling into the path of someone else. Her groceries spilled everywhere, and the two of them fell back on the ground.
"Sorry, sorry!" she apologised, gathering up her shopping.
"Nah, don't worry, I saw that jerk push you." the man she'd knocked over assured. Looking up, she took in his white-blonde hair, lanky frame and red eyes for a moment before the recognition clicked.
"Gilbert!"
He blinked. Realisation dawned suddenly and he grinned. "Sarah!" he cheered, cackling and helping her up easily, grabbing a bag of bread off the ground. "Holy shit, it's been a while! This is awesome! What brings you here?"
"My people, of course." she replied, beginning to stuff things back into her bag, Prussia handing things that had rolled away to her. "This century seems to have everyone really eager to show their nationality, huh?"
The cackle returned once again. "Are you kidding? I feel even more awesome than ever! Everyone's so proud to be German! Though to be honest the others are starting to annoy me with how obnoxious they're being about it. I could take on the whole world in a bar fight right now!"
The Jewish Nation returned the laugh. "Oh yes, I feel it too. Actually, a few of my scholars are meeting together to discuss possibly getting my land back! Herr Herzl has some promising ideas."
Prussia blinked at her. "Really? Well good luck with that, I guess." He looked around, then lowered his voice. "Though I've gotta say, things are stirring up here recently. Just some minor groups, the Kaiser's got them under control, but they don't like your kind. I think they'd see what you're planning as some kind of threat."
"It's nothing I've not dealt with before, I'm sure." Pogroms and pillaging and murders and blame pinned on her for every little thing that went wrong. "How's your brother?"
"West's doing great!" the albino grinned, hands on hips and previously cheerful tone restored. "We're going over to Austria and Hungary's house for a week tomorrow, to have a chat with his royalty, you know, the boring stuff." he pulled a face and she giggled. "Arch Duke Ferdinand wants to meet with me, and why wouldn't he, I'm awesome!"
Sarah took the bread back from him. "I hope you have fun. Say hello to Elizaveta for me, okay?"
They waved at each other, sure that things would be alright, and parted.
-----
Is there ever any way to be sure how things will turn out? In a world with so many people who are able to make so many decisions in so few seconds, is it possible to predict the future? Is it possible to pick out a single winner and a single loser in life, or do we all win and lose sometimes?
Germany was sitting on a street corner when she found him.
"Ludwig..." she said, trying to catch his attention. She crouched by his side. His clothes were worn, like that of a poor man's. He was gaunt and thin and horribly weak. His blue eyes didn't look at her. "Ludwig, are you alright?"
She received no answer. "I can't give you money, but I want to help." Still nothing. Sighing, she pressed a loaf of bread, for it was far more valuable than any currency now, into his hand, and left.
In the beer hall nearby, a dark haired man stood on a table and gave a rousing speech to underfed, overworked, poor working nationalists. Sarah dismissed the shiver she felt and pulled her shawl on tighter.
-----
She breathes in gas, and breathes out smoke, and there is not enough air to scream by.
-----
"I will give you land," said England, holding out his hand to her. "And in return, you aid me against Turkey."
She should know better than to trust empires by now.
-----
It has been many thousands of years since Nations were fertile, but she is not of this barren generation. She returns to her land, heavily pregnant, and beholds a son. And selfish as she is, she does not give him to the Lord, but treasures him and jealously regards those who dare approach and harm him.
Because she can still taste the ash in her mouth, and no water will ever wash the marks from her arm.
-----
It had been long since she had been called Israel. That country was not hers, and it had not existed. Now, it is her son's name. She takes on a different title, Diaspora, dispersion, and lives for her still-scattered people.
And it is a good thing she does, because her son needs protecting from his neighbours and she's not sure if she can trust England to do a good enough job.
-----
The fifth time it happened, Diaspora stormed Egypt's house. Not the same Egypt she struggled away from, she was long dead, her monuments the only things that remain. This young boy, that ancient empire's son, stared blankly up at her, sparking resentment in his eyes. He drank from his water bottle casually, then pretended to ignore her. From the Mediterranean, dark clouds approached.
"Hello." she greeted, Arabic perfect as she drew from the experience of her people, scattered worldwide. "I think we need to have a chat."
The liquid in his bottle swirled and turned a shade of red too bright and too thick to be water. He dropped it, and it soaked into the sand covered front steps of his house.
"... What if I do not wish to chat." he stood defiant, and there was his mother in the firm set of his lips. The thunder rumbled.
"You have studied the Qu'ran, have you not?"
-----
Germany still couldn't look her in the eye, but she found flowers on her front doorstep every 27th January.
-----
"Saaaaaaraaaaaaah~" Alfred whined, flopped on his sofa with his arm over his eyes. He seemed in quite a sorry state. "Huuuuurts..."
"Oh, don't be such a big baby." she scolds, moving his arm so she can put a cold compress to his head. The blonde stiffens, then relaxes with a sigh. "Did you have to go insulting Matthew about the hockey? Really?"
"But he was being so obnoxious about it." he groaned, peering up at her. Without Texas she probably looked like nothing more than an indistinct blur. She chuckled at him.
"You're certainly one to talk."
"He's got a really good swing with that hockey stick y'know." A drawn out, dramatic sigh. If he thought he was going to get sympathy from her for something he'd done to himself, he had another thing coming. She patted his shoulder.
"Buck up, you're fine really. Think Samson let a temple falling on his head get him down?"
America pouted. "...No..."
"That's right. And who's the hero?"
"Me."
"And what do heroes not do?"
"Lose?"
"Heroes do not laze about feeling sorry for themselves." she corrected, taking the now warm compress and planting a little kiss on his bruise, which was rapidly turning purple. "And by the way, America, since we're here, I need to discuss with you the topic of Jacob's nukes."
-----
Diaspora dumped her back in the hallway and was only half-expecting to see a certain someone on the living room sofa. She sighed.
"Palestine, get off the couch before Israel comes home." she ground out.
The bearded man gave her a grumpy look and went back to channel flicking. "Only once the expansionist little brat stops screwing around with my refugee camps."
Sarah rolled her eyes heavenward and prayed for a little patience. Just a little more. "I would be fine with you being here if you didn't just start fights with him."
He snorted. "Sarai, if you think for one minute that I'm going to get along with him just because you try and sweet talk me into it, you've become criminally stupid somehow."
"Don't call me that, and it wouldn't hurt your relationship if you, I don't know, let him know you were coming."
"And give him the chance to barricade the house? No way."
-----
The world is a wide place, and where her people tread, she treads too. But it is not often she visits China in person. In fact, she has barely seen him in the past 2000 years, since that time he came to investigate the empires of the west, and Egypt was still using her as a footstool.
"Do you ever wish to return to the old days, China?" she asks as they share tea. The only Nation in the world as old as she is drinks his tea thoughtfully.
"Sometimes, aru." he says finally. "Things were much simpler then."
"I wonder about that..." Green tea isn't really her thing, expanded pallet though she has, but she'll drink it for politeness' sake. "Sure, there were no nukes, and no massive treaties, and everything was much slower, calmer... but look at yourself, a powerful country again. And I've finally found my place."
The ancient Nations shared a look. "That is why I said sometimes, aru."
Notes (long!):
- Title: Havanah, Hebrew for "Understanding" Thanks to dudeandlulugirl for the Hebrew help!
- Rome destroyed the country of Israel in 70AD, and the people were scattered in 135AD, sold as slaves. The burning of Rome was not the end of the Empire, but definitely at the beginning of the downfall.
- The Jewish Diaspora split once they left Rome. The vast majority journeyed up to Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary, Russia and the Baltic states, and were called the Ashkenazi. Those that went to Iberia (Portugal and Spain) were called the Sephardi. While those two were the majority, some also settled in the Middle East (Mizrahim) and, much later, China (Kaifeng).
- Ironically, the word "Polska" (Poland) in Hebrew means "you should live here". Literally. I could not make that up if I tried.
- For the Jews, Europe was a very unfriendly place. They gathered in ghettos, isolated from society due to their different food laws, dress laws and ... laws in general. Their culture stood out, and they refused to simply blend with the other countries, because that would break the contract with God that they made on Mount Sinai. Also, as Jews, they were blamed for the death of Christ by many of the Medieval Christians. They weren't popular, were viewed as vermin and basically acted as scapegoat for EVERYTHING.
- Within the ghettos, however, there was little to do but farm and study. As a result, many Jews became well educated. They made leaps forward in medicine that had not been discovered in the outside world. To those from outside, it seemed that the Jews were much smarter than they were, as only the professionals left the ghettos. The Jews in the ghettos caught on that this was a good way to earn a little more respect and recognition, and worked hard to attain more status.
- The Age of Enlightenment was a big leap forward for the Jews, as the concept that all humans, Jew or gentile, were equal took hold. France, being the trend setter he is, was the first to let the Jews out of the ghettos to integrate with society, after the French Revolution.
- This idea spread across Europe, but for some reason Russia and Poland were quite resistant to it. The Jews there remained isolated, blamed for most things, and endured pogroms (racial hunts and cleansings) for many years.
- Spain and Portugal were a lot more chill with the Jews, Spanish Inquisition aside. The Sephardi Jews were much more relaxed about food and clothing laws, and in return, Spain and Portugal were much more welcoming.
- That said, things in Germany were also pretty cool until the early 1900s, when conspiracy theories about the Jews began to fly. Unaware of the coming storm, the Jews stayed where they were.
- In around 1800, Nationalism started to get on the rise. It wasn't about being equal any more, it was about being loyal to your country, to your nationality. It was in Germany that the concept of Zionism started, founded by Theodor Herzl, based on the idea that the Jews were still a people of their own no matter how far they were scattered. Unfortunately, this also brought about the idea of racial purity... for both the Jews, and the countries they stayed in...
- After the First World War, Germany got the blame for the whole war, even though it was Austria who started the chain reaction. Forced to pay reparations to, uh, everyone, Germany's economy went into a downward spiral like no other. There's a famous story of a barrel of bank notes being left out in the street. Someone stole the barrel, because it was more useful than the money.
- The man on the table in the beer hall is a reference to the Beer Hall Putch, an important rally in Hitler's rise to power.
- The British Empire promised the (Mizrahim) Jews that if they helped with intel against Turkey, they would get their land back. While England had the power to do this (since he kind of sort of owned the region) he also promised this to the Arabs who were being oppressed by Turkey at the time. When the war was over... well, the Arabs (Palestine) did not want to share. So England kicked them out like the huge douche he is.
- Modern day Israel is much different than the way Israel used to be. For one thing, it's a democracy, not a theocracy. For another thing, when it was first established, it didn't even have Jerusalem. (That was later.)
- Anyone who spotted the Biblical reference gets a free fic.
- Israel fought a metric fuckton of wars. The first one started literally days after the establishment of the Nation. Five of them included Egypt on the other side. Then Egypt rather suddenly stopped. Mysterious~...
- The first person to spot THIS biblical reference... gets a pat on the head and a cookie because it's easy.
- 27th January.
- Superman, Batman and Captain America were all designed and written by Jews. I think Diaspora must have encouraged America's hero complex a bit. XD And besides which it's cute.
- Palestine's people didn't just vanish you know. They were put into refugee camps on the borders of Israel. Those places are not nice, they are not clean, and they are not friendly. And Israel keeps making it worse. Damn it boy way to dig the hole deeper.
- Fic and art for anyone who knows the Sarai reference without wikipediaing. DON'T LIE, I'LL KNOW.
- Phew.
- If you read all these notes, congratulations. <3
Characters: Diaspora (Ancient Israel), Rome, Poland, Lithuania, North and South Italy, France, Russia, Spain, Prussia, Germany, England, Egypt, America, Palestine and China. PHEW.
Rating: 13
Warnings: Jewish history, so rampant anti-semitism in a historical context (and it should be noted right now that I don't share these views before anyone yells orz), the holocaust and really obscure bible references. Oh, and history too, but it's hetalia.
Summary: Something that came from writing up my notes on Judaism and Jewish History, and turned into a fic.
Jerusalem burned.
The Roman Empire gazed upon her.
And he cast her out.
-----
Rome burned.
Israel gazed upon it.
And set out alone.
-----
"Like, ew, she totally just touched me, Liet!" Poland cried, shaking his hand out like a child believing it had been infected with cooties. "I'm so not even kidding, if I get anything icky..."
Sarah backed up slightly. "Sorry." she mumbled, eyes lowered and hands kept close to her. "Sorry."
Lithuania analyzed her. "Maybe you should just get out of here." he urged lowly.
"Yeah, there's a reason you're in the ghettos, duh! Aren't rats meant to stay in sewers?" Poland called after her, laughing when her shoulders hunched and she started running.
-----
"Ahh! Fratello, fratello, what do we do?" North Italy fretted, running back and forth between the kitchen, nearly in tears. South Italy, sitting at the table with his head in his hands, stood abruptly from his chair, storming towards the door. "Ve, fratello, where are you going?"
"I'm going to get help any way I can." he growled, pulling on his traveling cloak and wrenching the door open with more force than probably should have been applied to such old hinges. His younger brother pursued.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm going to the ghettos." He was forced to a stop when Feliciano grabbed his arm. "Damn it Feli, what do you want?!"
"Fratello, you can't do that!" Feliciano exclaimed. "They're Jews."
"They're Jews with medicine." Lovino countered, looking just as reluctant about this as his brother felt. "And if we want to keep our king alive we're going to get a doctor that knows what they're doing!"
The two brothers argued all the way to the ghetto, and stood there arguing even outside the high walls and large wooden door. Eventually, their argument was interrupted when the door creaked open, Sarah peaking her head out. North Italy jumped behind his brother.
"Can I help you?" she asked in heavily accented Italian. Lovino swallowed.
"I-It's not like you're helpful or anything!" he blurted. "It's just we need a doctor and yours are cheap and kind of alright with medicine so you're going to help us!"
The older Nation blinked. "Uh, okay?"
"Good!" the two Italies started backing up. "J-just send him to the royal palace as soon as possible. Your best one, got it?!" And then they fled.
-----
The clouds rolled ever forwards across the sky. It would probably rain tonight, not that either of the two sitting on the hill cared. Late summer brought storms all the time, it was nothing new or special, not when they had seen so many of them over their long years.
"I wonder," said France, propping himself up on his elbows and watching the ghetto town busy about and prepare for the rain. "how it is that you are still here, Israel."
"That is not my name anymore." She didn't look at him, but instead at the sky. "But... perhaps because I am still dearly loved of Addonai?"
France laughed. "Really. Well, I suppose it might be possible, even if he cast you out of your land and destroyed your country?"
"My country, yes, but not my people." Sarah replied. On the road to town, a small boy with a cart made a mad dash for the gates before the rain could start. "No matter how we are preserved, we are still here."
The blonde man made a thoughtful noise, letting the quiet continue for a moment. "Do you think, that since I let you out of the ghettos, your people will merge with mine and start to fade?"
Thunder rumbled distantly. "You would hope so, wouldn't you?" Sarah said, no hint of bitterness but rather just of acceptance. "I hope they don't. I don't think they will." She smiled at him and peeked out from behind dark hair. "And no matter how much you want me to become one with you, I refuse."
France looked a little crestfallen. "Darn. One day, mon petit, one day." The first drops started to fall, round and fat and heavy. He stood, offering her a hand. "Until then, will you allow me to walk you home?"
She got up herself, brushing grass off her dress. "Why not?"
-----
Blood pooled. She spat it from her mouth. Her shawl had been lost at some point, hair spilling everywhere, sticky red and black. A hand grabbed it, large and strong, and she bit back a scream.
"France may have lost his mind, let you out of the ghettos." whispered a voice in her ear. She would have opened her eyes to see, but they were swelling shut. "But I know better. You and your people are nothing but blights on my land. On Europe." The grip tightened, and a few hairs ripped loose. "Why do you not go back to your own country, hm?"
"I do not have one." she rasped.
The voice, at times so kind and yet now so cruel, chuckled. "That is too bad for you, da?"
Her head hit the wall, and she knew only blackness.
-----
"And then you add the thyme, just a little sprinkle, and the rice." Spain instructed Sarah, who had her shawl pushed back around her shoulders as the heat from the stove and the Iberian sun got to her. "Bueno, you're doing great!"
"You know, I could teach you how to make some of my food next." she offered, half expecting rejection. Spain gave her a wary look.
"It's not strange or anything is it?"
"You won't know until you try it." The paella sizzled in the pan, and she drew her hand back reflexively as the oil spit. "Portugal eats it."
"Alright then!" Antonio chirped happily, satisfied that if his brother could eat it, he certainly could. "Ah, got to add the spices next..."
-----
The streets of Berlin were crowded and busy, people going back and forth about their daily lives in the hurried way that only city people could pull off. Everyone dodged and moved through the human ocean in sync, and it was always obvious who was unused to it. One such person bumped into Sarah, sending her stumbling into the path of someone else. Her groceries spilled everywhere, and the two of them fell back on the ground.
"Sorry, sorry!" she apologised, gathering up her shopping.
"Nah, don't worry, I saw that jerk push you." the man she'd knocked over assured. Looking up, she took in his white-blonde hair, lanky frame and red eyes for a moment before the recognition clicked.
"Gilbert!"
He blinked. Realisation dawned suddenly and he grinned. "Sarah!" he cheered, cackling and helping her up easily, grabbing a bag of bread off the ground. "Holy shit, it's been a while! This is awesome! What brings you here?"
"My people, of course." she replied, beginning to stuff things back into her bag, Prussia handing things that had rolled away to her. "This century seems to have everyone really eager to show their nationality, huh?"
The cackle returned once again. "Are you kidding? I feel even more awesome than ever! Everyone's so proud to be German! Though to be honest the others are starting to annoy me with how obnoxious they're being about it. I could take on the whole world in a bar fight right now!"
The Jewish Nation returned the laugh. "Oh yes, I feel it too. Actually, a few of my scholars are meeting together to discuss possibly getting my land back! Herr Herzl has some promising ideas."
Prussia blinked at her. "Really? Well good luck with that, I guess." He looked around, then lowered his voice. "Though I've gotta say, things are stirring up here recently. Just some minor groups, the Kaiser's got them under control, but they don't like your kind. I think they'd see what you're planning as some kind of threat."
"It's nothing I've not dealt with before, I'm sure." Pogroms and pillaging and murders and blame pinned on her for every little thing that went wrong. "How's your brother?"
"West's doing great!" the albino grinned, hands on hips and previously cheerful tone restored. "We're going over to Austria and Hungary's house for a week tomorrow, to have a chat with his royalty, you know, the boring stuff." he pulled a face and she giggled. "Arch Duke Ferdinand wants to meet with me, and why wouldn't he, I'm awesome!"
Sarah took the bread back from him. "I hope you have fun. Say hello to Elizaveta for me, okay?"
They waved at each other, sure that things would be alright, and parted.
-----
Is there ever any way to be sure how things will turn out? In a world with so many people who are able to make so many decisions in so few seconds, is it possible to predict the future? Is it possible to pick out a single winner and a single loser in life, or do we all win and lose sometimes?
Germany was sitting on a street corner when she found him.
"Ludwig..." she said, trying to catch his attention. She crouched by his side. His clothes were worn, like that of a poor man's. He was gaunt and thin and horribly weak. His blue eyes didn't look at her. "Ludwig, are you alright?"
She received no answer. "I can't give you money, but I want to help." Still nothing. Sighing, she pressed a loaf of bread, for it was far more valuable than any currency now, into his hand, and left.
In the beer hall nearby, a dark haired man stood on a table and gave a rousing speech to underfed, overworked, poor working nationalists. Sarah dismissed the shiver she felt and pulled her shawl on tighter.
-----
She breathes in gas, and breathes out smoke, and there is not enough air to scream by.
-----
"I will give you land," said England, holding out his hand to her. "And in return, you aid me against Turkey."
She should know better than to trust empires by now.
-----
It has been many thousands of years since Nations were fertile, but she is not of this barren generation. She returns to her land, heavily pregnant, and beholds a son. And selfish as she is, she does not give him to the Lord, but treasures him and jealously regards those who dare approach and harm him.
Because she can still taste the ash in her mouth, and no water will ever wash the marks from her arm.
-----
It had been long since she had been called Israel. That country was not hers, and it had not existed. Now, it is her son's name. She takes on a different title, Diaspora, dispersion, and lives for her still-scattered people.
And it is a good thing she does, because her son needs protecting from his neighbours and she's not sure if she can trust England to do a good enough job.
-----
The fifth time it happened, Diaspora stormed Egypt's house. Not the same Egypt she struggled away from, she was long dead, her monuments the only things that remain. This young boy, that ancient empire's son, stared blankly up at her, sparking resentment in his eyes. He drank from his water bottle casually, then pretended to ignore her. From the Mediterranean, dark clouds approached.
"Hello." she greeted, Arabic perfect as she drew from the experience of her people, scattered worldwide. "I think we need to have a chat."
The liquid in his bottle swirled and turned a shade of red too bright and too thick to be water. He dropped it, and it soaked into the sand covered front steps of his house.
"... What if I do not wish to chat." he stood defiant, and there was his mother in the firm set of his lips. The thunder rumbled.
"You have studied the Qu'ran, have you not?"
-----
Germany still couldn't look her in the eye, but she found flowers on her front doorstep every 27th January.
-----
"Saaaaaaraaaaaaah~" Alfred whined, flopped on his sofa with his arm over his eyes. He seemed in quite a sorry state. "Huuuuurts..."
"Oh, don't be such a big baby." she scolds, moving his arm so she can put a cold compress to his head. The blonde stiffens, then relaxes with a sigh. "Did you have to go insulting Matthew about the hockey? Really?"
"But he was being so obnoxious about it." he groaned, peering up at her. Without Texas she probably looked like nothing more than an indistinct blur. She chuckled at him.
"You're certainly one to talk."
"He's got a really good swing with that hockey stick y'know." A drawn out, dramatic sigh. If he thought he was going to get sympathy from her for something he'd done to himself, he had another thing coming. She patted his shoulder.
"Buck up, you're fine really. Think Samson let a temple falling on his head get him down?"
America pouted. "...No..."
"That's right. And who's the hero?"
"Me."
"And what do heroes not do?"
"Lose?"
"Heroes do not laze about feeling sorry for themselves." she corrected, taking the now warm compress and planting a little kiss on his bruise, which was rapidly turning purple. "And by the way, America, since we're here, I need to discuss with you the topic of Jacob's nukes."
-----
Diaspora dumped her back in the hallway and was only half-expecting to see a certain someone on the living room sofa. She sighed.
"Palestine, get off the couch before Israel comes home." she ground out.
The bearded man gave her a grumpy look and went back to channel flicking. "Only once the expansionist little brat stops screwing around with my refugee camps."
Sarah rolled her eyes heavenward and prayed for a little patience. Just a little more. "I would be fine with you being here if you didn't just start fights with him."
He snorted. "Sarai, if you think for one minute that I'm going to get along with him just because you try and sweet talk me into it, you've become criminally stupid somehow."
"Don't call me that, and it wouldn't hurt your relationship if you, I don't know, let him know you were coming."
"And give him the chance to barricade the house? No way."
-----
The world is a wide place, and where her people tread, she treads too. But it is not often she visits China in person. In fact, she has barely seen him in the past 2000 years, since that time he came to investigate the empires of the west, and Egypt was still using her as a footstool.
"Do you ever wish to return to the old days, China?" she asks as they share tea. The only Nation in the world as old as she is drinks his tea thoughtfully.
"Sometimes, aru." he says finally. "Things were much simpler then."
"I wonder about that..." Green tea isn't really her thing, expanded pallet though she has, but she'll drink it for politeness' sake. "Sure, there were no nukes, and no massive treaties, and everything was much slower, calmer... but look at yourself, a powerful country again. And I've finally found my place."
The ancient Nations shared a look. "That is why I said sometimes, aru."
Notes (long!):
- Title: Havanah, Hebrew for "Understanding" Thanks to dudeandlulugirl for the Hebrew help!
- Rome destroyed the country of Israel in 70AD, and the people were scattered in 135AD, sold as slaves. The burning of Rome was not the end of the Empire, but definitely at the beginning of the downfall.
- The Jewish Diaspora split once they left Rome. The vast majority journeyed up to Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary, Russia and the Baltic states, and were called the Ashkenazi. Those that went to Iberia (Portugal and Spain) were called the Sephardi. While those two were the majority, some also settled in the Middle East (Mizrahim) and, much later, China (Kaifeng).
- Ironically, the word "Polska" (Poland) in Hebrew means "you should live here". Literally. I could not make that up if I tried.
- For the Jews, Europe was a very unfriendly place. They gathered in ghettos, isolated from society due to their different food laws, dress laws and ... laws in general. Their culture stood out, and they refused to simply blend with the other countries, because that would break the contract with God that they made on Mount Sinai. Also, as Jews, they were blamed for the death of Christ by many of the Medieval Christians. They weren't popular, were viewed as vermin and basically acted as scapegoat for EVERYTHING.
- Within the ghettos, however, there was little to do but farm and study. As a result, many Jews became well educated. They made leaps forward in medicine that had not been discovered in the outside world. To those from outside, it seemed that the Jews were much smarter than they were, as only the professionals left the ghettos. The Jews in the ghettos caught on that this was a good way to earn a little more respect and recognition, and worked hard to attain more status.
- The Age of Enlightenment was a big leap forward for the Jews, as the concept that all humans, Jew or gentile, were equal took hold. France, being the trend setter he is, was the first to let the Jews out of the ghettos to integrate with society, after the French Revolution.
- This idea spread across Europe, but for some reason Russia and Poland were quite resistant to it. The Jews there remained isolated, blamed for most things, and endured pogroms (racial hunts and cleansings) for many years.
- Spain and Portugal were a lot more chill with the Jews, Spanish Inquisition aside. The Sephardi Jews were much more relaxed about food and clothing laws, and in return, Spain and Portugal were much more welcoming.
- That said, things in Germany were also pretty cool until the early 1900s, when conspiracy theories about the Jews began to fly. Unaware of the coming storm, the Jews stayed where they were.
- In around 1800, Nationalism started to get on the rise. It wasn't about being equal any more, it was about being loyal to your country, to your nationality. It was in Germany that the concept of Zionism started, founded by Theodor Herzl, based on the idea that the Jews were still a people of their own no matter how far they were scattered. Unfortunately, this also brought about the idea of racial purity... for both the Jews, and the countries they stayed in...
- After the First World War, Germany got the blame for the whole war, even though it was Austria who started the chain reaction. Forced to pay reparations to, uh, everyone, Germany's economy went into a downward spiral like no other. There's a famous story of a barrel of bank notes being left out in the street. Someone stole the barrel, because it was more useful than the money.
- The man on the table in the beer hall is a reference to the Beer Hall Putch, an important rally in Hitler's rise to power.
- The British Empire promised the (Mizrahim) Jews that if they helped with intel against Turkey, they would get their land back. While England had the power to do this (since he kind of sort of owned the region) he also promised this to the Arabs who were being oppressed by Turkey at the time. When the war was over... well, the Arabs (Palestine) did not want to share. So England kicked them out like the huge douche he is.
- Modern day Israel is much different than the way Israel used to be. For one thing, it's a democracy, not a theocracy. For another thing, when it was first established, it didn't even have Jerusalem. (That was later.)
- Anyone who spotted the Biblical reference gets a free fic.
- Israel fought a metric fuckton of wars. The first one started literally days after the establishment of the Nation. Five of them included Egypt on the other side. Then Egypt rather suddenly stopped. Mysterious~...
- The first person to spot THIS biblical reference... gets a pat on the head and a cookie because it's easy.
- 27th January.
- Superman, Batman and Captain America were all designed and written by Jews. I think Diaspora must have encouraged America's hero complex a bit. XD And besides which it's cute.
- Palestine's people didn't just vanish you know. They were put into refugee camps on the borders of Israel. Those places are not nice, they are not clean, and they are not friendly. And Israel keeps making it worse. Damn it boy way to dig the hole deeper.
- Fic and art for anyone who knows the Sarai reference without wikipediaing. DON'T LIE, I'LL KNOW.
- Phew.
- If you read all these notes, congratulations. <3