The next day went like the end to any other meeting of countries.
(Eduard could not quite believe Matthew’s e-mail, had trouble reading the words on the page. But he followed the request. He sent it to all the Nations except those Matthew had indicated, all bundled up in encryptions and firewalls to make sure it couldn’t be traced.)
Ivan smiled at his fellow Nations and congratulated them all for a very successful meeting; they smiled back and waved, and he couldn’t help but wonder why their smiles were so tense.
(Katyusha cried, and her sobs made her body jerk so hard she thought she’d pull herself apart with the force of it. Natalia held her, yes, but the arms were a numb, heavy weight over her shoulders, her eyes still fixed on the screen, unwilling to acknowledge the terrible, terrible actions of her beloved brother as anything but a horrible nightmare.)
Feliciano laughed, lifting a forkful of pasta up to Ludwig’s face; and he laughed loud enough to drown out Ludwig’s lectures that it was unsanitary, over Lovino’s shouting to stop encouraging the potato bastard. But Feliciano couldn’t help but hear Gilbert’s laughter, quiet and dark and easy and not forced, like his.
(Roderich knew that his wife was sleeping when he walked into her house and saw Elizaveta sharpening her sword; he saw her green eyes filled with dark and flint and fire - and also sadness. Oh, boys, he though, shutting his eyes, what have you done?)
Kiku and Yao parted ways in the airport, walking to opposite terminals. And so it goes, they both think; they were united in this one purpose, this one attempt to reeducate Alfred and teach him a lesson. Tomorrow, nothing would be changed.
(Khîm chewed the skin of her cheek and felt tears trickling down her cheekbones. Already she knew that Yong-Soo and her brother back in Hong Kong would reject the news, maybe even delete the message without reading it. But she remembered Alfred’s kindness from long ago, his warm smiles and his help in maintaining her democracy, and she couldn’t help but ask her ancestors to watch over him.)
Francis leaned back in his chair, waiting for his number and zone to be called, and sorted through his e-mail with his cell phone. He smirked and stopped himself from looking at his photos. There’d be plenty of time for that later.
(Carolien didn’t cry, but rather sat at her table and waited for Leone to contact her. Her eyes were narrowed and her lips pursed; she was not happy, but she was not surprised, and it saddened her because Leone would be. And Carolien had a sinking feeling that the first words she would say to Leone would be, “I told you so.”)
England leaned back in his chair and shut his eyes, letting peace and a sort of satisfaction wash over him. Alfred had to learn, he thought, he can’t go on believing we’ll support his every screw-up. I’m sure he’ll thank us for this someday. With that cheering thought in mind, he lifted his hand to buy a drink.
(Peter threw his ball, watching Hana-Tamago bolt after it on short legs, and it broke Tino’s heart, knowing that his happiness would be shattered so soon when he’d found out what his “jerk brother” had done. He looked up into Sweden’s eyes, and he felt his own resolve harden at what he saw. This could not go unpunished.)
The sun shone, and life went on as usual.
(Beneath the surface, the shock and sadness shifted to anger, to a thirst for justice.) ___
“Toris, I…I brought you some food.”
“You can come in, Matthew, he’s still asleep.” Toris ran his fingers through Alfred’s hair, squeezing one of Alfred’s hands with his other, trying to soothe and smooth the hurt away as best he can.
Matthew nodded, walking into the room with his head down, and Toris looked up to see a plate of pancakes, a bowl filled with plain vanilla yogurt, and more syringes filled with sedatives. Toris watched as Matthew took a seat on the opposite side of the bed, setting the tray down on the bedside table. “How is his fever?”
Ukraine - Katyusha
Vietnam - Khîm
Belgium - Carolien
Seychelles - Leone
___
The next day went like the end to any other meeting of countries.
(Eduard could not quite believe Matthew’s e-mail, had trouble reading the words on the page. But he followed the request. He sent it to all the Nations except those Matthew had indicated, all bundled up in encryptions and firewalls to make sure it couldn’t be traced.)
Ivan smiled at his fellow Nations and congratulated them all for a very successful meeting; they smiled back and waved, and he couldn’t help but wonder why their smiles were so tense.
(Katyusha cried, and her sobs made her body jerk so hard she thought she’d pull herself apart with the force of it. Natalia held her, yes, but the arms were a numb, heavy weight over her shoulders, her eyes still fixed on the screen, unwilling to acknowledge the terrible, terrible actions of her beloved brother as anything but a horrible nightmare.)
Feliciano laughed, lifting a forkful of pasta up to Ludwig’s face; and he laughed loud enough to drown out Ludwig’s lectures that it was unsanitary, over Lovino’s shouting to stop encouraging the potato bastard. But Feliciano couldn’t help but hear Gilbert’s laughter, quiet and dark and easy and not forced, like his.
(Roderich knew that his wife was sleeping when he walked into her house and saw Elizaveta sharpening her sword; he saw her green eyes filled with dark and flint and fire - and also sadness. Oh, boys, he though, shutting his eyes, what have you done?)
Kiku and Yao parted ways in the airport, walking to opposite terminals. And so it goes, they both think; they were united in this one purpose, this one attempt to reeducate Alfred and teach him a lesson. Tomorrow, nothing would be changed.
(Khîm chewed the skin of her cheek and felt tears trickling down her cheekbones. Already she knew that Yong-Soo and her brother back in Hong Kong would reject the news, maybe even delete the message without reading it. But she remembered Alfred’s kindness from long ago, his warm smiles and his help in maintaining her democracy, and she couldn’t help but ask her ancestors to watch over him.)
Francis leaned back in his chair, waiting for his number and zone to be called, and sorted through his e-mail with his cell phone. He smirked and stopped himself from looking at his photos. There’d be plenty of time for that later.
(Carolien didn’t cry, but rather sat at her table and waited for Leone to contact her. Her eyes were narrowed and her lips pursed; she was not happy, but she was not surprised, and it saddened her because Leone would be. And Carolien had a sinking feeling that the first words she would say to Leone would be, “I told you so.”)
England leaned back in his chair and shut his eyes, letting peace and a sort of satisfaction wash over him. Alfred had to learn, he thought, he can’t go on believing we’ll support his every screw-up. I’m sure he’ll thank us for this someday. With that cheering thought in mind, he lifted his hand to buy a drink.
(Peter threw his ball, watching Hana-Tamago bolt after it on short legs, and it broke Tino’s heart, knowing that his happiness would be shattered so soon when he’d found out what his “jerk brother” had done. He looked up into Sweden’s eyes, and he felt his own resolve harden at what he saw. This could not go unpunished.)
The sun shone, and life went on as usual.
(Beneath the surface, the shock and sadness shifted to anger, to a thirst for justice.)
___
“Toris, I…I brought you some food.”
“You can come in, Matthew, he’s still asleep.” Toris ran his fingers through Alfred’s hair, squeezing one of Alfred’s hands with his other, trying to soothe and smooth the hurt away as best he can.
Matthew nodded, walking into the room with his head down, and Toris looked up to see a plate of pancakes, a bowl filled with plain vanilla yogurt, and more syringes filled with sedatives. Toris watched as Matthew took a seat on the opposite side of the bed, setting the tray down on the bedside table. “How is his fever?”
Toris grimaced. “No change.”
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And Gilbert, Francis and Ivan really see nothing wrong with this at all. ._. They don't need extra convincing. That's...pretty creepy.
I also love your characterizations! I am now stalking bookmarking this fill. :P
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