A/N: So I was looking through old stuff, and I found my 2010 NaNoWriMo novel. The story wasn't all that bad. As I read through what I'd written, I noticed that some of the characters seemed to fit the characters of Hetalia, so I've decided to rewrite this using Hetalia characters and readjusting the plotline slightly. So here is the result.

WARNING: THIS IS EXTREMELY AU. I ORGINALLY WROTE IT AS AN ORIGINAL STORY WITH ORIGINAL CHARACTERS.

The Characters You Meet in this Chapter that need explaining:

Irena Edelstein: fem!Lithuania, daughter of Roddy and another character who you'll find out about later (but whoever gets it right gets a request from me =))

Sofija Galante: fem!Latvia

Chiara Vargas: fem!Romano; she'll be a little crueler than Romano

Alice Vargas: fem!Italy; she'll be much tougher than Italy, since Hima-papa said himself that she's tougher

Felicja: fem!Poland; you'll just have to wait and see what she is =)

And that should be it for this chapter. Let me know if you have more questions.

Chapter 1: Nefarious Doings

The Ancient Order of the Dragon Riders had not accepted a member as of fief Viennel an apprentice for five centuries. They had never accepted a female from house Viennel as well. Irena Edelstein was the first. It was quite a shock, as Irena was not the most adventurous person by far, but she was a very curious and cautious girl. She tested the bounds of her new identity, but she dared not cross them. She was never an arrogant person, and she never would be.

Her friends Alice Vargas and Chiara Vargas of Chigi would often enjoy goading her into testing those limits and being a noble girl. Little Sofija Galante, another friend, would timidly follow along, but she would never push Irena like the twins did. Irena knew how to deal with the twins from experience, so the four had a wonderful, if unconventional, friendship. The four often went out of the Citadel to explore the outer city in their spare time.

On another one of their outings, Alice gleefully pulled them over to a witch's stand of little trinkets.

"Perhaps an amulet for Irena? You may find a lover yet, ve~" Alice teased, her merry amber eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Idiot Alice, Irena has many men chasing after her and her lands," interjected Chiara.

"Oh sorella, you're no fun!'

"Ay," replied Sofija sadly, "Irena has Lord Ivan seeking for her hand."

"But what if I do not seek a lover?" Irena smiled and studied the amulet. The simple mention of Ivan of Ruskya gave her mouth a bitter taste. "'Tis but a trinket, Alice. Perhaps you wish to find a lover yourself? Or even one for Chiara, perhaps."

"I believe Chiara already has one," said Alice mischievously. Her curls bounced wildly as she took the amulet from Irena. "After all, Antonio follows her everywhere."

Chiara snorted. "That bastard dragon never leaves me alone."

"Ah yes," Alice added with a grin. "My dear Chiara has a funny little champion."

"NOOOO! Please! Not my child, Gods, no!"

They turned around to see a frantic serf reaching out to a little boy who was being pulled away from her grasp. Two mages of the Academy repeatedly pushed the woman away. The child cried out for his mother, but the mages ignored the pleadings. As they dragged the boy away, Irena's heart shattered. The mother was instantly silenced by one of the guards. No one took notice of the crimson stain of cobblestones and the nearby wooden boxes. Only two dogs ventured to whine at the woman's side

The previously amused expression on Chiara's face had curdled. Her quick hazel eyes scanned the area. Without any attempt to hide her distain, she led the other girls away from the horrendous scene. They followed Chiara, not caring where they were headed. Not one of them made a sound as they fled the marketplace. Their faces were clouded with then doubts of people who have been sheltered from the dark for many years and their eyes were haunted by the sight they had seen.

When they had returned to the Citadel, Alice rushed to her chambers at the Academy while the other girls dashed to the dragon stables. The moment they reached the stables, their dragons sensed their distress. Felicja clamored at Irena for more details, but the girl tried to convince her dragon that all was well. Felicja did not buy it.

"Irena, like, talk to me!" she growled.

With a sigh, she trudged to Felicja's stall as the dragon's words turned harsh.

Irena stroked her snout gently. "It is alright, Felicja. There were some unpleasant events."

In as succinct terms as possible, she quickly explained terrible actions of the mages to Felicja. Felicja's large, reptilian green eyes watched Irena with a cool, prying gaze. During her recantation, Felicja uttered not a single word, but listened very intently. The dragon was a creature of beauty, both inside and out. Her clear, bright scales shimmered wherever she proudly walked or flew. Her powerful wings could carry them everywhere. Felicja was usually bursting with energy and words, but for once, she quietly listened to Irena.

When Irena had finished, Felicja gazed at her thoughtfully for a long time. Finally, she gave a long sigh, or as close to a sigh as dragons can manage. In the dragon's eyes was a glumness Irena had never seen before. Irena was quite shocked, as Felicja was almost never unhappy.

"This is, like, totally depressing," Felicja replied sadly.

Irena smiled wistfully. "What happens happens, Felicja," The girl whispered in the human tongue.

A bell for afternoon prayers rang in the distance, and the young warrior quickly bid her dragon farewell.

Alice slumped wearily into a cushioned chair in her private chambers at the Academy. What she had seen this afternoon in the marketplace was most distressing to her, and she felt disgusted with how her fellow mages had handled the situation. Inwardly, she knew that the mages had been operating upon those standards since the beginning of the Academy. Serfs were despicable. She had been taught that as a young child. They were the main cause of problems of Metalia, and they were even lower than the dogs. Every child of the upper classes knew this.

But today, she could not help but question the validity of those statements.

With a slight grimace, she picked up scrying crystal and recited the incantation that would allow her to see her sister. Chiara seemed fine, barely affected by the events of the afternoon. It was no surprise. Even since they had been young, Chiara had been often noted as apathetic and heartless to many things. Though Alice wanted to defend her twin, she knew it was the truth. Chiara was often indifferent to the suffering of others. Alice strived to do enough good for both of them.

She put down the crystal and eased herself off of the chair to leave her chambers. She had some questions that needed to be answered.

A/N: Yes, we have three characters who are dragons so far. What did you think? I also named the country Metalia before I watche Hetalia. xD So haha.

And yeah, this is extremely AU, I know. But if you're patient, all will be explained in good time.

Reviews make me happy =).