Rated M for gore.
Beta'd by Eternal Fauna.
Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya
Hola, mis amigos. You are about to read a horrifying story that shows humanity at its worst and darkest. I would give you more warning, but that would ruin the surprise, da? In any case, to know this story, you must first hear this old campfire tale…
July 8, 2006
San Diego, California
Wang residence
"This camping trip is so awesome!" Ten-year-old Yong Soo declared.
His twin brother, Hyung Soo, shook his head in exasperation. "You moron. We're only pitching a tent in the backyard. Mei will probably even get scared overnight and run back in."
"I will not!" Mei protested, a tenacious little girl at the tender age of seven.
"I'm sure she won't," Cheng said soothingly before a fight could erupt.
Though he was only eight, he was still one of the main voices of reason in the family, Kiku being the other. Kiku, though, had been growing rather distant lately, but it had been brushed off as puberty and such, as the boy was thirteen.
"We can, like, lit a campfire and tell scary stories," Li Xiang suggested, a mischievous and cheerful six year old.
"Aiya, absolutely not!" Their eldest brother, Yao, yelled.
Him being the eldest at 17, he was the role model for his younger siblings, though some didn't see him as such. He would soon be going off to college, much to the distress of the twins, as they were very attached to their eldest brother.
Mei pouted. "But it'll be so fun!" She gave Yao her big cutie eyes that could melt even the coldest hearts. "Please, ge-ge?"
Yao's gaze softened at the sight of her. "Aiya… fine..."
A cheer erupted from Mei, Li Xiang, and Yong Soo. Li Xiang, in particular, gave Yao a big hug.
Yao sighed. "The things I do for you."
Li Xiang smiled at him sweetly, with wide eyes.
Yao smiled back. "You little rugrat. Imagine what would happen if that dear smile ever disappeared off your cute little face… I wouldn't be able to bear it!"
Li Xiang giggled, and motioned for Yao to pick him up. Yao complied, though he groaned as he picked him up.
"Aiya, you're getting heavier and heavier every day! My poor back, it's aching. You know, soon you'll be a teenager, getting into trouble…"
Li Xiang pouted.
Yao giggled. "But of course you wouldn't do that, would you? Because you're my good little boy, my sweet Xiang-xiang."
"Nii-san!" Kiku called, "The fire is ready. We took all the necessary precautions, I ensured it."
Yao smiled. Putting down Li Xiang, he examined the fire. "Looks safe… but did you pull up some grass from the lawn?"
Kiku looked guilty. "It was the only option. I did not wish for the yard to be set on fire."
"Very well then. But ma-ma will be furious."
"C'mon!" Yong Soo yelled, "You two need to have some fun. Let's sit down and tell scary stories!"
The siblings arranged themselves into a semicircle, with Li Xiang on Yao's lap and Mei on Kiku's lap.
"Now…" Yong Soo grinned in an attempt at being creepy. It ended up looking like he was constipated. "Aniki will tell the first story…"
Yao looked a bit exasperated with Yong Soo's antics, but he grudgingly agreed.
"Once upon a time, a young man came to that town from a foreign land. He had met a girl when she went on vacation to his native land. The two had fallen in love, and the young man had vowed to come to the States so that he could become wealthy and marry her.
"Unfortunately, the girl's father had already promised her to another, an older, more successful army veteran. And the girl was beautiful, so the veteran wished very much to marry her. But the girl loved the young man with all her heart.
"One day, the young man told the girl that he had found a way he could get wealthy. He said that he would be going off to South America with some acquaintances, and when he came back, they were to be married.
"Oh, how the girl rejoiced! Soon, she was to be married to the love of her life! But the young man did not return, day in and day out. The girl refused to be married to the veteran, for she loved the young man with all her heart.
"And then, bad news came on dark wings. The young man had been found lying in a hunter's pit, half of his body gone."
Mei gave a terrified squeak at this.
Yao smiled at her reassuringly, before continuing. "Everyone in the town believed that the young man had been trying to steal dead animals from the hunter's traps, and dismissed the matter quickly. The girl's father then demanded that she marry the veteran.
"But the girl refused to believe that her beloved had been stealing. She also refused to marry the veteran, for she knew that he had a bad heart, unlike that of her love. The girl ran away from home, and began to search for the true reason that her beloved died, for she knew that it had been... murder."
There was a pause as Yao completed his story. Then Yong Soo began talking.
"But aniki," He whined, "It wasn't even that scary!"
Mei shot him a dirty look. "I liked it! It wasn't too scary, and it was roma-ronam-ro-ro…" She scrunched up her face. "That word is hard!"
"Romantic," Kiku suggested.
Mei beamed. "Yep! It was ro-man-tic!"
Yong Soo gagged. "I hate romantic stories."
Mei let out a horrified gasp, before proceeding to bicker with Yong Soo.
As the sibling's voices filled the empty night and the fire crackled on, there was a certain sense of comfort and home, chasing away the darkness that haunts this cruel, bitter world...
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