Hi, guys! Blaze here with another story, and this is one that I've been dying to write for months! This is partly inspired by the game Deltarune, so don't be surprised if you see some similarities in the story. Pairings are undecided. I've always wanted to try something with the 2P World (although it has a different name in this story), so I'm glad I finally wrote this. Oh, and I'll update my other stuff in the weekend in case you're curious. Well, I hope you enjoy this first chapter. Now, on with the show!
(Deltarune OST: School)
America's not gonna lie, he's pretty much super-duper BORED out of his mind right now… Yeah, what a shocker, right?
First off, he didn't get to present another one of his super awesome ideas, even though he's the country hosting this time, because of some mishap with Prussia and Gilbird that ended up cutting half the usual meeting time. America would've tried to call Tony to ask him to download the presentation into another flash drive and fly to his location, but Germany practically insisted that there wasn't time.
Bullcrap! And he brought a good one too! Tony and his buddies from all over the galaxy were going to help create a black hole that only sucked up dirty air, the heat trapped in the atmosphere, and ISIS members! No, really, they could do that! It's actually a lot less complicated than it sounded!
Well, Tony's gonna be disappointed, that's for sure…
Second, politics. Politics, politics, politics… Don't get him started on the politics. Same old, same old… It didn't help that every time he'd try to think too much about certain issues, he'd get a splitting headache and end up contradicting himself. America did have his own opinions, but boy did his people affect him sometimes…
Today was… a little less terrible than usual. Today the only people he argued with were a couple dozen members of the European Union. America had already blocked out most of the argument from his memory but he's pretty sure it had something to do with them being angry for not helping convince his boss to sign some stupid pact or something...
Canada sided with them, of course, to no one's surprise. And then at some point, America got sick of getting crap for putting free speech and his peoples' safety first, and he stormed out of the room… Oh, and he might want to call a repairman later… He often forgets about his own strength.
But at least they were on break now, and for a long while too (thank god), so America was free to sit back, relax, and try to not kill someone.
He sighed and leaned against the wall.
And while he's at it, he'll try not to die of boredom too.
Boy, what he'd give to go AWOL for the day. Wait, now that he thought about it, what's stopping him from up and leave to flee to his special place? Sure, his boss probably won't be happy to hear that he skipped half of the meeting but screw it. His boss wasn't here, and no one here had the authority to order him around. Yeah, he'll ditch work and then he'll leave to see-
"So, you got shit thrown at you by the EU too?"
America nearly screamed, but he didn't (again thank god), and he jumped, before he whirled around to find a really frazzled and pissed-off looking Hungary.
He relaxed, but he couldn't help but feel off-put by her… pretty scary appearance. America liked Hungary, she was one of the few nations who more or less shared his brand of crazy, but wow, she looked kind of worse for wear. Did she get into another argument with Germany again?
"Hey, don't scare me like that, dude!" America exclaimed in alarm, holding his chest.
"I wasn't trying to scare you." Hungary pointed out, and she seemed to be struggling not to smile at his expense. "You were the one grumbling to yourself planning everyone's doom."
"Still not cool, dude." America crossed his arms with a huff, and Hungary managed to smile. "And I so wasn't planning anything… yet… A-Anyway, what happened to you, Hungary? Did Germany, England, France and co. give you a hard time again?"
Hungary's smile vanished, and her expression morphed into a bitter scowl as she sat down next to him. "You have no idea. You know the plot, 'blah, blah, let them in, blah, blah, we'll fine you if you don't, blah, blah, blah, you're an evil witch'. And yeah, I know it sounds like another typical day in the EU, but it got really heated… and I won't deny that it was mostly my fault this time…"
America would've laughed at her summary of things, but he narrowed his eyes when he saw her remorseful expression. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"Well, Germany, England and France tried to kill me…" Hungary said nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal, but America was immediately concerned.
"Wait. You mean normal nation fighting or a literal attempt to temporarily off ya?" America asked worriedly, cause there was a difference. And he got into enough spats with China and North Korea to know that.
Hungary hummed, and then cringed. "I'll be honest with you. I'm not really sure…"
"But what caused them to go nuts on you in the first place, dude?"
"I…" Hungary bit her lip, hesitating, and she frowned at him. "I didn't mean for things to end that way, you know. It was kind of uncalled for, but I was just so frustrated and angry that I snapped and-"
"Dude, we've all been there." America remarked, recalling the times when he'd snap… boy, those weren't pretty… "What'd you do?"
"…I may have… mockingly mentioned the New Year's Eve Cologne mass sexual assaults to Germany's face and taunted and berated him about it." Hungary laughed nervously, but her face fell and she wringed her hands nervously. "That, and I mentioned the Manchester Arena bombing to England… and the many terrorist incidents in France…"
Oh…. god.
America's mouth dropped. "You did not."
"I did."
"You did not."
"Oh, but I did!" Hungary insisted with an apologetic smile. While America was torn between facepalming or scolding her, he let her have her moment. "You wouldn't believe how fast they snapped! I'm pretty sure I heard his mind crack and I think I saw a vein pop in Germany's head. But anyway, we screamed at each other, Germany even tried to punch me…"
"Germany tried to punch you?" America's voice raised a few octaves, but he was too shocked to be embarrassed. "Oh my gosh, are you-"
"But I'm fine, really! He missed and hit the wall instead!" Hungary quickly assured him, eyes widening, and America sighed in relief. "Anyway, Feliks helped me escape while we tricked those three into beating each other up, and now I'm here with you."
Wow… European politics were crazy…
"Cool…" America felt that was the only he could say after a story like that, but then he moved on to another topic. "Which reminds me, why'd ya approach me instead of Feliks or someone you can chill out with?"
"Feliks ran off to Toris to defend him from Russia again, and Czech is out on a 'date' with Slovakia. But there's two reasons…" Hungary held up two fingers and gave a friendly smile. "The first reason is that I figured I'd do something before you destroy the whole building."
"What's the second reason then?"
"Maybe I wanted to talk with someone else who's feeling fed up like me… especially when they're struggling with the same thing… like a kindred spirit…" Hungary responded in a quieter tone, a small blush appearing on her cheeks. It wasn't that hot here, was it? "You don't think we're the only ones here frustrated with the shitty world of politics, do you?"
"Nah…" America shook his head, and he leaned his head on his hand. "I think a lot of people are sick of it, but they either don't want to admit it or are better are at hiding it than we are."
"Was it that obvious?" America muttered, though he quickly regretted how rude he sounded.
Luckily, Hungary seemed to ignore it as she snorted and offered a sardonic smile. "You looked like you were either about to fling a table at someone or throw the first person who annoys you out the window to their temporary doom. I saw Cuba walk towards you several minutes ago to taunt you, but your oozing anger sent him running. So yeah, a little."
"Oh…" America said lamely, no wonder he thought he smelled cigarettes a while back.
"So, you don't mind? Hanging out with a fellow tormented soul, I mean."
"Nope, not at all." America smiled, and Hungary cracked a grin. "So, what can the hero do to ease your troubles, Liz?"
Hungary giggled, and she grinned slyly. "So it's Liz now? I know we're supposed to be bonding, but I thought you would've at least started with Elizaveta."
"Well, ya called me Alfred earlier and I thought…" America stopped himself, and he stupidly began to panic. "But, I mean, if you're not cool with it then-"
Hungary smirked and nudged him playfully. "Oh, don't worry, I'm cool with it, Al."
America flushed, and he crossed his arms grumpily. "Not cool, dude…"
"Aw, don't get angry." Hungary snickered. "I was just teasing you."
"Yeah, yeah, I know…" America mumbled, and his expression softened when he realized that Hungary was happily smiling and laughing. "At least it's helping cheer you up, dude. That's a good thing."
Hungary briefly stopped her grinning and snickering when realization dawned on her that, yes, she was feeling like her old self again. "Oh, you're right!"
Hungary put her hand on her chin as she put on a pensive expression. "Well, for starters, I think that before we do anything, we should we vent out all our frustrations, anger, etc. so we'll be able to have fun later."
"Good point." America nodded, and he stroked his chin in thought. "Okay, let's start ranting. Uh, wait, but how do we rant about the other nations without the other nations hearing us, yelling at us for it, and make us feel all grumpy and angry again?"
Hungary deflated. "Oh… right…"
And so, they tried to come up with an idea…
Then it hit America.
A light bulb went off over his head as a genius idea came to him, and he snapped his fingers, getting Hungary's attention. "Ooh, ooh! I got it! We just have to use something to scream on so that no one will understand what we're saying!"
Hungary opened her mouth, and it seemed to hit her too. "That's… a really good idea! So, what do we use?"
"Well, I remember this one episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender, which, by the way, is an awesome show." America added cheerfully with a wide grin "Totally recommend it, you won't regret it! It's pure awesomeness! Oh, but don't tell Gilbert I said that."
"Alfred-"
"Even though it was made over a decade ago, it's still and always be timeless!"
"The animation and fight scenes are spectacular, the characters are great and memorable, and it has everything from action, drama, romance, adventure, comedy-"
"Alfred." Hungary raised her voice, and America stopped his great in-depth explanation of why ATLA was awesome. She smiled. "I'm sure it is an amazing show. I'll even watch it when I get back home. But what were you about to say about an episode that's supposed to help us…?"
Oops, he got a little distracted. America laughed. "Heh, sorry. Anyway, in the episode 'Nightmares and Daydreams', Aang, the main character, was all super stressed out because he was about to fight the big bad of the series. His friends all tried to help him, and one of them, Sokka, suggested that he try screaming into a koala sheep."
"A koala… sheep?" Hungary repeated slowly.
"I-It's a thing in the ATLA universe. You know, platypus-bear, otter-penguin, polar bear dog, you get the idea…"
"Ah, I see…" Hungary hummed in thought. "And did Aang feel better afterwards?"
"A-Actually, I don't remember… I haven't watched that episode in almost a year." America admitted with evident chagrin, but he remained optimism and flashed another grin. "But you gotta admit, it's a start!"
"Well, it's better than nothing." Hungary gave a determined smile, but then she frowned. "But… where are we going to find a koala or a sheep on such short notice in here?"
Now it was America's turn to deflate. "Aw, nuts…"
But then, as if it were a miracle brought by God, or just pure convenience, Australia and New Zealand came strolling past the stumped duo. America and Hungary both froze in middle of their agonizing as their eyes followed the koala and the sheep accompanying Austria and New Zealand respectively. The siblings grinned and waved at the two.
"G'day, Al! G'day, Hungary! How's it going!" Australia greeted cheerfully. "Oy, what's up? You two look like you've seen-"
"A KOALA!" America shouted, pointing at the animal clinging on Australia's shoulder.
"A SHEEP!" Hungary shrieked, pointing at sheep New Zealand was carrying.
"GET 'EM!" They exclaimed together, and the pair charged.
Australia and New Zealand screamed, the former in excitement and the latter in horror, and they swiftly ran off with America and Hungary in hot pursuit.
/ / / / /
Taiwan happily skipped through the halls of the UN building, humming a small catchy tune to herself, as she went in search for something fun to do. Even though she was (unfairly) kicked out of the UN, she's still allowed to hang around and continue pleading her case to the stubborn nations.
Of course, China always had to come along and ruin it, like he ruined everything.
She did her shtick of going about her day pretending he didn't exist and trying her best to stay happy and optimistic despite the old, senile, stubborn, jerk geezer chasing her around and screaming her to stop and listen to her elders.
"Taiwan, stop and listen to your elders this instant, aru!"
You see what she meant?
"I'm not going to stop for you, geezer!" Taiwan shouted angrily and glanced back to stick her tongue out at him. "And there's no way I'm going to speak with you! So unless you'll finally recognize me as a nation, scram!"
"Geezer?! How dare you! That is very disrespectful! No wonder you have few allies, you are a brat!"
Don't storm over to him and clock him. Don't storm over to him and clock him. He's just baiting you. Don't give him the satisfaction, Tai. Prove that you're the mature (and better and much prettier) one. You can kick his ass later.
"You don't me to call you geezer? Fine! I'll just call you shitty old mule instead!" Taiwan stated with a big smirk.
She giggled when China gave his usual scream of indignation. "Why you… I won't tolerate this disrespect! Stop and apologize for your horrible behavior right now, aru!"
"No way, you shitty old mule!"
"Taiwan, I am warning you!"
Taiwan rolled her eyes and immediately expected to hear the usual empty threat.
But then suddenly the floor started shaking…
(Deltarune OST: Lancer Battle Theme)
"HAHAHA! HOT SOUP! COMING THROUGH!"
"HELP! AMERICA, HUNGARY, STOP CHASING US!"
Shrieking, Taiwan jumped in surprise and barely reacted in time to get out of the way just as Australia and New Zealand sped through the hall, literally running over and trampling China in the process, and they left a trail of dust behind. When the dust cleared, Taiwan giggled at the groaning China and the sight of footprints all over his body.
"Looks like your so-called reflexes aren't as good as they used to be." Taiwan cheerfully taunted as she stood proudly "You really are becoming a true geezer."
China groaned even more, and Taiwan giggled again at the silly sound. "Y-You insolent, ungrateful, immature… I'm not dead yet! I am the… aiyah, it hurts to talk… I am the Peoples' Republic of… eep, China, aru…! It'll take more than… two stupid Westerners to-"
"GOTTA GO FASTER FASTER FASTERFASTERFASTER!"
"GET BACK HERE SO WE CAN SCREAM INTO YOUR ANIMALS, DAMMIT!"
Taiwan's eyes went wide, and she again jumped away just in time as… America? Hearts appeared in Taiwan's eyes. Yeah, Mr. America and Hungary… The hearts vanished and she stared in shock as America and Hungary charged through the hall, and China girlishly screamed as he was once again run over and trampled as the duo left a trail of dust in their wake. Once the dust cleared, China was face-down and groaning in pain, now covered in even more footprints.
But for the moment Taiwan wasn't focusing on that. What's America doing with Hungary? They didn't normally hang out together as far as Taiwan knew.
Oh, what was she saying? It's probably nothing she should be worried about. Instead, she should focus on taunting China and enjoying his pain and suffering!
"Huh, what do you know? You were right for once, old geezer." Taiwan began joyfully as she beamed over China. "It took four 'stupid' Westerners to defeat you!"
China made some anguished sounds, which caused Taiwan's smile to widen.
"Serves you right for being such a jerk all the time." She harrumphed, and she grinned as she poked the old man's head. "Anyway, I think we're done here. Now, if you excuse me, I'm off to find out what Alfred's up to!
And Taiwan happily skipped away in the direction America went to, jumping on China's back in the process, and left the geezer behind. Eh, he'll probably get better sooner or later… hopefully later than later…
It wasn't hard to follow where America and the others went, all she had to do was follow the carnage and use her sweet and cute charms to ask nations if they knew where the four had ran off to then follow their directions.
Before she knew it, she entered a room where Australia was grinning with New Zealand cowering near him while America and Hungary towered over them with evil grins on their faces.
Taiwan looked back and forth between them in confusion. "What's going on here?"
The four nations looked at her, and America was the one to answer with his usual cute smile. "Hiya, Mei-Mei! We're trying to convince Aussie and New Zealand here to let us borrow their pets so we can scream into them."
Huh?
Taiwan tilted her head, puzzled, and apparently so were the brothers, especially New Zealand. "WHAT? What do you mean you want to scream into our pets? Are you crazy?! You chased us all the way here so you can do that?!"
"Yeah/Pretty much." America and Hungary responded simultaneously.
"But… why would you want to scream into a koala… and a sheep?" Taiwan asked, feeling her lips curl up in a smile.
"Because we're stressed out, and this is the only way we can unwind without getting in trouble with the European Union of Bastards!" Hungary exclaimed loudly, and she raised her frying pan menacingly. "So give us the animals! NOW!"
"Hmm, sounds fun, but why our…" Australia trailed off and then a look of realization came over his face. "Ohhhhh, like in Avatar: The Last Airbender, right? Awesome!"
America grinned. "Yeah, I know right?"
"No, it's not awesome!" New Zealand squawked. "You can't just-"
"So can I borrow Kyle for a minute?" America asked his friend.
"Sure, mate! You coulda just said so!" Australia grinned toothily and handed him over his koala while New Zealand gaped in disbelief. "By the way, thanks for that race back there! Haven't had a good run in weeks!"
"No problem, dude!" America laughed as he grabbed the koala, and then he stared at the bear with a hilariously serious expression. "Okay, Kyle, I hope you're ready, because I got a LOT of stress to unwind."
The koala merely shrugged, not appearing to care.
"Sweet!" America smiled and the glanced at the others. "Oh, and, uh, you might want to cover your ears for this."
Taiwan decided not to question it and covered her ears just as America buried his face into the koala's fur.
What followed was… a little terrifying. The building shook, furniture moved, objects fell and shattered as they hit the floor and Taiwan cringed as America screamed….
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Then it all stopped, along with the shaking, and Taiwan uncovered her ears.
America removed his face from the surprisingly unbothered koala and gagged in disgust. "Augh, bleh- Oh my god, Jett, when's the last time you gave a Kyle a bath? He smells like mud, poop and chalk!"
"That's cause we played in the mud a couple days ago and Kyle, the silly guy, stepped on a kangaroo's poop in the same day!" Australia cheerfully explained, just another Tuesday in his country. "Oh, and I fed him chalk today for breakfast!"
"Chalk?!"
"It's high in calcium, mate!"
America turned a little green and returned the koala back to Australia. "Yeah… Thanks, Jett…"
"Anytime, mate!" Australia happily saluted, apparently not noticing America's disgust.
"Okay, my turn!" Hungary said excitedly as she reached for New Zealand's sheep, but the nation hugged it protectively to himself.
New Zealand shook his head. "I-I'm not going to-"
"Give me the sheep or you both get the frying pan."
Wordlessly, New Zealand paled and handed his sheep to Hungary, who immediately buried her face in it. Everyone covered their ears.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Taiwan cringed, and she saw the windows shatter.
Then it was over, and Hungary happily returned the sheep to a shaken New Zealand. "Thank you very much for letting me borrow your sheep. I feel better already!"
"N-No problem…" New Zealand said shakily as he hugged his sheep protectively against his chest.
America wiped his hands and smiled proudly. "Well, that's that. Thanks you guys. Come on, Liz, let's go before England gets here and finds out that we're the reason why there was an earthquake and the ones who broke the windows."
Liz? They're on human nickname basis now? What's going on?
Curious and frankly kind of worried, Taiwan followed them as they left the room.
"Um, hey, Alfred!" She called out shyly, and America stopped and looked back at her. "So, I was wondering… If you don't mind, can I-"
"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON THERE?!"
America and Hungary froze in their tracks, and they looked at each other. "Uh-Oh."
"AMERICA! HUNGARY! WERE YOU TWO WANKERS THE ONES RESPONSIBLE?!"
"Shit, we gotta run!" America cursed, and then gave Taiwan an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Tai, maybe we can hang out some other-WHOA!"
"Less talking, more running!" Hungary shrieked as she literally towed America away before England could catch them, and they even whooshed past the brit just as he came marching into the hall and wound up knocking him out as he was pushed against the wall.
And they left…
Leaving Taiwan feeling a little disappointed in herself.
"Oh…" Taiwan blinked, and she looked down dejectedly. "Um… okay then."
She barely acknowledged Australia as he walked to her and looked at her then at the unconscious England, before grinning and holding out his koala. "Hey, Sheila, you look down. How about screaming into my good 'ol koala?"
/ / / / /
(Undertale OST: Quiet Water)
"You know, Alfred, I have to admit, I do feel a lot better now!" Hungary remarked cheerfully after they escaped being scolded by England and she patted him on the back. "That was genius. Huh, koalas and sheep, who knew?"
"That's the power of cartoon logic!" America beamed as they plopped down in a couch in the middle of an empty hallway.
And America wasn't even sure if it'd work! Especially after he remembered at the last minute that it didn't exactly work for Aang, and Sokka wasn't the best therapist. But hey, it worked for them! That's great! Guess crazy ideas work for crazy people.
"So what now?"
"I… dunno."
"How long is the break again?" America asked with dread.
"About two and a half hours." Hungary responded with obvious distaste. "I think half an hour already passed."
"So we only have like two hours to have the best two hours ever before the break ends and we're back in politics hell?" America said with the flattest tone ever. "Two hours until we come back to Screaming Artie?"
"Uh-huh…" Hungary murmured as she glared at the wall. "Two hours until we're back with Breaking Germany."
"Two hours until we're back with the Totally-Not-Evil Federation."
"Two hours until we're back with the frog with the terrorist attacks."
"…And we have no idea how to spend them."
"No idea at all."
"This sucks."
"Tell me about it."
"Well, we gotta do something before the break's over. Something so cool that we'll forget about the bad stuff." America stated determinedly while trying to something, anything, that could be loads of fun. "I'm sure us crazy people we can think of something!"
"I hope so, Al. Because I am NOT looking forward to coming back to the meeting room." Hungary grimaced as she fidgeted her fingers. "I'm gonna get it this time, and when their bosses find out… I don't want my boss to get another headache."
"You think you'll get in big trouble for that little incident with England, Germany, and France?" America asked worriedly, and he flinched when she reacted angrily.
"Are you kidding? Of course I'll get in trouble for what happened with them, even though they were the ones who tried to hurt me!" Hungary snarled. "All I did was state facts and remind them of the consequences by bringing those people brought. And they just wouldn't leave me alone!"
"And I believe you, dude. I'm on your side, remember?" America said calmly, and he patted her shoulder in comfort. "If it helps, I'll stick up for you if they decide to call you out. England always hates it when I criticize him."
Hungary gave him a grateful smile. "Thanks, Alfred."
"No prob, Liz." He flashed her a thumbs-up.
"Now, all we need is…" Hungary started cheerfully, then frowned and trailed off. "No, forget it."
America looked at her puzzledly. "What? What is it, dude?"
"Nevermind, it's silly."
"Come on, I won't laugh."
"You mean it?"
"I do, honest!"
"I just…" Hungary scowled and slumped against the couch, crossing her arms. "I just wish there's a special place I can go where no can find me, and where I'll be able to do all sorts of fun stuff without interruption… like bathing in hot springs and singing scary songs!"
"Somewhere where no one can find you, huh…" America echoed distractedly as he looked up at the ceiling. That sounded like…
"Yes, but unfortunately, I have no such thing." Hungary sighed sadly "You know, Alfred, I envy the size of your country. It must be hard for your government to find you in such a large nation with fifty states."
"Yup, but they always find me eventually." America reminded her bitterly. Except when he…
Hungary sighed again and shook her head. "Oh, I know. No matter how hard you try, the government or someone will always find you, even if you hide in Poland's pony stables or in his mall-sized closet! Really makes me wish I can go to that special place…"
Special place…
"But I can't. That's life for us, I'm afraid."
Somewhere… where no one could find them…
…That's it!
A lightning bolt struck him as the most awesome idea came to him.
"What if you can?" America said quietly in realization.
Hungary stared at him with a puzzled look. "Huh? What do you mean?"
Slowly, he felt a big smile make its way to his face as he thought about it more, and the more he thought about it, the more he started to love it. America had already considered going to the special place today, but this was even better! He's going to finally bring a pal along for the ride!
"What if there is a place that we can go to where no one, not even England or Germany or our bosses, can find us?" America stood up "A place where we can get away from everything painful about our lives. A place where we can forget all the bad stuff and be ourselves. A place where can just have fun and be happy. What if there is a place like that?"
"Well, it does sound nice, but…" Hungary trailed off and her bitter smile vanished as stared at him. "Why? Do you know a place like that?"
America's grin widened even more, and he grabbed her wrist. "You bet I do."
Strongly but gently so to not hurt his new buddy, America pulled her to her feet, and he dragged her along as he ran off. He was so excited that he barely heard her yelp and begin demanding answers.
"W-What? Alfred, where are we going?!"
"Isn't it obvious, Liz? We're going to the special place!"
/ / / / /
(Deltarune OST: Beginning)
Hungary was having a bit of a hard time trying to keep up with America… in trying to figure out what his grand idea was, not that she was getting tired as he pulled her along through the halls, grinning blindingly as if they're off to a big fun adventure and laughing all the while. She was a good runner. She's just confused.
Now don't get her wrong, she'd take any chance to escape from the world of politics and the constant mockery and disdain of the EU any day at this point, but was it too much to ask to be kept in the loop? And this was America, who knows what could be on his mind to get him so excited? Although, Hungary could be pretty crazy too, and she was into some weird stuff…
But she didn't want him to let go, she just wanted him to slow down and explain. Hungary wanted to get out of here as much as she did, and… she really liked their talk together and their pursuit of Australia and New Zealand, honestly. Hungary hasn't really had anyone to vent out to who understood her current situation other than Poland, Czech Republic and a few others, they were the few who could put up with her anger issues.
But America? She was surprised to find that he didn't cringe or back away from her when she approached him, and instead ending sharing their frustrations together. And frankly, Hungary's forgotten how scary America looked pissed off (did she look anything like that when she's angry?) and more importantly, how stressful his job was.
She was even half-expecting him to punch a huge hole in the wall.
In summary, it was… nice. And she ended up feeling a lot better than she thought, especially after she screamed into New Zealand's pet sheep.
She still wanted answers though.
"A… Alfred, wait! Where are we going?" Hungary demanded just as America made a sharp turn to the left, and she offered a sheepish smile to a baffled Bosnia and Herzegovina as they passed them, then turned her attention back to him. "Woah- Seriously, Alfred, what's going on?"
America glanced to her, and merely gave her one of his famous smiles, along with a thumbs-up. "It's a surprise, Lizzy! Don't worry, you're gonna love it!"
"A surprise?" Hungary repeated, and she almost bumped into Armenia. She laughed nervously. "Oh! Sorry~"
"A surprise!" America nodded, and he laughed loudly.
"What? Oh come on! I mean, does it really have to be a surprise, Alfred?" Hungary asked in slight annoyance, and she tried to give a pleading look. "Can I at least get some hints? Some context? Anything? Anything at all…?"
"Nope!" America chirped.
Hungary let out a sigh and shrugged, smiling. "Fine…"
"I told you, don't worry. It's gonna be great!" America reassured her. "Hero's promise!"
"This surprise better not be something that involves junk food, vampires, or building a giant robot to 'kill the commie bastard' again…" Hungary playfully warned, and she hummed in thought. "Although that would be pretty fun… "
Instead of taking offense to that, he burst out laughing and waved his hand. "Course not! It's gonna be something way cooler than any of that! Trust me, what I'm gonna show you is gonna knock your socks off! And we won't even have to worry about Iggy or Germany hunting us down!"
"What? How?
"Sorry, but no spoilers!"
"Oh, come on!"
So, after some turns, bumping into a couple of nations, more turns, going up the stairs to the next floor, going through a few more turns and running through the seemingly endless hallways, they finally arrived to…
(Deltarune OST: Quiet Autumn)
"The supply closet?" Hungary said incredulously as she stared at the door to said room in pure bafflement while America beamed for… some reason, and she snorted. "Really? You dragged me all the way here to the supply closet?"
"Yep, but it's not what you think…" America informed her as walked towards the door. "If I were you, I'd better get ready."
Hungary's lips curled up in a small grin. "If you say so…"
The star-spangled nation winked and pointed at her, clicking his tongue, before he turned toward the door and proceeded to… stare at it. It was at this when Hungary started to feel seriously confused as she watched America stare at the piece of wood separating them from the supply closet. He wasn't waiting for it to open, was he? No, America's not like that.
Was he waiting for something else to happen?
America put his hand on the door. "Hey… Elizaveta…"
"Hmm?" Hungary blinked at him.
"I can trust you, right?"
Hungary flinched at the sudden question. "W-What?"
"I asked if I could trust you." America repeated as he turned around, and Hungary felt surprise when he saw that his expression was dead-serious. "I mean it. Can I trust you? Like… Like with keeping a promise? N-Not a politics promise, a personal person. And you're not the type of person to spill someone's deepest, most important secrets… right?"
"Wh… Where did this come from?" Hungary asked, and she chuckled a bit, mostly to break the tension but it died down as America's expression didn't change. "Alfred, what's wrong? Did I say something that…?"
"Elizaveta, please…" America pleaded, and he rubbed his head as if he were suffering a headache. "I need you to answer."
Hungary frowned at this but answered nonetheless to comfort him. "Well, I think you can trust me for the most part. I wouldn't suddenly backstab you and laugh at your suffering like your enemies and some other nations would."
"Yeah…" He didn't look completely convinced.
"So what's wrong?"
"Listen… I know we're not exactly BFFs. I know we don't hang out together that much. And I know we didn't really become friends again until the seventies…" America said grimly, before a sad smile appeared on his face. "…But I do appreciate you, and I really do like you. You're crazy and energetic like me… and you're a pretty sweet person. How could I not like you?"
Hungary stared at him oddly. Was he alright? Still, she laughed softly. "Oh, why thank you. And… despite your quirks, I always found it funny when you piss off England or Germany, and I like how… creative your ideas can be, impossible as they are. I also admire how optimistic you always are no matter what happens. For people like us, that's pretty impressive. I even envy you for that."
Hungary wasn't sure what compelled her to add that last part, but it did have an effect on the blonde. America's eyes widened and he stared at her dumbfounded, as if he never dreamed that she would say any of that to him.
"Gee, thanks…" America kept smiling, but it didn't really reach his eyes. "Heh, speaking of the seventies… remember when I returned the Holy Crown of Hungary to you back in '78? It was a great moment for us, and our relations."
Despite feeling confused at why he suddenly brought that up, Hungary had to smile fondly at the memory. "Are you kidding? There's no way I can forget that. I-I don't think I've thanked you enough for safeguarding it for all those years, Alfred. I don't know what Russia would've done to it if… Thank you."
America's smile broadened slightly, and it seemed to become more genuinely happy. "I remember when I saw your face light up in joy when you saw it…. You were happy that you could at least one part of your identity as Russia slowly ate away at you and your culture, you were happy that you had another reminder that you're Hungary."
That's right. She was Hungary. No matter who conquered her lands or who ruled her, no one could ever take that away from her, not even Russia and his cronies. Life in the USSR was harsh and difficult, with their lunatic of a leader blind to her and the others' suffering, and Hungary admittedly made mistakes as well. But even then, there were times when she could smile, when she felt herself…
America's visit that day was one of them. Hungary was surprised at how he and his leader went to lengths to make sure the crown and its jewels would given to the people of Hungary, not the cold, heartless government of the Soviet Union. She couldn't believe she had forgotten that he kept it safe for her.
"I was happy… that you were happy." America said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head, and he gazed at her grimly again. "So… I hope you know that I do care about you."
"I believe you." Hungary nodded.
"And if I can trust you, does that mean you can trust me?"
What was with him and trust of all a sudden? "Huh? Well, I-"
"N-Not with anything extreme, I mean… Do you at least trust me at least a little bit, as far as nations go?" America quickly corrected himself, looking flustered. "Do you trust that I wouldn't get you hurt on purpose… at least?"
Hungary wanted to ask him again what was wrong, but it looked like he wasn't going to rest easy until she answered. So, she gave her honest answer. "Well… I do think I can trust you with that, especially now when we're not in the awful world of politics."
"You mean it?" America looked at her hopefully.
"I do." Hungary reassured him. "I don't have any reason to lie, do I?"
"Then let's do this."
With one last smile, he slowly reached out towards the doorknob and then opened the door...
(Deltarune OST: The Door)
Just as she saw the darkness in the closet, Hungary's eyes went wide as the room around her suddenly started to darken. Her blood ran cold. She looked around in bafflement, and she saw that the lights were off, but the room looked as dark as it would be in the middle of the night. What was even more puzzling was that it was still early daytime, but the windows showed nothing but pure darkness.
The shadow coming from the darkness of the closet grew as the room darkened, but it seemed to fade for a second only for it reappear again, and it kept repeating. Hungary's breath hitched in her throat. What in the name of…?
She took a few weary steps back, and she swallowed. "A-Alfred…?"
"Sweet, it does work." Hungary managed to catch him quickly say to himself before gazed to her, usual smile in place. Did he not… see the darkness around them "Welp, this is it. You ready, Elizaveta?"
"Uh, before I answer that, can I just ask…" Hungary began with a tight smile. "Is it… me or did it get really dark all of a sudden?"
"Nope, don't worry, it's not you." America said in a relaxed, unconcerned manner. Hungary felt… slightly better at least. "That always happens when I try to get in there. Like I said, don't worry about it. Pretty spooky, huh?"
"Very…" Hungary agreed, and she looked at the unbelievably calm American uncertainly. "So… are you going to tell me what's going on or…"
"In a minute." America promised, and he frowned for a moment. "Look, I know this looks scary at first… But looks can be pretty deceiving, and we're hellbent on getting away from this awful place, right?"
"I know, but…" Hungary cringed at the look he was giving her. "Are you sure this is… I dunno, safe?"
America was upset by this. He frowned. "It is. You said you trusted me."
"I know I said that, but you can't expect anyone to just follow you into a dark and creepy closet without any explanation…"
America's expression softened and he sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Welp, I don't wanna force ya in you're not up for it. I brought you here because you want to escape just as much as I do, and like I said, I care about you. If you don't want to go in, fine. I'll go in myself and you can go back to the Europeans and attend the rest of World Meeting. Your choice."
Faced with that pleasant reminder, she scowled at the memory of Germany and the others berating her. She remembered her desire to escape the downsides of their lives as nations, even for a little while… Whatever's in the closet couldn't be any worse than them, Prussia's vital regions hunting, or politics, right?
And if America bothered to bring her here…
Oh, what the hell.
Mind made up, Hungary gave America a determined smile and took his hand. "Okay, let's do this."
America beamed in joy. "Awesome! Follow me, and whatever you do, don't let go my hand. You won't regret this, I promise. And if something does go wrong, you're free to pummel me with your frying pan as much as you want. Sound good?"
Hungary liked that. "Good. Let's go."
Squeezing the blonde's hand tightly, they entered the closet together. Hungary's first thought upon entering was that there didn't seem a lot of supplies in here for a supply closet, just a bunch of old papers scattered over the floor, but other than that is was completely dark. And then she wondered how she could see them if it was so dark in here.
There didn't seem to be a light switch in here, but it was pitch black in here, so what did she know? Maybe it's further in?
They kept walking. Hungary looked around dumbfounded. It's… kind of big for a closet, no? They should've reached the end by now…
They kept walking and walking deeper into the closet… which should be impossible because no closet (except for Poland's) was this ridiculously big. And then Hungary finally decided to voice her concerns.
"Uh, Alfred…?" Hungary said warily, and she couldn't help but smile anxiously. "I think this closet's… uh… broken."
America laughed a little at that remark, but then he abruptly stopped, and a worried frown appeared on his face. "Huh… that's weird. Usually it'd have come into effect by now… Let's go back a little. Maybe we did something wrong."
Despite having no idea what he's talking about, Hungary nodded in agreement and they began to walk back to the door…
Only for it to slam shut before they could even reach it.
Both of them jumped at the sudden surprise, and Hungary scowled. This better not be Romania locking her away in a room again! She tried to storm towards the door and bang it for answers, but America pulled her back.
"What?" She demanded.
"I think this is it." America whispered, gripping her hand tightly.
Before she could even ask, the floor started shaking. Hungary's eyes went wide. "Alfred, the floor-"
The papers started to fall, as if the ground was coming apart, and she and America took a few steps before he hugged her protectively. "Hope you're good at landing."
"Wha-"
Then the floor below them vanished.
And they fell into darkness.
Well, that's that! I hope you guys liked this first chapter! Please let me know what you thought of this first part in a review. I'll try to update soon!