Summary: Gilbert has nightmares that seem incurable. That is, until he meets the quiet girl that sits behind him in history class. PruxFem!Can, spin-off of The Music of Painting.
Author Comments: Hello, again! :D sorry this took me so long!
For those of you who haven't read The Music of Painting...hello for the first time! :D this is indeed a spin-off, but it doesn't matter which one is read first.
Hopefully I can keep it true to the timeline of The Music of Painting.
This will be mostly Prussia x Fem!Canada with a few side pairings. Feel free to request some!
Phew, alright then! :D I hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
"Shut up," a sleepy voice grumbled, a pale hand reaching out from beneath the black covers. Long fingers groped for the large snooze button lazily, more groaning emitting from the large bump underneath the sheets. "Dammit, come on!" Covers flew to the floor and the white form angrily punched the alarm clock off the nightstand, the device shattering on impact. "Shit, Ludwig's gonna kill me." The boy rubbed his head and stood from the mattress, slowly walking out of his room and down the carpeted stairs. He yawned and made his way into the kitchen, grabbing some bread from the fridge and popped it into the toaster. Red eyes shifted around the spotless room, a pregnant silence filling the air. It was so quiet that the boy jumped a few inches off the floor when the toast burst out of the toaster. The blush was easily seen as it flushed against his colourless skin. Clearing his throat, he ran his fingers through his silver hair, grabbed the toast and stuffed it into his mouth; donning his jacket and shoes and heading out the door, backpack in hand. He really didn't give a shit if he slept in the clothes he was wearing to school. It's not like they smelled or anything. And his jacket could easily hide the drool stain on the front of his shirt.
Once he arrived at school he quickly placed his headphones in his ears and turned on his iTouch, playing some German music (most likely Rammstein) to drown out the chatter of the many immature students crowding around in the hallways. He approached his locker quickly and pulled it open, grabbing the books he needed for his next three classes that were held on the bottom floor of the school. He hated carrying three books at once, but since his locker was on the second floor, it was a huge burden to run up the stairs between classes to switch out books.
The albino boy turned to leave when a force grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him into a headlock. "What the hell?" He peered up to see a blond boy, grinning down at him mischievously. "Francis! Let go of me, dammit!"
"Mon ami, is that any way to greet a friend?" The blond asked, releasing him and stepping back quickly, taking a spot next to a brunette boy with dazzling green eyes.
"Si, mi amigo. Is something wrong? You are not yourself," the brunette asked, smiling his usual clueless smile.
"Nothing's wrong. I'm just tired," the albino told them, turning off his iPod and stuffing the headphones into his pocket.
"Did you have that dream again, Gilbert? It seems that you're having it much more frequently these days," the Frenchman asked concerned. The brunette looked worried as well.
"Yeah. Ah, it's okay though. It's really not that big of a deal."
Francis sighed and placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. "If it helps you feel any better, Antonio and I are always here for you, okay?"
Gilbert looked at him, a tiny smile on his lips. "Thanks." He shrugged the hand off, and laughed obnoxiously. "Of course you two are! I'm awesome, after all!"
The other two smiled and shook their heads, glad that they had their typical friend back. "Well, I have to go or Lovina will kick me in the shins again," Antonio told them, grinning happily and ran off.
"I should go as well. If I don't start now, I'll be late again, and you know how Arthur gets when he's stuck waiting for me."
Gilbert nodded slightly and waved them off, his smile faltering as they disappeared. Truth was, he was jealous. Which was not awesome. Each of those losers that he called his best friends always had someone waiting for them before class started. He had no one. Not that he was lonely or anything! It just pissed him off. Right? Right!
Slowly he started off towards his History class downstairs, the pair of violet eyes staring intently at him going completely unnoticed.
Maddie was used to not getting noticed. People pushed by her in the hallways, sat on her when looking for a seat to sit in, and cut in front of her in the lunch line. It seemed that the only times people actually noticed her were when they mistook for her brother Alfred, or when she was in the hockey stadium. Well, aside from her over-dramatic cousin Francis.
There was one person that she dearly wished would glance her way. His name was Gilbert Beilschmidt. He was loud, obnoxious, and self-centered - on the outside, at least. She could tell that he was hurting on the inside. He was rather popular among the high school students - everyone knew him by name, girls drooled over him, and guys wanted to be him - but he was undoubtedly alone. Sure, he had his two best friends and his brother, but he always seemed to be walking to class by himself. She'd also never seen a truly happy look on his face, and his red eyes always seemed to be clouded with loneliness. She wanted to fill that void. She wanted to be the one to make him smile. But how could she when even her own brother sometimes mistook her for his own reflection?
The bell rang loudly, shouting throughout the halls that whoever wasn't already in class was late. Maddie slowly made her way downstairs and to her History class. She knew the teacher probably wouldn't even notice that she was late. Heck, the entire class probably wouldn't notice that the empty seat in the back was even emptier than usual. However, she hoped she was wrong.
Gilbert groaned, making his way to the end classroom at the end of the hallway. He hated detention, seeing as it was a routine for him at least once a week. Once he arrived, he took the seat nearest the back and pulled out a straw and notebook, instantly attacking the heads in front of him with nasty spitballs. Many were used to it and ignored him, wincing when they felt the familiar wet sensations on the back of their necks, and others turned to glare at him, to which he just gave a snide grin and continued with his spitball practice.
Mr. Wang, the Chinese history teacher that looked extremely like a woman, stepped into the room and wrote a few things on the whiteboard.
"I would like you to write this sentence on two pages, front and back. I expect them on my desk by the end of detention," he told them, a slight accent adorning his words.
Gilbert sighed and looked down at the desk, an eyebrow rising at the name carved into the desk with what looked like a pen. Maddie it said in beautiful cursive lettering. Who was this 'Maddie'? Maddie, Maddie…he'd heard the name before, but where?
"Gilbert!" Mr. Wang shouted from his desk, making the albino jump a few inches out of his seat. "Get to writing or I'll give you another detention!"
Gilbert sighed loudly, grumbled what sounded like 'fine', and grabbed some paper, starting on the tedious assignment, that name resonating in his head. Maddie.
"Hey Gilbert!" Francis yelled as he ran down the hall, catching the albino as he was halfway out the door.
Gilbert turned around, hitching his backpack up on his shoulder. "What is it, Francypants?"
Francis' lips turned down into a distasteful frown. "How many times have I asked you not to call me that? It doesn't perfectly portray my l'amour."
Red eyes rolled at his reply as Gilbert turned around to make his way down the steps. "Whatever. What do you want?"
Francis followed quickly after him, wrapping an arm around his pale shoulders. "I know your brother won't be home for a little while since he has piano practice, so I was wondering if you would want to come with me to take my cousin home. You see, her brother has Football practice and her mother doesn't like her walking home alone. Please? I think you'll enjoy it!" The glint in the Frenchman's eye showed he had different motives for this outing.
"Fine, fine. I'll go if you don't grope me on the way there."
The blond laughed loudly and patted his friend on the back, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his stylish black pants. "Oui oui, mon ami."
"So," Francis started, breaking the silence. "How was detention?"
"It was awful! Mr. Wang is so unawesome! Why did I have to have detention today? I almost fell asleep!"
The Frenchman laughed and shook his head, partly listening to his friend's rant. The other part was imagining how surprised Maddie would be upon seeing that he was bringing Gilbert to the rink with him. He'd known of her undying love for the albino for a while. He was always one to recognize l'amour.
Maddie skated back and forth across the ice, sporting a thick navy blue sweater and black cotton pants, shooting puck after puck into the nets. The rink was empty, save for a few maintenance people that worked there. She liked to practice when no one was around, just incase she fell and embarrassed herself.
She loved hockey. Sure, it was stereotypical for a Canadian to love hockey, but she really did! It made her feel free, and it was one way for her to get out her aggressions.
Maddie didn't notice when two young boys walked through the door at the front of the stadium, nor did she notice them take a seat to watch her. She was much too wrapped up in doing what she loved to see how they looked at her as she elegantly flew up and down the ice.
"Francis, who is that? She kind of looks familiar," Gilbert whispered, unable to take his eyes off of the beautiful blond. Francis just smirked and leaned in, cupping a hand around his mouth.
"That's Maddie Williams. Her locker is next to yours, and she's in your first period History class. She's also the sister of Alfred Jones." The Frenchman replied, peering over at the silver-haired boy. His smile grew upon seeing the captivated look on his friend's face.
Maddie? There was that name again. Could it be the girl whose desk he was just sitting at?
"Oh! That's right. She sits behind me. Quiet kid. I didn't know she played hockey."
"Well, you've never tried to talk to her, so how would you?"
"That's true. But I'm too awesome to start up a conversation! Girls come to me, not the other way around."
Francis rolled his blue eyes and stood up, kneeling over the railing. "Maddie! It's time to go!"
The blond girl faltered and slipped, falling straight down on her ass. "Shit, Francis! You scared the hell outta me!" She yelled, standing up from her spot and rubbing the sore spot on her behind. Francis didn't know why she wasn't always this loud. Maybe more people would notice her if she was.
"But it's so much fun! I just 'ave to do it every time!"
Maddie rolled her eyes and skated over to the carpeted floor, removing her skates and slipping on her shoes. She tied the laces of her skates together and hung them over her shoulder, pulling the strap of her backpack over her other shoulder. She looked up and opened her mouth to further berate the Frenchman when a familiar face made its way into her vision. Her eyes widened enormously, and she felt as if she would faint. What was Gilbert doing there? The Canadian felt her face grow warm when she noticed a large smirk splattered across his face. She figured it was most likely because of her fall. Stupid Francis.
"H-hi," she finally said, hesitantly holding out her hand, "I-I'm Maddie." It was just a matter of time before he forgot.
Gilbert grinned, amused by her total change of mood. "Yeah, yeah. I know, Francis told me." He shook her hand, letting go to set his hand on his waist. "And I'm the awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt!"
Maddie smiled shyly, giggling quietly. "I know, I sit behind you in first period History."
The albino's grin faltered slightly. How could he not have talked to a girl this cute? Especially if she sat behind him in class! It was probably because he always fell asleep in that class, to which Mr. Wang usually gave him a detention.
Francis cleared his throat to make himself known, snapping the two out of their thoughts. "It is best we leave now. I have to get home before ma mere freaks out, oui?" He said, starting off towards the exit.
The other two stood there a moment before glancing over at each other. Maddie blushed and peered down at the floor, mumbled something under her breath, and followed after Francis, gripping the strap of her bag tighter. Gilbert quickly complied, falling in step with Maddie as they neared Francis, neither of them speaking a word to each other.
Francis did most of the talking as the three of them stalked down the sidewalk. Maddie couldn't help but steal glances at the albino every once in a while, noting how worn out he seemed. She wanted desperately to know what was on his mind.
Gilbert yawned sleepily, rubbing the palms of his hands against his eyes. He really couldn't wait to get home so he could take a nap. And maybe do some homework. Yeah, probably not that last part. He glanced over at Maddie, who blushed and quickly looked away. A smirk came to his lips. So she had been looking at him, huh? He couldn't help but note how cute she was, from her bright violet orbs to the long curly hair sitting on top of her head, one strand of blond curled in front of her face. There was no doubt she was related to Francis.
Her house wasn't too far, and when they arrived she smiled shyly and made her way inside, shutting the door quietly behind her. Gilbert couldn't help but feel like he needed to know more about her. Francis smiled to himself and started off down the sidewalk, mentally patting himself on the back.
Well, here you go! ^^; I really hope it was okay! :D
Oh, yes! There will be lots of Genderbending, so if you don't like Genderbending, then I would advise you to not read this fanfiction. ^^; but if you do, then feel free to read! :D
I guess that's it! :D for now...
EDIT: Thanks to Liung Arkeanda, many of my mistakes have been fixed! :D