If you've been reading Is It You, I am so, so, sorry. It's just that I had the instinct to write this and I absolutely had to get it published. Don't worry. Chapter ten is coming soon, I promise.

Anyways.

As I said, there may be a bit of GerIta or Spamano or some other pairings thrown in there. I'm not too sure yet. As for the main pairing, AusHun, don't be surprised if Elizaveta winds up paired with some of the other characters at any given point.~

Disclaimer: I'm American, high school-aged, and a girl. Hidekaz Himaruya is not.

It was ten years ago when I first saw it happen.

Roderich had courteously invited me over for the day—as courteously as a six-year-old could. It was a harmless playdate with him and his family, including his cousins, Ludwig and Gilbert, along with Vash and his adopted sister Lili, who was a tiny little toddler at the time. Their "Grandpa Ulrich," a tall man with long blond hair, was watching us that day. Simply put, it was something of a family day together. I was a good friend they decided they had to have along with them... much to my irritation, they also invited that Romanian boy that I absolutely detested. I did my best to convince myself he didn't exist.

We were given a local park to run free in—a quite nice one, as a matter of fact. I still go there myself sometimes. It doesn't get as much tourism anymore, so I have, on occasion, gone there when I need a bit of time to myself. On that day ten years ago, we were lucky to have the place to ourselves, since normally it was crawling with families.

"Yeah! It's empty!" seven-year-old Gilbert had exclaimed when he had determined that there was no one there. "Everyone knew to make way for my awesomeness!"

A child who hadn't even reached double digits, already proclaiming his so-called 'awesomeness' had an effect on people? Really, Gilbert? Really?

"More like they're making way for your loudness," I retorted. The red-eyed boy turned around and looked at me.

"If I were you, Hedervary," he said, baring his tiny teeth in a wide grin, "I'd be quiet. If you're nice enough to me I might let you slide when I rule the world!"

I rolled my eyes. Annoying, bratty, and overly ambitious. As ever. Typical, typical Gilbert Beilschmidt.

"Don't let him bother you," Roderich said, standing next to me.

"He's not ruling the world if I have anything to do with it," I said, taking the remark all too seriously at the age of six.

"Of course not," the Austrian boy replied.

"Tag!" the Romanian boy, Viktor, suddenly yelled, poking me sharply from behind and dashing off, giggling. "You're it!"

"You!" I spluttered, whirling around. Trying to hide a slight smile, I took off sprinting after him, determined to catch him. Gilbert noticed us and gladly began running along with me, though he had absolutely no clue what was happening. I saw this as an opportunity. I pushed him away with one palm.

"You're it, Gilbert!" I echoed triumphantly.

We could hear a faint cry of "Don't go too far!" behind us, presumably from Ulrich—or, at least, I could. Gilbert and Viktor either were hard of hearing or really didn't care. Gilbert began chasing me, and when his pursuit was fruitless after some time, began looking for Viktor. Before he got too far, though, the Romanian boy surprised me from behind yet again. I looked around wildly for him, but he had disappeared.

He's fast! I thought to myself. Gilbert hadn't noticed, so I began chasing after him this time. At the last instant he spotted me and bolted into the trees beside the open grassy field we had just been in. I was determined not to look weak and give up, so I took up the chase and followed him into the woods, where every footstep was obvious in the rustling leaves and close branches scratched at my face and clothes. A few painful minutes later, the thought began to dawn on me that I had been running without paying attention to where I was going. I stopped, my lungs exhausted and my heart beating rapidly, even for my age.

The forest was silent. I couldn't hear the slightest echo of Gilbert's laugh, or a soft crunch of the crisp amber leaves. If there was one thing I was sure about, it was that I was alone. I slowly looked around. Sunlight filtered gently through the treetops, casting a soft, dim light on everything below. Since it was autumn, the trees were getting bare, or at least were covered in yellow or brown leaves. As was the ground.

I made a slight pouting noise and angrily shuffled my feet around in the dry leaves. I didn't care how much noise I made—after all, I figured there was no one to hear me. Suddenly, with a rather painful kick, the toe of my black boot landed on something hard under the leaves. This, of course, captured my attention instantly. Did I care about what Gilbert and Viktor were off doing? Not anymore.

Tentatively, I reached a hand down into the stiff leaves and found my fingers hitting a smooth surface. My fingers instinctively pulled back, but I shook my head and told myself it was fine. Slowly, I groped at the mysterious object with my blind, chubby six-year-old's fingers and carefully pulled up what may have been the most beautiful object I had ever seen.

It was some sort of brooch—a pale sapphire brooch. The silver surrounding the gem was soft and almost warm to the touch, and the gem itself seemed to radiate with its own light. Perhaps it was the way the facets were cut, but it looked as though it had captured the sunlight and let it glow a soft sky blue.

Blue like Roderich's eyes, I thought.

My thoughts were interrupted by the snap of a twig and a rustle of leaves nearby. Quickly, I pocketed the object—who knew what the boys would do if they found me with it?

"Elizaveta!" two voices cried. I saw the figures of the two irritating red-eyed boys scrambling through the bushes. Immediately, I stood up.

"Gilbert! Viktor!" I exclaimed. "Where where you?"

"Where were you?" asked the young Romanian, rubbing a particularly nasty scrape on his left cheek.

"Looking for you," I lied.

"Whatever," Gilbert interrupted, as out of breath as I had been when I had gotten to this spot. "Grandpa Ulrich wants us to come back. He says we've got to go. Something about er... urj... urgen—"

"Urgent business," Viktor finished hastily, playfully giving Gilbert a solid whack on the head.

"Ow!" Gilbert winced.

I nodded in agreement, a bit disappointed. I stood quickly as the two boys turned and ran back in the other direction. I lost them after running for a bit, but kept going. Suddenly, something curious caught my eye. Standing by the edge of the forest was Grandpa Ulrich himself, but Gilbert and Viktor were still running back to where Roderich, Vash, and a fast-asleep Lili sat.

"M-Mister Ulrich?" I asked, confused. He had been staring at the boys, when he blinked and looked down at me.

"Elizaveta?" he asked. "What is it?"

"I... uh, well... why is everyone else over there if we're leaving?" I asked lamely. I was utterly confused.

"I'm not really sure," he said, equally puzzled.

I turned to call to them, until I heard Roderich from across the park, saying, "Elizaveta! Hurry, we're leaving!"

Wide-eyed, I turned back to Ulrich, standing right next to me. "What's going on?"

His expression was a resigned one. "I don't know. I... they can't hear anything I say to them..."

I gaped. I knew I should stay here, because he was the adult in charge, but the other were leaving. Suddenly, Gilbert ran over and grasped me by the forearm.

"We have to go. Now," he said, urgency in his voice.

"But Grandpa Ul—"

"He's right over there!" Gilbert said exasperatedly, pointing to the group of kids walking by themselves. "He needs you so we can leave together."

"No!" I protested. "He's not!"

Gilbert proceeded in dragging me away. I looked desperately at Ulrich, who did nothing but return a look of shock.

We left the park, and I ended up having to go home earlier than expected. That was the day I knew something was wrong.

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You may also be interested in my other fic, "Is It You?"