So… Disasters seems to be turning into Japan and Vietnam sibling fluff… It wasn't meant to be like this, I swear… Still, I feel like after the last one I needed to write something happy, so…

Background info: Basically, in this AU, after WW2 it was Russia that occupied Japan, not America (except for Okinawa). Therefore, Korea stayed whole. Also, it was decided that East Germany would include the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, which is directly below Denmark, which they also end up invading. (So, yes, Denmark will be making an appearance, because he and Japan are my babies.) I'm not going to go too much into it here, but Japan and Denmark become dictatorships (ala North Korea), and Vietnam is one of the only countries that has any communication with them. There's more history than that, but that's basically all you need to know for this fic.

Vietnam: Lien Nhung Nguyen

Japan: Kiku Honda

16th July 2015

Lien Nhung Nguyen, it was safe to say, did not have the best control of her temper. She did try, of course- she counted to ten, she owned innumerable stress balls that she squeezed when she was about to say something unadvisable, she took deep breaths- but there was only so much she could do.

That was why, even after so many years of relative sanity and even an apology, she still hated Russia. Hated, hated, hated him. Whenever she was around him- not often, because he tended to avoid her- she struggled with the powerful urge to smash his stupid nose in with her paddle. She didn't, because causing international incidents was generally frowned upon, but there was nothing that stopped her from glaring at him whenever he was in her line of vision.

Still, though, cursing Russia to the pits of hell was her usual train of thoughts whenever she flew into Japan. Not much else to do, to be honest- the plane was full of her diplomats, who were slightly afraid of her, and besides, she didn't feel like receiving another lecture on how dangerous Japan was. Kiku wasn't dangerous, not anymore. In fact, Kiku had never been dangerous to her personally. People were just oversensitive.

In her bag, vetted very thoroughly at the airport, even though she desperately wanted to fill it up with food so that her brother would stop looking quite so skeletal, so that it didn't look like such a painful effort every time he stood.

Russia's fault, said that spiteful voice at the back of her mind. Because it was, really. Of course, Japan himself was not blameless- if he hadn't started the war, then Russia wouldn't have moved in to occupy, then Orlov would never have been placed as supreme leader, then Japan wouldn't be in the state it was in. Lien wouldn't be one of the only countries other than Denmark to be able to visit the closed off country- the only other being Russia, which made fury rise in Lien like magma.

The plane landed at Narita Airport, and Lien was the first to step off. It was winter, far colder than what she was used to, and she cursed, wrapping her coat tighter around her. She always forgot how cold it was in her little brother's country. Miserably so. She shuddered.

The Japanese officials had long since stopped greeting them at airport, but they still sent a special bus to take them to their hotel, in the centre of Tokyo. Lien watched dully out of the window as they passed by salarymen in their neat dark suits, civilians in kimonos and yukatas, skinny children following their parents. As usual, their route took them through the cleanest, nicest areas of the city. Lien knew the truth. Kiku had shown her what really happened behind the scenes.

Hotel Star Tokyo was just the same as it always was, and Lien didn't bother going too far inside. She didn't stay here- she stayed with Kiku in his house. And not his crappy Tokyo flat- she made him take her to his house in the mountains, where they could relax and crack open a few beers without worrying about disturbing the neighbours.

The personification of the nation of Japan was stood in the lobby, draped in shadows as a government official of his went to greet Vietnam's diplomats. He nodded to her, but didn't smile. She returned the gesture, her expression stony.

'Kon'nichiwa, honoured guests to the Democratic People's Republic of Japan,' said the Japanese official with a polite bow, probably thoroughly tired of rattling off these same lines every time they arrived at this hotel. If he was, he didn't show it. 'Please, rest, and we will commence talks in the morning.'

'Thank you,' said Lien's head diplomat, bowing in return- not because it was part of Lien's culture, but because when you were talking to a government official of an extremely sensitive and nation with an itchy trigger finger and nuclear weapons, you watched your manners. That, and it was common courtesy, and Lien had snapped at the diplomat who'd complained about it a few weeks ago.

Only once the polite necessities were out of the way and hotel workers had come to ferry Lien's diplomats to their rooms (they didn't bother to try and move Lien) did Kiku give any indication that he wasn't stuffed.

'Vietnam-san,' he said politely. 'Please, this way.'

He was even skinnier than she remembered. Although he was hidden underneath a navy kimono, tabi socks, geta sandals, a warm haori jacket and a scarf, his face was gaunt and his cheeks hollow. His wrists and hands were rough and spidery, pale and calloused skin stretched over bluish veins and jutting bones. The scar over the side of his face was still pink and obvious, his right eye still milky grey and obviously blind. It hurt her to look at him.

Kiku remained silent as they boarded a shinkansen headed to Nagano prefecture, and Lien followed suit. The train was nearly empty- a few curious passengers glanced in her direction, but they said nothing. Lien could feel her brother's presence beside her, calm and controlled, and she ached to squeeze his hand. Just a little bit of comfort- it wouldn't hurt, right? But no. They had to keep up this act- this utter ridiculousness- until they reached Kiku's house. Then they could let down these political personas fully and be Kiku and Lien, not Japan and Vietnam.

They arrived late to Kiku's house- the shinkansen hadn't been extended very far outside of the major cities and routes, so they'd had to switch to rattling 1950s reject of a train, which lurched worryingly at every turn and screeched horribly on the tracks. Lien's teeth were gritted, but Kiku's expression was as smooth and unreadable as ever. He didn't turn to face her, or do very much except for examine the seat in front of him, until the train shrieked to a halt in the tiny mountain village nearest to Kiku's home. Still an hour's walk away, down dirt-track and past paddy fields, but Lien didn't mind that. The further away from the city that they got, the more relaxed Kiku became, and the happier Lien was.

She could remember a time, not that long ago- not in relation to how long she'd lived, anyway- that she could visit Kiku's house whenever she felt like it. Of course, she'd been banned during Sakoku- everyone had been. But as soon as her brother's country opened again, she'd been right there, marching through his sliding doors and demanding tea. She remembered, in the clear light of hindsight, the madness that lurked in her brother's eyes, carefully concealed to anyone but those who knew him. He never tried to convince her to get on board with his plan- Kiku was many things, but stupid was not one of them.

Lien should have seen her brother's crumbling mental state. She should have noticed it, should have sat him down and demanded an answer- but she hadn't. Instead, caught up in the excitement of seeing her brother for the first time for two-hundred and twenty years, she put it down to him adjusting to the rest of the world, or changes that were bound to occur after two centuries. She never foresaw what was to come next.

'Betonamu-san?'

Lien looked up. They were stood outside of Kiku's house, and he was holding the door open expectantly. She nodded, shouldered her bag, and stepped inside, slipping off her shoes and putting on her pair of slippers, which she and Kiku had bought on her first visit after the war.

By the time she was out of the genkan, Kiku had already wandered off to the kitchen to make tea. Lien had the honour of not being his guest- more of an impermanent lodger. She knew Kiku's house just as well as she knew her own (Kiku was a stickler for tradition, and didn't tend to spontaneously reorder cupboards or move furniture, let alone modernise to any significant degree, so that helped), and she dumped her back in the bedroom. Although there was another tatami room that she could take, she'd always shared a room with Kiku since he'd first moved into this house, even though Kiku generally believed that an unmarried man and woman shouldn't share a room.

'Tea, onēchan!'

'Coming!' A futon was already laid out for her, and Lien opened up a cupboard to pull out one of the yukatas she'd bought and kept here. Her governments liked her to be always wearing business attire when she flew into Japan, and although she liked her suit, yukatas were more comfortable.

Kiku was waiting for her in the dining room- which wasn't all that different from any of the other tatami rooms, except for the chabudai and zabuton cushions. Kiku was already seated, and smiled at her when she entered. A cup of steaming tea was on the table, and Lien gave a happy sigh and flopped down on the cushion. The room smelt pleasantly of the fresh flowers on a cabinet, but since Lien knew her brother, she wasn't fooled.

'Still haven't kicked smoking?' She asked sternly, picking up her teacup. Kiku shrugged, not bothering to deny it. She rolled her eyes. 'How have you been?'

'Same as always,' shrugged Kiku, which Lien translated as 'absolutely crap'. 'And you?'

'You know,' sighed Lien. 'Financial issues, politics, all that fun stuff.'

'Mmm.' Kiku took a sip of his drink. 'So, tell me. Has anything exciting happened?'

Lien smiled slightly. She always made sure to stock up on gossip before she visited Kiku, so that he could feel slightly in touch with what was happening. Lien smiled and took another sip of tea- as it happened, she has a particularly juicy piece of gossip for her brother, but she wasn't going to give it up easily. After all, what was the fun of being an older sister if she couldn't tease her little brother?

In three days' time, she'd have to return to Osaka and go back home, leaving her little brother behind to face the maniac he had to answer to. Lien leant over the chabudai and gave Kiku's hair a tug, so he managed to spill tea on his face. Her brother spluttered, and wrinkled her nose at her. Yes, it would be over soon, but for now, Lien was going to enjoy her time with her little brother.

Kon'nichiwa: hello

Betonamu: Vietnam

Onēchan: older sister