Do you believe in an after life?

Maybe humans do.

And maybe they do because it exists for them.

But how about...

The last memories Gilbert had was of a cramped little cell.

There was a horrible stench of blood and piss that he couldn't escape. There was no window, thus no light. Just barely enough to see from a torch in the hallway.

Or at least, it seemed like a torch. He would watch the shadows constantly move along the walls like a flame when he got bored. Which was most of the time.

There was absolutely nothing to do in the cell. He wasn't chained, thankfully. Maybe his brother still loved him. Or he just didn't care.

Gilbert liked to believe that West still cared. After all, he would visit sometimes. When he did, Gilbert jumped up to greet him, and talk to him as if they were back in their old house, in their living room. As if nothing had ever changed little his brother. As if Prussia was still a powerful older brother.

Gilbert thought of all these things and more when he heard a distinct sound. It was the sound of footsteps. He got off the floor and brushed off his already-dirty rags with his hands. He rushed to the door, with a small barred rectangle that enabled him to recognize West.

At that instant, he realized something was wrong. It was wrong already of course, from the time he'd changed, and put him in this cell in the first place. But this time, he wasn't as frightening... Gilbert was afraid but not for the same reasons. Before he'd been afraid that West might forget him in the cell, forget him while he celebrated his victory. As a new power.

Now he was afraid he'd lost.

"H-hey... So did you lose a battle or something? Need my awesome help yet?" Prussia said in what he thought would be an arrogant tone. It just came out feeble and tired.

"Bruder... You know I never wanted to lock you up here in the first place... right?"

Gilbert didn't know how to reply to that. Instead he said, "So I'm finally getting out, huh? Yes! So maybe even my awesome self can be wrong sometimes. I guess you won, and now we can go drink beer and celebrate..." While Prussia chatted on mindlessly, he kept his wary eyes on Germany.

"You understand... I had to do this for a better world, right?" Germany said in a barely audible voice. But it was louder to the Prussian's ears than his own chattering. He gripped the metal bars separating the two of them.

"You understand... I know you can tell, that I've... screwed up. Right?"

Prussia remained silent. He was right. The Allies must have won. And he must have...

"Hey West... Do you think that... nations can go to heaven?" Gilbert said quietly. "Or is that just for humans?"

"I don't know" was his answer.

"Then again, humans have such fleeting lives... Heaven should be crowded by now. Maybe it doesn't even exist for any of us. Well maybe... there's nothing after 'death', you know? Even for humans, I mean." Prussia couldn't stop talking. He wondered all his thoughts out loud. Maybe... maybe that can help this sinking feeling he got. This feeling that he was fading away. This feeling that his brother couldn't hear him. "Or do you think, we get a new life? Where we wouldn't be able to remember anything, make the same mistakes?"

"They think you influenced me." Germany said. "They think it's partly your fault."

"But... I..." Prussia would have said that it was none of his fault, but that would be like blaming everything on his brother. "West, if I... if we go down, we go down together, right? Because we're brothers... And..."

"They think... you're the cause of my change."

"Who cares what they think? Come on West, we can work through this! We've had some tough times in the past, and I'm still pretty strong! Don't give up on me just yet..." Gilbert was almost begging. He felt he was already weakening. Tears sprang out of his eyes when he saw his own grip on the bars lessen.

"Save me... I don't want to disappear..." Those were his last words in that cramped little cell.

"I~za~ya~kun..." The distinctive voice rang out through the little park where Izaya was disposing some 'unnecessary stuff'. With that voice was accompanied a sound of screeching metal.

When Izaya turned around, he saw Shizuo ripping an iron rail effortlessly. In the deep night, his glinting eyes seemed even more frightening, even more inhuman. Izaya smirked with disgust.

"Oh, Shizu-chan. I didn't expect to see you here so late." As he spoke, Izaya drew out the flickblade holding it ready in his hand.

"Celty told me some stuff that pissed me off. So I came to beat the shit out of you."

"As always, you're so-" He was cut off in mid sentence as he avoided the piece of metal being thrown at him. "-blunt with your words."

"Stay still so I can fuckin' get rid of you for good." Shizuo said as he uprooted a sign pole.

"I would love to stay and chat, but I'm a little busy to deal with you right now. I have important stuff to do, not that someone like you can understand." Izaya said with a smile and sprinted off. He heard things being thrown at him, but they always missed him. Soon the raging sounds of Shizuo was barely heard.

"What a day~" Izaya said to himself as he slowed to a walk. He was now on the crowded night streets of Ikebukuro. Neon signs flashed near stores and so many kinds of people all gathered in smaller groups everywhere. Some of them were wearing yellow pieces of clothing, and some blue. "Maybe I could check out how things are going with Kida..."

Then something caught his attention. It was a tall building, owned by the government. Sort of like a meeting hall. Izaya didn't know much about it, as he didn't want to get involved in any way with the authorities. Playing it safe was one of the reasons he was able to continue in his business.

But today it seemed different. No mistakes, the building hadn't changed at all. But the atmosphere seemed so different and... grand. Like there was something big going in there.

As he stood thinking, he saw someone come out from the entrance. He seemed to be in a hurry, but overjoyed at the same time. It was a European man, maybe American.

"Ve~ This city's so interesting!" The man said to himself in what Izaya recognized as Italian. He still felt that grand presence in him, but as far as he could tell, this was an ordinary Italian tourist speaking in a language he'd never learned.

"Mein Gott! Get back in here, we have a meeting!" Suddenly, a blond man walked out, yelling at the Italian in a harsh German. Izaya never learned German either, but he recognized the words, the voice that spoke it, the low vibration it had when the German got frustrated...

Izaya felt like the breath was knocked out of him. Or more like, he was remembering something painful he'd felt before... He remembered the German's face, his furrow of brows, and a uniform...

But Izaya saw no uniform on this man, just a regular suit. Izaya had never seen him before in his life. Yet he felt his hands shake as from a recent memory gripping at air. And for a split second, he seemed to remember everything and realize the situation.

Then he'd come back to his senses and the memories that he just obtained all escaped out of his head in the next second. It was a strange experience. As the German dragged back the Italian into the building, he felt an impulse to run after him. Instead, he ran back to his office wondering what had just happened. This strange event just left him with a single idea, an idea maybe someone wanted him to remember, he didn't know.

Death, and the life after.

Izaya slowed down to a casual walk. He'd never thought about the subject before. Then he decided he didn't want to die. No it wasn't just that... He was afraid to die. As if it was some childhood trauma, Izaya felt chills thinking about dying. No... he didn't want to disappear. What was after death? Nothing? Hell? Or maybe he could still make it into heaven?

He didn't want to leave, though. He wanted to live a long life. He remembered someone somewhere once said, "humans have such fleeting lives." Maybe so. As Izaya entered through his door, he went straight to the computer and looked up old legends about death and an after life, almost desperately. Should there be a way he could prevent dying, or insure a way into 'heaven', he'd be willing to do anything. And in a twisted way, it sounded kind of fun. In any case, he didn't ever want to leave such an exciting life with humans he loved so much.

The internet showed various results. Some folktales interested him, especially the ones about the Valkyries. Well, maybe there was a way to be less afraid.

Maybe I can control where I go after I die this time.

Izaya turned off the computer with that lasting thought, which haunted him for a few minutes.

This time?

Author's Notes: Hellooo. This is the first fic I've ever finished writing... It's a oneshot, after all. I don't know if anyone'll like it. I just sort of wrote it out of a sudden impulse. I've never liked crossovers much... Anyways, hope you enjoyed it~ I'll probably write more stuff in the future.

OHHH. PLEASE REVIEW. Yeah. That's how I'll know that I'm not a total failure. Thanks. :D