Disclaimer: All the characters are Hidekazu Himaruya's.
Summary: This was nothing like they should have been. They were like old photographs; the atmosphere and the clothes so old looking, but the persons in them young and defiant, ready to take on the whole world.
A/N: This piece was mostly written for the sake of writing, and so the plot is a bit... nonexistent. The summary was damn hard to do, and so was picking the genre. Also, my first Hetalia fic, so OOC maybe. More A/N at the end.
It had all started so suddenly.
Just one day, in the world meeting when everyone was trying to find their seats, the door was opened to let the last person in.
America, already at the front ready to give his usual speech that would get turned down by England, only gave a quick glance to the late-comer. "Hey, Denmark, finally here!"
"Oh, you must have been mistaken", said a voice that definitely wasn't Denmark's, with a strangely heavy accent America couldn't place even though he somehow knew he should know it.
"What?" America turned around, along with other people whose curiosity had been raised.
It was Spain, grinning widely at everyone daring to look his way, in his hand holding a massive ax, the one that had had America thinking it was Denmark. His eyes glinted a bright green shade. "Don't get me mistaken with just anyone", he said, pointing his ax at America, smiling widely, completely oblivious to the questioning and slightly horrified glances of half of the people in the room.
With that, Spain went and sat next to South Italy, all the while smiling his usual smile that somehow had a different edge to it today.
America only stared, slowly turning his glance from Spain to England and France. England had a look of deep thought on his face along with a frown, all the while looking straight at Spain. France had the same look on him, but he quickly turned his gaze away from Spain and turned to look expectantly at America.
America looked at France, then at Germany who looked at his watch pointedly, then at South Italy. As he, the one who had been with Spain the most did not react any differently to this sudden existence of the weapon, America decided to do nothing to it and grinned.
"Then, let's start with my awesome hero plan!"
The next time was too soon, with too many people.
Yet again it was a meeting with all the countries that had been able to make it. This time it was Switzerland's turn to open the meeting, and it was still more than fifteen minutes until the start.
The first one was Lithuania. America greeted him enthusiastically, expecting a wave and a smile, perhaps a small exchange of words back. What he did not except was only a cool smile and a nod before the man sat. His hair was tied back with a red string.
America stared after him. Lithuania looked different, cool and collected, like someone readying himself for a battle.
America felt sudden dread surround him. Lithuania couldn't be planning anything, could he?
But just as he was about to stand up and go talk to him, Greece and Turkey burst through the door, shouting insults at each other. Turkey's face was covered like always, and they were arguing over the usual, Istanbul-Constantinople –thing. America wouldn't have noticed anything out of ordinary if it weren't for the small, thin knife that Greece held in his hand, positioned as if ready to stab Turkey.
America felt himself pale. This was not what should happen, not here when they were getting ready to make some progress. Not here, not now, not ever.
A bang in the otherwise silent room raised a few screams. Turkey and Greece jumped away from each other in cat like fashion and glare at the intruder, now both holding short knives in their hands.
"Why did you interfere?" Greece asked, glaring at Switzerland. His accent, too, like Spain's earlier, had grown thicker and more difficult to understand.
"I won't accept such behavior here", Switzerland said, not breaking under the two glares. He lifted the small gun in his hand and both Turkey and Greece took a small step backwards. "Go and seat yourselves as far away from each other as you can. And give your knives to me."
As the two of them were handing over their weapons, the door opened once again and in came Japan, followed shortly by Taiwan. Taiwan looked worried, America noticed before even giving Japan a glance. But when he did, he realized immediately why. The look on Japan's face was worse than the cool and collected look of Lithuania, far worse, far colder.
On cue, Japan turned his eyes towards America, looking at him for a moment that felt longer that it actually was. America forced himself to grin and wave at him, not showing his fear of this new change that seemed to have taken over some of them. Japan didn't blink but turned away and seated himself right next to South Korea, silencing the loud nation with only a glance.
"Is everyone here already?" Switzerland asked, irritation in his voice, glaring at the ax Spain had brought to this meeting as well. "And you, Spain, take that ax somewhere else. It's not suitable to the meeting."
Spain only laughed shortly at Switzerland's comment. "Oh, but then I would have nothing to defend myself with." Pointedly he touched the sharp edge with his thumb, a look of almost sadness on his face. "Though, it does need some sharpening. It hasn't been able to cut any English necks recently."
"Which I do not find strange at all", a new voice came in, and America turned around to see England stepping quietly through the doors.
But this was nothing like the England he should have been. His accent had an old sound to it, and his voice had a sound to it that America would describe as cockiness, or rather pride. He was like an old photograph; the atmosphere and the clothes so old looking, but the person in it young and defiant, ready to take on the whole world.
As England walked past Spain, America could hear him whisper: "You have already lost, don't you know it?"
"Then, can we start now?" Switzerland asked, irritated, glaring at everyone.
England smirked at him. "Please, do not let me disturb you." There was no trace left of the usual way he apologized had he held the meeting from starting, no trace left of the usual irritation he usually had showed towards America by now. The only thing left was the feeling of someone who had the whole world at his feet, ready to do what he asked.
America turned away from the piercing green eyes that had looked his way, spending the rest of the meeting in a silence unfamiliar to him.
A/N: So, the idea was that they were all somehow turning into themselves of the time their country was at its greatest, so they would be cockier and colder than normal. Just an idea that I got, so wrote it down.