Previously. In Sleeping Beauty...

A seventeen year-old man lay naked at the top of the staircase to Natalya's tower chamber, shivering. First, the spell of control dissolved and, because the stone spell specifically said While, at darkness's side you stay that also broke because he no longer did and he became flesh again. Then, finally, the spell of transformation faded away and his body began to change.

He knew who he really was. Natalya had taunted him enough with the information when alone, telling him his parents had given up on him, that they had a new child to replace him. He had wondered until she sent him out searching to find Feliciano. During his search he had happened across an Italian cortège and heard them talking about finding the Lost Prince and he knew Natalya had lied.

Now he was free. He opened his caramel coloured eyes and began to push himself to his knees. He gingerly put one foot on the ground and, using the staircase wall, shakily pulled himself into a standing position.

Carefully he took his first human step, then another, then another. He slowly made his way into the chamber and out of the cold.

Once he was more comfortable in his human form, he would find some appropriate clothing, raid Natalya's treasure chamber and he would make his way back to his family.

Prince Lovino was coming home!

Here it is, the long awaited Hetalia Tales 2 : The Prince and the Pea. I'm a little nervous about this one because there's no film storyline to follow so I'm without a safety net so to speak. This is all my own story (apart from the scenes which are clearly Hetalia, you'll know when you read them).

Characters:

Prince Lovino – South Italy

Natalya - Belarus

King Romulus – Roman Empire

Prince Feliciano – North Italy

Prince Ludwig – Germany

Tavern-keeper Carlos – Cuba

So here we go! (crossing my fingers)

I do not own Hetalia.

Chapter 1 : Spanish Hospitality

Lovino was almost ready to go.

He had managed to put together some clothes from what was scattered around from where the pig guards had transformed back into pigs after Natalya had been destroyed (he had washed them first). They were rough and ready but better than nothing. He had raided the kitchen for food for the start of his journey and now he was in Natalya's treasure vault, gathering gold coins and jewels to finance his journey to Italy and his true home and family. He would have liked to take more but he could not take more than he could carry.

He packed everything up, spare clothes, food, money, in a bag and hoisted it on to his shoulder. He made his way down the staircase from Natalya's chambers and out of the castle (after finding some planks of wood to form a make-shift drawbridge over the one that Natalya had destroyed, trying to stop Prince Ludwig from escaping). As he left and made his way down the Forbidden Mountains, he did not noticed a shadowy figure watch him leave.

While Ludwig had had the advantage of the magic of the Three Fae to get back to Italy from Natalya's castle, Lovino was not so lucky and had to go the slow route. Although Natalya was from the Kingdom of Belarus, the Forbidden Mountains existed within the Magic Realm and Natalya could move them anywhere she wanted and only magical beings knew where it was at any given time. Once Lovino left the foothills of the Forbidden Mountains, without Natalya to hold them in the mortal realm they vanished. He would not be able to return, which suited him just fine.

As he finally left the mountains behind, he stepped out into warm sunshine and a rugged, but beautiful landscape. Below him, there were fruit orchards and trees dotted here and there as far as the eye could see. He still had a way to go to reach the valley floor but he was happy to be in the light.

An hour later, Lovino was not so enamoured of the sunshine. He was sweating and the bag was getting heavier with every step. His feet were hurting more with every step as well and he was getting hungry. He finally made it to the first orchard. It was an orange grove and the fresh smell of greenery went well with the cool shade of the trees. Lovino gratefully sank down at the base of one of the trees and began to take the food out of the bag. Some dried meat, a lump of cheese and a flash of wine were quickly devoured. Fed and watered, Lovino put the bag behind his head and settled down for a siesta.

Lovino stood before the King and Queen, Prince Feliciano and his fiancé, Prince Ludwig. He waited for his father to welcome him with open arms and call him son, his mother to hold him close for the first time he could remember and his little brother to hug him and say he was glad to have a sibling.

King Romulus looked at him with disdain.

"Why would I want you now?" he sneered. "I have Feliciano, I have no need of another heir." The Queen just turned away and refused to look at him. Feliciano looked at him with contempt.

"If I accept you as my fratello (brother)," he said. "Ludwig and I will never rule Italy so why would I want you here?"

"But you are my family," Lovino replied, desperately. "I have nowhere else to go."

"Then I'll give you somewhere," the King stated. "Guards, take this intruder to the dungeons."

Hands grabbed him as he fought to reach the family that was rejecting him. More hands grabbed him and he began to disappear under them.

"CHIGI!" Lovino awoke, gasping for air in a mad panic. It took a few moments to realise it had been nothing but a bad dream, born of his insecurity. But still, it left him feeling disturbed.

As it was early evening when he awoke, he made better time as the air had turned cooler and he finally came to a small town with an tavern as the sun moved toward the horizon. He went in and approached the owner who turned to him after serving wine to some locals.

"Hola!(Hello!)" He greeted in an accent, telling Lovino that he was in the Kingdom of Spain. He was a stocky man with braided hair, held back, a cigar and a gregarious disposition, a prefect trait for a tavern-keeper.

Lovino did not have the best attitude. It came from living his entire life in Natalya's tender care and growing up with the pig guards. He had not been able to communicate with the guards which was a blessing because his thoughts were not complimentary and quite crude. Natalya had been able to communicate with him, mind to mind, and she had been amused at his thoughts. It had left Lovino with bad people skills but he was going to have to try.

"Do you have a room for the night?" Lovino asked, deciding it was best to be polite if he wanted somewhere to sleep.

"Ah! Italian! Si!(Yes!)" the keeper replied, enthusiasticly in Lovino's tongue. "I'm Carlos, the owner. On a journey?"

"Returning home," Lovino answered. God! The man was so damn cheerful, he thought. Are they all like that?

"Where's home?" Carlos asked.

"Italy!"

"That's a long way to go, amigo (friend)," Carlos commented. "You need to go through France. Watch out for the people, they're a little perverted. Unless you head for the coast and get a ship. What's your name, amigo?" Lovino decided not to reveal his royal status.

"Lovino," he answered. Carlos looked up surprised.

"Like the Lost Prince!"

"The Lost Prince?" Lovino was stunned that anyone knew about him in a country so far way from Italy and he wanted to hear more.

"Si," Carlos said. "The missing oldest son of King Romulus. He was kidnapped seventeen years ago and he's never been seen since. Every so often, Italian officials would come looking for him. The King has never given up trying to find him, not even after Prince Feliciano was born, although he had to sent away to protect him from the Dark Sorceress."

Lovino, of course, already knew all this but let Carlos ramble on.

"Of course," Carlos continued. "He'll have returned now that the Dark Sorceress is dead."

"I suppose the King will stop looking for the older son now the younger one is back," Lovino replied, still a little insecure from years of Natalya's taunting and the dream, earlier in the day.

"If he was going to do that," the tavern-keeper said. "He would have done it when Prince Feliciano was born. No! He wants both sons back." It made Lovino feel better to know that his father still wanted him, unlike the dream. But he also felt rather tired.

"The room?" he asked. "I've travelled quite a distance." Carlos looked apologetic.

"Of course!" he replied. "I shouldn't keep you standing here while I babble. This way!"

He lead Lovino up some stairs and down a corridor to a room at the end. It was small with a small window, containing only a bed and a chair but it was clean. Through the window, Lovino could see the sun was setting. No wonder he was tired.

"I leave you to rest," Carlos said as he moved out of the room. "If you get hungry, amigo, there's food available." Lovino thanked him and Carlos left.

Lovino closed the door to the room, tucked his bag right under the bed, removed his clothes and laid down, naked, and went to sleep. The dream did not make a reappearance.

The next morning, Lovino ate breakfast and paid Carlos with a gold coin (which was probably two or three times the bill but he had nothing smaller) who sent him on his way with a smile and a safe journey, amigo and come back again, any time.

Lovino wanted to make the next town before the sun got too high but nothing came in sight as morning moved to afternoon and the day became hot again and Lovino decided to head for the coolness of a nearby wood. The shade was inviting but Lovino was about to learn that the woods also held danger.

He stopped by a small pond and splashed some of the cool water on his face and around his neck. As he rubbed his face, he did not see the tall figure of a man with a white, half face mask come up behind him.

There. The first chapter of the new story which I hope you like. I tried to imagine the insecurities that might plague Lovino about meeting his family and figured he might have a bad dream or two so I threw that in there. I think you can guess who the man in the white mask is but more of that in the next chapter.

From Sleeping Beauty

To Cardfighter – Here you go. I won't give too much away but I'll just say that Lovino won't have it easy but he won't be alone for long.

To kassydaPJgeek14 – You're welcome, after all, you take the trouble to review, it's only fair I reply and I hope you like this as much as Sleeping Beauty.

To mini-chan and aliling-chan – I'm sorry I couldn't put your pairing in these stories but thank you for your support of Big in Japan which does have it (Shamelessly advertising other story)

To Acyee-san – Yes, happy endings all round if I can help it. And your wait is over. Enjoy!

To Scarlet Phantom – Thank you so much. And indeed this story has started where Sleeping Beauty left off. And the next story and shipping is ….. I think I'll leave you in suspense. (Muahahahaha!)

Okay, that's it for this week. Hope you enjoyed it.

Till next week, Hasta la Pasta!