Hero's Honor
A Hetalia Fanfiction by RishiandSquee
(A/N: A bit of completely meaningless, adorable fluff. The first Canada and America fic I've ever done. Hope I did it well! Please enjoy.)
Characters: small!Canada, small!America (human names used)
—oO—Oo—
It was raining, like most nights in London.
A silky-haired blond child cringed at the sound of the thunder. Matthew was hiding under his covers, shivering. With every jolt of lightning, he flinched. He hated the thunder.
There was a loud knock on Matthew's bedroom door. Before the child had a chance to answer, or even peek out of the covers, he felt someone jump on the bed. He squealed in surprise as the foreign object started to grab at the covers.
"Mattie!" A cheerful, overly-enthusiastic voice responded to Matthew's terrified whimpering. "Come on, it's cold, let me in!"
Matthew peeked out from under the covers. As his eyes tried to adjust to the pitch black night, lightning flashed, and in that second on dazzlingly bright like, he could make out his older twin's grinning face. "A-Alfred?" he whispered.
"Yeah, it's me, Mattie! Now let me in!" Alfred demanded, still trying to rip the covers from Matthew's grip. Matthew, however, refused to let go. "Come on, I'm really cold out here! My hands are freezing!" he whined, holding up his hands as if Matthew could really see them in the dark.
Matthew shook his head, trembling. "No! It's too scary out there!" he cried, ducking his head back into the safety of the covers.
Alfred, however, continued to attack the covers, unrelenting. "Mattie!" he pleaded. "Come on, let me in!"
Finally complying, Matthew made a small opening in the covers. Alfred immediately dove in, laughing. "Geez! It took you long enough, Mattie!" he complained, no doubt with a grin on his face. He snuggled next to his younger twin, his warm breath hitting Matthew's face. Matthew cringed as he realized that Alfred had not brushed. "Heh-heh, it's cold out there, Mattie! Feel my hands!"
Matthew cringed. "W-why do you think I'm in here?" he replied, still shaking. He was amazed at his brother's cheerful attitude. Nothing could scare him, it seemed. Matthew felt a surge of jealousy. Why was his brother always the lucky one?
Alfred, unable to read his brother's face in the dark, continued to laugh. Impatient, he pressed Matthew's cheeks with his ice cold hands. "Feel 'em, Mattie! See? Cold!"
The younger twin let out a shriek, trying to snuggle away from Alfred. "Y-yeah! They're cold! Too cold!" he cried, his cheeks turning red. "Get your hands away from me, Al!"
Alfred complied. Matthew could feel the older twin roll over onto his side. "It's weird, huh? Arthur isn't here today, and we're by ourselves, and it's storming out...it's almost like we're protecting the house, huh?" he laughed again, and Matthew couldn't help but bite his lip. Alfred was silent for a minute before snuggling closer to Matthew, careful not to touch the younger one with his cold hands. "Whatever, man! It's not like we need Arthur, anyway, do we? We can protect the house just fine!"
Matthew cringed again. "I-if you say so, Al..."
Another laugh. "Of course I say so! After all, I'm—"
A jolt of thunder interrupted Alfred's speech. Matthew shrieked, then blinked. Was it just his imagination, or had he had heard two screams of terror? He looked over in the darkness to where his older brother lay. "A-al?" he said quietly. "A-are you scared of the thunder, too?"
Alfred laughed again, but it was obviously an awkward laugh. "Of course not, Mattie! I came in here to protect you, after all!" After a few moments of silence, Alfred knew he wasn't fooling anyone. Still, he persisted in maintaining face. "You're more important, Mattie! I have to protect my little brother!" Matthew felt Alfred's arms grabbing at him. As soon as the older blonde's skinny arms reached him, Alfred pulled Matthew to his chest. "After all, I'm the hero!"
Despite his big words, Matthew could feel Alfred trembling.
The silky haired blonde's eyes softened as he realized that Alfred was trying to sacrifice his own needs for the sake of his little brother's. Matthew swallowed as the thought digested itself. "Uhm, Al...I-I'm really scared of the thunder. A lot more then how much you're scared...s-so it's okay for you to be a little scared, Al."
"I'm not scared." Alfred insisted. "I'm just really, really, really cold. Jeez, Mattie, don't you trust me?"
"Not at all."
Alfred jumped. "That hurts my pride, Mattie!" he cried. "I mean, jeez! Talk about hitting below the belt!"
Matthew couldn't help but smile. "I know when you're lying, Al." he said softly. "I can tell."
Alfred sighed, then rolled over onto his back. "Is that so, Mattie?" he said, still holding onto the younger boy's hand. "...well, I guess I'm a little scared. But not scared enough that I can't protect you."
"Promise you're not lying?"
"Yeah, I promise. I'm not lying. Hero's honor. Now go to sleep, Mattie. I'll be here when you wake up."
The younger twin continued to smile as he closed his eyes. Alfred's hand curled up in his own, holding on tightly to his own, frightened one.
"...thank you."
~End
