Ich bin ein Berliner
(RussiaxPrussia)
by WhiteWings9
Gilbert could feel the wall crumbling. His brows furrowed, beaded with cold sweat, his hand clutching at his chest; each fissure in the concrete partition was a cut into flesh. Yet he smiled. For his children, for their happiness, he could bear the pain.
"It is a miracle that you have lasted to see this day."
Gilbert twisted around, startled. Ivan was standing behind him, smiling his usual smile, a gloved hand wrapped around the neck of a clear bottle of vodka. Russia's own frigid soul.
"You – "
"Do not worry, I am not here to retrieve you."
Ivan's breath clouded the frosty winter air, and only then did Gilbert realise just how cold it was. He wrapped his arms around himself and shivered; it did not go unnoticed. Ivan raised his bottle in wordless offer, and Gilbert, though wary, accepted it. The bottle was already three quarters empty, Gilbert noted. He swallowed a mouthful, grimacing as the spirit burned his throat, and Ivan shifted his gaze towards the wall, his bloodshot eyes unblinking and unreadable, hands clasped behind his back.
"Why are you here?" Gilbert asked suspiciously. Ivan flicked his eyes towards him, a strangely distant expression on his face.
"Tell me something, East," he said quietly. "How are you still here?"
"Huh?"
"You are but a remnant of a past glory, a fallen kingdom," Ivan continued. "How are you still standing here, able to watch as your children desert you?"
Gilbert said nothing. He took another draught of the alcohol and gave the bottle an absent-minded twirl, swirling the last of its content.
"They are planning to bring in industrial equipment to remove the rest of it," Ivan said with an offhand gesture in some vague direction. He stopped.
"Yeah, I probably won't survive it." It had been on his mind. Gilbert downed the last of the vodka.
"And you are all right with that?"
"It's not like I can do anything about it!"
The empty bottle smashed at Ivan's feet, scattering into many glittering fragments. Ivan watched with his blank expression as Gilbert's hand flew to his chest, his face twisted in pain.
"I am sorry," Ivan said quite sincerely.
Gilbert turned away, clenching his jaw. He regretted that outburst. He sounded bitter when he felt far from it; he was to be granted his freedom, he was to be reunited with West; hell, if anything, he was overjoyed!
"Don't be," he said through gritted teeth. He forcibly looked upon the wall again. It was time he joined his children on the other side.
He took a trembling step forward, stumbled. Ivan was immediately at his side, aiding him with gloved hands resting on the sides of his arms.
"No, let go!" Gilbert snarled, pulling away roughly.
"East, you can barely stand." Ivan sounded so hurt, so sad. Gilbert turned and wrenched him forward by his coat, the glass pieces crunching underfoot as their faces came within inches apart. He watched as Ivan's red-rimmed eyes widened, surprised, his alcohol-laced breath mingling with his own in bursts of white. Gilbert felt the corners of his lips tugging into his signature smirk.
"I don't want your pity," he spat, and spitefully added, "I've always hated you, you know?"
Something stirred in those cold violet eyes, something that betrayed Ivan's otherwise impassive mask. He looked for all the world a lost child, eyes beseeching, staring mutely, hungrily. For all the might and military backing at his disposal, he was so starved for warmth. It was pathetic.
Gilbert shoved him off, disgusted, staggering backwards. Ivan righted himself, still staring, then he looked down out of some vague respect. From his pocket he slowly drew something. He held it for a moment, gazing at it wistfully, then offered it to Gilbert as he had with the vodka moments before.
"This is yours. I am sorry I took it. You may have it back now."
Gilbert stared. Recognition dawned on him, and he practically tore it from Ivan's extended fingers. It was a cross, a simple silver ornament embedded with a black jewel, one he had worn for nearly all his life and had held so precious. He pressed it to his lips, eyes closed in silent gratitude.
Ivan had prepared to leave, his back already turned, when Gilbert called to him, "Hey!" He paused, and half-turned to face the other.
"Why aren't you stopping me?" Gilbert demanded.
"Do you want to be stopped, little East?"
For a moment the two nations stood in silence, Gilbert uncomprehending and Ivan smiling faintly, sadly. Then he gave a small nod towards the wall.
"Go, your brother is waiting," he said. He turned back and walked away.
Gilbert watched as Ivan receded into the night, leaving no trace of ever being with him. He looked at the cross in his palm, gripped it and held it tight to his heart, and turned to face the wall once more. He pictured the upturned expectant face of West, his dear little brother, ruddy-cheeked from the biting cold and stoic among his celebrating children.
He smiled.
He was going home.
A/n: This is my very first Hetalia fic, and for the first time in a very long time I tried to write something with a plot. Boy was it hard!
This is a super belated birthday fic for LadyKnightofHollyRose, my long-suffering pal whose birthday was in January. Sorry! I just can't write het, I hope this is okay? Happy 18th Birthday!
I put a lot of effort into research - well, I say a lot, what I really did was print stuff off Wiki and sat down and had a good read. It became a bit of a pain when conflicting statements came up, and I was too lazy to properly check it in the library. So sorry for any inaccuracy in the wall of notes at the bottom, feel free to correct me if you spot anything wrong.
I also looked up some video footages when the Wall fell. I didn't realise there were two walls, not the one, and that it wasn't toppled on the very day, it took several weeks. You learn something new every time you watch Hetalia, yup yup. (Maybe I would have known this if I paid any attention in history classes? Nah!)
In any case, I hoped you enjoyed my version of it. I know the Berlin Wall has been done to death in Hetalia fandom, but every single one I read had poor Russia as the bad guy, and I wanted to cast a more sympathetic light on his character. I am an Ivan fan after all, bwahahaha!
By the way, the course of the story changed drastically from my initial draft. I wanted to write a snog fest between Gilbo and Ivan, but yeah... It felt too forced, and I needed a change. Apologies if you wanted it to happen. I promise to make up for it sometime :)
Notes:
Ich bin ein Berliner
President John F. Kennedy gave a speech about the Berlin Wall in which he said, "Ich bin ein Berliner" meaning "I am a Berliner." The president and the United States Congress made the decision to not interfere with the building of the wall and risk armed conflict, but sent protests noted to Moscow.
...each fissure in the concrete partition was a cut into flesh.
Over the next few weeks following the opening of the Wall, parts of it were enthusiastically chipped away by Berliners and tourists alike for souvenir chunks. Industrial equipment was later used to remove the rest of it.
"Why aren't you stopping me?"
When the Wall opened in 1989, no Soviet tanks rolled through Berlin when before anyone caught trying to flee across the border were shot by border guard under orders by the East German government. Figures of those killed range from 98 to 200 according to Wiki.
"You are but a remnant of a past glory, a fallen kingdom."
With the end of the Hohenzollern monarchy in Germany following World War I, Prussia became part of the Weimar Republic as a free state in 1919. It effectively lost this status in 1932 following a decree of Reich Chancellor Franz von Papen; Prussia as a state was abolished de facto by the Nazis in 1934 and de jure by the Allies of World War II in 1947.
Historical notes:
The Berlin Wall was a physical barrier encircling West Berlin, separating it from East Germany, known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), including East Berlin. The longer inner German border demarcated the border between East and West Germany. Both borders came to symbolise the Iron Curtain between Western Europe and Eastern Bloc.
Construction of the Wall begin in the early hours of 13th August 1961, with the first stone blocks laid down at the Potsdamer Platz. The United States Military and West Berlin police kept Berliners 300 meters away as the wall built stone by stone.
The Wall separated East Germany from West Germany for more than a quarter-century. It opened on 9th November 1989 after several weeks of civil unrest, when Politburo member Günter Schabowski released a misleading press statement saying GDR citizens could visit West Germany and West Berlin. Crowds from East Berlin thronged at the border and gained momentum, forcing border guards to open up and let them cross the frontier of Bösebrücke. People from East and West Berlin climbed up and danced at Brandenburg Gate in wild celebration.
The fall of the Berlin Wall paved way for the German reunification, which was formally concluded on 3rd October 1990 following the breakdown of Communism in Europe.
Sources:
.org/wiki/West_Berlin
.org/wiki/East_Berlin
.org/wiki/Berlin_wall
.org/wiki/Prussia