Hello everyone, I'm czieskara. Nice to meet you~ =bows=

This is my first fanfic for ffn. I wrote these similarly to how the Counting Sheep series sounded like (I love them!). When you see a series of .. 's do try to pause and converse with the character. This might seem awkward, but you'll see how it works in a bit :3

These were meant for girls. If you're a guy.. vee. Pretend you're a girl! :

For maximum effect, read while listening to Italy's character song~!

Please do enjoy. ^J^

I don't own APH. If I did, Sealand would be the main character!


Shopping with Hetalia

Chapter 1 – Italia Veneziano

The sun shone brightly on the day you were supposed to meet up with a certain Italian for a shopping date. The two of you had met after a world conference when he'd accidentally stumbled over you while you were holding a stack of office supplies that rivaled the Leaning Tower of Pisa to begin with.

"Vee~! I'm so sorry. Oh, I've never seen you here before! What's your name? Are you new here?"

..

"Mm! I'm Italy Veneziano! Nice to meet you~"

..

"Hehe.. I am a bit too clumsy, aren't I? Germany says so as well.. Oh no! I spilled ink on your coat!"

..

"That wasn't your only blazer, was it? Oh no... Ve... That makes me feel bad..."

..

"Ah! I know! The next world conference is going to be in Italy next week, right? Come early and see me so I can show you around! I'll buy you a new coat and maybe if we have time, treat you to some delicious pasta! How does that sound?"

..

"Ve~! I insist. It looks like the Italian fashions might look very good on you as well. Even fratello wears nothing but Italian-made clothes. Hehe~ I can't wait! See you next week then! Ciao!"

And so it seemed that you had a date with the rather cute personification of Italy.


You had agreed to meet him in a park square near one of the more upscale shopping havens of Italy. The entire place was beautiful. The churches you had passed on the way to the square were marvelous works of art in themselves. The small but quaint houses looked like they were straight out of a Rennaissance painting. It seemed that even the streets were picture-perfect.

All of a sudden, your thoughts were interrupted by a certain Italian.

"Vee~! Buon giorno! Good morning~"

You see that Italy is as bright as usual, dressed in a crisp white shirt, beautifully damaged dark blue jeans and a very subtle pair of casual loafers. Are all Italians this stylish?

"I hope I didn't make you wait too long! It took me a while to leave my house you see.. Fratello has been very short-tempered recently."

..

"Oh, no~ Don't worry, it has nothing to do with you. It might have something to do with brother Spain, though~ But enough of that. How was your journey here?"

..

"I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed the scenery~ My country IS really pretty, isn't it? You should see the countryside! Oh, and the girls are really pretty too! Hehe.. You're really beautiful, ve~."

..

"Ehehe.. I'm not lying or anything, you really are beautiful. I'm sure you'd look wonderful in our clothes! I'll help you find something really nice, I promise!"

You suddenly remember that more than half the designer brands you have heard of in your entire life are Italian.

And that you don't have the cash to spend on even half an Armani jacket. Your pay may be higher than most, but so were your expenses. Plane fare, insurance against Prussian attacks on your vital regions and all that.

And that Italy was probably wearing designer clothes as well.

"Huh? What's with that look on your face?"

..

"Oh! I will be the one to buy it for you~ It WAS my fault that your coat was ruined after all! I really do insist."

..

"Don't worry about the price~ These clothes I'm wearing aren't TOO expensive, really. Fratello is the one that likes to show off. You should see him when he goes on trips with Spain. He brings so many clothes~"

..

"Ve~ I think instead of talking, I should just show you, ne? Come on! There's so much I want you to see~!"

And so you were half led, half dragged by Italy along the streets of Venice. You passed many shops along the way, and Italy stopped at many of them to vee~ over cute scarves and such. The two of you finally went into a good-sized store with very minimal décor that almost screamed designer.

You awkwardly peruse a clothing rack, and see the price of a dress.

Huh. The price isn't too bad for a designer dress.

"Ve~ See? Not all designer clothing is expensive."

You see Italy holding up several clothing items, none of them jackets, blazers or coats.

"Huh? But I thought these would all look good on you. Vee. We're shopping, right? It wouldn't hurt not to get a nice shirt or two along with the blazer, ne?"

..

"I told you not to worry about the price.. Fratello would be mad at me if I let you pay for it. Besides, it's my pride as an Italian at stake if I don't buy you pretty clothing!"

You decide to let Italy buy you the clothes.

..

"Yay! It's good that you understand~ We countries have to take care of our friends, ne?"

Italy's face beamed with one of his signature smiles. It was easy to see how he managed to have so many friends, including the stern Germany and reserved Japan. Who wouldn't want this bundle of sunshine as a friend?

"Ve~ Come and try these on. I'll be waiting to see you~!"

You were ushered into a fitting room by several of the very amused female shop employees.

The first thing you try on is a very light and breezy sleeveless summer dress with a feminine flowery print.

"Wuoah~! Ve!"

Italy claps his hands in delight.

"I knew that would look nice on you! You look so pretty.. But I think that would look good with.. Hmm, let's see. Wait right here!"

Italy runs to another clothing rack and comes back with a belt that looks like a red velvety ribbon.

"Put that on.. No, not there, that place is for pants belts! Here, around your waist. Uwa~! Perfect!"

You look at yourself in the mirror. Somehow, you manage to look like you've just stepped out of a magazine catalog.

But you remind yourself that you are looking for a jacket!

..

"Ve? Oh, right, the coat! Um. I didn't see any that were particularly nice in the store."

..

"Mm. You're right. We should go look in a different store.. But do you like the dress?"

..

"I'm buying it for you~ Just because you look so pretty in it. Ve~!"

You suddenly have a vision of Germany scolding Italy for being so loose with his money.

"Ve? What's wrong?"

You tell Italy about his spending habits.

"Oh. Germany tells me about that as well.. I won't buy everything that looks good on you though!"

Italy looks pumped up.

"But I do like to see people in clothing that suits them. Tell you what, I'll buy these for you as a Christmas present! I know it's not Christmas time yet, but think of it as last year's Christmas gift that I'm giving you only now, ve~!"

You laugh, and so do the store attendants.

"Ve? What's so funny? I really do want to buy it for you though.."

You decide to let him, just this once.

"Oh yay! Hehe~! I'll just have them wrap this up first. I promise that I'll only buy you the coat after this, okay?"

..

"Good~! Let me go pay for these then~"


After buying the dress and belt, you and Italy walk out of the store.

"Hmm~ Where to next. I don't usually look for coats you see, it's nice and warm here in Italy..."

..

"Mm. Yup. Me and Fratello have our uniforms tailored too, so there isn't a whole lot of need to go out and look for office-y clothing.."

..

"Vee. Hmm. Oh, I have an idea! I'll ask Fratello!"

Italy whips out his cell phone, one of those new models that you hadn't even known was actually out yet, and calls his brother, the feisty Italy Romano.

"Hello, Fratello?"

"Oi, you bastard! What the hell are you doing calling me all of a sudden?"

"V-Ve? Fratello?"

Italy nearly dropped his phone.

"Stupid brother! No sense of timing as always! Sheesh!"

Italy tried vainly to reply. Your sense of duty kicks in, and you decide to take charge.

..

"Huh? Who's this?" Romano's temper seemed to settle down for a bit.

..

"Oh, you're that girl he's been talking about all week. Shopping, aren't you? Why the hell is he calling me..?"

You calmly explain the situation to him.

"That sounds so like him. Well, if you want nice attire that isn't too expensive, you could try.."

Romano gives you the names of several stores, some of which you'd heard of in the past.

..

"You should be good with those. They haven't failed me. Well, not recently at least. Are you sure you don't want something nice from Dior..?"

..

"Fine then. At least you'll look decent enough."

You remember to ask Romano why he was so mad when Veneziano called him.

"Oh, that. Well. Um. It takes... uh.. Well it takes ages. To get Spain in.. Um. The right mood. He forgets otherwise. Stupid happy smiley wonderful bastard.."

Romano sounded flustered. You try to suppress a light giggle.

"A-anyway, I'm going to get right back to him after I hang up. Make sure my brother doesn't slip up too much okay?"

..

"Right then. Give the phone back to my brother, will you?"

You hand the phone back to Italy, who seemed to have calmed down.

"F-Fratello?"

Italy held a worried expression.

"Yes! Yes! I'm sorry.. Yes. I'll get some tomatoes for you on the way back! Yes! Okay! Bye, brother, have fun with Spain! ...brother? Brother?"

Italy looked at his phone.

"He hung up.. Vee. Oh! Did you ask him about the stores?"

You tell Italy the names of the stores.

"Ah! I know those! One of them isn't too far from here. Let's go!"


Once more, Italy leads you through the confusing streets. You stop at a very professional looking store with the store name in gold lettering outside.

"I think I was here a few years back when I was looking for a present for Germany.. Let's have a look, shall we?"

You and Italy enter the store, where you were cordially greeted by the staff. The place seemed to have a different aura than the store earlier.

"Let's go look for your coat, shall we? The store's kinda big.. Let's split up! Meet back here in a few minutes, okay?"

The two of you split up. You soon find a good looking navy blue blazer, and a very black coat with silver buttons. Italy is nowhere to be seen at the designated meeting spot..

You soon find him near a coat rack, choosing between a mocha colored button-up and a white blazer.

"Ah! Oh, did I take too long? I'm sorry.. I was having trouble with these two. The mocha one is such a nice color, but this white one has GREAT stitches.."

..

"Yeah, I thought so too.. Mm. Before we make any decisions, you should try them on first!"

Italy approaches the store staff and asks for the two coats in your size.

"What did you pick out? Oh! That black one looks very nice! But I think that blue one would show your figure off much better."

..

"Really? Try the black one on first then. Look, there's a mirror here~!"

Italy helps you put the black coat on first. It feels very snug and warm on you, but not too warm.

"How is it? The buttons really make this piece shine huh.. Ve.. This is the sort of thing Fratello likes."

Italy gives you an appraising look.

"Try the blue one on next!"

You carefully remove the black coat and put on the blue blazer.

"That looks great! I really like how the lining of the collar defines your curves~ You look really professional in that! I'll bet if Germany saw you he'd fall right for you!"

..

"Ah, I see.. Mm. I like Germany quite a lot, I guess.. Do you think he likes me back? He's really nice to me all the time.."

The store attendant returns with the mocha and white jackets.

"Oh, here they are! Thank you for bringing them~"

"Try on the mocha one next!"

The mocha coat looks more like a winter coat on you than it does an office coat. You could move around pretty well in it, and it felt nice and comfy.

"Hmm.. That would work if you went to Russia I think. How does it feel?"

..

"Warm, huh? Maybe it's just the weather here. Ve.. Try the white one on!"

The white one had a very thin fabric compared to the mocha one, and it had a much sharper cut. You looked like a navy officer.

"Ooh~! You look like Japan in that! He would like that a lot!"

..

"Mm. It gets really hot at Japan's place, you know? But it gets really cold too. Have you ever been in a snowing country?"

..

"Mm. I have, just a couple of times. I don't like the cold a whole lot.. But as long as Germany's with me, it should be okay, right?"

..

Italy looks up at you hopefully. You give him a reassuring pat on the back.

"Thank you.. You're so kind. Ve~"

"Have you picked which jacket you wanted?"

..

"That one, huh? Mm! I think it was the best one too! Let's go get it wrapped~"

You notice that Italy looks particularly happy now.

"Hm? What is it?"

You thank Italy for buying you such nice clothes!

"Oh, it was nothing~ Really, it was! I was really happy I could spend time with you~ It's fun making friends, isn't it?"

..

The two of you walk out of the store with your new jacket!

"Hehe.. I hope we can go out like this again in the future! It would be great if we could all go out and have fun like this.. You, me, Germany, Japan, Fratello, Spain.."

Italy looks very happy.

"Ve~ I think that would be very nice! They'd all love to meet you! You're such a nice person and all.. Who wouldn't want to be friends with you?"

You laugh at his words. Funny that he should be saying what you were thinking of him earlier.

Looking up, you see a confused Italy. You smile and give him a hug.

"Ve.. I'm not sure what was funny, but thank you for the hug~"

"Oh! I almost forgot!"

..

"Now that we have your jacket, we can go eat yummy pasta now! Aren't you hungry? Come on! One of my favorite resturants is a few blocks from here!"

Italy takes your hand as the two of you walk off into the distance.

~End~


How was it? Ehehe. ^.^

You pick whichever jacket he gets you.

More shopping with Hetalia to come~!

Thank you for reading~