The sun set slowly. Ever so slowly. It hurt to watch, to know what was going to happen the second the sun sunk beneath the horizon. She was six at the time, when it happened. She'd never forget that day. The ice underneath her was cold, biting through her winter clothes. The sunset was brilliant against the blanched surroundings, all reds and oranges and yellows. The squawks or penguins and the barks of seals were to both sides of her, filling the air with her own Antarctic symphony. It was a beautiful day. For now.
The sun finally lost its battle to stay afloat and buried itself under the ocean, leaving her world black. Antarctica sighed, standing up and adjusting her favorite red scarf. It was time to go home. She took a few steps, then froze. Something was out of place. She pondered a few moments in silence, trying to figure it out. That's when she put it together. The silence. Not one animal was making a sound, which was strange. There was always a constant stream of penguins trumpeting, or the seals braying, but the air tonight was empty. She saw no significance and took another step.
CRACK! She froze, startled by the loud sound. Suddenly, the solid ice shelf she was standing on disappeared, replaced by empty air. The wind filled her ears with whistling as she fell, and she hit the water with a loud SPLASH! The girl sunk like a stone, curled up in a ball, until she finally released her knees and swam to the surface. She gasped for air, looking around frantically. The slab of ice that had once held her had split into a million floating pieces, and she immediately swam to one large enough to hold her.
She pulled herself onto the tiny isle of ice, flopping onto her back and breathing deeply. Her clothes were soaked through with freezing water, and the wind bit mercilessly at her all over. She had to get out of there. Fast. There was a splash. She lifted her head, looking for the source. A large ripple pushed past her isle, shaking it, but there was no sign of what caused it. She crept over to the edge closest to the waves, leaning over to search beneath her. She remembered her scarf dipping into the water. Under the surface, a large black and white head shot up at her, many small white teeth bared,
The orca's teeth caught her scarf as its head surfaced its fins grabbing the ice for a grip, to pull itself toward the girl. Her scarf tightened its hold on her neck, cutting off her air. She choked, clawing at the red garment, to get it off her. She found the knot and managed to undo it, letting herself breath. She scrabbled backwards, away from the beast. Scarf still clamped in its jaws, it sunk back into the waves.
Panting and clutching her chest, Antarctica flopped back on her back. That was the closest she'd ever been to death. Ever. Another splash. She was on her knees, ready for the next attack. A large black fin surfaced, circling her. Her breath caught in her throat as it submerged, and she braced herself. Same as before, the orca's head crashed onto the ice, its fins gripping for leverage, It wriggled, getting as much of its body onto the isle as possible. The ice shuddered, tilting. She gasped, grabbing for the edge of the as her feet started sliding towards the monster's gaping jaws. The bestial creature finally gave up, sliding back into the water. The girl collapsed back onto the ice, trying to regain her breath while she could.
The vicious cycle lasted for hours. It left her exhausted and scared she'd be too weak to save herself from imminent doom. She was shivering profusely, but from the cold or fear, she didn't know. And worst of all, the darkness kept pressing in, making her eyesight blurry and vague. She was at a big disadvantage. The fin resurfaced, and she followed it obsessively. This was a game to the great beast. Like a cat with a ball of yarn, it was toying with her. She was going to die.
Her eyesight was beginning to go entirely. The game was about to end. The fin continued to circle, then cut straight towards her. It was all over. Suddenly, she heard a few squawks. A flock of penguins dipped and dove and jumped out of the water near her, probably hunting a good school of fish. The fin turned towards the flock and sunk out of sight. It took a few moments for it to sink in. The whale was gone. She needed to get away while she could. She dove into the water, paddling furiously to the shore. Behind her, she heard the shrieks of a dying bird. It killed her inside to hear one of her beloved penguin's death cries, but she had to continue to survive.
Despite her aching body and exhaustion, the second she reached the shore, she ran. Ran to her house and up the stairs to her room, where she stripped off her wet clothes and replaced them with her warmest, fluffiest pajamas. She didn't even bother looking at her light switches. Every year, her electricity went out the moment it turned dark. She pulled out a candle and lit it, setting it on her bedside table. She crawled under the covers, looking at the single candle. Is warm glow was comforting, but the terror of the previous hours kept her awake. She stared, wide-eyed, into the darkness. The orca's grinning black and white face stared back.
That was nine years ago. She could still see the orca's grin in the darkness if she looked hard enough. She was dreaming about it, again. Her blood-red scarf was locked in the beast's jaws, pulling her towards the dark water. She clawed at the knot in her scarf, but it would not come undone. She was dragged down into the depths, screams weighted down by gallons of the cold water.
She awoke with a start, sitting up abruptly. Her eyes glazed over for a moment, and she tried to take in her surroundings. Where was she? It took her a moment, but she finally registered that she was in America's house. She smiled, thinking of the kid country. Not only did he take her in, but also the Baltic countries and (From time to time) her best friend, North Ireland. She smiled again, gazing at the night light the older country had set up for her as it cast a soft light. He knew she was terrified of the dark. She sat in silence for a few moments before finally sliding onto the floor. She silently slunk to her door, opening and closing it as silently as possible.
The hall was almost pitch black, but she forced herself to stay strong. America's room was at the end of the hallway. He shared with Mr. Liet since, apparently, there was no extra rooms. He didn't seem to mind, though. Mr. Estonia's room was next to their room. While she was respectful to the older nation, she didn't know him so well and he didn't seem to like to be woken up. She tip-toed down the hall, suppressing the urge to cry out. The darkness seemed to press closer.
The bedroom she had targeted was next to Estonia's. America must have been psychic, putting his bedroom the closest to hers. After Northern Ireland, Latvia was her best friend. Even though their first meeting had been rather disastrous, (She's scared him with her immense height and had to apologize repeatedly while convincing him she wouldn't hurt him) he'd warmed up to her. She stared at the door for what felt like hours before lightly gripping the knob. It was cold in her hand, and she turned it quietly, slipping through the open door and closing it behind her.
She could barely make out Latvia's tiny form in the dark room, but he was there. She smiled softly; he looked so peaceful, so calm. So unlike the shivering young man she'd first met. Not that she'd seen that particular young man since they'd stayed in America's house. Now he was nothing but smiles. Antarctica took a deep breath, building up her courage. "Raivis?" She whispered. It was silent for a moment.
"Mm?" The sleeping form of Latvia shifted and she could just barely make out his eyes, barely open. "Raivis? I had a scary dream. Can I sleep with you?" He was silent for a few more moments, and she could see him rub his eyes. Finally he replied, "Yeah." She smiled widely, creeping forward. She made sure not to disturb Latvia as she climbed in, but immediately snuggled up to him. "Thank-" she began, but he was already asleep. She smiled again, then closed her eyes. Sleep was on its way.
Latvia was having the strangest dream. He was sitting in America's garden, in his favorite flower bed. Across from him was the older country and his brothers. They were talking, not about anything in particular, just talking. Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms wrap around his shoulders and a large body press against him. He turned his head to see Antarctica hugging him. She was smiling at him, and he smiled back. It was a great day. And the dream was so realistic, it was like Antarctica was really there. But he felt consciousness tug at him. He opened his eyes.
It was still dark. He yawned, going to stretch his arms, but something kept them at his sides. Panicking, he wriggled and squirmed, working his way his way around to look at his captor. His face immediately turned red. It really was Antarctica! She had her arms wrapped around him, pulling him towards her. He pulled back sharply, but her grip tightened and she pulled him back. Now their foreheads and noses were touching. His face was heating up. "A-Anty?" he asked in a soft whisper.
Her face was childish in sleep, with a large smile plastered on it. She giggled at the sound of her name. "Rai-Rai?" He smiled softly, though a little embarrassed by her nickname for him. "Anty? Could you please…. Uh….. Let me go?" She smiled, her eyes not even fluttering, and loosened her grip. He moved backwards, out of the uncomfortable position they were in and gave a sigh of relief. "Raivis? One lump of sugar or two?" He smiled, stifling a giggle, "Two!" Antarctica smiled, then gave a snore. Her arms were still around him, but he didn't mind too much. It was kind of nice, actually. I felt comforting. He closed his eyes and let sleep wash over him.
Latvia and Antarctica were the only ones not up yet. America cheerfully walked down the hall to Antarctica's room, ready to wake the sleeping girl. Lithuania and Estonia had already eaten breakfast and were out and about, and he felt the two teens had gotten to sleep in long enough. "ANTY! TIME TO WAKE UP! BREAKFAST!" He yelled as he swung open the door.
The room was empty. Panicking, the country ran out into the hall and to Latvia's room. He swept the door open, mouth poised to shout, but he stopped himself. Antarctica was snuggled up to Latvia, hugging him close. Their cheeks were even pressed against each other! America smiled. He couldn't break this up! It was too cute! Silently, he left the room and closed the door behind him,
When Antarctica woke up, she was alone. Groggily, she examined her surroundings: She was in Latvia's room, a pillow clutched in her death grip. She forced her fingers apart, flexing them and releasing her captive. She yawned, stretching like a cat, and slipped out of the bed. She made her way to the kitchen, yawning again. Latvia was already dressed, eating a pancake. Another plate with a couple of flapjacks was set up for her. She grabbed the food and set it next to Latvia, grabbing a fork and then sitting down. The food was pretty cold, but she dug in, anyways. The room was awkwardly quiet for a while.
"So," she asked between mouthfuls, "What are you planning on doing today?" Latvia swallowed, thinking for a moment, "I don't have anything. You?" Antarctica chewed, then swallowed, "North and I are going fishing." Latvia nodded, looking down at his half-finished pancake, "Oh." Antarctica took another bite, finished her first pancake, and didn't even bother to swallow. "You can come with us, if you want," she said with her mouth full. Latvia's face brightened, "Really?" Antarctica swallowed, "Of course! I'd love to spend the day with my two best friends! It'll be fun!"
She reached over and wrapped her arms around his shoulders in a swift hug, then let him go and proceeded to finish her breakfast. They ate in silence for a while, until they stood to put their plates in the sink. "Where's Mr. America?" She asked him, "And your brothers?" Latvia shrugged, "My brothers were already gone when I woke up, and America left soon after. He said for us not to get into too much trouble." Antarctica giggled, "Did you tell him we make no promises?" Latvia laughed in turn, "No, but I should of!" Antarctica smiled, tugging at the collar of her pajamas, "North could be here any time, so I guess I should get dressed." Latvia nodded, as she headed up the stairs to her room.
Latvia waited downstairs, somewhat impatiently. He didn't enjoy being alone and in silence. After years of being in Russia's house, he was constantly feeling watched, paranoid. Even in America's house, where he felt safe and secure, he always felt like Russia would swoop down any minute and take him back. There was a knock on the door, pulling him out of his thoughts. He ran for the door, opening it for North.
Northern Ireland was dressed in his normal pair of black shorts, white shirt, and suspenders, long hair in a braid. He smiled cheerfully at Latvia, two fishing poles in hand, "Hey, Latvia." He smiled brightly in return, "Hey, North. Come on in." He led is his friend into the living room, where they each sat down on separate couches, facing each other. "Anty's getting dressed. She said she'll be down in a minute." North nodded, and they sat in silence for a while.
Finally, the heard the sound of Antarctica's feet coming down the stairs and stood. She came bounding down the stairs, fishing pole in hand. Instead of her normal snow gear, she was dressed in a pair of shorts and a white t-shirt, her parka across her shoulders. He knew both he and North were relieved she'd gotten some undershirts, since it made everyone (Except France) uncomfortable when she walked around….. well, the way she did when she got too warm. "SIS!" North shouted, running over, and they hugged momentarily.
"Hey North!" He looked at the fishing pole in her hand for a moment, "I thought you couldn't find yours! That's why I brought this one for you." He held out the second fishing pole. Latvia made his way over, standing next to Antarctica. She put a hand on his shoulder, "I invited Raivis to come with us, and I knew we'd need an extra pole. So, I dug through my things and found my old one." North seemed to think about if a while, then smiled, "Yeah! It'll be fun! The more the merrier!"
Latvia felt rather formal sitting next to his friends on the dock. They were in comfortable, casual clothes, while he was in his uniform. Sure, he'd rolled up his pant legs and unbuttoned his jacket, and they'd all taken off their shoes, but the feeling lingered. "I'm so glad Mr. America has so many coasts! The fishing here is great!" Antarctica beamed at her friends as they nodded, their feet hanging out over the water.
They'd found an empty dock and set up base. "This, "Antarctica whispered to him as they walked, "Is a very special pole. It's magic. I've never not caught a fish with it! Don't tell North, though. He'll think I'm cheating." Latvia nodded, and whispered back, "Really? And why would he think you're cheating?" She looked over at North, then back at him, "Because we made a bet on who'd catch the most fish." She giggled, and Latvia asked, "What's the bet?" Antarctica burst out laughing, Drawing North over, "What is it, Sis?" Antarctica wiped a tear from her eye, "Just telling him about the bet!" She turned to Latvia, "Loser has to wear a dress of the winner's choice, and the winner gets to cook the fish however they want!" Latvia let himself laugh as Antarctica grinned over at North, "I hope you like pink, with lots of ribbons, Northy!" He gave her a grin back, "I hope you do, too!" They laughed for a while, going back and forth about who they'd win and how bad the other would lose, until they reached the dock. Then the real competition would begin.
Antarctica's fishing pole really must have been magic. She'd already caught a whole bunch of fish, while North had caught a few and he'd caught one tiny mullet. "Maybe they just don't like boys!" Antarctica laughed, as if she knew something no one else knew. Which she did. Latvia looked over at her, "You do know that North has the worst part of this deal, right?" Antarctica looked at him in confusion, "What do you mean?" North was now looking at him, too. He rubbed his head awkwardly, "Well, you're a boy and you're a girl. Girls normally wear dresses, don't they?" Antarctica made a face, "Really? I hate dresses! Bleh!"
"Wait. So, if I lost, it would be more embarrassing for me than her?" North looked panicked, but Latvia had to nod. North frowned, "Then I want to change the bet!" Antarctica frowned back and shook her head, "No way! You're just angry because you're losing! Besides, wearing a dress is torture for me, too!" North grumbled something, but didn't take it further.
"I look stupid!" North called out from the next room. Antarctica laughed, looking up from the fish she was scaling, "Come on in! Let's see it!" North muttered something under his breath, then walked in. Antarctica had stayed true to her word. She'd picked the pinkest, most frilly and bow-covered dress she could find. It was pretty hard to look at. Both she and Latvia burst out laughing as North stood there, glowering at them. This lasted a few minutes. Antarctica finally wiped an eye, and returned to showing Latvia how to clean a fish properly. "You need to wash it first, like I did, so it's not slimy. Then, you take a knife," she held p a butter knife she'd found, "And hold the fish down by the head. Remember to scale," she placed the knife on the fish's tail, "To scale from tail to head." She proceeded to scale the fish, scraping bits and pieces of the stuff from her biggest mullet.
"Then," she said, picking up the de-scaled fish, "You have to wash it again to get rid of any scales you missed." She rinsed the fish again, only a few scales falling off the fish. Latvia smiled, not wanting to tell Antarctica he already knew how to de-scale a fish. He was actually really good at it. But, he smiled and didn't say anything. Then, Antarctica left him and North to de-scale some fish while she prepared them for cooking. She'd found this recipe that she thought was really good, with some noodles and this lemon-butter sauce thing that she had been dying to try. "We need to make six, one for everyone!" She smiled, cutting a fish into fillets.
Where was everyone?! Latvia looked around as he finished his last fish. His brothers and America had been gone all day, and he was starting to worry a bit. He absentmindedly gave Antarctica his fish, and she walked back into the kitchen, filleting it like she had the others. She had finished the noodles and… sauce….. thing…. And was ready for the last fish to be tossed into the frying pan. She looked over at North, who was still grumbling about the dress, "Come on, Northy! It's only for the rest of today! It's getting late, anyways. You can stay the night, if you want. Mr. America won't mind, right?" She looked at Latvia, who wasn't paying attention. Ignoring the lack of answer, she nodded, "Yeah, I think he won't mind. You wanna stay the night?" North nodded, and Antarctica smiled, "See, then you never even have to leave the house!" North smiled, liking the idea.
"Now," Antarctica turned back to her cooking, "Should we wait for them or just eat now? This is the last one." North shrugged, "Doesn't matter to me." Latvia continued thinking, not paying attention. "Raivis? Raivis?" She asked, tapping his shoulder. He was pulled out of his thoughts, and looked at Antarctica with confusion, "Huh? What?" Antarctica pointed to the fish cooking on the stove, "Should we wait for everyone or just eat now?" Latvia thought a moment, "Wait for them. It would be rude, wouldn't it?" Antarctica nodded, returning to her fish and flipping it onto the plate with the others. There was a loud sound in the backyard."Can you guys wrap these up? I'm going to go see who that was." Without letting them say anything, she was already running to the door, opening it and closing it behind her. North grumbled something and got up, Latvia following him.
Antarctica hadn't realized how dark it was until she was already outside. It was almost pitch black. She let a little sound escape her, but continued to walk. The sound was repeated. It was kind of like someone rustling a bush. "H-Hello?" She asked, creeping towards it. The sound was repeated again, and she drew closer to a tree beside the fence. "M-Mr. America? I-Is that you?" She squinted at the bush and was able to make out a pair of eyes in the shadows. "Oh, hello Anastasia," the owner of the eyes said. Antarctica stared at them, as if hypnotized, "Oh, hello-" She began, but she felt something grab her arm and she let out a loud scream before a hand was over her mouth.
North was just looking at the door Antarctica had walked through, "Wonder who it was." Latvia shrugged. That was when they heard it: a bloodcurdling scream. They rushed to the door, opening it, and running outside. No one was there. They ran back inside, where America, Lithuania, and Estonia had just walked in. "Hey, guys-" America began cheerfully, but frowned when he saw the two, "What's wrong?" Latvia's mouth opened and closed, but he couldn't say anything. "ANTY IS GONE!!!" North managed to shout.
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A/N: Hetalia is not mine, and neither are any of the characters except Anty. Hope you all enjoy it! Chapter 2 should be up soon!