Story: Of Bombs and Who Make Them (In A World of War 1) Not in chronological order, by the way. Since this is in '45

Author: Max-chan

Word Count w/o Notes: 2,098, All in one night, baby.

Summary of Series: A collection of one-shots set during various tragedies during WW2. Mostly angst-y, probably some LietPol, GerIta, and Ameripan. Planned: Atomic Bombs, Yellow River Flood/Nanjing Massacre, Invasion of Poland, Manchuria, Nuremberg and Nanjing War Tribunals, maybe Bataan Death March.

Summary of Story: America, feeling terrible about using Little Boy and Fat Man on Japan, travels to a hospital to visit him. Hurt feelings, mushiness, and some Ameripan fluff at the end ensues.

Rating: PG-13 for a little bit of cussing and violence.

"No."

"But-!"

"I can say it in Mandarin, if it pleases you, but somehow I doubt it would get through that thick American skull of yours. NO. Nyet. Nein. Nincs. Non. Nashi. Meiyuu. Ochi. Ani. Nie. Khong." Taiwan said the last words rapidly, her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face. Hong Kong, however, was suppressing a snicker at America's dumbfounded face and Taiwan's adorable mad one.

All three nations were covered with wounds in various stages of the healing process: some were scabbing over, on others, the blood was slowly turning thick and dark, and others still were freshly inflicted and oozing dark red. Taiwan's dress was tattered and threadbare, now more red than pink. America's glasses were cracked and the color of a burnt-out light bulb, as if he were caught in a magnificent blast of heat. Hong Kong was limping profusely and his left cheek had a long, deep cut on it, and it was green around the edges, which probably wasn't a good thing.

Despite their pitiful conditions, however, the trio was not by any means the worst off in the overcrowded and hot hospital. The people who were wheeled past them were all covered in angry crimson burns that mottled their once smooth faces. Those hideous marks could only come from one thing: an atomic bomb. Something so hot it melted stone and metal, and left shadows of desperate Japanese imprinted everywhere. Something so powerful that it could almost completely level two cities from thousands of feet in the air. Something America would forever have on his conscience.

Aforementioned nation bowed his head to avoid accusatory glances that didn't exist. All these people didn't know he was; they didn't know that he had told his military to drop the bombs that would ruin their lives forever. He whimpered quietly, and Taiwan and Hong Kong frowned at him. "America, it's your fault that their all like this, so please don't act like you're the victim." Taiwan snapped angrily, curling her fists by her sides in order to stop herself from socking America in the face. America straightened and fixed Texas. "I'm not. Just let me go apologize, and-"

"Absolutely not." The Asians said simultaneously, crossing their arms over their chests. "Why not?" America asked curiously. Taiwan threw her arms up into the air and muttered something in Mandarin that made Hong Kong snicker. "Oh, because it's natural to let someone alone in a room with the person they've wanted to kill for what- 4 years now- and who you just nuked , killing 210,000 of their citizens outright. OF COURSE you want to let that person into your room, alone!" she snarled, lunging at him, only to be stopped by Hong Kong.

She crumpled and sobbed quietly into Hong's arms. America could only make out snippets of their muffled and bilingual conversation. "Has to pay… don't want him to die… 300,000 now… condition worsening… unknown effects of the radiation… burns… in shock…" It when on for what felt like forever- did that girl have a never-ending supply of tears or something? She did, however, finally pull away, her cheek dyed a pale pink from the mixture of blood and tears. Hong Kong was covered with the same mixture, though neither seemed to mind. "Thank you" she whispered, "I needed that." He nodded and took her hand.

"We've decided you can go apologize-if he's awake." Hong Kong said, turning to address America. The elder (and he didn't usually get to be the elder one!) dipped his head in acknowledgement. "But I maintain the right to cut Florida off if I hear anything suspicious" Taiwan said as seriously as she could say that sentence, wiping the last of the tears from her big brown eyes and smiling feebly. "Um, Florida? How about a nice Nantucket!" America said nervously, motioning unenthusiastically to his ahoge. She laughed and reached over to tweak Nantucket. "Vital regions or no seeing my brother" It was very firm; she wasn't compromising, and hate still filled her eyes when she looked at him, even as she laughed and smiled.

He sighed and nodded. "Fine, but I wasn't going to hurt him anyway. May I go now?" "Yes, but why did Florida matter if you weren't going to do anything?" Hong Kong asked, quite intelligently. In response, America flipped him off and stepped into to a hospital room labeled. 'Private.'

The room was spacious, meant for more than one person, but the nation in it prevented it from reaching its capacity. Japan was thinner than he had ever been, and where there weren't purple, black, and scarlet burns, he was paler than ever as well. His onyx hair was dull and stringy, spreading out around his head like a twisted halo. America inched closer, unsure of exactly how to proceed, when his brown eyes flicked open, pinning him. They were bloodshot, as if he had been crying, which he very well could have been.

"America" he croaked, "stay the hell away from me." Eyes were widened and a heart was broken. "No wait, Japan, just hear me out. W-watashi wa jiban ni shazai suru koto wa dekimasenga, watashi wa dekimasu ka?"* He asked quietly, fumbling at the Japanese he had been trying to learn for weeks. Japan sighed breathily. "No, never. But, are you happy?" America's brow creased in confusion. "What do you mean, am I happy? Of course I'm not. I have just killed over 200,000 people who, for the most part, were innocent." Japan laughed, a bitter, heartsick laugh with no humor in it, just anger and heavily masked despair.

"I thought you would be happy now that you've got your revenge for Pearl Harbor. Not moping about the bombs."

"So you want me to be happy about the nukes?"

"Certainly not, but you've got to hide it. Pull a Hitler-san, pretend you're pleased about it."

America sighed and examined his boots. "Right. I've still got a long way to go in the Art of Genocide, huh? Life lessons from Mr. Hitler, always a good path." He commented dryly.

"It's an art all of us nations have to learn, even if we want nothing to do with it." A tear leaked down his multi-colored and burnt face. "Nanjing. Bataan. The Yellow River… it goes on and on…" he stared off into space for a minute, then directed his eyes back to America. "What did you want, anyways?"

"To apologize to you… the atomic weapons were unnecessary."

"If you were judging me by what I've done to China and my others siblings, I deserved much worse. I deserved to die and then rot. In China alone, I've killed over 1 million people just in the Second Sino-Japanese War in JUST Nanjing and at the Yellow River. After that, I lost count, and then the World War started…"

"Don't talk like that. Almost no one deserves to die, and you're not one of them." America paused and briefly thought about grabbing Japan's hand or something, but he figured he would just hurt him worse. "And… does that mean you've forgiven me?" he asked in disbelief.

Japan shook is head. "Not quite. I don't know if I'll ever fully forgive you, but I get why you did it, and that is enough for now. At this moment though-" he motioned to an old and rather cracked leather chair camouflaging in the shadows of the corner of the room. "You will sit and tell me what's happened this year. I've been a little… busy, and no one will tell me."

Nodding, America pulled the dilapidated chair up to the lone hospital bed and sat down rather gingerly. "Well, on of the first things that happened was when Russia found and surrounded Hitler's bunker and Berlin. That filthy coward didn't want to be captured by 'inferior' people and took Cyanide and then shot himself and his wife of ONE DAY, Eva, in the head." America shook his head in disgust. "Germany went all mood swing-y on us. One day, he would be happy that the hypocritical murderer that helped start this whole crap was dead, and the next he would be pissed at him for leaving him at the wrath of us Allies and without a leader, and for making him kill the what- 16 or so million Jewish?"

Japan nodded thoughtfully. "Poor Doitsu-sama. That man was pure evil, and those people… they went through a lot.

"Yeah, you can say that about 16 million more times. Well, anyway, on May 8, [That's today, or as I'm writing this, it is. Happy VE Day!] Germany flew the Unofficial Flag of Italy, A.K.A, the white flag, and Iggy, Mattie, and I, and I think France came sometimes, too, went and liberated everyone left in the death camps. That was a bunch a mixed emotions. I mean, I was happy to free them, and they were happy to be freed, but the conditions… atrocious. I could tell a lot of them weren't going to make it for very much longer, what with their 200-calorie-a-day diet and then having to work all day. And after that, it was just, um, chasing you down with England. And then, you know, upgrading my B-29's and getting the Enola Gay* ready-"

"That's probably enough, America-san. I don't care to know more than that." America looked relieved, and shifted in his chair. "Good, I didn't really want to elaborate on that too much…" They talked for hours, trying to forget all they had done to each other for the past 4 years "Well, thanks for being so understanding Keeks, but my boss is expecting me back from Iggybrow's place in a little less than an hour, and you sister's gonna rip Florida off if she thinks I like, chloroform-d you and then killed you, or something crazy like that." America said suddenly, looking at a leather watch tied around his wrist

Japan laughed, but in reality it sounded more like a cough. "Which one, Taiwan, Vietnam, Philippines, or Indonesia?" [Yes, the latter two are canon now! Go to Zerochan and type in ASEAN and you should find them, plus a bunch of other SE Asian countries. They're a pretty bunch]

"Ugh- Taiwan. And Japan? This never happened. I never apologized, I still hate you, and I'm at Hong's place with England now, okay?"

"Alright, if you don't tell that I semi-forgave you for Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Also, some here, America-kun. I want to give you something." Puzzled, he walked near the bed and leaned over Japan. His face is the least-damaged part of him, America thought, mildly surprised. "You're not like, contagious, are you?" America asked nervously. They weren't very far apart.

"No. Do you think they would let you in if I was even mildly contagious? I mean, it's radiation poisoning, baka." He reached out and grabbed America's hand, pressing a worn sheet of paper into his palm, curling the younger nation's fingers around it. "Now, go. Taiwan's coming."

And just like Japan predicted, the annoyed looking girl burst in the room just after America managed to reach a safe distance away from the injured nation, stuffing the paper in the pocket. "Happy little apologizing time's over; get out America." She announced, throwing the door open in an undignified manner, Hong Kong following in her shadow bashfully. She blew some hair out of her face, annoyed, and made a shooing motion with her hand. "Are you deaf? I said out." She muttered some things in God only knows what language- it didn't sound like the usual Mandarin.

America nodded and walked towards the door, directing a smile over his shoulder, one only Japan could see. 'I really am sorry' he mouthed. Then he stepped outside, closed the door quietly, leaning against the outside and pulling the crumpled sheaf out of his pocket. He smoothed it out, and looked, dumbfounded at the hundreds on inky kanji covering it from end to end. Did Japan think he could read this crap?

Squinting at it, he realized he COULD read the first two sentences, and it made him smile.

Watashi wa in tada anata o aishite iru kamo shirenai to omou. Subete nimokakawarazu.

I think I might love you. Despite everything.

End Notes- That ended up fluffier than I intended- whoops. This is very well researched, I feel so proud. I literally spent 2 hours getting all the data for this And now Kiku isn't Forever Alone? Next up are the war tribunals for the Axis- fun. An it won't have nearly as much fluff as this. I hope ju enjoyed! R&R.

-Max