Elizabeth sighed irritably as she stepped quietly through the forest, sweeping the hair out of her face while her feet barely making a sound against the leaf-ridden floor. The sun had risen less than an hour ago, casting a warming orange glow that seeped deep into the bark of the trees and whispered softly to the wild creatures to awaken. Any other time the woman would have enjoyed her early morning walks in her precious forest, only for the first in a long while, she wasn't happy.

Her entire life she had tried to remain of a pleasant state so she wouldn't hurt those she cared about, but was never truly repaid with the same amount of kindness. The night before Roderich had argued with her bitterly, unlike his normal patient personality with his wife, but the man wasn't in the mood to listen to her pleads to lower his voice for the younger children's sake.

She had begged her husband to at least soften his harshness, just to be back handed across the room roughly with a fresh mark on her cheek. Roderich had left her alone in the study, refusing to even look at her the next morning. She cried herself to sleep that night knowing that something was going on with his associates that would take away from their happiness and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Feliciano asked her cheerfully at breakfast what was wrong with all the perfect child innocence still ripe in his little face. None noticed the bruise on her cheek as she had expertly hidden it with long strands of hair. Before she could answer the little boy, Roderich stood and left the room coldly, causing her to burst into another fit of tears as she ran out of the house.

Now, she stood in the silent forest, a place secret to her people and no one else knew of. She closed her eyes wistfully and inhaled deeply as each and every scent of the world came to her. Earth and dirt and lilac and pine and free animals danced about her playfully, beckoning her to follow as they pulled gently on her hair and breathed carelessly into her clothes.

A smile came to her lips, aware and calm with the silence of the trees, not war, not death, not a scar of human contact had ever touched her sanctuary as she had kept for centuries. After a moment, she turned to leave, only to cringe as a high pitched squeal of delight sliced through her perfect woods.

Her brow narrowed suspiciously as she advanced to the source and tucked a free strand of hair behind an ear. A bright yellow bird zoomed by without stopping, only adding to her aggravation, but the voice was one she wasn't familiar with that kept her curiosity. She paused at the base of a large maple she'd never noticed before and with every last ounce of courage without being armed, she jumped out defensively.

Only, instead of the full grown Prussian she'd been expecting, was instead, a small little boy. Dressed in a ragged coat patched with a child's crooked hand that made him look tattered beyond compare and dark brown hair that was an almost black tumbling down into his tired, yet warm inviting eyes. He noted the older woman immediately, smiling a brilliant smile up at her and arms outstretched to be held.

Timidly, Elizabeth gracious picked up the beautiful little boy in awe that she had never seen him before. He yawned, rubbed his eyes with his dirty sleeve and nuzzled the other comfortingly. Elizabeth smiled down at the child as she could he his heartbeat against hers and ran her fingers through his hair maternally.

"Hey," She spoke softly to the wind, then down to the boy, subconsciously walking back to her house without realizing, "Hey, vhat's your name? Hey now, don't fall asleep just yet."

The little boy stirred in her arms and blinked out the sleep from his piercing red eyes and yawned again to reveal little needle sharp incisors before answering with the most heart-melting voice she had ever heard, "Moldova."

Startled, she almost threw the child away from her, resentful at her own foolishness to fail to recognize the same body frame and and hideous hair style that matched his bland olive tone skin of his older brothers. She wanted to kick herself for even ignoring the pile of forest magic material that had been spread out around him, clearly the child of a Vampire.

"M-Moldova," She tried the name, walking again as she had stopped out of shock, "Do you mind if I call you Nicolae instead?"

The boy shook his head pleasantly as his head slowly dipped down against her chest until he had finally given in and dozed off. Elizabeth, running now, excitement mixed apprehension tingling down her spine gave a new sense of invigoration that she had found the most precious child in her own territory.

*time jump*

"Vladimir!"

The blond snapped out his slumber, startled and confused that he'd actually fallen asleep at his desk. He clumsily knocked over several viles that crashed violently to the floor boards and spread into an oozing liquid far across the room and slid up the wall. His blinked for a moment, then down at his papers that lay scattered about the grand office from the last night's breeze, words smudged beyond legibility that he had tried to use an ink quell again. A burning smell of hair caught his attention as the liquid had started to burn a hole in a frightened Bulgarian's shoe.

Anton stood wide-eyed and terrified in the door frame, his dark black hair ruffled, uniform dirty and disheveled from late night romping around in the woods for burnet along with various other roots. The usual calm, cockiness that could have been mistaken for Romano vanished with slight anger and hope for redemption to cover it up. He dashed to the front of his brother's desk and slapped his hand across the blond's face quickly.

"Useless drunk! Vake up!"

Vladimir recovered and glared back with an irritable dead-pan look at the other, "Vhat do you vant?"

"Vhere da fuck is Moldova?! You vere suppose to be vatching him!"

"Ce?" The blond asked, instantly concerned for his precious little brother until something in the back of his mind clicked as he settled back in the chair, arms folded expectantly , "He vas vith you."

Realization and panic settled over the young man's face as he released his elder's shoulders slowly and turned around for the door quickly in complete shock. Vladimir stood suspiciously at Anton's fear of what may have been done, his hands placed precariously against the ancient thing as he called out.

"You left him in ze voods, da?"

Anton turned slightly back to him, careful not to make eye contact as he searched the room with a guilty face for an answer, "Maybe…"

"Anton!"

"It vasn't my fault!"

"Vas it ze forest fairy's fault then?!"

"Don't be stupid!"

"Then vere ze hell is he?!"

"I don't know!"

"Shit," Vladimir ran his hand through his hair, beginning to pace back and forth between the over-sized desk and stained glass window, "How hard vas it? How fucking hard vas it?! To vatch your little brother for one, one night! Instead, you lose him! Like ze incompetent shit zat you are! Come on!"

"Vhere are ve are going?" Anton asked skittishly as Vladimir shouldered past him angrily with hat and coat in hand, "Vlad…you're not mad, are you?"

The Romanian spun on his heels and caught the Bulgarian off guard so they were face to face, red eyes burning with an unnatural glow as his lips curled up almost like to display his sharpened teeth, "Vhat do you fucking think?"

"Nu?" Anton tried hopefully, skirmishing under the wrathful gaze, "I did get everyzing else zat you vanted though. Does zat help?"

Vladimir frowned, "I don't vant to hear you speak for ze rest of ze century."

*time jump*

"Get that thing out of here!" Roderich's voice shrilled throughout the house, shaking the window panes as people seemed to vanish from his sight.

Elizabeth raised her chin at her husband challengingly as she adjusted the little boy to her hip, "And vhy should I?"

"He's filthy! Look at him!" The older country swiped his hand against the younger viciously to prove his point, shoving the now-torn fabric in her face, "Just look at him ja?! It's like he's never taken a bath before in his life!"

Nicolae cried out fearfully as he tugged for his clothing back while Elizabeth stepped away from the man quickly.

"So are you!" She snapped, painfully aware of the blatant lie as she kept her back from her husband, "I found him, vhy can't I keep him, ha?"

"Oh God Elizabeth," Roderich pronounced dramatically, "Do I really have to tell you?"

"You're just jealous!" The woman screamed over her shoulder, stroking the little boy's hair not only for his comfort but for her own, "When can I ever have anything that's really mine? Everything and everyone in this wretched house belongs to you! Vhy can't I have something for myself ha?!"

Silence echoed off the walls and bounced against the windows as Roderich stared in shock at the woman's sudden outburst, turning away from her, ashamed for himself. He quietly stepped to his wife and gently wrapped his arms around her waist, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair that he loved so much about her, taking a moment to collect his thoughts.

"You can keep him, ja?" He studied her face carefully, scared that he'd angered her.

Only she wasn't looking at him, instead she traced one of her long slender fingers along Nicolae's jaw line. The boy smiled up at her, then to Roderich, reaching out his arms to be held by a different. Elizabeth eyes focused at the man, unsure to hand over the child, Roderich's pouted at the woman playfully until she gave in and grinned back.

His deep purple eyes light up gleefully, showing the paternal side of himself only to his beloved wife. Elizabeth folded an arm over her chest and nibbled on her fingernails and watched as he lightly rocked the child and played peek-a-boo fatherly with his cravat. The front door to the grand mansion swung on its hinges and slammed heavily against the concrete wall before either could recover their public personalities.

"Vhat's up losers?! Isn't it an awesome morning?! Ha! It is now cause I'm here!"

"If you are as "awesome" as you say you are, then, vhy do you live here?" Elizabeth asked coolly as she cupped Gilbird in her hands, not even trying to put an empathize on her insult.

"Ha! You just say that cause you wish you were awesome as me, hey vhat's this?" Gilbert grabbed Nicolae from Roderich, excitedly, "Look! Ve have the same eyes!"

Nicolae's mouth gaped in awe at the albino's pigment for a moment before hugging him back, "Big brother!"

"Hey! He likes me!" Gilbert swung around wildly to bask in the non existing glory, then taking a dramatic serious tone, announced, "I humbly take on the challenge of another little brother! From this moment on, he will grow up to be as awesome as me and my brother!"

"I don't think so," Elizabeth growled, taking the child from his crazy uncle and setting him down for the first time, smoothing down his hair and gently pushing him out of the room, "Vhy don't you go find Feliciano? Antonio's suppose to be bringing Romano over so they can play with each other."

The little country nodded gleefully before scampering off the grand hallway, hoisting up his ridiculously sized coat up over his feet. Elizabeth smiled and leaned against the door frame and watched him go.

"Zo? Vhere did you pick that one up from?" Gilbert's loud voice barked right in her ears, "Didn't steal him did you?"

"Of course not!" She answered defensively.

"Zhen vere did he come from hmmm?"

Elizabeth paused, scared to give away the her precious woods, "He was, wandering around in the garden this morning."

"Uhu, uhu," Gilbert tisked his lips together just to irritate her, "Do you know that, zat is the child of your biggest enemy?"

"Yes, and I swear, you tell anyone, and I mean anyone, that he's here, I will personally kill you!" She threatened, shoving a finger in his face, "Not Francis, not Antonio, and certainly not Vladimir."

"Does zat mean I can tell Anton?" He answered whimsically, taking her hair to make a mustache on his own face.

"No one!"

"Zhey're going to find out eventually you know…," Roderich spoke from his place at the banister.

"I know," She sighed sadly, "Maybe they'll forget about him."