Sweet Silence
NotesFromLaurenNicole: Woo fanfiction time yay! We've got some baby/toddler/young child/chibi England and big brother Scotland~ Since Scotland isn't an official character as of yet, I'm taking it upon myself to write him in my own special headcanon-y way (which isn't all that different from the general fandom depiction of him, at least how he's been depicted in the little one-shots I've read!) Anywho, let's get this started!…YAY BABY IGGY! *inhuman dying whale noises* *human names used~ Arthur (England), Alistair (Scotland), Patrick (Ireland), Dillon (Wales)* *Iggy-boo is about three, Alistair is 19, Patrick is 17, and Dillon is 15* *so many asterisks*
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Everything was dark. Nothing but pitch-black silence and solitude. Arthur was stood in the middle of it. Beads of sweat pooled on his forehead as he glanced around nervously. One-by-one, glowing red eyes opened all around him. His breathing hitched as panic set in. Creatures with needle-like fangs and razor-tipped claws emerged from the shadows. The space around him was invaded as the creatures closed in, cackling and growling maniacally. The boy covered his ears and let out a bloodcurdling scream. Then everything went white.
Arthur shot up in bed, his was heart racing. Warms tears stung his eyes and threatened to spill out. He reached around frantically, his hand wrapping around the soft arm of his stuffed bunny, William. He pulled the toy to his small chest and curled around it. The young blonde sniffled and tears began to flood his pale cheeks. His eyes darted around the room fearfully. It was almost completely dark, the only light coming from the sliver of moon shining in through the window. Regardless, it was still much too dark for Arthur's liking.
Clenching his eyes shut, he whispered, "I'm not afwaid, I'm not afwaid, I'm not afwaid…", and he was beginning to believe that to be true. That is, until could swear he heard demonic laughter coming from underneath his bed. That was when he knew he had two options: get out now or become a late night snack for the monsters lurking in his room.
Having absolutely no intention of allowing the latter to become a reality, Arthur gripped William in his arms, flung off the covers, and hurried to the door. He clumsily fumbled with the knob and stumbled out into the hallway, which unfortunately had just as much lighting as his room had. With tears still cascading down his face he ran to bedroom directly across from his own. Arthur cracked open the door and poked his head in cautiously. He tiptoed towards the bed and tugged urgently on the heap of blankets piled in the middle.
"Patwick, Patwick!" the child whispered. The blankets shifted and a patch of red hair emerged. Patrick's eyes opened drowsily and stared daggers at his younger brother.
"Go away Arthur." He slurred.
"But Pat-"
"Go. Away." Arthur shrunk back and a sob escaped his throat. He turned and shuffled out of the room. He should've known better than to go to Patrick. He was never in a good mood when woken up.
Arthur ran to the next room over, the one belonging to his brother Dillon. He opened the door and crept in, hugging William tightly. Soft snores filled the teenager's bedroom. He approached the bed, finding Dillon sprawled across the mattress. His so-blonde-it's-almost-white hair was a tangled mess and one of his legs hung off the edge of the bed while his sheets were twisted around his body.
"Dillon, please wake up," Arthur whispered desperately. He nudged Dillon's shoulder, but the older boy merely rolled over, mumbling something about sheep. Arthur sighed, wiped his eyes with his pajama shirt sleeve, and left the room. Dillon's continuing snores were almost mocking his defeat.
The boy had only one option left- his eldest brother Alistair. He scurried to the door across the hall and opened it with a shaky hand. He peered inside with wide, tearful eyes. Alistair was in bed with his back facing the door. Arthur tiptoed toward him and reached out to poke his brother.
"What do ye want kid?" a gruff voice asked.
The boy in question quickly drew his hand back and in a small voice asked, "How'd you know it was me?"
Alistair rolled over and cocked an eyebrow. "Who else would be wakin' me up at such an ungodly hour? I heard ye runnin' through the hall." Arthur sniffled and whispered a soft 'oh'.
"Now, what're ye doin' up?"
"I had a bad dweam…" The boy blushed and hid his face behind William. Alistair sat up and swung his legs over so that his feet were on the floor. He patted his leg, motioning for his youngest brother to come over to him. Arthur quickly climbed onto his lap and curled up against him.
"Is that so?" Alistair asked in that almost condescending tone that adults use when talking to children. Arthur nodded, scrubbing his damp cheeks with his fist. "Why don't ye tell me what happened?"
Arthur looked up at his red-haired brother with wide, fearful eyes. "It was weally dawk and there was monstahs wiff wed eyes and the twied to eat me!" He explained as a fresh round of tears streamed down his face.
"I see. Ye know it was just a dream, aye?" Alistair gave a small smile, running his fingers through his brother's blond hair
"Yeah but it was so scawy!" He choked.
"Shhh, it's alright," the redhead shushed him gently. He wrapped his arms around the quivering child in his lap, rocking him back and forth. The soothing motion quieted Arthur's sobs and his eyelids slowly began to droop. Alistair noticed this and gathered the boy and stuffed bunny into his arms and stood up, intending to return him to his room for the night
"What're you doin'" Arthur yawned.
"Takin' ya back to yer bed," Alistair said. Arthur tensed and shook his head rapidly.
"No! You can't!"
Alistair stopped and looked at his brother's frightened face with confusion.
"Why not?" he asked.
"There's monstahs hidin' in my woom." Arthur explained, burying his face in Alistair's chest. "Can I stay wiff you?"
Alistair smiled, "Yeah, I suppose there'd be no harm in ye doin' that." He turned and set the boy on the bed. Arthur crawled over to the other side and laid his head down on a pillow, hugging William to his chest. Alistair slid into the bed beside him and pulled the covers over them.
"G'night kiddo," he said as he closed his eyes.
"Goodnight big bwother," the young boy replied, snuggling in deeper beneath the patchwork quilt that enveloped him. A moment or two of silence passed when Alistair heard shuffling and felt something pressed into his side. He opened his eyes and saw Arthur tucked up against his ribs. The child held his stuffed bunny tightly and his thumb was planted firmly in his mouth as he drifted off to sleep. Alistair smiled and put his arm around him. His eyes closed as sleep slowly took control and a peaceful silence fell over the room.
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NotesFromLaurenNicole: Gah I hate ending stories! It always sounds so awkward and abrupt T-T I'm still mostly happy with how this came out though ^-^ -even though it's so short-
This took way too long to type up and publish, it's not even funny. Those darn computers in study hall ain't got internet…Oh well~
I really hope you guys liked this! As always, reviews are very much appreciated, but are by no means necessary!
I apologize if I completely butchered Alistair's dialogue…Feel free to correct me if I made any mistakes with typing his accent, I was winging it ^_^'
And Arthur's lisp…I have this horrible feeling that I overdid it, but oh well, it's cute~
***If any of you have read my other Hetalia story Golden Slumbers¸ the epilogue will be posted eventually. You know, school and such =_=
'Til next time,
~Lauren Nicole
