He wouldn't have found it if it hadn't been for America forgetting about him during a game of hide and seek.
So he should probably be okay with the whole "Everyone forgets me thing" just this once right?
No, probably not…
Anyway, he wouldn't have found it if it hadn't been for America forgetting him (again) and leaving small Canada to explore the large storage room he'd hidden away in out of boredom.
Among the dusty boxes of disused furniture and important looking legal documents locked away in case they were needed was, well, more dusty boxes and disused furniture and documents waiting to see the light of day once again.
But also, towards the back of the room, half covered in a white sheet that was slowly yellowing with age, was a tall, full length mirror. The glass was tarnished, the bronze gilded frame looking ancient and covered in cobwebs, and there was a small crack running up the glass from the frame for about six inches.
But the mirror held the boy's interest as he pulled the sheet up to fully look at himself, and sparked his curiosity when he found his reflection to not be there. In fact, on the other side all he saw was white sheet, as if he'd never lifted the fabric up at all.
"Strange…" He whispered, reaching out to touch the cool glass.
But before his fingers could make contact, from the other side a pale hand appeared and the sheet was lifted, a small blonde boy with a wayward curl bouncing in front of his face standing there blinking in surprise at him.
The reflection was of Canada… and yet it wasn't.
The boy's hair was longer than his, his eyes were darker, and there was a fixed scowl in place of the little colony's usual cheery grin.
Confused, little Canada quickly dropped the sheet and scurried to look behind the large mirror, seeing nothing there but a bout a foot of distance between the back of the large gilded frame and the wall. With nothing but dust and cobwebs between.
So how was the strange little boy able to look at him? He obviously wasn't Canada's reflection. And he couldn't possibly be behind the mirror…
Canada frowned, resolving to ask what was going on as he lifted the sheet to see no one there again. Just the white sheet covering everything on this imposter child's end.
That was to bad, Canada thought. He hadn't had a chance to properly greet the strange boy, and now he didn't know if he ever would.
And that was about the moment when America burst into the room, upsetting several boxes and causing a huge racket as he screamed he'd found Canada and that he was the Hero for winning the game.
Behind him England screamed not to make a mess and to get out of the room, as it was dangerous.
"How's a room full of dusty boxes and chairs dangerous?" America asked sarcastically, jumping up and down rambunctiously.
"There are things in there I don't want you messing with-you could get hurt."
"I'm so scared of a box of papers-oooh~" America laughed, shaking his arms in pretend fear as Canada stood in the doorway, watching between his brothers as they bickered in the hall.
"I'm serious America! Don't go in there!"
"Go to hell Engwand." America smiled, his usual line for ending conversations with their big brother. Canada wondered where America got the nerve but never questioned it.
"Is the mirror dangerous?" He asked England as America stormed away, humming the bars to some children's song and probably butchering them savagely
England frowned, as if realizing one of his colonies was still standing there-Canada had that affect on people, they'd lose awareness of their surroundings for some reason. He frowned, peering into the storage room at the large sheet-covered mirror.
"I'd forgotten that was there… no it was an enchanted mirror but the bloody thing doesn't work."
"What's it do?" Canada asked, awed by the idea of anything magic related.
"Well… I'm not sure really." England said sheepishly, marching inside the room and lifting the sheet to see nothing but more sheet on the other side much like Canada had, "I've had it for so long I don't remember honestly."
He lowered the fabric, turning to Canada and lifting him in his arms as they made their way back into the sun-lit hall, "The old thing doesn't work anyway, just forget about it love."
But Canada couldn't forget about it.
He instead thought about it constantly. He thought about it at dinner, he thought about it when America got him to play go fish, he thought about it while getting ready for bed, and he thought rather hard about it as he lay there in the dark curled up with Kumajiji tight in his arms.
He thought about how odd it was for a magic mirror to be sitting in his house right now, and it was stored away like Christmas decorations instead of being put to use. He thought about how odd that boy had looked and yet shared quite a few similar physical characteristics to himself.
He also thought it odd he wasn't before it right now, trying to get the boy to reappear. Because it did work, he'd seen it.
But if he told England, then he might lock it away where Canada couldn't get to it.
