Italy's POV
GERMANY WAS IN A WAR. I don't know how it started. I don't even know how it ended, if it did.
But I'll never forget what happened.
It wasn't really a war, more of a battle, it was so small and fast, but it seemed like a war to me. Only war could do that to Germany.
I found out about the battle when Germany didn't answer my calls-all six of them. I got Japan and went to her house to check on her. It didn't cross my mind she could be hurt-she was Germany, after all, she was big and mean and a little bit scary, and she definitely wasn't the country who got hurt. But she always, always answered the phone when I called her. She was always ready to talk to me, and today she wasn't, and I was just a little bit worried.
I was there at her house, out of breath from running from that crazy Swiss girl, when I heard the gunshots.
Neither Japan or I moved-I was scared, she wasn't the type to run in like me. I heard glass shatter and ran for the door. The lock was blown off, pieces of the doorknob everywhere. When I looked at it, the whole house was in tatters-windows shattered, furniture knocked over from what I could see. But that wasn't what made me worried.
What made me worried was that there was red fabric hanging from a window when I knew the curtains in that room were green.
The green curtains had never dripped like these new red ones.
I heard another gunshot, and I kicked the door open what the little strength of the country of North Italy. I may be weak, but I was strong enough to kick that door that separated me from her across the whole room. It didn't hurt that that one of the hinges had been shot, too.
I ran upstairs, searching for Germany. It wasn't hard, following the yelling on the top floor. My foot splashed in something and I almost didn't dare to look down, not wanting to see blood. I was relieved when it was just water from a broken vase of Austria's. My chest tightened when I realised the water was tinted red from a few small drops of blood.
I ran to the top floor, my lungs burning as I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding. The door was open and I stopped in the doorway from shock. Germany was fighting with...with…
Austria?
I knew they argued, but it was never more severe than a few harsh words, yet here they were with guns aimed at each other's chests. Hungary was struggling towards Germany, swinging his frying pan, but Prussia had him by the waist and was holding fast.
I heard Japan come up the stairs behind me, breathing heavily. I had to remind myself to breathe at all. It was hard with my hands over my mouth but I couldn't even move.
"Italia…" Japan panted, her voice trailing off as she saw what I already had. Germnay and Austria looked at us. Hungary stopped struggling.
"Italia. Japan." Germany turned away, back to the black-haired aristocrat in front of her. "Get out of here, you could get hurt." I would have done exactly that if I had known what would come next. Japan tried to pull me out of the doorway, out of plain view of everyone in the room, just get me a tiny bit safer than I was now, away from the Germany who was so angry her voice was deadly still, away from unpredictable Austria who had snapped, away from Prussia with her arms locked around Hungary's waist. Japan tried to move me but I was frozen, frozen from fear and shock and everything in between and Japan couldn't move me one centimeter away from that door.
Everything slowed down. I heard the small trickle of blood from a cut on Austria's arm, cut by the vase she had broken. I saw the red curtains where she had wrapped her wound, obviously rushed to do it before Germany got here. I heard Japan's voice urging me to move just three feet to the left as Austria turned towards me, aiming the gun at the one thing she knew would hit Germany the hardest.
Me.
Germany tightened, sprinting across the room as Austria's fingers tightened around the trigger. I watched the bullet come at a snail's pace, saw the little puff of gunpowder right before the gunshot. I didn't hear anything after the gunshot, but I saw everything.
I saw the sudden blast of fire come out of the gun, saw the recoil throw Austria to the floor after firing with her wounded arm. I saw the bullet come, so slow I'm sure I could have moved out of the way if I could even move at all. Germany was moving faster than I thought was possible, yelling something I couldn't hear. Japan pulled on my hand even harder than before, but it wasn't enough, it wasn't nearly enough to get me out of that doorway. Germany was jumped in front of me and all I could think was no.
No, no, no. No, please, no, just stop, just move, just don't.
NO.
All I could think was no as the bullet kept coming, faster and faster and Germany jumped directly in front of it to save me.
All I could think was no as she jumped and suddenly I couldn't see the bullet anymore and I knew that she was bleeding, I knew the bullet had sunken into her chest and that she was dying.
I knew that until she got up.
I knew that until she was the one screaming no and I was on the floor but I didn't remember falling, I didn't know where the bullet had gone until I saw the blood on the floor.
My blood.
Austria missed but I was bleeding. Austria missed and I didn't feel the bullet at all but I'm on the floor, I'm on the floor and I can't move, I'm on the floor with a bullet in my stomach, I'm on the floor and I'm bleeding too much too fast. Japan collapses to her knees beside me and I'm dimly aware of Austria dropping the gun in her hand and looking dazed, like she can't believe what she did, like she didn't do it but I saw her aim that gun and I saw the rage in her eyes that wasn't there now and I knew she meant to then even if she didn't now. She meant to and that's the last thing I'm actually sure of until the world goes black around me.
