Summary: Australia was a small, usually forgotten, country located at the bottom of the world. He had never been involved in any major wars so when World War One hit he had no idea what he was getting into.
Now Australia must come to terms with his relationship with England and form new bonds as he is exposed to the rest of the world. Sometimes a little isolation never hurt anyone. Slightly AU
*Note . No offence is meant by this fic
Spelling and grammar mistakes?
There might be a few…
Disclaimer: I obviously don't own Hetalia
Chapter 1-Australia
-1788-
Australia stood crying on the soft sand beach, dwarfed by the eleven large Galleons that were moored offshore in a sheltered bay. On these ships were what would be his first white settlers. His people. This would be his land.
But he didn't want people, he didn't want to be a country, island, colony, settlement or whatever he was. He wanted to stay with England in their home in England. For the third time in a row Australia ran after England's retreating form.
"Please don't go, don't leave me," Australia cried, catching up to England and latching onto his arm, pulling at his cloths. England gave him an irritated and exasperated look, trying unsuccessfully to shake the child from his arm.
"It's time you took some responsibility and started running your own country," England responded, while prying Australia's small fingers from his sleeve.
"It will be a positive experience for you and hopefully will rid you of your nasty thieving habit," England ground out, managing to detach Australia from his arm.
"I promise I'll be good, I'll be good, I promise, I promise,"
Australia's voice rose in volume and pitch as England attempted to drag him back to his previous location.
"Don't leave!"
Australia was now wailing at a deafening level, causing England to wince. With a reserved sigh England gave up on dragging the child and slung Australia over his shoulder. Australia continued to cry his 'don't leave' manta, trying to wiggle out of England's grip. Why was England being so mean, why was he leaving him? Hadn't England said that he would look after him? That he was his older brother. What had he had done wrong? Ok, so he had 'borrowed' a decorated pin that had belonged to the Queen, but he had done a lot worse. Why did he suddenly need to learn responsibility? Australia didn't want to be alone.
England finally reached Australia's original position, one that he had had to drag Australia back to numerous times over the past few hours. Gently placing the crying Australia down on the ground England kneelt in front of him, trying to get the child's attention.
"Australia?" England spoke in a calm, commanding voice. However, he ignored England in favor of staring at his shoes and sobbing, tears making this shoes blurry.
"Australia," Australia continued to cry at his shoes.
"Australia, look at me." Australia raised his head. Tearful green eyes meeting England's darker ones.
"Australia, you can't keep living the way you do. No more stealing, no more bad behavior. Your a big colony now. You need to learn responsibility." Australia gave a loud sniff before wailing, "But I don't want responsibility, I don't want to be a big colony," Ignoring England's attempts at calming him in favor of renewed cries. Life was unfair.
Finally, England clapped a hand over his mouth saying, "Well too bad, you are one. Now don't interrupt me when I trying to tell you something," taking a moment to calm himself, England took a deep breath before he continued in a softer tone, "I know you do not want to be alone and your afraid but there is nothing to worry about, I thought of everything you will need."
He continued crying, eyes searching England's face, some part of him hoped that this was all a joke and they would go home and things would return to normal.
"Now I need you to be strong and stay here. I promise I'll contact you as much as possible. However, this country is very much out of the way so messages might take a while to get here." England placed a hand on Australia's head.
"I will be in England if you need me," Australia guessed this was supposed to be reassuring but all it did was reinforce the colossal distance that would now separate them.
"You understand, right?" Australia hesitantly nodded, whimpering slightly. England gave a strained smile before pulling Australia into a hug that only served to make him sadder. England pulled out of the hug both hands on either of Australia's shoulders. Australia looked desperately at England, at a loss for words. For a moment he thought he saw England's eyes glisten as if about to cry.
"Good luck," and with that England got up and once again made the trip along the beach to a small rowboat waiting to take him out to his personal ship. Australia stood, stunned at the abrupt exit, watching England's retreating back.
Panic began to well up inside him, bursting into a fresh set of tears he run down the beach after England, yelling, "nooooooooo, don't go, don't go, don't go"
Australia reached the waters edge, wading after the rowboat- which was quickly moving away- stopping at waist depth. A wave smacked him in the face, giving him a mouthful of salt water. Australia watched as England's boat became smaller in the distance before it disappeared all together.
- December 1913 -
Australia lay flat under the thick wattle bush, trying to escape the heat of yet another scorching day which, coupled with humidity, made everything that little bit more uncomfortable. There was nothing more annoying than being hot and having all his clothes stick to him like glue. Australia released a long breath, humming absently to himself; despite his disagreement with the climate he still loved his land all the same. As he peered through the bracken at the mottled blue sky he quelled an erg to chase a dragonfly that zipped past. Not only was it far to hot to be running around, he was also way to old to be chasing dragonflies, being a proper country for the past years. So what if he was technically a commonwealth of England and could still be considered a colony, he didn't care, he barely saw England these days anyway.
It was often very lonely in his section of the world as he hardly saw any of the other countries, naively hopping that after being declared a country he would receive more attention. He loved meeting new people, going to new places, seeing new animals maybe even gaining a little more independence so he did not have to rely on just England and the UK for information and trading. However, nothing had change, he was still isolated, in what was considered the bottom of the world. Stuck in vast, dry lands with his closest contacts being the small Asian countries sitting above him, wanting nothing to do with one of England's colonies. Moreover, he in turn was being constantly warned by England not to socialize with them. It made making new friend problematic at the best of times. It probably did not help that he bore an uncanny resemblance to England, which seemed to deter a lot of his neighbors. He had the same color hair, which was only marginally longer, same green eyes and pail completion, though he did tan easer. Trade mark eyebrows were what really marked him as England's relative, although they thankfully weren't nearly as thick as England's. Australia couldn't decide if he was proud of this resemblance or annoyed.
When it came to his relationship with the 'mother country' Australia couldn't quite figure out where he stood, wanting to be both independent and recognized at the same time. He closed his eyes, enjoying the sounds of the bush around him and fiddling with the dull brown Band-Aid that ran across the bridge of his nose.
He acknowledged that he had never been the most well behaved child, no scratch that, he'd been downright unbearable as a kid. England had constantly been trying to keep him out of trouble. If it wasn't painting on walls it was climbing on furniture, sliding down bannisters, leaving mess wherever he went or running around naked (which had always horrified England). Not even mentioning his little habit of steeling random items from most people who came near him. He had liked to call it extended borrowing, after all, he did always try to remember to return the items. This had always tested England's patience as bad behavior may be tiresome but steeling was morally wrong. Australia remembered many a lecture about the virtues of right from wrong, shrugging at England's angry questions while silently resenting England for only caring when he did something wrong. England's attention had been a bit diverted during that period, mostly likely due to the American Revolution, which was in full swing. England had been stressed and emotionally strained. Australia had been young and staved for attention. It was an explosive combination that would only end in tears. His unexpected arrival and wild behavior were only icing to the, already crowded, cake. Australia did not know a lot about his origins except that he had apparently been found, quite unexpectedly, by England next to a gum tree in an unknown and unexplored island in the Pacific. England hadn't stayed long on the land, now know as Australia, deciding to take him back to England in order to teach him the English way. It had gone south from there, stating with the rinse and repeat cycle of learning English customs, doing stupid things to get attention, facing England's disappointed wrath and dealing with the following punishments. England would then assigned him more study material and proceed to leave him alone to oversee other important matters. Rinse and repeat.
It had probably been this tiring cycle in correlation with other numerous factors witch had led to what was and still was the worst day of his life. The day he left England and officially became the colony Australia. Or as he like to refer to it, the day he had been damped on the Ireland.
Yet in the recesses of his mind he knew he would do anything to gain England's favor. No… he could not afford to think like that. He could do this by himself. He would get by just fine on his own.
Australia jolted as he resurfaced from his depressing memories, realizing that the sun, which had previously been high overhead, was heading towards the horizon. He shivered, feeling cold despite the heat, reminiscing about the past, a past best left buried in the subconscious, always left him on edge. One day he would prove to England that he was worthy of recognition as a country in his own right.
No longer enjoying or feeling inclined to continue his afternoon nap Australia go up and stretched. Lazily, he began to meander through the scrub, attempting to shake lingering dark thoughts from his mind. A strong sea breeze blew over him bringing the taste of ocean and relief from the heat. Australia scrambled over a boulder, heading in the direction of the cliffs, which he knew overlooked a magnificent ocean. He had made it a habit lately of watching the sun set from this particular point. As Australia pushed though the last of the bracken he spotted a familiar figure silhouetted against the sky.
Australia's face split into a grin as he loudly hollered a greeting at the still figure.
"Hey, New Zealand."
New Zealand jumped at the sudden noise, head snapping in Australia's direction, I slight frown on his face.
"Hey," Australia was now vigorously waving at him, a stupid gin plastered over his face, talking with New Zealand always cheered him up.
"Hey, mate, Zealand, what're you doing out here," Australia continued to yell as he quickly made his way towards New Zealand.
New Zealand was a heaver build in comparison to Australia who was more thin and wiry. Though Australia was slightly taller, something he never failed to point out given the opportunity. He had darker skin, which had always be a source of confusion for Australia, and dark, shoulder length hair, which lay flat across his head. His only obvious connection to England being his English eyebrows…lucky him.
"Has anyone ever told you your too loud?" sighed New Zealand, fixing Australia with a bemused stare. Australia grinned, leaping over a low-lying shrub and joining New Zealand at the edge of the cliff.
"I was under the impression that the rest of the world was too quiet," Australia stated, his smile doubling in size. New Zealand raised an eyebrow at the cheesy answer, smiling in return before turning to once again face the ocean. Australia also turned to face the water, which spread out like a blue blanket towards the horizon. He idly noted that the surf was rather flat that afternoon. A quick movement flashed in his peripheral vision, catching his attention. He moved his eyes to focus on the point, hoping catch whatever had moved. Nothing happened, frowning slightly he searched the waters surface.
"Whales," Australia's eyes flickered to New Zealand in confusion.
"What?"
"There are whales out at sea," New Zealand was now smiling.
Australia hummed, "Whales, right." Another silenced stretched out between them. After scanning the waters surface Australia caught sight of the tell-tale streams of water vapors which confirmed that there were indeed whales.
"Your tense," Australia ignored the concerned in New Zealand's voice and New Zealand examined him for several seconds, "you haven't been receiving tax increases from England again have you?" Australia shrugged in response. Once again New Zealand displayed the uncanny knack for perceiving his state of mind.
"Naa, just tired." It was a bad excuse considering he was known for sleeping but New Zealand accepted the reason with only a sidelong glance.
Once again silence rained and Australia got the feeling that he wasn't the only one with troubled thoughts. New Zealand wasn't usually this quite as they would have usually stricken up a conversation or started a friendly argument by now.
"Soooo," Australia decided to brake the contemplative silence, "not that I don't love it when you visit, but why are you here?" Australia paused to look at New Zealand with a frown.
"Weren't you scheduled to visit next mouth… and don't say it was because of the whales"
New Zealand gave him a withering smile, "Can't a guy visit his best friend spontaneously without judgment,"
Best friend, try only friend. Being so isolated did not lend itself to meeting others like themselves. Unfortunately, New Zealand felt the remoteness a lot more that he did, conducting pretty much all of his diplomatic relations through Australia.
Australia, not to be weighed down by depressing thoughts, childishly stuck out his tong, fixing New Zealand with a glare.
"No"
New Zealand gave Australia a quizzical look, which told Australia he was missing a vital snippet of information, before bluntly stating,
"There's a meeting between our Prime Ministers today."
Australia's eyes widened in surprise, "Really!" he could have sworn that was next month. Oh well, missing out on a conference/ meeting wasn't the end of the world. He had never had a keen interest in his county's political situation anyway, being content with knowing just enough to get by. Though considering his age it was more than the average person. His parliament was heavily regulated by England anyway so he never saw much of a point in it.
"Actually, we're supposed to be there for this meeting. I was sent to find you," Australia's heart sank at the words. Great, just great. The last thing he wanted to do was go into stuffy meetings where he was expected to know all about the topics covered when in reality he was completely clueless. It wouldn't be the first time he'd have to bluff the superior knowledge he was expected to know as his country's personification.
Australia groaned out loud, "Do we have to go, it's so boring, all they do is talk and talk." Australia waved his hands in the air for affect, continuing, "Usually about doing stuff that never gets done anyway."
New Zealand smirked, "I thought you'd say that, which is why I didn't put a whole lot of effort into finding you. The meeting is probably almost over by now so there's not much point in going "
The sentence invoked a relived sigh from Australia who smiled. "You're a good mate you know," There was a small silence as Australia thought.
"So, what do you think the meeting was about?"
New Zealand rolled eyes, "Well, since neither of as went I can only speculate that it was about the situation in Europe. But this is only a guess gained from prior research for this exact meeting "
Australia ignored New Zealand's jibe, " Yes, I see you're heat broken at not being able to use your research," he laughed before shaking himself, becoming more serious.
"It's getting worse isn't it," Australia finally commented, his face now a frown. This was probably what New Zealand was worried about and why he was out here staring morbidly into the ocean. A habit they both shared when nervous or anxious.
New Zealand nodded, answering, "Tensions are rising between the European countries. Their all building up their armies"
Australia once again lapsed into thought. He knew that there was some serious shit going down across the sea. He could feel it. There was tension across his country. After all, conferences between his and New Zealand's country weren't just rescheduled for no reason. The whole world seemed to be holding it's breath and the source of the unrest seemed to be centered on the European counties. France and Germany had never gotten along well especially after Germany took the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. Now England was also snapping at Germany his reason being the fear that Germany's larger navy would cut him off from his empire, simultaneously worrying Australia as he relied on England's trade quite a bit. And that wasn't even the end of it. As far as he knew Russia and Austria-Hungary were also competing for land. Throw in a bunch of smaller countries also gearing up for conflict and it was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off, resulting in war. Australia had never really been in a war before so his future and the future of his country were completely unknown and that put him on edge. He was worried about himself and New Zealand… and England who was in the thick of it.
"A storm is coming," Austria looked out to sea, spotting the dark clouds on the horizon. He had a feeling that New Zealand wasn't just referring to the weather.
History
1770: Captain James Cook lands on the more hospitable east coast of Australia and claims it for Britain. England finds Australia.
1788: First fleet arrives in Australia and a British settlement is set up. The area was called New South Wales. Basically the first settlers were all convicts sent to Australia because, to put it simply, England ran out of space. So Australia based on a convict. Stealing anything was a pretty big crime back then.
. Galleons (large transport ships on the era)
. mother country (that's what Australian's used to call England)
1901: Australia becomes the Commonwealth of Australia but still relies heavily on England and English rule. Australians during that time basically still considered themselves subjects of Britten.
