Author's Note: There's some slang in here that I didn't realise were uniquely Australian until I started editing it.
'Maddog' (mad dog) - term for someone who is wild and crazy.
'Eskies' - A brand of portable cooler container/ice-box, but we literally refer to every cooler as an esky regardless of whether or not it is one.

Matthew pushed back the needle-y leaves of the juniper bushes that blocked his path. He had grown tired of this game of hide-and-seek – Alfred had somehow stayed hidden for almost an hour! It was getting cold – the sun had started to set – and his thick jacket was struggling to keep the chill out. Matthew wondered if he should head back to the house without him and let Arthur give him an earful for being out late. While it would've been funny, he didn't have the heart to do that.

He was just about ready to start calling for his brother when a sound distracted him from the thick brush nearby.

'He knows we're not supposed to go past the tree-line!' Matthew thought to himself frantically.

There was movement - some twigs snapped.

"Al?"

The rustling stopped.

Curious, and perhaps a tiny bit scared, Matthew approached the tall shrubs. The leaves were packed close together and betrayed none of their secrets inside.

"Alfred?" He tried again, but his voice was so quiet he didn't know if he had even said it out loud. He brought his hand up to the bushes and mustered his courage and strength to part them.

"This isn't fun anym—"

Something grabbed his arm.

⁎✤⁎

"Dude settle down, it's just me!"

It took the Canadian a few seconds to register that he was inside the mini-bus; Alfred was seated beside him in the driver's seat. His face flushed when he realised he'd almost clocked his brother in the jaw whilst waking up. Alfred eased his one-handed grip on the offending arm as Matthew took a deep breath.

"You have a bad dream or somethin', bro?" He asked, his tone slightly amused.

"S-something like that… Sorry…" Matthew turned his attention to the window. Now properly awake, he remembered that they were on the road headed to their destination. Before they had left town, Alfred had made sure to stop at the supermarket to gather any remaining supplies they were lacking. After that ordeal, there hadn't been much else to do since getting onto the highway and Matthew had dozed off. How he had managed to do so was anyone's guess, especially when almost all the other passengers were singing, yelling or talking over one another.

Matthew glanced over his shoulder to all the other nations behind him. Lovino had claimed the back seat all to himself, while Francis, Antonio and Gilbert sat in the row in front. Ludwig, Feliciano, Kiku and Arthur occupied the following row, with Ivan, Yao, Jack and Basch after that.

"Lovi, you should come sit here so you can be in the photo," Antonio laughed, trying to reach for the brunette who was reclining to avoid him.

"I don't want photographic evidence of me being here with you idiots," he returned as he shot a glare towards Gilbert.

"Whatever, I'll just paste a cut-out of you in the pic later!" Gilbert flipped his phone around and was trying to get everyone into frame. "Hey assholes, look at the camera!"

"Canada," Ivan addressed with a worrying smile on his face. "How wide do these windows open?"

"U-um, I'm not sure? Why?" He wasn't used to the tall nation speaking to him so directly and felt somewhat unnerved under his enigmatic stare.

Ivan gestured to Gilbert who was now awkwardly leaning backwards over one of the seats.

"I want to know if I'll have to break him into smaller pieces in order to throw him out," he said in such a sweet matter-of-fact tone that Matthew wasn't sure if it was a joke or not. Yao looked disturbed.

"Don't worry, I'll give him adequate warning of course!"

"That does not comfort me at all," Yao muttered. "Australia, can we please swap seats?"

Jack broke from his conversation with Basch – which appeared to have been largely one-sided as the blonde nation cast Yao a desperate look, mouthing 'save me'.

Matthew was glad that despite the banter, so far things had been going smoothly. He lamented that Kumajiro had been unwilling to come along, however. He had tried everything to get his companion to follow, but no amount of begging, bribing or pushing could get the bear to move from the house. Eventually Matthew had given up and allowed for his bear to stay at home. It wasn't like Kumajiro wasn't able to take care of themselves – it was only a weekend after all – he just valued their company.

But this would be a good opportunity, he told himself, to reconnect with everyone he had been too busy to see.

"That's the turn off up ahead, right?" Alfred's voice snapped him from his reverie. Quickly pulling out the crumpled map from his hoodie pocket, Matthew confirmed their whereabouts.

"That should be it."

Exiting the highway and onto a smaller side road, they began to ascend up a slope and into the woods. The neglect to the road became more apparent as the asphalt gradually became more bumpy and cracked. Eventually the asphalt turned to gravel, and Alfred was forced to slow down the vehicle. The mini-bus trundled along, jostling side-to-side like a junior fairground ride as it passed over each pot-hole and stone. Matthew could see the blooming wildflowers that blanketed the edges of the gravel road – their vibrant hues like paint splatters on earth's green and brown canvas. He heard Kiku say something in Japanese, the older nation visibly taken by the sight of the forest; Matthew felt his chest swell with pride.

The bus rattled rather violently as it dipped over a shallow ditch. Matthew steadied himself and readjusted his glasses that had been jostled askew.

"Just a speed hump, don't panic!" Alfred chimed, as if it were nothing.

"Aren't speed humps meant to be… well, humps?" Arthur spoke for the first time in hours. His question was promptly ignored. Gazing out the windows he could see the ditch they had driven through – it looked more like a trench really. It cast a stark dark line through the gravel and through the greenery surrounding them. It soon fell out of sight and was forgotten.

Alfred brought the bus to a halt where the gravel had finally petered out. From this point forward the trees had grown closer together; the gaps were far too narrow for any vehicle to pass through.

"Didn't this used to go all the way in?" He muttered, glancing around from the driver's seat to make sure he didn't miss an alternate route.

"It might've just gotten overgrown, it has been a long time after all," Matthew suggested. "I don't think we're too far away from that place, though. We could probably walk there."

With no other option to be seen, Alfred accepted this and shut off the engine.

"Alright gang," Alfred slapped his hands on the back of the seat to gain everyone's attention. "The rest of the journey is on foot, so grab your bags and let's get moving!"

There was a distinct groan of protest from the back of the bus. Feliciano however, who had apparently fallen asleep despite the jerky ride, was now wide awake and buzzing with anticipation. He flung himself out the door and into the crisp fresh air the second it had opened. Twirling about with an energy that was a stark contrast from seconds before, his whole body threatened to fall over into the patch of wildflowers. Ludwig swiftly reached out and stopped him from doing just that.

"You forgot your vest," he commented as he threw the puffy blue garment around him. The shorter man giggled, feeling a tad overwhelmed with glee and quite possibly dizziness. He steadied himself against a large boulder that was an arm's length away as he allowed Ludwig to zip the vest up.

Everyone unloaded from the bus - relishing in the chance to finally stretch their limbs and get their blood circulating.

Ensuring the vehicle's interior held no forgotten belongings, Alfred locked the door and made his way towards the trailer where the bulk of their things were stored. The trailer screamed when he opened the hatch. It was a very feminine scream and one that Basch recognised so easily that he was overcome with disbelief. He ran to the trailer where Alfred stood bewildered and pushed the taller nation aside.

"Lili?!"

He could only stare, wide-eyed and frozen as his little sister emerged from the pile of bags and eskies. She hopped down onto the ground, her legs wobbling slightly as she nearly fell over. Basch took hold of her shoulders to steady her; her body still feeling the bumpy motions of the drive.

"You spent the whole two-hour drive in there?!" Alfred exclaimed.

"Switzy, your sis is a maddog," Jack whistled and slapped his hand on the roof of the metal trailer.

"Basch you monster, why did you have dear Lili hide with the bags?" Francis accused.

Ivan started to laugh. Basch was frankly horrified. He could barely comprehend how she managed to remain undiscovered during their brief stop at the supermarket, let alone endure such a rough journey in a terribly confined space. Lili looked briefly frantic, then sheepish – she barely believed it herself.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know what else to do," she confessed quickly. "I was going to go back home like you said, but after I saw everyone had left, I just… I just…"

"You should've just asked," her brother stated. Lili avoided his reprimanding eyes; she wasn't totally convinced he would've agreed to let her come if she asked. "You could've gotten hurt."

"I know…" she agreed, lamely. She could feel a pang of regret in her chest as she watched her brother huff. He was definitely mad at her now.

"What Hermit-boy is trying to say is that he's glad you're here, because now he doesn't have to face the party alone," Gilbert interjected, ignoring the leer that was immediately sent his way. "Now, can we get moving? My legs feel like they've atrophied from sitting in that shitty bus so long."

"I second that!" Jack clapped his hands together. "Everybody come and get y'bags!"

Jack started to pass the luggage out one at a time. Like a well-oiled machine, everyone's belongings were distributed with rapid efficiency – until he held out Lovino's canvas bag. The irate brunette simply looked away, arms crossed over his chest.

"Is it too heavy, Lovi? Did you want me to carry it for you?" The Spaniard grinned as Lovino's expression darkened with indignation.

"Idiot, I didn't want to come on this trip in the first place! It's only fair you carry my stuff as compensation."

"It's okay Lovino, I put some of my things in Ludwig's bag so that mine wasn't so heavy!" Feliciano gave his brother a consoling pat on the back while Antonio relieved Jack of the burden.

After everyone's personal luggage had been collected, Jack started to distribute the various camping supplies. Between himself, Ivan and Alfred, the bulk of the gear was taken care of. What was left of the eskies and beer slabs was easily carried by the remainder of the group, and with that, the fifteen nations began their trek.

Matthew and Alfred took the lead, following the remnants of a dirt track into the woods. Despite what must've been years of disuse, there was still some form to the pathway that allowed them to navigate with some ease. Compared to the lively chatter that filled the bus ride there, the group travelled in amicable silence as they observed and soaked in the peace of the woodlands around them. Trees both skinny and wide stretched achingly up to the sky, blotting out its vast blueness with their endless shades of green as the leaves sighed against the subtle breeze.

Matthew had been right when he said that the place wasn't far. The path had disappeared beneath them, replaced instead with a thin layer of underbrush that crunched delicately under each of their shoes. Soon after they passed through a line of taller bushes and entered into a thicket. The trees were spread apart around them, forming a near circular clearing – the sky now fully visible above. It looked different to how Matthew remembered it. In fact, he was almost certain that he was mistaken, but Alfred instantly staked it as 'the spot' and rushed into the middle of the clearing to deposit his stuff.

"This is it! Base camp, my dudes!" Alfred declared proudly. "Sooner we set up, the sooner we can par-tay!"

"Hold on, how are we organising tent groups?" Arthur inquired. "Are we pairing up? What's the deal?"

Alfred looked to Matthew for a prompt. It seemed he had overlooked this part also. The Canadian sighed and examined their gear.

"We've got five tents, so since there's fifteen of us we can divide into groups of three," he explained. There were a few nods around the group, but an air of uncertainty persisted.

"Ooh no," Basch growled, suddenly aware of the implications. "I'm not letting anyone else share a tent with Lili, got it?" He glanced around the circle, giving Francis in particular a pointed glare. He also gave one to Ivan, but not for nearly as long.

"But, Basch-"

"No buts – she's my sister, and I don't trust any of you to be sharing a tent with her."

Matthew was a bit offended at that, but he had to respect Basch's stance. Lili was an unexpected addition to their get-together; had he known in advance he would've made sure she had her own tent. It wasn't like Basch couldn't sleep between his sister and whoever else ended up sharing with them, but Matthew didn't feel like he could make that suggestion without winding up at gunpoint. He knew the man had a habit of keeping a firearm on-hand at all times, and although Matthew was curious to see if he was currently armed, he wasn't feeling gutsy enough to find out.

Lili watched the proceedings without saying a word.

"This got a bit more complicated…" Matthew hummed. "I mean, the tent can fit four people, but it'll just be a bit… um… snug."

What was initially an agreeable albeit tense discussion, became rowdy in a heartbeat. No one could come to a consensus on who to group up with – especially since one group would have to squish together for a fourth person. Their voices continued to rise, until – surprisingly – it was Kiku who shouted, "Everyone, be quiet!" He looked more ruffled than the others did at his own behaviour and his dark eyes instantly drew away.

"Why don't we draw sticks," he proceeded, back at his normal soft volume. During the dispute, Kiku had gathered up a handful of sticks. "The people who pick ones of the same length will tent together."

Even though it was the most logical and fair way to go about the predicament, there was a widespread feeling of disdain. Nevertheless, Kiku walked around the group with the sticks in his hands and each person who went to make a selection closed their eyes. Once Kiku was left with only one stick, everyone exchanged glances and measured theirs against one another.

"Oh no, no, no!" Lovino backed away from the group. "I can handle one idiot, but two?"

Apparently, he, Antonio and Gilbert had drawn similar length sticks.

"You absolutely won't be escaping my blog pics now!" Gilbert laughed raucously. "Yo, Francis, who'd you get?"

The Frenchman was one of the few who were smiling – he gestured towards Feliciano who was joyously hugging Ludwig. "I truly got the luck of the draw, no?"

"Oh boy," Arthur said while drawing a long breath. "This is going to a very long camping trip."

"Speak for yourself." Yao turned his nose up at the Brit. "Kiku, you're the only one who's going to make this bearable." The statement caused Kiku to avert his eyes in disinterest.

"Hey, what's that meant to mean?" Jack opened his arms out as if to invite debate. "You should feel honoured – I've got loads of camping experience under my belt."

All eyes eventually fell upon the remaining trio. Ivan and Alfred were sharing layered gazes at one another while Matthew simply tried to ignore the growing chill around them.

"Let's just get through this weekend smoothly, yeah?" Alfred proposed with a forced grin.

"Of course, my friend, I wouldn't have it any other way," Ivan returned, voice dripping with saccharine sarcasm.

"H-how about I sleep in the middle?" Matthew suggested as he righted his glasses. The tension defused perhaps by a mere fraction. Eager to escape the beginnings of the Second Cold War, Matthew began distributing the tents.

With their equipment in hand, they splintered off to commence construction. Arthur's group worked the most cohesively and were the first to finish. Basch and Lili were a close second, as they always tended to cooperate with one another without much issue. Everyone else staggered behind. Ludwig's group had relegated the task solely to him, while Feliciano was off scouting the clearing. Francis simply sat back and watched. Antonio's group almost went down the same route, as Gilbert was too preoccupied filming the whole ordeal on his phone while Lovino insisted that the Spaniard was doing it all wrong.

"Ugh, just let me do it!" He groaned and proceeded to offer his assistance.

Matthew's group maintained a stressful silence, punctuated occasionally by his attempts to prompt a friendly conversation between them. The resulting discussion died very quickly and before long Matthew gave up on trying to get the two to play nice.

At long last, their tents were established – oriented in a semi-circle that faced the centre of the thicket where Alfred had started working on a campfire. Briefly abandoning his effort, he climbed onto the stump that was sitting beside the meagre collection of kindling. With one of the longer branches in his hand, he bashed the improvised apparatus on the stump to call attention.

"Now, before we officially get this shindig underway I wanted to call one final meeting," he announced. No one really had any clue what Alfred had to say, so they listened. He cleared his throat with a touch of exaggeration.

"Speech, speech, speech!" Jack chanted until Arthur nudged him in the ribs.

"On this day," Alfred began – his voice loud and strangely austere. There were a few whispered 'oh dear's and 'here we go's before he proceeded. "I hereby declare us to be men!"

Francis made an exaggerated cough before gesturing slightly to Lili. Her face flushed from being noticed all of a sudden and Basch soon stepped in between his sister and everyone's watchful stare.

"And woman," Alfred corrected himself. "As such, on this weekend no one is to refer to anyone by their country name, nor will we discuss any matters of business or affairs of state. No grim history talk; no politics talk."

For all his aloofness in the past 24-hours, Alfred's speech commanded an odd level of seriousness.

Until he got to the end, anyway.

"Only fun, excessive boozing and general shenaniganry are permitted henceforth – anyone who violates this sacred pact will be… uh…"

"Thrown naked into the lake!" Jack hooted.

"Sure, we'll go with that."

"Wait, you telling me there's a lake?" Gilbert was deeply interested by this piece of information. Apparently not everyone had been informed about it.

"Alright, everybody in!" Alfred hopped down from the stump and struck his arm out – palm down. There was some reluctance, before a universal shrug of 'why the hell not?' and one by one they put a hand in. Gilbert was still trying to extract details about the lake when Antonio pulled a hesitant Lovino in to join the circle. Basch was left as the odd one out, standing a short distance away. He seemed adamant in avoiding the whole affair, but with one pleading look from Lili, he caved, and gingerly placed his own hand on the rest.

With a resounding cheer, they lifted their hands up into the air and the agreement was made.

The party had just begun.