... Yeah okay, so this took way longer than expected to upload. Sorry people, I know it's a crappy excuse, but school just started again and- *shot by Norge*

... Fine. Without more rambling, here's the next chapter~

- NORWAY -

It's warm.

That's the first thing I'm aware of. Warmth.

Am I dead?

Is this what death feels like?

But no... I can't be dead. In death, one feels nothing, but I feel this warmth through my skin, my bones. It's within me.

... Perhaps death is really just warmth?

I'm about to let my train of thought end there when something wet hits my cheek. Wet? But I'm underwater... How am I able to distinguish separate drops of-?

"N-Norge?"

- DENMARK -

"Are... Are you still breathing?"

No response.

"Norge?"

Still nothing.

"... Lukas?"

Slowly, painstakingly slowly, his eyelids slide open to reveal those blue, blue eyes.

He's alive.

Norway is alive.

- NORWAY -

Before I'm aware of what's going on, his arms are around me, holding me tightly. My eyes widen.

"... Mathias?"

"Oh Norge, my Norge, I'm so happy you're okay!" Cautiously, as though he could fade away any minute, I return his hug, wrapping my arms around his neck gently. Why am I not dead? What happened? Was that voice I heard before going under... Was that really you?

"N-Norge... Oh Norge..." I gradually let my body relax against his. We're sitting up by this point; I'm leaning against him with my arms wrapped around him just above his waist so he can more easily hold me. His hand runs through my hair, messing it up and then stroking it back into order, as he mumbles my name over and over. Or rather, his nickname for me.

"My precious Norge..." A blush slaps my cheeks and forces my eyes wide open. His precious?

"Den...?"

"Hush, Norgie. It's going to be okay. I'll take care of you and make sure nothing and nobody hurts you ever again. You'll never have to resort to something like that again. I'll be there for you, I'll look after you, I promise. Just... Hush. It's gonna be okay."

A pause.

"Norge? You hear me?"

"Y-yes Den."

"Nothing will ever hurt you again. I swear. Nothing. I'll protect you with my life if I have to; I'll do anything to save you. I-

"Okay." Knowing he can work himself up by talking too much, I silence him with the simple word and bury my face in his chest. For a while we stay like that, him holding me and gently playing with my hair while I lean on him.

Suddenly, something changes. Den seems to be shivering; before I know what's going on, I feel a tear hit my face.

"Den? Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine. I- they're t-tears of relief, nothing else."

"Mathias..." I raise my head to look at him. Sure enough, he smiles back at me with an air of relief, seemingly happy just to see me safe and sound. The sight of his tears is still too much for me though; I reach up and wipe them away with the back of my hand. All of a sudden, I feel like crying myself. The knowledge that I've brought tears to the eyes of the one I love, as well as the fact that he risked his life to save mine, gives me a sentiment of guilt as sharp and painful as a metal object colliding with shins.

"Mathias, I'm so sorry. I don't even know why I did it any more. I wasn't thinking. There's no way I would've done it if I'd known the pain it'd bring to you-"

- DENMARK -

Denmark places a finger to his lips to silence Norway. He's seen the desperacy in the other's eyes, and it's made him think perhaps his Norge was in need of some form of comfort.

So he does the one thing left for him to do to show both his own relief and the feelings he has towards Norge.

- NORWAY -

He kisses me.

My brain is frozen; my thoughts are on hold. I don't have control over what I'm doing.

All I know is that I'm kissing him back.

- DENMARK -

To Denmark, there's nothing but this moment. Reality is nothing but sand moving through an hourglass in some surreal, parallel dimension, far away, untouchable. It's sealed off and out of reach. But that doesn't matter because somehow, this is reality.

Reality, Denmark's reality, takes on the form of Norway.

- NORWAY -

When he breaks the kiss, it takes my brain a moment to recover from the complete shutdown. My senses return to me as I become aware of a blush dusting my cheeks. Our eyes reopen in unison.

"Norge?" A whisper, softer and filled with more emotion than I've ever heard from him, escapes his lips. I just stare at his eyes.

My name...

Why does my name have so much more essence when it's him speaking it?

"... Yes?"

"I-I don't quite know how to say this, but-"

"I love you too." Before I can stop myself, the words tumble out of me, unintentional but true. His expression goes blank; if it weren't for the blush rapidly spreading across his face, I would have had to conclude that my interpretation of his (uncharacteristic and once-in-a-lifetime) loss of words had been incorrect.

"You- but I- how did you-"

"Shush, Den. Just tell me I'm right. It'll give me infantile satisfaction." At that, he smiles. I can tell what he's thinking right now- the old Norge is back. And he'll be thanking his lucky stars that he saved me in time.

- DENMARK -

"You're right," confesses Denmark after a moment's hesitation, "I do love you."

He proceeds to lean forward and pull his Norway into another kiss.

Ahhh, they finally kissed! That escalated quickly, but oh well, if you didn't love DenNor you wouldn't be reading this~ *shot*

Hope you enjoyed! I'll probably upload the next chapter this weekend, and I'll keep with my time promises this time ^_^'

Okay, sorry guys, but I've changed my mind on this one. My inspiration shot itself through the head with regards to the next chapter, and I've already epically butchered my time promise. So, until I think of a decent ending, I'll leave the story like this.

And anyone who flames because of that... Shall be fed to Norway's troll~