A/N: Sorry for the late update! The last couple weeks of school were pretty hectic. Thanks to everyone who continues to read and review my stories!

I do not own Hetalia.

Ludwig's POV

Of all the "field trips" in the world that the headmaster could come up with, it had to be camping.

It's not that I have anything against the concept of camping. On the contrary, I love being in the outdoors. Every summer, my brother and I would set up our tents at a nearby nature park and "rough it" there for an entire weekend. We pitched our own tent, cooked our own food, and bathed in a nearby stream.

This produced many bad memories.

In the mornings, I would find freshly caught crickets in my sneakers, my duffel bag floating halfway down the river, or a wild animal snuggling with me in my tent. All thanks to my wonderful big brother.

Now, not only was Gilbert participating in this trip, but his psychotic friends as well. The good news was that I probably wasn't going to see a lot of them throughout the day.

Headmaster Kiku's plan was to give every male a female camping partner who they would participate with in several activities. This would help "promote co-gender friendships," resolving the issues between the two groups.

According to the roster that was posted this morning, my partner was Feliciana. She was the same girl who had accidentally kicked a ball at my head, and she seemed like a nice girl. Maybe a bit too talkative, but nice.

Antonio was paired with her sister, Lovina, and he couldn't stop freaking out about that. During the hour that Kiku provided us to pack, he sang "Walking on Sunshine" at the top of his lungs, all the while maintaining a wide grin on his face and dancing like a squirrel who had recently drank 15 cups of coffee.

The rest of the pairings didn't draw too much of a reaction from anybody. Gilbert was paired with a girl named Madeline, whom I've never heard of. Roderich was with Elizabeta, the frying pan girl. Arthur and Alex were partners, which would probably end up in chaos seeing how different their personalities were. Ivan and Francis shared a partner: Chun Yan. Whoever she was, I pitied her.

After folding up my last shirt, I zipped up my bag and slung it over my shoulder with ease. I didn't need much for the trip: just the basic necessities. Gilbert, on the other hand, had crammed two suitcases full of his stuff, claiming that it was all supplies to "look good for the ladies." I didn't believe it for a second; there was a pretty strong chance that he was going to attempt to pull another prank during the trip. Whatever he was doing this time, I wanted no part of it.

One thing that I probably should've told my brother was that I overheard Alex and Lovina whispering about a trick to pull on "the bastards" during the campout while I was walking down the hallway this morning. I only caught bits and pieces of their conversation; nothing that would give me any clue as to what they were really planning. Hopefully they'd leave me out of it, but I thought it was sensible that Gilbert and his friends receive some payback for their actions. Therefore, I wouldn't interfere.

Headmaster Kiku peered into our room, carrying a duffel bag of his own. "Chidren, you have 15 more minutes to get ready. Meet us at the front door of the buirding when you are ready." Bowing slightly, he exited, heading towards the next room.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm so pumped for this trip!" Antonio was still dancing around our dorm, and I nearly gagged at the fumes of cologne that radiated from his body.

"Listen, my friend. Lovina is a pretty girl, yes? You don't want to scare her away with your excessive amount of body freshener. A little bit goes a long way." Francis flashed him a smirk that would send girls falling to the floor as he shoved his final bottle of conditioner into his bag. "Well, it looks like I'm all set. Antonio, we should meet Gilbert downstairs." He slung his luggage over his shoulder, his Spanish friend following his example. "Are you coming, Ludwig?"

"Ja. I just need to… double check my stuff."

The two nodded in my direction and exited the room, probably striking up yet another conversation about girls. I, for one, was just happy to get them all out of my space.

I sighed, falling back onto my mattress. Ever since I arrived at the academy, I haven't had a moment to myself. I just needed a minute of silence, enough time to clear my thoughts…

"Hi! You're Ludwig, right?"

…But it looks like that's never happening.

I sat up on the bed, glancing tiredly at whoever ended my moment of tranquility. Standing in the doorframe was that girl again-Feliciana- hugging a bag to her chest.

"Actually, I should already know that, seeing that I met you before…"

"Nein, it's okay. We only talked for a brief moment. Yes, I am Ludwig. I'm assuming that you're here to talk about the camping trip…?"

She nodded, brushing a strand of hair out of her golden-brown eyes. "Yeah. Well, kinda. Since we're going to be partners for the next couple of days, I thought that we should get to know each other!"

…Get to know each other?

For a moment, I thought she was joking. Feliciana's cheerful grin didn't falter, however, leading me to the conclusion that she was being serious. "Er… what do you want to know?"

She shrugged, casually strolling into the room and sitting onto a chair. "Basic stuff, I guess. I'll go first." Setting her bag onto the floor, she began. "I have one older sister, Lovina. She looks a bit like me, only she frowns and curses way more. Even though she yells at me often, I know that she loves me."

I nodded, signifying that I was listening to her speech. I had already guessed that they were sisters due to similar looks and accents, but now my prediction was affirmed.

"We live with my grandpa outside of school. He was the one who took us to America so that we could study here, since we used to live in Italy. Sometimes I miss my other family members and the beautiful Italian scenery, but I love America, too. I've made many friends, like Maddie, and I'm hoping that we can also be amici!"

I reddened at her last statement, slightly surprised at how forward she was with her intentions. Clearing my throat, I began to tell my own story. "Er… well, I also have an older sibling. His name is Gilbert, and he's the idiot that attacked you all with the chainsaw. He's loud and annoying, but we're still close, I guess. We never really get into fights. My family originates from Germany, but Gil insists that he's Prussian. And… that's it pretty much it." I shrugged, glancing up at the Italian. "How was that?"

"It was perfect," she replied, her unyielding smile still spread across her face. This time, though, it was more relaxed, as if she was becoming more comfortable in my presence. Normally people felt intimidated by my stern looks and intimidating body structure, but not her.

"Mio Dio, we were supposed to be downstairs five minutes ago!" Her sudden outcry broke through my thoughts and brought me back to reality. Before I could react, she slung her bag over her shoulder and grabbed my elbow, hoisting me out of my sitting position. "Come on, Ludwig!"

"Ah, yes, I'm coming." I picked up my own bag and followed her out of the room, easily matching my stride with hers. Overall, Feliciana seemed like an okay girl. She was nice, understanding, and incapable of leaving any awkward silences in a conversation.

Maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad after all.

Everyone else was already downstairs by the time we arrived, but Feliciana didn't seem to mind. She waved over at a shy looking girl with blondish-brown hair and glasses, who I assumed to be her friend, Maddie. She was standing with my brother, who resumed conversation with her after she waved back to Feliciana. Although Gilbert seemed to be doing most of the talking, she still seemed to be enjoying herself with his company.

Next to them were Arthur and Alex; they were already engaged in an argument, which wasn't too surprising. Antonio was chatting to a red-faced Lovina, who was pretending to ignore him but would still reply with a sentence or two every now and then (usually containing the phrase "tomato bastard"). Roderich and Elizabeta appeared to be getting along nicely, while Chun Yan forced a smile on her face between Francis's relentless flirting and Ivan's terrifying aura.

The Frenchman noticed my presence in the room, excused himself to the petrified Chun Yan, and strode over towards Feliciana and I. "So this is your partner, Ludwig?" He winked at the Italian, which strangely induced no reaction. She just smiled and nodded.

Linking my arm with his, Francis pulled me aside. "She's quite the catch, no? Don't think I didn't notice that you were the only couple that was late, Ludwig! Are you already… getting to know each other?" He followed up his brief interrogation with a series of on hon hon hon's, causing my face to heat up.

"Nein, you've got it all wrong!" Francis smirked and released me, strolling back over to his partners. Chun Yan was now trembling as Ivan demonstrated how to handle his metal pipe, squealing each time he swung it inches from her face.

"I'm happy you're my partner, Ludwig," Feliciana chirped, appearing to my right. "Everyone else seems kind of scary… or strange. You seemed a little scary at first, too, but now I know that you're a nice guy!" She beamed at me (seriously, what was with this girl and smiling?), and then skipped off in the direction of the buses, which had just arrived. For the first time since I arrived at this school, I smiled.

"I'm glad we're partners too, Feliciana," I whispered, even though I knew she couldn't hear me.

Feliciana's POV

Headmaster Kiku said that partners had to sit next to each other on the bus, which was alright with me. I was hoping to get to know Ludwig better on this trip.

It's not like I didn't have any friends; in fact, I had several. Even so, I felt a need to spend more time with Ludwig. He didn't open up to people easily, making him much more difficult to befriend. This meant that I'd have to spend a whole lot of time with him in order to really understand him.

I didn't know what made so convinced that I had to develop a bond with the tall German; perhaps it was because he seemed lonely to me, or that he also had an older sibling who was the polar opposite of himself, but it had become my mission.

"Is there any place where you would prefer to sit?" Ludwig, halfway up the bus steps, paused to look at me.

"Eh… not really. You can decide."

He gave me a curt nod and climbed into the bus, sliding into the second row of seats and setting his bag on the floor. I followed his example. Across from us sat Francis and Ivan with Chun Yan squished in the middle, and I came to the conclusion that Lovina and Antonio were in front of us due to the soung of my sister's flustered curses.

"I apologize for my brother's uncivil manner yesterday," Ludwig commented, breaking the silence. "It was uncalled for, and you all deserve an apology."

"It wasn't your fault." Although my experience yesterday wasn't a pleasant one, I didn't feel that it something for anyone to get worked up about. And besides, Ludwig didn't have to take the blame for his brother's actions.

"It might as well have been. I knew that they were planning something inappropriate, and I didn't attempt to do anything to stop it." The bus doors closed with a hiss, and the vehicle lurched forward, causing its passengers to fall back into their seats. Ludwig steadied himself and continued. "I've decided that next time I catch wind of any plan they may have against you guys, I'll tell you. If the boys and girls decide to start a war, it doesn't mean that I have to be completely loyal to either side."

"So it'll be like we're… allies?"

"Yes, I suppose so," he said, nodding slightly. I grinned widely and sat back in my seat.

Allies and friends were practically the same thing.

We arrived at the campsite 20 minutes later. Headmaster Kiku said that we had to walk up a trail to get to our real destination, which caused me to groan softly. While I was a pretty good football (or, as Americans call it, "soccer") player, I didn't enjoy most other forms of exercise. Especially walking and running long distances.

Ludwig immediately noticed my distress and offered to carry my bag during the hike, which was very kind of him, but I had to refuse. Not only would Alex and Lovina badger me for being wimpy, but I didn't want to appear weak to the German. At least, not yet; he would witness my feebleness soon enough.

When it comes to camping, it's not the bugs that I'm afraid of. On the contrary, I find them cute and unintimidating (though nowhere near as adorable as cats). It's the big spiders, snakes, and bears that I worry about. A mere cracking of a twig can set me on edge, and something tells me that Ludwig isn't too tolerable of wimpiness.

Luckily, our walk to the clearing was spider, snake, and bear-free.

By the time we arrived, I was wheezing like a fat man after running a marathon (it was a steep incline, okay?), but it was totally worth it. Slender trees surrounded a grassy field that was large enough to set up all of our tents in, but small enough so that they had to be pitched side-by-side. A stream trickled nearby, stones sticking out of the clear water. They provided a way to easily cross the water without getting wet. My peripheral vision caught the blur of some sort of wild animal-I'm assuming a deer- but it was too fast for me to get a good look. In a single word, it was-

"Beautiful." I turned to face Ludwig, who was looking embarrassed for his sudden outburst. Instead of teasing him like any of the guys would in that situation, I just nodded and switched my gaze back to the scenery.

"Yeah, it really is."

The serene moment was forcibly interrupted by the shrill chirp of a whistle.

"Okay, chirdren! Obviousry, we aren't going to have partners sharing tents. You wirr arr sreep according to your dorms rooms back at the academy."

I cringed at the thought of sharing a tent with Lovina and Alex. No doubt they were going to get into an argument about who-sleeps-where and other unimportant nonsense.

"Your first assignment is to go out and scavenge for food whire I pitch the tents. We have suppries in the green bag," he announced, gesturing to said object. "The team with the most impressive assortment wirr win a prize."

That set a spark in Ludwig's eyes. He seemed to be the kind of person who enjoyed challenges, especially when they involve his older brother.

All at once, almost everyone made a beeline for the bag. I stayed back, being more timid and unwilling to lose a limb in order to snatch up the top-quality gear.

After they all cleared, there wasn't an item left in the bag. Ludwig had scored us a basket, some knives, and a fishing pole.

"Let's get to it," he said, a look of determination set on his face. I nodded, picking up the basket (the item I was least likely to hurt myself with) and following him out of the clearing.

Just before I was out of earshot with the headmaster, I heard him shout, "Remember where we made camp! Don't get rost!"

I don't think anyone heard him. This was a competition, and we were all set on winning.

A/N: A bunch of Hetalia characters run out to the woods to catch food for a competition. Nothing can go wrong here, right?

*cricket chirps*

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~Hastalapasta