If the ensemble of countries were to be seen by a passerby, they would look like a class on a field trip, with the two Filipinos as guides.
"Starting today, you guys should be starting to memorize this route," Claire began, "it depends if we will all walk back home together or not, but if you guys want to, then I guess we should all meet after dismissal."
"You do know that not one country is listening to you right now, don't you?" Cris raised a brow at his female self.
She looked at him for a moment before turning her gaze back to where they are walking, "...oo."
Right behind the filipino pair are the noisiest country in the group of allies: the Americans.
"First of all," Alfred said to his partner, "Starbucks are soooo common white girl. And hamburgers are waaaaay more superior than hotdogs!"
"Well you know what?!" Amelia glared at the other American, her clenched fists on either side of her hips. "I won't even argue about your love for hamburgers 'cause it's so mainstream for fatties!"
Alfred gasped, "EXCUSE ME?!"
Once the Americans started their barking towards each other, the pixies flinched.
"I am terribly sorry for those two gits, my ladies." Arthur bowed his head towards the magical creatures, who smiled and giggled in reply.
Rose let out a gentle laugh, enjoying the sight of another person who can see his friends. "So Arthur, how long have you known about them?" She asked as the stroked the flying mint bunny beside her.
"Oh, I believe I've been friends with everyone for as long as I can remember!" The young englishman smiled.
Directly on the left side of the british pair were the French who are looking at them as if the two were aliens.
The French maiden groaned, "What's more embarrassing than a crazy british ally, is two crazy british allies."
The male french country smirked." Took the words right out of my mouth, ma chere."
"Hm." Marianne hummed with a nod as she twirls a small bouquet of iris flowers she was holding, which she had received earlier from her partner.
"Do you like the iris, bel?" Francis turned his smirk into a smile, "it is a national treasure, just like you."
Marianne smiled genuinely at her partner, showing the facade of a woman who knows her own beauty." Merci beaucoup, monsieur Francis. Tell me, how many mademoiselles have you made to fall in love with this?" She held up the small arrangement of the blue flowers.
"I can see and appreciate all the beauté from around the world," the french male answered, "but I do my best in telling everyone that the beauty they acquire is the one and only in the whole universe, which is the glorious truth!"
The female France laughed gracefully, "I suppose that starting now, we will get along just fine." She flashed a gorgeous full smile.
"Oui, mon bel." Francis said, returning an admirable smile of his own.
Meanwhile, a few countries away from the french were the pair of Chinas.
The petite Chinese female wasn't really sure about her discussion with Yao anymore, since her focus is now on the closed basket on the back of her partner. Actually, she has been wondering since yesterday about whatever might be inside that seems so important for him to always have it with him.
"Ni hao~ Chun-Yan!"
Yan swiftly glided her eyes back to her partner "Hm?"
"You seem distracted, aru." Yao pointed out.
"Oh! Bâoqiàn!" Yan smiled apologetically, "I was just wondering why you always have that basket with you, aru."
"Oh this, aru?" Yao took a glance at his basket, "Panda just doesn't like being alone."
"Panda?!" Yan repeated, her expression brightening up automatically.
Yao nodded with a pleasant hum, "See for yourself, aru!"
Yan squealed and eagerly opened the basket. With her action, she was greeted by a baby panda who popped its head out from the basket, its beady eyes twinkling as it stares back at her.
"Aiyah~! Can I hold him, Yao? Can I?!" The Chinese girl eagerly clasped her sleeve-covered hands together. With a bright grin and a nod from her partner, she swiftly took out the creature from Yao's basket to her arms.
"Ke'ài~!" Yan squealed as she hugs the bear tightly.
Yao smiled, "Just like you, aru."
Yan immediately turned her head towards the Chinese male, her delicate brown eyes wide, "Sh—shénme?"
Yao realised what he had just said out loud and swiftly turned his head to the opposite direction. "Nothing, aru! It's—it's nothing." He stuttered, feeling the embarrassed flush on his cheeks.
Yan blinked at the other Chinese, then guided her sight back to their direction of walking. But even when she ignored what she just heard, she cannot contain the smile from her lips from that. 'He said I'm cute, aru!' she thought as she tightened her hug to the panda in her arms.
And while she was thinking about that, the Chinese male was busy pondering over his thoughts. 'Aiyah! Why did I even have to say it out loud, aru?! Now she probably thinks of me as a creep!'
"We're here!" The Philippine pair finally announced.
All countries looked up at the grand scene in front of them.
Through the enormous golden gates is the World Academy W. All countries were standing at the end of a wide stone walkway bordered with miniature bushes and occasional cubic garden lights, and beyond that is a wide carpet of grass colored gold by the autumn season of August.
The group of countries walked forward, observing the surroundings with occasional choruses of whoa's, wow's, and Ve's.
As they passed the entrance building's arc, they were greeted by the grand campus.
Beyond the foreground they are all currently in is the breathtaking scenery of the inner campus. In front of them is a silver fountain with crystal clear waters. And behind that is the compilation of buildings, ranging in different number of stories, and grouped in its color scheme to identify the different departments.
"The buildings on the west are the Elementary Department, the ones on the east are the the Junior High." Claire explained, "our classes our gonna be over there." She pointed towards the single building erected on the middle and in front of them, the main building with the golden-colored name of the school.
"World Academy W" the American pair read the sign with twinkling eyes.
"Duuuuuude!" Alfred exclaimed.
"Feels too good to be true." Amelia said with a grin.
"Says the girl who was completely against going to school." Rose said with a raised brow.
"So guys," Cris started, turning to the rest countries, "we won't actually be in just one class. We will attend the classes of our own nationalities. So our classmates are gonna be our partners. But both Italian pairs will stay in one room, the same goes for the Germanic siblings."
After what Cris said, the Southern Italian pair groaned.
"So this is where we all separate," He announced, "I'm pretty sure you guys'll be fine in finding your classes. Your assigned classrooms are written and slipped in your school handbooks as well as the map to get there."
"See you guys!" Claire smiled as she took her partner's hand and bolted towards the middle hallway.
And the rest of the countries parted and went on their separate ways.
"Alright!" Alfred and Amelia yelled in unison, running up the first set of stairs and leaping excitedly, "Let the best school year ever BEGIN!"
•••Time skip brought to you by Maria Clara and Jose Crisosotomo•••
The enormous cafeteria is crowded by students of different classes just after the bell rang throughout the campus.
"I quit." The exhausted American pair muttered in unison, their faces flat on the table with their arms wrapped around their heads.
The two northern Italians giggled, "But it's only been half a day!" Feli stated before eating the pasta twisted around his fork.
"But it is tiring, in my opinion." Kiku sighed as he takes a bite on a piece of salted salmon. "I mean, I love listening in class, but everyone just keeps looking at Sakura-chan and I."
"It's because we're so awesome that people can't stop staring at us!" Gilbert laughed proudly.
"Sacrebleu, Prussia!" Francis and Marianne gasped simultaneously. "Get your feet off of the table!"
Marianne turned her gaze from the male Prussian to the Canadian girl, who seems to be staring into space, beside her. "Madeline, ma chere, are you okay?"
Madeline turned to the French girl and nodded as she hugs her polar bear tighter. "I think it's just that I'm not used to...not being invisible."
"Maddie's right." Mathew agreed with a tired nod. "Even when it does feel good to have everyone notice you, it's still unnerving to have everyone's eyes looking at you." He said while stoking kumajiru's head.
"Who are you?" The small polar bear looked up at him.
"I'm Canada." Mathew answered with a sigh.
"Oh, Mathew," Francis sung the Canadian's name as he rests his chin on the back of his hand. "You will get used to it soon enough, after all, you have moi as your big brother~"
"But I have a question," Arthur said after taking a bite from a burnt scone, "do the students even know who we are?"
"Come to think of it," Rose commented, her index finger extended and toughing her lower cheek, "Even our class seems to look at us with suspicion."
"That's because you talk to things that aren't even there, Angleterre." Marianne snickered.
Rose narrowed her eyes, but decided not to pounce on the French maiden. "Bloody frog." She grumbled.
"Ve~!" Alice exclaimed, her expression bewildered. "Feli, this is the BEST PASTA IN THE WORLD!"
"See?!" Feliciano grinned at his partner. "I told you you'll love it!"
"FOR FUCK'S SAKE WOULD YOU TWO BE QUIET?!" The two southern Italians barked at their siblings with their matching chocolate-hued eyes in a blazing hot glare. "This is why I fucking hate Monday." They both murmured as they drop their heads back on the table and continued their nap.
"Anno," Kiku leaned in towards Feliciano and Alice, "is it just me or are your siblings extra furious today, desu?"
"Oh," Feli turned to his asian friend. "fratello is always like that when he doesn't get enough sleep."
"But I just think they didn't get to eat enough tomatoes." Alice continued before taking another forkful of pasta.
"And it's all that bastardo Philippines' fault!" Chiara threw her head back up and angrily pointed at the table where the Spanish and Philippine pair are chatting gleefully. "Everytime that son of a bitch visits, Spain will stop growing tomatoes and replace them with fucking MANGOES! MANGOES!" She cried, slamming her fists on the table.
"Even though they were just saying thanks to the Philippines' 'cause they got to escape the Span's." Alice whispered, and Feliciano snickered.
"But Philippines always grow the best mangoes in the world!" Amelia defended after she raised her head up from the table as well.
"Yeah!" Alfred followed, "mango is even my favorite flavor in my shake!"
"Ve~Something tells me that you guys are just jealous~" Feli mused playfully.
"Now that is just bullshit!" Lovino shot his head up and countered. "That bastard Spain doesn't have enough worth to make me jealous, dammit!" He reasoned, leaning back and placing his arms over his chest.
"Same fucking shit goes for me!" Chiara followed, doing the same action as the male Italy Romano.
Their siblings giggled.
Rrrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiinnngg~
"Time already?" Francis looked up as he stands up, offering a gentlemanly hand towards his partner. "It felt too soon, I would like to be with you guys longer but I guess it's time to part once again."
Then suddenly, a burst of air blew from the table towards the exit of the cafeteria.
"Was that...?" Marianne asked, pointing a finger towards the door.
"The Russia's." Yan concluded with a nod. "Must be getting away from their siblings, aru."
"And I believe we should do the same, aru?" Yao cautiously said to his partner as he sees the South Korean pair walking up towards their table.
And with that, another flash of air blew towards the cafeteria door, now leaving more space on the table.
Outside the big lunch room, across the large hallway, and up the second floor at the top stair were the panting Russian pair.
"I think this is far enough." Ivan told his partner, gasping for air.
"I think so too." Anya replied, her hands on both her knees, supporting herself from collapsing.
"Brother." "Sister."
The Russian pair froze, knowing that they had completely failed in their escape. Turning their shaky heads to their backs, they met the faces of the Belarusian pair.
Nikolai threw a dagger at Ivan, which the Russian male dodged, but his lavender scarf got caught and ripped by the force. The sharp knife dropped behind him with a clank.
"You!" Nikolai pointed a finger at Ivan's prominent nose. "I saw how you took the hand of my sister. She is mine and only mine, you hear?!" He growled.
Natalya smacked her partner on the head, "if that dagger you threw so much left a scratch on my brother's face I will kill you!" She dared, then turned to Anya. "Because my brother is mine and only mine." She glowered at the Russian female.
Ivan gulped, he doesn't want her partner to do anything with his sister, and the same for the other way around. "Bela—"
"I am talking to you! You son of a bitch!" Nikolai barked.
"Nikolai, stop." Anya pleaded, trying her hardest to ignore the blazing hot glare her brother's counterpart is giving her. "Ivan wasn't doing anything wrong."
"But sister," the Belarusian male looked at her, "I know you were hurt, I saw how you looked earlier!" He exclaimed.
"Nikolai." Anya glowered at him, though her heart is already raising from anxiety and because of their lap from their escape earlier. "Stop."
"Sister." Nikolai said through gritted teeth, "you are living with a stranger you have only met recently. How do you know he won't do anything to you?"
Ivan saw the hidden fear within Anya's lilac eyes. So he mustered up his bravery and shoved his phobia of Belarus aside, and stepped up between the two.
"BROTHER!" Natalya shrieked, which Ivan ignored.
"The lady said stop, da." He stated, his usual cheerful voice wavering.
And in a flash of a millisecond, Nikolai's fist swung towards the Russian male's nose. But fortunately, a hand restrained him by the forearms, dragging the now screaming Nikolai away from Ivan.
"Let me go you ungrateful hag!" Natalya cursed as she too was being pulled back by a pair of arms.
"We've figured you two needed some help." The Ukrainian male said with a humble smile.
"Da. Spasibo, big brother!" Anya smiled wholeheartedly at the Ukrainian male. "I owe you one."
"Thank you too, big sis!" Ivan sent a smile of his own to the female Ukraine. "We'll see you later!"
Then the Russian pair went on their way to their rooms, trying to ignore the raging protests from the younger pair of country as they were being dragged away behind.
"That was brave, da~" Anya complimented, "Spasibo, Ivan."
"Anytime, da!" The male Russian replied with the same warm smile.
Anya's gaze lowered down to the scarf of her partner, her smile faded. "Oh no! Your scarf!"
"Eh?" Ivan blinked, then noticed the rather long tear on his lavender scarf. "Oh, it's okay!" He said with a reassuring smile.
"No, it's not!" Anya protested, her hair sandy blond locks swaying about as she shakes her head. "You can't say that it's okay to have something so important to you get ruined!"
Ivan gaped at her, dumbfounded. "How did you know this was important?"
Anya opened her mouth to answer but quickly closed it. She knew that the scarves they are both wearing are given to them by their Ukrainian siblings back when they were kids. But she mustn't say that, or else.
"I've noticed that you have always been wearing that. And you seem to have taken care of it for a long time." She covered, pointing out the old fabric of the ancient cloth. "I thought that your scarf had sentimental value, otherwise you wouldn't have been wearing that for so long."
"Wow." Ivan exclaimed. "You're right!" He beamed, astonished by his partner. Then his smile faded and his gaze fell back onto the lavender cloth wrapped around his neck. "But I guess it's time to throw this old thing away and—"
"No don't throw it away!" Anya's lilac eyes looked into Ivan's darker-shaded ones, her soft eyes pleading. "Don't throw it away." She repeated in a mumble. "I can stitch it back for you. Just don't throw it away." She offered.
"Really?" Ivan asked while adjusting the cloth as to attempt to hide the torn area. "You can do that?"
Anya nodded with a warm smile that could contrast a harsh blizzard in Siberia. She stepped forward and helped her partner with his task. Her pale knuckles smoothing over the Russian male's jawline, making him freeze, his breaths becoming deeper.
"There!" Anya stepped back and looked up at him once again. Her hands proudly placed on her hips. "Now let's go before we come late in class!" She said, grabbing the hand of her partner and bolting towards the Russians' class.
Author's Note:
I promise, the official selfcest is starting by the next chapter!
So stay tuned, minna-san~
—Kaith