The kitchen was eerily silent, the only sound being the constant ticking of an overhead clock. With the way the rest of the house was in such a mess it was amazing the clock hadn't fallen down and broke, but neither of the two nations considered this.
They were sat opposite each other at the table. Two hot mugs were set in front of them, one filled with tea and the other coffee, both untouched.
With a sigh, England hesitantly looked at America. The other was still staring at him intently. England had no choice. The younger nation wasn't going to give up any time soon.
"It started a long time ago," England told him. "I'm not sure how, exactly, though I have my suspicions, but this… curse has been with me for almost as long as I can remember."
America nodded in a 'go on' gesture. For the first time in a while, England had his undivided attention.
"Knowing you, you've probably already assumed I am some kind of werewolf. …I would say this is only partly true. Although I do change at night, my 'transformations' are not limited to the full moon. Also, this curse does not get transmitted to other people if I bite them."
"How do you know? Did you bite someone?" America tone wasn't accusing or scared. He was simply curious.
England waved a dismissive hand. "Ah, yes. There was an incident with a horse and France and some kind of cucumber a couple of hundred years ago, but that's not important." Before America had a chance to ask, England continued with, "My transformations, however, do seem to be affected by the moon. They can happen every night, but I find it easier to stop it if the moon isn't very full."
"That's weird," America said simply. He suddenly noticed that his coffee was going cold and took a large gulp of it. With a frown, he looked at England again. "So, do you mean this been going on almost every night for hundreds and hundreds of years?"
"Well, not exactly." England shook his head. "There have been a lot of times where it just… stops. Whatever caused the transformations in the first place vanishes. I don't have to worry about changing whenever I feel angry. I don't know how long this can last for; I believe the longest it has ever gone on for was around a hundred years." He gave America a grim smile. "I had actually almost forgotten about it until a few nights ago…"
A few seconds of silent passed, the 'tick, tick, tick' of the clock sounding unbearably loud as they looked at each other awkwardly.
"So," America started, "um, you said sometimes you can stop it, right? How do you do that?"
"Ah, yes, well…" England fidgeted. "The only thing I can do, really, is stay calm."
America blinked. He almost looked disappointed. "…That's it?"
"Yes." The English nation felt a sudden surge of irritation, but he pushed it back and explained. "When I lose control of my emotions that thing takes over. It's hard to stop, though. I don't know how, but he manipulates my emotions, plants strange thoughts in my mind, and makes me upset over the simplest things."
"Um…" America put his head to one side. "'He'?"
England faltered. He hadn't meant to say that. His main hope had been that if America got what he wanted then he would realise there was no point in 'helping' and leave. Saying anything else would make things a little more complicated.
"Oh, nothing," England said, a little too quickly to be entirely innocent. He grabbed his now lukewarm tea and sipped it in an attempt to end the conversation.
"Come on!" America pouted. "You said you'd answer my questions. Who's 'he'? Who were you talking about?"
England sighed and closed his eyes. He didn't want to argue about this. He was still very tired, and he was sure he would just get angry again if this went on for two long…
"I was talking about that monster," England admitted. "It makes me angry, panics me, all in an attempt to be free for the night."
"Huh? What, you mean it's got a mind of its own or something?"
"What did you expect?"
"I don't know." America scratched the back of his neck. "Um… I guess I was expecting it to be a big, hungry monster wolf. Just an oversized wild animal."
England laughed coldly. "Oh no, it's much more than that. Sometimes I can even hear it mocking me. It knows how much the change hurts, and it laughs and laughs while I scream and beg. There have been occasions where I hear its voice after I wake up. It will tell me how we're one and the same, that I'm the monster, and how it's only a matter of time before I hurt someone…"
America looked stunned. It seemed that he had no idea how to reply to this.
"You're not," America eventually said. Before England could ask what, exactly, America said, "You're not the same. I bet it's just trying to mess with your head or something. I mean, it's supposed to be evil, right? It probably just wants you to think you're the same thing, then you won't suspect anything when it tries to completely possess you!" America sounded more than a little overdramatic and it took everything England had to not burst out laughing. Honestly, what was he saying?
"That's why," America continued, "we've got to find a way to stop it. Break this weird curse thing and get whatever that is out of you."
"Oh?" England smiled amusedly. "And how do you suppose we do that? Keep in mind that over the years I have already tried everything I can think of.
"Well…" America hummed thoughtfully. "…Um… Well, I know I don't usually believe in this weird fantasy stuff, but doesn't Romania brag about being good with curses? We could tell him about—"
Suddenly, England practically jumped out of his seat, forcing the chair back as it skidded on the floor. He leaned on the table and stared at America with alarmed eyes.
"No," he tried to say firmly, but his voice wavered slightly. "You… You can't tell anyone about this."
America held back his surprise. "Why not?" he asked. "The only idea I've got is to go to a professional. What, do you think they're going to stake you or something?"
"I…" England stepped back. He looked pale. "No one else can know about this. Not again. If they do… then…" He shook his head and started moving towards the doorway, ignoring any of America's complaints as he walked.
He paused. Without looking back he said, "I stand by what I said earlier. You should go home, America. You shouldn't get involved any more than you already are."
Before he could leave, America stood up.
"England, wait!" he said, a little more urgently than needed. "Look, you've never told anyone else about this before, right? You've only ever tried to solve this on your own. Well, don't you think maybe that's the problem? I know what you're like with asking for help and everything; I hate to admit it but I'm kind of the same. I don't know what I'd do in your situation. But when you've tried everything you can do on your own, isn't that when you should turn to other people? It's literally the only option you haven't tried yet, but maybe it'll be able to stop whatever this is once and for all."
England did not reply. He left the room silently and America could hear him go up the stairs. There was the sound of a door slamming, and America sighed.
Well, damn.
-Chapter end.
Sometimes I think it's obvious when I'm grasping :/ I really didn't know what to do half way through it though… This seemed to be a heavy exposition chapter… *sigh*
Well, regardless, please review and tell me what you think :)
