Title: Flight
Series: Axis Powers Hetalia
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Japan, North Italy
Rating/Genre: PG-13 / Steampunk-fantasy, Gen.
Summary: "Speed is a captain's best friend, ve~!" was the last thing Kiku heard before the captain nosedived into the ominous, thundering cloud.
A/N: An old piece I'd written for an app sample years back for an board I used to RP in. Tthis is not the same Londinium as the mafia-AU verse; it's a Victorian Era Steampunk-AU. Confession: It was the first drabble I've written after a ten-year hiatus from creative writing... I-I think it shows? orz. But I still kind of have a soft spot of this piece, hence I decided to throw it into the drabble series. No-brainer title a reference to the song Garador's Flight by Jo Blankenburg.
~.*.~
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Kiku Honda woke up to the sound of a somewhat familiar droning hum. For a moment, he wondered where he was. He stared at the streaks of light entering his room from the bottom of the door, thinking hard.
Ah that's right, he thought. He was on a merchant airship heading towards Londinium. He sat up and was immediately sorry, feeling a sharp stab of pain at the back of his eyes. At the same time he was aware of a dull throbbing at the both sides of his temple and how heavy his head felt. He groaned, clutching his head with his hands, as memories of the day before washed over him.
Upon boarding the ship, he had found that sitting in an airship continuously for days with a rather enthusiastic captain at the helm did not sit well at all with his stomach. He had thought the American explorer was a daredevil with the glider, flying at speeds that it shouldn't even be possible for a vehicle that size. The Italian captain he was flying with now proved just how wrong he was when they encountered a thunderstorm yesterday. Apparently the best way to fly during a storm was to fly directly through the storm cloud. At break-neck speed.
"Speed is a captain's best friend, ve~!" was the last thing Kiku heard before the captain nosedived into the ominous, thundering cloud. He had spent most of the nosedive hanging onto the dear life and watching his life flash before him, thinking how terrible it was to die even before getting a taste of pasta and wurst. By some miracle however, they managed to survive the storm all in one piece. With the loom of death of out his mind, and the airship flying horizontally again, Kiku became preoccupied by something else: his churning stomach.
And thus he spent the rest of the day (and much of the night) feeling like he could throw up any moment.
Kiku shuddered, thinking about it now. He still felt a little air-sick, but at least now he didn't feel like he had to empty his stomach all the time... not that it wasn't already empty. He moved tentatively, taking care to stand up slowly and not swivel his head too quickly. Slipping on his jacket to keep out the cold of dawn, he made sure Kusanagi was fastened securely to his belt and proceeded to make his way up to the ship deck.
The crisp morning air was refreshing; Kiku immediately felt better. He said hello to a few of the crew who were already busying themselves with work, and walked towards the side of the ship. He glanced out over the skies, feeling the wind ruffle his raven-black hair as he gazed ahead. He felt his breath catch at the view: at the not-so-far-distance, he could see a vast land filled with huge buildings, all manner of gliders, planes and airships circling around in the sky directly above it. Clouds of steam trailed upwards from the cities, coloured pink and orange by the sun steadily rising from the east.
It was as if the land itself was alive and breathing.
Kiku could only look on, his usually stoic face now flushed with eagerness and excitement. He heard a soft chuckle behind him, and he turned.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" It was the Italian captain.
"Yes," he said softly, turning back to gaze at the buildings.
They continued watching in silence as the ship steadily made its way closer to Londinium.
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-end-
