Here we go! Chapter...15, now! It got kinda long, I know...
I do not own Hetalia or Avatar.
"I'm going to miss you." Lithuania told Li, looking at the small bag she was using to carry the clothing she'd borrowed. "I know I'll see you, but you're probably going to be really busy at Austria's. Promise you'll pick up the phone if I call?"
"Yes, I promise." Li smiled softly. She hadn't known what a telephone was until after a lengthy explanation by Lithuania earlier that morning, and the thought of being able to speak to someone else as if they were right in the room with her still amazed her. The technology in this world was so different from her own, which functioned mostly with clockwork and steam power. It was both frightening in what it could accomplish and puzzling in that Li had no idea what half of the buttons she saw did. At least with her own nation's technology (the most advanced in her world) she knew that most buttons, when pressed, would result in explosions or copious amounts of steam billowing from a newly-broken contraption. And she always pushed the wrong button.
It had been about five days since Li's arrival. She had been informed it was now Saturday, the seventh day of the week for this world's calendar. Since the meeting was officially over now, most of the nations had left the previous night. Austria had been forced to delay their departure due to needing to get Li a ticket on an "airplane," which Lithuania had described to Li earlier. Flying machines that didn't need gas balloons, like Fire Nation airships did—it was incredible to think of! A large part of her was itching to get a good look at one of them up close, maybe acquire a set of schematics for her friends at home to go over so they could replicate the designs.
"You should get downstairs. They'll be here any moment." Lithuania sighed ruefully, looking around Li's for anything they might have missed. Russia had been very generous in giving Li his little sister's old clothing, and any article she might need for travel. While Austria's land was (apparently) fairly close, compared to some of the other countries' homes, Li was equipped for a three-night stay in a hotel, or even on the plane itself.
"Thank you, Lithuania." Li bowed to the nation, startling him a bit. Well, even if his customs were different, she wouldn't neglect this. "I owe you my life. If you ever need anything, anything at all, I will come when asked. Don't hesitate to call in that favor." She straightened, and looked up a few inches into Lithuania's eyes. "You and the others. Pass it on." Her mouth curled up on one side, and a thought occurred to her. "Oh, uh, but, it doesn't apply to becoming one with Russia. Seriously, that's taking it a bit far. What does he even mean by that line anyways?"
"It's best not to think about it." Lithuania advised, ushering Li out of the room that had been, up til now, hers. They walked down the hall, descended a staircase, and followed another hallway along a route Li hadn't taken before to a large room. Two huge doors at one end told Li this must be the entrance, the formal one at least: Lithuania had taken her to the kitchen yesterday morning, and she had seen a door to the outside there as well. Not that she had gone: no, Li had not left the familiar wing of this mansion where she was staying in all the time she had been here.
It was an impressive room, to be certain. Though she entered from a small, fairly well-hidden door near one of the corners of the room, she could see a grand, sweeping staircase directly across from the ornate doors. Carpeted in red, made of fine white stone, it curved into two separate staircases about a third of the way up, one opening onto a balcony on the second floor, the other spiraling up another level to lead to an imposing door in the wall of the third floor. High above, a crystal chandelier sparkled in the light from the glassed-in roof.
Nobles, kings and queens, princes and princesses, generals and admirals and commanders, all would have passed through this place at some point. Li, as a princess, was used to such grandeur, but the foreign design made her catch her breath. Why had nobody from her own world thought of such beautiful designs as these? Certainly, they had their own marvels: the Throne Room in the Fire Nation Palace, the Palace of Ba Sing Se, the three hills of Omashu, the Air Temples, the Earth Temple hidden deep within the mountains…but Li had seen those places before, and they all followed the styles Li had seen all her life. This, however: this was something new, something different, a style Li hadn't been raised with. It was breathtaking.
Lithuania saw her stare, and mistook it for awe at the importance of the place. "You know, some of Russia's leaders have said this is the most beautiful place they've ever seen?" He whispered to Li, tugging her sleeve to make her follow him towards the doors. Nobody else was around, but Li thought she might hear footsteps approaching from the second floor.
Yes—there was Russia, striding towards the stairs, followed by Estonia and Lithuania. He wore his customary scarf, with a long, tan coat. That creepy little smile was plastered across his face, contrasting with the slight purple haze of his aura about him. Li forced herself not to shiver as he reached the railing that ran along the second-floor balcony.
"Germany called half an hour ago to let me know they would be coming about now." Russia called to Li. "I thought I would wait with you for them to get here. Apparently Prussia and Hungary will meet you at the airport, as Prussia had too much luggage to fit more than two people into one of their rentals." He paused, and Li wondered what in the world a rental was. "Oh, there was also something I wished to discuss with you." As if knowing what would come next, Estonia and Latvia vanished. Lithuania stood his ground next to Li until Russia gave him a strange look, one that sent him running.
"So, what did you want to talk about?" Li asked, hoping her nervousness at being left alone with the scary nation wasn't showing. He slowly began to descend the stairs, taking his time with each step, until he stood at the bottom. Li's eyes darted about, noting doors, arches, windows, all possible escape routes. But she stood her ground, unwilling to make a run for it when he hadn't actually done anything threatening. Yet.
"Well, upon your arrival, there is one thing I did not mention to the others." Russia started to walk over to Li, as casually as if they were in a crowd of people and he had just recognized her. "The Baltics did not see anything—I obliterated it as soon as they approached. But the blood in the snow around you was splattered in a pattern. One I thought you might recognize, as it surely has some sort of significance." He held out a hand, and Li saw the piece of folded paper clenched in it. She accepted it, hesitant.
"Why didn't you let the others see it?" She asked him as she started to unfold the paper, looking up at him but not quite daring to rest her eyes on his face.
"Because it interested me, and I didn't want anyone else to know of it." Russia shrugged. His blond-beige hair brushed the tops of his eyes, and he shook his head slightly to move it out of the way. Li stopped moving for a second, wondering what in the world he could mean, before looking down at the piece of paper.
Her eyes widened. Her heart skipped a beat, then began to thump rapidly in her ears. Her mouth dried out. Her stomach, previously behaving so well, suddenly staged a violent revolution. The paper crinkled as she tightened her grip on it instinctively, trying to prevent her hands from shaking like leaves as she stared at the symbol.
A circle, divided into four sections. One quarter held three wavy lines and three spirals, the emblem of the Water Tribes, fitted into the semi-triangular section. Counter clockwise from it was a square, with a circle inside of it, based on the national symbol of the Earth Kingdom, and from which their coins were modeled. Across from that section was a simple spiral, symbolic of the Air Nomads. And the final quarter…it held a tulip-like design, a spiral extending three lazy "petals" upwards into the air.
Nobody that wasn't from the Four Nations would know the meaning behind this. But everybody from her world knew just what it was. What it represented.
The Tóngyī ShÌjiè.
Li's mind raced. Why had their symbol been strewn across the snow where she was found? "Where—what part of the symbol was I on?" Li asked Russia shakily, trying to keep the waver she felt from finding its way to her voice. Without speaking a word, Russia tapped the lower left-hand quarter. The Fire Nation's quarter. "Ah…thank you…"
The Tóngyī ShÌjiè's emblem written on the snow in blood. Li herself, dressed in Fire Nation clothing, lying in the quarter of the emblem that symbolized the Fire Nation. Yue saying her soul had been sent to another world by a mysterious spirit.
Who had done this to her?
What did they want?
Why couldn't she have just died like she was supposed to?
No, get away from that train of thought, now. There was clearly some sort of reason for doing this—it wasn't as if a spirit would lay down the very emblem of fear in the Four Nations simply to mess with Li's head! Now, if it had been one of her friends, she would have understood the joke and laughed it off, the cruel humor involved more or less a regular feature in her group. They were all afraid, after all. And they needed to cope with that fear somehow. So they joked around, made light of the situation, while they all knew that they were scared to death. Scared of death.
"I see you recognize it." Russia's voice snapped Li back to reality. She flinched away from him, eyes raising to his in surprise and fear. He raised his eyebrows slightly at her expression, then took a slow step back, hands open. "It disturbs you." Not a question.
"This…" Li didn't know the words to convey just how terrified she was of this symbol. Of what it represented, what it meant. "It's…from my homeland."
"Da, I see." Russia nodded. "I had thought so. And you are afraid simply to see it. It has meaning, and it frightens you." Li felt a tremor quake through her hands as Russia spoke. How could he know? How could he understand so easily? "You were hunted, hunted by your people. Then this, I believe, must be the symbol of the new government of your people."
"Y-yes…" Li's voice quivered, high from tension and fear.
"Strange, though. There are four different sections to this circle." Russia's voice became oilier, smoother, gliding from his throat like a snake over grass. "That would imply that there are four different groups involved. Are they political groups? Religious? Perhaps…cultural?" Li could almost hear the question he wasn't asking. Are they nations?
"They rep—they represent the four groups that make up the nation." Li forced the words out, brain scrambling for a convincing lie. Nothing came to her. She prayed Russia wouldn't ask about these made-up "groups"…
"Really? Tell me about them, da? We have some time." Russia's smile grew slightly sinister, and Li cursed the spirits. They really didn't like her. Although, considering what kept happening with her and sacred places (those fires were an accident, she swore, and the Earth Temple? The structure was unsound anyways. She just found out before everyone else. That she had cackled maniacally was only due to the cactus juice she knew the Avatar had spiked her tea with, despite his many protests to the contrary) it wasn't too surprising.
"Umm, well, uhh…" Li's voice trailed off, and her brain simply shut down. Russia nodded slowly, then took the paper back from her and stowed it in a pocket.
"There is more to things than meets the eye, da?" He softened a bit, which may or may not have been meant to make Li relax. It didn't help, though, because him being nice only confirmed to Li that something bad was about to happen. "I will offer you a deal. This is our secret. No one else shall know, as I will not tell, and I do not think you will either. Does this sound acceptable?"
"Yes…please…" Li didn't think she could move, she was so scared. What did Russia want from her? Simply to know the truth? Or did he want her help in something? She just wanted to be somewhere safe where she could wait for Ru to return and take her home. Whatever the politics of this world involved, she had no intention of getting mixed up in them, because she wouldn't be here much longer. Ru would come, locate Li, and they would go home. A week, two tops.
Russia tilted his head slightly, and a smile spread across his face. "I can hear the car." He said softly. "They're here." Just then, Li's ears picked up the faintest of sounds of machinery from outside. Puzzled—it sounded like nothing from the Fire Nation—she turned to look out the huge windows situated on either side of the doors. It was snowing, but she still got a very clear view of a vehicle of some kind approaching Russia's home.
"Th-then…" Li stopped speaking as Russia leaned down. He was approaching the bubble of personal space. He was in the bubble of personal space. He was in the bubble of personal space…
"I will keep your secret, da. And you will remember that later." He whispered in her ear. Li was frozen, too scared to attack this man without the sheer adrenaline of her first awakening egging her on, but completely uncomfortable with him in her personal space. The scent of ice and snow and old, dry blood drifted from him. She heard voices outside, the slam of a door shutting, and then there was a polite knock on the door to the outside. Russia drew back and turned to the grand wooden structures, leaving Li to recover herself in the few seconds she had before the others entered.
The door opened, and a blast of cold burst into the building. Li squeaked in surprise, and clutched her arms about herself to keep warm. You would think that Firebenders, being able to heat their bodies automatically, would be less susceptible to the cold than normal people. Wrong. Cold affected Firebenders negatively, cutting them off from their warm chi and preventing them from Bending. If you threw a Firebender outside without giving them adequate protection, they'd lose the ability to Bend for up to a month. For Li, both the thought of not being able to Bend and the cold itself kept her either safely inside (and near a fire) or bundled up to the extreme.
"How cold is it out there?" She yelped before remembering she wasn't with Team Avatar anymore. "Er, I mean…same thing, only maybe sounding nicer?" She rubbed her arms quickly, trying to preserve heat. "Please get in and close that door!"
"Sorry." Germany hastily stepped inside, followed by Austria. Both nations had thick coats of some odd material, as well as scarves and some odd contraptions that covered their ears and looked like something you might find in the Water Tribes.
"That is all of your luggage?" Austria looked at the small bag sitting next to Li on the floor. "I had thought you might have…more." Germany gave him a stern look, and the other nation seemed to realize that Li hadn't had anything with her upon her…arrival. "Oh. Of course. Forgive me."
"Umm…so, thank you for letting me stay in your house, Russia." Li bowed solemnly to the taller nation, still scared from the conversation of mere moments ago. She didn't want to say the next words, customary for the Fire Nation, but politeness won out over fear. "I hope to one day return your kindness."
"Da, I'm sure you will." Russia's tone made Li's blood freeze, and she couldn't suppress a small shiver. "But, your plane should leave soon, da? You must go now. I will see you at the next world meeting." Li's brow furrowed, and she gave a questioning look to Germany and Austria. Russia noticed, and his grin widened. "Oh, didn't you know? After you separated America and China, several of us nations held a vote, and decided to have you attend the next world meeting as well. It's in a month, so if you don't see us until then, you can at least know you'll be there!"
"O-oh…okay…" Li hesitated. A month. Well, she wouldn't be here that long. Why not placate the nation? "All right, I'll see you in a month. Please pass my regards along to the others, Lithuania and Latvia and Estonia."
"I will." Russia smiled creepily. Li picked up her baggage and walked sideways towards Germany and Austria, not wanting to turn her back on the tall man for fear something would happen. What, she didn't know. She just knew she did not want to give him an opening.
Germany was holding a bundle of deep purple and black fabric that turned out to be a coat. He offered it to Li, who struggled into it awkwardly, then stared at the front, wondering how to close it. It was too big for her in the first place, and clearly made for a man—probably Germany, Li decided. That she was wearing his old coat (no, wait…the one he was in now seemed more beat-up than this one) seemed a bit awkward to Li, as it brought to mind memories of her original coat, and her first extremely embarrassing awakening. Thankfully, her brief exposure to the cold had turned her face red, and her fierce blush went unnoticed.
Austria noticed her dilemma, and sighed. "You do the zipper up." He pulled a metal device on the front of his coat down, and it opened. "Like this." After a quick demonstration, Li had (more or less) learned how to work the zipper. Germany had taken her bag, and she glanced up towards the second floor, where she thought she could see the Baltics watching from behind an archway. She smiled, and turned to the two waiting nations.
"Okay, I'm ready." She said politely. "Let's go." Germany nodded, and opened the door.
Outside, it was freezing. Li shivered as the merciless cold hit her, and tried to adjust her chi to warm herself up. The coat insulated her body heat rather well, but she had warmed up to uncomfortable levels before realizing it. She could remove the coat, but the wind was freezing her exposed skin quickly, and the zipper would be hard to work anyways. So Li pulled the hood up and tried to pass the warmth centered around her torso into her face and limbs.
An odd machine, sleek and covered in shiny dark green paint, sat on a snow-clear section of concrete. There were windows along the upper half, and Li could see that most of the back was filled with various bags and containers. Germany opened a door in the middle and carefully placed Li's bag in, then stepped aside and gestured towards the empty seat.
"What is that thing?" Li frowned at the machine in suspicion. It was drastically different from anything she'd seen in the Fire Nation. Even in her world's technology capital, machinery was large, bulky, and covered with steel sheets. Though they were able to color the metal, that odd, shiny sheen on Germany and Austria's machine—a "rental"?—seemed like it had been painted on.
"It's our car. It's only a rental from the airport, but it functions quite nicely." Austria answered. "It's also not as big as Germany's van, but we're making do."
"Okay…" Li made her way to the "car" cautiously, as if it was about to eat her. Which, considering it was a machine, was probably stupid, but she wouldn't put anything past the spirit that had sent her here and splattered the Tóngyī ShÌjiè symbol on the snow around her. It either wanted her scared, dead, or was laughing its head off at her right now. Li prayed it was the last.
Germany offered her a hand to steady herself, but Li ignored it and climbed into the vehicle carefully. It was taller than her, and about twice her length, but the inside was smaller than the outside and mostly filled with bags. Apparently it was mostly Austria's, as Germany commented on the sheer amount of things the aristocrat seemed to need on a trip while climbing into a seat at the front.
"I can drive." Austria offered half-heartedly, taking the other seat. Germany sat behind a wheel, with several knobs and such situated near it. He shuddered at Austria's offer, and shook his head. The aristocrat sighed and pulled out a scroll.
Inside the car was much warmer than outside, but the biting chill still remained. Li decided it was safe to take off the coat, but kept it arranged around her shoulders in case the warmth of the car dissipated and she needed to put it back on. Plus…she would not admit this to anyone, but the coat smelled really good. The scents of factories, iron and forges, mixed with the smell of a bakery and the slightest tang of alcohol, simply radiated from the fabric. She was tempted to bury her nose into it, but they would have surely noticed, and Li didn't think it would help her standing in their eyes.
Li instead opted to stare out the window, trying to take in the scenery. It was her first time outside in days, and she had to admit she was extremely curious about Russia's homeland. If his house was any indication, it would be like nothing Li had ever seen before.
The first few minutes of the drive, getting off of Russia's property, mostly just showed Li a bunch of flat, snowy ground. Perhaps when it warmed up there would be spacious green lawns, or even flower beds full of whatever blooms were native to this land. But for now, it wasn't very different from the tundra of the North Pole, where Li had last been outside at. Hopefully, this "airport" would be more exciting…
"We're about to enter Moscow." Austria informed Li as the car approached a huge wall that apparently encircled Russia's house, enclosing it from the rest of the world. There was a creaking sound as two huge, probably very old, iron gates swung open to allow the car passage. And then Li had her first look at Russia's city.
"Spirits…" She murmured, eyes wide with fascination and curiosity. Moscow looked nothing like the cities of her world, or none she had visited at least. Ba Sing Se had houses clustered together, with barely any space in between, or houses with extensive gardens and verdant lawns. The Fire Nation Capitol had huge, three or more story buildings, all home to nobility and officials, all made of metal and various other construction materials. At the Northern Water Tribe, she had seen imposing structures made entirely of ice, some of the richer homes reinforced with expensive stone or wood.
None of them had anything on Moscow. Towers topped with onion-like roofs soared into the sky, colored in lovely earth tones that gave them an almost otherworldly feel. Li could see less impressive buildings, more square and uniform, made of colorless materials, a ways off, but she was too distracted by the grand palaces before her.
"Russia's house has its good points." Austria told Li, sounding grudging. "Nobody doubts it is very beautiful. But try to remember what its resident is like."
"Huh?" Li, who hadn't been paying attention, tore her gaze from Russia's beautiful city to glance at Austria. "You say somethin'?" Austria considered repeating himself, but decided it wasn't worth it and shook his head no. Too distracted by the architecture of the buildings to care, Li turned her attention back to the outside, practically pressing her nose to the glass in her eagerness to see all she could. Tourism had never been one of her hobbies, but seeing Moscow, Li was starting to wonder if maybe she could ask someone to show her around if she ever came back. Hopefully she would come back: she wanted to see this place in more detail, and not while inside a car on her way out of the city.
"We're at the Sheremetyevo International Airport." Germany called over his shoulder, and took a turn. Li saw a large building of glass and metal and other, unidentifiable materials a short ways off. It occurred to her that she had no idea how long the ride had been, and she voiced the question.
"Hm? Well, we left Russia's house at 11:24, and now it's…" Austria peered at something on his wrist, and frowned. "Germany, my watch is broken."
"I'll fix it when we're inside." Germany assured his fellow nation, pulling up to a guard station and handing the man inside some money. Li was puzzled. Did the guards here need to be bribed to let people in? If so, what was the point of having them here in the first place, since they seemed all too happy to allow vehicles to pass? They must make a lot of money, too, since there were dozens of cars around, and more coming and going.
Germany stopped the car in front of a section of the building, and climbed out. Li realized that this must be where they entered, and quickly opened her door. The cold blasted her, and she cursed under her breath while fumbling back into the coat. She knew better than to try warming herself up again—for whatever reason, her chi was creating more warmth with less effort than it ever had before, and using it to warm herself would undoubtedly only make her more uncomfortable in the long run. So she zipped up the nice-smelling coat and swung her legs out of the vehicle.
"Can you hand me some of those bags?" Germany requested, coming around to Li's side of the car. She nodded, and leaned back into the car to grab two bags from the top of the stack. Setting them on her lap, she reached back in and took out two more, then handed them all to Germany. He set them on the ground—to Austria's protest—and walked towards a bunch of carts near the door.
"Where are Hungary and Prussia?" Austria looked around, tone disapproving. "They said they would meet us at this door." No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the sound of frantic yelling could be heard from around a corner of the building.
"Help! Help! Madwoman! Help!" Prussia screamed, darting around the corner and hiding behind an outcropping in the building. Hungary skidded around the same corner, a frying pan held tightly in her hand and a deathly glare in her eyes. She scanned the scene for Prussia, who was hidden from her view, and brandished the frying pan threateningly. Li not-so-subtly slammed the car door shut for protection.
"H-Hungary! Good day!" Austria stammered nervously. "Y-you are looking for Prussia? Has he done something?" His tone indicated he expected nothing less. Unfortunately for him, Hungary turned her Glare of Death on the aristocratic nation.
"Yes." She growled, looking like she was about to whack Austria with the frying pan, instead of the currently-out-of-sight Prussia. A curious rattling noise came from behind a pillar, but Hungary paid no heed to it. Germany decided this would be a good time to seek shelter too, and busied himself with the carts, acting completely uninterested in Hungary or her frying pan.
"W-what did he do?" Austria was trembling now, eyes darting around looking for help. Prussia, obviously, was no good, Germany was trying to disappear near the carts, and Li had locked herself in the rental car.
"Can't you guess, dear?" Hungary asked, facial expression akin to something you might expect to see on an insane serial murderer. Austria flinched back involuntarily, and slowly shook his head "no." The grin on Hungary's face widened. "Oh~ well, if you must know…" She clenched the frying pan so hard the handle dented, "he got mud on the hat you bought me."
"He's behind that pillar there." Austria pointed. Hungary lunged.
"Nooo!" Prussia screamed in terror, trying in vain to escape the mad female and her frying pan. Metal whacked flesh with a resounding thwack-! sound, and Hungary grinned savagely at her victim's pain. Her frying pan swung again and again to hit the cowering albino, and maniacal laughter issued from her lips.
Li wondered if she could make a run for it and survive. These people were insane!
"Hungary, bruder is not moving!" Germany finally stepped in, trying to restore calm to his friend and fellow nation, as well as save the life of his ex-nation elder brother. Hungary paused in her whacking to see that Prussia was, indeed, lying unconscious on the ground.
"Whoops. I got carried away." Hungary blushed slightly, and scratched her head with the hand that didn't have a frying pan in it. "I'm sorry, Germany. Um, I'll get the rest of the luggage. You and Austria carry him in?" She smiled apologetically at Prussia's body, and went to the car.
"I'm not touching him." Austria held his hands up. "I don't know where he's been."
"Austria, please." Germany sighed, looking around, hoping he wouldn't have to ask a complete stranger for help. His eyes lighted on Li, still safe inside the car, refusing to open the door for Hungary on account of the frying pan still being in the nation's hand. The tiny speck of blood on Hungary's cheek probably wasn't helping either.
"For the last time, no." Li said stubbornly, holding on to the lock for all she was worth. Hungary had yet to actually try forcing the matter, and Li wasn't sure if her friend…no, better go with just ally at this point…was strong enough to actually break the door down. After that little scene with the frying pan, Li was pretty much willing to believe anything of the nation. Especially anything including violence…sweet, sweet violence, which she hadn't allowed herself to indulge in now that her primary target (the Avatar) wasn't around to take the abuse…
"I just need to get the bags out. Come on, Li, Prussia deserved it. Really." Hungary was pleading now, it seemed, hands pressed to the window. Sadly, she had yet to relinquish her grip on the frying pan. "Just open the door and hand me the bags."
"I can still see it. Frying Pan of Death, in your hand there." Li pointed, keeping a firm grip on the lock. "Put it away so I can see you do it, then I'll open the door. Not before that. Please."
"Oh, fine." Hungary sighed, stowing her frying pan in a bag. "There, it's gone. Open the door?" Li complied, and handed Hungary several of the larger bags. Germany walked over to the car as Li struggled to bring out one of the largest bags, managing to get it partway before it stuck somehow.
"Let me." Germany reached into the car, past Li, and firmly grabbed the bag. He gave a sharp tug, and it came out easily. Li flattened herself against the seat to give him room to get the bag past, and he felt a little red as the back of his arm brushed her collarbone.
"Thank you." Li took out more bags, and glanced at Germany curiously. "Weren't you going to get…Prussia…inside?"
"Austria refuses to help." Germany sighed. "And sadly, while I could carry him alone, it would look like I am kidnapping him. So, I was wondering, if you wouldn't mind helping…?" His voice was so hopeful, even if he couldn't look at her, that Li decided there could be no harm in it. She nodded, and slid out of the car.
The wind hit her, and she clenched her teeth to keep them from chattering in the cold. Her internal temperature began to spiral downwards, and she wrapped her arms around her body to keep from shivering noticeably. It was almost as bad as being thrown into a cooler, one of the best ways to incapacitate a Firebender back in the Four Nations (Li had decided somewhere along the line that her own world would, until she got a better idea, be called "The Four Nations" in her head). Coolers were freezing metal containers that sapped a Firebender's internal heat, and thus their ability to Firebend, until the Firebender in question was either released or froze to death. Sadly, it was notoriously easy for a Firebender to freeze to death. Unless they wore insulated clothing, like most of the cold-weather army uniforms, or used their Firebending to keep them warm (harder than you would think in the cold, unless you had the Breath of Fire technique mastered), a Firebender in the snow would quickly lose all body heat and become a frozen-solid Firebender ice sculpture.
"How are we going to get him in, then?" Li tried to ask Germany, but she wasn't sure she was speaking clearly due to her clenched jaw. Germany frowned for a second, seemed to figure out what she wanted to know, and leaned down next to his brother.
"Put his arm over your neck." He instructed, throwing Prussia's left arm over his shoulders. Li hesitated—she really didn't want to have that much physical contact with anyone, much less a male, and the fact that this albino, "Prussia," had succeeded in making her feel uncomfortable before made her even more reluctant. But she'd agreed to help Germany, so…Li mustered her courage, and gingerly draped Prussia's arm over her shoulder.
He was HEAVY! "What does he eat?" Li groaned, trying to arrange his weight so she could carry him more comfortably. "Rocks and metal pieces?"
"Mein bruder does tend to eat a lot of junk food…" Germany admitted, hoisting Prussia higher up. He was carrying most of the weight, Li noticed, and she tried to take more of it onto her shoulders to give him a break. But he was really, really strong… "Of course, muscle weighs more than fat, and we work out together quite a bit." Germany added.
"Then you must weigh a lot, huh?" Li's mouth said before her brain realized what it had done and began to silently scream at it. She had either implied that he was fat, or that he had a lot of muscle. Depending on how he took it, she had either just insulted a potential ally, or insinuated that he was extremely strong, which, to Li's inexperienced mind, translated to a compliment with flirtatious overtones. Brain struggling to write this wrong, it started firing things at her mouth faster than the other member could keep up with. "Uhm, that explains a lot. A bunch of my friends are really muscled, so they weigh a lot too. Especially the tall ones, Si and Hong, though I'm only going from the fact that they had to stand on opposite ends of a ship once when we were sailing because they weighed so much and if they stood on the same end the ship would sink but it sank anyways because I tripped and stumbled into the tiller-thingy that Liandao was using and she got really mad at me but we argue all the time and I think I'll shut up now." Li took a deep breath. "Yeah."
"Um…I see." Germany looked uncomfortable, and Li would have groaned if she didn't know he'd hear it and think even less of her. Perfect, she had just wierded out her potential ally. Well, when she made a mistake, she usually babbled on about how it was an accident and what she'd intended and then on to whatever she thought of next until she could make herself shut up. Or, more usually, until someone else cut her off and had her go away.
Germany began to walk towards the doors, and Li quickly tried to keep up. He took long, purposeful strides, not suffering much under his "bruder's"—"bruder," could that be another word for "brother?"—weight. Li, on the other hand, did not have legs as long as him, and had to take quick steps to match his pace. Prussia bounced a bit from her movement, and she hoped she wouldn't lose her grip and drop him.
Something was bugging her, though. "Um…Germany?" Li looked in the opposite direction, but tried to keep her voice loud enough for him to hear. "Why did Hungary attack Prussia?"
"Oh, that's just how they are." Germany said dismissively. "It's been like that for centuries with them. Mein bruder is very annoying at times, and Hungary doesn't take it very well. She's also somewhat violent, and her usual reaction is to attack him with a frying pan."
"Really?" Li thought about it for a minute, then realized something and started to giggle. She could feel Germany giving her an odd look, but couldn't speak because her realization was too entertaining to allow her to catch her breath.
They reached the door by the time Li recovered herself, and she bit her lip to fight back fresh bursts as she reviewed the mental images being presented to her. Germany finally couldn't stand his curiosity, and asked what was so funny.
"She attacks him because, more or less, he's annoying?" Li looked to the blond nation for confirmation. "Well…I kinda do the same thing with my…fellow traveling partner, Huo." A small grin curled her lips as she remembered all the failed attempts to inflict pain. "Only, he's a better fighter than me, so I usually don't do any damage. But it's still a great stress reliever." Stress relievers: she didn't have many of those in her life, with her little brother gone and her elder brother off doing whatever he pleased as a pirate.
"I…see." That seemed to be Germany's catchphrase whenever she said something odd. Li blushed a little, and looked away as the doors slid open. They must have an Earthbender, or their equivalent, opening them from the inside. But…did they even have Earthbenders here? She hadn't heard anyone mention Bending, but this was a totally different world, and if they had human personifications of their nations it would make sense that they wouldn't have some other things Li found normal…
Germany walked into the airport confidently, and Li quickly scrambled to keep up, in case Prussia fell in the middle of the doors and they closed on his head. Which, while highly unlikely, could still happen.
Okay, I'd like to take this chance to ask for some good, critiquing reviews that will give me valuable feedback on how I'm writing this story. I do not, in any way, want to write Li as a Mary Sue-in fact, I fear this more than cows (who are evil). So please submit a review about how I'm doing! Also, personal opinions of my story and character and characterization of the nations would be more than welcome!
As a warning, though...if anyone wants to have me pair two characters...sorry, but no. I want to make this as similar to the canon as possible. So, since there is no clear statement in the canon saying, oh, "Canada and Prussia are dating," I won't put any sort of pairing with them in. Prussia's said that Canada's awesome, so I'll put that in-but all you PruCan shippers, sorry, but no.
Since Hidekaz Himaruya has stated that Sweden has feelings for Finland, I'll put that in. But Finland denies being a "wife," so no, they're not in an established relationship. Sorry, but the canon is clear.