Chapter 11: Magda

It was raining. Which wouldn't be much of a surprise if it hadn't been the first time in weeks. The summer had been sunny and we have been lucky weather wise but now it was raining and told us that summer was coming to an end. It was still just the end of July but it was something in the air that told me that summer wouldn't stay for much longer. So much had happened in just a few months and we still had a long way to go. Staying with the micronations had been okay. Except for Sealand no one was really friendly and Belarus was quite intimidating and Poland was strange. Tino still seemed a bit upset after my rejection. Ladonia had still not told me much and it began to annoy me. I couldn't help to always look around every room I entered just to make sure nothing suspicious was happening.
Ladonia had forced all the others to go out and train. I and Canada were still not well enough to train but I longed for the day when I could begin to practice archery and fencing. It seemed odd that we would practice that since our enemies used bombs and were most likely using more modern weapons than swords and bow and arrows. We had sat down in the kitchen and drank tea. I wasn't very fond of tea but it was nice with today's weather. I and Canada had never really talked much. Only orders and a good night now and then. But never really talked. I knew nothing about him except that he was America's brother.
"Although I feel sort of bad that I'm not doing anything I wouldn't want to be out there," I said and looked at the people who were out in the rain trying not to slip in the mud. Ladonia and Malossia were the ones who seemed to know what they were doing. Sealand was the one who was the worst. Every time Wy hit his sword he stumbled and more than once I thought he would fall. But he didn't so there was still hope for him.
"It's not your fault that you hurt your leg in that explosion," he said with the same low voice as usual.
"Nein, but do you know who I think has something to do with it?" I asked and leaned closer. I knew that the house was empty but I still felt that there was someone watching me. He looked at me and waited for me to tell him.
"I think that the people in this house aren't what they say they are," I whispered. I expected him to say something that I was being paranoid or that I threw out accusations with no ground. But he didn't. He just leaned back in his chair and got this thoughtful expression on his face.
"I'm not sure about that but Ladonia is really an annoying person," he said and I couldn't help but smile. To me, Canada always seemed to be a kind man that never said something bad about anyone even if annoying wasn't exactly the worst one could say about a person.

We sat there for about a half an hour until the rest had had enough of the rain and went inside. Ladonia went straight upstairs to his room like usual while the others joined us in the kitchen. Sealand sat down next to me and began to talk excitedly about the progress he had made.
"You should have seen me a month ago, I couldn't even lift a sword," he said. I didn't say anything or told him that he had been improving I just let him talk until he was finished. Then he turned to Canada and told him the same story even if I was quite certain that he had overheard him. Sealand was rather loud so probably everyone at the table had heard the story. But Canada just lets him tell the story all over again. He was too nice to tell him to shut up anyway.
"Do you want to take a walk?" Sealand asked me all of a sudden. He had noticed that Canada wasn't too interested in his story and turned his attention towards me again. His face was lit up with a hope and I felt horrible that I had to crush it.
"I'm sorry but I can't," I replied. "My leg," I added so he wouldn't think that I didn't want to go because of him. Ladonia entered the kitchen then and everyone got quiet. It was like they waited for him to tell them that it was okay for them to continue their conversations with him in the room. But such words never came and he walked over to the coffee machine. Everyone stared at him as if he had trespassed on grounds where he wasn't allowed. The tension in the air was thick and I wondered what he did to earn such respect from everyone else. All of a sudden I didn't feel like staying so I stood up. I thought Sealand would faint right then and there. Clearly what I had done was something really scandalous. I thought about Éloïse who would probably fight with Ladonia more than once about the leadership. The thought of my former friend sent a wave of sadness. It hadn't been that long since we parted ways but it still hurt. I tried my best to not think about neither Éloïse nor Antonio but we all had our moments of weakness. I walked out of the kitchen with my bad leg and decided to go and rest for a while. I almost expected Tino to come and help me up the stairs but he never came so I spent the next ten minutes getting up the stairs and without screaming out in pain while doing so. But once I reached the top something pulled me towards Ladonia's room. It was not very smart to lurk around somebody else's room and he would not think twice about throwing me out if he caught me. But I needed to know if I could find something that gave him away. I didn't trust him and if I found something suspicious in his room I would not think twice about telling Tino and Canada to get away from here.

His room was dark. Not only because the lamp wasn't lit. But the walls were black and he had the blinds down. When I put on the light I saw the queen-sized bed, black of course. There was only a desk in the room beside the bed and there were no personal belongings. It was strange. The desk was empty and there was nothing under the bed. It didn't even look like someone lived there.
"What are you doing?" a voice said and I froze in hope that I would somehow turn invisible if I didn't move.
"He won't be happy if he found out," the voice said. It was a girl's voice and besides me, there were only two possibilities. I turned around and thought all hope was lost when I came eye to eye with Belarus. It was not only that she was a really scary person. She also seemed to be that kind of person who liked to tell on people just to see them suffer.
"Don't worry I won't tell him," she said and smiled. She actually smiled and it made me relax a bit in her presence. She took a step into the room and looked around with great interest.
"One would think that a weirdo like him would have his room full of secrets plans and stuff," she said as she walked over to the desk and opened the top drawer.
"How could you?" I asked.
"I have been with them for the past two months. I don't trust any of them," she said. Then she walked over to the bed and sat down.
"In times of war we all need an ally," she began. "And you seem to be the most reasonable."
"I thought you and Poland were allies," I said. Actually, I had thought that she preferred to be alone if she didn't have her brother to talk to.
"Please he's such a weirdo," she said and although I never said anything I did agree with her. He always talked about his pony and would burst out in tears when he came to the conclusion that he might never see it again.
"So you want us to be allies?" I asked.
"Da. If things get tough you will need a friend like me," she said. I thought about her offer for a second. It was tempting to say yes. She would scare away most people but how could I be sure that I could trust her?
"Nein, I'm sorry but I don't trust you," I said. She smiled and stood up and headed towards the door. When she passed me she patted my head like I was a little girl or something even if I was taller than her.
"You will change your mind eventually," and with that, she left. I stared at her for a few minutes before I realised that I should probably get out of there before Ladonia came back.

I was a bit disappointed when I laid down on my bed. I hadn't found out anything about Ladonia and Belarus acted oddly. I would have to keep my eye on her. Something in this house didn't feel right and I would find out what it was.