I'm back again! Sorry for taking so long yet again, but at least I can say I think I'm beginning to get the right balance between studies, work and relaxing now.
Is it bad that it took me only three weeks of university to hit that wall for the first time? I broke right through it, though, and am doing better again.
University certainly is a lot more work than high school, though! And the first tests are already looming on the horizon...

Well, so much for me complaining about univerity life ^~^' (I do really enjoy it, though, and I already love the people I have to work and study with, they're great)

I think it was pinkdoughnuts who reminded me of something quite major that I could incorporate into this story, too. Not so much history-related, but I do believe I found the right way to use it in this context and make it fit. Correct me if I'm wrong, of course!

Thanks again to everyone for sticking with me so long and being so patient. I hope this chapter lives up to expectations!


"Gilbert. Gilbert, wake up. Gilbert, come on, we're going to be late if you don't get up soon."
East Germany grunted and turned around, pulling his duvet over his face. He really wanted to sleep just a bit longer. He'd been restless all night and it had taken him until long past midnight before he finally fell asleep and even after that he frequently woke up during the night.
Hungary's voice was unwavering and relentless, though. "Gilbert, don't make me drag you out of bed now."
It was only the first day of the UN meetings, and already did East know he had made a mistake in opting to share a room with Hungary. That, of course, had happened only because of a mistake in booking the hotel, something which East had gladly made use of. He had hoped for a chance to spent time alone with his friend again.
East Germany just grunted again when the Hungarian shook him. "No," he muttered into his pillow. "No, I'm skipping for today. I'd fall asleep at the desk in a matter of minutes."
"Then so be it," Hungary answered bluntly, giving him another shake. "You know Russia wouldn't take kindly to your being absent. Even less than him, your leaders wouldn't like you any more for it."
She had a valid point there. With a deep sigh, East Germany finally sat up. He yawned the moment he so much as tried to open his eyes, though. He sent Hungary a mild glare when she laughed at this.
But he felt a lot better just seconds later when a warm smell hit his nose. Hungary smirked a bit when she saw the change in his expression, then turned around to grab something. When she turned back to him, she held a steaming cup of coffee. "I figured you would need this when you wouldn't wake up from the alarm clock earlier," she explained as she sat down on the edge of the bed beside him and handed the cup to him. "You barely ever have trouble waking up, after all. Did you sleep so little?"
East nodded, not responding as he gratefully took a sip of the coffee, burning his lips in the process. "Ow! Damn. Well, that sure wakes a person." Before drinking any more, he spent some time blowing on it first. "But I barely slept last night, indeed," the tired nation then confirmed. "And God, do I feel that." He drank a large gulp of the coffee just as soon as it had cooled down sufficiently. Then he winced immediately and grimaced. "Ugh, American coffee."
Offended for only a heartbeat, Hungary raised an eyebrow curiously. "Is it really bad?" She sniffed the cup for a moment as East handed it to her to try it herself. "I mean, I know it smells different, but…"
"It's not bad," East replied as Hungary still seemed to hesitate to drink. "It's just… different from what I'm used to." He watched as Hungary also pulled a face when she tasted a sip, then shrugged and took the cup back. It may not taste like he was used to, but it was strong enough to jolt him awake, and that was enough for him.
He snickered a bit after gulping down the coffee. "Those Americans may claim to be from Berlin," he quipped, setting the cup aside, "but their drinks certainly don't taste like it!" And they couldn't write speeches like Germans could, either. Not only that, but they only ever showed their support for the West Germans openly, especially West Berlin. They claimed it was an 'island of democracy trapped inside an ocean of communism' and all that. Well, what about the East Germans? Sure, communism wasn't as bad as the westerners made it out to be, but they were still trapped. It might not be their half of the city that was completely encircled by a wall, but though it was undoubtedly difficult, the people in West Berlin did have a way out, which was more than East Germans got. Trying to defect to West Germany was almost equal to suicide.
Well, at least people paid attention to the existence of the Wall. Made it that much more certain something would be done about it sooner or later. Someday. That was the only certainty East had: the Wall wouldn't be there forever, and he would likely live to see the day it would come down. No matter how long it would take, he would be there the day he could be with his little brother outside of UN meetings again.
"At least the coffee is better than what you had to deal with until recently," Hungary commented, cutting into his thoughts. She was in front of the mirror now, brushing her hair and tidying herself a bit as she spoke. "Also, how could you skip the meeting if it meant not being able to see Ludwig?"
Again, East saw the sense in her words. "Aren't you just Mrs Logic and Reason today?" he saw with another quick yawn. "Stop being so awake, Lizzie. I can't keep up yet."
"Well, you will have to," Hungary replied matter-of-factly, still focusing on her reflection in the mirror as she finished readying herself for the meetings with a clip in her hair. "We need to leave in fifteen minutes. Twenty, at most."
East froze when he heard this. "B-but," he stammered, jumping up in a hurry. "I still need to get dressed, have breakfast, comb my hair, brush my teeth… All of it!"
"I know. That's what I was saying, silly."
"You couldn't wake me sooner?"
A sigh. "Gil, God knows I've tried, but you weren't exactly cooperative."


Even though he had been in this position before, it still left West Germany feeling somewhat nervous when he had to speak before all the nations gathered at the UN. At least he had studied up on this topic intensively before writing his speech: the increase in oil prices over the course of a few years now was becoming a problem for certain nations, causing troubles for their economies. It wasn't a very difficult subject to talk about, to him at least. He had always had a good understanding of the economy, partly thanks to East's lessons when he was little.
"It will certainly not have gone unnoticed to many of you," he spoke clearly, glancing around at the rows of nations sitting behind their desks, "that the real price of oil has practically doubled compared to three years ago. This has forced down the demand of oil in many countries, including the USA, Japan and European nations." He went on about this some more, talking about the effects of that decreased demand and the predictions made for the near future. It was to be expected oil prices would drop significantly soon if demand wouldn't increase, which in turn would raise demand again. Oil-producing nations benefitted from the high prices, naturally, while the consuming nations' economies suffered to some extent. If the situation was to progress according to the predictions, this balance would shift in the near future.
He then went on to ask other nations for their input on the matter: some of the OPEC members first, then some nations who consumed oil rather than produced it. America claimed to be working on finding alternatives to oil, which seemed to be working out well; the percentage of America's oil that had to be imported was now far lower than a few years ago, and was only expected to become even lower. Some Middle-Eastern countries didn't look too pleased when America explained this.
West then moved on to European nations. Netherlands especially was displeased over the high price of oil. But then, Netherlands was displeased with anything that was too expensive to his liking.
The third European nation he had planned to ask about the state of his economy was Ireland. However, when he looked at Ireland, the old nation rivalled Prussia in paleness, his gaze focussed on a point in front of him, somewhere beyond West. Surprised by this, West tentatively tried to draw his attention. The Irishman didn't even look up. It took West a minute or so to finally catch his attention.
Ireland nearly jumped, startled, when West asked him if anything was wrong. "Oh, uh," he stammered nervously. "N-no, everything's… Everything's fine…"
West narrowed his eyes. How obvious could a lie be? He sighed and shook his head. "Are you sure about that, Ireland?" The young nation wasn't entirely sure how to go about this, but that he couldn't just ignore someone looking this bad and being so out of it in the middle of a meeting was a given.
Ireland lowered his gaze. "W-well…" he replied, so softly West had to strain to hear him. "Maybe not…?"
What was the matter with the man? West knew that, especially given the topic of today's meeting, some nations were bound to be sick, but surely anyone who had it this bad wouldn't bother showing up at these meetings? West at least was pretty sure his leaders wouldn't even allow him to go if he was this ill, or whatever it was that was going on with Ireland.
"Perhaps you should leave for a moment," West Germany suggested to the Irishman then. "Take a break." Glancing around at the other nations, he added: "Provided everyone else approves?"
There was mostly silence, but also a few approving mumbles among the nations. Ireland nodded gratefully and got to his feet. He looked shaky and a little unbalanced as he stood. "Thank you," he brought out weakly. "I'll be back soon, I promise."
West shook his head at this. "Take your time." If you're in such a bad state, you won't add anything to the meeting, anyway. Best rest up now and try again tomorrow. He watched in silence as the old nation left the conference hall, and saw England get up from his seat almost the moment Ireland closed the door behind himself.
England apologized quickly. "I think I need to go after him, I'm afraid," he explained hurriedly. "He… Well, he is my brother, after all." He turned and left without waiting for a response, but no one tried to stop him.
Almost all nations stared after England as he followed his brother, and as did West, curious as to what was going on. But seconds later, he realised all eyes were turned on him again, and for just a moment, he felt flustered. "Uh, well…" That it wasn't a difficult topic, didn't mean he could deal with interruptions like these any better than normally. "I-I believe this brings me to the conclusion of my speech. Thank you, all, for listening, and for your valuable input. I hope we can find a solution soon." He then nodded to Japan, who was scheduled to speak next.
As he walked up the stairs to his own desk, he slowed just the slightest bit as he passed East Germany, looking at his brother. East looked tired as he sat there, but he noticed West's gaze and answered it with shining eyes and a warm smile. West could almost hear the words he could read in the albino's expression, and they warmed his heart. He didn't think he would ever reach an age where he wouldn't feel this sense of accomplishment from seeing his brother look at him proudly.
Feeling more comfortable again now, West took his place again, listening intently to what Japan had to say.


"You look dead on your feet, Gil," West sighed as he sat beside his elder brother after the meeting that day. "Have you been getting any rest at all lately?"
East Germany nodded. "I have, really. Just not last night." He chuckled dryly for a moment, before he broke off in a yawn. "Something tells me I'll sleep very well tonight, though. I don't think I can even stay awake until dinner, at this point. But say," he added, ending that topic now. "Have you really been having so much trouble with the oil thing?" West didn't look particularly bad. He wasn't any paler than usual, he didn't look tired or flushed in any way. It was clear he was as healthy as could be at the moment, making it hard for East to imagine his economy was really suffering. Of course, that he looked healthy didn't mean anything; he could just as easily simply be having a good day now.
West shrugged. "Well, it certainly hasn't made things easier on my economy," he replied calmly. "But I myself am not doing too bad, thankfully. I'm just glad I'm not in as bad a state as Ireland."
East was surprised for a moment at this last comment, until he told himself that, of course, West had no way of knowing what had been going on. "Oh, he wasn't sick or anything," the albino nation explained then. "England was right when he said it wasn't the economy." The kingdom had come back into the conference hall minutes after having gone after Ireland, and when other nations had bombarded him with questions, he had simply answered that whatever was going on, his brother hadn't been doing well, but it likely wasn't related to the economy. East had had to fight back a snort then. If he'd had a little less restraint, he would have just said something like 'you don't say!'.
"That guy's not sick, trust me," East said a little dismissively. "He was just scared out of his skin from seeing a ghost. Multiple times."
"Wait… What?" West blinked in confusion. East could tell from his expression that he would have to explain more before his little brother would let him off now. "A ghost? And you saw that, too?"
East raised an eyebrow at this. "Uh… yes? As I've been doing for the past decades?" He shifted where he sat before saying more. "It was a woman, long blonde hair… Looked a whole lot like England, to be honest with you. Brandenburg told me she's Britannia, their mother. She also told me Ireland's that terrified because he only ever catches glimpses of her, never hears her when she speaks… To be honest, I would be scared if I saw Brand like that, or anyone else."
West nodded slowly as he took in that information. "But… You only see the dead because of your stroke. So how can Ireland…?"
"Don't know," East replied with a shrug. "And to be honest, I don't really care. That's for him to deal with, it's not my problem. Not yours, either." He gave the younger nation a nudge and smiled at him. "Have I told you yet that I'm sharing a room with Hungary now, by the way? At the hotel, I mean." He snickered when West gave him a weird look. "Something went wrong in the booking, so I opted for sharing a room with her to solve the problem. For once I don't have to share a bed with, say, Estonia or Romania, or whatever." For some reason, hotels could never understand that, when booking a room for three or four people, that didn't always mean two of those people wanted to sleep in a double bed together. "Lizzie and I haven't exactly been in a relationship anymore for years now, but at least it's not awkward for us to share a bed. That is, I don't think it is. She doesn't seem to, either."
West hummed. "I do see why you would prefer Hungary over Estonia or Romania. Or -God forbid- Poland."
This made East Germany laugh. "Oh, God, no!" he burst out. "So far, arrangements have always been so that Poland and Lithuania would not be in the same room I am. We have to do that at home, and that's bad enough. But at least there, we've got so many other people around that we keep the fighting at a minimum. If we had to be in a room with just the three of us, or with one other person…"
"There would be casualties," West said with a grin. "Well, good that they at least take care not to have any… 'accidents', so to say." The young nation chuckled a bit, and East laughed along softly. But then West Germany let out a soft sigh, glancing down at his wristwatch. "I should leave soon," he said to his elder brother. "Unfortunately. I'll have quite some work to do, writing a report on what we've discussed today." That was the downside to being one of the nations to speak at these meetings: both the preparation and the report afterward took a lot of time.
East knew this, of course, even though he was rarely tasked with holding a speech like that. Still, he was disappointed to hear he couldn't spend more time with his little brother today. "We'll talk again tomorrow, won't we?" he asked, despite knowing he didn't really have to.
West smiled at him. "Of course we will. Well, enjoy your time alone with Hungary. And be sure to go to bed early tonight, all right? I don't want to see you with bags like those anymore tomorrow," he said, pointing to the dark lines under East's eyes.
East Germany huffed in silent laughter. "Try to stop me!" Then he got up, and as did West. The older nation held his brother in a tight hug for a moment before he let him go. "So long as you won't be overdoing it with those reports. Surely you won't have to finish them by tonight? No overworking tonight, little bro."


The rest of the week proceeded smoothly. There were no incidents of any kind, thankfully, and by the second day, at least East Germany had been better rested. Ireland, too, had been back for the remainder of the week.
West and Austria had suggested to East and Hungary to go out with the four of them if they had the chance, and on the last evening before everyone would have to leave again, the four nations spent the evening at a restaurant together. They stayed there far longer than they had anticipated, talking for hours. It had been as close to the old days as they had been for many years, an evening Austria and West Germany still talked about now, months later, during Austria's visit to Berlin.
"They seem to be doing well," Austria said as he and his younger cousin were out for a walk with West's dog. This was Sage's daughter, Nessa, a two-year-old dog. She seemed to have taken a liking to Austria, and kept butting her head against his hip as they walked. He gently pushed her away yet again before he went on talking. "I still don't know how much of that is true, and how much is an illusion. They are clearly healthy and appear quite happy, too. But have you taken a look at their outfits the past years? I haven't seen them in anything looking remotely new in the past decade. In fact, I think Gilbert has been wearing the same three suits to the UN meetings since you two had your first there."
West nodded. He had noticed the same thing. "But just that they don't seem to have any new clothes for the meetings, doesn't necessarily mean they're in a bad state." After all, West still had clothing from two decades ago or longer, although he made sure to be presentable at the UN or the EU.
"I'm just saying," Austria replied, "any self-respecting nation would try to look their best at meetings like those, right? So why don't they?"
West didn't know how to answer, so he just shrugged. He did think it was weird, but he didn't want to look too much into it and jump to the wrong conclusions. East Germany and Hungary seemed to be doing fine, and he wanted to believe they were. They had been for years.
"On another note," Austria then said, having to gently push Nessa away again. "Have you heard about Ireland yet?"
Confused, West looked at his cousin with a questioning gaze. "No…? Why?" Did something important happen, and West was once again unaware of it? Well, he had been focusing on the state of his own economy and people lately, after all. He had also been talking to the Netherlands, whose people would have to vote soon whether they would accept rockets being placed in their country as a defensive mechanism against a potential communist attack. There were plenty of things that had taken up his attention the past months, and only once had Ireland been one of those things, when West had been thinking about what East had told him about the old nation and what had happened during the UN meeting early that year.
He was curious, though. Austria wasn't one to gossip when it wasn't about his own family or close friends. Not unless it was something big.
Which it turned out to be, indeed. Austria sighed softly. "It seems the man's in a coma. That's what Italy Veneziano told me, anyway, and he's heard it from France. I think France got it from Canada? If not, France heard it from the UK themselves, I'm sure; they do seem to be quite close, in their own… unique way."
A coma…? Is that why he's been seeing his mother? It was a possibility. But then, East hadn't started seeing ghosts until after something life-threatening had happened to him. West had no idea how those things worked, of course, but to him, it still didn't make much sense either way. "So… So do you know how bad it is?"
Austria shrugged with another deep sigh. "Who knows? The UK isn't being very open about it, so I don't know. But we're talking about a coma here, Ludwig; it's bad, no matter what caused it. And I haven't heard of anything that might have caused something like this… It's a weird situation."
West nodded silently, thoughts rushing through his head. So a nation could be on the brink of death… "If he doesn't make it," he mused half to himself, "he'll be the first nation in Europe to die since… Since our family."
"Indeed," Austria replied calmly, although his voice betrayed some sadness and even anxiety. "He keeps to himself a lot, always has, but his death would leave quite the impact on Europe, maybe even more than any other nation. He's the oldest nation in Europe, did you know that? Greece is a close second, but Ireland's the oldest for all I know."
For a little while, West was silent after this, pondering. Austria didn't say anything anymore, either, as they walked. Eventually West spoke up again, a little tentatively. "Do you think we should say anything to the UK? Let them know we… Well… you know?"
Austria shook his head slowly. "I don't think we should. They haven't said anything themselves, so I don't think they wanted anyone to know. Also, how many people know about Gilbert by now? His stroke, or that he's… not going to be around forever. I think they feel the same way about this as we all did about Gilbert. Remember how they didn't tell anyone about Wales's paralysis until almost 20 years after his accident. I think it's best if we just keep quiet now, and if something does happen, we'll be supportive then."
Thinking about a nation possibly dying, West's mind automatically went to his own elder brother. In a way, the situation within the UK wasn't all that different from the situation West and East Germany had been in for the past decades. East could die soon, and only their closest family and friends knew about it. They didn't want anyone else to know about it, either. But if they never told anyone, and East would come to pass, other nations might consider it 'sudden', even though it had been a process that had lasted the majority of this century by now. West did think that, by the time his brother wasn't around any longer, he would explain to other nations what had been going on all this time. He thought he would have to, really.
He must have been quiet for a while, because he eventually caught the look Austria was giving him. It was a look of slight pity, worry and sympathy. "You're thinking about Gilbert, aren't you?" the older nation guessed softly.
West nodded, silent for another few seconds before he found his voice back. "I was just… comparing the situations," he mumbled in response, absent-mindedly giving Nessa a gentle pat on the side as the dog came up next to him.
Austria averted his gaze for a moment, quietly pondering. Then he gave a single, brief nod. "I suppose there are some similarities," he said, agreeing somewhat. "But then, whatever happened to Ireland must have been quite sudden. I mean, he didn't start acting weird until the meetings at the UN earlier this year. I guess anyone who's even a little observant can tell what's going on with Gilbert by now. Frankly, for someone who doesn't know him well, his albinism might just be the only thing giving away that he is the same person as the man who conquered left and right just two centuries ago."
Was it really that bad? West couldn't help but list the things that were different about his brother in his mind after hearing Austria say this. Well, for starters, he wore glasses most of the time now, a clear indication that his eyesight had gone bad which in turn meant his general health was what it used to be. West also had to admit that East looked more tired these days than he had been before; whether that was because he just didn't sleep very well or if it was because his overall stamina was leaving him, too, the young nation just wasn't quite sure yet. Of course, East hadn't exactly been as physically active as he used to be back in his prime, which for him had resulted in loss of muscle. He still looked perfectly fit, with broad shoulders and strong, muscular arms at least, but it just wasn't like it used to be, when he had been so strong and able-bodied he almost looked like a human tank. He had always been such a powerhouse, the only nations who looked like they could overpower East Germany had been Scotland (only because he was almost as muscular and quite a bit taller than the albino), Sweden (also because he towered over East) and Russia, although the latter could easily be a draw.
Adding those differences in East's appearance with his meeker, more withdrawn personality nowadays, East Germany really was a whole different person than Prussia had been. Except both people were Gilbert Beilschmidt, his awesome elder brother. That was the one thing that would never change about him: he always had been and always would be the self-proclaimed most awesome person on the planet. And rightfully so.
"Do you think others really just don't notice, don't pay attention to it," West asked as he was thinking this all through, "or do you think they all just decided keep quiet about it?"
Austria shrugged. "I don't know. I think it might actually be the latter." He looked directly at his younger cousin when he said this, his gaze calm. "Maybe they noticed how none of us ever speak about it openly, and decided not to mention it to us. Kind of like what we're doing with the UK and Ireland now." He frowned for a moment, then added more bitterly: "On the other hand, there are plenty of nations who wouldn't be so considerate. Which, actually, makes me feel bad for the UK now, too. I believe people pestering them about Ireland is about the last thing they could use at a time like this."
Just like we really didn't want people to bother us about Gilbert after his stroke, or about the imprisonment in the war… West also truly felt bad for the British nations. He didn't know any of them well enough to know exactly how they felt about Ireland, but he knew about Scotland, partly from his own experience and partly from what East had told him, that the Scot loved his elder brother dearly. He could imagine Northern Ireland disliking the older Irishman by now, after the Troubles had lasted so long, and England had never seemed to get along with his eldest brother. But then, he had gone straight after Ireland at the UN, when the ancient nation had been acting off. He couldn't imagine any of them not being heartbroken if they lost Ireland.
Even though he had managed to keep those thoughts mostly to the background, West had been grieving for his brother's impending death for many years by now. He had never wished these feelings on anyone, and it hurt him to know that others were going through the same thing right now. But at the same time, it hurt almost as much to know that they might not lose their brother at all, whereas for West, it was an inevitable fact.


Near the end of the year, there was a meeting of the EEC. It was common knowledge that Ireland had survived the ordeal, having woken up several weeks before the meeting. No one knew the condition he was in, though. West knew that there were plans to ask the UK about it at the EEC, hoping it wouldn't be as painful a subject anymore now that it was certain Ireland would survive.
Now that this was a certainty, though, his jealousy, somehow, got only worse. He didn't see how or why he was envious of a family who had just gone through months of hellish uncertainty and suffering, but he was. At least their suffering turned out to be temporary.
But then, it might not be, right? Ireland had been in a coma, for Heaven's sake; that he was still alive was no guarantee that he was all right now. Consequences could differ depending on the cause, but West Germany was fairly certain weeks or months of coma could easily be enough to damage a person's brain. Things for them might even be harder now because of the state their eldest brother could be in than if he hadn't survived.
But at least he survived, a voice would retort whenever he tried to reason with himself like this. At least they still have their brother, and will have him around for a while yet. Not only that, they can also go to him and talk to him whenever they like.
All the while,
you're still condemned to staying separated from your brother for fifty-one weeks a year for God only knows how many more years to come. And when -if- that ever ends, how long do you think he'll have left? You're right to feel envious, don't worry about that. It doesn't make you into a bad person, you know? It only mean you've had enough of this, and rightfully so. So why not put an end to it?
But how could he ever do such a thing? Much as he wished he did, West did not control anything that happened. And besides, even if he did, all this had been emplaced more or less as a punishment to his people for the cruelties they had unleashed on the world. All that had been only 40 years ago now.
It has been forty years indeed. Nearly half a century later, and you still think you and your people need to tiptoe around to be accepted in the world? Do you honestly? Don't make me laugh. You have more than paid for your own mistakes, your people have worked hard to right their wrongs, even while knowing such a thing is impossible to do. It is their effort that makes their repentance. You and your people both are respected again, relied upon by other nations, you have earned your place back in the world. So go right ahead and do something about this. Show the world that you won't take such injustice any longer.
But he couldn't. Right? He couldn't.
Thoughts like those kept swirling around in West Germany's mind in the days leading up to the EEC meeting. But he kept telling himself there was no injustice; he just had to put up with this. He wasn't the only person in the world who suffered, that much was a fact. And the Wall had been put in place, not to punish him, but because the East German government had decided it should be there. Surely they had their own reasons for it, perhaps even valid reasons. East had once told him it had been to prevent the majority of the East German population leaving the country; to keep the economy running, to keep the nation alive. That other people suffered because of it, well, that was just an unfortunate side-effect. Regrettable, but not up to him to change.
But then the day came that the EEC meetings began. It started out about as chaotic as usual, with nations catching up on each other's news before in the minutes before the real meeting would commence. There were nations talking, gossiping, laughing a bit. Until the doors opened to reveal the UK nations, all four of them, and Ireland right behind them.
West Germany was pleased for the five of them, of course, that despite what had happened, the old nation was well enough now to even attend meetings like these again. But it also instantly silenced his own protests to what his subconscious had been telling him all this time. He really was the one who had to go through the most misfortune. Others could go through Hell and back again, but at least they got to that last part, the 'going back again'. Their problems had solutions, even if it took a while to get there. His didn't, or at least not that he knew of. Except for one thing. One thing that could pose as a solution to his situation and problems. And he was determined now to get it done.
That Wall needs to come down.


East Germany looked up from the book he had been reading when he heard the door open. He closed his book and put it aside before getting up and going into the hallway. The albino nation smiled a little when he saw Russia and the others putting aside their bags and hanging up their coats. They all just came back from the 1982 UN General Assembly, meetings East had unfortunately missed this year.
"Hi, guys," he greeted the other nations quietly from where he stood. "How are you all?"
Poland grunted as he picked up his bag and swung it over his shoulder with an annoyed, tired look on his face. "Jetlagged," was all he said when he passed East Germany, probably on his way straight to bed.
Lithuania nodded, and Belarus also seemed to agree. "What he said… No matter how many times you do it, it's a long flight."
"You seem to be doing better, though," Ukraine said with a smile in East's direction. "Good to see. Feeling better?"
East gave a short nod. "Much. Thanks for asking." He had caught a virus just two days before the UN meetings would start, and it had been decided the morning before everyone had to leave that East should skip this year and take the time to get better. Russia had taken over for him whenever necessary, and for this once a human from East's government had been present in the meetings for nation personifications.
Of course, East hadn't stayed home very willingly. If he hadn't been hunched over the toilet just hours before their plane was due to take off, the others would have had to strap him down to prevent him from going. Instead they had almost had to do that. All week, though, his thoughts had been all about his little brother. This would have been the one week this year that they could see each other, and now, because he just had to be sick on the wrong few days, they would have to wait another year. Hungary had promised to explain the situation to the young nation, and to take the time to sit and talk with him instead of East this time around.
When East Germany looked at her, she soon caught his gaze, and flashed him a quick smile as if to say she would be with him shortly. The albino nation then turned to Russia instead. "So did anything happen that I need to be aware of?"
Russia nodded tiredly. "Naturally. Not right away, though," he added, just before breaking off into a yawn. "Right now it's time for sleep… I'll tell you everything you need to know tomorrow, all right?" After saying this, the tall nation went away in the direction of his room, stumbling a little, and East looked after him with a stab of guilt. If he hadn't been sick, Russia wouldn't have had to do double the work last week. He would have to make it up to him somehow.
Most nations went straight to bed then, following Russia and Poland's example. Romania and Bulgaria went to the living room to talk, and Czech sat down close to them and got a book from her bag and sat down much like East had earlier.
Meanwhile, Hungary walked over to East and hooked her arm with his. She said a quick greeting, then reached out to touch his forehead, frowning pensively before smiling. "You really do not have a temperature anymore," she concluded happily, and East had to stop himself from rolling his eyes at this. Sometimes she honestly stated the obvious.
The young woman then pulled him along, smiling still. "Now come on, there's some things I just need to tell you before I head off to bed, also. And honestly, I'd prefer to have it done quickly. I'm kind of tired, too."

The two nations went to a quiet room and sat down together. The first thing East asked, of course, was how his little brother had been doing.
"He was very well," Hungary replied calmly. "Sad that you couldn't be there, of course, but he did understand. In fact, he quite literally said he would rather wait another year than to have you push yourself too hard just to be there. He was worried about you for a moment, but when I said it was just a normal flu and was bound to pass within days, he didn't seem too bothered anymore."
The Hungarian's expression darkened a little after she'd said this, and she sighed. "He told me something, though, that's… quite bad. It seems we all missed out on quite the excitement last year -and not the good kind of excitement, either."
East Germany blinked in confusion, getting curious. "What do you mean? What happened?"
Hungary shook her head slowly, as if she could still barely believe it herself. "Do you recall how Ireland had been acting weird last year? Apparently whatever it was, was bad enough that he ended up in a coma, barely hanging on to life, for months. He survived and he's up and running again, but don't you find it strange that none of us heard about it as it was going on last year? A European nation might have died and we, who live on the same continent, wouldn't have heard until the meetings last week." She sighed in exasperation. "I can't believe it, really. It's crazy."
East Germany struggled to take in that information. So was that why Ireland had been seeing Britannia last year? Had she been trying to tell him something about this? Or was it because something similar to what had caused East to be able to see ghosts had happened to Ireland, too, and that had also caused him to get into a condition like that?
More than any of those things, though, he wondered about the same thing Hungary did. How could something like that have happened without anyone in the Eastern Bloc having heard about it? East knew first-hand that communications between the east and the west weren't always the best, but that it went to this extent was a surprise to him. A very unpleasant one.
"It's absolutely insane," he agreed, still trying to wrap his head around it. "How can communications be so bad that we don't even hear about stuff like this? Something serious could happen and we'd be left in the dark!"
Hungary nodded, eyes wide. "What if had been West instead, or Austria? Or someone in the Benelux for that matter. Do you think we'd be informed then?"
Surely no one would let someone die without informing their family or closest friends? Someone would have found a way to let the Eastern Bloc know what was going on if it had been more personal to any of them. Or at least, that's what he hoped. Right now, East just couldn't be sure anymore.
Hungary seemed to be thinking the same thing, because she narrowed her eyes in disdain and huffed. "All because of those goddamn closed borders! I swear, Gilbert, I will find a way to open my borders again. I won't let anything of this scale happen without my knowing about it ever again."
Determination coursed through East Germany like liquid fire, and he tensed up in sheer frustration. All thanks to those closed borders, indeed. All thanks to that thing.
"Even if I have to do it with my bare hands, I will make sure my borders will open again, too. The Wall will fall, I promise you. My people and I have been cut off from the world long enough now. I'll see it torn down, if it's the last thing I do."


But hey, at least there was history in it, right? The Coffee Crisis was mentioned, and so was the oil crisis of the late 70s/early 80s.
Also, shameless advertising for my own fanfics, but if you want to know what happened to Ireland... there's always Rising and Trouble to try out ;)

I honeslty hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope to be able to upload within at least two weeks again, maybe sooner. But I wouldn't count on it I'm afraid. Still, I can cross my fingers for inspiration, right?

Thanks all for reading!