87. Sleight of Hand
Date Written: July 17, 2019
Date Posted: December 4, 2020
Characters: Veneziano, Germany
Summary: Germany doesn't believe in magic. Veneziano, unfortunately, begs otherwise.
Notes: It's short, but it has charm.
"That is simply not possible! How did—" Germany interrupted himself as he tried logic and analysis to fully comprehend the problem. "It was just a bit of sleight of hand, right?"
Italy smirked. "It could be or it could be—"
"Magic does not exist."
"—magic!" At that, the Italian punctuated his statement by throwing his deck of cards in the air. While Italy cheered at the impromptu shower of card confetti, Germany grumbled about the eventual cleanup. "Come on, Germany! Live a little!"
"We're Nations; we live a lot."
A broad grin split the Italian face in two. "A joke! A bad one for sure, but nonetheless a joke."
Italy reached eagerly into the sleeves of his suit jacket to bring out another deck of cards.
"Round two?"
Germany pinched the bridge of his nose and hoped to God that Italy was just joking. Unfortunately, when he saw Italy's wide grin and childlike beaming, Germany knew that it wasn't the case.
"I'm telling you right now, there is no magic. It's all sleight of hand."
Italy pouted. "And you lack imagination. Can you try to suspend your disbelief for just a couple minutes so that we can both have fun? Would that make you feel better?"
Germany shook his head. "I'd rather we just go back to—"
Veneziano's sleeves began to explode with an influx of cards.
"Magic!"
"I told you, there's no such thing!"
