Denmark, for all of his macho posturing, has always been a not-so-secret admirer of daisies.

"April showers bring May flowers," he muses and twists the stem of the bleach-white flower between his two fingers. He turns it down, up, then allows it to go with gravity, dropping it to float down against Norway's cheek. Norway snorts through his nose, blowing the petals away, and turns his head into Denmark's shoulder.

"And then what?" He breathes. "What does June bring?"

Denmark does not have a reply for that. His arm drops back to his side, back into the cool grass that tickles his elbows. Above them, the sky is white and heavy with early pockets of spring rain, and below them, the ground is stirring with something neither of them can quite place. Denmark spreads his fingers through the grass—clips the head off of another daisy and flicks it across the open expanse of green and shadowy field. "Any word from the guys you have back home?"

Norway shakes his head. "No. They don't know anything new… just that something is changing."

Denmark breathes in through his mouth. "Something," he sighs. "Something."

"Something."

A break in the conversation as the wind picks up. Norway slips his cross-shaped pin back against his ear to keep his hair from whipping across his face. "We shouldn't stay much longer. It's going to rain soon."

Denmark shrugs and pushes himself up with his elbows. "It's too hot to rain. Besides, rain's never bugged me before."

"Me neither." Norway rolls onto his stomach and slides back to face Denmark. He brushes the small pile of beheaded daisies out of his lap. "We need to go home sometime, though."

"Home." Denmark scrubs a hand down his face. "My home or your home?"

"Yours is closer." Norway picks a weed out of Denmark's hair. "For now."

Denmark catches Norway's hand and clasps it between his own, rubbing a callused thumb over equally callused knuckles in slow, careful sweeps that send goose bumps creeping up into Norway's shoulders. "And what about in May?"

"You know exactly what we are going to do in May."

A crestfallen expression that Norway doesn't bother to smooth away. "Yeah."

"It's for the best."

"I know."

"We need to prepare our people."

"I know."

Norway sighs and breaks away from Denmark's grip on his hands, placing both palms on the back of his neck and pulling their faces together. "We don't have to like it, but it is what it is. We still have a week before lock-down starts, so we may as well make the best of it."

Denmark drops his hands to the ground behind him and sighs, too deep and too old for the romantic picnic that once was planned in the early afternoon. "I just don't want to miss anything."

"You won't." Norway pulls back. "There will be a constant line of contact between the five of us. And once the lock-down period passes, everything will go back to normal."

"I don't think it will." Denmark looks down at the sprinkle of daisies between them. He slowly curls his fingers in, taking firm fistfuls of grass and kneading at damp ground. "Do you feel that?" He waits for Norway to touch the grass. "The vibrations?"

"I feel it."

"The Earth is trembling." He opens his palms again. "I don't think 'normal' is going to be an option for a while."

Norway gets to his feet and stares over Denmark at the too-bright glow of the sun on the horizon. Sweat clings to him like a second skin, sticky enough to tempt him to push away the government regulated sunglasses for just a moment- -almost. Almost.
He helps Denmark to stand.

"Perhaps not."


Sve-

Still digging out bunkers and quickly running out of space.

Any word on temporary relocation?

-DK


"This is my last beer, 'land," Denmark carefully finishes measuring off two exactly equal portions into stout glasses emblazoned with the UN logo. "Don't waste it."

Netherlands snorts and catches the empty bottle that Denmark throws at him. "Like I would. Anything non-essential is being rationed."

"Cigarettes?"

"Cigarettes."

They sit down at the dusty table in the corner of the meeting room and Denmark hangs his coat on the back of his chair. "There were three new flare-ups last night." He holds his beer in one hand. "I can't decide if I feel like I'm suffocating or drowning."

"Practically the same thing." Netherlands pushes his glass forward and watches the wet trail it leaves. Between his teeth, he gnashes on a plastic coffee straw. "Only difference is one is wet and one is sweaty."
"Also practically the same thing."

They click their glasses together and spend a moment in silence finishing their portions.

"Feels kinda final, don't it?" Denmark grins and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. "The last beer."

Netherlands nods and leans forward, fishing through his pockets, then dropping a plain, white box on the table, followed just a second later with a clear blue lighter. "The last cigarette."

"You offering to share?"

"You're about the only person around who I'd offer my last smoke to, Den." He flicks the box open and lets Denmark take the cigarette, stretching an arm over the table to light it for him. "Just so long as you know you owe me one now."

Denmark breathes in deep—pauses—blows out smoke. "Oh yeah? And what do I owe you?" He passes the cigarette across to Netherlands.

"You owe me the next last cigarette you find." He takes a long drag. "And once all this bullshit is over, you 'n that rat-pack family of yours need to dig your way out and come find mine."

"Belgium and Luxembourg, I assume."

Netherlands looks at him like he's the greatest fool he's ever seen and blows smoke into his face before letting him take the cigarette. "Just promise me you won't drown when this thing hits."

"I won't drown. I'm a great swimmer."

"Except when you're not."

"I'm not going to drown, idiot."

Netherlands gets up and puts his sunglasses back on, shrugging back into his coat and crumpling the empty cigarette box in his fist. "See you after lock-down."

"Yep."

They toast empty glasses one last time and Netherlands leaves with a coffee straw between his teeth.



Denmark;

Still short on space ourselves.

It's cutting it close, but I will have an answer for you by the end of the month.

In the meantime, just keep digging.

-Sverige