There's two ships in this chapter that I have had planned since I first came up with these children! Just read ahead to the chapter! Also, I am so sorry for anyone who was truly enjoying this and I just stopped uploading out of no where! I did have things going on, and I know it's okay to do so, but I hope this chapter is noticed! I'm going to begin working on this story and finally finishing up this series!
"Ast? What're you doing?" The sixteen year old looked down at her younger brothers, Fritz and Wilhelm, both staring up at her in curiosity. She was standing in front of the mirror, cutting her hair short again as it was growing shaggy now, and she had soft music playing from her cell phone and she smiled. It was a piece of her mother's he wanted her to learn but listening was just as good as playing, right?
"I'm cutting my hair und styling it!" She replied happily, her ruby eyes locking onto Fritz's own and then her other brother's wide violet ones. "Why don't you go und ask Vati to cut your hair? Both of you need it, you're both as shaggy as a Uncle Luddy's dogs!" She reached out then, placing her scissors down and ruffling their hair making them laugh joyfully.
"Okay! Let's go find Vati!" Fritz cheerfully grabbing his little brother's hand and rushing from the bathroom where Astrid laughed, her ruby eyes glittering happily. "We need hair cuts, otherwise everyone vill think we're girls!"
Wilhlem blinked then, feeling flustered, when he clung to his brother's hand. He felt a little childlike spark of irritation with his brother's cheerful and loud behavior right then but he loved it at the same time. "Vhy? It's not that bad!"
Fritz paused right when they were some odd steps from the stairs, the hallway upstairs not that long to the stairs and he held up a finger in Wilhelm's face. "I'm your older brother, ja?" He asked planting one hand on his hip and Wilhelm looked at the finger first then looked up at Fritz. There wasn't much height difference, between the five and seven year old but Fritz was still taller.
"Ja." Wilhelm finally replied when the elder smiled making Wilhelm want to smile as well but fought it strangely. His violet irises locked onto Fritz's glowing rubies, identical to their sister and father's, three sets of rubies, three sets of violets of his, their mother's and other sister.
"Then I know vhat's good for you und for me!" Fritz replied with a wink, grinning widely then took Wilhelm's hand again. "Now, let's find Vati before Miss Hungary comes over vith your sister."
"She's yours too!" Wilhelm snapped then childishly and Fritz sighed out like he'd had this conversation so many times. Though he was only seven, the children acted rather older than they were and it was adorable to view as they thumped down the steps. And thought Fritz was only a year old when the whole thing happened he got the faint grasp that his Vater did something only married Mutters and Vaters did with Miss Hungary and his mutter at the same time, so his half sister was older than Wilhelm by some odd months when it was really a year, almost, as Wilhelm was in there for longer than nine months so he was born into the new year.
"Ja, but not my age!" He replied when he tugged Wilhelm into the living room and his older sister, Mia looked up and so did his cousin, Wolfram. "Mia! Do you know where Vati is?"
Mia thought for a moment, her violet irises narrowing for a moment making her look like their mother for a moment. Her head tilted back a bit, like their mother as well, making her chestnut brown hair spill down her back further it seemed as she looked up. Then she smiled at her brother. "I think Vater is outside vith Mutter. Oh, did you see Astrid upstairs? I need to tell her that Tatiana is coming over."
Fritz and Wilhelm shivered, like some ghost just moved over them. "Tatiana is scary." Fritz replied with wide eyes when he looked at Wolfram who was smiling slowly. "She's gotta be a witch or somethin'!"
"Yeah!" Wilhelm actually spoke to back up his elder brother, nodding rapidly. "She's really pretty, so she can't be one of those gross witches, but there's something creepy about her! Mia, you won't let her snatch us away, right?"
"Ja!" Fritz widened his eyes, looking rather convinced of this witch theory they cooked up about Tatiana Braginksy. "Mia, protect us, ja? Please? I don't vant to be a pie or vhatever it is witches do to people! I von't taste good!"
Mia laughed then putting her text book down on the floor, where she and Wolfram were sitting, and opened her arms allowing the boys to rush into her arms. "I von't let a witch take you away! My oh so precious baby brothers~" She replied stroking their hair, chestnut brown and silver, rather lovingly then and she nuzzled them both. "Big sister Mia won't let you get taken away!"
"Yay!" Fritz cheerfully replied then scowled lightly at his blonde cousin, reaching out tugging one of his blonde curls. "Wolfram! Go guard outside the living room!"
Mia's violet irises met Giovanni's ice blue ones and they both smiled when the thirteen year old stood up brushing himself off. "Fine fine~ I'll go and wait for the evil witch outside!" Wolfram replied playfully, good nature, when he smiled widely walking to the living room door and disappeared from view.
"Yay!" The boys cheered again making Mia laugh when they pulled away. "Now, ve have to find Vati so he can cut out hair! Witches only like little girls!" Fritz said this determined and stood up taking Wilhelm's hand. "With Wolfram watching ve'll be safe!"
Mia smiled then at her brothers, wondering if she and her sister ever had such a wild imagination at that age. Her childhood was fuzzy to her, some moments standing out more to her than the others and it made it a bit saddening but she always asked her parents when she wanted to remember something. "Go find Vati! He'll protect you!"
"Ja!" Wilhelm took his brother's hand easily and the two boys raced off in search of their father, Wilhelm's hand clutching Fritz's tightly while they ran and he giggled then. Mia then sighed looking at Wolfram, who blushed at the proximity and a light pink dusted her cheeks as she smiled at the blonde who looked back nervously. She remembered when they were younger that Wolfram was always loud, cheerful and he sill was but as of lately he barely spoke to her when they were alone and instead blushed, looking at her nervously like she might rip his face off or he'd speak a few words then get quiet but the blush remained the same. He acted like her Uncle Ludwig when they were alone together and she already knew why. Hell she'd known why when she turned ten! Wolfram liked her and clearly them being cousins did nothing to put it off for him making her feel a little..wrong.
They were cousins! Sure, the older Nations -their parents- could sleep with cousins or brothers or whoever but then again when their parents grew up it was like a giant free for all and the rules weren't so strict as back then. But still Austynn was crushing on his own cousin and his parents weren't cracking down hard on him at all like how humans did when family was with family but still something was holding her back right now from leaning forward and closing the space. But Wolfram's ice blue irises were light, letting her see the clear lines of his irises and the dark blue rings, outer and around his pupil, his blonde hair falling in loose curls now and his pale skin looked like it might be soft and she watched his lips part lightly. Cousin. She tried holding onto the word, on the connection but it was being lost quickly and she was scared, the fear gnawing in her stomach as her heart beat quicker against her ribs as her head moved forward and her lashes fluttered shut as fear but some other emotion rushed through her veins. She knew, if she let this happen, there'd be absolutely no going back to regular cousins.
And yet that wasn't even enough to pull her back from him as she held perfectly still, like she'd been carved out of ice, when lips brushed hers lightly and she held her breath when Wolfram pulled away slightly then leaned in again pressing his lips firmly against her own when fingers lightly touched the back of her neck lightly under her hair. She inhaled long through her nose when her left hand raised, fingers lightly grazing his forearm as she then gripped his shirt sleeve as she moved her lips against Wolfram's feeling older even for a split second. Of course, being a year old wasn't that different but still the year difference between her being fourteen and him thirteen made her feel a little superior. She pulled back just a bit to take a small, grounding breath and heard him do the same when she leaned back in gripping his shirt sleeve tightly still as her cheeks burned and she heard loud approaching footsteps and tsking making her jerk back, cheeks flaming hotly as her eyes snapped opened with shock and she was aware of how this look to her smirking older sister. She'd moved closer to Wolfram, so only inches maybe separated them and with her head so close to his it was impossible not to know what they were doing and Astrid watched panic flash across her little sister's violet irises as wisps of brown bangs fell against her cheek. She opened her mouth when she raised her hand at the brunette stopping any words and smiled then instead of smirking.
"Chill. I von't tell anyone." Astrid then grinned at her sister happily and moved her fingers through her fluffy silver hair, ruby eyes sparkling making Mia marvel at her elder sister. She truly was the female version of their father and it was never more fitting to see her like that and it made her heart warm for a moment as she relaxed slowly and watched Wolfram do the same. "Hell, I figured this kind of thing would happen eventually. Especially when Wolfram here went from liking Giovanni to you, I figured it was only a matter of time for it to happen. I'd wait until you were a little older before letting other's now though, especially our parents."
"Don't worry about it then!" Mia couldn't help the snap in her voice as Astrid blinked, losing her smile and good humor then sighed the only way a sixteen year old could making Mia blink. At least until the front door opened audibly and Astrid looked towards the sound then beamed brightly with a light that was just a little surprising as the silver haired teen rushed to the door laughing happily. Astrid happily left her younger sister back to do whatever she wanted with Wolfram and focused now instead on herself rather than any little drama her Vater had with Miss Hungary and their "accident" child that came over to play with her little brother but she actually enjoyed seeing Réka when she came over.
But right now wasn't about that. Or at least she didn't think so as she watched the door shut behind an all too familiar person. "Tatiana!" Astrid cheerfully called the girl's name despite her being right there and she smiled softly at the silver haired girl. Astrid felt her heart bouncing around her chest at the sight of the Braginsky girl she'd known all her life and she gestured o the stairs. "Ready to go upstairs and study? Or do you wanna just hang out?"
"We can always do both, Ast." Tatiana replied softly, even toned, making Astrid strangely blush aware of her sister's curious eyes on her even through the wall when she gestured to the stairs again. "Let's go. I know you're room by the back of my hand, so much so it's like my own room! You'll have to come over to my house again sometime." The teen girls turned to the stairs, walking up the stair case when Astrid squeaked at the warmth sliding into her hand. She felt her cheeks burn hotter when she looked down seeing her hand in Tatiana's then looked up, face burning and her feet pausing just two steps shy of the top and Tatiana looked down at her merely raising a brow and Astrid rushed up the stairs.
With her hand in Tatiana's she had no clue what to say and it made her feel very awkward as, being her father's daughter, babbling and loud conversations were never hard for her but right now she couldn't think of a good thing to say. At least not while holding Tatiana's hand that is. Now, this wasn't a simple crush that popped up out of nowhere, Astrid -for as long as she could seriously remember- she had been crushing on Tatiana forever now and she had to admit by age eleven when she should be liking boys, pretending to "fall in love" with said boys she had been wondering when she'd see Tatiana again. She always wondered when, how, why and if she would and when she did her heart did back flips like it seemed to be doing now in her chest and though she was only sixteen and she had a very long life expectancy as told by her parents, she was sure that she was most definitely on the edge of falling in love with this Russian Lithuanian girl. She took a deep breath under said breath when she entered her bedroom with Tatiana and she felt immediately self conscious and aware when the door shut softly.
"Wow, you're room is ten times cleaner than I'd ever imagined it being." Tatiana marveled at the room which was so clean she swore an army had been in and cleaned up the whole place, it was immaculate! Astrid was aware of the way the beige haired girl's green eyes rolled over the room and she hesitantly sat on her bed picking up her school bag from where she'd plopped it the moment she got home.
"Um, vant to start the homevork?" Astrid asked rather awkwardly when Tatiana sat on the other side and as Astrid was leaning down to lay out her binder she gasped at the hand that grabbed her white button up shirt yanking her to the right. She was planted on her back when Tatiana moving to sit on top of her, hands finding Astrid's and their fingers intertwining making Astrid's face erupt in red. "T-T-Tatiana! Vha-Vhat are you doing?" She couldn't help the stuttered question from leaving her lips when she stared up at green irises glowing down at her mischievously making her heart pound against her chest when she shifted.
"I like you, Astrid. You know it and I know it, so why don't we just take the plunge we both know we're on the edge of." Tatiana softly murmured staring at Astrid's wide ruby irises and admired the way her short hair still managed to flop away from her face. It didn't take much to imagine if Astrid had long hair how it'd bed splayed under her head in long silver ribbons and she nearly sighed at the image that filled her head. But she quite loved Astrid's short hair anyhow, remembering rather vividly of when the were little how long Astrid's hair had been and how unhappy she'd been with it's length. She shook herself mentally away from memories and stared down at the silver haired female. She moved one of her hands from Astrid's and lightly stroked her thumb against her pin bottom lip. "What do you say, Ast? I really would like to take that step, if you think you can handle me that is."
Astrid was wordless, in the best way possible, as her lower lip trembled lightly against the thumb stroking it softly as she tried to breath quietly over the slamming of her heart against her ribs. She squeezed Tatiana's hand softly as she took a deep breath nodding. Slowly once. Then quicker. "Ja! I-I think I can handle you!" She got out breathlessly when Tatiana leaned down pressing her lips firmly but gently against Astrid's happily. The silver haired female let her eyes flutter shut only to slid her hands into beige hair that was surprisingly smooth and silky when she blushed as the still, single kiss turned into more kisses that continued on until her head swam and her lungs begged for air and she pulled away. "Wow."
"Wow, yeah." Tatiana echoed when her green eyes widened a touch before she grinned sitting up off the sixteen year old and blushed a soft pink when she pressed her fingers to her lips softly before looking at Astrid with a new light in her eyes. "So, let me ask it now. Astrid Gretchen Beilschmidt, will you please please go out with this poor sad bisexual fifteen year old?"
Astrid couldn't help soft giggles that spilled out of her lips when she sat up, that same light must bee in her eyes for Tatiana's smile grew wide. "Of course I vill go out vith you, Tatiana Katya Braginsky. Said by this annoyingly loud sixteen year old lesbian." Astrid replied happily when she was tackled into the bed with loud squeals from both girls when there came soft knocks on her door. "Sup?"
"I just vanted to let you know that Réka is here und vould love to see her older sister!" Austria called through the door making Astrid blush at the sound of her mother's voice but nodded at Tatiana who released her and Astrid jumped off the bed. She rushed to the door yanking it open startling the aristocrat nation who then smiled after a moment as he stared at his sixteen year old. She walked down the hall with him when she felt his hand on her head when they reached the top of the stairs. "Look at my little girl. So grown up."
"I'm not that grown up, Mutter!" Astrid giggled the words out when she was squished into a tight hug by the brunette who rubbed his cheek into her hair, which was fluffy and soft and inhaled the soft sweet scent he'd memorized from the moment she was born and she inhaled in his own scent. It was light and airy, like the air outside before it snowed bu also like a fire and it was he best smell on the world. She giggled into his chest when he pulled away staring at her and she wondered how she could ever be so lucky as to have a mother like him, even if he was male and he was decades years old along with her father, she was happy.
"Schwester!" Astrid looked down the stairs only to thump down them quickly jumping off the third step making Austria scowl when Astrid scooped up the five year old silver haired child. She shrieked with joy while spinning Réka around making her green irises glow with joy when they finally stopped then Astrid hugged her half sister to her chest tightly nuzzling her long silver hair. Astrid sighed for a moment, a tiny burst of longing hitting her out of nowhere. She wondered, for a second with that longing, what her and Tatiana could create, child wise and she could easily see this child, Réka, being the exact image in her mind when she thought of a child appearing because of Astrid and Tatiana.
"Have you been good for Vati?" Astrid cooed placing the five year old on her hip happily while the silver haired girl giggled, green eyes glowing still, and she stroked her silky soft cheek which was flushed and sighed. She swore she loved her little half sister more than anything just like she'd loved Mia when they were younger but, because they were younger and close in age, she couldn't truly appreciate the benefits of having a little sister. Then Wilhelm and Fritz tore in, both staring up at her then the little girl in her arms, and Wilhelm, along with Fritz, both held their own arms up and open for her to pick up and she paused before deciding on Wilhelm since the child was younger. His violet eyes shimmered with joy and Fritz attached himself to her leg, dark hair and Mariazell barely brushing her hip yet and his ruby eyes were just as pouty as the rest of his face and she sighed softly hearing Mia in the living room with Giovanni. Ahh, it seems younger siblings and a new girlfriend seem to make everything just a bit more acceptable in the rather loud house.