Ludwig sighed and continued to face you. He pushed back his messy hair and took in a large breath of air.

"You have trusted me so much zhese past few days." Ludwig shifted as he spoke, holding onto each word as if it was his last. "It iz very hard to find good people like you, very hard to find ones that trust you. I haven't been totally honest about my background... My history..." Ludwig's eyes darted between you and the night sky. As he spoke, he continued to stroke his messy hair back into its usual slicked back style.

"W-What do you mean?" You asked cautiously.

"Since you took a leap of faith vith me, I suppose I should take a leap of faith vith you, Ludwig sighed. "I never had a parent trapped on zhe ozher side of zhe Berlin Wall. I actually never had parents to begin vith. In truth, mein Bruder Gilbert vas zhe one taken avay by zhe Soviet Union."

"I-I don't understand. Do-Do you just not know y-your parents? N-Never met them perhaps?" You asked as you fumbled your words. You weren't nervous, but you were having a hard time understanding what Ludwig was trying to say.

Ludwig looked at you and sighed, he no longer could continue to beat around the bush. "Have you every heard of somezhing... or someone called 'Country Personifications'?"

Your eyes lighted up as Ludwig spoke. "A little maybe," you said, questioning your own thoughts. "I know it's some type of conspiracy theory that's been floating around ever since the Second World War. Some people call it the new Illuminati while others just write it off as another 'Flat Earther situation'."

Ludwig slightly chuckled at your response. "Ja I vish ve vere just a Flat Earth Conspiracy."

"What do you mean 'we'?" You narrowed your eyes in curiosity.

"Vell... _ let me formally introduce myself as zhe personification of Germany. Ludwig Beilschmidt is still a name I use vhen talking with non-personifications and sometimes even Prussia." Ludwig's tone was full of sincerity and desperation. He was unsure if you were going to believe him.

"Germany... Prussia... wait... Gilbert is Prussia?!" You we're still completely in shock by this sudden information Ludwig dumped on you.

"Ja... mein older Bruder Prussia. He kinda helped make my country whole..." Ludwig eyes became glossy as he said this. His eyes looked down searching for answers from the cracks in the wood.

"Older Brother? What? That's the most unbelievable thing you said. There is not way Gilbert is older than you!" You chuckled a little in an attempt to lighten the mood. You assumed Ludwig was the older brother because he was far more mature and serious. Compared to Gilbert, he was well organized and never boasted.

"Ja... Gilbert has his ups and downs. Prussia is really no longer a state but he is essential to zhe pride and formation of zhe German Republic." Ludwig winced as he spoke. He was clearly uncomfortable talking about his history. You understood why, regarding everything you learned in school, but turning history into actual immortal memories can take a toll on anyone, even on countries.

"Oh... I see.." You weren't exactly convinced about what Ludwig was telling you, but you felt his since of dread and sincerity. It must have taken him a lot of trust to talk about this with me, you thought.

"I understand if you don't believe me, I know it sounds completely ridiculous. I shouldn't even be telling you zhis in the first place, it can get me or you in a lot of danger. Only a few people outside of zhe personifications themselves actually know our true identities. However, since ve are going to be in this god awful var for a vhile, I var to tell you zhe truth." Ludwig eyes relaxed and he looked up to your face. "You're a good person _ and I want to protect good people like you." He stopped for a second before his face flushed a bright pink. "Plus... I like talking vith you. It helps me... stay grounded."

You blushed a little at his thoughtful remark, but your eyes fell as you understood the impact of Ludwig's situation. That was probably why Ludwig always seemed so lonely, you thought to yourself. He had a dark and horrific past that he wasn't even allowed to discuss with anyone. He probably came up with the fake story of his parents in order to hide his emotions, and who he truly was. You genuinely felt sorry for him. He had been trapped in loneliness for centuries. Trapped in his own thoughts and memories without anyone to talk to.

A few tears built up in your eyes. You reached over and hugged Ludwig into a tight embrace. He wasn't crying or speaking but you could tell a massive weight fell off his shoulder. He was no longer restrained to keeping everything to himself. Even if it was just a random volunteer girl he met a few days ago, he finally had someone to share his struggles with. Someone he trusted enough with his whole life story.

"I-I won't lie Ludwig... I'm not sure I can even comprehend all of this. I mean, whole countries being represented by people. What if you are killed? How are you still a 20-years-old? Do you die if everyone in your country dies? What if you are taken over by another-" Ludwig cuts you off by pushing a finger against your lips.

"Shhhhh... Don't get yourzelf all wrapped up in it now. To be honest we don't know all zhe answers ourselves." Ludwig sighed as he relaxed his shoulders. He laid back down on the stiff wood, his eyes facing up to the starry night. "I don't expect you to believe me, but I hope you can come to trust me as much as I trust you. Tomorrow at zhe meeting ve vill be meeting more personifications. Zhe meeting was specifically made for many of us to meet and discuss zhis war. Zhey can probably answer your questions better than I can."

The wood creaked as Ludwig rolled to his side to see your face against the wood. "But I vant you to be safe. Vhen ve get to Italy tomorrow, try to stay as close to me as you can. Once personifications from zhe EEF or other threatening countries find out who you are, zhey vill stop at nothing to destroy you. Personifications are highly dangerous vhen provoked so try not to make anyone upset, and remember, stay close to me. I have a much better shot of keeping us both safe from zhe violent countries if ve stick together."

"Of course, you are way more experienced in combat than me anyways," you yawned out. You were starting to doze off on the wooden platform. You could faintly hear Ludwig mumble something back at you as your eyelids fell. You felt you could rest easier now that you had someone you trusted near you. It was a invisible warmth that flowed over you and allowed you to drift soundly asleep.

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The next morning you woke up on an unfamiliar bed. Where the hell am I? You thought to yourself as you sat up. For some reason the pine and earthy scent was very familiar to you. You swore you remembered it from somewhere but just assumed it was from being the forest so long.

Speaking of the forest, how did I get from the middle of the woods to here? You asked yourself. You thought that it might have been a dream but shook it off immediately.

I definitely was in the forest last night, you thought to yourself, noticing dirt up your boots and a few pine needles in your hair. You brushed them off immediately and stood up to stretch. No one else was in the room but there was a bed across from the one you slept in. It almost felt as if you had been in this bedroom before, but before you continued to explore, Gilbert popped in.

His eyes met yours as he scoffed. "Hope you had a vell nights rest princess. Ludwig vants you to meet him at zhe airfield. Ve are leaving fur Italy very soon." Gilbert was clearly annoyed by you but you followed him out of the room. As you entered a paper-littered room, you realized the room you slept in was Ludwig's and Gilbert's.

"I-I'm sorry if I disturbed you last n-night," you asked out of embarrassment for sleeping in their room. You didn't even remember how you ended up in their room last night.

"Tch- Ja vell Ludwig actually carried you back to our room last night. He said something about you falling asleep in zhe forest. Ludwig doesn't sleep much anymore and I was busy getting together a plane for our flight," Gilbert looked away for a second before continuing, "You didn't bother us too much, your boyfriend is much happier zhat you vere getting a good nights rest though." With that Gilbert ran away snickering with a massive grin plastered on his face.

"HEY! Gilbert Ludwig isn't-" you cut yourself off. He was already to far away to hear you. As you walked to the small runway strip you remembered that you fell asleep on a platform in the forest. That's right, Ludwig told me all about the 'Country Personifications'. I'll have to ask him some more about that on the plane, you thought to yourself.

When you reached the airfield, Ludwig and Roderich were already there standing just outside the plane. Roderich was carrying what seemed to be a violin case. He saw you first and waved you over with a slight welcoming smile.

"Guten Morgen _! I hope you rested vell last night, ve have a long day ahead of us," Roderich said mockingly. He looked over to Ludwig, whose face was a crimson red. Roderich then turned around sassily while placing his hand on his hip. He snickered out a overdramatic 'Tschüss' and walked away towards the plane.

"Damn Roderich, always got to be a drama-" Ludwig mumbled to himself in German. You walked up to him and cut him off by removing a pine needle that stuck out of his hair. Ludwig was much taller than you, so you had a hard time reaching up to it. Luckily, Ludwig saw what you were doing and bent down to your height.

"Sorry I'm so short, I just saw the pine needle in your hair and thought I'd take it out," you laughed out. "I'm assuming you didn't get much sleep last night?" Ludwig's hair was still ruffled compared to its normal slick back composure. He also had dark bags under his bloodshot eyes.

"Nein, like I said last night, I can't seem to get any sleep anymore. You fell asleep on zhe wooden deck so I brought you to mein room, zhe bed is much more comfortable zhere. It seems I still have to fix mein hair before ve leave though," Ludwig said blushing intensely. "A-Also I zhink your height is perfect. I-It's very c-cute." Ludwig rubbed the back of his head as your face lighted up. Ludwig never said something so sweet to you before. You were about to thank him, but he already ran up to meet Roderich at the plane. You decided to head back to the refugee camp to gather your belongings for the trip.

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You, Ludwig, Gilbert, and Roderich all boarded a large grey military plane. During the plane ride, Ludwig answered a few questions you had about the meeting and country personifications. It was all still incredibly confusing to you but you wanted to understand. You wanted to build more trust between you and Ludwig.

"Mr. Jones is the personification of America?" You knew he was always loud and obnoxious when you saw him so you didn't expect him to be responsible enough to keep a secret like that. "I mean it does makes since. The few times I've seen him he's always said the word 'hero' or laughed obnoxiously loud while he chomped down a hamburger."

Ludwig chuckled a little at your remark. I'm starting to love his laugh, you thought, wait, love? You thought about your word choice of 'love' but brushed it off as a side affect of your increasing sleep deprivation.

"Alfred F. Jones...America, ve veren't always on zhe same team but I'm glad zhat ve are allies now. Even if I have to put up vith his constant whining and bossy behavior," Ludwig stated as he looked out the small window. Whenever he talked about his past he would avoid showing his face. He would stay silent for a while, contemplating deeply as he stared out, away from you. Eventually, he would just change the subject.

Looking out the window, the plane zipped past the immense Alpine ridge. Every once and a while you could spot a village on the side of a mountain, or a lake at the bottom of a valley. The war hadn't reach this side of the Alps yet, so the beauty and nature was preserved perfectly.

As the plane started to descend, you could spot a few Italian farms in the rolling countryside. The sun was directly above your head, without a cloud in the sky. The long Italian fields reminded you of all the wonderful times you had with Elena. She would have loved watching all this beauty rush by, you thought to yourself. You knew going to Italy was going to be mentally stressful. You made a lot of great memories with Elena here before you were sent off into the war.

Upon landing in Rome, you spotted a few other planes from different countries. A Spanish and Portuguese plane was taxing in front of you, while a Japanese plane sat off near the ramp. As you scanned the area you noticed you were approaching a plane from Lithuania. Your heart started to race a you remembered that they were a well formed member of the EEF. Although the people greatly opposed Lithuania joining the EEF, their authoritarian leader pushed their application through. You remembered watching the devastation on the TV of Russia announcing Lithuania as the newest member of the EEF. Not a single civilian smiled, cheered, or even looked up from their depressing face that stared at the ground.

It wasn't like they could retaliate anyways. Authoritarian and Totalitarian dictators flooded the eastern block up to the formation of the EEF. Many of them were highly oppressive to their citizens. Music, art, literature, and other creative mediums were either suppressed or censored. Media outlets were pulled each day, leaving only the opinions in favor of the dictators airing on television. In public people were beaten, arrested, or even killed for protesting against the new EEF regime. It was an atrocity that the world had experienced far too many times.

You followed Ludwig out of the aircraft, staying close to him as he instructed earlier. He was wearing a navy blue suit with a small German pin attached to his tie. If the pin he wore didn't give away that he was German, the iron cross he wore definitely did.

The air in Italy was a lot sweeter than Germany. It was also warmer leaving you with a slight sweat on your forehead. You didn't mind the heat at all but you much preferred the crisp winds in Bavaria.

A cream colored cat ran past your legs as you took in all the new smells and sights. You leaned down to your knees to give it a pet. "Oh hello there little kitty," you said softly as the cat ran away from you in a hurry. He seemed to be running from something but you couldn't tell what.

As you stood back up, someone ran right into your forehead, causing you to fall to the ground. You sat up holding your head out of the pain. As you looked, up you saw a man with short brown hair run up to you and immediately lift you up. He wore a blue suit with a black bow tie. Strangely enough, he had a long curly strand of hair that sticked out of his head. You assumed he was Italian as he had an Italian pin on his suit. He was extremely flustered, moving his hands around and bobbing his head up and down.

"Ve~ I-ma so sorry for running into you Bella," the Italian man said apologetically.