England noticed a flash come from the window. He looked up and realized that the rain had turned into a thunder storm. He was glad that he was on dry land for once and not out on the sea. The stormy seas were no safe place for any vessel.
The door to England's study opened a bit. England looked up to see Canada, wide eyed in fear. "Um…" the younger nation said timidly.
"What's wrong? I thought you were in bed," England said in a slightly chiding manner.
"Well…" There was another crack of lightning and Canada ran to England, clinging onto his leg. Little Canada started crying, burying his tears on England's trousers.
England closed his book and scooped up the scared Canada. "Shh," he said kindly, trying to get Canada to calm down, "It's just a bit of thunder. Nothing to be worried about."
"B…b…but it's sssssso loud. Lo…louder than Ammmerica is."
"Be sure not to mention that to him, because he'll take that as a challenge. And neither you or I would ever hear the end of it."
Canada nodded, and sniffed. England took him back to his room. America was up as well, sitting on his bed holding his pillow. He was looking determined, which made England worried that something was about to go horribly wrong.
"And why are you up?" England asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Canada woke me up," America said, pointing an accusing finger at Canada.
Canada looked horrified by the accusation. "D…did not."
"Did to."
"Did not."
"Did to."
"Did not."
"Di-"
"CRASH!" There was a flash of lighting immediately accompanied by the thunder. Canada buried his face into England's shoulder and America yelped. England sat down on America's bed and put a hand out for the little nation. America came over and let his elder hold him. England did have to admit that last one even startled him a bit since it was so close. He rocked back and forth on the bed, and started singing quietly to calm his little ones.
"Little child, be not afraid
The rain pounds harsh against the glass
Like an unwanted stranger
There is no danger
I am here tonight
Little child
Be not afraid
Though thunder explodes
And lightning flash
Illuminates your tear-stained face
I am here tonight
And someday you'll know
That nature is so
This same rain that draws you near me
Falls on rivers and land
And forests and sand
Makes the beautiful world that you see
In the morning."
He put America and Canada back in their respective beds as he sang once he knew that they weren't clutching onto him for dear life. Canada had fallen back asleep; America was still awake, but it was obvious he was on the boarder of consciousness. The storm seemed to be calming down, which was a relief for England.
"Little child
Be not afraid
The storm clouds mask your beloved moon
And its candlelight beams
Still keep pleasant dreams
I am here tonight
Little child
Be not afraid
The wind makes creatures of our trees"
England glanced at the window, where the storm was still clearly visible to the occupants of the room. He walked over there and pulled the blinds closed so that, in case the lightning came back, the little ones wouldn't see it.
"And the branches to hands
They're not real, understand"
Which he said more to the comfort of the children than what was really true. Sometimes, the creatures most people would deem as fiction were real; not in the case for that day, but sometimes they were and they even scared England.
"And I am here tonight
And someday you'll know
That nature is so
This same rain that draws you near me
Falls on rivers and land
And forest and sand
Makes the beautiful world that you see
In the morning"
He kissed Canada and America on the forehead as a goodnight gesture and headed to the door to leave.
"England?" America asked quietly.
"Hm?" England tried not to groan. He was hoping America had fallen asleep again.
America had sat up and was looking at England with questioning eyes. "Why does the sky do that? All the lights and sound?"
England came back to America's bed. "It's because someone told a really good joke up in heaven and God is laughing."
"Does he have to sound so mean doing that?" America asked, not buying it at all.
England glanced up at the ceiling for a moment. "I guess not."
"Come on, what's the real reason? I'm not a kid, you know."
"Oh, really?" England asked amused. Once again, America had that determined look on his face, which made his statement all the more amusing. England sometimes forgot that America wasn't the five year old his physical appearance and personality suggested he was. "It's… just something that happens when it rains really hard."
"But couldn't it just rain lightly? I like it better when it does that. Then I can play outside."
"Not all the time. Sometimes it does have to rain really hard. That's how the plants grow and the rivers don't dry up. Now go to sleep."
"Can we go out and explore tomorrow? Maybe one of trees got struck by the lightning."
England highly doubted it. "Only if you go to sleep."
America lay back down on the bed and England got up to leave the room. When he opened the door, Taliesin was there. He ran over to America and curled up beside him. America reached out to the dragon and held the creature close to him like a teddy bear. England went back downstairs, where Wales was standing by the fireside looking very wet.
"Did you have to travel in that?" England asked.
"Yes, I did," Wales said, taking off his cloak, "There's trouble coming. You're needed in the government."
"Who is it this time?"
"France."
England groaned, "Of course the frog… How long until I have to be there?"
Wales raised an eyebrow, "Why do you ask?"
"I promised America we'd do something together tomorrow."
"…As long as you ride out by week's end, you should be fine." Wales sighed as he collapsed into a nearby chair. "I'll be glad once long-distance communications are invented," he stated wearily.
"Is this from one of your visions?" England asked.
"Yes, it's an odd device; it sends out messages through taps. I'm not sure how it works and it won't come until a long time from now."
England shook his head and sat down in a chair beside Wales. "Your visions are the strangest things."
"But they have come in handy on many occasions. And will continue to do so." Wales glanced at the doorway to the room. "Where are the little ones?"
"In bed, or they should be," England quickly turned around, half expecting America to be in the doorway of the room. Thankfully, he wasn't.
"I only ask because there was something else I saw, dealing with them."
"Both of them?"
Wales nodded. "Nothing anytime soon, but they will be at war with each other. I'm not sure why, though. I only ask for you to be careful when they get older."
"They won't be at war with each other. They are with me."
"One day, they won't." England gave Wales a scowl. "Or they might not," Wales added in, rolling his eyes, "But… you know nothing lasts forever, right?"
England looked out of the window. "Surely, I'd be dead when they go to war on each other." The rain continued to pour.
88888
It bothered England that there hadn't been any change in his condition. That he couldn't break free of the fog plaguing his head. It was aggravating. He did this to himself. This was all his fault. 'So why the bloody hell did I go through with this? Surely, I knew that this would have happened?' What was the drug?
"You are a very tense person," Spain said, joining England at the railing.
"And you are too easy going," England retorted back, "How are you not concerned that his could be permanent?"
"You take life one day at a time. That's how I got here."
"And you have no regrets?"
Spain didn't answer with some deep profound knowledge. That surprised England. What surprised him even more was Spain's answer. "I do have regrets. There are things I know I could have done better. People who I should have been better towards. But, what is the point when all is said and the damage has been done?"
England could feel that deep within him. There was so much that he had done, people he had wronged, and lives he had changed for better or worse. "Time moves forward… all we can do is move along with it…" He knew he should take his own advice.
"We are nations. You'd think that we would know how to do this by now."
"You'd think," England agreed.
Author's Note: The song in this chapter is "Lullaby For A Stormy Night" by Vienna Teng.