Author: MercurialLily
Fandom: Hetalia
Title: Iris
Rating: T
Pairing: None
October 6, 1993, Warsaw
Before Katya could go on, the woman named Elizabeta stuck her thumb at Natalya and demanded, "Why is she in Viktoria's seat?" Her voice was sharp and bitter, as though Natalya had done something wrong. She also had an interesting accent.
"We've been over this," Katya responded coolly. "We needed to replace Viktoria, and this is who we found."
"It's too soon."
"I'm really sorry," Natalya piped up. "I can change seats if you want me to."
"No," Katya said bluntly. "That's your seat from now on." She looked at the others. "Would you care to properly introduce yourselves to Natalya?"
"Ooh!" The one named Alfred thrust his hand into the air.
"Yes, you can go first, Alfred."
"Okay, cool." Alfred leaned back in his chair so he could see Natalya. "Hi! My name's Alfred. I'm from New York. So yeah, I'm American. I'm pretty new here, like you. Nice to meet you!"
"...Nice to meet you, too," Natalya said. He's American? His Russian's pretty good... Interesting.
The dark-haired man beside Alfred nodded in Natalya's direction. "Hello. My name is Kiku Honda," he said. His voice was soft and self-conscious. "I come from Japan. It is a pleasure to meet you." Natalya noted that his manner of speaking was very formal.
Elizabeta gave Natalya a sidelong glance. "Elizabeta Héderváry, from Budapest. I've been a part of this team for three years. I hope you know that this isn't an easy job."
"Thank you, Eliza, for being so optimistic," Katya said. To Natalya she said, "Yes, this job can be quite difficult, but that shouldn't discourage you. Your training will be very thorough and precise. I know you'll find something enjoyable during your time here."
"What sorts of things will I be trained in?" Natalya asked.
Katya didn't have time to respond, as the doors to the conference room were thrown open and two men of average height walked in. One was blonde and round-faced; the other had reddish-blonde hair and a slight grin. The blonde one had a long gun slung over his shoulder, which he deposited onto the table. He exchanged a few words with the one called Eduard, who by now had looked up. Eduard quickly wrote something down and passed the paper to Katya. Katya nodded and set the paper aside. Then she looked at Natalya and said, "Please meet Tino and Vladimir. They are also part of our team."
"Are you our new member? Nice to meet you! I'm Tino Väinämöinen," the blonde said. He held out his hand, and Natalya hesitantly shook it.
"Tino came to us from the Finnish military," Katya explained. "He had a confirmed sixty-eight kills during his service."
Tino shook his head and sat down. "Don't go around thinking that's a lot. I worked with others who logged many more kills than I did," he said.
Natalya was about to ask something, but she was interrupted by Vladimir saying to Katya, "What, you don't have an interesting fact about me?"
"Don't worry," Katya said. "Natalya, do you remember the revolution in Romania four years ago? Vladimir witnessed it first-hand."
Natalya's curiosity was piqued. "Really?" she asked.
Vladimir nodded. "I was a sixteen-year-old kid who was constantly getting in trouble, so I fit right in," he said. "It was a hectic ten days, but we succeeded."
"We're getting off topic. Everyone, if I could have your attention, please." Katya cleared her throat. She glanced at the watch on her wrist. "It's getting late. I imagine you're tired, Natalya. We'll reconvene tomorrow morning. Until then, Elizabeta will be taking care of you."
This obviously came as a shock to Elizabeta, as she opened her mouth to speak, but was quickly silenced by a wave of Katya's hand. She gave a quiet sigh of annoyance and looked away.
"New assignments will also be distributed tomorrow," Katya continued as she stood up. "And please remember that the shooting range does not open until eight." She said this with a pointed glance in Alfred's direction. Alfred, however, seemed unaware that the comment was addressing him.
After a brief pause, the others got up from their seats and made their ways out of the conference room. Natalya also stood up, unsure of where she was supposed to go. Elizabeta, who hadn't left yet, made a soft noise and said, "Come on, I'll show you to the dorms. Since Katya said I'll be looking after you, I imagine that means we're roommates now." Without giving Natalya a chance to respond, she turned on her heel and strode out of the room. Natalya followed her. For some time, the only sound was their footsteps through the hall.
The dorms were on the second floor near the back of the building. Elizabeta opened the third door on the right. She entered the room and gestured for Natalya to do the same. Taking a deep breath, Natalya followed Elizabeta into the room.
It was a relatively small room, with beige walls and hardwood floor. There were two beds on either side of the room, a table between them. Both beds were neatly made. A picture frame and a black phone sat on the table. A chest of drawers was against the wall by the door. A window on the far wall likely overlooked the back of the compound. Natalya moved toward it. She heard the door close behind her and, seconds later, a quiet click. She stopped walking and turned around, but she already knew what to expect.
Elizabeta was pointing her gun right at Natalya, a fierce expression on her face.
Natalya rolled her eyes. "Are you serious?" she said. "This is the third time today I've been threatened with a gun. It's starting to get old."
"Who are you?" Elizabeta demanded.
"I'm sorry?"
"Who are you? Why did they bring you here?" Elizabeta stepped closer. Instinctively, Natalya took a step back.
"What could you possibly want to know about me?" Natalya asked.
"Anything," Elizabeta replied sharply. "I don't care. Start talking."
"Okay. Hi, nice to meet you, I'm Natalya Arlovskaya," Natalya said, crossing her arms. "I'm from Minsk. My parents died when I was six. I'm seventeen now. I'm a pickpocket and occasional drug dealer and prostitute. My life is hell. Earlier today, two of your so-called team members kidnapped me and dragged me here." As she spoke, she began to notice that Elizabeta's expression was one of fear rather than of anger. She wondered why that was. "Look, could you just put the gun down? It's making me really uncomfortable."
It took a minute, but Elizabeta slowly lowered her gun. Instead of holstering it, she approached the bed on the right and sat down. She ejected the magazine and set the items at her side. Then she looked up at Natalya and said, "I'm sorry for...overreacting like that. I get anxious sometimes."
Taking this as an invitation, Natalya went to the other bed. As she sat down, she took a look at the picture on the table. It showed Elizabeta along with two other people, a man and a woman. The date on the picture was two years earlier. Elizabeta and the man were both smiling broadly, while the woman's smile was much subtler. Natalya didn't recognize the background.
Elizabeta noticed Natalya's interest in the picture. "Friends," she explained. "Fellow agents. He lives in Germany and she's...no longer with us."
"Oh." Natalya looked at Elizabeta. "Why don't you tell me about yourself? You said you're from Budapest?"
"That's right," Elizabeta said with a nod. "My father's a doctor, so I had a pretty good childhood. Both of my parents expected me to go to university and get a good job, but I dropped out after about three months." She looked up at the ceiling. "That's when I joined the Agency. Voluntarily, actually. I'd heard about it through some back channels, so naturally I was curious. In order to join, I had to completely sever all ties with my life in Budapest. And now my family thinks I'm dead." She sighed and went on in a quiet voice, "Katya said that was the only way to do it. That way they wouldn't come looking for me. You're lucky, in a sense, being an orphan. You have no connections to anyone."
This comment bothered Natalya, but she didn't say anything. Elizabeta was right, after all.
"Anyway, I bet you're tired, right? Try to get some sleep." Elizabeta put her gun on the table and reached for the phone. "I have to make a call. I'll try not to be too loud."
"All right. Uh, good night, I guess," Natalya said. She slowly lay down on the firm mattress. The feeling was entirely foreign to her. She was so used to sleeping in cold alleys and in doorways, her head resting on the hard concrete ground. The bed smelled clean and fresh, and it was wonderfully warm. She smiled and pulled the blanket over herself.
She rolled onto her side and closed her eyes. She heard Elizabeta murmuring softly into the phone in German, the occasional laugh escaping her lips. With a contended sigh, Natalya drifted off to sleep.
A/N: I really hope you're enjoying this story. If you have any questions about anything, feel free to ask! There are certain things I can't answer because they will be revealed later on, but I will answer anything else. Thanks for reading!