Chapter 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia
Big thanks to Krasavitsa and Guest for pointing my mistakes. Here's the second chapter, and again- how I depict the Romanovs aren't entirely accurate so don't take my word for their real life personalities. I hope you guys like it, read on!
Italics in quotations, "" mean that they speaker isn't speaking in English.
"Alfred, for the love of maple- would you just listen!"
The table breakfast table rattled when Matthew hit the wooden surface in an attempt to stop his brother's angry rant. The American refused to be placated and angrily shoved several pieces of bacon into his mouth and took a vicious bite from his helpless blueberry muffin.
"Bro, if that commie ever seduces you ever again just give me a holler. I'll rescue you." Alfred said with a mouthful of breakfast.
Matthew was speechless, he was a bit insulted that Alfred didn't think he could fend for himself- but he was also mildly impressed that his brother could speak without spraying chunks of bacon all over the place.
"Don't speak with your mouth full Al, and for the last time, we didn't have sex." Matthew said in a lower voice and shoved a pancake into his mouth. Alfred rolled his eyes that scarfed down his scrambled eggs.
"Sure." He said, clearly unconvinced.
Alfred decided to change the topic of conversation towards Arthur and relentlessly complained about how mean the older nation was to him.
Matthew was content to let his brother talk about anything other than his night with Ivan, and their morning would've probably passed rather peacefully if Ivan hadn't come in with Kumajiro.
"Hungry." The bear proudly declared atop of Ivan's shoulders.
The breakfast workers tried to stop Ivan from entering with Kumajiro and pointed to the "no pets" sign. Ivan feigned ignorance and innocently replied in perfectly articulated Russian and emitted an aura that screamed 'fuck off'.
The workers shrunk back and helplessly looked at each other and tried speaking English a bit slower, but Ivan continued smiling and shrugged.
He said a few mildly offensive Russian words and phrases and expectantly nodded. The workers immediately seemed to agree with him, but continued to hinder him.
Matthew immediately got up from his table when he saw Ivan silently contemplating whether to resolve the matter diplomatically or violently.
"Ivan! Kumajiki!" He greeted his two friends, "I'm sorry, this is my friend, he doesn't speak English very well. Here, I have a permit for Kumajiki… here!" Matthew showed them the bear's identification.
The workers were more than happy to let them pass. Alfred was long gone, obviously not wanting to see Ivan. The Russian grabbed a stack of toast from the buffet and sat down in Alfred's seat while Kumajiro sat on a chair Matthew had pulled up for him and happily munched on some salmon.
"Your brother doesn't want to see me." The nation remarked as he chugged a glass of orange juice.
Matthew shrugged, it couldn't be helped after this morning. "…Are you free today?" Ivan casually asked as he took a bite from his toast.
Matthew perked up and nodded, "I just have a few meetings during the evening." He took pains to make it sound like it was no big deal.
Despite not having slept at all, Matthew was wide awake, and tried to hide his excitement. He must've not hid it very well, because Ivan laughed at him and pushed his empty plate aside and motioned for Matthew to follow him outside.
Puzzled, the Canadian grabbed a napping Kumajiro from his seat and followed the Russian out into the city.
"Waaaah! AAAHHHHH!" Ivan rolled over in his bed and cracked open a tired violet eye.
A stream of moonlight came from the gap of his curtains and illuminated a part of his platinum hair. He patted down the top of his nightstand until his fingers grazed his metal earmuffs. Ivan turned seized the pieces of metal and placed them on his ears.
He blissfully sighed when the crying was reduced to indiscernible blotches of noise and a quiet peace came upon him.
After only living for a mere five months, the little monster of a child possessed a formidable set of lungs. Ivan rolled over in his bed and sleep quickly came to the exhausted nation. A rasp on his door went unnoticed and refused to be awoken.
The knocks came again- more urgent than the last, but Ivan couldn't hear it through his earmuffs. Eventually, Toris' head poked into his room and his nervous green eyes came across a sleeping Ivan.
"I-Ivan. Ivan!" Toris bit his lip when there was no response and took out a small piece of smooth wood used for the sole purpose of waking Ivan tossed it and it traveled in a high arc into the air.
The second it made contact with Ivan, the Russian drew a knife from a hidden sheath under his shirt and he warily surveyed his surroundings until his dangerous purple eyes rested on a familiar set of nervous green eyes.
"Toris, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Ivan smoothly sheathed the weapon and took off his earmuffs. Although he tried to hide it, his speech was laced with sleep and he tiredly sat up in his bed.
"…I'm leaving for my country as we speak. Before I left, the Tsar requested that I send you to his chambers." Toris raised his voice so he could be heard above the screams of the baby.
Ivan scratched his chest and changed his faded grey t-shirt with a newer white one. He slipped on his boots and wrapped his scarf around his neck, "I see. Thank you Toris. I believe it's snowing outside. Be careful not to get stuck."
Ivan walked with Toris along the halls. The smaller nation lightly blushed and ducked his head, "Thank you Ivan, I will be careful." Toris bowed before he ran off to the entrance of the palace.
Ivan didn't spare him another glance and continued to walk towards the deafening cries of Anastasia.
Ivan stood in front of the Tsar's door and debated whether he should actually enter. If he did enter, they would probably want him to do something with the baby. He was a nation, not a nanny- and he doubted he would be able to do anything.
But if he didn't enter, they would probably send someone else to get him and Toris would get in trouble. The Russian resigned himself to his fate and heavily sighed before he rasped his knuckles against the door.
"Come in." Nikolai's strained Russian came from the other side of the door.
Ivan swiftly opened the door and winced when the crying was amplified sevenfold. He quickly closed the door behind him and saw a rather tired looking Alexandra with an irritated and worried Nikolai.
"Why is she crying so much? She's neither hungry nor does her diaper need to be changed. Do you think she's ill?" Nikolai worriedly asked Ivan in English, who calmly approached the screaming baby.
"She is quite the squealer. Perhaps there is nothing to be done, get some earmuffs and all your troubles will be solved." Ivan calmly told the Tsar in Russian, who scowled.
"Ivan!" He growled, obviously not in the mood for jokes.
"I'm not joking. I have already bought a pair." Ivan adjusted his scarf so Nikolai could see his earmuffs around his neck.
Alexandra frowned, "Ivan, that's not very funny." The Empress said a bit moodily.
Indeed, this child had taken its toll on everyone. Ivan apologetically inclined his head and walked over to the queen. He peered at the baby's bright red cheeks and slightly red eyes and frowned. Ivan pressed his right hand against the baby's cheek and was surprised when Anastasia immediately quieted down.
Ivan removed his hand and pressed it against his own cheek.
"I believe little Anastasia is simply overheating. Now that I think about it, this room is a bit too warm." Ivan loosened his scarf and looked for a window to open. Ivan moved to see if he could crack open the windows, but a blast of cold air prompted him to immediately shut them.
"Perhaps if the servants bring in some snow, or maybe if you crack the doors open then it will cool down." Ivan suggested.
After a few minutes of tranquility, Anastasia cried again, but this time it was softer- and it was because her diaper needed to be changed.
"Well isn't that a relief. Thank you, Ivan." Nikolai sighed and flopped down onto his bed as the servants tended to Anastasia.
Ivan sensed that he was being dismissed and bowed his head, "Sleep well, Nikolai, Alexandra." Ivan excused himself and once he got to his room, he planted face down onto his bed.
Being a nation was so troublesome, he had the most experience so he thought it was only logical for him to rule over his people. But, as Arthur had proven, only humans could rule humans. Enemies would attack them on the basis that they weren't 'human' or they weren't compassionate, or had some sort of flaw in their logic or reasoning. Which was absurd and it annoyed the nation.
Ivan tossed his earmuffs aside and took off his boots with a single hand. But the monarchy was the monarchy, and his self imposed duty was to take care of his rulers. He supposed.
Ivan relaxed into his bed and sleep came to him quickly.
Unfortunately, his peace was short lived and was awoken by Anastasia's even louder and more determined screams a scant hour later. Ivan heaved a great sigh and angrily reached for his earmuffs, but was surprised when his hand landed on a head instead. He instantly sat up on his bed and looked down to see Tatiana timidly looking up at him.
"Please make her stop." She softly requested in Russian. As young as she was, she already had tiny bags under her eyes. They were a testimony to the persistence of her little's sisters screams.
Ivan grudgingly put on his boots once again and put on his gloves before reaching out his hand for the little girl to grab.
"You should've stayed in your room." Ivan gently chastised her as they walked along the dim halls of the palace. Tatiana tried to put some distance between her and Ivan.
"I'm sorry. I just wanted to see papa, but Anastasia is so loud. Olga can't sleep either, and I'm really tired." The little princess huffed in a rare show of annoyance as Ivan escorted her back into her shared room with Olga.
Ivan pat the four year old's head and gently pushed her into the room, where Olga was underneath her covers to try and escape the screaming coming from her parents' rooms.
"Can you make the noise stop?" Olga grumbled from underneath the covers. Ivan raised an eyebrow and removed his earmuffs from around his neck.
"I only have one pair."
Tatiana immediately snatched it from his hands and handed it to Olga under her covers. "You can have them Olya. My head is too small." The girl explained before she dove underneath her covers as well.
"Thank you Ivan." Olga placed the large earmuffs over her tiny ears and peacefully slept. Ivan nodded and eyed Tatiana, who was obviously trying to block out her sister's crying with her bedsheets.
He sighed and ran a hand through his platinum hair. Her self-sacrifice shouldn't go unrewarded. Ivan popped back into his room and gave Tatiana one of his pillows so she could cover her head with it.
By the time Ivan had left the nursery, Anastasia's screams intensified to the point where the sleeping guards outside woke up. Ivan walked over to the royal bedroom and rasped his knuckles against their door once again before he entered.
"Ah, Ivan. I was just about to send for you. She's not too hot, we tried to cool her down but now she's like this." Nikolai was so tired he couldn't muster the strength to walk over to greet the nation in the doorway.
Ivan nodded sympathetically to his exhausted Tsar and took off his gloves once again. His cold hands made contact with Anastasia's warm cheek, and he tilted his head when once again, Anastasia stopped crying.
"There's nothing wrong with her. I'm sorry Alexandra, Nikolai, I don't know what's wrong." Ivan retracted his hand and put his gloves back on. Perhaps she had some sort of underlying illness?
Anastasia began to whimper, and Alexandra immediately understood the key to their salvation.
"She wants to be with you Ivan. Take her." Before Ivan could protest, the empress placed the girl in his arms. The Russian was about to give her back, but Anastasia stopped whimpering and even smiled. Her eyes were closed and she turned her face into Ivan's shirt.
"Oh my, you've imprinted on her." Nikolai joked in English. He was obviously pleased that their problems had been solved, but Ivan was far from pleased.
"I am a nation, not a nanny." He firmly told the Tsar, who merely shrugged.
"It's either you watch over her and we all sleep, or you leave her and one of the guards shoots her." Ivan sharply inhaled and glanced down at the now sleeping baby, they couldn't possibly be serious.
"I can rest easy knowing she's with you. I'm sure she'll grow out of it at some point." Nikolai was already back in bed and Alexandra was half way to sleep.
"I haven't looked over a baby in years Nikolai." Ivan protested.
The Tsar scoffed and lay down. "It's just to sleep Ivan. Please." He yawned.
Ivan adjusted his hold on the infant and scowled, "Fine. I will be in the nursery." Ivan turned around and angrily walked off. His violet eyes glared down at the sleeping child in his arms, "You're too much trouble." Ivan muttered under his breath, trying to ward off a strange feeling in his chest.
He placed the baby down into a little cradle and pulled up a chair next to it. Ivan was astounded when the baby immediately woke up the second he let go of her.
The baby's blue eyes shone in the moonlight and Anastasia babbled. She reached up to try and touch Ivan, and seemed to pout when Ivan simply stared back at her.
"Do you think you're in a position to be acting cute? I am going to lose sleep because of you." Ivan icily told the baby. The child's eyes watered and her lips quivered at his sudden hostility. The Russian immediately panicked and forced a smile to his face.
"I am just kidding. Please don't cry." Ivan hurriedly amended.
Anastasia hiccuped, but didn't utter another sound. Ivan got into a comfortable position in his chair and let the child play with his gloved hand. "You are very smart. As long as you are quiet we will get along."
The Russian rested his chin on the edge of the cradle and absently let the baby tug and pull at his glove until it came off. The baby grabbed ahold of Ivan's cold finger and immediately fell asleep. Ivan's eyebrows shot up in amusement and softly laughed, she was a very peculiar princess indeed.
The bulk of Anastasia's infancy followed a routine. At night, the princess would scream in her parent's arms until Ivan came and took her to the nursery.
After a couple of months, Ivan was given permission to bring her to his room after complaining of back pain from sleeping while sitting up every night.
One night in particular, Ivan woke up in the middle of the night and was startled to find Anastasia's blue orbs intently staring at him. The baby shifted in Ivan's bed and expectantly held out her arms.
Ivan rested his head on his arm as he absently tickled the giggling baby on the stomach and a small smile came onto his face. He couldn't deny that Anastasia was a very cute little princess.
There was a point in time when he had to leave for a nation conference in England, and did the palace experience hell. Anastasia screamed her throat raw for the week and a half he wasn't there. It was so bad, Nikolai telegrammed Ivan to ask that he return early.
"Oh my, Russia is having some troubles with the new princess?" Arthur remarked when Ivan left for Petersburg.
Toris scratched the back of his neck, "Yeah, Anastasia screams up a storm when he isn't there." He told the amused nations. Francis grinned and flipped his hair, "Ivan is a splendid mother indeed. Did you see the look of worry on his face when he read the telegram?"
"There's northing wrong with caring for your royal family." Arthur lightly defended.
Francis hollowly laughed and adjusted his shirt, "Perhaps." He bitterly smiled.
"…Mr Braginsky, thank God you are here!" One of the nurses could've melted in relief when she saw his imposing figure arrive on the back of a horse with a few officers riding behind him.
"Are things so terrible that I had to arrive so quickly?" Ivan dismounted his white horse and easily matched his strides with the quick-footed woman.
"My apologies, the Tsar waited for as long as he could. He had to telegram you when Anastasia's health deteriorated because she was crying too much." Ivan frowned when he heard something that sounded like a dying trumpet.
"What is this sound?" He asked as he handed his bags to the servants. The nurse grimaced, "That's the sound of Anastasia crying."
Ivan immediately furrowed his eyebrows in concern and was led to a room where a couple of tired nurses tried to comfort the crying one year old.
"Anastasia, what are you doing?" Ivan called out to the little girl in Russian.
Immediately, the infant became silent and turned her head to catch a glimpse of her friend. She urgently babbled in her raspy voice and the nurse turned her so she could see the nation.
Her eyes watered again, "Van-a! Vanya!" Her raspy voice cried out. The entire room was stunned silent and Ivan momentarily paused from taking off his coat.
"Vanya! Vanya!" Anastasia kept on crying. Ivan was dumbfounded, the princess' first word was his name.
"Where did she learn that?" One of the nurses gasped when Ivan carefully took a hold of her.
Ivan wiped the baby's tears with his gloved hand and gently pat her back. "Perhaps it's because Katyusha played with her for the few months she was here." Ivan tried to hide his affection in both his voice and his gaze, but miserably failed.
How could he maintain his distance from a child who so affectionately called out his name?
One of the younger nurses furiously blushed and relaxed once Ivan took Anastasia for a walk around the palace.
"I just noticed, but Mr Braginsky is very handsome." She whispered to her superior. The older woman rolled her eyes and folded Anastasia's baby clothes.
"Don't even try it. He's at least seven times your senior, and he isn't even human."
"So? He looks human enough." The girl said a bit stubbornly. The nurse rolled her eyes, "It doesn't really matter- do your work." She snapped.
"Her first word was Ivan's name?" Alexandra said with disbelief over the dinner table. Nikolai found it amusing while his two girls were plainly surprised. The nurse nodded, "Aye ma'am."
The empress sighed, "I think Ivan is trying to steal Anastasia." She said in relative good humor, but was still obviously disappointed.
Nikolai reached over and gently consoled her, "Ivan deserves it. How many nights has he spent with her so we could all sleep?" He joked. Olga and Tatiana immediately nodded in agreement with their father.
Alexandra sipped her cup of tea and sighed, "Perhaps… speaking of Anastasia, I believe we should start trying to reduce her dependency on Ivan. I think it's too much for him." She brought up their daughter's startling dependency on Ivan.
Alexandra and Ivan were on relatively good terms with each other, they were unspoken friends. This being said, they spent a fair amount of time together and she noticed how the nation almost constantly yawned and would sleep during the day whenever he was given the chance. It was worrying to say the least.
Nikolai leaned back in his chair and thoughtfully drummed on the table. "Yes, I believe you're right. If she doesn't naturally wean off of him in a couple of years, we'll have to force it."
Alexandra grimaced and fondly pat her daughters on the head. "Let's hope it doesn't come to that."
Matthew absently passed the hockey puck to Ivan, who smoothly caught it with his hockey stick. The Canadian was more than surprised when had Ivan brought him to the ice rink to pass around a puck.
While the two effortlessly glided on the ice, the elder nation humored him with stories of Anastasia's infancy. Matthew listened with great interest and tried not to laugh, somehow the image of Ivan caring for a baby oddly suited him.
"It sounds like she really liked you." Matthew remarked when they got off the rink. Ivan's purple gaze softened and they sat down on a bench.
"Da, she did. She was a cute little imp." Ivan gave Matthew a water bottle and watched Matthew drink his fill.
The Canadian awkwardly coughed and capped the bottle. "She sounded like a handful." He tried to fill the silence. Ivan laughed this time and shook his head, "She was." Ivan treated Matthew to a casual lunch and they went off to do their own thing. For Matthew this meant work.
As for Ivan, Ivan suddenly found the urge to draw in his room and sketched a familiar field of sunflowers onto a post-it note. He didn't know why Matthew had such a keen interest in his relationship with the Romanovs, but Ivan was fairly certain that his fellow nation had no ill-intentions.
Matthew was a young nation, he reasoned. A young nation whose only experience with monarchs were Arthur's, and they were an entire ocean apart.
Ivan put his pen down and checked his phone for messages.
Recipient: Official Representation of the Russian Federation, Ivan Braginsky
Sender: Official Representation of Canada, Matthew Williams
Message:
I'm really sorry for being nosy. I really like listening to your stories, maybe we could talk on the plane ride to Toronto tomorrow?
When I say talk, I mean that we actual have a conversation. But I'd be fine with it if you wanted to talk more about Anastasia. But I'm not forcing you to do anything, you don't have to sit with me. I totally understand if you don't want to...
Ivan raised a delicate eyebrow and an amused smile tugged on his lips as he scrolled through the thousand word text message. It firmly asserted that he didn't have to sit with Matthew on the plane ride to the other world meeting, and that he shouldn't feel pressured or inclined to do anything. Ivan laughed and tapped the screen to respond.
Recipient: Official Representation of Canada, Matthew Williams
Sender: Official Representation of the Russian Federation, Ivan Braginsky
RE:I'm really sorry...
I don't mind at all. I will see you there in a few days. Tell me what seat you have so I can buy one next to you. Take care comrade.
Ivan hit the send button and laid down in his bed to take a nap. His phone beeped again, and Ivan laughed when the second message was an absurd length as well and texted back. Matthew was much too interesting for his own good.
Done! This was a difficult chapter to write for me, but I think it came out pretty well. Please don't be afraid to critique my work. Thanks for reading, you guys are awesome!
As always, criticism and thoughts about the chapter are always appreciated. Make sure to favorite this story if you liked it and follow it to get regular updates :) Hope you guys liked the chapter!
~Preuss
