This chapter is considered "Safe For Work."
***Warnings: Violence, Blood, and Coarse Language.***
***Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia nor the characters in this chapter. The plot is mine.***
Slowly, Belarus came to. She shook her head a bit, trying to pull herself out of the strange dream she had. With a deep breath, the scent of her surroundings forced her eyes open.
Bleach.
She stared up at the blank white ceiling, scowling as she realized she had been resting on a hospital bed. When the fuck did that happen? Lifting her arms up for a stretch, she found her right forearm had been wrapped tightly and a blood bag attached to her opposite arm. The haze lifted steadily as she stared at the cotton fabric.
Oh yeah… That bastard did this.
Giving herself a push, she sat up and got a better survey of her surroundings. Plain walls, an empty floor, an open window to her right, and a chair next to her bed. Her eyebrows furrowed as to who would have been sitting there. Within seconds of her question, the door creaked open.
"You're awake."
The memory of his shaking figure returned to her the moment her eyes met his. She scowled. "What? Didn't tell them you did this?" The imposter sighed, walking over to the seat. His arm shot up, forcing something ticklish in her face. Pushing it back with her good arm, her eyebrows furrowed as she took it. "What the fuck is this?"
"An apology present?" Belarus stared at him in annoyance.
"You almost kill me and you give me this?" She shook the stuffed bear in his face. "A pincushion?"
He took the toy from her, loosening the bow around its neck. "Well, I thought it was cute." His eyes lifted up. "And I don't always buy gifts for nations I almost kill so-"
"I don't want it." He sent her a glance of annoyance before wrapping his arms around it.
"Fine. I'll keep it." The man toyed with it as Belarus gave an exasperated sigh and turned away from him. Her eyes stayed glued to the wall, slowly drifting off again.
From his seat, the man glanced back up at her. He watched as she silently stared at the wall, seeming to be deep in thought. When she wasn't saying anything, this 'Belarus' seemed quite… attractive. He straightened in his seat, letting the bear fall to his lap. Who- no, what was this woman? From what he felt, he could verify she was a nation. Yet why didn't that heal? His eyes darted to her arm and the bandage.
The doctors had reported she had suffered severe blood loss. However, her body seemed to have quite a miraculous amount of resistance, especially surviving a ten minute drive to the hospital with that kind of wound. Upon arriving in the emergency room, he watched as the paramedics sped her away. Standing from a distance, he wondered briefly if he had heard her last words. Seeing her sitting before him was by far a relief. She may not have the healing abilities of a nation but her resistance was incredible.
He studied her expression carefully, collecting a brief summary of the one he nearly killed/saved. Her eyes were distant and her hair framed her face in such a way that outlined the curve of her cheek. Her lips hung slightly parted and at this angle he noticed the stubbornness of her chin. Her brow had relaxed, as if he were no longer in the room. What made her make such a face?
"What are you thinking about?" With a blink, her annoyed expression returned and she glared angrily at him. He cleared his throat, frowning. "I still didn't get your name."
Her hard eyes focused on his. He did not look away despite the intensity of the gaze. Instead, the man motioned for her to answer his question. She frowned. "Belarus."
Another sigh, this time accompanied by the shake of a head. "Well, you can't be Belarus. There is already another Belarus."
"Then you can't be Japan."
"And why is that?"
"Because the other Japan isn't such a son of a bitch."
"Har har. Very funny." He leaned back in his seat, the bear resting against his torso. "For the time being, let's just say I believe you're Belarus and you'll believe I'm Japan. It'll clear up any confusion." She thought a moment before nodding. "So call me Honda and I'll call you Ms. Arlovskaya."
Belarus shifted upward. "Why the hell are you calling me by my human name?"
He ran a hand through his hair before rubbing his temple. "Because humans can't know we're countries..?"
Her hands curled into fists. What was this maniac talking about? "But they already know that countries exist."
He sighed, interlocking his fingers and placing his joined hands on the side of the bed. "Let me explain to you how things work since the blood loss seems to have effected your brain." He pointed to the both of them. "We are nations. Nations know how to find other nations. Nations don't die unless their culture dies. Nations can sense other nations in their territory." Japan lifted his arm, signaling to the door. "They do not know we exist. To them, we are humans that have power in the government and thus can get away with a lot of things. So we," he motioned once more between the two of them, "Use our human names. Since we are under conditional immortality, we can kill each other often without consequences. Is it coming back to you yet?"
She glared at him. "Your fucking head is screwed on all wrong. Does it look like I regenerated? No. Does it look like I knew you were a country? No. Do you fucking think I would have survived this injury without treatment despite my country prospering? Fuck no!" Belarus raised her arms in indignation. "So stop giving me all this bull-crap about nations! We've been recognized by the world as humanoids since before my country existed. Calling ourselves by our country names won't do anything. We are as susceptible to death as humans." Her voice lowered, becoming sharper. "As long as no one kills us, we live." She narrowed her eyes at him accusingly. He stared right back but with more of a questioning light to them. Their eye contact contracted inexistent sparks.
After a moment of silence, Japan finally pulled away to reach into his jacket. "Look, I'm showing you how this works." Belarus's eyes widened at the sight of the familiar object.
"How the hell did you bring a knife into a hospital?" Japan sent a warning glare towards her.
"Don't ask questions. Just watch." He held rolled back the sleeve of his jacket, exposing his wrists. Positioning the blade carefully, he cut a small abrasion. A thin trail of blood started to form. Belarus opened her mouth to retort only to close it once more. Slowly, the skin sealed itself back up, leaving only the blood that had leaked out. "There? See? It healed." He grinned up at her, pleased to have made her speechless.
"Fucking shit…" She finally muttered.
"I'm not lying." He unrolled his sleeve, tugging it out in a failed attempt to get rid of wrinkles. "But you aren't either." Japan tucked the knife back into his jacket. Belarus watched as he stuffed her possession into his clothing. Hopefully she would get it back. Japan raised his head again, lifting an eyebrow at her line of sight. He gave her an amused grin only to watch her send a cold glare. With a chuckle, he brushed it off. "So my theory is if you answer my question we may be able to find out why this is happening." He paused for dramatic effect and smiled at the rolling of her eyes. "How did you end up in the middle of my country?"
Belarus remained silent, thinking carefully. Again, Japan caught sight of the distant gaze she possessed. This time, slightly biting her bottom lip. "I was at a world meeting. When I spoke to England, he said he would help me out with a problem using his magic. He cast the spell and I blacked out. I found myself on the floor of the meeting place." She turned her eyes to his, confusion lighting them. "No one else was there."
Japan leaned back in his seat, placing his ankle on his opposite knee. "That's because the meeting was last month. The lights are motion sensitive so they may have been triggered when you woke up. From what I can recollect, you were there for at least two hours. During that time, I had sensed you and made my way to the meeting place. I searched around the premise and found you standing outside."
He removed his leg and placed both feet firmly on the floor, leaning both elbows on his knees. Belarus watched as Japan finally stopped grilling her. His eyes narrowed as he processed the information. "From what I can conclude," he said once more, breaking the silence Belarus preferred, "the magic 'England' used sent you to a parallel world. Aka, here."
Exasperated, Belarus moved a piece of her hair behind her ear. "You're insane."
Japan lifted his eyes upward but did not move from his position. "Magic is insane. But its also real. So just accept the fact you're stuck here. And that I will be your caretaker." She gave a dry chuckle. Japan straightened, glancing at the wall clock. "Ah, the time. I have a meeting with Feliciano and Ludwig."
Belarus turned her attention to her wristband, staring at it absentmindedly. "Good riddance."
He stood up, causing the chair to squeal against the floor. "Don't be so rude, Ms. Arlovskaya-" Japan stepped back as Belarus lashed out with her right hand. He caught it, frowning at her. "Woah there, you're still recovering."
She scowled at him, tightening her fist. "Call me Belarus for fuck's sake."
Japan sighed. "Don't you remember I said humans can't know about us? As long as you're in my world, you'll have to follow our rules."
Belarus remained silent before nodding reluctantly. She let her hand drop to her side. "…Fine. For the time being call me Arlovskaya."
He nodded in turn. "You can address me as Mr. Honda." He turned towards the door. "I'll be off now." As Japan made his way to the exit, Belarus watched him. The way he moved... She could only describe it cocky. The overconfident bastard acted as if he owned the room. Each stride, powerful. His head held high, shoulders broad...
"Don't come back," she called to him as he started out the doorway, averting her eyes.
He turned back, leaning on the doorway and giving her a teasing grin. "You know I will." As he turned again, Belarus felt as if he were insinuating something more. As if something had slipped her mind.
She glanced to the side to find the bear sitting on the chair, it's beady eyes trained on her with a playful look. A vein throbbed as she grabbed it and threw it at the door and into the hallway. "And take your shitty bear with you!" Belarus growled angrily. This bastard was going to be the end of her.
Author's Note:
The introduction of 2p!Japan! It took a while to shape his character the way I wanted but hopefully I got the message through. Sorry if you got bored with all the talking! I didn't know how else to introduce it... In the next chapter, we'll be seeing a couple more 2ps!