This chapter is considered "Safe For Work."

***Warnings: None.***

***Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia nor the characters in this chapter. The plot is mine.***

In a way, her eyes were already open as she slipped into her world. She took a moment to readjust to the strange lighting before remembering where she was. Natalya sat up letting her fingers dig into the soft bed covers. A large canopy shadowed the bed and the drapes were drawn close. Crawling across the Queen sized bed, Natalya pushed open the curtains and stepped into her furred slippers.

"I'm here again," she said to no one in particular. Her eyes traveled around, taking in the circular room and its familiar contents. She stopped at the wall clock, noting the time shown before walking to it. Taking a chair from the corner, she removed it from the wall and stared at its unmoving arms. Natalya turned it over, twisting the knob backwards and checking to see if the time was correctly arranged. When the short hand reached the five and the long hand reached the twelve, she stopped, letting the object rest in her hands. The second hand sprang to life, ticking away.

Her gaze rose to the small window to her right that shed the lights of sunrise. Shuffling over, she looked out and saw the horizon in the distance, the sun peeking over the hillside. The land was painted by its rays and Natalya could only breathe in happily. She felt at home at last. Her eyes wandered and settled upon the clock in her hands, the short arm now at eight.

A short breath, a still heart, eyes that were forced to look downward. Below her- miles below her- people walked around like ants. Somehow, she could still observe them clearly despite their blurry outlines. A smile here and there, a woman with a hair bun, a grandpa with a cane, a child with his dog. All oblivious to her. She was trapped and they did not notice her as they walked around the tower like it didn't exist.

Isolation... Like the man on the moon. What crime did she do to deserve to get this? At first she opened her mouth to yell down to them, only to stop and close it again. What would she yell to them? Help? Get me out? There seemed to be no way to escape her confinement.

She settled for looking back at the clock for guidance, eyebrows raised as she found two hours had slipped by. Natalya looked down at the people below and noticed a group of performers had set up and began to perform. A small smile creeped onto her face as she watched their antics, occasionally cheering them on. She loved the juggler, entranced by the way he tossed the daggers in the air, as well as the lion tamer who bravely battled the ferocious animal. However, her favorites by far were the acrobats, that moved as if gravity itself could not hold them down. As the circus departed, she sighed happily and turned back to her refined prison.

Slowly, she reached up to her cheeks. A smile had slipped onto her face unexpectedly. Her fingers danced on her skin, feeling around her smile. Natalya felt… Happy. Happiness slowly washed over her as she realized her smile. When was the last time she smiled? Far too long ago. She kept the smile on her face as she looked down at her other hand.

She looked down to find the clock now signaled a new time, one close to noon. Something began digging at her as she stared at the hands. There was something wrong. Something off. Natalya gripped the sides of the clock, as if it could answer her question. The hands spun in front of her eyes, the smaller one inching towards the one and the larger one spinning. The large hand halted at the twelve and she felt… relief.

"You've forgotten." Natalya felt a smile creep onto her face. "You've… forgotten." She let out a giggle she didn't even know she was holding back. "You've… forgotten!" Natalya danced around the room happily, the clock between her hands. It's hand flew to the two as she laughed and smiled. "It's alright!" She let herself fall onto the bed, letting the mattress cocoon her as she bounced up and down. Her laugh was hysterical and relieving.

Natalya turned onto her stomach. The clock now lay on her pillow, as if waiting. "You've got to move on now," she hummed happily. The timepiece seemed to hesitate before the long hand began moving once more, as quickly as before. She rested her chin on interlocked hands, accepting the warmth and comfort of the bed. Yes, now she can move on. Just like the timepiece. A smile cracked on her face as she let out another laugh.

Then it stopped.

She felt the smile fall from her face as the clock halted at four o'clock. Crawling forward, she tapped it gently to get it moving again. Her eyebrow furrowed as she picked it up with both hands and shook it.

"I'm here so it doesn't need to move anymore."

Natalya stopped, her hands held out in front of her. Slowly, she let the clock fall against her chest and turned around. Across from her, a full body mirror revealed a woman who looked just like her, watching her pitifully. The clock fell to the covers. Natalya's eyes widened and slowly she inched forward. She swung her legs off the bed and the room around her seemed to fade away.

Prudently, she stepped towards the mirror and stopped a foot away. Her hands traced her own face as she saw the exact reflection of herself. A soft face, straight locks, a stubborn chin. The only difference between them was their clothing and facial expression. The one in the mirror frowned but not in an angry kind of way… More apologetic and pitiful. Natalya felt the urge to frown herself but kept up a playful smile.

"You're Belarus."

The reflection gave a curt nod. "Yes." She held out a hand. "Come, Natalya. We must go."

Natalya shook her head, her smile remaining as if a strong hold against Belarus's frown. She let her hands swing behind her, intertwining her fingers. "Nope! Don't want to go with you."

"You must," the reflection replied. "You need to."

Natalya stepped back, shaking her head even more. Her body was visibly shaking now. "No." She turned to run but found the mirror in front of her once more. Belarus threw her hand forcibly at her. "You can't make me!" Natalya dug her hands in her hair, covering her ears and screwing her eyes shut. Her smile had been wiped from her features. "I don't want to go with you so I'm not going to go with you!"

"…But we're both alone."

A silence came between them. Natalya let her eyes open once more and saw the face of Belarus looking back at her. "We," her reflection said, "Have always been alone. And why not be alone together?"

Natalya let her hands fall from her head, looking up once more. She let a small smile out. "I'm sorry... I can't go with you. I'm not ready yet. Please, let me stay for a bit longer..."

Belarus let her eyes rest on her before sighing tiredly. Her hand fell to her side and she shook her head. "You cannot stay forever. Nothing is forever."

Natalya nodded, her eyes downcast. The smile played sadly on her lips. "Yes... I know..." She looked up. "I hate that all I can do is hold it off but... It's better than going now."

"You won't have to be alone anymore," the reflection reasoned. "You're giving yourself false hope and that's crappier than what I offer."

"Then I'll put up with this crap~" Natalya felt tears trailing down the corner of her eyes and the smile becoming smaller and smaller. "I... I just..."

The reflection tapped on the glass with the back of her fist. "I can't force you to come with me so take all the time you want." Natalya sniffled. "But if you're going to stay here, don't act so defeated. It's painful enough I have to do this every time I die, but you're the shittiest case of the bunch. You went through so much just to get here. A prison cell."

Natalya wiped her tears with the corners of her sleeves, perking up with a larger smile. "...Thank you but I like it here."

Belarus crossed her arms, a frown evident. "Don't thank me for letting you torture yourself. I can't do anything in this situation besides watch you act helplessly."

"Then thank you for standing by me."

The reflection sat on the floor, sitting folding her legs on top of each other. Natalya mimicked her but instead sitting upright as her legs were beneath her. Belarus glared at her. "...You know, we aren't the only two who are effected by your stalling."

Natalya chuckled to herself, feeling pleased with knowing what Belarus meant. "Yes... I hope she'll forgive me."

Icy blue eyes turned upward in thought, gazing into the nothingness that surrounded them. "We shall see."

Author's Note:

I HAD SO MUCH TROUBLE WITH THIS CHAPTER. I'M STILL HAVING TROUBLE WITH IT. Gladly, it has a general preview of what I want to do with the story so I'm at least thankful for that. Well, I'll let you guys muse over what is going to happen while I smooth out the plot. Hopefully. Also, expect the next chapter to come sooner than this one.