-_- I noticed a bunch of typos in the last two chapters, so I'll fix those... I still probably missed a couple though.

Anyways, more Ivan angstyness for you! I promise he gets happier/nicer after this chapter XD

I do not own Axis Powers Hetalia.

…

You could say Ivan felt a lot better when he came home that day. Sure, he didn't exactly trust Madeline with all his heart, but he now held some sort of hope, and it calmed him. Ivan's calamity could easily be removed, though, and usually this either happened at home or at school. As he walked through the door of the large mansion, Toris was passing by the entrance. The smaller boy looked over, smiling nervously... and so began his anger.

"Um… h-hello Ivan…" he said in that slight Lithuanian accent of his. Even Toris and Eduard themselves weren't actually native Canadians… they had both lived early lives in the two Baltic States of Estonia and Lithuania before coming here. Heta was defiantly a multicultural place; a walk through town could almost be like traveling the world sometimes.

"Everyone's home tonight so… we're all having dinner together. I-Isn't that n-nice? W-We never do get together that much…" Toris stammered with a pathetic smile, hands tucked close to his chest for security. Ivan's mood, yet again, went dark. Why would he want to eat dinner with a family that hated him? He would just sit in his own little corner as he always did and wait for someone to talk to him, even if no one ever did. And if they did, he would be so ticked off by then he would just try to scare them off with a creepy answer. The only reason he was probably invited there was because they had no choice, because he lived here.

Ivan's glare tore into Toris, making the boy shake and slowly edge away from him. Stupid, stupid little boy. Ivan growled and grasped him by the shirt, shoving him into the wall. Toris yelped as he hit plaster and crumpled onto the carpeted floor. He kept his eyes tight shut and cowered in fear of the six foot Russian boy before him. Ivan chuckled a bit.

"Little Toris is so funny when he's shaking on the ground." He giggled like a child and turned on his heel, beginning to head up the stairs nearby. Ivan's smile fell when he was met with an angry-looking Eduard. Behind him was a nervous Katyusha, who also looked rather disappointed. Ivan glared and tried to keep going, but Eduard blocked his way. His expression was serious and fierce, one Ivan had never seen before on the older man.

"Ivan, I can't deal with this anymore! You need to start getting along better with this family!" he scolded. I already tried that, you were the one who wouldn't cooperate. Ivan wanted to say what was running in his head, but what difference would it really make? Toris would still be afraid, Natalia would still be avoiding him, and Eduard and Katyusha would still be ignoring him. He just glared.

"It is not my fault he is so terrified of everything as if he were some sort of small child or animal." Ivan growled. Eduard shook his head, placing his hand on his forehead in frustration.

"You shouldn't be picking on him in the first place!" he yelled, voice rising to a height Ivan never heard it go to before. Eduard was such a calm man, but now he was obviously enraged. That didn't scare Ivan one bit, though.

"If it's so easy to do, then I might as well do it." He stated simply, expression bored. He wasn't prepared for what would happen next…

Smack.

A sharp pain pierced the Russian boy's cheek as the sound echoed the halls. He went into shock; head still turned the direction a great force had turned it to. Gently, he brought a large hand to the red, stinging skin. He had been slapped. Ivan was shocked. No one had ever laid a hand on him like that except his uncle, and that was when he was still young and would unintentional cause trouble as small children usually did. By now, Toris was standing behind Ivan, equally shocked. At the very end of the stairs stood Natalia, and even her eyes had widened. Ivan slowly turned his head to face his attacker, who he expected to be Eduard. It wasn't. Standing before him, with her face angry and her hand still up in the air, was Katyusha. Ivan stared at her for a while before they switched facial expressions. His became fierce while hers went shocked, both unable to believe what the woman had just done.

"I would rather starve to death than eat dinner with any of you." He said simply, and then walked away quietly. No one stopped him this time.

…

It was a few hours later at dinner time when Katyusha entered his room. Ivan was doing his homework and took one glance at her, and then turned back to his homework as if nothing was there. She just looked plain pitiful with those puppy dog eyes and guilty pout, and he would rather not be tricked by it after what she had just done. In her hands was a plate full of streaming food, probably a bribe of some sort.

"V-Vanya… I brought you some food." She said quietly. He ignored her. She walked over and placed it on the table beside him, then sat at the edge of the bed.

"I know what I did was… perhaps an overreaction," she started, "And I'm sorry that it had to happen… but… Vanya I just didn't know how to snap you out of it! You're so angry…" she trailed off, and then took a deep breath. Ivan continued to stare at his books, but his expression had become sad, as well. Maybe he could apologise…

"I think it would be best if you got sent back to Russia to live with uncle!" she cried nervously, eyes shutting tightly and prepared for a reaction. That sent Ivan's mood back down yet again. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Everyone was so stupid! Would going back to Russia solve anything? No! Would he all of a sudden not be lonely or angry anymore if he went? No! He loved his home country and missed it deeply, but that didn't mean that he wanted to be living there when there was no one else to live with.

Ivan's temper got the better of him once again as he darkly whispered, "Get out."

"B-But… V-Vanya I was only trying to help you…" Katyusha protested. Ivan growled and faced her.

"I said get out!" he yelled sitting up straight now and letting murder fill his eyes. She obeyed with tears in her eyes, just like every other time she tried to talk to him. It happened about once a month, after all, and always ended in the same thing: a crying Katyusha. The door shut, and just like that, his anger faded away. Damn these emotions of his… why couldn't he control anything? He didn't want to be angry, didn't want to be fighting with everyone like this but… it just happened. Ivan wasn't even in enough control to stop himself, much less what was going on around him.

Guilt felt even worse than anger, and it was coming back yet again. Ivan's hand came up to clutch his chest, pulling at the strong fabric of his coat. "Katyusha… I'm sorry…" he whispered weakly, collapsing onto the bed and not minding when his head hit one of his textbooks. His stomach hurt, and it didn't surprise him in the least. Fights like these always made him feel ill, giving him stomach cramps and sometimes headaches. It was the strong, built-up emotions that caused this sickness, and it was just another thing he had no control over.

An apology might help…

His conscience told him the truth, as difficult as it would be to carry out. Ivan sighed, getting up from his bed. He could do it… he could apologise, right? He had tried to do it in the past, but he always was too afraid or prideful. The Russian-Canadian boy bravely made his way out the door and down the stairs, running through his head to find the right words to say. As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he smelled supper and remembered the plate of food that had been abandoned in his room. They must be eating, he thought. He crept to the dining room and hid behind the wall, peaking at the group sitting at the large table and eating the large dinner.

It was your typical warm, happy family scene. Everyone was laughing, everyone was smiling, and everyone was getting along fine. A genuine smile crossed Ivan's face, something that didn't happen often. He really loved seeing something like this, but one thing he wanted even more was to be a part of it. Ivan wanted to sit with his family and talk to them, be accepted by them. Perhaps if he attempted an apology, he might actually get that.

Ivan took a deep breath. He was just about to walk in, when suddenly his ears picked up a cruel conversation going on in the very room he was about to enter.

"Katyusha, we really need to do something about Ivan." Eduard's voice suggested.

"Um… I-I agree… he's just so scary!" Toris stammered. Katyusha sighed.

"Well… I just don't know what to do with him. He doesn't like it here, but he doesn't want to go back to Russia! How am I supposed to make him happy?'' she whimpered. Eduard shook his head.

"It's not a matter of making him happy, it's a matter of making him realise that his actions are horrible! You're spoiling that boy too much by always trying to please him! Look at him, Katyusha, he doesn't know right from wrong! Just send him to Russia forcefully for all I care, but none of us can deal with it anymore! I know you can't, either. Natalia, don't you agree?" Eduard made his argument harshly, breaking a piece from Ivan's heart with each word. The Russian boy clutched at his chest again, feeling the unbearable pain rise up.

"Maybe we should." Natalia said simply, then continued, "But before doing it right away, perhaps Katyusha could try being stricter. If that doesn't work, he gets sent to Russia forcefully until he can learn to get along with everyone."

How can you say that when I was trying so hard in the first place? Don't you remember? I'm not the bad guy, everyone else is! Ivan was protesting everything loudly inside his head. He wasn't even angry this time… he just felt hurt.

"Alright… we'll try that…" Katyusha said quietly. Ivan really just wanted to cry… but he couldn't. As he watched everyone eat their dinner and go back to being happy without him, he realised there was just nothing he could do as usual. This was just the first day of eighth grade all over again.

Quietly, he composed himself and stood. Out of here, he would get out of here. Ivan quietly walked through the house to the back door, which thankfully didn't make much noise when opened or closed, and exited through the back garden to sneak onto the sidewalk. Ivan tried to think of a safe place to go in his jumbled mind. Sure, he did have one place he really loved, but it was far away and didn't work that well unless it was the summer. Therefore, the first place that came to mind, for some odd reason, was Maple Tree Park. In fact, he didn't even really decide to go there, his feet just began to walk.

The ten minute walk was numb and blank. The pain in his stomach wouldn't go away, and it was growing worse and worse. Ivan was holding back on expressing all his negative emotions, which was probably why he felt like he could explode any second. He was almost dizzy, struggling to see clearly as the sun was starting to set. Finally, he saw the gate and entered the little park. When Ivan reached the trees, he collapsed onto his knees and just sat there, wrapping his arms around himself and breathing heavily.

You don't need to cry, Ivan. You don't need to cry. You're stronger than that. He talked to himself over and over inside his head. Besides, what was the point of crying when there was no one there to comfort you?

"Ivan?" a voice ran clearly through the park, and it wasn't in his head. He looked up, still breathing heavy, and saw Madeline standing there and looking a mixture of confused and concerned. Ivan wasn't sure what to do, so he brought his head down to stare at his lap and try to ignore the girl before him.

"It's pretty late, eh… w-what's wrong?" she continued. He pulled his arms tighter around himself and rocked back and forth, still staring at the ground. Just go away… he begged in his head for the Canadian to magically disappear, but she stayed anyways.

"Ivan, please… what's wrong?" she asked once again. He stopped rocking, still breathing heavily, and opened his mouth. Nothing came out, and he merely began to choke. Madeline approached him slowly, finally stopping right in front of him and falling to her own knees to come face-to-face with the larger teen. He stared at her worried face, and the tears stared coming. Emotion took him over, and he could no longer control himself. He covered his face and continued to breathe deeply, furiously wiping away the salty wet substance from his face. Madeline placed a hand on his shoulder with a hand as gentle as a falling leaf.

"You can tell me, eh? If it helps, I'll listen." She said quietly. Ivan wasn't sure what made him do it, perhaps it was the emotions invading his brain, or perhaps it was the fact that no one had ever tried to listen to how he really felt for a very long time… but he opened his mouth to speak.

"I c-came to C-Canada two years ago… a-and I tried so hard to get people to l-like me but… they were afraid of me!" he stammered, voice shaking as sobs threatened to burst from his throat. He sounded pathetic… but at this moment he really didn't care. "Now I get so angry I c-can't control myself and… I ruin everything! B-But how is it my fault? I was trying so hard and everyone made me act like this! Now they're blaming me! I try to change but I can't! I can't control anything, don't you see? Now they want to send me back to Russia! Don't t-they see… t-that I-I d-don't want to go back by myself?" he clutched his scarf tightly.

"You can change…" Madeline whispered. Ivan shook his head.

"I can't… I've tried… I can't…" he whispered. Madeline smiled lightly.

"Well… you're pretty calm right now around me right now… that's a start." She whispered. Ivan just shook his head, so Madeline frowned a bit. What was she to do? Ivan looked so helpless right now… she would have to make a risky move…

She sat up straight, cautiously pulled her arms around his neck, and hugged him. The Russian boy froze, heavy breaths stopping. Madeline shifted nervously, but she didn't move away from him. She was going to help her new friend, or so help her the lord of maple!

"I'm listening… a-and I don't care how upset you get because… w-we promised to be friends… and that means I'm here to help you… o-okay?" she explained nervously. Ivan couldn't hold back much longer, so he let the tears fall without struggle. He allowed himself to let go as he buried his face into Madeline's shoulder, light sobs wracking his body. Madeline stayed silent, keeping her thin arms around him and waiting for him to cry it out. Soon, he was close to a panic attack, but as he continued and struggled through his raspy breaths and sobbing, he eventually calmed down.

It took a full hour before he finally finished, and by then it was almost too dark to see, and both Ivan and Madeline were quite exhausted. Ivan hadn't cried since he was a small child, after all. In fact, a terrible headache pounded in his brain and made him want nothing more than sleep. Madeline finally pulled away from him, and he had become so used to her arms around his neck that he almost reached out to pull her back before he realised what he was doing. She sat back on her knees in front of the Russian and smiled.

"Do you feel better, now?" she asked timidly.

"Da." He answer hoursly, because it was the truth. The pain in his stomach was gone, and he felt almost… lighter than before. Madeline was satisfied with this answer and looked at the now almost black sky with a frown.

"I wasn't supposed to stay out this late…" she mumbled, seeming nervous. It was almost nine o'clock, and although most fifteen-year-olds were allowed out this late, Madeline was a patient at a hospital with doctors who only wanted her outside when the sun was still up. As far as she knew, it was dangerous to be outside this late even if she was very close to the hospital. Bad people walked around town at this time, and she was supposed to be safe in bed. Then, she remembered the boy in front of her What about Ivan? What if he was in danger, too? She didn't know how far away he lived… what if someone got him while he walked home? And he was so sad and tired, too…Madeline couldn't let him walk home by himself in the dark! Oh maple, what was the little Canadian to do?

"Come with me to the hospital, you can stay there with me." She said quietly. Ivan didn't say much as she took his arm and guided him away. He was spaced out and just wanted rest. They walked slowly to the large building and entered the metal doors. Madeline looked at a nearby clock and saw she was just in time. A young, blond woman with bright blue eyes and her hair tied in a perfect bun with her rather fashionable blue coat buttoned up and matching her purse was just about to leave. She took one look at her and gasped, walking over from the front desk.

"Madeline… w-what were you doing out so late? And who is this…" her French-accented voice took a pause, looking over to the large boy and his puffy, red face. "…Who is this boy?"

"I made a friend, Dr. Bonnefoy-Kirkland, I told you yesterday, eh? His name is Ivan." Madeline explained with a smile.

"…Oh…" French woman replied, unsure of how she was supposed to react. Ivan stared at her blankly, looking exhausted. It was quite obvious he wasn't exactly paying that much attention to what was going on around him. She sighed.

"Oh, zut*… ma petite Madeline… you know it is past visiting hours. He should not be here. Now… if you want to have the sort of fun I think you are trying to have… well… I always thought you were more innocent than that!" The young doctor crossed her arms but still was trying to hide a rather perverted smile.

"…Fun? No, this isn't fun, Dr. Bonnefoy-Kirkland! I have a situation right now! Can't he just stay in my room for one night?" she pleaded. The doctor stared into those adorable violet eyes for a few seconds before giving another sigh.

"Alright, Madeline, I trust you. I don't really trust that boy, though, so I'm going to make sure the nurse checks on you plenty." She sounded like a protective mother as she glared at Ivan. He was staring at the floor, not really caring.

"Thank you, Dr. Bonnefoy-Kirkland!" Madeline said happily. The French woman just smiled and shook her head. She then felt Madeline's forehead and frowned a bit at the hot temperature. She turned and noticed a nurse walking by who had long, curly brown hair and a kind smile.

"Eliza, you're on a night shift right? Could you bring Madeline to her room and help her get ready to go to sleep? She has a fever… Oh, and this boy is staying in her room tonight!" she called. The nurse turned, looked Ivan over, and glared.

"Really, Francis? I think that might be against the rules." Francis put on a pleading smile and Eliza rolled her eyes. "Fine, come on you two." Her friendliness disappeared and was replaced with sternness as she took Madeline by the shoulders and guided her to her room. Ivan followed silently. Once they arrived at the door, he was told to wait outside. The wait was quiet and a bit long, but he stood there silently, anyways. Eventually, the brunette nurse walked out the door and gave him a glare.

"I'll be walking in here plenty, and I have an iron pan I carry around at night. It hurts when you get hit with it." She warned. Ivan sighed and nodded a bit, and then walked inside the room. Madeline was sitting up in her bed, holding Kuma and wearing her pajamas. This time, they were blue. She pointed to the chair that was next to the window, which now had a blanket and pillow sitting on top of it.

"Um… that's the only place you can really sleep… but it's a comfy chair! I'd give you my bed, but Nurse Eliza would get mad, eh." She explained, voice growing worn out. Ivan nodded, not really concerned with where he slept but when. He walked over and sat down, pulling the blanket over his body and using the pillow to support his head. Ivan sighed in relief and sunk into a comfortable position, closing his heavy eyes. Finally, after a long day he could rest.

"Thank you… you're a good friend, da?" he whispered. Madeline smiled sheepishly and lied down in bed, pulling Kuma close to her body and getting comfortable herself. She hesitated, and then opened her mouth to speak slowly.

"G-Goodnight…" she whispered softly in a voice even hard to hear than her regular one. Silence made her think that he hadn't heard, but after a while she received a response.

"Da, goodnight."

Madeline was happy with that, and she snuggled into the soft white fur of Kuma so that she and Ivan could both finally get some sleep.

…

Leave it to France to let a male stranger into a female patient's room for the night XD That was probably the whole reason I made her Madeline's doctor in the first place… because I knew I'd get away with it if it was her… but there are other more important reasons, too ;D You can probably tell by her last name that she's married to a certain British man, too XD I love UkFr… sorry to anyone who may not.

Hope you enjoyed the depressing/sappy chapter. Ivan needed a good cry XD

**"Oh zut" means "Oh darn"… but it can also mean "Oh damn" XD We say it all the time at school, I'm not sure if people from France say it though XD Even if they don't say it in France, Francis can still say it cause she's in Canada and probably picked up some Canadien-styled French XD I'm not a Francophone, by the way. Wish I was, though ._.