I just… okay. This is a chapter. I feel like it should have more Russia, but Russia scares the hell out of me sometimes and my brain was like, "FUCK that, more Liet!"

EDIT: I tried to fix the German. I was alerted to my un-Germanness. Thank you, NekoFye!

Lithuania came to Ukraine's bedroom in a daze. He met Estonia's gaze and they shared a confused look.

"What's wrong?" Ukraine asked.

"Elizaveta…" Lithuania started.

"She just… left," Estonia said.

Ukraine wrapped Prussia's wounded arm in a long bandage. "Why does that shock you?"

Lithuania cocked his head. "I didn't know you could leave."

Ukraine tilted her head curiously. "I… never thought about it like that."

Prussia gave a hollow cough from the bed and Lithuania sat on the edge. "How is he?"

"Improving," Estonia said simply. "He's started to fidget in his sleep."

Lithuania bit his lip. "I think we should leave him a little longer."

"No," Ukraine said sadly. "He might catch us off guard again. We have to restrain him while he's still asleep."

Lithuania looked at Ukraine pleadingly. "They give him night-terrors, Katyusha. That's the last thing we need."

Estonia proffered the ragged ropes. "No, the last thing we need is him ripping out his stitches and trying again, like last time. Take the rope."

The three tied Prussia's shoulders, hips and knees to the bed, making sure his hands were immobile. Lithuania bit his lip.

"There's no other way?"

"Not unless you think you can hold him down when he wakes up," Ukraine frowned.

Prussia's eyebrows suddenly scrunched together in his sleep and he murmured.

"N-nein… nein!"

Ukraine bent over the unconscious man and stroked his hair gently.

"Gilbert, it's okay. You're okay. You're safe."

"R-runter… runter von mir!"

Prussia began to struggle against the ropes and Lithuania and Estonia each reached for one of his hands. His right hand was still weak from the damage, but his left hand crushed Lithuania's.

Lithuania gasped in pain. "Gilbert, you're okay! Wake up!"

"Hilfe!" Prussia sobbed in his sleep. "Hilf mir!"

"We're here," Ukraine said, panicking. "You're okay, we're here for you!"

Prussia tossed his head back and forth. His eyes opened suddenly and he tried to bolt up, but the ropes around his shoulders held him down. His eyes widened in fear and he screamed.

"N-no! No, get it off me! Get it off me! HELP!"

Estonia grabbed Prussia's face and forced him to look at him. "Gilbert, you're safe. Nothing's going to happen to you."

Prussia's eyes met Estonia's and they filled with tears. "W-where's Liz?"

"Give him some water," Ukraine said gently. Estonia took the glass from the nightstand and lifted it to Prussia's lips. He drank until he choked.

"Do you know where you are?" Lithuania asked, stroking the back of Prussia's hand.

"Where's Liz? D-did he…"

"Russia's away," Lithuania comforted. "He doesn't know yet."

"I'm sorry, Liz," Prussia sobbed. "I'm sorry."

"How are you feeling?" Estonia asked.

"Untie me."

"You know why we can't do that," Estonia sighed. "We have to keep you like this until we're sure you won't try to hurt yourself again."

Prussia turned his head to the side and sobbed. "L-Liz, I'm so s-sorry!"

Lithuania held Prussia's hand and hummed a soothing lullaby. Prussia's sobs turned into ragged coughs and he closed his eyes. Ukraine stroked his hair gently.

Prussia's legs shuffled. He raised his head in surprise. "P-pants?"

"We thought you might want to be decent," Estonia explained. Prussia's eyes spilled over in gratitude.

"Th-thank you," he cried. "Thank you."

Lithuania smiled. "They really are a blessing, aren't they?" Prussia nodded and smiled.

"Do you remember what happened?" Ukraine asked.

Prussia looked at her pleadingly. "Where's Liz? I need to talk to her."

The Satellites looked away awkwardly.

"She… she left," Ukraine said.

"Left? Left where?"

"She said she was going home," Lithuania said.

Prussia's eyes widened and he blinked back tears. "Sh-she's gone?"

"She said she was getting help. She promised she'd be back."

Prussia sniffed. "No, that's… good. I told her to get her ass out of here. Russia doesn't know, does he?"

Lithuania shook his head. "Russia doesn't know anything. Natalia's distracting him for now."

"Can she make it, do you think?" Prussia looked pleadingly up at the three.

Lithuania forced a nervous smile. "If anyone can make it, it's Elizaveta."

Prussia nearly sobbed in relief. "G-good for her."

"Are you okay?" Ukraine asked.

"O-of course. I told her not to wait for me. Sh-she's finally listening."

There was a pounding of footsteps from the hall and everyone watched as a terrified Latvia skidded into the room.

"H-he's here!" Latvia yelled. "He's coming!"

The three Satellites leapt to their feet to prepare. Estonia and Ukraine grabbed Latvia and ran out of the room to take care of the shattered door and the blood in the hall. Lithuania stuffed the blood-soaked sheets in Ukraine's closet and worked at tidying the room so it looked normal.

Meanwhile, Prussia panicked. "Untie me! Fuck, don't leave me like this, asshole! Don't let him see me like this!"

Ukraine's voice came from the kitchen, dripping with false cheeriness. "Brother, welcome home! How was-" There was a grunt and a smash. Latvia's voice wailed.

"Katyusha," Lithuania whispered. Prussia struggled even harder to get out of the ropes, but they wouldn't budge.

"What have you done?" Russia's voice roared. "Where is he?"

"He's safe," Estonia's voice said calmly. "He's resting in Katyusha's room."

Prussia paled and almost got sick. Lithuania held his hand and stepped in front of the bed, smiling comfortingly.

The hall pounded and Russia ran into the room, wild-eyed and fearful. Lithuania squeezed Prussia's hand and Prussia squeezed his eyes shut and bit his lip.

"What happened?" Russia panted. "Toris, is he okay?"

"He's fine," Lithuania said gently. "He just needs to take it easy for a while."

"Move. Let me see him."

Prussia squeaked in fear and Lithuania looked at him. He swallowed.

"I-I d-don't think that's a g-good idea, I-Ivan," Lithuania trembled. He closed his eyes, but stood his ground.

"What do you mean by that?" Russia snarled.

"I-it's just… H-he needs to be alone right now. A-and you…"

"I what?"

"Y-you make him uneasy. S-so maybe y-you can visit him t-tomorrow, or-"

Russia smacked Lithuania across the face and he fell to the ground with a shout.

"Toris!" Prussia screamed. He fought against the ropes , but the giant Russia held his shoulders down.

"Do not move, moy daragohy. Russia will take care of you."

"N-no! Get the hell away from me! Don't touch me, you fucking bastard!"

Russia placed a hand over Prussia's mouth and shushed him. "There, there. You must save your strength. You have not a lot, da?"

Prussia struggled against the hand and tried to call for help. From the floor, Lithuania whimpered.

"I-Ivan… s-stop."

Russia delivered a sharp kick to Lithuania's stomach. "How could you let this happen?" he snarled. "You are trying to kill my little Gilbert!"

Lithuania grunted and curled into a ball.

"Toris!" Prussia shouted.

Russia hushed him. "Shh, angel moy. Let me see your arm."

Tears streamed down Prussia's face as he struggled against the ropes. Russia tenderly pulled Prussia's right arm out of the binding.

The pressure against the stitches felt like thousands of knives stabbing into Prussia's wrist. He yelled out in pain and Russia looked at him sympathetically.

"It hurts, da?" The bandage peppered with blood from the pressure. Russia gently unwrapped it.

"Oh dear," Russia said, worried. "These stitches are not good."

Prussia glanced down at the immaculate stitches in his wrist. Estonia was nothing if not precise.

He murmured through Russia's hand. Russia shushed him.

"Save your strength, moy kotik. I will redo them."

Russia took his hand from Prussia's mouth and fire immediately shot through Prussia's arm as Russia ripped each stitch out, one by one.

"AUGH! STOP! STOP!"

"Shhh," Russia comforted. "I will be quick."

"STOP!" Prussia's skin burned as Russia slid the rough thread out, sparing no time. Prussia convulsed against the white hot pain.

Prussia suddenly felt a pop in his wrist. His hand was immediately bathed in hot, sticky wet. His eyes widened.

"No!" Russia cried out. "No, what happened? Why are you bleeding?"

"Get the fuck away from me! You opened it up again!"

Russia put all his weight on the bleeding arm and his eyes filled with tears. "I-I didn't mean to! I swear!"

Lithuania struggled to his feet and pushed Russia away. "Move," he said icily. Russia stood back and Lithuania stumbled onto Prussia's arm. Prussia squeezed his eyes shut. Lithuania pulled the skin of the arm together and put all his weight above the wound. He glared at Russia.

"Needle and thread. It's in the cabinet by the oven. Run."

Russia ran out of the room, panicking.

"Goddammit," Lithuania murmured.

"Toris," Prussia said. "Leave it. Let me bleed."

"Don't be an idiot," Lithuania grimaced. "I'm not letting you die."

"Why not?"

Lithuania met Prussia's eyes. He let his face fill with pain. "Because life gets better. Even after this. I believe with all my heart that it's going to be okay, and if you miss out on that big, beautiful future because I let you, I'll never forgive myself."

"How can it possibly get better, Toris? This place is Hell."

"I know," Lithuania smiled. He rolled up his sleeve gingerly and offered his wrist to Prussia. Prussia gasped at the dark, jagged scar.

"I know this place is Hell. I know what it's like to want to die every waking moment of your life. I know what it's like when your best friend leaves during the scariest day you've ever had. I know. I know fear, I know shame, I know that filthy feeling that won't go away no matter how hard you scratch. I used to fight it just like you."

Prussia's eyes flashed. "Don't ask me to stop fighting, Toris. Don't ever ask me to give in."

Lithuania finally stopped the crimson blood from spurting. He smiled. "Yesterday I would have begged you to give in. Yesterday, it was the only option in my mind."

Prussia cocked his head. Lithuania wiped the blood from his face.

"But today," he whispered, "I watched someone leave. Just grab her things and run out of the house. I didn't know that was an option. I forgot my legs could work that way."

Prussia smiled. "Liz has balls alright."

Lithuania wiped the blood from Prussia's arm and poured a little alcohol on it. "It made me think about all of the things that were possible that I'd never really thought of. Like, if there's an apple tree, I can either eat an apple or not. But I can also stack the apples, make strudel, throw them, carve faces in them, juggle, whatever. I can build a fort with apples like I used to do with snow when I was a kid! It never occurred to me that that might be an option."

Prussia cocked an eyebrow. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Life under Russia can feel like everything is either black or white," Lithuania said. "It's so hard here that we forget that there's a million different vibrant colors waiting for us to see them. Just waiting. I want to see colors again, Gilbert. I do. And I want you to see them with me. Because I know exactly what you're going through right now, and it makes me afraid for you. You need to see colors just as much as anyone else in the world."

Russia burst into the room, carrying a needle and thread. Lithuania snatched it out of his hand and glared.

"Leave us," Lithuania growled.

Russia bowed his head apologetically and left the room. Lithuania set to suturing Prussia's wrist.

Prussia whistled. "You're a badass today, Tor."

Lithuania laughed lightly. "I didn't know I could be. Now I do."

Prussia winced as the needle slid in and out of his skin. He bit his lip.

"My state is dissolved," he said. "I'm nothing."

Lithuania shrugged. "You're not a country. But there's a million different vibrant choices laid out for you right now. You're not either a country or not a country. You can be anything right now."

"Like what?"

"You tell me," Lithuania smiled as he wrapped clean bandages around the fresh stitches. "There must be something that makes you smile more than anything else in the world. What is it?"

Lithuania untied the ropes and Prussia gingerly sat up. He grinned slyly. "Sticks."

"What?"

"My brother," Prussia smiled. "Liz. Feli. Fuck, even Specs."

Lithuania smiled. "So what you can be is with them."

Prussia frowned. "Would they even want me back? The world wants me dead."

"The Prussian State is dead," Lithuania said sadly. "That's done. But Gilbert Beilschmidt, the heart of Prussia, is one badass motherfucker who just won't die."

Prussia's eyes widened and he laughed. "Dude, what?"

"You heard me."

Prussia laughed loudly until he broke into a happy coughing fit. "You swore," Prussia choked. "That's hilarious!"

Lithuania blushed. "I-I heard America say it once and…"

"Dude, don't apologize," Prussia giggled. "That was awesome!"

Lithuania smiled and stood up straight. "Are you feeling alright?"

Prussia nodded and put his feet on the ground. He winced, confused, and Lithuania rushed to his side.

"Been a while, huh?" he said. "I forgot, being tied up doesn't allow a whole lot of opportunity for walking."

Prussia paled in pain as Lithuania hoisted him to his feet and held him up under his arms. He took a feeble step forward and gasped in pain.

"The first one's the worst," Lithuania nodded in encouragement. "It comes back to you after that."

Prussia and Lithuania staggered to the door. Prussia stopped suddenly and looked at Lithuania curiously.

"Are you okay?" Lithuania asked.

Without warning, Prussia threw his arms around Lithuania's neck.

"Toris," he whispered. "You're an angel."

"S-sorry?" Lithuania blushed.

"You're an angel and the sweetest man I know. Thank you so much."

Lithuania hugged Prussia back. "You're welcome, Gilbert."

Runter von mir: "Get it off me"

Hilf mir: "Help me"

I'm happy, just one more chapter to go and I'll have purged all my awfulness! Yay!