Chapter Seven: Rogue Capital

"I hate China in winter," The ash brown haired boy muttered as he walked to the center of the bamboo forest he was in with shoots of bamboo in his arms. "Not enough food forcing me to go into towns and buy them, the fire always goes out at night forcing me to share Fēngbào's nest although she doesn't mind, and of course the worst thing of all: having to wait until my brother is born so then I can reveal myself!"

He threw the shoots on the snow-covered ground and collapsed on his knees while screaming as a white-and-black dragon stared at him curiously as his screaming slowly turned into crying. "Stupid! Stupid mother! Stupid father! S-Stupid Sino-Japanese War! If only I wasn't b-born at that time then I w-wouldn't have to hide here in Mama's forests from them!"

The dragon walked from the shelter made from bamboo shoots, sections of roof tiles mortals threw out, and cardboard boxes that the boy ripped up to create a makeshift shelter to survive the years ever since he ran from the war into the forests and never wanted to be found again. It nudged him before wrapping its wing around him and brought him closer to its warmth.

"Thanks Fēngbào." He said as he looked at her through his tear-stained eyes soulless amber eyes. She growled her welcome before shrinking and transforming into a white-and-black husky and a white-and-black cat. "Time to go into town," He said as he stood up and walked towards the forest edge with his dragon dog-and-cat following him until the cat jumped onto him and sat halfway onto his shoulder. "You are a weird cat Bào." He said as the dog padded faster to match his stride. "And you are a strange dog Fēng."

They reached the edge of the forest where mortals were walking around, probably getting ready for Christmas week and New Years. He tugged his shaggy gray scarf higher to cover his mouth before leaving the forest completely. There was only one problem once he left the forest: "WOOF!" "Fēng get back here!" The dog half would always run away, causing the teen and the cat half to chase after it.

"Okay dudes!" America shouted as he, the rest of the former Allied and Axis, and Sinovia walked through the snow-covered capital in China. "Time to get ready!" The others groaned at his ecstatic outburst. He's really energetic, but once Christmas is over he hates winter. "Shouldn't we wait until-" "WOOF!" A bark interrupted China as a white-and-black dog ran towards them before going in a random direction.

"Zhat vas-" "Fēng where are you?!" A young male voice shouted, interrupting Germany too. The owner of the voice was a teenager, fourteen or fifteen, with waist-length ash brown hair in a tight braid and soulless amber eyes wearing a dark blue naval jacket with golden epaulets, buttons, and straps going from his right shoulder to his left hip, matching dark blue military pants, black military boots, and a shaggy gray scarf. "FĒNG!"

"Are you okay?" England asked as the teen stopped in front of them and bended over slightly to catch his breath. "I.. pant... I'm fine..." He answered heavily before straightening himself. "Has any one of you seen an energetic white-and-black dog anywhere? She always gets excited whenever we leave our home, and this has always happened... except for now because I always find her but now I can't find her!"

"Just carm down," Japan said as he patted the distraught teen's shoulder. "It ran towards..." He suddenly stopped as he looked in the direction the dog ran then took a step back as something with black patches ran towards them before bowling the teen over and sat on him. "What in the world - Fēng!" The teen shouted as he sat up, causing the dog to jump off of him and a cat with a matching coat emerge from underneath the teen.

"Sorry Bào." He said as the cat glared at him before trying to brush the dog's fur down with its tongue. "Just a question," Sinovia asked as she took a step towards him. "Are you Kiyoshi Ryuu's brother?" The others stared at her curiously while the teen stared at her in shock and slowly stood up with the cat on his shoulder and Fēng in his arms. "How do you know that?" He asked but by the look in her eyes, his suspicion was proven true. "Yes, I am Maolong Wang-Honda. Personification of Beijing, older brother to a not-yet born personification of Tokyo, and..." He turned to glare at China and Japan suddenly. "And the only child born of two warring nations during the Sino-Japanese War."

"So Sinovia can-a see the future?" Italy asked as they went to a nearby restaurant, thankful that it allows animals although Bào and Fēng are actually a dragon but Maolong didn't tell the manager that, and were waiting for the food that they ordered. "I can't actually see the future," Sinovia tried to clear up. "More like, I have visions of snippets of the future."

Throughout the whole time the ten of them, twelve if you count the two halves of the dragon, have sat down Maolong has not said one word since they entered the restaurant. Everyone else was telling small jokes, reminiscing about the past, or just enjoying each other's company. He was silent. Nothing was being said. He was just staring at the table with Bào on his lap and continuously petting Fēng on the head.

"Are you-a okay?" Italy asked as he noticed the silent capital wasn't partaking in any of the conversations. "I can still see it..." He murmured quietly as the food arrived and everyone cut the talking in half, well as much as America can do while Sinovia glares at him and England and France tense up incase they need to restrain her. "Stirr see what?" Japan asked, gaining everyone's attention onto the silent capital.

"Still see the blood and corpses, still hear the screams, and still sense the Japanese general chasing me as I ran towards the bamboo forest for cover and decided to never leave it, even if it took a hundred and twelve years." Maolong said the last part silently but everyone could still hear him. "I-I'm so sorry." Japan mumbled but it was useless as Maolong's eyes suddenly darkened and a second later...

" 'ey where are we?" France asked as they stood in a square filled with destroyed buildings, corpses of innocent people, and fire in the background that tried to fight the rain that was pouring down harshly. "This...this is when the first Sino-Japanese war raged through my country." China said quietly as Japan stared at him in guilt until something caught their eyes. It was a person, but the person had shoulder-length ash brown hair and scared amber eyes wearing a red changshan with thin sleeves, dark brown pants with torn leg wrappings, and black boots.

He looked around before looking up the torn, rocky path and saw the bamboo forest ahead. He took a couple of steps before stopping suddenly. "Hey! What are you doing?!" A voice with a Japanese accent shouted, making Maolong freeze up for a second before bolting towards the forest with the general chasing him and trying to get his gun out, but stopped as Maolong disappeared in the forest.

"He won't survive long." The general said before turning around to go back to his post.

"Is everyone okay?" Sinovia asked as they all came to from the vision. America looked around blearily, England and France opened their eyes before closing them again at the harsh light, Italy slowly came to as Germany shook his head, Russia blinked his eyes to get the sleep out of them, but the strangest thing was that Japan and China were staring at Maolong in shock. And when the others looked at him, they were instantly shocked.

"BEIJING!" Maolong was slumped in his chair with his head on the table, his arms limp, and a few seconds later suddenly woke up by the scream to only fall out of his chair and onto Fēng and Bào. "Kuso... That hurt worse than when I fell out of a tree." As he sat up to rub his back, his hair was in a disarray and was going in different directions in front and around of his face. For a split second, he looked like a younger China.

As everyone clamed down, Sinovia knew that she was going to have to tell them one day. To tell them of why she has these visions.