Author's say:
New chapter, yay!
I guess you can consider this the first real chapter since the other one, as I said before, is more of a preface.
...and for the record, Hetalia isn't mine, wasn't mine, and won't ever be mine.
Find Me
It had been almost five months since his brother's death.
Japan, along with the rest of the nations, has reverted back to his old ways; meeting to confront new issues, perfecting one another's techniques, and taking this planet what they hope could be its brightest future. With the third of the world wars at end, high hopes of the people in every country were greater than ever.
"H-hey…Pochi-kun!" The Island nation called out to his puppy, who had happily been dragging Japan him along the path for the past half hour. "Please, slow down!"
"Arf!" The tiny dog responded, hardly bring down their speed.
"Pochi-kun!" Kiku moaned, finally resorting to pulling on his leash lock.
The whitely dog pouted a bit before sitting itself down, already bored from going slower. The Asian sighed before giving a soft smile. "You're so reckless, Pochi-kun…"
The man knelt down to scoop his puppy up. The sky had begun to darken, and he didn't want the dog to get lost in the shadows. Japan had turned to go, but just before he could take another step, he heard a soft cry coming from the forest beside them. While Kiku was deciding whether or not to be curious, his dog decided to take the decision I his own hands and let out a sharp bark.
"P-Pochi!" Japan had almost dropped the pup in surprise. "Don't do that!"
But the nation quickly quieted himself just to hear a weak moan coming from the same direction as the cry had. Kiku started to panic.
"Who is there?" He called out shakily into the shadows of the woods, still standing on the safety of the path.
"Arf!" Pochi wanted to help.
The sun was setting fast now and Japan didn't want to be left in the dark alone with…well, with whatever was making the noise. He called out again. No response.
Kiku's instinct told him to leave it. Whatever it was, it could take care of itself.
"Probably just some animal trying to call to the moon." He told himself, still unconvinced.
But somewhere in him, he felt the urge to explore. And well enough, his curiosity led him into the trees, Pochi in his arms, and his feet being attacked by the uncut prickles of the forest floor. He could easily agree that wearing zori* while trying to work yourself through various amounts of sharp bushes and weeds was not the best idea.
"Is anyone there?" He called out, feeling a tad ashamed to be talking to only the trees and darkness that surrounded them.
"…..j-jiu ming*" A tiny voice peeped out from behind the shadows.
Japan stopped in his tracks, leaning toward the option of either responding or running away, something he probably wouldn't regret. "W-who?"
A patch of leaves behind him began to shake as a small figure began to wrestle itself out of the forest. Kiku froze, his body quickly filling up with fear. He could even feel Pochi shaking. The two stood in fright as the creature tumbled out of the bushes, falling to the ground face first. It cried out again…this time in pain.
Once the figure had fallen out of the shadows, the light of the moon revealed two hands…human hands, and long, royal sleeves that covered them. Japan tried to focus through the dim light. Was it…human?
"A-are you alright…?" Kiku asked shakily, still gripping his dog.
When he received no response, he let himself a few steps closer to the mysterious 'person', who was now letting out a soft whimper.
"It's a…child." He realized, quickly letting Pochi down and kneeling beside the small boy. "Are you okay?"
The child gave a weak cry and tried to back away, still on the ground.
"No, no…it's okay." Japan whispered gently, "I'm not going to hurt you."
The kid tried to sit up, finally pulling up his neck to face Kiku, revealing his dark eyes that had been shaded with tears.
"D-dùi bù qĭ." He sniffed awkwardly…speaking in tongue that was unfamiliar to Japan.
"It's alright…" Kiku cooed softly, holding a hand out for the boy. "I will help you."
The shivering child held his ground for a moment, too afraid to take the hand. But he quickly gave in, like any kid would, and threw himself into Japan's arms before letting out all of his tears. The taller nation was surprised, as was his dog, who had been thrown from his arms as the child buried his face in the layers of Japan's kimono as he cried.
"There, there..." Kiku stroked the boy's oddly lengthy hair. "Everything will be ok…"
And before the moon had a chance to come back down, Japan had started his journey back home again, with Pochi happily barking at his side, and the child in his arms. Even for Kiku, carrying such a tiny child was not much of a hassle. But for now, all the Asian could think about was where, exactly, did the boy come from? And…remind Japan again…why is he taking him home?
As he neared the light of his porch, the rest of the night absorbing his shadows into the darkness, Kiku noticed another figure, standing there in the light.
"A-Arthur-san!?"
The man waved a welcome from the porch and started to walk toward Japan.
"Arthur-san…" Kiku asked as the Britain neared him, "What are you…?"
"Kiku!" England exclaimed, a light exhaustion in his breath. "I…I heard you had-….huh?"
The blonde displayed a rather confused look on his face after spotting the boy.
"Er…Japan? Who is that…?"
Kiku seemed to have forgotten all about the kid for a moment, causing him to blush a little and readjust his grip on the now sleeping child. "He-…I…found him." He said quickly.
Arthur took a minute and studied the kid's face. "…you just …found him?" His words leaked with disbelief.
Japan sighed and nodded, "He was all alone…in the forest." He spoke shakily; the cold night air was finally getting to him.
"Well…" England said quickly, pulling off his coat and wrapping it around Kiku's shoulders, "Let's get you both inside before it gets too late."
Japan nodded, "But what about you, Arthur-san? You a far ways from your home…"
England broke a smile. "Don't trouble yourself over me. I only came to discuss a few things about the meeting, but that can wait." He paused to take a glance at the boy, "He comes first for now."
Japan nodded unsurely and quickly followed the Britain, child in hand, into his own home.
"So…you just found him?" England was determined to get the story straight.
"Yes." Japan responded shakily. "He was in the forest…all alone. He looked hurt; his arms were covered in scratches from the sharp bushes."
Arthur nodded, having been the one who had to bandage the boy as Kiku worked on setting up a bed. The two were now in Japan's sitting room, under the heating table, trying to sort things out.
"Do you think he has a home…?"
"I…I'm not sure." Japan sighed. "He's not Japanese, I can tell you that."
But before England could respond, Japan let out a soft cry, lowering his head.
"Kiku…?" Arthur confusedly set down his tea and crawled out from under the heated table to join Japan on the other side. It wasn't every day that japan was willing to show himself so weak.
"I…Arthur-san…I'm sorry." England could see tears beginning to fall from the Asian's face.
Arthur felt lost, what was he so upset about? But being the gentlemen he was, he didn't say anything, simply putting an arm around his friend in attempt to comfort. They sat there, the boy in the other room resting silently, and the other two holding each other in the next.
"I...you'll have to excuse me..." Japan sniffed, wiping his face with the edge of his sleeve. "It's just…the child, h-he spoke to me."
England nodded, still stuck in confusion.
"At first, I just thought it was just some kind of gibberish," He could feel the tears coming back, gripping the edge of Arthur's shirt as they fell from his face. "B-but now I realize…it was Chinese."
The Britain's eyes widened. "Chinese…?"
Japan gave no response but a small sniff.
"But…China is-"
"I k-know." Kiku choked on his tears. "I know…Aniki is d-dead."
It took a moment for England to figure out who 'Aniki' was. "Then…how could the kid…?"
Several seconds of silence passed through the room, leaving them both with nothing to say before being interrupted by the soft cry of the child. Both looked up, remembering they weren't the only ones there.
"I can-" Japan began.
"No." England said with a soft smile before gently taking himself off Kiku. "I'll check on him."
Japan nodded, still shaken, as the Britain headed out of the room, leaving Kiku to hold himself. He could shortly hear the soft voice of the child back in the forest, softly ringing through his head.
"…..j-jiu ming"
Kiku winced, "China..."
It hurt almost as much as that day. Or rather, that night.
His brother was dead.
China was dead.
And the only one who still had yet to accept it was him.
Afterwards:
I hope I didn't cut this chapter off to quick. I had cut the original in half because it was too long to post, so the next chapter will really be the 'end' of this one. And thanks to those who reviewed~! Next chapter = Tuesday