Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, it belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya.

Author's Note: Hello, and welcome to the next chapter of the Poppy Field. Originally, this chapter was going to be from the British perspective with bits of other places as well. However, I was recently inspired by what I am currently learning in history- medicine and Hitler's Germany- and I just started writing about the attack on Belgian civilians by the Germans (sometimes known as the Rape of Belgium).
Although I realise that this event occurred before the taxi incident, I like how it turned out and do not feel it necessary to swap them over for the sake of chronological correctness.

A little warning here, things will get a bit more graphic in this chapter, with scenes of injury. After all, this is modern war.

Thank you for reading!
~Anonymous Lily

Chapter Five: A Reluctant Host
Adie awoke to screaming. Alarmed, she bolted up and winced at a dull ache in her ribs. She was in a hospital, full to the brim with anxious-looking doctors and confused young nurses. The air was pungent, full of the sickly sour smell of vomit and blood. She had been placed in a bed in the corner of the draughty, dimly-lit room. Gritting her teeth, she began to pull herself up from the bed when a panicked nurse grabbed her shoulders and pushed her down.

"Miss, you cannot get up, not in your state." the nurse said firmly, her Flemish clumsy and broken. From what she could see of her uniform, the Nurse was British.

Why am I in a British hospital? What happened?

The person who cried out before did so again, with more desperation.

Adie shook her head, "I am fine, Nurse. Go see someone else who needs you more, like that person who keeps calling for help."

Indignant, the Nurse tutted. "Miss, your chest was crushed and you were barely breathing. You are not fine and need medical attention..."

"How did I get this? What happened?" she interrupted.

"One of the patients found you on the street after witnessing a German soldier attack you." the Nurse sighed, "He said you were fighting and then you suddenly collapsed. He stood on your chest and left without a word. Now let me see that wound!"

Frustrated, Adie pulled up her blood-stained shirt, showing the Nurse an almost completely healed ribcage, with simply small bruises where large gashes should have been. The Nurse stared, perplexed, before rushing off after a doctor.

Adie ran a hand across the wound, the dull ache shrinking. Then she remembered, memories bleeding into each other...

Belgium was under seige. From the other side of the border, hoardes of grey-clad soldiers marched, their guns gleaming like a beacon. Most of the citizens had fled further away, leaving the Belgian Army and the few armed civilians to face the oncoming menace to their peaceful lives.

Adie herself had positioned herself a little away from the main forces, facing one person in particular.

Ludwig Beilschmidt.

The last time Adie saw him, he was quiet, observing his elder brother's movements and political techniques with the wide eyes of a student. Now, as he towered above her, Ludwig was in his element. Rigidly, he stood at the other end of the street, clear blue eyes boring into Adie's own.

"Belgium, let us pass. Our quarrel is not with you, but with France." Ludwig stated.

Adie was initially outraged. How dare this sapling demand that she, a powerful empire, allow them to walk over her, use her as a springboard to settle their quarrel?

"You cannot go through here," Adie said forcefully, "Go through Alsace-Lorraine if you are so intent on fighting France."

Ludwig stepped toward Adie indignantly. "You cannot stop me, just let my men through and we won't cause any trouble at all."

She reached for her gun. "I said, you are not going through here." Adie repeated.

Suddenly, Ludwig punched her, sending the Belgian personification backwards. Wiping the blood from her nose, Adie blocked another punch and kicked him in the chest. As he fell back, Ludwig grabbed her hair, dragging her forwards so that she practically could smell his breath.

"Get out of my terrritory!" Adie growled, pointing her gun at the German's neck. They remained in a deadlock for a few tense moments before Ludwig lunged. She pulled the trigger.

%&%

Then, she was in Bruges. The German Army had advanced significantly, to the point where most of Belgium was overrun. Adie felt a strange sickness in her stomach,

"Stop, Ludwig! What are you doing to them?" Adie screamed, gasping in pain. She could hear them: women, children, men, innocent civilians as they were ruthlessly slaughtered, one by one. She felt every body burning, the flesh peeling off; she felt every gunshot as it ripped through another person's heart.

All the while, Ludwig stood, staring at the Belgian with a blank stare. Was he smiling? Was he ashamed? Did he enjoy the power it gave him? Adie could not tell, only that the deaths were still occuring, that her citizens were dying by the hundreds and she could do nothing about it, only watch.

Adie felt a heavy weight drop onto her chest, squeezing the air from her lungs.

%&%

A plethora of voices, imploring her, demanding her to awaken...

"Miss, wake up!"

"Damn it Adie, get up! We need you!"

"Belgium, Belgium, it's Arthur. We've got you to the buffer zone now."

"Belgique, wake up now."

Adie again looked around her. The hospital had become even more crowded, the cries and groans bouncing off the walls.

Germany had invaded her country. He and his men had killed hundreds, perhaps thousands of innocent civilians.

He was not going to get away with this.

Author's Note: Germany invaded Belgium on the 4th August. German attacks on Belgian citizens began officially the next day and happened in towns across the country. These attacks were publicised in German newspapers and justified by saying that those killed were civilian snipers. One of the most famous massacres was in Louvain- which was so intense that it became a headline in the New York Tribune. It has been estimated that about six thousand Belgians and French civilians were killed in the first few weeks of the war. Sadly, this was just an example of the numerous atrocities associated with the First World War.

On another note, I am not sure about my portrayal of Belgium in this chapter- I am not used to writing her. I see her as tough and stubborn underneath her good-natured and friendly façade, what with her being a former empire with many colonies, as well as fighting in a lot of wars.

(By the way, thank you abc for your reviews, though you do not need to immediately review whenever a new chapter comes out, so don't worry about being late. Also, thanks to urfabiosis for reviewing- although in your particular case, you could have just told me the feedback!)

Anyway, thank you for reading,

~Anonymous Lily