Sometimes he woke up in a cold fright, sweat beading on his forehead and heart racing. Images, feelings and sounds would cling to his mind like spider-silk, to be brushed away as he woke up completely and realized where he was. Sometimes he would find himself humming a song he didn't know and looking around for something he couldn't name.
His brother's house was grand and spacious, but the house in which Prussia's ruler lived in was even bigger, filled with luxurious furnishings. People of all ranks bustled back and forth there, while outside, even more people clamored in the streets.
Prussia's house was on the outskirts of town, close to the people, but far enough away that he could teach swordsmanship and play with his brother. The lack of people around meant there were no prying eyes calculating and reporting to other nations about the small, blond, blue-eyed boy Prussia called 'brother."
He didn't go outside often because Prussia had an enormous library that was open to him whenever he wanted. The only section he couldn't read was Prussia's old diaries – something about letting ghosts rest. His brother, for all his violent quirks and vital-region- seizing tendencies, enjoyed reading almost as much as he did.
He traced the spines of the books with a forefinger, feeling the sun-warmed leather slide under his skin. The door to the library banged open, the doorway framing Prussia standing legs apart, hands on hips and bird on head, grinning like the entire world was his.
Letting his hand drop, he followed his brother out of the library, out of the house and out of Königsberg. They mounted horses and galloped west away from the cities, out to the countryside. Prussia stopped suddenly and dismounted, gesturing for him to do the same. Placing hands on his shoulders, Prussia walked him forward, jerking him to a stop, then backing him up a couple inches until he was happy.
"Do you see this?" Prussia whispered in his ear. "From where you're standing, from here to the horizon, as far as the eye can see….. This kingdom of paradise which was once mine, is now yours, Germany."
Sometimes the half-remembered memories would try to haunt his sleep, but he could push them away and replace them with new memories of his own country.