Hey there! Man, I hope I'm not spouting some random crap every time I post… on a side note, guys, is anyone here a fan of Ouran High School Host Club or Kamisama Hajimemashita (Kamisama Kiss)?

Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia - Axis Powers

My first warning.

How many warnings I would get before punishment, I didn't know. I had never gotten a warning before. Sweden and Denmark… they just skipped straight to the punishment.

It was valid though, this first warning. My own fault for using magic, it taxed my body too much, gave me another attack like Vena predicted.

As inferred above, I wasn't punished, not yet. It was still only my first warning. The look on Vene's face, though, the rather stoic, intensely disappointed expression boring into me and making me feel incredibly guilty.

The next time Canada saw me, the next day, when we were meant to pick up from where we had left off in our left off in our classes before I had nearly fainted, he came in with a somehow ashamed quaver on his lip, as if it were his fault I hadn't listened to Vene.

What did I do? I ruffled his hair and called him little brother. And that made him about a thousand times happier.

"That's it, don't worry, you'll get it," I told Canada soothingly, shooing him away from the second chair he had just exploded.

Norwegian magic is admittedly harder to grasp than British sorcery. There are no specific words to a spell, no particular hand movement, no fancy sticks to channel your magic with. You must be able to find your magical core within you, and let it flow smoothly through you. You must be able to feel the magic at your fingertips, control it, command it, and project it out the way you want it to. It'll be immensely hard to begin with, but once you get the hang of it the possibilities are endless. There'll be no boundaries to hold you back.

Basically, it took a lot of patience, even just to teach someone else how to do it. I don't know where I got all that patience from, if it had been Iceland, we would've both stormed off to do something else by that point.

Canada had the magical talent, sure, but he honestly had little to no control over it.

Said boy huffed as nothing happened for just about the millionth time. "Agh! I just did it, the wrong thing but I just did it, why won't it work?!"

I just sighed. "Because at this stage your magic is still unpredictable and you've got to be patient."

He only gave me a sceptical pout and jumped into my lap. "I'm hungry!" he declared.

I groaned. "Canada…"

Violet eyes suddenly became even rounder and larger, threatening to spill tears.

"Canada… I don't know where the kitchen or dining room is…"

"Please?"

Damned bambi eyes.

Canada managed to get me all the way to my bedroom door before I stopped us both.

"Canada…" I stammered, staring out into the hallway. It was painted a pale blue, with framed paintings hung up randomly here and there, all scenery, no figures. "I…"

Somehow, I hadn't thought about what the rest of the house looked like, and I hadn't seen properly outside my room for ages. "I… don't know if I'm allowed to leave my room."

He gave me a confused frown. "Well of course you are, why wouldn't you?"

I didn't know how to explain, but decided I'll just go along with it. Vena couldn't get mad if he technically never told me no, right?

Right?

Vargas Manor, Canada called this.

So all this time… all these days of lying alone in my room, almost dying of boredom on one or two fleeting occasions, I was in a manor.

Manor, manor I didn't know what it meant. So Canada explained it to me. A mansion, a large house. So large that we got terribly lost, despite a certain young boy claiming he knew the way.

When it happened, I hadn't been paying attention. We were walking through a hallway with loads of fragile-looking displays, and Canada tripped. Simple as that.

"Onii-chan!" he screamed as he fell down the stairs.

Time slowed down.

What I should've done, was run down and grab him, and risk maybe having another mild attack, but it was only a few steps if I did, so I should've been okay.

Instead, I thrust out my arm and willed him to stop falling. Using magic.

I wasn't being lazy. I wasn't being impertinent. It was just instinct.

My magical core was full to the brim. It always was. When I tried to command it, it all exploded through me. Like it usually did, actually. The change was how much I couldn't control it, that took energy, a lot of energy, a crazy amount that I didn't have, much more than was usually needed.

I fell to my knees and clutched at my chest, fighting against the unconsciousness.

"Onii-chan!" I vaguely heard Canada yelling. I think he hugged me again, but I wasn't sure.

It felt like two hooks had latched on to my heart and were trying to pull it out. It hurt that much, far far worse than the first time I had tried to run and gotten a seizure. It hurt more than the last time I attempted magic, I felt like I was being torn apart from the inside.

Black spots obscured my vision. I couldn't quite think anymore. It hurt, hurt, hurt.

My breath became laboured, but I tried my best to get enough air. I needed air. Air was good.

This time, I rather succeeded. I didn't black out straight away, the world was closer, albeit terribly blurry.

I smiled faintly at Canada, who appeared to have been saved by my careless spell after all. "I'm fine, Canada."

He sniffled and hugged me some more.

"You got lost, didn't you?" I heard a petite voice ask from behind us. More solemn than usual, not as sunshine and cheery as I was used to.

Canada pulled away from me and grinned like he hadn't a care in the world. "Gee, hey there, Bianca!" he greeted enthusiastically, "You wouldn't happen to have any food on you, would `cha?"

I blinked at his sudden attitude change. Just a few moments ago he seemed close to tears and now…

I turned around to face her too. Bianca was pretty much the same size as Canada, despite being at least a year or two older than him. They were quite a contrast together, her with her long silky black hair and olive shaded skin, him with his rounded honey-blonde hair and pale complexion.

She raised an eyebrow at his question and took out a sugar-covered bagel from the pocket of the white baking apron she always seemed to wear. Canada grabbed it eagerly, earning an eye roll from the youngest Italy. He in response stuck out his tongue at her and began munching on it.

I hadn't ever seen how the two interacted with each other. I was a bit funny, like they were siblings bantering with each other.

Bianca turned her attention to me. "Well, you two were looking for the dining room, right? I'll take you there."

I nodded, glad that the pain from using magic had subsided somewhat. Bianca did seem a bit less upbeat than I deemed normal, but I couldn't tell if it was somehow because of Canada or for other reasons.

The dining room didn't seem all that far away, but if you asked me to get back to my room from there that day all by myself I wouldn't have been able to do it.

Romano and Veneziano were there when I walked in. Romano basically ignored me, but I could practically feel Vene's golden eyes boring into me once more.

"I was about to call you for lunch, you know," she directed at Canada. "Would you like to join us, Norway?"

Canada stopped nibbling his bagel and pouted. "But we were just in the middle of class when—"

"It's fish & chips," Vena interrupted with a knowing smirk. Canada flashed into his seat immediately.

This confused me, really, and I had no idea what fish & chips were meant to be, but I went along with it anyway. I still wasn't sure if I had a choice.

I took the only empty seat and listened to them talk. At first, it was mostly just Canada and Bianca going on about the fun they had been having in the garden that day… then they somehow ended up having a grand debate on frozen yoghurt vs gelato.

Romano and Vena mostly watched them amusedly, as a couple would watch their own children bicker playfully. Sometimes, Romano would lean over and whisper to Vene, who would either respond with a small nod or a deadpanned stare.

When we finally stood up to go back to my room and continue class, Vena caught my eye and slowly held up two fingers.

Second warning.

Canada idolized England. It took me two weeks to find that out.

In that two weeks, Canada learned how to summon snowclouds and make frost. It was all a matter of figuring out his affinity, even if we had a bit of trouble getting rid of his icy creations. We bonded quite a bit.

I guess I must've been healing, because I could walk around without having any fear of getting an attack anymore. The two of us liked to stroll around and just talk. It was usually either him chatting hyperly and me listening, or he would sometimes demand me to tell him some Norwegian folk tales.

Canada liked to bring me to have tea in the garden, that is to say one of the Vargas Manor's many gardens. He always did it the proper British way, with different-flavoured crumpets and all.

Somewhere along the line, Canada had decided that England was a better guardian than France anyday. Coupled with the fact that the United Kingdoms had one of the strongest magical communities in the world, and how much his little brother USA seemed to love being a British colony back when they still got to play together all the time, when he was still a French colony himself, he was now a very firm supporter of 'Angleterre'. (The kid was also still trying to get rid of his slight French accent)

That and the fact that he absolutely loved British food. Even if he wouldn't touch a scone for as long as I knew him.