Blake watched his aunt with squinting eyes, her aura was back to her brilliant gold but the vapor was still in there; somewhere.
"Hey Dad," Amy was on the phone with his grandfather, "yeah, he's with me. Tell Melissa he's fine." Pause, "Yeah, we'll be home soon." Another pause, "Love you too, bye."
They were now in Amy's jeep, driving back home. He sighed; he was not ready to handle his parents' scorn. Not now anyway, his emotions were unstable and he felt as if he was feeling everything at once. Guilt for Owl and what he did to her; worry for Amy and the vapor that's inside her, and fear for what was lurking in the shadows.
"You okay kiddo?" Amy asked, concerned.
He shook his head.
"Hey, how about we take a detour?" a mischievous smile played on her lips.
He lifted a brow, "What kind of detour?"
"I was thinking ice cream," she winked.
She drove to the broad walk and bought two cones from an ice cream cart. She got cappuccino chunky chocolate chip while Blake got mint chocolate chip. They walked along the ocean's shore, eating their cones and taking in the sights. Not many people were around so they pretty much had the beach to themselves.
After they were done with their cones, Amy pulled off her pantyhose, balled them up into her shoe and dipped her feet into the cool water. She stretched her arms over her head, "God, it feels like the whole world was lifted off my shoulders. Heh, it kinda was," she turned to Blake, "You want to look for seashells?"
He shook his head and sat down in the sand.
"Okay, more for me then," she grinned, threw her shoes and jacket next to him and bent down to place her hands in the water.
Blake pulled his knees into his chest and closed his eyes, sending out a silent prayer for Owl.
"I'm not dead."
He opened his eyes and found Owl standing beside him. She was back to her average size. Her feathers were returned to their beautiful shades of white, gray and brown; and her eyes were once again glittery onyx.
"Owl?" he turned to face her but checked to see if Amy noticed him technically talking to himself but she was preoccupied with a pink seashell. Blake focused on Owl, "How? What-What happened? I thought-"
"You killed me?" Owl chuckled, "No, you didn't. But you did destroy the vapors."
"How?" he asked.
"With your aura," she answered. "A person of Sight can use their aura as a weapon against dark spirits. Just as it is easy for you to see other people's auras and spirits, this ability is just as natural."
Blake nodded, absorbing this information. "But why did you attack me? Why did you explode?"
"The vapors had complete control of me. They wanted to consume you, and if you didn't free me from their grasp they would've had me too. The reason why I shattered was because when your aura pierced my chest it was purifying the vapors. They were trapped in my body and had nowhere to run. Don't worry, you could never kill me. If I'm taken again by a vapor, just use your aura, as long as there is light in me, I will always be saved."
"But, where did you go?"
"I had to go back to the Spirit World to regain my strength and put myself back together."
He gave a small smile, "Sorry about that."
"I'm fine child," then she narrowed her eyes at Amy, "you have other things to worry about."
"Is the vapor still inside her?" Blake asked.
"Yes."
"I can get rid of it, right," he said hopefully.
"Blake I don't want to crush your confidence but I have to be truthful with you." Owl spoke in a firm tone, "What you did to me was a fluke; a lucky shot. Fear and instinct aided you today, but you cannot relay it. Vapors not only thrive off chaos, but also paranoia, agony, strife, and hatred. They not only grow stronger from these emotions. They are also born from them."
He knitted his brows in frustration, "then how do I-"
"Tell me, if these emotions make them powerful, what emotions cause them to weaken?" she asked.
Blake nodded, "I think, I know." he kicked off his shoes and socks and ran into the ocean. "Aunt Amy, what did you find?"
"Hmm, let's see," she pulled out her shirt, which she used to carry her treasures. Colorful shells were stacked on top of one another. Some were smooth with natural brown and white colors. Others had ridges with pink and tan shades and she even found one that looked like a swirled unicorn horn.
"That one's cool," he pointed to the twisted seashell.
"You want it?" she grinned.
"Later, come on," he gestured to the shore, "let's lay them out so they can dry."
She agreed and together they arranged the seashells with no concept of order. Then they fell back onto the cozy sand, allowing the sun to warm their skin. Blake glanced to Amy, her eyes were closed and she was breathing softly. She was at peace.
He reached for Amy's hand and closed his eyes. "Focus," Owl stood over his head, whispering her instructions to him. "Imagine your aura forming into a cloud and stretching itself around Amy."
Blake took a deep breath and his violet aura sparked to life. It took on the same shape as a vapor and swirled around Amy. The purple colored vapor dived into her gold, searching for the darkness.
"Now, when you find the vapor, send out a massive blast of your energy. If you do this right, it will shatter." Owl finished.
He nodded, his eyes were still closed. He visualized his aura traveling inside of Amy's and striking down that vapor. He smiled, feeling like hero; but that thought didn't last for long. The dark vapor found him first and bit off a piece of his aura.
Blake cried out and Owl exclaimed, "Stay calm. Put up your defense."
His aura fell back and tried to rebuild himself, but the vapor took its chance to attack. It struck with a series of slices and stabs. With every blow the vapor gave, it tore apart at Blake's soul. Pain surged through his veins as tears filled his stinging eyes. He gasped for breath like a fish out of water.
"Blake, calm down," Owl soothed, "it's using your fear and pain against you, don't let it."
He grinded his teeth together and summoned his courage. His aura grew and went on the offense. Blake imagined his aura biting into the vapor and ripping it apart like Owl did. His aura fulfilled his wish and morphed into a violet colored barn owl. He reached out with his aura's talons and squeezed the vapor with all his strength. The vapor hissed in irritation and bit back, but Blake felt nothing.
He pierced his beck inside the vapor and ripped it in half. The vapor screamed in agony as it shattered and disappeared from Amy's aura.
Blake released his hold on Amy's hand and pulled back his aura. He was panting as if he had run a mile; his muscles were sore and aching. His eyes were stinging with every blink and his hair was soaked in sweat. He side glanced to his aunt; she was still fast asleep, wearing the same peaceful expression.
"Good work," Owl said with bright eyes and flapped her wings. She leaped into the blue sky and flew away, towards the horizon.
Blake's eyes fluttered to a close as he curled himself beside Amy and fell into a dreamless slumber.
Jamie and Michel were lounging in the living room, watching Mean Girls as they ate chocolate chip cookies.
"'Oh my God Karen you can't just ask people why their white,'" Michel followed along with the movie and laughed, "I love that part!"
"You love every part," Jamie said as she bit into a cookie.
He nodded, "oh but I really love that part with the girl and the cake speech."
"'She doesn't even go here!'" Jamie quoted and they both dissolved into giggles.
Then the doorbell ringed and they both calmed down. Jamie rose from the couch, they must have found Blake, she thought. John had to take a personal day from his job so he could search the town for his grandson. He told Jamie and Michel to stay at his house in case Blake came by. Jamie didn't mind, Amy's house was pretty much a second home to her.
She answered the door, expecting John or Blake; instead she found Arthur and several people waiting on the front porch. She spotted Matthew and Francis behind him, but she didn't recognize the last five men.
"Hey Arthur, um," she did a quick glance to the five men and turned back to Arthur, "where's Amy?"
"She's not here?" he asked, concerned.
Michel came up behind her, "wasn't she with you?"
"Yes, well, she left early," Arthur answered.
Jamie and Michel shared a worried look. "Does that mean you guys are here to capture us and send us to secret lab where you will place rods into our ears and erase our memories of Amy?" Michel asked.
Jamie lifted her brow at him, "really."
"It's valid question."
Francis chuckled and Arthur sighed, "No. Everything has been settled, no one is going anywhere."
She smiled and Michel threw up his hands to the ceiling and exclaimed, "Praise Jesus!"
"Michel," she rolled her eyes, but couldn't wipe away her smile.
"If you two are done," a blond haired man said, annoyed. "We need to speak with Amy. Could you contact her? She won't answer any of our calls." He had the brightest blue eyes that she ever saw. Almost the same shade as Amy's, Jamie thought. His hair was brushed back and he also had a white bandage over his cheek.
Jamie took her phone out and scrolled through her contacts. She pressed on Amy's smiling face and waited for her to pick up. The dial tone repeated six times before her voice mail came into play. "Her phone must be off." Jamie then decided to leave a message.
"Can we speak with her parents?" the blond man asked.
"Two problems with that handsome," Michel proclaimed. "One: Jessica's at work, she'll be back at five. Two: John went out to look for Blake."
"Blake's with Amy," Matthew added.
"Hmm, then I don't know when he's coming back," he said.
"Why do you want to see them anyway?" Jamie asked.
Francis sighed, "You could say our friends here have some business to discuss with her and her family."
"Can we come in?" Matthew asked.
Jamie and Michel glanced at one another and he shrugged, "why not? Come in, welcome to the house of the Hawkfeather's; our home away from home."
Jamie stepped back as the nations walked in and Michel gestured them to the living room. She closed the door and strolled in after them. They sat around the coffee table as a teen-aged boy with a brown curl snatched a cookie from the plate. She turned off the TV and sat in the loveseat on the right. Arthur, Francis and Matthew sat on the couch, while the five men sat in the other loveseat and chairs that Michel brought in from the kitchen.
A short Asian man with brown eyes sat next to the brown haired teenager in the loveseat across from Jamie. The last three men took the three dining chairs from across the couch. The blonde man sat in the first seat. A taller Asian man with longer hair sat in the middle and a large silver haired man sat on Jamie's left.
Michel took his seat beside Jamie and asked. "So who's who?"
The nations shared cautious looks with one another but the teenager ignored their expressions and grinned, "I'm Feliciano Vargas, the nation of Italy."
"It-Feliciano," the blond man's tone was filled with irritation.
"Calm down Germany they know," Arthur proclaimed.
"You're Germany," Michel exclaimed, "should've known, your blond and blue eyed. Your people went crazy for it in the forty's."
Awkward silence filled the room and Jamie shook her head in embarrassment. She decided to change the subject, "so, um, Mr. Germany, in public should we call you-" she waited for him to finish her sentence.
"Ludwig Beilschmidt," he answered as he rubbed his temples.
"Cool," she said uneasily and glanced to the Asian man next to Feliciano, "what's your name?"
The man's eyes widen in surprise, he didn't seem like he was ready to speak to anyone, "I-I'm Honda Kiku, the nation of Japan."
"Oh you're Jap-aaaaahhh" Michel cried out in pain and turned to Jamie. "Why did you pinch me?" he rubbed his arm.
"To stop you from saying something stupid," she hissed in his ear. Then she focused her attention on the last two nations, "and you two are?"
The long haired Asian man lifted a brow at her curiously but answered, "I'm Wang Yao, the nation of China."
"And I'm," the silver haired nation lifted his hand in a mock wave, "Ivan Braginski, the nation of Russia."
Jamie's eyes widened as Michel tensed beside her.
Awkward silence filled the room once again.
Before anyone could say anything, Jamie rose to her feet, "Tea, we need tea. Michel, help with me the tea."
Michel ignored her and glared at Ivan. She then, had to practically drag him into the kitchen. "Get in here," she whispered harshly as she finally pulled him to the sink.
"I can't believe that bastard had the nerve to show his face here," Michel focused on matching his tone with Jamie's so the nations wouldn't hear them.
"I know, but we just have to stay calm and-"
"Stay calm! Hell no, that son of bitch will feel my wrath. He's not gonna get away with what he did to Amy."
"I know Michel. But he's a nation, he won't be running for the hills when he sees your sassy slaps of vengeance. He will smack you down like a fly." She grabbed the kettle from the stove and started to fill it up with water.
"What are you doing?" he asked suspiciously.
She lifted brow at him, "making tea."
"I thought that was an excuse, so we could come in here and talk about how we're going kick Ivan's ass back to Russia."
"You are human, he's a nation, take a moment and think about that for a second." Jamie placed the kettle on the stove and turned the knob to high.
"I don't care if he's a monkey's uncle! He's a dead man!"
Before Jamie could snap out a comeback, she heard the front door open and John Hawkfeather's voice called out for them. "Jamie. Michel. We're home-" he stopped in mid-sentence, most likely because he was greeted by five nations he had never seen before in his living room.
Jamie and Michel ran back to the room and found John and Aponi standing in the front of the room with confused expressions on their faces. "Who are these people?" John asked.
"How rude of us," Francis rose from his seat, strolled to Aponi and guided her to take his seat. "These people are some of the other nations. All of us here make up the G8," Francis proclaimed.
Introductions were passed around with John, Aponi and the other nations. Jamie tensed when she saw John and Ivan shaking hands like longtime friends. If only he knew what I knew.
Then she caught Michel walking towards John, "Mr. H, I need your help in the kitchen." Michel then pulled him into the kitchen.
Jamie cursed and followed them in.
"Michel, what's gotten into you?" John twisted his arm out of Michel's grasp.
"You have tell Ivan to leave," Michel said in a low whisper.
"Why?" he asked.
"Mr. Hawkfeather, don't listen to him, he doesn't know what he's saying," Jamie came up and tried to cover Michel's mouth.
"No. I don't care if we promised Amy, her dad needs to know," Michel kept her hand at bay.
John grabbed Jamie and placed her beside Michel, "What do I need to know," he asked, concerned.
Michel scorned Jamie and she sighed, "Ivan tried to rape Amy."
Then she and Michel quickly summed up the story that Amy told them on the beach. As they clarified their tale John's eyes widened and his brows knitted together in worry wrinkles. Jamie noticed these changes and stopped, but Michel kept going.
"He tore her dress, that's why you guys never saw it. Then he was kissing her and Amy bit him and-"
John held up his hand for him to stop and turned to Jamie, "is this true?"
She inhaled through her nose and closed her eyes, "yes."
The kettle whistled and everyone in the room jumped in surprise. John looked to the black pot with annoyance and opened the cabinet above the stove to grab twelve mismatched tea cups. He pulled out a tray from the bottom cabinet and sat the tea cups on the tray. He began to pour boiling water into each cup. He did all this in silence.
"Mr. Hawkfeather, are you okay?" Jamie asked, worried.
"I'm fine," he said and dipped in a jasmine tea bag into each cup.
Jamie and Michel glanced at one another and when John was done, he picked up the tray and walked into the living room. They followed right on his heels and were a bit shocked that he greeted them with his usually cheerful smile. He sat the tray down, "we got jasmine tea," he proclaimed and began to hand out each cup to his guests. They said their thanks and finally when he reached Ivan, John's smile widened. "Here you go."
Ivan reached out for the cup, but in a blink of an eye John threw the scorching liquid into his violet eyes. Ivan screamed and cursed as he rose to his feet. John then took the chance to sucker punch him in the face. Ivan was blindsided and fell to the floor, John gripped his hand into Ivan's white scarf and hauled him out the front door. He threw the Russian down the steps and yelled, "Stay the hell away from my daughter!" He slammed the door and locked it. He took a deep calming breath and faced his startled guests. "Matthew. Arthur. Francis. May I have a word with you in my room," it wasn't a request but a demand.
He walked into his room that was in the hallway at the bottom of the staircase. Jamie and the rest of the group turned to face Arthur, Francis and Matthew. Their faces were blank with emotion as they followed John to his room. When they were inside, Jamie could hear John yelling at them.
"Well," Yao blew at his tea, "I guess we now know where Amy gets her temper from."
Michel smirked, "Sorry to disappoint ya, but John's the calm one."
"This is like totally amazing!" Feliks said cheerfully.
Toris sighed, "It would help if you could carry some of these bags. Also, when we're on the subject, why do you need so much stuff?" He held two bags on each arm, along with a massive umbrella tucked under his armpit and an empty bag around his neck. "Why do you need this bag anyway? There's nothing in it."
"That's for my seashells, duh." Feliks was wearing green swim trunks and a white tank top. He turned back to face the ocean, "I'll go find the perfect spot!" He ran off the broad walk, towards the water.
Toris rolled his eyes, "you meant a spot for your seashells," he mumbled.
"Here let me help," Eduard took two of the filled bags. His trunks were dark blue and his t-shirt was gray.
Toris said his thanks and pulled off the bag from his neck. Raivis came running from their rental car. He was wearing red trunks and a graphic tee, "Have you guys seen Peter?"
"No," Toris answered as he fixed his white fisher hat to cover his face from the sun.
"There's Mr. Sweden's car," Eduard pointed to a large gray van.
"Eduard, watch what you say," Toris whispered.
Once the van parked, the Nordics and Peter came pouring out. All the countries wore swim trunks that bore the designs of their flags. They also wore long tank tops and had towels draped over their shoulders. Peter spotted them first and came running.
"Wow, this place is so wicked cool!" Peter took in the sights of Summerland's beach.
"No wonder they call this town Summerland," Erik proclaimed, "its still April but it feels like early June."
"What are we waiting for?" Mikkel grinned, "Come on!" He pulled Lukas and Erik towards the ocean.
"Stop," Tino exclaimed, letting his parental instincts kick in, "You need to put on sunscreen!"
After they applied sunscreen, Mikkel, Erik and Lukas dived into the water. Toris, Tino and Berwald set up the umbrella and towels on the sand. Raivis, Peter and Eduard followed Mikkel's group, bringing their multicolored beach volleyball. Felix grabbed his empty pink graphic bag and began to pick out seashells.
Toris sat right under the large blue umbrella and kept every piece of his skin away from the harmful sun. He watched everyone from his shaded place and smiled, this was peaceful he thought.
"Toris," Tino offered him the sunscreen and he took it. "Do you need me to get your back?"
Toris tensed and shook his head, "no, I'll keep my shirt on." He pulled the hem of his white t-shirt down to his blue trunks.
Tino nodded, "okay," and he turned back to talk with Berwald.
Toris rubbed in the white lotion into his limbs and face. During this, his mind began to ponder on the nation's meeting earlier that day. In the beginning Toris planned to stay in the background and pray for it to end without any tears. But the meeting quickly escalated to an uncontrollable situation that he didn't expect to be started by Amy.
He closed his eyes and a smile perked at the corners of his mouth. He shouldn't have been surprised. She was Alfred's daughter. She had his strength and his passion. He knew that threatening her family and friends would cause her to act out; Alfred would've done the same. Maybe not throw a podium at Prussia, but Toris didn't complained, he actually found that funny.
Once again, he witnessed how inspiring Amy was. Before Austria, when Germany informed them that the next nation of America was discovered, Toris made a promise to Alfred. That he would watch out for his daughter and make sure no harm would come to her. He really had no idea why he made that promise. Maybe he wanted to pay back some of his debt to the American man, or maybe he wanted to prove to him that he had gotten stronger in his absence.
Whatever the reason was, he decided to keep a watchful eye on Amy. This decision only increased with determination when he learned of Ivan's intentions. Alfred was able to keep Ivan at bay; he needed to do the same for Amy.
His plans didn't go as he originally thought. He was able to distract Ivan on the balcony but the Russian quickly got the upper hand. Toris felt a cold shiver go down his spine. Ivan's kiss was just as cruel as he remembered. Ivan bit into his lips and forced him to open up for him. It only rubbed salt into the wound to have Amy watch his humiliation. His mind reverts back to their brief moment of eye contact; her blue eyes were filled with such surprise and disgust. For him or for Ivan, Toris didn't want to know.
"Hey guys!" Mikkel called out, "you all won't believe what we found."
From a short five minute walk from their beach spot, Mikkel and the others stumbled upon Amy and the small boy known as Blake, sleeping together on the shore.
"How did you find them?" Tino asked.
"Well it's like this," Mikkel began, "we were playing volleyball and I was totally winning and-"
"To sum it up," Lukas interrupted, "this dimwit hit the ball to hard and it came soaring next to the little one." He nodded to the light brown skinned boy.
Toris glanced to Amy, her skin was beginning to turn pink and her hair was covered with sand. Before he could comment, Feliks beat him to it. "She like, doesn't look so good."
"We should move camp here," Tino proclaimed and Berwald agreed.
After they moved their towels and umbrella, Toris made sure that Amy and Blake were directly under the shade of the umbrella. He folded his towel and placed it under Amy's head, then grabbed Feliks's towel and did the same for Blake. During this, he couldn't help but think about Amy's compassion for the boy. How gentle she was when she held Blake in her arms and soothed him with a song. Her voice was so soft at that moment; he had to focus to hear the lyrics.
Toris remembered his time with her in Austria's house. In the beginning she was irritated and scared; he didn't blame her when she took some of that frustration out on him. Toris understood, besides a part of him knew he deserved it. He wasn't a hero; it was Amy that had to save him from Ivan, not the other way around. No matter what Amy said to encourage him otherwise, he knew he was useless.
He sighed and watched Blake as he snuggled closer to Amy. He smiled, the scene was adorable. Amy looked so peaceful and content; he liked this, Amy being genuinely happy. Back in Austria, she seemed so unapproachable. He admitted, when Toris first laid eyes on her he was captivated by her elegance and beauty. But she had placed a mental wall between her and everybody else. Then when they were alone, he got to see Amy's tenderness. Being truthful himself, Toris believed she pitied him for displaying his fear for Ivan. She held him just as she held Blake; a scared child. Coddling Toris in her arms and soothing him with sweet words. Even if Amy argued that they comforted each other, he knew she would have been fine without him.
"We better put sunscreen on them," Tino's voice snapped Toris from his thoughts.
"I got dibs on America," Mikkel grinned and grabbed the sun block.
"You can't just place dibs on her, you possessive ass," Erik exclaimed.
Feliks snatched the sun block from Mikkel, "I'll get the boy," he said and spread the lotion over his face and arms. Blake wore a shirt and jeans, so most of his skin was covered.
When he was done, Mikkel snatched it back. He squeezed some sunscreen into his palm and rubbed his hands together. "This would be even better if she was wearing a bikini," his smile widened.
"Okay," Lukas tugged on his ear; hard. "You are starting to creep me out; more than usual."
"Ahh-ah, ow, ow, ow," Mikkel whimpered as Lukas pulled him back to the ocean.
Erik smirked and tossed up the beach volleyball, "Ready for round two?"
Eduard, Peter and Raivis followed him to the water. Peter and Raivis did spare one worried look towards Amy. But they trusted their friends, so they weren't that concerned.
"Here," Feliks hands Toris the sun block, "take care of America. I'm gonna check out these amazing seashells." He turned to the shells in the sand, his eyes twinkled with delight.
Toris tightened his hold on the lotion and faced Tino, practically begging with a look to take his place. But Tino and Berwald were talking among themselves, completely forgetting Toris's existence.
Toris turned back to Amy, still fast asleep. He sighed once again; his nerves were on high alert and it didn't help that he had to touch Amy.
No, I don't have to touch her, he thought.
I just have to cover her up. Yes, get the towels and cover her where ever skin is showed. He grabbed the towels, but stopped. What if the others need their towels? Then, I just have to watch her and make sure she's under the umbrella's shade.
No, I can't just sit here and watch her, I would be no better than Denmark.
He needed to wake her, but what if she expected that he was taking advantage of her? He would never harm Amy, but what if she believed he would?
He mentally groaned he was over thinking this. Before he could second guess himself, he squeezed the lotion in his hands and rubbed it on her face. Her milky white skin was surprisingly soft. Her cheeks were pink and smooth, and her hair was silky soft when he had to push aside her bangs to touch her forehead. Amy's eyes flickered under her lids and Toris froze his fingers were centimeters away from her temple. She sighed sleepily through her nose and settled back into her deep slumber.
Toris slid his fingers to her ears, then to her jaw and chin. He surged with sensation when the tip of his fingers brushed against her lips. He pulled back feeling ashamed and guilty with himself. He rubbed his eyes and glanced back to Amy, why couldn't Finland have bought those spray on sunscreen bottles?
He shook the bottle and squeezed more lotion into his hands. He patted Amy's neck and collar bone. His eyes subconsciously fell to her chest and he blushed. He clipped up the two buttons from her breast to her neck and made sure that area was covered with her blouse. He swiftly moved on to her arms and stroked his hands over her elbows, forearms and hands.
When their fingers touched, Toris's mind fell back to secret passage way. Amy's hands roaming over his body and squeezing his hand for comfort. Then when she held him, he couldn't help but think that her body fit so perfectly against his. That her head suited the crook of his neck and her arm was just the right measure to be wrapped around his waist. Goose bumps spread throughout his body at the thought of her breath on his neck and her chest against his.
He shook away the thought. He was at her legs now and he just wanted to finish as quickly as possible. When he got to her last leg, his fingers slowed. His hand held her toned calf as the other massaged the sun block from her foot to her knee. His fingers tingled as they caressed her skin. Amy wasn't just beautiful; she was gentle, courageous and strong. He truly admired her.
Amy moaned in her sleep and Toris snapped his head up to find her eyes fluttering open. She blinked at him in confusion and then her eyes widened in terror. She screamed and slammed the heel of her foot into his face. The last thought that crossed his mind in that moment, was that he deserved it.
I felt the tips of fingers caressing my leg and when I looked up my eyes were blurred, so at first, I thought Toris was wearing a black suit and took on the complexion of sickly gray. It wasn't till he was lying in the sand with his hands to his face, did I realize Toris was wearing swim wear and his hair was its natural light brown color.
"Oh. My. God!" I knelt beside him, "Toris are you okay? I'm so sorry, I-I-"
"No, Ms. America, I deserved this," he whispered behind his hands.
"What's going on?" Blake asked sleepily as he rubbed his eyes.
Someone laughed and I looked up to find a guy with jaw-length blond hair and green eyes. "Ha, you got him good."
"This isn't funny Feliks," another blond haired young man said.
"Ah Tino, lighten up," Feliks grinned.
Then a large man with glasses walked up to Toris and handed him a towel, "you're bleeding," he said in monotone.
"What?! Let me see," I forced him to move his hands away from his face. His nose was swollen, red and it was turning black and blue. Blood was streaming from his nostrils and dripping from his chin. I paled and slid the towel over his nose. "I'm so, so, so sorry, Toris."
"No, don't apologize. I deserved this," he whispered again.
"What the hell?! You don't deserve to get kicked in the face. Why do you think you do?!" I exclaimed.
He looked away from me and whimpered, "Forgive me Ms. America."
"Forgive you? I'm the one who should be asking for your forgiveness."
"No, I don't deserve it."
"What the fuck," I said frustrated, "just take the damn apology!"
"I can't!" he cried.
"What's wrong with you?!" I said irritated.
"A lot of things," Feliks laughed.
I looked up and found entire group of half-naked men surrounding me and Toris. "Why are all of you here?" I asked in a calmer voice.
"Uh," another blond haired man with a curl lifted a brow at me. "We took your advice, came to the beach, you know, mini vacation."
"Right," I nodded and I checked my phone. I had four missed calls from Arthur, one from Jamie, ten from Dad, fifteen from Melissa and six voicemails. I checked the time and it was one, twenty-five. I've slept for nearly three hours. "Ah shit! Blake, get your stuff we need to go," I proclaimed as I grabbed my jacket and shoes.
"But who are these people?" Blake asked as he slid on his shoes.
"They're nations, that one is Sealand," I pointed to Peter, "that one is Latvia," Raivis. "Lithuania," I gestured to Toris, "that one is Denmark, and I have no idea who the rest of you are."
"I'm Poland," Feliks proclaimed.
"Norway," the guy with the blond curl said.
"Iceland," a guy with silver blond hair raised his hand.
A guy with a bowl cut hair style and glasses spoke, "I'm Estonia."
"I'm Finland," Tino smiled, "and this is Sweden." He pointed to the large man behind him.
Blake blinked at them, "I have no idea where any of you are."
Blake and I were met with silence.
I rolled my eyes, "That's the American public school system for ya." I grabbed his hand, "I'll show you a map later, but now we gotta go."
"What about your seashells?" Feliks called after us.
"Keep them!" I shouted and pulled Blake along back to my jeep. We jumped in and sped out of the parking lot.
Once we were home, Blake sighed and climbed out of the jeep. I followed behind him, "Hey, don't have such a long face. I'm sure she won't be that mad-"
"Blake!" Melissa cried out and ran out of the house. She fell to her knees in front of Blake and gripped him into a massive bear hug. "Oh thank the Great Spirit, you're okay!"
"Heh, you're starting to sound like Grandma," I said, trying to lighten the mood.
She glared at me and rose to her feet, "Do not joke with me right now."
"Okay," I mumbled and glanced to my feet.
"Amy," I looked up and found Dad on the porch. He was leaning on the rail and he was giving me a stern look. "I need to talk with you."
I side glanced to Melissa, "What's up with Dad?" I whispered.
She shook her head, "I don't know." She was clearly angry and refused to look at me as she walked back into the house with Blake's hand in her's.
"Why didn't you tell me or your mother about Russia?" he asked the moment we were alone.
My eyes widened, "What are you talking about?"
"Russia, Ivan, whatever you want to call him, I don't care. All I want to know is why you didn't tell me about what he did to you in Austria."
My jaw dropped, "I-I-" I stuttered at first. "I didn't want you guys to worry."
Dad shook his head and inhaled through his nose.
"How did you find out?" I asked.
He sighed, "He was here."
"What?! He isn't allowed to be anywhere near you guys; none of the nations are." I exclaimed.
"They didn't seem to get the memo," he said and nodded to the door. "The rest are in there."
I gritted my teeth, "Ah hell no." I stomped up the steps and busted through the door. "You people have a lot of nerve."
Francis was the first to rise to his feet, "Ami, mon cher-"
I raised my hand to his face. "Don't." I turned to Ludwig, "when I said to visit the community, I didn't mean my family."
"Your family is part of the community, technically we can visit them," he answered in a calm voice.
I noticed that he had a white patch over his cheek. I smirked, he hasn't healed yet. "Well technically, I don't care. Now get out of my house," I pointed to the door.
"Amy," Dad squeezed my shoulder, "Do not talk to them like that. I thought we raised you better than this." His eyes narrowed at me with disappointment.
That look sent my confidence downhill and made me feel like I was two inches tall. I blinked back tears and turned to face the floor.
Everyone was quiet till Sanjay spoke, "Michel, Jamie, could you take the children upstairs."
Jamie lifted the white and blue baby seat with both hands and followed Michel to the second floor with Blake and Blair beside him. Sanjay and Melissa moved to stand beside me and Grandma stayed in her seat next to Arthur. I breathed in and asked in a gentle tone, "What are you doing here?"
"We need to inform you about the G8," Ludwig answered.
"What's that?"
"An organization for the strongest stable base economies of the world; when Alfred disappeared, China took his place, but now that you're here. China is no longer needed."
"I'm just as needed as any of you are," Yao proclaimed, "my economy has grown over the years. I have every right to be here."
"Fine," I shrugged, "he can keep my place."
"No, Amy you're America. Your country's economy is connected to all of ours." Arthur said.
"Don't know why, seeming that a lot of America's stuff is made in China," I informed.
"See, her nation doesn't offer us anything. I'm a better choice," Yao said.
"I agree," I raised my hand.
"No you don't," Arthur exclaimed, "we started the G8 with America."
"I have a question," the nations turned to face Sanjay, "why does China have to leave?"
Ludwig said seriously, "this is a nation discussion. It has nothing to do with you."
Dad stepped up, "with all due respect, Mr. Germany, you are in my house. Discussing what you will do with my daughter-"
"Take this with no offense," Ludwig interrupted, "America is not your daughter. She is a nation."
"I raised her." his voice rose with authority, "She is every much my daughter."
"You want me, there's guys are part of the package deal," I proclaimed.
Francis shook his head, "Amy, this is what most of the nations fear; following your family's advice rather than your government."
"My government was founded by the people; these guys are just as much a part of my government as any arrogant fool in congress." I crossed my arms, "now why is it so important for China to leave? There are eight of us here."
"Russia-san is part of the G8," Kiku said.
The room dropped twenty degrees as goose bumps spread over my arms and shoulders. "It's official, I'm out."
"Amy-" Arthur called out to me as I tried to walk away.
"No, I don't want to be anywhere near him, and if I can avoid him. I'm taking it."
"Amy, you have to be part of the G8," Dad said calmly.
I stared at him in disbelief, "you can't be serious."
"I am. You are America; the G8 is large part of the nation's defense and economy stability."
Ludwig glared at Arthur, Francis and Matthew, "What did you tell him?"
"What he needed to know," Arthur said without batting an eye.
Ludwig messaged his temples, "this is not happening. This is not happening."
"There, there Germany, everything's going to be okay." Feliciano gave a carefree smile.
"Do I really have to?" I whined.
"Yes." Everyone but Yao exclaimed.
I sighed, "Fine."
Yao rose to his feet, "what about me?"
"How about we kick Russia out of the G8," Arthur suggested.
"I second that motion," I proclaimed.
"Russia's economy is needed," Ludwig remarked.
"Then, let both me and China stay."
"No, the G8 has to have eight members."
"Then can't we just call ourselves the G9 and get it over with?"
"But my stationary has just been restocked," he mumbled.
"You mean to tell me that the whole reason we're talking about this, is because you don't want to change your stationary." I brushed my hands through my hair and walked to the stairs. "I'm done."
"Well," Grandma rose from her seat, "nothing left to do but start dinner."