Hungary's eyes snapped open at the sound of whimpering behind her. At first she thought it was one of the dogs, but then she heard the sound of quiet muttering.
"Nein... Nein... Nein!"
She rolled over and saw Prussia's eyes were squeezed shut and his mouth was clenched. He had a death grip on the bed sheets and tossed his head to the side. "Gil," she softly whispered, reaching over for his hand.
"Nein! Nein! Ne-!" He jolted awake at her touch, and as his eyes rapidly searched his surroundings his chest began to heave. Gilbird quickly flew over to comfort him, landing on his shoulder and nuzzling his neck with a small peep.
"It's okay, Gil. It was a nightmare," she soothed him. At the sound of her voice his eyes darted to hers, and his face crumpled. She gathered him in her arms as he quietly sobbed into the crook of her neck.
They all had nightmares from time to time. When you were the living embodiment of a country, it came with the territory. Sometimes quite literally... Some of their pasts were more bloody than others. Haunted by atrocities and regrets...
"I'm sorry I woke you," Gilbert mumbled, lifting his head to sheepishly look at her.
Elizabeta sighed and placed a hand to his cheek. "Hush, now... How many times do I have to tell you? Quit apologizing. I get them too, you know..."
"I know..." He dropped his gaze and shakily inhaled.
She smiled warmly at him and stroked her thumb against his wet cheek. "Do you want to talk about it?" He considered it for a moment, then shook his head and sniffled as he raised his hand to dry his face. "...Do you want to write about it, then?" she asked.
"...Yeah. ...I'll write," he quietly said, taking another breath.
Hungary kissed his cheek and let go of him. "Go ahead. I'll make us some cocoa downstairs. Come down when you're ready."
He smiled at her and grabbed her hand before she could get out of bed. "Thanks, chickie." He pulled her to him and kissed her. She smiled back at him as they parted and she stood, sliding into her slippers. "Come on, Gilbird. Let's leave him be for a few minutes," she gently told the chick. Gilbird flew to her and nestled atop her head. Prussia was still smiling at her as she put her robe on.
She couldn't resist giving him another kiss, seeing the way he was looking at her. She leaned over the bed and pecked him on the lips. "Szeretlek."
"Ich liebe dich, Eli," he murmured as she walked out of the room. He sighed, then reached over and turned the lamp on. He opened the drawer of his nightstand and brought out his dream journal and a pen. As he turned the pages, he wiped his face again. Then he took a deep breath and began to write.
Hungary sipped at her cocoa as she waited for Prussia to join her. She grinned down at Gilbird, who was happily snacking away on bird seeds.
A few minutes later Gilbert entered the kitchen, looking still weary but better than he had before. He grinned at her as he pulled his chair over to sit next to her. "Thanks, Eli. I feel better already!" he chimed as he took his mug and brought it to his lips.
"I'm glad." She looked him over, quietly loving how he looked with messy bed hair and his still slightly flushed cheeks. "It's been some time since either of us had a nightmare. I suppose one of us was due for one."
"I guess..." He leaned into her and closed his eyes. "...Eli?"
"Yeah, Gil?"
"When we go back to bed, do you think you could sing to me?"
Elizabeta smiled. "Of course, Gil. Any song you like..."
