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High-functioning Ladykiller
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 Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 11:24 am
Ivan smiled slightly, his mask once more put back up. Although, this time there was a very slight amount of warmth in the gesture. He listened to the Chinese man speak, calmly grabbing his bottle of vodka and taking another gulp of the strong alcohol. He put the lid back on and slipped the bottle into his pocket, quiet. He worried Yao? Why? And... best friends were suppose to tell everything? He didn't believe he could be Yao's best friend, then, because he could not tell everything. He always kept things hidden; it was in his nature to be that way.
Brought out of his thoughts by Yao questioning whether they should go to the meeting, he glanced back at the Asian as he climbed off of his lap and stood up. "Da," he agreed, although internally he had been content to just sit there for a while yet. Knowing that Yao was stronger than he looked, he set his left hand onto the offered hand and allowed the Asian to help him to his feet.
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 11:31 am
Taking one last swig of rum, Arthur ground out his cigarette and walked back into his office, locking the balcony door as he did. Ensuring that the bottle was resealed, he put it back in the drawer and relocked it, slipping his cigarettes and matches into his pocket. He took one last critical glance around his office, checking for anything that was out of place, before nodding once and leaving, turning the light off and locking the door behind him.
With the alcohol now in his system, his hangover was fading and he felt a lot calmer. He hadn't drank enough to even get slightly tipsy, of course, but it had been enough to create a soothing effect, of sorts. He popped a mint into his mouth as he headed back to the meeting room, hoping to hide the smell of rum on his breath.
He entered the room in just enough time to hear the end of Alfred's story. He frowned slightly and walked over there, cuffing the American once over the head with the back of his hand, although not as firmly as he may have once done so for speaking over that particular matter. "At least something is enjoying my tea," he retorted softly, sitting back down in his seat and leveling his former colony with a calm gaze.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 12:09 pm
Alfred looked up and over as he watched England sit down. He smiled, noting that he was much now calmer now. 'He's got booze in his system' Alfred thought with a inward frown. "Coffee is be-tter that your suckyness~"America said, in a sing song voice, hoping to get the Brit to at least fake a smile. He then turned his attention back to Japan to hear him speak.
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 12:38 pm
'I...' Roderich again had no words to say. It was hard enough as it was to apologise to the ex-nation... And then to be spoken to in such a way was... Well, unsettling. 'Gilbert... I wanted to apologise. For... Well. Today.' He cleared his throat a little as he sat beside Gilbert on the floor, closing his eyes. 'I suppose it's best not to bring that up.'
Perhaps it wasn't. In fact, Roderich could guess that it wasn't. Instead, he fell silent, opening his eyes once more to gaze steadily at the albino. 'As I asked before... How're you feeling?' It was a stupid question. In fact, everything he'd said since coming to the bathroom had been nothing short of stupid. It began to feel a little more awkward, though the Austrian was now tiring of the tenseness he felt ebb in the air every now and again.
'It'll... It'll be alright. Won't it?' That question had come out of the blue, but Roderich was genuinely worried for the state of the ex-nation. After all, not being Prussia anymore... He could see the man's weakness, and it... It was unnerving. Frightening, even... That someone that powerful could've fallen to a state like this. 'I mean... You... You'll be alright. Right?'
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Yao smiled warmly as he assisted his friend, looking up at the now-stood Russian with a little laugh. 'You're lighter than I remember. Been losing weight, aru?' He teased lightly, giving the Russian's hand a squeeze before leading the taller into the conference hall. He guessed that Ivan would not be recieved well after the Wars and such... So he kept a firm hold on Ivan's hand, not wanting to leave the nation by himself.
He spotted Greece and smiled, waving with his free hand as he led the Russian over. They could sit together... Perhaps it would help Ivan to be a little more tolerant of the Mediterannean's presence. 'You know I'd not abandon you, Ivan.' He spoke in a lowered voice as they made their way across, smiling up at the Russian with a face that spoke of naught but innocent honesty and trust in his taller friend. 'I promise you... I'll not let go, aru.' He vowed, before turning to look at the Greek with a bright smile.
'Heracles, do you mind if we sit with you?' He asked cheerily, though he gave Ivan's hand another comforting squeeze.
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 1:22 pm
Heracles smiled up at the Asian, hiding his surprise that Russia had chosen to come join him aswell. "Of course, Yao. It would be nice to have people to talk to."
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 9:37 pm
When Roderich mentioned the earlier event and then suggested not speaking of it, Gilbert made a non-committal sound in the back of his throat. He shivered, a soft cough escaping him as he trembled slightly in mild fear over his illness and weakness.
He glanced over with blurry eyes, a frown tugging at his lips. How was he doing? He was ill, damn it, and he felt like crap. Giving a soft snort, he rolled his eyes. "Just peachy," he muttered dryly, closing his eyes again.
He opened his eyes again, looking over at the man beside him. He sounded...worried, he supposed. Over him. Usually, only Ludwig and Feliciano worried over him. It was odd having someone else worry about him, especially someone he had always believed held him in a certain dislike.
Leaning against Roderich again, more out of sheer exhaustion than actual awareness of what he was doing, Gilbert sighed wearily. "If I can bring the fever down, I'll be all right after a while," he mumbled, shivering again.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 9:46 pm
Ivan blinked at the comment of his weight, quiet. He pondered over that thought for a brief moment. He supposed that the fall of the Soviet Union had been rough on him, especially when his sisters had sought aid and stability from the Western nations that had been his enemies for so long, by that point. The loss of land and population had an effect on him. But, more so than anything else, was the loss of the people he had become so used to being around. It made sense that he lost weight. He hadn't been eating very well since the last decade of the USSR and the couple years that have passed since it fell, nor had he been sleeping soundly. He was tormented with bouts of insomnia, and when he did manage to sleep, he was plagued with nightmares and memories of the horrors he had put people through. It was...unsettling, to say the least. But that it had such a noticeable effect on his outward appearance? It was unnerving, since it could be regarded as weakness.
Not commenting on the unknowing tease from the Asian, he allowed himself to be led into the meeting room. He dimly noted that Yao was leading them to where the Greek was sitting, a slight distaste filling his mouth at the thought of sitting near him for the entirety of a meeting that he did not want to be at. He supposed, however, that he'd have to deal with it. He didn't want to sit alone. He was slightly comforted by Yao's promises, even though he knew that promises could not be kept. Eventually, every promise would be broken. After all, he promised to never harm his sisters. Ukraine had suffered a famine under the rule of his leader, the food of her land being handed off to his own people while her's starved to death. Belarus suffered, as well, under Soviet control. No, promises couldn't be kept.
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Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 10:00 pm
Rolling his eyes at Alfred's childishness, Arthur shook his head. That the lad still believed that the sludge he called coffee could even compete with tea, let alone be better, was simply astounding. Surely, the American had better sense than that? But no, time after time the lad taught him that he had little to no sense, whatsoever. "Your tar is hardly drinkable. I can not even tolerate that sludge without mixing it with alcohol," he scoffed.
Pulling a novel out of his briefcase, the Englishman redirected his attention to Eros. While it had a certain...erotica...in it, he quite enjoyed the story and had reread the book a fair amount of times. Although, his Queen did dislike that he read it in meetings due to it's more...voluptuous...nature.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 8:18 am
'Oh, thank you, Heracles.' Yao smiled cheerily, avoiding having to look over at Japan. In fact, his eyes skimmed over the nation -he felt he had to blank him- as he glanced across at Arthur. He'd wanted to make sure that the Englishman was alright after what had happened earlier. However, he quickly averted his eyes, having noticed the sort of material that the man had been reading... The title was one that he'd heard of but had never dared to read it.
He turned his attentions back to a more innocent situation, again having to keep eye contact off of his younger sibling. He doubted that he could bear having to look at the nation... After all, Yao was pretty much stealing the other Asian's best friend from him, seeming as the Greek had decided not to sit with Kiku... And had agreed to let Yao and Ivan sit with him instead.
And that was a very dangerous friendship. Yao himself knew that being on such good terms with Russia meant that others were less likely to be as friendly. However, Yao had made that choice... And was content, he supposed.
But did the gentle Greek really want to make such a decision too? And so soon?
Yao shook his head a little, forcing a little laugh as he looked between Heracles and Ivan. 'I'm sorry, I just fazed out then, aru.' He offered as a sort of explanation, before glancing around. The room seemed to be filling so there would soon be a lack of seats... 'You sit down first, Ivan.' He offered with a warm smile, looking up at the taller nation with a sunny look. He wanted for Ivan to be able to pick a seat first... Although it would limit where Yao could sit, it'd mean that Ivan would be happier... Hopefully.
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'Now, now, there's no need to be like that.' The Austrian gave a little tut of disapproval at the ex-nation's sarcasm, but decided to leave it at that. After all, it was a bad idea to irritate a sick man... Especially someone like Gilbert, who disliked him enough as it was already. And besides, it really had been a stupid question.
It hurt his mind to think too much on this sort of situation. However, his thoughts were broken by the feeling of a familar weight (well, it was getting to be familiar by now) slump onto him again. He closed his eyes, letting out a soft sigh as he wrapped one arm back around the albino in an attempt to keep the man warm.
Then again, there was a better way. If Gilbert were to sit in his lap, then he'd be able to become a much better human hot-water bottle... And he was sure it'd make the albino feel better. However, he'd guessed that the man did not like to be touched... And this was quite strong, even compared to the things this morning. So perhaps it wasn't the best idea... 'We're only a few moments from landing...' He murmured as he pulled Gilbert onto his lap with a gentle firmness. He expected the albino to kick up a fuss about this but it was for the best. 'Just try to stay comfortable.'
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 11:51 am
Gilbert froze as he was pulled onto the Austrian's lap, his cheeks heating up darkly. With wide eyes, he quickly got up and turned to give Roderich a piece of his mind, but he stumbled slightly and fell onto his butt in front of him. His blurry, wide eyes narrowed into a dirty look. He didn't even noticed that the handkerchief had fallen to the restroom floor.
In his entire life, only five people had picked him up or sat him on their lap. He excluded Russia since he had been too weak to struggle at that point. When he was very young, Rome would carry him around until Germania grew upset and told the warrior nation to put him down. Nearing the end of Rome's strength, the teenage France and Spain would carry him around, since he was still just a child. After that, nobody even dared to try to pick him up. Not until the 1700's when Friedrich the II would set Gilbert on his lap when he was ill, much like the Austrian had just tried. And it took years before Gilbert had allowed his favourite King to do that. Finally, Ludwig was now allowed to carry him. It wasn't until the Fall of the Berlin Wall that Gilbert allowed his younger brother to pick him up.
Getting to his feet again, the Prussian sat against the farthest wall from the Austrian. Perhaps he had allowed Roderich too much if he had deemed pulling him onto his lap as acceptable. He pulled his knees back up to his chest and rested his head on them, not paying attention to the fact that he was really supposed to be trying to get his fever down before it caused any brain damage.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 2:46 pm
Ivan watched as Yao took a look around the room, patiently standing while keeping his gaze averted from the offensive sight of the Greek. He scanned around for Natalia or his older sister, but both were not in sight. A sigh nearly escaped his lips, but he held it back.
He blinked and glanced back over to the Chinese man, not sure where to sit. Preferably, he'd like to sit far from the Greek, but... Yao wanted to sit beside him. He silently claimed a chair one away from the Greek, so that Yao would be able to sit in between them.
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 3:14 pm
Well, that hadn't gone well. As a sort of self-defense mechanism, Roderich gave a little laugh of amusement at Gilbert's reaction, standing up. 'You'll be fine.' He bent a little to ruffle the man's hair with one hand, before leaving the bathroom to return to his seat.
And, when there, he let out a heavy sigh, hands shaking a little. What had he done...? And why had he tried such a thing? Where was the logic in it? He ran one hand through his hair as he swallowed, trying to gather his thoughts from wherever they'd decided to scatter themselves to. It was hard to think... And hard to comprehend his own actions.
Why exactly did he -Roderich- insist on touching the ex-nation? It was a question that even the Austrian himself could not answer. He leant forward in his chair, resting his head on his hands with a shuddered breath.
'God... Gilbert was right; we're all damned.' But Roderich believed himself to be more so than others...
He was so lost in his thoughts that he'd not noticed the pilot announcing their arrival into his homeland... And that they'd be landing in...
No, they had pretty much landed now. The wheels began to slow on the tarmac, and the plane rolled to a perfect stop.
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It worried Yao that Ivan had fallen silent again. It was normal behaviour from the Russian, but the Asian could never really get used to it. It was... Unnerving, to not know what the man was thinking. Unlike Yao, who was rather vocal and wore his heart on his sleeve, Ivan did no such thing... It was like they were complete opposites. Which was probably why Ivan wasn't so fond of Heracles...
No, that wasn't right. Ivan... Maybe... Disliked him for other reasons. That much, Yao was sure of. Ivan did not like Heracles.
Then again, to Ivan, it probably looked like the Greek was invading their close-knit friendship all of a sudden, with no warning. Yao had tried to assure the Russian that he was still ever so fond of him, though it seemed not to have worked... even his sordid behaviour seemed to have not fazed Ivan.
Or perhaps it had, Yao didn't know. It was difficult to tell. He sat wordlessly between the two, feeling a little torn between the two nations. However... If it came to an ultimatum, Yao didn't know what he'd do. He'd... He'd stay with Russia.
As that thought crossed his mind, he wondered whether Ivan had thought any more on what the Asian had offered earlier... About becoming one with him. However, he felt it wise not to ask whilst in front of Heracles... It'd cause awkwardness.
And if anyone else overheard, he knew he'd get ridiculed for actually offering... And perhaps would slip even lower -if that was possible- in Japan's view.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 3:29 pm
Gilbert shuddered slightly when Roderich ruffled his hair, declaring that he'd be fine. A retort immediately rose up, but he bit his tongue to keep it hidden. No, he might not be fine. Not with a fever this bad. Although he did not have a thermometer on hand, Gilbert was fairly certain that his fever was high. He was slightly delirious, was having trouble seeing, and his hearing was slightly off, as well. In fact, he barely heard the announcement that they were landed.
Getting to his feet in a slight stumble, the ill Prussian moved to the sink and splashed cold water on his face. He shivered weakly, stooping to pick up his handkerchief, rinse off the dirt it might have collected on the floor in hot water, then ran it under ice cold water for several moments. He rang out the excess water and placed it back on his forehead.
He bit his tongue, trying to gain a more stable state of mind, before walking out of the restroom and back toward Roderich. He set his hand on the back of an empty chair, resting his weight while waiting for the Austrian to lead him out of here.
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Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 3:59 pm
It took a few moments for Roderich to realise that Gilbert had returned. That probably meant that they'd landed or were close to it; a quick glance out of the window confirmed that the plane had landed. Fantastic... Perhaps they could leave the memories of the meeting and the happenings in the plane behind. It'd be much simpler if he had the memory of a goldfish, the Austrian reckoned... It would mean that there'd be no need to explain or think on his actions. But he was sure the way he -Roderich- had acted would stay with Gilbert for quite a while now. He stood, unable to meet the ex-nation's gaze, though he cleared his throat a little.
And for what seemed like the upteenth time that day- 'I apologise.' -The Austrian again apologised for his actions, though his voice was much quieter.
'This way... There'll be a taxi waiting.' He took the man's wrist -it wasn't as offensive as taking his hand- before leading the albino from the plane tentatively, glancing back at the ex-nation every so often with anxiousness to make sure he wasn't dead.
Even his own embarrassment could not mask his concern.
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High-functioning Ladykiller
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Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 12:36 am
Averting his gaze when the Austrian tried to apologize again, Gilbert fell silent. He didn't make a comment, almost as if pretending that he wasn't there. He didn't even react when the Austrian grabbed his wrist and lightly pulled him to follow, just agreeing and walking behind with a blank look on his face.
He felt really dizzy, and he was having trouble thinking. He couldn't carry on a clear thought process, not even succeeding in stringing more than a half-dozen words together.
His face felt flushed, the heat almost a solid force. But he was terribly cold everywhere else, and he shivered weakly, keeping the damp handkerchief to his forehead.
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