Hetalia Oneshots/ drabbles

Tritão (ItaPort)

The wooden floor was wet, Feliciano walked slowly, firmly, he had learnt the lesson the last time he ran excitedly towards the ships.

Sketchbook in hand, he was eager to meet his soon to be muse. The tritão was famous around the port's men, the grandiosity of it was apparently comparable with venice's canals, Feliciano was a bit skeptical about it, but he decided to give the project a try.

There weren't many aristocrats willing to pay a beginner artist nowadays, so a captain will do for Feliciano. The money was needed and the request was simple, an illustration of the vessel for it to be admired in posterity.

Approaching the ship, Feliciano was in awe, the sunlight reflected beautifully on brown tones, olive green combined perfectly with the terracotta tones and he faltered at the sight in front of him. If only he had stared at the ship and not it's captain, he'd probably have finished his duty sooner.

The man, João, was a portuguese merchant, the call of the sea had lured him into navigating the deep waters and as he had said "there's no coming back from it once you've witnessed such beauty and freedom."

Feliciano followed him clumsily around the ship, taking in the details of it. "Do you want me to illustrate the inside of the ship too?" He asked, fidgeting with his sketchbook.

"Oh my, you are right, there's no use in giving you this tour when you should be outlining the ship." João said, scratching the back of his head. "There is nothing worth depicting inside."

Feliciano frowned, the man in front of him was worth a thousand portraits if not more. "This ship is nothing without it's crew, I'd like to visit it's insides more, see you guys working, to grasp the essence of the ship."

João nodded, patting him on the shoulder. "I guess you could come at sunrise, we usually discharge the goods early."

So, Feliciano did, needless to say, he was never a morning person, but each night he found himself sleepless with excitement.

To Feliciano, João was not a mere captain, he was an ethereal being luring him into the sea with bright smiles, swift touches and hummed songs.

Three weeks of tiredness and happiness flew by without him noticing. The day he dreaded had come, he'd finished the illustrations just in time for João to leave the port.

As he delivered the illustrations in the captain's quarters, João observed in awe the traces and details of it, giving him a warm smile.

Feliciano took a deep breath, drowning in the scent of sea salt and wood, he leaned closer to the other man, his heart hammering on his chest, all the emotions overwhelming him were released in a short kiss to João's lips.

A kiss soon turned into several, Feliciano was beyond happiness, he was content, the weight that had been oppressing his heart yesterday was lifted, he was finally free of what tormented him.

The problem with freedom was the void it left on Feliciano's being, his hands shook as he buried his head on João chest.

"Stay." The words were hushed, Feliciano wished for his voice to be louder, to convey the tornado of feelings on his mind and speak confidently.

João kept silent, a soft smile on his face. He reached out to embrace him, caressing his head and planting a soft kiss on Feliciano's forehead. "You know I can't, but I will always come back to you, I didn't stay at this port for business, I never did, this is the longest we've spent on land."

Ephemeral, periodical, tortuous, those were the words in Feliciano's mind as he thought of what his life loving a man like João would be like, but a louder voice was repeating, it'll be just like the sea, vast, deep and infinite, and he nodded, kissing him again.

João was right, "there's no coming back from it once you've witnessed such beauty and freedom." Feliciano couldn't help but think that when those words left João's mouth, they were more of a warning than an anecdote.