From the diary of Griselda Vargas-Beilschmidt

30

"Gabi? Could you not drool on my shoulder?"

The boy's eyes open and he mutters "I don't drool", before he goes back to sleeping on my shoulder and snoring. Fred looks at us.

"Woah, he's out..."

I shrug. Gabe is used to siestas, so I can't blame him.

Shortly after we packed, Gabe started zoning out, and now he's just full on sleeping mode, so I'm half carrying him. That's the good thing at every sleepover ever - he's quick to fall asleep and hard to wake up. (Though I may have overdone it a little when I once yelled at him to wake up only about 5 centimeters from his ear..)

Ash is muttering under her breath. "So there's 13 of us, meaning three cabs with three and one with four, the distance is..., so that'll cost...multiplied by four..." and so on. She says she's bad at math, but it sure didn't look like it.

Suddenly she leaps on the edge of the sidewalk and waves furiously. The taxi comes forth and she tells the driver instructions where to and then looks back at us.

"Alright, so three people can go," she says and her gaze falls to my relaxed cousin. (He doesen't keep his confident attitude when he's sleeping. It's cute how childishly innocent he actually looks - you wouldn't tell he could kick your butt when awake.)

"The Spaniard should definitely go- so Gris? Will you take care of him?" I nod and salute. Taking care of him? That's what I do.

"And one of us older ones, just to be safe. Nothing against you, dude!" she turns to the driver, who just nods.

"Can Faroe go so he won't annoy me for at least ten minutes?" Ingrid asks. The said nation pouts.

"Aww, Ingy! I'm just annoying you because I care about you!"

Okay, but me and Gabe??? Ash and Anni??? Fred and George??? Isn't this what friends are supposed to do?

Ingrid rolls her eyes and scoffs, but headbutts him in the shoulder. That equals a high level of affection with her. And probably with Norway too, honestly. This girl is really really his daughter. (Is this what they say about me and dads too?? I'd like to know.)

"But I mean if you want me to go, I'll go-"

The older nations exchange looks. Ash looks at George, George at Fred, Fred at Uncle Prussia (who is still hugging him, mind you - it's weird because he usually isn't this touchy with ones not from his family, but Fred seems to be an exception) and at Faroe again. Anni just stares at them all behind her glasses with this intimidating look, but doesen't say a word. Bluegreyish eyes meet forest green ones, then red irises look at equally coloured ones, all being watched by a purple gaze and with greygreenish ones darting in between them all. (I just got poetic. I like it.)

"Okay, you can go pal, sure thing," the owner of the bluegreyish ones decides as she hands him the money. "Tell dad it's gonna be little by little like that. Thanks."

Faroe nods and puts a hand on my shoulder, lightly, almost as caringly as my dads do.

"Fine. Let's go Griselda," he says and Gabe snores loudly. "And Gabriel, of course," he adds with a chuckle.

We sit in the back, me in between because Gabe doesen't like being touched by strangers in any way, be it a hug, handshake or just shoulder bump.

"Hey, we've got a room for one more!" the brunette yells, but the rest is walking away already, probably heading off to some taxi station, so they don't hear us anymore.

"Hmpf. Could've saved money, but I mean, it's not my money, so whatever," he shrugs. I smile. I like Faroe, he's funny and though his long stay at Denmark's has affected him, he can get serious. But in a good way, not a hysterical one.

I watch him as he's looking out of the window and taking in the scenes of the city. You wouldn't tell he's actually centuries old - but would you tell that about the other nations? I don't think so. Sometimes I forget that they lived through conflicts and seen wars and raids and slaughters. Well except Sealand, Ladonia and Gabe. But from what I've gathered Gabe is probably getting some memories through his nightmares. The table dancing might've actually happened in history. Why not?

And Fred and me, who aren't personificated anything. But maybe Fred's the wild spirit of the canadian forests, what do I know? But me? Nope Nein No Non...

"Faroe?"

"Hm?"

"What was your growing up like? What is even growing up as a nation like?"

He laughs, but it sounds sad. "Pain, Griselda, I tell you."

"Why?"

"Well, they think you're possesed when you're not aging, so you're alone -in the better case- until others understand, and that can take a while. I was alone, until one day-" his eyes sparkle like thousand lights now, "one day my big bro showed up. Then we discovered Emil and Kuya and I haven't been alone since then. Well, actually, throughout the second world war we were all separated, but not at heart."

"That's...sadly beautiful and beautifully sad."

"Yep, you just summed it up."

A few heartbeats of silence.

"And Gris?"

"Si?"

"It's Andrias." 

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I was planning on making this longer, but then I thought this'll be enough.

Up next: the arrivals