Countryhumans Hispanic Heritage Month 2024

¿Quién es el País de España?

Prompt: Fiesta/Siesta

Spain had been born under Caudillo Franco's thumb. His life had been dictated by that man, everything from his actions to his human name. Spain often felt that he was playing a role rather than being a countryhuman. He was just a doll to dress up any play, never a person with thoughts and feelings.

He felt empty a lot—maybe depressed. Not that he could tell anyone that. He had a reputation to uphold. It felt empty, which is probably why he played his part so well. It was something.

Spain was tired a lot.

But...there was something in him that wasn't, a tiny spark of life he hadn't known existed.

A spark that only appeared after he was told Caudillo Franco had died.

Spain was still trying to process that. A part of him wanted to celebrate, to scream and cry and let out all the emotions that he had suppressed under Caudillo Franco's orders. A part of him wanted to celebrate.

All of him felt nervous.

But no matter how much he wanted to, Spain didn't cry. He just sat on his bed, wings wrapped around his body, so utterly numb. Everything was different now.

A part of him wished that Abuelo or Equatorial Guinea were still with him. They had been his rocks, the people who reminded him of his humanity on the days when his head was full of nothing, and Franco's words were absolute.

They had kept Spain feeling like a person. They, and the voices that whispered in his ears, brought him comfort and kept him grounded, even after they had both left.

But voices were still voices, and it didn't help as much as a living, breathing person did. The past seven years without Abuelo and Equatorial Guinea had stripped that away from him. Even if Prince Juan Carlos didn't treat Spain like Franco had, how was he supposed to recover from this?

Spain...he didn't know. Anything. What was going to happen now, what was going to come of himself and his nation, all of it was a big mystery.

In a way, he supposed that was better. There was no way for him to get his hopes up. He would wait until his new role was given and then play that. It would...it would be better.

Right?

"I hope so. But...it could always go badly."

Spain hoped it didn't. He was good at playing his part, but he couldn't deny the part of him that wanted to be his own person.

But he would have to wait and see.