Twists and Turns

Life's Little Surprises

Luciano leaned towards the window of the small car, watching the grass pass below him. He was tired and half asleep, his face a bit green. He was sorely regretting having drunk so much the previous night and going at all. Germany sat quietly beside him, playing around with a little piece of yarn trying to imitate a trick that Hungary had shown him. Neither of the men could quite recall the name of the driver that Hungary had hired to drive them home. It was a name that sounded almost Russian. The man had claimed to be from Ukraine and had moved to Austria after problems had arisen in his home town. Luciano wasn't quite fit to drive, not that he could drive sanely anyways, and Germany had of course done something dangerous and hurt himself. "Being an idiot as usual" as Luciano had grumbled from over his shoulder (he had been trying to look over his shoulder at something by getting up on his toes and using Luther's shoulder as extra support), causing Lutz to be just as snarky and push him off his shoulder and therein causing a small fight of sarcasm and snarky remarks to ensue. Hungary had just laughed sweetly at the two and left it at "boys will be boys."

The small vehicle bumped up and down on the dirt road, it's bike-like wheels barely keeping up with the rest of the car. The car was fairly new though, it was one of the first of its kind. Not many people of Europe drove cars yet, considering that it was only World War 1 and technology was still fairly new in this age and time. There were many rich people who owned cars but more often than not, people went by horseback. The vehicle suddenly jumped up into the air for a moment before hitting the ground again. The car started making a strange noise as it slowed to a stop. Luciano sat up straight, looking up at the driver. "What happened?" The driver turned toward him. "Seems like that last bump probably broke the tire." He answered, getting out and checking one of the tires. He easily pulled the thing off and heaved it up into his arms. It didn't even look like a tire anymore. The rubber was torn and hanging off the metal cage that held it and the metal was gnarled with a blackish tinge riding up the sides. The man yanked off a new tire from the side of the car. The tire had looked so natural sitting on the side of the car that Luciano had barely noticed it, let alone knew it's purpose for being there. He hadn't even known that the tires could break. They were fairly new to him after all.

A man came walking by the car after a while of the man trying to fix the wheel. The man was very visible in the light colored wheat fields. His hair being black as his strange garb and his eyes being as dark as blood, tinted with a swirl of black around the pupil. His skin being the color of the dirt roads, which was very uncommon in these European countries. He wore a lengthy blade tied over his shoulder and a dark cape that made him seem higher of power and utmost respect. His black dress shoes were covered in dust and the socks worn underneath were a dirt color with spots of white, as they had been dirtied by the path. He wore what looked like a military uniform, but they couldn't be quite sure as it was extremely different from the typical European uniform. The man stopped next to the car. "Do you need some help there, sir?" He asked politely in a thick Asian accent. None of them could distinguish what kind though. They weren't very familiar with Asian people. "Ah, sure. If you could hold up the tire up for a moment, that would be a great help. I could give you a ride." The driver said, turning his head towards the man. The man held up the tire easily, only needing one hand to do it while the driver had been struggling to hold it with both hands. The driver quickly got out a few tools, and attached the tire to the vehicle. "You are much stronger than you look, man. What kind of superpower are you?" The driver laughed at his own joke. "You can join me in the front or you can join Luci and Lutz in the back if you like?" The man continued, intending to hold up his end. "That is not my name." Italy answered firmly from the back. "I would like to take the broken tire in the front. I'll sit in the back, thank you." The man said in his strange accent. "My name is Kuro, by the way." The man bowed deeply. "My name is Alexei. Nice to meet you. But why would you want to bring the tire along? It'll just take up space." The driver answered.

"It would be very impolite to leave it where it could hurt someone or something. And it isn't very far into the next town. It can be dropped off with the rest of the waste there." Kuro answered. "Alright then, if you say so." The driver said, hauling the broken tire into the front seat of the car and opening the back door of the car for Kuro. Italy gave up his seat by the window and sitting in between the Asian man and the German one, resting his head on Luther's shoulder and closing his eyes. He was already tired of the trip. Lutz sassily moved his shoulder out from under Luciano without a word. Italy mumbled a short 'jerk' before leaning his head back and closing his eyes again. "So where are you from, stranger? You have a strange accent. I don't think I have ever heard it before." Germany said in friendly conversation. The man looked at him, his eyes burning a dangerous red that made it seem like he was angry and Lutz for asking such a thing. "I'm from Japan, sir. And may I ask where you are from? I haven't been in Europe for very long and I can't seem to differentiate one accent from the other. The people here are so diverse though." Kuro answered, losing a bit of the fire in his eyes. Luciano looked at Kuro for a moment before speaking.

"Your eyes look like the burning pits of hell." He commented before closing his own eyes and leaning back again. "Stop being so rude, Italy. Maybe you should try being nice for a change." Germany hit Italy lightly on the arm. "Italy?" Kuro asked. "You mean like the country? Is he a country?" Kuro asked rapidly. "Ja. We both are countries. He's Italy and I am Germany." Germany smiled at the Japanese man. "Ah. I am also a country. Japan, you see. I had heard that we were not allowed to share the fact that they were countries, yet you shared it so easily." Kuro said. "No, there are plenty of people who know that we are countries." Germany glanced at Italy, whose eyes were still closed. "What are you doing in Europe though? We haven't heard from any of you Asian countries in ages." Luther leaned over Italy. "I have been going on many ventures lately to learn more about Europe. I hadn't been able to travel outside of my country for a very long time, so I feel I am a bit behind from the rest of the world technology-wise and otherwise. Though I didn't come with much of a plan. I've been wandering for most of my trip, although I have learned many things about European civilization." Japan answered.

"You could come stay with us for a few weeks. We know all the best places to visit in our countries and we know other countries who can show you around Europe." Germany offered. Luciano opened one eye and looked at Lutz. "You shouldn't go off inviting strangers to your house."

"I invited you, didn't I? And I hardly knew you when I did." Germany answered. "And that was also a big mistake on your part." Luciano closed his eyes again. "I would like to take you up on that offer, though I will have to go back to Asia in about a month. I wouldn't expect to be able to explore all of Europe in the short time that I have here." Japan interjected.