What if...

Chapter Thirty-One~

"Say goodbye!"

I had no time to think before I was tackled to the ground by Prussia, out of the way of the riffle bullet.

"Uncle!" Layily roared, putting on a burst of speed and dodging each of the bullets. She leaped up and grabbed his rifle, laying it flat against his throat and cradling it in the crook of her elbow, pulling tight to choke him.

"Don't you dare try to kill Mama!"

Turkey's eyes went wide as he tried to wrench his niece off of him. He threw himself forward, sending Layily rolling across the ground, still holding the rifle. The country started after the girl and I scrambled up, charging after him and knocking his feet out from under him and pinning him to the ground, my knife at his throat.

"I'll kill you if you don't leave Layily alone!"

Turkey growled, struggling to get free. "Let me go!"

I smashed his face in the dirt, silencing him. "No. If you're not careful, I'll kill you!"

"You can't," came his muffled reply. "You're no longer alive!"

"Then why are you trying to kill me?" I countered, looking up at my daughter. Layily was silently walking up to us, twisted glee in her dark blue eyes as she held her blade, ready to kill him.

"Because..." he started. "I'm still not over you taking over my country!"

I was thrown back from the force of him getting up and rolled on the ground. I quickly got up onto my arms and flipped my hair back to see Layily looking Turkey in the eyes while her knife was embedded deep into his right chest, right where his heart would be if it was on that side. From his wet breathing I guessed that he had a punctured lung.

I smiled. That was my girl.

She withdrew her knife and inserted a lit bomb into the wound. His eyes went wide as Layily scrambled off him and ran to us, grabbing our wrists and hauling us off to safety.

"He can get it out," she smiled. "If he works hard enough. Here," she stopped, turning around. Turkey was just a little bit away, close enough that we could watch, but far enough that we were safe from explosions.

"Three... Two... One." she counted. "Boomsplotion."

And, as if on cue, the bomb did explode. She giggled gleefully, jumping up and down while clapping her hands.

"Oh!" she cried. "The wait of seeing if he survived is killing me!"

Gil had his head turned, refusing to look.

Finally, the smoke cleared and we saw Turkey, curled up on his right side, shivering. His clothes were ripped up, and his wound was filled with dirt, but he was still intact. Layily to pouted.

"Rats. He did it again." She sighed, turning around. "Oh, well. Greece will be here soon, so we had better get going."

Iran took my hand and we resumed our walk home, Prussia following behind.

~*~

Kattak sighed, exasperated. "Adolf!"

He gave her the evil eye. "Was."

"You ate the last of the chips! You know that those were my favorite!"

He shrugged, going back to watching his show. Greenland growled and marched back into the trashed kitchen.

"And your house is a total mess! Good grief, Gil moves in with Vashti and you suddenly live in a pigsty! Do you even clean?!"

"Not really."