Once Upon A Time | A Hetalia x Reader

Chapter 46: The Piano

4 Days Before the War

(Name) was calmly listening to the soothing tune of music. The way each key perfectly complemented each other, moving up and down in a soft rhythm, satisfied the easy atmosphere. Roderich stopped for a moment and looked over to the latter, expecting her to make the next part of the song. She delicately placed her fingers on the expected keys and played the rest of the tune.

When she finished, Roderich gave a curt nod and looked back to his part of the piano. "It's your first time playing this, I know. You're fingers were too rigid as you played. Too short to reach some keys. Making mistakes on this song is perfectly okay, so there is no need to look so upset."

"How'd you know I was upset?"

"Knowing that cutting yourself for nothing would bring you to this location - I'm sorry, (Name), but really.... You can't participate."

"....I'll play some more then."

"You're still upset?"

She sighed. "I don't know. I could do almost anything else to relieve my disappointment, and apparently I came here. I don't even care if I'm sad or not anymore."

"Wars and battles do not fit your kind, (Name). Despite the years of training for defense, you haven't perfected the battle techniques and procedures."

"I know."

"You don't."

"Roderich, quit using me as if I'm just a book." 

"It's out of habit. It has been a long while since I've seen you." he replied, with a pained smile. Then he played with a few keys.

"You're upset too?"

He paused and rethought that statement for a moment. He slowly answered, unsure. "I suppose so. I may just be upset that this war is effecting so many innocent people. It's sickening. I'm quite disgusted as well because of this."

"Well, why don't we do something for all time's sake? You know, the duet-styled piano-playing?" (Name) asked with a timid grin.  "To get your frustration out of bay."

"It's been 12 years, (Name)."

"That doesn't change anything, dum-dum." she laughed in a lighthearted way, gently punching his arm and began to play the first verse of the tune to herself. Roderich instantly recognized it to be one of the more classical songs in the earlier centuries.

"You've been practicing this song for a while, haven't you?" asked (Name), glancing his way to earn a nod.

"Yes. Quite a lot, actually." he replied, beginning to follow along for the right side of the hand. 

The beauty of grace and tranquility flooded the air of music. Each key that the two individuals pressed on to was sustained to extend the masterpiece. High notes to low notes. Gracefully gliding through semitones and necessary minors.

And by the time the song reached the middle part, the music began to grow more louder and empowering. The individuals whom had took so much practice into it had began to play more fiercely and vigilantly, before they slowly transitioned back to its gentle and calmer state.

Roderich stopped playing and allowed (Name) to do the solo part of the song before finishing off the end.

And in that end, (Name) smiled.

"That was perfect. Just how I read it." Roderich pointed out with a satisfied hum.

"I'm not surprised that the collaboration was easily transmitted into the single piece without trying," (Name) huffed. "It was like we were meant to play this song. Isn't that cool?"

Her eyes landed on his, with a glint of joy and gullibility.

Roderich gave a sigh and nodded his head, smiling faintly. What a fool, he thought to himself. This is why she can't go to war. She's too distracted with other things.

She looked back to the instrument before her. She didn't seem to be smiling.

"You know, I just noticed something," she said. "I used to read a lot of books on fantasy and fairy tales and fiction and adventure. Novelettes and biographies also intruiged me. I read a lot when I was younger, whenever I could. Do you remember?"

"Well, yes. Why?"

"Do you remember the last story that I read? When I was here?"

"...no."

"Haha, figures." she laughed. "It all makes sense though - it isn't all that important. It was the perfect cliche that a person couldn't wish for. The main character was a girl who was a part of the royal family. Nothing more than a maid. Her kingdom was attacked by a large army of the sorts, and she ran away. Everyone was dead, and she had no one to depend on.

And you know, after a while, she managed to find runaways too. They grouped up and worked together. The tone was dark and gloomy and even harsh. And you know another thing that happened in that story?"

"No. What was it?" he decided to ask, not particularly interested. But at the same time, he didn't want to be rude.

"Despite that she was with others, she was alone. In solitude. Abandoned. She says that she didn't know why or how she felt like this, but she did. Everyone in her small little runaway group never allowed her to do the harsher things that the outside world had done. She says that she isn't able to do anything, despite her strengths that would have been beneficial if she had just used it at least once throughout the story."

"What was this story called?"

(Name) stayed silent the entire time, leaving Roderich to simply wander in his own thoughts. He didn't understand what she was trying to say, what she was yearning for, what she felt was right, for he wasn't her. He never actually was her. Did he have that right to assume her feelings? No. Did he have the right to keep her in her own little world and then force her to abandon most of her privileges and rights that make her human? No.

...so did her story dawn to him yet? Did he still need to realize why she was saying these things?

No.

"It's an autobiography. About a woman that does nothing but watch, think, breathe, and make mistakes."

Roderich merely frowned at that.

"Well, just know that you're not alone. But just know...that these choices that people make are for your safety, too. People care, they don't want to see people go. This war is inevitable. Don't ever feel sad if people are sacrificing lives for your sake. Feel proud. Feel loved. You're not alone. It's explicitly visible when you look out these windows."

-

"What is the point in encouraging people like you?"

-

Oho, the time is almost up. The story is almost ending. And when it does, I'll probably erase the A/Ns that I had put up, excluding the vital and necessary ones.

Oh, and the quotes have suddenly become more....horrid, right? Odd.

- Yukina

(( P.S. is this story getting more and more retarded? ))