Prove Me Wrong (Rusame)

Ahh Shit

Video for context. But also remember in the truth or dare chapter I had those videos of the dance and songs added in. Forgot to do that when I republished but they are back in that chapter again.

Narrator's POV

Things were a little less awkward when Russia found himself in conversation. While wandering around and looking at the vast differences between some of the housings the tribes used, someone called him over.

It was a young group of men who were sitting together and singing with a few children around them. Seeing no better option, Russia went over to them.

They had him sit down with them and he was about to ask them some questions but they had a different idea. One of the men pulled out a stick with a leather ball tied to it at one end and handed it to him. Russia looked at it, unsure what to do. It was when the men raised the ones they held above a large cylinder object with some leather of some kind stretched around it did he have a clue.

Anyone could recognize a drum when they saw one.

"Wait, but I don't know any of your songs," Russia tried to protest before they could start.

"Don't need to," one of the men said before he added with a chuckle, "You know how to hit a drum right?"

Russia looked at the instrument, thinking what kind of question was that. Of course, he knew. The kids around them were even holding their own small handheld drums with sticks. It was then he realized that they were all boys, noting that maybe it was only the males who played.

When they all started drumming, Russia tried to stay in rhythm. It was fairly easy, being a simple task. It was when they sang Russia couldn't join in. He listened to them happily instead, trying to make sense of words he thought sounded similar to ones he knew.

Eventually, the two who were supposed to be guarding Russia joined in as well. It didn't take long for them to have their face paint wiped off, as requested by some of the older-looking tribes. Not that Russia would have even recognized their flags.

"This one is good," an older man had said to convince the two men. "No need to treat him like a stranger anymore."

How he had determined Russia was "good" just from having him sit and bang a drum was something he couldn't fathom. He decided to rule it off to an old person thing. If the kids he met had really been 1000 years old, and he was seen as an old man, maybe he's just seen enough of the world to just simply know.

Imagine living that long. Gross.

In between songs, Russia would ask a few questions and from what he learned, his previous guess was wrong. The women do sing and play instruments as well, but they usually play in groups with themselves as they were doing.

There were around 500 of them hidden across the vast underground cave systems, all varying in age and strength and homeland. And trying to walk through every tunnel and pathway would take weeks to do, a lot longer if you didn't know the paths by heart as well.

And no. No, they would not like to discuss the bad parts of the past. Not right now, at least, not while they could sing instead.

Still, Russia would much rather learn all he could as fast as he could. But he also understood the hesitation. It was personal for them all. It was easy for Russia to ask and try to talk when it didn't affect him.

When the small circle lost a few members, namely the older-looking ones, they decided to stop. Russia was invited to hang out with the tribes that appeared to be around his age, which surprised him. They were all roughhousing, trying to pin each other to the ground as a show of dominance.