Forgotten But Not Erased
Gilbert should have seen it. The great personification of the awesome nation Prussia should have seen it way before it happened. The quick glances across the meeting table during conferences; shared secret smiles only reserved for the two of them, and the enjoyed silence as they made themselves comfortable around each other. So yes, he should have seen it coming or it was made apparent by the innocent red tulip petal laying next to him on his pillow.
He deposited the petal in his nightstand drawer among its precedents and reached over for a glass of water to soothe his parched throat. He swallowed down the painful lump and took a few more gulps of water to make sure it stays down. He was the pure symbol of discipline as much as it was in his Prussian blood: therefore he had to pull himself together despite the unsettling feeling trying to spill out from his gut. He has a meeting to attend, and despite not being a nation anymore, he was still granted an honorary seat at the meeting, albeit not at the table.
He slipped in the conference room, quickly catching the concerned look shot by his brother. He shook his head in a silent reply and made his way to the vacant seat meant for him located behind Ludwig. That feeling was there again. The raging, bubbling darkness that seems to grow tendrils around his lungs and throat. Gilbert can feel his chest tighten and cleared his throat to ease the suffocation. All eyes in the room fell on him and he quickly waved his hand to dismiss their attention.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland let out a little cough to round up everyone's attention to him as he continued his speech. âAs I was saying, the tariffs between the marines-â Gilbert drowned out the rest of his sentence, wishing he could do the same to the gurgling feeling in his throat. He picked up the bottle by his side and gulped down its contents as fast as he could.
Pushing it down, drowning, drowning; but there seems to be no rock bottom to push the feeling down. Eventually, he hit his limit and he has to rush out of the room as stealthily to avoid unwanted attention again. He heaved the toilet seat up and emptied out his guts. He wretched and wretched until there was no more to give before he slid to the floor. His thumb and forefinger reached down in his throat and pulled out a long unmistakably tulip leaf. He tossed that into the bowl with what could have almost amassed to a whole flower. Gilbert spared it one quick glance and flushed the toilet unceremoniously.
--
âI regret to say its bad news, Prussia,â said his private doctor upon closing his bedroom door. The sick man pushed himself up on the bed and motioned for the doctor to elaborate more. His caregiver handed him a radiology scan film and held it up to the sunlight. âThis was yours two weeks ago when you first came to see me, and this,â he pulled up another sheet from a folder, âis your recent one.â Gilbert did not need to lean closer to see the stark difference between both films. It was a huge dark blob on the film compared to two weeks ago when he could see all his organs. His recent scan showed his not imagined tendrils but real roots wrapping around all his internal organs. âI sent a sample to the botanist and it came back positive for Tulipa,â his doctor continued, âAnd I'm quite confident it is not Mr. Turkey or Mr. Netherlands who is the source of your Hanahaki disease.â
 "Anyone but the Phantom of the Opera, Arzt Heizzler.â Prussia snorted. âYou know me too long to be in cahoots with that man, even if Tulipa is his national flower.â he chided. "And I can assure you I have no romantic feelings whatsoever for Netherlands."
âThen that just leaves one other country...â the arzt revealed.
âWhat are my options, doc?â the patient changed the topic.
Arzt Heizzler swallowed before opening his mouth to speak. âSurgically, we can try to remove the flowers entirely with its roots, but that will also erase any romantic feelings harbored towards that person,â He met his patient's ruby eyes, âO-or I could prescribe painkillers and other medications to slow down the growth and help with the pain if you choose to deny-â he was cut short by the coughing sounds and rushed over to pat his patientâs back.
Prussia heaved a few sighs and spits out more petals into his hands. âCan I get a glass of water? This is making me thirsty.â
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Gilbert woke up to his brotherâs concerned cerulean blue eyes. âHey West,â he croaked, feeling the scratchiness in his throat. He tried to sit up, but Germany beat him to it.
âI got you,â Ludwig said, as he pulled his brother forward to prop up some pillows behind his back. He offered him a glass of water and watched him gulp it down faster than a fish. Once Gilbert returned the item with gratefulness, he opened his mouth to ask a question, âWhatâs going on?â Meeting his brotherâs exhausted smile, he pushed on, âYou donât seem well these days, and you refuse to tell me or allow the artz to tell anyone about your health!â
âWest-â Gilbert began but was interrupted.
âIâve already lost you as the nation of Prussia,â his shoulders shook, âand I donât want to lose my brother Gilbert, please...âÂ
Gilbert looked up to Ludwigâs eyes and took in his features: Disheveled hair, probably from running his hand through it multiple times, a hint of badly concealed eye bags from staying up all night going through the world meeting notes, crinkled collar of his once perfectly crisp suit... Ludwig would feel really lonely if he wasnât around, huh?
âIâm fine,â he finally said, âIâll be back to normal in just a bit, do you mind waiting for me till then?â he asked his brother.
Ludwig replied with a small nod, uncertain but willing to have faith in his older brother.
Gilbert smiled and pulled on the younger manâs cheeks, âGood boy,â he praised, âGive me a big smile and go fetch that old artz. Tell him Iâve made my decision.â
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Gilbert stood by Ludwigâs side as the latter chatted with the other nations. Something catches his attention out of the corner of his eye. A lady he has never seen before, maybe a new nation - did Germany ever said they had a new nation? Itâs been years since they had a new nation after South Sudan. She must be presumably under the protection of that cheapskate Austria, given how she follows him around docilely like a puppy.Â
The pair eventually made their way to the brothers, and Gilbert notices the way their shoulders tend to bump against each other, and their fingers brush with every step they take.Â
âHello, Austria, Hungary,â Ludwig greeted. âWhat did you think of Denmarkâs proposal earlier?â
Ah... so her nameâs Hungary then...
Austria pushed his glasses up his nose bridge, âI see the point that he is making, but I also understand how others may not be willing to jump on the bandwagon with him.â
âI think it needs more time,â Hungary supplied her thoughts, âMany people are not willing to change their routine, but we can provide a slow transition to help them ease into it.â She made eye contact with Gilbert and gave him a small secretive smile.
Ludwig hmm-ed in response and looked towards Gilbert, who gave a small nod. Gilbert kept his mouth shut - since he was no longer a nation, he was not allowed to provide input on global affairs, but there was nothing against consulting your brother and being his sounding board. The man, after all, had a few hundred years of wisdom to enlighten the younger nation.
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Gilbert tossed in his bed that night, his head filled with the nation he met. He had never met her before, but there was an unsettling weight in his stomach. He flopped onto his stomach, hoping the new position may finally bring about the peaceful slumber he needed. Hungary... that word was as familiar as unknown to him, and the enigma of that truth is not helping his inability to sleep.Â
He tried it again, but this time slowly, and savored the way it felt in his tongue. It felt odd, in a comforting way, like a man regaining the use of his limbs after a long coma, or getting on a bike after many years of not riding it. It was probably a look-alike from someone he met from the past, like France seeing Jeanne dâ Arc in a tourist.
Satisfied with the answer on why she looked familiar, he readjusted himself in bed and allowed the wave of sleepiness to finally overcome him. He slept through the night peacefully dreaming of emerald eyes and orange flowers.
And woke up the next morning to a tulip petal under his tongue.
