GerIta, HRExChibitalia Reunited (UNFINISHED)

[I was doing really well with this one and thought of a really awesome line to finish it, but when I got there I totally lost it and haven't found a way to end it since.]

‘Where am I?’  Germany looked around at the semi-familiar landscape.  He saw a little girl… no…boy?  He couldn’t tell since the child was dressed in maid’s clothes.  She… or he… was crying on a bench holding a flower to her… his?... chest.  Germany walked over to see if the kid was alright, he sat next to her, or him, and asked what was wrong, but he didn’t get a response.  “Hello?  Are you alright?”  He asked again, but no reply was made.  He tried to touch the child but his hand went right through him… or her.  ‘What the hell?’  Before he could think through what was going on the child started talking.

“Why would he just leave?”  The kid sniffled.

The child’s voice was small and stuffy from crying.  “I miss him so much… and he kissed me too.  I’ve never gotten a kiss like that before.”  The child looked down at the flower in his hand, or her hand, Germany still couldn’t tell.

Germany got up and knelt down in front of the child and looked up at the soft little face.  A few stray tears still fell from their bright amber eyes and over their pale cheeks.  Something about this kid reminded Germany of someone he knew, but couldn't put his finger on it.

“Holy Rome…” the child started again, “I want to see you so badly.  It’s been so long, I’m afraid that you won’t come back at all.”  The kid looked down at a locket whose chain wrapped around the flower stem, a picture of a young blonde boy in a black outfit looked back sweetly at the child.

‘Holy Rome… Holy Rome…’ Germany thought, ‘Where have I heard that name before?’

“If I grow up and never see you again… I don’t know what I’ll do with myself.  Will I meet someone else that’ll love me as much as you do?  But what if I forget about you entirely?  What if I can’t love anybody ever again?”  The child continued crying as they put their face in their hands.  Germany reached out to the child once more in hopes of giving them some sort of comfort.

His dream altered scenes to a bright grassy field, the same child from before stood on a hill with another young boy dressed in black.  The first child had tears in their eyes once again.  The child in black, Germany realized it was the same one from the other’s locket: Holy Rome, held the smaller child’s hands and spoke softly, “I love you, and I’ll come back to you… I promise, my Little Italy.”  Germany’s eyes widened in surprise, ‘Italy?’.  The boy in black kissed the young Italy on the lips and walked away, Germany ran after him but no matter how fast he ran he couldn’t catch up to him.  He tripped on a rock…

…and woke up with a start in bed, sitting upright quickly.  Italy, who was sleeping peacefully on his chest, fell onto his lap when Germany sat up.  Germany looked down at Italy bewildered.

Italy rubbed his eyes sleepily and sat up, “Germany…?  What’s the matter?  Did you have a bad dream?”  Germany just stared, Italy’s face quickly turned to serious concern, “Germany, are you ok?”  Germany lifted his hand to Italy’s face and brushed his fingers lightly across his cheek and looked deeply into his eyes.  “Germany please, you’re starting to worry me, what’s the matter?”

Germany stared into Italy’s shining amber eyes and brought his other hand to his face holding it gently between his palms.  Italy looked back up anxiously at Germany waiting for him to say something.  It was another long minute until Germany spoke, “My… Little Italy…”

Italy’s eyes widened momentarily and a slight smile crossed his lips, “What did you say?”

Germany paused and stuttered, “I-I’m Holy Roman Empire… and… you’re my Little Italy…”

Tears came to Italy’s eyes, he grinned as he threw his arms around Germany’s neck, “Germany?!  Do you remember?  Do you remember who you are?  Who I am?”

Germany nodded slowly still unsure of the dream he just woke from, “Kind of.  The dream I had… it might have been more of a memory I guess.  I left you on that hill so long ago.  I promised you I’d come back… but I never did.  Have you known Italy?”

Italy pulled away from him leaving his hands clasped behind his neck, sitting up on his knees, “Yeah.  I knew as soon as I saw you when you opened that tomato box I hid in.  I didn’t say anything because you didn’t seem to remember me.  I asked Mr. Austria about it and he didn’t believe me, but he said if I thought you were Holy Rome then to let the memories come back on their own.”

“But that was years ago…” Italy nodded solemnly.  “Italy…”  He looked up, “Italy, you’ve waited for me so long, and even after I came back to you I still kept you waiting.  I am so sorry.”  He brought his hands up Italy’s back and pulled him close, resting his head into Italy’s chest.  Italy propped himself up on his knees and held Germany’s head to himself, running his fingers through the messy blonde hair.

Italy tenderly kissed the top of Germany’s head, “This was probably a gift though when you think about it.”

“Why is that?”  Germany asked his voice sounding raspy.

“Well,” Italy started as he continued to pet through Germany’s hair, “we got to fall in love all over again.  You forgot what happened when we were younger, and you were even kind of a new person to me when I saw you.  And look at us now, just as deeply in love as when we were kids.”  He kissed him again.  

Germany broke apart from Italy and held his hands at his hips, “You’re wrong about one thing though