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Faux Paw	By : Florville Category: +G to L > Hetalia: Axis Powers Views: 3287 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: The Monkey's Paw is property of WW Jacobs, and I only reference it in passing. Hetalia does not belong to me, and I do not make any money off the writing of this fanfiction.

Chapter List
- 6
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7

This chapter is dedicated to my new pal OKFan, who is full of win. Internets to anybody who picks up on the Dollhouse reference. Oh, Topher, how I adore you and your Drawer of Inappropriate Starches.

Canada finally stirred a little as the night sky began to grow lighter, his blue eyes flickering open and gradually focusing on the person who was holding his upper half above…wait, why was he in water?

“A…Arthur?” he mumbled, looking around blearily.

England jumped in surprise, as he’d been rather focused on not falling on his arse in the water while still trying to keep Canada’s head above the surface until he changed. “Yes?” He searched Matthew’s expression warily for any indication that he was in danger, but it seemed almost as if Canada were back to normal…

“Did I fall asleep?”

“For a little while,” England replied softly, averting his gaze and looking toward the lightening horizon. “You’ll be back in your animal form soon, so I’ve brought you to a lake where you’ll be able to move around. It’s in a park, so you won’t have to worry about anything more than the occasional paddle boat…”

Matthew blinked at him, wanting very much to reach up and touch his cheek, but finding that his limbs felt incredibly heavy. “You…did all this for me?”

“I…I didn’t want you wrecking my pond,” England muttered, his cheeks flushing deeply as he avoided looking at the Canadian, because it was harder to lie when he was looking someone in the face.

“I see,” Canada murmured, a soft smile coming to his lips. “That was so kind of you, England…thank you.”

Against his better judgement, England glanced downward, seeing the adorably disarming smile on Canada’s face and groaning in chagrin. “Canada…I’m not completely heartless, you know,” he muttered, averting his gaze again and praying for the dawn to come faster, if only to save him from this overly sentimental rubbish.

“No-one knows it more than I do, Sir,” Matthew replied with a soft laugh, his hand shifting slightly to stroke the arm England had looped around him under the water.

Surprised that Matthew’s true self was coming through (he highly doubted an incubus would address him as ‘Sir’ after all; that was something only Canada did these days), England met his eyes again and wondered for a moment if the spell hadn’t been broken by his impromptu gesture of kindness. “How do you feel?”

Matthew grimaced a little. “Really heavy, and uncomfortable, like…almost like growing pains, but worse,” he mumbled, looking up at England again. A dull look of resignation crept into his blue eyes, and he sighed. “I’m going to change again, aren’t I?”

Arthur nodded, feeling the flicker of hope from earlier die in his chest. “I believe so,” he murmured, looking to the horizon again. “I’m sorry, lad.”

“It’s not your fault,” Canada said with a gentle smile, sliding his hand up, albeit slowly, to touch England’s cheek. “I wished for this…and to be honest…I…” Canada bit his lip, knowing it wasn’t really an appropriate thing to admit, but he was nothing if not an honest nation, “a part of me doesn’t regret it. Th-the selfish part of me, I guess,” he added quickly, averting his gaze.

England blinked, looking down at Matthew again, feeling highly irritated that Canada would say such things. “Well, you should regret it, it’s causing me a hell of a lot of trouble!”

Canada flinched, drawing a shuddering breath as he felt the skin between his legs beginning to fuse together. “I’m sorry,” he murmured, “I didn’t mean…ah!!” Matthew wrenched bodily, a pained cry escaping him as all of his bones began to lengthen and shift out of their joints, realigning themselves as his flesh turned rubbery and stretched out over the new assembly.

Arthur held him until the weight was finally too much, watching helplessly as Canada splashed into the water and completed the transformation into his animal form. He was surprised to feel a sensation of guilt pricking at him…it wasn’t as if Matthew was selfish very often; and was it really so selfish to desire the attention of someone who constantly mistook him for his brother, and barely noticed him otherwise?

“I…” As natural as the words ‘I’m sorry’ were to most people, they were words that Arthur almost never uttered, and it was difficult to force them out. Instead, he opted for concerned gentleness, because he simply didn’t do apologetic, it wasn’t in his nature to apologize. “Are you all right?” England mumbled as he reached out and placed his hand against the fleshy pink expanse of the dolphin’s forehead.

As the pain in his body gradually subsided, Canada could feel the silt of the lake bottom against his belly, and he used his tail muscles to lift his upper half enough that his eye was above the surface of the water. He heard Arthur’s question, and nodded as best he could. What about you? Are you all right? He tried to remember the events of the night before…he remembered waking in human form, red wine, and kissing, but after that it was as if he were trying to remember a dream. I don’t remember much of last night at all. I’m not sure why…

“I drugged you,” England stated flatly, straightening up once he was sure that Matthew was able to swim on his own. “Demons can detect magic and potions very easily, so I had to find a chemical solution to which I was essentially immune, one you’d had limited exposure to.” At Canada’s puzzled look, Arthur patted him on the head. “This is where I say ‘thank God for the opium trade’. I had some powder locked in a safe under the floorboards for emergency use.”

Canada seemed to squint at him a little in the morning light. There’s…blood on your neck. Is that…did I do that? Did I hurt you?

Eyes widening a little in surprise, Arthur reached up and touched his neck, feeling the area Canada was referring to and blushing. “Er…it wasn’t…entirely unpleasant, really,” he mumbled, moving to reach into a pocket for his handkerchief before realising it had probably gotten soaked when he’d dropped Matthew in the water. “Just a love bite, nothing to worry about. A-anyway, I really ought to run home and try to get a few hours of sleep.”

Matthew peered at him curiously, although Arthur’s last comment made him tense. You’re…oh. Y-yes, I understand. He’d been about to protest, had almost pleaded with England to stay; however, one look at the Englishman’s face told him how exhausted Arthur was. Not only that, England had already gotten cross with him a few minutes ago for being such an imposition. I will wait here for you, Canada added, trying to sound braver than he felt.

Too tired to read the words as anything other than the competence he’d grown to expect from his former Dominion, England nodded and patted Matthew on the head one last time. “Ta…I’ll try not to be too long.”

*

When Arthur finally returned, it was after sunset, and he stumbled out of the car in a panic, looking around as he jogged toward the lake. He hadn’t realised he’d been so exhausted…upon arriving home, he’d sat down for a moment to gather his thoughts and had dozed off in his chair. Upon waking and seeing that it was twilight, he’d run for the car and had nearly gotten in a couple of accidents rushing back to Regent’s Park, still wearing the rumpled clothing he’d passed out in.

“Matthew?” he called out breathlessly as he jogged to the shore, searching the surface of the water for a ripple, a hint of motion, anything. “Matthew!! Matthew, where are you?!”

As a practitioner of magic and an expert on magical creatures, England was highly attuned to that uneasy feeling that arose when something much larger and much more powerful had crept up behind him. He cringed, turning around slowly as he prepared for the incoming blow he was certain would land as a result of his distracted state.

“I thought something had happened to you,” came that soft, familiar voice, and Arthur grunted in confusion as he was pulled into an embrace that was one arm and two wings. He stumbled back when he was released a moment later, dropping to his knees and raking a hand through his hair.

“Bloody hell, I thought I was going to get splattered that time,” England muttered, gasping for breath and clutching at his chest as he waited for the sick feeling to leave his belly.

Golden yellow eyes narrowed slightly as Matthew cocked his head, moving to the water’s edge to peer at his reflection curiously. “Do I really look that intimidating?”

“I assure you, lad, once you’ve had a red dragon swat you aside like you were nothing more than a gnat, you see them a fair bit differently,” England grumbled, raking a hand through his sleep-tousled hair.

“Oh?” A faintly amused smile curved Matthew’s serpentine lips as he sauntered over to where Arthur was struggling to his feet. “And why would a dragon do that?”

“Never you mind,” England muttered as he moved to straighten out his shirt, immediately giving up when he saw how dishevelled he was from sleeping in his clothes. “Anyway, let’s just get you home, shall we? And for god’s sake, do NOT sneeze anywhere near my car.”

“Um…I don’t know if I can fly, England,” Matthew confessed awkwardly, stretching out his wings and peering at them dubiously.

Arthur halted in his steps, turning and looking the young dragon over for a moment before sighing harshly. “I’ll put the top up. If you put one claw mark in the upholstery, I’ll have your hide.”

*

After a car ride that was slowed significantly by the weight of a dragon in the back seat, the duration of which was spent trying to ignore how the blissful look on Matthew’s long snout was reminiscent of a dog with its head out the car window as they drove, Arthur pulled into the driveway and turned off the ignition.

“I’m getting too old for this garbage,” Arthur muttered, sighing and sitting there in silence for a moment before lifting his head and glaring at Canada in the rearview mirror. “Hurry up and move your scaly arse so I can put the top back up, would you?”

Canada flinched, carefully climbing out of the vehicle and moving away from it.

Any idiot could see that England was succumbing to the stress of looking after him, even though it had only been a couple of days. From the look of Arthur’s clothing, he’d fallen asleep the moment he’d gotten home, and had rushed back to the park to get him, as well. Obviously, there was no point in asking if Arthur had found a way to undo his wish; if he hadn’t had a moment to shower and change clothes, there was no possible way he’d picked up a spell book that day.

Arthur hauled himself out of the driver’s seat once the top was securely closed, slamming his door shut and pressing the button on the key fob to lock the doors. “Come on, let’s see if I’ve got a few pounds of meat so you don’t have to go stealing goats from my neighbours,” he grumbled as he walked toward the house, unlocking the front door and looking back. “Oi, you coming?”

Matthew forced a smile, trying not to look as unhappy as he felt. “N-no, no, I think I’m going to stay out here for a little while and…stretch my wings, you know?”

England gave him a rather dubious look, then sighed and shrugged. “Try not to knock any trees over, then,” he remarked as he went inside.

Canada maintained the smile for about a minute longer before allowing it to fade, and he searched around for Arthur’s magical friends. “M…Mint Bunny?” he called out, “Percy? It’s me, Matthew…” He could hear whispers drifting on the wind, but he couldn’t distinguish what they were saying.

When it became apparent that he would have to learn what he sought to learn on his own, Matthew sighed, going to a clearing on Arthur’s property and spreading his wings, flapping them repeatedly and trying to ignore the lawn furniture he sent rolling away with the powerful gusts of air.

Why couldn’t he lift off? It was a still evening with no wind, surely, but he should be able to fly!

“Maple! What could I possibly be doing wrong?!” he shouted, then sat sulkily on his haunches. As if he needed anything to make him feel more miserable…

Very few dragons can attain flight from a standing position, especially young ones like you, came a familiar voice as Percy stepped into the moonlight, although he watched Matthew warily.

“Thank you…tell me, please…how do I fly? Do I have to get a running start?”

Dragons live in the mountains because their wings are better suited to gliding…I do not think you will be able to learn to fly in the short time that you have that body.

“I live to prove people wrong,” Canada replied with a sad smile. “How far is Dover from here?”

Much too far to walk in a day, Percy replied warily, not liking where the nation turned mythical creature seemed to be going with this.

“I’m not walking,” Canada said, the wistful smile still on his face. “Anyway, please tell Arthur that I love him with all my heart, and that I’m going to make this right. Could you do that for me?”

I’m pretty sure I should be stopping you, or at least discouraging you quite emphatically, Percy replied fretfully.

“I’ve caused England too much trouble,” Matthew said softly as he began to walk in the direction of London. “He’s done his best to find a solution, and it’s not hard to see that he’s completely exhausted. I shouldn’t be such a terrible burden on the person I love.”

But won’t he worry? Yes, he…he’ll be terribly worried if you leave! the unicorn exclaimed, trotting alongside him in a near panic.

“No more worried than he will be if I stay. Tell him I’ve gone to solve this problem myself, and that he needs to get some rest. And most importantly, tell him that I love him.”

He loves you, Percy tried in a final frantic attempt to stall the young nation, exhaling a sigh of relief when Canada paused.

Canada closed his eyes for a moment, smiling as a cool evening breeze drifted over his scaled hide, stirrings of magic in the air. “In my heart of hearts…I want so badly to believe it. And yet, experience tells me that Arthur is too afraid to love.” He opened his eyes, looking down at Percy sadly. “Even me…the one nation who would sooner cut off his own arm than cause Arthur pain.”

But he said that you were lovers, did he not? Percy insisted, ears pinning back anxiously.

“But he doesn’t trust me, Percy. He’s afraid to say that he loves me…I’m not sure that it’s a fear he’ll ever surmount. And…that…breaks my heart,” Matthew murmured, averting his gaze and resuming his walk. “I once believed that my love was enough to heal his wounds, and make him smile again,” Canada confessed as the unicorn trotted alongside him, “but I am beginning to see that I was naïve. His wounds have scarred over, and there is nothing I can do to erase them. I have never been worthy of the task.”

If you leave now, you’re going to hurt him, Percy objected, moving out in front of him and standing facing the dragon in an attempt to block his path. He will be very hurt if you leave. He’ll be upset that you didn’t have faith in his ability to fix this.

“Percy…you are a kind soul,” Matthew sighed, scales glimmering as he shook his head. “But if there’s one thing Arthur is very good at, it’s forgetting me and the things I’ve done. I assure you, given a few days, he’ll be fine. I’ll find a cure for this somewhere else, and he’ll go back to ignoring me just like he did before. All will be well again.”

Percy watched anxiously as Canada lifted his wings high and quickened his pace to a ground-eating gallop. The unicorn shifted from hoof to hoof, debating frantically for a few more seconds before turning and running back toward Arthur’s estate with an urgent whinny.
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Faux Paw