Work Text:
Edelweiss
A long time ago there was a place,
Where you wore a smile on your face,
But this smile withered away,
When I decided not to stay.
Tears were streaming down,
And all you have is a hurt frown.
We lived in a beautiful world filled with love,
But our fate was determined by orders from above.
I grew up in isolation,
While you became a stronger nation.
But since the day we parted,
I remember the day everything once stared,
And I wished with all my heart...
That we may find a new start.
{Vash Zwingli, Zurich 1867}
Little snowflakes fell on the mountain tops, covering the last few Edelweiss flowers beneath the protecting layers of snow and ice. The air was cold and dry, not a single drop of light could shine through the thick, grey clouds.
It must have been in the late afternoon when a young man was wandering around, lonely and without a specific goal. It certainly was not a regular mountain climber or else he would have headed back to the next village several hours ago to be safe when the darkness falls.
The young man was swearing in a heavy Austrian accent when he almost tripped over a little icy stone. He could have "died" in no-time if he were not careful enough especially in the winter.
But "dying" was not exactly the thing an almost immortal personification would fear, it was rather the fear of getting hurt so badly that he could not move or do anything for the next few months until everything healed again. Plus, getting lost in the middle of the mountains was embarrassing for a country where at least two thirds of the land area was covered with snowy mountains. He would not get lost here, he thought, he was not a German tourist after all.
However, Roderich was looking for something. Something to give to a specific neighbour of his he cherished a lot more than he wanted to admit.
It was the story of the edelweiss he thought of. It was a tale in folklore that there once was an ice maiden who was in love with a hunter. The hunter however betrayed her, and, in her sadness, she fell down the mountains, crying endlessly. The tears she shed turned to edelweiss, making them grow on dangerous places. Everyone who was trying to pick one of these edelweiss were doomed to fall down the mountains just like the poor ice maiden once did. On the other hand, people said that this flower personified love, courage as well as loyalty and that it counts as a proof of their love if picked for their loved ones.
It was prohibited to pick one of those flowers of course but Roderich knew enough legal ways to get one. Even if it meant that he would suffer from great exhaustion while going on this journey. But that is what it was worth, wasn't it?
Roderich looked around, hoping to find these little star-like flowers as soon as possible.
It did not take him very long until he saw one just a few meters above him on a snowy cliff. "Finally...", he sighed in huge exhaustion. He just had to climb up the rock face and pluck it out of the grass. – It should not be that difficult, right?
Slowly he put his right hand onto the cold rocks, pulling himself up just a few centimetres. His feet followed carefully, while Roderich himself mumbled something under his breath. He groaned. His physical condition was a mess, he knew that, but it disappointed him whenever he needed some stamina or strength.
Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain on his palm and a red stain marked the stone he just had touched. "Damn it!", he cursed as the cut started burning even more. Nevertheless, he used the last bit of strength to heave himself up, picking the little edelweiss and climbing down.
Finally, he found the edelweiss he searched for so long. Now he would only have to go back to the nearest village and visit Vash as soon as possible. Roderich smiled weakly. He really hoped it was worth the effort and that Vash would understand what he wanted to say...That he realized how much Roderich cherished him.
***
Meanwhile a small figure was wandering around, enjoying the cold, snowy weather in his green coat and the large fluffy scarf he obtained from his little sister a while ago. The young man sighed as he arrived at a small village's memorial and took a seat at one of its low steeps. His hands were freezing, and his nose turned into a deep red the more he stayed outside.
He had been visiting Schwyz, one of his many cantons, for almost two weeks now just to visit this little memorial at least once a year on November 15th. The reason for that was very simple. Around 705 years ago his country won one of its most important battles against the House of Habsburg and Austria at Morgarten. After years of fighting, Austria and all the other countries had to accept his independence and neutrality which lead to his final self-isolation as a personified country. Vash would lie if he said that he did not enjoy the peaceful silence without having to bother with the other countries. He wanted them to leave him alone once and for all and he did not want to deal with their problems. His wish was granted when he won against Austria 1315 but Roderich was too much of a stubborn and clingy fool to let him go. He did not respect the personal space he wanted, and it did not surprise Vash whenever Roderich failed in battle repeatedly.
The blonde facepalmed when he remembered 1788. "This stupid idiot even lost against himself, Jesus Christ..."
Nevertheless, Vash liked this loser more than he would ever admit it. It would be a shame if somebody found out that he, the definition of neutrality, had a weak spot for someone else other than his precious little sister. Especially if it was a fool and coward like Roderich.
He growled as he remembered his childhood memories with him when they were still close. It might had gotten better nowadays as Vash had multiple separate treaties with the EU but since 1315 they had been in a very distant relationship. And even though the Swiss denied it all the time, he wished that he had kept their close bond throughout the ages instead of cutting off contact.
"Anyway", he sighed and brushed off the snow on his trousers, "I have better things to do than thinking of him. I have to get that stupid Austrian out of my head once and for all."
He was about to go back to the village as it was getting darker when he suddenly heard a loud, crashing sound followed by a bright light somewhere in the near mountains.
"What the actual hell was that?", he thought and squinted his eyes only to see a white cloud of smoke rising in the air. "Smoke? Don't tell me some idiot accidentally set a tree on fire or else they can pay a fine." He slowly walked towards the path leading to the mountains, wanting to find the source of the noise and the smoke. "I swear, I hope it's only a small avalanche, or else I have to call someone to extinguish a whole forest."
***
The moon slowly rose upon the sky, daring the snow to shine in a ghostly blue. Heavy footsteps stomping on the thick piles of snow were the only things to hear. It was a silent night, almost peaceful as if the little shock the Swiss had never happened.
He cuddled himself into his warm coat even more. Why did he even try to get on the mountain himself if there were professionals who could have helped immediately if something shocking happened. Vash growled again. If he had not been this curious, then he would have gone home so much earlier and he would eat cheese fondue all peaceful without any sign of pure annoyance.
Maybe he should just turn back before it gets even later, he thought and already turned around when he noticed a single black glove on the ground. Curiously, he picked it up, looking at it. It seemed like somebody lost it just a few minutes ago as it neither was frozen or anything.
Suddenly there was a quiet but clear noise. Vash startled as he saw the pile of snow next to him move a bit until a young brunette broke free of this cold blanket. It was Roderich covered in snow from head to toe that even his eyelashes had little snowflakes in them. His nose, cheeks and ears shone in a vivid red while his lips slowly lost their colour due to the cold. All in all, he looked exhausted and completely frozen.
Vash's eyes got wide. Why in the world was Roderich buried in snow at the foot of his mountain? How did he even manage to pass the border without anyone noticing?
"Oh, err... servus, Vash", Roderich stuttered, brushing the cold snow from his head. He was hardly able to move his fingers, they were too cold and numb to feel anything. "What are you doing in the mountains at this hour?"
Vash rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Gruezi, that's what I was about to ask you. You idiot got lost again, haven't you?"
"No? I haven't?" The Austrian felt the heat in his cheeks slowly rising. But Vash did not deign to look at him.
"You did. You crossed the borders. Hell, you are in Schwyz and it is almost in the middle of my country. Tell me how in the world you managed to randomly appear in front of me without anyone noticing you."
Roderich did not response. He just silently stared at the blonde and then at the snow and the mountains around him. Did he got lost again? And just because he wanted to pick some edelweiss? His face flushed in a second and his heart started beating harshly against his chest. Roderich hated it when he was embarrassed. He would usually start tapping his fingers nervously on his leg, imitating like he was playing the piano, or he would randomly hum a song to calm himself, but he could never do that in front of Vash. It would make everything even worse.
"Oh."
Roderich could have slapped himself in the face for that stupid response. How could he be so stupid? Luckily, Vash did not seem to care for Roderich's awkwardness, on the contrary, he just pulled his scarf over his red tinted nose, grabbed his arm, and pulled him out of the snow. "Get out of there or you get cold! I don't want to hear you complaining that you have such a high fever if you, dumbass, keep sitting in the snow!" He growled, blushing a bit. "You haven't changed a bit since we were younger. You simply can't take care of yourself, hrch."
Roderich looked at him, completely confused. Why was Vash so angry and stressed at the same time? It almost reminded him of himself when he gets all flustered and people keep embarrassing him. "Of course, I can take care of myself! I live a perfectly normal life, the only thing that seems weird is that my room seems to clean itself, that's all."
Vash just looked away, dragging the Austrian with him. He was fed up with standing around and having to see this living snowman's face. Plus, he was worried that they might end up getting a cold if they kept arguing at this place. "Stupid Austrian", he thought, "he can't do anything on his own. What is he, a kid?" He got even more salty when he thought about Roderich and Elizabeta being so close despite of their divorce. Why couldn't he keep their close bond after the wars? Everyone else who knew Roderich was able to keep contact except for him. The others however also tried wiping out the Austrians existence multiple times in the past centuries.
The Swiss pouted and did not dare to look at Roderich stumbling over multiple piles of snow. What would have happened if Austria had been destroyed once and for all in the past? Vash certainly did not want to imagine a world without him. And despite of the stubbornness his emotions had to fight with, Vash suddenly felt very protective of him. But expressing these feelings was not one of his strengths.
"The next time you go around in the alps you wear something warmer that that! Don't you know how many people get hypothermia in this cold?!" Vash sounded like he was scolding him even though he did not intend to do that.
Roderich looked at his frozen coat which made him feel stiff while moving around and pouted. "Do I look like I'm stupid? Of course, I know what to wear in the mountains, I am not a fool! Rather tell me how I should've known that there was a tiny avalanche about to wash me away!"
"Dear god!", Vash instantly stopped, letting go of Roderich's arm, "I'm sorry that I have to be worried about you. I'd also wish I didn't care at all." Realizing, what he just said, Vash covered his mouth, blushing heavily. Quickly, he turned his head away and was about to leave, when Roderich's voice broke through the silence.
"Aww, I feel honoured that you can spare a glimpse of your sympathy for me." The older one smiled cheekily.
"Shut up already!" Vash covered his ears. "I can't hear you anyway. We're almost in the village, speed up a bit or I'll leave you here."
***
A little while later, the two alpine countries reached the little memorial, Vash had visited only a while ago. While Vash had been busy carefully leading Roderich down the mountains, Roderich had the chance to check up the flowers he hid in his coat. He had lots of luck as all of them were undamaged and beautiful. He just had to wait for the perfect moment to give them to Vash and that required not only lots of willpower and courage, it also had to be in a moment where Vash wasn't about to explode like an Austrian tree.
Unfortunately, Roderich felt exhausted and dead tired to step forward any further. He was freezing, hungry, tired, and about to lose every single bit of strength he had left. The Swiss noticed how his neighbour slowly fell behind and felt a twinge of pity in his chest. Maybe they should take a break first and try to warm themselves up.
"Roderich?", Vash asked with a surprisingly calm voice.
"Hm?" The brunette looked down to him rather slowly.
"Let's sit down under the memorial's roof, if you push yourself any further, you'll collapse."
But to Vash's surprise, Roderich shook his head. "No, it's fine", he murmured, "We'll soon reach the village anyway, right?"
Vash kicked a bit of snow out of his way, looking down the hill. "Well, with our current speed we'd need at least 20 minutes." Looking in Roderich's tired face, he knew he reached his limits but nevertheless it might be dangerous to stay outside even longer.
The Austrian went silent for a moment, looked at the memorial with a glimpse of sadness in his eyes. He knew this place too well. Too many melancholic memories related to it, above all was their biggest and most hurtful fight. "I think I can cope with that. I've experienced worse in life."
Vash nodded, nervously plucking at his warm and fluffy scarf. He could clearly see how Roderich was freezing which he could not bear watching anymore. Back then when they were kids, Roderich would give him his gloves, scarfs or his woolly hat, the moment he started shivering. He was...quite caring despite not looking like it. Vash usually only thought about the many things he had done for him, like saving him, cleaning his mouth while eating because it was stained or carrying him around when he got hurt. Sometimes he found himself doing the same things to his sister Lily which sometimes triggered old memories he wanted to get vanished for a long time.
Slowly, he put his scarf down, watched how the many snowflakes melted when they touched the warm fabric, leaving little droplets. Without any further thoughts occurring, he walked towards Roderich, putting the fluffy scarf around him in an unusual careful and calm manner. Forcing himself not to show a single smile, he looked up to the slightly taller nation. Roderich blushed a bit, wanting to grasp for the warm cloth the little Swiss gave to him, but Vash just reached for his hand, putting it away.
"You can take it...You need it more than I do." A little blush appeared on his cheeks which made Roderich smile a bit. "Thank you, Vash."
The Swiss just looked down, holding the Austrian's hand so he could not lose him any time soon while walking down the hill that once separated them. "No need to thank me, I know I'm just too nice. I'm not heartless, you know?"
"I never thought you're heartless, Vash. You are amazing the way you are."
Vash growled, turning his head away. "You aren't that stupid either. You may be a fool but that's not meant to be an insult. Take it as a way to compliment you."
"I will, I do the same kinds of compliments from time to time." Roderich laughed, secretly searching for the edelweiss in his coat. Maybe this was the right time to give him the little present?
Carefully Roderich tapped on the other's shoulder, waiting for him to react by turning towards him. "Vash?" The blonde responded with a quiet "Hm?" when Roderich suddenly pulled out three beautiful edelweiss out of his pocket.
"Wha- ", Vash could not answer him as Roderich took the initiative to speak. "For you...", he whispered almost shyly, "I went to the mountains today only to get them for you by myself."
Vash went silent, looking at the white, soft flowers in awe. Roderich's glasses fogged up a bit while his face flushed again.
Finally, Vash found the words he wanted to say as he accepted the flowers, touching the petals gently. "So...You went on some mountain at your home, picked some edelweiss, got lost, let yourself get hit by a small avalanche just to appear in front of me to give me these?"
The brunette did not exactly know if Vash was scolding him for being an idiot or if he just revised everything that happened that day, but when he saw the little grin on Vash's face, he knew Vash was not mad at him, on the contrary, he seemed happy and touched by the gesture.
"Thank you...but why? Picking edelweiss is such an old and long forgotten tradition...why did you do that for me?"
The Austrian smiled. "You know that another name for an edelweiss is the 'eternal flower', right?" He waited for the other to nod before continuing. "It reminded me of you and how we've known each other since forever. Maybe my heart thought it loved you for an eternity when I saw these flowers. Edelweiss don't wilt and just like that my feelings for you never withered away." Roderich sat up a tiny, shy grin full of hope. "I don't want to push you into something. I just wanted you to know."
Vash was speechless, could not find a single word to describe what he felt. Did he feel happy? Was he angry? Or was he sad? The Swiss did not even dare to know. But what he knew was that he wanted to be close to Roderich...that he never has to let go of him. Wordless he let himself fall into the older one's arms, the edelweiss were held near his chest. With one hand he pulled Roderich close to him into a hug, never wanting to let go. Roderich returned the hug, planted a soft kiss on the smaller one's forehead, feeling all warm and safe.
Little snowflakes were falling, the starry night sky shone upon them like thousands of candles, bringing light into the darkness while the moon poured a silvery layer over the beautiful alpine area, making the snow look like fine silk. The place that once separated them with all the hatred, sorrow, and regret, finally united them again after more than 700 years.
And if you listen closely enough to the wind, breezing around the Alps, you may hear two little voices humming a peaceful song about edelweiss.