Chapter Text
Antonio walked down the hall to the room the meeting had been arranged to be in months prior. He was dressed in a white long sleeved blouse and dark red-brown vest with freshly ironed slacks, his nicest clothes to make a good impression. Following quickly behind his boss, he tried to put on his friendly looking smile and be optimistic about his situation. He had no choice in the matter, so he decided to try to make the best of it. Antonio's boss had made a decision for his country, and so Antonio had to obey. Although his mind was racing with the many, many ways this could go horribly wrong, he knew it was too late to worry. He was already standing at the door.
I think I remember meeting her before, thought Antonio, reminiscing a time from when he was a young country. It was a few years ago, and she was with a group of a few other nations. She had silky light brown hair with a slight curl. I recall her sweet laugh and the ruffles twirling in her green dress as she walked along a path, looking gorgeous in the sunlight. This memory was what had kept him in good spirits for the past few weeks. Yes, this will all work out just fine.
The door opened to let them in. The spacious room was filled with chatter and illuminated with natural light coming through the many windows. As per usual with meetings involving nations, leaders of the countries met first and exchanged greetings before addressing business. Antonio had been to many of these before, so he knew how to act accordingly: sit off to the side, don't interrupt, and agree with your allies without stirring up trouble.
This time though, was different. The meeting wasn't just to discuss alliance terms, but to introduce (or possibly reintroduce) Spain to his soon-to-be-bride. He looked around nervously for the one he was supposed to be meeting. The hall was filled with military leaders and ambassadors from the two countries, making seeing through the crowd impossible for Antonio. Where is she?
Antonio had been practicing what he was going to say to her for weeks now, he was prepared to show how he could be a great partner. He would bow to her, gently lift her hand and give it a quick kiss before pulling out her chair for her, as he believed a gentleman should. Antonio had been imagining this moment for so long, but because the day hadn't gone as he expected, it was throwing him off.
Even after taking his place on his country's side of the table, he still couldn't find her. Nearly every seat at the 15 foot long table was filled and yet there was no sign of her. The only one in the room who looked to be his age and not a government official of some sort was a man across the table dressed in a sort of pompous aristocratic attire.
"Well? Go say hello." Antonio's boss patted him on the back and gestured with a tilted head towards the side of the room which sat members of the other country.
"Now? Say hello?" Antonio asked, confused. "Hello to whom?" He looked around for someone he might've been missing. Antonio had assumed she would surely stick out like a sore thumb. She seems to be blending in very well, he thought. It was a big room, but there's no way she could-
"Hello." Antonio's thoughts were interrupted by a striking voice. He looked up to see that to his surprise, the man he had been staring at earlier had moved from his seat. Not only that, he was standing right behind Antonio's chair. He seemed to be about Antonio's height, maybe and inch or so taller although he was wearing boots with a slight heel. His deep purple peacoat reached his knees and when the fabric shifted, it could almost pass for a dress at a glance. He wore a white frilled jabot that was tied snugly around his neck. He had thin, delicate rectangular glasses and had neatly styled dark brown hair with a single errant strand that sprouted from his head and curled away from his face. To be honest, Antonio thought that it looked rather strange and not at all fitting to the rest of the man's tidy appearance.
"Antonio, this is Roderich; your fiancé. Get along," Antonio's boss told him, quickly becoming absorbed in a different conversation before Antonio could ask any questions. Wait, what? His fiancé? Surely this had to be a mistake. Where was the girl he met years ago? Antonio glanced from his boss to his new fiancé in confusion, racking his brain for any time marrying this man could have possibly been brought up in discussion. Say something, say something! God, I'm being so rude, Antonio's dumbfounded mind screamed. This guy is putting himself out there by introducing himself and I'm gawking at him like an idiot!
He tried to collect himself and quickly put on his warm smile, attempting not to trip over his words as he continued to panic internally. "Hello, I'm Antonio. You're Hungary, correct?" he asked in his most professional voice, offering Roderich his hand to shake. The other man did not accept the handshake, keeping his hands clasped in front of him, and simply stared at him in confusion. Or at least, that was the closest emotion Antonio could guess from the slight lift of one of his thin, sharp eyebrows.
"No, I am Austria," was his response, his whiny voice suddenly sounding almost disapproving. "We are to be wed. I was told that you were informed of our arrangement, but clearly you were not." Roderich pulled back the chair to the left of Antonio and swept his coat forward before sitting down. Looking unsatisfied with the space between them, Roderich shuffled his chair as neatly as he could towards Antonio until their armrests were nearly touching. Because of how close he was sitting, Antonio could clearly smell his cologne even though the smell was so subtle. Bergamot and ivory, he thought.
Antonio couldn't believe that had made such a huge mistake. Not only that, he was marrying a man? A man who seemed even less interested in this marriage than him. This was too many changes hitting him all at the same time. This would've been helpful information to know even 5 minutes prior so Antonio didn't make a fool out of himself. If he's who I'm going to marry, who was the girl I met a few years ago? I was under the impression that she was Austria… or that she was Hungary? And I was marrying her? Antonio didn't know what he remembered anymore, his stress seemed to be messing with his memories. I should ask my new fiancé, I'm sure he'll know.
"So Hungary, or Austria?… Roderich. Roderich," whispered Antonio, keeping his voice down as to not disturb the meeting. He leaned over. "Do you know who that lady in the green dress was from a few years ago? I think I remember seeing you talking with her, we were in a park around a year-"
"QUIET," Roderich hissed, his deadly look making Antonio's blood run cold. It was clear there was no room for negotiation.
Antonio tried again anyways, "Well, is there any chance that-"
"If you don't stop talking, I am going to move my chair away from yours. We can discuss when the meeting is over." Brows prominently down turned now, Roderich folded his hands in his lap and smoothed his, in Antonio's opinion, already perfectly neat hair.
Antonio thought of that moment for the rest of the meeting. While he was supposed to be actively engaging and remembering what was being discussed, he couldn't help but think about Roderich's tone and his "threat".
This is who my husband is going to be? This asshole who can't even pretend to be nice for the sake of the alliance? What an absolute- "No, stop that. I'm sure he had his reasons for acting the way he does. I've just met him today, I'm sure he'll warm up to me over time. It'll just take patience. All good things do, Antonio, this will work out just fine."
"Dear god, you're not talking to yourself are you?" Roderich put his hand on his armrests as if preparing to get up, before sighing and sitting back down reluctantly. He once again crossed his hands in his lap, a bit more aggressively this time. Aggressively enough for Antonio to notice and speak up.
"If sitting next to me is so terrible, move your chair like you said you would."
"I can't move my chair. You are my husband, it would be seen as extremely disrespectful to our countries."
"Well you seemed fine being rude to me, why would my country be any different? I don't understand how-"
"That's different. The fact that you don't realize they are is why I am not going to waste my breath explaining it to you."
The room went silent. "How sweet, their first fight as a couple!" jeered Antonio's boss. A few muffled laughs were let out around the room, making Antonio and Roderich both embarrassed enough to back down and stop talking.
Although he said nothing, Antonio peered over at Roderich who was openly glaring. Most emotion I've seen from him all day, thought Antonio.
After what seemed like too much time, the meeting was finally over. Leaders said their goodbyes and Antonio waited until everyone had left before attempting to speak to Roderich. Luckily, Roderich was waiting for the same thing.
The door shut, leaving the two alone in the meeting room. "Look, about today," started Antonio. "I apologize for starting trouble. I could tell you didn't want to draw attention." Antonio hoped this apology would get him in his fiancé's good side. This was not how he wanted to start this partnership and wanted to fix it before too much damage had been done. I already feel bad about how I acted when I realized he wasn't who I thought he was, He must think I'm a terrible person. I can be a good husband, and I'll prove it to him.
From what Antonio could tell, Roderich had regained his composure and was back to his less-than-amused face he had on at the beginning of the meeting. For a moment too long, he didn't speak. He didn't even look at Antonio, which didn't help his already high stress levels. Just as Antonio was about to just give up and leave, Roderich spoke.
"It is… fine. It is fine. I accept your apology. I… wish to continue our relationship on the best terms possible."
Spain remained still and waited for the other man to continue speaking, but it seemed Roderich had nothing else to say. Anticlimactic. But after a moment, Antonio realized that there actually was more that Roderich wanted to say, but he seemed to refrain from vocalizing in order to keep the peace. In all honesty, Antonio appreciated it. At least he was trying to be nice. Well, nicer.
Just at he was about to walk out of the room, Roderich called after him, "Just make sure to be presentable on Friday." He shut the door behind him.
Friday? What was happening on Friday?
Fuck. The wedding.