Genre: Anime/Manga
Category: Axis Powers Hetalia
Summary: When he had been very young, he was told that each star had a story. Mild DenmarkxNorway
Disclaimer: I still don't own Hetalia. As much as I want to.

In those days where they had all been a "family," and actually even before that time, Norway would watch the stars at night. Norway loved looking at the little skylights glitter above him, just as the snow glittered below as the moon's rays fell. It was beautiful in his eyes. What made it more beautiful was when he stargazed while the aurora graced him with its presence. The sight left him breathless with awe. Denmark would constantly tease him about this side of his hobby. Norway never paid any attention to it, though; he could hardly believe the Dane when the words 'you're' and 'so' and 'cute' and 'Nor' were compiled in the same sentence.

When he had been very young, he was told that each star had a story. As he silently stared up at the night sky, Norway would imagine the different little stories each light held—happy ones were in the stars that shone the brightest, sad ones were in the ones that looked faded. The northern country couldn't help but give a reserved smile when he counted more shining stars in the sky each night.

One day, there were several longships that lined up along the coastline. Norway watched as various young boys and men, who were most likely their fathers and uncles, bustled about the shore. He, too, was dressed in the same fashion as they were. His father figure, Scandinavia, had taken notice of the boy's interest in sailing and offered to bring him along in their latest exploration out in the vast blue waters. Norway heard the light crunching of sand from behind him and turned around—only to meet face-to-face with Denmark.

"So you're going, huh?" the Dane asked, hands in his pockets. Norway kept a blank stare.

"You tried to convince Father to bring you as well, didn't you?" He had heard from a few others about the incident. Apparently Denmark even had the gall to raise a hand axe against Scandinavia, but with his lack of experience it was certain that he would lose anyway. Seeing the blonde's aversion of his eye, Norway sighed, "You idiot."

"Yeah, yeah. Just make sure you don't die out there or anything, okay Nor? Oh, right. Here. So you don't get lost." Denmark put something in his hand. Dull, blue eyes wandered at the item placed in his palm—a small, copper compass. Flipping it over, the Norwegian saw a hand-carved engraving.

"Denmark, I don't need this." He stated bluntly

"Then keep it as a good luck charm or something!"

He heard his name at that point. Looking at the plank leading up to the ship, the two saw Scandinavia calling him. Giving one last look to Denmark, Norway said, "I won't take long."

The Dane nodded, and stayed in place as the little Viking ran up the plank and came aboard the longship. When they departed Norway's eyes never left the shore, never left Denmark. That night, while the rest of the Vikings were asleep, Norway was sitting on the deck, looking at the stars shine. As he spotted one bright star in particular, he definitely knew the compass was not needed for anything else other than a sentimental trinket.

"Unless the sky falls," Norway whispered under his cold breath, the North Star reflecting clearly on his eyes, "I will always find my way."

--

Time had passed. Scandinavia had been guided to the skies by the valkyries years ago. A young man by the name of Iceland had begun to live with them, along with his bird companion. The two of them lived under Denmark's house, along with Sweden and Finland. He was never really acquainted with Finland, but he was somewhat close to Sweden. Norway felt that this image would not last long—he could feel the tension between the Dane and the Swede. Iceland was a smart boy and promptly became more isolated from the others in order to stay clear from the disputes.

Even when conflict swept into their house, Norway would seek solace during the nighttime. Even as the arguing voices of Denmark and Sweden raged below, the glittering lights helped him drown out the sound. He counted more bright stars tonight than the previous, and it made him feel somewhat better. He found constellation after constellation, making a grand picture book in the inky-black-blue expanse as the Lion battled the Dragon and the Twins met the Water-Bearer. The next morning, he found out that Sweden and Finland had left the house, seeking freedom.

When it was just him, Iceland and Denmark living together, he somehow gained the ability to see the unseen. The empty surroundings were soon filled with nisses, trolls, lindworms and many other creatures of lore. But trolls especially. He befriended one nisse in particular—a cute little thing by the name of Bjarte. Norway rather liked that name. Bjarte was almost always by his side from thereafter. It was a funny thing when he took the nisse home, since Iceland's puffin started to eagerly attempt to communicate with him, which caused much confusion between Iceland and Denmark. That night, Bjarte partook in Norway's stargazing.

"'Bjarte' means 'bright,' did you know?" he asked the fairy creature floating next to him, knowing that he wouldn't be able to vocally answer back, "Perhaps, someday, you'll be like the stars overlooking us."

It hadn't been long before Sweden came back—but not to reunite with them. The moments afterwards were a large blur. All he remembered was being forced away, telling Iceland to run, yelling at Sweden not to lay a hand on the snow-haired boy. Most of all, though, he remembered that Denmark had not been there. Things eventually settled down. Life with Sweden and Finland was certainly calm. Norway also came to the conclusion that animals of any sort have some degree of ability to see the supernatural—since Finland's dog had nearly the same reaction Iceland's puffin had. He had his taste of a life separated from Denmark, and Norway had to admit: it felt refreshing.

World War II came too soon, and frankly, he never stood a chance against Germany. His only battle experience was with a Rhenish sword, and he barely knew anything about the firearms that were brought into existence none-too-long ago. After his defeat, he was thrown into a cell and locked up, with a bubbly Italy occasionally coming in to give him his daily meals. He never really did eat much, though, even with Bjarte's urging. Night after night—as he heard the sounds of gunfire, bombs, falling bodies, screaming—Norway would search the smoke-filled skies for any sign on the stars.

In that war-torn night sky, he found none. And so he gave up.

Norway had kept the compass Denmark gave him all those years ago. Clutching it in his hands—out of sight of course, because they will surely take it away from him if they saw it—he held it close to his chest and hoped. Eventually, he lost track of time, he lost sight of what daylight was—which was why he had to close his eyes when the doors of the cell chambers opened, hailing in the light.

"Norway!" a voice called, "Norway, where are you?"

The accent was recognizable—it was England. The Briton rushed in and fiddled with the lock, before slamming the iron bars open. He helped the smaller nation up and examined his ghostly pale face and weak, squinted eyes. He patted Norway's shoulder, "Don't worry, Norway; you're alright now. Everything's done—over. The war's over."

With those words, he got on a boat back to his home. Bjarte waved 'thank you' to England, and surprisingly the Briton waved back. Interesting. But it was a matter to solve for another time.

The waters never looked so blue before in his life, the Nordic nation thought as he sailed along the currents. He missed the feeling of wind whipping his hair around, the coolness of the ocean breeze. The smell of smoke still lingered in the air, but he could care less. He was free of the monochrome box that he was kept in for five years. As the sun fell, Norway's eyes shifted upwards. He gave himself a small smile when he saw small speckles of light over him. Five years' worth of stories presented themselves to him as the boat sailed. Like a small child, he watched them all unfold with an odd sort of glee. Even with his eyes merely skimming through the sky, he soon found the North Star—shining its light down at him.

Wearing his "good luck" charm around his neck, he held it up in his palm and flipped it over, glancing at the crude engraving the Dane etched onto the metal: Kom sikkert hjem.

"It hasn't fallen yet, Bjarte." He said to his nisse companion, as they saw the coasts of their homeland, "The sky hasn't fallen yet."

--

His house was in disarray—that was certain. Papers blanketed most of the wooden flooring, furniture was toppled over or broken, pieces of random wood were scattered about, not to mention to dirt and dust that had accumulated over the years. Norway scrunched his face slightly in disgust. He would have to clean this up soon.

It was then that he heard the faint sounds of sweeping.

The blue-eyed nation steps had always been light and near-soundless, so it was no problem approaching the source. He poked his head slightly from around the corner, with Bjarte doing the same. There, they saw Denmark, equipped with a broom and dust pan instead of his usual axe. The Dane's back was facing them, and he was humming lowly to himself. Norway raised a questioning eyebrow before walking up to him. As expected, he still didn't notice.

"Trying to add to the wreckage in my house, Denmark?" the smaller nation teased, amused at Denmark's startled jump. Gripping the broom in his hand, he whirled around to look at the Norwegian.

"Nor!" he exclaimed nervously, having been caught, "I…didn't think you'd make it here so fast."

Norway gave him his usual stare, "I've sailed around these parts for centuries. Of course I'd know the quickest route back."

"Oh, uh, right." Denmark scratched the back of his head. He didn't know how he would explain this. Fortunately for him, he didn't have to.

The taller nation was taken aback by Norway's sudden initiative. He got used to it quickly—thinking that he rather liked the sensation of the younger's small, gentle lips pressing themselves against his own. Norway really was as cute as he looked! Denmark snaked his arms around the petite waist in front of him, pulling the sailor close to him as he delved further. After they separated, two pairs of blue eyes lost themselves within each other.

"Jeg er hjemme." Norway whispered breathlessly

"I know." Denmark replied, kissing his temple lightly, "Welcome back."

Bjarte merely grinned at the happy ending.

The clock rolled forward, as the nations took the steps into the road of recovery. Things settled down rather fast. Some wounds healed faster than others, but eventually they had all gone. The memories were put behind them. Of course, new issues came up—Norway just decided to do what he did best.

This time, Denmark chose to accompany him.

"You know, I take back all the stuff I said back then." He said, pulling Norway closer to him, "This is actually kinda nice."

Norway stayed silent as he dazedly watched the stars twinkle. The Dane refrained from making a comment about his cuteness. His blue eyes, full of their usual vigor, scanned the skies and caught glance of something.

"Nor. That one, over there," he said, pointing to a certain star, "which one's that?"

"That's the North Star." The smaller nation answered, leaning back, "It's been used quite a bit for navigation, since it's closest to the north celestial pole."

"Oh. Was that why you said you didn't need the compass?"

"Partially." Norway admitted, "I wound up needing it for other purposes. But we mainly used the North Star when we sailed."

Denmark put his chin on Norway's head, "It's that useful, huh?"

"Of course. It led me back to you."

It's amazing how I managed to write this within two days. Seriously, for me, it's amazing. Then again, that's probably why the ending is so lame. Orz. On a lighter note, we're starting to get more DenmarkxNorway around! Hell, even just more Nordic exposure. Because they're just that awesome. Hah.

Anyway, I don't really know much about astrology, and Norway's history is nearly beyond me, so if I'm wrong with any of this stuff, blame Wikipedia XD. Thanks for reading!