Long, Long, Not Really All That Long, Ago

I've been planning and researching this for quite a while, and I was at a loss as to how to write the beginning until I remembered and re-watched episode 32 of the Axis Powers half. So, the first chapter will be a spin-off of that episode from Rome's point of view, with a few major adjustments, then flashbacking into my story.

Now then, enjoy the prologue / first chapter of Not Really All That Long Ago.

1943 -He Really Does Look Like Him- 387 B.C.

Long, long ago, there was a Mediterranean warrior who obtained immense wealth, fame, conquered vast lands, and stood with Egypt, India, and China as the pantheon of civilization. Yet it has been said that the man who obtained it all disappeared one day. This man's name was the Roman Empire, but very few these days know him as he really was.

As Marcus Vargas.

"Okay, so that means that it should be somewhere around… here!" Marcus looked up, grinning at one of the more prominent houses in the German neighborhood. Man, it had taken him forever to find this place! He'd first gone to his old house, expecting to find his little boys, but he'd only found little Lovi and his lover. And Antoni's a pretty cute lover, at that, though Romano denied it from sun-up to sun-down! Didn't he know that the blush just gave it away? Anyways, after a long time with little Lovi he finally managed to get that little Feli was over 'at that potato-bastard's place.' Antoni clarified that it was where a 'certain someone' used to live. They'd shared a look. Lovino started demanding to know 'what the hell' that meant. Marcus took his leave so Antoni could properly distract him and went on his way.

So, after visiting a confused Lovi, a pleasant Antoni, and managing to out-run an angry Swiss with a gun, Marcus opened the door to Germany's house (Italy had picked the lock earlier) and waltzed right on in. So, it was around ten at night… That meant the best place to find little Feli was in the bedroom, wherever that was!

He managed to find it, after stumbling into a few things, getting lost in the kitchen, and saving a vase. Marcus opened the door carefully, peeking at the bed to make sure he hadn't gotten into that prissy-looking brunette's room again, and there he was! Oh, and right next to him was… Was… Marcus shook his head and rubbed his eyes. Nah, the hair was much, much too short to be him. Although he sure did look like… Oh! Well, if that was the case, he was surprised that little Feli's lover was a top! Then again, he'd been surprised to find that both of his boys bottomed, but maybe that was his fault too, in the end.

The blond boy who looked so much like him didn't seem to be sleeping well. He was shaking, muttering in his sleep about cuckoo-clocks, whatever those things were. Marcus walked over to the bed and stared down at them, wondering if he should wake them up when little blondie opened his eyes and looked up at him. "Eh…? So this is little Feli's 'ally'?" My, my, what a shocked expression! "I'm a bit annoyed, for some reason." Maybe he should mess with him a little…

"Who the hell are you?" The little German shot up with a rage. Whoo~ That certainly wasn't like him, though Marcus wasn't sure if that relieved or peeved him.

"Ve, you must be really ignorant if you don't know who I am." Lovi had said as much. Besides, it looked like he would be fun to tease. Marcus smirked and struck some of his more famous poses. "As you can see from my sculpture-like beauty," change pose, "and my steel-like strength, I'm none other than the great Roman Empire!" Marcus turned back to face him and winked, "The supreme ruler of the Mediterranean!" And he still liked to think of himself like that.

Uwa~h, another gun! Little blondie had pulled it out from under his pillow and was now shoving it in his face. "Get out, you suspicious schweine!" Ha! He used to call Marcus a swine too! "You break into my house while I'm asleep, and then you claim to be the Roman Empire, a man I have deep respect for? Unforgivable!"

"No, seriously, I really am-"

"Halt die Klappe!" Little blondie stood, holding the gun at chest-level. "From now on, speak only when you're answering my questions. Who the hell are you?" Hm… Really loud, wasn't he? Not like him at all, but the resemblance was undeniable. Marcus didn't exactly know what would happen if the 'potato bastard' actually shot him, since he was dead already, but… What was a potato, anyways?

Marcus found his gaze wander around the room and shouted, "Whoa, food!" when they landed on a table with a plate of weirdly shaped brown-looking things and a jug of water. Were these potatoes? He tried one, just to see if they really were as bad as Lovi said before finally answering, "I'm the great Roman Empire, like I said."

"I'll put a bullet to your head if you say that again."

"Oh, don't get so worked up~!" Marcus slung an arm lazily over the young German's shoulder. "You've heard my lovely voice before, remember?" He'd been such a good boy that Mr. Big-Guns-Upstairs let him mess with the little nations earlier.

"That was you?" he asked, shocked, though no less suspicious. Marcus answered with a grin. "Then what in God's name are you doing here?"

"Oh," He blinked, several thing suddenly clicking in his head. "I almost forgot!" He strode back over to the bed and sat down, pulling the covers back to reveal little Feli who had remained asleep through all this commotion. "I came to see my precious grandson, of course!"

Marcus head a sharp intake of breath behind him before blondie started shouting again. "Why is he in my bed?" Oh? So they weren't lovers? Well, yet, at least. It would make sense if he and Feli… Well, was it destiny or irony? Oh well. He was dead. What should it matter to him now? Marcus ignored little blondie's mutterings of being stuck in a dream in favor of fawning over his youngest grandson.

The young German sat on his edge of the bed, holding his head in his hands like he used to do whenever he got a headache, or whenever Marcus had done something incredibly stupid. "You're a really lonely guy, aren't you?" Marcus couldn't resist teasing him some more. "You can't get a girl in your bed? Not that I mind, my little Feli's a grea-"

"What do you mean?"

He answered, nonplussed, "When I was your age, I was surrounded by beautiful women in bed." Though they weren't his favorite play-mates. "You've got some experience too, don't you~?" Purring into the last part.

The German glared daggers at him. "No, you perverted geezer!"

"Oh, so you're into boys and older women? That was popular in Naples once too." He snickered to himself at little blondie's expression of mixed despair and disgust. "Older women weren't really my thing, but some of those men were just-"

"I'm not interested in anything like that…" It looked like he was giving up trying to reason this out. He used to take on that tone like that.

Marcus crossed his arms, smirking at the boy nation. "But you do it when you're bored, right?" He couldn't imagine going through century after century, decade after decade, hour after hour, without just having a little bit of it. "Paradise harem?"

"I do not!" The German raged.

"Ve~?" Marcus was shocked. "So you don't even have sex on the road? You've at least kissed a girl before, right?" He insisted when the boy just continued to glare at him. "Maybe a little bit of-!"

"I haven't done any of the above!" The boy snapped.

Marcus fell to his knees and held his hands reverently, just for fun. "So you're a saint…"

"And you're a freak." The young German kicked him back onto his hind-quarters, completely weird-ed out by the whole experience and turn of conversation. "There is no way that I'd believe a schweine like you could be the great Roman Empire-

"All right then, I'll give you some special tutoring!" Marcus offered, jumping on the chance to educate someone ignorant enough not to know the great Roman Empire when he sees him. The little blonde didn't look nearly half as thrilled. "You at least know where I was, right? Rome, Italy was my heart." He chuckled, his mind briefly threatening to fly back to days of old. "I used to be small back then too." The German didn't look amused. "And so, after Mama Greece helped me get rid of Etruria I met-" Him "-I beat up Carthage, drank, and… I, uh…" Rome pushed those thoughts away, rubbing the back of his head, "Ah… Whatever. Every day I'd eat, fight, have sex, and sleep."

There was a sigh, and a very familiar monotonous voice recited, "753 B.C., Romulus and Remus, who were raised by wolves, founded the country." Eh? "509 B.C., you banished the King of Etruria and became a republic. Even after that you won land with epoch-making law and military strength, and in 272 B.C., Italy was unified." Oh yeah… And he'd still owed poor Mama Greece that favor, too. "Then you expanded your sphere of influence across the Mediterranean and defeated Carthage." With no thanks to him!

Marcus found himself beaming, grabbing the young German's shirt enthusiastically. "You're a fan of mine? That's what you are?" Well, duh, one of the first things he said was that he greatly admired the Roman Empire.

The boy looked taken by surprise, eyes widening and looking past him- another trait they shared. "W-Well… It's true that I respect you, but-"

"That's great!" He exclaimed, not allowing the boy to continue as he could never trust a German to be honest with himself. "Respect me all you want," He said, plopping himself down next to him with his arm draped over his shoulder, knowingly invading his personal space. "I'm deeply moved!"

"L-Let go!" He exclaimed, trying unsuccessfully to extricate himself from the Roman's grip.

Marcus would have like to play a little longer, maybe even wake up little Feli and get him to convince the other to 'play' a little, but something rang inside of him. Rome's form shivered and he jumped off of the blond boy before he could notice it. "Well, it's been fun, but I'm off!"

He'd almost dashed out the door before the boy had called out, "Wait!" behind him with such a desperate tone. He froze, slowly turning around to look at him. The young nation had his fists clenched and was glaring at the ground, obviously trying to find the words to say, "H-Hey, if… If you really are the Roman Empire…There's something- Something I want to ask you." Eh? The boy's lips formed a hard-pressed line before he continued, hesitating. "You had so much power, and yet… Why did you disappear? And where did you go? Where are you supposed to be now?"

"Those are some difficult questions." And I'm not the one you should be asking, he thought with a wry smile. "I was an idiot. I didn't realize I was fading before I had wasted away." He hadn't realized until a 'certain someone' brought it to his 'attention.' "I thought that power and wealth were things that would stay forever. I didn't realize what was truly important… And when I did realize I was aged, in my past glory… And…"

And he still remembered that last, painful night. He'd been there too. He had always been there, for almost as long as he could remember. He remembered that day they'd first met, and, oh! How they hated each other! Absolutely loathed one another, and they'd fought for centuries after, but the last time Rome had lost before his decline was one sunny day some twenty-three thousand years ago when his forces sacked Roma's heart-city.

He'd still been a young boy of a nation, but he remembered the barbarians riding in on their horses, wielding crude axes and spears and the like. He remembered the screams of the citizens, and his soldiers frantically fighting the slaughter. He remembered a shout from a young voice in some sort of gibberish and quickly raising his shield to block the arrow heading straight for his face. And there he was. He'd leapt off of a building, bright shoulder-length hair blinding in the sun and flames. He'd landed in a roll and lost no time in getting to his feet, notching his bow with another arrow aimed between Rome's eyes. Eyes locked, and he knew. There was yet another nation out for his head.

A young barbarian nation with serious, pale-blue eyes.