Epilogue

It was 08:30am the following morning. England and Norway had arrived early to the meeting as instructed by Germany. They were dressed in their suits and were seated on their chairs with their hands in their laps and eyes staring at the floor. Both wore outraged blushes across their cheeks. In front of them stood Germany, arms folded and booted foot tapping on the ground. He was in his uniform again; a firm scowl across his face.

England shuffled in his seat as he listened to Germany's lecture. He wished he was anywhere but here in front of the enraged man. He should have been grateful that Norway had returned him to normal, not lecturing as if they were naughty children.

"So that is where we stand," he concluded in a loud voice.

"I don't see why we have to wear something as embarrassing as this," England mumbled, circling his thumbs. He didn't dare look Germany in the face when he spoke.

"You know why you both have to wear this contraption," Germany snapped, scowling all the more. "Do you need me to explain again?"

England opened his mouth to speak, but Norway cut him off with a shake of his head. England closed his mouth and looked away, feeling small and sheepish.

"It's just embarrassing," he grumbled. He heard Norway sigh in exasperation.

"As embarrassing as having a double created that shows all your bad qualities?" Germany asked sarcastically.

"We said sorry," Norway muttered petulantly. He squirmed in his seat.

"And I accepted your apologies, but how do I know it won't happen again?"

"We said we would behave," England whined. "You don't need to make us wear these things!" It was incredibly embarrassing; there was no way to hide the monstrosity. Everyone at the meeting would see it and everyone would laugh. England knew he was never going to live this down.

Germany sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let me explain one more time, to make it abundantly clear. What you have strapped to your ankles are SCRAM bracelets. They monitor the level of alcohol intake and while you're still here in Leuven, you'll wear them! We have two more days of meetings and I do not want a repeat of what happened! Understand?"

"Yes sir," England and Norway chimed, still not looking Germany in the face. The door to the meeting room opened and some of the other nations began to enter. England and Norway hurried to their seats, avoiding the puzzled faces of their colleagues. England made sure when he was seated, he pulled his feet under his chair where no one could see the huge chunk of plastic. He awkwardly arranged his papers as the nations grew silent and Belgium declared the meeting open.

The rest of the day was going to be unbearable without a drink...

0O0

It was two days later when Germany and Japan each received a letter. Japan was visiting Germany at the time, but he had managed to grab his post before leaving. The trip had taken a while, so Japan had spent most of his time sleeping and reading some doujishi. Thus, it was only after settling into Germany's sofa with some tea that he picked out the letter from his pack. Germany was completing some last-minutes chores when he heard a choked cry from his living room. He rushed in to find Japan staring intently at a small letter.

"Mr. Germany, I believe we have a letter from the Mayor of Leuven," he said, his tone edged with disbelief. With mounting dread, Germany took the letter and tore open the envelope. The writing was very neat and formal. He skimmed over the introductions and pleasantries until his eyes caught a certain set of words.

As he re-read the words, Germany gripped the paper tightly, crumpling the edges. This was unbelievable! He gritted his teeth at the last paragraph, which particularly stoked the flames of his anger:

Dear Mr. Beilschmidt,

The city of Leuven would like to express its deepest gratitude for being chosen as the host city for this year's World Meeting. I trust that you enjoyed your stay in our city throughout the three day meeting and took in all the sights that our city has to offer. I hope you and your colleagues would consider Leuven as host for your World Meeting in the future.

However, it has come to my attention that during your official visit to the city of Leuven, you and your companion Mr. Honda were involved in an altercation with the city police. You were charged with disturbing the peace, vandalism and indecent exposure. As Mayor of Leuven I find these charges very disturbing, particular as they were committed by a representative of a nation. Additionally, I find it equal distressing that a false name was given during your stay in Leuven prison, another offense which will be added to your record.

As a result of your actions, you are banned from the city of Leuven indefinitely. If you should be found attempting to entire the city, you will be arrested on sight without the possibility of bail.

I expect your compliance in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

The Mayor of Leuven.

Germany breathed deeply, calming himself as he reached for his phonebook. There were two people who he needed to speak to...