Authnon notes:
Okay, so I did this BEFORE I finished my Russia fic, but dammit, I was bitten by inspiration due the fact that the FIFA 2010 song 'Wave your Flag' made me cry the first time I heard it.
Dammit South Africa, why so awesome? Australianon still loves her birthplace, and the song just made me love it more.

00

Give me freedom, give me fire, give me reason, take me higher
See the champions, take the field now, unify us, make us feel proud
In the streets our head are liftin', as we lose our inhibition,

Celebration it surrounds us, every nation, all around us
Singin forever young, singin songs underneath that sun
Lets rejoice in the beautiful game.
And together at the end of the day.

The stadium looked glorious in the sunlight. It took a long time to build and alot of money, but he didn't seem to mind. The people were happy. Ecstatic.

The screens in the viewing areas around the stadium were being set up, an opportunity for everyone to watch.

God.

Everyone.

All of them. All of him. Everyone united. Everyone the same. Everyone got to watch.

Days long past echoed in his head, the scars of separation still evident on his body and in his mind. The taste of hate still lingered, his people still suffered, the gap of hate and separation still there. But it was steadily (slowly, surely) being bridged. Effort on both sides sought to try to cross the gap brought about by years of intolerance. Mixed schools, shared churches, free shopping centers, more jobs, more money, more tolerance.
It would take an age for the scars to fade, and yet.

When I get older I will be stronger
They'll call me freedom
Just like a wavin' flag
And then it goes back
And then it goes back
And then it goes back
And then it goes back

And yet.

Give you freedom, give you fire, give you reason, take you higher
See the champions, take the field now, unify us, make us feel proud
In the streets our head are liftin', as we lose our inhibition,
Celebration, it surrounds us, every nations, all around us

Singin forever young, singin songs underneath that sun
Lets rejoice in the beautiful game.
And together at the end of the day.

Tears threatened to spill from his eyes.

He was proud. He was happy. He was finally united in something like this, everyone putting aside their differences, their status, the color of their skin, just to be united and enjoy the game. To fight for the pride of their (Oh god, it was finally theirs!) nation. For him.
The people shouted joyfully in his mind. July drawing ever closer. The planes of the other nations rolling into King Shaka International Airport. He loved that name. It was... god, it was like KwaZulu-Natal or Gauteng. Names that not-too long ago would have probably been rejected harshly by people filled with hate.

When I get older, I will be stronger
They'll call me freedom
Just like a wavin' flag

And then it goes back
And then it goes back
And then it goes back
And then it goes back

He wasn't perfect. Not yet. There was still so much to do, and yet in this moment, he could truly say he was happy.

South Africa looked out at his nation. He could hear the roar of the crowd, the ones inside the stadium and the ones outside in the fields and the ones in the houses and the ones in the shopping centres, the ones in the markets, the ones in the halls. Their voices meshing together to form one unified cry, filling him with pride.

"Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika"

And the players ran onto the field, their heads held high, their hearts united.

Wooo hooooo hohohohoooooo
And everybody will be singing it
Wooooooooo ohohohooooo
And we are all singing it