'Ello there. I honestly don't know why I wrote this - I have two more things I really need to work on writing, along with God knows how much schoolwork Orz But as I've found, procrastination seems to be what I'm best at, and this is only a one-shot, so it doesn't matter that much...

My first time writing Spain, and he's not his normal cheerful self. And Romano's not his normal snappy self. They're both being plagued with unpleasant feelings, hence their possibly minor out of character-ness... Heh~

Regardless of their possible OOC, I enjoyed writing this. Oh, note that this doesn't follow any particular point in history - if it does it's entirely coincidental. If you really want to, you could say this is focused around the time when Spain was fighting with Turkey and France to keep them away from Romano (In the anime/manga). I'm sure it was actually a fairly distressing time for him, trying to protect his precious little Roma...~

This was inspired (but not really based off of) the song 'Pet' by A Perfect Circle. And it's short. Tis a short one-shot. I hope you enjoy~ I'll stop talking now, so you can read if you desire ^^

"Spain..?" The quiet, abnormally soft voice of South Italy broke through the silence that surrounded the Spaniard, causing the older nation to jump out of his deep thoughts and turn to look at the tiny boy who was watching him nervously from the doorway of the olive skinned man's room. The small nation looked uncharacteristically worried as he stared with wide eyes at the elder; the blanket Spain had gotten him not long after the larger nation had gained guardianship over him clutched tight to his chest. The small Italian would never admit it to the generally annoying Spaniard, but it always comforted him when he was scared. Well, almost always.

Spain watched the younger momentarily; his once narrowed eyes softening as he took in the small nation's uneasy features. He pushed aside the thoughts that had been plaguing his mind mere moments ago, holding his arms out for the small nation he'd come to adore so much. The tiny boy instantly raced over to him, surprising the Spaniard as he willingly clung to him, burying his face into the fabric of the other's shirt.

"Romano..?" Spain stroked Romano's head gently, trying to urge the younger to look up at him. It was quite a rare occurrence for the Italian to willingly allow the Spaniard to hold him, and Spain's concern soon started to match the intensity of the expression the younger had worn a few minutes before. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I feel… Strange…" The small nation mumbled quietly, leaving the Spanish man with a puzzled expression before he quickly elaborated. "I feel more distant from you, is what I mean…" Spain instantly stiffened at these words, his eyes narrowing slightly as Romano looked up at him tearfully. "Why do I feel like this..? I don't like it… N-Not that I like being under your control or anything, but I've gotten used to it, so…" Even when he was scared, the small boy still felt the need to cover up his attachment to the Spaniard. It didn't matter if he was afraid of being separated from the elder nation; he in no way wanted him to know of his dependency on him. Spain didn't notice the rare act of could be affection though, his previous thoughts coming back to viciously bother him, causing him to grumble irritably. Romano noticed the elder nation's abnormal behaviour straight away, frowning slightly as his worry increased. "S-Spain..?"

"It's nothing Romano, just… Nothing…" The elder man's eyes flashed with an unknown emotion as he muttered quietly, making Romano all the more nervous by his odd conduct.

"B-But…"

"It's nothing." Spain repeated, though both his voice and expression softened as he placed a gentle kiss to the other's forehead, causing Romano to turn a bright shade of red. "Just some needless issues, that's all. I promise you, you won't be taken from me…" Spain's expression became distant as he said this, causing the younger to look at him doubtfully. He nodded anyway though, keeping himself situated firmly on his lap as he clung tighter to him, trying to regain the normal feeling he had in regards to himself and the Spaniard.

"If you say so… You better not be lying, tomato bastard…" A light smile graced the elder nation's lips as Romano closed his eyes. "I wanna stay with you tonight…" He added in a soft mumble, his lethargy making him far more honest then he generally was – had he been more alert he would have simply crawled in the older nation's bed and refused to move. His honesty wasn't a bad thing though, the Spaniard decided as he nodded mutely, scooping the seemingly frail body into his arms before walking the rather short distance from his desk to his bed. Romano made a soft noise as he was placed on the comforting warmth of his guardian's bed, and the moment Spain lied down he was snuggled close to his chest.

"You really are worried, ne..?" Spain stroked the small – now sleeping – nation's head before he wrapped an arm protectively around him with a sigh. At least Romano fell asleep quickly, though his ability to fall asleep seemingly instantly continued to shock the Spaniard. Spain allowed himself to slip into thought again, brow furrowing the more the issue invaded him. He knew why Romano was feeling strange – he could feel the fearful possibility of separation as well – and now, more than ever, he would make sure he'd protect the younger from all possible danger.

"They won't get you… I'll dissolve them all if it means I can keep you with me…" He growled quietly, his expression darkening as he thought of the countries that were insistently trying to take his beloved Roma from him. They wouldn't succeed though, the Spanish man vowed as he held Romano even closer to his chest. The tiny Italian had become the light of his world, and he'd be damned if he let anyone take the young nation from him. "You're mine, so don't worry Roma… Boss can protect what's his when he wants to…" He murmured quietly to the unconscious boy, pushing the thoughts of his enemies away as he made himself more comfortable, making sure Romano was fully covered with the comforter over them before he allowed his eyes to slip shut.

The images of a screaming, tearful Southern Italy being forcefully taken from him infested his mind almost immediately, almost playing out as a movie behind the closed lids of his eyes. But Spain didn't open them, as the tiny movie only enhanced his determination, increasing his desire to protect his precious little country with all that he had in him.

"I'll protect you…" He murmured softly against Romano's head, and after a couple moments of listening to the smaller breathe evenly he found his own breath matching that of the Italian's, and it wasn't long before he slipped into sleep, keeping the small nation close to his chest as he drifted into a more peaceful dreamland.

And, that's all. I apologize if there are any mistakes - although I check it over a view times it is half past one in the morning, so regardless of how awake I may feel there is the possibility that I missed something when editing. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed reading~ Reviews are always appreciated. Thank you~