Princess Atemna: This was a cute idea I while listening to Set Apart This Dream. And, no, Chibitalia is not a boy in this one. Pretty sure he's the only gender-bent character.


"Miss Hungary?" a small girl asked, looking up and tugging gently on the woman's dress. "Can you tell me a bed time story? Mr. Austria won't play the piano and Holy Rome's not here today."

Hungary smiled and picked the child up, holding her close. "Of course I will, Italy. What kind of story would you like?"

"One with a princess. And – and can she like pasta? And have a big brother like Roma? And someone like Miss Hungary and Mr. Austria who are the king and queen?"

"I'll see what I can do. Do you want your big brother Spain in this story, too?"

"Si~! And Holy Rome and his big brother, and Big Brother France."

The woman laughed and hoped Austria would be walking by the room some time during the story, if only to see how he'd react to what little Italy had come up with for a bed time story. She carefully tucked the young nation in and sat next to the bed, running her fingers through the girl's hair, quietly thinking of how to begin.

"Once upon a time, there were a king and queen in the Austria-Hungarian Empire who only had a son who had a very big temper and was constantly watched after by three older boys that he didn't like too well. But the king and queen knew their son was still lonely, so they asked a fairy to give them a daughter, because they wanted their son to learn how to protect something small and precious. She granted their wish, and the king began composing a song just for the baby . . ." Slowly, Italy began drifting off to sleep and her dream took the form of Hungary's story.

Queen Elizaveta watched as her husband sat at his piano, trying to create the perfect song to celebrate the arrival of their unborn daughter. Their son, Lovino, wasn't far away, being annoyed by three older boys: Antonio, Francis, and Gilbert. He wasn't too fond of Gilbert's younger brother, either. The adults weren't sure of his actual name, as Gilbert just called him 'Lutz'. Giving up and having had enough of those four, Lovino went over to where his mother sat on the steps leading to the dais.

"Mama, when will Papa stop getting mad at the piano?" he asked, not sure it would ever happen.

"Mama's not sure, Lovi. He just wants it to be perfect for your baby sister." She then placed the four-year-old in her lap and began humming the song Roderich had made for him when the king found out about her being pregnant.

"What will she look like?"

She didn't want to tell him and have the baby look different, but she went ahead anyway. "She'll have auburn hair, like yours, but lighter, and the same golden eyes. And she'll have a curl, too, but on the other side." She stopped and looked down at her son. "How does that sound?"

"I want her eyes to be brighter than mine, since mine are so dark."

"Of course. Her eyes will be a brighter shade of gold, like the sun. And, just like the sun, she'll be the happiest little girl in the empire and light up everyone's hearts."

"Is that why I have to protect her?"

Elizaveta smiled and said yes. Hearing about his sister always made the boy happy, and he couldn't wait to see her. She was everything any little boy would want for a baby sister. Then she came up with an idea to help seal the bond between the two, even if the little girl wasn't with them yet. "Would you like to pick out her name, Lovino?"

"Can I, Mama?" His mother giggled and nodded. He just ran off and tackled the brown headed boy, Antonio. "Mama said I can name my sister."

The boy laughed and held Lovino in his arms. "That's great, Lovi. But you look like there's a problem."

"I don't know what to name her. Mama said she'd light everyone's hearts and always be happy."

"That's easy, Lovi. Just pick something that means happy or joyful."

A light came to the younger boy's eyes before he hugged the older boy, jumped out of his arms, and went back to his mama. "I got it. I got it. Felicia. I wanna name her Felicia."

"Perfect," the queen smiled. But she was soon puzzled by her husband who was close to ripping out his hair in frustration.

"Who said the word perfect? I'm tired of perfect! Perfection is killing me!"

"Oh dear. Lovi, why don't you go get ready for dinner? I'll get Papa to calm down."

At dinner, Lovino sat next to his mama and had to put up with Antonio next to him, the older boy's friend Gilbert sat next to the king, his brother next to him – which was across from the prince – and Francis sat across from Antonio. Each boy, in their own countries, were princes as well. Gilbert was in control of the Holy Roman Empire at the moment, as his brother was too young to take full control and become the emperor like their father had wanted. Francis was the prince, or dauphin, of France. Dinner normally involved the adults talking about how to decorate the baby's room, Antonio trying to help cut up Lovino's food, and Lovino trying to kick at Lutz from under the table. The third event always ended in failure. But how he loved to try.

Sometime during the whole ordeal, they decided to work on the guest list of who would attended the baby's first birthday. It was important enough to get settled now so they knew then. Francis' and Antonio's parents were at the top, as it was important to keep good relations with France and Spain. The young Holy Roman Emperor and his older brother were sure to be there, as they were at the table at that moment. The queen of England and her boys were to be on the list as well as the rulers of Norway, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland.

"Can you boys think of anyone else?" Roderich asked the older ones.

"The guys in control of Poland and Lithuania?" Gilbert suggested. "Estonia and Latvia are okay, too. But not that crazy Russian and his sisters."

"Gilbert, we have to invite the 'crazy' ones, too, or else they'll declare war. But . . . . What about the Caliph of the Ottoman Empire?" Elizaveta asked her husband. Her people had just recently come under the protection of Austria when she was still a young Hungarian princess, which prompted the kings of both countries to arrange for their children to marry and form an empire, North Italy already under Austria's control while South Italy had been given to the Spanish. The Caliph was a slowly aging man who hid behind a mask and had almost taken control of Italy from them, had it not been for the combined effort of Spain, Venice, and the Pope's navy.

"That is a problem for another day."

But that day never came, and soon the princess's first birthday had arrived. Lutz had just turned four years old while Lovino was now five. The 14 year olds were Gilbert and Francis, while Antonio was just 13. The palace was soon flooded with guests such as the queen of Spain and Antonio's older brother, the queen of England with her three sons, the king and queen of France with Francis' younger siblings, the kings of Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, and the Czar of Russia and his older and younger sister. They would have sent the Fairy a separate invitation, but everyone knew that the queen of England and her sons were part fairy, and that Brittany – the queen – was the Fairy herself.

In fact, it was almost time for the brothers to give a blessing and for the proud parents to announce their precious daughter's engagement. All of the guests were seated at tables as they ate, Prince Lovino and Princes Gilbert, Antonio, and Francis and young Emperor Lutz too busy admiring one-year-old Princess Felicia to even bother eating. "Everyone, if we could have your attention," Emperor Roderich announced to the gathered monarchs. "The English princes will now begin to bestow their blessings on the princess."

"Stand back, boys," Elizaveta instructed the five.

The English princes were brothers, yes, but they couldn't look more different. The only traits they shared were their mother's thick eyebrows and green eyes. The oldest, Iain, had dark reddish-brown hair. Cade, the middle prince, had a medium shade of brown, whilst Arthur had taken after both of his parents, having blond hair. Once the spells had been put in place, the king and queen thanked them yet again, and asked that their thanks be extended to their mother.

Roderich turned back to the invites and actually smiled. Being a strict man who favored rules and discipline, the only times he smiled were when he played his piano or was with his family. "I would now like to announce something my wife and I find very important. The empire of Austria-Hungary will be joined with the Holy Roman Empire by Young Emperor Lutz marrying my daughter, Princess Felicia, giving them control of North Italy. And Lovino will be in charge of South Italy."

It had previously been a secret that control of South Italy was not only a peacekeeper between the Austria-Hungarian Empire and Spain, but also a promise that no matter what, their oldest child would marry the queen of Spain's younger son, Antonio. Luckily for the Austrian king and his Hungarian queen, Antonio adored the boy to an extent that no one quite understood.

Elizaveta picked up her daughter and knelt down before Lutz, who had been given a necklace by his older brother. "I believe you have a gift for Felicia, Young Emperor," she told him, looking at his unsure eyes. He just nodded and place the black cross around the infant's neck. The whole time she hadn't stopped giggling and smiling. Now the little girl was curious and quiet as she looked up at Lutz. Her smile soon returned as she reached up at the boy.

The tender moment was soon ruined, however, by an uninvited guest. "It's so cute I think I'm gonna get a headache."

"No one invited you, Sadiq," the Danish king, Matthias, told the newcomer. "Why are you here?"

"It's because I wasn't invited. I wanted to find out why, out of all the European powers, I wasn't invited to this party."

"European?" the Polish ruler, Feliks, scoffed. "Like, the only thing European about your empire is that you totally took over European countries. Your 'empire', like, starts in Turkey."

Despite the mask over his eyes, Sadiq still managed to glare at the Austrian and Hungarian effectively. The woman was still level with the boy and now held her baby girl close, her son standing in front of them, ready to protect his new sister. Antonio shoved Lovino closer to his mother as the older boy and his friends took over. The other visiting monarchs soon stood next to the boys, creating a barrier between the Turk and the offended family. "Another time, then. But be warned, she won't be yours for long."

That night, the king and queen held a meeting with their guests, except the Czar and his sisters who had taken their leave after the interrupted dinner. Elizaveta was beside herself, too worried about her baby girl to care about what the others said. Lutz gently tugged on his brother's sleeve and whispered in his ear. At the same time, Gilbert and Arthur stood and spoke. "Send her to Venice." The teens glared at each other for a moment before the blond gave his explanation.

"For one, she's to have control of North Italy. Another reason would be that I highly doubt that Sadiq will look for her there. If my mother doesn't mind, I could look after her."

Everyone else seemed to agree with the prince's reasoning, and voted for the idea. It was rare this many nations agreed. All except Lovino who had been spying on the adults with Antonio, Francis, and the other princes who didn't have much to give by way of held power. The only reason Gilbert, Arthur, Iain, and Cade were present had to deal with who actually ran the Holy Roman Empire and had magic.

"NO! I have to protect Feli! Why can't I take care of her here?"

"Lovi!"

"Lovino," Roderich began telling his son, getting down to his level. "Lovino, listen to me. Right now you're too young and you just started training. Sadiq can easily knock you out of the way, and I don't want either of my children hurt. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Get him ready for bed, Antonio."

"Si, senor."

The next day, Elizaveta prepared a bag of what tiny Felicia would need before handing her over to Arthur for however long they would be in Venice. Roderich sat in the empty ballroom and finally played his daughter's song. It was too bad it was for a farewell. Lutz was instructed to behave for the distraught parents and to get along with Lovino while Gilbert, Antonio, and Francis, along with Arthur's brother's, escorted the teen to the Italian city. While the Spanish teen was gone, Lovino swore to learn Italian so he could talk to his sister easily when she finally came home to her family. The parents of the departing teens stood with the Hungarian queen as they wished them good luck on the journey.

Luckily, they met no problems on the road, and when they reached a set aside location in Venice, Arthur's older brothers returned home to meet up with their mother while Antonio and Gilbert returned to Austria-Hungary. "Why aren't you going back to France or wherever?"

"Because, mon lapin, you have no idea how to raise a child. I already told my parents I would be staying with you."

"Great. I'm stuck in the country of cowards with the cheese eating surrender monkey. Thank you, God. Why do you hate me so much?" the young Englishman asked, gazing up at the sky. "Wait. How would you know how to take care of a child?"

"I am the oldest of four children and I have been around Lovino all of his life. How else would I know?" Arthur ignored him and went inside the small house.

It only had two bedrooms, a kitchen, living and dining rooms, and one spare room. While small and quaint, it would work for the three of them. No one would suspect it of housing English and French princes and an Austrian princess, and their names were common enough in their home countries and Felicia in Italy that they wouldn't have people suspecting them of being royalty.