walked in, shivering. He closed the door and leaned against it after, biting his lip to try and stop shivering. He was freezing.

heard the door open and close. He didn't move at first, figuring he'd hear en excited shout soon enough.. Though when it remained silent, he glanced over his shoulder and called out, "Danmark..?"

instantly smiled and took his coat off, walking around in only a t-shirt. "Nor~" He walked into the living room and stopped when he saw the other. He could tell something was wrong.

had put the cane behind him on the couch, partly - accidentally -hidden between the seat and back cushions. "Hallo.. 's been a while. How're you?"

nods a little as he walked over. "I've been good. How're... ye?" He raised his brow as he looked at his ankle.

didn't think there was anything abnormal about his ankle.. not seen from upon the clothes, anyway. "Good.. Mm, fine, more or less."

nods and smiled, a bit reassured. "Okay." He went to go get some coffee, figuring the other would have some in a pot.

always had coffee in store. It was his main priority. He watched the other go before returning his attention to the screen. It was true enough, he was doing relatively fine. The wound on his calf hardly _

bothered him anymore besides being a pain to walk on.

got a mug of coffee for himself, as well as the other and brought it over to him on the couch before sitting beside him.

barely looked away from the TV to take his mug, nodding a bit in gratitude. He smoothly resisted the instinct to curl up on the couch once so comfortable, and simply drank while listening to the host drone on.

idly watched the TV. "So. Why're we watchin' this?"

took a sip of his coffee, sort of hoping the Dane wouldn't notice the cane behind them. "'Cause I find it interestin'.."

hadn't caught sight of it, amazingly enough. "But why?"

watched as the film skipped from puffins to flamingos. "'Cause I do, most likely.. You didn't warn me 'bout your visit so I guess this is what you get."

rolls his eyes. "Do I ever say I'm comin' or a visit?" He shivered a bit and sipped the coffee quickly after.

shook his head. "Just as often as I have somethin' excitin' planned."

hums. "Let's go out then~ A walk or just in the snow, somethin'~"

pressed his lips into a thin line, hesitating to answer. "You're freezin' already.."

shakes his head. "M'fine~ Come on, let's go play!" He hopped up, all bouncy and energetic instantly.

sighed quietly and glanced briefly at him. "Nei.. Don't spill."

pouts, downing his coffee. "There. Now let's go."

drank calmly of his own coffee, definitely in no rush. He just shook his head a tad and fixed his eyes on the screen.

pouted more. "Nooorrrr. I wanna go out though. What about skiin'? Ye were practically born to ski!"

slowly finished his coffee, then put the mug on the coffee table. "You're a big baby, I hope you know that.." He hummed a bit, proudly, "Of course. We invented it."

smiled a little, ignoring what the other said before. "Ja, so get up and get yer skis. I wanna go out and play in the snow~"

fell silent, captured by what the host of the documentary was saying. "Hmm.."

frowns. "Nor..." He hadn't seen him ever this reluctant to go skiing.

leant on the arm of the couch, drumming the cushion lightly with his fingers while he kept his eyes firmly on the screen. "I can't, Dan."

sighs. "Why noooootttt?" Now he was getting to his whiny mood.

thought he'd been whiny for a good while. He huffed quietly, reluctant to answer, though he'd have to listen to the other like this if he didn't. "I.. can't use my leg. Now stop naggin'."

frowned, looking concerned after as he walked over and crouched in front of him, lifting his pant leg. He just looked at it, knowing it wasn't normal. "What happened?"

made a faint sound in protest, shifting his leg a bit to the side. At least it was bandaged.. even though the unatural dent in his flesh would still be obvious. "Accident.. Nothin' serious."

lightly ran his hand down his leg, not touching it though. "Nothin' serious my ass. What happened?"

didn't want to put any blame on the troll.. She couldn't help how she'd acted. He picked up the remote and turned up the volume of the television.

huffs. "Nor, tell me."

folded his arms over his stomach and stared straight ahead. "Just an accident outside, I told you already."

nods and got up, getting his boots and coat back on.

glad he let the case rest.. but the turn in behaviour didn't calm him much. ".. Goin' skiin' by yourself, then?" He sighed, not moving from the couch and not really believing that's why he was leaving.

shrugs. "At least one of us should be active." Though, he was going to investigate about this. He figured it was outside, mostly from how defensive he was at not wanting to go out and how he kept sating it was

an accident.

hummed indifferently and let him do as he pleased.

huffed a bit and went to find out what happened to the other. Even if it meant climbing up mountains.

wouldn't really understand what he was trying to look for; it's a large country with a bit too many possibilities for outdoor danger.

knew that, but he was determined to find out how he got hurt. He hated when anyone in his family got hurt, and would do all he could to figure out the cause. Even if he went days looking, and had no hints to go

by.

rolled his pant leg back down, barely paying attention to the telly. He knew it wasn't a good sign when the other got silent and strange, though maybe he just had to walk it off..

thought a quiet Dane was a dangerous Dane. But what did he know? He just kept on the lookout.

had been around on occasions when he'd felt better after a walk. Eventually, he began dozing off as the show reached an end and he needed his rest. Not far outside the neighbourhood there'd be a trail through _

old snow leading into a large forest, though the red specks of blood had most likely vanished.

... started following it. Even if it was faint, it was better for a lead.

| The trees were tall, some taller than buildings. The trail would go far before it disappeared into a clearing, where the snow was stomped down and some trees broken and fallen.

frowned when he got to the clearing, knowing all to well what had happened. He just wondered why... and would need to give a talk to a certain creature.

would be better able to explain it than the troll.. seeing as they weren't all gifted with speech. The journey would be longer if he'd try to find her cave in the mountains - especially at day.

did try to find it. He was determined! And knew there were many caves... He just... went on a journey. An unexpected journey.

woke up a good while later, blinking slowly and seeing how dark it had gotten outside. He frowned and found his cane, standing up to walk to the door. He knew the other hadn't left his land..

still out looking to talk to the troll that hurt him. He wanted to see why it hurt him...

opened the front door and slowly walked out to stand on the porch andl look out into the dark, shifting his weight to his good foot. Talking sense to a troll was like talking to a rock.

still wanted to try. He didn't think Nor should be so easy going with these creatures, even if they were fun at times..

didn't think of them as fun creatures. He considered them old friends, all relating to his wiser companion even if they didn't show near as much intellect.

eventually gave up and just headed back to the others place. He was cold.

shivered as he waited outside, not sure whether he was actually returning again or not. He thought of calling him, but found he didn't have his phone on him. He sighed tiredly and leant back against the wall.

showed up not long after, stumbling in the snow and falling to his knees just before the porch. He laughed a bit and looked up to the other, arms crossed around himself. "T-they're good at hide and s-seek..."

relieved when he finally showed up. His passive expression faltered when the other nation fell, evidently concerned, schooling it quickly as he studied him. He stepped down from the porch and carefully bent _

down to put an arm under the Dane's and helped him up with some difficulty. "What're you talkin' 'bout, you fool?"

sniffled a bit as he slowly stood up. "I-I was tryin' to f-find the troll that did this to ye..."

bit down on his lip to hold back a noise as he had to put weight on the wrong foot to lead the other up on the porch and to the door. "Danmark..." He sighed, slightly irritated though it was dulled with worry.

tried to smile, even if his teeth chattered. "N-no one messes with my m-merchandise." He got inside and leaned against the wall, slipping down to the ground quickly after and just wrapped his arms around

himself.

's grip on the other's arm tightened harshly at the 'title', and he huffed coldly as he let him go so that he could get inside. He followed a minute after, having made sure any curious creature from the woods_

hadn't followed. He closed the door and put the cane against the wall, figuring he'd not have the chance to use it easily for it's purpose now. "Don't call me that again, that time's over."

chuckled quietly. "I-I was jokin', N-Nor..." He knew he didn't belong to him anymore. It didn't mean he'd be any less protective though. He sneezed not long after, hitting his head on his knees which made him

hiss and curse.

inhaled deeply, taking a moment to register what he'd said. He gave a slight nod and closed the distance between, ignoring the limping. He brushed a hand gently through Denmark's hair. ".. You're not really in_

a state to make convincin' jokes. Come on, get up from there."

smiled apologetically up at him, teeth still chattering. "I-I'm always in a state to j-joke..." He rubbed his forehead a little after. "Gimme a minute.. I need to warm up a little more before I attempt to move"

nodded a little. He stayed where he was in case he'd need help, and to not strain his foot with unnecessary walking. ".. How'd you like to warm up?"

twitched a bit before sneezing again, not hitting his forehead this time. "J-just curlin' up on t-the couch'd be f-fine..." After a few more moments he carefully climbed up the wall, using it for support as he

slowly walked to the couch.

waited to make sure he'd manage the walk by himself, then grabbed the cane again as he headed for the stairs. "Right.. Dan, remove your shoes and socks. They're probably soaked, knowin' you and winter."

mumbled quietly as he leaned against the wall and pulled his boots off, his socks soon following as he just dropped on the floor. He looked at the couch, trying to get a bit warmer before getting there.

had a pair of woollen blankets folded on the couch. He let out a quiet huff of discomfort taking the first step of the stairs, though kept quiet from then on until he'd made it upstairs.

frowned a little when he saw Nor in distress going up the stairs, though when he got to the couch he just curled up into a bundle of blankets.

returned downstairs a little while later, and went up behind the couch to cover him with a sheep pelt. He put a pair of woollen socks on the armrest, then silently retreated to the kitchen.

smiled a little. "Tak..." He put the socks on before cuddling the sheep pelt. He got good memories just holding it.

valued pelts over blankets for several reasons.. He lowered the temperature of the stove a tad, letting the cocoa be as he went to sit down in an armchair with a soft sigh. "Whenever you feel like sittin' up.."

groaned but pushed himself up as best he could while trying to keep in his cocoon of warmth.

leant back in his chair, wanting to rest his leg a little longer. "Don't sweat it."

sniffled a bit before shifting off the couch and standing. "S-s'on the stove, ja?"

huffed and picked up the cane, prodding him once in the chest so he'd sit down again. "Stay. You'll spill it.. I'll get it in a moment, Dan."

coughed a bit when he was poked in the chest, falling back to the couch and pouting. "I could get it... m'a big boy."

glanced at him, not looking at all convinced. He got up soon enough, draping a blanket around his shoulders again before he went to the kitchen.

coughed quietly into the blanket, drawing up his legs in front of him. He clenched his hands a few times, trying to get some blood circulation through them again. It was hard for him to get warm on his own.