1I own nothing!
A long time ago, in a village near what today is Mexico City, two beautiful boys met. One was an American with a chubby face and ocean blue eyes, while the other was a short Mexican boy with deep crimson eyes. The moment they both met, and indescribable bond formed between them, and became stronger as time passed. They were inseparable throughout their childhood, and when they finally became adults, they built their houses near each other. The American had grown up to be a skilled shoemaker, while the Mexican became a blacksmith.
One day, in one of their trips to the nearby villages to sell their goods, they came across a bar in which they decided to relax in for a bit. After a few hours and a couple drinks, the both of them helped each other walk out the door. As they were leaving, the bartender asked.
"Are you leaving already, gentlemen?"
"Yes, it's getting late," the American slurred.
"I don't think that's a good idea..." The bartender said fearfully. " It's late and it could be dangerous outside."
"Oh c'mon!" The Mexican smirked, "what could possibly be lurking in the woods?"
The bartender looked around him to make sure nobody was hearing before leaning in and whispering to the two young men.
"The faceless man," he shivered. "It looks like a regular man. Boots, pants, a jacket, and long scarf that touches the ground. He has hair like anybody else, but there are no eyes, ears, nose or mouth. He is completely faceless!"
"He doesn't sound that bad," Mexico slurred. The bartender shook his head.
"You don't understand!" He said desperately. "Everyone who encounters the faceless man suffers a horrible fate! Please, just take one of the spare rooms in the back and leave in the morning."
"Fuck that," the American said, irritated. "I want to go to my own house, and besides this place smells like shit. The sooner we leave, the better. Let's go, Juan."
Before the bartender could stop them, they were both out the door.
After a few minutes, the land was covered in darkness as night settled in. During their drunken walk, the two friends had started comparing each other's success to their own, claiming that they were better than the other.
"I have more clients because I work harder," the Mexican, Juan, claimed. "Besides, my work is more valuable and lasts much longer than any of the shoes YOU make."
"Nonsense!" The American, Alfred, snarled. "My work is faster, so I can deal with more clients at a time, and so my pay is multiplied quickly."
"Yeah, but I'm richer" Juan laughed.
"No way, that'd be me!" Alfred smirked.
"Well why don't we ask that fancy-looking guy over there?" The crimson-eyed man suggested.
The American strained his drunk vision to look in the direction where his friend was pointing. There, he saw a tall man wearing a dark jacket, long boots, and a scarf that touched the ground. He had ash-blonde hair, neatly brushed and combed. But... Where were his eyes?
As they walked closer, they discovered that the mysterious figure didn't HAVE any eyes, mouth or any other facial features. They both remembered the bartender's descriptions and warnings, and asked as they approached him.
"Are you the faceless man?"
The figure visibly tensed before nodding. Even though he didn't have a mouth, he could still somehow speak.
"I'm at a loss, comrades," he said, relaxing. "You know my name, but I do not know yours."
"I am Juan," the short Mexican offered kindly. "And this here is Alfred."
"We just wanted to ask you some questions," the American interrupted. "We have been arguing for a while, so now we want a third voice to speak its opinion. My friend here is a blacksmith while I am a shoemaker, and we wanted to know which of us you'd think is richer."
The faceless man tilted his head up to the sky before looking back at the men.
"You two are best friends, aren't you?" The faceless man said. "It shouldn't matter, now should it?"
"We just want to know," Juan whispered.
The faceless man shook his head before saying.
"Alright, then I'll make you a deal," the man with the scarf said. "I will grant you one wish. Whatever one says, a double will be granted to the other."
"What?" The American asked, completely confused.
"Whatever one of you wishes for, I will grant the other double the amount," the man rephrased. "For example, if Juan asks for a bag of gold, Alfred will receive two bags of gold. If Alfred wishes for a thousand acres of land, Juan will receive two thousand. However, you must hurry, because come morning, I will disappear and never appear again."
The two men looked at each other. A wish, and double the amount for the other. Immediately, greed settled in.
"Why don't you ask first, Juan?" The American said sweetly.
"Nah, I think that you should go first, my friend." The Mexican retorted back.
"But you're rich, right? So you don't need that much of whatever it is going to wish for." Alfred reasoned.
"Yes, but I'm a blacksmith. Mine is very hard work and very dangerous. I could use the extra money to take a break from the flames." Juan smiled.
"Hurry," the faceless man said. "My time is almost up."
"Please Juan, just go first!" Alfred urged.
"I trust you, Alfred," Juan said. "You do it first. We can split whatever you choose afterward."
"Five seconds." The faceless man urged.
Alfred looked around desperately. If he asked for a thousand gold coins, Juan would get double the amount, and although the man had offered to split it in half with him, he didn't know if he could trust him to not run off with the gold.
"Four seconds," the faceless man reminded.
Two cows for him would mean four for Juan, and they couldn't split that! Cows were way too useful!
"Three."
What to do, what to do?!
"Two."
There has to be a way to make a wish where HE is the one who gets the better end of the stick...
"One."
Then, without thinking, the American said in a rushed voice as his friend and the faceless man looked at him.
"I wish one of my eyes was blind!" He screamed, and the Mexican's eyes widened, betrayal written all over his face.
"Granted," the faceless man said, disappearing as the first rays of light peered from the horizon.
Just as the man said this, Alfred's left eye blinked shut before opening again to a hazy blanket that made it impossible see with it. As he blinked to get adjusted to the change, he looked at his side. His friend was shaking on the floor, his hands covering his eyes and endless tears ran down his face. That's when Alfred realized what he had done.
The wish was supposed to grant double the effect on the other person, so when he wished to be blind from one eye...
He had caused both of Juan's eyes to no longer see.
Tears ran down the American's eyes as guilt and sorrow began to wash over him. He bent down and hugged his friend close, Juan's loud sobs making his heart break even more.
"I'm sorry, Juan!" Alfred cried as he held his friend close. "I'm so sorry!"
A few years later, they were seen at the church, Alfred helping his friend to sit on one of the chairs to pray. As they finished and walked out the church, the priest whispered to his apprentice.
"You see that, lad?" He pointed at the pair. "A half-blind man helping a completely blind man. One setting aside his own needs for the other. No greed in any of their hearts. That is truly one beautiful friendship."
Fin.
I was listening to random legends when I came across this one and decided to Hetalia-nize it. Hope you enjoyed it, because I certainly did ^_^