This chapter is long overdue: because of this, I apologize.

Month 1

It had been a while since Germany and Italy had found out about their little miracle, or 'piccolo miracolo', as Italy had taken to calling the baby. Surprisingly enough, Italy was doing his best to train hard and do his exercises. Germany wasn't complaining however; when she asked him why on earth he was suddenly enthusiastic about training, he replied "I need to be a role-model for our little bambino!" and then, if no one else was around, he would either pat or nuzzle Germany's belly.

And while being pregnant encouraged Italy not to be a weakling, it also had its many downsides. One of them was that Germany couldn't drink any beer, and that was harder to give up than she had expected. Another flaw was that she was keeping the pregnancy a secret, half for the safety of the baby, and half because she knew that all the other countries would have a field day if they found out she had been knocked up by Italy.

"Why can't we just tell them? They're going to find out soon, Germany!" Italy whined, rubbing his nose Eskimo-kiss style against her belly.

Germany blushed and squirmed away. "B-because! If Prussia knew, he would come after you with a gun and me with a clothes hanger!" she snapped, inching further and further away as Italy kept advancing. "Stop this foolishness! You know that you can't feel the baby, and it can't feel you!"

Italy smiled mischievously. "Who said I was trying to feel the baby?" he asked, purring and narrowing his eyes.

Germany's eyes widened in sudden horror as she jerked violently away from him, drawing her hands up to protect herself. Italy stared at her incredulously, wincing as her hand came to meet his left cheek in a powerful blow.

"D-dummkopf!" she cried, standing up as quickly as she could and walking briskly back to the house, leaving a very confused and hurt Italy behind.

Germany's breath was shaky as she rubbed her upper arms and bit her lip. Why was she acting so silly? She loved Italy like a brother, and she knew he loved her the same way and more, but she felt so strange around him. Ever since...that night when he had tricked her. And even though she knew (or at least strongly hoped) that Italy hadn't really meant to take advantage of her.

"Oh! Germany! I did not hear you come in." Japan, Germany's much more mature and responsible friend, turned towards her as he heard the kitchen side-door slam shut. After catching sight of the look on his friend's face, he approached her cautiously. "Are you alright, Germany-chan? You're face...you look as though you have seen a ghost!" Germany tried to smile.

"I-I'm fine, Japan. Just a little ill." She collapsed on one of the kitchen chairs and put her head down on the table, willing not to cry. Japan sat next to her and placed an awkward hand on her back. This was usually something that he wouldn't do- Germany had an issue with people touching her- but now, he found that if there was ever a time to comfort his choleric friend, now was definitely the time.

"You seem to have caught one nasty bug, Germany," Japan observed. Germany didn't respond. "You have been sick for the past few weeks."

"You're telling me," Germany grunted. She flipped her long hair behind her shoulder and then bit her lip, fearing that if she didn't, everything would come spewing out. "I feel like scheisse," she mumbled pitifully. Japan patted her back and then stood to pour her a mug of green tea.

"Perhaps this will make you feel better. It is an ancient Japanese remedy." He placed a small, ornate mug full of the herbal tea in front of the young woman. Germany stared at the tea cup as if it were trying to pull the wool over her eyes. "Is...something wrong?"

"Is there any caffeine in this tea?" she asked, in the most nonchalant way possible.

Japan, though surprised, answered truthfully. "Er...yes, there is. Why do you want to know?"

Germany shrugged and stood up, walking towards the stairs. "I won't be able to sleep if I drink caffeine this late in the day." she grumbled, stomping up the long staircase and slamming her bedroom door shut.

Japan sighed and sipped his tea. There had been a lot of door slamming going on in this house lately. It seemed like Germany and Italy were at each other's throats more often now. What was worse, Germany was sick and trying to act as if she weren't. What on earth was going on with these countries?

Thank you for reading, and thanks in advance for reviewing.

Thank you Anastasia Dove for beta-reading.

Sincerely, SausageMahoney98/Fagan