ˢᵉᵗᵗᶤᶰᵍ ᶠᶤʳᵉ ᵗᵒ ᵒᵘʳ ᶤᶰˢᶤᵈᵉˢ ᶠᵒʳ ᶠᵘᶰ [ ʰᵉᵗᵃˡᶤᵃ ᶠᵃᶰᶠᶤᶜ ; ᵒᵖᶤᶰᶤᵒᶰˢ ʷᵉˡᶜᵒᵐᵉ ]

"Don't worry, sweetheart. It'll only hurt for a minute, and then you won't feel a thing."

My father spoke with such confidence. It was easy to believe in his words when his faith in them is obviously strong.

He told me that he wanted to make me happy. He told me that this machine would send me into the world of my dreams and that, whenever I was to wake up, we would be the richest people in the world.

He had always been a big dreamer, and perhaps a touch dramatic... Still, I believed him.

There I laid on an uncomfortable slab of metal, various wires and tubes plugged into my body. I must have looked like a robot.

"Just close your eyes. When they open, you'll be in that show you love so much."

I swallowed and did as I was told. I was the one who agreed to do this, after all. The temptation of entering a fictional world as magnificent as Hetalia was an offer that would never be duplicated in my lifetime.

I was so in love with the characters, so enchanted by each and every personality. To disagree would have been idiocy.

"On the count of three, I'm going to inject you with this serum. It will hurt, but try not to move. Alright, are you ready?"

Due to a wire connected to my neck, I couldn't nod so I replied with a meager,"Yes."

"Okay, one... Two... Three."

A sharp pain jolted through my wrist and effortlessly spread across my entire body. Had the pain not been so prominent, I would have been writhing and moaning and doing everything in my power to erase the sensation, but there was nothing that I could do except lay there and allow things to take course.

"It's okay, Kyle. You can do this. You'll be a hero! Your name will be in history books after this!"
My dad's words of reassurance fell meaningless to me as the pain ebbed away into a tingling sensation that gave way to numbness.

I felt the world around me disappear.

"Kyle, we're home! Wake up!"

It was just like waking up in the morning. My eyes fluttered and then slowly, as if reluctant, I opened them. It was only then that I discovered that I was no longer laying on a slab of unforgiving metal. In fact, I was slumped against a car door with my cheek pressed to the cool glass. "Mmm?" I straightened up and turned to find that I was not alone in the car. I was seated beside two other people, both of which were familiar to me.

My heart began to pound against the confines of my ribcage, because it was then that I realized that my father's experiment had worked. It had really worked. I was seated beside Denmark who looked down at me through amused cerulean eyes. "I can't believe you slept the entire way here!" he exclaimed.

From beside him, the annoyed voice of Norway piped up,"She was awake all night long, dumb Dane. Give her a break."

"Well it took us almost seven hours to get here, and I-"

"Yep! Seven hours in the car, and you guys are still sitting here." Finland poked his head into the door with a light hearted smile,"C'mon, guys! Ooh, and Kyle, do you still want to help me and Peter make cookies?"

Dumbfounded, I could only blink as all three sets of eyes swiveled in my direction. I was in a state of complete and total shock and the very fact that I was anywhere near, let alone being acknowledged, by three of the Nordics was enough to send adrenaline pumping through my veins. "U-uh. Sure... Yeah. I- I mean, Definitely!" I stammered out, slicking a hand back through my short, choppy blonde hair.

I am allowed to do whatever I please over the course of the next few days, I know as much. My dad told me that, if things went well, then it's possible that my time in the Simulator could extend on for weeks. Everything that I would eat, feel, and see over the course of my stay would be as real as anything on the outside world because, by some twisted logic, I was physically in both dimensions at once.

"You sure? You seem kinda scared, Ky." Denmark remarked as he stepped out of the car, offering me his hand as I followed in his wake. I hesitated for only a moment before sliding my hand into his much larger one and jumping down. I then turned to face the house that I presumably lived in with the Nordics.

Orange light spilled through the blinds of the living room and out onto the pavement of the driveway. Inside, I recognized the bulky form of Sweden as he followed a young boy who I quickly identified as being Sealand.

It seemed that, by some stroke of absolute luck, I had ended up with my favorite group of characters.

"I'm not scared." I replied, crossing my arms over my chest as I tilted my head up to peer into the face of the much taller Dane. "You just woke me up when I was in the middle of a... Nightmare. But everything is better now, so let's go make cookies!" My words jumbled together and hardly made sense to even myself. I was trying to maintain a normal composure, but I was so excited that it was difficult for me to keep a thought in my head for longer than five seconds.

Tino and Mathias eyed me inquisitively while Lukas didn't seem to notice anything at all. If he did, he did nothing to suggest it. "Uh-huh... Okay." the Finn shrugged, before falling into step beside me as we walked into the house,"Sweden and I bought these awesome holiday cookie cutters the other day, and we have plenty of chocolate frosting and peppermint. I know how much you love peppermint, so I bought extra just in case!"

I couldn't help but to grin. It seemed that my taste had not changed any in this dimension. "Heh, thanks Fin." I replied.

"Kyle, Mathias, Tino! Berwald and I have everything set up in the kitchen!" Peter came racing out of an arch doorway with an excited gleam in his round blue eyes. He came to an abrupt halt in front of me and tugged persistently at my hand.

I laughed a little and smiled down at him, scratching the back of my neck with my free hand. I was trying to the best of my ability to act as if I knew what I was doing and where I was going and that everything was normal, but it was understandably rather difficult. "Come on then, you slowpokes! Mathias, you are making cookies with us, right? They're going to be delicious! Tino's cookies are always the absolute best, and I want to see if I can decorate one as well as he can!"

I zoned out of the micronation's babbling as he dragged me into the kitchen and I seated myself in one of the chairs. My shoulders and back were unintentionally stiff as I stared at the grand layout of cookie dough, flour, cookie cutters, icing, and sprinkles set up.

Something happened then that caught me off guard.

Denmark walked up to my side and stared down at me with an expectant expression in his eyes. I stared back at him, blinking. "Uh- Yeah?"

He raised an eyebrow, an exasperated sigh easing out of his lips. "Ky. Honestly. Scoot over, huh?" he demanded, crossing his arms over his chest.

I should have guessed. I was sitting in the seat that he had claimed which, in a way, was kind of funny. I could see the Nordics as being the kind of family to have their own seats at the table. Without thinking, I could feel a smirk as it danced at the corners of my lips and a playful reply came spilling right out of them. "I dunno about that, Den. Your seat is pretty comfortable."

"Oh, Kyle. You should know by now that I'm willing to use force to defend what's mine." he stated in a matter-of-fact voice, grinning.

My only reply was a defiant 'hmph' which the Dane seemed to have taken as a challenge.

"Alright, I warned you." he sounded playful as he scooped me into his arms, almost no effort necessary on his part.

"Kyle Findlay, you're coming with me."

I stared him defiantly in the eyes,"Is that so?"

"Mmhm, that is so. I would say that you've earned yourself a proper punishment."

Wait.

What?