A/N: Heey :D My first story! This is based on the song 'Brothers' by Dean Brody. It's really touching! ;w; I also saw an AMV with that song, and I wanted to write this. So, here we go!

Norway= Lukas

Iceland= Emil

Denmark= Mathias

These are the names I'm using, so don't ask me to change them. C:

Emil stayed in his room. He didn't move or make a sound. He knew what today was. He knew what would happen, but he didn't want to believe it. He didn't want to face the inevitable. His heart sank as he heard two pairs of feet walking across the hall, down the stairs, and out the front door. Emil took in a deep breath and swiftly followed them.

Emil never wanted to say goodbye. It was something that the eight year old didn't know how to do yet. When he was little, he made a promise to Lukas that he'd never leave him. Guess they didn't think that it would be the other way around. Now he was leaving. Both Lukas and Mathias were leaving Emil alone with Tino and Berwald.

He knew that if they could stay, they would. They wouldn't leave Emil alone without good reason. He knew that there was a war and that both Lukas and Mathias were drafted. Tino was a medical student, and Berwald was a college professor. Emil was too young to fight. Both Lukas and Mathias were of age and availability to be drafted.

The boy ran out of his room, past Tino and Berwald in the living room, down the stairs, out the front door, and down the block, where he found Lukas and Mathias waiting for the bus.

The bus that would take them away from Emil.

Both stood very quietly, which was odd, since Mathias was known to never stop talking, which had always annoyed Lukas. But, right now, Lukas wished that he would start a conversation, or something that would comfort him. Emil ran as fast as he could, and grabbed onto Lukas' waist. A lump formed in his throat and his eyes stung with oncoming tears. He breathed heavily from running a block, and he hiccupped as he prepared to cry.

He looked up to see Lukas, his darling older brother, looking down upon him. Lukas wore a sad face, and lifted Emil up so he could see him clearly. Mathias looked at the sad pair, cursing the world and wishing he could do something so that only he would have to leave, and not Lukas. "What's wrong, Emil?" Lukas asked, though he knew very well what was wrong.

"Please don't leave…" Emil begged, hugging Lukas and gripping him tightly, never wanting to let go. "I'll do anything! I'll clean your room for you, and I'll wash your car, Mathias. Just please say that you won't go!" Emil choked through his tears. Lukas hugged him closer. Lukas wanted to cry. No, he had to be strong. For Emil. For Mathias. He didn't know what to say, how to comfort him and to make him stop crying. Mathias stepped in.

"Don't worry, Emil. We'll be back before you know it! It's like we won't even be gone." He attempted to cheer him up. Mathias ruffled Emil's silver hair a bit and grinned. "But if you do decide to wash my car, just be easy with the paint." He sniggered. He was rewarded with a punch in the arm from Lukas. He continued laughing anyway. Then, Lukas saw it. Rolling down the street, a giant military bus made its way toward the trio.

"Mathias..." Lukas whispered, and pointed towards the direction of their impending doom. Mathias wiped the grin off his face so quickly that it was like it was never there. Emil's stomach lurched at the sight of it. The bus that would take his darling brother and friend away. Lukas set Emil down, and grabbed his bag with his few belongings inside it. Mathias followed suit.

The bus stopped in front of them, and Emil felt the tears coming on again. Norway stood still, and Mathias flashed Emil a quick smile before marching onto the bus. Lukas went to follow. He didn't want to look at Emil and see him cry. It would be too painful. He was stopped by the child's voice, filled with sadness and longing.

"You will come back, right?"

That question broke Lukas' heart. He didn't know if he would come back. He could be shot and killed, or kidnapped, never to return home to his brother. As much as he wanted to assure Emil that everything would be okay, that he'd definitely come back to tell the tale, he couldn't.

He couldn't lie to him like that.

Instead, Lukas turned, looked at Emil in the eyes, faltered at the sight of tears, and spoke clearly.

"No promises, Emil. But that's what brothers are for, right? I love you, and I'll write you. Okay?" He said, gave Emil a quick hug and a kiss on his forehead, smiled briefly, and followed Mathias onto the bus.

Lukas and Mathias sat down and looked out the window. There, Emil stood, tears streaming down his face. But he was smiling and waving. Lukas felt tears roll down his face as he waved back to the innocent face of his brother. Mathias put his hand on the other's shoulder and squeezed it lightly and reassuringly. He waved also, as the bus drove on and separated them. Emil watched as the shape of the bus slowly went over the horizon. He stood there, for a few more moments, but then started on his way home.

Tino and Berwald were in the kitchen when he returned home. Tino looked up, his eyes puffy and his nose running. He had been crying. "They're gone?" He asked, and Emil nodded. Berwald gave Tino a pat on the back. Tino sniffed and grabbed a tissue from the nearby box. The large man looked as if he had shed a few tears himself, also.

Emil silently retreated from the kitchen. He found himself wandering into Lukas' tidy room. He looked at how Lukas had neatly organized all of his belongings. His gaze wandered over to his bookcase, where his books were ordered by genre. He walked over to it, and picked one out. It was his favorite, and one he had often read to Emil. It was a fairytale. Emil smiled. Lukas had a thing for fairytales; he loved them. He sat on Lukas' carpeted floor and began to read. He kept on reading until he fell into a restless sleep.