((Awww that's absolutely adorable! <3

Ivan was grateful when Alfred shifted closer to him, and he closed his eyes briefly when he felt his friend's fingers carding through his hair - which was indeed soft and downy. "F-first time for everything, da?" He responded softly, wiping his eyes. He could feel his pulse in his ears as his gesture was returned, and he listened carefully to what Alfred had to say. He, too, was having unpleasant dreams? Ivan thought, now realising why it was that the American had woken so easily, and no longer feeling guilty about awakening him. "I - I do not think you could break anyone, Solnyshka. You are far too nice." He whispered, now feeling the need to try and reassure his best friend as he himself had been reassured.

"Th-there is always hurt when there is war, often on both sides. It sounds as though the other man was your opponent - but you had not injured him at all. That i-is confusing, but wasn't the point of the revolution to - to respond to unfair demands? E-even if the you in the dream had hurt someone, it w-wouldn't have been your fault alone. J-just part of a huge, h-horrible mess. A-ahh, and if you were just s-standing there, numb, weren't you hurt a-as well?" He rambled, hoping that he was making at least some kind of sense. He wasn't entirely sure that it did, but it was the best he could articulate it at this point in time.

Something about the idea of revolutions made him feel sick inside, but only for a moment - as though it was an echo, faint and ephemeral. "I - I believe that the you who is real would not break anyone - as I am n-not a monster." He concluded, brushing a lock of Alfred's sun-thread hair out of his friend's face, giving him what he hoped was a reassuring smile. Focusing on Alfred had helped him out of his own emotional tumult, though he still felt its roots beneath the surface, and he was soothed by their increased closeness. "There is no reason for you to be sorry - you could not help it any more than I." He murmured, "This i-is my best day also, a-and I have you to thank - do not think that I am m-merely putting up with you. I enjoy your yammering and hero-things, and - well - you. I am glad that being who I am brings you h-happiness, and I remind you that the re-reverse is also true."

((Aaww, Alfie! Poor puppy needs some hugs.))

((Gah these two doofuses are to damn cute ;v; ))

((I know what you mean... They're just so adorkable~))

It was good to see Alfred's smile, Ivan reflected, pleased that he had been able to offer some measure of comfort. When the American moved in closer and began to hold him tight, Ivan draped his free arm over his friend, rubbing little circles onto the small of Alfred's back. He could feel the other male's head snuggling into his chest, and it made him feel - needed. That was new, and somewhat poignant, and Ivan was determined to be there for his friend in whatever way that he could. "You are most welcome, Solnyshka." He murmured, still wrapping his head around the way that he was feeling, and the way that he was... useful in some way. "Any time that you need, you are welcome." That was when he knew that, even if he did decide to return, he could never leave America behind him completely - he would forever be looking over his shoulder and... remembering. He would still need to think, but he knew in his heart which way he was leaning.

((Tears? Nopenopenope, nothing to see here... Ahh, such feels...))

((All of the feels ;v;))

((I wonder if he could tell that it was Ivan's favourite?))

The curling of Alfred's fingers into his shirt was, once again, a reassuring sensation for Ivan - as was the feeling of the American's breathing becoming slower and more at ease. His own breathing was doing much the same, as he seemed to have cried as much as he was going to. It felt good to have his friend cuddled up in his arms, and apparently in no hurry to move. It was a warm, snuggly feeling inside him, and he desperately did not want to lose it. It felt as though his arms had been waiting to hold Alfred all this time, and only now realised their purpose. ?! He is... he is singing that - to me? I did say that it was a song I knew... He was blushing again, though he had no idea whether Alfred could see his face or not at this point, and he was in a kind of stunned silence. He is asking me to stay! What can I say? He thought frantically, listening to the American's voice singing out those familiar words. When no more were forthcoming, he took a breath and opened his own mouth. He had chosen to respond in kind, though he only recalled the first two couplets of the Disney song he was using as his reply. "There's been a change in me, a kind of moving on - though what I used to be, I still depend upon..." He crooned slowly, softly, as though confiding a secret. Would Alfred understand? He could only hope so.

((Look at these dorks communicating through songs <33333 Also oh my god I really want this to be a kiss moment but do you think it's an okay time because I may just be getting overly emotional because of these adorable idiots omg))

((So goofy and cute, right? I've been waiting for an excuse to use that. Anyway, the way I see it, there are a number of ways that this could go. Firstly, Alfred could kiss Ivan, completely on impulse, likely confusing the heck out of both of them. Secondly, Alfred could kiss Ivan, but maybe on the cheek or something, resulting in lesser confusion, but providing a vent for the same feelings as in the first scenario. Third, Alfred could get a strong urge to kiss Ivan, but not act on it, and dig into lots of confused thoughts about why he'd nearly kissed his buddy. Do those sound reasonable? It is a little soon for option number one, but I'll go along with whatever option you want to run with - including any option number four you might cook up. I might not be able to reply right away, 'cause I'm going to band in not too long, but I'll be around later. In all fairness, you aren't the only one getting kiss feels from this, but it could always lead into something down the road if it almost or kinda involves a kiss of some sort.))

((Baaaand 8D What do you play? I was a flute player! ^u^

((I play the tenor horn, though I've also played cornet. I like all of them, but whatever fits~ :3))

Ivan could feel Alfred moving, and he soon found himself looking into those bottomless blue orbs that his friend called eyes, watching as the American's face was split by what had to be one of the biggest grins he'd seen him wearing. Ahh, he understood... Ivan mused, treating his friend to a shy little smile in return. It was still true that he would always call Russia his motherland, feeling that there was a connection there that he absolutely could not sever, but he knew as he gazed into Alfred's sky-shine eyes that there were some things that simply could not be relinquished. He had never expected to decide this soon, and he felt a little like a traitor for doing so, but there was no way that he could turn his back on - all of this. Not without leaving his heart behind him.

There was an intensity in Alfred's ex
pression that he didn't quite understand, a hint of something unreadable flickering through his eyes - for some reason, that had a profound effect on him. The American's sunbeam hair, illuminated and surrounded by sunflowers, was astonishingly beautiful, and the depths of his bright eyes seemed to suck Ivan into them. What is going on? He thought to himself, though he knew what it meant when the drumming of his heart sounded faster in his ears, and his mouth felt dry. That smile, it was doing things to him, and he found that he wanted to press his own to it. What am I thinking? Ohh, bozhe moi! I cannot do that - I should not even be thinking it! I could break his trust! Ahh, but he is so adorable! I knew that he looked... very nice, but I had not thought that - that I would kiss him! Well, so I did kiss his cheeks before, but that was not the same! Ohh, nonononono...

Ivan was able to fend off his own impulse, but it had resulted in him spacing out for a moment, and he had no idea what he should do or say next. Alfred was still smiling at him with that glowing grin of his that so warmed the Russian inside, and he could not help but smile with his friend, even through his nervous confusion.

Alfred noticed something change in Ivan's ex
pression as well, his own becoming more curious. "Everything okay?" he asked softly, almost feeling that if he were to be his usual loudmouthed self that the enchantment over this entire moment would be broken. He was really sure he wanted it to be over just yet, this quiet, meaningful peace they had between them. He was assured by the other's smile though, his own growing a bit wider before he moved to settle into a similar position that he'd had before their little singing conversation that sent hearts aflutter.

"A-ahh, da." Ivan responded, feeling supremely awkward, and hoping that he hadn't caused Alfred to worry. "Everything is perfect~" He added, with more assurance this time. The American's voice had sounded soft and light when he'd asked, and that had been so sweet, but Ivan refused to allow himself to dwell on it. It seemed slightly odd, that the serenity surrounding them was still there and so tranquil, when his mind was a-boil, but the calmness of the scene was helping him to clear his head. Alfred was still close, so close, and he could hear his friend's every breath, but the fog in his brain was fading, and he had no reason to think that he would throw caution to the wind and plant a kiss on the American's peach lips out of the blue.

All the same, he was grateful when Alfred hit upon a topic of conversation. "Ahh, I forgot about the battery rabbit as well, do not worry." He assured his friend, "It would still be interesting to see what it was that you meant, though." He added, seeing that Alfred's phone was being pulled out. "There was something I forgot to talk to you about, as well - that picture I took of my latte yesterday, which I thought would go well in our photo album~" He continued, before registering that he was about to be photographed. Having noticed this, he compliantly uttered the word he'd been given, smiling - though just a hint of his blush remained.

"Oh no, it'll totally fit into our album," Alfred responded as he smiled up at Ivan. "It was a sunflower, after all," he said with a grin before he moved to pull up the Youtube app on his phone, humming a nonsensical tune as he searched up the ads for the Energizer bunny. He grinned when he found them and turned so Ivan could watch the screen as the video started playing, showing the bunny powering a bunch of stuff and never stopping in its movements.

"Ooohh, I get it now!" Ivan responded, both amused and intrigued by the antics of the fluffy advert bunny on the screen. "I suppose that it really does fit~ That is certainly not a bad thing, though." He continued, glad of the understanding he now possessed, and of the knowledge that he would be able to put the latte art into the album. The first sunflower he gave me... Ivan reflected, smiling like an idiot again for a moment, before he noticed that the bunny video had stopped. "Ahh, are there any more of those?" He asked, "The rabbit is quite entertaining." He added, giggling.

"Oh man there's tons!" Alfred responded, moving to pick another. "They've been on TV for AGES so there's plenty to pick from as far as I can remember," he responded, grinning at his companion. "There are other kinds of commercials with animal mascots too, if you want to see them," he added, smiling. "Or, hell, we could sit here and watch kitten videos and puppy videos or whatever," he added with a soft laugh. "I chose stuff yesterday so today is your day, Kotenok," he stated, smiling widely up at the other male.

Alfred nodded and tapped on another energizer ad, laughing lightly at the next notion. "That makes up a great deal of the internet," he responded. "Animals videos and gameplay are pretty big parts of youtube at least." Then he grinned. "Oh man we should totally play Portal and Portal 2 one day. I know that Portal 2 at least has a multiplayer option so we can solve puzzles together."

Ivan watched as the bunny on the screen proceeded to endorse its product in another entertaining manner, bounding around as though it had consumed a formidable amount of coffee. He giggled a little, amused, and nodded to Alfred. "That does sound fun~ What I have seen of Portal, I have liked, and that multiplayer mode sounds like it would be fun as well~" He chirped, apparently enthused. "Perhaps if we do that, we should make some cake to eat while we play? That would be funny - and yummy~" He added, amused by the idea - after all, that cake could not possibly be a lie. Besides, he had a recipe in mind...

"Oh, that! Ahh, I am in no hurry." Ivan answered, when his friend brought up the subject of the DS. "It is normal to be forgetting about things when immersed in a movie you like a lot, do not worry. Japan, you say? I always thought of that place as quiet, sophisticated, and having lots of robots and fish foods - but I do not know very much about it. What sorts of funny craziness are you referring to? That sounds like just the sort of thing I would like to be watching, just after some cute kitties~"

Alfred giggled softly. "Oh man I can't even begin to explain the things that have come out of Japan," he responded, tapping into his app so he could look through a few things. "For example, the music video for Pon Pon Pon," he stated, tapping on it and then turning it so it took up the entire screen, looking up at Ivan. "Cake sounds like an awesome idea. And ours won't be a lie!" he chirped, referencing the game. "But yeah, there's even stuff weirder than this, I swear," he said referring to music video with a quiet laugh. "Though I guess people probably think a lot of what comes out of America and stuff is weird too," he said, chuckling. Honestly, most other countries were more likely to find his home annoying and bothersome. Possibly only really putting up with them because it was beneficial.

Ivan blinked, completely taken aback. "Microphones from ears, bopping brains, faceless big dancing ladies, eye-clothes, green geese... Wow, that is weird! I wonder what the point is?" He responded, trying to reconcile what he had just seen with what he had already known of Japan, and having a hard time. "I think that might actually be the strangest thing that I have ever seen..." He giggled when Alfred made the cake joke, glad that they were both thinking along the same lines on the matter. "I'm glad you like my idea~ I already know what I would make - I was going to see if I could surprise you with it some time, but this seemed like a good thing to offer it for, and the type of cake is still a surprise~" He chuckled mischievously, winking. "I could tell you what it is called, but you would think it odd - so I will wait until you have tried some~ Fun, da? Hmm? Well, I suppose that things from other cultures can seem rather strange, and sometimes disconcerting - like that Ronald McDonald is to some, if you want an American example. Then again, he's a clown, and not everyone likes those... As for loud and obnoxious, I think that is more the media than the country itself. That is kind of what a lot of media can be like, it is only that this is such a big place that media with enthusiastic people can become a little more noisy than necessary. It is okay, though - that is what the mute button is for~ I have not met many Americans, but my impression so far is that this place is not, in and of itself, obnoxious. Only different, and enthusiastic. Da?"