"Awh, he looks so graceful out on the ice, don't you think?" Shelby asked, watching with fascination as Matthew glided gracefully across the ice. Of course, he had a couple centuries to perfect his ice skating abilities, but it was hypnotizing none-the-less.

"Yeah, I love watching him skate." Hope agreed, a content smile on her face. "When he skates... It's one of the few times that he's sure of himself. When he's confident..." Hope's cheeks flushed slightly, "I can't make myself look away."

"Ehh, he's doing okay, I guess. But skating isn't a real man's sport. He should try some football- now THAT'S a sport." Alfred commented.

Shelby rolled her eyes. "Alfred, I would love to see you try and skate. It's much harder than trying to tackle other players for a ball." She explained.

The three of them leaned on the wall of the ice rink as Canada glided across the rink like a dove gliding through the still air. Hope and Shelby, being accustomed to northern weather, worn only their coats. On Shelby's head, she sported a TMNT Michelangelo hat, and Hope had mittens encasing her hands. America, being a country of many varying climates, wore a few more layers than the girls, as well as a scarf and hand warmers. Despite the fact that he was freezing, however, he still found the strength to continue loudly slurp down a large coke, something that made Shelby's teeth grind in irritation.

After a few more minutes of Canada skating by himself, he glided over to the trio, looking at them in confusion. "Aren't any of you going to skate?"

America was the first to speak. "No way, man! I have WAY too much pride to slip on a pair of skates, dance around like ballerina on the ice, and embarrass myself."

Shelby laughed. "You don't need to skates to embarrass yourself."

"HEY!"

She ignored him, turning her attention to Matthew. "Sorry Matt, but I haven't skated since I was 4, and I don't plan on getting back in the rink anytime soon." She elaborated, before a mischievous grin stretched her lips. "However, I'm sure Hope here would love to skate with you." She almost sang, giving Hope a light elbow to the arm.

Hope's rose-colored face only intensified in hue as she processed what her friend had just said. "Uh, su-sure! I'd love to skate!" She recovered, offering him a warm smile. "Just let me go get some skates." She said, walking away towards the counter.

Shelby smiled to herself. "I ship it so much." She whispered.

"What was that?" Canada inquired curiously.

"Oh, nothing." Shelby lied.

Hope came back with her skates, slipped them on, and swallowed nervously as she stepped onto the ice, her stomach churning as she the felt the blades wobble underneath her feet.

Oh my lord, Hope, she thought to herself as she clung to the wall, do not embarrass yourself. Do not fall in front of him. You've skated before- you can do this.

Still, she hadn't been to the rink in some time and she wasn't used to the slippery surface beneath her feet. She felt like a new born moose calf.

Before she could even properly collect her thoughts, she felt her feet slip out from underneath her and in a second she crashed on her butt, sending a shock up her spine. She gritted her teeth, trying to play it off like it was nothing, but when she tried to pick herself up, she only ended up landing flat on her face.

Yeah, she was definitely a moose calf.

"Here, let me help you." Canada stated, gently guiding Hope back to her feet. She frowned as America's laughter rang throughout the rink. She glanced over at her friends. Alfred now sat alone, cracking up about Hope's spill. Shelby had moved away from him and was now way closer to the two Canadians. She offered Hope a small, encouraging smile.

"You're too stiff, Hope. You have to loosen up. Here," Canada began, hooking his arm with her's, "just follow what I do, and you'll be skating in no time."

Hope nodded and watched Matt's feet, mimicking their motion and grace to the best of her human ability. Still, she found herself distracted by the fact that they were pressed so close together. She could feel the warmth he radiated and could smell the faint scent of syrup and pine that seemed to follow him. It was blissful, although the content feelings did nothing to stop the butterflies in her stomach and the flush on her face.

Alfred watched from the stands as Hope slowly became more and more independent of Canada's assistance, although the kind country still followed her closely, hovering as he watched her skate with a smile. As much as he loved to tease Matt, he was happy he found someone as understanding as Hope, who was willing to spend time with and listen to him.

Alfred glanced over at Shelby, who still stood away from him, and thought about asking her to skate, but scraped the idea. He already stated twice that he didn't like skating- he couldn't make himself seem like a hypocrite. Besides, Shelby wouldn't want to get on the ice, especially with him. His eyes left her and returned the skating couple as he took another slurp of his pop.

Now that Hope had her rhythm down, she could keep up with Canada's pace and was even confident enough in her skill to do a few spins and glide on the frictionless surface, imagining she was soaring through the clouds.

Suddenly, the blades hit a bump in the ice, and she faltered, stumbling towards the ground. Canada tried to save her but once he grabbed Hope's shoulder, he found his feet slipping out from under him as well.

They slid across the rink for a ways, before they finally came to halt. Hope let out a soft groan, turning from her stomach to her back, only to touch Matthew's warmer nose with her's. The country had landed on top of her and their faces turned beet red as they stared into each other's eyes. Hope was too stunned to move and Matthew was too nervous to.

Finally, Canada found the courage to speak. "Watch it, this rinks a little slippery." He smiled, and Hope giggled. Her laughter caused him to chuckle, and soon they were both laughing too hard to even stand back up.

Shelby smiled from the stands, laying her head on her forearms. "Canadope is real." She sighed happily.