A/N: What a fanfic challenge?
Avery walked downstairs and turned the corner to see Alfred with his head buried in his arms at the kitchen table. He cocked his head to the side in confusion at the sight of his brother. Usually at this time of the day he would be…well sleeping.
Avery walked towards him and tapped his brother on the shoulder twice. His brother's head lifted and looked at Avery with obvious irritation.
What's wrong? Avery signed.
Alfred waved his hand over his forehead, flicking his wrist an agitated sharp signing. Forgot He signed before putting his head back in his arms.
Forget about it. Avery thought, remembering the hearing slag.
Avery was confused for a moment. Did he do something wrong to Alfred? He didn't remember anything out of the usual that might have upset him. His brows drew together and he tapped his shoulder again.
Alfred lifted his head sharply and turned to face Avery once again, looking about ready to hit something.
I know something is wrong. Now what is it? He signed.
Alfred looked at him with disbelief. Then his face twisted into a deep scowl and he stood up signing a sharp nothing. It was almost too quick for Avery to see, but Alfred was walking away from him before he could sign anything.
"Why are you lying?" he asked, continuing to sign as he did so.
Alfred was halfway up the stairs when he turned around and said "God, just leave me alone for right now!"
"What?" Avery thought of the sentence he had to read on his brother lips. God, juice leaf me alone fo white no.
Alfred threw up his hands and walked down the stairs towards him. He took Avery's hand and put it to his neck and said extremely slowly, "Learn…to…read…lips…"
Avery's eyes widened as his brother dropped his hand. A rage started to boil in his stomach, reaching out into his neck.
Avery yanked back his hand in disgust. "Learn to read lips?" he said angrily, his accent starting to thicken. "I did. I learned how to speak for you when you tied my hands behind my back or smack them over and over!" He signed along with his voice in fierce jagged motions. "I had to sit through hours of what you just did to me to learn a single word. Do you know how offensive that is?"
Alfred kept walking, ignoring his brother.
"You goddamn-" Avery let out a frustrated yell. "I just wanted to know why you're so angry!"
He stopped talking, having watched Alfred step up the stairs and his throat strained.
A tear ran down his cheek as the memories of being a mentally disabled "person" resurfaced. It hurt. Alfred wouldn't let people know he had a Deaf brother unless people thought that meant he was a better person for "helping him".
What help?
Alfred would smack his hands with a stick if he caught him signing. On other days his hands were tied behind his back and he had to undergo training to speak for hours a day. He would have headaches and his throat would hurt at the end of the sessions.
He had to watch as the citizens that he represented are separated from their family to go to a school that did nothing but teach them to do what they could not and would not do.
Avery blinked the tears away and turned around forcing his attention on something else.
He started to sign to himself without noticing. Soon he realized it was the first song that Laurent Clerc had taught the students.
He smiled sadly and then walked to the window.
I wonder if there is another like me. He smiled sadly. Of course I wouldn't be able to communicate without a translator…or unless they knew American Sign Language.
He sighed and leaned his forehead on the window. If only there was another. I wish I wasn't so alone.
A/N: Challenge accepted. I don't know why but I have a feeling that Alfred can be very insensitive and oblivious to the Deaf culture at times, not realizing how demining some of the things he says are. I also have the feeling that Avery tends to get lonesome being the only Deaf country known (yet). I tried to be accurate with how the Deaf were treated back in "ye olden days" and sometimes how they are now.