A/N: Here I am starting another story, when I haven't even finished the first one! Oh well...
Main pairing will be EnglandxCanada, though other pairings will show up. I haven't decided yet.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia and its characters
AU, probably OOC because I'm still not good at capturing their personalities.
Hope you enjoy, and if the responses are positive, there would be more to come!
Arthur Kirkland gazed upon the sleek red-tailed hawk held firm against his chest by his thick leather gloves. Yao Wang, a small Chinese man with dark hair tied by a ponytail, looked up at him with excitement in his eyes.
It was time to release bird number 1675 into the wild.
Hard to believe that two months earlier, she was brought to the clinic with two gunshot wounds. Now she stood tall and proud, a beautiful specimen.
With a lift of his arm, Arthur let his hands go. Instantly the talons released their grip. Wings fluttered, stirring the air, Arthur released a sigh as the hawk took flight. He tracked the bird carefully, assessing her strength and looking for signs that the broken wing was still not healed. Fortunately there was none, and Arthur felt a bone deep satisfaction that their work at the rehabilitation center was a success.
"Aren't you supposed to take Angelique Christmas shopping, aru?" Yao said as they packed up their gear to return to the clinic. "That child's been talking about nothing else all week."
An image of a five-year old girl, looking out the window forlornly as he waved goodbye, promising to be home early for their Christmas outing. I'll just release the hawk, poppet. he'd said. The memory tugged at his heartstrings.
"Well, yes." Arthur replied. "Let's just finish packing up and close the clinic for the day."
Yao shooed him off with a wave of his hands. "You go on to your girl, aru," he said. "Jia Long and I will close up here."
Arthur smiled at him, thankful for having such considerate volunteers. "Thank you, Yao. Merry Christmas. And tell Leon Merry Christmas too."
Yao gave a derisive snort. "His name is Jia Long, aru!"
Arthur Kirkland gripped his daughter's hand tight as he fought the urge to walk faster through the aisles in the huge mall. Other shoppers raced through the store brushing clumsily as they passed in a buying frenzy. There was so much stuff everywhere: bright red bows, dancing Santas, gold tinsel all seemed to jump at him. He longed to go back outdoors, away from the heavy crowd and into the silence of the open woods.
A small tug from his daughter made him look down. Angelique was pulling him towards a snack bar which featured an icy blue swirling mixture.
"Daddy, I'm thirsty. Can I have some of that?" she asked, pointing towards the beverage.
Arthur eyed the concoction with something akin to disgust. "Maybe later, sweetheart. Didn't you had a drink at the gas station? You can't be thirsty again."
"But I am! I'm thirsty now, daddy!" the five-year old dragged on his arm and whined. "Please!"
Her insistent tone made Arthur look down and inspect her closely. Maybe she was coming down with something. Her eyes were slightly glassy and her face was flushed. And she did drink several glasses of juice as if she were dying of thirst back at the gas station.
"How about this, love," he said, bending over to her level. "Let's pick out your present first and then, after that, we'll go someplace special for our Christmas Eve dinner. Then I'll get you whatever you want to drink."
"Oh, all right," she replied with lacklustre, casting one last glance at the drink machine.
Arthur frowned at the tone of her voice. Normally she would be very excited about their ritualistic outing during Christmas. When they reached the doll section, he spread his arms wide, "Look, Angelique, so many dolls! And you can pick any which one you want for Christmas. Come on, love, any one at all," he said with the enthusiasm of a carnival barker.
Angelique stared dully at the dolls without even a squeal of anticipation. Arthur noticed this and sighed, lowering himself again to her level. "What's the matter, love?"
She looked at him with forlorn eyes. "Daddy, you know what I want for Christmas."
Arthur's heart skipped at the longing expression on her pale face. He wrapped his arms around his five-year old, wracking his brain for the correct answer.
"Honey, you know I can't get your mama for Christmas. That's just... silly." At the sound of Angelique's whine he added, "I'll tell you what, why don't you pick a doll that looks like Mama? Just like those over there, aren't they pretty?"
When she looked up at him with those big blue eyes, she looked just like her mother that his heart wrenched. "Fine." She turned and looked at the rows of dolls. After some time, she pointed to the Barbie doll with the gaudiest pink gown. Arthur thought sadly that the doll was appropriate; after all, her mother did like bright colours.
"That's a fine choice, poppet!" he said as enthusiastically as he can. "What are you going to call her?" He held his breath, praying that he won't call the doll Emily like her mother.
Angelique deliberated for a moment, then announced, "Alice."
Arthur smiled. "Perfect. Now, you stay put while I go buy her," he told her. "Don't go anywhere, all right, love? Daddy'll be back soon."
When she nodded he hurried to the check-out line with Gaudy Alice in his hands. The lines were long, since there were only two cash registers open, and he wasn't the only one doing last minute shopping. He looked over his shoulder occasionally, keeping an eye on Angelique in the toy aisle.
As he neared the counter he mentally tallied up the bill and figured the cost of dinner. He fingered the remaining bills in his wallet, sighing softly. His job as the head of a wildlife sanctuary took its toll on his bankbook, not to mention his personal life. He sometimes wondered if he made the right decision to dedicate his life to saving birds. Putting his wallet back into his pocket, he knew the answer would always be yes.
When he looked over his shoulder again, he saw a minor commotion at the toy aisle. His heart leapt to his throat when he saw a few people bending over something on the floor.
"Angelique!" he blurted out, and took off at a run. He pushed through the small cluster of people to find his daughter lying on the floor with her eyes rolled back, her face ashen and her body jerking uncontrollably. He immediately scooped her in his arms and loosened her hood and jacket with shaking fingers.
"She just fell down!" a young lady exclaimed. "I saw her."
Arthur's mind fought through a horrifying panic as he tried to diagnose the problem. Epilepsy? Fever? He felt choked and his hands shook. This wasn't some hawk or eagle, This was his daughter, and he didn't know what to do.
He looked up at the wall of onlookers and shouted, "Will somebody please call an ambulance?"
A/N: Sorry for this chapter. I'd probably post the next one tomorrow or the next day. Thanks for reading!