Story: America and Canada, two orphans from the town of Smithville, run away from their abusive caretaker. What they don't realize is that once they hit the cold hard streets of the town by the name of Blacksburg, there's no turning back. They become separated when Alfred becomes forcefully made into a servant. Canada, who escaped the horrible ordeal, has to brave on his own the horrors of the new found town; including pirates, nobles, and one nasty king…
Characters: A lot, but it's mostly centered on America and Canada along with their masters, England and France.
Genres: Action/Adventure, Family, Hurt/comfort, all that fluffy angsty stuff, and maybe from time to time some comic relief.
Rating: T; just to be safe. There's not really what you call swearing in here, but there is some violence.
Pairings: Franada, Child US! and UK, older US and UK. a few minor pairings might appear here and there, but they won't stay vital to the story for long.
Warnings: Human names and Foreign Language. Violence is in here as I have said before.
Author's notes: All I can say is I hope you enjoy this story, it's been a pleasure thinking of the plot. And toss me a good review if you will.
It was another dreary day in the countryside of Smithville. The melancholy town was well known for its rancid seafood, and its diseases. But the worst thing said about the place were the numbers of orphans running about the smog infested city. There had been a sharp decline in parents, so almost all the children were parentless. It would be a miracle if you bumped into some fortunate kid with even one mom or dad. The city did have an orphanage, but you'd been better off surviving in the streets.
And so our tale begins with two little boys who have firsthand experience from what it's like in the orphanage…
"Give it back, please!!!" screamed Matthew, reaching for the polar bear in the older woman's hands.
The caretaker smiled her horrible smile. "Not unless you admit you did it!"
"Did what?" demanded Alfred, the braver of the two.
"Don't play dumb with me; I know it was you that snuck into the kitchen, my kitchen to grab a bite to eat!"
"We didn't do that; it was probably Charley or James…not us!"
Whack! Alfred was struck across the face, making Matthew only scream even louder than before.
"Little brat, shut up!" the caretaker yelled, equally smacking Matthew as hard on the face as she had did with the other one. Seeing his brother whimpering in pain, Alfred picked himself up. Ignoring the pain, and the blood running down his face, he cried out:
"Stop hurting Matthew; he didn't do anything!" When he was this courageous, he liked to think himself as a hero to his younger brother, saving him from the evil witch he had read in a bedtime story. Of course in reality at the orphanage, the evil witch always won in the end. The woman scowled.
"Didn't do anything eh? Let me tell something to you boy," She leaned in on Alfred's face, the smell of alcohol upon her breath. "You dumped yourselves on those steps outside, tired and hungry. I fed and made sure you had a home. If that isn't enough for you…" She emphasized on the word 'you' by ripping the polar bear's head off, causing Matthew to protest even more. "…then you can take yourselves back on the filthy streets from which you came!" With that, she slammed the bear down onto the dusty floor and left, locking the door behind her. Matthew tended to the bear, hopelessly trying to put the head back on. Alfred tried to help Matt by taping the bear's head back on with duck tape he'd found floating around in the attic. Wiping away his tears, Matthew asked, "What was it like before we lived here?" Alfred stopped taping the bear and looked at his brother confused.
"What?" Matthew could be pretty hard to hear sometimes.
"What was life like before the orphanage?" asked the Canadian, a little louder.
Alfred shrugged. He could barely remember anything outside the walls of 'the house'. They were really small when they came and all he knew was that he had always taken care of his brother. "I remember a warm, cozy bed." he stated after a period of silence.
"I remember the sweet pancakes always present when we woke in the morning, doused with sweet maple syrup and being seated down on my chair while warm hands tucked our napkins into our shirts to make sure we didn't waste any food on our best clothes…"
Without any warning, Alfred ripped off the dusty old table cloth and began to pack things into them-even the torn polar bear. Matthew studied his brother's actions curiously.
"Al, what are you doing?"
"I'm sick and tired of that caretaker bossing us around and abusing us. It's about time we leave for good. Besides, we're probably both better off in the streets, fellow orphans roam the place; they'll help us." Alfred opened a huge sack to reveal food. "I've been sneaking into the kitchen every now and then to grab some of this. Maybe we can leave in an abandoned run down house-"
"But what will happen when we run out of food? What will happen when winter sets in? We'll be dead before January." interrupted the Canadian. "We have a greater chance of surviving in here than anywhere else. Who knows what's out there…"
Alfred frowned. "If you want to stay here, fine. But for me, this is a whole new beginning." Alfred tied a piece of rope to the trunk and threw the rope down to the pavement below. He began climbing down with the personal belongings in the sack. Matthew, who always stuck by his brother didn't like the new feeling of being alone. He hurriedly trailed after his brother down the rope, knowing that this was going to be probably the last time he saw the old orphanage-alive.
"S'il vous plaît être prudent" muttered Matt in French. Alfred nodded, understanding those few words. The streets were filthy and filled with drunks. One man came up to them, apparently wasted.
"What's yous childerns soings outs here?" asked the man with slurred speech. Alfred and Matt backed away from the man. Another one of them came up from behind them.
"I's agrees; where's your mums and dads?"
Matt nudged Alfred, his eyes widening with fear. Alfred ran for it, grabbing Matt from behind him. They didn't know where they were headed, just that they were headed in the opposite direction of the orphanage and the drunks. Matthew all of a sudden screamed. Not because of the people chasing him, but because of the moon. It had turned red. It was too red and too late to be the harvest moon. It was something worse…something dark…and Alfred could sense it.
Maybe it was because the wind was howling, or maybe because Matthew was crying too hard, or maybe because the abnormal moon only seemed to focus its attention on them, but for whatever reason, Alfred and his brother became lost in a tangled mess of trees. Matthew tugged harder onto Alfred's clothing, telling him to go back. Alfred responded with the occasional, "It's ok Mattie, you have me!" but with every word, his own confidence was fading. The wind howled louder, making it impossible to her anyone or anything anymore. Matthew tried to shut his eyes to block out the noise, but it was no use; it still went through to his head. And then, it stopped. They were no longer in the woods, but in some other settlement. The look of the town was far from the look of Smithville, and not in a good way either. The ground was rocky and cracked, much unlike the smooth cobblestone streets they had come to know. The air was about as welcome as frostbite, but the most formidable thing about the town was the moon. With its blood red glow, it hung over the sky, towering over the residents who walked by silently. Alfred stared at them. Some people wore heavy coats and scarves that covered your faces so you couldn't see them. Even the faces you could see looked so frightening to approach; some seemed to glare at the children while passing by.
"Ceci est effrayant Alfred, let's get out of here!" moaned Matthew, wondering how the heck they got there in the first place. For the first time in awhile, Alfred agreed. They tried to leave, but they found that the forest behind them had vanished.
"M-maybe we should ask for directions." suggested Alfred, trying to be brave for his brother. He turned to the nearest man passing by with a suitcase in his hand. "Excuse me sir, can you-"
The figure swiveled around to stare at the children.
That was, if he had eyes.
The frightened children stepped back in shock, only to bump into another person. The man was tall, had long dark hair, and most of all, a scowl upon his face. (To Harry Potter Fans, imagine Lucius Malfoy with black hair.)
"My, my; what have we here?" the man asked, lifting the cane he carried up to Matthew's chin to inspect him.
"Get your cane off of him!" demanded Alfred, his courage suddenly back up and running. He decided to imagine that this man was an evil sorcerer, and that he was about to save his brother from being cursed. It helped better to imagine things than to face reality for him.
The man turned his attention to the hero stricken boy. "Ah, the heroic one aren't you? Sticking up for your brother like that. You must be outsiders, how unpleasant." he muttered with disgust. Then he smiled. "Don't worry; we take good care of people like you here."
"How so?" asked Alfred, his eyes narrowing.
The man's smile became even wider. He reached into his overcoat and pulled out an enormous and juicy hamburger. All doubt the boy may have had evaporated at the sight of the food. Alfred practically snatched it out of the man's hand and began munching. Matthew watched in horror as his brother selfishly gobbled down the sandwich. The man grinned at Matt. "Don't worry, I've got something for you too." in his pocket, he magically pulled out a bowl full of freshly made pancakes. Matthew was hesitant for fear of some trap, but eventually he took it and nibbled slowly. It was good!
"Hey mister, you're alright." declared Alfred through chomps of food. The man bowed.
"Why thank you, but where are my manners? I'm Mr. Slipnot."
"I'm Alfred and this is Matthew." the child said.
"Please to meet you." He took a glance at the other boy. "Say, does that one ever talk?"
Alfred looked towards Matthew and shrugged. "When he wants to. Normally he does, but he talks so soft you can barely hear a word he's saying!"
"I'm sure that he'll grow out of it eventually." laughed Mr. Slipnot, eying the timid boy who just shrank down. "You probably have no place to sleep, allow me to help you find a place."
Alfred smiled "That would be nice! See Mattie, I told you not staying in the orphanage was good!"
A carriage came up to them. Mr. Slipnot ushered the two inside and sat down with the driver in the front. As soon as they came aboard, the carriage took off. Alfred plopped down on one of the cushy pillows set for them.
"Isn't this great? We're going to live in an actual house!"
"Something just isn't right." thought Matthew. "It was like he knew we were coming."
The American yawned. "You worry too much."
"How many strangers do you know walk up to you and you treats that you specifically like?" questioned Matt.
"We never knew any strangers in Smithville. Wherever we are, maybe all the strangers are like this; sweet." said Alfred, snuggling up on a pillow.
"I'm serious; this place just gives me the feeling we're heading for trouble." Alfred didn't hear the last statement; he had fallen asleep. The Canadian sighed and leaned against the carriage door. They would just talk later and he was feeling a little sleepy himself…
Without warning, the carriage door popped open and dumped little Matthew out onto the dirt road. The Canadian was faintly aware of what had happened because he was halfway asleep, but he did know he wasn't in the carriage anymore. He tried calling after it, but his faint screams couldn't be heard. After several minutes Matthew stopped trying and passed out onto the road. The poor boy was left alone in the world for the first time…
--
"You sure those two will be able to work?" asked the driver to Mr. Slipnot.
"When am I ever wrong? Those two brats are perfect for servants; still young and naive. That's the way I do business, lure outsider children to come with me with goodies laced with the finest sleeping powder, and then we ship them off into servitude. I already promised Mr. Edelstein a fresh batch of kids for the selling." the driver turned to look at the sleeping Alfred in the coach.
"Hey, the hamburger one is drooling on my pillow!"
"Leave it; they should have a little taste of freedom before they leave for a very long time."
The driver growled and turned his attention backed to the road. "Fine, the sooner we get to this man's place, the better."
Mr. Slipnot nodded. "I agree…the sooner, the better."
--
Alfred opened his eyes partway. The warm pillow that had supported him was gone. He opened his eyes full way to reveal that he had been sleeping on the cold, hard floor and that he was at the foot of a person's boot. Looking up, he saw the full figure towering over him, the pillow now in his hand. He smirked.
"Looking for this? Liebes Kind, you won't be needing it, not where you're going are least." Those crimson eyes the man wore pierced poor Alfred's blue ones.
"What do you mean? Where's Mattie?!"
"Liebes Kind I don't know what you're talking about, but what I do know is that you better come with me before Edelstein gets mad." The man's smirk became wider causing Alfred to back up a little.
"Edelstein?"
"Jeez kid, didn't anyone tell you anything?! Roderich Edelstein," he began with a shudder, "Is your new master dealer. You'll be meeting him shortly."
Grudgingly, Alfred followed the man into the grand ball room, wondering what the heck a master dealer was. In the corner of the room was a man playing a low and sad song on the piano. Not even letting him finish the piece, the man walked up to him and slammed his hands down hard on the piano's keys, causing the other to lose his place. The Piano player turned around, red faced.
"How dare you Gilbert; I swear it took me hours to just compose that one measure!"The man rolled his eyes.
"Roderich, You and I both know that I could care less. Besides, the awesome me just brought you a new one."
"One, I was expecting two." the aristocrat said coldly. Gilbert scratched his head. Scheiße, could it mean that I left one behind?
"Heh, I was only given one." The Austrian waved his hand.
"I'll file a complaint later; right now I have to deal with this one and teach him some manners. Come with me child, we have lots of work to do before you're ready." Alfred nodded. Maybe this man will get me ready for adoption. He thought.
"What are you getting me ready for?" asked the child anyway.
"To work of course." replied the man. "All servants need to know that skill."
Alfred paled. "S-Servant?" the American felt a lump form at his throat. "B-but the man said…"
"You'd be getting a home yes? Well he didn't completely lie now did he? Your home will depend upon you buyer."
"Buyer? No! I refuse to-"
Slap! A huge whip came down on Alfred's arm causing him to cry out in pain. It felt worse than his old caretaker's abuse.
"Dumme Junge, let me get something straight; as a servant, you are to do whatever I tell you; that means you must obey me and only me. You are not to go anywhere unless it is authorized by me. Fail to do so and there will be dire consequences." Roderich dragged the boy along to the dressing room. A smirk played across his lips when he realized Alfred was still crying. "Oh, and be thankful that didn't hurt more than it should have. Usually I whip them till they're black and blue. Now put these on and follow me, there are two others I want you to meet." Alfred was in too much shock to retaliate. Servant; that's what he was now. If only he'd listened to his Canadian twin and ran away while he still had the chance. Who knew where Matthew was now. Heck, who knew if he was still even alive. Alfred stood there with his new clothes.
And most of all, who knew what his own fate was to be.
Some notes:
That's the first chapter. Let me know what you think. Here are some translations;
Liebes Kind is German for child dear or dear child.
Ceci est effrayant is French for this is scary or this is frightful
S'il vous plaît être prudent is French for Please be Prudent
Dumme Junge is German for silly or stupid boy
Scheiße is German for crap