A warm breeze whispered through the serene garden carrying the echoes of summer. Cicadas whirred from the treetops and a quiet stream gurgled as it wove under a small bridge. The sun was still visible since it was about 4 o'clock in the afternoon and puffy clouds drifted lazily across the fading blue sky. Kiku sat back in his chair, unmoving. Normally, he would refuse to even have a chair in his house, but right now he was too weak to support himself even sitting down. The attack from early August had left him drained and defeated. He winced at the memory.

When Hiroshima was attacked, he'd passed out from the force of the blow. Alfred had warned him what was going to happen and had asked him to surrender, but the proud, power-hungry side of him that'd gripped he and his country since the end of the 19th century ignored his one time ally's warning. Kiku awoke two days after the attack on Hiroshima and learned that they had been threatened once again and that this time Nagasaki had been targeted. And still, that stubborn samurai pride in his heart had refused to let him surrender. That was a mistake he knew he'd regret for decades to come. The next bombing seared through him in such a blinding pain that he was sure it was the end for his nation before he went out cold for a week. He awoke to find that his boss had surrendered to the Allies and negotiations were in place. He'd lost. The shame and anger did nothing but torture him while he lay helpless in bed for weeks.

Kiku looked up expectantly as he heard rustling footsteps shuffling towards him, recognizing the brunette. Hercules came nearly every day to assist him and for that he was grateful. Few countries bothered to help him. He'd been conquered after all. A former ally of the Axis Powers. The final obstacle overcome to end World War 11.

The Greek set down the tray he was carrying and Kiku nearly smiled. Hercules was getting better at the art of preparing tea with each passing day.

"Thank you."

Hercules shrugged and replied in his halting, hesitant way. "There's no need to thank me everytime. I'm just helping a friend."

Kiku blinked in surprise, then allowed himself a slight smile. "You appear to be one of the few friends I have these days."

He turned his dark, brooding gaze back on the garden. He'd thought that being brought here to the countryside would calm his mind, but it did nothing to suppress the darkness surfacing again inside of him. He'd tried for so long to just be perfect. Speak, act and even think in the right way. He'd tried to become a 'Westerner' and prove himself to be on their level. It'd taken one alliance with the wrong side though to make everything he'd worked toward fall apart. He liked Germany and Italy- he really did- but his support had cost him dearly.

The tantalizing idea of an empire, an empire to showcase the power of Japan, had aroused something in him that hadn't shown itself since the start of the Edo period. It'd always been there, but it'd been asleep for so long that Kiku had forgotten it was there. Something prideful and warlike. It's what had made him refuse to surrender in the face of inevitable defeat.

"Kiku?" He looked up, pulling himself back to the present as Hercules spoke. "You have a visitor today."

"A visitor?" Kiku repeated incredulously. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"I did, but you didn't respond. I assumed you were having a thoughtful moment and I didn't want to interrupt."

"You didn't let them in?" He could only think of of what a horrible host he must seem and for a moment the dark side of him completely dissipated. "Is it Ludwing and Feliciano?"

"No…" Hercules seemed to be choosing his words carefully. Or rather, more carefully than usual. "It's Alfred."

Kiku's face darkened instantly and when he turned away, the sunlight turned them an almost mahogany color. The old Japan was back and his fingers subconsciously sought the comforting leather of his katana's handle. Of course it wasn't with him. He'd put it far away- afraid that one day the ancient part of him would take over and he would commit seppuku in shame of his defeat.

"I don't want to see him." His voice was as cold as the Russian winter.

Hercules blinked slowly and Kiku didn't have to look at him to see the surprise in his friend's bright green eyes. "He's been waiting for a few days now. I kept telling him to wait. I knew you wouldn't be in the mood…"

"How many days?"

"Four. Five if you count today."

Kiku sighed, trying to regain control of himself and slow his pulsing heartbeat. "Tell him to come in, please. Would you mind preparing some coffee? I keep some in one of the cabinets for guests. "

The Greek nodded, rose to his feet and left the room. Kiku heard the sound of the front door being slid open and Hercules' low, pausing voice mixing with Alred's boisterous, clear one. Then the thumping of footsteps. He winced, imagining the American's large, leather boots leaving dirt on his beautiful tatami mats. A stab of anger at the foreigner's ignorance flashed through him, but he quickly pushed it away. He couldn't deal with those kinds of emotions at the moment. They were what had gotten him in this mess in the first place.

"Hey, Kiku!" He glanced up to see the tall blonde walking, more like thudding, closer to him. He noticed the forced cheerfulness on Alfred's face and, to his surprise, the worry hidden in his blue eyes.

"Jones-san." Kiku replied, sounding more brusque than he had intended. He wanted to keep as neutral and detached as he could. Looking at the person he'd once called a friend, he knew that that was going to be impossible.

The American's smile faltered, but he tried to recover it. "I've told you before, call me Alfred."

"I'm afraid there's only one chair, but you can take this seat if you like," Kiku made as if to stand up, but Alfred shook his head, waving his hands in front of him.

"No, no that's fine. You're- er, I mean… I'll just sit here," he plopped himself down on the floor close to the foot of the chair. The Japanese man hesitated, wondering if he should insist since Alfred was a guest, but took his seat again. There was an awkward pause.

"So… I guess I'll cut to the chase," Alfred tried to give an airy laugh, but it came out more like an uncomfortable cough. "I, um, wanted to apologize. About… you know, dropping the atomic bombs. But you wouldn't surrender and I was going to lose a lot of troops otherwise and I just…" He sighed, blowing his bangs out of his blue eyes. "I'm sorry."

Kiku remained silent, his gaze fixed on the peaceful garden outside. Alfred fidgeted, unsure of what to do.

"Do you remember that table-turning game you brought over all those years ago?" The Japanese man asked at last, his eyes still fixed on his garden. "I thought they were amazing. Like magic," he laughed humorlessly. How naive he'd been. "You seemed so sincere then, so eager to help me get out in the world." It was happening again. Those emotions were rising inside of him, making anger and even hatred swirl in a dark thundercloud in his mind. As much as he wanted to resist it, he felt a part of him giving in. America deserved to know the pain and anger he felt. Why shouldn't he?

"Kiku…" Alfred began, blue eyes distressed. "I did want to help! I just never knew you would become so powerful and-"

"Do you remember what I asked you that day, Alfred?" Kiku asked quietly, his shoulders, pent up with fury just moment's before, slumping. Suddenly he looked much older. The darkness had left him, leaving him looking drained and defeated. A shell of the empire he was just months ago. "I was concerned about how I would adapt in this new world. I wanted you to ask your magic table if I would get along with the other countries in the future." He let out a short, pained laugh. "I must've seemed really foolish when you told me I would and I believed you wholeheartedly."

"I meant what I said though, Kiku," America said with a shake of his head, looking oddly subdued. "I wanted us to get along."

When the Japanese man remained silent, his eyes never leaving the garden before him, he went on, "Which is why I wanted to ask if… if you would accept my help in rebuilding Japan."

Finally, Kiku looked up to meet Alfred's gaze. "I appreciate your offer, but I can not accept. Acknowledging my defeat has been difficult enough as it is. Receiving help from an enemy is… inconceivable at the moment."

The American scratched the back of his head, ruffling his sandy blond hair, uneasily. "Well you see, it's actually an order from my boss."

"Of course it is," Kiku sighed. "Why ask for my permission then?"

"Because I really want to help," Alfred replied, his blue eyes more serious and earnest than Kiku had ever seen them. "What I did wasn't very hero-like and I want to fix it so... this will make up for it right?"

The sincere naivety in the American's statement surprised Kiku. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Alfred was actually very young. The Japanese man inclined his head, "I suppose it will Very well, I accept your offer of assistance."

Alfred broke into a smile, though it was still nothing next to his normal grin.

"You should remember this though, Alfred. The Allied Powers may be the winning side, but that does not make them all good. Evil can be done on both sides, but who gets to play hero is decided by the winner. I'm not the only to have gotten hungry for power and this age of imperialism certainly didn't start here. This war really wasn't a matter of good and evil. It was a matter of where the tables turned."

A/N: Yay for my first one-shot! I actually have a stash of one-shots sitting on my Google Drive right now (this was the only one I'm pretty satisfied with xD) and I'm just debating whether or not to post them lol. This was more or less an experiment :) So let me know if you liked it!

Just a few side notes...
- Again, I kind of hinted at 2p!Japan, but it's more like it's a part of him, not a separate personification :)
- The ending was actually something I'd been thinking about for awhile since I was studying WWI & II. There really isn't a 'good guy' in war and in the end it's like whoever wins gets to write history. I think, me being an American, we tend to think of ourselves as the hero, but really there are plenty of things we've done in the best that are not heroic at all. The same goes for any country really, so I really just don't see the point in all the countries throwing history in each other's faces and bringing up what everyone has done to them in the past, because...yeah. Sorry, serious moment xD But that's what I was trying to say through Kiku :) I had a feeling he would be the one to say it since he's much older and has seen a lot more than America. Ugh, I'm rambling :P

I applaud you if you read through that whole note xD Thanks so much for reading & leave a review even if you didn't think so highly of it! 3 I'm open to criticism!