Tick.. Tick. Tick.
Annoying clock.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
Why won't it shut up?
Tick. Tick. Tick.
"SHUT UP!" Arthur yelled, tearing the clock off of the wall. Annoying. That annoying ticking sound still sounded in his head. Why? Why wouldn't it stop? "Stop. Just. Stop!" he yelled, stomping on the already broken clock.
So annoying.
He narrowed his emerald green eyes before he went into the living room.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
There it was again. That head-wrenching noise.
"Where is that noise coming from? Stop it! Please!" he cried out, falling to his knees and placing his head in his hands. That noise, that head-wrenching noise. It brought back horrible memories. Memories of the American Revolution.
The click of a gun. That's what that ticking sound sounded like. He trembled and clutched at his hair, crying softly as the memories he tried so hard to keep away came flooding back to him.
The sound of gunshots. Screams all around him. The feeling of being shot.
Everything.
It was too much to handle.
He...couldn't...take it.
Something in the back of his mind snapped. He started giggling insanely; a maniacal grin graced his features.
These memories would haunt him no more.
Alfred was getting ready to go to Arthur's house. He was gonna give him a surprise visit! 'Cause that's what heroes do. But, you know he had stop to get a hamburger...and a soda. So, after he did that, he went to Arthur's house.
"Alright, Tony! I'm off to see Arthur now!" he told his alien friend. Tony just blinked and went back to playing video games. Alfred laughed and went on his way, eating his burger. Arthur didn't live too far away. Even if he did, Alfred needed to lose the extra weight anyway. So, after about ten minutes, he arrived at Arthur's house.
He walked up the stone steps that led to the porch of Arthur's Victorian style house. Hm, weird. He didn't see any of his lights on. Did that mean he wasn't home? Maybe. But Arthur was almost always home. Seriously. He had no social life. At all. None.
Anyway, Alfred knocked on the door. "Dude, Arthur? You home, man?"
No answer.
"Arrrrthurrrr. Come on, duuuuuude. I know you have no social lifeeeeeee. Answer the dooooor."
Still no answer.
"Dude! Open the door!" He sighed and put his hand on the door knob, turning it.
The door opened. Why the hell was his door unlocked?
"Arthur? Are you in here?" Alfred called out timidly as he stepped inside. Everything was black. Pitch black. Even if Arthur wasn't home, he usually left at least one light on.
"A-Arthur? Dude, if this is some kind of trick..."
Insane laughter came from the kitchen. Alfred blinked. He didn't like the sound of that laughter. It scared him. Really. He took a deep breath and followed the sound of the laughter.
"A-Arthur?" he said, looking into the kitchen. He gasped at what he saw when he turned on the kitchen light.
Arthur had a knife, and he was slowly dragging it down his arm. He was giggling insanely as he did so. He was also humming a child's tune.
"Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown, and Jill came tumbling after!" Peals of laughter erupted from him as he dragged the knife down his arm again, droplets of blood coming down.
Alfred blinked and ran up to him. "Dude, are you crazy?"
Arthur looked up at him, licking the blood off of his fingers. "Perhaps." he said, grinning. "But...I love the pain, Alfred! It's amazing!" He grabbed his arm. "So...wonderful. You need to try it. Try it!"
Alfred gave him a horrified look before yanking his arm away. "Dude, what's gotten into you?" he said in a slightly scared voice.
Arthur grinned at him. "Nothing, dear brother. I'm perfectly sane." he said, cackling a bit. Alfred took a step back, actually looking afraid.
"T-there's something wrong with you. You aren't acting like yourself!" he said in a small voice. Arthur tilted his head and tapped his chin with the knife.
"Well, I don't think there's something wrong with me!" He snickered and licked the knife. "No...I feel perfectly fine!" He tilted his head the other way and poked Alfred's cheek with the knife, causing a dot of blood to roll down. "You would look very pretty covered in this glorious crimson liquid...don't you think?" he said in a soft, almost loving voice as he ran the knife down Alfred's face, causing a thin line of blood to appear.
Alfred blinked and wiped the blood off of his face. "Arthur, stop this madness! You're freaking me out!"
Arthur smirked and placed the sharp edge of the blade against Alfred's neck. "Oh, don't be like that, Alfie~" he purred. "Won't you play a game with me?"
Alfred took a step back, shaking his head. "N-no.." he said in a shaky voice.
"Awwwwww, c'mon Alfieeee..." He pouted. "Just one game..."
"N-no..."
"I said...PLAY. A. GAME!" Arthur snarled, slashing the knife across Alfred's face. Alfred cried out in surprise, pressing a hand to his bleeding face.
"A-Arthur..." he said, sounding hurt. His crystal blue eyes filled with tears, and he wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his bomber jacket. "Stop. Just. Stop."
"But why? I'm having far too much fun, Alfie. Now..." He slowly circled around him, smirking. "How about a little game of Cat and Mouse? I'm the cat...and you're the mouse." He paused in front of him, leaning up to press the knife on his neck. "If I catch you, you die! Isn't that splendid?"
Alfred didn't think it was splendid at all.
"I'll give you a five second head start. You better run fast, Alfie! I'll catch up soon! Andddd...go!"
And que Alfred running through the house as fast as he could. Then, when he thought things couldn't get worse, the lights turned off. "Hey! Turn the lights back on!" he yelled.
"No! It's far more fun with the lights off! Now go! Run some more!"
Alfred made a frustrated noise...and ran straight into a wall. "Ow...dammit..." he muttered, rubbing his nose.
"Alfieeee...I'm comiiiinggg..." Arthur sang from the living room. Alfred panicked and reached around blindly, grabbing a door knob. He blinked and yanked open the door.
A broom closet?
Eh, it was better than nothing. So, he quickly dove into the closet and shut the door as fast as he could.
Dammit. Arthur would probably find him soon. And he'd be dead when he was found. This. Sucked.
He froze when he heard footsteps coming near the closet. Shit. He crawled into the corner and made himself as small as he could. Maybe Arthur couldn't find him then!
Oh, how wrong he was.
The footsteps paused in front of the closet door, and the door slowly started opening until finally it was all the way open, and he was greeted by Arthur's insane smile.
"I found you!" He cackled and grabbed Alfred by his hair, pulling him to the living room and then throwing him onto the couch. "Don't worry. I'll make your death quick. Just let me get the proper weapon! And to make sure you don't get away..." He grabbed some rope and tied Alfred's arms and legs together, cackling as he skipped off to his room.
Alfred sat there, tears running down his face. How unfair was this? He was being killed by the one who raised him...his brother...
The one he loved...
It was so unfair! He never even got to tell Arthur how much he loved him!
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard singing coming his way.
"You are my sunshine...my only sunshine..."
Step. Step. Step.
"You make me happy when skies are gray..."
Step. Step. Step.
"You'll never know dear...how much I love you..."
Arthur stepped into the living room and walked into the living room.
Please don't take my sunshine away..."
He put the gun up to his forehead, grinning.
And if you leave me...for another..."
He cocked the gun.
"YOU'LL REGRET IT ALL SOMEDAY!" BAM!
Alfred fell to the ground. His crystal blue eyes...once so full of life. Once so full of energy and vivaciousness...they were now emotionless and empty. He was...dead. The mighty America was dead.
Arthur blinked and dropped the gun. "Alfred..."
Oh God...oh no...oh please...
No...
No!
"NO!" Arthur yelled, running over to Alfred's lifeless body. "Please...Alfred. Please no...please..."
He cried as hard as he possibly could. What had he done...and why? Why?
He would never...ever...forgive himself.
~A few months later~
Arthur placed red flowers on Alfred's grave. His grave was on a hill under a large Weeping Willow. He sighed and wiped his eyes. "Keep a stiff upper lip, you old git..." he muttered to himself. "Alfred wouldn't want you crying like a baby.." He wiped his eyes again. Despite his attempts to stop his tears, they overflowed and spilled down his cheeks.
His heart hurt...it hurt so much...
"A-Al...Al..fred.." he said, sobbing into his hands.
He was like that for a few minutes when he heard a voice. "Mister? Are you ok?"
That voice...he recognized that voice. It sounded just like...
"Alfred?" he said, turning around to face a boy with blond hair and blue eyes that was holding a rabbit. He looked about nine or ten.
The boy blinked. "How do you know my name?"
"I..."
"You look familiar! Do I know you?" the boy asked.
Arthur couldn't help but smile. "No..."
"Oh! Alright! Well, anyway. Are you ok?" he asked.
"Yes..."
"Alfred Jones! Let's get going!" a woman's voice yelled from the bottom of the hill.
"I'm coming mom! Sheesh.." The boy paused. "What's your name? Maybe we can play together sometime?"
Arthur chuckled softly. "My name is Arthur Kirkland...and I'd like that..."
"Yay! Ok! See you later, Arthur!" the boy said, running off.
Arthur chuckled as he watched him run off. He'd wait...he'd wait as long as it'd take to have his Alfred again...