Despite the rare quiet of the bedroom, Arthur woke up from a much needed sleep before the sun rose. He looked over at the alarm clock on the nightstand and saw it was just after one in the morning. He frowned.

Since her adoption, the newest member of their family never slept soundly for a full three hours, let alone five. Arthur fought back panic as he sat up and turned to wake Alfred, only to find his bedmate was missing. The British man hurried out of bed and into the hall.

He could hear the feint crying once he'd left the bedroom. He didn't know whether he ought to be relieved or more concerned, but at least this was something he was used to. He made his way to the nursery.

He pushed through the saloon styled doors that Alfred had talked him into getting when they were fixing up the house. Their daughter was crying in her daddy's arms, the sound soft and miserable. It upset Arthur to hear how unhappy his child was. He bit his lip as he crossed the room, catching Alfred's attention.

"I didn't want to wake you." The American looked sheepish as he stood rocking the tiny infant. Arthur noticed the light on the nearby baby monitor wasn't shining through the darkness. Alfred must have turned it off when he came in.

"You need sleep more than I do," the Brit scolded. Alfred gave a weak smile and looked down at the baby. Arthur came closer and held out his hand for the child. Her little hands tugged at one of his fingers while she cried, looking up at him with pleading blue eyes. It broke his heart to see her so distressed.

"Shh shh shh love," he cooed while Alfred rocked her. She whimpered and continued to cry. "Come now ducky, what's the matter?"

"She's been upset all night," Alfred said. "I changed her and fed her but she's still upset."

"She isn't sick, is she?"

"I don't think so. She's just sad." Arthur blinked and looked up at Alfred. The American looked heartbroken as he continued to rock their daughter, as though he couldn't think of anything else to do.

They stood together, huddled over their child, rocking her and stroking her tiny hands, wiping away her little tears while she cried. Arthur brushed golden strands of hair out of her face.

"Maybe you should sing," Alfred offered. Arthur looked up once more.

"Me?"

"You're better than I am." Arthur couldn't say he agreed with that statement. There was a reason he didn't often sing when sober, and it wasn't for lack of opportunity. And if anyone was more likely to comfort their child, it was her daddy. Amelia was very much a daddy's girl. Her face lit up when she saw the golden arch on a McDonald's bag, and she let out excited shrieks of joy whenever she saw Alfred's face splitting grin. Though to be fair, Arthur's heart swelled whenever he saw those grins as well.

"What would I sing?" Arthur murmured.

"Anything." It was clear Alfred wouldn't let this drop. Arthur let out a tiny sigh.

"All right. Let me hold her, then."

Alfred carefully handed over the nine month old, who whined louder and reached for him with one hand, the other one grabbing at Arthur's t-shirt. Alfred held out his finger for her, mumbling assurances that he wasn't leaving. Slowly Amelia settled back into her whimpering cries. Arthur led them to the nearby rocking chair.

He found a melody in his head and began rocking ever so slightly.

"Come up to meet ya, tell ya I'm sorry, you don't know how lovely you are,

I had to find you, tell you I need you, tell you I set you apart,

Tell me your secrets ask me your questions, oh let's go back to the start,

Running in circles, coming in tails, heads on a science apart,

Nobody said it was easy

It's such a shame for us to part

Nobody said it was easy

No one ever said it would be this hard

Oh take me back to the start."

Amelia settled down almost instantly, tugging a little at his shirt as though she were trying to pull him closer. Arthur continued to sing to her, watching as her little blue eyes, so much like her adoptive father's, slipped close and her breathing evened out. The weight on his knee told him that Alfred too had dozed off. A small smile crossed Arthur's face as he settled back into the chair. Soon he too fell asleep.

A/N: This story is dedicated to Lizzy, as The Scientist by Coldplay is one of her favorite songs. I feel that it's very fitting for USUK.

In case there was any confusion, the headcanon for this story is that Alfred would have their daughter call him daddy, and call Arthur Iggy. So any mentions of her 'daddy' are referring to Alfred.

There is a possibility of more chapters being added to this. If any do come, they will each be about different pairings and their respective children. PruCan is high on the list (as anyone who regularly reads my work would be able to guess), but there is also potential for some Big Brother Prussia and Little Luddy bonding time scenes. We shall see.

For now I'll mark this as completed, but feel free to follow if you'd like to see more. You never know what the future might hold.

I own neither Hetalia nor The Scientist. The rights of each go to their respective owners.

Thank you so much for reading.

~VV