Prologue: The Hypocrites

It happened yesterday. It finally happened yesterday. The treaty was signed at last. Years of fighting, blood, and distrust were shot down, their remembrances smeared across the ashes of old British reign. The people were free. Wrapped up in promises of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, America was revived. Now, not a slave of some European county that branched out its arms in greed, but its own land. The United States of America. A new land, where opportunity was proven fruitful and true. He was finally free.

"Not without my help, of course." A laugh broke the silence of a peaceful sunset as an accomplice smiled, lowering indigo eyes towards his friend, a younger man with golden hair and a strong golden heart to match. "You really did great, Alfred. You should be proud of yourself! Making Arthur fall to his knees like that... good job! You'll make a fine nation~"

The American in question made a small awkward chuckle in reply. "Haha yeah..." Alfred made a point to avoid the other's eyes, focusing on the lowering sun instead. He didn't regret what happened two years ago in Cornwallis, where he finally defeated the British and created a new identity for himself, but he didn't like it either. Arthur had raised him, after all. He was like an older brother to him, something Alfred had never had much in his life before. Things had to go bad from there.

He was never paid attention to much of his life. Though Alfred was always claimed to be Arthur's "favorite", he didn't feel like one. He merely couldn't. Ever since he was adopted by the British fellow, he was ignored. At first Alfred was too young to even tell, but as time went by, he gained experience. He grew all by himself. Sure, Arthur stopped by occasionally ever now and then, but he was gone in the next few days. Arthur had other stuff in Europe to attend to. He would leave the young American with a cheerful smile goodbye, and then suddenly, taxes at his house were raised. It seemed like the boy was only good for paying off Arthur's own debt. He was a tool. And so he rebelled, and Alfred found just the right person to support and fund the entire operation.

That person continued to laugh it off and ramble on. "You are really great! Really! Why do you look so down...? It's a shame Antonio couldn't be here. He recently showed me a cute cheer up charm not too long ago! How did it go again? Something like Fusasoasoasoaso or something like that. I forgot."

He was France. Well, not the actual landmass of France, but more of a representation of the country itself. He preferred to be called Francis Bonnefoy though, just because it suited him much better. A good-faith Frenchman. That's what he was and loved to boast on it. To Francis, his home meant everything, mainly because he was everything it was. If the economy went down, like it currently was, he would go down with it. If the country of France itself were to expand, his own power and influence would expand along with it. It was kind of a mirror reaction in a sense and he himself, along with other countries, didn't understand it fully.

However, none of that would ever stop him from joining a cause. Who wouldn't after having their ass beat up countless times? Of course the Frenchman would never describe it like that. He would simply point out that God was just not feeling in the mood to be in his favor or some line of thinking among that. Francis was boastful and pride was part of his main fuel. It couldn't be helped. So when opportunity came knocking at his door in the form of Benjamin Franklin (a personal favorite of his), Francis took the opportunity by the reins. Though, of course it wouldn't be to beat the British. Francis honestly wanted to support Alfred, representation of the British colonies and whatnot, finally gain independence and become his own country.

As if.

Francis didn't like to think on that though. Though it was a variant of the truth, he did want to help the boy in some ways. He couldn't imagine having to be under that bushy-eyebrowed Arthur for his entire life, doing his bidding. Then again, he didn't have to imagine too hard. The Hundred Years' War left enough memories plastered in his mind. Besides the point, helping out Alfred opened a lot of opportunities for himself. After all, it opened up a new partner for trade and helped him sit back and relax while another nation did the fighting for him. Not that he couldn't fight himself. Francis just didn't enjoy getting his hands dirty. It was kind of his style, in a brief sense. So, he funded the American and beat the British after a long string of losses. Viva la France.

Alfred didn't think Francis was the kind helping heart he pretended to be though. He fell for it at first, but it didn't take himself too long to figure things out. "Cheer up charm? Why are you Europeans into weird things? Man... You guys are all the same-" He quickly smacked his lips shut and sealed them thoroughly.

It wasn't the first time the American said anything like that. In fact, he said it to himself all the time. After being the European's marionette for years, it was a reasonable way to think. Though he did have to thank Europe for some things, he wasn't going to preach about their glory. After all, he had glory to make for himself. That was what he wanted after all. He didn't want to poke his head out to the world just yet, but some day, everyone would cheer on his name. That's was what Alfred wanted most. He was kind of prideful too in that aspect. A big dreamer. He saw the United States expanding, defeating every European he could find, and defending the rest of the Americans from colonization and other things. He wouldn't call himself a hero though. That idea would be entirely too cliché.

Francis didn't have to ponder for a long time on the meaning of what he said though. His head twisted around to face Alfred directly in alarm, sending blonde locks bobbing and taking what the American meant as some brand of threat. "What do you mean by that? I am nothing like Eyebrows if that's you're implying. Do I look void of taste to you?!" Comparing Francis and Arthur was always sure to end up sending a few sparks flying.

The Frenchman knew that this wasn't the first time Alfred said it though. He was there when he first admitted it out loud. It was the day when there own positive semi-brotherly relationship that they had kept ran into a wall. Arthur and himself were simply "chatting" one day when it happened. Well, the "chat" turned sour quickly as anyone could guess. Francis called Arthur out on his lonely deprived state and his own determined force to not let go of Alfred no matter what happened. Meanwhile, the Englishman in return mocked Francis until he finally admitted that he wasn't entirely interested in helping Alfred and that he was truly selfish; much more on the fact that he wasn't even sure if the boy would last as a nation or not. And of course, the hot-blooded American spoken of walked in on that exact moment. "You Europeans are all the same!" He stormed out of there afterwards. Alfred's and Francis' relationship had been slightly tense ever since.

Alfred wasn't clueless. He knew that Francis wasn't either. They were both thinking of the same moment. "Just forget about it." He advised, not interested in having to be yelled at by the Frenchman over anything. He didn't mean completely what he said. Alfred knew there were moments when Francis and Arthur made good memories in his mind and he liked to spend time with them. However, it was hard to build a nation with such a mindset on the past. He was strengthening himself, after all. He didn't want to be dependent on anyone for anything and wanted to be the one people depended on themselves. Alfred was sort of your typical teenage in that way. Rebellious as always.

The Frenchman in return wasn't quick to forget about something so easily though. Just like Alfred, he knew the other wasn't a mindless buffoon. "Non! Look, I'm sorry what I said, but you can't just group all of me with them. They're side characters in this story anyways." The long-haired blonde wasn't really partial to Alfred's teenage attitude. Then again, he was the rebellious type himself and loved to speak his mind. That's where the two were always bumping heads. It wasn't Francis' fault that his opinion was too important not to put out there. "You've been acting strange ever since you beat the English. Why don't you talk to me about it~? There is no reason for you to be guilty. You just saved yourself. Freedom is the best, after all!" His eyes tightly closed as he suddenly started to cough a bit into his hand. "Ugh… pardon."
Alfred's eyes widened in misbelief as if the Frenchman said something completely out of turn. It wasn't long before he turned his head away from the other and mumbled. "You're a real hypocrite."

The indigo eyes of Francis' closed tightly into a small squint, hoping he had misunderstood that. "Pardon? I didn't quite catch that. In what way am I a hypocrite? I'm the most direct and creative person I know~" That was true. Francis was fairly direct and was definitely creative, but he was also too bigheaded to look in the mirror himself at times.

"I- I don't just mean you!" Alfred looked for a second like he was going to deny what he said, then continued at it. "It's you and all of Europe! You say you're all independent and love freedom and whatever but you colonize others without giving it a second thought! And then you're always bowing down to your fat and lazy kings all the time that eat cake or whatever while you work your asses off! You're not free at all! And it's because of you guys that the rest of the world can't be free either! Why the hell do you think I revolted in the first place? It wasn't for nothing! I was actually fighting for something, not just helping you have your way at Arthur. I'm independent and the rest of the world should be free to. Aren't you French all for that Enlightenment or scientific stuff or whatever you call it that says all men are equal and stuff like that? Because you don't sound like it. I-" He let out a large sigh and looked up at the sky.

Little stars were beginning to appear. All of them began to cluster the entire area and were able to be seen from every corner of the Earth. The north star, the big leader, helped them battle the darkness as it began to set, sending the sky twinkling throughout the night. Each little star held their own, believing in their own spirit and will. There were some that were dimmer than others as they always are, but eventually they would shine just as bright as the others. They were just unpolished gems. Alfred stared a little while longer before bringing his head down. "I'm sorry. I'm just stressed with everything that's been going on lately. I have to create a constitution thingy when I get home from Paris. I wonder if I can get Madison on that."

For a while, Francis was too stunned to reply. It was like reality just hit him in the face. It took a while for him to produce any words at all, just as Alfred was standing up to leave. "W-Wait! I mean, oui, I just- I'm completely loyal to my king!" Francis quickly covered up his words and stood up along with him to prove his point. "You're just too rebellious to understand! The monarchy has always been in my life and I love it!" That was a lie. While Francis did really love some of his kings, he hated some others to no end. Honestly, at times he felt like a dog getting ordered around all the time by his master, but he was too prideful about himself and his house to admit that.

"Whatever." That was Alfred's reply as he walked away. He couldn't see the point in following one man like that forever. They all seemed like stuck-up snobs to him. He knew for sure that he would never have that. He's already decided. The United States is going to be a democracy, where all white males can be free and equal. He would be understood as the embodiment of freedom. That was his goal for his house, anyways.

This got Francis thinking. Not just the representative of France, but every countryman as well. Wheels started turning as more and more Enlightenment ideas spread throughout Europe. It was contagious. It was bound for a change. Everything was bound for a change. This is where the story begins.

Admin Notes: I hope you like the beginning! I can't promise timed updates or anything. Please feel free to leave comments about what you think. I accept criticism as well! If you find any misspellings or anything like that, please report so I can fix them immediately. By the way, this takes place the day after the signing of the Treaty of Paris in case you were confused. And it's fun to break the forth wall sometimes~ This story is going to be posted on both Quotev and .
Disclaimer: I do not own France or Hetalia