The sky was a blue so bright, that anyone who looked at it, could not help but to gaze at it, all previous thoughts forgotten. Similarly, the clouds that were strewn across it were pure white, fluffy and tall, making even the soft powder that covered the ground look hard and rough.
It was the dead of winter, but it would soon seem to have never been more alive. For just as the sun reached its highest peak in its traditional dance across the sky, a small girl was born.
In the middle of a frozen tundra, once a field of tall grass, the girl appeared. With no parents in sight, any onlooker would have scoffed at the idea of the appearance of the girl being referred to as a birth. But a small handful of people would know the truth.
It was a birth. The girl was born of the world surrounding her, and of the handshaking of two gentlemen, not far from where she sat. This girl was born of the wind, the sky, the clouds, and the earth. And it was a wondrous thing, that not even those exceptions of people could have explained.
In minutes prior to the birth of the small girl, people would remember looking out their windows and thanking their luck that they had wood for their fireplace to keep them warm. The sky had never looked so unforgiving, cold and gray, a mass of clouds and seething winds, shaking even the strongest and mightiest of trees.
Then, suddenly, the sky calmed, the winds broke and mellowed, and the blue sky peeked out from its gray prison, which had soon turned fluffy and white, acting as embellishments instead of captors.
Only one boy had seen this magical transformation, and as he looked around him at the stack of papers calling his name, he made the decision to go and find the source of this strange and foreign phenomenon. This boy was a member of the small group of people who would have understood what this strange girl meant. But, unfortunately for her, he was one of the more inexperienced of the group, thus, upon finding her wandering around the streets of his city, he mistook her significance, and changed her life forever.
This had not yet happened. The girl was still sitting in the middle of a field, covered with snow, in nothing but a thin white dress, with a loose blue ribbon the precise shade of the sky above her, tucked under the collar, tied in a bow. This dress should have been another clue to the boy who found her, but his tired mind still refused to make the connection.
The girl looked around her, and shivered. Instantly, the snow surrounding her melted and dried by a strange heat source, and the lifeless grass became thick and lush around her, tickling her feet and causing her to giggle. The sound rang out in the air, as light as the clouds filtering soft light down on her. Brown hair fanned out onto the grass, rich in color and thickness as the newly rejuvenated earth her small fingers dug into. The soft grass continued to tickle her through her dress, as the heat source warmed her, and she let out another peal of laughter.
This time, the laughter was answered with a loud neigh, one that pierced the air. The girl sat up, a look of terror on her face, and her big brown eyes as dark as the evergreen trees bark in the far distance wide with fright. The neigh reached her ears again, and far, far away, farther than any human could see she saw a dark shape, coming cowards her at a speed never seen before by any of this world.
The girl stood shakily, for she had never done it before, but felt that if as of the utmost importance that she do so, and took a step back. Successful, she turned around and began to pick her way in the other direction, where she could see tall gray and brown rocks that would hide her.
Another neigh, closer this time, and the girl squeaked, breaking out into a run. At the sound of the squeak, the newly rejuvenated grass grew, spreading father, until it caught up to the girls surprisingly quick feet. The patch of green grass and warmth had spread in a trail behind the girl, and soon was shielding her feet from the snow. The grass thickened, until the girls feet were no longer touching the earth.
This surprised her, and she stumbled. The tall grass caught her, now weaving itself together where her feet were going to hit, to completely support her, as well as handing each foot over to the next step, enabling the girl to get away from the thing that scared her. Then neighs were quieter now, but the girl kept reached the rocks, and the edge of the meadow. She stopped suddenly, seeing that there was no more grass in front of her. But she had been running too fast, and the momentum carried her foreword. She let out a small scream, as she fell foreword. Before she could hit the ground though, she was caught by something hard and knobby.
Opening her eyes, she looked at what had saved her, and found herself in the arms of a small, young, tree. She laughed a bit, and for the first time, used her voice to speak.
"Thank you, Mister Tree!" She patted the branches, and giggled. The tree seemed to straighten up, almost as if it were proud of itself. The girl giggled again, and started to squirm down to the ground. The tree immediately lowered the branch she was on, and she easily stepped to the ground. She stepped forewords, and the tree and grass sagged. Hearing the subtle creaking, the girl turned around, and threw herself into the grass, giving it a hug full of love and care, whispering a thank you to it, dark shape forgotten. After the grass helped her up, she turned to the tree. She wrapped her arms around the trunk, and gave it a kiss. Then she patted the lower branches, and whispered good bye to them, promising to come back.
She turned, and took a few cautious steps foreword. She noticed a different feel of the air in this spot. Not paying any attention to the ground, she soon fell on an uneven part of the rock that covered the ground here. She hit the ground, not too hard, but enough to tear the dress a bit, now green from the grass, and brown from the dirt. She felt a sharp pain in her leg, and looked down in alarm, at the red slowly staining her dress another color. She pulled up the dress, and looked, confused and in pain at the red mark that stung when she poked at it. It traveled up her leg, almost the entire length of it, a ridiculously large injury for such a short fall. What the girl hadn't noticed, was that she had had this mark on her from the beginning, and that her contact with the earth had been keeping the pain at bay.
Acting on instinct, the girl limped back to the grass which had given her comfort, and the tree lifted her up, allowing the grass to bind her leg tightly. A small plant then grew, and blue berries soon dotted its leaves in small clusters. The girl picked a single berry, being very careful to pull gently so as to not hurt the plant. She then ate the berry, the flavor exploding in her mouth. She instantly felt better, the pain vanishing and a calm drowsy feeling overtaking her. She felt the tree lower her, and whispered a thank you to the plants once more, slowly waking back to the stone covered ground, being careful to watch the ground. She made it to a choice of left or right, and sleepily turned left. Her steps were slowed as the berry's soothing taste kept her in a relaxed state of mind. She was so relaxed that she forgot to be scared when she bumped into something and fell backwards, choosing instead to curl up and fall asleep right there with a contented sigh.
The boy, really more of a young adult, despite his still childish features, closed the door to his house, having shrugged on a coat and shoes. He started walking to the right, towards the entrance to the field, convinced that that would be the best place to start his quest to find out why the sky had changed so much. Lost in his thoughts, he was shocked when he felt something bump into him.
He looked down, and saw a small girl, wearing a once white dress. The garment was torn, and stained green, brown, and, red? He looked closer at the girl, who was now curled up on the ground, sleeping. He saw semi dried blood on the girls ankle, and, judging by the stain, realized she must have a large wound running the length of her leg. He stood, looking around for anyone to claim the child. Seeing no one, he knelt, and picked up the small girl. He was shocked at how light she was. True, she was rather young looking, but he required almost no strength at all to lift her.
Carrying her in his arms, he walked back to his house. Shifting her to one arm, he turned the doorknob, thankful that he had forgotten to lock it for once. He walked in and closed the door with his foot, before walking upstairs to the spare room he usually kept for his brother Matthew, right next to his. Pushing the door open with his foot, he breathed in the scent of maple, his brothers trademark. He was Canada after all, and proud of it. Smiling to himself, he walked over to the large bed, and carefully placed the girl in it. Studying her face, he deduced that she was around two years old, still incredibly young to be wandering the streets, alone.
He carefully brushed some of her soft, surprisingly long and thick hair away from her face, and by doing so, revealed the ribbon. The young mans eyes widened in surprise, for the color matched his eyes, the only part of the girl free from damage. This brought up another issue. The girl clearly needed a bathing, and a fresh outfit, but modesty prevented him from proceeding. A light blush dusted his cheeks, and he imagined what Matthew would do in this situation. Most likely think nothing of it, insisting that the girl needed assistance, blushing while saying so, or rigging up a clever system to shield the girl.
He stood, having decided to call Matthew, and see what his advice was. Casting one last look at the girl, he looked at her leg, the injured one. He frowned, and looked closer. It couldn't be, grass?
He walked up to her and shifted the hem of the dress up the slightest bit, eyes fixed on the bandage made of grass, tightly woven together. He whistled at the quality, thinking back to when medicine equaled nature. He wondered who did it, but decided to still call Mattie. He walked into his hallway, turning immediately right, into his room, which, in his opinion, smelled of freedom, and liberty. He crossed to the handsome cherry wood desk, and picked up the phone there. Dialing his brothers number, he listened to the tone. After three rings, Matthew picked up.
"Hello. This is Mr. Williams speaking." came the soft voice of Matthew Williams, personification of Canada, and brother to Alfred F. Jones, personification of America.
"Mattie! It's me! Al! The hero!" Alfred yelled back into the telephone excitedly, happy to hear his brothers voice again, even if he could hardly hear him. His soft voice is what usually got him overlooked by most nations entirely, and when they did see him, they usually thought he was America, and beat him up. Alfred's handsome features formed a scowl as he thought of a certain personification that was constantly beating up Mattie. That is, until a certain red eyed Prussian came along. Al grinned, thinking of how Gilbert and Matthew completed each other, despite being complete opposites. Like him and Arthur...
"Al! Canada to America! What did you call me for? Gilbert's going to be coming over later and I'm making pancakes." Matthews slightly annoyed voice cut through Alfred's drifting thoughts of him and a certain grumpy green eyed Brit. He grinned at the implications of such a late visit of Gil.
"Yeah. Sorry Mattie, just had some drifting thoughts. A weird thing happened today." Alfred's voice grew worried, and he vaguely heard the scraping of a chair.
"Okay." came his brothers voice, now soft and quiet, clearly ready to listen. "Tell me everything."
Alfred took a deep breath, and began talking. He told Matthew about the weird sky thing, bumping into the girl, what state she was in, and the wound with the grass bandages. As soon as he finished, he heard the chair being pushed back, and his brothers parting words, before he hung up.
"I'll be there in under an hour."
Alfred sighed, relieved. His brother would know what to do. He always did. A small voice begged his attention, as he put the phone back.
"Hello?" The small, scared sound sent Alfred flying to Matthew's room.
"Hi." he answered, his voice coming out soft and gentle instead of its usual loudness. He slowly but calmly walked up to the bed, and to his surprise and pleasure, noticed that the girl did not try to hide, or shrink away when she saw him come closer. On the contrary, she sat up eagerly.
"Hi Big Brother!" she chirped in a voice so sweet and cheerful, Alfred immediately smiled, blushing a bit at the name.
"I'm sorry. Do I know you?" he asked before mentally bringing his hand to his face. What was he thinking? She was two! The fact that she could say that was amazing enough.
But to his surprise, the girl smiled, and said, "No. But your eyes match my ribbon, which matches the sky, which means that you must be related to the sky, and that since the sky is my big brother, you must be too!" She finished this little speech with a hug to Alfred's torso, one full of so much love that he wanted to melt on the spot. He decided to ask if she had any other family, despite the fact that he now wanted to take care of her, to be her big brother.
"Do we have any other relatives?" he asked, using the we to humor the girl.
"Yes! The green forests, the blue waters, and the blue violet gemstones!" the small girl eagerly said, dark brown eyes shining with excitement.
"Hmm..." Alfred thought for a moment, and, not thinking to ask for names, instead went a different direction. "What's your name cutie?" he asked, tilting her chin up and smiling warmly at her.
The little girls cherubic like face became troubled. "I don't know." Her voice was sad as she frowned, undertones laced with confusion and frustration.
Alfred's heart melted, and he pulled her onto his lap to wrap his arms around her, making soothing noises as he gave her a gentle hug.
"Hey!" Alfred said, pretending to get a great idea. The little girl looked at him in confusion, but also trust. Complete and utter trust. Alfred flashed his million watt grin at her and said, "How about we chose a name for you?"
The girls face lit up, and she mirrored his grin. "Okay!" Alfred gave her one last squeeze before picking her up, secretly watching her carefully for any sign of pain, as he had been doing since he entered the room. Arthur and Matthew should give him more credit. He wasn't completely incapable. She gave no sign of discomfort, and he shifted her to one side. She wrapped her small arms around his neck, fingers just reaching each other, and she buried her head into his neck.
"I have a bunch of name books we can look through! They are downstairs so hold on tight." Alfred said, as he began walking to the stairs. He gave a small "Oh! Sorry! I almost forgot! My name is Alfred F. Jones, hero!" He puffed out his chest, ruffling her hair when she giggled a little. The sound tickled his neck a bit and he flushed a bit, overwhelmed with cuteness.
"Okay. Then I'll call you Big Brother Al!" she chirped happily, turning her excited gaze on the profile of his face, subconsciously memorizing every single angle and line on his young kind face.
He blushed again, holding onto the railing with one hand as he carefully carried the girl down the stairs, holding on to her tightly. Once he reached the bottom, he turned left, and walked into a room he used as a sitting room. It was painted a light gray, with subtle hints of blue and violet. Alfred had always loved the color, having picked it and painted the room himself, as he had done with every room and aspect of the house. Every feature of the house was picked with care, and provided a calming effect.
Alfred sat down in one of the two easy chairs in the room, right by the window, and settled the girl on his lap. He reached over to the nearby bookshelf, and grabbed a few old looking books. He handed one of them to the girl, and opened another, setting the others aside. As he ran his fingers over the slightly yellowed pages, a memory shook loose from his subconscious, drawing him within itself to relive the events.
He had been young, almost a young as she looked, when Arthur had found him, and he had chosen him to be his brother and caretaker. Then, needing a name, they had leafed through all of Arthur's books about names. They had looked for hours, Arthur suggesting name after name, and Alfred rejecting them all. Finally, Arthur had closed his book, and opened it back up at random, closing his eyes and placing his finger on a name. Alfred. He had suggested it, telling Alfred that it was the name of one of his greatest kings.
The new nation had grinned, and puffed out his chest for the first time of many occurrences, and had stated, "Then my name shall be Alfred F. Jones!"
Arthur had smiled, and swept him up in a tight hug, before saying, "Well then, my liege. How about we take a walk?"
Alfred had smiled, and hugged Arthur tight, before nodding. Then they had walked through the golden fields of America together, into the night. They had both known right then, that the name was perfect.
The memory ended, and Alfred blinked, feeling a small hand on his cheek.
"Why are you crying, big brother Al? What's wrong?" the child questioned, eyes wide and worried, fingers tracing the trails of the tears. Alfred quickly rubbed the tears away, surprised that he hadn't noticed the tears. He gave the worried child a smile, smoothing her soft hair down, and placing a kiss on the top of her head.
"Nothing is wrong. I just got caught up in a memory. Did you know that I found my name in that very book?" he said, pointing to the book in the girls lap. She looked at him in wonder, and he picked it up, flipping to the page that Arthur had chosen all those years ago. He had gotten the books in a box after the Revolutionary War, along with a few other things of his. No note, just a tattered old box. Alfred involuntarily shivered at the memory, pushing away the pain of the war and the times after, when Arthur called him America, with a stiff voice laced with pain, betrayal, indifference, and, sadness.
Pushing back the tears, he showed her the name, and they began flipping through the books, in search of the perfect name.
They got lost in the name searching, and were startled by a nock on the door. Alfred looked up from his second book, and thought. Then he realized that it was Matthew. Alfred smiled, and looked down at the girl, who had fallen into a light sleep. He painstakingly shifted her, so as to not wake her, aware of the loudness and frequency of the knocks.
Once he was sure she was settled comfortably, he walked the short distance to the door and opened it to see a man who looked similar to him. With slightly longer, slightly darker hair, and a slightly taller physique, he was nearly identical to Alfred. Only his eyes were different, instead of being a blue clearer than the beautiful waters of Torch Lake, they were a sparkling violet, comparable to an amethyst.
"Mattie! Your here! That was faster than I thought-" Alfred's flow of words were cut off as his brother held up a hand.
"Alfred. The girl. Where is she? How bad are her injuries?" Matthew asked, stepping past Alfred as he looked around, normally soft voice strung tight with worry.
"In the sitting room, asleep. And same as I said on the phone, the grass is woven with impeccable skill. It hasn't ripped, become brittle, or allowed any more blood to flow. Its amazing!" Alfred led Matthew into the room where the girl was still sleeping. His violet eyes softened as he saw her peaceful sleeping features, made even more cherubic by the softly lit room. Then his eyes widened, as he saw the familiar white dress.
He turned to Alfred to ask him why he hadn't mentioned what she was, when she shifted, and he caught sight of her side, the one with the blood stain. All other thoughts flew out of his mind, as he shrugged off his coat and shoes. It was then that Alfred realized that throughout the whole time since he had found the girl, he had forgotten to remove his own. He did so sheepishly, and watched as Matthew walked over to the girl.
Matthews eyes slid over the bottom half of the grass bandage, and he had to agree with Alfred. This was remarkable skill, a style he had not seen since since the days when the tribes were still living in large numbers across his land, and medicine equaled nature. He looked back at Alfred, who gave him a shrug.
"What did you do after the phone call?" Matthew asked, standing up, having assessed that there is nothing that he could improve for the girl.
"She woke up, and called me her big brother. From what I can tell, she doesn't have any family, but she insists that I am her big brother, and that there are three more. I can't remember exactly what she said, but it was very specific. Mattie, I think she's alone." Alfred looked at his brother, who knew what the unspoken question that came along with that statement was.
Matthew shrugged, saying, "Maybe, Al, maybe." He sat down in the chair that Al pushed towards him, by the side of the couch where the girl slumbered.
Alfred perked up a bit, and continued, after walking over to the girl and stroking her hair softly.
"Then I carried her down stairs to find her a name. We have been flipping through books ever since, and she had just fallen asleep when you came." Alfred finished, looking at the girl with the same amount of love that she had looked at him with, and Matthew sighed, not sure what would happen if the girls parents showed up.
They were both startled by the girl yawning, and sitting up, grabbing onto Alfred's arm when she saw Matthew. But then she smiled brightly, and launched herself into his lap, hugging him tightly. Matthew looked at Alfred in confusion, and Alfred shrugged.
The girl sat back, and looked at Matthew with her big brown eyes, melting his heart. "Hi Big Brother!" she chirped, arms still wound as much as she could around his torso.
Matthew sighed a bit, and gave the girl a small smile. "No, I am not Alfred. My name is Matthew. Hello." he said tiredly, while still trying to be polite. Just another person who couldn't tell them apart. He looked over to Al, who instead, had sat down with a look of only slight confusion, as he thought.
"No." The girl tugged on his blue violet tie, one of his favorite, since it closely matched his eyes. He looked back down to see a slightly cross expression on the girls face. She shook her small head, and said, "I know you aren't big brother Al. You have longer and darker hair, you are taller, and your eyes are like blue violet gemstones." Matthew and the girl looked at Alfred, who had said the last words along with her. His face split into a grin of hope and joy.
"I'll tell you in a minute." he said to Matthew, before looking at the girl. "So, who is he?" he asked, having a hunch about what was going on, and loving where it was going.
Jenna looked at Matthew, before smiling just like Alfred did, and said, "You are big brother Mattie! Can we try to find a name now, together?" She looked pleadingly at Alfred, who nodded.
"Of course. Why don't you start with big brother Mattie, and I'll be back, after a quick phone call." Alfred said, idea forming in his head. He smiled once more, before leaving the room to make the call. He walked to the phone, and dialed the well known number, hoping they were both still there. It picked up after two rings, and Alfred couldn't hold back a smile at the for once relieved tone in his favorite Brit's voice.
"Yes, hello?"
"Artie! Hey it's Al! Is Francis still there?"
Once Alfred had left the room, the girl had got up and grabbed her next book, having given up on the other. She flopped down on his recently vacated chair before smiling as she held out the book Al had been looking through, and Matthew smiled at her, before asking, "How long have you been looking through these?"
"Since big brother Al carried me down stairs. He said that he found his perfect name in that book," she said, pointing to the one in Matthews hand. "And that he just knew that it was perfect." She looked back at the book, yawning slightly.
Matthew almost cooed at the adorable motion, but instead decided to do what Al would do. He opened his arms, and the girl looked up, before her small face light up with the smile that seemed to truly leave her face. She climbed up onto his lap and he held the book in front of them, deciding to choose one randomly, hoping that the book still carried some of its magic from before. He closed his eyes, and flipped partway through the book, opening it to see he was at the J's. He closed his eyes again, and tapped a random spot on the page. He looked at it, and smiled, knowing that he had found it. He showed it to the girl, who nodded her head, knowing it was perfect.
Alfred walked back into the room, thankful that Francis had still been looking over papers with Arthur, and they were still in the hotel that Alfred had booked, close to where he was, so that the four of them, France, America, Canada, and England, could work on a new proposal of their bosses. Ironically, it focused on child custody protocol. They were about 15 minutes away, and had agreed to come over.
Sitting down in his chair, he pocked up a random name book and began flipping through it when he noticed that Mattie and the girl had stopped flipping, and were looking at him with matching smiles, the girl relaxed against Mattie, leaned back and looking tired.
"What did I miss? Have you narrowed if down some?" he asked, looking back at them in slight confusion when their smiles grew.
"You could say that. Say hello to little sister Jenna." Mattie said, resting his chin on Jenna's head.
Al looked at them in disbelief. "You found the perfect name that quickly?" he asked, giving a small glare to his brother.
Mattie just smiled wider, loftily saying, "First try, hoser. I flipped to a random page in this book." He tossed the book at Al.
Al caught it deftly, grinning a bit as he realized which book it was. He placed it, and all the other books, back on the shelf he found them on, and sat down, before laughing a bit, and saying, "Well clearly it's a magic book. Using that same book, with that same method, was how Artie chose my perfect name. But then I knew what my middle and last name would be immediately after. Did you, Jenna?" He smiled at her, glad he had used her name when he saw her face light up. She nodded vigorously, and Mattie looked down at her in surprise. Al laughed, and stuck his tongue out at Mattie, who rolled his eyes. He then looked at Jenna, eyebrows raised, cueing her to tell them.
"My name is Jenna King! I don't want a middle name, but if anybody asks, tell them that it starts with an "l"." Jenna said proudly.
Al nodded his head, and tested it out once, just to see how it rolled off of his tongue. He smiled, and held open his arms to her, saying, "It's perfect!"
She climbed off of Mattie's lap, and ran over to him, and he picked her up, and sat her back on his lap. Mattie muttered a soft, "Hoser." before settling down in his chair for a nap, eyes closing softly.
Jenna watched this, and quietly said, "Mattie has eyes like fresh tanzanite, deep and bright, with a slight tint of purple not found in any other rock. He is a gemstone like none other, and I am glad to call him my brother." Alfred stared at her in shock, her words surprisingly deep for one of such a young age, but said nothing, before she giggled, and said sleepily, "Haha that rhymes! Night big brother Al..."
Alfred looked down at her, to see that her eyes were closed, and her head falling foreword. He leaned back, and allowed Jenna to use him as a pillow, while he thought of her words. He felt something tugging at his memory, some connection between what she had just said and something earlier, but as Jenna and Mattie's steady breathing filled the room, he found himself drifting off to sleep, until he too, was sleeping peacefully.
As Jenna slept, her clothes began to change. Now that she had a name, and a family, she was no longer an orphan. Her once white dress melted into clothes that fit her personality. A fluttery white blouse, with long sleeves, and brown work-grade pants, perfectly colliding with the era of women who wore dresses, and stayed at home. Just like Jenna would, as her new family would soon find out. Her sky blue ribbon stayed in a loose bow around her neck.
A soft knocking at the door, followed by a harder one, and the voices of two quarreling men, woke Jenna before Al and Mattie. She sat up from her comfortable seat in Al's lap, and yawned. She looked at Al and Mattie, who were just stirring, and, as the knocking became louder, she slid down, resolved to open the door. Her barefoot feet made no noise as she padded over to the door, looking up at the knob above her head. There was more arguing, and this time, Jenna could make out what they were saying.
A cross voice, different from Al and Mattie's, became much louder, and Jenna heard, "America! Open the bloody door, git!" That was followed by more violent knocking, and Jenna stretched towards the doorknob, trying to open the door, wondering if America was a different name for Al. It seemed like it, just, fitting of him.
Just as she grasped it, she heard the other man, and his voice was calm, and soft, different from all three if theirs, saying, "Do not break poor Amerique's door down Angleterre. I am sure he is coming. In the meantime..."
Jenna finally succeeded in twisting the knob, and pulling the door open. It revealed two blond haired men, one in blue, and one in green. Jenna's brown eyes were drawn to theirs, and she immediately squealed in delight, ignored their confused expressions, and hugged their legs tightly.
After a bit, she felt strong arms wrap around her waist, and Alfred lifted her up, laughing a bit at the confused expressions of the two blondes before them. She smiled at them, before wrapping her arms around Al's neck.
"Hey Artie! Francis! Glad you could make it! I see you've met Jenna. Let's go to the sitting room." Al said, beckoning them with his free hand. He walked the short distance to their recently vacated chair, and sat down, allowing Jenna room to shift into a comfortable position.
Arthur and Francis walked in, and sat on the couch across from the chair Mattie was currently waking up in. He stretched, and gave a wave to Arthur and his Papa, Francis, giving a small, indistinct "Bonjour." to the latter.
Francis stretched out onto the couch, casually placing his arm behind Arthur, who immediately shuddered and slid to the far end of the couch, away from Francis, muttering something about bloody frogs.
Francis glanced at Jenna, and then at Alfred, before asking, "So, Amerique, what was the reason you asked Angleterre and I over? It sounded urgent."
Alfred nodded, but before he could begin talking, Jenna tugged on his shirt sleeve. He looked down at her, and asked, "Yes, Jenna?"
Jenna looked at Arthur and Francis, and broke out into a smile that reminded them of Alfred's. "Remember, big brother Al? The green forests and the blue waters! Along with the blue violet gemstones and the clear blue sky, my family is here!" She threw her arms up, now smiling so wide that she seemed to glow with happiness.
Alfred nodded, his earlier suspicions just confirmed by Jenna. Noticing that the other three were looking at him in slight worry, he grinned down at Jenna, and hugged her, before explaining. "When Jenna came to, she called me big brother. She then explained that since my eyes matched the sky, and the sky was her brother, that if must be her brother. Then, she said that her other relatives were the green forests, the blue waters, and the blue violet gemstones!" Al finished, looking around at their still slightly confused expressions.
Then, Mattie made a sound of comprehension. "My eyes are blueish violet, Arthur's are green, and Francis's are blue. Somehow, she was talking about us, and referring to us by our eye colors. Is that right Jenna?" He looked at her and she nodded happily.
Arthur and Francis both said "Ah." and looked curiously at the mysterious girl who was convinced of being their family.
Arthur surprised everyone when he opened his arms, and when Jenna ran over to him, picking her up and sitting her on his lap. "Well now poppet. I suppose we should get to know each other." He ran his fingers through her dark brown hair, long and soft. When the others looked at him in confusion, he just shrugged, and said, "She clearly has no other place to go. And strange things happen for a reason. She knew us before we met her, seems to be quite intelligent for someone so young, and, just, I have a feeling, just, a feeling about her. I'm not sure what it is, but I have learned to trust my instincts, wherever they may lead me." He said the last part stiffly, and a ghost of something sad was visible in his forest green eyes, before it vanished, and he looked down at Jenna, smiling softly.
Alfred watched, and a feeling of nostalgia washed over him, but he pushed it away, and brightened, saying loudly, "Alright! Let's get to it then. You already know my name, so let's go on the Mattie." He put emphasis on Mattie's name, not wanting to try to explain that they were the personifications of nations to Jenna. The other three nodded, following his thinking, and Matthew began.
"My name is Matthew Williams. Alfred is my brother, and Arthur and Francis raised us, Arthur raising Alfred, while Francis raised me. I call Francis my Papa sometimes, and we sometimes speak a language called French." Matthew said, his quiet voice sounding much stronger in the quiet room, for once the center of attention. "Oh, and I am Canadian by the way. Al is American." he added, watching Jenna's face as she processed the information.
Francis spoke next, waving at Jenna as he followed the same form Matthew had. "Bonjour, mon cher! My name is Francis Bonnefoy, and I am French. I just said, hello my dear, in the most romantic language of all time. I raised Matthew, and almost Alfred, but Angleterre got to him first." Francis winked at Alfred, who just smiled back, enjoying the sight of Arthur fawning on his adorable little Jenna, absentmindedly braiding her hair, doing a surprisingly well job, despite not being into that, unlike Francis.
Realizing it was his turn, he tied the braid off with the ribbon. He smoothed her hair, and said, "Hello. My name is Arthur. Arthur Kirkland. I hail from Great Britain, and I, raised, Alfred." The last few words came out haltingly, and he swallowed, not meeting Alfred's eyes, worried that if he did, he might start crying. Pushing on, he finished. "I think I speak for all of us when I say that we would be honored to be called your family. But for now, I think we should all go to sleep." He added the last part as Jenna yawned, trying to stifle it, and failing. He shifted her, and picked her up, gently handing her over to Alfred, blushing slightly when their arms brushed together. Alfred smiled at them all, and started carrying her upstairs. They all followed, in an unspoken agreement that they were going to spend the night. They each went to their usual guest rooms, and settled in, each mulling the days events over. All except Alfred.
He carried Jenna into his room, and looked at her, before softly asking her, "Do you want to stay with me tonight?" Jenna nodded, and Alfred carried her over to his bed. He pulled back the hand stitched quilt he had gotten, an American flag proudly arranged through the patterns and shapes, and slid Jenna in, covering her back up, before walking into the other side, and climbing, fully clothed, under the quilt, allowing sleep to take him.
And so ended the first day of Jenna King's life.
