Disclaimer: I own nothing! Not Arthur, not Alfred (they belong to Hima-papa), and not Jamestown (that belongs to Virginia). Though I'd like to own the first two... *brick'd*

Arthur grumbled under his breath, shifting from one foot to the other and glanced at his watch.

"That git is late. Of all the-"

"ARTIE!"

The British nation jumped, but fixed his frown in place before turning to face his lover. He would not allow the brash American to see just how happy his arrival had made Arthur; at least, not until Alfred had been properly scolded.

The American in question wrapped his arms around Arthur and picked him up a little with his hug. Arthur reached up a gently smacked him on the back of the head as soon as he had been released.

"You're late. Where have you been?"

"Just a last-minute thing. I want this to be special."

Arthur narrowed his eyes at his boyfriend and considered interrogating him, but Alfred just smiled sweetly and took Arthur's hand.

The two nations walked hand in hand through the park at Historic Jamestowne. Arthur glanced around, unable to recognize anything from the last time he had been here. Though, this didn't surprise him given that it had been almost 400 years since then.

"Why did you want to come here, anyway? It's not as though this spot was really all that important to either of us."

Alfred only smiled, tugging Arthur toward the river and the replica ships that bobbed along in the water. Arthur felt nerves start to stir in his stomach, but he walked hand in hand with his American and tried to enjoy the late spring afternoon.

A sudden whistling sound cut through the air. Alfred glanced out over the river just before an orb of red sparks exploded in the air. Arthur jumped at the explosion, snapping his head around to look out at the fireworks display. He watched the colorful display for a few seconds before turning back to Alfred, brows drawn into a fierce glare and ready to scold his companion again.

Alfred just gave Arthur a quick kiss to stop the words.

"Relax. The fireworks aren't for us."

Arthur stared up at Alfred, his heart thundering in his chest both from the adrenaline still in his system and with a new fear at Alfred's serious tone. His expression softened slightly, but remained slightly suspicious.

"But they're that 'last minute thing' you were taking care of earlier, aren't they?"

"Maybe."

"What are you planning?"

Alfred only chuckled a little, tugging Arthur to a park bench nearby.

"The fireworks are to distract everyone else. I know you, Artie, better than you think."

The Brit sank onto the bench, his eyes popping wide and heart leaping when Alfred knelt on one knee in front of him.

"I'll admit, it was tempting to hire a pilot to write something in the sky for you, or some other big spectacle, but it just wouldn't be right. It wouldn't be right for you. Hell, now I'm getting nervous."

Alfred busied himself for a moment reaching into the pocket of his jacket. He pulled out a white velvet box, but didn't open it, just looked at it for a moment before meeting Arthur's eyes again. Arthur thought it was the fireworks that made Alfred's eyes sparkle, but it was unshed tears.

"I love you. Damn, I love you. Don't ask me when, or how, or why, 'cuz I can't answer questions like that. And I can practically hear you yelling in your head that this won't last, that just being what we are will tear us apart. I don't care. I've loved you as long as I can remember, since I first saw you, and I'm never gonna stop loving you."

Alfred had to stop and take a shuddering breath and scrub at his eyes. He fiddled with the box for a second before opening it. Arthur looked down at the ring that had been revealed. It wasn't anything Arthur had imagined Alfred giving him. There was no big diamond, no glittering gold band. Three small diamonds glittered in the light from the fireworks, the rose gold band carved with a subtle design that twisted around the gemstones.

"Marry me, Arthur? Please, please, please, marry me?"

"Bloody hell."

The words were barely more than a breath from Arthur's mouth, but Alfred laughed a bit.

"There's my Artie."

"Bloody hell, you git. Why? God, why?"

"'Cuz I love you. I love when you call me git, your habit of talking to yourself when you're happy, you crazy hair and eyebrows. I can't imagine living without you; even trying hurts so damned much. I want to spend every moment I can with you. So, why wouldn't I want to marry you?"

Arthur covered his face with his hands, trying desperately not to cry. Alfred shifted from his knee to sit next to his lover, hesitating for a moment before wrapping one arm around Arthur.

"Arthur? You're starting to worry me."

Arthur had to take several deep breaths before he could look up at Alfred.

"You were right. There's no way this could work."

"But, will you try? Will you say yes?"

Arthur looked back down at the beautiful ring Alfred was still holding,

"I shouldn't. I really shouldn't."

Alfred's heart slammed against his chest, but he forced himself to speak evenly.

"Arthur, please. Marry me?"

Arthur's voice failed him at last, and he just nodded. Alfred let out a happy, whooping laugh and pulled Arthur into a bone crushing hug. Arthur jabbed his elbow into Alfred's ribs, but didn't protest further. He took the jewelry box from the American's hands and pulled out the ring to study it.

The engraving inside the ring caught his attention. A vine of roses swirled around the entirety of the ring and just under the stones was a date, 4/26/1607. Arthur looked back up at Alfred with a frown. The American just smiled, taking the ring gently.

"You landed here on that day. I told you: I've always loved you."

Arthur finally let his tears fall while Alfred slipped the ring on his finger. He wrapped his arms around the taller blonde's neck and yanked him down for a long kiss. The applause from several onlookers jerked the Englishman out of his emotional fog and into a state of complete embarrassment. Alfred laughed again, letting Arthur pull him to his feet and back to their apartment.

Author's note

Whee! I finished a story! (Something I haven't done in an unbelievably long time.) This just sort of wormed its way into my head and ended up being my procrastination of choice for a few days. It was technically never beta-ed, but I'm comfortable enough with it as it is. If you notice anything (especially pronoun confusion), let me know and I'll do my best to fix it.

Reviews make the author very, very happy. (Except flames. No flames. Play nice.)