Delaware nervously watched as his father, America, paced back and forth in the kitchen. At the counter, Pennsylvania was at the counter entertaining their two guests, Italy and Germany, by feeding them slices of her famous Dutch Apple Pie and sourdough pretzels. In the dining room, Jim Reeves sang "Precious Memories," indicating that Kansas had turned on Oklahoma's favorite CD to calm her down from the chaos earlier. He could hear Tennessee upstairs playing his guitar and singing "Mr. Mom" by Lonestar.
Delaware studied his father carefully. It was almost like looking in a mirror. Delaware was almost an exact replica of America. At the physical age of seventeen, the First State had golden hair that was just a shade lighter than America's and the exact same sky blue eyes. Just put a pair of glasses on him, and Delaware could pass off as America.
The only major difference is Delaware typically wore a stern expression; whereas America's expression was typically light-hearted and laid back. In fact, America and the other states often claimed that Delaware must have been adopted because he was like Sweden and Germany's kid, if they had a kid, due to his intimidating aura, semi-permanent scowl, and stern, no-nonsense attitude. Delaware knew his family was joking about that, but it still stung a little. He had to be stern because he had to look after the other states when America was away. Being the oldest, he took it upon himself to keep order at the meetings and make sure the other states didn't get hurt or destroy property.
Obviously he had failed. He was extremely ashamed he let the others get out of hand the way they did. But yet, they didn't listen to him when he told them to stop.
"Ve~ Who are you?" Italy asked. "Como ti chiami?"
Italy and Germany had come over to investigate. Delaware figured this must be weird for them, discovering that America had children. It was clear that Prussia, Japan, France, Mexico, and Canada, the only other living nations besides America who knew about the states, had never revealed his father's secret. Germany and Italy had every right to be suspicious. They knew nothing about his siblings and him, so they had no reason to trust them.
Delaware extended his hand in a formal manner. "Jonathan David Jones, the State of Delaware. I have several nicknames such as the First State, the Diamond State, the Blue Hen State, and the Small Wonder. My state was first to ratify the Constitution on December 7, 1787, making me the oldest state."
Germany took his hand and shook it firmly. "Nice to meet you, Delaware. I am the Federal Republic of Germany, Ludwig Beilschmidt."
"Ciao Delaware!" Italy said eagerly, taking the state's other hand and shaking it rapidly. His grip wasn't as firm as Germany's and he wasn't as firm. "I'm Italy."
"It is nice to meet you Mr. Germany, Mr. Italy."
"Ve~ You don't have to be so formal. Call me Feli." Italy insisted.
Delaware's faced flushed red. Despite his flaws, America was a good father. And one of the things America had drilled into his head since the late 18th century was to be polite and respectful to people who were older than him. The best way to do that was address his elders, including nations, as "Mr." and "Ms." He even referred to Prussia as "Mr. Prussia," despite the fact that the former nation kept insisting to be called "Gil."
Italy's informal nature threw everything Delaware lived by out the window. Nations were to be addressed by their country name. Introductions were to be made using the full name, both human and official. People were always greeted with a firm, steady handshake.
"Italy!" Germany growled, noticing Delaware's discomfort with the Romance nation. "Don't make Delaware uncomfortable. This is his house, not yours. And what have I told you about greeting someone? You open your eyes and look them in the eyes, shake their hand firmly, and introduce yourself by your full official name, the Italian Republic, first, followed by your full human name, Feliciano Vargas."
"Spiacente!" Italy cried. "I forgot! I forgot!"
"Dummkopf." Germany scoffed in a gentler voice with a hint of affection.
"It's okay, Mr. Italy." Delaware said to the Romance nation hesitantly. "It's not that big of a deal. Believe me, I heard that lecture a thousand times from Father when I was younger. He still gives that lecture, just not to me anymore. But I don't mind."
"So America is actually your father then?" Germany asked.
"Yeah… I know it's probably really weird for you. It's probably even weirder knowing that he has fifty. On the bright side, only four of us were actually born. The rest of us just kind of showed up. In fact, I remember waking up near Dover, my state capital, and following my gut to a house that I somehow knew was Father's. He had the shock of his life the next morning when he woke up and there I was."
"That would be an understatement." America said dryly. He was standing in the entrance to the kitchen with his arms folded defensively over his chest. There were dark bags under his eyes, probably from the stress of having to deal with fifty children. Delaware felt a pang of guilt. His father was exhausted, and he shouldn't have to worry about coming home to either find the house destroyed or somebody dead (which was a huge possibility with rivalries like Ohio and Michigan, New York and Massachusetts, Oregon and Washington, and many others). America gave Delaware a weak smile and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry yourself, kid. What happened earlier is not your fault. I know you tried your best to prevent it, but sometimes it's inevitable."
"But Dad…" Delaware hung his head in shame. "I feel like I let you down. I know you're busy and you shouldn't have to worry about what you're going to come home to."
America cracked a smile before chuckling to himself. "I appreciate that, Del, but it's my job to worry about you kids. No matter what you do, I'm always going to worry." He adjusted his glasses and turned to Italy and Germany. "So what are you dudes doing here?"
"Well," Germany hesitated, "we- I mean Italy, thought that-"
"We were worried about you." Italy replied, interrupting Germany. "You seemed stressed when you left."
"I appreciate the gesture." America said warmly. "But I'm fine. Thank you, though."
"Ve~ Prego!" Italy exclaimed.
"Well, since you're here, you guys might as well meet the rest."
I'm going to try to formally introduce one state at a time so it doesn't get too confusing and I will be going in order of statehood. I also decided to keep it limited to two countries so there's not so many characters to pay attention to at once.
Delaware:
Human Name: Jonathan David Jones
Official Name: The State of Delaware
State Nicknames: The First State, The Diamond State, The Blue Hen State, The Small Wonder
Eye Color: Sky Blue (the exact same shade as America's)
Hair Color: Golden Blond (a shade lighter than America's)
Human Age: 17
Birthday: December 7, 1787 (1st)
