I know... I finally decided to update this story! Sorry, but I wanted to finish writing chapter three before I posted this chapter, and that went through several rewrites before I was finally satisfied.

Either way, I hope all of you enjoy this chapter~

Chapter 2: Night of the Alleys

Summary: Alfred's day off starts off routinely until his cousin comes barreling in with a demand. Then Alfred finds himself spending the evening with Ludwig, walking around the numerous alleys of London, getting lost.

Warning: Swearing, drunken nonsense, and of course Ivan.

In everyone's lives there is one sound that people hate more than anything in the world, even if they don't even realize it. Alfred was ripped from his beautiful dreams of golden fields and white fluffy rabbits to stare annoyingly at his alarm clock. It had done its job in signaling the American that it was time to get up. There was one small problem with that however… It was his day off.

Alfred pressed the snooze button and threw the black box with blinking red numbers across his room and into the wall. A loud smashing was heard; however, like always, the clock refused to be broken and unplugged. In about 10 more minutes a similar routine would commence, like every week before it, in which Alfred would have to actually get himself out of bed, away from his warm covers, and pick up the alarm clock to manually turn it off. Forgetting to turn off the alarm on his off days was a bad habit he needed to fix. Until then, however, he would continue his dreams of cheeseburgers and superheroes.

About five minutes went by when a knock on the bedroom door caused poor Alfred to glare burning holes towards the wooden frame. After a few seconds, a muffled sigh was heard, then another knock. The American buried his head under his covers, praying that the man behind his bedroom door would just go away. He knew who it was; who else could just waltz into his apartment without getting his ass kicked out the window and have the cops called on him? Alfred mentally cursed when the door was knocked on a third time. He also knew what would happen after three knocks but at the moment, he didn't care.

The door burst open with a load bang. A visible footprint that had to be washed off again appeared on the door's paint. Alfred flinched at the sudden hostile noise coming from the front of the room. Stomping that was coming closer, echoed in Alfred's head. He clenched his eyes and waited for the unforgiving act that would transpire like it did every once a month on his first day off ever since coming here.

"Oi Alfred! Get your bloody arse up! I need to talk to you!" The blankets were ripped off the blonde's body like a table cloth being used for a stunt that involved fine china and a group of old women who liked to gasp at everything.

"Hhhggmmm F-five more minutes…" He rolled over, pretending to still be in a trance of sleepiness but the other male wasn't having any of that shit today. He grabbed the American's ankles and dragged him off of his mattress with strength most people didn't know the Englishman had, effectively "waking" the other up as he hit the floor with a thud.

"The fuck Arthur!?" Alfred quickly rose to his feet, preparing to tackle the other blonde to the ground and start wrestling. Arthur simply glared at the younger with intense green eyes. Alfred had once referred them to his younger brother, Matthew, that the Briton's irises could be compared to acid. Not only did they have a similar color, but they had the same effect on a human being. They burned a hole right through the body, stopping them in their tracks.

"You know exactly why I'm here, you Yankee! I'm here for your rent! It's overdue… yet again!" Arthur pointed his finger at the American and poked him a few times to emphasize his point.

"Didn't we have this discussion last night?!" Alfred yelled back as he smacked the other's hand away.

"Yes, but I was afraid your lazy fat arse would forget."

"I'm not fat you son of a bitch…"

"You eat like one, plus the scale in your bathroom would have to disagree with you."

Alfred simply held up his middle finger, not feeling up for a screaming match this early in the morning. Arthur smirked triumphantly and placed his hands on his hips.

"Okay, listen you git, just because you're my cousin doesn't mean you get breaks from rent; I need to make money somehow, you know. Also your mum called this morning. She was asking if I knew which country you were in this time. "

"Which one did you tell her?" Alfred had waddled over to his dresser and began shuffling through them for some clothes during Arthur's lecture. He was only clad in his boxers, and the morning air coming in from an open window seemed a bit nippy today.

"I said Italy; more specifically you were traveling in Venice. How long do you think you can keep fooling them like this? Just go back to America and go to college like a normal person…" Arthur tilted his head in curiosity, but held an apathetic expression on his face.

"You know I don't want to go to college, and you know as soon as I get home, my parents are going to send me off to some ritzy, boring business school so I can take over the family business. I don't want to raise buffalo in the middle of Kansas!" Alfred grabbed his cousin's shoulders and began to shake them.

"Would you stop that!?" The shaking stopped but Alfred still had a grip on Arthur. "Beside's why would you be sent to business school if you were going to run a bison farm, you git!?"

Alfred released the Englishman's shoulders and blinked. "… You do have a point… but still! I'd rather do something I like then go work on a farm." He crossed his arms and made a disgusted face as he remembered spending his summer vacations on his family's American Bison farm.

So much shoveling… The blonde American shuddered at the memory.

Arthur rolled his eyes, "Speaking of working, you better have the rent paid by tomorrow morning, or you'll find yourself going back to the states with a pair of work overalls, boots and a shovel. Got it!?" Alfred nodded his head frantically, clenching his teeth together to form a frightened frown.

"I promise! Scout's honor!" The American raised a hand as if to pledge his alliance to something. Arthur crossed his arms and huffed.

"You were never a boy scout, you wanker…" The spiky haired blonde exited the room and out of the flat (as he would call it). Alfred stood in his boxers waiting until he heard the click of the door leading out of his residence. Once the sound rang through the apartment, signaling Arthur's departure, Alfred jumped backwards onto his mattress, bouncing a little as he landed.

He wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep, but Alfred knew Arthur would be back later, and he really didn't want another lecture from the green eyed man. But then again… sleeping in for once was always nice. He just needed to lay his head on his pillow just right, and he'd be able to drift off to dream land for a few more hours.

The second worse sound to hit his ears that morning seemed to slap him in the face as his alarm clock across the room sounded off a second time that morning. The noise muffled, by the stack of clothes it landed on. He really hated that thing.

How did a day go by so quickly? Ludwig glanced at his watch, looking in slight surprise as the time it told him. It was 8:50 p.m., and he really needed to go home. Ludwig clenched the brown bag as he adjusted his scarf. The fall weather was so much colder in Britain then what his brother described to him. Then again, his brother was always an ass so he could have just lied to the blonde German. Ludwig huffed in aggravation, the hot breath turning into a cloud before dissipating a few feet above his head. He glanced up from the sidewalk and stopped in mid-step.

"Alfred?" Ludwig glanced confusingly as the American looked back at him. He seemed to be sitting on a bench eating some fast food burger. His mouth was gaped open, about to take a bite of said burger, when the German called out to him. Alfred closed his jaws with a clack of his teeth clearly audible.

"Oh, hey Ludwig! What brings you here?" The younger asked. Ludwig stopped his gazing and mentally chastised himself for staring.

"I was out buying groceries. May I ask what you're doing out this late?"

"… I uhhh… I got hungry? … Well before that I ended up working on my day off so I could scrounge up enough cash to pay my rent…" The blonde scratched the back of his head. Ludwig blinked at him before taking a seat himself, sighing at the other blonde's antics.

"So I take it that you go the money you needed?"

"Yeah, just barely though, but all's good now!" The American smiled and held up his hand to give the other a thumbs up.

Ludwig sighed again. "Did you eat enough for dinner?" Ludwig's light blue eyes scanned the contents of his paper bag as he asked the question. Alfred took a bite of the burger and answered him with his mouth full.

"Yeah… I think so anyway…" Just then his burger was snatched away from him and tossed in the nearby waste basket. He stared at his empty hand for a moment before twisting his head towards the German next to him. "Hey!"

"That is a terrible snack. I know of a place that is just as fast and healthier." Ludwig pulled out a piece of lined paper with writing all over it. The German's light blue eye's scanned the paper and stopped abruptly at a specific line. He got up, still holding onto the brown paper bag, and stuffed the paper into his pocket. "Come along, it's this way… Alfred?"

Ludwig turned to see the America digging through the trash, trying to retrieve the half eaten grease ball. Ludwig winkled his nose in disgust and something akin to pity. He sighed frustratingly as Alfred began to talk out loud to himself… or was it the burger he was talking to?

"Don't worry baby! Daddy's coming to save you!" Ludwig walked over quickly and grabbed Alfred's ear. He then turned on his heels and proceeded down the sidewalk, tugging the American along. "Ow! Wait, Ludwig! No! Daddy'll be back baby, I promise!"

The German sighed loudly as he hailed a taxi and mumbled and address on the other side of the city. Once in the cab, Alfred looked out the window after several failed attempts at getting Ludwig to tell him where they were going. They were crossing the River Thames, albeit not where Tower Bridge was but if you looked, you could see the famous bridge from where you were. Alfred decided he didn't care too much for the sight and stared at the water. The river reflected the strong city lights and made them dance in its powerful flow. It reminded him of the thousands of stars he'd see when he was working on the family farm during the summer. God, he missed the stars, but he wasn't about to go back just to see them.

The taxi eventually stopped at a small restaurant that seemed out of place compared to the other establishments in the area. Nonetheless, it looked completely welcoming. Ludwig guided the young American into the café. They were immediately greeted by a brunette woman with a pink flower clipped into her long silky hair.

"Welcome! Please take a seat and we-" She abruptly stopped as she gazed up to the two men standing at the door. Her voice carried a similar accent as Ludwig's. Alfred had jumped when she suddenly squealed and leapt onto the tall German next to him. "LUDY!" 'Ludy' was taken aback by the sudden hug and blushed, but he soon laughed and coaxed the girl off of him.

"Hallo Elizaveta, it's nice to see you again." Well that explains why she practically jumped him. They knew each other. Alfred stared at the two as they spoke in German. Ludwig gestured over to the younger.

"Dies ist Alfred. Er ist ein Nachbar von mir in der Wohnung Ich bin bleibe in." The woman then looked to Alfred with a soft smile and hugged him.

"Hello Alfred, I'm Elizaveta, but you can call me Liz." She beamed. Alfred blinked as a flush spread across his face.

"H-hiya. This is a nice place you got here." He smiled back as he complimented the small restaurant.

"Aww thank you." She pinched his cheek lightly. "Come, I'll give you the special table in the kitchen."

"We're only staying for a small snack." Ludwig informed her. Elizaveta laughed.

"That's what they all say until they taste my cooking." She guided the two men through the kitchen doors and passed a few chefs, towards a small table in the back. It didn't have any of the décor like the other tables out front, but it was simple and welcoming. Alfred seated himself as Ludwig asked for something, probably their snack. Once the German took a seat, they began talking again.

"So you guys know each other?" Alfred gestured a finger between the Elizaveta and the blonde seated across from him.

"Ja, she is an old friend of our family. She was married to my cousin. We still treat her like family, even though she and Roderich divorced a few years ago." He stated. Alfred smiled as Ludwig explained how she was from Hungary, and how she opened a restaurant in the city.

"That's gotta be cool! I mean when my uncle divorced my aunt, we never spoke to her again because she was only related by marriage. It sucks 'cause she was an awesome cook, but that's how life works I guess." He interrupted. Ludwig gave him a look. He opened his mouth to tell the other that topics such as divorce were alright to talk about, as long as you didn't go into too much detail about it, but Elizaveta placed down their food, effectively silencing him. The American glanced at the plate. It had a small pile of little dumpling looking things. They also looked like they had small chopped up vegetables and bread crumbs mixed in.

"Enjoy the snack boys. I'll be back in a little while to make sure you're okay." She turned around and quickly left to check up on other costumers.

"What are these?" Alfred picked one up with a fork and examined it.

"Knödel. They are a type of dumplings made from raw, shredded potatoes, bread and other vegetables."

"They're raw?"

"Not necessarily. Elizaveta boils them in water, so they might be a little raw in the middle, but it's not bad if you eat a raw potato." Ludwig informed. Alfred gazed at the spud dumpling a little longer before nibbling at it. Ludwig chuckled and shook his head. After his experimental taste, Alfred devoured the first in record time. Ludwig gawked at the American as he took a decent handful from the pile and shoved them all in his mouth at once. "A-are you even chewing them?" He finally asked. Alfred glanced up and swallowed before his spoke, and act which the German was thankful for.

"These are delicious! I never had something like these before!" Alfred began to take another. Ludwig was worried that the younger would choke and began pleading to slow down. Just then, the Hungarian giggled as she approached the two with two beer bottles.

"So I'm assuming you want more, yes." She placed her chin between her thumb and forefinger, tilting her head slightly making her appear like a diva mocking something unfashionable. A glimmer in her eyes caused the German to smack Alfred's mouth shut, making sure he didn't order anymore. "Aww Ludy, let the boy eat. He obviously wants more of my amazing cooking." She smirked dangerously.

"He'll choke if he orders anymore." He suddenly slapped the American's hand away as he reached for a Knödel on his small serving dish.

"Alright…" The brunette sighed as her chances for getting more money were foiled. "But here…" She handed the men two beer bottles. "These were shipped in today—premium German beer! I thought you'd like to be the first to try them out." Ludwig smirked as he gave a curious look towards the Hungarian girl. She huffed, knowing exactly what he was getting at. "Yes, they're on the house… you're such a stinge…" She turned back to deal with more costumers coming in.

Ludwig looked annoyed as Elizaveta left. "I'm not a stinge…" he said before taking a bite of Knödel. Alfred laughed as he reached for a bottle.

"Well at least you're not as bad as Vash; now that guys a real penny pincher." The two drank their liquor as they continued to eat the dumplings. Eventually they ordered more beer along with a second helping of Knödel, much to Ludwig's protests. Soon the two blondes became a little intoxicated due to the beer, and Ludwig (who wasn't as drunk as Alfred was at the moment) decided it was best to go back home.

Elizaveta tapped her foot as Ludwig handed her the money for the spud dumplings. "I'm never letting you have beer on the house again!" She complained in German. Her hazel eyes stared at the taller of the two men trying to shuffle through a small pyramid of green bottles. She knew Ludwig was a little tipsy, considering the smile he wore on his face, but Alfred was completely drunk. "Americans…" She sighed.

"Hey Lud! Looky here…" Ludwig glanced up as he tried to sling one of Alfred's arms over his shoulder. The American lifted his hand and presented five bottles. Each one was placed on his finger. "Imma… I have alien hands!" He fluctuated his voice, giving it a spooky quality. Both men burst out laughing afterwards, Elizaveta simply staring at the blondes with slight surprise on her face.

Several minutes of drunken nonsense and damaged property later, the Hungarian woman finally had it with her two guests. It also didn't help that her chefs and wait staff were now questioning her taste in friends. When the brunette managed to catch the trouble makers she yanked them by the back of their collars and proceeded to drag them to the back door in the kitchen.

She threw the drunken men on the asphalted ground with strength not many knew she had and began to yell in a mixture of German and English (which was, without a doubt, heard by the dinning patrons outside the kitchen). "Don't come back 'till you're sober! And you better pay for a new stove Ludwig or so help me-!"

"Don't worry Elizaveta! I'll handle everything! I'm Ludwig Beilschmidt after all! Younger brother to the awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt! You have… nothing to worry about, Lizzy!" Ludwig yelled back with a drunken smile plastered on his face. Alfred joined in, but chose to just plain yell until he had to catch his breath and burst into hysterical laughter. The tie he wore around his head (which the Elizaveta wondered where he even got it from) bounced around as he held his stomach while he laughed. Elizaveta's eye twitched and her delicate looking hands balled into fists. She may have misjudged the state of Ludwig's drunkenness, but she wasn't going to let the German get away with that kind of talk.

She slammed the door shut, leaving the drunkards to the dangers of the city streets. The two blondes continued to laugh until Elizaveta came back. Bursting the door open, she threw Ludwig's grocery bag at his unsuspecting head and slammed the door closed. "Don't you ever let me catch you talking like that again, Ludwig Beilschmidt!" Her voice slightly muffled by the door.

Ludwig laid, sprawled out on the ground with his brown paper bag full of groceries (which were miraculously still in the bag) on his face. Alfred stared at his German friend for a moment before he burst out laughing.

Several minutes later, the two were up off the ground and staggering down a maze of alleys. "Hey Alfred, do you know where we are?" Ludwig asked, now regaining his senses a bit.

"I do believe we're in an alley Sir Ludwig." Alfred stated with a posh British accent. Ludwig glanced at the American and deduced that he was completely wasted. He knew he shouldn't have let the younger have so much beer. Also the chugging contest was probably a bad idea (even though Ludwig had won and claimed bragging rights).

The German managed to sling Alfred's arm over his shoulder and practically drag him up and down numerous alleys, however he was still completely lost, and Alfred's drunken state wasn't helping! The spectacled blonde giggled as he held onto Ludwig's groceries, entertaining himself with some fresh parsley plants that were bunched together. Ludwig was getting frustrated as he popped out of an alley and found himself on a desolate street, far from the main road were a taxi could bring them home.

If only I was sober enough at Elizaveta's restaurant, I would have called a cab! Ludwig thanked God for his family's fast sobering gene (no matter which side he got it from), otherwise he'd probably still be in that alley with Alfred, laughing like a hyena. However the resulting headache he had was a slight catch he learned about in his early years of drinking. Though only a slight one at the moment, it was still giving him enough of a problem that he couldn't think properly.

He quickly walked into another alley, and proceeded to get lost again for another thirty minutes before popping back out at another decollate street that looked oddly similar to the one he was at before.

"Dude… where's the street?" Alfred hiccupped as he looked around. Ludwig assumed he meant the main road, but he wasn't sure anymore.

"I don't know…" He sighed in irritation and dragged the American towards another alley way. The dizzying maze continued for another annoying half hour, Alfred giggling to himself or at the parsley the whole time. The duo managed to get to another street, one with some traffic, but nothing as heavy as the main road Ludwig was trying to find.

"Hey Lud…" Alfred looked away from his entertaining grocery to the irritated German dragging him around. "Are we there yet?" Ludwig was positive Alfred was as sober as he was and just trying to aggravate him now. He narrowed his cerulean eyes at the younger man he was practically carrying.

"How are we supposed to be back home yet, if I don't even know… where I am yet!?" Alfred stared back and tilted his head and stuck out his tongue in thought.

He shrugged after a few minutes and said, "You used the TARDIS!" Ludwig would have dropped the American right then and there if it wasn't for his innocent look that told him that Alfred was being serious.

"Please tell me you're not sober, because if you are, I'm leaving you here on this street corner…" Alfred opened his mouth to say something but he paused. His expression then changed into something resembling shock. He dropped the grocery bag and pointed a shacking hand towards something to Ludwig's left. The German raised a brow in curiosity and turned his head, wanting to know what caused Alfred to shut his mouth (not literally but figuratively).

All he saw was a tall man with beige colored hair and a pink scarf. He looked happy too as he approached the two. Ludwig continued to look at the man, who he now noticed was a lot taller then he thought. His smile was childlike and gave off a friendly vibe.

"Privyet little Alfred, and how are you this fine evening?" The tall man greeted. Ludwig racked his aching brain for a second and realized that he had greeted Alfred in Russian. Was the man Russian?

"How The -hic- Hell Do You Keep Findin' Me You… Commie Bastard!?" Alfred slurred with a holler.

Well that answered my question… Ludwig hung his head in embarrassment, which only made his head hurt worse. The Russian laughed loudly and looked at the tiny American with violet eyes.

"Ah Alfred, when will you stop calling me that? You know there was a time when you liked to call me sweeter things." Alfred made a face that Ludwig could only describe as the exact definition of disgusted. Like he literally looked it up and BAMP! There's Alfred's picture next to the definition. The shortest of the trio shuddered slightly and glared at the Russian.

"Fuck you! You're nothin' butta… -hic- butta…" Alfred trailed off, failing to make a comeback. Ludwig looked at the Russian and proceeded to introduce himself while Alfred began to mumble to himself in the background, trying to come up with a better insult.

"Uhh hello. My name his Ludwig, I'm a friend of Alfred's." The taller male tilted his head and smiled.

"Nice to meet you Ludwig, I'm Ivan. Alfred and I go way back… Isn't that right… comrade?" Ivan called back to the drunk blonde, a suggestive smirk gracing the Russian's features.

"Don't you use yer commie talk on me!" Alfred yelled before glaring at the Russian. Ludwig stared at the American for a moment with a deadpanned expression on his face. He turned back to Ivan.

"I apologize for him; he's not himself at the moment."

"Oh, I can tell that much. I just like to mess with him." Ivan smiled, but Ludwig couldn't help but shudder slightly, having the strangest feeling that there was a dark, menacing presence close by, ready to eat him whole. "So are you perhaps lost?" Ivan asked innocently.

"No we aren't!" Alfred hollered back, tugging onto Ludwig closer.

"Huh? Oh yes! I can't seem to find the main road." Ludwig admitted.

"All you need to do it go down this street, make a left and then make a right as you go down that street. You can get a taxi there, da?" Ludwig smiled in relief, finally having what he needed in order to go home.

"Thank you so much. I was worried that we were going to spend the whole night out here." The German showed his gratitude by bowing his head a few times. Alfred simply pouted and mumbled obscenities.

"Glad I could help. I must ask though, did you happen to just meet Alfred? Because I do not remember seeing you those times I spent at his apartment." Ludwig glanced up from shushing Alfred to reply.

"Uh, ja, I just moved in a month ago." Ludwig informed the tall Russian.

"Oh really?" Ivan's violet eyes began to shine with interest. "Well, if you ever need any assistance with Alfred, you can always come to me. I know just how to handle him." His smile grew into a smirk that screamed everything but friendly.

"Oh no you don't! Back off Braginsky! You better respect that fuckin' restraining order!" Alfred slurred again. Ludwig twisted his head around to gawk at the American who was pointing an accusing finger at Ivan.

"Respect What?!"

"But Alfred, I didn't respect the order that one time, and you seemed to be fine with it. In fact you loved it so much, you couldn't stop saying my name the entire night." Ivan thick accent rolled off his tongue as he grinned yet again. Alfred blushed a deep shade of red and quickly bent down (taking Ludwig with him) and dug into the brown grocery bag on the ground. He pulled out a carrot and pointed it at Ivan face.

"Oh yeah?! En Garde!" Ivan looked at the carrot for a moment as it was swished around in his face. After a moment he smiled and began to laugh, but it was much darker then when he had greeted the two blondes. They both shuddered and froze, not knowing what to do. Alfred was the first to come out of his frightened shock and decided to use his trusty vegetable sword the only way he knew how.

He threw the carrot at Ivan's face.

Then he bolted down the street, with the grocery bag and Ludwig in tow.

Ivan blinked as he picked up the carrot that hit him on his big nose. He stared at the edible orange cone then back up at the fleeing duo before chucking darkly. "On day Alfred, you'll become one with me… you all will become one with me."

As Alfred and Ludwig hailed down a taxi and practically leapt into the black cab, they quickly gave the cabby their address and frantically (yet politely) told the old man to floor it. After about a mile or so down the road, things finally settled down.

"Who was that?" Ludwig asked as he panted. He never ran so fast in his life, and he ran three miles daily! Alfred was wheezing as well, gripping the car door's frame for dear life.

"That was Ivan… He's… he was... Let's just say the man's insane…" Alfred finished. He was still slightly drunk, but even when drunk he knew when to run from the Russian like his life depended on it, and for all he knew, it probably did depend on it.

"But the things he said… you said… a restraining order?!" Ludwig glanced at the other blonde clenching his teeth together in slight fear.

"Some things are just better left unsaid…" Alfred stated, and Ludwig had to agree with him on that. As things calmed down and both caught their breath, things got quiet. The ride continued to go on like that till they reached their flat complex.

When the two reached Alfred's door, they stood there looking at each other for a moment.

Then they burst into laughter. Alfred bent over holding his sides, while Ludwig placed one hand on his hip and other on his forehead.

"Oh man, whada night!" The American snorted.

"A-are you even sober enough to get into your apartment?" Ludwig wiped a forming tear at the corner of his eye. Alfred coughed as he began to calm down.

"I-I think so yeah… Whoa! I don't think I've ever had this much fun before, well except for this one time when I streaked down the hall of my school on a dare and ended up being chased by a horde of teachers." Alfred finished. Ludwig stared at him before he burst out laughing. The shorter joined in right after and the hysterical laugher commenced all over again.

However the happy moment was short lived as a wok slammed into Alfred's head. The American collapsed on the floor, unconscious for the 16th time that week. "Shut Up! Some of us are trying to get some sleep, aru~! The nerve of some children!"

Ludwig stared at Alfred's comatose form, twitching ever so slightly, and wondered if all these pans colliding with the boy's head was the reason why he acted so weird all the time.

I should also mention that I don't feel like putting translations in at the moment, I might not do it anymore. I don't know, I'm a bit lazy at the moment. XDDD