Devon: So in return for you guys being so damn amazing, I tried really hard to make this a long chapter. With the promised Francis. And I'm finally leading towards the eventual FrUk. ;3 Just a note, the time frame has a changed a bit from early autumn to late summer because when I started this story, I knew I needed another couple who would be getting married in the course of the story but I hadn't chosen who. Alfred just kind of waltzed himself into chapter two without my consent and my brain went "Um hello, your OTP is Ameripan have those two get married, duh" and (based on the somewhat-dedicated research I did) the alliance between America and Japan occurred around September 8th so I'm using that as the date for their wedding unless some other history buff whose good with dates informs me that I'm wrong. Sorry for the long author's note and enjoy chapter three. :)
Warning: Um...man x man love is starting to bloom but honestly if I need to warn you about that this far into this story you shouldn't be reading it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, Nekotalia, Nyotalia, the characters, or anything else associated with the name. I only own the plot to this story in which I use someone else's characters for my (and your) enjoyment.
Rating: M. But honestly this chapter could probably be rated K. It's pretty...innocent. x3
Every Day
France (Francis) x Arthur (England)/America (Alfred) x Japan (Kiku)/yeah they'll be others but I'll list them when we get there.
Chapter Three
Francis Bonnefoy's bare feet padded gently against the tiled floor of his kitchen. Late afternoon sunlight warmed the middle of the floor, filtering in through the thin curtains draped across the windows. A lazy smile teased the Frenchman's lips as he turned on the faucet and washed his hands in the sink. He had resumed work on a painting that he had been avoiding for the past few days and after three hours of work, he finally felt better about it. Lost in his thoughts about how nice the painting was turning out, Francis didn't hear the soft "meowing" coming from the door way. It wasn't until Francis felt something gently brushing against his legs that he acknowledged the other living creature in the room.
"Bonjour Françoise." Francis greeted, turning off the water and grabbing a towel to dry his hands. The blonde Frenchman squatted closer to the long-haired feline who looked up at him with vibrant blue eyes. Françoise looked back up at her human, her tail flicking back and forth to show her appreciation of the attention he was giving her. An even wider smile brightened Francis's face as he put the hand towel back onto the kitchen counter before scooping the white cat into his arms and scratching behind her ear.
The pair made their way into the open living room. A warm breeze blew through the apartment through the open doors leading to the balcony and ruffled the pages of an open magazine sitting on the coffee table. Francis relaxed onto the couch and grabbed the magazine to flip through it. Françoise settled into his lap for another cat nap.
Days like these were a favorite of Francis. Time had no meaning as he created his masterpieces; as he wasted hours just relaxing with Françoise and their serene surroundings. There was no specific schedule for him to follow. It was for days like this that Francis quit the day job he had before. He might have been good-great even-at what he did but there was something missing from his scheduled, by-the-book life. As it was now, there were only two scheduled appointments that Francis always kept. One at 7:10, roughly, every morning, and one around 5:20 in the evening.
It was the faint sound of humming, and Françoise, that alerted Francis of the time. A wall clock across the room quietly ticked away the seconds, drawing 5:19 closer to 5:20. Francis apologized to Françoise as he gently lifted her off his lap and made his way to the balcony. The familiar, messy hair of a particularly grumpy Englishman was coming into view as the blonde leaned against the wrought-iron railing of his balcony and the faint humming was growing louder. It was when all of Arthur came into view that Francis realized he was the one humming. If the Frenchman had to guess, he'd say the tune was "God Save the Queen".
Francis could feel himself relaxing, to his surprise, even more as the soft tune reached his ears. Arthur's eyes were closed as he strolled down the paved path; his briefcase tucked under one arm, his hands buried in the pockets of his pleated trousers. His expression was peaceful and relaxed and Francis swore in that moment, a little part of him fell in love. It almost hurt him to interrupt Arthur's moment of serenity, but he also knew how much of a stickler Arthur was for his uniform day and Francis hated to disappoint.
"Bonjour, Arthur." Francis called down, feeling a small rush as Arthur's green eyes opened to blink up at him. "How was work today?"
Arthur was suddenly struck with an internal dilemma. Every morning, Francis greeted him with a pleasant "hello" and a ridiculous marriage proposal. He responded each morning with a monotonous grunt, followed by an angry rejection. It was their uniform morning routine. Likewise, they had a routine for the afternoon. Francis would greet him, asking about his day. Arthur was expected to respond with the same, off-ish, indifference that he used in the morning before Francis's marriage proposal. However, today was such a wonderful day, Arthur was struck with the urge to respond pleasantly to Francis's question. Could he throw off the natural order of his day, a day he planned to be almost completely identical to all of his other weekdays, because he was in such high spirits?
"It was wonderful, Francis. Thank you for asking."
The words slipped past Arthur's lips before he could over think what a terrible idea it was. The surprise accompanied by the new reply was left evident on the face of both of the men present. Arthur's widened eyes stared up at Francis as a rosy color bloomed across his pale cheeks. A shocked smile spread across Francis's face as he looked down at the flustered and confused Englishman.
"Magnifique, I'm so glad Arthur."
Arthur hurried away from Francis's balcony, not daring to look back or slow down until he reached the door that would lead to his apartment.
"I don't know what came over me." Arthur complained, shutting his apartment door behind him. He slipped out of his shoes and left his briefcase next to them as he to the kitchen. Half-way to the kitchen, Alice intercepted Arthur's attention. The brown-and-white Scottish Fold wound herself around her human's legs and meowed loudly.
"Hello there, old girl." Arthur replied to the cat's call, bending down to pick her up. "Did you have a nice day?"
Unblinking, olive green eyes stared back at him and Arthur sighed, resuming his trek to the kitchen.
"I don't know what happened. Everything had been going great until my walk back home." Arthur explained. Uninterested in her master's dilemma, Alice wiggled her way out of Arthur's arms and trotted over to her food dish. Arthur watched the feline dine with her back to him and he shook his head in disbelief. "Your indifference to my problem is touching. You know someone who didn't know better might think you care about me." Arthur informed her as he began making another pot of tea.
Alice and Arthur had been together since his freshman year of high school, ten years ago, when he found her as a young kitten, cast out alone and in the rain. Arthur was as antisocial as he was methodical and Alice wasn't exactly the friendliest feline but the two of them became fast and close friends. Arthur was used to talking about his day with the furry backside of his flat mate but he didn't mind. Alice may act like she doesn't care but when he's at his worst; she's always there for him.
Arthur took two scones out of his ceramic cookie jar, something he had made in high school for his mother that she "re-gifted" as a housewarming present when he moved out, to have with his afternoon cup of tea and went to the living room.
The previous conversation with Francis would continue to bother Arthur. It would haunt him when he was trying to go to sleep. When Monday came back around and he went through his usual morning routine, the thought that he had actually attempted to make pleasantries with Francis the previous Friday, would most likely make him stumbled over the few words he exchanged with the Frenchman. However, Arthur refused to let the slip up in his usual day mess with his evening.
He would have his tea and scones and read the rest of the day's paper. At 6:30 he would go back to the kitchen, clean up the mess he might have made while making his tea, and then make himself dinner. For example, tonight he would re-warm the last slice of the meatloaf he had made Monday night. Arthur would then clean up the kitchen once more, and make sure to refill both of Alice's bowls before he went back to the living room. A half-hour of news would occupy his time before he went to bed. From eight to nine o'clock, Arthur would do more on his needle work or read another few chapters of a book before going to bed, most nights accompanied by Alice who claimed the left side of the bed for herself.
As Arthur finally began to drift to sleep at nine-thirty that night, his afternoon "chat" with Francis replayed itself in his mind. Unfortunately for the meticulous Englishman, he had no idea that one slip up in his uniform day would send his scheduled life spiraling out of control.
Unlike Arthur, Francis was not asleep by nine-thirty. That particular Friday night in late August, Francis was working at the restaurant he had become head chef at once he quit his previous day job. That night he would be working from seven-thirty until close, which most likely would be eleven o'clock. He didn't mind. The restaurant was a five-star eatery and was well known for its exquisite French cuisine. Furthermore Francis had many friends that worked the night shift with him.
That particular Friday night however, Francis wasn't as focused on his work as he usually was, and people noticed. It started with the oldest waitress at the restaurant who asked Francis if he was feeling alright or if he needed to go home for the night and have someone cover his shift and ended with one of his best friends pulling him off to the side on their break.
"Your performance tonight has been a little less than its usual awesomeness and I'm just making sure you're doing alright." Gilbert Beilschmidt explained to Francis, draping an arm across his shoulders. Francis looked at the loud-mouthed albino with a lopsided, tired smile.
"Thank you for your concern, mon ami," Arthur smiled at me this afternoon. "But everything is alright. I'm just a bit preoccupied tonight." His smile is even more beautiful than I thought it'd be.
Francis made ratatouille, bouillabaisse, and a wide arrangement of other dishes but his mind was on the smile a grumpy Englishman had sent his way when he happened to catch him in a good mood. Finally, when Francis went to sleep that night around twelve o'clock midnight, he swore he would do anything in his power to make Arthur smile like that just one more time.
Devon: See guys I tried to make it longer for you lovely people, I hope it worked. :3
Replies to the Reviewers:
First of all, thank you all for reviewing:
Now then.
greeneyedAlice91: *gasp* How could you not? No, Ameripan is a pretty unpopular pairing, I'll admit, but I love it so I'm happy I could squeeze it in here and that seem to like how I've portrayed it. I hope you enjoyed this extra-Francis filled chapter. :3
Xylaphe: Thank you. I hope you stick around to read it all. :)
MangaAndAnimeFairy: It was my pleasure I'm so glad you like it. :)
Francey-pants98: You do? *small pause while I fangirl* He is quite sexy, I hope you enjoyed him in this chapter. Why thank you. :3
Alice D. Lovett: I'm glad you think so. 3 Are they? I was afraid I might not be able to get them right but if you say they're perfect I believe you. :3 Haha it sounds a bit weird but I think I know what you mean so thank you. I am ecstatic that Ameripan got in here some how. I blame Alfred because I knew I wanted Kiku in the last chapter but Alfred just kind of forced his way in so..x3
Keep writing
~DMD