A brief mention of:
Taiwan/Sakura
Seychelles/ Cora
Disclaimer: I do not own the Characters of Hetalia nor do I own the Songs from Little Mermaid 2: Return to the Sea.
Arthur sat on a bench closest to the wall with his small pile of correspondence. Max and Oliver curled on either side of him as he read through the letters his brothers sent him. It hadn't taken long for him to allow them to contact him, only a year after they had built the wall. It wasn't much but I did quell the overwhelming homesickness he sometimes suffered. "Isn't it ironic, little ones," he asked his felines before petting them both gently on their heads. "The one thing I hated in my youth my heart now longs for."
The green eyed prince pulled his half of the sea shell from under his shirt and ran a gloved finger along the side. He felt it vibrate in his hand. A few seconds later it vibrated again only this time it also hummed softly in response. Arthur smiled and leaned against the wall, "I miss you, too, Feli. I miss all you guys back home." He stood up from his bench to make his way to the small pool of water that entered from the gated lower half of the wall. Peeling off his gloves, Arthur stuck his hands inside the cool water and closed his eyes. If he tried hard enough, he could pretend that he was underwater again and-
"Papa?" Startled, Arthur fell back on his bottom. He cast an embarrassed look above him towards his son's room. "What are you doing?"
"Uh-erm, n-nothing, love," cried the older blonde. "I'll be right up to help you finish get ready. Give me a moment."
Peter panicked when he realized that his soiled clothes were still in the open. Moving quickly, he shoved them as deep into the hamper as he could and hid his bag of shells under his bed. The boy buttoned the rest of his white uniform and searched for his boots. He heard his father's footsteps from outside his bedroom door. Oh! Taking a light blue sash, Peter tied it across his body once then around his waist another time, much like how he'd seen his dads wear theirs. Plucking one of his crowns from the wardrobe, he placed it haphazardly on his head just as Arthur entered the room. "I'm ready!"
Arthur's bushy eye brows rose to his fringe in amusement when he took in at what his son considered 'ready'. Peter, though dressed perfectly, still needed to brush his hair and lace his boots. Chuckling, he stepped further inside and removed the boy's crown in order to smooth out his hair with a brush. "Almost, my dear boy, but remember, a gentleman always brushes his hair and makes sure his boots are properly laced."
"Yes, papa." Peter watched his dad through the mirror as the man ran the brush over his ahoge in attempt to get it to stay down. He sighed, "Papa, just put the brush down. It's hopeless."
"None sense, love. Just a bit of gel and...there!" Arthur looked proudly at his handiwork but the unruly curl his son had inherited from his father sprung back up with a mocking boing.
"So, we're having a bad hair day, huh." They turned around to see that Alfred was grinning at the door, his own ahoge standing proudly at end.
Arthur rolled his eyes at his husband and bent over to tie his son's boots, "If we were, you wouldn't be helping, would you." He cast a mischievous glance to Alfred, biting his lip in effort to keep a straight face.
"I'm just saying, babe." The blue eyed man leaned against the door frame, "Anyway, I'm just here to let you guys know that there's a lot of people downstairs…"
"Oh, we'll right down, dear. Just give us two minutes."
Alfred nodded with a chuckle and closed the door, "Right, two…now where have I heard that before?" The blonde prince looked across the hall where his brother was trying to coax his own husband out of their bedroom.
"Come on, Gil," pleaded Matthew through the door. "I just scared a couple of kids and I-"
"I'll be right out, Birdie," called Gilbert from inside the room. "Two minutes! It's all I need to look awesome."
"So that's where," said Alfred with a grin.
Back inside Peter's room, Arthur had managed to groom the rest of his son's hair to look presentable. Carefully, he placed his crown onto his head so to not mess it up. "Papa?"
"Hmm?"
"My eyebrows are weird," said Peter with a pout and a frown.
Arthur looked at his son's reflection and gave a soft smile. He reached over to smooth out his facial features, "Well, when you're frowning like that, then yes. Your eyebrows do look a little funny."
"It's not that. They're all…bushy."
"Son, look at me. My eyebrows are bushy. Yours only does it in the front; thank goodness you inherited your father's as well towards the end." Arthur hugged his son to his chest, "At any rate, you look very handsome."
Peter sighed, "Do I have to do this? Everyone thinks I'm...weird."
"Oh, darling, you'll be just fine." The older blonde placed a kiss on top of his son's head, "Everyone has problems fitting in at this age." Arthur gave a breathy chuckle at remembering how he tended to be the oddball out of his family and even when he came to the surface. Especially when he came to the surface, "I know I did. I was a regular fish out of water."
"You? No way!" The younger blonde stepped out of his father's embrace and walked to the balcony, "But you're such a perfect gentleman, papa. Everyone likes you." He folded his arms onto the rail and rested his face in them. He didn't want to ask how he'd managed to do that when he had a man for a spouse. Not everyone liked him at school…mostly because he was a little bit awkward and had a habit of talking to the inhabitants of the class aquarium and partly because he had two men for parents.
Peter leaned into Arthur's chest when he felt his dad pull him in for another embrace. He didn't pay too much attention to that. After all, how many of those kids could say that their fathers doted upon them as much as his papa and dad did. Not to mention that his uncle was king and he had a husband as well. Shaking his head, Peter looked up to meet his papa's green eyes, "I'm just afraid that'll I'll make a fool out of myself."
"Love, this isn't just about the party, is it?" Arthur had received a letter earlier in the week from Peter's instructor saying that he'd been a victim of teasing from the other students. Cora was a sweet young woman who had arrived to the kingdom from Seychelles and had instantly taken a liking to Peter. A part of Arthur suspected that she was a mermaid because of the mark on the base of her neck but if she was, she kept that a secret to herself. A secret that Lukas later revealed in a letter but Arthur and Alfred still feigned ignorance on the subject. The sea prince had been waiting for Peter to inform him of the teasing but the boy hadn't.
Placing a hand on the younger's shoulder he gently turned him around so that they could face each other. "You know, son, if there's something you want to tell me, I'm always here to listen." He smiled at his son and poked him in the belly, "You can tell me anything."
Peter giggled and smoothed his uniform down, "Ok, Papa!" Biting his lip, he looked out to the sea again. "This is going to sound a little weird and sort of impossible, now don't freak." Arthur raised an amused eyebrow and waited for his son to continue. "But what I dream about more than anything in the whole world is-"
"How's it coming, guys?" Alfred knocked on the glass door of the balcony before joining his family outside. He blinked at his son, the perfect combination of himself and his little merman, and smiled. "You look very handsome, Pete."
Arthur chuckled, "He's right. Now come on." The sea prince gently nudged his son forward and looped his arm through Alfred's waiting arm, "We'll talk later, son. You're going to have a wonderful time at the party. I'm sure of it."
Downstairs, all the guests were enjoying themselves. Some were dancing while others helped themselves to the food and wine. Elizabeta fretted over the fact that the flowers hadn't been properly arranged but it was mostly to keep her uncle out of her way. It wasn't that she didn't like him or anything it was just that he was starting to ask for something, she wasn't sure she could give. The Hungarian was busying herself on one arrangement when she felt a tap on her shoulder. 'If I ignore him, he'll go away.'
"Elizabeta, I know you know I'm here."
'Damn.'
"Dear, I only want what any father would want. Well, I'm not your father but I did raise you as my own. It's not uncommon that I would like to see you happily married and with children of your own." Magyar gently turned his niece to face him, "It's not very decent for someone of your social standing to be working here as a common maid."
"I'm not a house maid, uncle," replied Elizabeta with a frown. "I'm Chief of Staff and it's not like they treat me badly. I'm practically family here. And, hey, Gilbert and Ludwig are from our same circle, too! I don't see you fretting about them."
"They're happily married already. There isn't a reason for me to fret." Elizabeta wondered if it would be ok to tell her uncle that she was already seeing someone. Sure that someone happened to spend most of the day in crab form. Sure the only time they really got a chance to be together was during the night after Peter had been tucked in. But how would he react to the fact that her boyfriend was a merman? Where was he anyway? Elizabeta eyed the stuffed crab trays, sighing in relief that they were all red. She was spared having to respond when the orchestra stopped playing in order for Matthew to announce that Alfred, Arthur and Peter were going to enter the room.
Guests politely bowed before older twin and his husband and waited for Peter to descend the stairs. The young prince bit his lip when he felt all eyes were on him. "It's ok, old chap," he murmured to himself as he made his way slowly down the stairs. "I can do this. Papa said I could." Peter caught his dad wink at him as he wrapped an arm around his papa's waist.
Matthew reached out to hug his nephew, "Happy birthday, Peter."
"Thank you, Uncle Mattie." Peter felt a slight poke on his shoulder tassels and realized that he had accidently strapped Roderich onto his shoulder with his sash. He was about to help his little friend out when he felt another poke on his person. This time it was a bashful girl who he recognized as a classmate who didn't tease him. "Oh, hello."
"Hello, Your Highness." Cindy poked her fingers together, a habit Peter had known she did when annoyed. Was she annoyed with him? Peter looked at his fathers for assistance but they shook their heads and motioned for him to ask her for a dance.
"W-would you like to dance with me," asked the young prince, his hand outstretched in invitation.
"Oh, yes! I mean," Cindy darted her dark eyes to her parents and saw that the scowled at her unladylike response. Taking a deep breath she curtseyed before taking his hand in hers, "I would be honored, my prince."
Arthur watched as his son led his partner onto the dance floor and crossed his fingers that everything would go smoothly. His brother in law moved to stand next to him while Kumajirou dropped himself next to his master. The three royals and their guests watched their little prince rigidly glide with the young woman in his arms.
"Are you ok," whispered Cindy as quietly as she could.
"I'm fine." Peter looked down to his feet to make sure he wouldn't step on her toes. He had a bad habit of doing that when practicing with Elizabeta. See, yet another reason why he would love to have fins. With fins, the hazard that came with dancing, or anything that involved legs for that matter, were drastically reduced. "If I had fins, then I wouldn't have to worry about stepping on anybody's toes," he muttered to himself.
"What?"
"Nothing. I was just…talking to myself."
"Why would you do that when you have me right here?"
"Right, sorry." Peter paused to twirl the brunette before leading her again to the music. "A-are you enjoying yourself?"
"I am, thank you." She pursed her pink lips in thought before adding, "You know, I don't think you're a freak."
"Well, that's a relief."
"No, I'm serious. Everyone at school thinks you're strange but I don't think so. I mean no one really talks to fish. And if they do then it's probably because they aren't loved enough at home," said when she was twirled. When Peter brought her back in she was met with a confused scowl.
"What are you talking about? I'm loved plenty, here."
"Well, yeah. But I mean you don't have a mother's touch in your life. Prince Arthur is a nice man and all but there's only so much a father can do for his son." Cindy looked over to her female classmates in the sea of guests, most looking at her in jealousy. "My mother said that sometimes a proper wife could make up for that." She turned back to Peter, "She also said that I would make a beautiful wife someday."
The song ended as soon as she said that and Peter quickly took a step away from her. "I don't care if I don't have a mother. Prince Arthur is a great papa," he said as politely as he could given the seed of annoyance blooming in his gut. The teasing about him and fish was one thing but he drew the line when it came to his fathers, even if he didn't always see eye to eye with them when it came to his favorite past time. Peter turned to walk away but before he did, he shot back, "And thank you but no thank you. I'd sooner marry another guy before I'd marry girl like you." Roderich once told him that even the mildest of sea life could attack you, no matter how cute they looked, particularly sting rays. Suppose the same could be said about humans.
Cindy quickly looked over to her parents, her father was busy talking to another guest but her mother motioned for her to go after the young prince. Narrowing her eyes with determination she reached out to grab his shoulder, "Now, see here-"
Remember where we left Roderich? The poor merman had gotten disoriented from all the spinning and dancing. He'd tried to find a way out of his binds, using his claws to naw at the cloth. How unfortunate that Cindy reached out for that particular shoulder, placing her index finger snugly in a blue claw, at the very moment when Roderich would snap them shut for the final cut.
The girl's horrified screams brought the party and the music, which had started up again, to a screeching halt. She drew her hand away taking Roderich along with it.
"Now, what-" Peter's blue eyes widened when he saw that his friend was clinging on to Cindy's finger for dear life as the girl tried her hardest to shake him off. In her panic she tumbled over the refreshment table, staining her pink dress red with punch. As for the blue crab well, as he went soaring across the air, frightening memories of a familiar decent ran before his eyes. Memories that involved a certain albino chef's pot…much like these new memories were going to involve that same albino's cake. Oh sweet starfish!
Letting out his own scream, Roderich closed his eyes and sent Elizabeta a final 'I love you, dear' before colliding the center of the cake, effectively showering Peter and Gilbert with vanilla and chocolate bread and icing. Popping out of the remnants of the once glorious cake, Roderich blew out the candle on his head. "That's it," he cried in exasperation, "I'm telling Bobby I quit!"
"Oh, no!" Peter ran towards his little friend and knelt so that he could check him for injury, "I'm so sorry."
Cindy got up with assistance from Jasper. Thinking that he was speaking to her, she sniffed indignantly, "Well I should say-"
But the young prince wasn't even looking at her. Instead he focused his attention on helping, the little blue crab get rid of the icing, "Are you ok, Roderich?"
"So." Realizing that what her classmates gossiped about was true, Cindy angrily pulled her arm away from Jasper and left in a huff.
Jasper was joined by Boris and Madeline, the latter speaking loudly in exaggerated curiosity, "Who is he talking to?"
Boris giggled cruelly, "He's talking to a crab!" His giggles were contagious and soon everyone at the party found themselves laughing at the prince's misfortune with the exception of a few parents who looked in horror at their King and Princes. Matthew and Alfred looked livid while Arthur…well he looked downright murderous.
Gilbert wiped the cake off his face and looked around curiously. His red eyes narrowed when he saw what ruined his masterpiece, "You!"
The merman felt those heated eyes on his back but he turned around anyway in hopes that it was Elizabeta who perhaps would be a tad annoyed at him for ruining the cake. But as his luck would have it, it wasn't his girlfriend…it was him. And this time he probably wouldn't enjoy riling him up as he usually did every now and again in the kitchen. When he saw that Gilbert had pulled out a cleaver out of seemingly nowhere, Roderich let out another scream and jumped out of the way as the albino moved to chop him in half.
"Come back here, y-you bast-er- saboteur!" Gilbert ignored the fact that he wasn't in his kitchen, as well as the fact that he had used one of the words Francis taught him, and chased after the blue fiend that haunted his culinary domain. "You're going into the pot as soon as I catch you, you little shit!"
"No! Wait, Gilbert," pleaded Roderich as he ran across tables, the albino hot on his heels. "I'm old, I'm not tender anymore!" He screamed again and fell onto the ground, running towards where he thought he saw his love. She would save him for sure!
All around them, guests were laughing, each now completely delighted that their parents had forced them to attend the prince's birthday celebration. This party was proving to be very entertaining indeed. Matthew massaged the bridge of his nose to ward off the impending headache. His husband wasn't helping matters in chasing after that poor crab and he could tell that his brother and brother in law were reaching their breaking point. Beside him, his pet bear looked agitated by all the cruel laughter and pawed at his leg seemingly for permission to silence them.
Peter cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. He knew that his uncle's tactics weren't the cause of all this mockery but…it wasn't exactly helping his case either. 'Heroes don't cry,' he chanted to himself when he felt his lip tremble and the familiar sting in his eyes. 'Heroes don't- did the laughter just increase?' Looking around him, Peter felt himself get dizzy from everyone pointing at him and laughing. Some had their arms wrapped around their stomachs while others wiped at their eyes. He could see a few parents try and calm their children but it wasn't working.
The young prince hugged himself for comfort; his papa and dad were too far away. But the mockery was getting to be too much so instead he ran back towards the stairs. Matthew, Alfred and Arthur reached out for him but he ran right past them.
Arthur turned around to the sea of laughter, his bushy eyebrows furrowed in cold anger before turning to his brother in law and husband, "I want them out of our home. I want them out, now." He didn't bother to give his farewell to the guests, instead choosing to walk out of the hall to go find his son.
"Dude," muttered Alfred to his brother. "This isn't cool, say something."
"I want to, Al, but they won't hear me over this." Despite Matthew being king, Alfred was the one who would do everything for him. After all, he was still hoping to join the sea life with his small family one day and to go back and forth between kings would only confuse and upset their subjects. The younger twin was still shy in nature but with his brother and family behind him he faced his duties with as much nobility his father did before him.
"Mattie, you've got a freaking bear."
"Uhhuh…" Matthew looked at Kumajirou in confusion, "So?"
"So, use him!"
"Right. Kumajirou?" He made a motion to his polar bear that the creature recognized as a command to speak. Standing to his full height, the bear let out a piercing roar just as Elizabeta threw the melted ice in the silver ice pail at Gilbert.
"Jeez, woman!
"Quiet," hissed Elizabeta, catching Roderich as he jumped into her waiting arms. "I'm already seeing someone, Uncle." Turning to her uncle she held the crab by its shell, "This guy." Pulling Gilbert by the ear and lacing her free arm through Magyar's she lead them out into the kitchen, leaving behind bewildered guests to face the twin's wrath alone.
Arthur broke into a jog when he was out of sight. Rushing down the hall, he followed his son's sobs. 'My poor baby,' he thought to himself sadly. 'What's wrong with children these days! Their parents never gave us such a hard time before.' Then again their parents knew what Arthur was and where he came from. Alfred and the others hadn't been allowed to speak of Leviathan so they let others assume how Peter came to be. Not that it was really there business to start with.
The sea prince gently knocked on his son's door before letting himself in. Peter had stripped down to his undershirt and had on a pair of blue pants that reached his ankles. He was lying face down on his bed, clutching tightly to Max while Oliver sat near him, a paw on the boy's head. Arthur sat on the edge of the bed and ran a hand through his son's hair, "My little love," he murmured. "I'm so sorry about tonight." His heart clenched with sadness when Peter let out a heartbreaking sob and let go of his dad's cat so that he could latch his arms around his father's waist.
Arthur laid next to his son and allowed Peter to cry into his chest, "Baby mine, don't you cry. Baby mine, dry your eyes. Rest your head close to my heart, never to part, baby of mine." The little blonde gave a shuddering breath and tightened his arms around his father. "Little one when you play, pay no heed to what they say. Let your eyes sparkle and shine, never a tear, baby of mine." Peter's tears were beginning to slow as his father's soothing voice continued to sing to him. "If they knew sweet little you, they'd end up loving you too. All those same people who scold you, what they'd give just for the right to hold you."
Arthur gently lifted his son's face so that they could meet eyes, "You're so precious to me, sweet as can be, baby of mine." He placed a tender kiss on Peter's head and cuddled him close.
"Papa," mumbled Peter after calming down enough to speak what had been troubling him as of late, "a-am I adopted?"
"What? No, why-"
"But I must be, else why am I such a freak?"
"Son, you are not a freak."
"Yes, I am, papa! I'm not like you or daddy I'm not…normal!"
"Love, just because your dad and I are both men doesn't make you a freak."
"It's not that. I don't care about that, Sakura has two dads, too and no one picks on her. She used to talk to me before she went on that trip with her daddies to Greece." Peter rolled out of his father's grasp to lay on his side. The glimmer of the golden seashell he found that afternoon drew his hand towards it. Picking it up he continued, "It's the fact that I don't fit in, no matter how hard I try. I'm the prince of disaster!
Arthur exhaled slowly as he sat back up on the edge of the bed. His mind went back to when Robert or Christian, sometimes even Kyle, would comfort him when the twins and David would tease him. "Being a teenager is hard," he started slowly, trying to figure out where he was going with this. "All kids your age feel…awkward. Those little…"
Peter was only half listening to his papa. He noticed that there was some writing on the shell when his thumb wiped away at the sand. Furrowing his brow in curiosity, the young blonde gently cleaned the rest of it, gasping when he saw Dorian embossed into the precious metal. Enticed by the tiny knob that revealed itself from under all the muck, Peter pressed it. The shell opened with a click, releasing a bubble of water encasing an underwater city. Two miniature twin mermen chased each other playfully while three others watched with gleeful grins; they turned to face Peter and offered a wave before chasing each other again.
The young prince vaguely noticed that his dad had stopped talking and let out a sudden gasp. He was too enthralled by what he was seeing and hearing. "I know that song," he said excitedly. "I remember hearing it…but where?" He tried to place it but decided to dwell on it later. "Papa, this is Atlantica, isn't it? I knew it was real. And look there's merpeople and everything!" Frowning in confusion he turned to his frozen father, "Papa? I thought you said that Atlantica was nothing but an old fish tale?"
Too shocked from seeing a relic from the past, Arthur reached out to pull the locket from his son's hands, closing it shut while he was at it. It was too surreal. All that work he put into keeping Peter away from the sea for not. But perhaps he was jumping to conclusions. Maybe it washed into their little pool. He had to make sure so, looking over to his son, he asked, though he feared the answer.
Peter himself felt rather fearful as to how to answer the question but he knew better than to lie. The young prince curled his legs in bashfully, "I-er…" meeting his father's green eyes, he figured that perhaps it wouldn't be in his interest to be completely honest. "I found it."
"You went over the wall, didn't you?"
Or perhaps it was. "Actually, I went under it. I hate that stupid wall."
"Son, you know you're not allowed into the sea!" Gods help him. If Peter went out there then that meant that Natalya and Damien had more than likely caught his scent and now had a general idea of where they were. Blast!
"Why?"
"Huh?" Arthur was pulled out of his thoughts when Peter stood up on his bed grabbed the locket from his father's grasp.
"And why does this thing have my name on it?"
He should just tell the truth. This was more than a perfect opportunity but he would have to proceed carefully. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, his eyes darted between the locket and his son, "Peter, listen to me…"
Furrowing his brow further, took a step further on his bed, "You're hiding something from me, aren't you?"
"I-" he lost his courage. He couldn't do it, not without Alfred. Arthur bit his lip and resorted to something he knew he was going to regret. "Peter, you have to understand. You can't just go and disobey me like that! I don't ever want you to go back out there again."
"That's not fair, Papa!"
"Well, I'm sorry you feel that way, son but this is for you own good. It's dangerous in the sea."
Tears welled angrily in Peter's eyes. "How would you know? You've never even been in it!"
Grabbing his sailor shirt and hat in the hand that wasn't holding the locket he dashed out of his room when Alfred opened the door to come in.
"Wait, Peter!" Arthur was about to chase after his son but decided that the boy need some space. Poseidon knew he always needed some after getting into arguments with Robert. Robert. The sea prince dropped himself on the bed, his face in his hands.
"Babe?" Placing an arm around his husband, Alfred sat down next to the disgruntled blonde. "Are you ok?"
"I just became what I never thought I'd become."
"What's that?"
"My brother." Arthur groaned and leaned on Alfred's shoulder. "I've made a huge mistake in keeping him from the sea."
"Maybe it's time to tell him the truth; we knew we'd have to someday."
"I know."
"Hey," Alfred reached over to lift his husband's chin, thumb running over his lower lip. "It's going to be ok. Peter is a great kid, I'm sure he's going to understand why we've kept him from the water."
Blushing in spite of himself, Arthur smiled, "You're right."
"Come on, we'll tell him together." Both princes got up and hand in hand, they went to search for their son.
Sorry it's a bit late but it's still technically the weekend =3 I tried to get it out earlier but the Mr. wanted to go get our Christmas tree. Now my house smells like pine ^_^ I love that smell! A huge thanks to those who have added this story to their favorites and to their follow list! Makes me happy to see it, you have no idea. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Have a good Monday!
Until Next Time~
ps- I don't own the song Baby Mine.
VivaAmerica: Thanks! I wanted to include it in the story but wasn't sure how, a story for the next generation was sorta of a last minute thing but I'm glad it worked. Yeah, that movie is pretty awesome. It's unfortunate that it's not as popular as the others T_T Thank you for the review!
aycee-san: Yup yup, lol ^_^ And yeah, when I watched the movie and that part where the kids are mean to Melody, I got a bit sad when she got sad. So I figured Peter could use someone to have his back and who else than his awesome Uncle =3
zoewinter1: And there he goes again T_T
Marshal Thompson: Your confidence gives me confidence that this story will come out ok, lol. My biggest fear, like with all my stories, is failing my readers.
pastaaddict: Thank you for the review ^_^ I'm glad that I'll be able to surprise you lol. Also, thank you for reviewing Love Has No Recipe. I'm working on the next chapter for that now =3
Sandra DeNite: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked The Little Merman too. I hope you enjoyed the chapter =3
