Chapter 4: A meeting.
The mood in Arthur's London home was such that one could have cut the tension in the air with a knife, the atmosphere held not only fear and expectation but also worry, stress and loving concern (though all of them would deny it.) Arthur's brothers had arrived (much to his horror) and made themselves comfortable on the various sofas and armchairs that adorned England's living room. In true Kirkland style, they had each chosen locations in order to ensure that their youngest sibling would be trapped from all sides. Arthur's face was pale with worry, eyes red from weeping and dull from loss. Arthur may have been the one to raise the topic of war, but the ball was now in his brothers' court. They could and would ensure that success was achieved. "First things first Artie, how do we take control of the land from our governments, without starting a civil war, if at all possible." Arthur looked up, slightly surprised, "Surely you know Al! We will use the sword in the stone." Alasdair (aka Scotland) looked amused, "Using the legend you left behind little brother? How devious of you." Arthur allowed a smirk to settle on his face, "why did you think I left the bloody thing. All that nonsense about Mordred being my son, and Morgana being my half sister… I left the stupid thing in place in case I needed to return in a time of need." Alasdair's grin lit up the room, "that's my brother." He said happily, clapping Arthur on his back. Arthur blushed, "Merlin helped" he muttered, glancing at wales, "and he will be by my side this time too. Hopefully without needing the stupid disguise this time." Wales smiled gently, "if you wish it Artie, I will be beside you."
Everyone now turned to look at Seamus, and he raised his eyebrow, "I can convince my government to return to the union, and maybe to accept royal rule, but it may not work as a union in the long run. England, if you want to win this, you may need to return to your empire days. Offer royal rule for the duration of the war and allow them governments after. Is that not logical?" Arthur shuddered, "another empire Shea? I don't know if I can bear the weight of that alone. At least let the union stand. If you lot are with me, it may be possible." Alasdair shook his head, "I agree with Shea, the weight of an empire may be heavy but you are the only one among us I would trust to bear it. We will stand beside you, but you will be the one to bear the responsibility, the weight of an empire full of people. If you are willing to do that, we will support you." Wales smiled, "A speech Al? How unlike you, I always thought you preferred action over words." Alasdair shook his head, "sometimes words are irreplaceable, dear brother. After all, how else can I show my support for my baby brother?" Arthur scowled, "I am not a baby, damn you. I've lived millennia, and I have fought before." Seamus nodded, "yes, but how many of those wars broke your heart? It's obvious that you don't want to hurt the brat, but you will anyway. For once, England, let us help you." There was nothing Arthur could say to that, he had long wished for his brothers' willing support. To have them give it now… finally they were acting like a family. He inclined his head, "thank you. I really appreciate this, Al, Shea, Merlin. You are probably right about the empire as well. The question now is, how do we get the others to accept it." Scotland nodded, "we need allies. France will probably accept without too much bickering, so will Austria, Hungary, and a lot of the former Soviet Union. The problem will be Spain and the Italy brothers. What will we do about them? Also, I worry that Germany will probably surrender to avoid war." Arthur shook his head, "leave Spain to me. I can talk him into this. The Italy brothers on the other hand… we'll have to wait and see. Germany is a problem, he's stubborn." Wales looked between his brothers, "wasn't there once an East Germany?" "Who? Prussia? Oh! Prussia, I forgot! We can talk to him. He'll hate the idea of surrender and he wants a country… if we can establish him as a power, the threat will be neutralized. That is, if he can conquer Germany…" Arthur smiled. Ireland shook his head fondly, "Prussia will listen to you, and if we support him, he will win. The problem is that Prussia was always a Kingdom, and he has no king at the moment." Arthur grinned, "Ahh, but Gilbert is there. I always thought he'd make a splendid King. He is the nation after all." "Very devious little brother." "Don't patronize me, Ireland." "Stop arguing, Arthur, Shea." Called Wales, "I want to make lunch; you will all be eating, correct?" the three others gulped nervously; pissing Wales off when he wanted to cook was a bad idea. "Yes Brother, we'll all be eating," answered Arthur.
By the evening, the brothers had established a plan to ensure a swift transfer of power to Arthur, and had typed a message to gilbert. They had also sent messages to all the nations they planned to make a part of their empire, save Spain to whom Arthur had written, asking that they meet privately once power was transferred. It all seemed so simple now, when the people were dissatisfied with the government and the world was calling for a change. It just felt too easy, and left a bitter taste in the mouth. Still, it was all they could do, for themselves and for their people. All the same, the brothers felt they had somehow failed in allowing their people to come to this. By nightfall, all four men craved their beds, feeling more tired than they had in centuries.
