'Ah! Speak of the devil,' Arthur said over my shoulder, grinning, 'What the hell are you doing here, Sadiq?' I cringed as I slowly turned my head around. No one was standing there. Arthur burst out laughing, warranting a smirk from Alfred as well.

'What's with you two anyway? You and Sadiq, I mean. I haven't seen two people genuinely fight so much for so long since Arthur and Francis. And even they can work together sometimes' Yao said, sounding genuinely concerned, ignoring the English-speaking bastards and their laugh riot. I was beginning to think he was the only levelheaded one in this frozen hell. I smiled weakly at his inquiry but shook my head.

'It's a lengthy story' I managed to say, 'You probably don't want to sit through it.' Yao laughed

'I'm four thousand years old' He reminded me, 'I have a long history. Your story isn't that long. Trust me. If anyone knows how refreshing it is to have someone actually care, it's me'

'If you insist' I smiled, and so I told him my story.

It was beautiful. The sun gave life to the sparkling water, flaunting its wonders and secrets on its smooth glassy surface. The Olive tree standing proudly outside the window seemed to glow gold in the sunlight.

Dariea Sat in the middle of the marble floor. Her young son, Heracles, no more than five years old, was sitting cross-legged next to her. He was far too occupied with the small black kitten in his arms to pay attention to the teachings his mother was impressing upon him.

'Heracles' she said. Her voice was as smooth as the waters surrounding the islands they oversaw. There was, however a firmness that attracted his immediate attention. 'Are you listening, dear?' She directed his attention to the tablets in front of her.

'I'm sorry, Mama' He said, his deep eyes looking from his mother to the little cat, now squirming in his arms 'Can we do these lessons later?' He rubbed his eyes with his fist 'I'm really tired.' His mother smiled warmly to him, lifting him and his cat off the floor, carrying him into the adjacent room and placing him gently onto the bed before leaving, closing the door behind her.

A man outside the door stopped her.

'Ma'am' he said solemnly, yet with urgency laced in his voice. 'The Ottomans have breached the outer guard in Athens and are heading in our direction. Orders?' Dariea bowed her head and spoke to white marble.

'Bring the third guard to the second' She said 'Re-enforce everything we have' She paused for a split second to think, 'I'll have to lead the home arms myself' she breathed, maintaining her cool exterior. She looked the man dead in the face, resting her hand on his shoulder. 'Whatever you do, be sure my son is kept safe, should anything happen to me.' He nodded once before running off to relay instructions.

Dariea Bowed her head again, stray bits of her dark hair falling on her face. She turned to push the door in to Heracles' bedroom. She was careful to let as little light as possible.

She kneeled softly beside the sleeping boy, pushed his far too long hair up and kissed his forehead lightly. He stirred in his sleep but did not wake. Ancient Greece smiled at her son.

'May your reign last forever' She whispered before leaving Heracles to sleep.

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A/N Ha ha ha, Yeah, you get Greece's story free of charge. This thing spans about three capters, So the plot's not really going to continue until after the fact so, read on. I actually like how I wrote this. =D

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