And here's the next chapter, I suppose! Btw, I think I may have decided to change my life goal from doing something involving history to being a dental hygienist. What do you think?

Oh, and what Ariadne was supposed to say in the last chapter was "and you'll prove you're not a baby." Sorry, sometimes I drop words. *shrugs nervously*

I don't own Hetalia! end /AN/

Alfred held Raivis' soft baby hand in his, grinning triumphantly as he made his way into the yard. "This'll be really fun, you'll see. It's a good thing they didn't notice us leaving. Matthew's gonna get his mouth washed out with soap!" And Alfred was purely delighted with that. Matthew didn't get in trouble enough, in his opinion.

Raivis, however, was seeming a little less certain. He knew they weren't supposed to be outside, that it was a big no-no. He tugged on Alfred's arm, lips pursed in concern. "I don't want to be outside now. We have to be inside, or Ariadne will yell at us."

"No, relax- it'll be fine!" Alfred insisted, ignoring the smaller child's concerns. He was the smart one here, clearly, and his plan would be a lot more interesting. And, it would show Kiku how much more fun he would have if he hung around Alfred.

Because, of course, that was the main goal of his little quest. Showing off for Kiku. If he had been any older, he would have known that such actions frequently bring shame instead of popularity, but he was not older, and therefore did not know. He would simply have to learn that lesson himself.

Raivis' fears were soothed by the sight of the toys, and he ran over to the jungle gym. "Come play with me!" he demanded, grinning at their sneakiness, coming out here to play with toys when it wasn't time to be outside. However, Alfred had other plans, and he shook his head.

"No, we're not playing with those," he dismissed, and Raivis cocked his head to the side. "We're not?" There was nothing else to do out here, as far as Raivis was concerned. Unless Alfred wanted to pull up what little grass was there, of course.

"Exactly. We're going to sneak out. I have some money, we can go get a snack." It would be a little hike to the nearest corner store, but Alfred had deduced this was the best way to attract Kiku's attention. He would get a really cool snack, and then Kiku would want some, and he'd share, if he felt like it, and then they would be friends.

Raivis climbed down from the jungle gym slowly, plodding over to Alfred's side. "Okay, I like snacks a lot!" he chirped, grabbing Alfred's hand again. Alfred smiled, and walked craftily over to the gate. The lock on the gate may have been too high for four and five year olds, but it was no problem for a tall eight-year-old like Alfred. And popped open the gate easily, and he and Raivis went casually out of the yard.

Meanwhile, inside the house, Matthew watched sullenly as Heidi rekindled her friendship with Tryggvi. Apparently, Tryggvi was very quick to forgive his 'girlfriend' for 'cheating', and Heidi was quick to be taken back. Now, they were playing patty-cake, quite forgetting about Matthew for the time being.

Matthew wasn't entirely sure where he had gone wrong. Maybe he had overdone it with the cursing, but Tryggvi had been being annoying! Anyone would curse under those circumstances! It wasn't fair that he was the one sitting in the corner.

However, it seemed his time would soon be up. Ariadne approached, and she squatted down to his level. "Okay, Matthew, do you understand what you did wrong?"

He didn't want to say it. He didn't want to give her the satisfaction of admitting that he was wrong. But his mouth betrayed him, and he mumbled, "I cursed at Tryggvi." He frowned as he said it, not at the fact that he was wrong, but rather at the bitter taste of giving in.

"And why was that wrong?" Ariadne prompted, giving him an encouraging look. Matthew stared down at the floor a few minutes, before finally giving in some more. "Because it's not nice. It's vulgar." Because, of course, the speech Arthur had given Alfred had involved a lot of words, vulgar being one of the most prominent.

"Good. You can go join the other children now." Ariadne said, standing up. She gave him a smile. "Keep it clean, okay?" Matthew nodded, getting off of the stool. He plodded over towards Heidi and Tryggvi, arms crossed over his chest.

The pair were giggling about who knew what, and Matthew only the end of what was apparently a joke. "Because the chicken wanted to get more chickens!" Tryggvi was very pleased with himself, Matthew could see. But, oh, that was going to change.

"Heidi, I'm back!" Matthew beamed at Heidi, expecting her to smile back. She, however, sighed melodramatically. "Matthew," she lisped, "I am playing with Tryggvi! He's my best friend!" Tryggvi smiled, and Matthew could detect some hint of vindictiveness.

Matthew's jaw dropped. "But, Heidi, don't you want to play with me?" His voice was much smaller than it had been before, the shock of Heidi not rejoicing at being reunited too great. Tryggvi practically sneered, revelling in the reversal of their fortunes. "No, now you can go away!"

Heidi shrugged, as though her choice to play with someone else was something she could not help. Tryggvi grabbed her hand, clenching it posessively. "We're going to play bears now," he informed Matthew, and the poor boy could only stare as the twosome departed.

How on earth had he fallen out of Heidi's favor so quickly? Was it because he had not known her that long, and Tryggvi had? Was it because he was older, and didn't always understand her humor? Maybe it was only a phase, he consoled himself. Maybe she would want to play again once she got tired of Tryggvi. And Tryggvi was annoying, so it could happen soon. Probably.

Ariadne was frowning, and counting the children. She reached a number, but it was not one she liked, so she immediately counted again. She reached over and tapped Nefertiti on the shoulder, whispering, "We're missing two kids. Alfred, and Raivis, I believe."

Nefertiti's face morphed into a serious mask. "I'll watch the children, you find them. Hurry!" And Ariadne gave the room one last look around, before heading for the sliding door. Once outside, she discovered the unlocked gate. "That little snot..." she murmured, marching out of the gateway. She hoped to high heaven that they were not on the road... the traffic conditions were not exactly forgiving in this part of town, and she did not want the children harmed.

Though they were going to wish they were anywhere else when she caught up with them...

/AN/ Man, I had to teach catechism class to a bunch of unruly kids, and suddenly the prospect of having kids myself is looking less cute and lovely. Huh.