Ok! Finally! The next chapter! I always feel so horrible when I put it off, but I'm just so lazy. PLEASE FORGIVE ME! All the reviews/alerts/favorites are greatly appreciated, and they make me very happy. So, the next chapter here for you! :D

Chapter Nine

Ivan only starred at Alfred blankly. Alfred blinked slowly.

"You... don't... have pancakes?" Alfred responded to the blank stare. Ivan tilted his head.

"Pancakes?" At this, Alfred promptly flipped his lid.

"How can you NOT know what PANCAKES are DUDE!" Alfred shouted, "It's, like, the best food ever! Well... besides hamburgers and apple pie and... But, dude! Seriously! You've never had pancakes?"

"What are they?" Ivan asked. Alfred immediately grabbed up Matthew, who squeaked 'Maple!'

"Dude! We're going to have to make them then! An you're not gonna stop us! TO THE KITCHEN!" And with that, Alfred ran in a random direction, dragging Matthew along with him. A few seconds later, he reappeared back into the dining room, still dragging Matthew.

"Uh... where is the kitchen in this place?" Ivan only shook his head, smiling in an endearing way, before motioning for Alfred to follow him.

"Did someone say 'kitchen?'" Francis cried as he came running in, apparently all refreshed and ready to go. This only caused Arthur's mood to plummet, like uneven scales.

"I can cook as well, d'accord? I am a world-renowned chef!"

"Maybe in your head you are," Arthur retorted. This only fired up another round of arguing between the two of them, and they were promptly left behind by Ivan and Alfred (who was still dragging Matthew around) as they went to the kitchen themselves. After Alfred had been introduced to the kitchen, he made sure to walk around and get all of the ingredients himself, moving in hyper drive. The blond slathered batter everywhere: in bowls and on himself as well, as he whisked and poured them onto the heated stone plates that acted as the stoves in the kitchen area. Ivan was a bit amused at Alfred's antics, and Matthew sighed.

"Hey, you guys got anything like syrup?" Alfred asked, "It's real sweet and sticky and stuff?" Ivan paused before nodding, and getting out a couple of jars from the pantry. When Alfred looked into them, he giggled.

"Oh, that's not syrup, silly! That's honey! Although... maybe I could transform it into syrup!" Alfred flung his pointer finger into the air while his other hand rested on his hip in a heroic pose.

"Umm, I don't think it works like that..." Matthew squeaked out shyly. Alfred laughed loudly and smacked Matthew on the back light-heartedly, though it nearly gave Matthew a headache with the way it jarred his head.

"We'll manage! I'm the expert on pancakes, remember?" The pancakes were all stacked onto plates after they had been cooked, and they really did look fluffy and delicious. Since they were made on the stone plates, they were all different shapes and sizes according to how Alfred had used the spatula to shape and flip them. Some were perfectly round, while others had been formed into odd shapes. Alfred tasted the honey contentedly before he turned to Ivan.

"So you're sure that you don't have any maple syrup?"

"I am not sure, but I don't think so," Ivan spoke after a few moments of thinking.

"Oh! I know! Do you have anything like chocolate? Like a chocolate spread? Oh man, Nutella would be amazing on these pancakes right now! And some milk! I'd die of happiness!" Alfred sighed, gaining a wistful look.

"I think that we have this chocolate... though, this 'Nutella' you speak of, I know nothing about," Ivan responded.

"Awe man! I'm totally going to have to find a way to enlighten you and your people in the ways of Nutella!" Ivan and Alfred gathered up the pancakes, honey, chocolate spread, and also some bananas and apples that Alfred had found while rooting around in the pantry looking for other things to eat. Everyone perked up when all the food came out and was set up on the table. Feliciano had come in by that time, lured out by the smell of the fresh bread of the pancakes. He sat beside Ludwig sleepily, yawning. They sat in the exact same seating arrangement as they did during the dinner of the previous night. Every hastily started fixing their plates, and Alfred cut up his bananas in order to spread them all over the tops of his pancakes, and then drown everything on his plate in honey, along with slices of apple. Everyone absolutely enjoyed the simple, but delicious breakfast.

Ivan made the mistake of looking up to watch Alfred eat, and found he couldn't take his eyes off of the enthusiastic blond sitting across from him. Alfred had unconsciously slowed down his eating habits in order to better enjoy his food. He was still eating very haphazardly, however, and honey was rolling slowly down his chin and even getting down to his neck. Every once and a while, Alfred would wipe the honey from his neck and mouth with his fingers before licking and sucking his fingers clean, making the cutest little noises of satisfaction while doing so. It made all of Ivan's blood rush down south.

"Alfred! Really, you have no manners at all! Use a napkin for heaven's sake!" Arthur yelled from across the table, and threw a napkin at Alfred's face. Feliciano laughed when the napkin stuck to his face, as his mouth and chin were so stick with residue from the honey.

"Napkins?" Alfred laughed and joked, "What are those? I've never heard of them!" This only served to make Arthur throw even more napkins at Alfred in anger, Alfred only laughing at the Brit's actions. This snapped Ivan out of his trance, and he was able to pry his eyes away from Alfred in order to get himself under control. He thought back to earlier, when Alfred had asked him if he'd be able to wait until Alfred was ready... He knew that it would be difficult, and he was more than willing to show and prove to Alfred that he respected him and had the patience to wait. He just didn't think he would be tested so soon! But, never the less, Ivan was determined to earn Alfred's admiration. He had to keep reminding himself that it would be worth the wait, in the end.

"I was thinking," Yao piped up from beside Ivan, "that if Alfred is going to be able to help us locate the Great Crystal, that maybe the best place to start would be the ceremonial ruins. You should take him there after the two of you are done eating, Lord Ivan." Ivan's eyes lit up and he nodded.

"Ah! Good idea, Yao. I will do that, then. It is the perfect place to start." Alfred hastily swallowed the food in his mouth before asking:

"Ceremonial ruins?"

"Yes," Yao answered, "They are ancient ruins that have been submerged, and they detail the ceremonies necessary to receive the blessing from the Great Crystal, and were used to present infants to the crystal in order to gain blessings, as well as their own piece of the crystal to wear. However, the way to reading them had been lost along with the Great Crystal. You see, the ceremonial writings are written in a separate and sacred alphabet than the normal, everyday alphabet used to write the Atlantian language that is used commonly. The only way to read it had been lost during the Great Flood, as the Great Crystal had always shown us how to read them. It is a sacred place, and I'm certain you will be able to find something there that may be useful." Alfred sat patiently as he listened, soaking in this information as he paused in his eating.

"Wow, that sounds amazing! I definitely want to go now!" Alfred spoke excitedly, and downed the rest of the pancakes on his plate in record speed. The sight once again left most of the table mildly disturbed, save for Feliciano (who was oblivious as always and focused solely on his own food and talking to Ludwig), and Ivan, who found the whole thing incredibly amusing and somewhat adorable. Ivan and Alfred then left the dining hall, Alfred sucking his fingers loudly in order to get them as clean as possible. Ivan eventually flagged down a servant and asked for a damp washcloth, and proceeded to wipe off Alfred's face and hands himself so that he didn't have to suffer through the sounds and the sight of Alfred cleaning himself with his tongue. As they exited the palace, Ivan got a chill down his back, and turned to see Natalya coming from behind one of the pillars. Ivan had been wondering when she would show herself, as she had been hiding so that she wouldn't have to look at or speak to the guests. Ivan thought she was being childish, but had said nothing to her since their fight their fight that first day. Ivan could sense more than see that Alfred had tensed beside him.

"I came to see you, Brother," she spoke, "I hadn't seen much of you. I want to spend time with my brother." Ivan blinked at her nervously.

"I am sorry, sister, but I really have important things to do today..." Ivan spoke somewhat cautiously. Alfred tilted his head. 'I can understand that she's Vanya's sister, but he doesn't have to let her control him like that!' he thought.

"But brother! Wouldn't you rather spend time with me? I'm your sister! One day, we will be married, and we will be inseparable." Alfred did a double-take at this.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second there. Rewind! What did you just say? You're his sister and you're going to marry him? That... that just can't be right..." Not only was Alfred totally freaked out by the idea of sibling marriage, but he started to feel an unfamiliar wave of possessiveness come over him. He'd never been one to get possessive over things, really. He'd been emotionally attached to things, sure, if he liked someone or something enough (this was really mainly only concerned with inanimate objects such as his plane and jacket, since he'd never really gotten that close with anyone since his grandpa died) but he never had felt possessive. But, underneath all the affection and emotion that he felt for Ivan, Alfred could feel the welling thoughts of 'mine.' hidden deep down. It scared him a little, but at the same time, he was a bit glad that he finally found someone that he liked enough to be this way with. That he had finally found someone who wasn't a fling, that had a permanent place in his heart to help mend the void his grandfather had left. Alfred was just so ready to heal. These two conflicting thoughts greatly confused him.

"It is!" Natalya snapped, " Brother and I are going to get married!" She sent a withering glare at Alfred, but it was lost on him as he was staring at Ivan, wondering what he thought of all of this.

"Natalya," Ivan said heavily, as if mentally preparing himself for what was to come, "we have been over this. I will not and cannot marry you. We are siblings."

"But, Brother!" Natalya cried out, "You are the only one meant for me!" Alfred's eyes furrowed as he thought, genuinely confused.

"Then... what's the point of this mark then?" he asked, pulling down his tunic enough to show the glimmering snowflake. Natalya hissed and her eyes narrowed to slits.

"That means nothing. Brother belongs to me!" she spat.

"Well, then why does Vanya have a mark, then?" Alfred continued, honestly concerned about Natalya's logic, and not asking these questions to be mocking, as Natalya thought he was. Her face became red as she had heard both Ivan's nickname coming from the inferior Alfred, and the insinuation that Ivan had been marked by Alfred.

"There is no such thing!" she yelled, looking to Ivan to confirm this. Ivan hesitantly turned around, and started to pull his shirt up at the back by grabbing and rolling and bunching it up with his fingers, so that he didn't have to actually take his whole shirt off, as someone like Alfred might have. The little sliver of gold that Alfred had seen before was now obviously a part of a ray that was coming off of a glimmering sun design that splayed over Ivan's back, standing out brightly in contrast to Ivan's extremely pale skin. Alfred couldn't help but stare at the detailed design. It was just so... sunny. It seemed to draw Alfred in, and he could barely contain himself from reaching out to touch it and trace his fingers over it. It took considerable effort, as Alfred was naturally an impulsive person. Natalya's face paled snow white as she stared at the mark in shock.

"How... HOW DARE YOU!" She screeched, and charged forward, reaching to her side where she kept her knife strapped securely to her waist on her belt. Ivan immediately released his shirt, letting it fall back over his back before stepping in between Alfred and the enraged Natalya.

"Stop it Natalya! You're being irrational! Calm yourself! I will not have you harming any of our guests! Your conduct is shameful, and it disrespects me, yourself, and our people when you do these things," Ivan's disposition suddenly turned dark, and he glared down at Natalya due to his considerable height, which only made his presence that more menacing. His attitude had done almost a complete 180 from minutes previous.

"Not only do you bring shame upon you, but I will not stand for any threat of harm to be made upon Alfred. He is precious to me, and as long as I am here, he will not be harmed. Do I make myself clear, sister?" He asked, his face painfully serious, not even a hint of his childish smile. Natalya instantly became meek, nodding and hiding her face as she hung her head and averted her eyes submissively, her face red with the force of her contained anger. She quickly turned on her heel and fled, not uttering a single word more. Ivan sighed, his shoulders slumping, suddenly feeling very weary. Alfred stared at him worriedly.

"Uh... I could always get Yao to take me, if you want to go and see your sister. I don't want to intrude on your family and cause problems, Vanya. That's not what I'm all about here," Alfred spoke in concern. He really didn't want to cause a rift between Vanya and his sister, that wasn't his intentions, and he felt bad that he seemed to be causing a wedge between them.

"No," Ivan spoke firmly, maybe with a bit more force than necessary, without realizing it. He didn't want to be anywhere other than right here with Alfred. Alfred was the only one that could make him feel better, at the moment. And he hated to think that Alfred felt guilty about any of this.

"None of this is your fault, Alfred. Natalya needs to learn that she does not always get her way, and that some things aren't meant to be. It wasn't like you chose for this to happen, Alfred. We became drawn together by chance," Ivan drew close and wrapped his arms around Alfred, "and you had no control over it. I do not want you feeling responsible for any of this." He spoke softly and calmly to Alfred, and alleviated Alfred's fears. Alfred had the worst habit of making himself believe that things were his fault, and because of that, always felt a compulsive need to help or fix things. Even when Alfred had nothing to do originally with the situation, he always wanted to help out, or he would feel guilty later, if he didn't, and wonder if things would have turned out for the better had he tried to help fix the problem. Alfred sighed, feeling much better at Ivan's reassurances, and smiled brightly up at Ivan's face.

"Ok. I was just making sure everything is all right!" he grinned. Ivan let a small smile slip onto his face, before taking Alfred's hand into his own and leading him once more to the ruins. As they left, Natalya paced the halls of the palace in blind fury, wishing for any way at all to rid Atlantis of these unwelcomed visitors.

Ivan led Alfred through the city, much like he had done before, only they were going deeper into a more ruinous and waterlogged part of the city. The citizens must not have dared to come there, because it all looked like it hadn't even been touched for some time.

"My people are mostly afraid of this place," Ivan spoke when Alfred had asked about it, "They are afraid that their ancestors that died in the Great Flood haunt this place." It was the totally wrong thing to say, Ivan realized a second later, when Alfred suddenly stopped walking and turned as pale and stiff as petrified wood.

"But of course, nothing has ever been seen! I and Yao have explored these ruins dozens of times, and nothing has ever happened!" Ivan hastily added. This seemed to relax Alfred's fears, but not completely. He still looked around warily as Ivan lead him through the carved pillars and half-standing structures over grown with plants and other various floral wildlife. They eventually came upon a short flight of stone steps that led down to a basin of water, who's deep blue color suggested that what it lacked in width, it made up for in depth. Alfred blinked.

"So, all of it is submerged?" He asked.

"Pretty much, yes."

"Well, how am I going to be able to see down there? I can't exactly swim with my glasses on!" Alfred pouted. Ivan raised an eyebrow.

"You cannot swim?"

"Oh, I can swim! I volunteered as a lifeguard for the local pool at the YMCA in college. I know all about it!" Alfred paused, and then this face lighted up, as if an idea suddenly struck him.

"I GOT IT! My goggles. I had almost forgot that I had packed them. I'm so glad I decided to take them with me instead of just chucking them somewhere!" Alfred produces a pair of American flag print goggles from a small satchel that he grabbed up to carry with him on their little excursion. He gingerly folded his glasses up and put them in a case he grabbed from in his bag, and then put them away before donning the goggles. He then posed with his fists on his hips like some sort of action hero figurine. He looked like a complete dork, but in a somehow adorable way.

"Now I am ready!" Alfred announced. Ivan blinked, and then shrugged.

"If you say so," he spoke a bit skeptically, and then the both of them stripped to just their pants, both with their backs turned to each other. Alfred, out of shyness, and Ivan, because he wanted to make a show of respect. They both turned back when they were ready, and Alfred walked up to the water with some reservations.

"It better not be super cold or something..." He murmured. He absolutely hated cold water. He stuck his foot in, only to yelp and draw it back out.

"Shit! It's freezing!" He cried out. Ivan chuckled, dipping his foot it.

"Surely you're kidding? It is like bathwater!"

"'Bathwater' my ass! It is not!"

"Come now, you are being a big baby. In the water now," Ivan spoke, obviously not believing that Alfred thought the water was cold. 'What is this guy, a human ice cube?' Alfred thought darkly. Alfred stared at the way the sun mark on Ivan's back rippled as his muscles flexed when he dived into the water. Alfred could feel his body heat up in a way that he'd never really experienced before, and was a little glad that the water he was about to dive into was cold...

With a great splash, Alfred dived in, getting the whole experience done with in an instant. He shivered and he could feel goosebumps erupting all over his body. He and Ivan surface only for a moment to get a big gulp of air, before diving in. Alfred follows the glowing light from Ivan's crystal through the underwater ruins, watching it's path and mimicking it with the absence of perfect sight. Everything he saw was faintly blurred shapes and colors, and he would have had to press his face up against the columns in order to be able to see or read any of the carvings on them. Just as he felt his air about to expire, he followed Ivan up and into a pocket of air. He breathed in the oxygen like it was a precious commodity. He narrowed his eyes at Ivan, who seemed to be fine.

"You surface dwellers, you are not very hardy people?" Ivan asked, smirking.

"I'm plenty tough enough! It's just that you're like some sort of mutant cold-resistant fish people. I'm plenty in shape for the lifestyle I live," Alfred defended himself. He wasn't really keen on others thinking he was a wimp or anything like that. He could hold his own! Ivan only chuckled in response, and dove back under the water. Alfred huffed before following, and the two swam a short distance until they came upon a vast, curved slab of rock that looked like it might have been the wall of a cave at one point, but was now lost to the watery and ruinous depths of the city. Ivan swam close so that Alfred could use the light of his crystal to read the intricate and sprawling symbols that glittered an aqua color like turquoise stones, contrasting with the dark color of the walls they were carved into. Alfred, quite comically, had to almost smoosh his face completely against the wall to be able to clearly identify the symbols he was looking at. Alfred pulled himself away from the wall and pointed upwards, back towards the air pocket, and the two quickly swam there.

Alfred immediately began to talk, causing his words to come out winded and wheezy sounding, because he had not adequately filled his lungs with air first. Now able to see those bright blue eyes through the lenses of the goggles, Ivan could see the clear sparks of excitement in Alfred's eyes, and knew that he had found something.

"This is so cool! It details all sorts of different kinds of blessings, and there are more than just birth ceremonies here too. They have death ceremonies, wedding ceremonies... it's unbelievable."

"You... you can read the symbols?" Ivan asked hesitantly in bewilderment.

"Yeah man! I used a book called the 'Shepherd's Journal' to get here, and it's written the exact same way." Alfred paused then, his expression thoughtful.

"Hey, let's take another look," he stated finally, and he and Ivan dove back under the dark waters. Alfred skimmed over a different part of the wall to see what was written there, and his eyes widened in surprise and he frantically read all that he could before having to go back to the air pocket to breathe.

"What is it? What did you find?" Ivan asked, taking in Alfred's wild and excited look.

"It's... it's incredible! It's a detailed account of the Great Crystal's defense mechanisms, and I think there was even records... like, the history of Atlantians or something... I think they were names? Maybe... an obituary of some sort? If we study this, we might get a clue of where the crystal would have disappeared to after the calamity occurred." Ivan's face brightened, and Alfred could feel the heat at his core getting hotter, and warming his whole body. Ivan really looked so much better when he was happy and smiling, in Alfred's opinion. Even if Alfred preferred when Ivan used his regular, deep voice, his high, light voice could be cute too. Alfred's stomach growled loudly, interrupting anything else that was going to be said by either of them.

"Maybe, we should break for lunch?" Alfred asked sheepishly. Ivan chuckled.

"Yes, that might be a good idea. Besides, you are very cute when you eat. Like a squirrel, yes?" Ivan teased. Alfred huffed and puffed his cheeks out like a child would, mimicking the animal Alfred had just described him as unconsciously. It only made Ivan's smirk widen. They made the swim back to the surface of the basin, and exited the water. as they did this, they spotted Matthew running hurriedly toward them, looking panicked.

"I finally found you guys! There's trouble at the palace!" Immediately, Ivan's face turned serious and he paced up to stand close to Matthew in an almost threatening manner.

"Tell me what is wrong," he demanded.

"It's Commander Winter! He's completely shut the palace down. All of the Atlantian citizens locked themselves in their houses, as not to get hurt, thankfully. Everyone in the palace are practically hostages, though," Matthew explained, breathing hard. Alfred's face displayed the anger that Ivan was feeling but didn't show on his stoic face, but rather, was reflected into his violet eyes, dark and swirling with emotion.

"That bastard! How did you manage to escape?" Alfred asked curiously.

"It... wasn't really very hard..." Matthew trailed off, remembering.

Matthew was, once again, bored. Everyone talked amongst themselves and he just sort of sat there idly. Alfred had already left with that intimidating Ivan character, and Matthew was a bit grateful. Alfred was just so strong and so loud. It completely overwhelmed the much more docile blond. And then, Ivan of course, was another brand of scary entirely. It seemed as though the man had forgotten to make good on the silent threat he had sent to Matthew when Alfred had his panic attack, thankfully, but Matthew had been so scared that he could hardly get any sleep the night previous, fearing that Ivan would burst in at any moment to do god knows what to him. Matthew was so happy that they had pancakes for breakfast, though. It reminded him of home and soothed him, even if he had to use honey instead of maple syrup. Alfred could be an ok guy if he wanted to, Matthew supposed. He was able to talk to that nice guy, Kiku a bit more when Arthur had become distracted with hurting Francis when the Frenchman started trying to be seductive and use the honey to get peoples' attention in the wrong kind of ways. Kiku was so nice, and he even remembered Matthews name! Matthew was having a normal conversation! He was so happy that he might have cried.

Everyone was ready to leave, finished with breakfast, when seemingly out of nowhere, soldiers started to storm in from everywhere, securing and controlling everyone within the palace. Everyone was mostly silent with shock, except for Feliciano, who started to cry out and panic. Ludwig quickly shushed him, not wanting one of the soldiers to get angry with Feliciano and try to hit him or something. It would only make the situation worse. Commander Winter strolled in almost serenely after his troops, whom most of the crew had immediately recognized by their attire that they were part of the special forces directly under Winter's control. Winter laid a critical eye over each of them, skipping over Matthew as though he didn't even realize that he was there. Matthew didn't know if he should be relieved or angry at this anymore.

"I see that there are two missing here. That brat and the Lordling." He turned to his right, and there Natalya stood, scowling and looking quite irritated.

"You failed to keep them inside the palace today. You were to persuade them not to go out," Winter admonished. Natalya scoffed.

"It changes nothing. They will come back eventually. Just remember that you promised not to hurt my brother and leave our people alone when you get what you want. And make sure to take all of your filthy surface dwelling associates with you," she spat. Arthur clenched his teeth.

"You would sell out your own people for your selfish desires?" He spoke out. Natalya hissed and drew out a very sharp looking dagger from one of the sheaths on her belt.

"Your people are dying and yet you would choose to sit by and do nothing," Arthur continued, a tone of disgust clear in his voice. She growled threateningly only a millisecond before she swiftly aimed to throw her knife. Winter, however, roughly grabbed her arm to prevent her from doing anything.

"Do not forget that you are not supposed to harm any of my people either," he warned her. She sent him a withering glare, which only reflected right off the cold man, before she turned away angrily, and Winter released her arm.

"Now," Winter continued, "Where is our little friend Alfred? He is, after all, the very key that we've been searching for this whole time."

YAY! Some plot has started to kick in! Suspenseful, isn't it? I guess the main reason besides my laziness for these chapters coming out so slow is that I'm really trying to work out the finer points of my plot beyond this point. A.K.A I'm making up stuff as I go here! But, I'm going to make it all believable of course, and there will still be elements from the original movie too, but past this point, not really too much more, I think. Oh well. Please review! I do love it when people review. I love to know your thoughts and feedback! :D