Not everything is as it appears
By: Chiabride
Author's note: Hi everyone! Sorry for not updating in almost forever. I hope you are not too mad cause really I had a bit of trouble writing this and the next chapters… That's right I said chapters as in I'm releasing three at once. I won't really go into exactly what caused the trouble just that I'm going to try to never repeat that mistake again. Oh I finally got my new power cord and now I'm combining what I wrote before the death of the previous one to what I wrote using my sister's laptop.
Disclaimer: Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya I am just the fan fiction writer and therefore can only write this for no profit. Not to say that I don't get a reward believe me every time someone reviews, puts me on story alert, or puts me in their favorite stories my heart does a little dance.
Warnings: Alcohol
Chapter title: Before hell
Bold Italic Text: Mental thought
Plain Italic Text: Foreign language
Bold Text: Yelling
Bold Italic Underscore Text: Emphasizing
[June 29th 1995 A bar somewhere in Canada]
Alfred F. Jones glared into his rocks glass* the tumbler was filled almost to the brim with Jack Daniel's and almost no ice. Now one might be surprised to find the man drinking the Tennessee brand of whiskey instead of beer, Arthur and Francis sure had been when they first caught him drinking the stuff. But he'd explained that first night that beer was good only if he could drink it either at his own house or when watching a game at a local sports bar. The bourbon was best drunk out of the country where it was practically sold everywhere and it helped with not only his mood but also his thinking.
Which was why he was in Canada, why Arthur and Francis were meeting him here, and why he was drinking this particular beverage, it was all in the name of thinking. Well not all about thinking there would be discussing also but mostly they would be drinking but the discussing was to America's shock far more important than the consumption of alcohol. Feeling a tap to his shoulder the American looked and saw both a bemused Francis and an annoyed Arthur both looking from the glass to Alfred. Both did not stay looking, as they both slid into their own seats at the out of the way table that Alfred chose instead of the bar and the American chugged his drink. Lifting the empty tumbler high in the air waving it to get the waitress's attention and just so there was no confusion America yelled out. "I need another jack on the rocks over here!"
Arthur finding that his companion was acting rather embarrassing, quickly grabbed America's wrist pulling it down seething he chided. "Bugger all we are in a bar show a little class and before you get fully pissed tell us why you dragged our bloody arses out to the middle of nowhere."
"Huh? Sorry Iggy I don't speak Brit mind speaking English." Alfred remarked fully intent for the comment to be as insulting as it sounded before glaring back down at his glass. Francis grabbed Arthur's wrist right before the Englishman's fist connected with the American's jaw England glared at the hand around the joint before turning the expression on the Frenchman's face. Francis returned it with a shake of the head and a look that told England to let him handle getting information from America. Letting the man's wrist go Francis briefly watched Arthur unclench his fist before the nation decided to cross his arms over his chest. The waitress soon arrived carrying America's drink then turned to the other two men looking at them in interest which to France was a sign that she wanted to know if they needed something as well. But just as France had finished telling the gorgeous creature that they would need one Brandy Alexander for his friend and a nice Bordeaux for himself America had chugged his newest glass. This got him raised eyebrows from not just England and France but also the waitress for the briefest of moment before she gathered his two empty glasses and set off to get them their drinks.
England then thought this was the perfect moment to remind the Frenchman that he was suppose to handle the American by kicking France in the shin. Letting out a sound of pain France glared at the Brit for just the slightest of moments before turning on his 'perverted' charms and saying. "Oh ma chère Angleterre! I did not think you wanted to get so… 'physical' so early into the night."
The desired affect was reached with the Englishman's face going from the brightest red caused by embarrassment before shifting to an almost purple color as his temper flared. France ignored the belligerent nation and went onto focus on the younger one who currently was glaring at a spot on the table. England being the ornery old bastard that he was paid no attention to this fact but France being the most perceptive of all other nations scooted his chair closer to the American and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. This unfortunately had an undesirable affect as America turned that glare on him and grabbed his wrist nearly breaking it.
England snorted at this and France sent him a death glare as he tried to pry his wrist free, only America glared harder squeezed tighter. Relief came when the waitress returned with their ordered drinks plus apparently extra from several of the single women and one man around the bar, the second Brandy Alexander was from him. The waitress hurriedly set the drinks down before leaving just as quickly and Francis holding his hand over the top of Alfred's drink questioned. "Amerique not that we both don't enjoy spending our nights out drinking with you…" England let out a snort of a response to that but was ignored by Francis as he continued. "but you were very insistent that we come to Canada tonight without any explanation why."
"Why do you think I'm down these drinks so fast. Come on you both need to have as many drinks in you as me before I can even talk about this." America said moving France's hand away before drinking his latest jack this time a lot slower and both his companions knew that if he was slowing down after drinking so quickly there really was something up. When the two did not start drinking like America 'suggested' he turned his most volatile glare on his companions with an added aura of something they'd only felt ever come from either Russia or his sister Belarus. But until he threatened to nuke both their houses did the two European nations realize that it might just be a good idea to listen to him.
Several drinks later and Alfred who by far has had more drinks then his companions combined does not seem as drunk compared to England. Truthfully from what Francis's intoxicated mind can gather the American seems more broody then drunk and he still had not brought up the reason for calling them here. So it surprises even France when America slams his head down on the table hard enough that both Francis and England thought their companion had cracked his skull open. Arthur who has always had a soft spot for America, no matter what happened through the years between the two, placed a comforting hand on Alfred's shoulder. The American let out a groan and mumbled something that not even the Brit, who practically had his head resting on his companion's back, could hear.
Suddenly America shot up knocking England off of him he then surprised France by grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, shaking him, and demanding. "What is wrong with Mattie?"
"Matthieu?, Mattie?" England and France asked simultaneously. France interested in what this had to do with his cute former charge and England asking because he… well he still after all these years kept forgetting who the Canadian was but since the name was brought up he wanted to know anyway. America stopped at the name and let France go, the Frenchman very grateful for this, before banging his head two more times. As America moved to bang his head a third time England caught him and asked. "Alfred lad you're not making sense. Who is this Mattie?"
America may have given Arthur an odd look but it was France who smacked his forehead before announcing. "Mon dieu l'Angleterre! We are in his country of all the places. It is bad enough you confuse the boy with Amerique when you see him but it is heartless to forget him completely. If I had known I would be handing mon adorable petit Matthieu off to such an irresponsible guardian I never would have allowed you take him."
It took a few more seconds for England's alcohol addled mind to process everything and in doing so helped him remember exactly who the other two were talking about. Arthur just about ready to correct the Frenchman and give him a piece of his mind was interrupted by America. "Not that I don't enjoy the two of you bickering like some old married couple there's something wrong with Mattie."
The two European nations grew increasingly worried at hearing that something was wrong and both adopted expressions to show it. Giving the American their full attention he did not disappoint them by keeping silent. "Mattie he's not himself. I mean yeah we saw all that stuff in his house last time we crashed at his place and I can accept his little… 'hobbies' I'll even come to his rescue when he gets in trouble cause I'm the hero. But now he's stopped wearing his glasses, he's growing his hair out, when I want to touch him he goes weird on me, and now whenever I remember to come visit he's got not just that bastard Prussia over but now those upside down weirdos, so being alone together is impossible. Something is wrong and we have to help Mattie."
England and France as they processed this information gave America looks of surprise when it was fully registered both men threw their heads back and laughed. This continued for awhile as the two European nations slow down their chuckles in order to calm themselves, but then they would look at Alfred's serious face, and started laughing even harder. It was possibly the most ridiculous thing the two men had heard recently come from the American. Even England with what little he could remember about the boy could with all honesty say that Matthew was too withdrawn to have anything to do with the oceanic siblings. No he remembered that those two were more inclined to hang on to America like at the previous games. It was then that something New Zealand had said struck him. 'You really are blind old man. This is obviously Matthew our sweet, abandoned as a small child, forced into independence by you, couldn't corrupt a living thing even if he tried, brother Matthew.'
France calming down finally after noticing that England had stopped laughing with him looked to the Brit. There was a rather serious expression on Arthur's face which intrigued Francis but it seemed America also noticed this and would be the first in bringing it up. "Iggy you know something?"
"Huh?" England responded finally brought out of his thoughts. France saw him go back to that serious thoughtful expression for a few more moments before finally turning to America and asking. "Alfred were you at the common wealth games last year?"
When America's response was not what England had expected he shared what he remembered of that time. France jokingly responded. "Well it seems not everyone afflicted by those horrendous brows of your is also affected by your lack of memory."
England and France at this point decided to start throwing insults and ordering vodka shots, neither man paying any more attention to America. If they had they would have noticed the dark calculating look that permanently stayed on his face for the rest of their time in the bar and quite possibly heard him whisper. "I will fix this."