A/N at bottom
1754
Matthieu sat at the kitchen table writing a letter, which he often found himself doing when there was no work to be done or arguments to be settled. This letter in particular was addressed to Ludwig, who he hadn't seen for months, and he hadn't seen Romano for even longer. Matthieu's last letter had been written in a hurry, so he wanted to take his time and say what he needed to say. His peace didn't last long, however, until Frances barged into the room, nearly knocking down the kitchen door.
"Damn him. GODDAMN HIM," Francis muttered under his breath. Matthieu didn't even have to guess as to who Francis was referring.
"England again?" Even though Matthieu knew his name was Arthur, he wouldn't ever call him that, and especially not to his face. He didn't know him well enough, only having have seen him at the occasional meeting, which he didn't often participate in anyway. Matthieu may not adore the man, but he didn't want to blatantly disrespect him. He knew Francis would disagree, but that was the standard the Canadian held himself to.
"Of course. That... that bâtard!" Matthieu sighed, preparing himself for the drama that was surely to be hurled at him. He knew he would regret asking, but...
"What did he do this time?" Francis, shamelessly pleased that Matthieu had taken an interest in his complaints, wasted no time in responding.
"So you know how we have all those forts set up in the upper Ohio River valley? Well, Angleterre (he practically spat when he said his name) decided it would be so funny for him and his stupid American colonists to go an-"
By this point, Matthieu had to admit he was zoning out. He heard the words "bâtard" and "how dare he" and "that pompous jerk" a lot, but the entire situation seemed like a minor skirmish, and not anything to panic about.
"And that, dear Matthieu, is why I'm going to war." This, however, Matthieu took an interest in.
"Wait, what?" He hoped he had heard Francis incorrectly.
"I'm sorry, you're right. We're going to war." Like that made it any better.
"Francis, are you sure this is a good idea? This really just seems like a trivial thing, are you sure we should go to war over this?"
"Ah, Matthieu. You shouldn't worry so much! Angleterre could never defeat the mighty French Empire!"
"Ok Francis, whatever you say..."
A/N
Yes, I am back! I have written out the next few chapters of this story, so we should be good to go! As always, criticism is greatly appreciated. A couple things:
1. This is how I might write this story. Write a a bunch of chapters, take a two month hiatus, come back. It's just the way I work the best.
2. We are now entering a new part of the story. While the first ten chapters focused on the trio as young kids, the second part will get more into the Seven Years War and England.
3. Just as an important note, I do picture Matthew being a little older than Alfred, even though he gains his independence first. This is probably because Canada was found first.
