America took notice of England's living room. It had not changed over the centuries that he had been independent of the British Island. The Victorian furniture was spotless as usual. England, though few knew it, was a bit of a neat freak. Not as bad as Germany, but he liked for his home to be clean and well organized. The British Island had asked him to wait in the living room while he put the groceries away and set about putting the kettle on. America knew that would take him a few minutes, so he simply wondered around the living room as his mind drifted down memory lane.

This was the same room that England had brought him to when he had agreed to be his brother. It was also the same room where England would sit and tell him stories while America played with the wooden soldiers that England had hand painted for him. So many memories; most of them good and others not so much. Looking up on the mantle of the fireplace America noticed something new.

A wooden soldier with blond hair and blue eyes clad in a miniature uniform that was identical to the one Alfred had worn during the Revolution. Seeing this little Revolutionary Soldier sitting on Britain's mantle threw the nation for a loop. That war had been ugly and so full of anger, he had honestly thought the British Nation would never stop hating him for revolting. So why in the world was an American Revolutionary Soldier, that England had obviously carved himself, sitting on the mantle? Why did it look so much like America? It didn't make any sense, at least nothing that made sense to Alfred. He stared at the details on the doll's uniform only to jump out of his skin as his phone rang.

Taking a deep breath to calm his rapidly beating heart, America pulled his phone out only to see that it was California calling him. He knew his Hollywood Baby and Alaska had left home without telling him, but had decided to wait til they came back to ground them for eternity. Seeing Angelica's name on the phone made him think that now seemed like a good time to let them know what awaited them when they got home.

"Hello my soon to-be-grounded-for-life-little-girl", America said in a sickly sweet voice that left little doubt that he was pissed off.

"Okay Dad, before you decide to get hostile, I have information on Hawaii", California said hoping to sway her father away from his anger at her and towards his anger at China; lucky for her it worked.

"What do you know? Is Hawaii alright? Has she been harmed? Tell me!", America asked his focus going towards his Island Baby's well-being.

"Dad, chill! Hawaii is alright. As far as we could tell, she wasn't hurt, but her wardrobe has hit a major upgrade. A full silk gown worthy of an empress!", California gushed as she remembered the outfit her sister had been wearing.

"Focus Angelica!", America snapped, not in the mood for a fashion update.

"Oh right, sorry", she said clearing her throat, "Well other than that, she was alright. She was a little mad at us though."

"I have no doubt she was", America said his heartbreaking a little at the news.

"Dad, I know our government does not want us talking to her, but that is the whole reason she's mad", California said wanting to be able to talk to her sister again, if only to apologize.

America sighed as he thought about the plan he was getting ready to propose to England. If everything worked out, then America and his states would not only be able to talk to Hawaii again, they would have their sister back. It would be as if she never left and the debt to China would be settled. Permanently.

"Where are you two right now?", he asked knowing that Alaska and California had left together.

"Don't freak out, okay?", California said sounding a little nervous about answering him.

"Now Angelica Marilyn Jones!", America said sharply.

America was not a horrible father, but his temper was known to get the best of him when it involved his children. The fact that he had already lost Hawaii was bad enough, now that two of his western states had up and left home without telling him anything made it even worse. He had lost his little island girl, he refused to risk losing another child due to their own childishness and lack of foresight. Two traits he regretted passing on the moment they had begun to show themselves.

"We're at Russia's house", Alaska's voice came over the line in his usual monotone voice.

America nearly dropped the phone the moment his brain registered what he had just been told. Russia, America's most infuriating enemy, had two of his children at his house! Granted, Alaska had been allowed to have supervised visits from Russia after America had taken custody over the former-Russian colony. However, that curtsey was only extended to when Russia was on American soil. Alaska had never been allowed to go to Russia's house after he had been placed in America's custody. Hell, none of his states had ever been allowed over to Russia's house; at least not when America had a say-so in the matter.

"Why, on God's wide earth, are you two there?!", he growled out fiercely.

"We needed a way to get to Hawaii without The Man finding out. Saying that we were trying to form good connections with Russia was the best idea we could come up with", California said hoping her explanation would not land the both of them in deeper trouble.

America was shocked, still angry as Hell, but shocked that their plan had been so clever. It was no secret that America and Russia had issues with each other, so sending two of his states, one that used to belong to Russia, to try and smooth things out between them was actually a rather good plan. One that America could use to his advantage if he played his cards right. Russia was a clever nation, one that would not be fooled so easily unless America had a trump card, Alaska. He knew Russia still cared for his former colony, so Alaska would be the perfect choice to keep Russia distracted while the he and California gathered information on China and where they would be able to strike to bring both of them down. It was a golden opportunity, one that the American would be a fool to pass up.

"I want you both to remain in Russia", he said practically forcing the words out of his mouth, "Keep him distracted and gather as much information on both him and China. I'll expect a debriefing later, but for now stay there."

"Dad, what are you planning?", Alaska asked, his nervousness showing in his voice.

"Nothing as of yet, Micha. For now, just do as I say", America said evenly, he knew his state cared about his former-father nation, but he could not let that stop him. He needed Alaska's cooperation in order to follow through with his growing plans.

"Yes sir", Micha said his voice returning to it monotone that the American nation was use to.

"I'll call you later tonight, goodbye", America said before hanging up the phone.

It was almost too perfect. Russia was a nation that had been an issue for America for many years now. Being given the opportunity to bring both China and Russia down was not something the American would take lightly. China and Russia may have been America's allies during the World Wars, but that no longer mattered. Russia and America had been through the Cold War, but both of them still held resentments against the other. China and America had their own dealings with money that had formed a rough patch between them, but his taking control of Hawaii had been the final straw.

America had every intention of going to war and taking back what was his. Sadly, for what he was planning he would need help from his closest family. England, France, and Canada were the closest things America had to family other than his states. He would need all of their help to pull this off, but he would also have to tread carefully lest he lose more than a single state.

"Now that you're call is over", came a familiar British voice from behind America.

The American jumped as he turned to find the British gentleman holding a tea tray with two cups, an elegant floral teapot, and looking at him with a large eyebrow raised in a questioning way. America suddenly knew what an ant under a magnifying glass felt like. Uncomfortable, guilty, and 100% at the mercy of the one holding the sizzling weapon of death; not a good feeling at all!

"Mind sharing with the rest of the class?", England said placing the tray down on the coffee table and proceeded to cross his arms while tapping one finger lightly on his shoulder.

America was busted. No, he was beyond busted. He was neck deep in trouble with the Devil staring him down with the promise of Hell's fire for his wrong doings. To anyone else, he would have sounded overly dramatic. Well, they had never been stared down with the nation that once had been called the British Empire, a name that struck fear into many nations in the past, and some still to the present day. It was one of the reasons many thought America mad to challenge him all those years ago and perhaps he had been. Whether he won or not, England was still a force to be reckoned with.

Taking a deep breath and allowing it to flow out in a defeated sigh, America decided that it was best just to tell England up front what he wished to do and how he would need his former-European Guardian's help. Taking a seat on the couch, America stared down at the tea set and tried to decide where he should begin. England, sensing that America was not ready to tell him yet, went to making the cups of tea to busy himself so that his former-colony could collect his thoughts.

"The day I decided rebelled against you, I was so upset with you", America said softly not looking up from the tea cup that had been filled and sat in front of him.

England sipped his tea quietly and listened intently to his former-colony begin explaining himself. Though he did question his reasoning for bringing up their past transgressions against each other. Was it to rile the old island kingdom up? Or was it a trick to make him lose his temper so that the younger nation could gain the upper hand over him? Britain had lived long enough to know that appearances were often deceiving and that one should never let his guard down. He had made that mistake once when he allowed his walls to fall down for his 'little brother'. The brother that had turned his back on him and fought for all his worth to get away from him.

That kind of heartbreak did not heal easily. No kind word or amount of time could ever fully heal the pain America's Revolution had dealt Britain. Yet, even with all the bad blood between them, Britain still saw his little brother sitting on the couch. Independent Nation or not, America would always hold a place in Britain's shattered heart. It was for that reason, that reason alone, that the Brit had allowed the American into his home and agreed to listen to what he had to say, whatever it may be.

"I had wanted you to see that I could stand on my own. I wanted to show you that I could be just like you. I could be strong, I could hold my own, that I did not need you to keep treating me like a child. I had wanted you to see me as your equal. Now I am one of the World Superpowers, yet I still feel as if I have not become your equal", Alfred said staring down at the tea cup as if it held all the answers he needed.

"I fail to see how this is relevant", Britain said refusing to believe that the superpower whom refused to look him in the eye had come to discuss the past.

"It is more relevant than you know", America said with a sigh of defeat, "I was so caught up in trying to be equal to you. To show you that I could be just as good as you, that I could stand on my own, I did not pay attention to damage I was inflicting on, not only the world, but my own states. So, in a way, I became just like you. The you I never wanted to be. The one who only ever paid attention to my states when I needed them for something while ignoring them the rest of the time. Deny it if you want, but you know I'm telling the truth."

England at first glared at the nation, but his expression softened after a moment. He knew the stupid American was telling the truth. A hard truth, but the truth none the less. He had been negligent when America was growing up. He had come to terms with that a long time ago and had long sense accepted that he had been in the wrong back then. Yet, he was a little surprised that the usually narcissistic country was admitting to having committed the same folly. Just what did he expect to come out of this confession? What did he want?

"As fascinating as this little trip down memory lane is, please come to the point", England said beginning to lose patience with the younger nation.

America looked up from his tea cup and right into England's evergreen eyes, the look on the American's face left England speechless. Regret. It was a feeling England knew better than any nation on Earth. Regret for failing the one he cared for, regret for losing the one he cared for, and regret for doing it more than once. It was like looking into a mirror when England gazed at the American sitting across from him.

"I came here to ask for your help in regaining My Hawaii. Help me reclaim her and I shall help you gain back what you have lost as well", America said his voice and eyes unwavering.

"And what, pray tell, would that be?", England said barely above a whisper, the air still knocked out of him from his newest revelation.

"Your Empire", America said knowing that those two words sealed the fate of not only Hawaii's return, but that of his own freedom.

The teacup that had been sitting in England's hands shattered on the floor as it fell from his trembling hands. England sat completely dumbstruck as his brain tried to process the deal the American had just proposed to him. His empire?! Did this foolish nation believe he could return Britain to his place of power over nearly half the globe?! There had been a time with the sun had never set upon the British Empire and that had been a time when England had held all the power in the world. He missed his days of being the most powerful nation in the world, but now the current Superpower of the world was offering to help him regain it. What in the world was happening?

"Just how to you plan to do that? I will not be pulled into one of your half-baked schemes that leave me drowning in the middle of the ocean again!", England finally snapped as he jolted to his feet in anger.

"First, I wish abolish my own government and recreate it anew. To do this, I will need the aid of the only three nations I can trust not to over take me when I am at my weakest", America said looking up at England with the same loving blue eyes he had when he was a child, "I need my brothers to stand with me when I am most vulnerable. I will not force this on you though. If you do not wish to help me, then I will go and bother you no more with this. But I will continue my plans with or without you and the others."

England stood there shaking with suppressed rage that had been born from his confusion. Why, on God's wide Earth, would America, the nation that had fought tooth and nail to defeat him and gain independence, offer him the chance to reclaim his empire?! Did that one state matter that much to him? Or was this all some clever ruse in order for the American to obtain all he wanted before double crossing him?

"Why should I believe you? More importantly, why would you offer me this deal when I could simply wait til your weak then reclaim you as my own once more? Why should I take part in any of your plans?", England ranted wanting to see if the American was sincere or if he was playing him for a fool.

America stood up now to look down at the shorter nation, but it was not to intimidate him. No, his eyes showed a humbleness that England had not seen is so long. Not since America's early days as a colony. America was coming to England now the same way he had when he was a child. He came to him as a child seeking a parent.

"I'm not asking you to do this for myself. I'm asking you to do this, because you know what it is like to have something you love taken from you. I know I have hurt you and I am sorry that rather than gaining your respect and acknowledgment, I have only gained your anger and resentment. I'm asking you now, if you ever held any true love for me in the past, help me get my child back. I'm asking for your help, England, Great Britain", America said looking straight into the lime green eyes that watched him in awe, "Big Brother, will you help me?"

England fell back onto the couch, still staring up at the American in shock. The American spoke the truth. He was not a good liar when he was younger, and was still rubbish at it as a full grown nation. So it was rather easy for England to see through his lies and he was not lying. He was giving his word to help England regain his empire in exchange for helping him get back his child. He truly loved his state that much? Just when had America matured?! England, to his own surprise, felt his heart swell with pride. Of course, he would never admit to that.

Placing a hand over his tired eyes, England rubbed them in agitation, "Just tell me you have thought this through and don't expect me to work out all the details by myself?"

"Well, I've got the basic idea down", America said his childish side coming back a little bit, "But I need to get our other two brothers in on this before I can confirm any plans."

"So in other words, you do not have a bloody clue how you are going to do this?!", England snapped glaring at the smiling nation that was now happily sipping his tea.

"More or less", America said, he did actually have a few plans in the works, but he did love seeing England get all riled up.

He had secured one brother, he only needed to gain the other two to take down China and Russia in one swift move. It was a tangled web he was weaving, but to give England full control of Europe would be ridiculous. He would gain back his empire, but America intended that when this was all over that Russia and China would be little less than British and French Territories for the rest of their pathetic existence.


Kanoa flopped down on her bed exhausted. China's lessons were intense! Actually that was an understatement, they were the epitome of a nightmare spawned from Hell Fire. China would never settle for less than perfection when it came to proper etiquette. Her posture, speech, expression, state of dress, and even how she walked! It was a pain in the ass, but Kanoa could understand why he was so anal about it.

People had mocked her culture many times over in the past. Her hula dances had some how gone from a beautiful dance of grace and power to a tourist attraction. Chinese culture had suffered the same way in other nations. They mocked it and ruined it by messing with it or by trying to combine their cultures together. China did not wish for Kanoa to be one of these people who unknowingly mocked his culture due to ignorance. She would learn about his culture and respect it. She would live it the way it was meant to be lived and do so with pride. At least, that is what China wanted her to do.

"I'm learning all about his culture, but that does not mean I should forget my own. I was a kingdom long before I became a state and I am still the Hawaiian Kingdom!", she growled out as she pulled the golden chopsticks from her hair and began to change into her hula outfit once more.

"American State or Chinese Territory, I am still Hawaii and my culture will not be ignored so easily", she said as she took her boom box back out and headed for the backyard.

Supper was not due for another three hours and Hawaii was determined to honor her own culture by dancing. Hula may have been commercialized by the media and tourism, but it was her people's dance. It was how they expressed themselves, how they once worshiped their island gods and goddesses. It was as much part of Hawaii as the sand that covered her shores and the waves that caressed them. If she could not walk her own shores, she would dance in memory of them and her people who loved them. Her people who loved her.

She sat the boombox on the porch, same as she had that morning. That morning, the memory made her blush, but she quickly shoved it away. She would not let Hong Kong's Perverted Face distract her. He was a jerk anyway and didn't deserve to be in her thoughts. With that in mind, she turn on the music and began her dance once more. Doing her best to lose herself in the music and forget about a certain pigheaded, self-righteous, stuck-up jerk of a region.

The music was slow and sensual, a song that many would listen and dance to when they were in love. It was one of Hawaii's favorite dances. Not because she knew anything about being in love, but because of the love she had seen in others. It was such a beautiful thing, to love and be loved by the one you love. She was always happy to see someone on her island find love on her shores. The feeling she got from that joy made her dance in a way that seemed to please the gods. She smiled as she let the feeling of her people's love for her and each other fill her up. She was loved by her people, but she had never been loved in the way she had seen them love each other. What that love must be like, to bring such joy and such pain.

Kanoa was so lost in the music and her dance, that she no longer paid attention to her surroundings. She forgot she was in China's backyard, or even in China at all. She was back on her island, at a luau where she was dancing for her people, her mind was filled with the smell of the ocean and the feel of sand beneath her feet. In these memories she lost herself, so much so that, once again, she failed to notice she had a real audience watching her.


China had just finished cleaning up the lesson room, he had considered making Kanoa do it like any student of his had in the past, but chose to be lenient today since something Hong Kong had done had really upset her. He may be strict and traditional, but he was not completely heartless. Kanoa was a sweet flower that had taken root in his heart in the short time she had been under his roof. Her shy yet kind nature, her stubbornness, her willingness to try to compromise with him on many things; it all made her who she was and that made her special.

"Now, I only need the approval of my other siblings before I can truly make her family. Once they have agreed, I will file the papers that Hawaii will remain a permanent Chinese Territory and America's debt shall be paid off in full. A plan that will not require much, if any, blood shed and will settle this matter once and for all. Kanoa will have a home here with me and she will have a family who treats her as such. America was a fool to give her up so easily, but I suppose I am grateful that he is such a fool. Had he not signed her over to me, I would never know the dear girl I now wish to call Wǒ mèimei", he thought to himself as he placed the last of the scrolls and books away.

Kanoa was a bright young girl who did well in her lessons. She was not perfect, no one ever truly could be, but she did try her best. China was proud of her as he watched her learn about his culture and all that it had to offer. She was honestly trying to make this work and that pleased him to no end. He smiled as he remembered Hawaii's state of dress during their lessons. To see her in his country's clothes, to see her wearing them without making a fuss, it made him smile all the wider. She was becoming an excellent student and an ever better soon-to-be sister.

China continued to smile as he made his way to the kitchen to begin preparations for dinner when he heard it. Music, a strange kind of music that had never been heard in his home. It was a soft, sensual music that floated through the air like a gentle breeze would float through the bamboo. He walked over to the window where the music seemed to be coming from and found a most unusual sight. Kanoa, wearing her grass skirt again, and she was dancing in his backyard.

China was not only surprised to see Kanoa dancing in such a fashion, but it was the smile on her face as she danced. In the time Kanoa had lived under his roof, China had never seen her smile like that. All her smiles had either been weak or forced, but this smile was as real as the sun and sky. It was a smile filled with happiness as her movements reflected that happiness. It was all so beautiful, but also so odd to China. He had seen Hawaiian dances on television many times, but none as beautiful as this. Was it because she was Hawaii herself or was it because it was Kanoa?

China watched in silence as she danced to the music. It was a beautiful sight to see her finding such happiness in something as simple as dancing. Yet, it was not just dancing that seemed to make her smile, it was because it was her people's own way of dancing. It was one of their most memorable dancing styles that had made a mark on the world. It was beautiful, joyful, entrancing, and left a smile on the dancer and audience's faces.

"Even when she becomes our sister, even when she becomes a permanent Chinese Terrirtory, Kanoa will always be Kanoa. She is Hawaii and those islands are as much part of her as my land is apart of me. I will teach her all there is to know about my culture, but perhaps it would serve me well to learn about hers as well", China thought as he continued to watch her dance for a few moments longer.

China did not want to change Kanoa, no he wanted her to be part of his family. Of course, to do that she must understand him, his culture, and his siblings cultures. A few of his siblings were far too sensitive when it came to their cultures and would take great offense should they believe someone is mocking them. China did not wish for his culture to be unknowingly mocked, but he knew the best way to avoid that was to teach Kanoa about it. China had not really thought of learning about her culture in turn, but as he watched the joy it seemed to give Hawaii, he felt it would be good to learn more about what made this young island girl come alive.