I've had a busy few days, so this took a while to get out. Just to warn you, there's a time skip in this chapter. If I've written it properly the it should be obvious, but I confused people with time skips in 'Mine', so I wanted to give fair warning.
I Have My Reasons.
The bruising was going down nicely, fading to that sickly gross green colour that was the most painful. Arthur could open his eye all the way now, but it hurt to do it for too long, so he ended up squinting most of the time. He sighed in annoyance as he checked out his reflection in the bathroom mirror – he was happy it was fading, it wasn't a good look. He sighed again, washing the leftover foam from his toothbrush and throwing it back in the pot.
He was tried – Peter may not quite be a newborn, but he was still as demanding, up every few hours of the night demanding to be fed or changed. Theoretically, it was Arthurs turn ¼ of the time to take care of him, but as Owen slept like a lazy rhino and Angus was having difficulties of his own, he ended up pretty much in charge of the baby. He looked around as there was a knock on the bathroom door.
Patrick smiled at him pleasantly, standing in a way that wouldn't crease his smart black suit. He had dark bags under his eyes, but was perfectly shaven, hair swept back neatly.
"Ready to go, poppet?" he asked.
"Almost." Arthur admitted, buttoning up his white shirt "I never really got along with ties, though. Bowties and I can manage, but these do my head in."
Patrick laughed through his nose, taking the black tie from the side of the sink and throwing it over Arthurs shoulders, concentrating as he tied it for him.
"It may be a late one for us." the doctor admitted "I can't imagine Angus will be able to entertain for long, and we can't leave it to Owen. We may not get to have a rest until around 11.30."
"Consider me warned."
Patrick finished sorting the tie, sliding it up to its correct place at Arthur neck before ruffling his hair a little.
"You look weird with neat hair." he teased "Let's go – we need to set up."
Arthur followed him out the bathroom and down the stairs, where Owen was waiting with Peter in his arms, also dressed in black.
"Where's Angus?" Patrick asked.
"In the garden." Owen informed him "Looking at the flowers."
Patrick sighed and nodded, handing Arthur the keys to his car.
"You two get baby strapped into his seat, I'll fetch the big 'un."
Patrick wondered into the garden to find their brother. Arthur was happy that he had taken charge – he didn't know how to cope with Angus' complete and total shut down after Merediths death. He didn't speak, hardly ate, seemingly never slept, just stared into space and shuffled around the house aimlessly. Of course, that meant he was no good to his son, but Patrick assured them that this was just a temporary state. In the meantime he had taken control, sorting out the funeral and wake as well as Arthurs added issues.
The two older brothers appeared at the car soon enough, Patrick climbing into the drivers seat before they took off to the funeral home.
Merediths funeral was low key – she didn't have much family, it seemed – but it was tasteful and sombre. The two dozen or so people that did come all expressed their sorrow that little Peter had lost his mother, when only months ago everything had seemed to be going so well. A few tried to console Angus, but he remained silent and unapproachable, leaving Patrick to once again take the lead.
Peter seemed to realise something was awry as he just couldn't settle, squirming and fidgeting whoever held him and screaming like he was on fire if he was put down, so was passed between Owen and Arthur throughout the day. The funeral officially ended around 3, but the mourners loitered about for a while, so the brothers only got to finish setting up the wake an hour and a half later.
Angus immediately excused himself by going upstairs to his room and locking the door. Patrick just sighed, as he had done a lot that day, and let him go.
"You want a cup of tea?" Arthur asked him sympathetically.
"Thanks." Patrick said, loosening his tie a little after showing in a couple more mourners "This isn't a lot of fun. Hey, are you okay?"
"Me? I'm fine."
"Really? You look pale."
"I do? I'm probably just tried. Bit of a headache, but that's just tension."
Other than his headache, Arthur felt fine. Well, as fine as one could be during the funeral of a relative. Patrick smiled at him, a little sadly, and ruffled his hair again.
"There's some painkillers in the drawer." he informed him "In a green box. They're pretty strong though, so don't take more than one."
Patrick Kirkland learned something interesting on the day of Merediths wake: he learned that Arthur Kirkland was partially colour blind, unable to tell the difference between green and red. He wasn't surprised though – both Owen and their father had the same problem, and it was the most common type of colour blindness. It was still pretty interesting, seeing the results. Patrick thought the system for storing his pills was pretty simple – green box good (paracetamol, antacid, etc.), red box bad (prescription medicine, medicine samples and so on) – but he hadn't figured Arthurs colour blindness into that. He'd have to do something about that.
Peter was finally asleep, resting against Arthurs chest as he lay on the sofa. Arthur himself was... staring at a shiny thing on the ceiling. He had caught the ceiling light with the glass of his watch, and was amusing himself by shining the circle of light all around. Patrick figured it was his own fault – he should have kept his medicine in its labelled box, rather than leaving it an unmarked blister pack in a box.
Owen was annoyed at having to clean up all by himself, clearing away the chairs and doing the dishes, but Patrick had done enough for one day and Arthur was in no condition to help. He hadn't taken enough that he needed to have his stomach pumped, but he shouldn't be put in charge of anything important: being Peters cot was about all he could manage (those pills weren't even licensed yet...).
Arthur laughed to himself. Patrick finished his hot toddy, his own tension headache pressuring his sinuses. This day was over. He had been dreading it since that awful day at the hospital, and now it was finally done. That was the one thing he would change, if he could – he'd still have Meredith with them. Yes, they finally had Arthur with them now, but there was still an empty space in their family, and with Angus currently a walking ghost there may as well be two. He understood, he did – he had never been in love himself, but Angus wasn't just Patricks brother, but his best friend, and he had been witness to every step of their relationship, from the awkward glances and stunted conversations of the early stages to their joyous announcement of Peters expectation. He missed his sister.
Arthur laughed again, finally dropping his hands to his sides and muttering about fairies. Patrick got up from his seat and plopped himself on the floor by the sofa, fingering Arthurs messy blond hair.
"Hey buddy." he called softly "How you feeling?"
"Tastes like strawberry." Arthur giggled.
"Does it now?"
"Mmm." Arthur confirmed happily "It's been a while."
"A while since what?" Patrick asked.
"Since I've been home." he answered.
"This is home now." he reminded him.
"No, I mean home." he attempted to elaborate, shifting where he lay and closing his eyes "With Francis. With the boys and mum. And Ivan. I miss home."
"This is home now." Patrick reminded him again, a little more sternly "You'll get into the rhythm of things when uni starts. You'll be so busy you won't even know they're not here."
"I want to go home." he muttered, clearly tired.
"You are home."
"I'm tired."
"I know. How about I take Peter so you can go to bed?"
"I wish I was a kangaroo." Arthur pondered "We wouldn't have this problem."
"You should write a story about it." Patrick suggested "My kids love stories like that."
Arthur laughed again as Patrick took the slumbering Peter, taking great pains not to wake him or else face his wrath. When he was finally in his cot, Patrick picked up the baby monitor and crept out like a shadow back along the hall, figuring he should try and get Arthur to bed before he found the matches. Maybe he could tempt him with another shiny thing.
But tempting wasn't necessary – he was already in his room, sat leant over his desk with his pen in his hand. Surprised, Patrick went to see what he was doing: the younger brother had pulled out one of the notebooks Patrick had bought him for school and was writing furiously. At the top of the page he was written the title: 'I Wish I Was A Kangaroo.'
"You're writing it?"
"You said I should." Arthur pointed out "So I am."
Patrick laughed through his nose, rustling his hair before kissing him on the head.
"Don't stay up too late." he instructed.
"Can I have some tea?" Arthur asked.
"Sure."
Patrick went to put the kettle on. He should probably give Arthur a sedative to help him sleep.
The doctors were loathe to let Arthur leave the hospital, even after a week. He had been detoxed, medicated, stuck with an IV and poked and prodded black and blue, but a steady diet of mood altering drugs and tranquillizers had done terrible things to his stomach, so he was having trouble keeping down everything but soup. Arthur wasn't sure if it was his condition or Vashs influence that kept him in his hospital bed, but he was getting fed up of being stuck here.
That being said, it was nice to talk to Lily again – she had gotten sassy in the past eight years, and loved talking about her little boy (but not his father, and Arthur took the silent hint not to ask at all). Unfortunately, she was one of the few people that he could talk to: she had been kind enough to tell him that his family wasn't actually allowed to see him, on Vashs orders, until the mess had been sorted out.
Arthur knew what was going on – the doctors couldn't hide it from him, especially when Vash and Cameron started asking him questions – but he could scarce believe it. The idea that his brothers had been slipping him heavy anti-psychotic drugs and tranquillizers for nearly eight years was so difficult to imagine that he was having trouble accepting it. Why would they do it? And when? It was true that Arthur never cooked or made his own tea... but again, why? He felt more confused than betrayed. He simply couldn't understand it.
"So, how do you feel today?" Kiku asked.
"Pretty much the same." Arthur confessed.
"That's understandable."
Dr Kiku Honda briefly made a note on his clipboard. The hospital had thought it in Arthurs best interest to get him to talk to a psychiatrist after his unintentional drug addiction, hence his current appointment with Kiku. The two knew each other somewhat from years past – Lizzies little brother Heracles was Kikus best friend – so Arthur was somewhat reluctant to open up to him about everything (ignoring the fact he was also one of Yaos siblings, which certainly didn't help either), but he proved himself to be very professional and adept at his job.
"I've spoken with the relevant people." Kiku explained "As long as you have someone to take care of you, you should be able to leave the hospital in the next few days. Of course whoever you stay with has to meet with Vashs approval first."
"He's in charge of the case, huh?" Arthur clarified, smoothing out the starched white sheet around his feet "Has he made any arrests?"
"Not officially." Kiku admitted "But there's been a lot of movement. Your brothers homes and offices have been searched. I mean, Patrick and Owens."
"Owen too?" Arthur asked, genuinely surprised.
"As well as Francis."
"Francis?!"
"Just covering their bases, I understand." Kiku assured him with a professional smile "Francis allowed them to search, and they found nothing. Legally, he is your brother, so Vash has to be thorough."
"Yes, of course. Damn Kiku, you scared me there."
"My apologies."
Kiku made more notes.
"How are you finding the food?" he asked.
"Insipid and uninspired."
"It is, isn't it?" the doctor agreed entirely, laughing a little "It's very good for you, but tastes like salt water. I can assure you, the food in the doctors lounge is only slightly better."
"Yikes. Are there any perks to being a doctor?"
"The women." Kiku answered simply.
"Do 2D women care what you do for a living?" Arthur teased.
"What's that, you want me to stop your morphine?" he played along "Not getting enough soup?"
They both laughed, Kiku putting his pen back in his pocket.
"I'll see about getting you some nicer soup." Kiku promised "But in all seriousness, even if you're discharged, we'll still need to meet every other day for the time being."
"I'm not that messed up, am I?"
"Messed up, no." Kiku assured "But you do have issues that need to be dealt with, not least of which is your current situation. I'd be embarrassed to call myself a doctor if I just let you go the way you are."
"I feel reassured?"
"You should."
Kiku jumped onto the side of Arthurs bed, using the chair beside it to boost himself up, not being overly tall. He shuffled to get himself comfortable before turning to Arthur with a professional smile.
"So, we were talking about your mothers." Kiku reminded him, referring to their previous session "You said your father didn't like you talking to Jeanne – how did that make you feel?"
Mapletealover: Wow Matty, that's really messed up.
Mapletealover: What are you gonna do?
Mr_Kumajiro: I don't know. The police are all over this, so I don't know what's happening.
Mapletealover: Are these brothers you've met or?
Mr_Kumajiro: No, these are my fathers sons. He had four before he met my mother.
Mr_Kumajiro: Angus, Patrick and Oliver.
Mr_Kumajiro: Sorry, 'Owen'.
Mapletealover: Then Mr. Incest Crush?
Mr_Kumajiro: Yeah.
Mr_Kumajiro: (Please don't call him that).
Mr_Kumajiro: Fancy-pants is older than Author, but younger than Owen.
Mr_Kumajiro: Of the brothers, The Stud is the youngest.
Mr_Kumajiro: I'm 45 minutes older.
Mapletealover: The all important :P
Mr_Kumajiro: Yes.
Mapletealover: Have there been any arrests?
Mr_Kumajiro: Not yet. Apparently it's pretty hard to prove cases like this.
Mr_Kumajiro: I've been doing some research.
Mr_Kumajiro: It's hard to make a case, but if they're found guilty at trial they could go to prison for a really long time.
Mapletealover: How's Author handling all this?
Mr_Kumajiro: Don't know. They won't let us see him.
Mapletealover: They don't suspect you?!
Mr_Kumajiro: I know the bloke in charge – he suspects everyone all the time.
Mr_Kumajiro: Good at his job, but no fun at parties.
Mr_Kumajiro: They searched our place yesterday. I took like 5 hours and we weren't allowed back in.
Mapletealover: Damn.
Mapletealover: They didn't search our chat history, did they?
Mr_Kumajiro: Yup.
Mapletealover: Fuck.
Mapletealover: I feel so violated.
Mr_Kumajiro: You're cool.
Mr_Kumajiro: I'm the one that has to see a counsellor tomorrow.
Mapletealover: They told fancy-pants?!
Mr_Kumajiro: No, thank god, but only just. I have to see the counsellor in return for not telling him.
Mapletealover: Glad I'm not you.
Mr_Kumajiro: Haha fuck you.
Mapletealover: Love you too, Matty.
Mapletealover: So what happens now?
Mr_Kumajiro: Fancy-pants and the gang have cooked up a plan for him to stay with Ivan-the-(not so)Terrible, since he's not under investigation.
Mr_Kumajiro: I don't know when he'll be released from hospital, though.
Mapletealover: Are you allowed to see him?
Mr_Kumajiro: Not yet, but I will be. The Stud and I aren't under suspicion.
Mapletealover: I should think not!
Mapletealover: How's he handling it?
"You know you can't literally eat your feelings, right?" Romano criticised "But kudos for trying."
"Shut up!" Alfred barked at him "How I handle this is my problem!"
"It'll be my problem when you throw up the last eight bowls of pasta all over my floor!"
The two glared at each other over their homework, Feliciano looking between the two like he was scared another fight was going to break out.
"If you want to join Arthur in ICU that badly, I've got some show polish you can eat."
"I have a fist you can eat."
"Um... please don't fight." Feli pleaded.
"Stay out of this!" Romano barked at his brother, making him flinch "This has nothing to do with children!"
"Don't yell at him because you're on your period!" Alfred argued.
"You wanna go, stud?!"
Feliciano literally ran from the room, probably to fetch Antonio from the restaurant downstairs before the scuffle broke out. He hadn't been living with his brother and Antonio long enough to know that aggressive posturing one moment and playful banter the next was pretty much normal around here (especially from Romano). Seeing him flee, both teenagers took a deep breath and sighed.
"Jumpy, isn't he?" Alfred thought.
"He's been living with the boss's brother in the city." Romano told him "He's way laid back, like if the boss never got angry, so he's never faced any conflict, like ever."
"Antonio doesn't get angry that much."
"Nah, but you know it when he does."
"Ha, very true. You know the answer to number six?"
"Sure."
Romano handed his workbook over to Alfred so he could copy the answer.
"Putting aside all snark." Romano went on "It hurts my feelings that you're trying to eat yourself into a coma rather than talk to me."
Alfred looked at him a moment, grilled cheese sandwich half way to his mouth, before sighing and setting it down again.
"I don't know how I feel." he admitted "This is messed up and I don't know how to act."
"I'd be angry." Romano suggested "I don't even like your brother and I feel bad for him. If I were you I'd buy a hunting knife and go Rambo on their arses."
Alfred laughed awkwardly at the image.
"To be honest... I haven't known how to feel for a while." he admitted, glancing at the door to make sure they weren't about to be interrupted "Ever since Arthur came back, it's like... I really wanted him to stay, but I didn't want to get attached just in case he wouldn't. I remember how bad it felt when he went away before, and I didn't want to go through that again. It seemed like he wanted to stay, like he was getting invested – I mean, the thing with the punishments and getting back with Ivan, it was like he didn't want to go back."
Romano listened patiently, head in his hand, as Alfred vented his spleen, still fingering the sandwich.
"I thought I knew about the world." Alfred sighed "But I don't know anything. I thought Arthur went away because he wanted to, because he didn't like us or want to be around us anymore, and didn't care how much it hurt mum and Francis, but if everything the police are saying is true, he was basically a prisoner."
Alfred sighed again, scratching the back of his head and shifting uncomfortably as he tried to collect his thoughts and turn them into words.
"I live in a world where someone I love can be kept prisoner by drugs and not know. It's horrible, but... if mum hadn't died, he would probably still be there. We'd still have no idea, and there's nothing we can do about it." he sighed yet again, shaking his head "I don't want to live in that kind of world."
"What are you going to do?" Romano asked seriously.
"Dunno." Alfred admitted, finally looking him in the eye "I figured maybe I'd join the police or something. I don't know how to deal with what's going on today, but I want to make sure it doesn't happen again, I guess."
"Okay." Romano answered "I hear you. That's a solid goal for tomorrow, but today's not over yet."
"Yeah, I know."
The door opened, Antonio peeking around it cautiously. Feli had gone to get him afteral.
"Everything okay in here?" he asked.
"Just talking." Romano assured "About all the shit that's going on."
Antonio nodded understandingly.
"Yeah, okay." he said "Maybe don't talk so loud in front of your brother? You know he's jumpy around you bigger boys."
Opening the door properly, Antonio addressed them both seriously.
"There's a lot of shit happening." he pointed out parentally "But the worst part is not having answers. If there's something you boys wanna know or don't understand, you ask me. I don't want you getting into trouble because you're frustrated at not knowing things."
"How easy do you think it is to slip someone medication without them knowing it?" Alfred asked him, seizing the chance where it lay.
"What's in that sandwich?" was Tonis reply.
"It's a grilled cheese."
"Yeah, but what's in it?"
Alfred seemed to see what he was getting at, regarding the object in his hand in a new light.
"It's that easy." the restaurant owner elaborated "I make so many meals everyday, I can tell you that no-one stops to think about what they're eating. Everybody eats, so it's like one of the universal rules of life that you don't mess with peoples food – that's why people get so upset about food poisoning. How many things do you boys eat in a day that you didn't personally make?"
"That's just scary." Romano shuddered, considering the implications of what he had said "But one thing I don't get is why? I mean, it seems pretty extreme."
"Hm, okay."
Antonio thought for a moment, pulling out the chair Feli had sat in before and sitting down.
"You love your brother, right?" he asked Romano.
"I guess so." he answered in the typical adolescent fashion.
"If someone hurt Feli, you'd be upset, right?"
"I'd stab them in the throat."
"Looking mentally stable there, buddy." Alfred quipped, earning him the middle finger from Romano.
"Well," Antonio went on, used to their shenanigans "You know Miguel took good care of Feli all this time, right?"
Romano nodded.
"Imagine if he didn't, or if you thought he didn't. You'd want your brother to come and stay with us, wouldn't you? Well, that's what the Kirklands thought – they thought Arthur was being mistreated here, so they wanted him to stay with them."
"I don't buy that."Alfred muttered bitterly "They knew damn well Arthur was just fine here. They took him away because they could."
"That's option 2." Toni admitted "But I'll bet they don't see it that way. I'm sure Arthur wanted to come home after a few weeks, and the drugs were the only way they could make him forget about it."
"I still don't get it." Romano admitted "If you have to use drugs or force to keep someone with you, isn't it better to let them go?"
Toni chuckled, reaching over and ruffling Romanos hair.
"You're a good boy." he complimented "I'm glad you can't understand that man."
Romano grumbled, slapping off his hand.
"I'll be sad when Feli goes back to the city." he admitted "But I'm not gonna break his legs to stop him. I can't think that what that guy did was sane."
"You're right – that's why this is so serious." Antonio told them both "When Arthur gets out of hospital, he's going to need your understanding, you know?"
Both boys nodded. They let the subject drop as Feliciano poked his head around the door, curious at the lack of yelling.
Ivan and Katyusha stood expectantly, silently, as Vash and Cameron finished looking around the house. They made some notes and chatted between themselves before Vash approached them.
"I have to admit," he said "I didn't expect your place to be this nice."
"We did it up a little." Ivan answered "Coat of paint, house plants, cushions and throws and crap. You know, a womans touch."
Vash nodded in agreement.
"It's nice." he complimented "Especially compared to when I saw it five years ago."
"Is it good enough?" Katyusha asked "Can Arthur stay here?"
Vash grumbled uncomfortably.
"I can't ignore that Yao Wang is only down the road." he told them "You know what happened before."
"He's in no condition to do anything." Katyusha assured him "He's lost a lot of mobility in the past three years – he can't walk without a cane anymore, he's not a threat to Arthur. Besides, he understands the situation."
"Even so-"
"He won't be allowed here." Ivan told him plainly "He doesn't have a key since we changed the locks."
"You went that far?" Vash questioned.
"Arthur's like a little brother to me." Katyusha told him "I'll do whatever it takes to help him."
Vash sighed through his nose, examining them both closely before nodding.
"Okay." he said finally "Arthur can stay here, but someone has to be home at all times. If the Kirklands come sniffing around, you call me and I'll have a plain clothes officer posted here. I hear a whiff of trouble or any hint of Yao getting close to Arthur and I'll bounce him out of here so fast your lovely new cushions and throws will catch fire, got it?"
"Yes, sir!" the siblings chorused.
Romano and Alfred have an odd kind of friendship, but I wanted them to be close. Some people have already cottoned on to the fact that Antonios brother is in fact Portugal, but since he didn't have an official 'human' name I googled popular Portuguese names and settled on Miguel. I doubt he'll make an appearance in this story, though (he's on his honeymoon!).
So Arthurs reaction to this whole saga has been a little... underwhelming, hasn't it? It may take a while before the full scale of his brothers actions really hit him, but the good people of Hetalia aren't going to take this offence lying down. Once particular resident is going to be more proactive than the others...
