Mexico could already tell what America was going to say, so he preemptively said "You call me a whore, Alfred, and I'll call you a hypocrite." America responded "I wasn't going to call you that. I just don't like the idea of Francis getting that close to you." Mexico fixed his eyes on the American, who had balled his hands into fists. It was obvious that he had been deeply bothered by the last part of the story. It was not unexpected considering his tendency towards jealousy. Mexico said curtly "Bullshit. I can see it in your eyes. You think I'm a slut. Even now, you're thinking less of me."

America let go of the sheets slowly "I don't get it, why you would tease him? If you wanted him to do your dirty work, why didn't you just let him have you and get it over with?" Mexico smirked in response "You don't understand men, you never have. A man will always lust the hardest after what he thinks he cannot have. I let Francis think he had a chance, but he couldn't have me. That way, I have him thinking about how he can steal me away, no matter the cost. That way, he would do what I wanted without him knowing that he was doing my dirty work."

America looked to be mulling this over "At least he gave you the letter, granted, he flirted with you shamelessly first. But the point is that he did it and you were able to forgive me, which was all I ever asked." Mexico nodded again "He did and I read it because I figured that I owed you that much."


He broke the wax with one swift stroke and spread out the letter on his desk. The handwriting was hardly legible and smeared so badly in places that whole words had disappeared. But all the same, Mexico read it. He figured it would be good entertainment at the very least. The letter started out pretty cordial, as if it was a simple apology. But as the letter progressed, a bleeding heart was revealed. It was messy and romantic, like someone had smeared their heart's blood on the page in a desperate bid to get understanding. The word "love" was written and crossed out more than once. It was appalling and incredibly touching, all at the same time.

They had met for such a short time; it was hard to believe that America could feel so strongly about him. Perhaps it was just am effect of the revolution; maybe all of America's emotions were more extreme now because of the extreme position he was in. All the same, the genuine emotion in the letter stirred something deep in Mexico's heart. It was strange, but he actually cared about America's wounded emotions. It wasn't like the superficial emotions he felt when Colombia left. It was more like a deep gnawing feeling in his gut. He was causing America unnecessary anguish in the middle of his time of need, and that might just be putting the American at risk. During a rebellion, the last thing he needed on his mind was his love life. If the letter was true, and America was not clever enough to lie so passionately, he was hardly sleeping because he dreamt of Mexico and agonized over their parting moments. The lack of sleep couldn't be good for America's fighting ability, and Mexico refused to be the reason the American boy lost the war. He would lose eventually, that was sure, but Mexico didn't want it on his heart that he destroyed America's chance at freedom.

He folded the letter up and placed it in an inside compartment within a drawer in his desk. This was damning evidence above all else, to keep it was to put himself at risk. The most sensible course of action would be to burn the letter, and thus destroy the evidence. But burning this kind of pure sentiment was to deny the feeling that it was based on and that was something he couldn't do. America had risked a great deal to get this letter to him, if Spain had discovered the letter, then America would now be fighting a war against two European powers. Mexico needed to put America's mind at ease and the only way to do that effectively was to write a response. But, that would entail being able to get a letter past Spain and to America.

That was even more risky than keeping a letter from America. If Spain were to discover that he had received a letter, all the blame could be placed on America and France. However, actually writing a response was a sign of commitment that could not be easily explained away. If he was going to find a way to send this after actually writing it, he needed a safe and secure way to get it to America. That would require a bit of work, which he was quite willing to do. First, he quickly scrawled out a response on a long piece of paper. He tried to keep the wording as clear and unemotional as possible, despite the distinct feeling of attachment he felt towards the American. He couldn't encourage America to feel anything towards him, that would undermine the point which was to put America's mind at ease enough to allow him a fighting chance at winning the war. He was not even going to respond to the declarations of love in the letter, to do so carried too much risk. That would swing America's emotional fog in the other direction. He would be love-struck and that would also compromise his chances. Once the letter was finished, he tucked it away inside another drawer.

He would not be able to send it until some maneuvering was done to find a way to transport the letter. He walked over to the window and glanced out. From the position of the sun, he judged it to be a couple minutes before the hour. He expected Philippines to return soon. She had a curfew so Mexico could check in on her daily activities and set a time for weapons training. Other than that, he let her have a fair amount of freedom. At the very least, it was more freedom than she had in the Americas. He walked back over to the desk and quickly wrote a series of letters.

Like clockwork, he heard a knock at the door on the hour. Mexico turned to see Philippines opening the door. She was dressed in clothing fit for riding, which meant that she had probably been exercising the horses. It was pretty much tradition that Mexico chided her whenever she showed up, so the first thing he said was "You better not have overworked my horse, girl." Philippines scoffed in response "You know I didn't even try riding him. Your horse is one crazy stallion; he doesn't let me near him." Mexico nodded. It was true that his horse had a wild heart, which was why Mexico worked so well with him.

But, he had more important things to talk to Philippines about. He turned to face the Asian girl and said "I have something I need you to do, Piri." He used her real name to convey the seriousness of the task he was about to assign. He picked up the stack of short letters and a list. Philippines took them from him without question and waited patiently for an explanation. Mexico, of course, gave her an explanation "I want you to give these letters to the specific couriers on the list. Make sure to give the right letter to the right person. Tell them that I need these delivered to Texas in Mexico City. Make it clear that other people also have the same letter."

Philippines looked confused "To what end? What do the letters say?" It was essential that she understood the reasoning, so he explained "Each letter is different, but only slightly. They explain to Texas that I want to open negotiations with different European countries on the topic of trade. I'm courting the countries that have shown interest in me, like Russia, Belgium, Germany, England and France. I don't really want to negotiate with any of them, but showing interest in trade goes directly against Spain's orders. If one of these letters finds its way to Spain, I'll know who I can't trust. Based on which letter Spain gets, I will know exactly who I need to get rid of." The girl nodded "I understand. I'll have it done by the end of the day." With that, she left the room, letters in hand. Once Mexico knew who he could trust, he would know who would safely deliver the response to America. It would take a couple days before he knew who would sell him out. Until then, he just had to wait.


America interrupted again "It's scary how smart you are sometimes, you know." Mexico couldn't resist making a jab at America "Those who don't have intelligence are often frightened by those that do." The blonde cocked his head to the side and, for a second, resembled a confused golden retriever "Are you calling me stupid?" Mexico rolled his eyes dramatically "That you even have to ask me that proves my point." The American let this remark pass over him without reacting. Instead, he continued "I mean, how many people would think of that method of testing? I certainly wouldn't have. It also seems that you got results very quickly. If I remember correctly, I got your letter at the beginning of the spring, just as I was leaving Valley Forge." Mexico leisurely walked over to the bed and sat down next to America before speaking again "As I expected, one letter found its way to Spain. That was actually less than I expected. As you can imagine, Antonio was pissed."


Mexico had no illusions when Spain showed up at his bedroom door one morning. He opened the door, saw Spain and immediately took a couple steps back. The European's green eyes were full of fire. They would have been frightening if Mexico hadn't been expecting it. Considering that Mexico had already prepared himself, he kept his calm as Spain took a few steps into the room. Mexico remained calm and said "Is there a problem, Tony?" He used Spain's real name to diffuse some of the anger.

Spain pulled a letter out of his pocket and threw it down on the bed "Explain." Mexico took note of the fact that his colonized was, yet again, giving one word orders. He must be angrier than expected. Mexico responded, keeping his eyes fixed on Spain's face "I was reaching out to expand my trade network." Spain looked down at his feet for a second, as if praying for patience, before looking back up and saying "With Belgium?" This detail was important; Mexico made a mental note to get rid of the man who gave the letter to Spain. He also noted how lucky it was that this was the letter that Spain got, considering that Belgium was one of the few European countries that Spain had good relations with. He capitalized on this fact "Better her than anyone else, considering that she isn't a competing empire. I thought you liked Belgium."

Spain took a couple step forwards, which Mexico matched, as he spoke "It doesn't matter who you want to trade with. You don't trade with anyone but me. Is that clear?" Mexico's foot hit the edge of the bed. There was still something vaguely frightening about this situation. But, Mexico was prepared to do just about anything to satisfy Spain. He said quietly "Si, I understand. This was a mistaken assumption on my part." Spain smirked, "I will forgive you if you do one thing for me." He took another small step forward and connected their lips. At this point, Mexico was used to Spain kissing him and he knew how much kissing back Spain needed to feel he wasn't being rebuffed.

While he was kissing his colony, Spain used his foot to unbalance Mexico's stance enough that they both fell backwards onto the bed with Spain on top. Spain pulled away for a second to breath. Mexico took a couple breathes and then attempted to speak. But before he could say anything, Spain said "If you try to deny me again, I swear to God I will rape you. I don't want to, but if I have to, I will. I can't stand watching you flaunt your body like you do knowing I haven't had it yet. The more defiant you are, the more I want you." He aggressively kissed Mexico's neck, which was exposed. He pulled away one more time to say, his voice rough with unrestrained lust, "So, what do you say? Are you going to give me your body, or am I going to have to take it as punishment for your deceit?"

Spain didn't seem to actually want a response. He snaked his hand under Mexico's shirt and found a nipple, which he aggressively grabbed. The Aztec boy immediately surrendered to the sensation. He had very little choice this time, there was nothing he could do or say to keep Spain from taking him. The best he could do was close his eyes and react. But Spain was not satisfied, he spoke again "Open your eyes, Alejandro. That's an order. When I finally have you, I want to see those beautiful golden eyes." Mexico found it exceptionally hard to force himself to open his eyes and look at Spain. Their eyes met and Spain smirked, he crooned "Good, very good." Then, he used one hand to pin Mexico's arm to the bed. He then proceeded to kiss the tattooed band. Just having the skin touched was enough to excite Mexico, but having it touched so softly and sensually was even more overwhelming. The younger couldn't stop himself from groaning in response. The Spaniard chuckled "Did you really think that after all these years; I wouldn't know exactly what turns you on?"

Quite suddenly, the door banged open. Spain released his colony at once in order to turn and look. Philippines had thrown the door open more drastically than usual without knocking. She said rather pointedly said "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were busy." She left as suddenly and loudly as she had entered. Spain stared after her for a couple moments before turning back to Mexico. His green eyes had lost their drive. He said, his eyes fixed on Mexico's chest "Ah well, the moment is gone. I may call on you later tonight to finish this." Spain stood up and turned to leave. He added "And if you ever try to break my trade monopoly again, I will do worse. I'll teach you the true meaning of sadism."

Mexico was still too out of breathe to respond, but he nodded emphatically. Spain left without another word. Mexico got a few minutes alone in which he sat up and attempted to straighten himself out. As he expected, Philippines stuck her head back in the door "Is he gone now?" The Aztec boy responded "He's gone, Piri, you can come back." She walked in silently and stood awkwardly by the door. Mexico gestured to her "Come over here and sit." She followed the order wordlessly.

He addressed her "I could kiss you right now, girl. You saved my ass, quite literally." She laughed, although she was quite visibly shaken "Considering where your mouth has been, I rather you didn't. I owe you my loyalty, it was the least I could do to protect you." He took another few deep breathes, prayed his legs would hold him and stood up. He walked over to the desk, opened the drawer he had hidden Alfred's letter in, and pulled out his own response. Philippines stood up while Mexico was getting the letter. She walked over to him and took the letter "Shall I give this to one of the couriers that didn't give a letter to Spain?" Mexico nodded "Tell them to give it to Alfred, and no one but Alfred. Oh and tell Texas to cancel all those negotiations. We don't need to take that risk." She nodded one more time and started to walk out. Mexico sighed and said "Girl, take the rest of the week off. You deserve it."


A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review ^-^