4am? who is she
exams end on the 13th, whoo! 10 more days. :D
as always, i do not own the selection nor hetalia. these belong to kiera cass and himaruya hidekaz respectively.
His fist poised awkwardly in front of the door, Arthur looked straight up into the eyes of a slightly sleepy Jack Yao – which was to be expected. Arthur had sent a message this morning, while Alfred was busy showering – the first time Alfred had been able to keep his hands and lips off of him for the past twenty four hours – asking him to meet with him before breakfast.
He had to come clean about Leon, if one of his best friends were to attend the wedding.
"It's refreshing to see someone actually be punctual," Yao chuckled, both of them dipping their heads to each other. "Do come in, Sir Arthur."
"Thank you for agreeing to this," Arthur said as they both walked towards two plush chairs placed at the right end of the room, gently lit by a grand chandelier. "I know it's very early in the morning, but I wanted to get it out of the way…"
"I've had worse, I can assure you," Yao said – Arthur was even more appreciative of the fact that Yao treated him virtually like a co worker and not someone beneath him even though he was not yet officially part of the Primary Suit. "I've been called to the port several times over because of time zone clashes. Would you like something to eat or drink?"
"No, I'm all right, thank you," Arthur replied with a small smile, feeling his palms start to get clammy. What would Yao do to them if the conversation went south? At best, only he would be punished, but what if he decided to exile Leon and Emil…
"So what is it you need to talk to me about?" Yao asked, settling himself in his chair with a carefully neutral expression.
"It's…concerning the wedding," Arthur said, forcing himself not to mumble in front of the Jack. "About the choices for bridesmaids."
"Oh? I'm assuming you mean the completed list?" Yao said, his tone growing warmer. "I'd like to hear it, in this case."
"Yes, well…there's a small problem about one of the potential bridesmaids."
"Are they not able to come? Surely, we can find a replacement-"
"No, Jack Yao," Arthur said, forcing the words out of his unwilling mouth. "It's Sir Leon."
The tension in the air was palpable, only broken by a ragged exhale.
"…H-How can this be?" Yao pressed, his expression flooding with shock. "After the whipping, the advisors said that they would take care of their punishment, but are you telling me Sir Leon – no, they're in the castle at this very moment?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Heavens, I did not expect this at all," Yao mumbled into the palm of his hand, and Arthur feared that he had just made a terrible mistake. "So..."
"Are you going to kick them out?" Arthur asked, his whole body trembling in fear for the two of them. "Please, Jack Yao, reconsider-"
"No, no, of course not," Yao said, pressing his face into his hands. "That would…that would be wrong. I'm just shocked, that's all. Where are they now?"
"Alfred told me that he managed to give them jobs in the kitchens and the palace grounds, but we haven't met in a while as to not raise suspicion of either," Arthur stammered, his hands trembling where they were clenched in his jacket – he did not expect this conversation to be going in the direction it was going. "I just thought you would like to know..."
"I respect that, yes, but...the largest problem is not me, Sir Arthur," Yao said, leaning forward to face him at an even closer angle. "The fact is, how do we present them back into society with a pleasant twist? You know how the advisorship still has some pockets of support around the country, let alone the whole of Cards. What if we publish a small article, for example, and it runs out of our control? Then the biggest problem would lie in protecting them...there would be no chance of getting Sir Leon into your wedding."
"What do you suggest?" Arthur asked.
"We have to make our stance very clear," Yao replied, "Make what happened very precise so that there is no opportunity for anyone to twist the intentions or accuse us of anything. In my opinion, we should do a last minute Broadcast before the airing of the Friday wedding. It would be very late notice, but we must do it tonight. Time is of essence here."
"Perhaps not a whole Broadcast, but rather a news segment?" Arthur said. "Could we contact as many common television broadcasting studios to see if they can add a prerecorded segment by tonight's news. I wouldn't wish it to sound too intrusive."
"It would be more efficient, yes, but we would have to circulate the footage by lunchtime. If you could fetch Alfred after breakfast, I could arrange for staff to film it. One thing, though, I do not believe Sir Leon should make an actual appearance."
"C-Can I ask why?" Arthur asked, a little surprised – he was no expert in PR like Yao was, but why wouldn't they? "Surely if..."
"I expect it would be a terrible strain on the boy, first of all," Yao said evenly, "And this might seem a little cold, but keeping the tragic event fresh in people's minds may convince them to remain sympathetic."
"...no, that makes sense," Arthur said, shifting a little uncomfortably in his chair – perhaps it was their...activity in the tub yesterday? "Thank you for helping me...truly, it means a lot."
"It is a wrong that should have be righted back then, if I had the power," Yao replied, and Arthur could glimpse a hint of defeat in those brown eyes. "There is so much pain I could have simply prevented by..."
"Jack Yao, please don't blame yourself," Arthur insisted, "You were unable to stop it while Matthew and Alfred were both at stake. Even though you didn't know what exactly was happening, think about what could have happened if you did..."
"Thank you, Sir Arthur," Yao said, his expression softening a touch at the younger male. "Thank you for that. Although...before we go to breakfast, who are your other choices for bridesmaids?"
"Well...once I mentioned Leon, the rest would be a lot easier," Arthur smiled. "I asked my sister, Queen Kiku..."
"...Oh, there you are! I guessed you were busy and decided to tidy up this morning instead of last night," Anna greeted him, a knowing tone in her voice. "Hope you don't mind, since Friday's a big day for you."
"I...I hope it will be for you, as well," Arthur stammered, summoning up courage to ask her.
"Hm? Why, of course! You won the Deciding, after all," Anna cajoled, pushing a lock of her hair back into her bun as she spoke. "Serving the future Qu-"
"No, Anna, it's not about that," Arthur said, hesitating before he took her hands into his. "Could you please do something for me?"
"Um...all right," Anna said, raising an eyebrow at her charge's...slightly bizarre actions. "Go on."
"I've just asked Jack Yao about this, and he gave his approval – I'd like you to be one of my bridesmaids," Arthur blurted (hopefully she couldn't feel his hands shaking). "I've invited three other people, but you've done so much for me, Anna. This is sort of the first step in thanking you for everything."
"Oh Fates – did His Highness really approve?" Anna gaped, eyes widening in shock. "Someone of my station becoming bridesmaid to the future queen?"
"I came from nothing, and they're letting my sister walk with me," Arthur said, shaking his head gently, "I don't think it matters to anyone, not Jack Yao, and not me. If you don't want to, I won't make you-"
"No, no, of course not," Anna replied, her smile splitting into a beam as she squeezed Arthur's hands, her eyes sparkling.
"Goodness, you should have spoken to me earlier," Anna said, sticking her tongue out playfully, "I actually was going through with the other maids the final prototype of the bridesmaids' outfits. Thankfully, I stuck to the suits we're making for the two gentlemen, so hopefully I won't be too spoilt."
"Are you still sure about being a lady in waiting, though?" Arthur asked tentatively. "I think you could be a formidable advisor, truly…"
"No," Anna said, blinking firmly. "I enjoy serving you, Arthur, and I don't think I'd be too perfectly suited for the role regardless. Besides, I can't leave my friends behind - if you understand? They mean a lot to me - and so does your offer, but I'm happy where I am. As long as I'm still in charge of taking care of you, then I'm exactly where I want to be."
"I don't think anyone else could deal with my habit of losing things," Arthur admitted, rubbing at the back of his ear. "They'd probably quit."
"Now there's the spirit," Anna grinned, tugging at his cheek which made him yelp in surprise. "Right! Should I take you to the servants quarters? I think you should see the designs, even though I can't now!"
"I'd like that," Arthur smiled, relieved to still see his maid so on top of things, and followed her, closing the doorknob behind him.
This day could be looking up after all.
Honestly, after last time's reception, Arthur was a little disconcerted to see them still be shocked at his arrival.
"Oh Fates, Anna, are you sure it's within protocol?" A butler blurted, blond hair falling over his eyebrows as he ran towards her near the entrance. "Especially with him being the Queen in only a few days…we're still in uproar over his marriage. I swear Jordan planned all this out, she's," he dropped into a whisper, "She's earned almost two hundred gold on the bets she made over the last three months."
"That little minx - but I can assure you, Harvey, that it doesn't have jack to do with money," Anna groaned, but beckoned Arthur forward. "This is Harvey - he can be a bit skittish, but he's harmless all the same."
"It's very nice to meet you, Harvey," Arthur said cordially, giving him an awkward wave. Unfortunately, the butler seemed like he was going to pass out. "T-Thank you for having me here…"
"Harvey!" Anna hissed, snapping her finger under her apron, "There's nothing to worry about, Arthur won't bite your head off. Speaking of her, any way I can get ahold of her? She's on seamstress duty this week, and I want to show him the bridesmaids' outfits before Friday."
"Erm…right, yes, right, Jordan," Harvey mumbled after a long pause. "Jordan. She just went back to her quarters, she was fixing repairing some of the linens in Ace Matthew's room. If she's not there, she might be having dinner…"
"She practically inhales her food, I doubt it," Anna laughed, "Thanks, Harvey. See you around."
"Thank you," Arthur said after her, leaving Harvey to stand dumbly, his mouth wide open.
"Jordan? Open up, doll, I've got a special visitor," Anna said, knocking lightly on the door. "Please, before you come out, make sure you look presentable."
"Anna! I am, I promise, seamstress duty doesn't make me dirty in the slightest," came the younger maid's voice - they could hear her harried footsteps tapping on the floor to receive her friend. "SO, who's th - oh MY - FATES, BLESS-"
Arthur wondered if there was any way to recover his hearing from her outburst - and his dignity, as her shriek had caught the attention of almost every single servant in the quarters. Arthur wanted to bury his hands in his face, but went for a nervous smile as Anna chastised her.
"H-Hello again, Jordan, " Arthur said, trying to keep his voice from wobbling, "I-I hope you don't mind me coming here."
"Oh Fates, please don't, come here lots more," Jordan babbled, a beam plastered on her fact that seemed painful for her cheeks. "I'm your biggest fan, Your Highness, you should have heard me whoop when I saw your proposal on television! I almost got into trouble since it was late and I accidentally woke our head cook up, but it was so romantic…"
"Um…I'm glad you liked it," Arthur replied, patting her on the shoulder with a light handed touch - it was enough to send her squealing again for a moment, before she composed herself and smoothed down her apron. "Is is okay if I look at the designs for the bridesmaids, though? Anna said you had them?"
"Mhmm," Jordan said, nodding once. "We made the finishing touches to it! Anna, come on in too."
"I'm not going to be seeing them, unfortunately," Anna said, her expression fond as she patted the girl's hair. "I'm going to be a bridesmaid, apparently."
"Gosh, that's so sweet of you, Your Highness!" Jordan gasped, and perhaps Arthur saw a hint of hope in her eyes - but he didn't want to upset Yao nor the public with adding two relatively controversial bridesmaids - perhaps he could make it up to her later? "In that case, though, you have to promise you won't show her until the big day."
"Of course," Arthur said, nodding once. "I can't wait to see what you've come up with."
Jordan practically skipped into the room - it was a smaller version of his room when he was still a Chosen, but contained four bunkbeds made with a simple wood design and thin sheets, with the top one just being able to handle the height of a person. There were desks next to every single bunkbed, with the one Jordan led them to having papers strewn all over them.
"Anna, make sure you cover your eyes," Jordan tutted with a wag of her hand, and slipped Arthur two small pieces of paper indentured with pencil markings and colouring pencils. "Here you go, Your Highness! If you have any ideas, please let us know what you'd like us to change. We are at your service, after all."
"I don't think I'll need to," Arthur smiled encouragingly, leading her to blush scarlet. "Thank you so much, Jordan…this really means a lot to me, having your combined efforts for my wedding. Please…let everyone else know how thankful I am."
"I-I will!" Jordan stammered, her ears turning red as Arthur went on his knee and kissed her hand (he still had to hone his gentleman charm) in farewell. "It's been such a pleasure!"
"I'm glad to hear it, miss," Arthur smiled, and tried to ignore her cupping her hand with an awed expression on her face for her sake. Perhaps he could arrange for her to be an extra pair of hands when Anna became his lady in waiting?
"Sorry, she's…always been a bit excitable," Anna said, sighing as she closed the door. "Would you like me to fix the laundry for you as well? I'll prepare your bath when we get back."
"No, but the bath would be lovely as always," Arthur replied. "Alfred's maid did most of the laundry this morning regardless…there aren't any more left in the queen's suite. I'll tell you in the morning whether the design's horrible or not - but I doubt it…"
"Oh my," Anna said with an expressive wiggle of her eyebrows. "Alfred's maid did the work? So are you tr - wait. Wait, Alfred's maid does his laundry because it's…you were in-"
"Anna, please don't scream, especially in here," Arthur blurted, carefully steering his maid through the servant's quarters and desperately hoping the other servants would not be alarmed at her bug eyed gaze. "Please, I'll tell you the details once we get back to the room..."
Much to her credit, Anna straightened herself and plastered the most genuine fake smile Arthur had ever seen and strode to his room, and fixed his bath at lightning speed.
"Are you okay with it? Don't worry, I can wait," Anna said, impatience flavouring her voice as Arthur suddenly became very self conscious about his boxers. "I'll just be tidying around the room and making sure you didn't forget a sock. I don't want to rush you..."
"I'm sorry," Arthur said, raising a hand to touch hers until he realized it was already dripping wet and had two rose petals clinging to it.
"Nonsense, nonsense," Anna laughed boisterously, "Take as much time as you need. Shout if you need anything!"
And with that, he was left to his own devices. Reclining a little, he thought again about the day...and then remembered the designs! He had stuffed them into the jacket, and hurriedly used one of the snowy white towels to wipe his hands dry. He fished for the small plastic stool that was tucked underneath the marble sink and placed the suit version of the outfit, and gave the bridesmaids' dress a once over.
Arthur groaned – it was absolutely stunning. He could tell that the maids were careful to not upstage his own gown but managed to add unique touches reflective of the Spadian motif. Arthur couldn't help but imagine Erin's radiant face when she saw it.
Moving on to the suits, they were kind enough to create two designs for a pocket bursting with flowers – one was dotted with blue as Arthur hadn't passed on the fact that Leon was to be a bridesmaid, but one with snipped carnations, miniature poinsettias and red roses represented Kiku's kingdom very well.
Carefully, Arthur laid out the designs and folded them under his bar of unused soap, internally reminding himself to not forget them (he didn't want to forget them in his pocket and leave them for washing...) With that completed, he allowed himself to recline, laying his head against the wall and closing his eyes.
"And I was concerned when you took off your jacket," Anna teased, nudging him playfully with her shoulder – Arthur had just finished telling her of his opinion of the dress. "All those bruises...who knew the prince was that kind of guy?"
"It took me by surprise, as well," Arthur said, looking to the side to examine his fading love bites. "I...I don't really mind, actually, since they should be gone by Friday..."
"Well, there's a old trick one of the maids taught us if it's not gone by then, and it should help," Anna said thoughtfully, "But they're not very dark in colour, so you should be fine. But did it...feel nice?"
"There are more, actually," Arthur said bashfully, cheeks flushing as he thought of the bruises between his thighs. "And of course it did...I know we're supposed to wait but no one knows except the three of us. Alfred's maid thinks we're just sleeping in the same room, and I suspect the Jack knows, but it should be okay."
"But that's not detailed enough!" Anna wailed, eyes creasing in disappointment. "I want a minute by minute recount!"
"It's not as glamorous as you think it is," Arthur blustered, "It was the first time for both of us!"
"Isn't that romantic, though!" Anna winked, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "Well, if you don't want to share that night, you should share the one on Friday."
"Ah..." Arthur mumbled, a touch of desire gliding down his skin as he eyed his fiance's bedroom next door. "If he doesn't mind..."
"You are ready though?" Anna asked – her expression had shifted from humorous to serious. "He's not...forcing you, or-"
"I know he's a prince and all, but if he ever did anything like that," Anna muttered, fists clenching, "I wouldn't ever forgive him."
"No, no, please don't worry, he'd never do that," Arthur said hurriedly, waving his hands in what he hoped was comforting. "He kept on asking me if it was okay, and it was. I wanted to...do it with him."
"Are you ready for the wedding, though?" Anna asked after a moment.
"Yes," Arthur said clearly, voice devoid of hesitance as he looked into his maid's eyes. "I'm ready to marry him."
to be very frank, 80% the wedding's next chapter. i've dragged this on for too long :')
replies
CFAA - ahh i'm so glad you enjoyed it! hope you're doing better.
russia says hello - oh boy i managed to secure a typing license for really writing heavy subjects (english, history, etc) and by god am i grateful for that decision. i did see IF! weekend before my exams. i don't feel so good but yeah, they drag on for FOREVER. it's ridiculous (but i still get time to do cram.) and i have the phrase 'ToV was shaped mostly by france's desire to punish germany' hammered in my head as a result lmao.
vivadragnire - HAHA mom are you proud of me yet?! there is no explicit lewd tho here, lmao. just give ao3 a side eye for that ;)
n kukuri chan - me, holding my hands out: in this blessed church we sin and then forget it amen. since nsfw isn't allowed on FFNet, i decided to go a touch overboard with the innuendo, haha. i hope you can understand...almost certainly will be uploading omake if i don't think it's a literal disaster. the two of them are all tingly and have a lot of morning after glow, definitely! (you with grabby hands: give me that damn image nyo)
i SWEAR i tried to cram as much wink wink, nudge nudge in that small scene as much as i can without explicitly mentioning sex. picture me holding foam arrows pointing to a sign that says 'yes, they DID BANG BOYS' and perhaps you can figure out what i meant, lmao.
lili's still not versed in that sort of thing since francis is really protective of her, so i don't think he would have let alfred and arthur tell the whole story, but rather he said some fluff about it being 'an act of love' and 'you'll understand when you're older' and lili was left with a lot to be desired, lol. and with that section i definitely went overboard with the innuendo, haha. alfred would rent a megaphone...and thank you for the sweets! i love strawberry cake. ;D
spade sama - oh hey! thanks so much for popping in, haha. francis would probably get fired after one lesson for bringing doughnuts and an eggplant unfortunately...neither can i! :D
reviews, favourites and follows are what will keep me writing, so please go ahead and leave them!