Author's note

OH BOY A REWRITE

YEAH THIS STORY NEEDED A SERIOUS REVAMP. I am actually so, so happy that over the past 2 years you guys have enjoyed what I had here. I am deeply touched, actually! And I'm so, SO sorry for not updating for so long!

I am currently a Junior in Highschool so things get crazy, please be patient with me as I rewrite and restructure this old fanfic! Don't worry- the premise and plot will be the same, except MUCH better writing and plot consistency. Thank you ALL so much for sticking with me! And without further interruption- here is….

Chapter 1.

America's House, May 15th. Sunset. 2020.

Alfred looked out the bay windows in his large home in New York. The room was elegant, a large chandelier hung behind him over a coffee table made from a giant slab of wood. Maroon leather couches surrounded it, and a cup of warm espresso steamed from a cherry side table right next to Alfred.

It was a surreal moment. He had been preparing this plan for 20 years. Building up supplies, putting the right people in the right place at the right time. It was no small task. He was proud though, not anyone could pull something like this together. He was going to be the savior of the world, whatever that meant.

He took his IPhone out of his pocket and clicked his contacts. So many he would have to delete after he was done. He clicked the picture of his dear brother, Matthew.

Ring!

Ring!

Click.

"Hello Alfie!" Matthew cheerfully greeted. Water could be heard running in the background, along with the clanging sound of dishes being moved.

"Hi Matt."

"What is going on with you?"

"Not much." Alfred sat down and drank a sip of his coffee. "How 'bout you?"

"Oh, I'm just cleaning for tomorrow! Me and Gilbert are going to a new movie- it's called "Valley Girl"? I'm not sure what it's about, he was very interested in seeing it."

"I see."

"He arrives tomorrow morning, I made a big dinner tonight so there was a lot to clean. You know, Kuma has been especially hungry lately, maybe he's growing, it's been a wh-"

"Mattie. What do you think of me?"

Matthew could be heard turning off the water and setting down whatever he was doing.

"Well, goodness Al, I think you're amazing! Who made you feel otherwise? You aren't thinking about her again, are you?"

"No, no I wasn't." Alfred frowned at the mere mention of her. "I was just thinking in general. I mean, the last number of years have been pretty crazy, we've done so much together, I would never want my favorite brother to start hating me" He laughed.

"America. I could never hate you! You're one of the best people I know- I'm lucky to have you as a brother!"

America felt his heart warm. He adored Matthew, he couldn't have asked for a more kind and caring brother. He knew Mattie wouldn't be happy with him for a short time, but it all would be worth it in the end.

"Thank you." Alfred responded sincerely.

"Of course. If you fe- AH SHIT, KUMA!" A crash of pots and pans could be heard. "My idiot polar bear just tipped over a stack of cookware, is it ok if I give you a call a bit later?"

"Ah, don't worry about it Matt, sleep well."

"I will, you get some good sleep too! Love you!"

Alfred paused.

"Love you too."

Click.

Mattie was always the twin with good judgment. If he said Alfred was good, then he must be. No matter what. They had been through thick and thin together. Everything started with just the two of them, and everything shall end that way as well.

At an unknown date

He felt the water reach up and grab at his legs as he walked out of it. It was cool and fresh, and it splashed along his back. He existed, he was now. Reaching out and stretching his arms, he felt energy flow through them and almost out his fingertips. It was a joy to be alive.

"Aaaaa!" He called out, his tiny voice echoing across the beach. There was a vast expansion of lush, green trees ahead of him. The forest stretched out for miles. Looking around, he suddenly got the urge to move. To run. And so he did. He ran as fast as he could, kicking up sand behind him till he was so tired his small body fell down.

Then Alfred saw another walking out from the water.

He was a tad bit smaller than Alfred, and had purple eyes instead of light blue, but Alfred knew deep inside him that they were one and the same at heart.

"AAaaaa! Aaaayyyeeee!" He called out to the boy. He had no concept of what language was, he only knew he could produce sound. As soon as they made eye contact, their faces mutually lit up into a grin. Speeding up his pace, young Matthew ran out of the water as fast as he could and dove into Alfred.

They hugged and laughed, both feeling pure joy. They had not yet realized there was any wrong in the world, and there was no need to rush and find some. They were happy. They had been perfect.

America's house, same time as the section preceding the previous one.

"Are we ready?" A text he received had asked. What a great helper his friend had been. He had only let one person in on the plan. Not his dear brother, surprisingly, but one who shared his woes about life and the roles they play in it.

"Yes." He replied. "I have everything set up, my flight is booked for Sunday and preparations are going smoothly. Your assistance has been extremely valuable over the years, I am very appreciative."

"Of course. We are working towards a common goal that benefits us all, I await further instruction from you."

Alfred shut off his phone satisfied. As the last of the sun's golden rays touched the tips of the pine trees, he got to work packing his bags. He had to be prepared for his first stop.

Nordic Household, May 15th, Late afternoon.

"Hey Sea, watch this!" Matthias threw a frisbee so it skimmed along the grass. His nephew watched with admiration.

"I want to try!" Sealand ran over to pick up the circular piece of yellow plastic.

The front yard they were playing in was not too big, the grass was impeccable cut and green (Berwald had become freakishly obsessed with keeping in nice when they bought the house) and surrounded by a white fence with a gate in the middle, opening up to a stone pathway that led to the house. The home Tino and Berwald lived in was white with dark blue shutters, and a large front porch with several rocking chairs on it.

Attempting to throw the disk with the grace his uncle had, Peter ended up with the frisbee forcibly landing in the grass, with his tiny dog Hanatamago running over to it and picking it up with her teeth.

"No Hana! Bad dog!" Peter wrestled with his tiny puppy while Matthias laughed.

"You'll get the hang of it one day, I know you will!" He reassured Peter.

"Yeah yeah, maybe someday." The 12-year-old sighed.

"If you have Den teaching you, you'll never learn." Lukas sighed from one of the rocking chairs on the porch. He always chose the one with the faintest squeak, to annoy people as much as possible. And to drown out Matthias's loud voice.

"If you think you can do it so much better, come try yourself!" Matthias challenged.

Norway shrugged and came down the steps. He looked at Hana, raising his eyebrow. Immediately she set the disk down, he just had a way with her. Squatting, he flicked the frisbee just so, and it shot across the yard, hitting the fence.

"Speechless, aren't we?" He said, smirking as he stood up.

"Don't tease him, Uncle Nor! You know that makes him feel self conscious!" Peter said.

"I- well, I-" Matthias's cheeks turned a dark pink.

"Stop flirting over a flying disk and come eat!" Iceland called out to them from the front door, clearly tired of their fraternizing.

The inside of the house was very simplistic but cozy. Walking through the door, there was a living room on the left, with blue couches and a floor covered in piles of Legos from some ambitious project Peter and Matthias had been working on earlier. Directly ahead was a staircase and laundry room, then to the right was the kitchen and dining area, which was one of the grandest features of the house.

The cabinets were a light oak color with white marble countertops. A large island was in the middle, above it hung cookware and below them was a stove, which currently had a pot of macaroni and cheese on it that Berwald was stirring. Tino pulled a casserole from the oven and set it on the dinner table.

"Hello guys! Are we ready to eat?' He asked with a smile.

Matthias and Peter said "Yes!" in unison and Lukas just nodded his head. They all sat down.

"No Phones at the table." Berwald plucked Iceland's phone from his hands as he sat down himself, putting it in a small tray next to the table labeled "Phone Bucket"

"You're no fun." Iceland scowled, scooping himself some of the cheesy noodles.

"Do you guys know what day it is?" Tino, who sat at the head of the table across from Berwald, asked.

"Two days before Nor's birthday!" Matthias exclaimed excitedly.

"No," Lukas rolled his eyes. "It's the one year anniversary of them buying this house. Which means in eight days it will be the anniversary of Peter coming to live here." He said with authority, as if everyone should know.

"That's right!" Tino beamed.

"Tell the story, Mama!" Peter asked.

"Alright, Alright!" Tino blushed and began recounting the tale.

Flashback to May 15th, 2019. A Nordic meeting.

"I bought a kid."

The other four Nordic's heads snapped around to look at Sweden, who had made the bold declaration in his usual monotone voice.

"Haha, funny one Sve!" Matthias put his arm around Berwald.

"I'm not joking. I bought a kid."

"Congrats." Norway offered, seemingly not very fazed by it.

"BERWALD. THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!" Tino scolded him fiercely. "You are a nation, you cannot just adopt a kid! You have responsibilities, where would they even live? Your tiny apartment in Stockholm is hardly a place where any child would want to-"

"Don't worry, I bought a house."

"YOU BOUGHT A HOUSE?!"

"And he's a nation. Sealand. I pick him up on the 22nd."

"This is insane. INSANE!" Tino stormed off, cursing in Finnish and leaving the others just standing around awkwardly. A moment later, he came stomping back. "We need to prepare. We have to leave now." He must have channeled some superhuman strength, because he grabbed Berwald with an extreme amount of force and pulled him down the hallway.

"... do we follow them?" Iceland asked.

Back to the present day.

"Thank goodness he told me you were coming when you did, or we would have never been ready in time!" Tino laughed with the others.

They had become a tight family over the past year. There had been unspoken tensions among them for years beforehand, but bonding with and over Sealand had made them all inseparable. And as nations, they didn't have to worry about old age or illness possibly breaking up their family, they would be making memories for hundreds, if not thousands of years together. After all, it is EXTREMELY hard to kill a nation nowadays.

But it wasn't impossible. Or as unlikely as everyone thought.

And Alfred knew that.