I do not own Hetalia okay? I would like to thank all of you who have stuck with this story so far. It means so much to mean that you have done so. How fast I get to updating really just depends on how things go in life. Busy with work and school but hopefully after things slow down I can do more towards this and some schoolwork. Anyway, enough of this A/N, on with the fic!
Natalya stood at the door and rang the bell, when a frantic Alfred had come to the door. "Oh you're a lifesaver Nattie!"
"Just what is wrong with you?" Natalya asked as she struggled against Alfred's tight grip.
"Work sucks." Alfred sighed. "Ivan's office called him in today, apparently someone screwed something he was to do up badly and I have a big project I need done soon and once I get through this part of it, I can ease up some."
"Where are the twins?" Natalya asked looking around.
"Oh they are in the living room eating mac and cheese watching cartoons. Sorry, I know it isn't the best but by god, I didn't know what else I could do and work at the same time." Alfred then took Natalya's hand and dragged her into the living room where Nikita and Dimitri were staring at the cartoons on the screen, spooning large globs of mac and cheese into their mouths. "Hey guys, Your Aunt Nattie is here."
"Aunt Natalya!" Nikita smiled as she jumped up and knocked over her bowl, causing it to spill on the floor. "I missed you so! I want to play Candy Land with you so much!"
"I missed you too Nikita." Natalya smiled back hugging her. "And I would be happy to play with you and your brother, after you finish your lunch and clean up your mess." She pointed to the spilled mac and cheese that Alfred rolled his eyes at heading to the kitchen to get some paper towels.
"But Daddy looks like he is going to clean it." Nikita pouted.
"He is very busy with work like your Papa is." Natalya said.
"Someone must have done something really bad." Dimitri noted. "I heard a lot of Russian after he got a call from work and he looked very angry. I swear I could hear him going 'kol kol kol' and there was a scary purple field around him."
"You have quite the imagination." Natalya said.
"Well he's not entirely wrong." Alfred explained. Natalya looked on curiously. "I may not be as good as Vanya is with this naturally but I remember that rant. Eti grebanyye ublyudki ne mogut vypolnyat' svoyu rabotu, isportili mne den' i uslozhnili mne zadaniye. Oni budut platit' kazhdym svoim potom. Nikto ne zabirayet menya u moikh malyshek po prichine ikh polnoy i absolyutnoy nekompetentnosti." Natalya looked shocked. "I only felt comfortable saying that because the kids don't know that much Russian yet, so they won't know when someone made their Papa very, very very mad."
"Well you are better with your profanity in English." Natalya noted as she handed Nikita the paper towels to put the spilled food in the bowl to throw away. "Before you adopted you would have sworn much more."
"I still have my slip ups." Alfred admit. "But if I can focus on my work, I can get much more done."
"You know I cannot be your default babysitter." Natalya said. "I just had time off today and I don't want my plemyannitsa i plemyannik to think I do not like them."
"Where's Uncle Toris Aunt Nattie?" Dimitri asked.
"He had to do a few things for his medical school." Natalya explained. "I will let him know to stop by if he gets off early however." She smiled.
"Cool!" He smiled. "He's my favorite uncle."
"Now that's not too nice to your Uncle Mattie..." Alfred said. Didn't Ivan say he had a conversation with Nikita about this and Katyusha? "He wants to teach you and your sister how to ice skate and play hockey."
"Ooooooh! That sounds fun." Nikita jumped up, dropping the bowl of mac and cheese, causing Alfred to dive and catch it.
"Nikita Braginsky-Jones..." Alfred warned looking at Nikita with a scolding look. "Be careful."
"Sorry Daddy..." She said looking at her feet in shame.
"That's okay. Now take this bowl and put the mac and cheese that fell on the floor in the trash and bowl in the sink." Alfred instructed.
"So you won't be the permissive parent like I worried you would be." Natalya smiled.
"Just what is that supposed to mean?' Alfred asked.
"Nothing at all." Natalya said. She then grabbed Alfred's laptop and handed it to him, she could tell he had tried to work while watching the children and from what she had heard, it was not going very well. The children were fed and safe but he was having a hard time getting his work done. "I will take care of the children for you. Just keep working so you can keep feeding them."
"Just had to say it that way. Well if you need me, you know where I'll be." Alfred said. "Be good for your Aunt Nattie." Alfred said to Nikita and Dimitri.
"We will." They said simultaneously.
"I swear it's weird." Alfred said as he headed up the stairs. "Mattie and I never did that."
"I am sure if I ask your fathers, they will disagree." Natalya teased. "But I can handle the children. No need to worry."
Meanwhile, Arthur was sitting back in his office at the University with a sigh. Summer break was coming upon them and while he didn't have to be there as much as he was during the regular school year, he did like to keep his office tidy, and it was a chance for him to get out of the house. Francis still worked his usual shifts at the restaurant and with the boys moved out, it was quiet. He would also be one of the first to get the best class assignments and to review the next textbooks coming out and advise what the bookstore should get. It had its perks. However, this day was going to be different. A knock was heard at his door. "Come in." Arthur said casually while looking at some old copies of Charles Dickens novels he had in his office, with an affinity for that particular author along with an old copy of Les Misérables that Francis had gotten him for their 25th anniversary.
"Oh, for once your husband isn't here trying to get you to commit acts of debauchery over your desk." Professor Zwingli sighed.
"That was that one time!" Arthur blushed turning around.
"Well it's a shame because my sister wanted to speak with him." Professor Zwingli sighed.
"She does? Lili wants to speak with Francis?" Arthur said.
"Well I had the copy of your adequate business proposal at the house I was reading and she had looked into it herself and was thinking about being willing to be a partner in the business. I know you had expressed concerns about fiscal risk when you had told me about it and I have to wonder Kirkland, were you being passive aggressive to him when you wrote this thing?" Professor Zwingli said.
"No!" Arthur said defensively. "I just had never done a business proposal before. And I figure if banks take them from people needing start up loans for other business who lack the proper education I do, then I certainly could do one myself!"
Professor Zwingli placed his face in his palm. "Okay I will admit grammatically it is correct. If this were a story or mock up I wouldn't speak too badly of it. Is that alright Kirkland?"
"Yes." Arthur replied curtly.
"Well with all that aside," Professor Zwingli said. "Lili has finished her education and wants to start some investments and partnerships of her own."
"That's quite a notion but does she have the assets at her age to start an enterprise?"
"Yes." Professor Zwingli replied simply. "Wise investments from a long legacy of knowing how to handle money."
"I guess…." Arthur sighed. Professor Zwingli was always a little standoffish and preferred to keep to himself but this seemed to be more than the usual for him.
"And Lili has found one industry she wants to specialize in," Professor Zwingli began. "Tourism. She already has a stock profile composing of many hotel chains and amusement park corporations but she wants something she has more say in. Recently she went up to the area that bed and breakfast is in and noticed there was a lot that could be done if proper management and upgrades were done."
"Yes, Francis said so himself and I was inclined to agree with him." Arthur said. A silence filled the room. "So….is there somewhere I can have Francis contact Lili?"
"Sure." Professor Zwingli handed Arthur her business card. "But have him do it soon and at a reasonable hour."
"I assure you Francis is not that rude or ignorant." Arthur said.
"If he wants this to work, he better not be. I do not care how much older he is than me, Lili is my little sister." Professor Zwingli said.
"Understandable." Arthur nodded.
Professor Zwingli looked at the pictures Arthur had on his desk. "These must be new. I haven't seen them before." He picked up the frame and looked at the three pictures. In the center was the picture he had of him, Francis, Alfred and Matthew when they graduated high school and on the right was Alfred, Ivan, Nikita and Dimitri and on the left was Matthew, Katyusha and baby Charlotte. "This is your family?" Professor Zwingli asked in his usual tone, but it did not seem angry and condescending, but genuinely curious.
"Yes. You can tell it is Francis, our sons and I in the center obviously, on the Right is Alfred with his husband Ivan and the twins Nikita and Dimitri they had adopted. Left is Matthew and his wife Katyusha and their newborn daughter Charlotte." Arthur explained.
"And they live in the same town if I recall you saying?" Professor Zwingli said.
"Yes. Part of the reason Francis has his heart set on this idea." Arthur said. "While we only live an hour's drive away, he loves his grandchildren so much. The twins call him 'Grandpear'"
"Take it young children have a hard time with grandpere" Professor Zwingli smiled.
"Yes." Arthur laughed.
"Well, have him call Lili. She might be able to help him make his dream a reality." He said as he headed out of the office.
"I will." Arthur said and looked at the pictures. Could we? Should we? He thought. It was true that he and Francis were getting older. The fact they now had grandchildren more than said plenty. As reckless as he thought the idea was initially, considering that at the time it would have only been him and Francis running the place and he did not want to risk their fiscal security at their age. Francis was very much about the joie de vie, or the joy of life and while sometimes it was irresponsible to think of that alone, he did have to agree there was a point to that. What was the point of living if you could not be happy? Pulling out his phone, he dialed Francis.
"'Ello" Francis said as he picked up the phone.
"Say, Frog, when was the last time I took you out to lunch somewhere? Just the two of us?" Arthur said.
"A very long time." Francis said. "Is something bothering you? I am normally the spontaneous romantic."
"I'll tell you at lunch. Maybe at that pub on third street not too far from your restaurant?" Arthur suggested.
"Okay. I will be there awaiting you at noon. And while I am not a fan of British food, it is so nice to have you there with me. However, it is not noon quite yet and I have to get these fools set up for the lunch rush. Au revoir. je t'aime mon mari inflexible." Francis said as he hung up.
"What the? What did you call me?" Arthur said to the dialtone as he sat back in his chair and looked up and around his office. "BHZ 'Leisure Investment Group. Lili Zwingli.' He read on the card. I can assume that the Z is for Lili's surname but if that is the case, what are the other two?" He said as he moved everything he could around until he couldn't put off heading to the pub anymore and drove into the city to meet Francis, who had shown up early and handed Arthur a pair of roses, white and red. Arthur smiled at this, knowing he was referencing England. "You're such a romantic sap."
"Oh you…." Francis said. "So, what happened mon amor?"
"Well remember what I said about talking to Professor Zwingli about your idea?" Arthur began.
"Oui." Francis nodded.
"Well while he was not a fan of the idea, mocked my business plan." Arthur began, "His sister Lili wants to talk with you as she has a few vacation investors in some business partnership thing, I don't know it's not my field all this finance bollocks. I just know that if we keep doing how we are we should be able to retire comfortably." Arthur said flustered.
"Excuse me?" Francis asked.
"Here. Lili's card. I wouldn't give this much thought otherwise if it is just our money at risk but if Lili is anything like her brother when it comes to business and things like that, there's nothing we need to worry about other than making sure that you get your fair share for work you put in." Arthur said laying it down.
"Okay so you had some things come to mind after this happened that make you flustered. Spill it." Francis smiled.
"I do like the idea you had because we could sell our house and buy one closer to the boys and be near our grandchildren. Although I think Nikita and Dimitri like you more than me, and yet that girl absolutely loves Natalya, so I don't understand that…." Arthur complained.
"Children will have favorites; you cannot help that. All you can do is love them no matter what." Francis said. "Although I am confused as why she would like a complete and utter aggressive bitch like Natalya over someone like you whose only negative trait in that aspect is that you are a stick in the mud is beyond me."
"I don't know where to begin with that one…" Arthur said. "Yes, Natalya is rather disagreeable but…."
"Stop trying to be proper. You would have called her that when you were in your punk rocker days. If it wasn't the middle of the day, I would tell you to have a few pints and then get back to me on your thoughts about her. Alfred must have it rougher than we do." Arthur looked at Francis curiously. "I know he doesn't like her that much either. She doesn't like him that much. But he is married to her brother and they both don't want to make him mad by telling the other off in front of him. As Ivan only wants for them to get along, and if not that, to not be so hostile in the open. Now there's even more pressure on them both to act like adults to each other because they both do not want to upset Nikita." Arthur nodded again. "But you do not want to talk about that witch of a sister of Ivan's, you have a personal crisis of your own. Do not deny it. I will pay for your lunch if you tell me."
"But I invited you." Arthur sighed.
"We've been married how long?" Francis said. "I do not care."
"Fine." Arthur said. "Impeccable timing. Two Lancashire hot pots please."
"Great." The waiter said. "Back in a jiff."
"Well, it's an attempt for authenticity…." Arthur said.
"You know we can always go for a 'holiday' back in Britain if you miss it so much. It may not be as large as America is, but I doubt you will run into your brothers unless you look for them"
"What about your sister in Nice?" Arthur sighed.
"Oh, she's so busy, but she hasn't written in awhile and I do not like pestering her too much…." Francis said. "I should look her up again. But that is not the point!"
"Fine!" Arthur said. "I do not want to retire from my job at the University just yet. I like it. Very much so. But on the off chance that somehow Lili loves your idea, you two manage to work out some partnership deal that she, her brother, and you can agree on. And yes, while his name may not be attached to anything, Basch looks after Lili fiercely. If he won't use the law to his advantage, that man is a very accurate shot. He could probably make it so that if he had shot you from a mile away, he'd make the legal proceeding so entangled they couldn't try him for it until he was dead."
"You know that mutton stew you ordered us will likely come and be freezing cold before you get to the point…." Francis said.
"Fine! I don't want to quit my job and if you got that place it is a very long drive to get to the university." Arthur said.
"An hour's drive or so." Francis said. "I have made it myself and it is not too taxing."
"I've seen your ashtray when you came to visit me when I had my gallbladder attack…." Arthur said.
"Pour l'amour de Dieu..." Francis sighed placing his face in his hands. "I did not know at the time it was a manageable gallbladder issue! The symptoms were like that of a heart attack! Can you not see why I was worried so?"
"Smoking is not good for your heart either, so I doubt the risks from it cancel the stress relief…." Arthur scolded.
"ANYWAY!" Francis started. "Who said we had to live on the property? I mean yes it would be convenient, but home would be work. That's no fun. And before you begin, I know I would not be able to just give this up if I got bored. But I wouldn't 'get bored'" Arthur rolled his eyes. "Because while I could do the work needed to run the place, I would also be able to take some time and go see Nikita play baseball, to give Katyusha a break with Charlotte, to go with Dimitri to the museum, all sorts of "Grand pear" things with them." Francis said. "I sure hope to god above they learn how to say 'grandpere' properly soon. I know Alfred and Ivan find it funny, but I do not."
"But if I were to retire soon, I couldn't be some sort of old man who lives off the pension and does nothing but watch those old westerns Alfred likes so." Francis smiled.
"He's taken a liking to a video game called Red Dead Redemption 2 that takes place in the old west. Hasn't had much time to play lately" Arthur noted sipping his drink.
"But I would want to do something with my time and well, say what you will, that sounded like a good idea, and it would keep us closer to our boys and grandchildren. Not that we are too far as it is. But if Alfred and Ivan were busy with work and couldn't pick the twins from school, we'd be there. If poor Charlotte gets the croup, we'd be there to make sure that Katyusha and Matthew can handle it all. And all the while doing something to make a living oh so fun. But I also understand if you don't want to retire yet yourself. You worked hard to get the respect you do in that department. We can always split the distance. Find a place midway between both. Sure, it's not convenient as the same town but it's not awful on you either. And the boys can feel some autonomy away from us. So, they won't feel we are watching over them and their every little move. They have spouses for that." Francis teased.
Arthur laughed. "I guess you have a point."
"I speak from experience." Francis smiled as Arthur looked at him crossly as the food was placed before them. "I guess with my nag I can enjoy this bland British food."
"Butter is not a seasoning." Arthur said as he took a spoonful of the potato and mutton stew.
"Ah, the things us French can do with it though. And keep our figures magnifique." Francis bragged.
"Yes, because sex is a valid exercise." Arthur scoffed.
"Well, you can say the results speak for themselves with you, no?" Francis said as Arthur stuck up two fingers at him.
"Love you too." Francis said back. "Although if we are in a British inspired pub, they may know that one."
"Well, if they ask, I will tell them I am flipping off my perverted frog of a husband, not the staff, who made an excellent Lancashire Hot Pot." Arthur said as Francis rolled his eyes.
Translation Guide
(obtained via Google Translate)
Eti grebanyye ublyudki ne mogut vypolnyat' svoyu rabotu, isportili mne den' i uslozhnili mne zadaniye. Oni budut platit' kazhdym svoim potom. Nikto ne zabirayet menya u moikh malyshek po prichine ikh polnoy i absolyutnoy nekompetentnosti. - Russian- Those fucking bastards cannot do their job and have ruined my day and made my assignment harder. They will pay with every ounce of sweat they have. No one takes me from my little ones because of their complete and utter incompetence.
plemyannitsa i plemyannik-Russian-niece and nephew
Au revoir. jet'aime mon mari inflexible-French- Goodbye. I love you my unyielding husband
Pour l'amour de Dieu... -French-For the love of God.
So how was that? Good? Bad? Short? Long? Let me know in a review. I don't know when I will update again, lot of projects, work, and school stuff at the same time but hopefully with work lessening a little in busy I can get some other things knocked out too. But hey you don't want to hear about that. So, remember to read (well you just did) and to review. Ciao for now,
Otherrealmwriter
Aka
Realm.