I'm glad that's taken care of. Don't get me wrong. I adore Alfred dearly, but he can be kind of a baby when he doesn't get what he wants. Thankfully, I had Mattie to bring me back down to earth. He's definitely my favorite after today. But I will say this. After the long day I've had, I could stand to relax a bit. It'll be nice to come home and kick my feet up.

"Arthur?" I called from the front door, "Francis? I'm home!"

"In here, Terra!" Arthur yelled back. Drawing room? Sounded like it came from the drawing room, "Hello, darling."

"Hi." That's strange. It's just Arthur, "No Francis?"

"I'm afraid not," Arthur sighed out, "He went out with Gilbert and Antonio a little while ago. A quiet night in for me."

Look at him…Arthur looked so down. Secretly, I think he wanted to go out with them, too. My poor baby. I couldn't leave him like this. It's too depressing, "Hey, Arthur?"

"Yes, Terra?" Arthur swirled his little bit of brandy around in his glass, "What is it?"

"I'm feeling kind of hungry," I smiled, "Would you like to go get dinner with me?"

"I'll go get my coat!" he sprang up and bolted out of the drawing room. Aww…Arthur's so excited. In a way, it's kind of cute. He ran back and stopped in the doorway, "Are you still standing about? Come on then!"

Oh, Arthur…You're adorable. I followed him out the door and we took the car to town. Italian? I'm feeling Italian. I know better than to eat British food. Besides, Italian food had more carbs. And carbs are a body's hug from the inside. I mean, I know damn well I'm going to feel absolutely huge when I get up from our table, but that's the point, right?

As Arthur and I walked into the restaurant, a wave of delicious smells hit us, making Arthur weak at the knees, "What is that?"

"They're called spices, Arthur," I teased him, "When added to one's cooking, they typically enhance the flavor profile of whatever dish you're making."

"I know what spices are," he pouted, "I'm talking about those in particular."

"Sage, rosemary, basil," I guessed, "Probably some garlic. I'm sure I'm missing some. Excuse me…"

I flagged down our waiter, who quickly scurried over to our table, "Yes, ma'am?"

"Can we get the wine list please?"

"Terra…" Arthur stopped me, "Are you sure you want to do that? Aren't you a little young for wine?"

"Arthur Kirkland," I scolded im, "Are you sassing your mother again?"

"I'm sorry…"

"Hold the wine list," I changed my mind, "Cabernet, if you will. Bottle, not glass."

"Yes, ma'am." The waiter ran off to get my grape juice, coming and going just as quick.

"Besides," I pointed out, "Didn't we all just get wasted together?"

"Yes…" Arthur hung his head as I poured our wine.

"It's alright, Arthur," I picked his chin back up. It's hard to believe this was Britannia's little boy, "You were so cute when you were little, sweetheart. Just a little island, still wet behind the ears, that never wanted to leave his mother's side…I miss that."

"I know what you mean…" A gentle sadness fell over his face. One that I understood all too well. And I just wanted to give this poor boy a hug.

"Arthur…?" I worried, taking his hand, "Are you alright?"

"I do miss my mother," Arthur confessed, "But I also miss Alfred. He and I used to be so close. He was just as attached to my hip as what I was to my own mother. But then, Alfred grew up. And he got so independent. Then, Matthew grew up, too. I didn't have near the relationship with Matthew as what Francis did, but we still had one. I miss them. I miss taking care of them. All of my babies are grown up and…Well…They don't need me anymore."

"Empty nest syndrome, huh?" I understood, "I feel you. I was the same way when I had to let Britannia and Rome and Germania and Japan go."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Ask me anything," I allowed, "What's on your mind?"

"Does it ever get any easier?" Arthur took a good, heavy drink from his wine glass.

"You're…" I gave him a look, "You're asking me for parenting advice?"

"If you don't mind…"

I hated seeing Arthur look so defeated. But I think he's going to need more wine. I topped his glass off, "Arthur, look at us. What we're doing right now."

"We're having dinner," Arthur pointed out, "What does that have to do with anything?"

"I still have all of you," I began, "But I don't get to see any of my babies anymore."

"This isn't helping, Terra…" he slumped over the table.

"Look at it this way," I spun it, "You're asking me for my parenting advice. Because you still need me. I know that I'll have to let you go some time. It's not going to be today or probably not tomorrow, but you still need me. Just like how Alfred and Matthew need you. And more than likely, they always will. Especially Alfred. My god. I love that boy, but he's a hot ass mess."

"Especially these days," Arthur shuddered, "Good lord…"

"But do you understand what I'm trying to say here, Arthur?" I crossed my fingers.

"I think," he took in my wisdom, "I don't need to be constantly up his ass. I just need to be there when he needs me. Because, in the end, he'll always need me. Both of them."

"There we go," I applauded, refilling my wine, "It's nice when things I tell you kids sinks in like this. It does my heart good."

"Thank you, Terra," Arthur hid a smile from me, "I needed to hear something like that. It's nice to not feel completely useless, you know?"

"I totally understand," I let out a heavy, mildly depressed sigh, "I just wish I would've heard something like that. In a way, I abandoned my babies when they needed me most. And I regret it terribly."

"There's no way of you seeing the ancient nations?"

"I don't think so," I winced, the ache in my heart getting to be too much. Wine. That's what wine was for, "I'd have to talk to the gatekeeper and the gatekeeper and I are…Not exactly on the best terms. So, I'd rather not deal with that mess. Tell you what, Arthur. You know how Francis and Gilbert and Antonio are out and about tonight?"

"Yeah."

"We should go out and have fun, too," I decided, "It beats sitting around the house with our fingers in our asses, right?"

"Actually," Arthur suggested, "There's a pub down the road from here, if you're looking for somewhere fun to go."

"Then, what are we sitting here for?" I squeaked, "This has just gotten depressing. We could stand some fun, too, dammit!"

"Hell yeah!" he agreed, "Let's go out. Let's go do something. Let's go have fun."

"Alright, baby," I took his hand, "Let's go get into some trouble, yeah?"

A/N: Hi, friends. These short chapters have been doing wonders for my productivity. And little bursts of Terra's wisdom are always nice. But you know how I told you I've been working on another Hetalia fic (with a hint of Fruits Basket)? Well, I started posting it. The first chapter is up on Ao3. It's called Trouble Comes in Threes if you want to go look at it. And I'm going to be posting another one shortly after I post this, so…bingeability, I guess. So, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go over here. Question: Are these short chapters ok? Or would you rather me go back to the longer ones? Because I could do that, too. Either way. See you next chapter! xx