Labas! That was Lithuanian by the way- a country that normal people don't seem to know. Unless you watch Hetalia, which makes me proud that I know more countries than normal people.

Today we find out what happens to Francis! So sit down, get comfy, pay attention and...

Tanoshimi!

Chapter 10: For a friend

Sunflowers, letters and tattered remains

"Urghhh..." Alfred moaned.

Then he sat up as he awoke groggily, rubbing his eyes to wake up properly. He looked to the side of the bed to see that Arthur was no longer sleeping beside him and something within him felt a little upset at the thought.

The door opened slowly to reveal Toris, Alfred's friend from when he was imprisoned. Toris would often bring him meals and it seemed that he was intending to do the same today as he walked in with a tray of breakfast.

"Hello sir." Toris smiled.

"Hey Toris." Alfred grinned.

"I brought you breakfast, would you like to have it here?" He asked politely.

"Yeah sure, that'd be cool." Alfred nodded.

So Toris gently placed the tray on Alfred's lap as instructed and he seated himself upon Arthur's desk chair, turning it to face Alfred and positioning his hands neatly in his lap as he sat there, his back straight and his face boasting a modest yet heart-warming smile.

"Matthew was worried about you." Toris whispered.

Alfred almost choked on what he was eating and had to heartily pound his chest in order to cure himself of the chokes and spluttering.

"Mattie? He was worried? Damn I stayed here a little longer than I meant to..." Alfred mumbled.

"It's fine. I told him you are okay. I've known Matthew for a long time and it's very worrying seeing him like that." Toris explained.

"Uh-huh." Alfred nodded, not fully listening. "So Toris, I was just wonderin'... Where's Artie?"

"Artie?" Toris frowned, tilting his head to the side. "Oh you mean Captain Kirkland? He's up on the deck. Would you like me to take you to him?"

"Yeah dude! Take me to him!" Alfred beamed.

It was just another beautiful morning for Arthur Kirkland. Surprisingly, this one was normal and seemingly uneventful. The sun was shining down on him, gently heating his face. The sea air was flowing through his hair, the smell pouring into his nostrils. And the sounds of the rolling sea tides were a comforting sound for his ears.

...There was, however, another sound which was not as comforting to his ears.

"Artie! Artie!"

And that was a certain annoying little 'Hero'.

"I was having a peaceful moment up here..." Arthur sighed. "Until you came and ruined it!"

"Dude, I don't ruin things." Alfred laughed. "I make 'em better with my mere presence!"

"Bloody idiot." Arthur muttered.

"Stuffy gentleman." Alfred grinned.

It was all silence for a few moments. Something felt nostalgic about their little exchange- something they were both wondering about. Perhaps it reminded them of their times when Alfred had been locked up? Or maybe... Just maybe... This witty banter reminded them of something else?

"Captain!"

Their thoughts were disturbed as the turned to see Matthew running towards them. His face was contorted with pain and worry, his hair strewn into complete disarray and his glasses were positioned at an odd angle, most likely due to the amount of panic he was currently going through.

"What is it Matthew?" Arthur asked, his face now troubled with a worried frown.

"I-I found this note sir..." Matthew squeaked, nervously offering up the small scrap of neatly folded paper.

Arthur took it without a second thought and quickly unfolded the small note, instantly recognising the flamboyant pen strokes as the handwriting of Francis Bonnefoy, who hadn't been seen by anyone all morning.

Dear Arthur,

Or perhaps I should say... Captain Arthur Kirkland? Yes Arthur, for although we are "friends", it hasn't escaped me that your loyalty seems to lie with others rather than I, who have known you for longest. I'm the most faithful of your crew, yet it seems the ones who get all your attention are the ones that perform heroic feats.
And so that brings me to my next point. The reason I have left is because I am going to fight Captain Ludwig. By the time you have found this note, I will be gone. I will not return until I have accomplished something so don't expect to see me soon.

Your 'first mate',
Francis Bonnefoy

'I am going to fight Captain Ludwig'

Arthur was at a loss for words. Francis Bonnefoy, a man who at one time was his only friend, had left to try and perform what they both knew was impossible. Ludwig was hard enough to defeat as it was, but Francis would never stand a chance against him- let alone the whole crew.

"A-Artie? You okay? What's it say dude?" Alfred asked.

The Captain said nothing. He just continued to stare at the wooden floor in stunned silence. The realisation slowly hitting him: he might have just lost his most loyal crewmate.

"Ai ya..."

A long, tired sigh escaped Yao's mouth as he stared out to sea. His oversized sleeves were again covering his hands and his arms were casually resting on the railing. Something always put him at ease while staring out at beautiful sights like this. It allowed him time to think things over in difficult situations and he could easily find himself drifting into his daydreams as he stared.

But Yao found himself quickly coming out of his trance, for he suddenly felt as if he was being watched. Like there was a set of eyes on him, a set of unwavering, fixated eyes.

"Privyet."

It was Ivan Braginsky. Possibly the creepiest member of the pirate crew (well, in Yao's opinion he was anyway). His eyes glowed with an eerie purple tinge, just as they always did and his smile was wide, resembling a Cheshire cat. He was happy, or at least Yao hoped he was. It was actually rather hard to tell with this man.

"N-Ni hao..." Yao muttered.

"I got this for you." Ivan smiled.

Yao looked to his right hand. In it Ivan held a single bright yellow sunflower. It looked healthy too, despite the fact they were out at sea and it had no proper place to flourish and grow. Reluctantly, Yao took the sunflower and gave it a small sniff before thanking the Russian.

"Thank you-aru..." Yao whispered. "But where did you get this?"

Ivan just smiled. His eyes now closed and a wide grin just about visible behind his soft white scarf. He said nothing in response to Yao's question- he just carried on smiling. Admittedly, Yao was a little taken back by all this, perhaps even a little scared?

And behind that Russian's joyful smiling mask was a long list of everything he wanted to say. How Ivan admired his fighting skills, how he liked the way he didn't need to use a sword to knock out an enemy...

...How that sunflower was actually from Ivan's personal vase- a vase that he would never let anyone see because it and its contents were so valuable to him.

"Dude, Artie. Say something man!" Alfred whined.

The impact of the letter had obviously been too much, but no-one else knew what was written inside it. Arthur just had no idea what to say- after all he had just lost a valuable friend.

"I...I..." Arthur began.

"Ai ya! Captain Kirkland come and see this-aru!" Yao called.

Without another moment to lose, Arthur responded to the call by running along briskly towards the edge of the ship where Yao and Ivan were stood with Alfred strolling quickly behind. Yao was leaning over the railing of the ship, his face stunned with amazement.

"What is it?" Arthur asked, his face now shaped into a frown.

Yao pointed down below- down towards the sea. And then Arthur saw it: right beside his ship, floating alongside it like a baby would with its mother, was a small rowing boat. It certainly didn't look stable. In fact it looked old and barely able to support even one human. But humans were not what this boat was carrying. Inside this boat were the remains of some rather elegant yet unmistakeably pirate clothing. Such flamboyant garments could only belong to one man...

"Aren't those clothes belonging to Francis?" Ivan asked, tilting his head curiously.

"I am sure of it-aru! That has to be his!" Yao declared.

"What're you saying? They stripped him?" Alfred frowned.

"I think the matter is a little more serious than that." Ivan muttered darkly.

"...Captain? Are you alright?" Matthew whispered.

But Arthur knew the situation better than any of them, and as he stared down at the tattered remains- he knew what he had to do next.

"They've got him..." Arthur muttered. "I don't believe it but they've got him..."

"Whatcha talkin' about Artie? Who's got who?" Alfred asked.

But Arthur wasn't listening. He wasn't in the right headspace to properly listen to anyone in fact. What he was ready for though, was action. And as he pulled his pirate hat down lower and pulled his arms into the sleeves of his red coat, it became obvious to everyone else that he was ready for action as well.

"Yao, you're coming with me." Arthur declared. "We're going to find Ludwig. Do I make myself clear?"

"Mei you wen ti!" Yao beamed, saluting proudly.

"Matthew, for the next few days- you're in charge." Arthur continued. "Ivan, I'm leaving you to protect everyone so don't get creepy about it! Yao, make preparations and make it quick- make sure you're ready to fight."

"Artie..." Alfred began.

"We will back in a few days- a week or two at the most." Arthur went on, ignoring Alfred. "I'm sure that they're close. If they weren't then we wouldn't have received their little... Message so quickly..."

"Hey Art-" Alfred tried to interrupt.

"Under no circumstances are you to come looking for us." Arthur instructed, still ignoring Alfred's attempts to ask questions. "This job will be done quickly and efficiently, so I want none of you butting in... Is that clear?"

All of them nodded except for Alfred and Arthur walked off in the direction of his room in order to get ready. He didn't get far before being stopped by Alfred who ran after him and placed his hand on the Captain's shoulder.

"Artie! You gave everyone instructions apart from me! What am I meant to do?" He whined.

Arthur turned- his face serious and his eyes glaring coldly. Alfred had seen him upset, angry and determined before but it had never been anything like this. It even made Alfred flinch back a bit with shock- especially when his voice, now lower and quieter, spoke the answer to Alfred's question.

"You..." Arthur began. "Obey the rules and stay out of trouble."

And then he left without another word. Alfred could no longer bring himself to stop him.

Translations:

Privyet- Hello in Russian
Ni hao- Hello in Chinese
Mei you wen ti- No problem

In this chapter, my favourite bit was the fluffy RoChu moment. I've almost decided on the sub-plot side pairing by the way! Thanks to the support of my readers, I have two possible endings for China, and it can go either way. One ending is RoChu and GiriPan, made by me and the other is NiChu, made by Lord Kharl! So take your pick.

Thanks to escritoria, Lord Kharl, Myjen123 and MDWOLFGIRL for reviewing!

Sayounara minna-san!

~Neko