CC101: Sorry for the wait guys! I actually have a good reason for the wait:
I had to install my nuclear defense system for the end of this chapter.
Please don't nuke my house!
PLEASE!
Summary: Cardverse/Chessverse AU. King Alfred never got along with his Queen. After a fight, Arthur flees the Castle and is captured by a new royal from across the sea. When Alfred finally gets Arthur back, he finds that their relationship takes a huge turn. The American desperately tries to fix their relationship but how can the King trust his Queen when the other won't stop lying to him?
Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia
Chapter 27: Rachel
Alfred hugged himself as the tears cascaded down his face. The drops of water fell of his cheeks and landed on his shoes. Grief and shock were evident on his face. It was shameful to have to face such feelings, that he now preferred Arthur after the whole 'we should be friends' business. His beautiful, gentle, amazing, wonderful, Queen Arthur. He wasn't sick, after all; he was in love.
Yet why was he so sad? He felt as if he held the weight of the world on his shoulders. He loved Arthur. He loved Arthur! His Queen was a guy though! He had been strait his entire life, right? Why now? Why Arthur? He cried softer now as he let his thoughts wander. He wasn't sick yes, but he felt like it. Arthur had loved him before, but that was all gone now. Hell would freeze over before he would get another chance.
Arthur was everything he had ever dreamed of in his teenage years: caring, thoughtful, loving, funny, and beautiful. The only difference was that as a twelve-year-old, he had had a girl with short, curly blond hair and an amazing laugh. He had never once thought that this dream person would turn out to be a male.
What was he going to do now? How could he return to the Castle and expected everything to go on like normal. His maids would definitely notice the change. Everyone would be talking!
Maybe there was a way to make everything look normal. He'd work extra hard to make himself tired, therefore shunning the maids away. They would understand, right? He would tell Arthur that he had tripped forward and was just as shocked that they had kissed (hopefully, however, he believed it). Maybe he wouldn't have to express it to someone. Perhaps he could just past by and act like nothing was wrong! That was a perfect plan!
So slowly, Alfred picked himself and looked up towards the Castle. His hands gripped the edge of his clothing. He was nervous, extremely anxious at the thought of facing Arthur after the kiss. The smaller hadn't really kissed back and looked so confused when the kiss was broken. What would the Queen do, say? After some time passed in deep thought, the King gathered up his courage and left for the Castle.
The King first cleaned his face from the fountain nearby, giving a sigh as the cold water hit his face to help him appear better than he believed he looked. He didn't want to look as if he had been crying like a lost child. He was a King of Spades, the Kingdom of Time, and the Kingdom of Power! He was a symbol of power to his people.
Instead he decided to go in the back way. By going into an empty guard house, he got into one of the escape passages and made his way into the cellar of the Castle. It was dark, so Alfred grabbed one of the many torches handing on the wall. He was near were Spades held the worst of the worst criminals. It just so happened, he needed to have a conversation with one of them.
In the meantime, Arthur had searched all over the perimeter of the square for any sign of Alfred, or any sort of excited yell. Instead every time he went to look around, he nearly fell or bumped into people. The sheer number of people dancing and walking around made it hard. Now, it was downright impossible to find the missing King when Arthur couldn't help but remember what just happened.
It just kept repeating in his mind over and over and over and over and over and over again. It was an endless reel of the kiss, the feel, the emotions that he felt running through his head as the King and Queen shared a kiss. He didn't know what to think about it, besides the fact that he had found definitely different from the other times he had accidentally kissed Alfred. This time, he didn't know, was definitely different.
During their wedding, it was nervous. When he was drunk, it was about fun. After the runaway incident, it was desperation. This however? This was something else, something much deeper and more intense...
Perhaps it was something beyond his knowledge, something that he had never experienced. Was it...as corny as it was...true love? Arthur found himself snorting. He tried that and was rejected. He didn't want to go down that path of rejection again. All he knew was that it was not an accident, and he would do what he could to make sure he wasn't led to heartbreak again.
Eventually the party started to cool down. Arthur rounded up the original group of men, but still no Alfred. Where could the younger royal be?
He could see Night Runner a little ways ahead. Isabel was talking to a few of the children from the wealthier Lords and Ladies that happened to be in the Square. Eventually, when he was escorted by the guards to the Castle, he asked all of them to assist him in spotting their King.
Several people stated that they had not seen the King. Arthur was about to go look around the city again when he got news from the jailer, who had just gotten off duty a half hour ago. Alfred was in the Black Cells talking to someone.
The Black Cells was where some of the worse criminals were placed. Why would he be there? He snuck away from the guards and started in the direction of the jail. There was only one entrance to the Black Cells, a door in the basement of the Castle. There were only two levels, but the deep, dark dungeons housed at the time, four men. Two were staying there until death and the other two had trials soon. Alfred would determine if they should be executed or not.
He actually met Alfred just coming out of the door leading down to the cellar. The Queen stumbled backwards, having been knocked back a few steps when he knocked into the other. "There you are!"
Alfred froze upon noticing who was speaking to him. He blushed a deep crimson red. "H-Hello..." He quickly looked away, guilt and shame mixing with a feeling of happiness from being with the beautiful Queen.
"Why were you in here? I didn't know where you were, but I didn't expect you to go here," the Englishman's tone was worried but also somewhat peeved.
Alfred looked up into those emerald eyes then quickly sent his gaze down to their feet. "I...um...needed to think."
"In a jail cell? The Black Cells, no less. Why did you there?"
"I needed to talk to somebody."
Rising an eyebrow, the Queen asked, "And who would that be?" Alfred was avoiding the issue! Getting more annoyed, he crossed his arms.
Alfred finally looked up at him. "An old friend..."
"You have an old friend in the Black Cells?! Who?!" Now yelling, Arthur was not angry but surprised. Only the most evil people were sent there. Alfred was a good man, so who in the world would be down there?
The King stiffened. Alfred might have told Arthur about Mex, but this was another deep secret. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself. This was not for the Queen to know. Every man and woman has their secrets and this was his. "None of your business."
The Briton frowned. "Are you alright? You're acting a bit...weird."
"I am fine," was the stiff response.
"It seems as if something is bothering you." He stood on the tips of his toes to place their foreheads together. "You don't feel warm..."
Alfred's already harsh blush brightened in color. "I-I am fine."
"No, there's something...off about you. I can't put my finger on it, but it's definitely something."
Alfred couldn't take being this close to Arthur. So he pushed the smaller onto his ass. "I'm fine!" Hurriedly, he ran away from Arthur and his feelings, which wanted nothing more than to close the distance between their lips again.
The Queen cried out as he was pushed to the ground, and turned to watch the other run off. "That arsehole...," he murmured as he stood up. "Whot the hell is wrong with him?" He looked down at his palms to see that they were scraped from the rock steps. He winced at the sight of them, and went to clean and bandage them, whilst thinking of what exactly was wrong with his close friend.
Did he do something to upset the American? What had he done to create such fury with his King? He didn't do anything wrong! Unless, it was about that kiss he had been given. In his own defense, however, Alfred had been the one who had started it. Arthur slowly rubbed his arm. 'Maybe instead of angry, Alfred was embarrassed. After all he did kiss me,' Arthur thought.
Alfred's face was a bright scarlet, and he did act nervous while they were talking. Perhaps the King was just afraid of what his Queen thought of him now. Whatever it was, it didn't matter to Arthur. The emerald eyed man would wait for the other to think things through. After all, that method always worked, and it made things better for them.
The Queen frowned as he started to walk toward his room. His mind began to change its thought process. He couldn't wait to see Rachel! He grinned. He had missed his lovely, even though it had been merely, and approximately, two days since he had seen. He was ecstatic to see her again.
He quickly went into his room to find the servant girl. "Rachel?" However, she was nowhere to be found. Sad at the fact, Arthur quickly changed his outfit so he could find her.
He first started with where her servant bedroom was located, where he met Sarah and Sophie, another maid. He greeted them kindly: they returning the polite gesture, before they said that they had not seen his girlfriend. He checked every room down his hallway twice before he decided to check downstairs and the rest of the castle.
He spotted Toris and called him over. The Lithuanian smiled and pointed to the royal kitchens. Arthur smiled wide, thanked Toris, and then darted for the kitchen as fast as he could.
The cooks in the kitchen all looked horrified for some reason as he walked into the hall; they always did that for some reason... A male servant close by came up the Englishman and asked what he wanted. Knowing he could not say he had a girlfriend, he said he wanted lunch and would wait there.
The Queen sat at a small table that was usually meant for servants, waiting patiently and quietly by watching outside the window for nothing particular. Eventually he ate a sandwich that was brought to him. After that, he just watched the cooks make the meals. Everyone once and a while he would ask a question of the chefs about the meal he or she was cooking.
However, he was never one to wait for very long, and soon he found himself start to wander the ground floor of the Castle in search for her. She had to be somewhere! She wouldn't leave him, would she?
It was when he was rushing past a window, he saw her. Rachel was outside in his rose garden, smelling the flowers. He laughed quietly to himself, and, after checking that no one else was nearby, he ran outside and towards her direction. "Rachel!" He cried out once he was just a few feet in front of her and out of breath.
The serving girl turned around with a huge smile. Her blond hair was pulled up in a small pony tail. "Arthur!" She said hugging him tightly. "I missed you."
He returned the embrace and sighed in contentment. "I missed you just as much, luv."
Rachel let go. The happiness on her face was simple to detect and she looked radiant. "When did you get back?"
"Just today, Hearts was attacked and we needed to get back to prepare."
The female frowned. An attack on any Kingdom was bad… "Oh, how many are dead?"
"We don't know. We haven't seen any of the Royal Court members since yesterday. We can only hope it's not many." Arthur stepped closer to the other blond. It was nice, how she cared for others.
"Oh, well I hope everyone is okay!"
"As do I. Alfred and Ludwig do not get along, but I do hope that they do not suffer."
Rachel fiddled with her nails for a bit. "I have an idea. Why don't you send them a magic letter? It will get there faster than a bird," suggest the maid, hoping it would assist the Queen.
"I think I will. Hopefully, they'll be able to respond."
Rachel smiled. "Of course they will. You're the most important Queen of the four!"
He smiled, and pecked her lips sweetly and gingerly. It was rare that he actually did something in public. Although a few people knew, both of them tried to keep it as secret as possible. It would just add stress and unwanted attention on them. "Thank you, precious."
Rachel turned red, her entire body turning red with the blush. "We're in public!" She hissed, looking around to see if they had been caught or spotted. Thankfully, no one was around as the gardeners had off today.
"So?" His hands gently graced over her sides in a loose embrace. The grin on his face grew larger at the reaction. Arthur cooed to his lovely, "No one else is here. It will be fine."
"T-They c-could come!"
"Then we'll go somewhere more...private." He winked at her, as if to suggest one thing.
Sex had been weighing in Arthur's mind for a long time. Alfred had made mention of it to him several times. He considered himself bisexual as it didn't matter if he loved males or females. It was just harder for him to be sexual with a woman than a man. So it shocked him that Rachel was able to get a reaction from him. They hadn't done very much, but it had been a bit overwhelming for Arthur. Thankfully, the maid understood and gave Arthur room to think it over.
'She wants sex,' Alfred had told him that before. He had missed being sexually intimate with someone. The thoughts had been there for a while, but Arthur never went through. There was something holding him back. He didn't know what it was but he needed to get over it… Briefly, he wondered what happened to his reasons not to bed her. However, he didn't want Rachel to leave, so he was going to do this!
The servant smiled. "O-Of course my Queen." Rachel was blown away. They never... He was... She grinned even wider. "Let's hurry."
He grasped onto her hand and guided her to the door before she started to run. Even though he had never been with a woman before, he had once walked in on his best friend and a maid once. Plus, he was sure that she would be able to coach him through it.
Rachel giggled as she shut the door to Arthur's room. She was so happy! No, beyond happy. Finally after so long, they were going to have sex.
Almost instantly, Arthur was on her, kissing at her neck and running his hands along her sides, giving a moan as he pressed her against the door. Eventually, he kissed her lips. Everything was just hot, and melting. He preferred the dominance fight but this would do.
Rachel gave a smile as she quickly stripped. She would give Arthur everything and anything he needed. It was highly possible that she would have to help him but that was okay. No one was perfect.
Arthur was just as quick, almost falling to the ground as he stepped out of his pants and laid her against the bed, running a hand through her hair.
"Are you sure?" She asked in a quiet tone, wanting to know if the Queen actually was doing this of his own will.
Arthur paused for a bit. Thinking hard, he came to the same conclusion. He needed to do this. The fear that Rachel would leave was enough to have him nod his head. "I'm very sure." He smiled wide, and their lips began to smooth over each again, hands intertwined and breaths shared.
Alfred sighed as he flopped onto his bed. Finally he had a time to ponder on his current situation, which was his heart was now in the unknowing hands of his Queen. He let out a whimper. His locked up friend only have him one hope: that because Alfred had only been noticing Arthur for a short time, it was only a crush not love.
He had always wondered what it had been like for Arthur when he loved him but the King had never looked at the smaller male twice. It was a restrained feeling, leaving him lost, trapped, and making him undecided on how to handle it. His heart felt as if it was in a tight clasp that squeezed when he even thought of the older blond. He let out an exasperated breath and shut his eyes. What else was there to do now?
This was forever! He finally understood when people said every moment felt like a year. Alfred would have been surprised to find himself with gray hair at the moment he next looked in the mirror.
He had to talk to his Queen, he decided. He wanted to see Arthur face to face, not only to- and his cheeks burned at this- see and admire him secretly, but also to apologize. His Queen had strength in his legs specifically and he was a bit scrawny (yet seeing him mad brought out the worse of him), but it must have hurt. Alfred, when angered, had a habit of not minding how much strength he was using.
He purposefully stood up and made his way toward Arthur's room. His heart started to beat at a rapid pace and he composed himself before he reached the door. Alfred reached his hand up to knock when he heard several loud moans coming from the room.
Instantly, his mind jumped to the worse, but then he relaxed when he heard a loud female cry that he recognized as Rachel. She was saying something incomprehensible, even when he pressed his ear against the door. The deep grunts and the loud groans of pleasure were a sure sign that there was something sexual occurring in the room.
Alfred quickly turned around and ran to the nearest entrance to the servant's passages. He quietly snuck up to the peep holes that allowed him to see into Arthur's bedroom. His gut lurched, and for some reason, there was a tight knot in his throat. He could see the maid on a male's lap, and he could recognize the deep, gravelly, accented voice and put an owner to the shaggy blond hair- his crush, his Queen, his love. He was right; Arthur and his girlfriend were in the middle of the heat of passion.
Alfred felt sick. He wanted to look away but something just drew him in. He hated this. Arthur didn't do things without thinking of the future. Tears came to Alfred's eyes. If Arthur was doing this, that meant he was giving his whole heart to Rachel. The King's vision became blotchy.
He didn't have a chance in Hell now.
"No..." His hands turned into fists, and he wanted to bang them against the wall, but he didn't want to reveal himself. This was what it must have been like when Alfred had accidentally walked in on him a year ago. His heart belonged to Arthur, but Arthur's was not with his. Instead, it went to a situation that the Queen did not know.
Slowly, Alfred backed away from the peep holes. Once he was far enough away, he quietly ran out of the entrance he came in. After, he started towards his room. He ran into a few things as his eyes wouldn't stop tearing up.
When he eventually reached his private quarters, he shut and locked the door and leaned against it, falling to the floor with the soles of his hands kneading into his eyes. He trembled from the tears, those of which he shed for the beautiful Queen. He felt as if they deserved to be together, their hands deserved to be entwined, their hearts beating for the other. Now that he had finally realized just where he was headed, he wanted Arthur. However, there the King was, with the owner of his heart giving his love to another- a woman, no less. He longed for the older blond now, longed for his embrace and love and presence beside him.
'Well it's too late for that,' the pessimistic side of him thought. 'You had Arthur's heart, but you threw it away. He moved on! Away from your pathetic ass! Rachel is just what he needs. You said so, remember?'
"But that was the past me," he whimpered, feeling even more stupid by the minute.
'The far past. You found yourself from finding him off to trusting him with your life and now putting your love in hands that might have belonged to you? You find everything of your Queen attractive and wonderful; what can she give him?' Alfred had a more optimistic side that apparently wanted to talk as well.
His dark side laughed. 'She can give him the love you never did. Her body that is very comely. She can give him that kindness. But most importantly, she has been his best friend longer than you have.'
His conscious started to fight back. 'Yet you know Arthur the most! You know every little thing about him, his secrets and dreams and desires and ambitions, and even some stuff that she must not know. Besides, you know for a fact that Arthur would always choose you over her.'
His other half smirked, 'Really? He is FUCKING her! Do you think he never confided in her? You really are stupid.'
The passive half, Alfred could tell, was cracking. What else was there to say or do? "I want him." He glared harshly at nothing in particular. "I don't care if I'm late or early or will never be able to. I want him to be available to me; I want his hand in mine only. I will share anything else, but Arthur is my Queen of Spades. He belongs with no other soul but mine."
'Oh, but he does belong to someone else! And it's your fault! You abandoned him!'
'You were confused and lost. You didn't know where your heart was, but you found it- sadly, in the hands of someone who used to love you; he belongs to another. That doesn't stop you from feeling pain. You can still look into his eyes and smile and love him, even if it may be hidden, even if it may give you heartbreak, even if it takes forever for him to notice you.'
His dark side began to show his nightmarish colors. 'Just listen to the optimist!' The pessimist snorted. 'You don't even believe him! Look, take my advice. Arthur is not going to come to you by choice. You have to take him by force! Get rid of the bitch and. Make. Arthur. Yours.'
'Yet Arthur seems so happy with her!' The lighter side exclaimed. 'You don't want her to be upset, no matter how much it rips out your heart to see them together. You can't rip her away suddenly from him. What would you tell him? What would you tell him? How would he react?'
'The truth,' his darker half sneered. 'Once he is yours, he won't care where that bitch went. All he will want is you'
'But would he be happy if you sent away someone that brings him joy? You will have to wait for him to realize just how much you feel for him. Then, perhaps, he will hand you his heart once more.'
'That will never work! You idiot! Send away the bitch and it will be done with!'
'To send her away would mean you would cut away his happiness. And if you want the Queen's love over hate, patience is key.'
'What about your own happiness, Jones? You will be miserable until you send her away!'
'Hoping never harms the soul unless the outcome is miserable. It is necessary to wait; otherwise hate will arise from Arthur. You need to wait for your Queen to realize how much love he holds for you.'
'Love? He is sleeping with that BITCH! He doesn't love you! Get her out of the way!'
'Arthur is ignorant of the entire situation. He doesn't know who she truly is; he cannot help himself. He is in need of a lover. Who else is there to help him with that?'
The dark side smirked. "Us of course! With no one to turn to Arthur will return to us with open arms!"
'Not if we push the Queen away from him! If we get rid of his maid, then he will be devastated, as if we tore out his heart and all love motives. We need to wait until they fall out of love. Rachel knows her motives for this; she knows why she is there. It will not be hard for her if she ended it for them.'
Alfred flinched as the voices in his head started to argue with each other rather than talk to him. "But she stopped asking for payment long ago," he added to the mental battle.
'She's still a part of this plan,' the light side explained. 'You paid her to get rid of Arthur and now you pay those consequences by realizing your love too late.'
His dark half sighed. 'Look! We brought in a whore so Arthur would forget us! She did her job! Now send her back to the whore house where she belongs!'
Alfred looked up and saw a true demon. The demon looked just like him but had jet black hair, a leather jacket with fur inside and soulless blue eyes. His fear spiked up and he nearly screamed. A demon…was almost as bad as a ghost!
This demon gave an evil laugh. 'So what are you going to do? Do nothing?'
'He is not worth the time,' a much more delicate voice spoke up. Alfred looked at the person to see that this person was, in fact, an exact replica of him except for the fact that he was much cleaner and an angel, with delicate wings and a halo, as well as a getup to go with it. 'Patience is what will help lead you to Arthur, not evil and demonic ways.'
The demon snorted. 'Yeah right!' He looked Alfred strait in the eyes. 'Now choose! Whose idea is better?!'
'Your Highness, do not be tempted by his ways. Demons are always tempting and leading good people like you down the wrong half,' the angel stated calmly. 'You do not know what is to be expected if you follow the ways of this demon. Any thing he suggests will end in misery.'
Alfred looked between the two. "No, you're both wrong." His voice was barely above a whisper. "I'm going to do this my way."
The angel looked hurt, a deep frown upon his features. 'If you wish…' The mystic being slowly faded into the light.
The demon smirked. 'Well, I guess that's my cue to go. Enjoy my parting gift!'
Alfred raised an eyebrow in curiosity and confusion. "What gift?" As soon as the demon vanished from sight, Alfred felt it. He fell to the floor, his whole body drained of any energy. He could feel the tears in his eyes and soon his vision faded black.
CC101: PLEASE, PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!
Guest Reviews
Dear Miyon,
You write English enough for me to understand. I hope that this chapter answers your questions. Also, Arthur and Rachel became girlfriend and boyfriend because Arthur wanted someone to be with. He hoped Rachel would make him happy.
Love,
CC101
Dear RobinBird,
He is devastated because he realizes that the situation is hopeless. Arthur already loved him and moved on.
Love,
CC101
Dear Wenbo,
Thanks for the review! Everybody keeps asking about America... Don't really know what to tell you guys that keep asking... America told Arthur that the King was with England, his Queen...
Love,
CC101
Dear Chayton,
I am glad you liked the Disney portion of my last chapter. I can just feel the hate I will get for this...
Love,
CC101
Dear MM,
Alfred has not really asked Arthur as it's a sore spot. He tried but Arthur just refused to talk about America.
Love,
CC101
Dear Misty,
No, there is no Omegaverse. It is simply a dream that Alfred had. Both times he was not resting near Alfred. Because he couldn't leech off Arthur's magic, Jaden is not a futuristic vision either. The dream merely expresses how much Alfred wants a kid.
Love,
CC101
Thanks for reading. Leave me a review!
DON'T SEND ME ANY NUKES!
PLEASE!