By the way I left all my weird little time skips because why not lol

Alfred's POV

I started to open my eyes, but I changed my mind. It was too bright. I wasn't sure where I was. I was a hero, but I was a tired hero. The potion really took it a lot out of me.

Eventually I rubbed my eyes and sat up. I had been laying on a park bench. I wasn't sure where I was but I saw a path and I followed it. The trees that lined the path were starting to change from their summer green, and the leaves lit the sky on fire. The grass was an emerald green. Above the trees I could just barely see a gray sky, and a chilly wind stirred everything a little.

Luckily I was wearing my bomber jacket. There wasn't anyone around, so I had no choice but to keep walking.

My head had cleared by the time the path opened up to a small town. I looked around at where I was, neighborhood businesses dotting the single street. It was a cute little place, so I turned off the path down the road. I checked my pockets to find a credit card under Allen Jones, my father's name. There was also a small, folded piece of paper. On it was an address. I assumed it was Arthur's.

Spotting a small restaurant, I crossed the street. My stomach was rumbling. I checked my watch and saw that it was 6:03. How long had I been here? I hadn't checked the time when I was at Vladimir's, but I got out of class early on Thursdays so it must have been around 3:00. Surely it didn't take that long to travel back? Was I unconscious for a while? Was it even a Thursday? Whatever, it didn't matter.

The restaurant smelled amazing. I sat down, and not long after a pretty waitress came over. She gave me some coffee and a smile, and I ordered myself a hamburger.

I wasn't sure how long I would be here before finding Arthur. The address meant nothing to me, because I had no idea how to find it. Eventually my food came, and I began my first meal in this foreign territory.

*time skip brought to you by Iggy's tea*

It had been three days. I had wandered around enough to find the school. It was a start. I went in the office.

After a bit of disagreement with the secretary, I walked out with papers for my parents to sign.

I would be forging those signatures.

I used what I knew about Arthur to try to take some of the same classes as him.

With the signatures of Allie and Allen Jones on the bottom I leaned back on the bench I was sitting on. I could do this.

*time skip because Roma has tomatoes*

I must have fallen asleep because I woke up before dawn not knowing where I was. Looking around, I remembered. It was the park bench in the town Arthur had lived in.

As I went to check my schedule, I realized I was wearing a different shirt. It must have been Vladimir's magic. That guy was smarter and more powerful than people at the Academy gave him credit for.

I had to be at the school at 6:30 for classes. If I came in at 6:15 I would have time to deal with the secretary. Hopefully I remembered the way.

After wandering around for about an hour I finally found the school. I checked my watch again. It was 5:58. I was early.

The secretary was nice, she explained a little bit about the school and some general things I should know.

At 6:07 I said thank you and left to find my way around. There were a few people dotting the hallways.

I found and opened my locker. A problem I hadn't realized existed had been fixed. The locker was full of my supplies. The textbooks the secretary had given me had spots. A magnet held a piece of paper to the inside of the locker door.

I opened it. It was a letter.

HI Alfred!

It's me, Vladimir. I forgot to mention that I can still help you from where I am. When you sleep I can somehow give you stuff. I can't explain exactly how, and even if I could you wouldn't understand. There isn't a way for you to respond, but I can kind of see what you're doing. If you look at the bottom of your locker you'll find a small journal. I recommend you write everything down at the end of every day. Maybe you'll feel less crazy that way. Be careful, everything you do there will affect Arthur. I'll keep an eye on him for you. I wish you the best of luck.

- Vladimir

He definitely was smarter than we gave him credit for.

I made my way through first and second period, finally finding Arthur in third. It wasn't anything special, it was a world history class, just like back at Hetalia Academy, and he was early, sitting directly in the middle of the room. I sat on his left, not really looking at him. He did look over at me, though.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Alfred Jones, and who are you?" Of course, I already knew the answer but I couldn't just say that.

"Arthur Kirkland." He turned back to the front in an attempt to end the conversation. I wasn't about to let that happen.

"Since I have no idea what I'm doing would you allow me to follow you everywhere?" I asked, as innocent as I possibly could.

"Sure," he said roughly, and I got the impression he wasn't really listening to me.

I studied him closely. He had on a white tee shirt and black jeans. A red and black flannel long-sleeve shirt covered the tee shirt. He had on gray Vans and his hair looked slightly spiked and less cared for. This definitely wasn't the Arthur Kirkland gentleman that I knew.

It was so exciting.

*time skip by Matt's maple syrup*

I had followed Arthur to every class I could. I had third through fifth with him, then lunch. This is when everything hit the fan.

"This is where I leave you, " he said, turning to face me.

"What? Why?"

"I eat lunch alone. I'll see you later."

" But I'm your friend!" I protested, not ready to give up yet.

"I never said that. I agreed to put up with you. The lunch room is in the other direction." He turned and walked off, his steps swaying. He was still rough around the edges, but in a different way. What could have happened to change him?

I wanted to go after him. I knew I couldn't. That was the number one way to drive him away. I knew Arthur. If he wanted to know you, he would. If he didn't, give up. Something told me I could get to him. It would just take time.

I shook my head and turned to find the lunchroom.

Once there I looked around, trying to find where to sit. Not far away was Honda Kiku, a quiet Japanese boy that so far I had every class with. Who was also one of my best friends in the future.

"Kiku!" I yelled.

It was surprising how many people who I knew from Hetalia Academy went here for high school. They all sat at a long table. Kiku sat on the end and there was an empty seat next to him. I walked over and sat down.

*another time skip because cats*

The next day was pretty much the same, and the day after that, all the way to Friday. So far I hadn't managed to get through to Arthur. I knew it would take time, but I wasn't a naturally patient person. My goal for the next week was to speed it up a bit. I sat on my park bench, ready for whatever this strange place would throw at me.

Even though I still had no idea "this strange place" was.

Oh well.