A/N So, this chapter is a bit shorter, I'd ike to say there is a reason for that but, honestly, half the chapter got deleated and I couldn't remember enough ot completly rewrite it. Anyways, I am still looking for ideas for my China chapter. But, thank youu all for reading. :)

Arthur woke to a sharp pain in his neck. He had fallen asleep sitting with his head on the table. Standing up and rubbing his neck he finished cleaning the dishes from the previous night.

After the kitchen was clean he took a shower. Tucking a towel around his waist, Arthur dug through his dresser for a clean pair of clothes. But he didn't recognise any of the clothing folded neatly in the drawers. It was mostly pastel coloured shirts and sweater vests. He settled on a light blue shirt and through his old clothes in the wash.

Not having any meeting or plans, he grabbed his jacket and decided to take a short walk. He grabbed his notebook planning to go over his notes so far.

About twenty minutes later he found himself at the edge of a small pond. The gentle splash of the water was relaxing and Arthur decided to stop for a few minutes. He had just sat down when he noticed Kiku sitting on the other side of the pond.

He stood back up and began to walk towards Kiku. Arthur stopped a few feet away noticing that Kiku's eyes were closed, and not wanting to startle him. Kiku still had that sword on his hip.

'Hey, Kiku. Um, Mr. Honda.' He called. Kiku sighed and opened his eyes. 'Uh, mind if I join you? For a few minutes?' Kiku muttered something that Arthur was going to take for a yes. He sat down beside Kiku, trying to come up with a way to start a conversation.

'So, Kiku, thank you for delivering that letter.' Kiku nodded. 'I was actually hoping to find you, I wanted to talk.'

Kiku raised an eyebrow and scooted an inch away from Arthur. 'No, it's just... what's new?' He tried smiling at Kiku, but it only made him scoot over further. 'Like, what have you been up to... in the last ten years?' Kiku's expression showed that he wasn't sure if Arthur was being serious.

He didn't say anything for a while. Finally he kicked a rock and stood up. 'I have been very busy at my own home. I don't see much of a reason to leave. I should go back there now.' He began to walk away.

Arthur jumped up, slightly panicked. If Kiku left now, He might not get a chance to talk to him. He couldn't think of anything to say, so he panicked more. 'I was talking to Ludwig the other day. he said something about you getting hurt. What was that about?'

Kiku stopped, his body ridged. 'He should not have told you about that.'

Arthur felt himself relax a bit. 'Yea, I know. But now that he told me, I'm curious, he didn't elaborate on the story to much, would you please? I won't tell anybody, promise.'

Kiku began to walk again, but he slightly waved his hand, telling Arthur to follow. They walked in silence until they were a good thirty feet from the pond. 'There is not much to tell, I suppose. And it wasn't Ludwig's fault. He was heart broken over his brother. Feliciano got himself into some trouble, I should have left him, it wasn't my job to protect the kid. Anyway, we were ambushed, barely made it out alive.'' He wouldn't meet Arthur's eyes as he spoke.

'So, uh, is that why you are so reserved? Because it's too hard to have people depend on you? You're afraid to fail them?' He thought back to Ludwig.

Kiku laughed. Something Arthur had never even heard in his time. 'No, you really have been talking to Ludwig haven't you? He can be such a wuss sometimes. No, I had never been left alone with Feliciano for that long before. He is so annoying. I decided then and there that I hated people.' Arthur stopped, most countries seemed to have traumatic reasons, Kiku just didn't like babysitting.

'So, it's just better to be lonely?' Kiku didn't answer, and Arthur realised they had stopped in front of a house. Kiku walked up the small driveway and began unlocking the front door. Arthur continued walking, hoping he could figure out how to get home from here.

Kiku called out from behind him, 'would you like to come in, Mr. Kirkland? I can make tea. Perhaps we could continue talking, if you want to.' Arthur nodded and followed him into his house.

Kiku's house what not completely what Arthur had expected. Yes, it was dark and peaceful and had a very Japanese feel to it, but the walls were also lined with photos. There were many of Kiku and the Axis countries, roasting smores on a beach, training, touring the cities in Italy. But there were also many of him and the Allies too, during meeting, Kiku and Alfred watching movies together, even pictures from that horrible picnic Francis organised.

In all of the pictures, Kiku was off to the side of the group a little. He didn't like to be lonely. He just didn't like to be the centre of attention. Arthur had been staring at the photos so long, Kiku had finished making the tea. They sat down to drink it and Arthur tried to continue the conversation from earlier. But Kiku really didn't want to talk about himself, and Arthur was afraid to hear anything about himself, so they ended up sitting in silence. Arthur dug around for an excuse to leave. Taking three hours to get home and becoming quite lost he got home very late.