Francis (April 7, Friday)

I sat at the kitchen table, staring at the closed door that led to the living room. But my focus was not there. It was years before this date, late at night when Alfred was only one years old. He was sick, had been running a fever all day. Arthur and I were finally at loss as to what to do for him. He was crying and Arthur was pacing the living room, rocking our child back and forth in his arms. I sat on the couch, watching them with worry. What could I do except wait the night out, hoping the fever would break? Arthur turned to me helplessly and I reached my arms out. Dutifully, he passed Alfred to me and, after unbuttoning the first two buttons on his onesie, held him to my chest and he stopped crying. Arthur sat down next to me, leaned his head on my shoulder, and rested one hand on his slightly enlarged abdomen. It was one of the first times we were sure we could make it through life so long as we were together.

Staring at the kitchen door, I recognized how that one night had set the course for our lives now. "Twelve years," I muttered into my hand. Had Arthur and I not been so sure of our relationship, it would have ended five years after our kids had vanished. His hormones, our stubbornness, my flirtatious behavior... No one had thought we'd last so long. Yet here we were, not only still together and madly in love, but also with our kids again. Our kids that we were now sure were ours. I had no more doubt in this. I was relieved and terrified at once. I felt I had to make up for lost time, yet they didn't seem to expect it. Years hardly made a difference for parents. You feel as though there's a certain sequence to follow and even though that sequence was broken, you still try to use it.

"Francis!" Arthur called from the living room. I blinked, trying to wake from my haze. He burst into the kitchen as I stood. "Why aren't you in bed?" He looked upset. But something in my expression made his soften. "Francis?" He slowly wandered over and I wrapped my arms around him. He snaked his around my waist.

Gently, I ran a hand through his hair. "I love you, chèrie... Let's go to bed."

X x X

"Ouch! H-how did you...?"

"I don't know!"

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!"

"I'm sorry!"

"Get out!"

I blinked myself awake and looked at the time. Even for a weekday, it was way too early to be up. "Okay; no wait! I lied! I need you!" I heard Matthew's frantic voice from downstairs. For a moment, I was confused. It seemed that every day this week, I'd woken puzzled.

"What're they doing?" Arthur's groggy voice questioned from beside me. And then I remembered. I rolled over and draped an arm over his bare chest.

He looked at me, his expression torn between irritation and adoration. "Sounds like breakfast," I mumbled with a light chuckle.

He smacked my shoulder with a roll of his eyes and a smile on his lips. Then he paused and sighed as Alfred let loose several loud curses. "It does," he muttered in defeat. Then he shifted so he was on his side and cuddled into me. "Well, if they're fending for themselves, then that means we have an extra five minutes..."

I kissed the top of Arthur's head and nuzzled my face in his hair. He made a light purring sound. I brushed my fingertips down his spine and smiled when he arched into me a little. A loud crash had us untangled from each other and the blankets. In moments, we were on our feet, pulling shirts on and hurrying downstairs. "Who died?" I asked as I pushed open the kitchen door.

Alfred was the disaster, standing by the fridge. He was coated in flour and sopping wet; the sprayer was in Matthew's hand. The attacker was the one who looked pissed while Alfred simply looked surprised. Matthew glanced at us and sighed, "Breakfast died..." The back door was open and the last bit of smoke was exiting through there.

Arthur burst out laughing. I was torn between being horrified at the tragedy my kitchen had become and amused by the situation. I wondered vaguely what Alfred had done. When Arthur had finally calmed down, I sighed and stepped out of the doorway. "Go get cleaned up, Alfred. And, Matthew, put the sprayer down…" Alfred slumped out of the kitchen and Matthew reluctantly put his weapon back in the sink. "Now, what on Earth did he do to deserve that?" I asked curiously.

Matthew pointed at the stove. "He burned my food. And cursed at me…" He paused and then added, "I'll clean up the kitchen. We generally fight like this in the morning. Alfred can't cook!"

I glanced at Arthur and he punched my arm, making me flinch a little. "You can't inherit cooking skills, frog!" he snapped, crossing his arms over his chest. I chuckled at his reaction. "I'll help you clean up, Matthew. And then Francis can cook for us…"

I made a face at being volunteered but then smiled brightly. "As long as it's clean before five-thirty," I sang and left the kitchen as the two started scrambling to put it back together in time.

~XxX~

Matthew (April 7, Friday)

It was rainy when we were all ready to head out to school. We'd left with Arthur at six and arrived at the school about fifteen minutes later. Arthur all but commanded us to wander around to find our classrooms while he set to work on some paperwork he had neglected to pick up over the week. I felt bad when I realized how much time he'd really taken off just for me and Alfred. So, set loose, we began our trek around the school. It was two stories and reminded me somewhat of a college campus. There were different halls for different subjects – like the English hall and the math hall. And then we found the auditorium.

A few kids were already tucked away inside, talking and laughing. But it was the two couples on stage that caught both mine and Alfred's attention. They were both dancing the cha-cha. There were two boys, looking like they were carrying on some sort of casual conversation as they did so. But their footwork was absolutely amazing and I was entranced by it. The other couple, a girl and a boy, had their expressions a little more focused on the dance. I enjoyed watching them as well but it looked like they had to think more to carry out their dance.

One of the two boys dancing together was tall with messy brown hair and a silly grin on his face. He looked as though he shouldn't be able to dance that well but was extremely graceful and fluent as he led his partner around the stage. His partner was a few inches shorter than him with darker brown hair and a slightly irritated look. I recognized him immediately as Lovino Vargas. He twisted and fell back and the slightest nudge from his partner, as though they'd danced their cha-cha routine enough times that they'd memorized every step without needing a reminder. I was enthralled by their routine and found myself wishing I were on the stage, dancing my heart out.

"You found our hide-out," someone announced from behind us as he slapped his hands onto our shoulders. Both couples on stage stopped to look at us and everyone in the "audience" turned around. He didn't sound upset but the instant people started staring, I was petrified.

Alfred – my stupid, brave, obnoxious, wonderful brother – turned and looked behind us. Following his example, I forced myself to do the same. A tall young man with a huge grin that instantly disappeared when he saw us standing there was behind us. He had short, wild blonde hair and dark blue eyes. He didn't seem extremely intimidating but he definitely wasn't Feliciano friendly. Still, my brother brought forth one of his best grins and said, "We didn't realize you were hiding. Sorry; we're new to the school and were told to wander. So we did!"

"Ehi!" I picked out Lovino's voice as the one who had shouted. "It's you two! You're actually going to school here?" I looked back at him to see that he'd hopped off the stage – leaving his partner looking dazed – and was marching toward us. Feliciano was out of his seat in ten seconds flat, running toward us with the same cries but in a more cheerful tone. All I wanted was to turn and run.

"Yeah!" Alfred replied enthusiastically, though he seemed as confused as I was about Lovino's reaction. "Good to see a familiar face or two." Feliciano stopped in front of us but was looking behind us.

"Mathias, be nice!" he half-scolded, half-teased. Then he actually looked at us. "Glad you found us; we thought we'd have to come looking for you!" He giggled at the idea as Lovino walked up, a smug smirk on his face as though he was amused by the idea as well. "Mathias, this is Alfred –" he pointed at my brother "—and Matthew!"

"Really?" the boy behind us drawled, removing his hands from our shoulders at last. I felt like I could breathe a little better. He stepped out in front of Feliciano and Lovino and stared critically at us. "The Anderson boys?"

Alfred made a face and I sighed. "We're changing our last name," I declared and he glanced over his shoulder as someone began to laugh annoyingly. "But, yes. That's us. How do you even know about us all the way out here?"

"You're famous," Lovino huffed and pushed past Mathias irritably. "You were on one of the few teams that keep making regionals and have even made nationals. And everyone knows that you two are the main reason they got there." He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at us with one eyebrow raised, as if daring us to try and challenge what he thought he knew.

I frowned, a little perplexed. "Well, not really but if you say so. We probably just practiced hardest, I think." Alfred agreed hurriedly with a proud smile on his face. "But we couldn't singlehandedly get them there, you know. That's pretty much impossible with the judges. Hey, are you on the ballroom team here?"

My question was directed at Lovino but it was Feliciano who answered, "We both are! Mathias isn't – he's just one of our friends that comes to watch us." He took my hand and dragged me into the auditorium. "You should come hang out with us. How long have you been here?"

"This morning? Since around six or so," I replied, startled. I didn't resist as he dragged me over to his group of friends, all clustered near the front middle of the auditorium seats. I picked Gilbert out of the crowd and was kind of surprised to see him there. I hadn't thought Feliciano would be friends with someone like him but then again, I didn't know either of them very well.

The other three on the stage climbed down and ran up to us. "Oi, Feliciano!" the boy Lovino had been dancing with called as he neared. I stood awkwardly before the group of kids as he turned to see what the boy wanted. "Who are these two?"

Lovino wandered up to him, letting go of Alfred's wrist and said, "Alfred and Matthew. The ones Gilbert was talking about the other day, remember?" He seemed much calmer in his partner's presence and I couldn't help but wonder if their partnership went beyond dancing. "I have a question, though. You're Mr. Kirkland's kids so you guys were really kidnapped?"

There was that pause where everyone was dead silent, waiting to hear our answer and where my mind went reeling. Arthur and Francis had said our story was pretty known around the town but I hadn't really thought the kids would know. I'd been expecting having to talk to adults, tell them that it was interesting to be back in a place I didn't ever remember being. What was I supposed to say to these kids who had apparently listened really well to their parents? Luckily, I didn't have to. My brother jumped in and casually said, "Yeah, we were – not that we remember it or anything so don't bother asking. We've lived a pretty boring life."

"Oh," Lovino muttered, sounding disappointed. But I was grateful that he didn't push the topic. "Well, okay then. Let me introduce you to everyone." He pointed to his partner who looked extremely surprised. "My boyfriend, Antonio. " I tried to look like I hadn't already guessed this. Then he pointed at a blonde boy, his hair slicked back and his bright blue eyes focused. He was standing somewhat near Feliciano but looked like he'd just stood up and was now caught doing something he would rather not be. "That's my brother's boyfriend, Ludwig." Lovino said his name as if it were a dirty word but continued before Feliciano could get anything else but a, "Ve~! Lovino!" out.

He went through the audience, pointing at people and calling out names. "Lukas; Natalia; Ivan; Heracles; Feliks and his boyfriend, Taurys; Xiao Mei; Im Yong Soo; Honda Kiku; and Gilbert, Ludwig's older brother..." Some looked over at us or waved in acknowledgement but some didn't and I struggled to match names to faces. "Got it?" Lovino barked when he was finished.

Alfred grinned easily. "Yup!"

"Sure," I muttered, wondering how I'd ever remember them all. The bell rang suddenly and obnoxiously loud.

People started gathering their things, and standing, filing out. But one stopped in front of me. He was extremely tall with sandy blonde hair and soft lavender eyes that hinted at secret danger. He was intimidating but I wasn't scared – the reason for that was mostly in his smile. "You'll catch on soon enough. My name is Ivan," he said with a heavy Russian accent, his smile never faltering.

I grinned up at him. "Not soon but, yes, I'm sure I will. Thank-you." He nodded and then wandered out of the auditorium.

Alfred came up behind me and put one arm over my shoulders. "Want some help finding your first class? You look a bit dazed there, Mattie!"

"Come off it!" I snapped, ducking out of his arm and heading out. "You have your own class to find, Alfred!" He laughed as I left, wandering the halls and trying to remember where I'd found my first class earlier that morning. But as I did, I knew I was blushing.

X x X

Later that day, after dinner, Alfred and I excused ourselves from the table and hurried downstairs. Alfred threw himself onto the couch and I sat on the floor, looking up at him. We'd hung out with the ballroom team and their friends at lunch after an invitation from Feliciano and watched more people dance. It had made me ache even more for the stage but I was elated that Alfred and I seemed to be making friends. "Did you see them dance?" Alfred asked, eyes shining as he looked at me.

I grinned. "Which ones? Lovino and Antonio stand as my favorites." I crossed my legs and placed my hands on my knees, leaning forward. "They were amazing. No one on our team could dance like them!"

He shook his head. "No, no; Feliks and Taurys! I never thought they'd be able to dance like that!" It was true. Jittery little Taurys and loudmouth Feliks made an interesting pair, both on and off stage. It seemed as though they were polar opposites but worked so well together in every aspect. Dancing, it was like their differences disappeared and nothing else was there besides their feet, each other, the music, and the chemistry. They were intense, dancing the samba together.

"They were amazing," I agreed, voice a bit more wistful than I'd meant for it to sound. "I miss dancing."

Alfred sighed with a nod and then looked at the stereo system with a devious smile. "Hey, why don't we dance? They must have something we can dance to..." Then he jumped up and sprinted to where Arthur had shown him the CDs. He flipped through them, finally producing one after a minute or so. "Think we could dance to track three?" He tossed me the case and I flipped it over to look.

"Maybe. Let's hear it." I tossed it back and he put the CD into the stereo system, flipping to track three. We listened to it and then he started it over. "Jitterbug it is!" I stood up and he cranked the music, pushing play. He stepped over to me and we got into the appropriate dance position. Grinning, we began to enthusiastically dance the jitterbug together, swinging and laughing our hearts' content. But my heart wasn't content. It longed to be onstage again. This time, with a partner who had enough passion to match mine when we danced, spun, lived.

~XxX~

Alfred (Monday, April 10)

I was momentarily blinded by the spotlight as if fell on me and my faceless partner. I was stage-left and he was stage-right. The music started and my feet slid across the polished ground below me; I drifted smoothly into his arms. For a moment, he just held me and we swayed. Then the back lights hit; he pushed me away and we fell into a perfect West Coast Swing. I was yanked across the stage and I dragged my partner along and I felt so lost in our moment. Then I woke up. The sun was shining brilliantly into my eyes, birds were singing obnoxiously, and I had killer cramps. I rolled onto my side and hugged my abdomen desperately. "Oh, it hurts!" I whined, squeezing my eyes shut again. Arthur knocked on my door, a little enthusiastically so I answered, "Yeah?"

"Come downstairs, please. Francis has something to tell us," Arthur called happily and I heard him go to Matthew's room. My eyes snapped open and my heart pounded faster. The DNA test results? I wondered. Were we finally going to get our answers? I got up hurriedly, searching a bag I'd hidden in my closet for a pad. When I finally found one, I sprinted to the bathroom and groaned when I discovered that I was right – I'd started. Muttering to myself about how life wasn't fair, I finished up in the bathroom and slouched downstairs.

Matthew met me at the bottom of the stairs with a rather happy smile on his face. "Aw, don't look so glum. It's not that early! Only five in the morning!" I almost punched him, as I wasn't amused with his comment.

"Shut-up, Matthew. I'm not really in the mood for rainbows and smiles right now," I snapped and wandered toward the living room. He sighed and huffed about how it must be that time of the month again. I growled and glared over my shoulder. Frowning, he apologized and hurried after me. Francis and Arthur were already sitting in the living room; Francis looked absolutely radiant and it calmed me down a little, for some odd reason or other.

They looked up when we walked in and Arthur grinned at us. "Sit down?" Without question, we did as suggested. I felt my hands start to quiver a little – I was so nervous. Was it good or bad news? Would Matthew and I have to go back to the Andersons if the DNA results said we weren't related? Would we have to go back and try to start yet again? Arthur looked happily at Francis who stood up, obviously elated to be able to start playing a father figure again.

"I got a call about the DNA test results last night," he started and I felt like my heart would beat right out of my chest. He looked at us a moment and then, amazingly enough, his grin got wider. "You're ours. You're our petits garçons." For a moment, I lost all senses and just sat there. Then it all came back in a rush. My nerves started tingling up from my toes to my head and my eyes widened and my heart picked up a quick but soft pace. And I grinned. Matthew was already on his feet, asking excitedly, "Really? You sure you heard right?" For every which way Matthew made it sound like he could have misheard, Francis just nodded and said he was sure. I looked at Arthur excitedly and then my heart plummeted. So it was real. I looked down at my knees, suddenly sick to my stomach. Then I was on my feet and out of the room in less than a minute, standing on the front porch gasping for breath as the sting of tears hit my senses. It was real and there was no escaping it. I wasn't alone but that meant I was more trapped than before.

"Hermaphrodite?" I tested carefully, quietly. It sounded funny. I didn't like it. I wanted to deny it. But looking guiltily over my shoulder at the front door, there was no possible way to deny it. Arthur was my mom. And thrown into my head at that instant was an accusation, bitter and sour. It was his fault I was this way and it was his fault he'd never been around to tell me how to handle it. It was his fault I felt trapped by myself even more than before. My head was a confusing mess after that and I sat down to try and think it all through. I was happy. I was angry. I was betrayed. I was accepted. And they all clashed.

The door clicked shut and someone crouched behind me, wrapping their arms around my neck. "I told you: you should have asked," Matthew whispered, resting his chin on my shoulder. The tears spilled over and neither of us said a word as we stared out at the yard. For several minutes, he let me cry and then he sighed. "They're worried and I had no explanation. We should go back in."

I nodded weakly, drying my eyes, and we stood up. "I guess this is it then." He looked at me curiously, pausing in opening the front door. "This is our new life." He smiled and walked inside; I followed after, a little more hesitantly but I knew that once I let that door shut, I was going to keep walking. I'd come here for a reason and now I was certain I'd been right after all. I had to face my choice and the answer I'd received. I glanced over my shoulder as I closed the door and then smiled, deciding that everything else in my head could wait to be addressed. Right now, everyone should be happy. I wouldn't bring them down.

~XxX~

Author's note: Well...I hope I vaguely answered some questions here. And now the family knows what the answer is! I might be skipping around a little but hopefully not too much as I dislike having to write out people getting to know each other and that's what Alfred and Matthew have to do with their new friends. But I won't skip too much because there are some important things that have to be addressed while they're getting to know each other.

Um, any other warnings... The direction of the story changes ever so slightly after this. The focus of this will continue to be the family and getting used to being that way again but it will become more directed to the ballroom portion. This will actually be relevant to the family and you'll get to see why when Alfred has his first dance with his new partner. ;D Spoiler?

Other than that, the translations:

French:

chèrie–dear

petits garçons – little boys

Italian:

Ehi – Hey

Thanks so much for taking the time for this story! Hope it's still satisfactory! Please review! :)