Oops...erm... I mean, Hetalia doesn't belong to me, and it isn't like I totally forgot to say this on the past two chapters. cough...cough...
A week later, he walked into the adoption services building in downtown New York, and asked if he could foster a child. Being who he was (or who he used to be), the government cleared him fast; he didn't even have to leave the building before they called him back in with shocked faces. Of course, he'd had to explain to his witness protection agent why he wanted to foster a child, and that no, this wasn't another hobby, and that he'd fully thought through the prospect of raising a child for the next few decades and how this was a huge breech in his security, but she couldn't override the government in this case. That small victory made him smile. Anyway, that afternoon, he was allowed into the viewing room.
He played with a few children, reading to a small group a disturbingly sweet story about a puppy that wanted to play, but eventually his eye caught a little girl of about six, who sat alone in the corner. Her knees were pressed against her body, and her pale skin was extenuated by black hair cascaded down her back. Getting up, he walked over to her, and crouched down.
"Hey there, little one, why are you here by yourself?" She gave him a sad look that tugged at his heart, her pale grey eyes teary.
"Sir, she doesn't speak English. No one here can speak Russian, but we've made do. We are trying to transfer her to Russia, but she is a citizen here. Parents were immigrants who died in a crash." The woman who had accompanied him in called over to him.
He turned back to the girl, and thought back to the days when he spied in the Soviet Union. He'd learned to speak Russian fluently, even if he'd had issues with the man himself. Sending the girl to Russia, she'd never be adopted! He couldn't let them send her there by herself! But risk a chance at breaking his cover?
"So, is it true that you speak Russian?" He asked in Russian, startling both the woman behind him and the girl.
"Yes, s-sir." She was hesitant, but a light started to show in her eyes.
"Well then, what's the name to go with such a cute face?" He smiled at her, and held out his hand to her to help her up.
"Анна." She took his hand with her small one, and pulled herself up. "Are you here to pick up one of the other kids? The other Mommies and Daddies always do." He thought about it for a second. Would he now just turn away from this little girl to go and foster an English-speaking child? She had almost zero chance of being fostered, and Russia was no place for an orphan. So what if he had to teach her English?
"Actually, do you want to come with me? I can't leave such a cute face so sad!"
USUK
He got her room all set, painting it a light baby blue, her favorite color, apparently. He made up a bed for her, and bought toys he'd thought she'd like. Today was the day a girl was coming to live with him, and he was beyond excited. He wished he'd had a camera to get the look on that lady's face when he had started spurting Russian. They'd gladly accepted his offer, even though he was single and young. Usually, foster and adoption agencies liked giving children to couples only, but seeing no Russian speaking couple walk through the door, made an exception. So, here he was, a legal guardian. Now, to go pick her up.
He climbed in his Altima whatever boring mobile he'd gotten to simply get him from point A to point B, and headed for the city.
After he'd parked his car, he went inside, and immediately spied her sitting on a bench by the door, a little pink suitcase next to her.
"Are you ready?"
Helping her into the car seat, he'd had to smile. She was so adorable.
"It is about four, and it takes an hour to get home, would you like something to eat?"
"Yes please, Mr. Moore."
"Anna, please, you can call me Damien or whatever else, but you don't have to be so formal." He got in the car and looked at her again in the rearview mirror. "So, do you want to get something to eat?"
She nodded her head, and Alfred immediately was going to head to a McDonalds when, in his head, a thought ran thru about responsibility and making good choices, like not feeding his foster child McDonalds. No, he was going to take her to a healthier, sit-down burger joint. Then, early bed time when they got home.
This time, he wouldn't be alone.
USUK
He pulled up to the house at seven thirty, and turned back to see Anna asleep in her car seat, her little head resting gently against the side of it. A smile came to his lips, and he got out quietly and went to her door.
He gently unbuckled her and picked her up easily, and grabbed her suitcase. Closing the door, he walked up the walkway to his house and brought her inside. She snuggled into his shoulder as he walked up the stairs, making him realize that he already had started to love his little Anna.
He got her changed for bed and slipped her under the covers. He started to pull away when her hand grabbed two of his fingers.
"Will you…" She yawned ever so cutely. "Be here when I wake up?" She looked up at him sleepily.
"Of course, Anna." He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Good night."
Closing her door, he walked down the hallway to his own room, and got ready for bed. For the first time in two years, he fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow.
USUK
"Papa! What is da big news?" It had been a year and a half since he'd taken in Anna, and her English was good enough that she went to public school now. Because of his extensive tutoring up to that point, she'd skipped a grade or two, and at seven and a half, was in fourth grade.
"Je ne sais pas. How are your french lessons coming? " He turned away from his desk to look down at her playfully.
He'd found that she was extremely quick when it came to learning foreign languages, and he'd read a parenting book that advised teaching them young. He could speak French and Spanish as well as well as Russian and English, due to being raised around the languages but could read or write neither. He'd found a tutor in town who was able to teach Anna.
If anyone from his former life came to visit him, he was sure they wouldn't recognize him. He dressed in button down shirts almost all the time and hishouse was very clean, and multi-lingual. And they'd all assumed that he only knew English, and just barely. He realized that he'd played up that role, thinking it was what it meant to be an American. But now, he felt like there some reason to change.
"Oui, je parle bien, Papa. Now please tell me za big news!" She grabbed his hand in hers, jumping up and down. She was excited, he could tell by her slight slip-ups in the language. Better than most for their second language.
"Maybe I should teach you Spanish next, yes? Since you apparently speak French so well…"
"PAPA! Please tell me, I can wait no longer!"
He pulled Anna into his lap, laughing, and pulled out a small pile of papers.
"Anna, you've been living with me for awhile now. Do you like living with me?" Now was the serious part of his news. She turned to look in his eyes, concern written on her face.
"Yes, very much, but Papa isn't going to send me away now that I know English, is he?"
"No, Papa isn't sending you away. Papa would never do such a thing, because he loves you VERY much. Papa was lonely for a very long time before he met you, no family or friends."
"No mommy or daddy?"
"I only knew my mother, but she died…when I was very young." Ok, so that was mostly true. He'd never had a father, and his mother, North America, had vanished when he'd been discovered and the Europeans had come and whipped out his indigenous race with smallpox, so he felt it wasn't lying, exactly. "I have been without family for too long. Now, you've come into my life. Do you want to be my family?"
"You mean Papa would be my real life daddy?" Her eager face was the happiest sight in the world to him.
"Yes. Do you want this? I have all the forms filled out, but if you say no, I won't go any further. I only want what you want."
"Yes!"
He signed the paperwork the next day, and she was his. They went out to eat that night, a rare treat for them.
Damien loved his little Anna. He loved hugging her, playing with her, snuggling with her. He loved to tell her stories of historic events. And then, what ever else he knew. She got into ice-skating, and he'd go with her to her lessons, skating around with the casual skaters as she learned. He would do everything and anything for her.
There were times when he was a bit in the dark. What would happen when she hit puberty? Was he strict enough? He read every book on parenting, and always tried to be consistent with her. He avoided her questions about his past, making up little stories; naturalizing or 'humanizing' his true past. But when she asked why he sometimes suddenly became distant and unfocused when a reminder of his past life was too much, he told her that once she was old enough to understand, he'd tell her.
He looked over at her from across the table, her little smile as she ate her something something a la Italian, and was truly glad he'd gotten to meet his little lady.
Author's note: Yes, I am updating every day (for now) as I have some stuff pre-written. This is where we meet Anna, Al...cough...Damien's little girl. At this point in time, its been about three years since the first chapter and four or five since his 'flashback'. I hope I'm not moving to fast or being confusing. This isn't my favorite chapter.
I LOVE hearing from people. Getting reviews makes my day. So, if you feel like dropping a line!
Btw, I love writing stories, but my problem is that I have issues with logic. Everything has to be logical to me. I go through everything thinking 'if there really was a situation like this, would Alfred really act this way?' 'Am I just wanting to satisfy a fangirl tendency?' 'Does this plot line make any logical sense?' REASON WHY I HAVE SLAUGHTERED MANY A PLOT BUNNY *licks blood* (sorry, that was unneeded) So, if you see anything illogical, drop me a line.
Fun fact: I like blue. (no, srsly) When America was getting set up, they decided that they wanted a king after all and sent a secret message to a Prussian(I KNOW!) prince asking him. It didn't make it in time, and the Continental Congress chose to be a republic after all.
Why they never mention this in History class: The Prussian(I KNOW!) Prince was...GAY! (btw, do you guys like these fun facts? I just get bored, so I write what's on top of my mind)