Thanks so much to Dontmezwitme and ChaoticXXHearts for the supportive reviews! Seriously, they meant so much!

Right: I think you all just need to beat me with a stick because I keep dragging out my part. After this "arc" it is Left's turn for real and you can go back to reading her epic narratives. I'm sorry, I know ._. Please forgive me!

World Affairs: Part One of Three

His feet carried him across down the corridor. He ignored the familiar rooms and doors as he passed them. He had been in the Hong Kong World Conference Building more than enough times to know his way around. In truth, he very well may have been the only country which had attended each held conference without fail since 1945.

It would not have surprised Japan if he found this to be true.

Currently Honda Kiku was attempting to fulfill an e-mail request he had received earlier that day. It had been from his oniisan, the People's Republic of China. It seemed very urgent in spite of its vague detail.

That was why it became a mystery to him as he stopped when he heard an all too familiar voice yell out, "Kiku! Hey! Wait up! I really need to talk to you for a second!"

Japan sighed and halted his brisk pace before turning his shoulders just enough to see none other than the United States of America making his way toward him. It made the older nation tsk, but otherwise he did not give a response.

"You're a hard man to catch up to!" Alfred panted as he finally stopped at an uncomfortable distance to Kiku.

"America-kun—"

"Alfred."

"Arufureddo—" Kiku stopped and stared quietly at the other nation as he bit his lip and suppressed a giggle at what he called 'Japan's Engrish' ("This is why I do not call you by your name, America-kun!") – "on most dates I would be most delighted to have a conversation with you, but I am very busy. I must meet with my brother."

"Oh, you're probably trying to get there twenty minutes early, anyway. I'll spare you some bored waiting time," Alfred said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I really have to talk to you."

"I believe you should be more concerned with the presentation you are giving this evening with England-san," the Asian man reminded him. "It is a very, as you say, hot topic at this moment. Your brother has still not been able to come to our Meetings and it has been many, many months since these warheads became an international concern."

Alfred pouted slightly at the reminder and folded his arms. As he straightened, Kiku was reminded just how large and intimidating his close friend could be. "Arthur won't even let me in the room while he's getting stuff together. As for Cody, well, he's been out of the hospital but Arthur and I both believe that it's best if he just rests and recovers. Actually, his face looks a lot better, and he's starting to work out—"

This brought Japan to uncharacteristically raise his eyebrows. A nation with that powerful of a weapon working out?

"Al, you promised to shut up about that."

The unexpected noise brought Japan to go rigid. His spine shivered and he looked around the hall. Could it be that one of Norway's ghoulish friends had gone free again? Were England's suspicious ghosts out and about?

With these various nations gathered it was always hard to tell.

Then, after a few haunting moments, Alfred let out a small laugh and was looking to his left side. "Oh, Matt. I forgot you were following me."

Kiku blinked and began to make out the nation beside America. The two looked almost identical, though this 'Matt' had longer, curlier hair and a less daunting presence. He did not carry his chest out proudly but instead seemed to curl around a small, white bear that was in his arms.

Who was this again? Oh, yes. Japan's mind began to piece together the information at last. It was Canada, America's quiet and mostly forgotten twin nation.

The quiet twin was frowning at his more boisterous counterpart and hugged the bear tighter. "You promised," he reminded his brother yet again.

"Oh, oops," Al responded in a low mutter, finally realizing his blunder. He then smiled confidently at Japan. "But it's just Kiku. He's like my best friend, and he's really good at keeping secrets. I'm sure he wouldn't take that whole working out business the wrong way."

To this, Kiku sighed. Leave it to the American to know how to flatter him into submission. "You should watch your words more, America-kun. I could very well have taken such news negatively. It is, after all, rather shocking. You are also much too trusting. I am your friend, but nations must think of their people first, not their own relationships. If I had taken this news as threatening, no amount of friendship would prevent me from taking action."

America stood with a goofy grin. Canada looked utterly defeated.

Kiku shook his head and turned more directly toward the North American brothers. "That is all the 'lesson' I shall teach you today," he promised. "What is this news you wished to speak with me about?"

"Actually, it was Australia," he admitted before shoving his hands down into the pockets of his brown suit. He rocked back and forth on the heels of his dress pants and Kiku noted how out of place America seemed dressed up. It was not a very natural look for him. "See, you're one of my closest friends and allies and you also happen to be in the Pacific."

The island nation sighed. He did not like where this was going.

"It'd be really helpful for my little brother if we could show that he has solid ties with the Pacific Community," Alfred explained further. "Obviously New Zealand and some others support him, but that's not going to do much on an international scale."

"You need someone with influence in the G8, G20, and Asia," Japan sighed with a shake of his head.

"I need you, Kiku," a serious tone suddenly dropped into Alfred's voice. It brought the island nation to look up at his friend's concerned face. "Look, it's not about me wanting more permission to stream anime or anything. I'm worried. My little brother just got taken advantage of by some corporate assholes and his own government. Now he's facing serious charges."

"It is a large issue," Japan reasoned. "And it may be unfair, but even a young nation must know how to see past his own people's lies and deceits."

"And 'I didn't know' isn't a good twenty-first century excuse, I know," Alfred continued. "But it honestly isn't his fault, Kiku. You said it yourself, he's really young. Hell, younger than me. And I'm not asking to not charge him completely, just dropping some of the more pressing sanctions. And I think it'd be beneficial if we continued to have international aid repair his more damaged regions."

Kiku sighed. "I am unsure—"

"Would you do it if it were Korea?"

Japan's normally dulled eyes sparked and flashed over to his friend. The question had been a jab but also completely serious. Kiku could see it in the very stiff posture his friend held.

After waiting a moment, Kiku nodded. "Yes. I would do it if it were my brothers or sisters. I understand where you are taking this conversation."

The American rubbed his hands. "So you'll help me talk to some of the others?"

Sighing and rubbing his head he nodded. "Yes, America-kun, you will have the support of the State of Japan in your Australian endeavors."

"A-ha!" America exclaimed before doing something which caught Japan off guard. He watched quietly as his friend bowed humbly toward him and smirked. "Arigatō, Nihon."

Smiling softly, Kiku returned the gesture.

"Anata wa, Amerika-kun o manande iru," he said gently. Straightening himself, he then nodded to the meeker North American country, having to actively think to not forget him again. "Now I must be going. I beg your apologies."

"Hey, it's cool," America responded with a shrug. "Maybe after the presentation tonight we can meet up and catch something to eat." Work out something more official. Japan could almost hear it under Alfred's breath.

"Perhaps," Kiku stated. "We shall see."

"I'll hold you to it!" Alfred called as the Japanese man made his way back down the hall and toward the private office used by China and Hong Kong when orchestrating these meetings. It made Kiku shake his head because he knew that his friend meant that more than anything else that he had said.

As he entered the office, he was greeted by his older brother sitting at the desk, Hong Kong standing by him with an unreadable look draped across his features, as usual.

"Ah, Li Xiao," Kiku greeted Hong Kong before looking to China. "Yao-sama." He bowed his head slightly and closed the door behind him.

"Only five minutes early, Kiku?" China asked as the Japanese brother returned to his stiff, original posture. "Very unusual for you, aru."

"And for this I apologize."

"No need," Hong Kong spoke up with a bit of a furrow threatening to disturb his thick eyebrows. "Five minutes or forty. You are still early, Kiku." He then bowed respectably and straightened. "It is good to see you as well, Xiōngdì."

When the boy closed his mouth this time, Kiku could see his teeth clench and he knew that, as far as Li was concerned, their conversation was over. It was only between Japan and China now and it was already giving the aura of being a dandy, as America would say.

"What does this meeting concern, Oniisan?" Kiku asked curiously as he looked over Yao who, in turn, looked over him.

"I am concerned for Dìdì de safety, aru," Yao responded with a great amount of sincerity sparking in his eyes. "As I am with all of Asia's security."

Blinking, Kiku held his hands behind his back and tilted his head to the side. "My safety? I was not aware that there was danger for me to be concerned with."

"Then the threats of Australia do not bring you worry, aru?"

Adjusting himself, Japan sighed and straightened the jacket of his suit. "No, Oniisan. It does not worry me, least not in the ways you are projecting. I have already begun similar discussions about this situation with members of—"

"The G8, aru?" China questioned. His hands then folded neatly together on his desk as Japan looked expectantly at him. "I would not know, aru."

Japan was taken aback by this, his brother was sounding strangely bitter over a situation which Japan foolishly thought they had put behind them years and years beforehand. Still, the younger nation tightened his hands' grips on one another and looked soundly at Yao.

"I understand your concerns, and appreciate them," Kiku quickly added at the end. "However, I do not believe you should concern yourself with it. America-kun and England-san are giving their final announcement on Australia-san's behalf this evening. I am sure all our issues and concerns shall be addressed."

"I do not want to wait for tonight to come, aru, before such important thins are addressed, Kiku," China said gently. "I did not wait. And, aru, I am offering you a chance to see what information I have gathered in spite of not being included in such important council meetings as the G8, aru."

This caused Japan to scowl slightly. "Spying, Oniisan?"

"The information fell into my lap, aru. I am about to let it land in yours," the older nation's eyes became a darker shade. "I am attempting to look out for you, Kiku~aru. It is all I have ever tried to do, aru."

"I trust my friends," Japan said in a finalized tone. "Otherwise I would not keep their company. I shall learn all that is in that folder this evening in the presentation. I thank you for your offer, Yao-sama, and for your concerns. My answer, though, is no."

Kiku watched his brother give him a crushed expression.

"You wound me, aru," Yao said quietly. "How much longer will you treat these Europeans and their kin closer than family, aru? Do you truly believe that these weapons are not to be used for returning ourselves and our siblings into colonies, Xiăo dìdì~aru?"

"If I believed in such a threat, Oniisan, they would not be my friends," Kiku attempted to explain but shortly stopped.

His brother would not listen to him past that point and Japan was tired of this argument.

"Damn. No milk."

York was not really sure what he had been expecting. Their father had not stepped foot in the country since the Australia fiasco began and now he was left house sitting on his leave time. Not that he had to watch the house. There were fifty of the State Siblings, all under their father's tentative care, but he was one of the oldest. One of the original Thirteen.

That meant that if he was home while Dad was away, he could inevitably play God.

He shut the fridge door and groaned before looking over his shoulder to see three of his siblings in the nearby kitchen. They were squirming on the couch or the floor, following the characters on the television screen that their respective controllers directed.

"Hey, assholes!" York swore. "We don't have milk. One of you get off your desert butts and get some at the store. I didn't drive from New York to Virginia so I could cook and clean for you little shits."

"Oh, boo-hoo, York," the shortest of the three said with a roll of his eyes. "We took a plane from Arizona to get here. And then drove." He turned his well-tanned face more directly toward his brother. "Oh, by the way, we're using your LIVE account."

"New Mexico, I'll kick your scrawny ass from here back to Area Fifty-One if you don't watch your mouth," the eldest snapped.

"Fine, fine," Neil laughed. "He did mention something about 'desert butts,'" he said, this time to the two brothers playing with him. "Well, I suppose that means Ari got volunteered for Milk Duty."

"What the hell, Neil?" Arizona hissed. "You make another Grand Canyon joke and I'll help York shove you into a spaceship so you can find your little green men."

"Okay, he's silver. And dammit, guys, it's TONY! Every last one of you has seen him! How the hell do you deny that he exists?" Neil squealed before pointing toward the alien who walked through the hallway with a placid look on his face, once more ignoring the Jones boys.

"Sure, Neil," Arizona said. "I'd also like to point out, again, that it's Colorado's damn river that made the canyon."

Colorado snorted as he leaned over his controller and concentrated on the small corner of screen he had. "Oh, you're just mad because I am kicking both of your asses at King of the Hill right now—"

All three boys let out screams and gasps as the television turned into a black abyss before their very eyes. Rad even went so far as to throw down his controller so as to more dramatically grab the sides of his head. "MY HIGH SCORE!"

York stood with the cord in his hand. "I'm not putting up with bullshit this weekend! We need milk and you're totally messing with my God Complex right now. Get a move on it, all three of you!"

The three larger states stared at their older brother for a while before glancing to each other and then snorting. The jokesters headed out a few quick jabs at each other and Neil grabbing the grocery money that Dad always hid under the flower pot in the kitchen.

Satisfied with himself, York plugged the television back in and sat down with his favorite controller.

"Trying to use my LIVE account, unbelievable," he muttered before searching for a good server to join. He ignored as the front door opened to a pissed off looking Pennsylvania.

"Want to play, Sammy?" York questioned, both to patronize his brother as well as direct him to what part of the house the army brat was in. He smirked as Penns stiffly walked into the room and glared at the television screen. "It's stress relief. You should try it, take the stick out. You might actually smile."

"Uh, if you haven't noticed, Dad's not been home in almost six months," Penns growled. "Things are falling apart, and there's only so much I can do. There's a reason we're no longer called These United States, York. We don't function cohesively as a Union unless we have Dad here to temperament things. I have governors breathing down my back asking why papers I was sent in January haven't been signed yet."

"See, you worked too hard to get that stuff done on time," York sighed. "Now people expect something from you. I told you not to take up being Dad's right-hand man back in eighteen-one. You should have made it a position to rotate between all of us."

This made Pennsylvania's reddened face go violet. "Something in this country has to be consistent, York."

"Like your wardrobe? Have you updated since Franklin died?" York questioned before looking to his brother, pausing his session in the game. "Look, I know you're efficient, but the reason this isn't working so well for you is because you expect yourself to do the same amount of work that Dad does. You can't. You're one of fifty."

"He's not doing it, though," Penns reminded him pointedly.

"Well, tell him," New York groaned. "We're not the only ones doing this sort of work. Canada has provinces, there's the German States, the Japanese Clans, and not to mention all the micronations and so forth that live with older nations. They all take care of domestic issues. It's supposed to be the job of the actual nation to supervise, but worry more about the international stuff."

Taking a deep breath and no doubt counting to ten, Pennsylvania shook his head and glared at his brother. "But you have to feel it, too. There's … something weaker about us all when he's not here for too long. We need him here. He needs to sign his stupid papers."

"Oh, just say 'fucking'," York snorted. "Stop acting like a Quaker."

With that, Pennsylvania turned and left.

"Hey, where are you going?" the army brat called.

"Georgia's!" The mention of their southern sister made York's stomach growl as he thought of her famous Cheese Pie. "She's the only one of you all that I can talk to!"

[Notes]

*1945, the United Nations starts up after the end of WWII. Japan would become actively involved from this point on, of course. The first meetings had more than just a little to do with dealing with the Axis and what not.
*This is the summer of 2010 in this "universe," July to be exact, and the Australian Nuclear Crisis occurred in early December of the previous year. So, obviously, it's been about seven months since stuff hit the fan, six months since Alfred has been doing his domestic duties. (It's also about six months since a certain letter has been sent out~)
*"Arigatō, Nihon." Japanese. "Thank you, Japan."
*"Anata wa, Amerika-kun o manande iru." Japanese. "You are learning, America-kun."
*Left and I decided (in about five lines of dialogue on AIM, like almost everything else we decide on unanimously) that Hong Kong's human name was Li Xiao Chun to his family, and the "nickname" Leon to his fellow British colonies because, y'know, English or die mentality and what not. Both were suggested by Himaruya on his blog.
*Xiōngdì." Chinese. "Brother."
*"Dìdì de" Chinese. "my brother's"
*So, many may consider this China a little OOC, but I promise he's just being a watchful older brother in his mind. And, yes, he's slightly bitter about the G8 business but, really, who wouldn't be? It's basically - no, correction - it is the Axis and Allies in a special group minus him.
*"Xiăo dìdì." Chinese. "Little brother."

*The Thirteen in these stories are the original Thirteen Colonies which created Colonial America. In this universe they're almost like America's most trusted advisers, having been created by the pride of the individual colonies shortly before the Revolution. Their history won't be necessary for understanding the directions this fic will take, but their dynamics do help understand the rift between the New England states and the rest of the country (which is important later on). Again, not trying to detract from the nations, but their involvement makes more sense later on.
*New Mexico is host to Area 51 and Roswell. NM - or Neil - is often made fun of for these. (BUT THE FIRST REPORTED UFO WAS IN KENTUCKY. WE POLITELY RESPONDED BY SHOOTING AT IT. I KID YOU NOT.)
*Technically speaking, the United States of America was never actually 'founded.' It was the independence of the 13 colonies that was declared and fought for. Even in the first constitution (The Articles of Confederation) and early drafts of the United States Constitution, the federal government really was much more akin to a doctrine of the European Union. Each of the states were like independent collectives uniting under a collective government (in mindset, not legally). It was the debate over the rights of the states v. the rights of the federal government that was the actual civil war. It was not until after the Civil War was the country called "THE United States of America." And, with that, I'm sure a bunch of you can see where this is going XD;
*Quakers. Otherwise known as the Religious Society of Friends (which could be the greatest superhero group name ever, but I digress) was an English religious movement that took root in America. They were VITAL to the creation of modern day Pennsylvania. And I like buying their soaps.

Right: Considering that my Notes section for JUST part one of this mess is almost as long as the states-scene (and longer than some upcoming scenes, for shame) I hope you guys can understand why uploading these pre-written story arcs takes a good while. It takes a long time to write them too, because I'm made of fail. But I digress. Again, the state involvement is important for later on in the story and I DO understand that this doesn't make it enjoyable to read. I'm really sorry for that, I try my best to make them work ;_; Lots of historical context, I know. On the plus side, Left and I have been working REALLY SUPER HARD on these. And, hopefully, WE SHAN'T DISAPPOINT.

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