Disclaimer: I don't own Axis Powers Hetalia or any of its characters.
Every person is a new door to a different world.
~ tag line from the movie Six Degrees of Separation
Chapter 4 - La Château's Newest Recruit
" And here's the dining hall, where we usually eat for dinner," Adelio pointed out. " Though it has a few more bullet holes than what I remembered," he dryly added.
The dining hall was a cozy sort of place, with a few people mingling here and there, some leaving and some entering. Sleepy "good mornings" and irritable "what's so good about this morning?" floated lazily across the room.
" Vash must have been in a bad mood," he grimaced.
Matthew remembered the name from one of the two people who had started a fight earlier in the morning. " Who is Vash?" she asked.
" He's a security guard, like me. Don't get on his bad side if there is nothing else you don't remember about him."
" Why is that?"
" ... And speak of the devil. Vash!" A stern faced, blond-haired boy just entered into the dining hall, stopping in his tracks when he heard his name being called, allowing Adelio and a trailing Matthew to reach him. " Heard what happened with you and Roderich," Adelio frowned. " What happened?"
Vash glowered. He didn't answer Adelio's question though. The relationship between him and this Roderich could only be added to Matthew's growing list of questions.
He suddenly turned his scowl towards her, who gulped in alarm. " Mr Jones?" The vexed surprise in his voice was apparent. " What are you doing here? Le Château isn't opened yet," he glared at her in annoyance. " I am not in the mood to deal with you. I suggest that you leave now before I lose my patience."
The sight of Vash resting his hand on the gun secured to his belt was almost enough to make Matthew faint in terror. " No, no! This isn't Jones," Adelio hastily explained, stepping between the two of them in case Vash actually acted on his threat. He didn't want a repeat of what happened with him and Matthew. " As much as he does look like that bastard, he isn't Jones. This is Matthew. I'm just showing him around the place."
He shot her an impassive frown that she couldn't quite decide if it was in curiosity or in hostility. " Pleased to meet you, Mister Vash," Matthew quickly said.
Grunting, he curtly crossed his arms. " Call me Vash," he gruffly asserted.
" Y-yes, Vash," she immediately corrected herself. Was it just her or did she saw that the corners of his mouth twitched just a very, very tiny bit upwards?
Adelio didn't seem to notice though. " Just wanted to let you know that Bonnefoy assigned the entrance to me for tonight," he promptly informed Vash. " So it looks like you'll be getting the back exits for tonight." He winced sympathetically. " Good luck looking after that. I remember I caught a few drunken idiots hanging around there the other night. Cause me some grief and got my favourite shirt ruined with their smell and vomit."
The fact barely seemed to faze Vash though. " Doesn't matter," he said coolly. And Matthew knew why. Vash openly carried a weapon that made all the difference and wasn't afraid to flaunt it. No one, not even drunken ones, would dare to approach him.
" Besides, weren't you suppose to help Feliciano getting the groceries today?" Vash nonchalantly pointed out.
Adelio slapped a hand to his face, groaning. " Damn it, I forgot. You'll be fine on your own, Matthew?" he distractedly asked her.
" Don't worry about me. I'll ... " she began, as Adelio hurried away, not even hearing her last sentence. " ... be all right," she finished lamely.
With a tiny nod in her direction, Vash brushed past her without another word. She supposed it would be the closest thing she got to a goodbye from him.
Sighing, she left the dining room and made her way to the practice room. She caught a few people shooting her glances, but they didn't say anything to her and she didn't say anything to them either. Upon reaching the end of the hallway, Matthew had only peered inside empty rooms. But to her surprise, there was one room where there was someone in it.
Raised voices from the room at the end of the hallway argued and squabbled spitefully, growing louder at each passing minute. With a mixture of curiosity and alarm, Matthew creaked open the doors only slightly and peeked her head through the crack. To her surprise, it was the man she had met previously, Heracles and another man alone in the room, their noses nearly touching as they turbulently spat at each other at the height of their argument.
" There's no way a bastard like you is going to get the lead role!" the masked man growled.
" And why should a beard face like you get the role?" Heracles demanded, his usually passive face twisted in a scowl. " You can't even say your lines right."
" As if you could say your lines right."
Soon, they erupted into a fury of fists, kicks and rabid snarls, sending the room into a blustering mayhem with a terrified Matthew hovering by the half-open doorway, not knowing what to do. Finally, gathering her senses, she stepped back and began frantically running to the hallway to find someone who would be able to stop them from fighting. Someone who would know what to do in this situation. Fortunately, there happened to be a someone standing not too far away from the room, apparently not noticing the angry shouts.
" Excuse me!" Matthew called out desperately. The girl turned around, looking surprised as Matthew hurried towards her, recognition dawning on both of their faces.
" Mr Jones! What are you doing - ?"
" T-t-there's a fight!" Matthew interrupted, flailing her arms, her hair falling out of place as if she were a mad woman. The girl immediately relaxed, upon realizing this wasn't Mr Jones. " Down the hall, with Heracles and a masked man!"
" Oh." She almost sounded bored. " Those two are always at it. Everyday, every time they met. Like me and Lars. Though their relationship seems a bit more chaotic than us," she admitted with a chuckle.
Wondering who Lars was, Matthew could only wince as the sounds of chairs and other objects (including what suspiciously sounded like a body) were being violently thrown around in the room, shaking the walls that could barely contain the tremors. " B-but - "
" Don't worry about it," she cut in smoothly. " They'll be fine. Just leave them alone and they'll cool off after a while. They always do." The girl casually waved a hand in the air, looking impeccably unconcerned even as a barrage of swearing and curses ruptured savagely from the room, making Matthew blush at the vulgarity.
" Are you sure?" Matthew timidly asked, flinching at the yowling of a yelp and a triumphant crow behind the doors. " One of them could get seriously hurt ..."
The girl shook her head. " Heracles and Sadiq would never go that far. The worst either of them got was a bloody nose. Their fights only sound worse than it actually is." She grinned at the disbelieving look on Matthew's face. " Trust me. You'll get used to it real fast."
Uncertainly, Matthew glanced back at the room, where the shouts and pounding sounds appeared to have dulled down for the time being. " Are you sure we shouldn't check on - ?"
" For a boy, you certainly worry a lot," the girl commented in amusement, prompting Matthew to snap her mouth shut. In her panic, Matthew had slipped a little too far from her image of a young boy, momentarily forgetting that a boy her age shouldn't be too overly concerned if a fight between two strangers had broke out. In fact, he might have joined in if he felt like spreading more chaos. I have to be more careful, she scolded herself.
The girl then grabbed Matthew's arm, pulling her away from the room, ignoring Matthew's protests. " I better get you out of here before you worry yourself to death," she teased. " Come. I'll give you a tour of the place." Having no choice, Matthew allowed the girl to drag her down the hallway.
" So, what's your name?" she mildly asked. " I would hate to call you 'you' all the time."
" Matthew Williams."
" I'm Bella. At your service," she said, taking Matthew's hand and shaking it. She stopped, raising an eyebrow. " I'm surprised that your hands are quite slender for a boy's. I would have thought they would be more callous."
It was one of those things that Matthew had no control over unfortunately. In her younger years, she was mostly given women's work to do, serving food, sweeping the floors, washing blankets and towels in the dirty hamper, sewing and stitching clothing back to its relative normal state. She was too small. She was too inexperienced. She was too dumb. That's what her employers told her as an excuse. And Matthew had come to accept those as the truth.
" I didn't go out much," she lied.
To her relief, Bella appeared to accept that as the truth. Instead, she was more focused on apologizing for what she did earlier. " I'm sorry about what happened this morning," she said, her expression rueful. " I didn't know that you weren't Mr Jones. Or else I wouldn't have tried anything on you. Even if you weren't Mr Jones, you're still a little bit too young for me."
Matthew wasn't sure whether she should laugh or choke on the breath she just inhaled. The implications of what Bella just said slowly made her wonder exactly what kind of line of work did Belgium do. Especially with this mysterious Mr Jones that everyone kept talking about.
" - heard that Monsieur Bonnefoy hired you this morning," Bella was talking, not realizing Matthew's quiet pondering. " I am rather curious what did you to convince him to let him hire you. Though Bonnefoy has an unhealthy appreciation for beautiful things, whether they're people or objects. And with your looks, you could probably charm him if you put yourself to it." She abruptly paused, shooting Matthew a sly glance. " You didn't try to seduce him, did you?"
" What - no! I would never do that!" Matthew spluttered indignantly. " I'm - I'm a ... boy! How could I - like I would do - "
Bella laughed at the hilarious exasperation that bloated Matthew's stuttering face until it was tinged pink. " I was just kidding, Matthew! No need to get worked up about it. I was merely jesting." She grinned until Matthew slowly relaxed and the red in her cheeks faded away a little. " So what did you do then?" she asked curiously.
" I - I acted for Monsieur Bonnefoy," Matthew replied, trying to say the word 'act' with a little more confidence. As if she really was an actor. " And I suppose he liked it," she shrugged carelessly.
" You suppose? Of course, he liked it!" Bella incredulously exclaimed. " Otherwise, you wouldn't be here right now. Bonnefoy was cutting back on hiring people for a long time now, despite us needing an extra hand or two. Not to mention that Bonnefoy can be notoriously hard to pleased. As I said before, he appreciates only beautiful things."
Confused, Matthew was about to ask what does that have to do with her, when she heard someone singing in the distance.
" I never knew the charm of spring ... I never met it face to face ... I never knew my heart could sing ..."
Her jaw dropped upon hearing the melodious voice singing sweetly just on the other side of the door that Bella had pulled her in front of. " Who - ?" she started, only for Bella to place a finger to her lips, eyes twinkling, before she pushed the door open.
A pretty girl barely older than Bella leaned against the piano, eyes closed, hands clasped to her chest, as she sang with all her heart and soul. Beside her, playing the piano majestically, was a young, dark-haired man, whose fingers expertly flew across the piano keys, striking them to resonate the exact notes that he desired.
Matthew couldn't help but stare, captivated by the perfect harmony and unity of this couple, one in voice and one in music. She never heard such a beautiful thing in her life before and to her confusion, the corners of her eyes prickled with fixed tears building up behind them and her vision flickered briefly out of focus.
To her disappointment, eventually the song had concluded and the music had faded to its last warble.
Without even realizing it, Matthew had brought her hands together, clapping as loud as she could. Both the girl and man looked up to her, slightly taken back that they had an audience. " Mr Jones?" The man stared, with a mixture of exasperation and bewilderment written on his scowl. " I thought you made it clear earlier that you weren't impressed with our music."
Lips twitching involuntarily, Bella appeared rather amused by both Matthew's reaction and the man's. " Elizabeta, Roderich, this is Matthew, our newest member," she introduced, a wry grin still etched on her face.
" Why, thank you," Elizabeta said graciously, her cheeks tinted in embarrassment. Roderich said nothing, still trying to figure out how Mr Jones and Matthew looked so alike.
" It should be me that's saying that to you," Matthew babbled incoherently, her own cheeks matching the color of the other girl's. " It - it was very lovely. Your singing, I mean. And - and the music also!" she quickly added, inclining her head in admiring respect towards the young man, whose stern face appeared pleasantly surprised. " I never seen anyone playing the piano so professionally before."
" If you don't mind me asking, what do you do?" Roderich asked her politely.
So this was the Roderich that Vash had gotten into an argument with earlier this morning. He doesn't seem so bad, she mused to herself. " Acting," Matthew said again, this time with a little more ease.
Immediately, Elizabeta's eyes widened in delight. " You're an actor also? That is perfect! We had been bugging Monsieur Bonnefoy to let us take in another actor, but he continually refused, saying we do not have the money and time to train another actor. But with you joining us, our group is now completed."
" Our?" Matthew blinked in confusion.
" Ahh, forgive me. I'm getting ahead of myself." She bobbed her head in apology. " You see Matthew, I am also part of the acting troupe."
Suddenly, a rush of guilt gnawed at Matthew, making her duck her head in shame, that she was deceiving the exquisitely talented Elizabeta, who was both a singer and a real actress. Unlike her.
Elizabeta however mistook her remorse for shyness and anxiety. " There's no need to feel intimidated by us," she kindly said, making Matthew feel worse. " The rest of the actors and actresses are quite friendly and I'm sure you'll have no trouble getting along with them."
" I - I wasn't too worried about that. I met Heracles earlier and he was nice enough." Matthew decided not to mention the masked man, whose appearance seemed to frighten her a little. " It's just - just that I haven't performed on stage before," she mumbled, forced to lie again.
" That isn't a problem," Elizabeta cheerfully professed. " We'll help you and show you the works. In fact, you couldn't have joined at a better time. We had just finished our last performance a few nights ago and we were just thinking of a new play to do. We can give you a smaller part, if you feel comfortable with it."
She could only smile gratefully, burying her guilt-ridden thoughts for now. Matthew barely got her gratitude out when Bella suddenly interrupted.
" Since we still have plenty of time, why don't we have all sing April in Paris again?" she excitedly proposed, her eyes glowing in delight. " It would be another practice for Elizabeta and Roderich, while Matthew and I can practice also."
"You like that song too much," Elizabeta teased.
" It doesn't matter to me," Roderich calmly said, heading back to the piano and bringing out the music sheets once again.
Matthew was the only one who had doubts about that, despite (privately) liking the song very much. " I don't know. I never sang before ..."
" Come on. It'll be fun!" Bella excitedly prattled, already pulling two chairs over to the piano. " Here, I'll even write down the lyrics for you."
" But I - "
" Why don't you sit there on the piano chair, next to Roderich?" Elizabeta suggested deviously, nudging Matthew towards him.
Without much choice, she did as she was told, sitting stiffly next to Roderich, feeling rather out of place.
On the other hand, Elizabeta didn't think so. " Perfect!" she gushed, pleased. She tilted her head, gazing rapturously at Matthew and Roderich, her eyes shining in happiness. " If only I had my camera," she wistfully sighed.
Matthew had no idea what was going on, though Bella did roll her eyes. " Just put up with it," she muttered at the corner of her mouth. " She does this all the time."
About to ask what Elizabeta does all the time, she was interrupted when Roderich cleared his throat. " Shall I start the practice?" he asked, with a note of irritation hidden in his otherwise patient voice.
" Of course." Elizabeta smiled sweetly at him, before finding her seat next to Bella and directly across from Matthew, who didn't notice that there was a reason why Elizabeta had chosen that particular spot where she could admire the two gentlemen (or so she thought) sitting very closely to each other, without either of them noticing.
More concerned about her first time singing in a company, especially after hearing the marvelous practice performance from Elizabeta, Matthew was feeling very nervous indeed. She gripped the paper that Belgium had handed her seconds ago, where the lyrics were hastily scrawled across the sheet.
The music began and Matthew found herself struggling to match the beat of the song with the lyrics. She fumbled and faltered over the words often. By the end of the first sequence, she had shrunk in her seat, too embarrassed to look at the others.
" It was only your first time," Elizabeta offered sympathetically.
" Try to go more slowly. Don't rush the words," Bella suggested.
" Sit up straighter," Roderich sternly said. " Don't slouch. Keep your eyes forward. Your voice won't be able to articulate at its full potential if you keep looking at the floor."
Fortunately, the second and third and fourth times were a little bit better. Though she didn't stumble over the words as much anymore, Matthew still couldn't get the right correspondence with the music and her awkward voice still clashed clumsily with Roderich's flawless rendition.
" It wasn't bad for your first time," Bella tried to cheer her up. " You just need some practice."
" I agree. And I don't think I have heard a more lovely singing trio," Monsieur Bonnefoy brightly announced his presence as he walked into the room. " Though I am quite surprised to hear that Matthieu has such a feminine voice," he smiled as Matthew blushed.
Elizabeta chuckled. " You shouldn't tease the poor boy. He is young after all. Perhaps his voice has not matured yet. Give it a few more years."
Though Matthew knew the real answer to why her voice would stay as soft and effeminate as it was, even with the passing of a few years.
Smiling, Monsieur Bonnefoy then turned to her. " Mattheiu, I have sent up some clothes up for you," he told her. " Despite only being hired this morning, your shift will start tonight at five to midnight. Come down a little bit earlier so we can help get you set up with our catering system."
" I understood," she obediently nodded. There was a shiver of excitement brimming in her. Her first day at Le Château and she was determined to do it right.
After all, what could possibly happen?
~.~.~.~
Author's Notes:
I am terrible at incorporating the proper time period slang, so I'll be doing only a little of that, though I will be careful not to use any slang from the present time. If I do, just let me know and I'll fix it.
Despite rarely appearing in the actual strips, Belgium is said to have a mature and cheerful personality, acting like a cool big sister, which I hoped I got right. Also, Lars is meant to be Holland (Netherlands), where the two of them argue and fight a lot, like the two siblings that they are. I saw the name Lars used for Holland in a few stories before and it just stuck with me.
"April in Paris" was a song written in 1932 for the Broadway musical, Walk A Little Faster.
I don't know why, but I had always imagined Hungary having a nice singing voice, just to match with Austria's playing of the piano.