Alfred placed Jenna on the countertop, and smiled at her. Jenna looked back at the the four of them. France, America, Canada, and England. Known to her as Francis, Alfred, Matthew, and Arthur. They looked at her in various states of adoration, before Matthew coughed, and nudged Francis and Alfred.
"Right. Jenna? Can you guess what this is about?" Alfred asked, smiling bashfully at her.
"Uh huh." she nodded her head earnestly. "You want to know about Tiger Jenna. I can transmorph now if you want." Jenna said, starting to slide off the counter.
"That would be wonderful, mon cher." Francis said, helping Jenna down. They were in Alfred's kitchen in his house in Ohio, surrounded by fields of golden crop, with one of the most breathtaking sunset spots around.
Jenna smiled at him and backed up. "Okay. Here I go." She closed her eyes and breathed in and out deeply. A soft glow surrounded her, veiling her from curious eyes before it faded, and in Jenna's place was a small white tigress. She stretched, before bunching back up and looking up at Alfred. Her eyes had changed color, from dark chocolate brown to a bright icy blue, but they still held a large wealth of knowledge in their depths, assuring Alfred of her success in transformation.
"Hiyaah! Wait! Al!" she cried plaintively, squirming when Alfred swooped down and picked her up, cuddling her to his chest with strong, secure arms.
He pet her head, giving her a scratch behind the ears, before apologizing. "I'm sorry Jenna. But you looked so unbearably cute! I couldn't resist!" He gave her a quick kiss on her head, and she stopped trying to escape.
"Okay. Understandable, but you get to see me the most. You're being selfish big brother Al, don't you think Iggy or Francis might want to cuddle the only white tigress that cuddles back while TALKING to you?" Jenna pouted, trying to cross her arms with surprising success. Overwhelmed with cuteness, Arthur grabbed her out of Alfred's arms, hugging her in his own.
"I agree. You need to share, Alfred, I thought I taught you better. In any case, Jenna dear, do you know how to grow yourself? And the blue gem? Is there possibly another form dear?" Arthur asked, noting the obvious size difference and lack of shimmery blue gem on her forehead with slight concern.
Jenna jumped onto the table, much to Arthur's dismay. Alfred noted the flicker of disappointment with interest, and quietly walked behind Matthew to stand right by Arthur.
"Right. I know. It feels different. The energy flow isn't as strong. Or angry." Jenna said quietly. Alfred stopped Operation Embarrass Arthur, and looked at her in confusion.
"What do you mean, angry?" Matthew asked gently, lifting up her downcast chin and looking at her in concern.
Jenna looked at them all, suddenly seeming so much smaller. "Just that. I felt really angry the whole time. I guess I was so worried that Ivan was going to hurt you," she looked at Alfred, and took a step towards him, "That I unlocked a different ability." She finished, and looked back down.
"Jenna? What do you mean, a different ability? What else can you do?" Francis asked, crouching down to look in her eyes.
"We can get to that later, right?" Alfred asked from right behind Arthur, causing him to jump and glare at him.
"Right. Jenna dear, how about you try to channel your energy and get to the other stage without getting angry. We can go outside." he said, singing the last bit. The effect was instantaneous.
"Yay!" cried Jenna and Alfred. Jenna sprang off the table, over Francis's shoulder, and out the open door. Alfred pumped his fist in the air, before giving Arthur a big hug and lifting him up.
"Go Iggy! The suns about to set and there ain't nothin' more beautiful than when the fields are all alight like that! Hoowee! Am I excited! Les go!" Alfred cheered, slipping into his Texan drawl, much to the others amusement.
Francis and Matthew walked outside, chuckling a bit at the look on Arthur's face. Said Brit was still being hugged by an enthusiastic Texan.
"America, could you please let me down? Jenna is waiting, and I would like my feet touching the ground." Arthur sighed, once again hating the nations superpower strength, and dwelling that he was most likely only using the smallest amount of energy to keep him trapped.
Alfred grew still, and slightly tense. "No." he said firmly, and, a bit sadly?
Arthur sputtered, "What do you mean, no?" He started wiggling, trying to get down.
"No Artie." Alfred's voice was strong. "Artie, I know we agreed not to use our nation names in front of Jenna, but you know I want you to call me by my human name anyway." Alfred lowered Arthur to the ground. "Please Arthur, you are really important to me, and I want you to see me as more than just a former colony, or just a superpower, but as an equal. Please."
Arthur looked into Alfred's big blue eyes, swimming with emotions, some hidden deep within the cerulean pools, other presenting themselves to Arthur's mercy. Sadness, hope, seriousness, and, adoration?
"I suppose I could never say no to those eyes. Not then, not now." Arthur sighed, and gave a tired smile to Alfred.
Alfred didn't move, and Arthur was about to ask what was wrong, when he suddenly lunged foreword, and caught Arthur in another big hug. This one was more gentle though, and made Arthur reminisce about the days when America was still a colony, and depended on him for everything.
"Thank you." Alfred said it so quietly that Arthur almost missed it.
He smiled, before lightly pushing away from Alfred, saying softly, "You are welcome. Now let's go outside, Alfred."
The smile Alfred gave him was radiant, and Arthur knew that Alfred would always depend on him. He took Alfred's hand, and they walked outside.
"Yay! You're out!" Jenna exclaimed, jumping from Francis's arms to nuzzle against Alfred's leg. She suddenly went still, and put her nose in the air, while the other four looked at each other in amusement. "I smell something! It's different. But no matter. I'll transform now, and see if I can identify it then. Okay." She took another deep breath, and at that moment, a twig snapped. Jenna jumped up, as the soft white light surrounded her. Before it faded, she had dived off in the direction of the noise.
The four looked at each other in alarm, tensing, looking around for Jenna.
"Sorry. Instincts of a full grown tigress kicking in unexpectedly. Not much I could do about it. But I found the strange scent." Jenna walked into the yard from the fields, leaving a trail of crushed crop behind her. Stardust followed her, head ducked, clearly embarrassed. "Yeah. I scared Stardust a bit. Oops! I'll fix it." Jenna had seen the flattened crops, and turned to face them.
While everyone watched with interest and confusion, Jenna took a strong stance, paws spread apart, tail relaxed. She crouched just the slightest, and placed her nose to the ground. She opened her mouth and breathed out. A wisp of golden light trailed out of her mouth, and it floated along the path, before sinking into the ground. After a moment, the stalks began to rise, regrowing to full strength in a matter of seconds.
Jenna turned around to see everyone but Arthur looking at her with jaws loose and eyes wide. Arthur himself just looked at her in contemplation, as if he had a theory that he wanted to try out.
"Speaking of those 'other capabilities'. These are some of them." she said shyly.