The arrival of chapter 6!
Sorry, this one is a bit shorter than the others, but I think it ends at a suitable place. The next chapter will need to be longer.
Thank you so much to JoyOfSoul, Amelia Mills, Sorrowryuu, MindMaster, and SamLjacksin for your lovely reviews!
Thanks as well to Kirino Tsuki, fluteprincess95, i am veeery bored, NatariSama, xxEu-chan and again to Sorrowryuu for your alerts and favorites!
I disclaim, and own nothing.
On October 9th, 1781, Alfred woke with one of his need-to-move feelings again, this time directing him to somewhere in Virginia. However, under no circumstances was Dr Fuller about to discharge him for no reason other than he'd decided to go to Virginia, so Alfred resigned himself to a childish pout for the remainder of the day.
It was the following afternoon when the news reached their hospital in New Jersey.
The sound of a horse's hooves made its way through the canvas walls of their tent. There was a thump made by someone dismounting, and a soldier burst into the hospital.
Looking grim, Dr Fuller approached the boy, who saluted. From his face, it was clear that he expected news of another battle in their area, but Alfred could sense nothing but excitement coming from the boy.
"What's wrong?" the doctor asked gravely, but the boy, nearly bouncing by now, just grinned brightly as he saluted.
"The war's over! The Brits surrendered at Yorktown, sir! We can all go home!"
There was a moment of shocked silence before the tent full of wounded men erupted in cheers.
_V~-~-~V_
1804
Years had passed since the day Alfred had received the news of American independence, but the memory was as fresh as if it had happened just a few days previously.
He considered it unsurprising, really, because he looked almost as he had on that day, barely a few years older.
Following independence, he'd chosen to wander again (rather aimlessly, in his opinion), picking up work where he could and journeying up and down the Atlantic coast, seeing all the states he could. In the time he'd spent, he'd seen the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the establishment of a new kind of government for the people, as revolutionary as Ben had promised. He'd watched the country grow as new states joined the Union (as it was becoming known) and the dissolution of the short-lived State of Franklin (he'd rather liked the name of that one). He'd read about politics in the newspapers, of the souring of their relationship with France and the Louisiana Purchase, and felt the agony when thousands died when the yellow fever plague struck his beloved Philadelphia eleven years before.
In fact, he'd felt his own agony for that event.
But currently, his aging man he considered a friend, Jefferson, was President, and among the first things he'd done upon his inauguration in 1801 was to seek out Alfred where he'd been staying in Virginia and ask him if he was interested in a job.
Alfred had accepted, of course, and had helped sort out the aftermath of one of the most confusing elections ever in the young country. Jefferson had tied with a man named Aaron Burr, and it had been up to the House of Representatives to vote on the President. Alfred, even if he felt he wasn't really supposed to take sides, was elated when he heard of Jefferson's victory.
And now, working in an office in his new capital of Washington DC, Alfred found himself being summoned by the President.
He knocked on the door of Jefferson's office. "Sir? It's Alfred Jones. You sent for me?"
"Come in, Alfred," came the voice from within, and Alfred opened the door to step through. He then seated himself across from Jefferson in one of the green cushioned chairs he'd set up for this purpose, and waited for him to speak.
Alfred had always wondered why Jefferson had never mentioned anything about his age, had never questioned why he always looked the same. He was actually grateful for this in more ways than he could express, but he couldn't help but wonder what the man had heard from Ben that ensured his unflappability on the matter.
Jefferson's eyes met Alfred's, and the older (looking) man steepled his fingers before him, elbows resting on the desk.
"I'm thinking of sending an expedition," he said, then was silent for several moments. Alfred waited, knowing the man would continue eventually.
"You see, trade with the eastern lands of India and China is something I desire greatly, and traveling across Europe to get to such places is very uneconomic. If a water route from here to the unknown western coast of our own continent could be found, it would expedite travel considerably."
"With all due respect to your idea, didn't they try that?" Alfred asked skeptically. "If I recall my history correctly, the explorers sent found no Northwest Passage and went home."
Jefferson waved his hand dismissively. "That was more than one hundred years ago, Alfred, and the New World wasn't even populated yet by more than the uncivilized natives. We're so much better off than they were already."
Alfred winced inwardly at the jab at Nek's people, but Jefferson did have a point. "What if there is none? Would you settle for an overland route?"
"Going by ship is much faster," Jefferson said. "An overland route would do nothing for commerce, because carrying goods would be far more difficult."
"But couldn't you do it anyway, just to prove we can?"
"Economically unfeasible, but it would be good to try, I suppose. This trip is also an opportunity to explore our newly acquired Louisiana territory, and hopefully ally with some of the tribal groups."
"For what purpose?"
"It's just a safety precaution. America is destined to grow much more than it already has, and expansion would be easier if they were compliant."
"The… Indian tribes won't like that, you know. You are kicking them out of their territory, and it was theirs long before it was part of ours."
This earned Alfred another dismissive hand wave. "We won't be 'kicking them out,' as you say, we'll simply be relocating them, with proper compensation of course."
"They won't take your money," Alfred said flatly. "It has little to no value for them. You can't just buy your way into owning their land!"
Jefferson gave Alfred an odd look. "May I cite the Louisiana Purchase, Alfred," he answered evenly, but his expression was growing far more calculating.
Alfred waved off the reference to recent history. "You merely bought the so-called French territory, with may I add, no consideration of the people living on it."
"There are Europeans living on the edges of the territory as well," Jefferson countered, "But you seem to know much more about the Indians."
"With all due respect, Mr. Jefferson, I've been around for a while, and know many of your so-called 'Indians', and they won't stand for disrespect from white men," Alfred replied, trying his hardest not to sound irritated. But Jefferson didn't seem to notice his tone, and only gave Alfred a thoughtful look.
"You know, you could be useful on this expedition, Alfred."
Taken aback, Alfred's eyes widened. "Me, sir?"
"Your knowledge of these people and their cause could make you invaluable for negotiations. Would you consider going?"
Alfred's head whirled. Going west! It was inconceivable, traveling into the unknown, away from the familiar (and now beloved) colonies. Away from the battles he'd fought, the lands he'd farmed, and the people he'd come to know.
But Nek had gone west, and the burning desire to see her again, despite the consequences it might bring, suddenly was all but overpowering.
"I'd love to, Mr. Jefferson," Alfred said finally, earning himself an approving nod and a knowing smile from the President.
"Excellent, excellent," he said, reminding Alfred very much Jefferson's former coworker at Independence Hall. "Now, the plan is to explore as much of the new territory as we can while still making good time westward. I've hired two men to lead it, Captain Meriwether Lewis and a Mr. William Clark, and have asked Congress to provide funds. There will also be soldiers meeting the expedition at St. Charles, Missouri…"
"Lewis, as in your other aide?" Alfred asked. The man was fairly friendly, lived near him, and was among Jefferson's close friends.
Jefferson nodded, and went on to describe in detail his plan to establish American sovereignty over as much land as possible clear to the Pacific Ocean, which the expedition would "discover" for America before the Europeans could.
He also planned to assure the allegiance of the natives with his "peace medals" made of silver and in Alfred's opinion, quite frivolous and serving little purpose as a means of persuasion. But Jefferson seemed confident that such a plan would work out.
"You were a soldier, weren't you?" Jefferson suddenly asked. Alfred nodded slowly, unsure of where he was going with this. But the man grinned and said, "Then nobody will question your authority when I send you to Camp Dubois!"
"Camp Dubois?" Alfred asked uncertainly.
"Oh yes, where the soldiers that will meet the expedition are, in Illinois."
"They're going from Illinois to Missouri just to meet us?"
"Oh, yes. They're soldiers, I'm sure they can manage."
Alfred raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Are you sure that would work? I haven't technically been a soldier for thirteen years."
"True…" Jefferson said, tapping his pen absently on his chin, "I often forget just how old you are, Alfred, my apologies. Your age would be unexplainable…" Seeming to reach a conclusion, Jefferson set the pen back in its inkwell. "No matter. You will be sent as my personal observer of the progress of the expedition."
"What's that mean?" Alfred asked warily.
"That means you had better keep a detailed journal of the whole expedition, and the negotiations you perform must be courteous and befitting of the assistant to the President of the United States of America. I trust that shouldn't be a problem?"
Alfred let out a bark of laughter. "Sir, that's what I do every day. It shouldn't be a problem at all."
Alfred turned to go, but Jefferson stopped him. "Alfred?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Whatever happened to that girl from Philadelphia? Rose, was her name I believe? You two seemed fairly close."
Alfred felt his heart clench. "I can't stay with people forever, you know," he said, trying to keep his tone lighthearted. "She went to college, and moved on eventually."
"That's too bad," Jefferson said. "A girl like her was good for you, I think."
_V~-~-~V_
The preparations for the expedition took months. It turned out that such an expedition was Jefferson's long-standing dream to undertake, and he was constantly hovering over the proceedings, observing everything with the eye of a perfectionist.
The peace medals, it turned out, had Jefferson's portrait on them. Alfred nearly threw them away in disgust: he'd thought Jefferson would have been better than that.
Black powder and lead for the advanced firearms they were bringing was also necessary. Asserting American strength was imperative, Jefferson maintained, and deadly weapons were apparently essential for this. Knives, blacksmithing equipment (who among them was going to use that, Alfred didn't know), medicine, cartography equipment, gift bundles, and most importantly, American flags were also packed, along with the essentials of food, blankets, and canteens for water. In fact, the Alfred found the provisions very similar to those he'd carried during the Revolution.
Having already met Lewis, Alfred knew a bit about him. He'd been born in Virginia (Jefferson's clear favorite state) and was quite the outdoorsman, and was in the army, having fought in several of the battles on the western frontier. He looked about ten years older than Alfred, having just turned thirty earlier that year, with gray-tinged black hair and blue eyes.
Clark was four years older than his counterpart, with the thinning brown hair to show it. He too had been involved in wars on the western front, and resented having been too young to fight in the Revolution (that comment had made Alfred feel quite old), though he'd resigned from the army on cause of poor health. Alfred found him to be an intelligent man, if a bit quiet, but certainly well-read even if his spelling was atrocious.
Both seemed fairly accommodating of Alfred, though Lewis was a bit put-off by the fact that Jefferson thought he had to send someone to watch them. Alfred had heard the two arguing about it, but in the end, Lewis had given in to the president's persuasive argument that Alfred was indeed useful.
_V~-~-~V_
With barely a week left before the trip set off, Alfred was again summoned into Jefferson's office, this time for an entirely different matter from the previous occasion, during which Jefferson had spent several hours debating whether or not to add mint leaves for teeth-cleaning purposes to the packing list (and Alfred had convinced him that, mint or no, no one on their expedition was going to brush their teeth anyway). Jefferson was standing, hands clasped behind his back, watching the goings-on outside through his window.
"Ah, Alfred!" Jefferson exclaimed as Alfred entered. "Perfect timing! My new aide just arrived downstairs," he said, gesturing out towards the front lawn. Joining him at the window, Alfred watched as a carriage pulled up in front of the mansion, and the driver leapt off his seat to open the door. A figure exited, looking small from so high, but Alfred could clearly see his curly blond hair.
As the young man hit the ground, he looked up to admire the building before him, and subsequently tripped over his baggage. Alfred and Jefferson winced in unison as he sprawled across the driveway.
"He's fairly young, just a bit over twenty. Just temporary, of course, until the expedition returns," Jefferson said as the pair continued to watch the young man. He appeared to be apologizing profusely to anyone in the vicinity, and allowed one of the maids to lead him away from his luggage as the driver picked it up (rather gingerly, Alfred noted) and carried it into the front hall below.
"How did you manage to find him?" Alfred asked as the figures below disappeared and the stablemen unhitched the horses. Turning away from the window, he caught Jefferson's small smile out of the corner of his eye.
"He's actually the son of an acquaintance of mine, a lawyer named Paul Wetherby. I met him while he was at law school at the College of Philadelphia. Mr. Wetherby assures me that his son is a reliable worker, but does need a bit of training, which is where you come in."
"So that's why he's here a few days early," Alfred mused. Then he paused. "Wait, did you just say Wetherby—?"
He never finished his question, because at that moment, the door to the president's office burst open, and Alfred found himself face-to-face with a rather dusty young man who could be a carbon copy of his best friend.
"Sorry, am I late? The carriage took a bit longer than expected—oh, I should have knocked, shouldn't I? I'm so sorry—wait, am I in the right place? You are Mr. Jefferson, aren't you?"
Alfred let out a strangled noise and got out of that room as fast as he could.
_V~-~-~V_
Jefferson had been curious about Alfred's reaction, but Alfred did his best to brush the man off.
The boy (for with his childish face and attitude, Alfred couldn't help but think him anything but) of course thought the whole thing was his fault, and wouldn't stop apologizing. Alfred figured it was in a way, but the boy had done nothing wrong, and his constant apologies just made him seem more like Zach than he already was. As a result, Alfred couldn't look him in the face, and wished he would just be quiet.
Though the more Alfred actually looked at him, the more he decided it was his attitude that was the biggest reminder, not his face. It was rounder than Zach's had been, with freckles Zach had never had, and his eyes were a blue rather similar to Alfred's own, not Zach's unique chocolate brown.
His name turned out to be Peter Wetherby, named for his father's father. He was the second child, with several younger siblings, and greatly admired his older brother (Paul Wetherby Jr.) who was looking to be a lawyer like their father.
Peter didn't want to go to law school, something that his father had been angry at him for, and thus had taken it upon himself to find Peter a profession. When Jefferson had put out word that he needed a new aide, Paul Wetherby had been the first to contact him.
In the few days Alfred had to show him the ropes of being a presidential aide, he found himself starting to like the boy as an individual instead of his best friend's nephew. But when the expedition's start date arrived, Alfred was rather relieved to be away from the unnerving Peter Wetherby.
_V~-~-~V_
Nobody, Alfred decided, was more excited than Jefferson to see the group of three on its way.
The man was practically hopping in place, spitting out instructions and questions so fast no one understood him, but he didn't seem to care.
"I do believe I haven't seen you this giddy since you came up with a satisfactory opening paragraph to the Declaration," Alfred said quietly, earning himself a chiding glance from the president.
"And I do believe you appear too young to remember such a thing, Mr. Jones," he retorted, and went back to his internal bouncing. "Did you remember to pack the mint leaves?"
"For the thousandth time, we are not bringing mint leaves!" Alfred exclaimed.
"Goodness, there's no need to shout," Jefferson said. "What about the peace medals?"
"Of course we wouldn't forget those," Alfred snorted. "Insufferable materialists, the lot of you. Not to mention egoistical. Your portrait engraved on them? Really, sir, was that necessary?"
"Absolutely," Jefferson replied, appearing to ignore Alfred's disparaging tone. "I'm the President, and we're asserting proper guardianship over our country by forging alliances through the presentation of such gifts."
Alfred muttered unintelligibly in reply, remarking on the disgrace to Nek's people. Jefferson didn't hear him, and continued spouting orders. Peter, who had been watching the exchange from beside Jefferson, merely stared at Alfred's audacity to speak to the President in such a manner in shocked awe.
Finally, Lewis appeared from the throng of servants loading the horses. "We're ready to go, sir," he said, addressing Jefferson. "I assume you are as well, Alfred?"
Alfred gave a nod. "Well, mount up then," Lewis replied, "we have a lot of ground to cover to get to Missouri, and then we're off to the Pacific!"
As Alfred made to follow the man, he heard Peter yell, "Take care, Alfred!"
"Will do, Zach," Alfred muttered to himself. "Don't worry too much, you lot!" he yelled over his shoulder. "We'll do just fine, and bring back loads of amazing stuff!"
Mounting his horse, he positioned himself comfortably between his baggages and gave the animal a gentle nudge forward, trotting over to where Lewis and Clark were waiting on their own horses.
"Shall we be going, then, gentleman?" Lewis asked. Clark nodded his assent and the trio headed out. Glancing back, Alfred gave a parting wave to the mansion, before turning around and facing the west.
I'm coming, Nek.
V/~-~-~\V
Chapter Six Complete!
So. Alfred's off on the famous expedition of Lewis and Clark, getting away from the east coast to see more of his country and possibly to find Nek. Again, I attempted historic accuracy here, but I could only find where the expedition met up with the soldiers from Camp Dubois, so I'm extending their journey a bit. Hope you don't mind.
And a new person appears, young Peter Wetherby. He's purposely similar to Zach, if you haven't figured that out. He is his nephew, after all. We'll meet the rest of Peter's/Zach's family when Alfred returns from the expedition, which will be either one or two chapters long. It depends on how much detail I can find on the journey itself in the vast depths of the internet. There won't be any Nation cameos for a while, I'm afraid. I was considering re-introducing France for the Louisiana Purchase, but his scene would be so tiny and would change this chapter's dynamic quite a bit, so I'll settle for perhaps doing a mention of it sometime later.
Thank you for reading! I hope it met your expectations, and if you have the time, please drop a comment or review! See you next time! (^_^)/