Redemption (Sequel To We Are North America)

The Heart and The Brain

"Why is he here?" France spat.. "Why? Why is he here in this house!?!" He stormed off into an empty hallway.

"Francis!" Arthur called rushing after him.

"Why is he here Arthur!!?!"

England stopped... and looked down... "I don't. I don't know. Alfred brought.... Alfred brought him here, love."

Francis shook his head rapidly. "He's going to leave. He needs to leave. I will not stand having him here in this house! If he stays. I will kill him!! I should have killed him! I should have..."

Arthur nodded, "I'll tell Alfred to kick him out. He is not welcome here. Ever."
Arthur felt tears come to his eyes. But they were wiped quickly.

Francis was turnt to the window. The man nodded.

Good. John... he just had to leave. John just had to get out. He wanted that boy out now.

He didn't care what happened to him. Why should he?

He wanted that boy out of his life.

England came up and put his arms around France's waist. "I don't understand why Alfred would do this. Why now? Why to us? Why? To his family? After all we've been through."

France shook his head. "You know our boy was always a caring one. Too sweet for his own good. He's blind to it. He doesn't understand. Antonio and you always were concerned about him and his blindness to betrayals and being too forgiving."

Arthur nodded. "I just wished he understood... He's a fighter.. But too sweet. He's too soft in some cases. And others will see that. They will use that. And-" His voice started to shake, "That just can't happen Francis. It just can't. I can't lose him again. We can't..."

Francis turned in Arthur's arms and took the other man's face into his hands. He wiped Arthur's watery eyes.

It was like an old routine.

Their old routine.

How they use to be.

"I feel as if you and Antonio lack faith in him. He's our son. We raise him the best we could. I trust him to make good judgements." He rubbed Arthur's cheek.

Arthur put his head on Francis's chest. "I- I..... you and Joáo always taught our children to use their hearts. To think with it at times...."

"And you and Antonio taught them to use their heads, their logic." Francis felt his own tears come up.

Arthur brought up his head and shook it, "The heart can be deceitful at times."

"And so can the brain." France sighed and looked down the hallway, "I know you're scared Arthur. You've always been scared for him."

"He's too much like..... He wanted to leave me. Leave us too early Francis! Why? We gave him unlimited food on a table! So many homes!! He had shoes! So many siblings! He had cousins who would come over many times! They all had so many sleepovers! We gave him more than what any of us had when we were his age!!" He didn't understand it. "He's too much like..... like..."

"You when you were younger..." France nodded, he knew. "You see too much of your younget self in him... Arthur, you were a child-"

"And so is our son!!" Arthur felt a tear slip, "I was naive. Too naive. And our son was too. He still is damn it!! He doesn't understand. He doesn't get it. That's the type of behavior that gets you invaded, beaten, kidnapped...... killed."

"We were hurt too much as children... But it's made us who we are today. It dictates what we teach our children." He wiped Arthur's tears.

"I don't understand how you and Joáo can teach them to follow the heart. After all that we've all been through."

Francis kissed Arthur's cheek. "But I understand that you felt as if your were too weak in your childhood, if you can call it that, so you choose to teach to rely on the brain. I understand that Antonio and his pain from dealing with Rome taught him that the weak die. The weak struggle. The weak lost and were the ones nobody care about. The ones history forgot about. I understand that he learned much from the way his father treated his mother."

He learned that he had to be the one to rise and stay on top. It didn't matter if it brought the downfall of others.

"So he chooses to teach our children what he learned."

Arthur sighed. The heart was a liar itself.

"The heart isn't the only one to rely on. We can agree on that. Joáo, I must say, enforced that they use both the most. The heart and the brain. I agree. He and I have learned that both are needed to balance each other out." France kissed England's other cheek.

England shook his head. It was things like that, that made his feel as if he would never understand Joáo. But he did see the man as a wise one.

(As you guys can see. I really do love Portugal, I feel like I always hype him up in stories XD)

Arthur spoke, "I just want Alfred to understand... He has too much faith in people. He's too understanding. He thinks with his heart too much..... he's too much like you."

Francis chuckled. "There's nothing much we can do about that now is there?"

"John. That boy might be lying to him. That boy killed him and yet. He still brings him here. He forgave me...." Arthur started to shake, "After what I did. He's too good. Too pure for this world. All of them are."

Francis gave him a soft smile. "The heart."

The heart gave Alfred the power of much forgiveness.

England shook his head again and hugged France. "The brain.. He needs.... he needs to have better judgement.. Use more logic. I wouldn't have forgiven myself. I still haven't."

"That's what makes you and Amérique so different." France smiled.

He cupped Arthur's cheek and gave him a soft, simple, and sweet kiss on the lips.

Just like their first kiss centuries ago.

France stood up straight. He gently moved out of Arthur's arms and started to walk down the hallway.

England watched him go. "He takes too much from you and Joáo!"

Francis gave him a smile, "You give me too much credit mon amour!!"

Arthur sighed, he gave a soft smile though and brought his hand to his lips.

The heart was a cruel son of a bitch.

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Just so you guys know. France and England are not back together.

They kinda fell back into the way they were in the past as boyfriends. I hope that makes sense. Any thoughts about it?

I really liked this chapter. I think it was really soft and sweet. And I feel like it revealed a bit more about Arthur.

Any thoughts about the chap?

Bye!! Gonna try and work on 'Never Should Have Let You Go' too!!