Exotic Butters(Hetalia High School AU)

All That Glitters Is Not Gold

Francis' signature scent of lilies was the first thing Arthur distinguished as he came to his senses.

The second was the undeniably cosy heat that had enveloped him and tempted him to rest his eyes a little longer. After further inspection, he realised the heat was being supplied by Francis, who was snuggled up close beside him.

He wasn't surprised, they'd been sleeping together every night lately, last night was no exception. Every evening, Francis would suggest eagerly that they sleep together, the Brit obviously bickering with him about it. However, Francis' perseverance wins through in the end and he manages to coax him into agreement. Arthur would never in a million years admit that he actually enjoyed the interaction, but in fact he rather enjoyed their late night squabbles and how warm Francis' embrace was. He wouldn't dare say it to him of course!

Suddenly, yesterday's events hit him like a freight train. Was it all just a bad dream? Hopefully so, because now that he replayed the events in his head he didn't think he could regain the false confidence he had built up yesterday.

His eyes darted towards the wardrobe in front of them, where the source of his nightmares dwelled. All his queries could be answered through that wardrobe. If he opened the door and found no dress, that meant it was all a dream and he could rest in peace. If he found the dress instead...

Arthur glanced over at his sleeping partner, wondering if he was actually asleep or if he was just pretending to be so that he could startle Arthur and comment about him staring at him sleeping, even though he definitely does not do such a thing! It's not like he's anything special to look at!

If he were to conduct his plan, then he had to make sure Francis wasn't going to wake up and embarrass him.

It was pretty early though, as he read on the clock it was eight. Neither of them usually wake at eight in the morning when there's no school. Arthur figured he probably woke up early because his mind was so restless the night before.

He watched as the other male's chest rose and fell slowly and how his eyelids were closed gently instead of clenched tightly, indicating that he was indeed asleep. But he knew better than to trust the conniving Frenchman.

He recalled how when he was younger, he'd often stay up real late to finish a book and when he'd hear some noise outside his door he'd quickly throw the book under his covers and pretend to be asleep before someone caught him. He considered himself really good at faking it too, until Allistor learnt a new trick, that is.

The red head must have been suspicious of him, as every morning young Arthur woke up groggy without a vivid reason, so he made it a ritual to check up on him every night when he came back from work. The first few times he couldn't prove he was awake of course, but then one night he didn't do his usual death glare but took Arthur's hand and lifted it a good thirty centimetres from his face... Then dropped it. Instinct took over the young boy and in order to not facepalm himself he forced his hand to fall to his shoulder instead of it's target. Only afterwards when he got a mouthful from his older brother did he realise how exactly that was incriminating. Ever since, he had never been able to read a book late at night under the same roof as Allistor.

And so that is what he did, he used the knowledge he was kindly given from his brother on Francis. He almost felt bad but when he thought about how the older teen deserved a beating or two when he was conscious, his sympathy for him became history. He lifted up Francis' right hand as it was closest to him, held it a good distance from his face and dropped it instantaneously. Unlike the situation with him, Francis' hand actually fell right onto his face with an unpleasant smack that made Arthur wince. The conclusion he reached from his experiment was that he was indeed asleep, there was no way that didn't hurt and even if Francis was a determined actor, he would have at least flinched from such a smack. He considered himself lucky that Francis didn't wake up from it, actually.

Arthur gently lifted up the covers on his end and hopped down, making sure not to cause too much disruption in order to not wake the other occupent of the bed in the process. He tiptoed over to the wardrobe and looked back to make sure Francis wasn't waking up, thankfully his hand was still on his face and hadn't moved an inch, so he concluded that he was still sound asleep.

His uncertain fingers moved up to the handle and opened the door and he opened the eyes he didn't realise he closed. As swiftly as he opened the door, he slammed the door shut, not wanting to look further at the damned thing. So turns out it wasn't a dream, fan-fucking-tastic!

"Tea... I need tea..." He whispered to himself, suddenly feeling all the energy drain out of him. He needed tea to calm his nerves, and to help him rethink his options. Possibly even his life decisions. Was the five thousand dollars worth the hassle? Maybe it would have been best if he just let Joan take Francis...

************Time Skip!************

Francis awoke to find his hand resting on his face. It's wasn't a pose he'd deliberately sleep in so he was puzzled as to how he ended up in such a way. He looked over to his right and was even more startled to find out that Arthur was absent from the spot he usually slept at.

That was odd, usually Francis was the one to wake up and find the other still sleeping soundly beside him. It was the highlight of his morning in fact, Arthur was so cute when he was sleeping, all silent and not screaming his head off at him.

He reached over and patted the space where Arthur was not, it was still slightly warm which meant that it hadn't been too long since the Brit had left.

Knowing him, he probably scurried off into the kitchen immediately, pondered over which of his assortment of teas to drink for a while before actually making himself a cup.

Oh no. What if he tried to make breakfast?!

With that terrifying thought in his head, he leaped out of bed and went in search of his boyfriend.

As he entered the kitchen, he found out that his hypothesis was accurate.

Arthur was leaning against the counter, a mug that was visibly steaming settled between his palms as he stared at the ceiling, looking lost in thought.

He didn't seem to notice that Francis had walked into the vicinity so he took that as a sign to initiate a conversation.

"You got up earlier than me, I'm impressed." Francis remarked, his hands moving mechanically to tie up his hair with his signature ribbon, as he usually does when he decides to cook.

Arthur snapped awake from his trance but Francis' attempt at starting a conversation yielded no response from the Briton. He simply took a sip of his tea and stared blankly at nothing in particular.

"Well, are you hungry? Any requests for breakfast?" The Frenchman asked with a cheerful smile.

"I can make my own breakfast, thank you." He stated nonchalantly but his striking eyes told another story.

Francis' facial expression immediately changed from merry to worry, as he tried coaxing him out of this fatal option.

"I don't think that's a great idea, I'll-"

"I survived without a personal chef for most of my life, I can make my own food just fine!" He interrupted and yelled into his face, sticking his nose up haughtily.

Francis held his hands up as a sign of peace. There was no way Arthur would agree with him when he was in this mood and it was best not to rile him up further, so he decided to let him make his own breakfast.

With Francis' hawk like supervision, of course.

Francis rushed around and gathered ingredients to make his breakfast, but it was just a disguise while he really watched the Brit and what he was going to do. So far he hadn't made the effort to move from his spot against the counter so he wondered when he was going to make breakfast like he said he would.

Just then, the undeniable scent of something burning hit his nose.

Had Arthur really managed to set food on fire with his mind?! He knew the Brit was bad at cooking but this was on a totally different level!

"What's burning?!" He exclaimed as he frantically looked around for the source of the odour.

It seemed that's when Arthur came back down to earth because he placed his mug down on the counter in such a hurry that he nearly spilled it's contents and sped over to the toaster where two innocent pieces of bread had been burnt to a crisp.

Thankfully, the ear piercing shrill of the fire alarm hadn't reached their ears yet, but Francis opened up the windows in the kitchen to make sure the smoke left before it was detected.

The next moment lead to the couple staring at each other in dead silence, both processing what just took place and how to react accordingly.

"Heh, would you like some butter with that?" Francis asked teasingly, chuckling lightly at the turnabout of events. As always Arthur had succeeded to burn food, he wondered what kind of sorcery this was.

Arthur glowered at him and grabbed the inedible pieces of toast and slammed them on to a plate.

"Why, thank you, I think I will!" He spat, words laced with venom, as he snatched the butter from his hands and turned around to flee the scene.

"Wait, you're seriously going to eat that?!" Francis questioned.

"Why not?"

"Um, they're clearly burnt-"

"And so what?"

"You are not gonna eat burnt toast!"

"There's no rule that says I can't, I can and I will!"

"Arthur that's not good for you!" The blond stressed, coming closer to the subject of his worry to grab the plate in case he decided to make a run for it, but the closer he got the further Arthur inched backwards.

"I've eaten burnt toast plenty of times and I've never gotten sick." The other argued.

"Look, we're not going to fight about this, you're not going to eat that damaging slop, you will eat whatever I make you and that's final."

"What if I don't want to eat your stupid food?"

"What if I made macarons?" Francis proposed with a knowing smile that Arthur would fall victim to his bait. Macarons were in no means nutritious breakfast food but it was better than eating burnt toast.

Arthur's eyes lit up but it only lasted a millisecond before he quickly shook his head and regained his tsundere exterior.

"I...! W-whatever, I don't care, I'm going to go read!" He answered and stomped off into the living room, leaving the deadly looking toast behind.

Francis smirked, it seemed the way to Arthur's heart was macarons, this only proved it further.

An hour later the pair were in the living room, feasting on the colourful treats that the French teen had made. Sure, they weren't as great as they could have been if he had chilled them but Arthur seemed to be enjoying them which was satisfactory for him.

Now, they were both chilling on the couch, Arthur opting to stare at his book rather than speak with the French teen curled up invitingly against his side who, on the other hand, longed for conversation.

And so Francis determinedly worked on disrupting his reading by breathing on his neck, playing with his blond locks and even tickling him him till he couldn't sit still and concentrate.

"What do you want Francis!"

Francis smiled like the cat who got the cream and continued to sit up straight. Foolishly, he thought that there was no better time than then to talk to him about the party, since he had cooled down from the breakfast incident once he was presented with macarons.

"So... have you got your character down for the party?" He asked, trying to suppress his excitement.

"Pardon?" He asked as he copied Francis' movements and sat up too.

"I mean, your cheery maid persona. Remember that the prize goes to the pair with the best costumes and characters."

"Ugh, yeah I'll try," he replied with a groan.

"Trying isn't good enough, you got to give it your all!" Francis pressured.

Arthur looked up at him and scowled at his stupid remark, itching to give him a smack for that but in the end he smirked arrogantly.

"Don't underestimate me fool, I can do it! Easy peasy!" He declared.

"Oh really? Wanna give me a preview of this immense talent of yours?" Francis suggested with that typical, tempting smile of his.

"No, you have to learn to be patient, you'll get the same show as everyone else." Arthur answered and assumed that was the end of the conversation and so he picked up his book once more.

"Even though I'm your boyfriend?" He asked with a pout, using his pointer finger to lower the book so that Arthur would look at him.

"Especially because you're my boyfriend." The Briton answered tonelessly. It seemed that he'd gained immunity to Francis' cute pout.

"But don't you think we should practice our roles together now so that we can perform it easier later? If we do, then we won't be surprised by anything the other decides to do out of the blue."

"Firstly, you and I both know that you just want to see my acting so that you can fangirl some more and tease me about it. I am not going to stand for that. Secondly, I think it'll look more realistic if we don't practice since otherwise it'll look bland and boring. Surprises are what makes any show interesting anyway, we'll have to wing it for that effect," Arthur explained, unconsciously crossing one leg over the other like some know it all, a confident aura about him.

"Look, I will perform to my best ability and try to please whoever the judge is, your job is just to try and keep up with me." The Brit remarked with a small, but condescending smirk.

"Ha, keep up with you? You know, I did acting courses for a few years, I'm afraid you'll be the one having to keep up with me, mon cher," Francis replied with a challenging smile.

You'd be surprised by how much I know. Sure, I didn't do fancy acting courses like you did but I do have real life experience. I think I'll be just fine." He stated with a slight sneer in his voice.

"Alright then, wanna bet to see who's acting is more impressive?"

"God, what's with you and bets?"

"Well it's funny to see you lose... and anyway, we don't have to have forfeits, it's just to see who's superior since we're both sure of our skills."

"Hmm, well I'm feeling daring, we can have forfeits." The younger answered.

"Oh ho, so does that mean you agree to the bet?"

"I shouldn't be agreeing with this, I know better than to trust that cunning mind of yours by now but this time that odds seem to be in my favour. Just saying, if I was you, I wouldn't agree to this bet. You'll suffer an embarrassing defeat."

"Oh really now? We'll see about that, what are the consequences if we lose?"

"How about the classic money bet? Loser gives winner twenty dollars?" Arthur suggested.

"Parfait, but you sure you don't want to back out?"

"Why, do you think you'll lose? Can't spare a meager twenty dollars?"

"Of course not, it's a deal then!"

"Great! Get ready to kiss twenty dollars and your pride goodbye!"

"We'll see about that chéri." The pair gave each other competitive looks, both self assured they'll win. Well, only one can win so only time will tell!

************Time Skip!************

"Arthur? Hey, it's nearly eight, are you ready?" Francis asked as he knocked on his roommate's door. They had both went their separate ways after a while, Francis working on an art piece in his room while Arthur did his homework in his.

Now, with nearly fifteen minutes left till the party, Francis wanted to make sure that the Brit didn't bail last minute so he decided to check up on him.

The Frenchman fiddled with a piece of his golden hair as he stared at the wooden door, patiently waiting for any sort of response from the other side.

"Francis? Ah y-yeah, um, I... uh... God..." He trailed off into a murmured hush so quiet that Francis couldn't distinguish what he was saying.

"I'm ready, just... wait a few seconds." The British accent finally answered properly. He heard a few shuffles from the other side and then the door was opened gradually, almost like the person on the other side didn't want to be detected or seen quickly.

He wasn't lying when he said he was ready, the door opened up to reveal the blond adorning his maid outfit. His gloved arms were wrapped around his middle insecurely as he looked down at the ground in embarrassment. He clearly still had yet to get used to it, which was understandable.

Francis completely forgot his foolproof persuasion tactic in case Arthur changed his mind last minute when he saw the Brit all dressed up, glancing meekly at him and then quickly averting his eyes.

"Don't just stand there gawking you frog, you look like a weirdo," the Briton observed and quickly changed his posture, the arms that were wrapped around his midsection now crossed in front of his chest defiantly.

"You... You look beautiful," the French male expressed dreamily, he couldn't get over how amazing Arthur looked, even if he didn't know that himself.

"Goodness, you're looking at me like I'm in a wedding dress walking down the aisle to you. Stop it, it's derogatory!" Arthur exclaimed, shielding his face with one hand as he was starting to flush from the comment.

"Ah, alright then, I'll reserve the statement for when you are," he laughed, earning a soft smack from the English male.

"Wait, why aren't you ready yet? Doesn't the party start at eight?" The shorter boy questioned.

"Heh yes, but I wanted to make sure you didn't change your mind last minute before I spent hours getting ready so I wanted to check if you were ready first," the older explained with a sheepish smile.

"You distrust me that much? I wouldn't just change my mind and not tell you, I'm not that... bad..."

"Well you never know with Brits so I thought better safe than sorry." Francis replied with a wink, knowing all too well that his boyfriend would get mad but he just couldn't resist. The Briton looked adorable when he was mad, which if he told him would only anger him further so he kept his mouth shut.

"Hey, what's that supposed to-"

"Now now, don't get angry, it doesn't suit this cute outfit of yours. Remember, the key to success is-"

"Acting in character, I know. You've said it a good hundred times by now! But guess what! I don't need to be in character till I get there so too bad, I'll get as mad as I want!"

"Okay okay, calm down! But you know what would really make your costume much more amazing than it already is?"

"What?" The Brit asked warily, not liking the sudden enthusiasm Francis gained.

Francis smiled brightly, unable to keep from showing his excitement.

"Makeup! I think some coral lip tint would suit you a lot, ooh, how about some mint eye liner, that'd match the mint on the dress! And for eyeshadow-!"

"No! Stop your wild babbling! I will not to subject my face to all those horrid things!"

"Come on, you'll look absolutely gorgeous after I'm done with you!" Francis started, off in his own fantasy world by now.

"First things first, we need to do something about those... Caterpillars on your face," the French blond cringed as he spoke.

"Caterpill... Are you talking about my eyebrows?! There's nothing wrong with my eyebrows!" Arthur asserted.

"Oh there's everything wrong with your eyebrows, lapin. It's okay though, I can help you make them look better! Just need a pair of twee-"

"No way in fuck am I letting you touch my eyebrows." Arthur declared in a serious tone, a dark aura radiating from him.

Francis was slightly discomforted by his glare so he quickly changed the subject. He decided to let the eyebrow discussion go, in the hopes that he'd be able to deal with them at a later date, but knowing the Brit he probably wouldn't even be allowed to get close now.

"Fine, I'll leave you be, but please let me do your makeup?" Francis pleaded, flashing his charming smile to add to the effect.

Arthur's line of eyesight swiftly moved away from him as he tried his hardest not to agree to Francis' temptation, but it was inevitable he'd lose at this battle. It was with Francis, remember.

When he replied with neither a yes or a no, Francis decided to take matters into his own hands. Soon, the Brit was being led away from the spot where he stood stationary, putting up no fight and staying silent which Francis took as a yes.

************Time Skip!************

"Chaton, cheer up a little! Your sadness is making me sad!" Francis claimed, making a sad puppy face to try and woo the subject of his statement, while the subject of his statement maintained his 'ready to stab someone' countenance and didn't spare him a glance.

"I'm wearing makeup too, why are you getting so upset like I committed a criminal offence against you!?"

Arthur's head snapped to glare at the other blond, making him almost cower in fear from the sheer hostility in his glower.

"Are you the one who the taxi driver mistook as a girl, huh?!"

"Okay no, but..."

"I suffered so much in such a short time, I swear if I do not win Bonnefoy, I will have your head on a platter. Mark my words!"

"We will win, don't worry! And hey, if he thought you were a girl doesn't that mean the makeup worked? That's great, that means you're dressed the part, now all you got to do is act the part!" Francis cheered, still slightly scared by the vibe the blond was giving off. He was now slowly learning that irritated Arthur was nothing compared to Arthur who's pride was hurt. It was like comparing a kitten and a saber tooth tiger.

"Hey, we're here now so cheer up a little bit for me? Remember our bet as well, may the better actor prevail," Francis smiled sweetly, to which Arthur responded by sticking his tongue out cheekily.

The Beilschmidt's house, well, more like mansion screamed wealth and status at first glance. It looked grand and sophisticated, unlike anything expected of the two brothers, at least not thick headed Gilbert.

The outside was decorated for the occasion, skull fairy lights were hanging along the windows and a bloodied skeleton was hunched over in the corner of the the porch.

While Arthur was stuck gawking at the house and thinking about how his was ten times smaller but much more practical, Francis didn't seem too mystified by the massive building in front of him like his boyfriend was, his house in France must be just as big, he theorised. Damn the rich frog.

"Francis! You finally made it! You're an hour late though," Antonio stated as the door was opened and the other two pieces in the Bad Touch Trio puzzle came together.

Arthur thought he looked like the biggest fool to ever fool but then when he saw what Antonio was wearing he instantly realised he was much more sane than the Spanish boy. He was wearing a bright red tomato costume that looked like he could barely walk in it, and he looked absolutely ecstatic about it!

What Gilbert was wearing looked like a casual outfit when compared to Antonio's, he was wearing a knight's armour, which is still pretty adventurous. It actually looked like the real deal and he wouldn't be surprised if it was too, from the looks of their house they were evidently minted, they could afford it.

Compared to both of them, Francis looked so much more decent, his butler outfit was simple yet aristocratic, his hair was tied into a low ponytail with a silky white ribbon while that one pesky piece of hair still remained dangling in front of his eyes. He never seemed to mind though.

Arthur wondered what the others two's partners were wearing and if they were dressed just as crazy as them.

"Really? Well I'd say I'm fashionably late, don't you think?" Francis answered, brushing a lock of his ponytail off his shoulder gracefully.

"Ha ha, very funny Francis. Oh, and who is this lovely señorita-"

"Touch me and I'll pull your arms right out of their sockets and shove them down your throat." The Briton spat venomously, succeeding in terrifying not only his target but his boyfriend and the host of the party.

"A-Arthur?! Is that really you?!" The petrified Spaniard enquired.

"Oh gee, wonder how you came up with such a farfetched guess!" Arthur remarked sarcastically along with a bitter laugh.

"I told you I had something special planned didn't I?" Francis said with a pleased grin. Curse the sadistic frog for enjoying his misery!

"Mein Gott, you really are an overachiever huh?" The German laughed.

"Well I did say we'll win this." The French teen stated with a smirk.

"Oh yeah? You know I'm one of the judges right? I could easily not pick you," Gilbert disclosed with a grin.

"Ah but that would be cheating, mon ami."

"What's taking you so long to answer the door Gilbert?" The albino's more serious younger brother came to the door and examined their latest guests.

Ludwig looked like he came straight out of the Renaissance period with his overdramatic puffed sleeves and tight pants. He also had a scabbard and what he presumed, or at least hoped was a fake sword attached to his hip. The weirdest part was that his usually gelled back hair was free of the hair product and was ruffled up messily and hanging in front of his face.

"Oh it's Francis and... Arthur?!" Ludwig sputtered, taken aback by the normally modest blond wearing such a ridiculous outfit.

"Why the hell are all of you so shocked when you say my name!" He yelled, blushing fiercely at this point.

"Hey, at least he recognised you!" Francis pointed out, irritating the younger further.

"Erm... Yes, well come in," the German invited, moving aside to let the couple in.

The interior of their house was just as magnificent as the exterior, it was spacious and a fitting venue for a party. It was also embellished with Halloween themed decorations, and the lighting was dim to make it seem creepier.

"I'm guessing you two are taking part in the contest?"

"Of course," Francis answered while Arthur was stuck marvelling at the inside and trying to look like he wasn't interested.

"You probably knew already but Gilbert and I are the judges, along with a cousin of ours, Ned, he's the one with spiky hair over there." Ludwig explained and pointed to the person in question, who had such gravity defying hair that Alfred's tenacious cowlick looked puny compared to it.

"You know all the rules I presume, most impressive costume and most in character couple wins."

"Oui, I've drilled it into Arthur's head by now," Francis giggled, while the Brit gave a small humph at the statement.

"Yes... and unless you two are going to be a moody maid and a boisterous butler, you might want to rethink your strategy," he told them.

"No no, we've got our characters planned, we just didn't know when to start."

"Alright then, I'll discount your out of character behaviour till now, though from now on your performance will determine whether you'll win or not. The main hall is here and if you're leaving this room, the whole venue is open to guests, only the locked rooms are strictly prohibited. Everyone's already here except for a few others, so enjoy and good luck." Ludwig explained formally, and then walked off to join what seemed like a huge packet of fries and a lady in a beautiful gown.

Arthur didn't recognise half the crowd there so he was a bit unsettled and hid himself behind Francis, insecure due to his revealing outfit. As he assessed the crowd he saw that there was so much variety in costumes, ranging from normal clothes to crazy cosplayer level outfits that he almost felt like he didn't look that strange... That didn't give him any courage to come out of his safe haven behind his boyfriend though.

"Is that a... Burger running towards us?!" Arthur whispered to his partner who turned to look in the direction he motioned towards.

They didn't have much time to react as the 'burger' ran to them at light speed and started conversing with them.

"Yo dude, you're finally here! Why are you so late? You probably spent it doing your makeup didn't you?" The burger, that after further inspection proved to be none other than Alfred, asked Francis as he hadn't noticed the teen behind him.

"You know how boring this party was without you and Artie's fights- actually where is Artie?"

"Wait, who's that girl? Wow, did you get a girlfriend?!" He questioned and curiously tried to examine the figure further.

The blond quickly ducked behind Francis and used him as a shield to hide from the American who kept trying to get a better look at him.

"Oh my god, am I really that unrecognisable?" The blond whispered into Francis' shoulder and hid his face in the crook of his neck.

"Stop, you'll smudge your makeup! Lift your head, it's fine, he's not going to attack you!"

"I know that, it's just if he sees me he'll make a laughing stock out of me!"

"How do you know for sure?" Francis asked, finding it humorous how Arthur was getting flustered.

"He's Alfred, isn't it obvious! He's just waiting to get something to laugh about!" The English teen replied in a hushed tone.

"Well I think he's dressed more funny than you are. I mean, he's a burger for god's sake! Here's an idea, he won't make much fun of you if you make fun of him first!" Francis suggested.

Arthur pondered the thought, then took a deep breath and detached himself from Francis, adopting a confident smirk.

"Haha, what the hell are you? A hamburger? Did you have nothing better to dress as, you idiot!"

"Oh! Huh Arthu-... What, you don't like my outfit?" The dirty blond queried, pouting sadly.

"Arthur, this isn't quite what I meant-"

"No no, I think it's great, it really captures your essence. People do say 'you are what you eat' right? And that's all you eat, a bunch of burgers all day." He jeered, making the victim of his comments furrow his eyebrows and frown in upset.

Francis tried nudging him multiple times in the side but he wouldn't snap out of it. And Alfred was getting taunted more and more by the second.

He blamed himself for giving the Brit the idea in the first place!

Suddenly, an angel appeared in the form of Ludwig, who noticed Arthur making fun of Alfred and cleared his throat to be noticed.

Why an angel, you may be thinking since all he did was try to distract him. But as soon as he did so, something clicked in the Briton's head and he halted in his tracks... Before bursting into apologies and over dramatic hand gestures.

"Oh poppet, could you ever have it in your heart to forgive me, I don't know what came over me! I didn't mean any of what I said..." He exclaimed, suddenly acting bashful and twirling a lock of his short hair around his pinkie.

"Don't mind what I said earlier, I think you look adorable! So much so that I could just gobble you right up! Ooh, how about I get you something from the table over there, it's the least I could do for all those horrible things I said!" He offered with a caring smile so unlike Arthur that the dirty blond wondered if he was possessed.

"Erm... I uh... Nope it's fine I'm gonna go now, bye!" And with that, the oversized burger sped off somewhere, leaving a still smiling Arthur and two open mouthed teens.

Francis got even more of a shock when he felt an arm snake around his, interlocking their arms tightly and a head settle against his shoulder.

"Now then, what can we do for you dear?" Arthur asked, beaming like a child in a chocolate factory.

"Ah no, nothing! I was just checking in..." Ludwig expressed, rubbing the back of his neck in anxiety kindled by Arthur's sudden and dramatic change in character.

"Doitsu!" A familiar high pitched voice yelled and the next thing they knew, the lady in the beautiful dress and the huge fries were amongst them.

"Feli, I told you to stop calling me that!" 'Doitsu' scolded his boyfriend, who, as always, didn't seem to realise the seriousness in his tone.

Feliciano was also dressed in a Renaissance style costume, the end of the beautiful blue gown dragging across the floor and he had the same puffed up sleeves as Ludwig's costume did. The difference was that he had long, natural looking brown curls resting on his shoulders which made anyone who didn't know him assume he was a real girl, and his high pitched voice didn't help his case.

"Doitsu?" Arthur asked, confused by why the word was such an embarrassing nickname to the German.

"It's Germany in Japanese. Feliciano's been using it ever since I accidently taught him..." the fries answered, who Arthur identified as Kiku.

"Oh, excuse me, Alfred is um... Waving at me frantically from a distance. It seems I am wanted elsewhere. Goodbye." The ever-polite Japanese male did his signature ninety degree bow and headed off to the burger.

That made more sense now, why Kiku was dressed as a packet of fries, which was pretty peculiar for him. Alfred probably coaxed him into it somehow.

"Ve~ Doitsu, you were right, Arthur looks like a pretty little girl, I didn't even recognise him at first!" The Italian stated with a wide smile, flustering Ludwig further.

Arthur turned his head away to avoid eye contact with the trio in order for them to not see the sour look on his face and to not hear his scowl.

Francis noticed how he distanced himself and squeezed Arthur's hand in encouragement.

"I'll take care of this, you take a well deserved break. I need a chance to show my impressive acting skills anyway, right?" He uttered past his ear and then the arm that was wrapped around his was gone.

"Bonsoir mademoiselle," Francis greeted Feliciano with a small smile. Leaning down, he took his hand and planted a chaste kiss on his knuckles, making the brunet giggle.

"So you're a French butler?"

"En effet(indeed), and what about you, ma chérie?" Francis asked, his voice suddenly elegant and silky, along with a slight flirtatious undertone that irked Arthur just a tad bit.

He was interesting to watch anyway, despite his character not being much different from his usual self, the way he presented himself felt like Arthur was looking at a totally different person, he possessed this aura that made you want to kneel down and beg him to fuck you. Don't get the wrong idea, Arthur wasn't thinking that!

"Juliet!" The Italian prided.

"Juliet?" The French butler queried. Good riddance, Arthur thought, he had finally gotten off his knee and and let go of the Italian's hand.

"Hmm mm! And Luddy is my Romeo~" Feliciano replied as he cuddled up against his side affectionately, the German tried his hardest to keep a straight face from the public show of affection.

That explained the Renaissance style clothing both were wearing.

"Oh, but if only we both lived in the same time period, maybe then I could have been your Romeo instead," Francis expressed, shocking and annoying both of their partners.

"Tis a shame, but my Romeo is unrivalled by any other, and likewise, thy Juliet... is getting rather... Hot*!" Feliciano chuckled and eye gestured behind him, making Francis look back at Arthur just to find him crucially assessing the pair, and then look away once they made eye contact.

"Oh wasn't that lovely? It was a pleasure to talk to you both, now if you'll excuse us now we'll be leaving!" The Brit forced his face muscles to muster up the brightest smile he could and waved them goodbye.

"Ah yes, well in that case I'm afraid I will have to bid you adieu, my fair maiden. Hopefully fate will allow us to meet once more," he managed to perform a short bow before he felt Arthur tug at his waistcoat and pull him away.

"Why did you drag me away? I was having a great conversation!"

"Oh yeah well too bad, I'm hungry so you have to come with me." Arthur insisted.

"Are you planning on stuffing your face to distract yourself from your jealousy?" He smirked.

"Jealous?! Ha, jealous my ass! I'm not jealous! What is there to even be jealous about?"

"I don't know but you have that envious look you had whenever Joan was around so I assumed you were jealous," Francis explained with a smirk.

"I-I just don't understand what all that fancy stuff you said has anything to do with winning, it's not like Feliciano's one of the judges."

"No, but he's got Ludwig wrapped around his finger, if he could put in a good word about my acting then it could contribute greatly to our win."

Arthur stayed silent and debated the idea.

"I guess... That makes sense..." He murmured shyly.

"Oh mon petit chaton," Francis expressed as he caressed the younger's cheek affectionately.

"You're so cute when you get jealous so I can't help myself, but you know I don't mean what I say to anyone except you, right?"

"That means if I say I love you. I mean it with all my being." Francis smiled.

Arthur's chartreuse eyes widened and his cheeks gained colour from his confession.

"Don't say such things in public!" He stated, embarrassed.

"Why not?" He enquired with a pout.

"Because there's people around, what if someone hears?"

"And why can't they hear? Let the whole world know my undying love for you!" He declared aloud, Arthur instantly covering his mouth with his hands to stop him from saying anything more.

"Shut up!" The Brit cried, looking around warily if anyone was around. There were a few, but they were too involved in their own business to care, thank god.

"Mmmff!" Was the only noise Francis made as the gloved hands were still covering his mouth, his eyes begging for him to show mercy and let him speak.

"Oh- ew you licked my gloves!" The shorter male complained, wiping his hands vigorously against the skirt of his dress and glaring at the French.

"Hehe, sorry!"

"Wow, sorry just fixes everything, huh?"

"Yes, and-" Francis started with a smirk but then interrupted himself as he saw something rather strange I the corner of his eyes.

"Wait is that Matthew drinking from a... Cheese fountain?"

"That's not cheese, it looks more like..."

"Maple syrup." They both chorused along with a sigh. The boys addiction to the sweet substance was no confidential matter, everyone who at least sat around him at lunch knew. How could they not, he often brought a whole jar of the stuff and practically drank from the bottle.

"Should we try to stop him?" The Brit asked unsurely.

"Do you think we can stop him?"

"... But I don't think that amount of maple syrup is good for him." Arthur distressed, watching as the boy practically drank from the fountain.

"Aww, is mama bird concerned for her little Matthew?"

"Francis!"

"Don't worry maman, he's a smart child, he knows when to stop...... Right?"

"Riiiight." Arthur said as he shook his head disapprovingly.

They watched the boy for a few minutes, the couple speculating as to what the Canadian was dressed as.

He, like a bunch of the others, looked like he came right out of a history book, with his puffed sleeves and knee high boots. But the strangest thing about his costume was the bright red cape on his back and the golden crown on his head, which lead them to believe he was a prince... But what connection has he to any of the others?

Both parties shut up and tried listening in when Gilbert walked over and started talking to the Canadian, but all they understood was that the German promised something worthwhile because the caramel blond quit his maple quest and went off with the knight.

With no one to watch, they were just chilling by the food table, discussing their winning strategy, what the other guests were wearing and how stupid they looked.

"Excuse me for intruding on your alone time but Alfred says that you were 'possessed' a while ago. He sent me to investigate. Are you okay?"

The pair almost jumped out of their skins when the silent Japanese male creeped up on them and started talking. Either they were drunk already or Kiku was excellent at being stealthy, it probably was the latter, which led them to believe he'd be an amazing ninja.

Arthur scanned the area behind Kiku for any sign of the blond- and there he was, the abnormally large hamburger was spying on them from afar.

"Look Kiku, tell him it's fine and that he's just being a scaredy cat," Arthur responded, tugging the skirt of his dress down diffidently. He didn't trust the way Kiku looked back and forth between the couple and blushed. He sort of reminded him of that strange nurse from a while back, Elizabeta.

"Arthur, call him over." Francis told him.

"What, why?"

"You didn't really apologise properly, in fact it was your 'apology' that scared him so please?"

"Okay, I will go call Alfred then," Kiku declared and off he went to convince the American to come out from his hiding place.

"Why did you do that! Now I have to clear the misunderstanding up and... A-apologise..."

"Yes, exactly the point!"

"You're awful..."

"But you still love me~"

Arthur harrumphed and crossed his arms defiantly, but he couldn't deny it wasn't true.

"H-hey A-Arthur," the dirty blond and the black haired boy appeared once more in front of them, the Japanese teen poker faced as usual while the American stuttered in fear.

"Goodness, I'm not a monster, calm down!" The English teen replied, reaching out to try calm him but Alfred visibly stiffened as his hand got closer so he decided against it.

"Then what was that... Thing you did! You suddenly stopped talking for a sec and boom! It was almost like you actually had a heart!" Alfred explained.

"It's called acting, Al." Arthur started to explain, completely dismissing the comment that hinted to him not having a heart.

"You know how there's a contest and we're expected to be in character? Well I was assigned this role by someone I'm not naming and sadly, I have to act like some happy go lucky maid. That's all it was."

"...Okay but... Why did you do it out of nowhere!"

"It was because Ludwig was behind me and he's one of the judges alright? Look I'm... I'm sorry. I honestly didn't mean to frighten you. And hey, why aren't you acting?"

"Well how am I supposed to act, it's not like burgers and fries talk and move everyday. Or do they?!" Alfred theorised, instantly moving to shake poor Kiku by the shoulders and going on a ramble about how the food he eats must be conspiring to kill him from the inside.

The other two couldn't help but facepalm at how childish the seventeen year old was.

"I don't know, how about you shut up!" Arthur finally screamed, provoking a astounded gasp from his partner and Alfred to halt his movements and stare at him dejectedly.

"I mean... Burgers and fries don't talk or walk, you're correct, so how about you... Not... talk or walk?" Arthur proposed, it was the only thing he could come up with that didn't sound completely idiotic. But the more he thought about it the more it sounded idiotic.

No one uttered a word, the only sounds audible were that of the other guests chatting. Kiku looked around nervously like he was afraid Alfred would get angry but much to his astonishment, Alfred started grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey, you're smarter than you look old man! Hah did you hear that Keeks, all we have to do is go sit in a corner like normal foods do and we'll win!"

"Um Al I don't know how I feel about that..." The brown eyed boy confessed.

"It'll be fine! It's gonna be the easiest win ever! Heh, thanks dude! Or should I say dudette," the younger boy remarked with a playful wink.

Arthur and Francis shared unsure looks and looked back to the pair in front of them.

"Y-yeah... I mean you're welcome?" He continued with an awkward smile, desperately hoping that his stupid comment that even he didn't understand would be understandable to the simpleton.

"Talk to you after the party's over probably!" He proclaimed as he grabbed his distraught Japanese friend's hand and sped off urgently.

Once they were well out of earshot Francis interrupted the silence.

"I feel bad for Kiku. You could see the fear in the poor boy's face."

"Yeah, he doesn't deserve to suffer because of Alfred's stupidity. Oh well, his loss for befriending him." The Briton concluded and daintily sipped from the cup of punch he got himself.

"Is that really the extent of your empathy?" The French blond laughed.

Arthur merely glanced up and rolled his eyes but didn't stop drinking his most probably spiked drink.

"Francis, there you are! I was looking all over for you!" The tomato waddled over to the pair, as happy as always.

As soon as he saw him, Arthur narrowed his eyes and growled at him, petrifying the poor boy who instinctively reached over to massage his arms as though he was scared they would be torn off.

"What is it? Did something happen? Where's Gil?" Francis inquired, gushing with questions.

"That's a surprise! Gil said he's um... Busy, so he sent me to get you," the Spaniard explained.

"Alright, but what about Arthur? Can he come too?"

"Nope, this is not for outside ears and we'll only take a few minutes anyway. He'll be fine without you Fran." The boy snickered, his laughter quickly ending as the Briton glowered at him threateningly.

Francis glanced over to his boyfriend to make sure he had no oppositions, and from his nonchalant face he deducted he had none.

"Go on, he's right, I'm not a baby. I'll be around here somewhere when you come back." He promised, keeping his expression montone but the way Arthur avoided his eyes told him that he was actually upset inside.

"Okay, I trust you. À bientôt!" The Frenchman responded, grabbing him by the chin and giving him a swift peck on the lips, but taking his time to savour the taste of the strawberry lip gloss the Brit was wearing.

"And that..." Francis whispered softly as their lips seperated.

"Was for you to remember me by," he continued, gazing into the younger's bedazzled eyes.

"I... I'll see you again, you're not disappearing off the face of the earth!" He retorted,

"I'm sorry, your lips were too enticing, I gave in to the temptation." Francis admitted with a bright smile.

Arthur averted his eyes and crossed his arms huffily before he'd give in to the temptation himself.

"Come on lovebirds, are you two going to separate or am I gonna have to force you two apart?" Antonio queried slyly.

"Ha yes, sorry Toni." Francis said, smiling and kissing him affectionately on the nose one last time for good measure... And then he was gone.

Arthur looked around at all the funnily dressed people around him, it was colourful and crowded but it felt so grey, he felt so lonely without his boyfriend, as much as he hated to admit. He never knew he depended on Francis this much, he didn't need him to have a good time and he'd prove it!

Determined, Arthur set off to find something worthwhile to do.

He wandering around the huge mansion, awestruck as he explored through the elegantly decorated rooms but in the end he couldn't find the worthwhile thing he was looking for.

He was silently praying to come across Francis while he looked but it seemed that the place Antonio took him to wasn't one of the public rooms open to all, which was understandable, but irritating nonetheless.

Bored out of his mind, he leaned against a wall away from too many people and slid down, landing on his bottom which induced a small wince out of the teen. He pulled his knees up to his chest and rested his head on them.

"You know you can see your underwear when you sit like that." A voice informed him.

Arthur instantly put his legs down and patted his dress down to ignore his scalding hot face.

The seemingly stranger sat down beside him, but he was too mortified to make eye contact.

"It was Francis' idea, wasn't it?"

"Pardon?" Arthur asked, finally looking at his conversation partner and realising it wasn't a stranger after all.

"You obviously didn't choose to wear a dress to the party yourself, unless you did which I'm not judging or anything just... Unexpected." Lovino explained.

Lovino... Recognised him? Thank the deities above, someone isn't totally blind!

"No you're right, it wasn't my choice, it was a stupid mistake of mine that led to this."

"Yeah I can see that, you look very uncomfortable and Francis looks way too happy for his own good."

Arthur laughed lightly at his comment.

"Excuse me but what are you dressed as? I can't tell."

"That's because I'm not dressed as anything." The Italian disclosed.

"Wait, really? Then Antonio..."

"Is a tomato for absolutely no reason. Actually, the original plan of his was to make me dress as the tomato and he as a farmer, isn't that just hilarious? I told him to fuck off, and to 'wear it yourself if you love it so much'. And so that's what he did." Lovino answered, playing with the loose threads of the rips in his jeans.

"I wish I could have said that..." Arthur stated forlornly.

"Why couldn't you have? From what I know, you're a pretty stubborn guy, I don't see why you'd agree to this."

"I didn't want to but... It was an odd situation, I just hope this sacrifice will get me the outcome I desire." The blond replied.

"Uh huh, I think I have an idea as to what it is. Well, good luck with that." The umber brunet smirked and the pair fell into silence again.

"Do you know what Antonio and Gilbert are up to?" Arthur questioned.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, Antonio came up to us a while ago and took Francis away. He said they'd only be a few minutes but I reckon it's been half an hour."

"I have no clue, I haven't seen Tonio since we got here."

"Really? How come?"

"Well would you want to be known as the tomato's boyfriend?" Lovino implored.

"Point taken."

"Say, how's Francis? Is he still just as annoying now that you're together?"

"He's gotten even more anno- wait how did you know we were together?"

"Toni told me. Expecting secrets to stay between those three is like expecting Alfred to keep up a diet. Absolutely impossible." Lovino elucidated.

"Goodness, they're worse than gossiping girls." Arthur added with a frustrated sigh.

"Ha yeah, you can say that again!"

He never really talked to the Italian before, and the times he did he assumed he was an angry jerk that liked to make his boyfriend run around in circles but not so much anymore. The more they talked, the more he understood how similar they were in character.

They spent a long time complaining about their respective boyfriends, Lovino's comments about how Antonio was 'such an idiot' but 'an iresistabably adorable one' remarkably relatable in Arthur's case. Arthur decided to fill him in on what happened the past week, the Italian tumbling with laughter as he was informed about none of that from the Spaniard. So the Bad Touch Trio did keep some things secret after all. Lovino also gave him bouts of advice on how to suffer an 'adorable idiot' throughout their conversation, which the Brit made mental notes of since he knew he'd need them.

"Gosh, I'm sore after sitting on the floor for that long, wanna come with me to get a drink?" Lovino offered, extending his hand to the other.

"Sure," he agreed and accepted the hand he was kindly given, instantly being hauled up off the floor.

The pair went back to the main area that was infested with people and got themselves drinks.

"Um... Lovino, do you know that guy over there who's been staring at us for the past minute?"

"Huh- Oh. It's just him, don't mind him." Lovino told him and rolled his eyes.

"Is it someone you know?"

"Sadly, yes. And spoiler alert, he's not staring at us, he's staring at you, Arthur." The Italian snickered maniacally.

"What? What do you mean by that!?" Arthur asked, perturbed by the guy's stare and Lovino's comment combined.

"Well he's sort of a... Oh would you look at that, he's coming this way! You can see for yourself!"

"Just watch." Was the cryptic answer he received from the Italian before he proceeded to take a sip from his drink, waiting for the entertainment to begin.

"Care to introduce me to this pretty friend of yours, Lovi?" The male finally got the courage to walk up to them and start a conversation. His accent was distinguishable as Italian and he looked almost exactly like Lovino and Feliciano, he had the same Vargas curl except it had slightly straighter edges than the two brothers. Wonder what that signified.

The sandy blond blinked rapidly, confused by the turnabout of events and looked towards the brunet beside him for moral support. Unfortunately, the only reaction he saw on the older was his slight laughter hidden behind his cup, which didn't help him at all.

"Er-"

Lovino swiftly leaned in and shushed him before he could mess up his plan.

"If you talk, he'll know you're not a girl!"

"Isn't that what I'm going for?"

"Well... yes, but how about we mess with him first? Wouldn't it be funny to see his reaction when he realises you're actually a guy?" The brunet suggested, malicious intention evident in his plan.

"Alright, what am I supposed to do then?"

"Stay silent. But smile and laugh to whatever he says, make him believe you're into whatever bullshit he says."

"Ugh god, I don't-"

"Hey! What are you two whispering about?" The stranger questioned, agitated by their secret conversation.

"Mi ha detto che sei carina((she told me that you look cute) also please don't judge, my dear speakers of Italian I'm literally copying and pasting from google translate))," Lovino declared confidently, confusing the poor Briton but making the other brunet's eyes light up with hope.

"Veramente? Non stai scherzando?(really? You're not kidding?)"

"Sono serio(I'm serious)." Lovino replied with an expressionless face, laughing on the inside at how easily he was falling for his bait.

"What are yous talking about?" Arthur whispered to his new Italian friend, he hated when people would talk to each other in another language when there's one confused piggy in the middle who didn't understand. It was quite rude of them.

"Just preparing the ground, now you're in charge of planting the seeds." Lovino winked, gave him a pat on the back and pushed him towards the nameless Italian. He stumbled forward from the force of his push and the stranger caught him in his arms and held him tightly.

Arthur tried politely pushing at his chest and detaching himself from his hold but he was trapped; the guy wouldn't budge! Damn Lovino, he could sense him smirking in delight behind him.

"My name's Sebastiano, what about yours, bella?" Sebastiano asked with an appealing smile that could make any lady fall for him immediately. It was obvious from his confidence that he was a womaniser.

Arthur forced a small smile, not knowing what exactly he was meant to do. He glanced over his shoulder to Lovino who was now snickering behind his cup and not being of any use. Arthur gave him a menacing look before returning his attention to the male in front of him and smiling cluelessly once more.

"Oh, you're so stunned by my beauty you're at a loss for words, don't worry I don't blame you, tesoro(treasure)." He proclaimed arrogantly, making Arthur's countenance contort into one of disgust but he promptly blinked it off and forced himself to giggle and nod like a lovestruck teenage girl.

"Not to worry, your beautiful green eyes make up for your lack of words," he claimed, reaching up to stroke his cheek but Arthur spontaneously grasped his hand before he could. Sebastiano stared at him like he's never seen a person deny his touch, and judging by his shock, he probably hadn't till then.

"Hands off, Lothario." He ordered sternly, dropping the hand he caught like it was filth.

It didn't seem possible for the Italian to be even more flabbergasted, but that's what happened after the English teen uttered his first words.

Sebastiano removed the hands that were around the Brit at lightning speed, and took a few steps back out of fear he would be jumped with more surprises.

"You're a guy?!"

"I don't understand how you didn't realise earlier, but yes, surprise!" The Briton exclaimed, waving his hands crazily, a sudden sense of mischievous pride coursing through him. It felt great to see the male's dumbstruck face.

"B-b-but!" He cried, unable to process how he was mistaken.

"Seb, you failed so just accept your defeat and go find some other innocent girl to prey on." Lovino announced, shooing him away with his hand.

Sebastiano looked so embarassed that Arthur would have almost felt bad... If he had a heart, that is.

The Italian quickly rushed off, leaving the pair of demons to laugh their imaginary hearts out, both tearing up with laughter at their joined prank.

"Hey, I hate to leave you since we were having such a great time but I think the little crybaby's gonna go and complain about me to his nicer cousin so I have to go and deal with that." Lovino expressed, irritation clear in his expression.

"That's fine, we can always talk later, you have my number anyway."

"Sì, remember to call me for any of your love troubles," the umber brunet reminded with a knowing smirk.

And with that two unlikely friends seperated and Arthur was once again alone by the food table and forced to find some sort of time pass.

After checking the vicinity multiple times for any sign of Francis (who said he'd only take a few, god damn minutes!) he decided to take his phone out from the small pocket in the side of his skirt as to not look like that much of a loner.

Too broke for mobile data, the only entertainment he had on his phone was stupid crossy road, which enraged yet addicted him at the same time. The more he thought about it, the more he realised it was kinda like Francis, and he chuckled to himself.

Though what kind of a party would it be if all he did was play crossy road all day?

Could that be used in the same context for Francis? Was he hogging the Frenchman too much? Arthur was obviously too attached, that's why he can't stay away from him for this long.

'Sheesh, would you just shut up, mind!' Arthur commanded his brain and flicked his own forehead, his lack of concentration in the game also killing him.

"What are you doing that's got yourself so mad?" A voice he definitely didn't recognise asked him.

Arthur felt like a deer caught in headlights, he quickly turned his phone off and tucked it back into his pocket like he was caught with it out in class.

"Um... Just a stupid game, nothing more." The Brit answered uneasily, watching as the stranger's eyes widened slightly before returning to its original form. Ah, he must have had a revelation that he wasn't actually a girl, he thought and rolled his eyes.

Actually, what's with strangers talking to him today? Was this a normal thing at big parties like this or was his get up attracting perverts like bugs to a bright light?

"I'm sorry, who are you?" He asked, raising a thick eyebrow questiongly. To say he was vexed would be an understatement, his night was already going badly considering the lack of Francis and the getting flattened by cars multiple times. Now a random person was talking to him, perfect!

The stranger had beige brown hair almost as light as chocolate ice cream that stuck upwards defiantly. He also had forest green eyes, a small scar above the left. He didn't seem to be dressed up as anything either.

"The hosts' cousin, Ned. As a sort of co-host, I was instructed to go around and make sure 'everyone's having an awesome time', quote unquote Gilbert. And I saw you by yourself over here and guessed you weren't having the greatest time." He answered, his stern face reminding Arthur of Ludwig.

"Yeah, my uh... My boyfriend left me," he answered, kicking a scrunched up cup that was abandoned on the floor by some lazy person who didn't bother putting it in the bin.

"Oh. Well I'm sorry to hear that." The beige brunet admitted, his unyielding face showing no signs of the remorse in his statement.

"Wait Ned... as in, Gilbert and Ludwig's cousin?"

"Yes, as I stated before."

"If I recall correctly, Gilbert said you were one of the judges for the costume contest, is that right?"

The male nodded in affirmation.

Arthur immediately brightened up as a wicked idea sprouted in his head. Francis' words from before came to mind and it was his turn to act on them. It was embarassing, but hopefully it would work and pay off in the long run...

The Brit cocked his head and smiled cheerfully at the Dutch who's eyebrows furrowed in confusion at this sudden change in attitude.

"Oh! How could I not recognise you, Gil showed you to me earlier from a distance, but you really are much cuter up close," he commented, batting his eyelashes cutely.

"Excuse me?" Ned replied, his poker face not affected by the compliment but there was slight befuddlement in his voice.

"Silly me! I forgot to introduce myself. My name's Alice, it's a pleasure to meet you poppet!" 'Alice' greeted, daintily lifting two corners of his dress and curtseying.

How the hell did he come up with Alice without any hesitance? Did it have some sort of significance?

This wasn't the time to ponder on trivial things like this, so he halted his thought train and decided to concentrate on the job at hand.

Ned's astonishment had disappeared as he now understood what he was up to. This 'Alice' was a sneaky one.

"Likewise." The male answered, not wanting to continue this conversation anymore but he couldn't just walk away because he knew Gilbert would catch him and make him repent for making his guest not feel welcome. While the hypocrite was busy messing around with his newlyfound boyfriend to fulfil his duties himself.

Arthur chuckled then went silent in hesitation to say his next idea.

"I'm really fascinated by your hair, can I possibly.. touch it?" He asked as he peered forward curiously. He knew he looked like an utter fool to the people that knew who he was, but he took solace in the fact that half of them thought he was who he was acting to be. And the fact that Antonio was dressed as a tomato also calmed his bundle of nerves.

The beige brunet blinked in surprise and reluctantly agreed, bowing his head slightly to let the maid touch his precious hair.

Arthur leant forward on his tip toes to face the tall brunet. He was much taller than him, so much that Francis would probably have to look up to him as well.

'Hey, stop bringing Francis into everything, stupid mind!' he reprimanded.

Unlike what he expected, his hair was smooth and silky even after being styled up all the time. How did he do that?

"Ooh, it's so smooth!" He stated with a laugh, petting his hair with utmost care like it was a newborn pup.

Did acting like an idiot make him look cute? All he felt was repulsed by his character.

Gosh, the more he thought about it, he sounded like Feliciano. What was he turning into?!

The Dutch plainly nodded, he had to give it to him, his acting was pretty good considering how he was acting beforehand and now he was all lively.

Damn, what was he supposed to say next? Hmm... What would Francis say?

"Are you single?" He enquired out of nowhere, flustering the brunet.

"Why is that so important?"

"No it's just I can't imagine a gorgeous guy like you not being taken, that's all." He smiled slyly, playing with a strand of his short hair.

And a sweet-talker, at that. Ned figured he must be after the prize, I mean who wouldn't when reckless Gilbert suggested it be five thousand dollars?

"Hmm yes, but no, I am currently not seeing anyone."

"Is that so? Could I fill that blank space in your heart then?" He asked, moving from playing with his hair to twirling with the bow on his choker. He was saying whatever comes to mind by now, hopefully it wouldn't backfire and make him look like a creep.

Ned forced himself to keep a sigh from escaping his mouth.

"Well I'm not looking at the moment either." The Dutch male answered, trying to answer sternly but his composure was faltering. He wanted to leave this conversation fast but he was cursed to stay, damn Gilbert.

"Aww, what a shame," he answered with a pout, only getting a quaint nod as a reply. Ned hoped that if he stopped replying then this blond guy would get bored and walk off.

Not knowing how to continue the conversation, Arthur smoothed down his dress uncomfortably due to the awkward silence.

"A man of little words I see. You must be very thoughtful." He then commented, trying to continue the conversation. Damn, Francis had it so easy, why was this so hard for him?

The only answer he received was silence, further proving his point but making him look like an imbecile. The brunet must be getting tired of his Francis-like advances, he definitely would be.

Dear god, is Francis the only thing on your mind 24/7?! Arthur, focus!

"So who makes the final call anyway? There's three judges right? What if you all pick three different contestants?"

"Gilbert says he's going to be the one making the final call but we don't know, and if such a thing does happen, then I guess we could have my two other siblings judge too."

"How likely would it be for you to pick me?" He queried, edging closer to the green eyed man as he clasped his hands together and leaned his head against them with a suggestively cute smile.

"Finally coming straight to the point?" Ned asked, one side of his lip quirking up slightly in a smirk, but it was barely visible.

"Whatever do you mean?" He queried, his naïve facade almost crumbling from the almost condescending tone.

"Look, 'Alice'. We both know that you want to win. And flattering the judges is a normal thing people do. But a bunch of flattery isn't enough to sway me. The only reason I didn't leave sooner was because of Gil, now if you'll excuse me, I have other business to attend to." He stated ruthlessly, delighted because now he could leave the conversation and he also succeeded in rattling the Brit.

Great, Arthur had gone too overboard with his statements and now he looked like a moron. But worse than that, the five thousand dollar prize flashed gravely before his eyes and forced him to think of a way out of the situation at hand.

"... Are you saying that my acting is... bad?" He asked, biting down on his now trembling bottom lip.

"Not exactly, but-"

"You hate my acting don't you, you think it's silly...! You know what, you're right, I won't ever get the prize..." he expressed, his voice wobbly as he wiped at his eyes with his arm and then coiled them around himself protectively.

"I didn't- hey wait, no don't cry!" He begged desperately, placing his hands on his shoulders and shaking him in the hopes of snapping him back to his senses while the boy in front of him was now gushing mascara tainted tears from his eyes.

Ned looked around and noticed how a few people were now looking over, concerned by the situation, now he'll look like the bad guy that made a 'girl' cry! Damn it, if only he could just escape from this already!

Arthur couldn't believe he played this card, it was degrading but it seemed to be working so far. Sure, it didn't look like his plan of emotionally manipulating the Dutch brunet into giving him the prize would work, since he now looked bad to the people around because of him, but at least he didn't look like he was just a creep going after the prize to others.

Suddenly, he felt himself being hauled to one side, away from the distressed brunet and into another's arms. The comforting scent of lilies struck his nose and he immediately realised who it was.

"Who are you." Francis deadpanned through gritted teeth, holding his visibly upset boyfriend close to his chest and away from the supposed person who made him cry.

Crap, Francis thinks he's actually upset, what if the two of them got into a fight?! Oh dear, he had to intervene quickly.

"No, wait!" He tried yelling but his words were muffled by Francis' clothes and the French blond dismissed it as the younger's sobs.

"Who are you?" Ned questioned, adopting a defensive stance against this stranger who growled at him unpleasantly.

The Frenchman didn't bother with the 'I asked you first' game he usually would, he was way too caught up in finding out the reason of his beloved's misery to play games.

"His boyfriend." He asserted unrelentingly.

"He said his boyfriend broke up with him, you liar."

Whaaaaaaaat?! When?!

Arthur tried every trick in the book to get out of the blond's protective hold but to no avail. In normal circumstances, he would be able to get out easily but turns out Francis had brute strength when he felt challenged; he felt like he was being crushed to death.

"Oh so you were trying to take him as yours since you knew he was single?" He barked harshly.

"No!" Ned objected boldly.

"Okay, we'll put that aside. What did you do?" He returned, the pair were now face to face (well, Francis did have to look up a bit) as if they were going to have a fight. The commotion quickly attracted people too, who, since the Roman ages have ways been interested in seeing other people's brawls.

The good thing was that a fight meant he had to make sure Arthur didn't get in between and so he let go of him. As soon as Francis' grip loosened Arthur broke free and he ran in between the pair.

"Stop!" Arthur shouted, running in between them, finally able to to insert his voice into their dispute.

The older teen's glare disappeared as soon as he saw his Brit's eyes, those beautiful chartreuse green eyes- wait why wasn't there any traces of tears in his eyes? Actually there was no remnant of sadness on his face except for some dry mascara lines that he quickly wiped away, staining his pure white gloves in the process. It was almost like... No, he wouldn't...

"Sorry, both of you. This is purely my fault." He claimed, looking to both of them and bowing his head. His voice was clear, like he hadn't just been balling his eyes out.

"And to you lot, do you have nothing better to do than to stare at other people?!" He yelled to the crowd that had formed, eager to watch a fight.

The crowd quickly dispersed after his statement and the trio were left to sort their problem out in peace.

Arthur went over to the Dutch and started saying something, but Francis couldn't catch it.

Unable to respond with anything, he stood dumbfounded, as he watched Arthur apologise to the Dutch male and explain what happened. The brunet nodded plainly at the Briton and gave Francis a curt nod before he walked away, ecstatic to be able to leave.

"Francis, god, where in the world were you I-"

"Did he... make you cry?" Francis asked tepidly, but at the same time the seriousness in his voice was vivid.

"I made myself cry, you know better than I that I wouldn't cry so easily in public."

"Then why did you do it?" Again with the same quiet, angry tone that gave Arthur shudders.

"Look... The situation was getting out of hand so I decided to... It's nothing." The English teen assured.

"What were you talking to him about?" Francis implored, distressed by his lack of co-operation.

"Nothing! Just... Would you please let it go?"

"Now would you please tell me what you were doing for three hours?"

"Not until you tell me what you talked about with that guy." Francis demanded.

"Come on! You left me alone for three hours and I don't get to know what you were doing?"

"I could say the same for you." Francis retorted smartly, but there was no pride of his comment visible on his face.

"Well then I guess neither of us are getting our way then!" Arthur huffed and turned his head obstinately.

They both remained silent, waiting for the other to speak first but both insisted on the other explaining their side, which lead to no productivity.

"I'm gonna go ask Gilbert what you did then!" Arthur informed with a frown, but before he could even take a step, a hand wrapped around his arm and tugged him away.

"Oi, what are you doing!" Arthur whisper-yelled, not wanting to attract as much as attention as he had before.

As much as his complaining suggested, he didn't try to fight Francis as he knew there would be no point in trying. One, Francis' grip was so strong that he couldn't even if he tried and two, he knew Francis would never bring him into anything harmful intentionally. Or at least he hoped.

The Frenchman led him up a staircase that looked like it came right out of a fairytale and picked one of the multiple bedrooms in the Beilshmidt mansion for them to have a heart to heart conversation in.

Arthur had already been through most of the rooms, four of them being bedrooms but the random room Francis had picked was unfamiliar to him. God, just how many rooms did one house need?! It was massive too, he would have believed it was the master bedroom but going off of his gut feeling, he decided there must be a bigger master bedroom somewhere he didn't check that was just waiting for him to gawk at.

Not to mention the gorgeous king sized canopy bed, the elegant curtains hanging on the large windows and the freaking balcony overlooking their garden- no, private park at the far end.

Even though the room was large, the atmosphere inside was stifling. The couple sat on the edge of the bed, Arthur waiting for Francis to explain why he brought him here and Francis deciding on how to start.

"Now that we're away from people... Will you please talk to me?"

"Only if you talk first." The Brit insisted.

"Arthur." He called, placing his palm on his thigh and gazing into his eyes urgently.

The Brit was bewildered by Francis' insisting, usually he'd give in to Arthur by now but he didn't seem to be giving up that easily this time. Worried, Arthur decided it was best if he be the mature one for once and nodded slowly in agreement.

"Fine. But you better tell me afterwards!"

"Promise." The golden blond agreed.

"Well um... What do you want to know?"

"Everything you did after I left." He answered, his face monotone but the displeasure was clear on his countenance.

The English blond blinked in surprise, recalling all the events that led up to this.

"I uh... went around the house aimlessly, talked to Lovino... We went and got drinks and... talked to his cousin.... Then I talked to the guy you saw, then you arrived and now we're here." He summarised, 'forgetting' to include the parts where he was sure Francis would flip a table.

Francis rose an eyebrow in disbelief, and shook his head lightly.

"Define 'talk'."

"What do you mean, all of them were normal conversations!" He argued, his lips formed a thin line and his eyebrows knitted together sternly.

"From your face I can tell you're hiding something."

He squeezed his eyes shut and sighed. There was no use fighting his words either.

"... Lovino's cousin thought I was a girl and started flirting with me, then when he realised I wasn't, he ran away with his tail between his legs," Arthur explained, a small chuckle leaving his mouth but Francis' austere expression made his laughter die down.

"How did he realise?" He questioned, hoping it wasn't some lewd way but from Arthur's unbothered expression he guessed it wasn't.

"When I spoke."

The blue eyed male sighed in relief from the answer, he was still annoyed by the incident and reprimanded himself for dressing him up so much, then urged him to continue his tale.

"Then... The Italians left and I was just standing by the table looking like an idiot when the person you saw, Ned, came around and started a conversation. I learnt that he was one of the judges and what you said earlier came to mind and...."

The French teen looked confused for a second before his eyes widened in realisation.

"I... I tried the thing you did with Feliciano but it didn't go so well and so I... feigned tears to escape. I had it all under control until you showed up." He continued in a bitter tone.

"If only you had arrived ten minutes earlier, this mess could have been avoided. Now I probably have an enemy in Ned and a whole load of people gossiping about what happened."

"That leads into your story, so spill. What were you doing for three hours when you said a few minutes?"

"Toni and Gil dragged me away to show me Bella." Francis conceded.

"Bella? As in that girl we saw at the café, the distant relative on your mum's side?" He enquired, to which Francis hummed a yes.

"What's so special about her, did she sprout horns overnight?"

"No, she's Gilbert's cousin."

"Ha, that's equal to sprouting horns ove- wait, does that mean..." The younger blond started cautiously, not liking the conclusion he was getting to.

"Gil and I are related!" Francis declared.

Great, now that's another reason for the obnoxious German to intrude on their alone time. He knew he'd be using it soon, too he grimaced at the thought.

"You sure? Just because she's a mutual relation doesn't automatically make yous related too."

"Non, I'm sure. Her mother is related to me and is also Gil's aunt." The older replied.

"You don't look too happy." Francis noticed, pouting at the irked expression on the Briton.

"Why would I be happy, now he'll just use that excuse to steal you from me." The English boy huffed, a sour look adorning his face.

Francis gaped at him like he said something unbelievable, and in all fairness, it was. Arthur actually admitting to not liking when he's away from him? Now that's a first.

"Erm... You didn't finish! I doubt that you were establishing your relation for three hours."

"Oh, afterwards, Bella insisted we have a drink. I told them I should leave since I don't like being away from you either but Gil wouldn't let me go. Soon, we didn't notice how fast time had passed." Francis responded.

"Ha, no wonder you're acting like this! You're drunk!"

"I'm not drunk! Just a little tipsy. And how do you expect me to react when it looked like a strange man made you cry?"

"I still don't agree with that scene you made."

"I'm sorry, but I can't stand to see my precious lapin hurt by anyone." He responded, trailing his unblemished fingers along the younger's warm, scarlet tinted cheek.

"Just don't leave me alone at a public place like that's again. I... I didn't think I depended on you this much but- ack, forget it, I'm just being stupid." The Brit abruptly finished his emotional ramble and quieted.

The corners of Francis' lips raised into a smile and an airy laugh came from his mouth.

"You're not being stupid, if you're stupid for missing me then I'm an utter fool for longing to be by your side. And I'm glad you don't want me to leave, mon trésor, because I wasn't going to even if you asked." He replied, his signature charming smile gracing his lips and making Arthur smile back from his sweet words. Now that, was his Francis.

"You know it's the first time you're the drunk one out of us. But you're still a charming bastard, how's that fair!"

"You really think I'm charming? Ah! I can now rest in peace!" Francis exclaimed, bringing a hand up to his forehead and falling backwards onto the bed melodramatically.

"You're so god damn childish, Francis."

"I can be your daddy too if you want." He purred with a wink for extra effect.

Heat rushed up to Arthur's face, damn, why did he always blush at the most ridiculous things! And how did Francis always turn the most innocent things dirty? He gulped, trying to push his heart back to his chest instead of blocking up his throat like this.

Francis wasn't spared for his comment, he got a weak punch to his arm and a chiding from the embarassed Briton.

The pair were startled by continuous explosion sounds coming from outside. It almost sounded like...

"Fireworks! Ooh, let's go out to the balcony!" Francis suggested, not allowing his boyfriend time to answer before he wrapped his hand around his arm and dragged him away.

The couple stood beside each other, gazing up into the dark midnight sky, the only sound audible being the prickly cold wind. It was a rather cloudy Autumn night so the stars were hidden behind the puffs of grey fluff.

Yet the very thing they came for was absent from the sky, leading Arthur to turn his head and give Francis an unimpressed look.

"Just wait, I'm sure we won't be disappointed." He reassured the younger who looked ready to turn back and leave him.

Francis really was magic, for after he uttered those words the sky was suddenly lit up with multiple bright explosions of colour.

Both the Frenchman and the Englishman stared up in awe at the fireworks, Arthur was never really interested in such things before but with Francis by his side, he almost felt the jitters of the first time.

Watching the fireworks gave him time to think, and that's when an unsettling realisation sparked in his head.

"Francis?"

The French teen noticed his distress and nodded warily.

"You said Bella is Gilbert's cousin, right?" Arthur said.

"Yes, what about it?"

"Does she have two siblings by any chance?"

"Yeah, two brothers called Ned an-..." He abruptly stopped, it now dawned on him what Arthur was getting at.

"Hopefully you two won't meet again at some family reunion," Arthur snickered, trying to alleviate the sense of regret that he knew Francis was feeling. Francis laughed along but the silence that followed was extremely awkward.

Damn, Arthur knew exactly how to ruin perfect moments didn't he?

A particularly strong gust of wind rushed past them, making the pair shiver and prompting Francis to wrap an arm around the sandy blond's shoulders and pull him closer to him.

"You must be freezing in that, let's go back inside." He stated, worried by how the Brit nestled closer into his side for heat.

"What about the fireworks? They're not finished and you really wanted to watch them."

"Your well-being is much more important to me than some stupid fireworks," Francis expressed.

A grin danced along Arthur's lips but he hid his face away from the French's eyes. He shouldn't know that his sappy remarks were making him smile!

Back inside, the couple decided to utilise the resources inside the room instead of letting them collect dust. Mainly, by lounging on the fancy loveseat on the other end of the room.

Arthur was sitting upright like a normal person, mainly because if he tried to sit the way Francis was, gravity wouldn't be too nice with his skirt.

Francis on the other hand, had claimed the whole sofa and Arthur's lap, for he had his legs dangling over the arm on one end and his head resting on his lover's lap.

The funny thing was that subconsciously, Arthur had started toying with Francis' golden hair, astounding the other teen. Though he chose to not point it out unless he wanted to lose what he already had and he was enjoying it too much to do so.

"You know, it's our one week anniversary today." Francis blurted out of the blue.

"Huh?" His hands stopped playing with his hair, making Francis rebuke himself for interrupting the blissful silence.

"You confessed to me last Friday, and it's been a week so it's our one week anniversary since we got together!"

"So what? Come back with this excitement when it's a year anniversary and I might be interested." Arthur countered. Knowing his luck, they might not even make it to a year, but he didn't need to spoil the moment by saying that.

"Come on, it might not be much to celebrate but... You know why I brought this up?"

"Why." The English teen replied indifferently, resuming his fiddling with his hair, making the French blond smile.

"My desire for a long time came true last Friday. To have you as mine, and to be yours. I've never felt so happy in any of my past relationships as I have with you, mon amour. With you, I cherish every second of our relationship, every kiss we share and every thing we do no matter how small." Francis described, staring up to witness Arthur's reaction. The Brit eyes roamed everywhere except meet his, as his cheeks gained a crimson red colour.

Francis sat up and cupped his cheek, forcing him to look at him with those bewitching green eyes.

"You're so cheesy..." Was the only response he could come up with while his mind was running in overdrive from the poetic love confession.

"It's the truth though, I know it may seem like exaggeration but the truth is that it doesn't even begin to cover how I feel about you. Je t'aime du fond de mon cœur(I love you from the bottom of my heart)."

"Stop..." Arthur ordered, covering his face with his hands from embarassment.

"Tu es l'amour de ma vieeeeee!(you are the love of my life!)" Francis announced loudly and proudly, throwing his hands up in the air.

"You're drunk." Arthur deduced, forcing himself to not laugh at the older blond's antics.

"Non, je ne suis pas saoul, je suis juste ivre de vous~((no, I'm not drunk, I'm just intoxicated by you) also I know this is formal so if anyone could correct this to singular you, it would be greatly appreciated))" he grinned, poking his lover's nose affectionately.

"You know when I said you can speak in French with me, I didn't mean you could speak it all the time!" He retorted, crossing his arms and eying the other amusedly.

"Pourquoi pas(Why not)?"

Arthur shot him a threatening look.

"Alright, whatever pleases you, ma chérie." Francis replied with a smile, snuggling into Arthur's side.

"Oi! I'm not a girl!" The Brit proclaimed suddenly.

"Oh so you picked up on that! I am so proud of you, knowing such basic French~"

"Are you learning French for me perhaps?" Francis queried, bringing a hand up to his chest and gasping in faux surprise.

"I've got better things to do than to learn your stupid froggy language!" Arthur returned with a proud harumph.

"Aww but if you learn it then we can converse in French! Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Converse? More like croak back and forth!"

"You just love cracking the frog jokes don't you?" Francis asked, voice toneless but he wasn't actually annoyed at all, rather he was amused.

"I have an endless supply, would you like some more?" Arthur offered, his lips curling into a smirk.

"I'm good!" He spat, but no malice was actually alive in his remark. The conversation was humourous than offensive to him.

They continued to talk and poke fun at each other, only quieting down when they heard some loud commotion from downstairs.

Curious, the pair quickly headed downstairs, and were graced by the presence of Antonio, but his frivolous tomato costume was nowhere in sight, leaving the Spaniard in casual clothing.

"Oh there you two are! The main event just started, you might want to tune in."

"What do you mean?" Francis enquired.

"The judges are discussing the winner, Gil's gonna announce it soon!"

At this Arthur, who was previously annoyed about his time with Francis being interrupted, brightened up and gained a sudden enthusiasm. He linked his arm with Francis' and urged him to hurry to the main hall where Gilbert's strident voice was preaching nonsensically(probably Doitsuism ;).

"You people better have enjoyed this awesome party since it was hosted by the awesome me. I doubt it was anything less than aweso-"

"He's talking rubbish, as usual." The Brit concluded, groaning inside at how conceited the albino was.

"Leave him be, he's did you no harm."

"So far. If he doesn't pick me as the winner then that might change."

Francis gave him a look of disbelief which Arthur caught onto and altered his wording to suit him.

"I mean us, if he doesn't pick us." Arthur corrected himself.

Like that changed much, Francis facepalmed but Arthur was too busy waiting for the results to be announced to notice.

"Right, so let's get onto the part that everyone came to this party for, the winning couple of the costume contest!" The knight announced, the crowd getting louder with anticipation.

Arthur looked up at the judges who were whispering very seriously, while Gilbert looked like he wasn't listening to any of it. In the end, they all nodded and Gilbert stepped up to announce the winner, when he made eye contact with Ned.

He flashed him a cheery smile but he's sure it looked more like a nervous grin. Either way, the Dutchman didn't return it, instead he turned his head away.

Yep, he definitely wasn't in the brunet's good books.

Arthur let out a small gasp as Francis' fingers entwined with his and gave him an encouraging squeeze. Without even looking at him he knew that he saw Arthur's pained expression and was trying to cheer him up.

Arthur grasped the older's hand back affectionately.

"I've discussed it with the other judges and so the winners are..." He waited to create suspense, the crowd growing restless by now.

"Me and Matthew!" He declared with a sneaky smirk.

Everyone in the room fell silent for a millisecond, before the crowd started shouting, not with excitement anymore but rage while the judges stood appalled behind him.

"You can't just pick yourself!" A person from the crowd stated.

"I didn't just pick myself, I also picked Mattie, so your objection is overruled." He remarked haughtily.

The crowd went into uproar at his statement but it didn't bother Gilbert, who started cackling instead.

"Gil! We didn't agree with this!" Ludwig grabbed him by the arm and whispered to him.

"I said I'd make the final decision, right? So I did, why are you all so mad?"

"That didn't mean you could just ignore our suggestions and do whatever you want! At least pick someone else and not yourself!"

"How about n-..." He trailed off as his eyes met Arthur's and he fell mute.

Arthur's eyes were burning like green glow sticks in the dark, his flaring eyes boring into his soul and he swore in that instant, he wasn't fully human.

Gilbert rubbed his eyes then looked again to make sure he wasn't seeing things but his eyes weren't the problem.

The Briton lifted his hand and dragged his pointer finger across his neck, slowly and steadily to really frighten him. He then pointed to him and growled, to let it soak in further.

That did it for the German who cleared his throat and played his little stunt as a 'joke, everyone relax!'

Somehow, even when the Brit was dressed like a clown, he still managed to scare the living daylights out of him. Though... he wouldn't actually kill him right? He better write a note to let people know that Arthur murdered him, just in case he turns up dead without explanation one day.

"Arthur?" He was pulled out of his trance by Francis' concerned voice.

"Hmm?"

"What are you up to?"

"Nothing just..."

Francis looked to him and smiled, tightening his grip on his boyfriend's hand.

Arthur stuck his tongue out, a gesture that spoke 'stop fondling me so much and mind your own business.'

"You know what, I don't think one couple should be the overall winner so how about we have a first, second and third place!" Gilbert proposed, making Ludwig stare at him indignantly and the crowd to start cheering again.

"Gilbert, what are you planning." The younger Beilshmidt sibling questioned.

"Something to save my head from decapitation," he replied eerily, startling the platinum blond.

"The prizes will be given out later since there's some uh... Sorting out to do."

"We'll start from third. The prize is... $1500 and it goes to..." Gilbert started, looking around for someone worthy to pin it on. As he expected, the five thousand dollar promise attracted a lot of people to take part, but that didn't mean they were any good. Either they put no effort into their costumes or they were absolutely hideous actors, so it was a hard choice.

He then spotted a burger and fries in the corner of the room, oh! It was must be Alfred and Kiku, no one else would dress as a burger and agree to dress as fries.

To be fair, their costumes were pretty good, it seemed pretty realistic when you look from a distance. Their acting... Well, they were acting how inanimate objects would so it would have to do.

"Alfred and Kiku!" He shouted, pointing to the pair, who didn't even notice that their names were called out for the prize.

A few people went over to investigate, and found out that the pair were asleep. After being shook awake from his uncomfortable slumber and told the 'good news', Alfred was unresponsive for a few seconds before his sky blue eyes lit up and he suddenly gained all the energy in the world, like he hadn't just woken up.

"Did ya hear that Keeks! We won! Keeks, we won! We actually won! I knew it'd work, you didn't believe but you see, this is why you listen to your elde-" Alfred interrupted himself, his selective hearing zoning out Kiku's pathetic comment of "I'm older than you," and focusing on the older blond who advised him in the first place.

In an instant, his attention moved from the Japanese male to the English one.

"Omg thank you dude I really should listen to my elders more too, you're so old and wise, you must have so much knowledge stocked away!"

"... Okay?"

"Does this mean I'm now in debt to you? How could I ever repay you? Would ten Big Mac's be enough?" Alfred asked excitedly, Kiku finally catching up to him and trying to drag him away. He was officially done with his bullshit for today.

"How about we talk about that later?" Arthur suggested, pushing the enthusiastic North American away from him, obviously not interested in talking while his money was on the line. It was hard work, pushing that bull of a man but Kiku did most of the work for him by dragging him away.

"Okay, moving on." Gilbert announced, drawing back everyone's attention.

"Second place of um... $2500, goes to..." His eyes moved to see how the demon situation was holding up and he quickly realised that he was treading on thin ice from Arthur's uncannily sweet smile.

If he gave them first, Ned would get mad at him but if he didn't would he be endangered? He knew his cousin was a force to be reckoned with when mad, Arthur didn't seem far off.

Fuck it.

"Francis and Arthur!" He finished, he felt like a burden was lifted off him when he saw the Brit wasn't staring anymore, hopefully it didn't look like he was melting anxiously under the Brit's icy stare.

The couple merely exchanged glances before Arthur grasped the collar of his boyfriend's shirt and pulled him down for a passionate kiss.

The people around them cheered, some even wolf whistling at the public display of affection while some others cringed.

The ones that didn't know they were a couple however, did a double take to make sure they were seeing right. The pair that threatened to rip each others guts out on a daily basis were swallowing each others mouths now?

"When did you gain so much courage to kiss me in front of all these people?" Francis whispered breathlessly once they'd seperated.

"I need to show them you're mine, right?" Arthur stated, sounding a bit too much like his polar opposite.

"I think I'm influencing you too much," Francis laughed.

"Are you complaining?"

"Never in a million years, mon cœur." He responded with a smile.

Arthur's cherished five thousand dollars went to a couple they didn't know, a Tolys and Natasha who were meant to be partners in crime. They were deserving of the prize, they were who the judges had picked in the first place after all.

The Brit probably would have scowled at them, if only he'd stayed behind a little longer to see who had won. Before that, he and Francis had evacuated the area, and rushed back to their little hideout to continue what Arthur had started earlier.

************Time Skip!************

After Arthur bickered back and forth with Gilbert about the prize amount, the German finally gave in and the sneaky pair had pocketed three thousand five hundred, an extra thousand from what they were entitled to.

Soon after graciously accepting their reward, Arthur started complaining that it was late and that he was exhausted and that they had to go home immediately. The party hadn't even finished, but Francis being the understanding boyfriend he is, decided to fulfil his request and call it a night. Francis knew that it was just an act to leave, since his purpose of being there was over.

Once they got home, Arthur was quick to change out of the outfit that had been haunting him for a while and scrubbed his makeup off, delighted to be free of his feminine curse.

It was two in the morning and Francis was nearly dozing off on the couch when Arthur returned to the living room with two steaming mugs; one for Francis and one for Arthur, filled with coffee and tea respectively.

"I thought you were exhausted, now you're drinking tea and looking as energetic as possible!"

"Well I'm happy after winning, could you blame me?" Arthur responded, taking a sip of his tea that was visibly scalding hot. It never ceased to amaze him how the Brit didn't react to the temperature of the drink.

Francis took his mug into his hands and took a small sip, wincing as the hot, bitter liquid touched his tongue. It's not like he didn't know coffee was bitter, usually that was his favourite part of a cup of coffee but not this bitter! He speculated that the Briton hadn't added enough sugar since he doesn't add any for his own tea.

He had a lot more to learn about making the perfect cup of coffee but he truly appreciated him trying his best for him.

"We never decided who the better actor was." Francis said, placing his mug back down and looking towards the blond interestedly.

"Oh yeah. I mean, how are we supposed to decide who won anyway?"

"I have to say though, your acting was actually entertaining. I could never imagine you acting like that, you actually gave me chills from how different you were from your usual self. I definitely underestimated you," Francis disclosed, sounding like an acting instructor complimenting a pupil.

"Well... Your acting wasn't half bad either... It was... Nice." Arthur admitted. The truth was, it was much more than just nice, but he couldn't say all that was going through his head!

"That's sweet of you! You must have struggled a lot to get that compliment out your mouth hmm?"

"Oh shut your pie hole Francis." The English blond returned, making Francis smile and zip his mouth with his fingers imaginarily.

"Anyway, the actor question. Maybe... Maybe it's not necessary, maybe we can agree that we were both good actors in our own way."

"That sounds like the cheesy ending to a children's cartoon show."

"Sometimes cartoon shows can give really good advice." The French countered.

"Yeah, that's why kids grow up killing and doing drugs, right?" Arthur avowed back.

"They're obviously watching the wrong channel then, they should watch my show!"

"Oh god no, you're probably going to teach them about cooking and sex."

"Why of course! Those are the only two things humanity needs to survive, non? Cooking for food and sex for procreation. I'll teach them the fun way, of course." The older blond added, laughing inside at the way Arthur's face soured like spoiled milk.

"I seriously hope you won't be raising any kids in the future," Arthur stated, he couldn't fathom the sort of stuff he'd teach them.

"Do you not want kids?

"I was talking about you, idiot, not me!"

"If you don't want kids we don't have to have any but I think it'd be nice!" He answered, totally ignoring his statement.

Arthur didn't blush like he expected him to which was a tad unnerving. Instead he stilled, face expressionless before it darkened. He pondered something for a while before asking:

"...Do you think ahead like this with every one of your partners?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, you seem pretty confident that this relationship will actually last that long," he replied painfully.

"Why, do you not think so?" Francis asked.

"Well highschool relationships don't tend to be lifelong relationships, more like something to keep you entertained during these torturous years."

"'Don't tend to'. Which means there's still a chance that it can be the real deal. I'll take it, however slim, because I want to be with you for the rest of my life."

"You're just saying that now, you'll change your mind after a while. It's just human nature, after all." The Briton said, sighing deeply.

"Arthur. I don't know what's made you lose your faith in love but you really need to trust more. I know the future may seem hazy and nothing's set in stone, but believing a relationship isn't going to work out will lead you to not put any effort in, which will lead it to not work out. Let your fear go and let fate go the way it goes." The Frenchman told him, grabbing his hands that were resting on his lap and intertwining their fingers.

"And no, I don't think like this for every one of my relationships. I have before, I'll admit, but now I realise they were just stepping stones to you. It's silly but I've planned my whole life with you to the point that it feels more like a memory," He lifted the hands gently up to his mouth and kissed them.

"What makes you so sure I'm not a stepping stone too?" The younger contended sharply, pulling his hands back towards him forcefully but Francis didn't let go.

"Because the trail ends here, this is my destination and I'm satisfied with what I have."

Arthur didn't look too convinced as he hung his head and averted his eyes.

"Arthur." Francis called, grabbing the other male's attention.

"Do you love me?"

"Um... Well..." He muddled over his words, why was it so hard to say what he felt?!

"... Yeah." He murmured, fiddling with his thumbs anxiously.

Even though there was so much hesitation in Arthur's voice, Francis beamed nonetheless. He knew it was just how the blond was, hopefully he could teach him to be more free about his feelings with time.

"And I love you, so for now, forget all your worries and believe we will be fine. As long as our love is mutual, I know we'll be fine."

He held his breath as he waited patiently to witness Arthur's reaction. After a while he sighed in relief when he saw Arthur nodding, a small smile tugging at his lips.

Francis swiped away the bangs of sandy blond hair in front of the younger's forehead to place a chaste kiss there, noticing how his usually pale skin was red and hot, he always blushed so easily.

"Now then, how about we go sleep, it's nearly three and I'm tired." Francis admitted, a yawn escaping his mouth and proving his point.

"Go sleep then, I'm not tired." The Briton argued, trying his best to not submit to the contagious yawn.

"Says the person who insisted he was exhausted and wanted to go home immediately. Even if it was an act, you still gotta come to bed with me," Francis demanded getting up and giving him a hand.

Arthur groaned but he still accepted the hand, making the French blond chuckle.

That night the pair got little to no sleep as they had drank caffeinated liquids that insisted they stay awake. Well, it was more like since Francis couldn't sleep, he didn't allow his poor boyfriend to get some shut eye either.

Arthur didn't mind though, but he broadcasted his disapproval well, remembering to insert it into the conversation every five minutes about how Francis wouldn't allow him to sleep. By the end the French boy felt guilty and allowed him to sleep.

It didn't last long before Arthur stated he couldn't get to sleep anymore and the couple continued their bantering back and forth till the early rays of sunlight creeped in through the windows.

By morning, both had slowly drifted off to sleep, the events of the day finally taking its toll on the pair.

As sleep took him, Francis decided that his next mission was to find out why the Brit had little faith in love and what could have possibly influenced him. It didn't feel like simple naivety due to lack of experience, rather it felt like he was talking from a bad one. And so, it was his duty to find out what this experience was.

He just hoped he didn't mess up in the process. He was dealing with the Brit after all, one wrong move and everything might explode.

~

*When Feli says 'Juliet is getting rather hot', he means Arthur's getting angry. Hot was a term they used in Shakespearean times instead of angry, I'm pretty sure. If not, feel free to correct me!

Also you might have guessed already but Sebastiano is Seborga and Ned is the Netherlands. I was very uncreative when I found out they had no official human names :P

Y'all must be disappointed in me haha don't worry I am too.

I hope this long ass chapter is not too bad, I know you must be disappointed though... It's a bit of a mess and I didn't update when I should have, I'm very late.

I'm sorry but I don't think I can fulfil my promise of six chapters before summer ends, I'm on holiday my mother expects me to stay off my phone and... talk with people *shudders*

Not to mention, the WiFi here is absolute shit so I can barely get onto Wattpad sometimes!

Though on a slightly good-ish note, this chapter is more than 18,000 words long! Did it feel long cause it did to me writing it XD

I hope you enjoyed reading but if you didn't, that's totally fine too.

Either way, have an awesome day and if you're staying up late to read this, then I wish you the sweetest of dreams.