[Archive] The Wellington Declaration [USA]

[New Zealand]

Nov 4, 2010

Will watched as Murray McCully (MP for Foreign Affairs) and Hillary Clinton (US Secretary of State) signed an agreement that was called "The Wellington Declaration" by everyone else. Will didn't care about what it was called; he cared about what it meant. To all these politicians it meant that their Governments could work together more closely, and it was almost like the last quarter century didn't happen. To Will, it meant that he was getting his brother back, and that was much more important to him than the political implications of the Declaration. He was glad his boss didn't know what he was thinking or he might've told him off for not paying attention.

He listened as the various points of the agreement were mentioned, and mentally filed them away as something important. What he was really looking forward to now was talking to Alfred after the meetings were over. Family was very important to Will now that he had one (everyone he'd considered family before being colonised grew old and died on him), and he had really hated the situation he and Alfred had been put in after New Zealand's sea borders were tightened due to the anti-nuclear laws and policies passed in the 1980s.

He hated the "disagreements" they'd had over the last quarter century: arguing over dropping the nuclear ban (the response to this was always "no!"), arguing over US Navy ships being denied entry to NZ because they wouldn't declare if there was nuclear material on board or not, and that undercurrent of awkwardness that seemed to be present at social gatherings they attended.

Today, however, felt different. Will hoped this different feeling was a good thing as he preferred to get along with his family than fight with them. There was exceptions to this in the past, but that was back in the 19th Century when England was establishing his authority over Will and his people.

Suddenly he heard people applauding, and realised the last of the speeches were over. It was the end of the formal side of the event and finally he could excuse himself to go looking for Alfred.

"Excuse me, please." Will said to his boss, and he nodded. "Thank you."

There were a lot of people moving around in the room, but Will wasn't worried about him or Alfred getting lost in the crowd. He could sense Alfred's presence (there was this feeling you got when other nations were present) and just had to keep following that presence. He moved through a group of people, and finally saw Alfred!

He hurried over before either of them could be whisked away by their bosses.

"Hey Al!" Will said. "It's good to see you. That was a good meeting, aye!"

[aniskywolf]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,180,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top] It's time for unity For us and we That's you and me, together

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,480,true][atrb=width,20%][atrb=vAlign,top] THE DATE IS NOVEMBER 4, 2010 ...And the United States and New Zealand are currently re-establishing ties after the breaking of the ANZUS agreement. With old, hostile feelings aside, both countries celebrate the reunion. Wellington, New Zealand, Oceania

     By god did he hate meetings. He didn't care what it was about, he just come to hate them. His restless nature prevented him from sitting still for long periods of time–and if the subject was just dull, become tired and almost fall asleep. There was always someone around him that would nudge him to remind him where he was and why, and to remain on his best behavior, much like how an adult would tell their child to behave on a formal outing. To be frank Alfred did have this sort of child mentality, and as such he was often treated as one by the most elderly people within the government. Indeed, the stiff suit didn't help. While he agreed he looked better in one... couldn't they be more comfortable?!

     This meeting was no exception. When the blond began to slouch, the elderly Secretary of State tapped him on the back slightly to usher him to sit up, to which he immediately responded, a sigh escaping him. She gave him a sidelong glare and he felt this sort of feeling in his stomach that he should just listen, the sternness of the look being felt. Ah, she was a woman bound to her job and would faithfully carry it out. As Clinton was in charge of foreign affairs she was to do everything in her power to try and make things like this work, even if it meant putting the country she was working for in place by simply looking at him sternly. She was a passionate woman (as demonstrated in her Presidential campaign), but right now her passion was within making this work, and it was obvious she was leaving little room for any mishaps that could come about. Alfred simply complied to whatever her looks were giving him. Ms. Clinton could be pretty damn scary when she wanted to.

     Still he was fidgeting somewhat, but not because he was hyper or because he just had a bundle of stored energy (in fact such stored energy was being drained away as the years passed. The last few years were taking their toll slowly), but more because of the fact that he was finally making amends with a country that he had formally been on good terms with. He found the problems that had separated them to be kind of trivial, but whatever. Politicians and such argued about the silliest things (then again, so did he. Often). Now he was officially allowed to resume good communications with the island nation. He If anything, America was quite eager to chat away at William's ear. He wanted to get all the formal junk out of the way so that he could finally be able to talk freely. Right now he was just being there to look pretty. He looked on anxiously as the signings and speeches were being made. Almost there. He hated how long these sort of things were sometimes. His nature was to always be moving about, not sitting or standing still for too long. He was always on the move, and his soul hated to be tied down.

     Finally, by some mercy of a higher being freeing him of his torture of being tied down a mere seat, it was finally over. Loud applause snapped him from nearly dozing off as everything wrapped up. Well then.. cool. So now it was official. The events of the previous quarter century were finally put behind. Now they can move on! Standing, a placid look overtook his usually overly bright face as he pondered about what this all meant. He enjoyed the feeling of getting over the pass and moving on. There were very few times when such was true. This wasn't like some treaty that ended a war, where ill-feelings would linger on for years. Oh no, this was different. They were simply establishing old ties with a friend that were broken before. There were defiantly no ill feelings here. Secretary Clinton smiled at him and nodded, wanting him to go and mingle with the populace. With a soft grin he nodded back, and lost himself in the crowd. A familiar voice was turned and blue eyes scanned around to look for the face that matched the voice. His head turned in the direction of the other blond and his face lit up with delight.

"Hey Al! That was a good meeting, aye!"

Walking over to the other he waved and made a wide grin. "Sure was!" Says the one who almost fell asleep again, "Long time no see, huh~?" he said, his tone cheery and somewhat playful as he was once again face-to-face with the island nation, "Well.. I guess things are back to normal from now on?"

     Ah, New Zealand. America had always wondered why he ended up being such good friends with former colonies of his empire; like Australia, who's alliance is comparative of best friends, and Canada, who by all means was his brother. Interesting how things worked out. In the end they all shared a common origin, and at the end of the day it was one of the very things that linked America to all these Commonwealth nations. Their people were friendly with each other, their histories are similar in some aspects (even though it was America who had to be different and be the only colony who broke free though fighting), and when it came down to the politics, things were pretty much good.

Alfred barely got to speak with William face-to-face like this, and so he was elated to be able to do so now. The grin on his face simply showed how much he was feeling. He never lied about how he felt, and now was no exception. This was no lie, this was great! He held out a hand with a soft smile, offering a handshake. Well, this was it.

"Nice to see ya~" genuinly, "I believe we have some catching up to do!"

---

• How this is so long I don't know I'M SORRY ;o;

[New Zealand]

"Well.. I guess things are back to normal from now on?"

"Yeah bro, I think our bosses are finally done with being dick-heads about everything." Will smiled at Al. "I would've preferred them to be sensible about all of this sooner, to be honest. Don't they realise they're breaking up families when they pull this kind of crap?"

Cripes, that was blunt as. As soon as Will said it he wondered if he should've been that blunt. Sometimes being too blunt got him into trouble, but other times it worked out well. At least you always know where you stand if the person you're dealing with is willing to speak their mind, and you doesn't have to second-guess everything that comes out of their mouth. They say what they mean, and mean what they say.

He did mean what he said about the last 25 years breaking up family. He didn't think any of their bosses realised that being in the same Empire/Commonwealth (albeit at different times) as other nations created family ties as well as professional ties to each other. He'd missed how things were between him and Alfred before all this crap started, and it was all because both his and Alfred's bosses were as stubborn as each other. He was quite proud of his bosses sticking to their guns over not allowing nuclear anything into his country, but unfortunately Alfred's bosses were equally as stubborn over the whole thing and refused to declare what needed declaring. But that's all behind them now.

"Nice to see ya~ I believe we have some catching up to do!"

"Oh, hell yeah! I don't know if we have time to stop and chat here though." Will said as he shook Al's hand. He noticed that Al looked a little more tired than he remembered, but then again he'd been through a lot especially in the last decade or so what with the attacks on his country and the War on Terror that followed. The oil spill earlier in the year probably didn't help either.

Will looked around the room and saw that it was full of officials, security staff and so on. So impersonal and stuffy a place to stay in and chat.

"We'll have to go to the Banquet Hall soon. There's one more formal part to the day, but I don't think either of us have to do anything other than relax and mingle. After that there's a barbecue at my boss's house." Will said.

It looked like the room was starting to empty out a little so perhaps people were starting to move to the Banquet Hall already. He was starting to feel a little hungry, and hoped there would be snacks in there at least. He was looking forward to the barbecue more than the Banquet Hall event since it would finally be something informal after all the formality of today. He also wanted to get out of the suit he was wearing and chuck on something more casual like shorts and a T-shirt.

"Think we can ditch the formal outfits for the barbecue, Al? I bloody hate wearing suits all the time."

---

Found more on the day's itinerary here: A Day in the Life of Hillary Clinton.

Sadly all the formal crap isn't completely over yet! D:

[aniskywolf]

"Yeah bro, I think our bosses are finally done with being dick-heads about everything. I would've preferred them to be sensible about all of this sooner, to be honest. Don't they realise they're breaking up families when they pull this kind of crap?"

Alfred blinked a bit as his eyes cast off to the side, his hand fisting in front of his mouth and clearing his throat slightly as his grin weakened for moment. "I can think of worse ways..." He of all would know, although as soon as his grin and mood faltered, he was quick to recover and cover it with a relaxed look and continued, "... but I'm sure they're not that ignorant about it. They probably did... but did it anyway. Gotta do what ya gotta do, which sucks half the time!" He huffed and crossed his arms.

He may not speak with New Zealand a whole lot, he enjoyed the times that they did get to speak. It wasn't like a flight across the Atlantic that only took a few hours. Seeing him again made him feel elated. It was like seeing the friend you haven't seen in years. Here, that was exactly the case. They perhaps had much to converse and banter about. Knowing Alfred, he'd be William's ear-worm for the day, if not the entirety of the Americans' presence on the island. He was going to take advantage of every second, of course. Seeing his friend was rare and times in between were very large. After the bitterness that was there before between their countries, it seemed like things were finding better ground to stand on.

"Oh, hell yeah! I don't know if we have time to stop and chat here though."

Looking around, he could see why. "I gotcha... yeah.." He pouted slightly. "Man, they loooove just... pulling at my strings!"

Man, once you feel like were done for the day, you could always count on someone to slap you in the face with "hey, there's more to come". He could groan in frustration at the notion of such but he refrained. Since it was coming from William he felt that he could control himself a bit better than with personnel. It was odd, Alfred had almost three different mindsets: one that was comparative to a child, one that was comparative to his physical age of an older teenager, and one that was actually wise and typical of one who has lived beyond normal human years. The former was the most common and the last was the most rare. During meetings... it was easy to say that he kind of brought up all three of these mindsets.

"We'll have to go to the Banquet Hall soon. There's one more formal part to the day, but I don't think either of us have to do anything other than relax and mingle. After that there's a barbecue at my boss's house."

"... Oh? Just a banquet?" He said, a bit surprised. "That ain't too bad then, huh~? I can deal."

And when there was a banquet, there was food~. He could go for something to much on. It was no surprise that America was a glutton, and hopefully Ms. Clinton wouldn't beat him with a spoon or something to get him to stop hogging all the food (after all, she's the one that runs the relationship with her husband). Though something poked at Alfred's interest from what William had to say.

"Think we can ditch the formal outfits for the barbecue, Al? I bloody hate wearing suits all the time."

"I could NOT agree more!" He said, sounding so elated at the fact someone actually thought the same way as he did, "As much as I hate suits... I can't... really... talk smack about'em, if you know what I mean." He shrugged a bit. They were wearing them after all.

Suits. Ugh. While not the bane of his existence, he preferred not to wear them for long periods of time. Yeah, suits can be fitted to be more comfortable, but they never really were. They were meant for a sophisticated, stiff look. Of course, it was not only in the fit, but in your taste of fashion as well. Alfred found himself to be quite sharp in a suit, feeling as if he could have all the ladies swoon or something. This though was just up to matter of opinion, and of course, America had the highest opinion of himself, Adjusting the jacket and cuffs he felt himself wanting to roam about, despite the fact slowly he was growing uncomfortable with the suit a bit. He looked back at William and grinned.

"Well then, you said it, let's head over there~" He chimed, trying to grab William's wrist tightly so that he may haul him into the Banquet. Impatient was one word for it. "The sooner we get there the sooner we get out, eh~?"

Next stop, the hall!

[New Zealand]

"I can think of worse ways... but I'm sure they're not that ignorant about it. They probably did... but did it anyway. Gotta do what ya gotta do, which sucks half the time!"

"Yeah, that's true." Will thought about that for a moment. "At least it worked out well this time for everyone. I would've hated to see something like this drag on for even more generations."

Will also saw the look on Al's face in the middle of that before he hid it again, and realised he must've thought of when he broke away from Arthur for a moment. Will's people had tried to do something similar when he was smaller and seemed to be succeeding until Arthur turned up with an army and defeated them. At the time them being defeated and what happened afterwards was terrible, but in hindsight it might be one of the best things that could've happened to his country. His attention returned to Al when he had to explain that the day wasn't over yet, and there was more to come.

"... Oh? Just a banquet? That ain't too bad then, huh~? I can deal."

Will nodded in response and remembered that food was one of the things Al loved. He was also feeling a bit hungry himself. It had been a long day so far, and this part of the day would be a lot easier on everyone than the meetings before it. He had looked over a few times during the meetings and noticed Al fidgeting a little like he was having trouble staying focused. Towards the end of the meeting Will's mind had started to wander too, and this part of the day would definitely be better for their attention spans. Surely even nations like them can't be expected to focus on work for the entire day without some kind of break?

"I could NOT agree more! As much as I hate suits... I can't... really... talk smack about'em, if you know what I mean."

"Finally, someone other than Oz who feels the same way I do! Does Matt feel the same way too? And yeah, I know what you mean. For some reason people only seem to take you seriously at work when you wear a suit."

Will was stoked that Al was on the same wavelength as the two of them. Did Arthur's urging to become "gentlemen" like him make all of his former colonies hate formal wear with a vengeance? Well, his lessons on being gentlemanly weren't a complete loss where Will was concerned at least. Will didn't hate tea, and he was sure he still had an English accent hiding in him somewhere since his people only stopped using English accents in the media a few decades ago. Not that he'd ever use it. Why give his bro across the ditch even more reason to jokingly call him a "South Seas Pom"? "Terms of Endearment" like sheep-shagger were annoying enough without adding that to the mix.

"Well then, you said it, let's head over there~ The sooner we get there the sooner we get out, eh~?"

Before Al had even finished talking he'd managed to drag Will into the Banquet Hall using that super-strength of his. He must be just as keen as Will for the formal side of the day to end. Well, that and the food, of course. Somehow Will had managed to snag a couple of glasses of wine from someone as they entered the room, and offered one of them to Al. They'd entered the room just in time for the speeches to begin. Luckily they didn't have to stand with their bosses in here or it would've been obvious that they were almost late for this part of the day.

---

* Sorry I took so long getting this post written up! ^^;

[aniskywolf]

"Yeah, that's true. At least it worked out well this time for everyone. I would've hated to see something like this drag on for even more generations."

     Simply he nodded in agreement. People were fussy over the weirdest things, and while Alfred never had a problem with hating people for long periods of time, for something like this it was kind of meaningless. Truthfully America didn't really have anything against New Zealand, even after that whole event. Yeah there was a small bit of bitterness but it was nothing that would stay rooted in him forever. He had almost forgotten about it now, and that was probably for the best. No point in remembering things you got over really. That was the past and this was the now. A renewing of friendship was the sweet present that Alfred hoped to always live in.

"Finally, someone other than Oz who feels the same way I do! Does Matt feel the same way too? And yeah, I know what you mean. For some reason people only seem to take you seriously at work when you wear a suit."

Pffft, Matt. "Course he doesn't!" he whined. "He's like Arthur's clone sometimes... with a hint of Francis." And what a combination that was.

      Despite being twins, him and Matthew had their stark differences, even if no one else saw them (literally). America was loud and a leader, Matthew was quiet and never seemed to stand out. America ditched all forms of British English and settled for the version Noah Webster had come up with, while Canada had his own variant known as "Canadian English"... which was really just British English... except Canadian. As colonies, America was more prone to outbursts of rebellion while Matthew kind of stayed quiet and abided by England's laws. Of course he would, and Alfred never understood why. He never cared to really think about it. Not even now as he simply stated what had really been obvious to him, not really thinking about the matter too well. Brothers always tended to hide things from each other, no matter how close they were. This was the case with everybody, though.

     Upon arriving to the hall, William had brought him some wine. Hm, been a while since he really drank anything. He grinned and accepted the offer with a "thanks". Oh, what a surprise, speeches. Geez, how long were people going to keep up with these things? Uninterested, he looked over to William and sighed a bit.

"Sometimes I feel like they can't just not... have speeches. Like really, is it so hard?" He sighed deeply after and tilted his head at the one speaking. "When will it be time to finally sit down and eaaaat~? I can't to listen to these anymore." a childish whine escaped him. Typical.

     Bored he took a seat and crossed his leg, sipping the wine and closing one eye as he did, looking rather bored. Hey, at least he wasn't having to sit and listen to people lecture all the damn time. That just ain't right. But at least, now he had the opportunity to settle down a bit and stretch his sore body. A body that everyone was watching intently to drop the wrong that was sitting precariously on his shoulders as his gripped slipped every day. The firm hold he once had was no longer there, and no matter how hard he was now trying his hands were becoming more slippery as the weight just seemed to increase. The same could be said with the affairs within his own country. Neither he would admit, seem weak he would not. Instead he acted like everything was fine, everything was clearly not. He wasn't sure when it started, but he more cared on when it would end. He enjoyed his power but the longer he had it the more it seemed it was taking over his mind. He never regretted taking Arthur's place in world dominance, but simply regretted having to take the world's blame.

      If the economy faltered, it was his fault. If the world was seemingly creeping it's way into chaos, it was his fault. All his, and he couldn't defend himself. He was now the world's scapegoat, whether it was out of jealousy or fear that everyone made him such, his position as the last superpower required that he run everything, managed everything, decide everything. Everything, everything, no ands, ifs, or buts. Once the world would fall from his shoulders, well, perhaps it would also be his fault that everyone scrambled to pick it up for themselves.

     Even when the real culprit was the greed hiding within everyone's hearts. Failing to admit such, they'd just blame him. That was always the reason

      Running his fingers through his hair he was oddly quiet for a good few minutes, something that was very odd for such a chatty young man. Blinking he shook his head to snap him from his thoughts, from a neutral face to a grinning one he looked over at William.

"Hey," he started off. "think this'll last a while?" The question was innocent enough.

     It was if an old Cold War paranoia was creeping in again. Once more he found himself worried that his alliances weren't going to last. With everything that was going on, the failing economy, the war on terror, everything, he felt that there was going to be a day when his allies were just going to decide enough was enough and one by one leave him. Even countries he was simply friendly with he felt were going to follow the same pattern. He hated being alone. He always did, and this fear plagued him during his tensions with the USSR, and here they were again, even if it was less prominent. And while he kept the grin as he asked the question, underneath it all he felt somewhat worried. They weren't quite allies, but they were closer than friends now. So maybe it would? He drank more of his wine as he closed both eyes, thinking. It was rare for him to be so... placid, but when he was truly content, you knew.

---

• Noah Webster resented the English and felt that if America should be "truly" independent, they needed their own form of English. So in 1828 he he published the An American Dictionary of the English Language. Prior to this, his speller books taught five generations of children in the US how to spell and read, and made their education more secular and less religious. Now he's known as the "father of American scholarship and education". Explains the whole "learned not learnt" thing.
  
• Sorry for the wait! D8
  

[New Zealand]

"Course he doesn't! He's like Arthur's clone sometimes... with a hint of Francis."

Will chuckled at the "Arthur's clone" part, and it was true enough. Matt always seemed so gentle and well-behaved at the Empire meetings back when he, Will and Alex were part of Arthur's Empire, and even now at Commonwealth and World Meetings Matt rarely made a peep without being spoken to first or asked a question.

"It's like Matt thinks Arthur will notice him more if he behaves well and is agreeable, and it really isn't working out for him. If Matt would only realise that and just be himself it'd probably make his life easier." Will sighed. "I'm probably being too blunt again, but I don't see why you should have to change who you are to please Arthur. He seems to accept me and Alex the way we are, so I don't see why Matt should be any different."

Sometimes Will wondered if Arthur still had a hold of some sort over the other nations he formerly "owned" even though his days of being an Empire were long over. Now he wondered if that might be why Matt acts the way he does around Arthur. Will was pretty certain that Arthur had no physical or emotional hold over him aside from him considering Arthur as family. His boss had made sure Arthur had no political hold over him either in the 1980s. He didn't consider Arthur fearsome either, and even if he did he wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing it. He had always been taught that warriors go into battle with confidence and without fear by his people before Arthur came, and Will applied that to his dealings with other nations both in wartime and in peacetime as best he could.

"Sometimes I feel like they can't just not... have speeches. Like really, is it so hard? When will it be time to finally sit down and eaaaat~? I can't to listen to these anymore."

Will heard the whine in Al's voice, and quickly glanced at his watch. Unfortunately for them it wasn't quite time to go and get ready for the next part of the day: the barbecue at Premier House. He was getting just as tired of all the speeches as Al. Did they really need to keep talking like this? Don't they ever run out of things to say? He knew they wouldn't. Bosses never run out of things to say at events like this.

"It's too early to finish up here and go, and I wish I knew when all the speeches will end." Will leaned back in his chair to try to relax a bit. A moment later he sat up again, and quickly set what was left of his wine aside. In the two months after the quake he'd re-learned what an aftershock of any magnitude felt like for him, and sure enough his hands trembled for a few seconds after he let go of the glass. After that he picked up his wine glass and finished it off before setting it aside again. "Once our bosses stop talking and start mingling with everyone else it's closer to the end of this. I can't wait for that."

Will leaned back in his chair again and closed his eyes. There was a lull in the conversation so he took the moment to rest a little bit, and let the noise of the speeches and other people talking during them just wash over him. He opened his eyes again when he heard Al speak.

"Hey, think this'll last a while?"

"I'm hoping this'll last a hell of a lot longer than a while." Will said, and he truly meant it. He didn't want to go through anything like this again, and he considered Al family. Whether Al felt the same way or not he didn't know. "I think of you, Alex, Matt and Arthur as family, and I don't want to lose any of you. My people believe that the whanau (family) is what you draw strength from, and you can go to them if you have nowhere else to go. My door is always open to all four of you no matter what."

Crap. Had he said too much, or said exactly enough? It was true that he thought of Al, Arthur, Alex and Matt as his family. They were there for him and he was there for them no matter what. They also were the first family he'd been part of that didn't grow old and die on him, and he loved them for it. He wasn't sure what Al would think or say about him opening up like that but it was how he felt, and for once he came out and said it instead of keeping it to himself.

---

• "no political hold" is referring to the Constitution Act 1986 which removed the UK's right to pass laws with the consent of NZ's Parliament.
  
• "the quake" is referring to the first Canterbury Earthquake that happened in September 2010. Aftershocks of varying amounts and severity continued right through to the second earthquake in February 2011, and are still occurring over a month after the second quake.
  
• Using my secondary text colour for better readability.
  
• How on Earth did this turn out so long? o:
  
• Sorry for the wait! D:

[aniskywolf]

"It's like Matt thinks Arthur will notice him more if he behaves well and is agreeable, and it really isn't working out for him. If Matt would only realise that and just be himself it'd probably make his life easier. I'm probably being too blunt again, but I don't see why you should have to change who you are to please Arthur. He seems to accept me and Alex the way we are, so I don't see why Matt should be any different."

He looked at William rather curiously, a but surprised he actually had said that. He shrugged a bit. "Well, Matt's always been the calmer of the two of us, I'll admit that." He started off. "I don't think he's the kind of guy who wants to try and impress others. He's always content how he is." He took a sip of the wine in his glass, putting it to the side then looking up at the ceiling, thinking. "You guys are the 'good kids'." His blue eyes met with Will's green. "Of course he'll accept you for who you are." Slanting his eyes to the side slightly he shifted in his seat. "Ah, sorry if that sounded weird~" He rubbed his neck slightly, wondering where that statement had even come from in the first place.

      Once upon a time, Alfred had been a well-behaved lad. It wasn't until after the French-Indian War in which things started to change. He acted differently and in the end he had to take his independence by force. The whole event had all been so sudden it was if he blinked and he was suddenly his own country. Though, he never thought of Arthur the same again. Taking another sip of the wine he wondered to himself how all these commonwealth nations... stayed on good terms with him. America found it so hard and yet they found it so easy. He felt jealous of this, but in the end he told himself he didn't care. They had all asked for their sovereignty while America asked and was flat out denied. Was it because he asked too early? Maybe, but in the end he fought tooth and nail and now he was where he was on top of the world. Canada, he thought, wasn't trying so much to be noticed by Arthur, but instead he wanted to try and be himself so that maybe that way, he would stick out. America thought Canada didn't much care about that anymore. Maybe once he did, but America hadn't spoken to his brother for a while after he had gained independence. God knew what had changed between Canada and England.

"It's too early to finish up here and go, and I wish I knew when all the speeches will end. Once our bosses stop talking and start mingling with everyone else it's closer to the end of this. I can't wait for that."

"Maybe if we have a little more fun with this, time'll go faster!" He chimed cheerfully. "Nooow... what could we do with this... hmm... there's not a lot of fun with this to begin with." He thought, but didn't give up on the idea. "Geez, you know it's dull when you can't think of anything to make it not-dull." Dear lord.

America hated meetings. Hated'em, hated'em. Well, at least meetings with his bosses. Eugh, there was never any fun with them. Now, world conferences with other nations and no humans, now, those were the best. Anything went and anything could happen. They were exciting, they let him say whatever he wanted and he wasn't scolded by one of his bosses. Well, he was scolded, but they were by other nations. That in itself was better. He could honestly not give a flipping shit about what everyone else thought. His opinions were his, and with his standing, he felt like he could get away with half of the stuff he said. Oh, those were always the best. Yet now, now this was just annoying as hell. Maybe nations should be used to long hours of listening to stuff like this with their ages, but that didn't change the fact they were just the most boring things ever. Sooo damn annoying. He was afraid of getting any one of their voices stuck in his head.

"I'm hoping this'll last a hell of a lot longer than a while. I think of you, Alex, Matt and Arthur as family, and I don't want to lose any of you. My people believe that the whanau is what you draw strength from, and you can go to them if you have nowhere else to go. My door is always open to all four of you no matter what."

With that reassurance, a soft smile appeared on his face. One that held genuine contentment rather than the wide obnoxious grin that he was famous for. "Thanks." he said softly, feeling genuinely happy for once. It had been too long since he felt this way. "I... I need that." He brushed his wild hair behind his ear. "The 'whanau' is a strong thing." He felt like he was mispronouncing that tricky little word.

While the rest of the world shut the last superpower away, the more lonely he felt. He wasn't able to visit Canada as often anymore, every other nation seemed to hate him or just used him. There was a large burden he had to carry for such a young man as well as a young nation. Had he simply grew up to fast? No, no, that wasn't it. He wasn't sure why he ended up with all this, but he didn't care. He felt it was his moral duty to tackle these problems head on as any hero should. No, not hero, but like any Good Samaritan. He wanted to help the world settle down and create peace, yet his actions always brushed up the wrong way with many. There were very few nations left that were willing to comply and simply be there. Few they may be, but they were the ones that counted. The ones that were at least there to make him feel like someone cared. And for that he was forever thankful. To his brother, to Oceania, to Japan, to England, to those who were there

[New Zealand]

"Well, Matt's always been the calmer of the two of us, I'll admit that. I don't think he's the kind of guy who wants to try and impress others. He's always content how he is."

"Ah, I see! That's kind of like me and Alex. I'm usually the quieter one out of the two of us. And that makes sense about Matt. Maybe he just needs to be given the chance to speak up more at meetings so people notice and remember him more."

It seemed like Al and Matt weren't all that different to him and Alex when he really thought about it. Sure Al and Matt share a land border and blood ties whereas he and Alex don't, but Will wondered if having that physical and emotional space away from Alex made them closer as brothers. They saw each other fairly often, and if something happened over there Will would drop everything to go help, and Alex was the same if Will needed him. Neither of them really had to ask the other to come over; it was an unspoken thing.

"You guys are the 'good kids'. Of course he'll accept you for who you are. Ah, sorry if that sounded weird~"

"Nah, not weird. We weren't always good, or at least I wasn't. A lot of my people didn't accept Arthur's authority at first, and neither did I. There was also a lot of fights over land too between Arthur's people and mine." Will looked down at the floor for a moment as if to gather his thoughts, then looked at Al again. "We had one final push for independence in the 1860s, but we lost to Arthur and my people and I were punished severely. My people's lands were confiscated from them, and I still have the scars from that 150 years later. I don't think they'll ever fade away."

Will sometimes wondered if his people could've won that last battle. If only he'd been bigger and older and had back-up instead of being little and alone. That was where Al had the advantage when he ousted Arthur: he didn't have to go it alone. Never mind, it all worked out in the end. He still got his independence; it just took another 80-something years.

"Maybe if we have a little more fun with this, time'll go faster! Nooow... what could we do with this... hmm... there's not a lot of fun with this to begin with. Geez, you know it's dull when you can't think of anything to make it not-dull."

"Hmm. If this was one of our meetings, Ludwig would've been breathing fire hot enough to cook a burger and yelling at them for exceeding the time limit by now. That throws off his whole planned schedule for the meeting, you know." He nodded at a corner of the room. "Arthur and Francis would be fighting over there, and Agincourt would've only just been mentioned so there was definitely more fighting to come. Yong Soo would be going for Francis's title as World Groping Champion while Francis is distracted, and once Ludwig was done yelling at whoever was currently speaking he would be telling Gilbert to stop talking to Antonio and leave the meeting." Will grinned. "Okay, perhaps not the firebreathing part, but it's an awesome mental image full of life, isn't it?"

Now that was what was missing from the meetings they've sat through today: Life! It seemed like their people forgot sometimes that even if you're in meetings all day they don't have to be completely stuffy and formal. They are allowed to laugh and make other people laugh, you know!

"Thanks. I... I need that. The 'whanau' is a strong thing."

Will leaned over to give Al a hug. "You're welcome, Bro." He could hear more noise from the front of the room as he let Al go, and people actually seemed to be leaving. "Do you think it's finally time to go to the barbeque?" Will's stomach growled a little. Clearly it thought it was beyond time for something to eat, and he wondered where those nice people with the snacks had gone.

---

*That push for independence in the 1860s was the New Zealand Land Wars. Before they started the Maori held the majority of land in NZ, and the settlers had very little despite their population being greater in number than the Maori. Some foreigners tried to swindle Maori when buying land, and the Government wanted to make that process more fair for those who were willing to sell land to settlers. Also, the new Government essentially had no power over Maori-owned land at the time and wanted to change that. The Maori King wanted land in Maori hands to stay in Maori hands (he understood land=power completely).

After the tribes who were loyal to the Maori King were finally defeated (the King and those who were loyal to him retreated into the area now known as the King Country), the Government confiscated land from tribes who were both allied and against them during the War. As a result they were finally able to gain power over the whole country, not just small pockets of land and cities. Some of the land that was confiscated was eventually returned, but by then the damage had been done to Maori sovereignty.
* Apologies for the tl;dr in the previous point! The wars in that time period were an interesting time in NZ's History, and for England it would've been disastrous if he'd lost (now my alternate history senses are tingling. >D). ^^