So I found this request on the kink meme, and it was already filled. But I don't post on there when I fill one, anyway (see Foreign Languages Are Totally Sexy), and it was soooooo cute that oh my gosh I was inspired. And I have to be inspired in some way to write (I get a lot of ideas from songs). And, like I said, it was CUTE. CUTE CUTE CUTE. So. The prompt was basically this: England can see magical stuff, so he can see his red string of fate connecting him to America. The bonuses were that England could see other countries' red strings, that France's string was connected to Jeanne D'Arc, and that the fact that England could see his string was the reason that the Revolution caused him so much pain, because he couldn't understand why his soul mate would do such a thing.

So, here goes. This is my first time writing from Arthur's perspective, so this should be interesting.

"It's hard sometimes, yes. Knowing that everyone thinks you're crazy, that you should be put on pills. Having people close as family trying to have you committed as a schizophrenic. Yes, yes, been there, done that. They think what I see is fake; that's why I don't talk about it anymore. Throughout my years, I've done away with such things as talking, as explaining, trusting, friendship. I've learned to live in my own world, filled with my own secrets, my own hopes, wants, needs. So far , I've been successful. As long as no one knows, a majority of the pain and suffering is avoided.

The fact that no one knows means, of course, no one knows the true extent of what I see; fairies, yes. Flying Mint Bunny, yes. Trolls, leprechauns, things of that nature, yes. But I also see the more morbid side of the supernatural; I see the various ghosts, banshees. Demons. Of course, these things are unimaginable to those who have not truly seen them; they would be terribly scarring to one who is not used to their presence. I, though... I've been with them since my beginning. They are synonymous with my existence, as I am with theirs. That's the way it is and how it has always been, therefore how it will always be. It's understood that this can't be changed.

Aside from the morbid and the whimsical, however, I can see fate. No, no, not what a child will grow up to be or if you'll win the lottery. I see fate in the romantic sense.

You see, there's this supposed myth that the fates have tied little red strings around the fingers of, well, everyone. The ends of these strings are tied to someone else's finger. The pair that is connected by this string are soul mates, fated to be together.

Well, it's no myth; I can see these strings.

Now, no one, I mean no one can know this. Everyone will want to know who their soul mates are. What?! No, that is not a good thing! Before you know it, someone will be unhappy with the identity of their destined love, and will try to change fate. Let me tell you, fate is something not to be messed with. Certainly not.

How do I know? Well, I don't. That's the thing; I've never missed with our string.

Why, yes, Alfred. Our string."

"We have... a string?"

I shrug. "Well, everyone has a string-"

"Yeah, but... we have... our string?" His eyes search mine for an answer that he already has.

I simply rest my hand on top of his.

Somehow, Alfred has managed to break through my secretive shell and into my world. No one has ever tried to do so, and I gave him a hard enough time about it. Nevertheless, he was relentless, and, eventually, I cracked.

It's a cool spring day, the bright green of the new leaves mixing with the gray of the damp sky. Alfred had followed me out of our meeting and pestered me to go with him to the park, uninhabited due to the dreary weather of the day. He had heard about the strings on the internet or something and was questioning me about it, but I didn't want to tell him anything. I told him that it was more... complicated than he thought. I knew that if he got me talking, I'd end up saying something I shouldn't have.

Which I did.

"I... you were never supposed to know that." I sigh and push myself off the bench we had settled onto. "I'm sorry."

"We're soul mates." He stares down at the concrete path in front of him.

"I'm sorry."

Silence. The breeze is the only noise, ruffling trees and messing with our hair. Then:

"Tell me more."

"What?"

Alfred looks back up at me. His eyes are wide and full of an emotion that, for some reason, I can't identify. "About the strings," he says. "Tell me about them."

I hesitate. Do I really risk centuries of silence for this? He may be my soul mate, but...

Taking a deep breath, I sit back down next to him, keeping my distance. "What do you want to know?" I exhale.

"What do they look like?"

I shrug. "Rather self explanatory, I suppose. A red string. Mine is tied in a bow right here"-I gesture to my right pinkie finger-"and connects to you right here." I trace the strand over to Alfred's left pinkie. "It's short because we're so close together. But they can literally go around the whole world."

Alfred examines his finger, even though he can't see what's there. "Can they... break?"

I shake my head, fiddling with my bow. "They can be knotted, to show present, past, or future trials involved with the relationship," I sigh, looking at our troubled string. "They can't be broken, though. No matter how much you try."

"You can see everyone's."

I nod.

"... who's Ivan connected to?" Alfred has his eyebrows raised.

I begin to protest. "I really shouldn't be spreading such things..."

"Aw, c'mon!" he whines. "Not even for your soul mate?"

I look up from my lap and glare at him. "Alfred..."

"Is it Natalya? She really-"

"Yao," I sigh. "His string of fate is connected to Yao."

"Oh," Alfred chuckles.

"Don't laugh!" I slap his arm. "Fate is serious."

"Who is Natalya connected to, then?"

"Toris."

"No way," Alfred shakes his head, grinning. "She hates him. Hey, what about Matthew?"

"Alfred, really. I shouldn't be telling you all of this," I frown. "It's bad enough that I know."

"Please?" he pleads. "How about Ludwig? Gilbert? What about Francis?"

Try as I might not to, I flinch. Unusually attentive, Alfred catches it. "What..?"

I sigh. He won't stop bothering me about it if I don't tell him... "Francis... his string was connected to a girl named Jeanne D'Arc."

"Who?"

I sigh again. "She was born a peasant in France in 1412. She led the French army to many victories during the Hundred Years' War."

"Oh..," Alfred was still obviously confused.

"Alfred," I bite my lip. This is actually a quite painful thing for me to relive, for... reasons. "She was burned at the stake when she was nineteen."

"Why?!" His expression was one of justly exaggerated surprise.

"Because... remember when I told you that the string was unbreakable?"

He nods. I really shouldn't be saying what I'm going to, but... he is my soul mate, after all.

I inhale shakily. "Well, back then, I didn't know who my string was attached to, because you weren't around. I was actually convinced that it was supposed to be attached to..," I can't get it out without chuckling. "... to Francis."

"You thought your soul mate was Francis." Alfred gives me that raised eyebrow "you-have-to-be-kidding" look.

I nod, chuckling more at the memory. "It was 1412, Alfred. Give me a break. Anyway, I was very much in... in love with him, albeit secretly, and the fact that his string was connected to a peasant tomboy drove me up a wall. Yes, Jeanne, she was rather beautiful, but I... the way Francis looked at her, I couldn't stand it.

I wanted to be Francis's soul mate so badly at the time. I tried madly to find a way to break the string; I tried cutting it, burning it. Heh, even biting it. Nothing worked.

Eventually, however, Jeanne was captured by the Burgundians. And was exchanged to us English for money. And I might have seized an opportunity to influence a man by the name of Pierre Cauchon. And I might have convinced him that she was guilty of insubordination and heterodoxy."

"So... it was you," Alfred stares at his feet.

"It's something... I've chosen to forget it."

We cut back to silence. A misty rain had begun to fall sometime during my explanation. The water feels refreshing against my skin, reddened from this whole ordeal.

"What does our string look like?"

I snort without thinking. "Terrible."

"It is...?" He looks up at me from his slouched over position, his eyebrows wrinkled in the way, I've come to know, that means he's concerned.

Oh, I've made the lad feel bad, now. "Alfred, I'm sorry. It's just... our relationship isn't the greatest."

He stares dejectedly at me, waiting for an explanation. I lean back against the bench. The rain has picked up, but neither of us has made a move to get up and leave. I don't think it would benefit us to; the water will help to conceal how teary this explanation is bound to be.

"Our relationship, especially from my side, has always been very... tumultuous. Imagine being me, seeing you as a child, seeing this string, knowing that there would be a time when I'd look at you and think... well, never mind that. It was an odd experience. Then... when I got up and left you and came back to find you all grown up... well, it made me realize how close we were getting to that big knot in our string. I didn't have a clue what it was. And then, you... you rebelled.

I knew that was the big knot. Alfred, you can't understand what I went through during the Revolution. I couldn't imagine..," my voice catches a little, and I have to wipe my eyes. "I couldn't imagine... why my soul mate would put me through such... horrible things. I felt lost and confused and... I thought that this string was lying. I thought, for a time, that I had lost you. Forever.

Our string, Alfred... it had gotten so brittle and worn. I thought that it would just snap right before my eyes. But it never did," I sniffle and give a small smile. "And it started healing, eventually. And now, here with you, right now... it's better than it has ever been."

For a what seemed like forever, Alfred did not respond. And then, all of a sudden, his arms engulfed me.

"I think I know why our string's so good now," he whispers.

"You do?"

"It's because I know it's there. And now I know that, no matter what happens, we'll always be together. And that's one fate I will never try to change."

ajdgo;jlds;kjglksjagljlkgj. So. I wrote this and I don't know. I should probably sleep, actually. But review! Review, review, review! And thanks for reading! Love y'all. :)