Sumina

-epilogue, part three-

Three Missed Letters

A/N: Okay, last Epilogue! And the end of the Sumina series, as it so happens. Hoho…I hope you guys enjoy this one. After this I'll be working on a three-shot along with finishing up COtS (Cadence of the Spring, for those of you that don't follow this one). But that's beside the point. While I'm typing this A/N up, I'll take the time to say this…

Thank you all so much for reading Sumina!!

That's all there is to it. You guys are awesome. Having support meant a lot to me, so really, you guys played a major part in this story (though I think I've said something similar to that before)! I really hope you like the final little part to this! (I hope I've wrapped this story up well.)

Rating: T, for implied sex. I didn't end up making it M, like I had originally planned…sorry, guys!

Pairing: ArthurxAlfred/EnglandxAmerica

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~Five Months Later~

As the door to his shared room slams shut, Arthur groans, getting up from the bed. He is careless about his nudity; he gets dressed in the outfit he'd set out yesterday.

"Arthur, you're not up yet?" Alfred, now leaning against the door, inquires, an eyebrow raised in question.

He stretches out his limbs once his sweater is slipped over his body. "Obviously I was not," he snaps, glaring. "I don't see why it should be any different for you."

"Yeah, I mean, you did keep me up all night…you've got more stamina than your appearance says!" Alfred laughs, but Arthur glares angrily at him.

"You're always so damn loud…have we gotten any mail recently? Kiku did say he would keep in touch with us."

Alfred frowns. "I'm not quite sure," he says, before his eyes flash bright in remembrance. "Oh, yeah! You got some mail two months ago. I forgot about it."

"You idiot!" Arthur was physically irate, fingers twitching with the desire to pick up the object nearest to him and chuck it at the American's head. Instead, he settled for glaring him down into a state of nervousness. "Two months ago?! How the fuck do you forget about mail for two months?!"

"I dunno," he answers quickly, before rushing over to the desk and pulling out a few letters sealed in yellowed envelopes, Arthur's name written upon it in neat, flowing script. "But I think it's from Kiku; here." He hands the few letters over to Arthur, who snatches them from his hands and glares at him for a few moments before tearing open the first of the three, dated one month after the group took their own paths home. Alfred reads over his shoulder, chin resting against the scratchy wool of his sweater.

Dear Arthur-san,

How is your trip home going? Or, if you are home, how has it gone? I would hope you'd have returned home by now, and especially without injury.

Yao has been extremely upset. All he does nowadays is go into the garden and look out windows, always north. He sighs often while doing so. I wonder…do you think he's changed his mind? Sometimes I hear him crying before he sleeps, and other times I hear him reading his letters to Braginsky-san aloud. He starts over often, as if fearing he won't say anything right. He's sent a letter two weeks ago, but I don't believe Braginsky-san will answer back. He seemed awfully upset at the time we left him.

Are you happy to be home with Alfred-san? It must be wonderful to have found someone you thought long-gone. I could tell Alfred was very happy – his eyes were very bright whenever he looked at you.

Heracles and I have been very well. He seems content to reconnect with the world, rather than being connected with otherly spirits. I'm afraid to speak to him about this, though – do you think I should? I fear it might raise negative emotions from the past, though. It's a delicate topic for me…I just wish I knew how Heracles felt about it.

I hope to hear from you soon, Arthur-san.

From, Kiku

Arthur sets the letter down on the desk, opening up the second envelope, much lighter in color than the other – he can only assume Kiku used less-aged envelopes for this letter.

Dear Arthur-san,

I have not received a letter back from you in a month, so I assumed you had not made it home yet. Please forgive me if I am bothering you with these constant letters.

Is Alfred-san doing well? I suppose I should ask if the both of you are doing well.

Heracles and I are doing well, but Yao…Yao has not been very happy recently. He's sent many letters to Braginsky-san, and none have been returned. It's been a sudden decision of his to go to Braginsky-san's home in Russia to see how he's doing – a visit, he says, but I do believe that he will not be returning if that is the case. There is a strong connection between the two, and even Yao cannot deny that. Soon enough, he'll be living there.

I'm not sure if there's much else to say here…if anything comes up, I will send you another letter.

From, Kiku

He allows Alfred to open the final letter while he sets the second aside; the last is dated one month ago – four months after they split.

Dear Arthur-san,

My third letter. I hope nothing bad has befallen the two of you on your way home.

Yao has gone to Braginsky-san's home in Russia. He will not be returning, as I expected.

Heracles must figure out how to spend the fortune Animus amassed with his half-brother, Gupta; we're going to take a trip to Egypt to do so. I believe the money should be given to the people of the world, rather than split between the two – I think Heracles would agree with me. How do you think it should be split, though, Arthur-san? There are so many ways to do this…

I've considered speaking with Heracles about what has happened between us. We never speak of that fight, and I can only wonder how he really feels about it.

I would love to see the two of you again, if I could. Perhaps Heracles and I will visit you after we've settled things with Gupta?

From, Kiku

Arthur sighs, glaring back at Alfred again. "You damn fool."

"Sorry!" Alfred doesn't sound very apologetic as he says this.

"Whatever. Go get me paper, an envelope, and some stamps." He hears Alfred grumble as he slips from the room to fill Arthur's demand.

When he comes back, he places everything at the desk Arthur now sits at. "Here," he frowns, pulling up a chair to sit next to the Brit.

He rolls his eyes, leaning over the arm of his chair to place a kiss on Alfred's temple. "Thank you, Alfred. You should really tell me when we get mail right away though." Arthur turns back to the desk to write the letter, picking up a pen from where they stick out of the holes on the desk organizer.

"Can we still go into town once you're done writing this, though?" Alfred's tone is hopeful.

"Of course," Arthur rolls his eyes, "it's not going to take that long, Alfred." The pen makes contact with the paper as he drags its tip across in a flowing script, more difficult to read than Kiku's do to its curled intricacy.

Dear Kiku,

I apologize for not writing back earlier. Unfortunately, Alfred forgot to give me the letters, so I did not receive them until recently. Alfred and I are just fine. It took us about a month to return home, and I am happy to be with him again. He may be irritating and idiotic at times, but I do love him.

You and Heracles have been well despite your troubles, I hope? About your problem…I believe the best thing to do is to just speak to him about it. It would no doubt be awkward at first, but this is how a relationship is, isn't it? Just speak to him about it. I'm sure it doesn't bother him as much as you seem to think it does.

So Yao finally came to his senses? I didn't think he would have gone so early, though – I thought it would take him a year, at the least. It makes me wonder how he's doing…neither Braginsky nor Yao have written me. I don't care to get a letter from Braginsky, but I would not mind hearing how the two are doing now.

Write me back about your trip to Egypt. I'd love to hear about it! I've always wanted to visit Cairo, but I'm often too busy to do anything of the sort. If you would still like to, the both of you are welcome to visit Alfred and I. We'd be more than happy to see you again, so don't hesitate on anything, alright?

Hoping to Hear from You Soon, Arthur Kirkland

Alfred folds the letter once Arthur has finished, sealing it in the envelope. He licks his tongue across the edge to start the adhesive's reaction, laughing after he has stuck it down the way it should when he realizes Arthur had watched him seal it with utmost attention. The Brit glared and smacked him, but ultimately, he was still laughing.

Arthur sticks the stamps on the front of the sealed envelope and signs all of the information needed, deciding to send it to Cairo so that Kiku may pick it up there.

Once all this is done, Arthur sticks the letter in the pocket of his light jacket and slides it on, following the excited American down the long staircases of his tower to the front door. They begin to walk down the dirt road leading into town, where they will no doubt spend the afternoon after delivering the letter to the postal office. As the tower gets smaller and the busy London streets draw closer, Arthur laces his fingers with Alfred's, smiling over at his slightly taller lover. That smile is returned with a wide, immaculate grin.

Three missed letters later, and the two are doing well.

SUMINA

-Epilogue, Part Three-

END