THE RED STRING OF FATE...

Chapter 1

Meet Arthur Kirkland. To most people, the first thing they notice about him is his eyes: those emerald-green eyes. Even though his eyebrows are as huge as caterpillars, they don't diminish how beautiful his eyes look. However, his eyes can be misleading since whoever looks at them would first think that he's a soft spoken person. He isn't, and they realize that once they notice how vocal he is and how quick his temper gets.

If there was a word to describe Arthur, it would be "special". At a young age, he was able to see things that others couldn't: unicorns, fairies, you name it. He did feel sad that the other people couldn't see them, but the fairies would try to cheer him up and converse with him, so that he wouldn't feel alone. Since Arthur was special, he saw something else unusual—a red thread. That said "red thread" tied the left ring fingers of whichever couple he saw to one another. Though it wasn't very often, he saw it every once in a while.

At the beginning, he thought it was odd and tried asking his mystical friends about it, but they didn't have a clue. His question went unanswered for days until it was finally answered by a Japanese boy Arthur met in middle school named Honda Kiku. Arthur's first impression of him was that he was a polite boy. Kiku was small in his features and had eyes which resembled peaceful pools of black water. He could also be considered extremely dangerous as he's quite capable in wielding a sword (or a "katana" as he calls it).

Since they both were taking the same classes together, they started hanging out more and more. First, they exchanged homework and then spent their social time with each other. During that time, Arthur heard Kiku mention to someone else about the red string of fate.

"The Red String of Fate. What does that signify?" Arthur asked, trying not to sound too excited. Kiku, always able to read the atmosphere quite well, noticed Arthur's slight tone of excitement in his voice. Nonetheless, he continued, "Well Asa-san, according to most Asians, the red string of fate signifies 'soul-mates'. It usually ties those who are meant for each other."

"Soul-mates," Arthur repeated. Well, that makes sense, Arthur thought to himself, no wonder, it was around couples. I guess I shouldn't have been so surprised.

"Asa-san, Asa-san, are you alright? You seem to be spacing out," Kiku interrupted Arthur's train of thoughts.

"Huh? Oh yeah, sorry about that," Arthur replied. "I guess I had an epiphany."

Kiku stared at Arthur for awhile and later inquired, "May I ask why you are concerned about it?"

Arthur became worried. It wasn't like Kiku would believe that he could see the Red String since he had a very bad experience with his mum when he tried explaining that he could see fairies. This resulted in going to many therapy sessions. In the end, it was declared that Arthur had a hyperactive imagination for a young child. The only person who believed him was his dad.

While Arthur had all these emotions going through him, Kiku noticed what an open book Arthur was since his face was showing whatever he was feeling. He decided to reduce Arthur's burden, "Can you see it?"

That question sidetracked Arthur for a bit. He wasn't sure what Kiku was asking. "Can I see what?"

Kiku tried not to sound ridiculous, fearing it might upset Arthur. "Can you see the red string of fate, Asa-san?"

Of course, that was what Kiku was asking, Arthur thought, It wasn't like Kiku was reading my mind and asking me about the fairies. Still, Arthur was unsure whether to answer it or not since he didn't want Kiku to think that he was a nut-case.

Finally, Arthur decided to trust his gut and spoke, "I'm telling you this because I trust that you won't make fun of me when I reply." Kiku nodded. "Yes, I can see it..."

Both remained silent for quite sometime, then Kiku opened his mouth, "Do you see it all the time?"

"Not really," Arthur said. "Every once in a while, I see a red thread connecting the left ring-fingers of whichever couple I see." Silence again. Now Arthur was slowly regretting his decision to tell Kiku, when Kiku replied with a huge smile, "That's wonderful."

This time, Arthur was shocked—not because someone believed one of his most guarded secrets, but because that someone actually smiled while believing this said secret. Kiku rarely showed emotions, so this actually surprised Arthur a bit.

"Do, you think when you grow older, you will be able to see it more often, Asa-san?" Kiku inquired with bright eyes.

"I don't know, I'm not too sure," Arthur replied.

"Wait-a-minute, Kiku, do you really believe what I just told you or are you just humoring me?" Arthur asked. After what he went through when he was little, he couldn't believe that it was this easy for someone apart from his dad to accept his secrets.

However, Kiku looked straight into Arthur's eyes and said, "Asa-san, I cannot see any reason why you would lie about something like this. I've known you long enough to know when you are lying, and when you are not."

After Kiku said this, Arthur eyes teared up a bit. It was a great feeling knowing that he could again finally talk to someone about this, knowing that this person might not betray him . Kiku put a hand on shoulder and said, "If there is anything you want to talk about, I'm here for you." Arthur nodded

"Thanks Kiku."

x

x

For days, they talked about the red string of fate. Arthur learnt from Kiku that the concept originated from China; his cousin named Yao provided most of the info. Yao had mentioned that the Red String connected the pinky fingers, which was a bit different from what Arthur saw.

"Maybe, it's because you're a Westerner," Kiku theorized.

"Are you trying to say I am racist?" Arthur asked, hurt that Kiku was trying insinuate something. "That's why I can't see it attached to the pinky finger?" Kiku shook his head, slightly smiling.

A bit touchy, aren't we? the Raven-haired boy thought.

"What I meant was—from what I know about the Western culture—the wedding ring is worn on the left ring finger because the vein in that finger was believed to be directly connected to the heart, the symbol of love," Kiku explained. "Maybe, subconsciously your vision connected it to the ring finger. I'm sure if it was in Yao-nii's case, he would see the 'Red String' connected to the pinky finger instead."

Arthur wasn't sure whether to agree with Kiku, but it didn't matter since one of the last things that he wanted to be called was a racist.

"How long does the thread stretch?" Kiku inquired. Arthur blinked.

"Eh? I'm not sure I quite follow you," Arthur said.

"What I meant was," Kiku continued, "does the thread only instantly appear when the couple is in close proximity, or can it be seen for miles connecting the couple?"

Arthur thought about it for awhile and replied, "It appears when they are in the same vicinity. I mean, I remember this one time, I was saw a thread connecting a finger of this guy sitting at the cafe and his thread sort of went around the corner. For awhile, I wondered whether I should duck fearing that it might hit me." At that thought, they both laughed.

"But, I guess I didn't have to worry about getting hit, since it passed right through me," Arthur continued. "Later, his girl came, and the thread sort of shortened. So, yeah, you could say it stretches, but maybe it only appears when they are in the same vicinity . . . I still am not too sure about it."

Weeks later, Kiku asked, "So, have you seen the 'Red String' tying anyone you know?" Arthur, still couldn't believe that he could actually have a normal conversation about this to someone else.

"Actually, I've and you won't believe who the couple is," Arthur replied. Kiku leaned in to hear Arthur's answer. Once Arthur was sure he had Kiku's attention, he declared, "It's you and MeiMei".

The normally expressionless boy was now looking like a tomato. "Are you sure, Asa-san? You are not pulling a cruel joke, are you?" Kiku asked.

"Kiku, I thought you said you were able to tell whether I was lying or not?" Arthur teased. Arthur couldn't believe what he was seeing: his belief in the occult, completely unshakable, but a blushing Kiku, now that didn't happen very often.

"Well, you see, this concerns MeiMei," Kiku replied. Arthur couldn't comprehend what Kiku was trying to tell him.

"Hold on! you love MeiMei?" Arthur asked when it finally hit him. Kiku nodded. "But, we're too young," Arthur stated, shocked by Kiku's revelation. "Are we suppose to be like that with girls? Isn't love a little too deep now?" Now, it was Kiku's turn to be shocked at Arthur.

"Asa-san, one doesn't wait for love to happen. It just happens" was all Kiku said.

But we're too young, Arthur thought. But he didn't want to upset Kiku, so he just nodded.

"So, when was the first time you saw the 'Red String'?" Kiku asked, breaking the silence. "I bet it you saw it with your parents." Arthur suddenly looked downcast.

"Asa-san, what's wrong?" Kiku asked, panicky.

"My dad passed away before I got this ability," Arthur replied. Now, Kiku was feeling extremely guilty for bringing up such sad memory for Arthur. Noticing Kiku's state, Arthur smacked him on the back.

"Hey, don't feel bad, I am alright," the Brit said. "I've wonderful memories with my dad. Sure there weren't that many. But you know what, if he was still alive, he would have believed that I am able to see the 'Red String'. After all, he believed me when I said that I am able to see fairies and unicorns."

Still reeling from the shock of being hit on the back, Kiku coughed, "He what?"

Arthur panicked thinking, Oh bloody hell, I can't let him know about this, Arthur thought. It's already enough that he believes one of my secrets. If I let him know about the other, he'll definitely think I am a nut-case. The British boy quickly stood up, picked his stuff up, and quickly said, "Wow, look at the time. Didn't know that it could fly so quickly, so I'll leave now. See you later. Bye".

"Asa-san, wait, wait," Kiku said, grabbing Arthur by his wrist. When he realized that Arthur was feeling tense, he released his hand and stated softly, "Asa-san, I won't judge you." Arthur turned to look at Kiku's face and when he saw no signs of disbelief or scorn, he relaxed.

"My cousins are moving tomorrow to our town," Kiku said with a smile. "I would like you to meet them especially Yao-nii. I'm sure you both will find a lot of things in common."

"All right, just let me know the address, and I'll be there," Arthur replied and decided that he probably should go home; otherwise, his mum would throw a fit. He got the address from Kiku and said his goodbyes.

x

A/N- This is first time I've written anything like this, so I hope you all enjoy it (reviews & criticisms are welcomed). I know the "Red String of Fate" is an Asian concept, so Yao or Kiku would have been more suitable for the lead character, but Arthur is my most favorite character from the Hetalia series, & I also thought it would fun to write about someone who didn't know much about their ability.

This story is mostly Arthur-centric (Francis will be appearing much later). My apologies to all the AsaKiku fans out there, but I made them seem more like close friends instead since Arthur seems to be genuinely less cranky with Kiku than with Alfred & Francis, most likely because Kiku's polite personality would discourage Arthur from getting truly angry or irritated with him.

Disclaimer: I don't own Axis Powers Hetalia or any related characters.