This Town is Big Enough...

Alfred pouted when Arthur pulled away and tried arching his back up to meet his lips once more. They should stop, he understood that completely, but it didn't make him any less pouty. Still, he sank back into the covers with a soft sigh and slipped his fingers from Arthur's hair in favor of holding him lightly around the waist. Together they held one another and tried to catch their breaths. Lord, he had forgotten how addicting Arthur was. When his lips pressed against his own, any sense of reason he might have possessed slipped away into oblivion. Not that he minded of course. But it was in the middle of the day, Arthur's family was still around, and he probably shouldn't allow his body too lost within Arthur's touch when they would no doubt be interrupted. "I've missed kissing you..." He admitted, placing another soft peck against the bit of skin exposed from underneath Arthur's collar. "But I'm guessing we should stop..."

A part of him hoped that Arthur would jump back up and begin kissing the living daylights out of him. When nothing of the sort happened, he let out a sigh and shifted slightly to get more comfortable. From the light coming in through the windows, it was probably about mid morning. Where they were, he hadn't a clue, but the house was nice enough. He had a sneaking suspicion that it belonged to Arthur's wealthy family which meant that the rest of the Kirkland clan must be running around somewhere. He flushed slightly, suddenly a bit embarrassed. Arthur's family, he had wanted to make a good impression on them (well, not that he ever expected to meet them, but still). He was in love with Arthur and even if they didn't quite approve of the match (male couples weren't exactly the norm within England or America for that matter), he wanted to be in their good favor. "Hey... I need to meet your family at some point. Especially your mother. I feel like I owe them all a thank you." He said with a smile. Mrs. Kirkland had been the one to hold him as he sobbed into her chest. She seemed like a fine women and he was glad to have the opportunity to meet her.

A sudden thought struck Alfred as he lay there, sending waves of worry throughout his body. Mattie. What on earth had happened to him? Last he knew of, he had gone on to take another job in some town not far from his own. Did that mean he was safe? Had he ever gone looking for him? Did Ivan hurt him too for some reason? "Hey Artie... When you were traveling around looking for me, did you ever happen to run into Mattie again?" He tried not to sound as worried as he was. Matthew was a respected doctor, that meant that he should be well protected from much of the cruelties in the west. Not many people were going to hurt a doctor (unless they were particularly thick). Still, as a brother and a twin, he couldn't help but be concerned. "I hope he's alright..."

Setting his head on a pillow, Arthur grinned at Alfred, feeling his rather sleepless night pulling at his eyes. He could happily fall asleep. He snuggled close to Alfred's body as much as he could so it wouldn't be awkward if someone came in and found them so close, yet still allow him to enjoy the feeling. He started dosing off a bit when Alfred suddenly spoke up.

"Most of them are here." Arthur said glancing up at Alfred's face. "Patrick's still in Ireland, his wife is pregnant...again." Arthur grinned a bit, he was happy for Patrick, and he understood why he hadn't come, but still he wished there would be a larger break between the two children's ages, it was not exactly fun growing up with birthdays so close to each other. "My father did want to leave the business for...months, to come on some wild goose chase for me." Arthur said wrinkling his noise a bit in disgust.

He settled back down, Alfred's fingers in his hair was just encouraging him to close his eyes and go to sleep. His did that, marveling at the feeling, before Alfred stirred him from his sleep with his words again. Mattie? The name sounded familiar. Then it registered, Alfred's twin brother. "I don't remember seeing him personally, but my mother said there was a doctor who knew me when I was in bed with fever." Arthur said, remember his mother saying that the doctor got him to do a lot of things with ease will Arthur was his usual stubborn self. "I did run into Francis though..." The Frenchman had crossed him on a rather long day of traveling and Arthur was tester than usual. "He said he was looking for him."

Arthur snuggled into the bed more, his eyes drifting close, yet he willed himself for a light sleep, so when someone knocked at the door he could get it. Yet Arthur still kept dosing off.

Relief washed over Alfred when he heard that the other had at least had some contact with his brother (although he wasn't quite as happy to know that the creepy Frenchman was out looking for him). Still, it was nice to know that somebody was looking out for him. Perhaps when he got his strength back, he and Arthur could go and find him themselves. He longed to see his brother once more, especially seeing how bad the circumstances were that kept them apart. He was about to open his mouth to suggest the idea to Arthur when he noticed his eyes had drifted closed. Alfred watched quietly as he began to slip into unconsciousness, a fond smile on his face.

Poor Arthur... he probably hadn't been sleeping well either. He had most likely had a long recovery from the fever and the gunshot wounds, and afterwords he had gone straight to work looking to find him. No doubt he had been neglecting to take care of himself as he should. Alfred leaned forward, pressing a chaste kiss against the smaller man's cheek. "Sleep well Artie..." He murmured softly as he ran his fingers down his hair - hoping to coax him into slumber. It didn't take long for Arthur to drift away completely. Alfred leaned over and watched quietly for a while, absolutely fascinated with the way his lips and eyelids fluttered as he dreamed. During the entire course of their relationship, he couldn't remember a time when Arthur had fallen asleep before him or woken up after him, so getting the chance to watch him sleep was nice. He smiled fondly and stole another kiss before leaning back against the bed. "It's good to be back Arthur..."

Alfred slipped a hand within Arthur's (it took every ounce of restraint not to pull him into a full hug - he figured it would be a bit awkward if someone were to walk in), squeezing it lightly. Despite the fact that he had been unconscious for the passed few days, Alfred found himself slipping easily into the world of dreams again. After months of sadness and nightmares, he found it strange how easily peaceful sleep came. But than he remembered Arthur and he held his hand a little tighter. Arthur had saved him. Arthur loved him. And despite all the horrible cruelties in the world, as long as Arthur was by his side, he knew everything would be okay.

Elizabeth Kirkland was somewhat disappointed in Arthur. He had always been a rather timely boy, and if he was late there was allows a good reason. However when lunch rolled around and he didn't show she was a little bit shocked. Still she made sure lunch cared on as it should, their host was very nice and made a wonderful lunch. After Scott and Amelia went of somewhere, they were adults she didn't have to wonder where, while Evan took Peter to watch the cowboys bring the cattle in. She helped their host clean up before parting up stairs to find Arthur.

She went to the door they had been keeping the man, Alfred, she remembered, in. Knocking, she received no response and grumbled a bit to herself. Arthur was probably sleep in some chair like the stubborn man he was. Easing the door open she found no one in the said chair and Arthur was not in his usual curled up form on the bed, but he was asleep. She took notice that the American had moved as well, most have woken up at some time in the morning.

Treading lightly into the room she sat down in the chair before reaching for Arthur's shoulder. "Arthur, darling, wake up." She spoke gently not wanting to wake Alfred. "It's past lunch," she got a groan and Arthur burrowed into the covers more. "Arthur!" She hissed, but he didn't stir. "Arthur James Kirkland you better wake up this instant." Nothing but more burrowing into the covers of the bed.

Alfred felt comfortable, much more so than he could ever remembering feeling. All around him was soft, warm, and most importantly safe. Even in his hazy mind he could make sense of that. He smiled lightly and snuggled closer to the main source of warmth within the bed, before letting out a soft, content sigh. In that moment, just before he awoke, all was right in the world. The only problem was the sound of a voice calling out from beyond the recesses of his own mind. Alfred tried to ignore it, shake it away as not important. But when it continued, sleep steadily became more and more impossible. He begrudgingly opened an eye and sat up, ready to tell whoever it was to leave him alone when he caught sight of who it was.

The worlds instantly died within his throat and he let out a surprised yelp as he tried to cover himself up. Mrs. Kirkland was in the room (clearly not trying to bother him, but still!). Alfred frantically tried to push his unruly locks back into place as he glanced down at the bed. Good, for once he hadn't managed to pull Arthur completely against him, but it still made for an awkward conversation as to why he was laying in bed with him in the first place. Alfred's cheeks burned. "Mrs. Kirkland, um, good morning! Or, is it afternoon?" He laughed nervously, not really knowing what to say. Women always made him nervous (young or old, it didn't matter). He wasn't much of a gentlemen due to his lack of breeding and manners, but he tried desperately to do right by women. The result however was him fumbling over words and making a general fool of himself.

"Um... did you want Arthur? I think he's just tired. Must have fallen asleep without realizing it." He laughed again before bringing a hand down to shake Arthur's shoulder. Please, please wake up. He silently willed. The last thing he wanted to have to deal with was explaining to Arthur's mother (a women he had not exactly made the best of impressions on) as to why Arthur had decided that it was appropriate to sleep beside him. Although a good first impression was out of his reach, he did still want to be liked by the Kirkland family. Arthur may deny it, but his family was obviously an important aspect of his life if they were willing to throw months of their time into finding somebody for him. Heck, he kind of wondered what Arthur managed to say to convince them that he was worth saving. He couldn't have gone out and told them everything about their relationship, had he? "Artie," He said, a bit loudly as he shook the smaller man, "Wake up. Artie?" Please don't leave me alone to deal with your mother.

Arthur stretched a bit at the feeling of someone shaking his shoulder and saying something, but he quickly curled into a ball. A groan of annoyance escaped his lips. Elizabeth sighed, Arthur was obviously rather content with his sleeping and he was not going to budge for anyone. She gently reached out of stop Alfred from shaking her son. "If he's tired and like this we best let him sleep." She grinned, before lightly whacking Arthur's sandy colored hair. "Stubborn boy." Arthur sleepily waved her away.

She sighed and sat down in the chair. Smoothing out the skirt of her dress while she got comfortable in the seat. "You know, Arthur's always been the smallest of all my sons, yet he's always the one doing the biggest things." Elizabeth said lightly, fiddling with a stray piece of her blonde hair. She paused for a bit, glancing at Arthur's sleeping form in the bed. She looked up at Arthur and grinned brightly. "Thank you for everything you've done for him."

Alfred inwardly panicked when the women reached down to halt his movements. A part of him wanted to subtly start kicking Arthur under the sheets to get him awake, but he conceded with his mother’s wishes. He really did deserve to sleep. No doubt he had been too busy worrying about everything else that he had neglected his own health in the process. Stubborn Arthur. He chuckled a bit when Mrs. Kirkland’s words matched his thoughts and happily nodded in agreement. “He is. But he’s determined too…” He smiled fondly down at the sleeping blond, reaching down underneath the covers to take his hand. “If he hadn’t have been, I never would have gotten out of that cell.”

He lightly ran his thumb up and down Arthur’s knuckles, smiling fondly as his mother spoke. It was true what she said (although he didn’t pretend to know anything about her other sons), but it was quite incredible how much Arthur managed to do with his life. Although he was small in stature, he certainly was a force to be reckoned with - and Alfred himself his perseverance to thank for saving his life from unending darkness. That was why the women’s sudden gratitude caught him so off guard. Startled, Alfred directed his gaze up at her, blue eyes confused. What did she have to thank him for? He hadn’t been anything besides a problem since he had Arthur had met up. If he hadn’t have meddled into Arthur’s life, he would have never been forced to face death at such an early age.

“No ma’am,” He said quietly, bowing his head respectfully, “Arthur is one of the best men I have known. I have you to thank for raising him as such. I am very grateful to have him in my life.” Once again his eyes trailed down to the sleeping man curled up beside him. The sweet sight caused another fond smile to appear on his face. Arthur really was incredible. How he had ever managed to get pulled into a life of deception he would never understand, but now he was just happy to be standing on the same side as him. With the law or not, they would at least be together standing up for what was right.

Elizabeth grinned as she watched Alfred. He had a fondness to his look she couldn't over look it. She had seen the same look in Arthur's eyes, and it had been nice to see it. Arthur was the type of person who caught to caught up in things he need to please important people and not in the world around him. She seen him receive the look, but never give it back, or that was until he got Alfred out and away.

"I...Thank you," she said glancing at Arthur's sleeping form. She could tell Alfred doubted her words, but they were true. "You care for him quite a good deal, and for that I thank you." She said with a very loving smile. "The west has done to things to Arthur," She sighed getting up from the chair, "made him mad and made him happy, even if he doesn't show it."

She made her way to the door, turning before she opened it. "Would you like some lunch?"

It warmed Alfred’s hear to know that the west had some positive impact on Arthur’s life. He himself may have found it impossible to see given the circumstances, but he trusted Arthur’s mother to give a true, unbiased view of her son’s growth. After all, she had no obligations to be nice to him (especially since he had been the one to put her son in such a dangerous position). “I’m glad… although, I am sure he would like to go back to England one day.” Alfred’s heart suddenly sank as he stared down at the sleeping figure. His family was here; that meant he no longer had to fight to find a way back. If he wanted to, he could take off any day and go back to the life he obviously wanted. It would probably be better for him to, considering all the enemies he must have made.

“I suppose… this means he’ll be returning home with you than, won’t he ma’am?” He asked quietly, not turning to look up at the women. He knew the answer already, but that didn’t stop the pain. No, this was better. At least he got to see him again - he hadn’t believed he would ever get that opportunity again, so this was enough. Besides, if he was in England, at least he would always know that he was among family and well taken care of. Arthur would be safe there. And if Arthur was safe, he would be satisfied.

Alfred glanced up when the women stood. At the offer, he smiled a bit and nodded his head. “That would be lovely. Thank you kindly ma’am.” He gave Arthur’s hand another light squeeze before pulling away. He stood up, albeit a bit shaky, but not enough so were he had to worry about collapsing under his own weight. He followed Mrs. Kirkland out of the door and down the stairs, feeling steadily more awkward with every step. Now that he was out of the bedroom, he felt exposed. He wasn’t worried about any of his former captors finding him or anything; oh no, he was more nervous about coming in contact with the Kirkland brothers.

Hopefully Arthur hadn’t told them about their… relationship. The last thing he needed were over protective brothers (whom he had recently watched beating the hell out of somebody) coming after him and threatening his life! Well, okay, he wasn’t completely sure if they would do that, but the fear was still there. Now that Arthur wasn’t by his side, he couldn’t exactly protect him from the wrath of his family. “Um… are the rest of your sons around?” He asked, somewhat tentatively.

Elizabeth frowned a bit to herself. She would love for Arthur to come back with them to England, but he had made his choice very clear. She sighed, she should tell Alfred, but she felt it was Arthur's job too. She grinned at Alfred when he got up, opening the door and leading the way down. She was slow to make sure it wasn't too much for Alfred, Arthur would have a bad fit if something happened.

Alfred's question startled her a bit. "They're all out doing something. Evan and Peter will probably be in a few hours, or however long it takes to deal with the cattle." Elizabeth said leading the way to the kitchen. "Scott will probably be back later tonight." Their host was working on dinner in the kitchen, but happily set out what remained of lunch. "You don't have to worry about them so much though, they're very kind boys."

Alfred nodded, somewhat relieved that the rest of the Kirkland boys would be out for at least a couple more hours. He had no doubt that they were exactly what their mother said - kind boys, but he couldn’t help but feel somewhat nervous about meeting them. This way, he could at least have some more time to prepare before introducing himself for real (hopefully than Arthur would be up and moving to help him out too).

When the host set out what was left of lunch, Alfred brightened immediately. When was the last time he had a real, home cooked meal? He couldn’t draw up any memories before he was arrested so he eagerly sat down and grabbed a plate. “Thank you kindly!” He said before happily digging into the delicious meal. It was only when he was halfway done that he realized he was in the presence of a lady. Immediately, his face turned red and he tried to salvage what was left of his horrendous table manners. “I apologize ma’am,” He said, somewhat sheepishly trying to wipe his face with a napkin on the table. “My mother tried her very best to teach me proper table manners, but I’m afraid they never quite stuck.”

Once he was done with the simple, but marvelous meal, he turned his attention out towards the window beside him. Wherever they were, it wasn’t a place he was familiar with. It didn’t look very large, which was obviously planned to keep them safely hidden from prying eyes. He smiled softly as the sunlight hit his face through the glass window panes. Beautiful - it had been far too long since he had the opportunity to see the sun. “Ma’am,” He turned back to Mrs. Kirkland, a happy smile adoring his face, “Thank you so much for all that you have done for me. Arthur is very lucky to have a mother like you.”

Having raised five boys, Elizabeth was use to seeing the sloppiness males could posses. Arthur was really the only one who kept them when he went away to school, while the others had sort or remembered but never practiced, at least until they were older. Elizabeth was very understanding of the trying and not succeeding. "I'm sure you never get much time to practice them," She grinned out, thinking of Peter and how his use of manners depended on how he felt or if he wanted something.

She grinned watching Alfred eat as she made some tea for herself. She happily sipped at it till Alfred was done, and grinned at the comment. "Think nothing of it, I'm sure any mother would do the same."

---

Arthur stirred a bit, searching for Alfred, trying to comfort himself that he was there. He felt nothing beside him and his eyes snapped open to find him no where in front of him. Arthur shot bolt up right and looked around the room, finding the American no where in sight. He cursed, shoving the covers away and heading ripping open the door. "Alfred?!" He asked looking about the hallway. "Bollocks." He quickly raced down the stairs. This was not helping him get over a rather haunting dream.

Alfred couldn’t help but blush, despite Mrs. Kirkland’s reassurance that she understood that he was at least trying to be presentable. Honestly, he wanted to appear more gentlemanly than he did - it would have made his mother proud of him at least, but when food was placed in front of him, he promptly forgot everything to do with proper manners. “No, I suppose not,” He agreed somewhat sheepishly. They sat in a comfortable silence after that, Mrs. Kirkland sipping tea (Alfred now realized where Arthur had developed the taste) and him staring out the window. It was surprisingly comfortable and despite his earlier fears of making a bad impression, Alfred found himself relaxing.

It had been years since he had been exposed to such a motherly presence. When his mother died, he had been placed in the care of a neighbor. Although she was a kind, elderly women, she often too frail to deal with the hyperactive boy herself. Most of the time he was left to his own devices, which was fine, but he missed having a mother around. Arthur really was lucky to have such a close nit family, ready to drop everything and help him at a moment’s notice. Alfred looked down at his hands, a familiar sadness tugging at his heart. It was understandable why Arthur was so eager to return back home to England.

A sudden shout from above them sounded, starting the American. He jumped to his feet (managing to keep his balance surprisingly well) and rushed to the foot of the staircase. “Arthur!” He called up happily, hoping the other man wasn’t too out of sorts due to his sudden disappearance. Honestly he would have been quite content sleeping beside him for the rest of the day, but he didn't want to be too obvious around Arthur's mother. Plus a plate of good food was too great to pass up. Alfred offered a happy smile when he caught sight of the Brit running down the stairs. “Sorry, we thought it was best if you got some sleep. You looked exhausted.” He nodded back to Mrs. Kirkland, as if to apologize for leaving Arthur alone.

Arthur would have jumped off the stairs if he hadn't remembered Alfred wasn't at his best health. He merely slowed down hearing Alfred's words, before he embraced him. Alfred was there and no one took him away while he was sleeping. He heard a chuckle to the side and recognized it almost instantly and retracted his arms quickly, blooming with a red blush. He was happy he couldn't see his mother, because it most defiantly meant she couldn't see him. "Uh...no it's fine, thank you," Arthur said fiddling with his appearance and giving Alfred a quickly look. He did feel a bit more awake than before.

"Arthur, darling, trying not to run in our guest house." he heard his mother scolded him. He grumbled a bit before easing Alfred away and walking towards the kitchen. His mother had gotten up and poured him some tea, handing him a cup. "You missed lunch and made me accidentally wake up Alfred." She said holding on to it for a bit longer.

"Ah...sorry mum," Arthur said glancing down into the cup to avoid her gaze. He felt like a small child getting scolded by his mother in front of his best friend.

His mother let go of the cup and he quickly walked to the table and sat down, taking a long sip of the wonderful taste.

Alfred smiled brightly when Arthur descended the stairs and was about to tease him for sleeping through his mother’s visit when he was pulled into a sudden embrace. He let out a little gasp and his cheeks turned bright red, although he did not pull away. It felt nice being held, that he could not deny and he was just about to sink deeper within his embrace when he heard a small chuckle from behind them. Arthur instantly pulled back when he recognized the sound, also having turned red from embarrassment. “Your mother brought me down to have some lunch,” He explained quickly, trying to pass the embrace off as being perfectly normal.

He sat down once more and went quiet as Arthur spoke with his mother. He had to bite back his snicker when he saw the full grown man reduced to a child being scolded by his mother. Honestly, it was adorable to see how much Arthur cared for his mother’s opinion (which is one of the only reasons Alfred chose not to tease the Brit immediately upon seating himself). Instead, he offered a small smile and tilted his head back towards the window. “Are you feeling alright?” He asked, hoping the question didn’t seem too out of place. Arthur’s health was important, and he didn’t want him neglecting it simply because he had been focusing all his energy on finding him.

After a few minutes of staring out at the open desert, he grew antsy and stood up, lightly pressing his fingertips against the hot glass. “Can we go outside?” He turned to look back at Arthur, his expression pleading. He wanted to walk out in the sunlight again - too much of his life had been spent in the dark. “Just for a little bit. It’s going to get dark soon anyway.” The sunlight was beautiful but the idea of facing night again scared him, even with Arthur by his side. Who knew what kind of shadowy demons were out there, waiting to snatch him back if given the opportunity. Alfred shook his head and turned his full attention back to the Brit sitting beside him. He pouted slightly and glanced meaningfully back at the outside world. “Please Artie?”

"I'm fine," Arthur said taking a huge sip of his tea. "I should be asking you how you're doing." Arthur said glancing over the rim of the cup at Alfred. Honestly the American should me less concerned with him, after all he was fine. Or not he was knowing Alfred was safe and sound and out of the hands of Ivan.

His mother set a plate down in front of him and he happily ate it. It wasn't much, and he had grown use to home cooked meals when he traveled around with his family. He ate quietly until Alfred suddenly got up and went to the window, startling him a bit. He sighed, he should tell Alfred no, he wasn't healed enough, but at the same time he couldn't say no.

"I suppose a small trip out side wouldn't hurt too much." Arthur said looking away from Alfred like it might help him tell the other no, but he couldn't.

"The herd just came in," Arthur's mother said lightly, "surely that's not a far walk. You can tell Peter he needs to do some of his school work." She said sipping at her tea.

Arthur nodded and got up. "We should head out then...for a bit." He said with a small grin.

Alfred beamed excitedly when the Englishman agreed. Finally, a trip outdoors that didn’t include being chained up and stuck in the back of a carriage. He eagerly stepped forward and clapped Arthur on the shoulder (having barely repressed the urge to pull him into a full embrace). “Great! Let’s get going!” He tugged lightly on the smaller man’s shoulder, wanting desperately to make the most of his time outside before night hit.

Not too long after he had found his shoes and was waiting impatiently by the door, looking more and more like a child at every passing second. After what felt like forever, he was permitted to step outside. The feeling of fresh air mixed with the warmth of sunlight almost brought tears to Alfred’s eyes. It had been far too long since he had seen the sun. He tilted his head back, raised his arms slightly, and smiled, as if greeting the celestial body from his place down in Earth. “It’s beautiful,” He said softly, closing his eyes to enjoy the warmth better. Perhaps tomorrow he would work on convincing Arthur to let him spend the day outside, even if it was only sitting and resting. Anything would be appreciated after months of darkness.

Once Alfred felt he was ready, he walked along side Arthur (occasionally asking for help or support) to locate his brothers. The more he walked, the more confident he felt in his own strength. Yes he was still very weak, but he knew that with hard work and good nutrition, he would be back to normal in no time. With that thought in mind, he turned back to smile at Arthur. “We should go riding again soon. I’ve missed it so much.” And Liberty. His heart ached at the thought of his dear sweet horse having been abandoned. He could only hope that somebody good had picked her up and was caring for her well. “Maybe we could find Mattie too. Oh! Or we could go exploring and find a nice place to have lunch one day.” His mouth ran a mile a minute, going on and on about the things the needed to do together. Although he stumbled a bit and had to stop every once in a while to catch his breath, Alfred never stopped smiling. He was free and he was with Arthur - everything was right with the world.

Arthur had already decided Alfred had childish moments and this was very much on of them. He chuckled a bit at the American as he chattered about, bit was nice to see him like that. Almost two days of staring at his sleeping form had made Arthur miss him moving around and acting as such around people. It was hard for him to believe someone would want to do that to Alfred, making him so weak and pale. More importantly why would anyone want him that way? It made sense that he would be weak, but with the lie they told him, Arthur was sure Alfred wasn't going to try anything. The Englishman helped him when he stumbled a bit and stopped when Alfred stopped for a breath, but he was happy, and that was all that mattered to Arthur.

He nodded as Alfred talked, half hearing them. "If everything goes as planned," Arthur said pausing a bit to figure out the correct number of days, "we can leave by the end of the week." He grinned, it would be nice to go back to their town. He had gone through it on his travels for Alfred and made sure everything was as it should be. Victoria and Liberty were fine, and a neighboring deputy was watching over the town, at least till everything was settled and a new sheriff was sent. Arthur had told the deputy to wait, see if he could delay anything for a while.

"Oi, Jerk Art!" Peter called suddenly, knocking Arthur from his thinking. The boy was standing on the fence, leaning forward to get a closer look at the action with the cattle which wasn't much. He waved at him, "Look it's so cool to be a cowboy."

Alfred smiled happily when Arthur said they would be leaving at the end of the week. Good, he would be glad to be getting back to his life again after so many months away. Of course he was comfortable here with the Kirkland family, but he missed his home and his life out in the west. “Wait,” He stopped suddenly, realizing the implication of what Arthur had just said. “We? Does that mean you’re staying here? I thought you would want to go back with your family. I mean, wasn’t that what you wanted?” Despite his best efforts not to read too much into it, Alfred could feel the excitement bubbling up within his chest. Perhaps Arthur would stay with him after all.

The young American was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of a voice calling out. He looked up, somewhat startled to see the youngest Kirkland boy (those eyebrows were unmistakable although he only had vague memories of him in the carriage the night they found him) standing on a fence nearby. The name calling surprised him, but it appeared to all be in good fun when he waved the two of them over. Still, he could not help but look at Arthur and mutter “Jerk Art?” under his breath, obviously asking about the strange nickname.

When they reached the fence, Alfred joined the young boy with excitement clear on his face. “It is cool to be a cowboy,” he agreed, watching the cattle moving around with a fond look. He turned his head towards the boy and offered a playful grin. “Want me to teach you how to rope? I know some cool tricks.” He said, never minding the fact that Arthur would probably throw a fit if he tried to exert himself too much. He needed to get out and do a bit of exercise - it was good for him. Alfred chuckled and offered a hand for the youngest Kirkland to take. “I’m Alfred by the way. Thanks for helping me out earlier. You’re pretty brave for doing what you did.”

Arthur blushed slightly at Alfred's question, he really wanted to stay in America, with him, and he just let it slip out. Not that he wanted to keep it a secret he just wished it hadn't slipped out as such. Luckily Peter's call and excitement had saved him from having to explain where people could see them. He growled at Peter's chose of word a names. They neared the fence and Arthur stood by Evan who gave him a bit of a shrug.

"Really?!" Peter said with excitement of learning some rope tricks, completely ignoring Alfred's compliment. "That would be so neat!" The idea of Peter and learning some rope tricks bothered Arthur a bit, he knew Peter were test them out on him to no end. That at it might mean Alfred over doing it. "Are you a cowboy?"

"Peter, I told you, he's a Sheriff." Arthur sighed out peeking at Peter.

"Oh, so you did arrest Arthur?" Peter asked without missing a beat. Evan chuckled, glancing at Arthur and ignoring his glare. "I'm sure he was a real pain to deal with. Arts good at fighting when he needs to be." Arthur head his face in his hands groaning a bit. "You know Arts once took out three huge thugs who tried to rob us one. He's very mean with a cane."

Alfred chuckled, finding the young boy’s excitement cute. It was strange how much he looked like Arthur yet acted so differently - it made him wonder what Arthur had been like when he was a child. He tried to picture it, but somehow the frown that seemed to always adore his face didn’t translate as a kid. The image made him laugh all the same as he turned back to the youngest Kirkland. “I know a lot of the tricks of the trade though,” He said, leaning over the fence with a grin.

At the boy’s neck question, he couldn’t help but laugh once more. “I didn’t arrest him,” He said simply, choosing not to go too in depth about his reasons for trusting a known criminal. He just continued to smile and laugh as Arthur’s brother went on to describe him, using a combination of praise and insults to get his point across. It was clear that he cared deeply about his older brother, but liked to pick on him for the sake of it. If Alfred had to guess, he would say that the young boy was simply lonely and craved his older siblings attention - something he could understand.

“Nah, he’s not that bad once you get to know him,” He teased, knocking his shoulder lightly against Arthur’s with a grin. At the story Peter told, he let out another chuckle and glanced down at the Englishmen who had his face in his hands. “Really? I would have liked to see that.” Alfred smiled brightly and rested his weight against the fence, looking out at sight in content. It felt wonderful to be outdoors again, although his body was still exhausted. He leaned forward, resting his chin against a wood post and let his eyes drift shut.

He was so comfortable with the sun on his face that he could fall asleep out here, but the danger of the darkness creeping up around him was too great to ignore. The sun was slowly sinking below the horizon as it got later and later in the day. He grew tenser, more nervous as the shadows grew longer. “Maybe we should head back inside,” He suggested, trying to remain casual about his fear. Alfred turned back towards Arthur, giving him a quick look before pushing off against the fence to get ready to walk back. “Sorry, I’ll have to teach you to rope another time.” He apologized with an uneasy smile, shifting closer to Arthur, trying not to be too obvious as to what he was doing.

Arthur let a small chuckle out at the fact that Alfred would want to see him fighting. Arthur would admit he was rather good at it, but that came from years of growing up in a household filled with boys and being small did to him. Arthur had learned the advantage of sticks at a young age, and learned to fight with them well enough. "Maybe if I get a cane when Francis is around, you can see." He said in a bit higher spirits.

The world slowly grow darker as time went on and all they did was watch the cattle run about. However they all agreed with Alfred's request to head back. Well except Peter who groaned as he jumped down.

"Peter, you have school work to do," Arthur said trying not to let Peter pout about the end of the day coming to end.

"What kind?" Peter asked folding his eyes.

"Bloody hell Peter, I don't know, I didn't came with you, and I'm not your nanny either." Arthur snapped, causing Evan to chuckle.

"I'm sure mum knows Petes." Evan said patting Peter's head lightly. "We should get going, dinner probably almost done as well."

"Fine," Peter huffed kicking at some dirt, "but it has be before we leave okay." Peter said with a huff holding out his hand as if to make a deal.

Alfred smiled as the three brothers interacted. Too bad he had Mattie had grown up separately - he would have liked to have shared experiences like this one with him. Well, he doubted they could ever have acted that cutely, but it was a nice sort of dream. When Peter turned to him, he grinned and eagerly took his hand. “You’ve got it partner. Just be sure you help me convince your brother to let me outside.” He dropped Peter’s hand and grinned at Arthur, hoping the young boy would help spring him from being confided to the house to recuperate.

With that straightened out, Alfred started the short journey back to the house. It was a bit harder on his body than before, causing him to stop or stumble (much to his annoyance), but he managed to keep going with only minimal support. He tensed up more as night began to fall and speed up to reach the house before the world went completely dark. He let out a relieved sigh when he caught sight of the house and eagerly made the last few steps of the journey. When he was safe within the well lit little home, he relaxed and began to smile easily again.

A heavenly smell wafted through the air, making his stomach grumble loudly. Alfred chuckled and placed a hand against his stomach, as if to quiet it. “That smells great. Is dinner almost ready?” He asked, eagerly turning to Arthur, looking more like a child than a full grown man. His stomach growled again, causing him to flush. He gave Arthur a sheepish smile before glancing down at his appearance. “Should we wash up or something?” Honestly, he had little idea of what was appropriate within this household and the last thing he wanted to do was offend Mrs. Kirkland with his sloppiness. She was a lady and he was always taught to be on his best behavior when in a women’s presence. He continued to stare up at Arthur, silently pleading for some answer as to how to make himself appear better mannered (when his table skills were obviously severely lacking). “What do you think Artie?”

Content with the handshake Peter took off for the house, with a small "Race you," to who ever felt like running after him. He chuckled as he ran ahead, causing Evan to jog a bit of ahead of them. Arthur didn't mind, he was more concerned with Alfred being able to make to the house. Arthur wasn't exactly as strong as Alfred and Alfred was indeed larger than him, and the poor man would probably have to be dragged for a bit till Arthur could get help. He walked patiently with Alfred, wanting to make sure everything was fine with him. He noticed Alfred tense up as it grew darker and he honestly would give much thought into what Ivan threatened when he saw him again. Arthur was rather sure he was going to act out.

The moment he walked into the house Arthur was hit by the wonderful smell of food. He had grown use to it as they stayed waiting for Alfred to get better and wake up. He knew the meals were just as good as they smelled. Alfred knocked him from his thinking, and Arthur had to suppress a bit of a chuckle at the look on the young sheriff's face. "Ah, yes, it would probably be best if we washed up." Arthur said with a bit of thought. He grinned a bit to himself. It was clear Alfred was trying to learn some manners, at least for his mother. Arthur knew for sure his mother was more than use to messing eating in front of her, she was still beating manners into Peter's head from what he observed. "I'm sure there's some water around we could use." Arthur said looking around for a pale or something filled with water for them to use.

Alfred smiled, eager to please when Arthur agreed with his suggestion about washing up. So that had been the correct move to make - that was good to know. He glanced around, wondering where a water bowl would be placed for such an act when he spotted a small washroom located adjacent to the kitchen. He headed towards it and dipped his hands in the crystal clear water located there, bringing it up to his face to wash off the dust and sweat from his jaunt outside. Than he brought his hands up along his arms to do the same. When he was satisfied, he grabbed the small towel and dried off.

Once that was done, he leaned forward and examined his hair. It had grown long during his months in captivity, brushing passed his ears and onto his neck. He frowned in annoyance and styled it back as best he could. “I really need to get this cut,” He said, more to himself than Arthur. After a few minutes of fiddling around with the corn silk locks, he gave up and turned to look back at Arthur. “Okay?” He asked, a hopeful expression on his face. “Be sure and kick me if I’m eating too fast or using the wrong fork or something. I don’t want to offend your mother.” Lord knows his table manners were awful - his own mother would turn in her grave if she saw the way he behaved now. At least for tonight, he would try and behave like a proper gentleman.

Alfred stepped out of the little washroom and made his way into the dining room, smiling a bit nervously at the family that was just starting to gather. It was clear that despite the teasing and name-calling, they were a close knit bunch, making him feel like he was intruding somehow. He glanced quickly at Arthur for support before taking a seat, succumbing to the heavenly smell that awaited him. “Mm… smells wonderful.” He praised happily, looking down at the food laid out with eager eyes.