Arthur was surprised as he was approached in his office by his butler. As he lived in a rather large home that he had since he left the palace after the Virgin Queen died, he did in fact have servants that helped run the place and keep it clean. Which would make sense. Of course his staff here was small. Only three gardeners took care of the large expanse of land– of course none of them ever helped with tending to the gardens or greenhouse as Arthur specifically requested they leave that to him as he had a green thumb. He had one stable boy which took care of his many odd pets that he had acquired over the years and his three horses, as in his older days he was quite fond of horseback riding and the like.
He had two maids, they handled cleaning and organizing so that the house was always in it’s prime condition, as it was old and it needed tedious care. And lastly he had one butler and one footman. The butler mainly helped guide the servants and would also fulfill basic orders and form a type of companionship with Arthur, he would often times be a place of advice and wisdom, while aiding him in more complicated manners like finances or appointments. Not to mention remind him of upcoming events. Then there was the footman who did anything that had to do with leaving the manor during the times when Arthur was too busy to. He was a country after all… He hardly had any time to take care of himself.
When his butler approached he looked up from his work. “Sir, there is a visitor.” Tilting his head, the Brit didn’t know what to say, it was unusual to have visitors without plans but he shrugged it off and got up. “Any idea who it is?” The country asked. “It is mister America.” The butler responded, he was an older man with graying hair, but despite this he had this short of ‘young’ feel to him as if his body was in just as good condition as when he was in his twenties. “Alfred? No wonder I got no call.”
On that note the blond began to head out of his office which was on the second floor in the left wing. Coming down the stairs he saw the American in the entrance way still. “You can never call can you?”
Alfred didn’t plan for a visit to Arthur’s place, quite the opposite. It would be expected when your “family” lived in a different country that you would come visit once you were in that country or at least close. Though the life of a nation wasn’t always the same as the life of humans, and most, if not all, nations were tired of one another by now. Having lived together for centuries, getting one another’s nerves. Grown together, fought together, and in the American’s case, gotten their independence. It got a toll on one another.
However, if you had this kind of view toward anyone whom you considered a fellow nation, or once called family, the world would be a dark place. There would be no one to trust and life itself would be depressing and isolated. A life the young boy refused to live, so he took everything with a smile, even when people showed annoyance to his presence. What else could he possibly do?
Alfred had to wait in the entrance, a place he had been many times before; he could remember the place as he could his back pocket. Tripping up and down the hall, Alfred was getting impatient, waiting wasn’t his strongest side, and a part of him just hoped he wasn’t intruding on personal matters, now that would just be awkward. The waiting would be cut short, as the Briton’s voice rang in his ears. A scolding. Why was Alfred even surprised?
The youngers larger frame turned toward the older nation, as his arms opened wide like you would do if you expected a hug. Alfred wasn’t stupid, he knew well that he wasn’t getting any comfort, not unless he proceeded to hug Arthur first, though it still showed the boys enthusiasm. His smile was broad and welcoming. ❝ Artie! ❞ It’s been some time since the two last had a simple conversation between them, and Alfred had therefore chosen to take his visit to England as an opportunity for just that. ❝ No, I didn’t, I was close by anyway, so there shouldn’t be a reason to call. I wanted to surprise you! ❞ Not entirely false. Not true either, but whatever, Arthur didn’t know the truth and now that he was here, what did it matter anyway?