I'm so sorry for not updating in such a long while. I'll be honest, I really have no excuses, but I'll tell you all the truth:

I am not quite sure when I will be able to update my stories due to college.

Aside from that, please enjoy the story and I am sorry for the grammar and spelling atrocities that I committed writing this.

I am so sorry for the long wait.

Dreams: is still being updated and edited.

What they don't know won't hurt them: I will be updating soon.

Thank you so much for waiting for such a while.

Again, enjoy the chapter.

The moment she felt the Spaniard's hand on her scar, Alice pushed him off. She quickly sat up and tried to move far from him. She hissed when her back hit the head board of the bed. Both of them stayed where they were; sitting from the opposite edges of the bed. Antonio reached out, making Alice flinched. He watched as she held the towel tighter, letting him know that he is nowhere close to touching her again.

"Let me see" Antonio said as he moved closer to her. Alice just stayed where she was, tensing and glaring. "Alice please" he added. Alice did not move, she did not budge and glared at the Spaniard. Spain sighed. "I have the right to know"

"Stop pleading, it's unlike you" she said as she slapped the Antonio's hand. At this she watched as the Spaniard faltered, his hand fell to the side of his body. 'He's holding back his anger' Alice concluded. She watched as Antonio sighed and moved so that he was sitting on the edge of the bed, his back turned to her. She watched as he covered his face with his hands and let them slide down as he raised his head.

"Why are you being like this?" he asked not looking at her. "I have the right to know about our child" Alice kept silent. "Atleast tell me why-"

"It was a child of fire and ice" Alice finally breathed out. Spain turned to look at her. "You honestly think that the moon and sun can have a child?" she asked. "The sun, as hot as it is, will burn the moon, so it was either I live or die-"

"STOP BEING SO CRYPTIC" Antonio yelled at her. He caught himself and covered his mouth,. "I'm sorry Alice I did not mean to yell" he said.

"IT'S THE TRUTH!" Alice yelled at him. "You think that our empires, enemies as they are, can bear fruit to another nation or empire? IT WOULD RESULT IN EITHER ONE OF US DYING" Spain turned and moved towards her. For both of their sake, he tried to stay calm.

"I know that" he said as he approached her. "I know that"

"Then what is there to tell you?" Alice asked slapping the Spaniard's hands away from her. "I have nothing to tell you Antonio, nothing"

"Alice-"

"ALICE!" a voice said from the outside. "ALICE!" it repeated. Alice sighed and moved off the bed.

"I'm changing Lovino" Alice said as she opened the door to let the kid in. He was hugging a pillow and crying. "I had a night-" He looked at the bed to see Spain. "What the hell is he doing here?" he asked.

"Romano!" Spain said in an irritated tone. "Watch your language" The little Italian seemed to jump from the angry tone his 'father' gave him. This made him move closer to Alice.

"I guess I'll just go back to my room-"

"Stay" Alice said as she guided the little boy towards Antonio. "It's fine, Spain and I just had a slight argument, he'll calm down soon" She turned to Spain. "Isn't that right Antonio?" she asked. Spain was surprised by how she addressed him. "Go on Romano, just stay, and I'll go and get changed." She closed the door and walked to her bathroom. Romano stood by the door for a couple of seconds, hugging his pillow tighter and tighter as the seconds go by.

"Come here mi chiquito" Romano did just that. He jumped on the bed and leaned on Antonio.

"Were you two arguing again?" Romano asked.

"You can say that" Antonio said as he picked up the Italian and placed him on his lap. He kissed Romano's head and sigh. "How much do you miss her?" Spain asked. Romano looked up, he was confused.

"By 'her' do you mean Alice?" he asked. Spain nodded. "A lot" Romano said.

"Even though you have Belle?"

"Comparing Alice and Belle is unfair. They're two different beings who have their own strengths and weaknesses, the reason as to why I seem to be more attached to Alice than Belle would probably be based on my experiences." Romano stated. Antonio took a while to take Romano's response.

"And your experiences?"

"Belle is more like a sister" Romano declared. "I don't mind a sister, but the kind of love that Alice gives me it's…it's…" Spain and Romano sat for a moment. Spain just closed his eyes, waiting for Romano to finish his sentence. He was about to fall asleep, but he felt someone taking Romano away from him. His first reaction was to grab the arm that brushed against his own.

"Calm down, I'm just going to tuck him into bed"

"Bed?" Spain asked.

"Listen, you two were already falling asleep, don't worry, I'll tuck him in on your bed, so let's go and-"

"No" Antonio interrupted. "No, if you don't mind, He and I would like to stay here" He let go of her arm and looked at the bed he was sitting on. "This bed, it seems too big to sleep on alone, and Romano wants you next to him when he wakes up." Spain said. "I'll leave if you want me to, but please don't take yourself away from Lovino" He looked up and finally looked at Alice straight in the eyes. "He sees you as a mother and I know that's what he wants." Antonio did not hear anything from Alice. But he did feel her tugging on the blankets and tucking Romano in. He heard Romano turn and murmur and he was about to cry. He turned, ready to help Alice calm the Italian down, but he was surprise when he heard Alice start to hum a song that immediately soothed the Italian back to its sleep. Antonio let out a sigh and stood up, only to be stopped by Alice's voice.

"Stay" she uttered. Spain sat still, contemplating on whether he should or not.

"Are you sure?" he asked. He sat there, his back turned to Alice (and Lovino for that matter).

"I want to talk to you" Alice declared. "But not here, I would like to talk to you in my study, if that's fine with you"

"I don't see how that should be a problem"

Spain was amazed by the size of Alice's study. The walls were lined with books, scrolls and trinkets. He liked how the moonlight brought light to the room, but scorned at how cold the room was. He was looking around until he heard the crackling of timber. He turned around to see that Alice starting a fire. She reached over and grabbed another log and threw it into the pit. She turned to him patted the empty space next to her. He walked over and sat down next to her. She looked at him and said nothing at first. When she saw the Spaniard shiver she let out a small laugh.

"What?" Spain asked.

"I told you to bring the blanket" she mused. "Now you know why" After her comments, Alice turned her attention to the fireplace. "But a nice fire can bring people closer" she murmured. After a moment of silence, Antonio reached out to her. At first she tensed but relaxed. She leaned towards him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I forgot to ask" she started. "Would you like anything to drink?"

"What do you have?" Antonio asked.

"Whiskey" Alice replied, getting ready to stand.

"No" Antonio said. "You shouldn't drink either" He said as he held Alice's hand. "I don't want Romano to think-"

"Always about Romano" Alice scoffed.

"that we had drunk sex" Antonio finished.

"That child is smarter than you credit him for" Alice said as she turned to the Spaniard.

"I don't underestimate him, I'm just considering what he grew up with" Alice grew silent at this. She knew exactly what Antonio meant. She couldn't help but think back to the time when Rome had her and her mother in his possession. She hated how the he would flirt with all the women, bedding them, smelling like wine. That's probably one thing that Alice found most foul from the man. How he smelled of wine (It even affects her interactions with Francis). But she understood that it was necessary for the Roman representative to be the way he was. It was a way for him to keep his sanity; it was keeping the visions of the war fields, the screams of those who passed, and the faces of terror, denying the man from the feeling of love. She remembered how her mother would always go back to her smelling like wine. She thought about how Lovino must've always been the one to shushed Feliciano to sleep when Rome was gone. She frowned at the thought of it.

"Does he come home drunk?" Alice asked Antonio. Antonio was confused first, trying to figure out who Alice meant by 'he', but he came to the realization once she identified the man. "Rome" she turned to face him. "I know that he makes one of you stay with the Italian twins when he would go to his escapades"

"Sometimes" Spain said as he hugged the blonde. "He would come home, but he was still able to act as a grandfather, he would kiss Lovino goodnight and tuck him to bed, and sleep by their side" Spain said. "But I know that Lovino didn't like it, he knew that Rome could just spend the day with them and feel the love that he needed to feel"

"And in the end he took Feliciano with him" Alice finished. Spain hugged Alice tighter.

"He did" Antonio said. "But we can change that"

"We?" Alice asked as she broke herself away from the Antonio's hold. "What do you mean by we?" Antonio looked at Alice. He looked at how her eyes begin to tear up. He reached out to her and caressed her left cheek.

"I want to be with you" He watched as Alice froze from his confession. She was shocked and most of all scared. Scared that Antonio is lying, scared for her, scared for them, terrified at the idea.

"No" she murmured. Antonio knew that she would refuse. He also knew that he needed to be firm with his decision if he is to convince Alice. "No" she repeated. "You're mad"

"I might be" Antonio said. "But I do know that I do want you, not in a lustful way, I want you, back in my life-"

"I am in your life!" Alice interrupted as she stood up. "I'm in your life as of right now! As the girl you're sitting across from! As your friend's enemy and ally, as another girl in your history, as your" Alice stopped as she didn't want to think of it. "As your enemy" Antonio was surprised by Alice's response. "As long as we keep it that way, I will be in your life" she finished.

"You're scared" Antonio said as he stood up to try to reach her again.

"I'm scared?" Alice mocked. "I'm sure anyone else who witnessed our relationship would be scared, FOR THE BOTH OF US"

"I KNOW THAT!" Antonio yelled back.

"THEN WHY WOULD YOU WANT A SECOND CHANCE?"

"BECAUSE I ADMIT" This response shocked Alice. "I'm admitting to my mistakes" Antonio finished. He let out a sigh as he reached out to Alice. "I admit, I was an idiot"

"You are an idiot" Alice murmured. This brought a smirk to the Spaniard's lips.

"It's hard for people to admit their mistakes so be gentle with me, hear me out" he continued. "I was idiot for losing control of my emotions when my Armada sank, it was the most humiliating defeat I've had and to lose to you, a state that was, was so…" Antonio couldn't bring himself to say his words.

"Weak? Divided? The Black sheep of Europe?" Alice interjected. "Yes I know that it was a surprise, and I know that the Armada was not the only thing that you were angry over" Antonio stood there silent. "You were mad because you thought that your God left you, that the 'Godless' Elizabeth who used pirates was able to beat you because of the God's wind." He couldn't deny it, he did scorn the fact that the winds were in Alice's favor during the confrontation. "I know his Speech, your brother was kind enough to tell me, 'I did not send my men to battle God's winds' he said, but did you ever think that maybe a Witch may have done the same? Admit it you thought of me as a Heretic whether I identified myself as a Protestant or using magic." She paused, observing the Spaniard as he clenched left hand into a fist. "Tell me, did you think that I was a lost cause? That maybe, your God used his brutal winds against you to keep you from the 'Godless' England? to spare you from the work of reforming England?"

"I was actually thankful for that" Antonio finally said. "I was thankful that I failed in reforming you. To be honest, I was not ready to take on England's religious reform, not after what I saw you go through when my men kidnapped you under my own council's decision without my knowing." He reached out and held Alice's hand. "I remember how reluctant you were about telling me what they did to you.

"Good for you" Alice taunted. She flinched when she felt the Spaniard's hand on her abdomen. She could feel the warmth of his fingertips through her thin nightgown. She stood still, allowing the Spaniard's hand to trace the scar from the cut. "It's not your fault" Antonio finally said. Next thing Alice knew, the Spaniard was kneeling in front of her, his hands on her waist, while he pressed his forehead against her abdomen. "It's not your fault" he repeated. He looked up at Alice, making sure that their eyes met. He could tell that Alice was too confused on what to do. He knew that this was not what she expected him to do. He knew that she expected him to not care, to walk away and not even talk about the child. Because he did say it himself, the idea of having a child with her is a nightmare. "It's not your fault" He repeated as he pressed his forehead on her abdomen this time. He kissed her abdomen, making sure that he could feel the scar underneath her garment. "It's not your fault that our child died" he finally said. For years no one had dared to say that to her. "It's not your fault". Not one state that knew bothered to tell her that. "It's not your fault" The phrase kept repeating in her mind. No one dared tell her that because they knew that it would imply that she would be blaming herself, that England, of all people, state, or nation was blaming herself for the loss of life.

"I'm to blame too" he finished as he hugged Alice. Alice, who was shocked from this, just stood there, trying to ignore the sensation of the Spaniard's lips on the cut. Next thing she knew, she felt something cold, which made her flinch. She placed her hands on the side of the Spaniard's face, and directed it so that they were facing each other. The light bounced off the trail of tears on the Spaniard's face. She knew that the Spaniard was affected by just feeling the scar that he was only able to speak in his native language.

"I wasn't there for you" He began. "All I cared about was your religious reform. The only thing in my mind was putting who I thought was the right ruler for you on the throne even with the knowledge that it will hurt you. I was so blinded that I didn't even bother to try to stay together! To look out for my wife, to be with her even though I vowed that I will be there through whatever time throws at us!" he said. "I could've spent those that time taking care of you and the child! I could've spent that time with my hands caressing you abdomen feeling for our child's kick-"

"I didn't have a baby bump" Alice finally said, disrupting the crying Spaniard. "I didn't know that I was pregnant" Alice finished. This only prompted the Spaniard to hold onto her tighter. Alice didn't say anything else, but instead, she sat down, her legs folding underneath her, hands placed on the floor while Antonio moved so that his hands were over hers. He sat in front of her making sure that they had eye contact. Alice looked down, not wanting to see the man's eyes, but this action was nulled when she felt the Spaniard's index finger underneath her chin, making her look up. By the looks of it, Antonio was confused. They were covered in the darkness as the light the fireplace emitted died due to the lack of source. They stayed there, looking at each other. Antonio opened his mouth to say something, but closing it as he stopped himself.

"How long?" he finally asked, breaking the silence. This time he reverted to using Alice's language. "How far were you into the pregnancy?" Alice wondered if she should give the information out, wondered if she can try to be honest to the man in front of her. She looked at him, deciding if the Spaniard in front of her should even know about the details.

"Five months" Alice answered. She waited for the Spaniard to scowl, or even worst: leave her. 'It was pretty pathetic, for a woman to not know that she had a life inside her' Alice thought.

"And you didn't get any symptoms?"

"I only got the morning sickness, but I shrugged that off" Antonio looked at Alice, then at her abdomen. He didn't know what to say.

"Of course you wouldn't have any symptoms" he began. He felt Alice tense, which prompted him to lay down, placing his head on her lap. He hugged Alice close to him. "Maybe you didn't get any symptoms because of our nature, as nations, avatars of our state" he mumbled. "Maybe we don't have the ability to tell" he hugged Alice tighter. "Or maybe you were too distracted" he finished. "Too distracted in trying to be who you are despite what the rest of us was trying to do, maybe if we had let have your breathing space, maybe then will the child have time to develop and grow, maybe then we would.." He stopped himself from finishing the sentence.

'Still be together' the both them of thought.

"Do I still have a chance?" Antonio asked. This question threw Alice offguard.

"A chance at what? A relationship with me?" she asked.

"That and a chance of being a father" Antonio clarified. "I know having another child will not make up for the loss of one but-"

"I'm not letting myself carry anyone's child" Alice said. She watched as Antonio hugged her, hiding his face, but she knew that he was frowning.

"But you didn't deny if I don't have a chance with you" he mumbled. Again, this caught Alice off guard. She was startled when the Spaniard gasp, quickly rising to sit up. As he tried to sit up, his head collided against Alice's chin. Both recoiled and hissed from the impact. Alice glared at the Spaniard. "What the hell was that for?" she asked.

"We really need to get back to Lovino" Antonio said as he stood up. He offered a hand to help Alice up. Alice looked confused, she had never seen the Spaniard look so nervous, especially when it came towards Lovino when both of them are home. "He usually wakes up around this time and I don't want him to wake up alone on a big mattress"

"why-"

"The last thing he saw when he fell asleep was us" Spain said as he pulled Alice up, grabbing her hand and began to walk towards the door. "I don't want him to wake up and think that we left him to take care of business"

"You mean you're considering with what he grew up with"

"That child does not need to feel the loneliness he felt when Rome took Feliciano." Antonio clarified. "and I have no intention of making him feel like that."

Romano woke up, he was a bit surprise. He was expecting to wake up alone. But instead his eyes met Alice's. He also felt Antonio's arm resting on his belly, he followed it to see that Antonio was holding Alice's right hand. His eyes got a little wide. Next thing he knew, Alice moved her hand and propped her head up with her left hand and began to comb through Romano's hair. "Lovino" she began. He was surprised. She normally does not address him by this name. "Go back to sleep" she cooed. He tried to move closer to her, but as he does, Antonio moved with him.

"We're here Lovino" he said. Romano couldn't help but cry.

"How do I know I'm not sleeping alone and that this is a dream?" he asked. Alice couldn't think of an answer, neither can Antonio. Then it finally clicked in their mind that this is all the Romano ever dreams of, sharing a bed with his parents, or the equivalent.

"Pinch yourself" Alice said. Lovino hiccupped as he pinched himself. And to his luck, he wasn't dreaming. "I still don't believe it"

"Then we'll stay like this until you wake up" Antonio said. He saw Alice frown at the suggestion, but she didn't protest against it. They both focused on Lovino again. He was sobbing, and he was reaching out for Alice.

"Alice, Alice , Alice" Romano said as he reached out.

"I'm here" she said as she moved closer to him. Soon enough, Alice was in Antonio's embrace, putting Romano in the middle. They stayed like that for a couple of minutes. Until they knew that Romano was back to sleep.

"Does he do this often?" Alice asked.

"too often"

"What do you do?"

"nothing" Antonio mumbled. "I can't ask Belle to sleep next to him"

"Oh but you can" Alice mocked. "Things are back to normal for you" she whispered. "You are free to pursue that Belgian"

"It's not the same" Antonio clarified.

"What's not the same?" Alice asked. At this Antonio managed to untangle Alice from Lovino in one swift move, and next thing Alice knew the Spaniard's hands were on either sides of her head and Antonio hovered over her.

"This" he said as he lowered his head, nearly bringing his lips to hers, but he stopped just as his face is an inch away from Alice's. "Ever since the day I walked out and ended our relationship, doing this with another person is unbearable"

"Yet you go through" Alice whispered.

"It was troublesome when your gut is constantly disagreeing"

"What's stopping you then?" Alice asked. "You have me pinned and I do not wish to wake up Romano for him to find that we are like this."

"I want your consent" he said as he backed off and lay down on the other side. This left

Alice with her eyes wide and thoughts rampant. She scowled when the moment gave her butterflies in her stomach. She hated it. She hated how she wished that the Spaniard did plant his lips on hers. She hated how she wanted to be held by him and lean in on his touches. 'How dare he?' Alice thought. 'How dare he pull such a stunt?!' she finished. She looked to see that the Spaniard was staring at her the whole time.

"I was getting worried there" He mused.

"for what?" Alice scowled.

"your eyes weren't closing, they stayed wide and I was wondering if you were okay"

"perfect" Alice said. Then something clicked in her head. "What do you want really Carriedo?" she asked. "You won and you haven't really done anything"

"May I hold your hand?" Antonio asked, reaching across. Alice just stared, she nodded. Antonio smiled and as he let his fingers fill the gaps between Alice's, holding her hand. "This is all I want" he asked. "This moment is all I ask for" he said.

Alice turned to her side when the sunlight hit her eyelids. She felt an arm pull her close. At first she panicked; forgetting the events of the previous night. But everything was clear when she heard a little puff of air coming from the sleeping nation to her. She looked to see Romano, grabbing onto her nightgown, and Antonio, whose arm was wrapped around her. She felt a tug again, and this time, the Spaniard pulled her closer; earning another mumble from the Italian nation in between them. She began to comb Romano's hair with her hand, she stopped when Antonio suddenly uttered her name.

"Alice" he mumbled. Alice couldn't help but look up, observing the Spaniard. "quédate conmigo" she heard. "por favor, mi rosa, quédate conmigo" he mumbled. Alice couldn't help but blush. Everything in her mind suddenly disappeared, and she suddenly felt tears pooing around her eyes.

"Ye-" she stopped herself. She tried to not make any sudden movements; fearing that she'll wake Antonio and Romano up. Instead, she covered her face with her hands, trying muffle her cries and sobs and wiping away her tears. She repressed her voice when she suddenly felt herself being pulled closer, forcing her to quickly wrapped her arms around Romano, pressing the Italian against her; preventing the nation from being squished. She found herself so close to Antonio, close enough for her head to be tucked underneath his chin. She felt his hand on her hair, massaging her scalp; As if Antonio knew that she needed to get things of her mind. She tried to block out all of his mumblings, which was nearly impossible considering her position. What broke it for Alice, was when she suddenly felt lips on her forehead. At first she tried to pretend to be asleep, but she soon realized that the Spaniard did the action unconsciously. She looked up, only to have his lips touch her forehead again.

What bothered Alice the most was how natural this all felt. Waking up to see Romano and Antonio, being tugged closer, listening to the little mumbles of the Spaniard and Italian. Most importantly, the feeling of Antonio's lips on her skin. She couldn't help but lean towards him, prompting the man to give her another kiss on the forehead. Next thing Alice knew, she slowly moved up, making sure to not wake the Italian in her arms, and then planted her lips on Antonio's. Sending her mind into a ray of confusion, doubt, and bliss. This all came crashing down when she opened her eyes to see a shocked, surprised, and confused Spaniard.

I hope that you all enjoyed the chapter. If there is a particular time in history that you would like me to include please message me. Here are some of the important events that the story will cover

1. War of Spanish Succession

2. The Seven Years War

3. American Revolution

If you have any question, comments, or concerns about the events that I will be covering, please tell me soon.

Once this story is done, there will be a sequel, taking place in modern times.

I hope that that doesn't give the ending away.

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!

~~~Azurey Skies.