A/N: If you recognize me from tumblr (url is coldwarqueer) then you'll realize this is the fic I've been hyping up for a while (the "prince alfred knight ivan au") well here you go, here's the first installment

the name comes from an of monsters and men song, i recommend you read it its pretty nice. I don't own hetalia, I don't own the song, yadda yadda. I am not making profit for this and it is purely hobby.

The cover image was created by my friend fynntail and has given me permission to use it.

In the future there will be sexually mature scenes, character death, royal politics, and angst

As always, feedback is always appreciated.

Ivan opened his eyes, flat on his back, staring up at the cloudy sky. His head was pounding and he wasn't quite sure what had happened. The last split second he remembered was falling face down in the mud.

"Sorry I hit you with my sword…" Ivan turned his head and winced at the kink in his neck. He was about to go off on the child before he fully realized who he was talking to. "My dad said you were a real knight and knights are always so strong so I thought if I hit you your head would break my sword."

"I'm not a knight yet," Ivan muttered, his head lowered- as he had told to be when around the royal family. He kept his gaze to the ground. The young prince wasn't quite what Ivan had in mind when he pictured him.

"Yeah, but you're gonna be a knight some day!" The prince grabbed Ivan by the jaw and pulled with all his might, the young apprentice grunting as his jaw popped. "My dad told me that knights are big and strong and they have magic armor!"

"I don't get armor until I'm eligible for knighthood." Ivan sat up and rubbed the back of his head, where he felt a hard bump. That was going to hurt in the morning. "Why are you down in the training courtyards?"

"I can see you from my room!" The prince turned, dropping the wooden sword in his sticky grasp, and then pointed to the East tower of the massive castle that loomed over the courtyards. "That's where my room is! Where do you live? I like to watch the knights train every day, they look like they have so much fun! Do you ever get to slay dragons? I want to go on a big adventure and be a knight! I'm Alfred, who are you?"

The prince sure was talkative. "Ivan. I live in the apprentice quarters." He slowly pushed himself to his feet. He towered above the prince at an alarming rate. "How old are you?"

"I'll be seven summers soon! How old are you? I bet you're really old, you're so tall!" Of course, the prince was a chubby, short child like most nobility. Ivan bit his tongue. He had a lot of mean things to say, but he wouldn't.

"I'm twelve now." Ivan glanced at the abandoned wooden sword, presumably what he had been hit with. He wasn't too pleased, being saddled with the annoying kid prince. Wasn't he supposed to have some kind of nanny to watch over him? "Don't you have someone taking care of you?"

"Yeah, but I snuck out. I thought it would be way more fun to play with you, since you're a knight and all! You know what we should play? We should play evil wizard and knight! You be the evil wizard, I'll be the knight!" The prince picked up his wooden sword again and held it above his head, cheering.

Ivan had to duck a swing aimed at his head. "But- but…" He grunted as he was knocked square in the chest and pushed down. "But I'm the one training to be a knight." What an ironic twist.

"Yeah, but knights are heroes, and I'm the hero here!" Alfred lowered the wooden sword. "You're not playing it right! You have to act all evil, and then when I hit you you fall down! Come on, you gotta play it right!"

Ivan didn't want to piss the prince off- who knew what sort of things the king would do to him if he hurt the poor boy's feelings. "Alright, ah-" He cleared his throat and rubbed his hands together, pushing back to hop to his feet. He was nervous at the prospect that he would be playing with a member of the royal family. He hoped this didn't come back to bite him in the ass. However, if he was going to do this he may as well do it right. "What do I need to do to be an evil wizard?"

"You have to shoot spells! And I'll fling them off with my magic sword, and then I'll run you down and hit you and kill you! And then I'll be hailed as a hero!" Alfred cheered, sword in the air.

Ivan wondered what the boy's obsession with being a hero was about. He shrugged off the thought and nodded. "Alright, ah…" He made a hand motion. "I am shooting a web at you! It is magical, and will hold you down!"

"I rip it apart with my amazing sword!" Alfred giggled, chopping away at the pretend webs, making a look like he was struggling. "I'm free! I'm coming after you, evil wizard!"

Ivan laughed, sidestepping and running away from Alfred's lunges. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't having fun. "I shoot fire at you!"

"My sword is immune against fire! It protects me!" Ivan wondered if the little boy even knew what a shield was, and that that was the item he was thinking of. He didn't say anything; that would ruin the magic of pretend.

Ivan grunted as he was knocked in the chest with the sword, thankful that it wasn't incapacitating this time. "I got you, I got you!" Alfred cheered, jumping up and down. "I slew the evil wizard! Quick, now you have to give me a parade!" Alfred dropped the wooden sword and jumped up on Ivan's back with no warning. "Put me on your shoulders!"

The apprentice grunted and shifted Alfred onto his shoulders, holding him by the legs. Alfred seemed pleased to be up so high. "What do I do? Walk you around?"

"Go that way!" Alfred directed, pointing to the path that lead to the royal gardens. Ivan had never been in the gardens before; the knights and apprentices weren't allowed.

Ivan trekked them across the training field where a few of his fellow apprentices were scattered. He stopped at the edge of the lush gardens, before taking a nervous step. He grunted as Alfred kicked him to hurry up. "I've never been in the gardens."

"They're nice! My dad has a lot of flowers." Alfred pointed to many of the high hedges and the low hanging brush that came down off one of the walls. "See how pretty they are? Come on, take me on my parade!"

Ivan didn't know what the "parade" was supposed to look like, but he wandered through the gardens with Alfred on his shoulders and that seemed to be enough for the prince. Alfred pointed out many exotic flowers and plants that were special gifts from other countries.

"It's very beautiful," Ivan murmured under his breath, closing his eyes to soak in the serene grace of the gardens. He wished he'd snuck in before. Even if his shoulders were beginning to ache the beauty and the calm made up for it.

"Alfred!"

Ivan tensed and Alfred seemed to jump right from his shoulders. The prince seemed small now, as the king himself trampled the path to get to his son.

"Alfred Fredrick Jones, what do you think you were doing? Cavorting with some common apprentice? You should be up in your room, studying your words!"

"I don't want to! I want to play!" Alfred exclaimed. His tone had more than a hint of indignation in it. "I don't like studying, it's so booooring."

"That doesn't mean you can just up and sneak out like some common thief!" The king snatched Alfred by the ear, dragging him to his side. "And you," he pointed to Ivan, who froze under scrutiny, "You should know better than to run around with my boy. Go back to your duties."

Ivan felt small beneath the harsh gaze of his king. "Yes, your majesty," he said, eyes on the ground. "My humblest apologies. It won't happen again."

"You're right it won't." The king then lead his son away through the gardens, Alfred protesting and shouting the entire way. He looked back, waving a goodbye to Ivan.

Ivan returned the wave, before he slowly trudged back to the training fields; the gorgeous, calm gardens left behind.