The Saddest Thing

Summary: One of the saddest things is for a 911 dispatcher to receive a call from a scared six year old. "911, what's your emergency?" "Daddy won't wake up."

Genre: Tragedy, Hurt/Comfort (?)

Warnings: Character death, a bit of OOC, blood, a bit of cursing, etc.

Pairings: None.

Rated: Teenager

Disclaimer: Only the plot line is mine. Hetalia doesn't belong to me.

The call happened on a cold October night. No one walked the semi-misty streets. The orange lights coming out of all the Halloween decorations have a warm, yet eerie feeling. No one thought something wrong might happen. They were all wrong.

"911, what's your emergency?"

"Daddy won't wake up."

It was the voice of a scared little boy. It seemed that he had cried. At first, the dispatcher thought that the call was an accident, until the boy said.

"He's covered in blood, and he won't wake up."

His voice cracked.

"Okay, okay. What is you name?"

"Alfred."

"Okay, Alfred, can you tell me your address so we can send the ambulance and the police to take a look at your father?"

The boy didn't answer. Instead, ruffling was heard. The dispatcher heard Alfred yelled, "Matt? Matt? C'mon, Mattie. This isn't funny! Wake up! Please! Matt!" The dispatcher could feel her heart break. She began tracing the call. After a few more cries, Alfred finally found out he was still with the police.

"H-Hello?"

The young boy sniffed.

"Alfred... Can you tell me what happened?"

Her voice was calm, showing no harm.

"Me, Matthew, and Dad were watching a movie when this masked person broke into the house and started to attack Dad. Me and Matt we-were able to hide in the other room without that pe-person spotting us. Then that mean person took out a knife. Matt said we had to do something, and ra-ran out to save Dad. I closed my eyes. When I-I opened them, Matthew was being crushed by the bad person's foot, but Matthew tried to be a hero. He tried to save Dad when I was too scared to even move!"

Alfred started to cry again. The dispatcher was glad this conversation was being recorded. This might be the only thing the traumatised boy might ever say about this day.

"I'm no hero..."

Alfred sounded depressed.

"Now, now... Don't say that, Alfred. You called the emergency line. Because of you, the police are on the way, and they can help your father and Matthew. You're a big hero."

"R-Really?"

"Yes, really."

"And t-the police are on their way?"

"Yes."

"Alright. Thank you, ma'am. Good bye."

With that said, the call ended abruptly. The dispatcher wasn't able to say anything else. She hoped the boy's family would be alright. She sighed and looked at the notes she took. She did not like the image in her brain one bit. Being a pessimist during these times was no good.

The police had reached Alfred's house. The door was opened, and it showed signs of forced entry. They had slowly entered the home. Everything seemed normal except for the small blood stains here and there. The police followed a hallway until they entered the gruesome crime scene.

It looked like the room was a family room, before the tragedy. Now it was messy. It meant that the victim probably threw things to shield himself from the attacker, or the attacker threw things to injure its prey. There were blood splatters everywhere, but the saddest thing, was the boy sitting in the middle of the room, trying to wake his father up. His left cheek was covered in blood, as were his hands and clothes.

"Dad? Dad? Daddy? Please wake up. C'mon Dad, wake up. I love you."

The boy said it like it was a chant. Like he had repeated it so many times it was almost natural. The boy turned half of his body around. The cops followed his view. They saw another boy. He had a deep cut wound on his cheek.

"Matt? You haven't woken up yet..."

One of the officers cleared his throat and the boy's head quickly turned to them. The boy's blue eyes lit up with hope. He quickly got up and, almost slipping on the puddle of blood around the body next to him, ran up to one of the policemen. He grabbed onto the man's shirt.

"Please, you have to help Daddy and Matthew! They won't wake up!"

Fresh new tears fell from the boy's eyes. The policeman's eyes soften at the boy's naiveness. He crouched down to the boy's level and motioned his officers to do their jobs.

"Can you tell me your name boy?"

The officer asked slowly to the frighten child.

"It's Alfred, mister."

The child said. He started to play with his fingers, showing how uncomfortable he felt. The officer looked at the boy's eyes and saw how disturbed and frighten he was.

"I'm Officer Kiku Honda."

Alfred nodded in understanding. Officer Honda looked at one of his men. The man was next over the older victim and shaking his head in disappointed.

"No use. He's gone."

The policeman had said. That fact didn't surprise Officer Honda. It was obvious the poor man was stabbed various times (so many times, he was barely recognisable, but the officer knew who he was), even after death, but the deep slash on his throat said it all.

"This one still has a pulse."

Another officer said, the one that was next to the smaller victim. Officer Honda nodded.

"No, I don't get it. How can he be gone? Dad's right there."

Alfred didn't understand. The officer sighed sadly.

"Gomen'nasai, Alfred."

Alfred had spent the night in the hospital. He was checked for injuries, but the doctors found none. When asked about his bloody cheek, Alfred said he got it checking for his father's beating heart, which he didn't find. His brother, Matthew, was found with a deep cut on his cheek and three fractured ribs. He was now on the hospital bed and the doctors were waiting for him wake up.

Officer Honda sighed as he went through the events of the night. He still didn't know why he had decided to stay with Alfred. Probably because the boy didn't have anyone to stay by his side, and somehow, didn't want to part from Kiku's side. The officer was now sitting on chair on the far corner of the room watching a curled up Alfred sleeping on the end of the hospital bed his brother was in. Alfred had insisted to be the first Matthew would see when the boy opened his eyes. A while later, he had fallen asleep.

Kiku couldn't really understand the six year old. When the officer had told him the tragic news, Alfred jus stood still, letting all the information in. He didn't deny it, or anything. He just stood there looking at nothing. The boy was quiet on the ride to the hospital. He was quiet when the doctors examined him. When asked questions, Alfred would answer in a monotone. He was quiet when Matthew was being examined, and Kiku and him were alone in the hospital room. But when Matthew was wheeled in, something changed in Alfred. He would ask questions to the doctors about Matthew's health. Maybe, Kiku thought, maybe he just wants to protect the only family he had left.

"He is a strong kid."

The officer said in his native tongue.

He once again thought about why he stayed with Alfred. Maybe it was because he had known the boy's father from high school. Arthur Kirkland wasn't exactly a well liked man on campus, yet many girls would still go after him (and Arthur wouldn't pay attention to them at all). Kiku and him had been best friends since the beginning. Sadly, they had parted ways at the end of school. When Kiku saw Arthur's body, a lot of emotions ran around his body. He didn't know what to do, or think for a moment. But when he saw that scared little boy, he knew he had to pay attention to him and not himself. But now that he's alone, he still doesn't know what to think. Another reason could be because Alfred had lost his mother days after childbirth. Kiku never met the woman, but he had seen though a popular Internet site that she had debilitating disease that pregnancy only made worse. She was given the idea of abortion, but chose not to. Maybe Kiku did it because he felt like he was repaying Arthur for being a loyal and good friend in high school all those years ago.

Kiku rested his head on his hand.

"Yeah... That must be it."

Kiku wanted to make sure that Alfred and his brother are in good hands. He'll take care of that in the morning. Kiku began to doze off until he fell completely asleep on the chair.

Kiku sighed as he stood in front the grand house. That morning Kiku had woken up with a crick on his neck. When he looked around to check for Alfred, the man had found him sitting on the bed waiting for Matthew to wake up. Kiku figured out he was late for work already and needed to get going. He stood up and stretched.

"Good morning, Alfred."

"Hey..."

The boy didn't even look at him. When Kiku took a better look at Alfred, the boy wore a frown and his eyes were dull and boring. Alfred took a deep breath and let it go.

"Why is the world so cruel, Officer Honda?"

"What do you mean, Alfred?"

"Last night, before I fell asleep, I was hoping I would wake up in my room. That all of this was just a cruel nightmare. That in the morning... Dad would be burning something in the kitchen. Maybe it doesn't work the second time around either."

Kiku didn't know what to say. He had never had such a strong experience as watching someone you love be killed right in front of you. He just apologised once again and kept it like that. The doctors came in to check Matthew and told Alfred and Kiku that the boy might be waking up anytime now. Kiku didn't have another minute to waste and knowing that Alfred probably doesn't want to get up from the spot he's in, he called a trusted friend to babysit Alfred. Once the friend got here, Kiku took off for the police office.

In the office, they had told him that they still didn't have any subjects of the crime or no one that could take care of the boys. They did say they had some people to interview, and in that list, Alfred and Matthew were written. They had also given Kiku the recording of Alfred's 911 call. Officer Honda packed up his things and his men and him went to interview the people in the list.

Now, in front of the grand house, he wondered how much would it take to solve this case. Hopefully, soon. He wanted closure so his friend could rest in peace. He slowly knocked on the door.

A woman with short blonde and green eyes opened the door. Behind her, a taller tanned man stood. Both in equal surprise of the police being there. Officer Honda looked at the taller man.

"Are you Mr. Fernández and Ms. Peeters?"

"Sí, we didn't expect for you to be here so soon?"

So they were expecting the police.

"Can we come in?"

"Yes, yes, please."

Mr. Fernández and the woman stepped aside to the police inside. The two brought the police to the living room. In there, the police saw three other people; two adults and an older grumpy looking teenager. Officer looked at one of the adults and gasped.

"Gilbert?"

"Kiku!?"

Gilbert laughed and stood up. He put his hands on Kiku's shoulders.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, buddy?"

"Y-Yes, it has."

"You know him, Gil?"

The woman Gilbert sat next to and Mr. Fernández asked at the same time.

"Of course, Liz, Toni. Him and Luddy were good friends during college."

Liz stood up and went to where Officer Honda was.

"I'm Elizaveta Héderváry. We were just visiting Laura and Antonio. We can leave if you want."

"No, it's okay. I actually need to speak to Gilbert, too."

The officer looked at Gilbert's shocked face. The man gulped and nodded. The four adults sat on a couch and Officer Honda sat on the couch across of them.

"Are you saying one if them is the murderer?"

The teenager, who had gone unnoticed, asked. He was leaning against the fireplace.

"No, I'm not saying that at all."

"Calm down, Lovi."

Lovi growled at the nickname.

"Whatever. I'm going to lock myself in my room."

The teen started walking to the stair murmuring profanities. Kiku watched him all the way.

"Who was that?"

He whispered.

"Lovino Vargas. Foster child under my care. He's suffered through a lot."

Antonio awkwardly chuckled. Kiku nodded. He had heard of Lovino Vargas. His family was part of the infamous Italian Mafia. Lovino was able to escape the Mafia, but his little brother, Feliciano, is missing and presumed dead.

"Understandable... Why don't we begin?"

The four others nodded and the interview began. All of them knowing it had to do with Arthur's murder.

"How was your relationship with Arthur?"

"He hated me."

"Ja, and me."

"He was a good friend of mine."

"We were in friendly terms."

Antonio, Gilbert, Laura, and Elizaveta answered in that order. The policeman next to Officer Kiku wrote it down.

"Was there anyone who he didn't get along with other than you?"

"Other than Francis, no."

Antonio shook his head like the rest of them. Kiku raised a brow.

"Other than Francis?"

"Ja, Franny."

"Francis Bonnefoy, brother of Arthur's late wife."

"Is there a chance he cou-?"

"Nien. The man has been in France for six months now."

"He has been in coma for six month now, cause by a car accident."

The four adults lowered their heads. Elizaveta was the first to talk.

"Poor, poor Francis. I never liked the man, but on these last six months, I just hope he would wake up."

"It makes me feel bad for the boys. They really liked him. First, their mother. Then, Francis. Now, their father."

Laura sighed after she said that. Kiku's eyes widened.

'Maybe it doesn't work the second time around either.'

So Alfred had hope Francis having that accident and falling into that coma was a nightmare. That if he fell asleep, in the morning, everything would be fine.

"I-I see..."

Kiku stuttered and cleared his throat. He continued the interview. Even though he did get a lot of information on what Arthur's been doing in the past years, he still felt no closer to the killer.

"One last question: Who do you think would want to kill Arthur?"

Kiku saw as their faces darkened.

"Her."

They said at the same time.

"Her?"

Kiku wondered who her was.

"That woman would stalk Arthur."

"She followed him from high school to college."

"She had attack Arthur's wife when she was still alive."

Kiku raised a brow. He didn't remember a woman stalking Arthur in high school. But he does remember Arthur sometimes telling him that he felt watched.

"W-Who is her?"

Antonio told Kiku her name. The officer knew who she was. She always been a strange woman in high school. People called called her disturbed. Kiku never knew she was stalking Arthur.

Kiku stood up and cleared his throat.

"Thank you... For the information."

Antonio and the crew stood up, too.

"Can I ask you something? How are Alfred and Matthew?"

Kiku looked at Antonio's eyes. He saw that the man was looking for an honest answer. He didn't know if he could reveal the state of Alfred and his brother.

"Por favor, I'm like an uncle to the twins."

Kiku sighed. He could tell the man wasn't lying.

"Alfred is fine as a traumatised boy can be. Matthew has injuries that are not serious. He is expected to wake up today."

Antonio nodded.

"If they have nowhere to stay, they are welcomed to stay here."

"Yes, thank you."

Antonio sighed and gave a quick glance to the stairs, as if expecting Lovino to be there, then settled his gaze to the floor.

"Poor, poor boys... Arthur maintained the hardships of the world hidden from them. Then... Just them watching him being... Well... Everything Arthur was trying to hide... It must have been hard..."

So that would explain Alfred's naiveness. Why he refused to belief Arthur's death until Kiku confirmed it. It really must have been hard, and scarring.

"Yes, I agree. It must have been hard."

It stayed quiet for a while.

"Well... I must go. Thank you for your time."

Kiku bowed and said his goodbyes.

Kiku rubbed his temples. He was now sitting in his office and having a conversation with another officer helping on the case. There were discussing what to do with the twins.

"I don't think it's a good idea for them to recall yesterday's events."

"Kiku, the faster we get the events, the faster we will end the case."

"But still, we can't know for sure if they want to say the events."

"We have to try. Look, the people you interviewed said it probably was a woman. On the recording, Alfred said he saw Matthew under the attackers foot. Matthew could be able to tell us the gender. Please, Kiku."

"Oh, alright. I will see what I can do."

"Good. By the way, have you found a place where the boys can stay?"

"Well... Antonio Fernández Carriendo. He said he was close to the two brothers and offered to take care of them but..."

"But what?"

"I don't know if it's actually a good idea."

"Why?"

"Mr. Fernández is taking care of former member of the Italian mafia, Lovino Vargas."

"A Vargas, eh? But didn't that one escape from the mafia?"

"I still not think it's safe."

"Well... Officer Honda, do what you think it's right, okay?"

"Okay."

The other officer left the office and Kiku stayed alone. He sighed. Now he had to interview Alfred and his brother, if his brother is even awake. He didn't really want to do it, but he had no choice. Hopefully, everything will be find. The problem was the custody issue. Their mother only has one brother, and he's been in a coma. Their father's brothers are in the UK, and they aren't in exactly good terms with the police. At least, that's what Antonio and the others said. All the police had to do is run a background check. Antonio's a good candidate, but the problem was Lovino. Kiku didn't trust the teen. He groaned and slammed his head (softly) on the desk.

"This is so difficult."

Kiku started to wonder about the subject they have. What if it's not the woman? Gilbert said Arthur had a drinking problem. What if he, while drunk, messed with the wrong crowd? It could happen. It wasn't a group murder. Alfred did say a person. Maybe he didn't see correctly. Maybe there were other people in the shadows. Kiku sighed and stood up straight.

He looked at the clock and saw it was almost time to go. He decided that he was going to check the crime scene.

As he walked through the doors of the house, people acknowledged him. On his way to the family room, he saw family portraits and pictures of outings. Some where of Arthur and his late wife when they were probably just dating. Other were of Arthur and the two boys. They seemed pretty happy. It made Kiku's heart fill with sorrow for the boys. He continued walking until he was in the family room.

"Any new evidence?"

Kiku asked the man in charge of the crime scene. The man turned around and greeted Kiku. After that, he answered the question.

"We have found long strings of hair. They didn't seem to be from any of the family members. We'll run DNA tests on it and see if we can match to anyone in the national DNA database system."

Kiku nodded. He asked if there was anything else, but the man said no. He stayed a while longer; watching people take pictures and collect evidence. After half an hour, he decided to leave. As he walked to his car, the officer saw a woman and her child right behind the yellow tape.

"What's going on, Momma?"

"There's... A very bad person did something evil."

Kiku gulped as he held the door handle to car.

"I suggest you hug your kid a bit tighter tonight."

"I will."

The woman had said after a while past. With that said, Kiku got into his car. He didn't know why he said that, but it felt right. He started up the car and went to the hospital.

Kiku heard a couple of giggles when he was outside of the hospital room. Matthew must have woken up. When he entered the room, he saw why there was giggling in the room. The brothers had used his friend's hair as a source of entertainment and braided it in many weird and extravagant ways. Kiku saw that when every time Matthew let go of a fist of giggles, he would hold his chest and/or complain of pain. Kiku cleared his throat.

"Officer!"

Alfred was happy to see him. In fact, his face was bright and showed happiness, but that wasn't the story his eyes were telling him. Alfred was acting differently from this morning. When Kiku looked at Matthew, he figured the boy was oblivious to his father's passing.

"Thank goodness, you are back!"

His friend exclaimed. He took out all the braids from his hair.

"I'm sorry, Yao."

Yao walked to him and gave him a piece of paper. Kiku put it in his pocket.

"You owe me big time, Kiku."

He walked to the door and waved.

"Bye, boys."

"Bye!"

The two boys waves goodbye and Yao left. Kiku looked at the boys, especially at Matthew.

"Hey, officer? Can I speak to you in private?"

Alfred had said that.

"Um... Sure."

Alfred got out of bed and followed Kiku outside. The moment the were outside the room, Alfred's face fell.

"What is it, Alfred?"

"I still haven't told Matthew about... About Dad..."

"I suspected that much."

"He thinks Dad is in this hospital being checked by the doctors."

"I see..."

"I can't tell him... He'll probably believe I'm lying, and also... I don't have the guts. Can... Can... You can tell him, Officer Honda? I've told him about you. I think he trusts you enough."

Kiku crouched down to Alfred's size. He nodded and gave the boy a small smile.

"I'll try."

Kiku ruffled Alfred's hair.

"Why don't you call me Kiku?"

"Okay... Kiku."

They both walked back to the room. Alfred went and sat on the chair Kiku had slept on. He was looking down and started playing with his fingers. Kiku walked to Matthew lowered himself until he was face-to-face with him.

"Hello."

"Hello, you must be Matthew."

"Officer Honda, I've heard good things about you from Alfred."

Kiku sighed. Let's just get to the point.

"I... I have something to tell you about your father."

"Do you know about his conditioned? Alfred won't tell me anything."

"He... I'm sorry, but you will not be able to see him anymore."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Your father... Didn't survive the attack."

"He's... Dead?"

"I'm sorry."

For a second, Kiku thought Matthew was going to take it like Alfred did, but he was wrong. Matthew's eyes began to fill with tears, and he started hyperventilating.

"N-No. That can't be true!"

Kiku didn't know what to do at the moment. The devastated boy started crying, and completely denied Arthur's death. Matthew hugged himself. Between the screams of emotional pain, there was physical pain. Tears fell over his stitched and bandaged cheek, and the heavy breathing and three broken ribs didn't make a good combination. It only made Matthew cry more. Kiku was not the consoling type; he knew a simple pat in the back wasn't going to help.

Alfred had gotten of off his chair and into the hospital bed. He slowly made his way towards his wailing brother.

"Matthew. Matt. Mattie!"

Alfred grabbed Matthew's cheeks and made Matthew look at him. The boy still cried, but after a while of looking into his brother's direct gaze, he calmed down.

"A-Alfred, you're hur-hurting my cheek."

Alfred let go of Matthew and apologised. He still kept the gaze.

"Look, Matt. I know it's hard. You have know idea how much I want to turn back the clock. But I-I can't. And you and I both kno-know crying isn't go-going to sol-solve anything. It's hard. But we ha-have to be strong, because that's wha-what Dad pro-probably wants. We can't just give up! We can't settle up and just cry! We can't! We can't! WE CAN'T!"

By the end of the speech, Alfred was crying, hard. His hands were covering his face. Matthew, whose tears were still falling, said nothing. He decided to put a hand on Alfre's shoulder, and when Alfred took his hands off to see what Matthew wanted, he hugged Alfred.

"I'm sorry, Al."

Kiku might not know the twins before the accident, but he knows they had changed a lot in mere hours. This case had been an internal emotional roller coaster for Kiku. So many things happened in so little time.

Alfred hugged Matthew with all the strength he could muster. Matthew stiffened.

"Al?"

"You're hurting me, again."

"Sorry."

Both boys gave each other small chuckles. Both still had tears falling out from their eyes but chose to ignore them. Both... Were trying to start moving on.

The rest of the night was spent like that. Kiku and the twins shared laughs and stories, trying to take their minds off of Arthur. Once the two boys had fallen asleep on the same hospital bed, Kiku took the piece of paper Yao had given. It was nothing that important. It was just the reports of the doctors. It said that Matthew was going to stay overnight so the doctors can make sure the boy's broken ribs isn't too big of a problem.

Once again, after a hard day at work and a lack of sleep the night before, Kiku fell asleep on the same chair.

Kiku was looking at all the evidence and pictures of the crime scene scattered around his desk. He had just come back of interviewing subject number one. It didn't go so well. When Kiku had knock on the woman's house and she opened the door, he told her it was about Arthur's murder, and she started screaming.

"Are you saying that I'm the murderer? I would never kill him! Never! I love him! I cried when I saw on the news that he was dead. No! Never! You're crazy for believing I killed him. In fact, I have an alibi! Yeah!"

Kiku had maintained a straight face through her rambling. She was speaking so loudly the neighbours had come out to see what was going on. In the end, the subject told him to never come back and slammed the door on his face. That was what made her become subject number one.

Kiku squinted his eyes. There really wasn't any new evidence. They couldn't go back to Antonio and the others and make the subjects because they all have an alibi. There were no new leads. It all stayed the same.

Suddenly, the officer that Kiku was talking to yesterday came back. He had some papers in his hand. The officer started to walk over to Kiku's desk and slammed the papers there.

"Here is a copy of the results of part one of Arthur's autopsy."

Kiku looked at the results.

"Hmm... Thirty-four stab wounds."

"Everything about this murder screams out I Hate You."

"No kidding."

"As you can see, even though they say stabbing is the cause of death, they can't determine which on was the one that killed him."

"That wouldn't surprise me. With stab wounds on in his stomach, chest, throat, and head, it actually surprised me they were only thirty four. At least we know he tried to himself with the defence wounds on his hands and arms."

"They do say the big one on his throat was after he died."

"Hmm..."

"So... Do you have the two boy's interviewed?"

"..."

"Kiku?"

"No, I have not."

"Well you have to do it today! Those two eyewitnesses can solve this case, Kiku. Remember that. It'll bring justice to your little friend."

"I know, Vash."

With that said, the officer walked out of the office, leaving Kiku completely alone.

The rest of the day was completely uneventful. Kiku was only left to think of Alfred and Matthew. The two boys still didn't have a home. Kiku still didn't trust Antonio enough. If they wanted, the brothers could stay in his home. That wouldn't be so bad.

Kiku went back to the hospital room to find Yao joking around with Alfred while Matthew slept. Kiku smiled a bit. He started to walk into the room, making sure his steps were loud enough to be heard.

"Hiya, Kiku!"

Alfred said when he acknowledged Kiku.

"You still owe me, aru."

That was what Yao had greeted Kiku with.

"Okay, I'm off. Say goodbye to your brother for me, Alfred."

Yao gathered his things and went on his way.

"What did you did that now I owe him for it?"

"We might have called him miss a couple of times to mess around with him yesterday and today."

"He doesn't like that."

"Me and Matt can tell."

Both shared a small chuckled, until Alfred gave Kiku a small punch on the thigh. Kiku looked at him.

"What was that for?"

"That's for not saying goodbye to us this morning."

"You two were sleeping. It wasn't polite to wake you up."

"Well it's not polite to not say goodbye either."

"I guess it's a lose-lose situation."

Alfred chuckled a bit.

"When had your brother fallen asleep?"

"About two hours ago, so he should be waking up anytime now."

Kiku crouched down until he was Alfred's size. Time to get to the point.

"Alfred, I need you and Matthew to tell us, the police, what happened that night."

"..."

"It can really help out on your father's case."

"It's just really..."

"Hard? I know. So it will show just how strong you are, both you and your brother."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Okay, me and Matt will do it."

Kiku gave a small smile and stood up. Alfred wiped his eyes to check for tears. At that moment, Matthew started waking up.

Both Alfred and Matthew were sitting on the bed. Both now knew what's they were going to do. Kiku put down a recorder down.

"You may start."

Alfred and Matthew looked at each other and sighed.

"Um... It was Friday night..."

"Roar! Kuma is gonna beat Tony, Al!"

"Naw-Aw! Aliens are stronger that polar bears!"

"Says who?!"

"Says me!"

"Alright, boys! Settle down."

Arthur told his boys and chuckled. They were both playing with their stuffed animals. When Arthur called on them, they put them down.

"Matthew, can you go and make popcorn?"

"Of course."

"Alfred, you can choose the movie tonight."

"Oh yeah!"

Matthew went to the kitchen and did what he was told. Alfred went to the desk under the TV and took out the drawer filled with movies. He took one out, denied it, and threw it to the side.

"This one, nope. This, nope. Nope. Nope. Nope."

"You're cleaning that mess later, Alfred."

"Okay, whatever."

Arthur rolled his eyes and continued watching Alfred make a mess out if the family room. It continued like that for a couple of minutes until Alfred pick the right movie. He smiled and showed the movie to his father.

"I guess this movie is pretty acceptable. Now pick up the mess, you little rascal."

Arthur stood up and went to put the movie in. Alfred, while grumbling under his breath, started to pick up the other movies.

"Dad! Can you help get a bowl for the popcorn, please?"

"I'm coming!"

After putting in the movie's DVD, Arthur went to help Matthew. In a couple of more minutes, the small family was sitting on the couch enjoying a movie. Alfred and Matthew were resting on each side of Arthur and were snuggling against him. Each were hugging their own stuffed animal. That was when the nightmare began.

There was a knocking on the door, but Arthur didn't bother getting it. He thought that if he didn't get the door, they will go away. He just wanted to spent time with the boys, because in the last couple of weeks, he hasn't been able to.

"Shouldn't you get that, Dad?"

"No, it's okay."

But it wasn't okay. Each knock was harder and Arthur's patient was running low.

"Dad?"

"Boys, I want you to go to the kitchen and stay there until I tell you to get out."

"Umm... Okay?"

The brothers got out of the couch and went to the kitchen, but they stayed closed to the opening that led back to the family room. Arthur slowly stood up. As he walked to the opening that led to the entrance hall, the door was knocked open.

At that moment, the silhouette of a person appeared in the opening. Arthur had squinted his eyes before opening them widely.

"You?! What the hell are you doing here?!"

Arthur got closer to the figure, and that was his mistake. The silhouette to a knife from its back and stabbed him in the stomach. Arthur lost his words. The twins, who were watching from the kitchen's opening, silently gasped. Arthur stepped back, watching as blood poured out of his wound.

"You little bi-"

"You deserved this, Arthur. For all the pain you have caused me!"

The person had charged to attack Arthur on the head, but Arthur ducked and she hit his shoulder blade. The twins stopped watching the assault. They leaned against the wall as the heard things crash and their father scream. Their breaths became heavier and they couldn't find the courage to scream. They did, however, find the courage to look once again.

They saw something that will forever stay in their minds. Their father was on the floor. The mean person on top of him, stabbing him, and Arthur was barely able to keep his hands up to protect his face. Blood seeped from him and made a puddle on the floor.

"This," stab, "is," stab, "for" stab, "all," stab, "the," stab, "time,"stab, "I've," stab, "spent," stab, "waiting," stab, "for," stab, "YOU!"

Alfred and Matthew stopped looking and once again faced the kitchen.

"W-We have to d-do something, Al! We can't let Dad die!"

"I-I... I-I... l..."

Alfred never found the correct words. Matthew kept whispering that they had to help, and Alfred just kept stuttering the same words. When Matthew saw Alfred wasn't going to answered him, he took matters to his own hands. Sadly, he wasn't thinking straight. Alfred closed his eyes.

Matthew dashed out of the kitchen, disobeying Arthur's orders, and went started hitting the bad person.

"Please stop!"

The person stopped and looked at Matthew.

"You fucking little brat!"

Matthew, by the tone of voice and physical familiarities, could tell it was a woman. She, using the hand with the knife, hit him in the face, making a deep scar on Matthew's cheek. The boy stepped back and put a hand over his cheek. The woman stood up and walked until she was in front of Matthew. She kicked him in the stomach. She was able to push down Matthew, who was out of breath and vulnerable. She held down Matthew with her free hand and raised the one with the knife.

"N-N-No..."

The woman turned around and saw Arthur.

"You're still not dead!"

She stood up, put a foot on Matthew's chest, and started to push down. The rest was a blur for Matthew. The woman didn't stop until she heard the noise of cracking ribs.

Alfred opened his eyes and turned to see what was happening. He saw Arthur on the floor and barely awake Matthew. Alfred wanted to do something, to help, but his body wouldn't move. He doesn't know what the person did next. Alfred just turned around, brought his knees to his chest, covered his ears, and his mind started to play an old lullaby Arthur sang to his brother and him.

He doesn't know how long he stayed like that, but after a while, the home phone started to ring. Alfred guessed the person panicked, because he heard her heavy footsteps running away. A minute later, the home phone stopped ringing and Alfred gained the courage to walk back to the family room.

"And you know the rest..."

Alfred said and wiped his teary eyes. Kiku had listened intently to what the to boys had said. He wanted to stop the interview there, but he knew he had to keep going.

"Matthew, you said the attacker was a women and she looked familiar. Where have you seen her before?"

"Almost everywhere when we went out."

Kiku nodded. He remember having a picture of subject number one on his pocket. He took the small photo out and hosed it to Matthew.

"By any chance, did she look like her?"

"Yes..."

Kiku retrieved the photo and grabbed the recorder.

"Interview over."

He stopped recording.

"I have to go back to the office, boys."

"I told you those two boys were the key to solving the case!"

"Yes, I'll have to agree, Vash."

"Yeah. By the way, I forgot to tell you. Her alibi, it was false."

"Even more reason."

"And besides, have you seen her criminal record?"

"No."

"Multiple charges of breaking and entering, assault, stealing, stalking, and drugs."

"Oh my..."

"Also I think the DNA results of the hair strands. I haven't looked at them yet."

"What are we waiting for then?"

Kiku and Vash walked to Vash's office to find an unopened, big, yellow envelope. They opened it slowly. When they saw the results inside, both men sighed. Vash looked at Kiku.

"Ready to make an arrest?"

"Ready."

The arrest was made, and Kiku hadn't felt this happy in a long time. Arthur's case has been the most personal case he had ever received, and solving it felt absolutely wonderful. The trial was set to be three months from now.

Before he went to the hospital, Kiku stopped at the crime scene. People were packing up and heading home.

"Officer Honda! What brings you here?"

The man in charge of the scene asked when he saw the officer.

"I'm here to pick some things up."

"And what are those things."

"Two stuffed animals, probably a polar bear and an alien."

"Oh yeah. They're on the couch. You can take them if you want. Miraculously, they don't have any bloodstains. Here let me bring them to you."

The man went back inside and came with white teddy bear that had a red ribbon tide around its neck and a grey alien. He gave them to Kiku.

"Why do you want them?"

"They belong to the two boys that lived in this house."

Kiku left without saying anything else.

Kiku held the stuffed animals behind his back as he entered the hospital room.

"Kiku! You're back! We've heard it on TV. Dd they really arrest Dad's- What do you have on your back?"

Alfred ran up to him. Kiku crouched down and gave him the stuffed alien. Alfred's eyes lit up and he smiled truly as he hugged his possession.

"I thought you might want it back."

"Oh thank you so much, Kiku! Thank you!"

Kiku stood up straight and went to Matthew. He handed him the other one. Matthew hugged it.

"Kuma! Oh thank you!"

"You're welcome."

Kiku smiled. Yao placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I hope you won't need me again, aru."

"No, I think it's all over, but come by my house tomorrow morning."

"Ugh... You owe me."

He started walking away, not bothering to say goodbye. Alfred went and sat of Matthew's bed. The twins started to talk.

Kiku sighed. He still didn't know about the custody of the the boys. They had to leave the hospital today, and it was already nightfall. He could go with the idea of bringing them to his house in the meantime.

"Hey, Alfred, Matthew?"

"Yeah?"

"H-How would you like to stay wi-with me?"

The boys eyes widened. They nodded ferociously. Alfred got out of bed and hugged him. Kiku couldn't remember the last time someone had given him a hug. He's not a hugger, but he delivered the hug back.

Kiku can't believe he got attached to the boys in such a short period of times. He could work as a foster parent for them. Up until their uncle recovers, if he ever does. He hopes the boys can go back to being themselves, or as close as they can get. There is still some much that needs to happen. This isn't Alfred and Matthew's happily ever after.

I'm done with this one-shot. I just felt like writing a tragedy. And I wanted to try out the writing style. I don't know how I feel about the ending.

I left the killer to you guys. Put her as an OC, another APH character, and if you're that crazy... Yourself.

Sorry if the characters were OOC, and for spelling errors.