How America Became America

Chapter 4

Another scene change, Jamestown. Arthur was already away at the time. Alfred watched as both his people murdered each other.

"Your past is much bloodier than I knew," Kiku, the personification of Japan, said quietly to Alfred.

"Yeah," Alfred agreed. "It calms for a bit later on."

That didn't calm any of the nations watching as a native killed an Englishman, and then the English killing the native.

A slight scene change led to the nations being in a small one room house. Small Alfred had a giant book in his hands.

"How'd you get that?" Arthur asked.

"You left it," Alfred explained. "I needed to learn somewhere."

Most nations were lost. The only one's who weren't were Arthur's siblings and Norway and Romania, as they had seen the book several times before.

Anyway, young Alfred noticed that his lantern was becoming dim. So, he flipped through the book and then said an incantation. The small house was now lit up as if electricity powered lights.

"I memorized every spell you had," Alfred said quietly. "I still remember most of them."

"I thought you hated magic," Iona, the personification of the Republic of Ireland, asked.

Alfred hesitated for moment, but eventually decided to answer. "I do, but I still use it when I think it's necessary. You're probably gonna find out anyway, but I'm..." Alfred hesitated again, taking a deep breath slowly. "I'm genderfluid. I use magic to change how I look."

That of course, shocked the nations, but not by much. There are trans nations, and the magic trio has helped with that, but to have the world's superpower be genderfluid was a shock. Of course, there were several nations that didn't approve of this, at all. They started scowling at Alfred but stopped when several others glared daggers at them.

Before Arthur could say anything, the scene changed. When Alfred saw it, he screamed about how it was unfair and cruel of his mother to play these memories. For what was before them was one of many witch trials.

"Alfred Kirkland," said a reverend, "you have been proven guilty of witchcraft. Any last words?"

"I didn't do it," a very small, very scared Alfred said, voice quivering. He had a noose around his throat. "I don't know why those girls were hurting, but I
didn't do it."

"Then explain why, that in the last five years, you have not aged."

"I don't know, but it's not magic."

Before Alfred could say anything else, the stool that he was stood upon was kicked away and Alfred suddenly couldn't breathe. He struggled for what seemed like forever, but then he went still. After about twenty minutes, Alfred regained conscious and started struggling again. At this, he was taken down and tied up.

A quick scene change, Alfred was tied in rope, but the rope had rocks tied to them. He was on the bank of a river.

"Please don't do this," Alfred cried, his face stained with tears.

"Then explain the last fifteen times!" The reverend shouted.

"I can't! I don't know what is going on."

Without another word, Alfred was pushed into the river. He immediately sunk to the bottom and started struggling to breathe. He then faded out.

Another quick scene change, he was tied in a pyre. No words were exchanged before he was lit up. The screams were deafening. Luckily, there was the sound of a horse coming closer and Arthur saw what was happening.

"Stop it!" He said frantically, "Get water, put this out now!"

"No can do," the reverend replied," good sir, the witch needs to burn."

"He's not a witch! He's a child!"

Before long the scene faded, leaving the nations in a black room, but it was lit up.

"Fourteen hangings," Alfred spoke up, "twenty drownings, five burnings."

Most nations' jaws dropped. It was almost unheard of for a nation to be killed that much in such a short amount of time.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Arthur asked.

"I didn't tell anyone," Alfred responded quietly.

Before anything else could be said, a door appeared on the side of the room. On it was a note. Please use this room to rest when needed, sorry for not adding it sooner. -Saiska