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1819
Under a live oak tree, Mississippi sat quietly, brushing his hand over his skirt to clean off clumps of grass and pestering insects. It had been two years since Mississippi had been split in two and had been integrated into the Union. Today, a new state had emerged from Mississippi's old territory, but he had no desire to meet them. In fact, Mississippi found himself quite comfortable out by a creek, away from his Capital where he was expected to be today, to meet this new face.
Mississippi rubs his brow at the feeling of an itch, his brows furrowing as he hears the sound of footsteps approaching. His eyes cast upwards, the sunlight peeking through the leaves, dappling over the figure. It was Louisiana, the only one who was willing to search for him every time he ran off. Louisiana smiles without showing his teeth, a sympathetic look, "You are needed in Natchez, they want you to meet the new state." Mississippi's mood sours a bit more and he stares up at Louisiana without uttering a word. The Cajun got the message, although he couldn't bring himself to disobey the orders he was given. He leans down with a sigh, hand outstretched to Mississippi. "It won't take long, I swear it. I think it will be a great opportunity, don't you get lonely hiding away like this?" Louisiana tilts his head, trying his best to coax Mississippi off of the ground and onto the nearby horse. Mississippi still refuses to reply, but this time, he stands up, ignoring Louisiana's hand. The man's brows raise in surprise and a pleased smile crosses his face. He steps closer to take Mississippi's hand and guide him over to the horse, but Mississippi waves him off with a grunt. Louisiana doesn't try to pester the other state, knowing that he might try to rip his head off in the next thirty seconds if he did something stupid.
After the pair had saddled up, Louisiana immediately strikes up conversation, he was clearly ecstatic about finally swaying the younger state. "It's a male state, his name is Alabama... He's a slave state, though I'm sure you knew that already." Louisiana's tone turns a bit joking, hoping to lighten up the mood, but Mississippi keeps his frown steady, ignoring the man as they ride along. Mississippi knew Louisiana was favoured by the Union, having the fifth biggest city in the country and a crucial port and he wouldn't dare to lose that appreciation with disobedience. He was always trying to persuade Mississippi into being a bit more obedient, though it hadn't worked out well.
Twenty or so minutes of travelling had them riding slowly through the streets of Natchez, a budding city and the state capital. However, Mississippi would rather be anywhere else, his face still sporting that unflinching glare as they passed through the streets speckled with his citizens. Of course, none of the civilians cared about their appearance on horseback, an every day occurrence in the city. Soon, the pair arrive outside of the 'Texada', the capital building. The simple, yet elegant building was not as grand as other capital buildings in other states, but it did it's job perfectly well.
Mississippi and Louisiana dismount the horse and Mississippi waits outside of the white door, his face softening as he stares at the details of the wooden doorframe and glass. He could feel it now, the incoming dread as he thinks about the shame he will be subjected too. Every time, without fail, he was never taken seriously. When Louisiana returns from tethering his horse, he could sense the change in Mississippi's demeanor. His lips part as if he was going to comment, but he quickly decides against it, not really knowing what to say to soothe the other state's nerves. Instead, Louisiana steps up, pulling the entrance-way door open for Mississippi.
Mississippi stares at the open doorway, the patterned carpet hallway immediately filling him with dread. His dress felt awfully heavy as he steps up into the building, his gloved hands trembling slightly. In the back of his mind he hears Louisiana follow close behind but it does nothing to slow the younger state's heart rate. As Mississippi turns the corner, he nearly jumps out of his skin at the sight of a man greeting him with a polite smile, the smile of the city himself, Natchez. "Thank you for coming, Mississippi, Louisiana. Come this way." *The city nods his head in acknowledgement, gesturing towards the main room. As they enter, Mississippi notes the beautiful patterned blue and white carpet and the sizeable mahogany table in the centre, draped with a table cloth and candlestick. A chandelier hung from the ceiling as well.
Standing opposite Mississippi and Louisiana across from the table were another two people, complete strangers. Natchez appears once again, a restrained look of excitement on his face as he steps around the table to introduce the two strange men. One of them was much shorter than the other, even shorter that Mississippi by a sliver, his blue eyes filled with curiousity, brows raising. Natchez gestures between the short man and the two states, "We'll introduce the newest Capital first, shall we? This is Huntsville." *Huntsville moves around the table to shake Louisiana's hand firmly, although he doesn't touch Mississippi, instead giving him a curt nod and a smile. "Louisiana, isn't it? Is it true that you have the biggest city in the south? I would love to meet him one of these days!" Huntsville smiles widely at Louisiana who almost seems flustered at the sudden appreciation. "Well..." Louisiana's words blur out in Mississippi's ear as the latter of whom has lost interest in Huntsville and is intently watching the man behind him. The man was the tallest in the room, emanating an almost smug aura as he smiles, awaiting his introduction.
"...And this here is Alabama, the newest admission to the Union. Alabama, this is Louisiana and Mississippi." Natchez continues, guiding Alabama's gaze to the two other states. Louisiana's eyes widen, intrigued as Alabama leans in for a quick handshake, though he doesn't seem as eager as Huntsville. "It is indeed a pleasure to meet you two, The United States informed me about you two." Alabama's voice was very smooth, almost seeming as if he was trying to be too professional, too charming, trying to make an outstanding first impression. He turns to Mississippi, his smirk reappearing and he nods his head. "Mississippi, isn't it? It's nice to meet the person who ceded their territory for me." Alabama's attitude was starting to make Mississippi irritable, he didn't cede it *for* him, it was what the people wanted. "Well. The territory was too big for one state to control." Mississippi responded, trying to keep his temper in check, which was almost impossible at the appearance of the smile on Alabama's face. "Oh, I'm sure you would've struggled with it. But don't you worry, miss. I can handle it fine."
Mississippi's face goes blank for a moment, his head aching a little bit. Forcing his billowing rage down, he forces a smile, "Well, I'm glad we have someone who knows what they're doing, hm?" He turns to Louisiana, seeking refuge. The Cajun takes the hint and steps close to the table, picking up the bottle of wine from the cloth. "So, how about we get to know you a bit better Alabama? You seem to have a lot of ideas for your new state."
Alabama turns away from Mississippi, his smirk fading into a pleasant smile as he eyes the wine bottle in Louisiana's hands. He watches as the man fishes for the corkscrew, nodding his head. "That sounds grand." He grabs a glass and slides it across the table to be filled.
Perhaps another hour or so had passed and the wine was certainly getting to the men at the table. Alabama was beginning to lose his heavily practised decorum, slumping back into his chair, his eyelids a bit heavy. He chuckles at everything, his lips constantly upturned into that grating smile that Mississippi absolutely despised. Every time Mississippi glanced over at the man's face, his stomach would twist and heat up and he would have to look away. Natchez and Huntsville were not much better, being the source of the humour apparently.
Mississippi sighs, listening in on their conversation that had gone from talking about important things, such as economy to explaining their childhood injuries in great detail. Alabama pulls his foot up onto the table, which no one but Mississippi gasps at. The man grins widely as he pulls up his trouser leg to reveal an array of scars lining his calf, clearly scrapes. "These here are from when I climbed a tree as a kid, I slipped and dangled between a branch until I could pull myself out of there." The rest of the table look on in intoxicated amazement, like it was the most impressive thing they've ever witnessed. Mississippi rolls his eyes, "Imagine if you'd broken it, you might still be up there, dangling to this day." Almost immediately he purses his lips, not knowing how he'd suddenly got the confidence to say something like that. Luckily, Alabama just laughs and the others at the table follow suit, thankfully not acknowledging that Mississippi was almost making fun of Alabama's injuries.
"So, do you have anything to show for yourself, miss?" Alabama's words were aimed directly at Mississippi, his eyes narrowed in an almost accusing manner, looking to try and embarrass Mississippi. Said state returns Alabama's gaze with a cold glare, a deep seated anger beginning to boil higher in his stomach. "No, I don't have any scars. I value myself enough not to not put myself in danger." Mississippi speaks, his brows furrowed as he glowers at Alabama. The other man can't help the smile appearing on his face as he sees how riled up Mississippi was getting. "Well, maybe you should keep your voice down, you-", Louisiana suddenly butts in, his voice wavering slightly. "Excuse me, Alabama, but it's getting quite late. It's almost 7 o'clock, I'll need to transport Mississippi back home, before it gets too dark. You understand, don't you? it'd be dangerous to get so drunk that I can't help a lady home". Alabama glowers at Louisiana, his eyes darting back and forth between him and Mississippi. He couldn't believe the audacity of the Cajun interrupting him, but he did understand his motives.
Alabama slumps back in his chair, sighing loudly, "Yes, I suppose it is getting late." He glances towards the window, noting the golden hue in the sky. He turns back with a smug grin, holding back his irritation. "You'd best be going then, I would hate to see a young lady get into any trouble." Alabama's eyes were trained on Mississippi now and although he had a smile on his face, his tone was anything but caring. In his eyes, the pair had disrespected him greatly, he wanted them gone and it was glaringly obvious.
Louisiana nods his head, a miniscule movement of acknowledgement, his lips pursed awkwardly. He puts his hand on the small of Mississippi's back, getting ready to guide the younger state away in the next few moments. Mississippi himself was glaring daggers at Alabama still, his gloved hands curled at his sides, hidden in his skirt. "It was lovely to meet you, Alabama, really, but we should skip out on the wine next time. I prefer whiskey, anyways." Louisiana was trying his best to cover up his awkwardness, but it was just getting worse and worse with his rambling. Mississippi sighs and pulls the Cajun backwards, he allows his frown to relax for a moment. "We'll be heading away now, thank you for visiting, Alabama, I hope things go well for you." Mississippi had felt a budding hatred for the man, growing larger each second he was near Alabama, he had to leave now.
Mississippi flips Louisiana around, taking the lead instead. He guides the tipsy man towards the door and the pair head down the hallway. As expected, Alabama didn't say a farewell to them, he just watched until they left his sight.
Outside of the building, the temperature had dropped to a mild, almost chilly temperature as the sun started to get lower. Mississippi looks around, making sure there were no open windows before his face snaps into a scowl. "You have no idea how much I wanted to grind my heel into that sap-head's toes. I never want to see his face again." Louisiana sighs, having come around the corner with his horse in tow, hearing the insults spewing from Mississippi's mouth. Louisiana did agree with Mississippi, but he also felt slightly guilty. "I'm sure he's just trying to put on a facade, he's only just become a state, don't take it to heart." Mississippi scoffs, "Did you not hear how he was insulting me in there?"
Louisiana nods his head meekly, shocked by Mississippi's outburst."Well, yes... Listen, how about I just get you home and you get some rest, okay. You won't be able to avoid him, he is your neighbouring state, but let's just hope he lets go of this attitude soon." Louisiana doesn't say anything else after that, mounting his horse and helping Mississippi up.
Mississippi's house was a quaint, cottage sized house in the outskirts of Natchez, not far away. The yard was always unkempt, making it look almost abandoned, but really, it was because Mississippi only used it to sleep in, he rarely used it as a living space. Louisiana stops just outside of the house and Mississippi dismounts, patting the horse's side before looking up at Louisiana. "Thank you, Louisiana. But, I hate you for what you put me through today, you should be ashamed of yourself." Louisiana sits up, his eyes widening slightly before he realises that Mississippi was joking, a very rare sight. A smile creeps onto his face and he chuckles, "I know that's the biggest lie ever told and so do you. Now, you have a good night, Mississippi." Louisiana nods, waving a hand as he begins to ride away.