I love being a judge on Nobody's Got Talent But Me. [Arthur + Alfred] [complete]

Arthur was furious when he was informed that he'd have a novice model sitting in on his photoshoot. Arthur was a professional, not some sort of teacher! Though his wrath was slightly reduced when it was brought to his attention that perhaps letting a rookie observe his photoshoot was perhaps a way of the higher ups saying that Arthur was an excellent model. Arthur scoffed, of course he was excellent. He wasn't about to be outdone by any Americans, or even worse, Frenchmen.

Soon enough, Arthur was completely dressed up in his outfit for the shoot. Oddly enough, Arthur had been placed in a pirate outfit. He wore a huge coat that was colored red as if it meant to make the bloodstains less obvious. He wore a frilly white shirt with a black vest on top of it, though both of these were mostly obscured by the flashy coat. Arthur also had donned white breeches and black knee high boots. He slid into the photoshoot, arrogant and confident as ever. The outfit suited him, and Arthur knew it.

Though the fact that he was dressed as a pirate gave Arthur a hankering for rum. Perhaps he'd get himself a drink or two after the shoot, as it was beginning to become customary for him. For Arthur, there wasn't anything like a good drink to calm his nerves down. It never even occurred to him that perhaps his drinking habits were a bit excessive.

Arthur raised an eyebrow, the new model seemed to be shyly staring at his feet. Being shy was never a good trait for a model. Arthur quickly crossed the room to lecture the other person, before realizing the other was struggling not to laugh. Arthur frowned and glared at the young man.

"And, what, pray tell, do you find so funny?" Arthur asked, still scowling at the other person.

Arthur had been expecting a higher level of competency in the novice model. Then again, Arthur's standards for others were generally impossibly high. Being a pessimist, Arthur could easily find the flaws in anything. He continued to scowl and wait for the other to reply or for the photographer to give him directions as to how to pose and what to do.

Oh crap, now the other model was coming right at him! What was he supposed to do? Now the man had noticed him laughing. Great. Just great. He hadn’t meant to laugh! He had just been so startled by those eyebrows, which were now furrowed and looking very much like angry caterpillars!

“N-Nothing! Honest!” Except for your eyebrows, oh God, those are huge!

Alfred tried his best to stop laughing like a moron, because he was supposed to be a professional here! “I’m sorry… I’m Alfred F. Jones! I’m the new model that supposed to sit in but I guess you already figured that out…”

"You're not professional in the least and you seem rather stupid. Go home," Arthur stated flatly. Honestly, he had expected the other to be able to control himself somewhat. "I thought models knew how to control their emotions, but apparently I was wrong," Arthur added, swiftly turning around.

Arthur was certain that the idiot was obsessing over his eyebrows and that royally annoyed him. However, it gave Arthur an idea, a slight smirk appeared on his face. Then he had a private discussion with the photographer, threatening to throw one of his infamous fits and ruin the shoot. Needless to say, Arthur got his way.

Some of the staff members began to make their way towards Alfred, trying to fulfill Arthur's request of having the other model join in on the shoot. Some would have mistaken this for a selfless and benevolent act, but Arthur, on the other hand, just wanted an opportunity to put a boot in the other's face. He hoped the stylists would choose a good outfit for the pirates new "prisoner".

Alfred stared up at the model with wide eyes, shocked that someone could say something so horrible. He had no idea how to respond to that, so he just blankly looked down at his lap as he heard Arthur walk away.

Well, that had been terrible. He had been supposed to get on the model’s good side, so the other man would teach him the basics of big agency modeling like this. Great. He had gone and blown his chance. Well, he supposed he was still allowed to watch.

Suddenly, Alfred was pulled onto his feet by stylists, who dragged him into the dressing rooms, babbling about how he was going to participate in the photoshoot.

“W-Wait, I was only supposed to watch!”

Unfortunately, they didn’t listen to him and he soon found himself in loose black pants and a ripped white shirt, barefoot and with makeup made to look like dirt on his face and arms. He was ushered back to the set where he looked around nervously.

Arthur chuckled as the protesting model was dragged off to get dolled up and dressed up for the shoot. Arthur was determined to make sure the other model learned to respect and, more importantly, fear Arthur. After all, there was two ways to run things, to be loved or to be feared. Arthur found that it was much better to be feared than loved. After all, then one didn't have to worry about unexpected betrayals then.

When the other was brought back in, Arthur gave an approving nod to the stylists before turning to the other model. "You'd best listen closely. I suppose since you seem like an incompetent git, it would be better for me to give you a hands on experience of modeling, correct?" Arthur said harshly, still scowling at the novice. He motioned for Alfred to follow him to the photographer.

The photographer asked Alfred to prostrate himself on the floor so Arthur could pretend to step on him as a sort of victory for the villainous pirate. Of course, Arthur was sure he'd 'accidentally' step on the other model, if Alfred decided to annoy him further.

Staring down at himself, Alfred pouted since he wasn’t as ornately dressed as Arthur Kirkland was. But he supposed that was because Arthur was totally famous and he was, well, not. He frowned a little at Arthur as the man made his way over to him, not liking the way that the other man looked down at him.

“Thank you,” he mumbled, deciding to try to get on Arthur’s good side once again, but he doubted that it would be easier a second time around. Following Arthur, his frown only grew as he listened to what the photographer was trying to get him to do. Apparently, his look only made the photographer happy, since it captured the anger of a sailor defeated by pirates.

How lame was this? Arthur was walking (quite literally) all over him, just because he was a new model. But he had to think about the publicity he might get from being in a photoshoot with someone as famous as Arthur… Though Matthew might be mad that he had done this without telling him.

Since the other wasn't being as annoying as earlier, Arthur decided not to harass the other as much as he had been planning to. Arthur figured he had taught the other to properly fear him, or at least be somewhat wary. After all, Arthur Kirkland was bound and determined to get his way no matter what.

After various photos of Arthur looming over Alfred in smug victory, the stylists quickly descended upon Alfred again, getting a new idea. Arthur raised an eyebrow, he had only mentioned using Alfred as a prisoner, and nothing else. Unbeknownst to him, the stylists were quickly changing Alfred into a flashy navy uniform, a fitting outfit for Arthur's rival.

When the other returned, Arthur was furious. However tempted he was to storm off in a fit, he was not one to back down from a fight, and certainly there would be a fight. Even if it was one through photography.

All these pictures of being “beaten” by Arthur were starting to get annoying but he would deal with it. For now. Finally, they were finished and he was about to hurry off and get changed when he was once again kidnapped and whisked off to the dressing room. Why was this happening to him?

When he saw what he was wearing next, he sputtered and tried to take it off but the stylists refused and shoved him out into the photo area. So, Alfred stood there nervously in his sleek naval uniform, trying to look at everything other than Arthur.

He could tell that the other model was angry. It wasn’t like he had planned all of this! It had just happened! This wasn’t even his photoshoot! “U-Um… Guys, d-do I have to do this?” It wasn't that he was uncomfortable with taking pictures, no. It was Arthur, who was glaring at him.

"For once, the novice is right! This is utterly ridiculous!" Arthur exclaimed. He was glad that the other seemed to be on his side. "Obviously a novice like him should not be able to handle something like this. This is my shoot, not his introductory one," Arthur growled, glaring at the staff.

They protested, talking about how the navy suit fit Alfred so well and how the photoshoot would be so much more dynamic with a few fight photos with Alfred. Arthur glared at them, simmering with fury. The sheer nerve of it, but Arthur was not going to step down and have the potential to get replaced by Alfred, that would only be more humiliating for Arthur. The staff had him trapped, and they knew it. Perhaps Arthur should not have been so rude to them in earlier photoshoots.

Arthur shot Alfred another glare.

Somehow or another, Arthur resigned himself to his fate, and decided to just go along with the shoot. The poor rookie seemed terribly tense and stressed out, and Arthur was not going to have him mess up the shoot. "Relax, lad. We might as well get this over with. Just follow directions, and you'll do half decently. You may be stupid and annoying, but you don't look half-bad," Arthur said, complimenting the other in his own way.

The photographer ordered the two models around, telling them to act as bitter rivals. It was easy enough for Arthur, already used to being an antagonist as well as used to photoshoots, since modeling just so happened to be his job. He hoped desperately that he'd get paid extra for having to deal with the rookie. Either that or someone buying him a drink or two, that too would be very nice. Arthur was certain that he'd go out for drinks after this annoying photoshoot.

He didn’t want to be fired! How was he supposed to do this? He wasn’t supposed to have a photoshoot for awhile now and and and-! Alfred’s thoughts were cut short when Arthur spoke again, and even… complimented him? “O-Okay… thank you…” Taking a few deep breaths, Alfred tried to compose himself and ready himself for the photoshoot.

Everything the photographer said was given Alfred’s utmost attention, because he didn’t want to mess anything up. But dammit, Arthur had the scariest glares in the world! After a couple pictures where he was still tense, Alfred finally relaxed and let himself get into the photoshoot. As exhausting as it was, he was having fun.

Arthur noticed that Alfred continued to seem tense and nervous. Arthur smirked inwardly when he guessed that his glares were getting to the other. It felt good to know that he was able to strike fear into the hearts of others, after all, causing people to fear you gave you power, and it was power that Arthur desired. Power was what fueled Arthur into joining the model business anyways. Money and fame were just forms of the power and influence Arthur desired. If he had that power, he wouldn't have to worry about being hurt by anyone.

As Alfred relaxed, there was very little change in Arthur's behavior, it just seemed that Arthur was less annoyed with the rookie. After all, Alfred hadn't majorly screwed up and Arthur's career was safe, so Arthur was fine, for the time being. Though that never meant that Arthur would be nice, no he'd most likely stick with his usual hostile manner.

After quite a few photos, the shoot was finally ended, and Arthur gave a sigh of relief. "Finally. Now get me out of these blasted clothes so I can get myself a drink. Or so help me, I will prance myself down to the bar in this outfit," Arthur ordered, immediately being dragged out by the stylists so that he could look like a relatively normal person once more. After he had changed back into his regular clothes, he gathered some of his things, planning to head straight to a bar after this.

Stupid glares and stupid eyebrows! It was definitely the eyebrows fault! Those things were scary and were making him really nervous. All he had to do was focus on something other than the eyebrows… okay, Arthur’s nose. That wasn’t scary. So, Alfred did his best to keep his focus off of Arthur’s very noticeable eyebrows, even though he wondered why Arthur was so rude…

Finally, the shoot was over and Alfred was dying to get out of this outfit. He raised his eyebrows at what Arthur said and mumbled, “I didn’t know you could wear these outside,” before being dragged off to change and get his make up removed.

When he was back in his normal clothes, Alfred wanted to hurry out of there as fast as possible and find his twin. But unfortunately for him, as he was texting Matthew, he ran smack in Arthur and fell down.

The skinny and short Brit was easily bowled over by the taller American when Alfred crashed into him. All of Arthur's things were scattered on the floor and the sore Arthur was more angry than usual. "Watch where you're going you big oaf!" Arthur hissed, trying to gather his things and stand up again. Being knocked over by a bigger person never felt pleasant.

Arthur gathered his things, grumbling about really needing a drink at the moment. He glared at the American, offering a hand to help him up. After all, Arthur thought himself a proper gentleman, though that was quite far from the truth. Arthur was more of a delinquent than a gentleman, though Arthur refused to accept that fact.

“Ow…” Alfred’s cell phone went flying across the floor and the battery flew out. Great. It had been such a bad idea to come to this photoshoot. He’d been dragged into it, forced to deal with Arthur, who clearly hated him, and now, he’d crashed onto his ass.

Arthur’s comment about him being big made him flinch and he quickly scrambled to pick up his cell phone. When he saw Arthur’s hand, he just stared at it, unsure of what to do at first. Hesitantly, he reached out his own hand to let Arthur help him up.

"Honestly, I feel like I was hit by a tram," Arthur grumbled to himself, letting go of Alfred's hand once the other was standing up. "Pay attention to where you're going," he growled, before spinning on his heel and attempting to exit the building.

Arthur was not a nice person, after all, he wasn't being paid to be nice or friendly, just to look good. However, Arthur was not an irredeemable jerk, he was just irritable and people got under his skin quite easily. There were people who Arthur did not hate and actually got along with, unfortunately, these people were few and far between, so Arthur had grown used to solitude and building walls in between himself and others. He felt safer that way.

“I’m really, really sorry! And what’s a tram…?” Alfred pouted when Arthur stormed off, not even acknowledging his apology. Were all models at big agencies so mean? He hoped he never became mean like that!

Still pouting, Alfred finally put his phone back together and tried to text Matthew again, this time paying extra attention to who was around him. All he wanted to do now was complain to his twin while eating ice cream. No. No ice cream! Um… carrots! Yeah, those were healthy! But carrots totally weren’t comforting like ice cream…

"A tram is a trolley! They're large vehicles on rails!" Arthur yelled behind him as he made his exit. He grumbled to himself about stupid Americans not knowing anything as he made his way out of the building. Arthur never exactly wondered why almost everything and everyone annoyed him so, it didn't seem to matter to him. Arthur had forced himself to be accustomed to not getting along with others.

Predictably enough, Arthur found himself at the bar with a glass of rum in his hands. Much better, for Arthur, alcohol seemed to make things better. According to Arthur, drinking relieved stress and all the built up emotions in Arthur. Which basically meant that Arthur was an unpleasant and emotional drunk.

Arthur took another drink of rum when he noticed the rookie staring at him with a rather displeased expression. Of course it was another person who thought Arthur drank too much. Couldn't a guy have a drink every once in a while without getting hassled? Arthur scowled and drank a bit more. People, he didn't like them, they annoyed him and stressed him out.

Sick of watching Alfred stare at him, Arthur stood up and wobbled over to the other man. When Arthur was tipsy, he lost his graceful movement, as well as his inhibitions. Yet, it was never nearly as bad as when he was drunk. Luckily (or perhaps not so luckily) Arthur was only tipsy at this point. "Why... Why're you following me?" he asked the other, his words slurring slightly.

Alfred frowned when he noticed Arthur coming over to him. Dammit, he had been spotted! “I’m not following you! I live this way!” He was immediately defensive, trying not to wrinkle his nose at the strong smell of beer. “Now… just go back to whatever you were doing. I wanna go home.”

He turned away from Arthur, desperate to get home already. He was tired and worried about his weight (again) and he just wanted to go to sleep and stay there for a long time. If only he hadn’t been made to participate in that shoot.

"So defensive... Are you sure you just didn't enjoy the shoot too much? Of course they send a skinny American like you to try to replace me," Arthur slurred more. He wobbled a bit while standing in front of Alfred. Arthur really did reek of alcohol. He was an alcoholic after all, though he was very much in denial.

He tried to glare at the other person, annoyed and thinking that Alfred had showed up that day because the higher ups wanted to replace him with a person who didn't cause nearly as many problems as Arthur did. Arthur refused to get sold out like that! Luckily, this was mainly in Arthur's drunken mind and nowhere else.