New Mexico. The 47th state is generally known for its desert environment and large, Hispanic population. Besides these two common characteristics, he's also known for aliens which can come as a surprise to some who aren't aware of a certain incidence that happened in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947.

☆☆☆☆☆

You know. The world is a weird place. I learn that in a way I cannot describe. Not because it's indescribable. But because I can't tell anyone. At all. It's a secret... A top secret...

"Here's the gist," said Nevada in a monotone voice. "Whatever you saw today, you never actually saw it. Okay?"

He wore a black and white suit like the rest of the F.B.I. agents. The silver eyes I usually saw were hidden behind a pair of black shades. His serious tone didn't match the carefree tone of my neighbor. Everything he said sounded...alien...like he was brainwashed.

"¿Qué (What)? I don't understand. I saw something fell from the sky and-"

"That was a weather balloon."

I shook my head in disbelief. "B-B-But the magic metal!"

"It's a special titanium alkaloid if that answers your question."

I gave him a weird look. 

I knew what I saw. Never before had I seen a sheet of metal ripped apart that easily by hand then meld itself back together within seconds. Even if my eyes were playing tricks on me, America was there. I called him over to my home, and he, too, couldn't believe what he saw. He was more enthused than I over the discovery, but without a doubt what we saw was something never seen on Earth before.

"America! He saw it, too!" I mentioned.

He nodded. "He did."

My eyes brightened. "And?"

"He was told it was a weather balloon."

My heart sank. "What?"

Nevada looked over his shoulder, looking to see the pickup truck had finally finished hitching the trailer that carried the large object under a teal canvas. "I'm sorry, but I need to go now." He began to walk away.

I grabbed his arm. "Do aliens exist?" I questioned.

I didn't think such beings were out there in the world. The adults always told me I was making it all up, or they're just speculation. For a while, I thought they were right. However, America told me to keep believing. He believed extraterrestrials, aliens, or some mysterious being out there in space really existed. That one day, we'll meet these beings, shake their hands, and eat hamburgers with them. I don't know about the last part, but I didn't want to ruin his imagination. And the next thing I knew, an unidentified flying object fell from the sky, and crashed on a ranch in my home.

It must be aliens, right? What could fall from the sky, and have magic tinfoil like that? Certainly not a plane. It had to be of alien technology. It had to come from something not from this world.

Nevada hadn't said anything immediately. Even without his shades, his silver eyes would've been blank, giving me nothing to infer on. As his face stared down on me, I thought I saw his lips move. I thought he was going to tell me the truth.

"It was a weather balloon," he spoke. "It crashed. We simply came here to clean up the wreckage." 

He turned around, and walked away. He got back inside the black vehicle without looking back at me. Both the vehicle and the truck that pulled the trailer drove off, leaving me and the empty crater behind us.

I thought about chasing him down, but deep down I knew he still wouldn't tell me. He probably couldn't without getting in some sort of trouble. I don't want him punished for something I made him do. Still, I'm left with many questions and few answers, doubtful those answers even made sense. In the end, I should be glad nothing bad came out of this incident.

With everything that had happened, I simply wished to go home and sleep in my comfy bed. All this attention had drained the life out of me. Normally, I was used to being obscure from the world, seen as a land full of sand and cattle skeletons. But ever since the Roswell UFO Incident, everyone had been calling me, asking me what I saw, whether I was alright, or whether or not I could take pictures of the wreckage. For the first time in my life, I was the center of rumors and gossip. It was overwhelming, but it was fun while it lasted. Tomorrow, everyone and I will listen to the morning radio, told what happened at Roswell was a weather balloon, not a a flying saucer. That was all.

Looking back at the empty crater one last time, I left the area, and went home.

~

"Fuck! Fuck!"

My ears picked up cursing. At first, I thought it was Arizona making a ruckus. It took me five seconds to realize Arizona moved out a long time ago...

I sat up, and got out of bed. I grabbed a wooden baseball bat from behind the nightstand. I quietly creaked open my bedroom door, looking in both directions. I cautiously tiptoed down the dark hallway toward the livign room.

"¡Pinche! ¡Pinche!" a high-pitched voice exclaimed from the nearby kitchen I assumed.

"Where is he?" said another high-pitched voice.

I cocked my head perplexed. 

Kids? How did they get in here? Maybe my head was playing tricks on me. It was early in the morning after all. Still, why would they breaking in my house? I had nothing of value.

I gripped the bat tightly in my hands. I was sweating gallons, and my knees were knocking at each other like crazy. Oh man... I should've gotten another phone for my bedroom. I could've easily called for help then. But because my only phone was located in the living room, I was forced to handle this situation on my own.

Carefully, I peeked around the corner. The lights weren't on, so it was difficult to tell where those invaders are. The only sounds I heard came from somewhere in the vicinity. Knowing my home, I felt the wall around the corner, touching the smooth surface of the wallpaper. It wasn't long before I felt the cold plastic of a switch. Taking a breath, I flipped it upward.

The living room glowed a bright yellow, forcing me to shield my eyes for a brief moment. As soon as my eyes adjusted to the light, I got a good a look of the living room. And... I couldn't believe what I saw.

There were two gray figures less than four feet tall. They were...human-like, yet they don't look human... They stood on two legs. They had arms and hands, both of which have five fingers each like any normal human. Their heads, however, were oval in shape. Their bug-like eyes were bigger than mine; about the size of large chicken eggs I think. Red like rubies, their eyes were plastered on me, the owner of the house they were burglarizing. 

One of the intruders was making a mess out of the coat closet. The look on their face was...blank. I think... It was hard to tell. They weren't as shocked to see me unlike me seeing them for the first time. The intruder's accomplice was in the nearby kitchen. They wore one of my turquoise bolo ties around its scrawny neck. Unlike their buddy by the coat closet, they didn't pay me much attention. Apparently, they were too busy analyzing the contents of my leftover enchilada dinner from the fridge.

Again, I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Before I could say anything, everything went dark.

~

"Wake up! Fucking idiot! Wake up!"

I felt something poke my side. Groggily, I opened my eyes, looking up to see two gray heads staring down on me. I blinked my eyes twice.

"AAAaaaaaHHhhh!" I screamed.

The gray creature with my bolo tie slapped me across the cheek. "Cállate (Shut up)!"

Of course, I stopped screaming, mainly out of fear of getting slapped again. Or, worse... Wait a minute!

"G-Get away from me!" I stuttered. 

I crawled backwards, away from them. I quivered like a leaf, scared out of my mind. I recalled the baseball bat I had earlier. I tried looking around for it, but my only weapon was nowhere in sight. They must've took it away while I was passed out from shock. I whimpered.

Many question went through my head. Were they mad Nevada took their space ship? If so, why were they here in my house? Were they going to experiment on me? There were so many questions, I thought I was going to pass out again.

The two aliens gave each other strange looks and shrugged their shoulders.

"¿Qué estás haciendo (What are you doing)?" the alien with the bolo tie spoke fluently in Spanish.

I couldn't respond immediately. My tongue was dry and my voice was trapped in my throat. All that came out was stuttering and panicked wheezing.

"S-S-Stay back! I-I... I-I'm not afraid of you! Y-You won't take me...t-to your space ship! N-Not without a fight!"

I slowly got up, trying to appear intimidating. I recalled a few boxing matches I had seen before. I tried to posture myself like a boxer, putting my fists up, and using my arms like a shield. It was really difficult considering my body was paralyzed in fear from the neck down.

The alien without the bolo tie sighed. "Fucking idiot..." He placed the palm of his hand on his shaking head.

"Idiota jodido..." their friend uttered and did the same thing, but in Spanish.

We just stood there, separated by a few feet from one end of the hall to the other. I should've went to my bedroom, and locked myself in there. I could've waited things out until they left, or when someone arrived at my door to discover the intruders. But I couldn't. My feet were frozen to the floor. I was also afraid these aliens had special abilities or weapons of the sort. Some kind of psychic powers or a x-ray blaster. I don't know. I hated to upset them, and get myself disintegrated. Either way, anything I did would get me in trouble.

As the minutes passed by, the immediate fright of meeting extraterrestrials started to set in. The trembling disappeared as were the beads of sweat that fell down the side of my face. My tense body began to relax. My beating heart started to calm down. I kept looking at the aliens. Not once since I found them did they try to hurt me. Nor did they carry me to their space ship. Instead, they just stood there...observing me...

"W-Who... Who are you?" I dared to ask the two in a clear tone.

Both aliens looked at each other before looking back at me.

"¿Quién eres tú?" the alien with the bolo tie asked.

Reluctantly, I answered their question. "My name is Alvaro Joshua Fernández. I'm also known as New Mexico."

I expected the two to give me their names. Instead, they looked at each other before walking away from me. Baffled by their behavior, I went after them.

"Hey! You didn't tell me your names? Or, what you are? Hey! Are you listening? I know you understand me! Stop ignoring me!" I pestered them.

"Fucking annoying," the alien without the bolo tie muttered.

"I can hear you, you know." I pouted.

The alien with the bolo tie went back to the kitchen to analyze the enchiladas they had earlier grabbed. Meanwhile, their friend continued to search my house. Still distrustful of the two, I could only watch them go through my home like FBI agents. Maybe they'll leave after they realized there was nothing of value in my house. I hadn't stole anything from them from what I knew so far. Hopefully after they were done, they'll leave me alone. Then, everything will go back to normal.

The alien without the bolo tie walked around my living room, gazing at the nearby shelves that aligned the wall. I watched their crimson eyes dart around the room, observing their actions carefully from a distance. Suddenly, the alien stopped to look at the hanged pictures on the wall. The alien started pointing at one of the pictures.

"Him! Him!" the alien exclaimed.

I stared at the photo they were pointing at. The picture was taken at least twenty years ago from what I recalled. It contained me, the states, D.C., and America. At the time, it was my second photo with the rest of the states. Ever since the invention of the photograph, America insisted we, the states, take a group photo together. That way, we're reminded of familia and friendship and so on. No matter how much time had passed, we would always be reminded of being one out of many states. That we'll never be alone because there are those like us who exist.

The picture I had would eventually get replaced. I heard Alaska and possibly Hawaii were going to join the Union pretty soon, so another photo shoot is going to happen in the future. When that happens, I'm sure it'll get more hectic to shoot than the last one. The picture I had was the best one out of the bunch the photographer took. Looking carefully at the photo, I saw New Jersey giving New York bunny ears. Tennessee made a funny face next to Arkansas who unfortunately had his eyes closed during the shot. West Virginia was in midst of a sneeze, and Arizona was flipping the camera off with both her fingers in the air.

Sigh. I should've tried harder to discipline her.

I grabbed the hanged photo the alien was pointing at off the wall. The alien started  jumping up and down in excitement like it was kid being given free candy. Reluctantly, I gave the alien the picture frame for them to look at. After a brief glimpse, they poke their finger on a certain individual within the photo. It was America.

"Him! Him!" He looked to me in an enthusiastic manner.

"America?"

"Yeah! Yeah!"

"What about him?"

"I want to see him!"

Initially, I was confused by his request. Why America? Why him out of all the people in the world? Is it because he was also there at the site? What do they want with him?

Taking the alien to America was risky. I mean, I still had no idea what they were capable of. Nor do I had any idea what their true intentions are. Abduct people, perform experiments on them, take over the world! I would endanger everyone's lives!

"I'm sorry, but I can't," I told them. 

The alien appeared astonished. Their ruby red eyes narrowed, conveying a mean look.

"Fuck you! Fucking bastard! Fucking useless! Fuck you!" Their voice shook as they threw a huge tantrum in front fo me.

I started to panic. "S-Stop it! Stop it! ... Okay! Okay! Okay! I'll take you to him! Calm down, and I'll take you to him! I swear!"

I really am useless...

The alien stopped jumping. They seemed pleased. The alien started heading to the door, but I told them to stop. They gave me an annoyed look, ready to hurl more curses at me.

"If I'm going to take you to America, you must promise me you won't do anything to harm him," I said. "A-And I'm serious! I really am! Abduct him, torture him, or even mind control him, you'll be sorry."

I still don't trust them. Even if I were to deny helping them, they probably had other means on finding him. Worse thing that came to mind were mind-controlled humans and cities on fire. So far, the alien didn't seem all that threatening. But in case it posed as a threat on the nation, I'm calling whatever number, and getting someone who can better handle the situation than me.

The alien heaved out an annoyed mutter I couldn't understand. They slowly nodded their head.

"Good." I began to relax my shoulders. "First, I need to prepare some clothes. And then, we can go."

The alien gave me a weird look before I ran off.

~

About an hour later, I had packed a suitcase full of clothes and items I might need during my temporary adventure to America's house in the East. The alien followed behind me, wearing an extra small, white tank top and a tiny pair of brown swim trunks underneath a small, red and green poncho I managed to find at the back of my closet. I also gave him a sombrero, hoping to hide their face whenever we had to go out in public. Despite giving him the smallest set of clothes I had in the hopes of blending them into the crowd, I had little confidence we would pass without someone pointing out how weird "my little hermano" looked.

I didn't have the money to afford a private plane. Nor did I had the money to afford travel by ship. I thought about using the railroad, however, the people on board would slowly catch on to the weird alien that sat next to me. Hopefully with the money I had, we could take the obsolete road without drawing attention to ourselves. It'll be a long trip, so hopefully the alien had the patience to endure the trip until we get to America's house.

As for the other alien, still wearing my bolo tie, they were now sitting in front of the radio. The radio was turned on. Coming out of the speakers was a man discussing about the latest news on the Roswell UFO Incident. The alien appeared to be listening to the news. Or, I think it was... The alien didn't had any ears from what I could tell. Either way, its ruby red eyes were focused on the radio, so it must've found an interest in what the speaker was saying.

"Um..." I tried getting its attention. They didn't turn their head to meet my eyes. Kind of rude, but I wasn't in the mood to tell them off at this point. "Do you want to come with us?" I asked.

The alien still didn't give me their attention. Unlike their friend, they didn't to seem to care much about America. I wasn't sure what to do with them. I thought about forcing them to come along with us. Then again, they might compromise our safety during our journey to America's home. But if I left them alone in my house, it was possible they could cause some kind of incident. I hated to have my house destroyed, or any of my neighbors get abducted because of them.

In the end, I decided to leave them be for now.

"Okay. When I come back, I expect my house to stay exactly the same as I've left it. Don't do anything to bother the neighbors. And if anybody knocks, don't answer the door no matter what."

I felt like an irresponsible parent telling a kid what not to do when I leave the house temporarily. Hopefully they don't cause too much trouble while I'm gone. I still had no idea what they were capable of doing, so this might've been a bad idea. Unfortunately, I already promised one of them I would take them to America's house. There was no turning back now whether I liked it or not.

I turned to the alien without the bolo tie. "Okay. Leave the driving and talking to me. You... Just don't be suspicious. Also, don't hurt anyone. If anyone were to find out you exist, we won't be able to meet America. Is that clear?"

The alien nodded.

I sighed. "Okay. It's going to be long trip, so be patient with me." I opened the front door, and the two of us went outside to meeting the cool, morning air. Hopefully nothing goes wrong.

~ A Couple of Days Later ~

The alien and I finally arrived in New York City. We were on our way to meet America, but I lost the alien in the bustle of the crowd. Despite the Mexican-American outfit I gave him, I couldn't find him anywhere. I spent all day trying to look for the small, gray alien. I even tried asking New Yorkers if they saw a small kid wearing a poncho. Every one of them gave me funny looks before ignoring me. How rude...

After searching for many hours, the sun was beginning to set. It was getting dark, and I wasn't able to find the alien. Reluctantly, I had to give up on my search for today. I kept worrying over the alien's fate. Even though I traveled with the alien over the last couple of days, allowing them to learn a little bit about American society, I was still distrustful of their intentions. What made this situation much worse was not knowing where they are, or what they were doing. They could be causing trouble for any poor soul who may have stumbled onto the weird creature. They could be causing chaos I wasn't aware of. Wherever the little alien is, I need to find them soon.

But first, I need to get some rest after a long, road trip.

Earlier, I had called America ahead before my arrival. I didn't tell him about the alien yet, assuming he would either not believe me or tell everyone what I found, especially his boss. I wanted to keep this a secret. Instead, I simply told him I was paying a visit. He was happy to let me sleep over at his house which was good to know. I was getting low on money, and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to afford the cheapest hotel room in this expensive city.

The street lamps around the city were beginning to light up by the time I appeared in front of America's house. He answered the door as soon as I rang the doorbell. Grinning from ear to ear, the blond, blue-eyed American greeted me with enthusiasm, hyper than normal for some reason.

"Hey, dude! Welcome to mi casa!" He pulled me inside by the arm. "I want you to meet my newest bestie!"

I looked at him confused. "Wha-?"

Before I got the chance to ask him, I was pulled into the living room where, sitting comfortably in an pea green armchair, was a little, gray alien. The same one I was travelling with  I was in complete disbelief. How in the world was the alien able to find America within the millions of humans living in this gigantic city?

America went over to join the alien. "This is Tony!" He smiled. "I recently met him today, and we're like total buds now." He briefly turned his attention to "Tony". "Tony, meet New Mexico. He's one of my states. You can also call him Alvaro or A.J. Anyway, say hi to him."

Tony looked at me, giving me a small wave. "Hi!" he greeted in a nonchalant manner.

Subconsciously, I waved back. "Hi, Tony..." I muttered, still comprehending the whole situation.

"Dude. Why do you look like you saw a spooky ghost?" America gave me a weird look, oblivious to my earlier encounter with his new friend.

Speaking of oblivious, why isn't he shocked over Tony's appearance? Like, what?

I forced a smile on my face. "Lo siento (Sorry). I'm just tired from travelling," I assured him.

He smiled. "That's alright, dude. Make yourself comfortable while I make you some coffee." America left the room.

Left alone with Tony, I sat myself down in an armchair opposite to Tony's. I sat there, unable to look away from the gray alien.

"So... Tony... You finally met him," I awkwardly pat the arms of the chair. "So... What do you plan on doing next?"

It blinked its red eyes. "Stay here."

"Uh...why?"

"I like it here."

I was about to question Tony's response, but America came back with a tray of coffee in his hand, forcing me to shut my lips.

"I see you two are getting along just fine," he laughed. "I can't wait to tell everyone about Tony. Especially England, I can't wait to see the look on his face. I told you they're real!"

I awkwardly smiled. "I'm glad you and Tony are getting along as well," I softly chuckled.

I really needed to get some proper sleep. At this point, I really don't know what's real, or sane anymore.

What I learned from this experience was the truth. There really were beings out there in the universe. Wherever Tony and his friend came from, I still hope we can all get along without a problem. As long as nothing bad happens, I'm willing to forget everything, and pretend nothing weird happened. I just wanted to live a humble life, and be a humble person. No trouble. No problems. No abductions. No experiments. Just peace and quiet.

Tony the Alien, whatever your reasons for coming here are, I hope your stay on Earth is as peaceful as a dove on a pear tree. Be a good friend, and look out for America. Also, please don't conquer the Earth because I don't want to see that happen. Ever.

~ Bonus Scene ~

"I'm home," I called.

After taking Tony to America's house, I'm now left with the other alien who behaved more strangely than Tony.

At first, I heard nothing. I thought the alien was gone. But out of the corner of my eyes, I saw the alien with the bolo tie around its neck darting toward me. I thought it was attacking me. Then suddenly, it was hugging my legs. And... I thought I saw tears coming out of the corners of their eyes.

"¡Comida (Food)! ¡Ally tiene mucha hambre (Ally is very hungry)!" It started begging, much to my surprise.

Not far from the dining table, I saw my kitchen had been rummaged as though a family of raccoons broke in. The refrigerator was left wide open. A bunch of half-eaten fruit and vegetables were laid out all over the counter; some were already growing moldy. The trash bin was full of empty boxes of frozen waffles and cereal. Most of the bottles of cola were left open by the sink; some still had tepid soda inside them. For some reason, all my plates were used. All of them were piled high in the sink, nearly two feet high. I was flabbergasted by the outrageous mess.

"Dios mío (My God)..." I gaped.

From that day forward, Ally became my own alien friend. A very lazy, hungry, and weird alien friend...

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New Mexico

Nickname: The Land of Enchantment

Human Name: Alvaro Joshua Fernández (sometimes nicknamed A.J.)

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Foundation Date: Given the name Province of New Mexico in 1598. With Mexico, became independent from Spain in 1891. After the Mexican-American War, Congress created the New Mexico Territory in September 1850.

Union Date: January 6, 1912 (47th)

Hair Color: Ebony Black

Eye Color: Caramel Brown

Notable Traits: Slightly short in height. Fit in weight, however, he's weak in terms of strength and endurance. Tanned skin. Usually wears buttoned shirts under tweed jackets. Commonly wears bolo ties and necklaces, one his favorites is his Native American Squash Blossom necklace.

Favorite Foods/Drinks: Pinon Coffee, Breakfast Burrito, Carne Adovada (meat, usually pork, marinated in red chile sauce and other ingredients), Posole (hominy soup), Green Chile Stew, Chile Rellenos (stuffed chiles), Frito Pie, Bizcochito (cookie), Enchiladas, Sopapillas (fried pastry)

Favorites: Playing the Pimentel (New Mexico Sunrise Guitar), Hispanic Art, Hispanic Music, Literature (especially those of Mexican folklore), Science-Fiction (especially in relation to aliens)

Personality: Gentle and Timid. Quite an easygoing person, mainly living a quiet, humble life in his small home. Has a close relationship with the Hispanic community; he even has good relations with Mexico. Doesn't like getting into trouble, becoming a worrywart whenever he's forced to deal with Arizona. Has a fascination with aliens, often observing Tony from afar whenever visiting America's house.

~

Hetalia had already covered this incident, however, I decided to add more to this event which hopefully everyone doesn't mind. In reality, it was indeed a weather balloon, however, its intended use was for nuclear test monitoring, thus why it was covered up. There had been many theories and speculations since the incident, but so far there are no official encounters with aliens...yet.

I briefly mentioned Ally the Alien being New Mexico's friend who's similar to Tony in a side chapter, but I hadn't really mentioned their personality. Anyway, let me give y'all a breakdown on Ally. With Tony, Ally arrived in New Mexico during the Roswell UFO Incident. Unlike Tony, she mainly speaks in Spanish due to picking up the language from the locals. The reason she stayed in New Mexico's home is due to her recluse nature. She had gotten so comfortable living in New Mexico's home to where she refuses to leave the house or her personal room for that manner. She mostly sees New Mexico as the human who provides her food. Rarely does she express emotions unless in extreme circumstances; empathy seems to be an alien concept to her. Like Tony, they would later adopt a love for video games and horror movies. Hopefully that explains her character in future chapters whenever she's depicted.

~

Feel free to vote or leave a comment on your thoughts of New Mexico or place suggestions for future chapters on New Mexico (history, facts, etc.)