Arthur had been having a shit week. On Monday his boss let him know that they no longer needed his services as they had discovered the exact AI program that had taken his last job. On Tuesday his landlord decided it was a good time raise the rent of his apartment by a few hundred quid. On Wednesday, the guy he'd been on a few dates with told him he didn't see it "working out". It was now Thursday, and he had spent the entire day scouring London for any job postings available. He was exhausted. 

He had been strolling through St. James Park in an attempt at gaining some sort of peace of mind. He figured grass would do the trick. It did not. He shuffled into Green Park station only to find out his oyster card had no funds. 

"Great" he grumbled, walking over to one of the ticket machines with a sigh. He reloaded his card and moved towards the gate, finally reaching his terminal as a wave of existential dread washed upon him. It wasn't just this week that had been bad. The past month had been bad. The past year had been bad. There was something missing from his existence. Every day was a bore. He couldn't tell if he was just an idiot for being miserable in a place like London or if he was the only one real enough to recognize that nothing in the city is what it's chalked up to be. 

He took the train to King's Cross, desperately trying to get back to Camden so he could just sit down and read a book. That'd let him escape for a while. Waiting for his next train, Arthur reread the text message from his short-lived flame. "I don't see this working out" Arthur mocked under his breath, rolling his eyes at the thought of the pretentious prick wanting to break it off with him. Never again would Arthur go out with someone who touted themselves as an "old soul" who people just "didn't understand". Those were just code words for "superiority complex" and "massive prick". 

When the train arrived heading to Camden town, Arthur slid into a seat in a carriage on the back of the train. Although not one to typically stare at passengers boarding the train heading in the opposite direction, Arthur felt compelled to do so. It was then that Arthur felt as though someone had struck him across the face with a cricket bat. 

Directly across from him, staring at him from the other train, was himself. And not a reflection. His actual human form. Arthur Kirkland. Same clothes, same face, same everything. Arthur put up a peace sign in the window of the train to make sure he wasn't seeing his own reflection. The other Arthur seemed to be having the same freaked out revelation. He waved, eliciting a sort of choked-up noise from Arthur's throat. The two seemed to move in sync as they hopped off their respective trains to meet. 

Arthur frantically paced as he impatiently waited for the two trains to move along. He knew whoever that person was had been waiting on the other side of the station as well. Starting to realize he looked absolutely insane to the strangers trying to board, Arthur backed away from the yellow safety line near the edge of the platform. 

Once the trains began to move, Arthur stared across the gap at the other side of the station and once again locked eyes with his replica. They both furrowed their brows, utterly confused as they both signalled towards the exit of station, planning to meet outside. 

The two practically sprinted towards their respective exits, meeting up outside with the same confused expression on their faces.

"Who the fuck are you?" 

"Weren't you supposed to be at work today?"

The two blurted out their questions at the same time, adding more confusion to the situation.

"I don't even know who you are!" Arthur shot out, looking the man up and down as he tried to grasp that he was in fact, not dreaming. The two were completely identical, down to the outfit. The only outlier was the blue flower sticking out of his twin's breast pocket. 

"I'll explain everything in a second" the replica replied, "we just need to go somewhere a little less public." Arthur looked around and noticed some people had been staring. It isn't often you see two identical adults wearing the same outfits and shouting at each other in public. 

The man led Arthur down a few streets and into an empty alleyway before looking Arthur dead in the eyes and wshipering "I am you- but from a different dimension." Arthur scoffed, unwilling to believe the man's bullshit. 

"You'd have better luck convincing me that we were twins separated at birth" Arthur replied. 

"Honestly I'd have rather said that to you anyway" the man shot back, "You're not supposed to find out that I'm here. It's going to fuck with your timeline and mine."

"Okay mate" Arthur said with a smile. The man must've been insane. 

"You're insufferable. I'm insufferable. You know- this interaction is going to be very damaging to my self-esteem" the replica replied frustratedly, "You were supposed to be at work so I didn't have to run into you. I'm only here to find Alfred before it's too late." 

"Who's Alfred?" Arthur asked, now curious. 

"My- partner. Travel partner" the man replied hesitantly, "That dumbass American fucked up our dimensional travel vehicle and we were pulled into this dimension. He landed somewhere around here but he's probably wandering around entirely unaware that he sucked us into an alternate dimension anyway. That man is as dumb as a bag of rocks. I need to find him before we can't go back." 

The genuine sound of concern in the man's voice made Arthur slightly more convinced of the potential of interdimensional travel. "Is there any way you can prove to me that you're not just this insane doppelganger making this story up off the top of your head?" Arthur asked. His twin looked up at the sky for a second, trying to think of a way to explain his situation without sounding like a lunatic. His eyes lit up as he dug into his pockets. 

Moments later, the man had pulled out a few coins from his pockets. "In this dimension, are the big english-speaking regions separate countries?" 

"Yes?" Arthur replied.

"Look" the man shot back, handing a few coins over to Arthur with a proud grin on his face. Arthur examined the coins. Currency of United Federation of Engterra. He flipped the coin over, which revealed a map of what would, in his dimension, be considered a United Britain, Canada, Australia, and United States, among others. 

"This seems like a political nightmare" Arthur muttered, handing the coins back to the man. 

"It is" he replied, hoping he convinced Arthur of the truth now. He shoved the coins back in his pocket as Arthur blankly stared into space. The Englishman couldn't believe he was trusting this bloke. 

"I- believe you" Arthur uttered, eliciting a sigh of relief from the other Arthur. 

"Now that you know that interdimensional travel is real- I need you to absolutely never tell anyone about this so long as you live. Otherwise your timeline will absolutely implode" the man explained seriously. "I will only be here as long as it takes me to find Alfred. So I need your help." Arthur nodded, realizing the gravity of the situation. 

"I don't believe this will take too long as this man will stick out like a sore thumb in London. He's fairly tall, tan skin, blond hair, blue eyes, loud as all hell, and refuses to take off this brown bomber jacket that's a million years old. Oh- and he's american" 

"Got it" Arthur replied. "How do I get in contact with you about returning him if I do find him?"

"I'll find you" the man stated confidently.

"Do you have a name? Or-" Arthur began, feeling like a bit of a imbecile for asking. 

"Yes my name is Arthur" the replica replied with an exasperated tone. "I thought we were smarter than this."

"God forbid I don't understand the rules of a multidimensional universe" Arthur responded, annoyed at his other self.

"You can call me Artie for communications sake" the man suggested. 

"Sounds good" 

"Okay now be on your way. I only have a week until the rift closes and I dematerialize" Artie commanded. 

"What?" Arthur questioned.

"Never mind the details- be on your way." 

Arthur obliged, practically sprinting out of the alleyway as he tried to wrap his head around what had just happened. He know he promised to look for this American, but he really just wanted to get in bed and read a good book. Heading back into the station, Arthur made his decision. Tomorrow he would start his search for Artie's lost partner.