The Turn of a Feather

Epilogue

All the furs and mounts were to be donated to various wildlife museums and exhibits, and the snow leopard, sadly no longer able to be released due to having been captured only a year into his life, would be given a large space to roam in the Columbus Zoo. He would be given 'the top care possible'.

Other animals were lucky enough to be released, like the many species of fish and snakes found in various rooms of the mansion.

Antonio was working side-by-side with an officer from a station a few towns over when they were forced to move away from the door as another large piece was taken outside. The man whistled and shook his head while a team carried it through. "Damn, hate to see the bird those came off of. They're freakin' huge! Whatdaya think, some kind o' condor maybe?" Antonio tore his eyes away from the massive pair of avian limbs was hoisted away down the hall. He wet his lips in an effort to sound normal as he replied. "I dunno, maybe. They seem a bit big for even that. Maybe some prehistoric hawk come back from the dead in time to be hung on the wall of some loony's house."

The man laughed at that as they walked back inside to fetch more taxidermy.

The Spaniard was pulled out of his thoughts yet again as they came up on a newly built bridge. It spanned across a wide gap in the forest floor, and was hidden from most who came across it. They pulled carefully over the bridge, Lovino grinning smugly as they reached the other side without nearly dying for once. They drove down a small road, which was more of a faint indent in the weeds, really.

Lovino groaned as he spotted the tire tracks already having shredded the foliage in front of them. "What? I thought for sure that we would be the first ones here!"

Antonio chuckled. He did a lot of that lately.

"Aw don't worry, Lovi. We'll beat 'em next year." Lovino scowled. "I swear, those idiota German brothers must come down here in the early morning every damn holiday just to be the first ones."

The couple walked up to the door, holding between the them two pots of paella. The door opened before they even reached it, out of it flying a small, brown-haired boy of about twenty. "LOVIIIII~!" He yelled, careening into his brother just as Antonio was able to rescue the dish his boyfriend was carrying.

A blond German walked out after him, standing beside Antonio and taking the extra pan from him as they watched the two Italians laugh and play-wrestle on the ground.

Unsurprisingly to anyone, Ludwig and Feli had started dating not long after the battle. They, along with Antonio and Lovino, Alfred and Arthur (no one saw THAT one coming, nope... not at all), and Gilbert and Matthew, made for a LOT of double dates and couple get-togethers. No one was really sure what was going on between Jackson (who turned out to be in his mid twenties, who knew?) and Belle, but as far as anyone could figure it was just awkward flirting as of yet.

The Italian Brothers finally got up and dusted themselves off and the group walked to the door and let themselves in, calling out greetings. A chorus of voices from friends and family answered them as they headed into the kitchen, adding their dishes to the feast already set up.

The owner of the house walked over to his grandson, hugging him tightly and shaking Antonio's hand. As an afterthought, he pulled the Spaniard into a hug as well, clapping him on the back with a grin. Antonio grinned back. "Hello, Roma. Happy Thanksgiving."

"Same to you." He replied. "How was the drive?"

Antonio smiled. "A little bumpy, given the driver." He winked at Roma as Lovino pouted. "Hey! I'm getting better." He cried indignantly. The group of onlookers laughed, and soon enough the expression melted and he joined in.

An hour later, everyone was seated at the table. Belle had arrived, bringing with her a favorite dessert of the group, a Belgian dish called Rijstevlaai, which she brought to most gatherings. The pie, with its rice pudding filling, tended not to last very long on the table. Not ever since she had first brought it on the last Hyldest festival they had held at the Vargas household.

Antonio loaded his plate with food, trying to get as much as he could before the ravenous angels stripped the platters bare.

As soon as everyone calmed, Roma called the group to attention. He stood up, clearing his throat. "This year, I think we should follow the human tradition of going around the table and telling what we are thankful for in our lives."

A few groans followed this, but were quickly silenced by a look from Roma. "Since we are fairly new to this, having skipped it last year, let's have the humans start us off. Antonio, you first."

The officer smiled; he loved this part. It gave him a way to express his love and gratitude to the people he held dear.

He stood up from the table, taking Lovino's hand. The mismatched gathering looked at him expectantly, as he opened his mouth and began.

~fin~

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A/N: Hah, wouldn't it have been evil if I'd added the last line: 'and then a gunshot rang out through the room'? Or something. But no I'm not that malevolent (although I'd be lying through my teeth if I said I didn't consider it just a tad). But I didn't! So don't worry, happy ending. Ok back on task. Well, I'm actually finished! Wow, this has been an experience. This is my first EVER fanfic, so I hope you all like it. Yes, Rijstevlaai is an actual thing. I looked up famous Belgian dishes  and holy crap I might have to make that some day. Also, Hyldest is an angel holiday created by me. It's literally just 'celebration' in Danish. Sadly, it doesn't exist, but if it did, I'd make it be today, July 15th, and it would consist of someone drawing the names of two family members or friends out of a hat and those two would have to spend 24 hours together. They would have to be with each other the whole time, except for things like bathroom and changing and stuff, let's not get weird. At the end, they'd have to buy each other a gift, using whatever they learned about each other to pick the perfect one. Ok, that's all. I might go back and reread the story (and therefore edit it because when I see something I can word better I can't help myself, I'm sorry) so yeah there's that. Because I feel like it, here's a random quote: "How can you speak six languages and sound like a dick in every one of them?" If you know where that lil sassafras line is from, kudos, I love you. Bonus points if you know who said it and to whom. Ok, wow. Big run for my money with the author's note lengths. Ciao for the last time!😭
~LJ