Antonio stepped out of his cabin, taking a deep breath of the crisp evening air. He stretched widely and grinned in satisfaction as his back popped loudly. Suddenly a voice spoke behind him.
"Ugh that's so nasty. Why do you do that?"
Antonio smiled warmly at the grumbling Italian that stepped out of the house behind him. He simply laughed and took his hand as they walked to the car, and was soon rewarded with a smirk thrown his way.
"Come on, Lovi, I know you lovi-me. Get it?" Antonio chuckled at the unimpressed look on his boyfriend's adorable face as he opened the driver's side door.
"Can I drive?" He asked with a hopeful look. Lovino had recently gotten his learner's permit and was taking every opportunity to hone his (loosely put) skills.
Antonio checked his watch and shrugged. "Eh, we're early anyway. But I'm driving on the way back, I don't trust you on the roads at night." The Italian put on an innocent face. "What, because of one time? I already said I was sorry. And besides, that garbage can had it coming; those old asshats always left it out in the middle of the road."
"Yeah, but may I remind you--" Antonio broke off with an exasperated sigh. He looked up into Lovino's amused features and shook his head with a smile, tossing him the car keys. As they drove, he let his eyes wander over his lover's face, memorizing all the details. He seemed so different from the argumentative hothead he had met in the woods.
It had been almost two years since then, and their lives had finally calmed down. The couple had moved closer to the angel territory, and every holiday (human or angel; they had a few that both celebrated, but some that were new to either group) they all gathered at the Vargas household. That night was one such occasion.
After the final battle in the shed, the poachers were effectively arrested and almost immediately convicted. It turned out that they were part of an infamous poaching ring. They had been hunting down endangered species for decades, had numerous bounties on their heads, and were banned from eight different countries, including the United States.
The lead poacher was the head of the entire organization, with several life sentences. The story that they had come up with was that, off duty, a group of police officers were taking a hike and saw a shady looking lodge. They decided to investigate on account of the thick black smoke coming out of the smokehouse, and found it to be the home of one of the most wanted men on the planet. Fortunately, they were able to capture the leader and a few of his henchmen, with others in his gang mysteriously turning up at different police stations in the area after being captured that same night.
It was put down as the work of good samaritans. After all, there was no way, no matter how good the officers were, that they could have arrested the twenty-odd thugs on their own.
The large feathers that littered the floor after the battle always remained somewhat a mystery. Though there were a couple wild theories, it was assumed that some rare bird was being plucked when the officers arrived, and the feathers scattered all over. It was never discovered what that bird might have been, or where it went.
Antonio chuckled at that. Lovino glanced over at him from the driver's seat with a raised eyebrow. "What's so funny? You talkin' to yourself, old man?" Antonio laughed again, staring out the window at the fall leaves as they were whisked out of the car's path and sent fluttering into the wind.
"I was just thinking about something."
Lovino snorted but let it go. Studying him, Antonio's mind washed back to a less pleasant memory.
He was tasked with helping to remove the many poached items from the mansion, a job he was more than willing to undertake. Seeing those in that place made him sick.
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