This oneshot is dedicated to Dalek-caan19 and Syntax-N for giving me my first ever reviews. Thank you guys so, so much, you really made my day! Here's hoping you enjoy reading this oneshot too :)
"Like this?" Peter asked, as him and Erland looked up at their mother. The three of them were baking Christmas cookies for the next world meeting; a bit of mother/sons bonding time as well as a way of making the micronations feel more welcomed.
Tino nodded, smiling down at his sons, who were covered in flour after rolling out the dough.
"Yes, that looks perfect." He said. "And now comes the fun part – cutting out the shapes. Which ones would you like to use?"
The two assessed at the array of shiny cookie cutters lying on the floured worktop. There were so many to choose from; making a decision was proving more difficult than expected.
Seeing his sons' indecision, Tino laughed. "It's OK, how about we just use all of them?" he suggested. "Then everyone can have whichever one they want."
Erland grinned, nodding. "Yeah, that's a great idea, mama!" he replied.
"I bet even jerk-Arthur will say I'm a real country once he sees how good these cookies are!" Peter declared proudly.
Tino laughed again, smiling at his sons' enthusiasm. "I'm sure he will," he assured the boys. "But not if you call him names, Peter, or anyone for that matter. That goes for both of you; it's not polite for countries to insult each other." His tone was gently chiding as he spoke, though the hand ruffling Peter's hair took the sting out of his words.
"Sorry, mama."
Tino nodded at the apology, then turned his attention back to the rolled-out dough on the worktop.
"So, which one will we go for first?" he asked, indicating the cutters to the side of the mixture.
Two pairs of thoughtful blue eyes scanned the selection on offer.
"Mmm…that one!" Peter said, pointing to a reindeer-shaped cutter. As well as the basic outline, it also had some detail for the face and harness. When stamped into the dough, it revealed a rather goofy-looking expression, smiling broadly and looking altogether quite pleased with itself. Peter and Erland shared a grin at the result. Erland stamped a few of his own cookies with another cutter from that set – this one a snowman with a large smiling head, small body and feet like little white pebbles.
Tino smiled at the boys' creations and obvious love of the characters they'd chosen. Opting for more traditional shapes for the older countries, he started cutting out his own designs. Soon, the trays lining the rest of the available space (which was a lot, considering the size of the kitchen) were covered in cookies of all shapes and sizes – Christmas trees, Santas, reindeer, snowmen, angels and stars a-plenty, as well as less yule-oriented shapes like hearts, gift boxes, diamonds, and circles with fluted edges. To ensure that no-one would be left out, there were also several trays dedicated solely to neat rows of little flags, which Tino was going to help his sons decorate with the national colours of each country, or an image of something associated with that country for those who didn't have flags of their own.
Tino set the timer, and soon the kitchen was filled with a delicious aroma as the cookies baked.
As the trio relaxed with a cup of hot chocolate, the sound of the front door opening signalled the return of the rest of the family. Berwald had taken Hanatamago for a walk to get her out of the kitchen and under Tino's feet, and Lukas and Mathias had gone shopping earlier that day. Emil was in his room as usual, texting Leon and listening to his rock music at full blast.
The three entered the porch, stamping snow off their boots. Hana dashed into the kitchen to greet her owners, almost bowling poor Erland over as she jumped up.
"Hana, down!" Tino commanded her sternly, trying to avoid the potential for disaster implicit with the combination of an excitable white dog, hot liquid and small children. At her master's order, the Maltese obeyed, sitting at Tino's feet and wagging her tail happily, tongue lolling as the Fin stroked her soft, silky fur.
Peter set his mug down and ran over to Berwald. "Papa, guess what?" he asked excitedly as he flung his arms around the Swede's waist. "Me and mama made cookies for the next meeting! Do you think everyone will like them? You can have some too!"
Berwald returned Peter's hug, nodding at his son's enthusiastic chatter. "I can see that. Thanks." He said simply. Peter grinned and walked back to the counter just as the timer hit zero, filling the kitchen with its' shrill beeping. The sound alerted Mathias and Lukas, who stuck their heads round the doorway.
"What's that noise?" Mathias asked, cheeks flushed red with the cold as he rubbed a hand through his gravity-defying hair, shaking the last of the snow out.
"Didn't you listen? They made cookies." Lukas answered, face creased in annoyance as he, too, shook the snow off his hat and clothes. He pushed past the Dane and sat down next to Peter, gratefully accepting the steaming mug Tino handed him.
Mathias' eyes lit up. "Hey, cool, do I get some?" he asked eagerly, taking his place opposite Lukas as Tino handed him and Berwald their own drinks. The Swede sat at the head of the table, ruffling Erland's hair as he took his seat.
"Yes, there's more than enough for everyone, don't worry." Tino replied.
"Geez, you guys are noisy". Emil complained as he came down the stairs, having finally decided to join his family.
"Says the guy who listens to rock all the time." Mathias retorted cheekily. Emil glared at him, but didn't deign to reply as he sat next to his brother.
"You're one to talk." Lukas muttered under his breath, causing Emil's mouth to quirk upwards in a half smile. Everyone knew that, out of all the Nordics, the exuberant Dane was certainly the loudest.
Mathias grinned in response, eyes crinkling in amusement as he shrugged, not denying the Norwegian's words.
"Enough." Berwald's stern admonishment stopped the younger ones' bickering, and the family settled down, chatting amongst themselves about nothing in particular. Tino busied himself with getting the last of the trays out the oven, then rejoined the table. The cookies were left to cool, and once the drinks were finished Tino, Berwald and the younger boys headed into the lounge to watch TV, Emil went back to his room and Mathias dragged a reluctant Lukas upstairs to his room to build the new Lego set he'd bought on their shopping trip.