Easter Eggs and Romantic Austrians
"Ve, Aunt Lizzie, wake up!" A bouncy, bubbly Italian eagerly shook her as best as he could, a grin stretching across his face. "It's Easter, Aunt Lizzie!" The brunette stirred and groaned.
"Igen, Feli, I know it's Easter." She ruffled his hair and sat up with a yawn. "But Aunt Lizzie wanted to sleep longer."
"Mi dispiace!" He hung his head in shame, in the manner only a six-year-old could. She laughed and pulled him in for a hug.
"You're such a sweetie." She smiled. "Where's your brother?"
"Fratello wouldn't wake up when I told him it was Easter." The boy pouted. "Even when I told him there would be candy!"
"Calm down, Feliciano." A grumpy voice sounded from the door. In the doorway stood his grumpy twin, rubbing at his eyes, dark hair sticking up in every direction. Elizabeta laughed slightly and beckoned him to come closer.
"Come here, Lovi." She smiled. "Let's have a nice family hug and decide what to do for breakfast. Sound good?" Before the older Italian could protest, Feli had dragged him over to the bed, flinging himself into the brunette's arms. She squeezed them both tightly.
"L-Let go of me!" Lovino struggled against her hug, but eventually gave in, his cheeks a rosy red.
"Now, what shall we do for breakfast?" She smiled brightly at them.
"Can we have ice cream?" Feli asked hopefully. She laughed and ruffled his hair.
"Not this time, kiddo." Elizabeta said. "But how about chocolate chip pancakes?" Feli eagerly nodded, and Lovino let out a sullen grunt of agreement.
"Can I help?"
"Feli, stop asking so many questions." She got up from the bed and helped them down. "But, igen, you can. Do you want to help, Lovi?"
"No, thanks." He grumbled. She leaned down, mischief lurking in her green orbs.
"Do you want a visit from the Tickle Monster?" She teased. Lovi jumped and shook his head.
"N-No! Don't touch me!" Even as he said it, a small smile tugged at his lips. She lightly pinched his cheek and smiled.
"There we go. Be happy!" She ruffled his hair. "Now, go help your brother before he hurts himself, Jól vagy?" He nodded dutifully and scrambled to the kitchen, where Feli was trying to get out the pancake mix, but couldn't reach the box. Elizabeta let her gaze travel to the picture on the wall closest to her, where a jovial man stood holding two tiny bundles. She hovered to the left of the man, smiling nervously, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her green dress. A sad smile tugged at her lips. That had been the day she had been given the two bundles of joy she now took care of.
The man, of course, was the twins' nonno. When her sister had died after giving birth to the twins, he had initially taken custody of them. However, shortly afterwards, he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. The picture was taken the day he called her up for the legalities. A few years ago, she had not seen herself being the mother these boys needed. Now, she was much more confident.
"Aunt Lizzie!" Feli wailed, Lovino merely laughing loudly. She poked her head in the kitchen to find a bowl on the floor, pancake mix everywhere.
"Oh, Feli." She smiled. "You're so adorable." She ruffled his hair and got out her spare box of pancake mix. "You two clean up the mess; I'll make the pancakes."
"But—." Lovino protested.
"Don't argue, Lovino." She raised an eyebrow. He gulped and nodded, scurrying to help his brother clean up. She shook her head and stifled another laugh before starting on the pancakes.
Her phone began to beep loudly, signaling an incoming call. She glanced at the caller ID. Incoming call from Gil, it alerted her. She sighed and shook her head before answering her phone.
"Szia?"
"Lizzie! Happy Easter!" Gilbert's overly-excited voice came through the speaker of her phone. She winced and put the phone on speaker, setting it on the counter.
"Happy Easter to you, too, Gilbert."
"Are you guys going to make it for the egg hunt?"
"Of course we are, Gilbert." She laughed. "Feli's beside himself with excitement."
"Gut!" He replied cheerfully. "Mein cousin from Österreich is also coming. I hope it's okay with you…"
"That's fine." She answered distractedly, trying to flip the pancakes without dropping them. "I'll see you then?"
"Ja!" Gilbert's grin was easily imagined from his tone. She hung up without another word.
"Boys! Breakfast is ready!" The twins eagerly stumbled to the table as she carried a plate of steaming pancakes and their own plates, setting them on the wood carefully. "Be careful; they're hot." While she went to retrieve the syrup from the pantry, the boys loaded their plates with pancakes.
"Grazie, Aunt Lizzie." Feli mumbled around his food. She laughed and set the syrup down to get her own pancakes before dousing them in the maple goodness.
"So, guess who's going egg hunting with us?" She smiled. Feli's face lit up.
"Is it Monika?!" He all but squealed. She nodded and laughed.
"Igen, and his brother, Gilbert. Their cousin is coming, too, but I don't know them." She turned to Lovino. "Guess who else is coming?" The darker-haired boy groaned.
"No! Not that guy!" He whined. Elizabeta reached over and fixed his mussed hair.
"Yes, Toni's coming, too. As is Francine and Arthur and their boys." Lovino shot her a glare and continued eating his food.
"I don't want to hang out with that loser." He said glumly.
"Lovi, be nice. Or I'll have to take your candy for myself." She warned. He gulped and pouted.
"Fine." He muttered, along with a few words in Italian that Elizabeta had no hopes of deciphering at the moment. She threw an exasperated look at her ceiling.
"You should've been the one to keep them." She grumbled good-naturedly. The boys gave her an odd look, but she ignored them. "So, boys, who's ready to go get some Easter eggs?"
"I am, Aunt Lizzie!" Feli waved his hand around frantically.
"Then go get dressed, you two! The faster you get done, the faster we can leave." The two boys immediately stood up and dashed to their room. Elizabeta smiled and hummed as she began to clean up their breakfast mess. Her phone buzzed with a text.
Gil: They moved the hunt to Franny's house, okay?
She texted back an affirmative. After touching up her appearance in the hall mirror, she went to check on the boys. "Are you two ready?"
"Si!" They answered.
"Then let's go!"
((EE*33))
"Lizzie!" Gilbert's overly-obnoxious voice floated over to her as she helped the boys out of the car. She barely had time to urge them away before the albino tackled her to the ground in a hug. "You made it!"
"Gilbert Maria Bielschmidt, get off me!" She hissed, squirming beneath him. He flashed a trademark smirk and laughed loudly as he stood.
"Kesese, you're so weak, Liz!" She shot him a heated glare before attempting to stand. A hand was extended in front of her face. She looked up, surprised that Gilbert was offering to help before she realized that the man in front of her was definitely not her friend.
"Please excuse my cousin's rudeness." He shot the albino a fierce stare. "Onkel never quite managed to beat some manners into him." She gently placed her hand in his, allowing him to help her stand.
"Köszönöm." She smiled, gulping when his violet gaze softened. "I'm Elizabeta Hedervary, but everyone calls me Lizzie." He bent and lightly pressed his lips to her knuckles.
"I'm Roderich Edelstein." He said softly. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance." Her cheeks reddened, her heart thumping wildly. A loud cough sounded from her left. Gilbert rolled his eyes and grabbed her arm, pulling her away from his cousin.
"Enough charming, you prick." The albino stated in a less-than-pleasant manner. "I think the hunt's about to begin." Elizabeta looked up to the porch to see an excited Francine waving to get everyone's attention. The three of them headed for the house, the brunette sandwiched between the two glaring cousins.
"Aunt Lizzie!" Feli toddled over to her. She scooped him up and smiled.
"What is it, Feli?"
"Lovi won't give me my basket!" He pouted cutely. She sighed.
"Lovino Vargas, give your brother his basket or I get all of your candy." The darker-haired Italian whined and made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a muffled curse before handing over the bright green wicker basket begrudgingly. His twin took the basket eagerly before squirming out of her arms. Gilbert's brunette cousin gave her an odd look, opening his mouth to ask a question.
"Bonjour, everyone!" Francine clapped her hands excitedly. "Merci for coming! I apologize for the last-minute location change, but someone forgot to fill the eggs last night." She shot a sideways glance at her husband, who was red-faced and fuming. "Anyways, are you ready, children?" The five children eagerly bobbed their heads. "Then come up here, so we can all have a fair start, oui?"
"I'm gonna get all the candy!" Alfred, Francine and Arthur's oldest son, boasted, carrying a plastic Superman basket. His younger brother Matthew meekly stood beside him, head ducked shyly. Beside Alfred stood the twins and Gilbert's younger sister, Monika, who stared solemnly at the field, searching for the brightly-colored eggs.
"Ready?" Arthur called, checking to make sure everything was fair. When he received five nods of excitement, he smiled. "Go!" The little kids immediately swarmed the field, picking up eggs left and right. Elizabeta smiled as her boys began to collect more and more, leaving Alfred frantic, Monika annoyed, and Matthew a little less timid.
"Are those two yours?" Roderich asked softly. She looked at him in surprise.
"Technically, they're my nephews." She smiled sadly. "Their mom was my sister."
"What happened to her?" His cheeks immediately reddened, causing him to be flustered. "I-I mean, if it's appropriate to ask…"
"It's fine." She let out a soft sigh. "She died in childbirth. Their nonno raised them for a month or so before being diagnosed with cancer. He handed over their guardianship to me." She hugged her torso self-consciously.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up." His hand lightly, hesitantly came to rest on her shoulder. Elizabeta gave him a watery smile.
"It's fine." She whispered, not daring to raise her voice from fear of having it crack. His eyes widened.
"Would you like me to leave so you can…recover?" His voice was full of concern. She shook her head.
"I-I'll be okay." She rubbed at her eyes, hiding her face from Gilbert's prying gaze when she noticed it. His crimson orbs narrowed in suspicion.
"Prick, did you make her cry?" He asked through clenched teeth, clutching the front of his cousin's black button-down shirt. Roderich looked confused.
"Gil, stop." She sniffed and lightly tugged his arm away. "Roderich didn't do anything, I promise." The albino looked at her for a moment before letting his cousin go.
"Fine." He walked away towards a frowning Monika, who was surveying her eggs with disapproval. The blonde boys had the same expressions on their faces. Feli and Lovi were beaming proudly, both of their baskets quite full of multi-colored eggs.
"Ve, ve, Aunt Lizzie, look!" Feli dropped his basket at her feet. Elizabeta smiled and ruffled his hair.
"I'm proud of you two." She knelt and gathered them both in her arms. "I'll go put these in the car. You two go play, now."
"Si!" Feli eagerly darted towards the other children, while his brother hung back hesitantly.
"Lovi~!" A bright, cheery voice called from the porch. The Italian groaned and dropped his basket.
"I'm doomed." He muttered.
"Be nice." His guardian chastised. A Hispanic man sashayed over to them, scooping Lovino up in his arms and hugging him tightly.
"Lovi!" He grinned. "There you are!"
"L-Let go of me, Tomato Freak!" The Italian squirmed in his arms, to no avail.
"Go have fun with Toni, Lovino." Elizabeta's expression was serious. "Or no candy for you."
"But-."
"No buts." She smiled cheerfully and waved. "Have fun~!" Antonio immediately darted to where the other kids were, laughing and swinging Lovino around. Though the boy tried not to show it, a small smile that tugged at his lips indicated that he was having fun.
"Well." Roderich cleared his throat. "I guess I should be going."
"Where to?" Elizabeta asked conversationally.
"The airport. My plane flies out tonight to return home."
"I see…" She tapped her bottom lip thoughtfully.
"Would it…be possible…" His cheeks turned bright red. "Would you terribly mind if we kept in contact?" Her own cheeks burned red.
"I-I…sure." She smiled shyly. "I'd like that." A relieved smile stretched his lips.
"Danke." He whispered, bending down to kiss her hand once more. "It's not every day a pretty woman accepts my request." She giggled like a schoolgirl.
"I feel honored." She said quietly. He straightened up and flashed her a crooked smile, which added to his charm, in her opinion.
"Here, I'll give you my email." She handed him her phone and he typed it in, handing it back when he was finished. "I look forward to conversing with you…Elizabeta."
Somehow, coming from his lips, it just seemed…right.
Heyo! I know I should probably update my other stories, but… one of the forums I am on had a contest this month, with a prompt of "egg hunts", which led to this little one-shot right here. I don't expect to win, honestly, but it's a great way for other Hetalians to find my stories. ^.^
I don't own anything except the plot bunnies and the boys' unnamed mother.
I hope you guys enjoyed this cutesy little AusHun thing I never thought I would write. To all the PruHun fans out there, yes, PruHun is still better, hands-down. But… Gilbert just doesn't fit into the story like that, but I did slip a bit in for you guys. ^.^
That's all for now, folks! If you've gotten this far, that means you've read the story. I'd appreciate it greatly if you guys could leave a review.
Until next time, arigato, and hasta luego~!
~Hero