Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Author Note: Set and written before 4th April 2016 Raw.

HAPPY FAMILIES

There was no cream cheese left. Antonio stared for a moment, then pulled out the boxed salami. He was sure there'd been cream cheese only the night before. He glanced down at the two cats lapping at their water bowls.

"This was you?"

Neither of them denied it. Antonio shook his head and took what salami he needed. "You live well but stealing from people who feed you, it's not a tactic for winning."

The cats were meowing, Antonio smiled. Truthfully he hadn't spent much time with cats before meeting Tyson and Natalya but now here he was, talking to the adored furry children of his boyfriend. Well, the cats were good company and he did find grooming them quite relaxing. They reacted very well to French conversation.

He focused on making sandwiches and was mixing a protein shake when Natalya came downstairs, clad in a beautiful blue dress. Her shoes sparkled with every step and she was wearing the earrings that Antonio had bought for her birthday the previous year. They caught the light beautifully, they matched her smile.

"Hey, are you trying a new recipe?"

Antonio waggled a hand in vague explanation, he was trying to remember one that Chris had recommended, "I think more bananas, it always helps."

Natalya brushed a kiss to his cheek. Her perfume was one that Antonio liked best on her, the kind that made him smile when he caught its scent. There was a lot about Natalya that made him smile.

She was talking to the cats now, entirely absorbed in the creatures, her smile beatific. Tyson was much the same way around the cats. Antonio sipped his protein shake and watched.

The truth was Antonio did not expect to form such a bond with Natalya. He had always had great respect for her, as a wrestler and simply as a person. Because she made Tyson happy and because she was part of the great Hart Dynasty yet she stood as a great wrestler in her own right too. She was comfortable with the legacy that surrounded her, that everybody saw before they saw her. She wore it lightly and did not let it deter her from plucking victory after victory. Her head was set on straight, in a business that many drowned in. There was a lot to admire about Natalya, this opinion of Antonio's was only cemented once he got to know her better through Tyson, even more so once Antonio moved in with them.

It was an arrangement that worked for all three of them. Tyson especially was so pleased having both his loves in one place, and seemed quite surprised and not exactly happy that Natalya and Antonio formed a separate bond that included spending time together without him. The irony of this seemed completely lost on him.

Antonio enjoyed spending time with Natalya - working out in the gym and taking her to dinner, seeing her smile across the table, dressed so beautifully, enjoying being spoiled. She took his arm and leaned into him as they walked together. He was happy to see her happy, to feel her warmth and affection. It was a good bond, one built on much understanding, of Tyson, of the wrestling business, and on the back of the desire they both held to make this work. Who else knew what it was to love Tyson?

There were many things to learn when living with other people. Of course Antonio had shared hotel rooms with tag team partners before, he had learned their habits and they had learned his. And he had stayed over with Tyson and Natalya before so he had some ideas but he still learned a great deal more each day. Tyson told him about letting Natalya sleep in some days, just so she would have time to truly rest. He told Antonio about the importance of buying Natalya gifts that she wanted, not just thoughtful practical gifts that she needed, Natalya wanted more than that. Yes, Antonio had heard about the treadmill.

He often bought flowers for Natalya. He liked how much they delighted her, how her hands lingered in them as she arranged and watered them. He had been able to tell then that she was not bought such things regularly. Tyson for all his years with her still had much to learn too. Natalya loved the earrings Antonio bought for her birthday; he was considering buying a spa and gym weekend for all three of them for Christmas.

Natalya warned him about Tyson's family, about Tyson's inability to refuse them and their skill at overwhelming Natalya and her needs. During their next visit, Antonio did what he could to divert and divide so that Tyson's family were distracted by other things. He did not take the attention himself; he was not so selfless. And Tyson's family made Tyson happy, though it was obvious he was glad not to live so close to them.

Antonio called his parents that night and raised a glass as his father did the same.

Natalya appeared in the doorway once he had finished his call. She had been waiting clearly. She eyed him as she sat down, threading her arm past his.

"You never talk about them?"

It was framed like a question, like she wanted to know more. Perhaps Antonio had not spoken about family by blood, he remembered a journey or two when he had talked to Chris and Sara, after a match that had stirred memories. That was some time ago now. He took a moment to soak Natalya in, how good she looked with her hair halfway braided, her patience and inside the house was Tyson, not so patiently waiting for them both.

After Antonio got the news he had been pushing back for many weeks – that his rotator cuff muscle injury was serious enough to keep him away from the ring for several months – the first people he called were Tyson and Natalya. He knew that both would have come to the doctor with him, had Tyson not been recovering still from his neck injury and Natalya pulled away for so many WWE media duties. To hear their voices, that was good while he dealt with news that brought him low.

Antonio spoke several languages and played many sports but wrestling, this was the activity that made him happiest. It was his dream job and to be away from it, it was truly painful. Tyson knew this and understood, his injury was much more serious than Antonio's and he was being kept away from wrestling for so long.

Natalya insisted that Antonio not move out, despite the fact she would be living with two rehabbing wrestlers.

"I want to see how you're doing," she told him when she saw him after his appointment. "You and Tyson can take care of each other."

It would be easier to rehab together for sure, both Antonio and Tyson wanted to see the other succeed and strengthen. So Antonio was glad to stay there still of course, to often share a bed with Tyson, to find a way of sleeping side by side that did not aggravate either of their injuries, to talk to Natalya on the phone or in person, to spend time with them both.

Antonio knew he was very lucky that Natalya had allowed him to move into their home and become part of her and Tyson's life. Antonio was under no illusions – if Natalya had divorced Tyson after discovering his feeling for Antonio, Tyson would not be the same man. He would be so devastated to lose the woman he had loved forever, Antonio doubted a relationship between himself and Tyson would have survived. He had a lot to thank Natalya for.

She seemed pleased when he'd mentioned this, glad perhaps that her sacrifice and compromise was so noted – Tyson did not tell her these things. Antonio tried to ensure she knew her place was forever strong and vital, and savoured her response.

"You make Tyson happy and you're family now, really."

Family. Antonio smiled. That was an unexpected kindness, to be considered so important by his boyfriend's wife. Yes, family was a good description for Natalya's place in his life and affections also. He could not conceive of living with Tyson without Natalya there also, talking to the cats, complaining about Tyson's obliviousness, working hard to continually stake her claim as the dominant female in the WWE. Antonio wished to see her achieve this, for her to be champion and as respected as she deserved to be, by everyone. He wished to be there when she triumphed, as she had been present when he and Tyson had become tag team champions.

A victory was truly sweetest when flanked by Tyson and Natalya. There were friends of Antonio's who might laugh at this stance of his, for there were several groups he had called family thanks to wrestling. His found families, he kept in touch with many of them. It did not lessen them or Tyson and Natalya. All families were different and important. Antonio knew how he felt and how he wished to continue to feel.

Tyson was tactile by nature and curled close when he slept, holding onto Antonio. There was great happiness, no, contentment on his face after they had sex. Tyson enjoyed Antonio's great strength. Antonio doubted anyone else had ever experienced such a side of Tyson. It was a privilege and it sent great heat through Antonio, heat and satisfaction. This was only his.

Natalya was a different kind of tactility. Always she linked arms with Antonio when they walked together and often he wrapped an arm around her. Like Tyson, she fitted well against him. It was a different welcome feeling. Family. She reached for Antonio and he did the same in return.

There was a possibility that Tyson would not wrestle again. He had suffered such a devastating injury, one that would leave many unable to walk again, let alone wrestle. Tyson had been incredibly lucky; he was able to move quite well after his very important surgery. Now he had months ahead of him, months of careful rehab, numerous medical scans and doctors' caution. It was testing him, Antonio could see and feel that, the great tension and frustration that Tyson felt and sometimes took out on him and Natalya. They did what they could to help him though Natalya always fought back, Antonio did sometimes too. His patience was not infinite.

Yet Antonio felt blessed because Tyson could move, he had a chance, he might wrestle again, if progress was good and he was sensible. Too often wrestlers rushed back, they did not want the crowds or their employers to forget them. Antonio knew that urge because he missed the ring, the life that had been his for many years now. To be without it, in any way, Antonio could not imagine anything more impossible.

So he rehabbed and worked out with physiotherapists and saw doctors and measured his own progress. He took note of Tyson's too and massaged his stiff aching muscles and gave reports to Natalya when she was not there. She gave them both reports on the WWE, on the people, the politics brewing, the teams they would face to reclaim their belts once more. It was an itch deep under Antonio's skin, he would have those belts again, they were his and Tyson's. No one deserved them greater.

It was deeply frustrating, the waiting game, being on the sidelines but there was much to fill Antonio's time. He focused on that.

"I'm glad you're here," Tyson told him, his hand palming Antonio's face. "Not the injury but you're here, that's really awesome."

Antonio smiled, yes, he felt the same. The injuries were not wanted or needed, but the time he had with Tyson, even when there were frustrations born of two people wanting to be working and not here, it was time he was glad to have. Perhaps, he thought, this was how life was for Natalya; living with Tyson, seeing him so often, so many hours together at home. Even after Antonio had moved in, he had not spent so much domestic time with Tyson. And now Natalya was like Antonio had been; working and returning. It was a thought to turn over. Natalya would like it.

Antonio kissed Tyson and drank in his sounds. This was as helpful and satisfying as any rehab exercises. How could they fail?

Antonio received strange questions sometimes, from those he counted as friends. No, he and Natalya did not have set days when it came to Tyson, there was no schedule, but there was some organization. Natalya of course was expected publically for WWE events and Antonio was so associated with Tyson that he was expected too so either one of them could be Tyson's date or they could both appear at his side. There was enough time for them all. Yes, Antonio and Natalya liked to socialise together. If they did not work on their relationship too, if they did not nuture it, the centre would not hold, yes? There were enough bedrooms for them all.

"Whatever works for you, man," Chris told him on the phone, sounding mildly amused.

"This does," Antonio responded.

Chris was a brother. He and Antonio had so many hours on the road together, locked inside cars and strategising in motels. Chris needed to visit soon, he was on the road of course and it was rare now that he and Antonio's paths crossed. With Antonio injured, it could be time for Chris to journey to Florida. He would be amused by Tyson and the cats and he would tease Antonio. Natalya would like him, though it was very doubtful they would agree at all on car journey music. It would be so good to see him again.

"You will send me a Death by Elbow shirt."

"Wear it on Raw."

-the end

Author Note: The Chris mentioned is Chris Hero, known as Kassius Ohno when he was part of NXT in 2012 - 2013. Previously on the independent circuit, he and Cesaro, then known as Claudio Castagnoli, were a hugely-successful tag team known as the Kings of Wrestling. Death By Elbow is the tag team Chris Hero is part of with JT Dunn.