Proof to everyone my partner is back. This was a present for "J", but she revised it, making this so much better and funnier. The theme she gave me was something with Spanish in it. So tada! Enjoy. Sorry for the minor character death guys. I rarely do OCs.
The Enchanted Child
It was if the Earth had split in two. The stormy day ruptured into a torturous disaster, where rain spewed forth from the blackish clouds and it seemed as though the thunder and lightning were going to emerge as one. Antonio Fernandez Carriedo, a nomadic traveler, was sitting under a firm tree despite the gloom overhead and was watching the omnipotent display in reverence, amazed by how the forces of nature could so easily cause so much destruction. He pulled out a tomato from his waterproof knapsack and munched on it, licking the juices that spilled from the corners of his mouth and chin. Antonio chuckled to himself as he contemplated his current situation. He was a weird, happy Spaniard in the middle of nowhere.
"Just another day in the lonely life of a simple wanderer, huh?"
While he was in the middle of smacking his lips in a type of congenial fulfillment, he was distracted by the unpremeditated groans from above. Then, just like how one would have expected a reaction from him, he jumped in surprise, and a not-so-manly squeak escaped his lips. He began to sweat in fear as Goosebumps appeared along his arm, and he could have sworn his heart was beating a million beats per second.
"Up here retard. I'm not across the field, you know." said the rude voice.
A mere child of about nine years of age was straddled to a bulky branch over Antonio's brown head. Upon first seeing the boy, he at once understood the source of the child's ails. There was a large gash on his arm. Antonio hoisted himself up and climbed the tree, ignoring the nonstop pricks on his fingers as splinters inserted themselves onto his tender flesh.
"Are you hurt, nino?"
"Fuck off."
Being a natural born lover of children, Antonio self-censored the child's list of colorful language, and instead, tentatively reached for the child, unsure of what he should do. With one courageous swoop, he used both hands to secure the young one as the demonic child panicked and started to defend himself by thrashing and scratching at Antonio. It sure was one courageous feat because by the time the soles of Antonio's feet touched the ground, there were five bruises on his face, the biggest one on his chin. His face was so bruised up that he looked like some ungodly Spanish monster seen in folklore meant to scare children out of their wits. But Antonio didn't really mind, he was just glad that the child was now safely on the ground.
"Dear child," Antonio spoke softly, "Why are you all alone?"
The child huffed irritably, crossing his arms in a childish gesture. What he said next was the most surprising.
"Tu sei stupido (You are stupid). I am not what you humans call a baby. I am a spirit, cursed by an atrocious wizard who was just jealous of my good looks. Sadly, I am stuck in this measly form until I hand him one thousand roses in a bouquet."
When the child said this in his squeaky voice, Antonio cooed and pampered the embarrassed, timid child because he understood that the child had to resort to a human to save him from this predicament. It was rather endearing, really. And so, Antonio, the wanderer, set off on a journey to find the so-called fields of roses that were supposedly under the control of a troublesome rose sprite named Francis. With the child comfortably poking out of his knapsack, and the storm cooling down enough to lift the sun up, Antonio ventured deep into the dark, shadowy forests.
Thus far, there were only short branches that he had to go under; nothing too difficult to trounce upon…
"Who go 'ere?" called the armor.
A rusty suit of armor was guarding the entrance into the heart forest, its stance ready for combat as Antonio stood a meter away, weary of the point of the sword gleaming at him, thirsty for his blood. He was a pacifier, not a fighter. How will he be able to defeat a masked knight? The nicely tanned man gulped. He was too young to die, and if he dies, will the child die, too?
He puffed out his chest to encourage himself as he bravely stepped forward and replied with audacity, "It is I, Antonio Fernandez Carriedo! I have come to cross this forest to pick one thousand roses for the evil warlock!"
He could have listed a bunch of detailed explanations, but the child smacked his forehead and hissed, "Do you want to proclaim your death?! Now the wizard knows your name and can take advantage of that! Just go and fight him!"
Comparing the size of the clad of metal and the shivering body of Spanish pride and Spanish wits, it was obvious who would be the victor, but Antonio couldn't change face; he couldn't afford seeing a sad child (or worse, a dead one). He had no sword, no shield, no strategy, or any fortifiable luck to protect his well-being from getting a hacking from this foe. Nonetheless, he picked up a stick, probably a fallen branch, and stood ready for any attack.
"You're gonna lose." stated the child.
Swish!
"Y-you don't have hope in me?" cried out the Spaniard as he dodged yet again another slash from the weapon.
Swish!
"Never did."
The obnoxious brat was correct as the hilt of the sword smacked his skull, which he calculated would cause a reddening bump on his head before he saw eternal blackness. The child, with a bored and unreadable expression, spoke from the knapsack.
"Hey, sei sveglio (are you awake)? Hey!"
The pouting child remained knocking on the unconscious man's forehead until he sighed and crawled out of the knapsack, stretching his fingers and craning his neck since he was stuffed in there for a timely period.
"At least he lasted longer than the others. A mal tiempo, buena cara (In bad times, a face held high). Since he did try to fight despite failing, I might as well show mercy and finish the job myself."
By this time, the sun was setting and was leaving a pinkish glow around the child's outlines, and his bones cracked and extended themselves until the child grew thrice his size. He wasn't a kid any longer; in his place was a grown, adult man with a curl sticking out of his reddish-brown hair. He cracked his fists, ready for action.
"I thou' you los' pow'r…" the astonished knight said.
"Fuck yeah I did, but by sunset I can return back to this form." The stranger smirked.
Before the enemy could predict what was next, the spirit casted him toppling backwards with a flick of the wrist. It was pitch black.
"Even though I was in a small body," the mischievous spirit said, "Doesn't mean I can't kill a human or two."
With his back to the ground and his struggling fruitless, the man approached his doom as the omnipotent being plucked the sword from the man's hands like how one would pick out a dandelion and immediately plunged it to the area where the throat would be. Spasms overtook the suit of armor until it lay limp at the ground, red liquid seeping out of the overused shield of metal and chains.
"Geez, now my hands of dirty."
The boy, who is now naked after ripping his adorable, clean white night gown by his sudden growth, used the remainders of it to smear the red color off, which matched the scarlet ribbon at the neckline. His gash earlier was gone, and what was left was a scar, healing at a rapid pace. In a gruff of disgust, dissatisfied that he couldn't scrape the blood off his fingernails, he dragged Antonio's out cold body as he looked for new clothing, inching closer and closer to the fragrant garden where more dreadful trials awaited.
Splash!
Cold water sprayed directly at Antonio's eyes, making him choke and sputter the water out of his face because of that uncomfortable feeling of water inside his nostrils. His mind was in a tizzy, but after realizing what state he was in, he reexamined the contours of his body, checking for amputated arms or missing limbs.
"I-I'm in one piece?"
"Ovviamente (of course)."
The child leapt into the man's lap where his bottom almost crushed his groin. He withered in pain, curling himself to alleviate the crucial agony as the child mocked and complained and grumbled. The kid managed to steal some clothes from sympathetic villagers on the way to the mystic garden and carried the man to a pleasant shrubbery before he changed back to this sickening form during sunrise.
"Ungrateful human of a bastard," the child picked up a bucket, which Antonio could not register why there would be one in a forest, and continued to mumble, "Doesn't know how to say thanks. Bet he his parents spanked him for being so impolite."
So says the kid who talks behind my back and blurts out profanity, thought Antonio.
"Gracias," Antonio reluctantly said, "Como te llamas (what are you called)? I never quite caught it."
"It's Lovino."
"Ah…nice name."
Off they went, tired and muddy and fatigued from traveling; they reached the rose garden, which was an open field dotted with seas of red roses and thorns. Antonio braced himself for the sprite because it's plausible that the sprite will work him to death in exchange for the roses he will pick later. There's no way he will get them gratis. Then a fragrance saturated the air, perfuming the perimeter with rosy aromas. However, it was too strong, too pungent for the two's sensitive noses. The kid plugged his nose using his thumb and index finger and narrowed his eyes in distaste.
"Yup, that's the perverted rose sprite doing his job. It's funny how he ended up as the magician's slave though."
"Little child, you hurt me so. It seems that you are willing to lead a life of diapers and doilies."
What popped out from the undergrowth was a midget of a man with a stubby beard and wavy locks of hair. He somehow managed to cover his crotch with a rose bud and spoke to Antonio with a carefree smile.
"Whoever wishes to pick my roses may do so, but you can only have five minutes."
They instantaneously scrambled to the roses, exacerbated by the sprite's playful countdown.
"Four minutes are left~"
"Shut up you horny bastard!"
While Lovino tugged one rose, a thorn splintered him, causing the child to wail out in antagonizing anguish. He clutched his pudgy hand, the twangs of pain prodding his hypersensitive nerves. Antonio, who jumped in action to the poor child, examined the cut carefully, and thanks to his handy dandy knapsack, pulled out tweezers and squinted with concentration, wonder what would be the best way to draw the thorn that was wedged in, out. He wrapped Lovino's tiny finger with a bandage that had printed maracas and kissed the finger soothingly, just like how his mama would do.
"There, all better?"
Lovino puffed out his cheeks that were tinged with pink and whacked Antonio's head with a karate chop.
"Hurry up and pick roses! Don't worry about me!"
Remembering his time limit, he listened for the sprite's French accent, and based on his count, he had two minutes left.
Desperate to secure as many roses as he could into his knapsack, he managed to scrape his fingers raw and bloody to the point that one cannot differentiate the scarlet drops of blood staining the flowers from the natural pigment of the rose petals. Time was up, and there was nothing else Antonio could do. The rose sprite bid them ado, sneering at the young child sticking his tongue out in an act of jealousy after the rose sprite kissed the bubbly Spaniard good-bye. The distance wasn't too bad, and the castle was within sight. Although his nimble fingers were bandaged, Antonio would blanch and sit down occasionally. He sat and prayed for the prickly feeling in his fingers to numb away, which slowed down their advancement. During their trek to the wizard's castle, Lovino was eerily quiet for once and the man had to turn his head around more than once in order to double check to make sure that the child had not gotten lost or kidnapped. That would have been bad if it did happen, wouldn't it?
But there was a serious reason as to why Lovino had been so quite. In truth, Lovino was immersed in thought, pondering how long before the sun would set again and how he could hide his true form from his friend. Lovino was afraid that if Antonio discovered how powerful Lovino could be at night, that he might feel betrayed and abandon him. It wasn't that Lovino was lazy; it's just that he could not possibly pick one thousand roses with that sprite perversely watching his body. Lovino grimaced at the thought. Moreover, the wizard who had bestowed this curse upon him wasn't exactly on agreeable terms with him. Perhaps his heart may soften up when he sees a wimpy human like Antonio. Either way he needed Antonio to stay by his side. Something nudged at his shoulder.
"Lovino, is that the castle?"
Dominating the cliff, where waves crashed into jagged rocks at the bottom and where clouds as dark as soot loomed over it in a gloomy circle, a castle peered down at the two miniscule beings, its archaic design making it look more frightening and treacherous than intended.
Lovino nodded solemnly while Antonio almost wet his pants when a crackle ripped from the seams of the clouds.
"Damn it! Get off of me! You're a man, right?!"
"T-this wizard sure knows how to make a person feel like he's in a horror film."
Lovino palmed his head and sighed. "Did you get all of the flowers? Did you count them?"
"I couldn't get a thousand. That's for sure. We only had five minutes. Maybe the wizard will accept this token, and promise him that I'll get more? Pay it in payments?"
"You idiot! Is this some kind of practical joke?! He has magic powers and can crumple you to dust. You're willing to negotiate with a dark mage?!"
"La incertidumbre es una margarita cuyos petalos no se terminan (Uncertainty is a daisy whose petals are never fully plucked). Why not give it a try?
They entered the castle after knocking a few rounds onto the knocker, and the door creaked open where it showed nobody was holding the door. It only moved on its own.
"Lovino, is that you?" A gruff voice called out.
Emerging from the shadows was a figure under a cloak, but all Antonio could see was two forest green eyes that were cat-like and ominous.
"Arthur…" Lovino growled.
"I asked you a question, spirit. Not for you to call out my name, you idiot!"
"Yes, it is I… This human brought some roses for you. However, as you can see, it is not one thousand."
"Yes, I can see that."
"Antonio Carriedo Fernandez is offering you a contract. Agreeing that he will slowly pay you the correct amount of roses, but for now, he hopes that this amount of roses will be sufficient."
Arthur pulled his wand from the hole of his sleeve and pointed it at the bouquet of roses in Antonio's hand. A light illuminated the tip of the wand and a blast of a stream of light which coiled around the garland. Then the roses floated up into the air as Arthur counted the roses, dancing his wand back and forth silently head counting the buds until the last one was accounted for. However, things didn't look good as Arthur's expression proved deadly and lethal. His face was burning scarlet or was fuming with unspeakable rage.
Arthur screeched in explosive fury, "Y-Y-Y-YOU DARE MOCK ME HUMAN?!"
Antonio jumped, taken aback by the sudden outburst; he sensed that he's going to be blasted into smithereens for no apparent reason.
"Shit! He's angry! Let's go!" Lovino yelled. His tiny hand gripped Antonio's broad hand and jerked his arm. They needed to get out of there quick, because there were fireworks bursting from Arthur's wand, shooting speedily in their direction. In the end, Arthur counted 69 roses altogether.
Antonio mentally groaned. What did I do to deserve this?
Unfortunately he did deserve this as they both later learned from the French sprite, who was scorched and pummeled like the two after meeting the wizard. Apparently, the poor sprite needed to be punished too for allowing Antonio to pick only for five minutes.
"Por favor, amigo!"
"Non!"
"Por favor!"
"Non!"
"Bastante por favor (pretty please)! I'll do anything; come on, help us out here. Whatever you want, amigo….just name it!"
The sprite stopped for a minute and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. An idea sprouted in his mind, which made him grin dreamily.
"I would… if you can persuade son amour (his love) to give me a kiss?"
Antonio almost choked on air.
"That-That man has un amante (a lover)?!"
"Oui. Sadly, however, I've been given the misfortune to be hated by Arthur, making it prove difficult to come close to his "raison d' etre" (reason for living)."
"I guess I can't see any harm…"
"Do you promise?"
"Si! On my soul!"
"Then it's a deal."
They shook hands.
Visiting the castle was a daunting task since the infuriated wizard is out to wring their necks, but Antonio's eyes were burning bright as he strenuously dragged the large bouquet of exactly one thousand roses. It was as if there was nothing in the world would stand in his way. That is until Arthur's magic circle had blossomed carnivorous plants which were snapping hungrily at them. Apparently, the plants were meant for unwanted guest and intruders. But Arthur was a merciful man and a quickly changed the dietary preferences of the plants to something more organic, making them vegetarians.
"Come back for more, eh? Now choose, imperfect weakling, would you like torture or slow and painful death?"
"Isn't that the same thing?!"
"Ding ding ding! It appears that they are. We have a winner, folks. Now you shall die."
"Why are you pissed off?!"
"You can't fool me with that positive attitude! I have a crystal ball that recorded your conversation with that insufferable buffoon."
Arthur waved his wand in the air. Electric sparks began to stir themselves around it, licking the stick enthusiastically. But before he could drop his hand to stick a fatal blow, the front doors of the castle were kicked wide open by a tall, blonde man wearing spectacles with a cheery smile fastened on his joyful face. Like Antonio, he looked like a ditzy, light-headed klutz but hopelessly loveable.
"Arthur~"
Lovino swore he saw hearts spouting out from the cheerful man's words.
"What?" Arthur spat out.
"Do you want hamburgers or Chinese take-out?"
The good-natured man calmed Arthur's quiet rage unexpectedly as he softly answered that he would prefer the man to cook for him, preferably scones or fish and chips. The man, who the two later learned was named Alfred, flashed them a toothy grin and saluted them good-bye, completely ignorant of their deathly situation, and closed the door with an adorkable hum.
They were speechless and this wasn't just because their mouths were magically taped shut and could not really utter anything, but because they wondered whether Alfred read the situation and left or if he was really that mindless of a person. Arthur coughed, resituating himself.
"Okay, now where were we…"
Before Arthur can revitalize the energy onto his wand, Antonio muffled helplessly, wiggling and trying to squabble something past the duct tape.
"What now?!" hissed Arthur impatiently.
Magically, the tape was ripped from Antonio's mouth, which left him screaming for a good minute before moving his lips to talk.
"I know why you want those roses!"
Arthur's eyebrows scrunched jointly.
"You want to give it to that man, right?!"
Arthur's ears turned pink.
"Is he your lover?"
Arthur sputtered like a three year old, "Y-y-you…"
"I see that he's not! Then have no fear! I am from the country of passion. I can help you."
Lovino stared at his partner in disbelief.
"Really? Do you think that a great magician like Arthur would want help in seducing somebody? That would only possible when hell freezes over…better yet, when pigs fly." Lovino sneered.
"Sh-shut up!"
Apparently, Antonio hit the jackpot on Arthur's feelings.
"Are…are you sure about this?" asked Arthur with a quiet voice.
"Most defiantly!" replied Antonio "Trust he'll be drooling at your feet by the time I'm done with you!"
Arthur looked suspiciously at the Spaniard, still mentally debating whether or not to actually believe the soon to be dead man's words. "Alright…I'll let you live."
He snapped his fingers, and with an excruciating rip, their hands and mouths were no longer taped together but pulsing and throbbing from the sheer amount of strength it took to take out the duct tape.
And thus, the two became tangled up in another rather depressing situation. They were stuck with helping Arthur woo an American. It should not be that hard. Hell, he tried to give the gullible boy one thousand roses; that takes a lot of commitment. This guy's serious!
"Wait a damn second. Hold the cheese," Lovino added, "You're powerful and mighty and all that shit. Why did you curse me to do your dirty work?"
That was a good point. Score one for the child.
"… I tried to court him with… using different resorts… Your curse was like a Plan B…" Arthur shifted his eyes away clumsily from the piercing glare, "Besides, Francis is an arsehole. I don't want to be around him while I'm picking roses. Can you imagine all the dirty jokes he would say?!" Arthur pouted, as if it was a legitimate reason to hate on somebody, but it had no effect on Lovino, who is currently trying to pry Antonio's hands off of him in order to attack Arthur behind the knees. While keeping the violent man at bay, Antonio suggested the befuddled wizard options to win the heart of his muse.
"Do something that he will like? Write a poem to entwine his heart to yours? Or perhaps food to win his stomach? Chocolates for his soul? A song to captivate his mind?"
This roundabout way of coming up with ideas took all night; and Antonio did his best to support Arthur and coaxed him to practice his moves. This gave Lovino the perfect opportunity to gracefully sneak away from Antonio. He shouldn't so shy about revealing his true form from the friendly man, but by the time the sun was about to set, he would make up a lie and alibi to distract his partner. He would say stupid things, really, like saying that he had to go take a piss. What's more, and what made Lovino feel all the guiltier was that Antonio believed him full-heartedly and never questioned his motives.
"Damn this guy…" mumbled Lovino.
"Hmmm? Did you say something?" inquired the always cheerful Antonio.
Lovino blushed and fiercely shook his head "N-no!" Seeing Lovino red-faced made Antonio giggle in a way that only made Lovino blush harder.
"Hey you! Don't get distracted, idiot! Aren't you suppose to be teaching me here?" yelled Arthur.
"Ah, perdoname!" exclaimed Antonio "Here let me see you do it again, please."
Lovino groaned. This was going to be a long night based on the screams and the thunderous energy endowed in this specific move. "I'm going to go to bed. You idiots have fun."
Antonio's heart sunk when he heard that the small child had decided to go to bed. "Eh? But the sun hasn't even set yet, Lovi! Please stay."
Lovino flinched and blushed at the new nickname. "Don't call me that…" although he tried to seem angry, he spoke the words half-heartedly. "…and besides, I always got to bed early. You should know that by now…bastard!"
Antonio pouted his lips, much like a child who appears innocent in an attempt to get a sweet, and said that although he hated to see him go, he still wished him a good night's sleep.
"Buona note idiota. (Good night idiot)" said Lovino as he hurriedly ran away to disguise his true form.
It was morning and things were already getting busy within the castle walls. Alfred hummed peacefully to himself, rearranging Arthur's and his own laundry while the animals, which he called out to after whistling the American anthem, scrubbed the counter and swept the floor. He couldn't wait to start making breakfast!
"I-I'm hungry…"
A pudgy child emerged from the opening crack of the kitchen door, scratching away the "sand" from his eyes and peered at the normal human with narrowed eyes.
"Aw, you hungry, kid? Do you like omelets?" He ruffled Lovino's hair.
The kid smacked his hand away.
"I'm not a kid. I'm a spirit that can easily summon you to the depths of the forest. A-a-and you can die!"
"But you don't really want to do that, do ya'?"
"Don't test me, human."
Alfred acknowledged the kid's snide remark. After all, he did hear that Arthur cursed a spirit a few months ago. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to insult you. Arthur's not a real bad guy. He has his weird mood swings, but that about it. You probably just caught him during his grumpy phase. Ha! Honestly it's like the dude's got PMS. He's a bit queer, isn't he?" Alfred chuckled.
Folding and flipping the yolky meal, Alfred happily cooked breakfast for the small child. He got a plate and handed two fresh omelets to the kid. "Give one to your friend. I could hear you guys all the way up stairs last night. Gee whiz. What were you guys doing?"
Lovino simply charged himself out of the door with two hot, steaming omelets in each hand and climbed up the stairs with his stout legs. When he reached the wizard's quarters, Antonio was tuning a newly made guitar and Arthur, who was wearing black tight fitting pants and an airy white long-sleeved shirt under a black vest, played with his wand. For a nice touch, a few sequins were ridiculously stitched on the vest.
What the hell was Antonio getting Arthur into?
Arthur shouted accusingly at Antonio, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU GETTING ME INTO?!"
"Flamenco dancing~" Antonio said with a cheeky grin as he strummed a few chords on the guitar.
"What the bloody hell is that suppose to do?! A stupid display of this so-called "dancing" isn't going to help the bloody situation at all you daffy bastard! This is an idiotic plan!"
Antonio stopped strumming the guitar and, due to shock, plucked a sour note on his guitar. The air in the room became still and all of a sudden everything was dark and gloomy. Antonio was still within his seat, his posture was crunched down low; his entire body language was clearly exhibiting signs that something snapped inside. He had a serious expression, but one could not see the sincerity his eyes, for they were covered by his brown bangs.
Then in a tone that crept out on both Lovino and Arthur, Antonio said "Do not…underestimate…the power of dance." He lifted his head and his eyes had changed. They were demanding, dreamy and seductive, and yet they still held the same brightness as before. This was a side of the once-carefree Spaniard that Lovino had never seen before. "Dancing," continued Antonio, as he got up began to strum an upbeat song on his guitar while moving his body to the rhythm of the song. "…is like the pre-sex to sex. Antonio had ganged up on the hopeless wizard and had him cornered onto a wall.
"If you are a good dancer, then you are a good lover." said Antonio with the most suggestive smile on his face. He spinned suddenly and smirked evilly as he began to push his body even closer to Arthur's. The sudden change in personality, the strangely arousing music and atmosphere made Arthur freeze on the spot, unsure of what to do or how he could get himself out of this very…compromising situation.
Poor Lovino was at a loss of words too; he didn't know whether to be disturbed or intrigued. This was a different side to Antonio, and Lovino had to admit…he didn't mind the view. He would never admit it, but he liked what he was seeing. But even wasn't prepared for what the passionate Spaniard was going to do next.
"Dancing is the body's way of expressing what it needs and wants…" Antonio grinned and swirled his hips on Arthur's, making the immobile magician's face turn bright red. "…without the need for simple words." He strummed a final chord on the guitar and then just as quickly as he had done his little tease, went back to being his 'ol carefree, happy-go-lucky self. "Haha, do you understand now Mister Wizard? Dancing is the perfect way to win someone's heart! It's so obvious! I don't know why I didn't think it before…oh, well. Haha!" Antonio once again went back to cheerfully play his guitar and singing quietly to himself. Completely oblivious to what he had just done to the two other men in the room, he was gone.
"B-bloody hell…what was all that about?! J-Jesus H Christ Antonio! What was going through your bloody head, y-you wanker!" stammered the very flushed and flabbergasted Arthur. However, despite all the…awkwardness…of the situation, Arthur did now understood what he needed to do. Damn the stupid git is good.And with that, Arthur continued to practice.
As for Lovino, he was going through his own little internal spiel. Where did that damn bastard learn how to move like that? He looked so stupid and made a complete fool of himself out there. What an idiot! Ha, he wasn't even on rhythm. But Lovino knew that he was only fooling himself. Deep down he knew that only a blind man would not be able to see just how sexy Antonio was just a few seconds ago. But of course he would never admit this to himself or to anyone for that matter.
"Hmmm, are you okay Lovino? Your face it all red."
"None of your damn business, bastard!"
xxx
Two days later…
Today was the day. Antonio had every confidence in Arthur that he would be able to woo his precious Alfred now. No doubt about it! But there was still one last thing to do. He had told Arthur to arrange a wooden board downstairs to add emphasis to his routine.
"Each step to take will become louder and that you'll be more in rhythm and get his attention too." said Antonio. Arthur sighed and did what he was told.
While the grumbling man stomped downstairs, Antonio took advantage of the spare moment and grabbed Lovino's hands and swung them around, happy with ecstasy, all too glad to live. And Lovino complied about the swinging because he didn't want to be the one to wipe of that charming smile of Antonio's face. He looks so happy…his smile is beautiful. Lovino blushed at his thought.
Antonio stops swinging the small child and embraces him instead. "Mmmmm….today is going to be a good day Lovino! After Senor Arthur's dance, we will be free! Oh, que dia tan feliz!"
Slowly but surely Lovino returns the hug, but hides away his blushing face inside the contorts of Antonio's shirt. "Yeah, yeah…whatever." he mumbles without a lack of sarcasit hardness that he usually speaks to when with the Spaniard.
xxx
Stomp clap clap clap Stomp stomp Tap stomp tap Clap clap clap clap clap Stomp stomp tap stomp clap
In a series of clapping and stomping, Arthur was put to the test as he improvised his dancing to synchronize with Antonio's rapid guitar accompaniment, with the American, who was for some puzzling reason petting an eagle in his lap, as his audience.
Dear Lord, give Arthur the strength.
Tap tap tap Clap Clap… Uh... What's next? Curses!…
He failed. He stood, paranoid. Antonio had quit strumming more notes as Arthur gave him the death glare, silently using an incantation to consume the horrible human in flames since he thought fire was a suitable way for the man anyway. He's going to kill him.
Alfred is gaping at Arthur even though he didn't finished.
He's going to kill him. Also that brat next to him will be banished forever. Yes, he's going to kill him.
Alfred is still ogling at him.
Shit, someone's going to be killed by strangulation. I'm going to ki-
A hug. A tight, squeezing hug.
Alfred blushed. "That was erotic."
Arthur blushed.
"Y-you think so?"
"Get a room." Lovino huffed.
The two spurned lovers blushed.
"Wait, does that mean Lovino's curse is gone?"
Antonio kneeled before Arthur to rest the bouquet of one thousand roses in Arthur's arms, which he ruthlessly threw to Alfred in an embarrassed stupor, and muttered, "For you."
The magician tenderly locked lips with the American. Antonio whistled.
It was a happy ending. Evidently, Arthur and Alfred did get a room. Francis, the rose sprite, was then trapped in a spherical mechanism thanks to Arthur's wrath; and Lovino, even though it was the still in the middle of the afternoon, grew back to his spiritual, powerful self. However, Antonio felt his siesta time was waaaaay overdue and knocked out, never seeing Lovino's true form.
Lovino patted the Spaniard's matted hair at the same place they met, except this time it was Antonio sleeping on his lap while the sunshine dazzled and kissed his skin. He very lovingly and very gently felt through his hair and patted his head caring as he contemplated what the future might have in store for them.
"You were a good mortal. Might as well keep you. I-It's not that I like a normal one like Arthur. You're a better one than that Alfred kid. He couldn't even make me a decent omelet. Ha, that didn't compare to the ripe tomatoes that you give me. For now…I'll let you stay by my side."
And just like Arthur, Lovino pressed his lips against Antonio's, tasting a hint of tomatoes and something minty. Probably from those minty desserts Arthur's flying mint bunny gave them. A smile then slowly formed on Antonio's attractive face. "…Idiota." Lovino couldn't help but wonder what face Antonio will have after seeing him in his true form. Who knows? But for now, they both enjoyed their siesta as Lovino soon became drowsy and was fast asleep too. They could both now sleep in peace, the enchantment behind and forgotten.
FIN