Chapter 3

A Tank Almost Full

February: the month of love. Even with the hole in her heart Elizaveta loved the month of February, she always had. Today she and Natalia were practicing baking chocolat. Natalia rarely got excited about anything, but working in the kitchen with Elizaveta seemed to do the trick. So far they had spent the whole of the morning and half of the afternoon going through many different recipes of how to make chocolat. By the time dinner rolled around the two girls had made 15 chocolat meringues, 20 chocolat cupcakes, 19 chocolat chip cookies, 221 chocolat candies, three platters topped high with chocolat covered strawberries, and mint chocolat syrup that was undoubtedly made for the double layer chocolat cake stationed in the middle of the table. They were, without a doubt, exhausted. When they had cleared everything up, they high-fived and collapsed onto the couch in the family room. Toris came down soon after only to be greeted by both sisters asleep and a plethora of chocolat treats. On the table in front of said treats was a note.

Dearest brother,

If you touch those treats, then I will personally castrate you without any hesitation whatsoever upon discovering your treacherous deed. If you wish to have your balls still attached to your body, then I suggest you take heed to my words darling brother.

Your loving sister,

Natalia

Toris didn't touch the desserts. He knew Natalia would be true to her word. He put the note back on the table just as the phone decided to start ringing. He picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Toris? Is that you?" An uncertain female voice sounded on the other line.

"Yes, this is Toris. May I ask who you are?" A sigh was heard on the other end.

"This is Feliks. I thought that I would have to talk to Natalia. Um, actually seeing as it is Valentine's day in about three days Matt was wondering if you all would like to come to a party that day."

"I'll talk to Natalia about it. If we do end up coming make sure that you have no chocolat."

"No?" Feliks asked. "Why not, are you guys allergic?" Toris shook his head though he knew Feliks couldn't see him.

"No, it's not that, no one in our family is allergic to chocolat. No, Elizaveta and Natalia just spent the whole day in the kitchen baking up chocolat goodies. They're sleeping right now so let them rest."

"Ok," Feliks whispered. "Call me back when they wake up alright?"

"Alright," Feliks gave Toris her cell phone number and hung up. Neither Elizaveta nor Natalia woke up until the next day about midmorning. Elizaveta woke up first and found that Toris had taken the liberty to wrap everything in saran wrap to keep them safe. The cake, syrup, and candies had been placed in the fridge to keep them spoiling. On the table Elizaveta found a note from Toris next to the one that Natalia had written.

Hey,

I don't know when you'll wake up so I decided to write this instead. Matt and the theater group have invited us to a Valentine's Day party on the 14th. Seeing as we have so many chocolat goodies, I thought that it would be a good thing to bring them all, that is, if we went.

I'm going to sleep now,

Toris

Elizaveta woke Natalia and showed her the note. Natalia was ecstatic. She loved the idea of everyone getting together to celebrate.

"And Elizaveta," she said smiling childishly. "You must give the man you like a little bag of chocolats that you made yourself." She paused in her speech and looked thoughtful. "That blonde man with the oval glasses; the one with green eyes, he seems to have a thing for you, why don't you make him some?" Elizaveta blanched.

"WHAT! Natalia I can't do that! Eduard is a friend! I don't have any special feelings for him! It wouldn't be right if I just gave him chocolats!" Elizaveta lowered her head and blushed profusely. Natalia patted her younger sister on the shoulder.

"Then you can just give everyone the chocolat candies that we made." Elizaveta sighed and got to work stitching little bags for the chocolat. One bag for Tino and Berwald; filled and done. One bag for Feliciano and Lovino; filled and done. One bag for Kiku and Sadiq; filled and done. One bag for Matt, one for Arthur, one for Hera, one for Yao and Mínguó, one for Raivis, one for Francis, one for Alfred; all filled and done! The bag that she made for Eduard however, she stitched tulips and not roses. Elizaveta knew that the meaning that tulips held was a stronger meaning than that of roses but she didn't really know what the flowers meant exactly. She closed all the bags and placed them back into the fridge.

()()()

Elizaveta carried the box with the cake and a bag with the candies; Toris had a platter of strawberries balanced on his head and the other two balanced on the open palms of each hand; Natalia carried the cookies, meringues, cupcakes, and syrup carefully stacked in her arms with the syrup perched precariously on top of everything else. Elizaveta walked the fastest seeing as she had the least to carry. The door to the villa opened for the siblings as the trio drew nearer. The box was taken from Elizaveta, Toris was liberated from two of the platters and Natalia had the meringues and cupcakes relieved from her grasp. Their saviors stood in front of them smiling.

"How much stuff did you guys make?" Feliks asked skeptically eyeing the goods everyone was holding.

"Not that this isn't fun or anything," Eduard piped up. He was holding the box with the cake in it and one of the platters of chocolat covered strawberries. "But maybe we should take these into the kitchen so everyone has free hands?" the deed was soon done. Toris gave Feliks a small bag of chocolat that he had made the night before. He said it was because she was the only girl who didn't shy away from him. Feliks giggled and tousled Toris' hair. Elizaveta began handing out her chocolat. Francis kissed her cheek and thanked her profusely "for the beautiful gift of a young maiden's heart." Tino hugged her and Berwald mumbled his thanks, Arthur gave her a warm smile and kissed her forehead in thanks, Kiku bowed and Sadiq tousled her hair. All in all, the reactions to her gift varied from person to person; Lovino had kissed both cheeks twice before placing a small kiss on her nose. At last, she gave Eduard his bag of chocolat. He took time to inspect the handy-work of the bag and smiled at the crimson red tulip she had sewn.

"Lele," he said quietly. "Do you know what the red tulip symbolizes in the language of flowers?" he asked. Elizaveta shook her head. Just red tulips meant something?

"What do they symbolize?" she asked in response to his question.

"They symbolize true love." Elizaveta looked horrified. Had she known that she would have stitched a rose; just as she had on everyone else's bag.

"I am so sorry," she said. "I didn't know! I thought roses and tulips held the same meaning primarily but that the meaning of tulips was slightly more important. I – forgive me." She finished her frantic apology helplessly. Eduard chuckled lightly.

"It's ok. I don't mind. Well, if it's alright," he stopped suddenly, took a breath and continued speaking. "Would it be alright if I gave you a kiss?" Elizaveta blinked up at him. "No?" Elizaveta continued to blink. Eduard turned to leave when Elizaveta slowly reached up to cup his chin in her hand.

"You may. I've already been kissed seven times today but you're the first person to ask. That's why it took a while to answer. I was just making sure that I heard you correctly." Eduard smiled again and dipped his head to place a small but lingering kiss on her delicate lips. Elizaveta tilted her head to the side a bit wondering why Eduard was still leaning over her; the kiss had just been a brief brushing of lips on lips. Eduard stood up and blushed. That's not right. Elizaveta should have been the one blushing; why did she feel triumphant? She heard someone give a catcall. Oh dear. The triumphant feeling vanished in an infinitesimal second and she collapsed on weak knees.

The rest of the party passed with much merry making and approximately 18 drunken cats and three drunken men; names shall not be given. Elizaveta had learned that Heracles owned the villa thus explaining why there were cats present in the first place.

()()()

Who on Earth said that is was alright to snow every day of the week for a week and a half? Elizaveta loved the snow; she had for the longest time and she was ecstatic when the first snow fell. However, when the snowing refused to stop when the blanket on the ground reach 20 inches, no one was really happy. There was no school, which meant that there was no homework to keep the minds of the students busy. All the shops were closed, which meant that the majority of adults and working college students couldn't keep their minds busy that. February was now over and the snow had reached a record of two and a half feet. By the time Saint Patrick's Day came and went there was only half a foot of snow left and by the end of March, the snow had melted completely. With the snow gone, the creatures of spring started appearing. The crocuses, tulips, roses, irises and daffodils sprouted, budded and bloomed in beautiful flowers. Spring had come at last and with spring came new arrivals in more way than one.

()()()

Elizaveta walked into the concert hall with Toris and Natalia one fine April day only to hear an extraordinary male singing voice, angry German threats, and an occasional gunshot.

"Bruder! Will you please stop that incessant screeching?" Ludwig shouted at the top of his lungs. The man he was yelling at didn't seem to pay him any mind. "Einz. Zwie. Drei." Another gunshot sounded. Mr. Svizzera was there as well. Tall with white hair and gleaming red eyes like the devil he had; the man was as pale as the winter snow that had just vanished. He finished his song. He eyed Mr. Svizzera nastily before raising the corner of his mouth in contempt.

"Oi Schwester, I don't like playing games while I'm rehearsing!" Mr. Svizzera looked outraged.

"'Schwester'?" he demanded. "Idioten! Ich bin 'bruder'!" The albino German flipped Mr. Svizzera the finger with both hands until he realized that ladies were present.

"No, no," Natalia choked out holding her sides. "Please continue." She nearly fell to the ground laughing. Toris had left and Elizaveta stood there looking perplexed. What was so bad about the man singing that Ludwig had to have Mr. Svizzera shoot the man's head off?

"You have a nice singing voice." She stated subconsciously. The albino man smiled at her and lifted and imaginary cap off his head.

"Gilbert von Weiss, at your service. It seems as though SOMEONE likes to listen to me sing!" Gilbert shouted over his shoulder. "Unlike two dickheads that I know."

"Now Gilbert," Matt had appeared from behind the stage curtains. "You know I love it when you sing. It's especially delicious to hear you hit the high notes during our alone time together." Gilbert turned three shades of red that Elizaveta didn't know existed for someone of his complexion. Matt snuck up behind Gilbert and wrapped his arms around the man's waist. He rested his chin on Gilbert's shoulder and gazed at Elizaveta. "Lizzie, want a job to do?" He asked. Elizaveta nodded uncertainly. "Great! I want you to go into the kitchen and find a weapon." She raised an eyebrow at that.

"A weapon? Are you crazy?" Matt shrugged and chuckled.

"That's what they tell me!" Elizaveta rolled her eyes. "Just so you know; your weapon is your personality. Feliks has scissors because she's a seamstress, Arthur literally has light weight blades in the shape of CDs hanging somewhere in his studio, Tino has her Pointe shoes," here Matt stopped and brought a hand up to massage the back of his head; undoubtedly recalling fond memories of Tino bashing his skull in with her toe shoes. Matt continued talking before too much time had passed in reminiscing nostalgic memories of ceaseless head and body aches. "Just so you know, your weapon doesn't have to be your run of the mill weapon; for all I care it could be a sponge so long as you feel power in wielding it. Lecture over." Elizaveta nodded enthusiastically before waltzing into the kitchen to look for a weapon that would suit her. A frying pan? Nah! To overused. A knife? She'd need it to kill herself but as a weapon; no. A meat mallet? No. Flat out, no. A wooden mixing spoon? Hmmm. There was an option. She swiped the spoon in front of her for a bit, then started jabbing and parrying as though she were fencing with it. This was fun! Or not; her next parry earned her a painful moan. Elizaveta looked up to find Raivis standing in front of her with Peter behind him. Raivis wasn't so much standing as he was bent over clutching his stomach. Elizaveta all but dropped the spoon as she knelt down in front of him making sure he was alright.

"I am so sorry!" she repeated this phrase at least twenty thousand times before Raivis clapped a hand over her mouth and told her to please be quiet. Elizaveta placed her hands on Raivis's stomach and started pressing lightly until her hands were placed under his ribs. She started massaging the injured spot. Raivis removed her hands and took off his shirt. Ok, he didn't really need to do that but, it was a good way to have the pressure applied directly. Peter left closing the door behind him. He didn't want to be there in case something else happened. He bumped into Eduard in the hallway on his way to Arthur's studio. Eduard kept walking in the direction of the kitchen. The door to aforementioned room opened and Raivis stepped out pulling his shirt on. Eduard gave the Latvian a questioning look. Raivis patted Eduard on the shoulder and smirked slightly.

"Your girlfriend has the hands of an angel." Raivis passed Eduard; still smirking. Eduard stood rooted to the spot for quite a few moments before entering the kitchen. Elizaveta was dancing with a wooden spoon. To keep himself from laughing, Eduard forced himself to ask the question that was on his mind.

"I saw Raivis come from here not too long ago. What happened?" Elizaveta shrugged.

"I was playing with my spoon and I stabbed him in the stomach. I gave him a massage to make it feel better." Eduard groaned. The way Raivis had said it had made it seem as though something ENTIRELY different had transpired between the two. Elizaveta smiled at the man in front of her.

"Do you need anything?" Eduard felt his heart skip a beat as he gazed into Elizaveta's smiling face. He took her into an embrace and buried his face in her hair. Elizaveta giggled slightly and bopped him playfully on the head before gently pushing him away. "Silly! If you wanted a hug I would have said yes! Is there anything else you need?" she asked sweetly the smile was still on her face. Eduard brushed her cheek with the side of his hand and whispered,

"You should smile more often. It makes you glow. It is truly a warm and comforting feeling." Elizaveta's smile grew wider. "Yeah, like that." Eduard placed a kiss in her hair before leaving her to continue dancing with the spoon.

"MEIN GOTT! It's a spoon!" Gilbert declared as Elizaveta reentered the auditorium. More people had gathered in the vast space. Matt stood on the stage and everyone else was either sitting in the isle chairs or lounging on the stage. The stage also had countless cats sprawled here and there; two or three of them were chasing a small yellow bird. Gilbert yelled again. "Get away from Gilly you fiends!" he dove onto the stage and rescued the pathetic creature from harm's way. He stroked the bird's tiny head with his finger and glared at Hera. "Keep your monsters away from my Gilly!" Hera chuckled.

"Keep your peep away from my cats. They love peeps and if they see one moving across the floor of course they'll pounce!" Gilbert aimed a kick at Heracles' head but Hera rolled easily out of the way. Matt clapped his hands together to get everyone's attention.

"Ok! The reason why I called you here today was not so you guys could argue but to pick out which play we should act out. Any ideas?" silence hung heavy in the room as thoughts of this and that filled the air.

"How about Peter Pan?" Gilbert shouted.

"I hate being Tinker Bell you Scheißekopf!" Tino shouted. She had asked Ludwig how to shout at Gilbert so he wouldn't make fun of her. To stop the argument Elizaveta spoke up.

"How about Aladdin or Turandot, or Ali Baba and the …" She was cut off by Matt.

"All in favor of Aladdin raise your right hand, those in favor of Turandot raise your left hand, and all in favor of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves stand up." Three quarters of the people present raised their right hand only three raised their left and only a cat stood on its hind legs; he was trying to catch Gilly. "Aladdin it is then. Thank you Lizzie." To the rest of the cast and crew and friends he said, "I will contact you when I have the cast list. If you have issues with the casting; deal with it." Silence hung like a dead weight as Matt walked back stage.