The day of Thanksgiving had arrived, and everyone in the castle was playing their part in preparations for the feast. Cassandra was out with Raphael on her first official hunting trip, so for now it was Alcina and Daniela who were helping Julia and a few other maids prepare the table, and tidy the place up for when the guests arrived. Meanwhile, Bela and Joseph were with Olivia, Leonardo, Elena, Sarah, and the rest of the maids as they prepared the food. Even the Duke stepped in to help.

Alcina had invited the entire village, mainly because she knew it was likely that not everyone would come. In fact, there was a chance that no one would show at all. Just in case though, she and Daniela were setting up extra tables in both sections of the main hall as there would obviously be too many people to fit in the dining room.

Leonardo and Elena had officially been hired as part of the castle staff, and even Sarah reapplied to work there as well. Her father was against it at first, but Alcina assured him that everything was in the past and that this was a new beginning. Even then, the hunter was still uncomfortable, but the Countess didn't blame him. He said it himself that it would take him a while for him to get used to it, if at all.

"Okay so the stuffing, sweet potatoes and corn bread are ready." Olivia said. "We just need to finish the mashed potatoes and wheat bread and we'll be all set!"

The only thing that they didn't have was the turkey, but turkeys didn't live in Romania and there weren't any at the market. So they really had no choice but to leave it out. Raphael and Cassandra had told them though that they would try and find a replacement for them on their hunt.

Just as they were thinking that, the small group of chefs heard a knock at the front door.

"I'll get it!" They heard Julia shout.

As the maid opened the door, sure enough, there was Cassandra and Raphael, having just returned from their hunting trip, and between them was a cart that had a large wild boar in it. It had been shot in the head, and it was clear from the smile on the brunette's face that she was the one who bagged it.

"We're back with the meat!" Cassandra said happily. "I say this should be more than enough for everyone!"

Having heard her daughter speak, Alcina came to the door and stared wide-eyed at the animal on the cart in front of her.

"Cassandra, did you get this boar?"

"She sure did." Raphael said. "Right between the eyes too. I'm surprised, but I won't lie, she did damn good for her first time."

"Shall we bring this inside, Mother?" The brunette asked.

"Oh Cassandra, I don't think that boar will fit on any of the tables. Not to mention, the mess it will make will be horrendous. Take it to that tree behind you over there. You need to hang it up so you can skin and clean it, correct?"

"Yeah. We're going to need some rope to do that though." Raphael said.

"Of course." She said as she sent a maid to do just that.

As they waited, Raphael and Cassandra wheeled the boar over to the tree and got their cutting knives out.

"Alright. Time to make some bacon!" Cassandra said.

"And sausages too. Wild boars make for a fine sausage when prepared right." Raphael replied.

"Oh my god. Please don't say that." The brunette begged. "You're making me hungry, and we still have a few hours before dinner."

The hunter chuckled. He couldn't believe it, but this new Dimitrescu family was starting to grow on him.

….

It was around three thirty when the guests started arriving. First, it was the other lords accompanied by Mother Miranda, which Joseph wasn't really happy about. He preferred not to see The Priestess again, but Cassandra reminded him of their plan to stay on her good side, and that included being polite. Even still, he decided that he would try to avoid The Priestess the whole night if possible.

Thankfully though, she seemed to be in a good mood, and even complimented Alcina on how well the castle and food looked.

I guess even she loosens up around the holidays. Joseph thought.

People from the village started arriving next, but out of the five hundred residents that were invited, only around two hundred actually showed up. It was clear that many people still didn't trust the Dimitrescu family, but it didn't bother them too much. They were just happy with what they had.

Right now, everyone was chatting and talking, some clearly more nervous than others about being in the castle, but Alcina made sure they were warmly welcomed and treated well, which helped ease their nerves.

At the moment, Joseph and Cassandra were talking to the Duke.

"Thanks for helping me prepare the meat Duke. Being that this is Thanksgiving, I really wanted to make sure I got it right." The brunette said.

"It was my pleasure, Lady Cassandra. I'm sure it will turn out to be a fine dish." The merchant responded with a smile.

"I hope so, but I still can't help but feel nervous. Is this how a chef feels when they've made a dish for people?"

The Duke smiled and nodded.

"Every artist gets nervous like that Lady Cassandra, whether it be a chef, a painter, or a sculpture. Why, when I was a lad I trembled at the mere thought of someone trying the food I prepared. Trembled, I say!"

This got a good laugh out of the couple. The merchant's jolly personality was extremely contagious and uplifting.

"You should have seen Cassie when she confessed her feelings for me. She was shaking like a leaf!" Joseph chuckled.

Cassandra turned and raised an eyebrow.

"You weren't exactly calm yourself Joseph. In fact, you stuttered like crazy when I offered that we share the same bed."

Joseph's smile immediately faded and his face turned red, causing his girlfriend to laugh harder.

"Cassie, that's kind of a private matter." He mumbled.

The Duke gave a hearty laugh.

"There's no need to get flustered, my friend. If anything, it's a sign of how much Lady Cassandra trusts you."

Joseph's smile returned.

"That's true, and I wouldn't have anyone else by my side."

Cassandra smiled lovingly and gave him a kiss.

"God, you two are so sweet I could get Diabetes just watching you." A voice behind them spoke.

They parted and turned to see Heisenberg walking up to them. He was wearing the same style of coat and hat as when Joseph had first met him, but this one was tan in color instead of orange.

"Sorry. We can't help it." Joseph said as he shook his hand.

"Ah, no worries. Honestly, I like seeing you two together. It's a reminder of how much things have changed around here."

It was the truth. Things had made a remarkable amount of progress in the last two months, and even though there was still a lot more to do, the couple were happy with how far they had come.

Heisenberg then looked around with a mischievous look before leaning in and whispering.

"Don't tell Vampy I said this, but I saw Bela and Elena talking together, and they looked like they were getting pretty close with each other."

Joseph and Cassandra smiled excitedly. They suspected Bela and Elena were getting more friendly with each other from the other week, but it seemed like they were getting ready to take the next step.

The Duke gave a small laugh before also whispering.

"Is that so? My, things are coming up roses today! Perhaps you can give them some of your mother's wine to help them loosen up a bit, Lady Cassandra."

"Eh, I don't know. The last thing I want is for them to get drunk. Bela can hold her alcohol decently, but Elena? Not so much. Trust me, I've seen it for myself." The brunette said.

"Yeah, I'd rather not have to explain that to your mother." Joseph said.

"And I definitely wouldn't want to be around for that. I know for a fact Vampy will find a way to blame me." Heisenberg joked.

Everyone laughed.

….

Some ways away, Alcina was talking to Raphael with a glass of wine in her hand.

"I can't thank you enough for being willing to teach Cassandra, Raphael. I know it wasn't an easy decision for you to make. So the fact that you chose to help us speaks volumes."

The hunter nodded as he took a swig of beer.

"I will admit, I didn't want to do it at first. I thought after everything that had happened, you didn't deserve help, and instead you deserved to be punished for what you did."

The Countess looked down in guilt at the hunter's words, but he continued.

"When I got here however, I really saw first hand how much everything had changed. Everyone seemed to be happy and you were all talking and laughing together like you were family. I was wrong in my initial judgment of you. You really have changed."

Alcina held up her hand.

"You weren't wrong. We truly had done so many horrible things and had only begun to change our ways recently. So everything you said to me that morning was justified. Despite that though, you chose to at least try and put it behind you and give us a second chance, and that was more than I could ever ask for."

Raphael sighed.

"I guess this shows that everyone deserves a second chance, even the ones you don't think deserve it. How did you do it? I know Joseph helped, but how did you and your daughters convince yourselves you could move past everything and be better? How did you convince yourselves you could do it despite the odds?"

The Countess gave a warm smile.

"Let me put it this way. It's not a question of can or can't. There are some things in life you just do."

The hunter was surprised at her words. This woman really was nothing like the Alcina Dimitrescu he used to know. This was someone he didn't have to live in fear of, and neither did anyone else.

"Well said." He finally replied as he gave a big smile.

Just then Olivia and Sarah came into the main hall and announced that dinner was ready, and everyone started piling into the dining room and kitchen to help themselves to some food. It got to a point where Joseph and the Dimitrescu daughters had to get everyone in a line to keep it organized.

Thank goodness we don't do Black Friday here. I would prefer not to know what that's like. Alcina thought to herself.