I hussled around the busy kitchen trying to get all of the food prepared. In two diffrent stations working hard were Kat and France as they each worked on a couple of diffrent dishes each. It was currently three in the afternoon and we have been cooking since nine this morning. The three of us were a little irritated and overwhelmed at the moment. Why? The kitchen was hot, the bear kept getting in the way, and we were currently behind shedual.

For the seventh time today I tripped over the bear who was staring up at us with pleading eyes. I almost dumped my bowl of gravy all over him in the process. "Damn it! Mattie! Get your bear out of here! I almost tripped on him! Again!" I shouted in agrivation.

The shy nation came in to collect his bear, nearly running into Katyusha. "What do you want me to do with him? He's just going to keep coming in here."

"I don't care. Put him outside, lock him in your room, something!" I sighed as I stirred some pots. Things were kinda a mess right now. "Oh God damn it!"

"What is wrong now Alfred?" Asked Kat as she hurriedly peeled carrots.

"I forgot to wash the china yesterday." I groaned. "IVAN!"

"Yes Fredka? What do you need?" He asked as he entered the door way. He didn't come in any further to stay out of the way.

"Can you be of help? I really need you to wash the nice plates I have in the cabinet in the dinning room. Take them to the bathroom tub and wash them in there please." I asked him with wide, pleading eyes.

"Da. Don't worry." He smiled and left the room.

"Thank you! I love you!" I called out to him relived.

"You really do love him, don't you America?" France said next to me with a small smile.

"I told you before, I've loved him for years. Life just got in the way." I chuckled.

"Are you happy with him?" He asked as he stopped what he was doing.

Taking the hint I stopped as well. "Yes. I am very happy with him. He makes me feel safe, and loved, and beautiful. He's always so kind to me and he never tries to make me do something I don't want to to do. I don't ever have to be on guard around him."

"Hmm. Well if that is the case then I don't see why I should stand in the way of love." He smiled at me.

"France? What are you saying?" I asked, hope flaring in my chest.

"If he makes you happy then I guess I can give you two my approval. I won't try to stand in either of your two's way." He said with a firm nod.

I looked at him for a moment before a wide grin stretched across my face. I shot at him and wrapped him in a firm hug. I was careful not to crush him, but it still was tight. Tears of happiness pricked at my eyes. As much as I tried telling my slef that their opinion of us didn't matter it still felt amazing to finaly have the approval of someone I once deemed my father. He let out a small laughed and held me tight.

"You have no idea how much that means to me." I whispered.

"I think I have a good idea." He whispered back. "Now, mon cher. We still have work to do."

"Right. Lets give them a feast like non other." I laughed loudly.

"Oui oui!" He agreed with a small cheer.

With a new spring in my step I whent back to cutting up the fruits. I was still under pressure, but I felt lighter now. A lot lighter. I hadn't realised how much I valued his approval untill I finally had it. My family felt just a little bit bigger now.

"America, I-" England started as he came into the room.

"Is someone hurt?" I interrupted.

"What? No."

"Is the house on fire?"

"No."

"Then get out of the kitchen." I growled. He had been coming in and out all morning for the most stupid of reasons and it was starting to get on my nerves. Every time he was in here he was rude to everyone and he only got in the way.

"Well, that's just rude." He huffed, not getting out of the kitchen.

"Repeatedly distracting us while we are cooking is rude." I snapped. "Now, if you don't get out right now I will take this knife and shove it so far down your throat it will be coming out your ass!" I snarled. He looked surprised, then angry, and walked out.

"Was that necessary?" France asked with a raised finely groomed brow.

"Yes. He won't stay out and has caused nearly three accidents today." I almost growled.

"Are you okay mon cher? You whent from happy to angry extremely fast." He asked worried.

"I'm just under a lot of pressure right now. I'll be fine once we get to eating." I smiled at him, calming down slightly.

"If you say so." He some what smiled back.

After about another half an hour if cooking we reached a point were we could take a break. The other two sat down at the little island while I walked I to the living room. That is where the other four have been most of the afternoon. On the t.v. was Charley Brown and the Great Pumpkin. One of my favored classics. In front of the coffee table, talking amongst themselves, sat Ivan, Mattie, and Nat. I have no idea where England is though.

"Hey guys. How's it going in here?" I asked them.

"We're doing great. We all helped set the table after Ivan cleaned the dishes, so you don't have to worry about that." Mattied told me with a smile.

"Awsome." I grinned. "Dinner will be done soon, so I hope you're all hungry."

"No, we're not. The one package of crackers and the one stick of summer sausage was totally enough to fill four adults." Mattie said with as much sarcasm as humanly possible.

"Well then. It looks like I'll just have to shove all that food down your throat because the three of us made way too much to just throw out." I teased back. "Does anyone know where block brows is at?"

"No. He disappeared a while ago. I think he whent in his room." Ivan told me.

"Kay. Thanks love. Well, I got to get back in there. The rest of you get ready. Dinner is in twenty minutes." I told them excitedly with a small clap. They all gave a small cheer as I turned back into the kitchen. "Okay. I'll finish up the cooking. I need you two to start putting the food on the table. Be sure to save a couple of spots for the turkey, ham, and Natalia's dessert. What she made was just amazing."

"Right away Alfred." Kat smiled.

As the food gets done cooking they come in and take it away. It was fast and efficient. The first time either of those things happened today. I was waiting for the timer for the turkey to ding when I realised I still don't know where England is. I pull out my phone and sent him a text that dinner is done.

The timer dinged and I pulled the turkey out of the oven. It was a perfect golden brown. I smiled, pleased that I didn't burn it, and brought it to the dinning room where everyone else was already sitting down, waiting. I looked around and still didn't see England.

"Has anyone seen England yet?" I asked them as I set the turkey down.

I got a chorus of nos untill I heard one yes. I looked at Natalia to see her pointing behind me. I turned around to see a flush faced England with a mostly empty bottle of rum in his hand. Oh no.

"Hey their. Are you okay?" I asked as I slowly approached him. He swayed a little, but still stayed up right. "Maybe you should put down the bottle and have a glass of water."

"Ah, shut up you wanker!" He snapped at me. His voice was somewhat slured, so I knew he was drunk. "You're always trying to tell someone what to do and what not to do. Always sticking your nose in other peoples business."

"Calm down." I tried reasoning with him. Fear slowly crept into my chest when he staggered closer to me.

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down you bloody brat! You need to learn to show your elders some respect." He yelled. I turned my head when I saw Ivan stand up to intervene. "Pay attention when I'm talking to you!"

I turned back to the angry drunken nation. "England. Calm do-"

I wasn't prepared for the sting of a slap when he hit my face. I stumbled back, hitting the table, and pulling down the cloth by accident. This sent both me and all the food that was cooked tumbling to the floor. Most of which landed on me. I heard shouting and a fight going on, but I couldn't see through the gravy the was dumped on my face. I felt a hand pull me up and start cleaning off my face.

When my eyes were finally clear I was able to look around the room. Next to me stood both Mattie and France. All the food was on the ground. In one corner Ivan and England were in the middle of a fight. In the other stood the girls, both shocked and terrified. Two chairs were broken, as was most of my china, the table cloth was stained, and the day was ruined.

Every thing was too much. All of the stress and anxiety from this week. All our hard work going to waste. Me getting hit and having food spilled all over me. The fight. Tears started rolling down my face and a sob escaped passed my lips.

"Alfie? Are you okay?" I heard my brother ask me.

"This week has been nothing but a nightmare. England had done nothing but start fights. Dinner is all over the floor. Their is a fight going on in my house. And the day is ruined. I'm just fucking peachy." I cried out in frustration and anger. He put his hand on my shoulder but pulled away. "I just need to be left alone for a while. I need to clean up." I ran out of the room and up the stairs.

*Matties P.O.V.*

I watched my brother's retreating form. All his hard work to make this week, to make this day, fun and amazing whent right down the drain. All his effort to get England to at least be able to tolerate Ivan was in vain. All the stress he put himself through was for nothing.

Anger took over my senses. In one quick motion I sepered the larger nation from the smaller island nation. Said island nation looked like Hell, but I didn't care at all. I pulled him to his feet and calmly looked at the rest of the nations in the room.

"Will the rest of you clean this up while I try to sober him up?" I asked them. The nodded their heads, even Ivan reluctantly agreed. I knew he still wanted to beat the shit out of England, I don't blame him, but their are more important things to get done at the moment.

I dragged England down the hall and into a bathroom on the ground floor. I shoved him in the bath tub and blasted him with icy cold water. A loud shriek emitted from him the second the water touched him. He scrambled to get out, hut I held him under for a good ten minutes before letting him scramble out.

"Why in the Hell did you do that?" He shouted in shock.

"Do you have any idea on what you've just done? Do you have any clue how badly you just hurt Alfred?" I started, my eyes set in a piercing glare.

"One little slap and a tumble won't hurt the worlds superpower." He sneered.

"I'm not talking about that, but you should be counting yourself lucky I'm not letting Ivan beat the Hell out of you for it." I snapped at him making him flinch. "I'm talking about the emotional damage you caused him. You have no idea how much this dinner ment to him. This was his first holiday in a very long time that he had everyone he loved with him. This dinner was his chance to have everyone he loves under the same roof, bonding as a family. And you whent an ruined it! He is upstairs right now, probably crying his eyes out, because you decided that you were above the rules and got drunk after he specifically said not to!"

"I-"

"Don't you even try to defend yourself right now. The second you get cleaned up I want you to meet us in the kitchen so you can apologise to Alfred for being an ass!" I snarled and stalked out of the room. Their is so much more I wanted to say to him, but right now is not the time.

I walked back into the room and helped the other finish cleaning up the dinning room. The whole time I could see Ivan seething with rage. As much as I wanted to let him continue to beat England, their was already enough damage to his house. A few minutes latter England came back, noticeably more sober, but still a little drunk. We all stopped what we were doing and glared at him.

"Well?" I said.

"Well what?" He asked annoyed.

"Are you ready to apologise to Alfred?" I asked with crossed arms.

"Whatever. Fine. I suppose slapping the git was a little too far." He huffed.

I rolled my eyes. At least it was something. I roughly grabbed his arm and dragged him to Alfreds room. The others followed close behind us, probably worried about the distressed nation. I knocked on the closed door to get my brothers attention.

"Alfie? Are you in there?" I called through the door. "All of us are out here. We just want to make sure you're okay. England here also wants to apologise."

The door opened and my brother stood in front of us with a small smile.

*Alfreds P.O.V.*

I opened the door with a smile on my face. Standing outside of my door was my whole family looking concerned. I brought my finger up to my lip in a gesture to be quiet. I waved them in and led them to Hero's box. One by one everyone let out a small gasp.

Mewling and wiggling were six tiny kittens. Hero layed curled protectivly around them while Lampushka sat proudly by her head, occasionally dipping to give her a lick. Each of the kittens moved around blindly, trying to find their mothers under belly to suckle. I grinned down at the little furry jellybeans with love and adoration.

"She had them while we were down stairs. I didn't even notice untill I stepped out of the shower." I said gently stroking one.

"How about that? Thanksgiving kitties. You named them already, didn't you?" Mattie asked with a soft smiled.

"Yep. The two light brown boys with the white faces are Tom and Butterball. This golden girl with the white tiped tail and paws is Biscuit. That red brown one, she is Cranberry. This big brown boy with the black paws is Gravy. And this lovely little lady is Snow Pea." I said holding up a small white kitten. The others let out a small chuckle, except one who snorted mockenly.

"Really America? You named them after food? Only a child would do such a thing." He scoffed. The smiled dropped from my face and the atmosphere grew tense. "I didn't say anything when you named your cat Hero for goodness sake. I obviously should have since you have terrible taste in naming anything. Though that's probably because you're-"

"Shut up." I told him calmly.

"I beg your pardon?!" He sputtered.

"I said SHUT UP! FOR TWO GOD DAMN MINUTES JUST SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" I hollered at him as I spun around. "Ever since you got here you have been nothing but a pain in my ass. Always starting fights with someone. Always complaining about something. When ever any of us try to have a good time you take it as a personal challenge to see how well you can screw that up!

"You completely disregarded most of my rules. You've started no less then five fights. You've snapped at everyone at least once and you assaulted me twice! No, three times!" I screamed at him while waving my arms wildly. I was well aware that my arms were bear and my scares were visible for all to see, but I didn't care though. Not even when his eyes locked on my arms and widen with shock.

"But I ignored all of that because I really truly wanted us all to have a good time and get along. I wanted us to bond together as a family. I wanted you to see Ivan for who he is. I wanted you to get along with Mattie again. I wanted us to be a family again! One big happy family!

"But you didn't care!" Tears of anger, sadness, amd frustration streamed down my face as I finally let out everything that I've been holding in all week. "You never care if it's not all about you. You don't care about anyone's feeling. You don't care about the outcomes of your actions. YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYONE BUT YOURSELF!" I ended my rant, panting from the energy it took.

"America, I-"

"I want you gone." I glared at him.

His eyes widen even further. "What do you mean?"

"I want you out of my house. I want you out of my country. I want you out of my life." I told him calmly. "I don't want to see you unless absolutely necessary. I don't want to talk to you unless I have to. I don't want anything to do with you out side of us as nations. You have one hour to pack your stuff and get out before I throw everything out the window."

He looked at me shell shocked for a moment before quietly leaving the room. Once he was gone the room erupted in applause. I felt a hand touch my shoulder, so I looked to my left to see France.

"Yes? Can I help you?" I asked.

"How long?" He asked, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. He held my hand in his as gently as if he were holding a rose.

"For a long time." I knew what he was referring to. "I'm getting help now. They're helping me." I pointed to the others who nodded their agreement.

"Was I at fault?"

"Partly, yes." I told him honestly.

"Okay." He whipped his eyes from the few stray tears. "I'm so sorry."

I smiled gently at him. "It's okay. I've already forgiven you."

"Just like that?" He asked bewildered.

"Just like that." I confirmed.

"Why?"

"Because, silly, I love you. I always have and always will." I laughed.

"I don't deserve your forgiveness, or your love." He looked away.

"Hey. If their is anything that you taught me, it's that everyone deserves love." I smiled at him.

A small smile spread across his face. "At least you learned something from me." He chuckled. He looked out the door England left through not to long ago. "I have to go. You know how he gets when he's like this."

"He's not your problem. Or your responsibility." I told him.

"Yes he is. In a way non of us truly understand he is." He turned to leave.

"By Francis." I called out.

"Au revoir Alfred." He called over his shoulder and left. He closed the door behind him, leaving the rest of us in the large room.

"Fredka, are you alright?" Ivan asked me as I sat down by the kittens. They were surprisingly undisturbed by the loud shouting.

"Yea, big guy. I'm gonna be okay." I smiled at him.

We stayed in the room for a while. We petted the kittens and chatted amongst ourselves. I was mostly quiet, but not in a sad way. I was at peace with everything at the moment, so I didn't really feel the need to talk.

We left the room about an houre latter after hearing the front door slam shut. I led us dow. The stairs and into the dinning room. It was picked up from earlier, but the rug, table cloth, and most of the chairs had to be replaced now. All the food was thrown away too. I let out a small sigh and turned to face the other.

"Well, we still have the desserts on the counter and I have a few frozen pizzas. So who's up for a movie night?" I smiled at them.

Everyone raised their hands. I laughed and got to work making the pizzas. The other set up the living room with blankets and all the food that survived. Mattie put in a fun movie and started it when I brought the pizzas in. We all sat around the coffe table and feasted on desserts and pizza.

Music also played in the background. A soft song that Kat picked out. Ivan offered me his hand, which I happily took. He spun me around the room just like on our first date. At the end he leaned down and kissed me while the others cheered. Or downed a bottle of wine in Natalia's case.

I looked around at everyone's smiling and laughing faces. We were all having a great time chatting, eating, dancing, and watching the movie. Even Natalia wore the smile on her face freely.

Sure, this wasn't exactly the Thanksgiving I had in mind, but I still got what I wanted. We all had fun together. We feasted, maybe not on turkey, but that's just a technicality. And most importantly we grew closer as a family. In the end that was my goal this entire week.

To have one big happy family.

____________________________________

The next chapter will be the last and might end up being short. This book is almost over. Yay!

The next one is going to be call Christmas Gift. Yes, I am keeping this series going. I hope you're all happy.😉