Family Reunion

We crossed Wall Maria, the third wall in the city. Every wall was more imposing than the one before. Wall Maria has patterns on its surface that resemble figures of crowns and trees. The wall features two materials: a smooth gray and olive green, with embedded precious rocks throughout.

“It’s beautiful.”

“And you haven’t seen the next wall closer to the palace, Magdalene. That one is spectacular. It has twelve different precious stones embedded, and the foundation of the wall was made of 12 different minerals,” said Aunt Eugina.

“We will take a look tomorrow.”

“Paul, I didn’t know your family was so influential to live in this part of the city. After Wall Maria, most people living here work for the kingdom in essential work. How is it that there is no connection between this family and ours?”

“That’s because of me, he he he. Their family thought I was too strong to be part of the family. They were scared that someone as low as I, with no backing family, would take over,” said Mom proudly.

“It’s true.” Said Dad, looking at Eugina.

“Who is the head of the family right now?”

“It is still my Dad, Drausus. However, my little brother will probably become the head of the family once he retires as a soldier.”

“Big Brother!”

“Petros! Brother! Look at you! You look so strong.”

Petros is Dad’s little brother. The future head of the family. He is a little shorter than Dad, a handsome man with black hair and the same hazel eyes as Dad, and refined.

“Paul, I miss you so much! You should visit more often!”

“Ha ha ha! You know I have work. You should come visit me.”

“You know I can’t. I'm only home because of the festivities. The kingdom needs more soldiers here this time of the year.”

“Let me introduce you to the family you don’t know. This is Cato, our second.”

“Hello Uncle Petros, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” I said, kissing him on the cheek.

“Oh, come here, give a hug to your uncle. You don’t need to be so formal.” 

“This is Camillus, our third.”

“Hey, cutie, don’t be shy. Give a hug to Uncle Petros." Uncle Petros looks pretty affectionate.

“And this is Eugina, Anto’s second partner, and her son Marcus.”

“Yes, I remember you mentioned this in one of your letters. Ma'm, pleasure to meet you.” Uncle kissed Eugina on the hand as a sign of respect.

“And you remember Anto.”

“Of course I do… she beat the s*** out of me when I was in the Academy.”

“Come here, Petros, give me a kiss and a hug for your master. I heard you might become the head of the family. Would you ever dare to duel me?” Said Mom, coming closer and giving Uncle a kiss and a hug.

“Ha ha ha… I’m good. Paul Jr. was here this morning. He came to say hi to his favorite uncle and left to get ready for tomorrow.”

“You are his only uncle. Wait, Eugina, you have more brothers, right? Maybe you won’t be the favorite uncle for much longer.”

“Nonsense. I’m not close to my family. I can’t picture my brothers being this kind.”

“You hear that, Antonina? I’m the best.”

“I guess best uncle is as far as you will get anyway.”

“Okay, you two. Everything is fine. Let's go in, shall we?” Dad got in between them. “Are Dad and Mom home?”

“No, you know how it is this week. They will probably arrive late, as businesses close at 2:00 am for the Week of the Heroes. The servants will get you situated, go relax for a bit, and then we can have dinner together.”

The servants show us our rooms. I notice they are all homo Felidae servants. They look so cute in their butler and maid outfits! With their cat ears and tails. We should get a servant like that, too. The house is a mansion. From the outside, I notice that properties are very close to each other. However, the terrains are enormous. This is a three-store mansion with multiple rooms for the family, guests, servants, and other activities.

…

It was about 7 pm when we headed down to have dinner. I have never seen a table this big before. It could seat 18 people easily. The table was beautifully set. It featured a combination of red and white tablecloths, silver utensils, multiple plates, and cups, all ready for food to be served. We were sitting down when suddenly people came from the entrance.

“We made it on time! Hurry, Perpetua!” Grampa Drausus appeared, followed by Grandmother Perpetua.

We all stood up from the table and hugged each other. We were doing that when Paulus appeared at the door next to two older adults.

“Surprise!” Said Paulus, coming in.

“Paul! I thought you were busy. Aww, Mom, Dad!” Said Mom, heading to the entrance. Mom hugged her parents for a while, kissing them.

“Antonina, my daughter. Are you visiting? What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you two, and also to see Paulus' participation tomorrow in the Arena.”

“Let me introduce you to the family.”

Mom introduced everyone to her parents. Her dad’s name is Justin, and her mom is Lucia. I could tell she was excited. Her parents look to be in their late seventies. But that’s not what caught my attention. They both are homo Bovinae, but Mom is a homo Sapiens.

“Drausus, is this why you want us to come back early?”

“Ha ha ha, I wanted to keep the surprise, Lucia.”

“We don’t need to be in the stores. That’s why we pay workers to do the job. I know how workaholic you are, Justin,” said Perpetua.

“We could have met at the stores instead, seen the family, and kept working.”

“Oh, stop it, Justin, let’s eat!”

Dad came closer to where Aunt Eugina and I were and whispered into our ears. “Your Mom was adopted.” That makes sense.

We all sit at the table and enjoy a delicious dinner. We talked for hours until Uncle Petros and Paulus left due to their military duties. This is my first time experiencing something like this. A family reunion this big. It’s hard not to compare my family now with the one on Earth. Why were we so independent from each other? Why didn’t we show more love? For New Year's, we would eat together and then everyone would go to their own room. I would spend hours online watching a streamer while studying. Was it our misuse of technology that caused it? Was it the individualistic society? I recall that no one cared for each other. No one cared for the minorities, the ones that were born at a disadvantage. We would say that if you work hard enough, anyone can succeed in life. That was a lie we often say, so we don’t feel guilty for those who struggle. I didn’t care for people experiencing poverty or hardworking immigrant workers. I just wanted to be successful until I gave up.

We all went to bed that night. Mom went to sleep with her parents. I was sharing a room with Camillus.

“Good night, Sis. I love you.”

For some reason, those words touched the depths of my heart, and tears were rolling down my cheeks.

“I love you too, brother. Sleep well.”

Camillus would always fall asleep right away. I love how his breathing feels when I hug him while sleeping. I opened the sliding window to the balcony to get some fresh air. I was lost in my thoughts when a lightning strike struck me, throwing me backwards onto the floor.

“Hoshi!? How?! What?!”

“Pew! Pew!”

Hoshi was on top of me, licking my face.

“You can fly?!”

I was confused by the numerous questions that arose when someone knocked at the door and entered the room.

“Cato? Are you awake?”

“Dad? Why are you not in your room with Aunt Eugina?”

“It was a bit awkward without your Mom, so we decided to go to different rooms. She went to sleep with Marcus, and I came here. Wait… is that Hoshi?”

“Uuh… yeah…”

“How? Did you sneak him here?”

“Well, if I tell you he flew, would you believe me?”

“There is no way a pudu can do that.”

”I’m not lying, Dad, I swear.”

“Okay, okay, let's get to bed and sleep.”