Work Text:
One Week Before:
“So we're visiting your parents for Father's Day, my dear?” Kratos asked while looking at Anna's phone that she handed to him just moments before.
“Yes, honey, and your parents are going to be flying in from Meltokio on Saturday.” Anna replied as she muted the TV. “And I have a special surprise for you, your father, and my father, that I'll reveal when we arrive at my parents house on Saturday night.”
“I see…” He said thoughtfully. “Then why aren't we flying from Triet to Luin on Saturday, my dear? Why are we driving from home to Triet on Thursday, Triet to Palmacosta on Friday, then Palmacosta to Luin on Saturday?”
“I just think driving would be easier on Lloyd and the twins, honey.” She answered as her husband handed back her phone. “And we won't have to worry about seating for all of us like we would if we were flying out.”
“I guess you're right, my dear.” Kratos nodded in agreement towards her. “And the twins are only eleven months old, so I'm not sure if they're old enough to handle the five hour long flight yet.”
“Then that settles it!” Anna declared before she laid her head down on her husband's shoulder. “We head out to my parents house on Thursday morning!”
______
Thursday Morning:
“Did you lock the front door and turn off all of the lights, honey?” Anna asked as she finished buckling Lloyd into his car seat.
“Yes, my dear.” Kratos replied as he started his truck and adjusted his mirrors.
“And you remembered to attach the twins’ bag to our suitcase, right?” She asked after hopping up into the passenger’s seat and buckling her seatbelt.
He sighed and gave her a knowing smile before glancing at Lloyd and the twins through the rear view mirror. “Yes, my dear.”
“Mommy, what about Noishe?” Lloyd asked from his car seat behind her.
“Uncle Yuan and Aunt Martel will be coming over to our house every day that we're gone to check on him, sweetie.” Anna replied as she set her tote bag down by her feet.
“I wish he could come with us…” Lloyd said disappointedly.
“I wish he could, too, Lloyd.” Anna sighed knowingly. “But he's too big to fit in the truck with you and the twins, sweetie.”
Kratos put his truck in reverse and pulled out of their driveway as Anna and Lloyd's conversation trailed off into silence. He then put his truck in drive and drove off down the road and out of their neighborhood. The family of five made it to their hotel in Triet about two and a half hours later and quickly settled into their room on the second floor.
______
“Honey, can you go pick up some lunch from the gourmet deli across the street for us?” Anna asked Kratos shortly after noon.
“Sure, my dear, what would you like me to get for you and Lloyd?” Kratos asked in reply, giving her a soft smile.
“I think I want to try their turkey club this time.” Anna replied before turning her attention to Lloyd. “And Lloyd, what sandwich do you want Daddy to get for you, sweetie?”
“PB and J!” Lloyd exclaimed in reply as he looked up at Kratos and Anna from where he was sitting on the floor playing with his action figures.
Kratos nodded and smiled at his wife and son. “All right, then I'll return shortly with those sandwiches. I think I'm going to get the shredded beef sandwich with peppers this time. Do you want me to get those homemade kettle chips too, my dear?”
“Oh yes, honey, get those kettle chips too!” Anna exclaimed softly in reply.
______
When Kratos returned with the sandwiches and chips about a half hour later, the family happily ate their food before spending the rest of the day relaxing at their hotel. The following morning, the family of five headed out through the desert and drove to Izoold, which was about a seven hour drive from Triet. They then boarded a ferry and made the three hour journey to Palmacosta. Once they arrived in Palmacosta, Kratos drove them all to the hotel where they would be staying for the night.
______
On Saturday morning, the family of five headed out and drove another ten hours to Anna's hometown of Luin. They finally arrived at the sprawling Irving family farm late in the afternoon, and both Anna and Kratos' parents were there to happily greet them as they entered through the front door of Anna's childhood home.
“Wow! Lance and Lyric are getting so big already, Anna!” Anna's mother commented after hugging Anna.
“Yeah, they'll be a year old in just a few weeks.” Anna said with a smile as she stood behind the twin's stroller again.
“Seems like they're going to look exactly like Kratos.” Anna's father drawled as he stood next to his wife and glanced between the bright, reddish brown hair on the twins and his daughter.
“When did you two arrive today?” Kratos asked after hugging his mother and father.
“Oh we arrived just a few hours ago, Kratos.” Kratos' mother replied. “We had an hour layover in Palmacosta before our connecting flight to the airport here in Luin.”
“Then you two must be tired.” Anna commented as she looked at her in-laws. “Isn't it an eight hour flight from Meltokio to Palmacosta? And then another two hour flight from Palmacosta to the regional airport here in Luin?”
“Eh, we both took a little nap during our layover in Palmacosta.” Kratos' father replied, glancing between Kratos and Anna. “We should be fine after we have dinner.”
“And speaking of dinner, it should be ready now.” Anna's mother announced as she began to walk away from the group and towards the kitchen. “Let me just go get it out of the oven.”
“Here, let me help you, Mom!” Anna called out as she followed after her mother.
______
The rest of the family filed into the dining room a short time later. Anna and her parents both hurriedly set the table and Anna gently placed her mother's famous tater tot hot dish at the center of the table. For the next couple of hours, the family sat down together and ate while talking about everything that had been going on in their lives since the last time they all saw each other. When the family was finished eating, Anna and Kratos helped her parents clean up the dining room table before they all filed into the living room.
“All right everyone, gather around!” Anna announced as the rest of the family sat down on the couch and chairs by the coffee table. “I have a special surprise gift to reveal for the three fathers in this family!”
She looked over at Kratos, her father, and her father in-law, as she set her tote bag down on the coffee table. The rest of the family waited quietly in anticipation while she opened her tote bag and began to search through its contents.
“Ah! There it is!” Anna declared as she pulled out a white envelope from her tote bag.
She looked over at Kratos, her father, and father in-law again as she pulled out what appeared to be five tickets from the envelope. “I bought tickets to tomorrow's game versus the Wind Guardians for the three of you for Father's Day! I actually managed to get us seats in the lower level behind home plate!”
“Oh! So the yearly rivalry game versus Asgard? That should be fun!” Anna's father commented while looking over at both Kratos and Kratos' father.
“Are you and Lloyd going to the game as well, my dear?” Kratos asked as he looked up at his wife.
“Yes, honey, and the twins will be staying here with my mom and your mom.” Anna replied as she gave her husband a gentle smile. “I already discussed this with them before dinner.”
“Yes, it'll be nice for us to spend the afternoon with Lance and Lyric while you all are at the game.” Kratos' mother commented while glancing between Kratos and Kratos' mother in-law.
“Three fathers, three generations, and a baseball game…” Kratos' father commented sagely while nodding slowly with his arms crossed over his chest.
______
A short time later, after the reveal of Anna's Father's Day gift, the family retired to their respective rooms for the night. Kratos and Anna stood in the middle of their room after getting ready for bed with their arms wrapped around each other in a gentle embrace.
“I really hope the Farmers win tomorrow, honey.” Anna sighed contentedly. “Not only for your sake, but also my father's, though I don't think he follows the team as much as he used to.”
“Well, he still has to take care of your family farm, my dear.” Kratos said after kissing the top of her head. “And while I hope the Farmers win, too, I'm sure all of us will have a good time regardless. Thank you for the gift, my dear, it's been a long time since we've all been to a baseball game.”
“You're welcome, honey!” She grinned up at him happily for a moment before the look on her face turned more thoughtful. “And you're right about my dad… Sometimes I wonder how much longer he's going to be able to keep up with the farm, though.”
He leaned down and touched his forehead to hers. “That's something we'll have to talk about in the future, my dear. I wouldn't worry about it right now.”
Then he kissed her, and all of Anna's momentary worries disappeared, just like that.
______
The next morning after the entire family woke up, they all sat together at the dining room table while Anna and her mother, along with Kratos' mother prepared and served a delicious gourmet breakfast to celebrate Father's Day. After breakfast, Kratos, his father, and Anna's father all changed into their baseball jerseys and more casual clothes. Kratos and his father in-law both wore Farmers jerseys while Kratos’ father wore a Meltokio Royals jersey. Anna and Lloyd then changed into their own Farmers jerseys and more casual clothes. Once everyone was ready to go, the five members of the Irving and Aurion families said goodbye to Anna's mother and Kratos' mother, along with the twins, then headed outside towards Kratos' truck. Anna sat in the back next to Lloyd in his car seat and her father, while Kratos' father sat in the passenger seat next to Kratos, who volunteered to drive them all to the stadium.
They drove into the baseball stadium's parking lot at around 1pm, which gave them plenty of time to grab some lunch from one of the concession stands before heading to where their seats were behind home plate. The five family members all sat together a couple rows back in the section right behind home plate. Anna sat at the very end of the row while Kratos sat next to her and Lloyd sat next to Kratos. Anna's father sat next to Lloyd and Kratos' father sat next to Anna's father.
“Is this your first baseball game, Lloyd?” Anna's father asked as he turned toward his grandson.
“Yes, grandpapa!” Lloyd replied cheerfully before pointing at Kratos. “I know Daddy's been to a few of them, though!”
“Yeah, I've been to a few games, though I haven't been to a Farmers game since before Lloyd was born.” Kratos said as he ruffled Lloyd's hair before looking over at Anna. “Right, my dear?”
“That's right, honey.” Anna replied, giving her husband a soft smile.
“And I can't remember the last time I attended a baseball game with you, my son.” Kratos’ father commented as he leaned forward to look over at Kratos.
______
The game officially started shortly after 2pm, and the Farmers quickly scored four home runs in the first three innings. Unfortunately, the Wind Guardians scored five home runs in the following three innings, leading the Farmers by one. The Farmers managed to score another run by the bottom of the eighth inning and the game remained tied after the top of the ninth inning. Since the Farmers were the home team, the game carried on through the bottom of the ninth, and the bases were now loaded. Everything was riding on the current Farmers player up at bat knocking it out of the park and scoring the winning runs.
Kratos, Anna, Lloyd, and Anna's father leaned forward in their seats in silent anticipation. Their eyes were locked on the batter as the Wind Guardians pitcher finally threw his pitch towards home plate. The bat instantly connected with the ball, and the four Farmers fans softly gasped as the ball flew higher and higher into the sky until it could no longer be seen. Everyone stood up and cheered loudly as all four players ran past home plate.
“And that's a wrap!” The announcer declared over the stadium's speakers. “The Farmers win nine runs to the Wind Guardians five runs!”
“Oh my goodness, we won!” Anna cheered loudly before wrapping her arms around her husband. “The Farmers won, honey!”
Kratos wrapped his arms around her after he was finished clapping in celebration of the Farmers’ win. “That was such a fun game to watch, my dear.”
“Happy Father's Day, Kratos!” She exclaimed before reaching up to kiss him on the cheek.
“Thank you, my dear.” He looked down at her with a soft smile.
Kratos then looked down at Lloyd and quickly bent down to pick the boy up.
“Happy Father's Day, Daddy!” Lloyd exclaimed as he threw his arms around his father's neck and gave him a soft hug.
“Thank you, Lloyd…” Kratos thanked his son after the boy kissed his cheek. “Did you have fun watching the game?”
“Yeah!” Lloyd nodded excitedly. “I'm really happy the Farmers won, Daddy!”
______
After the family hugged each other in celebration of the Farmers win, they all made their way out of the stadium and headed out into the parking lot.
“Next time we all attend a baseball game together, let's go to one where my Royals are playing.” Kratos’ father commented once the family arrived at Kratos' truck.
Anna giggled softly at her father in-law’s comment. “Maybe we could go to one next year for Father's Day. What do you think, Dad? Maybe we could make this a Father's Day tradition?”
Anna's father chuckled while everyone got into the truck. “That sounds like a great idea, Anna! Just as long as your mom and I aren't hosting next year!”
______
When the family arrived at the Irving family farm again at around 5:30pm, both Anna's mother and Kratos' mother had prepared a special Father's Day dinner for everyone.
“We made Hamburger Steak, and Short Ribs, along with Pulled Chicken in our two slow cookers!” Anna’s mother announced after setting down the tray of pulled chicken at the center of the table. “Eat up and enjoy, everyone!”
“Wow, Mom, this looks delicious!” Anna commented excitedly as she glanced at both her mother and mother-in-law. “Did you two start making all this before we left to go to the game?”
“We started shortly after you all left.” Kratos' mother answered matter of factly.
“We also had fun looking after Lance and Lyric this afternoon.” Anna's mother commented.
The family spent the next couple of hours eating and talking about the Farmers win, while also discussing whether attending a baseball game should become an annual Father's Day tradition for their families. When everyone was finished eating, Kratos and Anna helped clean up the table, then put Lloyd and the twins to bed at around 9pm. After wishing their respective fathers and father in-laws one final Happy Father's Day, Kratos and Anna retired to their bedroom and quickly got ready for bed.
______
“Seems like you had fun today, honey!” Anna commented as she wrapped her arms around her husband's neck and looked up at him. “I don't know if I've ever seen you so happy after a Farmers win.”
Kratos gave her a gentle smile. “I did have fun today, my dear. There's nothing quite like watching your favorite team win in person.”
“Well I'm glad you had fun, and we'll definitely have to consider attending another baseball game for Father's Day next year.” She said while giving him a soft smile. “Happy Father's Day, Kratos! I love you, honey…”
“Thank you, Anna, and I love you too, my dear.” He looked down and smiled sincerely at her.
Then Anna stood up on her toes and gently cupped his face with both of her hands. She then softly kissed him, and Kratos couldn't think of a better ending to such a fun and special day.