Romano remained at the granny's house for well over two hours, spending one of that time fast asleep on her couch. She didn't seem to mind at all and actually allowed Spain to climb up on the settee so he could snuggle up to the child, taking a quick nap as well. He was so warm, and soft, with his body pressed up to Romano's chest, and he honestly had a hard time resisting the urge to run his fingers through the cat's fur before he fell asleep. When the two nations woke up from their light slumber, Spain slightly before Romano, the lady had already prepared a snack for the two.

"Ah..um... thanks..." Romano murmured along with a small nod as she gave him a small bowl of what seemed to be vegetable soup with some kind of meat broth, and placed Spain his equivalent on the floor. As she disappeared into the back of her home, the two nations ate in silence, enjoying the soup that the kind Spanish woman prepared. It was very good, Romano decided, the warm liquid slipping into his mouth by the spoonful, heating his throat and body once it settled into his stomach. Spain seemed to think the same thing, with how many times his tail twitched in happiness. Hell, Romano was considering asking the lady for the recipe, not to cook it himself; he'd get that tomato bastard to make it for him. Maybe... Just maybe, on days when he is feeling generous, he might brew some for the fool.

Spain finished well before the child did, tiny drips of the delicious concoction clinging to his whiskers before he licked them away, and rubbed his body against the bottom of Romano's feet. It tickled, nearly causing the Italian to drop his bowl as he twitched, jerking up his legs and tucking them to the side of his body. A scowl was shot down at the cat, but Spain merely blinked and tilted his head to the side. "You're not cute." Romano grumbled before finishing off his meal, still glaring and still watching the nation who was crouching, wiggling his butt back and forth. Not a second later, Spain leaped up onto the couch. He rubbed his body against Romano's side, dragging his head against the boy's arms and circling around on his legs until he sprawled himself on his tiny feet.

Spain rested his head upon Romano's thigh, those endless pools of emerald staring up at him as his ears twitched a few times, matching the calm flicks his tail made into the air. He really didn't seem to mind that he was now nothing more than a common house pet, and, for some odd reason, it bothered the Italian. Far too calm, he was, seemingly unworried at all about regaining his human form. Was he truly more comfortable as a cat? No... Romano had to be over thinking this. Maybe the idiot was just trying to not make the child worry about him.

Well, it was already too late for that.

The elderly lady came over to the two and took up their bowls after a few more minutes, humming to herself as he did so. It confused Romano a bit. Why was she acting so kindly to him? Was she truly just that nice? There was the possibility, but the Italian still kept a wary eye on her whenever she was around, especially when she came back into the room with a cloth wrapped bundle in her arms. "This is for you." She simply stated, smiling at the sceptical frown that merged onto the child's lips. "Antonio asked me to give this to you if I saw you before he retrieved it."

Romano glared down at the cat lying on his feet, honestly wanting to smack the animal, but was able to control himself as the granny sat dawn beside him. Spain mewed, quickly stepping over Romano's lap and onto the other side of his body, making sure to rub his head across the child's chest. He curled up beside the boy, and snuggled his head into the Italian's ribs. Whatever was in the cloth, it was very soft and light when Romano was given it, surprising him greatly; he somewhat expected it to be heavy, due to the size of the package. Upon a curt nod from the lady, he tugged the Spanish flag-coloured ribbon away from the bundle. Cloth fell away at the command of his fingers, uncomfortably soft and newly stitched he soon noticed, woven together with a patchwork of coloured silks that were pleasing to his eyes. Gold, red, white and green shifted under his finger tips, eventually exposing an alabaster object. It too was very soft, also filled with cotton he noticed as he picked it up.

A stuffed cat... Smaller than Spain's current form, though it blankly stared at him with its blue buttoned eyes and the neutral mouth stitched below its pink nose represented with a slightly smaller button. Dare he say it, but he was rather impressed by the level of detail on the animal; it even had limp whiskers made of thick strings on its cheeks. Romano glanced down to the breathing cat pressed to his side, and was met by an emerald stare. The bastard asked the lady to make him this? It had to take ages! Why the hell would he do something like this? "A-Are you sure it was for me?"

She hummed through her smile, reaching up and ruffling the boy's hair. "I am sure, little one." Old, wrinkly fingers trailed the stitches in the stuffed feline, down its legs until they came upon the blanket it sat upon. "He said that you get lonely when he's not home, and he wanted something you could remember him by."

Romano could feel his face warm up, especially when that cat bastard wrapped his tail around the child's arm. "But why would he ask you to make this for me? It must've taken forever!"

A soft chuckle fell from her lips and she ruffled his hair again, before taking the ribbon between her fingers. "You're mistaken." She cooed, tying the bi-coloured cloth into a bow around the stuffed creature's neck. "Antonio made this for you, not I, though I had to help him with certain stitches."

Sp-Spain made this? How? There wasn't any possible way that the idiot could make something so...so... cute. Romano didn't want to think of it, but... perhaps, this was the reason that Spain was missing most of the previous day, and he managed to piss off the wrong person or thing, on his way home. It was possible, at least in the child's mind. "The blanket is yours as well. He also made that too, completely on his own." Really? There... wow... While Romano didn't fully believe the woman, if what she said was true, then, well... he really didn't know what to think. Never would he have suspected that his caretaker could do something like this.

"How long did it take?"

She smiled, leaning back into the sofa. "A few months; he worked on it when he had free time." Probably on that ship of his, or maybe late at night when Romano was asleep in his own bed, at least those were the only times that he knew that the man would have nothing to do. But now, instead of feeling overjoyed about receiving a gift, guilt bubbled up in his chest. When he should've been resting, that idiot was working on making something for the child, and probably spent a hell of a lot of money to get the resources for the silk crafted gifts. This was the reason that Spain was always broke... he should've prioritized his spending better, dammit! "He really loves you."

The lady's statement startled the child, though Spain made a sound in the back of his throat. "W-What?"

A smug smile formed upon her lips. "Antonio talks about you every time he visits. It's admirable, how proud he is of you." Proud? That bastard never acted as if he was fucking proud of the Italian. It was always something stupid, like overwhelming happiness or his typical idiotic nature, not pride.

She had to be mistaken.

Not much was said after that. Sure, they shared a few more words while Spain contently flicked his tail against Romano's thigh and rested his head on the child's stomach, but the Italian's mind kept drifting to what could happen if his caretaker remained in his furry form. Surely someone would notice the idiot's absence and try to steal Romano for their own, that was just a given... and since Spain was a fucking cat right now, there wouldn't be any way that he could stop them. That thought terrified the young Italian. He didn't want to be under the rule of France or the Ottoman Empire, or even Austria for that matter. But then again... Spain was usually missing from his home for the majority of the year, so it wouldn't make much a difference. Those idiots who wanted Romano for their own never dared to attack when the Spanish Nation was gone, for they knew the wrath set upon them would be more than they could recover from.

After another hour or so, Romano thanked the old lady for the food and warmth and left for Spain's home. That said cat remained on his heels, tail high in the air as the child trudged on, the stuffed animal held tightly in his arms with the blanket wrapped around it. It was much better having shoes and socks this time, though the sun still warmed his skin under its bright smile. Every now and then, Spain would purr out a meow and speed up his gait, going a foot ahead of Romano before looking over his shoulder and slowing down once more. The Italian understood it as his eagerness to return home, though he knew in the back of his mind that there would be a problem, albeit a small one. How would he get the cat inside the house without anyone noticing? Romano wasn't sure when his fellow nations would return, and if they weren't there, it would certainly prove to be a challenge.

Spain, on the other hand, didn't seem nervous at all. Then again, Romano couldn't really tell much about that his caretaker was thinking while in this form. Not that he really cared.

At least the weather was nice now. Romano was actually enjoying his short walk with his boss, his eyes drifting from the low lying walls that lined the path, to the cloudless sky, and even to the birds perched on the leafless branches high above his head. If only Spain held a human form, then it would be a perfect day, even though it was winter. Deciding to not fret about it, or at least he trying to, Romano turned his eyes back to the road he was following, already spotting the tops of Spain's home.

Even Spain apparently saw the loft towers as well, letting out a mew as if to urge the child along. "Alright, fucker. Stop rushing me." The cat's tail twitched at Romano's grumble, but nevertheless, the young nation hurried his steps, even breaking out into a run as his patience withered away. He needed to get home quickly and find a way to sneak the cat into the enormous estate. It shouldn't be too hard, right? It would be a challenge, but Romano didn't like everything to be too easy all of the time. Yet, the more he thought about it, the less worried he became. Upon sifting through the various memories stored away in his mind, he recalled all of the times he managed to sneak out under the noses of Teresa and Spain, so pushing that damn cat through one of his secret entrances would be a piece of cake. Confidence welled up in his heart at the memories playing behind his eyes, and it ate away at the doubts that he previously had. Yeah... yeah, he could do this.

Yellowed grass whirred pass him, becoming nothing but a blur as he neared his home, excitement fizzing up in his stomach with every metre that was wiped away by his feet. This was a perfect time to show that idiot Spain that he wasn't as frail as those human children in town; that he was a nation, for fuck's sake! He could take care of himself, and, if everything followed the ingenious plan unfurling in his mind, he could prove to the cat bastard that he could take care of him as well. Romano grinned at the brilliance of it. Maybe Spain would treat him with the respect he deserved after all of this shit was over.

And then, the two found themselves at the wall that surrounded their home. The iron gate was sealed closed, and even as he tried to reach the lock high above his head, his chubby fingers could only brush the very bottom of it. Grumbling, Romano turned to the east, following the wall with Spain close on his feet. He mewled as if he was questioning the child's motives. Romano simply rolled his eyes. "Shut up. It's not like this is the first time this has happened." It was around this time that the gates were locked for a few hours anyway, and more times than once, Romano found himself on the wrong side. He pointed in the direction they were walking, not bothering to check if Spain saw the action. "There is a hole in the wall up ahead. Your servants are too dumb to notice that it's there."

The cat meowed once again, yet the smaller nation ignored him. His attention was drawn to the bundle in his arms, pondering a way to fit it through the child-sized gap without dirtying it or himself. While he didn't want to wash stains out of his clothes, he didn't want the stuffed animal to be ruined either; Spain would be devastated if he treated the gift with anything but the greatest care he could muster. And it wasn't like the cat turned nation could carry it himself... its ass would drag across the ground. Groaning in annoyance, Romano eased himself down on his knees, holding his newly prized possession close to his, and crawled through the opening.