Royalty - Spamano

El Mercado

"Feli, I'm going to the market! Make sure not to burn the house down while I'm gone." Lovino called out to his brother from the front of their small house. Lovino was going down to the market to sell some of the tomatoes that had gone ripe in the past couple of days. The two brothers owned a farm on the outskirts of Florence and made a cheap living off of tomatoes and the occasional seasonal wine. The two had never met their parents, but were raised by there Grandfather who constantly reminded them that they were "descendants of Rome". Lovino always thought it was bullshit because he figured if they were really descendants of Rome, they wouldn't be peasants living off of farmland in Tuscany. 

Feliciano was a bit more optimistic, but everyone could tell the tough farming life was wearing on him. Feliciano's dream was to be an artist, but no one ever recognized his work. Their tiny house was littered with beautiful art, never to be seen by anyone except the two brothers. Lovino's talent was his cooking. Though only able to afford one big meal per season, Lovino adored making his brother proud with his extravagant cooking when the time came around. 

Today he was selling a few things at the market. Along with the tomatoes, he had made a few homemade sauces with some leftover tomatoes and the few spices they owned, which he figured would go for a pretty good price. He always had fun going to the market. He loved coming home and seeing Feliciano's face light up at all the goods he brought back. 

When Lovino arrived at the market he was surprised to find a massive crowds in the middle of the city. Though Florence was pretty populated in the first place, he had never seen this many people in the market at the same time. He went every Saturday to trade his tomatoes with the old ladies who made pasta to please his brother, but today he didn't see a single one of them. 

Basket in hand, Lovino pushed his way through the crowd to the area where his usual customers resided. They were there, but they were all whispering to each other as if something dramatic had just happened in the middle of the square. He looked around in confusion, but to no avail, he didn't see anything. As he approached one of the elderly women that he often chatted with in the market, he asked them what was going on. 

"Oh- you don't know? The Spanish King is in town. He's visiting the Cathedral. Apparently he's a big fan of Brunelleschi." the lady said, looking at Lovino with a wide smile on her face. Lovino had never heard of a foreign king visiting Florence, so it must've been a big deal, but he didn't really care. Just another rich, corrupted ruler to make him look like a speck of dust on the big planet. He didn't like guys like that. So egotistical, so ignorant. 

"He's a very handsome young man!" another lady chimed in, this one only in her twenties or so. Lovino was a bit confused. The last he heard the Spanish king was an old Hapsburg ruler who was practically a dinosaur. He had never heard anything about this new king. 

"What happened to the old king?" Lovino asked curiously, looking back at the ladies who he so often traded with. 

"No idea. This new one just sprung up like a summer lily." the woman responded before turing around and heading back to her booth in the market. Lovino gave a shrug and dismissed it, not caring any further about the new king. It's not like he lived in Spain anyway.

Lovino went on with the rest of his day, not giving much thought to the visiting king. He spent a couple hours selling the tomatoes and buying fresh bread, pasta, oils, and any other food necessity he could get his hands on. He saw a booth selling art and wondered if Feliciano would possibly ever want to sell any of his own, though he doubted it would ever happen. 

Making his way back to their farm with a basket full of the week's food and supplies, Lovino walked along the cobble roads, thinking about what the weeks chores would be. Tomatoes, more tomatoes, and you guessed it.. tomatoes. He was starting to get bored with life. When would anything interesting happen to him? He pushed the thought out of his mind as he noticed the sun going down. He had been at the market a long time. He hoped Feli wouldn't be mad.