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Fandom: Hagane no Renkinjutsushi
Title: The Perfect Christmas Present
Pairing: Roy/Maes
Rating: PG
Summary: Maes has a surprise for Roy.
Disclaimer: They belong to Arakawa.
“Here,” Maes said as soon as Roy opened the door, thrusting a large gift-wrapped box toward him. “I brought you something.”
“What’s this?” Roy asked, looking suspiciuosly at the cheerful little snowmen printed on the wrapping paper.
“It’s a Christmas present,” Maes announced, grinning in a manner that Roy had learned to be wary of. “C’mon, open it.”
He pressed it onto Roy’s chest as he passed by him, forcing him to take it. Roy remained standing still for a moment, frowning at the mysterious package in his hand, the snowmen’s candy grins just making him more wary of what lay inside. Closing the door, he followed Maes to the kitchen and stood at the entrance, watching him take two gold labeled bottles from the middle shelf. They clinked together as he grabbed them by the neck.
“Maes,” Roy said.
“Hm.”
“It’s the middle of November.”
Maes glanced at him over his shoulder, a mischevious smile sparkling on far from innocent lips.
“Oh, I know that,” he said, twisting the lid off one of the bottles. “But this one couldn’t wait.”
Roy looked back down at the box in his hands, then back at Maes, but he had already turned away to give his full attention to the beer bottles. He examined the box, prodding at its sides with his fingers. It felt like thick cardboard, not just an ordinary gift box. He tiped it on its side and heard a mild thump. A single object, big enough to fit almost perfectly inside. It certainly felt heavy enough to warrant the stronger box. A small chest, maybe, or a book. But what would be the angle there? Because with Maes’s presents there was always something weird, ridiculous or just plain annoying. Once, he’d given him a box that opened to another box and then another box and yet another until he’d opened six boxes in total, the last one of which was smaller than his palm, and found a green spinning top. It was so tiny that they could hardly spin it. Maes thought it incredibly amusing. Roy had been too frustrated from having to open six different boxes, all bound heavily with tape, to see what was so funny. Then there was that I. O. U. that consisted of a coupon for 50 cents off on a cheeseburger from the fast food joint down the street from their dorm. And the coupon was expired.
“Just open it,” Maes said, coming to stand beside him, beers in hand. “And don’t shake it. It‘s sensitive.”
“I don’t know whether to believe that.”
“It isn’t that kind of gift. C’mon.”
He moved toward the desk, motioning Roy to follow him. Roy did so in resignation, starting to feel curious despite his wariness. He cleared away the mess of paper strewn across the desktop before setting it down. Slipping his finger through one of the paper’s folds, he ripped it apart, tearing it off in large white and blue chunks. He tossed the pieces to the side and took a good look at the box that lay beneath them. It was an ordinary brown package. The torn remains of a shipping label were still visible at its center, and the sender’s address at the top left had been scratched out with a black pen. A long swath of tape was wrapped around it, yet it was just the right amount needed to keep it closed, not the exaggeration from other occasions when it was there solely to make it almost impossible to open. Maybe the joke had grown old. Or maybe… He took his silver letter opener from the top drawer of the desk and stabbed it through the tape, slashing it open in one long swipe. He opened the twin flaps, pushed away the white paper covering the item inside and froze. Surprise would be too mild a word to describe the shock he felt when he saw the treasure that had appeared before his eyes. He picked it up, slowly, reverently. It couldn’t be. This was… How did Maes get his hands on this? Something this beautiful could only be found in a wealthy man’s private collection. He held it up firmly as he stroked its spine, his fingers brushing over the title of one of the greatest classics in the discipline of alchemy. And it wasn’t just any ordinary edition, oh no. He already had one of those on his shelf, a dog-eared copy he bought at half price during his student days. Its cover was scratched and stained, the last third of the pages all wrinkled from when Maes accidentally spilled a whole glass of water on it. Maybe this was a much belated fulfillment of his promise to buy him a new copy. But this wasn’t new. No, it was much better than that. The cover alone spoke of its great age. Books nowadays didn’t have such fine drawings engraved on its spine in flowing silver, nor was the paint so skillfully placed that it followed the indentures of the lines perfectly. The cover was smooth, not a scratch anywhere that he could see, its brown coloring only slightly faded at the corners, and the paper…
“I take it that you like it.”
Maes spoke close to his ear, startling Roy out of his stunned contemplation, but it wasn’t enough to get him to turn away from the book even for a second. He flipped it open as Maes wrapped is arms around his waist, crossing his hands over his stomach.
“How did you get this?” Roy said, examining the exquisitely printed font on the title page.
Maes’s chuckle was as warm as the chest pressing against Roy’s back.
“There’s an antique bookshop near my house. I passed by it last week and figured I might have a look inside. I wasn’t planning on buying anything, but then I saw this tucked away at the back. I had to get the bookseller’s permission to look at it. I inspected it, assured myself that it was properly incomprehensible and thought that it’d be the perfect present for you. But I didn’t want to wait for Christmas to give it to you. That’s too long to have it buried in a drawer while I imagine every possible face you could make upon seeing it.”
Roy reluctantly lifted his gaze from the opening of the first chapter and looked back at Maes, whose face hovered mere inches from his.
“How much did this cost you?” he asked.
“Don’t worry about it,” Maes said with a slight shake of his head.
“How much, Maes?” Roy insisted, closing the book. “This must have been very expensive.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Maes stroked up Roy’s chest and nuzzled his neck, licking his skin with the tip of his tongue, his typical way of distracting Roy.
“Maes.”
“Consider it interest for that book I ruined all those years ago.”
“So you do remember.”
“Of course. I did promise you that I would get you another one.”
“That was over ten years ago.”
“It still counts.”
Roy finally put the book down on the desk and, reaching behind his shoulder, pulled Maes’s head up.
“I will still want to know how much it cost,” he said, looking as best he could into Maes’s eyes in the blurred distance between their faces.
Maes dropped his head on Roy’s shoulder, sighing theatrically.
“Fine,” he said. His hand slipped through the flaps of Roy’s buttoned shirt, sliding teasingly over his bare skin.. “But not today.”
Roy twisted his upper body around in Maes’s grasp and kissed him, his mouth lingering softly over his bottom lip.
“Thank you.”
Title: The Perfect Christmas Present
Pairing: Roy/Maes
Rating: PG
Summary: Maes has a surprise for Roy.
Disclaimer: They belong to Arakawa.
“Here,” Maes said as soon as Roy opened the door, thrusting a large gift-wrapped box toward him. “I brought you something.”
“What’s this?” Roy asked, looking suspiciuosly at the cheerful little snowmen printed on the wrapping paper.
“It’s a Christmas present,” Maes announced, grinning in a manner that Roy had learned to be wary of. “C’mon, open it.”
He pressed it onto Roy’s chest as he passed by him, forcing him to take it. Roy remained standing still for a moment, frowning at the mysterious package in his hand, the snowmen’s candy grins just making him more wary of what lay inside. Closing the door, he followed Maes to the kitchen and stood at the entrance, watching him take two gold labeled bottles from the middle shelf. They clinked together as he grabbed them by the neck.
“Maes,” Roy said.
“Hm.”
“It’s the middle of November.”
Maes glanced at him over his shoulder, a mischevious smile sparkling on far from innocent lips.
“Oh, I know that,” he said, twisting the lid off one of the bottles. “But this one couldn’t wait.”
Roy looked back down at the box in his hands, then back at Maes, but he had already turned away to give his full attention to the beer bottles. He examined the box, prodding at its sides with his fingers. It felt like thick cardboard, not just an ordinary gift box. He tiped it on its side and heard a mild thump. A single object, big enough to fit almost perfectly inside. It certainly felt heavy enough to warrant the stronger box. A small chest, maybe, or a book. But what would be the angle there? Because with Maes’s presents there was always something weird, ridiculous or just plain annoying. Once, he’d given him a box that opened to another box and then another box and yet another until he’d opened six boxes in total, the last one of which was smaller than his palm, and found a green spinning top. It was so tiny that they could hardly spin it. Maes thought it incredibly amusing. Roy had been too frustrated from having to open six different boxes, all bound heavily with tape, to see what was so funny. Then there was that I. O. U. that consisted of a coupon for 50 cents off on a cheeseburger from the fast food joint down the street from their dorm. And the coupon was expired.
“Just open it,” Maes said, coming to stand beside him, beers in hand. “And don’t shake it. It‘s sensitive.”
“I don’t know whether to believe that.”
“It isn’t that kind of gift. C’mon.”
He moved toward the desk, motioning Roy to follow him. Roy did so in resignation, starting to feel curious despite his wariness. He cleared away the mess of paper strewn across the desktop before setting it down. Slipping his finger through one of the paper’s folds, he ripped it apart, tearing it off in large white and blue chunks. He tossed the pieces to the side and took a good look at the box that lay beneath them. It was an ordinary brown package. The torn remains of a shipping label were still visible at its center, and the sender’s address at the top left had been scratched out with a black pen. A long swath of tape was wrapped around it, yet it was just the right amount needed to keep it closed, not the exaggeration from other occasions when it was there solely to make it almost impossible to open. Maybe the joke had grown old. Or maybe… He took his silver letter opener from the top drawer of the desk and stabbed it through the tape, slashing it open in one long swipe. He opened the twin flaps, pushed away the white paper covering the item inside and froze. Surprise would be too mild a word to describe the shock he felt when he saw the treasure that had appeared before his eyes. He picked it up, slowly, reverently. It couldn’t be. This was… How did Maes get his hands on this? Something this beautiful could only be found in a wealthy man’s private collection. He held it up firmly as he stroked its spine, his fingers brushing over the title of one of the greatest classics in the discipline of alchemy. And it wasn’t just any ordinary edition, oh no. He already had one of those on his shelf, a dog-eared copy he bought at half price during his student days. Its cover was scratched and stained, the last third of the pages all wrinkled from when Maes accidentally spilled a whole glass of water on it. Maybe this was a much belated fulfillment of his promise to buy him a new copy. But this wasn’t new. No, it was much better than that. The cover alone spoke of its great age. Books nowadays didn’t have such fine drawings engraved on its spine in flowing silver, nor was the paint so skillfully placed that it followed the indentures of the lines perfectly. The cover was smooth, not a scratch anywhere that he could see, its brown coloring only slightly faded at the corners, and the paper…
“I take it that you like it.”
Maes spoke close to his ear, startling Roy out of his stunned contemplation, but it wasn’t enough to get him to turn away from the book even for a second. He flipped it open as Maes wrapped is arms around his waist, crossing his hands over his stomach.
“How did you get this?” Roy said, examining the exquisitely printed font on the title page.
Maes’s chuckle was as warm as the chest pressing against Roy’s back.
“There’s an antique bookshop near my house. I passed by it last week and figured I might have a look inside. I wasn’t planning on buying anything, but then I saw this tucked away at the back. I had to get the bookseller’s permission to look at it. I inspected it, assured myself that it was properly incomprehensible and thought that it’d be the perfect present for you. But I didn’t want to wait for Christmas to give it to you. That’s too long to have it buried in a drawer while I imagine every possible face you could make upon seeing it.”
Roy reluctantly lifted his gaze from the opening of the first chapter and looked back at Maes, whose face hovered mere inches from his.
“How much did this cost you?” he asked.
“Don’t worry about it,” Maes said with a slight shake of his head.
“How much, Maes?” Roy insisted, closing the book. “This must have been very expensive.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Maes stroked up Roy’s chest and nuzzled his neck, licking his skin with the tip of his tongue, his typical way of distracting Roy.
“Maes.”
“Consider it interest for that book I ruined all those years ago.”
“So you do remember.”
“Of course. I did promise you that I would get you another one.”
“That was over ten years ago.”
“It still counts.”
Roy finally put the book down on the desk and, reaching behind his shoulder, pulled Maes’s head up.
“I will still want to know how much it cost,” he said, looking as best he could into Maes’s eyes in the blurred distance between their faces.
Maes dropped his head on Roy’s shoulder, sighing theatrically.
“Fine,” he said. His hand slipped through the flaps of Roy’s buttoned shirt, sliding teasingly over his bare skin.. “But not today.”
Roy twisted his upper body around in Maes’s grasp and kissed him, his mouth lingering softly over his bottom lip.
“Thank you.”
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I inspected it, assured myself that it was properly incomprehensible and thought that it’d be the perfect present for you.
xD That is just SO Maes. *lovelove*
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Thank you.
From: (Anonymous)
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Sailor Jupiter, no se pa' que escribo el nombre si sabes que soy yo
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On a side note...
I love antique book shops! They smell so much like old paper and binding material. There's one in town that has a fireplace with a big over stuffed couch in front of it. I have once actually spent an entire buisness day, from open to close in that shop. My fiance thinks I'm nuts.
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I've never been to an antique bookshop. They don't have any where I live. I'd love to go to one, though. The one you described sounds so neat. I love the smell of old books, it's so rich and alive. I might be tempted to walk out with one of them, though.
By the way, I love your icon. That's one of my favorite pairings. They go so well together. I'm shocked at myself for not having written anything with them yet.
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and I want Maes to give it to meLovely...