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Tradition

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"Are you sure you wouldn't like some help?"

Riza just turned from the tree she was decorating in front of her to a box at her side to retrieve another ornament. "No, thank you, like I said. I can handle this – besides, I actually really enjoying decorating." And it was true – she wasn't brushing him off because she was trying to be distant; she truly did take pleasure in adorning for that particular time of year. In fact, it was one of her favourite holidays – she had the most pleasant memories of her mother around Christmastime, and so it was dearer to her than others.

Roy frowned at her dismissal from his place on the sofa behind her, completely ignoring the alchemical texts that were sat beside him. His mind was elsewhere, more interested in spending time with his teacher's daughter than hammering chemical equations into his brain. It was nearly Christmas, and he could barely focus on anything else but the impending holiday and her.

That night, Riza had decided that she would begin to prepare her dusty, overly large house for the upcoming date and had started in the living room with the freshly-cut tree, where Roy was trying and failing to study. She only served to distract him further – not that he minded in the least - and after a half an hour of attempting to get back into his notes, he gave up and resorted to inquiring if she wanted any help – her father certainly wasn't going to offer his own anytime soon, that was for sure.

But she had refused each time he asked, and her last answer, though no different than the first few, made him finally pipe down. Leaning back and sighing, he peered around the room, bored, before his eyes landed on an open box in front of him and caught sight of a particularly interesting object and a devilish grin appeared on his features. Sitting up, he reached over to take it just as Riza was turning around to grab another decoration, and before her eyes could catch what it was, he snatched it and hid it behind his back.

Eyes narrowing at him, she faced him and folded her arms. "Roy Mustang, whatever that is, put it back and leave it and me be right now." She wasn't about to play games with him – this was something she wanted to do by lonesome, without any childish interference for a boy she may or may not have feelings for.

"If you want it back—" He launched himself out of his seat, and her eyes became slits, daring him to continue with his joking threat, "—then you'll have to catch me first!" And at this, he took off to the other side of the room and down one of the Manor's many obscenely long hallways.

"Roy!" she shouted, making an irritated noise before following closely after him. Of course, he would go and do the exact opposite of what she wanted him to do – only he would do so! They played a game of cat and mouse for nearly fifteen minutes, with Riza becoming increasingly annoyed and Roy laughing all the while, the object he possessed still unbeknownst to the young Hawkeye.

It was only after softly creeping around a corner and catching him off guard that she finally stopped him, backing him into the little space, his hand still hidden behind his back. "Give it to me – you're not a child, Roy," she held out her hand in front of him, her face flushed from all the running she had done while his own from the excess laughter.

"Oh, come now, Riza, I only wanted to help you decorate," he shrugged and flashed her a grin, twiddling with the unrevealed decoration. "But you wouldn't let me, so I had to resort to this. When you really look at it, this is your doing, you know."

Riza sighed heavily and withdrawing her hand to her chest, looked away, clearly exasperated. "Please, just hand it over so I can finish decorating the tree."

He tried to repress his smile from growing any further as he decided to initiate his plan. "Close your eyes."

Riza blinked at him, her tone unimpressed. "Roy."

"Just do it. You can trust me." His tone was calm and gentle, belying his true intentions.

Exhaling, Riza did as she was told, extending a hand again. "Now will you give it back to me?"

"I will right after this."

Before she could register his words, he was grasping her palm and pulling her towards him, placing his lips firmly, but softly, against hers. Riza's eyes were wide as saucers as she tried to compose herself, but as his hand moved from hers to her waist instead, drawing her closer, she betrayed her initial feelings of shock and leaned in to return the kiss. When they parted, both of their faces were flushed again, though this time from the proximity of their heated bodies.

As her suddenly foggy mind sorted itself out, she stared at him and saw that his hand was raised above them, and she blinked up to look at what he was holding, only to find the object he had taken: a piece of mistletoe. Her blush only intensified at this, "You little-!"

"Hey now," he gave her a charming smile that made her heart skip a beat in her chest, "don't act like you didn't enjoy it as much as I did. And I thought you liked celebrating the festivities of Christmas – this is certainly one, you know. It's tradition, in fact, and you don't want to break tradition."

Riza's face flamed further. "I-I know that!" Roy's smile simply grew, and before he knew what was happening, he was twisting by her and stretching up to the closest doorframe, attaching the little bundle of mistletoe.

"There – I've finally gotten to help now. And this gives me an excuse to kiss you again." He looked smug for a few seconds, but her next words made his mouth gape a little and his cheeks heat up.

"Who says you need an excuse?" Riza was even surprised that she had said such things – but it was the truth. She would be lying if she said kissing Roy Mustang wasn't nice.

"I-I... uh," he stammered, running his hand threw his hair sheepishly. He slowly stepped closer to her, taking her hand in his again. "Care for another, t-then?"

It was Riza's turn to smile at his newly-flustered demeanour, and she answered by closing the gap in between them and applying a sweet kiss to his lips. When they parted, he smiled warmly at her and bumped his nose gently against hers. "Merry Christmas, Riza."

She gave him a funny look – it was still nearly a week until the actual itself – but still, she found herself returning his expression and saying the time-worn phrase herself, "Merry Christmas." And at this, they both gravitated towards each other again and kissed shortly, Roy peppering her face with light pecks when they pulled away, making her laugh before bringing him in for another, enjoying the warmth his body brought hers.

This was certainly something she wasn't used to, but then again, Riza was more than open to making new traditions for the holidays with those she cared for.

~P~

Also for secret santa!