Okay so this was my submission for an Almei winter themed contest on deviantArt. It was really fun to get back into writing fanfiction. Hope you guys enjoy!
"Hey.. Mei?" Al looked up from his book at his girlfriend. He seemed to have gotten bored with the text in front of him. This was strange, especially for Alphonse, but he couldn't stop thinking about his brilliant idea. "I have a great idea. It just seems so fun and I think you'll love it."
Mei looked over at Al and smiled. "Well? Are you going to tell me this 'great idea' or are you going to start staring into space again like you're contemplating your place in the universe?"
Al, who was sitting on a couch, lied back and stared at the ceiling. "It's just.. I know it's a great idea. And it'll be amazing. And everything will be so beautiful. And the idea will only be great if you are there. And-"
Mei cut him off. "Just tell me already Al!" She turned the chair she was in completely around to face Alphonse and crossed her arms. "If you don't tell me now, then I'm going to pick the longest book I can find and not listen to you until I finish reading it."
Alphonse sat back up and laughed. "Alright alright." He cleared his throat and looked directly at Mei. "Okay so here's the thing. I've been traveling the east with you for almost two years now. And we've been together almost the entire time."
Mei still had her arms crossed. "And? What about it?"
"Well it's now the middle of December... And Christmas is right around the corner... And it's really our first official Christmas together because the last time we weren't in Xing and we weren't keeping track of what exact day it was all the time." He walked over to where Mei was sitting and sat down on the table in front of her. "So.. I was thinking that maybe we could do something special this year."
"What might you have in mind, sir 'brilliant idea?'" She smirked at him and leaned back in her chair, her arms still crossed.
Al smiled brightly. "I'm glad you asked. I was thinking that, since I've been in the East for so long, maybe we should go visit my home. Well, my home country, there isn't much other than snow in Risembool this time of year."
Mei frowned and unfolded her arms. "Al.. I don't know." She looked at her lap and continued. "You know I have a duty here to the emperor. He's my brother and a close friend of both of us. And you know he wasn't very happy at the amount of time we spent traveling the other eastern countries. And everything is finally settled down here. The elders are finally okay with our relationship and I don't want to mess that up.. I just.. I don't know Al."
"But Mei.. You know how Christmas is my favorite holiday. And Ling will be fine. We'll only be gone a week. Two weeks at most. And yeah the elders are finally okay with us, so why should they have any problem with us celebrating Christmas in Amestris?" He grabbed Mei's hands out of her lap and looked her in the eye. "And I know for a fact, that you have never seen a 'big city' style Christmas in Amestris. The way you celebrate it here is nothing compared to Central. So.. Please Mei? For me?"
She looked up at his now pouting golden eyes and sighed. "You just really know how to persuade people don't you. That pouty little face is just impossible to say no to." Al started to smile, waiting for Mei's official answer. "Okay okay yes I'll go. BUT! Only a week. Promise me that."
Alphonse nodded quickly. "Yes of course! As you wish, my princess." He leaned forward and kissed her swiftly on the lips. "Now let's start packing."
"Al. Alphonse. Come on Al wake up!" Mei nudged him awake as the train pulled into the station at Central. She already knew that this was going to be very different than the small Christmas she was used to. There were lights on almost every tree and building. Elegant decorations were on every street lamp, window pane, and doorway. And there was always Christmas music playing on the radio. This was just as Al described it. Everything he absolutely loved about Christmas was right in front of her now.
Al stretched himself awake after Mei nudged him a few times. "We're here already? Wow that was fast." He rubbed his eyes and looked out the somewhat-frosty glass. "There it is.. Isn't it just beautiful? The lights. The decorations. Everything. I told you this trip would be amazing."
As the train slowed to a stop, the couple got their bags and walked into the city. Alphonse grabbed Mei's free hand with his. "Come with me. We're going to be staying in the center of the city in the nicest hotel Central has to offer. It'll give you the best Amestrian Christmas experience." He glanced over at Mei and smiled. "And it was all complements of Col-General Mustang (Al always forgot that Roy was no longer in the rank of Colonel. He was now Brigadier General) and Lieutenant Hawkeye."
Mei stopped in her tracks and looked up at Al. "Wait.. Why did they do that? Why didn't you pay for the trip?"
"Well I did pay for the trip. And something else that you'll see on Christmas. They just payed for the hotel. And they did it because I told them you have never experienced an Amestrian Christmas. And that the trip meant a lot to me. They said it was a Christmas present from the both of them."
She linked hands with Al again and thought about asking what he payed for that's special for Christmas. But she held her tongue. "Okay Al. Whatever you say."
As they got to the entrance to the hotel, Mei was mesmerized. The town square was the most beautiful thing that she had ever seen. Well right next to the palace on special occasions of course. There were beautiful lights everywhere. The town was bustling with people who all seemed to be in an amazing and generous mood. People were singing those silly songs on every corner. Children were building snow men and having a grand time in the park. Alphonse truly wasn't lying when he said she would love this trip.
But there was one thing that confused Mei. In the center of the park there was this tree. The tree had to be at least 15 feet tall. But it was dark. No lights seemed to decorate the tree that would look the most magnificent. Why was that?
She tried to figure it out as they walked inside. Once they were settled in the room, Mei still could not figure out why that one giant tree was not lit. "Al? You know that tree in the center of the park? The really big one?"
Al had just finished brushing his teeth. He leaned out of the bathroom and looked at Mei. "Yeah. The one with no lights on it? What about it?"
"Well why exactly is it that there are no lights on it. Wouldn't it make sense to decorate that one with lights more than the others? I mean.. It's the biggest tree here. And it's in the center of everything. So why isn't it lit?"
Al laughed and sat down on the bed next to Mei. "You'll just have to wait and see. One of the best parts about Christmas here, is that it's full of surprises."
He then kissed her on the cheek and went to lay down in the bed. "Come on let's get some sleep. We have a very exciting week ahead of us."
"Mei.. It's Christmas Eve. It's time to wake up. I know it's been a long week but trust me this day is what will make it worth everything." Al nudged Mei softly. It was about 2 in the afternoon. He had let Mei sleep that much because of how long they stayed out last night. Al had found it necessary to visit nearly every single resident in Central that he was acquainted with yesterday. He said that it was part of having "Christmas Spirit." What he failed to mention to Mei was exactly how many people he knew in central. It was a long day.
She groaned and slammed her face into her pillow. Her hair was a mess and she was tangled in the sheets. But she was comfortable and did not want to get up. "If you say we have to go meet more people then I am getting on the next train back to Xing. You can give all of those people my kindest regards."
"Oh come on Mei it wasn't that bad-" Mei turned over and glared at him angrily. "Okay okay. I apologize for making you meet all of those people. It was very tiring going all around Amestris all day, I admit. And I didn't really help that situation by deciding to have us walk everywhere too..." He faded out for a moment before continuing. "But trust me on this one. Today is going to be a fun day. And you know that tree you were asking about the other day? Well you get to see why it's not lit, tonight. That's the only major thing we are going to do today. The rest is just relaxing and a nice dinner."
Mei sat up slowly. "That doesn't sound too bad. I still am really curious about that tree.. And you promise that there won't be any running around?" Al nodded. "Okay. Let me take a shower since you already seem to be dressed. Then we can have a nice relaxing day around Central. But ONLY the town square and right around it. My feet are still aching from yesterday.."
They were walking along a sidewalk in Central for a few minutes when Mei looked up at Al. "So what 'relaxing' thing are we going to do first? Get a quick snack at a cafe? Have a picnic in the park? What's on the agenda?"
Al just smiled and kept looking straight forward. "Hmm. I was actually thinking that-" He paused and turned to a building that they had just reached. "-I should buy you a nice dress."
Mei's mouth dropped. "Al! You told me this was the most expensive store in ALL OF AMESTRIS! No. Nope. I will not let you spend all of that money on a simple dress."
Al opened the door to the shop. "Well I did say I was taking you out to a nice diner tonight, didn't I?" He smiled and gestured for Mei to enter the store. "Merry Christmas."
"This one is gorgeous. I'm definitely getting this one." Mei was admiring herself in an elegant red dress with gold threading design that went from the right side of the torso to the very bottom. Al was sitting on a bench behind her as she tried on dozens of dresses.
"You look beautiful. No matter what dress you get, I know you will look amazing in it. But I have to say, that dress is my favorite one so far too. Do you want to get that one?"
Mei looked at herself from a few different angles again before simply saying, "Yes."
She turned back towards Al and smiled. "This one is my absolute favorite. I'm going to have to go with this one." She turned back to the mirror. "I'm going to change out of it so we can check out." Before she went back to change, Mei glanced out the window. "Wow.. It's already sunset. I think we should head back and get ready for dinner once we leave here."
Al smiled. "That's a good idea. We don't want to miss the reservation. It was hard enough to get a reservation at this place to begin with."
"Mei!" Al called from the door of the suite they were staying in. He was all ready to go in a nice suite he had picked up during the day. Just a classic black suit with a red tie to match Mei's dress. "Come on! We're gonna be late! Are you ready to go now?"
"Sorry! I'm ready now!" Mei walked out of the bathroom in her new red dress. But she looked more dazzling than ever before. Her long hair was halfway up in a braid that sat like a crown on her head. The rest of her raven hair was flowing down her back so elegantly. Her makeup was simple but exquisite. She had simple golden earrings and a thin golden necklace on to accent her dress. She looked amazing. "I'm ready to go."
"Mei you are so beautiful." Al was in such awe that those were the only words he could think to say.
"Why thank you Alphonse," she smiled, "and you are so handsome. Now I think you were the one saying that we need to get to the restaurant as soon as possible."
Alphonse snapped back into reality. "Right right. Let's get going."
"First the most expensive dress shop in all of Amestris. Now the most expensive restaurant in all of Amestris and Xing combined?! Alphonse Elric, what on Earth are you thinking?! You couldn't possibly spend any more money on me than this!" Mei was amazed by this. A rooftop meal in the town square of Central. All of the lights in the city were shining brighter than ever tonight. Al had really outdone himself for this one. Mei had no idea on how this day could have gotten any better.
"Well. Actually I can and I kinda sorta already did. BUT- you'll just have to wait till midnight for that one. Lucky for you, you only have about 30 minutes left to wait. So why don't we enjoy our amazing meal and wait for the clock to strike midnight." Al smirked and began eating his food.
"Alright Alphonse. It is two minutes until midnight. So why don't you tell me what else you spent your money on?" Mei was getting frustrated at how mysterious Al was being.
Al got up from his chair, walked over to Mei, and held out his hand. "Just give it a minute, I promise everything will be clear in two minutes."
He stood her up and walked her to the edge of the roof. The leaned against the railing and looked straight forward. "Just watch the tree." *Tick tock tick tock tick tock- DONG DONG DONG* As soon as the clock struck twelve, the huge tree in the park was littered with the most brilliant lights that Mei had ever seen. Not even a minute after that, beautiful fireworks were sent out into the air. A crowd below was cheering and enjoying this amazing night almost as much as Mei was. Never has she seen such a beautiful sight in her life. This was truly a merry Christmas.
Mei snapped her self back into reality and turned to Al. But he wasn't standing next to her anymore. She covered her mouth with her hands to stifle a scream to where it sounded like a loud gasp. Her eyes started to flood with tears when she realized that Alphonse was no longer standing next to her. He was kneeling.
Al, down on one knee, looked up at Mei. She was so beautiful. And he loved her so much. He held out the thing he spent the last of his saved money on and smiled. "Mei.. I know we haven't been together for as long as others like Ed and Winry... But I can't imagine spending my life with anyone other than you. You are my one true love. Mei Chang, will you marry me?"
Mei began sobbing and flung her self onto Al. "Alphonse Elric, you crazy man," she sobbed into his shoulder, "I love you so much." She stopped her sobbing and leaned off of Al. "Of course I'll marry you. Yes!" Mei leaned in and kissed her new fiance for what seemed like an eternity.
After finally separating from the kiss Alphonse smiled at Mei and wiped one last tear off of her face. "See. I told you Christmas in Amestris was full of surprises." He pecked her on the cheek one more time. "Merry Christmas, Mei."