Ishbal Dreams ch26

[okami_hu]

Disclaimer: World & characters are the property of Arakawa Hiromu & Square-ENIX. However, the fic itself belongs to us (kira_k & okami_hu). We have to stress that – sadly – we’re not making any money from this.
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: some Maes/Roy
Note: Many thanks to those, who read this and took the time to comment. Special thanks to those cherished few, who went even further and decided to beta for us.


A Moment of Peace


The air is still cool when the prince awakens. The birds chirp and the sky is clear, promising another beautiful day. Maes sighs softly and opens his eyes. A loving smile spreads on his face, as he looks at his dozing beloved. Roy seems so young... And, come to think of it, he kind of feels young too - old men aren't capable of such mind-blowing sex they just had last night. Maes traces Roy's face with a careful fingertip, he loves to watch his lover sleeping. He's so relaxed now, like everything would be alright in the world. But the prince feels a small pain in his heart - today is the day, when they begin with the negotiations. That's good of course, maybe peace will reign at last - but every passing minute brings Roy's departure closer.

Roy stirs as something touches his face and he opens his eyes. Before him lies the prince with a brooding face and the general smiles at him. "Morning..." He whispers and moves to breathe a kiss onto Maes' lips. He scowls as the movement brings pain. After their mouths meet Roy lets his body fall back on the bed. He's sore and has some - already fading - bruises from the night before.

"Morning to you too, my Moon and Stars." Maes forces a smile and kisses back. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore. Contented." Roy grins. "Like I usually feel after an encounter between us." He brings up a hand and caresses Maes' face. "What deep thoughts were you thinking before I interrupted?"

"The usual." Maes looks away. "I'm not looking forward to today's conference. Gran is ugly." He smiles and hopes his joke worked. "Does it hurt bad, Joonam? Do you think a hot bath will help you?"

"Probably, yes." Roy nods with a small smile, however he doesn't like Maes' train of thoughts. "So you were brooding..."

"Why shouldn't I be...?" Maes buries his face into Roy's shoulder, lowering his head under the general's chin. "Half of my heart will be taken, maybe forever." He starts to kiss the white skin, wanting to remember the taste.

Roy sighs softly. It's nice to be loved, and he pets Maes' hair as an answer, still it's too early for the deep thoughts. "Because you won't reach anything at all with whining. As my father used to say."

"Your father is a wise man, Roy Mustang." The prince laughs quietly. "But even if I'm the ruler of this country, I can't do anything to defend my lover. The heroes in the tales weren't responsible for a whole nation." Maes sighs and moves to Roy's neck with his lips, gently caressing and kissing the soft skin there. "But we should take a bath, hm?"

"Father has this pesky nature, he's right incessantly," Roy shakes his head with a fond smile. He loves his father. "And I can defend myself, Maes. You seem to think, I'm some damsel in distress who needs your protection," he continues more soberly, before rolling off the bed, to stand up. "We need to dress up if we want to wander out of my room. "

"Maes sits up in the bed and gazes at Roy. "I've never questioned your manliness, my love. I'm questioning Fate and Destiny's goodwill toward you." Still, Roy's right concerning the clothes. Maes crawls out of the bed to pick up his robe. It'll do just fine, for the walk to the bath-house.

Roy shrugs and reaches for his trousers. "I don't doubt they would hate me if I've believed in them." He finds his shirt, too, and puts it on without buttoning it. He's ready.

Maes swings his shirt and trousers over his shoulder and extends his hand towards the fair general. "Let's go. It's still early, no-one should be on the passages save the servants."

"And they won't stare?" Roy asks, as he takes Maes' hand. He doesn't take the servants granted, nor does he look through them. Probably because of the cultural differences.

"No. they were all raised as commoners. If they see a priest, they bow. If they see a warlord or noble, they'll kneel down. If they see me, they don't even dare to look up until I passed them. You know, it's one of the things I'd like to change. If Ishbal will keep up like this, we'll be swallowed up by time and history. We should start to change."

Roy nods. "Your nobles and priests, who enjoy their birthrights, will protest; you need to work slowly." He remembers to the passages as they go, and he snickers at the irony. As soon as he learned the way, he won't need it anymore. This thought leads to another and he turns his head to the prince. "Will you release my men also?"

"Yes, most probably. Gran promised me more prisoners of war, so I guess we'll even up our scores. And you're right, the process has to go on slowly. The first step has to be the peace." Maes stops and opens the door. "Here we are. I promise to make you feel better."

The general nods at this - he would have hated to leave anyone here. But the walk is over and they are at the bath-house, and Maes' words sound interesting. "How do you plan to do that?" Roy asks in a low voice, stepping close to Maes. He has some ideas, some sweaty, noisy ideas, but isn't sure if the prince agrees or not.

Maes blinks back innocently. "Well, I had a nice bath in mind and a good, strong massage. Or is that not for your liking...?"

Roy pouts and puts his hands on Maes' abdomen. "I was thinking more on this way."

"What, should I rub your belly?" Maes can't help it, he grins widely. Teasing Roy is fun!

"Pff!" Roy smacks Maes' behind with his other hand and turns away from the prince. He goes to the pool with the hot water and starts to undress, grinning a little. He's glad the prince snapped out of his serious mood - even though he made fun from the Amestrisian.

Maes swiftly strolls behind the general and embraces his waist from behind. "Apparently, you had other ideas." But he places a hand on Roy's abdomen and starts to rub it, in slow circles. "Care to share? I'm not a mind-reader either."

Roy leans back, resting his weight on the prince's slightly taller form. "Just wanted to continue what we did yesterday..." He smiles up and puts his hands around Maes' neck. "More slowly and gentler of course, minding your backside."

"Hmm..." It's really hard to resist your lover, when he's naked in your arms and he's stretching in your embrace like a cat. Maes slips his hand lower, to the general's crotch and strokes his manhood. "You'd like to have me? Well, until I can sit down, I wouldn't mind it, my love."

"Good." Roy grins like the Cheshire cat and rubs himself a little against Maes. He stops abruptly and pulls away to step into the hot water. He forgot how sore he is, but his little teasing reminded him fast.

The prince shrugs off his robe and follows Roy. He gathers the soap and the washcloth and steps to his beloved. "Will you allow me to wash you?"

"Will you still massage me after it?" Roy asks with big puppy eyes. He plays with Maes and he knows it.

"Of course, my love. Any time." Maes suspects a trap but he's willing to walk into it.

Roy smiles sweetly and steps close to Maes. Their bodies are almost touching. "Even if I tease you endlessly, testing your willpower, and not giving myself when you reach your limits but taking you instead?" The general's voice is low, his tone is suggestive and seducing, and he's smirking.

Maes gives up. "I can't promise strong touches then, but yes. Tease me, test me and take me. I don't care." And he leans closer to steal a kiss.

Roy pulls back with a grin. "You don't care now, and you'll go mad, as I take you slowly and gently... Or would you prefer to embarrass yourself before my compatriots?" This goes better and better and he licks at Maes' neck.

"If I remember correctly, I endured your little games before," Maes begins to rub Roy's back with the cloth slowly. "But no, please. I believe, General Gran might get disgusted with me and he won't be up to negotiations. It'd be better to hide my blasphemous sexual interests as long as I can, don't you agree?" Despite the serious words, the prince's voice is laced with amusement.

Roy frowns. "'Blasphemous'?" he asks startled. He ignores everything else, but this one. Maes does believe in Ishbala. So this is a really hard word to describe their relationship, not one would use as a teasing.

"I meant your country's religion. Or am I wrong...? I haven't done much research on this topic."

The tension leaves Roy's body and he shrugs with a smile. "Neither have I, but yes, God forbids it." He kisses Maes slowly and tenderly. "Gran doesn't believe in God. Alchemists usually don't. However, I think, we should leave the general out of our conversation for a time at least. Thinking about him is a sure way to kill my libido." Roy cocks an eyebrow after a pause. "Or was it your plan from the start?" His eyes are laughing, but he manages to keep a straight face.

"Oh, no, I wouldn't think of such a thing!" Maes protests. "No generals then. Want to pretend you're my warlord? Or maybe you want to be the prince while I'm a commoner?" The idea sounds nice; Maes would love to play a little - and it'll result in lovemaking soon too, so-

"Oh you can stay the prince, Maes." Roy smiles and slowly caresses the dark-skinned chest. "I don't care about your rank for a long time." His smile turns wicked and his voice is just a whisper now. "But I have to wonder, what kind of man you would be if you weren't the prince. Still this beautiful, smart, generous, and caring one? Would your only loss be the arrogance and smugness you seem to radiate?"

Maes cocks an eyebrow. "You mind that? The arrogance and the smugness? That balances out my otherwise angelic nature!" Then, he considers the question seriously. "I have no idea, who would I be if not a prince. I was born to be one, I never had the choice to choose."

"Oh, I don't mind them." Roy laughs and kisses Maes' face. "You're perfect as you are." He brushes back his hair from his eyes. "I could have chosen another carrier, but I didn't want, so I have neither any idea of my civil personality. Probably a little less smug and self-confident. Less lethal."

Maes rolls his eyes. "Just because you can trample on me and my first warlord, it doesn't mean you're lethal. Try Riza once, she's a hard one to charm! Even I failed, although she's my concubine."

Roy shakes his head with a little smile. "I didn't speak about that."

Instead of continuing the topic, he scratches Maes' chest. "I'm clean. Want my massage."

Maes vaguely remembers some half-serious promise about sex but if Roy wants his massage, he'll get it. "Lie down on one of the benches then. I'll get the oil, my love."

Roy nods and after one last submerging he climbs out of the water. He feels better than when he woke up, and he hopes the prince knows how to massage. The Amestrisian lies down on his stomach, puts his hands under his head and waits for Maes.

The prince walks to the shelves and picks a bottle of oil he likes. It's citrus-scented, very refreshing and has some menthol in it too, so it cools the skin down. He walks back then and leans over the foreign general. He pours some oil on his hands and smoothes it over the pale back then begins to work the fresh-smelling substance into the skin. His touch is strong and skilled; he learned this, too, out of fun, but the knowledge came handy a few times.

Roy purrs softly, closing his eyes as Maes starts to work on him. "Feels nice... Very nice." He comments.

Maes smiles and moves downwards with the caresses, to the middle of Roy's back and his waist. He loves the silky skin under his hands and the scent of lemon and orange lightens his mood too. Finally, he slips a hand on the Amestrisian's rear, kneading the firm buttocks with a small grin. Roy has a delicious-looking backside.

Roy yelps as Maes touches his buttocks, and whines softly - mostly as a teasing. "Gentler, Maes; I'm sore, because you didn't have enough self-control yesterday..." He knows, he's in a vulnerable position and Maes has a similar appetite in sex as he. So the whining, to put the prince off.

"You're too sensitive," Maes declares but his touches turn gentler and soothing. He slips one finger between those pale half-globes, to ghost over the opening, like a feather's caress. "Does it hurt that much? Should I... kiss it better?" It sounds dirty but Maes shrugs it off. Last time, Roy had no objections. Although, he was hanging from the ceiling that time.

Roy shivers at the suggestion, but shakes his head slowly. "It hurts, because there was no oil. And I'd rather if you were kissing me mouth." Roy's muscles are relaxed, and he feels sleepy. He isn't sure if he wants to make love or not. And if Maes does that, there won't be any questions - he'll claim the prince, probably as hard as he was claimed.

Maes finds the "challenge" acceptable, so he kneels down and caresses Roy's face. "Give me your mouth then, that I could kiss your sweet lips," he whispers.

"Sweet?" Roy lifts his head and cracks open his eyes to sleepily blink at Maes. The prince's skin is dark and his burgundy eyes have a strong and steady fire in them. Beautiful.

"You're half asleep, Joonam." Maes caresses the general's black hair. Still, the comment warms him up in the inside. "You should get dressed and return to your room, to catch an hour of sleep. I don't know when you will be needed."

"Why would I be needed?" Roy asks, and doesn't bother to deny his sleepiness. The need to get dressed brings up another soon to be problem. "By the way, what happened to my uniform?" He slowly sits up and leans toward the prince for his kiss.

"I let it to be washed and mended and it's in my chambers. You'll get it back, don't worry. Maes opens his mouth and his tongue plays tag with the general's. He ignores the first question on purpose, because the answer will involve Gran as well.

"With everything? My gloves also?" There is a little bit of hope in Roy's voice, something he can't keep out, even though he tries.

"You didn't have gloves, when you were brought to me," Maes frowns lightly. "Why would those gloves be so important?"

"My gloves..." Roy smiles sadly. He forgot that they were lost before he met the prince. And this time he can't ignore the question. "They had an array inked on them. They're my weapon of choice."

Maes blinks. "Scar told me about those arrays. You managed to turn the torches' flames against him. So you wear them on your hands, clever... but what if there's no fire around you?"

"It's a very expensive and unusual material from which they were made. I didn't need the living fire, because I could create a spark anytime I've wanted." Roy answers and shrugs. "But it doesn't really matter. They are lost, there is nothing to do."

Maes can't help but hug the fair man close. “I'm sorry about them, really. They're really special. I hope you'll get another pair." He really hopes that. Honestly. That'd mean, Roy's alive. "Come, let's dress. I should have breakfast and check up with my warlords." He kisses Roy once again. "And you'll go to sleep."

"Yes, sir," Roy answers, saluting lazily. "You're going to walk me back?" He asks with a smile. He doesn't ask if the prince trusts him enough to let him wander alone. It wouldn't be fair to ask. "But first, I need my clothes."

Maes stands and gathers Roy's clothes from the floor. "Let me dress you? And I'll walk you back." The prince intends to get a last kiss, last hug. Well, they can be the last.

Roy takes his clothes. "No, thanks. I can manage." As he dresses up, he makes it into a slow and sensual show, just to tease Maes.

The prince sits on the ground and gazes up on the beautiful body. He loves to watch it move and the sight chases some blood into his manhood. Maybe he can take care of it before breakfast. When he was younger... Oh, well. The memories make him smile. Then, the prince stands and takes his robe.

Roy grins and pulls Maes' head down for a kiss. After pulling back, he continues to grin. "We can go now, I think."

"Yes." Maes takes Roy's hand and walks out. He's silent all the way back. The idea of the fair general leaving still weights him down and until he won't have a serious reason, Maes doesn't feel like putting much effort into concealing it.

Roy is sleepy on the other hand, and he needs to concentrate on his own legs to not fall, and he doesn't really notice the silence. When they reach his door, he pulls Maes into the room for one last deep kiss. "Be careful, Maes."

"The same goes to you, Joonam" Maes whispers breathlessly. "And don't forget, that I love you and I always will."

"I won't." Roy smiles and opens the door to Maes. One of them has to be strong enough to part, and Roy wants to make it easier for the prince. "Go now, my lord."

Maes nods and turns his back, to rush off. If he'd look back, he couldn't leave, and he also wants to return to his chambers, to curl his own fingers around his member and stroke it, until the burning white pleasure purges his soul, mind and body - if only for a moment.

Roy curls on his bed and waits for the dreams, but he's cold without the prince's added heat next to him. He shivers, and pulls the blanket more tightly around himself, but it doesn't help, it can't replace Maes.

Comments

[shin-sama-13.livejournal.com]

darn it! i can't believe that i already read all of the story. sigh. so good! i would love it if you could update soon.
oh my god! at the end i was so torn! i wanted roy to stay with maes, but i wanted to see what would happen if he went back with gran. lol.

[okami-hu.livejournal.com]

There's one more. ^_^ I added it yesterday.