Work Text:
Seiichirou looked over the ingredients that were gathered on the counter, nodding to himself as he went over the list he held in his mind’s eye. Pavel stood nearby, watching him with a hint of anxiety, clearly hoping that he had understood the request correctly and had gathered the correct items. Satisfied, Seiichirou turned a warm smile to the man and nodded, “This is excellent, Pavel, thank you.”
“Of course!” the man grinned proudly with relief, tapping his chest with a burly fist. “I’m excited to see what you plan to do with them!”
Laughing with a hint of embarrassment, Seiichirou looked over the counter, his cheeks burning with a faint shade of pink. “I’m hoping with your guidance they’ll come out well. I understand the theory of how to make what I have in mind, but I’ve never actually done it.”
“Alright, tell me what’s up, and I’ll see to it this gets done right!” the chef boasted, pushing his sleeves up his arms. Seiichirou used to wonder how a chef got arms like that, but after watching Pavel make bread one morning, and realizing he did so everyday, it became clear just how the man’s physique came to be.
Seiichirou nodded and explained his plan. Nodding along, Pavel took some notes and his grin grew wider and wider the more he heard. “This is a wonderful idea, Kondou! Master Aresh will love it, I’m sure!”
“I hope so,” he shyly answered. “I know the tradition doesn’t exist here, but I still wanted to do something…”
“I think it’s a lovely tradition! If you mentioned it to more people, I’m sure it would take off here as well! Who doesn’t enjoy an excuse to celebrate loved ones?”
“I suppose. Anyways, do you think this is everything we’ll need, or did I miss something?”
“This is perfect! I’ll get to work right away!”
“No!” Seiichirou interrupted, his face bright red at the confused expression turned on him. “It’s just, it means something different, when the giver personally makes the gift. I would appreciate your help in making sure it comes out right, but I want to do the work myself. If, that’s okay…,” it occurred to him belatedly that the kitchen wasn’t his, and he really ought to have permission before taking it over.
Pavel smiled in encouragement, clapping Seiichirou’s shoulder under one large hand and flashing a thumbs-up with the other. “Of course it’s okay! And I’ll be right here to answer any questions you have!”
Relieved, Seiichirou nodded and smiled up at him, “Thank you, Pavel!”
With that, the pair got to work. Aresh was out on expedition, but from his letters, Seiichirou knew he ought to return the next day, which worked out well. If he had done his math correctly - and he was certain he had - it was mid-February in his world, which meant a certain holiday was at hand. Sure, in Japan, it was usually women giving gifts for Valentine’s Day, but White Day was supposed to be about reciprocation more than giving a gift out of the blue, so it made sense for him to act now. In plenty of countries, it was all done on the same day, so it wasn’t that outlandish for him to prepare a gift now instead of a month later.
Aresh wasn’t very big on sweets, he had observed, but the man did enjoy fruits. And wine. That led Seiichirou to some ideas on what to prepare, rather than the traditional chocolates. He didn’t want to break too far from tradition, so there would be some chocolate, but it was melted down with some red wine before being used to coat fruits. With Pavel’s help, he also made syrups from a couple of different wines and dipped fruits in those as well.
They put the coated fruits in the fridge, which was powered by magic stones, and Seiichirou grumbled when he was kicked out of the kitchen when trying to assist with the clean-up. He hoped Aresh would like the gift, and he kept thinking on how exactly he would present it on the following day.
Seiichirou rolled his shoulders as the carriage gently rattled down the road to the manor. His coworkers had been surprised when he had joined them in getting ready just before the bell called the end of the workday, as he usually worked right up to and beyond it. Especially when Aresh wasn’t around to collect him. He had heard that the Third Royal Order had indeed returned as expected, but it had been a long expedition, and so everyone had gone home the moment they were dismissed.
Exiting the carriage, he was greeted by an eager Pavel and a far more reserved Valtom who informed him that Aresh was upstairs in his rooms. “Do you want to bring it up now?” Pavel asked him, practically vibrating with excitement. “I did as you asked and arranged it like a bouquet, and I added some candied flowers as well.”
Flushing at the exuberance, Seiichirou was always at a loss at how invested the household staff was in their relationship. He nodded slowly, dumbly, and watched in awe as Pavel ran off at speed to return moments later with a beautiful bouquet of the fruits and berries they had prepared the day before. Valtom watched on with a pleased expression as Seiichirou thanked Pavel for the help and went upstairs to greet his lover.
He went first to his own room to change out of his work clothes into something more relaxed for lounging around the house, then took the treats with him to stand at Aresh’s door and knock. “Come in,” came the deep voice from beyond the door, and Seiichirou noted some of the fatigue carried in those words.
Opening up, he peeked in and saw Aresh rising from where he had likely been napping on a couch. Smiling at him, and unable to bury his blush, Seiichirou entered and laughed nervously at the raised eyebrow his burden received. “Uhm, it’s a tradition, where I’m from,” he explained, speaking quickly thanks to his nerves. “Well, actually, I’m mixing traditions from a few countries in my world, but it’s all got the same meaning, really. We give gifts to our loved ones on this day, as a sign of appreciation. In my country, it’s usually handmade chocolates for someone you love, uhm, romantically, but you don’t like chocolates that much, so I thought something like this might be more to your taste, uh.”
He was interrupted by the vase full of skewered fruits being taken from him by one arm, another wrapping around his waist and pulling him flush against Aresh’s body as lips descended hungrily on his. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment, resting his hands on a broad chest and silently reassuring himself that Aresh was alright. Of course he was. But the worry never really left him in spite of what he knew, and so he trailed his hands over that strong body to seek out any sign of injury.
“I don’t have anything for you, though,” Aresh muttered, seeming disappointed that he had missed out on the tradition.
Laughing, Seiichirou shook his head, “It isn’t like I expected anything, since you didn’t know.”
“Still, I would have-.”
“Five weeks.”
“-what?”
Seiichirou smiled, leading Aresh over to the couch and stifling a yelp when he was tugged into the knight’s lap. “Five weeks,” he repeated instead, wrapping arms across broad shoulders and pressing his face into the side of Aresh’s throat. “In my country, we have a day for reciprocation. It’s about four of our weeks later, or 28 days, since our weeks are seven days long. Yours are six days, though, so five weeks, or 30 days, makes more sense, don’t you think?”
Aresh rubbed his back thoughtfully, and nodded after a moment. “Alright. In five weeks, I’ll do something for you. What would you like?”
“Whatever you see fit to give me,” Seiichirou chuckled, pulling him in for a kiss. “Usually it’s more chocolates and flowers, but it can be anything, really. Actually, in my country, Valentine’s Day - that is, today - is when girls give gifts, to each other as friends, and to men, both friends and lovers alike. Store bought for friends, homemade for lovers. Then White Day, the reciprocation day, is when men give gifts to the girls. Usually chocolates, but for lovers there might be flowers and more personal gifts, or a date night, or something like that.”
Nodding at the explanation, Aresh threaded fingers through Seiichirou’s short, silky-cool hair and leaned in for a deep kiss. He signed happily against parted lips as Seiichirou leaned into the affection, holding nothing back. After some time spent like that, Aresh reluctantly pulled away and turned his attention to the gift. “So, what exactly is all this, anyway?”
“Oh,” Seiichirou mumbled, sounding dazed as his mind rebooted. He blinked at the arrangement and smiled timidly. “Well, you seem to like fruit a lot, and while you don’t go after chocolate much, you don’t seem to mind if it isn’t too sweet. So I asked Pavel’s help in making sure I got the ratios right and didn’t burn anything, and made these coated fruits for you. There’s red wine in the chocolate, and the others are dipped in syrups we made from red or white wines.”
“Hm,” Aresh reached out and plucked a skewer with fruits reminiscent of strawberries, pineapples, and blueberries covered in a clear glaze of a white wine syrup. “If everything has wine in it, I won’t be able to share it with you,” he sounded disappointed.
“I thought you might say that. The red wine is definitely too much for me, but Pavel helped me find a white wine you would enjoy that isn’t fortified with extra magicules.”
Intrigued, Aresh tried a piece of the fruit, testing it for potency, then nodded in satisfaction. He then held it out for Seiichirou, grinning and encouraging him to take a bite. Flushing at being fed, he gave Aresh what he wanted and leaned in to take a bite, nodding in satisfaction. “Mm, it’s good… Pavel had to try everything since we didn’t want you yelling at us… I’m glad it came out so well.”
Aresh smirked, leaning in to nuzzle the side of his face and kiss below his ear, murmuring softly, “Thank you, Seiichirou.”
“Hm? For the fruit?”
“That too, but for taking care of yourself while I wasn’t here.”
“I’m much too old to keep getting lectured like I’m a child,” Seiichirou teased, reaching over and grabbing another skewer of fruits, ones dipped in the wine-infused chocolate, and he held it up for Aresh to take from. “It’s less hassle to follow your rules. Most of the time.”
Holding eye contact, Aresh looked almost predatory as he opened his mouth to close around a berry and drag it from the stick. Seiichirou shivered at the expression, and found himself on his back shortly after. “I really do, need to reward you, then. So you keep up the good behavior.” Aresh’s deep voice was hoarse with need and warm with affection, the mix causing Seiichirou’s gut to cramp painfully tight with his own desires.
“I’m not a pet to train,” Seiichirou grumbled, though his protest sounded weak to his own ears. He groaned as a hand slid into his shirt to rub across his chest, teasing at hot skin made all the more sensitive with want. “Aresh, let me, let me put this down at least. And the one you’re holding…”
Aresh ducked his head to eat another piece of fruit from the skewer held by Seiichirou, offering his own at the same time. Violet gaze locked onto that of dark steel, they finished off the fruits from those first two skewers before turning all of their attention onto one another’s bodies, thoroughly enjoying a long evening together.