FIC: Van Wazir – Seller of Exotic Pets ~ FMAB ~ May Chang & Al Elric ~ Teen

[batsutousai]

Title: Van Wazir – Seller of Exotic Pets
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood/manga
Author: Batsutousai
Rating: Teen
Pairings: May Chang & Alphonse Elric
Warnings: Alternate Universe, pre-shippy
Summary: In the foreign quarter of Xing's capital city, there is a shop which claims it can find the customer the exact pet they need, no matter how rare. And while not every customer leaves with what they came for, they always leave happy.

Disclaim Her: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Arakawa Hiromu and various publishers. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

A/N: For day 6 of AlMei Week on tumblr. Today's prompt is AU/Crossover.
If you're familiar at all with Pet Shop of Horrors, you'll probably see some similarities. If not, carry on reading. ;)

So I actually originally got this idea for RairPair Week's prompt day with both 'pets' and 'crossovers', but it fits today's prompt just fine, and I'm still not 100% if AlMei actually counts as a rairpair, so.

You can also read this at Archive of Our Own, Fanfiction.Net, or tumblr.

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Coming to the capital city, May considered more days than not, had been a mistake. Buying favour for her clan's survival was vital, yes, and she would stop at nothing for them, but the capital was a...trying place.

"Trying," May whispered to herself with a grim sort of smile.

Being a lesser clan meant she wasn't on many of her halfsiblings' hit lists, which meant she had to dodge far fewer assassination attempts than most of her halfsiblings. It also, however, meant that no one saw any point in attempting to curry favour with her. Or even talk to her at all.

She was lonely.

It hadn't been hard to hear about the little Xerxesian pet shop clustered with the rest of the foreign shops. After all, plenty of her halfsiblings had bought guard animals or birds to shrill warnings in case of an attack. Too, it was hard to walk through the city, outside the palace walls, and not hear about the gentle Xerxesian man who never let a customer leave without exactly the pet they needed, even if it wasn't the one they wanted. And payment, by all reports, was of no concern.

It was the last, more than the loneliness, that had decided May. Because she could never skim off the supplies her clan so desperately needed, but, for free, she could allow herself a bit of companionship.

Which brought her to stand in front of the building. Unlike some of the other buildings in this part of town, the pet shop had kept to Xingan architecture, muddling the origin of the shop. 'Wazir', she'd heard, was a Xerxesian title, but that was the only outward sign of nationality.

Once she'd stepped inside, however, she found herself surrounded by an impossibly rich paradise: Sandstone flooring sparkled with miniature gems that caught the light of the soft glow of Xerxesian alchemical lights. Most of the metal furnishings looked to be gold or silver, while silk tapestries depicting so many animals lined sandstone walls. The two couches looked plush and comfortable, while a table made entirely of glass sat between them, a delicate china teapot and two cups set out on it, with a plate of sachima cut into rectangles next to the teapot.

"Welcome, May Gongzhu," the man seated on the couch facing May said with a faint hint of an accent, his smile kind. There was a lazy-eyed cat seated firmly on his lap, excusing his lack of bowing, assuming he was the sort of foreigner to care. His hair and eyes were both a brilliant gold, and his skin was an unfamiliar golden-brown; he was very clearly Xerxesian, even wore the bright, gaudy tunic of his people. Or, well, May had always thought of Xerxesian clothing as gaudy, from seeing it on the Xerxesian ambassadors in court, but this man wore it well. Perhaps a bit too well, given the way her heart was speeding up.

"V-Van Wazir, I presume?" May returned, firmly attempting to remind herself that she was a princess, and it was her duty to marry well. Which meant not some fancy foreigner who had the kindest smile she'd seen since leaving her clan two years before.

The man's smile turned a bit helpless. "Van is my father; my name is Alphonse." He motioned toward the empty couch across from him. "Won't you please join me, Gongzhu?"

May moved around the couch to sit, hoping it wasn't obvious how nervous she felt. "You were expecting me?" she had to ask, given the second cup. (Not to mention the sachima, which happened to be her favourite sweet; it was considered a bit too common by the head of the palace kitchens, so she rarely got it any more.)

"I was expecting someone," Alphonse replied, still smiling as he picked up the teapot and poured it first into her cup, then his own, somehow managing to keep from disturbing the cat on his lap. (May was duly impressed.)

May was vaguely startled to recognise the scent of the tea her mother had always made, maojian, and she immediately reached for her cup, bringing it closer so she could enjoy the familiar fragrance, and trying desperately to blink back the tears forming in her eyes.

It would figure, of course, that she would feel most at home in a foreign shop.

She cleared her throat and hurriedly said, "I came for a pet," hoping Alphonse would take the bait and not comment on her upset.

"Most do," Alphonse agreed, politely pushing a cloth napkin across the table, then picking up his own tea and taking a careful sip. "One day," he added as May brushed her tears away with the offered napkin, "someone will come just with the intention of having tea with me. Alas."

"You said 'most'," May couldn't help but point out. "What do those who don't want pets come for?"

There was something almost...broken, really, in the gold of Alphonse's eyes. "What sort of pet are you looking for?" he asked, instead of answering her question.

May scowled and took a long sip of her own tea, giving herself a moment to enjoy it, make him wait on her.

Except, when she peeked back out at him, he was still smiling his kind smile, petting the cat in his lap and clearly content to wait on her.

Shame burned through May, and she ducked her head; she was becoming as bad as her spoilt half-sisters! "I don't really...know," she admitted quietly. "Not a, ah, guard dog, or anything. More...friendly, I guess?" She chanced a glance up at him.

He was watching her, his kind smile traded for a thoughtful look. Not quite a frown, but closer to that than a smile. "Friendly," he repeated, a little like he was tasting the word. And then his smile was back, his eyes catching May's. "Would you tell me some of your clan? They live up in the northern hills, correct?"

"Yes," May agreed, uncertain. "Why, though? Do you not have a pet for me?" Somehow, that wouldn't surprise her in the least.

"Oh, I think I know exactly who will suit you," Alphonse promised, before looking down at the cat in his lap. "But Master Declan won't be moving any time soon, and it would be a shame to waste such lovely tea, don't you agree?"

Well, that sounded reasonable enough, and May had been ignoring the sachima, which was a true shame. She took one of the rectangles, took a moment to enjoy the familiar taste – having it with the tea of her childhood was doing terrible things to her old homesickness, but she couldn't quite bring herself to turn down either treat – then started telling him of her family. Her mother and her stepfather and the halfsiblings that she actually liked. She told him of long hours in the fields, of learning alkahestry and martial arts, of listening to ancient poetry as they walked along the mountain paths.

She told him of the home she'd left behind, memories so much more vivid with the taste of maojian and sachima on her tongue, and had to keep blinking away tears.

Just as she finished the last of her tea, she was startled by a little panda crawling into her lap and taking a large bite of the sachima she'd been holding in one hand. "Oh, no!" she cried, quickly holding the little bit left out of the tiny panda's reach. "You shouldn't be eating that! It'll make you sick!"

"Oh, Xiao Mei has quite the sturdy constitution," Alphonse promised, sounding utterly unconcerned. "I can't think of a single thing she's got into that she's regretted."

Little black eyes peeked up at May and the panda let out a pitiful little cry, reaching one paw toward the last of May's sachima.

"W-well, I suppose, if it's really okay," May agreed, holding down the treat.

Xiao Mei quickly gobbled it up, letting out a delighted squeak.

"Oh my goodness!" May couldn't quite keep from saying, because the tiny panda was adorable. She'd always loved panda cries, ever since she'd heard one as a child, and only their size – and her mother's firm grip on the back of her qipao – had kept her from rushing toward them and doing something foolish, like hugging one. Her teacup saved her that time, but she still wanted to hug the little panda.

"Xiao Mei is a runt," Alphonse offered, his kind smile gone a little fond. "Her family didn't seem to want her, I assume because she was so small and weak, and they left her to die in the wild, but a traveller came across her and brought her here. She wasn't doing well, but I managed to nurse her back to health."

"You poor thing," May breathed, setting her teacup on the table and picking up the miniature panda to hug.

Xiao Mei let out what might have been a discontent noise, then proceeded to bat at one of her braids.

"She reminds me, a little, of your clan," Alphonse commented, before sipping at his tea.

May couldn't help but stare at him, because he was...right. Too small, too weak, struggling to survive and getting no help from any other Xingans, because why would they care about a clan that barely managed to feed themselves? And May, too, trapped in the capital and feeling so very alone... Wasn't that the exact boat little Xiao Mei was in?

She blinked and, apparently without actually moving, Alphonse was crouched down on the floor next to her, his smile a little bit apologetic, clearly aware he'd startled her. "Would you please take Xiao Mei with you? I believe you both need a friend."

"O-oh," May stammered, looking down at the mini panda in her arms.

Xiao Mei looked back up at her and squeaked, and May knew there was no way she could ever hope to refuse.

"Of course," she whispered, rubbing her thumb gently against Xiao Mei's cheek, which the panda leant into, eyes sliding closed.

"Wonderful." Alphonse stood and May looked over to find him stepping silently over to a cabinet against the wall behind his couch. His clothing was absolutely silent, so unlike the quiet rasp of Xingan clothing, and May assumed that was why she hadn't noticed him moving, before. "I have a contract you'll have to sign, saying you promise to take care of Xiao Mei, and that the shop isn't liable if she runs off or anything, and then you're welcome to take her with you back to the palace."

"I had– I heard you don't really ask for payment?" May asked, feeling a little awkward having to ask.

"Sometimes I do," Alphonse replied carelessly, smiling as he moved back toward her with a pen and paper. "When a customer can afford it, or they're especially rude." He winked at her, and May couldn't keep herself from smiling back, because she could think of a number of her halfsiblings who would have fit that description. "Here you are," he said as he set the paper and pen on the table, then called, "Xiao Mei, come here for a moment."

The little panda let out a pathetic sort of whine, but when May set her down in her lap, she trundled over to Alphonse's waiting hands, and promptly chomped on his thumb.

"Oh no!" May stared at him, horrified.

But Alphonse simply chuckled and tickled under Xiao Mei's chin until she let go, showing his thumb was unharmed. "She's a bit of a biter, I'm afraid," he admitted, scratching the panda's head, "but she doesn't tend to actually use her teeth unless she's feeling threatened."

"That's..." May swallowed, remembering some of the snarling part-wolves her halfsiblings kept, and the bright gleam of light on the silver of blades that everyone who didn't wish to be caught and killed in the halls of the palace kept on their person. "That's good," she settled on, because at least that meant Xiao Mei wouldn't be completely defenceless.

"Perhaps," Alphonse murmured, still smiling, but there was something in his eyes that reminded May of her first nights in the palace, so terrified and alone.

And then it was gone, and he was just smiling again, kind as ever. "For her diet, Xiao Mei should have just bamboo, but she's quite happy to eat anything you set in front of her. I have aimed to keep sweets to a minimum, just because sugar plays havoc with the digestive systems of most animals, but she gets into my stash often enough, and she's seemed to handle it well."

"I'll keep that in mind," May promised, because the last thing she wanted was for Xiao Mei to wind up sick because she wasn't watching what she ate.

"Yes," Alphonse murmured, and traded Xiao Mei for the contract as soon as May had signed it. "Well then, Gongzhu." He bowed. "Thank you for your business, and please do take care of Xiao Mei for me."

"I– O-of course!" May managed, a little thrown by the sudden formalities. She stood, holding Xiao Mei close to her chest. "Thank you, Alphonse xiansheng."

She turned and made for the door of the shop, feeling so very lonely again, despite Xiao Mei's head bumping against her chin with every step.

"One day," Alphonse had said at the start, "someone will come just with the intention of having tea with me."

"Would it–?" May started saying before she realised she was going to speak. She stopped, hand on the doorknob, uncertain.

"Gongzhu?" Alphonse asked.

May turned back toward him, straightening her spine and trying to look like the princess he kept calling her, rather than the terrified young woman in a pretty dress that she knew she was. "When I come again, I should like to hear of Xerxes. The ambassadors only ever talk politics."

For one moment, Alphonse's smile was gone, replaced with wide-eyed shock, and May realised that he...wasn't that much older than her, was he?

And then he smiled again, but it looked oddly tired. Honest in a way that she hadn't realised his previous smiles hadn't been. "I think," he said, "that can be arranged. And perhaps I can even tell you some of Amestris."

"You've been to Amestris?" May breathed, enthralled; she didn't know anyone who had visited the war-waging country of the far-west.

Alphonse shook his head, the corners of his eyes crinkling as his smile widened. "No, but my brother lives there, running another pet shop very like this one, and he writes to me of their oddities from time to time."

That was still more than she'd ever had before, and May smiled brightly at him as she said, "Then, until next time!"

"Until next time," Alphonse agreed, and there was something in his voice that could have been wonder or could have been gratitude, May couldn't quite tell. But, either way, it warmed her heart in a way that she hadn't felt in far too long.

She rubbed Xiao Mei's head as she started back up the street to the palace, feeling, at last, like she didn't regret her choice to come to the capital, not even a little.

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