Title: Christmas Games
By: nancy
Pairing: John Reese/Harold Finch pre-slash
Fandom: Person of Interest
Rating: PG13
spoilers: to present
series: 25 Days of Xmas
warnings: shmoop, unbeta'd
summary: John picks out a Christmas gift for Finch.

***

What did someone get the man who literally had unlimited funds and access to just about everything on the planet? John gazed pensively through the window of a bookstore and then walked inside. The air was musty and held that paper smell that reminded him of the older libraries, including the one that had become their de facto headquarters.

It wasn't that Finch needed another book. They were surrounded by them almost every day and with a selection that far exceeded what meager shelves existed in this bookshop. It was more that whenever John was near any real amount of books, he thought of Finch. Books and birds. Both reminded him vividly of the other man, his stiff, sometimes jerky movements and the slightly musty smell to him that came from being in the library so much.

John's hand drifted along a shelf, fingers trailing over hardcovers from the last century. Old books. Big books. Some with leather covers, some not.

"Lookin' for somethin' in particular?"

John glanced briefly at the old man and his cane, dismissing him as any kind of threat. He had almost no hair, a slight hump to his back, and the paper-thin skin of the very old. "No."

The old man's mouth pursed and then he shrugged and hobbled back to the counter at the side of the shop.

John took his time, looking through at books when his finger lingered, letting impulse dictate his movements for a very short time. He ended up with his hands on a first edition book about Charlemagne from 1847, an author he'd never heard of who'd written a comprehensive book larger than even most of those written at the time. John's mouth quirked briefly, thinking about how that definitely reminded him of Finch; a behind-the-scenes man who knew a lot about everything.

He brought his purchase to the counter and paid the exorbitant price without a protest. Some things were worth the money. He couldn't wait to see the look on Finch's face as the other man tried to figure out why John had bought this particular book. It would keep him off-balance for hours, maybe a couple of days and that was a gift for John.

Whistling cheerfully, John left the bookstore and walked towards the subway station. He looked up at the nearest camera and winked at it. In all likelihood, Finch was watching him and trying to figure out his latest behavioral quirk.

Let the Christmas games begin.

end

***