Title: Roses and Reunion
Title: A Rosy Reunion
Disclaimer: Ok, we've said this a million times, but we DO NOT own Fullmetal Alchemist. If we did, then Hughes would still be alive and Rose would be written off the show XD
A/N:
me: Once again, Sora here! Kitty has handed the chair of PoV over to me for this story!
Kitty: Yay! Chair of PoV!
me: Anyway, due to the recent adding of ToR onto a C2 community, we decided to celebrate!
Kitty: With a splurge of writing!!
me: Yeah… well, this is basically a somewhat sequel to ToR consisting of one fluffy little oneshot. Why? Because we couldn't just leave Roy in a depressed slump, duh.
Kitty: Yup, yup! And because we wanted to give everyone something to read while we complete our SECOND (le gasp) fanfic!! Not really ours though, because you see-
me: OK! That's enough, Kitty! No more spoilers!
Kitty: Aw…fine. Guess you'll just have to read it when it comes out!
me: Now let the story begin!
Edit: Ok, we fixed the line things, so it's better now... Oh, and if anyone wants a oneshot for one of the characters from ToR (basically: Winry, Pinako, Roy (a second one XD), Ed, Al, etc.), you know if you want to see what happened to them post-fic, then just put the request in a review and we'll add them to this semi-sequel. Kay, bye now!
Twelve years. Twelve years since his last drink of alcohol. Twelve years since the last time he went out with a woman. Twelve years since he had last seen the Elric brothers alive. Hard to imagine that it had already been twelve goddamn years.
Since their deaths, he had visited them twelve times; today marking the twelfth. Each time, he brought with him three different flowers, a single stunning rose of a different hue for each of them. A kind, pink one for Trisha, an innocent white for Al; and, lastly but certainly not least, a beautiful sapphire rose for Ed. The one Roy held in his hand today marked the twelfth he had given to Edward.
He sighed, Edward's last words to him echoing over and over in his mind.
'…a dozen blue roses….'
So, he had fulfilled his promise already? Had he truly completed the one goal in his life he had left? The thought was almost surreal, in a frightening kind of way.
'What do I do now?' He thought sadly. He couldn't very well continue laying roses year after year on the cold graves. He had treated Edward's last statement as a will of sorts, a dying wish that felt disregarded if he were to add any more or less to the bouquet he had created over the years.
He paused on that thought; all these years he hadn't considered the reason why the roses he had offered never seemed to wither, though he knew that no one watered them and that they had been completely severed from their respective bushes. All these years it had seemed like an unexplainable mystery, one of life's little miracles that weren't meant to have meaning.
'What if…' he thought, shaking his head forlornly as the idea took root in his mind, 'What if nothing. They are dead, Mustang. Dead! They can no easier affect the existing than you can the departed.'
But still, the thought remained. What if the Elrics had seen his offering and kept it alive all this time? What if it was their way of telling him that he was not alone?
Ostensibly, it appeared insane to think such thoughts. But within the confines of his mind, it was beginning to make sense. 'How ironic.'
He chuckled humorlessly. Of course he was alone; otherwise he would be doing something else other than visiting the closest thing he had ever had to a family.
He sighed again, twirling the delicate blue flower in his fingers before placing it gingerly on the grave marking the resting place of the elder of the brothers; he had let go of Hughes long before now, he could do the same for Edward and his family.
And as he walked, a great weight seemed to lift from his shoulders; like he could finally live now that he had bid his friends a final farewell. And his last glance towards the fading tombstones seemed almost symbolic of his newfound ability to let go.
A blue rose meant unattainable and enigmatic; it seemed that Edward was now both.
And Roy could finally accept that.
'How strange,' he thought. Though he knew not how he had arrived in the beautiful and wonderfully perfumed meadow, he didn't quite care. His last memory had been that of driving back to his house in Resembool, as he had decided to spend every summer in the small town, and then hearing a deafening crash before…nothing. He supposed he had hit his head and lost a portion of his memory.
Nonetheless, he thought that he might as well make the best of his time in the space, serious head wound or not.
He took a quick glance around, before noticing something, or rather, someone he hadn't noticed before. A small child with shining blonde hair.
His breath caught; the child seemed too young to be the Edward he knew, but he certainly looked like…. He shook his head to clear it; 'Edward and his family are d-e-a-d. Dead.' he tried to tell himself.
The boy finally turned and Roy could only stand there helplessly when wide, golden eyes met his own. They widened slightly larger in surprise, before turning mocking.
"I didn't think you were that old, bastard." It amused Roy to hear such an innocent voice curse at him, but soon all amusement was forgotten and he couldn't think of anything else to say before running forward and hugging the boy tightly; squeezing his eyes shut lest his tears betray him.
"Full-…Edward…. Is it really you?" His voice sounded meek and shook with unshed tears; almost as though he were the child and the boy in front of him were some long lost and dear friend (which he was).
Said boy merely raised an eyebrow, "'Course it's me." Then his voice turned suddenly serious as he glared, "Don't you dare make a comment about my new height, Mustang."
Roy looked up at the small, rounded face. True, Edward was a lot smaller than he remembered, but he wasn't about to point that out; he was still just happy to see the boy again. Plus, something kept nagging at the back of his mind, an unspoken question that had been answered with Edward's confirmation of his identity.
"Wait," his eyebrows knit together, "Aren't you dead?" Edward stared incredulously at the man before bursting into laughter. Roy knelt there stupidly, not quite sure what was so funny.
Ed wiped a tear from the corner of his eye before speaking again, "Of course I'm dead, and you are too!" He laughed. Roy froze; dead? How…when…?
Seeming to see the internal conflict, Edward's voice took on a grave tone. "It was a car crash, Roy. You were the only casualty." Roy's heart sank; a car crash? Riza and the others would be crushed that he had gone in such a way...
"Hey, are you okay?" Roy looked up to see golden eyes filled with concern; he realized he may have been too silent for too long. "Y-yeah…." he said with less conviction than he had meant the statement to have.
He cleared his throat and tried desperately to change the subject, "Why do you look so…?" He let the question hang in the air.
Edward raised an eyebrow suspiciously at the question but answered anyway, a look of wonder crossing his face, "I don't really know. Mom says that it's because here we become the age that we liked the most, but… I don't know. For some reason, I became some brat but people like Hughes and Mom stayed the same age they were when they died." Here he added a pout for good measure, "Al is around the same age as me, but still…."
Roy blinked. He had heard everything he needed to hear. His eyes softened at the thought of seeing everyone he had lost again, before replying to Edward's musings.
"Maybe it's because they had families, Edward." The blonde looked down confusedly. "Huh?"
"Well, they had children. Don't you think they would want to be the same age that their children remembered them as being?" The boy seemed to consider the thought before understanding lit his face. "That still doesn't explain anything, but oh well."
Roy chuckled, "Some things aren't meant to be explained, Ed." He stood and took Edward's hand in his own, "Now, do you think you can help me find home? I'm a bit lost." He smiled a genuine smile and Edward returned it happily.
"Sure… Roy. Thanks for remembering, by the way." He pulled out a single blue rose.
He looked at it in utter astonishment; and as Edward led him to his final place of rest, Roy could only think of the flowers and if they had withered now that his life had ended.
Then he decided that it didn't matter; because after twelve years and a dozen roses he was finally going home.
Twelve Blue Roses:
A Steadying Enigma
You are my strength; and my weakness.
me: Phew! Now it's finally over!
Kitty: Please R&R!
