The scorching heat had temporarily subsided as the sun began to set. This provided a period of time for travelers to advance through the desert without getting permanently sunburned - if they were insane enough to cross it in the first place.
But there were some insane enough: Three immigrants driven by the pure desire to return to their homeland as soon as possible.
Ling could feel his legs ready to fall off. The first trip was brutal, but before, he had two trustworthy servants who had taken good care of him. This time, he only had one of his servants with him and instead of a reliable partner, he had to deal with a liability of a princess with a panda ready to bite his head off. Plus, his camels had decided to play "hide-and-go-seek" with him during the trip, only to get themselves eaten by desert coyotes, leaving them to walk on foot for a majority of the journey.
First order of business as soon as he is crowned Emperor of Xing: the construction of a railroad from Xing to Amestris. And a law demanding the full loyalty of camels across the world.
They had been traveling for a good three and a half months, but the longer he stayed in the desert, the more he longed to live inside the palace he would acquire as soon as he handed over the Philosopher's Stone. He had kept it safe around his neck in the form of a necklace, knowing full well that it was his only shot of becoming Emperor other than a battle royale, which he did not particularly prefer.
He looked behind him at Mei, whom he had regrettably brought along with him after the war with the Homunculli. Though the two were on better terms with each other since their old competition over the throne, they were often at odds, something that would take time to change.
As he made a closer inspection of her, he could see the fatigue in her posture, something that was visible in all three of them. They had agreed to try their best to tough out the tail end of the journey without stopping - a huge mistake.
He looked over at Lan Fan, his trusted servant for over five years. He knew the desert journey had taken a toll on her, especially with her automail - all the more reason to get out as soon as he could. Though he couldn't see her face, he knew she was on the last of her energy supply. Not wanting to burden him with responsibilities, she had taken the duty to go hunt for food and find rare water reserves. She even went out of her way to scout for enemies during the night, though he couldn't think of a single person who would was stupid enough to travel through the desert during the summer besides himself. She was taking on the burdens both she and her late grandfather had divided between themselves during their last trip, thus wiping herself out.
He knew he was going to have to give her a long break as soon as they reached Xing; a mandatory break, that is.
Lan Fan was beginning to pant, continually having to slow her pace as they ascended up a sandy hill. Each bag of luggage they brought with them was beginning to feel heavier and heavier on her back. She knew it was her responsibility to carry the load, and she didn't regret as long as she did it for her master.
But the burden on her body was beginning to take its toll. She found herself using all her energy just to prevent herself from falling onto the sand. Soon, her willpower lost to the fatigue of her body and she began to fall.
But she didn't fall.
Surprised that she didn't fall, she opened her eyes to see herself floating above the ground. This is what she had believed until she saw she was being carried on the shoulder of her master. "Young Master, you shouldn't be wasting your energy carrying me. If I am too tired to continue, you should just press on without me," she said, trying to shake loose from his grip. But Ling just smacked her on the head.
"Yeah, like I'm going to leave you behind now. Come on, Lan Fan, think! If I carried you through Central with Fuhrer Bradley and another Hommunculus trying to kill me, would I leave you while we're traveling through the desert just because you're tired? You're my most trusted vassal and there is no way I'm going to Xing without you," he said as he continued to make his way up the slope of sand.
Though she wouldn't say it out loud, she was deeply thankful to Ling. She had made mistakes in the past, many costly, but he just smiled away at her and told her not to worry. Not that she didn't worry, but it gave her a warm feeling inside to know that her master cared for her.
She didn't notice herself begin to blush as she was being carried, but Ling didn't let it go by unnoticed, suddenly letting out an evil smirk.
As she was lost in thought, she felt she was rising in the air. She was shocked, but didn't have the energy to squirm in the air and she descended into her master's arms. She looked at his face, which showed a playful and cheery mood. She couldn't help but blush at the position she was in now.
"Young Master, what are you doing?"
But Ling just continued to smile as he carried her in bridal style. "You looked a little out of it, so I decided to give you a little 'lift', you know what I mean?" he asked, smiling slyly.
"This is unfitting of a prince. You shouldn't be carrying your servants in such a manner!"
"Well, you are my servant, so I will order you to let me carry you in this position until I get tired of it," he ordered, knowing that she couldn't counter that.
Just as he had predicted, she wasn't able to find the words to react to his order. She knew there was no stopping him when he played his card of superiority, so she just decided to try and relax even the littlest bit.
"Ling Yao, hurry up!" Mei called to them at the top of the hill, urging him to start to run. His feet imprinted into sand as he stomped his way eagerly to the peak. Once he reached it, he looked out, taking in the view.
"Xing, your soon-to-be Crowned Prince has come back!" letting out the biggest smile he could.
The small village was bustling with farmers transporting their goods. Unlike in Central, most of the produce in Xing is grown locally and quickly sent to the market.
Salesmen filled the streets, offering merchandise ranging from little trinkets to carriages for transportation. The sound of children gleefully running around filled the street; it was a sound Ling very much enjoyed growing up. He was taking in much of his surroundings, almost to the point where he had forgotten about his ravenous hunger.
But a man of Xing can never forget about his hunger for food.
Just as he was giving himself condolences for his hunger, he noticed the grand opening of a new restaurant. An Amestrian restaurant. Immediately, he let out another evil smirk and looked behind him, asking, "Hey guys. Do you guys want to eat?"
Suprisingly, they were still there, standing behind him and giving him strange looks.
"Of course we don't. We're just starving after fasting for the past two days," Mei said sarcastically, followed by a yell from Xiao Mei.
"Well, I've found the perfect place. But just follow my lead," walking ahead of them. But both Mei and Lan Fan looked questioningly as they walked in the Amestrian restaurant.
"Tell me why we're running again?"
"Because, we ordered three orders of everything and I didn't have any money. But don't worry, I left the guy the card of a certain former State Alchemist. I'm pretty sure he'll pay the bill for me," smiling gleefully as he imagined him getting the bill.
"I almost feel sorry for Edward," Mei said as they continued to run.
"Young Master, you must get over this habit of yours. I don't believe eating and running is respectable anywhere," Lan Fan scolded.
"I already told you. I'll fix these habits when I become emperor. It's not like I'll-" he stopped walking, as did Lan Fan. Mei looked at them questioningly, but walked back towards them.
"What's the matter?" she asked. The two were stagnant as they looked out.
"We're... home," he said, slowly walking through the small dirt path before him. The three kept walking until they reached two large manors surrounded by trees and a lake in the background.
They walked closer until one of the women spotted them, dropping her broom and running into towards the buildings and yelling something they couldn't hear quickly. Immediately, crowds of people stormed towards them and nearly crushed them.
None of them could understand anything they were saying since they were all asking different things at the same time until a loud whistle silenced the crowd.
Ling looked over to where the sound came from and saw someone walking slowly towards him. "M-mom?" She had black hair tied up in a bun and wore a red Kimono over her frail and short body.
But as he was watching her, he felt someone tackle him to the ground. He knocked his head against the ground and laid motionless. "Oh no, did I kill him? I thought he was stronger than that!" sighing, somewhat disappointed.
"Of course I'm not dead, stupid," he said to her, punching her on the shoulder.
"Brother, that hurt!" she pouted, rubbing her shoulder where Ling punched her. She was around five-foot five and unlike a majority of the women in her clan, wore white shorts that hugged her legs tightly and a short sleeved shirt just screaming "Pink". She wore her hair in a pony tail tied with a red ribbon.
She turned towards Lan Fan, a servant for her clan for over five years, and smiled at her. "Lan Fan! It's so good to see you!" hugging her. Lan Fan almost let out a groan of pain, but managed to keep it silent. Lan Fan just smiled as she hugged the sister of her master.
"Hey, Sayaka," putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. "Give her some space. She's still sore from the journey," Ling defended, getting her to let go of the embrace.
"What? Did you overwork her again? Well, you always were so lazy," she smirked, sticking out her tongue in rebellion towards her brother. "And who's this little girl? Ling, don't tell me you're cheating on Lan Fan for this kid," causing all three of them to blush.
"It's not like that!"
"Sayaka, you're always jumping to bad conclusions."
"Why would I be with this loser? My heart belongs to Sir Alphonse," Mei said dreamily.
"Come on, I was just teasing," chuckling, looking around for a second. "Say, where's Fu?" she asked.
She regretted asking. Immediately, the three traveler's faces turned sullen and their bodies started to hang. She could especially see the pain from Ling and Lan Fan's faces.
Ling opened his bag and showed them a box nicely wrapped with a bow-tie. His mother walked up to him, holding the box. "When was this?"
"It was at the tail end of the battle."
"How did he die?"
"He died protecting me," regret still lingering in his voice.
His mother just stood there, looking at the box, and then back at her son. "Well, he died a worthy death. Just find a place to bury him in the garden and leave him be," giving him back the box and walking away.
Ling tensed up with fury. He stared at his mother and let out a roar. "He died a worthy death? He didn't deserve to die! He was one of the best servants our clan has ever had, and you just throw him away like that? Don't you feel the slightest bit upset at his death? He deserves the most honorable burial possible!"
"No! I'm already giving him enough honor to let him be buried in the garden. Remember, he was a servant. They are replaceable."
Ling snapped and his face showed as much anger as he could draw out. He couldn't hold it in any longer and charged towards her, only to get pinned down by two other servants. His mother looked back at her restrained son for a moment before turning away and walking back to the manor.
She walked in and kneeled beside a candle in prayer. She almost didn't notice someone come in behind her. "What do you need, Sayaka?"
"Why did you say that? We know you cared for Fu deeply. All you did was hurt Ling psychologically."
"I know. But Ling needs to learn not to dwell on the past. Though he has an extremely lax and fun-loving nature, he is very philosophical and is always deep in thought, especially about the past," she said, not turning towards her daughter. "He needs to grow up so he can take the status of Emperor of Xing."
"You know he's still a kid. There's no way he'll be able to grow up just from this."
"I know. But looking at him, I can tell he has faced many hardships and obstacles during his journey. Did you notice Lan Fan's arm?"
"What do you mean? Is there something wrong with it or something?" Sayaka asked.
"It was an automail arm. Though not many know of its existence here in Xing, it is a metal limb that functions as a replacement of a lost limb. She probably lost that arm protecting Ling."
"He must be going through a lot of pain right now."
"Yes," she started. "And that is exactly why he needs to first let go of Fu's death and forget his mistakes. If he cannot do that, he will be swallowed up with guilt and pain. Now, leave me to my prayers."
Sayaka complied and walked out of the manor, leaving the older woman alone in front of the candle.
Fu, you were a great warrior. Your soul had known no peace since that time so many years ago. I hope you find peace up above any star in the universe.
Night had hit the lush mountain range where their clan resided. There had been a celebration for the return of the Prince, and though she was of a different clan, Mei was allowed to enjoy and party with the Yao Clan. Many were still enjoying themselves on the outside of the manors, even to the point that few had noticed the disappearance of the man they were celebrating for.
Ling sat on the side of the lake, staring at what little reflection he could see in the dim lighting. Normally, he would be partying to his heart's content, but he had a lot on his mind since his return.
"Master, shouldn't you be in the party?" he turned around to see not his masked servant, but a beautiful woman clad in a pink yukata with orchid designs across it. Her hair had been let down and shined from the moon's rays.
He hadn't even noticed that he was nearly gaping at her, but he shook this off and managed a response. "What about you? I bet there would be many men in this clan who would love to have a dance with you."
"No respectable man would want to dance with a servant. And if they wanted to, I would reject them soundly," she answered, moving awkwardly towards Ling. Well, it was his fault she was dressed so in a yukata. It was "orders" that she dressed out of her uniform and he shot her down whenever she tried to object. It was a lovely yukata, but it was just so hard to move around in. To her embarrassment, she had almost tripped over her yukata on multiple occasions.
"Sure they would. Especially someone as cute as you," he said, teasing her. But it was the truth. She did look amazing.
The lack of light hid Lan Fan's blush from him. She always hated it when he teased her like that.
She looked at her master and saw his hand pointing down. And unless he wanted her to pick something up, it probably meant that he wanted her to sit down next to him. Not wanting to disobey him, she plopped down next to him and looked up towards the stars.
"How do you feel?" Lan Fan looked towards him, confused.
"What do you mean, Young Master?"
"I mean, about everything that has happened in the past couple of months. With the loss of your arm, and Fu's death, you must be going through much turmoil. I just want you to know that I'm here for you, just like I was before," he said.
He didn't want to be subtle about this. He knew his servant well. Her world was probably turned upside down during his journey. And for what? All for his selfish desires for a crown.
"It is not of your concern, Young Master. You have other things to worry about that are of more importance than my condition," she heard him get up, but even for her, it was tough to see where he was. But that was until she felt an arm around her shoulder.
"You know, it's not good to keep things bottled up, Lan Fan. You should learn to open up to others. Letting others know what you are going through allows them to share your pain so there is less of a burden on you," even through the dark, she knew he was smiling. It was a calming smile most likely, a smile she had seen on his face a lot.
"Hey," grabbing her attention, "When I'm Emperor, will you stay by my side?"
Honestly, it was a stupid question. He knew the given answer, but right now, he couldn't believe anything unless it's said right in his face.
Lan Fan looked questioningly. Did he not trust her? Was he unsure of her dedication? She just decided to answer, not knowing why he asked this random question. "O-of course, Young Master. Why would I not?"
He smiled. "That's good. I need someone by my side. Someone I can confide in during the dark times."
Lan Fan almost forgot that his arm was around her shoulder as they sat, looking at the stars. It was a long time since they were able to relax as they did at the moment. Searching all of Amestris for a Philosopher's Stone and fighting off Hommunculli made her appreciate the quiet times she had. But she never let her guard down. It was her lack of attention that lost her her arm, and she didn't want a moment of lost thought to be the downfall of her master.
"Hey, I suggest you get out of that bush before you get in trouble with us," Ling shouted, the two turning around to see who it was. "The Peony Flower. You are of the Royal Guard, correct?"
"Yes, you are correct, Ling Yao, twelfth son of the Emperor of Xing. There has been a request made to you from the palace." This got their attention quickly.
"His Excellency wants to see you in person tomorrow."