Another Hero of the People – Chapter 2 – Loyal to His Duty
They received complete silence from the brothers. Generally before, Ed's outbursts were terrifying to a degree, but his silence is even scarier. Goodness, the boy really did grow up. It wasn't long before Ed opened his mouth.
"Hitmen?" The words were coated with a caustic end. He was intending to be quite calm, but his voice made everyone still fear for an upcoming rant.
Winry bowed her head slightly, she could feel Ed tense, judging from what she felt through his arms. Roy sighed.
"Yes."
The defeated answer was answered by a snort. Honestly, people were hopeless, weren't they? Ed could easily palm his face in disappointment, but he'd rather make the point clear to everyone.
"How low can you go, General Bastard?" Ed raised an eyebrow. "Now you're an assassin for hire! And you guys, too?"
"We're sorry, Chief…" Havoc sighed. "But we had no choice… because…"
"Because?" Al asked, his stern eyes flitting to the man. Al was always they type to tranquilly express fury. All of Roy's office knew that too well.
"Well, Roy actually has to keep his cover."
"And why?"
Another moment of silence ensued as everyone stared at the man responsible for this mess. Roy shook his head and then walked to his apartment door.
"Ed, Al, get inside. Talking about personal things out here aren't good signs…"
Before the brothers could say anything, they were roughly shoved into the apartment by the buffy major.
"The Vongola Family," Roy began once everyone settled in a seat. "is a mafia family, the most powerful family at the current time, and has been for more than a century."
"So you work for these goons?" Ed asked, and Roy nodded. As a former dog of the military, he hated excess disorder, and mafia was obviously on that list.
"Yes, the family we work for is the Vongola Family." Mustang explained. "As you know, the family must have someone at the top, the boss, Don Vongola, they call him. As a boss, he has many subordinates. Because the family is so large, a Vongola boss must chose seven of his most trusted subordinates to be Guardians, or underbosses, you might say. Of course, these 'Guardians' have subordinates of their own, the web goes on and on."
Alphonse raised his eyebrow at the term Guardians. What type of Guardian does he mea? Ed's steely eyes gave quick glint of surprise. Back at Amestris, he had heard of crime syndicates, but he usually wasn't the one to deal with those organizations, since he was busy traveling the country for alchemy research. He barely even knew how a crime syndicate even operated, to say the least.
Ed and Al couldn't help but noticed that Mustang wore on his hand a red gemmed ring. The silver band was engraved with symbols, including a large recognizable circle which Ed recognized to be the array for flame alchemy. The most notable trait was a salamander shaped ruby pressed into the silver ring. Along with a wedding ring, Hawkeye wore a blue ring with winged engravings. Winry wore an indigo ring with an identical pattern to Hawkeye. Fury, Armstrong, and Breda wore yellow rings. Havoc wore a green ring.
The two brothers watched with quavering curiosity, and Al finally pointed out the strange jewelry.
"General, what are those rings for?"
Roy explained. "Identification in the family is crucial, in this case, identification by rings. Each Guardian has a specific weather and corresponding color attribute. Usually, subordinates of the Guardians tend to wear the rings that attribute to their boss, but nowadays, they were the colors that suit them best. Independent hitmen wear rings of their own color of the seven rainbow colors, usually to describe their personality… or something. Now can we get back to the subject?"
Mustang received a quick nod.
"Two years ago, one of the most trusted independent hitmen under Vongola, by the name of Roy Mustang, disappeared. By hushed murder or hiding, the public doesn't know. The truth? He was killed by a rival family, but it hasn't been confirmed if he lived or not. For them, at least… The Vongola family mourned for their companion's death in secret. Fortunately, here is the new Roy Mustang."
Al stared in awe at the General, realizing what Roy's plans were, and the man cleared his throat.
He announced. "It's not much, since I'm not a Guardian and such, but I'm still 'highly respected.' By now, my status gives me almost as much authority as a Guardian, anyway."
"Still… a high member of a mafia family…" Ed smiled. "Not bad, General. Not bad at all…"
"Well, couldn't go walking around casually if I looked like some famous and dangerous person," Roy sighed. "If I hadn't been found earlier by the Ninth, then I would have been dead meat."
"You have your gloves, right?" Al sat up. "You would've beaten assassins easily."
"Well, that just brings more suspicion," Havoc shook his head. "Alchemy is not a familiar art in this world. The only reason Chief can perform alchemy is because of his supposedly former status as pyromaniac assassin. If Roy randomly blew up half an alleyway, they'd think that Chief was that Roy but with upgraded weapons or something, then they'd seriously go after him. That way, Roy would never get a break."
"Well, that's what mafia's like," Armstrong sighed. "They never give a rest until the job's done."
Al and Ed's sweatdropped. That sounds… brutal.
A knock on the door, made everyone in the room jerk upright, and everyone was on guard at a moment's notice. Mustang got up and headed for the door, opening it cautiously. Before him a shady man a head taller than the Flame Alchemist was nervously fidgeting with his sleeves. Ed assumed that this man was part of the "Vongola" Roy had mentioned.
"Mustang-sama," The man bowed politely. "The Don wishes to see you immediately."
"I see," Mustang frowned but nodded, and the shady man actually flew away, running as fast as he could go. Ed and Al sweatdropped again.
"You really scare people with your eye patch, that much, General?" Al asked. Roy didn't say anything.
"Yeah, they think I'm a son of a pirate, or something," He joked. "Actually, they think I'll blow them up if they get too close. I think I should get those glass eyes people talk about."
"Even the other Guardians are quite scared of Roy sometimes," Havoc laughed. "And they've only seen him angry one time only. It's funny how the old and new Roy Mustang have the same exact personality."
"Wow." Ed rolled his eyes. "Typical people."
Having understood the underling's report, Roy turned to his bedroom. He then looked at Ed and Alphonse.
"What are you standing there for?" He snapped slightly. "We're have to get going really soon. Those clothes you're wearing won't do well in this era, Fullmetal, and Alphonse, too. Riza, you might happen to have any smaller suits for them, do you?"
"I might," Riza nodded, and she walked away. The others dispersed from the room at the same time, leaving the two brothers whirling in confusion. Riza then sighed.
"If you don't want Roy to be snap-happy, hurry along."
A car drove through a small grove of trees and into a lush meadow of flower gardens and fountains. Al couldn't help but be awed by the numerous plants and art displays, including the car they drove in. Back at Amestris, cars were rugged and moderately fast, but this car was sleek, and was probably two times faster.
Meanwhile, Ed was having difficulty with being used to having a tie wound about his neck. He constantly yanked at the offending strip of cloth to make it loose, just a bit, so he won't choke. Al turned around, and had to assist him for a moment there.
"Brother…" Al sighed. "I think this is probably really formal or important."
Both brothers were wearing white dress shirts, black ties, black blazers, and black trousers. Ed looked at Al and nodded in agreement.
"Yeah… otherwise we wouldn't have to look like we're going to a dinner party or something."
"Well, it's technically uniform code if you step onto Vongola estates," Havoc explained. "Took me and Breda a while to get it right. Armstrong… well, you know him… can't keep his shirt on for a minute."
The car stopped before a large mansion, probably the same size as the main building back at Central. Al gasped in awe once again at the splendor of the estate, and followed everyone stepping out of the car as the driver in the car sped away to park the vehicle in a hidden garage.
Ed then looked ahead, where Roy and Riza walked confidently up the steps. Several sharp men stood about the front door, and upon the sight of Roy Mustang, they straightened to the point of looking as stiff as a board and lined up according to height. The action somewhat reminded Ed of what the officers did when the Fuhrer passed by, except no salutes. He then wondered if Mustang, or maybe the former Mustang, had trained them to line up like that.
"Roy Mustang," One of them stepped up, but with some rigidity. "The Ninth is in the office. He has been awaiting your visit."
"Thank you, Benedetti," Roy nodded politely, and two of the group of mobsters opened the doors graciously for him and his team to enter. They all strode in calmly as they approached an elevator at the end of the front corridor past the foyer. Ed couldn't help but be amazed by the numerous ornamental displays of flags and paintings hung about the walls. What he found most interesting was that a lot of the flags displayed a lion with orange fire for a shaggy mane.
The elevator door slid open as they clambered in, with Armstrong taking up most of the space, of course. They stood inside the platform in silence. They boarded off the quick transportation device and continued down another set of corridors again. The brothers assumed that Roy must have known the mansion very well. After taking a quick glance of their surroundings, they knew they would have been bound to be lost in these places.
"Good afternoon, Ninth," Roy bowed, followed by everyone else, including Ed and Al, to be polite. An elderly man nodded and allowed them to stand up normally again. He then saw two new presences within Mustang's group.
"Oh? And who are these children you have brought here?" His kind gaze fell upon the two boys. "Are these relatives of Winry-chan?"
"No, Ninth," Roy answered. "These boys are Edward and Alphonse Elric. They are childhood friends of Winry. They recently moved here."
"Ah! I see , I see…" the Ninth smiled at the two boys. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Alphonse and Edward. Your officer had mentioned things about you numerous times around here. I must assure you that you may relax, since I know your origins quite familiarly."
Ed's shoulders tightened. "What do you mean by that?"
"I know about your title the Fullmetal Alchemist," The Ninth cheerfully replied with little uneasiness. "And that your home country is Amestris, which is not of this world. I can see you don't like to share that with others, but no worries. After going through the Gate multiple times and being betrayed numerous times on your journies, trusting people would be very difficult."
The Elric brothers let their stiff shoulders fall loose, and the Ninth motioned for them to take a seat in the leather couches near the unused fireplace. A bright lamp sat beside the armchair to compensate for the limited light that came through the windows and thick crimson drapery. The Ninth took a seat in the elaborately printed armchair and rested his elbows. Roy, Ed, Al, and Winry took a seat in one couch, while the others took the second.
"You have summoned me, Ninth," Roy reminded the elderly man, who laughed heartily upon realization.
"Ah, yes," Ninth nodded, and he recalled the details. "I understand that you want to travel a bit, according to Coyote."
"I believe so," Roy nodded.
"Then I have the assignment just for you," the Ninth smiled. "It'll be good for all you. It's even more convenient that the famed Elric brothers I've heard from you have arrived on time."
The Ninth assumed a thinking position.
"You see," He began. "I have finally chosen my successor, and news of a new upcoming Tenth boss has been spreading quickly. By now, even the rival families would have heard the rumors. Since currently, my successor is still fourteen, and he has no Guardians as of yet, I believe he'll need bodyguards. The Guardians must stay here, since there's still some unfinished business and conflicts erupting everywhere. I've sent Reborn there already, but I can't take any chances to send only one of our best hitmen. Mustang, you'll join Reborn in the city of Namimori… You've worked with him before, right?"
"Multiple times," the ebony-haired man nodded. Ed and Al wondered at who this Reborn was…
"That's good," The Ninth contemplated. "Bouche has already reserved several houses next door to the Tenth's home for you and your subordinates. That way, you can keep watch on him more easily, and for Reborn if he wishes not to stay at Decimo's home. Also, Winry, Edward, and Alphonse are going to attend Namimori Middle High School as first-years, which I believe my successor is currently attending, also of the same grade. I arranged for the school to always place you three in the same class with him. That way, guarding the Tenth at school grounds will be much easier. Understood?"
"Yes, Ninth," Winry nodded curtly, while Ed and Al stammered the same words, bowing their heads hastily. The Ninth rose to his feet.
"That is all," He smiled. "All traveling arrangements have been done, and you'll leave as soon as possible."
"Yes, Ninth." All the occupants of the room complied, and promptly exited.
Winry opened the door to her apartment, with a swipe of a key, surprising the two brothers. Gesturing the two boys to enter, she immediately headed for her closet, and pulled out a fairly sized duffle bag. She then raided her drawers for all her clothes, and neatly stuffed them all into the suitcase. She then procured two more suitcases from her bag, tossing them into Ed's face.
"W-What are these for?" Ed exclaimed.
"For your own clothes, stupid," Winry frowned. "There's some reasonable clothes for you to wear. Change into those clothes, and then pack your suits. I'll meet you at the front hall."
"How do you get clothes for guys?" Alphonse picked up a patterned button down shirt from the suitcase he received. "You're a girl aren't you?"
"Undercover," Winry replied flatly. "And gifts from other members of the family. I always get some love letter from them all…"
"Undercover?" Al shrieked. "You mean… you dressed up as a guy?"
"Yeah, that's right," Winry chose a set of clothes and headed for the restroom, slamming it shut. Within minutes she was out already, in blue jeans and a pale blue blouse, her hair pinned up similar to Hawkeye.
"Go change already."
"Y-yeah…" the two brothers stuttered before rushing to a nearby room of their own. Winry smiled at the two boys, and she opened her fourth suitcase, revealing a new automail arm and leg.
"About time, he's got an upgrade."
Roy and Riza were dressed like normal civilians, along with the rest of the 'office.' Winry was down the stairs, carrying a small handbag, while Ed and Al were staggering under the weight of four other suitcases, gasping for air.
"Winry, you're such a slave driver…" Fury sighed.
"It's training," She pressed, but Roy noticed that the boys were slightly pale.
"You look dead," He smiled. "Something wrong?"
"No…" Ed muttered. "I didn't know there was a artillery chamber in her kitchen…"
"All of the apartments here have it," Riza added. "This is technically a Vongola-owned complex. Normal civilians live here, too, but they won't be able to find out about the weapon compartments about the home."
"Oh…" Al paled. "That's great…"
"Whoa!" The Elrics gasped, amazed by the large airport. The ceiling was clear with large arching panes of glass, supported by white steel beams. The walls were glass, too, and crowds of people were hurrying past each other. Ed noticed one was holding a handheld phone with no wires, and another was busy tapping away on some book with moving pictures (remember, FMA world only had radios, not TV).
"You done gawking yet?" Winry smiled, and Al faced the blonde girl.
"It's amazing!"
"Well, there's more to see," Roy looked at the line to enter the hallway of airplane gates. He then took out a card, which Ed assumed was ID. Was he supposed to get one, too?
"Here," Winry handed him and Al the same two cards Roy had. "You can worry about the pictures later."
"T-Thanks…" Ed smiled. He then looked at the "metal detectors" Winry explained to him. She had told him of the new automail he sported.
"It's a metal I developed in the past two years I was here. The Ninth was kind enough to let me use the labs. I added a mimic-flesh covering so gloves aren't necessary. This is a metal that cannot be detected by metal detectors to a certain level. You can pass through airport gates without worry. This is only for the Vongola, so don't tell anyone, okay?"
Ed gazed at his new watch and followed closely behind Winry, nervously watching the others pass by. Back at Amestris, train stations were just as crowded, but he was fine with going about on a moving car across land… but what about the air? He's only been on a plane once, and surely, that was not a happy experience (He was too busy thinking about stopping Eckhart and helping Noah. Besides, he was the person who jumped off the plane).
"You're looking a little green, brother…" Alphonse sighed. "You're not air-sick, are you?"
"I'm green?" Ed jumped. "I'm fine! I'm not green! I'm perfectly well!"
"Says the person who didn't want to jump from the apple tree when he was an idiot to climb one," Winry teased, leading the older Elric into a perfect argument.
Roy and Riza watched the three "teenagers." He sighed. They were quite fun watch… children…
"Chief?" Havoc waved a hand in front of the ebony eyes. "The plane's gonna leave in ten minutes."
"R-Really!" Roy nearly leapt out of his skin and took off his gloves, which he had put on instinctively. "W-we really have to move soon. Hey, Fullmetal, Alphonse, Winry! Hurry up!"
The three children looked at his direction, and sprinted their way towards the adults, who headed for Gateway 18.
A/N: Yay! Finally updated next chapter, and everyone's going to Japan! I actually bothered to search what the airport in Catania looks like, so my description slightly fits the real thing. I also set up a backup account on another website, so updates will be made simultaneously. Oh, and I took the idea of putting weapons in the kitchen from Mr and Mrs Smith (the part where the oven opens into a compartment for all these cool weapons was awesome. Using the backyard cellar for all your guns and bullets works too). Review soon!
