We drove in complete silence, he seemed absorbed watching the buildings pass by. Every now and again his eyes darted to me thinking I couldn't see him. He seemed to be looking me over and I could tell he wanted to ask me something. But he seemed almost... scared to? I hawked catching his attention. "So what is you name?" This was so awkward, he looked shocked.
"Um... Edward. Edward Elr- Oh!" He looked at me with his wide eyes. Man they where distracting. "Whats wrong?" He fiddled with his hands frowning.
"My name... Are you going to change it? Or can I like keep it..?" I never thought about it. Edward seemed right for him. His little scrunched up face didn't reveal much as to what he was thinking.
"Not unless you want it changed. I don't mind, but I think Edward fits you." I kept one eye on the road and one on him. He looked out the window again and nodded. "Yeah.. I like it. Can I keep my last name as well then?"
"Sure, what was it again?" He smiled then. "Elric, Edward Elric." He seemed so proud of his name. Shit, I was gonna crash at this rate. He was too distracting. I pulled over on a shopping street. Edward looked around, confused. "Would you like to get something to eat?" His golden eyes glowed at the mention of food. "You like burgers?" He frowned undoing his belt.
"I... I think so." Oh right, he must not of gotten much freedom in that place. I remembered the cupboard he was locked in. Getting out the car I opened his door and locked up. He followed quickly behind me, looking around at the shops. Going into the burger place he grinned, such a lovely smile he had. Shaking my head I ordered for both of us, and took the food to the table. I watched as he unwrapped his burger from the paper. Taking a big he moaned. "Mmmmm!" I watched him devour the whole thing in a few bites. He looked up to me with puppy eyes after more.
"Here have mine." I watched as he snatched it away and dug in. We would have to work a bit on his manners. Pausing he put the burger down and looked at me.
"So.. Your name is?" He struggled on the words and I blinked. Right my name. How could I forget to tell him! "Roy. Roy mustang." Nodding he picked the seeds off the bun and ate them one by one.
"Are you still... you know a fireman?" He kept his head down, hair covering his face. Pick pick, pick, picking the bun. "Yeah, I work from keeping the flames from getting too big and all that." He nodded and rubbed his elbow softly.
"So like. What made you come for me?" His face was hidden but I could hear the sad note in his voice. "Four years ago it was." My hands shook. I could of and should of found him by now. I knew I had no reason not to, just fear. After seeing his brother, burned and black I was afraid he would blame me for it.
"I couldn't forget it. Or you. That was not the worst fire I have been in. But you kids, I couldn't save all of-" I broke off shaking my head. I held his shaking hand, and brushed away his hair. As I thought he was crying. "I am so sorry Edward. I just couldn't do any more for your brother or sister." He nodded, tears slipping down onto the table.
"Thank you." He was smiling now, looking into my onyx eyes. "For everything." He looked over at the counter. "Could I get something else?" I was about to object but looking down I realized he has already eaten the other burger. Nodding I gave him 4000 cez and looked out of the window. I saw a reflection Edward walk away from me. Flames surrounded him and he slipped, skin melting like plastic. His bones snapping and his small frame hitting the floor. I spun around to see him coming back, he was fine. No fire, no melting skin. I looked at the tray of food he placed on our table.
Ice cream, cola, another burger, fries, chicken nuggets, fried chicken and a wrap. He tucked right into the already melting ice cream. "Are you sure you will eat all that?" He nodded dropping the change on the table. Only a few cez. Hmm. I looked him up and down thinking of the costs. I had more then enough to look after him, but he really had nothing but the clothes he was wearing and those where too scruffy for him to wear much longer.
"Right, after this we have to get you some new clothes, and some other stuff." He stopped eating and tugged at his long sleeved shirt. "You can pick out what ever you want, don't worry." He smiled and carried on eating. Wait, what! Most of the food was already gone. Where did he keep it all! If he carried on like this he was going to be fat and run me bankrupt. Rubbing his mouth he cracked his knuckles. Then I realized something else about him. He was wearing gloves, how did I not see that before?
"Okay, I am full! Shall we go?" Getting up he followed me as we went into the clothes shop. "Right what age range clothes do you need?" I asked him. His face blushed and he frowned. He walked over to the 11-13 range and began poking the clothes awkwardly. "Get what ever you want. Just make sure you have enough." I watched him pick out the clothes, mostly trouser's and long sleeved shirts.
"Don't you want any T-shirt's or something for when it is hot?" He looked over at the cooler clothes frowning. Shaking his head he walked away looking for something else.
"Whats wrong?" Scratching the back of his head he gave me what he had picked out so far. "Ah... Nothing." I shrugged made sure he had everything. "Want to try them on?" His eyes went wide as he shook his head fast. "Sure? I want to make sure the fit-"
"No! I- They will okay." He walked over to the till and I bought the clothes in silence. He was still looking around for something else. "Edward, is there something else you want?" His breath hitched and he nodded. "Um... Gloves." He mumbled so quietly I had to bend down to hear him.
"Gloves?" He nodded, his face red again. Why did he need gloves, it was summer! "Okay I will see what I can do." Asking the woman she frowned.
"Gloves? I am not sure.. We might have some in the back. Let me go check." She walked away looking confused. Edward was hiding behind his hair again when she came back with several pairs.
"This is all we have. Is this okay?" Edward looked them over and nodded. "Could... Could I have them all please?" He looked at me pleadingly, I nodded and the confused cashier rung them up.
We spent the rest of the day like this, jumping for store to store getting everything Edward needed. By the end out it we both collapsed into the car. "I never want to go shopping again." He mumbled into the car dashboard. "You can say that again." I groaned, starting up the car. As we drove Edward looked in all the bags in the back pulling out doughnuts and cookies. "Where did you get those from!" He snickered ripping the packaging off the doughnut's and biting into the jammy center.
"When we where at that corner shop getting toothpaste and squash." He tried to say, but most of it I was unable to understand as he was eating the doughnuts like there was no tomorrow. When he had polished them off he tried to open the cookies, which I snatched from him and threw in the back of the car.
"Hey! I was gonna eat those!" He yelled, reaching to try and get them back. He couldn't half be noisy when he wanted to. "I know, but all you have eaten today is junk food. Eat something decent when we get home. We will be there soon." He stopped trying to retrieve the junk food and looked out of the window but as it was getting rather dark now, there was nothing to see. Only his reflection. As soon a I parked up he jumped out and began to look around the place. I had parked in the drive and he walked around my house. No, our house. Stumbling down the garden path in the dark I heard him yell. "WOAH! You have a pool!" He came running toward me, jumping up and down.
"Yeah, you can go in it when it's nice." I smiled at him as he danced around. He grabbed some of the bags from me as I locked the car up and unlocked the house. He ran in first, looking around in all the rooms. He left the bags in the sitting room and collapsed on the sofa. Chucking mine down with his I watched him stretch out. "Want me to show you your room?"
Jumping up the stairs two at a time he looked around on the landing. "Second door along, the one in the middle." He ran in jumped onto the bed. "I'll have to get some sheets and stuff. I haven't used this room in a long time." Nodding he ran back downstairs to get the bags full of stuff while I got the room ready. When he came back up I showed him where he could put his stuff, and where the bathroom was. If you need anything I'll be downstairs in the kitchen. Nodding he looked around his room once more, while his back was turned I took the cookies out of his bag. Spinning around he grabbed my arm.
"Give 'em back!" Shaking my head I walked downstairs with them leaving him to sort his room out.
The room was small but way better then what I had if the orphanage. It smelled like mothballs though. Going though the draws and messily shoving my clothes in I found them. "Aha!" I opened the window and threw them out into the darkness. Leaving the window open I looked around the room once more. This was really my home now. That made me smile, more then I thought I could.
I could smell burnt toast and beans from downstairs. Clomping down the stairs I looked in as Roy tried to take the toast out without burning his hands. Walking in I saw the problem, leaning past him I turned the toasters heat down.
"What does that do?"He asked while I sniggered. "You don't know how to work your own toaster?" Frowning he ignored me and tried to butter the blackened toast. Giving up he poured beans all over it. He set the two plates on the table and motioned for me to sit across from him. I began to scrape the beans off the toast and eat them. He watched with interest. "Do you have to watch me while I eat? It's kinda off putting"
"Ah. Right sorry. I was just wondering where you put it all. You have already eaten so much today." I laughed then, he hadn't been stuck in a cupboard for 2 days. But I didn't tell him that. the smile faded as I ate the food.
"So what are we doing tomorrow." I asked fiddling with the fork. Before now I had never thought of my future. But with Roy now.. He interrupted my thoughts with a hum. "Well I need to get the paperwork for you sorted out. That orphanage didn't do anything so I am going to have to tell them about their lack of care. We will also have to sort out a school and.." The rest I blocked out.
From the word school I stiffed up and dropped my fork, at the clatter he looked up at me. Shaking my head I thought of the last one I went to. "No I can't go to school." My gloved hands clenched and my back tingled.
"Why not?" I was sweating now. Come on Ed calm down I told myself. He is nice, he won't make you. Then I remembered.
"They won't let me." He looked confused. "My track record." I explained. "I have a bad record with schools. I bet not one of them would let me in." I picked up my fork, there was no way I would get in a school I was gonna be okay.
"Can I ask what happened?" I froze up again and this time he noticed right away. "You don't have to tell me." I nodded and picked at my food. I wasn't really hungry any more.
"Could you get me some water please?" Roy's eyes where on me the whole time he got the water.
"Remember this is your house as well, if you want anything help yourself." He told me, while giving me the water. Nodding I sipped it. "Do you want to go in the bath after this? You can use any of the towels and your toothbrush is in one of the bags." I put the drink down and nodded. Anything to get away from talking about school was okay by me. "I'll go fill the bath up then. I'll call you when it's done." He walked off, dumping the rest of his food in the bin and leaving the plate in the sink. I sat on my chair unsure of what to do.
Getting up I walked into his, no our living room. There was a lot of books, I pulled one out at random and saw lots of transmutation circles. So he knows alchemy? That was good, we could talk about that. I looked at the other books at realized most of them where alchemy books. He must be pretty good then. Smiling I flicked through them. I recognized a lot of these books, having taken a lot out in library's before now. Before I knew it I was on the sofa absorbed in a book, and nothing else mattered any more. This was my way of blocking everyone out. No matter where the care system dumped me so long as I had a book I was okay. Something touched my shoulder and I jumped out of my skin, spinning around ready to attack. But it was only Roy looking bewildered.
"Do you like alchemy?" I nodded, holding onto the book still. "Can you do some?"
"Yeah, I would say I am kinda good at it." I could already guess the next question, his eyes showed it. "Would you show me some?" I nodded and he got a pen and paper for me.
"What do you want me to make?" I fingered the paper thinking the the cranes me and my brother used to make for our sister and mother. "Anything you can, I don't know how good you are so..." He smiled encouraging me.
Pulling my hands apart I closed my eyes and thought of what I wanted. Bringing them together in a clap and pressing them down on the paper, blue light filled the room. Roy's eyes grew wide as the paper refolded into a miniature him. It was small but I made sure it was a complete likeness right down to his clothes.
I looked up to see his reaction, his mouth was wide open. He was staring blankly at me. "H- how did you do that!" I clenched up. He picked up the figure and looked at it. I bent my head down and peeped at him through my hair. Was he mad? I couldn't tell. "This is... amazing!" I lifted my head a little. "How do you do it without a circle though?" I bent my head right down again and shook my head.
"I dunno. I just do. Is the bath ready?" I could feel his eyes on me and I felt sorry for him. He just picked me up. Really he knew nothing about me, and I kinda wish it would stay that way. If he knew... I am sure he wouldn't want me any more just like everyone else.
"Yeah, if you go up I will be in there in a sec, there isn't many towels left." With that I ran up the stairs sat down next to the bath.
Calm down Ed. He doesn't know. He doesn't know. He doesn't know. Shaking my head to keep it clear I looked at the bath water. Roy really was so nice, like a farther. Not like my real one... I closed my eyes and tried not to remember. I was here now, with Roy.
Hope you liked it! Once more thanks sooo much for the faves and reviews! You guys always make me smile! 3