Author's note~
Me- What's this?! Another update!?
Evil Twin-...who are you and what have you done with my twin?
Disclaimer: If I owned FMA, I wouldn't be here, now would I?
Chapter 3: The Past is Past
Roy walked into his kitchen and pulled the scotch out of the cabinet. Normally, only one glass would be needed, as he lived alone. This time, however, two glasses were filled. He walked into the living room and sat down on the couch, passing one of the drinks to the man sitting next to him.
"So, what took you so long to find me?" Roy said as Kade accepted the drink. Kade shrugged and put the drink down.
"Hate to tell ya this, Roy, but finding you wasn't exactly one of my highest priorities. I had more important things in life I had to tend to," he replied, faking exasperation.
"Is that so? Then I guess I won't hurt your feelings when I tell you that I forgot that you existed two days after you left. I think that's when my life started getting better," Roy said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Of course, none of that was true. Both brothers missed each other terribly and would do anything for the other. Nevertheless a little teasing never hurt anybody.
"You sure have changed over the years, Roy. If you were anything like the brat you were back then, the sight of me would've made you burst into tears. I was not expecting a fist to the face," Kade said, chuckling.
"Well, I can't be weak my entire life. After everything I've experienced, I guess I just became hardened." Roy wouldn't really call that a good thing. Innocence is a virtue, a virtue he lost a long time ago.
"I see what you mean," Kade said, nodding. "Do you still have those phobias of yours?"
Roy gave a small but visible finch.
"I'm not afraid of the dark anymore, but I still have claustrophobia. I don't think that's ever really going to go away."
Kade frowned and looked at Roy, all amusement leaving his eyes.
"I see. I have another question. Why exactly are you in the military?" Disdain was clear in his voice, though not directed at Roy himself. "Don't you remember what those bastards did to our family? What they did to Liliana?"
Roy sighed and shut his eyes, painful memories threatening to resurface.
"Liliana wouldn't want to you to hold a grudge, Kade," he told his brother. He really didn't want to talk about this right after being reunited with him. "Anyways, you know full well that the military weren't the ones who killed them. It was the civilians."
"The military could have prevented it! They knew it was going to happen. It was inevitable!" Kade hissed out. "Did you know that the bastards who did it weren't even put in jail? They got let off with a damn warning! And for your information, one of the men there was a military dog on his day off!"
Roy slammed his drink down, silencing Kade.
"Considering what we are, I think we should be grateful that the military came at all!" Roy said, his voice rising.
"Oh yes! I'm so grateful that the they sat back and watched as our family got murdered in cold blood!"
"They saved us, didn't they?"
"Yeah, to make themselves look good! 'Amestrian Heroes Save Two Xingese Children From Death'! Makes quite the cover story, no?!"
"Kade…"
"They didn't even bother looking at father's will. If anything ever happened to our parents, we would be put in the direct care of Aunt Chris! Tell me, Roy. Where did we end up?"
"What're you going to do about it?! That was twenty years ago, Kade! Your anger won't change anything! The past is past. Liliana isn't coming back, no matter what you do."
"I thought you of all people would've understood me, Roy."
Both twins glared at each other, not saying a word. This was not how they planned this night to go. Roy finally looked away and took a big gulp of his drink.
"Do you have any place to stay for the night?" he asked once the burning sensation in his throat went away.
"Yeah. I'm staying at a hotel with a friend of mine." Kade answered. He then broke into a grin. "It's much better than staying here with an annoying brat like you."
"Good, 'cause I wasn't offering."
Kade laughed and stood up, walking towards the door.
"I'll stop by tomorrow. See ya later," he said, exiting the apartment.
Roy watched as his brother left, thinking 'That moron still has the drink with him'.
The twins were quite a naughty pair. Of course, they're only eight years old. However, they seemed to always do the exact opposite of what they were told. That's why, when they heard unfamiliar voices coming from the parlor, they just had to sneak downstairs and investigate. Who needs sleep, anyway?
They peered around the corner and saw the parlor filled with strange men dressed in black. Also in the room was their parents and older sister, wearing less than pleased expressions.
"…make it our mission to purify this country. In order to do that, we must first rid it of it's filth," they heard one the strange men say.
"That's ridiculous! What makes the Xingese any different from the Amestrians!?" Their father said. The twins looked at each other, curious as to what's going on.
"Simple. The Xingese are a separate species, one far inferior to the Amestrians."
"A separate species?! We're all human! Amestrians are no better than the Xingese, Ishvalans, Aerugans, or any other race out there!"
The strange man sighed, his eyes gleaming with disappointment.
"So, all that time you spent in Xing and with that filthy wife of your's really did warp your mind." The men standing around the leader began pulling out weapons, such as knives and thick wooden sticks. "Samuel, for your traitorous words, you will now be silenced."
One of the men that held a knife shot forward and stabbed Samuel Mustang in the stomach. Samuel coughed up blood and went down on his knees. His wife, Yang-Sen, screamed and ran to her husband's side.
"Leave him alone!" she cried out. "He's done nothing to you!"
Another man barked out a quick laugh.
"Look at the Xingese garbage trying to tell us what to do," he sneered as Yang-Sen was backhanded by the leader.
The twins were shocked into silence as they watched the scene unfold before them. Some men began pouring gasoline around the parlor and breaking everything in sight while others began beating their mother. Their sister emitted a small cry of pain when one man grabbed her roughly by the arm.
Finally, the twins had seen enough and they ran into the room.
"Stop it!" they said in unison. In the brief moment that the man was distracted, their sister bit him on the arm, causing him to let go. She ran forward and grabbed the twins, pulling them out of the parlor.
"What were you two thinking, endangering your lives like that?!" she chastised them while she looked around. The front door stood a several meters to her right, but she knew that there would be more men outside, in case one of them tried to run. Same thing for the back door, which was in the kitchen off the main hallway. Also to her right was a staircase leading to the upstairs bedrooms. An idea filled her head as she led them upstairs and to her bedroom.
Once they were all in her room, she locked the door and ran to the wall on her left. She quickly threw the painting that hung on the wall to the side, revealing a large hole. When the twins got a closer look, they saw it was filled with clothes. It seemed to lead straight into their parent's closet.
"Alright, you two. I'm going to lift you through the hole. You first, Roy."
"Where exactly did this hole come from?" the other twin asked his sister as she picked Roy up.
"Remember the time when Catherine was over and you guys heard that loud bang? Let's just say that Cath was pretending the wall was her ex. Your turn, Kade."
Once both twins were safely in the hole, she began replacing the painting.
"Now listen. Do not make a sound, no matter what you hear," she said as the sound of footsteps grew louder and louder. It seemed as if the men had finally ended their destructive torrent and were coming to finish the job.
As she slid the painting over to it's original position, she smile sadly.
"You two be good, okay?"
"Wait! Liliana, don't-" Roy began to say, but Liliana cut him off.
"I'm sorry, but this is just the way things are. Grow up and become strong," she said, silent tears streaming down her face. "Change this country and end the madness.
"Remember that I love you very much…" Fists began pounding against the door and taunting shouts were heard. "…and goodbye."
With that, she sealed the hole completed and ran to the window, opening it up. At that moment, the men finally broke down the door and filed into the room, forming a semi-circle around her.
"Where are the other two half-blood brats?! I heard you speaking to them!"
"They're far from here. They left from this window."
"Oh really? Why is it that you'll willingly tell us where they are?"
"Because I know that you'll never catch them."
Silence filled the room before the man said with a brisk tone: "Kill the girl."
On the other side of the painting, the twins covered their ears, trying to block out the world as they heard their sister let out a shrill scream.
'This can't be happening! It can't be!' Roy thought as his eyes were flooded with tears. "This is all wrong! No! NO!'
"NO!"
Roy shot upwards, his eyes wide and his face paler than usual. He breathed heavily, as if he had just run a marathon. He hung his head, looking down and the blanket he clutched tightly.
Another nightmare. However, this one took place even before his time at the orphanage. He wondered if his conversation with Kade brought it on.
He looked at the clock that stood on his nightstand. It was just pass one o'clock in the morning. Wonderful.
He laid back down, hoping to fall into a dreamless sleep.
This time, he couldn't even fall asleep to begin with. His last dream left him feeling uneasy and paranoid. He sighed, knowing it was going to be another long night.
The uneasy feeling he had felt never went away. Even when the sun finally began to show itself, it was still there.
Roy wasn't sure what all of this meant, but one thing was certain;
Everything was about to change.
Author's Note~
Me- I'm actually somewhat pleased with this chapter.
Evil Twin- That's a first.
Me- *glares* Anyway, next chapter is going to be Edward-centric, soooo...yay, i guess? Leave a review if you feel like it. If you leave a flame, a ninja will sneak into your house tonight and steal all your food. Buh-bye!
