This shall be the final part in Fallen Memories. I know it took me time, but there's a lot of work put in this and I had the craziest semester this year. Next one is going to be harder, since I'm retaking the four hardest classes in psychology to raise my grades to be sure to have a chance of entering a doctorate... Anyway, Fullmetal Alchemist is still by far my favorite manga and anime ever, I can't stop myself from rewatching and rereading it. Still have to find another serie just as good to follow. It will be hard to find anything as good. ^^ I sure hope you'll have a great time reading this and that we'll meet again in another fic.
Fallen memories – Part IV
The silent treatment was Bradley's fate for a whole week. Selim talked more to him than Amelia did. The woman literally evaded him, acting like a ghost in her own house. Their son was extremely worried. Slowly, Wrath understood that the boy couldn't be Pride. But doubts lingered. Pride had always been an extremely good actor...
Then came the fateful night during which Bradley had all the proofs he needed that Selim wasn't Pride, but that he wasn't entirely ridden of that ghost either. For some reason, the man made homunculus had trouble falling asleep when a shy knock on his door made it clear he wouldn't sleep that night. It was running incredibly late in the night, or well, incredibly early in the morning; and for a moment, he thought that it could be Amelia on the other side of the door. He eagerly got up and had to subdue his deception as he saw only Selim on the other side of the door frame. The boy was wearing his blue pajamas, his eyes wide opened. He looked unsure of himself as he felt the gaze of his "father" falling over him.
"I'm sorry, si... dad..."
"Don't babble like that. Speak up like a man, son."
Bradley had started treating the boy with more respect. The word "son" was a rarity, and he'd wished Amelia would notice his tremendous efforts over the matter that had separated them. But then again, if the woman refused to get along, at least he would make sure that Selim would respect him. It felt a little as if both males had managed to join as allies. They weren't Amelia's enemy, but they would understand each other. Wrath often felt clumsy and inexperienced about everything that made him human, and Selim was just as clumsy and inexperienced as him.
"I... I had nightmares, so I couldn't sleep and I..."
It was clear on the boy's face that he had to step on his pride to admit anything like that.
Bradley sighed and opened the door entirely.
"Aren't you supposed to look for your mother for comfort?"
Selim blushed and looked the other way, shivering in his pajamas. His bare foot on the floor made him look extremely vulnerable and Bradley wondered if Pride could ever have fake something like that.
"She locked herself up in her room, so I thought she didn't want to be disturbed. And I thought... you would understand..."
He looked up, expecting to be reprimanded. Anything would be better than being alone once again, with the memories of his terrible nightmares. The tall man in front of him pulled a face, before to let a smile grow on his features.
"You're still a little kid, Selim. It's normal for you to have nightmares and be scared. I guess you can come in and we'll talk about it."
It felt slightly awkward phrased like this, but the boy looked reassured and walked inside the room. He waited to see what his father would do and sat next to him on the side of the bed as he was invited to do. Bradley waited for his ex-brother to talk. He remembered how they would meet in the past, in the middle of the night, Pride always hiding in the darkness, letting his voice grow stronger. Wrath remembered how he hated this side of his life. To be ordered around by this homunculus, when he looked older, when he was the only one allowed to walk around the human world on a daily basis! What did Father had to keep an eye on him like that? Why was Pride so set up on bossing him around? It had almost driven him mad. At the same time, he would easily get mad. Inwardly, that is...
He waited patiently for a few minutes, but Selim remained silent, waiting for a sign that he could speak up.
"What is it?" he ended up asking.
"You're gonna think I'm crazy."
"Every kid in the world is crazy. That's human nature. And I had my lot of heavy nightmares. I can take it." Bradley grumbled, half joking.
Selim gave him a weak smile. Their relationship hard started wrong, but they had ended up developing a complicity that was different from the way Pride and Wrath used to meet in the past. It was something fragile, but something that made them feel safer around each other. They looked a lot alike. Selim had admiration in his eyes when he saw the old man carrying his swords around. When he would start practicing, the boy's eyes would start to shine. He had asked him for lessons once. Bradley wasn't too sure about it, especially about what Amelia would think. It was a matter left in questioning for now. He would ask when his wife would feel better about all that she'd learned from him.
"I don't know if I have the strength to talk about it out loud."
Raising one brow, Bradley stroked the boy' head, shuffling his hair with his large fingers.
"You have all the strength you may want. You stood up to me on my first day here. It takes some nerve to anger a Fuhrer."
"Ex Fuhrer." The boy reminded him.
It had turned into a joke between them, though Bradley wasn't always happy about it. Mustang had had quite an influence over the boy. There was a lot of work to be done to turn Selim into an obedient soldier, and even more to make sure he would be a civilized man that wouldn't go after all the young women looking his way. Bradley had started to worry about the future. Amelia had clearly put him in charge; since she was too busy mending the broken pieces of her own heart. He knew it was his fault and he wished he knew what to do. But he hadn't lied one day since they met in his old xingese chains.
"There, you see? You've got guts."
A weak laugh came from the child. Bradley felt him quivering under his hand. So small and frail, when he felt so old and clumsy himself... The child hid his face in his arms, shivers starting to win him over. His eyes were half closed, and they were shining with fears, like two stars in the night. Wrath guessed the boy needed to cry or something. He clumsily wrapped one arm around his small frame, before to tease him a little.
"Scared from the dark, boy?"
He shook his head.
"I'm more scared of the light. It creates shadows. Lots and lots of shadows. I hate them and their eyes..."
Bradley froze at that. It sounded way too familiar to be a simple coincidence. Was it really just Selim next to him? Couldn't it be that he was slowly reverting into Pride? He stroked the boy's forehead. The strange circle on his skin was undetectable under his touch. But he could see it clearly with his ultimate eye. What was it? Was this the remnant of his homunculus selve? Something to trigger him back to the monster he once was? Or something to repel the shadows that once obeyed him?
"I've been having the same dream a lot lately," Selim started. "I'm lost in a really dark place, with a slight glimpse of light. Eyes are surrounding me from the corner of every wall. I feel tentacles around me, like dozens... hundreds of hands gripping onto me. Something... I can't tell if it's even human, so I have to say that it is something that is smiling at me in the distance. Its teeth are white and wide and its smile goes too far. It's almost surrounding me. There's no sound outside. Only voices running inside my head. It feels empty. And lonely. So lonely, I'm scared no one even realizes that I still exist."
Bradley was captured by those words. It depicted something Pride had admit once. His live had been a lonely one. The first homunculus ever created. The only of his kind. A simple copy from his father. He could be proud of himself. Proud of his creator. He had to make sure nothing could ever surpass him, otherwise, his pride – the very reason he lived for- would be challenged. He hated doubting himself. After all, he was arrogant. Though he was based over someone who should have been perfect, he was bounded by limits. He had a vast container, but a container nonetheless. He couldn't go everywhere. In complete darkness, he could do less damage. He was made of shadows and pride, but without light to create his paws and hands, he had no shape. As if he never existed.
"...wide, purple and red eyes, staring at me. And at the end of the nightmare, I wake up screaming, when I realize that those eyes are in fact all mine!"
Bradley heard the pain behind the fear. How could Selim see himself as such a monster? How could the kid remember anything from being an homunculus, when his being had reverted to a small baby? Wasn't Pride dead? Was he trying to come back?
"Mom has pictures from me when I was... older, which is impossible. But she has them. So how can I know that this nightmare is truly impossible too?"
"What scare you the most, the pictures, or that nightmare?"
"Both..."
Wrath exchanged a grave look with the boy. He had to carefully choose his words here, though he was more a man of action than of words.
"You're really too brilliant for your own good, Selim. This must be from my side of the family."
"We don't share blood, dad... I was adopted."
"I know. But our families are closer than you could think... The pictures you saw are all real, and they're from a real boy."
"It couldn't be me right?"
"You mom never wanted to show you those picture, didn't she? You searched around her things when she wasn't looking, right?"
Selim looked to his feet, vaguely ashamed.
"I won't punish you, those nightmares are enough."
"But why do I keep having them? And why aren't you telling me that the boy on those pictures isn't me?"
The child clutched his hands onto his father's shirt, demanding to be reassured.
"I don't really know what to tell you, Selim. You never had a twin. We adopted you many years ago, Amelia and me. You were different at the time, but you've changed to the better. We need the boy that you are now."
"How could I have been older? Am I sick or something? Am I... a monster?"
Bradley refrained himself not to wince. This wasn't what he'd expected. He remembered Selim as a simple container for Pride, but right now, he could feel the quick breathing of the boy on his arm. He could even guess that his heart was going quicker than a train. He saw himself in that child; on the night he had become a homunculus, when he was still a young perspective Fuhrer.
Am I a monster? He had wondered over that question for most of his life. He had accepted the truth. But Pride was given another chance. Selim had no evil power anymore. His eyes were honest and pure.
"No, Selim. You got stuck in terrible battles that you didn't understand and where you shouldn't have been. You were faced with alchemy. It made you rejuvenate to the state of a small infant. We won't let it happen again."
For a moment, he was afraid that the boy would accuse him of lying. But Selim had started to trust his father. And it was the most coherent way of explaining his life.
"Where does that nightmare come from?"
Since his dad had answers, Selim determined he could get all those he needed to ease his mind. He felt terrible, as if he should be ashamed of having such nightmares. He was pretty sure other kids were scared of spiders or rats. Not shadows with eyes, tentacles and creepy smiles!
"From all those fights you were caught in." Wrath answered
"So something like that Thing really exists?"
The child looked terrified.
"It existed, but not anymore."
After that, all it took was repeating the same words over and over again. Bradley never thought he would be able to comfort anyone about anything. But it turned out pretty easy while he faced the boy. After all, it was all about stuff he knew and had experienced himself or closely seen. He was the only man in the world who could have understood the boy. He wondered if his lie would be seen through one day. If one day, the nightmares hunting the boy would catch up to reality and bring Pride back to life. That would certainly mean that they would have to fight. Unless they could be allies.
He wondered if Lust and Envy were still out somewhere in the world. Talking sense into Envy was out of the question. But maybe did they need protection and a proper life. Not that they really owed one. Lust was dead, as he slowly remembered. Or was she, now, really? He remembered her as someone who owned a lot more dignity than everything that she got in her life.
Greed and Sloth were dead. Glutonny had been eaten by Pride. Did that mean that the boy could have some of that fool's memories too?
Bradley couldn't help but wonder over all of this. He remembered his past. He remembered everything about Amelia too. Not that she would listen to him if he tried to show her his good will. Her anger and deception towards him were breaking him apart. He still held his ground without much trouble though and he decided that once Selim would get over his fear, he'd had to pay a visit to his wife. They had to settle things. Their quarrels had started to take a toll on the kid too. He had noticed his intervention had no more effect over his mother well-being.
"The worst in my dreams is that I'm always alone. Mom isn't there. And I'm scared to check if she's still there and to found out that she's not. She's getting older, isn't she?"
"She's doing fine." Bradley tried to reassure the boy. But that question was somewhat worrying him too and when Selim managed to fall back to sleep, a few minutes later, the man left him behind to go check on his mother. In his whole life, he'd never taken a better decision...
...
The door was locked and no one responded to his knocks. Of course, the woman could have been sleeping, but Bradley had a good intuition and even better ears. He clearly heard someone tumbling around stuff from inside the room. He held his breath and heard her mumbling, as if she had trouble talking. He wanted to call out her name, but he was afraid he'd wake up Selim. He didn't need a scene right now. He needed to make sure his wife was alright and that she would hear him out for once. Staying cooped up in silence wouldn't change anything. He wasn't sure what he could tell her. Saying that he had prevented Selim from becoming Pride for now wouldn't do any good. But he needed to see her alone. And now, he heard her yelping and he couldn't help but feel uneasy. Amelia had looked as gloomy as every other day today, so why did his heart suddenly skip a beat? He broke in, wondering why he felt such a sense of urgency.
Then he saw the rope and the legs of his wife, hanging in midair. She was struggling to breathe, one hand still on her chair, which was clearly going to topple over. The rope was tightly tied to her neck, in a loop that was slowly strangling her. His shoulder still hurt from breaking the door open and he wished to all the gods he knew about that Selim would not wake up from the noise. The last thing he needed now was a terrified boy. He was terrified enough himself.
What was she doing? Why was she trying to accomplish? All the questions ran in his heads as he moved.
In one swift motion, he had crossed the room and stabilized her, raising her up so the rope wouldn't strangle her anymore. It was hanging down from the roof, wrapped around a ceiling ventilator's fixation. As soon as his hands were on her, she tried to fight him back, but weakly. He stopped the chair from falling, forced her to stand. Her legs were barely holding her. Tears were rolling from her eyes. The noise of her hard breathing was like a knife piercing his heart. He refused to talk. He didn't even stare at her eyes. He needed to get her out of any danger and make sure she wasn't too hurt. He couldn't leave her alone. This was a clear suicidal attempt. She could try again as soon as he would turn his back on her.
He went through her things, around the desk in the room, smashing some things to pieces through the process. He found a pair of cissors and quickly cut the rope that had almost killed her.
"What were you thinking? What do you human can possibly think to do something like this? What could it bring you?"
His voice was trembling with anger and she shook her head, unable to speak, her hands holding her throat which was red from the burn left by the rope.
"Did you forget about Selim, Amelia? You've been worrying over him instead of me ever since we come back and now you try to..."
He was doing all he could not to yell out his frustration. The boy hadn't come around already, so he had to be still sleeping. It was a miracle in itself. He gently lead Amelia to her bed and laid her down on her pillows. His actions were soft and tender, but his hands were shaking and he had to refrain not to slap her across the face. How could she do is to him? How could she suddenly give up on everything without a fight? That wasn't like her at all. That wasn't the woman he had chosen to spend his life with. And he remembered. He remembered and it hurt more than ever.
"I..."
"Don't speak. Don't hurt yourself any further. I don't think I can hear anything right now or I'll crush you myself... What were you thinking?"
This time he yelled right in her ears, unable to hold it back anymore.
Amelia's eyes widened with surprise and fear. He sounded truly mad. He had every reason to be. But she just couldn't accept to live in such a lie. If she was supposed to die in their fake life together, wouldn't he be better off without her?
"I failed..." she managed to whisper.
"That was too close, Amelia. Were you thinking this would help our situation? Or were you just trying to hurt me in the process?"
She blinked at that, still massaging her throat, coiling up on herself. She could see the anger in his eyes. He had never looked that mad. But at the same time, there was something fragile in his gaze. Something like pain and self grieving.
"Aren't you prepared to see me dead?" she asked, still full of resentment.
"I was supposed to die along with you. It wouldn't have made any sense otherwise. Haven't you figured it out already? You were the only thing they ever let me... You are..."
His voice died down in his throat as he looked away, feeling too vulnerable in front of her. He couldn't permit himself to whisper any sweet words to her. Not when she had put him through such a fear. His heart was still pounding like a mad drum in his chest. His arms were covered with goose bumps.
She stared at him, rolling on her side as her breathing steadied. He looked like a beast in a cage. But he genuinely cared and he was saddened by her action.
"Brad..."
"I hope you weren't serious about dying here and now, if I ever get you trying again, I'll...!" He paused, unable to threaten her in any way. Hurting her was the last thing he would do. He barely ever dared to yell at her, let alone slap her across the face, though it was terribly tempting right now. Instead, he kept on pacing back and forth in the room, before to ask her with venom in his voice:
"You think your life is hard on you? You really think you've got the worst deal out of it? I started off as a test subject in a lab! We were dozens of guys, trained to become Fuhrer and I alone survived through it all. When I was given power, it was only to obey my master and to live the life he had designed for me. I was a mere puppet on a string. Only with you could I be myself, and now you're trying to die by your own hands?"
Amelia stared with disbelief and sadness as he said all that. He'd never talk as much over himself. He had complained in the past. He even admitted some nightmares, with scientists in a lab, when it was all too hard to take. But he was so strong and perfect at all time. So proud and always so in control of his self... But he never mentioned anything like that.
"I didn't mean too... It hurt so much, to see how you've lied and..."
He shook his head. He was scared he would confess too many things if he talked anymore. But at the same time, he had to convince her that though he couldn't be forgiven, he could make a difference in her life now.
"I remember, Amelia. You weren't one to give up easily when you set your mind on something."
"I'm sorry," was all she could mutter at first.
He had stopped pacing just to stare at her, so that she would understand how important this was to him. And she understood. He walked up to her, to sat on the edge of her bed and quickly checked on her throat, gently forcing her to remove her hands from her red skin. His fingers barely brushed against the bruised area where the rope had been tightly stroking. And he needed a promise that something like this would never happen again. But he didn't ask anything. How could he demand something when all he had ever done was to hurt her?
"Can I apologize too, Amelia? Will it change all the hate and betrayal feelings you hold towards me? I'm no good with words. I know how to manipulate and threaten. I know how to order and conquer. I know how to obey. How I ever managed to convince you to live with me, I'm not sure I could do it again."
"Brad, please, don't talk like that. Your eyes..."
He blinked, realizing tears were welling up. He still couldn't believe he had pushed her to such an extent. He had never tried to kill himself, not even once in his life. He had felt desperate though. But he was too proud to give up. And he could believe that the woman he chose could ever want to die. He needed her to support him. He needed her to follow him in everything he did. He needed her, just her, for heaven sake!
"I have a confession to make, Bradley. I'm not as strong as you believe. I can stand up to you when you're right in front of me. But when I realized that I never really knew you... When you were off dead and I learned about the whole truth, I tried to kill myself. At the time, Roy stopped me. Selim needed me. And I guess I still had to try and get you back. But the last weeks has been too much for me. I'm tired of arguing. I don't want excuses, but at the same time, I'm not sure what I really want."
Her voice was still hoarse from the pain and Bradley listened to her absentmindedly, still stroking her skin with swift motion of his fingers. Following the line of her jaw. Going by her few wrinkles. Looking for her heartbeat. Being content that her chest would still rise and fall and rise again. He was glad she didn't push him away. He was glad Selim was sleeping safe and sound in his bed.
"I've lied to you a lot, but I thought you would understand. I'm part human and homunculus. I know it was selfish to drag you in my life. Saying I lied to protect you wouldn't change anything or make the lies any easier to take. But..."
He sighed, replacing her hair around her face. She was crying now, but it wasn't because she was sad. To hear him talk so openly was new and terrifying in itself. How could she want to lose him forever? How could she try to kill herself when she had her husband back, without anymore lies?
"But what?" she encouraged him.
He lied next to her, so that they would be as equals, and because he suddenly felt terribly tired. His throat was too tight and he felt too exposed. She moved back, to leave him some space, her hand looking for his fingers. They felt old and young at the same time, as if they had gone back in time. Bradley wanted to stay mad at her, but he couldn't. He understood her reasons. He resented her for scaring him. She smelled like fear and lies. Like poison. He wanted that smell to vanish from her, so that her warmth would be the only thing left for him to taste. Their hands found each other.
"I chose you for a reason, Amelia. You stood by me. You treated me like a human and respected me for who I really was. I never regretted... Hate me all you want, but don't you ever try to die again. You left my world once already..."
"I don't... hate you, Brad."
It seemed she was forcing herself to call him by his favorite name. He tried not to let the attention get to this head. He was still mad at her, deep inside.
"You've drown yourself sick, refusing to eat... You're too thin."
"I'm just old." She tried to reassure him.
"Amelia, I don't want to fight with you. Just tell me you won't try anything like this again."
"I won't." She sighed. "It was wrong. But I felt so desperate. Why haven't you talked to me during the few last weeks? Why haven't you fight back when I was getting depressed?"
He rolled on his back to gaze at the ceiling, still holding her hand, but not looking at her. So now, it was entirely his fault once again? Weren't they two in this?
"Why is it so hard for us to get along?" he asked her.
She waited a long moment, in silence. They hadn't raise their voice, breathing next to each other, lost in thoughts, when she murmured:
"I think we're doing fine right now."
And it was true. Everything felt right. As long as he didn't look around to see the awful rope that could have broken her neck after strangling her to death. When had this started? When had they become so far apart?
"Won't it stop suddenly, as it did lately?" he added, admitting his little trust in himself.
"I'm ready to try my best."
"Then you have to rest and eat as much as you can to get back in shape. You're not that old. You were younger than me if I recall correctly."
"I thought you remembered everything?"
"I do remember. But my memory is as old and wasted as I am."
"I'm sure it's not." She said, almost playfully this time. "Why don't you prove it? There must be things you remember from our past that'll make sure you're really the same man as before. I think that discovering you so different and bitter and accepting your homonculisity..."
"This is the worst word you ever created, dear."
The sweet name came without thinking. They blinked, before to exchange a weak smile. She hid herself between his arms, since he was willing to let her do so. It felt comfortable. Her breathing closer to him was the best sound he'd ever heard.
"Why don't you try? Surprise me with memories I don't remember myself."
He reflected for a long moment, wondering if it was a test that he could pass. Their first encounter had been something, but he decided that it held too many bad feelings. After all, he had been pretty insulting and daring and she had slapped him.
There was their wedding day. It had been perfect in every way, even if Envy was hiding among the guests. And Lust who was also there and had almost ruined everything with her chilly laugh. But it was too far back. He had to think of something else. Something more recent. To show her that the man she loved hadn't changed. Than it came right to him.
"There was a gift I had prepared for you. It was for your birthday, or our wedding birthday, I don't recall the occasion that well, it's a few years ago and the whole chaos around Central and the sacrifices happened before I could even give it to you. It was a crystal ball, wrapped in a green package. It held a picture of us, when we were young. Since I hadn't forgotten and you had lost many of our pictures the year before."
Amelia was astonished. Somehow, until this point in time, she had been unsure if Bradley remembered anything about her. But she was positive that he had never seen the crystal ball since they met in Xin. There was no doubt that he remembered her, not just her body or else, but the woman she was and that he'd loved.
"It was a wonderful gift."
"You kept it?"
"Of course."
That made him smile. And though he thought it was far too easy, they slowly both fell asleep in each other embrace. They didn't sleep long, of course, Selim soon woke up from another nightmare and looked around for his father and mother. Finding them together had him shocked for a moment. They let the boy join them for the night. Bradley decided that he would have to check him more closely in the future, to make sure that the kid wouldn't revert into Pride. Or that it would be a controlled transformation, at the very least. His first preoccupation was Amelia welfare and he decided not to warn her about their son's problem. It would have to wait until she had build up enough strength, both physically and mentally.
...
The next few weeks were peaceful and filled with joy. The whole family, now finally acting as one, would celebrate around wide dinner, eating their fill and enjoying each other for the first time since they had been reunited. They played together. Bradley started training Selim at using swords, under the close watch of his wife. The boy's nightmares seemed to vanish, since he was working a lot and he slept like an angel. As for the couple, though they would quarrel every now and then for small stuff, they got along pretty well. But Bradley wasn't quite ready for the next step. When Amelia decided that they would go out together and that he would face the outside world without anything to hide his ouroborous eye.
She had dressed pretty well and was humming to herself. Bradley had one idea, and it was mostly of getting her out of her clothes, since they still hadn't done anything to satisfy their needs in that domain. What they had built together felt too fragile to go on and rush things. He understood that she would be scared somehow; after all, she knew he was a monster. She could always hold his gaze, but sometime, fear would flash back in her eyes. He did his best to ignore it, so that they wouldn't start fighting again. But he was growing a little more impatient. He had wanted since the very first day, even if it made no sense to him at first. And now, as he was allowed to sleep and live in the same room as her, he thought it was about time that things got serious.
"Don't stare at me like that, Bradley." She warned him.
He averted his eyes, shifting uncomfortably in his civil clothes. He had a necktie, over his white shirt and a nice dark vest. His shoes were shining and he looked pretty dignified. He made sure his hair was well arranged and asked for the nth time.
"Won't you tell me where we're going?"
"I guess I should. We're visiting Roy and Riza. They've helped me quite a lot when I was alone with Selim and I wanted to thank them."
"Shouldn't you go alone?"
"I want them to see that you're back to your old self."
He let a dark smile crept over his face.
"We were never friends, Hawkeye, Mustang and I. They were more like bugs messing in our garden."
"Watch it, Wrath!"
He bowed to dodge the hairbrush she had thrown at him. Her voice was still playful, so he had nothing to worry about. At first, she disliked how he would refer to his past, but now, she was happy to hear him being entirely honest.
"You know, there was always something incredibly wicked with the way you handled people in the past. I don't say I support it, but I've gotten to like it somehow. It's also a part of who you are. I don't mean to go and frighten them. Roy and Riza are friends to me. I want you to let them know that they really have nothing to fear from you anymore. And after all, their baby is born and I've really want to see their little girl."
She walked up to him, replacing his necktie before to run one hand through his hair. He peeked on her cheek, agreeing to go, even if it meant he would have to walk in the outside world. He regretted it pretty soon, in fact, as soon as he felt other people's eyes on him. Everyone remembered the old Fuhrer. He had been a national hero, but everyone now knew the truth. Kids wouldn't look scared, but their parents dragged them the other way, afraid that this man, wait, this monster could do any more harm.
Voices followed them, echoing in the air.
"What are they doing here?"
"It really is King Bradley. What should we do?"
Amelia waved at some people, who shyly waved back. Bradley felt scrutinized from everywhere and was surprised to realize how nervous it made him feel.
"Tell me we're taking a car." He asked her, looking ready to plea.
She shook her head.
"I'm feeling in good shape. Walking there will do us some good. And I want everyone to see that my husband is back."
Hearing that, he realized that she was ready to brag about him. So he wrapped on arm around her shoulders, wondering if she could really be proud to be married to a man such as him.
"You're sure, Amelia?"
"I'm happy with you, Bradley. We fought a lot, but you're finally back to me, in one piece, still alive and breathing. You've lied to everyone, me first, but I was the one you chose to live through it. It had been hard. People have laughed at me, and worse, people have tried to kill me sometimes. When I discovered the truth over my life, I felt betrayed. But I'm over it now. I'm too old to hold any grudges. And besides, it wasn't entirely your fault; we were both trapped in this. I'm happy to know that we've walked this road together, even if we were on different side sometimes."
"Amelia..."
He didn't know what to say to that. It was as if she was finally forgiving him. It felt unbelievable. He was unworthy of her words. But he just held her closer to him. He barely remembered seeing Mustang or Hawkeye. He remembered holding the hand of his wife. Playing with his son when he came back. Sporting outside, slashing his swords through the air. Doing research over the other homunculi, to make sure if there wasn't something he could do about the potential threat of Pride's return. He forgot most of it that night, when Amelia suggested that they shouldn't go to sleep directly.
They collided together before to mix, making love as if there was no possible tomorrow. He possessed her and she dispossessed him and as it ended, they both knew it was only beginning. They relearn tenderness and passion, accepting each of their new limits. She managed to stand his gaze. Be it the look from his human eye or the ouroborous tattoo on the other one. He rediscovered her and himself at the same time. In the morning, Bradley was so wasted, he wondered if he hadn't been beaten to dead and dreamt all these months spent with a long lost forgotten wife.
Then he saw her next to him, barely dressed in a light and daring nightgown. She looked exhausted, but content. She was simply beautiful. His wife, who had aged next to him, supported him, yelled after him, lived for him, day after day. She had paid to get him back to her, in more than one way. Her hair was a mess and so was his heart. He was back in a life that had never been his own. And he had now a chance to live it as he wanted. He was already old. He noticed a few grey hairs on his chest, as if his age was trying to mock him. He didn't really give a damn about it.
His Mrs Bradley was with him. He had to protect her once again, not against his self called Father or any scientist, but from the potential Pride coming back. Selim was slowly growing up. His eyes were still pure and innocent. But if the nightmares did come back, Wrath knew he would have to do something. He wasn't really worried. He had all he could ever asked for. Amelia shifted a little, slightly opening her eyes. They exchanged a frail smile. He wasn't sure he was worth her.
"Hi." She whispered to him.
"Hello, love."
She blushed at the choice of his words.
"Yesterday was..."
She laughed.
"...laughable?"
He sounded unsure and kinda down at her reaction. She shook her head, brushing his face.
"No, it was like going back in time. It was magic."
"And a little too fierce. You've got bruises all over." He realized, ashamed of himself.
In truth, she had just one small bruise on one arm, because he had gotten a little too possessive at some point, but it would heal quickly.
"You're exaggerating things. We both needed it. And we'll just sleep in a little to recover from it."
"You seriously want to sleep?"
"Oh, so you're up for more? What if Selim is already up?"
"What if he's still asleep?"
There was a knock on the door.
"I heard you talking, I'm sure you're up, guys, why aren't you coming for breakfast? I'm starving!" Selim complained.
They truly had a growing boy, who made it hard to spent any quality time together.
"When does school start already?"
"Bradley!"
-The end.
I don't know if this is too abrupt as an ending, but I like it as it is. Don't mind about sharing your ideas over this.