Author's Note: I would like to thank all of my reviewers! It's always a pleasure reading your comments!!
Disclaimers: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Indiana Jones. They belong to their respective owners.
Enjoy!
Chapter Four - In a Nutshell
"Indy, you seem irritated? What is it?" wondered Marcus after the two of them had discussed what their plans would be.
"Kid problems," murmured Indiana, massaging his forehead.
"Oh yes, Edward did seem angry when he had arrived. Wasn't he with you, though?"
"He decided to head here without us," explained Indiana, shaking his head. "Marcus, did you know he can now speak English?"
"Oh yes, I found out in the library. Let me tell you it was very shocking," he laughed, remembering what Edward had yelled out. "And I also found out that he's pretty good in a fight. That was also another surprise," added Marcus.
"Wait... You mean to tell me Edward was the one Kazim was talking about? That he injured most of those men?" whispered Indiana in disbelief. "And I thought he was just a brat..."
"Oh Indy," sighed Marcus, shaking his head. "Don't tell me you were hard on him. Why, when those men ambushed us in the library, Edward didn't want to leave me. He called me an idiot for suggesting it but, he left only after I ordered him to go and warn you about them. And, just before, when he was coming up, he was limping from an injury, didn't you notice it, Indy?"
Indiana leaned back in his chair, sighing loudly. He passed his hand through his hair, thinking everything over. After a moment, he remembered that he had seen Edward kneeling on the ground before they returned to the hotel. He was not kneeling because he was tired... He was kneeling because he was injured... He cursed under his breath, stuffing the grail diary into his pocket before standing.
"You are going to go see him, right?" wondered Marcus.
"I guess so," replied Indiana, leaving the room.
The archaeologist closed the door behind him and walked down the hall towards Edward's room. He hesitated a moment before knocking at the young man's door. From the other side, there was a sort of acknowledgment and Indiana slowly opened the door.
"Hey, Edward," he called as he looked around the room, searching for his companion.
After a moment, he spotted the young man seated near the window, staring down at the canal. On the window sill, a book lay open, its pages fluttering lightly in the breeze. Indiana walked up to the young man and pulled up a chair, placing it next to Edward's.
"What are you doing?" he wondered, sitting down casually.
"Reading," he replied without glancing towards the man.
Indiana glanced at the book on the window sill and realized that it was the one Edward had picked up from Indiana's father's house. He has been reading the translations all this time? He thought, raising his eyebrows.
"Surprised, no?" murmured Edward, glancing towards the archaeologist. "I do not think you were... expecting that, no?"
"No, I wasn't," replied Indiana, shaking his head. "How did you learn all of that in such a short time?"
"It was easy for me...," whispered Edward as Indiana stared at him for a moment, thinking over what he wanted to say.
"Hey, listen, I'm... I'm sorry about before," he murmured, glancing towards the young man.
Edward looked up at him, his golden irises sill a puzzle for Indiana. However, after a moment, the young man chuckled softly, shaking his head.
"I did not think you were someone who would say something like that," he explained as he continued to laugh softly.
"I could just take it back," replied Indiana with a smile. "By the way, where did you learn to fight like that? From what Marcus and Kazim told me, you're pretty good."
"I have been practising since I was young," explained Edward, stretching. "My teacher thought that to... to train? Is that right?" he wondered, glancing towards Indiana who nodded. "That to train your mind, you have to also train your body."
"He seems to know what he's doing, you teacher."
"She. She knows what she is doing," corrected Edward, surprising the archaeologist. "Yes, my teacher was a woman but that never stopped her. She is very... very tough."
"Well, to have the patience with you, she had to be," joked Indiana, earning a dark glare from the young man. "But, now that it is easier to communicate, I think things will go smoother from now on."
"I agree but...," Edward scrunched his face, not as if trying to find a word, but more like he was having an internal debate. "Ah... Never mind," he sighed, shaking his head.
"Well, when you feel like telling me, I'm all ears," explained the archaeologist, earning a confused stare from the young man. "It's an expression. It just means that I'll be listening."
"Oh, it sort of makes sense," murmured Edward, still puzzled.
"By the way, tomorrow, you and Marcus are heading to Iskenderun."
"And you are not coming," finished Edward, eyeing the man.
"No, Elsa and I will be heading to Austria to where the Nazis are keeping my father. You and Marcus can get a head start on them. Besides, Marcus' sense of direction is..."
"Lacking."
"In a way," chuckled Indiana. "Also, I'll feel better knowing that you're with him."
"So, I have to babysit him?"
"Not the words I would have used but, in a nutshell, yes."
Edward stared at Indiana once again, puzzled. He had understood that the basic idea of him going with Marcus was to protect him but he did not understand where a nutshell fit into the idea.
"Never mind. You get the idea though, no?"
"Yes but the nutshell is still puzzling me," replied Edward, scratching his head.
"Well, just forget about that then," suggested Indiana, shaking his head.
"All right," murmured Edward, still confused.
Indiana watched the young man and a small smirk appeared on his face. He chuckled softly, shaking his head. Edward caught this and turned towards the man.
"What's so funny?" he wondered, crossing his arms.
"I told you to forget about the nutshell expression."
"Well, you should not have brought a piece of food into a conversation," replied the young man, matter-of-factly.
"It's an expression," repeated Indiana, loudly, his smile still showing.
"It's stupid, that's what it is."
"I don't disagree but can you just forget about it?"
Edward glanced towards him one last time before his attention returned to his book. Indiana watched him for a moment and wondered if the young man had something else on his mind. However, when he voiced this thought, he only received a negative reply.
"Nothing is on my mind right now but going through these words again," answered Edward, looking back up at the archaeologist.
When Indiana tried to read his expression, the man found it difficult, almost impossible to do so, making him wonder about Edward even more.
"All right, see later then, Kid," called Indiana, standing and heading towards the door, not before noticing the slight frown that appeared on the young man's face because of the nickname.
