Chapter 7

By the last day of the festival, Ed was more than ready to get back to being an emissary. Every time he turned around someone was saying hello to him or shaking his hand or even (disturbingly) saying a blessing for him. Everyone was very kind to him, but he still didn't understand why the people reacted to him the way they did.

"It just doesn't make sense," Ed muttered to Al. "Why is everyone so darn happy to see me all the time? I'm no one special, really."

Al had to look at his brother to make sure that he wasn't joking. Ed saying he was no one special? Of course Brother knew just how special he was, but if he were saying otherwise, then what did that mean? Most likely that he was tired of being noticed wherever he went. "Just be patient," Al counseled him. "Things will calm down eventually."

"Yeah, but how long will it take?"

The Brona had not reappeared after their fabulous show the first day that had culminated in Amalda's being kissed. Now she had a bodyguard, and she was not happy about it. She'd argued with her parents, argued with the Council (it had been their idea), and stormed about it for a few days, but the guard had stayed and she was stuck with him. She called him Sir Grump because she hated him and it was clear he despised her.

"I thought everyone liked you," Ed said when he saw the two glaring at one another.

"I'm not going to go into it," Amalda muttered. "Suffice it to say that he and I have never gotten along together. Ever."

Ed and Al left it at that, but they did have a laugh later in the day when Amalda contrived to slip away from her guard. The poor man ran all over the festival trying to find her, and the brothers were highly amused when Major Armstrong suggested that they should help search as well. They found Amalda in a small enclosed garden that was open only on one side to the street. If they hadn't heard her voice and followed it, they would never have found her at all.

What they saw surprised them more than anything else they had yet seen in Paxia. There was Amalda, sitting on a garden bench, wrapped in the arms of a dark-haired young man, and it was clear that they knew one another very well. As the brothers and Major Armstrong thought about turning back, they saw Amalda and the young man kiss one another lovingly.

Major Armstrong was the one who shattered the moment by clearing his throat, making Amalda and the young man jump and look up. "Ah, Your Highness, your bodyguard has missed you and is looking all over for you. Perhaps we should not keep him waiting?"

"Oh, let him wait, Major," the young man said, waving him away. "I don't wish to go yet."

"I'm going to insist in a minute," the major said, beginning to sound dangerous. The Elrics began to back away.

"Insist away, just don't interrupt me," he answered, giving Amalda a kiss that did not look as if it were going to end any time soon. "This young lady needs kissing."

A crash and boom later, and a very red Amalda was being escorted back to the festival by Major Armstrong while the Elrics followed sheepishly behind.

"I never saw the Major get that mad before!" Al whispered fearfully. "Were Amalda and that boy doing anything wrong?"

"Well, adults are funny about kids kissing," Ed muttered, hoping Major Armstrong wouldn't hear him. "I don't know why, they just are. The bad thing is, by the time we're teenagers we're old enough to do that, but they don't see it that way. They still see us as kids."

Amalda fell back to walk with Ed and Al. "Major Armstrong has already promised not to tell my parents as long as I don't sneak off again," she said, sounding unhappy. "Could you guys do the same? They wouldn't understand."

"No problem," both brothers chorused, and they felt better when they saw Amalda smile.

"So, who is he? How did you manage to get a boyfriend?" Ed asked, unable to keep himself from asking.

Amalda smiled. "His name is Merrick, and he's completely wonderful. We first met at the temple. He was there praying, and I was there giving counsel. He and I were the last ones in the temple since it was almost time for counsel to end. He came and confessed to me that he had been adoring a young woman from afar for more than a year, and with each day he adored her more and more. He asked me what he should do, and I told him that he should try to tell her or show her how he felt. The next thing I knew, he was kissing me and telling me how much he adored me, and I fell in love with him at that moment, and we've been together ever since."

Ed blinked. "Wow. So that's why you slipped off."

Amalda nodded. "That's why I slipped off. And thank you both, for not saying anything."

Space

The day after the festival ended, Ed's valets woke him up early. "Wassamatter?" he mumbled, sitting up and squinting in the dark. "Wasswrong?"

"Nothing, sir," said his head valet. "Nothing at all. There's a council meeting, and it's beginning in a short time. They've asked you to be present, and Major Armstrong is already there and waiting. He asked us to come get you."

"Okay," Ed told him, untangling himself from his covers. "I'll be there in a bit."

He washed and dressed, yawning the whole while. What time was it? He looked for a clock, and when he saw the time he moaned. Five in the morning! What were those Council members thinking? Didn't they realize how early it was? Not even the birds were up yet!

Still yawning, Ed left his room and wandered down the hall toward the Council Chamber. Once he got there, he intended to give those men a piece of his mind for the early hour. As he entered, the Council members chorused a greeting and Ed parroted it back to them, hardly awake. He made his way to his seat and tried very, very hard to look alert, but he could tell that he was fighting a losing battle from the start. Almost as soon as he sat down, he could feel himself falling asleep again.

A touch on his shoulder woke him, and he found himself looking up at the sympathetic face of King Corin. "The Council has broken for recess, Edward," he said, helping him out of his chair. "We're meeting in the side garden in a few minutes, though."

"Whoops," Ed said, getting to his feet. "Sorry I fell asleep. What time is it?"

"Just after six," the king said. "And it was all right for you to sleep. Not much happened, just a few last minute details, that's all."

"Well, that's all right, then," Ed said, allowing himself to be led along. "Tha's nice."

The sun still wasn't out, and the light in the garden was a kind of half-twilight that made seeing very difficult. There were still a few lingering traces of mist here and there, and he could hear nothing but silence once they were outside. The king led him along and chatted with him, saying how glad he was that things were going so well and that everything was happening just as it should. Ed made appropriate answers when they seemed called for, but mostly he followed the king and wished he could go back to bed. He'd stayed up late reading the night before and now he was paying for it. Four hours of sleep did not make for a rested Edward. He hated to think of what Major Armstrong would say to him when...wait a minute. Hadn't his valets told him that Major Armstrong was going to be there? So far, he couldn't remember seeing the major or hearing his resounding (and annoying-at-six-in-the-morning) voice. And he sure hadn't felt Major Armstrong poking him to keep him awake just like he always did at these awful meetings! So, where was the major? Why hadn't he been at the meeting when he was supposed to be?

They reached the center of the garden just as the sun was starting to peek above the horizon. The Council was there, gathered around a table and they were all looking excited. A priest in full regalia was standing there as well, holding a purple cushion. On that cushion rested a gold dagger. The King took Ed's left hand, surprising him, and led him up to the table.

"Um, what's going on?" Ed whispered as quietly as he could. Was this some sort of symbolic religious ceremony he was supposed to participate in? Why didn't people tell him these things?

"Shh," the King said as they reached the table and the priest started to chant. "All you'll have to do is stand here by me. Don't let go of my hand, and don't worry. It'll be over in a few minutes."

"What will?" Ed demanded in a hiss, becoming a little worried, but he really couldn't say why.

The priest finished the chant and approached the king, presenting the dagger on the cushion. The king took it and turned towards Ed, giving him a reassuring smile. "It will only hurt for a little bit, Edward, and then you won't feel a thing. Don't worry."

"What won't?" Edward blurted, not bothering to keep his voice down in deference to the early hour and those people still asleep. "What's going on?"

Without a word, the king removed Ed's glove from the young man's left hand and rested the point of the dagger against it. Feeling that something very bad was about to happen, Ed kicked at the king and started to run, windmilling his arm so that the king would lose his grip.

Immediately Councillors were everywhere, trying to block his escape. He kept fighting, just as Izumi had taught him to do, and it looked like he was going to get out of the gardens altogether when one of the councilmen plowed into him, knocking him hard with his shoulder. Ed felt himself go flying and before he could right himself and regain his feet he felt something pound against his head. Either that, or I pounded it, Ed thought, remaining where he'd come to rest. His head hurt abominably, he had trouble seeing, and he couldn't really get his body to move. It was what Izumi liked to call a brain strike: if he was hit on the head in a certain place, he wouldn't lose consciousness, but he would be unable to move or call for help. She'd taught him and Al how to avoid it, but now it was too late to think about. He couldn't move or call for help as he felt the guy who'd knocked him over pick him up and carry him back the way they'd come.

"What happened?" Ed heard the king say a moment--an age?-- later. He was having trouble keeping track of time.

"He's just dazed, fell against one of those marble planters and hit his head." Ed heard that and tried to shout, You liar! You pushed me into it! "It will wear off and he'll be able to move in a bit, so we'd better make this fast while he's so quiet."

"All right, lay him on the table, then," the king said.

Ed felt the hard surface beneath him and fought to see, fought to move, yell, anything! What was going on? Abruptly, his sight cleared, but he still couldn't move. He stared in horror as he saw the king approach him with the dagger and lay it against his hand. He felt the blade slice into his skin and he felt his breath hiss in and felt his legs and arms twitch slightly, but that was all he was able to do. The blade dug further into his hand and he tried to yell or pull his hand away, but all he could do was curl his fingers and turn his head the slightest bit.

Everything seemed very far away yet terribly close at the same time, and what he saw was like a scene out of a horror story. The king was standing there, holding his hand and moving the dagger away from the large gash he'd just made. Blood was pouring freely out of the cut, and for one panicked moment Ed wondered if the idiot had hit a vein, but no, it didn't appear that he had. Now his hand was turned palm-down and the blood started to drip, landing on a large sheet of paper covered with writing in an ornate hand. The king was allowing it to drop in only one spot, though. Ed fought to focus his eyes, trying to see why, and then he wished he hadn't. The blood was falling onto an array, and he could see the lines of it glowing the slightest bit. Why were they performing alchemy using his blood? Equivalent exchange? But why? What were they doing? He couldn't see all of the array and he really couldn't tell what its purpose was.

The last of the array was covered, and the blood and array disappeared, leaving no sign that they had been there. He felt someone swab something onto his hand, cleaning up the blood and numbing the pain, and he felt someone swab it onto the bump on his head as well. The pain faded and he felt someone--it turned out to be the king--pick him up from the table. The priest began chanting again, and the Council chanted back along with the king. He could only hear a few of the words, and they began to mystify him. There was talk about responsibility and teaching and honor, and an injunction to protect. Protect what?

The whole time that the priest and the Council were chanting, Ed could feel his body going back to normal. He felt as if he could move just the slightest bit, and perhaps stand or even walk. But still, he was terribly dizzy, and when he tried to get out of the king's arms, all he could do was move his feet a little. The king felt the movement and looked down at him and leaned in to whisper to him. "It's almost over, Edward. Don't worry, after this you're going right back to bed and we'll have the doctor come to look at your head."

The priest stepped into Ed's vision then, and Ed felt him drip something--water--onto his forehead. "In the Name of the Child, I hereby name and christen thee Edward Sophar Corin Deneran, Crown Prince of Paxia and newly-born son to their Majesties, Corin and Evelane Deneran. May you be one with the Child and Paxia, and may you be prosperous. In the Name of the Child, the Adoption is complete," the old man intoned, drawing an "In the Name of the Child" in response from the Council and the king.

Only then did Edward manage to find his voice. "Adoption?" he croaked, feeling sick. "What adoption?"