DreamweaverAki: Aw, come on. I hinted at it, no? ;)
A Mysterious Illusion: The kid you're talking about was Ed's shackmate. Yes! Roy finally gets to blow things up! Yep, you were right about Winry. (I know I PMed you, but this is just in case any one else had the same question).
Bluefire21: I'm only a little unmotivated, nothing real major; yet.
Not so human: Your question shall be answered this chapter.
Carottal: Anything I write between Ed and Roy will only ever be brotherly/fatherly. You know what, I'm not sure why I did that with the letter. I guess he wouldn't want to make her worry. And yes, I love writing with symbolism, wither it be noticeable or not. Thank you so much!
Amber Hastings: Just a midge uninspired. I've been addicted to drawing lately.
Wolves Run Free, Fangirl2013, Elricsrule, and Keystar11: Thanks for your lovely reviews!
"What if it doesn't like me?" Mustang twitched in response. "What if I mess up? It's going to hate me!"
"Your baby hasn't been born yet. Stop worrying."
"How do you know? She could've miscarried, or given birth prematurely." Ed grew more frantic as he thought of more terrible things that could've happened to Winry.
"I'm sure she's fine. You have a strong woman." He smiled briefly at Mustang's compliment, but soon began to feel uneasy.
"My kid is going to think I'm a bastard."
"Fullmetal! Newborn babies can't hate people!" Mustang took a deep breath and spoke with a gentler tone. "All they care about is being properly fed and changed."
"What if I change the diaper wrong? Then-"
"Gah!" Mustang shouted and flailed his arms into the air in defeat. Since he woke up an hour previously, all Ed could talk about was his child and how he thought he was going to mess up.
They rode in silence until they came across a cobblestone road, and Mustang changed course to follow it.
"What are you doing?" Ed questioned.
"Taking a break. She can't go on forever." Mustang patted the horse's black side. Ed had to admit, the animal was pretty neat. She carried the weight of two people on her back all night, and she didn't seem to be keeling over from exhaustion.
"She's a strong animal." He decided to point out for no reason at all.
"Yeah, she's part mustang, after all." Even though Ed couldn't see Mustang's face, he knew he was smirking.
"Did I mention smelly?"
"That would be you." Ed tried to think of a way to counter that, but it was true. He smelled worse than a pigsty. A small house came into view, and when they approached, it looked unkempt. The grass was overgrown, brown, and full of weeds. The bushes next to the house were beyond the stage of needing a trim. Shingles were splayed across the yard from a past storm. Overall, it looked abandoned. "You can bathe in there. We should make sure no one is home, first."
Ed completely agreed. He didn't want a repeat of his incident many months before when he took a shower in an occupied house. They dismounted the horse and Mustang knocked on the door. They stretched while they waited, since hours of sitting on a horse left the both of them rather sore. After several minutes of silence, it was determined the place was empty.
"You go inside. I'll take care of my horse."
"Does your horse have a name?"
"Yes." Ed waved his arm in a gesture for Mustang to continue speaking. "I don't see why that's important."
"I was just curious."
"It doesn't matter, now go clean yourself."
"Trying to hide something? I'm not leaving until you tell me." Just to irritate Mustang, Ed moved closer to him so his nasty smell was overpowering.
"Fine," Mustang shoved him away. "If you must know, her name is Riza." Ed began to hysterically laugh. "It was the first name that came to my mind when they told me to name her. Now get in the shower!" Mustang turned around and led the mare to a fenced pasture.
Ed still laughed and he opened the unlocked door, but as soon as he walked in, he ceased chuckling. The inside was dark, dusty, and looked depressing. Papers and other various items were scattered across the floor, like the owners of the house left in a hurry. Frowning, Ed walked into the front room and looked closely at one of the walls. There were several picture frames nailed into the wall, all depicting a couple with two young children. He hoped they had made it out in time.
He gloomily walked through the house and ended up in a bedroom. The closet looked disorderly, and there were only old work suits in it. A small dresser was at the end of the bed, so Ed opened a random drawer, but he slammed it back shut upon seeing what was inside. He carefully opened another one while squinting his eyes. Thankfully, men's undergarments were in that drawer, not women's. After opening his eyes fully, Ed grabbed a dark pair of boxers and flannel pajama pants.
The bathroom was not hard to find, and Ed turned the knob on the shower and waited until the room was filled with a warm steam. The rushing of the water and hitting the porcelain tub sounded almost foreign to him, but it was music to his ears. He glanced in the nearly foggy mirror before stepping into the shower. His hair looked like a tangled mass of brown hay, and his face was covered with dirt. Steam eventually shrouded the mirror until Ed couldn't see a reflection. He stepped into the blissful shower and he ignored the stinging pain on his back.
When Ed looked down, he was relieved to discover the water was not red; a good indicator his wounds were not open. The tub was starting to become caked with mud as the forceful water hit Ed's body. He grabbed the old half-full bottle of shampoo and dumped half of the contents on his head. He continuously worked the shampoo through his snarled hair, and he dumped even more of the creamy liquid on. Eventually, the tub was filled with mud, straw, and dead bugs. Next, he poured all of the remaining conditioner on his horrendous hair.
The towel he was using to scrub his filthy skin was now a brown color, and he let it slop onto the floor. There was loud knocking on the bathroom door. "You've been in there for over a half-hour!" Mustang shouted. "What's taking so long?"
"Wanna toss me another rag?" Ed responded. His scrubbing towel was already ruined.
"No!" The door pounding ceased. Ed turned the shower off and he got into his new clothes. The sensation of being clean felt amazing, and when Ed cleaned away the fog from the mirror, he was happy that the reflection looked familiar to his old self. Ed opened the door and Mustang charged in.
"You can have fun burning those if you'd like." Ed pointed to his old brown clothes. Mustang frowned and he nodded his head toward the pile.
"You're wearing someone else's underwear? That's unsanitary."
"Hey! These are clean. Besides, it's better than wearing the same pair for eight months."
"Fair enough." As Ed started to walk away, Mustang shouted, "You clogged the shower!" Ed evilly smiled and he rushed into the kitchen to find something to eat. He curiously opened the fridge, only to slam the door shut when the overwhelming strong odor of mold filled his nose. He looked through the cabinets, but they were for the most part, bare. Frustrated, he went outside and circled the house in the hopes of finding a garden or orchard.
When he went around back, Ed found an unkempt garden. There were a few brown stalks of sweet corn, but wasn't going to eat that particular food anytime soon. He dug his clean hands into the earth to look for anything salvageable. Upon digging, he found and pulled out several withered carrots and brought them back to the house.
Ed grabbed a pot and filled it with water to boil. He dumped various jars of noodles into the bubbling water, and he began to cut the carrots, discarding the rotten parts as he did so. The carrots were tossed in with the noodles, and Ed waited until the noodles were tender enough to be strained. While he waited, he dusted off two plates and two glasses.
As he strained the water, Mustang walked into the kitchen and he gave Ed a curious look when he poured the food on the plates.
"It was all I could find." Ed explained as he stuffed the food into his mouth. Mustang grabbed a plate and looked at the plain food.
"You need some meat."
"I know it's bland, but I couldn't find anything."
"Not for the taste. You need to gain some weight." Mustang was frowning.
"I'm fine."
"All of your bones are visible. You can't hide that." Ed looked at himself. Sure, he hadn't been eating properly for a few months, but it could've been much worse.
"I not as bad as Al was."
"I wouldn't know."
"What are you talking about? You were there." Mustang blinked his eyes, which caused Ed to remember about the temporary blindness. "Oh, never mind."
"That's alright. Anyway, once we get to Central, you're going on a steak diet." Ed responded by stuffing more noodles in his face. Mustang eventually ate the bland food, and Ed finished his within minutes.
"I know what you need." Mustang slyly moved to the fridge and he quickly pulled out a carton. "Milk." He quickly unscrewed the cap and flipped the carton upside down over Ed's water cup. Ed screeched and slapped his cup away. To both of their dismay, nothing was coming out of the carton.
"You're not going to make me eat that, are you?" Ed apprehensively stared at Mustang.
"I think it's well past the cottage cheese stage." They both shuddered and Mustang tossed the carton back into the refrigerator. "Okay, we have a long day tomorrow, but we should be in Central by nightfall. Let's get some sleep." Ed tossed his dirty plate in the sink and he followed Mustang into the living room.
Once in the room, Ed sat down comfortably on a plump couch, which was a feeling he had long forgotten. He could hear Mustang shuffling on the adjacent couch, and he heavily drooped his eyelids. The couch's fabric was extremely soft and welcoming.
"Edward?" Ed did not open his eyes, and he adjusted himself to he was laying on his stomach. "Why did you attack that man?" At that, Ed peeked his eyes open and he furrowed his eyebrows upon recalling the memory.
"Well, he told me he read my letter."
"So you attacked him? You could've denied writing it."
"I did." Ed clutched the couch tightly as a result from his anger. "He ignored me, and…" Ed stopped himself, not wanting to repeat the words that man had said.
"What?"
"He called Winry a prostitute. So I attacked him." Ed waited for the colonel to say something smug and complain about how thoughtless he had acted.
"I would've done the same. Get some sleep." Ed obeyed without a second thought, and he quickly fell asleep on the heavenly sofa.
Ed was running as fast as he could with Mustang slightly behind him. They ran endlessly through the unrelenting desert while trying to avoid the Cretan military. Several armed trucks came over a dune to strike the escapees down, and Mustang snapped his fingers. He managed to hit one of the trucks, but the others sent out a spray of bullets.
Xingese civilization was in sight, but Mustang crumpled to the ground. "No!" Ed shouted and he stopped to help his superior. The parched sand turned red and greedily soaked up the refreshing liquid. Mustang coughed up dark blood and he pulled Ed harshly by his shirt until they were face to face.
"You're going to be a terrible father." He sputtered before his eyes went cold. Ed released himself and he ran until he was at Xing's palace doors.
"Where's Roy?" Riza asked pleadingly, and her eyes seemed to bore inside Ed.
"He's gone. Where's everybody at?" Riza did not answer him. Instead, she seemed to pretend Ed was not there. The only acknowledgement he received was an occasional dirty glance, so he stormed into the palace.
"Where's my wife and brother?!" He shouted to Ling, who was sitting conceitedly in the ornate throne.
"Who are you?" The malice in the emperor's voice proved he knew exactly who Ed was, but he didn't want to recognize their former friendship.
"It's me, Ed, your friend. Where's my brother, Al?" Ed was starting to feel abandoned and kicked on.
"Alphonse Elric?" Ed ferociously nodded his head, and Ling gave him an unmerited look. "Al was an only child; he had no brother."
"What?!" Ed was terrified at this point. Everything was going wrong.
"He disowned you before being killed a few months ago."
"Where's Winry?" There was no use in trying to hide the panic in his voice, and he darted to the direction Ling was pointing at.
"Winry!" He shouted and sprinted to embrace her.
"Stay away from me." She growled, which caused Ed to freeze and drop his arms. Immediately, he noticed her stomach was not overly large.
"Our child?" He innocently questioned.
"My son died shortly after birth, and it's all your fault. I hate you!" Ed slowly backed away, and he hung his head with shame.
"Everyone hates you. You left us, and we will never forgive you." Familiar voices of friends and family echoed in his ears. He yelled at them to stop, but they only grew intensely loud.
"Fullmetal." Ed saw Mustang die with his own eyes, but at this point, he really didn't care.
"Stop! Leave me alone." He clasped his hands over his ears in a feeble attempt to make the jeering go away.
"Fullmetal!" The voice repeated and Ed snapped his eyes open. His surroundings were dark and unfamiliar. He was sweaty and his heart was thumping audibly. Slowly, his eyes adjusted and his breathing became regular. "You were yelling." Ed turned his head to look at Mustang, and he sighed; it was just a nightmare. Mustang made a casual hand motion by wiping his cheek, so Ed mimicked the motion. He was shocked to discover his fingers were wet, so he used his arms to wipe away the rest of the salty water. Ed was very grateful the colonel said nothing or made any indication to tease him for crying.
He heavily placed his feet on the floor, and Mustang looked at Ed apprehensively. "Just so you know, you're not the only one." It was nice to know the colonel also had nightmares, which made Ed feel less humbled. Mustang reached over to the table, and he placed a pile of dark clothes in Ed's hands.
"Um, my back." Wearing the top parts of clothing would chafe and irritate his wounds.
"Right. Follow me." They went into the bathroom and Mustang began to wrap Ed's back with a roll of gauze. "It will still probably hurt. Just be careful when you put on the suit." Suit? Ed unfolded the clothes and inspected the clothes he was given. They were business casual clothes, which made Ed roll his eyes.
Ed went into a bedroom and he cautiously put on the suit. After breaking several flimsy combs, he eventually managed to tame his hair down, then he pulled it into a neat and orderly braid. Once he straightened his stupid tie, he exited the bedroom to greet Mustang, who was now also wearing a suit.
"What's the plan?" Ed was curious to see what Mustang was cooking up.
"We are anthropologists wanting to study the Xerxian ruins." Mustang put on a pair of weak glasses, and then he gave a pair to Ed. Not really wanting to, Ed put on the half-rimmed glasses.
"This is a terrible idea."
"No it's not. Besides, I think we look nice."
"You look like a pedophile." Mustang frowned and narrowed his eyes.
"This is the best we have, so deal with it." It seemed to Ed that Mustang's pride was no longer intact.
"Whatever you say, Colonel." Ed really didn't want to wear the dumb glasses and suit, but he also didn't want to admit Mustang's plan could actually work.
Ed helped Mustang hitch the horse to a wagon, and they filled it up with traveling supplies. They even packed pointless things, like empty suitcases, so they looked like convincing travelers. Before disembarking, Ed looked at his hands and realized they still had the damned bracelets on.
"Colonel." Mustang looked at Ed, who was revealing the his bright yellow bracelet. Quickly, Mustang pulled out a pocket knife he had taken from a cabinet in the house and he cut the bracelet off. When Ed offered to do the same, Mustang shook his head. He didn't have a colored bracelet because he didn't work in the fields. "Okay, how are we going to take care of these?" Ed pointed to the much more durable metal bracelet on both of their right wrists. "Winry had to tinker mine off."
"Riza had to take care of mine." Ed could've sworn he saw Mustang shudder. "There's a pressure point here." He pointed to the small, red light. "Roll up your sleeve." Ed complied and he allowed Mustang to smash the said area until the contraption snapped in half. Blue liquid oozed out, and Ed destroyed Mustang's bracelet with a quick swipe of the pocket knife. They waited a few minutes until the staining liquid dried so it wouldn't get all over their clothes.
"Do you see the point of Iodine?" Ed still couldn't figure out what purpose it served.
"It makes an annoying mess." They both shrugged their shoulders and decided it didn't matter; they were officially free! When they climbed in the wagon, Ed nestled himself with as many blankets as he could.
"Are you cold?" Mustang seemed to snicker. The sun wasn't up yet, so it wasn't like it was warm out.
"Yes." Ed lied. He was warm, but at the point where it was discomforting. Really, he just missed the feeling of having a blanket. Before long, Ed fell asleep in his little nest of comforters and quilts.
As soon as Ed slipped into unconsciousness, he dreamt about being in the desert, running with Mustang. He had a bad case of déjà vu, and he snapped awake right after the part where Mustang called him a terrible father. The blankets were hot, but Ed wrapped them closer to his face.
"Um…" Ed cut himself short, and he squeezed his hands around a quilt.
"What is it?" Mustang questioned from the bench where he was controlling the wagon.
"Never mind." Ed turned his head slightly to avoid Mustang's curious gaze.
"I think you might have some PTSD from being on the plantation. Don't worry, it'll get better." Ed knew Mustang was speaking from experience, but the plantation was not the subject that was causing Ed to panic.
"Do you think I'm going to be a horrible dad?" He blurted out and he stared Mustang down, not with anger, but with fear.
"Is that what's been bothering you?" Mustang chuckled to himself. "Here I was thinking something was wrong with your mind." Ed lowered his chin and Mustang focused back to the road. Maybe Mustang really did think he was going to be an inept father. "Edward?" He peeked through the blankets and glanced at Mustang. "You're going to be fine. You took care of your brother for years."
"Yeah, that worked well." Mustang must've sensed the sarcasm in his voice.
"You raised your brother to the best of your ability, and he's grown up to be a respectful young man."
"You forgot the part where I trapped him inside a suit of armor for four years."
"Fullmetal, enough!" The power of the voice made Ed shrink down a little bit, despite his best efforts to convey no emotion. "It wasn't only your fault, so stop trying to take all the blame. You're going to be a great father." After hearing those words of assurance, Ed did feel a bit better, but something inside him was still unsettling.
"How do you know? You don't have children."
"Not biologically." Upon hearing that, Ed let a small smile scrawl across his face.
"You really think I'll do good?"
"Of course. Being a parent is a natural instinct that everybody has. You're no different."
"You mean that?"
"It's a primeval instinct, so yes." Ed shook his head with dismay and he grinned contentedly. He wasn't going to be a mess-up of a dad like Hoenheim, and now he was sure of it.
They rode on and the scenery was starting to look vaguely familiar. It almost looked like the outskirts of Resembool, except there were fields of wheat with slaves unenthusiastically harvesting the grain, and the spot where a farmhouse should have been was not there.
"Are we going through Resembool?" Ed asked curiously, since he was not absolutely sure that's where they were.
"Yes. This is the best route to Central." More fields of wheat and sheep came into view, and their wagon started to go over a familiar looking hill. Any second now, they would be seeing Ed and Winry's house. The wagon went forward, but the house never came into view. There was nothing there.
Ed frantically unwrapped himself from the blankets and he jumped off of the cart. "Edward!" Mustang shouted after him while he ran up the hill to where his house was supposed to be. There was nothing but a few sparse wheat plants growing on a pile of ash and debris. He unknowingly dropped to his knees and began to aimlessly sift his fingers through the rubble.
He was excessively ecstatic to find a lightly burnt picture of him, Alphonse, and Winry, which was taken shortly after defeating Father. Ed clenched the photo close to his chest when a shadow came over him. "Who are you?" A man demanded and Ed's body went rigid. Standing behind him was a slave driver on a horse.
"Hello!" A foreign sounding voice interrupted, and the rider moved his horse, which revealed Mustang walking casually up the hill. Mustang stood next to Ed, and he helped him to his feet. "I'm Lee, and this is Xu." Ed had to admit, the colonel's Xingese accent was believable.
"You're from Xing?" The man seemed to be addressing Ed only, since Mustang could easily pass off as someone from Xing.
"We are distant relatives of Emperor Ling." Mustang answered without hesitation.
"Relatives?" The slave driver had his eyes focused on Ed.
"He is adopted." Mustang quickly explained, which seemed to fix the story.
"Really? Are you of Cretan descent?"
"Me no speak 'Mestris." Ed tried his best to look and sound convincing. Thankfully, the man seemed to be buying their charade.
"What were you doing on the ground?" Mustang bent over and grabbed a fistful of the ash, then he threw it giddily into the air.
"It's, as you say, ish day! No? Ish day very important. Come, celebrate!" Mustang grabbed more ash, and Ed mimicked his motions of throwing the dirt into the air.
"Foreigners…" The man grumbled and he trotted away on his horse. Mustang and Ed hastily went back to the wagon, and they continued on their way.
"What am I going to do?" Ed groaned and he hit his head against the wagon floor. "It's all gone. Everything's gone." How was he supposed to raise his child without a house?
"Edward, we will take care of your family when this madness is over, I promise. If it comes to it, you can stay in the barracks. Alright?"
"But, I'm not in the military."
"I don't care. I'll help you get through this."
"Okay." Ed wiped his ash-covered hands off on a blanket, and he fell asleep while sprawling out on the wood. The sun was finally starting to rise, and everything seemed peaceful.
Roy was bored. For the past few hours, all he had done was sit on the bench and make sure his horse did not trail from the road. Dublith was not far away, and the sun indicated there was another hour or two until it was noon. When they got closer, the whole town appeared to be abandoned. Debris, chunks of road, and house pieces were flung everywhere.
"Oh no." Roy could hear Ed say. "I forgot to warn teacher!" Roy highly doubted Ed's teacher was still here. He had a feeling no one was here. The once bustling city of Dublith had been completely abandoned. "We need to see if everything's okay." Ed spoke determinedly, and Roy knew stopping to see if his teacher was still here (which was unlikely) would only delay their arrival to Central.
Still, Ed had been acting strange lately. He was anxious and upset about his family in Xing, which was understandable. All he wanted was peace of mind that his teacher was safe. So, Roy gave in and he followed Ed's directions to the meat shop.
What was there was not surprising, given their current situation. The shop was nothing more than a pile of wood and bricks, as well as the surrounding area. There were pillars of rock jutting out in random places that appeared to be formed with alchemy, and Roy seemed to have a slight understanding of what happened here. Either Ed's teacher had made a miraculous escape, or she put up an amazing fight while being captured. Either way, the damage to the entire town was devastating. Roy had a feeling she made it out.
"Okay, Fullmetal, let's keep going." Roy clicked, and the horse quickened up the wagon's pace.
"I thought I told you not to call me that." Ed stated with a dead tone, which didn't surprise Roy one bit. Still, he called Ed by his old title plenty of times before, and he hadn't said anything then.
"Edward, let it go. What's done is done. I know things are a little messed up now, but it always gets worse before it gets better. Maybe this is a sign things are about to make a change for the better. Don't lose your hope. You've got a wife and unborn child waiting for you, so be strong for them." Roy knew it must be hard to lose your home, and find out your second home was destroyed, but they would never manage to make it to Xing if Ed didn't have the will or drive to continue on.
"I haven't lost hope, and I never will. I will be there for Winry and our baby." It sounded like Ed was offended that Roy insinuated he had given up. Roy was glad to hear Ed was still in a fighting spirit, despite their newfound discoveries of the fate of his hometown.
The sun was in the center of the sky, and Roy knew they would be arriving in the capital in a few hours, assuming they retained their quick, but steady pace. When they approached Rush Valley, Ed was stunningly quiet. The automail Mecca of Amestris was quiet and calm. It was supposed to be bustling and loud. A few people were walking in the streets, but it was otherwise abandoned.
"Are we there yet?" Ed moaned from the back.
"Don't you start that. We won't be in Central until nightfall." He could hear Ed snicker, which was followed by silence, then light snoring. Ed seemed to be sleeping like he never slept in his life before. Roy couldn't blame him; in the fields, the slaves were woken up at five in the morning, and they worked until ten at night. They also weren't given an adequate amount of food. The poor kid must've been exhausted.
Since there was nothing to look at except for his mare pulling the wagon, Roy couldn't help but think about Riza and the rest of his team. At least Ed knew his family was in Xing. Roy didn't have that luxury, so in a sense, he was blind.
Ed was snoring softly, and there were hardly any other noises. That made Roy relax, and he knew Ed wasn't having another nightmare. As he rode along, Roy tried his hardest to ignore the slaves cultivating crops near the roadside. He wanted to shove them all onto the wagon, but he knew even taking one would ruin their mission.
The sun went into it's decline, and Central came into view. Roy hadn't seen his home in eight months, and he selfishly hoped it hadn't met the same fate as Ed's home. He doubted Central would've been plowed down for the sole purpose of having more room for crops like in Resembool. Still, knowing these sadistic bastards, they could have demolished his apartment for fun.
"Why did they destroy the libraries?" Roy didn't realize Ed stopped snoring, so it took his brain a few seconds to understand he was being spoken to. He turned his head and looked at the burned down remains of Central's largest library, and he sighed with melancholy.
"Do you know how to kill someone, on the inside?" Ed shook his head and he had an eyebrow raised. "Get rid of a man's culture, and he is dead. Without culture, humans are reduced to mere animals. That, Edward, is why they have desecrated our institutions and literature." Roy could feel the anger swelling inside of him, and he could almost guarantee Ed was feeling the same way.
Central was bustling as ever, and no one paid Roy and Ed any attention. They passed Central Command, or at least what was left of it. Now, the building was an enormous pile of rubble, and half the building was torn away. The nearby buildings were in a similar scorched state.
"Looks like a battle field." Ed's eyes were moving rapidly and his mind was trying to quickly process what had happened to the area.
"It was." Roy was in the battle; he had been a one-man army.
"Kind of looks like these buildings were burned down." Ed was suspiciously eyeing Roy.
"They were. I think you know who did that." This was the spot of Roy's last stand. Well, not really, that was a few houses away in a boat…but that didn't matter!
"I can't believe you beat an entire army." One of Roy's cheeks twitched upon hearing Ed's statement.
"Actually, I lost. I was captured here."
"Oh, did you fall asleep?" Ed snorted, and Roy wanted to defend himself with an equally annoying response. Then he realized Ed was right. Roy had fallen asleep in a stupid boat. Really? A boat of all places, and in the middle of a water locked city. He wasn't about to let Ed know that piece information.
"Drop it." That only made Ed laugh, so Roy shot him a look. He even made a menacing motion to make it look like he was going to snap his fingers, but it wasn't exactly scary when he wasn't wearing his ignition gloves. "We'll be at my apartment soon."
"Yay." Ed sarcastically raised his hands in the air. "I can hardly wait."
"I'll have you know, my apartment is nice. It's better than your barracks ever were." Ed immaturely responded by sticking his tongue out. Roy ignored him and he hitched the mare on the side of the road.
"Oh, yeah, it really looks like it's a nice place." Ed jeered when Roy led him inside the complex. Roy had to admit, the place was a wreck. He hesitated to turn the doorknob to his room, knowing it was most likely going to look like a disaster.
Roy was right; his home was disorderly and things were scattered across the floor and tables.
"I thought you said you kept things organized." If Ed was trying to piss him off, it was working.
"I haven't been here in eight months, of course it's a pit!" Roy flicked the lights on and he walked over to his ash-riddled fireplace. He clapped his hands and transmuted a few bricks out of the way, revealing a small hole. Ed stood behind Roy and peered curiously over his shoulder. Roy reached into the makeshift safe and he pulled out a pair of ignition gloves, as well as a hefty amount of money.
He felt at ease with the familiar gloves on his hands. "It's been a long day. Let's get some rest, we have a long journey tomorrow." Ed agreed, and they patted the dust off of the two couches. Once again, Roy let Ed get the comfier of the two. It was hard to think he had been sleeping on dirt for all those months.
Once they were both situated, Roy let out an congenial sigh. Because he could, he snapped his fingers and set the logs in the fireplace on fire. The flickering light and the crackling wood was soothing. Roy closed his eyes and he thought about a myriad of things.
"Edward, nine months ago, you were in Aerugo." Roy said after doing some random calculations in his head.
"So what?"
"Well, Ms. Rockbell is due soon, and human mothers carry babies for nine months."
"Your point being?" Ed asked with more irritation in his voice. It seemed to slowly dawn on Ed what Roy was trying to get at. "Well, you did get us a honeymoon suite." Roy twitched his eyes and mouth with frustration.
"You knew Amestris was on the brink of war, so you thought it would be a good idea to…" He let his last word drawl out.
"Hey, you could've found us a more interesting town to stay in. Geeze, I thought I was going to die of boredom. Then, on my birthday-"
"I don't want to hear it." Roy quickly cut the loudmouth off.
"Jealous?" Ed was smiling mischievously.
"Jealous of what? I don't have a child and wife holding me down."
"Whatever you say, Colonel." Ed let out a loud yawn.
"What's that supposed to mean?" The only answer was a snore. Ed was very lucky he was injured, otherwise Roy might of considered setting the couch on fire.
"Agh! Get it off me!" Mustang shouted and Ed woke up. The sun was peeking through the open window, and the fire had long died out. He scanned his surroundings, but stopped when he saw Mustang. And a very large bird of prey.
The eagle was standing on the cushion and pecking at Mustang's side. It was quite a funny scene, and Ed began to deliriously laugh.
"Fullmetal! For the love of everything alchemy, get this damned bird off!" Mustang pleaded as he held up his hands defensively. Ed continued to laugh, and he threw a sheet over the eagle. The bird panicked, so Mustang and Ed carefully held the wrapped up eagle in an attempt to calm it down. It seemed to work, and the mysterious bird peeked it's head through a hole in the blanket.
"Well, that was random." Ed stated after he got over a coughing fit from laughing.
"I don't think so. Did you know Imperial Eagles are fast birds of prey native to Xing?"
"No." Ed didn't see how that was important, or why Mustang knew that.
"Sure, there are faster birds, but they don't have as much stamina and strength to cross the desert in a short amount of time."
"Thanks for the biology lesson." Mustang gave Ed the smile. Yes, he hated that smug, arrogant look. It irked him to no end. Mustang patted the bird's head, and he took the sheet off. The eagle remained calm and it looked at Mustang with beady eyes before screeching out a call.
"Here." Mustang untied something from the bird's leg and he handed it over to Ed. "I think it's for you." With wide eyes, Ed unrolled the piece of paper and he zealously read the letter.
"Brother, I can't believe it! You're okay! There's so many questions we have. I was scared; we were all scared you died in the desert. Or something worse. We even sent out a search team to look for you several times, but we had to give up when Creta tried to detain the groups.
Ling has been great. He's given all of the Amestrians Xingese citizenships, even though I'm sorry to say that's not stopping the army from capturing our people. I'm just glad you acknowledged him. He seemed really happy after you thanked him in the letter.
Winry couldn't wait anymore. She had the baby an hour before your letter arrived! Oh, it was so scary. I made sure I was there, but I stayed in a different room with Ling. Everything went perfectly. Mei, Teacher, and Riza were all there to help during labor." Ed paused and reread that line. Teacher was there, after all! And so was Riza! "Congratulations! You're a father! Your son is healthy, and so is Winry. We are anxiously waiting for you to arrive so you and Winry can name him. We all figured it would be okay to wait a few days until you came. It's not that long, really.
I'm really glad Colonel Mustang is with you. Everyone was worried he had been killed, and I'm sure he was worried about Riza and everyone else. We are all safe, I assure you. I still can't believe you've been gone for eight months. Don't ever scare us like that again!
The reason we got an eagle to deliver this letter was so it would get to you before you left. She's an amazing animal, so make sure you're nice to her. She's a specially bred eagle from the palace.
I know I've said it before, but you really have no idea how excited we were when this letter was delivered to us. It was like two miracles happened in one day! I'm sorry you couldn't be here for the birth, but honestly, you probably would've fainted. Again.
Be careful crossing the desert, and don't drink cactus juice this time. We all happily, and anxiously, await both of your arrivals.
Love, Alphonse
P.S. Riza told me to tell Roy the eagle bites."
Ed gave Mustang the letter to read over. He seemed to be warmly smiling at the post note. "Here, you forgot something." Mustang gave the letter back to Ed, and he flipped it over. On the back, there was a small photo. Ed tenderly pried it off for closer inspection.
It was a picture of Winry and their son. They were surrounded by familiar, happy faces, and Ed was glad to see it. So many people had been there for Winry at her time of need, and Ed would be forever grateful for their help.
Ed kept staring at the picture of his son, and he put it in Mustang's face. "I'm a dad!"
"Looks like a sack of potatoes." Ed punched him on the arm. "Ow! All babies look the same; like potatoes."
"Not mine! Look at him, he's nothing like other babies. He's mine!" Ed accidentally let out a giggle of excitement.
"…Not another one." Mustang grumbled to himself, and Ed simply ignored it. He grabbed a random piece of paperwork from the floor, and he scrawled a message onto the back of it with a pen.
"Alphonse, it's Ed, but you probably already knew that. I can't believe it! I'm a father! Oh, and he's perfect. Winry's perfect. You're all perfect! Tell everyone how much I appreciate their help. I can't say enough how glad I am. I doubt Winry's in any condition or mood to read this, so make sure you read it out loud to her. I don't want her to over-exert herself.
I'm happy to hear Teacher is there. We went through Dublith, and the whole town was ruined. That reminds me, I have some terrible news. Resembool is gone. Nothing is left. I'm sorry.
Again, I'm so sorry for leaving like that. I was actually thinking ahead that time, too.
I wouldn't have fainted! I've never fainted before. Sheesh, have a little faith in your brother. Fainting…that's ridiculous! And no, you can't keep the eagle as a pet. I'll be careful this time in the desert. By the time you get this letter, Mustang and I will be in the desert and a few hours away from the palace.
I love you all! -Ed"
Ed ran out of room, and he didn't care about his ramblings in the first part of the letter. He rolled up the note, tied it to the bird's leg, and Mustang took care of the rest. Ed clung to the picture, and smiled.
"I'm a dad." Ed said out loud, and Mustang smiled.
"I know."
It was kind of sweet, in a weird sort of way. Ed paraded around with his picture, and he had fallen asleep with it when they boarded the wagon. Roy received a letter, too, but Ed was too busy and frantic to notice. The members of his team were coddling him, and wishing him a safe return. He replied the reason they were leaving sooner than planned was due to a few complications, and they should be arriving a few hours after the eagle did.
Roy had filled the suitcases with clothes and fake travel papers, so they didn't look suspicious in case they were checked. After a three hours of traveling, a large wall with countless sentry towers came into view. He led the wagon towards the checkpoint, and he woke Ed up.
"Look alive, and let me do the talking. Try not to look nervous." Ed swung his legs over the side of the wagon, and he sat next to Roy. They were wearing their casual suits and glasses. Ed's hair was in a braid, and Roy put gel in his hair so it looked nice.
"Good day, sirs." A guard stood in front of the wagon, and Roy made a command for his horse to stop. Freedom was just beyond the gate; he could practically taste it.
"Good day to you." Roy said, then he bowed his head, and Ed mimicked the action.
"Would you mind coming standing here so we can conduct a search?"
"Of course not." Roy hopped off, and Ed surprisingly came off easily, despite his tender back. Several more guards and dogs searched the wagon. They must've been looking for stowaways.
"So, what brings you here?" Roy looked around. The checkpoint wasn't busy, and it seemed like only merchants came through.
"We are anthropologists. My colleague here has been to the Xerxian ruins before, and he suggested we go study it." Ed beamed with pride. Roy knew Ed wasn't smiling because of what he said, but because he was thinking about his son. "Here you go." Roy handed the man the fake documents.
After only ten minutes, the wagon was given the all clear. "Alright, you should be free to go. One last thing, do you mind rolling up your sleeves?" Roy and Ed glanced at each other; they were both confused. It seemed like a strange request, but it was simple enough.
Together, Roy and Ed both rolled up their sleeves. Roy's stomach flipped and his heart seemed to stop. Their right wrists were stained yellow from Iodine.