Fdshfggfafvc update.
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It had been about two hours since Edward had left the camp. Aragorn had built the fire so that it was sheltered from the rain, and as he watched the flames, he considered the day's events.
So far, Edward had been as stubborn as Alphonse had predicted him to be; already the younger brother's idea, despite the resulting injuries, had proven to be the best solution. Once given time to think on the matter on his own, Edward would likely change his mind about the affair.
Of course, his behavior since setting up camp had been anything but promising. His silence had almost been unnerving, and the only reason Aragorn hadn't attempted to stop him was because he had gone the wrong way. At any rate, he would not find his way back at night, though that was the least of Aragorn's worries.
He stood and doused the fire before passing through the trees, keeping an eye out for any signs of trouble. Within a few moments, he came upon a large boulder, underneath which lay the alchemist. Aragorn crouched down next to him and looked more closely. Edward was still alive, and though his hand was covered in blood, he was unharmed. He hadn't been seen by any unwelcome eyes.
Aragorn pushed Edward's hair back to check on the bandages, realizing that they were probably too wet to be of any good anyway. Sure enough, they were, and Aragorn was about to pull them off when he noticed something else. Though it was hard to tell with the minimal light, it appeared as though Edward had been crying.
He watched the sleeping form for a moment before standing. It was becoming evident that Edward could not be forced to accompany him. Even if he dragged the alchemist to Rivendell, it would feel too much like a prison to the boy. In the end, he would see Aragorn as an enemy, and that was the last thing he wanted.
He stood, checked the surrounding area once more, and returned to the camp. He gathered everything together before returning to Edward's side, placing his pack beneath a nearby tree. Once he had taken care of Edward's wounds, he covered the small form with a blanket, and he returned to the cover of the trees. They would speak about the matter tomorrow.
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The first thing that came to Ed's mind when he woke up was that he would regret his actions for a long time. He sniffled as he curled into a ball, trying to warm himself up, not noticing the blanket draped over his body until it touched his face. Ed stared at it for a moment, wondering how it had gotten there.
Strider.
He looked up, trying to get a better look at his surroundings. To his surprise, he was in the same place where he'd fallen asleep last night. He'd thought for sure that he'd be taken back to camp and lectured. Ed pushed himself to a sitting position, wincing at the pain in his left hand.
That's right, I punched the rock last night, he thought as he looked at the bandages. He must have done those, too. He shook his head and rested against the stone, keeping his eyes shut. Why had he been left here? Hadn't he been dragged all the way here for an important reason? He'd been taken from his world, his goals, his brother…
Al. Ed's eyes snapped open. Al had definitely been acting suspicious yesterday. When Strider had said that Al wouldn't be left in the dark, had that been a cover story for what had really happened? Had Al helped to arrange all this?
Ed stood. He knew what needed to be done now. He wouldn't let his brother down.
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It wasn't long after Aragorn awoke that he heard Edward approaching, the footsteps stopping twice along the way to allow for a rather ungraceful sneeze. Aragorn shook his head sadly. It seemed Edward had been unable to avoid catching a cold.
The alchemist stopped when he saw Aragorn sitting against a tree trunk, and he took a moment to observe the area before sitting down across from the Ranger. He kept his gaze lowered for the moment.
"You moved."
Aragorn raised an eyebrow at the boy. It was a rather blunt statement, but he didn't comment on it. He could tell Edward was having a hard time getting his thoughts together.
"It's dangerous to be alone in these woods," Aragorn replied. He didn't have to explain why.
"Yeah," Edward muttered. "I guess so."
Aragorn watched the boy for a moment before the latter spoke again. "It was pretty cold last night," he said, keeping his gaze on his left hand.
Aragorn continued to silently watch Edward. Whatever the boy had to say, it was difficult for him. A few minutes passed, and the silence weighed heavily on both of them. Finally, Edward looked up.
"Al helped set this up, didn't he?"
Aragorn nodded. He was glad that the alchemist had figured it out on his own, although with Alphonse's behavior, he was more surprised that it had taken this long to begin with. "He told me you would not come willingly."
Edward scowled. "I'm gonna kill him when this is over."
Aragorn looked into Edward's eyes. "So you will come?"
Edward smiled and shrugged. "It's not like I have much of a choice, right?"
Aragorn smiled back. He would have been willing to return the boy to his world, but since Edward was willing to stay, they could continue to Rivendell. They packed up rather quickly and went on their way.
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As they rode on, Ed found himself wondering if he really was ready for this. Everything he could remember about this place was good, but he wasn't sure if he could trust those memories. After all, almost everything seemed brighter when he was little. Would it really be the way he remembered?
Everything he could see so far, though, brought back vague memories from that time. He didn't know whether to be relieved or nervous. He didn't know how well he'd fit in here, and if he was going to be here for a while… All of a sudden, he was grateful that he hadn't been wearing his usual outfit when he went into the forest. He had a feeling the black leather would just make him stick out more.
As they arrived and got off the horse, Ed also thought of how he was grateful for Strider's presence. If it came down to having to admit what he'd done, Ed had the feeling that at least he would understand. A few minutes later, when Elrond came down to greet them, Ed tried to look as normal as he could. He felt bad for putting Strider through so much trouble, even though he really had brought it on himself.
After they exchanged greetings, Elrond briefly looked both of them over, making Ed conscious of the bandages on his head and hand. Too bad there wasn't much of a chance of making up some cover story for those…
"It seems you ran into trouble on your way here," Elrond said finally, concern evident in his voice. Ed had to put a conscious effort into keeping a straight face. Of course, he'd always had trouble keeping himself from turning bright red, so he turned his head. There was no way in hell he'd be the one to tell this story.
To his relief, Strider stepped forward and said something in what Ed recognized as the Elven language, and Ed guessed that was their cue for him to leave, because Elrond then took him to a bedroom and told him to get some rest. Since he was still sick, Ed didn't bother to argue. Once he was alone, he pulled off his coat and lay down. A few minutes later, he was asleep.
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After Edward had been taken to his room to rest, Aragorn sat in his own room, taking a few minutes to recover from the journey. It had been relatively uneventful in the end, but the bruises that Edward had given him were becoming more pronounced. It would take a few days for them to fade, at the least.
A short while later, he went out into the hallway. At that moment, Elrond came out of the alchemist's room. The two of them walked down the hallway in silence for a moment before Elrond spoke.
"It seems you have quite a story to tell," he said. "What happened?"
Aragorn was brief in explaining the events that had occurred since he had left Rivendell a few days earlier. He didn't go into detail when he spoke about Edward's nervous breakdown, simply because he wanted to respect his privacy in those matters. He finished his tale as they came to a balcony, and they stood looking out over the valley.
"So he changed his mind in the end," Elrond said after a moment. "It is good that he made the choice on his own. It will be easier to teach him."
Aragorn nodded, though he was curious as to what had caused Edward to change his mind. Considering how stubborn he had been at first, it must have been difficult for him to make that decision without a very good reason.
"He will have to learn a great deal before you leave," Elrond continued. "He should at least be able to read, as well as know how to behave in this world."
A moment's silence passed, where both Man and Elf considered just how much effort would be required for this task, particularly the second part. Aragorn in particular was concerned, because of the words spoken by Alphonse on the subject.
"Brother's not exactly what you could call respectful. If he thinks it's undeserved, then he'll be a complete jerk, except when it's something important. Even when he's reporting to the Colonel…"
Aragorn had thought Alphonse's rants on his brother's behavior amusing at the time, but now that he'd had some experience with the boy, he was slightly concerned. Just how much of a struggle would it be to handle him?
They spoke a short while longer about the coming days before parting for the afternoon. Aragorn checked on the alchemist before returning to his own room.
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When Ed woke up, it was early evening, and he yawned and blinked a few times to get rid of the disorientation that came from falling asleep in the middle of the day. He stared at the ceiling for a while, not wanting to move just yet, before finally standing and pulling his gloves on. He didn't really feel like drawing attention to his right arm.
A moment later, the door opened, and Ed looked up to see Strider. The older man smiled when he saw that Ed was awake and walked up to him.
"Are you feeling better now?" he asked, sitting in a chair across from Ed. Ed nodded, biting his lip to keep from sneezing. Thankfully, the urge passed, and he soon found himself able to breathe again. He opened his mouth to speak, but soon found that he didn't know what to say. In the end, he just frowned and looked down at his hands. Not that he was intimidated, he was just struggling with the realization that I have no idea what I'll be doing the next few months.
"You should not be so nervous," Strider said, as if he knew exactly what Ed was thinking. "You will have your answers by tonight."
Ed nodded again, feeling a little better, but still worried. He continued staring at his hands, not realizing that Strider had left his seat until the older man was standing in front of him.
"We'll eat after I check your wounds," Strider said, and Ed nodded again, holding out his hand and wincing as the bandages were pulled off. It was true that it didn't hurt much, but it looked pretty bad. Ed was surprised that he hadn't broken any bones.
"It will be a few days before this heals," Strider said after looking at it. "You're lucky it isn't any worse."
"Yeah, well, you're lucky I didn't get a chance to use alchemy back then," Ed retorted, trying his hardest to keep from blushing. He had to wonder what kind of impression he was making. Strider was one of the few people who made Ed care about his reputation, and he was one of an even smaller number that Ed had nothing but respect for.
"In that case, you should be glad I didn't let you drag when you attempted to run away," Strider replied calmly.
"Yeah, and maybe you should have told me that Al was a part of your little scheme," Ed shot back. He braced himself to continue, but to his surprise, Strider simply looked at him thoughtfully. "What?" Ed asked after a minute, not really liking the fact that he was being stared at.
"What made you change your mind?" Strider asked.
Ed blinked. He definitely hadn't expected that question. "A few things, I guess," he said after a moment. "Mostly thinking about Al, though."
"But wasn't he the one reason you wished to turn back?" Strider asked.
"Yeah, but then I realized something," Ed answered. "I mean, if Al agreed to this, then you must have been really convincing, and something tells me that whatever he heard from you was more important to him than our own goals."
Strider continued watching Ed with a thoughtful look on his face as Ed continued.
"I just figured that if it really means that much to him, then it has to be pretty important," he finished, suddenly feeling self-conscious. "I didn't want to let him down."
It was quiet for a moment before Ed found the courage to look up. When he did, he was surprised to see that Strider was had an encouraging smile on his face. Ed, out of relief that his words had been taken seriously, smiled back.
Maybe this detour wouldn't be so bad after all.
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Aragorn hadn't been too surprised to hear that Alphonse had been the reason for Edward's decision. It was only natural, considering the bond the two had. At any rate, what had been more surprising was how easily Edward smiled. It seemed that though his life had taken a turn for the worst, he had managed to retain every quality he had had as a child, though some were less desirable than others.
He finished his work in silence, though it was not an uncomfortable one. Once he had determined that Edward's head was healing well, he stood, and soon after, they ate a simple dinner.
After they had eaten, Aragorn led Edward to a nearby balcony. Edward was understandably nervous, though he hid it fairly well when Elrond met them there. Edward kept his face emotionless as they explained what was in store for him, and both Man and Elf were pleased to see that Edward had no objections. It appeared that this venture would be easier than they had first thought.
Once they had finished discussing what the future held in store for them, their discussion moved to other, equally important matters, which Edward was the first to mention. After talk of traveling had ceased, Edward raised his right arm, pointed at it, and asked, "What about this?"
"You will have to be sure to keep it hidden," Elrond replied. "Your appearance is more memorable than you realize, and you must be sure not to draw more attention to yourself. Which also means," Elrond continued, "You will have to leave your coat."
Edward looked down at the red sleeves for a moment before nodding. It was painfully obvious that he didn't want to leave it behind.
They went over a few other precautions as the sun set, and when they had finished, Aragorn walked with Edward toward their rooms. However, before they left the balcony, a resounding clang filled the air, and Aragorn looked back to see Edward pushing himself up off the ground. Nothing was said about this incident, but Aragorn knew full well that Edward had tripped in the same spot that he had eight years ago, and judging by the look on Edward's face, the boy knew it as well.
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So guys, I have like 20 stories that I haven't updated in forever. Some of them I still want to work on but haven't really had the chance, some of them I don't want to continue because I think they need to be redone completely, and some of them I just don't care about anymore. I'm trying to come up with a solution for the last two groups that won't leave everyone hanging, which means I may add a few half-assed 'wrap-up' chapters, or just put up a summary of what I was going to write and let you imagine the ending or something. I hate the idea of giving up on these fics, but I honestly shouldn't have put some of them up in the first place because half of them I have no idea where I was going with them and such.
So yeah, I'll try to get that figured out soon, but until then, don't expect any updates on some of the older ones, except for Strange Worlds, because I plan on actually getting the next chapter done before the end of the month.