This is it guys, the last chapter, I shall miss you all, unless you've been reading some of my other stories in which case it isn't so much a case of missing you as you leave but more like seeing you later, but this is also the internet so its more like reading, but I suppose you see the reviews and stuff so it is see you guys later and wow that sentence didn't just go down hill, it fell at a ninety degree angle and crashed into the hard, rocky terrain below causing a fiery explosion with pieces flying everywhere.

Okay, I'm done.

I just needed to get that out of my system.

Um... I don't own FMAB.

Enjoy.

Chapter Ten: The Emperor's Partner

Ling stretched, the poison had fully left his system a few days ago without any major issues, Mei was okay as well, spending an awful lot of time with a certain alchemist, Ling would be lying if he said he had been surprised when he heard about the two and their... current romantic status.

He walked down the hallway, Ru had escaped, they had some people out looking for him, notices had been put up, but so far they had nothing. As for Jie, she had killed herself the day after she had been put in her cell, apparently, she had told one of the guards just before that she would never tell them anything. What that anything was, Ling had no idea.

He thought it was fairly obvious what had happened.

The Xiao clan had made an 'alliance' with the Shii clan, promising Ono that he could rule, of course, he wouldn't question it, he would have been led to believe that the Xiao clan needed his help, that they'd let him emperor and as a result, their clan would be favoured.

Of course, their plan wasn't as simple as that.

They used Ono to find out where the Philosopher's Stone was, then they would let him kill the current emperor. They would have Ono killed then, his usefulness gone, and they would send their spy in to retrieve the stone.

When Ono failed to end Ling's life, he was killed by one of the guards they had supplied the man in the name of 'assisting an ally'. The plan would have had to be changed, one of their spies would have to take on the task of killing the current emperor, it put them and the secret of their involvement in the plan at risk, but they seemed to have decided it was worth the risk.

They were wrong.

Ling sighed, running his hand along the wall idly as he turned a corner, none of this changed the current facts, Ru was missing, Jie was dead, the Xiao clan more treacherous than he believed, and Lan Fan...

He opened the door, entering the room and turning to the patient sitting up in the bed, he stood for a moment, gazing at her, silently willing to meet his eyes, but her gaze remained downcast and he sighed.

Walking over, he seated himself next to her bed, he played with his fingers idly and they sat in awkward silence until finally, he sighed once more, he had something he had to tell her, and he knew she wasn't going to take it well, but it was necessary, to keep her safe.

"Lan Fan..."

Al sighed, sitting next to Mei pulling grass from the ground worriedly, "so why can't we go say hello to Lan Fan now that she's waken up at last?" he asked, sticking out his bottom lip slightly in an annoyed pout. They were currently sitting outside in the garden, a suggestion made by Mei, and while Al liked being outside perfectly well, he did want to make sure his friend was okay.

Mei shook her head, "I told you Alphonse," she said, a hint of impatience in her voice, "I saw Ling heading that way," the alchemist shook his head, conveying his confusion and Mei sighed, smiling slightly at Al's ignorance, "let's just say that they need a chance to talk about certain... things," Al shook his head in a slightly bemused fashion before wrapping his arms around her in a content manner.

Mei giggled, leaning up to plant a kiss on his brow, then another on his lips, red tinging her cheeks slightly, before wrapping her arms around him and closing her eyes with a smile.

"We'll go talk to Lan Fan later, when they're done," she told him softly, Al hummed in response, he knew that Lan Fan and Ling had something there, and judging by what Mei was saying... they had romantic feelings for each other?

He shook his head, smiling slightly, 'well, I hope that if that's the case, they'll be able to work it out then.'

"You... what?" Lan Fan stared at Ling in shock, her surprise at his words causing her to forget her guilt over her previous failures over the past few weeks. This time it was Ling's turn to avoid her gaze, looking away, down to the ground, "I'm relieving you of your services," he repeated, hands clasped together.

Lan Fan couldn't believe what she was hearing, yes, she hadn't necessarily done a good job recently, but the Ling she knew would never be the type to fire someone for that, if anything, she was expecting some teasing jabs about the way she had failed to protect him. She wondered for a moment if this was another one of them, but Ling's posture, the way his shoulders were slumped forward in dejection, it was too honest and horribly true.

"I know I did a less than admirable job dealing with the Xiao clan incident," she began, wincing slightly at her words, "but..." she trailed off, what was she going to say? It couldn't be helped? She wasn't at fault? She had no right to try and defend herself, because of her and her foolish emotions and rash thinking, she had nearly gotten Ling killed multiple times, if it hadn't been for Al and Mei then they'd both be dead now. In all honesty, the right thing to do would be to accept the judgement and leave, let someone more competent take care of him, someone who could actually do their job.

But something inside her just couldn't let that happen.

"But I would appreciate another chance," she said, reaching forward and hesitantly grasping his sleeve, Ling had found her unconscious when she had chased after Ru. He had brought her back to the doctors immediately and they had tended to her, because of this, she was stabilized and ended up being fine, but currently, her strength was somewhat weak, and she knew that if he so desired, Ling could brush her hand off easily, but he didn't.

And for that Lan Fan was grateful.

"I know that I have no right to ask for this, I failed you terribly, but I-" she was cut off when Ling looked up at her, "I don't believe that you failed me," he said softly, his hand rose to covers hers for a moment before sighing and pulling it from his sleeve and placing it back on the bed.

But Lan Fan wouldn't be deterred, and she grabbed hold of him, hands clutching his tightly, ignoring the way it felt to be so close to him, the way it made her heart pound in her chest, "then why?" she insisted, she couldn't leave this be, she didn't want him to walk out of her life after all this time, she wanted to be able to protect him.

She wanted to be able to be with him.

Mei sighed, scrunching up her nose in a worried manner, "what's wrong?" she turned towards Al, seeing the concerned look on his face she smiled and shook her head, "nothing," she murmured, leaning in slightly to snuggle against him, inwardly squealing at the fact that they actually were together, still not able to believe it.

She felt Al's gentle smile and she calmed slightly, in truth, she was concerned about was going to happen to Ling and Lan Fan, she knew that her stupid older brother had been feeling guilty for Lan Fan nearly dying from the poisoning. And she knew that he wouldn't want Lan Fan to be hurt anymore, so being him, he'd probably something dumb in an attempt to keep her safe.

Mei just hoped that Lan Fan could forget about duty and loyalty and status long enough to tell Ling how she was really feeling.

If that happened, Mei was sure that everything else would sort itself out.

"You hate the idea that I was hurt... because of you?" Lan Fan frowned, "that's my job," she said, "and I want to be able to... it's my job to protect you," she blushed slightly at her words, but forced herself to meet his eyes.

She saw the sadness in his gaze, the worry, the guilt and... something else, something warm and affectionate that made her heart flutter.

He smiled slightly before shaking his head, before Lan Fan knew what was happening, he had stood and kissed her gently on the forehead, "I don't want it to be your job," he said softly, "all these years you've been in my shadow, protecting me, you never got a chance to do what you wanted, to find someone to love, I want... I want you to be happy, Lan Fan," with those words he stood and turned to go, only to find himself stopped by arms wrapping around him from behind, "then let me stay with you."

His eyes widened, she hadn't really said that... had she?

"Lan... Fan?" surely she wasn't saying what he thought she was?

"I have... I have found someone to love, and I want to be with that someone, and protect them," Ling turned slowly, looking to see Lan Fan's downcast eyes, "will you please let me protect the one I love, my Lord?" Ling's mouth felt dry, his blood pumped in his ears as he crouched down, cupping her face and turning her to look at him, "and who is this person you love? Who is this person you want to protect?" He saw Lan Fan's blush deepen, she glanced away, embarrassment clearly written on her features, he knew she didn't want to say it aloud, but he had to hear it.

"Who is this person, Lan Fan?" the raven girl sighed before reaching up and placing her hand on the hand that held her face, "it's you, of course," she said softly, and Ling leant in and pressed his lips to hers, sliding his arms around her to hold her to him in a tight hug, and when he pulled away he rested his forehead on hers and smiled softly.

"When you say something like that, how can I refuse you?" he asked, a laugh evident in his voice, "you can on one condition," he told her, she looked at him, confused and he kissed her cheek gently, "you have to let me protect the one I love also," she blushed, flustering a little at this, before smiling slightly and nodding, and Ling thought he had never seen someone so beautiful.

As they sat there together, holding each other close, Ling's heart felt warm and his smile widened, he knew Lan Fan would still take protecting him as a serious duty, and in many ways, the ways they interacted wouldn't change, she would be determined to 'do her job' still and nothing he could say would change that.

But this time he would return the favour.

She wouldn't the emperor's bodyguard.

She would be his protector.

And he would be hers.

Pfft... yeah, idk.

So, happy stories and endings are two of my endless weaknesses and I battled one of them here so let's just ignore the fact that I failed miserably at the other okay.

Oh well, there you go, pointless fluff.

Hope it was worth the time it took to read this.

Did I do an okay job?

Were they too OOC?

I would like to know, any comment is useful in helping me become a better writer in the future.