So... you know how I said that the chapters in RFG are going to be super long... this is about three times the size of my normal chapters... But this is kinda one of my favorite chapters. And one of the ones I've been waiting to post for a really long time. It was originally supposed to be two chapters but I realized that I as a reader would rather have one really long chapter than have to wait for two. And if I want to have this story finished before I'm a senior, then I really need to keep to my schedule and there is really no room for a two chapter arc.

Also, we found out yesterday that my mom had a pulmonary embolism, which is what my grandma died of before I was even born. She's taking blood thinners and the doctors are hoping that as long she's on them her body should take care of the blood clots, but if any of you are the religious type, any and all prayers would be appreciated.

Liwu dropped the lumps of potato into the water to boil before turning around and rinsing off the cutting board and the knife.

"Can I help with anything else?" he asked, turning towards his father who was trimming fat off of a lump of meat.

"The carrots still need to be chopped," he responded, grabbing another knife to cut the meat.

"Okay." Liwu nodded sharply, grabbing the carrots off the counter next to his father and beginning to chop them up with the knife he had just been using. A companionable silence fell between the two men.

Liwu didn't know how it had quite started. It might have been that he was lonely one day because Nina was off with her friends and Chris was out of town before he had made friends at school. It might have been that he was bored. Maybe he had something that he needed to talk about. But a year or so ago he had wandered into the kitchen while his mother was preparing dinner for the family.

He had had his conversation or sat there because he was bored, or whatever it was… and found himself coming back more and more often just to watch her cook. It was fascinating to watch, really. The way that she could take a few basic ingredients and some spices and turn it into something that could feed their entire family. And then one day she had asked him to help her with something and he had done it.

Within a few months, cooking dinner with his mother became a routine. A few months after that, he learned that he loved it.

They didn't have stew very often, and when they did it would was always be his father pushing for it, but it just so happened that today was one of those days. Apparently the weather was perfect for it. Liwu would be lying to say that stew was his favorite food in the whole world as he knew it was for Uncle Ed (except maybe Aunt Winry's pies) but it was certainly one he enjoyed.

"So how was school today?" Al asked Liwu.

"Huh? Oh it was fine."

"Did you learn anything interesting?"

"Not really, actually. Most of the stuff we talked about I already knew."

"Like what?"

"We were talking about the Ishvalan War of Extermination. And the teacher only really talked about things I already knew. I got to talk about Uncle Roy though."

"What did you talk about?"

"She asked if anyone in the class knew someone who fought in the war and a couple of us raised our hand. She wanted me to talk about it a bit more when I said that the person I knew was Uncle Roy, the Flame Alchemist."

"Only a couple of people knew someone?" Al asked, raising an eyebrow and turning towards Liwu.

"Yeah."

"That's surprising."

"Well, it did happen when you were a kid. Most of the people who actually fought in it are the people in my class's grandparents. And if you want to say that Uncle Roy was like a dad to you when Uncle Ed was in the military then in a way he is my Grandpa."

"Okay, okay. I guess it's just weird for me since I know so many people who fought in it. Uncle Roy wasn't the only one, you know."

"Yeah, I know. Uncle Roy, Aunt Riza, Colonel Armstrong, and Grandpa Scar, even though he was on the other side."

It was always strange for Al to hear his children refer to Grandpa Scar. He had been able to get used to seeing and associating with the man who had nearly killed him multiple times in his childhood in a casual setting. He had thanked him profusely for protecting his wife when she was in Amestris. He had even had more than one pleasant conversation with the man. He didn't think that Ed would ever be able to do that.

It was another thing though for his children to refer to the man he had been so scared of as a child as "Grandpa Scar". Not that he minded. The Ishvalan really had been like a father to Mei during those months in Amestris. A better father than the Emperor ever had been. It made sense that he would be Grandpa. It was still hard for him to quite wrap his mind around though.

Silence fell again between them as Liwu added the carrots to the pot alongside the potatoes.

"... Dad?"

"Yes, son?"

"… um… You know I love you right." Al's knife froze mid cut.

"Of course. And you know I love you." He turned around to look at Liwu in the eyes. "And I mean that Liwu. It's not just something that I say."

"I know Dad… but…"

"But what?"

"I want to find my biological family."

Silence.

"What?"

"I'm not trying to replace you or anything I swear! But I've been thinking about it and the more and more I think about it the more I want to… I need to know. Who they are. Without these people I wouldn't be alive. Parts of me come from them."

"… I understand. I am going to warn you, though Liwu that… you might not be happy with what you find. Your biological grandparents disowned your biological mother. They probably don't even consider you family. And your biological father did… well, abandon your mother to her fate."

"I know. But I have to know."

"… alright. We can talk to your mother after dinner."

It was at the same time harder and easier than Liwu thought it would be. They had one lead, the name of his biological aunt. Tso. She had been the one that had answered his parents' questions about his mother. If it wasn't for her, his parents might not have adopted him, though both of them agreed that if it gone months without a response they probably would have decided to take him anyways.

The lead was something he hadn't quite been sure they'd be able to use, but Al and Mei assured him that she probably wouldn't be averse to at least meeting him. She had been the only one in the family that cared about her sister enough to ignore her parent's orders that they not say anything about her. She would probably want to meet her sister's child.

However, she proved rather difficult to locate. They had her first name and a vague idea about her background and where she came from, but it had been 17 years. She had probably married and had her own children. She could have moved away from her home city, she might have even moved out of Xing.

It took months to finally track her down.

She had married, and married fairly well. One of the road workers that had been employed by the infrastructure boom in Xing. They weren't exactly raking in the money, but they had food on the table, clothes on their backs, and a roof over their heads.

They debated for a while the merits of them going with him verses him going alone, and though Mei didn't like it, eventually decided that it would be better for Liwu to go alone. He was almost an adult at 17 and Al and Mei coming along would bring too much attention to the situation. And Al had his job that he couldn't leave and though they were sure that they could find someone who would agree to take Nina and Emily on for a few days, they didn't want to impose.

"Call as soon as you get to Xing," Mei ordered, fussing with the front of his jacket. "And before you go to bed every night."

"I will, Mom."

"Be careful."

"I will, Mom."

She smiled slightly before hugging him. He hugged her back.

"Love you, Mom."

"I know. And whatever you learn about your real mother, I don't want you to forget that I love you."

"That's not going to happen, Mom. And you are my real mother. I'm finding more out about my biological mother."

"It would be impossible for anyone to stop loving you, anyways, Mei," Al said, having just dropped Liwu's luggage off on the train.

"Oh be quiet."

"It's true, Mom," Nina responded, her arms crossed.

"See? I told you," Al said. "Thank you Nina."

"No problem, Dad."

"Maybe when Liwu comes home we can work on trying to find your biological parents." Everyone's eyebrows rose and they looked at Nina. She herself seemed surprised and taken aback by the offer.

"I… Uh…"

"I'm serious. If you want to know… I'm sure we'd be able to find something."

She paused before shaking her head. "No. I'm fine. I don't need to know. I think I like not knowing."

"That's the part I can't stand," Liwu said, which only made Nina shrug.

"Yes, but if I don't know it means I can pretend that I'm actually the daughter of a very rich woman whose daughter was prophesied to rule the world and the reason she gave me up was to protect me." Everyone roared with laughter, even Emily who was quite sad to see her big brother leave for a few days.

"Keep on dreaming, Nina," Liwu said, ruffling her hair, which made her glare at him. The train whistle blew and they all turned to look at it.

"Well… time to go. Bye. I'll be back in a few days."

"We know," Al responded, because everyone seemed to not want to say anything. "Now come here and give your father a hug."

Liwu obliged, and gave everyone else another hug before boarding the train. He waved to them all as he rode away before settling down on the bench and breathing deeply. This was it. He was finally doing it.

The woman who had answered the door was fairly tall for a Xingese woman. She had typical Xingese features, but her hair was quite long and she wore it loose, which wasn't something that Liwu was quite accustomed to. In Chengshi most women wore it up or out of the way. Her face was sort of similarly shaped to his own though.

"Hello, my name—"

"You're Jia's son, aren't you?" she whispered, a hand flying to her mouth.

"… yes. Yes I am."

"You look just like her."

"I do?" he asked, swallowing.

"Yes."

"… I'm sorry for intruding, but… could you tell me more about her?"

She paused before glancing back into the house. "Come in."

"Jia was the oldest of us sisters," Tso explained, handing him a cup of tea, which he accepted with thanks. "There were three of us. Our parents were… disappointed that they didn't have any sons, but if there was anyone who was their pride, it was Jia. She was… beautiful. I might…" She paused before standing up. "Wait here."

He sat there, sipping some of the tea. Glancing around the house… he could tell there were children that lived here. Young ones. The oldest was probably ten. Twelve at the oldest. There were maybe three? Two? Cousins. His cousins.

"I did keep it," Tso said, coming back into the room carrying something in her hands. "They tried to get rid of it after disowning her, but I kept it. This is her." She handed him a picture of three people. Two of them were obviously the third's parents. He gave his biological grandparents a glance before focusing his attention on his mother.

She was beautiful. She had sharp features, which had been softened in his own face, but they were there. Large dark eyes that seemed to stare at him as if she knew exactly who he was. He didn't have her eyes. A quick second glance at his grandparents proved that he must have gotten them from his father, or at least his father's family.

Despite the fact that she was seated stiffly staring at the photographer with her parents standing by either side, he could tell from her face that she was usually smiling. Probably laughing.

"She never wore her hair up like that," Tso said, sitting back down and holding her own tea cup between two hands. "She would always wear it down. Her hair was beautiful. All of the girls in our town were jealous, including me."

"And what was she like?"

"She loved to have fun. She would go anywhere or try anything if there was a promise to have fun. It was why she was attracted to… to him."

Liwu could on assume that the "him" she spat out with so much disgust was his biological father.

"He was the son of the richest man in our village, so he could take her places and take her to do things. Our parents thought that it was wonderful that he was paying her that much attention. They wanted her to marry him to improve our status. And that was what mattered to Jia most. She loved having fun and smiling… but above all she wanted to make our parents proud. I'm sure there was no doubt in her mind that he would marry her after learning about the baby— you. But as I'm sure you know, he didn't. She was then forced to tell our parents of her shame and when he denied that he was even the father… they disowned her."

"Was she nice?"

Tso paused slightly. "She was protective. She wouldn't allow anyone she cared about to be harmed. I never had to worry about anyone picking on me because she wouldn't allow anyone to pick on her sisters. I never saw her stop to help someone that she didn't know though. She didn't like taking help from other people though." She shrugged.

"Maybe she just thought that she would want to help herself, so they wouldn't either. That was always one of her flaws. She was proud. I was surprised when I learned that she accepted help from the Ambassador."

"Well, to hear Dad tell the story she didn't really have much of a choice. He just sort of picked her up and ran to the palace."

Tso smiled. "My parents were furious when they learned that she had given birth in the palace with the Empress's own midwives attending her. They had disowned her and tossed her out… and she gets brought into the very place most of Xing dreams about being able to step a foot inside of. Though I supposed with Princess Chang as your adoptive mother, you've spent some time there."

"I… I was actually more or less raised there. I lived in Amestris for a few years when I was really little, but I can't remember much of that. Then we moved back here to Xing, and I was taught at the palace with Prince Quyi…"

"Imagine that. My sister's child being raised with the Emperor's own children." Liwu smiled before staring at the picture again. He recognized his nose. He must have gotten his height from his grandfather. Maybe his grandmother was short, but it certainly looked like he was quite tall for the average Xingeseman.

"… will you do that again for me."

"Excuse me?" he asked, looking up.

"Smile. It looks just like hers." Liwu blinked before doing his best to smile. Something in her seemed to relax.

"Thank you. You seem to have grown up into a wonderful young man." Tso reached out and touched the side of his face. "Jia would be proud. The Princess and Ambassador are very lucky to be blessed with you."

The smile he gave her that time was more genuine.

There was some commotion from the front of the house and both of them turned to look.

A man and two children entered the room a few minutes later, the man speaking to the children before calling out a greeting. He stopped when he saw Liwu at the table.

"Who are you?" he asked gruffly.

Liwu stood and bowed. "I'm sorry for intruding, sir. My name is Liwu Elric and I—"

"Elric?" one of the children asked, eyes wide.

"… Yes."

"As in the Fullmetal Alchemist?"

"Yes, like the Fullmetal Alchemist. He's my Uncle."

Both of the kids gasped and started asking a continuous stream of questions. Liwu grinned before putting his hands on his hips as he looked down at the kids.

"You bet! He doesn't have a metal arm anymore, though. But he does still have a metal leg and it's really cool."

"What happened to his arm?"

"Have you ever seen him beat up a bad guy with alchemy?"

"Does he really wear red all the time?"

"How tall is he?"

"I've never seen him beat up a bad guy with alchemy, no I'm sorry. He doesn't fight bad guys much anymore, unless they're messing with my cousins. And he still wears red a lot. He actually gave me a jacket for my birthday that looks a lot like the coat he used to wear. It's one of my favorite jackets. And he's actually pretty tall. He's taller than me."

The girl gapped at him as if she couldn't imagine anyone being taller than Liwu.

"But he used to be pretty short."

"Children, stop bothering the man," the father ordered and both of the children automatically closed their mouths and dropped their heads.

"It's alright, I don't mind. I'm used to it."

The man pursed his lips and Liwu got the message. Don't fill their heads with adventures of far off people and places. Right. He was used to that attitude in Xing, even though his mother would always protest. "If my head hadn't been filled with adventures of far off people and places I never would have come to Amestris and met your father. Or help save the world."

"But I should be going. My train should be leaving soon. Thank you for talking to me, Tso," he said, turning around. Then he frowned slightly. She had such a sad smile on her face… had he done something wrong?

"I will see you to the door," she told him, standing up and leading him to the door to the house.

"Is something wrong?" he asked her under her breath.

"No. You just… you just reminded me so much of Jia. She loved children. She would play with them just like that." Liwu smiled.

"They're great kids." He glanced back at where they had come from. "They're my cousins."

"Yes they are… thank you for coming, Liwu… my nephew. I had almost forgotten how much I miss her. You really would make her proud."

"Thank you…"

Liwu paused, quickly debating with himself. He knew that his dad didn't quite seem comfortable with Liwu tracking down his biological father… but he wanted- needed to know.

"…I know this isn't a topic you would like to discuss but… I have to know. Who's my father? My biological father."

For some reason, of all the things that Liwu had asked or talked about tonight, that question seemed to shock her more than Liwu showing up in the first place.

"What?" he asked, in response to her shock.

"You don't know?"

"… how would I know?" He frowned slightly. Was it supposed to be obvious? He had never exactly met an older man who looked exactly like him. And from the picture he looked more like his mother than his father…

"Your father."

"Yeah, how would I know who he is?"

"No, I mean your father knows. The Ambassador. He came to me some years ago and said that he needed to know who he was."

"… he's known this whole time?"

"You mean he didn't tell you?"

"Liwu!" Mei shouted when he came through the front door. "You're back! How was it?" He didn't answer his mother though, marching right past her and to Al's office.

"Liwu, you're back—!" he said happily, taking off his glasses.

"You lied to me!"

"What?"

"You lied to me! How could you!?" Al froze before setting his glasses down on his desk.

"Liwu—"

"You've known this entire time, haven't you?"

"Known what?"

"Liwu, what's going on?" Mei asked, the happiness in her voice from earlier gone.

"He's known who my father is this entire time. He's worked with him!"

There was silence following his words.

"Al?" Mei was the one to break the silence. Al swallowed and folded his hands.

"It's true."

"Al!" Mei reprimanded.

"He's one of top executives of a building company that your Uncle Ling hires for national road systems. He was quickly becoming one of the most important men in Xing. Ling invited him to court and he struck up a conversation with me. I would recognize those eyes anywhere. The next time we worked together, I had to ask Tso, so I did."

"How long?"

"…8 years."

He was breathing heavily. "So every time I've mentioned it. Every time I talked about it or him or my biological family… the entire time we were struggling to track him down. You knew?"

"Yes."

"How could you? Were you scared? Did you worry that if I knew I wouldn't want to be your son anymore?"

"Liwu—"

"You've always been afraid of that haven't you? That's why you've never let me know. That's why you never told me."

"Liwu—"

"NO! You've been lying to me. You… you're… I never want to see you again!"

"Liwu!" Mei said sharply, but he was already running down the hall and out of the house. "Liwu come back!"

Al looked like he had been punched in the gut. He felt like it and far worse. He stared out the door, not seeing anything.

"Liwu…"

It took about ten minutes after storming out of his house for Liwu to realize that he didn't know what he was going to. He didn't have anywhere to go, exactly. He didn't have any plans. He didn't even have any money on him.

He considered going to Simon and Oliver's house… but his family would no doubt look for him there. Where could he go that he wouldn't be found? He could try Aunt Gracia, but they might think to look for him there. And if he was really desperate he could try the Armstrong Mansion, but he really hoped that he wouldn't ever be that desperate. It's too bad that Chris was still in East City…

Wait a minute.

No he wasn't. He had gotten promoted to Sargent Major and transferred to Central! He was in Central! In the barracks though…

It was worth a shot.

That shot seemed far less likely to hit its target, though, when the first words that Chris said when he called him were "Are you insane?"

"… no."

"Why would you run away from home? And why would you come to the military for help? I'm in the barracks, we're inspected up, down, and left!"

"I didn't come to the military for help, Chris… I came to you."

"… I hate you. Stay where you are. What are you? Like a size 22? No, you're too skinny. I'll get you a 20."

"A 20, what are you talking about Chris?"

But the line was dead. Liwu had nothing to do but wait in the cold pulling his jacket tight around him and hoping that it wasn't going to rain.

Luck seemed to at least take pity on him, since it didn't seem to favor him at all, because it didn't rain and Chris did show up after half an hour or so, with a uniform tucked under an arm.

"Put it on. I hope you know what a risk I'm taking. If any of my superiors find out anything about this, I will never get promoted a day in my life, forget about any personal valor, leadership qualities, recommendations, or famous parents."

"It's just the night… and money for a train ticket to Xing?"

"… you'd better be paying me back for that."

"With interest."

"Fine. You're lucky I like you kid."

"If I'm not the best man at your wedding, I have something to blackmail you with."

"Haha, you're funny. We're going to have to cut your hair too."

"Why?"

"No one's going to believe you're really part of the military with that hair. If I had to cut it, you do."

"I… but… come on!"

"I have the scissors right here."

"Don't you come near me!"

"Do you have somewhere else to stay?"

"I'll go to the Armstrongs!"

"Really?"

"… You're conspiring with Mom aren't you?"

"I thought you said they aren't your family anymore." Liwu froze.

"I never said they weren't my family. I think if I ever tried saying that Nina'd knock me into next week."

"So why are you here Liwu? Why did you run away and why are you going to Xing?"

"… They're my family. They are. I love them all… even if Dad's been lying to me. But I have to know. This man… he abandoned my mother, but without him I wouldn't exist. I have to at least meet him. I know you wouldn't quite understand, but…"

"It's something you've got to do."

"… exactly."

"Well… I can understand those. Come on, off with the hair."

There were a few moments of panic like when a Major stopped both of them and after inquiring after whether Chris was indeed the Mustang and telling Liwu that he needed another haircut (to which he scowled) and inspections in the middle of the night when Liwu had to hide in a closet until the officer left.

But everything ended up alright because an hour after wake up, Liwu was on a train headed for Xing. He made a serious note in his mind to thank Chris… for the rest of his life.

And though he was extremely, extremely thankful for his assistance (the thought of the Armstrong mansion terrified him more than anything the military could cook up as a punishment for him), he was also incredibly grateful he didn't have to deal with anything like it in Xing. Quyi welcomed him with open arms, and more importantly a shower and clean clothes.

And some news.

"Xie Wang? He's um… he's that one guy."

"That one guy?"

"He does construction work. Most of the roads and railroad projects that Dad's started for the past couple of years now has been through his company. He's been invited to court a lot."

"So I've heard. When's the next time he's invited to one?"

"I can do you one better. He should be at the party tomorrow."

"Party tomorrow?"

"Yup. No particular reason, just keeping the courtiers and nobles happy type party. But he's practically made himself a noble with all the money he's made off of these projects. And I can tell you that a lot of the other courtiers hate him for it. Most of them are direct decedents of the Emperor, so they don't like that there's a commoner — a rich commoner, but a commoner nonetheless — muscling his way into court. He's almost as much of an assassination target as Fu."

"Wow."

It wasn't the first Imperial party that Liwu had attended. His mother was the 17th Princess of Xing, his father was an Ambassador, and both of them were close with the Emperor. Not to mention that he and his siblings were the Imperial children's closest cousins. This was the first one he had been this nervous at though.

He scanned the faces of the people in the crowd. No, that wasn't him. That wasn't either.

"Liwu," Quyi said, nudging his cousin. "Over there. He's getting a drink."

Liwu looked to where his cousin was pointing. The man was obviously Xingese. He was fairly tall for the Xingese, even though Liwu knew that his dad… well, that Alphonse Elric would be much taller than him. His hair was jet black and carefully oiled back away from his face. His eyes were the exact shade and shape as Liwu's. He even recognized his chin.

All of a sudden the reality of the situation hit him.

This was his biological father.

What…what was going to? What could he say to this man?

"Are you going to go?" Quyi asked under his breath. "You don't have to."

"I want to," Liwu responded, and he was surprised at how honest the words were. He wanted to talk to this man.

He set his glass down on a table, and moved towards his sire.

"Excuse me," he said, trying to catch his attention. The Xingese man glanced up from his drink and looked at Liwu.

"Hello?"

"Hi," he said, slightly out of breath from weaving through the crowds. "Are you Xie Wang?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Yes." Catching his breath slightly, Liwu bowed to him. The man inclined his head, eyebrow still raised.

"I…" Liwu trailed off. He had never been good with talking to strangers. And what was he supposed to say anyways. 'Hi! I'm your son! You abandoned my mother to live on the streets of Xing and I would have died if not for a certain Ambassador walking down the street at the right time! Hugs?' "My name is Liwu… Liwu Elric."

"Elric. As in Ambassador Elric?"

"Yes."

"Ah," the man smiled slightly. "The Ambassador is a pleasant man. I enjoyed my time working with him. He doesn't waste time on unimportant things, just gets the job done. It was a very gratifying attitude to receive from a politician."

"My father isn't much of a politician. He's always claimed to be a scholar first."

"Of course, of course," the man said, nodding. "He's quite the master at alchemy and alkahestry. He tried to explain his Mei Flower array, but I was hopelessly lost. Not one much for the mystical. I prefer hard cold numbers and profits."

"You're a businessman, yes?"

"I am. I am one of the top executives in a building company you probably haven't heard of, even though we're responsible for most of the infrastructural improvements in Xing since 1931. Are you interested in business, young man? Or would you prefer to follow your father into the political or alchemic fields?"

"I haven't decided."

"Ah. That is unfortunate. I am sure that your father wishes for you to follow in his footsteps. I know that is my fondest wish for my son."

"Your son?"

"Yes," he said, smirking proudly, as if this was a topic he was very glad to discuss. "My son, Xie. He is named after myself, of course."

"And… is he your only son?"

"Yes he is. I have one daughter also, but he is my only son."

Liwu's breathing got heavier and his next comment was clipped. "And you're sure about that?"

He raised an eyebrow again. "I think I would know if I had another son."

"… Would you?"

"Yes." He sounded almost amused at the question.

"Not even if he… walked up to you and started up a conversation."

"If this nonexistent son were to hypothetically walk up to me and start a conversation, I am certain that I would recognize it. Children tend to look like their parents, young boy. Or has no one explained to you how children come about?"

"I know how 'children come about', as you put it. I… you really have no clue, do you?"

"No clue of what?"

Liwu paused, frowning. He was not liking where this was going. "Did you know, Mr. Wang, that I was adopted? My mother was diagnosed as being unable to have children. I'm not biologically related to any of my family."

"I had heard rumors yes, but I did not know. I…" His words trailed off as he finally seemed to get what Liwu was trying to clue him in on.

"No… no it cannot be…"

"It can't? So your telling me you didn't ever have a relationship with a girl name Jia Teng back in your home village. She didn't end up pregnant. You didn't deny that you hadn't even touched her but that she was quite the slut. You didn't get her disowned and exiled by her family. You're not the reason she was forced to go into early labor on the streets of Xing. And you're certainly not the reason she died surrounded by strangers who didn't even know her name or what she was going to name the child… me."

"You're Jia's child?"

"Yes." He didn't mean to get so angry. He certainly didn't mean to speak the man as if his presence was poison. He didn't. This was his *father*. But… he couldn't help it.

The man didn't answer for a while, before clamping down on Liwu's arm and leading him away from the rest of the crowd.

"How much?" he hissed, once he was assured that there was no one in the hallway they were in.

"What?"

"How much do you want?"

"I don't understand you."

"How much do I have to pay you to keep you quiet, you little runt?"

Liwu stared at him, not comprehending, until understanding washed over him.

"You don't want the world do know you have an illegitimate son stashed away, do you?" Of course he didn't. A prominent businessman like himself, especially with his position so precarious among the courtiers, he couldn't afford to have a scandal like that come to light. Not even just a fling, but a child that he abandoned to die on the streets of Xing, only to be rescued by an Amestrian. It would ruin him.

"That's a stupid question," he hissed. "How. Much?"

"You're afraid that I'll tell everyone. That everyone'll know exactly what you did to my mother."

Xie's lip pulled back into a snarl. Liwu pulled himself to his fullest height, which was (luckily) taller than his father's.

"You're afraid of the fact that I could ruin you. I could destroy you. I should after what you've done."

He tried to pull himself up to Liwu's height, but he couldn't quite reach it.

Liwu could see the fear in his eyes.

"How. Much."

Liwu eyed the man who had sired him… and his lip curled.

"… why would I want people to know I'm related to scum like you?"

"… what?"

"I said, why would I want people to know I'm related to scum like you. The very idea disgusts me. I don't know how your son manages it."

"Xie is proud—!"

"Well good for him. I'm not." Then he turned around on his heel and left.

The door opened and Liwu was greeted by the sight of his sister. Her hair was up in a messy ponytail and she was wearing a pair of Xingese pants with one of their father's Amestrian T-shirts. A typical lazy day outfit for Nina.

She didn't seem at all surprised to see him there.

"You've really messed up big time, haven't you?"

"… yeah. I have."

"Was it worth it?" He opened his mouth to answer, but didn't know what to say. Was it worth it? He had been entirely disappointed in his sire. He could understand why his father hadn't told him about him. Probably describing him would require many invocations of the word banana. But the trip had also made him see exactly what he wasn't missing out on.

"… yeah. It was." Nina crossed her arms and stared at him a little longer before finally nodding and letting him in.

"Mom and Dad are out with Emily. She wanted to look at the State Alchemists library and needed Dad to get in." Even though Alphonse Elric was not a State Alchemist, Fuhrer Mustang had given him full rights and access to the library. So far, the state had continued to honor that right. "Mom just wanted to see if they had a particular text there about alkahestry. She said it was pretty basic so they might have it here. She's probably going to get in an argument with the librarian about them needing to add more alkhestry books to their collection."

Liwu smiled weakly. This was one of the things he loved about Nina. She was treating him as if nothing had happened except a small stupid little mistake.

"Were they… were they worried?"

"Worried sick, but Uncle Ling called as soon as you showed up at the palace. Mom started crying when she heard you were alright, she was so relieved. Dad looked like he was about to as well, but he didn't. At least not in front of me and Em."

"I shouldn't have done that."

"No, you shouldn't have," Nina agreed. He winced slightly. "What happened?"

"Well… I found him. My biological father."

"And?" Liwu looked up and saw the guarded look in Nina's eyes. He scoffed.

"I don't blame Dad for not letting him know about him. The man's a scum bag. As soon as he found out who I was he started trying to bribe me to keep quiet to protect his career."

Nina started at him, not saying anything.

Then she described Xie Wang the way that Liwu wanted to.

Liwu grinned.

"I can't imagine what that'd be like. To find him, after all these years, and get that." Nina snorted. "Your mother must have been a saint or something to get you with him."

The grin faded into a weak smile. "Yeah… I'd like to this so. He had my eyes."

"Technically you have his," she pointed out helpfully, which only prompted Liwu to roll said eyes at his sister.

"Shut up."

Nina smiled back at him and shoved him playfully.

Then they heard the door open.

"You ready for this?" she asked him.

"No."

"Brilliant. Let's go do it."

"Nina? We're back!" Emily's voice said.

Then the three of them walked around the corner and caught sight of Liwu.

There was silence before Emily happily called out "Liwu!" and ran at him, hugging him tightly. He smiled, hugging her back, but still glancing up at his parents. Both of them were staring at him.

"Liwu…"

"Hi Mom…" Then Mei began to cry and followed in her daughter's footsteps.

"Sorry for worrying you," he whispered, hugging her back tightly.

"Liwu Elric, don't you ever do that to me and your father again! Or we will ground you until you're married!"

"I'm not going to be getting married very easily if I'm grounded now will I?" he joked. Mei smiled, before hugging him tightly again.

"You cut your hair."

"… I didn't have much of a choice. But um. Yeah. It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you one day… when I have grandchildren." She pursed her lips, but smiled and hugged him again.

"Love you, Mom," he whispered to the top of her head (he loved being taller than his mother).

Then he looked at his father.

"Dad… I'm… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things to you. You were only trying to protect me from the truth of who… who he really was. I'm… I'm sorry."

"Liwu," Al whispered, before pulling his son into his arms in a hug that almost crushed the Xingese boy. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kept it for you. I've regretted it every moment since."

"So… so you don't hate me?"

Al let go of the boy and bent down so that they were at eye level.

"Liwu. No matter what ever happens to me or to you or whatever we may do to each other. You are my son. And I will never hate you. It would be impossible for me."

"I'm sorry, Dad," Liwu said, hugging his father again. Al hugged him back, ignoring the tears that were managing to leak out his eyes.

"It's okay. All that matters is you're home. You're home."

If anyone noticed/is interesting, yes that is the same Xie Wang from chapter 43 of A Source of Hope. And my brother and sister were totally routing for Liwu to start blackmailing him. I don't know if you noticed but Tso's husband works for, indirectly but he does work for him, Wang's company. And they really wanted me to have Liwu blackmail him into giving him a better position or something, but Liwu's a nice guy, he would really need evidence at that point more than Tso's testimony, Wang might try to assassinate him, and plus that would have made the chapter even LONGER. So if you want to imagine that he does so, go ahead.

So... long chapter. I've really been looking forward to this chapter, so I really hope you liked it!