Hello again! It's been, what, half a year since I last updated? Sorry...I turned into One of Those Authors. I get it now; you lose motivation and then you kind of just...stop. But I felt like reading more HPFMA fanfic recently, so here I am. I've got 5 more chapters after this one, to bring it to a total of 16 chapters, and then I've got a sequel planned out because I do love this, and why not indulge myself?
So Mys1tery reviewed (thank you) and pointed out that Roy does get his eyesight back at the end of FMA Brotherhood. I haven't watched it in a while, and forgot that. For those of you who haven't forgotten, my apologies. (Ed's sacrifice works for my plot in this fic, though, so I guess I'll stick with it.)
I have noticed a few typos with Ed's age as I reread the fic to get inspired to write it again; so just to clarify, he is sixteen. I'm just too lazy to fix it anytime soon. Also, I reread the last chapter I posted, and can I just say...my defense for keeping Ed's alchemy and automail is weak as hell. Whatever, I'm a sucker for cool powers and stuff.
I Am and Always Will Be, the Optimist, the Dreamer of Improbable Dreams, the Hoper of Far-Flung Hopes
Their three days in Resembool were the complete opposite of their week in Rush Valley. Where Rush Valley had been packed with work and social interaction, Resembool was a slow, leisurely time. They watched the stars and talked until the wee hours, and woke up late enough to miss the morning. They played with Den, drank tea with Pinako, and played in the nearby forests.
And when it was time to take the train to Central, they hugged Pinako goodbye and caught a ride on one of their neighbour's trucks to the station.
. . .
Meanwhile, things were really wild in Central. Just kidding.
Mustang was buried in paperwork, and Hawkeye was true to her name - she watched him like a hawk. He had not yet had the pleasure of buying a 'celebratory drink' with Riza, and as time ticked on, he feared this would never happen.
Finally, as the sun set one day, he set down his pen - he'd have to bring a truckload of pens with him to Hogwarts when he returned. Sure, using quills was quaint and quirky, just like everything else wizard-involved, but it was so impractical! They had to catch up sometime, or they'd end up centuries behind regular technology.
He turned to Riza and said, straight and to-the-point, "Drinks."
Hawkeye looked at him, deadpan, and in the reddening light, he couldn't tell if she was blushing. He hoped she couldn't tell, either, because he was. Slightly. It was hot in his office. He wasn't embarrassed or anything. Not at all.
"I did say we would, sir."
He nodded, stood up, and said, "Shall we?"
The two of them left the office, walking stiffly and silently. As they exited the building, Roy breathed a sigh. "Where to?"
Riza offered him a small smile, then said, "Follow me. I know a good place."
Eyebrows raised, for he doubted there was a single place he hadn't visited, with Hughes, and especially after Hughes, in this city. But as Hawkeye led him down the streets, the daytime side settling down and the nightlife waking up, painting the darkening city dull reds and yellows with their bright lights, he found himself in an unfamiliar street, staring at the large windows of a bar he'd never seen before.
"It's a suitably respectable place," Hawkeye was telling him, a smile curving her lips. "Clean, good customers, better alcohol."
Roy raised an eyebrow, surprised. He had never taken her for much of a drinker. It was amazing how little you could learn about a person, even after working together for years.
They took seats at a back table, ordered their respective drinks (a Scotch on the rocks for Mustang, a glass of finely aged bourbon for Riza). With the mishmash melody of idle chatter and clinking glasses in the background, they drank and talked.
Riza maintained custody of Black Hayate, now fairly large dog, and she told Roy about his recent escapades. They talked about the paths of the people they'd met during the Homonculus war; Ling's rule over Xing (the strange man had recently gone missing from his palace for two weeks before he was found travelling with a performer's troupe), Mei's research into alkahestry and her blossoming friendship with Al, Izumi Curtis' declining health (a somber topic), and the Armstrong family. Their conversation turned to Elrics as well.
"They worry me," Riza said, head resting on one hand. "Edward still hasn't told us what he exchanged for Al's body. It was generous of him to give his arm in return for your sight, though."
Roy sighed. "Damn fool. Now I owe him."
Chuckling, Riza commented, "He was very annoyed when he returned without his arm again. You should do something nice for him."
"Flowers?" The man scoffed, smirking at her.
The two began bickering, gently, sarcastically, as they were prone to do, and the night wore on. At last, an hour or so before midnight, they left the bar, Roy walking Riza home. As she opened her apartment door, he called out, "We should do this again sometime."
She turned, straight-faced. "Are you asking me out on a date?"
"Yes."
With a small, lopsided smile, almost Mustang-esque in force, Riza replied, "That would be great, Roy."
They stared at each other, unsure of what came after that, and were saved by Black Hayate. The dog came bursting out of Riza's apartment, barking energetically and weaving around their feet. "I should get going," Mustang said, rubbing the back of his head.
"Goodnight," Riza told him, getting a lazy wave as he walked away. Smiling and shaking her head, she ushered Black Hayate back into her apartment and closed the door.
. . .
The next day, Brigadier General Roy Mustang was giddy. And sleep-deprived, hopped up on caffeine to get him through the day. He was humming, snapping his fingers to the melody, and all any of his subordinates could hope was that he never thought to put on his special gloves on, the ones with a fire array sown onto the backs. Every time he snapped, they flinched (some threw themselves on the ground).
When Hawkeye walked in, her deadpan expression softer than it usually was, the Brigadier General's mood only improved. Havoc finally got tired of the constant heart attacks caused by the snapping of his superior officer's fingers, and asked, "Did you get lucky last night, or what?"
The dark-haired fire alchemist's eyes shot to Riza for a split second, and after a thoughtful pause, said, "Yes. I think I did get lucky."
. . .
It was four days later that the Elric brothers arrived. With a resounding bang, the elder one kicked open the door to an office. The workers within looked up with shock, not having expected anything of the sort. "Whoops," Ed muttered, "Wrong office."
With that he turned sharply on his heel and walked away, Al apologizing and bowing hastily before following his brother.
Another door slammed open, twenty minutes later. This time it was the correct office, and Ed was greeted far more warmly. Havoc called out, "Chief!", Falman, Breda, and Fuery greeted him with nods, salutes, and smiles. Riza inclined her head to him, lips curving up. Roy simply smirked, beckoning the Fullmetal Alchemist to take a seat in one of the low-backed chairs in front of him.
"Fullmetal. How was your break?" Mustang asked, lacing his fingers together.
Ed grinned. "A hell of a lot more fun than working for you, pyro. I take it your vacation was a blast."
He indicated the stacks of paperwork on his SO's desk and Riza's satisfied expression. Instead of frowning or scowling, the Brigadier General simply continued to smirk. Ed's brows drew together, and he looked from Mustang to Hawkeye confusedly.
Havoc came to his rescue. "They started dating, less than a week ago."
Wide-eyed, Ed stared at Mustang. "You started dating Hawkeye?"
Mustang stifled a smirk and nodded seriously.
"What the hell?!"
. . .
Professor McGonagall, who had generously agreed to apparate the Elric brothers to the Potter's estate, arrived in the usual loud fashion at sunset.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked, raising one eyebrow the tiniest bit.
Ed and Al looked at each other, nodded, and each grabbed one of her arms. "We are," Ed told her.
With a crack, she Disapparated. Brigadier General Mustang shuddered and muttered, "I hate that."
Hawkeye smirked. "You do know you'll have to do that to go back there, and again when you come back. And just imagine all the travelling you'll have to do. I don't imagine they have roads or trains everywhere, Brigadier General."
"Damn it, Hawkeye, don't remind me."
. . .
They landed on a sprawling lawn, covered in snow. All Ed saw was cold whiteness as he bent over, trying not to feel so nauseous. McGonagall, like always, was unfazed, and stood patiently by the two as they recovered. Ed gradually stood up, and found that Al had gathered the strength to do the same, though he looked very green. "Thanks," he managed weakly.
"You're welcome, Colonel Elric," she said, and promptly Disapparated again.
"I never want to do that again," Al complained, shaking his head and looking around, "Oh! Is that it? It's massive. You didn't tell me your friend was rich, Ed."
"You're impressed? We're friends with Ling Yao, Al. He's the ruler of a country."
Al frowned, "Yeah, but I met him before I knew that. It's not as impressive when you know him."
"You're right about that, Al," Ed said, "Let's go."
Ed gathered up their luggage; his trunk and Al's smaller, lighter suitcase. His younger brother was still too weak for any remarkably weighted items, so he approached empty-handed.
The Potter's house was extravagant. It looked more like a small castle than anything, with large doors and two towers. The windows glowed warmly, and as the Elrics drew nearer, the doors burst open and four people came running out; the Marauders.
"You're all here?" Ed asked. He knew that Sirius was living with James, but as far as he knew, Remus and Peter had families of their own.
James nodded. "Yeah. Remus has his furry little problem, which can complicate family life, and Peter's parents spend Christmas in France. Peter used to go, but a particularly nasty bowtruckle attacked him on a picnic there once, and he hasn't been back since. So," he said, looking at Al, "This is your little brother. It's nice to meet you, Al, Ed's told me a lot about you."
"Same here," Al replied, smiling gently, "It's very nice of you to have invited me here. I'd never heard of Christmas before, it sounds absolutely wonderful."
James paused, clasping his hands together. Behind him, Sirius pressed a hand above his heart, and Remus and Peter's eyes were wide. "Merlin, your brother's an angel, Ed, how are you related?" Sirius asked softly.
"Hey!" Ed shouted, eyes flashing.
"Brother's really very kind once you get to know him better. He just acts tough because he's still insecure about his height," Al commented in the same gentle tone.
Ed's head whipped around. "Al!"
The others had broken into laughter. "Blimey, he's more savage than you, too!" James chuckled, "Why don't you come inside and see if some wizard Christmas spirit can't heal your broken heart, yeah?"
The Chaser led the way into the house, and they followed close behind. "You never said you were rich, James," Ed said, having recovered from his double-betrayal.
"Oh, yeah. We're a pureblood family, so loads of inherited money, which my dad quadrupled after inventing Sleakeazy's Hair Potion. Never used the stuff myself, though." He grinned.
They were all staying in a small part of the castle-house, near the kitchen and dining hall, but fairly secluded. Several bedrooms and two bathrooms led off a main room, complete with squashy chairs and a fireplace. The Potters had several house-elves that tended the fire, keeping it burning continually.
"Nice house," Ed remarked, putting the luggage down and gazing around. "Extravagantly rich, but not like Ling's."
"Ling?" Remus asked, settling down in an armchair around the fire.
Al giggled. "Oh, Ling Yao. We met him nearly two years ago. He was lazy and gluttonous but good with a sword, and he had these two ninja bodyguards that followed him around all the time. He's the Emperor of Xing now, and he has all these big, fancy palaces, from what I hear. Ed's visited him a few times, but always gets kicked out because they fight a lot. They end up inviting him back again anyways. I'd like to visit once I get well enough. They're very good at using alkahestry, which is sort of like alchemy."
"What the� What were you guys doing before this?" Sirius asked, wide-eyed.
"It's classified," Ed said, "As is, you all know too much."
After a chorus of complaints, Ed agreed to drop a few hints. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you all that it involved lots of guns, swords, fire, immortality, and near-death experiences."
"That just made it worse," Sirius groaned, "now I want to know more."
But Ed said no more. James showed him which room he and Al would be sharing, and they settled around the fire to talk. They didn't touch the subject of Ed's military experience for the most part, though he did share a few stories that he hadn't strictly been told not to tell. The wizards had their fair share of stories too, although not nearly as many of them involved life-endangerment.
Thanks for reading! This was mostly filler, but it was fun filler. I am sorry that I haven't updated in a while, but I've got the ending mostly written, and now that I've started I could maybe ride this wave of motivation enough to finish it.
As always, please review and tell me what you think! I haven't written anything recently, so there might be plot holes. Oh well.
Adieu!
