Chapter 12: The Definition of Family
Nine Years Ago
Armstrong Mansion
Central City Estate District
The afternoon light shone brightly through the massive picture windows of the Armstrong estate's main drawing room, scattering sunbeams across the gleaming marble floor and mahogany furnishings. As the ornately carved grandfather clock in the corner ticked softly, Rick and Raven sipped tea from china cups, smiling politely toward Rick's parents and his two sisters. These family luncheons were formal, elegant affairs, albeit mercifully infrequent.
Philomena, the matriarch of the family, was a tall, thin older woman with a long face and blonde hair tied into a severe bun. She was currently expounding at length upon matters of progeny, Rick and Raven's in particular. "I'm not saying," she continued, "that she isn't a lovely child. Especially with her…challenges. It's wonderful of you two to have opened your home to a poor unfortunate. But—"
"Stop it, Mother!" Rick cut in. "She's not an 'unfortunate.' She's our daughter and we love her." He kept his voice measured, but at his sides his hands were clenched in irritation. Beside him, Raven's smile had tightened into stone.
"Oh, certainly." The older woman waved a hand in breezy dismissal. "A lovely child, considering. I am just making an observation," her voice rose an octave for emphasis, "that it's high time you had some children of your own. Some boys especially. We need someone to carry on the proud Armstrong lineage. And I'm simply in despair of your older brother." Philomena sighed forlornly and clutched at her pearl necklace.
"We've just about given up hope on Alex," Rick's father Phillip chimed in mournfully. He was a short man with a bushy blond beard, mustache, and receding head of hair, all of which ended in curls. "I don't understand it. No matter how many eligible young ladies we introduce him to, he refuses to court any of them. Why, it's almost as if he has no interest in girls whatsoever!" He threw up his hands in befuddlement. There was a round of polite coughs from the younger adults.
"Don't worry, Mother and Father, I'm going to get married and have lots of babies!" piped up the delicate blonde teenage girl seated next to Philomena. "Just as soon as I find a man who's strong and kind and handsome." Her gaze drifted off into space, as she smiled to herself and swooned slightly at the thought of her imagined suitor.
"Oh Catherine dearest, that's why you're my favorite," Philomena crooned, pinching the girl's cheek affectionately. The teenager lit up in a proud smile, basking in the praise. "Of course as a woman, your children won't be able to carry on the Armstrong name, so that won't be enough," the older woman countered absently, failing to notice as the girl deflated. "I'm afraid it's all up to your brothers. If they don't step up, the Armstrong birthright will be doomed to perish forever." She passed a hand over her forehead, tears threatening. "Oh dear, I simply can't bear the idea!"
"Now now, my darling, let's not think such thoughts. There's still time." Phillip put an arm around his wife, patting her shoulder like a child's. An uncomfortable silence fell on the room, broken only by her sniffles, as Rick and Raven avoided the others' gazes and snuck looks at the clock.
o-o-o-o
Out in the hallway, six year old Brooke watched the scene from her hiding place under the legs of a grand piano. Though she understood only some of what was being said, she was happy not to be part of the gathering of relatives, those strange, stuffy people with empty smiles and no interest in her at all. As she watched, Brooke unconsciously tugged at her knit hat to make sure it still hid her wolf's ears. Her parents had warned her not to reveal her secret to the rest of the family, whom they were certain wouldn't understand. All in all, the little girl was much happier under the piano.
"There you are!" a jovial voice boomed from down the hallway. A tall, burly figure with a blonde mustache, bald but for a single lock of blonde hair on his forehead, bounced into view. "You picked a good hiding pace, little one!" he declared approvingly.
Brooke grinned at the man, the only one of her relatives she actually liked. She slid out from under the piano and hopped up. "Now it's your turn to hide, Uncle Alex!" she sang out, her voice slightly mechanized through her automail collar.
He nodded, his gaze drifting past her for a moment to the adults in the drawing room. The grandmother was dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief and moaning something about "pedigree" and "real future Armstrongs." A frown flashed across his face; in the next moment he scooped Brooke off the floor and raised her aloft on one huge bicep, back to his usual cheerful grin. "This is not a conversation for children to overhear. Come, you've been cooped up indoors long enough for today." In a few strides, his long legs carried them through a set of terrace doors outside to the garden patio. A warm breeze was blowing, carrying the smell of freshly mown grass and spring flowers. "Much better! Children need to play in the fresh air to grow up strong."
Still perched on his arm, a burst of energy made Brooke want to run. "Hey, put me down!" she ordered, laughing. "Or I'll beat you up!" She began to playfully pummel his shoulder with her small fists.
"Oho, I see you're already working on your fighting technique—excellent! That is the Armstrong spirit!" Chuckling, he twirled her around over his head until she shrieked with giggles. Then set her down on the ground with a flourish and pretended to return her punches, grinning playfully.
Brooke laughed. "Yeah, I'm gonna be tough! No one will mess with me!" They continued to shadow-box around the garden, laughing, until an errant punch from her uncle slipped over her head—and accidentally knocked her hat off.
She froze as she heard him gasp, saw astonishment cross his face as he took in the sight of her wolf's ears for the first time. No. No. They couldn't find out, not like this—! Petrified, she felt her legs weaken, sank to the ground. Her vision blurred by tears, she groped blindly at the space around her until she found her hat and clamped it back on her head, far too late. "P-Please, it's a secret, please don't t-tell anyone—"
"Little one!" He had recovered somewhat from his shock, and now he carefully lowered himself to the ground beside her, sitting cross-legged. "Dry your tears. I promise I will keep your secret," he told her gravely. He pulled a handkerchief from his shirt pocket and gently blotted the tears from her cheeks. "I can see that you are a very special child. More than any of us knew."
She sniffled and took the handkerchief from him, hands trembling as she rubbed at her eyes. "Does—does this mean I can't be an Armstrong anymore?" she asked in a tiny voice. "Because I'm different?"
"What? Nonsense!" he exclaimed. Her took her small hands in his huge ones, gripped them reassuringly. "Listen to me, little one. There is nothing wrong with being different! Never let anyone tell you otherwise. And never let anyone tell you who you can or cannot be." He took a deep breath. "Wherever you came from, whatever happened to you before you came to us, you're an Armstrong now, and always will be. Do you understand?"
Her fear beginning to calm, she nodded. "But, Uncle Alex…" She bit her lip uncertainly. "Will you still be my friend?"
"Of course I will!" he roared joyously. He jumped to his feet, then took her hand and pulled her upright. "No force on Earth can break our friendship. That is the Armstrong way!" He scooped her up and perched her on his arm again. Forgetting her fear, she giggled, then hugged his massive neck. It was going to be all right.
"Uncle Alex, is being different the Armstrong way too?" she asked.
"It is now," he declared. "Let us make a pact, you and I, that we will pass this down to all the generations of Armstrongs that come after us."
"OK!" she grinned, relieved. "Wait—even if they're adopted? Or their names aren't Armstrong?"
"Of course! Being an Armstrong comes from the heart!" Grinning, he hoisted her high above his head and twirled her in the air once more. The girl's peals of laughter filled the air, her tears long dry now.
Present Day
Dublith, Seaside District
"Remind me again," Brooke said to Kayla, "how is this legal?" As she spoke, she methodically whacked at a slab of sirloin with a cleaver. "Assault, kidnapping, forced labor…"
Kayla dumped a bowl of pork scraps into the sausage grinder and began working the handle. "I wouldn't say it's so much a legal question." A sign above her head read Curtis Meats. "Do you want to be the one to go up against that woman? Even the police are probably scared of her."
"Probably." Finished slicing, Brooke put down the cleaver and shed her plastic gloves, sighing as she pushed her hair out of her eyes. They had been at this for hours. "If she weren't scary enough by herself, she's got that giant mean-looking husband backing her up. So I guess we're stuck here."
Kayla tied off the row of sausages and removed her own gloves. "At least if we ever want to see Ed and Al again. Where is this Yuck Island place they got dragged off to, anyway?" She sank onto on a wooden bench behind the butcher's counter, Brooke wearily joining her.
"No idea. Guess it's the scary lady's favorite place to beat the snot out of people."
"Ha ha ha, you've got it all wrong." The girls startled as Mason, the only employee of the butcher's shop besides the Curtis couple, glided into the workroom with a fresh crate of meat. He was a short, burly man in his mid-twenties with dark hair and a perpetually cheerful expression. "Izumi and Sig Curtis are good people. Sig looks mean, but he's really a nice guy. And Izumi might have a temper sometimes, but deep down she's got a soft heart."
The girls were regarding him skeptically; he shrugged. "Anyway, it's Yock Island. That's the place Izumi took the boys when they first started their alchemy training, years ago. Left 'em there for a month to fend for themselves. Well, I was there too, keeping an eye on them, but they didn't know it." He heaved the crate onto the counter and began divvying up slabs of meat between the girls' workstations.
"That sounds awful. Weren't they little kids?" Kayla argued.
Mason shrugged. "They survived."
"How reassuring," Brooke replied drily.
Finished emptying the crate, Mason took a seat on the bench next to Brooke, fished a silver flask out of his apron pocket and took a swig. He had earlier established (after extracting a promise from the girls not to snitch) that he enjoyed sneaking samples of the sake his employers used to marinate the Kobe beef. "Izumi really cares about those boys," he continued, "like they're her own sons. And now that everything's gone all wrong, she's taking them back to the island to think things over."
"What do you mean, 'gone all wrong'?" Brooke echoed. "Do you mean the alchemy accident Ed and Al had?"
"Yeah. That accident." He took another swig; by now he'd had a few. "The thing is…Izumi had an accident like that once too. And she warned the boys not to ever make the same mistake. They swore they never would. But after they left their training here, they did it anyway." He paused, staring down at the flask as he turned it over in his hands. "When she heard about the famous Fullmetal Alchemist with the automail arm and leg, and the brother who always wears armor, and she realized it was Ed and Al, she flipped. She knew right away what they'd done. So she went to find them." He shuddered. "And here we are."
"So…" Kayla prompted gently. "Izumi had an alchemy accident too? What happened?"
Mason took another swig, a long one this time. A struggle played over his features as if he were deciding whether to tell them anything further. But the sake was making him chatty, and he went on.
"OK," he murmured. "But you can't tell anyone. She will literally kill me." The girls nodded solemnly. "A few years before Ed and Al came here, she got pregnant," he continued. "She and Sig were so happy! But something went wrong, and she lost the baby." There was a long pause. "I don't know what happened next, exactly. But that night she headed out to Yock Island by herself. When she came back, she was coughing up blood—a lot of it. And all of a sudden, she could do alchemy just by clapping her hands."
"Whoa," said Kayla. She must have tried to do human transmutation, she added silently to Brooke. Just like Ed and Al.
To save the baby. Brooke agreed. What else could it be? She turned to Mason and pressed on. "So is Izumi…OK now? Was she badly hurt?"
He shrugged, the corners of his mouth turned downward. "She still coughs up a lot of blood sometimes, if she overdoes it or gets really upset. But she's OK if she takes her medicine and gets some rest. I'm not an alchemist, so I don't really know how it works." He stared at the flask, perhaps regretting that he'd told them so much. Finally he stowed it back in his apron pocket and stood, smiling cheerfully as he pointed toward the stacks of meat waiting for them on the counter. "But I do know there'll be hell to pay if we don't get these orders processed before Izumi and Sig get back. So let's get back to work."
o-o-o-o
Several hours later they were finally done, the refrigerated case behind the front counter stuffed with cuts of meat wrapped in brown paper, the customers' names and the date neatly penned on the outside. A steady stream of people had already come to pick up their orders; business was good. As the afternoon light began to wane, Mason closed up the storefront and led the girls through the back door to the Curtis' apartment.
He glanced up at the kitchen clock. "I guess they're gonna be late getting back. I'll go ahead and get dinner started." He rummaged around the fridge, emerging with a platter of raw meat. "Looks like it's broiled steak tonight," he grinned over his shoulder as he slid it into the oven.
"Well, as long as you're busy, why don't Brooke and I just go find something else to do for awhile…" Kayla murmured innocently, inching toward the kitchen door.
"Right!" Brooke concurred, following. "We wouldn't want to get in your way, so we'll just—"
"Not so fast!" Mason called over his shoulder. He turned around and thrust a bag of potatoes into Brooke's hands. "These need to be scrubbed before baking, and the carrots—" he reached into the fridge, grabbed another bag and handed it to Kayla "—need to be peeled and sliced. Then there's making the salad, and setting the table, and..." The girls' shoulders slumped as they resigned themselves to another round of forced labor.
But an hour later, the table was set and loaded with heaping platters of hot food, and the girls' stomachs were growling. Mason frowned through the window at the setting sun. "I figured they'd be home by now," he shrugged. "Well, we might as well eat. Go ahead and get started, I'll join you after I wash up." He disappeared through the kitchen door.
"I'm guessing 'wash up' is code for 'refill the sake flask,'" Brooke whispered with a smirk as they sat down, causing Kayla to giggle. Just as they reached for the food, they heard the back door to the apartment bang open and the commotion of people entering.
"Go through here," Izumi's voice drifted down the hallway, an uncharacteristically gentle lilt to her voice. "You must be starving, poor little thing." Brooke and Kayla exchanged puzzled glances—who she could possibly be talking to? They were even more startled when she strode into the kitchen…holding the hand of a young boy. He couldn't have been more than eight, with pale white skin and long unruly black hair, dressed in shorts and a t-shirt. Ed and Al trailed behind them, looking unhappy.
"Food!" the boy cried joyfully and ran to the table. Had they found him on the island? Without even sitting down he grabbed a fork in each hand, speared a steak on each one, and began alternating large bites, barely taking time to chew them before he swallowed.
Brooke didn't wait for an introduction; she was on her feet, every muscle tensed. "That boy," she whispered, pointing at his diminutive form. "He's a homunculus!" Kayla jumped up from her own seat with a gasp. Ed and Al stared at Brooke in alarm, their eyes darting back and forth to the child, still obliviously shoveling steak into his mouth.
"Master Izumi—!" Al protested.
"I told you he was dangerous—!" Ed yelled at the same time.
"I know what he is!" Izumi snapped back, silencing them all. Her eyes burned black as she swept them over the group. The homunculus paused in his eating and stared, his earnest eyes wide and frightened.
The woman's voice softened. "Look at him," she commanded quietly. "He's innocent. He doesn't remember anything before today. However he ended up on Yock Island, whatever happened to him, he's alone and lost, and he needs our help."
The homunculus blinked at them, still bewildered as he swallowed his current bite. If there was any evil intent in him—or any intent at all beyond finishing his meal—it wasn't visible. Perhaps he was just what he seemed, a lost and scared little boy. Chastened, the four teenagers stared at the floor.
"If that's settled," Izumi continued smoothly, "then let's sit down and have our dinner like civilized people." Her tone allowed no argument. The teenagers meekly took seats at the table, and Izumi began passing around the platters of food.
This is bad! Kayla's silent voice held fear as she numbly passed the bread plate. What if the other homunculi come looking for him?
I know, Brooke replied, handing her the steak with a deep frown. But Kayla, that boy isn't just a homunculus. Something else about his scent is familiar—really familiar. I can't place it, though.
Fantastic, Kayla replied sourly as she gripped the platter. Like things weren't complicated enough already. She scraped meat onto her plate without enthusiasm, no longer hungry at all. Ed and Brooke were pushing their own dinners around listlessly with their forks, while Al stared calmly at the table as usual. Izumi ignored her own meal as she carefully watched the boy. Apart from the homunculus, who was still shoveling food into his mouth with vigor, not much dinner was going to get eaten tonight.
o-o-o-o
Brooke and Kayla, settled into an upstairs guest room, had stayed awake late into the night talking silently about the day's developments. A little after midnight they finally ran down, and Kayla was just drifting off into much-needed sleep when she felt Brooke sit bolt upright beside her.
"I've got it! Kayla, I know what the boy's scent is!" Her eyes were wide with alarm.
"Shh!" Kayla admonished in a whisper. "Keep your voice down or you'll wake everybody up! What is it?"
Brooke's voice dropped. "He's part homunculus and…part Ed."
"What?" Kayla gasped. "What does that even mean?"
"I have no idea." Brooke shook her head. "But we need to find out. Let's go talk to that kid." She hopped out of bed and headed for the door, Kayla hurrying after her.
"Wait, shouldn't we wake up Ed and Al first?"Kayla whispered as they crept down the hallway and approached the door to the boy's room.
Brooke's hand paused on the doorknob, but just then they heard a crash from inside the room. Alarmed, she flung the door open to find—
Ed and Al were standing in the middle of the room staring up at the boy, who had somehow managed to turn his bed up on its end and was perched on top of it. Or was he…? Strangely, only the top half of his body was visible. He was bawling.
"What the hell?" muttered Kayla, gazing in shock at the boy who seemed, impossibly, to have partly disappeared into the bed. "What did you guys do to him?"
"We didn't do anything! We were just asking him some questions—he did this to himself!" Ed protested over the boy's sobs.
"Brother scared him," Al conceded.
"Oh geez." Brooke palmed her forehead.
Before anyone could argue, Kayla took a few tentative steps toward the boy, then reached out her hand to touch his arm. There was a flash and sizzle of purple electricity, and the boy and the bed came tumbling down with a crash, separated once more. Kayla's legs swayed beneath her and buckled; Brooke quickly caught her under the shoulders before she fell. The boy's sobs turned to whimpers as Al stepped forward and helped him up.
"WHAT IN GOD'S NAME IS GOING ON HERE?!" Izumi, disheveled and clad in pajamas, roared from the doorway. The teenagers froze and turned to face her, blood draining from their faces. The woman crossed the room in three steps, using two of them to shove Ed and Al respectively across the room. "Come here, sweetie." She took the boy into her arms and hugged him, finally quieting him. "All of you get out!" she bellowed at the four teenagers. They hastily complied, and the bedroom door was slammed shut behind them.
Out in the hall, Al nodded to Kayla. "Thanks for your help. But what are you two doing here?"
"I realized something." Brooke's lips were pursed in a line. "Ed, that homunculus…I don't know how, but somehow he has your scent."
The boys' eyes met. "Yeah," Ed replied, his voice uneasy. "We just figured that out ourselves." He swallowed. "We noticed that his right arm and left leg are a different color from the rest of his body. Like a normal person's. And…they're exactly like mine." He looked down at his automail limbs, a faint shudder rippling his shoulders. "He even has a scar on his arm that matches one I had as a kid."
There was a shocked pause. "You, you mean…he has your arm and leg? Attached to him?" Kayla's voice was nearly a squeak.
Ed nodded soberly. "They were taken from me at the Gate of Truth. That must be where he came from." His mouth tightened into a scowl, his eyes far away. "That's why I don't trust that kid. I don't think he's as innocent as Master Izumi thinks. He can't be." Unconsciously, his hands clenched into fists.
"So what are you going to do?" Brooke asked in a whisper. "It's not like you can just…take them back."
"I know," Ed murmured. The question hung, unanswered, in the silence that followed.
o-o-o-o
"I said, what have you done with the boy?!"
Pressed against a wall, Ed struggled to escape Izumi's stranglehold. Seen through the kitchen window, the sun was just coming up; no one else in the household was awake yet. "I told you, we didn't do anything! Al, tell her!" On the floor, Al was dragging himself by one still-attached arm as he frantically tried to retrieve the rest of his limbs.
"Brother's telling the truth, Master Izumi—none of us have seen him since last night!" He reached his right leg and began fumbling it back into its socket. "Could he have gone somewhere on his own?"
With a deceptively casual flick of her wrist, she sent Ed flying across the room to crash into Al, knocking the leg from his hand. "Fine. Say I believe you—for the moment." The woman glared at the boys, arms folded across her chest. "You're going to help me find him before I change my mind. Get yourselves together. You have two minutes." She turned on her heel and strode from the room.
"Crap," muttered Ed, disentangling himself from Al. "That kid had better turn up before she kills us." He stood and began helping round up his brother's limbs. Hearing a gasp, he looked up and saw Brooke and Kayla staring at them from the kitchen doorway.
"Um, we heard some loud noises…" Kayla began, biting her lip as she took in the sight of the freshly bruised Ed and nearly limbless Al.
Brooke simply yawned, waving her arm toward the brothers. "Seriously, you guys. Should we even bother asking anymore?"
"ED! AL! NOW!" interrupted a bellow from the next room. The boys shuddered visibly. Ed quickly finished attaching Al's legs, then handed him the remaining arm as the two ran through the doorway toward the voice.
"We'll be back as soon as we can!" Al called over his shoulder, fixing the arm into its socket as he hurried away.
Brooke sighed and turned to Kayla. "Guess we're on our own again today. Let's sneak out of here quick, before we get chained to the meat counter again."
Kayla nodded, and the two quietly began to slip through the apartment, headed towards the back door. But a loud voice, drifting down the hallway that led to the butcher's shop, stopped them in their tracks.
"Ham, 100g, 128 cenz," Sig's voice boomed loudly. "Chicken breasts, 160 cenz." It wasn't so much the price list as the defiant tone he was bellowing it in. "Sliced beef chuck, 200 cenz."
Curious, the girls turned back and crept down the hall toward the voice. Now they heard a second man: "We're here on military business, citizen! If you know where the Elrics are, I suggest you tell me." His tone was barely polite with a faint undercurrent of threat.
"Mixed ground beef and pork, 98 cenz!"
In the workroom behind the storefront, Mason was peeking at the scene from the doorframe. "What's going on?" whispered Brooke as they joined him. Craning around him, she made out a pale, dark-haired officer with a pointy nose sneering at Sig. There was another soldier standing behind him, but from her vantage she could only see the edge of their uniform. Someone big by the looks of it.
Mason shook his head. "Soldiers looking for the Elric boys," he whispered. "Are they in trouble?"
The girls shared a glance. "Pretty much always," Kayla admitted. "This could be about the Laboratory 5 thing. Or the dormitory building that burned down, or—really anything." Or us, she added silently to Brooke, an edge of fear creeping in. Brooke nodded grimly.
In the storefront, the unseen soldier shifted and stepped into view. Both girls gasped—it was Brooke's uncle Alex!
"You know that guy?" Mason whispered, puzzled. "Can you do something to make them go away?"
"Yes. Yes we can." Brooke turned to Kayla. We need to let him know we're here, she said. Some kind of secret message, something only he would know. What can we use?
A flash of inspiration crossed Kayla's face. "Stay right here," she ordered them both. "I need to get something." She disappeared around a corner. A few moments later she returned holding a bright blue feather. "Mason, can you take this out there and make sure they see it? Don't say anything about us."
"Er, I guess." He bit his lip nervously as he accepted the feather. Looking around the workroom, he grabbed a crate of chicken and headed out to the storefront.
Did that hurt? Brooke asked silently.
Just a little, Kayla smirked.
"Hey Sig, do you need any help up here?" Mason asked casually, heaving the crate onto the storefront counter and letting the feather fell to the floor.
"These men don't want to buy any meat, so I'm sure they're just leaving." Sig glowered meaningfully in the soldiers' direction.
"What is that?" sneered the dark-haired man, pointing to the feather.
"Huh? Oh, we get weird feathers mixed in with the chicken shipments sometimes." Mason shrugged. "It's no big deal." At his side Sig looked puzzled, but kept quiet. Behind the sneering officer, though, a glimmer of recognition appeared in Armstrong's eyes.
"Colonel Archer," he said crisply, his stance snapping to military attention. "I believe we've learned all we can here. Perhaps it would be more productive to take another look around the town."
His eyes still on Sig, Archer's gaze narrowed into a glare. "Fine. We'll take our leave now—but rest assured that we'll be keeping an eye on you." He glanced contemptuously at the feather on the floor. "Perhaps a health inspection would be in order as well." He turned and strode from the store, with Armstrong following close behind.
The men breathed a sigh of relief that was echoed by the girls as they rushed into the storefront. "What was that all about?" Sig asked, gesturing toward the feather.
"Oh, um, I collect feathers," Kayla laughed nervously, one hand rubbing the back of her neck. "Blue ones especially. And Brooke's uncle knows that, so I figured if he saw it, he'd know we were here."
"Right!" Brooke smiled with an enthusiastic nod. The men exchanged confused looks, but shrugged and let it go. "Anyway," she continued breezily, "we'd better find Ed and Al and warn them. Let's go, Kayla." She grabbed her friend by the wrist and pulled her out the door. Let's hope it's not bad news, she shuddered as they headed out into the street.
o-o-o-o
Ed, Al and Izumi had spent a half hour combing through the seaside town before they found anything of note. But it wasn't the boy they stumbled upon when they turned onto the narrow street. It was two soldiers, one of whom they knew quite well.
"Major Armstrong!" Ed exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"Looking for you, young Edward." The tall, burly soldier with the bald head and bushy blond mustache gestured at the officer beside him. "This is Colonel Archer, acting head of the Investigations Department. He wants to ask you some questions."
Archer interrupted curtly. "Major Elric, where is the boy from Yock Island?"
"Huh? What do y—"
"What about the boy?" Izumi stepped forward, threatening.
Archer's eyebrows shot up, a glare forming. "Not that it's any of your concern, citizen, but we're here to retrieve him. That boy is a missing relative of a high-ranking official."
"Well, that much I believe," Ed muttered to Al.
"Bullcrap!" Izumi snapped at the officer. "Tell me, what exactly is the military going to do with a homunculus? Dissect him for research?"
"Master Izumi!" Al gasped.
Archer folded his arms over his chest, his glare turning colder. "Well then. I see that we're disposing with the pretenses." His lips settled into a thin smile that was anything but friendly. "We're on classified military business, citizen, and what we are doing is not your place to know. You will, therefore, keep your mouth shut and hand that homunculus over to me immediately." He drew the syllables out slowly and with relish.
Ed quickly stepped in front of Izumi before she could lash out. "We don't have the boy. He ran away last night. We're looking for him."
"Don't tell this piece of military trash anyth—"
"Master Izumi, please!" Al repeated. If she didn't stop, things could get ugly fast. And since the officer outranked Ed, there might be nothing they could do.
"It's the truth!" Ed insisted to Archer, his voice rising as he spread his arms out. "Look at us! We don't. Have. The boy."
Archer squinted at Ed, his cold smile fixed in place, judging. Finally he nodded. "I believe you." He drew himself up further. "So here are your orders, Major Elric," he went on. "You will continue your search for the homunculus. You will not stop until he's found. And once you have him, you will report to the Southern Command Center and turn him over to our custody."
Ed swallowed. "All right," he said finally. "Sure. We'll find him and turn him over to you."
"Like goddamn hell we—!"
"MASTER IZUMI." Ed's eyes shot fire at his former teacher. "We can talk about this later." He was giving her a very meaningful look. It took a moment amid her rage, but a glimmer of understanding finally showed in her eyes.
"Fine," she said, allowing the aggression to slide from her shoulders. "If you say so, Ed." She turned her back on the soldiers and began to walk away.
"Nicely done, Major," Archer smirked at Ed. "Some civilians just need reminding of the military's authority."
"Whatever. See you 'round." Ed turned his own back on the officer and followed after Izumi. Without looking back, she called out some anatomically impossible suggestions of what Archer could do with his military authority, in sufficiently graphic detail that the man's cheeks flushed pink.
"Er, um, it was nice to see you again, Major Armstrong!" Al offered feebly before turning and hurrying after the others. Dwindling behind them, Archer had begun to sputter with rage.
The trio waited until they were out of earshot of the soldiers to talk among themselves. "Edward Elric, you had better have been bluffing back there, or so help me god, you will need four automail limbs by the time I finish with you," Izumi growled.
"Of course I was bluffing! Jeez, how did I get to be the level-headed one?" Ed waved his arms in agitation. "Now let's find that kid and get him as far away from that Archer creep as we can."
o-o-o-o
As the three figures receded from sight, Armstrong stood politely at parade rest, waiting for his commanding officer's rant to wind down. Something about the degenerate state of the citizenry and how Amestris needed a strong dose of martial law; Armstrong was only half listening. His attention had been drawn by a bright blue feather, caught in the light sea breeze, which soared and tumbled its way past them down the narrow street. So consumed was Archer with righteous indignation that he failed to notice. When the man finally paused for breath, Armstrong cleared his throat and pressed in.
"Colonel, I believe it would make sense for us to split up. We could cover twice the ground in our search." He paused for a calculated moment. "If you feel that would be appropriate, of course, sir."
"Hmm. Yes. That would be the best course of action." Archer coughed importantly. "You will continue the search on your own, Major. We'll regroup at the Southern Command Center in two hours."
"Very good, sir!" Armstrong saluted. Another pompous officer who had to think every suggestion was his own idea—he had seen too many such men in his military career. He marched off before the colonel could appoint a direction for him, hurrying toward the end of the street from which the feather had appeared.
o-o-o-o
"Uncle Alex!" Brooke greeted Armstrong with a bearhug and was nearly lifted off her feet as it was returned. Kayla followed with a grin and a more restrained hug.
"It is good to see you both, little ones. Your parents will be relieved to hear that you're well. I know they miss you."
"Yeah," Brooke laughed. "I never thought I'd miss them so much. But…is everything OK? Is the military looking for us or anything?"
Armstrong shook his head. "No, no. They're only after the homunculus. Your secret is still safe."
The girls sighed with relief. "Well, that's a good for us at least," Kayla replied, anxiously smoothing a hand over her hat. "But that poor boy! What if they want to turn him into a lab rat?"
"He doesn't seem evil like the other ones, Uncle Alex," Brooke added. "Is there anything we can do to help him?"
Armstrong frowned. "I will try. But if Colonel Archer finds him, there will be nothing we can do without risking exposure for you two. And that is much too dangerous." The girls grimaced and nodded reluctantly.
"So, Mr. Armstrong…" Kayla added. "You said that Archer guy is acting head of the Investigations Department? That's my Uncle Maes' job. Is everything OK?"
The burly man paused a moment, then took a breath before responding. "Indeed. He's fine now, but he ran into some trouble with a homunculus himself." He sketched the events as they had been (quietly) related to him by Colonel Mustang: Hughes' confrontation with the shape-changing creature by the phone booth, the gunshot, and the giant phantom bird that had somehow healed him and carried him to safety. Both girls' eyes had gone wide by the end of the account, Kayla's especially. Armstrong patted her shoulder reassuringly. "As I said, little one, your uncle is perfectly fine, just taking some time off. And there was no connection to your secret. There is no need to worry."
"S-sure," she replied uncertainly, swallowing.
A boisterous group of pedestrians walked by, momentarily startling them; Armstrong looked over his shoulder and sighed. "I had best go now, before Colonel Archer chances upon us. You girls should lay low for the time being, just in case." They nodded, giving him big hugs. Then he was gone.
Brooke sighed. "OK, we should still catch up with the guys." She scanned the distance. "We can track that kid better than they can. Maybe we can still help him get away." Hearing no response, she turned back to Kayla, who was staring absently in the other direction. "Hey, are you OK? You seem...bothered."
Before she could answer, they heard a shouted "Hey!" from up the street. They turned to find Ed waving at them as he Al, and Izumi headed their way.
Kayla smiled ruefully at Brooke. "Let's talk about it later—right now we need to find that boy!"
o-o-o-o
The boy with no name hadn't meant to run away, exactly. He'd been bored. All the other people in the house had lain down in their beds and refused to move for hours, with all the lights off, and that Izumi lady had told him he had to be quiet until they all got up again. Boring! So he'd hopped out the window and gone exploring. There weren't many people at first, but there were cats and mice and bugs and all kinds of little scurrying things awake in the dark, and he'd had a fun time chasing and catching them. Then the sun came up and the people started moving again, but by that time he had no idea where he was or how to get back to the house he'd come from. So now he simply wandered.
As he walked through an alley, his stomach growled. He thought of the Izumi lady and all the food she'd given him last night. And the hugs, that was really nice. She was nice. He smiled at the memory. But…she could also be kind of scary when she yelled at the other people. And there was something else. Something he didn't understand, didn't know how to describe. Something about her upset him so much that part of him was happy to be away from her, even though he missed the food and the hugs.
None of the other people in the town had looked at him much, but now he noticed a brown-haired lady standing at the end of the alley, watching him. She was dressed up nice in a skirt and jacket, both light purple. "Hello there," she called. "Are you hungry?" She held out a hand, showing something that glittered red in the morning sun. Curious as well as hungry, he skipped over to her. The red things in her hand looked more like stones than food, but she took one of his hands and dropped them into it. "Have some," she encouraged with a smile. "They're delicious."
Confused, the boy put one of the red stones in his mouth. His eyes went wide in surprise—it was delicious! Not like other food, but much, much better. He quickly wolfed down the rest, then turned to smile at the lady…
The rush of memories hit him all at once. The dark, cold place, full of wriggling things and terrified souls—the Gate. He'd been abandoned there, a little thing lost and scared and angry and alone, so alone. After that had come the waiting, the endless waiting. Years of waiting, all alone. No one to comfort him or keep him company…except his anger. Until yesterday when a portal had opened, and he'd walked through it to this world.
It was a different boy now who turned to look up at the woman in the lavender suit. His eyes held bitter knowledge now. "Give me more," he demanded curtly. She chuckled, then reached into her pocket and handed him more red stones. He chewed those more slowly, savoring the rush of energy they gave him.
"I'm glad you like them. We're raised on these stones of life, we homunculi."
He turned to look at her, startled. "That's right," she continued. "I'm just like you. We're not human—we're something better." He swallowed the last bite of stone, his eyes riveted on her. "Starting today, you're no longer alone," she smiled, ruffling his hair. "What do you think of that?"
All those years alone, all those years he'd dared not even hope…but before he himself knew what we was doing, he found his small arms clasping around her in a desperate hug, felt tears sliding down his cheeks. She knew him, knew who and what he was, and she wasn't afraid. She embraced him, stroking his head. "It's all right now," she crooned. "You never have to be alone again."
Voices drifted their way from the distance. "He's this way—I'm sure of it!" He recognized voice of the brown-haired girl from Izumi's house, looked up in alarm. The woman put a finger to her lips.
"I can't let them see me just yet. Say your goodbyes, OK? However you like. When you're done, I'll be waiting." She gave him a motherly wink, then disappeared around a corner.
"There!" the brown-haired girl burst into the alley, followed by the other three teenagers and Izumi herself. The girl pointed smugly. "Told you I could find him."
But Izumi was ignoring her, instead running to crush the boy in a hug. "I was so worried!" she exclaimed. "You're OK? You're not hurt?"
The boy stared up her, a wicked smile slowly stealing over his face. "Oh, I'm just fine…Mother," he smirked. Izumi gasped, and he grinned harder. "What's wrong? That's what you want me to call you, isn't it? And I'm your little boy." Oh, this was fun. The pain in her eyes—every caustic word was like a knife through her heart.
"What—what happened to you?" she stammered, moving backward from him.
"I remembered who I truly am," he answered with a laugh. But inflicting emotional pain wasn't enough. His hands shot out and grasped her throat, every ounce of his rage pouring into his tightening grip. He heard the other humans cry out as she began to choke; irrelevant. It would only take a moment to kill her—but something struck him hard in the forehead and he staggered backwards, dropping the woman.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" screamed the blond teenager. The homunculus rubbed his forehead where the rock had hit him, his hand coming away bloody. There was a sizzle of red energy and the wound healed itself. Grinning, he turned to face his attacker, then found himself abruptly tackled to the ground by both human boys, including the heavy one in the armor. Behind them, the girls were rushing the shell-shocked Izumi out of the way.
This was suddenly less fun. With a jerk of his body, the homunculus managed to throw off both brothers—he was much stronger than both of them—then leapt to his feet and scaled the nearest building, sprinting away across the rooftop. He leapt nimbly to the next building, then the next, the humans' shouts and curses fading behind him as he sped away.
He was nearly a mile away before he slowed, slid down from the rooftop and stopped, catching his breath. He was in an alley near the shore, its surface paved with crushed seashells; too far away for the humans to have followed, or at least he hoped. But he wasn't surprised at all when the woman in the lavender suit, not the faintest bit ruffled, appeared from around a corner.
"Are you ready now?" she asked lightly. "It's time to meet the rest of our family."
"I'm ready." He straightened. "What do I call you?"
"I'm Sloth," she replied. "And your name is Wrath." The boy brightened. It had never occurred to him that he might have a name too.
"Now I need you to take a deep breath," she smiled as she stepped toward him, "and trust me." He did as he was told. Sloth's form began to flex and undulate oddly, as if her whole body were turning to liquid. In a moment she surrounded him completely.
o-o-o-o
Brooke skidded to a halt in the alley, nearly slipping on the crushed shells. She turned back and forth in frustration. "He was just here! But now he's gone—damn it!" She inhaled deeply. "There was another homunculus here too. I think—it was the Führer's secretary. But now I can't find them."
"You're sure?" demanded Ed. "Come on Al, let's get a better look." He clapped his hands, placed them on the ground and drew up a glowing column of earth under their feet, raising them up like a tower. At ground level, Izumi sagged against the wall of the nearest building, discouraged.
Kayla, her attention caught by something else, strode out of the alley into the street. Brooke quickly followed. They stood at the top of a sloping hill that led down to the water. "There!" Kayla cried, gesturing up to the brothers. "Can you see—that homunculus lady, she's out on the water, way out there—" She pointed out over the sea toward the horizon.
"The rest of us can't see that far. What do you see?" Brooke demanded.
"She's sort of, um, riding on the water. Like she's surfing or something. But I can only see the top half of her body. And it looks like the boy is…inside her chest, somehow." She shaded her eyes against the sun's glare. "They're getting really far away." Even if they'd had a boat, at this distance they had no hope of pursuing the pair. After half a minute Kayla turned back to the others. "I can't see them anymore. Where could they be going?"
"Heissgart River," Izumi replied quietly. Her voice was drained of energy, her shoulders slumped. "It'll take them to Central City. He's going back to the rest of his kind." Energy glimmered behind her as Ed lowered himself and Al back to the ground, and she turned toward them. "Ed, Al, you were right. That boy is dangerous." Her hands tightened in the air. "I should just have let him die."
There was an uncomfortable silence. I guess she really bonded with that boy, Kayla observed silently. Before he turned evil, I mean. She must have wanted to adopt him.
Yeah, Brooke agreed somberly. I guess she still really wanted to be a mother.
Al cleared his throat, an artificial metallic sound. "Master Izumi, we should take you home." She nodded woodenly, turning and walking back up the alley without another word. Behind her, Ed and Al exchanged worried looks.
The teenagers followed Izumi, hanging back a few steps to give her some space. They walked in awkward silence for several minutes, but as they drew within sight of the butcher shop, they resumed talking quietly among themselves.
"I've been thinking about the homunculus names," Kayla murmured thoughtfully. "The ones from Laboratory 5 were all named after sins. Lust, Envy, Gluttony…like the seven deadly sins from ancient philosophy." The brothers looked at her blankly. "You know, the Summa Theologiae from Aerugo, or the Ishvalans' Arishadvarga… " She appealed to Brooke, who was nodding as if this were obvious to anyone. The boys still looked confused. "Homeschool," Kayla shrugged. "Anyway, the point is that there are seven sins, so that must mean there are seven homunculi."
"That makes sense," Al agreed.
"So that means we've met almost all of them," Brooke pointed out. "Besides those three from the laboratory, there's the Führer President, his secretary, and now the kid."
"Al and I still haven't seen the secretary," Ed countered. "But OK, that's six—so who's the seventh?"
Brooke shook her head. "No idea. But the way things are going…"
"They'll probably turn up soon," Al finished grimly.
"Great. Another homunculus—just what we need." Ed rolled his eyes. "But next time, we'll be ready for them. Right, Al?" He shot a sly grin at his brother as he slammed a fist into his opposite hand.
They were almost to the door of the Curtis household, but Izumi halted and turned to glare at them, suddenly livid. "You idiots! Do you think this is a game?" she cried, fists clenched. "These aren't playthings—these are living beings!" The fire had returned to her eyes, but there was something ragged in her voice.
There was another long silence. "No one said it was a game, Master Izumi," Ed replied soberly. His forehead creased with concern as he regarded her. "Hey look, I'm sorry it didn't work out with that boy. It seemed like you were really bonding with him. I know this must be hard—"
"You don't know anything!" she shouted at him, irrational with fury.
"Then tell me, damn it!" he shouted back. "You've been acting crazy ever since that kid showed up! What the hell is going on with you?" His voice dropped lower, his manner calming. "Tell us what's really going on. The truth—please, Izumi."
The fight drained out of her all at once, her fists unclenching as she stared down at the ground. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Do any of you know how a homunculus is made? What they really are?" she asked sadly. There was silence.
"A homunculus is made when someone performs human transmutation," she continued, the strength ebbing from her voice. "When we try to raise our loved ones from the dead, the thing we create…turns into this.
"The homunculus we found—that little boy—is my son. Or the closest thing to him that will ever exist." She took another deep breath, a mournful ragged sound. "When I made him all those years ago, when I saw what he was, I gave him back to the Gate of Truth. And now he's found his way back."
Izumi looked up at the shocked brothers, misery and pain etched into her features. She began to cough, a raspy wet rattle that ended with a spray of blood on the ground. As she sank to her knees, Ed and Al ran to help her as Brooke and Kayla watched helplessly.
"Sig!" Al called. "Mason! Please, somebody help!"
The door to the apartment burst open and Sig ran out, Mason close at his heels. Without a word, Sig scooped up his wife and ran back inside.
"It's OK. She'll be all right," Mason reassured the shaken teenagers. "She just needs to take some medicine and get some rest." His voice and smile were calm, though there remained a touch of anxiety in his eyes. "Why don't you kids take a walk for awhile, and give us time to deal with this. OK?" Reluctantly, they nodded.
With nowhere to go, the four began to walk slowly and aimlessly down the street, back toward the seaside. Brooke and Kayla exchanged worried glances at the brothers, who walked in silence. The air hung heavy with dread.
Finally Al spoke up, softly. "Brother…when we tried to bring Mom back, did we…"
"No!" Ed cut him off angrily. "Don't even think that, Al. There's no way that could have happened!"
"But Master Izumi said—"
"I don't care, Al! Just stop it!" His voice cracked with desperation, and there was a wild look in his eyes. In another moment he turned and ran off on his own, leaving a startled Al, Brooke and Kayla behind.
