Hi everyone! Yeah I know once again I am putting off my very important summer reading for all of you! And trust me I am so in trouble for it! Life has been well really crazy lately. I'm just glad that I was finally able to get this up. School starts next wednesday, sadly. :(
Date of Completion: August 20th, 2010(At like 4:30 in the morning. Why do I always seem to post chapters at weird times?)
Date of Update: August 20th, 2010(At 4:30 in the morning. I do this one because sometimes the chapter doesn't come out when I finish it.)
Word Count: 9,785(Without author's note)
Also I must thank my lovely beta ike1440 for not only being awesome and always encouraging me, but keeping me sane. Trust me I might have went off the deep end by now.
I do NOT own Full Metal Alchemist, sadly. Personally if I did Ed and Al(when he was human) would be shirtless all the time, along with Roy. They would serve grapes while only wearing pants. Hmmm nice mental image.
Ed stood outside the home and butcher shop of Izumi and Sig Curtis. The alchemist didn't want to knock or even let his teacher know he was there until Aria and Al joined him. The blonde haired sixteen year old watched the snow fall increase and silently wondered where his brother and the girl that had somehow stuck to them like glue was.
Thinking about Aria brought the kiss back to his mind. He silently wondered if it would have been better to just kiss some random stranger. He wondered if he had somehow messed up their odd but peaceful friendship. Strangely he had enjoyed the kiss and the taste of cinnamon wouldn't leave his mouth. And if the alchemist truly admitted it, he wanted to taste cinnamon again. Fat chance in hell.
Ed had kissed girls before. Right after his brother and him had managed to save Amestris a lot of girls had come onto him. Edward was ashamed to admit he had acted like Roy for a bit and went out on dates with a lot of girls, he never took it past the kissing stage, but he had kissed a good many. He silently thanked Roy for nearly setting him on fire and telling him that the womanizer position was already held by himself. He hadn't dated anyone since.
If he really admitted there was another reason for not dating. He couldn't trust many people with the knowledge of Al's blood seal and you just don't keep that from someone you're dating. There was also that he never stopped traveling and couldn't bring them along with him. His brother was his first priority and he had decided to hold off on anything he wanted until he got Al's body back.
"Damn automail." He cursed, placing his flesh hand on his automail shoulder; he discovered that it was cold to the touch, well more like frozen. Ed knew he should just wait for his companions inside but he'd rather not make his teacher angry and if he was going to get his ass kicked he decided he wasn't going to be the only one. The temperature was dropping as the sun went down and Ed silently mused that the snowstorm was only going to get much worse.
"You don't have to stand outside you know." Edward must have jumped two feet in the air at the sound of his teacher's voice. The woman was standing on the doorstep to the butcher shop looking both amused and angry at the same time. The blonde alchemist cringed at seeing her glare at him.
"Hi teacher." He waved at her, praying that his companions would arrive soon. He didn't want to bear the brute strength of Izumi Curtis all alone.
"It's been a long time." She scolded him. The woman's eyes scanned him, before sighing. "Where's Al?" She asked, wondering where the suit of armor was. It was rare to see one Elric brother without the other one. It normally meant something was wrong and one of them was captured or worse.
"I'm not sure." He answered honestly, knowing it was coming. The teen was suddenly punched in the gut, Izumi grabbing his collar, and slamming the teen back into the ground. He was used to the black haired woman's punishments by now, but still she had a lot of brute strength.
"Is that why you came to visit? To have me help find Al?" She asked, angry, but worried at the same time. The Elrics were like her own children and now one was missing. And in a snowstorm to boot!
"No. I'm here to spend the holidays." Ed watched his teacher with a wary eye. "Al's around here somewhere, he didn't get captured if that's what you're worried about. He's just back with rhino." Ed realized with a jump what he had said. The teen prepared to cover his head, waiting for the attack he knew normally came when he called Aria, something besides her name.
"May I ask why you look like you're about to be attacked?" The adult female alchemist asked, greatly amused. It reminded her of that one time Ed had ducked to avoid getting hit by Winry's wrench. The woman raised her eyebrow in response, wondering who this rhino person was.
"Because normally I'd have either the nearest object thrown at my head or been whacked upside the head by now." Ed told her, looking around for any signs of his brother and the girl that tasted like cinnamon. The blonde alchemist groaned at that, now whenever he thought of Aria, he thought of cinnamon. "Teacher, you wouldn't happen to have any cinnamon candies would you?" Ed asked, hoping that he just needed something to eat.
"I think so." He was acting strangely, she decided. The woman decided to see what was really going on first before calling her former student out on it. "Stop calling me teacher. I told you, you're not my students anymore." She grumbled, would they ever stop with that? It made her feel older and she hated feeling old.
"Brother!" Both alchemists turned towards the suit of armor walking towards them. Izumi's eyes zoomed in on the dirty blonde. I wonder who she is. The adult female alchemist thought. She couldn't tell if the girl was a fighter or not, wrapped up in the coat she was wearing. She did notice that the teen carried herself with grace, making her feel like the girl could fight.
Al silently laughed; he couldn't wait to see what would happen next. The whole way over since Ed had separated from them, Aria had been muttering curses under her breathe, glaring at the ground.
"What took you so long?" Ed asked, crossing his arms over his chest. They had taken a long time in walking here. He had been waiting for a few minutes.
"We stopped to help this dog." Al told him, waiting for Aria's magical reaction that he knew was going to happen. "Hello teacher." He greeted the older alchemist with a healthy dose of fear and respect.
"Hi Alphonse." She told him, banging her fist upside his helmet. Even if he couldn't feel it, didn't mean he didn't get the message. "Stop calling me teacher. How many times do I have to tell the two of you?" She asked, glaring.
"Until it sticks." Edward told his teacher, smirking at her. Al looked over to Aria, knowing that his words had just sparked the ignition fuse.
"I'm going to kill you." Aria snarled out, already reaching for the short blonde alchemist. Ed took the cue to use alchemy, clapping his hands together and summoning a cage around his angry travel companion. The Full Metal Alchemist looked smug with his work, sticking his tongue out at the girl in the cage.
"Brother." Al tried to warn his stubborn brother, knowing Aria's temper was short from the cold, shortage of food for the day, her weird mood swings, and then the kiss on top of it. Locking Aria in a cage would get his brother killed for sure.
"Oh calm down Al." Ed told him, it had been a while since he had locked Aria in a cage. He needed anything to get his mind off the kiss with the dirty blonde alchemist currently trapped in a cage.
"When I get out of here…" The female warned, trailing off dangerously. Izumi wondered what the hell was going on, but finding the scene amusing.
"Should I be worried?" She asked, crossing her arms. Al thought about it for a couple of seconds.
"Only about the shop. Aria's still a little angry about the cold and brother took something a little too far and she's going to whack him over the head a few times, give him a concussion, maybe even crack his skull and then everything will be okay again." Al told the woman.
"And you're gonna let her give your brother a concussion?" She asked, deciding that she might come to like this girl
"She'll heal it." Al told her, watching the scene in front of him unfold.
"I reinforced the bars with as much steel as I could. I wonder if you'll be able to break them this time." Ed smirked; he was trying to find the one thing that could keep her in.
"It won't do you any good." The dirty blonde told him, reaching for a bar to her cage. The ten pulled on it sharply; it budged a little, but didn't break.
"Looks like I win this round. Promise not to kill me and I'll let you out." He loved winning against a game with her. Aria seemed to think it over, placing her hand on her hip, thinking it over.
"I think I'd rather freeze to death out here and promise that." She smirked. The teen bet that if she applied more of her unnatural strength she would be able to break the bars. She already knew that she'd just throw the bars at him and then attack him while he was distracted.
"You don't mean that." Ed frowned; the idea that she wouldn't admit it and stay in the cage worried him. He didn't like the idea of hr staying outside in the cold all night. The blonde alchemist knew that Aria was stubborn enough to stay there to prove a point.
"Would she really stay out here?" Izumi asked, watching the two with amusement. She didn't know what the girl could do, but she had a feeling that the girl was more than she appeared.
"She's stubborn enough." The suit of armor told his alchemy teacher. "But Brother wouldn't do that. He'd drag her inside if he had too." Al knew it to be the truth. His brother had become protective over the sixteen year old female, they both had. "If I have to, I'll drag her inside."
"What does she mean to you?" Izumi asked, her eyes sliding from Al to Ed to Aria and back again. Al didn't get the chance to answer, before Aria had yanked a bar free from her cage.
"Shit!" Ed cursed clapping his hands together, a wall forming between the two blonde alchemists.
Aria threw the bar at Ed, knocking over the wall with the force she had thrown it. Once again Ed clapped his hands together, destroying the wall when he touched it. The teen leaped through the dust, ready to charge the teen. Aria couldn't see in the dust, allowing Ed the chance to slam into her. They both hit the snow covered ground, Ed straddling the alchemist. Using his automail hand, he jerked both of her hands into his, holding them above her head. He knew that if he wasn't careful, she'd kill him.
"Get the hell off!" Aria yelled at him, thrashing around. Ed shook his head, trying to hold her down. The girl was using her alchemy to enhance her strength levels to ones higher than Armstrong's.
"Is this a normal occurrence?" Izumi Curtis asked, raising her eyebrow in response. She had to admit that the two were rather entertaining.
"When she first started traveling with us yes, after awhile no. They do this every few days or when Aria's having those weird mood swings of hers." Al really was pleased with all of this. Ed and Aria had kissed and now they were fighting. He wasn't surprised that they were fighting; it just seemed to be someone the two of them did when they were confused.
"You mean when she has her period?" Izumi raised her eyebrow; watching Ed snap his head up in her direction. The teenage boy seemed interested and then Izumi realized that neither of the boys probably understood what she was talking about.
"Her what?" Ed called, tilting his head to the side. In that moment Aria finally managed to break free of his restraints, throwing him off of her. The female got off the ground, brushing herself off.
"Can we continue this discussion inside, I'm freezing?" Even in Ed's coat her wet clothes were still bothering her and even if she was about ready to make a pancake out of Edward Elric she still didn't want his automail to be hurting him.
"Sure why not?" The oldest alchemist out of the four of them said, walking into her home all the while wondering who this girl was. It wasn't normal for the Elric brothers to travel with anyone unless it was ordered or Winry had decided she was going the same way. The way Al had sounded was that Aria had been staying with them for awhile.
Aria appraised the woman in front of her. She had black dreadlocks, but they also looked like micro braids to her. The woman had a long white coat on over a pair of black pants and black boots for the weather. The woman had the same tattoo that Ed had on his coat and Al had on his arm. She doesn't seem so scary. The teen wondered what was so scary about the woman that had Al and Ed afraid of her.
Izumi led the three past the butcher shop part of her home and into the back, where the house actually was. Aria was glad to see a fire going in the fire place. She didn't want to seem rude since the woman was going to allow her to stay in her home, so she stood next to Al.
"You can go sit by the fire as long as you take off your wet clothes." Izumi noticed that the girl was shivering, her skin paler than it probably should be. "Here give them to me and I'll take them to the washroom." Izumi held her hands out to the teen ready to take her coat.
"Thank you." Aria took Ed's coat off, along with her thin jacket. "Is it okay if I use your bathroom to change into something that isn't wet?" She was soaked all the way through and even if the fire did look inviting she wanted to change into something dry.
"Al show her where it is." The adult alchemist ordered, before holding her hand out to the teen in front of her. "I'm Izumi Curtis."
"Nice to meet you. My name is Aria, Aria Renaldie." Aria smiled, allowing Al to lead her towards the bathroom.
"Here's your suitcase." Al opened his chest panel, handing the wet teen's suitcase to her. "Do you need me to wait for you" He asked, worried.
"I'm not helpless." She glared at him, giving his chest armor a good whack, before venturing into the bathroom.
"You do realize that you might actually break something when I get my body back, right?" Al shook his head. The suit of armor chuckled hearing the snort on the other side of the door before heading back to his brother and teacher. He had a feeling that his brother was going to ask about the mood swings.
Aria quickly slipped out of her clothes, sorting through what clothes she did have that was warm. Finally she put on a pair of long pajama pants and a thick purple t-shirt. The teen paused when she looked in the mirror. It wasn't the color of her skin or even how damp her hair was that made her do a double take. It was her eyes.
They weren't lifeless anymore.
Aria had known before that she really didn't live for much. The only thing that kept her tied to this world was her fight to get revenge on the person responsible for her family's murder. Even with that goal in mind, she had felt herself slipping away. But she realized that she wasn't slipping away anymore. She had things that kept her in the world besides her goal of revenge. Mainly Ed and Al. She still couldn't figure out when that happened, she realized that she had figured it out back in Carasole, but she wanted to know when exactly had it happened.
"Stupid Shorty and talking suit of armor." She muttered, stilling thinking it over. She smiled faintly at herself in the mirror, noticing that had changed as well.
She used to never smile. She stuck to herself and if she did smile in any way it was a smirk or a fake smile. The teen still didn't smile that often to anyone besides Ed and Al and maybe Roy. But her smiles weren't fake anymore, they were real. Aria decided that she happy and once again wondered when all this had really changed.
"She does what from where?" Aria burst into giggles at Ed's screams. She decided to push the thoughts out of her mind, gathering her wet clothes in one arm and her suitcase in another. Oh god, she couldn't wait to see what the boys would say. The teen sounded pretty panicked, Aria decided. She had just managed to get rid of her fits of giggles under control when, "And they don't die?" Ed once again shouted, causing the female alchemist to fall into another fit of giggles, wishing she could see his face.
"Oh God, why couldn't I have been there to see his face?" She asked herself, she wondered what both boys would say. She silently pondered if they'd say anything at all. Al would probably say nothing or if he did he's be quiet about it, but Ed, now he would be the one to ask. She made her way back into the living room of Izumi's home, noticing Ed's odd look. She snickered, before handing her wet clothes to Izumi who practically took them out of her hands.
"So you look warmer." Al told her awkwardly. He was still in shock about what his teacher told him about women's bodies. The lower part of his metal helmet was even hanging down a bit.
"I am." Aria plopped herself down in front of the fire, sticking her fingers and toes dangerously close. The heat felt good on her cold skin.
"Does that really happen?" Ed asked, a little scared. Was his teacher pulling his leg or was she being completely serious?
"Yes." Aria told him, frowning. They were keeping their distance. "I'm not going to bite." She patted the seat next to her, telling the boys to come sit with her. Ed and Al seemed to think it over before Al sat Indian style next to his female companion.
"Ummm…" Al started off, awkwardly. What do you say to that? Aria shook her head.
"If you want we can never mention it again." She told the two of them, silently deciding to forget the teasing, realizing how awkward it was. At that moment, Ed decided to plop rather ungracefully beside her.
"Deal." Both boys said at the same time, making Aria chuckle. Ed turned a quick glare on her, sticking her tongue out at her.
"What? I find this kinda funny." She told the two of them, holding her hands up in surrender. Aria's feet were rather cold and she reached for her suitcase again, finding a pair of socks and quickly placing them on her feet, once again placing them close to the fire.
"Be careful." Al warned, warily watched the fire and her toes.
"Hey when did you get changed?" Aria asked, noticing Ed was in a pair of black leather pants and a tank top, with a pair of socks on.
"I had these on under my water proof clothes." He told her, sticking his body close to the fire. Aria watched the glow on his face and silently wondered how hot his automail could get.
"You didn't answer." She told him, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, her head on her knees. The Full Metal Alchemist noticed that she looked so vulnerable at that moment.
"When you were in the bathroom." He paused, smirking. "I think the cold has frozen your brain, it's not working right, not that it ever does." He told her, laughing when she smacked him in the chest.
Izumi watched the three of them with a fond smile. She noticed the chances in her two students, Ed seemed a little bit more open and Al just seemed happier. She wanted to know more about Aria and what was going on with her.
"Have the three of you eaten?" The black haired alchemist asked, causing the three to look at her.
"They haven't." Al told his teacher. He had a feeling that they were hungry but weren't going to say anything.
"I'll get you some sandwiches." She told them, already through the door. "Also why don't you put your things in your rooms?" The alchemist all agreed quickly. Aria ended up sharing a room with Al and Ed like always, claiming one of the beds.
The rest of the night was spent down by the fireplace, eating, talking, and just having a good time. Izumi and Aria got along quite well, much to the Elric Brothers amazement. Izumi had to laugh when Ed had to carry the sleeping Aria up to their room, Al behind them chuckling. This was one guest besides the brothers she didn't mind in her home.
Ed couldn't believe he had gotten roped into this. He had to admit that he had forgotten about it, but still. He silently blamed Al and his teacher who both seemed to be up to something. The annoyed alchemist sighed, how much longer was he going to be tortured like this?
"Stop sighing. I'm not any happier about this than you are." Aria told him. Al had mentioned that everyone needed to go Christmas shopping and since Aria didn't know her way around Dublith would need someone to go with her. Ed had been picked for the job.
"I think you're the only girl I know that hates shopping. Even teacher doesn't seem to mind it that much." Ed told her, watching her look at a few items.
"When am I ever that girly?" She asked, looking for something for Al. She couldn't figure out what to buy him. Seriously what do you buy a fifteen year old with a suit of armor for a body?
"No." The male alchemist watched her take down a few things from a shelf and put it back shaking her head. "What are you looking for?" He asked, he had to do some shopping for Al and her.
"A gift for Al." The female looked over a sculpture of a kitten and thought it was cute but she wanted to get Al something he could take with them and actually use.
"What I don't get a gift?" Ed teased, receiving a whack for it. He rubbed his flesh arm in response, he wondered if he would ever get used to how hard she hit him.
"Why would I get you one?" She teased back, leaving the store. There was not a single store for something for Al anywhere. Ed followed after her, pulling his coat tighter around him. The snow was piled high already and the damned stuff just kept coming.
"Because we're friends." He called to her, eyes scanning the windows for something for his kid brother. He noticed a few things he might consider for his brother, but like the girl walking next to him was looking for the perfect thing.
"Are you getting me something?" Aria asked, watching her breathe in the air. She was really starting to wish for the heat. Once again Aria only had her black jacket for protection from the elements.
"Yeah a coat." He told her watching her hug herself, trying to get warm. "Do you even own one?" He asked, wondering if he should just give her his jacket again.
"I normally go on short walks or stay inside; not play around in the snow." The female alchemist said, rubbing her hands together. She stopped to look in a window and Ed wondered what she was doing looking in a candy and hot chocolate shop for Al. "Come on. I have an idea."
"You do realize that Al can't eat right?" The alchemist asked darkly. Guilt rose in him at the memory that he had trapped Al in a body that couldn't sleep or eat or even feel.
"I want hot chocolate." She told him, grabbing his flesh arm and pulling him towards the counter.
"What can I get for the two of you?" A blonde woman asked.
"Two hot chocolates please." Aria told her, Ed turned towards her. He didn't want anything.
"That'll be five dollars, Sir." The woman said. Ed looked for Aria to pay, but discovered her browsing though the candy. He pulled out his wallet, paying for the drinks and taking them.
"That wasn't fair." The blonde alchemist told his friend. He joined her at a table, refusing to give her her drink. Aria reached across the table, while her companion pulled it out of her reach, just barely.
"So not fair." She whined, once again trying to grab the hot chocolate. Ed smirked, the hot chocolate only about half an inch from Aria's finger tips.
"Neither was making me pay, when I didn't want it in the first place." The male alchemist told her, giving her a smug look.
"All's fair in love and war." Aria told him, once again reaching for the hot chocolate. Her fingertips grazed the cup before Ed pulled it away, shooting her a smirk. "Now you're just torturing me."
"This isn't love or war." He told her, taking a long sip of his hot chocolate. He gave a sigh of appreciation just to annoy the blonde in front of him.
"I love hot chocolate so it's fair." She lunged across the table once again, making Ed glad he was holding her cup with his automail hand because the hot chocolate spilled.
"Opps." Ed said, having a feeling that he was in a lot of trouble. He looked at Aria, gulping. She had that expression that said if looks could kill you'd be dead. The blonde alchemist held his hands up in surrender.
"I'm so going to kill you." She reached for him, ready to knock his brains out. Ed backed up a few feet, racking his brains for a solution.
"What if I buy you another one?" He told her, even if he had bought her the first one, he would buy her another one, as long as he didn't get whacked upside the head.
"A large?" She asked, after thinking it over for a minute. Ed nodded his head yes. "Go get it!" The female ordered, waving her hand in the direction of the counter. The male alchemist hurried over to the counter in a rush. Unfortunately for him there was a line.
Ed had to wait for several minutes to order the anger prone female he called a friend a large hot chocolate before she bashed his skull in.
"I saw you with your girlfriend, you two are rather cute together. You even offered to buy her another hot chocolate."An elderly lady at the counter told him. She smiled, handing him the large hot chocolate.
"We're not together."He frowned, the thought making him think of cinnamon. His mind flashed back to the other night in the snow, Aria's lips against his own. A part of him wondered how he had ever allowed himself to be baited into kissing the teenage girl.
"Oh. I'm sorry, but the two of you remind me so much of my husband and me when we were younger." The woman apologized and Ed just nodded his head, brushing it off. The teen allowed the next customer in line to take his spot, heading towards where he had left Aria. The male alchemist felt annoyance bubble in him when he discovered that she wasn't there. The oldest Elric scanned the shop to find her missing. Something in him began to panic, remembering the words his brother had told him.
"Watch after Aria in my absence. Her life is mine and mine only; if she dies I will torture you and everyone you love until you beg for death."
Ed wasn't worried for his sake, but those words implied that Sandy was going to come after the dirty blonde he called a friend. What if in his five or ten minutes he had not been with her, that Sandy had somehow managed to capture the girl. They had shared a promise and he swore along with it that he wasn't going to let anything happen to Aria. He searched the shop once again, nearly ready to flash his State Alchemist pocket watch and demand everyone to tell him where they had seen the girl. That was until he noticed a knock on the window.
Aria stood there, a bag in her hand. Ed noted that she looked annoyed with him. The teen couldn't care less but headed outside anyway.
"Where did you go?"Ed asked, once again holding Aria's precious hot chocolate hostage, this time for information. The super strong alchemist reached for her hot chocolate, dismayed when Ed held it over his head.
"I'm taller than you; I think I can reach it." Ed glared at her for her words. The female alchemist was taller, but Ed noticed with glee that she was only maybe an inch or two taller than him. Aria smirked, once again reaching for her precious drink.
"Reach for it anymore and I'll dump it." He told her, even tilting the cup just a bit. The teen withdrew her hand in response, her gaze drifting between her hot chocolate and Ed's face. The male alchemist fought to hide his smirk but allowed it to slip onto his face. "Where did you go?" He asked again.
"I saw something I wanted to buy."Aria told him simply, once again her eyes darted for the drink and Ed gave in handing her the hot chocolate. "Thanks." She smiled at him, already walking down the sidewalk.
"You owe me." He told her, walking beside her. Ed's eyes drifted to the bag to discover that it was double bagged so he couldn't see the contents. Damn her.
"That'll be my Christmas present." She told the boy beside her, pulling Ed into another store. The teen had noticed something that had caught her eye and for some reason it seemed perfect. "Now go scatter, I have shopping to do and I don't want anyone else to know what I'm buying everyone." The female teen waved the boy off, even giving him a hard shove in another direction.
"I'm starting to think I liked it better when you wanted to kick my ass all the time." Ed muttered, heading off in the direction she shoved him in.
Aria waited outside the store waiting for her blonde friend. He was an annoying little squirt she admitted to herself, but he was her friend and it was what made him Ed. Plus she annoyed the hell out of him, so it was worth it.
"Aria!" The female turned to see Izumi, Sig, and Al walking towards them. Al had taken to running towards her, stopping barely a foot away. She wondered when she had gotten comfortable enough to allow anyone this close to her, but once again pushed it out of her mind.
"Hi Al!" Al looked at the girl in front of him. Her arms were weighed down with bags and it looked like she even had wrapping paper as well.
"You really went all out, didn't you?" He asked, surprised. Aria didn't seem the type to be this crazy over Christmas.
"I haven't celebrated it in years; I guess the excitement got to me. Some of this stuff is for other people too. I'm going to mail it to them." Aria smiled once again looking for Ed. They had been in there a long time and she was getting cold. The girl didn't want to just leave him, but she was seriously considering getting back to the Curtis household and plopping herself in front of the fire.
"Do you want me to put the gifts in my armor?" He asked, trying to be the gentlemen his mother had always told him to be.
"Is that why none of you are carrying anything?" Aria asked, looking at the bag less Izumi and her husband. Sig was a nice man Aria had decided, just quiet.
"Of course! Al offered and accepted." Izumi grinned at the girl. The oldest alchemist staying at the Curtis household gladly allowed the girl to stay with them. She actually helped out and she proved interesting entertainment.
"Well when he offers who am I to deny him?" The super strong teen made sure to tie all of her shopping bags shut and stuffed them in Al's armor. "Thanks Al, I might have super strength but it gets tiring to use it all the time and carrying bags is annoying for normal people." She smiled at the suit of armor.
"You guys are awful." Ed popped out of nowhere, carrying some bags of his own. Aria turned her head towards him, rolling her eyes. He always had to pop out of nowhere, but it seemed a habit of both Elric brothers.
"No it's cold and we're tired." Izumi told her eldest student. She crossed her arms, staring down Ed, wondering if he was going to be stupid enough to comment.
"No you're all just lazy." Ed muttered, already heading in the direction of the meat shop. He missed seeing the dirty look both Izumi and Aria shot him.
"What did you say? Aria asked, her tone causing Ed to stop. There was that I'm going to beat you into a pulp tone and Ed had the feeling that he should run, but then again Ed was really brave or in other words just stupid. The teen turned back around, lifting his eyebrow.
"I said you were lazy." Ed smirked, once again the feeling of doom descending on him.
"Why you little runt!" The Elric's teacher yelled, jumping into the air to clobber the teen. Edward honestly tried to get away, but it's hard to run away when you have a super strong female alchemist who is currently pissed off at you grabbing the back of your coat to keep you from running.
Just as Izumi was about to plow into Ed, Aria let go, getting away from two alchemists. The snow seemed to fly up in a wave, covering everyone in it. The female teen watched Ed's former teacher pick Ed up and land a punch to his gut, before kicking him in the face and away from her. Aria's mouth just about dropped when the woman patted her hands together, walking in the direction of her home.
"Is she really going to just leave him there?" The girl asked, looking between the bleeding alchemist on the ground with a head injury and the one walking around down the street.
"You should see what Winry does." Al muttered, poking his brother gently and cautiously. His brother didn't seem to respond to anything he tried.
"Just leave the brat there!" Izumi yelled, waiting for the teens.
"Let me heal him first!" Aria called to the woman, bending down next to the blonde alchemist. Some blood mixed with his sun colored hair, yet to Aria, Ed still looked kinda like an angel. Mrs. Curtis silently observed, the girl knew medical alchemy?
The healing alchemist placed her palm on the bleeding head wound, the array on the back of her neck flaring to life. She focused on mending the tissue around the wound back together and fixing the crack in the teen's skull. She sat back sighing, before checking the wound. Ed's head was fine and he shouldn't even have pain.
"I didn't know you knew medical alchemy." Izumi stated appearing behind the trio. How had she healed the wound? The girl hadn't drawn an array or even clapped her hands together. "I must know how you did that." Izumi continued, watching Ed regain consciousness.
"Damn." The teen muttered, rubbing the back of his head. He was sure he would be in pain or at the very least been bleeding.
"Don't worry I healed the wound for you." The teen told her companion. She felt a little tired after healing Ed.
"Are you okay?" Al noticed, Aria looked a little pale.
"Healing takes my away my energy." Aria muttered; rubbing her head. She realized with a start that she hadn't eaten anything and hadn't slept much the night before. No wonder I feel drained, I didn't have much energy in the first place.
"That's how you do it isn't it? You use your own energy to enhance your muscle strength and to heal people." If Al had eyes, they would have been the size of saucers. It was a simple concept now that he thought about it. Ed also realized what Aria was doing and wondered where the array was.
"Where's the array?" Izumi asked, speaking the unspoken question. There had to be an array somewhere on her body, she never drew one.
"On her neck." Al answered and Aria snapped her head up to stare at the suit of armor. "I noticed the tattoo on the back of your neck when you were unconscious and we were heading towards your hometown with Lauren." He explained quickly, fearing that Aria was about to whack him.
"How do you activate an array on your neck? Most alchemists who have tattoos of arrays are normally on their hands, so all they have to do it clap their hands together." Izumi stated, wishing to look at the array, but wasn't going to unless Aria said it was fine.
"With my thoughts. It was hard to learn but once you figure it out, it's fairly simple. The array is really just a way to help me use my natural energy to enhance my muscles and channel it into people's bodies to heal them." Aria told them, her eyes darting between the others and herself. They were all staring at her confused. "I'd have to show you the array and I don't feel like doing that at the moment." Aria told them, helping Ed stand. She didn't seem to like having everyone staring at her.
"Let's get back to the house." Ed said randomly. He had noticed the rigid posture of the girl and decided to help her out. Izumi took the hint and arm in arm with Sig headed back to her home. Al walked side by side with his brother, Aria on the other side of Ed.
"Thanks for that." Aria whispered, shooting Ed a grateful smile. Ed smiled back, nudging her shoulder with his own. Al watched from the corner of his red glowing eyes, please. The three were silent after that.
"I can't believe you left me to sleep in front of the fire." Aria asked, cracking her back as she stood. The teen had fallen asleep on Christmas Eve among the blankets in front of the fire and they had decided to leave the girl there.
"No one woke me up either." Ed complained, working the kinks out of his automail. He glared at Al, who seemed smug and was standing a few feet away. "Al, why didn't you wake us up?" The teen asked his little brother, curious and highly annoyed.
"You two looked so content and cute and I just didn't have the heart to move you." Al snickered; thankfully glad that both hadn't woken up to the flash of the camera. The younger Elric had caught Aria with her head on Ed's flesh shoulder and Ed with his cheek resting in her hair. It looked like the two had gotten cold and snuggled up to each other in warmth. The flash had seemed to make them move apart but the pictures were evidence enough for the suit of armor.
"Shut it Al." Aria snapped, head off in the direction of the kitchen. Izumi was already there, handing the teen two cups of hot chocolate.
"Take one to Ed."The woman told her, gathering her own mug. They both left the kitchen, heading towards where Sig, Al, and Ed had already perched around the tree.
"Thanks dear." Sig said, as his wife handed him a mug of hot chocolate. It seemed that since Aria practically asked for it twenty four seven lately they had bought a lot of it and everyone was drinking it.
"Here Shorty." Aria told her blonde friend, plopping down between Al and him. The teen was still dressed in her pajamas; a pair of long bottoms and a t-shirt.
"Thanks Gorilla Girl." Ed snapped back, he didn't feel like turning this into a fight, but he had to at least get revenge. It was Christmas and he figured that neither Aria nor him would start anything today.
"I'm choosing to ignore that statement." Aria mumbled into her drink. Al wished he could have smile as he ruffled Aria's hair. The girl glared at him, giving him a solid whack in the chest. "It's too early to be doing that." She scolded, taking another long swig from her drink.
"It's never too early, especially for a person who doesn't sleep." Al taunted, already thinking about getting the pictures developed. His teacher was going to enjoy the picture and probably keep it.
"Shut it Al." Ed said, annoyed. He wished he could have slept longer, but his little brother had been so excited that he had woken the two teens up. His little brother still had that child quality that loved Christmas and Ed was glad that at least that hadn't changed.
"Why don't all three of you shut up?" Izumi asked, glaring at the three of them in question. The woman did love the entertainment the three would provide her, but today she wanted them to actually get along. "Now get to opening." The woman commanded; she was happy to spend Christmas with the Elric brothers and Aria. The boys had become like her own children to her over the years and Aria was earning that status as well.
Both Elric brothers dug into the presents with a childish glee, surprised to discover presents from Winry, Pinako, Roy, Riza, and a few other people besides the ones around them. Aria was also surprised to find presents from Roy, Riza, Lauren, and the rest of her Lauren's family from Carasole.
Al was happy to discover toys and other creative things to amuse him, especially the books he got. Sig and Izumi had gotten him a portable chess set that would easily fit into a suitcase and Aria and Ed promised to allow him to keep it in one of their suitcases. Mustang's men had sent some money and said that when Al got his body back, they were buying him a dog. Mustang himself had sent armor polish. Riza had gotten Al a gift card for some clothes and sent money for the big guy to buy whatever he wanted.
Ed was dismayed that Winry and Pinako had gave him coupons for money off his automail but decided that it fit in a strange oddly way. The teen alchemist was horrified that all those under Mustang's command except Riza had gotten him a book or a magazine involving smut. There was also some money sent in the card. Roy had gotten him a hair ribbon to hold back his 'girly hair' as the Colonel had put it. Riza had sent some money and clothes.
Aria couldn't believe how much clothes Lauren had given her. The woman made it seem like she was starting from scratch with her wardrobe. The woman had also sent money saying just in case Aria needed something special. Leroy and the others had also gone a little crazy, sending her pictures and money. She could have choked when she discovered the purple dress that Roy had sent her; it looked so expensive. Riza had sent a large package of ammo and money.
"You guys made out well." Sig noticed, but none of the teens had given each other theirs gifts.
"We're not done yet!" Al exclaimed, reaching into his armor to pull out two presents. He handed the smaller one to Aria and the bigger one to his brother. "Well open them." The childish suit of armor was nearly bouncing off the ground and it made both Ed and Aria smile.
Aria opened hers first to discover a beautiful charm bracelet. Normally the teen wouldn't be up for jewelry, but it was special. The bracelet itself was a silver color and it looked live vines were wrapping around her wrist. The bracelet only had one charm, but it looked like two. One side of the charm was a suit of armor that looked like Al, while the other side was of Ed even with his blonde hair and red coat. The detail was incredible.
"It's amazing Al. I love it." She played with the charm, smiling at it. The teen held her hand out to Al, mentioning for him to put it on her.
"I was thinking of putting more on, but then I decided that for every Christmas we're all together, I'd get you another charm." Al told the girl, fastening the bracelet around her wrist.
"Thank you." The teen smiled softly at the suit of armor in front of her. "Well looks like I know what I'm getting next year." She joked. Al would have blushed if he was able, but instead settled for ducking his head, when Aria kissed him on the cheek in thanks. Both teens turned to Ed to see his reaction to the present.
The Full Metal Alchemist unwrapped it carefully, not wanting to rip the paper. Edward discovered that his brother had gotten him a chain in much the same fashion as Aria's. Ed's was black in color though and the teen discovered that at one end was a large circle that opened. At first he thought it was a pocket watch, but discovered that it wasn't. On one of the circle, there was a picture of Ed, Al, and their mother, while the other side held Aria, Ed, and Al in the snow.
"Now I know why you insisted on a picture." Aria had jumped on his back earlier in the week after throwing a snowball at his head. The snow was still in his hair and Al was shaking his head back and forth at their antics. They were all smiling.
"Do you like it, Brother?" His brother had been hard to shop for and he had finally decided that this would work.
"It's great Al." The oldest Elric hugged his younger brother, finding it difficult to wrap his arms around his brother's giant form.
"I'm glad you like it." He told his brother, once again wishing he could smile. The suit of armor shook his head, before adding, "We're still not done!" Aria and Ed both grinned at the youngest of their group's antics.
"Hold on a minute." Ed said, getting up and getting something from behind the tree. He plopped back down in his spot. "What? Did you think I would open up my chest and pull these from my body?" He asked, catching Aria's curious look.
"Not really." Aria was excited. For some reason after seeing Al's present, she desperately wanted to know what he had gotten her. E chuckled at her expression before handing her a box, handing his brother his present.
The suit of armor pulled the box off his present playing with the idea of what was inside. The teen alchemist made of metal was surprised to find what he found. Al held up the camera in the air, excited. He was especially happy when he found a whole bunch of film around the camera.
"I noticed that you liked to take everyone's cameras and use them, so I figured to get you your own." Ed was nearly crushed when his brother hugged him. Aria laughed seeing Ed turning blue and smiling when Al practically began reading the owner's manual at a breakneck pace.
"Thank you Brother! I'm so happy!" Ed smiled; seeing that his dear younger brother was bouncing off the walls happily. Ed had a feeling that the camera was going to be used in so many ways for blackmail, but as long as his baby brother was happy he didn't care.
"You're Welcome." He nearly went blind, when his brother took a real up close picture of him. "Aren't you going to open your gift?" The blonde teen asked, noticing Aria hadn't opened it yet.
"Yeah. I was just happy to see Al so happy." Aria smiled, taking the lid off the box carefully. Ed wasn't sure she'd like his gift but hoped it was okay.
Aria pulled the coat out of the box carefully. She had to admit that normally getting clothes wasn't her thing, but getting the coat made her happy. The coat was black and lined with fur or something else really warm. The outside was waterproof and the coat had a fur lined hood. Aria tired it on, feeling that it was warm. She would never get cold again. The teen looked into the box again to discover a thermos and plenty of chocolate to make hot chocolate with.
"Do you like it?" He asked, he knew she wasn't the clothes type, but the girl needed a coat. She was always freezing and even though he didn't mind lending her his coat, he figured that she needed her own.
"Yes." Aria twirled around once, even putting the hood up to show the occupants in the room what she looked like in it. "Thank you." Aria smiled and then hugged the blonde alchemist.
"You look pretty." Al commented. "Brother, don't you think Aria looks pretty?" He watched his brother freeze up at his words, inwardly smirking. He was one day going to make his brother see the light.
"Yes." Ed managed to say after a moment. He had to admit that the teen did look pretty, beautiful even. He would never admit that he thought the girl in front of him was beautiful, not even in a million years.
"Thanks guys." Aria thanked the boys, blushing. She used the trimming to hide her blush and then busied herself with placing her new coat carefully into the box.
"It's true." Al said, watching the blush fade on Aria's cheeks. He had noticed that his brother also blushed at the words he had told the girl in front of him. "We're still not done!" The youngest son of Trisha exclaimed.
"Let me get your presents." The teen ran up to the room where Ed, Al, and her had been sharing. She reached under the bed pulling out two decorated Christmas bags. The girl raced back down the stairs, handing each boy their present. "I got you each two things. One thing is the same for both of you." She told them, watching them each pull out the box from the bag.
The two teen boys opened the small boxes to find identical necklaces. Each was bound together by a leather strap and had a pendent made of silver. The pendent was actually an alchemy array. Around the outside of the array in fancy letters were the words: 'To gain something, something of equal value must be lost'. Both boys were shocked, it felt like something was being thrown in their faces.
"Look at what's on the other side." Aria told them gently, noticing their shocked and hurt looks. Both boys turned the pendants over to find in the same fancy letters the words: 'Love is the opposite of Equivalent Exchange, you don't need to lose anything and it never runs out'. "My mother once told me those words, giving me a pendent just like you have." The teen pulled out a necklace and pendent just like the ones both boys had in their hands.
"Thank you." Ed spoke first, wrapping the dirty blonde in a tight hug, before both were hugged by Al.
"Thank you Sister!" Al slipped into calling Aria sister again, causing Aria to smile.
"You're welcome! Now you still have one more thing." She reminded them.
Ed nearly choked when he discovered his present. In the bottom of the bag was full of cinnamon flavored treats like hard candy and even a shampoo that smelled like cinnamon.
"I noticed that you seemed to like cinnamon a lot, so I went all out." Ed remembered when Aria had disappeared in the shop they had been in.
"Thank you." Ed realized with horror that he had never truly liked cinnamon that much before, but now he loved it. He silently wondered if it was because the girl in front of tasted like cinnamon. He had noticed before that she also seemed to smell like cinnamon and lilac, spicy and sweet.
"You're welcome." Aria turned towards Al, wondering what he was going to say about her present.
Al wished he could have grinned because he'd be grinning from ear to ear. Aria had gotten him radios and not the cheap kind either. There were three of them and they all seemed to be turned to one channel and the suit of armor had a feeling that Aria had done it so that the three could always keep in contact even if they weren't together. Plus he knew that he could turn the channel and pick up music if he tried hard enough.
"I had a hard time with your gift. Did I do okay?"Aria asked, nervously. She hadn't been lying; it had taken her hours to find the radios for him.
"Of course, I love them!" Al practically pounced on the female, giving her a bear hug. He swung her around a bit, causing everyone in the room to laugh. Al finally put her down, enjoying the giant smile on the girl's face.
"Well that's it everyone. Let's clean up and start making dinner." Izumi clapped her hands in a chop chop manner. Aria waited until Izumi and Sig went into the kitchen, turning towards the two alchemists.
"Thank you." She told them once again. Ed and Al noticed that the teen had the biggest and brightest smile that they had ever seen on the girl's face. Aria noted that the day had been perfect so far and realized with a start that she hadn't been so happy in years.
"For what?" Ed asked, sucking on a cinnamon flavored hard candy. He instantly remembered the kiss again and swore mentally. The Elric decided that he was going to get Aria back for this.
"Making this Christmas the best I've had in a long time." The female alchemist told them, pulling her hair into a pony tail.
"Don't worry about it Aria. We were glad to have Christmas with you." The youngest son of Trisha concluded honestly. He knew that his brother had enjoyed having Christmas with the teen and so had he.
"Come on you three! If you don't hurry in here and eat, I swear I'm going to throw the food away." Izumi called and the trio quickly made their way towards the kitchen. Aria had already learned that the butcher's wife meant what she said.
Al had just crossed into the kitchen and only heard the mutter of curses. The suit of armor turned around quickly to see Aria trip and fall, but before she could hit the hard wood floor, Ed had caught her.
"Thanks." Aria muttered, blushing. She hadn't meant to trip but she had stepped onto the edge of one of her socks and tripped herself. She had fully expected to hit the floor, but Ed had somehow caught her.
"You're welcome." Ed silently wondered when he had become so used to catching Aria when she fell. He began to release the dirty blonde, but was stopped.
"Look its mistletoe! You guys have to kiss!" Al cheered. It was his lucky day he decided.
"There is no wa-" The Full Metal Alchemist argued but was cut off by his Aria.
"It's a tradition." Aria had always believed that traditions were to be kept. She had always marveled at the mistletoe and promised that she's kiss someone if they had been caught under it.
Aria leaned forward, interlocking her lips with the blonde who had caught her. The teen seemed to realize what was going on and lock his arms around her waist. He kissed her back and Aria once again noticed that he was a good kisser and that kissing Edward Elric wasn't bad, it was actually pretty good.
The two teens broke apart, momentarily. Edward looked Aria in her blue-green eyes, smiling.
"Merry Christmas." Ed wished the girl in front of him.
"Merry Christmas to you too." Aria smiled, before Ed kissed her again. The two forgot about what was going on or that Aria was dating someone, until a light flashed. The two teens jumped back, searching for the reason of the flash only to find Al with his camera.
"Al." Ed's tone was a warning and Al had a feeling that he should run. The suit of armor took off running, his older brother running after him. Al had decided that he wouldn't let anything happen to his picture and was going to get it developed and frame the thing. "Give me the camera!" Ed roared, lunging across the table to hit the wall. Al dashed out of the room with Ed hot on his heels.
"Why me?" Aria questioned, yet at the same time fondly. She shook her head, deciding to get Al back later.
"Because you're the only girl in the group. Boys naturally like to bug girls." The wife of Sig Curtis said, rolling her eyes. She loved the Elric brothers but sometimes they were quite the handful.
"I guess you're right." Aria nodded, deciding to brush it off. The teen ignored the flutters in her stomach from the kiss, instead focusing on helping Izumi. Somewhere in the deep parts of her mind, she wished that she could kiss Edward Elric again.
Meanwhile upstairs Edward was banging on the door to the shared room. He silently cursed that he had promised not to transmutate anything while in the house. Another thought that nagged at him more was that while cinnamon was delicious, he much preferred to taste it when he was kissing Aria. The teen banged his head against the door, wishing the thoughts of Aria and cinnamon out of his mind.
Well guys I might have to hide my flashdrive from myself. I really need to work on my summer reading, it's really easy but boring and I hate doing boring things. I'm being completely and truthfully honest, I will not write anymore until my summer reading is done and everything is settled. ike1440 told me that I was going to keep pushing it back and I have. I hate it when he's right. Damn him!
Also Ed is in denial. I personally like schemeing Al. It's rather fun to write. Aria is starting to get confused, but don't worry this won't become a love triangle. Roy and Aria's relationship will be taken care of. Izumi is hard to write and I'm not sure I truly captured her. UGH I hate that. I wonder what people think of Aria and what she looks like. *hint hint*
By the way does anyone else see the irony that it's Christmas in my fic and it's August in real life? It reminds me of that Christmas or is it Halloween in July thing? I actually think it's funny in a weird little way.
Well people tell what you think. I had fun writing this chapter, even though deciding the gifts was diffucult. I had other ideas but they were almost all scrapped and made up on the spot after a minute or so of thought. It seems I think best on my feet.
Until next time!
-j.d.y.