Walking in Shadows, Seeing the Light

Author's Note: Some more steamy stuff in this chapter… but not as much quite yet. I love you all… thanks so much for the reviews… I guess… Fun stuff and more fun filled crazed side stories and things to come… as for now… let's twist things up a bit shall we? Welcome to the 21st hair-brained installment of Walking in Shadows, Seeing the Light

Disclaimer: Don't own rights to Full Metal Alchemist but I do own Maria and Asuna so bugger off…

Summary: Past meets present the clash of a haunting past lingers overhead as the Elric brothers attempt to find peace. Can an angel who guards the gate help them discover the secrets of her past as well as theirs? EdxOC and AlxOC

… she's bittersweet, she knocks me off of my feet, and can't understand I don't want anyone else…"

The Click Five

Chapter: Revelations of Laundry

Sun filtered through the shades on the window and Al tried to bury his face deeper into the soft… body? He opened one eye and through it he saw the angelic, sleeping form of Maria. He was curled around her in a perfect spooning position, his arms wrapped tightly around her bare waist. His face was pressed against the back of her neck, her long hair twisted over her shoulder. His own long blonde hair was thrown across the pillow in tangled strings of gold. Their legs were still tangled together in a twisted lover's knot. His heart skipped a beat.

'Jesus Christ Alphonse… think… what did you do last night?' His head felt like every jazz band in Chicago crashed there the night before. 'Think…' He remembered coming home, he and Maria had begun to live together after a few months and had moved into a two-story, three bedroom house just inside Central. It wasn't surprising to find himself curled around her like this, but the fact that his thoughts were so foggy worried him.

The angelic creature in his arms shifted and broke him from his thoughts. The young Alchemist looked down at her, then blinked. Her brilliant green eyes were fogged slightly with sleep but they were sparkling as she smiled at him and stretched. "M-M-Morning…" She yawned. Stretching up and planting a soft kiss on his jaw.

"Good morning Lieutenant." He replied jokingly. "You know a few months ago this would have been strange to you… don't you see anything wrong with this picture?" He teased.

"Nope… except some how, in the course of the night you seem to have obtained your boxers." She laughed at him. The youngest Elric smiled. Usually it was a quiet smile that spread across his face whenever he looked at her. But now it was a heartfelt beam that cracked his face. "You've got that goofy grin again." She chuckled.

"I like my goofy grin." He replied as she tried to pull out of his grasp. "Nope, I don't think so." He pulled her back into his arms. She put on a mock put out face and folded her arms.

"I have to get out of bed Al." She whined playfully.

"Why?" He groaned, burying his face in the crook of her neck.

"Laundry, Colonel." She muttered as the blonde Alchemist pushed her over to pin her down. He pinned her arms above her head, kissing her neck gently.

"No… no laundry." He grumbled. "No laundry here…" Suddenly he stopped and rose up to look down at her, his blonde hair spilling over his shoulders. "Why don't you let me do the laundry? I mean Alchemy can clean…" He arced an eyebrow curiously.

"No love. Alchemy can make it look clean… but it doesn't get rid of scents." She broke free of his embrace and he whined. "You sound so pathetic." Maria laughed. Al rolled over and buried his face in a pillow. Then…

RING… "Al are you going to answer that?" He shook his head. RING… After about ten rings he realized that Maria was in the shower and the Alchemist reached over and picked it up.

"ACK… what? Colonel Alphonse Elric speak-"

"ALPHONSE!" He heard Ed's voice over the line.

"Oh… hey Ed." The blonde sat up in bed, rubbing his eye and stretching with the phone resting on his shoulder. "Why are you shouting?"

"Sorry, I tried your office number and then I had to try this number, hoping that you would pick up. Asuna and I are done and we're returning in a week. Will you be there?" Al cracked his neck and nodded.

"Yeah… we'll be here."

"Have you asked her to marry you yet?" His older brother muttered.

"No." Al heard Ed chuckle and hang up. Al dove back under the covers, curling into a ball, tucking himself into a nest of pillows.

.

Later on in the afternoon Ed walked down the stairs of the house where he and Asuna were staying for the time being. He was wearing jeans and his shirt was in his hand. The Alchemist walked into the kitchen, pulling his hair into a ponytail.

"Asuna?" He looked around. She didn't seem to be anywhere. It had been an extremely peaceful four months, without Alphonse, without disturbances from the homunculi, no Roy. It seemed to be a perfect world for the moment. Suddenly a conversation that he and Asuna had a few months earlier pricked at the back of his mind.

"So you do love me then?" She muttered. The oldest Elric hung his head and nodded.

"You don't love me… do you…" He sighed.

"I do…" He perked up as her heard her speak, "But I won't let myself." He looked at her curiously.

"What?"

"You're everything that I ever wanted in a husband or a boyfriend or just men in general only… you have one check mark that you can't fill yet."

"What's that?"

"I want a son. A first born son. Can you give me a son?" She asked him, looking him in the eye. Well it wasn't the strangest question he'd ever been asked but it ranked up there…

"Yes." He grinned. She blinked at him.

"You're serious?" He nodded.

'Was I?' Ed thought. At the time he was very self-assured… 'At least I think so… I mean… it runs in my family. There hasn't been a girl born into the family in almost 15 generations.' The Elric shrugged and walked out the door and was almost immediately buffeted in the face by a gigantic white sheet. He then figured out where Asuna had been. It was laundry day. He saw a figure move towards him and almost immediately a pair of hands grabbed his shirt and disappeared.

"Damn… Asuna!" He growled. She could be heard laughing behind all of the laundry. He dove through the heavy sheets, damp and drying. From behind him her head popped out and she latched onto his waist… tickling him. "Stop!" He laughed as they fell into the dirt, tumbling in a jumble of arms and legs to a blonde and jean heap at the bottom of the hill. She was laughing hysterically, tears pouring from her eyes.

"Y-Y-you should have seen the look on your face!" She cried. Ed looked disgruntled, he was lying on his back in the dirt after he had taken a shower, not to mention Asuna, in jeans and a tank top was sitting on top of him, one knee on either side of his hips.

"You are going to pay for that one." He wrapped his arms around her waist, pushing her over and a tousle to be on top ensued. Ending in her sitting on top of him again.

"Shhh… Ed… you haven't noticed anything have you?" The Alchemist shook his head. Asuna pulled up her tank top to the bottom of her rib cage and then he noticed what she meant. Her jeans were straining a little on a small bulge in her stomach. "You know what that is? It's a baby bump… we're pregnant."

"Oh my god…" Ed's face cracked with a crazy smile. "You're dead serious?" He sat up and she scooted to rest in his lap.

"Yep… three months… three whole months along." She grinned. Then Ed's look faded.

"Is it a boy?" He asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"You bet." She smiled and all of a sudden Ed felt relieved. Then he didn't feel so relieved. This would become a target, that put her in extreme danger, and out of commission. In the military she would be taken off active duty and be put on reserve. At home she would have to stay away from fighting, this meant that Ed was her only source of protection and if anything happened to him. He didn't even want to think about it. "Something wrong sweetheart?"

"No… nothing's wrong." He smiled, his smile didn't spread to his eyes though.

"Something's wrong. You smile but your eyes don't. What are you worried about?" She muttered softly, put her hand on the side of his face. He was her true love, he had caused her heart to start beating, therefore she knew him better than anyone else. Ed knew that it would be impossible to lie to her. She was a human lie detector… she would figure it out.

"I'm just worried about you." She knew that one was coming. The female Alchemist sighed as he rested his hand on hers.

"Listen buster, if you think that I can't still kick ass because I'm pregnant then you have got some problems."

"I could have told you that." The oldest Elric replied. She looked at him seriously.

"Look, you have no need to worry about me. I took care of myself long before you ever came around. I love you to pieces and I know that I will need you to protect me eventually. But until that time comes when I can no longer see my own feet I think I'll be okay." She kissed his cheek and he smiled softly. Her lips gently caressed his ear. He thought it was so funny how she was obsessed with ears. She would sit for hours and play with his ears, rubbing and petting his ears, ears were one of the strangest part of a person's body and she absolutely adored them. It usually calmed him down, sometimes it was a good way to wind him up again though. But that was different. This was meant to relax and calm.

"I love you." He mumbled.

"Because I like your ears?" He heard her reply.

"Well that too."

THAT WAS FUN! I hope you all liked that. I like making things complicated… and starting the next chapter… things are going to start getting more confusing… so get out your handy dandy notebooks and get set for the next installment of Walking in Shadows, Seeing the Light

Chapter 22: Wishbones.

HUGZ 3

Ringo.