I still own absolutely nothing!
I had to look up a moon chart for December of 1991 to make sure everything worked, and thankfully, it did. ^^;;
Oh...the little mentions of Edward's "taste" in design is a reference to the manga/second anime where he tends to make things with demon heads and skulls because he thinks it's "cool". Nuff said. XD
Just a reminder, I know Risembool isn't a real place in England (or anywhere in the real world, at least), but it felt more appropriate having them be there instead of some look-alike English town. So, in this story, there is a Risembool, England. ;p
Chapter 26: A Very Elric Christmas, Part I
"Mom! Ed's transmuting the tree again!" Al shouted through the house.
"I'm just adding some flare to it!" came the protest.
Harry snorted as he looked at the demon horns and very odd items that littered the tree as ornaments. "Your taste, as usual, is awful."
Edward scowled at him and stuck out his tongue.
"Edward!" Trisha sighed when she caught sight of it. "You change those ornaments back right now! Everyone will be here soon, and I'll not have them seeing that!"
Edward pouted, but did as he was told. "D'you think it's bad taste, too?"
It took Trisha a moment to find the right words for it that wouldn't result in hurting her son's feelings. "It's…artistic…but not appropriate for Christmas."
Edward still sulked.
It had been a week since Alphonse had his legs working again, and could walk only with the aid of forearm crutches, though not for very long. He couldn't do stairs yet, but his legs were still better than they had been before.
The boy now sat on Harry's shoulders, hanging some tinsel and stockings over the fireplace, but being careful of where they were positioned so their guests who flooed in wouldn't get tangled in it.
Invitations had gone out by owl, and all had been returned with positive notes.
Draco and his mother, Narcissa, were coming, along with Remus, who had hit yet another dead end. Hermione had owled in return, which showed that her parents were starting to get accustomed to the wizarding world, but would be arriving by train, so the group had to hurry and finish decorating to get down to the station and pick her up.
Winry was coming, of course, along with Pinako. The girl's parents still had to work at St. Mungo's, being doctors, but that had been expected. The final two coming were Izumi and Sig.
Belatedly, Trisha wondered if there was room to accommodate such a large amount of people in the house, but she hadn't thought of that until after everyone had accepted the invitations.
There were eight guests, plus herself and the boys, which totaled twelve people.
Trisha had to transfigure a couple normal chairs into armchairs, and just figured that they would eat in the living room since their kitchen was much too small for a group of twelve.
Harry stumbled over to the couch to let Alphonse down as the flashes of light went away that signaled Edward had finished putting the ornaments back the way they had been.
"…Draco woulda thought they were cool…" Edward was heard muttering as he went to the closet by the door to get his coat.
Trisha chuckled and shook her head. "Well, Draco isn't the only guest. Now, are you sure you'll be alright?"
"Mom! I've been at Hogwarts for half a year, and been through the Gate twice! I think I can go to the train station by myself!" Edward scowled slightly.
Harry laughed, and Alphonse giggled.
Trisha chuckled and handed her son his Gryffindor colored hat. "Be careful, then. There's a small layer of snow, so watch for ice."
"Got'cha." Edward grinned as he pulled his boots on and then took the hat from his mother.
"Mittens, Edward!" Trisha scolded when the boy had been about to walk out the door.
"And your scarf, Ed!" Alphonse added.
"I only need one mom, thanks!" Edward shouted playfully at his brother.
Alphonse and Harry dissolved into laughter again as Trisha wrapped Edward's scarf around his neck, then handed him the mittens.
"My own colors are yellow and black…but red and gold fits you," Trisha told her son as she gave him a pat on the shoulder of his red jacket.
Edward grinned, then opened the door. "Be back soon with Hermione!"
"Alright. And when you leave, don't slam the…!"
BAM!
Alphonse and Harry snickered as Trisha sighed.
"…door behind you. Oh, well…are you boys ready?"
"Yep!" Alphonse chirped.
"Yes." Harry nodded.
"Alright…let's stay away from the fireplace, because everyone should be arriving soon, then."
The snow wasn't piled too high; it never was in Risembool, after all, which typically had moderate weather. Still, that didn't stop Edward from jumping from spot of snow to spot of snow on his way to the station. He was still slightly on euphoria from the successful healing of his brother, and tried to ignore that he still had the problem of Harry's Horcrux.
Oh, he knew how to deal with it, the only problem was getting to that point. He already had knew the matrix for transferring a soul to an inanimate object, but since they wouldn't have an amplifier, they would have to probably give something up.
The question was what.
Edward also had a sinking feeling that it would be Harry that would have to give something up, as well. So, he had started to wonder what the boy could possibly give to have the souls separated. Also, there was how Harry would get back, if they were going down that route.
There was the option of Red Water, but who knew how long it would take to decipher the notes in the basement (which they still weren't allowed in), or if there was anything mentioned more in depth about it.
That, and between Dumbledore's warning from Flamel of "inhumane methods", and whatever Hoenheim had tried to propose to Trisha that made her actually argue with him…
Well, Edward wasn't quite sure he would be seeking to make a Philosopher's Stone the way the old man obviously studied it.
Edward shook his head as he neared the station. I told myself I wouldn't think about it! Not till after the stuff with Quirrell is done with!
Sure, he somewhat trusted the adults to protect the stone, but there was that incident at Halloween…
Adults didn't always know best…his old man, for example, who up and left to supposedly find a cure for Alphonse, when the cure was under their noses the entire time.
Edward shook his head. Not gonna think bout that bastard, either! Christmas! It's Christmas, and we're having a party! I'll hafta tell Draco about alchemy, but that's a minor detail.
The boy flopped down on a bench and glanced at the clock. Hermione's train was due to arrive within the next ten minutes, so he just relaxed and stretched out as he watched people bustle back and forth at the station.
Edward hadn't even realized he had zoned out until he heard the loudspeaker kick in, announcing that Hermione's train had arrived by stating the number of it.
The boy, rather than jumping onto the ground, stood up on the bench in order to see over the sea of coats and hats from people getting on and off the train. It didn't take him long to recognize the bushy red hair, especially since it was half hidden under a Gryffindor colored hat much like his own.
"Hermione!" Edward called over the various people and waves his arms over his head with a big grin. "Hermione~!"
The girl glanced around, then spied Edward and seemed to half chuckle, half sigh, before she pulled her small suitcase behind her. Her parents had agreed to let her spend the night, since she would be back in time to spend Christmas Eve with her family, and it made more sense than boarding a train, staying a few hours, and then getting back on a train.
Hermione made her way to Edward with a smile. She had already been informed of the transmutation (partially, at least; attached to her invitation was a letter that simply said: "It was a success"), and would have known that, anyway, if Edward's smile was anything to go by. "Honestly, Edward…"
Edward chuckled and hopped down. "How else was I supposedta see ya? Everyone's super tall!"
Hermione laughed lightly. "Not everyone is super short."
Edward colored. "Who're you calling shorter than a bean?"
More laughter from Hermione.
Edward snickered, then gestured for her to follow. "When I left, nobody came, but they've prolly arrived already…I'll show you to the house!"
"I'd hope so."
Edward grinned. "But…welcome to Risenbool!"
Hermione smiled. "Certainly less snow than back home."
"Mm…we usually don't get too much snow. Barely enough to make a snowman outta. We've got plain, boring farmland. The muggle area is down in this area, and the non-muggles are up the hill. Though, sensei lives with the muggles though she's not. You'll getta meet her…"
"Sensei? Isn't that Japanese?"
Edward bobbed his head as they walked along the snow dusted path away from the station. "Yep! She teaches us martial arts. I mean, we grew up with alchemy, not wands…sides, what if you get disarmed or lose your wand? Gotta know how to defend yourself!"
Hermione did see the point in that, and it was a very good point, too.
"She also tutored us in alchemy, too." Edward smiled fondly, then shook his head and continued up the hill. "Her name's Izumi Curtis, and her husband is a muggle, but huge, but not bigger'n Hagrid, of course."
Hermione grinned. "Edward, it'd be difficult to find someone bigger than Hagrid. But, you must be in a good mood…I've never heard you…well…babble."
Edward gaped. "I'm not babbling! I'm…uh…talking excitedly!"
Hermione smiled. She supposed the boy did have something to be happy about, since whatever happened with his brother had been successful.
"Plus, Remus is gonna be there!" Edward strung his hands behind his head since he couldn't stick them in his pockets, what with the mittens over them.
"Remus?"
"Remus Lupin…friend of Harry's dad. We call him 'Uncle Moony'. He's wicked. And…" Edward stopped himself with a small frown.
"What?" Hermione inquired as she tore her gaze off the scenery (which, in her opinion, was beautiful, being countryside covered in a thin layer of snow) to look at her friend.
"Uh…noth'n." Edward shook his head. And it's like having a dad around, when he's there…but, I'm not gonna think about it.
Hermione blinked when Edward grinned again.
"That's Winry's house." Edward pointed out a two-story house that had a sign on the outside that read "Rockbell Automail". "Her parents work at St. Mungo's…doctors, both of them. Her Gran, though…she invents this magical prosthetic called 'automail'. Though, it's also available for muggles, just without any enchantments and all."
"What sort of enchantments? Winry told me a bit about automail, of course."
"Water repelling charms, for one…though, they can be removed, cause they do have to be cleaned…you'd hafta ask her for the others." Edward beamed, then led Hermione up the next path on the other hill not too far from Winry's house.
When they passed through the fence, and a bare tree with a swing that had a layer of snow on it, Edward stepped up to the front door and smiled. "And this…is home."
The boy turned the knob, since it had been left open for him, then opened the door with a grin. He could see the forms of people in the living room, though couldn't make out who they were at the moment. "I'm home, mom! Hermione's here, too!"
Trisha came around from the living room, and smiled at the girl. "Well, let her in, Edward!"
Edward grinned and stepped aside to let the girl in, then pulled his boots off while he still stood on the welcome mat.
"Everyone else arrived, and are in the living room," Trisha informed the two. "Edward, can you take Hermione's trunk to Harry's room? He'll be sharing with you and Alphonse tonight."
"Kay." Edward took said item and scampered to get it into Harry's room so he could join the party.
When Edward got back downstairs, he grinned and leapt up at the nearest person with a fist aimed at their head.
Izumi spun and grabbed his fist, then twisted around so that he went head over heels and landed with a small 'thud' on the carpet.
There was a small silence in the room, though Trisha just shook her head and Harry and Alphonse grinned.
Edward sat up with a chuckle. "Hadta give you a proper greeting, sensei! I wasn't able to when you last came over!"
Izumi smirked and helped the boy up. "You got a lot closer than Harry did."
Harry pouted. "He's been training longer than I have."
Izumi had been one of the first people to arrive, after Remus did, so this was the first time the others had seen the odd way of greeting that master and pupil had. Winry knew of their relationship, so she, too, hadn't been shocked.
"She teaches us martial arts," Alphonse explained to a stunned Hermione and Draco.
"So, she's always giving us tests, and expects us to test her now and then," Harry finished the explanation.
"Martial arts?" Draco frowned in slight confusion. "That muggle thing?"
"Yea, it's a muggle thing, but it's bloody useful," Edward piped into the conversation after he said the rest of his 'hellos' (which entailed jumping on Remus to hug him, and exchanging a customary insult with Pinako).
"How so?" Draco looked interested.
"Well…if you ever lost your wand, and you can't do alchemy, then it's the last line of defense," Edward explained.
"Alchemy?" Draco eyed the boys.
Winry shrugged. "I can't do it…"
"You can perform alchemy?" the question came from a woman with blond hair down to her shoulders and blue eyes. She didn't look like a very pleasant person, but looks could always be deceiving.
"This is my mother," Draco introduced the woman to the boy that had missed the introductions, as well as to Hermione.
"Narcissa," the woman stated, though the absence of her last name didn't go unnoticed.
Still, to be on the safe side, Edward gave her a small Probe as Hermione replied with a "pleased to meet you". Like Draco, he got a "fell from grace" feeling, as well as reform; the woman had probably been nasty in the past, but now, she had changed herself into a dutiful mother.
In that case, Edward nodded. "Al can do it, too. So can Harry." He left out the parts about not needing a matrix; he didn't know Narcissa enough to tell her, and if she recognized the term 'alchemy', there was a small possibility that she knew what it meant for someone to be able to do alchemy without a matrix.
"Can you demonstrate?" Draco asked eagerly.
Edward looked to his mother, who nodded.
"Just none of your…more creative versions of things," Trisha warned.
In other words: Don't transmute anything to look like the Christmas ornaments had.
For the most part, the adults had agreed to let the kids be kids, and not force them into small talk that they would be making. Remus had offered to help Trisha in the kitchen to prepare the meals, and though Trisha argued it at first, once Izumi also offered her services, the two managed to convince the woman.
For now, they were all in the living room, however.
Edward searched his pockets for his emergency piece of chalk, then beamed when he found it. He ran over to the coffee table and drew a simple matrix on it, then put the chalk down and put his hands on the edge of the matrix.
In a flash of light and energy, the table had given up some of its wood to make a wooden hawk, though it still had its legs attached to the table.
"Wanna have a go, Al?" Edward grinned.
Alphonse pushed himself off the couch and didn't have to go far to get to the table, then took a turn in changing the hawk into something else. The hawk morphed, and some more wood was added from the table to turn it into a small horse figurine.
Narcissa was shocked, and even Draco's jaw was nearly on the ground. Everyone else was fine, as they had seen alchemy before. Though, that didn't stop Remus from watching in amazement and pride, particularly as the Elric brothers gestured for Harry to have a go.
"And, I think mom would want her table back, so you're up, Harry!" Edward grinned.
Harry chuckled, then focused on the energy, and transmuted the horse back into the table, which, except for the chalk sigil, didn't look like it had been messed with at all.
"Can I learn that?" Draco breathed in awe.
"You can try…not everyone can do it, though," Edward warned him, though he was eager to see if anyone else could perform alchemy. "Winry and Hermione weren't able to do it. Even mom can't do it."
"Where did you learn it, then?" Narcissa inquired.
"Sensei taught us a bunch about it!" Edward replied without hesitation as the boys erased the sigil.
Izumi gave Narcissa a nod. "Yes…I can do it, too. Actually, I specialized in alchemy and martial arts, though I'm really just an average housewife to anyone that asks. I have a wand, but I don't often use it…was tutored a little, but didn't really attend any school for it."
"Interesting," Narcissa responded.
"Have you any knowledge of the subject?" Izumi inquired.
Narcissa shook her head 'no'. "Only that it was said to be a forgotten art. I didn't think anybody could still perform it."
Trisha chuckled. "Well, my boys certainly can."
"A rare gift, indeed…" Narcissa mused.
Edward could see that he wasn't the only one uncomfortable with some of the conversation, and he could also tell that, if the questions continued, Hoenheim would be brought up, and he really didn't want to think about the old man at a party.
So, the eldest Elric looked to his mother. "Can we show Draco and Hermione the study? Please?"
"Please?" Alphonse and Harry echoed.
Trisha laughed. "Very well…but stay away from the advanced books, and don't go into the basement!"
"We know!" Edward helped his brother up, then gestured for the other kids to follow, including Winry, if she so wanted to.
Winry jumped at the chance to get away from what was probably going to turn out to be boring adult talk, and followed. Harry led the way, since Edward was helping Alphonse with the stairs, since the 'study' happened to be in the attic.
TO BE CONTINUED…