Chapter 29
Rory slept on nicely once they got him to a doctor. Nothing more than a few bruises were on him when arrived. Sleep was much needed. Darius and Heinkel helped Ed and him hide. They set a plan in motion and that's how it started.
Rory awoke to the sound of soldiers marching into his room. He kept his eyes closed, feigning sleep as they interrogated Darius and Heinkel. He smirked when he heard a loud thump outside which startled the soldiers.
"Harris?" One of the soldiers went outside quickly while the other kept his gun trained on Darius.
The other soldier was knocked unconscious by Ed when he tore through the weak walls and cut off his airway.
"Geez," Darius said as he got off the bed. "You took them all out on your own."
"Is Rory up?" Ed asked as he came in.
Rory sat up, yawning. "I'd say I am, I guess. That's the most sleep I've had in months."
"Now that you're ready, let's go," Ed grinned, grabbing the bag he dropped.
Rory nodded, putting his clothes back on. He smiled gratefully at the doctor, "Thanks so much for taking care of me."
The doctor waved his hand dismissively, "Yeah, yeah. Just get outta here."
Rory chuckled, grabbing the slip of paper next to the unconscious soldier. "They're looking for a guy with a red jacket and a ponytail and a guy with a dark hair and a white dress shirt." He sighed, taking his shirt off. "Guess I'm gonna have to change."
He grabbed the black button up, putting it on. He grinned at Ed who rolled his eyes, "I look good." He put on his coat.
Ed chuckled, "Yeah, yeah. Seems like we're both gonna have to deal with these clothes."
"Freeze!" Two soldiers appeared down the hall. "Drop your weapons."
Rory rolled his eyes, super speeding to them and knocking them out. He dusted off his hands, "You know that sleep was good for me. I feel 100%."
They ran out of the building. Rory jumped off the stairs and kicked the other soldiers at the bottom of them, knocking them out.
"We need wheels," Heinkel said.
Darius threatened a man and his date for his car before they left. Rory and Ed glanced at the back window, cursing when they saw the other car close to them. "Hurry it up, donkey kong!" Ed shouted.
Darius growled, "I'm not used to driving in the snow. It's gonna be harder to get away from them."
"Take a right on this street," Ed commanded, sitting up front. He clapped his hands, "Do a u-turn the second we're past the corner."
"Man I have no idea what you're thinking, but okay," Darius grunted, but followed Ed's orders.
Rory snorted when he saw how Ed transmuted the car. Ed sighed in relief, "We lost them."
"Alright," Heinkel said behind gritting teeth. "Transmute the car into something more practical."
"You got a problem with my design?" Ed growled. "This is badass."
"Just do it," Darius pleaded.
Ed rolled his eyes but clapped his hands and transmuted the car once more. Heinkel turned to them, "Where to?"
"We need to figure out what's going on first," Ed said.
"We can't go near Briggs since Central took it over," Rory commented. "And we still need to find Alphonse."
Ed sat back in his seat, pondering while Rory stared at the window, hoping that everyone was okay. Ed soon told them where to go and they ended up back at the old safe house.
"What is this?" Darius asked once they exited the car.
"An old hideout," Ed replied, cautiously walking up towards the house. "I used this house to meet up with Colonel Mustang a while back. The homunculi know about it, but I doubt they'll come back to it. Al is definitely her-"
Darius smacked his head, "No one's here, idiot."
"No one's been here, either," Heinkel commented.
"Can't you do anything right?" Darius growled, shaking his fist at the short blond.
Rory shook his head, searching around the place. He furrowed his brow when he heard rustling outside. He gestured for the others to take cover. He brought out his sword as the footsteps came closer. He jumped out quickly, pointing his sword at the intruder. Greed-Ling appeared, much to his disbelief and hit the floor. He blinked confusedly, "Greed or Ling?"
"Thank goodness," Ling breathed in relief. "I never thought I'd find a friend here."
Ed rolled his eyes, "It's Ling."
After giving Ling their last rations, the boy was seemingly brought back to life. Ling breathed deeply, "Phew. I feel like I've been brought back to life." He gestured to the older males in the room. "Who are these guys?"
"Donkey K-" Ed was cut off by Darius' growl.
"I'm Darius."
"Heinkel," Heinkel said. "We were originally soldiers, but circumstances have us working with this kid." He turned to the alchemists. "Who is this kid?"
Before Ed could answer, Ling replied, "I'm a homunculus."
"Don't just say it like that," Ed exclaimed.
Rory smiled at Ling, "So what are you doing here? We haven't seen you since what happened with Father."
"Greed cut off all ties with the other homunculi," Ling responded. "He started freaking out over old memories and I took control of my body."
"Old memories?" Rory mumbled confusedly.
Ling winced, holding his head, "Greed's trying to come back."
"No," Ed smacked the other boy over the head. "Fight it."
"Damn it, Ed," Ling pushed him away. "Father said he was going to open the gates when 'the day' comes. I don't know very much, but if you guys dive in when he does, couldn't you get your bodies back?"
"Sl-slow down," Ed muttered in shock. "When you open the gate, you have to pay a toll? Why does he want to open it? What 'day' is he talking about?"
Ling flinched, the veins in his head bulging as he fought internally with Greed. "He's coming back," He grunted. "My message. Did you give it to Lan Fan?"
Ed nodded quickly, "Yes, Al gave it to her. She's alright, but we don't know where she is."
"Thank goodness," Ling smiled in relief. He surged forward, holding his head, "His will's getting stronger. I can't…"
A moment passed before the Xing boy stood. Greed-Ling huffed, "Fucking prince spilled the beans." He rolled his eyes at Heinkel who held his gun at him, "Put that away. You're only wasting bullets. You're gonna need a lot more than that to kill me." He walked out, waving over his shoulder, "Thanks for the food."
"Wait," Ed ran up to him. "You're just gonna leave us here?"
Greed-Ling shrugged, "Yeah, what do I care? You heard the prince; I'm through with the homunculi. I started remembering stuff and I freaked out so much I attacked Bradley. I don't even want to think about what would happen if I went back, so I'm done. I'm off to do my own thing. See ya."
Ed stopped him just before he went out the door, "What about joining our side?" Greed-Ling stared at him in shock. "If you've got nowhere to go, come with us."
"Are you stupid?" Greed-Ling asked incredulously. "I'm a homunculus, remember?"
Rory stepped up, "Whether or not you're a homunculus, you can still help us. Greed was my friend before he died."
"Yeah," Ed shrugged. "These guys are chimeras."
"We're only working with you because we hate Kimblee," Darius stated. "So stop acting like you're in charge or we'll ditch you."
"Join you?" Greed-Ling questioned before laughing. "That's rich. Get real. The world belongs to me." He walked outside, "Maybe if you worked for me, I'd agree."
"You just gonna let him leave?" Darius asked.
"We can try and change his mind," Heinkel added.
Rory shook his head, "Greed never lies. That's his policy." He smirked, shrugging, "Though, I'm not a prideful person. I'll work under him."
He ran after him with Ed and the chimeras trailing behind him. "Greed," He called, staring at him seriously. "I'll work for you."
Greed-Ling laughed manically, putting his hand on his shoulder, "Just know working under me makes you an outcast. Don't regret it."
Rory nodded solemnly while Ed and the chimeras conversed with Greed-Ling. He put his hand in his pocket. He blinked confusedly, taking out the objects in his pockets. Winry's earrings. He promised he'd give them back to her.
He closed his hands around them, gazing at the dark sky determinedly. He needed to tell Winry what was going on.
They had made it to Resembool later on in the night. Pinako and Den were at the festival in town so the boys were able to go in there easily. Rory waited it out, tipping back in Winry's chair while Ed, Greed-Ling, Darius, and Heinkel were out getting food.
The blue eyed boy glanced up when he heard the door open. He grinned brightly when he saw Winry but stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed her taking her shirt off. He choked, which gave away his location.
He covered his mouth, gazing at her with wide eyes while Winry stared at him in confusion which slowly burned into anger. "Wait, wait," He rushed over to her, holding her arms. "Sorry, we're hiding out here. Edward made me take his place in here because it's has the best view of watching people if they tried to sneak in."
Winry gazed at him silently for a beat before she wrapped her arms around him tightly. She burrowed her face in his chest, "I was so scared. I thought something happened. Everyone said you guys went missing."
Rory wrapped his arms around her in return, soothing her, "We didn't go missing. We got a bit roughed up, so we had to take a break for a while."
Winry pulled away, glaring at him, "How 'roughed up' are we talking?"
"We-well," Rory laughed nervously. "A tower collapsed and I had to save Edward because I didn't want anything to happen to him-"
"Rory," Winry warned, staring menacingly.
He swallowed dryly, "Edward was safe, but I was impaled by two beams."
He caught her hand when she grabbed her wrench, "Hey, hey," He tried to calm her. "I'm fine now, see?" He unbuttoned his shirt, putting her hand on his chest. "See, heart's still beating. I'm all right, Win."
Winry gazed at him sadly before gripping his shirt and pulling him forward. He was once again surprised by her lips on his, but he was slowly getting used to it. He held her tightly, deepening the kiss. He relished in the feeling of her running her hands through his hair while he cupped her cheek and continued to kiss her passionately.
He was a bit surprised when she tugged at his shirt. He broke the kiss quickly, "Wait, wait, Winry." He swallowed thickly, gazing into her darkened blue eyes. He shook his head slightly, "We can't do this right now."
Winry bit her lip, looking down ashamedly. "I know, I'm sorry I-"
He rubbed her arms reassuringly, "No, no. It's okay. I want to do that too, but right now I have to tell you something."
Winry furrowed her brow, "What is it?"
"Edward and I are here for safety. We're also with two men. They're chimeras, but they're on our side. They're out right now, getting some food since Ling ate it all. Oh, and Ling's here too, but he's a homunculus named Greed though. We work for him because we need him on our side. We're waiting for the 'day' to come to fight Father."
Winry nodded numbly, processing all the information. Rory clenched his jaw, steeling himself for the last bit of information he was going to give out, "And Winry?"
She glanced up at him questioningly and he felt his eyes sting with unshed tears. He wanted to see her eyes forever, but he knew his eyes weren't the ones she wanted to see for the rest of her life. He was okay with that.
He sighed heavily, running a hand over his tired face, "After we fight Father, I'm going to die, Winry."
It was silent for a beat. Winry took a step back in shock. Her knees hit the edge of her bed causing her to sit down on it, "Wh-what?" She gazed up at him, trying to see if he was lying. Her heart sunk when she realized he wasn't. "How-how do you know?"
Rory frowned, sitting next to her. "When I did human transmutation, and when Truth gave me my powers to fight Father, he told me I had to die after. I told Edward and he let me know that it wasn't equivalent exchange. It's not, so what I'm going to do is give up my life for Edward to have his limbs back, for Alphonse to have his body back, and for Izumi to have her organs back. If anyone else gets something taken away, I'll just get that back as well."
Winry sniffled, her tears running down her face. "Why are you doing this? Why are you so willing to give your life up?"
Rory gazed at her sadly, "Because I'm not supposed to be living, Winry. When my mom had me, I was dead. I don't know how I came back, but I wasn't supposed to. Truth told me that when I did human transmutation. See," He took her hand in his, hoping to comfort her. "If I was never born, you wouldn't have me to deal with."
"I don't deal with you, Rory," Winry smacked his shoulder roughly. "Just because I love Ed doesn't mean I can't love you too."
"I just make things more complicated," Rory responded with wet eyes. "You love Edward, and though he may not show it, he loves you. I love you, Winry and I love Edward, but I don't want to make your life or his life unnecessarily complicated because of my feelings. That's selfish of me."
Winry's breath hitched when she heard his declaration. She didn't know how to respond; yes, she loved Ed. She loved him so much her heart ached when he wasn't around. With Rory, it started slowly. She soon realized his touches would light her on fire and his gazes would leave her breathless. She yearned for his presence sometimes when her worries got to be too much. She knew he was trying to make her life easier, but she wouldn't accept that. She couldn't accept that.
She kissed Rory deeply, surprising the boy yet again. Rory responded quickly, holding her waist. He pulled away for air, "Wh-what are you doing?"
"It's not the end of the world if I'm with you, Rory," Winry said quietly, leaning her forehead on his. "If you're going to give your life, I want to know what it will be like being with you."
Rory gazed at her in disbelief, "Really? You want that?" When she nodded, he smiled so brightly she thought he was the sun. "Just tell me if you want to stop, okay?"
Winry nodded once more before capturing his lips again. Rory deepened the kiss, lowering her to the bed. He hesitantly trailed his hand down her side before letting his fingers skim across her warm abdomen. He slowly took off her tank top and gazed into her eyes lovingly. He kissed her once more, only breaking it off when she tugged off his shirt. She ran her hands down his toned abdomen while he slowly trailed his hand up her side.
He glanced up at her hesitantly, "C-can I?"
Winry breathed shakily and nodded. She gave a soft moan when his hand landed on her breast on slowly kneaded it. She pried her fingers through his belt and unbuckled it after a slight struggle. He kicked off his pants and unbuttoned hers as well. He pulled her pants down and swallowed as he stared at her panties only. He felt heat rush over him tenfold; even more so than the first time this happened.
He kissed her cheek gently, whispering in her ear, "We'll do this together, okay?"
Winry nodded and they both pulled off the other's last article of clothing. After a moment, Rory led himself to her entrance. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, feeling his chest swell so much he couldn't feel his heart beating. He gazed at her, and she gazed back. Intense blue clashed with liquid blue, and everything just seemed to fit.
"I love you…"
It was clumsy, awkward and slow, but it was everything they needed. Rory was soft and gentle while Winry was responsive and just as eager as the boy. This was making love to Rory, and it would be the best thing he ever did.
After Edward had his automail tuned and had himself thoroughly beaten by Winry, Rory had his turn. Moments later, he rotated his automail arm after she finished tuning it. He smiled at her, "Thanks, Winry."
Winry smiled back, nodding, "It's fine. You need it for the promised day, right? I'll do anything to help you guys."
"Yeah," Rory nodded. He shuffled his feet awkwardly before grabbing his coat. "I guess I better get going then."
Winry's breath hitched when she realized that this was the last moment she was going to see Rory. He was going to be gone when Ed and Al came back. She sobbed brokenly, throwing herself in his arms. "I love you," She whispered into his shoulder brokenly. "I do love you and I always will."
Rory swallowed thickly, gently running his hand through her blonde locks, "I love you too, Win. I love you so much, okay? Don't forget."
Winry nodded, wiping her tears as he walked away. Rory grinned slightly at the older woman, "Goodbye, Pinako. You were so good to me. I'll never forget that."
Pinako chuckled, patting his cheek, "Getting me all misty eyed. Get outta here and go kick the bad guy's ass."
"Will do," Rory laughed, following Ed, the chimeras and Greed-Ling. "Goodbye," He turned back, waving to them. "I'll never forget you."
Greed-Ling smirked at him, "You finally got your girl?"
Rory blinked at him in surprise before smiling widely, "You got your memories back."
"It's still a bit fuzzy," Greed-Ling tapped his temple. "But I know most of what happened between you and the last Greed." He grinned wickedly, catching the boy in a headlock and giving him a noogie, "You got a girlfriend?"
"As much as it pains me to say it," Rory grunted, getting out of the headlock. "She's not my girlfriend, but she is someone I love dearly."
"You ever kiss a girl?"
"Yes," Rory chuckled.
Greed-Ling laughed, "You ever sleep with a girl?"
Rory blushed, punching the homunculus' shoulder, "Yes, I have. A pleasure girl and one of the loves of my life."
"Really?" Greed-Ling asked in disbelief. "You're kidding, kid. That's great!" He wrapped his arm around the blue eyed boy, shaking him roughly.
Rory laughed happily, glancing at Ed who walked ahead of them. In even the darkest times, he felt that everything was looking up.
They traveled for a few days when they finally found the man Ed was looking for. "Hohenheim," The worker talking to them called. "You've got a visitor."
The tall blond bearded man stood, smiling at them before Ed knocked him to the ground with a hard punch. The short blond inhaled deeply, "That felt good."
Hohenheim rubbed his wounded cheek before standing and gazing at the males behind his son, "Oh, friends of yours?"
Rory approached him, holding out his hand, "I'm Rory, sir. It's nice to meet you."
"Rory," Hohenheim mumbled before grabbing the boy by his arms abruptly.
"Get off him!" Ed tried to cut in.
Hohenheim stared at Rory intensely causing the poor boy to cringe. "You…" Hohenheim whispered before smiling widely. "You will save us all."
Rory blinked in surprise before the man patted his head, "Thank you for protecting my sons," He said before moving on to everyone else.
He spoke with Greed-Ling who told him not to hide anything from them. He didn't. They sat around a small fire while Hohenheim retold his tale of how he came to be what he was.
Ed winced, putting a hand to his head. "Ow," He mumbled, trying to take in all the information.
"I'm the philosopher's stone you've sought for all these years," Hohenheim stated. "Do you want to use me?"
"What? No," Ed shook his head negatively. "Those are innocent people. It's your fault we're like this."
Hohenheim smiled, "I'm glad to hear you say that, son. Will you help me stop his ambitions?"
"Help you?" Ed questioned. "Let's get this straight; with or without you, we're gonna stop him, but it would be better if you were on our side."
"Well, regardless of your motives," Hohenheim smiled once more. "We'll fight together. Now let's get some food and some rest."
"Yeah," Ed stood up with everyone else. He halted when he suddenly remembered something, "Oh yeah. Grandma Pinako told me to tell you Mom's last words. She said 'Tell him I'm sorry, but I can't keep our promise. I have to go first."
Hohenheim stared at the sky silently before tears rushed down his cheeks. Ed was taken aback, "W-what? You're a grown ass man. You don't cry; that's just weird."
"I know," Hohenheim took off his glasses, wiping his tears. "I'm sorry."
Ed backed away slowly, "Okay, I told you the message. I'm gonna go get dinner. Bye!"
While they ate dinner, the chimeras harassed Ed for not being nicer to his poor father. Ed ignored them and found a woman with red fabric. He made is jacket while Rory went back to his white dress shirt.
They all continued to walk back in the dark. Ed asked if the chimeras wanted to leave, but they decided not to. Greed-Ling laughed, "That's the spirit."
Rory smiled before stiffening greatly at the dark presence that washed over him. It was back, and it was stronger. He stared into the dark and was greatly surprised when he saw Al there.
