Chapter 36

It's a Bird

When the world came back into focus, they were standing at the banks of the river. They had the perfect view of the Tower of Forest, as the Woman called it, crumble into ash. The cracks in the sky didn't disappear, but their steady stretch across the sky was slowing down. It bought them more time. Link slipped the pendant fragment into his pocket.

Before they could even take a breath, they were accosted a reporter who had somehow heard they had made it into the Tower. She had with her a young man snapping pictures of them. Link hid behind Ed as soon as the first bright flash went off in his face.

"Lois Lane, Daily Planet," she cut right to the chase. "Do you have any comments on the Tower's disappearance."

"Um, no… thanks, we're good," Ed said, herding Link towards the car, keeping himself between Link and the nosy reporter.

"Are you sure?" Lois Lane from the Daily Planet followed them. She had her phone in her hand, no doubt recording their conversation. "You're not wearing masks."

"Yeah, no shit," Ed snapped, starting to get annoyed.

"Are you superheroes?"

"Please leave us alone," Ed said.

"Oh, come on," she insisted. "You two appear just as the Tower begins to collapse. You have to know something. You were filmed entering the Tower."

"Oh for…!" Ed groaned. "By whom?"

"Someone who was walking their dog along the river. They posted it to YouTube, it has almost a million views."

"That was half an hour ago! Come on!" Ed frowned.

"Do you have any comments on what happened inside the tower?"

"Leave us alone," Ed shoved past her and dragged Link behind him, making a b-line for his car.

"What happened to your arm?"

"You wanna quote me!" Ed rounded on her. "Quote this!" He let go of Link and flipped her a very aggressive bird with his remaining hand. "I'd flip you off with both, but… well." He shrugged angrily, grabbed Link, and stormed to their car.

He practically shoved Link into the passenger seat and slammed the door. Lois, thankfully, was too upset to follow him. Link was too shaken to speak. First Ganondorf, now he was witness to one of Ed's temper tantrums.

"Who's idea was it to put all the important controls on the right side!" Ed practically screamed, slamming his fist on the horn.

Link flinched. Ed didn't notice.

"Dammit!" Ed slammed his palm into the horn and held it, letting the car scream his frustrations for him.

Link pulled his knees up to his chest, covered his ears with his hand, and scrunched his eyes closed. Maybe Ed would calm himself down.

"Shit," Ed sighed, letting up on the horn. "I'm scaring you aren't I?"

Link didn't answer, he merely quivered.

"I'm sorry."

Link sniffled quietly.

"I shouldn't have undocked the prothesis and I shouldn't have just shoved it back in when it requires special equipment to dock. I should have installed the disabled controls as soon as I got the damn car but I did want to and now we're stuck in Canada. Ah, damn. We're stuck in Canada."

"Better than being stuck in Gotham," Link mumbled.

"Yeah," Ed laughed. "Maybe we'll be adopted by a friendly moose family."

"Or beavers!" Link giggled.

"Maybe even a Mountie," Ed snorted.

Link let out a small gasp, "They have horses."

"GCPD has a mounted division, I think."

"Really‽" Link perked up immediately, his eyes sparked. "Do you think Dad'll let me pet the horses?"

"You called him 'Dad'."

"I did?"

"Yeah. You did."

"Oh," Link looked down at his knees. "Sorry."

"Don't… don't apologize," Ed sighed. "It's high time we started calling him that."

"We? Really?"

"Yeah, sure, why not," Ed shrugged. "I mean, consider the alternative, right?" Ed tried to laugh, but he was suddenly afraid it'd sound like Ganondorf's unsettling cackle. He wondered if that was why Link didn't laugh more often.

"What if he doesn't let us? I mean, we're gonna be in a lot of trouble."

"Yeah, I know."

"We have to call someone to pick us up."

"Yeah, I know."

Ed pulled out his smart phone, paused, put it in his lap, pulled his remaining glove off with his teeth, picked the phone back up, and unlocked the screen. His thumb hovered over the text app, then he noticed the little green phone icon in the corner with an angry red bubble. He had almost fifty missed called and half that many voice messages. He knew who they were from.

"Wanna get some ice cream?" Ed asked Link.

"It's kinda cold out for ice cream."

"Hot chocolate fudge Sunday?" Ed offered. "That's good for cold weather. You think there's Cold Stone in Canada?"

"I wanna go home," Link mumbled.

Ed sighed. He supposed it was worth a shot.

It felt lame to text Gordon, after all the calls he'd deliberately missed, but Ed knew if they talked on the phone, Gordon would yell at him and he didn't feel like dealing with that just yet; not over the phone, anyway. After he'd written the text, he was tempted to ask Link to hit the send button, but that felt pathetic. He was the older one. He was the one who was supposed to hold Link's hand, not the other way around. He felt like he'd waited five minutes to hit send.

Hey we're fine but we need a lift home

Ed didn't have to wait more than five seconds before his phone started to vibrate. Ed immediately hit ignore call. Gordon tried again and again, but every time, Ed hit ignore. It was the most stressful game of cat and mouse Ed had ever played.

After no less than ten attempts, Gordon caved and resigned himself to texting. Ed regretted his win almost immediately. Watching the little bubble that indicated Gordon was typing was agony. It kept disappearing and reappearing, and Ed had a feeling it didn't have to do with bad reception.

Where are you?

Canada

I know that. Where in Canada?

Montreal where the tower used to be

Used to?

We destroyed it
It was pretty epic
We kicked its ass

Good for you
You're grounded

We can't be grounded we have to save the world
It's really important
We're the only ones who can do this

Not when you live under my roof, you're not.

Then maybe we shouldn't

Excuse me?

Maybe we shouldn't live under your roof anymore
You're just a cranky old man what do you care anyway

Gordon called him again. Ed hesitated for a moment before hitting ignore again. He considered turning it off entirely. He even considered throwing his phone into the river, but that felt a bit too rash, even for him. When Gordon called him a second time, he let it ring to voice mail. Gordon didn't bother leaving a voice message. Ed wouldn't have listened to it anyway.

Edward answer the phone

Gordon called again. Ed almost let it ring all the way to voice mail again but at the last second he slid the little green circle across the screen and hesitantly brought the phone up to his ear.

"Edward, I have been worried sick about you!" Gordon shouted, his voice was shaky, even over the phone, Ed could tell he was upset. And not in the angry way. At least he wasn't yelling that loud.

"We're kinda stuck here," Ed mumbled.

"I got that. Why?"

"My arm came off and I don't think it would be a good idea to drive without it since I have to reach over too far to change gears and I don't want to let go of the wheel that long."

Gordon sighed. It was crinkly over the phone. "What happened?"

"It was loose. It just kinda fell… off… into a void. I don't want to talk about it."

"And what's all this about not wanting to live with me anymore? Where did that come from?"

"I dunno."

"You don't know."

Ed didn't answer.

"Edward, this is dangerous. You could be hurt… or killed."

"So? What's the big deal? So could you."

"Yes, but that's different."

"Why?"

"I'm an adult, Edward."

"So?"

"Really?" Gordon snapped. "You're a child. You're really going to make me explain why a child shouldn't be risking their life trying to save the world?"

"Sure, go ahead. I'd love to hear it," Ed didn't like being called a child.

"And what about Link? What happens if he's hurt, if he dies because of this. Edward, you're already down an arm. Don't make this worse."

"No one else can do this but us."

"What makes you so certain that you and only you can do this?"

"Because."

"Because? That's your excuse? Because! That makes everything better. I'm so sorry I ever doubted you," Gordon's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Get your ass home right now."

"How? I can't drive, genius," Ed snapped.

"Talk Link through using the stick."

"Really? That's your advice?"

"You're both smart, you'll figure it out. I've got some things to say to you both and I'd rather do it face to face."

Ed'd gut twisted. "About what?"

Gordon didn't answer.

"About what!" Ed repeated, angrier this time.

"I'll tell you when you get home, alright?" Gordon sounded tired and beaten. He was done dealing with them.

Ed was terrified. "You… you…" Ed couldn't bring himself to ask if Gordon still wanted them. He tried to tell himself he was only scared of Link getting hurt, but he wasn't convinced.

"We'll talk when you get here."

"Yeah," Ed swallowed. His throat was dry. He preferred Gordon yelling. At least then he knew Gordon cared enough to raise his voice. Now, he wasn't so sure.

"Edward," Gordon hesitated. "Try not to get into any more trouble."

Ed wished he'd hadn't said anything at all.

"What'd he say?" Link asked.

"Wanna learn how to drive?" Ed deflected the question.

Ed's car wasn't stick shift, so Link's job was pretty easy. All he had to do was change from reverse to drive while Ed backed out of his parking spot and then change it to park when they pulled in to the driveway.

They did drive-thru for lunch and dinner. Ed didn't eat. Link had offered to keep the steering wheel steady on straights while Ed ate, but Ed refused. He didn't even drink anymore coffee. He looked half dead. He'd been driving for almost fifteen hours with only a few hours' break. Link was worried about him.

Ed pulled up the driveway, Link pulled the parking break and moved the stick to 'P', and they sat there, the sun setting in the distance. Ed didn't want to face Gordon.

"How mad is he?" Link asked.

Ed sighed. "I don't know," he said. "Guess we'll find out."

"Oh," Link mumbled, pulling his knees to his chest. "You don't think… he'll send us away… do you? I mean… he knows… we had to, right? He knows that?"

"I don't know, kid," Ed mumbled.

"I did tell him," Link said. "I told him I had too. I told him why. So… so that means he knows?"

"Does it have anything to do with being Ganondorf's kid?" Ed asked.

Link flinched.

"Well, does it? You know I don't blame you for it. Hell, we're in the same damn boat, anyway."

"Ironically, it doesn't," Link said. "Me being his Kryptonite has nothing at all to do with him being my father or me being his son. I'm Chosen, apparently. It kinda sucks that I don't get a say in it."

"I'd like to have a word with the ass holes who picked you, too," Ed snarled. "Sending a kid to do something not even an adult should have to do." Ed was pissed. Whoever they were, they picked the wrong little brother to mess with.

Link was already resigned to his given role.

"Well, at least that explains why you were able to get in and I wasn't," Ed tried to calm himself down before he had another outburst and scared Link.

"We're half-brothers, aren't we?" Link asked. "By blood, I mean."

"Huh, yeah, we are. Small world, isn't it?"

"Small multiple worlds," Link amended.

"Wonder how that worked out," Ed mused. "Does Gordon know about Ganondorf?"

"No," Link shook his head. "I just wanted to forget. I tried to forget. It didn't work, I guess. Dad only knows that I'm the Chosen One or whatever."

"We should go inside."

"Yeah."

Neither of them made a move to go inside.

"We really should go," Link insisted.

"Yup," Ed said.

Still, they were stuck to their seats. Ed took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and opened his door, like ripping off a bandaid. He got out and Link followed suit. Ed fumbled with the keys, half on purpose to delay the inevitable and half because his keys were in his right pocket, which was hard to reach with his left hand. Link knew better than to offer Ed help.

When they walked inside, Alma ran to greet them, wagging her tail and wiggling her whole body with joy. She was so happy to see them, she peed on Ed's shoe.

"Damn dog!" Ed jumped out of the way.

"Alma, no," Link scolded. "Bad dog. Don't pee on people, it's rude." But he couldn't stay mad at her forever, and it wasn't like puppies had full control over their bladders.

"I'll get the damn towels," Ed grumbled, kicking his shoes off and stalking into the kitchen. "Dumb, stupid animal," he grumbled. "I hate dogs." As he was pulling the paper towels from the roll, he hesitated. Edward Elric didn't like dogs. He wasn't Edward Elric. He reflected on the situation, pushed aside any of his past emotions, and focused on the present, how he felt about dogs now.

He supposed they weren't half bad.

"Whatever," he grumbled, grabbing the towels and going back to the entrance to clean up the wet puppy dribble. "My shoe's gonna smell like dog piss now," he complained.

"I smelled like cow manure for two whole months once!" Link bragged.

"You say that like its a good thing."

"Hey, where… where is he?" Link asked, looking around.

"I dunno, probably sleeping," Ed shrugged.

The house didn't feel right.

"There's something wrong," Link whispered. "Where is he?"

"I'll go check his room," Ed said. "Why don't you get ready for bed, or something. It's late."

"It's only seven," Link said.

"Since when do you object to getting in your pjs?" Ed teased.

"I don't like this, Ed," Link whined. "I'm scared."

"Of what? It's just the house."

"Somethings wrong," Link insisted.

"Fine, lets go check his room then," Ed said.

Link followed Ed to Gordon's door. Ed knocked on it, pretty loud. No response.

"Hey, old man!" Ed shouted. "We're home!"

Gordon still did not answer. Link's heart skipped a beat.

"This is bad," Link whimpered.

"So he's a heavy sleeper, big deal," Ed shrugged. He shoved the door open. "Look, he's probably a…" Ed froze. "Shit!"

Gordon was on the floor, leaning against his bed, pale as a ghost. He wasn't moving, his eyes were closed, and they couldn't tell if he was breathing or not. Ed ran to him, immediately checking for a pulse. He found a bottle of pills in Gordon's hand, unopened. They were heart medications.

"Link, call Bullock," Ed said. "Tell him we need an ambulance."

"Ed, what's wrong," Link cried.

"Do it now!" Ed snapped.

Link snapped into action. He didn't remember where he put his clunky, old flip phone, so he rushed to the home line. Gordon kept a sticky note on it with his, Barbara's, and Bullock's numbers on them, in case Link or Ed ever needed him. Link fumbled with the numbers, but he managed to call Bullock.

"Harvey speaking," Bullock answered.

"Edsaidweneedanambulance," Link cried, taking so fast he had trouble understand himself.

"Link? What's wrong, talk slower."

"Ed said… Ed said to tell you we need an ambulance," Link said, forcing himself to breath.

"What's wrong? Is it Jim? Did something happen?"

"We… we came home and he's on the floor and he's not moving and Ed said to call you and we need an ambulance but I don't know what happened."

"Jesus," Bullock cursed. "Is there blood, does it look an attack?"

Link shook his head, then remembered he was on the phone and mumbled a quick, "Nuh-uh."

"Alright, alright, I'm coming over with an ambulance. You just hang in there, Link. You hear me? I'll be right there." Bullock hung up the phone.

Link wandered back into Gordon's room, where Ed was pacing back and forth, periodically checking to make sure Gordon was still breathing and still had a pulse.

"Ed, what do we do?" Link cried. "What's wrong? What's happening?"

"He's had a heart attack," Ed said. "I think. I… he's got heart pills…" he gestured to the bottle, which had fallen from Gordon's hands and onto the floor.

"What do we do?"

"I don't know!" Ed snapped. "You called Bullock?"

Link nodded.

"That's all we can do, I guess. I don't… I don't know how to do anything without alchemy and… and even if I did have that, the only thing that could help him would kill me and that would get us nowhere."

"Ed, he can't die, can he?" Link whimpered. "He can't."

"He's not gonna die," Ed snapped. "He'll be fine, we did everything, alright?"

"Is this our fault?" Link asked.

"No," Ed shook his head. "I… I mean… stress can cause heart attacks but… but it'd have to be a lot and over a long time and… I… I mean… his job is super stressful so that could be it. The prescription for the pills is pretty old, longer than he's had us for, anyway. So this was a preexisting thing."

"But we made it worse," Link whispered.

Ed didn't answer.

Link went back into the living room and curled up on the couch. He covered his face with one of the pillows and cried. He even tried screaming into it to see if that helped, but all it did was hurt his throat. He didn't know how Ed could turn these feelings into anything other than fear, despair, or guilt.

He didn't want his dad to die.

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