Chapter 38

But I Will Shave it for Later

It broke Gordon's heart to send them out of the room like that but if they stayed any longer, he would have started yelling, and if he started yelling, his heart rate would go up, and if his heart rate went up, he might very well die, then and there, and he was no good to them in body bag. He needed time to carefully and calmly think about how to handle everything that was going on.

Things in Gotham had a way of happening all at once. Of course his long overdue heart attack would happen now, of all times. He never should have started smoking. If he could go back and change anything, it would be that. At least, at this moment. There were many decisions he wished he could change. Hindsight was twenty/twenty, after all. But out of all of his poor decisions, this was the one that had been in his control and he let it get the best of him anyway.

By morning, which wasn't much brighter than night, the doctors cleared him and Bullock drove them home. Gordon would have preferred to drive himself or take the train, but his car was at home and the train was covered in carnivorous plants. Both Ed and Link were paler than ghosts and they couldn't meet his eyes. Bullock tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but no one laughed.

Gordon would have preferred to go straight to work, but his doctor and Bullock were both enforcing a mandated vacation for his heart to recover. He didn't want to leave the boys home alone, but he didn't want to face them. They didn't want to face him either, so the three of them ended up going to their rooms and staying there. Gordon paced his room, trying to find a peaceful solution to their problems, while the boys sat on their beds to discuss the future.

"What do we do?" Link asked, leaning against the headboard.

"I don't know," Ed sighed, sitting on the edge of his bed, his elbow on his knee and his head hanging low, resting on his one hand.

"We… we can't stop fighting Ganondorf," Link mumbled.

"No, of course not," Ed agreed.

"But if we don't, then the Commissioner will be mad at us."

"I know," Ed grumbled.

"But he knows we don't have a choice, right? If… if I had a choice, I would stay here forever and ever and I'd never do anything that would make him mad or not want me or anything like that."

"I know," Ed sighed. "Me too. Minus the 'not making him mad' part. I'll stop making him mad when I'm dead," he joked. It didn't really help.

"I thought he knew that I didn't have a choice. I thought… I thought I explained it okay. At least, I think I did. Maybe… maybe I forgot?"

"It's not your fault, kid," Ed said. "Like you said, we don't have a lot of options. We can't just sit around and let the world end."

"Of course not! What would be the point of staying home, if the longer that we stay home the more dangerous the world gets. We've got to… save everyone before we can even think about staying home. Right? Because… because people will get hurt. It's wrong."

"Exactly! If he can't see that then… this isn't going to work. He can't just ground us and let the world end. If… if saving the world means he doesn't want us around anymore then… that's his decision. We've made ours and we're sticking to it."

Link curled up tighter in his bed. "Maybe we can stay for one more day?" Link asked. "Do you think he'll let us stay for one more day?"

"What for?"

"I'm not ready to give up everything. I… I mean… I will. I just… I'm not ready to leave behind the only house I've ever had. The only home I've ever had."

"As long as we've got us, we're always home," Ed said, but it hurt. This was the only home he had that he didn't have to share with Elric.

"But I wanted a dad," Link cried, his voice breaking. "That's all I've ever wanted. Why, Ed? Why can't I have a dad? Why does something always happen to take away the people I care about?"

"Nothing's gonna take me away," Ed said, with conviction. "I won't let it. I'll fight tooth and nail to protect you, kid."

"You've already lost an arm doing that," Link said. "And your powers."

"Big whoop, they don't work where we're going anyway, right?"

"And you said you couldn't make any promises, remember?"

"I know I said I couldn't promise that I'd always be here, but I sure as hell can promise I won't stop fighting to be here."

"But what if… what if we leave forever and he worries anyways and he has another… another… and then it would be all my fault and… and I… what if he died?" Link cried. "What if he died? It'd be all my fault and… that would mean… if… if it's my fault then… I… I might as well have…"

"Link…" Ed's breath caught in his throat. "This isn't your fault. The prescription on the bottle was five years old."

"That doesn't mean that it's not my fault. We should've asked for permission, at least!"

"Boys!" Gordon suddenly shouted for them from the living room, catching them both off guard. Link squeaked. "Get in here, you need to see this."

They shared a look, but neither could think of what Gordon possibly meant. Ed didn't want to go out there, but if Gordon would call for them like this when he was still mad at them, it must be important.

Link shied behind Ed when they went into the living room. Gordon was standing next to the couch, nervously twitching, watching the TV. There was a live broadcast from the United Nations in New York. The TV was currently on the Daily Planet's channel, but Link suspected it was live on every channel.

"A giant impenetrable crystal gem has appeared over the United Nation's Headquarters," a field reporter said into a mic. She was standing across the street from the UN. "A man, calling himself Ganondorf, is holding the leaders of the world hostage."

Link could barely move. Being on TV made it feel real. He grabbed Ed's hand to keep himself grounded.

"He is demanding the surrender of Earth to his control or he'll take the planet by force. At this point I can say it's very likely he's the one behind the Towers and the monsters. The Justice League is already at the scene, along with the FBI and Special Forces."

The camera swerved to show Superman, Wonder Woman, and the Green Lantern, John Stewart, talking to a group of men dressed in black suits wearing sunglasses, another man in a general's uniform, and an angry looking woman in a blue suit.

"They have managed to open communication with the hostage taker and…"

A person ran up to the reporter and whispered something into her ear.

"I am just now receiving information that the hostage taker is behind the darkened sky and the Towers. He's made an additional demand. Earth does not have to surrender, but if the two unidentified persons who destroyed the Tower in Montreal surrender to him, he will leave Earth in peace."

"No way," Ed hissed.

"On that we agree," Gordon snarled.

Link's ears starting ringing. He felt like he was back there, with Ganondorf looming over him. The terrible, agonizing strikes of Ganondorf's twisted magic was brought to the forefront, like it was happening all over again. He couldn't see, he couldn't breath, he couldn't hear. He couldn't even move. There was only the overwhelming pain and fear.

The image on the TV changed from the field camera to the studio camera and the TV anchors went on to show the YouTube video of Ed and Link going into the tower.

"Yesterday morning," the first anchor explained over the video. "Two unidentified persons made contact with the large Tower in Montreal, Canada. About an hour later, the Tower crumbled into the river and disappeared."

"Call me crazy, Bill, but they look like children to me," the other anchor said as the video ended and the screen went back to them, with the thumbnail of the video in the upper left corner.

"You know, I don't think you're wrong, Jan. They definitely look like children. Two children who did what even Superman couldn't."

"Why do you think that they were able to…"

Gordon turned the TV off. He'd seen enough and he certainly didn't want to see much more. He just thought they should know. But Link hadn't seen any of it.

"Edward, this is exactly why I didn't want you two involved with this," Gordon sighed.

"We were already involved!" Ed snapped. "What about that do you not get‽"

"You…!" Gordon spun on Ed, his rebuttal practiced and ready, but that was when he saw Link. "Link?" He knelt down immediately, putting both hands on Link's shoulders and squeezing. "Link look at me."

Ed flinched back, startled by the look of utter horror on Link's face. Link's breath was quick and rapid, his eyes were dilated, and his hands were clenched into fists so tight his fingers were white.

"Link, breath," Gordon said, trying to stay calm. He tried to gently unclench Link's fists, but Link wouldn't budge. Tears were starting to fall down his face.

"What's wrong?" Ed whimpered.

"He's having a flashback," Gordon said.

"What? Like… PTSD?" Ed asked. "But… he's eleven. He's too young to… he shouldn't…" Ed couldn't finish the thought. He didn't want to.

"I know," Gordon's voice shook. "Link, please, look at me. You're safe. You're safe, son. Please."

Link took a long, shaking breath, interrupted by hiccups and sobbing. He wrapped his arms around his chest and some part of him was pulled back to reality. He could feel Gordon's hands on his shoulders, and he knew those hands would never hurt him. Not in the ways Ganondorf hurt him. He leaned into the protective embrace and slowly, hesitantly, wrapped his arms around Gordon's neck, burying his face into Gordon's shoulder.

"It's okay," Gordon cooed, holding Link close. "You're okay."

"Don't let him hurt me," Link whimpered. "Please, don't let him hurt me. Don't let him take me away, Dad, please."

Gordon's voice caught in his throat. Link called him 'Dad'. Link never called him that. In fact, Link never called him anything. Not to his face.

"Did…" he held Link at arm's length and looked him in the eyes. "Did you just call me 'Dad'?"

Link paled. "I… I'm… I'm sorry! I… I didn't meant too! I'm sorry."

"Link…"

"Please don't be mad at me I was scared I didn't mean it I won't do it again I'm so sorry…"

"Link! I'm not mad," Gordon laughed, hugging Link once more. "Son, I'm not mad. You're my kid, what else should you call me?"

"You're not mad?" Link hiccuped. "You still want us?"

"Of course I still want you. I'll always want you."

"But… at the hospital… you were so angry… we thought…"

"I didn't want to start yelling," Gordon explained. "You didn't think… Jesus… boys, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you like that. I was trying to keep my blood pressure down. I was worried you were hurt. Edward's down an arm, for Christ's sake. I didn't want to think of all the other ways you could have been hurt."

"I'm sorry," Link sniffled. "It was my idea. Please don't be mad at Ed."

"I'm not… I'm not mad," Gordon sighed. "I'm just very disappointed in you for going out there after I told you not to."

"I didn't want to go," Link explained. "It's not like I have a choice. The last thing I ever wanted was for you to almost die because of me…"

"Link, that heart attack was because I smoked almost a pack a day since I was seventeen. I only managed to quit five years ago and by that time the damage had been done. It had nothing to do with you. I'm just grateful I only have a heart condition and not cancer."

"But I made you worry when we ran away…"

"Of course I was worried, Link. You're my sons, I want you to be safe."

"But…"

"And if I didn't have you around to worry about I would have managed to work myself into that heart attack. Either way, it was my own decisions that led to that. Not yours, alright?"

"Okay," Link sniffled.

"You're a good kid, Link."

"How long do you have left?" Ed hated to burst bubbles, especially now, but he had to know.

"Ten to twenty years," Gordon sighed. He knew he couldn't avoid that now and they'd know if he lied. "Maybe less. It's hard to give it a number, but it's… never as much as you hope for."

Link hugged him a little tighter. "It's not fair," he mumbled into Gordon's coat. "It's not fair."

"I know, son," Gordon sighed.

"Why the hell'd you adopt us if you knew you were just gonna up and die on us in a couple years‽" Ed snapped.

"Ten to twenty years," Gordon clarified. "That's hardly a couple years."

"You could be dead right now if we didn't find you!" Ed shouted. "How can you just go around and tell us not to risk our lives trying to save everyone when you could just drop dead at any second? How is that fair? How?"

"Edward…"

"No! You can't just…" Ed started to stammer. His words caught in his throat. "You can't just up and die on us, old man! You can't…" he felt hot tears fall down his face. "Promise."

"Edward," Gordon sighed.

"No! Promise us! Right now, that you're not gonna just up and die on us! You said you still wanted us but that's bunk if you're not around for it!"

Link leaned into Gordon a little harder and sniffled.

"I'm not kicking it just yet," Gordon said. "That much is certain. We're just going to have to get used to the idea that no one lives forever and, as much as I hate to admit it, my time's going to be sooner rather than later."

"But… you can't just… you can't just come into our lives and then just leave like that! It's not… it's not fair. We… we just decided to call you Dad."

"This was a group decision?"

"Well, yeah, but…" Ed crossed his arms and looked away. "I mean… consider the alternative…" he motioned to the TV.

Link cringed.

"And… um… about that," his crossed arms turned into a hugged chest. "We should… um… do something about that… whole… mess… thing."

"No," Link cried. "I don't want to go with him."

"No one's going anywhere," Gordon said, holding him a little tighter.

"Please, don't let him take me," Link whimpered.

"I won't let him take either of you," he cooed. "Edward, why don't you go get Link a glass of water?"

"Milk," Link corrected. "Can I have a glass of milk?"

"Fine," Ed huffed. "Weirdo. What'cha like milk for, anyway?"

"It tastes nice," Link whispered.

"Whatever," Ed shrugged, heading into the kitchen.

"What say we sit on the couch, hm?" Gordon asked Link.

"Okay," Link said.

They sat on the couch. Link leaned into Gordon like he usually did with Ed. He loved Ed more than anything, and he knew Ed loved him too, but Gordon made him feel safer. He didn't explode as much and he didn't make Link feel bad as often.

Ed knew Link had made the complete transition. Link no longer saw him as his main protector. He was no longer the only one Link had. He knew that this went for both of them, at least Gordon and Link saw it that way. But no matter how hard he tried, it was so, so hard to accept that Gordon was just as much a part of their screwed up family as they were. Gordon was just as much Ed's dad as he was Link's. But all Ed could see was Link seeking comfort from someone that wasn't him, and it scared him.

Ed grabbed a glass from the cabinet and went to grab the milk from the fridge. The milk gallon was full, and it wasn't like Ed had much experience handling them before. And with his missing arm, it was incredibly difficult to keep the gallon steady over the cup.

"Come on, come on," Ed hissed under his breath. "Just pour into the damn cup you stupid cow juice."

His hand was shaking. He tried as hard as he could to steady it. But he couldn't. The cold, wet plastic handle slipped right out of his sweaty hand, knocking the glass off the counter and both it and the milk gallon exploded against the linoleum floor, sending broken shards of glass and milk everywhere.

"Dammit!"

"Edward, you okay in there?"

"Dammit," he slumped against the fridge. He felt useless. He couldn't even get his little brother a cup of milk without screwing up everything. No wonder Link liked Gordon more than him. Ed tried not to cry, but it proved too difficult.

"Edward?" Gordon came into the kitchen. Link stayed behind on the couch.

"Go away," Ed sniffled.

"Are you really crying over spilt milk?" Gordon tried to cheer him up. He immediately busied himself with cleaning the mess up.

"Shut up," Ed whipped the tears from his face. "I am not."

"What's wrong?"

"I'm fucking useless," Ed hissed. "Especially without my damn arm."

"You're not useless," Gordon said.

"I can't even pour a stupid cup of milk! Of course I'm useless!"

"People with two hands spill things all the time," Gordon said. "It doesn't make you less worthy."

"I can't fight, I can't use my alchemy, if that's even what I'm doing…" Ed buried his face in his hand. "I can't even protect my own little brother. I have to protect him. He's all I have."

"You have me, Edward," Gordon sighed. It would stick eventually.

"We have to do something… about the UN," Ed said. "If we don't even show, he'll probably start killing hostages. I… I can't be responsible for someone dying."

"The only way you could be responsible for someone's death is if you're the one who pulled the trigger," Gordon snapped. "There are professional hostage negotiators handling the situation. You have no responsibility to what's going on."

"You're only saying that because you don't want us to put ourselves in danger again. You know they never would have leaked his demands to the media if they weren't trying to contact us."

"Edward…"

"We have to go. It's the only way to defuse the situation."

"I'm not letting Link anywhere near that man," Gordon hissed. "The mere mention of that bastard triggered a panic attack. I can only imagine what he did to Link to warrant that kind of response."

"I know," Ed whispered. "I'm kinda glad I don't remember what he did to me. He must've… taken my arm and leg… it's not like a clone inherits scars or amputations. But if we don't do something… innocent people will die. Isn't that just as bad as pulling the trigger?"

"No," Gordon insisted. "It's not."

"Maybe not to you!" Ed shouted. "But it sure as hell is to me! We have to do something. We at least have to show up. I don't mean that we're gonna surrender… it'll take a hell of a lot more than that to make me even think of letting him have Link… but we have to do something."

Gordon sighed. "You're not budging, are you?"

"No," Ed answered.

"Well, then I suppose there's no point in putting my foot down. You'd just go behind my back, anyway. Looks like we're driving to New York."

"Link should stay here," Ed said.

"No!" Link interrupted.

They both looked up to find Link standing in the doorway. He got up from the couch when he heard them talking. He heard the whole thing.

"Link…" Ed started to protest.

"No! I won't let you face him blind. I'm the only one who knows what he's capable of. I'm the only one who's faced him and lived. Even if I didn't come out unharmed. At least I'm still alive. If you try to fight him, he'll kill you, or worse."

"Worse than death?" Ed laughed hesitantly.

Link paled. "He's pretty good at torture and brainwashing people. He even managed to brainwash someone who had the strongest spirit than anyone else. If we face him now, all that will happen is we'll be captured and then no one will stand in his way. That's why he wants us to surrender."

"We're not gonna surrender, kid," Ed insisted.

"I know but… we'd lose if we fought him and then he'd take us by force. No matter what happens, he takes us."

"So we don't fight him. We talk him down."

"I tried that! Two years of him hurting me and making me feel like less than dirt and it got nowhere!" Link clenched his fists and hugged his chest, trying not to cry again. "He can't be reasoned with."

"Then we trick him."

"How? He's a master tactician and he's super good at manipulating people."

"I… I have a plan," Ed said. "It's not much, but I'm certain it can fool him."

"What is it?"

"I can't tell you. You just have to trust me."

"How do I know it will work if you won't tell me what it is? I'm the one who knows him best."

"The less people who know, the better it'll work, trust me."

Link looked into Ed's eyes. Ed knew his plan would work. "I believe you believe it's the best thing to do," Link said. "Usually, that'd be enough for me, but not with… not with him involved."

"Link, you have to trust me on this, please," Ed stood up.

Link looked to Gordon for answers. It hurt Ed to see Link looking to someone else for guidance. He was supposed to be there for Link, but he wasn't. He had to do something. If only Link would trust him enough, first.

"Edward, if this plan of yours puts either you or Link in danger…"

"Of course it's dangerous!" Ed snapped. "The hell kinda plan in a situation like this wouldn't be? This is just the best I can come up with right now and no one else seems to be making any suggestions. Sure, if everything goes according to the plan, no one'll get hurt."

"Link, do you have any other ideas?"

Link frowned and shook his head.

"Then, under the circumstances, it seems Edward's plan is the best option we have."

"But we don't even know the plan!" Link protested. "He might not even have a plan at all!"

"I have a plan," Ed snapped. "And it'll work."

Gordon sighed, "The least we can do is show up, like Edward said. I'm sure that the experts already there have a plan of their own."

"But… but what if their plan is to let him take us?" Link whimpered.

"We don't negotiate with terrorists and we sure as hell don't give in to their demands," Gordon explained. "I doubt they're even considering that."

"At the very least, we should offer our help," Ed said.

"I suppose you should," Gordon sighed. He didn't want them anywhere near the danger, but he doubted that would change anything now.

"Fine," Link huffed. "But only… only 'cause you said they won't let him take me."

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