"I'm on my guard for the rest of the world but with you, I know it's no good."
-taylor swift
•••
Iris was so caught up in seeing Ed that she only registered the three others with him after everyone was inside.
"Hey Ling," she greeted, patting him on the back, but then drew back her hand. "Or is it Greed? Or both? Man, you're confusing."
"Are all of this kids' friends annoying as all hell?" Greed asked, mostly to himself.
Iris ignored him and came up to the two chimeras. She made sure it was a private conversation as she watched Ed talking to his godmother across the room.
"Hey," she greeted. "Not sure if I said it before, but thank you for taking care of Edward. It means a lot to me that he's not dead," she laughs morbidly, still unable to flirt with the thought that Ed could have not made it. The two men just give her a strange look.
"No problem...?"
Granny offers everyone some stew on Edward's behalf, and lunch goes by quickly for them all. Greedling goes for another plate, but Iris stops him, suddenly remembering a lesson Mei taught her.
"You can eat more after I use you for a little experiment."
Iris has to drag him away from the table and into a guest room. He still complains as the door shuts.
"Okay Ling, I know you're in there, buddy. And if you're in there after getting fused with a homunculus, then so is my sister." She sighs unsteadily. "Right?"
Greed surprisingly complies as she tells him to sit still as she reads his aura, although he does add distracting commentary, such as, "What are you doing?" and "Stop staring at me".
The girl just sighs and looks inside him. There are many colorful souls swimming inside his body, somewhat tamer than those in other homunculi like Envy or Wrath. Either way, she dismisses that thought and concentrates on the big black mass in the center. It's Greed himself, but also Ling. It's not pure darkness. Ling's soul gives it color. Her theory was correct!
She takes herself out of her trance and breathes a sigh of relief. "There's hope for my sister," she breathes, relieved. "She's got to be inside of that homunculus. I just have to get her out."
•••
"So, the Promised Day is coming. I'm still unsure of what our plan of action is, Edward." Iris stood in front of him, arms crossed. They were standing in the kitchen alone while the others were occupied - Pinako was with a client, and she made the two chimeras go to work around the houseshop. Greed was to get tickets for the train to their next location but should be back soon.
The blond alchemist leaned on the counter, jaw tense. "Simple. We kick all the homunculi's asses and that Father guy."
"Easier said than done," she huffs, annoyed by his reply.
"That's what it boils down to."
"I know." She bites her lip, anxiety seeping into her small voice. "I'm just worried our efforts won't be enough."
Ed looks at her hard. He hopes his determination will rub off on her as he says, "We have to be ready for anything. So let's get ready."
He goes to leave, turning to the door. Impulsively, she calls out, "Wait," grabbing onto his shoulder. She can feel the exact place where his automail and real body meet as she runs her fingers down his prosthetic arm.
Now at his hand, Iris gently grabs his automail fingertips and laces them with her flesh ones. She meets his curious, golden eyes. It's strange to her, realizing that she has to look up to see his entire face. Wordlessly, she takes her other hand and grabs the front of his black tank top, gentle but firm. Light enough for her to let him go, if that's what he wants. Yet it seems as if he doesn't. He stays frozen in anticipation and watches as she pulls him down just a few inches. She's terrified he won't reciprocate. But once her lips graze his, he's all in. He turns fully towards her then and cautiously pushes his lips back against hers, placing his flesh hand behind her neck and into her hair. He subconsciously notes it's gotten a bit longer since he's last seen her. He supposes they've both grown up on each other.
The exchange between them is perfect; a thorough balance of chastity and passion. But in a moment it ends, and both pull away and look at each other, trying to read an emotion. Ed is the first to speak.
"We can't do this right now," he reasoned, removing his hand from her hair. Iris lets go of his prosthetic hand, suddenly lonely from the loss of contact.
"I.. I know. We have to save the whole fucking world, here, Ed. It's not lost on me. I just had to do that. Just in case anything happened."
She watches Edward's thought process, trying to figure out what he's feeling between reading his qi and his facial expression. He's wholly unpredictable. He opens his mouth to speak, but once the girl looks past him he doesn't say a thing. He turns to see what she's focused on. It's Greedling standing in the doorway, holding five tickets in his hand. Surprisingly, it's Ling's voice that comes out of his mouth when he says, "Let's go, lovebirds. We've got a train to catch."
•••
The ride to Kanama is brief and mostly silent. Greedling made no more sly comments, and Iris decided to take a seat alone instead of next to Edward like she usually does. Her thoughts were swimming. She vividly remembers the sensation of his lips pushing against hers, but can't forget his troubled voice when he pulled away from her. In her uncomfortable train seat, she pouted and crossed her arms. She came to a conclusion in her head: 'Boys are confusing!'
Frustrated, she watched the scenery flit by, which was far more simple than anything that they would face in the upcoming days.
The train had stopped about a mile away from the actual town, so the five of them traveled by foot. A dirt road led them to some villagers, who kindly directed them to the one and only Van Hohenheim.
They found him sitting on a stool eating at an outdoor cafe. He seemed content with his food but was greatly startled when Edward shouted his name ferociously. The boy barely gave his father enough time to rise up from his chair before he landed a giant swing on him with his metal arm. He flung backwards into the dirt, creating a cloud of dust around him.
"Ed!" Iris shouted. "Was that really necessary?"
"Eh. He had it coming."
She scoffs at him and goes to the man's aid. "Here Mr. Hohenheim." She extends her hand. "Get up."
"Ah. How lovely to see you again young lady." He stands upright with her help and scolds his son lightly.
"Warn me next time." Ed simply turns and walks away from him, thoroughly cross.
The girl rolls his eyes at him, annoyed by his stubbornness. She looks back to Hohenheim.
"The Promised Day is tomorrow. We need as much firepower as we can get. Are you with us?"
"Is my own son going to agree to us teaming up?" he answered in a loud voice, making sure Edward heard. At his mention, his head whipped back and he marched up to Hohenheim. "Listen here. We're only teaming up because it's our best bet!" He huffs in frustration. "We wouldn't be having a conversation at all if it weren't for the Promised Day."
"It's good to know you're aware of the situation at hand. I'm just glad you're talking to me at all, circumstances aside."
"Please," Iris looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Tell us what you know."
Hohenheim sighed deeply and gestured for them to sit around a makeshift campfire. The man sat on one of the three logs and began to start a fire as the sun set behind him. The two chimeras took a seat on the log beside him, as did Ling and Iris on his other side. Edward remained standing behind his friends, his arms crossed.
A fire was brought to life quickly and Iris was reminded of her brother as she felt the heat give her warmth. She couldn't help but wonder what was going on with him in Central. She tried not to fret; she would see him soon, all things considering.
The older man cleared his throat, and the group listened intently as he spoke. "I have deeper ties with the homunculi and their father than you may realize."
"Iris told me some," Ed countered. "You have the components of a homunculus. But why? And how does their father look exactly like you? How can we trust you?"
"Alphonse trusted me quite easily."
Ed was surprised, then grimaced at his father. "He idolizes you. I don't. I know better."
"I'm not here to argue. I know why I'm a suspicious character to you, but I can explain it all. I was tricked by the first homunculus to sacrifice my own people to create Father. Xerxes fell overnight because of my ignorance. All those souls now live inside me. I'm the last of their people.
"Ever since then, the homunculi have made an enemy of me. Tomorrow, they will have the means to destroy Amestris, just as they did to my home of Xerxes. During the eclipse, they plan to perform the countrywide transmutation circle. We cannot let this happen. We have to stop them."
The group's face was grim, shadows of the flames dancing over their faces.
"But," he said, a hopeful note in his voice, "with enough effort and a sound team, we can save the country."
"Is that it?" Ed gripes.
"I didn't spare any details."
The boy huffs and goes to walk off, but Iris gently calls for him.
"Your mom's message, Ed?"
Pain is evident in his eyes as he looks to Hohenheim.
"Don't take this alliance as forgiveness for what you did to mom, and us. But she wanted to tell you, 'I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise. I'm dying first.'"
The alchemist turned and walked away before he could see the tears build then cascade down his father's face. The chimeras and Ling excused themselves and caught up with Edward, but Iris stayed for a moment, wishing she knew a way to comfort him. She got up and sat next to him, saddened by his sobs.
"Families are never easy, are they?" she whispered, smiling up at him halfheartedly. Looking through him, she could sense a sadness not just in him, but in the population living inside of him. She couldn't help but sympathize. His memories were full of his wife and his sons, but even without her power, she could tell he loved them over anything.
She laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Edward is hard to please, but he comes around eventually. And as for your wife, I'm sure she has no regrets."
"You're wise for your age," he compliments, wiping his tears away with a handkerchief. "I'm sure my boys have learned a lot from you."
"I wouldn't say wise," Iris mused, thoughtful and mellow. "Sometimes I think I've just been cursed with knowledge."
•••
Torches are lit up to serve as street lights for this tiny village, and Iris finds her crew at the edge of the town standing around a barrel lit on fire, deep in discussion. She notices that Edward has finally returned to his red coat - It made her realize that the Promised Day was just mere hours away.
Iris joins them in their circle. "Am I missing a team meeting?"
"No, but we might miss the train if we wanna get to Central tonight. We need to be ready there in the morning."
"What are we waiting for then?"
