Chapter 29 –
Alphonse was listening to Izumi subtly interrogate Voltron as best she could while they were in public with extremely well-hidden amusement. A glance to his right showed him his brother and Sig talking avidly about the Curtis' butcher shop and Al just knew Ed was trying to get all the blackmail material he could on Mason so he could use it against the man the next time they were in Dublith. They were being listened to by Scar, who was walking just behind both Ed and Al, and Al was a little amused to see just how much interest Scar was showing in the subject discussed by Ed and Sig. Though he wanted to, Al refrained from turning around to check on his teacher and the Voltron crew because he knew that if he did, Izumi would likely try to draw him into the interrogation.
They were nearing the front gates of Central Command when Al spotted movement. It didn't take him long to identify who was racing towards them and he didn't bother to stop the shit-eating grin from growing on his lips as he said, "head's up, Brother."
The amused warning drew Ed's attention from Sig in time for the blonde to yelp as a lean but strong figure wrapped itself around him, nearly knocking them both to the ground. "Edward! My friend, how are you?!" the figure cried in joy as he clung to the blonde alchemist.
"Ling, I swear to fuck that if you don't get off me, I'm gonna stab you," Ed growled as he tried shoving the Xingese Emperor off him. He could feel a steadying hand on his left shoulder and a glance told him that Scar had moved to grab him so he didn't end up hitting the ground after Ling's tackle. Ed spotted two figures clad entirely in black and with masks firmly in place hovering just outside of the group's reach but close enough to intervene if Ed or any of them tried anything. "Hello, Lan Fan. I trust you're well?" Ed asked as he continued trying to pry off the man clinging to him.
The slender figure removed their mask to reveal Lan Fan's bank face. "It is delightful to see you once more, Edward. Please refrain from stabbing Emperor Ling while we're here," she requested, her face twitching in amusement as Ed continued to try and get Ling off himself with minimal success.
"A little help?" Ed asked the Lions, all of whom were watching this in amusement.
"You didn't help us while your teacher was questioning our humans," Black said, a touch of irritation in her voice. Izumi was very good at wording her questions carefully so as to not arouse suspicion from any passer-byers and she was very thorough in her questioning. Not a single one of the Paladins, including Keith, dared to ignore her questions.
"I promise she'll stop now that these guys are here," Ed told them, pushing at Ling's face. The emperor looked thoroughly unphased by the treatment. "Plus, if they're here, you can bet Mei is around too since she was a big part of Promised Day and Teacher will want to talk to her about alkahestry now that we're not in danger of a power-hungry homunculous trying to destroy Amestris," Ed told them.
The Lions seemed to be considering his words while Lan Fan and the still unintroduced guard watched them cautiously. "Alright, fine," Black said finally before she and Red let out two simultaneous, loud snarls directed right at the emperor still attached to Ed.
The snarls had the desired effect and Ed breathed a sigh of relief when Ling all but flew off of him in surprise, having apparently not noticed the five large Lions behind Ed when he'd spotted the blonde and his group approaching the gates. Both Lan Fan and the second guard tensed up, reaching for their weapons but didn't get the chance to unveil them since the Lions calmed down the moment Ling was off Ed. The younger guard still held himself as though he was willing to throw himself in between Ling and the Lions at a moment's notice but – to Ed's mild surprise – Lan Fan seemed to be more at ease than he'd expected.
"Is that really how you let your friends greet another of your friends?" Ling asked from where he stood near Lan Fan.
"It is if that friend is trying to suffocate me," Ed said sternly. His glare lasted only a moment before he relaxed it into a smile and held his hand out for Ling to shake. "It's good to see you, Emperor Ling," he said, a slightly teasing note in his voice as he used Ling's title. "I'd wondered if your free-loading arse was gonna be invited to the memorial service," he said as Ling shook his hand.
"You wound me with your unfounded insults," Ling said, a grin on his face as he released Ed's hand. "Now I haven't spoken to Fuhrer Grumman yet but perhaps you could introduce me to your friends and explain exactly who they are and how they arrived here?" Ling asked, nodding to Voltron with a touch of wariness.
"Only after you've introduced your new guard," Ed countered, gesturing to the person standing next to Lan Fan and watching them suspiciously.
Ling startled slightly and Ed wanted to facepalm. It was obvious the older man had forgotten that none of them would know who his second guard was. "Oh, that is Lan Fan's cousin and her second in command, Li Jun," Ling told them, waving a hand at both Lan Fan and Li Jun when he said their names, primarily so that those who didn't already know her would know who Lan Fan was. "Now, who are your new friends?" Ling asked excitedly before anyone could do more than nod at Li Jun.
"My lord, perhaps it would be best for those introductions to happen later. We're late for our meeting with Fuhrer Grumman and we will be late for the second meeting if we do not move now," Lan Fan said respectfully.
"Oh, I suppose it wouldn't put us in Fuhrer Grumman's good books if we were late to the next meeting as well," Ling said, looking thoroughly disappointed that he wouldn't get the answer to his question immediately. "Plus, I don't thing it would be good for the Chang-Yao alliance if we left Princess Mei with only Xao-Mei for company for so long," he added.
Ed's face split into a grin when he saw his younger brother's reaction to Mei's name and the knowledge that she was in Central Command. "So Mei travelled with you lot, did she?" Ed asked as he urged the two groups forward. He and the other Amestrians were the only ones – aside from Ling – who weren't surprised when Lan Fan and Li Jun seemed to disappear into thin air, leaving Ling with them.
"Where the hell did they go?" Keith asked, his hand in his pocket where he kept his bayard as his eyes darted around their surroundings, trying to spot the missing Xingese. The Lions and other Paladins looked just as startled and suspicious.
"Oh, they'll be keeping watch from above," Ling told them casually. "Lan Fan knows that Edward and Alphonse wouldn't let any real harm befall me so she's leaving my care on the ground to them. Li Jun took a little while during our journey to Amestris to convince that despite Edward's brash behaviour, he likely wouldn't kill me. Perhaps injure a little, but not actually kill me," Ling said with a large smile.
"Depends on how empty my account is after you beg for food again," Ed muttered, obviously still annoyed at how much the emperor had cost him literally when he was a prince and homunculous.
"As for your question, yes, Princess Mei and Xao-Mei travelled to Amestris with us," Ling said, ignoring Ed's mutters. "Since the Chang and Yao clans have formed an alliance, made official when we returned back to Xing after Promised Day, we've been spending a lot of time together. We have made a lot of changes in Xing regarding many things but one of the biggest changes was how to decide a successor to the throne," Ling revealed.
"So no more having to have a kid with every clan?" Ed asked, almost grinning when he heard a couple of startled gasps-turned-coughs behind him.
"Excuse me?!" Blue asked, sounding a touch scandalized by the revelation.
"Exactly," Ling said with a smile. "My advisors were not happy with my decision but I informed them that they couldn't make me have a child with the eldest daughter of each clan head. Mei was the one to then point out that some of the clan heads – like herself – were either too young to have children of their own or were childless for one reason or another, something that hasn't happened in the history of Xing before. She and I both reminded the advisors that our goal was to unify Xing so there were no more inter-clan wars as the clans struggled to try and keep in favour with the emperor so their chances of being the successor was higher," Ling told Ed, sounding very proud of himself and Mei.
Ed had to admit he was rather proud of the emperor as well. It had only been an idea in Ling's mind when he and Lan Fan had left, leaving Mei in the care of Amestris until Al had been out of medical danger and could be escorted home. To hear that he'd achieved something as massive as that in less than a year was amazing and he couldn't begrudge Ling the smugness he was feeling nor could he stop himself from saying his thoughts on Ling's accomplishment out loud. "So what does that mean for the decision of your successor?" Ed asked once he'd successfully stopped Ling from trying to hug him once more.
"I can meet with each clan's heir and choose who I want to train under me as my successor. After a few years, I will announce my heir and they will begin preparing for my retirement or death, whichever one comes first," Ling said as Ed flashed the front gate guards his pocket watch so they wouldn't be held up. He saw two dark flashes jump from one rooftop to another as Lan Fan and Li Jun kept their emperor in their sight. "At the moment, Mei is my successor should something happen before I can choose an actual heir," Ling told them as they entered the main building of Central Command.
"Is that wise?" Al asked, looking a little worried. "I know Mei would make an excellent empress but she's barely a teenager and from what I remember about her stories, the Changs aren't exactly respected amongst the other clans," he said,
Ling nodded. "You're right, of course," he told him. "Mei's age isn't ideal and her clan isn't one of the ones normally considered for the throne," Ling said, "however she has proven herself most worthy of ruling Xing in my place if I am unable to do so. She's got a smart mind about her and in the nine months it's been since I've taken the throne, she has proven herself most adapt at walking circles around the advisors belonging to our late father," Ling said, a smirk on his face that made both Ed and Al come to the mutual and unspoken decision to get stories from Ling later about that.
As they turned a corner, Ed spotted a small, familiar, pink and white clad figure waiting patiently next to the elevator Ed, Al, Mustang, Hawkeye, Havoc and Voltron had all met Samantha in front of when they'd first arrived in Central after Voltron and Lotor had crashed in the Ishvalen desert. To Ed's immense surprise, Mei didn't give into her obvious desire to wrap Al in a hug like Ling had done to Ed himself when her eyes landed on him. Both Lan Fan and Li Jun were now standing with Mei, which Ed found himself also unsurprised by considering he knew they wouldn't be able to spy on everyone from a window ledge like they'd done a few times when Ed first met them without causing the base to go into a panic.
"Alphonse! Mr. Scar! Edward!" Mei exclaimed once they were close enough that she wouldn't have to shout. Xao-Mei was, as always, sitting on Mei's shoulder and was both waving and squeaking furiously at the group. "It's good to see all of you!" she gushed as they came to a stop next to her and the two guards. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Curtis!" she said when she realised the two of them were also part of the group.
"Hello, Princess Mei," Izumi said, a rare smile on her face. "How have you been?" she asked as Ed pressed the button for the elevator.
"I've been well," Mei said, looking delighted that Izumi had asked. Her eyes flicked to Alphonse once more and it took every ounce of self-control and fear of Izumi's reaction Ed had to not grin madly at the way Alphonse's cheeks were slowly starting to darken. "How are you, Alphonse? You look a lot better than the last time I saw you. Was your recovery quick?" she asked as Shiro silently helped Ed and Lan Fan herd everyone into the elevator and get it moving up to the level they needed it on.
The obvious curiousity in Ling and Lan Fan's eyes told Ed they wanted to know as well but had – for whatever reason – not asked themselves. Al didn't seem to notice their curiousity as he answered Mei's questions. "I'm doing good, Mei," he told her, "and my recovery was quick," he said. "I was released from the hospital only two months after Promised Day and I could join Brother on missions once more a month later," he told her.
Mei's eyes widened in surprise. "That's amazing, Alphonse! I had thought your recovery would take longer than that!" she told him while Xao-Mei squeaked in agreement.
The small panda's noises caught the attention of the Lions and their Paladins, all of whom were now watching the tiny panda with looks of amazement, curiousity, confusion or any combination thereof. Ed noticed Lance reaching out as though to pet the small creature, seemingly oblivious to Xao-Mei's warning snarls. A combination of Mei realising what was about to happen and moving as much as she could and Ed grabbing Lance's wrist prevented the Blue Paladin from losing a finger.
"Trust me when I say this but Xao-Mei doesn't like people she doesn't know or like touching her," Ed warned them, releasing Lance's hand just as Shiro gave Lance an admonishing look.
"But she's so cute!" Lance whined even as he dropped his hand.
"And vicious," Ed told him seriously. He was certain that if he had his right hand at the time that he would've had scars from Xao-Mei using it as a chew toy.
A small ding! caught their attention as the elevator shuddered to a stop, saving Lance from a few stern words about not touching strange animals from Shiro. A check of Ed's watch told the blonde that they still had plenty of time so he didn't have to make them hurry as they started heading down the corridor towards Grumman's office. Mei was watching Lance with a mix of apprehension and happiness and Ed didn't bother hiding the grin at how obviously torn the young princess was about Lance's reaction to Xao-Mei. Ed nodded to the few soldiers who they passed by as they continued down the hall as Mei continued to interrogate Al and, when Izumi mentioned Al's training after being released, Izumi herself.
"She seems quite taken with Alphonse," Blue commented as they walked.
Ed grinned as he felt the other Lions' obvious interest and knew they were fishing for information. "Yeah, they spent the two or so months between Baschool and Al arriving in Liore with Winry, Scar, Yoki and Marcoh as their only company. At that time, we were trying to learn alkahestry as best we could so we might be able to combine it with alchemy so that if Father cut off our alchemy again, we might be able to use it still so the two of them spent most of that time together with Mei trying to teach Al as much as she could," Ed told her casually, though he decided to let the other Lions in on the conversation to save Blue from having to repeat his words to them.
"Is the admiration both ways?" Red asked bluntly, finding herself the end of four berating hisses of her name from her sisters.
"Oh, I am almost positive it is," Ed told them, ignoring the suspicious look he was getting from Al before his little brother's attention was willingly dragged back to Mei. They may have been speaking through their bonds but Al had always had an uncanny ability to know when his brother was teasing him, even in his mind. "In fact, Al has been making random comments about Xing in the last couple of months. I think he's trying to gauge my reaction so he can guess how I'll react if he suggests we visit Xing together," Ed divulged.
"What are your thoughts on it?" Green asked curiously and Ed shrugged.
"I'm not sure I want to go, if I'm being honest," Ed told them. "It'd be nice but if Al and Mei do actually decide to get into a relationship together, I'd be left dealing with Ling by myself and I really don't think either of us would survive that," Ed said, scowling lightly at Ling, who looked a little flummoxed about why. "Plus, the only reason I would've gone would be to learn alkahestry and I don't think I want to anymore. The only reason I was interested in the first place was because it might help us against Father and that threat is long gone," he said as the Fuhrer's office came into view. "However, Creta's alchemy is healing based, just like alkahestry, but they use alchemy the same way we do. If our trade talks go through and we can visit, I'm gonna volunteer for that because I wouldn't mind learning healing alchemy. Certainly would come in use on missions," Ed muttered, scowling a little when he felt five nods in agreement.
"Plus, you wouldn't be arrested or killed for stabbing Ling when he got on your nerves while Al and Mei aren't there to stop you," Blue said, nodding approvingly at his plan. Ed snorted when the others gave their own seals of approval on his plans.
"Now that I have your permission," he teased before he knocked on the door, startling both Al and Mei out of their conversation. "You should be paying attention to your surroundings, little brother," Ed said, grinning when Al flushed.
"Shut up," Al muttered, causing Ed's grin to widen but the elder Elric decided to back off for the moment, if only because Samantha had just granted them permission to enter the outer office.
"Morning, Miss Samantha!" Ed called in greeting just before calls of his and Al's names drowned him out. "Morning, everyone else," Ed said with a grin as he faced Mustang, his main team, Rebecca and, to Ed's surprise, the chimeras. The only ones missing for the meeting were Grumman himself, Lieutenant Maria Ross and the Armstrong siblings, though Ed suspected it would be a matter of moments for the two of them to turn up and for Grumman to make an appearance.
"Good morning, Edward. I see you've managed to find our missing guests," Samantha said, giving Ling and his entourage a disapproving look that had Ed very curious.
"What did you lot do to make Miss Samantha annoyed with you?" Ed asked as Izumi and Sig headed over to where the team was standing. Scar and Voltron didn't move from Ed and Al's side.
Ling grinned guiltily as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Ahaha," he chuckled as he grinned before bowing deeply to Samantha, mimicked quickly by the three other Xingese in the room. "We apologise for our tardiness, Miss Samantha. We were on track to be here early enough to speak with Fuhrer Grumman before the meeting, as per his request, but we ran into Edward and Alphonse along the way and the meeting slipped our minds in favour of greeting our friends," Ling explained, earning himself an eyeroll from Ed and a mollified look from Samantha.
"His Excellency saw what happened from his window so he realised you likely wouldn't be here for your meeting. I'm sure he'll say so himself but he has requested that you remain after the meeting so you and he can discuss what you need too," Samantha informed him. Her stern tone told him there would be no arguments.
"We are gladdened that Fuhrer Grumman wasn't offended by our actions and we would be honoured to have that discussion at his earliest convenience," Ling assured her, finally straightening from his bow, as did the three others.
"You're either brave or dumb to risk Miss Samantha's ire like that," Ed told him cheerily, clapping Ling on the shoulder.
Ling opened his mouth to say something while Samantha did her best to not seem happy about Ed's comment when Grumman's inner office door opened to reveal the four missing people, which Ed was a little surprised about. He had thought the Armstrong siblings and Ross would be behind them, not in Grumman's office. Grumman looked around, likely checking they were all there before he nodded in greeting to them all as well as to dismiss the salutes from those in the military and who weren't in his inner office with him.
"Emperor Ling, Princess Mei, I'm pleased to see you both in good health," Grumman said once his eyes landed on the Xingese standing with Ed and Al.
"Fuhrer Grumman, it is our honour to be here. On behalf of Xing, we would like to thank you inviting the four of us to the first memorial service for Promised Day so that we may join Amestris and her people in remembering and honouring those we lost and celebrating our victory," Ling said as he straightened up from the bow he'd fallen into when Grumman had finished addressing them.
"All of you were instrumental in aiding our side against the homunculi and their plans for our country and all of you sacrificed something, in one way or another. You have as much right to be here as the rest of those standing before me today," Grumman said, voice kind but firm.
Ed felt Voltron shift slightly behind him in reaction to Grumman's words and his apparent oversight of the fact that they were there. He didn't call them out on it though since he didn't think any of them would appreciate the attention. Plus, he saw the way General Armstrong's eyes had narrowed in both recognition and suspicion when she'd spotted the Lions and their pilots upon exiting Grumman's inner office and he didn't feel like going through her interrogation on Voltron's being in Amestris before the meeting that would be getting underway any minute now.
Sure enough, Grumman was quick to get them moving into the conference room that had been used for the meeting between Ed, Grumman and the generals while Mustang had been in prison. With instructions to Samantha to interrupt the meeting if something urgent came up, Grumman followed them in and closed the door behind him. "Please, grab a seat. If there aren't enough, I'll see if Samantha can locate some more for us," he said as he headed around the conference table to seat in the same seat he had when Ed was last in the room.
Everyone else managed to find themselves seats and Ed found himself sitting at the end of the table with the Lions surrounding him and their pilots, all of whom were sitting in some spare chairs up against the wall behind Ed. Al was on Ed's right with Mei, Ling, Mustang, Hawkeye, Havoc, Breda, Fuery and Falman all sitting on one side of the table and Grumman, the Armstrong siblings, Rebecca and the Curtises taking up the seats on the other side of the table, with both Armstrongs flanking Grumman, which Ed thought was a smart move since it would likely stop General Armstrong from stabbing her brother if she grew too irritated of him. Lan Fan, Li Jun and Ross all stood behind their respective charge, though Grumman was quick to coax Ross into the empty seat next to Rebecca since she wasn't there to act as a guard. Ed wasn't surprised when Grumman didn't try and do the same to the two Xingese guards since the Fuhrer knew as well as Ed did that they would politely decline the offer. There was a small moment where it looked like three of the chimeras wouldn't have any seats but they were quick to spot the spare chairs in the corner of the room and soon joined them all the table, though Ed was now sitting on one end of the table, facing Darius who was seated opposite him with Heinkel on his left and both Jerso and Zampano on his right, once everyone had shuffled down to accommodate them.
Only once everyone was settled and had finished shifting to make room for everyone else, Grumman addressed them all. "I want to thank you all for taking the time to travel up from your homes or postings in order to attend this meeting," Grumman said, dipping his head to them all. "I'm sure you're all aware that this meeting is being held primarily to discuss what will happen during the award part of the memorial ceremony tomorrow," he said, using the opportunity to smooth out any confusion some of them might've had since it wasn't unheard of for messages to get messed up before they reached their intended target.
"Forgive my interruption, Fuhrer Grumman, but there is something I'd like to ask," Heinkel rumbled from where he sat. At Grumman's nod, he continued. "Who are the strangers sitting near Ed and why are they here? I don't remember them from Promised Day," he said. The three other chimeras all shifted noticeably, showing their interest in the answer.
"Ah, yes," Grumman said, straightening a little. "I'm sure everyone had heard about our diplomatic guests and the national hunt for a war criminal from their country, yes?" he asked and got nods from those who weren't an Elric or part of Mustang's team. "The hunt for the criminal has since ended with the criminal's death but our diplomatic guests are still waiting for transport back to their home. Since they're still Amestris' guests, Brigadier-General Mustang and Lieutenant-Colonel Elric are still tasked with their safety. Since both of them and the rest of General Mustang's team are here, I granted Voltron permission to attend this meeting," Grumman explained.
"Thank you, Your Excellency," Heinkel said, dipping his head in gratitude.
"You got promoted, kid?" Darius asked, a grin on his face that only widened when Ed groaned.
"Unwillingly," Ed muttered, glaring at Mustang when he made a suspicious coughing sound. "Keep laughing, bastard, and I'll punch you," Ed snarled before Grumman could stop him.
"What happened?" Heinkel asked while Darius tried to stop grinning at Ed's reaction. Both chimeras, and Ling for that matter, knew personally just how much Ed hated the idea of being promoted. It had been something the chimeras had joked about while Ed was travelling with them and Greed/Ling during the few weeks before Promised Day. Ed's rant about how he wouldn't be promoted was something the two chimeras still considered legendary whenever they reminisced about those weeks.
"I'll happily tell you about it later but I think Fuhrer Grumman and a lot of other people would prefer it if this meeting happened without any side-tracking," Ed said, still glaring at Mustang, though it was moved to Al when his brother couldn't stop his own snort of laughter in time.
"It would be appreciated," Grumman said, earning himself and Ed a nod of agreement from the two chimeras. Once he was certain there wouldn't be anything else said, Grumman got the meeting back on track. "Now, the actual ceremony is scheduled to start tomorrow morning by nine but I would appreciate it if everyone, including Mrs. Hughes and Elysia," Grumman said, looking at Ed and Al, "could be here at least an hour beforehand," he said, getting nods from everyone. "We'll be setting up the courtyard where the final battle with Father took place. There will be a stage that will sit in front of the building and faces out into the courtyard, where there will be seating set up for those who will be attending the ceremony," Grumman explained. "All of those attending this meeting, minus Voltron," Grumman shot them an apologetic look, "will be joining me up on the stage, where you will remain for the duration of the ceremony. Mrs. Hughes and Elysia will be given the choice to remain there after the award ceremony or they can leave the stage to join those in the courtyard, if they so wish," Grumman said and Ed let out a silent sigh of relief that Al mimicked. Neither of them would've been able to say for certain that Elysia would've been able to sit on the stage for that long quietly.
Grumman gave them a knowing look before he continued. "The seating in the courtyard will be split up. One section will be for reporters, with a station nearby so that the radio station here in Central can broadcast the ceremony live. Another section will have the generals and any other high-ranking guests, such as your family," Grumman said to both Armstrongs, "seated in it. This is also where the Ishvalen elders and Rockbell women will be seated," Grumman added, looking at both Elrics and Scar and received three nods in thanks. "That section will have guards around it, just in case someone tries to take advantage of the ceremony to try something," he told them. Major Armstrong looked relieved and thankful for Grumman's consideration while General Armstrong's expression didn't change, though she did incline her head slightly. "On the other side of these two groups will be a section of the same size but it will hold the immediate family of those who perished during the fighting here in Central and have agreed to attend the ceremony," Grumman said, a touch of grief in his voice. "I will have Voltron sit amongst the generals and special guests, so long as you're all comfortable with that?" Grumman asked, looking specifically at the humans of Voltron though Ed noticed his eyes glance at him and Mustang.
"We have no arguments with that, Fuhrer Grumman," Shiro said, speaking on behalf of them all. "I would like to request that we be seated near Pinako Rockbell, if possible, and on the outer edge of the section so that our Lions are able to stretch out if they wish to," he asked, looking a little guilty that he was doing so.
"That's completely fine and I'm sure we can arrange for that," Grumman agreed easily. Ed felt the Lions' relief through his bond and knew that it had been Black who'd asked Shiro to make that request, which explained the slight pause in between Shiro's agreement to the seating and the request. "The reporters have been told that there will be no questions from them at any point during the ceremony and all of them have agreed to only ask for statements once the ceremony is finished," Grumman told them, moving them to the meeting once more. "There will be no warnings given to the reporters so if any of them do try and question any of you before or after the ceremony, or try to interrupt the actual ceremony, they are to be escorted off the base. Every soldier who has been assigned to attend the ceremony have the same instructions so I ask that you delegate the removal of any reporter who disregards the conditions of their attendance to those soldiers," he told them, once again looking specifically at Ed, who just nodded.
Satisfied there were no questions forthcoming in the couple of seconds he stayed silent for, Grumman moved on. "Once the ceremony has started, I will be talking about the events that led up to the Promised Day. This will include what Brigadier-General Hughes uncovered and was ultimately silenced over," Grumman said, looking at Ed, Al and Mustang as he spoke. "If you would like to warn Mrs. Hughes and her daughter beforehand, I won't stop you," he told them gently. "I will also be talking about your arrest and subsequent escape and how that led to the role you played on Promised Day, Lieutenant Ross," Grumman said, angling his body so he would be facing the woman he was speaking to.
Ross didn't look awfully happy to know that that part of her life would be revealed once more but she nodded in acceptance. "Thank you for the warning, Sir," she said.
Grumman nodded at her thanks before he continued speaking. "Once I have finished speaking about the Promised Day and what happened, we will move into the award section of the ceremony," he told them. Ed's scowl was noticed by everyone and no one missed the uncomfortable fidgeting from the chimeras but no one commented on it. "I will be honouring all of you first before I move onto the posthumous awards for Captain Buccaneer, Fu, Van Hohenheim, and Brigadier-General Hughes," Grumman said.
It took everything in Ed to not flinch or react to his father's name being spoken out loud. Grumman had warned them that this would be happening when he first told them about the fact that they were going to honoured during the ceremony so it wasn't a surprise but Ed still had to hold back the reflexive scowl he usually wore when Hohenheim was mentioned. The side-glance from Al told Ed that his brother was expecting some sort of reaction from him but Ed managed to only show he'd heard Hohenheim's name in the way of a slight twitch. He could feel the Lions pressing on his mind, sending warmth and love through their bond, which Ed appreciated immensely even if he didn't say anything.
Grumman continued as though no one had been waiting for Ed to explode upon hearing his and Al's father's name. "After the posthumous awards have been presented, I will move on to read off a list of the known deaths caused during the fighting before we will pause for a minute of silence to remember the victims," he told them. "Once the minute of silence has ended, we," Grumman gestured to all of them, including himself, "will be moving off the stage and to the middle of the courtyard where I will unveil the plaque I commissioned with the names of those who died and the names of those who saved our country," Grumman explained. "After the unveiling, the ceremony will come to a close, the radio station will stop its live broadcasting and those who attended the ceremony will be invited to join us for a lunch that the Armstrong family kindly offered to have their family's cooks create for the ceremony and those in attendance. We will be required to stay near the plaque for photos for the reporters but that shouldn't last more than ten minutes, if that," Grumman said.
"Once that is finished, you will all be free to join everyone else for lunch and entertain yourselves until the lunch is over," he told them, the corners of his mouth curling up into an almost invisible smirk when several people seemed to relax at the news. "I will also be announcing that April 15th will be considered a public holiday where only the military, hospitals and any businesses who may choose to do so will remain open throughout the country. The only trains that will run will be the military ones and only if they are absolutely needed," Grumman explained. He paused for a moment before continuing. "The only things I will not be speaking about tomorrow without your explicit permission are your statuses as chimera," he said, looking at the four in question, "and the fact that Hohenheim was there when Xerxes fell and everything that happened to him personally as a result of that," he said, looking at both Ed and Al.
"We would prefer it if it wasn't made public knowledge about our statuses," Zampano said, after quietly consulting with his fellow chimeras. Grumman nodded in acknowledgement and both Ed and Al found everyone's attention on the two of them.
Ed looked at Al and, after a silent conversation that ended with a tiny shake of Al's head, Ed turned to Grumman. "We'd prefer it if the fact that Hohenheim was centuries old and there when Xerxes fell was also kept out of the public's eye," Ed said and again, Grumman accepted it with a nod.
"Then no one outside of this room and who already knows will hear about it tomorrow," Grumman promised them. He waited in silence for a couple of moments before speaking once more. "Do any of you have any questions regarding the ceremony tomorrow?" he asked, settling back into his chair so he could see them all and gauge their reactions.
After another small round of silence, Mustang finally spoke up. "I don't believe anyone on my team have any questions, Sir," he told Grumman.
"We don't either," Jerso said, obviously speaking for his fellow chimeras. His words were echoed by the Curtises, Lieutenant Ross and Rebecca.
"Nor do I, Your Excellency," Major Armstrong said, a touch louder than everyone else around him.
"I have no questions either," General Armstrong said, though her eyes told Ed that she had plenty of questions for him and there was an undercurrent of threat in them, daring Ed to try and escape her before she could ask them.
"Since Li Jun was not involved in Promised Day, would you like him to assist in guarding the generals and other important guests or is he free to chose somewhere of his own to guard us from?" Ling asked.
Grumman considered his question for a moment. "I have no issues with him choosing a location of his own, providing that he informs the soldier I have tasked with overseeing the security measures where that location is, just in case someone spots him and mistakes him for an opportunistic sniper or enemy," he said finally.
Ling was quick to say something in Xingese that had the youngest of his guards nodding before the emperor faced Grumman once more. "He will decide on where he wants to guard us from in the morning once he's seen the set up for the ceremony with his own eyes. He will inform your soldier before he takes up his chosen position," Ling promised him. Li Jun nodded to Grumman from where he stood behind his emperor, obviously wanting Grumman to know he understood his orders and would do as his lord said.
Grumman gave a nod of his own, this one in thanks. "I will introduce you to that soldier in the morning," Grumman told them before he addressed the rest of them once more. "If no one has any further questions then I'd like to thank you all for attending this meeting," Grumman said. "I'd like to request that those of you who have the time and inclination to do so to help those who are setting up for the ceremony tomorrow. This isn't an order so if you have other plans or work of your own to complete, you won't be disobeying orders by doing so," Grumman told them.
Mustang silently checked with his team before he addressed Grumman. "I believe we have all finished our work for the day, Fuhrer Grumman, so we would be happy to offer our assistance," Mustang said.
"A minor miracle in and of itself," Ed muttered, loud enough for Mustang to hear him but low enough that Grumman could pretend not to have heard of him, if the Fuhrer decided to do so, which he did, much to Ed's delight. "Al and I can give a hand as well," Ed said before Mustang could do anything more than glower at him.
"We'd be happy to help as well, Fuhrer Grumman," Shiro said after a quick conversation with his team and the Lions.
"That would be greatly appreciated," Grumman said, nodding to Voltron.
"I will also help, if I can," Scar said quietly and Grumman gave him an appreciative nod.
"Unfortunately, I must decline," General Armstrong said, a slightly displeased twist on her lips. "My doctor heard I was in town and has asked that I attend an appointment for a check-up before I leave for Fort Briggs once more," she explained. Ed had to bite his tongue so he didn't whisper to Al that he wasn't the only one in Amestris who thought hospitals and check-ups were pointless.
"I, too, must decline with great regret, Fuhrer Grumman," Major Armstrong said, sounding very upset that he had to. "Lieutenant Ross, myself and the rest of our team still have work that requires our attention," he announced, looking and sounding close to tears. Ed was slightly worried that they'd have a weeping and shirtless Major Armstrong soon.
"That's completely understandable, Major Armstrong," Grumman said, looking thoroughly unphased by the bigger man's emotions while General Armstrong looked like she was doing a remarkable job stopping herself from either snarling at her brother for being emotional or outright stabbing him. "I appreciate that you would have been willing to help out had your duties not been in the way," Grumman assured him.
"I'm happy to help where I can," Rebecca said, side-eyeing Major Armstrong, who still looked like he was close to tears.
"We'll pitch in as well," Darius said, the three other chimeras nodding along with his words.
"As will we," Izumi said, speaking for both her and Sig.
"If there is still anything to be done after our discussion, Fuhrer Grumman, we will also assist in setting up the courtyard," Ling said after checking with his three companions. Mei and Xao-Mei didn't look too happy that they wouldn't be spared from attending the meeting but they didn't put up an argument.
"Thank you," Grumman said. "If you have no objections, we'll have that meeting as soon as this one has ended," Grumman said and received nothing but agreeance from the Xingese. "Well, with that and there being nothing else I need to discuss, I'd like to once again thank you all for attending this meeting," Grumman stood up from his seat as he spoke, causing everyone else to do so as well, "and I'll see you all in the morning in the courtyard," Grumman instructed.
"Sure thing, Grumman," Ed said. "We'll make sure Miss Gracia and Elysia know what's happening and when they need to be here by," he told him.
"Thank you, Edward," Grumman said, a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. "Enjoy the rest of your day," he said in a clear dismissal, addressing them all.
"You as well, Fuhrer Grumman," Mustang said, raising his hand in a salute, prompting everyone else who was part of the military to do the same, Edward included.
The moment Grumman dismissed their salutes, Ed turned to Voltron and hustled them out of the conference room, not willing to take the chance that something would happen and he would be drawn into it. He was completely unsurprised that not only the chimeras but General Armstrong were on their heels. They made it out of the conference room and halfway between the inner office doors and outer office doors – providing Grumman and the Xingese plenty of room to move past them without disrupting any conversation and with enough distance between them and Samantha so they wouldn't disrupt her work – before Ed came to a stop and prepared himself for the confrontations.
"It's good to see you're still in one piece, kid," Darius said, ruffling Ed's hair with one of his hands and laughing when Ed snarled at him and pushed his hand away.
"It's good to see you guys as well," Ed said honestly, trying to unsuccessfully duck away from Heinkel's hand as the lion chimera mimicked the gorilla's actions. "For the most part," Ed snarled as he batted Heinkel's hand away from him. "You guys never said in our letters that you were gonna be coming up for this," he said, watching Jerso and Zampano warily but relaxed when their attentions were on Al and annoying him.
"I don't know about Heinkel but I hadn't been certain whether I was going to set foot in Central again," Darius said with a shrug. "This city has too many memories and I couldn't help but think it was one big, elaborate trap to get us back in town so they could study us," he admitted.
Ed's expression twisted into one of sympathy. "I thought Grumman made it so no one knew what you guys are," Ed said. "Everyone who did know was a traitor and either killed on Promised Day or has been killed after their trial," he said and the four of them nodded.
"He definitely made sure that there wasn't anyone else alive aside from you lot who knew about us but there was still that fear that he'd missed someone," Darius told him.
"Lieutenant-Colonel Elric," General Armstrong said, clearly deciding she'd graciously given the chimeras and Ed enough to time to catch up. "Explain how they arrived," she demanded, gesturing to Voltron. Her eyes informed him on the same thing they had when she'd pinned him with a look while explaining to Grumman why she couldn't assist everyone else; that denying her what she wanted to know would not end well for the blonde alchemist.
"Sister, I think it would be best if you and young Edward spoke at a later time. It's a very long story and you'll be late for your doctor appointment if you don't leave now," Major Armstrong said, interrupting Ed before he could immediately start relaying the whole story despite the fact that there were several people present who didn't know anything about his inter-dimensional trips.
General Armstrong actually growled at her brother for daring to interject himself, an action that caused the Lions to look at her with awe while the Paladins seemed to be watching her with mild fear and wariness now. Major Armstrong simply smiled pleasantly at his sister's reaction, something Ed had to give him points for since he'd known lesser men to run from the elder Armstrong in fear if she'd done that to them. However, much to Ed's surprise, General Armstrong didn't immediately murder her brother, literally or verbally, and she didn't ignore his suggestion.
"What are you doing late this evening?" General Armstrong asked bitingly.
"Probably finishing up helping with setting up and heading back to the Hughes'," Ed told her, knowing exactly why she was asking.
"We have a dinner with Mother, Father and Catherine tonight," Major Armstrong reminded his sister and Ed was certain he saw the swordswoman reach for her bladed weapon before she thought better of her actions.
"Tomorrow afternoon?" Armstrong snarled, glaring at both Ed and her brother.
"Happily discussing the events around our diplomatic guests appearing in our country with you," Ed said without hesitation and was relieved when General Armstrong seemed to be pleased with that answer. Or he thought she did at least. He couldn't actually say for certain whether she was or not.
"Very well," General Armstrong said with a slight nod. "I will speak with you at length about this tomorrow afternoon," she told him, gesturing with one hand at Voltron. She barely waited for Ed's nod of agreement before she left the outer office without another word.
"I do apologise for my elder sister's bluntness," Major Armstrong said while Ross lingered behind him, waving silently in greeting to Ed. "She's just very intrigued about the ten of you and her thirst for answers has never been easily ignored," Armstrong told them.
Ed waved back to Ross as he addressed Armstrong. "Don't worry about it, Major. We know what General Armstrong is like and we aren't offended by her behaviour, if that's what you're worried about," he told him.
Much to Ed's relief, Ross noticed the signs that Armstrong was about to lose control of his emotions in face of Ed's claims and was able to interject herself, stopping the large man's joyful tears before they could begin. "I apologise for hurrying this along but we really should get back to our duties, Sir," she told Armstrong, who quickly and enthusiastically nodded in agreement with her words.
"Of course, Lieutenant Ross!" the major boomed, loud enough that Samantha shot him a withering look before she went back to her own duties. "We shall see you all tomorrow morning, if we do not happen to run into you beforehand!" he said, addressing everyone minus his sister and the Xingese who had attended the meeting with Grumman.
"See ya, Major," Ed said with a small wave. "Bye, Miss Maria," he added as the lieutenant started to subtly herd her commanding officer out of Grumman's outer office.
"Bye, Ed," Maria said as she continued with her efforts while everyone else offered their own goodbyes to the pair of them.
Once Maria had successfully managed to remove Armstrong from Grumman's outer office, Mustang decided to speak. "I believe it would probably be a good idea to head down to the courtyard now. I'm sure Fullmetal will happily answer any questions the four of you have as we walk," he said, cutting off Darius, who had been about to ask Ed something.
"Are you sure you've got no more paperwork to do? Maybe a stash hidden somewhere that you should get done before Miss Riza shoots you?" Ed asked, not bothering to hide his suspicion regarding Mustang's claims that no one on the team had any work left to do.
"Of course I'm sure," Mustang scowled but Ed's suspicious look didn't fade in the slightest.
"I searched his office myself. There is no more paperwork requiring completion by the general today," Hawkeye said, sounding mildly surprised by the revelation herself. Mustang looked torn between being smug and offended.
"Oh, well that's definitely a surprise," Ed said, earning himself a glare from Mustang but he continued speaking before the man could actually say anything. "We should get going though before Grumman thinks we were just pretending to accept his request to help out," he said, turning smartly on his heel and heading for the doors. "Bye, Miss Samantha!" Ed called as he held the door open so everyone could get through. He pretended not to notice the scowl on Mustang's face as everyone followed Ed's orders but he did notice and returned Havoc's and Breda's smirks.
"Bye, Edward! Have a good afternoon," Samantha called back, waving goodbye even as she reached for the now-ringing phone on her desk.
Ed returned the wave before he followed Scar, who had been the last to leave, and shut the door behind him. He found himself immediately surrounded by the Lions and Darius and Heinkel, the latter two obviously preparing to get the answers about his promotion out of Ed before they even got to the courtyard. Ed didn't bother to put up a fight as everyone started moving, Izumi being drawn into a conversation with Hawkeye while Hunk was enthusiastically talking with Sig about the butcher shop and Sig's opinions on different cuts of meat and how they should be cooked. Everyone else was either listening or engaged in their own conversations, with Al drawing Scar into one about what was happening in Ishval now.
Ed sighed, getting both Heinkel and Darius' immediate attention since they both knew what that sigh meant. "Alright, so my promotion happened like this," Ed said, grinning when both chimeras seemed to lean a little closer. "So, about four or so months ago, Mustang went and got himself framed for several murders and an attempted murder. After the third murder, Mustang and Miss Riza realised something was happening so they decided to plan for it…"
"Hey, kid." Ed paused in his movements to help grab more chairs to set up for those who were going to be attending the ceremony to sit in tomorrow as Darius called out him only half an hour after Ed had finished regaling both him and Heinkel with his story about why he'd been promoted.
"What's up?" Ed asked as he jogged over, expecting the gorilla chimera to ask for Ed's help with something. Both Al and Mustang paused in what they were doing a couple feet away to watch Ed move before they both seemed to turn back to their own work, apparently dismissing the call for Ed as a request for the blonde's help as well.
Heinkel seemed to know what Darius was about to ask since the lion chimera paused in his own work, which confused the blonde a little. "We've been meaning to ask since we first spotted ya, but how are you going after Baschool and that fight with that bastard, Kimblee?" Darius asked, frowning with a touch of concern.
Ed immediately froze internally, something the Lions were very quick to notice, which meant their Paladins noticed as well. "Yeah, I'm all good," Ed said lightly, pairing his words with a smile that he hoped would mean neither chimera would question him further.
As usual, Ed's luck was never that good. "So you haven't noticed any side effects from using your life-span as a stone to heal yourself?" Heinkel asked, oblivious to the panic going on inside Ed's head that only grew with each word that came out of the lion chimera's mouth.
"He did what?!" Al gasped; his voice strangled as he dropped the chair he'd been carting.
Mustang's reaction was almost identical, minus the exclamation. His dark eyes were trained solely on his youngest subordinate, who was looking like he would've rather been facing off Father again than being here in this situation. The commotion caused by Al attracted the attention of several other people, Hawkeye included, but most of them simply continued with what they were, Hawkeye excluded. The blonde captain seemed to realise something was happening since she decided to take a few steps forward in order to put herself in the conversation and, if need be, stop something from happening.
Both Darius and Heinkel seemed to realise what was going on as the Lions headed for Ed, wanting to be there as support for him and Ed found himself thankful for Blue and Black immediately pressing against him as he realised that he was going to have to explain what Heinkel had said after spending over a year keeping it from everyone. He was exceptionally grateful for the fact that none of the Lions were gloating about how they'd told him it would've been better for him to come clean in Ishval. He could feel the Lions' irritation at the fact that Ed had assumed they would've done that in the first place.
"They didn't know, did they?" Darius asked, voice unusually quiet as he put two and two together just as Izumi and Sig seemed to realise something important was about to happen and quickly joined the party.
"Nope," Ed said, eyes refusing to meet anyone else's. The entire atmosphere around their group was extremely uncomfortable and fraught with numerous kinds of tension and Ed honestly had no desire to do anything except flee from it.
"Didn't know what?" Izumi snapped, obviously displeased that she was out of the loop and concerned about what was happening in front of her.
"What did Heinkel mean when he said you used your life-span as a stone to heal yourself?" Al asked and Ed winced at the tremble in his little brother's voice.
Izumi's, Sig's and Hawkeye's gasps joined ones from the pilots of Voltron and all of them caused Ed to flinch slightly. "When I fought Kimblee in Baschool after Al and I separated so he could warn Winry, Scar, and the rest of them that Fort Briggs was no longer safe for them to head to, Kimblee caused the mine shaft to collapse while Heinkel, Darius and I were still in it," Ed told them, his left hand clutching at Blue's fur as he kept himself from backing out.
"You can do this, cub," Black told him as the other Lions did their best to comfort and surround him just in case.
"We know about that," Mustang said, his voice forcibly level and Ed couldn't hold back a flinch at the sound of it.
"I was hurt," Ed told them. "Badly hurt," he added before someone could interrupt him. "A thin support beam impaled my left side," he told them, grimacing at exclamations and other noises coming from those around him and hadn't been in that mine shaft with him. "Darius and Heinkel were trapped under some rubble and were being slowly crushed to death. I used alchemy to sever as much of the beam as possible and to free the two of them. In repayment, they helped pull the remaining part of the beam out of my gut," he told them, eyes still on the ground.
"That kind of injury should've killed you almost immediately. You shouldn't have even survived it being pulled out." Ed wished he could've been surprised when he heard Havoc's voice from somewhere near where Mustang and Hawkeye were standing.
"Yeah, it should've," Ed said with a humourless chuckle. "But us Elrics are tough to kill," he repeated the words he'd said so many times before, "and I'd learnt a couple of things after sacrificing some of Envy's stone to get us out of Gluttony's fake Gate," he told them. "I sacrificed some of my life-span in order to heal my injury enough before I bled out so that Darius and Heinkel could get me to a doctor who could finish patching me up," Ed explained. He took a deep breath before he made himself look up at meet the eyes of his brother, teacher, and commanding officer. "I couldn't die. Not when Father was still alive and needed to be dealt with," he said, voice far firmer than it had been during the past few minutes.
Heinkel and Darius both looked extremely uncomfortable and a bit guilty at the fact that their innocent desire to check on their friend had been the cause of this scene in front of them. Al looked like he was about to go into shock while both Hawkeye and Mustang's impassive masks were broken by fury and grief, respectively. Izumi, to Ed's surprise, had a couple of tears clinging to her eyelashes and she looked as though she was fighting to not shed anymore while Sig looked like he was trying not to wrap Ed up in a hug and never let him go. Havoc looked pale and distraught, like he couldn't believe Ed had gone through something like that and he'd been none the wiser. Ed didn't have to look behind him to know that the humans of Voltron would've all been looking much the same as everyone else.
"Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't you tell me?" Al asked, gasping through the sobs threatening to sound as tears started rolling down his cheeks.
"When would I have had the chance?" Ed asked. "It took me two months to heal enough that the doctor would even let me out of his house, despite the fact that he really wanted us gone. Almost immediately after that, Darius, Heinkel, Greed and I had to go into hiding for nearly a month until Promised Day. You then got yourself trapped in that dome with Pride and then we were all fighting against Father," Ed said. "You were so weak after waking up from your coma that the doctors actually argued with me about what I could tell you because they worried that any kind of stress would stop your heart," Ed said, his voice growing quieter. "Then I saw how you reacted when we got the word that Hohenheim died. I couldn't tell you then," he told him. "By the time I'd considered telling you, it had been well over eight months since the fight in Baschool. It had been so long and I'd made my peace with it. What would've been the point of telling you and causing you to react like this when there was nothing you would've been able to do?" Ed asked.
"I wouldn't have found out like this!" Al snapped, his eyes blazing with anger even as more tears ran down his cheeks. "I wouldn't have found out because Darius and Heinkel didn't realise we didn't know! Dammit, Ed! You should've told us!"
"So you could react like this and spend months trying to figure out a way to fix what I'd done?" Ed asked, sounding a little tired already. "Al, there is nothing you can do about it and I know exactly what you're like. You wouldn't have accepted that and you would've killed yourself trying to save me and that is exactly what I didn't want to happen," Ed told him.
"How many?" Izumi asked, cutting Al off without the slightest regret. "How many years did you sacrifice in a stunt that stupid?" Izumi asked, eyes blazing as dangerously as Al's had.
"I don't know," Ed admitted, causing both Izumi and Al to choke down another sob each. "It was probably one of the worst injuries I'd ever gotten and I only managed to heal it enough for Heinkel and Darius to get me out of the mountain and to the nearest town. I can't imagine the number of years I gave up for that would be a small number," he admitted. The noise Al made tore at Ed's heart and he wanted nothing in that moment other than to make it so Al wasn't feeling like that anymore but he knew any attempt to comfort him would result in Al lashing out at him.
"This," Mustang started saying before he cut himself off and Ed was shocked to realise that Mustang was fighting his own emotions so that he wouldn't give any indication to those around them that something upsetting had happened. Mustang cleared his throat and started speaking again. "This isn't the place for this conversation," he said firmly. "There are too many people who can overhear us and this is a conversation that needs to happen in far more detail than what we can manage now," he told them. Taking a deep breath that was obviously meant to steel himself, Mustang continued. "We will be talking about this later. Perhaps not tonight or tomorrow as we'll be too busy with the memorial service but we will be speaking about this," Mustang said, his voice leaving no room for argument.
Ed didn't put up a fight as Mustang pinned him with a glare that told him that the blonde didn't have a choice though he did strengthen his grip in Blue's fur. He was not looking forward to that discussion but knew he could do nothing to escape it. Instead, he nodded to show his agreement and Mustang seemed to deem it good enough. Al looked like he wanted to argue against the general but a firm look from Mustang had him back down enough that Ed knew he would listen to the flame alchemist. Both Izumi and Sig looked torn about following Mustang's suggestions but they did, giving Ed a look that he couldn't decipher before they headed back to what they'd been doing before they realised something had been going on.
Darius and Heinkel watched as Havoc, Hawkeye, and Mustang headed away from the group before they too went to head back to their self-assigned jobs. "Sorry, kid," Darius said before he left and Ed gave him a small smile.
"Not your fault," Ed told him quietly before he nodded to Heinkel's silent inquiry about whether he was alright. Both chimeras were quick to leave the brothers and Voltron by themselves and Ed knew that the humans of Voltron were silently debating about whether they should leave as well to give the brothers as much space as possible.
Ed was completely unsurprised but still hurt when Al didn't do anything more than shake his head and join Izumi and Sig in what they were doing, apparently deciding that ignoring his older brother was the best way to make sure that he didn't disobey Mustang's order to leave this discussion for a later time. He felt a head butt against his shoulder blades and turned to face Red, who was looking as distraught as the rest of Voltron. A quick glance at the Paladins told him that both Lance and Hunk had been crying, though they'd managed to stop and wipe away the tears to try and hide the fact, while Pidge and Keith looked furious and heartbroken. Shiro looked the exact same way Ed knew he and Al had looked when they were told that their mother was dying and wouldn't recover.
"We need to get back to work," Ed told them, his voice somehow both tired and empty at the same time.
Both Lance and Hunk got exactly one word of protest out before Shiro cut them off. "Ed's right," he said, earning himself a glare from the two Paladins. "We promised Fuhrer Grumman that we would help set up the courtyard for tomorrow and you all heard Mustang. This is something that will be discussed in a far more private setting once everyone has had a chance to calm down," Shiro said, his tone informing them that he wouldn't be arguing about this and he expected them not to either.
It was obvious they didn't want to but, much to Ed's relief, the two Paladins backed down. Neither Pidge nor Keith had spoken a word but they didn't look like they were planning on interrogating the blonde on the spot, which Ed was glad about because he didn't think those two would be a team he'd want to be interrogated by. The four younger Paladins eventually moved away to continue doing what work they had been before their Lions alerted them to something happening with Ed but Shiro stayed behind.
"Are you alright?" Shiro asked as the blonde felt a tear roll down his cheek before he could stop it.
"I'm fine," Ed said, angrily swiping the small drop of liquid from his cheek and feeling his desire to just curl up or punch something rise inside of him before he forced it back down.
Shiro looked at him knowingly before he stepped in between Green and Black so he could draw Ed into a one-armed hug that would've looked like a simple friendly gesture rather than the act of comfort it was. "No you're not," Shiro said with a small sigh as he squeezed Ed closer against him.
"But you will be," Black said, her voice echoing slightly in Shiro's mind as she spoke to Ed. "They're just scared and confused and angry that you kept this hidden. It might hurt for a little bit but they won't stay like that for long after you've told them everything and answered as many questions as you can," she told him, voice confident.
Ed nodded even as he swiped at his cheek again, ridding himself of another tear before it could the full journey down his cheek. "Yeah," he said in agreement.
Shiro knew that the blonde didn't fully believe his Lion but he would've been far more surprised if he had. Sighing internally, Shiro tightened the hug a bit more before he used his grip to lead Ed towards the rest of Voltron, determined to get the blonde's mind off of what happened, even it was just for a little while.
A/N- Boom! Here's 29 for you all and the start of this particularly angsty arc for this story! Thank you to those who left me a review on the last chapter and I'd love to hear your thoughts regarding this one. Have a good day and I'll see you all next week!
