Chapter 35 –

"We need to get going quickly," Ed said, a note of urgency in his voice as he entered the kitchen. The only ones who weren't up were Gracia and Elysia. Gracia wouldn't have to leave for work until 8:00 that morning so Elysia was staying home while Ed and Al went to say goodbye to Izumi and Sig at the train station. The brothers had promised to be back by quarter to eight at the latest so that Gracia would be able to get dressed for work without worrying about Elysia getting herself into trouble.

Al looked up at his brother's entrance and frowned at the tone of Ed's voice. "We've got forty minutes until we have to be at the train station, Brother, and it only takes fifteen to get there. What's the rush?" he asked, eyes flicking to Shiro and Lance, as though he expected them to know what was going on.

"Miss Allura just called me," Ed revealed, instantly getting everyone's immediate attention. "She's coming to Amestris today. She just needs the five Lions to be in one spot so she can use her bond with them as a guiding beacon," he told them.

"Why?" Shiro asked, brows furrowing in confusion. "Why does she need to come here? I thought we would've just had to wait for her to open a wormhole between our dimensions and we could fly through it," he said.

"That's what I had assumed to but they've discovered that the portal is unstable unless there's two sources of her alchemy, one on either side of the portal," Ed told them. "It probably wouldn't be an issue if you guys had ended up in some planet millions of miles away but in your own dimension. Allura would've just opened a normal wormhole to get you guys. It might've drained her but she could've done it without any issues. However, from what Doctor Holt and Matt told Allura, it's like the fact that the portal opens up in a different dimension that affects it in a concerning way. They're not convinced Allura can hold it open for long enough for the ten of you to get through in one piece," Ed explained. "So, they came up with a device that connects Allura to the teleduv, no matter the distance between them and one that is attached to the teleduv that holds Allura's alchemic energy. When she activates the device on her, Allura will also activate the device on the teleduv and somehow the two lots of energy working together forms a bridge, which stabilises the portal, making it safer for you guys to get through. It just means that Allura has to be the last one through," Ed said.

Shiro's frown hadn't smoothed out and Lance looked worried. "But wouldn't Allura be risking herself to come over here in the first place?" Lance asked.

Ed shook his head. "No," he assured him. "The Holts are positive that the portal will be stable enough for Allura to get through. The destabilisation only worsens with each object or person going through it," he explained, repeating Allura's words from only minutes earlier. "If Allura stayed on the Castle-Ship, Doctor Holt theorised that maybe three or four of you could make it back fine before the portal collapses or Allura can't hold it," Ed said, "and since it'll take Allura a couple of days to recover her energy between activations of the teleduv, it's take nearly a week to get you all back to your dimension. With her coming over here, she'll only need to take the couple of days to rest before she can power the teleduv from both ends and get you all home in one go," Ed revealed.

Shiro, Lance, Blue and Black still looked concerned for Allura's health and safety but they seemed to relax a little with Ed's words. "So when is she arriving?" Shiro asked.

"Not until I have the Lions give her the okay and that won't be until Teacher and Sig are gone and we've warned Mustang, who'll warn Grumman," Ed told him. "We'll honestly be lucky if she's here before Miss Gracia needs to leave for work," Ed admitted.

"Why do you need to tell Grumman and Mustang?" Lance asked before clarifying himself immediately. "I mean, why do you have to tell them in person? Can't you ask Yellow, Red, or Green to tell their pilot and have whichever one is told tell Mustang and he tell Grumman?" Lance asked.

"I could but I'd rather tell Grumman myself, if only to make sure he's told before Allura actually arrives," Ed told him. "I don't know what Mustang's schedule is like so I have no idea if he'll be able to tell Grumman immediately," Ed said as he swiped some buttered toast off the pile Al had finished making. Al glared at him but didn't say anything as Ed shoved half a piece a toast in his mouth, chewed for a moment and washed it down with half a cup of fresh coffee that Lance handed to him with an amused smirk. "Cheers," Ed said once his mouth was empty. "Do you four want to come with us this morning or stay here until we're back? Either way, we likely won't be okaying Miss Allura's arrival until Miss Gracia is gone for the day because we won't have the time after seeing Grumman to get somewhere isolated so that no one panics when a portal opens randomly," Ed explained before Lance or Shiro could answer him.

Shiro and Lance glanced at one another before looking at their Lions. Lance ended up shrugging to Shiro, telling the older man it was up to him. Shiro looked over at Ed, who was now making his way through his third piece of toast. "We'll go with you, if that's alright? We might be able to help answer questions Grumman might have since the Lions can talk with Allura," Shiro said.

Ed nodded as he drained the last of his first coffee. "Yeah, I don't mind. Wouldn't have made it an option if I did," he said with a smirk that had both Paladins rolling their eyes.

"We can go when everyone's finished breakfast," Al told everyone as he poured another two coffees, handing one to Ed without being prodded by his older brother to do so.

"Thanks," Ed said as he took the coffee and another piece of toast from the dwindling pile. "Don't say anything about a caffeine addiction," Ed warned, poking a finger at both Black and Blue.

"We weren't going to say anything," Black said, sounding offended that Ed had even suggested she would.

Ed gave her a flat look while Lance tried to smother his laughter. Ed wasn't completely sure what Blue had said to him but it was apparent Black didn't appreciate it. "Sure you weren't," Ed muttered at her, sipping his coffee slowly, savouring this one now that he had caffeine in his system.

"But it's not like we wouldn't be wrong," Blue sassed, chuckling when Ed flipped her off.

"They really wouldn't have," Al said, even as he drank his own coffee.

Ed pointedly looked at Al's coffee cup before glancing up at his face then back at his coffee. "Pot, meet kettle," he deadpanned, grinning into his coffee as he heard several huffs of laughter, both in his mind and around him.


"Have a safe trip back," Ed said, waving goodbye to his teacher and her husband from where he stood on the station platform with Al and Voltron behind him. Al was standing on his right, waving goodbye alongside his brother. Ed was almost certain he didn't imagine the approving glance he and Al got from Izumi.

"Neither of you had better be dead by the time Sig and I pay you a visit next," Izumi warned the pair of brothers. "And if I find out you are, you can bet your arses that I'll bring you back just to end you again," she promised them, adding a glare to reinforce her point further.

"Yes, Teacher," both Al and Ed immediately said in agreement, voices appropriately fearful and Izumi nodded in satisfaction.

"Goodbye, boys. Keep yourselves safe," Sig rumbled from his seat, giving them a rare and warm smile.

"We'll do our best," Ed promised him. He didn't notice the disbelieving look Al gave him then Sig, whose only sign of amusement was a wider smile.

The train whistle blew, signalling its impending departure. Izumi glared at the boys one more time while Sig gave them another smile that had hints of worry, pride, and affection in it. "It was nice meeting the ten of you. I truly hope we can see each other again and please pass on our apologies to Princess Allura that we couldn't delay our departure so we could meet her," Izumi said, eyes softening slightly as they turned to Voltron.

"It was a pleasure meeting the both of you as well," Shiro said, slipping back into his usual task of speaking on behalf of the team. "Have a safe journey home and I'll pass on your message to Princess Allura, though I can assure you that Allura will understand why you couldn't meet her today and that she would be happy to arrange to meet you at a later date," he told her.

Izumi and Sig gave him a smile before they waved to everyone just as the train started pulling away from the station. Ed and Al didn't drop their arms until the last train carriage was out of the station and the moment it was, they immediately high-fived. "Another visit survived!" Ed cheered, earning himself numerous chuckles and amused snorts from everyone except Al, who was grinning with the same amount of excitement as his brother.

"And you didn't even land in hospital this time!" Al exclaimed, grin widening and eyes shining brightly. "I think I can only think of, like, two other visits where that hasn't happened!"

"You just had to bring up my record?" Ed asked as he and Al started heading out of the train station, waving or nodding to the employees they knew while Voltron walked behind them, the Lions ensuring they had a relatively clear path.

"Yes. I absolutely had to," Al told him, completely straight-faced before yelping and rubbing his right shoulder, glaring at Ed, who looked thoroughly unphased by it.

"How many times do I have to say not to sass me if you don't want to get hit?" Ed asked, brow raised pointedly when his brother started grumbling.

"Ah, sibling love," Lance sighed teasingly, earning a double-Elric glare for himself, which caused him to chuckle nervously. He noticed the amusement oozing from his Lion and glared at her, even as the others around him laughed at his reaction. Lance refused to admit that his pout stayed in place until at least three blocks away from the train station.


"Did you really have to go out of your way to tell the guards not to warn General Mustang that we were here, even if they were under orders to do so?" Al asked, sounding thoroughly exasperated by his brother's actions.

"Can you really blame me for wanting to go one day without seeing that bastard's face?" Ed asked, sounding shocked that Al would.

"Brother," Al sighed long-sufferingly.

"Alphonse, I really feel like I need to say this once – just for my peace of mind – but I think you ought to give up on trying to change this part of Ed," Shiro suggested, nearly pleading.

"Stubbornness is an Elric trait and I am just as stubborn as my brother is," Alphonse informed him, glaring at Ed who had been chuckling at Shiro's suggestion.

"At least I can say I tried," Shiro said, shrugging a shoulder and backing down immediately without any further argument.

Ed shook his head as they entered the large elevator and hit the button for the floor Grumman's office was on. The doors slid shut smoothly and they all felt that familiar swooping sensation that came with an elevator going upwards. "I'll give you points for trying, Shiro," Ed told him as he leant against the side of the elevator so he could face the Black Paladin, "and I'll even give you bonus points because I am certain no one has ever asked him to do that. Not even Miss Riza," Ed said, sounding rather surprised by his own admission.

"Not true," Al said as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened. "Captain Hawkeye was the one to ask me to try and get you to change your attitude then she told me it wasn't necessary anymore after a couple of months so I could stop trying but I didn't listen," Al admitted.

Ed gave him a mildly exasperatedly shocked look. "You ignored Miss Riza's instruction?" Ed asked. "Who the hell are you and what have you done with my brother?!" Ed asked, turning so he was walking backwards and giving Al a suspicious look that had the younger Elric rolling his eyes.

"Stop being an idiot," Al chided, even if he was grinning at Ed's behaviour.

"Is that possible for Ed?" Pidge asked, grinning when everyone bar Ed laughed at her words and Ed's offended gasp.

"Hey!" Ed protested, scowling at everyone, most of whom were still chuckling at Ed's expression. His scowl needed to disappear when they found themselves in front of Grumman's outer office door. "You're all arseholes," he muttered, swinging the door open so no one could say anything in response.

Or no one who didn't have a mental connection with him at least. "Hey! That's so rude!" Blue protested. "We weren't teasing you," she grumbled.

Ed considered her words even as he greeted Samantha. "That's true," Ed admitted. "I apologise to the five of you," he said through their connections. He could tell the moment the Paladins felt the Lions joy and smugness through their bond with their individual Lion and he couldn't hold back his smirk at it. "We need to speak with Fuhrer Grumman, if he has a couple of minutes?" Ed asked Samantha, who had been speaking with Alphonse so she hadn't noticed that Ed wasn't really paying attention to her for a few moments.

"I think he might," Samantha told them as she flicked through Grumman's schedule. "It's Saturday so there aren't many meetings being held today," she explained as she reached the page she needed. A quick scan of the pencilled-in meetings written in the top half of the page had Samantha nodding her head. "He has ten minutes before he's scheduled to meet with General Brathwaite," Samantha said, "which means you'll have fifteen minutes at the absolute most before he needs to leave, okay?"

"More than enough time," Ed said, giving her a blinding smile. "Thank you, Miss Samantha."

Samantha returned his smile. "You're welcome, Edward," she said. "Just let me call him so he has a heads up," she said, reaching for her phone.

Even though he knew she'd only asked to be polite and that she would've called Grumman anyway, Ed still nodded and took a couple of steps away from her desk so she had some privacy. "So we've got fifteen minutes?" Shiro asked and Ed nodded.

"We actually have ten really but fifteen if we absolutely need it," Ed corrected. "But I'd be extraordinarily surprised if this takes us more than ten minutes," he told him.

"Same," Al agreed just as Samantha placed the phone back in its cradle.

"Go on ahead, guys," Samantha said, even as she got up from her seat to open the inner office doors like she always did. "I'll see you in a few minutes," she said, giving all of them a warning look that lasted two seconds before she grinned to show she was only teasing.

Ed matched her smile. "Maybe we'll take those fifteen minutes," he teased right back and earned himself a look that told him if they did, she'd make them regret it. "See you in a bit, Miss Samantha," Ed laughed as the doors were pushed open, permitting them entrance.

Samantha nodded at him, a warning glint still in her eyes as she opened the doors. "Good morning, everyone," Grumman greeted before Samantha could announce them.

"Morning, Sir," Ed said as he moved inside, leading the way for the others and waving goodbye to Samantha at the same time. "Thanks for agreeing to a quick meeting," he said as everyone finished entering the office. There was a soft click that told Ed that the doors were now shut, leaving them alone inside Grumman's office with the Fuhrer.

"I figured it must've been important for you to be at my door this early on a Saturday morning," Grumman told him, an amused curl of his lips the only betrayal of his impassive mask.

"Well, you'd be right," Ed told him as he glared at Pidge and Lance, both of whom had snatched the two comfortable chairs that sat in front of Grumman's desk. "I've told you that Pidge managed to connect my tablet to everyone else's on the Castle-Ship, right?" he asked, suddenly unsure of whether he had or not. He wouldn't have been surprised if it had slipped his mind.

"Yes, you have," Grumman said with a nod.

Ed was mildly surprised at that but didn't comment on it. "Awesome, that'll make this go a lot quicker and mean Miss Samantha probably won't burst in to drag us out by the ears," he said, only half joking. Grumman really did grin at that before managing to look neutral once more and gestured for Ed to continue. "I received a call from Princess Allura this morning to tell me that the inter-dimensional teleduv they've been working on is finally able to be used," he explained before launching into the rest of what he'd told Lance, Shiro and Al in Gracia's kitchen that morning.

Grumman listened to what he said quietly, only interrupting to ask the same questions Ed had been asked that morning before going back to attentive silence as Ed explained. "I see," Grumman said when Ed finally finished speaking. "So we'll have another diplomatic guest arriving shortly?" he asked and Ed nodded.

"As soon as we give her the all-clear to do so, she'll arrive," Ed confirmed.

Grumman sighed slightly before leaning back in his seat and regarding Ed for a moment. "You already have a location and cover plan in mind, don't you?" he asked and Ed grinned at him.

"I do," he revealed, earning looks from everyone else since this was news to them. "I thought that maybe I could take Voltron just outside of Central to see the ruins of the cabin where we held Gluttony captive. Princess Allura will sense when the five Lions are there before she has someone she found and trusts to use quintessence open a portal long enough for her to get through," Ed said. "The user will only have enough energy to open a portal big enough for her to use since they've never done this before. Once they know they were successful, the quintessence user will rest for two days before opening a portal large enough for the eleven of them to cross over," Ed finished saying.

Grumman mulled over the story for a few moments. "I admit that it's a good story," Grumman told him. "However, the one thing I think someone would question is how would this quintessence user know whether Princess Allura made it safely? For that matter, how will they know when the eleven of them are together and ready to leave?" Grumman asked, brows raised.

Ed glanced over at Al and Voltron, letting them know silently that they were more than welcome to jump in if they had any ideas on how to answer Grumman's questions. After a couple of seconds, Lance perked up slightly. "Allura's gonna be wearing something on her wrist right? Something that connects her to the teleduv?" he asked and Ed nodded. "We could say that it's a way of tracking her through quintessence? Maybe the 'person' who is creating the portal made it so that Allura can press something that releases quintessence that can be picked up by them? We can say that Allura will press it again when she's ready for the portal to open again," he suggested, looking at the others to see what they thought.

No one spoke for a few moments until Grumman nodded. "It could work," he said. "We don't actually know the technology behind your bayards so we don't know what other technological advances you have. The only problem I can foresee is a general or two becoming paranoid over the whole portal thing," Grumman said. "It was alright when you ten turned up," he gestured to Voltron, "because you told us that quintessence was only recently discovered and no one knew much about it which told the generals that it would unlikely be used against us. Now you're planning on telling us that Allura found someone to use quintessence to open a portal deliberately so she can enter Amestris. That's going to make quite a few higher-ups ask what would stop your country from portalling an army into Amestris at a later date," he explained.

Ed hummed in thought but it was Al who spoke next. "What if we spoke to Allura and asked her to provide Amestris with technological advances that will help us?" he asked. "I know that Allura's home planet is far too advanced for us to try and catch up with now but I also know Pidge has some blue prints drawn up that she's been trying to figure out how to give us," Al explained before anyone could veto his idea. "If Allura readily agrees with no hesitation to give us those blueprints, you and she could strike a trade agreement or something similar. That might help ease the generals' fear and suspicion," he said.

Ed nodded. "It follows equivalent exchange, which I know most of the generals are familiar with and agree with," Ed said, making it obvious he was backing Al's idea. "The plans Pidge has are more advanced than what we've got but not so advanced that we'd never be able to pull them off in the near future. At first, the plans can be in exchange for looking after Voltron and helping with Lotor. If you and Allura think having a trade agreement in place is a good idea – assuming you and Allura agree that Voltron visiting every now and then can happen – then we'll have to come up with things we could trade for technological advances and whatnot," Ed said.

"Allura is definitely the kind of leader who would offer repayment to a foreign planet or country who took us in, looked after us and helped us with someone like Lotor with no warning. The idea that she'd pay the country back however she could certainly wouldn't be out of the question," Shiro said, interjecting himself into the conversation.

Grumman's eyes flicked over all of them, looking to see if anyone seemed as though they didn't agree with Ed or Shiro. Finding nothing of the sort, Grumman nodded. "I believe you're right. Amestris being offered technological advances in repayment for looking after Allura's citizens would likely ease any suspicions the generals might have regarding Allura and her intentions towards us," Grumman said, leaning back in his chair. "I'd like to speak with Allura once she's here and settled enough to agree to a meeting with me so we can introduce her to the generals and present the idea to them and look like we're in agreement with each other," he told them.

"Yeah, that won't be an issue," Ed said immediately. "She'll probably want to meet you ASAP as well," he said, a smile stretching on his face when all of Voltron nodded in agreement with him. "We'll have Elysia with us but we can see if Fuery or someone will keep an eye on her, if that meeting with the generals happens before Miss Gracia gets off work," he said, glancing at Al.

"I can't see why the meeting wouldn't happen by this afternoon but I'll be sure to give you plenty of warning," Grumman promised.

"Thanks, Grumman," Ed said, gladdened that they seemed to have a solid plan in place now. "We'll take off now, if that's good with you? We've still gotta go by Doctor Knox's office and pick up Lotor's cremains before we get back to Miss Gracia's before she leaves for work," Ed said, his tone reminding everyone that they were on a deadline and neither person he mentioned would be happy if they were late, which got Al looking like he was ready to start leading everyone out of the office.

Grumman's lips lifted in amusement as he nodded. "I'll wait to hear from you before I pull the generals in for a meeting. I'll have Samantha call you with a time, if I don't see you with Princess Allura beforehand," Grumman told him.

"We'll be at Miss Gracia's, if we're not on base already," Ed told him and Grumman tilted his head in acknowledgment.

"I'll inform Samantha," Grumman said. "In the meantime, I think it'd be best if you hurried along to Doctor Knox's so that the good doctor doesn't have any reason to call General Mustang to rant at him," Grumman suggested.

Ed's eyes lit up immediately but Al smacked his shoulder, causing the older blonde to flinch and snarl at his younger brother. "No, we are not going to be purposefully late to Doctor Knox's so that you can get General Mustang yelled at," Al scolded.

"I didn't even say anything!" Ed protested, rubbing the spot on his arm Al had hit and finding himself feeling even more grateful for Lance's foresight in packing some of their first-aid kits in his bag. Al had managed to hit him in between the two injuries he'd gotten from Keith the day before but he knew the hit would've hurt way worse if they were healing at the rate he normally healed at.

"I know what you were thinking," Al informed him, eyes rolling at his brother's dramatics.

"We can make us a little late for Doctor Knox by getting distracted by things," Red offered as the humans around them started wishing Grumman a good day while trying to keep their amusement at Ed and Al hidden.

"I won't encourage that but I'm not actively discouraging it either," Ed told her, grinning when he felt her acceptance and determination. Before anyone could comment on his smirk, Ed saluted Grumman. "We'll probably see you later today."

"I imagine you will," Grumman said with a nod and amused glint in his eyes. "You're dismissed," he told them, gesturing pointedly to the door and Ed didn't hesitate.

"Cheers, Grumman," Ed said, giving the man a wave as he opened the door and allowed everyone to walk out first as they repeated their own goodbyes. "Enjoy the peace while it lasts," he joked.

Grumman snorted lightly. "I appreciate that, Edward," he said as he pulled his paperwork towards himself. "You'd better leave before your brother thinks you and the Lions are going to try making General Mustang's day a little more difficult," he warned him, an amused smirk curling on his lips at Ed's sheepish chuckle.

"Yeah, you've got a point," Ed said, voice light with laughter. "See ya, Grumman!" he said once more before he closed the door, waving at the amused older man as he did so.

"From what Alphonse has said, I might be expecting a call from you later this morning?" Samantha asked, getting Ed's immediate attention.

"Yeah, that or another visit, depending on how things go down," Ed warned her.

Samantha nodded in acceptance that her day may get a touch more hectic than she'd thought it would be that morning. "I'll speak with you later and if I don't end up seeing you later today, I hope you all have a good one," she said, giving them all a pleasant smile.

"You as well, Miss Samantha," Ed said, finding himself echoed almost verbatim by everyone else.

The group left the outer office with a wave from Samantha, leaving her in the peace and quiet of an empty office – at least, until something or someone interrupted it for a meeting or something else with Grumman or Samantha herself. Once they were outside, Ed and Al took up the lead as they usually did and Ed was a mixture of amused and annoyed at the pace Al was setting. It was obvious Al hadn't bought Ed's innocent act and was trying to ensure he wouldn't be able to worsen Mustang's day, no matter how slight it would've been.

"I've elected to let you all try and slow us down, if you're in," Ed said through his bond with the Lions.

The five of them looked at the slight glare Ed was giving the seemingly oblivious Al before they looked at one another and had a quick but silent conversation with each other. A few moments later, Ed was trying to wipe the grin that appeared at the Lions' response off his face. "Leave it to us."


"I swear, it's not much further," Ed said, pausing in his stride to hike Elysia up so she was more securely on his back.

"That's what you said ten minutes ago," Pidge grumbled, glaring at Ed for a moment before her eyes went back onto the trail they were following.

"I've only been here twice before and that was well over a year ago and I got here both times in a car and from different directions. Pardon me for not having the trail memorised," Ed snapped, unwilling to put the effort into keeping his voice civil. It had been a long and rushed morning once they'd left Grumman's office and the longer-than-previously-thought hike was only chipping away at his patience with each extra minute they weren't at the cabin where Gluttony had been held captive.

"I believe we need to follow the right-hand path, Edward," Hawkeye said calmly before anyone else could say anything.

To say it had been a surprise to run into Hawkeye walking Black Hayate on their way from Doctor Knox's, interrupting Al's half-hearted lecture of Ed and the Lions for making them three minutes late and ticking off Knox, would be an understatement. Ed had been rolling his eyes at Al's words when the familiar bark had sounded, drawing his attention immediately. Hawkeye had looked as shocked to see them in front of her as they were to see her, though her surprise was hidden far more quickly than theirs was. As Hawkeye explained while Black Hayate proved how much he'd taken after his owner and fearlessly and enthusiastically approached the Lions, yipping and whining in his excitement – something the Lions were delighted in since none of them had met an animal as small or as excited to see them as Hayate –, today was her day off for the week and she'd decided to take Hayate on an extra long walk to make up for the slightly shorter one he'd suffered on the Promised Day anniversary.

When Ed had quietly explained what they were doing, Hawkeye had asked to accompany them to the cabin where they planned on having Allura appear. Though Ed had no issues with it, he did glance at Shiro and the others to gauge their thoughts on her request. Seeing no objections, Ed had told her they'd be happy to have her with them, though he then did warn her that they'd be stopping by Gracia's to pick up Elysia first and that they'd possibly be going back to the base if Allura wanted to speak with Grumman right away to get it over and done with. Hawkeye had had no problems with that and since Black Hayate seemed to be excited about the extra long walk and being around the Lions – who he'd taken to to far quicker than Den had – for longer, they'd both joined them for the rest of the walk to Gracia's.

The decision to let Hawkeye come with them was proving to be a good one in more ways than one since she did remember the way to the cabin in more detail than Ed seemed to. "Thanks, Miss Riza," Ed said, dipping his head gratefully as he followed her instructions.

"How long do we have to wait once we're there to meet Princess 'llura?" Elysia asked, voice nearly vibrating with the excitement that obviously hadn't dissipated in the slightest since they'd told the young girl what they were doing that morning.

Ed hummed in thought. "Well, I don't think it'll take an awfully long time once we've made sure the area is clear and told Miss Allura that she's safe to open the portal," Ed told her. "We might only have to wait a couple of minutes," he said.

"Wow," Elysia whispered with an awe that had Ed grinning slightly.

"It's so cute how excited she is," Yellow said, eyes melting as she watched Elysia take in the sights, eyes obviously watching in case Allura appeared before they could give her the okay.

"You know, I'm suddenly glad you don't have a bond with Elysia," Ed told her through theirs. Hearing the questioning noise from Yellow, he elaborated with a cheeky grin. "She'd get her way with everything if you two were bonded," Ed chuckled.

Yellow huffed in amusement and annoyance. "I can't even honestly say that you're wrong because I know you're absolutely right," she muttered, causing Ed and Hunk – who had been privy to Yellow's side of the conversation – laugh.

The last few minutes of walking were done in silence as Ed, Al and Hawkeye paid closer attention to the trail so they didn't end up lost while aiding the Lions, Paladins and Black Hayate in checking their surroundings for any enemies or opportunistic and curious hikers. When they finally stumbled upon the cabin, Ed took it in and compared it to how he remembered the structure and its immediate surrounds from a year ago. The cabin had been half destroyed by Gluttony when the homunculous had been overtaken by a murderous rage upon realising Mustang had killed Lust. That rage had also carved trenches into the earth, destroying everything its path as Gluttony sought revenge.

To Ed's eye, the only change to the place from the moment he, Darius, and Heinkel had joined up with Greed/Ling was how overgrown the area was. Obviously the land was still abandoned since no repair work had been done to the cabin and no recent attempts had been made to combat nature in its attempt to take the rotting structure for itself. The only untouched area were the scars in the earth left by Gluttony's devouring beam. It seemed that the grass couldn't or wouldn't grow in them and it made Ed curious as to why.

"Alright," Ed said, shaking his mind free of his thoughts. "Elysia, stay with Miss Riza while Al and I check the area out," Ed instructed, crouching so Elysia could slip off his back easily.

"Okay, big brother," Elysia said agreeably, moving over to play with Black Hayate, who looked positively thrilled by the little girl's approach.

"How far out, Ed?" Alphonse asked, readying his hands to clap.

Ed tugged off his white glove before tugging on his black one smoothly and quickly. "2 k's should be enough," Ed told him before turning his back to Al. He felt his brother's back hit his before he stretched out his left hand and hovered his right fingers over the array stitched on the glove. "On my count," he said, feeling Al nod. "3, 2, 1," he counted down before placing his fingers on the array and feeling it activate as a clap rang out from behind him.

It only took a few seconds for his tracking array to finish scanning the area in front of him for the two kilometres he'd told Al to scan. The fact that he didn't have scan the area behind him aided his array's completion time considerably. Finally, he stopped the array and blinked as his eyes adjusted to his normal vision. He heard the small gasp that indicated that Al had finished his own scan just as he'd tugged off the black glove.

"I didn't see anything, Brother," Al said before amending himself. "Aside from us and everyone with us."

"Neither did I," Ed told him, pulling his white glove back on and placing the black one back with its matching partner. Turning to the avid crowd, Ed nodded. "All clear," he reported before looking at the Lions. "Give Miss Allura the go-ahead."

Ed didn't hear them give him confirmation they would but he sensed it when they had. It was like there was a shift to the air around them, almost as though the universe knew what was about to happen. Ed felt the change to a certain area immediately and recognised the feeling straight away. What he could sense was a stronger version of what he'd felt in Washington D.C. when the portals were being opened inside the NCIS parking lot. The sensation only grew as the portal slowly became visible, growing to the point where Ed was holding back a grimace and Al was looking uncomfortable.

Finally, a swirling mass of air appeared as blue and pink energy mixed together – and if what Ed was sensing was right, it was Allura's alchemy mixing with the alchemy of Amestris – before a figure seemingly appeared out of nowhere to step out of it. Ed could hear a small, frightened gasp and glanced to find Elysia watching the mass of energy with wide eyes, clutching onto one of Hawkeye's hands while Black Hayate stood in front of the young girl, fur standing on end as he growled protectively and threateningly at the mass. The figure took two steps towards the gathered group before the mass of swirling energy just suddenly stopped and disappeared, leaving a victorious and exuberant looking Allura standing in front of where it had been, a small bag draped over one shoulder. She grinned at them as her eyes greedily drunk in the sight of her friends and adopted family looking safe and sound, thought they did linger on both Hawkeye and Elysia – the only two she didn't know personally.

"Hello, everyone," Allura greeted happily, her voice shaking with her joy. "It's good to see all of you in one piece," she told them, sounding serious and relieved.

"Hey, Miss Allura," Ed said, being the first one to respond to her. "It's good to see you in one piece as well. I'm glad that the teleduv worked as you promised it would," he told her.

Allura grinned as Ed's voice seemed to break Voltron out of their stunned shock. Despite the fact that they'd known what was happening, it seemed that the humans at least hadn't honestly believed that Allura would be appearing in front of them. Lance was the first one to move – though Hunk was a close second – and to wrap Allura in a hug. She let out a startled laugh when Lance collided with her and that laughter only increased when Hunk reached the both of them. Shiro, Keith and Pidge headed over as soon as Hunk had placed both Allura and Lance back on their feet after sweeping them both up in a tight hug. The Lions had beaten the last three Paladins and Ed grinned as he watched them demand attention from Allura while she tried to answer the questions everyone was pestering her with.

"Is that the princess, big brother?" Elysia's voice grabbed Ed's attention and he looked away from Voltron and Allura in favour of looking at Elysia, who was still holding Hawkeye's hand but not as tightly as she had been before. Ed was also relieved to see that Black Hayate had seemed to calm down and was now watching the scene with interest while Hawkeye watched it with both intrigue and suspicion, as though she was waiting for some kind of attack. Ed couldn't be truly surprised with the captain's behaviour since it was her job to stay on high alert, especially around people she didn't know.

"Yeah, that's Princess Allura," Ed told her, taking the few steps needed so he could crouch in front of her. "I'll introduce you, Miss Riza, and Black Hayate to her once Voltron's finished saying hello to her, okay?"

Elysia nodded in agreement but kept her eyes on the chattering group in front of them. Allura was still answering questions being rapidly asked by the humans of Voltron. Ed almost felt surprised by how many questions there were until he realised they literally only got his tablet connected to the ones on the Castle-Ship a few days ago and Voltron really hadn't had the chance to speak with anyone using it in those few days since it was always with him. Allura didn't see to mind how she was immediately asked another question the moment she finished answering a different one. In fact, it seemed to Ed that she was enjoying it and that did surprise him – if only because he knew he would've been sick of the questioning by now – until he realised that Allura had also gone all this time without being able to speak to them and that she'd missed them enough that she was basically relishing at being able to speak with them face to face again.

The Altean princess finished reassuring Pidge that her family was okay for the third time before she spotted Ed standing off to the side with Alphonse and two people who – though she had never met or spoken to them before – she believed she could easily identify from Ed and Mustang's descriptions alone. Turning back to her family, Allura held up a hand to stop the onslaught of questions. "We'll have plenty of time to catch up later on," Allura told them, giving them an indulgent smile when a few of them made their disappointment at having to wait for the rest of their questions to be answered known. "Besides, I would like to be introduced to those here that I haven't met properly yet and I am aware that there are diplomatic tasks I need to take care of while we are still here," she said.

Shiro startled slightly and Ed had to hold back a snort of laughter when the Black Paladin gave him and those with him a sheepish grin. "That's a good idea," Shiro said, scratching the back of his neck embarrassedly. "As you said, we'll have plenty of time to speak in length about everything later," he said, echoing her words.

"Precisely," Allura said before she broke out of the group and made her way over to where Ed, Al, Hawkeye, Elysia, and Black Hayate were waiting. She didn't even hesitate as she pulled Ed – who didn't yelp, no matter what everyone else said – into a tight hug that he returned fairly quickly. "It's so good to see you in person, Edward!" Allura said, voice low as she tightened her grip slightly.

"You too, Miss Allura," Ed said as he tightened his own hug.

Allura was the first one to step back from the hug, though she did pet his cheek lightly before her eyes fell on Alphonse. "It's so wonderful to meet you in person, Alphonse!" Allura exclaimed, thrusting out her hand so Al could shake it.

"It's great to meet you in person as well, Princess Allura," Al said politely, shaking Allura's hand and smiling at her. "I'm glad the teleduv worked as it was supposed to," he added, earning himself a delighted smile from Allura.

"I had absolutely no doubts it would," Allura assured him. "Doctor Holt and Matthew are as intelligent as Pidge so I knew I was in good hands," she said, apparently oblivious to Pidge's sudden blush and Lance's teasing coos when he noticed his younger friend's reaction.

Ed saw Elysia shift slightly and focused on the his adopted sister once more. The awed expression on her face as she took in a real-life space princess for the first time almost had Ed grinning but he managed to keep his amusement off his face. "Miss Allura?" Ed called, getting Allura's attention before he gestured to those who still needed to be introduced to her. "Let me introduce Captain Riza Hawkeye and her dog, Black Hayate," he said, gesturing to the pair.

Hayate was now sitting patiently in between Hawkeye and Elysia but his brown eyes were watching Allura with avid excitement, now that he knew she wasn't a danger to them. Hawkeye held out her free hand to Allura before Ed could start introducing Elysia. "It's delightful to meet you, Princess Allura. Edward and General Mustang have both spoken highly of you and I'd like to take this chance to thank you in person for making sure they both survived long enough to come back home from their adventure with you," Hawkeye said as Allura gripped her hand and shook it.

"They both agreed to – and did – help us save our universe from those tyrants. Ensuring their safety and well-being was the least we could do for them," Allura told her. "However, I would like to take this chance to thank you for helping Edward and General Mustang assist Voltron while they were stuck in your dimension with no warning," Allura said, looking and sounding very grateful to the female sharpshooter.

"It was no trouble at all," Hawkeye assured the princess. Hayate seemed to lose his patience a little at having to wait for Allura to notice him as he shifted from a sitting position to standing and shuffled slightly, as though he was going to yap at Allura. "Hayate, stay still," Hawkeye ordered, voice sharp and Hayate did as he was told even as he whined slightly.

Ed only just managed to turn his snort of laughter into a cough at the way Allura's eyes grew large and the normally composed princess seemed to melt at the sight of Hayate. "Oh, look at him! He's so little!" she cooed, crouching so she was within easier reach of the delighted dog. "Am I allowed to touch him?" Allura asked, hand already halfway to the little dog's head.

"Of course. He's friendly unless given an order to be otherwise," Hawkeye told her. Ed noticed the slight upward curl of Hawkeye's mouth, telling him and anyone else who noticed that she was amused with Allura's reaction.

Allura gasped in delight and let her hand fall onto Hayate's head, gently scratching him between the ears. Hayate damn near melted in pleasure at the attention he was receiving, something which only fuelled Allura's joy and caused her to coo at him. Hayate only got to enjoy the attention for a few more seconds before Allura reluctantly pulled away and straightened from her crouch. The little dog started to whine but cut himself off when Hawkeye cleared her throat pointedly. "Thank you," Allura said, bowing her head slightly.

"You're welcome," Hawkeye said, her visible amusement gone and voice far more friendly than Ed had heard it be around someone the captain had only known personally for a handful of minutes.

"Miss Allura?" Ed called and got Allura's attention back. "There's one more person I need to introduce before we head into Central," Ed told her as he walked to stand on Elysia's other side. "This is mine and Al's little sister, Elysia Hughes," Ed said, placing his right hand on Elysia's shoulder and squeezing it slightly.

"It's nice to meet you, Princess Allura," Elysia said, carefully making sure she enunciated Allura's title and name properly.

"It is my pleasure to meet someone who Edward and General Mustang holds so dear to them," Allura said, grasping her hand and giving it a friendly squeeze as she crouched once more. "I hear that you are also a princess. I don't think I've ever met a princess quite as lovely and kind as you are," Allura told her, smiling widely when Elysia's face flushed bright red.

"'m not a real princess like you," Elysia managed to mumble, her embarrassment obvious.

"Nonsense," Allura chided gently and Elysia looked up at her with wide eyes. "With everything I've heard about from Edward and General Mustang while they visited us and from everything I've heard from Edward through the Lions in the phoebs between, you are a true princess and meeting you will be a memory I cherish for the rest of my life," Allura said softly and honestly.

Ed could feel Elysia's free hand on his pants leg and knew without looking that she was fighting back the tears of joy that threatened to overwhelm her in the face of Allura's genuineness. "Thank you, Princess Allura," Elysia said, voice trembling as her emotions threatened to overwhelm her. "I'm really happy I got to meet you as well! You're as nice as big brother Ed said you were," she told her, beaming widely.

"Thank you, Princess Elysia," Allura said, a soft and kind smile on her lips.

"You can just call me Elysia," the little girl told her, her flush back in full force at being addressed by a royal title by a princess.

"Then you may call me Allura. All of my friends do and I hope we can be friends," Allura said openly.

Elysia looked scandalised by the very thought of not being friends with Allura. "Course we can! You're big brother Ed's friend and Uncle Roy's so you're my friend too!" Elysia assured her enthusiastically.

"I am about to combust with how cute this is," Yellow told Ed seriously, even as she all but cooed as she watched Allura thank Elysia for her words and in turn assured her that she considered Elysia a friend as well.

"It is a bit cavity-inducing, isn't it?" Ed asked her as he watched the scene, no small amount of relief felt at how well Allura seemed to be getting along with Elysia and Hawkeye and they, her. Not that Ed had been truly worried about it but he knew that Allura had the same amount of experience with little kids that the Lions did and he had been afraid that that would show through in Allura's interactions with Elysia. However, it seemed his fears were completely unfounded and he couldn't be happier about it.

"It's adorable," Yellow corrected him, causing Ed to huff out some laughter at her.

"Hey, Allura?" Lance's voice caught the attention of most everyone and Allura straightened from her crouch after squeezing Elysia's hand once more so she could face her Blue Paladin and looked at him questioningly. "What's in the bag?" he asked, gesturing to the small rug sack still hanging over Allura's shoulder.

Allura looked at in mild surprise, as though she'd forgotten it was there before she answered Lance. "Well, since I knew I would be here for at least two nights, I packed accordingly. I also brought General Mustang's and Edward's clothing that they left on the Castle-Ship," she told them.

Ed blinked a couple of times at that. He'd completely forgotten that when Truth had collected him and Mustang after Haggar and Zarkon had been dealt with that they'd been in their borrowed clothing, which meant one of Mustang's military uniforms and Ed's unofficial uniforms had been left behind. "Thanks, Miss Allura," Ed said, happy that the next time he destroyed his red jacket beyond repair even with alchemic means, he wouldn't have to replace it.

"You're welcome, Edward," Allura said, giving him a pleasant smile. "Now, I do hate to move this conversation from catching up to work but I believe it would be a good idea for us to speak with your Fuhrer sooner rather than later," she said, certainly sounding apologetic about suggesting it but firm as well.

"No, it's a good idea," Shiro said immediately before anyone could try and talk Allura out of it. "We did promise Fuhrer Grumman that if Allura was feeling up to a meeting with him once she was here, we would drop by his office again," Shiro reminded Ed, who was already nodding.

"Yeah, I know," Ed told him before looking at Allura. "Are you sure you're okay to hold a meeting with him? He won't mind if you need to rest for an hour or two before we go in," Ed told her. It was evident he was worried that the energy she'd spent opening the portal, no matter how small that portal was or that she hadn't even had to hold it for long, was enough to leave her drained more than was comfortable.

"I'm alright, Edward," Allura promised him. "I'd been keeping a close eye on my levels while I was fuelling the teleduv for our return trip and this portal hasn't drained me enough that I require rest right this moment. I can sit through a meeting," she assured him.

Ed didn't look awfully convinced and Alphonse had never had to bite his tongue harder than he did in this moment at the hypocrisy his brother was showing. Instead, Al filed this moment away for the next time Ed tried to weasel his way out of resting after an injury or using too much alchemic energy so he could use it against his older brother. "Okay," Ed said, getting Al's attention back to the conversation happening, "as long as you're sure," Ed said, putting a slight questioning tone on his words and Allura nodded. This time, Ed seemed to accept her answer more readily. "Alright, we'll head to Grumman's office," Ed stated. However, before he let any of them actually move, he gave Allura an apologetic look. "I hate to ask this of you, but would you have any ideas on how we could disguise you a little bit? It's mainly your Altean markings and your ears. We've kind of implied that you and the Paladins are of the same species," he explained.

Allura looked a little upset at the mention of covering her markings and Ed knew it was because they were what mainly identified her as Altean in the first place but she nodded. "I can shape-shift my features," she revealed. "It's something all Alteans can do. I can hide my markings and change the shape of my ears," she told him.

Ed looked startled by the revelation about Allura's shape-shifting abilities but he decided to leave his questions for later. "It doesn't have to be all the time while you're in Amestris," Ed promised her. "Only when we're in public or on the base," he said.

Allura gave him a smile as she squeezed his left forearm. "Truly, Edward, it's alright. I know that this will help so that you and your Fuhrer aren't asked awkward questions and I don't mind doing this for you," she told him. "Do you wish for me to change the colour of my hair as well? I believe I've heard from one of the Paladins that white hair is highly unusual on people who look as young as I do," she said.

Ed shook his head. "Nah, the Ishvalans have hair the same colour as yours, for the most part. It won't be as unusual here as it might be on their Earth," Ed told her, gesturing to the Paladins.

Allura gave a nod. "Very well, I'll leave my hair the colour it is and just focus on hiding my marks and reshaping my ears while we're in public or on your base," she promised.

"Thank you, Miss Allura," Ed said gratefully. She just smiled back at him while waving off his thanks as unnecessary. Happy that he hadn't insulted Allura or upset her, he turned to Hawkeye. "Do you want to join us? Fuhrer Grumman will probably ask Mustang to attend this meeting and he'll definitely have asked him to be present during the meeting with the other generals," Ed told her.

"I wouldn't mind joining you all," Hawkeye said. "We'll just have to go by my apartment so I can feed Hayate and change into my uniform, if that's okay with you all?" she asked.

"I got no problems with it," Ed said immediately and there were several murmurs of agreement from the others. "So that's settled. We'll go past your apartment before we head to Central Command," Ed said with a decisive nod.

"While we're walking, I would love for all of you to regale me with the tale of what happened when the ten of you," Allura gestured to Voltron, "disappeared from our dimension," she said.

"Of course, Allura," Shiro said, chuckling when he saw Lance's excitement at being able to gossip freely with the princess, something the pair enjoyed immensely. "The Lions knew where we were…"

A/N - Here's chapter 35 which means there are only two weeks worth of updates left now! I honestly can't wait to be finished posting this story so I can start posting the sequel to 'Medic Lance' for those of you who read my purely Voltron works. I've also started work on a How to Train Your Dragon x Rise of the Guardians fic so once the 'Medic Lance' sequel is up and fully posted, I'll start posting that work. I'm also going to be working on my drabbles and what ifs for 'Spirit Animals' if any of you reading this crossover also read 'Spirit Animals' and want some more stories from that AU.

Anyways, thanks to those who have reviewed the last chapter. I'm looking forward to hearing what you think to this one. Until next week!