Turns Out Space Storms and Inter-Dimensional Machines Don't Mix Well

by TheFullmetalBitch

The story of how the Ed, Al, and other characters from Spirit Animals came to learn other dimensions exist and how AMA Voltron came to realise that maybe using the inter-dimensional teleduv machine with a huge space storm forming nearby wasn't really the best idea they'd had. Or, the small crossover of AMA & SA I wrote instead of my SA x Marvel story! Enjoy!

3. Chapter 3

As Ed walked with Ayala, Al, Chester, Mustang, Nala, and Hawkeye while Soren flew overhead of them on their way to Pinako's the morning of the day Voltron's surprise visit would end, he couldn't stop the memories of the previous day from playing in his mind. The soldiers and their Animals who were stationed in Resembool were quick to arrive on the scene – which told Ed that either Hawkeye had called them before she followed after Hughes and Mustang or she'd asked Gracia or Pinako to do so since he was sure Mustang and Hughes wouldn't have thought to do so – to take the seven escaped criminals and their Animals into custody. Ed had been a little surprised at just how many soldiers there were apparently stationed at Resembool as nearly a dozen bonded pairs had shown up in the clearing with Soren leading the way at Hawkeye's behest. Ed had spotted a few Voltron members scanning the new faces and looking a little surprised and disappointed when they didn't see whoever they had been expecting, which piqued Ed's curiousity enough to ask about who they'd been searching for while the soldiers were busy extracting Animals out of his and Al's traps with his little brother's help. Evidently there was a Corporal Jon McBride stationed in the other Ed's Resembool who that Ed was familiar with and they'd been curious as to what Spirit Animal this world's version of him ended up with. Ed wracked his brain and even asked Ayala, Chester, Nala, Soren, and Leo whether they'd heard of the man but all of them had come up empty, which had caused some of Voltron's members further disappointment, if their looks had been anything to go by. Ed had wound up leaving them to help the soldiers with recapturing the criminals in order to avoid the awkward situation before it grew even more so.

But it wasn't the arrest and consequent escort of the criminals into Resembool which had made them late for the lunch Gracia and Elysia had prepared nor was it the lunch itself – which had been delicious – or even the afternoon's adventures of Ed and Al checking on their parents' land with Elysia, Voltron, and the Animals minus Soren and Nala in tow – which had gone as smoothly as it possibly could've and had given Lance the opportunity to show how good he was with children and directing their attention when Elysia had started asking about the charred remains of the Elric house – that was on Ed's mind. No, it was what had happened after dinner but before those who were staying in Resembool's only motel had left for the night. They'd been talking about what would happen the next day and when Allura thought she would have enough alchemic energy to open a portal back to their dimension when Elysia had innocently asked whether they would be coming back to visit them.

"Are you gonna come back and visit us?" Elysia asked, green eyes looking over Voltron from where she sat on her father's lap.

Ed could feel himself freeze from shock at the question and knew the others had as well. He'd had no clue – and really, he should've expected it – that Elysia had grown so close to the strangers to want them to come back for visits. Before anyone else could say anything, Ed did. "No, they probably won't, El," he told her, glancing fleetingly at Voltron before he focused on Elysia, who looked confused and a little hurt.

"Why not?" the little girl asked, frowning and pouting.

"They didn't mean to come here in the first place," Ed said, his brain frantically going over what Shiro, Allura, and the others had said after Den had led Elysia back to her mother when Voltron had first arrived so he could figure out how he could repeat that in a way Elysia would understand without him having to lie to her. "They came here accidentally and it's not likely that they'll be able to recreate the events that led to them coming here," he explained.

Elysia didn't look happy about the news and there was a sudden sheen in her eyes that told Ed she was close to crying. From the way Hughes and Gracia shifted, they'd noticed as well. "But that's not fair! They're your friends, big brother! They're our friends! Why can't they come back just to visit us?" she asked, the onslaught of tears becoming less of a threat and more of a reality.

Ed flinched slightly when Elysia called them his friends and he was sure they noticed, if the quickly covered hurt expressions were anything to go by but he pushed away his guilt as he looked at Hughes and Gracia for some support since he didn't know how to handle this now. Gracia took pity on him and gripped Elysia's hand, drawing her attention to her mother. "Sweetie, they can't come back. Your big brother just explained why. There was an accident when they tried to visit their friends that interfered with the item they were using to get there and they came here instead." Elysia's face crumpled further and Gracia tsked understandingly. "I know it's unfair that they can't come back but that's no one's fault and there's nothing anyone can do about it. It's just the way it is, darling, and pouting about it won't change anything, okay?" she said, lightly tapping Elysia's nose and causing the little girl to scrunch her nose in offense.

"But Mum-" Elysia started whining, only to be cut off by her father.

"Your mother's right, Elysia. This is like when Miss Riza and the rest of your uncle's and brothers' teammates were reassigned. It was sad and you missed them lots but there wasn't anything anyone could do to change the fact that they were needed elsewhere in the military while your uncle trained a new team," Hughes chided lightly. "The only difference this time is that it's very likely we won't see the Voltron team again. So instead of being upset about it now, while they're still here, what do you think about maybe not being sad right now?" he asked her.

Elysia scrunched her face up in thought as she mulled over her father's words. "Okay, Daddy," she finally said, a small, resigned sigh escaping her as she slouched on her father's lap in displeasure. "I won't be sad while they're still here," she promised, her big, green eyes looking up earnestly at her father and predictably causing him to almost melt into a pile of cooing goo at how cute his daughter looked. Leo wasn't the only one to roll his eyes at his human for that.

Ed breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that Elysia's impending cry had been diverted – at least for the time being – however he now had nothing to distract him from the hurt looks some of the Voltron members were giving him after his flinch at Elysia's insistence Voltron were his friends. He felt Ayala press subtly further into his side from where she lay next to him and allowed himself to relax as much as he could in her presence. He could see the look Al and Nala were giving him, their concern betraying the fact that Chester and Nala had obviously sensed his guilt and discomfort at Voltron's reactions and – at least in Chester's case – had passed that onto their human. Den, Soren, and the foxes were also shooting him concerned looks but it seemed as though they were willing to leave it alone for the moment.

The reason why the other Animals – including Nala – weren't pestering him about why he felt guilty and uncomfortable soon became apparent. "What's going on in your head?" Ayala asked, looking for all intents and purposes like she was still dozing.

Ed sighed through his nose as he contemplated how to word his response so he wouldn't be rambling as he tried to figure it out on the fly. "Elysia's comment about how Voltron are my friends surprised me," Ed admitted, keeping his conversation between him and Ayala while the adults and Al moved the conversation along. "It must be so obvious to people who don't know their background or, like Elysia, are too young to understand their story how much Voltron cares about their Edward Elric from the way they treat me," he said, "and it makes me feel… weird because I'm not the Edward Elric they're friends with. I'm not the one who they've known for months and who's bonded with their lions and who's been on all those adventures since Promised Day. I don't think I would count us as friends right now. Potentially good acquaintances who might've had the chance of developing a friendship with us if they were here for longer but I wouldn't say we were friends. And they must realise that themselves because how could they not?" he asked rhetorically. "Except they all looked hurt when they noticed my reaction to Elysia's words which makes me wonder if they'd already labelled me as a friend to them," he finished.

Ayala hummed for a few moments as Al drew Elysia into telling them a story from her last set of school holidays. "I think you'll find that they think of you the same way as you think of them but seeing you flinch at Elysia's words might've had them possibly imagining it was their Edward who did so, not you. It hasn't even been 48 hours since they wound up here, in a world that's so familiar but entirely different to what they know. I wouldn't be surprised if they had to constantly remind themselves that you and everyone else aren't the versions of you that they know," Ayala said, mentally shrugging.

Ed found himself processing her words for a few moments before he had to admit that what she said made sense. "If that's the case then I no longer feel guilty," Ed told her, ruffling her ears in thanks and causing her to shift so her belly was half-exposed. Ed huffed in amusement as he took the unsubtle hint and started scratching her stomach lightly as he tuned into the topic at hand.

Ed didn't know why that scene was playing over and over in his mind as they walked towards the Rockbell household for their last breakfast with Voltron and second-to-last breakfast with Pinako for a while. He thought perhaps he felt some guilt still over how he'd reacted to Elysia's response but he soon dismissed that. He still stood by his original thoughts on his relationship with Voltron as of last night and there was no reason why anyone should expect them to be best friends after only a day and a half. He thought that perhaps it was because they were leaving today and he hadn't yet explained why he'd flinched at Elysia's words before he again dismissed that thought for the same reason as the other one. It shouldn't be that hard for any of the members of Voltron to figure it out for themselves.

Frowning internally at himself, Ed forced the replaying memory to the back of his mind and focused instead on watching where he was walking. Just because he knew the road to Pinako's like the back of his hand, it didn't mean he knew where every single rock and tripping hazard was and he'd rather go up against a homunculous again than trip over in front of everyone because he wasn't paying attention. He could feel Ayala's amusement but could only mentally flip her off since she and Chester were exploring the forests alongside the road.

"When do you think Voltron will be going home, Brother?" Al asked, bringing Ed's attention away from plotting ways to get Ayala back for her amusement.

Ed hummed as he thought, well aware that Mustang and Hawkeye were also listening before he said, "probably shortly after lunch. Miss Allura said she needed to rest for two days and it'll have been 48 hours by 1:30pm. I really can't think of any reason as to why they wouldn't go home as soon as they can," with a casual shrug.

"And they're going home the same way they came, right? Through a portal?" Al asked. His face screwed up in a way that told Ed he still couldn't believe Voltron's tale of how they arrived here in the first place, via a portal opened through a combination of technology worthy of being in a science-fiction novel and an alchemy that seemed closer to magic than science. If Ed were being honest, he didn't fully believe it either.

"Unless you know of an array that'll get them back to their dimension, yeah, they're heading to their home the same way they got here," Ed told him, allowing a small amount of teasing to bleed into his tone.

"Don't be a dick," Al chastised, lightly shoving Ed, who just grinned as he caught himself out of the slight stumble Al had sent him into. "Think they'll let us watch them leave? I wouldn't mind seeing a real-life portal in action," Al said hopefully.

Ed shrugged once more. "They probably would if we asked. And even if they said no, it's not like they could stop us," Ed told him.

"They could refuse to open the portal," Al pointed out. Ed saw the agreeing look on Mustang's face, as though he thought Al had a point, he didn't bother hiding his eyeroll.

"They won't. They wanna go home and they won't linger here for longer than necessary just because they don't want us to see their portal. Besides, it's not like they'd have a reason to refuse to let us watch. We wouldn't be able to recreate their technology, even if we could see it, and there's no array – even in theory – that could let us dimension travel so there's no reason for them to say we can't watch them leave," Ed rationalized. "And even if they do say we can't, we can always sic Elysia onto them. Something tells me those lions are about as immune to her pleading as you are," Ed added, a smirk on his face.

"You're hilarious," Al deadpanned, glaring at Mustang when he made a suspicious coughing noise.

"He has a point though," Chester said, his voice echoing in both Ed and Al's minds.

Ed admired the leopard's smart thinking of sassing Al while he was currently nowhere near him so he didn't get hit for teasing his human. From Al's expression, he didn't think Chester was being smart. The muttered "coward" only backed up Ed's hypothesis and he barely managed to keep his amused snort internal so Al wouldn't turn the unimpressed glare on him. Nala glanced knowingly at him, telling Ed that the Animals had definitely sensed the amusement but since Al didn't seem inclined to hit him in retribution as they continued walking, Ed knew that the Animals hadn't tattled on him and he decided that maybe he didn't need to get Ayala back for her earlier amusement at his expense after all.

The group arrived at Pinako's a little later than they had the day before, their pace having not been as quick as it had been the previous morning since there was no underlying sense of urgency to get to the Rockbell property as soon as possible now that the threat of Archer and his allies had been dealt with and Voltron had proven they were trustworthy the previous day. Ed made sure to let Den, Leo, and Lilith know they were about to round the last corner before the driveway came into view so that they could warn their humans. He knew they had when they saw Elysia running down the drive, her pigtails flying behind her as she raced, so she could meet them on the last leg of their approach. Her squeal of delight was muffled by Ed's jacket as she hugged him first before making her way around to everyone, leaving Mustang for last then silently demanding he pick her up and carry her back up to the house.

Ayala and Chester joined them just as they started up the driveway and Ed rolled his eyes in tandem with Al as they spent the walk picking dried leaves and twigs out of their Animal's fur. They weren't surprised when no one met them at the door since it was pretty obvious that Elysia was their welcoming party. They found everyone outside once more, having just sat down for breakfast – which was pancakes with a wide variety of toppings – thanks to Elysia's directions. Gracia was the first human to spot them – Ed theorised it was because her mother instincts were able to pinpoint Elysia that accurately – and gave them all a warm smile.

"You're just in time," the Hughes matriarch said, gesturing for them all to join them at the table.

While Mustang helped Elysia into her chair in between her parents, Ed and Al took the two empty chairs between Hunk and Pinako, with Al sitting next to their adopted grandmother. "Lilith was nice enough to let me know when you were thinking of starting breakfast," Ed informed her.

Gracia looked unsurprised at the news and nodded. "Now that we're all here, help yourselves," she said, eyes flitting to as many people as possible as she spoke.

Not a single person hesitated once permission was given. Ed made sure to grab himself a couple of chocolate chip pancakes, strawberry pancakes, and banana pancakes each while he also put together a plate of pancakes that Ayala chose, alongside the varying toppings she wanted. Once her plate was stacked, he placed it on the ground for her to start eating off of before he turned his attention to his own plate and the toppings he wanted. Gracia and Pinako had gone all out on this breakfast feast and Ed silently ordered himself to thank both of them as soon as his hunger was sated and to find somewhere to hide some money for Pinako to pay her back for all of the ingredients she would've had to use putting breakfast together two mornings in a row for almost triple the number of guests as she thought she would have.

The only noises to break the silence of breakfast were the sounds of the birds around them, leaves rustling in the slight breeze, the odd cow or sheep from a neighbouring paddock, knives and forks clinking softly against the plates, and happy but muffled noises from those enjoying the food. The Animals and Lions were the first to finish their meal, to no one's surprise, but for the most part, they seemed pretty content to doze off their food comas while they waited for their humans to finish up. It shouldn't have surprised anyone when Elysia was the first to finish her breakfast, since she had the smallest amount, nor should it have surprised them when she was the first to break the comfortable silence surrounding them.

"When are you heading home?" the little girl asked, looking at the human and Altean Voltron members with wide eyes. "I wanna know how much time we have left to spend with you!" she explained before anyone could ask.

Shiro and Allura exchanged a glance and Ed got the feeling that the two of them at the very least had discussed this the previous night at some stage. "We won't be leaving until after lunch, Elysia," Allura answered, giving the young girl a gentle smile. "You'll have us here for a few more vargas yet," she swore.

Elysia's brow wasn't the only one to crease in confusion at the unusual word but before anyone could ask, they were told, "varga is the Altean word for hour," by Pidge, who'd obviously noticed their confusion, which immediately cleared up after she'd spoken.

"Is there anything you need to do to prepare for your departure?" Mustang asked the group, though he did direct his words mostly at Allura.

"I merely need to make sure I don't overexert myself or use any of my alchemy. Neither of those should be a problem, however, as I don't foresee myself being in a position where I'll have to do either," Allura assured him.

"None of us need to do anything either," Shiro said on behalf of his fellow pilots, though they all nodded as though to back his words up.

Mustang gave a nod to show he understood but now a somewhat awkward silence fell over the group as everyone waited for someone else to either suggest something to keep Voltron occupied until they were ready to leave or a topic to discuss while they waited. This atmosphere continued to grow more awkward as time continued passing with no one breaking the silence until Pinako took it upon herself to do so. "Oh, boys, I've been meaning to ask you while you've been here but it kept slipping my mind," she said, getting everyone's attention and ignoring it in favour of pinning both Al and Ed with a look.

Ed was immediately suspicious but before he could do much more than narrow his eyes at his adopted grandmother, Al spoke up. "What is it, Granny?"

"During the storm the night you arrived, a tree fell over the boundary corner that connects my land to the Rutherglen's and Sav's properties. Would you mind going for a walk and fixing the damage done? I told them both when they rang me with the news a couple of days ago that I'd send the two of you to check it out," Pinako explained.

Ed couldn't find any sign that this was some kind of ploy and he didn't doubt that one of the trees on the border of Pinako's property could've fallen and damaged the fences that marked the border of the three properties during the rather intense storm their first night back in Resembool. "Of course you'd remember that the day after a fight like yesterday's," Ed grumbled with a sigh. "Where are your strainers?" he asked despite his protest as he went to stand.

"In the shed," Pinako answered promptly, ignoring his grievance entirely. "Take the wheelbarrows with you and bring up the wood from the tree, would you? Never too soon to start getting firewood ready for winter," she said.

Ed rolled his eyes but nodded as Ayala quickly got her paws out of the way of his chair. He glanced over at Al, who'd also gotten up from his chair. "You wanna find the wheelbarrows while I go dig up the strainers?" he asked.

Al gave him a nod and the pair left the table full of people in order to complete their assigned missions with only Ayala and Chester as company. Though full of basically everything Pinako used outdoors or that couldn't fit in the house but that she didn't want to get rid of, it only took Ed a few minutes to find the fencing strainers buried in a box full of other gear used for fencing. Since he and Al would use alchemy to actually mend the wire, Ed didn't bother grabbing anything more than the strainers before he and Ayala left the dusty shed and headed back to the table.

Al was already back with both wheelbarrows while almost everyone was moving around him and Elysia as they worked together to clear up the table now that everyone had definitely finished breakfast. Ed threw the strainers into one of the wheelbarrows before he and Al joined in on the cleanup efforts, leaving Elysia to either help or wait with Ayala and Chester. Neither of them were awfully surprised when Elysia chose to play with Ayala and Chester rather than end up being waved away by her mother when her efforts to help resulted in her being underfoot more often than not. The lions and Animals also stayed out of the way since none of them were like Michella and had the ability to easily carry in the dirty dishes or cutlery with minimal damage.

With everyone helping, the clearing of the table only took a few minutes and soon Voltron and the Amestrians were back outside, with the exception of Gracia, Hawkeye, and Pinako, who'd remained inside to deal with washing the dishes. Having sensed that people were getting ready to leave, Elysia had stopped playing with Ayala and Chester and was now focusing on her father, uncle, brothers, and the group of non-Amestrians. She was looking at her brothers and Voltron almost expectantly and Ed knew that they would likely be taking her along with them. He was pretty much fully certain there would be no complaints from any of them if that was the case.

"How long do you think it'll take you to get the fence and everything done?" Hughes asked curiously.

Ed shrugged a shoulder as he looked at Al, who mimicked his movements. "Depends on the damage. Can't give you an estimate on something we haven't seen yet," Ed said, a small tone of teasing chiding in his voice that had Hughes grinning innocently at him.

"Are you planning on kidnapping my lion again?" Mustang asked, sounding bored and almost resigned to the fact that Nala would be going with them.

"And my daughter?" Hughes interjected before Ed or Al could answer. Since the threat of Archer possibly attacking them was completely erased thanks to the brawl the previous day, there was no need for anyone to try and convince Elysia to stay at the house and it seemed like Hughes knew his daughter would ask to go with her brothers and Voltron.

"Same answer for both," Ed said. "If they wanna come with, they're more than welcome to do so," he told them.

"I wanna go!" Elysia predictably piped up excitedly and hopefully.

Nala seemed to be weighing her options. "I wouldn't mind tagging along with you guys if you don't mind," Nala said, speaking obviously to both Ed and Mustang.

Mustang sighed as though annoyed but everyone who knew him could tell the irritation was just for show. "At least I can enjoy my morning not worrying that Fullmetal has managed to find himself in some sort of trouble again," he droned.

Ed flipped him off since Elysia wouldn't be able to see it as Al was in between him and the little girl. "Just because you're annoyed that Nala would rather spend time with me than you," Ed grumbled when Mustang looked entirely too amused at being given the bird.

"I love you both equally and you know it," Nala said, though she sounded somewhat pleased – as she always did – with Ed's familiar statement.

"So we'll see you back here around lunch?" Hughes asked in an obvious effort to prevent the banter-fest that threatened to start.

"Probably," Ed said, easily abandoning his possible snipe exchange with Mustang in order to answer Hughes.

"Do you want one of our Animals to let you know when we're planning lunch or should we leave it for you to make your own lunch on your return?" Hughes asked.

Al was the one to answer. "I think it'd probably be best if you left it up to us to get our lunch, Mr. Hughes," he said.

"Al's right. Who knows how long we're gonna be? Best not to make us food we might not get to for a while," Ed said in agreement.

Hughes gave a nod of understanding before he turned to his daughter. "Are you going with your brothers and Voltron or do you want to stay here with me, Mummy, Miss Riza, and your uncle?"

Elysia looked torn for a few moments before she seemed to come to a decision. "I'll go with my big brothers and our friends, Daddy," she said to the surprise of absolutely no one.

"As long as you behave yourself for your brothers, Princess," Hughes said, getting an enthusiastic round of nodding in response which caused him to chuckle as he looked back up from Elysia. "I guess she's going with you this morning," he said.

"Seems like it," Ed said with a small grin before he moved to stand in between the handles of one of the wheelbarrows. Al mimicked his brother with the other one while Elysia stayed between Ayala and Chester, looking eager to go on this next adventure. "We'll be back soon. I'll have Ayala or another Animal tell Den, Soren, or one of the foxes when we start heading back," Ed told the two men as Nala moved to join Ayala and Chester once she'd given Mustang's hand a nudge and got a scratch behind the ear for her troubles.

"See you in a few," Hughes said, offering a half wave.

"You only have one day of leave left. For the love of everything, don't test your luck by getting in another fight and extending your leave, Fullmetal," Mustang drawled, though there was a hint of worry in his tone.

"I do what I want," Ed flippantly said, grabbing the handles of his wheelbarrow. Elysia had evidently decided that since neither of her brothers were able to carry her, she was going to hitch a ride in Al's wheelbarrow.

Mustang's sigh in response to Ed's quip was drowned out by Al, who said, "even though I'm sure there won't be any more trouble now that the escaped criminals have been caught, I'll make sure Brother stays out of it, General," as he helped Elysia settle comfortably into the barrow.

"Traitor," Ed hissed at the same time as Mustang said, "I appreciate it, Alphonse." Voltron looked a little too fondly amused about the exchange, in Ed's opinion but he somehow managed to hold back his scowl as he started pushing his wheelbarrow forward to lead the way to the boundary corner Pinako had referenced. He couldn't let Mustang get the last word though so he made sure to flip him off once more before he turned back around so Mustang couldn't retaliate. The sigh from Al, the amusement from the Animals with them, and the muffled chuckles from a couple of the Voltron members told Ed his actions had definitely been noticed.

---

They were most of the way to the corner of the Rutherglen, Sav, and Rockbell properties when Ed – who was walking mostly with Voltron, Ayala, and Nala while Chester, Al, and Elysia were busy leading the group – when Ed decided to address what he needed to. "I shouldn't feel guilty about it but I do so I need to apologise for my reaction last night when Elysia called us friends," Ed said, keeping his voice soft enough that Elysia wouldn't overhear him but loud enough that Voltron couldn't say they couldn't hear him.

His apology shocked everyone with him except for Nala and Ayala but it was Shiro who first recovered from his surprise. "You don't need to apologise," he assured Ed. "Yes, I think seeing you flinch back at Elysia's words hurt a little bit but only because we all thought of our Ed in that moment," Shiro said. Ed could feel Ayala's smugness at being proven right through their bond and barely managed to hold back from giving her an unimpressed look as Shiro continued. "The apology is appreciated but you really don't need to give one."

Ed hummed at the words as he navigated the wheelbarrow he was pushing around a dead branch as thick as his arm in his path. "Yeah, but I still feel better having done so," he told them.

Ed could see another wave of shock roll through their eyes and he wondered if perhaps it was because it was so surprising to hear him apologise. It wasn't like he offered apologies all the time but still, it wasn't like he never apologised either. He glanced at Ayala and Nala to see if they had any opinion but both of them ignored him which Ed thought was a little rude and made sure they knew so through their bond. Much to Ed's annoyance, they didn't seem to care and were in fact amused at his irritation with them.

"Besides," Lance's voice got Ed's attention, "like Shiro told you, it only affected us because we're friends with you. Or another you, at least. If you – or any Ed – were as much of a stranger to us as we were to you, I don't think we would've noticed or, if we did, been hurt like we were," he pointed out, his voice almost uncharacteristically serious but understanding. "I think it would've been pretty unreasonable of us to expect you to consider us friends after barely 24 hours considering the other you took a couple of days in forced proximity to us to actually warm all the way up to us," Lance added casually.

Ed felt a mild amount of relief rush through him at Lance's words but did his best to not show it. Ignoring Ayala's "I told you so," Ed gave Lance a half smile. "Yeah, as interesting as it has been to hear as much as you guys can tell me about the other Amestris and her people and as intriguing as you all are, I think I'd classify our relationship more as 'good acquaintances' at this stage," Ed freely admitted.

Not a single human, Altean, or lion of Voltron looked surprised to hear that. They did look surprised though when it was Keith who said, "yeah, I think we'd say the same about you as well."

Ed gave Keith a small smile and a nod as they continued walking. It felt good to know that he and Voltron were on the same page and it certainly felt good to know he hadn't unintentionally hurt them the previous night. The rest of their walk to the corner boundary was done in comfortable silence, making Ed wonder if perhaps he hadn't been the only one who needed to talk about his reaction the previous night. The silence wound up being for the best considering they were now in the more unexplored and therefore, more hazardous, section of this part of the property. Had they been talking, it was likely more than one of them would've ended falling onto their faces because they weren't paying attention.

"I think I see why the Rutherglen's and Sav's didn't tell Granny to not worry about leaving this up to us, Brother," Al said from ahead of them.

Ed looked up for a moment to see Al paused with Elysia still in his wheelbarrow. His brow furrowed since he couldn't see whatever it was Alphonse could as his little brother was in the way but it only took him a few seconds of maneuvering for him to see what exactly Al was talking about. One of the biggest and oldest trees in this area must've died a few months back because there was no other reason for that particular tree to be crushing three fences as the storm a few days ago certainly hadn't been strong enough to have knocked it over had it still been alive. Ed's eyes could see a few strands of barbed and straight wire peeking haphazardly out from underneath the massive tree trunk while branches that had snapped off in the fall were spread around all three properties.

"Yeah, this would've taken them days to do and that's just dealing with the tree alone," Ed said as he let go of his wheelbarrow and continued assessing the situation. "We're gonna have to deal with the tree first but the problem is that there's no way we can fit all of that into two wheelbarrows," Ed pointed out.

"We could fill our wheelbarrows up as much as we can with some of the wood then separate the rest into piles on each property so that the Rutherglen's and Sav's will have some for winter as well," Al suggested. "We can just have Granny call them to let them know it's there waiting once we've finished fixing the fence and get back to the house," he added.

"Honestly, I've got no better ideas so that's what we're gonna do," Ed said with a nod. "Let's get that tree split first," he said before glancing at Al. "Wanna do the honours or is it all on me?" he asked.

"It's all yours, Brother," Al told him, making a sweeping gesture from Ed to the downed tree with a half smirk on his face that had Ed rolling his eyes.

Ed moved around his wheelbarrow with Ayala on his heels and approached the tree. He could see that it was at least three metres wide and fifteen metres from its base to its highest point. They'd gotten lucky that the angle it had fallen on meant the tree had fallen between the boundary fences rather than along its complete length because that would've meant a several more metres of fencing to do. Clapping his hands together, Ed placed his palms against the rough wood and activated the array in his mind. Blue energy danced along the wood of the tree, encompassing it completely before it dissipated once the transmutation ended. The tree still lay exactly where it had fallen but rather than being whole, it had been split into hundreds of pieces perfect for fireplaces.

Taking a couple of steps back as he admired his handiwork, Ed glanced over his shoulder at those behind him. "What are you waiting for, an engraved invitation?" he asked, one brow raised pointedly. "We've got a lot of tree to get through before we can even think of starting on mending the fences and it ain't gonna get done if you're just gonna stand there," he said.

His words had the effect he intended and everyone started moving towards him, with the exception of Al who'd elected to help Elysia out of the wheelbarrow he'd been pushing. Lance had grabbed Ed's wheelbarrow and pushed it closer, earning himself a nod of thanks from Ed as the blonde grabbed out the strainers he'd thrown in there before they left Pinako's so they wouldn't end up buried underneath the piles of wood. Al's wheelbarrow soon joined Ed's and they got to work on getting the tree cleared and sorted.

It didn't take them long to build a good, efficient routine to streamline the process. Hunk and Lance would toss a piece of wood to Ed and Al, who would then place it in their wheelbarrow in a carefully stacked pile while Keith, Shiro, and Pidge started working on building piles of wood on each of the properties that were several metres from the fence so they wouldn't be in the way of the property owner. Allura and Elysia were switching between the three others, with Allura helping Elysia more often than not. The lions and Animals were also lending a paw by either rolling a piece of wood towards someone or carrying it carefully in their jaws and handing it to whoever was closest for their pile. Once their wheelbarrows were full, Ed and Al joined the others, as did Lance and Hunk, and between them all, the tree was piled carefully on three separate properties after barely an hour's worth of work.

"Good job. We're halfway done," Al said as Ed placed the final bit of firewood on the pile that sat on the Sav's property.

Ed looked at the mess the tree had made of the fence now that the tree was out of the way and winced at what remained. The barbed and straight wires were crushed in places, which meant Ed and Al would get to try and straighten the kinked wire out as best they could, while the wooden posts the tree had fallen on were little more than splinters. Ed sighed as he realised they would have to alchemise some new ones since it'd be easier to do so than collect the splinters and try to repair the original posts. From the look on Al's face, he seemed to have come to the same conclusion Ed had done and was mentally preparing himself for the effort and energy needed to do so.

Ed was sympathetic but knew that if he didn't get them going, no one else would. However, it seemed as though Ayala had had the same thoughts because her voice rang out in his head the moment he'd decided to get Al moving. "The sooner you get started, the quicker this is all done," Ayala informed them both.

"Yeah, we know," Al sighed, still not looking happy about it. "Think we can use the branches from the tree to create the posts?" he asked his brother.

Ed screwed up his face in thought as he considered the branches still around them. Voltron seemed to be using this opportunity to rest and Ed couldn't find it in himself to say something about it since he absolutely would be doing the same thing if he could. "Yeah, there's probably enough to make some of them," Ed finally said. "We'll just take what we need from the piles we've made for however many we still need to make after we've used all the branches," Ed said decisively.

Rather than asking nicely, Ed decided to just grab Al by his sleeve and start dragging him over to the middle of the boundary corner. Al went with a fair amount of grumbling but he only pulled himself out of Ed's grip once they were close enough to the branches to start collecting them. Shiro and Pidge were the first two members of Voltron to offer their help and Ed and Al readily accepted it, giving them the rough amount of wood they would need per fence post and instructing them to put them in piles. The others – bar Allura, who had been suckered into answering Elysia's curious questions about herself, Altea, and literally everything else the seven-year-old could think to ask – were quick to join and they soon found themselves surrounded by a dozen piles of branches and bits of firewood for Ed and Al to transmute.

"What's the plan now?" Lance asked curiously as he eyed the piles of timber.

"Now we get to sort through the wires and see what we're dealing with there," Ed told him. "Once we've got them in relatively decent order, Al and I will start transmuting the fence posts how we need them then we'll get started on putting these fences back together," he finished explaining.

"Alrighty," Lance said, sounding as enthused as Ed felt but, to his credit, he didn't try and back out of the work.

Sorting through the wires and getting them as straight as possible was both the easiest and most painful part of the whole morning's activities since not a single one of them – minus Allura, Elysia, the Animals, and the lions – finished without at least one scratch to some part of their body, courtesy of the uncooperative wire. When they'd finally gotten the wires in decent order and out of their way, Ed and Al started alchemising the piles of wood into the fence posts they were intended to be. Ayala was able to help out by letting Ed use her to complete a transmutation circle, which meant they got two done for every post Al did.

"Right, that's the last of them," Ed said as the blue alchemic energy from his and Ayala's last transmutation cleared off the two newly transmuted fence posts. "Let's get the-" Ed found himself cut off by an indignant noise coming from Pidge, making him look up to find her looking bewilderingly between him and Ayala. "What?" he asked, a little annoyed.

"What was that?!" the Green Paladin asked, jabbing a finger at Ed then gesturing between him and Ayala with it.

Ed frowned at her as he looked at Ayala then back at Pidge. "Alchemy?" he said, the word sounding more like a question than an actual answer.

Pidge made another noise, this one more frustrated than anything else. Keith had a somewhat amused look about him while Shiro, Lance, and Hunk seemed to be readying themselves to calm their teammate down. "How?" Pidge ground out.

"Our bond," Ed said, frowning a little. He and Ayala had used their bond to capture Osane's Animal the previous day before Voltron had included themselves in the fight so why was Pidge asking about this particular quirk of their bond now? "We've got a stronger bond than any other pair we know of. I discovered pretty early on after she appeared that I can use my bond with Ayala to create a circle for an array. It comes in handy a lot, especially if I'm down an arm. It's how Ayala and I were able to survive Father," Ed told them. "We were able to alchemically cut the rebar so Ayala could pull it out of my arm when Father had me pinned," he explained.

"Is every Edward Elric like this?!" Pidge exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air in exasperation.

"I feel the need to apologise for the weirdest reason," Ed said, bemused.

"I don't really think you need to, if I'm being honest. It sounds like this is just something she doesn't truly expect an answer or apology for," Ayala told him, as bemused as he was.

"Oh, don't bother," Pidge grumbled, looking thoroughly annoyed as she spoke. "I should be used to you surprising me with this kind of shit, no matter which dimension you come from," she sighed.

Ed gave her a wary look but decided not to respond to that comment. "Why are you asking about it now? We did use it yesterday," Ed asked instead, his curiousity getting the better of him.

Pidge looked a little surprised at that. "You did?" she asked, her brow furrowing as she seemed to try and recall the memory for herself.

"Yeah, when we captured the mountain goat," Ed said, a touch of confusion in his voice. Pidge seemed to be one of the most observant members of Voltron so he was a little surprised that she'd missed him and Ayala using alchemy together the previous day. "Ayala touched the tree trunk nearest the mountain goat and I used our bond to alchemise wooden bonds to secure it," he said, trying to jog her memory.

Pidge's face cleared in remembrance before she sheepishly admitted, "I remember seeing you do that but then everything else happened and it kinda got pushed to the back of my mind so I completely forgot until now."

"I guess a lot did happen in that fight so it's probably understandable that you didn't remember every little detail," Ed said with a shrug. "If you don't have any questions about that particular aspect of mine and Ayala's bond, I think it'd be best if I got back to this," he suggested, gesturing to the fence posts and wire.

"Yeah, yeah," Pidge said, flapping a hand dismissively at him.

Still feeling mildly perturbed by Pidge's dramatics, Ed gestured for Al to start helping him alchemise the earth below them so they wouldn't have to dig the holes for the posts. It only took a few moments for them to do so since the previous post holes were still present. "Right, let's get the posts in now," Ed instructed, straightening alongside Al from their crouch.

Between the seven of them, they managed to get the dozen poles where they were needed and centered into the ground within a matter of minutes. Once they were, Ed and Al used an array to pack the earth back around the fence posts, ensuring they wouldn't be shifted easily. Each post then had six holes alchemised straight through them for the wire to be threaded, with the exception of the centre post which didn't need any since the wires would be fixed to it. With that done, all that was left to do was thread the wires and attach the ends to the centre post.

"Okay," Ed said as he stood back to figure out how best to go about doing the fences. "Miss Allura and Elysia, would you and the lions please come over to Granny's land so you aren't forced to climb through the fences once they're remade?" Ed requested, deciding that that was probably the best place to start.

"Okay, big brother!" Elysia said agreeably, happily abandoning where she sat with Allura to scramble over to where Ed was pointing. Allura climbed to her feet gracefully and joined the lions in crossing over the boundary between the Rutherglen property and the Rockbell one. "Can I keep talking to Miss Allura?" Elysia asked once she was near Ed.

"So long as you're not annoying her," Ed said with a teasing smile.

"She could never annoy me," Allura assured both Ed and Elysia. "I find her curious questions refreshing," she said honestly.

"Sounds like you have all the permission you need, El," Ed said, ruffling the little girl's hair before he lightly pushed her towards Allura. "We shouldn't be much longer now," he told the both of them.

Allura gave a nod to show she'd heard as she gently took Elysia's hand and gently guided her towards a log in the shade they could sit on so they could continue speaking. The lions made sure to greet their pilots before they spread themselves out along the log and shade near Allura and Elysia. As they couldn't help much with this part, Allura, Chester, and Nala had joined them, though they were lying a little ways away from the others. With everyone now back on the Rockbell property, Ed went and grabbed the strainers from where he'd placed them safely out of the way.

"So how come you're not using alchemy to fix the wire to the posts?" Hunk asked curiously.

"Well, we could," Ed admitted as he crossed over onto the Sav property and started with the lowest strand of wire. Al was ready at the next post to thread it through there once Ed handed it to him. "However, we wouldn't be able to get it as tight as needed with just alchemy. So we'll use the strainers to do that before we alchemise the wire to the centre post," he explained.

"Oh," Hunk said, looking a little surprised, "that makes a lot of sense," he said. "Do you want us to help?" he asked, stepping forward lightly in his eagerness to do so.

"You guys can start threading the wire through the other posts if you want?" Ed said as he and Al continued working with the bottom strand of wire. "Just until the last post with holes so that all Al and I gotta do is strain them and alchemise the wire," Ed said.

"Can do," Hunk immediately agreed, not letting any of his teammates protest, even if they were so inclined to do so.

To their credit, none of the pilots of Voltron elected to put up any sort of protest as they headed back to the last of the work to be done. Ed and Al made quick work of the bottom strand and soon had it through the last post and ready to strain. Ed set up the straining chain around the centre post before attaching the second part of the set to the wire, making sure it had a tight grip on the wire before he started ratcheting the strainers to tighten the strand of wire. He tightened the wire until he felt like any further would make it snap before Al moved in to alchemise it to the centre post. Once Al gave him a nod, Ed released the strainers and readied them for the next strand, which Lance handed him the end of.

This repeated another four times until the Sav/Rutherglen boundary fence was completed and they moved on to the Rockbell/Rutherglen boundary fence. It took them another ten minutes to strain both the boundary fences with the Rockbell property. Once the last strand of wire had been strained, Ed couldn't help but give Al a high-five in celebration of all their hard work. He still doublechecked that the fences were definitely mended to the best of their abilities but he knew they would be.

"Thanks for all your work, guys," Ed said, addressing the pilots of Voltron and giving them a large, genuinely grateful grin.

"Wasn't any problem," Shiro assured him.

"Yeah, you two did most of the work to make it easier on us and you get to haul those wheelbarrows' full of wood back to your grandmother's," Lance couldn't help but point out, making Ed and Al groan and everyone else laugh at their reaction.

"Well, there's no point in dragging it out, I suppose," Ed grumbled as he threw the strainers carefully into his wheelbarrow. "We'd best get going if we wanna get back to Granny's in time for lunch," he said, speaking mostly to Alphonse who merely sighed as he nodded in acceptance.

"Where will I sit in your wheelbarrow, big brother Al?" Elysia asked as she skipped over to join them, looking at all the wood dubiously.

"Sorry, El, but you're using your own two feet to walk back," Alphonse told her, trying to act like he wasn't moved by her pout.

Hunk cleared his throat as Yellow looked at Elysia adoringly. "Yellow has offered to carry Elysia back, if she wants," Hunk relayed for the Yellow Lion.

Elysia squealed in excitement while looking imploringly at her brothers for permission. Ed grinned as he said, "so long as Yellow isn't making the offer out of pity, it's fine with us."

"Oh trust me," Hunk said with a chuckle as Yellow's tail twitched in the same way Chester's did whenever he was joyful, "this isn't an offer made out of pity. She is genuinely excited about this," he assured them.

Ed's grin only grew as Elysia darted over to the Yellow Lion's side and threw her arms fearlessly around the lion's neck. "Thank you, Yellow!" Elysia cried in delight. Ed fought valiantly to hold back a laugh as Yellow nearly melted at Elysia's hug.

Hunk assisted Elysia in climbing onto and settling on Yellow's back before making sure she was as secure as she could possibly be. The naked excitement on Elysia's face had everyone grinning before Ed decided to pull their attention from the little girl seated on the second-largest lion, who was obviously doing her best not to squirm around like an excitable puppy. "Come on. We gotta get all this wood back soon," Ed instructed as he gripped the handles of the wheelbarrow he would be in charge of. Al was quick to do the same with his while their Animals moved in front of their barrows and Nala between them so they could call out any obstacles the boys might not see. Remembering his promise, Ed reached out to Lilith and said, "we're finished at the boundary and are on our way back now."

Lilith responded immediately with a "see you soon, Ed," just as Ed and Al started moving forward, following Voltron and Elysia back to Pinako's house.

---

Lunch had been a comfortable affair, with Mustang giving Pidge an understanding look that had Ed scowling and Al cackling when Pidge's reaction upon noticing Ed and Ayala's ability to use alchemy together was repeated. Since Ed had told Hughes to leave it up to them to get their own lunch, they'd all raided Pinako's fridge and pantry for ingredients to make sandwiches. They'd used every last bit of bread Pinako had in her house, which the elderly woman was not impressed with until Ed and Al promised to head to town that afternoon and buy the local bakery out of bread to replace it. Elysia had regaled everyone with an enthusiastic and extremely detailed recount of the morning's activities once she'd finished her sandwich and Ed found himself enjoying their break after devouring three sandwiches with Ayala resting up against him where they sat on the floor in the living room.

Once Elysia had finished her retelling, it seemed as though the afternoon was going to pass with everyone swapping stories that were somewhat censored so Elysia could listen to them. Ed was mildly surprised when he realised that Voltron were sticking mainly to stories that had nothing to do with the Edward Elric or other Amestrians they knew but he didn't call them out on it. He could tell from their reactions to some of his stories – Father Cornello, Scar, and the lead up to discovering the main ingredient for a Philosopher's Stone, for example – that their Edward had dealt with them as well in fairly similar fashions but there were stories of his – the alchemist who experimented illegally on Spirit Animals, their first visit to Fort Briggs, and their first encounter with Father – that either didn't happen in the other universe, had happened but they hadn't been told about it, or hadn't happened in the same way it had happened to Ed, Al , and their Animals.

They'd been so busy exchanging stories and genuinely enjoying themselves that no one noticed how much time had passed until Pinako glanced at the clock and made a startled noise. When she realised she'd done so and had garnered most everyone's attention, she said, "I didn't realise it was getting so late into the day. I need to go and pull something out of the freezer so it can defrost for dinner," before she got to her feet and shuffled into the kitchen to do just that.

Pinako's mention of the time had them all looking up at the old analog clock that Pinako had on the wall. Ed felt his own surprise to find that it was after 4:00pm and that they'd been sitting in the loungeroom, swapping stories for over three hours. Allura cleared her throat softly but it caught the attention of everyone. "We should be leaving now," she said, sounding a little regretful.

Shiro didn't look fully onboard with the idea but he nodded before anyone could try and argue with the Princess. "Coran, Sam, and Matt will have realised something went wrong when we arrived here and they'll have expected us to come back exactly 48 hours later. The fact that we were planning on surprising our Ed likely means we won't have had a worried Ed calling our tablets or trying to get ahold of the Lions while we've been here but Coran and the Holts will have started to worry," Shiro said, voice daring someone to try and argue against his rationale.

"Where exactly did you guys turn up?" Ed asked, realising in that moment that he'd completely neglected to do so earlier.

"Uh, like in the middle of the field on the other side of the hill we had to climb to see you at the end of the driveway?" Lance said.

Ed frowned as he thought of where Lance was talking about and tried to remember what kind of traffic there'd be at this time of day around that area. "That should be a good spot for you to open your portal at," Ed said, looking to Al to see if his little brother had remembered something he'd forgotten.

"The Animals would sense someone or another Animal nearby so it's not like we'll be taken by surprise," Al pointed out.

"Good point," Ed said with a nod before he got to his feet. No point in drawing this out longer than needed. "We'll escort you there so we can be sure," Ed told them, leaving no room for argument.

Elysia – who had been sitting on Gracia's lap ever since she'd finished telling everyone about her morning – had been watching them with widened eyes that were now starting to glisten with impending tears. Gracia noticed immediately and started soothingly rubbing her back as she said, "you knew they were going to be leaving this afternoon, sweetheart."

"I know, Mummy, but it's not fair that they're leaving and we can't see them again," Elysia sniffled.

"But it wouldn't be fair to them if you tried to make them stay. Their families and friends would miss them a lot," Gracia said gently. "Do you think you'll be alright watching them go or did you want to say goodbye now and stay in the house with me and Granny Pinako?" she asked.

Elysia gave another sniffle as she forced back her tears and thought over her choices. "I'll watch them go," Elysia said, her voice trembling slightly.

"Alright," Gracia said, giving her daughter a kiss on her temple and let her climb off her lap so she could go over to her father, who readily picked her up and held her on his hip.

Voltron had gotten to their feet at the same time as Ed, Al, and their Animals but seemed to hesitate for a moment. Before Ed could ask what was wrong, Pinako came out of the kitchen and gave them a look. "So you're off now then?" she croaked out, eyes raking over them.

"Yes, ma'am," Shiro said.

"Got everything?" Pinako asked though it wasn't like they'd brought anything with them. Apparently their Edward had kept the clothing he'd bought for them during their first visit to Amestris so they wouldn't have to worry about possibly forgetting them on a trip. They'd wound up using spare clothes from Edward, Alphonse, and Pinako – who had a few pajamas she had on hand in case a patient had to stay overnight and they couldn't sleep in their clothes – to sleep in while Ed and Al used a cleaning array on the clothes they had worn when their portal malfunctioned.

"Yes, ma'am," Shiro repeated with a nod of his head. "Thank you for your hospitality, ma'am. We really are thankful and appreciative that you were willing to allow us to stay in your home with zero notice and no clue on who we were," he said, his tone genuine.

"Yes, it was truly kind of you to do so. Not many people in any universe would be willing to house eleven beings they didn't know for longer than a handful of minutes," Allura said, her face twitching slightly at the use of the word 'minutes'. "On behalf of Voltron, I would like to offer my gratitude to you for your kind actions and would like to ask if there is anything we can do for you to repay you?" Allura queried once she'd offered Pinako a small bow.

"No, there's no need for you to do anything more to repay me. It's not like this is the first time the boys had invited people I don't know to my home and expected me to put them up for a meal or two," Pinako said, giving Ed and Al a look that only had the latter of the pair looking mildly apologetic. Den snickered in Ed and Pinako's mind, earning himself an admonishing look from his human. "Besides, you helped the boys with the boundary fence this morning. That was more than enough help," Pinako added before Allura or anyone else could try and insist on offering something in exchange for Pinako allowing them to stay in her house and eat her food.

Allura didn't look entirely sure that Pinako considered their help with the fallen tree and fences as adequate repayment for her hospitality but wisely, she decided not to try and press the matter. "Thank you, Pinako," she said once more instead with another slight bow.

"No problems," Pinako said, waving Allura's thanks away dismissively. "I guess from everything you've all said that it's very unlikely that you'll end up in our particular Amestris again. In that case, I'll say that it was certainly interesting meeting you all and I wish you a safe journey back home," she said, her aged voice matching Shiro and Allura's genuine tones.

"Thank you, ma'am," the whole of Voltron – minus the lions, though their expressions certainly reflected the words – said together.

Pinako gave a nod before she headed back into the kitchen, her hostess duties now done with, and left the others alone to speak. Gracia took the opportunity presented to herself to get a few words in before Voltron was escorted out of the house. "Lilith and I won't be accompanying you to the field you'll be leaving from as we'll be giving Pinako a hand with the dinner preparations," Gracia explained as she smoothed out the skirt of her dress, "but it was very pleasant meeting all of you and I wish you a safe journey home and luck for your future," she said with a warm smile.

"Thank you, Gracia," Lance was the first one to speak as he smiled at the Hughes matriarch. "I hope you and your family get home to Central safely tomorrow as well and that you stay healthy, safe, and happy," he said sincerely.

Ed was sure he wasn't the only one to notice how Lance's and the other Paladins' eyes flicked to Hughes then Ed before back to Gracia as Lance spoke his well-wishes but no one got the chance to comment as Gracia's smile grew warmer and she said, "thank you, Lance."

Shiro's head twitched towards his lion in the same way everyone with a bonded Animal did when their Animal spoke to them and sure enough, after a couple of seconds, Shiro confirmed Ed's guess that Black had spoken to him by saying, "Black says we should really get going before we wind up staying here another night and given our Edward, Coran, Sam, and Matthew actual cause to panic."

The words had the intended effect and after another goodbye to both Gracia and Pinako – the latter of whom was still in the kitchen and called back her own repeated goodbye – the rest of them walked out of the house. No one seemed to be surprised when Hawkeye and Mustang joined their group or that Ed and Al automatically took the lead. They headed diagonally from the driveway, walking like they were going to visit the ruins of the Elrics' childhood home until Ed and Al had them turn an almost ninety degrees towards a large clear patch of paddock that they would be able to see any wandering neighbours from a decent distance.

It only took them a couple of minutes but on the way, Ed found himself dropping back slightly so he was more or less walking beside Shiro. Ayala put herself between Ed and the Black Lion and didn't bother to hide her protectiveness from them both but to their credit, neither Shiro nor Black looked offended at her actions. "You said the lions are bonded with your Ed, didn't you? Does that mean they've told him what happened to you guys and where you ended up so he wouldn't be worried?" Ed asked Shiro. He knew that the rest of Voltron, Hughes, Al, Mustang, Hawkeye, and Elysia were listening to him but he focused on Shiro's response.

"Yes, though because of the fact we're in a separate dimension to him rather than in our dimension or his, their connection is a little strained at the moment. The Lions haven't been able to tell him the whole story yet but he does know the basics of what happened and where we are," Shiro answered. "He promised to let Coran and the Holts know what happened as well since Pidge couldn't as her tablet can't connect to ours back on the Castle, probably because we're in a different dimension than ours or the other Amestris," he explained.

"That's why you guys were worried that they'd start getting concerned, right? Because your Ed told them that you'd be opening your portal 48 hours after you'd arrived here," Ed guessed and Shiro nodded.

"Yeah, that's right," the Black Paladin confirmed. "They would've expected us back regardless by the 48-hour mark but we wanted to make sure they knew we were safe and weren't being held hostage or anything like that that might make them do something rash," he explained, "and using the Lions' connection with our Ed was the best way to do so."

Ed nodded in understanding. It was a pretty good plan in all honesty and it wasn't like he hadn't used his connection with an Animal or two in order to relay important information because he couldn't get to a phone. "So are you going to tell him everything that happened once you're back home?" Ed asked curiously.

Shiro looked a little curious about the question but he nodded. "Yes, we wouldn't keep any of what happened from him. Plus, I think our Ed will get a kick out of knowing there's a whole other dimension that has an alternate Amestris and all of her citizens in it," he said with a small smirk.

They'd all come to a stop by now and the Animals were stretching their senses or – in Soren's case – surveying the area from above to check for any Animal or human who might be in the area and could accidentally see whatever was going to happen. They were now just waiting for the okay from all of the Animals before they allowed Allura to do whatever it was she needed to in order to activate the portal that would take them back home. Ed returned Shiro's smirk with only a small amount of hesitancy when he noticed Lance's conflicted look.

However, before Ed could ask what Lance's problem was, one of his teammates beat him to the punch. "What's got you looking like that?" Pidge asked curiously, poking Lance in the side so he couldn't pretend to not have realised she was talking to him.

Blue pushed herself under Lance's hand in such a similar manner as what Ayala did for Ed to give him a boost of courage and comfort that it almost made Ed forget to listen to what Lance was saying. "I'm just not sure we should tell him everything about this Amestris," Lance mumbled almost low enough that no one could hope to make out his words. There was, however, no missing the almost guilty look he shot Hughes as he continued. "We all know how much Hughes'…" Lance seemed unable to make himself say the word but no one seemed to need him to, "affected Ed. How much it still affects him. I just don't know if telling him that another him was able to do what he wishes he could've would do him any good. Not to mention telling our Gracia and Elysia," Lance said.

"We can't keep something like that from him, Lance," Shiro admonished gently, giving his Blue Paladin an understanding but firm look. "Even if we did, you know he'd likely accidentally see the Lions' memories that contain this Hughes and he'd figure it out and you know how Ed would react to us keeping something like that from him," he pointed out.

"Yeah I know," Lance said, looking both sullen and resigned.

Ed watched this exchange, internally debating with himself as to whether he should say what he was thinking. "I think it would be a good idea for you to do so," Ayala said, startling Ed slightly. "You and this other Ed are – for the most part – the same person. Sure, you're not identical as you've both experienced different things and he doesn't have me or Chester or any of the other Animals and had never had us but you're probably as close to an expert on his thoughts as anyone could get, save perhaps his Alphonse. Your opinion wouldn't be ignored," Ayala assured him and Ed gave her a nod even as he sighed lightly.

"I think," those two words got everyone's attention and Ed was suddenly fully aware of that but he didn't let himself give into the temptation of telling everyone to not worry about what he'd been about to say, "that you should tell him about Hughes and what happened. If our Hughes' fates had been switched and Leo hadn't thought to call me or Ayala and I had gotten on the train with Alphonse, Chester, Winry, and Michella and hadn't been here to help, I think I would want to know that there was a me somewhere that had managed to save Hughes that night," he said, purposefully not looking at Hughes or Mustang as he spoke.

Ayala pressed into his left side, leaning her full weight against him as she put her head under his flesh hand as Ed continued. "And I also think you should tell him what I told you about what Hohenheim and Calix said to Ayala and me when we saw them after our first trip north," Ed said before he lost the nerve to do so. "You said that his Hohenheim didn't give him any reasons for his abandonment of them when he ran into him – as far as you know, at least. It didn't help me much for a long time but I found out that shit while he was still alive and I still had the chance – and took it – to punch him. Maybe it'll help your Ed," he said with a shrug he hoped was far more nonchalant than he felt.

Shiro looked a cross between grateful and concerned. "Are you sure you want us to share that with our Edward? That's a very private conversation between you and your – Hohenheim," Ed appreciated the fact that Shiro had managed to make himself say Hohenheim's name rather than 'father', "and it's entirely possible the Hohenheim of our Ed's Amestris' reasons weren't the same as the Hohenheim of this Amestris," he pointed out, looking rather apologetic that he did so.

Ed shrugged. "Up to you on the Hohenheim thing but from what I've gathered, there are basic similarities between my life and the life of the Edward you know. The same goes for Al, for the most part, and for what you've told us of Mustang and the rest of the team." At this point all Amestrians, bar Elysia, were nodding in agreement with Ed. "Seems reasonable enough to me to assume that the Hohenheim of this world and the one of the other Ed's world would have the same base reasonings for why they did what they did," he rationalized.

Hunk seemed to feel the need to inject himself into the conversation at this point. "Maybe it might be best to ask our Ed whether he wants to hear this stuff?" he suggested, looking a little nervous about doing so but completely confident in his words. "Let it be his choice whether he wants to hear about Hughes and Hohenheim and anything else about this Amestris and its Ed and Al and everyone else," he said.

Shiro gave Hunk a proud smile. "That's a good idea, Hunk," Shiro said before he looked at Ed and said, "and you have made some good points but I think it would be best if we did as Hunk suggested when it comes to our Ed. I don't think he'd decide to not want to hear everything about this adventure of ours but it would be best if it was his decision to hear it," Shiro said, speaking mainly to his team and Allura, all of whom gave agreeing nods.

"Fullmetal certainly has never stuck around to listen to something he didn't want to," Mustang drawled. "I can't imagine it would be any different no matter which Fullmetal we're talking about."

"Do you want me to hit you with my automail, bastard? Because I will and do so with no regret," Ed growled, glaring at Mustang.

"He's absolutely right," Nala said conversationally, looking at her human. "I can feel that he would have absolutely no regrets or guilt about hitting you." Her voice echoed in both their heads, causing the scowl on Ed's face to appear on Mustang's while Ed's scowl turned into a smug grin.

The sound of a throat clearing gently somehow managed to be heard over the chuckles from those who'd heard just Ed and Mustang's exchange and Al, who'd heard Nala's words as well. Everyone's eyes were quick to find Allura, who looked somewhat regretful at her interruption. "I'm ready to create the portal now," she told them all before she addressed just the Voltron crew. "I need the Lions to transform, as usual, before I open the portal," she said.

"Of course, Princess," Shiro said with a nod before he nodded to Black.

That seemed to have been the only signal needed for the lions as they started walking away from their pilots and seated themselves twenty metres away from everyone and thirty metres, at least, away from each other. Shiro looked at Ed expectantly but it took him a moment to realise what he was asking. "Last check," Ed said aloud, though he directed his words internally to Soren so that the circling owl would be able to hear him. "Any potential voyeurs?" he asked.

"Nothing," Ayala confirmed immediately, followed closely by Chester's, "I can't sense anyone or any Animals,", Leo's, "I'm not sensing anyone,", and Nala's, "same for me."

It took Soren a few moments to get back to them and it was through Hawkeye, who'd been the first out of herself and Edward to relay Soren's message. "Soren confirms there's no one he can see or sense for several kilometers," she informed them.

Shiro nodded in thanks. "You'll need to close your eyes now. It gets really bright when they transform," he informed the Amestrians.

Ed wasn't sure about anyone else but he didn't hesitate to heed Shiro's warning and he certainly wasn't slow in making sure Ayala's eyes were covered properly. Even though his eyes were closed, he was able to tell when the lions had transformed and it wasn't just because the inside of his eyelids turned pink for a few moments. He gasped when he felt an alchemic energy flare only for the briefest of moments that was unnervingly similar to his. From the sounds of the gasps he heard from Al and Mustang, Ed knew they'd sensed it as well.

Ed didn't wait for the command of, "you can open your eyes now!" from Shiro before he did so it was only pure coincidence that he did so at the same time Shiro had spoken.

"You guys sensed that as well, right?" Ed asked Mustang and Al, his eyes immediately finding them first. He could see his own shock reflected in both their eyes, Mustang not bothering with a mask for the moment. "I didn't imagine that, right?" he couldn't help but ask before they got the chance to answer.

"Sensed what?" Keith was the one to say, preventing Mustang or Al from saying anything.

Ed's eyes found him but in doing so, he saw for the first time the massive mechanical forms of the Voltron Lions and he found himself unable to speak as his brain tried to comprehend exactly what he was looking at. The mechanical forms of the Lions were absolute marvels, five objects that hadn't even come close to have been dreamt up by the most creative of minds yet. He could feel the amusement coming from a few of the Voltron pilots but he felt as though he was allowed to be completely stunned right now. Ayala certainly seemed to be and if his wolf had been shocked into silence, after all the crap she's seen and Ed had put her through, then Ed couldn't find it in himself to be embarrassed about his reaction.

"Holy shit," Ed finally managed to choke out as he drank in all the details of the lions he could while he could. Someone nudged him and Ed whipped his head around to see a thoroughly-amused, yet understanding, looking Hughes next to him. His golden eyes noted there was no Elysia in his arms but it only took a moment for him to locate her near Allura – who she'd obviously taken a shine to during their stay – and was asking her several questions while bouncing on her toes, giving away her excitement.

"Ed, what did you sense?" Hughes asked, not sounding like he was saying that for the first time and Ed felt a faint blush form on his cheeks.

"Oh, uh, when they transformed," Ed said, mentally trying to shake his mind free from the grips of the shock he still felt, "I could've sworn I felt – well, I felt my own alchemic energy mixed in with theirs," he explained, glancing over to Mustang and Al, who had been standing alongside Hawkeye in a state of stupor – though Hawkeye and Mustang hid theirs better than Al did.

However at the sound of Ed's voice, they seemed to come out of it in time for Mustang and Al to nod, though it was Al who voiced the confirmation. "It definitely felt like yours, Brother, but it also felt different somehow," Al said. "Didn't you guys say that your Edward was the one who helped the lions with their array? The one that helps them transform?" Al asked Voltron.

"Yeah," Pidge confirmed. "He put some of his own alchemic energy into the array to prime it, in his words. That energy was what the array used so they could transform for the first time and it also allowed the array to start drawing in alchemic energy on its own so that the lions could store it and use it to power transformations when they need to," she explained.

"Oh, then that makes sense," Al said while Ed and Mustang nodded in agreement. "It's your Edward's alchemic energy we could sense. There must still be some traces of it mixed in with theirs that's only noticeable when they transform," he said.

"Why wouldn't our Ed or Al or even Mustang have said anything? Surely they would've noticed," Hunk asked, sounding curious and confused.

Ed shrugged a shoulder. "They probably wouldn't have noticed it since his energy would be very familiar to them," he said. "It'd be like spending all week in a room with just one person. Eventually you get so used to them that you sometimes to forget they're there," he stated. "Only reason we noticed it is because – like Al said – it's similar to my alchemic energy but it isn't identical. But I tell you what," Ed chuckled, "if I hadn't believed you about everything you'd told me over these last two days, sensing that energy would've had me believing you in a heartbeat," he told them.

"Maybe next time we'll lead with that," Shiro said with a small chuckle of his own.

"Probably a good idea if you ever run into another me again," Ed said, an amused grin playing on his lips. He looked wistfully at the lions before sighing. "I wish I could look at their arrays but I think we've pushed our luck as far as we can with standing here talking while the lions look like that and no one stumbling on us," he pointed out.

"I think Edward is absolutely correct," Hawkeye said, standing straight-backed with Soren now sitting on her shoulder, his keen eyes watching everything from his position. "You shouldn't linger here any longer. I'm sure Fuhrer Grumman would much rather us give him this report without a civilian witness or two being involved," she said, eyes flicking to Mustang, who nodded.

"Captain Hawkeye is absolutely correct. We're lucky that the Resembool soldiers agreed to withhold mentioning you or your lions in their report until I called them to give them instructions on how to do so once I've spoken with Fuhrer Grumman," Mustang said, holding his hand out to Shiro. "It was – as both Pinako and Gracia have said – exceptionally interesting to meet all of you and while I don't want to sound pushy, I must ask that you leave quickly so we don't have to deal with some farmer or traveler and their Animal finding us," he said, looking and sounding mildly apologetic about his brusqueness but not regretful about it.

"We understand," Shiro assured him, obviously needing to make sure Mustang was aware he wasn't offended as he accepted the handshake from Mustang. "Thank you for not reporting us to your Fuhrer. While we get along with him in our Edward's world, it probably wouldn't have all been dealt with in 48 hours, let alone us back here or somewhere we could safely open a portal within that timeframe," Shiro said with a wry grin.

"Most likely not," Mustang agreed, taking his hand back now that it was free from Shiro's grasp.

"Well it was definitely interesting meeting all of you as well," Shiro said, lowering his hand back to his side. It was obvious that Hawkeye's and Mustang's words about not lingering any longer had had a definite effect on the group as they were all starting to shift minutely towards their lions, with Allura sticking by Shiro's side. Elysia was still adamantly talking to her and though Allura was listening and reacting to her words, it was obvious that she was paying more attention to the adults' conversation. "Thank you all for putting us up the last two days and for everything you've done for us," Shiro said sincerely. "We truly appreciate it all, especially given how awkward it must've been for you to interact with people who seemingly know a lot about you but who you know nothing about," he added.

"Awkward's one word for it," Ed said with a wry smile, "but you guys certainly made up for it by giving us answers to everything we asked and by showing us evidence when we didn't believe you," he said.

"It was very nice of them to do so considering if you were the one being constantly questioned, you would've snapped within the first hour and beaten them up until they believed you," Ayala commented lightly.

"Oi," Ed growled, flicking her ear warningly but it only made her laugh. He rolled his eyes at her and focused back on Voltron. "Have a safe trip home," he said, an air of finality in his words as he said what were likely going to be his last words to this group.

"You're going home now, aren't you?" Elysia asked, having noticed the atmosphere of the group and the separation between the Amestrians and the non-Amestrians.

"Yes, we are," Allura said, crouching so she was eye-level with Elysia. "But it was so lovely meeting you, Elysia. Thank you so much for being such a wonderful little girl and keeping me company this morning. I thoroughly enjoyed speaking with you and I truly wish we could have more time together but I need to bring myself and my friends back home to our families," Allura said, both sincerely and firmly.

Elysia's eyes watered and her bottom lip wobbled but she managed to hold back her tears enough to say, "thank you, Princess Allura. It was really amazing to meet you too! Thank you for talking to me and answering all of my questions and telling me all of the stories from your home and about your family! And 'member! If you come back some time, you should come and say hello to us! Mummy and Daddy would let you stay in our house if you did!" she told Allura, who looked like she just wanted to scoop Elysia into a hug and never let her go, which was, funnily enough, exactly how Hughes looked at the moment as well.

"I will remember that, Elysia," Allura promised before she gave the little girl a hug and straightened up from her crouch.

"Elysia," Hughes called softly. He didn't need to say much more to get his daughter to run over him, the tears now visibly streaming down her cheeks until she buried her face in her father's shoulder once he'd scooped her up.

"Good luck with everything in your future," Al said, giving Voltron a half wave and a smile.

"You as well," Allura said, making sure to look at everyone, including the Animals. "Goodbye, everyone, and thank you for everything," she said regally before she turned to her team. "Board your Lions," she ordered primly, leaving no room for anyone else to try and say anything, thus drawing the goodbyes out.

Hunk, Pidge, Lance, and Keith settled for giving Ed, Ayala, and everyone else a smile, a wave, or both before they raced for their Lions. Shiro and Allura both offered another wave and smile each before they headed for Black, who had been the closest Lion to them all so it didn't take long for them to reach her. The Amestrians and their Animals watched as the Lions' mechanical jaws dropped, allowing their pilot and Allura inside before they closed. Only a handful of seconds later did their eyes glow a bright yellow and the sound of machinery whirring suddenly reach everyone's ears. For a moment, nothing else happened but then Ed felt a sudden and massive surge of alchemic energy close by, similar to what he'd felt two days prior.

"We gotta move!" Ed said, gesturing for everyone to start heading away from the lions.

No one argued against his orders and both Ed and Ayala brought up the rear of the group as they retreated several metres away from where they had been standing. They turned in time to watch the Lions, led by Black, suddenly launch into the air, powered by some force on their feet that looked like a fire far hotter than Mustang could manage with his alchemy. To the right of the group on the ground but at least thirty metres in the air was a swirling mass of pink and blue alchemic energy. it was easy enough for Ed to deduce that the blue energy was from the alchemic force here in Amestris which meant the pink had to have Allura's own. They all watched in awed silence as first the Black Lion, followed quickly by the Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green ones disappeared through the swirling mass that then blinked out of existence like it had never been there.

Ed felt the alchemic energy dissipate immediately once the physical energy was gone and he breathed a small sigh of relief. Though they'd been interesting and Ed would've given up a lot of things to be able to talk to them more about their technology and possibly look at the Lions' arrays, he felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders now that they were gone. It took him a moment to realise that that weight had been the expectations of himself he felt the Voltron crew had held of him based on the other Edward Elric, the one who didn't have an Ayala by his side.

"It was certainly an experience," Ayala said in Ed's mind, still watching the spot Voltron had flown through as though she half-expected them to come back.

"That it was," Ed said in agreement, shaking his head lightly as his brain finished processing the sight of the mechanical Lions and them flying through an honest-to-Truth portal and accepted it as a real thing that had just happened to him.

"It still weirds me out that there's another universe out there with you and Alphonse and everyone else but no Spirit Animals," Ayala admitted to him softly.

Ed reached out with his flesh hand and placed it comfortingly between her ears, allowing her to lean into it. He could hear Hughes speaking softly to Elysia, trying to soothe her with Al's help while Mustang and Hawkeye quietly discussed what they would be telling Grumman about the past two days. "Yeah, the thought of a me out there without you is almost inconceivable to me," Ed confessed easily. "I don't know how I would've gotten through life so far without you there with me and it blows my mind that there is an Edward Elric out there who has managed to do so," he told her, shaking his head at the very idea. "It makes me so unbelievably grateful to have been born in this Amestris so that I could have you as my bonded partner," he admitted, giving Ayala a warm and loving smile as he scratched her closest ear.

"Aw, I knew you were a giant softie!" Ayala cooed mockingly, though Ed could feel her pleased flush at his words and his own feelings echoed by her, telling him that she was just as grateful to have him as her human as he was to her as his Spirit Animal.

"I changed my mind," Ed told her. "Now I wish Nala was my bonded Animal. Or even Chester. Neither of them would be teasing me after I admitted that to them," he sniffed at her, his eyes teasing.

Ayala rolled her own golden eyes at him as she grinned up at him. "They both absolutely would have and you know it," she said confidently, making Ed chuckle. "Besides, you know I'm only teasing. If I had been given the opportunity of picking who I could bond with, I would always pick you," she said, tone serious and as loving as Ed's smile had been.

Ed couldn't stop the happy flush from spreading along his cheeks, though he did fight valiantly to push it down as quickly as possible so no one would notice it except for Ayala and the other Animals. "I'm definitely glad to hear you admit that," Ed told her, ruffling her ears once more before he looked back at the spot the portal had been. "I hope they're alright and I hope the other Ed and everyone in his Amestris will be as well," he said, a hint of worry in his voice.

"They will be," Ayala said confidently, leaning against Ed's leg. "And so will everyone in the other Amestris. Even without their Animals by their sides, they're still basically the same people as the ones here and you know how strong everyone here is," she pointed out.

"That's true," Ed said, easily admitting she was right. He glanced over the small group still gathered with him and couldn't help but smile softly as he watched them. "You know, I never thought I would ever think that I would be grateful for how things turned out for us but hearing about some of the things the other Edward went through," Ayala saw his eyes flick over to where Hughes stood with Elysia in his arms and Leo, Alphonse, and Chester close by, "I am really thankful that things worked out how they did," he said quietly, the words spoken out loud but just for Ayala's ears.

Ayala's eyes followed the same path her human's had, taking in some of their small family, and she pressed against him a little harder. "So am I."

A/N - And that's a wrap! Thank you so much again to Ao3 user, Nooodlen, who gave me the prompt for this short story! It was a lot of fun writing such a quick story that crossed over two of my series, even if I did scrap the first version almost entirely lol

Next week, I'll be starting to post my Marvel x Spirit Animals story. Note that in that AU, this little crossover never happened. This story is basically an AU of my AUs so it won't be mentioned in any further SA or AMA stories. I really hope that you guys enjoyed this story and I hope you'll find my Marvel x SA story exciting! Until next time! FullmetalBitch xx