Each individual chapter will have a different rating, different pairings, different spoilers, and a different setting and timeline. Multiple people were involved in writing this fic, I do not claim to have written anything other than my own characters. I do however claim to have come up with the plot, story idea, and organizing it all. The others who write characters in this fic are well aware that I am posting it, and contribute willingly. This fic is an ongoing project with an unknown number of parts, with alternate storyline as of the fifth laboratory incident. Enjoy!
Don't Make Me Say Goodbye
Rating: PG-13 (Language mostly.)
Pairings: Do I need to keep saying this over and over?
Disclaimer: I don't own FMA. Don't sue meeeee!
Spoilers: Hell if I know anymore :D
Setting: Fuhrer's office, Havoc's apartment.
Timeline: Two days after the previous Fuhrer visit.
"They're late," Bradley grumped tiredly, petulantly crossing his arms. "They shouldn't be, not this late in the game."
Edward watched as Roy went on ahead, still not quite sure why Havoc had told him to do so. "So... what's this all about anyway?"
Havoc chewed on the inside of his cheek, seriously reconsidering. Oh, what the hell... "I just thought I should tell you a couple of things before I crap out on you." He still couldn't shake the feeling of uneasiness that had firmly lodged itself in his stomach.
"Okay... I'm listening..." Ed found himself extremely curious as to what was making Jean so... what was the word... well, whatever he was at the moment, he couldn't quite place it.
Havoc chuckled. "Wow. Never thought that this would be so tough... You ever get weird feelings? Visions of your own mortality and things like that?"
Blinking slightly, Edward glanced down for a moment, then off to the side. "We're not going to make it, are we..."
"You might. But I don't think I will..." Havoc heaved a sigh. "Don't look like that, Ed, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that there's no way for me to go except down."
Ed smiled sadly. "What makes you think I'll be able to make it without you, anyway? I wouldn't be able to hold the other me back anymore... As far as I know, you're the only one who can subdue that other side of me... Every time so far except for when Fawkes was there, you've been the one I saw first coming back..." He looked down again, feeling utterly sappy for saying all that. "I'd just be a lost cause without you there to help.."
"I never got that... why me? Why not Roy? I mean, I was the afterthought. You liked Roy long before I came to pick you up in Dublith..." Havoc resisted the urge to fidgit. It was a question that he had been meaning to ask for weeks, but... he never got the chance to.
Scratching the back of his head, Ed wondered that himself. "I... don't know..."
Havoc shrugged. "Oh, well."
"We should probably, uh... get going... um.."
Havoc grinned at Ed's sudden stutter. "All right, kid." He sighed, mock-dramatically. "Bradley's probably kicking up a fuss or terrorizing Roy. Come on." He opened the door. "Well?"
Fists clenched, Roy did his best to keep a straight face. "I know, they should be here any--" he paused, hearing the door open and shut. Looking over his shoulder, he gave his best 'what the hell took you so long!' look.
"Sorry we're late," Havoc said, not sounding apologetic at all.
Bradly relaxed slowly into his chair. "Good. I thought that Mustang would try something... drastic if you didn't show up quickly." Needling the poor black-haired man had always been his favorite pastime, and this was no different. The gloves clenched spasmodically.
Ed shrugged, fidgeting with his ponytail. "So what now? What's the plan?"
Roy was a bit surprised at how little animosity Edward showed towards Bradley, seeing as he was sure that the boy knew of his other identity as one of the seven sins that had chased him around for so long. Then again, perhaps it was better if he'd forgotten about that incident...
"We get you armed and ready." Bradley tapped his desk. "You'll have to abandon the military uniform. Snipers' uniforms would do well in this instance, considering that there is no obvious military affiliation. Decent weaponry – don't make that face, Mustang, I know quite well that you can shoot a gun and hit a target." He moved his head to look at Edward. "Is there anything you want or need?"
Blinking, Edward pondered that. "...I can't say I'm very good with guns, hand to hand combat and alchemy are my only skills... I can pretty much make use of anything I come across, so I don't guess I need anything specific..."
Smiling wryly, Havoc remarked, "If we had more time, I'd teach you how to shoot. As it is, you probably can't even hold a gun."
Refraining from comment, Ed flopped down on the couch in an overly 'I'm exaggerating my irritation' type of way.
Roy sighed. The aspect of guns was definitely not something he cared to even think of. "Is it really necessary to outfit anyone besides Jean with that type of weaponry? Edward and I are alchemists, it's best just to let us use alchemy."
With a pointed look at Mustang's hands, Bradley commented, "It would be foolish to go in without backup weaponry. An intelligent antagonist, as Fawks seems to be, would strike first to render your gloves useless. It has happened before... I'd rather not lose a good officer because he was too elitist to use a common soldier's weapons."
"I don't rely that heavily on scraps of fabric, sir. I'm more resourceful than that.." Roy replied, tone clipped and mildly irritated.
Ed didn't like where this was going, it made him want to go back to bed and not wake up for another seven hours.
Bradley's eyebrow quirked in challenge. "Oh? The last time I saw you do any combat alchemy other than what you can perform with your gloves was back in Ishvar. Even then, it almost got you killed."
Havoc groaned inaudibly and dropped his head into his hands. This was going to keep going for a while, he knew.
"Do you think I've just been sitting behind a desk doing paperwork and letting my skills deteriorate these past years?" One eye narrowed slightly.
Golden eyes glanced around, looking for an out. Ed pondered just grabbing Havoc by the arm and dragging him off into a corner somewhere.
"Do you think your enemy would allow you the luxury of being able to draw an array?" Bradley shot back. "You're being stubborn, and that can and will get you killed."
"I never said a thing about drawing an array, you're putting words in my mouth, Bradley."
Bradley's eyebrow quirked.
"Can we get on with it? Or are you two going to have an all out Cocky Sons of Bitches tournament?" Ed tapped his foot against the table, arms crossed.
Havoc couldn't help himself. He disintegrated into helpless giggles at the affronted and miffed expressions on both Bradley's and Roy's faces.
Upon not getting any real response, Ed asked again. "Well?"
Still slightly irritated, Bradley waved a dismissive hand. "You're free to go at any time, but damn it Mustang, at least take a handgun. And that's an order."
"When is the assault to take place then?" Regaining his composure, Roy ran his fingers through his hair.
"You'll leave tomorrow." Bradley held out a sealed briefing packet. As Mustang took it, he continued, "The details are in there. Good luck. I have a feeling that you'll need it."
"Thanks for the overflowing confidence." Ed muttered, getting up off the couch and walking back over to Havoc.
Roy shook his head at the comment. "I don't suppose you're sending in any of your kind to back us up, are you?"
"If I can find Kimbley and his motley crew, I'll send him... in.. for... backup?" Bradley frowned at the semi-frozen Ed and Havoc. "Or not?"
Roy turned to face the others, noting their expressions as well. "Maybe that's not such a good idea..." Just the thought of the Crimson Alchemist irritated him, not to mention the assumption that he had been the one... three years ago...
Bradley shrugged. "Suit yourself." He was going to do what needed to be done, and damn the feelings of a cat and a non-human. "Dismissed."
Despite being the furthest from the door, Roy was the first one out of the room. One second more with that man and he was sure he would have snapped. Quite literally.
Edward glanced at Havoc, stepping out as well. That alchemist was one he would be perfectly fine not hearing of for the rest of his life.
Havoc shook his head, trying to get rid of that stupid, explosive-happy alchemist's image, name, whatever. "Water on the brain," he said cheerfully at Ed's inquiring mumble. "Come on, I need to get my sorry ass down to the quartermaster's."
"I guess I'll go too, it'll give me something to do." Ed grinned a bit, forcing down the painful memory that alchemist's name roused. He blinked as he looked around, though, finding Roy nowhere in sight. "I wonder where he got off to all of a sudden? We were only a few seconds behind him..."
"I'll bet you dollars to donuts that he's either already going down there or going off to have a quality sulk." He grinned at the kid. "Come on, then. It's across the parade ground."
Nodding Ed followed alongside Havoc. "I don't think he's stupid enough to go off without us, he's probably sulking."
"Not to mention that he has our briefing in his hand," the taller blond commented. "Silly ass."
"Yeah..." As much as Ed tried to think of something else to say, nothing came to him. And he was sure as hell steering clear of mentioning the upcoming mission with any sincerity.
Havoc lapsed into silence, obeying Ed's unspoken order to Shut the Hell UP about their raid on the other chimerae. They walked briskly across the parade ground of the base, slipping into the cool, stark interior of the armory building.
Looking around, Ed nearly tripped over Havoc. "Ack!"
"Oh, brilliantly done," Havoc grunted, getting Ed's forehead pranged between his shoulderblades. "Stupid gopher. Come on." They entered one room marked 'Quartermaster', where Havoc proceeded to argue for a half-hour, then the man scuttled off like a beetle. "Sit down. This'll take a while."
Ed sat obediently, toying with the end of his ponytail and looking for split ends. Finding none, he proceeded to stare at his shoes.
Havoc's face quirked briefly into a frown. "Is something wrong?"
"Just bored, is all." Ed lied, hoping it would pass.
"M'mm... I bet."
"What? I'm bored, we've been sitting here for how long now?" Ed whined, but only slightly.
Havoc cuffed him affectionately across the back of his head. "That's not all that's bothering you, though."
"It's all I care to delve into in the slightest, though. Boredom is so trivial compared to everything else, it makes it seem like we're still living semi-normal lives."
"Ed, you couldn't be normal if you tried." The hand slid down to gently and chastely caress the back of Ed's neck. "Things like that are bad for you, though," he said, abruptly grim.
Ed shivered slightly, leaning against Havoc. "Oh well..."
Havoc heaved a dejected sigh.
"We're being all gloomy..." Ed pointed out the obvious, as if it would change the fact.
Despite himself, Havoc rolled his eyes. "I see they call you genius for a reason..."
Ed huffed. "Oh shut up."
"Yes, sir."
Ed proceeded to knock Havoc out of his chair and onto the floor. "Don't even start with that!"
"Owww..." Havoc rubbed gingerly the point of impact. "If that bruises, I swear that I'm going to drag you naked through a roomfull of carpet tacks then dip you into a vat of astringints."
"That's so sweet of you." Ed said with mock adoration. "You deserved it, dammit."
"What did I do to deserve that?" Havoc got to his feet.
"I can think of a number of things, but I'd rather not go into them." Ed looked at the clock on the wall. "How long did you say this was going to take again?"
"I didn't." Havoc plopped back down into his seat. "Y'know, sucker-punching someone is not particularly endearing."
"That wasn't a sucker-punch. It was a shove."
"Whatever it was, it hurt."
"Sorry..." Ed sighed again, slouching in his chair.
"Would you just tell me what's wrong? You're driving me nuts!" Despite his rough words, Havoc reached out, stroking the back of Ed's flesh hand with his fingertips.
"I'm worried about you... about myself... about Roy..." Ed finally admitted. "With what little we have, can we really defeat those chimeras?" he paused for a moment, thinking it over. "No... I think that really... We don't belong here, Jean... We should have stayed dead, but we're here, and we're probably going to die in this... Do you think that's why we're still here? So we could put things right?"
Havoc bit his lip thoughtfully. "I don't know," he finally admitted. "I wish I did."
"Where do you think we'll go after this? We've both died once... do you think the other side of the gate will reject us for it?"
Havoc glanced over at Ed. "Does it really matter?"
"I don't guess so..." Ed leaned against Havoc's shoulder again before hopping out of his seat and pacing. "Dammit, how much longer is this going to take!"
"Don't get your knickers in a twist. I requested something specific, and I don't think that they've pulled it out of storage since the war."
Ed just quirked a brow at the word 'knickers', opting not to make a comment. "...So how long do you think this could take?"
Havoc shrugged, grinning ruefully. "I have no idea. They probably buried it pretty deep, considering it was an older model."
"Just what did you ask for anyway!" Not that Ed would know what it was, but still, it was something to fill in the silence.
"A rifle. The new models that they gave us for the little bodyguarding fiasco were complete shit – the ones from the war were actually built for the desert." Havoc stretched a bit, leaning back over the chair to pop his spine. "They still have a few of them lying around, but not nearly enough to make the oldsters happy."
Havoc got a somewhat blank gaze in return. "Oh... okay..." Cue the subliminal voice that says 'I have no idea what you're talking about' here.
Havoc sighed. He was about to launch into a lecture when the door reopened and the quartermaster came in with two handguns, a black sniper's uniform, and a rather impressive-looking rifle. "Ammunition is ready across the hall," the man said stiffly, packing up the goodies.
Havoc took the packages with an absentminded "Thanks" and motioned for Ed to follow him.
Following once again, Ed thought of something. "So... what am I going to wear?"
Havoc laughed. "What you usually do, squirt."
"Bright red?" Ed didn't see how this would help him blend in at all, and it couldn't possibly be good for this type of combat.
"Black," Havoc corrected. He dropped by the ammunition room, picking up several cases and dumping them on Ed, ignoring his squeals of protest. He couldn't resist making the old soldier's quip, "That way we're dressed for our own funerals."
Ed frowned deeply. "That's so... I don't even know..." Shaking his head, he carted the ammunition off after Havoc.
Havoc directed the dumping off of the ammunition and other such things in a car designated for it, but took the new uniform home to hide (forlornly and momentarily) in the kitchen. On the table.
He plopped down into the armchair with a groaning sigh and covered his eyes with his arm.
Ed flopped on the couch again, looking at Havoc. "I wonder why Roy's not home yet..."
Havoc let his arm fall down, looking up and the ceiling and really feeling like he wanted to cry. "He'll be back in his own sweet time..."
Ed frowned, getting up and relocating himself onto Havoc's lap. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing... just stress, and the awful feeling that, yes, I'm right this time around and I will die... and there's going to be no one there to save me or you if I die..."
Curling up a bit, Ed looked up at Havoc's face from his position. "If you die, I'm coming with you, wherever you go."
Havoc's arms slipped around Ed, pulling him closer for comfort. "I'm glad to hear you say that, Ed."
"It's the truth.. I don't think I could leave you even if I wanted to." It was meant to comfort, though the wording wasn't quite the best to use. It was how Ed really felt, though.
"Let's just hope that you don't want to, then..."
"Of course I don't..." Ed lifted his head, hearing the door. "Hey! Where were you, anyway!"
Roy walked past the chair, headed for the bathroom. "Out, but I'm back now, as you can see. Yes, I'm fine, no, I didn't die or do anything reckless, thanks for being concerned about my well being," he ended sarcastically. Water could be heard from the bathroom, though it was just the sink, followed by a bit of muffled cursing.
"I'd say he's cranky," Havoc commented, not even lifting a single finger to get Ed off his lap; he was comfortable the way he was, thank you very much. "Wonder what got him like that."
"Dunno..." Ed found himself slightly sleepy, and fought back a yawn.
"I'm not cranky, for your information.." Roy stepped out of the bathroom, rubbing his hands gently. Apparently, the backs of his hands were a bit red and looked as though something had irritated the skin there.
Havoc frowned yet again. "Roy, what the hell have you been doing?"
Ed was dozing by now, oblivious to what was going on at the moment.
Looking down, Roy got an odd expression on his face, quickly hiding his hands. "Preparing.."
With a low growl of frustration, Havoc snapped, "Be glad that I have a kid on my lap, otherwise, you'd have to show me." Depression and fatigue were catching up brutally, making him more irate than he really should have been.
"Shouldn't you stop referring to him as a kid, Jean?" Roy stepped around behind the chair, pausing as he considered something. "Promise you won't yell at me for doing something stupid?" Sure, he didn't think it was stupid, but Jean might.
Havoc tried to twist around, but with Ed's weight on him, it was nearly impossible. "He is a kid, Roy. And no, I won't yell at you." He paused to consider. "Much."
Roy sighed, dropping his arms around Havoc's neck. If it weren't for the redness, and of course the fact that his skin wasn't that pale, it would almost seem at first glance as though he was still wearing his gloves. Bradley had made a point, Fawkes most likely would try and rid him of his array right of the bat. So he'd done something about it.
"What... the hell!"
"It's a backup measure, Jean, you don't have to freak out on me..." Roy spun back around, leaning against the chair with a slightly miffed expression that Havoc couldn't see.
"... I'm in love with two people who are insane. Damn it, why can't there be a wall nearby so I can hit my head against it?" Havoc let out a groan. "I didn't freak out on you, either."
Roy frowned. "How is having a backup in case your enemy decides to strip you of your main weapon considered insane? And what did Ed do to be deemed as such?" It was only after he'd asked the second question that he realized how stupid he was for asking it.
"That second question was really a dumb one," Havoc drawled. He reached behind him, tugging on Roy's shirt. "Are they permanant?"
Roy turned around again, leaning over the back of the chair. "What do you think?" He avoided commenting back to the first statement.
"I don't. I'm not the alchemist, remember?"
Sighing, Roy shook his head. "Tattoos have nothing to do with alchemy."
"This is my cue to feel stupid, but oddly enough I don't. How the hell did you get tattoos that quickly?"
"I've been gone for nearly two hours, Jean... Lines don't take that long to tattoo..."
"My next question: Isn't Hawkeye going to be pissed when she finds out?"
Roy pondered that for a moment. "Why would she have a reason to be pissed off at me for it? It's not like she's my wife or anything." He shuddered momentarily at that thought. Probably moreso because of the prospect of having a wife, though still a lot due to the fact that it was Hawkeye, and she could be just plain scary.
"Man, you're dumb."
"What? It's for my safety, why would she be pissed about it? It's not like I went out and got some girl's name tattooed on my ass or something!"
Havoc grinned up at Roy. "I'll tell you when..." his throat closed off, but he forced himself to keep going casually, "we get out of this mess in one piece. Deal?"
Shrugging lightly, Roy leaned down to steal a light kiss. "Deal.."
Havoc managed to get a quick lick in before Roy straightened. "Have you read the briefing packet yet?"
"Not yet... If you would wake up Ed we could do that now, if you'd like.." Roy briefly touched his tongue to his lips, thoughtful. I'm still holding you to your word, Jean... He sighed, draping his arms around Havoc's neck again. Don't die on me, Lieutenant. That's an order. Shaking his head, Roy forced that memory from his mind.
Havoc grinned up at Roy. "Let the kid sleep. He's more stressed out than I've ever seen him. We have till tomorrow, anyway."
"He needs to know these things too... How about after dinner?" Roy brushed a few strands of Ed's hair out of his face, smiling softly. He thought back on the very first time he'd seen the boy like that, over three years ago in his office after he'd brought Alphonse back.
"Oh, damn," Havoc groaned. "What the hell am I going to feed you guys?"
"Maybe we should go out to eat somewhere nice..." Live or die, Roy wanted to at least have a nice meal before he stuck his head into a hornet nest.
Havoc pouted. "What, is my cooking not good enough for you?"
Roy chuckled lightly. "That's not it, I never said that! I just thought maybe we should, or we could order something nice too, I guess... Besides, you can't get up and cook with him on your lap like that."
"I can't exactly go out to eat with him on my lap, either," Havoc commented, shifting slightly to get Ed more comfortable.
Ed mumbled a bit in his sleep, nuzzling his face further into Havoc's stomach.
Shrugging, Roy went to sit on the couch. "Well, like I said, we could order something then. But if we went out to eat, we could wake him up to go with us, of course. He's going to eat with us.."
Havoc absently stroked Ed's hair. "I guess we could order something. I'd rather not wake him up until he wants to."
"Well he has to wake up to eat, either way... It's not for a few hours, though..." Roy ran his fingers through his hair, smiling a bit at the picture his two blonds made.
Havoc grinned sidelong. "I still say you don't want to eat my cooking anymore."
"If you want to cook, go right ahead, I'm not stopping you," Roy motioned at the boy in Havoc's lap, "but he is."
Havoc stuck his tongue out petulantly.
"What?" Roy just grinned. "You could always just move him off of your lap..." You'd be waking her from a sound sleep, you do the math. Roy nearly burst out laughing at the thought, hiding his mirth behind an amused smirk.
"You try waking him up – I don't particularly want automail violently shoved into my gut."
"I don't think he would wake up if you moved him over to the couch.."
Still, Havoc made no move. "Eh. What do you want for supper?"
"I dunno... whatever is fine by me, really... Just something at least halfway decent, we've got a rough day tomorrow.." Roy continued to observe the two in the chair.
"That," Havoc remarked. "Is the Understatement of the Year. Congratulations."
"Oh shut up.." Roy stretched, moving to lie down, staring at the ceiling. "What do you have in there that you could cook, anyway?"
"Quite frankly, not much." Havoc squirmed a bit. "Help me get him off, will you?"
Sitting back up again, Roy scooped Ed up into his arms and allowing Havoc to get up before he put the boy back down again. He watched as Ed grumbled and got comfortable again, absently groping for Jean before giving up and settling back into slumber. "So what exactly is 'not much'?"
"That's what I'm going to look for," Havoc said, teetering on tingly legs. "I'm assuming there's some fish and/or red meat in there."
"Fish sounds good, you need any help?" The dark-haired man looked down at Ed one more time, before turning to face Havoc again.
Havoc didn't miss the look. "Only if you want to. I don't mind if you want to stay with Ed, though I don't think he'll be very companionable."
"Hm? Come on, I'll help." Roy headed for the kitchen without another look back.
Havoc followed. "I'm not sure what kind it is. Probably tuna. How do you want yours cooked?"
"I don't mind how, I'll eat it all the same, do it how you like.." Sure, he'd said he would help... but Roy really didn't know the first thing about real cooking.
"I doubt you're going to like it how I usually eat it." Havoc rummaged around, coming out with a medium-sized package wrapped in butcher's paper. He tossed it onto the counter and started foraging again. "Open up the cabinet next to the oven... no, other side... yeah. Put the cast iron pan onto the stove."
Despite hating orders, Roy was fairly good at following instructions.
Havoc came up with a stick of butter and a triumphant grin. "There. Now you don't have to eat your fish raw."
Roy nearly gagged. "You eat it raw now?"
Havoc blinked innocently at the rather greenish-looking man. "Yeah. I do. Don't ask me why, I just like it better that way."
"...Right." Roy understood, but it didn't make the thought any less disturbing.
"All right, then." Havoc got out a knife and began to cut the fish evenly. "Pass me the salt and peppercorns?"
With a nod, Roy looked around, spotting the afforementioned seasonings and handing them over. "Do you have anything else to go with it?"
"H'm. I think I may have some lettuce." Havoc turned on the burner, cutting off a generous bit of butter and tossing it in. He rubbed salt and crushed peppercorns onto two pieces of tuna. "Actually, I'm pretty sure I do. I got it for you two, considering I don't like the stuff."
"No side dishes? Not that I'm complaining or anything.."
Havoc mock-glared at him. I'm good, but I'm not your own personal chef, all right?" He flicked a peppercorn. "Consider yourself lucky that I'm cooking your food." Despite his words, his eyes were laughing.
"Yeah, yeah.." Roy smirked at the blond, shaking his head. "Thanks for taking the time."
Havoc flicked another peppercorn at Roy. Behind him, the pan began to smoke.
"Is that a bad thing?" Roy eyed the pan, not quite sure whether it was supposed to do that.
"H'm? Oh, yeah. It means that the butter's cooked through." Havoc flicked the two pieces of meat into the pan, briefly glancing at his watch. "Butter tastes nice cold, but it's even better when it's browned."
"I see..." Roy stood beside Havoc, watching the pan with mild curiosity.
Havoc checked his watch again, then flipped the meat over. "See, now you can impress any girl that you can find with your knowlege of cooking."
Roy frowned, leaning just slightly against Havoc. "I don't need to impress girls, Jean.."
"M'mm..." After checking his watch a third time, Havoc flipped the fish onto the cuttingboard. "Grab a couple of plates, will you?"
Roy snapped out of it and nodded again, fishing out a few plates and setting them out. He was about to go and get Ed up, when he heard the boy in the other room.
Rubbing his eyes a bit, Ed plodded into the kitchen, waking up more with each step. "S'mthin' smells good..."
Havoc chuckled, setting the respective pieces on everyone's plates and getting out knifes and forks. "What do you all want to drink?"
"What do you have?" Roy helped guide the somewhat still sleepy Ed to his seat.
"Water... cold coffee... that's about it..." Havoc shrugged. "I'm cleaning out the kitchen right now..."
"I think water will be fine then, right, Ed?" Roy sighed, noting the full mouth the boy already had. "Don't you think you should wait for everybody else?"
Ed swallowed what he had in his mouth, rubbing the back of his head a bit. "Er... sorry? Yeah, water's fine.."
"All right..." Havoc filled three glasses and set them down, following soon after. "All right Ed, now you can start eating."
Blushing slightly, Ed stuck out his tongue. "Shut up," he answered, though he did get back to eating.
Shaking his head again, Roy chuckled. "Slow down, Ed, you're going to choke yourself.." He managed to duck the half-hearted punch, and started on his food as well, still grinning a bit.
After eating, Havoc shooed them all out into the living room. Plopping himself down into his armchair, he said, "Well? What's in the packet, Roy?"
With a sigh, Roy opened the packet, tossing the map included onto the coffee table and briefly scanning the first page. "Hm.." He set the papers down, unfolding the map and looking over it. Pulling out a pen, he marked their current location, before looking back to the paper again. "We'll be up early, it says here we are to be in position at 05:00."
Taking the pen in hand again, he began marking a path. "We're to take the back alleys east of here until we reach Warehouse 6. Travel time is estimated at one hour, so we'll be leaving here by 04:00." A large red circle was now around the square labelled 'W6'. "I really don't see the point in acting before dawn, seeing as we have the disadvantage in the dark. There are seven of them, and three of us. We'll need to stay in a loose formation, but still watch each other's backs, seeing as we don't know too much about the enemy aside from their numbers."
Running his fingers through his hair, Roy scribbled a few more things on the map. "We'll be going in through the south wall, whether or not there's a door there, it doesn't say." He shook his head. "From what we know, Fawkes is their leader, also known as Deceit, specializing in firearms. He's also our main target, and an alchemist, so be careful. Other than that, we are knowledgable on only one other; Falsehood. We know that she is extremely dangerous, particularly involving her highly toxic venom. Other than that, we're flying blind." He set the pen down on the table. "The estimated chance of success is so low I don't even want to read it... I think Bradley is underestimating us at least a little here..."
Havoc leaned over. "Sunrise comes at roughly six-fifteen this time of year. So we can either stake out for an hour and fifteen minutes, or we can scout the position. Scouting has an increased chance of being caught, but at least we won't be totally blind." He glanced up. "We'll be in position right around the false dawn period, so we may be able to do something; either way's fine with me. But... staying in formation might be a bit of a problem."
Ed wasn't really one for battle strategies, and he wasn't at all used to these sorts of missions, either. So he watched and listened in silence, trying to soak it all in.
Roy shrugged. "I'm just reading what it says in my own words. Either way, I think we'll be caught the second we get close, I have a feeling that they'll know we are there, wouldn't you be able to tell if we were there, Jean? I don't think any amount of silence is going to work, snakes I know can feel vibrations in the earth.."
"And knowing Fawkes, he's going to have her on duty that night, I'll bet you anything." Havoc sat back, arms crossed. "Though... she'll be inside, and we'll be on the outside... there may be a slight muffling of vibrations due to the flooring. She'd be suicidal to go outside." A quick grin quirked at the corner of his mouth.
"Would she do something that stupid?" Roy caught the grin, wary of its meaning. "We don't know what their other abilities are... it would be foolish of us to make such assumptions..."
"But we do have to plan for different situations; she may not even be on duty. Though... didn't Bradley at one point reference to an old professor of yours?"
"He'll be hard to miss with his bulk..." Roy tried to imagine him hiding, failing miserably.
"He'll also be harder to kill. If he's that big, then I suggest that... you..." he frowned, trying to remember something.
"Suggest that I what?" Roy noticed the look on Havoc's face. "What is it?"
Ed blinked. He... really wasn't good with these types of things.
Havoc shook his head. "Can't remember." The only big thing he could remember was something massive, destructive, and rather manic about it. "I was going to say that you take care of him. Your fire would be perfect."
"Alright..." Despite the fact that this was a life or death operation, Roy still felt a bit bad at the thought of having to crisp his former professor.
"Oh. One thing." Havoc half-lidded his eyes and gave a LOOK to the other two. "Fawkes. Is. Mine."
Ed scooted back to the far end of the couch, not liking that look at all. "But what if he engages one of us first? Are we just supposed to run like cowards with our tails between our legs? Do you even think he'd let us run?"
Shaking his head, Roy looked at the ceiling. "I don't think we'll have to worry about him coming after us... You understand what I mean, don't you, Jean...?"
"Yes." The look softened to an almost normal one. Then he grinned slightly, which matched he previous glare in being not quite right. "He's mine. Don't get within a ten-foot radius of him."
"I really wouldn't want to anyway..." Ed really didn't know that much about the man but still, he sounded like someone he'd rather not meet in the confines of a deserted warehouse.
"Just don't do anything stupid, Jean..." Roy stood, stretching. "We should probably get some sleep..."
"You two go on ahead. I'm not feeling tired."
"And who said I was tired?" Ed piped up, rocking back and forth slightly. He ignored the look Roy gave him.
Shaking his head, Roy made to drag Edward off anyway, whispering something in the boy's ear as they entered the bedroom that earned a screech of protest, followed by a squeak for reasons unknown.
Havoc let hs head fall back and his eyes close. "Goddammit."
A few minutes later, Ed came stumbling out of the bedroom, hurling one of his boots through the door in the process. "YOU COULD SERIOUSLY USE A LESSON IN SUBTLETY, ROY!"
The corner of Havoc's mouth quirked up.
Refastening his pants, Ed turned his head, looking at Havoc. "Like I said... I'm not tired..."
"M'm?" Havoc cracked open an eye. "Seems like Roy isn't either."
"He can deal." Ed made his way over to Havoc's chair, settling himself in the man's lap. "I think he was more worried than awake... In that kind of way that you think it'll be the last time you get the chance to do something..."
"Him, too?" Havoc opened both his eyes. "He's going to be so pissed at me when this is over with."
Edward sighed. "It's not like he'll be able to do anything about it..." It was hard coming to terms with the likelihood that they were going to die, but damn if they weren't going to take as many people with them as they could. "I... I'm scared, Jean..."
Havoc finally lifted his head, wrapping his arms around the boy. "Don't be. Nothing can happen that already hasn't."
"Dying once doesn't make it any more pleasant the second time around..." Ed nuzzled his face against Havoc's chest. "And it's worse because we'll all be together... It's easier to take when you know it happens, but you don't have to see it happen..."
Havoc sighed, resting his cheek on the top of Ed's head. "But if what you say is true, it won't matter. You'll be following soon enough."
"I know... But I still don't want to lose you again..."
"Is death really forever?" Havoc asked rhetorically. "What makes you think that you will lose me?"
Ed gave up on talking, opting just to sit there. He was warm and comfortable, and he felt safe in Jean's lap, as if nothing was going to keep them apart. Even if it was the last time they got to be this way in this world, Edward was glad for this moment.
Please review, constructive criticism and questions appreciated, flames will be deflected back at you by Roy. n.n;
A/N: Next chapter is it, guys. It's been ten months running since I started this thing, stick with me for the finish, alright?
