Ch. 8

Crash and Flutter of Black Waves of Wings

Because I'm a hungry lil' animal…

I'll bite down on your soul and never let go.

--Goku character study, Saiyuki book 4

Ed's body seemed to be sensitized. Every breeze, every shift in temperature and movement, seemed to skate across his nerves like silk skimming across water. And it was all revolved around General Mustang…Roy. It was like he could feel the man's presence, a distant warmth always at the edge of his consciousness. He could feel the heat of his gaze when coal eyes looked at him, even momentarily. They were drawn to each other, and miserable trying to hide it.

"Ed? Ed? Brother…"

"What?" Ed snapped his head around, realizing that Al had been talking to him when he'd let his attention drift. He was torn. He wanted to tell Al about Roy, but the two of them had agreed to keep their relationship a secret for now. They were in a tense situation and needed to remain as professional as possible…plus Al just might kill Roy.

"Brother, are you alright? You've been distracted ever since you fell into the river. You're not sick, are you?" Al was alarmed at the thought that his brother had been ill and hiding it. And he would hide it, too, the stubborn mule.

"No, Al, I'm fine. I was just thinking…. I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

Al stared at his brother for a moment, trying to judge his sincerity. As a rule, Ed didn't lie much, but he wasn't above stretching the truth and did it well when need be.

"Maybe we should take a break. We've been working on this all morning." They'd been trying to break the code on the gates using what they'd learned of the sutra and alchemical elements. First in the car, now in the cool shade provided by a scraggly tree after the group had stopped to take a lunch break.

"Yeah, you're right. A break and then we'll be refreshed. I'm gonna go for a walk—been sitting too long."

"O-okay, but don't go too far!"

"You worry too much, little brother."

Casting a meaningful glance in Roy's direction, Ed made his way quietly into the nearby wood. A few minutes later Roy made some excuse and joined him there. The only one who noticed was Hakkai, who kept his silence with amusement. He was happy for Ed, even if it could be a potentially difficult relationship.

The forest provided quiet relieve from the dry, dusty road. It was soothing to listen to the birds and other small creatures that lived in the trees—they made a nice early warning system, for they would fall silent if youkai approached. Ed leaned casually against a tree, trying to hide the tension in his body. A quiet rustling announced the arrival of his lover.

Roy walked up to Ed like a dream, some fire elemental come to burn away everything with desire. He unbuttoned his jacket and shrugged it off, letting in lie in the dry leaves. Reaching Ed, he wrapped his arms around the smaller body and lowered his mouth to take Ed's in a hot, wet kiss. Ed pressed up into that kiss as his slender, clever hands began working at the buttons on Roy's shirt, trying to work their way to the smooth skin below. Roy's large, gloved hands worked their way under Ed's shirt and up his back, making Ed shiver with their roughness. Ed wrapped his right leg around Roy's hips and moved to align their bodies as closely as possible. It wasn't close enough and Ed growled with frustration.

Roy moved his hands from underneath Ed's shirt and took off his left glove. He moved that hand up to clutch at the silky mass of Ed's hair, pulled back in a low ponytail. His right arm moved lower, lifting Ed up and against the tree. Ed wrapped both leg's around Roy's waist as he was lifted from the ground and their hips aligned perfectly. Positioned correctly, the two began to grind at each other. Their breath came in hot, frantic little puffs, and Roy buried his head at the junction where Ed's neck met his shoulder.

Ed closed his eyes and bit his lip as the needy pull in his groin grew more and more frantic. Something in his lower belly tightened and coiled and he was on the cusp of ecstacy…and then Roy grown deeply, throatily in his ear and began shuddering his climax. Ed quickly followed, spots of white dancing across his vision.

Afterwards, still breathing heavily, Ed gingerly lowered himself to the ground. His pants, like Roy's, were thick enough to hide the evidence of their mating, but to walk around with said evidence inside his pants…eww.

Hearing a small, throaty chuckle, Ed looked up. Roy walked over to his coat and reached in to pull out two hankerchiefs.

"I came prepared."

Goku was bored. And hurt. He'd tried talking to Sanzo and had had his head bitten off! He'd run away when Sanzo had pulled that dangerous fan out of nowhere. He hated that fan! (1) Hakkai was busy helping to organize and prepare lunch, and Gojyo…Gojyo'd been acting weird lately. He spent a lot of time staring at Sanzo, but hadn't gone out of his way to annoy him as much. But the staring seemed to make Sanzo more irritable than ever. Goku sighed.

He didn't know any of the foreigners! They'd seemed nice at first, but had been scared when they saw the Sanzo group fight for the first time. Since then they all acted like he was a pet wolf—friendly for the most part, but still not tamed, still not trustworthy, still dangerous. He wouldn't hurt them! He just wished he had someone to talk to. Goku kicked a rock in the road in frustration and loneliness.

"Hey there!"

Goku turned at the chipper greeting and saw one of the foreigners, a young man who looked to be about eighteen or nineteen. He was an inch or two taller than Goku and very pretty with dark brown hair and big blue eyes. He wore a big, friendly smile on his open and honest face.

"Hi!" Goku was relieved someone wanted to talk to him. Finally!

"You're Goku, right? I just wanted to tell you that you fight great! I've never seen anything like it! You're so fast!"

"Thanks!" Goku grinned shyly. He wasn't used to getting compliments, especially not from strangers, especially not about his fighting skills. Maybe a 'good job' from Hakkai or Gojyo, but nothing like this frank admiration.

"Oh, I'm making a fool of myself! I'm sure you've got lots more important things to do than talk to me!" The young man seemed kind of crestfallen and turned to walk away.

"No, wait! I don't really have anything to do, I'd like to talk to you!…um, what's your name?" Goku wasn't about to let someone who was near his age (2), interested in talking, and not afraid of him get away.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Private Jeremy Landis at your service," the boy said with a sharp salute and a sly grin, "but you can just call me Jerry!"

The lunch stop was only about an hour, but Goku and Jerry spent the whole time talking. When the troop stopped for the evening, they found each other again. Jerry talked Goku into sparring with him a little bit, then they wandered off so Goku could show off his tracking abilities.

"Its just so neat! I can't believe how good your sense of smell is! And if not for you, we'd probably never have found the General or the Fullmetal Alchemist!"

"The who?"

"Oh, you don't know his title? Edward Elric is the Fullmetal Alchemist. Whenever an alchemist is certified by the army, they become an official state alchemist and are given a title by the higher ups! Edward Elric became the youngest state alchemist ever at only twelve years old! Anyway, his title is the Fullmetal Alchemist. General Mustang's is the Flame Alchemist!" Jerry took a long breath after he explained the titles in a rush.

"Why Fullmetal and Flame?" Goku was curious. He wondered why the General or Ed hadn't said anything. He'd met them both when he was at Sanzo's side, but hadn't really had much of a chance to get to know them.

"Well, Flame because the General is and expert in fire alchemy. I don't really know why Fullmetal, except that he works with metal a lot."(3) Jerry looked perplexed for a moment, but shrugged it off.

At the end of the night, before they returned to camp, Jerry surprised Goku by hugging him. It had been a while since Goku had been hugged—Sanzo wasn't a big fan of close physical contact. Hugging Jerry was different from hugging Sanzo (those few times he'd managed to sneak close enough to steal a hug). Jerry was warm and firm and soft and so close. He smelled fresh and clean and just a little salty, and his breath was hot in Goku's ear.

"I think you're really special, Goku," Jerry whispered before pulling back to smile shyly. Goku just stared back at him for a few minutes before returning an equally shy smile. He didn't understand the feelings whirling about in his lower belly, hot and confusing. But he liked it.

The next day started off in a sweltering miasma of heat and humidity. Ed's messy bangs stuck to his face and got in his eyes, annoying him to no end. Everyone seemed to have a fine layer of perspiration covering them, making the camp aromatically unpleasant, and tempers frayed. Even Hakkai and Al looked grumpy, even Hawkeye looked frazzled. Havoc seemed intent on smoking as many cigarettes as he could before the drive started—he knew that none of his passengers would allow him to smoke in the car. Considering who his passengers were, he tried not to piss them off too much. Even his cigarettes seemed soggy in the heavy, wet air.

The camped packed, the long drive started with an air of dread. It was one of those days when you really shouldn't do anything other than lay around in as little clothes as you could get away with. Even riding in a car seemed a hassle end a chore. The line of cars trudged through the forest like a line of lazy, drunk ants, meandering without any energy. By mid morning, Al and Ed had agreed to not worry about uncoding the gates until they'd taken a rest. Al quickly leaned back and followed the example Hawkeye set by taking a nap. Ed exchanged glances with Roy.

Since they'd become lovers, sitting in a car with Roy and not touching him was a form of tortuous distraction. Even now he knew that Roy was awake, though the man had his eyes closed. It was if there was an electric link between them that sizzled and sparked constantly. As if in response to Ed's gaze, Roy opened his eyes and returned his look. In those coal eyes burned the same yearning that Ed felt in his gut. It was going to be a very long day.

As the day dragged on the troop was surprised to see signs of civilizations. There was no village on the map the Sanzo group had, but the map was, admittedly, faulty. So, at noon, the whole troop was pleased to see a village in the near distance. As they drove closer, however, an ominous atmosphere filled the air.

When the cars reached the village a short while later, it quickly became apparent the reason for the dread air. The stench was what was first noticable. That horrible, distinct sweet smell of rotting flesh and carnivore offal. When they drove to the village the only movement was the crash and flutter of black waves of wings as crows milled around their macabre feast.

The whole village was dead. It had been massacred, corpses strewn about the street and left to rot. Most of the corpses were too decayed and eaten to be identifiable, but many of the corpses, too many it seemed, were small and frail. Children.

The corpse village was the Armestrian's first true taste of the tragedy encompassing all of Shangri La (4).

Mwahahahaha….

(1) Sanzo carries around a folding fan which he can seem to pull out of thin air. It's like he has three levels of threat—yelling, hitting with the fan, then shooting. I believe I read somewhere that the fan is something often carried by high ranking priests to discipline noviates, or something. Needless to say, Goku and Gojyo have been hit with it many, many times.

(2) Goku's actual age is somewhere around 500, but physically he's about 18. While he was in his mountain prison he didn't age at all.

(3) For those who don't know, I think that 'Fullmetal' refers to Ed's arm and leg more than anything else (even though he does work with metal a lot), but almost no one seems to know about that. I assume that that goes for the army as well as civilians, which is why most people assume Al is the Fullmetal Alchemist (being made of metal and all).

(4) I don't think I said before, but the events of Saiyuki take place in Shangri La.

Okay, I think I'm gonna redo Envy's outfit because I don't like skorts. So far I've had one vote for leather hotpants. Any other suggestions?

ayjayaj: Glad to see that you're still reading. I was originally gonna focus more on Ed POV than anything else (he's still the protagonist), but I love the Saiyuki characters too much to leave them out! Thanks for reviewing, keep reading!

Tsunamisiren3264: I plan to keep it up! Please keep reading!

JMJV: Glad you liked last chapter! Hope you liked this one too…especially since you're a Goku fan. This is the first time I've ever tried to write him. Hope he turned out IC. About Goku's crime, I got the feeling from Gaiden that it was more about controlling Nataku than Goku, since Goku was Nataku's only friend. So sad. Anyways, thanks for reviewing, and for the congratulations! Ja ne!

Grasshopper: Ah, another Sanzo fan! He's my fave Saiyuki bishie—so angsty and sullen! Heehee. I LOVE Weiß! I actually like YohjixAya best I think…and I can thank P.L. Nunn for that. She's got a whole Weiß arc with lots of Aya torture (he's my fave Weiß), mostly a la Shuldig. I'll take KenxAya, too. ShuldigxAya NCS…I like Shuldig evil, I don't like it when authors try to write him like he's not really a bad guy. Yes he is, and he loves it! Its what makes him so fun! All of Schwartz is like that, except Nagi. I like Aya as the uke, I guess because he seems so…celibate. I don't see him being the one to initiate it. Plus Ken seems sort of masculine, virile to me…I guess it's the whole jock thing. I really read him as a seme type, even if he isn't a very big guy. P.L. Nunn also influenced how I like my Saiyuki pairings. She's got a Saiyuki arc with lots of Sanzo torture and a good bit of GojyoxSanzo. Look her stuff up at www. bishonenworks. com minus the spaces. Very, very good, but very, very dark. Anyways, I love a pissy Sanzo. He bitches so well, dontcha think? But Gojyo was lucky to survive that chapter. Expect to see more GojyoxSanzo soon! I'm more into abs than asses, myself. I love the lower belly, hip area where the hip bones stick out just a bit and the muscles do that dippy thing… drools . You know, I never thought of the gun as phallic symbol before, but maybe that's why Sanzo so gung-ho to shoot everything (also makes me wander about Aya's katana…). Yes, poor Private Landis…but I had to get Envy back in there somewhere, so he got sacrificed to my muse. Mwahahahahaha. I don't really like Sanzo with Goku a lot because Goku just seems too young to me. Maybe if its in a continuation when Goku's more mature, or playing up his youkai features, or maybe a dark fic when he loses his limiter, but…I don't know. I'm not saying I haven't read SanzoxGoku fics I like, but they have to be sure that it doesn't feel like Sanzo's molesting Goku. A lot of them seem like that because Goku's just so innocent. Ed with Krad-style hair. I don't know whether to drool or be envious. Both. Isn't Ed just so fun to torture. I'll have more of that in the near future. Hmm. I repress my emotions, too. It feels like every time I really let them go, I regret it later. So I just suppress, then avoid. I spend a lot of time daydreaming and reading…hmmm, not a good use of time, but at least I don't get in many fights. Oh, I have read some uber-graphic stuff on I've also read people complaining because shut them down after they posted something innappropriate. Well, I'm glad my stuff's not too graphic. Besides, I really think a good story doesn't need too much smut, it should be able to stand without any pairings. Glad that Envy's coming along well. How do like the latest Envy-twist. Hmm…the four S's. Sounds like Crawford, too. But I have to say, Muraki may just be my favorite villain. Schwartz is close, though. Haven't really seen enough of Envy in the show to be sure about him. I got the whole Ed-obsession thing from other fanfics. Anyway, thanks for reviewing again! Ja ne!

Shihaz'riah: Glad you like! Thanks for reviewing, and keep reading! Ja ne!

Climax: Thank you for the congratulations! I didn't really think about having Sanzo borrowing cigarettes from Havoc, but you're right, he'd never ask. He has a hard enough time asking for things from Gojyo, he'd never ask a favor of a stranger. And you're also right about why Havoc wouldn't share. I got the part about Goku tracking directly from the manga. In book 5 he helps Sanzo track down Hakkai (it's a flashback to when they first met). Yeppers. Gojyo still acts like he's scared of Sanzo when Sanzo points his gun at him, but I figure he can't be too scared or he wouldn't piss Sanzo off so much. Glad you're still reading! I'll keep writing! Ja ne!

Schizo the Mentally Disturbed: Glad you're still reading! Don't sweat it about not reviewing for a chapter, I'm just glad you still like it. I'll get in touch for more Saiyuki details in a few chapters. Don't think I'll need it for Fullmetal Alchemist—I'm kind of making an AU split and making up a different ending for the parts I don't know. I may ask about FMA for another fic I've got in mind at a later date, though. Spilt blood in heaven, hmm. In Gaiden it seemed more like it was about controlling Nataku than anything else…Goku was Nataku's only friend, so Nataku was ordered to kill him kind of thing. But Gaiden ends before the actual event occurs. Anyway, thanks for reading! See ya soon. Ja ne!

Terry-McElrath: Hi! Glad you found this fic and like it. Good to hear that you like the health-Al's body exchange. I really debated with myself about what Ed should have to give, and that worked out the best for the story. Love Ed with super-long hair! Glad you like my characterizations. I'm trying to keep them in character, if a little more mature in some cases. For instance, Ed is a little bit calmer because he's older, a little bit less of a hothead. I like the whole neko-Ed thing. Must be his eyes, the kitten thing just suits him. I felt bad torturing Ed, but…I just love to torture my favorite characters, I can't help it. Yes, Envy isn't finished with him yet. Glad you like the Saiyuki characterizations, I'm trying to keep them pretty close to the manga characters. This is a continuation of FMA, but a TWT for Saiyuki. Thanks for all the effusive praise at chapter 4! I'm glad you like the bracelet thing. I wanted to give him his limbs back (after taking his health and torturing him I owed him that much), but I really thought the blade thing he does in the show is cool…so I compromised. Yeah, Sanzo doesn't have any room to complain about people hiding things from him…but I think he's kind of a control freak, so not knowing about the alchemist would piss him off. I do love the long hair! I'm thinking of a fanfic where Aya from Weiß has long hair, and another with Tsuzuki from Yami with long hair. Hmm. And I've got an idea or two for some GW fics with Duo as the main character…so many ideas, so little time. I wish I could get a job writing fanfics. sighs Yeah, fanficcers seem to love torturing the characters they love. But its so much fun! Poor Ed. And you will see plenty of RoyxEd! Oh, yeah, that Envy being Al thing is so perverse. It just came to me while I was writing that chapter and I had to do it! Glad you like the way Ed and Roy got together. I had to get them alone before it could happen, though. Oh, Hakkai didn't heal Ed because Ed was just exhausted. I'm not really an expert on Chi magic, but I think its mostly to heal wounds and such. Since Ed wasn't actually wounded, there was little Hakkai could do. Plus, Hakkai would have already been drained by the earlier healing, so he really didn't need to waste energy on a problem that could be solved by a nap. Glad you like Sanzo's POV. Yeah, he can admit (to himself) that he's got a libido. But will he ever admit it to anyone else? I like redheads to. My current obsession is Aya, from Weiß (in case you haven't guessed!). I love long hair, but I also like Aya's funky haircut a lot. Glad that the Saiyuki info was helpful. It occurred to me that using Sanzo's POV I made some references that people who don't know about Saiyuki might not understand. Glad you like the story, and keep on reading! Thanks for the congrats! Ja ne!

Senna Robbins: Glad you like the story! Thanks for reviewing! Keep on reading! Ja ne!

Serenity Moon2: Thank you for reading! Glad you like! I'll update as quickly as I can! Ja ne!

Akkarin11: Generally hate RoyxEd shocked! . Just kidding. To each their own. Out of curiosity, what is your fave FMA pairing? Or do you prefer it sans pairings? Anyway, I'm glad that you like this story even though its not your normal kind of pairing. I take that as a real compliment! Thanks for reading! Ja ne!