A/N: Yippee! Thanks for the reviews, all! It just tickles me to know that there are such lovely SxL fans out there. You guys rock the world of FMA!

All right, so here's the next drabble, and it's fresh off the keyboard! I just got it done, and I am very proud of it! There are some spoilers for episode forty-six, but you guys may be able to sneak by with this one, however I will say this: read at your own risk! This is also between Ed and Lust, since they have a lot of interaction in the series, yet I haven't seen any fiction on them, so I put them together to discuss Lust's motives. It turned out quite well in my opinion, so I hope you like this!

Dedication: This one's going out to the SxL author I adore for her fantastic work, Alchemist Experment. Read her stuff, people!

Understanding

"Why are you wanting to help me so suddenly? I was under the impression you hated me." Edward spat after the homunculus in front of him, her long black hair blending in with her dress thanks to the dark midnight sky.

She turned and looked over her shoulder at him, a sad smile on her face. Sad... how could she be sad when she wasn't supposed to have emotions? "I can only truly hate my creator, and since he is already dead, I have no reason to resent you, Full Metal boy." Edward relaxed just slightly, but still didn't quite trust her. Her behavior lately had been questionable, and loyalty was known to be a fake mask she could wear easily. Lust took note of his unchanging expression and went on. "Like I said in the alleyway, I want to become human, and only you can help me do that."

"But why do you want to be a human so badly?" he shouted, still nowhere near on good terms with her. "You homunculi are all the same - you crave something that isn't rightfully yours. You're all willing to sacrifice others to get something you're not supposed to have."

Despite the truth in his words, there was unintended bias within. Lust scoffed lightly and folded her arms, growing a bit impatient with Edward's stubborn and naive outlook on life. "But you forget to remember that thousands of lives have already been sacrificed and are now what's keeping your brother alive. Those sacrifices have already been put to use, and you have the power to give them meaning, Full Metal. Waste them, and it would be an even greater sense of guilt to bear."

Edward gritted his teeth together. Cursed woman! How dare she bring his brother into this, but he had to admit that she did have a point. He was no different than any of the other homunculi, in that the sacrifices had already been made, and were now inside Al's shell for a body. Should he choose to let the Stone dissipate, then it would be the same thing as murdering them for no righteous cause - just a lost one.

"You still haven't answered my question, though. Why do you want to be human?" he asked, more politely now, though still had a sense of malice in his tone.

Lust whipped some hair out of her face to show off her still sad, yet hopeful smile. Didn't he understand yet? "I told you before. It's for the same reason that you want your brother's body back."

"Not good enough!" he yelled back, startling her slightly. "Stop using everyone else's reasons as your own excuses. Give me your real reason and I'll start considering granting your wish."

So he wanted the full truth, did he? Clever boy... He knew just what to ask to get what he wanted out of her, and though it was a painful recollection, she realized that it was why she wanted to feel the way a true human did so badly. "I want to know what love feels like, because I thought I felt it before, but wasn't sure."

Her words were simple, but heart-wrenching to him as he watched her face weaken with miserable images - images of deaths she didn't want. "...Scar told me that he had a brother, and that that same brother had a wife whom he tried to bring back from the grave. I told him that it was you, so that's why he was struggling so much around you. You were his guilty sin and he couldn't bear to look at you without regretting his former life."

"I know." she replied in a whisper.

"How do you know?" Edward said back angrily, surprising himself that he was now defending Scar's past, even when the two were once bitter enemies. "You can't know how awful he felt when he would look at you! It's just like me when I see the Sin that I created to be my mother - I can't suppress the guilt and horror in my mind!"

Lust shed a tear.

Edward silenced himself.

She was... crying?

"I can't know all that you both have endured, but..." She paused and let her smile widen slightly, ornately complimenting her pale face. "...I do know that I think I felt love for him, just as Sloth feels a recalled love for you and your brother." Edward stared at her cautiously, his flesh and bone hand shaking a little as he let it slip out of its tight grip. This homunculus was different than all the others. She had a desire unlike the rest of them, and it was a desire to understand her true feelings. She didn't want to just feel what her sin nature told her... Lust just wanted to love the way she used to before she turned into this monster.

Lust wiped away the tear lingering on her cheek and stared at the clear gem-like drop on her finger, seeing her reflection in it for a moment before it soaked into her skin. Clenching her fist shut in quiet determination, she spoke to the boy she hoped would make her dream a reality. "Help me understand myself, Edward. Help me know what it's like to love."

Slowly, he nodded and hung his head, fingering the necklace in his pocket for a moment before looking back up at her with a wry smile. "Let's go."

A/N: Yes, I altered the original scene because I wanted her to get sappy. I think it works, though, and I say spread the Ed and Lust interaction love! He he, and I just love how they were able to share a slight similarity when they compared one another's trials, so it's spiffy to me. All right, if you liked this, leave a review. If you didn't and only want to flame my favorite FMA couple - leave. Thanks for reading, all!

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