Another fic co-written with my itoko. This time, featuring Jing from his anime and the Elric Brothers from Fullmetal Alchemist. Note: It might help to take a peek at Luminary Larceny first, since this is along those lines, though not connected with that fic. Also, my itoko and I own neither King of Bandits: Jing nor Full Metal Alchemist.

Pilfering Parables
By Ankhutenshi and Halys

Dawn was approaching as light began to filter in through the trees. At the makeshift campsite, most of the travelers were still sleeping. Near the fire, Ed had moved to rest his head in a depression of grass. The mark appeared to have been of where something heavy was sitting, but had left. Then, soft, but heavy footsteps rang in the cool morning air as someone approached. Alphonse tiptoed into the clearing, with a bundle of wood in his arms. He neared the dying fire, and added a few logs, urging the flames to grow again. When he was satisfied, he set the remaining logs nearby and moved back to his seat near Ed. Lifting his elder brother gently, he sat back down, and then carefully cradled Ed's head into his lap to keep sleeping.

There was a small rustle from the yellow coat on the other side of the fire, and a black feathered head poked up, then wiggled free of his partner's arm. Kir ruffled his feathers all over, and yawned -- something not easily managed with a beak. Seeing Al awake, he flapped over to the armored brother. "Morning already, eh?"

Al rose a metal finger to his helmet--to his lips--to signal quiet, and then pointed to Ed. He nodded. "Yes, it's morning, but nii-san is a late sleeper, so we'll rest a while longer," he whispered.

Kir cocked his head to one side, then lowered his voice slightly. "Jing's like that some days. If it ain't important, he ain't waking, you know?" He almost hopped onto Al's arm, but remembered the poor reaction the younger Elric had to it the day before. "Your brother was pretty uptight yesterday. Everything ok?"

"He's just worried about me," Al replied, looking down at his brother. He let his hand rest on Ed's head, and began to gently stroke his brother's hair. His large fingers carefully worked out tangles after Al had released Ed's hair from its braid. "He's very protective of me, because we're both working for the same goal."

Kir regarded the red coat the alchemist was wearing for a blanket, then back at Jing. "They're kind of alike, aren't they?"

Al's gaze shifted from Ed to Jing. "Yeah, in a way. Though, I don't think Jing-san gets angry at getting called short."

"Nah, but he's got his trigger points," The albatross snickered. "That's something fun to see."

A chuckled emanated from the armor. "Nii-san will spazz, even if someone's not talking about him. He'll take offense at anything, but I think he does it for attention." Al leaned forward, taking care not to disrupt his snoring brother. "He also hates milk with a passion," he confided.

Kir was quiet for a moment, then tilted his head. "What is it you're running from, Alphonse Elric?"

Al froze, staring at the bird. "What are you talking about?"

"You two were moving pretty fast yesterday," the black albatross said reasonably. "Much more urgent than if you were just eager to get home. If you were trying to get to someone, you wouldn't have stopped overnight. So what are you trying to get away from?"

Apparently, Kir was a very intelligent bird. There was a pause before Al spoke again. "We... the army is after nii-san," Al murmured, keeping his voice low, as if someone might be listening in. "And me..." he added as an afterthought.

Kir have Al an appraising look. "Well, you do sort of stand out. If you'd --" He stopped mid-sentence, feathers ruffling. "Uh, hold that thought. Be right back." And with that, he flew up into the canopy.

Al watched as Kir took off, but he remained silent. When the bird was out of sight, Al glanced down at his brother again, and continued to gently pet him. "Nii-san.." he said quietly. His brother shifted, and flopped onto his back, with his head still in Al's lap. Al leaned forward, and carefully pulled Ed's shirt down, so he wasn't sleeping with his belly out.

"Uhh. Al?"

The armor boy's gaze moved back up to the canopy. "Yes, Kir-san?"

"You know that really large army you were talking about last night?" Kir's voice was oddly conversational.

"Yes..."

"Were we waiting for them to show up and escort us?"

Al jerked suddenly, a surprised cry leaving him. He shook his brother, willing him awake. "Nii-san! Wake up!" The elder boy jumped, rising unsteadily to his feet.

"Wass goin' on?" he growled, rubbing his eyes.

"Kir-san said the army is approaching!"

"Can't be..." Ed replied, slowly becoming more awake. His eyes traveled the clearing as he began to remember where he was. "They were all turned into the Sto--" His amber eyes fell on the prone figure of Jing, and he suddenly clamed up. "I mean, are you sure?"

Kir came spiraling down through the foliage, landing on his partner's back. "Jing! Jing! Time to go!"

Jing sat up, hair looking even more tousled than usual. "What is it, Kir?" He asked, shaking his head alert. He swiped his arm at the bird, who dodged easily.

"We've got company," Ed stepped in. "And I'd prefer if we kept this simple. Al and I don't have time to waste."

Nearby, Al had already gotten into a fighting stance, his arms rigid as they crossed over his chest. His knees were bent, ready to spring. Ed stood like wise. "Should we run, nii-san?" Al asked.

Ed turned to Jing. "Can you and that bird of yours fight if we need to?"

"Don't worry about us," Jing said, smirking, suddenly wide awake. "It was getting boring around here anyway."

Ed nodded, and took a fighting stance similar to his brothers. Instead of crossing his arms, however, he clapped them together, using alchemy to extend his automail into a gleaming sword. Through the foliage of the forest, they could hear a large group approaching. Shouts were heard, and were getting louder.

"Remember Al," Ed growled, glancing at his brother. "No alchemy. Let me take care of this."

Al was silent for a moment, then said "Yes, nii-san."

"Here they come," Kir warned, and flew to Jing's side.

The group of four stood poised and ready to meet whatever threat was coming for them -- but astoundingly, it wasn't blue dressed soldiers which burst through the underbrush, but a pair of frightened, dark-skinned people. A young man and woman pulled up short at the sight in the clearing.

"Oy!" Cried Ed, diverting the pair's attention to himself. "Are you all right? Why weren't you with the others?" He spoke of the other people from Lior who had escaped through the underground tunnels before the attack by the Amestrian army. Before either of the two refugees could respond, more shouts came through the trees, coupled with gunshots.

"Help us, please!" The woman cried. Al beckoned them towards a corner of the clearing where there was a thicket of brushes.

"Hide in here," He directed the two into the bushes. "We'll take care of them."

"Get ready, Al!" shouted Ed above the din.

A quartet of soldiers with guns drawn came crashing through the trees. There was a moment of silence as they assessed the situation, and then one of them shouted, "The ones Major Armstrong said we're looking for!"

"Who are you talking about?" shouted Ed, preparing himself to dodge bullets. "What am I talking about? It doesn't matter, 'cause you're not taking anyone!"

There was a sound of sliding metal, and a blade eerily similar to Ed's locked into position along Jing's right arm. "Remember this isn't our fight, Kir," he warned. Nevertheless, he didn't back down, moving slightly to put himself between the now-concealed couple in the bushes.

Ed shot a glance over to ensure his brother was all right with the refugees. "Short and simple, remember?" he said, turning now to Jing. Then, a small group of soldiers burst through the trees into the clearing.

"Oy!" Ed shouted, directing the attention of the soldiers to himself. "What do you want? Can't you leave a few travelers alone?"

"This is territory of the Amestrian Nation and we're searching for known terrorists!" Replied one of the men, as he hefted his weapon to his shoulder. "And you happen to fit that description!"

Smoke began to fill the air as the soldiers began firing. Ed zoomed forward, dodging the gunfire on swift feet. His red cloak fluttered behind him as he jumped, and landed a high kick to one of the soldier's faces.

Known terrorists? Jing thought, even as the gunmen broke formation and tried to regroup. Seeing that he too bore a weapon, one of the soldiers turned his aim on the Bandit King. Obviously the rule of Amestris is guilty by association! Jing thought, bringing his blade up to deflect the bullets before rushing towards his attacker. Three quick slashes and the rifle clattered to the ground in pieces.

Meanwhile, Ed was making short work of the other enemies. Two were already down, either unconscious, or with broken bones.

"Fullmetal, you traitor!" cried one of the soldiers, taking aim. Ed swung around, flipping over and landing on his hands before springing to his feet again, only to slices through the barrel of the man's gun. The metal clattered to the ground, just as Ed drove a well aimed knee into the soldier's chin. The man collapsed, unconscious as well.

Jing had likewise dispatched his target into unconsciousness; with the exception of surely having a splitting headache when he woke, however, the man was unharmed. Seeing that there were no more soldiers coming -- this army must be stretched pretty thin if there's no backup, he mused -- Jing turned to make sure the couple hiding in the bushes were all right.

"Hey," he said, a friendly smile on his face. "Are you two all right? It looks like you won't be chased now..."

The two dark-skinned Lior citizens nodded mutely, glancing between Ed and Jing.

Al stood, offering the two a hand up, which they took. "You'd better be more careful," he warned gently. "Try taking this road due north, and you should catch up with the others."

The man and the woman nodded again, and scurried on. Ed, however, was standing near the prone men, surveying his work.

"Ne, nii-san... don't you think you overreacted a little?"

Ed glared at one of the groaning men.

The curved blade slid back into Jing's coat sleeve, as Kir examined one of the fallen soldiers before directing a smirk towards Al. "So, you really weren't kidding when you said the army was after you and your brother, eh?"

"We'd rather not go into detail... too long of a story." Ed grumbled, kicking the body of a soldier. "Anyway, our work is done here. Let's get going. That is, if you're planning on going with us?"

Jing grinned rakishly, holding his arm out for Kir. "I suppose we'll have to now. They were shooting at us too, for being in the company of terrorists. I guess we're outlaws already, Kir, and we haven't even finished sightseeing!"

A giggle escaped Al as Ed grumbled an assent. "All right... Just don't let that dumb bird get us in trouble by talking or anything."

"Nii-san! That was mean! Kir-san is very nice. It think it's good that he can talk!" As he spoke, Al lagged behind, walking into time with Jing. "I like animals a lot," he said, and if it were not for his armor, he would be smiling.

Kir blew a raspberry at Ed (no easy feat with a beak, surely) but he didn't seem overly upset by the comment. Still, a hard edge entered Jing's grey eyes for a split second at Ed's words, but it was gone again a moment later, and he looked up at Al with a smile. "Really? I don't much picture you as a dog person... cat, maybe?"

The suit of armor nodded. Then, to Al's own amazement, he was almost skipping. "Nii-san won't let me have a pet, 'cause we travel so much. But I want a kitten. They're so cute!"

"I have a pet," Kir wisecracked. "I call him Jing. He's sort of messy, but you get used to it."

Al laughed again. "Nii-san is kinda messy too! You should see him eat!" The younger Elric leaned forward, whispering conspiratorially. "He even sleeps with his belly hanging out. I usually have to cover him up so he doesn't get cold!"

Even Jing laughed at that, casting a glance up the path at the elder Elric brother, who seemed to be in an even worse mood than yesterday. "What's the matter, Ed?" The Bandit King called, "Don't you have any cute stories you want to share?"

Ed shot a glare at Jing, but when he saw the look Al was giving him, he relented. "Fine... When we were younger, whenever we got in a fight, Al would sit by the river until I came and got him." A soft look crossed Ed's usually harsh features. He kicked at a rock at the ground, not wanting the others to see his face. "And even if it was my fault, he'd forgive me. No matter what I'd done against him. Al always forgives me..."

"Nii-san..." Al murmured, staring at his brother.

Ed growled again, and kicked the dirt. "All right, there's your sappy story. Happy?"

"Very happy," Jing answered, without any trace of mockery in his voice. "You two have been together all this time, and that's really good. Even people who are really close fight sometimes, eh Kir?"

The bird bobbed his head. "Yeah, Jing and I sometimes get into it. Usually it's over something really stupid. Or someone really pretty," he added with a laugh. "But it works out once we both cool down again."

Ed remained silent, however Al nodded. "The same with us. We don't fight very often, but we always work things out in the end. Nii-san is really kind, deep down. He's just too embarrassed to admit it. You know, he's the one that kept me alive whe--"

"AL!" shouted Ed, turning suddenly. His face was white, but he glared at his brother. "Don't..."

"I... sorry, nii-san. But Jing-san seems trustworthy enough! You let me tell Rose-san and she didn't even like you! Please?"

Ed continued to glare at Al, then turned suddenly, his shoulders slumping. "Fine... " he murmured.

"Kir and I are good at keeping secrets," Jing said solemnly to Al. "Have you ever heard of the Ghost Ship of Blue Hawaii?"

Al shook his head. "No..."

"Exactly."

The suit of arm tilted his head to the side, but raised a hand to it's face, as if to smother a laugh, though the sound echoed inside. "What was it?" Al asked.

"A ghost ship," Jing answered, jumping up to grab an apple from an overhanging branch as they walked. "Actually, it was a casino ship, run by ghosts. Overall, it was headed by Greed."

Spinning on his heel, Ed faced Jing. "You knew Greed?"

Apple midway to his mouth, Jing paused. "Well, 'knew' is a little personal. Encountered, I guess. Greed and Desire sort of ran the place together. I thought you'd never heard of it?"

"We knew Greed-san," relied Al.

"I killed him," Ed added. "Desire... who's that though? Is she a homunculus? I've never heard of her..." The older Elric seemed to be pondering.

"Maybe that's just another name for Lust-san?" Al asked, turning to his brother.

"Maybe... Oy, Jing, what did Desire look like?"

Jing shook his head, seeming confused by Ed's claim of killing Greed. "They didn't exactly have forms... they just controlled all the gold in the ship. And the souls thought they were playing with the gold, when really it was the other way around."

Ed waved a hand, shaking his head as if Jing was a confused child. "No, no. I killed him. I'm sure. After I pushed him into alchemy circle, near his old bones, he had thrown up the pieces of the Philosopher's stone, making it easier for me to kill him. And Lust... well, she's still out there."

"Maybe the homunculus in Jing-san's world are different than they are here, nii-san?"

"Hmm... that could be."

"What's a homunculus?" Kir asked, then said, "Oh, who cares! Introduce me to any lady named Lust!"

The Elric brothers stared at each other for a moment, and then at their companions. At once, they began to talk, describing each homunculus while miming with their hands.

"Lust-san is almost nice, but she's still evil. She has fingers that can stab--"

"Gluttony is just gross. He can eat anything, the huge pig. He tried to eat Al once, but I got--"

"Wrath used to be our friend. He's Sensei's so--"

"Envy, that bastard, he's annoying as hell and can change into anything he wants--"

"And Sloth..." Both Ed and Al silenced at the mention of the homunculus they had created.

"Anyway, they're evil. You want to stay away from them," Ed said flatly. "They're made up of pieces of the Philosopher's Stone, so they can't die, unless you kill them a certain way."

"The Philosopher's Stone?" Jing repeated innocently.

"Yeah, it's this legendary object that allows the user to ignore the Laws of Conservation in Alchemy," droned Ed, reciting a familiar line. Al shot a nervous glance at his brother, but Ed didn't seem concerned by Jing's question.

"That sounds like quite a treasure," the Bandit King said musingly, then grinned at Ed. "But I bet you wouldn't need anything like that, would you? Your brother was telling us how talented you are at Alchemy."

Al continued to shift nervously. Ed, however, glared at Jing. "Why would I have need for something like that? It's myth."

"Er... nii-san..."

"But if you have to ask," Ed continued. "We were looking for it so that I could give Al back his original body." His tone suggested that Jing wouldn't want to question further.

Jing took a bite of his apple and chewed it thoughtfully before answering. "I can understand that, I guess." He looked up at Al sympathetically. "Must be kind of hard living like that, huh? Be a little drafty, I'd think."

A gasp echoed through Al's armor, while Ed gave Jing a calculating stare. "You knew he was hollow. How? Same way you knew my leg and arm aren't real?"

"I've handled lots of people in armor before," Jing answered. "Al's only got a single echo when he walks. A foot inside armor makes two echoes, one on top of the other."

"Told you Jing was observant," Kir added.

Placing his hands on his hips, Ed smirked at Jing. "Well done. I bet you feel rather smart. Yes, Al's armor is empty."

"When we tried to resurrect our mother, when we were young, nii-san lost his leg, and I lost my body. He gave up his arm, then, to attach my soul to one of the suits of armor in our house. If it hadn't been for his quick thinking, I would've died," Al said, the pride for his brother evident in his voice.

Ed shrugged. "It's my fault that you're in that armor, Al. I'll never forgive myself for that."

"Nii-san..."

"Anyway, that's our story."

Jing had matched Ed's smirk with one of his own, but it fell away when Ed mentioned trying to resurrect their mother. A saddened look crossed his face and his shoulders hunched slightly into his coat as he turned quickly to continue walking up the path.

"Heh..." Kir said, having been suddenly left behind. To draw attention away from Jing's abrupt departure, he offered, "It's a good story. You guys should write a book or something."

"Nah... not our thing," Ed replied, looking up at the bird. "What about you and your 'pet'. We haven't heard much about you two."

"Oh, Kir-san, please tell us a bit! I bet you've got lots of good stories!" Al encouraged, offering a shoulder for the bird to land.

Kir settled down on his new, much higher perch. "Haven't heard much about us, huh? Well, me an' Jing have been partners for years now -- ever since I hatched! And Jing was just a little guy at that time... he used to be so cute, too," The albatross snickered. "I guess you could say, we're like... entrepreneurs. Sometimes we do odd jobs for people. We delivered some Por Vora once, which was... fun..."

"Por Vora?" The phrase came out funny from Al, as he tried to work his tongue-er-soul voice around the word. His pronunciation was way off. "That's the animals that blow up, right? Poor things... What other kinds of adventures have you been on?"

"Hmm," Kir said. "Well, there was the masquerade that turned out to be a no-holds-barred tournament. The psycho artist that wanted to finish painting his daughter -- painting on her, that is. And I finally got Jing to give me those castanets that Mimosa made, in Coco Oco..." He clapped his wings together. "Ah, Mimosa… what a klutz, but sooo cute."

"Not bad. But what have you done to keep from starving. Don't you two work or anything?" Ed interrupted, smirking.

"Nii-san, why can't you just listen to Kir-san's stories?"

"What, are you worried we're not paying our taxes?" Kir laughed, jumping onto Ed's head and messing up the blond hair. "We do, uh, charity work."

"WHY YOU LITTLE--" Ed swung his arms in the air, batting at the bird. "Bastard! GET OFF OF ME!"

Al hurried over, trying to placate his brother. "Nii-san! Kir-san is just playing around! Don't hurt him! Nii-san!"

Kir hopped into the air, dodging Ed's flailing arms. "Oops, too slow! Try again!"

"BASTARD!" He shouted again, swinging wildly at the bird in his temper.

"Nii-san! Stop it!"

"THAT STUPID--" Ed's voice dissolved into curses, as he clapped his hands together, and created a earthen cage to surround the bird, who squawked in surprise.

"NII-SAN!" Al shouted again, as Ed smirked at Kir.

A curved blade whipped forward, slicing several times through the cage, almost too fast to be seen. It was reduced to clumps of dirt in mere seconds, and Jing held his arm out for Kir, although his gaze was fixed on Ed warningly. "That's enough," he said softly, although he appeared to be addressing both of them.

Ed scoffed again. "Then tell your stupid pet to keep it's claws off me."

"Nii-san!" Al turned to Jing, bowing in apology. "I'm sorry! Nii-san is rather hot-headed..."

"Al!"

"Nii-san, you are and don't deny it!"

Jing pivoted on one booted foot at Ed's words, grey eyes blazing angrily. "I'm only going to say this once. Kir is my partner, not my pet. Got it? Unless you want me to start calling your brother here, your bodyguard."

Ed's hazel eyes narrowed. "I would remind you that Al is not my bodyguard. I can take care of myself. But you need a bird to stay safe, then I guess that's your thing."

Al hurried forward, placing himself between Ed and Jing. "Nii-san! Stop this at once!"

"Al, get out of the way! That stupid bird has been pissing me off since we've met!"

"I'd listen to your big brother, Ed," Jing sneered.

There were few things that really provoked Ed, and comments about his height were one of them.

"WHAAAAAAAAT!" Suddenly, where Ed had been standing, there was nothing but dust. A crackle of alchemic exchange hissed in the air as Ed sent a spike of rock towards Jing. Then, he ran towards the other man, blade withdrawn, ready to take Jing down.

"Nii-san! NO!"

Jing rolled out of the way of the as the ground suddenly exploded in a earthen spear near his feet. A glimpse of red material was all the warning he had before Ed's sword-arm was bearing down on him. Instinctively he brought his own right arm up, blade already extended and locked into place, and the two metals clashed against each other, sparks flying.

"Jing!" Kir landed on Al's shoulder, eyes wide. "What's gotten into you?"

Meanwhile, Ed was letting out a battle cry, engaging Jing in a hand to hand fight. The two blades sang through the air and crashed against each other, each combatant circling the other.

"Kir-san! What should we do?" Al asked the bird, shaking with concern.

"Buy your brother a hairbrush, I don't know!" Kir's feathers were badly ruffled, evidence of his consternation at the moment. He tried to get his companion's attention. "Jing! Jing, what's going on!"

Jing, however, didn't answer. He focused instead on meeting each of Ed's blows. Oddly, he was smirking a bit, inwardly delighted that Ed was no novice with this particular type of weapon. It was unusual to find an arm-mounted sword as the weapon of choice, which was one of the reasons he favored it so much. "Is that all you've got?"

"Why I ought t-!" A clang and a shower of sparks filled the air as Ed responded.

"Nii-san!" Al cried, trying desperately to get Ed's attention. The last thing he wanted was for someone to get hurt. "Kir-san, we've got to get in there and stop them. Do you know of any way to get Jing-san's attention? I can stop my brother, but I don't want to hurt Jing-san."

"HEY, you two!" Kir bellowed. "Your moms called! You're going to be late for dinner if you keep this up!"

Arm mid-air, ready to smash down in another blow, Ed froze. "What did you say?" he asked, in a would-be calm. Jing merely stared, likewise seemingly stunned by the albatross' yell as the color drained from his face.

"NOW, AL!"

The suit of armor moved with amazing speed, grabbing up his brother in a huge hug. "Nii-san, you stupid! You could've gotten hurt or you could've hurt Jing-san! What were you thinking?" He continued to smother Ed in a combination of scolding and mollycoddlings while Ed struggled against his brother's hold.

Kir likewise latched onto Jing's lapels with his talons, hanging from the yellow coat as he used his wings for improvised blinders to block his view. "Hey, calm down partner! Settle down! It's okay... Jing?"

"That was a dirty trick, Kir," The Bandit King bit out, eyes flashing; they showed an old pain, as well.

"Yeah, I know," the bird answered, relieved when the metal sword sheathed back into the yellow coat. "Sorry about that... both of you," he added, directing the apology to Ed as well.

Al released his brother, allowing Ed to shoot a glare at Kir, but he nodded, accepting the bird's apology.

Kir let out an uneasy laugh, trying to dissipate the tension in the clearing. "Wow, looks like we all get cranky when we miss breakfast. How about I find us the nearest town and we can grab a bite to eat, huh?"

Ed shrugged, but turned towards Al. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, nii-san. I was more worried about you! You shouldn't have been fighting like that. I think getting some food is a good idea. Yes, please, Kir-san! We'd really appreciate that!"

"Yeah," Jing answered, casting a hard look at Ed before Kir claimed his attention again with something murmured quietly. "Something to eat sounds fine."

Kir hesitated, as though not sure if he wanted to leave Jing alone with the brothers, then spread his wings and flew up through the canopy again. He spiraled around, until he spotted a few thin streams of smoke rising into the air, about a mile away. "What're the locals like around here?" He called down. "There's a little place, not too far away. Do you think any of those blue soldier boys will be there?"

"Which direction is it in?" Ed grumbled, sending a glare to Jing as well.

"Ah," continued Al. "We don't want to go south. There will be trouble there."

"East," Kir answered. "How far is your hometown from here?"

"A ways..." the older Elric replied vaguely. "Are you planning on tagging along with us the entire way?"

"Mo, nii-san... Granny and Winry-chan wouldn't mind."

"Hrmp. Anyways, our hometown is to the north, war lies to the east."

Kir glided down to settled on Jing's shoulder again. The black-haired young man hadn't missed Ed's 'enthusiasm' in asking if they were going to continue following the Elric brothers. "Maybe not all the way, but at least until we find an unguarded route out of Amestris. What's with the guilty by association mentality here anyway? I'm not usually in trouble in a new city until after something goes wrong."

"It's not really your fault, Jing-san. Please don't think the people of Amestris are all cruel. There are a lot of kind people. It's just right now... there's something terrible that's gone wrong, and there are bad people working in the government. We have some friends in the government as well. Nii-san is actually a State Alchemist, a member of the military. But we're choosing our own path now." The suit of armor striding alongside his older brother spoke solemnly, yet earnestly, as if he believed what he had said.

"Iie. They probably just thought he's an illegal from Xing," Ed cut in, shortly.

"Well, you're obviously recognized on sight, since that soldier called you Fullmetal traitor," Jing said, speaking to Ed at first before turning his attention to the armored brother, "and Al, you don't exactly blend in. Why don't I just pick up some food and we can eat on the way?" Although he looked less than eager, he was obviously trying not to come off as hostile.

"Mmm," Al nodded, wrapping his arms around his brother and covering the blonde's mouth before Ed could spout something crude. "That would be nice."

"If we're getting delivery, Jing, can you bring me back someone petite and blonde? Maybe around five foot, five foot two?" Kir fell easily back into old habits, it seemed, and was relieved when a hint of an exasperated smile crossed his partner's face.

"Yeah, yeah, Kir. Stay here with these two. Otherwise they'll probably turn us in or something." With that, he struck off down the path curving across the hillside towards the small village in the distance.

With Ed still in his arms, Al folded himself down into a seat on the ground. Once Jing was out of sight, Al released Ed, who released a torrent of curses.

"Nii-san..." Al gently scolded. "That's not nice..."

"Hmph. Whatever. I'm going to take a rest. I don't care what the bird does." And with that, Ed folded himself up in Al's large lap, and promptly fell asleep. Al heaved a soft, exasperated sigh.

"Eh... sorry about my brother, Kir-san. He's really not so bad once you get to know him more. A little hot tempered, but he really is a genius and works hard. It was his idea to learn alchemy so we could help people. That's why today, no matter what we do, we try to help others. Nii-san may not seem like it, but that's one of his main goals."

"Nah, it's all fine," Kir said, scratching the back of his head with one wing. "Jing an' I are made of tougher stuff than to let your brother's temper tantrum get to us. But Jing... eh, I don't know. He never acts like that. It takes a lot to get him riled up, but earlier he seemed like he was really mad at your brother." The albatross flopped down on one wide steel shoulder.

"I think it had something to do with you guys talkin' about resurrecting your mom. Jing lost him mom when he was real little. That was a few years before I hatched and met him. The only person who really stuck around for him was Cassis... and she disappeared too. We're always looking for her, but..."

"Ah... I'm sorry, Kir-san, for Jing-san that is. If nii-san knew, he probably would've been nicer. Or would've made the fight more intense, just to prove a point. He does that sometimes. Once, he destroyed an entire false religion, just to prove a point to a girl we knew. It's weird, you know, but that's just how he does things." Al looked down on his brother, who was starting to snore softly. "Nii-san, well, he is what he is. He endured getting automail, which would make even grown men scream in pain (that's what Winry-chan said), just so he could help me get my body back. I want to help him get his arm and leg back too. But... I don't know if I'll be able to do that now..."

The younger Elric's voice became sad as he spoke, a tone of longing coloring his words. "Now... now I might be in worse trouble than before... when I was just a suit of armor..."

Kir cocked his head to one side. "If you were 'just' a suit of armor, you wouldn't be walkin' and talkin'... only a person can do that. And people aren't always human... like you and me. But why would you be in more trouble? I mean, you rust and I molt, but..."

The suit of armor, Alphonse, shook slightly when Kir mentioned the concept of human. "I am human! I... Nii-san says I'm human! I remember, remember when..."

"Hey, hey, I didn't mean anything by it!" The bird held his wings up in a gesture of peace. "I was just givin' an example!"

Al heaved a metaphysical sigh. "I'm sorry, it's just now... well, I'm human but so much more. I just wish that... that all those people hadn't have..." There was a sense that if Al could, his eyes would be welling with tears. His voice rang with the pain that he felt in his very soul, for there was no other way he could feel. "All those people, for me... And Scar-san... Scar-san was just trying to save me. Nii-san..."

The younger Elric passed a large hand through Ed's long, tangled hair. "Nii-san's very worried about me, that's another reason he's so short right now. He's worried that someone might find out and take me away. He's worried, like me, that I might go away... After all, no one knows how long a Philosopher's Stone lasts..."

Kir was silent for a moment, then gave Al an encouraging pat with one wing. "Don't worry there, Al. Nothing bad'll happen to you while your brother's looking out for you."

Al glanced up at the bird briefly, the enigmatic features of his helm seemingly smiling.

"Thanks, Kir-san."

To Be Continued…