Despite everything that had transpired over my second day in Amestris, that night was far more peaceful and restful than I ever thought it would be.

The orange glow of light through my eyelids slowly roused me from my slumber and I stretched out my limbs, squinting as I turned over and away from the light in a tangle of white sheets and pillows topped by a fluffy white duvet.

I let out a soft groan as I rubbed at my eyes, still sensitive from all the crying I had done the prior evening. Taking a deep breath in, I leased a contented sigh as I snuggled into the mess of the bed, burying my face in a big pillow and basking in the scent.

Mmmm, Ed smells so good.

Why do I say that, you may ask? Because after a little while longer of teasing and roasting me for how absolutely spent and pathetic I looked, Ed forced me to take the only bed in the apartment - his bed - for the night, reasoning that the arrangement was only until I got my own room the next morning. I reluctantly acquiesced to his proposal, too tired to argue as he pushed me along into his room.

He had chuckled in amusement as he watched me faceplant directly onto the bed, borderline moaning at how soft and comfortable it was compared to the surfaces I had suffered since I had started my miserable existence in this world. Throwing the towel I had unknowingly dropped in the hallway at my head, he bid me goodnight, remarking how the bed was much more comfortable under the covers and another thing about plans the next day that I didn't catch as my consciousness waned.

I smiled into my pillow at the memory, eyes slowly cracking open as I shifted to peer at my surroundings. What time is it?

Unenthusiastically, I rolled to the side of the bed, slipping out from under the warm mess of the bed I had created only to shiver lightly at how cold the room was in comparison. Alas, sleep, I must bid you adieu for now; the responsibilities of this new world beckon me and I can't ignore their call forever.

Grabbing my toiletries and making my way to the adjoining bathroom, I freshened up and brushed my teeth, grinning at the mirror as I spotted Ed's toothbrush sitting on the counter. The sight tugged at my heart in a warm, strangely fulfilling way, and I quietly hummed to myself as I went about getting ready, noticing several of Ed's personal effects lying around in the process. I'm not alone anymore.

I changed into a short-sleeved black high-neck top paired with comfortable, loose-fitting black slacks and white crew socks, strapping the knives I had purchased the previous day back onto my calves. Holding up the black jacket that was also a new purchase, I frowned at the streaks of dried mucus coating the edges of the sleeves, throwing the jacket back in my rucksack after removing the collapsible bo staff and tossing it in one of my deep pockets. Gross, I gotta get that cleaned. But man, I love buying mens clothes, there's nothing quite like utilitarian fashion with actual pockets.

Slipping my rings on, I walked out of Ed's room and into the living room area, spotting an all-too-familiar outline of armor sitting by the window, hunched over what seemed to be a thick book.

"Hey Al," I yawned, stretching my arms up above my head before shaking out my shoulders. Al made a surprised noise, not having noticed my approach, before doing what I surmised was beam at me.

"Lynette! Good morning!" Al chimed, and I stopped in front of him, smiling sleepily.

"Good morning! Do you know where Ed is?" I inquired, leaning against the wall by the window and glancing down to try and catch the title of the book Al had been buried in. Al rested the book on his lap, looking up at me from where he sat.

"He left for a bit to grab some groceries for breakfast," Al answered, "You're welcome to stay for a while and join us for it, I know you wanted to get your own room first thing but there's no rush, really!" I laughed at his voice as he fretted over my leaving.

"Al, you're too sweet, honestly," I remarked, making the younger boy stutter in embarrassment as he insisted I was too kind. "What are you reading there?"

"Oh, this?" Al lifted the book and showed me the cover, and my eyes widened, "It's a book about several studies on using alchemy to synthesize organic plant matter from inorganic compounds." Ah, biology, I know a smidge more about that.

"How old are you again?" My words held an amazement that was answered by tinkling laughter.

"Fourteen," he answered, and I shook my head slightly.

"Riiiiight," I joked.

The sound of the front door of the room unlocking met my ears, and both Al and I turned in it's direction.

"I'll go see if he needs any help," I said, padding over to the opening door while Al nodded and simply returned to his advanced academic reading material.

These guys really are on a different level, I thought to myself as my eyes caught on Ed's blonde braid as he closed the door behind him. I walked over, picking up one of the large brown paper bags that obscured the elder Elric's view and grinning as he peeked his bright eyes over the top of the bag to see me. For someone rumored to be so short, his platforms put him right about at my height; it's probably his brawny frame that makes him seem shorter than he is... Hmm!

"Good morning," I said, turning on my heel before he could say anything. He followed close behind, red jacket billowing behind him as he caught up to me in the kitchen.

"You finally decided to roll out of bed, huh?" he jested, setting his bag down beside where I had rested mine on the kitchen countertop. I shrugged, yawning again.

"Yeah," I replied, preoccupied with peering into the bags to see what Ed had acquired on his morning odyssey. "After thoroughly messing up all of the blankets and pillows because I tend to roll around in my sleep, sorry about that." Ed let out a chuckle, starting to lay out the groceries on the counter.

"Did you get some actual sleep?" he asked casually, and I nodded, leaning against the counter next to him.

"Thankfully," I answered, eyeing the small carton of eggs and loaf of bread among other paper-wrapped goods. "What're you making?"

"Eggs and toast," he said proudly, "and you're not allowed to leave until you eat some, because I bought a lot." I couldn't help the grin that overtook my features as I leaned slightly closer to him.

"Wow, you really know how to take care of a girl in the morning after a rough night; almost like you've done this before." I watched and waited for Ed to process my words, his eyebrows pinching together as he tried to catch my drift before the hilarity sparkling in my eyes alerted him to my meaning.

"N-NO!" His face aflame, he stepped back and waved his hands frantically, yelling, "I-it's not like that, damnit! I've n-never - I mean, it's really not-" I tipped my head back with the most genuine laugh that had escaped my throat in a long time, guffawing at the golden-haired boy's mortification at my innuendo.

"H-hey! It's not that funny!" Ed protested grumpily as I doubled over, our noise drawing Al over to the doorway of the kitchen to see what all the ruckus was about.

"That's for making fun of how dead I looked last night," I gasped out in between laughs, righting myself as my laughter faded into small fits of giggles.

"One more word from you and I'm not making you breakfast," he grumbled, and I clapped a hand over my mouth to silence a loud snort of laughter as I bit my tongue on even more dirty jokes. With a hot glare from Ed, I turned and left him to his devices, chuckling softly as I passed a puzzled Al to go retrieve my wristwatch and one of the books I had purchased the day before.

"What are you reading?" Al peered over my shoulder as I took a sip of coffee, stomach full from a simple yet surprisingly delicious breakfast begrudgingly prepared for me by his salty older brother.

I kept my fingers in the section I was reading as I flipped the cover to show Al, "The Fundamentals of Elemental Alchemy, not quite as sophisticated as your reading I'm afraid."

"You really weren't kidding about not knowing the technical aspects of alchemy, huh?" Ed's voice caught my attention and I looked over at him sitting beside me only to see him watching me carefully over his own mug of coffee. I let the book fall back open, picking up a pen I had found earlier and twirling it through my fingers.

"It's… complicated," I said, and Ed released a sigh of slight frustration.

"Well, if we're going to help you, we need to know what you're starting out with," he said, eyeing me warily. "Show us what you can do." Fighting back the nerves that spiked at his words, I looked around the kitchen's island countertop for something to write on, settling for grabbing one of the empty grocery bags and tearing off a piece of the brown paper.

Taking a deep breath, I scribbled down the only transmutation circle I knew by heart, setting the pen down to the side when I was finished. Looking up briefly at the two Elrics, I swallowed, letting my hands hesitantly come together and finally come down to rest on the edges of the circular sketch.

It felt like a pulse, a strangely familiar ebb and flow of energy under my fingers as the drawing began to glow blue, sparkling with energetic current as I closed my eyes and worked with the tendrils of energy to manipulate the matter that seemed to buzz around the air. The process seemed almost second-nature, my body melding with the energy to bring to reality the image in my mind.

Upon opening my eyes, my expression turned into one of utter delight as I took in my biggest creation yet; a smooth sword of ice was held upright by the small stretch of the matter connecting the base of the hilt to a small block of ice underneath it, a stretch I swiftly broke as I excitedly took the sword from the table, too ecstatic to mind the biting sensation of the ice against my hand. I lept to my feet, shifting the sword between my hands gleefully before making a fake jab at the air.

"En garde!" I shouted merrily, a prideful grin flaring up as the brothers looked at me in surprise.

"Ice alchemy," Al said, stunned, "That's just like-"

"McDougal, yep," I said, setting the sword back on the counter next to Ed and attempting to shake out the stabbing pain of my thoroughly chilled hand. "They, uh, might've forgotten to tuck his hand under the tarp covering his body and I might just have in my traumatized state accidentally burned the image of his tattoo into my brain-"

"Elemental alchemy takes years of practice to gain a handle on even when you understand it conceptually, nonetheless to this degree of control!" Ed waved a hand at the sword that had begun to drip slightly onto the countertop surface. "And you just learned this yesterday?!" I gave him a toothy, uncomfortable smile that probably looked more along the lines of a cringe.

"Mayyyyybe?" I drawled, laughing nervously as I watched him with widened, rapt focus. Fuck, did I blow my cover already?

Ed's sharpened eyes flashed with a sudden understanding, and my countenance flipped.

"Don't," I was in his face quicker than he could speak, and I jabbed a finger into his chest forcefully as my expression twisted with panic-fueled intensity. "Leave it, Edward."

"W-what's going on?" Al fretted, armor clinking as his head shifted back and forth between Ed and I in obvious distress. Al squeaked as Ed's face leaned closer to mine, his eyes taking on a harsh look as he refused to back down.

"You didn't even need the circle, did you?" He accused, clenching his jaw as he glared at me with an edge I wasn't prepared for. Fear gripped me as I stepped back, shaking my head but unable to break our eye contact.

"N-no," I squeaked, color draining from my features at my obvious fib. "You're wrong-"

"What's your deal?" Ed nearly knocked his chair over as he angrily got to his feet, automail arm darting out to grab the collar of my shirt and yank me toward him before Al could stop him, "We were upfront with you about our past!" I refused to make eye contact with the seething Elric, eyes looking anywhere but the golden orbs threatening to eat me alive.

"Brother-" Al tried to step in, a clear albeit panicked warning evident in his tone, but Ed's real arm roughly shoved him back, the dull but forceful impact of his gloved hand against Al's chestplate sending a muted reverberation through the hollow armor.

"No, Al," Ed seethed, the rage in his grating tone sending a pulse of pure fear down my spine as he turned his focus back on me.

His grip on my collar tightened in an attempt to get me to look at him but I held out, too shocked to try and get him off me.

"It's one thing to have things you can't say, but it's another to play dumb and lie straight to our fucking faces," Ed bit out, so close I could feel his warm breath on the side of my face. "So now, you either tell us the full truth or you can get the fuck out."

"E-Ed," I pleaded, my eyes going wide as they shot over to look at him. My hands wrapped around the hand that gripped my shirt, and I begged him with my eyes. I should've known they were too smart not to notice, I just didn't think if it happened it would be this quick.

"Now," he demanded, his golden irises like molten lava set in a fierce and impossibly obstinate expression. He released my collar roughly and I coughed, hands pressed against my chest as I tried to control my rapid breathing.

"Y-you won't believe me," I choked out, and Ed's eyes narrowed.

"Try me."

I scrubbed two hands over my face, still reeling from a multitude of emotions that I wouldn't have a chance at processing until I calmed down.

"Fine, but you may want to sit down for this one."

Fight! Fight! Fightfightfightfight!

Nah jkjk but honestly them bois are smart, no wonder they caught on so quick. Ed is certifiable husband material n probably the most fun to tease, and banter is honestly so fun to write. Big things coming up! The next chapter will definitely be a fun one!

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My lovely readers, thank you and until the next chapter!