Meandering from class to class, through halls that now looked hostile…was this how Edward felt every day? Izumi, always sympathetic to her son's situation, felt another pang of his pain as she made her way down to Ed's sixth bell class. Chemistry. Lately, Edward had been much more private with his grades than he had ever been before, and it didn't take a genius to know why. Izumi was not so airheaded as to have not noticed his slipping grades. But what was she to do? Punish him? It wasn't Edward's fault, and besides, the boy punished himself enough.

She hadn't been inside the school since the end of last year, after the whole debacle. For a while, it had felt like Izumi came to school as much as her sons did! In and out with questions, tears, calls about violence…and, more than anything, her own roiling anger. Izumi threatened to rip that bastard Principal's mustache clean off his face, once. Only after Ed asked her to back off did she concede, with poor grace. And who could blame her? There were only so many times Izumi could hear that dick repeat that his hands were tied. That he would do nothing.

Even now she couldn't help but let out a snort of derision. "No proof." What a ridiculous statement. Izumi and everyone else involved had known damn well that Winry girl was the culprit. Maybe it was that Bradley was a homophobe. Not that the reasons mattered, or in any way excused his behavior.

Perhaps Izumi would stop into the Principal's office after her tour of Ed's classes, just to remind him that she hadn't forgotten.

For now, though, she was stuck following Edward's class schedule. Sig was off doing the same with Al's. Really, these weren't parent teacher conferences so much as explaining the class syllabi to curious moms and dads, considering that the meetings were held with a whole group of people. Every once in a while, a teacher would have something to say, calling out a particularly star student. That's why she and Sig had come every year prior, because their boys always made a good impression. This year…well, that's why Sig was here. Izumi was here for Ed, in case a teacher had something less than stellar to say about him.

Finally, she reached the door to Edward's chemistry class, striding in and making room for herself to stand close to the front of the room. There were so many parents that there weren't enough chairs for everyone. Not that Izumi minded; she was well used to being on her feet, and those seats looked mighty uncomfortable anyway. Curiously, she sized up the man she quickly picked out as the chemistry teacher. A quick glance at her copy of Ed's schedule confirmed his name: Mr. Roy Mustang. Only a housewife would be able to tell that he'd been here longer than the other adults in the room. His black hair was a little more mussed, his shirt wrinkled at the arms from rolling the sleeves up and down throughout the day, and the bags under his eyes just a little more pronounced.

All of that was fairly standard for a high school teacher. What took Izumi aback was the man's youth. He appeared, at a guess, to be maybe five years her junior. Which wasn't that much, in retrospect. But she'd had the same reaction upon meeting Edward's English teacher. When Izumi thought of educators, it brought to mind images of dusty old men and women. It seemed the universities were pumping them out younger these days.

It took Izumi a moment to realize who this Mustang character was speaking with, but when it clicked, her lip curled. Pinako, that filthy old bitch. Imagine your granddaughter ruining someone's life, and then defending her. Izumi worked to keep her fists unclenched; she'd seen the hag in Ed's first bell as well, and nearly sent her flying. Just like she ought to have the first time Pinako dared blame Edward for what happened. Her son wasn't perfect, but that…

Izumi was saved from dwelling—seething—by the teacher disentangling himself from whatever conversation they were having (probably congratulating Winry. Everyone was taken by her at first glance. Even Izumi had fallen for her charms) and coughing to gather everyone's attention.

"Good evening, all. I know it's been a long night, so I'll try to keep things to a bare minimum." Hmm. A lecturing voice, demanding of attention. This Mustang could be a professor. "To be perfectly frank, I've never found it did parents much good to hear a whole presentation about what I'll be teaching their children. Your sons and daughters are in my AP Chemistry class, so that's what they learn from me. Rather, I would prefer to open the floor early and get started with any questions or concerns you might have for me, be it about the class in general or your child specifically."

Izumi almost laughed. She appreciated being spared from needless information, but what was she supposed to ask? Have you noticed that my son is barely living? Any chemical equation to fix that?

This whole thing was a waste of time. No one, through the whole day, had mentioned Edward to her. That was probably a good thing; it meant her boy might not be excelling, but at least he wasn't struggling to the point of teachers feeling the need to get involved.

Questions from other parents washed over her. Safety concerns, mostly, with the experiments this class involved. One father wasted all their time boasting that his daughter could learn nothing from Mustang because she was just so smart. Izumi was a little perversely amused when said teacher promptly shut that down, citing that the girl in question was in fact not even in the top five students of this class. A mother, from the opposite side of the room, fretted the opposite; AP level might be too challenging for her son. She was directed to the school counselors, to discuss a new placement.

Each conference was meant to last only fifteen minutes, but Izumi found herself wishing time would speed up. She hoped Sig was having a more entertaining time with Al's instructors.

Finally, time was up. Mustang wished everyone a good night, and Izumi was making her way to the door when his voice called for her. "Mrs. Curtis? Could I have a quick word with you, please?"

Oh no. Dread filled her from top to bottom, but Izumi kept her face calm and pleasant as she turned back around. "Yes, what can I do for you?" What would this man have to say? With any luck, Edward hadn't gotten—or done anything—too bad…

The man, oddly, looked uncomfortable. This couldn't possibly be his first time breaking bad news to a parent, could it? "You're Edward Elric's guardian, is that correct?"

"I'm his mother, yes." Regardless of what the paperwork said, Ed was as good as her own. Alphonse, too. Izumi loved those two boys so much sometimes she couldn't breathe for it.

A smile tugged at the edge of Mustang's mouth, quickly extinguished by whatever words were on his lips. "Mrs. Curtis, I…have an unusual question. I was wondering if you might be able to help me to help your son."

Well, that wasn't quite what she'd been expecting. Still, this only sounded like some roundabout way to get to the point, which she was quite sure would remain the same. "What is you need, exactly? I—" Izumi broke off, sighing as she gathered her thoughts. "Is Edward not doing well in class?"

This seemed to surprise the instructor, who held up a hand apologetically. "Oh, no, that's not it. Well, not exactly. Ed's doing fine, but the truth is I believe he could be doing better. Stupendous, actually. His previous years' records are glowing, and yet in my classroom Edward is more of an average student. I've discussed this with him a little, and I've gathered that something happened to him that shook him up quite badly. I…well, I was wondering if you would tell me what that was, Mrs. Curtis. If you know, that is," Mustang added thoughtfully. "I don't know how much Ed confides in you, obviously. It's just that I think I could be of some assistance if only I knew what I was working with."

Unconsciously, Izumi crossed her arms so that she was near hugging herself. She knew this sort of body language gave off the impression of insecurity, but to be fair that's exactly what she was. Being a mom was always hard, but when your son goes through a trauma…well, that's a different kind of hard.

And this man, Mr. Mustang, wanted her to discuss it with him! It was interesting that he'd managed to learn anything at all. The whole explosive incident had been remarkably quiet, in terms of faculty. Izumi was the one who'd brought it to Bradley's attention, for all the good that did. That implied that Edward might have actually said something to the man, or at least let something slip. Was it possible that her son was thawing? That he was ready to not shoulder this burden alone?

Heavens above, what was she supposed to do in this situation? No parenting book could have prepared Izumi for this. "Sorry," she murmured, realizing it had been a few seconds while the instructor waited for her response. "I just don't know what to say. I want nothing more than to help my son. What has he told you?"

Mustang shrugged, a helpless lilt to his shoulders. "All I know is that Ed is gay, but that that's just the tip of the iceberg. He needs support, but doesn't seem to want it."

Izumi shook her head sadly. That was pretty spot on. "I'm amazed he confessed to you about his sexuality. Edward tries his hardest to pretend he feels otherwise."

"Well, it more just leaked out. I witnessed the scuffle Ed got into with Elijah. He must have mentioned…?"

"That's right." How could she have forgotten? Though the details had slipped her mind. Izumi hadn't registered this particular teacher's involvement, having been too wrapped up in worry for Edward. Physically and otherwise. "I have to say, you've put me in a hell of a bind, asking that."

The man's face scrunched all together, worry lines already forming at the top of his young nose. "What do you mean?"

"I have two choices," Izumi began, weighing them in her head all the while. The lights were too bright in this room, like they were judging her. Both choices were right. Both were wrong. "I can betray my son's trust and tell you of his deepest struggles in the hope that you can help him like you seem to think you can. Or I can maintain Edward's confidence, and turn away the offer of a lifeline."

As soon as Ed's mother spoke, Roy felt his face fall. He'd not considered the situation like that; he really had given her an impossible choice. It was just that his own hands felt so tied…it was, perhaps, a drastic measure to reach out to Edward's parents for assistance. Roy had felt like he did something right for Ed when he wrote that little note on his quiz. The kid had seemed in a better mood for a whole day. But of course, something that small couldn't fix whatever was happening inside of Edward. And so, in hopes of some pointers, Roy turned to Mrs. Curtis.

That, however, was asking too much and being too unfair to her. After all, she had to handle a much larger portion of Ed's burden than Roy did himself. "My apologies. I hadn't looked at it from that angle. And I certainly don't want to push you either way. I just want to help."

To his surprise, Mrs. Curtis smiled at him. It wasn't wide, but rather soft and genuine. "No need to be sorry. It's…a complicated situation, shades of grey rather than black and white. Thank you for caring about my boy. If you can think of something else to help him, I'd be more than happy to help."

It was permission, of a sort, and it was ringing in Roy's ears long after Edward's mother had finally left. A challenge didn't deter him; in fact, it just made him all the more motivated to get to the bottom of the Ed mystery.

Besides, even if what he'd told Mrs. Curtis—that he stumbled upon the fact of Edward's queerness—was true, that didn't mean the boy didn't trust him. At least a little. Roy could work with that.