A quick note from me: Before beginning this chapter I wanted to say thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, liked, or followed my story. I didn't anticipate it would attract any serious attention and I've been quite delighted to see evidence to the contrary. It brings me a great deal of joy to know that you like my work, and I hope as this story continues to unfold that it will keep being a positive experience for those of you who enjoy reading it. End of note.
The tension between the two of them was heavy, thick with anxiety and bitterness, but lacking in imminent violence as it had been in their past encounters. Envy remained cautious however, keeping their mouth closed for the time being as they sat at the table and regarded their warden while he moved about the kitchen. After several trips between cupboards and the refrigerator, Mustang brought over two plates and set them down on the table, both carrying the same simple meal-a sandwich. Raising an eyebrow, they tilted their head back from the wheat bread to get a better angle at what he had offered to them. Along the sides of the bread ran several layers of color, green, yellow, and a pale beige. They inhaled the scent of the food, their delicately crafted nose wrinkling slightly. Mustang settled into his own chair across from them, watching their face a long moment before sighing.
"Is something wrong with turkey and cheese?" He lifted his own sandwich and took a bite.
They glanced from their food to his dark eyes, uncertain how to answer him.
It looks so plain. When we kept Dr. Marcoh captive I brought him steak, he never ate it, but it was better than a sandwich. Still, he could have just thrown a bag of crackers at me, this is something of an effort-and that's unusual for him when it comes to me. I guess he really is serious about this 'talk'.
Slowly, they picked up their sandwich and bit into it, almost daintily. Mustang looked surprised by the way they nibbled at their food, their teeth barely making a dent in the first corner of the sandwich. He set his own food down and rested his hands on the table, drumming his fingers as he gathered his thoughts to speak. Envy kept their attention on him, trying to gauge the potential of a conversation they had never anticipated being part of.
"I'm not going to lead you on with any sort of pretense; I wish I didn't have to deal with you. It would have been easier for me if you had died in Central, and I have no problem saying that to you." Mustang held their gaze, his expression grimly serious. "You're a vile creature Envy, you have committed numerous crimes against humanity and you show no indication of remorse; what's worse, you show no potential to truly change. I can keep you in check because you know I can destroy you, and that fear holds power over your behavior, but it doesn't mean you're going to develop a desire to become better, to grow beyond what you are now." His right hand closed into a fist as he paused a moment, seemingly considering his thoughts.
"I've been struggling with these concerns, trying to determine how much effort I really want to put into you. How much do I want to put my team at risk for the sake of a beast that only finds pleasure in causing pain and death? How long will I be able to keep you in check before you do manage to harm someone? I made an agreement to participate in this sentence you are serving, on the condition that your consequences would be at my discretion, but I must consider the danger you pose, and the fact that I don't really know what's going on in your head. You're a liar, and a manipulator by your very design, what guarantee do I have that anything you say or do is genuine proof that you won't continue to be a walking disaster to everything around you?"
Envy set their sandwich back on their plate, the taste having turned sour in their mouth the longer they listened to him speak. Their gaze had hardened, anger roiling up within them as each question pounded away, hammering nails into a metaphorical coffin with their name burned into it.
He sits there spouting off about how dangerous I am, and he has no idea what it even is to be me. How dare he talk to me like this! I should give him proof like he wants, prove to him that he's absolutely right-I AM dangerous, and all these worthless humans should be terrified.
"You talk like I'm supposed to care. There isn't a compromise between us, I'm homunculi, we're above all of you lowly humans, we don't think about your stupid feelings or well-being. You were supposed to be nothing more than fuel for the stones, sniveling, petty, weeping, miserable insects that held no purpose beyond what we deemed fit for you to have." Glaring indignantly, they swept their open hand up into the air and then brought their palm down onto the table with a harsh bang. "The only reason I haven't lashed out is because I don't want to die again. I don't like being hurt, and you know how to hurt me worse than any human ever has, so yes, I try not to invite your anger on me as much as possible. It's not because I want to change what I am, I'm not some pathetic human that needs to be goaded into mending their ways and finding a new leaf to flip."
Mustang's eyes narrowed considerably as he listened to them expel their disgust and fury. His posture was tense in his seat, and his facial muscles pinched into a barely controlled visage of rage. Envy saw the effort being used to keep that anger in check, and though they wanted to continue pulling at the threads of his temper, previous experience led them down the wiser path of falling silent and hunching their shoulders in a display of bitter resentment.
"You, hypocritical worm. Your life was spared, you have been given an opportunity like no other, and you spit all over it so carelessly." Their warden jerked out of his seat abruptly, the sound of the chair scrapping across the floor grating on their ears. He raised his arms, his hands poised to clap together the way the Elric boys had always done. They blinked at him, frightened and mildly confused as they waited for him to do something, but he remained in that position, glaring down at them in open contempt.
"You say homunculi are above humanity, you sound just like your father, Envy. Your father, who wasted countless lives to achieve his own ends, who forced alchemists to become puppets in his twisted plots, who ruined families and brought suffering just to serve his own goals. I saw so much of that suffering all around me, in the east, in the war, my friends, their families, and I personally suffered at his hands as a chosen sacrifice." He took an unsteady breath, flexing his jaw as he attempted to reign in his anger. Slowly, his hands lowered to the table top. "There is a difference between you and your abomination of a father, he didn't lie like you do."
Their face contorted with their bewilderment at his statement, but he pressed on before they could reply.
"If you were truly so proud to be above humans, you wouldn't have wept over the reality of your jealousy, you wouldn't have tried to escape the pain of your own resentment by trying to take your own life. The truth is Envy, you're a coward. You're afraid of understanding humans, because if you understand us, then you might realize how alike we really are, and then your walls will fall apart. I've seen the kind of attitude you put on before, you've been stripped of everything you ever knew, forced to submit to your enemy, and pushed into a position you don't know how to cope with. Worst of all, you're having to face all of it alone, and aren't the most capable emotionally or mentally from what I've seen. We can deal with this situation one of two ways, you continue to push me, to refuse any sense of true compliance with your sentence and I will eventually incinerate you, or you can let go of this recalcitrant attitude and start making an effort, and maybe you'll discover something new about yourself, maybe we both will. The decision is up to you, but you should commit to the choice. There's no going back from it."
"We're not alike! Don't you compare yourself to me!" Their voice rose to a shout as they slapped the plate with their sandwich across the table. The glass shattered on the floor and they didn't bother resisting when Mustang's hand yanked them out of their seat by the wrist. They met his scowl with a snarl, venomous denial blazing in their violet eyes.
There's nothing the same between us! Idiot! I'm not a coward or emotional! I'm not anything like humans; I'm not like you!
"Is that so? What about how much you hate me for burning Lust to death? That rage you have, that hatred for me, that grief you carry for her-it's exactly the same as what I've felt over Hughes, all because of you. You murdered my best friend, a man who was family to me, and you know exactly what that hatred I felt drove me to become. Don't you dare look me in the eyes and tell me it's not true, that you see no comparison." He gave them a rough shake before releasing his grip on their arm. The colonel hissed air out through his teeth, his brows knit together, the muscles of his jaw strained with intensity. "You're very good at one thing for certain, and that is digging yourself a bigger hole to be buried in. You don't deserve mercy of any kind, but I'm trying to make a point to you, if I can just get through that stubborn, thick skull you have."
Envy glowered at him, rubbing their arms in a self-comforting manner as they glanced briefly to their feet.
"Why?! I don't understand why you keep insisting on trying when you say you don't want to, when we both know this is useless, I don't want to understand humans, I don't want to change for you or anyone, and I don't feel sorry about anything I did, and you can't make me feel sorry! Why do you keep trying Mustang?"
"Because I made a promise to someone, a promise that I would be a man that could be followed and trusted by his subordinates, a man who could lead by the truth of his words and his actions, without hypocrisy. I forgot how to be that man once, because of you, and in destroying you I was destroying myself, and any hope I had for the future. I won't do that again." His tone was stern, but genuine, and it unnerved them how openly sincere he was about his faithfulness to his comrades.
I'm just a means to an end then, goody. This isn't fair, I don't want this!
"I'm not going to be a tool for you to gain some sort of self-worth by being charitable to me." Grumbling, they crossed their arms over their chest and frowned. They hadn't expected to win any battles in this conversation, but it was steadily becoming obvious that there had never been an upper hand to achieve from the beginning. Every effort they made to refuse to cooperate with him was growing more defeated, and even to their own ears they were starting to sound strained, caged by their circumstances. Mustang seemed acutely aware of their faltering defiance, and it agitated them greatly.
"You should be immensely grateful for my charity. It's saved you from becoming a pile of smoldering ashes several times already." He sighed, a heavy, long-suffering tension ebbing out with his breath. Mustang brought his right hand up to massage his forehead lightly before fixing them with a discerning look. "I don't expect you to be happy about any of this, or to develop a sense of remorse over night, but I do expect for you to cooperate honestly, and that means trying to understand the people around you. You have to stop denying the consequences of the path you chose to take. Can you at least do that?"
Fidgeting under his gaze, they bit down against their lower lip and avoided meeting his eyes for as long as possible. Despite their reluctance to acknowledge it, they knew that their choices were limited. I don't like it, I don't want to 'work' with them. I don't want to be part of his stupid team, I don't want to help them. It's not fair! It's NOT fair! The tension of their will twisting and throwing its last acrimonious stand brought a tremor to their shoulders, the crumbling of their resolve signified by a low hiss and a tell-tale sniffle.
"I hate you." It was honest, but subdued. Their warden nodded, watching them as they struggled to cope with their resignation.
"I know." The tone of his voice was laden with a tired weight. Mustang appeared to release a portion of the stress he had been holding onto, his muscles relaxing marginally with the small, victorious step forward he had gained. His eyes were focused and calculating as he looked them over, they could tell he was weighing options, plotting something, but he was far more difficult for them to predict than other humans had been, a point that constantly displeased them.
"I don't want this situation to be one where I have to constantly be threatening to destroy you to get your cooperation, regardless of what you feel about me or the team, or any humans, you need to work beyond those emotions, past that hatred and disgust, even if it's just to survive. I know you're capable of it, when you feel inclined to do so. Right now, that's all I'll ask out of you." He spoke bluntly, and for their own sake they were somewhat glad of his honest frankness. If they couldn't read his expressions, at least they could count on his open expectations. They huffed, their frown softening slightly as they nodded their agreement. Their warden breathed a quick sigh, relieved, then continued.
"At the end of this week we will be traveling to Lior. The provisions you gathered today are being sent ahead along with other supplies. When we arrive, you will participate in reconstruction efforts. Our team is going to be actively involved both in Lior, and farther south. This will be an opportunity for you to prove you are able to move beyond that hatred." The colonel frowned, looking away before sliding his hands into his trouser pockets. "You may despise being reminded of the fact that you're jealous of human strength, of the ability that we have to support one another in harsh times, and to move beyond tragedy because of the bonds we share, but I hope you're smart enough to realize this is a chance for you to obtain some of that same strength."
Envy squinted at Mustang in suspicion. Their curiosity piqued at his statement, but they weren't eager to delve too deeply into how they could achieve that goal.
"Now who's living in a delusion? Why would any of you offer me support?" They snorted at him, scoffing.
Mustang appeared almost amused, a faint smirk twitching the corner of his mouth as he regarded their disbelieving expression. He kept his hands in his pockets, his broad shoulders rolling with the inhale of his breath.
"This team will support you, Envy, if you can start working with them. You might be surprised at what can happen if you give humans a chance. It's better than lighting your own funeral pyre, isn't it?" He shrugged, seemingly unaware that his analogy had forced a twitch out of them.
They ran their fingers through their hair, gripping the strands at the nape of their neck as they exhaled a heavy sigh. Why does he have to make sense? Am I really going to consider doing this? Lust, Gluttony, Pride, Wrath, Sloth, I'm not betraying us, I promise, I have to keep going, to survive, that's all it is. Lowering their hands to their sides, they offered their warden a careful glance, gauging his reception of their words.
"I'll try, but, not because I want to understand any of you, I just don't want to keep doing this every night, you get what I mean?"
He acknowledged their rather lame statement with a look that clearly showed he was aware of their inner struggles, and they couldn't bear to keep eye contact for long. Shifting their gaze to the side, they caught sight of the sandwich he had prepared for them, scattered on the floor among fractured pieces of their plate. The smallest twinge of shame brushed their mind at the sight.
I shouldn't have done that, such a waste, it didn't taste half bad either, and now it's filthy.
The sound of their warden clearing his throat drew their attention from the forlorn state of their lost meal, to his unimpressed frown.
"That was quite the fit you had, you victimized your own dinner. The broom and dust pan are in the corner, after you clean up we'll go back to your room. It's late."
After they had gotten past the slight embarrassment of his comment, they retrieved the broom and dust pan, quietly sweeping up the mess they had made with a confounding wonderment over how he managed to make them feel absurd about their own actions. Once they had finished their task, they returned to their room with him.
As they laid their head against the pillow, they cast a displeased glance at the tethers fastened to their bed frame. Mustang caught their expression and didn't so much as blink at it as he began tying their wrists and ankles for the night. He retrieved the needles from the drawer and sat on the side of their bed, meeting their frown with an openly unsympathetic shake of his head.
"We've been over this, you know I'm not going to leave this room without putting them in." His tone wasn't harsh at least, but it didn't change the fact that they couldn't stand their predicament.
"I know, but I don't have to like it." They sulked, but didn't resist when he leaned over and braced their head with one hand, his thumb resting against their right eyebrow. The touch was practically gentle, and it startled them enough that they looked up into his face as he lined the first needle up with the center of their right node. Coal black eyes flickered down to meet bewildered violet briefly, catching the storm of emotions in the inhuman gaze before focusing on the needle as it slipped easily into the sparking red circle. Fully aware of the discomfort the sensation was causing, he smoothed his thumb across their brow bone slowly, silently offering a minimal regard for their pain as he placed the remaining two needles.
The colonel stood from their bed and pulled the blanket up around their shoulders before walking toward their door. He paused, his hand hovering over their light switch before he glanced over his shoulder at them.
"I'll be getting you up early tomorrow. Good night Envy." He opened the door to their room and flipped the light switch. As darkness fell around them, they stared after his silhouette in the light of the hall. A strange sense of confusion and frustration twisted in their gut as they watched him shut their door and listened to the sound of his steps fading down the hall way. Sleep wasn't easy to find, but eventually they drifted off into a restless slumber.
True to his word, their warden was in their room with the dawn, shaking their shoulder firmly to rouse them from dreamless sleep. Blearily, they cracked their eyes open, finding the colonel's stern face looming over them. For a split second, they had a flash of memory from the tunnels of Central, the face was the same, but the eyes had held so much malice then, and after their sudden gasp they had recalled their discussion from the previous evening. Mustang arched an eyebrow at them but didn't comment on their tense posture, his hands resting on his hips as he looked down on them.
"You must have been more tired than you let on. You didn't even move when I unfastened your restraints and took out the needles. I've been trying to get you up for a few minutes now." He shook his head at them, the soft tap, tap of his boot on the floor indicating a sense of impatience. "You'll be assisting Second Lieutenant Falman today, he's already in the office down stairs, waiting for you."
Up at the crack of dawn and he's already got a chore list for me, here we go again.
Sighing, they sat up and gave a rather languid stretch before sliding out of their bed. Settling one arm behind their head, they cast their warden a bored expression and started for their door. They could hear his boots clopping against the wood behind them as they left the room and descended the stairs. The house was quiet around them, and they took a moment to glance over their shoulder as they turned to follow the short hall to the office, noting that their ever watchful keeper was close behind.
"I made an agreement with you didn't I? You don't have to shadow me all the time." Their grumble lacked any real hope of impact, and Mustang's snort clearly stated that he wasn't going to let them out of his sight any time soon. Opening the door to the office, they found the tall, gray haired man standing amongst several towering stacks of books. Envy blinked, hovering within the door way as their gaze traveled around the numerous columns of tomes, crowded together in numerous rows. There was barely enough room for the human to fit between the edge of the desk and the physical piles of knowledge gathered around him. Envy wasn't certain there would be space for them both in there, but Falman's worried features relaxed slightly when he looked toward the door way.
"You're up! Wonderful, I was hoping to get a hand with this, it's a big job for one person." His relief still carried a touch of apprehension with it, and they couldn't help the slight amusement it gave them to listen to his nerves. They were about to speak, but the second lieutenant derailed their course by picking up a brown sack and waving it in the air. "I know it's not the best, but since we're going to be stuck in here a while I picked up doughnuts for us to have while I was in town last night."
"Doughnuts?" They frowned, trying to pick through over a hundred years' worth of memory to recall the word and its meaning. There weren't many foods they had actually bothered to waste their time with eating over their long life, particularly since Gluttony was always trying to pilfer any snacks they did indulge in once he had been created. They shrugged, deciding that they would consider the offered food as a minimal apology for the task ahead, which was likely to involve the stacks of books all over the room. They left Mustang at the door way, carefully picking their way through to the desk, eyeing the bag he held out to them before snatching it abruptly.
Falman jerked at the suddenness of their action, bringing a small snicker from the homunculus as they opened the crinkling package and reached inside. Their hand grasped something soft, slightly squishy, and powdery. Removing the object, they discovered it was circular and white as snow. They sniffed it, then cast a sharp glance at the man across the desk before tearing a rather vicious bite out of the treat. Their eyes widened slightly as they chewed.
It's sweet! This isn't half bad, I mean, it's not my favorite, but it's not terrible, and what is that stuff oozing out of the middle? Is that blood? Humans wouldn't do that, would they?
Taking another bite, they discovered the substance was incredibly sticky, and fruity. Slightly disappointed, they decided the taste was decent enough. They paused before their next bite, glancing at Falman's anxious expression.
"For a second I thought you had given me something stuffed with blood in the middle, it would have been weird, but I was almost excited by it. Pity it turned out to just be fruit paste. So, what are we doing in here, Second Lieutenant Vato Falman." They smirked at him, then finished off their doughnut with an obnoxiously large bite, their left cheek bulging slightly as they chewed.
"Right, well, it will be our job to sort through and organize all the books that have been brought here for transport to Lior. The city took a great deal of damage, and it's been a steady but slow process to repair it. Part of what we'll be doing there is the construction of a large library, the books here will be used to fill that, but we need to categorize them and prepare transport documents for them before they can be sent off." He gestured briefly around the room, and Envy's gaze followed his hand, a subtle frown crossing their features as they scanned the rows of books.
"There are a lot of books for this one room, but you said a library, this is hardly enough to fill a library." Reaching into the bag, they felt around for another squishy treat, and were pleased to sink their fingers into a second doughnut. Yanking it from the bag, they sank their teeth into the sweet substance, munching away without regard for the shocked gasp the human made.
"Ah! That! That was my-oh, never mind." Falman sighed defeatedly, then shook his head. "The rest of the books are out in the shed behind the house. When we've gone through all the books in this room we can get another set brought in." He smiled, seeming rather pleased at the prospect of a long day of work. Envy snorted around their doughnut, but crumpled up the paper bag and tossed it into the wastebasket beside the desk.
"Sounds boring, but I don't have a choice, where do we start Squinty?" They placed a hand on a large volume set on the desk, eyeing the title with mild interest. Falman looked uncertain of them, but gestured toward the books to their right.
"I've already started organizing the books by subject on that side of the room. The piles under the window are historical, the one by the shelf is fiction, and I haven't gotten to the rest yet."
The book in their hand appeared to be an atlas of some sort, displaying maps of the different regions of Amestris and the surrounding countries. They set it on the floor between the historical and fiction piles, then began the process of sifting through the nearby columns of books for any other map related tomes. They found that Vato Falman was a relatively quiet worker, surprisingly efficient as he sorted through the books, quickly browsing their pages before determining a sorted stack for them. Mustang had remained in the doorway for the first hour of their work, watching for any signs of trouble, but eventually he moved out of sight, his voice carrying down the hall as he spoke with someone in the sitting room. Envy was surprised he had left them with the second lieutenant, but then he hadn't exactly gone far, still, it was a deliberate sign.
He's testing me. Tch.
Categorizing the books was a slightly daunting task, but they weren't nearly as stupid as their warden seemed to think they were, and they went about their task with an adeptness that surprised their working partner.
"You really have a talent for this, I bet you're good at office work aren't you?" Falman's praise caught them off guard, and they peered at him from behind a pile of books, their violet eyes narrowing slightly as they watched him fidget under their gaze.
"I did spend some of my time assisting Wrath and working in and out of the military headquarters over the years, if that's what you're getting at." They watched him nod, then allowed their expression to relax as they recalled something that had been important to them. "You said you had worked with my 'kind' before! Who did you see? What were they doing?"
Falman appeared apprehensive at the eagerness in their tone, and carefully looked from the book he held, to their expectant gaze.
"I don't know how much I can really say to you. The colonel hasn't specifically said I can't tell you anything, but it wasn't a question I asked and that's an oversight on my part." He rubbed at his neck, brows furrowing as he considered the situation. "I suppose talking about the homunculi I've seen would be alright, but don't pressure me for details beyond what I'm about to say, deal?"
Envy nodded conspiratorially, sliding around the pile of books to crouch down next to Falman behind the desk. The man looked nervous, tensing at their proximity before sighing and lowering the tone of his voice slightly.
"While I was stationed at Briggs I ran into the Elric brothers. We were discussing their situation, and their encounter with Major General Armstrong when the ground began to shake. The floor exploded, and this hulking figure emerged out of it. He had hair similar to yours now that I think about it, but he was easily twice the size of any human, and his clothing and eyes were strange. He had chains on his wrists, and the first thing he did when he showed up was fall asleep." Falman shook his head, then glanced over as Envy released a sudden cackle.
"That's Sloth! What was he doing inside Briggs? What an idiot, ha!" They grinned, leaning into the man's personal space with a wave of their hand for him to continue.
"Sloth, well, he proved to be an incredible force to fight, before the Briggs force managed to subdue him, he nearly took out part of the fortress, but I don't know how much of it was intentional. He almost seemed like he was wandering around looking for something, like he was lost." Falman frowned thoughtfully, tapping his chin.
They snorted, slapping their palm against their knee and raising a finger when the man looked at them.
"Sloth was tasked to dig, it was the only job Father gave him for most of his life, and he hated it. All he ever liked to do was sleep, which was probably impossible under Pride's watch. I'll bet he tunneled up into Briggs by mistake and had to figure out how to get back below ground. Did you see him again after that?"
Falman appeared uneasy, and shook his head, his gaze fixed on their face as the glint of amusement left their eyes and their smile faltered. He cleared his throat, glancing around before focusing on their sullen expression. "I saw another, a homunculus that could cover his body in a black armor. Greed was his name, he was really interesting, but a decent enough fellow for what I could make of him, and he did help us fight.." He trailed off, leaving part of his story unfinished, but they didn't seem concerned with his secrets.
The mention of Greed stirred a strange combination of emotions within them. The sensation of anger rose inside them, mingled with disgust and an underlying current of rivalry and loathing. Their expression darkened considerably, but their grin was back in place, and they barely noticed when the human beside them flinched away.
"I don't want to hear a single word about that traitorous rat. He turned his back on us twice, always for his own petty reasons. If he isn't dead like Lust and Gluttony are, then he will be when I find him!" They snarled, curling their hands into fists against their knees. The second lieutenant coughed nervously beside them, then licked his lips and made a careful query.
"I know each homunculus has special abilities, what are yours? The colonel didn't particularly clarify the details." He was obviously trying to steer the conversation in a direction away from Greed, and while Envy was still simmering over the mention of him, they could appreciate why Falman wanted to change the topic. Adopting a smug countenance, they extended their right arm and allowed a crackling of red alchemic energy to pop and dance along the limb as it transitioned from flesh and bone to smooth, razor sharp steel. The wickedly curved blade caught the light from the window, glinting dangerously.
Vato Falman's reaction was priceless. His squinting eyes opened wide, and his mouth fell open in shock. Envy couldn't help their delight at his face, and a cackle bubbled up as they returned their arm to its usual shape.
"You think that's impressive second lieutenant? Watch this!" Leering at him, they focused on the cells of their body, the attempt to change their entire form was slightly difficult, as if they were forcing their body to move through mud; but once the flow began it became easier, the transition of energy flowing from their feet up, shifting their form to that of the man sitting beside them. Falman's mirror image sneered at him with arrogant amusement, and the man fell over backward with a shout once he had come to terms with the fact that he was looking at himself. He jabbed a quaking finger at them from his sprawled position on the floor, his eyes nearly bulging in his fear and astonishment.
"How are you doing that?! You're me! Well, I would never make that face, that's terrifying, but it's amazing! I had no idea a homunculus could do this!" His exclamations only brought another round of laughter from them, but before they could say anything in reply they heard the distinctly displeased sound of a throat clearing behind them. The two Falmans turned together to peak over the top of the desk, finding an annoyed looking Roy Mustang staring down at them. To the left of the agitated colonel stood Riza Hawkeye, her firearm aimed and ready.
"I'm not sure if I want to know what's going on, but you both should be working on your assignment." His tone was annoyed, but not overly so.
Envy glanced at Falman, and decided to jerk their thumb in his direction, using his voice to speak to the colonel. "This one started it, sir. I was only trying to organize the books."
"What?! Colonel that's not me! I swear!" Falman flailed his arms, his finger pointed accusingly at his doppelganger. Envy didn't give Mustang time to acknowledge his panicked subordinate, reverting their body to their preferred form with a far too amused snicker and a wide grin. Falman heaved a sigh of relief, then looked almost sheepishly at his commanding officers. "I did indulge a bit, I confess. I was curious what Envy could do."
"There's no harm done, right Mustang? It's not like anything happened, and I think, I MIGHT just be able to tolerate you, Second Lieutenant Squinty." Envy's grin only widened at Falman's defeated sigh.
"I see. You both need to get back to work, and Envy, no shape shifting for now." Mustang gave them a stern look, his brows arching for emphasis. Rolling their eyes, the homunculus nodded their consent and stood, dusting themselves off before striding around Mustang and the ever-watchful lieutenant to return to their stack of books. They listened as the pair left the room, then turned their attention back to the anxious man by the desk. Adopting a sly smirk, they snapped in the sharp voice and tone of the colonel.
"Falman get to work!"
The second lieutenant flailed around, knocking over a pile of books on the desk before he realized where the voice had come from. Envy's laughter only increased as the man groaned and began complaining about the scattered books on the floor that had mingled with the pile he had been sorting earlier. The rest of the afternoon went by surprisingly pleasantly. Envy discovered that Falman wasn't terrible as far as humans went, and he provided a decent amount of amusement for them, as well as displaying an adept mind that was proficient in getting their work done.
That evening the entire group sat at the table in the kitchen, and Envy insisted on sitting next to Falman, which didn't seem to bother the second lieutenant at all, and greatly surprised everyone but Mustang and Hawkeye. They had finished eating, a decent meal for once in Envy's opinion, though they hadn't bothered to voice it.
Mustang set down his fork on his empty plate and glanced around the table before letting his gaze rest on Envy. They caught his stare and returned it with a questioning look of their own. Now what? I didn't even do anything today! Is he mad?
"There's been a slight change in our scheduled plan. We need to leave for Lior first thing in the morning. I received a call today from Central that our presence is needed in the eastern area immediately." His tone was careful, guarded, and it had all of Envy's suspicions on high alert. They glanced from his watchful eyes to the faces of each person at the table, noting the serious expressions they all wore.
They're all hiding something from me. This is more than just a call for fixing a run-down hole in the wall like Lior, and why would Central be insisting Mustang take ME to a place with so many civilians so soon? Aren't they worried what I might do? Not that I would do anything, given colonel horsehead has me on such a close watch and all, and I suppose I did say I would make a little effort in this, but Central can't know that.
Frowning, they tapped their fork against their plate a few times, until the entire group was looking at them. Envy set their left elbow on the table, propping their chin against their fist as they let their gaze travel from one individual to the next before settling on Mustang.
"You're keeping a secret. I'm not stupid, much of my life involved secrets, and it's blatantly obvious there is more going on than you're saying."
Watching the unspoken conversation between Mustang and Hawkeye would have been amusing if they hadn't been annoyed at being the only one out of the loop. The rest of the team was silent as stone, faithfully waiting for their colonel's decision on the matter. Mustang frowned deeply, rubbing his hand over his chin as he regarded them with a calculating gaze.
"There is more going on in Lior than you were initially informed of, but just because you've discerned that, doesn't mean I'm required to explain everything to you. This is my judgement call to make, and I'm still of the belief that you aren't ready for this information." His tone was neutral, but unyielding, and Envy glared at him as they absorbed his words.
"Oh really? I thought I made a pretty good EFFORT today. Isn't that enough?!" Their hands clenched into fists against the table top, but they managed to keep from swiping anything onto the floor. Mustang appeared unimpressed by their ire.
"No, it isn't enough. I'll acknowledge you were improved today, and while that's commendable in its own right, it has little bearing on whether you can be trusted with this information." He raised a hand to hold them from protesting, continuing in a slightly raised voice. "I didn't say you would never be told anything, you're part of this team now, circumstantially, or by necessity. Time will tell if this has been a disastrous mistake on our part or not, I'm certainly hoping not, but my determination on when you are told and what you are told is final. Is that clear?" His last question was directed to everyone in the room, and was more of a statement of command than a query of compliance.
Envy observed the dutiful acceptance from the humans around them, and heaved a disgusted sigh at their unwillingness to challenge their colonel's decision.
You too huh Squinty? Figures. Loyal dogs to the end, the lot of them.
Settling their arms over their chest, they watched Mustang relax into his chair and the tension lifted around the room. There wasn't any point in pressing the issue, their warden would explain when and only when he decided to do so, and as much as it grated on their pride to have to acknowledge his authority in the matter, they didn't really have a choice.
It wasn't long afterward that they were heading for their room, Mustang accompanying them, and going about his usual method of securing them to their bed. They tilted their head at him as he reached a hand out to brace the side of their face.
"Why are you doing this?" The question was met with a frown from the colonel.
"I'm very certain I've already explained this to you multiple times, Envy." He sounded slightly perturbed, tired of repeating himself to them. They sighed and shook their head, ignoring the way their face bumped into his palm with the action.
"No! I get that! What I mean is, why are you suddenly being almost nice about it? You did it last night too. You don't have to force yourself to be nice." The very idea of Roy Mustang, acting kindly toward them was bizarre, in a way, it was unnerving.
"I don't have to be nice to you, I don't have to try to empathize with you, or challenge you to improve, or punish you when you lose control or act disrespectfully, but if I don't do those things, I'm not going to see if you can change, if you can grow like Edward and Führer Grumman think you can. It's also part of my own growth, as I said, in order to be the kind of leader I want to be, the kind of man I want to be, I have to know what I'm capable of, even in the most difficult situations; and being kind to an enemy, learning to work with them, trying to help them even when they don't want that help but need it all the same, is going to show me who I am as much as it shows me who you are." He tapped his index finger against the side of their forehead lightly, then braced his thumb over their brow bone and carefully placed the needles through their nodes.
Once he had drawn their blanket up and headed toward the door, they frowned at his back, their mind whirring as they tried to grapple with his statements. He paused at the door, his hand on the knob as he flicked the light off.
"Good night Envy."
"…Tch..!" They huffed, squashing the reply that had almost spilled from their lips. Feeling annoyed and flustered about their near slip, they watched him exit the room through the dim light of the hallway before he closed their door.
I almost said good night! What's WRONG with me!?Argh! Stupid humans and their sentimentality, if I'm not careful it's going to creep up and infect me like a disease.