December 1920
"I'll be back!" Xiang shouted as he hurried out the door pulling on his jacket. Though the air was freezing he left his hat in his pocket and his scarf loosely draped. By the fence waited Xiang's most prized possession-a 1918 Cartwright Brothers racing bicycle. The frame was painted a shiny apple red with a parcel rack attached to the back. In addition he'd added a lamplight and a bell to the handlebars. Xiang saw it in one of Lan Fan's Amestrian catalogues and fell in love instantly.
For almost a year he stashed his allowance in order to buy it himself. Heartbreakingly, Xiang discovered having it imported nearly doubled the price. In the end his father had agreed to cover the difference in part so he didn't have to keep hearing about it. Then there was the matter of learning to ride it. His mother was convinced he'd break his neck but Xiang was determined eventually getting the hang of it. These days he went everywhere on the bicycle rain or shine.
"Xiang," Suyin called from the doorway as he wheeled his bicycle to the gate. "Don't be late for dinner. be careful!"
"Yes, mother." He smiled at her and was on his way. As usual the streets of the Imperial Capital were bustling. Xiang loved speeding his way through the city. Even if he had nowhere in particular to go he spent hours on his bike. This afternoon he was headed to the post office to drop off a letter for his father. After that he had the rest of the day to himself.
"Coming through!" He announced with a ring of his bell. A merchant who knew him by sight bid him good afternoon. Xiang glanced back with a smile and a wave as he passed.
"Watch out!" Someone in front of him cried out. His head whipped forward. In front of him was a man stepping off the curb. Xiang put on the brakes so hard he went flying over the handlebars.
"Are you trying to get someone killed?!" exclaimed the man in heavily accented Xingese. He huffed his annoyance and hauled Xiang up by his elbow.
"Ow ow ow! I'm sorry, I wasn't looking," Xiang hissed in pain. He'd come down hard on one knee which was certain to bruise, but it was his right wrist took the brunt of the fall.
"No shit!" The stranger dusted Xiang off roughly with one hand. In his other he carried a battered suitcase. "You're lucky you didn't crack your head open!"
"I said I was-"
"Lan Fan?" The man seemed to have forgotten he was in the middle of a scolding. His amber eyes were wide with surprise. He looked at Xiang's face then at his left arm before looking him up and down. "You're not Lan Fan," he said in an accusing manner.
Xiang blinked up at him. Equally surprised he looked at this stranger properly for the first time. His long gold spun hair gathered up into a ponytail. Those eyes he'd only ever seen on one other person. The fact that the man knew his sister on a first name basis. Everything clicked into place and his whole face lit up with excitement.
"Lan Fan is my sister! Are you Edward Elric? The Fullmetal Alchemist? I'm Xiang. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Xiang gave a swift bow and held out his hand to shake only to wince in pain. His wrist was already swelling.
"Yeah that's me." Edward sighed and put a hand to the back of his neck. "This is just great. Come on let's get out of the street kid." The Fullmetal Alchemist, or rather retired Fullmetal Alchemist as Alphonse had mentioned, set the suitcase on the curb in order to right the bicycle. "Home or the palace?"
"Um I'm going to the post office. I have a letter-" Xiang started to pull the letter from his jacket pocket.
"Not where you were going. Where should I take you to get patched up?" said Edward.
"Oh!" Xiang colored a bit feeling embarrassed. Here he was making a complete idiot of himself in front of a real life hero. Home was the obvious choice since it was considerably closer; however, he hardly ever got to go to the palace. Only for special court functions and then he was stuck with his parents the entire time. If he went home he'd be scolded for riding too fast. Again. Going to the palace wouldn't get him out of a scolding, but Lan Fan would only be annoyed he hadn't paid better attention to his surroundings. Besides it meant he'd get to see his sister. That was worth a lecture. Xiang tried to not look over eager as he said, "Palace!"
"You take that." Edward gestured at his suitcase. "I'll push your bike."
"It would be faster if we rode the bicycle."
"With that wrist? I don't think so. You'll just crash into something or someone else."
"Do you know how to ride a bicycle?" Xiang asked with innocent curiosity.
"Of course I know how to ride a bike!" Edward insisted. "The physics behind it are kid stuff! Kinetic energy makes it go, the distribution of mass and gyroscopic effects keep you upright, and you brake with friction."
Edward Elric hadn't been on a bicycle in his entire life. Growing up he and Al didn't have one to learn on. Besides who would've taught them? Yet another thing Hohenheim hadn't stuck around long enough to do. Not that their mother couldn't have taught them herself. It was only that was the sort of thing fathers typically taught their children wasn't it? Ed wasn't sure what kind father he'd be when he and Winry had kids, but he was damn sure going to be around to teach them to ride a bicycle.
The kid had a point. The sooner he got to the palace the sooner he'd see Alphonse. He'd taken an earlier train from East City than General Mustang and his entourage for that purpose. Strictly speaking he was here on a travel visa. Showing up with Amestrian diplomats would undermine his unofficial capacity in this whole affair. Arriving separately had the added benefit of not being stuck on a train with Mustang for three solid days. Edward respected his former commanding officer, even considered him a sort of friend these days, but that didn't mean the end of their verbal sparring. They would've been at one another's throats before they reached the desert.
"Anyway! It's just a matter of practical application of theoretical knowledge," Edward said. Between the two of them they secured Ed's suitcase to the rack. Xiang sat behind Edward and held onto his shoulder with his good hand. After a false start or two and nearly overbalancing Ed got them moving. Ed grinned in triumph. He'd always been a quick study. "See? I told you. Where to?"
Xiang navigated while Edward peddled and did his best not to run them into anything. It was a bit slow going but Ed admitted to himself it was enjoyable. He was used to traveling everywhere on foot or by train. A bicycle might not be such a bad investment.
"You know it's not such a bad thing running into each other. I can't read half the signs around here," Ed admitted.
"Really? But your Xingese is very good!" Xiang said brightly.
"I can speak it all right. I know a decent amount of simplified Xingese characters but Al's the one who bothered to learn traditional. So you're Lan Fan's little brother huh? Does that mean you're a bodyguard, too?" asked Ed.
"No, not yet anyway. Lan Fan trains with me sometimes. I want to become her apprentice, but she says she's too busy guarding the emperor," he replied sounding despondent.
"That sounds about right." Edward laughed under his breath. "Ling can be a royal pain in the ass. But that's what your family does, isn't it? Protect the Yao clan?"
"Different sides of the family," Xiang answered.
"Huh? How do you mean?"
"We have the same mother but it was Lan Fan's father's family who serve the Yao. He died a long time ago. After that our mother married my father and I was born. Since we came from different clans we weren't raised together."
"Oh." Ed didn't know what else to say to that. He couldn't imagine growing up apart from Alphonse. They looked after each other most of their lives. He wondered how Lan Fan's father died but didn't ask. Taking Lan Fan and Fu's dedication to Ling into account he could draw enough conclusions. "You're together now though, right? Isn't that the whole point of the unification of Xing?"
"Yes," Xiang said with warmth. "We're together now."
As they neared the palace gates Edward marveled at the sight. Alphonse was always eloquent in his letters but even he couldn't do the place justice. The palace was a masterpiece of Xingese architecture. It was the epicenter of the Imperial City. Ed was beginning to see why Alphonse loved it here. Traveling abroad, immersing himself in another culture, studying alkahestry with a certain Xingese princess. People liked Alphonse. He made friends everywhere he went and Edward was glad.
Alphonse Elric deserved everything the world had to offer.
