Chapter 2: Arrangements
Ginny stayed close by Vic's side the rest of the convention, following him through the halls and sitting in the front rows of every event he attended (at his request). She felt a little awkward getting the special treatment but somehow felt safer knowing he was close by. As the day wore on, she got to see him interact with others and listened to him talk about himself (at least his past self) with his fans. Finally, when the con was coming to an end and it was time to go home, Vic pulled her aside out of earshot of passing attendees.
"I'm concerned about how safe you'll be going home by yourself." Vic said in a hushed voice.
"Oh, I was just going to catch the bus, it's only a couple hours away." She said, equally as quiet.
"Is it north of here? I can drop you off on my way home!"
"Actually, yeah. But I don't want to put you out of your way…" She toed the floor.
"Nonsense, I want to. Besides, it'll give us more time to talk about…things." He smiled and she felt a little nervous.
"What kind of things?"
"Just stuff…come on, get your things and we'll head out. My car's in the parking lot." He glanced around casually as she fidgeted and said, "Well…I already do."
"Hmm? What, all you brought was that backpack?" He said curiously.
"Yeah…" She seemed a little uncomfortable about the subject and he decided to let it slide, turning and saying over his shoulder, "Well, let's get going then."
"Okay." They left the con together and wandered out into the parking lot, stopping at his Yukon as he unlocked it. Curiously, Ginny ventured around to the front and stared at the bummer with a grin.
"What is it?" Vic asked as he opened her door for her.
"Just seeing if you still had the vanity plate." She grinned, getting into the passenger's seat. Vic went around and got into the driver's seat, starting it up and saying, "Did you see the fanfilm?"
"Yeah, I was one of the lucky few, I liked it a lot. It's a shame it was the end of Vic's career…"
"Yeah…" He muttered before pulling out of the parking lot and heading home. Several minutes down the road, Ginny spoke up again and said, "So, uh…what did you do after you left Germany?"
"Well, I traveled the world in my pursuit of safe places to hide out. I met a lot of people along the way and learned a lot about different cultures; it's enough to change your perspective of the world. I've also fought in many wars over the years because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Really? Did you fight in Vietnam?" Ginny's eyes swam with excitement as she waited anxiously to hear his stories.
"I fought in all the wars between the 1940's and 1980's, I kind of decided to stay out of the military after that."
"That's amazing, what made you quit?"
"Well…I moved to Japan around 1987 and lived in Hokkaido working for a delivery truck business. They went around farms transporting goods to the market so I got to meet a lot of people out in the country, it was beautiful. I still remember the rice fields when they were ready for harvest, like fields of gold dancing in the wild…"
"It sounds like a beautiful place to live."
"It was, it's also where I met a very special woman whom I'm still friends with to this day. Her name was Hiromi, I used to call her Romi-chan. I would visit her family's farm every week and she'd be the first face I'd see, smiling up at me as she did her chores. She always stopped to talk to me while I was there, sometimes we'd sit on the fence watching the cows graze, sharing stories and telling jokes. It was a good time in my life, very quiet and peaceful."
"Why did you leave? You sound like you liked this girl a lot."
"I did, yes…but there's only woman I ever truly loved. I told Hiromi this but she understood and still wanted to be my friend. She was a wonderful person with a sense of humor unrivaled by anyone I had ever met before, she had a strange affection for corny movies. She used to drag me off to the films whenever something new and wacky came out, we'd sit in the back row and laugh our heads off. But I knew I could never stay with her forever, my fate wouldn't allow it. So I gave her something she could remember me by for all eternity: my life story. You may know it now as Fullmetal Alchemist."
"So…Hiromi was the creator!"
"Yeah, once her story became a big hit, she told me to go to America and find her a good guy to play my character, someone who would do me justice. So I did…and that's how I found Vic."
"You're the one who got Vic the part??" Ginny said in shock.
"Sort of, I kind of worked for FUNimation as a liaison for Hiromi, since she couldn't leave Japan to work on the dubbing in the United States. I met Vic before his audition and knew immediately that he was the guy for the part after talking to him for a few minutes. Our voices were so similar and we looked a lot alike back then, though I still had my long hair and a beard. We became best friends and I moved to Texas and lived nearby him in an apartment complex, it was definitely a change of pace from living in Japan so long. I had to learn English because I hadn't really been here before that but Vic helped me out a lot."
"You didn't know English? What did you know?"
"Oooh, my native language from my dimension, German, Swedish, Italian, and Japanese. My English was pretty loose cause I had been to England and Australia before and they mainly speak English there, if you ignore the different terminology for things."
"That's pretty impressive, you must be a fast learner."
"Yeah, I guess it comes from studying all the time, I'm a complete nerd when it comes to alchemy though." Vic chuckled, scratching the back of his head.
"I'm a nerd when it comes to studying too, I get teased a lot in school for getting straight A's." Ginny laughed with him.
"I guess we're just a couple of dorks with nothing better to do but bury our noses in books all day. Except I don't have much time for that anymore, seeing as I have to live Vic's life 24/7. It's not an easy job, believe me."
"I can imagine. You know…" Ginny blushed a little as she said, "I always wanted to be an apprentice for Vic, learn from him and get knowledge from an expert like him. I guess that'll never happen…"
"Don't lose all hope in your dreams, Ginny, faith and hope are all we've got to keep us going everyday. Otherwise, what's the point of living if you've got nothing to look forward to?"
"I guess you have a point, but it's hard to have my dream come true when the man I admire is dead."
"Where there's a will, there's a way." Vic said quietly, causing the conversation to come to an end until they had reached their final destination. When they arrived at Ginny's apartment complex, Vic got out with her and looked up at the building, saying, "This is where you live?"
"Yeah, it's not much…well, see ya." She waved and started up the sidewalk when Vic stepped forward and grabbed her arm.
"Hang on! I wouldn't be a gentleman if I didn't walk you to the door; it's not safe for a girl to be walking around by herself. Besides, you haven't given me your phone number or email so I can keep in touch with you." Vic said, putting the arm he grabbed around his and walking with her into the complex.
"My, aren't you forward." She grinned and he frowned sarcastically.
"Oh yes, I pick up underage girls all the time." He said dryly, glancing around casually, though she knew he was surveying the area and making sure it was safe.
"Well, I'd give you the information you want but…" Her voice trailed off nervously.
"What?" Vic looked down at her curiously.
"I don't have an email, I don't even have access to the internet."
"What about your phone? Don't you have one of those?"
"I…my parents don't like strange men calling me." She said, looking away.
"That sucks…how am I suppose to keep in touch?" He looked aggravated as they climbed the stairs to the second floor.
"I guess we'd have to arrange to meet somewhere. After school, I always go to this arcade a block south of here for a couple hours before coming home, I guess you can meet me there if you really wanted to. Otherwise…I don't know." She shrugged. They stopped in front of a door and she took her backpack off, pulling out a pair of keys and fondling them slowly.
"So…sometime around 4? It's a date." He leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek before backtracking to the stairwell, "See ya tomorrow afternoon, Ginny."
"See you…Vic." She whispered, hiding the blush spreading across her face. Quickly, she opened her door and slipped in, shutting it and falling back against it with a heavy sigh.
The next day was heavy with rain, soaking the world in a sorrowful atmosphere and making life difficult for those trying to get around the city. Vic pulled up to the arcade he'd been directed to the evening before and quickly hurried through the rain to the front door. Entering the building, the sound of video games echoed everywhere, various tunes playing as kids from the local school battled to beat the high score board. Wandering in further, he spotted a small pizzeria in the corner and decided to wait there for Ginny. Walking up to the counter, he leaned on it and called to the waitress, "Hey there, sweetie, can I have a slice of pizza to go?"
"Cheese or pepperoni?" She turned around and to Vic's surprise, it was Ginny.
"I didn't know you worked here." He said, taking the pizza slice she handed him.
"You never asked; want a drink with that?" She smirked, grabbing a cup and going to the soda fountain.
"Dr. Pepper." He took his drink and paid, turning as he sipped to lean against the counter casually, surveying the arcade, "How long have you been working here? I remember coming here with my friend to play games and talk."
"Only about a year, I needed the money. Besides, it's kind of fun cause I get to play all the games I want for free." Ginny leaned against the counter as well, smiling as she watched a couple kids play skeeball in the corner.
"Really? Sweet! I should get a job here." Vic grinned and Ginny looked up at him with a cocked eyebrow.
"And give up all the fun you have at conventions? Why would you want to do that?" She said sarcastically, wandering about and randomly cleaning things. Taking a bite of his pizza, he said, "So how was school?"
"Fine…it's school." She shrugged, cleaning off the fountain nozzles.
"No trouble with bullies?"
"Not today, no."
"That's good…can I ask you something, Ginny?"
Looking up, she said quietly, "I guess so." Before Vic could say anything, a commotion started across the room. A group of boys had circled around a smaller kid and were obviously not being very kind to him as they taunted him with something.
"Hey!" Vic shouted, setting his drink down and getting ready to go over and stop it when Ginny rushed past him, hurrying to the group and shoving a couple aside to get to the little boy being attacked. Pulling him free, she hid him behind her and said loudly, "Leave him alone, you jerks! How many times have I told you to stay out of here?! Get out!"
"We'll go wherever we want, Orphan!" The biggest boy said roughly, trying to intimidate her with no avail. Standing her ground, she growled, "Is that what you're going to say when the police come?"
"Yeah right, if you call the cops on us one more time, no one will come to this dump anymore. Besides, we were just having a little fun." He grinned, waving something plastic around casually.
"Give that back!" She made a grab for it but he pulled it away, causing the boys to laugh obnoxiously at her attempts.
"You want it? Jump!" He dangled it over her head but she refused to comply, giving him a deathly glare while holding the frightened boy behind her.
"I said give it back!" She growled.
"I think you should listen to her, boys." Vic took his place next to Ginny, crossing his arms and staring down the boy who was obviously the leader.
"Who are you, her boyfriend?" He scoffed.
"No, I'm a cop. Wanna see my badge?" He started to reach for his wallet when the boys wailed and ran for the door, the tallest lingering to give Ginny a dirty look before chucking the object at her and following his gang. Ginny stooped and picked it up off the floor before turning to the little boy and saying, "Drew, how many times have I told you to stay away from them? You're lucky they didn't break it this time."
"I'm sorry, Gin, they cornered me!" He sniffed, obviously fighting back his tears. Suddenly, Vic realized what Ginny had in her hand, it was a prosthetic arm.
"Alright, let's get you fixed up, come on." She led him over to the dining area and sat him down, rolling up his sleeve and getting to work reattaching the piece to its base at his elbow. Drew looked up at Vic curiously as he stared at them in silence, muttering, "Who's the police man?"
"Oh, he's my friend. Would you hold still??" Ginny fussed with the clips as Drew fidgeted in the chair.
"I hate this stupid arm, it's annoying." Drew whined. Finally, she managed to get it securely fastened in place, testing it before patting his shoulder and saying, "There, now go play some games and stay where I can see you!" Handing him some coins, he jumped up and ran off to a driving game, leaving Vic and Ginny to watch him from afar.
"You never said you had a brother." Vic finally said as Ginny walked back to her station behind the counter.
"You never asked." She muttered, obviously somewhat uneasy about mentioning it.
"How long has he had that?" Vic resumed his leaning on the counter, picking up the drink and watching Drew pilot the car around the course as if nothing had just happened.
"All his life, he was born with the lower have of his arm missing. You'd think he'd be used to the prosthetic by now but he still complains, I think he just hates getting teased about it." Ginny began wiping the counter down to distract herself as Vic smiled, touching his right arm.
"You'd be surprised…" He said, looking up at Drew in an understanding way.
"He'd be thrilled to have something like automail instead, he's constantly talking about how he could beat up the bullies if he was like Ed." Ginny looked up at Vic in amusement and he let out a chuckle.
"Yeah, that kid sure had a fiery spirit, didn't he?" Vic said quietly.
"He still does, I imagine." Ginny replied. The hours wore on and Vic remained at the arcade, talking to Ginny and playing with her little brother on the various games. Finally, it was the end of her shift and time to head home for the night. As she headed toward the door with Drew in tow, Vic said, "I'll give you guys a ride home, it's still sort of raining and it's getting dark."
"It's okay, we only live a couple blocks from here." Ginny argued.
"After today, I'd feel a lot better knowing you two got home safe. Give this old man a break and let me drive you home." Vic held the door open and Ginny sighed, ushering her brother out and saying, "Fine, old man, but don't make a habit of it."
"I'll try." Vic smirked, unlocking the car and opening her door. They piled in and within a few minutes, were back at the apartments and upstairs.
"The teacher says I need some stuff signed for class, can you do it before tomorrow?" Drew asked as Ginny pulled out her keys.
"Um…sure thing, let's get inside and talk about it later, okay?" Ginny said quietly, opening the door and ushering Drew inside as she avoided Vic's gaze. Standing still for a moment with the door slightly ajar, Ginny finally said, "Well, goodnight and thanks for the ride."
"Shouldn't his parents be signing his school papers?" Vic asked, a look of concern on his face.
"They should be, shouldn't they?" She said, her voice lower than before.
"Where are your parents, Ginny?"
"You ask too many questions."
"You're the one who said I never ask, so now I'm asking."
"Sometimes there's just things you don't ask about…and respect enough not to. Goodnight, Vic." Before he could stop her, she slid inside the apartment and shut the door, locking it almost instantly.
As the days passed into weeks, time eased by a little smoother than it had been. Vic stopped by the arcade everyday to spend time with Ginny and Drew, playing with the little boy and telling him stories over a couple slices of pizza (which he paid for every time). Two weeks after they had all met, Vic was scheduled for another convention and was somewhat anxious about leaving them unguarded. The day before he left for the con, he approached Ginny at the arcade.
"I'll be out of town this weekend for a convention in New York, I don't really like leaving you two alone for those 3 days so I made some arrangements." Vic said to Ginny in a hushed voice.
"What? When were you going to tell me this?" Ginny frowned, stopping mid-sweep as she cleaned the dining room area.
"Right now?" He smirked, backing behind a table out of her reach and waving her off, "Don't kill me, I have my reasons! You know that I worry about you two!"
"Yeah but…" She sighed in defeat and groaned, "Where are you sending us?"
"You'll be hanging out with my good friend Caitlin at her place for the weekend, I think you'll like her. She's a real sweetie and don't worry, she knows so it shouldn't be too awkward." Vic explained.
"Caitlin? You mean the voice actress? I get to hang out with Winry all weekend??" Ginny suddenly became excited.
"In a way, I guess. She does have a show on Saturday and you'll have to go with her but it's a good one, you'll love it! When you get off work tomorrow, she'll come by and pick you and Drew up. I think she said she'd be by around 7 PM, just keep an eye out for a cute redhead." He chuckled, helping to push in a couple chairs as Ginny went back to sweeping.