AN: In response to one of the reviews:
No, Dumbledore is not all knowing. However, he is a powerful legilimens, and was scraping across the impressions floating through their minds. Thoughts flash by without notice, but Dumbledore seized on them.
Chapter 3: Observations and Conversations
Several hours later found Ed sitting beside Roy's bed, keeping watch. Despite the fact that no one here had moved to harm either of them, and they had in fact helped them out a bit, he did not trust that they wouldn't try something now that there was more time to consider their options. So here he was, in an isolated room near the hospital wing, keeping guard beside Roy's bed. And that was where he still was when Dumbledore stopped in later that night.
Once again he stopped to survey the two strangers who had so suddenly and so strangely entered the mix. They would have piqued his interest anyway, but the fact that they had emerged from the Death Gate made everything all the more strange and exciting. He fully intended to find out more about these two and their strange powers and origin.
And now that he had the time, he decided to take a closer look at his new guests. Enshrouded with invisibility spells and muffled by a spell for silence, he walked closer to the two.
The one in the bed had short, dark hair and a pale complexion, though part of that may have been due to pain and blood loss. He was a very handsome man with smooth, refined features and Dumbledore vaguely remembered the deep, dark sapphires that were his eyes. His name he had gathered was 'Roy Mustang'.
The other could be Roy's antithesis with long golden locks pulled back in a loose braid that almost perfectly matched the gold of his eyes. In fact, if Dumbledore had to choose a word to describe the young man in front of him, 'golden' would have been it. His features too were smooth but lacked the 'suave' essence of his counterpart. His skin itself was a golden tan- he obviously spent much time outdoors. In short (pun intended), the boy could be described as 'pretty'. And despite his height (or lack there of), Dumbledore could tell by his poise and the look in his strange golden eyes, a look he recognized as one not unlike Harry's, that this boy was much older, wiser, and stronger than he appeared. And his apparently mechanical arm was an enigma in itself. His name, he was told, was Edward Elric.
As he watched them, his mind wandered back to the impressions he had received back at the ministry. They were a mess of muddled and confused emotions. Chief at the time had been worry, of course, but underlying that worry was a torrent of emotions that only peaked at the surface. Dumbledore wasn't even completely sure they knew that those emotions existed. He had first glimpsed them when he had met Roy in the Death Room. He hadn't understood them at the time- he had mainly felt an over riding desire to check on his companion. It wasn't until he got the two together that other emotions and desires started to poke through. Flashes of their darker thoughts had flashed before him and left him completely bewildered. The two of them fought like rivals, but their minds and hearts flew on the wings of lovers. Thoughts that would have made him blush in his youth flashed through theirs on frequent intervals- and what's more, they didn't seem to notice!
Dumbledore shook his head to clear it of those thoughts. There would be plenty of time to unravel their mysteries. For now, he was content to watch them. As he was turning to go, Dumbledore heard Edward speaking behind him.
"Forget how you were able to follow me, why did you do it? I don't remember much from when I crossed over, but when I try I think I remember someone speaking, and I feel arms wrap around me. It was warm, comforting… things I've never really acquainted with you, you bastard. Why did you come after me? Why?!" Ed banged his fist down on the side table, making the objects on it jump. Dumbledore stood still, watching as Ed's head drooped to his chest.
"Damn you, Colonel… damn you…but… thanks…"
Dumbledore took this as his cue and left as quietly as he came.
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It was a few days after the incident in the Department of Mysteries that Snape saw an unfamiliar blonde haired kid in a slightly baggy long sleeved red shirt and gloves wandering the halls. It took a few moments for him to recognize him as one of the 'guests' Dumbledore had brought back from that night. He walked up behind him as the boy was investigating one of the portraits and cleared his throat. The boy spun around and Snape was caught in his strange golden eyes.
"You wanted something?" asked the blonde in a bored voice as Snape continued to stare. The boy's voice shook him out of his thoughts and he tried to stand a little more menacingly to try and recover face. Unfortunately for him Edward Elric wasn't one to be intimidated so easily, and he had to hold back a sneer himself as one affixed itself to Snape's features.
"I don't know what you are up to, but I doubt Professor Dumbledore has given you free reign of the castle. Besides you'll probably get lost so why don't you just go back to the hospital wing like a good little boy and-"
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SMALL THAT PASSING STUDENTS WOULD MISTAKE HIM FOR AN ANT AND STEP ON HIM?!"
Snape actually took a step backwards as the diminutive blonde exploded in rage, swinging his fists angrily about him. He was just about to pull his wand when an amused voice behind them said, "Ah! Mr. Elric! Have you seen enough of the portraits? I see you have already met Professor Snape! Well, come along with me and I shall show you the rest of the way to my office." And with that Dumbledore led away a smoldering Ed and left a very confused Snape.
"I apologize if you've had a confrontation with our Potion's Master- he's a bit of a handful at times and more than a little paranoid, but he has good reason to be, and I'm sure you understand about having a bit of a temper…"
"Humpf! As long as he doesn't insult my height again we should be fine."
"Excellent! Well here we are- the password is 'Hershey'.
As soon as Dumbledore said the word the gargoyle in front of them jumped to the side allowing them entrance to a hidden chamber of some sort. Ed felt his jaw drop a little bit, and not for the first time. When he had been first told about magic he had laughed hysterically. That is, until someone levitated a freakin' cabinet about three feet off the ground. That coupled with all the weird shit he had seen back at the place they had come out of left him doubting his own disbelief.
Dumbledore led him up a moving staircase (more slack-jawed staring) to an ornate door and into an office with an innumerable assortment of odd gadgets. Dumbledore motioned to a seat in front of a stone fireplace before seating himself across from it. Ed sat down and found a bowl of some odd yellow candies pushed under his nose.
"Care for a lemon drop?" asked Dumbledore with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes.
Ed shook his head slightly, "No thanks."
"How is the shirt? I notice it's a bit big…"
"It's fine. Now we were going to explain some things to each other?"
"Yes, yes, of course… Would you like to start or I?"
"You," Edward said bluntly.
"Very well, where would you like me to begin? Any questions in particular? I can not promise answers to them all, but I will do the best that I can."
"How can all these things be possible? Magic doesn't exist…"
"Then what do you call what you and your dark haired friend did back at the Ministry?" asked Dumbledore curiously.
"Science," said Edward vaguely. He still wasn't sure about this guy. He didn't want to give anything away before he got some answers.
"Science? What kind?" asked Dumbledore.
"I believe you were the one who was answering questions…" said Edward.
"Ah yes, forgive me, but I am more than a little curious myself on a few things... How about I answer one question then you answer a question- fair enough?"
"Very well, an Equivalent Trade," said Edward with a nod.
"Yes, so your question?" asked Dumbledore.
"What is magic?"
"It's a force wizards control to manipulate their environment. However, that is the simplified description. Only certain individuals are capable of using magic, and it tends to run in families, though there is such a thing as a muggle-born wizard."
"What's a-"
"Now, now, it's my turn Edward," said Dumbledore with a smile.
Ed growled but nodded his head.
"What 'science' is it that you practiced?"
"Alchemy."
"My dear boy, alchemy is only part science and part magic-"
"No it is not! It is the science of transmuting elements from one form to another! Any intelligent being can do alchemy if they study hard enough! This magic-hogwash is absurd!" yelled Ed, making violent motions with his hands.
"Calm down, Edward. Perhaps if you would describe your form of alchemy we can find where the difference lies."
"The science of alchemy can be described in three steps: understanding, decomposing, and reassembling. In order to perform a transmutation you must understand the complete breakdown of the materials you are transmuting. Beyond that you can only transmute something of equivalent mass that shares at least some of the same base properties. The Law of Equivalent Exchange must be met."
"But what allows you to use alchemy to begin with? There must be a catalyst of some kind…"
"For most it takes an equation we call an array," said Edward.
"You say most, but not all?" asked Dumbledore.
"I believe it's my turn to ask a question," said Edward. "Now, what the hell is a muggle-born?"
"A muggle is someone with no wizard blood in them, thus a muggle-born would be a child born of non-wizard blood who is none the less able to use magic," said Dumbledore.
"That doesn't make any sense. Laws and theorems aren't just forgotten where they're inconvenient. The muggle parents must carry a recessive gene for magic that becomes active in the child…"
"Be that as it may, that is how it works," said Dumbledore. "Now what about the catalyst? You say an equation, but that would merely give it structure and purpose. There must be an energy exchange involved- what sort of energy is used in alchemy? Where does it come from?"
"What sort of energy is used in magic and where does it come from?" asked Edward stubbornly, crossing his arms. The two glared at each other for a moment before Dumbledore slowly began to grin.
"You're blocking me now, are you?"
"You think I wouldn't notice someone trying to break into my mind?! I felt you nosing around in there that night but I was too busy to bother with it at the time! Now if you wouldn't mind… GET OUT!"
Dumbledore massaged his temples, both from the vocal outburst as well as the mental one.
"Now I have one more question… you claim to be from another world…"
"Yes," growled Edward.
"Then why have I glimpsed in my searches certain… flashes of WW I London?"
Edwards face registered shock before becoming angry. Then he stood as he said, "That is none of your concern-"
"On the contrary, Mr. Elric, it is my concern because I am the only reason you haven't been abducted by the Ministry of Magic already. Many want to erase both you and Mr. Mustang's memories; others, mainly those in the Department of Mysteries, want to bring you back for 'questioning' which can be interpreted to be 'testing'. You see, you came out of a very secret and very mysterious artifact that has been in our possession for many centuries. But despite the best efforts of many talented wizards, its purpose has never been divined. Now here you and your friend come along and the current keepers of that gate are salivating at the chance to get a hold of you. You say you are a scientist- then you can imagine how they feel."
That stopped Edward in his tracks. Flashes of crazed experimenters he had met, like Shou Tucker, flickered through his mind. They wanted he and Mustang for experiments.
From behind him he could hear Dumbledore give a deep sigh, "Mr. Elric, I can understand why you would be distrustful of me, especially with my mind searches. But you must understand that what you witnessed back at the Ministry is just a taste of what awaits this world. We are at war, Mr. Elric, and I have been too trusting in the past. I can not afford to make the same mistakes again."
This time it was Edward who sighed. He was stuck in the middle of only God knows where with only Mustang as back up. Hell, he didn't even know where his father was. Not that he was particularly missing the bastard- he had gotten this far with out him- but just about any familiar face at this point would have been good. No, he needed help. And though he hated to admit it, this old guy seemed alright, despite the freaky mind searching. On a side thought he wondered if he could get the guy to teach him how to do that. For now, he would just have to trust him.
Sort of.
"I may have… been here before. I don't know for sure… but I've crossed the Gate before. This last time was different though. The first time I was transferred into the body of someone else that was already here. This time I seemed to have come through directly. Last time someone also told me that they were in the middle of a large war. I was released back to my own world when the body I was in died after being hit by a crashing flying machine—"
"A zephyr I believe, from your memories," said Dumbledore.
"I don't know. Either way, I ended up back in my world. It turned out that my brother had sacrificed himself to bring me back. I couldn't let that happen. So I exchanged myself for him. That was when I ended up back at that place. For some reason the Gate decided to spit me back out somewhere different."
"As well as at a different time. It has been about 40 or 50 years since WWI raged. It was a muggle war between several countries, though the wizarding world was dragged in at intermittent times, but only in as so far as to help keep our existence secret from the warring armies," said Dumbledore. "But what about the other man? Where does Mr. Mustang come into all of this?"
Ed bit his lower lip. He wasn't sure how much to tell Dumbledore about he and Roy's relationship. 'Oh God, did I just think that?' thought Ed as a look of revulsion crossed his face. Fortunately he was faced away from Dumbledore, so he didn't see it.
"We're… colleagues back in our world…"
"You called him colonel," said Dumbledore plainly.
'Damn! I did, didn't I?'
"Oh yeah, well-"
"Honesty, Mr. Elric, is perhaps the best policy," said Dumbledore, and Ed could almost hear that damn twinkle in his voice.
Ed sighed, "He's my CO, or perhaps ex-CO would be more precise in this situation. We were both in the Amestris military as National Alchemists."
"You as well?" asked Dumbledore inquisitively. "But surely you aren't old enough to be in the military…"
"I'm 17 and I joined when I was 12," said Ed.
"Why would someone so young enlist in the military? And why would they allow it?" asked Dumbledore. The more he heard the more confused he became.
"They allowed it because I'm a prodigy and they wanted my talents at their talents at their disposal. And I joined because I made a promise to my brother that I would return something vital to him. And the only way I could see to do that was with the military's resources," said Ed.
Dumbledore was still curious but heard the tone in Ed's voice and wisely left the matter alone.
"So you weren't lying back at the Ministry? You really are a Major in the military? Not just in military school?"
"So you did hear that? I haven't attended school since I was 8, unless you count my years training under Sensei in alchemy or I and my brother's personal studies before taking the State Alchemist exam."
"Self taught, hm? It takes great discipline to do that…"
"I had a great motivation," said Ed. He turned back to Dumbledore, "So what's your story? What was going on back there? What have we gotten ourselves into this time?"
"More than you'll likely care to know," said Dumbledore gravely.
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An hour later
"So basically you're telling me that asshole got it into his mind that he's god's gift to wizardkind and all the muggle-borns are trash because he had a crappy, non-existent relationship with his father and has therefore made it his lot in life to wipe out muggle-borns and muggles while also having some freakish fear of death that makes him search for immortality, and on top of that has some psychopathic personal vendetta against that Potter kid because of something his mother did?" asked Ed with a disgusted look on his face.
Dumbledore couldn't help but smile at his description, "In short, yes."
Ed looked off to the side, rubbing his face as he muttered something about 'power-hungry bastards' and 'always the same' and 'how does he always get himself mixed up with these nut-jobs.'
"I think both of us have been left with enough to keep our minds occupied for tonight. Would you care to join the school down in the Great Hall for dinner or would you prefer to eat in privacy?"
"I think I'd prefer to eat on my own tonight, thanks. I need to sort through all this…"
"Then I will guide you back to the colonel's recovery room. Or if you would prefer, to one of our guest rooms where you could stay and be more comfortable."
"Could you maybe show me the way to the guest room and then to his recovery room? That way I could travel between the two?"
"In that case I'll take you to one near the hospital wing to make it more convenient. Would that suffice?"
"Yes, that would be fine. Thank you."
'Mustang's going to freak when he hears all this.'
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It was around midnight when Ed collapsed in the guest room, throwing an arm over his eyes. Actually, the word 'room' didn't quite cover it; it was a set of rooms lavishly decorated in scarlet and gold, as if meant for royalty. The bed he lay on was a massive king size canopied four-poster bed with silky scarlet drapes that were pulled back with gold sashes. When he had first been showed the room he had been floored and had tried to tell the old headmaster that he would be perfectly comfortable in one of their 'normal' rooms. The headmaster had merely chuckled and stated that this was one of their 'normal' rooms. Ed didn't comment after that.
The rooms came complete with two bedrooms, a living room area, bathrooms larger and more elaborate than any Ed had ever seen with a bathtub the size of a small swimming pool, and a small kitchenette off to the side. Thinking of the kitchen made Ed's stomach rumble, but he was too tired to investigate, even to appease his offending stomach.
'Bah… I'll just get something in the morning,' thought Ed.
He was just nodding off when he heard a slight knock on the wall beside the painting guarding his rooms (that too had floored him). Ed groaned and drug himself out of the much too comfortable bed. His eyes were still half-lidded when he answered.
"What do you-?"
He stopped when he saw no one out there. He growled and began to turn back around but jumped when someone suddenly appeared after pulling some kind of strange cloak off.
"Ne! What's the big idea-?!"
"Shh! Snape will hear you!" said the boy. Ed squinted in the dark. That voice sounded familiar…
"Who are you?" asked Ed.
"Don't you remember? I'm the one you helped, back at the Ministry…" said the boy quietly.
"Ah… Harry Potter, right?" asked Ed.
"Yeah… could we move this out of the hall? I'm technically not supposed to be out here…"
"Oh, yeah, sure… come on in," Ed said groggily, stepping to the side. "My name is Edward, by the way, Ed for short. Make yourself at home."
"Thanks," said Harry, stepping inside while Ed closed the portrait behind him. Harry looked around the room and his eyes widened.
"Bloody hell! This room is…!"
"Yeah, tell me about it. I tried to request something less extravagant, but he insisted that this was as 'normal' as it got," said Ed, running his flesh hand over his face. What was the kid doing here?
"So, why are you here? Speaking of which, how did you even know where I was staying?" asked Ed, as his brain finally started to kick awake from its sleepy state.
"Actually, I… wanted to ask you some questions, if you don't mind," said Harry, then he lifted a large bag; "I brought snacks."
Ed's stomach gave another rumble at the mention of food and he saw Harry's mouth quirk into a barely visible grin. Ed scowled but none the less motioned to the chairs sitting in front of the crackling fireplace.
"You still haven't answered my other question. As far as I know, Dumbledore is the only one who knew what room I was going to stay in."
Harry sighed as he pulled a piece of rough paper out of his pocket along with that thing these people called a wand, placing the tip on the paper.
"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," said Harry.
"What-?" Ed began to ask. But then he saw lines begin to snake out from where the tip met the paper. After a second, words became legible:
The Marauder's Map
Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs.
After he had read them they dissipated and the lines grew to cover the paper. After a minute Ed finally grasped what it was.
"A map of the castle," said Ed. Then he noticed little dots showing up around the castle. Many were concentrated in four localized areas, but others roamed around the map. Two dots in particular caught his attention as he spotted the names above them.
"Hey! That's us!"
"Yeah, it shows the castle and a portion of the grounds as well as most of the main secret passages out of the school, and it tracks all those on the grounds and their movements."
"So you just followed the map to my location…handy…"
"Yeah," said Harry with a chuckle.
They settled into a tense silence. Harry cleared his throat nervously. Ed felt his stomach give another lurch and sat forward, motioning to the food, "So what did you bring? I'm starvin' over here…"
"Oh! Here," said Harry, pulling out two bottles of a mysterious beverage as well as a collection of sandwiches, homemade potato chips, chicken, and cookies.
"Where did you get all that food?" said Edward, his eyes wide, "And at this late…"
"I stopped by the kitchens before I headed this way. It was all I could do to peel myself away before the house elves sent half the damn stock with me."
"Wait- house elves? What- Ne, never mind…" said Ed with a sigh, hanging his head. Once again they fell into silence. With another sigh Ed reached out and popped the top on the bottle in front of him, taking a swig. Warmth spread from his tongue to the rest of him. Ed shook his head to clear it from the odd sensation, taking another look at the bottle.
"Butterbeer? You all have alcohol here?"
"Nah, there's not much alcohol content to it. You could drink 10 and barely even get a buzz," said Harry, opening his own bottle.
'Which means I could probably drink 50 and get the same reaction. Damn Roy and his corruption,' thought Ed, taking another swig. Though truth be told, he could really do with one of the colonel's infamous cocktails at the moment.
Ed leaned back with the bottle in one hand and a sandwich in the other. Finally, after he felt sated enough to start conversation, he asked, "So, what did you really come here for?"
Harry paused in his munching to look up at Ed. As he started to frame his question in his mind, he began to get nervous. But he had to ask, he had to know…
Harry bowed his head as he began, "When you came through the archway, do you remember anything?"
"Why do you ask?" asked Ed suspiciously.
Harry took a deep breath, "Right before you came out, someone else had fallen in. I was wondering…" here Harry paused. He looked up when he heard Ed give a sad sigh, a pained expression on his face.
"You wanted to know if the person may still be alive and, if so, where he is," Ed finished for him.
Harry nodded.
"I'll be honest with you, Harry- chances are slim that person made it to the other side."
"But you made it! Why wouldn't he? Or anyone else?"
Ed didn't answer. He didn't know how to. How did one explain the Gate? And how much did he really want to tell this kid?
"It's… not as simple as you think. You may not understand…"
"Try me," said Harry, a determined glint in his emerald green eyes.
Ed knew he wouldn't be able to get away from this kid unless he gave him a satisfactory answer. He could respect that.
"It's not like walking through a doorway; you don't just walk through to the other side. You have to pass through the Gate."
"The Gate?" asked Harry. The way Ed had said it worried him.
"Yeah, the Gate- the structure, or entity, or whatever you want to call it that separates our two worlds. And in order to pass through it, you have to pay a toll."
"What kind of toll?" asked Harry fretfully.
"It really depends on what you're asking of it… usually you have to pay with things like body parts and organs, though it has been known to take lives as toll…"
"What?!" asked Harry in horror. "What do you mean 'take lives as toll'?! What kind of gate is it?!"
"The Gate of Truth," said Ed. "In order to use the Gate, you must pay an Equivalent Exchange or die."
"Equivalent Exchange? But- what did you pay to cross over?"
"No offense, but that's none of your business. Just know that there was an exchange. Or at least, I hope there was…" said Ed, and Harry saw a flash of pain cross his face. But in the next second Ed was back to his stoic expression, though still looking a little the worse for wear.
Ed stood up as well and stretched, reminding Harry of a cat after a nap. Then he gave a long yawn before turning back to Harry.
"I'm sorry I can't tell you that the person made it over to the other side, but that's just the way it is. But you never know, he may have made it. But if he did, and should you ever see him again, be ready to accept that he may not be the same as he was when he left."
Harry nodded and began to move toward the portrait hole, taking the hint that the interview was done. But as he was leaving, pulling the invisibility cloak over himself, he heard Ed ask from behind him, "Who was it?"
"My godfather, and the closest thing I've ever had to a dad," Harry said, feeling a prickling behind his eyes. But he quickly pushed it down and turned back to flash Ed the shadow of a grin, "I'll come by tomorrow morning around 8 o'clock to show you the way to the Great Hall. You can have breakfast with me and a couple of my friends."
Ed nodded as Harry turned away and strode out into the night.