A/N: Okay, there are some things you might need to know ^^ This story is placed after Cos&the first anime and slightly AU since Ed is in Amestris. It`s simply for the fact that I prefer Ed to be older than 15 ^^° I know a lot of people don´t mind writing or reading stories with Ed being so young (And I´ve read some fic's where it works), but as I said, I prefer him to be a bit older when I write ^^ another reason for this set up is that Ed has his automail and is capable of performing Alchemy. Also, Alphonse has his body back to be able to do what Ed claims he does at the end of the chapter :D
Now, a big and fat 'thank you' to Ca11iope! My fast and amazing beta :D *hugs*
Enjoy!
Christmas Fairy
What a Girl Wishes For
"Jiao Lan," Ed was still amazed how easily Mustang was able to say that name. "You really need to let go of him."
And how much patience the man possessed, considering how often and how quickly his own 'discussions' with his superior turned into fights. It was kind of strange to see Roy taking the time to reason with the girl. Ed himself had long since resigned himself to his fate and carried the child over to a booth where he could at least get something warm to drink.
The attempt to gently pry the skinny arms off his neck had ended in a scene no one wanted to repeat. The shrill squeals of outrage by the little hellion had woken her brother, Ze Ren, who quickly decided he wanted to play that game as well. The resulting symphony had been epic, many passersby wincing from the high volume assault of the screaming duo.
Since Edward's neck was already taken, Ze Ren was doing his best to strangle his uncle while staring owlishly at Edward. Whenever the blond tried to talk to the child however, doing his best to smile reassuringly at him, Roy's nephew quickly hid his face under his uncle's chin, only peeking at Edward when he felt he was no longer the object of attention. Once assured that the adults were occupied with something else, he returned to outright staring. Ed had given up trying to talk to the child in order not to make him uncomfortable.
This gave Ze Ren's sister all the attention the girl could want. And incidentally gave Edward all the food and drinks he wanted, on Mustang's dime. Since Ed couldn´t leave the market with Roy's niece clinging to him, and the girl refused to let go, Mustang could pay for everything he ate and drank while being forced to stay. And that could be for quite a while. It was a good thing that his automail didn´t tire out, and that the child didn´t seem to mind the metal arm holding her.
But why the hell didn´t the little girl get tired of clinging to him?
"But he said he'd make my wish come true, and he hasn´t," Jiao Lan insisted for the hundredth time that evening.
Ed and Roy sighed in unison. They knew where this would lead. Well, it was worth another shot.
"You have to tell him what you want, honey. Or else he can´t trans- make your wish come true." Roy reasoned. Again. For what felt the thousandth time. And just like the nine hundred ninety nine times before, the Colonel's niece stubbornly pouted and claimed that her wish could not come true if she told someone.
"I think you're confusing a few different ... fairy tales here," Colonel said, by now appearing a bit desperate.
"How the h-" Ed quickly cleared his throat when he received a stern glare for the beginning curse. "How am I supposed to know what you want if you don´t tell me?"
Jiao Lan looked at him, considering the situation. "I don´t know…" She admitted and both alchemists dared to hope she would finally spill it. Then the girl's face took on a stubborn expression. "You´re the fairy, it´s your job to know," she said, poking Ed in the chest with a slender finger to make her point.
Oh great. Mustang let out a suspicious cough at both his niece's logic and Ed's having given up arguing about not being a fairy.
The blond alchemist glared at this superior. "She's your niece," the blond accused. "Don´t you know what she wished for?"
Roy grimaced. "No. She gave the letter containing her wishes to Riza, so she would send it to its destination. I was not allowed to look."
"Huh. Even your niece knows better that to trust you with paperwork." Ed muttered, and shifted his attention back to the child. "Could you write another letter then? And just give it to me?" he asked.
The girl shook her head. "No."
Fuck, this girl was stubborn! The blood relationship to the bastard was immediately obvious. It was clear that this was all the answer they would get, and Jiao Lan refused to explain just why she would not write another letter.
Shrugging, Ed set to wandering the Christmas market, Roy Mustang at his elbow, both of them carrying a child in their arms, both of them hoping the girl would point out just what it was she wanted to have. If not, she'd eventually get tired and fall asleep, right?
So far, no such luck.
And to make this even more uncomfortable, the question of what happened to place these two young children in Mustang's care was on the tip of Edward's tongue.
Ed was far from being a shy, polite person. He usually wasn't patient enough to hold his tongue when there were questions to be answered. But the suspicious black suit and the grief he had seen on Mustang's usually impassive face put a hold on his impatience. If what he suspected was true and Mustang's sibling had died recently, he had no desire to have that brought up in front of the children. Not while they seemed so carefree, staring in awe at all the holiday wonders on display in the market stalls.
Still, the silence was growing awkward. They had to talk about something, preferably without insulting each other, or this strangely peaceful stroll through a festive holiday fair would turn into an absolute disaster.
Mustang found the perfect topic. "So tell me Edward," he said with a smile. "How is Alphonse doing?"
"He´s doing great! Actually, he's around here somewhere, too." Ed informed his commanding officer.
Strangely enough, he had yet to see his brother anywhere, even though they had walked through a good bit of the market. With a twinge of guilty conscience, Ed noticed that he hadn´t even looked for his brother, too occupied with getting himself stuffed silly, his attention drawn in by the bastard and his sibling's children. And he had to admit, he was enjoying the stroll through the fair, looking at what the vendors had to offer. Some of the stuff was complete trash, but many vendors had very unique and interesting crafts displayed. Ed was constantly amazed, admiring the craftsmen's ingenuity at every turn.
"Look, uncle!" Ze Ren piped up.
It was the first time Ed had heard the boy speak. The child was pointing at a booth not far away, fine jewelry displayed on black velvet table mats. Ed was not sure what the boy wanted them to see, but the Colonel seemed to know immediately what the boy was after and changed course towards the booth.
On closer inspection, it became clear why Mustang's nephew had, for the first time that evening, broken his silence to point something out.
The vendor offered silver jewelry as well as carved stones, beautifully fashioned into necklaces, rings and bracelets. But now the younger alchemist noticed that the designs were of a more exotic style not usually seen in Central. Edward recognized a few Xingese characters and mystical creatures he was familiar with, superbly crafted in silver, jade and onyx.
It was a shame such jewelry was not more popular in Central. This particular craftsman was obviously a master at his trade, each piece beautifully, flawlessly detailed, with none of the telltale signs of alchemy present. Ed's estimate of the artisan's skill increased. Various tools lay on a table inside the booth, along with a nearly finished stone, abandoned to pay attention to other potential customers.
Ed leaned in closer to look at the work in progress. "A phoenix?" he guessed. It was definitely a bird, and it appeared to be in flames.
"No, that's Fenghuang." Roy corrected. "A mystical bird of Xing, the mistress of all other birds. It has very positive connotations. Fenghuang represents fire, the sun, justice, obedience and fidelity."
As Ed turned to his commanding officer, one eyebrow went up. "And that?" he pointed at what looked rather like a big snake chimera.
"That is the dragon Yinglong, the rain deity." The Colonel offered, surprisingly civil.
Pointing out the next trinket, the Colonel proceeded to name a few more Xingese mythological beasts and their relations to each other. Looking at the crafting, Ed found himself wondering just how much of a connection Mustang still had to the country at least one of his parents came from. To Ed, the Colonel had always been the picture of an almost perfect soldier of the Amestrian military, a model Amestrian citizen. If not for the clearly Xingese influences in his appearance, it was likely no one would ever question Mustang's origins.
Yet here he was, two children in tow that were obviously the product of the Eastern side of his family. Suddenly ashamed, Edward realized for the first time that he didn´t even know which side of the Colonel's family had its origin in the other country. He hadn´t known that his commanding officer had a sibling… or were there more than one? Ed hadn´t known about any relatives at all, and he had certainly never noticed the man behaving in any kind of parental or familial manner. Hell, this was the first time Ed had had any civil interaction with him.
Actually… just what the fuck did he even know for sure about the man he threw insults at on an almost daily base? Other than the fact that he was a soldier, a slacker with regard to paperwork, a smug bastard who insulted him, and who was able to blow up a building with a snap of his fingers -
not much.
And speaking about Xingese heritage…
"What do you know about alkahestry?" Ed asked, his eyes caught by the salamander on the back of the Colonel's glove.
Roy stopped his explanation of one of the mythical creatures on display, which earned him a pout from both children as they obviously had enjoyed hearing tales about the sages.
"A few basics." The slightly tense tone in Mustang's voice was faint, but noticeable.
"Do they use symbols in Xingese alchemy as well?" The moment Ed began to compare the bird and the salamander, his mind was back to alchemy. "I´m sure that bird-"
"Fenghuang. She´s basically a chimera of various birds." Roy corrected.
"-would influence an array differently if you used it in place of your salamander." Ed finished, unimpressed by the interruption. The form was different, but he wondered what impact it would have. "Maybe it would render the circle useless. It´s not part of Amestrian alchemy. Could the two forms possibly be combined to ..."
His thoughts were interrupted by a snort coming from the bastard. "You really can´t stop thinking about alchemy for a minute, can you?" The amused tone in the Colonels voice was back, and the man visibly relaxed.
Edward blinked. He hadn´t even noticed when the body beside him had become tense. The man was far too skilled at hiding his reactions.
Edward had the sudden urge to… no, he couldn´t do that. But it would certainly be worth it to scratch the bastard's walls of impassiveness. For once, in all the time Ed had known him, the Colonel appeared relaxed enough to be off guard, and Ed decided to take the opportunity to shake him up a little.
"Depends…" Edward paused, eyeing his prey, and as predicted, one dark eyebrow rose in mocking question. "On what I´m doing and with whom." Ed curved his lips into a sultry smile.
He could pin down the exact moment the Colonel registered the words when the dark eyes went wide and the man appeared like a deer staring into oncoming headlights.
Resisting the urge to laugh out loud, Edward couldn´t help but try to score another point while he had the chance. His gaze dipped to the man's groin, and when his eyes returned to Mustang's face, the smile on his lips became downright lascivious.
"I´m sure you could come up with a few... interesting ways to distract me, Roy," Ed all but purred.
Then he quickly reached out to support Ze Ren's back as the child let out a squeal, tightening his grip around his uncle's neck to prevent a fall from his uncle's suddenly slack hold.
"Sh-" Mustang cut off the curse and quickly tightened his slipping hold on his nephew. Only when he was sure of the boy's safety did he send a glare towards the blond. The effect was ruined by Ed's observation of how handsome Mustang was with a faint blush on his face instead of the impassive mask he usually wore.
"Uncle!" both children chided.
The Colonel cleared his throat and offered a hoarse, "Right. I´m sorry." before sending another glare at Edward.
Who tried his best to wipe off the grin on his face and replace it with an innocent expression. It didn´t work.
"Are you tired, uncle?" The girl asked, concerned for her uncle once it was clear his brother was not going to be dropped on the ground. Then she cocked her head, looking at her relative before asking.
"Uncle, do you have a fever?" Then she turned to Edward when the blond let out a short laugh.
"What´s so funny? Is Uncle ill? That´s not funny!" She chided.
Ed shook his head. "Don´t worry, your uncle is not ill." He grinned. "He´s just ... hot."
"He´s feeling hot? You sure? It´s so cold out here." She asked as she observed the faint color on his uncle's face returning.
"Stop that." The man hissed towards his subordinate, earning a confused look from his niece and a much better version of the innocent look from the alchemist.
The reaction was not as strong as it had been at the first innuendo, but Edward still came to the conclusion that messing with Mustang like this was surprisingly entertaining. And the man didn´t seem to mind being hit on by a man. It seemed more like he was shocked about being hit on by Ed.
Now that the Colonel was forewarned, the blond alchemist decided it probably wouldn't be so easy to do it again. At least not right away. So he would wait for another surprise moment before he tried again. Mustang didn´t really believe Ed would stop just because his superior told him to, did he? Actually, it was motivating him to do the exact opposite.
"Cookies." Ze Ren muttered into the silence, interrupting Uncle Roy glaring at his sister's blond 'fairy'.
"Huh?" was Edward's first reaction to that. Where the hell did that come from? Couldn't the kid speak in full sentences? Was he hungry?
"Right, cookies!" The girl chirped as well, and the Colonel sighed before nodding.
"Cookies?" Ed repeated, his voice holding the question. He was missing something here. "Care to explain, ba-… Colonel?"
"We need to buy some before heading home," was all the information he got from the man, who suddenly appeared surly.
The reason why came from the girl in Ed's arms. "Because Uncle can´t bake!" She pouted, and her uncle sighed again.
"He can't-?" Shifting his attention to his superior, Ed raised an eyebrow. "Don´t tell me there's something you are not absolutely magnificent at… other than your paperwork."
The sarcasm was understandable. After all, Mustang prided himself on giving a stellar performance no matter what he was doing, be it as the oh-so-might Flame Alchemist, a strategist, a politician, or even just dating the women Havoc had set his sights on. Edward's ears still rang from all the reprimands he received over the years for the things he had been unable to do to the Colonel's satisfaction. Sure, he usually succeeded in his assignments, but not without ruining that bridge, or letting that building fall down, or insulting some general, the military police, or some other pompous jackass that took themselves too seriously. And fine, maybe he should have kept his hands off that array that blew up half of the third lab….
Enough. There was something more important going on right now.
Mustang not being able to do something. Though at the moment he was proving that he certainly was skilled at glaring.
Ed turned back to Jiao Lan. "Really? He can´t be that bad at baking." Smiling innocently at the girl in his arms, he was very tempted to burst out laughing when both children nodded their heads vigorously enough to have dark hair bouncing synchronically.
"He is!" The girl stared at him with big eyes as if begging him to believe her. "He burned the chocolate cookies! And over salted the cinnamon stars-"
Ed blinked. Over salted?
"I mixed up the salt with the sugar." Roy muttered as an explanation.
"-and the dough for the gingersnaps was too hard to cut, even when uncle tried with that big knife he got from work!"
Mustang tried to cut dough - that shouldn't even be cut but formed - with a military saber? And considering how sharp those were…. Just what did the man put into the dough? Cement?
"And the icing for the-"
"Jiao Lan, I think that´s enough," the Colonel interrupted, blushing again, this time out of embarrassment at being caught out mishandling his equipment. When his niece sent another confused look at him, he elaborated in a much softer tone. "I´m sure he gets the idea." Turning to his subordinate, Roy found himself stared at in utter amazement.
"You´re a disaster in the kitchen." Ed concluded in a matter-of-fact tone.
Snorting softly, the Colonel stated, "I'm sure you are much better at cooking -"
"Cooking too?" Ed interrupted, both eyebrows rising.
"-and baking, Fullmetal." His superior finished sourly, his ego bruised.
"Well…" Ed started, unsure how to explain. Seeing his superior's lips curve up in a smirk, he quickly elaborated. "I am. I mean, it wouldn't be hard to be better at it than you, from what I hear, but I can bake."
"That doesn´t sound very convincing, Fullmetal." The Colonel accused, ignoring the jab against his own skills with stoic ease.
"What does that mean?" Jiao Lan interrupted the conversation and her uncle shifted his attention to the girl.
"What does what mean, honey?" Roy asked in a tone that encouraged the child to ask any question she might come up with. Parental again. Still weird.
"Fullmetal. What does that mean?" Jiao Lan asked again and looked at Ed as if she could somehow figure out why her uncle was calling him that, completely ignoring the fact that a metal arm held her up as if there was nothing strange about that at all.
"That´s what Edward is called at work." Mustang explained.
This time his nephew barged in. "You´re not at work, uncle." Hesitating a moment, the boy asked, "Are you?" as if it was absolutely possible for Mustang to work at the Christmas market.
"No, of course not."
"Then why are you calling him that?" The girl shot the next question.
"…."
"Silly uncle." She reprimanded.
Conceding the point, the man directed the conversation back to the blond who was biting his lower lip in a suspicious manner. "That didn´t sound very convincing, Edward."
"I'm a pretty good baker," Edward told him wryly. "I just can´t knead much dough at once because I can´t use the automail hand." Grimacing in remembrance of the pain his skull had suffered in the past, the blond explained. "The dough gets squeezed between the plates and it´s murder to get out. Winry told me she'd kick my ... have my head if she had to take the arm apart one more time to get baking ingredients out of it. So I get Al to knead the stuff for me now."
"One more time? She's done it often?" One dark eyebrow went up again and the bastard's lips returned to their smirk.
Shit.
"Fine. I like baking," Ed huffed, feeling his face heat up. "It´s no big deal."
"Uncle Roy can knead the dough!" the girl in his arms cried out in joy. She turned to look critically at her uncle. "I watched him, it's the only part he does right!" she offered and turned back to Ed. "Will you bake with us? Pretty please?" she begged. Her eyes once again filled with hope.
"Uhm." Ed looked down at the girl, then to her uncle. Going to Mustang house, of all places, to bake? He was met with another pleading look from the boy in Roy's arms.
"Well? What do you say, Edward?" the bastard asked. Was the man kidding?
Looking into dark eyes, Ed felt strangely out of place at the honest question he read in them. It was not as hopeful or pleading as the one in the children's, but still… it was strange. Really, really strange, weird, and slightly twisted but… could it be? Roy Mustang, decorated Colonel of the Amestrian military and dangerous Flame Alchemist… loved cookies?
No way in hell.
"Fine," Ed's mouth said, surprising the shit out of him.
Did he just agree? Was that him speaking? Obviously it was, because he now had a very happy girl strangling his neck.
"What kinds are we going to make?" the girl asked, joined by her brother, who was begging for cinnamon stars, which explained why the Colonel had attempted them despite not being able to bake. That child was far more persuasive than any damn puppy when it came to pleading.
"Chocolate cookies!" Jiao Lan demanded, her brother quickly adding sugar cookies to the growing list.
Before the list could grow into eternity, the Colonel interrupted. "But first you need to go to bed. It´s already very late."
The mutual pouting was not something Ed would have been able to hold up against, but Uncle Roy appeared to be better trained at withstanding them.
"I can come over tomorrow," Ed offered. "And I´ll bring the ingredients." Just in case. If Mustang was that bad a cook, Ed wanted to make sure he had exactly what he needed. And it gave him another opportunity. Before Roy could protest about his guest buying the things they needed, the blond looked at the little girl in his arms, and played his trump card.
"I will need both hand´s to buy them," he stated.
The girl in his arms stared at him, then looked to her uncle who quickly nodded.
"But you will come tomorrow to bake, don´t you?" she wanted to know.
"Yes, I will." Edward agreed, imagining his neck already free.
"You promise?" The big, dark eyes were glowing hopefully again.
Damn.
"Yes, I promise."
Well, there probably were worse things than going to bake at the bastard's place. And if Mustang really was as bad with cooking as his relatives claimed he was ... Ed could order the bastard around! Suddenly, the idea didn't sound so bad anymore. Ed was almost looking forward to it.
"Is that what your wish was?" The blond asked. "Home baked cookies for Christmas?"
"No. But if you come tomorrow, you can try again."
Oh well. He had tried.
Both alchemists were grateful that this time Jiao Lan did not protest when Ed placed her on the ground. Releasing her hold on his neck, she reached out to her uncle who took her hand.
Weird again.
Weirder still when the Colonel told the children to say goodbye to him.
Ed tried not to grimace, but smiled and waved back when the happy children waved, and both at the same time shouted a joyful "Bye, Fairy!" at him.
They really needed to get rid of that habit.
Watching his commanding officer walk away with his niece beside him and his nephew waving over the man's shoulder, Ed sighed.
Now he just needed to find Al, and explain to his brother why this year, he wouldn´t have to knead the cookie dough.
Tbc.
One or two more to go and the Christmas Fairy will be finished :D doesn´t mean the whole story/plot itself is finished ^^ It´s going to become a multi-fic story ._. the Christmas part is almost done, but there are still some open points, like the adoption or most of the history behind that. So, there will be a sequel. I thought about a New Year's-part for the next one but seeing as I probably won´t be able to update the next part of this story before January… u.u Okay, two options here:
1) I post the New Year's fic regardless of the fact that New Year is over ^^° (And I hope that won´t ruin the mood)
2) Or We´ll wait… *cough* a year ^^° Christmas Fairy can stand on its own as a finished little fic, so it doesn´t need to have a sequel right away ^^
Let me know what you think :D
Review reply non-registered member:
Yoy: Yes, sadly she did ._. More about the circumstances will be known later ^^ There's a bit of history here and I plan to explain it all :D so don´t worry, I will continue ^^ And I hope it really turns out as good as you think it might ^^