Author Notes: Sequel to State of Mind. Just to spite my own sense of habit, this one doesn't start with them waking up.

Oh, and the next update won't be for a long time. I haven't actually worked on these since early September. I've been really busy and won't have time to work the stories until after November 15th. You're all up-to-date with me now.

Our Environment
A Fullmetal Alchemist Zoofic by Elric 'Hunter' Ward

Copyright:
The Fullmetal Alchemist (Hagane no Renkinjutsushi) and all its respective work and ideas are copyrighted by Hiromu Arakawa and her distributors.

Comments and critique welcome.

Chapter Five

Ward rolled onto his side in the sun and wiggled his legs in the air, making the human-kits laugh at his antics. They had visited his and Fons' den every day for the past fourteen and they had slowly worn down his carefully developed defences, disarming him with treats and quick, timid pats on his head. It reminded him of the time before he was abandoned, oddly reassuring in its familiarity.

Who could resist those slabs of meat, anyway? Certainly not a growing Edward - but his Heiderich could and did ignore anything the human-kits gave them. Ward was mildly confused by Fons' wary distance from the humans. The human-kits had proven to be harmless and a lot like his old Master – only much younger and not really a threat. Besides, they were small and weak.

The Elric completed the roll onto his back and lashed his tail; contemplated the two human-kits as they shoved, pushed and crowded around him with curiosity. If they tried to hurt him it would only take a swipe at each throat to stop them. He didn't understand why him being around the small humans got Fons so annoyed and uptight. The deer back in the forest were much more dangerous and were at least edible.

Ward wrinkled a nose at the humans. They were round and white, but soft looking. He cocked his head for a better look.

The human-kits responded with "Awwwrss" and weird chatters.

Were they edible? Ward wondered.

One of the human-kits tugged at his tail, but the Edward flicked his limb out of the hands and sat up quickly; tail tucked under him for protection. The question was on his mind now as he slowly stalked to the human-kit and pushed it down. Ignoring the complaints and bleating it made, the Elric gave the human a contemplative lick.

Disgusting.

Ward sat back down on the ground and rubbed at his tongue. The human-kit tasted like the horrible stuff master used to bathe him with, so bitter and foul.

The human had stopped its squeaking and was making its way to him again. Ward huffed in annoyance, the amusement of entertaining the human-kits wearing off him. He hoped it wasn't going to try to tug his tail again; it could be quite painful if they weren't careful.

The Edward watched warily as the human came over and started patting him on the head and ears.

Oh, that was all.

Ward leaned against the human. This was good and he hummed in the back of his throat; content to sit and have humans fuss over him. It was almost like when he was a young kit and the master had doted on him. He felt a purr curl its way up his throat as he watched the world with lazy eyes.

The fence gave a rattle and wobbled heavily as Fons launched into view and landed on the top, returned from his foraging trip. Ward gave a lazy wave, then frowned; perplexed. Fons' face was dark and thunderous with his eyes narrowed furiously. The Edward hastily travelled his eyes all over his Alfons' body for signs of injury, or damage but did not see any. What had his companion-mate so angry? He watched with befuddlement as Fons stormed over to the den, flung his collection of fruits in and stomped over to Ward. The Edward's anxiety heightened with every step and he sat upright, ignoring the human-kit. Fons was coming over to him, even though he sat near the humans. Something was wrong. His sweet and timid companion-mate was very upset over something.

'What are you doing!' Fons snapped, his voice high. 'Those humans are grooming you, and you're letting them?' Grey eyes flashed. 'Only I can groom you! You're going to be my mate, not these-these dumb-beasts!'

Ward blinked back in reply, too startled by Fons' outrage to reply. Was what he had been allowing that bad? Had he upset the Heiderich that much? The Elric stifled a whine. He was really no-good at being an Edward, always making the wrong decisions.

Ears lowered sadly.

'I can't believe you're letting them touch you!' The Alfons grabbed his arm-pelts and tugged, pulling Ward up from the ground. He didn't resist. 'Into the den, now!'

The human-kits, too stupid to realise Fons was angry, milled around and blocked their way to the den. The Edward watched in amazement as his normally docile Alfons hissed furiously and lunged at the nearest human. With one swipe from the Heiderich, the human-kit had four red lines slashed across its arm. Ward gave a curious sniff as the coppery tang reached his nose, the wails and screeches filling the air as the human-kit wailed on.

The human's den had burst open with the larger humans rushing out, the smaller adult-human making shrill yells. Ward didn't get to see what happened afterwards as Fons hissed again under his breath and tugged him hastily into the den.

'Close the entry!' Fons muttered at him and presented his back. The guilt curdled in Ward's stomach again as he miserably clapped the entry close. He had upset his Alfons so bad; he really wasn't being a good Edward.

The past few days had been going so well, he lamented internally as he flopped down into their nest. Even the cloud of dust and book-muck did nothing to ease him as he stared over at his companion-mate.

Fons' back was stiff and rigid right down to his tail; the ears had disappeared into his hair. Ward shuffled over hesitantly.

'Fons?'

No reply. He edged closer.

'Fons? I'm sorry. I didn't know…' The Edward leaned against the Alfons' back and licked at the nape he could reach in apology. 'I'll work hard and be an even better Edward, I promise!'

The Heiderich's tense shoulders slouched and a shaky sigh escaped him. Ward watched anxiously at his Alfons finally turned around and face him. His heart plummeted when he spotted red-rimmed eyes.

'Fons?' The Edward repeated softly as he ignored that horrible guilt - the heavy feeling in his chest. He had hurt his Alfons, his Alfons – his companion-mate, and he needed to make it better. Ward pulled the Heiderich into his arms and held on tightly as he whispered apologies.

'I'm so very sorry, I didn't know that only you could groom me. I'll never let anyone groom me ever again.' Ward vowed. 'Except you.' He added hastily.

'You suck at being an Edward.' Fons grumbled into Ward's chest and gave a muffled snort. 'You really don't know anything.' The Heiderich drew his head up and stared into Ward's eyes.

He stared back at his Alfons and gave a nervous smile. 'I know more than I did when I met you.'

A short nod from the Heiderich. 'That you do.' Fons sighed as he leant against the Edward and kept leaning until Ward was on his ground, the Alfons slumped on top of him.

'You're so much trouble, you know?' The Heiderich muttered. 'So hard to understand.'

Ward gazed at him hopefully. He hadn't been kicked out of the den or abandoned yet. His Alfons was just tired and confused by him.

Fons gave him a small lick on the nose and Ward felt his lips stretch as he grinned impossibly wide, giddy with joy. He was forgiven! The Elric sighed and buried his nose in Fons' hair, relaxing as the scent invaded his nostrils. Fons was the scent of home.

They lay there contentedly, listening to the fuss from the humans outside. The human-kit was still squalling.

Ward rolled his eyes. 'You only gave him a small wound. I don't see the fuss.'

Fons huffed. 'We'll have to find a new den now.' The Heiderich grumbled. 'They're bad humans anyway, touching you like that.'

Ward brightened and squeezed his arms around Fons happily. 'I know the perfect place!' He chirped. 'It's a great place to build a den and has everything we need!'

Fons raised his gaze again, the query on his face.

'I can take us there. You'll love it, it's amazing!' Ward grinned.

Fons grunted and shoved his face back into the Edward's chest. 'Sounds good. We'll go when it's dark and the humans are gone.'

Ward smiled, pleased. He would prove that he was a good Edward, just for his Alfons.

Ward stuck his head out of the den and looked around warily. The square forest they had inhabited was dark except for the small suns the humans kept trapped in glass balls. There was neither sight nor sound of the humans themselves, or any sign of their soft kits. The Edward sniffed cautiously just to be sure, but the scent was old and stale.

'It's clear,' He quietly spoke to the Alfons lurking behind him. 'I can't sense the humans anywhere.'

Fons looked at him doubtfully. 'Are you sure? They sounded pretty upset over that scratch.' The grey eyes looked out at the darkness. 'They might be waiting for us downwind.' Hesitation as the more timid of the two leant against the entry, all previous outrage and fire of the day gone. 'Your eyes are much stronger. Could you scout for me?'

Ward puffed up at the compliment and the chance to prove what an amazing Edward he could be. He crawled the rest of the way out of the den and quickly surveyed the area, crossing from one side to the other with his ears, eyes and nose working keenly. There was no sign of the humans hiding anywhere. The Elric even took a chance and peeked into the see-through part of the human's den. Inside he could see all kinds of weird objects, but no humans. He quickly returned to the Alfons with his findings.

'There's no signs of the humans anywhere.' He reported confidently. 'They're not even in their den. We're safe to leave.'

Ward proudly stood guard outside the den while Fons pulled out their books and food, all wrapped up in two large nest-pelts the Elric had clapped for them. The Heiderich swung one of them over his shoulder while Ward claimed the other.

'Lead on.' The Heiderich looked at Ward expectantly, a small smile on his lips.

'Right.' The Elric flashed a smile. 'It's this way and not far.'

Ward clambered over the fence, the Alfons following much more gracefully as they trotted alongside the hard river. The Edward was so excited that he had to force down the desire to blurt out their new den location. He couldn't believe he hadn't asked Fons to move there after he had discovered it. It was such a perfect spot for him to court the Heiderich.

He hummed excitedly as the moved down on of the smaller rivers, the human dens pressed in close around them.

'Here it is!' The Edward announced outside one of the walls.

'Our den is going to be inside a human's den? Is that a good idea?' Fons looked doubtfully at the large wall, larger than all the other dens they had passed.

Ward shook his head. 'I've been watching carefully. Sometimes humans go in, but it's not a den. It's like a really big storage place.' The Elric turned around and dramatically ensured his pelts were out of the way of his hands. Cocking a head to ensure Fons was watching, he slowly clapped and opened up the wall.

The Heiderich crept forward and peered through the after-glow of the transmutation. He gasped as Ward stood to the side proudly.

'Great, isn't it? Bet no other Edward had ever given his Alfons-' Ward was cut off as Fons flung his storage-pelt into the Edward's arms and rushed into the den. There were books everywhere. They were piled neatly in lines along strange, wooden walls and spread out all over the place. The den was huge and the soft, musky scent of the books surrounded them. The Heiderich was excitedly running from one book filled wall to another, grabbing and sniffing at everything he could reach.

'Ward! This is amazing! Look!' Fons pranced over with a particularly big one. 'It's got so many pictures of the metal monsters!' He hugged it to his chest and whuffed happily. 'We can make the biggest nest and it will smell so good. I can't believe such a wonderful place exists!' His Heiderich placed the big book carefully in a corner and dashed off to look for others.

Ward smiled as he moved into the large den with their belongings dragged after, clapping the wall closed behind them. He hoped that this gift made up for his earlier blunder. It looked like it.

'Stop standing over there and help me collect these.' Fons called to him. 'I can smell a really good ones, but it's all the way up the top!'

The Edward rushed over hastily, eager to help out. Once he reached his Alfons he knew which book was mentioned. There was that heavy scent of a good book, tangible above the mingling scents of all the other books. Ward quickly clapped a hand that sent them up to the same level. While Fons rifled through it, the Elric took a chance to look around from their high lookout. There were so many of the wooden walls and the books on them. It was amazing.

He didn't get to contemplate the sight for much longer as his Alfons brought him into a tight hug. 'This is great. All is forgiven.' Fons murmured to him and apologetically licked his forehead. 'Why don't you unwind and enjoy this with me. We've got a giant nest to build.' Fons smiled softly at him.

Ward grinned back.

Soon the two animals were racing each other down different passageways and seeing who could bring the best smelling books back for the ever-growing nest. Ward made use of his clapping to make giant stone hands that brought them to unreachable places, leaving them to decorate in his passing. One of his hands had accidentally knocked over one of the large, long wooden walls and the following noise and dust left him standing there with embarrassment at his lack of control.

Fons didn't notice his humiliation, diving into the sudden pile of books and rolling around with gleeful abandon. Ward soon joined his companion, revelling in the feel of the books against them and making several minute nests and hollows throughout the book-den.

Eventually they exhausted each other out and retired to their main nest; decorated with the best smelling books and the big one filled with pictures of the monsters Fons was fascinated with. They succumbed quickly to sleep.

Ward was woken abruptly the next morning by Fons shaking his arm. The Heiderich was muttering angrily under his breath while the Elric slowly pulled himself out of a lovely dream filled with books and many Alfonses.

'Ward…Ward…Come on, wake up. How do you sleep through this?' Fons commented as Ward sleepily pulled himself up. His Alfons was looking quite putout with his ears down flat.

'The humans are back.' The Heiderich rolled his eyes, the voice heavy with resignation. 'Stupid animals are watching us again. The funny-pelted ones from the white den are here too.'

Ward frowned at the humans. There were a lot of them, including the ones who had dragged him around last time. There were even some human-kits. The Edward flattened his ears in aggravation. There were too many people and he wasn't sure he could fight that many.

'Want me to chase them off?' Ward asked anxiously. He would fight them all for his Alfons, because he was an Edward and he'd promised to be a good one from now on.

'No.' Fons' lips tugged down in a frown. 'There's way too many. Lets grab our things and get out of here.' The Heiderich stood with a huff, valiantly ignoring the chatters and titters from the watching humans. 'If we stay they won't leave us alone and they might hurt you.'

'Right.' The Edward nodded and set about clapping their nest-pelts back into pelts for hauling things. The humans made weird noises with every clap and it grated on his nerves.

Ward threw them a glare and worked faster, holding the pelt-bag open for Fons to put all his favourite books in. Anxiety rose in him as the oddly pelted humans with their sticks and ropes started approaching them. Hurriedly they each swung a heavy load over their shoulders and backed up in the opposite direction, the Edward clapping open any walls they came across.

'I can't believe they're harassing us again!' Fons lamented to the Edward. 'Why can't they leave us alone?'

Ward grunted as he readjusted his pelt-bag. 'Because they're stupid.' Keen eyes looked around for any threats. 'Lets go this way, there's shelter while we work out what to do.'

The two animals set off at a quick pace, shying away from any human.

Break in at library by animals

The Amestris Library was broken into and valuable historical texts were stolen last night in a shocking case of nature versus humanity.

The culprits were a pair of animals notoriously known for stealing books and can cause great destruction when disturbed. The Edward and an Alfons are believed to be the pair found previously in the subway a few weeks prior.

The extensive damage was riddled throughout the library, and it is assumed the animals got lost in the large building when collecting the books they so prize. Volunteers brought in to remove the animals experienced little fuss and managed to drive them off peacefully.

Early morning observers were lucky enough to catch this once of a lifetime sighting, including several instances of the Edward's strange alchemy ability.

In a similar story a family recently had to admit their child to hospital after feral animals attacked him while he was playing in their backyard. The boy needed 13 stiches in his left arm after the attack, of which one of the animals was an Edward and possibly the same one from the library.

The family, who wish not to be named, are calling for the residential government to create new laws in regards to the management of wild and feral animals in the city. They argue that it is dangerous to have so many animals running free and it is only a matter of time until someone is seriously injured.

The Elric Protection Society (EPS) calls for more understanding of animals and wish for fines to be brought into the law for cases where people feed the animals and accustom them to human presence – a topic subject to much debate as it is feared feeding the animals increases the likelihood of coming to harm.