ok...the seperators didn't want to work for this chapter, so you're just going to have to bear with me. Sorry for the late update, I had a little bit of writers block, but I think that line that Ed says halfway through is what helped get rid of it. I also got frozen for posting a script form fic...damn TOS. I thought they let you put up scripts now, I was wrong, but that's my own fault.
I'm back now and I'm going to be updating soon, before the middle of the week. I'm sorry again! ;-;
And, I know religion is a touchy subject for most, so take it easy when you read this.
Enjoy!
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Chapter 13 - Yee of Little Faith
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"Brother, aren't you hot with that shirt on?" Al directed his question to Ed who was wearing a thin, yet, long sleeve red shirt.
Ed pulled out the colar and then let it sink back to it's original state. "Metal holds heat really well. I'm warm, but I'm not as warm as I'd be if I left my automail shining out on the sun." He tugged the colar of his shirt again a few times. "It's still hot though." Ed ran his hand through his bangs, some of witch were clinging to his forehead.
Winry was quite comfotable. "You guys should wear less clothing."
Ed looked back at her. "I'd love to, but I think I'd look a little weird in a skirt."
Aria smiled and giggled. "I usually wear dresses, they're really cool and airy. And who knows Ed, it might do you some justice." Ed meerly shook his head and laughed a little.
Winry nodded in agreement. "That is a really nice dress, where did you get it?"
Aria flattened out a crease in the front and gave a small smile. "My mom made it for me."
"Excuese me." A voice came from behind them as they walked the streets of Central. Upon viewing who was accosting them, they could see that they were two young missionaries, both around the ages of twenty. "Would it be alright to have a moment of your time?"
Ed turned away upon noticing the bible in each on of their hands. "Not intrested."
Aria seemed a little taken aback. "Why not Ed, it's not like we have anything better to do."
He simply shook his head. "I can think of a million different things better than listening to some ocultists trying to tell me about all the different kinds of way I'm gonna be going to hell. No thanks." He continued to walk.
One of the missionaries lowered his head and clutched his bible tight. "I truly feel sorry for souls like you, I will pray for you."
Ed clenched a fist and turned to face the young man. "I don't need your sympathy, my life is going great, there's no need for you to feel sorry for me. Just because I haven't conformed myself to a cult, doesn't mean I won't be 'saved', I mean, you can't even sicentifically prove that this 'god' person even exists."
Aria raised an eyebrow and spoke. "Just because someone can't prove something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. You might upset god if you say that he doesn't exist."
Ed calmed himself and looked at Aria. "Let me ask you something Aria." She listened intently, Winry and Al just listened on from the sidelines, they both knew better not to get into a religous debate with Edward, there was no way they could win against him. "Let's say that I had a friend named Russel, let's say that I told you a lot about him and what he did, but let's say that you never met him and you doubted that he really existed. You deeply and truly thought that he didn't exist."
She folded her arms. "I don't quite see where you're going with this."
Ed held up a hand and pointed a finger. "Now let's say that you finally meet Russel and you tell him that you didn't think that he existed...do you think he'd be mad?"
Aria thought to herself for a moment. "I don't know...well...if he was mad at me for not thinking that he was real before even meeting him, I guess he wouldn't be a very nice guy at all. I mean, I really wouldn't have been able to know."
He continued. "Exactlly!" Aria seemed confused. "If when I die then go up to these 'Pearly gates' and God, if he truly exists, is mad at me for not believing in him, that's not a god that I would want to believe in, in the first place."
Aria took the time to think about it for a moment. "I suppose I can see where you're coming from, I understand."
The missionary interveaned. "What are you talking about you 'understand'? Of course god exists, you shouldn't encourage him to disbelieve. You must praise god as much as you can."
She smiled at them. "Well, I feel he's right in doing what he's doing. If he's shown proof then he'll admit that he was wrong, I'm pretty sure that god will accept that. He's a scientist after all, his entire life is based around fact."
"Yeah, and unless you two can prove that he's real, my opinion will stay as is." Edward stated.
The younger of the two piped up. "Well I personally feel that the passage by xxxxxxxx in the bible speaks for itself."
"I'm listening." Ed folded his arms in disbelief.
The missionary opened his book and skimmed though the pages, upon stopping, he spoke. "God is that than which no greater can be thought, and he must, therefore, exist, for otherwise he would not be that than which no greater can be thought." Ed was silent as he took the words to thought.
"Wow, you stumped him." Al spoke in disbelief.
"On no they didn't." Ed spoke. "I just need to think about how to word this." They awaited his response. "Alright then, you have to listen, because I doubt I'll be able to say this twice."
"You cannot deny that xxxxxxxx has a very good point."
Ed shook his head. "Though that is a good explanation, thought is limited to the human mind, and god is suppose to be measured with unnipidence. Because thought is a limited aspect of the abstract, and god can only be measure as far as thought, it cannot simply exist until the thought becomes reality." They listened intently. "Because thought is no reality, and god is no greater than witch can be thought, god is no reality, making him abstract and not real."
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Ed held his popsicle in hand as he enjoyed the cool treat while he lay in the grass. "That was pretty impressive brother." Al began, taking another bite of his icecream. "But you didn't have to make him cry."
He shrugged. "They had it coming. There's nothing I hate more than someone trying to tell me that I'm wrong."
"You always had time admitting that you were wrong, and you suffered because." Al smiled at his older brother.
Ed looked up at him in disbelief. "Oh? How so?"
He smiled. "Like the time that tree we always climbed when we were little got hit by lightening. You said it was still climbable."
Winry chimed in. "I remember that, you broke your arm that summer and couldn't go swimming."
Ed smiled. "Right. I remember now."
"And when we were ten, you thought you could outrun that dog. You have to remember that." Al continued.
"Yeah, you guys had a hell of a time holding me down so I could get that tetanus shot. If I recall, I gave you a black eye." Al nodded and laughed a little. "You didn't speak to me for two days."
"That was pretty funny now that I think back to it." Al smiled, those kinds of things were bad when they were happening, but when you grew up and think back to them, they were actually quite amusing.
"I'm not that bad anymore though." Ed bit into his orange popsicle.
"Are you sure?" Aria disagreed.
"Yeah, prove otherwise!" Ed demanded.
"Just a few minutes ago. You caused a scene." Winry so cleverly pointed out. "The only difference is you didn't get hurt."
Ed smiled triumphantly. "Yup, I'm just glad they were pasifists." He laughed aloud. With Edwards luck with these sorts of things, they probably would have just beaten him up if not for their faith.
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It seemed that days take a longer time to pass when you don't have anything to do, finally, six o'clock had rolled around. "I didn't think we'd make it." Ed stretched as he sat up from his laying down position under the tree the four of them had claimed.
"Yeah, nothing seems to happen when you want it to. I gaurentee, the next day that we want to sit back and relax, something going to come up." Al sighed as he leaned against the tree that was shading them.
"Does that happen often?" Aria questioned.
Ed, Al and Winry all nodded. "All the time." They said in usion.
Winry smiled as she wrapped her hands around her knees as she watched people begin to set up for the bonfire. "But at least it's hear now and we all get to have fun." She stood up and pointed off towards the fire pit. "We should go down there, I think I see a barbeque, I want first dibs." She set off down the hill. Al smiled and followed off down behind Winry.
"Hey Aria." Ed stopped her short with a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry about what I said."
Aria was a little confused. "What for?"
Ed smiled. "For what I said earlier, you know. You have a sepecific faith that you follow and I insulted it, rather hearshly. If I'd have known, I would have just walked away from the situation."
She waved a hand at him. "It's ok Ed, I know I can't make everyone believe what I believe in. You're your own person and are able to make choices. I mean, I chose to accept what you said and I still remained faithful. Everyone has their own beliefs, who am I to tell you that you are wrong?" Ed thought about it and then nodded. "I know that faith cannot exist without doubt."
He smiled. "That's a good view that most don't have." She smiled in return. "But for future refrence, I'll try to be a little more sensitive, ok?"
"That's fair." With that out of the way they caught up with Al and Winry.
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The bonfire was great, Flame Colonel Roy Mustang actually showed up to light the whole thing; his alchemic flame, even now, wowed the Elric brothers. Aria was all glassey eyed at the spectal and all Winry could do was smile at the towering ten foot pillar of fire. 'If he can blow hot air like Ed says, he would make a great blowtorch!' She thought.
The night was quite fun, there was drink and good food. Ed wandered off on his own to get something to eat.
On his way back, something caught his eye. He could see Roy tucked off into the corner with what appeared to be his date. Ed was going to shrug it off when he noticed the long flowy blond hair; at first he thought it was Winry, but upon closer inspection he realized it was actually someone else, someone who he really didn't think fit into this picture.
"Lieutenant Hawkeye?" He spoke softly to himself. He squinted at the spectle and then taking his hotdog that he had purchased back to where the others were sitting, he knelt down next to them. "You guys are not going to believe who I just saw with Mustang." They turned their attention to him. "It was Hawkeye, they were--'together'." He poked his index fingers together.
Al waved a hand at is brother. "Ed you're seeing things, just sit down."
Ed gritted his teeth and waved a tightly bqalled fist at Al. "You don't believe me! Come here!" He stood up and grabed him by the back of his coat. "We'll just have to see for sure." The girls gave Al a friendly wave as Ed tugged him of in the direction that he had just come from.
"Ed, seriously, you must have seen wrong." Ed stood him up and pointed his head at Roy and Riza who were holding each other in a loving way. "Wha...?" He was dumbfounded, it really was Roy and Riza together.
"And to think, you still believe in God with no proof, yet you didn't even believe me, your own brother." Ed shook his head and then motioned for Al to follow him. "Come on Al, I don't want my food to get cold. We have to leave in another half hour." Ed managed to book the last train leaving central, so they got to enjoy the bonfire almost to it's full extent. "There's no sense in just standing here, let's go eat." Ed began to walk away, leaving his brother standing there, standing in awe.
Al nodded. "Uh?...Right...brother." He began to catch up with Ed.
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There you have it, I hope I didn't offend anyone with my views. I figured Ed had the same opinion on god as I do, so I just figured that it would be ok to put that in there. Take it whatever way you want. :D
Chapter 14 - I DON'T KNOW! GAH!
...hehe...sorry. I'll think of something, don't worry.
