Chapter 8: Lunch at Van't Hof
The streets of Central were nothing like the streets of Resembool. Where Resembool was a quiet and quaint village, Central was a bustling hive of activity. There were people everywhere, cars everywhere, and store fronts and restaurants aplenty. And while Dublith, the home town of Teacher and her husband Sig Curtis, had been fairly decent in size and had been relatively populated with people and cars and all of everything else found in an urban community of its size, it had nothing on the metropolis that was Central. As Ed walked the busy streets of his new home with Al at his side, he could not help but openly gap in awe at the many cars navigating the streets and feel annoyed at the herds of people clogging the sidewalks, as so-and-so stopped to chat with what's-her-name or that-guy-in-the-suit.
"We turn left on Danvers St., right?" Ed asked, seeking confirmation of the directions that General Elias had given him and Al.
"And then right on 3rd Avenue," Al said with a nod.
As he and Al turned left on Danvers St., Ed proceeded to scowl. They had been staying with General Elias for a little over a week now. It wasn't necessarily that he minded staying with the general or anything of the sort. In fact, the last week had been filled with intrigue and the general had been more than happy to answer his and Al's questions or tell them about the work that the man had done for the Military. Ed was certain that he and Al had learned more in the last week than what they had learned in the last few months. General Elias's library was filled with all sorts of rare tomes, and the general had allowed them unrestricted access to the translated research notes that the man had presented to the Top Brass, upon the completion of his poppy tree and several other plants that the man had crossed together by use of alchemy. They hadn't gotten far in looking over the general's research notes, as the general made sure that they devoted a majority of their days to studying for the upcoming State Alchemist Certification Exam, but from what little bit that they had read so far, Ed was fascinated by the man's work to say the least.
No, he didn't necessarily mind staying with the general and had so far been quite pleased with his and Al's time spent with the elderly man. Even Madam Martha was pleasant company and had made sure to do what she could to make their stay enjoyable. The other night she had cooked the best roast beef that he and Al had ever tasted.
The thing that bothered Ed was that he had noticed over the last week that General Elias often got tired and would nap in the afternoons. There were times where the general would have difficulty standing up and other times where the man's hands would shake and it would be hard for the general to raise his watering tin to tend to his plants. Ed wasn't stupid. He knew what death looked like. After all, he and Al had watched their mother die. It was clear to him that the general's age was catching up to the man.
"You should stop thinking about it," Al said softly, interrupting Ed's thoughts and pulling his awareness back to the streets of Central.
"How do you know what I'm thinking about?" Ed demanded with a huff.
"You've been upset ever since General Elias said that he wouldn't be coming with us." Al sighed and gave Ed a look of understanding. "I see it too, brother. But there is nothing we can do. There is no cure for old age."
"Why'd the bastard do this to us?" Ed kicked angrily at a stray pebble on the sidewalk. "Making us care about someone who is just going to die sooner rather than later. Why couldn't he have had us stay somewhere else? Then we never would have known General Elias and his death wouldn't have mattered to –"
"Don't say things like that," Al said in a low hiss, his tone sharp and reproving.
Ed hung his head, his bangs falling forward and shielding his face, and stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"The general is a great man, brother," Al said, this time his voice was gentle. "We're lucky that Colonel Mustang has introduced us to him. We're lucky to know the general and to get to speak with him, while he's still alive. I, for one, count it as a privilege and an honor. You should too, brother."
"I know, Al," Ed admitted shamefully. "It's just that we've been through this once already: watching someone who we care about slowly weaken with death. I don't want to do it again."
"I think that's why the colonel placed us with the general." Al bit his lip with uncertainty, before continuing quickly upon Ed looking up at him sharply. "Not to make us go through it again, but because he knows we've been through it once already and knows that we can handle it." Al stuffed his own hands in his pockets and gave his brother a helpless shrug. "You can't tell me you haven't notice the way the general smiles whenever we enter a room that he's in, or that he checks on us before he goes to bed to make sure that we've not sneaked books into our bedrooms and plan on staying up and studying all night."
"I have. He looks after us the way that he looks after his plants." Ed smiled softly, thinking about the way the general seemed to brighten at their mere presence and had taken to looking after them as a grandfather might look after his grandsons. The man had consistently made sure that they ate proper meals, got proper rest, and took breaks from studying every once in a while. While he had initially found the interruptions annoying, he had to admit that the general always made his interruptions into their studies worthwhile, whether it was with a fantastic meal, an animated tale of events from the man's past, or their beds turned down and awaiting them.
"We should help the general out in the green house when we get back," Ed said decisively. "I think that he'd like that."
"I think so too, brother." Al grinned.
The remainder of their walk to the café that they were supposed to meet up with Mustang at was lighter and much happier in nature. Ed pushed aside his worries about General Elias's health and allowed Al to distract him with discussion of their studies and what Madam Martha might make them for dinner. Upon reaching the café, which was a few blocks up from where Danvers St. intersected 3rd Avenue, Ed led Al past the noisy sidewalk seating and through the open, blue painted doorway into the busy establishment. He scanned the indoor seating, but didn't see Mustang anywhere in the crowd of patrons and waiters, just as he hadn't seen the man outside either.
"Excuse me, miss," Ed said, getting the attention of the hostess behind the counter near the door.
The hostess looked Ed and Al over with a dubious, harassed look, before pasting a smile on her face. "Walk-ins are a forty-five minute wait at the moment, young sir. If you would like to put your name down for the next available table, you may. I'll just need your surname and the number of expected guests in your party. I surmise a parent or relative will be joining you …"
"We have a reservation, lady," Ed said, glaring up at the hostess for treating him and Al like incompetent children who needed someone to hold their hand while walking down the street.
"You should find us listed under Elias, Dwight Elias," Al said quickly, before Ed could explode at the woman. "The general called ahead informing the café that he wouldn't be coming today, but that Edward," he point to his brother, "and Alphonse," he pointed to himself, "Elric would still be filling his reservation and that Colonel Roy Mustang would be joining us as expected."
The hostess looked down at her black book of reservations, moving aside several notes. Upon apparently finding their reservation and the note amending it, she blushed. "Yes … um … everything seems to be in order. I apologize. Please, young sirs, right this way."
Ed silently followed after the woman with Al trailing behind him. He did his best to look dignified, as she led them past several tables seating fancily dress men and women. As he had come to expect with all things related to General Elias, the café wasn't just an ordinary café to stop in at for a nice cup of coffee and perhaps a light lunch. Van't Hof Café was classy with white tablecloths and silver napkin rings holding neatly folded, blue cloth napkins and a place setting with frosted glass water goblets and more forks than necessary. Though both Elrics had been learning from General Elias what each fork was actually meant to be used for during the course of a meal, Ed still found the idea of the use of multiple forks just to consume one meal laughable, not that the knife and spoon situation was any better.
"A waiter will be with you momentarily," the hostess said, as she brought the brothers to a stop before a table set for four near one of the large picture windows facing the street and outdoor seating.
Al sat down first, taking the seat furthest to the left and closest to the window. Ed sat down on the next chair over, leaving Mustang to sit in one of the two chairs opposite them whenever it was that the bastard finally arrived. With one last apologetic smile, the hostess left them.
"Fancy place," Al murmured softly, his gold eyes taking in the elaborate décor of the ceiling and the woodwork that made up the walls and framed the windows.
Ed wasn't given a chance to respond, as their waiter had shown up swiftly and poured each of them a glass of water and inquired about the drinks that they would like to go with their meal.
"They'll both have a chilled glass of your raspberry lemonade," a familiar voice cut in, before Ed or Al could give a response to the startling range of drinks that they had been offered. As Mustang sat down in the chair opposite Ed, he sent a grin at the two boys and looked back up at the waiter. "I'll have one as well."
"Of course, sir," the waiter said, before making to pour Mustang a glass of water and to distribute the menus that he had brought over to the table with him.
"What if I wanted one of those fizzy drinks?" Ed demanded of Mustang, once their waiter had left.
"Trust me, you're better off staying away from those," Mustang said knowingly. "What makes the drink fizz is carbon dioxide dissolved into the water that's used as the base of the drink. Though the chemists have claimed that they've made the carbonic acid safe for consumption, their formula still needs work. I've heard of people being hospitalized from drinking the stuff."
"If it's unsafe, why is it available to the public?" Al asked with horror.
"Politics, money … take your pick." Mustang shrugged and relaxed back into his chair, looking completely at ease in the three piece suit that he was wearing and not at all concerned with the high-class atmosphere of the café, as if the setting were natural for him. "Those who study the other sciences – physics, chemistry, and so forth – they invest a lot into any win that they can get over us alchemists. These fizzy drinks are the first marketable invention that the chemists have developed independently in years."
"Still –" Al began, visibly upset that any field of science could be so irresponsible and release a harmful product to the public.
"It's neither here nor there." Mustang waved off Al's concern. "The drink isn't fatal. It will eventually be pulled from the market or the chemists will find a way to fix the problem. It's the Department of Health's dilemma to worry about, not the Military's."
"Distributed responsibility," Ed murmured in recognition of what Mustang was telling them, remembering the information that he had read on the Military. Rank helped to distribute responsibilities and provide efficiency within the Military … as well as let everyone know whose ass they needed to kiss and whose ass they could order to do their dirty work. Obviously, there would be a similar system of distributed responsibility throughout the entirety of the government and not just within the Military.
"Exactly, Ed." Mustang nodded to Ed, looking pleased. "While there are some things that are our problem and we can work towards doing something about them, other things aren't and we have to trust that the people responsible for them will do their jobs."
"Trust, huh?" Ed said, eying Mustang in a way that clearly communicated just how much trust he had in man.
"A foreign concept for you, I know." Mustang's lips pulled into a partial smirk, before the expression abruptly settle into a grimace and the man sighed instead, clearly thinking better of riling Ed up. "They serve a great quiche here," he said, as he picked up his menu and flipped it open.
Taking the hint, Ed picked up his own menu with Al following suit.
The meal was … pleasant. There was no other word to describe the hour that followed. While Ed didn't necessary dislike Mustang, he hadn't ever made it a point to get along with the man. In fact, as far as he was concerned, Mustang was a manipulative bastard and wasn't to be trusted. The man was the type of person to claim one set of motivations, as the man, in truth, did what he did with an entirely different set of motivations in mind. There was no way to know where one stood with him at any given moment. At the current moment, all Ed knew for certain was that Mustang wanted something from him and Al and that equivalent exchange would be paid out in the end. Yet, despite all reasons for animosity and his usual interactions with Mustang, the meal passed without incident and Ed found that he was actually enjoying not only the food and drink, but the company and atmosphere as well.
Ed, at first, hadn't noticed that what he had originally thought to be a terrible idea and had thought to be an even more terrible idea, once General Elias informed him and Al that he'd not be joining them, wasn't actually such a terrible idea after all. With living in the country for a majority of their lives and electing to devote themselves to the science of alchemy, it wasn't unusual that he and Al would lose themselves in their studies for weeks, sometimes months at a time. For them, it wasn't uncommon to stay home for extend periods without going out 'on the town' so to speak. It wasn't like there was anything all that interesting in Resembool or even a 'town' to go out on. Therefore, he hadn't really understood why General Elias had insisted that he and Al go out, or why they ought to spend a bit of time with Mustang. They had their studies to focus on, after all, plus General Elias's research notes to look over. They had things to do, better things to do with their time.
Now, however, with his stomach full of fine food and Mustang not being a standoffish ass or a smug bastard, like the man had come across to date, Ed could see reason in going out. It was good to get out of the general's house and to adventure out into Central, even if they only adventured out to a café a few blocks away from the general's house. It wasn't so terrible to spend some time with Mustang either … he supposed, though he wasn't quite sure what to make of the man acting like a decent human being for once. It was surprising, intriguing, as well as frustrating and a little more than concerning.
Up until this point, his and Al's interaction with Mustang had been out of necessity and with purpose. Sure the man had called to check up on them every so often, but Ed knew better than to think that the calls had been placed out of genuine concern for him and Al and how they were doing. It was more like Mustang was checking up on the progress of his investment. Oh, Al might be naïve enough to believe Mustang actually care for them in some way, but Ed lacked his brother's faith in people and often saw the darker motivations behind people's actions. He didn't doubt for a second that Mustang saw him and Al as an investment and a very valuable one at that. There was something more going on than what Mustang's claimed: them boosting the man's career and earning him quick promotions, once the man had them under his command. If it were just that, Mustang's interest in them should be only enough to get them under his command with the bare minimum of fuss. The man was being far too helpful and was far too interested in his and Al's own interests.
Not that Ed was about to tell Al about his suspicions, as Al seemed to like Mustang well enough and it wasn't like Mustang was a bad person and was entirely untrustworthy. There was no reason to push off his paranoia on Al and have Al be frustrated with Mustang as well. He could be cautious enough around Mustang for the both of them. No, if he had thought for even a second that Mustang was a big enough threat to them that he needed to warn Al to watch himself around the man, they wouldn't have ever come to Central. They would have stayed in Resembool, where they would have been safe and far away from Mustang. Mustang's motivations, whatever they may be, were greater than what the man claimed. That much was obvious. Yet, Ed didn't quite get the impression that they were sinister in nature. Not to mention, Mustang had this thing about them making their own choices. He'd never forget the first conversation that he and Al had ever had with the man.
"Really, Edward," Mustang had raised a single, elegant eyebrow, "I am offering to do you a huge favor and look the other way regarding what you and your brother have done, yet you're not even going to listen to my sales pitch? That's awfully rude, don't you think?"
"And if we listen and still say no?" he had asked, while scowling for all that he was worth.
"If you listen and give my offer serious thought and you still say no afterwards, then we part ways and never speak again if that is what you truly want," Mustang had assured firmly, leaving no room for misunderstanding. "I'm not going to force you to join the Military and become State Alchemists, but I am going to ask that you at least listen to what is being offered to you and take time to consider what you could gain from the Military in return for your service to the State of Amestris."
The words 'I'm not going to force you' had stuck out the most to Ed and still did. Mustang had said and done a lot of things during that conversation that made it clear, if not with words then in actions, that the man wasn't entirely heartless and that the man wouldn't use his position or the knowledge of what they had done to force them into becoming State Alchemist, which the man had quite obviously desired. Even at that point, Mustang had had the trump card of saving their lives, yet the man hadn't mentioned it. The man still hadn't brought it up to date, and Ed was certain that Mustang would never bring it up … that that particular card would never be played. While he, himself, as well as Al, considered it a debt, he knew instinctively that Mustang didn't consider it one at all. It wasn't that Mustang was holding saving their lives over their heads and waiting to bring it up at an opportune moment. No, the man acted as if saving their lives was of no consequence to their current plans and whatever may come to pass in their future. Ed didn't know enough about why Mustang viewed things the way the man did, but he suspected that Mustang saw saving their lives as payment towards the man's own incurred debt, whatever debt that might be.
So, yes, Mustang wasn't a horrible person. Ed could acknowledge as much. Mustang would give them a choice in the end. However, Mustang was a master at using various means to obtain his goals. The man wouldn't force him and Al, but that didn't mean that the man wouldn't find a way to persuade them to do whatever it was that the man wanted them to do in accordance to the man's endgame. Ed didn't like it, as he knew Mustang's influence was what had brought him and Al to Central to become State Alchemist. It wasn't necessarily coercion at this point. He and Al did want to become State Alchemist for themselves, but that didn't take away from the fact that Mustang was an expert manipulator and it was the man's subtle manipulations that had set them down their current path.
Even now, as they sat at the same dining table and Mustang spoke and acted in a way that was pleasant and lacking in hubris, as well as other bastardly behavior, Ed didn't doubt that there was purpose behind the man's words and actions. This – whatever it was that Mustang was attempting to do – was just a step towards directing him and Al towards what Mustang truly desired. The most irritating thing of all about it was that Ed was finding it difficult not to follow Mustang's lead and succumb to the man's charisma.
–
It was hard to keep the smirk off his face, as he enraptured the two young alchemists' attention. Mustang hadn't quite known what to expect from today. After the week that he had had – General Halcrow breathing down his neck at every turn, the Eastern Liberation Front putting a price on his head (apparently he had really pissed them off), and Hawkeye burying him in never ending paperwork – he had been looking forward to his weekend. His original plans had involved relieving some of his stress with a woman named Tabitha and perhaps visiting General Elias's home on Sunday to check up on the Elrics. Not that he really needed to check up on them now that he had entrusted them to the general. General Grumman had always spoken highly of General Elias and from the few times that he had met up and spoken with General Elias himself, he had surmised that the retired general was just the man for the Elrics to stay with, while they studied for the upcoming State Alchemist Certification Exam.
Not only was Dwight Elias a knowledgeable alchemist and had been a full-fledged general prior to the man's retirement, the elderly general had accomplished much with his alchemy that Mustang knew the Elrics would respect and find interesting. On top of that, the man had been notorious for sponsoring worthy alchemist to take the State Exam. According to the records, alchemists sponsored by General Elias more often than not earned a State Title, if not the first year that they took the exam then the second. While the prestige of being under General Elias's tutelage was definitely beneficial to the brothers and would reflect beneficially upon him, there was a different reason for why he had decided to place the two with the general that would ultimately prove to be even more beneficial to the brothers and him in the long run. In fact, he could see evidence of it at the very moment and had witnessed the general's fine touch throughout the meal.
Mustang doubted that either one of the boys would realize the true purpose for their stay with General Elias, until they had progressed well beyond the initial stages at which they might protest his and the general's efforts. It had taken him several months to figure out how to culture the two without either one – especially Ed – kicking up an immediate fuss about it. The two were country boys, unrefined and unaccustomed to the nuances of higher society. That much had been clear to him from the start. Oh, they were capable of manners at times, but only of the standard 'yes, please' or 'no, thank you'. They were raw, young, experienced in some things, yet inexperienced in others, still naïve, but not quite. Their minds, though … their minds were unbelievably sharp. Their minds were gold, pure gold hidden beneath their golden hair and behind the molten gold of their expressive eyes. Their minds were perfection, genius. It was truly remarkable and utterly fascinating how their minds worked. The leaps of logic that the two could make were outstanding. The ingenuity and creativity that they possessed was on par with their expansive knowledge.
Potential, the word once more assaulted Mustang's thoughts, pure, raw potential.
It had taken all of two hours in the boys' presence for General Elias to come to the same conclusion. As learned, yet unlearned as the two may be, their potential was staggering. The brothers were like diamonds in the rough. Even with the smallest amount of polish, they would begin to shine. If the two were to succeed on the path that they had chosen to set themselves down, they would need all the polishing that they could get. It was one thing to be an asset of the Military and another to be an integral part of the Military. To be an asset was to be used by the Military. To be an integral part was to have leverage within the Military to use for one's own beliefs and motivations.
Most State Alchemists were considered assets, and they allowed themselves to remain so by distancing themselves from the Military. In the end, their misguided attempts to protect themselves from the Military nearly always left them all the more vulnerable. What Ed and Al wanted, on the other hand, 'to work within the system' would take the two learning how to do exactly that. They'd be entering the Military as majors, meaning that they would already be among the field officers and would have occasional contact with general officers. Men among the higher ranks – at least those with true sway and power – were accustomed to and held with respect the finer idiosyncrasies that dictated life of the Elite. Dinner parties, symphonies, plays, operas, museums, art galleries; proper manners, proper posture, proper respect; subtle usage of words over blunt and direct statements or questions, body language and facial expressions as the more effective means of communication, the tell all of the infection of a person's voice combined with the emotion hidden within their eyes; it was all a part of the dance that weaved within and outside of the strict chain of command that formed the backbone of the Military that the Elric brothers would need to learn to truly advance away from being considered mere assets and towards having their own sway to use to their own means.
Unsurprisingly, the Elrics appeared to have been quick to pick up what General Elias had set out to teach them over the course of the week. The general had agreed with Mustang that it was probably best to start out small and see how receptive the boys would be. Therefore, the week had been focused on table etiquette. Judging from the way that both Elrics made an effort to sit up straight in their chairs and had been conscious of the silverware that they had used and had been quick to remove their elbows from the table, the two had been receptive of the general's teachings and were inclined to use what they had learned. Of course, Mustang had noticed that neither one had the finesse of dining down pat, but both had made the effort to conduct the meal in a proper manner befitting their environment without a single scowl. He had also noticed that both watched him for clues when they were uncertain about something, which he was rather pleased with. It was a step in the right direction, an indication that they wanted to learn and would most likely accept further teachings in similar matters of which they were currently ignorant of.
With the two sitting across from him – both dressed in dress shirts and vests, Al with his hair up in a high ponytail and Ed with his hair in a neat braid down his back – and clearly on their best behavior, Mustang could already see the beginnings of the unrefined, rough edges being buffed away. Watching them both act as young gentlemen, on top of knowing what they were capable of, acutely increased his desire to have their support in becoming Fuhrer. Just as he had expected, the two were the right combination of youth, intelligence, and naivety. With the right guidance, in ten or so years, the men that they would grow to become would be men of vast influence and most likely of vast wealth as well. He could already see the buried charisma within them that would pave the way of their future, making him thankful that he had essentially already secured the boys' placement under his command, as that charisma combined with their intellect would be very appealing to certain parties in a few months' time.
Though the boys were obviously oblivious, as they did not know who they were dining with within Van't Hof Café, the two were already catching General Raven and General Fritz's interests. Mustang wasn't so vain as to believe that it was merely because the two Elrics were dining with him that the two generals had stayed long past finishing their meals and had repeatedly glanced in their direction. It was well known that General Elias took lunch at the Van't Hof Café every Saturday and Mustang would bet that the table that he and the Elrics were sitting at was General Elias's accustom table. That fact combined with the rumor circulating that two child alchemists were set to take the upcoming State Alchemist Certification Exam would be the more likely reason for why General Raven and General Fritz had stayed.
Mustang did nothing to stop his lips from pulling into a smirk, as General Raven quickly diverted his gaze to avoid making eye contact. It would have been one thing for General Elias to have taken the brothers out to lunch, another for the general to have invited him to join them, but the meaning behind his lunch with the Elrics without General Elias's presence spoke of something entirely different. He would have to thank the general not only for the fine meal, but for the message the occasion sent. Edward and Alphonse Elric were his discovery alone. Not only was it he who had discovered the young prodigies and he who would be responsible for their recruitment, but by sitting at General Elias's table and filling the general's reservation, it was also apparent that he had the support of General Elias in bring the boys into the Military and that the brothers had General Elias's approval and vote of confidence.
Mustang didn't doubt that General Raven and General Fritz had already begun to understand that the brothers weren't just a couple of kids and that the age exemption that the two child alchemists had received, in order for them to take the upcoming State Alchemist Certification Exam, was far from the joke that it at first appeared to be. While their looks were somewhat curious, their glances were far more assessing. The way General Fritz had taken to cocking his head the slightest bit towards them told of the man attempting to listen into his and brothers' conversation. Naturally, the Elrics had wanted to talk about alchemy, so he'd be surprised if the general had understood much of anything of what had been said … well, other than the fact that the two boys were indeed alchemists and adept ones at that.
"Thank you," Mustang said to the waiter, as the man set the bill down before him and held out a pen for him to use to sign his name. General Elias would be paying the bill the next time that the general came into the restaurant, as the general had insist that their lunch was on him. His signature, however, was required as proof of his and the Elrics' attendance and that the tab was indeed theirs.
As the waiter accepted the signed bill with a gracious bow and gave a standard parting that consisted of a return invitation and an additional bow of farewell, Mustang motioned to his young companions to stand. He could see that the two were abuzz with energy and needed to be freed from the restraints of their current environment. He was reluctant, though, for his time with them to end, as the two had proved to be pleasant company so far and his week really had been shit and he really didn't want to think about it or the prospects of returning to work on Monday. As he wouldn't be able to see Tabitha until later, after she got of work for the evening, spending the afternoon with the brothers was ideal and most definitely preferred to immediately returning home to the pile of laundry that had compiled over the week and the dirty dishes awaiting him in his kitchen sink.
"There is a park not far from here," Mustang said decisively, standing as well and stepping away from the table. "Care to join me for a stroll?"
"It is a nice day, brother," Al said, looking to Ed with clear desire to accept the invitation.
His gold eyes affixed on Mustang, Ed hesitated at short moment, before giving a sharp nod of acquiescence. "I suppose it is."
The barely noticeable inflection in the boy's voice left Mustang with the impression that Ed wasn't merely referring to the weather with that particular statement.
"Besides, it would be good to see a bit more of Central," Ed added, as if Mustang's invitation was of little consequence to him and that wanting to see more of Central was the only reason why he had agreed to join Mustang in going to the park.
"Shall we?" Mustang motioned for the two to take the lead out of the restaurant, smiling at Ed's temperament. If he wasn't mistaken, he had made some headway in gaining the boy's trust today.