Number of words: 6,061

Published date: January 27, 2015

Began chapter: August 3, 2014

Finished chapter: January 27, 2015


Chapter 35: Period

Lust woke the next day in a decidedly foul mood. A mood which was not at all helped by the rest of the household, for everyone else seemed rested and in generally pleasant spirits.

Though Gluttony was a little wobbly on his feet from the long walk to town, he cheerfully told Ms. Bradley that he had enjoyed the outing despite being sore (an experience that he didn't seem to remember should be novel to a Homunculus). Envy spent breakfast griping about the bump on his head from where Greed had hit him with the boot, but only Ms. Bradley expressed any sympathy and he quickly lost interest in complaining. Instead, he took to fiddling with the new radio, which surprisingly attracted Sloth's attention. When the smaller Homunculus finally found the sweet spot in the living room for the radio to pick up a signal, Sloth actually bothered to look pleased by the light, jazzy music it produced. Which maybe wasn't so surprising, since Greed had already pointed out Sloth's tendency to hang around Selim's piano practice. Apparently their big galoot of a brother enjoyed anything that required no effort and that provided a sharp contrast to his stimulation-deprived time in the tunnel.

In contrast to her siblings, Lust hadn't slept well, her headache had not gone away, and now, to top it off, her stomach was bothering her. It was a subtle human pain, like the headache, that came not from injury but instead from some undefined physical complaint that had never occurred to her before. She could think of no reason for it and so had no idea how to make it go away. All Lust knew for certain was that she would be damned if she showed such pitiful human weakness in front of the others, especially with the Elric brothers present, so she clamped down on the feeling and did her best to keep her face smooth and unruffled.

She had had plenty of heat and sun from the trip yesterday and the main rooms in the mansion all had a tendency to grow warm as the day progressed, so Lust took a cue from Sloth, who had set the radio in an open window in the living room so he could hear the music and had then reclined against a tree in the forest's shade. She picked a nice shady spot beside the pond not too far away from him, dragging the picnic bench over to settle down for a nice reading session. Sloth, as quiet as usual, only glanced at her for a short moment before wordlessly returning to staring at the fluffy clouds overhead, though something in his expression hinted that he approved of her sitting outside with him.

From where she sat, she could just watch Selim and the Elrics at their work near the front of the mansion.

Selim, though he had been worn out the night before, had seemingly recovered all of his childish energy with the new day, and it hadn't taken long after he got up for Greed to start pestering him about the gift he'd been promised. Selim had responded good-naturedly, wolfing down his breakfast and then dragging Alphonse outside to help while Greed enthusiastically tagged along behind them. Edward had joined them too, but not to help, for the circle Selim needed to construct wasn't so complicated that both brothers were needed to explain it, and Edward had no ability to demonstrate the transmutation itself in any event.

"How about this?" Selim asked. He was squatting down, scribbling test circles in the dirt. The misshapen hunk of metal was off to the side, waiting to be 'operated' on, while Alphonse stood over Selim, scrutinizing his work.

"The matrix would be right," Al said after a moment of deliberation, "and I can see what you were thinking with the iron and carbon, but the extra elements also need to be extracted."

Lust couldn't see his face, but she could easily visualize her brother frowning at the correction.

"... Can't the fire triangle and the athanor integrate those elements without affecting the primary transmutation?" he asked, his tone mildly challenging.

"Ordinarily," Alphonse said, "but you're forgetting the conflicting energies in the fire and earth bases. The athanor is a strong symbol. Too strong here." He paused for a moment to demonstrate something in the dirt, most likely a formula or calculation of some kind. "See?" he asked. "The elements wouldn't mix properly and you'd find a fault in the metal, which obviously we don't want. It wouldn't be good for Greed to be in the middle of a fight and have his blade snap in half. Not that you should be getting into fights." This last sentence Alphonse directed at Greed.

"Yeah, try to avoid that, thanks," Greed piped up nonchalantly from his seat on the front steps. Selim gave him an irritated glance.

"Keep distracting me and I make no guarantees," the boy told him, and then clearly dismissed his brother as unimportant, turning back to contemplate his circle. For him, Lust knew, it was no longer about a present at all, but a challenge that he wanted to beat.

Unoffended, Greed chuckled and turned to Edward. The older Elric was hunched over on the steps beside him, his left pant leg pulled up past his knee to reveal the entire metal prosthetic. The young man was quietly focused, with a screwdriver in his right hand and his left hand running up and down his leg with practiced ease, methodically checking the screws and bolts and tightening anything that was loose.

"You know," Greed said, obviously bored of waiting, "I don't remember you ever paying attention to your automail before. What gives?"

Ed didn't look up as he responded, "I don't really have a choice. The shop has gotten a lot busier in the last few years and Winry barely has enough time for all of her customers without adding me to her list. After her training in Rush Valley, she's become pretty well known - honestly, I think she stole a lot of Mr. Garfiel's clients. And she's told me over and over again to do my own maintenance. Granny Pinako might take pity on me if my leg malfunctions, but Winry'd just tell me it was my own fault and leave me to hobble around for a few days before fixing it."

Greed and Alphonse both laughed at the mental image and Ed grew indignant.

"I'm trying to get better at it!" he said in his defence. "Right, Al? You'll tell her I checked it, right?" He sounded almost anxious and Lust allowed herself a slight smile. She had thought the day before that his wife hadn't trained him properly, but at least now the boy seemed properly cowed.

"I don't know," Al replied coyly. "I think it's cute when Winry threatens to beat you with some blunt instrument."

Edward gave his younger brother an exasperated look and Alphonse grinned good-naturedly, holding up his hands to indicate he'd been joking. Greed guffawed, but to Lust, who had no knowledge of the Elrics' close family relations, the exchange was meaningless. She turned her attention back to Selim, but he had settled down cross-legged on the ground with some notes and did not appear in any rush to do anything interesting.

She was a little surprised by the teaching method adopted by the brothers, for neither man offered Selim any hints to point him in the right direction. Instead, Alphonse remained silent, patiently letting Selim mull over the options. It was clear he would speak up if the boy was going to attempt something that could go wrong – and with alchemy, Lust suspected that was standard for all teachers, considering the science would quickly become extinct or at least ill-reputed if students were allowed to kill themselves in the rebounds of ill-conceived transmutations – but just as clearly, he felt it was better for his student to figure things out on his own.

No matter. She turned her attention away from the boys and to her book – a generic thing about romance, intrigue, and mystery that far from matched her own history – and struggled to ignore her headache, stomach pain, and Greed's occasional loud laughter.

She had just started to succeed, about half an hour later, when she was interrupted.

Despite giving off what she felt to be very clear signals that she was not in the mood to be bothered, Envy had never been one to respect another person's foul humour or personal space unless he felt like it, and now was no exception. Ignoring the way she didn't even acknowledge his approach, he sat down across from her on the bench and leaned forward with his elbows on the table and his chin in his hands.

"So…?" he prompted with a cheerfulness that said he could sense her mood and found it entertaining.

"So…?" she repeated without looking up from her book.

"Sooo, tell me about the trip to Dublith."

"There's nothing to tell," she replied coolly, flicking her eyes briefly from the page to his face and then back again. "You should be grateful you didn't have to go."

"Aw, come on, Lust!" Envy wheedled. "Pride's busy and I don't want to have to ask Gluttony, he won't have any of the good details. Something interesting had to have happened or you wouldn't have come home in such a tizzy."

"A… 'tizzy'?" she repeated, arching an eyebrow at him coolly. He remained unfazed and, if anything, seemed amused by her reaction.

"Didja' think I wouldn't notice? You're usually better at humouring people, so when you skulked off to your room as soon as you guys got back, I figured something was off. So what happened?"

That's true, she mulled darkly while keeping her face smooth behind her book. She was ordinarily in better control than that. She should have been able to hide how exhausted and irritated yesterday's trip had left her; she had always been able to do so in the past.

Disgusted with herself, she laid the book down.

"You want to know what yesterday was like, Envy? Fine. I'll humour you: It was torture. You wouldn't have lasted ten minutes," she stated bluntly.

Since they had always been the closest of their family (with the exception, perhaps, of Lust and Gluttony), Envy looked taken aback by her harshness. It was rare for her to snap at him and he opened his mouth, most likely to protest, but she continued without giving him a chance.

"Crowded in on every side by noisy, smelly humans. Selim leading us on a pretty circuit, introducing us to every second common peasant in town. Having to put up with inane chit-chat and petty conversation. You would have snapped long before we reached that infuriating woman with her nosy prying."

"Hey! I was just as good as you at faking it when I had to!"

She ignored the double-entendre that instantly came to mind.

"This was different, Envy. Much different. You've never had to fake being human when you are."

The last sentence slipped out before she could catch herself, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth that matched Envy's expression. It clearly threw him off and Lust sighed, annoyed more with herself than with him now.

"Sorry," she snapped. "I didn't mean it like that. It was just hard – no, frustrating – to see Selim act like such a goody kid. You ought to be thankful you weren't there. He's played this child role of his by himself for so long that he's forgotten anything else."

She looked past Envy and he twisted slightly to glance over his shoulder as well, but their brother was now discussing the final touches to his circle with Alphonse and clearly had no idea he was the topic of their conversation.

When Envy turned back to her, he looked confused. "I don't get it. You told me he's changed not all that long ago, so why're you surprised by it now?"

"Surprised isn't the right word, but I suppose you have a point," she allowed. "As annoying as that is."

She refused to admit it out loud, but… I guess the truth of it hadn't truly sunken in. Not until I had to watch him interact with the townsfolk. At least the realization helped to explain her bad mood; she had been finding it hard to articulate what had bothered her so much about the trip.

Selim's putting on a good act for his step-mother, the Elrics, and even his siblings was not so hard for Lust to watch or believe, since Pride had at least some reason to respect and care about those closest to him. It was much harder for Lust to swallow the same front put on for strangers, even though it made sense in a way, since he needed to be a believable child with everyone he came into contact with. However, she had expected him to act shy, distant, or indifferent with the villagers since they should hardly be important to him. It wouldn't have hurt his child act – lots of children were timid around adults – but he had chosen instead to be friendly.

She was sure Envy wouldn't have been able to stand it.

Her brother had leaned back on the bench, hooking one foot underneath her side of the table so that he could lean farther back without falling, looking mainly disappointed and also oddly resentful.

"… Don't give me that look," she chided with a sharp glance. "Or were you hoping being 'in a tizzy' was related to some fun piece of gossip? I'm so sorry to disappoint you."

"... Geez, you're really in a mood," he muttered under his breath, then, in a louder voice, "How about that 'infuriating woman with her nosy prying'? What's that about?"

"Oh my, I hope you two aren't talking about me!"

The pair glanced over. Envy sat back up, gave a lazy wave, and shifted over on the bench, making room for Lily to come over and join them. Lust tried not to scowl at the new addition; at the moment, she was feeling far from charitable towards the old woman.

"Naw, you're in luck. This time, it's some other infuriating woman who's been nosy," her brother joked.

Lily laughed and smiled as she sat down. "Well, that's a relief! Although I promise you, it wouldn't be the first time I've been described that way!" Which brought a big grin to Envy's face. Lust thought he was probably happy to have his joke laughed at, but she suspected just as much that he was looking forward to having an ally in questioning her.

"So who were you talking about?" Lily asked. "No, wait. Let me guess. You were talking about Pearl, weren't you?"

"Pearl?" Envy asked.

"If you were able to guess correctly with just that, your friend has quite the reputation," Lust commented blandly.

Lily nodded, quickly looking embarrassed.

"I'm sorry if she was too… erm... Selim thought maybe she was a bit rude."

"Just 'a bit'?"

Lily winced. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. Pearl can be blunt sometimes, and she's not one to shy away from asking personal questions, but I thought you two might get along. You're both strong women, after all."

"Wait," Envy interjected, sounding frustrated at being left out. "Who is it we're talking about?"

"A friend of mine," Lily explained. "Pearl Chanel. She owns and runs the ladies fashion boutique in town. Her husband, Carl, works at the train station."

"You will appreciate this, Envy," Lust said. "Lily actually plotted with this friend of hers and Selim to petition my help."

"Ooh, really? Our old biddy did? I love a good plot! Err, I mean the scheming kind, not the story kind. What did they want your help with?"

"It wasn't-" Lily started to protest, but Lust held her hand up to silence her, suddenly enjoying Envy's enthusiasm and the flustered and indignant look on the old woman's face.

"Lily here, without asking or even telling me, told her friend that I would be a suitable candidate for a certain… task. Then, also without telling me, she instructed Selim to take me to this woman and introduce me, where this friend then proceeded to lie about not knowing anything about me, plied me with personal questions, and tried to flatter me into doing what she wanted."

Envy made a good audience, giving an impressed whistle before grinning wickedly.

"And you didn't kill her?" he teased.

"I considered it."

"Lust, I'm very sorry," Lily said earnestly. "I didn't think you would be upset by it, and I didn't mean it to seem like scheming! I wanted Pearl to ask you herself so you wouldn't feel pressured to do it just because I thought you should."

"I assure you, my desires are the only ones I consider when making decisions for myself."

Far from seeming reassured by that, Lily only made a pained face, and for a brief moment Envy looked like he wanted to argue the statement before deciding to satisfy his curiosity instead.

"What was the task this Pearl woman asked you to do?" he asked.

"Modeling," Lust replied, waving her hand lazily to show how little she thought of the idea. "She wants a model for her store. Apparently business is slow and she thinks a local model would bring in more customers."

Envy looked confused again.

"I don't get it. Isn't that a good thing?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, isn't being asked to model something a person'd normally be flattered about? Why're you upset over someone telling you you're attractive? Not that you need a reminder or anything."

"I'm not upset by the request; I'm annoyed at how it was asked. I'm not going to let some small-town bossy little hussy think she can press me into doing whatever she wants."

"Lust!" Lily exclaimed, looking offended. "That is my friend you're talking about! And it is not proper for a respectable young lady to speak like that!"

Envy immediately laughed and Lust didn't even do that much, giving the old woman a flat look that said she had no intention of apologizing.

"... I didn't mean it to be a joke," Lily mumbled at Envy in an injured tone.

"Which is why it's funny," Envy told her, still chuckling. "Lust, a respectable young lady? Yeah right! You humans say the cutest things sometimes!"

It was clear that Lily didn't really know how to react to that. On the one hand, she looked both offended and a bit annoyed by the insult inherent in Envy's comment, but on the other hand, it was the first time Envy was being overtly friendly with her (or at the very least good-natured) and she seemed reluctant to ruin the occasion by defending herself.

So she remained silent. Which, Lust mulled, was probably the wisest choice.

"Well?" Envy asked, returning to their previous topic. "Are you gonna' do it?"

"I already told Selim I don't think it would be wise. We want to keep a low profile. There's a risk something like that could make its way into the hands of... people we don't want it to."

Envy didn't deny it. Instead, he leaned back again, rubbing his chin and eying her thoughtfully.

"... Couldn't we just change your looks a bit? Cut your hair or dye it-" Lily made a small sound of protest at that. "-add some different makeup, maybe some sunglasses, and it'd be impossible for even the bastard Colonel to recognize you."

"I doubt that would be enough-" she started, but he waved her concern aside.

"Trust me, I know what I'm talking about here. It doesn't take much to trick people when it comes to faces."

"Then you think I should do it? Why?"

"'Why'?" he repeated, raising an eyebrow at her. "Are you saying you've got a ton of more important things to do with your time?" He gave the book in her hands a pointed glance until she tapped her fingers on the tabletop impatiently, then rolled his eyes and shrugged.

"First, 'cause I would if I were you," he explained rather simply. "This Pearl woman wants your body, right? So what if it's not the same 'want your body' as usual - you oughta' flaunt yourself. Things won't really feel normal until you've got a few chumps drooling over you and their wives giving you the stink eye behind their backs. The worst thing that could happen is you make a few enemies, and boo hoo, that'd be a reeaal shame. The best is that you'll become popular. Certainly you've got a better chance of getting into their good graces than the rest of us, and that might be helpful down the road."

He gave her a meaningful look then and, suddenly feeling her respect for her brother go up, Lust realized that Envy was referring to her surreptitious alchemy studies. If she was eventually able to seek help from the townsfolk - though it didn't necessarily mean that they would know what they were doing... Well, the cooperation of the nearest source of human souls wasn't a bad thing to nurture. Certainly it would be more useful than keeping to themselves as recluses outside the town.

"But mainly," he continued after waiting to make sure she'd caught his meaning, and with his usual taunting grin, "I just like the idea of you and this Pearl woman butting heads. I've always wanted to see someone push you around!"

She gave a blind kick under the table, hit flesh, and was rewarded by Envy yelping and glaring at her, while Lily demurely scooted over on the bench a few inches.

"… Lust, really, I'm sorry you're upset. I honestly thought you two would get along. Did you have nothing at all in common?"

"No," Lust answered firmly.

"Are you sure? What did Pearl want to talk about?"

Lust internally sighed. The old woman either didn't realize that she didn't want to talk about it or was ignoring that fact, being stubborn in a way much different than her friend had been.

"First, she wanted to know how we were related," Lust grudgingly recounted, "and she mentioned you become hedgy whenever the subject comes up. You need to work on your technique." Lily looked either embarrassed or offended by this, which Lust studiously ignored. "She discussed wishing she was back in Central, which I suppose we share in common, and she mentioned having some experience in using her feminine wiles, as is proper and which I could respect if she hadn't chained herself to a man now. But then she accused me of being here because of some weak human emotion like compassion-" She couldn't even bring herself to say the L-word. "-which obviously is utter nonsense."

Envy smirked, then quickly pulled his legs out from under the picnic bench and sat sideways to avoid being kicked again, while Lily looked like she wanted very much to interrupt. Knowing that she probably wanted to pursue the topic, which would require far more time and energy than Lust had in her at the moment to explain and which would only end up offending the old woman anyway, she continued without giving Lily a chance.

"And then the final straw: Your friend asked me…" she paused briefly, still seething at the indignity of it, "… if I wanted to have children."

Lily gave her a blank stare, while Envy at least had the sense to shake his head pityingly, though whether it was pity for his sister or for Pearl's blunder, Lust couldn't tell.

"That sounds like an innocent question-" Lily started.

"Innocent! I cannot believe the nerve of that woman! Children! Do I look like a fool to you? It's absolutely ludicrous!"

She crossed her arms under her breasts only because she felt like sinking her fingers into someone's throat. She found it almost as hard to believe just how angry she suddenly felt as it was to believe someone had even made the suggestion. Had the men at the bar suggested that Greed donate all his money to charity? Had that little Menny girl suggested that Gluttony start a diet club? In a detached way, she understood that Pearl had meant the question exactly as Lily said – innocently – and yet she felt almost as insulted as if she had instead been asked why she didn't join a monastery along with its implied vow of chastity. Children could be a by-product of carnal pleasure, but as far as Lust was concerned, such risk detracted from the pleasure. Or at least she imagined it would, since she'd never had to worry about it personally.

"I don't know," Envy drawled teasingly from across the table. "You played the mother act with Gluttony pretty well. And isn't attractiveness supposed to be linked to fertility or something? So you're like the perfect candidate for popping out babies."

"I cannot believe you just said that."

"What? I'm wrong?" he asked in mock surprise, seeing a button and completely unable to resist pushing it.

She didn't disappoint him. It was a topic she'd had to think about before, mainly thanks to lovers who had worried about getting stuck with the expense of an unwanted child and the possible scandal if they happened to already have a family.

"I shouldn't need to explain to you that the whole notion of motherhood is offensive," she informed him in a scathing tone. "Altruism at its most disgusting. The child is nothing more than a parasite, while the mother is expected to pander to its every cry and sacrifice herself in the process if necessary. She has no free will, being obligated to love the thing no matter how poorly it misbehaves. She bears the largest responsibility in raising it, receives little praise if she does a good job, and is condemned if it doesn't turn out to be a model citizen. The only women who want to be mothers are those foolish enough to be brainwashed by their mothers into believing that it's something fulfilling – a lie they tell themselves so they don't have to face how much of their own lives they wasted."

She could have kept going, would have, except that Lily suddenly stood up with a look that Lust had never expected to see on her: lips pressed tightly together, brows furrowed, and a spark in her eyes that seemed quite at odds with her usually mellow appearance.

The two of them stared at her curiously and she wilted a little, but then visibly steeled herself.

"Lust, you… You shouldn't say things like that! Being a mother is the greatest blessing a woman can ask for, and none of us would exist if it weren't for our mothers. It's completely ungrateful of you to say something like that!"

Lust flicked her hair dismissively. "I can say whatever I please, especially when it's all true. And I'd only be ungrateful if I had a mother in the first place."

"You don't… have a mother?" Lily asked the two of them hesitantly.

Lust didn't respond. Envy simply shrugged.

"… I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

Envy stared at her blankly for a moment, then laughed. "She didn't die!" he exclaimed. "She never existed in the first place! You keep forgetting: we weren't born the way you humans are. We never had a mother, period. So wipe that pitying look off your face – it's annoying."

"W- Well, if that's the case, then that's even more reason, Lust, for you not to mock other women for wanting to have children. You shouldn't criticize something you don't understand-"

"That's faulty logic. You don't need to experience something in order to judge it. Most people agree that murder is wrong without killing someone themselves or having been personally threatened. Both the rich and poor alike agree that having more is better than less. Being strong is better than being weak. Being served is better than being the server. Even the people who have only been on one side know that much."

"Th- That might be true, but those aren't good analogies for something like this! Motherhood is something that needs to be experienced."

Lust gave a small growl under her breath. "Just give it up already. I'm not in the mood to argue about it and I couldn't care less whether you agree with me or not. Anyway, it's none of your business what I think."

And of course, when she glanced over, the old woman looked like she'd just been slapped. She had absolutely no poker face, revealing her hurt without any thought that her transparency could be used against her. How Wrath had been able to stand – let alone care for! – someone so opposite to the Homunculi, Lust had no idea. She was a lamb in a world of wolves. It was a wonder she hadn't been torn to shreds ages ago.

But she did have some spirit, a tiny bit of strength, because she didn't just let it go as Lust had told her to, despite how clearly upset she was.

"... You're right," Lily said in a quiet voice. "It is none of my business. I just can't stand hearing anyone talk like that. Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to have a child of my own. And King and I tried for so long... I'm grateful for Selim and I think of him as my own son, but when I hear a healthy, beautiful young woman making fun of something I've always wanted... It- It hurts to hear you belittling what meant so much to me. I never had that choice, but at least you do, so please don't take it for granted like that."

Envy, Lust saw with a bit of surprise, was staring at Ms. Bradley with an intent, serious expression, as if he found what she had said suddenly quite meaningful. He looked like he wanted to say something, and Lust was ready to correct the old woman that no, she had no more choice in the matter than Lily had had, for the Homunculi had all been sterile and Lust couldn't have given birth even if she didn't find the idea abhorrent.

But neither of them got the chance. Apparently Lily had taken as much conflict as she could bear, for, flustered and embarrassed, she ducked her head at them, then turned and headed inside with faster steps than usual.

And then Selim was suddenly running after her, sparing just enough time to glare at them in passing, and Greed came up behind them, absently swinging his new sword and tsking disapprovingly under his breath.

"Geez, what were you guys talking about that got her so upset?" he asked. "I thought you two were getting along, Sis?"

"The topic was harmless. It's hardly my fault that she's so sensitive."

Greed looked unconvinced. He turned to Envy instead.

"They were talking about babies," he replied absently, backing her up.

"Babies? What kind of topic is that? You're not seriously interested in-"

"Of course not!" she hissed, snatching her book from the table and flipping it open in as aggressive a manner as she could. "What kind of pathetic tool do you take me for?"

"But then… Why's she upset?" he asked.

"She's jealous of you," Envy said, less in answer to Greed's question and more to himself. His expression, staring fixedly at the spot where Lily had rounded the corner, was one Lust hadn't seen on him before: a strange mixture of surprise, pleasure, and, oddly enough, a hint of guilt.

"…Then not only is she mistaken, but she's also a fool," Lust replied scathingly after a moment.

The look Envy gave her in response seemed, to her at least, mildly reproachful, and she grumpily sank down on the bench, bringing her book up to eye level so she didn't have to look at them. Unfortunately, it didn't keep her from having to hear them.

"Dunno'," Envy said in reply to what could only be some sort of gesture from Greed. "She was in a pissy mood when I got here."

"So 'in a mood', but not in the mood? And here I thought there was only one mood she could be in!" Greed laughed.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then measured her words slowly so as to carefully enunciate each syllable.

"Greed, your memory loss might offer some excuse, but I am sure Envy can vouch for me when I tell you I don't like to waste my breath on useless threats. So when I say that if you two don't get out of here right now I will tear the miserable hides off your bodies, give them to Gluttony to turn into stew, and then feed said stew to your bleeding carcasses, you will appreciate that it is entirely within my ability to do so, Ultimate Spear or not." The threat felt oddly satisfying; she could never have used such violent imagery against them in the past, for at most she could only have flayed them partially before the skin would just grow back. Suddenly the world seemed full of creative possibilities.

She didn't look up to check whether they took the threat seriously, but it had the effect she'd wanted, for though they muttered about it, they did leave her alone, barely making it a few steps away before starting to bicker: Apparently Envy didn't care much for Greed's suggestion that they use his new sword to give him a haircut, and the last thing she heard before they got out of earshot was a startled exclamation to 'be careful, you almost hit me!'

The last Lust thought on the matter was that she would have to set Lily straight later. All she needed to do was explain that the old woman's jealousy (if Envy was indeed correct) was based on a misunderstanding and surely that would fix everything.

Unfortunately, that wasn't how things worked out.


It was probably fortunate that the topic of having children came up when it did, because it wasn't more than a few hours later when Lust came out of the washroom looking pale and ready to strangle someone.

"I don't understand. You mean this has never happened to you before?"

"Do I look like it has! What am I supposed to do?"

"Don't worry, I already had Mason bring some supplies with the groceries-"

"You knew this would happen?"

Lily's tone bordered on exasperated. "Well, I thought it was a pretty fair assumption. You're not anywhere near my age and no one in their right mind would mistake you for a late blooming teenager."

"…"

"… Sorry. I guess you didn't have a mother to explain this to you. But didn't you have any female friends? How have you not heard about this before?"

In the ensuing frank explanation, made easier by the fact that Lily was far past the age to be embarrassed by such things, she found herself more amused and grateful than anything else.

A son was a thing of pride for both parents, a little man who would grow up to be strong and brave and to protect his family. But a daughter was a treasure, a thing to delight in and cherish. Of course no parent could pick between the two and she would have loved Selim just as much if he'd been a girl instead. But it was a strange and funny twist of fate to find herself giving one of 'the talks' to a woman for whom it should have been long overdue, taking on a mother's duty that she had never imagined would be asked of her.

If he had still been around, she knew King would have been happy for her.

"Of course I won't tell them," Lily responded to Lust's demand. "It's women's business only… Oh, I know it's no fun," she continued consolingly, "but think of it this way: It's a sign that women are much tougher than men."

"I never needed any proof of that," Lust muttered. Lily smiled sagely.

"And wise men don't need any proof either, dear," she said.


Author's Notes:

Athanor: An alchemy tool, the athanor is an oven or furnace used to provide a uniform and constant heat.

Period: Okay, so I had to go there! From a scientific perspective, this is an important truth for Lust. If the Homunculi were sterile, then I see no reason to think that Lust had a menstrual cycle before. As she is now human, this is one new experience that she would not have had and that I therefore felt shouldn't be completely glossed over.

Has it really been six months since my last update? I am so, so sorry! I have excuses, but not good ones. Mainly blame Pokémon X and AlphaSapphire, Attack on Titan, Durarara!, a general lack of motivation, and the wide assortment of everyday chores that plague a normal working adult. The only thing I can promise is that I will continue to feel guilty whenever I do other things when I could be writing instead! I should also warn readers that I anticipate having a very rough spring, as I am being put in a new position (which will require at least a bit of studying German), having one of my bosses leave, and most likely having a new boss put in their place. So I make no guarantees that I'll do better in terms of posting (though I do hope that the freedom to move on to a new topic will stimulate my creative juices).