Number of words: 18,025

Published date: December 22, 2016

Began chapter: February 15, 2016

Finished chapter: December 22, 2016


Chapter 38: The Plot Thickens

"How much farther is it to Dublith, anyway?"

"We're only halfway there, so another half an hour. Quit complaining."

"I'm not complaining, I was just asking. Sheesh! Besides, it's hot out. Give me a break!"

"…"

"Hey, did you let the others know where we're going? It'll be a pain if they think we ran away or something."

"Of course I did. I left a note for Lily on the dining room table."

"Why a note?"

"Because I didn't want Pride insisting on joining us, obviously. This isn't a field trip, as I've already explained to you. He would just have gotten in the way."

"Fine, I get it. You know, you're going to need to work on your attitude if you want to impress this guy. Are you sure he'll be able to teach-"

"I am sure of nothing until I meet the man. But if he won't work, there are surely other alchemists in a town this size. I'll find someone."

"Hmm…"

Envy hummed in acquiescence, pursing his lips at his sister's straight back as he walked slightly behind her, allowing her to lead the way. Not that he was likely to get lost; the only side roads they had walked by so far had been little more than old woodsmen's trails and tractor tracks into the fields they were now starting to pass. The main road was clear and easy to follow and he was not inclined to wander off it.

Walking behind her was just an old habit, a mild way to show Lust respect, especially since she had done him a favour by inviting him along (as Envy well knew, having been reminded of it just minutes before). Lust had started to become short with him, and Envy didn't really blame her for it: he'd been more than a little chatty on their way down the mountain.

Even their departure from the cooling shade of the forest did little to dampen Envy's mood, though the midday sun in the cloudless sky was starting to beat down on them, heating his black clothes and making him sweat. Lust was probably faring better in the green summer dress she was wearing, made of a light material surely much cooler than his own clothes.

His sister had taken special care in preparing for their trip to Dublith: Her long, wavy black hair had been pulled into a loose ponytail draped artfully over her shoulder, held with a golden pin pilfered from Lily's collection. Lily didn't use the same bold, deep red lipstick that Lust preferred, so she had been forced to use something subtler, a soft pink that changed her overall appearance from aggressively seductive to gently inviting. The golden looped necklace Selim had given her was hanging around her neck, matching the hairpin and dress nicely, and a pair of brown strapped sandals completed her outfit. It was quite different from her usual look, but then, her usual look would have been out of place in the country town of Dublith.

As Greed had been prone to remind him, Envy knew his fashion sense was not as well-developed as his siblings, but even he could tell that Lust had done a good job. The cut of the dress drew attention to her chest without seeming too deliberate, showed off her narrow waist without being too tight or clingy, and the hemline, cut at the knees, showed off her shapely calves while leaving open the innocent possibility that she just wanted to stay cool in the summer heat.

As Lust had once explained to him, there was a fine line between looking your best and looking desperate, and his sister had a knack for finding and straddling that line.

On the other hand and despite being grateful for the invitation to join her, Envy had been unwilling to grant Lust's request for him to wear something other than his usual black tank top and skort ensemble. It had taken him so long to come up with his own human design, and he was proud of it. Maybe if he could change his physical appearance too, it wouldn't be so bad, but Envy just had this feeling – irrational though it was – that complying with human standards, even if just in terms of fashion, was a betrayal of sorts, a giving in. He couldn't do it.

How long ago has it been? Envy thought, letting his mind wander as he walked behind Lust. Since I created this body? Hmm... It was probably a few years after that mishap with that woman who knew Greed...


Envy entered their underground lair with a mixture of excitement and trepidation, following the curved, musty tunnel with only half a mind. At times, he picked up his pace, wanting to arrive all the sooner, only to slow down as he reminded himself to concentrate. He wanted his arrival to be perfect, and besides that, he was nervous of what they would think.

He had been alive for around 30 years, but was still the baby in the Homunculi's 'family'. Father intended to create a new sibling soon, one who would be given the strength and stamina to dig the Nationwide Transmutation Circle, but 'soon' to the immortal beings could mean anything from a few months to a few years and until their new sibling was born, Envy continued to get the short end of the stick (as far as he was concerned).

The first ten years he had spent learning the basics of his powers: How to manipulate his body's component molecules in order to transform into different shapes. The others looked down on him for how long it took him to learn, but of course their powers were far simpler to use, which was completely unfair! They had no idea how difficult it was, how complicated the biology was.

With time, Envy had generally gotten the hang of transforming as he wished, and now he focused especially on taking human form. The human shape was not natural to him: Balancing on two hind legs, for a creature with eight limbs, was far from easy. Human eyes were different, a tricky thing for Envy to mimic and then see with. They had tiny hearts, tiny lungs, no tail, and flimsy strength, all of which felt strange and uncomfortable. He could deal with all of that – it was the minor differences in appearance that Envy especially struggled with. Humans all looked the same to him. And yet, if he was going to be useful to their father, he needed to learn to distinguish between them.

Despite its practicality up to that point, pretending to be Lust, Greed, or Pride had grown thin. Envy resented needing to borrow their faces and bodies. Really, he resented that he had to change himself to be of any use at all, but it was just one more thing that wasn't fair.

Now, after several weeks of careful consideration, he was going to fix that.

Envy came to the last corner before Father's room and paused, giving himself one final check before facing the others. They would all be impressed, he told himself. He hadn't asked for any help, had done this all on his own. And none of them liked having their faces stolen. Yes, he had every reason to be pleased with himself.

With that thought, he pushed the doors open...

... And in less than five steps, promptly found his neck pinioned by the long, deadly spears of his sister's fingers.

"Who are you?" Lust demanded from halfway across the room. "What are you doing here?" Her purple eyes flashed at him dangerously. He was impressed by how fast her reflexes were.

The quickest of glances told Envy that Greed and Pride weren't there yet, and he couldn't tell if Father was present, since the angle from the door made it hard to see anything but one arm of the throne. He spoke quickly, being careful to keep his body still and feeling foolish for not having foreseen this problem.

"It's just me, Lust! Envy!"

"Envy?" his sister repeated, raising a perturbed eyebrow at his unfamiliar appearance. To his great relief, though, she believed him, retracting her fingers and adopting a calmer stance. "Who is that?"

As in, Whose body have you stolen this time?

He straightened to the full height he had chosen for himself, puffing his chest out and giving her his best grin, wide and toothy, mirroring as much as possible the grin of his natural body.

"It's no one," he proclaimed. "It's me. Or, well, it's going to be me. I made it up. What do you think?"

"You… made it up?"

Lust looked surprised, to say the least. It simply hadn't occurred to any of them that he could take a face that wasn't already in existence. She made a peremptory gesture for him to come closer, studying him as he crossed the room. He'd been under her scrutinizing gaze before, as she'd evaluated his impersonations, but this was entirely different.

"What… What do you think?" he asked again, his nervousness returning. He hated to admit it, but he really wanted Lust's approval. He certainly wouldn't be getting it from Pride or Greed.

"… Well," she said, tapping her fingers against her lips as she continued to stare at him, "it's certainly… different. I would almost say flamboyant. Wouldn't it be better to pick something that would blend in more?"

"I'm tired of blending in," Envy declared. "I can take another face if I need to hide in a crowd. I want this to be how you guys see me."

"Alright," she acknowledged. She reached out and flipped a strand of his hair experimentally. "I can see what you were thinking. The green tinge reflects your skin colour." It wasn't as fluffy as hers, but at least it wasn't limp and oily, the way his natural hair was. "The headband mirrors the pattern on your head. You look strong, if a bit small, but considering how cramped this place is for you…." She seemed to be warming to the idea now. "I suppose the voice is the closest you can get to your natural voice. Why did you go with a younger age? You don't look much older than a teenager like this."

"I don't know," he shrugged. "Younger is cuter, isn't it? I wanted something younger than you and Greed – after all, I am younger – but obviously not as young as Pride looks."

"And the clothes?"

"You know I don't like clothes. I figured the less of it, the better."

"Why did you put the Ouroboros tattoo on your thigh?" she asked, glancing down his leg. "Seems a strange place for it."

He followed her gaze and frowned. "It's the only thing I can't change. I think I have the tattoo on one of my legs, but it must be somewhere where I can't see it. Even when I'm looking like you guys, the tattoo's always there."

"You never mentioned that before."

"It doesn't matter, does it?"

"No," Lust said, "but if you can't get rid of it, you may need to be careful of the situations you get into. A spouse is going to question a tattoo suddenly appearing without explanation. And I suppose, of course, that you chose something short to show it off." Lust and Greed both had their tattoos in places that were easily visible. Naturally, he'd wanted to copy them by ensuring his own mark was visible too.

She edged closer into his personal space, giving that teasing, knowing smile of hers. Before he could object, she lightly grabbed his chin, forcing his head one way and then the other. "You took the same eye colour as us," she commented. "I've got to say, it's a rather… androgynous look. Tell me, what did you end up picking?"

"Huh? Picking what?" he asked, swiping his hand at her.

She laughed and released him. "Your gender, silly. What gender did you pick?"

He rolled his eyes at her. "I've already told you I couldn't care less about that stuff. I didn't bother with it."

"Is that so? That's too bad. I've told you before, you're missing out."

Envy ignored the comment. He could well remember the few conversations the two of them had had about his sister's name, but Envy was not human and he simply did not have the same biological urges humans had. 'Lust' was beyond him, and frankly, he was fine with that.

He was saved from needing to reply by the arrival of their other siblings. As usual, it was Greed they heard first; his boisterous voice carried loudly in the passageway, whereas Pride always spoke softly, albeit harshly. Greed sounded angry, arguing in what seemed to them like a one-sided debate, since they couldn't hear Pride's responses.

"-none of your business how I spend my free time! ... Well, look, it's not my problem if you don't like finding me there. You're too uptight. I can do whatever I want... Oh, don't give me that, of course I care about the plan. Doesn't mean we can't enjoy ourselves in the meantime."

And now Envy and Lust could hear footsteps approaching. Two sets, one heavy and the other light, which meant that Pride was coming in his container, and it was his container's voice, not his shadows, that spoke in reply to Greed's gruff complaints.

"… be an embarrassment to us, Greed, and … tired of overlooking your seedier … of time before the Promised Day, so you are free to do as you please, but that is not without limit. What do you expect me to think when I have to dig you out of the places you've been loitering in? My patience – and Father's – will not last forever."

They had overheard Pride and Greed arguing before, and the arguments usually boiled down to one core issue: Pride wanted to be obeyed, and Greed wanted to indulge himself however he pleased. With Pride assisting the higher-ups in establishing Amestris' military dictatorship and Lust working on the crests of blood, Greed had been left to handle the messier problems (usually by killing them). He had none of the finesse necessary to handle anything political. He had started to chafe at these assignments, though, and spent less and less time in their lair. Other than Greed himself, Pride was the only one who knew where Greed wandered off to, and from the sounds of it, he was purposefully going to places Pride did not like in the hopes that their eldest brother would stop keeping tabs on him.

The pair rounded the corner, Pride leading, which only served to make him look smaller than normal when compared with Greed's height. They both paused in the doorway at the unfamiliar face in their home.

"It's Envy," Lust supplied quickly at the twitching shadows around Pride's feet, before there could be another misunderstanding.

Envy tried to maintain his bravado, but it wasn't easy facing Pride's contemptuous stare. Of course, he had expected as much, but he hated that judgemental, haughty look on his eldest brother's boyish face.

Greed only went so far as to take his sunglasses off, looking down at him with bemusement.

"Who-?"

"It's original," Lust explained on Envy's behalf. "Our little brother decided to design his own human body."

"Huh." Greed stepped forward, circling Envy in the same way that Lust had, studying him appraisingly. Envy resisted the urge to fidget. "Not a bad idea. Guess that's better than you using my handsome mug all the time. I gotta' say, though…" He paused, then bluntly said, "you look pretty freaky."

"What's freaky about it?" Envy snapped indignantly. "I look human, don't I? I've got the right number of arms and legs, I've got the same body structure. That's the whole point!"

"Sure, you do look human," Greed replied, "but that is some seriously bad fashion sense."

Envy puffed up, ready to retaliate.

"Ignore him," Pride snapped. "There are humans who prefer to stand out and mock convention. No one will doubt your humanity based on a few unusual features."

Mollified, Envy satisfied himself with a simple glare at Greed, who took it in stride.

"However," Pride continued, "looking human is not enough. If you wish to use this form on a consistent basis, you must have every detail worked out." The boy approached and Greed stepped aside, giving Pride the space to examine Envy himself. A small mocking smile played on his lips.

"As you ought to know, there are many small details on a human body that are easy to overlook," he lectured. A thin tendril of shadow snaked out from his feet and lifted into the air. With it, he flicked Envy's hair back; Envy tried not to flinch. "The hairline. The shape of the ears." The shadow plucked at his hand, pulling his arm up. "The exact shade of skin. The fingerprints." A tiny eye appeared on the shadow, close to his palm. "Which you seem to have forgotten." His tone of voice said he'd been absolutely confident that Envy would forget some detail.

Envy pulled his hand free of Pride's grasp, feeling heat rise in his cheeks before he forced the blood away. What did you expect? he thought to himself bitterly. Be grateful this is all he's criticizing you for.

"Fine," he said, feigning nonchalance. "I'll keep working on it. I'll add some fingerprints. No big deal."

"You can't just add details. You must ensure you are physically the same, every time. These are small things, true, but it is the small things that, if noticed, will produce suspicion. Humans may be fools, but they aren't blind."

"I know that…" he muttered.

"Nevertheless," Lust interjected in an attempt to head off a dispute, "wouldn't you agree that the body suits him, Pride?"

"Yes, I suppose it does," Pride allowed. "I'll help you work out the finer details later. Otherwise, you're liable to miss something."

Envy gave a begrudging nod of consent, knowing there was no point in arguing, and just like that, he lost their attention as they turned to other, more serious business.

"Well then," Pride continued. "We should discuss how we're going to handle that coward Hartz."

"The populace should never have elected him," Lust said, taking a seat on one of the large pipes protruding from Father's throne. "But that stint between Jacobs and Wallace made him the preferred candidate."

"They're so fickle, humans."

"He's from the north, isn't he? Perhaps ethnic loyalty will make him useful in Fisk."

"Yes, but he's also a pacifist, the type who wants to please everyone, who will go to any end to avoid conflict. I've seen his kind before. He won't be led to harm others, not directly. But put him in a situation where compassion and hesitation cause harm, and he should prove quite valuable…"


Envy lifted one hand and studied the faint lines and whorls etched on his palm. Pride had indeed helped him, examining nearly every inch of his new body and checking that every part was intentional, from the shape and size of each of his toes to the length of his eyelashes. At the time, the effort had seemed like a huge waste, but Envy had to admit that the intense scrutiny had helped him stabilize and feel at home in the body. It had made it that much easier for him to treat the body as his natural, default form. And sometimes the tiny details really did matter. After all, it had been a tiny overlooked detail, Maria Ross' mole, that had given him away to Hughes.

Reminiscing caused the rest of the trip to pass by fairly quickly. As he returned to his surroundings, Envy found that they had already reached the outskirts of Dublith without his noticing.

The size of the town surprised him; the way Lust and Greed had talked, Envy had assumed Dublith was a small settlement. Nestled with its north and west sides extending into the foothills of the area's rolling mountains and its east and south sides skirted by modest fields of farmland, Dublith had the resources for a respectably-sized population. Whether the town could be called wealthy or not remained for the country's census to decide, but it obviously wasn't poor.

The south highway entered Dublith under a large sign arching over the road declaring the town's name, similar to most of the cities in Amestris. A pole set up at the entrance square with a smattering of smaller signs helped direct visitors to which street, out of the several leading deeper into town, would take them to their desired destination.

Lust gave a quick glance at the signs, but she seemed to know which direction she wanted and she allowed them to pause only long enough for Envy to splash some water on his face from a well at the edge of the square before leading the way down the busiest street deeper into the city.

His good mood to finally be out of the mansion helped keep Envy from growing too annoyed, even when their path became more crowded as they drew nearer to the business district. Lust had been right in that, even if it wasn't so bad as to be called torture, it certainly wasn't fun: Weaving in and out among groups of humans, occasionally being bumped, mingled with the loud hum of dozens of voices chatting, haggling, and laughing. It was certain to exhaust all but the most buoyant of extroverts.

They both attracted a fair amount of attention, even in the crowds. Lust naturally drew a lot of looks, although she was carrying herself with less flaunting than usual, but Envy caught people giving him a double-take as well. For the ones whose glances lingered on his unusual hair colour or clothing, he glared until they minded their own business. For the others, he just ignored them, though he felt slightly pleased to stand out in the crowd.

Sticking close to Lust's heels, Envy paid attention to the people they passed in the way he always had: as potential disguises. He knew that it didn't matter anymore, he couldn't shape-shift, but there was little else to entertain himself with. Most of the people looked pretty average even in all their diversity: Small and large, tall and short, long hair to bald, light skin to dark. Amestris, being a country formed out of multiple smaller nations, had a great variety of races and ethnicities. Most wore everyday working clothes, not the fashionable suits and dresses from Central that he remembered. And most he gave no more than a quick glance before moving on, but a few people jumped out at him for no particular reason: An old woman doggedly examining every piece of fruit at a farmer's stall, to the farmer's clear annoyance; a short mother with a little girl in tow, holding a small slip of paper and muttering to herself about the errands she still had to run; a fellow with a significant paunch and a ruddy complexion wiping sweat from his brow as he patiently listened to his companion, a tall and dour-looking man who seemed to be complaining about some obnoxious gang of hoodlums that he didn't like; a clean-shaven young man with a briefcase under his arm and a pair of glasses perched on his nose, a scholar of sorts who looked absent-minded and distracted on his way to some appointment.

There was an emotional tenor that ran underneath it all.

"Seems like a pretty well-off town," he commented.

"What?" Lust asked distractedly, pausing at an intersection as she considered which way to go next.

He repeated the comment more loudly.

"What do you mean?"

Envy gestured vaguely at the street, encompassing the people walking by. "The vibe is cheerful. No… Content," he tried to explain. "If people were scared, or worried, or angry, you'd be able to tell. Like in Liore, or West City. Before and after the riots and the wars, everyone gave off a certain… mood. Here, you can tell that the people are comfortable. So I'm saying they must be well-off."

Lust flicked her gaze briefly over those walking past them, perhaps checking to make sure no one was eavesdropping, but she didn't bother replying until she had decided on a direction and set off again.

"That makes sense. This place is in the middle of the country and we never had much need to meddle with it. The Fullmetal boy mentioned they lost a lot of alchemists to the State Alchemist program, but they've never seen war or been at risk from the border and the likelihood of famine seems low here."

There was no need for further comment, but Envy found a small voice in the back of his head whispering that if they ended up turning the town into a new Philosopher's Stone, it would serve the people right. Amestris had never been a country of peace – nor had it been meant to be a country of peace when they'd founded it – and it would only be fair for this town to suffer right along with the rest of them.

When Lust stopped again, they were standing outside a small store with a large window displaying women's clothing and a hanging sign declaring the store's name: Little Central.

Lust made for the door, then paused.

"This will be easier if you aren't around," she said, almost apologetically.

Envy feigned hurt. "What? I won't get in the way! What's the problem?"

"Look, it's going to be annoying enough dealing with this woman without having to add you to the pile of lies I'm planning to tell."

"That's why I want to come in. I wanna' meet this woman!" Envy said, giving her his widest grin.

She grimaced at him. "You want this to work, don't you? Then shut up and let me do my job. Without you."

Envy deflated somewhat, but yes, he did want Lust to be successful with what she had planned.

"Fine, fine. You're no fun sometimes, you know that? So what am I supposed to do instead?"

"I don't care," Lust said, putting her hand on the door. "Wander around. Amuse yourself. We'll probably be here a while, so why don't you learn more about the town and find out what's here? You can wait for me at the square where we entered. Give me three hours."

When she glanced back to get his confirmation, he was already huffily strolling away.


The small bell hanging at the top of the door tinkled gently as Lust entered Little Central. Unlike her earlier visit, Menny was nowhere to be seen and two customers were standing among the racks of clothing with Pearl, one of them holding a blue dress up against her body while the other two women studied it. All three looked up as Lust entered. The strangers eyed Lust as anyone would, slightly curious but ready to mind their own business. Pearl, on the other hand, smiled broadly and quickly excused herself from them.

"Lust! How lovely of you to drop by. Running errands for Lily again?"

Lust returned the smile, purposefully working to make her expression warm. Her irritation with this nosy woman had not diminished, but it wouldn't do to let her know that.

"No, not today. You might say I'm running my own errands," Lust replied. "I hope you're well?"

"Of course, of course, as well as can be expected. It's nice we've had such good weather this past week. My, what a pretty dress! And that necklace suits you so nicely! That's the one Selim bought, isn't it?"

Pearl made a happy clucking sound and, before Lust could stop her, pulled her around in a circle to admire her outfit. Lust supposed clothing was the woman's trade, so it was reasonable for her to be interested, but her teeth still grated in annoyance. Rather than show it, she played up to Pearl's ego, touching the necklace appreciatively.

"Yes, it's very nice. I was surprised by it; Selim was crafty about bringing it home. If Menny helped him pick it out, please thank her for me."

Pearl nodded in a satisfied manner. "Oh yes, Menny is a good girl. A little excitable, but generally a good head on her shoulders. I'm glad to have her help, though she's still in school, so she can only help out part-time."

As Pearl prattled on, Lust saw the two women watching them from the corner of her eye. Both were well-dressed, with fashionable belts, shoes and handbags. Lust pegged them to be in their young thirties. The taller one's long reddish-brown hair was drawn into a fancy bun, and the shorter woman's blond hair was cut short, with a floppy lace hat perched on top of her head. The shorter woman had been the one testing the dress, and although she was keeping her expression neutral, Lust had the distinct impression that she was annoyed to have lost Pearl's attention. The taller woman, however, was studying them with a bright, open look, and when she saw Lust glancing at them, she took it as an invitation to approach.

"Is this who you were telling us about, Pearl?" she asked. "Lily's niece?"

"That's right," Pearl declared, sounding strangely proud. "Lust, this is Ruth Miller and Marcella Jacobs." She gestured to the shorter woman, who gave the tiniest sigh before joining them, draping the dress she was still holding across one arm. Now that she was closer, Lust saw that the woman was not only shorter than Lust had first thought, with her head only reaching Lust's shoulders, but she was a slim thing, with a narrow waist and small chest and overall dainty figure. Beside her friend, the contrast was sharper, for Ruth was far from thin and not at all dainty. "They're good friends of mine, and the ones who suggested finding a model for the store."

Ruth extended her hand with a smile, which Lust took and shook with a smile of her own.

"A pleasure," Lust murmured.

"And Pearl was definitely right. You would make a great model! Don't you think, Marcella?" Ruth exclaimed, turning to her companion. Marcella was far less enthusiastic, though she nodded her agreement.

"Pearl said you weren't all that interested, though." She tilted her head to one side curiously. "We didn't know Lily has very many relatives. Is it true you're from Central?"

Lust let her hand fall down to her side, clenching her fist for just a moment and feeling her flimsy nails dig into her palm. It seemed that Pearl was not just nosy, but a gossip. Just how much had she told these two strangers? She ignored the question.

"Since you've mentioned it, I was hoping to speak with you about that," she directed at Pearl. All three women perked up, so Lust added, as apologetically as she could manage, "Alone, if you don't mind."

"Actually, we're kind of busy…" Marcella said, just as Ruth exclaimed, "Of course!" The two women eyed each other for a moment.

"I suppose it's alright," Marcella allowed grudgingly. "But Pearl, we have to make it to that appointment soon, so we can't be dawdling."

"Don't be silly," Ruth countered as Pearl took Lust's arm and began leading her to the stairwell at the back of the store. "We have plenty of time! And you don't need the both of us to always comment on everything you try on."

"Maybe not, but we're still customers…" Marcella's voice trailed off as they went out of earshot.

Pearl barely waited for Lust to take a seat in her puffy beige chair in the upstairs living room before optimistically prompting, "Have you reconsidered my offer? It would be so lovely if you said yes."

"Yes," Lust replied so simply that Pearl, for all her optimism, looked taken aback.

"Really?"

Lust nodded. "I'm sorry about my hesitation the other day. Truly, I was flattered, but it was just so out of the blue that I didn't know what to say. I'm not the type to jump into things without thinking about them first. I hope you weren't offended."

"It was disappointing at the time, but I understand. Must have seemed to be coming out of nowhere!" Pearl laughed.

"But I do have a… concern." Lust paused for a moment, composing her face into a picture of reluctance mingled with embarrassment. She looked down at the floor, avoiding meeting Pearl's eyes, and fidgeted with her hands. She could feel Pearl's curiosity growing along with some worry, and she internally smiled. This type of performance was not as common for her, but it was still working perfectly. Envy would have been pleased; he did so enjoy acting.

"I was in a… relationship when I was in Central. It was serious but..." She paused again, as if searching for the right word. "-complicated. And it did not end on good terms. Unfortunately, the man is a soldier. In fact, he is a high-ranking officer with the military. And let us just say that he did not want the relationship to end." She thought of Mustang and Jean and decided that it wasn't really that much of a lie.

Pearl tsked and muttered under her breath in sympathy. "I know the type. Men! Thinking they own a woman, refusing to let her go when things clearly aren't working. It's ridiculous!"

"It would be very bad for me if he discovered me here. It was hard enough leaving Central without him finding out. So the idea of putting my face on posters, even for a local store… Well, it feels risky. I'm not sure about it."

Pearl had shifted forward in her seat, nodding as Lust spoke.

"I completely understand, my dear, no need to say more! I don't need the details. It is unfortunate, but these things happen. I had a clingy ex-boyfriend myself when I was younger. Thankfully, a new and stronger man and a harsh public shaming worked wonders! Though that probably won't work in your case. Lily was married to a military man, wasn't she? Love of the uniform must run in your family!"

Pearl laughed and Lust hid her mouth with her hand to keep from laughing along with her. Most of the men she'd dealt with had indeed been military, but that had been from necessity, not choice. She waited until she had composed herself again before speaking.

"My family suggested I do the modelling, but disguise my appearance."

"Oh, yes, what a great idea! I'm sure there are plenty of ways we can make you look different. Is this the look you had when you were in Central? Sunglasses are pretty popular in ads right now, and there are so many options with make-up. The girls downstairs will surely have some good ideas. Let's go get their opinion."

Lust hesitated. "I'd rather this stay a secret between us," she said as they stood up. "It is embarrassing and I know how rumours start so easily in a small town…"

"You've got that right. People can be so nosy sometimes." Pearl said it without a hint of irony. If anything, she sounded offended by the idea.

When they went back downstairs to the front of the store, Ruth and Marcella were still among the dresses, comparing items in whispers that had grown a fraction more urgent. Their deadline for leaving was apparently drawing close.

"It sounds like fun!" Ruth exclaimed upon hearing the plan, clapping her hands like a foolish girl. "I've been so bored this summer; it'll be fun to have a project!"

"Yes, yes, fine. We'll help," Marcella said tersely. "But Pearl, we really don't have the time right now. Can you just tell me which of these two dresses will be best for the party so we won't be late? I really like the lacework on the yellow dress, but I think this blue one hangs better on me."

Pearl's attention was easy to distract and she bustled over to her two friends with a short gesture to Lust that it would only take a minute, leaving her to stand slightly apart from the three women among the clothing racks. Lust tapped her foot impatiently, but decided it wouldn't be worthwhile to try to regain Pearl's attention. She had one more thing to discuss with her, the most important (though seemingly innocuous) thing, but she was in no rush, whereas Marcella and Ruth were, and she wanted to stay in the good graces of these people. She took a seat in the store's front window, alternating between watching the passersby and listening to Marcella continue her dithering over which dress she wanted, which would match the shoes and hat she had already picked out and would better suit the event they'd be attending.

For all of her concern over the time, Marcella did not make up her mind easily, and by the time she gave in to her friends' flattery and enthusiasm, Lust had begun to regret her first choice of humans to align herself with. If there was one thing she had a hard time tolerating, it was indecisiveness.

"You'll look lovely!" Ruth assured her as Marcella dug into her purse. Pearl took the blue dress to the cash register, calling Lust over to join them even as she rang in the sale.

"What do you think, ladies?" Pearl asked. "Is everyone free tomorrow evening? We can pick out some sample outfits, try a few different looks, and then I'll talk to Hans about getting the photos taken. I bet I can wheedle his price down once the old codger finds out what the subject is." She winked and Ruth and Marcella both laughed. Hans apparently had a reputation. "Lust, why don't you invite Lily to come too? I'll ask Pierre to pick you up – imagine asking Lily to walk all that way, especially in the summer! We'll make a dinner of it."

"That would be nice," Lust agreed to the others' nods. Marcella was already putting her wallet away and heading for the door, purchase in hand. Ruth turned and waved at her as the pair left the shop. "Pearl, I have another small matter I needed to ask you. I'm afraid Selim bought another item when we were last here. For Lily." She reached into the sash of her dress and pulled out the ladybug clip. She didn't need to explain further; the clip was visibly broken.

"What happened to it?" Pearl asked, frowning and taking it from her.

Lust feigned embarrassment. "I was trying it on and it got stuck in my hair and, well…"

"Sloth. I could use you for a moment. Wake up and break this for me."

It was still early in the morning and Sloth was lying in bed flat on his back, snoring loudly. The room was dark, the sun still on the other side of the building, though the curtains had been left open. Sloth's room was still bare and item-less except for the furniture and some worn clothing he'd thoughtlessly left in random piles on the floor. Lust expected Lily would start to nag him about that if it went on for much longer.

After some prodding, Sloth opened his eyes and looked up at her dully. Without a word, he held his hand open for the hairclip.

"… Why?" he asked simply, staring at the piece as she dropped it into his palm.

"You don't need to know," Lust told him. "I've already tried to break it myself and I'd have to take a tool to it. I need it to look like it was broken by accident."

Sloth pondered this for a moment. "But it wouldn't be an accident," he mumbled, sounding mildly puzzled.

"Just bend the metal or twist the clip there or something."

"… This belongs to Ms. Bradley?"

It was unusual for Sloth to question any of them – he usually didn't care enough to bother. "So?" she asked. "Come on now. Envy and I are going to Dublith soon. We don't have time to waste."

Sloth turned his gaze from the clip to his sister. Sloth had always been apathetic and it made him difficult to read and to be around. But now, there was the tiniest spark of emotion in his eyes.

"What?" she asked impatiently, shifting her feet. "There's no need to feel guilty. I'm going to have it fixed later. Just do it."

He stared at her for a few more moments, then wordlessly squeezed the metal in his large hand. In his previous life, Sloth would have reduced the small piece of jewellery to scrap in a second. Now, it obviously required more effort, though Sloth's expression didn't change, so it was impossible to tell if he noticed his loss of inhuman strength. Compared to the average human, it was still more than enough. The clip bent and twisted, and when he opened his hand, the clip portion was at the wrong angle and the left wing was bent down along the ladybug's side. He gave it back to her without a word, and had resumed snoring by the time she reached his door.

"That's strange…" Pearl muttered as she held the clip up into the light to examine it more closely. "There must have been a fault in the metal. Naturally I'll replace it for you, but we won't have the exact same piece, I'm afraid. The one downside of being a boutique is that we only carry one-of-a-kind items."

"No, please, Lily really liked this piece, and I don't want her to know I broke it. You mentioned there's an alchemist in town. Lujon, I think you said? Do you think he would fix it for me?"

"Why, of course he would. I'm sure an alchemist would have no problem fixing something like this." Pearl laughed, handing the hairclip back. "But then, Selim knows a bit of alchemy, doesn't he? I don't know much about it, but is this really too difficult a job for him?"

"I don't want him to know I broke it either," Lust said, accepting the clip and tucking it back into her sash. She continued with her embarrassed expression, which Pearl seemed to believe without a hint of suspicion.

"Right, of course not. Well, Lujon lives a few blocks over, on Beech Street, though it's hard to be sure when he'll be home. A lot of requests require on-site attention, I think, but he usually puts out a sign saying when he expects to be back. You just turn left at the end of this street, straight past two more streets, right, then it's the small brown house on your left. There's a sign. Here, I'll draw a map for you..."


Though Envy rarely admitted it to himself, he didn't like to be alone. He liked to talk and having no one else around was boring.

'I don't care what you do', he thought, remembering the way he would have transformed his vocal cords to match his sister's as, instead, he sulkily mimicked her voice in his head. 'Explore the town. Amuse yourself.' Ha! Easy for her to say. Like there's anything even remotely interesting around here!

But, with no other options, he took Lust's suggestion and wandered around, enjoying the mild exercise after the days he'd spent in bed. He passed through a few squares littered with flower beds and some shady trees, the city's weak attempt to create green spaces – most of Dublith, though, was dusty and taken up by buildings. The homes in the residential parts of town were modest for the most part, but they were far from shabby and matched the people living in them. The market was on the south side of Dublith, toward the farmlands, and Envy found the abandoned ruins of some sort of industrial factory in the north-east. That part of the city was clearly the home of the poorer citizens; graffiti and garbage, not to mention the unsavoriness of the people he passed, easily attested as much.

Really, there were a lot of things to see. A small library. A bank. City Hall. A modest hospital. A hotel. A small school. The train station. Envy paused at the station to examine the schedule posted on the bulletin board.

Hmm... A public train heads to Central from South City one day, the next day it goes from Central back to the South. Same thing for the train between here and the East. And there's a train that goes to Fotcett twice a week. Usually departs around noon. He filed the information away to maybe pass on to Greed later. If he wants to leave, no harm in making it as easy for him as possible.

As he meandered back toward the south side of town, a bell tower chimed the hour and Envy did some mental figuring.

Noon already? Hmm, let's see... We left the mansion around nine, and the walk in took about an hour. Which means we probably split up around half past ten. Lust said to give her three hours, so I've still got another hour and a half to kill. Ugh.

He was getting tired of walking, figuring that he'd seen the main things of interest, and his stomach was starting to grumble. He had no money, but Envy didn't expect that to be too much of a problem. Sometimes stores gave out free samples, and if not, there was sure to be an opportunity to swipe something without being noticed.

All things considered, Envy had never had a big appetite. True, his real body had demanded far more food than his human guise should have needed – a need that did not change depending on what form he took. Like Gluttony, he had needed to eat a lot, which had once or twice gained him some ribbing from the other soldiers in the military's cafeteria. Unlike his tubby sibling, though, Envy cared little about food. His natural tongue, with its thick saliva and writhing surface, did not have a good sense of taste, and Envy knew that he'd never quite managed to get a human's taste buds properly copied. He ate when he was hungry and considered the food to be fuel and nothing more.

His stomach gave another growl. Alright, I'm working on it! he growled back, looking at the stalls and watching for an opportune moment. His eyes fell on a crowded pastry shop with a table set up out front. Perfect, he thought. Enough people were gathered around the table, picking the items they wanted and waiting to hand over payment, that it was laughably easy to pick up a cinnamon bun at the edge of the table while he pretended to view other items, then, keeping the morsel at his side, to frown as if not seeing anything he wanted and slipping away through the crowd.

Even if one or two humans had seen him, Envy bet on the odds that only a rare few would speak up. Some humans naturally hated conflict and, unless they were the victims, were unlikely to say anything because of the argument that would ensue. Some would doubt their own eyes, or think that they had misunderstood, perhaps that the owner and 'thief' had some prior arrangement. Some humans simply couldn't be bothered over something that didn't directly involve them. And others, who felt that life had given them a hard lot and resented the high prices set by the shop, would say nothing because they secretly felt thievery was fine when it was the poor stealing from the rich. If someone had suddenly yelled out and pointed a finger at him and accused him of stealing, Envy would have been very surprised.

In any event, he felt not the slightest shred of guilt about it.

If I didn't feel bad about seeing humans slaughter each other in bloody war, I'm not going to feel bad about stealing a 200 cenz treat. Which tastes absolutely delicious, he mused philosophically, alternating bites with licking his fingers, which were getting sticky with frosting no matter how he held it. I should have stolen a napkin too. Sweetness was the one flavour that even his natural form had been sensitive to. Now, with a human tongue given to him by the Elrics, it tasted even better.

Envy found a spot to eat in a narrow side street where there were no people to bump or bother him. The buildings here, though no taller than the ones in the wider streets but because they were closer together, blocked the afternoon sun, making it pleasantly cool and shaded. He finished his treat, wiped the last hint of frosting on his skort, and then settled back on some stone steps.

I'll just wait until the clock tower tolls one and then I'll go find Lust. No point in wandering around. I'll be bored no matter what I do, so a nap's as good as anything else.

He shifted until he was more comfortable, relaxed against the steps, and closed his eyes.

The sounds of the market were audible but thankfully muted, forming the rising and falling hum of the heartbeat of a city. Shutters opened somewhere down the alley and a cloth snapped vigorously from a second floor window before the shutters closed again. A cat meowed fairly close by, but when Envy cracked an eye to see if the creature was looking at him, it had already padded away on silent cat tiptoes. A door squeaked gently on rusty hinges to the jingle of a key, followed by a set of footsteps walking past and some quiet conversation between two people about what to have for lunch. From the direction of the main street, clicking heels on the irregular cobblestones of the alleyway drew closer, slowing as they approached him. Envy opened one eye again, just enough to take a peek.

He saw boots of soft brown leather that went up to the bottom of the knee. A flash of pale skin underneath the hemline of a dark purple dress, cut with a ruffle at the bottom before becoming close-cut from the knees to hips.

Envy hadn't planned to examine anything more than that, except that the person had stopped in front of him.

I'm not blocking the door, he thought irritably. Buzz off. Don't bother me. He thought maybe the person was just wondering who he was or perhaps was curious about his strange appearance, but when they didn't move after a few seconds, Envy opened both eyes and looked up, glaring.

"What do you want?" he demanded before getting a good look at the person.

It was a woman, which was not really surprising considering what Envy had already seen. The dress from the hips up remained close to her body but wasn't clingy, creating a flattering line that naturally could not match Lust's proportions but was not that far behind. Her bosom was average, neither large nor small, and a simple pendant of blue stone dangled on a silver chain around her neck. Her dress's sleeves went all the way down to her wrists, and a second layer of white cloth modestly covered her skin from shoulders to neck. She probably wasn't any taller than him, but her boots gave an extra inch or two and lying down made it harder to tell.

The woman herself had an almost doll-like face. Her skin was smooth and pale, the lines of her cheeks and chin soft, her neck long. She had a small mouth and nose. Her hair was straight and dark, a shiny black that almost looked purple, and was cut in a bowl style to hang a few inches above her shoulders, partly covering her ears. Her straight bangs fell down to just brush her thin eyebrows. Her eyes, which matched her hair in colour, were sharp and scrutinizing.

She was looking down at him with a small smile quirking at the corner of her thin lips.

"You look bored," she commented blandly. Her voice was soft and feminine, but not in any way timid. Envy pegged her to be in her mid-twenties, certainly no older than thirty.

Envy shifted, pushing himself slightly up on his elbow to diminish the height gap. He kicked his leg insolently against the steps. "So what? I don't see that it's any business of yours," he said challengingly.

"Are you waiting for someone?"

The direct question threw him off. "What makes you say that?" he demanded with narrowed eyes.

"I'm returning to my shop," she continued, ignoring both his question and his suspicious tone. "If you're not busy, why don't you come with me? I'll give you a free reading. After all, it's providence that we should meet here." Her tone was mysterious and she gave him a mischievous look, as if she had said something funny, before she turned to continue on her way down the alley.

Envy stared at her back for a few seconds, feeling bemused. Even he knew that that had been strange. Ordinary people did not normally start conversations with strangers with no prompting and then invite them to follow.

But, Envy mused, he tended to enjoy the company of strange people. He'd gotten along well with Kimblee, the self-styled heretic, and the cross-eyed doctor in charge of Wrath's creation (although the fellow had been obsessed with his inhumane experiments to the point of being irritating, even for someone as cruel as Envy).

I am bored, he thought, and it's not like I have anything better to do. Maybe this will be interesting. Besides, what could she do to me? Envy was not so foolish as to think that a woman could not be dangerous – one thought of Lust, or even of Hawkeye, easily attested to that – but the girl did not have a military bearing and he hadn't gotten any dangerous vibes from her. He saw no need to be worried.

When Envy got up from the steps and began to pad after her, she didn't even turn to look behind her. She just kept walking as if certain that he would follow.


Lust stood in front of the brown house to which Pearl's map had led her. Beech Street was not a busy market street, but a quieter residential area where a few entrepreneurs operated small businesses from their homes. A few people were out walking in the streets, and other than the usual glances spared for an attractive woman, no one paid her any particular attention, which suited Lust just fine.

She tried to guess the temperament of this Lujon fellow by the house's exterior, though there was not a lot to work with; there was no yard to speak of and no hints of personality in the windows, on the door or anywhere else for that matter. Which was information in its own right. The building was not a new one. It was too small for a family and the fact that Pearl had mentioned him being unattached suggested that Lujon was on the young side. These two facts together led Lust to guess that he was renting the house, which looked like the perfect size for a young bachelor. If someone was unsure whether they would be staying in one place for very long, they were less likely to treat it as permanent, hence the lack of personality to the place.

There was no note on the door indicating that the man was out, just a small sign bearing a triangle inside a circle to designate the presence of an alchemist, so Lust gave a few sharp raps on the door before opening it and standing in the entryway.

"Hello?" she called.

She could see most of the living room and dining room from where she stood, as well as a stairway leading up to the second floor. The living room had the feel of not living up to its name at all, with sparse furnishings and a too-tidy appearance, while the dining room table bore a few scattered books and papers.

There was a clatter from above of a chair being scrapped backwards on the floor.

"I'm so sorry," a voice called down to her, only slightly muffled by the thin floorboards between them. "Am I late for another appointment? I'm always losing track of time..."

A man came down the stairs, almost stumbling half-way down as he slung a black bag over his shoulder. In his distracted rush, he didn't look at her until he reached the bottom, and when he saw her, he stopped short and stared.

He was half a head taller than her and slightly on the thin side. His eyes, blue-green, were framed by square-rimmed glasses, and his hair, a sable brown, was messy and looked as if he had forgotten to brush it. His clothes lent to the impression that he didn't pay much attention to his appearance, for his shirt was a plain blue button-up with noticeable wrinkles. His skin lacked any sort of tan and although he didn't look weak, he certainly didn't look like he was suited to physical labour. Overall, he fit the stereotype of an alchemist perfectly.

"Are you... Lujon?" Lust prompted after a moment.

He started. "Yes. I mean, yes, I am." He shifted the bag on his shoulder. "Can I help you?"

Lust smiled at him. My, this is going to be easy. He is young. Already stammering over himself. How cute.

"I'm sorry to stop by when you weren't expecting a visit. Pearl recommended you." There was no recognition on his face, so she added, "Pearl Chanel? The owner of the lady's clothing store a few streets over?"

"Oh yes. Pearl Chanel. I know her."

"She told me you're an alchemist?"

He nodded. "Yes, I am. I'm sorry, but you don't look familiar. I mean, I haven't seen you around before…?"

She shook her head. "I'm new to town. I just moved here a few weeks ago. The name's Lust." She extended her hand, which Lujon shook slowly. Now that she was closer, she could see a smudge of ink on his chin. His face was clean-shaven, at least. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Do you know Lily Bradley? The widow in the mountains south of town? I'm her niece."

He nodded again. "Yes, I know Ms. Bradley. Or at least I know of her. Most people do, what with her son being a prodigy and all. So you're a relative of theirs?"

"That's right."

"Are you visiting for long?" he asked. The words were polite, but lacked interest. Lujon seemed to only be asking because it was expected of him. So he's not the social type. I can still work with that.

She put her hand to her cheek and gave him a gentle grin. She didn't want to flirt too strongly, but she had the feeling that this man might not notice subtler hints. "It's hard to say for certain, but for now, that's the plan." A light lilt in her voice turned it into a suggestion that she hoped to find something to make her want to remain. "I was looking for an alchemist to fix something for me. Do you think you can help?"

She reached into her sash and produced the ladybug pin, which he took and held up in the light from the window.

"Hmm, the metal's bent and the clasp is broken. Yes, this looks pretty simple to repair. It'll only take a minute or two. Did you want to wait in the living room and I'll just take this upstairs to fix?"

He had already turned to start back up the stairs without waiting for an answer. Annoyed, Lust went after him without saying anything. Her sandals were soft enough on the steps that he didn't seem to realize she'd followed him.

The second floor was no more interesting than the first. At least it was clean. She'd been in men's apartments before that had been far messier, but she thought Lujon was not necessarily tidy on purpose, but that he was simply too absorbed in his work to use the rest of the house. His office only confirmed her suspicions. What was supposed to be the master bedroom was instead taken up by a large desk and two long bookshelves.

Lujon pulled the bag from his shoulder and absently slung it across the back of his chair as he sat down, scraping the floor again as he pulled his chair in closer to the desk. There was a rotating lamp mounted on the desk's corner, and Lujon turned the light on and opened one of the desk drawers, producing an eyeglass similar to what most jewellers used. Removing his glasses, he pressed the device to his eye while bringing the pin close.

"What are you doing?" Lust asked curiously, leaning over to peer around his shoulder.

Lujon jumped in his chair and nearly dropped both the hairpin and the eyeglass. He twisted around and gave her a look that was part exasperated and part embarrassed.

"Sorry," she said with honest bemusement. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"I didn't realize you followed me…" Lujon muttered. His eyes flicked briefly to her bosom, where her leaning forward had created a generous flash of milky-white skin and cleavage beneath her necklace, then jerked away in the clear hope that she hadn't noticed. The faintest of blushes crept into his cheeks.

"What are you doing?" she repeated.

"I was checking the material," he explained, giving her a quizzical look while avoiding eye contact. "I need to know what type of metal I'm working with in order to transmute it."

"May I?" Lust asked, gesturing to the eyeglass. Wordlessly, Lujon handed the glass and pin to her. "So what type of metal is this?" she asked as she pressed the glass to her eye and held the pin under the light. The magnification was more powerful than she expected and the red wing appeared as nothing more than speckled, textured colour.

"It's a mix," Lujon said, "but I'll need another look at it..."

Sheepishly, she handed the items back to him.

"Most jewellery is made up of various alloys: Steel, iron, and copper blends, for example," Lujon told her as he studied the piece. Perhaps he was just trying to be polite, but she had the impression that he was nervous and telling her these things simply to prevent an uncomfortable silence. He was still avoiding looking at her directly. "Silver or gold might be used with more expensive pieces, but even then, usually the precious metal makes a thin layer over the common alloy underneath."

"To rip off the customer?" she asked. Lujon shook his head.

"Not necessarily," he explained. "Pure gold is too soft to be used in jewellery without combining it with other metals, while a pure silver piece would be brittle and hard to work with. And then the stones might be precious, like diamond or ruby or sapphire, but they can just as easily be cheaper look-alikes or even coloured glass. And sometimes the item will be painted."

"And you need to know all of this in order to fix it?"

Lujon placed the pin and eyeglass down, then drew forth a blank sheet of paper from inside the desk. With practiced ease, he sketched a circle, drew a square inside it, and added a few symbols around the inner edge.

"The first step of alchemy is always analysis. You can't transmute something without understanding what you're deconstructing and reconstructing first."

"I know that much," Lust replied coolly before catching herself and softening her words. "I mean, I've heard Selim mention it." She had heard of those three steps before: Analysis, Deconstruction, and Reconstruction. And yet it was easy to forget that first step, probably because the best alchemists – and the Homunculi had only ever focused on the best – seemed to not even have to think about what they were doing. The Elrics even had enough skill to fight with their alchemy. She had heard the whispers that the 12-year old Fullmetal had been an alchemy genius, but she'd never actually considered what had made people call him that, the vast scientific knowledge that backed up his title.

"Oh yes, I had heard that Ms. Bradley's son was studying alchemy," Lujon murmured, half distracted by his work. He placed the pin in the middle of the circle and, one quick flash of light later, he turned around in his chair, handing the pin back to her. The clasp was fixed and the metal bent back into its proper shape. "Is it true he's studying with the Elric brothers?"

Lust hesitated, then nodded. There was no point in denying a fact that was likely well-known around town. "You know of them?" she asked.

"Know of them? What alchemist doesn't!" For the first time, there was genuine excitement in Lujon's voice. "The older the youngest State Alchemist ever, and the younger not far behind! And I've heard that they studied with an alchemist right here in Dublith. And when they were children, no less. The older locals practically brag about it." He stood and stretched across the desk to turn the lamp off, then re-slung the bag over his shoulder and began leading the way back downstairs.

"If I ever get the chance, I would love to speak with Alphonse Elric," Lujon continued. "I've heard he's studied in Xing and knows some Alkahestry, and they say Xingese alchemy is specialized for healing. I've been doing some study of the medical field, and it would be wonderful to discuss it with someone so experienced..."

"You're interested in medical alchemy, then?" Lust asked as she followed him down the stairs. "I've heard that's a rare specialty, isn't it?"

Lujon paused on the steps, and it was only a quick grab at the railing that saved Lust from stepping into him and sending the pair of them crashing down to the bottom. The fool man didn't even seem to notice.

"A few years ago, a sickness spread through the area where I grew up," he said in a quiet but steady voice, his back still turned to her. "You know how these sicknesses come and go; no one can predict them, and we all have to deal with them as best we can. I was travelling for my studies at the time, so I wasn't even able to make it back until the disease had almost run its course. But it was a horrible thing. They called it Fossilitis. A person's body became rigid, their flesh turning brittle and hard, like stone. It was horribly painful and there was very little we could do to slow it down, much less cure it. No one ever figured out what caused it, either."

"... I'm sorry." She wasn't the least bit sorry, but it seemed like the appropriate response. The tale tickled at her memory; perhaps it had happened before she'd died. But of course, there was always some sort of plague or natural disaster running through a country as large as Amestris – if it wasn't likely to have any impact on the Nationwide Transmutation Circle, there was no reason for the Homunculi to care about it, and those events deemed insignificant had a habit of running together in Lust's long memory.

"Thank you," Lujon said, turning just long enough to make direct eye contact with her, the first time he had done so – he had very serious eyes – before continuing down the stairs and with his story.

"I've always felt like there should have been more I could do. My hometown didn't have any alchemists. My parents always said I was bright and that I should pursue alchemy if that's what I wanted. And I have been able to help a lot of people with the alchemy I know." He waved his hand dismissively. "Fixing broken tools and toys. Helping with construction on a new house. I had thought that those skills were service enough – most of the time they are useful and appreciated – but they're paltry things when compared to human life. What we really needed was medical alchemy, and I didn't know any. It was especially disheartening to have spent so much time studying and yet to be so helpless."

"Say," Lujon said suddenly as they stopped in the entryway. "Alphonse Elric visits Ms. Bradley from time to time, doesn't he? To tutor her son? Do you think he'd be willing to see me? Could you ask him for me?"

The conversation had not gone at all in the direction Lust had intended, but now she saw the opening she needed, and she pounced.

"A favour? My, how bold!" she laughed. After Lujon's sombre story, the sound was a bit jarring, but she couldn't take it back, so she ignored it. "I owe you a little something for your help, but Alphonse Elric is a busy man. It's a big favour you're asking of me." Lujon stuttered, looking embarrassed and undoubtedly prepared to insist that she didn't need to, but she cut him off before he could get a word in. "How about an Equivalent Exchange? I'll do you this favour if you do one for me."

He hesitated, looking confused.

"What do you need?"

She smiled coyly and held up one finger. "Lessons. I'd like some alchemy lessons."

"You mean... you're a student?" Lujon still looked confused, but he didn't sound opposed to the idea.

"Yes. Well, I'd like to be. I've been trying to study on my own, but..." She needed to seem vulnerable now – after all, she was asking for his help – but the admission still irritated her to no end. It took very little effort to feign embarrassment. "... it hasn't been going well. I didn't think it would be this difficult."

"The beginning is the hardest part," Lujon said with a smile to say that she had nothing to be embarrassed about. "I was wondering why you were asking all those questions." He paused, frowning. "Why ask me? If the Elric brothers are teaching Ms. Bradley's son, surely you could study under them too, couldn't you?"

She had already considered this objection, so the counter-argument flowed easily from her lips.

"Have you met Selim?" Lujon shook his head, and she gave an exaggerated sigh. "Don't get me wrong when I say this, but the boy is an arrogant know-it-all. In some ways it's good he's so smart, but if you've never been constantly corrected by a child who barely reaches your knees, you might not appreciate how exceedingly annoying it can be. If he knows that I'm studying alchemy too, he won't be able to keep from butting in and trying to lecture me and proving how much farther along he is. I'm sure you can understand."

Lujon tried to look sympathetic, but it was clear he didn't really understand.

"I've never been a teacher before," he warned her.

"That doesn't matter. I just need some instruction up to where I can perform transmutations on my own. Just the basics."

He still looked unconvinced, so she upped the ante.

"Or maybe you'd rather not spend time with me...? Which, I must say, would hurt my feelings."

"No, of course not! I didn't mean to imply-"

"Then do we have a deal?" She offered him her hand, long and slim and inviting, and Lujon took it with a look that said he felt as if he'd been forced into agreeing to something, but wasn't sure exactly what is was or how it had happened.

"It will be a pleasure to learn from you, Lujon," Lust said sweetly, giving him her most charming smile. "I'm going to be starting a job in town soon, so I'll visit again in the next few days and we can make plans then. And naturally, I'll keep my side of the deal the next time Alphonse Elric visits us. Until then!"

She left Lujon feeling more pleased with herself than she could remember since being resurrected.

There really is nothing quite as satisfying as convincing someone to do something they don't want to. God, I really have missed manipulating people.


The strange woman led the way down the alley, across a main street, and then down a side street that ended in a small square mostly in shadows cast by the surrounding buildings. Envy followed silently several feet behind her with his arms crossed behind his head, but he paid close attention to the route, not wanting to get lost and mindful that he only had little more than an hour before Lust would be looking for him.

She stopped in front of one of the buildings. Envy had assumed, at first glance, that they were all apartments, but he revised his opinion as he examined their destination more closely. In the small window beside the front entrance was a sign with cursive writing that seemed to be some sort of advertisement, though it was very odd as far as advertisements went.

'The Desert's stars reveal all,' he read. The statement was followed by some smaller text: Half hour consultations with Lyra. Available by appointment.

The Desert? Envy wondered. It's capitalized, so is it referring to the Great Eastern Desert? Or maybe it's the name of the business. And what does it mean, 'stars reveal all'? What are these consultations about? Some kind of private astronomy lessons? Surely there's no market for that. At least he now knew her name; it seemed reasonably safe to assume that 'Lyra' was the one who owned the store and who had led him here.

The interior did little to clarify things. The place was dimly lit and, as they entered, Envy was hit by a heavy, smoky scent. Incense, he realized, recognizing the smell from his time in Ishval. The Ishvalan temples often included incense in their ceremonies, but he hadn't noticing it being something that Amestrians used. She had probably needed to have it specially imported, unless she knew how to make it herself.

They seemed to be standing in a waiting room, for four chairs sat in a row against one wall, while a side table held a few magazines. A large tapestry was draped over the opposite wall, depicting less a scene and more a series of symbols that reminded Envy strongly of their father's alchemy textbooks, though he didn't think they were alchemic. Tiny yellow stars studded a dark navy-blue background taken up by a circle with a variety of creatures running along its edge. He picked out a lion, a goat, a snake, and a beetle, though they were so stylized that it was hard to identify them. Other symbols and words written in a language he didn't recognize were scattered in an orderly fashion near the middle of the circle, creating the sense of an intricate but incomprehensible web.

"Welcome," she said, turning to him and giving a half bow. "As you can see, I don't have any clients right now. Allow me a minute to ready my office and then we shall have a look at your stars together, hmm?"

"Fine, but I don't know what you mean by that," Envy replied. "I came with you 'cause I was bored. What are these consultations about anyway?"

Lyra didn't immediately answer. Instead, she walked across the waiting area to open a door on the other side of the room. The connecting room, Envy could see as he peered past her shoulder, was not much larger than the waiting room, and it definitely reminded him of the few alchemists' offices he'd seen. Most of the space was taken up by a large oaken desk. Sheets of paper and a few books covered its surface, and it was this part of her office that Lyra seemed to want to ready, for she walked around the desk and began gathering and sorting the sheets, tucking them into different folders, and replacing the books onto the shelves of the bookcase against the wall behind her. Large charts were posted on the walls, though Envy was too far to read them well and doubtless they would make no sense to him even if he could.

"Before I can answer your questions," Lyra said as she worked, "I must ask: What do you believe about free will?"

"Free will?" Envy repeated doubtfully. "What do you mean?"

"Do humans freely choose how they behave, what actions they take? Or are our behaviours dictated by our biology, social conditioning, and how we were raised?" she elaborated. Her tone was light and playful for such a heavy question, as if it were merely a joke or perhaps a formality.

Envy shrugged and leaned against the doorpost, affecting disinterest. "I dunno'," he drawled. "And I don't care. It's not something worth thinking about."

"And why is that?" she questioned, glancing up at him through her eyelashes with her head still lowered.

He paused, taking a second to think about it.

"Well, how would you go about proving you have free will? Anyone who thinks free will doesn't exist is just going to argue that you're conditioned to think that way."

Lyra nodded. "A valid point," she conceded. "So then, let me re-phrase the question. Did you side-step my question because you chose to, or did you do so because your past dictated such a response?"

Envy did not appreciate being forced on the issue. "It's none of your business what my opinion is. How about you then? Are you badgering me because you choose to? Because if that's the case, I'm gonna' be annoyed about it."

Lyra gave a light laugh. Envy had to admit that he was impressed by how she was taking his attitude in stride.

"Please, sit," she said courteously, gesturing to the chair on the other side of the desk as she took her own seat, sitting straight-backed but relaxed with the air of a professional. Shrugging, he joined her at the desk.

"I am not asking for the sake of idle intellectual interest," she explained conversationally. "Rather, the answer is important. Both to my profession and to the task at hand." As she spoke, she pulled a file folder from one of the desk's drawers. "If people have complete free will, that would be troublesome for what I do. But if people have no choice in how they act, what good would my services be to them?"

"And what are your services?" he asked.

Lyra paused before answering, and Envy recognized in that short moment the attempt to create a dramatic effect.

"Why," she said in a measured tone, "I foretell an individual's future."

"Oh really?" he replied doubtfully, leaning back in the chair and crossing his arms over his chest. "How?"

"It is an ancient science, a great truth that humanity has lost in recent times," Lyra murmured. Her tone was quiet, almost reverential, with an undercurrent of lecturing. She had closed her eyes, and Envy only barely managed to keep from rolling his own. He had no doubt now about what type of person this woman was, but he decided not to interrupt. "But humans have always felt respect and awe for the heavens. And there is good reason for this, for the worlds above and below us are connected.

"Although it is difficult to understand and difficult to explain, the stars reflect what is happening in our world. As such, the one who can read the stars' positions properly can know what happened in the past, what is happening in the present, and what will happen in the future. That is what I do."

"..."

"I can see that you're sceptical."

"Naw, I should have guessed as much," Envy replied dryly. "The smoke, the symbols, your deliberate mysterious air. You're one of those religious charlatans, the con artists who trick people into believing what they say for profit or power." He sniffed in disparagement and waved one hand dismissively. He felt slightly disappointed to have wasted his time. "You're hardly the first swindler I've met." That was certainly true; Father Cornello had not been the first fraud the Homunculi had made use of.

Lyra's expression did not twitch. If anything, she relaxed deeper into her chair and steepled her fingers together as she rested her elbows on the chair arms.

"Those are strong words, strong accusations," she replied in a cool tone. "What makes you think that I am trying to take advantage of you?"

"Because it's impossible to know the future. You might be able to guess, but no one can know what's going to happen for certain. People behave how they please and you can never depend on someone acting a certain way."

Envy felt a flash of hatred fill his chest with these words. Like Mustang, he thought bitterly. Like Scar and Hawkeye and the Fullmetal Pipsqueak. In the end, they refused to fight each other, which I was certain they would do. In the end, no matter how confident we were of succeeding, the humans still didn't behave like we thought they would.

He forced the emotion away, knew better than to dwell on it in front of this stranger. "And the stars?" he continued. "Come on! It's just silly nonsense, something only gullible humans would believe in."

"And yet you believe in alchemy," she stated calmly.

"I don't believe in alchemy," Envy corrected, "it's just something that works. I've seen it. It'd be like saying I 'believe' in gravity. You don't believe in it, it just is. And how are the two even comparable?"

Lyra responded without hesitation. "They are comparable in that, to the layperson, alchemy seems impossible to believe, much more magic than science. A circle, a few symbols, and some ingredients, and the alchemist can accomplish the most fantastic things. And yet, once one learns enough, alchemy becomes understandable and hardly fantastic at all. The art I practice is much the same. I admit, it may seem impossible that the past and future can be read in the pattern of the stars, but for the experienced practitioner, it is neither strange nor unbelievable. It just is." She spoke as if she had made the argument before.

Envy bounced his crossed leg irritably while trying to decide how to reply. Though he had often found it funny to mock the ridiculous things humans could be led to believe – especially when they wanted to believe them – this woman was too earnest and she had the same quick and persuasive tongue as his sister. Envy could be persuasive when he needed to be and he rather enjoyed arguing, but word games and debating were not his forte.

"I am not unreasonable," Lyra interrupted before he could think of what to say. "You don't need to believe everything I've said – or even any of it. Words are cheap, after all. How about this? Why don't we examine your stars together and you can decide for yourself how much of a swindler I am."

"I don't have any money," Envy cautioned, and Lyra shook her head with a small smile.

"I already said I would do this for free. Now, to business."

She rubbed her hands together briskly, eagerly, before opening the folder she had placed on the desk, drawing forth a few sheets of paper with blank charts and tables. She probably had a stack of similar folders prepared and ready for new clients, though Envy doubted she had need for very many of them.

"The first step is to identify the positions of the stars at the time of your birth," she said, clicking the end of her pen and plucking one of the papers out and in front of her. "When and where were you born?"

For a moment, Envy felt the tiniest flash of alarm, wondering how he should answer the quick question. He could surely not tell this woman the truth, not that she would believe it if he did. But then he grinned, first to himself and then externally. Why not? he thought with a mental shrug. I don't need her to believe me. What she's saying is bogus anyway.

He let his grin fall, replacing it with a thoughtful look. "Let's see…" he said, making a show of staring at the ceiling, as if he was straining his memory for the date she was asking for. "Now when was I born? It was so long ago…" He pretended to think for a few more seconds, then nodded to himself. "1743. Yes, that's right. It was 1743."

He watched her eyes and waited to savour her reaction.

Lyra frowned at him. She sat back in her chair. She pursed her lips. She seemed to be waiting for him to laugh and tell her he was joking, but when he continued to watch her, straight-faced, she gave an exasperated shake of her head and muttered under her breath. Envy thought he heard the words stubborn child and let his grin return. Excellent. She thinks I'm just being difficult and saying ridiculous things to irritate her.

"If you are not going to be serious-"

"What? You don't believe me? This isn't going to work very well if the therapist won't even believe her client!"

Lyra's expression became frosty for an instant before she regained control, allowing herself only a small sigh before turning her attention back to the paper in front of her. She wrote the year in small, precise letters in a spot near the top of the page.

"And the month and day?" she asked as she wrote.

Envy paused honestly now. He didn't know the exact day he'd been born. Or, well, he supposed 'created' was the more technical term. He didn't think any of the Homunculi knew their exact birthdates. After all, it had been a long time ago and there had been far more important things to learn and remember in the early days of their 'births'.

Lyra seemed surprised when he didn't provide an immediate answer.

"You do not know?" she asked. She was probably thinking that he would use his real month and day with the lie or make up a random combination on the spot.

Envy didn't exactly blush, but he did feel embarrassed. Humans enjoyed celebrating each others' birthdays, made a fuss over it. Undoubtedly that was because their lives were so short and uncertain. The Homunculi had never thought to pay attention to such things, though Envy could remember the faint tinge of jealousy he'd felt upon witnessing such a party in passing. He'd resented that the humans were enjoying themselves and having fun in something that he did not have. He also remembered thinking that celebrating birthdays was counter-intuitive; why would humans want to celebrate the reminder that they were one year closer to their deaths?

In response to Lyra's question, he shrugged uncomfortably. "I'm pretty sure it was in the fall," he told her. "I remember the temperature was dropping." Their lair had not been well heated and that first winter had been an especially cold one. "And Lust sometimes wore a jacket." She preferred not to wear one unless she had to.

"The fall…" Lyra muttered dryly. "Of 1743. That is rather… vague. Still, I suppose there is some knowledge that can be gleaned from it."

She swivelled in her chair to the bookshelf behind her and, after some searching, pulled out a thick, worn and slightly dusty tome from the bottom shelf.

"It has been a long time since I've needed to reference this," she said wryly, wiping some of the dust from the cover before opening it. "Most of my clients are not so… aged."

For a few minutes, they sat in silence as Lyra flipped through the pages. From what Envy could see, most of it seemed to be tables of numbers, and Lyra began making notes on her paper, her eyes flicking back and forth from the book to the paper and back again as she worked. A lot of the characters were not in a language Envy recognized, though they vaguely reminded him of the script used in Ishvalan writings.

She's taking this whole thing rather seriously, considering she thinks I gave her a false date.

When she was satisfied with her notes, Lyra looked up. "Can you confirm you were born in Amestris? I need to ensure the calculations are correct. These tables are not based in Amestris."

"Yeah," he confirmed. "In Central." As far as Envy knew, all of the Homunculi had been created in Central City, although the actual city probably hadn't existed when Pride, at least, had been born.

Lyra nodded as if expecting the answer and made another note.

"Then I will explain what I can tell about you, based on this limited information.

"First, while there are three signs that the Sun could be in during autumn, I feel no hesitation over naming yours as the Scorpion."

"The Scorpion?" He didn't know what that meant, but he liked the sound of it. He'd never seen a scorpion before, but he had seen one unlucky soldier in Ishval who'd been stung by one. The fellow hadn't died, but he had screamed and wept from the poison for quite some time as his foot became a swollen black. No one had needed a second reminder to check their boots before putting them on in the morning after that.

"It is a powerful sign," Lyra told him. "The scorpion is a creature that can deal death. Not like most animals, with their tearing and clawing, but with the tiniest touch. It represents transformation, intensity, mystery, and interior willpower."

Those all sounded good to him, but…

"You said there were three choices. Why are you certain which one is mine?"

"The Sun represents the exterior personality and the other two do not suit what I have seen of you. The Scales desire balance and harmony. You would not be so abrasive, would not test me for amusement." He laughed out loud at that. "And the Horse makes for an honest philosopher. You would not be so suspicious and doubtful of what I've said.

"For the more negative side, the Scorpion is often a study in extreme emotions, an unwillingness to compromise, and a tendency toward jealousy."

Envy winced at the last one. Did she have to use that word? he wondered. Thankfully, Lyra didn't seem to notice his reaction.

She reviewed her notes again, choosing her words carefully.

"Assuming I am right about this and I narrow your birth to between the days when the Sun was in the Scorpion, the planets are heavily clustered in one half of the chart. Without the birth time, it's impossible to be sure what this means. The imbalance could mean that you are intensely extroverted or introverted, or it can mean that you are highly independent or interdependent. Do any of those sound like you?"

Envy didn't think any of them sounded especially descriptive of him, but he stopped himself in the act of answering, instead tsking at her and wagging one finger.

"Now, now, I know how this game works and I'm not going to play it. It's a common parlour trick to ask leading questions that'll point you in the right direction. I'm not telling you one way or the other whether what you're saying is right."

"Very well," Lyra said with another sigh. "Let us see… There are three planets in one sign, which is certainly noteworthy. The Twins is a sign of words and mental activity. With Mars, it indicates an aggressive way of speaking, a quick and critical mind, and a tendency to be argumentative, rude, and sarcastic."

"You don't say," Envy said in the most sarcastic tone he could manage. It was Lyra's turn to give a small laugh, a genuinely amused laugh, that said she realized how obviously Envy had already displayed some of those personality traits. She was almost cute like that, Envy thought, the smile softening the sternness in her face and giving her a mischievous cast. She had a faint dimple in the left-hand corner of her mouth.

"Saturn in the Twins creates a logical mind that favours practical ideas," she continued. "The detriment can be self-doubt and a tendency to be overcritical.

"For the last, Uranus in the Twins indicates an original and intuitive thinker, but one who is also restless and dissatisfied with the status quo.

"These last two planets were retrograde, which usually means that their characteristics are more extreme. Either they are inhibited and harder to access, or they are overemphasized in the personality."

She sat back in her chair, frowning slightly at the desk and its papers. Apparently she had gleaned as much information as was possible from them. Envy leaned back as well.

"This was interesting and all-" he started to say, but Lyra spoke at the same time, cutting him off.

"It is a shame we don't have a more specific date. This is not enough – especially not for you – to be persuasive. It is too general; it could apply to anyone. And I cannot make any prognostications like this. Solar progressions and returns are out, as are any meaningful transits. We cannot even analyze the signs' aspects or the houses." She idly clicked her pen a few times, then dropped it on the desk in mild disgust. Her lips were tight with dissatisfaction. Not with him, but with herself, which on its face was odd. It was as if she had completely forgotten that he had given her a 'fake' birth date.

Envy wasn't sure what to think. She had admitted to exactly what he'd been about to say: That the information was too general to be any good at convincing him of its truthfulness. Half of what she'd said could easily apply to anyone at least some of the time. By saying as much, she had neatly cut off his argument before he could make it.

Suddenly, Lyra perked up.

"I have a different idea," she declared. "Chiromancy requires no information other than what is already here. Give me your hand." She leaned across the desk, reaching over with an imperious gesture for Envy to extend his own hand.

Envy wasn't sure what she intended, but he obeyed without thinking, proffering his left hand to her. Lyra took one look and then laughed. At him, it seemed, and he flushed angrily.

"Without your glove," she told him in a teasing tone. "How am I supposed to read anything on your hand when it's covered? Honestly, though, why are you wearing gloves in this heat?"

He glared at her and muttered darkly under his breath that she should have no reasonable expectation that he'd understand what she wanted, wrenching his glove off with more force than was necessary before thrusting his hand back across the desk.

Lyra remained unperturbed by his change in mood and took his hand in both of her own with a gentleness that startled him. He disliked being touched and hadn't been expecting it, but her fingers were soft and she treated his hand as if it was made of porcelain, smiling as she flipped it over so his palm was facing up. He had naturally leaned toward Lyra a little bit so he could rest his elbow on the desk. The hint of perfume drifted in the space between them, an exotic, spicy scent that was not all that different from the incense. He wouldn't have said he liked it, but it wasn't unpleasant either.

"Chiromancy," she told him, "is a different art, but not dissimilar to the reading of the stars. Humans are born with a unique set of lines and patterns on their hands that provide details of what will happen to them throughout their lives." As she spoke, she traced one of the deeper lines in his palm lightly. His hand twitched involuntarily and the tickle sent a shiver up his spine, which only made her laugh again.

"Let me see… First, the shape of your hand. Your palm is square, your fingers long, an Air hand if I ever saw one. Do you believe in coincidence? The Twins is an air sign, so you seem to have quite a lot of air in you. This hand type belongs to a sharp mind, a restless temperament, someone quickly bored with routine and repetition but blessed with a quick and witty tongue.

"This-" She traced the line running in an arc around the base of his thumb. "-is called the Life Line." He looked down curiously, wondering what such a line would look like on a Homunculus, before reminding himself that he had designed the lines on his hand himself.

Don't be silly! I was even thinking about this while we were walking here. I just picked these fingerprints randomly. Even if there is meaning in them – not that there is! – that wouldn't count for me. Now that he was actually looking at his hand, Envy saw that Pride's help in designing his body, even all those years ago, had stuck with the boy; the lines were as he remembered them.

Lyra studied the line for a moment. "A long line," she commented, "but I would have expected it to be deeper. Do you not need to work for that body?" Her eyes flickered appraisingly over his arms and chest.

"Huh? Why?"

"A deep Life Line suggests someone who enjoys physical activity and you're obviously strong. Since your line is not that prominent, my guess is that you don't need to do much to stay in good shape."

He shrugged. "I suppose not." He didn't care much for fighting – he had admitted as much to Edward in passing at their first meeting, as he recalled – and the only serious exercise he was likely to get would be training with Greed and Pride, if he wanted to take them up on that offer and which he was still disinclined to do. "I've always been this way," he part-lied.

She nodded absently, turning her attention back to his hand. "There is a noticeable break," she said, touching a spot on his palm. "Along with a star. Do you see it? Both the star and the break indicate a shock of some kind. The two together means it will be severe. Maybe psychological, but most likely physical, and it will take some time to recover."

Envy stared at his hand. He could not see any star, though he could see the break she was talking about. Why did I put that there? The patterns he'd picked with Pride's help had been a random mishmash of the patterns on the others' hands. This must just be a coincidence. It must be. He shifted in his chair."When?" he asked.

She touched the edge of his hand between his thumb and index finger, where the line started. "This indicates when you were born." She moved to where the line ended at the wrist. "This is the end of life. The break occurs more than halfway down, so probably around your 60th year." She peered into his face and suddenly lowered their hands onto the desk.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. This is a long way into the future and the line indicates you will recover."

Envy shook his head. He wasn't upset, not in the way she thought. Doing the math quickly in his head, he figured that he was now technically 172 years old. If he added the average lifespan of a human to that, he could expect to get another 50 to 60 years, minus the 20 odd years of his body's age. Which meant that, barring any accidents, he would likely live to around 230. Dividing up the line into quarters, the break was then positioned around the same time the Homunculus had died.

A severe shock? I'd say that counts. And six years would certainly count as taking 'some time to recover'. It could still be a coincidence, but it's an awfully strange one… It brought up bad memories, things he didn't want to think about, and that made him irritable.

"I'm not upset," he said firmly. "But come on! When I'm 60? How do you expect me to be convinced by something that's not supposed to happen for another 40-odd years? Don't you have anything relevant for now?"

Lyra smiled at him sweetly, an expression remarkably similar to Envy's taunting grins, but her fingers tightened on his hand. "I am not making things up just to convince you. I am merely telling you what I see."

"Suuure you are."

She pulled his hand back up with an unnecessary jerk.

"The Head Line-" she started to say, then paused, bringing his hand closer to her face. "Ah, this is unusual. Your Head and Heart Lines are fused."

"So what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you are a mule-headed, unappreciative and cynical teenager who utterly lacks respect for his elders."

"You can't be that much older than me!" he protested. At least, he didn't think so, but then again, Ms. Bradley had been wholly unimpressed with his ability to guess ages.

"I think you would be surprised by how much older than you I am," Lyra said coyly. Envy laughed at that, but it didn't seem to faze her. He wanted to put her in her place by telling her the exact same thing and struggled to bite his tongue. "In any event, would it be so horrible to be a bit politer to a lovely young lady? Didn't your sister teach you better manners?"

Lyra let go of his hand again, this time pushing herself back in her seat and crossing her legs at the knees. One of her feet brushed against his leg. Perhaps she hadn't noticed, for she didn't move her foot away, leaving it to lightly touch him under the desk.

Envy ignored that, instead focusing on her words. "How'd you know I have a sister?"

"You mentioned Lust, remember? That sounds like a woman's name. You wouldn't refer to your mother that way, and you said the name with a certain fondness that suggests she is family. I made that earlier bit up, by the way. In truth, it means the person tends to be emotional, that their heart and mind are mingled more than usual."

Envy had to think back to remember what she's said, then shrugged unapologetically.

"Since you're so clever, you can ask Lust if I've ever been polite to someone just because she's young or a lady. She'll laugh in your face!"

"Perhaps I should. Is she here with you then? Do you have other family here?"

"Yeah. Well, not here in town. It's just Lust and me who came down. The others stayed at the mansion. We're up on the side of the mountain. To the south." He gestured vaguely in what he thought was the right direction. "We're staying with Lily Bradley and Selim. They're relatives."

"I see. Well, I hope I'll get to meet them someday. No, I am sure I will meet them." Lyra gave that calculated, mischievous smile again, then glanced at the wall behind Envy's head. "But you were waiting to meet up with her, weren't you? It's been an hour. Perhaps it's time for you to be going?"

Envy swivelled around to look at the small clock hanging above the doorway, ticking quietly. He hadn't noticed it. It was half past one, just the time he'd been planning to start looking for Lust, and Envy suddenly felt eager to be out of this place. His nose felt stuffy from the incense and perfume and he felt a little disoriented by Lyra's 'prophecies', if that was what they could be called. Most of it was standard mystic babble and the fact that it fit him for the most part was nothing more than mere coincidence. But the part about his Life Line… Well, he'd have to think about it later. Now was the time to find out how successful Lust had been with her plan.

"You're right," he said, standing up and registering her foot lightly falling away from his leg. "Last thing I need is Lust chewing me out." He tugged his glove back on, flexing his fingers to more comfortably snug them into the fabric.

Lyra stood up as well, smoothing her dress over her hips and tucking a loose strand of hair back behind an ear. She waited patiently until he was ready to leave, then gave him a small, demure bow.

"It has been a pleasure," she said. Her tone was steady; Envy thought it was 50/50 odds that she was being sincere or mocking him. "I'm sorry the information was not as detailed as it might otherwise have been. Do you think your sister would know the time of your birth?" He shrugged. It was possible, but he didn't care all that much. "No matter. I gleaned a lot of useful information today. I do hope you'll visit again."

There was a lilt in Lyra's voice that caught Envy's attention. She was staring at him with her intent dark eyes, her chin slightly raised, her lips slightly pursed. And all of a sudden, all of the signs that he'd been ignoring hit Envy like a ton of bricks.

She's been… flirting with me!

All of the smiles. The touches. The compliments. They all added up now. How had he missed it?

It wasn't that Envy had never been flirted with before – he had mimicked Lust in his younger years, after all, and there had been other personas he'd taken on who had been attractive, judging by the reactions he'd gotten. But Envy could not think of a time when someone had flirted with this version of him, this body.

But is she actually attracted, or is this just another ploy? the suspicious side of him whispered. Flirting with male customers was a reasonable tactic for increasing repeat sales. But she seemed sincere. Maybe. Not that it made him want to be any friendlier to her. If anything, the idea amused him.

"Oh, maybe I'll come back," Envy replied breezily. He had learned from Lust and Greed that the best response to someone who was interested was to start off aloof. "I don't mind giving you another chance to tell me generic things that there's no proof for. Thanks for helping me kill time."

He turned without looking to see how Lyra reacted to that, but her soft response stopped him from heading out of the office.

"The past and the future really are open to me. You will be convinced of it, eventually."

She spoke with such confidence and certainty. He thought of a retort, pondered for half a second over the wisdom of it, then threw caution to the wind. He turned back to face her and adopted the overly wide, teeth-baring grin that worked so well for antagonizing people.

"If this stuff really worked," he told her, "and you could see who I am and what my past is like, you wouldn't be standing there and saying that so calm and cool. You'd be scared."

She didn't blink.

"Of course, Envy. I will keep that in mind." And she gave him another small bow.

It was only after he'd left the building that her departing comment caught up on him.

How did she know my name? I never mentioned it.

And as he pondered this, Envy realized one more thing:

Humans usually could not remember anything from their early years of life. And yet she hadn't questioned his memories of his birth date at all.

Strange, he decided. She is definitely strange.


Author's Notes:

I'm an admitted lover of esotericism. I researched everything I wrote here and referenced several books and websites for the part between Envy and Lyra.

Obviously this is an important chapter in terms of plot development. I could have continued on in this chapter, but it's already long enough and this seems like a good place to stop. But the length really isn't an adequate excuse for why it took so long.

On a personal note, I am buying my first house in January. An adorable little home with a lovely backyard. Wish me luck!