Disclaimer - I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or Bleach and I'm definitely not making any money from this. Just having a little fun.

Chapter Thirteen - Equivalent Exchange

"I can't believe that I'm actually doing this," Ed muttered to himself as he made his way across the Seireitei to the one squad that he'd sworn to never again set foot in. He hadn't gotten over his anger with the smug Captain Hitsugaya by any means however he found that he was in need of the brat's help. He had encountered someone even more annoying and needed Hitsugaya's help in order to beat Tomori in a sword fight.

"Yo Edward," a voice called out from behind him as Ed made his way across the Squad Ten courtyard.

Caught off guard Ed jumped and then whirled around to find Hughes walking toward him. "What?" he snapped before his mind registered exactly who it was that had called out to him. Then, once the fact that it was friend registered, Ed waved his hands in apology. He hadn't meant to be so short with his friend it was just that he was already on edge due to the simple fact of where he was heading. "I'm sorry Hughes, it's just that I'm a little on edge."

"I would imagine so," Hughes said, offering the blond Shinigami a fatherly smile. To be completely honest Hughes was actually shocked to see the young man here. "So what exactly brings you here to Squad Ten?"

An anger mark appeared on the side of Ed's face as he recalled the reason for his journey to Squad Ten and he was once again annoyed by the very thought of asking Hitsugaya for help. IT was the last thing he wanted to do however he realized that he needed help in order to get good enough to defeat Tomori and like it or not Hitsugaya was the best one for the job. And he most definitely didn't like it. The young man growled low in his throat.

Knowing this side of the young man extremely well Hughes was instantly on guard. "You know what, on second thought just forget that I asked. I have guard duty to attend to anyway. Catch you later Ed."

And without another word Hughes walked away.

Ed felt somewhat ashamed by the fact that he'd driven Hughes away with his foul mood but on the other hand he couldn't seem to get rid of the attitude. He was being forced to ask his rival Hitsugaya for help and that thought did not sit well with him. It was almost as bad as asking Mustang for help back when he'd been alive and it was sure to leave the same bad taste in his mouth.

"Ugh," he groaned under his breath as he resumed his journey to the office. "I can't believe that I'm actually going to do this."

"Captain!"

The young prodigy's grip tightened around the pen that he was holding as he fought down his irritation at her whiny voice. His second in command had been avoiding her paperwork all day and he'd finally ordered her to finish it which had resulted in her whining. "What is it now Matsumoto?"

"How about we take a break?" the busty vice-captain suggested, a hopeful expression in her blue eyes as she gazed at her superior.

"Not a chance," Hitsugaya muttered as he returned to his paperwork. "It's not like you've done anything to deserve a break."

Matsumoto heaved a sigh and reluctantly began to work on the stack of paperwork that was sitting on the edge of her desk however her gaze lifted mere moments later when there came a knock at the door. She was delighted by the interruption and instead of merely calling out to the visitor she jumped to her feet and dashed over to open the door.

"Edward," she said, surprise evident in her voice as she came face to face with the young man that she and her captain had found in the forest of the Rukongai.

"Hello Vice-captain Matsumoto," Ed said, his voice as respectful as he could manage while in this particular squad. "I came to speak to your captain."

"By all means," Matsumoto said, gesturing for the blond haired member of Squad Five to enter the office. She was sensing that she would soon have some entertainment since meetings between this youth and her captain never went well. "Come in."

"Thank you," Ed said as he stepped inside the office.

"Captain," Matsumoto called out in a sing-songy voice, turning around so that she could look at Hitsugaya and therefore see his reaction. "You have a visitor."

Which of course the young prodigy already knew since he did have the sense of hearing after all. Hitsugaya had ceased his paperwork when Matsumoto had opened the door to reveal the unwelcome guest and he glared at Ed, wondering what possible business the blond menace could have with him. "Matsumoto, you may leave."

"But captain. . ."

"Leave," Hitsugaya ordered, leaving her absolutely no room to argue the order.

"Fine then," Matsumoto said, disappointed that she didn't get to hand around and watch the fireworks. She had been dying to leave mere minutes ago however now that she wanted to stay her captain refused to allow her to. Her look was somewhat pouty as she turned to leave the office. "You're no fun at all captain."

Hitsugaya waited until his second in command had departed before he turned his attention back to Ed, whom he hadn't seen since the man had quit their lessons. Not that he had objected to this, as evident by the fact that he hadn't reported to Head Captain Ukitake that they had stopped. "What do you want Elric?"

Fighting the urge to curse at the boy and then leave Ed walked toward the desk. This was going to be one of the hardest things that he'd ever had to do however he was determined to do it. "I. . . I came to ask a favor."

Hitsugaya was shocked by this statement and all he could do was stare at the Squad Five member in disbelief.

"I know that I'm the one who called it quits," Ed said, fighting hard to keep the venom out of his voice. "But I would really appreciate it if you would consent to resume our lessons."

"And why would I do that?" Hitsugaya asked, gazing at Ed through narrowed teal eyes.

Ed briefly debated what answer he should give however in the end he decided on the truth. After all he had learned from Captain Kurosaki that Hitsugaya was a prodigy who had graduated from the Academy at an incredibly early age. It was likely that he had experienced similar issues with his classmates and squad mates. The blond youth took a deep breath. "There's this obnoxious prick in Squad Five who thinks he's all that and he won't stop telling me that I'm worthless."

Despite the fact that Ed annoyed him to no end Hitsugaya found that a small part of himself, a very small almost miniscule part, sympathized with the young man. He knew what it was like to have someone who delighted in making your life miserable. Keeping his voice as nonchalant as possible the young captain asked, in an off-hand manner, "And who might this person be?"

"His name is Ryuu Tomori," Ed replied, unsure whether or not the Squad Ten Captain would know him. "And he's the third seat officer of my squad."

Hitsugaya saw red as that name brought back memories that he had never wanted to experience again. Tomori had actually been one of his classmates during his time in the Shinigami Academy and the bastard had made it a point to constantly tell him that he didn't belong there and that he wouldn't make it.

Thinking that his hesitation meant that he wasn't going to help Ed resorted to plan B. "If you continue teaching me how to control my zanpaktou then I'll teach you something."

Hitsugaya arched one eyebrow. "And what can you teach me?"

Walking over to the young captain's desk Ed picked up a blank piece of paper and placed it on the small table that was situated in front of the sofa in the center of the room. Thinking that the blond menace had finally and completely lost it Hitsugaya got to his feet so that he could better see what Ed was doing.

Hoping that he wasn't making a huge mistake by showing this off Ed clasped his hands together and touched the piece of paper. The familiar blue sparks erupted and when the puff of smoke cleared an ornate origami crane was sitting on the table where the paper had been.

Despite himself Hitsugaya was somewhat impressed. And confused at the same time. "What is this skill?"

"It's called alchemy," Ed replied. "A science from the country where I'm from. And if you'll continue our sword fighting lessons then I'll teach it to you. However if you would I would prefere to keep it a secret from the others for now."

Hitsugaya thought about the request for a few minutes before he finally nodded. "Our lessons will resume first thing tomorrow, if that is alright with your captain. But know this; I'm only doing this because I hate that bastard Tomori."

Ed nodded and, even though the words practically burned on his tongue, he said, "Thank you."

The blond youth turned to leave however he only traveled a couple of steps before he stopped. Turning back to face the Squad Ten Captain he asked, "So when would you like to start the alchemy lessons?"

Trying not to look eager Hitsugaya said, "After the sword fighting lessons?"

"Right," Ed said with a nod.

With his business complete Ed left the Squad Ten barracks and made his way back toward Squad Five. And on the way there he ran into his brother who seemed to be searching for something or someone. "What's up Al? Have you lost something?"

"You," Al replied as he fell into step beside his brother. "I went to Squad Five looking for you but obviously you weren't there. Where exactly have you been Ed?"

"Squad Ten," Ed replied, without the venom that his voice normally contained when speaking of this particular squad.

"Really?" Al asked, his eyes wide. "Why?"

"I asked Captain Hitsugaya if he would continue my lessons," Ed replied.

"And. . ."

"We start first thing in the morning," Ed told his brother. Then, after a moment's thought he decided to tell Al what he had traded in order to make this possible. "And after that I'm going to give him a lesson on basic alchemy."

"Seriously?" Al exclaimed.

Ed nodded, thinking about what he had offered. "It's equivalent exchange, one lesson for another. And I don't think that he'll tell anyone else about it. At least not yet."

Al nodded, trusting his brother's judgement.

"Soon I'll show that bastard Tomori what for," Ed said, raising a fist in the air.

A/N - and there's lucky chapter thirteen! And Ed's going to trade alchemy lessons for sword fighting lessons. And Shirou's going to learn to be an alchemist. Aw, they're bonding. Cue dramatic fight music cause it can't last. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review and tell me what you thought. Til next time this is Hitsu-taichou signing out.