September 8th, 1996
The first breaths of cool autumn air were a refreshing relief after what had proven to be a particularly hot August. One in which Ted had found himself in-and-out of town on half a dozen missions that had him home for only two or three nights at any one time. But then, that was the point. They were still trying to make Arsenic nervous, and while other alchemists were hunting down the money behind the illegal element acquisitions, and causing the enemy to abandon another four small labs and stash-depots, he was out there to draw their attention.
Especially since Clarina had been able to confirm that Vera was, in fact, at least one of the alchemists that was part of Arsenic. She had only seen half a dozen others in the past couple of months of working undercover, and hadn't pushed too much, but it was still useful information. She had seen a map of some of their rotating locations. Ted had gone out to two of them in his missions so far; just enough to make Arsenic uncomfortable, but not enough to make them suspicious of Clarina. He had purposefully picked two that had been recently vacated, to keep up the appearance that they were on their tails, but still a step behind.
It was a lot of travel, and a lot of work. Not that Ted was doing those missions alone. No State Alchemist worked solo anymore. At least two teams had been in firefights, though no one else had died. Tringham had taken the opportunity to pair Ted up with promising, if less experienced, alchemists on all six of those missions. Which meant six majors all learning from his experience. If he weren't so focused on the missions, Ted might have been flattered. He hadn't ever considered himself a role model, but apparently his reputation had been repaired. At least, as long as rumors didn't get out about the fake situation with Clarina. He was sort of stunned that it hadn't, but also heavily relieved.
Arriving home to his family, fresh off the late afternoon train, was the best feeling. First, as always, he was rushed by the boys, who tackled his legs and begged for hugs and started babbling a kilometer a minute. This last trip had taken almost two weeks, and every time he was gone, they were eager for daddy time. It made him feel warm and happy, knowing his sons wanted to spend time with him.
They weren't the only people, of course. Anika slid into his arms, even with the boys intertwined between their feet, for a hug and a passionate kiss. "You were missed." She smiled at him. "How was your mission?"
"Successful, and thankfully uneventful," Ted assured her, smiling back as he reveled in the feeling of having her in his arms again. "We confirmed what we were sent to confirm, and no one tried to attack us."
"The best kind of mission, even if they are a bit dull," Anika agreed. "Are you tired?"
"Only a little," he replied knowingly to that question. "I managed a few naps on the train." Not that the military paid for sleeping cars for soldiers on a mission. Those only went to those of sufficient rank, or the injured. Ted qualified as neither. "I'm not about to fall over, if that's what you're asking. Though I might be by the time these two are done with me."
Anika chuckled. "Well, I hope you can make it through dinner. I made solyanka."
The Drachman beef and sausage stew was one of the Marskaya family recipes Ted particularly enjoyed. He grinned. "Nothing like a little home cooking. I'm sure I can stay awake for your masterpiece."
"Good." She kissed him one more time before they let each other go. "I have something special for you… for later."
I bet you do. Ted knew that tone, and it did not concern him. The past couple of months since their talk, Anika seemed far more relaxed and more like her usual self. Which was good since, with him being gone on so many missions, their nights alone were fewer and farther between. "I look forward to it," he assured her.
After family dinner, a children's board game, and helping with evening bath time and bedtime stories, Ted was tired, but not exhausted. What he really wanted was a long hot shower and time to curl up with his wife. Though, he thought, it would be wiser to wait until after they were done in the bedroom before showering.
Anika was waiting for him when he came in from putting the boys to bed, but she didn't attack him right in the door. Though she smiled coyly and curled around him again, a little more fervently than earlier.
Ted lost himself in the kiss, not holding back without the boys in the room to behave in front of. "So, you said you had something special for me?" he asked curiously. With Anika that could be just about anything, though he was silently betting on some hot new nightgown.
Anika's smile brightened a little as she nodded. "I do. Tonight… we're just going to curl up, and cuddle."
That… was not what he had been anticipating. Ted chuckled softly. "I appreciate that, tsveta. But I'm really not that tired tonight. I don't mind."
"I know." Her smile became slightly wicked. "I could tell. But the thing is… you don't have to."
Ted was about to object again when he realized exactly what she was telling him. He really was tired to have missed it. "When did you find out?"
Anika was beaming now. "A couple of days after you left. I haven't told the boys yet. You're the first to know, except for the doctor's office."
Which meant Uncle Ethan and Ren knew. Not that Ted minded. "I'm glad I could fulfill your desires," he teased. "So, when are we expecting number three?"
"The end of April, if it's on time."
Plenty of time to plan. Right now, both boys were sharing a room, which meant the baby would get their own for at least a while, whether it was a third boy or they managed a girl. Ted wasn't placing bets on that last one. While his parents had never produced a girl, Reichart did have two of his seven, Urey had one of three, and even Ian had managed two of five. "That sounds perfect. Just promise me that this is the last." He didn't want to get hunted down again in a couple of years.
"I promise," Anika chuckled quietly. "I'm already remembering why we considered stopping at two."
"Nauseous already?"
She nodded. "Every morning this week, and half the afternoons. You may have the energy for something tonight, but I'm about to fall asleep on my feet."
Well, that sounded par for the course. Ted kissed her nose. "Then let's get to that romantic cuddling you promised me. Do you think you can stay up long enough for me to take a quick shower?"
"No promises, but I'll try." Anika's relived expression told him that, despite his agreeing months ago for a third child, she had been a little afraid that he wouldn't be as happy with the reality.
"No promises needed," he assured her. "If you fall asleep, I will simply have the pleasure of watching the most beautiful woman in the world rest until I can join you." Falling asleep watching Anika at rest was something he truly enjoyed. A realization he had discovered years ago, in the mountains of Drachma, when she had passed out on his bed in their underground stronghold.
"You wait until I'm already expecting to pull out the romantic lines?" Anika shook her head. "That seems horribly unfair."
Ted grinned. "If it's anything like the last two times, then I know I'll get plenty of chances to use them."
September 12th, 1996
Cal felt a little guilty for ditching rugby practices in the middle of the fall season, but Alyse had told him that they could simply do without him for a bit, because there was no way she was missing visiting Gloria and Alexei with the imminent birth of their first child. Even knowing, thanks to the marvels of modern technology, that the baby was almost certainly a girl, did not take away any of the suspense or pleasure of welcoming a new family member.
Cal did not disagree with that statement. In fact, he was looking forward very much to his daughter's first experiences as a mother, and his first grandchild that was coming into the world without causing stress and anxiety for its entire family. Not that he would ever have told any of Charlie's children how complicated the timing of their births had made things. None of that was their fault, and they were great kids. And, so far, none of them seemed to have taken too much after Charlie, or Cal, so he rather hoped that whatever in the Fischer bloodline had caused him, his father, and his son to be the occasional messes they were, had diluted enough that all of his grandchildren would be functional, sensible people.
The weather in North City was about what he expected when he got off the train. This far north, winter weather seemed to move in before the end of fall, and while it was not, in fact, actively snowing, it was clear that it had already started flurrying from time to time. There was a light dusting of snow over the colored leaves that were already half gone from the trees, where Central was just barely beginning to turn.
Cal could have done without any snow. He was no longer a fan. Still, bundled warm in his coat in his chair, he did his best to remain patient as Alyse helped him maneuver to the train exit that now had a metal platform that could raise and lower to the station platform below just for that purpose. It was far less embarrassing than being lifted and carried.
Fortunately, his son-in-law was waiting on the platform. Alexei, ever the North City boy, stood comfortably in a knit long-sleeved shirt and slacks, the same as most people were currently wearing in Central where it was a good twenty to thirty degrees warmer on the average. Not that the blond tower of a man was hard to spot. He didn't have the bulk of say, the Armstrongs, but he was easy to find in a crowd.
He was also alone. Not that Cal had necessarily expected Gloria to come down to the station to meet them in her condition, but he was eager and a little anxious to see his daughter for himself and confirm her well-being.
Alexei smiled and waved as soon as he spotted them, moving through the crowd and taking their suitcases from the porter that had brought them out. "It's good to see you," he said by way of greeting. "Though I'm afraid you're a bit late."
"The train's on time," Cal commented, momentarily confused until Alyse squeaked.
"The baby's here?"
Alexei nodded. "I'm afraid she decided she just couldn't wait another day. She came on the ninth, but you were already on the train and we couldn't reach you."
Well, that answered that question. Not that Cal was sorry to have missed labor. He had never much been good at labor, and he doubted Gloria would have wanted him in there anyway. Though he knew she had wanted her mother by her side. Obviously, everything was fine, or Alexei wouldn't be grinning so broadly.
"They do seem to like to come when they feel like it." Alyse laughed. "That's wonderful! You'll have to tell us all about it in the car, that is, unless Gloria wants to tell us herself."
"She did say something to that effect before I left." Alexei nodded as they all moved towards the parking lot. "But I do have permission to tell you that everything went smoothly, and that I brought them both home from the hospital this morning. I can't say that we've figured out sleeping much yet, but my mother and sisters have all insisted on helping out with her, so we've managed to get some rest. Gloria more than me," he added with a chuckle. "She seems to be able to fall asleep the moment the baby's out. I end up watching her sleep."
Cal couldn't help smiling at the sounds of pride and amazement coming from Alexei. The classic expressions of wonderment from a happy new father. Sentiments which brought him immediately back to a snowy night in Resembool, decades ago, when he had held a newborn Gloria, and fallen head-over-heels in love in a completely new and different way than the romance he had found with Alyse, with his own infant daughter.
Alyse did her best not to be impatient as Alexei drove them—in a car he had actually borrowed from his parents, since he and Gloria generally used public transportation—over to their home. Knowing that her newest granddaughter was already waiting at the end almost made it harder. Though she was relieved to know that her daughter had already made it safely through delivery. Alexei, true to his word, did not tell them all that much on the way back. Gloria wanted to tell them everything, and he wasn't about to spoil it for her. Which was as it should be. He wouldn't even tell them their newest granddaughter's name. Though he bragged at some length at how amazing a mother Gloria was.
Alyse could only smile at that and nod and enjoy letting Alexei talk. As tired as he was, he had obviously slept enough that driving was not an issue, and it was nice to see him so happy.
Fortunately, their apartment building had an elevator, so getting Cal and all of their luggage upstairs wasn't difficult. Not with Alexei insisting on carrying the bags; even the extra one with things Alyse had made and brought for the baby.
With free hands, the first thing Alyse did stepping inside the door was fold her daughter—who was standing there waiting for them—into her arms and hug her.
Gloria hugged her back, smiling broadly. "I'm so glad you're here."
"A bit late we've been told," Alyse chuckled. "You look surprisingly well rested."
Well, she did. Gloria wasn't done up for work, but she had obviously showered that morning, and while she was in loose comfortable house clothing, her long curls were up, and she did not have the exhausted look Alyse had seen on most new mothers, herself included. Of course, it had been a couple of days.
"That's because we've had lots of help," Gloria insisted, though she looked pleased. "Janna and the rest of the family have been over a lot." Janna was Alexei's mother. "I think we already have enough meals in the freezer to last at least the next couple of weeks. They made sure the apartment is spotless. There's not much for me to do besides spend time with Viola, and when she's asleep, I get sleep."
So that was the name of their new darling. Alyse liked it. She looked at Cal, who looked slightly bemused, and she knew why. It was very similar to his mother's name, Violet. Surely that was on purpose.
"Do we get to meet this angelic child Alexei has been talking about all the way here?" Alyse asked, trying not to sound too eager.
Not that she fooled her daughter, who released the hug and led them into the sitting room, where a bassinet by the couch held the newborn in question. The sounds of their arrival must have awoken her, because she blinked up at them tiredly with the usual unfocused gaze of new eyes. There was little to see at the moment, as she was just a little face with a hint of light hair visible, swaddled warmly in a light lilac colored blanket. She made a little tired noise, and then drifted off again.
"Are you sure she's a real baby?" Cal joked softly.
Gloria nodded and gave her father a knowing look. "I assure you she has an excellent cry when she needs it. I just got her fed and changed before you arrived, so she'll probably sleep for the next hour or two while we catch up. I'm sure you're tired after the train. Can we get you anything?"
"I'll handle that," Alexei insisted gently. "You should relax while you can."
Gloria shook her head. "I'm fine. You take the bags into the guest room if you need something to do."
Alyse said nothing as her son-in-law looked momentarily frustrated, then complied.
"You can show me the guest room," Cal followed Alexei down the hall.
Alyse followed her daughter into the kitchen. "Any objection if I help put snacks together?" she asked as Gloria started pulling out glasses from the cabinet.
"Of course not." Gloria pulled out coffee and tea as well. The water, Alyse noted, was already freshly hot. "You'll do your part, and let me do mine. For the last month Alexei hasn't wanted to let me do anything. Now that I can finally move around freely again, it feels better to be doing something. You know what I mean."
"I do." Very well indeed. Alyse remembered well the horror on Cal's face when she had insisted on taking part in the family snowball fight at full term. Gloria had joined them not too long after. "In that, Alexei and your father have much in common. Though it gets better, mostly because most of that protectiveness seems to be diverted towards the kids."
Gloria laughed. "That certainly fits Dad, and what you've told me about Grandpa when you were younger. I can live with that. Now, do you know what Dad will want to drink?"
"Coffee," Alyse replied without hesitation. "He complained about the selection on the train the whole way up here. Said they were too weak and flavorless."
"Then I'll make him some of Alexei's favorite. It practically eats the spoon." Gloria put the coffee grinds into the percolator and set it on to steep. "Now for teas I have a few."
"Whatever you're making a pot of for you is fine," Alyse replied. No reason to be picky, and while she was feeding an infant, Gloria had the more limited selections.
"Peppermint it is then."
By the time Alexei had shown him the guest bedroom—which was actually a sofa-bed unfolded in the home office—and bath, and left Cal alone long enough for him to hit the restroom and roll his way back out into the living room, drinks were ready. Or so Cal surmised when he could smell the intertwined aromas of coffee and peppermint filling the house. It reminded him of the smell of their own kitchen in the early years of their marriage.
Alyse and Gloria had everything spread out on the coffee table, and it was clear that his daughter had already given Alyse the tour of the baby's room from the way they animatedly talked about how everything had gone together, and also about a wide variety of topics on newborns. He joined them without joining the conversation, wheeling up to the table and taking the coffee Alexei offered him. His son-in-law was just listening with a bemused expression.
"You'll be listening to conversations like this one for the rest of your life," Cal warned him with a grin before taking a sip. He paused then, as a satisfying and fortifying wash of a very dark, nutty coffee with just enough sugar, but not too much, flooded his taste buds. The only thing he might have considered asking… was something he would never open his mouth and ask for. Besides which, he didn't know what Alyse had or hadn't told Gloria and Alexei. "Someday, it'll be Gloria and Viola having this chat."
He managed not to smirk as Alexei shuddered slightly. "I think I'm glad that's a long way off," Alexei admitted as he drank his own coffee with a little more need. "Are all women this calm after three days with a newborn? I don't really remember very well what my mother was like when my sisters were born, but when I asked her that question she just laughed."
"Some act like it but no, most aren't," Cal acknowledged "But Gloria's a lot like her mother, and in this they both seem to be exceptional at being prepared, and having their plans actually be the right ones."
His son-in-law nodded. "Gloria has contingency plans for her contingency plans, though they always seem to be flexible enough that she just needs to make minor changes if something she didn't predict comes up. I think she's read every book on infants in the North City library."
"And you?"
"A few of them, but not nearly as many. Gloria liked to share tidbits in the evenings when reading before bed." Alexei shrugged. "Though a lot of the time I'd ask her a question about what we should do with some of the usual parenting things you talk about, and sometimes she'll tell me something from a book, and sometimes she'll tell me the book's answer depends on the kid, and her mother's answer is probably better."
"Never my answers though, right?" Cal chuckled knowingly.
"Actually, that's not the case." Alexei drank more coffee. "Once we started talking about parenting, she mentioned you in positive terms quite often."
After his conversation with her a few months ago, Cal wasn't shocked, but it was still nice to know. "Glad to hear it. From the parent side, half the time you feel like you're half-assing it and guessing even if you think it's the right thing to do. The best compliment you'll ever get is when your grown kid tells you that you did a good job."
"I'll remember that. I just want to be the best father I can be to her, and any siblings she may have in the future. We're taking that one decision at a time, after we see how we do with Viola for a while."
"Wise move." Cal would not have called his children unplanned, but they had definitely not been scheduled. It had been a relief to him, especially after Charlie's forays into parenthood, that Gloria had been quite content to take her time, both with marriage, and deciding to start her family. "So, how's work with all of this?"
"Fueled on coffee at the moment." Alexei saluted him with his mug. "All of our most recent articles have all been purchased for publication, so this is a good time for a break, and even my newest piece can be worked on at home for now. I don't have to go back in to the office except for our weekly meeting with the editor for the next few weeks."
"And Gloria?"
"Still in the room and listening to your conversation too even if you aren't listening to ours," his daughter chimed in with a cheeky smile. "As Alexei said, I got all my works in progress submitted a couple of weeks ago. So, the plan is to start writing again from home as soon as we have Viola on a predictable schedule. I also figure being a professional writer and parent might make for a fun article for the parenting magazine our publisher also produces."
"Turning your daughter into additional income?" Cal shook his head. "I don't know whether that's brilliant or just convenient."
"If it'll pay for her upbringing and eventual career training, does it matter?" Gloria sipped her tea, and set the cup down on the table. "Though I'm not giving up entirely on following the national and international news circuits. Even if I can't do on-the-ground reporting for a while. I don't suppose you could talk your best friend the President into an exclusive interview?"
He knew Gloria knew that was highly unlikely, especially depending on the topic, but Cal shrugged. "I can always ask, but the way things have been lately, don't expect a yes. At least not until there's something he really wants out there."
"It was worth a shot." Gloria shrugged.
Alyse's response was eaten by the sudden squawk of a waking infant.
Gloria rose and moved over to the bassinet, scooping her daughter up with a smile and cradling her close. "It's all right," she cooed softly. "Are you ready for another meal? You don't feel or smell dirty. Or do you just want to cuddle?" She watched her a few seconds before speaking up. "Alexei, I think she's hungry, could you get the pillow from her room?" She glanced over at Cal. "Unless you'd rather I take her to her room. There's a chair in there."
His daughter was asking if he minded if she breastfed in the living room. "Whatever makes you most comfortable is fine with me," he replied.
Gloria nodded and retreated to her spot on the couch as Alexei brought in a support pillow and a small baby blanket that Gloria artfully draped so that it blocked Cal's view, but didn't cover Viola's face as she unbuttoned her shirt and tucked the infant in confidently. A moment later her eyes widened just a little. "Yep, definitely hungry."
Alexei chuckled, but Cal noticed that he watched intently. This was not the part a father could experience directly. Even bottle feeding wasn't quite the same feeling.
Despite only recently becoming a mother, his daughter seemed calm and content, and like she knew exactly what she was doing. But then, that was how Gloria always presented herself, and she had certainly read up everything she could on the subject well before Viola was born. New experiences did not scare his daughter.
When she was done eating, Gloria and Alyse vanished into the baby's room with her, leaving Alexei and Cal to clear up the dishes. Not that Cal minded. He helped move everything into the kitchen, and Alexei washed.
"I noticed they didn't send you with security," Alexei commented as he scrubbed the cups. "Does that mean the situation has improved?"
It must be driving Alexei nearly as crazy as it was probably driving Gloria not to be on the front lines of the current situation right now, but really Cal knew Alexei really wanted to know what the threat was to Gloria and Viola, if there was one. "It means that as far as we've been able to figure out, either we aren't likely targets, or the enemy has some serious blind spots," Cal responded. "Franz and Sara were able to go to Creta and back without getting attacked again. They travelled very low key, and kept their schedules secret, and even though everyone knew they were there once it got out that they were visiting the Argyros family, there was no attack. They don't seem to be good at fast plans. Both of the train attacks and the attack on the Elric house in Resembool could have been planned for weeks, if not months. Even the attempt to assassinate Anastas was not an attack of opportunity. Arsenic had been setting up a coup attempt for years," Cal pointed out. None of this was secret now, though it was definitely something he and Tore had discussed more than once in recent weeks. It was nice to know he was still needed as a friend, even if it was sometimes just as a sounding board. Still, far better they had put Tore in that position than him.
"So, you didn't advertise the fact that you were going to be travelling, and came without security to be less visible."
Cal nodded. "We even had a friend pick up the train tickets. No one would have seen us anywhere near the station until we showed up to leave. Not that we went as far as Sara and Franz did. They wore disguises."
"I suppose they're more recognizable." Alexei rinsed the mug in his hands and reached for the next one. "It makes sense. Do you think that means we're not really in any further danger?"
"I don't think you were the intended target in Drachma. If it was anyone on that train, it seems to have been more that it was the diplomatic train than the specific individuals who were on it. It's possible they'd have blown that train even if no one in the family had been on it, just because it held the Amestrian and Drachman diplomats. It would track with their destruction of the train carrying the Cretan diplomats."
"So how long will they be keeping a security guard practically on our doorstep?"
"Are you asking because you're hoping it will stay, or because you'd rather it didn't?"
Alexei grunted thoughtfully. "I just want it not to be necessary. I want to stop worrying that some crazy person is going to threaten my family."
Cal took a moment considering his answer. "Promise not to breathe a word of what I'm about to tell you."
Alexei nodded without hesitation.
"I don't know who the source is, but I've been assured we've got someone on the inside now we can trust who's trying to get information, and as far as they know, there isn't anything immediate planned, period, and North City doesn't seem to be a likely target. Especially not civilians. So, while I can't promise everything is honestly fine, you should all be safe, especially if you stay away from military facilities and don't do any major traveling for a while. Which, I assume, you aren't planning."
"Not for a few months at the very least," Alexei agreed, looking like he wanted to ask a million questions, but would settle for being satisfied with any kind of answer that had a chance of being true behind it. "While I have no doubt that my wife would be all up for world travel with an infant, I am not, and it's going to take us time to find our feet and rhythm as a family. Hopefully by the time we're ready, this situation will have been taken care of."
"If they keep making progress the way they are now over at Headquarters… I really think it will." If anyone could handle this mess, it appeared to be Tore. Cal could only put his trust in his best friend, where it had been since the first time that they had stood side-by-side in combat, and tried to stay alive.
September 14th, 1996
Winry was grateful for the enthusiastic voices in her living room, punctuated sometimes by excitement, sometimes by laugher, and every so often the sound of alchemical transmutation. Even while she was working on a project in her shop, it was nice to know that life could go on as usual. Today both Danielle and Yurian were over to work on alchemy lessons with Alphonse and Edward. Urey had come over as well, and hearing them all in the other room as she adjusted the fingers on an auto-mail arm she was repairing for a neighbor, was definitely music to her ears. It was the music of generations. In it, she could hear and see clearly the memories of Urey as a teenager in this very house, working eagerly on alchemy with his grandfather, and so many others, and farthest back, though not in this house, but on this hill… Edward and Alphonse as boys, totally absorbed in learning alchemy.
While Central would always be a home she had loved, Resembool was her heart's true home. They had been back here for so long, that sometimes Central felt almost as long ago to her now as when they had been children here. Yet when they went back, it still had that strange feeling of being very recent.
Winry finished what she was working on and went out in the other room, where Danielle was in the middle of attempting to do a basic alkahestry transmutation. She had moved on from fixing basic objects to working with living material. Not that she was up to working on live humans yet. Winry found it very smart of Alphonse that outside of showing her how to share energy and soothe pain, for fixing actual injuries, he had chosen to start her with damaged plants. It was better than actually injuring people for practice, and the risks of damage were much smaller.
As she joined them, Danielle was beaming over a potted chrysanthemum that had been damaged in a light autumn hail storm a couple of days ago, that now looked as happy and healthy and unbroken as it had before the storm. Winry hoped the Harvest Festival grounds looked as good. The storm had come through in the middle of setting-up—as seemed to be traditional—and most of the town had been put to work repairing damage before the festival started.
Despite the aches Edward always got with the rains, he had insisted on helping with the repairs alongside Alphonse. Winry wasn't sure what had invigorated him lately—perhaps it was just Ethan's hypotheses about the possible benefits of the Xerxian blood that ran through Edward and Alphonse's veins, as well as those of their descendants, if in lesser amounts. It would explain how Edward had even lived this long after everything he had gone through over the past several decades. It had been thought once that using large amounts of alchemy to heal the body took years off your own life. Finding alkahestry and ways to heal without draining away life had definitely also had a direct impact. Still, the boys—as they would always be to her—were definitely aging better than the few other living people Winry knew their age.
Not that she would say she and Elicia had aged badly, but even healthy and good looking old, the boys definitely had an energy to them and longevity that was different. So many close calls, so many injuries and illnesses that could have killed either of them—especially Edward—and yet they'd held on and survived. Whether their lifespans themselves would be far beyond those of normal elderly was yet to be seen.
They were certainly grinning as big as the younger family members around the table, even at such a simple transmutation.
"That looks much better," Winry beamed as she joined them at the table.
"Thank you, Mrs. Elric." Danielle beamed at the praise, as she always did. It didn't matter how simple the compliment. She wasn't a braggart but she also wasn't one for false modesty.
Alphonse seemed to agree with the assessment. "Next time, we'll try something with a person. You seem ready to move on from plants."
"Really? I don't feel like we've been working with them very long," Danielle admitted, looking surprised but pleased.
"You picked it up very quickly," Alphonse admitted. "If you keep at it like this, you're going to outreach my ability to train you before too much longer. You'll need a more experienced alkahestry teacher."
"Like Doctor Elric?" Danielle asked with a hopeful expression. Apparently, Ethan had left a huge impression on the girl when he had come down for the opening of the new research facility that Urey was now overseeing full time as part of their partnership. Winry and the others had been over to see it upon their return, and had definitely found the finished building and the new team impressive. Still, having Ethan within reach to answer her bevy of questions had lit a fire under Alphonse's student.
"Like Ethan," Alphonse nodded. "Though there are a lot more alkahestrists practicing in Amestris now, and not all as far away as Central."
Danielle looked mildly disappointed, but she nodded. "That makes sense. Are any of them near Resembool?"
"There are a couple here at the hospital now, but they're fairly new, and I don't think they take students. So, not that I know personally, but we can look into it, if you want to take your studies farther, and your mother is willing. You might not be able to stay in Resembool and train at the same time," Alphonse explained.
"I don't want to leave Great-Grandma while she needs me." Danielle looked thoughtful. Clearly it was something she'd have to figure out.
"You still have some time," Alphonse pointed out with a patient smile. "There's not a limit. Think about it, and discuss it as a future prospect with your mother and great-grandmother. It will take me some time to look for possible teachers for when you're ready."
"Okay." Danielle nodded and, as that appeared to be the end of the lesson, stood. "I need to get back to help her with her garden, now that I'm sure I can." Her infectious smile was back. "Thank you for today's lesson."
"What about you two?" Edward looked at Urey and Yurian. "Any work you have to get home for?"
"Not a bit." Urey shook his head, grinning. "We took care of any hail damage before we left."
"Mom wouldn't let us come until we did." Yurian chuckled. "Something about how if she was going to feed alchemists, we'd better put the work in."
Winry couldn't help smiling. "That seems perfectly fair."
"You're just saying that because you're the same way," Edward retorted.
"Because feeding you is a lot of work," Winry nodded. "And I've been doing it for almost a century. Though you've certainly done a lot in that time, so I'd say we're even for the moment." She smiled at Edward.
Her husband rolled his eyes, but he was grinning. "Great, because I'm starving."
"I'm not the only person in this house who can make lunch," Winry pointed out. "Just because Elicia is down at the fairgrounds doesn't mean you had to wait for me."
"Or we could go check out the food stalls," Yurian pointed out. "They're supposed to be set up now, and Grandpa told me this morning he and Grandma hadn't been down to check them out yet."
Aldon and Cassie had returned from Central only a few days ago, and while they had been up to the house to visit since returning, Winry knew they had mostly been resettling back into the house and relaxing after months of visiting Central to help Ian and Bonnie get ready for, and adjust to, their expanded family. "That sounds like a great idea. You should run down and see if they'd like to join us," Winry replied. That would be much more enjoyable than cooking, and the weather was lovely today.
"I will." Yurian bounded up from the table with the energy only a teenager could possess, and darted out the door with a "We'll see you there!"
"I miss having that kind of energy," Urey chuckled as his son vanished down the road at a jog.
"I miss having those knees," Edward countered. "We'd better get going or they'll beat us there."
Alphonse stood from the table, shrugging. "It's not a race, Brother."
"No, but as nice as the weather is, everyone in town is probably down there already. If we don't hurry, they'll run out of all the best treats."
"They'll make more tomorrow," Alphonse pointed out, picking up the potted plant.
"It's probably going to rain tomorrow," Edward objected. "If it does, I'm not going to want to walk back down there."
"Fair enough. Let me put this back out in the sun where it belongs, and we'll go." Alphonse headed for the side door towards the gardens.
"And I need to change into something less greasy," Winry chuckled, heading for the stairs up to their bedroom. "Mr. Romero won't be by for his arm reattachment until tomorrow morning, so we have the rest of the day to ourselves."
Edward caught her hand for a moment, and pulled her close in a quick, passionate kiss.
Winry returned it with pleasure, though she chuckled softly as he released her afterwards. "What was that for?"
"Just a good start to date night," Edward replied, a bright light of longing in his eyes. An expression she had seen for years, but never tired of. "Besides, this is how I like you best."
Winry knew exactly what she looked like in her auto-mail coveralls and with her hair back. "You mean like a gearhead?"
Edward nodded. "Exactly. My incredibly hot gearhead."
"Lucky for you, alchemy freak."
Edward leaned in for another kiss. "Very lucky."