On Sunday morning, Roy woke up feeling true and utter peace.

Ed squirmed against him as he attempted to get even closer, and Roy's hand drifted to his hair. His fingers ran through the silky strands, nails softly scratching at his scalp, and Ed hummed.

"I could get used to this morning treatment," Ed mumbled, his voice deep and slightly hoarse.

Me too, Roy wanted to say. Instead, he said, "You're like a cat."

Ed pinched him in the side. "Take that back right now and never, ever tell Al."

Roy huffed in tired amusement and rolled onto his side, enveloping Ed into his arms. He vaguely remembered waking up in the middle of the night to Ed basically throwing him off him, and somehow they'd ended up in their usual position; Roy on his back and Ed curled up on his side.

"Would Alphonse not already know about your feline tendencies?"

Ed grunted. His eyes were still closed as Roy ran his fingers through his hair, and Roy took this rare opportunity to look at him. Or rather, stare at him.

Ed didn't reply, opting for savouring what Roy was doing with his fingers. Roy's mind travelled absently to last night, and all the complicated emotions he'd been feeling rose to the surface.

Ed had turned into someone way more vital to his life than he'd ever thought possible. He knew for a fact that, when they broke the bond and Ed moved out, it would hurt. A lot.

And he'd just have to bear it, accept it, and act like he wasn't going to be mourning something no one else knew he'd had in the first place.

He didn't want Ed to move out. If it was up to him, he'd gladly let Ed stay here for as long as he wanted. The thought didn't even surprise him. He didn't think anything would anymore, not after last night, not after how he'd come so thoroughly undone, and showed Ed something so raw.

His eyes caught the golden thread of the bond, and he allowed himself a moment to ponder.

They hadn't broken it yet, and Roy wasn't sure why. He hesitated mentioning it to Ed, considering how it went last time. He didn't want Ed to think he was thinking about the bond when they were being intimate. In fact, it was probably the last thing on his mind.

But the question remained. Why hadn't they broken it? What did it want from them? Roy indulged himself by asking those questions, even though the answers didn't matter; the reversal array would sort all that out.

And then he remembered the pulsing he'd noticed last night, how he'd felt a flair of heat similar to the one he'd felt that time in his office. Did it mean anything? Had it simply been some sort of energy response to the intensity of his and Ed's emotions?

"Whatever you're overthinking, stop it. You're messing with my zen."

Roy frowned, pausing his scratching of Ed's scalp. "You're telling me there's moments when you're not thinking of anything?"

Ed snorted. "No, but I think right now is the closest I've ever come to that."

Roy took that in, inspected the words from every angle and tried to understand what they meant. What it meant, that Ed felt so peaceful in his arms that his mind would quiet.

He didn't know what to say to that, so he didn't say anything. He resumed his stroking, and Ed sighed happily.

He wished every Sunday would be like this. He wished he'd have Ed to himself every single Sunday for the rest of eternity. No work, no responsibilities. Away from prying, judging eyes. Just him and Ed.

It was a fairytale, a story too good to be true, but Roy was starting to believe in fairytales as of late.

He wondered if this was what was meant for him. If Ed was what he needed, who he was meant to be with. It would certainly be completely different than anything he'd ever imagined, but Maes had always told him that the universe had its own way of doing things.

Roy had always rolled his eyes and said he'd simply control the universe by making sure its outcomes aligned with his plans, and Maes had always given him that look after, the one of a patient dad who knew better but would let their child experience it for themselves. Roy had hated that look, and now he found himself missing it terribly.

A soft pitter-patter sound brought him out of his thoughts, and he craned his neck to look at the window. It was raining.

"It's raining," he announced dumbly.

Ed sighed. "Yeah, I can feel it."

Roy frowned, looking over to him. "You've got magical powers that feel the weather?"

Ed snorted a laugh, finally opening his eyes to grace him with a teasing look. "Yeah, it's called automail."

Roy blinked, his eyes going to the lump of where Ed's lower body was under the duvet. "I see…"

Ed gave another snorty laugh and explained, "The skin that's connected to the port is super sensitive to changes in temperature. It's usually okay if it's mildly warm, but too warm and the metal literally starts burning me, and too cold and I can get frostbite. Humidity isn't great either which is why I tend to know when it's gonna rain."

Roy filed that information into the chaotic corner of his brain labeled Ed. "Does it hurt now?"

Ed shrugged. "A bit."

"I see."

Ed laughed, properly and loudly. "Fuck, you need coffee."

"Yes."

Coffee consumed, Roy's brain sharpened enough to notice that Ed had a very minor limp. It was obvious he was attempting to hide it, but Roy was afraid to mention it because…He wasn't entirely sure it was from the automail.

He hadn't exactly been gentle last night. The thought was accompanied by a wave of embarrassment, which caused him to gulp down the last dregs of coffee in his mug and stare at the newspaper in from of him like it was the most interesting thing he'd ever seen.

Ed sent him a quick glance of suspicion from over his book. They were sitting on the couch—or rather, Roy was. Ed was lying down, his head propped up by the armrest and his legs bent at the knees so Roy could fit on the other end. Truly a kind, accommodating gesture.

But with Roy being so close to his legs, he also had a good view of his automail port. The skin around it was pink, pinker than usual, Roy thought. Not that he'd ever taken a close look at Ed's automail before, but still.

It was still raining outside, but Ed didn't seem to be in any sort of physical pain. He was concentrating just fine on the alkahestry book, and surely if he'd been in pain his concentration would've been impaired, right?

But then he reached over and absently massaged the skin around his thigh.

Roy caught it from the corner of his eye. His newspaper was a decoy at this point, a way for him to observe Ed without being obvious.

"Does it hurt?"

Ed blinked, looking up at him from over his book. "A bit, I guess. It gets a bit tight when we have a rainy day after a lot of dry weather."

Another bit of information successfully filed to Ed's chaotic corner of his brain.

Roy wondered what the skin felt like. Did it feel like his shoulder? Was it as sensitive? Well, he supposed it would be, but maybe in a bad way, since it was still attached to the automail.

"I can…" His voice trailed off, and he found himself lamely gesturing to Ed's legs.

Ed frowned, then looked at what Roy was gesturing at. "You wanna massage my leg…?"

Yeah, maybe not. What a ridiculous idea—"Yes."

Ed blinked at him. Then, maintaining eye contact, he moved his leg, extending it until it flopped right in Roy's lap. His eyes were almost daring him.

Roy broke the eye contact, pulling the newspaper from under Ed's leg and delicately depositing it on the coffee table. Then he looked at the metal limb currently resting on his thighs.

The automail was heavier than he thought. "Does this not drag on your skin? It's heavy."

"Yeah, it's the reason it hurts most of the time."

Roy took a deep breath and placed his palm on Ed's thigh. The warmth of his skin seeped into his hand. He applied a bit of experimental pressure and looked at Ed's face for information. "Is this okay?"

"You're just touching my thigh."

Right. He applied a bit more pressure, starting to massage the delicate, scarred skin around the automail port. "Better?"

"I can just put a hot water bottle on it if you have one. That's what I usually do."

He did have one, embarrassingly used for his lower back, but he was determined to do a better job than a hot inanimate object.

He ignored Ed's comment and focused on massaging the skin, going harder than he'd initially thought he'd need to, but Ed didn't seem to be in any pain. In fact, after almost a solid minute of massaging Ed sighed, his book flopping open on his chest. He'd closed his eyes, and Roy took that as a good sign.

"I can use my gloves to heat the metal, you know."

"Absolutely not."

Fair enough. Roy didn't trust himself with a flame anywhere near Ed, anyway.

The silence that ensued was comfortable. Roy got into a rhythm and Ed was relaxed and happy, so it was a job well done.

Ed sighed again. "Bastard Truth could've given me my leg back too, jeez. Stingy bastard."

Roy momentarily paused. "Should I be concerned you talk about…that the way you talk about me?"

Ed laughed, his eyes still closed. He didn't reply, which Roy wasn't sure how to take, but he resumed his massage.

"Our Gates are different you know."

Roy's brain embarrassingly stalled. "What?"

Ed was now looking at the ceiling, his expression serious in that contemplating, theorising way of his. "Like, your Gate had fire alchemy on it. Mine was…weird. Like a tree. Al's was definitely a tree, with a sun."

Roy tried to think back to his encounter with Truth and remember what the large Gate behind him had looked like. He had always assumed The Gate was sort of a singular entity, but after Ed had given up his, Roy had realised everyone must have different Gates. He hadn't realised, however, that they would each look different.

It was an interesting observation, made by probably the only person in the world who had survived to see the Gate multiple times.

But… "When did you see my Gate?"

Ed tilted his head down to look at him, his chin resting almost fully on his chest. His neck would surely hurt later on. Or maybe not. "I saw it in one of your dreams."

Oh. Right. Realising he'd all but abandoned his massaging, he resumed, kneading the scarred flesh with his fingers. His left hand had joined in the effort, so both his hands were working their magic on Ed's thigh.

"Do you know why we have different Gates?" he asked conversationally, genuinely interested in Ed's theories, in what went on in his brilliant mind.

Ed shrugged, looking at the ceiling again. "I just found it interesting."

"It is."

"Every person in the world has a different Gate design. Like that's so cool."

Roy frowned as he thought. "Does it correlate with someone's power then, since mine's fire? Though I wasn't always specialised in fire, so does Gate design change?"

Ed absently drummed his fingers on the book spine laid open on his chest. "I really don't know, and I kinda don't want to at this point. I just wanna be. Curiosity killed the cat and all that."

Roy chuckled. Ed was trying to act casual, as though he didn't care about knowing, but Roy could feel the insatiable curiosity he was feeling. He would bet money Ed's mind was whirling with possibilities regardless of what he was saying.

"While I am eternally grateful you're not diving head first into dangerous situations anymore, speculating and theorising isn't harmful."

That was all Ed needed. He pursed his lips, took a breath, and said, "If I had to guess, I think it's a combination of someone's essence, alongside the alchemy style they've most nurtured. Though I don't know if a Gate design would change depending on what alchemy you study. Mine was the same when I was eleven as it was the day I gave it up. So maybe yours would've had fire on it before you even learned fire alchemy. Kind of like destiny." He paused, scowling, as though he realised what he'd just said. "Fucking hate that."

Roy smiled. "Of course you do." Ed made his own destiny, accomplished things he wanted that defied all kinds of order and logic. Kind of how Roy liked to live his life; he didn't like to think the things he'd set out to achieve could be set in stone never to happen no matter how hard he schemed. He shared Ed's sentiments on the concept of destiny.

"Maybe that's why I can't use your Gate now that we're soul bonded." Roy raised a brow, looking at Ed glaring thoughtfully at the ceiling. "Cause it's your essence, not mine."

"Or perhaps Truth just really doesn't like you."

Ed scowled, craning his neck down again to aim the glare firmly on Roy. "Bastard."

Roy couldn't help grinning. "Me or Truth?"

Ed grunted. "There's no bastard like you. Truly a unique breed."

Roy's cheeks hurt his grin was so wide. He shook his head as though in awe. "Who would've thought that after all these years of being called a bastard it was actually such a term of endearment."

"It is not."

"It's your pet name for me, isn't it?" Roy cooed.

Ed's cheeks flushed an adorable pink and he raised his leg to deliver a kick right in the middle of his upper arm—thankfully with his flesh leg.

It should concern him that he felt fondness at that—that Ed didn't actually want to cause him bodily harm and thus kicked him with his right foot when, in their positions, it would've been more natural to use his left.

"Get back to massaging, asshole."

Roy's grin was unrelenting. "Your wish is my command, since you asked so nicely."

The phone ringing in the middle of dinner turned his food into a rock of tension in his stomach. No call at his address on a Sunday ever meant good news. And he really, really, didn't want anything to interrupt this time with Ed.

He picked up the phone regardless, Ed watching him curiously and in mild concern as he chewed his food. Perhaps they'd had the same thought.

"Roy Mustang speaking."

"Roy, hi! It's Gracia."

His eyebrows rose at Gracia's slightly frantic voice. "Gracia. Is everything all right?"

Ed perked up at the mention of Gracia, and then frowned.

"Yes, sorry to bother you. Please could I ask a massive favour?"

"Of course. How can I help?"

Gracia sighed, the phone line crackling. "I've had to work at the flower shop today and I need someone to pick Elysia up from her drawing class. I was meant to be home by now but I'll need to stay a couple hours extra. Please could you—"

"Of course. We'll pick Elysia up and keep her entertained until you return."

It occurred to him too late that he'd said we. Gracia, thankfully, didn't seem to notice in her current stress, or maybe didn't care to ask. "You are a dream, Roy, thank you! Do you still have the key to the house?"

"Of course." As if he'd ever be able to part with something so precious Maes had trusted him with.

After a few more words, he hung up and found Ed looking at him expectantly. "We're picking Elysia up from drawing class," he offered helpfully.

Ed just blinked at him, then smiled.

When Elysia spotted them she squealed and launched into a run towards them. "Uncle Roy! Big Brother Ed!"

She crashed into them with glee, wrapping an arm around Roy's left leg and Ed's right. She was getting quite big now, however, so the force wasn't as harmless as it was when she was a small toddler. Roy found himself tensing to steady himself.

Ed laughed and reached down to mess up her hair. "Look at you, you've grown so much taller!"

Elysia grinned at him proudly. "I'm almost as tall as you, big brother!"

"Well, I wouldn't say that…"

Roy snickered and Ed shot him a look.

"Where's mummy?"

Roy mustered a kind smile. "She's had to work late today, so we're here to pick you up instead. Hope you don't mind."

Ed snorted at his polite words, but Elysia didn't seem to notice. She squealed in delight and did a weird little child dance. Roy didn't fully understand children. "I get to hang out with big brother Ed and uncle Roy!" she sang.

Ed leaned down and picked her up in one scoop, and she screamed in happiness. "Hell yeah you do!"

Roy thought his ears would burst from the commotion those two were making. "Let's make our way home, shall we?" he said to Elysia, and she nodded frantically from Ed's arms. Her arms were wrapped around his neck and she pressed her cheek against Ed's. "Big brother, can you carry me home?"

Ed faked a thoughtful expression for all but one second, and then went back to grinning and started tickling her. She was squealing again. "You little princess, you! Spoiled rotten!"

Roy stared at them for a second as he came to the abrupt realisation that Ed was good with kids.

They started walking, and soon they were at the Hughes residence. It had been a short walk, but Ed and Elysia seemed to have managed to exchange life stories in that time. Elysia had been babbling nonstop about her drawing class, her friends, how she was doing in school, and about a boy she liked—Roy was slightly horrified by that one, what would Maes think of that?—and Ed was telling her about Al and Winry and how much they missed her.

Roy wondered if they'd forgotten he was even there. He unlocked the door to Elysia's home, and flicked on the light by the hallway.

"He pulls my hair all the time!" Elysia fumed, but she didn't seem particularly mad. "So I think he hates me."

Ed smirked, humming. His eyes flicked to Roy for a second as they walked into the living room. He was still carrying her. "Sometimes boys act like they hate you when they actually like you. Weird right?"

"Really!?"

Roy frowned at him. "Don't tell her things like that."

Ed smirked at him, finally letting Elysia down. She was running up the stairs in a flash. "It's true though, isn't it?"

Roy gave him a dubious look.

Ed chuckled, taking a seat on the couch. "What, still think I hate you?"

Roy scoffed. "That is hardly relevant."

"Isn't it?"

Ed held his gaze for a few seconds, his eyes challengingly cocky, but then Elysia came running down the stairs and they both looked towards her.

"Let me show you my drawings!"

She quickly and extremely efficiently hopped on Ed's lap, and started flipping through her drawing book.

Roy sighed. Had Elysia eaten? He hadn't asked Gracia that. Was he expected to feed her? Had Gracia prepared something for her? Perhaps he'd have a look in the fridge. Or he could order takeout. Again. Was a child so young allowed greasy takeout or would Roy contribute to the possibility of an early death? Maes would hang him.

He sighed again. "Elysia, are you hungry?"

"Staaarving."

Right. "What would you like…?"

Her eyes lit up in a way that told Roy he had possibly just made a mistake. "Can I have anything I want?"

Before Roy could reply, Ed butted in. "Oi, you'll have whatever mum's made for you. Let's go have a look."

And with that, he picked her up again, her legs wrapped around his waist, and walked to the kitchen.

Roy could hear them discussing food in a very childlike manner, and decided to take a seat on the couch. He'd leave the parenting to Ed, perhaps.

And with that thought, a small avalanche followed.

Ed was good with kids. Roy had never really seen him interact with smaller humans before, and for some reason he was surprised by what he had discovered. Ed was too brash to be good with kids, right? He swore all the time, he was too smart to dumb himself down to child-level, and he'd barely had a childhood himself—surely that meant he would struggle around kids.

But no. He wasn't struggling at all. He was talking to Elysia as though he'd been talking to kids his whole life. Maybe practically raising Alphonse made him good like that? But no, because he'd been a kid himself then. He and Alphonse weren't that much different in age.

A slither of doubt, of insecurity, curled around his lungs, hissing at him like a parasite as it squeezed until he could barely breathe.

Ed and Elysia walked back in, Elysia holding a small bowl that was piled with small pieces of chicken, some greens and potatoes. Ed sat next to him on the couch and Elysia opted for the floor by his feet, eating messily while still flicking through her drawings book.

"Look at this one!" she exclaimed, the mush in her mouth visible for all to see.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Ed chided, which Roy thought was pure insanity since Ed talked with his mouth full all the time.

Elysia decided to eat like she hadn't been fed in days, and then set her empty bowl next to her and plopped her notebook on Ed's lap. "This one's my fav!"

Ed smiled at her. "You're actually so good at this, what the heck?"

Heck. Ed had said heck.

Elysia blushed and turned to look at Roy. "Do you like it uncle Roy?"

Roy mustered a smile for her. "Of course I do. I've always known you're a gifted child."

Elysia beamed at him, and Roy absently wondered if he laid it on too thick. He didn't want her to develop a massive ego and think she was better than everyone. Dear god, how had Maes done this?

Roy observed Ed and Elysia interacting for the next few minutes. A glance at the clock told him an hour had passed since they'd picked her up from class, which meant Gracia would probably be another hour.

They'd gone through her entire drawing book, Ed having to comment on every single drawing and at the end list his favourites with concrete reasoning, and now Roy watched as Ed was braiding Elysia's hair.

Ed caught his eye and smirked. "Why're you staring at me like an awkward statue?"

The parasite squeezed tighter. Roy cleared his throat and averted his gaze, choosing to stare at the rug instead. "It's nothing."

Ed scoffed. "Come on, what're you thinking about?"

You. How I don't deserve you. How you aren't truly mine at all, and never will be.

Roy acted nonchalant as he said, "You're good with kids."

And that would mean he wanted kids, right? Ed adored Elysia; that much was obvious. Was it really that far-fetched to assume that he'd want a couple of his own?

Roy couldn't give him kids. He didn't even know if he wanted a child himself; he hadn't given it much thought.

He was in Maes's home, babysitting Maes's kid. It was all he'd thought he wanted, wasn't it? The epitome of happiness, of personal success. A warm, cosy home, a kind wife, a happy child. He'd kind of just assumed he would end up with a child, especially if he ended up married. But Roy had failed to take into account the fact that he wasn't husband material, nor father material. He simply wasn't Maes, so the vision felt wrong, a bit crooked, a bit broken.

The thought of a child having him as a father made him feel a bit ill.

Ed looked at him and shrugged. "I just like how innocent they are, untouched by the world. Makes me feel like I can be a kid too." He finished off the braid with a flourish and Elysia turned to grin at him. "All done, princess."

"I wanna draw with my crayons!" She was speeding past them again, up the stairs.

Ed leaned back into the couch, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm shit with teenagers though." Amusing, that Ed spoke of teenagers as though he wasn't technically still one. "I don't get them at all. They seem so shallow, so dumb, so immature, whereas I expect them to be basically adults. Right?"

Roy smiled. "I think you're the odd one out in this situation."

Ed grunted.

A brief silence ensued, which made Elysia stomping down the stairs once again seem a lot louder than it was. She plopped back down on the floor and unleashed all the crayons on the rug. Maybe he shouldn't have let her do that on the rug.

Roy swallowed. Did Ed want kids? The question was burning inside him. Because if he did, then what future could there even be, realistically? When they couldn't even tell anyone about what was developing between them?

Ed could be out there searching for someone who could give him everything he wanted. And while he'd said he wasn't interested in women, he'd also admitted to having no experience with them. Maybe, once he tried, he'd find himself liking it. Preferring it. Instead of Roy.

But he wouldn't find out, not if Roy held onto him this tightly, if he kept him for himself for as long as he could—

Was he holding Ed back?

The thought made something fracture inside of him.

"What're you thinking about now?" Ed mumbled. His gaze was absently on Elysia, but it was contemplative, serious.

"Do you want kids?" Fuck it, better to have it out in the open, to be told exactly what he thought he'd hear. What he needed to hear, maybe.

Ed took a second to reply. Roy wasn't sure what that meant. He realised he'd been hoping for an over the top scoff followed by a Me? As if! But Ed was thinking about it.

"I like the idea of having my own family someday."

Roy's stomach dropped, and it felt like his body had betrayed him. This was what he needed to hear, wasn't it? This was what he'd been expecting, this was why he'd asked in the first place. And yet his body acted like it had been punched in the gut.

"But it probably won't happen." He laughed, but it was a sad laugh, a laugh that meant he thought this was something he wanted but couldn't have, and Roy frowned.

"You can certainly find someone who'd be more than willing to give you children." Little golden haired, golden eyed children. It'd be adorable, it'd be perfect. And Roy would be happy for him, even if the thought of those children and what they meant felt like a stab in the heart.

Ed gave him a look. "I'm definitely not having biological kids."

Roy decided not to comment, not to tell him that he might like women if he tried. It would probably lead to a more heated discussion, and it was one they couldn't have in front of Elysia.

"You could adopt," Roy suggested instead. Being an orphan himself, he had plenty of experience with that.

Ed shrugged, humming. "Yeah, I guess." Then he huffed a laugh. "I don't know what I'd do with a teenager though. Probably deck it to teach it some things."

"It?" Roy raised an amused brow.

Ed snorted. "You know what I mean. My hypothetical child."

Roy shook his head, his lips betraying him by curling up into a smile. "You wouldn't hit your child."

Ed looked indignant. "I'd teach them how to spar! Gotta know how to defend yourself these days," he grumbled, scowling.

Roy choked on a laugh. "Be careful Ed, you're sounding old."

"Rubbing off on me, bastard." He winced and gave Elysia a nervous glance.

Roy rolled his eyes, but his stomach was being weighed down by a rock. Ed had thought enough about kids that he knew he wanted to teach them how to spar, how to defend themselves. What else had he thought he'd teach his future children?

Ed eyed him for a moment, and Roy stubbornly kept his gaze on Elysia drawing quietly with her crayons. "Do you want kids?"

Roy blinked, looking back over at Ed. For some reason he hadn't expected the question to be turned on him. It was the first time he'd been asked that, and he found the answer at the tip of his tongue, but it wasn't an answer he was particularly comfortable with. "No."

He held Ed's gaze, feeling his heart pounding harder in his ribcage with every second that Ed didn't say anything. Was he surprised? Had Roy's answer made it painfully obvious that they weren't suited? That this wouldn't work? Would Ed say something along the lines of Well I guess there's no point continuing if we're just headed for a brick wall.

Even though Roy was willing to crash and burn.

A key turning in the lock of the front door saved Ed from replying, and consequently saved Roy from a breakdown.

Elysia squealed and ran towards the front door. "Mummy!"

Gracia emerged a moment later, laughing at Elysia accosting her in a tight hug. "Hi, sweetheart! How was drawing class?"

"It was awesome! Come, I wanna show you!"

Gracia laughed as Elysia dragged her into the living room. She beamed at them sitting on the couch. "Oh, Ed! Wasn't expecting you, what a lovely surprise!"

Ed grinned at her. "It's been too long."

"It certainly has." She looked at Roy. "Thank you for taking care of her, I don't usually work so late on Sundays."

Roy waved a hand. "It was no problem." He looked at her, noting the dark bags under her eyes, her general dishevelment.

"Please, stay for dinner. Unless you've eaten already?"

Ed looked at him, as though the decision was up to Roy. Roy smiled at her. "We've eaten. We wouldn't want to impose, you've had a busy day."

"Oh don't be silly! I've got some apple pie leftover in the fridge if you want dessert?"

Ed beamed at that. Roy sighed. "Gracia, it's fine, really—"

"Roy, you used to stay all the time. Really, let me get you a slice." She shuffled into the kitchen, Elysia still clinging on to her.

"I want apple pie too, mummy!"

They emerged a moment later, Gracia holding two plates of apple pie, and Elysia holding a smaller one for herself.

Roy accepted his with a polite thank you, and Ed grinned wide and all but scoffed it down.

Gracia frowned at Elysia stuffing the pie into her mouth and making a mess. "Honey, please go eat at the table."

Elysia pouted. "But big brother Ed and uncle Roy aren't!"

"And you're Elysia, and you eat at the table."

She huffed and stomped to the kitchen.

Roy eyed Gracia again, frowning. "You'll let me know if you're struggling for money, won't you?"

Gracia smiled at him. "Everything's okay, Roy, really. I'm just doing some extra shifts at the moment." Roy pursed his lips, ready to reply, but Gracia said, "How come you brought Ed with you?"

God, where to even begin? The soul bond had been such a big part of his every day life for months now, he'd forgotten that most people didn't know about it.

He explained the soul bond to her, Ed pitching in occasionally with some dramatic comment.

"And now I've had to live with him for ages," Ed said, sounding so scarily convincingly dismayed that Roy believed it for a second.

Gracia laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. "Oh dear, does this mean you're soulmates?"

Roy stared at her. Ed blushed.

"Gracia," Roy chided.

"Soul buddies," Gracia giggled.

Ed stared at her incredulously.

Roy sighed. It was moments like these that made it so painfully obvious to Roy why Maes and Gracia had been perfect for each other.