Lust had never enjoyed the stench of liquor. It had its purposes, both medicinally and when one was seeking an escape or solace from the stressors of the world. Or simply for the pleasure of the flavor, though she was not one to enjoy anything less than a fine wine.
The figure behind her wreaked of ale and tobacco, two of her least favorite vices the humans clung to. "I'm waitin,' darlin," he slurred, gripping her harder.
"Perhaps your mother should have taught you better manners. A proper gentleman wouldn't lay a hand on a lady until they've been introduced," Lust entoned, glancing over her shoulder to get her first look at the man holding her fast.
He was middle-aged, entirely average even by human standards. There was nothing unusual about his black hair or brown eyes. Nor about the thick mustache and beard. The only defining feature he appeared to have was the automail hand clutching a bottle in his free hand.
The man eyed her for a second before throwing his head back laughing. He stepped around her and took the open seat across from her. He uncorked his bottle and took a long swig without reacting. He wiped his mouth and belched loudly before he chuckled again. "Sure, and ain't you quite the lady! Name's Gunther. You here alone?"
"Not quite," she replied truthfully. Her lips curled ever so slightly when his face lit up. Ever the hopeful fools, these humans were. "My companion is having a bit of work done on his leg."
Just as quickly, his countenance fell when she mentioned Edward. Yet she could practically see the gears turning in his head. "But you're alone right now, havin' food. C'mon, lemme buy you a drink."
"That's awfully kind of you, but I was actually just leaving. Perhaps some other time." Lust smoothly rose to her feet and gathered the wrapped pork buns before turning to go.
Gunther blocked her path yet again. "Now, now. You didn't even tell me your name. How'm I supposed to find you again if I don't know it."
Lust smiled without batting an eyelash. "It's Elizabeth," she lied. The scent of booze and smoke was enough of a deterrent to ensure she wasn't going to see the man again if she had any say in the matter. There were far more alluring men to share her bed when she was so inclined.
"I'll look you up then, Elizabeth," he enunciated. "How long you gonna be 'round?"
"That's entirely dependent on my companion," she replied.
He appeared unbothered by the notion. "Trains come through twice a day, once each way. Be seein' you then." He took a long swig from the bottle in his hand before stumbling away, mumbling 'her' name to himself.
Lust rolled her eyes and exhaled. She wasn't disinterested in companionship. She hadn't "tended her needs", as the humans delicately called it, since before she was traveling with the Fullmetal Alchemist. Unaddressed arousal was nothing new. After all, she was the embodiment of lust. To have desire was to fulfill her true nature.
But she could do far better than a drunken asshole. She had seduced many greater men. Men in positions of power were brought to their knees with just a few simple words and some sexual attention. Playing the human body like an instrument, telling them what they wanted to hear to play into their self-righteous egos and narcissism. Then she would take them for what they had, sating herself before moving on.
Yet given her present state of mind, there was little desire for spending more time than necessary with the riff raff. It would be easy to shut down her mind and focus on claiming carnal satisfaction for herself. But what purpose would it serve? Such men as Gunther bored her. Everywhere she went, always the same. Boorish, insufferable pigs.
Lust pursed her lips and walked back towards the shop. When she approached, the sound of pleasant chatter, and the near-musical laugh belonging to Fullmetal greeted her. Certainly different from the harsh anger and bitterness held against her and Envy on first encounter. The angry little brat had grown into a more mature adult, and she couldn't say it was a bad change.
"And that was the time she attacked me with a chair. I don't think I'd ever run so fast!" Ed chortled, slapping his good leg. "Oh, hey, you're back. Did getting some fresh air help with…"
Despite her effort to remain neutral, a faint tinge of red dusted her cheekbones. "It did, thank you. I trust progress has begun on your automail?"
Edward blinked at her curt tone. "It has, but it's not gonna be done today. Even as great as Garfiel is, this kind of repair can't be rushed."
"Oh my, yes. My dear lady, if you try to work the metal too fast, it's bound to fatigue and break. And if we somehow make a mistake with our measurements, it can cause great pain to our clients when we reattach the parts," Garfiel explained.
The effeminate lilt to his voice made the unpleasant news slightly less irritating. "I see," was all she said. Nothing more need be addressed on the matter. Patience was the order of the day, and Lust was hardly in a mood to tolerate a patronizing tone from either of the men in front of her. "What arrangements do we need to make for accommodations while we're waiting? Perhaps there's an inn nearby we can utilize?"
"There's no need to waste your money on an inn! I have a spare room in the back with a couple of cots in it. Miss Winry found it comfortable enough while she was here."
"Then I'm sure it'll be just fine for us!" Ed cheerfully replied. "We can grab some grub shortly too."
"I have a couple of pork buns, but I can go and get more. Last I checked, you're missing a leg."
Fullmetal chuckled and shook his head at Lust's wry comment. "Ever the observant one, aren't you. I've got a crutch to use until Garfiel gets my leg all set. Would you prefer to eat at a restaurant or simply pick up more takeout?"
"I think I've had enough of humans for a bit." Lust sank onto the stool where she had previously sat and idly examined her nails. "Once you decide what you want, I'll go get it though."
"You know there's no need to trouble yourselves. I'll take care of dinner for you tonight too," Garfiel offered. "Just promise me that you'll tell Winry to come back this way for a visit soon. Practically everyone has been dying to see her."
Fullmetal shook his head without even glancing at Lust. "You're already giving us more than enough with the room for the night. Lemme pay you for it at least!"
"Only if you insist," the mechanic sighed. "You are sure to bring in customers when they find out the famed Fullmetal Alchemist is here. So it'll pay me one way or another in the long run."
"Your fame follows you everywhere," she remarked.
Fame was a strange thing. Those who sought it often didn't find it, yet those who made no effort to obtain it often found themselves drowning in it. Reasons for the popularity varied however the common thread remained – attention on the person at the center, whether positive or negative. Infamy and the antithesis thereof... The desire for power and recognition existed within Lust, albeit to a lesser degree than her homunculi kin. Pride and Greed clung to such far more strongly than she did. She was content to let them. Fame would only bring more troublesome, homely humans clamoring for her attention on their terms. Rarely would she stoop to such a level.
"It's so annoying! It was so much easier when only a handful of people throughout the country knew my name. You'd think they'd have forgotten by now," Ed complained.
"With someone who had as much of an impact as you and Alphonse, I really can't say I'm all that surprised. But enough of that! I'll have some food for you and Solaris in a few minutes if you'd like to put your things in your room. Edward, I trust you remember where it is?"
"Yeah, yeah, we got it. Thanks, Garfiel!" He was up on his crutch now, leaning down to pick up his bag and throw it over his shoulder.
Lust picked up her own belongings and followed a few paces behind. He had tied up the leg of his pants in her absence, covering the stump for the time being. But it didn't hide the jarring reality that he was forced to hobble with a crutch to maneuver until his artificially created limb was properly repaired. What fragility.
"Do you want the bed by the door or the window?" he asked, interrupting her thoughts.
"Window," she said automatically.
"You got it. You don't snore, do you?" Ed teased. He dropped his bag at the foot of the bed and flopped backwards onto the bed. The crutch he'd been using fell to the floor with a clatter that he pointedly ignored. "Feels good to lay down after sitting down for so long."
"I can't begin to count the number of times I've heard those words uttered in my presence." Lust set her belongings down beside her bed and undid her coat. The heavy garment fell to the floor and she let out a breathy sigh while she sank down onto the small bed.
The linens held a faint musty aroma that filled her nostrils, and the air in the room only cleared when she half-turned to push the window open. Rain had begun to drip from the eaves of the roof outside, but Lust ignored it. Better a few raindrops on her bed than dust filling her nostrils.
Her gaze shifted once more to her companion. Fullmetal was prone sideways on the bed with his foot dangling near the floor. His face was pointed to the ceiling and she could watch the regular rise and fall of his chest.
"Did your Winry take the window bed too?" Lust found herself asking.
Edward sat up and scowled at her. "She's not my Winry. She's been my automail mechanic and best friend since we were kids. And no, she always took the one by the door. Al would sit between the two beds here and keep an eye on us at night, til we got our bodies back. Then he shared a bed with me."
"Mmm. And yet you blush every time people ask about her. You can't deny it. The red on your cheeks nearly rivals the garish coat you used to wear."
"Garish!? That coat was classy, and everyone knows it!"
"And yet, having matured, I don't see you wearing it now." The corners of her mouth curled and she leaned back against the wall. Really, it was too easy to fluster the blond and leave him fumbling for his words. "Perhaps it was only suited for a hotheaded child after all."
Ed huffed and looked away. "I still kept it, y'know. Al made sure I had one that fits and is kept in good condition."
"Then why didn't you bring it?" she pressed. "Surely you want to show off your personal sense of style now?"
"Oh, shut up, would you? I see your fashion hasn't changed in years either. Do you only have one dress in your wardrobe or something?"
"Not quite. But I know what works for me and what draws the male eye to my body. It has served me well." Her smirk widened when she caught him studying her again. "It worked on you, didn't it?"
"S-shut up, alright? I was just looking at the cut of the dress. Winry wouldn't–" He clammed up when he realized what he had said.
"Well, well. So defensive." Lust clicked her tongue. "You really should do something about that. It's a trait that may get you in trouble in the future – with women and men alike."
He didn't reply, seemingly content to stare beyond her out the window.
She crossed her legs to see if she could garner his attention while watching him from the corner of her eye. "What is it that you're drawn to, Fullmetal? Outside this incessant thirst for knowledge that has you waltzing throughout the countryside?"
"Hmm? Drawn to? That's a hard question. Dunno that I've really thought about it. I tend to live in the moment, especially now. I've seen how fleeting life can be, and I've lost people I care about. Guess I could say I'm drawn to experiences that I'll look back on with few regrets."
Lust blinked at him. His response was vastly different from the more sexual direction her question had intended to take them. Yet she couldn't help but share his sentiment, in least in several regards. But she could guide it back.
Silence fell for a few seconds before she smirked again. "Are you afraid that you'll regret it if you sleep with a woman without sorting out your feelings for her, if you have any?"
Edward gasped and sputtered. "W-what? I never said that! I just–"
"You have unresolved feelings for Winry, and you seem to be under the impression that because of that, you don't deserve pleasure from anything save from your own hand. Does that about summarize it, Fullmetal?"
"I…" He fell oddly silent, as if her words had struck a chord with him.
Now that's more like it. Just a tiny bit more and he'll crack, just like every other human I've set my sights on. Part of her was satisfied that she'd figured him out. A larger part was profoundly disappointed, almost angry that Fullmetal was, in the end, just as weak-willed and corruptible as everyone else.
She leaned forward, the motion accentuating the curve of her breasts. Was she satisfied that she knew how this was inevitably going to go? This was how it was inevitably going to be… yet did she truly have solace in that knowledge? She pushed the thought from her mind to continue. "Haven't you ever considered what the touch of a woman would feel like? How you might have the opportunity to experience the difference between the firm planes of the male physique, and a female's more supple, welcoming body?"
The hitch in Edward's breath was audible, though he said nothing.
"Take me for example. I may not have the perfect body for every man's preferences, but there's simply no pleasing everyone, is there? Besides, there are features that appeal to anyone. Many are drawn to long, slender legs." Lust leaned down to run her hands slowly over her body from ankle up to her thighs. "Perhaps it's because it leads to more… intimate regions on the body. Wouldn't you agree, Fullmetal?"
His throat bobbed when he swallowed thickly. His eyes never left her body. Just like every other man. It would offer her great enjoyment to bring him to his knees. What a pity he truly was no different.
The seductive tone slipped over her voice like a glove, returning to the old, familiar ways. "Others prefer to begin from the neck down. There's a power within hearing your partner gasp when your lips are on their throat. When your hands are sliding down their side to the swell of the breasts. Cradling the soft flesh in your hands, and knowing you hold the key to their pleasure in your hands. Truly it is an exhilarating feeling."
Edward's gaze followed her fingers when they traced underneath her breasts. Even when she pressed upwards, toeing the line of propriety where a mere fingernail's width would reveal her nipples, he sat entranced with his breathing irregular and his fists clenched on his thighs. The wry smile on her face grew to a full smirk. It wouldn't be long now.
"Or perhaps, you want something more selfish. You've done so much with your heroic actions: don't you deserve for your body to be worshiped and praised as much as the rest of you?" The words felt thick on her tongue. Heroics to the likes of humans, perhaps. She had no cause for celebration: only the need for satisfaction. To prove to herself that he was just the same as all the others. Every bit as predictable and malleable.
The hard ridge in his pants spurred her to take it to the next level. She rolled to her feet and sauntered across the room, adding an extra sway to her hips before she took a seat beside Edward on the edge of his bed.
"Tell me, Edward, have you given much thought to how a woman's mouth could caress your hardened flesh? How a tongue might feel when it's lapping over you in long strokes from root to tip? The warmth of her lips caressing the top of your sensitive member." She elongated a nail in front of her lips and seductively licked it.
The blond shuddered and gulped slightly. He was trying not to pant now, his knuckles turning white from the exertion of holding himself back. And Lust was now close enough to smell the musky scent of his precum through his clothing. Such was a blessing of having heightened senses. It was intoxicating, feeding off the desires he exuded. He was fairly generously sized for someone of his stature from what she could tell through his clothing. The fabric was snug against him, and the temptation to reach out and touch him was growing stronger by the moment. But first things first.
His gaze had temporarily fallen from her body to his lap, where he too appeared to be studying his erection. His eyes closed and he took a couple of deep breaths.
Lust reached out with two fingers, lengthening the nails out of habit to lift his chin and turn his face to look at her. "You can't tell me that you haven't wanted to experience a lover's kiss. To hold her body in your arms and know the power you wield over her." She leaned in closer, her breasts on the verge of spilling out of her dress.
The touch snapped him out of his trance, and Edward grabbed her sharpened nails, roughly shoving her away from himself. "What are you doing!? I'm not with you for this, and neither are you! So why are you even trying!? I thought you were better than this. I'm not doing this. Not today, Lust."
Her back stiffened and she sat motionless, stunned by his outburst and at a loss for words.
Ed scowled at her for a long moment, then leaned forward to grab his crutch. He moved with surprising dexterity, making more noise than he needed to as he limped past her. With a final glower, the door slammed behind him with an air of finality.
Lust watched him leave in silence, her gaze firmly locked on the closed door. Once more, she was left alone with her thoughts.
Where had she gone wrong? Had she misread his interest? No. Certainly not. She had seen his attention go from mere fascination to full arousal as swiftly as any other man when pressed with her artful seduction. That was irrefutable evidence that she had some influence over him.
Out of habit, she brought her fingers up towards her face while she pondered over what had transpired. Almost as a reflex, her tongue slid across the nail, and the coppery tang of Fullmetal's blood filled her senses. Her crimson eyes, which had been fixed on the door, caught sight of her own reflection in the mirror on the wall across from her and she froze again.
The face staring back at her looked as lifeless as she felt. Her pale skin, smooth and flawless in the light of day, now looked sickly and somehow too white against the black of her hair and her dress. The red of her eyes, too, seemed unnatural somehow; for a moment, too close to the color of Fullmetal's blood. The blood-tipped, inhumanly elongated fingernails that she held in front of her half-parted lips completed the grotesque tableau.
Lust continued to stare, and the vision in the mirror seemed to grow all the more hideous to her. Gone was the raven-haired beauty that had walked into the room an hour or two ago. Gone was the piercing gaze and the self-satisfied smirk that had left Fullmetal squirming where he had sat. The creature in her reflection was little more than a mutilated shadow with glowing red eyes. A crude revenant that clawed its way out of an alchemist's nightmares.
She was just a homunculus. A cursed husk that was deceiving itself. She was no more human than an automail doll or a propped-up corpse. For all her vaunted looks, she was simply a miserable wretch. A pathetic, ugly, monstrous thing, that was trying to masquerade as humanity. Coldness swept over her. Fullmetal was right to leave.
How far had she come to get here? It didn't matter. She had little left of herself. A million miles away from the alchemist's circle that had spawned her, and she was still trapped inside its coils. Only difference was now regret and emptiness that came from knowing she was no better off than before filled her to the core. She was no closer to finding a true direction to go.
Playing around with the fragile emotions of humans would avail her little. It wouldn't fill the philosopher's-stone-sized void in her chest, which seemed to burn more and more insistently the longer she looked at her reflection. The urge to scream, to break something, to even tear out the blood-red stone above her heart, bubbled up from somewhere inside her. Yet previous attempts proved such an action to be a fruitless endeavor. Removing the stone wouldn't lead to a cessation of her misery.
Thus, would her existence continue. To what end? Her reflection had no answer. Only time, like a hungry abyss, stretched out endlessly before her as the minutes lengthened into hours, and Fullmetal did not return.