It felt strange to be alone again.

Really alone, compared to the occasional solace he sought out on the surface. The once comforting pressure of the ocean had turned suffocating, pounding at his ears in time with his heartbeat. As he swam deeper, the deafening sounds of the storm eased away into nothingness, leaving him more unnerved than if he had heard them.

Even though it was his idea, Ed really hated leaving Al.

Though he had returned to familiar waters, the lack of presence from his brother and Winry made his own father feel like a greater threat than the humans had been. He knew the storm wouldn't stop without his own intervention, but Hohenheim's will was practically an immovable force.

He wasn't naive enough to think he'd get out of this with zero consequence. Hell, he'd broken the only rule that'd been enforced against him for eighteen years. He'd be more surprised if he didn't face punishment.

As long as Al and Winry weren't involved, he didn't mind. The whole plan had been his idea, after all.

It didn't take long before Ed caught the first sight of the golden palace exterior in the distance. The waters around the kingdom were as calm as always, purposefully enchanted to remain temperate despite the weather outside. It made the extra guards stationed outside Xerxes' walls stick out more than they would've otherwise.

They were waiting for him and Al, no doubt. If anything was enough to crack the kingdom's facade of perfection, it was the departure of both royal princes. He would've been amused, if it hadn't meant innocent merfolk were dragged into his own mess. As much as he loved the idea of ruining his father's day, he hated the thought that the kingdom was devoting themselves towards a futile search.

As soon as he was close enough to be spotted, the guards sped towards him, ready to draw their spears if needed. He rolled his eyes, raising his arm in mock surrender.

"It's me." He had to think for a moment before switching back to his native tongue, having spent so long speaking only Amestrian.

The nearest guard's eyes widened as they neared close enough to see him. "Your Royal Highness!" they swung an arm over their chest and ducked their head, a customary bow in Xerxes. "The king requests your presence immediately."

"Does he? Lucky for the bastard, I was already on my way," he said, trying and failing to keep the bitterness from his voice. The guard winced, and he quickly remembered who he was speaking to. "Thank you. You um… you're excused."

The guard bowed again and joined the others to part a path for him into the palace. It would never not be awkward to have strangers at his beck and call, obeying every little thing he said without fail.

Ed did little to acknowledge them as he swam ahead, leaving a stream of bubbles behind him in his haste. He followed the path he knew by heart, reminiscent of moonlit nights and the careful whispers of two brothers who wanted nothing more than their father's recognition. The stone archway that had once towered above him now seemed… smaller than it had before. He remembered waiting under that damned thing night after night, hoping to catch even a moment of his father's time. It was all wasted in the end; his hours lost to the waves like grains of sand.

His father was going to listen this time, whether he intended to or not.

Ed rounded the last corner, and for the first time the space before him wasn't empty or sealed. Hohenheim faced him head on, his unreadable eyes bearing into his own with an intensity that made his stomach turn. He'd only seen that look once before, in the medical ward after he'd almost died from the harpoon.

He didn't know what it meant, but he decided he hated it regardless.

Ed grit his teeth and began moving again, not realizing he'd stopped to begin with. He approached the throne with fervor, rising to ensure they were on an equal level.

Hohenheim began to speak, his voice cold and emotionless. "Edward, you-"

"No, you don't get to do this," Ed interjected, seeing red. "You do not get to lecture me when you're endangering hundreds of lives up on the surface with that storm."

His father began to speak again, but Ed didn't let him. The years worth of hurt and rage that he'd pushed away had begun to surface; the freedom leaving him drunk with adrenaline. He could do this. He could do this.

"Just listen to me for once! When did we suddenly become important enough to you to warrant destroying an entire town? They're innocent people. You have no right to punish them over my actions."

"I have every right to ensure my sons are returned to me through whatever means possible. A storm is nothing compared to what they've done." Hohenheim rose from his seat, lessening the gap between them as he towered above. "You've experienced the cruelty of humans once already, and you still chose to put you and your brother's lives at risk because of your own foolish desires. If that storm is what it takes to get you to obey, then I will continue to do what is necessary."

Ed forced himself to remain in place, keeping his face stoic to avoid showing any unnecessary emotion. His father's cold words tore at him like knives, yet it only angered him more to have a man who hardly knew him turn his own past against him.

He raised his head, clenching his fist at his side.

"Al knows what he agreed to, and so do I. The humans aren't all like those fishermen, you're just too thick-headed to see it," he seethed. "Al's happier than I've ever seen him. He has friends, real friends, and they don't mind that he's not like everyone else. He can finally walk and run and have the freedom that you never let him have.

"And one of them… she made me a new arm from scratch. Designed it so I could still swim with it, too. She's known the truth from the start, yet she's been nothing but kind to me, even with all the shit I put her through." Ed swam higher, making himself level with Hohenheim once again. "The humans gave us a home, which is a hell of a lot more than you ever did."

His shoulders felt lighter as he glared in defiance, reveling in the shocked expression his father wore. If he could just convince him that humans weren't all bad, then maybe-

"You're in love."

"Huh?" The statement pulled him from his thoughts, sending him reeling with its bluntness.

Hohenheim's eyes darkened as he glared down, which was more expression than Ed could ever remember seeing from the man.

"You abandoned your kingdom for a girl. A human girl."

"That's not-"

"That's exactly what this is," he snapped, furious eyes betraying his mask of indifference. He reached for his trident, and Ed knew any bit of control he'd had in the conversation was instantly lost.

There was no fighting that thing. They both knew it, and the unsaid threat pooled in the water like blood. Ed hoped with everything inside him that it was a bluff.

"What does it matter?" Ed retorted, forcing his voice to remain steady. "She's no different than anyone else, if you'd just try to understand–"

"She's a human!" Hohenheim's voice boomed through the chamber, and Ed couldn't prevent himself from flinching. "Have you forgotten what they've done to us? I have spent years fortifying Xerxes to protect you from humans, and now you're throwing away your entire life for one!"

Ed bit the inside of his cheek so hard he tasted blood. He knew his father wouldn't listen to him, yet his chest still ached at the realization. The part of him that was still young and bright eyed had grasped at the chance of reconciliation like a lifeline. He didn't know why he was so desperate for his father's approval–it was stupid, really–but the burning in his throat didn't lie.

"What about mom?"

Hohenheim paused, his silence louder than the waves. "What?"

"She always believed in humans. Without her, I never would have cared about the surface to begin with. You trusted her, didn't you?" Ed raised his voice to match Hohenheim's, pushing through the tightness in his throat. It felt wrong to mention his mother during an argument, but she was the entire reason he'd had so much faith in humanity to begin with. Her passion was infectious, igniting a flame within him that urged him to learn and see as much as he could; to search for the thing that'd left her with such a profound impression. It wasn't until meeting Winry that he'd finally understood what she felt.

He wasn't going to lose that. He couldn't.

"Trisha loved stronger than anyone I've ever met," Hohenheim began, voice surprisingly calm. "She saw the good in everything and everyone, regardless of the horrors surrounding them."

"Then why-"

"But she knew the danger," he continued, as if Ed had never spoken. "She told you wonderful stories because you were children, intrigued with the world outside your own. She subdued your curiosity by telling rather than showing, and like all mer, she knew the risks the surface contained."

Ed thought back to when she told her stories, her eyes glistening with adoration. That wasn't the look of someone who'd only been lying to keep them in line. There was a longing there–a desperate plea to have someone else understand what she did. Ed had only wanted to see the same hope she had, a small glimmer buried beneath decades of fear.

"She wouldn't have wanted this," he said, shaking his head. "I know she tried to keep us safe too, and I get it, but never to this extent. Not to the point where Al's been a prisoner in his own home, or where you're destroying a town that has nothing to do with the wellbeing of Xerxes. Why else would we be able to change forms, if we weren't meant to be near them?!"

Hohenheim scowled, a dangerous loathing present in the creases of his eyes. "Long ago, humans supplied us with tools and minerals while we offered food and calm waters. That was the distant past, before they turned into monsters that began to pollute our home and hunt us like animals. They changed, so we changed. Trisha was fascinated in their culture, yes, but she knew better than to get too close to them. She stayed in the sea with her family, because that is what we must do to survive."

He raised his trident higher, and Ed could do nothing but stare at its menacing golden glow.

"I will not argue with you any longer. Trisha is gone, and it is foolish to talk in circles about what she would have done if she were here. You disobeyed my rules, and as your father and your king, it is my duty to ensure you understand the consequences."

Ed felt his heart skip a beat. He'd expected some form of punishment, but was the bastard really planning to use the trident on him? He'd come with a compromise as his goal, but now he'd been backed into a corner so tight he couldn't see his way out.

"Wait– we never even agreed on anything yet. I'll do whatever it is you want, but you have to promise to leave Al and the humans out of it. Please."

Hohenheim raised his eyebrows, making Ed feel smaller than he had in years. "You are in no position to be making demands with me. I have tried to keep you in line for ages, Edward, but it seems conventional methods don't work on you. I can assure you that the storm will end, but only because it will no longer be necessary to keep you where you belong."

Before Ed could question him any further, he was staring the trident in the face. His tail twitched with the instinct to swim away, but he couldn't make himself move even if he tried. He'd never liked being around his father, but this was the first time the merman made him feel actual fear.

There was no chance for further rebuttal. The trident shook with power, and without a word, Hohenheim sent a beam of light directly towards him.

Ed braced himself for the unknown , but any uncomfortable sensation he'd expected never came. He felt no different than if he'd dove into a pool of warm water, and his dread quickly morphed into confusion.

"What… what did you do to me?" he asked, looking over himself to see if anything had changed.

Hohenheim stared somewhere off his shoulder, hollow eyes shrouding any emotion he may have been feeling. "Something I should have done a long time ago. You will no longer be able to change forms on the surface. You will remain as you are now. Permanently."

Ed's vision blurred as he tried to understand what'd just been said.

You will remain as you are now. Permanently.

That was it then, wasn't it? The life he'd sacrificed everything for had been ripped from him in a single moment. The future Winry had introduced to him was just… gone.

He was right back where he started, and the realization was soul crushing.

If it had been anything else, Ed might've thought he deserved it. He'd never fulfilled his duties to the kingdom, and he certainly hadn't kept Al safe like he'd promised to. He would've chosen to stay put if it meant the others would be spared.

This, though? It was unforgivable, even towards himself.

Hohenheim hardly knew him, yet he'd decided to alter his own son's body because of his own personal vendetta against humans. It was a cruel and disgusting thing to do, and the bastard didn't even care.

It wasn't going to stop with him, either. Even without words, he understood his father's intentions loud and clear. Once Al arrived, he was going to do the same to him, too.

He swallowed the nausea that had begun to creep up his throat and replaced it with unbridled rage. He couldn't afford to fall into a hole of self-pity when his brother was still on the surface–where he still had a chance.

Ed would face his own future later, after the reality of everything had sunk in.

For now, all he would think about was keeping Al away .

He glared past the stinging in his eyes, thankful that it was impossible to cry underwater. "If you thought that this would make me stay here, then you're a bigger idiot than I thought. You will never be my father, and I'm done playing the part of your son."

Ed intended to leave—to find Al and somehow convince him to stay on the surface—when he suddenly felt cool steel press against his back.

"It's getting a bit heated in here, wouldn't you say? Looks like the family reunion didn't go so well," a sinister voice drawled next to his ear.

Kimblee. Of course.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ed attempted to elbow the man in the gut, but his arm was quickly wrenched behind him with a surprising force. There was undoubtedly a knife against him, and it had pushed close enough for Ed to feel that blood had been drawn.

As if things couldn't get any worse.

"Unhand him immediately!" Hohenheim ordered, and Ed almost laughed. Did Kimblee really think the king would comply with him as a hostage ? His odds of getting out of this would be nonexistent if he left his fate to their barter.

He tried again to squirm out of Kimblee's hold by reeling back his head and aggressively swishing his tail. It'd almost worked, until his tail was gripped tightly by an eel he hadn't seen before, promptly anchoring him to the sand. The thing must've been summoned by Kimblee, if its creepy face was any indication of its loyalty.

"Not until you give me what I want. Really, do you think your precious kingdom would respond well knowing you used the trident on your own son? I'm sure they'd all agree that it belongs to someone more deserving."

Hohenheim's expression shifted, revealing a fury completely different than when he'd spoken to Ed. "They would never follow a traitor like you. I suggest you back off now, if you value your life."

"You think this is a bluff, do you? I'm not afraid of bloodshed, Your Majesty." Kimblee moved the knife from Ed's back to the left side of his tail, and began to scrape the blade upwards against his scales.

He clenched his teeth against the pain, watching as gold-tinged blood began to stain the space around him. As much as he wanted to interrupt their conversation or continue to fight, his involvement would only make things worse for him.

He'd wait for an opportunity, and hope that Hohenheim was smarter than he previously let on. If the trident was powerful enough to keep Ed from changing forms, then surely it could do something against Kimblee. That was the only viable option, after all. Ed knew how much Hohenheim prioritized the kingdom above all else, including his own family. There was no way he'd give up his source of power to save the son he'd chased away.

Kimblee chuckled as he scraped away more scales, leaning in close to Ed's ear. "You know, the storm on the surface was my idea. Xerxes has lived in fear for far too long, thanks to your father. With the trident, though… we could fight back. Give them a taste of what they dealt to us… reclaim the seas as our own. You're welcome to join me, Your Highness. It could be fun."

"Fuck. You," Ed hissed.

Kimblee hummed and slowly lifted the knife away from his scales. Ed took it as a chance to attempt another escape, until the blade quickly swung down to stab him in the same spot it'd left.

He couldn't keep himself from crying out in pain as he felt the large blade twist in his tail, releasing a cloud of red much larger than the last.

"A shame. Those humans will turn on you as soon as they know what you are. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Kimblee yanked out the knife and turned to Hohenheim, who met his gaze with wide eyes and tight-pressed lips.

"Take it," the king said, throwing the trident into the sand.

Ed stared at the thing in shock, heart nearly pounding out of his chest. The bastard really did it. He gave up everything for him.

The grip on him quickly receded, leaving Ed to fall to the sea floor with his hand clutched against his wound.

Kimblee lunged forward and grabbed the trident with a cackle that chilled him to his core. "Much obliged, Your Majesty."

Ed's vision swirled before him, and he wasn't sure if it was the blood loss or the whirlwind of events that had just occurred.

He'd done this.

His leaving had set off a chain reaction far more horrific than he had imagined, and now both the land and the sea were involved.

The eel continued to hold him down as Kimblee raised the trident above his head, and Ed's shouts were lost to the sea as a blinding light shot towards his father. Rather than collide with him, the light bent into a prism-like cage, containing him within.

With a squint, Ed was just able to make out the form of Hohenheim inside. He looked to be unconscious, which was still a hell of a lot better than if he'd been killed.

"He'll be of use later," Kimblee remarked, turning his attention to Ed. "And so will you."

He was gone as soon as he'd arrived, and the sea fell still once more.

Ed… didn't know what to do.

He was alone for the first time since he'd entered the throne room, and he was terrified.

He'd thought he'd been able to handle things—that someone would finally listen— but he'd only ended up in a worse position than where he'd started. He'd fallen straight into Kimblee's trap, and he hadn't even fought back.

The storm had seemed like the worst possible crisis at the time, but that was incomparable to what that monster was capable of with the trident in his hands.

Ed had to do something, injuries be damned.

Now that he was no longer restrained, movement should've been easy. The eel had left alongside Kimblee, leaving his tail and arm free.

He pushed himself up and attempted to swim, ignoring the lightheadedness that threatened to pull him down. His attempt was short-lived, despite his efforts. With every motion of his tail, a sharp and burning pain shot up his body, making the task near impossible. He'd gain height, only to lose it as his tail spasmed against his will.

A frustrated yell escaped from his lips, and in a matter of time he was right back on the sand where he'd started.

The blood swirled above him, and he watched with a frighteningly clear mind as it drifted to the surface, where things had been so much more simple. Where his brother and Winry were, hopefully safe from the disaster he'd created.

God, he was going to make Winry cry again, wasn't he?

Even if he managed to fix things and stop Kimblee, he'd never be able to see her again. His promise was meaningless, and he couldn't bear the thought of breaking her heart so soon after she'd given it to him.

The surface felt as distant as it'd been when he was a kid, like a dream that was always just out of reach. He should've known it was too good to be true.

He already knew what Al would choose, too.

They'd always stuck together, even if it meant sacrificing everything. Ed knew Al would never stay on the surface if it meant that he couldn't. His loyalty was both endearing and infuriating, because as much as Ed wanted his little brother by his side, he wanted him to live his dream even more.

With the way things were going, Ed would be lucky to reunite with him at all.

Everywhere he looked, the water was tinted red. He vaguely wondered if Kimblee had hit anything important, judging by the effect the wound had on his body.

Black spots began to dot his vision, pulling him under against his will. His eyes slipped shut, and he let his mind take him back to the world above the sea.

it's summer, so you know what that means! i have 0 excuses for how long it took to get this chapter out, but i'm glad to be back! this chapter may require a bit of a refresher, but i'm hoping to get the remaining ones out soon! (which will also be longer in length)

we're finally at the climax now, but i promise more fluff and edwin will come later hehe. the whole hoho confrontation in this one was difficult to figure out, so i decided to make him a bit ooc to fit the role he's supposed to fill for this au, lol. (little mermaid dupe i know i know)

if you're returning, thank you so much for sticking around! if you're new, you missed the long hiatus! (and thank you so much for reading as well!)