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batsutousaiTitle: Reverti Ad Praeteritum
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood/manga
Author: Batsutousai
Rating: Mature
Pairings: Edward Elric/Roy Mustang, May Chang/Alphonse Elric, Gracia Hughes/Maes Hughes, post-Edward Elric/Winry Rockbell
Warnings: Spoilers like whoa, Ed's potty mouth, canon-typical violence, pile 'o OCs, mute!Ed, original character death, angst, fluff, past dub-con, past adultery, Ed has all the guilt
Summary: Unwillingly forced to serve as a human trial for a crazy alchemist experimenting with time travel, Edward Elric finds himself standing across from Truth in the moment it takes his leg from him. Armed with the knowledge of what's to come and burdened with guilt for the choices he'd made as an adult, Ed sets out to fix every mistake he ever made and save every life they ever lost, no matter what it takes.
Key: "Speech" | 'Mouthing words'
'Writing'
:Sign Language:
"In another language" | 'In another language'
A/N: The exams that everyone and their great-auntie've been asking about are in this chapter. ;) Also, DID SOMEONE SAY HUGHES AND NINA?! XD
So, my mum and I both did NaNo together (she was working on an original book, me on this fic, obviously). Our flat overlooks the motorway, and one night we heard a car let out a noise that sounded a bit like a fart. I commented on it, we both laughed like idiots, and then sort of challenged each other to mention a farting car in our pieces. Mine is in this chapter.
Ileah (AO3) asked about Ed's laughter making a sound, and apparently it ended up in my notes somewhere that he would, but I went looking, and no, that shouldn't be a thing. So, I'm fixing that in chapters as they go up, and I'll fix it in past chapters once everything's calmed down a bit after our move. Just, you know, if anyone else caught that and went a bit O.o, I know. I'm sorry. OTL
Chapter Eight
-0-
Ed and Al spent the day touring East City, Ed showing his brother all of the places that had once been their favourite haunts. Because he knew the city, they had no trouble getting to the station a little after five, and Ed pointed out a reasonably-priced restaurant that had a good view of the station entrance, so they got some food and sat down to wait for Mustang and whichever member of his team he dragged along – Hawkeye, probably; she was usually the one to accompany him to other cities – to show up.
When Mustang showed up, though, he was alone, and Ed frowned at that as he and Al made their way over. :What, no keeper?: he signed when Mustang caught sight of them.
Mustang's mouth twitched. "I'm afraid the lieutenant is currently tasked with an assignment that requires she remain in East City," he said, before signing, :She's filling in the others.:
That...wasn't a bad plan, really. Anyone keeping an eye on Mustang and his team, was going to be more interested in him going with two unknown boys to Central, than in whatever paperwork his team was staying behind to work on. And Ed knew Mustang's team could be discrete. (Well, maybe not Falman, so much, but Breda, Havoc, and Hawkeye had all had some sort of covert training, Havoc had told him once, and Fuery's hobby-cum-duty to keep an eye on radio frequencies and the phone lines had taught him plenty of caution.)
Mustang picked up their tickets and they joined the queue to board, a few people shifting away when they recognised the uniform.
Al watched the reshuffling for a moment, head tilted to the side, before saying, "Sir?" When Mustang looked over at him, he signed, :Are State Alchemists required to wear a uniform?:
Mustang shook his head. :It's only required on a battlefield, or if you've gone through basic training, which is true in my case. Those State Alchemists who come seeking the licence for the grants and access attached, however, very rarely wear the uniform. You'll be given a silver pocket watch as a sign of your position–: he paused long enough to pull his out for Al to see, then slipped it away once he'd nodded :–which serves essentially the same function as the uniform, but without the expectation of military manners attached.:
Ed snorted and, when Al and Mustang looked over at him, added, :At our age, you'd almost get more weird looks for being in uniform, than being on base without. I mean, we're way too young to be joining the military through the academy, and a State Alchemist has the rank of a major, which you know is going to make some people a bit freaked out, having to listen to a kid just because he's got more stripes on his shoulder.:
Al shot him a knowing look. :So you're going to wear the uniform, then.:
Ed just sort of blinked at him, because...what? Wear a military uniform? That uncomfortable as fuck sign of the establishment? Sure, it would piss people off that he effectively had a higher rank with none of the work, but as soon as you put the damn thing on, people expected you to know how to salute and say 'yes, sir' and 'no, sir' in that really fucking polite tone of voice that–
Oh.
Oh.
:Enabler,: he signed.
Al flashed him a grin.
"What just happened?" Mustang requested, sounding rather like he wasn't sure he wanted to know.
:Brother just realised that wearing the uniform meant people can't treat him like he's a dumb kid, but being a State Alchemist means he can get away with being rude,: Al explained.
Mustang sighed and warned Ed, :IF you're accepted. Your difficulty communicating is far from desirable in the military.:
Al shot Ed a worried frown. :I didn't think about that.:
Ed shrugged. :As close as it is to the Promised Day, Bradley's going to want to keep close what resources he can sink his swords into. I'm banking on his need to keep tabs on me, outweighing the problems my disability will cause.: He snorted and shot Mustang a smirk. :And there IS a potential commanding officer who understands sign language, which nullifies that particular argument.:
Mustang smirked right back. :An excellent way to ensure you don't end up under anyone else's command.:
Ed snorted. :You're worse than a child with a new toy.:
"Brother," Al hissed.
Mustang, though, just chuckled and ushered them on ahead of him as the conductor motioned for everyone to start boarding.
They settled into seats, Ed and Al taking one bench together, while Mustang sat across from them.
Mustang watched with some interest while Al tried to find a way to place his jian sword in the overhead bins so it wouldn't chance falling through the slot and onto their heads if it got jostled. When Al finally sat, satisfied, Mustang said, "Second Lieutenant Havoc said you'd implied you could use that sword?"
Al nodded. "It's called a jian. I, ah, found it while we were travelling in Xing, and our clan's fighting instructor taught me how to use it."
"You 'found it'," Mustang repeated, raising one eyebrow.
Ed snickered. :Technically, I'm the one who had it first.:
Al rolled his eyes and elbowed him. "We were two kids travelling alone; a group of bandits thought we looked like easy prey, and Brother insisted it was the other way around."
Mustang blinked. "You got attacked on the road and ended up stealing the bandits' things, rather than them taking yours," he said flatly.
Ed grinned and nodded, while Al just sighed.
Mustang glanced at Ed and shook his head. "I may regret this."
:You are ABSOLUTELY going to regret this,: Ed promised.
Al sighed again and caught Ed's hands, holding them tight. "I apologise for my brother, sir. He's actually five years old."
Mustang blinked, then let out a quiet chuckle and leant back in his seat. "So I see."
'Fuck you both,' Ed mouthed, just because he could.
Wisely, they both opted to ignore him.
Al managed to fall into a restless sleep after a few hours, curling up on the bench with his head in Ed's lap. For his part, Ed just stared out at the passing scenery and combed his fingers through his brother's hair. And he knew he would be better served by getting some sleep before the exam, but his mind was vacillating between being stupid over Mustang being right across from him, and supplying all the ways this could go to shit, because there were a lot of ways their plans could go wrong.
"Edward," Mustang murmured.
Ed glanced over at him and tilted his head in inquiry.
:Why the military?: Mustang signed, looking tired. :As much as you know, and as capable as you and your brother seem, surely you could have found a different way to fight these monsters than getting into bed with them.:
Ah, yes, thank you for that particular phrasing, bastard.
Ed slipped his hands free from Al's hair so he could sign, :We need the money.:
:There are other ways to earn money, even at your age,: Mustang pointed out.
Ed sighed. :Look, I was a member of your team for three years and I hated your guts, but you kept our arses out of the fire. Consider it returning a favour.:
Mustang's faint smile looked like it ached. :One would argue you still seem to hate me.:
Ed couldn't stop a snort. :No. I hate the stupid façade you put on, trying to act like you're stupider than you are, but I don't hate YOU. Who you are, what you want to do for this country, all of that.:
Mustang had tensed as Ed signed that last bit. :You referred to me as 'Führer Bastard',: he signed carefully, his eyes almost piercing in their intensity.
Ed grimaced; so he had caught that. :The lieutenant told me about Ishval, at one point.:
"Ah." Mustang glanced down at his bare hands, stared at them for a long moment, then looked back up at Ed with those same shadows that he'd seen in Resembool in his eyes. :Did I make it, in that future of yours?:
Somehow, Ed managed a smile that wasn't shadowed by his own sins. :Pretty sure you spent your first day as Führer with a hangover. Idiot.:
Mustang coughed a laugh into his hand. "Havoc?"
Ed snorted and nodded. :The whole stupid pile of them were there. Everyone got completely pissed and I had to carry your sorry arse home. Moron.: And he probably needed to change the subject before he said anything more on that night. :We didn't quite have a full democracy, yet, but we had a parliament, and they were working with the military to draw up treaties with our neighbours.:
Mustang blinked at that a few times. :Peace before demilitarisation?:
:I seem to recall one speech or another about that, yes.:
Mustang considered him for a moment. :You retired, didn't you?: he guessed.
Ed blinked. :Yes. How'd you know?:
Mustang's mouth quirked. :In a speech?:
'Ah.' Yeah, if he'd remained a member of Mustang's team, he'd probably have had more information about what was going on. :Yes, sorry. Tearing things down is more my style than repairing them.:
:You're saying you actually ARE five?:
Ed rolled his eyes. :I'm thirty-three.:
Mustang just sort of...stared, something very like shock in his qi.
Ed flashed him a smirk. :Respect your elders, Bastard,: he signed, because he could, then turned to look back out the window, pleased with his win.
It wasn't every day, after all, that he got one over on Mustang.
They'd already had to switch trains in Central twice, but it still caught him off guard, a bit, how strong the crawling sensation was inside the city. He couldn't wait to get back to East City, and he really hoped they managed to wrap this whole thing up before Mustang got posted to Central. (He was fairly certain they wouldn't; Hohenheim hadn't shown up, before, until after Hughes' death, while Ed'd been east to see off Lieutenant Ross. And hadn't Fuery said something about the move being because of all the State Alchemists Scar had killed? Awesome.)
Al, likewise, looked a little nauseous as they stepped out of the station, occasionally glancing towards the ground, as though he really would have rather not been walking on it.
Ed tapped his shoulder and signed, :Bear it for now. We're not going to be here long.:
:I know. It's still...:
:I know.: Ed glanced down at the ground himself and grimaced.
"Roy!" a familiar voice called.
Ed felt his heart jump up into his throat, the crawling under his feet being swept to the back of his thoughts, as he turned towards the voice and caught sight of a man he hadn't seen alive in...forever. He was grinning as wide as ever, sunlight glinting off his glasses, and his uniform regulation-clean; nothing at all like the empty-eyed, blood-stained ghost that sometimes haunted Ed's nightmares. 'Hughes,' he mouthed.
Mustang let out a long-suffering sigh. "I knew I shouldn't have told you I was coming, Hughes."
"Oh," Al whispered, and his hand curled around Ed's shoulder, familiar and settling.
"How cruel!" Hughes insisted, before turning a friendly grin on Ed and Al. "You must be the Elric brothers! You shouldn't let this stick in the mud talk you into things like joining the military, you know. It's not a nice place."
Ed couldn't quite bring himself to do anything more than stare, taking in every detail of this miracle in the flesh. And he'd known that Hughes was still alive, sure, but seeing him, grinning and so stupidly happy and just–
He was alive. Envy hadn't killed him. Envy wouldn't kill him.
Al cleared his throat, squeezing Ed's shoulder. "Colonel Mustang didn't talk us into anything, sir," he offered quietly. "He gave us the option, we debated it for a couple years, then decided this was what we needed to do."
"Hughes," Mustang cautioned, grabbing his friend's shoulder. "This is their choice."
Hughes' eyes darkened and his grin wavered as he looked at Mustang and said, "Oh, is that all?"
Ed shook himself and stepped forward, past his brother's grip on his shoulder, and tapped Hughes' arm. Partially to make sure he was really real, partially to get his attention. When Hughes looked down at him, he gave him a flat look and signed, :We know exactly what we're getting ourselves into, better than you do. I know you're only trying to look out for us, but don't.:
Then he turned away from Hughes' blank stare and motioned for his brother to follow him as he continued down to the street.
"Edward!" Mustang called after him.
Ed looked back, raising one eyebrow at him.
"It's too early to go in to Command. We have rooms booked at the Central Rose Hotel."
Ed grimaced. :The Rose SUCKS,: he complained, because the food in their dining room was kind of crap, and he'd twice ended up in rooms in the back corner, which had a great view of a dirty alley and never got any sunlight.
Mustang shot him an unimpressed look.
Ed scowled at him, signed, :Fuck you, Bastard,: then ducked Al's attempt to smack his hands and turned towards the Rose.
Huffing, Al caught him up after a minute. "What's wrong with this hotel?" he asked quietly.
:Their food sucks.:
He could almost hear his brother rolling his eyes.
Just up the road a bit, someone started their car and it made a loud farting noise as a cloud of dark exhaust bloomed out behind it.
Ed blinked, looked at his brother and found him biting his bottom lip, then looked back towards the car.
The car let out another fart of exhaust, then pulled away and crept down the street like it was ashamed of itself.
"Did that just–" Al said, clearly flummoxed.
:Farting car,: Ed signed, before he had to stop and laugh.
Al stopped next to him, snickering. "You are so immature."
:You thought it was awesome, too. Admit it,: Ed returned.
Al shook his head. "Maybe a little bit."
'HA,' Ed mouthed.
Al rolled his eyes, then glanced behind Ed. "Colonel, Lieutenant Colonel."
"Yes," Mustang said in that blandly superior tone he had, "I expect something like that car would amuse you, Edward."
Al caught his hands before he could respond to that. "Please don't encourage him, sir."
Hughes let out an amused cough.
"I apologise, Alphonse," Mustang offered smoothly, stepping around the brothers to take the lead. "The hotel is this way."
"Behave," Al hissed to Ed, before letting go of his hands so they could follow the bastard.
Ed fell back slightly, glancing over at Hughes, and found the man watching him with a considering gaze. :It's not safe to talk in Central,: he signed.
Hughes was still for a moment, before making a sign Ed wasn't familiar with, followed by, :–mentioned something similar.:
Ed made the unfamiliar sign and shot him a questioning look.
Hughes started to open his mouth, clearly thought better of it, and signed, :R-O-Y,: then nodded towards Mustang's back. :What do you call him?:
:Führer Bastard.:
Hughes choked on a laugh.
Ed flashed him a knowing grin. :Shortened to 'Bastard' in public.:
Hughes just shook his head, clearly amused.
In the hotel, Mustang passed over the key to the room Ed and Al would share, and they all left Hughes in the lobby to go put their things away and – for Ed and Al, at least – change into something fresher.
Ed finished first, Al having let him take the first shower, and wandered back downstairs. Mustang hadn't shown back up, but Hughes was trying to show the woman at the front desk a couple photos. Ed caught his sleeve, then signed, :Can I see?: when Hughes looked over at him.
"You want to see pictures of my adorable daughters and gorgeous wife?" Hughes said, looking delighted.
Daughters. Plural. As if Ed had ever expected Hughes to do anything other than include Nina wholly.
He nodded, motioning toward a couple of benches against the wall, well away from the frazzled receptionist.
Hughes came with him willingly, sitting down next to Ed and holding forth a stack of photos, his eyes gleaming. And there were photos of Gracia baking and Gracia smiling and Gracia with one or both of the girls. There were photos of Nina and Elicia together, and photos of them separate, of them smiling and laughing and playing with all manner of toys.
It was abso-fucking-lutely perfect, and Ed didn't have words for the curl of warmth that settled in his chest and helped to ease his stress from...everything. Mustang, Al insisting he was going to join the military, worrying about their clan, the danger lying in wait ahead of them, the crawling from below...all of that.
And, too, seeing his daughter's namesake so alive and happy... It helped, a little, against the certainty that he'd never see that family again. Just like the hope that only a copy of his memories had gone back, that a version of him was still there to make it home.
Al joined them before they made it through half the stack, clearly interested to see more of this family that Ed had occasionally mentioned with both fondness and sorrow.
"I'd love to meet them all," Al said as Hughes finally slipped his photos away.
Hughes' eyes lit up. "I can arrange that!" he promised. "We can do dinner tonight, at my house, and then you don't have to suffer hotel food."
:Yes, PLEASE,: Ed signed.
Al laughed. "If it's not too much trouble, we'd be honoured."
"Why are you honoured this time?" Mustang asked, announcing his reappearance, though Ed was fairly certain he'd sensed his qi lurking just out of sight, a few times, while the photos had been out.
"I'm inviting you all over for dinner," Hughes informed him as he stood. "Since these two are so very determined to take the exam, they might as well get some home-cooked food to give them extra strength." Then he frowned between Ed and Al while Mustang sighed. "Not much that can be done for the written part, I'm afraid."
Ed waved a careless hand at that, while Al shrugged and admitted, "We're not really worried about the exam. Any of it."
Hughes looked askance at Mustang, who just gave a slightly helpless shrug, then said, "Speaking of food, however, we should probably stop and get something more than train food before heading in."
Al nodded. "Sounds like a plan."
They stopped at a little hole-in-the-wall place that Ed had never been to before, which was delicious and relatively grease-free. As they got closer to Command, it was clear the grease-free was a good idea, because that sense of crawling was nigh-on unbearable, by the time they reached the main entrance.
"Brother," Al whispered as Mustang stepped forward to handle the permissions to get Ed and Al onto base.
Ed caught his brother's clammy hands in his and squeezed them. 'I know,' he mouthed. 'Deep breaths, try to ignore it.'
Al squeezed his hands back and closed his eyes, then took a handful of deep breaths. His qi curled up tight around him, like that might protect him from the crawling. It wasn't unlike what Ed's own qi had done, mostly unconsciously, and he hoped it helped his brother, wished there was some way he could make it better, other than nudging his qi against Al's and trying to transfer a feeling of warmth and love to distract from below.
A gloved hand came to rest on both of their shoulders, and Ed glanced up to find Mustang standing next to them with a hint of concern in his eyes. "Everything all right?" he asked quietly.
Ed squeezed Al's hands again and his brother nodded. "I'm okay," he promised, opening his eyes again. There was still a hint of strain around his eyes, but he definitely looked steadier, so Ed let him go. :Thank you,: Al signed to him.
Ed forced a tight smile. :It's bothering me, too,: he admitted. :Let's just get this over with, so we can go back to East City.:
:Please,: Al agreed, before turning towards Mustang. "Sorry, sir. Just nerves, I guess."
"Of course," Mustang agreed neutrally, before turning and leading the way towards the bottom of the tunnel up to the entrance.
"Roy," Hughes called, and they all glanced back toward him. He motioned with his head in the direction that Ed knew both the Investigations building and Hughes' home were. "Come find me when everyone's done. Even if it's well after dinnertime, I'll make sure there's something saved for all of you."
"I certainly hope it doesn't take that long," Mustang returned flatly.
Hughes laughed and waved as he turned and started away.
:It won't,: Ed promised, because the exam had only taken him seven hours, before, because he'd still been struggling with writing with his non-dominant hand. With his right hand fully functional, he expected to finish in half that, and he suspected Al would match him; seeing the Gate made this exam child's play.
Mustang raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't ask as he led them to the waiting lift.
Getting further away from the ground helped a little bit with the crawling sensation, even as it brought them closer to where Ed knew the Dwarf in the Flask's lair was, which, doubtless, had some interesting connotations about his power base that Ed didn't really care enough to sort through right then.
Up on the parade grounds, Mustang turned just enough to sign, :What is it?:
Ed blinked, then sped up a bit so he could walk at the bastard's side. :Envy and the other homunculi aren't the only rotten things we can sense that you can't,: he offered.
:This Dwarf in the Flask?: Mustang guessed.
:He's a large part of it,: Ed agreed.
Mustang nodded and lifted his gaze to stare ahead of them, towards the windows that Ed knew were Bradley's office. And he couldn't help but wonder if, maybe, this was the sort of thing that had given him away to Bradley to begin with. Not that it really mattered, in the end; they would find a way to get rid of Bradley, and all the other homunculi, too.
Somehow.
As Ed had expected, the exam was stupidly easy, and he finished inside of three hours. Mustang just sort of stared at him for a moment over the top of the paperwork he'd brought, when Ed flopped down in one of the chairs in the empty office the bastard had borrowed. Then he said, flatly, "You're done."
Ed flashed him a smirk and signed, :That exam is so easy.:
Mustang set down his pen. "I have met men and women who have taken that exam multiple times, know exactly what questions to study for, and still can't finish it as quickly as you just did."
:I am a genius,: Ed returned.
Mustang grunted and picked his pen back up. "You still have to deal with the psychologists and the practical, genius."
Ed rolled his eyes and pulled out his journal to write in.
Al showed up about an hour later, grimacing as he rubbed at his dominant wrist. "I don't remember the last time I had to write that much," he complained.
Mustang sighed. "Of course you both sped right through one of the hardest exams in Amestris," he muttered.
Al blinked and looked at Ed. "That was supposed to be hard?"
Ed snickered and shrugged. :We're essentially geniuses, when set against normal alchemists.:
Al frowned. "We're not."
Ed shrugged again. :There are different ways to gain knowledge, Al, and we've paid our tolls for ours; get used to the label.:
:YOU paid our tolls,: Al returned, his expression tight.
Ed shot him a sharp smile. :Next time we decide to do something stupid like that, I promise you can pay the toll for both of us.:
"There had best not be any further attempts at experimental alchemy," Mustang interrupted as he stood, "or extended recoveries will be the least of your worries."
Ed snorted. :Sorry, Al, no tolls for you to pay. Führer Bastard's rules.:
Al threw his hands up in the air. "I'm not talking to you any more," he announced, before very pointedly turning his back on Ed.
"I do believe," Mustang told Ed as he walked over to them, "that that is the most effective snub I have ever seen."
:Fuck you.:
Mustang raised an eyebrow. "Alphonse, is there a reason your brother seems to prefer the more sexual signs?"
"Because he's a jerk," Al snapped.
:Because it embarrasses him and amuses me,: Ed supplied once he'd stood.
Mustang sighed and motioned for them to head out. "Please avoid using them around any children, whether they understand you or not."
Ed shook his head. :Nope. I have learnt my lesson about using foul language around children.: Winry, in fact, had been very good about making sure that lesson stuck, by whacking him over the head with the nearest blunt instrument every time she heard one of their kids use one of the words they'd picked up from him.
"That sounds like a story," Mustang muttered.
Ed shrugged and offered, :I had two children and a vindictive wife.:
Mustang stumbled.
Al turned wide eyes on Ed. :What did you just SAY?:
:I thought you weren't talking to me?:
:I'm not. What did you say?:
(Ed loved his brother.)
:I mentioned having children,: Ed explained, since Mustang's hands were full of paperwork and that wasn't really something that should be said aloud.
"Oh." Al shrugged, then very pointedly looked away again.
Ed snorted, amused.
Mustang shook his head as he overtook the two of them. "I'm giving you two to Hughes and you can drive him to drinking."
Ed laughed at that, and was almost positive he heard Al attempting to muffle snickers next to him.
Hughes was equally disturbed by how quickly they'd managed the exam, but he was all too happy to pull out the collection of photos he kept at work to show Ed and Al, while Mustang and Hughes' staff made themselves scarce. When he ran out of photos, Ed asked him about current events – he hadn't paid a great deal of attention, last time, honestly, but he had learnt the worth of keeping an eye on them as he got older – which somehow brought up Xing, and then Hughes scrambled for a very thin file of information that the military had on the country, at least half of which was a complete fallacy. Which Hughes clearly knew, because he proceeded to wheedle and plead until Ed and Al finally gave in and agreed to update the file.
"I'm keeping them," Hughes told Mustang, when he finally poked his head back into the office not quite an hour later.
Ed glanced over from where he and Al were debating how much to put in the file about alkahestry, and found Mustang shaking his head. "They're yours."
Hughes practically cackled.
Mustang rolled his eyes. "What time is Gracia expecting us?"
Hughes glanced at the clock, then jumped to his feet. "Oh! How time flies when you get to talking about foreign countries. Come along, boys. I have to introduce you to all three of my best girls!"
Mustang let out his long-suffering sigh.
(Ed was about seventy percent certain it was all for show.)
They quickly cleaned up, Al promising they could come back after the psychological and practical portions tomorrow and finish the file, then followed Hughes to his house.
Hughes led the way inside, calling a greeting, and Mustang waved Al and Ed in ahead of him. Ed was, admittedly, more than a little nervous. Seeing Hughes for the first time had been a bit of a shock, but the last time he'd seen him, he'd been alive and cheerful. But Nina... The last time he'd seen her, she'd been a chimera. And, for all that he'd always partially blamed himself for Hughes' death, everything about Nina's situation had been a massive stain of failure, and there had never been anyone like Gracia trying to tell him it wasn't his fault.
"Papa!" a gleeful voice called, right before a little girl, her red-brown hair done up in two braids, pelted around the corner and straight into Hughes' waiting arms.
Nina. A year younger than Ed remembered her, but so much more vibrant, for the extra attention that she got from two parents who didn't lock themselves in a lab all day. She looked to have settled in with the Hugheses well. Though, if Mustang had got her out as soon as Tucker had applied for his licence, she would have been two; old enough to understand that her parents were gone and been upset at it, but young enough to adapt to her new life without too much difficulty.
The last two members of the household came into view as Hughes hugged Nina tight enough to make her squeal and swat his head. Gracia was holding Elicia, who was watching her father and Nina's antics with a wide stare. "Welcome home," Gracia offered, before looking past Hughes. "Roy, I'm glad you could come for dinner."
"Your cooking is always worth it," Mustang said in that stupid smooth voice of his, before resting a hand each on Ed and Al's shoulders. "This is Edward and Alphonse Elric, here to try their hands at the state alchemy exam. Boys, that's Gracia, and their youngest, Elicia."
Gracia blinked. "A little young, aren't you, boys?" she asked.
Al let out a slightly nervous laugh. "So people keep telling us."
Hughes cleared his throat, and shook his head at Gracia, before finally letting Nina down, since she'd started trying to slip out of his arms as soon as she'd realised there were other people.
While Hughes went to greet Gracia and Elicia, Nina peered up at Ed and Al. "Hello," she offered with an uncertain smile.
Ed crouched down in front of her and offered a smile and a small wave in response.
"Nina," Mustang said quietly, and she glanced up at him, "this is Edward, and his younger brother, Alphonse. Edward can't speak, but he knows what you're saying."
Nina blinked at that, then looked back at Ed. "Edward?" she tried.
Ed couldn't quite keep from flinching, because that was way too close to how she'd said his name as a chimera. :Nicknames,: he signed to Al. :Please.:
Al crouched down next to him. "Hi, Nina. Brother says you can call him Ed, because you're special. How's that sound?"
Nina's eyes lit up. "Ed?" she tried, and Ed smiled at her and nodded; that was better.
"And you can call me 'Al', if that's easier," Al added. "That's what Brother always calls me."
"Ed and Al," Nina said, before grinning widely and announcing, "Big brothers!" and darting forward to give Ed a hug that he returned wholeheartedly.
As she transferred her welcoming hug to a laughing Al, Ed stood and signed to Mustang, :Where's her father?: Because he'd been so distracted by worrying about her, he'd forgotten to find out what had happened to Tucker.
:Imprisoned in East City,: Mustang answered, his qi taking on a dark sort of edge that Ed fully understood. :I tried for a life sentence, but some of the brass seemed to think it didn't count as human transmutation.:
Ed scowled; he really fucking hated their government.
:He got thirty years,: Mustang offered. :By the time he gets out, she'll be able to take care of herself.:
Ed snorted. :Yeah, and the first thing I'll do if I see him is break his face again.:
Al sighed. "I think," he said as he stood, holding Nina a little bit awkwardly, "that Brother needs to be hugged until he's not grumpy any more."
Nina was plenty willing to provide said service, and Ed quickly found himself holding her, which did help soothe his ire at her father, and also made it much harder for him to sign, which he suspected had been part of Al's intentions.
"Why don't you boys follow Gracia to the dining room," Hughes suggested cheerfully, before throwing a significant look towards Mustang.
Well, if Hughes wanted to harass Mustang without an audience, Ed was down with that, so he shoved Al ahead of him and they followed a smiling Gracia through the house to the dining room, where the table had already been set for everyone. Once they could spread out a bit and she'd set Elicia in her highchair, she offered her free hand to Al. "It's good to finally meet you two," she said. When Ed and Al both frowned at that, she explained, "When Roy first dropped off the sign language books for Maes, he said it was for a potential future State Alchemist who couldn't talk, so you had someone in Central you could talk to." She nodded to Ed.
"Oh," Al said, verbalising both of their understanding. "Did you learn any?"
Gracia let out a quiet laugh and shook her head. "I picked up a little bit, but Roy never mentioned how young you both were; I assumed Maes would only know you through work, and I only rarely have occasion to meet his co-workers."
Al laughed and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Surprise?"
Nina tugged on the tassel at the front of Ed's sash. "What's this?"
Ed snorted, leaving it for Al to explain, "That's the symbol of our clan, back in Xing."
"Xing?" Nina repeated blankly, while Gracia said, "You two are Xingan?"
Al shook his head. "Oh, no. We just spent the past couple years there, learning their alchemy." To Nina, he explained, "Xing is a really big country to the east. You have to cross a desert to get to it, but it's a very pretty country. Not many cities."
"Oh." Nina tugged at Ed's sash again, pulling it forward and peeking inside. "There's something inside," she announced, while Gracia admonished, "Nina," and Elicia called, "Xing!" from the table, banging something against something else.
Ed snorted and nodded, gently catching Nina's hand before she could reach in to grab the handle of the closest kunai, while Gracia went to stop Elicia's noise-making.
"Brother keeps sharp things in there," Al cautioned. "Best to let him pull them out, if you want to see."
"Sharp things?" Nina repeated, looking between them. "Can I see?"
Ed nodded and motioned towards the floor, Al translating, "Yes, but he'll have to put you down."
Nina considered that for a moment, then nodded, so Ed carefully lowered her to the floor, crouching in front of her. He pulled out one of his kunai, holding up a finger when she reached for it, and clapped his hands together to use alchemy to blunt the sharp point. Then he let her take it.
"It's safe," Al promised, almost certainly to Gracia, Hughes, and Mustang, the latter two having just joined them.
"That," Hughes said quietly, "is some impressive alchemy. Why can't you do that?"
"Be quiet, Maes," Mustang muttered.
Hughes crouched down next to Ed and Nina, who was turning the kunai over in her hands with clear interest. "Knife-fighter, are you?" he asked Ed.
Ed nodded. :Like you.:
Hughes' mouth quirked. "Spotted that, then." Ed shrugged and nodded; it wasn't hard to notice the single knife Hughes kept at the small of his back, not quite hidden by his uniform jacket, though Ed suspected it was far from the only one on him. "And I'd guess your brother uses that sword he was carrying around?"
Nina perked up at that. "Big Brother Al has a sword?"
Ed grinned and nodded. Since Al had moved into the kitchen with Gracia and Mustang, he looked to Hughes and signed, :He does, yes. He's got a couple knives, too, but he much prefers his sword. He just didn't want to take it into Command and freak anyone out, so he left it at the hotel.:
"Fair enough," Hughes allowed, before telling Nina, "Al does indeed have a sword, and Ed says he might be convinced to bring it by one time, but only if you're very good."
:You people take far too much liberty when you translate for me,: Ed complained, while Nina insisted, "I'm always good, Papa!"
Hughes laughed and gently took the kunai from Nina. "So you are. Why don't you go sit?"
"Okay!" She turned and scurried off towards the table, loudly informing Gracia that she wanted to sit between Ed and Al as she went.
Ed grinned at that as he accepted his kunai back and stood, quickly re-sharpening it with alchemy and slipping it away.
"Do you prefer 'Ed' and 'Al'," Hughes asked as they watched the table shuffling, "or 'Edward' and 'Alphonse'?"
Ed shrugged. :It doesn't matter, really. People in our home village use our nicknames, and they used our full names in Xing, since they don't really do nicknames there, so we're used to either. I just figured nicknames would be easier at their age.:
"Hm," Hughes returned, sounding rather like he didn't buy that. "Roy says you were the one to warn him about Nina's father."
Ed glanced over, finding too-sharp green eyes watching him. :I did,: he agreed.
Hughes' eyes narrowed. "I thought you were in Xing a year ago."
Ed shrugged. :We were.: And then he stepped toward the table and took the spot Nina was excitedly pointing him toward at her side.
After dinner, Mustang, Hughes, and Gracia all retired to the living room, while Al and Ed let themselves be dragged up to Elicia and Nina's room. Al played with Elicia for a while, before she fell asleep while he was reading one of the books she'd dragged over. Ed, for his part, ended up sitting back against one of the beds, holding a handful of hair decorations, while Nina sat behind him and went to town styling his hair.
Which was familiar in a way that ached, because his daughter had gone through this phase about a year before he'd come across that array. Winry hadn't been fond of it – probably because Nina thought she could do her mum's hair while she was working on automail blueprints, since that didn't involve potentially sharp parts, but she pulled a lot, which tended to ruin Winry's concentration – so Ed had been the only one with the patience – or who got distracted enough not to care – to let Nina play with his hair without yelling. She'd eventually outgrown it – Ed had come home after spending a couple weeks hunting down another rogue alchemist, to find she was no longer interested in playing hairdresser – and Ed tried not to hate himself, now, for his shame at his own sins robbing his daughter of this game; the least he could do was let this Nina have as much fun as she wanted.
"Oh dear," Gracia said when she stepped into the room well after Elicia had fallen asleep, Mustang and Hughes not far behind her.
Hughes just started laughing, muffling it behind his hand, while Mustang very obviously coughed into his fist.
"Mama, Big Brother Ed let me do his hair! Isn't it pretty?" Nina asked with all the confidence of a child who'd yet to be told to stop.
"It's pretty something," Gracia managed with a straight face.
Ed set his handful of hair decorations on the ground next to him and signed, :How embarrassed am I?:
Hughes had to retreat out of sight down the hallway, to – from the sounds of it – howl with laughter. Al, who had been watching the work in progress with a constantly widening grin, gleefully informed Ed, :You are SO embarrassed.:
Ed offered Nina a thumbs up, then held back his hand for a high-five, which she smacked with a giggle.
Gracia shook her head with a quiet laugh. "All right, my little hairdresser. Time for bed."
Nina made a pitiful noise and leant forward over Ed's shoulder, wrapping her arms around his neck. "But I wanna stay up with my big brothers!"
Mustang cleared his throat. "Your big brothers need to leave for the evening and head for bed themselves. But I'm sure they'll be back tomorrow to play with you and Elicia more."
Ed nodded; he fully intended to spend as much time with the Hughes family as he could while they were in Central. If for no other reason than having rambunctious children to keep tabs on, meant they noticed the underground crawling less. (Or, well, Ed did. And, given the way Al had relaxed over the course of the evening, he suspected his brother was the same.)
Nina huffed and let go to climb out of the bed, then turned around and hugged Ed tight. "Night, Big Brother Ed," she said sadly.
Ed hugged her back, then kissed the top of her head and motioned her toward where Gracia was freeing Al from the sleeping Elicia.
While Nina went to say goodbye to his brother, Ed stood and stretched. Then he became aware of a familiar sound and turned to find Hughes with his camera, currently aimed at Al and Nina's hug.
"Your hair," Mustang informed him drily, a sparkle of amusement in his eyes, "has been immortalised on film."
Ed sighed and shrugged. :I'll live.: To which the bastard shook his head in disbelief.
Mustang led the way out of the room, once Al was free to join them, and Hughes called, "I'll be back to tuck everyone in after I've seen your big brothers and uncle out."
As they walked downstairs and to the door, Ed carefully pulled as many of the decorations out of his hair as he could find, and Al got the last couple while Mustang got his coat, then handed them over to Hughes, while Ed put his hair back in his usual ponytail. "Nina might want these back."
Hughes laughed and slipped the handful into his pocket. "Yeah. Thanks for being so patient with them, both of you. None of us really intended to abandon you."
Al shook his head. "It was fine. There are a couple younger kids in our clan who we'd keep an eye on during the planting and harvest seasons, when we weren't out in the fields, so we've had a little bit of experience."
Hughes narrowed his eyes slightly in Ed's direction, something knowing to the curl of his mouth. "Oh, is that all?"
Ed blinked, then frowned and signed, :What did Führer Bastard tell you?:
"Language, Edward," Mustang murmured from way too close behind him.
(Sticking it out just long enough to punch the Dwarf in the Flask back to the other side of the Gate, and then running like hell back to Xing and staying there, was sounding more and more promising; he did not need this man and his temptation in his life.)
As Ed shifted slightly to the side, Hughes grimaced slightly and signed, :Time travel.:
"You don't believe him?" Al murmured, tilting his head to one side.
:And whatever happened to watching what you say in Central?: Ed demanded of Mustang.
Mustang just shot him a flat look. :Given you're incapable of acting like a stupid child and he'll go digging for answers at his first opportunity, I decided this was the safest course of action.:
'Oh.' Right. Hughes wasn't the sort to just let a mystery be, and if he didn't know exactly how easily their enemies could keep tabs on him...
Didn't think that one through properly, did he? Dammit. (This was one of the reasons he needed Mustang in on everything, because the way-too-clever bastard could spot these problem spots that Ed would miss; Ed didn't do people.)
"I don't know what I believe," Hughes admitted so quietly, he was almost whispering. "Normal alchemy goes over my head, never mind whatever weird nonsense this is. But there is a little girl back there whose father turned his wife into a chimera, and you–" he pointed at Ed "–look at her like she's the most precious thing in the world. Hell, the first time you saw me, you looked like you'd seen a ghost!"
Ed swallowed and admitted, :To me, you ARE ghosts, you and Nina. Her, I failed–:
"Brother," Al whispered.
Ed shook his head and continued, :You, I gave too many questions, and finding the answers got you killed.:
Hughes tensed. "What answers?" he demanded quietly, looking between Ed and Mustang, whose mouth was pressed in a thin line. "Roy–"
Ed snapped his fingers and, when Hughes focussed on him, signed, :Do you have a map of the country?: Because he should show this to Mustang, too, and Hughes' house was far more secure than the military. And Mustang was almost certainly right about needing to give Hughes some answers, before he went looking for them on his own; before, Hughes hadn't come to East City until they'd needed to pick up Tucker, and that wasn't happening this time. And him taking a holiday to go back east with Mustang for a few days was liable to get some raised eyebrows.
As much as Ed didn't want to discuss this in Central, they didn't have a choice.
Hughes gave a brusque nod, then led the way to what Ed had always assumed was a hall cupboard, during his rare visits with Gracia and Elicia, before, which turned out to be a cramped, windowless office with a desk covered in papers, a massive map of Amestris taking up the wall to one side, while a huge map of Central City was hung on the wall across from it. Both maps were covered in pins with coloured tips, most with pieces of paper caught on them, and many of the black-tipped ones linked by white string.
"Oh, wow," Al murmured, clearly intrigued. "What are you tracking?"
"State Alchemists," Mustang murmured, reaching past Ed – who couldn't really shift out of the way, because of the cramped quarters; fuck – and touching a red pin, "powerful non-certified alchemists–" he pointed at a yellow pin "–anyone above a lieutenant colonel–" he touched a blue pin "–and military defectors." He touched a white pin.
Hughes tapped one of the few black pins and explained, "These are unsolved or potential serial murders, the perpetrators of which have been avoiding military prosecution."
Ed blinked, his interest – thankfully – caught and asked, :Do any of them have a scar across their forehead?:
Hughes frowned and shook his head. "Not that I can recall. Why?"
"We're waiting for him to pop up," Al offered with a shrug, while Ed spotted a container of pins on the desk and used alchemy to make a handful of them stand out from the rest of the ones on the map.
Ed considered the map for a moment, sighed when he couldn't remember the exact order of the events, and just started with Riviere, since he knew it was the first, and went anticlockwise around the array.
"Ishval?" Mustang hissed when he placed that one, and both his and Hughes' qi just sort of went rigid with tension.
"And Fotset," Hughes whispered, as Ed changed two pins slightly for Liore and Briggs. "There was a massive battle there two years ago, when Aerugo and Creta joined forces, apparently acting on information that it would be an easy target."
Ed snorted. Misinformation, he'd bet.
"Those were bloody battles, with massive losses of life," Hughes continued quietly. "Are all of the rest of them–"
Ed nodded, and both Mustang and Hughes let out quiet curses.
Al had found string by the time Ed finally managed to get the Briggs pin in, with the help of the desk chair. Since he was already up there, he started the string from Briggs and quickly formed the outer pentagon. As he started connecting the inner pentagon, Mustang drew in a sharp breath. "That's an array."
Ed nodded.
"What for?" Hughes whispered, voice shaky.
Ed glanced back when his brother whistled. When he started signing the damning truth, Ed went back to connecting the last of the string.
"The whole country?" Hughes whispered.
Ed tossed the leftover string back on the desk and nodded, then snapped his fingers to get their attention and signed, :We're going to stop them.:
:Where's the circle?: Mustang signed, his jaw clenched tight. :That large, they can't wait until the last minute to create it.:
:Underground. Sloth is digging it.:
"Sloth?" Hughes repeated.
"A homunculus," Al said, before switching to signing to explain about the seven of them.
Hughes' eyes had gone wide at the mention of King Bradley, and when Al said Selim's name, he just started cursing.
"This is too much," he said finally, hands pressed together tight in front of him, as if that would hide how badly they were shaking. "This is impossible."
"You don't believe us?" Al asked, his voice tense.
Hughes looked past Ed, toward the map, his eyes tracking down a bit before stopping, and Ed knew he was looking at the marker over Ishval. "I believe you," he admitted, before letting out a cracked little laugh. "Shit. How can I not? This is so completely freakish and impossible, it can't be anything but the truth." Then he looked at Mustang, who was leaning back against the closed door, arms crossed tight over his chest and his expression held carefully blank. "This is why you've been telling me to slow down, isn't it?"
"I only found out everything yesterday, myself," Mustang said flatly, and Ed couldn't quite keep from wincing; fuck, they'd sort of just dropped the whole mess on him, then never gave him the chance to think, hadn't they? (Not that getting everything in bits and pieces, while hostages were being held over your head wasn't just as stressful, but still.) "But Edward passed on some warnings, with the information about the Tuckers. Recognising the validity of one did stress the importance of the other."
Hughes took a slow, carefully controlled breath and glanced over the map again before looking at Ed. "Is there anyone in Central we can trust?"
"The Armstrongs," Mustang offered, and Ed nodded.
"Brother once mentioned a Maria Ross?" Al offered.
Ed blinked. He had?
Hughes frowned. "Second Lieutenant Ross?" he asked, looking askance at Ed.
Ed sighed and nodded. :Yes. But she was dragged into everything by the homunculi, first.: He rubbed at his mouth in thought, while Hughes let out his own sigh and slumped slightly. As it occurred to him, Ed reached out and touched Hughes' arm to get his attention, then signed, :We never had much to do with your office, so I don't know most of your team.: He motioned towards the map behind him, then continued, :This is a sentencing for everyone in the country, our family and our friends. If you have people that you absolutely trust and can't bear to leave in the dark, especially those with people they would lay down their lives to save, there's not much I can do to stop you. But BE CAREFUL.:
"I doubt we're being watched all that closely right now," Mustang murmured, glancing at the map. "I'm not the only member of the military with eyes on Bradley's seat, and all that the military knows about you two," he continued, looking between Ed and Al, "right now, is that you completed that exam faster than most adults." He looked at Hughes, then, and met his stare. "This time tomorrow will be a different matter, but you have the chance to work out some sort of warning system with those of your team whom you trust."
Hughes' mouth quirked. "Make plans like we're being watched, but don't let that stop us?"
Mustang inclined his head, then looked at Ed. "You said you can sense them? The homunculi."
"Oh?" Hughes looked over too.
Ed grimaced. :We should be able to. If Bradley comes to the practical again, I should be able to tell you for certain after.:
"If you can, that would be a useful skill to develop," Hughes commented.
:You're welcome to travel to Xing and waste a year trying to figure it out,: Ed returned with a flat look.
"Perhaps not."
Al yawned, flushing and covering his mouth when they all looked at him. "Sorry."
"No, I'm sorry," Hughes returned, shaking his head. "You were heading out and I started pushing for answers."
Ed raised his hands to sign, but Mustang reached out and caught his closest wrist. "Apologies don't get us any closer to the hotel," he chastised, while Ed just sort of stared a bit blankly at the hand wrapped around his wrist, just tight enough to keep Ed from signing, but not so much as to be painful.
What the fuck did Mustang think he was doing?!
(And why wasn't Ed pulling away?)
"Come on, Alphonse," Mustang ordered, opening the door and tugging Ed along after him.
(Exhaustion. It had been a long two days of travelling and he just needed to go to bed. Clearly.)
Gracia came quietly down the stairs with a worried frown as they passed the bottom. "I didn't think I'd heard you leave," she said, looking between Mustang and Hughes. "Is everything all right?"
"Just passing on some information." Mustang promised with an easy smile.
Ed finally found the wherewithal to yank his hand away as Mustang stopped to open the front door. They traded a round of quiet goodbyes, then Hughes left to go tuck Nina and Elicia in while Gracia saw them out properly.
Outside, Ed fell in next to Mustang and angrily signed, :I am not a child whose hand needs to be held, you bastard!:
Mustang let out a near silent sigh and signed back, :Maybe you were happy to continue standing around, passing blame, but I intend to get some sleep tonight.:
Al caught Ed's arm and tugged him back so he wasn't walking with Mustang any more. "Stop," he whispered quietly.
Ed huffed, but obediently left off arguing with Mustang, instead staying back and serving as support for Al, which proved quite necessary when they finally made it to the hotel and he stumbled on the stairs.
"Edward? Alphonse?" Mustang called from the landing above them. And he must have been pretty fucking tired, himself, because he actually sounded concerned.
One-handed, Ed signed, :Fine. Go,: then wrapped one arm around his brother and helped him up the stairs, ignoring Al's quiet insistence that he was fine, followed by a tired apology.
In their room, they got changed for bed in silence. Before Ed could turn off the light, though, Al called, "Brother?" When he looked over, Al signed, :It's the colonel, isn't it?:
:What is?: Ed returned, putting on his best tired look in hopes that his brother would either be quick about it, or just shut up.
:Your mystery man.:
Ed couldn't stop himself from tensing, knew that was as good as a confirmation, and responded by snapping off the light, then crawling into bed.
The room was absolutely silent for about half a minute, then Ed's bed dipped and Al said, "Can I sleep with you?"
It had been a long few days, and far more emotionally draining than Ed had really been prepared for. With the crawling sensation under them a constant strain on his nerves, and knowing his brother was all-too aware of it too, the only possible response was to lift his covers, giving Al space to crawl in next to him.
Al curled up behind him and whispered, "I'm sorry. Are you okay?"
Was he? Hughes and Nina were both alive, and some of their strongest allies believed in the danger and were willing to stand with them. He was...grateful. Relieved.
Which wasn't what Al was asking, but Ed had no interest in tackling the kettle of fish his brother was worried about, so he reached over his shoulder and patted Al's shoulder, then closed his eyes.
Al sighed, but didn't push it, for which Ed was extremely grateful.
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