Alphonse Elric is (not_fullmetal) wrote in knowhereic, @ 2017-09-19 01:44:00 |
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Entry tags: | fullmetal alchemist: au: alphonse elric, fullmetal alchemist: canon: edward elric, haloverse: canon: north, haloverse: canon: york |
Who: Edward & Alphonse Elric and North Dakota & York
What: One big.. er.. happy? family.
When: Evening, after this.
Where: Elric/Spartan Apartment
Rating: PG
Status: Log - Complete
Okay, so York and North had fought Tex with Harry and every other psychotic person he knew. North turned up looking like shit, York looked a little bad himself but not nearly as much as North. Why the hell they stayed friends with someone who beat them this badly was beyond him. All he’d done to them was put various appliances in the wall because tall people were getting annoying. And needed to stop. He’d wanted to see North try to get the precious coffee pot now, but when he came in looking like he did-Ed didn’t really say anything. He didn’t know what to say. North was still new territory to him. Sure he felt bad, but he couldn’t find the words to properly express that so he just followed York and North into their shared room and looked at him trying to figure out what to say. How the hell was Al so good at this talking thing? Ed felt like he sucked at it. North probably needed water. Ed said nothing but left the room moments later only to return with water and put it beside him. --- It had gone pretty much how North and York expected it to go with Texas. Neither of them had died, the wizard (what, really? A wizard?) hadn’t needed to intervene and the boy--Alphonse Elric--hadn’t fallen into the chaos by association well until the end. Dresden had done his part and in the end, so had Texas. What was left was the aftermath. York showed North where to store his armor (again, with the wizard who North hadn’t even properly met yet) and then patched the Freelancer up. He was bruised and bloody under his armor, but York was the resident medic and had done this patch up job a thousand times in the last year or more that North had known him. It would have to do. Unequipped with the healing unit attached to York, North was left to handle the aftermath on his own. No big deal. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t done before. But that meant he was a hot mess when he finally entered the Elric-York apartment (privately impressed there was a space so large for only three people) a little bone weary and ready for a nap. But he had a smile on his face, because Theta and Alphonse had taken to each other with surprising enthusiasm and the little magenta and blue AI had found his voice long enough to talk. It was the best part of North’s night. As was being able to sit down on a cushy surface. He’d looked at Edward, of course, being a giant of some six feet and nine or so inches, he towered over everyone in the apartment with the same terrifying presence the wizard Dresden did. Except North had a whole hell of a lot more muscle than he did. But then the little blonde dipped out, and the pale blonde giant raised an equally pale eyebrow, and opened his mouth to say something. Then Ed came back with a glass of water, the gesture was the nicest thing. What a pair of pleasant brothers. And the first brothers North had ever seen. They could be twins, too. He took the glass of water, “Thank you, Edward, that’s very nice of you,” he said, and then watched him curiously. Brothers. “I’m sorry for dropping in on you like this, York and I had to help a friend.” *** York had helped North into the room, looking far better than his best friend. He had a bit of blood still on him, having not managed to clean it all off properly, but he had no bruising anywhere. No cuts. Nothing but those scars on his face and his missing eye. Leaned back against the wall near the door, he was smiling as Ed brought back some water for North and might have spoken up, but then he noticed Alphonse come to stand in the doorway, looking so much like Edward that they certainly could have been twins; fraternal, just like North and South. They were the same height, though Al’s rounder, larger eyes made him look a bit younger, his personality and demeanor made him seem older than he actually was. He looked younger and acted older. Odd boy. But both of the Elrics were pretty odd, if you were being honest about it. York gave North a wink and a smile, then slowly pushed away from the wall and turned, grabbing up Al from the doorway and spinning him around before trapping him in his arms, the boy’s back against his lower torso, as he marched the young blonde awkwardly back towards the couch. York sunk down onto it, stretching out long legs and Al wasted no time in climbing onto the couch beside him and dropping his head into the Spartan’s lap, large bronze eyes still focused on the door of York and North’s room (he supposed the two would be sleeping in the same room, that was what York had said). The Freelancer watched also, lazily playing with the long hair Alphonse had presented him with. North and Ed needed a moment to feel one another out. *** Al took to people so easily, Ed had difficulty relating. There were many differences between the two brothers. Even physically Ed felt like they were completely different people, but most people they met didn’t seem to agree. Ed stared down at North as he took the water, “...Yeah well you look like shit.” He said awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck. At home he didn’t bother to wear his gloves to cover his automail, but when they went out he still hid. “You shouldn’t move around much.” Ed looked over at the t.v. where he’d spent the other day looking over that ‘netflix’ thing everyone seemed so amped up about (he didn’t get the thrill, he just wanted his book back) “...Why are you friends with someone who treats you like shit?” Ed didn’t understand. Sure sometimes he had to fight with Roy to make his point heard, but he didn’t think this was that. These things felt like different things. Roy wasn’t like Tex...was he? Ed chewed at the inside of his lip as he thought about that. He didn’t know enough about the colonel, but his morals seemed better than hers. He felt remorse it seemed for the things he’d done, Tex? He wasn’t sure. It seemed like she was bragging half the time and enjoyed people being afraid of her. Tex was a confusing person to him. Sometimes Ed liked her and wanted to be her friend, other times she just upset him and he wanted nothing to do with her. Now was one of those latter times. She hurt people he cared about. He was unamused. --- North laughed, “Yeah, buddy, I feel about the same, too.” Like shit. But it was fine. He’d heal. And this wasn’t the worst condition he’d ever been in. He smiled a little, ignoring the faint tug of the cut across his cheek (that one would scar minimally, but who was keeping track? He had a whole load of scars across his body anyway). And for the question? Why was he friends with someone like Texas? She didn’t have regard for most people, she only seemed to actively like York. Mostly she seemed tolerant of everyone else, North included. So the Freelancer regarded Edward with all seriousness, taking the question for what it was worth, “I won’t make excuses for her, there’s a lot of things about Texas that are… off. Sometimes she isn’t a very good person, but it’s not all her fault. Somewhere along the way she decided she’d be better off this way..” By pushing people away, of course, but York was ambivalent about sharing details of Texas without her permission. “York and I are still her friends, and being there when she needs it, despite all her flaws, is the best way for us to show it. Especially because she doesn’t know how to ask for help.” He took a drink of water, then set the glass aside. “It says a lot about you that you’d ask that, you know.” His pale blue eyes met those brazen gold ones, “It shows you care about York, and even Texas,” less so himself in that moment, as North had only just met Edward. He wasn’t expecting Alphonse’s level of sudden interest. “York’s good people, he really likes you. Thinks very highly of you. I can see why.” *** “I don’t try to kill the people I push away.” Ed made a face. He didn’t do very well with most people either, but he also didn’t want them dead. If he was in a mood half the time he just wanted to isolate himself with a room full of books and be left to his business. This was way beyond that. “...I don’t like it.” Ed was uncomfortable admitting it, he felt like a little kid whose parents had gotten into an argument and he was forced to witness it. He knew sometimes he did push people away, but it wasn’t because he wanted them to hurt like this. He only wanted himself to suffer. Not everyone around him. He didn’t know that he could be friends with someone like that. People had flaws, yeah but this was out of his league. Tex was kind of a psycho. He sat at the edge of the bed for a moment, boots on their heels. He liked the way they balanced like that for some reason. It made his feet feel lighter than he was maybe. Who knew. Glancing over at North he frowned a little. “It does?” He didn’t seem to understand that connection North had made about him caring. It went over his head entirely. “..Yeah. He is.” Ed had Roy when he first arrived, but having Roy was a little like having an explosive device. Having the combination of them was what had kept him from going off the deep end. Ed didn’t like the idea of either of them being hurt by anyone. --- I don't like it. North's expression fell a little. "I know, I'm sorry we brought it to your doorstep. I really am. It isn't something we wanted to involve either of you in," he looked at Ed when the boy sat beside him, so small in wake of North's form. A tiny imprint of a human with so much inside him. And so much trust to take North at his word like that, to sit without caution. To believe he was safe in the big man's presence. North warmed inside. "In the future, York and I will work to keep the noise to a minimum." Not that the fight had been anywhere near him. Not really. But they could reduce the backlash, keep Texas satisfied. Keep her from exploding on these boys. They could do that much. "You let us manage Texas, she can be exhausting, but she doesn't have to make it your problem. Why don't you tell me about those books York took from you? Has he given them back yet? Are you feeling well enough to read? York and I have read every book we could get our hands on. He’s really the biggest nerd I’ve ever met, don’t let him convince you otherwise.” *** Al had wanted to watch, but Ed didn’t. Part of him was curious to see what York could do, but he didn’t like the idea of Tex actually trying to kill them and watching it for fun. It had oddly upset him to the point of distancing himself from her entirely. The last thing she’d said was the comment about his legs, and it had actually gotten to him. He didn’t want to let it show, but he was unimpressed again with her. It was like fire and ice. One moment she could amuse the hell out of him and the next he’d not know how to react to her. “Al wanted to watch, so..it’s...whatever.” He wasn’t there to stop his brother from living the way he wanted assuming he didn’t do anything stupid. “Exhausting is the right word.” That matched Tex exactly in his opinion. He felt safe sitting beside the freelancer because York did. If York trusted him this much, Ed would try. He didn’t sense anything hostile from him or untrustworthy, so he would make an attempt not to push him away too but he made no promises. Ed just nodded to the comment about them managing the psycho. He was fine not being a part of that. “You read them while I couldn’t? Assholes.” He couldn’t help himself, but it wasn’t entirely harsh. It was more of an amused comment. “M’fine, I get fevers kinda frequently because of this.” He held up his metal hand, moving the fingers slightly and shrugged. “I’m used to it, but it’s annoying and inconvenient mainly.” The fever hadn’t been that high in a while though, so that was a little strange. “It’s for a project I’m working on, teachable alchemy.” --- Al shouldn’t have watched. He and Edward both occupied that strange position for the Freelancers, where they were well past the age of being considered children. They were men by all accounts but seeing them? Interacting with them. They were a strange mix of young and old, children and men. Children who’d been forced to deal with the happenings of men. The Freelancers had been like that once, long ago, when the Spartan program had churned them out as teens and put them on the front lines of a war. North didn’t know exactly what had happened, but Edward had an arm made of metal and Alphonse legs just the same. Theta had noted it right off the bat, silently (he spoke inside North’s head the same way Delta did York) asking why the boy was made of metal before he’d elected to appear and talk to him. That troubled North’s narrative of them, but what could you do? So he just took them the way they were. North laughed, a good sound, something free and delighted. “No!” He said, both hands coming up in surrender. “I would have, maybe York has, but I’d love to when you’re done with them. Don’t give them to York first if he hasn’t read them yet, Theta likes impressing Delta with fun, interesting facts he learns. Sometimes he knows things Delta doesn’t.” ”I know a lot of things Delta doesn’t,” Theta said, sounding every bit the indignant teenager. He appeared without prompting over North’s right shoulder. North beamed. “You’re very smart, Theta. Hey, meet Ed. He’s smart, too, he was just about to explain what alchemy is. Because I don’t know.” “I do,” Theta replied. Then his little holographic frame turned to look at Ed. “....hi.” *** Ed and Al might have looked almost identical, but they were different in personality. Ed had a hard time attaching to people. Even when he became friendly with them it didn’t mean he was going to instantly love them with his entire being. Al was made of that love. Ed was glad for it really. He wanted Al to maintain his innocence, and it seemed like Roy did a decent job of making sure that happened in their world. Ed was pretty glad for it, but frustrated a lot of times in this one. He tried to connect with people like Al did, and ended up offending them most of the time, or turning them away by accident. Golden eyes narrowed on North suspiciously at his denial of reading the books but he just shook his head with an exasperated sigh. “You both suck, so you know.” He said with an added rolling of said eyes. “Who’s Theta?” Ed asked with a raised eyebrow. But then that little holographic form appeared and Ed stood. “...” What the hell was that? But then he said Delta. Delta was York’s little AI thing. “...Hey.” He was awkward. In fact awkward was an understatement. North was new territory, Theta was unknown. ---- “Oh, it’s okay,” North said when Ed rose and basically flinched away from Theta. Theta moved back too, his skateboard appeared in hand like a security blanket. Not how North wanted that to go. “It’s okay, Theta,” he repeated. “We’re friends here. Ed, this is Theta, he’s my AI.. he won’t hurt you. He’s just curious about alchemy. We saw the wizard do …. Whatever ‘magic’ is earlier and Theta hasn’t been satisfied with the answers he’s found to his questions. Your mentions of alchemy caught his attention, that’s all.” Theta moved down to North’s right hand, standing in his palm, the giant Freelancer looking at him, his expression gentle. Theta kicked up his skateboard and seemed to lean against it, if he were anything other than a holographic display he’d be resting his weight against it, but the armored magenta blue soldier had no physical mass. “Have you met Delta, Edward?” North asked. *** Ed wasn’t good with all this technology stuff. He was used to Delta now, but the AI’s were still new to him. Technology made him a little wary when he didn’t understand how it worked. He didn’t understand how any of it worked. Part of him wanted to take one of them apart and see for himself, but since they seemed to be intelligent they probably wouldn’t appreciate that-so he hadn’t asked. “Yeah...I met him.” He frowned a bit at his own reaction to the appearance of the AI. He felt a bit ridiculous over it. “..Sorry. We didn’t have this kind of technology back home, so it takes a little getting used to.” He hadn’t meant to upset the little thing, but clearly he had judging by North’s comment. “Actually we didn’t have much technology at all.” Ed said with a shrug. --- “... like some of the outer colonies we’ve been to, North?” Theta asked. North nodded. “Just so, little guy, so don’t worry too much if people are a little uncertain. Sometimes people are anxious too. Like you are when you meet new people. That’s all. But we’re good here, okay?” His pale eyes moved from Theta to Ed, waiting for his confirmation or at least a sign he wasn’t going to bolt in discomfort. That would end poorly. He didn’t want Ed being wary of them. Especially not over Theta, who was doing his best to be comfortable with new situations. He’d met a whole two new people today! He’d even come out of his own volition to say hi to Ed. That was progress. “Proud of you, buddy,” He raised his other fist and lightly fist bumped the AI. “How about you go see what York and Delta are doing? Give Ed and I a few more minutes.” “Are you sure?” Theta asked, hopping off North’s hand and onto the floor. “Yeah, tell him I said to bring Ed’s books back. He wants to finish reading them.” “Okay,” Theta replied. And then his skateboard appeared again and he seemed to roll off toward the door. He couldn’t go far from North, but the apartment wasn’t exactly huge. So he could move a good distance in relation to it. *** Ed watched Theta and North interact, it was a lot like York and Delta. That thought alone made his heart stop beating as fast, and he nodded to the comment about people getting anxious but not bolting. No, he wasn’t about to run. He’d just been startled but he was starting to calm down a bit. He even moved back toward the bed cautiously to get a closer look at Theta and the thing he was holding. He didn’t know what it was but it was an interesting shape and had wheels, but what was it’s purpose? When Theta got onto it Ed tilted his head a little. “.....What’s that?” Curiosity replacing the anxiety that exited in his eyes. He didn’t even know what his t.v. was until a few days ago. He thought it was just a weird ugly decorative box that people could see themselves in when it was off. Maybe like some sort of mirror but not very classy looking. The blonde looked over cautiously at North, half expecting to be scolded for his reaction to the AI. He hadn’t meant to make it nervous. Did AI’s get nervous? Delta seemed to ramble on the day they met. Ed didn’t really understand it all. “....Sorry.” He managed a little shame, though it was awkward. --- North watched Theta zoom off, only to pause at the doorframe, hop off his skateboard, and cautiously poke his head out into the main room. He looked back at the blondes then reluctantly stepped out of North’s vicinity. Outside, where North couldn’t see what was happening, the little AI trusted his person’s decisions and suggestions, dropped the board, and then ‘rolled’ further into the main room, looking around in wonder while he scanned his surroundings and reported the information back to North through their connection. He flagged York and Alphonse down with a wave. North, meanwhile, turned his attention back to Ed. “It’s a skateboard,it was one of the first things he learned how to make on his own. They were some kind of transportation device from the 21st century. And it’s alright, you don’t have to apologize. You didn’t do anything wrong. Nothing wrong at all about being a little anxious, especially about things you aren’t familiar with. I forget sometimes that not everyone’s been exposed to advanced technology.” ‘Sometimes.’ This was literally the first time in his life he’d ever been somewhere where a group of people weren’t familiar with it at all. *** Ed let himself slide down to the ground a little defeated. He couldn’t even interact with an AI properly. Watching him go, he felt a little pathetic and nodded quietly to North’s responses. Resting his back against the bed with his arms against his knees, he frowned a bit. “So that’s the thing Al was going on about earlier.” He tried to comment like this interaction hadn’t bothered him. North was nice enough about his awkwardness, but Ed was tired of it. Maybe he ought to just go live in a cave somewhere where people didn’t just show up that he’d have to interact with. Then he couldn’t embarrass himself anymore. Al was good at being the social one. That skill had obviously skipped over Edward. He pushed a bit of blonde hair out of his face and tried to ignore his failure as he looked over at the injured man with a shrug. “I just found out what netflix was yesterday….the descriptions are funny.” He admitted with an exasperated tone even at himself. He felt stupidly lost in this century sometimes. --- “Hey,” North said, reaching out to touch Ed’s shoulder when the boy slumped down onto the ground like that, looking dejected. “Don’t worry about it, I’m serious. No one is expecting you to be different than you are,” And North could see how difficult it was for Edward to endure this social interaction; it was painfully obvious the boy wasn’t adept at speaking with people with whom he wasn’t familiar. “We kind of forced my presence on you and it wasn’t a nice thing to do. But I won’t be offended if you tell me you’d rather I not be here right now, okay? It’s alright to speak up instead of forcing yourself to sit through something that makes you uncomfortable, Edward.” North released his shoulder. “If you’re worried voicing opinions will make York unhappy, I promise you, it won’t. You just be you, alright?” In the living room, Theta paused at York’s giant feet, looking up at him. “York, North says you have Edward’s books and he wants you to give them back. He said I can read them first, too.” So take that, Delta. *** Looking down at the small AI near his feet, York smiled and tilted his head some. Alphonse, similarly (from his position lying on the couch, his head in York’s lap), smiled at Theta and extended a hand down, so the AI could climb into it, if he wanted. The way he’d seen Theta do it with North. “Yeah, if his headache is gone, there’s no reason I can’t give back his books.” York agreed without hesitation, Delta flickering to life over his shoulder a moment later. “York,” the green AI began, “If you and Agent North Dakota are going to allow one of us to read the books, the best choice would be myself, as I am able--” “North said Theta gets to read them first, D, you’re just going to have to wait your turn.” The Freelancer pat his hand against Alphonse’s shoulder, who took the cue and sat up, bringing Theta along with him. “I’ll go grab a few boxes of them. You guys just relax here, I won’t be long.” Standing up from the couch, York headed out of the main room and to the small storage closet in the hall, where he kept a few odds and ends from his gear (for protection, of course). “Did you meet my brother?” Al prompted to Theta with a smile, lifting the AI up a bit more. Delta took a comfortable position standing not far from the youngest Elric, just over his left shoulder. *** Al’s hands were a great deal smaller than North’s, it made Theta look a lot bigger than he was when he stepped up, appearing to ‘hold’ onto Al’s fingers for ‘support’ when the boy lifted him up. “North said we have to wait for Edward to finish them, so you have to wait twice,” Theta informed Delta. If a holographic soldier with a helmet on could look smug, Theta would have done it. He was everything a teenager would be in that moment. He even folded his arms across his chest, crossed one ankle over the other and leaned bodily against Al’s fingers. He straightened when Alphonse spoke to him, turning his head up to look at the boy who was a close match to his brother. “Yeah! He was sort of afraid of me, but North says it’s okay to be afraid sometimes. I have brothers. And sisters. North has a sister, too.” *** Ed frowned a bit and wrapped his arms around his knees. “I said it’s fine before. I didn’t change my mind.” Ed knew he could have and York would be fine with it, but he wouldn’t. He should be able to do this. The fact that he struggled so much was frustrating to him, he’d chewed at his lip enough to cause it to bleed a little. “You’re fine. He is too. It’s me. There’s…” Ed stopped at the thought of continuing that sentence, that there was something wrong with him and stood up with a rather forced neutral expression. “I want you all to stay.” And he did, but he was terrible at showing it. “I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know what else to say. Do I have to staple you to a damn wall or something to prove it?” Ed could make the wall into a giant staple gun if need be, but he was getting irritated. “...just stay.” He commented, turning away from him and folding his arms uncomfortably. --- Well. That certainly wasn’t how North intended for any of this to go, but it was obvious the boy was uncomfortable with the whole thing. Not because of anything North had done or said, he just seemed particularly… self loathing. That was sad. And it wasn’t an issue that could be fixed overnight. Not that North was seeking to ‘fix’ him at all. Like York, North simply had a vested interest in others. He watched Ed’s meltdown with a neutral expression, nodding mildly before he stood. “Alright, then I’ll stay.” And that was that. He passed by Ed on his way toward the door, ruffling his hair lightly. “It’s okay, don’t be so hard on yourself, Edward. Everyone’s different.” He offered a faint smile then stepped into the main room. Theta turned in Al’s hand when North appeared, hopping down then suddenly appearing over North’s shoulder. North peered at him, brows raised. Theta was in someone else’s hands, of his own volition! That was exciting. He’d grown so much since he’d been with North. The giant of a soldier was pleased. “Having fun?” He asked. Theta nodded. “Alphonse, I think your brother could use a hug.” *** Ed went to smack the hand away from messing up his hair, but basically gave up when it appeared futile and some of his bangs fell into his face anyway. He decided to stay in that room for a moment, he needed a break from people in general and just put his head on his knees as well. He was terrible with people and he felt a little sick over it so he didn’t bother to get up. Why was this so difficult? When he had a mission of sorts he was able to talk to those people. He had some kind of general direction to go in and he went just fine. But left to his own devices in attempt to talk to people? He was lost. He let his eyes close for a moment, pulling his jacket a little closer to his body. He’d actually bothered to fix it finally, and he’d missed it. The red jacket was a comfort blanket and he’d forgotten about that. Everyone was different, but Al seemed to fit in so easily. Ed struggled. How long had he even been there, and he could count the people he knew on one hand. That was sort of pathetic. --- York lifted his eyebrows at his fellow Freelancer as he came out of the bedroom, slowly removing his arm from where it’d been draped around Al. Then Theta was hopping from the boy’s hand and North was speaking up. It had Alphonse standing and he smiled at York, who waved his hand in a ‘go on’ gesture. “Thank you, North.” Such a polite boy. Really, Alphonse and Edward couldn’t have been more different. Ed had more in common with Texas and Roy than he had in common with his own brother. Then again, Al didn’t really fit in with the other Alchemists, it’d taken time for him to get used to them and he was still the odd man out. It wasn’t that he wasn’t loved (oh, everyone who met Alphonse loved him), but he was just so.. Different than everyone else. Alphonse Elric wasn’t broken. He was a little banged up, perhaps, but he managed to push past it without much damage. Slipping into the Spartan’s bedroom, he paused when he saw his brother there on the floor, but inevitably took slow steps to bring him around to Ed’s back. Then he knelt down behind him and wrapped his arms around the slightly older boy, just holding on and resting his chin over that red-draped shoulder. “Are you okay, Brother?” It was just a whisper between the two of them. Back in the livingroom, York leaned some to watch as Al disappeared into his bedroom, but then he couldn’t see anymore than Ed’s shoes, so he directed his attention up to North. “How’d it go?” ~~ North moved in closer to York so both men could speak in low tones that wouldn’t carry. The kind of whispering between soldiers that needed clear communication without being overheard. With both Theta and Delta there to mentally relay the information, it was basically a murmur that passed between them. “It went alright,” he said quietly. “Boy is really hard on himself, York. I’m fairly sure he’s doing what he thinks he needs to be doing, because he has some ideas that that’s what people do. But he doesn’t understand he doesn’t have to operate that way. I think he spends too much time comparing himself to his brother…” But he’d only just met them. So who knew? North couldn’t claim to be an expert on the Elrics. The soldier put a hand on York’s shoulder, squeezing mildly. “I don’t think he really wants me here, but he’s going to force himself into accepting it. It’s a lot of commotion, York, you know how loud it can be when there’s more than two people…” They were raised in units of people, in close quarters with the other Spartans and then the Freelancers. Noise was their life’s blood. It wasn’t Ed’s. *** Ed probably should have expected Al to show up, but he was a little startled. He’d been lost in his own little world of self hatred and loathing. He looked up with a bit of a frown and shrugged. “Sure. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, but yeah. Great..” Ed commented. It was easy to talk to York and Al, even Harry now. But North? He was completely out of his element. The man was nice enough, but Ed couldn’t seem to gain his footing properly. “I’m an idiot. It’s fine.” He said in attempt to make light of it all when he felt so damn heavy. It’d taken two weeks with York before he could trust him. Maybe in two weeks he’d be able to trust North too. How long had it been? Ed had lost track of time, to him it seemed like it’d been forever. --- It hadn’t been nearly long enough. Al tightened his arms around Ed and pressed their cheeks together with a soft breath. “I didn’t speak to anyone for weeks, after...” But the youngest Elric let that sentence trail off. Ed surely knew what he meant. After his brother had died and Al had lost his legs trying to get him back, he had sat in that hospital (laid, actually) and said nothing to anyone. Roy had visited. Riza had visited. The men from Team Mustang had all stopped in. But he’d done nothing, only laid there and stared out the window, or written in his book-- a book which Mustang had taken away when he’d realized what Al had been writing about, trying to come up with a way to try again. He could try again. He could make it work this time. The youngest had been a complete wreck, far worse than Ed was now. He’d been sad and angry and nervous and terrified all at once and it’d come out in the worst way. Sure, Al couldn’t understand exactly what Ed was experiencing, but at least he could let his brother know he wasn’t this wonderful, always-easy to get along with boy. For a time, he’d been terrible at talking to people, too. ~ Back in the living area, York stretched out a little more and glanced to Delta, who was standing there still and silent as he watched Theta. The dirty-blonde head tilted a little closer to the paler blonde of his friend, the two giant men very nearly leaned against one another entirely. “You should have seen him before Al got here.. But he does compare the two of them often, you can see it in his eyes. He wonders why he can’t be more like Al..” That blue eyes shifted to North. “Al wonders why he can’t be more like Ed.” Brothers. It wasn’t something York understood, but he imagined that North might. “If he said he wants you to stay, then you’re staying. I know he’s doing it partly to please me, but he also needs the interaction and since he won’t go out and get it..” Well, then it needed to be forced. “When you’re settled in, we’ll look at the apartment next door.” Hell, they could easily put a door between the two apartments and it’d be more like a suite. Then Ed could have his privacy when he needed it, or it could be open for interaction. It seemed like a great solution to York. ~ He chuckled lightly. From the outside it probably looked weirdly intimate, North and York standing as close as they were, their heads almost touching when North bent close. They were definitely within bumping distance, the slightest motions making them touch. North towered over York, looking down at that serious blue eye with his own pale blue set. “Siblings don't make any sense, man. South and I were always made to be exactly alike. By the time we were old enough to be our own people? Well.” York knew what happened, he'd been through the same program. “We didn't have time to lament one another's personalities or our own. She's reckless. I keep her in check. We never wanted to be each other. But I guess it's different with twins, we're extensions of each other.. more so, even, than you and I are. We never question it.” He fell silent, his eyes wandering to Delta and Theta, wondering if they understood. “I told him I'd stay, I don't think it'll do him any good to force it either way.” Pale eyes tracked back to York. He leaned into him. North had missed his friend. --- Ed squinted the golden eye nearest the other boys face. He really did like to be close. Ed struggled with closeness but he said he’d try, so he would at least make an effort. He nodded a bit and let himself uncurl from that spot a little more. “Weeks huh.” Hard to imagine Al like that as he was now, but Ed knew if he’d lost Al chances were he’d be a wreck too. He still had Al. He had everyone. So why the hell couldn’t he act like a normal human being? He finally decided to stand and nodded a bit. “I’ll try. I said I’d try..so.” He repeated awkwardly as if trying to convince himself that standing up wasn’t going to crush the world around him. He looked over his coat and even smiled a little at the repair job holding up. “I fixed it last night.” He didn’t have his books, so he figured it was something to do and it’d given him a bit more confidence today to try being a human with North, so it was a good thing to have around in a solid state. No more of it being in shambles on the chair in his room. He looked a little more like himself with it on. --- The room was dim, Alphonse hadn’t given it much thought. He’d just dropped down and hugged his brother. But now, with Ed nudging himself free and Al slipping away, he took note of the red coat. And as the elder boy stood up, the coat seemed to move past him in slow motion. The shoulders, where it fit so nicely, then the black symbol that curled and twisted along his brother’s back, and began to wrinkle where the coat billowed out just above the waist, all the way to where it nearly hit booted ankles. Al blinked slowly, tears welling up far faster than he could manage to react to. Instead, he just sat there on the floor and stared up at the red coat and the golden-haired Elric wearing it. His hands tightened into fists on his thighs and the Windstorm Alchemist tore his eyes away to drop his chin to his chest and hide his face, bangs swinging down and doing a fine job of acting as a curtain. Ed was wearing the coat. He hadn’t worn it since before Al had arrived. Al hadn’t even really taken notice of the damn thing. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He looked a little more like himself with it on. He looked exactly like himself with it on. “It looks good.” Was all he could manage to get out. He was afraid if he spoke anymore, his voice would crack and betray his tears-- not that Ed wouldn’t be able to tell with just a glance down at his kneeling form. ~ With North leaning in close like that, York tilted also, pressing their shoulders together comfortably and lifting his chin just slightly so he could get a good look at those lighter blue eyes. “He’s going to be just fine. We all are.” He sounded so sure of himself, York often did-- unless he didn’t. Delta did a lot of second-guessing in the infiltration specialist’s head. Usually it was for the best. “Fine is an ambiguous word. The probabilities of coming out ‘fine’ are low in this--” But the little green AI was cut off by his host. “Yeah, D, we get it, thanks.” Way to ruin the moment, Delta. ~ North touched his forehead to York’s, then laughed a little when Delta provided his input, “Thank you, Delta.” He said, turning his head to look at him then slowly straightening, “Your input is always valuable. But I think we’ll take our chances on this one.” Theta sat on North’s shoulder, elbows on his knees, but remained silent while he lightly kicked his feet back and forth. North bumped his elbow into York’s ribs lightly. “Get your boys, man. I wanna take a nap.” Before he fell over. Texas had, after all, done a number on him. --- Those words weren’t exactly comforting that Al managed to spit out, like he’d eaten something bad. Ed frowned and glanced down at him. “Then why does it sound like I just kicked your puppy?” He knelt back down again and looked at him directly trying to analyze what exactly was going on. It took him a little while to connect the dots before he looked over at the coat on his shoulder and frowned. “Should I not wear it?” If it made Al that upset, he’d consider taking it off for good even if it was his. -- Faced with the possibility of Ed taking off the coat he loved so very much, Al managed to get himself together and looked up, smiling across at his brother even though he still had tears in his eyes. Alphonse had always been the emotional of the two. Polar opposites, these boys, two sides of the same coin. “No. You should wear it. You love it. I’m glad you’ve still got yours.” And that it didn’t have a large hole through the back of it, stained a deeper red around the edges. “I’m sorry.” A hand lifted to smear the tears away from his eyes and the youngest Elric laughed quietly. “Help me up.” Even though Ed had crouched back down to be closer to his little brother, it appeared he needed to get right back up so he could help drag Al to his feet. He was far lighter than the lighter-haired boy, thanks to his Briggs automail, far closer to the actual weight of a boy his age. Oddly, that had been something that was incredibly important to Alphonse, though it was funny to think about. --- Ed rarely cried. In fact he only had a slight idea as why Alphonse had just then. That it’d reminded him of his brother, which made Ed feel a bit like a jerk..but Al insisted he keep wearing it, and Ed did love that jacket. Red was a good color. He did just that and pulled Al up with him. “Maybe we should go out there?...Theta probably thinks I hate him.” Ed frowned as he reached a fleshy hand to brush away a stray tear on Al’s cheek. “Idiot.” If he didn’t want Ed to wear it all he had to do was say so. Ed wouldn’t keep wearing it and torment him like this if it caused him to cry. When he lifted Al he raised an eyebrow. “Not as heavy as a suit of armor..Or me.” Ed himself weighed like iron bricks, but he didn’t care whether or not he was the weight or a normal kid. He wasn’t normal, so why pretend? --- All Al could do in the wake of that hand brushing the stray tear from his cheek was smile and nod. He wanted to lift a hand and grasp onto Ed’s and hold it there against his cheek, but he didn’t. He kept his hands firmly at his sides. He wanted to talk to him, to tell him all about what had happened (he’d never actually told anyone, he’d never really had to, the people who needed to know already knew, Mustang had walked in on it-- both times), to let it all out and hopefully be able to relieve that weight from his chest, but he didn’t. He kept his lips tightly sealed. Ed didn’t need that mess on his plate, not when he already had his own baggage concerning the Alphonse back in his world. So instead, he laughed softly and rubbed at his cheek again, removing the last bit of the wetness there. “It’s Briggs automail.” While Ed didn’t care and didn’t try to pretend to be normal, Al did. He had gloves like Mustang, with arrays-- he didn’t need them, but he wore them when he did Alchemy, so no one would wonder about him. He wasn’t ashamed of his missing legs, he didn’t feel the need to hide them, but he did want to weigh closer to what he should. If something happened and someone had to carry him, he didn’t want to weigh the same as a full grown man. Alphonse wanted to go unnoticed. --- “Briggs huh. Didn’t have Winry do it?” Ed didn’t mind the heavyness. It served several purposes. Keeping him grounded as well as a reminder that he wasn’t going to stay this way. Nope. One day he’d get back to his body and he wouldn’t let himself settle just because automail was functional or “looked cool” according to Winry. Ed wasn’t so sure it looked cool, sometimes he still hid it. When they went out with people who didn’t know about them, he still wore his gloves. They didn’t have arrays on them, he didn’t care that much about his brand of alchemy but they did cover his automail. He didn’t need the world knowing what he’d done. Ed was fortunate, people he knew were giants. As annoying as it was if something did happen neither of them so far would have any issue lifting him up. Even Harry had been able to that time at the lab, so he wasn’t terribly worried about the weight. Cautiously he took Al’s fleshy hand and gave him a side long glance that read Tell anyone about this and I’ll deny it. and held onto it maybe a little too tight. --- “Roy found someone for me. Brought him in all the way from Briggs.” Alphonse really hadn’t had a say in it at all. It had happened in Central, not at home. Winry hadn’t been there. So the best of the military had taken care of the youngest Elric. Thanks to Roy. It was all thanks to Roy. With that hand taken, Al held tight and gave his brother a smile. They’d be left like that for only a few seconds before York’s hulking form (but North dwarfed him! And they’d thought York was big..) appeared in the doorway. “Come on, you two, it’s late. North needs his rest and you two need to get showered and to bed.” Not that they were children, but because it was late and York was the big brother. --- “...Roy did.” Ed made a face as if saying Roy had left a bad flavor in his mouth. Yet he was glad. He looked over at Al, irritatedly content that the colonel had likely done what he’d asked him in both worlds to do should anything happen to him and he was unable to look out for Al anymore...not that he’d say such a thing out loud, but he was fairly certain that had happened. It was also his request should something happen to him in Knowhere that Roy and Riza look out for Al again. The Colonel had agreed, and it did give him a little relief, not that he’d ever admit it. Glancing up with golden eyes as York came in Ed was oddly compliant. He was tired from all this social activity if he was honest. It took a lot of energy, he wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed. Shower be damned. He didn’t let go of Al, but instead took him toward the other bedroom that sometimes they ended up sharing much like the two soldiers did theirs. “Yeah...okay.” He responded to York almost politely, but the grip on Al’s hand suggested he was very out of his element with that response. --- If York’s shadow fell over the Elrics, North’s covered everyone including York too. He came up behind the shorter blonde (funny when York was considered the short one!) and together they made a veritable wall, a gigantic fortress of muscle, metal, and bone. It’d be terrifying if both of them didn’t have pleasant expressions on their faces. Maybe that didn’t help as much as they believed though. In sync, both the Freelancers moved aside (weird, right?) to let the Elrics through. For having no real concept of siblings outside of his knowledge of the Dakotas, York was handling this big brother role pretty well. North punched his shoulder lightly, then stepped around him, and without issue, concern, or any shame at all, sank down onto York’s bed and made enough room for the other soldier. Theta appeared on the pillow beside North’s head, sitting down with his back resting against North’s head. *** Alphonse followed Edward into the older boy’s bedroom without hesitation, smiling at York as he passed by. York watched them go, it was evident Al had been crying, but he didn’t say anything. He just turned to watch North get settled in, then the golden soldier rocked back and followed the brothers to Ed’s bedroom, sticking his head in after them. “Goodnight guys.” He pat his hand against the wall twice, then pulled their door mostly closed and went about turning the lights off in the apartment, returning to his room and North shortly after. He closed up the door and tugged off his shirt as he headed for the bed also. Sinking down onto it, he stretched out with a soft groan and turned his head to regard the man beside him. “You know,” he said after a short pause, “You could always take my healing unit.” He’d offered it before, but it wasn’t exactly easy to do, and neither of them were techs. York was sure he could do it, with Delta walking him through it, but they could destroy the unit if it wasn’t done right. Still, it was telling that the Golden Boy was willing to take the risk. *** Theta got up to walk across York’s line of sight, situating himself there against North’s chest when the large man turned onto his side, regarding York with light eyes. “No,” he said, “It’s designed for you. You need it more than I do. I’ll be fine in a few days.” Nothing they hadn’t said before. North never agreed and York never stopped offering. It was nice knowing some things didn’t change. The pale haired blonde leaned his head against the slightly darker York’s and closed his eyes. “Good night, North, good night, York,” Theta said, and then he went away, too. *** “Goodnight, Theta.” The shorter Spartan replied, tilting his head slightly to set it more firmly against North’s, that blue eye staring up at the ceiling. He was tired, but not enough to sleep. Delta was running calculations in his head and it’d keep him awake for a few more hours. Sometimes he wished Delta would realize, like Theta had, that their hosts needed to sleep, too. |