Lesson no. 4
Ed’s eyes burned. His nose was runny. He hasn’t shaved in days, and a stubble of sorts had made itself known every time he would rub his chin. He was still in the clothes he had worn when he first got here. Come to think of it, he hasn’t showered in ages either. Yet he was satisfied.
He had spent the last week holed up in his borrowed room, books layed out all over the floor, making it impossible to go anywhere without stepping on one. Exactly ten stacks of books leaned against the wall with the window, and there were four more next to the door. Ed had read them all.
As much as he hated this mission with every fiber of his being, the thought of new information had made him giddy and he threw himself eagerly into the books Sirius had given him. When he finished those, he moved onto the ones from the Black family library. Sirius had warned him about a few at the top of a shelf in the corner of the dusty library, but Ed wanted to know as much as he possibly could about this world.
And hell, did he know everything now.
But he was still caught up on one thing. For all of its glory and exciting prospects, there’s a factual flaw—where was all the magic coming from? Everything in this world defied the notion of equivalent exchange, from simple spells like alohomora to 12 Grimmauld Place itself. Something can’t just spawn from nothing.
He had theorized, of course. His most probable theory was that the magic could be acting as a well. A very very deep well where the wizards could just pull and pull as much as they needed. There was still the physical exhaustion to account for, though, when a lot of magic is used in a short amount of time.
Later that afternoon, Mrs. Weasley practically dragged Ed from his room, angrily muttering something about how she didn’t care how old he was, he was going to eat something while he was in her care. Technically he was under Sirius’s care, but he didn’t dare correct the raging woman. Probably the most important thing Ed has learned so far was that Mrs Weasley was NOT to be crossed.
So while he sat at the table in the kitchen, shoveling down his serving of shepards pie like it might disappear at any moment (you never know with wizards), a loud CRACK resounded around the room along with two red headed twins. Right on top of the table.
“Well George, looks like we overshot it once again.” Fred (Ed presumed) said.
“That’s just what I was about to say, Freddie. Ed’s plate is two paces behind us,” he said as they both craned their necks around to look at Ed and his half-cleaned plate.
Ed protectively placed an arm around his plate and leveled the twins with a glare.
“Go right ahead, I’ll be sure to let dearest Molly know if you do.” He said, allowing a smirk to creep onto his face as the twins looked at him and then at each other in horror before scrambling off the table.
“You’re evil!” Fred whispered dramatically as he and George scurried by and out the door, almost running right into Remus. Remus, who had flattened himself against the wall to avoid being trampled, looked back at the twins' retreating forms and then over at Ed, eyebrows raised.
“I’m not sure I’ve ever seen those two move so fast. What ever did you say to them?”
“I threatened them with their mother.” Ed said, turning back around to shovel the last bite of his pie into his mouth.
“Ah… well that will do it,” Remus shivered. “Anyways Ed, it’s time to go.”
Ed nodded glumly. The other day, Sirius had barged into Ed’s room and made him promise to go shopping for new clothes. It had, to put it delicately, not been one of their finest moments.
‘There’s no way I’m letting you walk around Hogwarts dressed as some backstreet scum!’ Sirius had said from in the doorframe, while Ed protested from where he sat curled over a book on the floor, growling and saying, ‘what's wrong with my outfit? I like leather!’
‘Nothing’s wrong with leather, Ed!’ Sirius had yelled back, ‘You know I’m the last person in this world who has a problem with you walking around in skin-tight leather pants!’
‘Why don’t you keep it in your pants!?’
‘I’m just trying to prove my point, you wanker!’
This continued for twenty more minutes until Remus found them and managed to get them to come to an agreement. The leather would stay, but robes would have to be acquired first since they were “professional necessities”. Sirius and Ed begrudgingly made up only a few moments later, much to Remus’s amusement.
“I have competition. Ed is stealing my spot on Sirius's Favorite People list.” He told Harry, Ron, and Hermoine, who had all ran up the stairs to hear what all the commotion was about.
Ed had resumed his reading after they all had left, except he couldn’t concentrate. The thought of the day he’d eventually have to leave 12 Grimmauld Place and Sirius’s, Remus’s, and even stupid Kreacher’s company was disheartnening, even though he was supposed to be a heartless bitch now. He couldn’t help but feel akin to Sirius, though, for he was the first wizard he had encountered in his time in this world, and they got along almost as well as Ed did with Alphonse himself. Who was Sirius going to complain about Kreacher with? Sirius mirrored his own feelings when Ed brought the subject up, but was much more upbeat. Besides, Sirius had said, they’ll get to see each other at Order meetings.
After cleaning up his plate, Ed and Remus headed to the front door. Just as Remus was pulling the door of 12 Grimmauld Place, Padfoot slunk through the quickly closing gap. He yipped when he caught sight of Remus’s sour face.
“Sirius, the last thing we need right now is you getting caught-“
“Oh, leave him be, Remus,” Ed clapped Remus’s shoulder, “The guy’s been shut up all summer. He’s at his shit’s end.” Ed grinned down at the dog-man. Padfoot wagged his tail.
Remus sighed. Ed noticed he tended to do that a lot.
“You two are bad influences for each other.” Remus said, shaking his head despite the small smile on his face. “Ed, seeing as this will be the first time you have ever apparated, it may be a bit uncomfortable. Just try and focus on holding onto me, alright?”
Ed nodded, not sure whether he was supposed to be nervous or not, but before he could make up his mind, Remus grabbed Ed’s hand with his left and Sirius’s lifted paw (clutched alongside his wand) with his right, flicked the latter hand, and sent everything to hell.
Looking back, Ed supposed it was rather similar to the feeling he had experienced when he first fell through his gate all those years ago. Except that when they landed (after feeling like he had been cut apart by a little kid with safety scissors and then hazasphardly pieced back together with Elmer’s glue, and then sat on by said little kid), Ed had immediately stumbled upon hitting the solid ground that was London’s cobblestone streets.
A sudden, nauseating wave of pain spiked up his automail leg, almost causing both legs to give out. Next to him, still clutching his hand, Remus bent forwards to let Ed lean his weight on him.
“Thanks.” Ed gasped. Remus looked down at him worriedly, Padfoot doing the same from his other side.
“Old injuries. It’s nothing.” Ed said, waving them off. Upon arrival to London, Ed decided that he was going to refrain from mentioning his automail leg for as long as he could. It would only bring about unwanted questions of his past. That’d be too annoying. After solely focusing on breathing for the next minute or two, Remus led Ed and Padfoot into a grubby looking pub just off the street, glancing over his shoulder at Ed every few moments or so.
Ed looked up at the sign just as they were crossing through the front door—the Leaky Cauldron. The aroma of whiskey and smoke hit the roof of his mouth like a train. As Remus led them through the pub, Ed found himself absolutely captivated by a variety of strange looking people. Some dressed in mis-matched muggle attire, as though they had gone to GoodWill, closed their eyes, and grabbed whatever random item their hands landed on. Others sat around drinking in their wizard robes. No one even glanced their way as they headed through the pub, out the back door, and into a small, walled-in courtyard.
Remus halted in front of the farthest side of the wall, pulling out his wand. He tapped three bricks up in succession, then two to the right. The wall shuddered and a hole appeared. It grew and grew until it created an archway, revealing countless twisting and turning cobbled streets. Stepping through the archway, Ed’s senses began picking up on the massive magic waves coming from the town. It was so noticeable, the hair on his arms stood up, just like when he performed alchemy. Shops lined the side of the road, advertising strange squeaking objects and even racing brooms. It was packed with old and young witches and wizards dressed in various kinds of robes, nightgown-looking things, and strange combinations of muggle clothing. Ed even spotted a few of the stereotypical pointed hats.
Before they could walk any further, the same giant fire bird from the other week swooped down from above and sat itself down right on Padfoot’s head.
“Fawkes?” Remus said, bending down closer to the animals. “What’s this?”
He stood back up with a large bag of something clinking together. Ed peered over Remus’s shoulder as the other man loosened the strings on the bag to reveal—hundreds of gold coins along with a note sitting across the top.
“From Truth.” Remus read, looking over at Ed as he held the bag out. “Ed, that’s a lot of money.”
“Being a Lieutenant does have its perks.” He muttered, taking it and moving on down the street. Padfoot barked.
He slowed as they walked past a book shop, eyes still glued on it even as Remus and Padfoot dragged him towards a small little tailor called Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions.
“Oh, Remus! What a pleasant surprise!” A short, plump woman dressed in eminence robes came from around a curtain and practically suffocated poor Remus with an enveloping embrace. “And I see you brought a friend–oh, no, two friends, how lovely!”
Madam Malkin gave Padfoot a fond pat on the head before turning to Ed.
“And your handsome young friend is…?”
“Lt. Edward Elric, ma’am, it’s a pleasure.” Ed said, offering her his hand. She laughed, her face turning a pink color as they shook hands.
“Oh my! No need to be so polite, m’boy,” Madam Malkin giggled. “Now what can I do for you all today?”
“Ed here is in the market for some of your best robes, Mary.”
“Why, of course, I’m sure we have your size. Come, come, let’s size you up!”
Two hours later, Ed was completely drained after trying on what felt like thousands of robes and suits. In the end, he ended up picking out five sets of black wizard robes and one set of crimson dress robes. He also picked out three two-piece suits, two black and one a dusty gray. As promised, Remus and Padfoot let him keep his leather pants and even bought him some muggle clothes for when he wasn’t teaching.
Once they paid and stepped back outside, the trio proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon shopping. Ed secured a number of textbooks for his class, as well as some that interested him personally (master potion making, for example). He was also able to stock up on paper, or parchment as Remus called it, and pens which he found in muggle London. Ed was also sure to pick up a couple bags of chalk for the demos he would be doing with the kids in class.
Over the last week, Ed had taken time to ensure that the kids would be learning alchemy properly and that his lessons were clear and easy to comprehend. He poured hours into his planning alongside learning as much about the wizarding world as he could. He couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit proud when the first month’s lesson plans were finished.
His class wouldn’t be easy, though. That was one thing he was sure of.
The sun slowly slid further and further down the sky as Remus led them back to the pub.
Movement to the left of Ed caught his eye. Something was watching him. A face peeked out from behind a brick wall. It was a boy with pale skin and fair hair—
The second wave of nausea of the day hit Ed like a truck, and he doubled over, clutching his head which had begun to feel as though it was being split open, front to back.
And then it was gone, just as fast as it came, Ed left standing like a marble statue, the only thing differentiating the two were the regular, deep heaves of his chest.
“Ed! Are you okay?” Remus asked, appearing by his side in a flash. Ed nodded, slowly bringing himself upright.
“I’m fine.”
“Ed if something’s bothering you, I’m sure Molly could—“.
“Remus”, Ed exhaled and forced a smile, “I’m fine, I promise. I had made a couple rash decisions in my teenage years, and I’m just reaping the repercussions. I’m fine, I promise.” Not a total lie.
Remus didn’t press him further, bless him and his kindhearted soul, and continued on, his face disbelieving. Ed risked a look back over this shoulder as they went. The boy’s face, although gone now, was now firmly etched into his memory. But from where has he seen him before?
Once they arrived back at 12 Grimmauld place, Ed promptly dropped his purchases by the door and flopped onto his bed, sleep overtaking him quickly.
The next morning, he found himself being shaken awake by Molly who frantically stuffed a piece of toast into his mouth, threw some clothes into his arms, and pushed him out of his room, muttering something about having to take care of a grown man alongside eight children.
Apparently Molly had taken the time and liberty to pack up all his things the night before (he had been too tired to notice). She even took care to pack him some homemade toffees. He made a mental note to thank her sincerely later. Once dressed in a new pair of leather pants, a white t-shirt, combat boots, and the new black wizard robe, Ed braided his hair down his back like he used to when he was younger.
Downstairs was a mess. People were racing around, tripping over cats, owls, and ugly AF house elves. Molly was now yelling hysterically at the twins. Something about flying trunks? Ed, still blinking sleep out of his eyes, startled when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned, eyes met with the familiar, yet still unsettling, sight of Alastor.
“‘Sup?”
Alastor placed a grisly hand on Ed’s shoulder and pulled him slightly closer.
“Keep a close watch on the boy, ya hear? I’ll be ‘n touch once yer all settled.” Ed nodded, and with a rough clap on his shoulder, Alaster began ushering everyone out of the house.
The walk to King’s Cross took only twenty minutes. Compared to the day before, Ed felt great. He had taken the time to pick up some oil and other supplies for his automail when in Diagon Alley, so his left leg felt great. Padfoot seemed to be much happier as well. Him and Harry walked a little ahead of the rest of the group, stopping occasionally to chase a cat or two, much to Harry, Tonks and the other kids’ amusement.
Once they arrived, Ed felt a pang of homesickness. Being around all of the trains reminded him of Amestris, of Winry.
His mind, although speeding far away one second earlier, was brought back to reality as he subsciously watched Arthur and Hermoine fall straight through the brick wall (labeled Platform 9 ¾) they had just been leaning on. Ed watched in disbelief as two-by-two, the group disappeared through the wall. Lupin sighed, then smiled at Ed’s startled expression.
“C’mon Ed, mate, it’s your turn.” Lupin said, grabbing him by the cloak and dragging him through the wall. The other side looked just like King’s Cross. There were a few different details though, the most prominent probably being the almost-suffocating feeling of magic pressing in on all sides, just as it had in Diagon Alley. The Hogwarts Express sat grandly at the center of the station, black steam puffing out of the engine's pipe. The place was extremely crowded, families and students hugging one another and saying their farewells. The morning sun left splotches of white light along the granite ground, baking in the late-summer light.
To Ed’s left, Alastor appeared, luggage trolley in-tow. Molly went around to each kid and placed a wet kiss on all their cheeks before giving them bone-crushing mama-bear hugs, even Ed, who thanked her profusely. Ed then moved to bid the others goodbye, shaking Alastor, Tonks, and Aurthurs’ hands before being pulled into a sturdy embrace from Lupin.
As soon as he turned from Lupin, Padfoot rushed over to him, almost barreling him over as he placed his gigantic paws on Ed’s chest.
“Hey! This shirt is white, you bitch!” Ed growled, tugging the giant dog-man off him. Padfoot just nipped at his hand before giving him the saddest puppy-eyes, well second-saddest to Al’s, he’s ever seen in his life. “Ugh, bro, we’re gonna see each other soon, don’t make me hug you too.” Ed said, avoiding eye-contact with the dog as the Hogwarts Express whistled from behind him. Padfoot whimpered.
“Ugh, fine.” Ed wrapped his arms around the dog. As Padfoot did the same, Ed noticed people looking at him strangely (I mean he was hugging a dog (and the dog was hugging him back)), so he quickly untangled himself, grabbed his luggage, and boarded the train.