Restoration and Exhaustion
Restoration and Exhaustion
Command Center
Colonel Elric's office
1:00 pm
A knock at the door had Ed guiltily scrambling to shove the journal in the top drawer of his desk as he called for them to enter. He slammed the drawer shut on his finger and fervently cursed his lack of metal fingers as Roy came into the room.
His behavior was enough to draw Roy's attention, however he decided against commenting on it with the boys in the room. It was bad enough that Ed was cursing the desk, he didn't need to set Ed off into a full rant with the way Yuery had been repeating everything recently.
"Dammit dammit" Yuery singsong as if to prove Roy's point, without looking up from the picture he was coloring.
"Yu don't say that. Mommy will kill me." Ed said while shaking out his hand.
" Wan Mommy!" Yuery replied looking around
" Mama Mama!" William agreed
Ed sighed and reminded them that Winry had left and would be back soon.
"You may need to evaluate your priorities if Winry is your only concern for Yuery's language." Roy said with a smirk.
"Shut it. He's being raised on a military compound. He hears worse words on the walk over here every morning. Any hope of the boys not cursing ran away with this move to the desert." Ed grumbled.
"Really? I rather thought the hope for them having clean mouths flew out the window with you as a father." Roy replied as he sat down.
"…I don't care you are Lt. Fuhrer; I will punch you." Ed growled, though he sat back down himself.
"Edward! I am your father!" Roy joked.
"Yeah, that didn't stop me before, it won't now either." Ed said, "What did you want? I have paperwork."
"Yet you were sitting here reading something you felt you needed to hide."
"I am very busy."
"Clearly."
"Okay, this was a nice chat, have a good day."
"Actually, we need to discuss the restoration progress." Roy replied as Ed attempted to yank him to his feet. Yuery came over and climbed into Roy's lap with his latest picture. Since Yeye and Daddy were playing with each other it meant they weren't busy. "Very good Yuery. It's very clearly a purple cow this time."
"We need to start encouraging him to color them the right color according to the book." Ed muttered, while rubbing the boy's head. "Good job Yu, I couldn't have drawn it that well at your age."
"Or now. I remember seeing a certain demon dragon that was supposed to be a miniature panda." Roy said, before clearing his throat and pulling out a file that he had set down beside him. "Now, we finished the city center, and the North and West districts. However, the Eastern district is in dire need of attention before anyone else can move back into the city. With the heat raising daily the people need out of tents as quickly as possible."
"I agree. The southern section is also vital however, if they want to begin producing their own food this year, we need to repair the irrigation canals. "Ed replied with a frown. "It's a shame we can get Verdure more involved. He could help the fields along."
"We can't push our luck here. It was hard enough to get permission for you and me to use our alchemy." Roy said while standing and pushing everything back into the folder. "Especially me. You have the benefit of coloration on your side."
"It doesn't matter. If push comes to shove, I'll study his arrays and do it myself." Ed shrugged and turned his attention to William, who had begun crying a moment earlier. As he lifted his son out of the playpen, he heard a drawer open. Ed whirled around, making the baby giggle.
"What the hell are you doing Dad?" Ed demanded, ignoring his eldest repeating 'hell'.
"I thought as much." Roy replied, tucking the journal under his arm with the file. "It isn't doing you any good to read these Edward. You are hurting yourself by insisting on continuing this line of research. Should I find anything that may be helpful to Yuery's situation, I will let you know, otherwise, as both your father and your commander, I'm asking you to let this go."
"I can't. I need to know. No matter how upsetting it can get. I need to know Dad. Al already read them."
"Al read them before returning with them, or I would have forbidden him as well. This is just making you withdraw Edward, and not just from me. You've been pushing Winry and the boys away as well. I know you would never intentionally do so, but you have been." Roy pulled his son into a hug. "I love you Ed, I can't stand watching you tear yourself apart with all of this. If you need to know something, I will show you myself, but from now on I'm keeping the journals. "
Eastern District.
4:00pm
Altogether there were fourteen blocks that needed repairs. Which came to roughly one hundred forty houses. Edward was powerful, and young enough to claim to be full of energy. It was still a huge project. One that Roy was not going to allow him to attempt all in one day, no matter how much Ed complained.
They had been out here for two hours and had completely restored four blocks. The Ishbalans were impressed and a little frightened, which was a large part of why Ed wanted to get it done quickly. The longer the natives watched the more they had misgivings about allowing alchemy to help with rebuilding. If he didn't get this finished before the rest of the council overruled Elder Sham, then it would take far longer to complete the restoration of Kappa. It would also blow any chance they had of using the same methods in Haitru, the other major city they would be restoring to its former glory before they could return home.
They had been in Ishval for the last three months, and Ed hoped they would be done closer to the one-year mark than the two-year mark. While it was true he had promised Roy a year out here, and one way or another he himself would return to Central at the end of that year, he would prefer if his Dad came home then as well.
Which is why when he stumbled after the last house, he tried to ignore the worried looks he was receiving from Havoc and Breda. They were here to assist him, and to keep him from overdoing it. He knew his own limits, and he didn't need these guys slowing him down. He wanted this district to be done by the end of the week. He just needed some water, and maybe some jerky, then he could keep going.
"Hey. Uh. Boss? I think you should be done for today." Havoc said, stepping forward to steady the alchemist, who appeared a little flushed to him. Havoc was worried that Ed had spent too much time out here in the sun.
"I'm fine Havoc. I could go another hour, at least." Ed replied as he pushed away from the older man.
"I really don't think that's a good idea." Breda fretted." I'm pretty sure Mustang will kill us if we let you get heatstroke, sir."
"Well, I will remind him that I'm your commanding officer and I ordered you to let me finish." Ed said as he moved to the next house.
"Yeah, but he's your commanding officer and father and he commanded us directly to keep you from overdoing it." Havoc said.
"When did you become an alchemist Havoc?" Ed said casually as he studied the house.
"I'm not but- "
Ed cut him off "So how do you get to gauge how much I can take?"
"Sir, we just- "
"Breda, I get Dad was your boss far longer than I have been, so I'm letting it go that you're arguing with me, but it needs to stop now. You're dividing my attention here."
Breda told Havoc he was going to go find Mustang and let him know what's going on out here. Ed meanwhile moved to the next house and clapped his hands. Havoc stood by nervously, he had been warned, repeatedly, by several people, to never interrupt an alchemist as they were activating an array. Once it was active you could interfere, or before, but during activation it was dangerous for both you and the alchemist especially the alchemist.
Meanwhile, Breda rushed through the small city until he reached the command center on the outskirts near the train station. Sweating, and breathing heavily he pushed into Mustang's office without knocking. Mustang, Sham, Hawkeye, Miles, and an unknown man who looked important were standing over the map of the city. Yuery and William were sitting in their play area near Mustang's desk. The Tringham brothers were both standing off to the side looking annoyed. Everyone turned to look at the panting red-faced man as he leaned over and clutched his knees. "Breda? What is it? Has something happened to Edward?" Mustang asked as he stepped toward the other man.
"Ed…Ed *gasps*. He. Won't. stop." Breda wheezes out.
"What?" Hawkeye asked, already heading toward the door.
"Riza. Stay here with the boys please, I'll go get him." Roy replied as he grabbed Breda's arm. "Show me exactly where he is."
"What is it, what's going on?" Elder Sham asked as she followed.
"Edward is overexerting himself. I anticipated this once we got to the residential areas. He wants to get the housing finished as quickly as possible so the people can move back into their homes. He will keep going until he collapses if we don't stop him now." Roy explained as they left the building. "How far did he get before you came to get me?"
"He finished four blocks, was starting on the fifth. Havoc and I both asked him to stop, at least take a break, but he brushed us off. He nearly fell over after the last house." Breda replied, speeding up slightly.
"Shit. That boy is going to be the death of me." Roy muttered, shaking his head, "When we get there, I will stop him and take over the array if necessary. I need you to keep him from starting again. That's an order."
"I had no idea he could use too much of your alchemy?" Sham asked still following behind them.
"Alchemy uses energy, both drawn from the Earth and taken from the Alchemist. Edward has always had an extraordinary amount of power, but at a price. He's small as much as he hates hearing it, and he sleeps and eats as much as three men. He's been pushing himself too hard lately. He hasn't been eating enough, not wanting to overuse our resources. He uses less energy than he used to, but still, he's an alchemist with automail and is also a teenager. "
"I had heard he regained his flesh during the final battle, it was a miracle." Sham replied, they were now passing through the shopping district just outside the area Ed was working.
"He did, he still has an automail leg, and the miracle that restored his arm will not be repeated." Roy said as he spotted the blue light that indicated Ed's current position. Roy saw the light waver, and without explanation broke into a run.
"If he's running, we have problems." Breda said, speeding up himself, but not leaving the elder woman.
Roy arrived just as the light faded and Ed fell to his knees. Havoc helped Ed to his feet, neither of them noticing Roy storming toward them yet. Ed shook off Havoc's arm and took a shaking step away from the wall. "I'm fine Havoc, just need a minute." Ed said, exhaustion clear in his voice.
"You're done for today Edward." Roy said, resting a hand on Ed's shoulder and looking him over. Ed was flushed from the heat and exhaustion was practically coming off of him in waves. Without his uniform top, in an undershirt, Roy could see the boy had lost weight lately. Dark circles under his eyes and the lack of sweat covering him was what really concerned Roy most at the moment. He didn't give Ed another option, instead scooping the boy up as if he was still much smaller.
Ed didn't bother to struggles, once he had stopped moving, he could feel how worn his body was. Instead he imitated his sons and laid his head against Roy's shoulder to close his eyes. Breda and Sham joined them as the heaviness of Ed's weight let Roy know the boy had fallen asleep. Roy shifted the weight slightly; his back was going to hurt by the time they got back.
Ed had lost weight; he had been right. There was no way Ed was this light when they had been in Central. Roy knew, they had spared often enough while Al was recovering. Havoc picked up Ed's discarded overshirt and jacket to follow them, and Breda was left to shoo away the locals and then escort Sham back to the compound.
"I knew he seemed strained, and that he hadn't been sleeping or eating enough, but I had no idea he had lost this much weight." Roy said quietly as they walked, not wanting to wake his son. "When did I miss this?"
"I think he's gotten worse since Miss Winry left. I don't know if that's what caused this or- "Havoc said, concern written in his frown.
"No. It's his research. It's making him sick to worry so much about this." Roy said with a frown. "I took it from him this morning. It isn't work related."
"Still, I should have spoken up sooner. I tried to get him to slow down, but he ignored me." Havoc said.
Roy walked through the gates to the compound and turned toward the house instead of the offices. "Please tell Hawkeye I took Edward home and that she can bring the boys over in a few minutes. I'm going to try to get his temperature down. He spent too much time in the sun on top of everything else."
Hogwarts
Evening
Severus wanted to ignore what had been said at the meeting. He wanted to believe that Edward had simply misunderstood as Dumbledore suggested, but it fit too well. Dumbledore was a master at manipulation, Snape knew that better than most, he wanted them to believe him, so they did. However… however, the Potters had been betrayed. James, for all of his many faults, and Severus hated to give him credit at all, would have favored being his own Secret Keeper, if for no other reason to protect his friends, yet he chose one of them who in turn betrayed them.
It didn't make any sense. Dumbledore had preformed the spell himself. Yet he hadn't suggested that James or Lily be Secret Keeper. It didn't add up. Severus needed to know more. He didn't like this, because it was starting to look like Edward wasn't wrong.
Severus would need to look in Dumbledore's office…but it was entirely possible he hadn't left anything written. Why would Dumbledore do this was the question, because if Snape's fears were correct he let them die. Worse, he set them up to die. The only one who could answer his questions about the spell was rotting in Azkaban.
He needed to know more about prophesies in general. He had never paid much attention to the subject in school, never took the classes himself. He always felt it was a bit of hogwash. Perhaps he should look up the werewolf, though he had always been thick as thieves with Black.
Mustang-Elric apartment
5:00 pm
Ed's temperature had returned to normal after some time in a lukewarm bath. His color had returned to normal, and Roy had managed to get him to drink some water. Now Ed was sleeping again a cold cloth on his head and a second covering his torso, but Roy was less worried about him when Riza finally brought the boys home.
Her first instinct had been to rush over with them, but she didn't want to have them underfoot if Ed was as sick as Havoc described. She trusted that Roy would know what to do, and had waited until now, hoping that he would have Ed stabilized and sleeping off the bout of heat stroke.
"How is he?" Riza whispered as she slipped into the room, after setting the boys in the front with their blocks.
"Better. Still not great. I shouldn't have let him go out there by himself, we both know he doesn't pay attention to his body." Roy said as he dipped the clothes in cold water and replaced them.
"He wasn't by himself, he had Havoc and Breda with him. As soon as they realized there was a problem, they came a got you." Riza replied, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"He's stubborn, and only listens to me or Al, barely listens to us. What if I hadn't rushed right over?"
"Then you wouldn't be you, and we wouldn't be having this conversation."
"Riza- "
"I'm serious Roy. You have always taken care of all of your men. Always. That goes double for your children. This happened because it's hot and that boy is just as stubborn as you are. He's going to be fine, because he's too stubborn not to be."
"I'm not leaving him tonight, are you alright with the boys? You can ask Rebecca for help perhaps."
"I think I can handle two little boys for one-night Roy." Riza replied. "I'll make up a light dinner. He shouldn't eat tonight, he's likely to be sick anyway."
"Once we get him over this, we need to get some weight back on him. I was able to carry him all the way back here by myself, and he wasn't awake."
"He'll be alright Roy. We'll make sure of it."
"He's just been through so much lately; I don't know how much more he can handle."
"Give him more credit than that. He went through things that break grown men when he was nearly a baby, he can handle this." Riza said, sounding more certain than she felt.
"That's the problem Riza. It's not the big things that break the strong ones, it's the little things that manage to seep into the cracks left by the impact of the large ones. I can't lose one of my children Riza, it would be the thing that broke me too."
"We aren't going to. He pulled through whatever left that scar, he pulled through having two limbed ripped from his body. He pulled through having his automail destroyed more times than I like to think about. He's pulled through heat exhaustion as well if Breda it to be believed, he's to stubborn, has too much to wake up for, to give up now.
"I certainly hope so." Roy replied, unable to convince himself that she was right. She hadn't been here; she hadn't heard the way Ed was muttering and babbling when he was in the bath. The boy was clearly trapped in bad memories at the time, and Roy wasn't sure Ed wasn't still stuck there.
Journal Three
1625-1635
12/12/25
I met Perenelle in the market today.
I instantly knew she knew magic, I
Could feel in in her Qi. She was pleasant
To speak with as well. I invited her for
A walk in the park, and introduced
Myself. Despite my perfect accent she pegged me
As a foreigner from my name.
I will need to think of a new name to use while
I am here, this is not the first time this has happened.
She did not seem bothered however, and accepted
My invitation. I asked her casually, if she was a witch.
She was slightly startled but agreed she was. I informed
Her I was an alchemist. Equivalent Exchange. We spoke
For a great deal of time, the sun was low in the sky when we
Parted ways.
I invited her to dinner in a local establishment, and she
Agreed. I was very happy, still am. I haven't met anyone
So engaging since Maria. I already am forgetting the name
Of the latest since then, and her perfume still lingers in my rooms.
Alas, she was very dim.
_T.B.V.H.
01/03/26
Perenelle and I had a lovely time at dinner.
It was slightly forward of me, however I insisted
She return with me to my rooms so that we could
Discuss matters best left out of public. She agreed.
She had a great deal of information on the magical schools of
Europe, particularly Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, which
She graduated last spring. She agreed to introduce me to
The Headmaster when she next speaks to him.
She is the most intelligent company I have found since Hiro,
I hope to remain in her company for some time to come.
_T.B.V.H.
11/12/26
Perenelle and I are to marry tomorrow.
I have never been more terrified and excited.
I have always dreamed of having a family of
My own, and it appears that dream will now
Finally come true. I have not been this happy
In years. Not since I lost Hiro, certainly. We
Desire a child as well, and intend to try to have
One by our first anniversary.
_T.B.V.H