Multi-muse FMA 03 and Brotherhood blog

"Well.. from here.." Black Star's voice rose in pitch nervously. Since the Gem had heard too many stories from parents about their kids complaining about having to walk. Being a Gem, she could walk a fair distance without getting tired. But she didn't know how Wrath would fare.

"I can walk a long time," he replied simply despite having no gauge of how far a mile was. It sounded far the way she was talking about it, but he'd never learned how to measure distance. There had been no real reason to, and no one had ever showed him. Living outside in the alleyways, he knew how to measure by number of buildings, streets, or blocks but no traditional measurement systems.

Wrath fell into step beside her, staring wide-eyed at her description of how fast they'd be able to travel. That sounded much faster than walking a couple of miles. "What's a warp pad?" he asked, already fascinated by the idea of moving faster than light. "Is it like a car? I've seen those go pretty fast, but maybe not as fast as light. Is that the same as lightning? That's the only time I ever saw light moving."

His body shook, and his lips gaped for a second, hiccuping. "Winry. S-she didn't make it." Edward had been powerless to do anything, vehicle accidents were horrible, and happened quite often contrary to popular belief. "She's gone, Al... I watched her die." His voice the second time he spoke was almost emotionless, Edward was in shock again, just thinking about it, and he held his brother, white-knuckled.

She'd never chide Ed for not taking care of his automail right or make another one of Gracia's apple pies like she had when he'd first gotten his body back. She'd remembered little details like that, things he'd said he wanted to try when he wasn't just a suit of armor. She'd always been there to support them from the beginning, and he'd always thought that would never change. But she was gone. Just like that.

Al's hold on Ed tightened, gripping the back of his shirt with a shaking hand as tears streamed down his face. "Winry..." he choked. He tried to hold back from his brother's sake, but his heart ached with each shuddering breath.

They slowly savoured the takoyaki blowing on each little ball, with Haruko covering her half-open mouth to blow off stome steam now and then. Once over, she made sure they'd find a trash can before carrying on with their exploring.

"We have many games too," she explained, pointing at stands where people threw hoops to win prizes, and others where kids tried to catch fishes with a paper net. "I got a fish like that when I was six. It's still alive! And we like to buy decorations as well," she explained, pointing at stands selling masks of different sorts. "Oh! And..."

She hurried to a small stand selling nothing but small cucumbers stuck on long wood skewers, soaking in iced water. Haruko bought two and handed one to Alfons.

"You're really not making me do anything," he agreed with a light laugh, already thoroughly enjoying what he'd tried so far. "I'll try any of it." He blew on the takoyaki a bit more and managed another bite, but the one after it was a mistake.

With a small "mm!" of surprise, he covered his mouth and tried to blow off some of the steam. She'd had a point about burning his tongue on these, but they were delicious enough that it was hard not to eat them too fast. He was more careful about eating the rest.

As she led him around the festival, his eyes followed her finger toward everything she pointed to, pausing curiously to watch how anyone could catch a fish in a paper net. But a boy who looked to be about seven or eight managed to do it, much to Alfons's wonder. "The paper doesn't rip in the water?" he mused aloud, but it couldn't have been impossible if both the boy and Haruko had done it.

He was still lingering looking in wonder at the fish game when he noticed Haruko hurrying off to another stall, and he quickly turned to follow her. Cold cucumbers? Another thing he hadn't expected, but he may as well give it a try. With a word of thanks, he accepted the one she offered him and bit into the cold, crisp cucumber with a loud crunch.

"That's...actually refreshing," he admitted despite never having really thought of having a plain cucumber as a snack. "Though you were right about the takoyaki. Maybe something cooler is a good idea after that."

"The timing is perfect," he said with a grin. Despite eating only a little bit ago, Ed's stomach rumbled at the smell of the funnel cakes. Granny Panako often teased him that she didn't know where he put all the food he ate. Ed supposed he was still young and maybe growing a little, though he doubted his height would change much at this point considering he had been the same height for two years now.

He was about to give his order when Roy did it for him. Ed didn't mind. He liked the sound of Roy's deep voice. For lack of a better word, Roy's voice was sexy. Always had been. Ed remembered thinking so when he had been younger, though back then he hadn't given it much thought considering everything else he had to worry about. Getting Al's body back and stopping Father had been his top priority back then. He hadn't allowed himself much time for anything else. But now, he could bask in the sound of it. "Thanks for ordering." He turned to Roy and smiled.

His attention went back to the woman as she made their funnel cakes. Ed watched with rapt attention as the dough was fried then the sugar was sprinkled on, with his getting extra. "It smells so good. I can't wait to have a bite."

Once their cakes were done, the woman handed the cake to them. "Here you go. That will be six hundred cenz."

He held the statue a little tighter in his arm and moved the goldfish bag so that he could both hold the knotted plastic and support the statue's base with one hand, leaving the other free to pick up the plate. He wouldn't be able to actually eat until they sat down, but if they wanted to get a good seat for the show, they should make their way over there anyway.

Accepting his own funnel cake with a word of thanks to both Ed and the woman who'd made it, he turned to continue on in the direction where the performance would be held. "The way you talk about it, I'm sure I'll enjoy it," he replied with a hint of amusement in his tone. Ed really did seem excited to show him this, and if Roy were being honest with himself, it was actually kind of cute seeing him this hyped up over something like this. This festival really seemed to mean a lot to him, and after all the hardships Ed had endured over the years, he deserved an opportunity to just have fun for once. And Roy felt lucky to be the one beside him to see that side of him.

Havoroyai doodle for my dear @qs63 's birthday, with whom I share the exact same brainrot ❤️🫠

"Perhaps," a humoring word, not shutting him down completely. It may not be the sort of underground business he was thinking, but she couldn't shut down a prospective merchant. He wouldn't have quite the underhanded methods he was used to or implying, but it would be an opportunity to go clean. For any of them. Crime was usually a result of a strife, be it monetary or otherwise. That's why she was proud of how low the crime rates were in her kingdom... excluding Rogueport, which chose it's own flavor.

"Though, as far as back home, I'm well known enough I think most of that knows to not look my way. I'm a bit of your antithesis, Greed." there's a coy humor in the line. "I'm pretty generous. I keep my Gardens, even the edible parts, open to the public most of the time. My kitchen is always stocked with something quick and easy to eat should someone need it. People in town know they can ask if they need help. My doors are kept open. So my reputation there probably doesn't quite open the doors you were looking for." That's not a total shut down, however.

"But, if the route to and fro became a simpler journey, I'd love for you to visit. I have a friend who's a business owner and treasure hunter who I can see you getting along with... or the two of you may butt heads profusely. I'm not seeing much of an inbetween, currently." Wario was a pretty extremes personality, after all.

Still, it wasn't looking particularly hopefully if her focus was on charity rather than personal gain. Someone like that was harder to motivate to work together for their mutual benefit if they acted like there was nothing they wanted out of it themselves. But everyone wanted something; it was just a matter of figuring out what it was that drove Peach's desires.

Greed crossed his arm across his broad chest and regarded her with a slight frown. "Dunno why it's worth your time if you're not getting anything out of it. Seems like a real waste to just give it all away. But that's your business, and I'm not here to step on any toes." He watched her face carefully, searching for any reaction that would further the conversation. "Though you're welcome to pay for anything you see here that you wanna just hand out," he added with a sharp smirk. It was unlikely that that she'd just be handing out booze, but at this point, he wouldn't put much pass her seemingly excessive generosity.

@amestrian-rain sent: " you must've really pissed those guys off, huh? " (Xigbar and Brosh, Wild West AU)

The barfight, as per usual, had been swiftly-handled, the raucous offenders promptly warned with a couple of well-aimed gunshots at the their mugs of whiskey, glass exploding like shrapnel---and before Xigbar had even holstered his firearm, they'd zipped on out of there as though caught on fire.

And this time, nobody had to die.

They were definitely new in town, so putting them in their place was absolutely necessary. Everyone else knew him, of course, during the few days he had been here---and it didn't take a lot of time to memorize his face, his demeanor, and, most importantly, his reputation.

The Freeshooter, come over the Pacific from the Far-Far East, cutting a jagged, terrifying path across the U.S.-of-A.---and here in Arizona, still no one had proven to be a faster, more accurate shot than him.

What was humorous, though, was that Xigbar really didn't care about any of that. His only goal was to just drift about, seeking out anything that would catch his fancy, all while perfecting his drawl. This country was supposed to be "the land of opportunity," after all, but thus far, not very many opportunities seemed to present themselves.

Boots propped up on the table, arms crossed, hat tipped over his eye to block out the sun---though intent on enjoying its warmth---he sensed a presence, and heard a voice:

" you must've really pissed those guys off, huh? "

With a flick of his finger at the brim of his hat, he examined the man that had addressed him. A youngun, with a sweet face and kindly expression, untouched by the cruelty of time---and definitely also new to this town.

Xigbar couldn't help but wonder how long he'd last here.

"Denny! Leave him alone," the bar owner, a man with a thick greying mustache and matching eyebrows deep enough to shade his eyes, hissed from behind the counter. The younger man had only been here a few days himself, but the two had been acquainted yesterday when Brosh had come inquiring about work. Though the bar didn't have any room for one more, the bartender had slid a sympathy drink across the counter, and Brosh had returned the next day to buy one for himself for real to return the kindness. But now the mug lay forgotten on the counter, still half full.

The owner ignored Brosh's inquisitive frown over his shoulder and interrupted before Brosh could get a word in. "Sorry about him, mister," he apologized with an ingratiating grin. "You know what they say about the brazenness of youth. He don't mean no trouble."

The owner, too? Sure, he was young, but not that young. It wasn't as if he were some impetuous teenager. He could handle himself just fine, thank you very much. It wasn't as if this rather impressive gunslinger had actually killed anyone here, and he didn't seem particularly threatening in person. Just self-assured.

Adjusting his hat with a sigh, Brosh turned back to Xigbar, ignoring the needless apology. "Is that why your aim's so sharp? Stopping a fight before it happens? Those guys looked about ready to smash their glasses over your head." Despite the bar owners warning grunt, he took a step closer, eyeing Xigbar's holstered gun. "How'd you learn to shoot like that?"

Edward stood with bated breath as Alfons was checking himself over, only releasing it when there was nothing that called for any additional concern. That came with a sense of relief that Alfons had went unharmed, even so, this had probably rattled him for the night.

How lucky he was to have found him and saved him.

"I remember some of your usual routes, but I think I got lucky that I did find you. That guy wasn't really keeping quiet.."

He might had missed Alfons entirely if the mugger hadn't lost his cool nor got desperate for some cash. It got them spotted and allowed him to quickly step in and take them out, he needed more of that luck in his life honestly.

Still, the offer managed to get a slight smile out of him. "Is it that obvious I skipped dinner?" Once he was focused on a project, he devoted his full concentration to it, which sometimes led to missed meals and late workdays. Just not usually this late, and while he could normally wait until he got home to put something together, now that he was slowly starting to come down from the adrenaline of the attack, it was beginning to dawn on him that he could have eaten a horse right about now.