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"I don't know who you think you are, kid, but maybe grow into that uniform before you go around making demands."
Edward Elric punctuated his statement by turning back to his notes with the untold expectation that Roy could see himself out. In this maze of a lair Roy wasn't so certain he could, and he wasn't eager to leave just yet. Not when he'd came so far crossing an entire desert to make it all the way to the ruins of Xerxes.
"I'm afraid I cannot do that!" He said, "when I spoke with Alphonse-"
"-yeah tell 'im I said hi."
Roy tried not to sigh. His patience wearing thin he emphasized each word when he responded with, "when I spoke with Alphonse he said you were working with my parents."
"You're still here?"
"That they had left this place before they died-"
"-that's nice."
"They were bringing supplies for your resea-"
"-exit is behind you."
"And they were supposed to bring Alphonse-"
"-he doesn't need any more books."
"Their names were Yin and Leon Mustang."
Golden eyes snapped up to look at him through thin glasses seeing him as if for the first time since he'd stepped foot in the building. The way those eyes pinned him, like he was a butterfly pinned under glass, made his heart skip. He'd heard tale from a few people on his travels of how the Elric brothers were. Alphonse was sweet until he was not. But Edward was always surly. Pure rudeness, insensitivity, and spite. Some even called him selfish or cruel. But all called him brilliant.
"Mustang, huh?" A grin slowly cut through his face. It was not a nice one with the way it reminded Roy of the Cheshire cat. Roy shifted. Gold eyes lazily followed the movement, "I forgot they had a son."
"So you remember them?"
"Perhaps," he leaned back in his chair somehow looking down on Roy despite being seated. Roy watched him, wary of this sudden change in temperment from the notoriously firey Elric. "I thought you were younger."
"It's been fifteen years,"
"Has it really? My mind must not be what it once was," Roy doubted that very much, "now I'm curious what brought you here."
"As I said-"
"-don't get snippy," he warned, "you're the one who came here begging for my help."
"Apologies," he balled his hands until he felt his nails dig into his palm, "sir, I am here to ask what happened to them."
"So you've said."
"... and are you going to tell me?"
"Hmm," the hum was playful rather than contemplative, the answer had already been decided well before the question had been asked, "no."
"Sir, I'm afraid I must insi-"
"Come here," he did not raise his voice to speak over Roy and yet somehow he'd managed to cut through his anger. Roy stared at him, feeling like this was all a trap. He could see the tail twiching. The claws were ready to dig into his flesh.
He stepped forward. Crossing the distance from the door to the desk in three wide strides. Ed leaned forward with his elbow resting against the desk and his right hand raised like he was waiting for Roy to place something in them. It was the first time he got a good look at it. Automail.
"Pray you don't come about it as honestly as I did," Ed said, "hand. Now."
Roy pulled his hand up then hesitated, letting the appendage hover in the air was he looked at the metal hand waiting for it. Like a mouse trap or, more aptly, a cat waiting for the bug to land before it smashed the thing against the wall.
"Hurry up."
Slowly, watching the automail for every twitch, he dropped his hand until his palm was resting against the fingers. He held his breath as the metal hand slowly closed around the digits and his hand was tilted so Ed could get a better look at the circle.
Then he was roughly pulled forward until his stomach dug into the edge of the desk his shout echoing throughout the room.
"Ah, you were Berthold's student," Ed said casually, "I shoulda known."
Roy pulled his arm back, utilizing what little leverage he could to put some distance between himself and the grabby Elric.
"What's that mean?"
"It means I knew the fucker twenty years ago when he knew fuck all and I bet he locked his ass in some shed in the middle of buttfuck nowhere like the paranoid piece of shit he is."
"Tell me how you really feel."
"I would love to, unfortunately I've already lived nearly half my life and that would take up the rest," he leaned back in his chair, resting his automail elbow on the armrest and then his chin in the metal fingers, "fine, what do you want to know?"