Work Text:
Cadence
“I’ll be back in a month,” he’d said, which was of course a mistake. One month turned into two, and then into three when he got distracted, and now here he was stuck in a probably haunted castle for the night while he waited out a storm. He stared out at the sheets of pouring rain for a long minute, then sighed and patted his temperamental horse, Pokey, on the snout. She responded by attempting to bite him, but he was used to this and avoided her teeth easily.
“We’ll have to wait it out inside,” he told her morosely. He tugged gently on her reins until she decided to follow him with a loud neigh and a shake of her head, then led her over to the dilapidated stables he saw nearby. There wasn’t much in them that would be useful, but they at least kept off the rain, and he had enough food to keep her happy for the night. He’d have to find her somewhere to graze in the morning, though.
With a heavy heart, he trudged through the rain to the castle doors. He’d been looking forward to getting home and spending time with his sons before he had to head out again to do more research, and even this short delay was painful. He hoped it would be a short storm.
The rain didn’t let up for hours. Hohenheim didn’t sleep much these days, and he wandered the dark hallways with a candelabra for something to do. He thought he heard heavy footsteps following him at one point, but when he turned to peer into the shadows, he didn’t see any person, and he dismissed the sound as his imagination. It was late and he was exhausted; there was no reason to believe in the ghosts his mind invented.
It was nearing sunrise when he found the library. The double doors opened at his touch, swinging silently on their hinges, but he forgot to be suspicious when he caught sight of the collection in the room. Every shelf was stuffed full of books and scrolls. He stepped into the room hesitantly, wondering at the lack of dust.
Then he caught sight of a large desk in the corner, one that was overflowing with papers as well as neat rows and piles of books, like somebody had gotten up in the middle of doing research. His eyes widened as he flipped through the papers. Whoever had been sitting here was doing research on fire alchemy, a rare and dangerous field that even Hohenheim avoided. They must have already worked out one working array, because it looked like they were attempting to improve on one design while building up a second one completely from scratch.
He turned to the books. Any one of these would be worth a fortune, but more importantly he knew his sons would love to get their hands on this kind of research. And Edward had requested that he bring home something of real interest, not another treatise on the alchemists they were already familiar with. Hohenheim hadn’t been able to find anything in the towns he’d visited in the past months, but this would be perfect.
He reached for the closest pile, thinking he would take one of the more basic ones in case whoever owned the castle returned, but paused as he felt a soft breeze of cold air on his back.
Somebody else had entered the room.
He spun around, holding his light up high, but he wasn’t fast enough. There was a snap and a loud crackling noise before the candelabra went out, and in the darkness before sunrise all he could see was a tall, looming figure moving in on him. He reached into his pocket for chalk and the figure leapt forward, slamming him backwards into the desk and holding him in place without any visible effort.
Hohenheim wasn’t a small man, but this man’s hands could have circled his wrists twice, and he loomed above him maliciously. The man growled and bared his teeth, and Hohenheim saw the scant moonlight glinting off a hint of a fang.
Not a man. A beast.
“What do you think you’re doing in my castle?” The beast growled in his face. “I haven’t given you permission to be here, nor to take my books.”
“I’m sorry,” Hohenheim said. “The castle looked abandoned, and I didn’t think ghosts would mind if I took one book.”
“The castle,” the beast growled again, “is mine. And for your attempted thievery, you will remain trapped here with me.”
Now, that just wouldn’t do. Hohenheim had a lot of work to do still, and he needed to be able to travel to do it. He would love to stay cooped up in this library for, well, years by the looks of it, but he couldn’t be selfish. Perhaps a trade.
“I’m afraid I can’t stay in the castle,” he said, keeping his voice even in the hope it would keep the beast calm. It didn’t work, and he leaned back slightly as it growled at him a third time. “I have many things to take care of still. Would you accept one of my sons as a trade?”
The shine of the fangs disappeared abruptly, and then the monster had released him and was backing away from him. Hohenheim could feel its eyes on him and decided it would be best not to make any movements in case it thought he was trying to escape.
“You’re serious,” the beast eventually said in a flat voice. “You would trade your own children for your freedom. That is one of the most despicable things I’ve ever heard, and people call me a monster. Very well. Send me one of your precious children, and I will consider your debt repaid. But if he does not come, I will hunt you down and this time I will not let you live.”
Hohenheim nodded his agreement to the conditions, then sidled around the beast and swiftly left the library. He would have preferred to wait until the sun had risen to set out again, but he didn’t dare test the beast’s patience, and he saddled Pokey in the moonlight. The horse was uncooperative with being woken up, but at least he was accustomed to her ornery nature, and it wasn’t long before he was on his way again.
His return home was met with about as much excitement as he expected. That is to say, Alphonse seemed pleased to see him, but Edward barely bothered to glance up from the book he was reading before he sulked off into another room. Hohenheim sighed. It looked like the conversation they needed to have would have to wait for dinner.
The day was a quiet one, with Alphonse trying to get Edward to talk to him and Hohenheim unpacking everything and preparing for his next trip out while he considered the best way to bring up the topic of the beast at dinner. He’d already decided who to send out to the monster, and it had been a painfully easy choice to make. He wondered idly what that said about him, but shrugged it off. He would deal with that later.
Edward came out for dinner and scowled at him, but Trisha had raised the boys well while she’d been alive and he still thanked Alphonse for making the meal. He didn’t wait for them before he started eating, though, clearly wanting to leave the kitchen as soon as possible. Hohenheim sighed. Yes, the decision had been too easy, but it was the only possible choice.
“Before you leave the table, Edward, we have something to discuss,” Hohenheim said when he noticed his elder son was nearly finished eating. Alphonse put his utensils down immediately, looking interested, but Edward finished his food before he bothered to give his father his attention. “On my way home I was forced to take shelter in a castle to escape a terrible storm, and the lord took exception to my being there. He attempted to force me to remain.”
“Seems counterproductive,” Edward grumbled. “I’d’ve just kicked you out.”
“Brother,” Al said reprovingly, and Edward subsided with a grumble. “How did you escape, Dad?”
Hohenheim took a deep breath. “I’m afraid he demanded that I send one of my children as my replacement,” he lied. Alphonse gasped in horror. “I’m afraid there was no bargaining with him. I don’t wish to force either of you to go, but I fear what he’ll do to all of us if we don’t comply.”
“Let him come here and try to take one of us,” Edward snarled, baring his teeth. “I’ll give him a fight he won’t be fucking expecting!”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Brother!” Alphonse snapped. “If Dad couldn’t even protect himself with his alchemy—”
“Boys, please,” Hohenhim interrupted, and they both fell silent. “Alphonse, I’m sorry, but I really think you should be the one to go to him. Edward is, ah, more abrasive and—”
“Like hell Al’s going to live with someone like that,” Edward said, a familiar stubbornness in his voice that meant there would be no arguing with him. “I’ll go. Al’s too damn nice.”
“Brother, you don’t have to protect me from everything,” Alphonse said. His frown was annoyed, but it didn’t come through in his voice. “I can take care of myself, you know.”
“Do you want to go, Al?” Edward asked. Alphonse looked away from him, crossing his arms petulantly. “I know you and Winry have been making eyes at each other behind my back. The two of you should get to be happy without Dad’s shit ruining your lives too.”
“Hey now,” Hohenheim said lightly, but Alphonse was already nodding his reluctant agreement to Edward’s little speech. When both of his sons were in agreement with each other, any argument he could make was pointless. Edward was going to the beast whether he liked it or not.
He just hoped his ornery son didn’t anger the monster more than Hohenheim already had.
@-`---
Ed left early the next morning, his horse Glue barely weighed down with a bagful of his clothes and a few books. Hohenheim had suggested he wouldn’t need much, which was kind of suspicious, but Ed wasn’t in much of a mood to ask questions so he just kind of rolled with it. He had no interest in going to this stupid castle, but if the alternative was to send Al, well, he’d just have to suck it up. Al put on a brave face, but he wouldn’t be able to handle a monster the way Ed would, and being cut off from the rest of civilization would kill him eventually. At least Ed was pretty much built to be a hermit, as long as the castle had some sort of entertainment.
He followed his father’s directions on how to get to the castle with a heavy heart, quietly hating the sunny sky and the birds fluttering noisily around him, and the further he got away from home the worse he felt. By the time he got to the castle, nearly a week later, the only thing that was keeping him going was the thought that the beast would go after his brother if he never showed up.
The grounds of the castle were wild and overgrown, and Ed scowled at it all as Glue got distracted nibbling at the long grass. There were a lot of roses covering everything, ivy climbing up the sides of the castle, and the stables looked like they were about to collapse. No wonder his father had though the place was abandoned; it certainly didn’t look like anyone would be able to survive in such a place.
Before he set Glue up in the stables, he decided he’d might as well fix them. If they were both going to be stuck living there for an indefinite amount of time, there was no point risking injury.
He drew the circle on the floor of the stables, and even with the days of travel the transmutation failed to exhaust him. The building reformed itself around him, straightening walls and repairing cracks in the wood at Ed’s direction, and it took barely a minute to complete. He stood up and clapped the dust off his hands with satisfaction, feeling a little better. Maybe the beast wouldn’t be so unbearable if he was useful.
Glue didn’t seem to care about his new surroundings, clopping his way into the stall with disinterest and turning around to nudge at Ed’s head. Ed rubbed his snout and followed him in, taking off his packs and brushing him down. This would be the only living creature he knew for the foreseeable future. He had to take care of him and make sure he survived as long as Ed did.
Ed sighed and rested his forehead on the horse’s side. It was going to be a long life.
No point in feeling bad for himself. He grabbed his belongings and strolled off into the castle, slamming the door behind him and waiting impatiently for somebody to have the decency to acknowledge his presence. It only took him a few minutes to lose his patience. He dropped his bags to the ground with a loud thunk and took a deep breath.
“IS ANYBODY GOING TO FUCKING COME OUT HERE?” he screamed as loudly as he could. “THIS IS RUDE AS FUCK!”
He crossed his arms with a huff and leaned against the door. There. If nobody showed up after that, he was just going to make himself at home, and the shithead who owned the castle was just going to have to shut up and deal with it.
He waited a few more long minutes to see if anybody would show up, figuring the castle was, well, a castle, and would probably take some time to walk through. Just as his patience was ending again, he heard heavy footsteps moving toward him ponderously slow, and eventually something appeared in the shadows of the hallway. With the sun dying outside it was hard to make out anything, and Ed squinted at the tall silhouette that seemed to be regarding him with equal curiosity.
“I suppose you don’t consider your screeching to be rude as well?” the shadows asked Ed in a deep voice. This must be the beast, but he sounded far more cultured than Ed had been expecting. “You interrupted my dinner.”
“If you don’t want people interrupting your meals, maybe you shouldn’t make them send their sons to you just because they wanted to get out of a storm,” Ed snapped.
“Ah, you are the thief’s replacement, then?” The creature sounded amused and slightly disgusted. “Of course he wouldn’t tell you that he suggested the trade himself. Well, such things are only to be expected when dealing with monsters.”
Ed’s hands automatically clenched into fists. He didn’t want to believe that even Hohenheim would be such a bastard that he’d trade his children for his own freedom, but the beast didn’t sound like he cared enough to bother lying. He wasn’t sure which to believe, so he didn’t defend his father. And he didn’t think the lack went unnoticed, either.
“Since you will be staying,” the beast continued in an even tone, “would you care for dinner? I’m certain I can spare a bowl or two.”
“Why don’t you step into the light?” Ed frowned. “I want to see who I’ll be sharing a meal with.”
“I did not invite you to join me.” This time there was a slight growl to the beast’s tone, but Ed wasn’t going to let himself be fazed.
“Look, if I’m going to be fucking stuck here we’re going to have to get used to each other. Just let me look at you now so I don’t throw my food at you or something.”
There was a tense silence as the two of them stared each other down. Finally, with extreme reluctance, the beast made the last few steps out of the shadows, bringing himself within arm’s reach of Ed.
Ed gave the monster a long look, feeling wholly underwhelmed. Sure, it was large and beastly, hands and feet ending in claws that looked like they could probably tear Ed apart with one swipe, but was it really any scarier than any monster he’d faced while traveling? At least this one was sentient, and apparently educated to boot. Better than something that took one look at him and tried to eat him.
Ed pushed himself off the door and picked up his packs. He tilted his head back to stare straight into the thing’s eyes.
“So,” he said casually. “You were saying something about food?”
The beast blinked at him slowly, looking completely thrown off.
“You aren’t afraid?” it asked.
“Too fucking hungry,” Ed said.
“Ah, well…” The beast stared at him for another second, then shrugged its shoulders as if it was shrugging off its surprise. “Follow me then. The kitchens aren’t far.”
E scowled all the way through dinner. The beast kept looking at him, its expression unreadable, and he had no idea what it was thinking. Was it angry that Ed had forced it to actually suffer his company for dinner? But Ed was on his best behavior (not that that was saying much) and wasn’t even talking, and he was minding his table manners besides. If it wanted something to be mad about, Ed would be more than happy to provide that.
Maybe another day, though. He would like to at least make it through the first night alive. Then he could say he’d tried to get along.
Whatever issue the asshole had, he didn’t mention it while they ate. Nor did he seem inclined to tell Ed about it while he led him through the dark hallways with nothing but a candle to light their way. He halted outside of a random room and pushed the door open with claws tapping on the wood, then used the candle in his hand to light a sconce on the inside of the room.
“This will be your room,” the beast said, its voice hushed in the darkness. “I have not kept up much of the castle, but you are free to make use of anything inside that has not gone to waste. If you would like, I can give you a tour in the morning after breakfast. I’ve retained the library….”
That caught Ed’s interest. “The library?” he echoed, trying to hide his eagerness but knowing he was failing. He’d never been any good at hiding his emotions, and he was too excited at the prospect of more books to read. The few he’d brought with him weren’t going to last long. “What kind of literature did you keep?”
The beast gave him another long look, and there might have been something of a smile on its face this time.
“I believe you will discover that tomorrow,” it said. Ed bit back a growl. “Before I forget myself again, please let me introduce myself. I am Lord Roy Mustang, the owner of this castle, and I would like to officially welcome you to my home, Mister…?”
“Uh, Edward Elric,” Ed mumbled.
“Please make yourself at home, Edward,” the beast said, stepping back and taking one of Ed’s hands. Ed couldn’t stop a blush when the beast kissed the back of it as he bowed formally, because what the fuck, but Roy Mustang didn’t offer any commentary if he noticed it. He simply turned and strode away into the darkness, his fur and clothes blending into the shadows until the only sign of his existence was the sound of his footsteps echoing through the corridors.
Ed woke at sunrise the next morning, the sun streaming through curtainless windows to shine directly into his face. He grumbled at it and tried hiding his face under the covers, but that was too hot, so he reluctantly dragged himself out of the bed. He eyed his bag of belongings uncertainly, thinking of his travelworn clothes, and then opened the wardrobe with a grimace instead.
It was full of suits in neutral colors, and Ed pulled one down. It was made of finer material than he’d ever worn, but it looked like it might fit him. It seemed strange to wear somebody else’s clothes, but the beast—that is, Lord Mustang—had said he could make use of anything on the premises….
Well, he’d know he’d done something wrong if he was yelled at.
Appropriately attired, he cautiously peeked his head out the door of his room. The corridor was empty, the sunlight only emphasizing the darkness of the stones, but this one at least looked like it was kept in good repair. He was pretty sure he remembered the way back to the kitchens. Maybe. Well, if he didn’t, Lord Mustang would probably find him eventually.
He found the kitchen without any trouble, and discovered Lord Mustang already there eating. He cleared his throat awkwardly, tugging on his borrowed suit to make sure it was settled properly.
“Uh, hey,” he said.
Lord Mustang looked up from his plate and then just sort of…stared. Ed endured it for a minute, shifting impatiently on his feet.
“What?” he finally snapped. “You said I could use anything in the castle. Was I not supposed to use the clothes? I can put it back if it bothers you.”
“No,” Lord Mustang said, quickly enough that Ed raised both of his eyebrows. Lord Mustang cleared his throat. “No, it’s fine. The suit is, ah, well. I certainly wasn’t going to be using it any time soon.”
Ed put a hand on his hip and just kept staring at him. Pointedly. Lord Mustang smiled broadly at him, the gesture showing off his otherwise ignorable fangs.
“Breakfast?” he suggested, gesturing to the table. Ed sighed in defeat and joined him. He was hungry anyway.
After they ate, Lord Mustang followed through with his promise to show Ed the library. Ed followed him through the corridors with interest, but tried not to get his hopes up. Sure, the beast seemed educated, but that was no proof that he’d have a library with anything worthwhile in it. It’d probably be boring history crap, or most of the books would be falling apart like the castle, or maybe the guy had a thing for accounting.
Or maybe it was going to be the best thing he’d ever seen in his life.
Ed walked through the shelves with wide eyes, letting his fingers trail across the books as he walked. He’d been right about the histories, but there was just as much science, and adventures that would keep him occupied when he got frustrated with research, and then there were the alchemy books that even his father had never managed to get a hold of….
He could feel Lord Mustang walking along behind him, but he didn’t pay the beast any mind. There was too much here to hold his attention, even though the organization was starting to get on his nerves. He didn’t have the patience to put them in order, though, so he’d just have to put in the time memorizing where everything was, or maybe make some sort of chart. If he could tear himself away from reading in the first place.
“Shit,” he said, feeling strangely breathless. “This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“I should probably find that disturbing,” Lord Mustang said, sounding way too amused. Ed shot him a brief glare. “Shall I leave you to your studies, then?”
“Yeah, sure,” Ed said, waving a hand dismissively. “I’ll see you later.”
He thought he heard Lord Mustang laugh, but he pushed it out of his mind as he took a book down from one of the shelves. It was one he’d seen Hohenheim mention a few times in his journals, but not one he’d ever actually read for himself. In fact, he’d thought the last copy of it had been destroyed years ago when his mother had died as their house burnt down around her.
Lord Mustang found him hours later, leaning against the bookshelf he’d stopped at and nose deep in his second book. The first one had turned out to be full of useless and outdated information, so Ed had found something that was more interesting to pass the time. He didn’t notice the beast was with him until a hairy hand was covering his book, and then he looked up with a snarl.
“Would you care for some lunch, Edward?” Lord Mustang asked blandly.
“It’s lunchtime already?” Ed asked, distracted. “Shit, I forgot about Glue!”
He tried to get to his feet, but the way he’d been sitting had apparently cut off the blood flow to his feet. He stumbled, reaching out to catch himself on the nearest bookshelf, and was caught and righted by Lord Mustang instead. The beast’s hands seemed to linger on his waist briefly before they pulled away, and Ed’s voice got caught in his throat with confusion. What the hell was the guy’s deal?
“You named your horse Glue?” Lord Mustang asked, a smile curling up one side of his lips. “I tended to him for you. I noticed that the stables seem to have mysteriously fixed themselves overnight as well.”
“Well, yeah,” Ed said. “I wasn’t going to leave Glue in a building that might fall down on him at any moment. He’s a good horse. Thanks for taking care of him.”
“It’s no problem,” Lord Mustang said. “Shall we?”
They left for the kitchens again, though Ed was reluctant to exit the library. He knew the books would still be there but he’d only just been getting into that one! He could’ve waited for food until dinner; it wouldn’t be the first time he’d done it. But Lord Mustang was calmly insistent, ushering him down the hallways and dishing out the food for him, and Ed figured he’d might as well just give in. It was awkward having a lord do things for him anyway, but when he hesitantly started getting up and offered to help, Lord Mustang waved him back to his seat.
Then they went back to the library together. Lord Mustang told him that he was doing research of his own, but Ed didn’t really listen until he heard the words ‘fire alchemy’.
Something in the bastard’s eyes sparkled when Ed jolted with sudden interest, but Ed ignored it in favor of asking just what the hell he was talking about. He’d never heard of anyone doing fire alchemy before, all of the elements besides earth being notoriously difficult to handle, and he found it difficult to believe that any monster, no matter how well educated, would be capable of something that no man had ever perfected.
Lord Mustang simply smirked at him and showed Ed his desk piled with notes and even more fascinating books, and Ed tried not to hover with his own curiosity. He needed to know how this worked. It must be tricky as hell, he thought, and just the science behind it must have taken years to learn.
Lord Mustang blocked his notes from Ed’s view and turned to him, no longer smiling. Ed scowled as the disappointment hit, but didn’t make any attempt to force him to let him see them again. Alchemists were notoriously secretive about their work, and it had been ridiculous to think that he’d get to see them so soon.
He turned to leave for the shelf he’d been at before, but Lord Mustang grabbed his wrists and tugged him gently to a halt.
“Edward,” he said. Ed realized suddenly that this was the second time Lord Mustang had used his given name, and the familiarity made him blush. “You must know the agreement I made with your father has trapped you here for a long time.”
“Yeah, kinda got that part,” Ed grumbled.
“I apologize for stealing your life from you.” Lord Mustang acted like he hadn’t heard Ed’s comment, but his dark eyes were sincere as he spoke in a soft tone. “But since you will be trapped here anyway, I must ask you if you will consent to being my husband.”
Ed yanked his hands from the beast’s grip on them, backing away as fast as he could. Lord Mustang just watched him with his face set into an expressionless mask, though there was something sad and unsurprised in his eyes.
“I’ll accept that my dad might’ve lied about why I’m here,” Ed snapped, “but I know he would’ve mentioned if part of the agreement was that I was going to get fucking married, okay? I’m flattered by the offer or whatever, but I just want to, I don’t know, get along quietly and do research, okay?”
“I understand,” Lord Mustang said. His quiet voice turned formal, and Ed thought he might miss the easy way the beast had spoken to him before. “I apologize for my indiscretion.”
“Right, sure,” Ed said, feeling awkward. “I’ll just, you know.”
He fled into the shelves without waiting for a response, and buried himself in the books again. If he felt even a slight bit of disappointment when Lord Mustang didn’t come by to lead him back to his bedroom that night, well, he just wasn’t going to acknowledge it.
The next morning wasn’t as awkward as Ed expected it to be. Lord Mustang still decided to serve him breakfast, but they ate in silence and after they were done he wandered off somewhere on his own. Ed shrugged off his guilt for the way he’d reacted the night before, but the beast had caught him by surprise. He really don’t know what he’d been expecting. Grateful, joyous agreement? Ed was perfectly happy being a weird hermit, thanks.
Rather than go straight to the library, which was where he suspected Lord Mustang was retreating to, he went outside to visit Glue. The horse was chewing on some sort of feed, though fuck knew where Lord Mustang had dug it out from, and he gave Ed an unimpressed, judgmental look. Ed glared back at him, then grumbled unhappily as he set about brushing his coat again just for a reason to be out there. He didn’t know if Lord Mustang had already come out to take care of Glue before he’d even woke up, but the horse didn’t seem to need anything from him. He felt guilty all over again.
In a bad mood, he left the stables and decided to putter around the grounds and just…fix things. Alchemy always made him feel better anyway. The outer gates were falling apart, so Ed carefully used as much of the ground around them as he dared to fix the holes he discovered. The gardens needed more work than he felt like he was capable of taking on himself. He had friends who were better-versed in plant alchemy than he was, and he thought they’d be able to take care of things in no time at all, but he obviously couldn’t contact them now. Oh well. He’d get around to the roses eventually, maybe, if he ever really felt like it.
He stayed out there until lunch was over, carefully avoiding any hint of Lord Mustang and his well-meaning attempts to make sure Ed was taking care of himself. He did kind of like the attention, but at the same time it was making him uncomfortable. Who wanted to spend time with him that badly? Nobody, that’s who.
When he thought Lord Mustang might be too invested in his research to notice Ed’s presence, he finally decided to go back inside. He tiptoed his way into the library, making as little noise as possible as he returned to the bookshelf he’d been borrowing books from, and took his book down. After a moment’s hesitation, he grabbed a couple more books he’d been interested in, and carried them over to a chair by the windows.
He read through the rest of the day, barely noticing as the room got darker and darker, until he could barely see the pages of the book he was reading. He was just starting to get annoyed, vaguely considering the possibility of finding a sconce or a candelabra to assist his attempts to continue, when he felt a clawed hand land on his shoulder.
It looked like he hadn’t managed to avoid Lord Mustang after all.
“What do you want?” he growled.
“I apologize for asking you again,” Lord Mustang said softly. “But you must understand, Edward—”
“Can’t you fucking see that I’m trying to read?” Ed snapped, smacking him in the arm with the book. Lord Mustang looked startled, pulling his arm away.
“You can’t tell me you can see in this light,” he said, sounding irritated for the first time since Ed had gotten there.
“I was about to find a candle or something,” Ed said. Lord Mustang made no attempt to get out of Ed’s space, so he rolled his eyes and slid over the arm of the chair. He was surprised to find a candelabra on the table near him, though there wasn’t anything to light it with, and he patted at his pockets absentmindedly for some matches. Shit. He was wearing one of the borrowed suits, not his own clothes. “Where the hell do you keep the matches, anyway?”
Lord Mustang sighed, long and heartfelt. He reached into the pocket of his own clothes and pulled out a tiny piece of chalk, which he used to draw a circle on the table. Ed watched, fascinated, as he placed the candelabra in the middle of it and touched his claws against the ring. The candles flared up high with fire, then settled down to more normal levels.
“That’s fucking great,” Ed said, leaning forward to inspect the circle. He had no idea how the elements interacted with each other, and he sighed with disappointment. Oh well. At least he had light now. He climbed back over the arm of the chair, opening his book back up and already starting to read it again. “Thanks, Lord Mustang.”
“You can call me Roy, if you like.”
Ed was surprised enough that he looked up from his book, just to see if Lord Mustang was joking. It didn’t look like he was, his face serious as he looked down at Ed.
“Uh, thanks, I guess,” Ed muttered. “Now go away, I’m trying to read.”
“Enjoy your research,” Mustang murmured quietly, and then he ghosted away. Ed watched him until he disappeared into the shadows of the shelves, and then he returned to his book with a huff. Lord Mustang was so damn weird.
The next day was an exercise in repetition. Ed avoided Lord Mustang as much as possible, using alchemy on anything he could reasonably fix without somebody else’s expertise, dodged the beast when lunchtime came around so he wouldn’t have to suffer through three awkward meals for the day, and quietly entered the library as late as he could stand it. His books were where he’d left them on his table by the window. Hopefully Lord Mustang would get the idea and leave him the hell alone that night, because the book was just starting to get interesting.
A shadow fell over him, Lord Mustang having silently stepped into the light of his candle.
“Oh for fuck’s sake, Roy!” Ed growled, slamming the book down on the arm of the chair. “If I agree to marry you, will you leave me the hell alone?”
Lord Mustang smiled slowly, leaning on the back of Ed’s chair with one hand. With the other he ran a single claw through Ed’s hair, then along the underside of his jaw to tilt his head back so they were looking eye-to-eye. Ed gulped nervously.
“I think those are terms I can agree to, Edward,” he said.
“Right,” Ed said. “So you just. Go do whatever it is you do and I’ll, uh, I’ll be here.”
Mustang seemed to think that Ed agreeing to marry him gave him free reign to touch him as much as he wanted, even though it made Ed nearly jump out of his skin the first few times. The touches were all innocent, at least. He never attempted to put his hands anywhere that would piss him off, but he seemed to prefer walking beside Ed with a hand across his shoulders or just grazing his lower back. He also had some weird fascination with Ed’s hair. Normally Ed would have put a stop to that right away, but the claws were unexpectedly great for getting out tangles. Some mornings he considered not brushing his hair just to see what Mustang would do.
Ed eventually got used to the touches, and in fact kind of started to like them. The beast was bigger than most men, but he could be comfortable to lean on.
They started doing research together, curled up on a couch in the library or, once Ed had braved the mess and cleaned it out, content in front of a fireplace inside of a large parlor Mustang hadn’t entered in years. The parlor was kind of Ed’s second favorite room in the castle, once it was clean, because it was the least drafty room in the entire building so the fire kept it warm and comfortable even in winter.
He might have fallen asleep on Mustang in there once or twice, but nobody but the two of them were ever going to know that.
As the date of their wedding came closer, Ed started thinking about getting in contact with his brother and father again. He didn’t think either of them would be pleased with his marriage to the beast, but he missed his family (okay, he missed Al) more than he wanted to admit. The wedding was going to be private, but he hoped maybe after they were settled down he could be reunited with Al again. Just because Ed was trapped in the castle shouldn’t mean he wasn’t able to see others, he reasoned. They could always come out to him.
He waited until they were leaning together in the parlor, the fire burning merrily in front of them, to broach the subject.
“I don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t be able to visit,” Roy said thoughtfully. He had his arm around Ed, resting a hand on his hip, and his claws scratched lightly at the side of Ed’s thigh. “But not until the wedding is over. I will not ask for your father’s permission to marry you.”
“Don’t think he’d give it anyway,” Ed said sleepily, trying to resist the urge to snuggle into the embrace. “Assuming he even fucking showed up.”
“We will be married soon,” Roy said, his voice reassuring. “Then it won’t matter what he will have said or done, will it?”
“Guess not,” Ed sighed. “Now open the book before I fucking fall asleep again. This room is too damn comfortable.”
Roy did as Ed requested, not that that was much of a surprise. The closer they were to being married, the easier it seemed to be for Ed to get Roy to do what he wanted. Sometimes it seemed like Roy was just humoring him, but Ed thought the beast might actually be doing it because he just wanted Ed to be happy. Which was weird as hell, but also kind of…sweet, in a way.
Ed was trying not to be charmed by the bastard, but dammit, he just wasn’t playing fair!
@-`---
On the day of the wedding, Roy surprised Ed with another wardrobe full of fancy suits. Ed paused long enough to give him a severely unimpressed look, but he was willing to play along. He threw open the door, expecting more of the same things he’d been wearing all this time, but the ones in here were so impressive he was afraid to touch them.
“I don’t think I can wear these,” he said, backing away until Roy caught him by the elbow. “They’re way too expensive for me. I’m surprised I haven’t ruined them just by looking at them.”
Roy pulled him back, sliding behind him so he couldn’t back away again.
“I know nobody is going to be there to see it,” he said quietly, “but I would like you to have the opportunity to look like a prince for your wedding. And I think these outfits would quite suit you.”
“Just don’t get mad at me when they get destroyed,” Ed muttered, and hesitantly reached for one of the pristine white jackets. “And they’re gonna.”
He was pretty sure he could feel Roy’s smile as he let Ed go.
“I’ll leave you to get ready then.”
Ed tried not to touch anything as he walked down to the parlor, wary of the slightest bit of dirt marring the brightness of his clothing. When he entered the room he thought he saw Roy’s eyes light up and he blushed, but then his attention was distracted by the huge man standing in front of the fireplace. He was easily as big as Roy, obvious muscles bulging under his minister’s habit, and Ed’s steps faltered at the sight of him.
“Ah, what a lovely groom you have chosen, Lord Mustang!” the minister boomed. Ed thought the entire room might have shaken from the sound of his voice. “I’m honored you’ve chosen me to be the one to preside over this joyous day!”
Ed forced himself across the room and gave Roy a look that he hoped clearly conveyed his question of “is this guy for fucking real?” Roy gave him a pleasant smile in return, one that probably meant “please just be patient and get through this so we can eat,” so Ed rolled his eyes and snatched the hands that were being held out to him.
Roy was going to pay for this later, one way or another.
Ed could feel the smile on his face freezing with horror as the minister droned on and on about the sanctity of marriage and how wonderful their devotion was, and the beauty of looking beyond external appearances and blah blah blah ad nauseum. Where the hell had Roy dug this guy up? Ed was going to ask later just so he knew to avoid that part of the country for the rest of his natural life.
Finally, almost as if he could sense Ed’s growing impatience and annoyance, the man’s speech tapered off and he got to the important part. They dutifully repeated their vows, exchanged rings that Roy had dug up from somewhere (not that Roy’s fit on any of his fingers), and then the minister said the words Ed had been dreading:
“You may now kiss the groom.”
Roy cupped his face gently, but Ed could still feel the claws pricking at his skin. In all the time Roy had been hanging all over Ed, he had never once tried to kiss him. Ed had been grateful for this, because he wasn’t particularly looking forward to encountering those fangs, but he couldn’t avoid it any longer. He closed his eyes and fisted nervous hands in the front of Roy’s dark blue suit jacket.
Roy’s lips on his were painfully gentle, every movement careful to prevent accidental bites, and Ed slowly let himself relax into it. Roy wasn’t going to hurt him; for all his beastly looks, he hadn’t once so much as tried. Ed could trust him. Everything was going to be fine.
Roy pulled away with a gasp. Ed opened his eyes, alarmed, and for a second he thought he must have gone blind—then he realized that there was a bright light emanating from Roy’s body. He took a startled step back. The huge minister was doing the same, nearly trampling the ashes in the fireplace in his astonishment.
“Roy, what the fuck,” Ed choked out.
Roy didn’t answer. He seemed to be shrinking, or maybe it only looked like he was because he was doubled over in pain? No, he was definitely getting smaller. Ed moved forward again, hovering without touching him and trying to figure out something he could do to help. Alchemy wouldn’t be any good here, even if he had any idea what to do.
The light died away as suddenly as it started, leaving Roy kneeling on the rug. He was breathing heavily and seemed to be staring at his own hands in wonder, turning them to look at the palms, and then over again to look at the back of them.
“Roy?” Ed said uncertainly. “Roy, is that—are you—?”
Roy looked up at him slowly, and Ed gaped at the change. There was nothing left of the beast in his face, no fangs, barely even any hair. He was pale and clean-shaven and fucking gorgeous, and Ed just stared at him, overwhelmed.
“Edward,” Roy said, his smile full of wonder as he got shakily to his feet. He barely stumbled as he stepped forward, reaching for Ed’s face to pull him in close again. Ed scrabbled for a grip on his forearms and held on tight. “I never thought I’d be human again, Edward, you beautiful…”
When Roy kissed him this time, Ed felt helpless to do anything but reciprocate. He could hear the minister crying in the background, declaring this to be a miracle and the most beautiful moment he’d ever witnessed, but Ed tried not to pay him any mind. Roy, returned to his human form, apparently had no qualms about putting as much passion into his kiss as he was actually feeling.
Ed wrapped his arms around the man’s neck and thought faintly that even Hohenheim couldn’t be angry about Ed marrying Roy now. And if he was, the ceremony had already happened, hadn’t it?
As for consummating it, well. Ed hadn’t even considered that as a possibility before, but now he thought he might be disappointed if it didn’t happen.