"So this is automail?" Hikaru and Kaoru peered over the metal limb. "It's very steampunk."

"Not stylish at all."

"Old-fashioned looking."

"What's with the ridges there?"

A ten-year-old girl slammed a wrench into both their heads. "It's supposed to be functional, not pretty, you dorks!" She continued to scold them heatedly.

"Granny," Edward stared at the tall, brunette girl in front of him, "who's this?"

The girl stopped her tirade and turned to face him. "Ah, I'm sorry. I'm Mika, Ms. Pinako's apprentice." She stuck out her hand.

"Nice to meet you…" The elder blond shook it, staring at her incredulously.

"I took her on quite a few months ago." The old woman bent over Lan Fan's dismembered arm, making small repairs where needed. "She's learned very quickly."

"Well, I have a great teacher!"

Ed smiled wanly. "You guys okay here?"

"Yeah, boss."

Honey paused in his conversation with Ling. "We're good over here, Tama-chan!" He turned back to the Emperor of Xing. "So if cake's not the same in Xing, what's it like?"

Mori nodded.

Lan Fan and Haruhi didn't hear him, chatting animatedly.

Kyoya was nowhere to be found.

Edward sighed and walked out of the room. Running a hand through his hair, he made his way toward the living room where he heard the undertones of Alphonse's voice. "Al, have you seen –"

His brother was having what seemed to be an intense discussion with Mei Chang. An uncharacteristic flash of irritation crossed Al's face and he said something in gibberish.

'Not gibberish,' Ed realized, 'Xingese. What's so secretive that they have to discuss it in a different language?' He lifted his hand and rapped on the doorframe. "Sorry to interrupt your 'moment' or whatever you're doing, but have you seen Kyoya?"

The two jumped.

"B-Brother! How long were you standing there?" Guilt was written all over his face, making him look like a deer in headlights.

"Thirty seconds, maybe?" The elder Elric shrugged, trying to ignore Al's weird behavior. 'Probably none of my business...yet.'

"You asked about Kyoya?" Mei asked. "I think he's in the bathroom." It was obvious she wanted him to leave quickly.

"Ah." With a knowing grin, he sat down in a chair. "So what were you talking about? That was…what? Xingese?"

Mei scowled and muttered something in her native language.

"We were just, um, discussing how you don't seem to be on very good terms with Kyoya." Alphonse avoided his brother's eyes.

Ed stared at his brother for a minute before saying softly, "Obviously that wasn't what you were talking about."

The younger Elric winced.

"But since I hid where I was for a year – your time – I guess secrets are to be expected." With a sad smile, he stood up. "I was just checking to make sure Kyoya didn't run off or something. Not that he'd be stupid enough to." The former alchemist turned to leave.

"Wait, Brother!" Alphonse looked down, fidgeting slightly. "I didn't want to tell you so soon after you came home, but…Granny Pinako's really sick."

Edward spun to face his brother, eyes wide with shock. "How sick?"

"Lung cancer," he said quietly. "Doctors say she has two years to live – at most."

The older brother let out a long string of expletives. Turning on his heel, he stormed out of the room, down the halls and out the door. The door slammed behind him.

~:~

The first person Edward saw when he came back inside an hour later was Pinako.

Wordlessly and with red-rimmed eyes, he bent down and hugged her tightly.

"So Alphonse told you then," the little old woman sighed. "Well, it can't be helped. Mei got your tickets. You'll be leaving for Central tomorrow morning at nine. All eleven of you."

"You're not coming?"

"I'm too old to travel nowadays. Besides, Mika needs to continue her training." A vein began to bulge on Granny's temple. "Now let go of me already!"

"Sorry." The blond released the hug.

"Your friends went back to your house. I think Al wanted to talk to you."

"That's weird." He frowned and headed out the door. "Thanks, Granny. We'll stop by later. Do you want to come over for dinner?"

She shook her head. "Why don't you come over for supper? I'll make stew."

"All right!" Ed's eyes lit up. "I'll ask the others, and if they don't want to come, I'll come by myself. See ya, Granny!" He walked out the door.

~:~

"No, wait, Al!" Ed struggled to get out of his brother's hold.

"Sorry, Brother," Al said firmly, "but this is for your own good." The younger blond threw his brother into his room.

Five seconds later, Kyoya was thrown into the room, trying to look as dignified as he could.

"Ha, they think a closed door can keep us in here?" The blond raised a fist and walked to the door.

Outside the room, someone clapped and hit the door.

"…Well, crap."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow but kept his gaze disinterested.

"Door was locked alchemically. Probably reinforced too." Ed sighed. "If I hadn't given up my alchemy, I could get us out…Eh, what can you do?" He flopped backward onto his bed. A puff of dust flew from the mattress. "So," the blond coughed, "how do you like Resembool?

A glare was the only response.

"You're such a megane. Remember that weird song Renge showed us – Megane Aru Aru no Uta, or somethin'? That's, like, your theme song." The former rolled onto his stomach and raised his head to look at Kyoya.

In the dark-haired boy's hand was a small red box.

"Give me that!" Edward scrambled off his bed and snatched the box out of his hand. The blond tucked it into his pants pocket.

"Didn't your mother teach you manners?"

Time stilled.

"Which one?" Ed asked lightly. "The one who's dead or the one in France that I'm forbidden from seeing?" He scowled. "I know you're mad, but using my mother to taunt me? That's a low blow and you know it."

"I suppose I would feel worse about it if I had proof that Anne-Sophie even exists."

"You've met my father, haven't you?" The blond rolled his eyes. "Look, Father's an idiot, but he's not a liar – or a fake. You know that. After all, the Suohs have been around as long as the Ootoris. I know you think I'm a fake, that Tamaki Suoh doesn't exist – don't give me that look, I know you, Kyoya – but I didn't fake much."

Kyoya adjusted his glasses. "Then that begs the question of what you did fake."

"The over extravagance, the idiocy…" Ed grimaced. "Okay, not all of the idiocy, but the point is that I'm pretty much the same person, regardless of what my real name is."

The dark-haired boy frowned.

"I'm not making sense, am I?" He sighed. "All right, you know how in reincarnation that a person has a previous identity before their current life? It's like that. I didn't die, but Truth – who's, like, God or something – turned me into a baby, so it's essentially the same."

Kyoya nodded slowly, digesting the information. "How is it the same?"

"I grew up again," Edward said simply. "I learned how to play the piano, become charming, fit into the rich society. All I did was curb my temper and all the…dark aspects of my personality. It hasn't been obvious, I know, but being here…it's bringing up a lot of memories. I thought I could handle it, but it's a lot harder than I predicted."

"You said you grew up again, meaning whatever is haunting you happened seventeen years ago. Why –"

"Is it so hard for me? Because I've refused to let myself think about it, so every time I do, the pain is still fresh." He took a deep breath and walked towards the window. "I'm not going to go into detail. You'll probably find out about my past in the next two weeks."

"Tamaki…" Kyoya narrowed his eyes. "Is the window sealed as well?"

"…You have got to be kidding me." The blond slid the glass pane open. "Wow, I'm dumb." He ducked under the frame, putting one foot on the sill. "C'mon."

"We're on the second floor."

"So?" Gold eyes blinked in confusion. "Oh. I'll come back for you." Without another word, the former alchemist stepped out the window and disappeared from sight.

~:~

"Alphonse said you'd be here," Haruhi said, walking carefully around the gravestones.

Ed looked up and smiled. "Hey. I got tired of all the angst that was going on at the house, so I came here to catch everyone up." He turned back to the stone in front of him. "This is Haruhi, Mom. She's part of the Host Club I was telling you about."

"What was your mom like?" The brunette lowered herself to the ground next to her sempai.

"The most beautiful person in the universe." He chuckled. "Al got his personality from her – nice, caring, patient…She was our entire world. We learned alchemy to impress her. Now Hoenheim…" Edward glared at the headstone to the right. "He's where we got our looks from. Unfortunately, I've been cursed with most of his traits – inside and out. But you didn't come here to talk about my parents, did you?"

For a long time, Haruhi said nothing, simply staring towards some graves in the distance. Finally she said quietly, "I saw the ring box on your dresser."

"Yeah?" The blond refused to look at her.

"Were you really going to…"

"Propose? Yeah." Ed leaned backward, his hands supporting his weight. "I was twenty and had made her wait long enough." He closed his eyes and took a shaky breath.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," the brunette said quickly. "Forcing yourself won't help. Trust me."

He nodded and stood up. "C'mon, let's go."

"Where are we going?" Haruhi asked as he led her out of the cemetery and down the country road.

"Granny Pinako's! She invited us over for supper!" The former alchemist grinned, putting his hands behind his head. "Aw, man. I can practically smell her stew now!"

"Shouldn't we get the others?"

"Nah! I didn't tell them! Serves them right for locking me in my room!"

"What about Kyoya?"

"Probably sick of me." He nudged her playfully in the side with his elbow. "Besides, we haven't hung out like this since the day we went out for ramen."

"That was only a week ago, sempai." Despite her words and flat tone, she smiled.

"So what?"

Does anyone want to make a cover for this?