Fic idea where State Alchemists are called to battle.
All State Alchemists in Amestris where called to Creta to handle a political/military crisis and it takes a few months.
In the end all return, safe and sound, on the train to Central Station and their families are waiting for them.
Edward waves enthusiastically to his brother and pretty much leaps out the door the second they are open.
"I missed you so much!" Al encases him into a tight hug. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, Colonel looked after me." Ed looks back at his superior officer.
"Hey." Hughes claps Roy on the shoulder. "How was it?"
"Fine." Roy smiles, no traces of lie on his face.
"Just fine?"
"Not here."
"Oh, okay." Maes claps him on the back again and turns his attention to Edward. "Come here, you little runt." He catches the boy into a tight bear hug, lifting the child off his feet. "You okay?" He whispers into Ed's year.
"Yeah." Ed nods against his shoulder.
"Positive?"
"Yeah, it was easy."
"Okay." Hughes lets the boy down but keeps a hand on his shoulder, the metal one and turns his face to Roy. "Amestris is so much more peaceful with you freaks out of the picture."
"What?"
"No honestly, do you know how many wars and conflicts are started with Alchemy. Take that withcraft out of the picture and we might have world peace."
"Alchemy is not witchcraft!" Edward grabs his suitcase and the group start walking out of the station and towards the parking lot. Around them people are visiting the various shops, talking and locating family. Edward can't remember ever seeing the station so overcrowded. 'A prime target for picpocketers' he thinks and takes his wallet from his uniform jacket and clenches it in his fist instead. "Alchemy is a science, it requires deep knowledge of chemistry, physics, geology, biology..."
"Brother, you know he was just kidding." Alphonse takes his wallet for safekeeping, it was stupidity to rob a child in military uniform but downright suicidal to choose moving suit of armor as the target. "I can understand looking like magic to someone who can't do it themselves."
"But it's not magic! Sure everyone can't do it but you can still learn the basic principles."
Edward continued the rambling as they got into the car, Hughes and Mustang at front, boys in the back.
"Did they have cars in Creta, Brother?" Alphonse asked as they started their way to Hughes' house.
"Wha.... it's.... Creta doen't live in Middle-Age, of course they have cars." Edward rolled his eyes.
"How about their houses then? Do they differ"
"You saw the pics I sent, right? The post cards?"
"Yes, but maybe the postcards are propaganda."
"Creta looks very much like Amestris, Alphonse." Mustang turned to look at the armored boy. "Sure there are style differences but basically it's same."
"Do you want to go there again, Brother?"
"Al, I just spent three months there." Edward sighed. "Ask me that in a year."
"Did you have any time to do research? Maybe they have information about Philosopher's Stone that we don't have."
At that notion Mustang and Edward shared a meaningful gaze that Hughes could not help noticing, not even when he was focused on the traffic jam at the intersection.
"Yeah.... let's talk about it later."
"Steaks are ready!"
Edward jumped up from where he was playing with Elysia and all but ran to the food station. He grabbed a plate and looked at the grill. Dozens of perfectly cooked steaks were just waiting for Team Mustang and Hughes's to claim them.
"You hungry?" Havoc, the designated griller, smirked.
"Starving, we didn't even get coffee on the train."
"Thank heavens for that." Mustang butted in to their exchange. "You were pretty much shaking the entire way."
"I was excited to get home, you can't blame me for that!" Edward glared at the superior officer.
"Oh, I could tell. Can you imagine how hard it was to get this one" he pointed at the boy" to stay still for an entire ride? I had half the mind to either bind you down or knock you out."
Edward rolled his eyes and chose two of the biggest, juiciest steaks his eyes could locate. He heard the groans of the men behind him, snickered and moved along to the 'healthy' table, filled with salads, baguettes, fruit and a selection drinks for adults and children.
"Do you want soda or juice, Edward?" Gracia asked as she was opening a big bottle of sparkling water to pour a glass for herself.
"Soda, it's so hot today." Edward answered while placing his plate on the table. He grabbed the ladles and took a helping of the green salad, it had all his favorites and he noticed that Gracia had not put in any olives. He did not like olives, no matter how many times he had tried them, their saltiness was just too intense to his taste buds.
He took the glass Gracia offered and made his way to the picnic area. With so many people present it was easier to sit on the ground than to fight over table seats. And it was the warmest day of the summer so there was no danger of dampness creeping through the blankets.
Edward made his way to where Hughes was sitting with Elysia on his lap.
"I can hold your plate"
"Thanks." Edward gave his plate and drink to the man and sat down beside him. He also dragged closer a small stool and when his food was placed onto it it looked like small table.
"Tadaa!" He grinned at Hughes and the man laughed.
"Yes, very impressive, you're the first one to do that."
"Hey, if it works-" Edward took a forkful of salad, Hughes lifted his hands.
"I'm not judging."
As soon as everyone had a plate of food the conversation turned to State Alchemists' deployment to Creta. Edward and Mustang shared a look and Mustang, as the highest ranked, cleared his throat and set his plate aside to focus.
"Alright, so... we are both okay, let's start with that." Edward nodded while cutting his steak and the team let out a breath they had been holding. "It was nothing like Ishval. It was..."
"It was bullshit."
"Edward." Mustang narrowed his eyes at his youngest subordinate.
"You said it yourself."
"Not with those words." Mustang explained to Hawkeye."
"What I don't understand is this-" Edward set his plate aside and thouhght for a second. "Okay, so they had alchemy problems. Circles just appear all around the country. Okay, fair enough, but why do they invite State Alchemists from another country to fix it?"
"Creta doesn't have their own State Alchemist program." Falman said. "Which is stupid if you ask me."
"Exactly! Creta has good alchemists and the arrays we saw..." Edward shook his head. "They were a mess."
"Could you do anything with those?" Havoc asked interested and Mustang shook his head.
"Not without some serious redesign." Edward answered. "They were just lines and symbols thrown together."
"Wait, wait." Fuery set aside his plate and adjusted his glasses, it was clear this conversation was going over his head. "But I thought, correct me if I'm wrong, that there are like 'basic' arrays and then you expand from that and that's where the lines and symbols come in. Why don't all kind or arrays work?"
"There are still rules." Alphonse said while holding Elysia on his lap. The little girl was more interested in a fluffy toy cat than the adult conversation. "The reactions won't happen if the symbols are placed wrong."
"Then there are exceptions." Edward added.
"And exceptions to exceptions." Mustang said and Edward nodded.
"If alchemy is so strict how can there be research to new forms of alchemy."
"That's where the method of trial and error comes in." Edward laughed sheepishly. "But honestly, Alchemy is a science where you just.... you can never learn all. The more you know the more you realize what you don't know. That's what makes it so fascinating. The thrill of learning and pushing the limits."
The group was silent for a moment.
"Is that why you spend so much time researching?" Breda asked. Edward laughed.
"That, and I'm a workaholic. I just addicted easily."
"There are worse things to be addicted to than alchemy." Hughes shrugged.
"But the bottomline is the deployment wasn't really necessary?" Hawkeye asked. Edward and Mustang looked at each other.
"Sort of..."
"I wouldn't maybe go that far..."
