Steadfast Bright Star @steelandstrays-blog - Tumblr Blog

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t grateful, so thank you. But the change has been nice. Nothing too drastic has happened.” Riza informed him, holding the package close.

She paused for a moment, taking it all in. Of all the times Riza had seen Alphonse she couldn’t make it to her second hand when counting the occasions when he had been in his regular body. When she had first met the brothers formally, he’d been in his armored body that served as his lifeline in this world.

“It’s lovely,” she said, smiling again. “Things have been relatively calm. There are tensions and little things, but compared to everything else…” the pause passed quickly, “it’s almost nothing.”

steelandstrays-blog

"Well you definitely deserve it!" Al replied, beaming. "And there's nothing wrong with things not being drastic. I mean, it has to be welcome after- er- everything." He coughed out a little self-deprecating laugh at his less than stellar phrasing, and the tips of his ears flushed- as he only recently learned they had a tendency to do.

He smiled broadly, simply happy that he could. Even after over a year, he delighted in the small things; finally being able to show someone how happy he was with being in their presence, or looking at people from a vantage point that wasn't towering over them. The lieu- no, the colonel now, looked taller and broader, and though he had a few inches on her it was far preferable to the height and bulkiness of armor.

"That's great, I'm happy to hear that!" His brow wrinkled in curiosity, natural thirst for knowledge and compassion bubbling to the surface. "But almost nothing isn't exactly nothing. Unfortunately it's been a little difficult to keep up with Amestrian news across the desert- can you say what's been happening?"

#threads #strongholdqueen #[[ ahaha this is an adventure in trying to remember what Al is like ]]

"I'll say," he replied emphatically. "Congratulations, that's great! I'm so happy for you." It was utterly genuine- Al had always admired the now-Colonel and was happy to see her receiving accolades that reflected how hard she worked and how much she did.

"The paper is from a specialty shop- they're not totally uncommon in the capital city but outside they're pretty rare. And it's really not a problem, I saw it and something just clicked. I hope you like it!" He grinned brightly and rubbed the back of his neck, as was force of habit. "So how have you been?"

#strongholdqueen #I legit don't even remember my tagging system here #it's been so long xD

mirayama

edwardrockbells

THIS OR THAT ↝ Almei or Lingfan (requested by anonymous)

ohlookitscazz-deactivated202512

super fast, super shitty gif for almei sunday… which hopefully I’ll be able to clean up, smooth out, and finish?? Or maybe make something else because idk that I really like this at all….

cupofdaydream

FMA:B- Favorite Moments

Ed: “You seem to have become quite fond of May Chang, the princess of Xing.”

Al: “She really is a nice girl, huh? But never mind me, Brother, are you sure about Winry?

"Sorry it's been kind of forever since I've been around! I have to stop getting so engrossed in what I'm doing."

#I'm not dead!#Just sick #and busy

amurita

“Welcome Home, Idiots!”

smallfolk-blog

My valiant, noble soul…my Alphonse.

8amtrain

why doesn’t an almei high school au exist yet

#THAT'S AN EXCELLENT QUESTION

thistlebranch

edwardmeowric

Other Brother | steelandstrays

edwardmeowric

Although Edward could tell that Alphonse was trying to diffuse the tension, the sense of panic still ran quite poignantly through the air. Who really was the crazy one here? Edward almost felt like he were the one in another world. The most scary part was how this place looked so much like his home. This person before him looked so much like his brother should have at that age, albeit Alphonse appeared thin and sickly, most likely having something to do with the way his body was returned to him.

Confusion rendered blatantly on Edward’s face when Alphonse began to attempt to explain. “Fought Father? We fought that bastard?” His brown knitted together with more confusion. Was Alphonse referring to Hohenheim? “That man’s no father to us, Al! We haven’t seen him in YEARS in case you’ve forgotten!” Edward was not certain if that was what Alphonse meant, though he had difficulty keeping any outbursts in check that involved Hohenheim. He hated the man with a passion.

Edward sighed deeply, folding his arms across his chest as Alphonse made his proposition. “That does sound like a better idea,” he concurred, trying to keep any anger at bay. Alphonse was not trying to make him upset. “I don’t know exactly how this happened, but my money would be on the homunculi being behind this,” Edward admitted, narrowing his gaze. “We recently found out the truth about that damn stone and have been wondering about if there’s any other different ways to fashion one… Less horrible ways. Or about pursuing another alternative for restoring our bodies.”

steelandstrays-blog

Al bit at his lip, trying to smooth the consternation from his brow. He would figure this out; repeating that like a mantra in his mind helped to dull the sharp caustic burn of worry that lived in his veins. Whatever was happening would be okay- and focusing on Ed's story, trying to think of what to supply in return helped him to focus.

He drew back slightly at Ed's outburst, brows raising in confusion. "Ah- no- not Dad. You- don't remember? Dad saved us, Ed. We were fighting that homunculus, named Father. I..." The rest of the words caught in his throat and he fell silent, finding it easier to listen rather than contribute for the moment.

At least he could find some common ground at this point; Al clearly remembered the day when they found out what the Stone really was- what is was made of and why they abandoned hope of trying to find one, let alone use it. That was not the way they'd return to their original bodies; they refused to be part of that.

"-Right. We were going to find something different to pay the toll. I remember that." The words were colored with relief; finally something that he could use to point himself in the right direction. A sign that perhaps things weren't quite as wrong as they seemed. "Okay, that's a good start- and that's the last thing you remember? No weird figures or- or- lights or anything?" As far as Al knew, there was no way to cross dimensions or tamper with time itself; even with godly powers the creator of the Homunculi had only set his sights on this world- the only world.

#rp #edwardmeowric

princessmeichang-blog

Holding still against him as he moved, Mei let her eyes flutter closed, taking in the moment. He really did feel like her knight, not a guardian, or merely a protector, but someone who recognized her own power, and then added his own; someone who bided to loyalty and devotion. A knight, after all, had to be protected in equal measure by their Lady, to be treasured and honored. It was her girlish fantasy that led her to imagine him a prince, but Alphonse was truly someone who understood the rules of equivalency. He gave and got in equal turn, and they understood each other. She was a princess by blood, not just by heart; and he was a knight by choice, not just by birth. It was an even match, when she considered it.

His fingers wound through braided hair, and Alphonse pressed his lips against the top of her head. Mei smiled. “I think so too.” she said quietly, playing her fingers across his collar gently. The thought that she could play him rather like the qin she had learned upon in Xing as she trained her skills as a Princess of the court made her stifle a secretive giggle. Mei bit her lip, the laugh still causing her shoulders to shake slightly as she buried her face into his collar.

“You have a lot of work to do, you know.” She managed without laughing.

steelandstrays-blog

The ability to feel in this particular situation was almost overwhelming. Even now simple points of contact, variations of textures, changes in pressure- they were all magnified, sending electric sparks down his spine and warming his chest. But beyond that this was Mei. Strong and sweet and beautiful, she was precious in his arms. And not only could he hold her but he could feel that. Al was entirely certain he'd never get tired of that.

"I'm glad we agree," he said gently and lightly against the top of her head, absently running his fingers through her hair. Al had to remind himself that this wasn't a science experiment; the future was exciting because he might spend it with her- and while he wanted to find out what pleased her perhaps he should do it more along the lines of her philosophy. Feeling to understand, rather than laying out the steps in a more exact manner.

With a chuckle, Al nodded. "I've always been told I'm a pretty hard worker." The words were airy and bright. "Unless they were all lying to me," was added jovially. "Plus, who am I to deny royalty?" He pulled back, bumping his nose against her forehead.

"I must be a pretty lucky guy. To know you."

#rp #mei #princessmeichang

steelandstrays-blog

{ brother * steelandstrays

without-my-past-blog

Poor Alphonse. The other boy’s stuttered words clearly showed he didn’t want Edward to feel trapped. “Don’t worry, I don’t think anyone can force me to do anything that I don’t want to.” Such was the stubbornness Edward knew he had despite of his lack of memories. Ed stepped forward, wandering his way into the kitchen with his brother close behind him. Naturally, the place seemed foreign to him. Though Edward had a feeling the kitchen wasn’t somewhere he was most familiar with even back when he had his memories.

“You usually do the cooking in the house?” That would make sense. Al was nice and patient, characteristics that would make a good cook. Edward was much the opposite, he didn’t think he had the patience to wait for an egg to boil on certain days.

“I will help getting out the ingredients.” He started pulling drawers open, searching for a recipe book. Luckily for Ed, he found it on his third try in a drawer at the corner. To make pancakes, they needed flour, eggs, sugar, vanilla and milk. Edward paused for a second at the word milk and narrowed his eyes. “Let’s use water instead of milk,” he said firmly.

steelandstrays-blog

"That's certainly true," Al replied, drawing a shaky breath and grasping at some sense of normalcy. He wouldn't be able to help his brother if he wasn't calm and in control of at least his own faculties. He couldn't afford to fall apart, even though his heartbeat was still a little thready and not quite even.

So as he stuck close to Ed, Al forced himself into calmness. Despite his brother's current condition, he still seemed like Ed. That connection was still there, and even his little mannerisms were familiar to the point that it gave Al hope for the future; they'd fix this. There was already enough of a foundation that they could build on.

"Well I try," he admitted with a sheepish chuckle. He didn't have to admit his failures in cooking which weren't all that bad, really. Just magnified under the lens of frustration and perfectionism. "That would help, though!"

He couldn't help but laugh at Ed's caveat. "Of course you don't want milk. Just like you- but you're going to have to trust me on this. They'll taste a lot better with milk and you won't even know it's in there." While Ed got the utensils and things from the drawer Al undid the latch of the refrigerator and withdrew the last ingredients they needed. "It just gets fluffier with milk."

#withoutmypast #rp

[[ GUESS WHO'S GETTING TO REPLIES.

This guy. ]]