Worlds Collide

A/N: hikaru9, Yep, definitely full circle. The end is actually similar to another scene early in the fic. greedxed, blame Ed for ruining the name Phillis. Aideen wasn't the first one to call her that, not even one of the first. And as far as Aideen, she's trying to honor him, but she's 17, pregnant, feels like she was raped even if Phillip didn't really do it. And I will say Phillip never was told by Aideen she thought he raped her. She never said it to anyone. She just panicked because Dante could have used him against her again. It was her family who jumped to conclusions, and Phillip knew what went on between them, even if it wasn't quite accurate. (in other words, didn't include Dante as part of it). I actually have kept it to my journal on lj because of all the mess. I'll probably just post an announcement of where to find previous chapters. Amethyst-eyed Konkeo, I have to say I always look for your reviews, knowing how much time you take to put into those. I figure Ed can't get his real limbs back, or everyone in the world would want to know how, being famous for his automail. As for Phillis, I figure it will be a name Nikki uses as she gets older (in other words, check the other section the rest of the story for those parts) when being professional. Yes, if I'd stuck with canon, Fletcher would be 15 years older than Aideen, but I never felt he acted 13 in the series, so i made him younger. And when I realized I'd like to have them together, I kept it at 10 1/2. Russell, well, you'll see how he's adjusting this chapter. Same goes for Nicholas.

Thanks for all the reviews and all the hits. Well, thank you and I guess if you want more of this beast, you'll have to check for the next oneshot in the other section. Remember "The Rest of the Story" :)

Chapter 66

Happy Ending

Four Years Later

Roy was not quite deeply asleep when he heard the door to his bedroom opening. He was rallying slowly as he heard the gentle padding of little feet across the wood floor and then carpet of the room. He was only half-asleep as the foot of the bed dipped down with a new, slight weight. But when the weight very suddenly pounced on his chest and stomach, Roy was very much awake.

“It’s morning, Grandpa!” the excited voice said from its place on his stomach.

“So I see.” Roy looked around him. His husband was stretching with a smile across his face as his body faced Roy, arching like a cat. He looked back up at the naturally tan child laying on top of him, her eyes bright with excitement. “Is there some reason you’ve decided to wake me up, Runt?”

Like a bolt, the little girl with her brown ringlets jumped up, her feet straddling his stomach, already narrow gold eyes becoming little more than slits. “Who you calling a runt?”

“You,” Roy answered.

Nikki opened her mouth to argue, only to squeal as Ed pulled her off of Roy. “Ignore him. He just likes to pick on people smaller than him.” In unison Ed showed his maturity alongside their granddaughter as they both stuck their tongues out at him. “He just doesn’t like it that he’s old.”

At that, Nikki looked confused, and turned her head to her granddad. “But you’re old too.”

And for the first time in Roy’s memory, Ed was speechless. Roy, however had no difficulty finding his voice to laugh at his very surprised husband. Ed, seemingly even more insulted by Roy’s reaction, began doing a very good impression of a fish. “To a four-year-old, Ed, you’re old. Get over it.”

“I’ll show her who’s old,” Ed said as he grabbed Nikki and began tickling her until she was a mass of kicking legs and giggles. It was entertaining to watch the two interact, from Roy’s perspective. They seemed to have been cut from the same mould; they had the same temper, the same sense of humor, the same mischievous tendencies, and the same chip on their shoulder about their height.

The girl was still small for her age, more often mistaken for a three-year-old than four. Occasionally, she even was mistaken for a two-year-old, and anyone who dared ask her if she was two to her face got an earful. Not only was she not two, she had the mind of a six or seven year old. Yet again, Roy’s family had produced another prodigy, one who was reading, doing math with ease, and had a vocabulary beyond her years. It was also a very good thing she had adjusted well to stares and odd looks, between the fact that she’d already begun using alchemy without a transmutation circle and the simple fact of who her family was.

Then there was her hair. When it was pulled back into a ponytail, it wasn’t really noticeable, but the chestnut curls had one white and one nearly entirely white curl nestled among them. They had no idea how the little patch of white hair appeared, but it had been there since birth.

“Stop!” the four-year-old shouted, laughing. Ed obeyed and brushed a few stray strands out of the girl’s hair. “Are you two going to get up? I want breakfast.” Then as an afterthought, she added. “Please.”

The two men smiled, standing from bed, Ed holding out his arms so the little girl could leap into them.

“Well, I suppose we should see if the twins are up,” Roy said.

“You know, at some point, you really have to stop talking about them like a single unit, Roy.” Ed hugged the little girl tightly as they made their way into the hall, the two men in their pajamas, Nikki in her pale pink nightgown. “Nicholas is a major now and Aideen’s just become a doctor. Calling them ‘the twins’ like they’re still six just seems wrong.”

“I know.” Roy couldn’t help it. It didn’t matter that he was looking at his husband holding one of “the twins’” child. It didn’t matter that he’d signed off of Nicholas’s orders to eastern headquarters—one of the hardest things he’d ever done—or that his daughter who’d finished medical school a month before was going to ask him to present her at her wedding today—another of the hardest things he’d ever done.

Roy shook his head, actually afraid that over what should be a happy occasion, he might cry, and he just didn’t cry over things like this.

“Can we wake up Uncle Nicholas?” Nikki said.

“Of course,” Ed answered with a devilish smirk. Both men had been at the bachelor’s party the night before and knew that while Roy had refrained and Ed had only had a bit of alcohol, Nicholas had managed to down more than his share before the two older men had left.

Roy smoothed down his hair as he watched Nikki playing with Ed’s as they walked. Though the younger man cut quite a bit of it off, it still hung between his shoulder blades. Roy understood Ed wanting to get rid of something he saw as much too youthful for his age, but the older alchemist full-heartedly agreed when Nikki tried to convince Ed to let it grow just a little longer. Roy missed when Ed could still wear it in a long braid.

The three made their way down the hall, Nikki’s olive-toned skin contrasting with the still rich gold of Ed’s hair. Her hands threaded themselves in the loose locks as she hugged him tightly. Though neither of his children had been so affectionate, Nikki was always finding some way to hug or kiss and easily told those she cared about that she loved them, truly meaning it each and every time.

She looked so much like her father, save for her eyes and mouth, that there would have been no denying Phillip Armstrong’s part in her creation if the family had wanted to. And looking back on their decision to explain how Nikki came to be, Roy was still amazed at how wise Aideen had been when she suggested the story simply be that they were immature teenagers afraid of the battles and possible future when they slept together. Roy had suggested they tell the press that Aideen had been under the influence of a drug and Phillip had not realized it; that story had been closer to the truth. However, it had been his daughter who’d insisted it wasn’t fair to Phillip’s memory. Now, looking at the innocent—mostly, anyway—life that was sliding back to the floor to open Nicholas’s door, Roy couldn’t imagine telling her that there had been any mistake in her creation, even if they would one day have to. Though, mistake was probably not the right word. Roy preferred surprise.

Nikki looked prepared to wake her uncle the same way she’d so “gently” roused him, but Roy grabbed her. It wasn’t that he didn’t think that Nicholas deserved this kind of a wake-up call after the way he’d been drinking the night before, but if he was also nauseous, as he might very well be, Roy didn’t want him being sick on Nikki.

Roy put a hand on the small shoulder, watching as gold eyes the same color as her granddad’s looked up at him. “Let’s wake him nicely, okay, Rosebud?”

She looked a little put out, but agreed with a nod of her head that shook the mass of natural curl that was her hair. She took a few steps forward, nearing Nicholas’s feet, and grabbed hold of one beneath the covers. “Uncle Nicholas,” she said. “Time to wake up.”

“Huh?” The blond head shifted at the pillow. “Oh, son of a—”

“Nicholas!” Ed said warningly.

“Oh, dad, not so loud.”

“How much liquor did you have last night?” Ed asked. “And please tell me you didn’t try to match Kain.”

“No. I know how much that man can drink. I’m not stupid.” He groaned again. “I feel like I’m blinking too loud. And I feel like I… Oh, crap!” Nicholas jumped out of bed and ran into his bathroom.

“Is Uncle Nicholas sick?” Nikki asked.

“He just had too much alcohol last night. Sometimes when people do that, they wake up sick the next morning.”

“Eww.” She screwed her little face up in response.

“Come on, let’s see how your mommy’s doing.”

“‘Kay.” Nikki ran ahead of them to the floor she shared with Aideen, for at least a few more hours.

********

Russell had a mild hangover, and he had to wonder how the overenthusiastic Mustang was doing this morning. In the next room, he heard his brother on the phone.

“How are you feeling?” There was a pause. “That’s not what I mean, and you know it. I know you’re not going to leave me at the altar, so to speak.”

Russell chucked from outside the door to the livingroom in the apartment that Russell would soon be living in alone. Fletcher sounded so confident at the moment, when just last night, he’d panicked about Aideen backing out on him, that she’d decide she didn’t want to marry someone ten years older than her. It was sad that only two drinks and nagging worry had brought the younger brother to that point, but Russell had forced Fletcher to cut himself off. Anyone who saw Aideen when she was around Fletcher knew she loved him, and while Russell felt there was more going on with his little brother than he was saying, Aideen loving Fletcher was never something Russell worried about.

“Oh,” Fletcher said, “sure, put her on.”

Raising and eyebrow, the older brother stepped into the room.

“Hi, Nikki, how are you?” Russell watched as Fletcher smiled, only managing to get in the occasional “uh-huh” and “oh, really?” as the four-year old chattered away on the other side of the line. “So you’re excited about the dress?” Again, only a few “uh-huhs” were uttered. “Oh, you’ll do a good job. I’m sure of it.” Then, something was said on the other end of the phone that made Fletcher smile, yet somehow still look shocked. “Well, what does your mommy say?” There was a pause. “Of course we wouldn’t want you to forget him.” Russell stepped closer. “But if that’s what you want, that would make me very happy.” Fletcher looked around until he spotted Russell, waving him over. “He’s right here.” Fletcher put a hand over the receiver. “Nikki wants to talk to her Uncle Russell.”

Russell smiled. She’d adopted both Fletcher and him as uncles as soon as she could twist her little tongue around that word. “So what has you looking so happy and shocked?”

“She asked if I had to still be Uncle Fletcher or if it would be okay if she called me…” The grin that appeared on Fletcher’s face couldn’t be shaken by anything, despite his nervousness earlier. “Daddy”

“About time,” Russell said, taking the receiver. “Hey, brat,” he said, “you behaving yourself?”

“Yep,” her voice said. “Did you hear? I can call him daddy now! Even though the wedding’s in a coupl’a hours.”

“So I heard. You really want my brother as your daddy?”

“Uh-huh. Then I can have two like mommy and Uncle Nicholas and Nina do.” Russell rolled his eyes. Leave it to a child raised in that non-traditional family to think that way. “Wait ‘til you see my dress, Uncle Russell. It’s really, really pretty. It’s red, but looks almost black with a red bow in the back. And I’m gonna wear my hair pulled up on top of my head with little rosettes in it. And the dress, you know I think it’s even prettier than mommy’s dress, and mommy’s dress is beautiful.”

Russell chuckled. Ed and Roy had a girly-girl on their hands with the vocabulary that would one day rival both grandfathers and an ability to spew out words at a speed met only by her granddad. Though, he had to admit that her attention span could use a little help. “Well, then I guess I’m going to have to see it at the wedding.”

“It’ll look really nice when I dance. Are you going to dance? Will you dance with me if you do?”

“Yeah, brat, I’ll dance with you.”

“Good. Mommy’s getting ready for the wedding. Tell Daddy,” And here she giggled at getting to use the word. “that she’ll have to talk to him later, once they’re married.”

“All right.”

“And don’t forget you said you’d dance with me.”

“Not a chance. Bye, brat.”

“Bye.” There was a rattling nearly capable of deafening Russell as she hung up the phone. As he put the receiver on the hook, he looked over at his little brother.

“So you’re a father now?”

“Yeah,” Fletcher said, still wearing that impossibly goofy grin on his face, but again, there was that flash of something in his brother’s eyes that made Russell wonder what the hell else was going on.

“Well, we’ve got a few hours before you get yourself tied to a ball and chain,” Russell said with a smirk to let Fletcher know he was kidding. “How about a very light breakfast?”

“I’m kind of hungry,” Fletcher said.

“Yeah, but I’m hung over enough that I don’t want to push it. And in a few hours, your stomach’s going to be doing somersaults, if it isn’t already.”

********

Aideen sat at the Central Greenhouse in the makeshift changing room, rubbing her stomach.

“Butterflies?” her dad asked.

“With nine-foot wings,” she answered, taking his hand in hers. “Where’s papa?”

“Talking to Fletcher,” her dad answered.

“Oh, no.” There was no scenario where that would go well. Aideen immediately stood, feeling a little lightheaded at the quick movement, but covering it easily. It was helped by the fact that her dad put hands at both of her shoulders to stop her from doing anything rash.

“Relax, Aideen,” he said. “Nikki went with him, so he will keep himself in check, if for nothing else than for her.”

“You planned that when you had her go with him, didn’t you?”

“I’ve been married to him for twenty-one years, I know him far too well.” With a smile, he reached beneath the leather thong that held his hair in place and began unfastening the necklace that lay under his shirt. “I think we need to complete the Earth tradition properly, don’t you?”

“Your necklace? Dad, I can’t.”

“I’m not giving it to you,” he said, lips in a tight smile that seemed somewhere between happy and sad. “It’s your borrowed item.” He looped his arms around her neck as he re-fastened the familiar Flamel beneath the hair that he, himself, had put into an upside down braid. Aideen just hadn’t been able to have someone braid her hair if it wasn’t the person who’d done it since she was a little girl. “I’d like your memories of me to be as more than your hair stylist.”

Feeling the still-warm metal against her chest, Aideen grabbed hold of her father and hugged him. There was still a very strong part of her that felt she didn’t deserve this, didn’t deserve her happy ending, so to speak, but she just couldn’t help that she was exactly that: happy.

“Thank you,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

“Don’t you go crying on me,” he said, his voice sounding as though he was ready to just as much as she was. “I might be able to braid your hair, even upside down, but I know nothing about make-up.”

Aideen pulled away from her father and looked at the shoulder of his black suit. “I hope you at least know how to get it off of clothes,” she said. “I think I messed you up.”

“Eh, I don’t matter. According to Winry, and Raine, and Elysia, and Gracia and every other person permanently possessing large amounts of estrogen, this is all about the bride.” He clapped his hands together and transformed the makeup into a tiny clump he was able to flick off his shoulder. “Good as new.” Taking off his left glove, her dad raised his hand to her eyes, wiping beneath each. “This is a good day, Aideen.”

“I know. I’m happy, but—”

“There’s no reason for a ‘but’ here, Aideen. I know the whole ‘Daddy’ thing this morning got you started on this. At this point, had he lived, Phillip would have found someone else, someone who he deserved and who deserved him. He was just too young for how mature you always were, Sweetie. And more than any of the rest of us did when we attacked him and accused him like raving lunatics, he knew he loved you the night Nikki was created. You never accused him of anything other than not knowing you well enough to tell the difference. If there was something to feel guilty about, Rose and both Alex Armstrongs wouldn’t be out there right now to see you get married.”

“Well, young Alex better be out there. Fletcher asked him to be an usher,” she said, the faintest piece of a smile on her face.

The door opened, with her papa carrying her daughter on his shoulders. He ducked down, and with a yelp of surprise, Nikki grabbed hold of his face.

“Nikki, honey, you’re going to have to let go of the eye. Only one works, and you’re covering it,” he teased. She slid her hands up to his forehead.

“Sorry, Grandpa.”

With a slowness that had come as her papa had gotten older, he lowered Nikki to the ground. “Mommy, you look so pretty,” Nikki said as she ran to Aideen, only to watch the little girl skid to a stop.

“Come here,” Aideen said, holding out her arms.

“But your dress, mommy.”

“Just watch your shoes.” Aideen held out her hands and picked her daughter up under her arms, pulling the little child into her arms. She squeezed the little girl.

“Why are you crying? Did Granddad give you a talk like Grandpa gave Fletcher?”

“No. I’m just happy,” Aideen said, knowing that trying to explain how many different things were behind the tears would be too complicated for the four year old. “Adults do that sometimes.” Aideen shifted Nikki to her hip, kissing the tiny curls that refused to be bound in the girl’s hair. “So, papa, how bad did you chew out my fiancé?”

“Not too bad, I swear. I told him that he had to be good for you, if he liked certain parts of his anatomy.”

“Mm-hmm. Grandpa said he’d fry his butt if he did anything to hurt you.” Aideen rolled her eyes, setting her daughter on the floor as she did. “Mommy, is that Granddad’s necklace?”

“Yes. He’s letting me borrow it.”

“And you’ve got the blue earrings Grandpa made for you too.”

“It’s part of an Earth tradition Frank told us about,” Aideen explained to her daughter, watching as the little girl stared at the makeup at the tiny counter. “Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.”

“Your earrings are blue. And the necklace is borrowed, right?”

“Yes, you’re Granddad’s probably going to make me give it back to him right after the wedding.”

“The dress is new,” Nikki said, looking at the makeup closely again. Among other things, Aideen’s mind supplied, but she didn’t say it aloud. “So what’s old?”

Aideen told Nikki to step back as she pulled up the skirt of the two-piece dress. Attached to her thigh was a gun holster and a small derringer. “This was my mom’s, but I don’t have it loaded.”

She lowered the dress again, grateful she had gone with one that was a looser fit and the ruffles, which allowed her to hide the holster. There was just something fitting about having that thing on her to remember her mother and how strong the woman was.

“Would you like a little make-up, Nikki?”

The gold eyes lit up as Aideen turned to the counter and grabbed the blush, putting it lightly on the little girl’s cheeks. Then, Aideen grabbed a shade of pink lipstick that Elysia had borrowed and put it on the tiny bow-shaped lips. “Eye shadow too?”

“Eye shadow too.” She laughed at her daughter and grabbed a gold and dusted it over the child’s eyelids.

Once again the door opened. “I know, I know,” Nicholas said as he came though. “I’m shirking on my ushering responsibilities, but I wanted to see you before the wedding.”

“Look, Uncle Nicholas! Make-up!”

“Well, don’t you look pretty,” he said, crouching down to Nikki’s level and giving her a quick peck on her forehead. He stood back up to wrap his arms around Aideen. “I can’t believe you’re going to be out of the house. It’s going to be so quiet there.”

“First of all, I’m only moving across the street. Second of all, you’re headed to Eastern Headquarters, so you’re not going to be there either.”

“But I can still come over when I want, can’t I Granddad? Grandpa?” Nikki asked, looking up at the two older men.

“Of course,” Aideen’s dad said, kneeling down to the girl’s level.

“And you won’t re-paint my room?”

“Never,” her papa said, patting the little curly head. “Unless you ask us too.”

“Cool!” Nikki said.

Nicholas hugged Aideen tightly before looking down at Nikki. “You know, I should learn by now that all the attention in this family goes to the females. First you, then Nikki,” he said with a tone of mock hurt. Aideen smacked him on the shoulder, making him wince.

“You didn’t get another one did you?”

“Last night, apparently,” he said, looking sheepishly around the room. “Apparently, in my drunken state, I thought it was a brilliant idea to get a tattoo of my state alchemy name. So I heave a lion’s head with a very odd heart behind it.” Nicholas already had a tattoo of a Flamel wrapped in flames on the flesh portion of his left arm. “Victor said it was that or I was piercing my ears. For whatever reason, when I was drunk that also sounded like a brilliant idea.”

“Here’s an idea, Nicholas,” Aideen said. “Stop drinking, and the self-mutilation will probably stop too.”

“Bite me, sis.” Still, he kissed her on the cheek. “Love you and good luck, congratulations and all that.”

“Love you too. Now, get back out there and help Alex with ushering duties.”

Black eyes rolled as Nicholas walked out of the room.

“Mommy, can I get a twin like Uncle Nicholas after you get married?”

Aideen paled, looking at her fathers out of the corner of her eyes.

“That’s rushing things a bit, Rosebud,” her dad said. “And it won’t be a twin. It will be a little brother or sister, like your cousin Sasha has.”

“Oh.” Again, the amber eyes looked up at her mother. “Then, can I have a little brother or sister?”

“We’ll have to see.”

“You don’t get one of those overnight,” Aideen’s papa said.

“That’s right,” Aideen told the little girl, kissing her on her forehead as the door opened once again. This time Elysia Hughes—because of a financial scandal on her father-in-law’s part, both Elysia and her husband had taken the name Hughes and moved back to Maes and Roy’s hometown where they could still find work as accountants—leaned her head in.

“Matron of honor here letting you know that it’s time.”

********

Frank sat beside his husband, their hands clasped together, both waiting for Nina. She was the first of the bridesmaids and would be the first to walk over the path of slate and stone that made up the greenhouse walkway. Frank had to admit that this ceremony, held in a place so important to Fletcher, not to mention its meanings for Aideen, was already a touching idea. When he and Kain had married, it had been done quickly, with just their closest friends to witness the ceremony, as they had gotten married largely to prevent either of them from being reassigned to an area apart from the other.

This wasn’t the massive event it could have been, but it wasn’t small by any stretch of the imagination. The former prime minister of Creta was in attendance, along with the now-infamous grandson and his husband. Frank had thought it was rather amusing when Nicholas had run into the young man he’d snogged senseless against a brick wall those years ago. He was obviously surprised that said man was married, and when Victor unintentionally got added into the mix, stumbling into Nicholas’s conversation, trying to read what was going through the military engineer’s mind was difficult. There seemed to be a lot going on there, a lot that Frank guessed was based on Nicholas’s suspicions from years before.

At the groom’s side were friends of Fletcher’s from his work in Ishbal over a year ago, some of them Ishballan, and all seemingly surprised at the welcome reception they received from the military present. There were obviously members of the greenhouse staff, a few soldiers who had served along with the thin blond, and some old friends from his hometown.

While Frank and Kain could have been on either side, both leaned toward sitting on the bride’s, where they currently were situated, Frank’s view blocked somewhat by a sobbing Armstrong. Both he and Rose were in the row directly in front of where the British man sat. The former prime minister sat next to them along with his family. The Havoc/Hughes family was also there, as were Breda and Victor. At the front, Falman and Raine sat, watching as Juliana returned from her duties as greeter at the door.

Then four figures in black suits came through the greenery, moving their way closer to the front. Fletcher looked sick, to be perfectly honest as he was guided to the front by his brother—as it was apparently the norm for both parties to be presented by their parents or close family in a traditional alchemist wedding—who was also serving as his best man. Then, from the other side of the arboretum section of the greenhouse, Nina, in her long redish-black dress, walked toward the front, a pleased grin on her face when she met Frank’s eyes—all that could be seen above Armstrong’s shoulder. She was followed by Elysia Hughes and by Sasha Elric, matron and maid of honor. Then, Nikki stepped forward, holding onto Michael Hughes’s hand as she all but pulled him down the path, tossing flower petals as she did, Michael gripping onto the pillow where the two rings rested so tightly the thing hardly resembled the square it once had. At one point, Nikki looked up at her grandparents, waving her little arm off to the Armstrongs, shaking lose a few dozen petals in the process from her pouch.
And then, Aideen could be seen leaving the waiting area, Roy and Ed flanking her with identical expressions of happiness, nausea, worry, and sadness. The young woman, from what Frank could manage to see, looked very pretty in the flowing white dress, having forgone a veil for rich red roses and little fire flowers in her hair. It was hard to imagine that this woman was the same girl who’d welcomed him to Amestris so readily. This woman before him was now Dr. Aideen Mustang, a mother, and a renowned alchemist and researcher. She was also head-over-heels for the man who awaited her at the front of the room, a man who had waited four years for her to figure out exactly who she was and what she wanted to do with herself before marrying her.
The ceremony began with a wizened old alchemist presiding over everything. “Who presents these two as they prepare to join their lives together?” the man asked.
“I, Russell Tringham, present my brother, Fletcher Tringham.” Russell then moved back to his place as best man.
“We, Edward Elric and Roy Mustang, present our daughter, Aideen Mustang.” The two men obviously struggled with that single sentence, nearly as much as they struggled with the idea of moving to their seats once it was said.
“Take one another’s hands,” the elder alchemist said. Aideen and Fletcher held out their hands, one facing palm up, one facing palm down. “As your right supports your loved one’s left, so will you support them in life. What words to you bring with you today to exchange to your future partner?”

Fletcher started to open his mouth, but stumbled, and it was obvious that Aideen’s fingers brushing over his wrist were an attempt to calm the older man. “I was not the first to realize that I was in love with you, but I feel as though I always have been on some level, as I unconsciously did everything in my power to see you happy, to see you smile.”

As though out cue, Aideen flashed a small but genuine smile at the blond man. “You were my first crush, and though every part of me said to ignore it, to make my feelings for you go away, nothing worked. If anything my feelings grew with each attempt to squash them.”

“You are beautiful, and you more than anyone, know that I don’t mean that as only outward beauty. I have always been drawn to that inner beauty you possess, whether it’s the soft, gentle manner you have in so many things in your life or the temper that cannot be described as anything but fiery.”

“You are kind above all things, and even when I feel less than myself,” Aideen’s eyes stared intently at Fletcher’s to make this point clear. “you have always known. You taught me how to regain myself when I felt lost.”

The two would continue this until each had discussed five points of their love for the other person. It was considered an equivalent exchange between the two parties, as were the hands matching one another in their support and dependence.

All the while, Frank could feel Kain’s hand in his own, their arms pressed against one another. At one point, he looked down at his husband, meeting those overly large brown eyes before leaning closer to kiss the other man lightly. What was it about weddings that made him think about how damned lucky he was?

“And now, the rings,” the officient said. Michael approached, holding up the pillow with the two silver rings resting on top. “May these two objects serve as a symbol of your love and your realization of the trade, the give and take, that is marriage.”

Fletcher was first to move his hands to grasp the thinner of the rings and slide it over the pale feminine hand offered him. The man’s hands were shaking so badly that Frank questioned how, exactly, Fletcher had managed to slip the ring over the first knuckle, but moving enough to see around one bulging, muscular shoulder, he could see Aideen’s hand on Fletcher’s wrist, guiding him. When it was her turn, Aideen seemed much steadier than her nearly-husband, getting the ring onto his fingers, but needing his help to slide it completely in place.

“May we welcome Fletcher and Aideen as they two have become one.”

And with that, the crowd stood, applauding, as the two alchemists, in a show of their shared alchemy, placed their hands to the vine-covered trellis. The once green and white trellis was now covered largely in red as roses budded and bloomed. Aideen smiled at him, obviously proud that without the negative energy and emotions of Dante, her ability to perform plant alchemy had increased as much as it had in medicine.

“You may now show your affection for one another.”

Both smiled as they held one another tightly, kissing far more passionately than Frank would have expected from the previously anxious Fletcher. They were an odd contrast to one another as Aideen stood with her black hair and white dress and Fletcher with his blond head and black tux. There were a million reasons why they wouldn’t work together, but the most important fact was that they did.

********

The reception was held in one of the halls nearby, and dinner had gone remarkably well, in Nicholas’s opinion at least. Feeling he was being watched, Nicholas scanned the crowd below him, finding a pair of brown eyes staring at him intently. He hadn’t seen Victor face-to-face in about eight months, hell there was no “about” about it. Nicholas knew damned well how long it had been since he’d really gotten to see his friend. It had been eight months and three days.

For some reason Nicholas now found himself poking at his food, trying not to meet Victor’s eyes. Something was different about his friend, and it was unnerving. Nicholas was damned glad Victor was on his side, a fellow military man, or he’d have been screwed. He couldn’t remember being this distracted by anyone, let alone someone who he’d known all his life.

Thankfully, Victor’s intent gaze broke when Nikki came running from the head table where she’d been seated by her mother to go to her “Mum-mum and Papap.” Really, Nicholas was amazed each and every day by the good that the little girl had done for his family, for all their families. She linked them all together with her easy nature and open affection. It was strange to see his old friend in his niece’s face every time he looked at it, but it was far stranger when her behavior mimicked Nicholas’s dad perfectly.

There was a signal from the Armstrongs that they would just have Nikki eat with them, letting Aideen have the time with Fletcher. Nicholas was certain his parents would have done the same, but Nikki had run to the Armstrongs first, and they were all seated around the same table.

Nikki was pulled into a seat that the elder Alex transfigured to bring the small girl to the table. She watched in awe, asking her papap how he’d done it, what the circle had been that he’d drawn, and could he show it to her. True, Nicholas couldn’t make out the words, but he knew his niece’s fascination with alchemy first-hand, and those questions were standard protocol any time alchemy was used around the miniature Mustang.

Dinner went well enough, as Nicholas made conversation with Elysia, grateful that he could now manage to talk to his own first crush without blushing like an idiot or flirting himself into an awkward situation. It didn’t matter to him that she was older than him. He still thought she was one of the most beautiful women he’d seen, even as her four-year-old unintentionally messed up the red dress trying to get her attention. He and Elysia had entered an easy friendship, and Nicholas readily accepted it.

“Mommy, Daddy tol’ me I had to ask you if I’m ‘lowed to have cake.”

“How much of your vegetables did you eat?”

The little boy pushed the wire-rimmed glasses on his nose and looked up at her with his cat-green eyes. “A couple.”

“If you finish all the green beans and carrots, then you can have your cake.”

The little boy smiled and ran back to his daddy. “You seem very happy, Elysia.”

The older woman smiled. “I am.” She smiled at Nicholas. “So, is there anyone special in your life at the moment?”

“No,” he answered, though he once again felt the brown eyes on him.

“Well, I hope you manage the kind of luck I’ve had. You’re too good a guy not to.”

“Thank you,” he said as they prepared for the cake.

“Still your favorite part?”

“Cake? Yes, though I don’t quite get the sugar high I used to.”

“Well, that’s good, then. You used to be a handful when you’d get like that.”

“Really?” came a voice from Nicholas’s right: Nina. Nicholas smiled. Nina had a certain fascination with finding out little details about him. Really, Nicholas thought that once he stopped being her teacher, the teen seemed to love finding out that he was actually human.

“Oh, yeah,” Elysia said. “He used to get very hyper and never seemed to know when to stop.”

Nicholas rolled his eyes, and he leaned back as Elysia elaborated. The young teen with the large violet eyes took in all of her words.

Thankfully, Elysia hadn’t completely ruined his reputation before Russell stood, clanking a glass, offering his toast to the new couple.

“Okay, as best man, I guess I get the dubious honor of public speaking,” Russell said. “All I can say is that I watched these two fall in love before they even realized it, and now that they have finally recognized how perfect they are for one another, I couldn’t be happier. I have always been proud to call Fletcher my brother and can only say that nothing makes me happier to officially welcome Aideen as my sister.” He waved to the crowd. “And Nikki, my niece. Let’s just wish them all the best in the world as they start their life together.”

There was applause as Fletcher took Aideen’s hand in his own as they both stood and made their way to the cake. They managed to behave themselves, though Aideen seemed tempted to stick it in his face. Then the cake was passed out to everyone, Aideen apparently requesting that Nicholas be given a piece of chocolate cake with extra icing on top. He smiled at her from the table in gratitude.

It didn’t matter that he’d passed the state alchemy exam a month before, becoming the Lionheart Alchemist. There would probably always be a part of the blond man that would appreciate a good piece of cake and plenty of sugar. As his new state alchemist name crossed his mind, Nicholas still couldn’t believe his stupidity in getting the thing tattooed on his arm. His sober self still hadn’t decided whether he liked the name or not. It came from a king in Frank’s world and became his Auntie’s name for him after he’d saved Aideen. But to know that everyone in the military would be referring to him that way seemed odd. He had actually considered petitioning his papa to change it, but he supposed if he’d managed to put it into his skin, he was stuck with it.

Those thoughts aside, he found he was getting anxious for the party to begin. Dancing, music, and all those lovely, single, young people in the crowd in front of him. Smiling to himself, he wondered how there were people in the world who limited themselves to only enjoying one over the other.

He ate the cake, chatting with Nina this time about school and her fathers. She talked enthusiastically with him, explaining what she’d learned, the circle-less alchemy she seemed to be able to do more and more of as her humanity was well-established.

“Of course, I still say things that people don’t understand, and the kids talk about things that I just don’t get, but it’s getting better.”

“That’s good,” Nicholas said, patting her hand. “You’ll have to show me your alchemy sometime.”

“Thanks.” She looked down at her chest, where just the faintest ridge of the oroborous could be seen, trying to shift the dress up to cover it. “Though, I still get picked on for this. People think I got a tattoo, but I’ve always had it. They just don’t believe me.”

“Is it girls making these comments?” Nicholas asked her.

“Yeah,” the teen said.

“Nina, I’d take bets they’re jealous. You’re very pretty, mysterious—and that’s not something many teenage girls can really say about themselves—and you have an unusual mark on your chest. Tell them it’s a tattoo. Let them think whatever they want, and when you’re old enough to, show that thing with pride. You are the second homunculus in recorded history to manage to become human on her own. Even if they don’t know it, you and I do.”

Honestly, Nicholas thought Nina was sweet; odd, but sweet. Since he’d started preparing for the state alchemy exam, he hadn’t gotten to see her that often, and he missed his time teaching her, not only about the basics like reading and math, but about the simple things. Watching her see something for the first time was always entertaining. It was the same way with Nikki, but more expected in the small child.

After chatting with Nina for a while longer, the plates were cleared from the table, and Nicholas took his leave of the bridal party to make his way to two young women and a very good-looking man he’d been subtly monitoring from his position at the head of the room. Obviously, he had obligations to his friends and family, but he’d learned from experience to find out possible relationships and attachments of all possible targets, so to speak, of his interest. Knowing early prevented messy situations later. Much as he tried, his infinite charm only managed to dissuade one angry boyfriend of a young woman with the talk of a threesome. Others just glared at him or actually took a swing at him for the suggestion as though it was his fault their girlfriend was willing.

As he approached the three attractive young people, he considered that tonight he could very well have whoever he wanted, given the high emotions that a wedding evoked, but Nicholas wasn’t one to sleep with someone he didn’t know—only four, well five if you counted both the girl and her boyfriend. However, Nicholas had been out of a three-month relationship with his ex-girlfriend for nearly a month and had already had the obligatory rebound who was terrible for him. Perhaps re-entry into the real world would be a good idea.

He began chatting up the three, finding out that one of the girls was engaged, a commitment Nicholas wasn’t even going to attempt getting in the way of. The other two were blissfully single.

Nicholas was about to tell the three he’d talk to them later so that he could mingle with his friends and family when a familiar arm found its way to Nicholas’s shoulders.

“Nicholas,” Victor said, “are you behaving yourself?”

“Of course I am,” the blond answered.

“Well, usually when you’re off flirting, you get yourself in trouble.” The arm around him was tight, making Nicholas squirm slightly.

“Oh, well, have you at least learned how to do it?” Nicholas teased. “Back in school, he was given a rating of six by the girls for his flirting ability. And, let’s see, what was it in kissing?” Nicholas asked, eyebrow raised in true Mustang fashion. “Wasn’t it a two?”

“That was a very long time ago,” Victor said, turning enough to meet Nicholas’s eyes. “I’ve improved.”

“Not that long ago. You talk like we’re ancient. I bet kissing you is still the same as practicing on your hand.” Somewhere, a little voice in his head was telling Nicholas not to push this. Their biggest fights came from when Nicholas would tease his long-time friend over the one joking kiss they’d shared. “Have you at least figured out how to respond to a kiss?” Why wasn’t he listening to that voice?

With a fierce strength that Nicholas really should have expected from the man who not only was an engineer but mechanic in the military, Victor tugged Nicholas a few steps away from the three he’d been flirting with.

“You tell me.” And faster than the trained fighter and alchemist could respond, he found two thick calloused hands grabbing his face, a set of lips mashing themselves to his, nibbling on Nicholas’s bottom lip. Nicholas’s mind clouded for a moment, then considered that Victor had definitely improved. Victor pulled away. “Now who’s the one not responding?”

Inky black eyes narrowed before Nicholas was all but pouncing on his long time friend, moving him out the nearby doors and onto a balcony. Victor was about two inches taller and several inches thicker through the chest, but it didn’t stop the blond from slamming the dark-haired man against the wall and assaulting the mouth just above his own. His hand found its way to his friend’s head of soft curls, feeling Victor’s rough hands rubbing at Nicholas’s back, the other at the short hairs at his neck. Nicholas’s automail hand was now curling so tightly into his friend’s lapel, he feared he might rip it.

Two mouths opened, two tongues fought. Teeth nipped at lips, scraped against one another. When they finally moved apart for need of air, Nicholas pulled their foreheads together, looking into the brown eyes. “I thought you were straight.”

“I am, except for you, apparently.” The two stood, breathing hard, foreheads still touching. “I couldn’t figure it out at first. I notice other men, but I never thought about doing anything with them. I didn’t know why the hell it bothered me that you could. Then, my bunkmate in Southern Headquarters pointed out that I might be jealous that it’s not with me.” Victor lightly kissed Nicholas’s lips. “He was right. But I wasn’t pouring all that out in a letter or in a phone call.”

“I seriously doubt that would have translated via phone.” Nicholas pulled their lips together again. “I am just that damned irresistible, am I?”

Victor began moving down the blond’s jaw. “I hope you can make yourself a bit more resistible. I’ve found I’m a very jealous man, and if you’re willing to see where this goes…”

“Fine, but don’t think it means you can order me around.”

“Wouldn’t do any good anyway.” Victor moved to whisper in Nicholas’s ear. “If it did, we wouldn’t have gotten in so much trouble as kids.”

The two began to kiss again, this time, Victor pressing Nicholas against the wall, only to be interrupted by the voice of a former homunculus. “That’s hot.”

“Nina!” Kain yelled.

Nicholas just grinned at the slightly taller man. “I have to agree with her, though.”

********

Somewhere among the crowd, Ed lost sight of his daughter. He saw Fletcher talking with Russell, and he’d already witnessed the interesting display his son and Victor Lombardi had put on. It was about damned time. Roy was holding Nikki as he swayed to the music that began to play. As he danced with the small girl, the Armstrongs moved next to them, talking as they danced.

Ed couldn’t help the snort of laughter. All these years, Roy had dreaded the idea of being related to the Armstrongs, and here they were, very much related. Not once had Ed heard his husband complain about the family relationship. As a matter of fact, Roy seemed to enjoy having an alchemist his own age to talk to, and Armstrong had mellowed, either with age or with Phillip’s death no one knew. He just seemed somewhat less obnoxious than he had when Ed had first known him, but still distinctly Armstrong.

Ed looked for a sign of the bride, walking by Frank and Kain, who were in a very familiar position for the couple, Frank at the back, Kain at the front, Frank’s arms draped over the smaller man, whose hands held onto Kain’s.

“If you’re looking for the vanishing bride,” Frank said, “I believe she went that way.” He jerked his head to the right.

“Thanks,” he said with a smile to the two men. Ed didn’t really know what fates, or whatever you want to call it, decided those two would work together, but miraculously, they did. He made his way to the hall where Aideen was returning from the ladies room, looking a little green. Immediately, Ed’s worst fears came to mind.

“Aideen?”

She smiled at him. “Hi, Dad? Was I missed?”

“By me.” He moved toward her and wrapped an arm around her waist. “How are you feeling now that you’re a married woman?”

“Strange, happy, worried that I’ll screw it up.”

“Well, you know our house is always welcome to you if you decide to storm out in an angry fit, and it’s always there if you need it for longer than that.” He squeezed his daughter against him. “I just hope it’s never necessary.”

“So do I,” she said. “But the same goes for you. If you decide you don’t want to keep going over Uncle Al’s when you get mad at Papa, we’re just across the street.”

“Knowing our husbands the way I do, I’d say I’m more likely to take you up on your offer than you on mine.” Ed pulled his daughter into a quiet area away from the guests. “Aideen,” he said, his tone serious, “are you prepared for the more… intimate… aspect of married life?”

Considering what his daughter had been through, Ed expected surprise, concern, anything but laughter.

“I’m sorry, Dad,” she said, kissing his head like he was the child in this situation. “It’s just, well, you gave me one very humiliating talk about the ‘birds and the bees,’ and…” Aideen’s fair face flushed. “And, Fletcher and I have been together for four years, even when we weren’t both in Central. We decided a while ago to try to move slowly enough that I could be comfortable.” She began to wring her hands together. “We’ve already been… together.”

Ed looked up at his daughter in shock, but supposed he understood. It would have been horrifying if tonight was her first time since Dante had used her to be with Phillip. “Well, then one of my worries for you today is pointless, isn’t it?” he asked with a smile.

Aideen leaned down and hugged Ed so tightly, he didn’t think she would ever let him go. But, he knew she would, that in the figurative sense, she already had today joining her life not to her parents but to the man she loved.

“Dad, I only hope that I can have half what you and Papa do and that as a parent and spouse, I can be at least that much as good as you have been.”

“You are already an amazing parent, Aideen. Nikki is an incredible little girl, well adjusted, with personality to spare.”

“Your personality,” Aideen added as she continued to hold Ed, head resting on his shoulder.

“Maybe.” Then, Ed did the hardest thing he’d thought he’d have to do. He let go. “I’m sure Fletcher’s looking for you.” Aideen only smiled and kissed her father on the cheek.

Together, he walked back into the main hall, passing by Kain, who was dancing with Nina when they heard a bit of a commotion coming from the other part of the dance floor, apparently involving Nicholas, Russell, Victor and about three young women who’d come with their parents.

“I’m not above hitting a woman,” Nicholas said with a scowl.

“But giving up on dating them,” one of the women spat out.

“I’m equal opportunity. Though I don’t date worthless, petty cats.” The woman tried to smack him across his face, but her wrist was grabbed by Nicholas’s dark-haired friend.

“Personally,” Russell said, those gray-green eyes narrowing on the young woman, “I would recommend that you leave this place now. If you have issues with the bride then you have no business being here. Fortunately for the world, Aideen is not as immature and petty as the three of you, and she is a brilliant girl beyond her years. It is little wonder she never managed to find anything in common with women her own age if they are as empty-headed as you three. And if you want to make comments about ‘why she had to marry’ my brother, I recommend you do it from outside this building. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”

By the time Ed made it through the crowd with Aideen in tow, Victor was already ushering the three women out.

Aideen smiled faintly and pulled Russell close enough she could kiss him on his cheek. “My hero.”

“Anytime. You’re family.”

“What about me?” Nicholas asked.

“My hero, too,” Aideen said, kissing her brother on his cheek. “Though I only heard you defending yourself and insulting them.”

“He told them off, believe me,” Russell said. “I’m just sorry that had to go on today.”

Ed watched his daughter as she shrugged. “It’s not new.”

He took her hand in his, saying nothing as he rubbed over the smooth skin she’d inherited from her other father. There was hurt in her eyes, and he wanted to take that away. On this day of all days, she deserved to be happy.

Fletcher was through the crowd by that point. “I’m sorry it took me so long,” he said, his voice actually sounding as angry as Ed felt. “Frank felt it necessary to hold me back before I did something stupid.”

Aideen only ran her knuckles over his cheek. “He was probably right.” She slid her hand down to Fletcher’s before kissing Ed and releasing her hold on him. “Let’s find some place private we can talk to one another and you can calm down.”

Ed watched her go, as she looked over at Fletcher, her eyes lighting up in a way that a few years ago, Ed would have thought was impossible. He had done that for her.

********

“I can’t believe those women said those things about you!” Fletcher yelled out to Aideen, but not really once they had reached a quiet alcove in the hallway. He’d heard some of it. A few of the things were about being loose as a teenager, others were that no one her age wanted her and she had to resort to being with someone ten years her senior.

“Fletcher,” she said, holding his face in her soft hands. “Are any of them true?”

“Of course not.”

“Then don’t let them ruin this day, okay?” She smirked. “Besides, you didn’t notice me touching each of their arms as they passed, did you?”

“No, what did you do?”

“Gave them an increase in nasty bacteria that will give them diarrhea for a week.”

Fletcher shook his head. “Remind me to never get on your bad side.”

Aideen pulled Fletcher the inch distance between their heights until their lips were against one another’s. The kiss was soft and gentle, though the two had shared more than enough passionate ones. “Have I told you in the last ten minutes how much I love you?” she asked.

“Nope. Love you too, you know.” As they stood like that, barely an inch apart, Fletcher felt his anger melt away.

“Where did you disappear to?” he asked, looking into those unusual eyes.

“Bathroom,” she said with a faint sigh.

“Just as bad as last time?” He held her in his arms, enjoying the feel of her there, the weight of her head on his shoulder.

“No, thankfully. Just a nasty smell triggered… things.” She pulled back from him. “I want to give you your wedding present here.” She began pulling on the top piece of her dress.

“You smuggled a television under there? I’ve been dying to get one of those.”

“No, I’m smuggling enough under here,” she said, a look of mock exasperation on her face.

“Speaking of that, exactly when are we going to tell your parents that the dress isn’t the only new thing that you had at the wedding. I’m fairly sure that the fact we’ve kept it from them this long will mean my death.”

“Does two and a half months count as new?” she asked, absentmindedly, as she slowly pushed down the skirt of her dress, showing him a transmutation circle drawn on her lower stomach over the scar that remained from Nikki’s birth. “Fletcher, I really wanted you to make it long enough for us to get married. Otherwise, how can I collect the insurance?” She was teasing, but at the moment, Fletcher was too shocked by what she seemed to be asking him to do.

“Aideen, shouldn’t your aunt or brother do this? I don’t have much experience…”

“Fletcher, you can’t hurt anything. At worst, you won’t be able to tell.”

Biting his upper lip, Fletcher pressed his hands to the white transmutation circle. His mind suddenly filled full of things, some he couldn’t understand without the medical experience of his new wife or her family. But one thing, two bits of information came through: everything was okay, and “It’s a boy,” he said in awe.

“What’s a boy?” A deep voice asked. Fletcher quickly pulled Aideen’s dress back in place and turned to face his elder father-in-law. “Really, I hope to find out that medical alchemy has advanced to detect that immediately and at some point between the hundred foot walk between the greenhouse and here you managed to conceive something. Because otherwise, I have a very big reason to be angry.”

“With the insanity of the wedding,” Aideen said, “yes, we kept this from everyone.”

“Kept what from everyone?” This time, it was her dad. “Roy, I told you to let them alone for a few minutes.”

“Kept the fact that you’re going to have a grandson in about six and a half months,” Aideen said, taking Fletcher’s hand and gripping it tightly.

“You what!?” Ed yelled out. “I feel like such an idiot for having that conversation with you. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Or why didn’t you?” Roy asked Fletcher, pointedly.

“She told me not to until after the wedding. Until everything had settled down.”

“And you just obeyed?” Roy asked, still eyeing him darkly as Fletcher nodded. Then, the fuhrer’s attention focused on Aideen. “Good, you’ve got him trained. It took Ed a few years to get me to that point.”

Ed was still ranting, but for whatever reason, the in-law that Fletcher had been fearing most seemed to be the one least fazed by the whole thing.

“Congratulations,” Roy said, actually hugging the new couple.

“Oh, hell, no one’s listening to me, are they?” Ed asked.

“No,” Aideen and Roy answered in unison. Fletcher might have as well, but he wasn’t going to mess with a man with a metal arm and a nasty temper either.

“Well, then, what the hell, congratulations.”

********

Roy held Nikki on his lap, looking over at Ed as they were driving back to the house. Aideen and Fletcher had taken a late flight to the beach where they’d be spending their honeymoon. Victor and Nicholas had disappeared, both talking animatedly, sharing touches that showed to the world that they were now more than friends almost as much as the kiss they’d shared in the dance hall. The parents of the teenagers and pre-teens were still trying to convince their respective children they needed to go home. Al had reluctantly allowed Sasha to leave with James Havoc, while his other four children returned home with him. Russell had been talking to a young woman at the hall when Roy had left; though it didn’t seem like anything serious would ever come of it, it was a start.

Ed opened the door for Roy as he slid out cradling the sleeping girl in his arms. She had both her hands tucked beneath her chin, her eyes closed as she faintly huffed once or twice in his arms, but remained sleeping. Ed continued to open the doors as they made their way into the house.

Roy followed behind the smaller alchemist as he climbed both flights of stairs and made their way to the third floor. They walked through Aideen’s room, former room, and walked to Nikki’s. Ed went to the bureau at the side of the room while Roy laid the girl on the bed. He began unbuckling the black shoes and pulling off the little black hose. Ed walked over with a nightgown and Roy carefully pulled off the dark red dress and helped Ed put the purple nightgown over the little girl’s head. As Roy guided the sleeping girl up to the pillow, Ed pulled the blankets over her. She snuggled into the warmth of the blankets, and both her grandfathers leaned down to kiss her forehead before going down to their room, leaving the doors open behind them.

“She was out cold,” Ed said in a hushed voice when they got to their bedroom.

Roy quietly shut the door while both men quickly got into their pajamas. “She was.” Roy shook his head. “I can’t believe we’re going to be grandparents again.”

“I can’t believe it’s not Nicholas’s.” Ed laughed at his own joke. They both climbed into bed, Roy unfastening Ed’s shoulder blade-length hair. “It’s going gray you know,” Ed said. “What will you do when it’s as white as yours?”

“Make you shave it off, I suppose,” Roy joked as he pulled their blankets over them. “And if you take me seriously on that, you’ll be the one sleeping on the couch.” Roy threw his arm around Ed and pulled him close.

“Never,” Ed answered, allowing himself to snuggle—if Roy would dare to call it that—into Roy’s arms. “I love you, you know.”

“I know.” Roy meshed their legs together, trying to dwell more on Ed than on his daughter’s marriage. He nuzzled his nose into the lightening blond hair to hear Ed clearing his throat. “I love you too.”

Damn, twenty-two years ago, Roy would never have thought he’d have gone to bed each night in this man’s arms. Now, It was hard to imagine any other option, honestly, hard to imagine even Riza, in his arms this night. Just the thought made him half-sick.

“Roy,” Ed said. “Roy you’re squeezing me to death.”

“Sorry, just glad to have you here.”

The door creaked open, and little footsteps made their way to the foot of the bed. A curly head, still with a few rosettes in her hair, appeared, hands rubbing at her eyes.

“Nikki, hon, what is it?” Ed asked, pulling out of Roy’s embrace.

“I woke up and I was all alone. I forgot where Mommy was.” She looked up at her two grandfathers. “Can I sleep here?”

“Of course,” Roy said, holding out his hands to pick the girl up and lay her between himself and Ed.

“Night Grandpa, night Granddad. Love you.”

“We love you too,” Roy said.

“Yes we do.”

Both men hugged onto the girl between them, their legs twined together.

“Good night, Roy.”

“Goodnight Ed.”

THE END

Thank you all again for reading this monster fic