Summary: Ed’s son Alan has been disappearing a lot from their house, and Ed tries to figure out why.

A/N: finally! This took like a million years. I hope you guys will still enjoy it 🙂 Please let me know what you think!! (bing @automail-freak-and-alchemy-freak)

Edit: I forgot to say there might be a small “easter egg” hidden in the fic, about a movie some Edwin people have been talking about lately :’)

Words: 2450

Warnings: swearing

---

”Hey, Ed?”
Winry addressed her husband who was cleaning the kitchen after the dinner. “Do
you think Alan has been acting weirdly lately? He’s been doing… less mechanic
work and gone out to town way more often…”

“He has?”
Ed stopped putting the plates into the cupboard and turned to look at his wife,
raising his eyebrows. “To me he has told that he’s simply taking some extra art
lessons with Mr. Dawson because drawing blueprints has never been his strength.”

Winry
crossed her arms over her chest and looked just as surprised as he did. “And to
me he’s told he’s helping out some friends who have trouble with school…
Something doesn’t add up.”

“Hmm. It’s
not like him to hide things from us. I think I will call Mr. Dawson tonight and
ask him if he’s really been at his house,” Ed decided. The conversation ended
at that point because a loud crash could be heard from the living room, and
Winry rushed to check what the twins had broken this time.

---

Only half
an hour later, Ed, who was observing Emma’s alkahestry studies upstairs, heard
the front door opening and closing. That let him know Alan had just left the
building. He waited 10 more minutes, just in case Alan indeed went to the
Dawsons, before dialing their phone number.

“Mr.
Dawson? Hello! I’m calling you because my son seems to have been spending a lot
of time there lately. Is he there right now?”

“No. And he
hasn’t been here for the past two or three weeks, so I wouldn’t call that ‘a
lot’,” a grumpy voice answered.

Ed narrowed
his eyes at that piece of information, but he didn’t want to make Mr. Dawson
too suspicious so he didn’t reveal the real reason of his call.

“Oh, OK. Well,
thank you, anyway. And if he shows up, could you tell him to come home as soon
as possible? Winry has a commission to finish and the twins are currently
trying to kill me, so extra hands would certainly be useful.” The part about
the twins was obviously a lie, as they were sitting surprisingly quietly in the
living room listening to their father’s phone call, but the dramatic wording
would probably get Alan home more easily. That is, if he ever got the message.

Winry
glanced at Ed curiously when he finished the call.

“So? Did
you find out anything?”

Ed
shrugged. “Only that Alan hasn’t visited Mr. Dawson for several weeks. I
thought he was enjoying his classes!”

“I thought
so too,” Winry said, getting more and more confused.

“Did you
talk to any of his friends?” Ed asked then.

“I just saw
Jack, that boy from his class, down the street, and he said that if Alan had
been helping someone, he certainly wasn’t among them. But you know, to me it
sounded like he was hiding something from me.”

“Great,” Ed
sighed. “So he’s been lying to both of us. What do we do about this?”

“I guess we
should get him to talk. But how do we do it? He’s got your blood in him, you
know.” Winry threw Ed a sly look that Ed had seen quite many times during their
years of marriage.

“And what
is that supposed to mean?” Ed pretended to be hurt by Winry’s implications.

“Just that
you have never been very good at expressing yourself, honey.” Ed snorted, because Winry and he had never been ones for pet
names. “But also, since he’s more like you than you probably realize, you
should be able to figure out the best way to make him open up. Was there
anything that managed to crack your shell open when you were a teenager?”

Ed leaned
his jaw against his hand, seeming to consider Winry’s question. His face seemed
to have gotten some extra color when he spoke.

“Well,
after the Promised Day… There was this girl who had been my friend since
forever… She had even built me an automail leg and arm, so I could function… I
knew she was upset because I couldn’t tell her what was happening in my life,
but after the Promised day, when I felt it was safe to tell her everything… it
was easier than I thought. Why? Because she made me feel she cared.”

“Ed… that’s
very sweet of you…,” Winry said, completely surprised by her husband’s words
and blushing slightly. She let her hand linger on his shoulder for a moment
before continuing: “Anyway, I guess that means you should show that you do care
about his wellbeing. I mean, deep down he must know that already, but you know,
sometimes it’s good to say it aloud. He’s in a difficult age, but I know he
really respects you and values your opinions.”

“I hope so,”
Ed grunted, not quite believing her.

Until that
moment, the twins who had been listening the whole time hadn’t said anything,
but suddenly the 4-year-old Henry blurted: “We heard brother talking with big
sissy today! He told her to ‘dis… tract you’, whatever that means, while someone
comes to get him with a motorbike!”

“Really?”
Winry asked, her eyebrows raising probably higher than the twins had ever seen.
“Those two are almost as bad as… oh, never mind,” she added quickly when she
saw the twins staring at her intensely.

“So that’s
why Emma was so eager to show me what she had learned with Mei… She’s usually
not that enthusiastic about it,” Ed
noted.

“Makes perfect
sense. Hey, my little king and queen,*” Winry ruffled her kids’ hair, “you didn’t
happen to hear where they were planning to go?”

“No, mum,”
the twins said in unison. “But I bet Emma knows!”

“We’ll just
have to ask her, then.”

---

“No, dad, I’m
not gonna tell you where Alan is. One, because I don’t know it either since they
change their meeting place regularly, and two, because it’s none of your
business.”

Emma took a
book from her bedside table and pretended to be interested in it instead of
looking at her father’s stare. Even though it didn’t work quite as well against
her as it once used to, she still felt slightly bad about hiding things from
him. Alan was right, though, their parents were too curious for their own good.

“Fine, then.
Can you at least tell me with whom he is?”

Emma was
positive her father would use what he liked to call “Elric telepathy” on her if
she didn’t talk, so she let a little huff from her mouth and said:

“He’s gonna
murder me, but… you would find out eventually if they continue doing this. You’re
not gonna like this, dad…”

“Emma, just
tell me already.” Ed was starting to show signs of losing his patience. Even
though he had calmed down after having his children, the old temper still
raised its head when he was truly annoyed or frustrated.

“Remember
how Mei’s niece from Xing came to visit her and Al a couple of months ago
because she wanted to learn more about Amestris and alchemy?” Emma asked,
trying to be nonchalant but failing at it.

“Yes, wasn’t
she Ling’s daughter?” Ed asked, not understanding why Emma had started talking
about her. “Didn’t she have all those guards behind her all the time because
she’s the daughter of the Emperor?”

“You are
right, she was… Well, what you probably don’t know is that she decided to stay
here in Amestris. She’s been trying to keep a low profile because she doesn’t
want the media to follow her.”

“OK, but
what does this have to do with Alan? I don’t get… OH!” The pieces of the puzzle
started finally clicking in Ed’s head, and Emma could see his face taking a more
and more dark red shade as he processed the information. “Are you telling me…
my son… is seeing… that bastard’s heir?!”

“I told you,
you wouldn’t like it.” Emma shrugged. “I thought you and the Emperor were
friends, though? Doesn’t he always send you presents on holidays and stuff?”

“Damn right
he does,” Ed suddenly stopped caring that he was talking to his daughter, “but
that’s only because I once had to pay for a hell of a lot of food for him. He owes me.”

“Whatever
you say…” Emma rolled her eyes. “Listen, please don’t be too hard on Alan. From
what I’ve seen, they genuinely enjoy each other’s company, and Zhi is a nice
person.”

“Fine. But
I’m still gonna talk with him.” Under his breath, he mumbled: “what if they
decide to get married? What if my son becomes a prince? What if…”

“Um, dad, I
don’t know what you had in your mind when you were 15 but I really don’t think
they are thinking about marriage yet,” Emma said, amused by her father’s
exaggerated reaction.

“When I was
15, I was trying to save our entire country from Homunculi so it was a bit
different!”

“Based on
your stories, you were only trying to save Uncle Al, dad, and everything else
just happened by accident.”

“That…
might be true, but you shouldn’t say it aloud, Emma,” Ed gave her a fake hurt
look. “I still punched the god on his face!”

“Whatever,
dad.” She took her book again and hid her face behind it. “Just… could you go
now so I can continue reading in peace? I have a test tomorrow I need to study
for.”

“Would you
like me to help?”

“Just go,
please!”

---

Ed and
Winry had already put the twins into bed when Alan showed up at home again. Winry
remained calm on the surface even though Ed knew she must have been sizzling
underneath her cool cover. She had always hated it when he and Al had hidden
something from her and now, they were talking about their 15-year-old son… Ed guessed
that it was normal teenagers acted that way, but that didn’t mean he liked it. He
suggested Winry go to check on the rest of the kids while he’d deal with Alan.

“Alan, can
we talk?” Ed asked, barely able to contain his annoyance. Alan looked like he
sensed his parents had found out something, the guilty expression Winry had
seen on Ed so many times giving him away.

“Now? Dad,
I’m hungry as fuck, haven’t eaten anything since lunch so can I at least grab a
bite first?”

“What’s with
that language, young man?” Ed asked disapprovingly.

“Please,
like you weren’t the one who taught me that word…” That was the truth, but Ed
wasn’t going to let him get away so easily.

“I’ve
always told you to not do what I do,
not the other way around…”

“Right…
Well, since you clearly aren’t allowing me to eat, you might as well get into
the topic.” Alan crossed his arms just like his mother had a little bit
earlier. That amused Ed a bit.

“We can
always talk about it in the kitchen,” Ed noted, a small smile spreading on his face.

“So… what
was it you wanted to talk about?” Alan asked when he had a full bowl of stew in
front of him.

Ed looked
serious again. “I think you know. Don’t think we haven’t noticed your
disappearances lately.”

“But I’ve
been…”

“We know
you haven’t been where you were supposed to be. I talked to Mr. Dawson today
and he told me you haven’t visited him for several weeks.”

“I’ve…”

“Listen,
the sooner you admit it, the better. Do you want me to know the real story or
the vague one Emma told me?”

“She told
you about Zhi? Damnit, I’m never telling her anything again.”

“I think
you are missing the point there, son.”

“Fine,” Alan
finally admitted, as he was lapping the stew into his mouth. “Yes, I’ve been
hanging out with Mei’s niece… who also happens to be the Xingese Emperor’s
daughter.”

“And…?”

“And what?
What are you expecting me to tell you? That she’s pregnant? That we are about
to announce our engagement any day now? That I’ve decided to move to Xing and
leave my family behind forever?”

“None of
those things are true, right?” Ed raised his eyebrow suspiciously.

“Of course
they aren’t! I like her, and we have a lot of fun when we are hanging out… But
I do realize that she’s a princess from another country. And she knows the
realities too. She’s gonna have to go back eventually. And when she does, she
is in the constant focus of her people. That is not something I’ve ever
imagined going through, but why does it have to mean I’m not allowed to enjoy
this moment? I knew you guys would react badly to this, that’s why I didn’t
tell anything.”

“Now we
finally got to the root of the problem,” Ed said. “I don’t mind you hanging out
with this Zhi girl… the princess… whatever… But I am upset that you have been
lying to us for a long while now.”

Alan couldn’t
help but roll his eyes in annoyance. “Like you’ve never had any secrets yourself…”

“I admit
that when I was your age, I hid a lot of things from your mother, because I
wanted to keep her safe… But I regretted it a lot. I could see she hated it,
and it made me upset too. After the Promised Day, I was so relieved because I
could finally share everything. I think it made our relationship stronger too.”
Ed sighed before adding: “I’m not good at these things, but what I’m trying to say
is that please don’t hide things from us just because you think we might not
like what you are wanting to tell us. We are here to support you.”

“Dad, thanks…
And sorry… for not telling you.”
“No problem, son. I’m just saying what I wish my father had once told me.”

“Oh…” Alan
hadn’t heard his father talking about his father a lot. He had just always
assumed they had had a bad relationship. And this proved he had been right.

“So, now
that we have dealt with that…,” Ed spoke suddenly, “about this Zhi girl… how
far have you gone with her? Do I need to have the talk with you?”

“Dad, stop
being so embarrassing!” Alan screamed and jumped off his chair. “I’m not gonna
talk about that with you! Uncle Al or even the Emperor of Xing would give
better advice than you!”

“Hey, take
that back!” Ed growled, but Alan had already run away from the kitchen, and he
was left to fume with anger on his own.

*Names Erika and Henry both mean rulers and I have a headcanon that the twins indeed are the rulers of the Rockbell-Elric household even though they are all a pretty strong willed bunch.