Cardinal sin (2) : A laugh in Vain

3 - This I ask of you

Ed found it very challenging to deal with Willa Dronsken. She was a person of high and strong opinion, not afraid to express and fight for them. Whenever she doubted or was unhappy with something, she would voice it without shame. At times, she seemed like a bothersome older sister.

But, then again, on other occasions, she would show a side of her that was undoubtedly motherly. She'd tease him constantly (it was a horrendous mistake to have told her about Winry), respect him, take interest in whatever he had to say even if she personally didn't care for it—little things like that made her pleasant to be around. Every now and then she'd even throw her arm around his shoulders, hug him or shove food or drink down his throat. The latter option generally applied to milk.

Not a week had even passed that he'd known Willa, but he liked her very much. She'd shed her depressing allure to replace it with a bright, eccentric personality that quite betrayed the usual image one got from an escaped prisoner from death row.

Yet, her cousin Earl's death was ever-present in her mind. Ed could see these emotions peek out once in a while, and he'd settled to help Dronsken. For these reasons, he proposed they go on a walk together.

"Boy, I'm twice your age!" was Willa's initial reaction to this.

As he was ticked off very easily, Fullmetal broke his calm demeanour to yell, "I'm not looking for a romance, old hag! I've already got a fiancee!"

Willa dismissed the ridiculous idea upon hearing this bit of news. Her eyes nearly sparkled as she clasped her hands together under her chin. "You've got a fiancee?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Reaaaaally? Can a pip-squeak like you actually get a fiancee?" Dronsken could thank Phil for the bit of knowledge that Edward was highly sensitive to talk about height.

"I'M NOT A PIP-SQUEAK, DAMMIT! YOU'RE EVEN SHORTER THAN I AM!!"

"Ah, no need to go off on a rage like that. A walk, you say? Sure. There's so much tension between these two." Willa gestured at Phil and Frederick, who were currently sitting on milk crates in light, awkward conversation. "I don't know why they're so weird around each other, but they should definitely hook up."

Hearing this, both men in question turned their heads. The escapee waved at them and said, "At least kiss once while we're gone, even if it's just on the cheek!"

"You're making this weird," Ed complained as Frederick's face went dangerously red and question marks seemed to dance from Phil's quizzical look. "Are you coming or not?"

"Yep."

Willa got up, throwing an encouraging thumbs up at Phil, who was still clueless as ever, and joined Fullmetal. She and the state alchemist set off on the path from the farm in the dark, headed for the road.

"So how come you want to take a walk with me? This is the sort of thing young couples do, you know? Oooh! We should have your friends go on a romantic walk!"

"Why're you so pushy about them getting in a relationship?"

"It's entertaining. Let me have some fun. I've been locked up in a prison cell for the longest time."

"Well, it won't work out anyways. Phil has a crush on a farmgirl who sells milk back in their hometown in the West."

"A love triangle. Even better. Speaking of love, why don't you tell me about this fiancee of yours?"

"That's not why I asked—"

"We can talk about what you want after. I just got out of jail, so I'm the priority here. Also, I'm older. Respect your seniors and tell me about your love life."

Ed sighed, exasperated. He turned his eyes to the sky sprinkled with the shining white dots that were stars, thinking, 'Whyyyyyyy?'

"Come on. No need to be shy! I don't care if it's a very dirty story."

"For a 40-year-old, you sure are immature."

"I am not that old! I'm in the prime of my youth, boy. 40? Ha! I'm twenty-five at best."

Edward was feeling particularly smug while saying, "Such a shame your file says otherwise."

A jaw dropped. Willa could not believe the nerve Fullmetal had to say that to her face. "You've read my file?"

"And I know just how old you are."

Willa was now looking at him with a touch of repulsion. "What are you, an unfaithful stalker creep with a taste for older women?"

"You just called yourself old."

"Ah, shit!" She covered her face and groaned. Ed remembered a time when something similar had happened to him, and he shivered. Thank the earth beneath him he was now tall.

Abruptly, Ed changed the subject. "Willa. Do you want to speak with your cousin?"

Willa stopped walking. He couldn't see her face, but she sounded half crazy while saying, somewhat amused, "Oh, that's right. You've got Earl's soul, don't you?"

"I do. So you want to talk to him or not?"

"Why not? I've been meaning to tell him I'm sorry for the longest time."

***

Phil and Frederick had not kissed (actually, they'd discussed why it was that they'd stuck around in an abandoned barn for seven days). They had thoroughly disappointed Willa in doing this, but she was a little preoccupied at the moment, sobbing into Ed's shoulders. She repeated "Thank you" about a million times, a smile etched across her face even as tears poured over it. The person whom she had most wanted to speak had gotten her most sincere apology.

"Willa, I've done you a favour, now I need you to pay me back."

The escaped convict pulled back and wiped away her tears. "Sure, but I'm not kissing you if that's what you want."

"No freacking way I'd want to kiss a hag like you."

Dronsken made a face but did not say anything. She waited for him to make his demand.

"I need you to distract and then keep an eye on Phil and Fred for me."

"Are you going somewhere?"

"I am. If I tell them I'm leaving they'll want to come along."

"And you can't have that?"

"Well... to be perfectly honest, they're both pretty useless in a fight."

"So they'd be in your way. Gotcha."

"I didn't say—"

"No, no, you made it perfectly clear that they'd get in your way if they came to this fight with you." Willa nodded, trying to suppress a smile. "I'll stay here with the two of them. They'll be perfectly fine with me here."

"You're going to try to get them togheter, aren't you?"

"I most certainly am. Don't underestimate my cupid skills."

"I don't."

Ed sighed and said, "I'll get going then."

"Right now?"

"Of course. I don't have anything to make me wait here, so I'm going to Torchpit to exterminate the Cardinal Sin before they become even more of a threat. At least, after I go see someone..."

_____________________

I just want to explain the line "Thank the earth beneath him he was now tall". Normally, it's "Thank god", but because Ed is an atheist I figured it would be better to change the expression a little.

That's all I have to say except thank you so much for reading!

—SmaugIsADragon