Strange encounters [Traverse Town; Open to Greed; COMPLETE]

[secondmetal]

The not-so-peaceful streets in the second district of Traverse Town were particularly noisy this day. The dimness of the empty roads did nothing to muffle the noise as Al ran along the cobblestones. It had been a long time since he had moved about without considering the hollow clanking his footsteps tended to make, but he could not bring himself

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[ultimate_shield]

Living for over three hundred years left a person (or homunculus, but let's not be picky) with a bit of street smarts, a sense of when something bad was going to happen, and... a certain amount of grace.

That is, Greed wasn't one to crash into people - let alone a very loud, very obvious suit of armor.

It was a bit of a shock when it happened, then. The hard metal smacked right into his chest as he rounded a corner. His instincts had a shield up in seconds, but it soon became obvious that he didn't actually need it.

Eyes narrowed, he stared at the armor suspiciously. How had he screwed that one up? This whole situation had a little unsettled, even if he was trying to keep his calm. He'd been thinking about his plans and hadn't been focusing on the environment.

This wasn't something he saw every day, though. Placing a hand on his hip, Greed tilted his head. "What's with the outfit?"

[secondmetal]

The town had been so quiet and empty that Al had not even thought about his headlong flight until the large gentleman had come around the corner, right into his path. The crash sent him staggering back, large gauntlets going instinctively to his helmet to make sure it didn't fall off.

If Ed had been here, he'd be mad at me for being so reckless. Al could almost feel himself blushing. He straightened his head a little, then started bowing repeatedly. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry! Are you okay? Please excuse me."

[ultimate_shield]

That... didn't answer his question.

Well, the guy (kid?) was pretty polite for coming off as so intimidating at first. "Fine," he responded. His well-being wasn't his largest concern at the moment. It was his curiosity that was at the forefront of his mind.

Which meant he wasn't going to excuse him. Even if the armor guy was in a hurry, Greed didn't simply let interesting people walk away.

"What's with the outfit?" he repeated, raising his voice a little to make sure he was heard and answered.

[secondmetal]

Al felt relief wash over him. It was good that he hadn't hurt anyone. Besides being chased by Heartless, it would have been awful to have injured a local. Although...now that he thought about it, the man hadn't even been thrown by the run in. He must be very strong, Al realized.

The question brought him back from his wandering, though, and he straightened. "Outfit?" he asked, confused. Was there something odd with his loincloth?

[ultimate_shield]

"Yeah, outfit," Greed said with a sigh. What, was the guy dense? Or had he somehow forgotten that he was running around in a suit of armor?

To explain what he was talking about, Greed balled his left hand into a fist and knock on the armor's breast plate. When it made a hollow sound, the homunculus frowned and stepped back.

What the hell?

Was there anything in there?

Wait. In Laboratory Five. Hadn't he heard about something like this?

[secondmetal]

Oh. The armor. Al sometimes forgot that a suit of armor wasn't exactly normal clothing. He felt a bit of concern, however, when the man rapped against his chestplate. How was he going to explain the hollow sound? He couldn't just say he'd possessed a suit of armor, after all. That would make him sound like some ghost or maybe even a Heartless or something.

"Oh, uh..." Al thought hard for a moment. Maybe he could make something up and hope that the sound wasn't noticeable. "I...I just got here, you see, and this, uh, this was what I was wearing." A gauntlet lifted to rub the back of his helmet, a sheepish movement. "I was, um, in...a play! Yeah, I mean, auditioning for one."

[ultimate_shield]

The stranger was the exact opposite of convincing. Greed wasn't sure if he'd ever encountered someone less convincing. It was obvious he hadn't been in the world for very long, if he was still so awkward. That and his high-pitched voice supported the idea that he was young. Which meant that his height made little sense.

"All right," he said, figuring he'd play along and force him into a corner. "Then why don't you take it off?" he asked with a smirk. "It must be heavy and hot and hard to move in there." His points were valid - eventually the boy wouldn't be able to explain away any longer.

Greed was determined to hear the truth, even if he had to obtain it forcefully.

[secondmetal]

"Oh no!" As Al had feared, he hadn't been convincing enough. The man was eyeing him now and looked like he knew that Al had been fibbing. Well this wasn't going well. Al glanced around as if he was hoping to find something to help him out. He had no idea how much natives would know of alchemy, but he suspected not much, since Mr. Mickey had not known much of it either. If only something would come to distract this man. Then he could sneak away and return to chasing his brother.

Unfortunately, nothing seemed to jump out (where was a Heartless when you wanted one?) and he had to settle for saying faintly, "I-I can't take it off. It's...um...sort of complicated, but this suit is me, you see."

[ultimate_shield]

That was all he needed to hear. It was the same as the guards posted in Laboratory Five. Greed had only heard about them after he'd escaped, since he'd been confined to a single space while there.

Damn that hag. Damn Envy.

He couldn't focus on that right now, though. If he was correct, then this person could be very, very helpful to him. He smirked and drew closer.

"I wonder... Are you from Amestris, by any chance?" He grinned, showing off his razor sharp teeth.

[secondmetal]

Al was hard pressed not to take a step backward. The smile that the stranger was giving him made him uneasy, though he couldn't quite say why. But the mention of his home sent the wariness fluttering away. He knew of Amestris? That must mean that yet another person had made it here! And that meant the chances of the ones he loved surviving had just gone up another notch!

"Yes. Yes!" Al leaned forward eagerness in his every move. "I am! Are you from Amestris as well?"

[ultimate_shield]

Greed nodded. How else would he have known about it?

"Yep. I was in Dublith when the world... went under, I guess." The sin lifted a hand and scratched at his head. He still wasn't sure how that had all happened. Things had seemed fine and the next thing he'd known, there had been those Heartless fuckers running around all over the place.

"So I guess alchemy is behind this, right?" he asked, knocking on the boy's armor yet again. He wanted to know all about it - who had done it and how... So that he could be the same. So that he could be immortal.

[secondmetal]

Al nodded, still jarred by the fact that his home no longer existed. The twinge of loss came as expected, but he didn't let himself be swept over by it. There was still so much to do, people to find.

It was that distraction that loosened his lips. "Yes, it was alchemy." He pressed a gauntlet over the place that the man had knocked, muffling the hollow clang that had thrummed his metal chest. Concentrate on brother he told himself. He will know what to do.

The thought reminded him again of his mission. "Um, I'm really sorry, but I need to go. My brother may be leaving soon, and I have to catch up to him."

[ultimate_shield]

No no no. It couldn't be that easy. Now that Greed had somehow stumbled upon a clue, it wasn't like he could just let it go. The suit of armor standing in front of him - or rather, the boy posing as a suit of armor - might be the only chance he had left at getting what he wanted.

His hands itched. He wanted to take it all apart, figure it all out.

"That's pretty strong alchemy," he commented, sounding rather impressed. He didn't seem to pay any attention to the fact that the kid was in a hurry. His brother could wait. "Someone very skilled must have been behind it." He was dying to hear the story of why someone would bind the soul of a young boy to a suit of armor.

[secondmetal]

"Huh? Um, yes. My brother is very good at alchemy." Al hesitated, looking beyond the man, down the street that led to the hangers. Ed could be getting ready to leave even as he stood here. He began to sidle around the man. "I really need to go meet him now."

He hesitated, and wondered if Ed would mind if this guy came along. This guy was one more link to home. He didn't seem to be bad, and he knew about alchemy. "Um...you could...come with me. I could introduce you to my brother."

[ultimate_shield]

"Oh, your brother did this?" So it hadn't been an act of hatred... Which meant there was a whole lot more to the story.

Greed was grinning on the inside when the boy offered to take him to meet his brother, the alchemist who was responsible for this... work of art. He wasn't sure why he was being trusted - he didn't exactly come off as a savory person - but he wasn't complaining.

"Sure," he responded with a tamer smile. "I've got the time."

[secondmetal]

Al was glad that the man didn't pursue the subject of his armor body. It was too personal a thing to talk about in detail, especially to someone he didn't know. His brother had emphasized that.

And speaking of brother... "Okay. He's supposed to be at the hangar just down this way." Al turned and took up his hurried pace once again. "Oh, my name is Alphonse. Alphonse Elric. But most everyone just calls me Al."