Day 69: Breakfast

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar scowled, both relieved and angry that he had woken up once again in his own bed. That lanky man who had become his new roommate on the night of his death was sound asleep one bed over.

This was coming to be the new "normal." It was infuriating.

As always, he begrudgingly followed his nurse into the cafeteria and took a seat. He preferred to file in with the majority of the patients in order to avoid sticking out, but no such luck this morning.

Scar stared at his food rather than starting in on it, despite the newly found appetite that had been lost thanks to that blasted sickness. He had a lot to think about. He hadn't managed to find Frank last night. The damn intercom had beaten him to it. And judging by Tsubaki's reaction to him, he had been out for at least a day's time. How many had noticed? Cared? It couldn't have been many.

But it was the few who did whose detection Scar was desperate to avoid.

[Eddyyyy!]

Comments

[envy_the_sinners]

That touch of pity had returned to Scar's gaze. His own brother's sin had become one of the first people in a very long time to actually care about him.

He wasn't sure which outcome was worse.

"So does that mean that emotions are left over as well?"

[fullmetalheart]

Ed nodded again, trying to ignore the pity so he wouldn't become snappish. "I think so."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar went back to staring at his plate.

"Then what makes a homunculus different from a human?" A soul was the source of emotions and memory. It was what made humans human, as far as Scar was concerned.

Yet he was desperate to find some discrepancy. He wasn't asking for the sake of devil's advocate, or defending homunculi. No, he was trying to find the flaw.

[fullmetalheart]

Ed sighed. "Honestly, it would probably be best to pick Lust's brain on this. I would guess it's the lack of soul."

If Ed could read Scar's mind he'd pick out the flaws in his thinking.

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar grumbled at that.

"I already have enough to take up with her."

There was too much going on at once. He was worried about Frank, and by effect many others. And Edward had just told him about the Fuhrer, which opened doors and closed them and drew connections Scar never could have made on his own. And he still had to deal with the fact that he had somehow survived, as well as others finding out that he had somehow survived.

[fullmetalheart]

Ed scratched at the back of his neck. "Did I overload you with too much information?"

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar contemplated for a moment.

"Yes, but I'm glad you did."

[fullmetalheart]

Ed blinked and looked bemused. "First time someone's said thanks for throwing too much at them."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar shook his head.

"I've been kept in the dark long enough." His race and record had preceded him at home. And he hadn't been able to get much out of Lust, either. But he wanted to know. Needed to know. He wasn't the pigheaded moron many made him out to be. Scar knew that he was involved in something deeper. What that was, though, he didn't know.

[fullmetalheart]

Ed blinked again as he remembered something he meant to tell Scar that he got distracted from. "Before I forget again, Al's a few inches shorter than you, has darker blond hair and darker eyes."

[envy_the_sinners]

"I'm sure I would be able to pick him out," Scar said quietly. Despite his lack of social skills, he had always been able to have a good grasp for people. And Alphonse was a particularly special person.

[fullmetalheart]

Ed gave Scar a sunny smile, mood noticeably brightened by talking about his brother being in his rightful body. "I know. But having a description helps."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar only nodded, lifting his head once again to check around the room.

"There," he muttered. It was obviously him. Scar could tell simply from the way he carried himself. A calm demeanor, and of course the physical description matched. He looked like Edward, just taller and leaner. Scar's eyes narrowed.

"Is he injured?"

[fullmetalheart]

Ed winced as he looked over to his brother. "He'll be alright. We both got traumatized by last night, but he'll be okay."

[envy_the_sinners]

"The monsters here are more than monsters. They know how to get to us. Each of us. Personally. Don't forget that."

[fullmetalheart]

Ed shuddered. "Great. Just what I wanted to hear. I'd like to pass on another reminder of that night tonight."

[envy_the_sinners]

"Maybe. If you're lucky." And careful. Scar needed to decide on what he would be doing, tonight. He had focused all of his efforts on Frank in recent nights, and dying had without a doubt thrown him off kilter. Perhaps...

"What were you two planning for tonight, anyway?"

[fullmetalheart]

"I have no idea," Ed admitted. "We may try for the kitchen and then the greenhouse again like we did last night. The three of us only made it as far as the Sun Room, when we ran into Murphy and then got to wake up in our rooms, however that happened."

Ed shook his head, still not sure how it occurred.

[envy_the_sinners]

"Murphy?" Scar perked up at the mention of the name. So he was still around. Good. "He's a good man."

"What is there to look for in the kitchen? Or the greenhouses for that matter?"

[fullmetalheart]

Ed looked sheepish. "Lloyd and I were still hungry." Then he hastily moved on. "And the cure for the monster-making illness can be found in the greenhouse, which is why we were going there."

[envy_the_sinners]

Scar's mouth fell slightly open. For a seasoned fighter, Edward was starting to sound like a clueless child.

"You risked yours and your brother's lives because you were hungry?" What kind of priorities were those?

And the cure... Scar mellowed out at its mention. He had heard whispers of a solution, one safer than surgery. It hardly mattered to him, anymore. He was cured, or close to it. And Frank...

Well, if Frank turned up, he would go from there. But he had yet to appear at breakfast.

[fullmetalheart]

Ed sighed. "Has anyone told you how automail works? And for the record, Lloyd said he didn't get much to eat for supper."

[envy_the_sinners]

"I do not care to know how automail works. Somebody your size should be able to get away with the portions they give us. And you ate two lunches."

How could he have been so reckless? He had be warned, had he not?

[fullmetalheart]

"Actually, due to the way it works, I need twice as much to eat as most people that aren't automails do. There's a reason I ate six pancakes this morning and would have eaten more if the nurse let me," Ed snapped. "And don't call me small!"

[envy_the_sinners]

"That's completely besides the point. You cannot afford to be so reckless. Only leave your room at night for what is necessary."