paixaorpg | Reunions [completed!]

Entry tags:

Reunions [completed!]

Character(s): Edward, Nina, Repliku
Content: Edward meets up with Nina
Setting: F4
Time: afternoon
Warnings: not as of yet, no

Ed shoved his journal back into his pocket as the train stopped for the second time since he’d gotten on the Vaneheim line and quickly extracted himself from the car. The trains in Paixao made much shorter stops than the steam engines in Amestris or Germany and Ed worried about how long it would take those doors to close again.

He stopped on the platform to consult a map before turning and heading quickly to the north exit. He was relieved, not only to be on his way to meet Nina, but also to put down the journal. As fascinatingly useful as the devices were, Ed was definitely starting to feel the strain of being polite to all the people he’d been conversing with through them.

Courtesy had never been his strong suit. He had tried develop some skill for it in the last few years because it had turned out to be a much better way to get people to give him information than being forceful without any actual influence to back it up. But still, being polite for a prolonged period of time was tiring; only half the people he spoke to on the journals seemed to actually have anything useful to say.

Once on the street, Ed found the Haja O Que Houver easily and sent a message to Nina from the lobby telling her he’d arrived.

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Nina and Repliku had spent time looking around the festival, but had found no one, and soon it had been time to leave. The festival had been exciting--bright and colorful and filled with delicious foods and fun games--but by the end of the day Nina was tired, and once she and Repliku had gotten back to the hotel, she had fallen right asleep after talking to her box about the funnel cake.

Once she'd gotten the message from Ed, Nina was quick to run at top speed out of the room, down the stairs, and into the lobby, Alexander bounding along excitedly.

She peered through the crowds, balancing on Alexander to see, and spotted him in a moment. He was wearing different clothes than she was used to, and he looked older, but he was definitely Ed.

She hopped off of Alexander and went running again, fully intending to at the very least attach herself to one of his legs for a hug. Alexander was following, tail wagging.

"Small Big Brother!" Nina squealed. "You got bigger!"

Repliku had been slightly disappointed at the fact they hadn't been able to find anyone at the festival but it had still been a fun day for the both of them so he hadn't minded too terribly. After they had gone back to the hotel Repliku had waited for Nina to fall asleep before slipping out for the Resistance meeting that was being held. He had loathed to leave her behind alone but it had been important and he knew Alexander would have watched over her while he was gone. Though things had gone smoothly and she was still safe when he had returned.

He had been sitting on the bed, fiddling with his journal until Nina suddenly ran out of the room with Alexander in tow. There had been a moment of surprise but Repliku was quick to realize it was probably because her 'brother' had arrived. He followed them at a slower pace but fast enough to keep Alexander's tail in sight as it disappeared around the corner and down the stairs.

He slowed his pace, coming to a stop behind Alexander as he regarded Edward and acknowledged him with a nod. He didn't look all that impressive but Repliku was naturally wary of strangers. Still he was happy for Nina, at least she found a person she had been looking for.

Ed didn’t even notice Repliku’s presence. His entire attention was focused on Nina. She looked exactly as he remembered; beautiful, perfect, human.

He knelt down to catch her in a hug as she ran up to him. She seemed a bit smaller than he remembered, but of course that would be his own change in stature. He laughed as she commented on it. ‘Yeah, I did pretty good there, huh?’

As he felt the little arms around his neck, the warmth of her body, the realness of her presence, and the lick on his cheek from Alexander, Ed felt a sob push its way past his lips. He hugged Nina tightly against him and let the reality of the tiny angel in his arms wash away at nearly seven years of guilt as he broke down crying.

Nina frowned a little and hugged tighter uncertainly. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?" She blinked up at Ed. He seemed happy just a few moments ago, but people who were happy didn't cry, right? Hopefully the hug would make things better.

Even if he was crying, Nina was still glad to see him. She hadn't been in the city long--only a few days--but it would have been scary all by herself. She was lucky Repliku was there, too. And Alexander had been there the entire time, which was good!

Alexander's tail wagged slowly, and he licked at Ed's cheek again, picking up on Nina's uneasiness and trying to make them both feel better.

Repliku raised an eyebrow though refrained from making a comment which most likely would be of the sarcastic kind. After all, he didn't know Edward's circumstances concerning Nina. It did make him wonder, had he come from the future where something terrible had happened to Nina? He wanted to ask but it was better to let the guy get his break down over with first.

"I'll...go get some water," Repliku scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he turned and wandered off to find a glass of water. Talk about awkward, he had no idea how to deal with a situation like that. All he remembered was that drinking water was supposed to help or something, so off to get some water it was.

If Edward had looked, he might have noticed people in the lobby staring or trying not to, as well as Repliku’s obvious discomfort, but he was too wrapped up in near-hysterical warm, fuzzy feelings to care.

He leaned back a little, knuckling away tears with his left hand and laughed tearfully. ‘No, nothing’s wrong. Sorry. I’m just so happy to see you that my eyes got confused,’ he explained. He tried to catch his breath as he knelt there, smiling at the little girl for a minute before he picked her up under the arms and held her in the air. ‘I missed you, Nina!’ he exclaimed, giving her a little toss.

Nina smiled more at the laugh. Laughter was good, it meant people were happy. The crying was still a bit confusing, but she grinned at Ed's explanation. "That must be really happy!" She'd never been so happy she was crying, but maybe that was something that happened when you got bigger?

She giggled and then squealed at being held and thrown. "I missed you, too! So did Alexander!"

Alexander wagged his tail and ran little, hopping circles around Ed. Nina felt much safer with all of them here, though she did have to ask: "Where's Big Brother?"

Repliku returned with a glass of water only to find the guy laughing this time. Wow, did this guy have mood swings or what? Well, he wasn't going to complain. Nina seemed too happy to have him around and Repliku wasn't going to ruin that happiness. So the replica opted to stand back and watch him toss her up before offering the glass of water. He felt quite awkward doing so considering he hardly knew the guy and people were staring but whatever, he'd deal with it.

'Oh, uh, thanks,' Ed said when Repliku offered him the water. He set Nina back on her feet and tussled her hair while accepting the cup. 'You're the guy I talked to on the journal, right? Thanks so much for watching her.'

At Nina's question, he faltered slightly, but quickly replaced his smile for her; the last thing he wanted was to upset her. 'Al and I got separated, but I was actually talking to a guy on the journals and I think he may be able to tell me something about that, so I was going to go meet him later.'

It was true that Edward wanted to ask this Sasori person about his brother, but what was worrying him more at the moment was the 'Pride' he'd spoken of. Ed didn't want to leave Nina behind now that he knew it really was her, but going to meet Sasori and 'Pride' could be dangerous... Sasori's description did sound as though 'Pride' hadn't yet been assimilated by Dante or the other homunculi, like Wrath had been before Envy got to him, but still...

Nina giggled and grinned up at Ed and Repliku. "He took me to the festival and we had funnel cake and looked for you there! So now we can go find Big Brother and we could find Sora too, right?"

Nina hadn't forgotten that Repliku was looking for his friends, too. Since he had been so nice in helping her look for Small Big Brother and Big Brother, and since he had helped her get funnel cake, she wanted to help him, too! And it was always more fun to stay in big groups then to be all by yourself and lonely.

Alexander settled down beside Nina, watching her closely, as usual. He was more relaxed with Ed and Repliku there, but he was still acting part of guard dog.

"No problem," Repliku replied with a nod. "Yeah, I'm Repliku and that's alright." To be frank, watching Nina hadn't been bad at all. She made excellent company and with her energetic attitude she could make anyone smile. It was like watching over a small Sora.

At the mention of said friend Repliku tilted his head back at Nina, returning the grin with a small smile of his own before nodding to the question. Perhaps Sora could clear up this mess. He had taken on the Organization before, hadn't he? There had also been quite some capable people in that Resistance so surely the Organization was going down sometime...hopefully.

'Oh, you have someone to meet?' Ed asked Repliku. There went the idea that maybe the silver-haired boy would be willing to watch over Nina again while he went to see about the 'Pride' situation.
'I'm supposed to see this guy named Sasori because he knows something about my brother, but I've never met him before, so I don't actually know what kind of person he is...' Ed said, kneeling down to pet Alexander's head. 'I've only talked to him on the journals.'

Nina clung cheerfully to Ed's pant leg, and Alexander was only too happy to nuzzle against Ed's hand and wag his tail hard enough to knock over small children.

"We were looking in the festival for Sora!" Nina supplied brightly. "We didn't find him, though. But we had funnel cake, and it was really good!"

Nina, if it was possible, brightened even more at the mention of going to find Al, too. She giggled and ran a little circle around the blond.

"We should go see now and then find Big Brother and Sora~!"

"More like someone to look for, I'm not even sure he's really here," Repliku replied. Perhaps Sora would know about Naminé too, so far he hadn't been able to figure out whether she was here or not. Unlike Sora, who had been seen and suspected to be here, absolutely nothing was known about Naminé. It gave Repliku the hope she wasn't here and forced to do things for the Organization again. Sure he would've liked to see her....but it was for own good to be somewhere where the Organization wasn't.

There was another tug at his lips at the mention of funnel cake, that definitely had been good. He'd be willing to watch over Nina a little longer but it seemed the child had different plans of her own.

'Well I hope you do find him,' Ed replied to Repliku, smiling encouragingly. He hoped even more that this meant that the other boy could look after Nina a little longer while he saw about 'Pride.'

'I'm not sure Al is actually here, Nina,' Ed said with a smile, very much wishing not to upset Nina. The illogical part of him wanted Nina to be right, for him to be able to see his brother again after so long. But the reasonable part of him hoped that Al wasn't here; that he was safely in Amestris with Winry and Granny and hadn't done anything desperate like opening The Gate. He tried to assure himself that Al wouldn't have done something so foolish, not like himself, because Al was always the more cautious and sensible between them.

'I also don't think it's a very good idea for you to come when I meet Sasori. It could be dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt,' Ed explained carefully. It was essential that Nina be somewhere safe while he figured out this 'Pride'. 'I promise that I'll come right back after I've talked to him.'

"Awww, but I wanna come, too!" Nina whined, and attached herself to Ed's leg with a grip that said she wasn't planning on letting go any time soon. "Big Brother has to be here, I talked to him on my box!"

To Nina, the only thing that really stuck out in her mind was the need not to get separated again. She had only just found Small Big Brother after all; she wasn't about to let him go places without her if she had anything to say about it. She could always follow him on Alexander if she had to.

"I'll be good!" she said, looking up at Ed with big puppyish eyes.

It didn't matter to her if it might have been dangerous--Small Big Brother was there, and he would protect her. Hopefully Repliku would come, too--if she could anage it, she wanted to keep him nearby, too.

"Thanks," Repliku said cautiously, feeling slightly skeptic. He couldn't help but feel there was some ulterior motive although that could just be paranoia, something that could be easily obtained when hanging around the Organization. However his suspicions were confirmed when Ed announced he'd rather have Nina not go along with him.

Repliku more or less agreed that when going out to meet a stranger you have never met before and probably comes from a different world, it was best not to take a small kid with you. He doubted Nina would let go though. He understood the desire to stick together but it was up to Ed.

'I know you'll be good, Nina,' Ed bit his lip and tried to bolster his resolve. Bringing Nina along just wasn't safe, so it was out of the question. 'I'm only worried that you might get hurt! I think it might be dangerous for you if you came along.'

He was trying very hard not to fall victim to the little girl's puppy-eyes, while attempting to pull her small arms away from his leg. 'And I promise I'll come right back as soon as I'm done and then we can go get ice cream or something!'

"But we should stay together!" Nina whimpered, her breath catching in her throat as tears welled in her eyes. "You an' me an' Alexander an' Repliku!"

Her lower lip trembled dangerously as she clutched at his leg in what could only be described as a death grip. She was not going to part from Ed right after she found him!

"I wanna--wanna--stay w-with youuu!" she wailed, and then the tears came.

Alexander, for his part, began whining and half-howling sadly, joining Nina in the unhappiness.

Repliku looked on with a somewhat sympathetic expression while also feeling quite awkward, he wasn't good at dealing with crying people. Also, Nina wanted him to come along? Repliku wasn't so sure about that but if it stopped Nina from crying, by all means he'd go with her although he was sure he couldn't stick by them forever.

Now that Alexander had joined in the chorus of unhappiness, he quickly patted the dog on the head in a attempt to give some comfort. Let Edward deal with Nina for he had no idea how to comfort her and he wasn't the one upsetting her.

Ed started to panic. Nina was crying. He had no idea what to do about that. And Alexander was not helping. 'Nina, it's okay! I'm going to come right back! I promise! I double-promise! I'm gonna come right back! I just have to check on this and then we can play! We'll take Alexander to the park! And get ice cream!' Ed didn't actually know if there were any parks around, or ice cream parlors for that matter, but he needed Nina to stop crying.

"I d-d-don't want you to get lost again," Nina sobbed, her voice muffled as she pressed her face against Ed's leg and sniffled piteously. Her little body shook as she cried, desperate to remain with Ed.

The idea of parting from him had become unbearable for her--if her father had been there, she would have been able to handle it, but this was a big, weird city and she didn't know where anything was. She needed Ed with her.

Alexander reached out with his jaws to tug at Ed's coat.

Repliku scratched the back of his head awkwardly, even Ed's desperate attempts weren't working it seemed. He couldn't blame Nina though, if he found Naminé (if she was even here) he'd definitely stick with her no matter what. The Organization might go after her again and Repliku would have none of it.

"You're fighting a losing battle I'm afraid," he commented idly.

'I'm not going to get lost! I promise!' Ed was nearly flailing in panic. 'I-I- You could get hurt!'

The irrational part of Ed's mind was now telling him that surely it would be okay to bring Nina along, he could protect her. The reasonable part of his mind was scolding it and pointing out that he was potentially going to see a homunculus and that was definitely not a safe place to bring a child. It further argued that, knowing that Envy was in Paixao, he had to consider that this might be a set-up by the very most dangerous homunculus he knew. Bringing Nina was simply out of the question.

But Nina was now crying louder than before and Ed couldn't seem to get a good grip on his resolve now. At the comment, he cast Repliku an annoyed look.

"Nu-uh!" Nina said as best she could between sobs. "Y-you'll be th-there! A-and Re-re-pliku!"

And that was really all that mattered to her. She didn't want to be all by herself. And she was perfectly safe with Ed and Repliku. They were really strong, and there was Alexander, too. Alexander had always protected her. She couldn't think of anything that could possibly be stronger than all three of them.

So she kept clinging and crying, hoping Ed would relent.

Repliku returned the annoyed look with a grimace. He had meant to smirk but considering Nina seemed set on involving him too it didn't quite make it to a smirk. He secretly felt happy in the confidence Nina put in his strength, considering he hadn't been too confident in it himself. Losing a battle and dying because of it did that to you.

He doubted Edward could keep his resolve up for long, children were very good at being unreasonable. He crossed his arms and resisted the urge to wander off (most likely it would upset Nina even more) and come back when this was over.

'Nina, Repliku has things he needs to do too! You can't just expect him to come along, it's rude to assume things like that!' Ed ignored the voice in his head reminding him that he'd been hoping Repliku would be willing to babysit while he went to assess the situation.

He set his face into a stern expression and trained the expression on Nina. 'I am not going to put you in danger, Nina. I really really need to talk to this Sasori guy and you can't come, but I promise I will be right back really quickly.'

Nina clung tighter--now Ed's words seemed confusing and almost contradictory. If Repliku was going to go somewhere else, and Ed was, too, what did that mean for her?

"Th-th-then..." she whimpered, trying to catch her breath and seeming, for the moment, to have calmed down.

Alexander whined and nuzzled Nina unhappily.

"Am I go-gonna be all alone?" she wailed, and began sobbing again. She didn't want to be all by herself!

An unexpected comeback, Repliku had to give Edward that, but now that attention was brought to him he wasn't quite sure what to do. Yes, he had other business to attend to. Mainly finding the persons he was looking for but leaving Nina alone? That wasn't a good idea and possibly not safe either, considering the people who ran this place.

"Nina..." he muttered, not quite sure what to say and pretty much leaving it at that. This was awkward.

((omg! we move! http://community.livejournal.com/paixaorpg/319725.html))

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Reunions [completed!]

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