Air Feeds Fire
After Ed has to kill he has to deal with having killed.
Edward Elric was not crying.
After Ed has to kill he has to deal with having killed.
Edward Elric was not crying.
Roy’s memories of his friend.
“I pay attention to everything, Roy. That’s my gift. Yours is to barbecue things that annoy you. Apparently this makes you command-track material.”
Ed learns the price that playing can cost.
Ed was silent for a moment. “What do alchemists do?” he asked at last.
Winry blinked at this apparent non sequitur, but Al understood. “Alchemists work for the good of all,” he recited, eyes shadowed.
A handful of moments: Roy and Hughes at Ishvar.
Roy did not normally rise to that kind of bait in public. He had a certain dignity to maintain, and being an Alchemist who had become an officer by default rather than through training didn’t make things any easier. But today he was tired and short on temper, and decided that the shortest distance between two points was to vault the table and tackle Hughes.
Disaster strikes for the whole team.
After such a golden autumn, no one expected what happened in the heart of winter.
Takes place during Chapter Seven. Introspective. Yukimura tries to deal with his debilitation over the winter. Angst, I-5
He tried to sleep as much as possible.
Roy and Gracia discuss some difficult plans.
Gracia Hughes had been blessed with an innocent face. It had served her well, as the wife of an investigator. She had also been blessed with a sharp mind, which had served her even better, as the wife of Maas Hughes, in particular.
Sanada’s and Yanagi’s reactions to the whole story about Belial.
Saying that Genichirou and Renji were not happy simply did not address the magnitude of their feelings on the subject.
Sanada makes a further discovery.
Seiichi knew the moment Genichirou noticed Mad Hatter’s seal, low on one hip and inconspicuous except to a thorough lover.
Kurai is depressed and Hatter is curious.
It was the Witch’s shattered realm that eventually drew her—with all its psychic pain and loneliness like a blackened mirror for her own.
Tezuka sets up ranking blocks.
"Headache, Tezuka-kun?" Raphael asked, leaning against one of the empty desks.
Kunimitsu took his hand from his forehead. "I’m fine," he said, and that was true, but not likely to deter Raphael’s bored curiosity.
Knowing the history of Byakuya’s promises, Rukia makes one of her own, and hopes Renji can accept it.
A subtle softening passed over her brother’s face. Nothing so overt as a smile, but Rukia brightened to see it. I’ll make our house proud, she assured him silently. I will. I promise.
Byakuya and Rukia speak of regrets and possibilities.
“Tell me about Hisana.”
Renji catches a glimpse of Rukia dealing with her own new position.
It was good to know she hadn’t lost any of the edge off her vocabulary after all those years in a noble house.
A bit after game-end, Cloud broods over Zack’s sword and gets a visitor.
“Cloud, you idiot, you were sicker with transition than anyone else I’ve ever seen, and by the time you could put two words together in a row all the physical evidence and memories you had pointed to you being me. Why should I be mad at you about that?”
Al wakes up, restored. Not all the news is good, though.
He and Nii-san were going to have to come up with whole new equations to talk about what had happened to him and probably some new technical vocabulary too. The thought steadied him, and he smiled.
Civil war erupts, and Seien returns.
There were screams in the roar of voices, now, and Shuurei flinched from the sound, drawing closer against Seiran, looking up at them both with wide eyes. “Is it…” she had to stop and swallow, “is it really going to be all right?”
The Emperor is dying; Seien talks with both his fathers.
Seien’s anger made his voice a growl. “You spent years and years fighting to reunify the country, to break the power of the great clans until imperial law ruled everywhere again.” His control slipped and he slammed a hand against the wall. “And you almost lost it all just because you ignored what was happening in your own inner courts! Why?!”
Takes place just after the Final Judgement. The Cards are happy; Yue isn’t, very.
As the celebration rolled on Yue caught a number of glances in his direction, flickering toward him between laughter. He answered them only with his presence; he wasn’t sociable, the way Keroberos was.
Ritsuka won’t move out so Soubi moves in. Everyone involved has to readjust their lives.
"Ritsuka." Soubi touched his cheek, eyes dark. "I can’t just leave you here unprotected. I can’t. Don’t ask me to, please." He was perfectly willing to beg for this, except that didn’t always work with Ritsuka. A tiny part of him didn’t think that was fair.
Post Soul Society arc, Rukia has to deal with lingering injuries and Byakuya finds old habits of care returning.
It had been coming for days; she’d felt it like a presence standing behind her shoulder, stepping closer and closer again until it merged with her backbone and unstrung her. She didn’t know why it was now, why this hadn’t happened when she was locked away or about to die or at some other time that made sense. She just knew she couldn’t hold it back any more, and a few hot tears spilled over as her breath rasped harshly in her lungs.
Ban is having a bad evening dealing with his ghosts. Shido chooses to help.
He remembered things he’d never experienced.
Things he had experienced, he couldn’t forget.
There were days he thought that was the curse.
The Ninth helps Xanxus find someone he can bear to be.
It wasn’t that Tsuna didn’t trust the Ninth, because of course he did. And it wasn’t that he didn’t think the Ninth could handle Xanxus, even, or especially, now, because he did, really. It was just… well, his dad had made him solemnly swear he’d make sure the Ninth didn’t overstrain himself.
And that was really the only reason Tsuna kept just happening to pass Xanxus’ rooms or the balcony beyond them to check on them every couple days.
Sometimes one small mistake can lead to an entire avalanche of nasty consequences.
One of the first things Sawada Iemitsu did in his apprenticeship to the Vongola Ninth’s outside advisor was bring the Ninth news of the woman who claimed that her son belonged to Timoteo Vongola. It was an act that Iemitsu reflected on later, grimly, deciding that it was the event that colored his entire service to the Vongola.
Shirogane has a plan to buy them all time and reinforce the boundary between worlds, provided Ryuuko agrees, and provided Shirogane can bring himself to carry it out.
Shirogane settled his hat back on, speaking from under the brim of it. "You and I are the direct kings. Weakened or not. If we take an action together that resonates through our realms, that may reaffirm the balance for long enough."
In the final confrontation with Homurabi, Ryuuko returns. Afterwards, Akira finds that he remembers and understands a few more things. One of them is why Shirogane has refused to make any more shin than him.
Whenever Akira had changed in the past he’d been too occupied with, most usually, almost dying to notice before he was suddenly waking up again. This time was different. This time, Akira could feel it happening, like walking down a see-saw and reaching the fulcrum, the tipping point, when uphill suddenly became downhill and the world turned over.
These are things that never happened to Xanxus, but could have done, if only things had started out just a bit differently. This fic is what happens when you say to yourself, “Gosh, I’ve been writing a lot of Xanxus angst lately. I wonder if it is possible to write Xanxus in such a way that he is, well, functionally broken instead of just psychopathically insane.” And then you get tackled by a plot bunny that is the size of a goddamn linebacker.
Xanxus stared up at the old geezer—this smiling old fool was supposed to be the Vongola Ninth? please—and lifted a hand to show him the Flame when he asked for it.
In the universe where Federico survives, Byakuran is still a problem ten years later. This time, it’s someone else who dies to send Tsuna and Xanxus against the Millefiore.
Sunlight fell gracefully through stained glass and into the open coffin.
Fedele had known it was going to be hard. It couldn’t be any other way when the Vongola’s Boss had been killed—not killed, the back of his mind whispered, clinging to that but he couldn’t let it show or it would all go for nothing—killed by an ambush no one had seen coming. He had forbidden anyone to tell Federico’s wife or son, saying it was for their own safety in hiding, which was true enough. But the fury and pain in the eyes of the other Guardians, the stripped, blank looks on the faces of the two kneeling by Federico’s coffin, sliced his heart like a knife.
Squalo bonds with Xanxus, and none too soon as Xanxus finds out some things the Ninth had kept from him.
Squalo strolled around the edges of the wedding crowd beside Xanxus, keeping an eye out for any unattended cake they could nail down. He didn’t have all that much of a sweet tooth personally, but it was a way of keeping score among the kids. After all, twelve year olds couldn’t rack up kills yet, or negotiations concluded in their Family’s favor.
Xanxus is finally finding his place in the Family when everything is upset again.
Part of him was glad they felt goddamn guilty about this, and part of him was uncomfortable about feeling glad, and most of him was pissed off about both parts.
Pre-canon. How Fuuga came to part, and how Kazuki came to leave.
Saizou named him Prince of Terror. Kazuki never objected. It was true enough, and if some of the terror that had lodged in his bones for years seeped out to touch the people they fought, the ones who threatened even the tiny corner of life he had managed to cling to here… well, perhaps that would mean less for him which was all to the good as far as he was concerned.
Saizou has been watching Kazuki and the others only from a distance, and Kazuki finally corners him and convinces him that his proper place is with them again.
Kazuki felt a stray breeze brush his cheek and sighed. Saizou seemed determined to be the most troublesome one of all for him.
Juubei had been the first to detect him shadowing them, never coming close, only watching, but never leaving them. Kazuki had tried, once or twice, to drift closer, but every time Saizou slid away. Thinking about it, Kazuki didn’t suppose he was actually surprised.
Sakura wants Saizou to stop holding back from them, and from her in particular; it takes some coaxing, but she eventually succeeds in style.
Sakura slipped up beside her quarry on soft feet until she was close enough to be heard by no one else when she asked, "Why do you hold yourself apart from us, Saizou?"
He stilled, laughter dying, eyes turning dark and distant though he didn’t look at her. "Is shame so hard to understand?"
When Toshi makes her choice known, Saizou has to deal with everything that’s still between he and Yohan.
The thought that Saizou had been trying not to look at ever since Toshi first spoke to him darted up again. He could choose another. Or he could… not. He could return to Yohan’s side himself, to this smiling gentle-eyed Yohan who he was trusting with his little sister.
To Yohan, who had trapped him in service and torment for eight long years.
To Yohan, who had all the deadly grace of the Fuuchouin line and had held him with more than force alone.
What might have happened between Xanxus and the Ninth, immediately after the Ring Battles. Comment-fic for Lys to the prompt: Xanxus, got to be the best.
The old men were arguing over killing him.
Kakashi isn’t blood of Uchiha, but he was permitted to keep a closely guarded clan talent. A look at the potential reasoning of the Uchiha.
"There might not be a choice, you know. The Uchiha clan has heard about this, and there’s a summons waiting for you as soon as you can get out of bed again. You know they won’t want their bloodline talent in the hands of someone outside their clan."
Knowing that you’re sending twelve-year-olds into the field to fight, what do you need to teach them before they go? And what do you do when it never seems to work? Sometimes Iruka has trouble with that second one.
Warning: Discusses aftermath of trauma.
Umino Iruka loved to teach. He really did. He’d taught at the Academy for years, and with every new class he felt again the wonder of shaping Konoha’s future through his students.
There were also weeks when he needed to remind himself of this strenuously to keep his hands from closing around their skinny, little necks.
In which Sakura insinuates herself into Hidden Sound and the dance of mutual deception and seduction commences among her, Orochimaru, and Kabuto. Also featuring the beginning of Akatsuki’s plan emerging.
She blended into the torch-shadows like they did, now. The one thing Orochimaru had done, in the three weeks she’d been waiting, was give her the run of Sound’s outfitting supplies. Sakura suspected it was a test of sorts, but that was all right. She was done hiding what she was (and that made the best cover of all). She’d tossed her chuunin uniform into storage and chosen instead a snugly zipped leather vest, loose pants, and half gloves. All in black. She was done trying to be pretty and unthreatening, too. Orochimaru had chuckled.
Takes place during Chapter Seven of Half Without Another One. While Sakura is gone her boys fret and try to distract themselves and take care of each other.
The third time Naruto blew up his study room trying to separate out the fox’s chakra from his own once he’d already expressed them, Tsunade didn’t even yell. She just gave him a narrow look, hands planted on her hips, and called for Iruka-sensei.
Kakashi achieves the Mangekyou Sharingan, turning to his past to do it. His past visits him while he recovers. Takes place just after Chapter Seven of Half Without Another One and "And We’ll Laugh About It".
The Sharingan’s greatest single use to him was not expanded perception, or the ability to copy others’ techniques, or even intimidation value. It’s greatest use was as camouflage. No one had to wonder why the man with a thousand jutsu kept winning; the answer was self evident.
It was also wrong.
Sakura has to debrief and deal with the backlash of her time at Orochimaru’s side. Fortunately, Naruto and Sasuke are there for her. Once that settles, though, Tsunade has to deal with the resistance of the Elders to promoting the three of them.
“He didn’t call me by name, for a long time. It was always ‘kunoichi’. But when…” she had to swallow, “when I demanded more tests on the last version of the seal, more tests on other people, because I knew it would give me more time to gather intelligence on the bases, then he called me by name.”
“And if he thought all along you were a plant,” Miuhara completed her logic coolly, “it follows that he was seeking to draw you into just that position, where you would be complicit with his atrocities. And he rewarded you for it.”
“Yes,” Sakura whispered, arms curling tighter. “And it worked.”
Sasuke faces his brother again. Fortunately, Sakura and Naruto are there for him, and he finds the space in his head to do what he has to do. Involves character death.
Sakura gripped his shoulder hard. "Are you all right?" she asked, low. Sasuke took a slow breath and yanked his thoughts back into order. Naruto was going after Gaara’s body, and Kakashi would take care of him. The Sand teams probably had Sasori in hand. He was here, with Sakura and Gai’s team, and Itachi was in front of them. He had backup, today, to go with opportunity, and his brother was standing in front of him. Now. The time to take Itachi down was now. That was all he needed to think about.
Gaara is revived, and Naruto and Sakura take Sasuke home to recover.
Sasuke didn’t know what he wanted to say until he heard the words, “I really loved my brother,” coming out of his mouth. Sakura took in a quick breath at that and wrapped her arms around him. Sasuke was glad for that; it kept the shaking in his stomach from taking his whole body. “I loved him,” he said again, slowly, painfully. “And then he turned into… that.”
The larger ninja world starts talking about Akatsuki, and what to do about them. Naruto is hustled off to the Island Turtle with his team, where he meets B and reaches a certain cooperation with the Nine-tails.
Warning: Features a brief section of suicidal thoughts.
Kakashi slid past the Hokage’s door rather warily and waved a handful of message-paper strips at her. “Latest batch from the relays; Shizune asked me to bring them up with me.” He swapped himself reflexively with the coat hanger as a cup went hurtling past where his head would have been and smashed into shrapnel against the wall. “I can see why she did,” he added.
Naruto is figuring out how to work with the Nine-tails, but Akatsuki is getting bolder. Shikamaru brings them word of the attack on Fire Country and when the new Akatsuki team finds the Island Turtle Jiraiya is the next to pay for facing them.
Naruto sighed. “Nine-tails keeps glaring at you; it’s distracting. Though it is kind of funny when you both get pissy about my technique and he gets all pained about having to agree with an Uchiha,” he added reflectively.
After one possible end to canon, Frau discovers that Ghosts tend to get stuck in Tenkai for a while. On the bright side, this means Gido is still around. Adorableness ensues. Also a good deal of sex.
In Frau’s considered opinion, Heaven sucked.
Most of the Konoha contingent ingathers to deal with Sai’s attack on Naruto and its implications. In the wake of this, Naruto proposes his new plan to Tsunade.
The only reason Sakura didn’t kill Sai immediately was that Ino got in her way.
Kakashi takes Sai under his wing and Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura help Sai start to find his emotional feet. Just in time for Madara to make his move on Konoha.
“Shinobi are the weapons of their villages. Their nations. Their employers. True enough. But a shinobi without the will to evaluate orders, and even modify them if field conditions demand it, is a blade without a sheath. And members of ANBU are ground to a sharper edge than any others. That’s what you’ve been waving around your own village, Danzou.”
However guilty he thinks he should feel, Hijikata can’t be anything but pleased by what Okita has become. Whatever second thoughts Hijikata might be having, Okita can’t be other than what he is.
Axandra has translated this work into Russian.
The whisper of Souji’s hair sliding over his shoulders as he bent his head was scarcely louder than his voice. “They’ve called you the demon more than once. Am I not the demon’s child?”
After the finals of the Winter cup, Kuroko finds Aomine waiting for him. They finally have a long-overdue discussion about what happened in their third year. Implied spoilers for anime-only fans.
Kuroko Tetsuya walked the last bit of his way home alone, after Kagami turned off onto his own street, letting the quiet settle over him. As the echoes of his team’s voices, of exultation and disbelief and, really, quite a lot of screaming died away, they left one thing behind.
They had won.