InuYasha Fan Fiction / Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ In Pursuit of the Green Dragon ❯ Journey ( Chapter 5 )

04. Journey

Yokohama/Tokyo, May 1925

The journey from England to Japan took Edward, Alphonse, and Souta Higurashi over a month, in various stages. First, they boarded a steamship in Liverpool that conveyed them in reasonable comfort to New York. From there, they traveled overland by rail to San Francisco, where the three of them boarded another steamer bound for Yokohama.

Alphonse wistfully expressed the wish to linger New York and San Francisco and sightsee a little, but Higurashi was polite but insistent that they proceed as quickly as possible. While still in England, he had sent a telegram to his associates with news of their impending return to Japan, and they had ordered him to travel with all possible haste.

Ed took Higurashi's side for once. He was burning with the desire to track down Envy, and go home, for good this time.

Despite his lingering resentment over Higurashi's initial attempt to deceive them, Ed found himself taking a liking to the man as the days passed in mostly-congenial company. Higurashi was young for a professor--barely thirty--but brilliant, well-read, and well-spoken. He was fluent in English and German as well as Japanese, and could read Russian. And he was also most concerned about the well-being of his younger brothers, who were being held hostage in Tokyo, and Ed found himself in grudging sympathy.

After all, he knew more than a little about sacrificing everything you had for the sake of his brother, didn't he? Ed thought, as the transcontinental train sped smoothly through vast stretches of wheat and cornfields somewhere in the middle part of the United States.

His long, bleak exile in a world without alchemy had been worth it, if only to see how tall Alphonse was getting, and to hear his newly-hoarse voice break into a high squeak at awkward intervals.

All of these things were things that his brother could only experience in a flesh body, and it had been worth every scar, every drop of blood that Ed had given to free Al from the prison of being a soul bound to an empty suit of armor.

Somewhat to his surprise, Ed found himself telling Higurashi about his quest to regain his brother's body, and Higurashi listened thoughtfully, though many of the details probably seemed incredible to him.

In return, Higurashi shared his own experiences growing up as the oldest of nine boys, and his dual fascination with both the spiritual and scientific. He had always been able to see ghosts and spirits, and to banish the troublesome ones. But he was also drawn to the mysteries of the stars and Earth's neighboring planets, and had done his graduate work in England as part of a team investigating the behavior of the gases that comprised the Sun.

Following the tragic deaths of his bride Akiko--they had been married less than a year--and his parents in the great earthquake the previous year, Higurashi had stepped into the role of head of the family.

His eight younger brothers ranged in age from six to twenty-four, though the two older brothers lived away from home. Following the Higurashi family tradition of dividing attention between the spiritual and the practical, Akio was a Buddhist monk at a temple in Kyoto, and Makoto was enrolled at the Prefectural Medical College in Osaka.

The San Francisco-to-Yokohama steamer was crowded with tourists. Japan was a popular destination for travelers, it seemed, and from the guidebooks, Ed surmised that it was a country filled with picturesque bridges, scenic mountains, and exotic houses constructed of wood and paper, with tile roofs that turned gracefully up at the corners. It looked interesting, more like Xing than Amestris, despite the similarities between the Japanese and Amestrian languages.

The biggest difference between the two languages, Ed discovered as Higurashi tutored them in the basic etiquette and customs of his native country, was that Japanese had many more levels of polite and rude speech, and different words for whether the speaker was a man, a woman, a man addressing a peer, a man addressing a superior, or a man addressing an inferior.

But still, the roots of the words remained the same, and once Ed and Al learned the trick of it, they found themselves understanding almost everything the other Japanese passengers said, except the thickest dialects or most obscure slang.

Higurashi told them that their slightly modified Amestrian would be acceptable for most modes of conversation, since they were clearly foreigners, and simply the fact that they spoke and understood any Japanese at all would be the subject of much wonder.

The Japanese writing system was very difficult—not at all like Amestrian, which used a close approximation of this world's Latin alphabet. Ed and Al passed the long, boring days of travel by studying the language. Ed found the kanji as obscure as the symbolic writing used to construct the alchemic equations within transmutation circles, and spent long hours memorizing the characters and copying them out, with occasional breaks to practice his hand-to-hand combat skills against Al, something the other passengers found noteworthy.

Ed became accustomed to gathering an audience as he traded punches and kicks with his brother on the ship's deck.

By the time they finally arrived in Japan, and disembarked, Ed could recognize the most commonly-used kanji for store, restaurant, police station, toilet, and other important signs, but was nowhere near being able to read a newspaper or any of the pages of the Japanese books in Higurashi's luggage.

To Ed's annoyance, Al seemed to be able to memorize the kanji effortlessly, and was even reading a novel—albeit very slowly—that he had borrowed from one of the other passengers.

Ed was disappointed to find Yokohama disappointingly mundane, with storefronts and trolley lines that looked a lot like San Francisco, or Liverpool. Well, at least having modern transportation meant that they'd get to the Bone-eater's Well that much faster, didn't it?

From the look on his face, Al was similarly disappointed. Higurashi chuckled a little at their crestfallen expressions, and promised to take them sightseeing to Kamakura and Hakone, once they had captured the dragon and satisfied his associates.

The short train ride from Yokohama to Tokyo was interesting--the houses clinging to the hillsides on either side of the rail line looked closer to what Ed had been expecting from the guidebook pictures, and there was even the occasional temple to add to the atmosphere.

Al was hanging out the train window for most of the ride, calling back comments. Ed just wanted to get to Tokyo, and the Higurashi Shrine, already.

Despite his impatience, he couldn't help noticing signs of the damage done the year before by the earthquake--though most of Yokohama, Tokyo, and the towns in-between had been rebuilt, there were still plentiful vacant lots heaped with shattered brick and other rubble, and many of the wooded hillsides bore the large bare-earth scars of landslides.

Tokyo itself was a sprawling mass of streets and houses in a mix of Western and traditional Japanese styles. Ed and Al both stared, fascinated, out of the train window until it finally pulled to a halt at the main station.

Hastily pulling their suitcases off the overhead racks, Ed and Alphonse followed Higurashi down to the platform, where they stood for a moment, trying to get their bearings while being buffeted by crowds of people.

Ed noticed that he was actually of average height here, and grinned. Japan already had a lot to recommend it.

Alphonse, on the other hand, was nearly a head taller than everyone else, and his height, combined with his golden hair, attracted open stares from passing children and discreet sideways glances from the adults.

Higurashi began to plow through the crowd, heading for one of the station's exits, and Ed and Al followed in his wake.

Then Higurashi came to an abrupt halt. His calm expression did not change as he caught sight of a slim, cold-eyed man wearing a neat Western suit standing on the far end of platform, but Ed had spent enough time in the young professor's company to sense his sudden wariness.

"What is it?" he asked in a low voice, and Alphonse leaned in.

Higurashi answered, his dark-eyed gaze never leaving the man who was now approaching them. "That's Ikeda-san. He's a member of the Tokkou, the Special Higher Police. He's also part of a group that call themselves the Descendants of the Dragon."

"And they're the ones who sent you to recruit us?" Al guessed, his eyes narrowing.

Higurashi gave a half-shrug, and Ed rose on tiptoes to get a better look at the bastard.

"Brother…" Al murmured, in warning.

"Not gonna do anything," Ed protested. "I just want to know what--and who--we're dealing with."

"Be very careful," Higurashi said, his lips scarcely moving as Ikeda drew closer. "The Tokkou have the right to arrest and interrogate anyone they deem a threat to the public order, especially foreigners. Please don't say or do anything, Edward-san--I'll handle this."

"But--" Ed began. Alphonse's hand fell on his flesh shoulder, and squeezed hard.

"All right, all right," Ed grumbled, and stepped back.

Ikeda reached them, and Higurashi gave a stiff bow, carefully calculated to show respect towards a peer, but nothing more.

"So, you've finally returned, Professor Higurashi," Ikeda said, returning the bow with obvious reluctance, his voice as cold as his eyes. "And you've brought the foreigners with you. Good."

His face utterly expressionless, Higurashi said, "Please let me extend my gratitude for your care of my family during my absence, Ikeda-san." But Ed heard the unspoken questions between his words--Are my brothers all right? When canI see them?

Ikeda's lip curled. "Your brothers have been very...lively...in your absence, Professor. A little more discipline would smooth their ways in life. Take my son, Osamu, for instance..."

"I thank you for your advice," Higurashi said, and Ed didn't know how the other man managed to suppress all traces of sarcasm from his voice or his expression.

Ikeda made a dismissive gesture, then turned his attention to Ed and Al, studying them closely before saying in careful English to Alphonse, "Welcome to Japan, Mr. Edward Elric and Mr. Elric's younger brother. Your papers, please."

In that moment, Ed realized two things: Ikeda had no idea that they understood Japanese, and that (yet again), here was someone who thought Alphonse was the elder, just because he was fucking taller! He began to bristle, and thought better of it.

Kill 'em with courtesy, he reminded himself, reining in his temper with an effort. It was easier to do at twenty than it had been at twelve, when he had been the youngest State Alchemist in the history of Amestris.

He stepped forward and gave a perfunctory bow, feeling the heavy brush of his ponytail as it swept over his shoulder. "Konnichi-wa," he said, deliberately mangling his accent, then continued in English: "I am Edward Elric. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Mr. Ikeda."

He reached into his coat for the large leather wallet containing their passports and other papers, and handed it to Ikeda, whose expression had darkened at having his mistake pointed out to him.

Uh-oh, thought Edward, holding his breath as he always did when presenting Alfons Heiderich's papers. The black-and-white photo on the German passport was a very close match to Al, but Heiderich had had blue eyes, and they had taken a huge risk in altering the eye color descriptions to match Al's hazel eyes.

Ed watched Ikeda frown over their passports, and wondered whether Ikeda could read what the papers said. Apparently he could. Still frowning, he looked up. "You have different family names," he stated, accusingly.

"We're half-brothers," Ed replied, used to telling the lie by now. None of the officials in the United States had blinked at fifteen-year-old Alphonse passing for twenty-one, but every single last one of them had immediately noticed that Al's last name was not Elric.

"I see." Ikeda flipped through the papers one last time, and Ed could tell he was looking for an excuse to question them further. Then he stuffed the papers back into their wallet, and handed it back to Ed. "Welcome to Japan, Mr. Elric and Mr. Heiderich." He stumbled a little over the last names, and Ed saw his expression darken further.

This guy is looking for a reason to become our enemy, he thought. And he hates people seeing him makemistakes.

"Please follow me," he said, curtly, and turning, strode away. Higurashi, Al, and Ed snatched up their suitcases and followed him outside, to where a shiny black car awaited them.

Nothing was said as they got in the car. Higurashi sat up front, next to Ikeda, and Al and Ed settled themselves in the back seat. Ed traded glances with his brother, and saw that Al was dying to talk to him.

He gave a tiny shake of his head. Amestrian was out of the question, of course, and there was no telling whether Ikeda understood German. After all, he had read it well enough to decipher Al's passport.

"Later," breathed Al in Cretan, in a whisper that barely reached Ed's ears. Ed nodded minutely, and turned his head to look out the window.

Like Yokohama, Tokyo's main streets were lined with Western-style buildings--shops, hotels, and restaurants. And like Yokohama, signs of last year's earthquake were everywhere, from the freshly-painted newness of the standing buildings, to the piles of rubble and twisted metal piled along the riverbanks as they crossed several bridges.

They drove for nearly an hour. The Western-style buildings thinned out the further they got from the train station, and the neighborhoods began to get hilly. Soon, they were surrounded by two-and three storied Japanese houses, with sliding doors and blue tiled roofs, interspersed with the occasional red-beamed gateway that marked the entrance to a shrine.

As Ikeda and Higurashi conversed quietly in the front seat, Ed and Al both pretended a deep interest in the passing houses, and strained to overhear. Only snatches were comprehensible, but Ed gathered that Ikeda was reporting that there had been no signs of the dragon since its escape, and that Higurashi was trying to reassure him that Ed and Al would be able to find it.

Ed wasn't so sure about that, but he would do his best. They hadn't come all this way just to fail again, he told himself. He hoped Higurashi hadn't been lying to them when he told them that there was something about the Bone-eater's Well. Something special.

A way home.

Historical and canon notes for this chapter:

The Japanese Tokubetsu Koutou Keisatsu (Special Higher Police), also known as Tokkou, was roughly equivalent to the FBI in the US, but with a much more anti-democratic flavor. It was established in 1911, specifically to investigate and control political groups and ideologies deemed to be a threat to the public order. The splinter group mentioned in this chapter, Descendents of the Dragon, is entirely my own invention.'