Singing a Silent Song
She made her way into the kitchen, sitting down at the table with a pout on her face. Messy gold locks came down to just past her shoulders, sticking out slightly. Her eyes, a pale green, looked up at her mother, who was beginning to prepare dinner. "Mommy, they're fighting again." She whined.
"Again? Don't let it get to you, dear, they'll stop soon." Her mother sent the small child a smile, which was returned. "Do you want to help me with dinner?"
"Yeah!" The girl stood back up and walked over to the counter.
"Wash your hands first, since you've been outside."
"Okay." After scrubbing her hands thoroughly, she grabbed hold of the wooden spoon to stir the boiling pot of stew. The aroma soothed the little girl, and she soon forgot her older brothers' spat that caused her to go inside in the first place. "Am I doing good, Mommy?"
"Yes, you're doing excellent!" The woman replied, the soft smile never leaving her face. It was always comforting, no matter the situation.
Happy with the praise, the girl continued to stir, switching hands when one or the other would get tired. After a few minutes, her mother asked, "Will you go and tell your brothers it's time for dinner?"
The girl nodded, turning and racing outside again, in search of her two older brothers. She was close with both of them, though they were protective of her in a childish way. It was a warm, sunny day, perfect for playing outside, which was what the children had been doing. She made her way down to the river, where she had last seen her brothers. They were still there, sitting at the edge of the water. As her mother had said, they didn't seem to be fighting anymore.
"Mommy says it's time to eat!" She called out to them.
At the mention of food, the boys sprang up. "Race you!" They cried in unison, before they sped back towards the house, practically on each other's heels. With a small sigh, their sister followed.
She was back home in a few minutes, long after her brothers had arrived. They were eagerly waiting to start eating. The kids' mother had always made it a rule for everyone to be sitting down before they ate.
"Man, you're so slow! We were waiting forever!" Her oldest brother pouted. "Can we eat now?" He asked as his sister sat down.
"Go ahead." Their mother nodded, and soon her children dug in.
It was those happy times that would soon be looked back upon with mixed emotions. Some happiness, loneliness, and above all guilt and longing. It seems hard to believe that a happy family such as this one would be torn apart, the remains holding onto each other tightly afterwards. Such a thing would be too cruel.
Just a few weeks later, that same girl and her brothers had been sent outside to pick tomatoes for that day's dinner. They took their time, searching the plants thoroughly for the most ripe, juicy red tomatoes. It didn't take long for them to fill the baskets, but they decided to hold off on going home for a few minutes, instead deciding to play with each other on the journey back. They played a game of tag with each other, the boys deciding to pick on their sister some, teaming up and making sure she was always 'it.'
After some whining and complaining from said girl, they decided to hurry back home, not wanting to be scolded for taking too long. They ran along the path that led up to their house, and before even opening the door, the girl could tell something was different, in a bad way. The trio, upon entering the house, announced in unison, "We're back!" before abruptly dropping their baskets. Tomatoes rolled onto the floor, but none of them took any notice.
"Mommy!" The youngest exclaimed, running over to her mother, who was lying on the ground, deathly pale. "What's wrong? Get up, Mommy!"
After that, everything was a rush, too difficult to remember. That was the last time the girl had ever seen her mother with the slightest bit of life in her. At the time, it seemed too much to handle, as if it had never happened. It was at the funeral that she realized, life would never be the same again. Her mother was gone, forever, and there was nothing she could do.
Dressed in black and gripping her oldest brother's sleeve, the blonde couldn't hold in her tears. They streamed down her face in an endless waterfall. She would occasionally choke out a small sob, but otherwise she was silent. After the funeral, she sank to her knees in front of her mother's gravestone. She couldn't cry anymore. There were no more tears to wet her cheeks any further.
"Mommy..." She whispered her throat dry and tongue slightly swollen. She had never experienced sorrow like this, a hollow feeling filled her heart to the brim. Her brothers felt the same way, both of them having a dead look in their eyes. They sat silently in the cemetery for hours, before the oldest of the three finally spoke.
"We're going to bring Mom back."
"Using alchemy?" Her second oldest brother inquired voice hoarse and thick with emotion.
"But we're not allowed to. The books said that's bad." Their sister added her opinion.
"So what? She's our Mom, she doesn't have to go so early. We can bring her back, and she'll be really proud of us."
With that, it was decided. The idea of seeing their mother again had occupied all three minds, and for a few years they dedicated themselves to that promise. They sought out training from an alchemy teacher, and instead of normal schoolwork, read books that the youngest didn't fully understand, though she was smart for her tender age.
The training was hard, exhausting them every day. But whenever they would lie in bed, they would feel they were one step closer to their goal, one step closer to seeing their mother again.
When the day finally came, the now eight-year-old girl was shaking with excitement and nervousness. She went with her brothers to her house, where they had already prepared the transmutation, with the ingredients for the human body in the middle of a huge transmutation circle. Each of them pricked their finger, allowing some of their blood to drip into the pile.
"Are you sure we should do this?" Her second youngest brother, who was now nine, asked.
"We can't stop now." The oldest, a ten-year-old, stated. "We're almost there, soon we'll get to see Mom again."
"I'm scared." Their sister whimpered, green eyes moistening slightly.
"Aw, come on, don't chicken out now." Her oldest brother rolled his eyes, ignoring the quiet, 'be nice.' that the other sibling muttered.
"I'm not!" She denied, a fierce look overtaking her eyes.
"Then come on. On the count of three. One... Two... Three!"
Simultaneously, the three slapped their hands onto the corners of the transmutation circle, watching with grins as it lit up blue, sparks emitting.
Mommy, come back... We're here, Mommy!
The pretty blue, however, soon turned a crimson shade of red, not unlike blood. The smiles the three harbored faded. "What's happening? Brother, I don't think this is working right!" The nine-year-old's voice was shaky as he spoke up. Before he was able to continue further, he let out a cry of pain.
His sister looked over, eyes wide and scared. Her brother's body was beginning to dematerialize, right in front of her eyes! A panicked shriek left her lips as he was pulled into the middle slowly.
Her oldest brother soon gave in too, his left leg also disappearing. Tears began to leak from her eyes at seeing this, both of her older brothers letting out cries of pain. She felt helpless, wasn't there anything she could do?
Before she could move, there was a flash of white, and she was standing in a white chamber, right in front of a gate. She was there with her oldest brother, and another man she didn't recognize. He was as white as the chamber itself. He didn't even have a face, or any defining features. He had a black silhouette, separating himself from the background.
She couldn't understand the words he spoke, her mind in too much of a panic to work correctly. Her ears were ringing loudly, heart pounding faster than it ever had before. She was unable to react in time as a bunch of black wisps with hands at the end grabbed onto her, with a grip much stronger than their size would let on.
The gate behind her opened and she was pulled in, despite her struggles to get free. She looked behind her, not expecting the sight she was met with.
Countless pairs of eyes stared back at her, looking like they were harboring smirks of glee. Her head began to slowly feel pressured, as if it was being compressed. What was at first bearable, soon became a blazing pain that flashed through her whole body. Vast amounts of information entered her mind, bringing scenarios and visions of sorts with it. It wouldn't stop, despite her head being about to burst. She shut her eyes tightly to block it out, but the pain didn't ease. She soon opened her mouth with a wail, her brother joining in with her after that.
Is this it? Am I going to die here?
The pain began to fade some, but not enough. It still burned through her, like a hungry wildfire. Her vision went black, screams beginning to subside.
She opened her eyes a few minutes later, to find herself back on the floor in her house, but it wasn't over yet. She looked around to see her oldest brother, missing his left leg. Blood was flowing freely, pooling around him. She tried to push herself up, the adrenaline rush giving her energy, about to call her brother's name.
She didn't get far. As soon as her voice sounded, it suddenly stopped, as if something had blocked it. A burning pain spread into her throat, and she pulled her hands up to cup around the sensitive skin. At contact, the pain only worsened, causing her to jerk her hands away. Time stopped momentarily at observing the large amount of blood that now coated her hands, only after a second's worth of contact.
Time started back up again. She heard her eldest brother scream her name, but darkness overtook her vision, pulling her into a peaceful state of nothing.
A/N: ...
What a lovely way to start a story! :D I am so excited about this right now, I only hope I can keep that excitement throughout this story. Yes, I do realize I am also currently writing another story titled 'Two Sides of the Same Coin,' but I've had this idea ever since I roleplayed this with my friend, which is what inspired this.
I can promise you that future chapters will include names, and much more happiness. This was but a prologue, therefore it was also short. The next chapters will be longer than this, much longer. I hope you guys end up liking this.
So yes, with this I take my leave. Please, please, review! Let me know what you think so far, because this took me awhile to write. I want to know if it's good, or if I need any improvements. Please review!
Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist, because you know, if I did, it would be much more messed up and psychotic.
Have a nice Monday!
~~~Edited as of 4-27-2014~~~
Much like my other story, I have decided to edit the existing chapters before continuing on. I now have a beta reader, whereas when I started this, I didn't. My beta went through this prologue and edited some for me, so I decided to re-post it.
Many thanks to my amazing beta reader: Ruizu73!
Enjoy the remainder of your Sunday!