Ch.1
"What a glorious street! What a magnificent store! What wonderful people! What a blessed, glorious, magnificent country!!"
"Yeah—thanks Al." Ed muttered as he watched the people on the street watching his little brother's tirade. "I bet you can't make it any more obvious that we are not from here and that you are off your rocker."
Al stopped and blinked at his older brother. "Whatever do you mean Brother?"
"Never mind Al, never mind." Ed laughed as he shook his head. "I was just—"
"You two young scallywags seem to be lost! Permit me to show you the way!"
The two brothers stopped and turned to see an old man with pure white hair and brown eyes, shining with amusement, pointing his walking cane at them. "Ah, so great foreigners! So lost you seem to be in our vast and beautiful country."
"How can you tell we're not from here and that we are lost?" Al asked.
"My dear sir! You take me for a common fool!" The old man groaned as he rolled his eyes. "You dress funny, you talk funny and you're running down the street as if the devil himself were after your soul!" He banged his cane on the ground. "I may be older than most, but I am not crazy! Not at all!"
Ed looked at his brother with raised eyebrows then turned back to the old man. "You are right Sir—we are not from around here. In fact, we were just on our way to find a place to stay for the evening."
"Oh my good gentlemen! Look no further for I know of a dwelling in which you may rest your tired, little heads." The man grasped Ed's arm with his free hand and led the brothers down the street. "Do not be frightened of these vile creatures that roam the streets my dear sirs—for I will do all in my power to protect you!"
"Um, okay." Al chuckled nervously.
"Exactly where are you taking us?" Ed asked after a moment of silence.
"To the finest establishment on this side of the Atlantic my dear boy!" The old man let go of Ed's arm and held out his cane.
The two brothers glanced up at a mansion-like white house and their mouths hung open in shock. "Wow—it's huge!" Al whispered
"This is the place in which you may stay!"
Ed turned to the old man. "But this looks like someone's home! We can't just walk into someone's home, uninvited."
"And when has that ever stopped you before Ed?"
"Shut up Al." Ed muttered through clenched teeth.
"Nonsense my boy! For you see—"
Just then the door to the house was flung open and a young woman with long red hair stepped out onto the porch. "Frederick Winston Myers! What do you think you are doing!?" She ran down the walkway and grasped the old man's arm. "The doctors told you to stay in the house, in bed, after that fall of yours!"
Frederick patted the girl's hand. "My dear gentlemen—this is my granddaughter, Christiana. She takes such good care of me! Go ahead boys—ask her!"
Christiana looked over at the two boys. "Grandpa, who are your friends?"
Frederick looked at the brothers and then at Christiana in surprise. "Well you know what? I have no idea."
Christiana rolled her eyes. "You brought these boys here and didn't even bother to get their names?"
"He just brought us here and said we could rest." Al interjected.
"Well he was right, I'll give him that. This is an inn; it's been in my family for generations." She shook her head. "I'm sorry—where are my manners? My name is Christiana Myers, but everyone just calls me Ana. And this crazed fruit-loop is my grandfather, Frederick Myers. He's a little crazy, but there's nothing really wrong with that is there?"
"Um—I guess not." Ed grinned at her. "I am Edward Elric, but you can just call me Ed since everyone else does. And this is my brother—"
"Alphonse Elric at your service madam!" Al shook her hand enthusiastically. "But you may call me Al."
Ana raised an eyebrow. "You know what? You're really weird." She cocked her head to the side and looked at them strangely. "How old are you boys anyway? Never mind, don't answer that if you don't want to. Follow me and I'll show you to your rooms." Ana led them into the house.
"You can leave me here gentle lady—I will be fine." Frederick said as they entered the living room. "See there is dear Lady Midway."
"Alright Grandpa, but please don't leave the house again okay? Promise me."
Frederick held his index and middle finger up. "Scout's honor Ma Cherie!"
Ana shook her head and laughed. "Come on boys."
Ed and Al followed close behind Ana as she made her way up the stairs. "I'm twenty-one and Al is twenty." Ed said suddenly.
"Excuse me?" Ana turned to face them.
"When we were outside you asked how old my brother and I were; Al is twenty and I am twenty-one."
"You seem younger than that; maybe about my age."
Ed and Al looked at each other. "And how old are you?" Al asked.
"Eighteen."
The two brothers stared at each other, mouths open in shock. "And here I was thinking that you were our age!" Ed exclaimed. "You act so…so…so grown up."
Ana pushed open a door before she replied, "You can stay in these rooms."
"Rooms? I only see one." Al said as he poked his head into the room. "It's a very nice room though."
"Here, let me show you boys." Ana crossed to the far side of the room and pushed open another door. "Viola!" The brothers looked into another room with awe. "A second room." She walked through the other room and opened the door that led to the hallway.
"Brother this is awesome!" Al exclaimed.
Ana's back stiffened. "I had to grow up very fast. My mother died while giving birth to me and my father and older brother died when I was sixteen. I took over this inn and I took over the responsibility of taking care of my grandfather."
Ed and Al looked at each other, their memories racing through both of their mind; Growing up without their father around, their mother sick, dying, and then dead, finding their father and then losing him when he was killed only several years previous.
"Dinner will be ready at seven o'clock. You don't have to eat what I cook of course, but it will be there. Get yourselves cleaned up okay?" Ana quickly shut the door behind her.
"Why do you think she told us all of that brother? We hardly know her at all." Al whispered.
Ed shrugged. "I don't know. Why are you whispering anyway?"
Al blinked at his brother. "You know what? I don't know."
"And here we have the grand gallery!" The door burst open and Frederick entered the room. "And our guests of honor are already here! Wonderful!"
"Uh, Mr. Myers? What are you doing here?" Ed asked.
Frederick glanced behind him before shutting the door quickly. "Now you to listen to me very carefully," he said in a normal voice. "My granddaughter believes that I am senile and that is the way it has to stay."
"But why?" Al asked, taking a step back.
"Because my Christiana, my dear, sweet little Ana—is special. Her father wanted to place me in an old folk's home, but I knew Ana would be lost without me. Who else would understand her gift?"
"Gift?" The brothers asked at the same time.
"Yes—her gift. Ana's mother had the gift and so did her brother. You boys aren't from here right? And I don't just don't mean from this country—I mean from this world."
"How…how could you possibly know that?" Ed stared at Frederick with wide eyes.
"I have my gifts as well boy." Frederick replied with a shrug. "Now you were wondering why dear Ana told you those things about her family? Maybe it is because she sees in you two what she had with Daniel."
"Who's Daniel?" Al whispered, fearing the answer.
"Daniel was her older brother."
Al looked over at Ed. "We never got to ask her—how did her brother die?"
Frederick hung his head. "That has nothing to do with me. I'm afraid if you really want to know, then you have to ask Ana herself." He cocked his head to the side. "I'd better get going now. Ana's looking for me again. She does take really good care of me." With a smile Frederick left the room.
"Brother—this is beginning to give me the creeps!" Al exclaimed. "How could anybody, especially Mr. Myers, know that we are not from here?"
"Maybe we should talk to Ana first. Hopefully she can make some sense out of all of this." Ed replied.
Just then Al's stomach growled. "Do you mind if we get something to eat first? It's almost seven now."
Ed sighed as he shook his head. "Okay Al—let's go."
Ana stood at the kitchen counter, staring aimlessly out the window. Everything was getting even more complicated as each day passed. Her grandfather didn't realize it, but she had always known that he was not as crazy as he acted. "Let him believe that I am ignorant of his true mind capacity. It just makes things all the easier." She thought to herself. She sighed when the oven beeped. "And now there are these two brothers who desperately wish to go home even if they don't say it out loud. Reminds me of Daniel. I want to help them, but should I?"
When the kitchen door burst open Ana turned around quickly to see who it was; nobody ever came in here.
"Oh, sorry!" Al grinned as he picked himself up off of the floor. Ed had already climbed off of his younger brother and stepped away.
"What, in the hell, were you two doing?" Ana asked as she set the hot pan on the stove top. "You nearly gave me a heart attack bursting in here like that!"
"Wrestling." The brothers said at the same time.
"Of course you were." Ana pulled off the oven mitts with a sigh. "Dinner's almost done."
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Ed asked as he stepped forward. "It's the least we can do."
"I don't make guests help with anything in this house."
"But you see—we feel really bad. You have given Brother and me a place to stay, but we have no way to pay you for your kindness."
"You two are not going to let this go are you?" Ana sighed.
"Nope." The brothers grinned at her, arms crossed.
"Fine. Grab those plates over there," she pointed to the counter next to them, "and put them at the end of the long table in the dining room where the forks and napkins are already set."
The boys turned and their mouths dropped open in shock. "Those are a lot of plates to carry out there."
"Yes, so you had better get started." Ana nodded her head. "Hop to it boys—there are hungry people out there and they get cranky when they don't get their food on time." She watched as Al and Ed left the kitchen, each with an armful of plates. Before the boys could return Ana looked at the turkey that she had taken out of the oven and suddenly it was neatly cut up.
"Okay we're back for more—wow." Al's eyes widened when he saw the turkey. "You cut that up really fast."
"How in the world did you manage that?" Ed asked.
Ana shrugged. "It's called practice. I've cooked for my family since I was eleven years old when my grandmother died. I always used to help her in the kitchen."
"Lots of death." Ed whispered.
"It's life Ed. No matter what you do or what you say there will always be death. People you love will eventually die whether you like it or not. You cannot change anyone's destiny. After all—death is only another path of life we all must take."
Ed and Al looked at each other feeling as if Ana knew what they had tried to do. It also seemed that she regretted something that had happened in her life.
"Is this what you do all day?" Al asked.
"Not all day; it just takes up most of my day. Do you two always ask so many questions?"
"It's the only way to find answers." Ed replied. "Okay—now what?"
"Now you boys get the rest of those plates out there while I start to get the food all set up."
