• Chapter One
A/N Well, I was stupid and deleted (by accident) the first document on my iPod. Reason why YOU put the chapters separately so you only need to rewrote certain chapters. Three chapters in and it's gone. The IPod needs a recycling bin like the computer, and why you post things on Notes on FB to keep track... I make stupid mistakes. Enjoy what could have been. Warning: Language through the whole story. Smut(not described), peril, gore you would find in a 14-A movie, some nudity, maybe implied Yuri/Yaoi (depends on my mood. Most likely EdRoy, DarkKrad, DarkEd, AutShinji or EdElricxEdMustang.) Enjoy.
- Risembool, a quaint, peaceful place. The smell of ash is faint, carried by civil wars. It's old ash, but it brings back raw memories to those who have lived here, and those who haven't. Lying in a blood-slicked puddle of grass, a deadly amount, was a purple haired girl being supported by someone pressing blood dyed gauze to a hole where her right arm had been. It had been snatched away by the Gate, in exchange for the Truth. She was dying and in need of immediate assistance. Two boys, both matching one of the girls, one blonde, the other purple haired. The blonde teen (both were actually literally centuries older than they looked) matched a well-known alchemist from the area. Eyes and hair. It could have been menacing. That one had spotted the very house that would be either life or death of the girl whose every heartbeat spelt disaster for her. Chills settled on his heart as he spread white wings and flew stealthily over. He landed a little farther from the house and ran the rest of the way. He climbed the steps and banged on the door loudly.
"Help!" He shrieked loudly. The door was flung open by a fifteen year old one-armed teen with gold eyes that challenged anyone and blonde hair back in a braid.
"Winry and Pinako are busy, but I can help, what do you need?"
"One of my best friends lost her right arm and she's going to die!" The older blonde had a tone of a drowning man crying to his rescuing helicopter. His hand flinched up to the metal plated area of a missing limb. His face had a memory imprinted on it like some sick memory. "One second." He closed the door, and uneven steps resonated from behind the oak door. A shout came at the blonde, then a shout and a set of desperate thudding feet as the door was thrown open and the short blonde shot out, persued by a burly man whose clothes seemed to be bought from Big and Tall Menswear. Either that he was the Thing. Minus the bricks. "Show us where." The man asked him, bandages in his hands. The taller blonde nodded before running off to the dying girl.
-Shinji-
I woke up in a room that was familiar, yet strange. I remember landing on a patch of grass, ash and flame scented wind wafting around me paired with the faint scent of machine oil.
"Hey." Came Dark's broken voice from beside me. I twisted my head to look at him. A new shiny lower arm was rested across his lap, the fingers twitching uncontrollably.
"Automail?" I quietly asked, my voice harsh. He nodded.
"Pinako made it for me. We've been here a week." He looked at the door. "You need new clothes. Once you get your own Automail, the two of us will go to East City." I stiffened.
"Roy. Mustang." I dryly said, no affection for him.
"Your father's mirror." Dark felt my forehead. The door opened. "Hey. You're awake, huh." Dark pulled back, brushing the silver metal of his arm. A boy a little older then me came in, a roll of gauze in his hands. He walked over and helped me sit up, telling me to push my body up with my left arm. I nodded and shook my black hair out. I usually had purple hair, but it felt nice to have my natural color in my hair and eyes. Go read book one and two. :) The kid unwound the bandages.
"I'm Edward." He introduced himself, checking my side. He sighed before winding fresh bandages around my chest.
"Shinji." I looked at Dark and smiled. A short woman came in.
"Ed, how's our patient doing?"
"She's up, as you can see, the bleeding's stopped, but it's still a gaping wound, like it's waiting-"
"For Automail." I cut Ed off. "It's waiting to have a replacement for it's loss. I have an odd body." Dark smiled as wings, invisible to the normal people-people who didn't share the smidgen of bird DNA, magic and so many other talents I hadn't discovered yet- fluttered behind me. If it were just us, the thief would have curled his hands in the non-substantial feathers. I smiled as I shifted to get up. "Can you make me some?" I asked Pinako. She smirked.
"Of course. Welcome to the family. Ed and Al seem to have taken quite a liking to you." Of course the two who mirrored my brothers would like me. "Miss Shinjitsu Elric-Mustang." I blushed as I looked at Dark. He shrugged.
"Told 'em your name, so what?" I rolled my eyes.
"Mousy, is there any clothing of mine left, unstained?" I had been in my Barrier Jacket, as that was bloodstained, so was my clothing. He shook his head.
"Impossible to remove the stains without destroying them." I swore in Japanese.
"Okay, once I have rested, let's go to East City. I can get a decent outfit and... Ugh, I wanna make something burn..." I let my fingertips catch on fire. Ed jumped back. I sighed as I watched the flames. I'm a pyro, so what? "Get me some flame alchemy gloves, Thief." I decided to go Hunter on him, the slight instinct I had when Krad leeched my magic. He yelped and nodded.
"I'll try to get some." He sighed as I put the flames out.
"Howdyah do that?"
"I'm a fire elementalist. In both alchemy and magic." I looked at my arm. "And if it weren't for..." I shuddered at the memory of those black hands, touching my body, pulling me into the black gate's bleak and pain-filled depth. "The Gate..." I whispered, rubbing my shoulder. "Gate." It took Ed a little to figure things out.
"You saw it too?" He was on me like Black Hayate on Breda, just to annoy the fuck out of the poor guy. I nodded.
"Truth took my arm..."
"Then... You had to perform Human Transmutation?" He looked shocked. "Who was it?" I took on a sullen look as I pointed to the person I had perfectly resurrected.
"He had been dead for a month. I called him back through sacrificing the one thing higher than your own Gate- my Linker Core. Its something inside me that allows me to use magic. Without it, I'm fucked." Ed laughed.
"Profanity... I like it!" My gold eyes glittered.
"My twin has a short temper and the same level of profanity of both you and Mustang drunk and high combined." I smirked. I ran my hand through my dark hair. If I was a guy, my eyes would be the same sneaky shape as my dad's. Pinako smiled.
"Ed, show her to the living room, lend her a vest or coat. Since you both are runts, your clothes should fit quite well on her."
"DON'T CALL ME SMALL! IM STILL GROWING YOU DIMWIT MINI GRANNY!" I shouted. "HALF PINT HOBBIT FROM HELL!" She barged back into the room. "MICROSCOPIC MINI SHRIMP! LAZY HALFWIT SQUEAK OF A BROKEN HO!"
"FUCK OFF, CHIBI GRAN!" I was close to setting her hair on fire.
"EMBERS OF A SHRIMP!"
"CALL ME SHORT ONE MORE TIME AND YOU'LL BE A CHARCOAL SMUDGE ON THE FLOOR!" I let flames flicker on my hand. She smirked and turned away.
"Well, I'll get working." She left, leaving me steaming. A blonde girl came in, holding a lump of metal and a measuring tape.
"Grandma told me to come measure and fit a prosthetic on you until the operation." She started measuring it and fitted the plate on, twinges of nerves getting connected. She fitted something like Dark's prosthetic on. I moved it around. Not as mobile, but it would do.
"Thanks."
"No need, Shinji. I'm Winry." She smiled, tapping the arm gently. "Take it easy, it's not as durable as Automail."
"I can tell you that." Dark sighed, watching his fingers ball up into a fist and unclench. "So much better, even though rehab is annoying." I stood up and walked to the door. I stepped out and Ed followed.
"This way. Autumn and Krad are down there, Al and my 'bodyguard' are sparring." Ed led me down the hall. I came into the living room, where Krad and Autumn were playing chess. Krad was winning and had captured most of his girlfriend's pieces. He captured another pawn and leant across the board and kissed Autumn. I smiled. Ed handed me a black article of clothing. I slipped it on, finding it was one of his short jackets. I snapped the catch closed on it. Dark came up behind me.
"That jacket looks fucking hot on you." Dark murmured, licking his lips.
"Get a room!" Krad called. Dark laughed as he hugged me.
"When she's eighteen!" Dark hollered back, a smile lighting up his eyes. He whispered in my ear.
"After that, I will have sex and make you pregnant with my baby." I blushed brightly, imagining the bundle I would eventually have. My eighteenth birthday would be spent, after the party, in bed, messing around with Dark.
"I love you." I flashed my classic smirk at him.
"As I do you, Pyro." I stepped away and sat by Autumn on the couch. Dark stuck his tongue out as he moved his left hand.
"Hurts like hell." I set on rubbing the flesh above the metal limb with my remaining limb, the way I had for my 'other/past' mother. Dark sighed in relief as I managed to massage a little stress from the muscles. Ed placed a hand on my shoulder, me being a little bit of an Edward Cullen, picked up some of his thoughts. Shinji's cute. Too bad Dark has her. If he leaves her, or breaks her heart, I'm taking her. I want her. The last thought scared me a little. Wanted me as in lust-wise, or wanted me as in wanting me to be his girl. I had an internal shudder. Damn Cullen. Go to hell for all I fucking care. I sighed as I sat by Autumn, whispering moves into her ear, thinking of each piece of a soldier in an army, like what I may be commanding at the very end of all this living hell Aut and I were stuck in with no lifeline out. And right now, I was clinging to the very edge of my Flame Pull. If I wasnt careful, it would shatter and I would be royally fucked. Aut would have to perform it on me, and it would leech my wing color away. I like the charcoal black with gold and silver flecks my wings are. And I was clinging to my Flame Pull like a drowning man clings to a raft. Or my twin clinging onto his last bar of Dark Aero chocolate. Yes, I have tried to take his Aero away, causing a punch to my sensitive area. Trust me, a direct hit to your boob (for all you women out there) does not feel great. It's like someone kicking a guy's nuts. I have felt Dark's memory of Krad getting him, not lovely. And Ed throws a mean punch. Almost as bad as getting WinryWrenched. I hoped that I'd pull through all of this. Haha. Pull. Ugh, bad pun.
Three days later, Ed had decided to hit on me.
"Shinji. If you aren't busy, could I come over to your room?"
"No." I flatly declined. He was not a Mustang.
"Why not?" I had bound my chest flat, makin me look like a Ed-Roy hybrid. I desperately lusted for some EdRoy yaoi, but I shouldn't pull my IPod out in this world. Mmmmmn, EdRoy. So smexy. Better than DarkKrad any day. Oops, there goes that Yaoi Fangirl side.
"I know what you want." I crossed my arm over my chest. I wore some of Ed's extra clothing, a vest and leather pants. I had been wearing the coat that Krad had given me for my fourteenth, which in matter of fact was creeping up in a month or so. My fifteenth. Ed turned sixteen on February 5th, so I was caught up to him for about... 5 months. Dark lay on the floor, taking a cat nap and stretched out on the floor like an oversized house cat, which he liked to act as (a huge kitty in bed, suck up) often. Dark snored lightly, purple ears on the top of his head, giving him a male Neko look. I smiled as I petted his left. Dark liked to have purple cat ears on his head in 'Cat Mode'. He made something like a purr in his throat and I realized how much Dark was of a leopard and a deadly dragon. The black side of the Kokuyoku seemed to have leopard and dragon or bird DNA, making us like stealthy creatures of the night. Yes, we are just like big cats when ya got us in bed. Especially me, suck up Uke I am. Okay, gotta stop talking about that. Ed sighed.
"He's taking-"Ed prodded Dark gently in his side, the large cat rolled over, but didn't wake up. "A nap. He won't know."
"I would feel like I was cheating on him." I scoffed. Ed sat on my hips, pinning me to the couch, and teenage hormones raged through my body. I was not going to turn into some slut before getting my liscence and seducting Mustang into getting me into his bed. He pressed his lips to mine fervently. I was stunned as Ed held me captive through pinning my hips, my wrist and lips down and prisoner to him. I kissed back and felt the wet slip of Ed's tongue licking my bottom lip for permission to enter my mouth. I opened my mouth to let him trespass into female (and hostile) territory. I felt something unhook inside me and I felt a strange tug. It stopped after a brief moment. His tongue slipped in and lapped around mine, making me moan slightly. His hands slid up and down the curves of my body, resting on the bandages that no longer kept blood from staining furninture and clothing, but bound my chest until I could get a bra, hesitating as if he was unsure wenether to undo the vest and cut the bandages and touch forbidden flesh for someone who wasn't a baby who needed to be fed or a lover. He bit my lip gently, making my hormones whip up again quickly.
I pulled away, whispering an 'Ed, stop.' He looked at me, lips swollen from the kisses. His cheeks had been stained by a decent blush, something he rarely EVER showed. I can count on one hand all the times he's blushed. And even less with tears. Probably how many Justin Bieber pictures I had (One picture that I defaced from a Scholastic book order. And Ed's cried twice, actually, a pic on FB. That's two.). I walked up the stairs, my shoulders prickling and the flesh around the prosthetic port ached, Automail felt like it would be more natural than this piece of mocking shit that pretended to be an arm. I only had to put up with the damned replacement until Pinako finished the arm. I decided to take a nap in my room, curled up on the bed, black cat ears out with a crescent on my forehead, mimicking Luna from Sailor Moon -A pretty good Shojo in Japanese- and beating the prosthetic into submission against the pillow. I walked into my room, yanked my vest off and curled up on the mattress, the blankets in a nest. I fell soundly asleep, one that someone who have to scare me awake.
My dream was a little odd. Ed stood with me, not the one from Amestris, but my brother. His hands were coated in feathers and blood, as if he had just defeathered and dispatched a bird-human hybrid chimera. A lumped shape lay on the ground, the other Ed crouched, watching the thing with deathly sharp eyes. His outfit was one of a Homunculus and the mark on his left bicep was a strong red brand that the whole world could see. His eyes carried rage along with the 'fuck off or die a painful death' battle glare he carried normally in a fight. I sucked in a breath as bloody limbs pulled back under it's skin and red sparks flew into the air and the thing stood up, the blood on my brother's hands collecting into a smooth stone. I knew who this was as soon as they turned their hateful purple stare on me, crushing me emotionally and melting my thrills of adrenaline that coursed through my veins, wounds on my arm and chest sparking with a blue thrill shut. I swallowed, thinking something was keeping me alive... But what? I knew this was going to be the future. And I had to find out what it was by waiting it out and braving it out and just getting to then. A door opened, and since the dream had ruffled my feathers already, I jumped awake. Pinako stood, clenched hands on her hips with a defiant smile on her face. "It's ready. Your Automail." She confirmed it.