Foreword: After reading a lot of FMA Fics I began to think up a story to get Ed and AL back home from the "real" world. Mostly because I hate how the movie ended. This takes place two years after the FMA Movie.
Chapter 1- Hoenheim's Letter
Edward Elric gave a weary sigh. He had been without a home for two years, and he couldn't remember the last time he'd had a decent meal. He and Al had been on their own for a while since Noah and the gypsies they had been traveling with were captured. The Nazi's seemed to have diminished, but suspicion of gypsies had not. Ed hadn't seen her since. He doubted he ever would. So it was with these thoughts casting a dark cloud over him that Ed began his 20th birthday.
"Brother," said Al excitedly "I've got something!"
Ed slowly pulled himself up from the wall of the alley. He hadn't slept well at all. Not that it's easy to sleep leaned against a brick wall in an alleyway. He scratched the growing stubble on his chin. Alchemy would have made shaving a hell of a lot easier he thought to himself. Soon he'd start looking like his father. Not that he wanted to make Al think about him when he didn't have to.
He had waited a long time to tell Al what had happened to their father. How he had been pulled through to the other side of the gate where they now lived and how he had disappeared when he and Ed where living in Munich, and how in his last moments he had given his life to send Ed back across the gate. Now that they had both returned through that gate, the grief would be with them for many long years. But at last Ed had found himself able to forgive his father, even if he could never tell him.
Al had told him about Izumi's death as well. Ed had been crushed. She had been more than their teacher. She was their mother. Looking back Ed had finally understood: although their mother had been taken from them, it seemed as if the world was balancing itself out. Izumi had lost her child and her ability to have more children, but Ed and Al had been her sons, not just her pupils.
"Brother, stop daydreaming and come look at this!" Al said impatiently
"Sorry, Al, what is it?" Ed asked.
"Breakfast." Al replied, holding up a loaf of bread.
"Al, you didn't steel that did you?" Ed asked accusingly
"No, I bought it." Al said
"But..." Ed was at a loss.
"I sold one of my drawings." Al smiled with pride.
Al had started drawing after only a short while after they had crossed the gate. He showed amazing talent a she had with his alchemy. he always drew pictures of home though, their old world and the people they had known.
"Which one did you sell?" Ed asked, his interest rising as he tore off a chunk of the bread.
"The one of mom." He said. his voice had dropped low again.
"aww Al, what did you go and do that for? That was one of your best drawings?" Ed replied
"That's why I got so much for it." Al replied
"How much?"
"Enough for a loaf of bread and two train tickets." Al said. Ed nearly choked.
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The train station in Berlin was expectedly noisy. Ed and Al where almost run down by harried citizens several times. They needed to pick a destination and stop standing around.
"What about Munich? Didn't you and Dad have a house there?" Al asked.
"it's been rented out to someone else by now." Ed said despondently.
"Are you sure?" Al asked. "maybe you should call there and at least find out for sure."
"Fine, fine. We'll need money for the pay telephone." Ed said.
The phone rang for a while before a rich german accent came across the line
"Guten Tag, this is Friedrich Hiedelberg, the housing manager, who may I ask is calling?"
"uh, yes my name is Edward Elric, my Father, Hoenheim and I, used to rent a house in your development."
"Ah, mister Elric, yes your father said that you might call."
"My Father?" Ed nearly crushed the receiver with his automail hand in surprise.
"Yes, he came to me about two years ago, he had asked where you went. I told him I hadn't heard where you were going. He left a very large sum of money and said that if you should come back or if you should call I should find a house for you to rent, using the money he left as a deposit. Well, I suppose you will want to rent ?"
"Uh, sure. But, I'm in Berlin right now." Ed said nervously.
"Well, what is a few more hours then?" I will have a place made ready for you right away. Good day!"
"Goodbye." Ed said.
"Well," Alphonse said with a smile "What did he say?"
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On the train, Al sat across from Ed, who was staring determinedly out the window. He was Ed and yet, not Ed. Al had noticed it from the first time they had been reunited. He was not as brash or impulsive. Perhaps he had just grown up, but something had changed him. His voice always carried a tone of quiet sadness, as if the years of seeing so much suffering had made him weary of the world. One thing had not changed, he would still never open up. He had been more honest with Al than anyone, but even his younger brother could never had imagined the things Ed had seen.
Riding a train was something that made both Ed and Al feel at home, as it was something that they had done when Ed was a state alchemist. In this world, they had a mission as well, even if they had been delayed by their hardships. A rogue scientist on their side of the gate had created a bomb which used an element called Uranium. He had crossed the gate when he performed a human transmutation, attempting to fuse the dead bodies of his uranium miners with machines. Now, that Uranium bomb had found its way into this world. Ed somehow knew they would have to stop it from falling into the wrong hands. Just who the "wrong hands" where, he wasn't quite sure.
Last he had heard, a scientist named Hoeffler had acquired a grant to study the mysterious element which had been discovered by the now seemingly defunct Thule society. He lived in Munich. So it was a good thing they where going there after all. Ed chuckled to himself. He couldn't seem to avoid trouble.
"Brother!" Al said in a sharp whisper, "Look!"
Ed looked at the newspaper Al was holding without much interest, until he saw a very familiar face.
"Greed!" He shouted, in spite of himself. Then thinking of his first meeting with Fritz Lang, who had looked like Pride, he felt very foolish.
No , this, according to the newspaper was Dr. Hoeffler, the man he had just been thinking about.
"Don't worry, Al, believe me, you'll see a lot more familiar faces once we get to Munich.
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The train rolled into Munich just around lunch time. Ed and Al ate at a quaint little French Bistro. Al seemed to really relish food in a way that Ed didn't. Of course he hadn't lived several years of his life a soul in an empty suit of armor, either. He loved Al more than he knew he could ever express, he had suffered so much in his short life, most of it because of Ed's choices. How could they ever be considered even?
Ed knew that Al had been able to live the years of his life that he had lost, as a result Al was now six years younger than him. This seemed strange as Al and Ed where still roughly the same height. Dammit Ed thought am I ever gonna actually look like the older brother? He scratched his chin, and feeling the stubble again, grinned.
They made their way to the housing development which Ed and Hoenheim had lived in. It was modest but comfortable. Th housing manager came out and welcomed them with his rich accent, bidding them to share a bottle of wine with him, Ed agreed but Al turned it down. Al still remembered the laws of their old home. Things where different here, but Ed didn't think it was a big deal. The housing manager seemed confused but let the matter go.
"Your father also left a letter for you, Edward I left it one your bed. I will let you rest now, traveling always tires me out, I'm sure you two are no exception." He gave a hardy laugh and left them to explore their new home.
Ed immediately flopped on his bed and tore open the letter. What could his Father have written, and why hadn't he told him the last time they had seen each other?
He began to read.
Dear Ed,
I came back hoping to find you, but I shouldn't have been surprised to see that you had left. I have left instructions with Hiedelberg to rent you a house If you return. I have been assisting the Thule society, well, I should say they have unwittingly been assisting me. I believe they may have found a way to open the gate on this side. I hope that they will not be aware of my lack of faith in their friend Adolph Hitler. I only wish to find a way to help you get back to Al.
From what I've gathered I've concluded that if the energy for alchemy in our world comes from the life force of this world, then conversely the life energy of our world would make alchemy possible here. That is to say, using the blood of someone from our world, like you or myself, in a transmutation, then the gate could be opened. However, there is also something the Thule society has mentioned about a "great serpent." A mythical dragon. I don't know about giant dragons but I do believe with your talent and a few drops of your own blood, you could open the gate. At least on your end.
If I see you before you get this letter we will discuss this in more detail. However, I know that I am treading dangerous ground with the Thule society and if my treachery is found out well, then at least I can say that I gave my life to give my sons back their lives together. You should know that I never meant to hurt you and Al the way I did. I especially never meant for your mother to suffer so much grief at my disappearance.
If I had stayed, If I had been there perhaps none of this ever would have happened. You and Al would never have gone through so much pain, ending up separated from each other, and you in a strange land full of new struggles and hurts. For all of this I blame myself. I hope in time you will come to forgive me, because for all the evils I've done in my long life, what I did to you and Al and your mother was the worst.
Edward, never forget, I love you and I'm so proud of the man that you're becoming. As I said before, There is nothing I could do to deserve a son like you and like Al.
Don't ever lose hope Edward!
Your Father,
Hoenheim Elric
Ed held the thin piece of parchment with a shaking hand, his mouth quivered with sorrow and joy. For so long he had only wanted to hear those words from his Father, and now he could never say them back. He set the letter on the night stand, undressed, and fell into bed, exhausted both in body and in spirit. Tomorrow would be even more tiresome. Tomorrow they would have to start tracking down Hoefller.
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Chapter 2: Reborn
Hoefler looked every bit like Shou Tucker's human form. He seemed nervous and neurotic but clearly passionate about his work.
"I knew someone would come eventually, demanding I turn this project over." He said to Edward.
"Listen, I'm not here from the government, I'm not with the party. I just came to tell you what this object is."
"I'm well aware of what it is."
"then how can you want to keep researching it. What if the Nazi's where to get hold of it?"
"You misunderstand me, Mr. Elric. Having studied this device I understand that it could cause the deaths of millions. I'm planning to leave the country. There's a physicist named Einstein. He's living in America, considering the attitudes about jews in this country, I don't blame him. I'm going to hand this over to him to study. He's a pacifist."
"So, you have no intention of using this weapon?" Al asked.
"No."
Edward looked into the man's bespectacled face. His eyes looked right back, set and unflinching. this was the truth.
Walking home, Ed hung his head. "Two years of work Al, and it all amounts to nothing. What the hell am I supposed to do now?"
Al mumbled something, but he didn't seem to be listening to his brother at all.
"Hey, Al are you even listening."
"What? Oh! Sorry brother, it's just..." he sighed heavily.
"C'mon Al, what is it?" Ed prodded.
"I miss home. I came to this world so that we could stay together. I didn't really think about anything else, but now..."
"Are you saying you regret your decision?"
"Well, no... and yes." Al hung his head this time.
Ed turned his eyes back toward the ground. Al would follow him anywhere, and now he was stuck here, poor and hungry. The reality of the economic depression this country was experiencing had come home to both of them. At least with the gypsies they had had food. Ed thought of Noa again.
He hadn't meant for it to happen. But he hadn't stopped her either. She had looked at him with those sad, pleading eyes and he hadn't been able to refuse her. he had never made love to a woman before. It had been awkward at first. But he had always had a certain grace in combat. he was amazed how similar the two acts really where. Sex and fighting, he had a natural talent for both.
The aftermath had been the worst part. The other gypsies seemed to know what the two had done. They didn't say much but he knew they weren't exactly thrilled. When their group was ambushed by corrupt military police, he and Al managed to get away simply because of their skin color. Noa hadn't been so lucky. Ed had sent his kind of ignorance and intolerance before. The military in his own world had treated the people of Ishbal the same way.
"If there was a way to go home, would you go back?" Al asked, breaking the long silence between them.
"I can't decide. I've lived here long enough that I actually have friends here. But I miss home too. I should know by now, that you can't have your cake and eat it too. No matter what I do, I always end up leaving someone behind."
"Do you mean Noa or...Winry?" Al asked in a whisper.
"I wish I knew." Ed muttered.
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Noa stared out the window of the car. She'd been lucky. This girl had saved her. A girl wearing a swastika, the symbol of the Nazi party. This could be a trap.
"Don't worry, Noa. I'm not going to harm you. I need you to help me. I've been looking for someone you know. his name is Edward Elric. " said the girl with short black hair.
Noa hesitated. Ed and the nazi's where not on good terms. Should she really trust this girl.
"Please trust me Noa. I'm not going to turn them over to anyone in the party. You where involved with the Thule society's project, weren't you?" The girl asked with a knowing smile.
"Yes."
"Then surely you've seen the portal, the gateway?"
"It's not what you think it is."
"but that's where you're wrong, Noa. I know it isn't the land of Shamballah. But is my world, and Edward's." The girl caressed Noa's face.
"You want to go there don't you?" she asked. "Haushoffer told em you had said that. I'm taking care of his Villa while he's on "holiday."
"You mean hiding from the law." Noa said.
The girl laughed. "Yes. But you understand what this means don't you Noa? You can help me get home and I'll bring you with me. But we need Ed's help. I was an alchemist too, but he's far more skilled than I am. When I crossed the gate, four years ago I was able to find a body like mine and force my soul into it. It's not a pleasant experience but it allows me to perform alchemy without using my own blood. But I need the knowledge that Edward Elric has, so that I can open the gateway, I don't know the proper transmutation circles."
"You won't need Ed. I'm a seer. I've been in his mind. I know everything about alchemy that he knows. But I can't perform it. I wouldn't know where to find him anyway."
"Well, if you can supply me with the information, I can get both of us across the gate. "
"I never thanked you, for saving me from that military prison. I don't even know your name yet." Noa said.
"You can call me Dante."
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Once Al had gone to sleep, Ed began his planning. Without the threat of the uranium bomb, what was left for them to do? Al wanted to go home. he would do anything for Al, anything to make up for all the suffering his younger brother had endured. There had to be some way to open the gate again. Dad transmuted Envy, and Al transmuted Wrath, which is why the gate became permanent. Both sides had opened it at the same time.
If he was able to open it on this side it would close once they stepped through to their won world. But what he could use as material? There where no more homunculi, and he sure as hell wasn't going to open the gate inside an infant as Dante had before. He doubted that would even work on this side of the gate. There had to be another way.
Could there be any other homunculi who had crossed the gate, made by other alchemists? Perhaps Haushoffer's research on the great serpent would give him some clues. He would have to go to the Villa and see if he could find the man, or at least some clue as to where he had gone. That was at least a step in the right direction. He hoped.
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"You're really going to ask Haushoffer about this? He's with the party, Ed."
"I don't have many other options. I've made up my mind, we're going home. I didn't want to tell you the other day, but I've had this feeling that our presence in this world is throwing something off. Some how I can feel it. It's this nagging thought that we don't really belong here. That's the best I can explain it."
"What if he's gone?" Al asked.
"Then we'll find another way." Ed said, knocking on the door of Haushoffer's Villa.
The door swung open and Al gave a gasp. Ed kept his calm.
"Excuse me miss, I was looking for Dr. Haushoffer. You may not remember but we sort of met at UFA."
"Oh, that's right" said the girl who looked like Lyra. "I was let go for budgetary reasons, sadly. But Dr. Haushoffer offered me a job looking after his estate. I don't agree with his party's policies, but a good job is hard to find these days." She smiled.
"Can we come in. I'd like to review Haushoffer's research." Ed said.
"I'm afraid I can't allow that. He gave me specific orders. But at least come in for a moment. Your name's Edward right? My boyfriend's name was Edward. We're not together anymore." She sighed/
"Well, If he's not here...."
"Edward..." a voice called from the stairs. Noa descended, stepping lightly as if she didn't believe it was him. Ed started to smile but noticed something. Her eyes are glazed over. Just like...
"Run Al." he growled.
"I don't think so." Dante said coldly.
Ed felt a flash of pain on the back of his head and his vision went black.
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Edward awoke with a splitting headache. Dante's face was the first thing he saw.
"Dante. But how?" He choked out. He now realized he was tied up, Al behind him, Noa to his left. They where in the main chamber, a large transmutation circle was inscribed on the ceiling. he also noted that his arm was bleeding slightly.
"Never mind that, Edward. You're going to help me get home. Thanks to Noa I now have the knowledge of Alchemy necessary to open the gate." She gave a cold chuckle.
"You can't do alchemy in this world!" Ed spat back.
"Oh but you see, I'm able to use alchemy because I'm merely borrowing someone's body. My real body is still in the gate. So I can use this one, lovely as it is to open that gate. By transmuting this Lyra's body, I can enter. Of course I promised Noa I'd bring her with me, and I'll need a new body to use once I return to our world. So I'm offering you and your brother in exchange for her safe passage. Your blood is a catalyst to make sure the transmutation has enough energy. "
Dante clapped her hands together and placed them on the threesome. Ed's vision went white and the world fell away from beneath his feet.
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Ed's eyes snapped open. He was alive. His body was whole. Al was lying unconcious next to him. Noa was gone.
"What the hell?" He said aloud. Looking around him he realized he was in the ruined city beneath central.
This makes no sense. Did Dante make a mistake? Why are we alive?
Then the memory came back.
"You and your brother will be spared, return to us the one called Dante and your debt is payed. Fail and you will return to the gate..."
He had heard the voice inside the gate, just like when he had transmuted his mother. There was some prescence within the gate, the truth or God or the universe incarnate, that's what it had said the first time. It was now clear to Ed what had to be done. Dante had been defying the laws of nature and of alchemy and apparently her number was up. The presence within the gate was hunting her down, like a bill collector. BUt why hadn't she come through the gate in the same location? She must've done something to get away. But what?
"Get up Al, where home."