Disclaimer: Characters and Places belong to Hiromu Arakawa, the creator and writer of Fullmetal Alchemist. Takes place between episodes 18 and 25, Pre-Hughes death.
Prologue
He knew that running down the street in the dead of night was dangerous. In fact, it still burned his brain, knowing he was doing the unsafe and reckless again. Had he not learned the last time?
Edward Elric, age fifteen, ran down the streets of East City in his black leather pants, black over-jacket, and red cloak. His hair, pulled loosely and messily into a braid, was swinging in his face. He was panting, hard, each step he took on the pavement pulling more air from his lungs. His nose, eyes, throat, and chest were burning, the embers causing a sharp gasp to escape him. He was scared, no – terrified of the man behind him.
That's why he had to keep running.
The autumn air blew in Ed's face, him inhaling the sweetness of maple wood and apples. He'd always loved living in Resembool, the rural village south of the capitol, because there was never any danger. Save the rain storm just weeks before, but he was used to showers like that. Resembool was a very wet, sweet-smelling place.
His brother Alphonse, age fourteen and stuck in a suit of steel armor due to a horrific accident, looked around. They weren't home for long, for Ed had to get his prosthetic arm re-measured before they continued their quest for their bodies. After all, they both missed the feel of each other's skin when Ed softly pounded on Al's chest plate after a job well done.
Al stopped on the view of a man and woman in the local marketplace. He'd always seen pictures of such affection in museums in Central, of a happy couple walking in a lovely green park, or just enjoying each other's company. Both brothers missed the happiness.
"Brother?" Al asked quickly first, making his way into a question his brother would most likely shrug off. A gruff "Hm?" was his signal to continue. "Do you ever wish… you had someone to be happy with? Who, no matter what you've done, you could always count on them to make you smile?"
Ed stopped then. His eyes saddened and his head bent downward. "I used to, Al. Back when…" he choked but continued "… when mom was alive."
Al said a shaky "Oh. Right."
The rest of the walk toward the train station was silent.
Chapter One
Three days was too long to sit on your butt on an uncomfortable train. The seats, though made of soft, pillow-like leather, had become hard after being pushed between the wood keeping it up and someone's bottom. Ed had become too used to this.
"I swear, there's got to be something done about those damn seats!" He growled under his breath and Al chuckled, throwing the luggage into his body. "Brother, please. You're too old to whine like that. You sound three years old." Ed paid heed to his brother's lecture, but soon shut the voice off. He was becoming a parent, a trait he'd probably acquired from his mother.
Ed waved his brother off dismissively with an added "Yeah."
The trees seemed to be running alongside the train as it chugged on the tracks. It was mid afternoon, the sun was burning high in the sky and the car they inhabited was heating up. Ed moved to open the window as a thin ribbon of sweat dripped from his hairline. "Hot… it's so hot!"
Al shook his head as the blond boy sat back down, the wind blowing his bangs from his face. "Ah… that's better."
When they reached the station, Ed had fallen asleep. His hair was slipping from the braid he'd eloquently done when they left their home country. Now, stray golden locks spilled over his shoulders. Al hoped he'd remember to remind his brother to fix it when they got to their living quarters closer to headquarters.
The train halted, making Ed fall from his seat. The alchemist landed on the ground, his cheek starting to bruise and his butt sticking up in the air. "Ow…" he mumbled, and Al helped him up. They marched out of the train car and onto the pavement, where they were met with Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes, their personal friend from HQ. "Hey, Elrics!" he shouted happily, and Ed waved awkwardly. They both made their way to the man. He wasn't in uniform, and instead was dressed in his ever-popular plum shirt and black dress pants. Casual sandals were on his feet, and he scuffed them, a loud smacking sound erupting through the closed station.
With his left hand, Ed smacked his forehead.
Hughes smiled and started walking away. His shoes were still making too much noise.
The Lieutenant Colonel escorted them to a car parked in the front of the station, where Lieutenant Havoc was waiting for the boys. After all, Ed hadn't learned to drive yet. "Alright," he said, a bit more professional than before, "In you go. Roy is waiting for you boys." Ed groaned, and Al nodded. He then went around to the driver's seat and whispered something in Havoc's ear, quiet enough for only Ed to hear:
"Be careful through Main Street; 'he' is waiting for Edward."
Ed's eyes widened as Hughes hit the back of the car as Havoc drove off. He hoped to whoever was up there that they wouldn't run into him.
The car ride was long for Ed, considering he was now darting his eyes left, right, forward and backward to look for anyone who could possibly be waiting. Maybe it was Scar, the man who targeted State Alchemists. The only thing people knew of him was the large 'X' shaped scar over the bridge of his nose. Ed shivered as he remembered what he'd done to his arm.
Destroying it from the port to the ends of his fingers.
Another shiver, and then a quiet "Who's waiting, Lieutenant?"
Havoc looked in the rear-view mirror to stare into the boy's nervous golden eyes. Keeping quiet, he looked back at the road, his eyes narrowing in concentration. Ed guffawed. "Havoc, I think I have a right to know who's chasing after me! Now, please! Who's after me!" Havoc turned the signal on and pulled over to the side of the road. Turning around, he spat angrily "Listen, Fullmetal. I'm not telling you for a reason. Now pipe down, calm down, and wait patiently until we get to HQ."
Ed gulped and scowled, his eyes narrowed as Havoc drove off toward HQ.
Chapter Two
"Well, Fullmetal, it seems that you've made an excellent recovery from your confrontation with Scar," General Roy Mustang smirked as his subordinate sent him a mock-interested stare. "Oh, thank you, Mustang. You're so c-c…" Al smacked his shoulder "considerate," he spat through his teeth, and Al said, acknowledging his brother's sour attitude, "It took a little over three days for Winry and Aunt Pinako to fix us, good as new. But, now we can continue looking for the Philosopher's Stone."
"That's wonderful," Roy said with a smile, "You boys might be a little disappointed though."
This was the point where Ed seemed more involved. "What do you mean?"
Roy leaned over his desk, papers being pushed aside and his smile falling into a deep frown. "Fullmetal," he called Ed by his alias because of his auto-mail limbs and stubborn attitude, "There's been some… complications here in the East. Someone fairly similar to Scar's tactic of hunting."
"You mean, he goes after State Alchemists?" Al inquired, and Roy nodded at him and continued as Ed's head cocked to the side. Roy eyed the boy carefully. "Sort of. He's after one in particular because of a certain incident that happened in Xenotime a month or so ago. A famous scientist was killed in his mansion, after coming in contact with a certain hot-headed puny alchemist researching the works of one Mister Tringam."
Ed gasped, Al following, and Ed stomped on the ground, bringing his whole body up in the process. His fists pounded the air beneath him for momentum. "Who're you calling… wait, huh?" the rant would have to be saved for later, because what the General had said was starting to sink in. "He's after me. It is me, right?" Al beside him panicked as Ed kept his melancholy frown.
Roy nodded, and Ed stepped back. "Sure, Fullmetal." Roy sensed his subordinate was going to run, and Ed turned to walk toward the exit of the man's office. "A piece of advice," Roy continued with a hint of kindness and concern in his tone. "If you run, he can find you, with the amount of experience he has chasing people down. There's three people already he'd found and caught. Be careful; his MO is hiding in the shadows. He sneaks up on his prey, and then KAPOW!" He clapped his hands, Ed jumping and leaping out of the office. Al went after him, swinging his arms hurriedly.
"Brother! Hey, Ed, wait for me!"
"Perfect. This is perfect." A voice hidden in the shadows cackled to himself, rubbing his palms together as if everything was suddenly perfect. "Soon, I'll have the runt, and I can bring him back to Grandfather. It's so perfect—"
"…-ait for me!"
The man looked around and spotted his prey. He leaned down, his bald head catching a small strip of moonlight, and hushed his excited shudders. Tonight was a perfect night indeed.
He watched as a figure exploded from the corner: neither too short nor tall, he thought to himself, which was a good start on the description he was given by his grandfather's pupil, Russell Tringham. As the man watched the boy stop and bend over for breath, and more was exposed to his dark eyes. Golden blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail and, just as Russell had said, he was wearing a red cloak with a black cross-and-serpent emblem on the back. Perfect; he'd found Edward Elric.
Chapter Three
"Boy, brother," Al met Ed at his side, his hand on the back of his head, "I had no idea you could run so fast for…"
"Go on, little brother, say it," he shot back. "For a short person? A midget? Water flea?"
'I was going to say 'so fast for so long',' Al thought, a sweat drop sliding down his armor. This was just so wonderful, the man thought, and he sat up, tightening his cloak. It was starting to get a little chilly. He crept out of the shadows, keeping his eyes, cold as ice, glued on his object of pray.
Ed calmed, his teeth sharp as shark's teeth after his rant, his eyes red. He calmed, blinked twice, and looked around, where he saw a man walking toward him. He squinted; for some reason, his feet didn't want to move.
"What're you doing out here so late, son?" the man asked, his voice a quiet whisper. Ed's shoulders tensed as he said slowly, "I'm… on my way home," he looked to Al who, if it could be seen, was looking right back. "Now, if you'll excuse me…" Ed banged on Al's chest plate and the two started to walk off, but the man caught Ed's arm. "I'm sorry, Fullmetal Alchemist," Ed's eyes widened, "But I can't let you do that."
Ed turned back to look into the man's face, and a malicious grin swept across his face. Ed tore his arm away and he, Al alongside him, ran like hell. "Damn! Damn it all!" he cursed, Al not having the ability to censor his brother. They just had to keep running, no matter how bad it was for the Fullmetal Alchemist's ego.
"You cannot run, boy!" the man yelled behind him. Al could've begged to differ as he and his brother picked up their pace, now twice the speed of before. They could've sworn they passed a moving motorcycle. 'Oh yes,' Ed thought to himself as he turned a corner. He stopped abruptly. "Oh yes I…" he and Al bounced off to the side as they heard yells, snickers, a gun shot, and a body falling to the ground.
Although he hated to admit it, Ed owed the General more than he bargained for.
When Ed made it back to his and his brother's apartment, the first thing that went through his mind was one simple word: food. He made his way over to the fridge in the corner and pulled out a piece of apple pie he'd received from Gracia, the wife of Lieutenant Colonel Hughes. He bit into it greedily, and heard a sigh from his brother. "What?" Ed asked with his mouth full. Al smacked his metal forehead. "I've had a stressful day ('Understatement of the year' he thought). The last thing I'm worried about is my eating habit."
Al sniggered and walked away, headed into the living area. He remembered hearing a sigh and a body collapse on the sofa before bowing his head down. 'Stress,' Al thought, 'is all we ever get, isn't it?'
FIN
This is a story I wrote for my Literature class. Yes, in the same context! Seems my Lit. teacher supports my writing, and I felt comfortable with letting her see the characters in action... the theme was 'en medias res'. I got an A on this story, according to her, but you all have different demands, don't you my pets? xD How 'bout tellin' me how I did so I can feel good about myself? Hehe. Alriiiiighty then.
~Cookie