Disclaimer: NOT MY CHARACTERS! Just the result of my mind running rampant during my bus ride home.
The wind howled, scattering leaves across the path. Ed shivered, huddling deeper into his overcoat, before glancing across at his brother. Al never paused, just continued walking, as though unaffected by the cold. Ed could see his lips tremble, and knew Al was trying to keep his teeth from chattering. He smiled softly, before wrapping his scarf snugly around Al's neck.
Al blinked at him in surprise. "Aren't you cold, brother?" he asked, even as he pulled the scarf tighter, grateful for the added warmth.
Ed shrugged uncomfortably. "Apparently not as cold as my little brother."
Al smiled wickedly. "It wasn't that long ago that I was the bigger of the two."
"JUST WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT THAT EVERYONE MISTOOK HIM FOR THE YOUNGER BROTHER?!!!"
Al laughed delightedly, dancing out of his brother's reach as Ed took a swing at him. Ed chased him down the London street, to the shock of the Sunday morning shoppers, who looked askance at the rowdy boys. Ed followed his brother back to their flat, laughing as well, and the two young men settled down for a late morning brunch.
It had been nearly a year since their arrival in this world through the gate, and the two brothers had enjoyed every minute of freedom afforded to them. After the disaster of Shamballa, Ed had been the only survivor from the group of scientist looking to build the rocket ship. Though surely the sale of the plans would have afforded them a life of luxury for the rest of the boys lives, Ed had felt that the others had played a larger role, and had left the plans in the hands of their families.
Since then, the two boys had traveled to London, and set up a life for themselves. Both had found work at the London Public Library, thanks to their significant literary knowledge (despite most of it being irrelevant due to the fact that they weren't in Amestris anymore) and the fact that they had spent more time in libraries throughout their lives than most sane people and as such just plain knew how they worked. It wasn't a glamorous job, and certainly didn't pay well at all, but it was enough for Ed and Al to get by on. More importantly, it afforded them the opportunity to research a way home, since they now knew that alchemy could be performed here, somehow.
"Are you gonna eat that last piece of bacon?" Al mumbled around a mouth full of eggs.
Jerked out of his own thoughts, Ed looked blankly at his brother.
"Bacon?" Al prompted, reaching out towards Ed's plate.
"MINE!" realizing his brother's intent, Ed quickly grabbed the bacon and shoved in his mouth, giving Al his absolute best 'I'll-kill-you-before-I'll-ever-give-up-my-bacon' glare.
Al's eyes widened in surprise, before he laughed at his brother's antics. "Brother, you have egg on you face!" Al made a valiant attempt to stay in his chair, before finally giving up and toppling to the floor.
Ed snorted at his younger brother, now sitting on the kitchen floor. "Some people just never grow up."
"Oh, you're one to talk, brother!" Al exclaimed, heaving himself up into his chair.
"Shut up and eat, we're going to be late." Ed got up from the table, taking his dishes over to the sink before heading into the sitting room where he had previously abandoned his shoes and overcoat.
Glancing at the clock, Al moaned, before shoving his toast into his mouth and following his brother out the door.
They arrived at the library shortly before noon. Ed walked straight up to the door, confidence written in every step, while Al hung back, glancing nervously around him.
"I don't think this is such a good idea, brother."
Ed already had the door opened, and was moving inside. "You want this too, Al," he reminded his younger brother gently.
Al hesitated for a moment in the doorway, before straightening his shoulders and heading inside.
The library was silent on a Sunday, with its hours only being from Monday through Saturday. Sunday was meant to be a day off for the staff, and the building was abandoned. Al stuck close to his brother as they made their way through the empty, dark building.
The boys moved through the stacks with the precision of someone who spent hours amongst them daily. They made their way down to the basement, following a path laid out in their minds, as they didn't dare turn on the lights. Without a word, Ed led the way into a small storage room that had previously been unused.
Closing the door tightly behind him, Al breathed a sigh of relief as the lights flickered to life, before surveying the room before him. Stacks of books leaned against the walls precariously, threatening to topple over at a moment's notice. Sheets of paper were tacked to the walls, covered in notes and symbols. In the middle of the floor, chalked right onto the concrete, was an intricate circle, nearly completed.
"It'll be done after today," remarked Ed, following his brother's line of vision.
Al looked up at his brother, before nodding his head in response. After a year of research, today was the day they'd finally return to Amestris. Or maybe die trying. That was a price that Al was scared of, but both brothers were still willing to pay.
"Are you ready?" asked Al.
"Yeah," replied Ed softly, already distracted by the calculations running through his head. "I've spent years here trying to find a way to use alchemy, but couldn't figure out how to do it. I can't believe that we finally found the answer! To think that it was something so obvious and yet so absurd." Ed shook his head in disbelief, before grabbing the cable coming out of the wall and running it through to the center of the circle.
"It is pretty funny to think that alchemy here is actually run on electricity," Al giggled.
Ed looked fondly at his brother, before stepping into the circle. "Are you ready?"
In answer, Al followed him into the circle. Ed pulled a pocket knife out of his jacket and pressed it gently to his thumb, before passing it onto Al. A sign so that the gate would recognize them as out of place, and hopefully send them back where they belong. They did not have a sacrifice prepared for the gate, as they reasoned that the gate would simply try to right the disturbance and put everything back into its natural order. Secretly, Ed didn't think that this was the case, but had already determined that he would do whatever it took to send his brother back home in one piece, no matter the personal cost.
Ed looked up at his brother, and grinned quickly. Hr quickly dropped down to his knees, with Al not even a step behind, and in unison, both pressed their hands to the center of the circle, and everything WENT TO SHIT! (A/N: ok, so maybe that was a little bit dramatic) In reality, once they activated the circle, it opened up to reveal the gate. They were pulled through, as though the gate could read their intentions, and fell through to the other side.
Ed stood up shakily, brushing off his pants. "Well that was easy."
"Brother, look!" Al's voice was weak and strained.
Ed looked up sharply, narrowing his eyes at his brother. Did he sacrifice something?! The gate never even asked me! What did it take?! Ed's eyes passed quickly over his brother, but couldn't find anything obvious. It was then that he noticed that Al's eyes were not on him, but instead surveying the area around them. His face was drawn and pale. Ed looked around himself. Oh shit-\
"We're not in Amestris," whispered Al. Then where the hell were they?
A/N: note bad for an introduction if I do say so myself! Keeping in mind that I was half asleep on a bus when I wrote this. Also, I don't have a Beta for this story yet, and if anyone wants the job, feel free to sign right on up. I think my FMA verse needs work, so preferably someone who knows a lot about the series ^,^ And the more you review, the more time I will find out of my busy school life to update, so please R&R!
