The Story of Song

A teen girl looked warily out the window of the train.

This is going to be a long ride, eh?

"Not as long as it could be. I'm thankful for that." The girl replied slowly to the voice in her head that has kept her company for the past ten years. Now, there was always Kou, but the girl and Kou haven't seen each other for three years. And that's a long time, really.

The girl slumped into her seat and looked wistfully at the outline of trees in the half-light.

It's early, you should get some more sleep.

"I'm fine."

Or… you just can't sleep. The simple words brought a flicker of grief through the girl's eyes, which was quickly extinguished. "Ah, there's good view here, at least."

Just lie back and rest for a while more. It's still early. The girl paused and leaned back in her seat. "Might as well."

"Hands up! All of you are under robbery!" A group of masked men barged into the train and pointed loaded guns at everyone while the passengers screamed or gaped. The girl face-palmed herself and sulked.

"Gosh, that makes it the sixth time the train I'm on got robbed!"

Heh, heh, none of the robbers live to tell the tale though.

The girl scoffed dramatically. "Are you kidding me? They all survived."

Did they… hmm?

"Eh, most likely. Which book should I read now?"

Er, have you finished the book you borrowed from Kou?

"Like, a hundred times already."

Eh, they're coming your way. Duck.

"Duck? Where? Flying?"

Sigh, no, I mean duck as in HIDE!

"Gah, make clearer statements."

"Hands up, girly, hand over your valuables!"

The girl didn't give the robber a single glance.

"P.U., you smell, you know that?" The girl held her nose and turned away comically, causing small bursts of muffled laughter here and there.

The robber narrowed his eyes menacingly. "I ain't repeating myself. Get out your valuables."

The girl tut-tutted and tugged at her silky brown hair. "My, my, what a bad choice of grammar! Didn't your mama ever teach you anything? Or maybe she took one look at your ugly face and ran away. No wonder you have a small brain."

The robber pointed his gun dangerously at her. "You haven't even seen my brain, nitwit, now don't make me repeat myself!"

The robber's face froze in agony as the girl's hand suddenly shot out and she buried her claw-like nails into the man's throat. Tightening her cruel grip she dragged the would-be plunderer closer.

"Who's a nitwit?" She asked softly, like a snake hissing to a nest of baby mice. The robber's nerves failed him.

"No-no-no-no one!" He gulped painfully. The girl smiled roguishly and let go. "I was thinking that too." The robber's three companions looked dumbly at the girl, their wits completely lost.

The brown-haired girl closed her eyes and, to the world, looked like she was going to fall asleep. Then she gave the would-be robbers a dismissive nod. The leader regained his senses then, whirling his gun put he was going to shoot when he sighed and sat down, glazed-over eyes stared forlornly at the throwing-star that was embedded deep into his chest. The other thieves' nerves completely deserted them, and they fled the train.

The girl tugged on the string that connected the throwing-star to a wrist band on her right arm. The throwing-star flew back, and was caught by the girl between two fingers. The passengers surrounding her gazed dumbly at their rescuer. Then the red light on the top of the door beeped, and the door opened, a female voice announced that this was Central.

"Alright, bye peeps." The girl put on a hat, gathered her belongings, and stepped off the train. Right before the girl had made it out, a man grabbed her wrist.

"What is your name?" He asked quietly.

The girl turned and looked at him. "You may call me Song."

Something soft pounced on Song. "Arg, gerrof." Song shoved her chicken, Sky off. The Silver Sebright Bantam chick glanced curiously at her. Song sat up. There was a knock on the door to her hotel room.

"Who is it that is so amazingly annoying that they dare intrude a maiden during the final phrases of her beauty sleep that will have to last her for the rest of the agonizingly slow day?" She called out grumpily. A laugh came from outside the door.

"Are you kidding me? You a fair maiden? Normally if anyone bothers you you'd bite their heads off and make them eat it!"

Song smiled and ruffled my hair. "Gah, Kou, you're annoying." She called comically to the person outside. Kou played along with her.

"Not half as annoying as you!"

"Oh? Dimwitted boggle-nosed onion-bum!"

"Half-witted bungle-eyed googly-head!"

"Ha! Weird-eyed crazy-haired girly-looking girly-boy!"

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN BY THAT YOU PIPSQUEAK EXCUSE FOR AN ANT!"

Song's nerves snapped at being called short. She marched off the bed and flung open the door, throwing a metal star at the boy outside. He barely ducked it and chucked it back. Song caught it and suddenly threw a pie at the boy, who caught it by holding his hand out and letting the pie splat on his hand. Some cream flew of the pie crust and the boy opened his mouth to catch it.

Song glared murderously at Kou. Then burst out laughing. Wiping tears of merriment from her cheeks, Song looked happily at Kou eating the pie stuck to his hand. "Woke up feeling well?" She asked. Kou simply nodded and gave Song a cookie. Song took it and wrapped it up in wax paper for later.

Then she went brushed her teeth, washed her face, and changed into a simple hand-woven grey tunic and light jeans. Song tied her silky brown hair into a ponytail and put on brown contacts over her pale blue eyes. When she walked out again, the first thing Kou said was:

"Whazzap with your eyes?"

Song scoffed and replied. "Eh, my original eyes looked like blue opal. The pupil is so light-colored it's as if I'm blind and without a pupil."

Kou shrugged. "Okay, just wondering. 'Cause you know yesterday you wore green contacts."

"… I'll tell them it's contacts."

"Humph. You'd expect them to tell us where the headquarters of the military are." Song complained. Kou gestured.

"Oh, it's somewhere there." He stated. Song yawned and muttered a pardon, then unwrapped the cookie Kou gave her earlier. Munching the cookie, Song closed her eyes and opened them when a commotion nearby startled her. Kou frowned.

"That'll be the office, eh?" he muttered, fairly annoyed. Song took off her currant contacts and replaced them with pale-blue contacts. Of course, pale-blue contacts with pupils that could be clearly seen. Kou walked into the building and found the one marked "Colonel Mustang" and placed his left ear on the door. Song shrugged and joined him just as colonel said the word "short". That was his biggest mistake.

Song slammed her hands against one the doors, completely destroying it in her rage as Kou kicked down the other one.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT THAT THERE IS A SONG CALLED "PINT-SIZED ALCHEMIST" DEDICATED TO THEM!" She yelled along with one of the boys that sat inside.

"He didn't say that, 'kay/Brother!" Kou and the other boy yelled in their attempts to calm the two down.

Kou took on an angry shade. "Try to live a day without insulting people, okay? Stupid Popcorn Kernel (Kou calls Colonel that because "colonel" sounds like "kernel" and to pop popcorn you need fire and the Flame Alchemist has plenty of fire.)." Kou huffed angrily and calmed down. Song got over her rage by punching the Colonel fairly hard on the face.

Colonel Mustang frowned for a bit and smirked. "Okay, this girl is Songblade…"

"Song is perfectly fine, especially if a certain Popcorn decides to use it as an introductory phrase. 'Songblade' isn't even my given name." Song clarified.

Colonel sweat-dropped before adding. "Er, okay. This here is…"

"Kou. And I refuse to let this Popcorn Kernel say any more potentially insulting phrases for the rest of the day."

"Aw, be nice!"

"No."

Song laughed. "Heh, you, the great Flame Alchemist and 'hero' of the Ishvallen War just got owned by a sixteen-year old, and he didn't even use curse words!"

Kou smirked evilly. "Bye-bye, then, Sir Useless Popcorn Kernel."

The laughing four left the room as Colonel began to sulk about being called useless.

On the way out Al suddenly realized that the two new strangers never even got told that he and his brother was their new guide. Song, as if she read his mind (which she probably did due to her awesomeness, actually one of her powers) replied. "On the mail they sent us they said that we will have two guides."

"Who's they?"

"The military, duh."

"That wasn't obvious."

"… Whatever."