(WARNING: MUST SEE WHOLE SERIES AND MOVIE OF FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST ANIME BEFORE READING THIS SOMETHING PAGE BOOK | If you haven't, go to .com to see the series with English dub!)
***DISCLAIMER: Idea of ALL everything below belongs to Hiromu Arakawa. Some text from the comics, so please don't punish me! I gave her credit!
Chapter One
"Stupid Ishbalans," Ed muttered to himself. "No, the stupid military! Just starting the war itself is enough to get me pissed." Guns fired off in the distance and he turned around, and the sound of running footsteps ran towards him.
"God, Colonel, what do you want?" he said hotly.
"Brother, don't get so hot-headed," Al pleaded, and Lieutenant Riza and Colonel Mustang came up from the shadows.
"Just one order," Roy said, panting heavily. "Sorry if this is pretty early, but I need you to inspect the area for any survivors from the military."
"Sometimes I regret joining as a dog," Ed said, smiling to himself. "But if you insist, Colonel…"
"He does," Riza said, her bright brown eyes glaring at him. "If you hadn't noticed, he can't do it himself."
Three years ago, when I was eleven (November 12, 1918), and when Ed and Al were gone for four years from their rural hometown of Resembool in search of the Philosopher's Stone, it happened.
"Father, what do you really think of the first law of alchemy?" I asked, drawing a transmutation circle on the small table and placing my hands on it. The circle shone a bright blue, then faded as quick as it appeared, and as the light faded away, you could see a full meal (complete with drinks) upon the table. "You know… equivalent exchange?"
"My teacher once told me," he replied, "that equivalent exchange was not only the law of alchemy, but of the world."
"But sometimes, I think I shouldn't believe in that retarded law anymore," I said, shivering with tears coming back. "Remember? When you and I tried to get both my sister and Mom back? We tried so hard, only to lose your right eye and the left half of your face, not gain anything back. We did get something, but the Homunculi took the two… creatures back and fed them those weird red stones…"
"You don't remember the rest, like the last other times you told me."
"Uh-huh."
"I've been lying to you, Renea, and I'm sorry about that."
"Wait a minute, what do you mean?" I asked, dropping the fork that was in my hand onto my plate and standing up.
"Lying about why you're half of what you're supposed to be, why your mother and sister died, about me being your father…" he trailed off at the end of that part.
"No! You're my real father! And you say my mom and sister died because of trying to kill the Chimeras invading our house. And you say I'm only half human was because the Homunculi took the left…"
What I meant was my father told me that the Homunculi stole half of my physical body because they needed… what they say… "Human sacrifices" to create something, and they only got away with half of my body, weirdly. Was that really the truth?
"So, if you say you're lying…" I breathed, charging towards him, and grabbing his collar, "…what's the truth?"
"The truth…" he said, "…is that, as I told you, I'm not your real father. I took you when you were smaller because I knew what was going to happen to you staying with me and you wouldn't be with the Rockbell's when it happened. But that's only part of it.
"You didn't lose your left half of your physical body because of the Homunculi. It was because of trying to get your mother and sister back. I didn't lose my right eye and the left of my face. I lost them because of the Red Lotus Alchemist." That name brought back memories, but I don't know why. It wasn't familiar, but I remember what it was supposed to mean. "Your mother and sister died… because of the military."
I gasped, wide-eyed, remembering why the military was such a big enemy of my family. We would always stay away from Central because we were the inheritance of one of the major alchemist murderers, though I don't know whose name it was.
"But, if you're not my father, then who are you?" I asked, dumbfounded and totally confused as a "daughter" would be.
"I'm Hohenheim, Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric's father." Ed and Al, I thought to myself. The Rockbells say they left home in search of the Philosopher's Stone, with Ed's right arm and left leg only automail connected to his nerves, like how my right side of my body's nerves are connected to the automail on my left side.
Oh, and just to say, my eye recovered while having the automail on me. Now, I let my left bangs grow so they would cover it so people wouldn't get suspicious. But my eye is an odd red color, unlike the green eye I'm supposed to have. What I mean by my left side of my body is my head, my arm and shoulder, and my left leg.
"But, I mean…. it's awkward to hear it from you, after you'd said the things you said," I muttered, "As Hohenheim, I need to ask—" I was cut off by the bang in the front door. Lots of footsteps charged towards the left, away from the dining room we were in.
"Crap, the military," Hohenheim whispered. "Don't worry about me; escape out the back door and into the Rockbell's. They already inspected that place for you so they won't come back there again. I'll try to cover you."
"And if you don't?" I asked nervously as I ran towards the back door.
"I won't come back to the Rockbell's and the military will find out soon where you are," he insisted. "So, as quickly as you get to the Rockbell's, go straight into the woods. They came from there, and they'll be returning that way to Central. Keep yourself hidden in the trees in the canopy, and they won't spot you."
"Yeah, okay," I said nodding and running off to the Rockbell's in the open.
The worst happened. I heard gunfire in my house and some pauses, as if they were listening to orders. Then, I heard the door of my house burst open and I heard a soft gunshot. I didn't know a bullet could go that far, but after it traveled a few yards it landed itself in my right shoulder, deep in my flesh, and I heard a crack. It reached my bone. My eyes got darker around the edges, the pain too much for me to bear. I collapsed in the grass, blood-stained, and last heard the military picking me up and taking me somewhere before I fainted.
"Are there any survivors?" Ed yelled one last time, but there still was silence that followed.
"Brother, if you haven't noticed, nobody's in this building," Al said, pointing to the empty rooms.
"Huh, well," Ed sighed. "We've looked in Aerugo for a few hours already. We should report back to the Colonel."
"AAH!" I cried, sitting up in the bed instantly. Reality came back to me and I realized I wasn't in a bed but a couch, in front of a desk, with Colonel Mustang sitting behind it, with Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye at his side.
"Well, Renea, I see you're awake," he said, getting up and stooping on his knees. He snapped and suddenly the fire blazed in the fireplace. "As you can see, I'm Colonel Mustang, but if you're not part of the military, call me Roy."
"Military?" I asked, remembering what my dad—I mean, Hohenheim said. "But, why am I here?"
"Oh, that," Roy muttered, "I'd say we took you from hiding in Aerugo, for something important."
"When you say something, you mean information," I said, leaning my head on the couch arm.
"Well, sure, put it that way," Roy said. "We just came from Aerugo when taking you from hiding since the Ishbalans, and told Ed and Al to look for military survivors. Don't bother asking me for them boys." I swung my legs over and stood up, dizzy. Roy stood up himself, and to me he was like eight feet or something.
"Ha hah, another pipsqueak," he said, shaking his head.
"What the heck do you mean?" I said. "I'm only four foot six for goodness sakes." I blew a strand of hair out of my face.
"Well, Ed is taller than you," Roy said, nearly knocking over with laughter. "Al is taller than me—"
"And just what is your point?" I asked. Riza seemed to be on my side, because she said, "You took her into your office for a reason. Get on with it, Colonel."
"We just need to know of your past and if it has any connections to the serial killer's brother," Roy explained, "so we can get on with the investigation of the serial killer."
"So that's it?" I asked, calming down. But I remembered him saying that about Hohenheim, Ed and Al's father. I decided to tell them only half of the story.
"Well, my father and I were staying at an abandoned house next to burned ruins of probably another," I began. Roy got all uneasy around the ruins part. "And my mother and sister were killed by the Chimeras for reasons I can't tell you."
"Why can't you?" Roy asked, but Riza interrupted him.
"Let the girl talk," she said.
"Anyways," I continued, "my father told me that he was lying about two things… About my mother and sister not really dying of Chimeras… but because of the military, and my father told me I lost this half of my body"— I pointed to my left arm and pulled back my bangs, and Roy and Riza looked more surprised than I was finding out— "because of Homunculi. But, I really lost it from trying to bring back my mother and sister. My father lost his right eye and left side of his face not because of my mother and sister, but because of the Red Lotus Alchemist."
"Him…" Roy said, clenching his fists. He looked angrier at him than me doing human transmutations.
"I don't know why, but that name is really familiar… but I can't get it all…" I said. "After my father told me everything, we were talking about the Red Lotus Alchemist before the military charged in. I escaped the back door and tried running to the Rockbell's house, but was too late. Apparently, they killed my father and you managed to get my right shoulder. That's why I have this stupid scar." I pulled back my sleeve and showed them. "It got into my bone, halfway, and somehow, when I woke up, I had this and they said my bone was rock hard compared to a bullet."
"Superhuman?" Riza asked.
"No, her doctors were lying. They're alchemists anyways," Roy replied.
It was silent after that, as if the Colonel was taking all this information in. Then, he asked, "Who's your father?" I tried telling them he was Hohenheim, but for some reason, I couldn't… Just before I was going to speak, the doors of Roy's office banged open and there, for real, was Ed and Al.
"Hey, Colonel, there weren't any survivors," Ed said. "The only survivors we really spotted were wounded Ishbalans," Al reported. He eyed me. "Hey, who's she?"
I looked away, because I knew four pairs of eyes were on my back. "Her name's Renea," Roy said. Without looking at him, I asked, "How do you know it when I've only known you for half an hour?"
"Well, it's simple really," he said. "The troops that took you from hiding reported to us that your father looked familiar. And that the only thing he said before he died was, 'Take care of her… Take care of Renea.' And apparently, here you are."
"Renea, this is—" Roy began, but I interrupted him, "I know. The Rockbell's told me."
"The Rockbell's, like Winry?" Ed asked, and for once, I turned around to face him.
"Yeah, why do you ask?" I asked. "You know Winry? And you used to live in Resembool?" Ed asked. "Resembool is my hometown."
"Isn't that where you lived?" I asked.
"Yeah, and while you were there, did you happen to see burned ruins of another house?"
"Actually, I used to live by some ruins. There was an old abandoned house there, and my father and I lived there after awhile, but then the military…"
I explained about that part, and basically what I told Roy.
"Who's your father?" Ed asked, as if he were in the investigations department. I decided not to tell him, but to tell Roy the rest.
"Do you mind if you get out of here for a moment?" I asked.
"Oh, yeah," Al and Ed said simultaneously, and they hustled out of the room.
"Roy, I didn't tell you everything," I said. "My father's not really my father. We moved into that abandoned house and he told me he was just a local there and he took me in because he knew what was gonna happen to me, so he could take me into the Rockbell's. My father…" I stood on my tiptoes and cursed that I had to jump to speak into Roy's ear. "Just lean down, will you?" I asked. He nodded, and he stood on his knees. He finally was my size. I spoke into his ear, "My caretaker's Hohenheim."
Just at that moment, Ed yelled from the other side of the door, "Can we come in now?"
"Yeah," Riza said, and the doors opened, and they sat on the couch opposite of the one I was lying on earlier. Roy was still on his knees, with his mouth wide open and his eyes wide.
"Hello, Colonel?" Riza asked. "You okay?" He snapped out of his "daydreaming" and stood up, sitting back on his desk. "Are you really sure your caretaker's… you know…" he asked, eyeing Ed and Al to see if they were listening. They kept their eyes on us and their ears intent.
"He told me before the dang military came by," I said, my head hanging. I looked up without moving my head and saw Ed watching me and Al watching the Colonel. Crap, I thought to myself. He sees something in me, but what?
"Renea, you're in search of the Philosopher's Stone too, aren't you?" Riza asked, sitting next to me. I felt relieved. Somebody by my side while that other "pipsqueak" as Roy called him kept staring at me.
"That's only half of it," I said, putting my face in my hands. "I'm trying to find… answers for lots of my questions."
"Then you can go with Ed," Roy said. He was still dumbfounded about that Hohenheim-as-my-father thing. "I just need to talk to you first."
We stood in the hall, and I asked after the silence, "Why do you need to talk to me? You seem pretty quiet."
"I just wanna see if this plan is okay with you," he said, scratching the back of his neck.
"What plan, me going with Ed and Al?" I asked, folding my arms. I got ready for alchemy if he got too far.
"Yeah, why?" he asked.
"OF COURSE IT'S NOT OKAY WITH ME!" I yelled, and I clapped my hands and shocked him. He bounced back as if he knew I had temper tantrums often. The doors to his office slammed open and I rushed in, dodging Ed, Al, and Lieutenant Riza like a breeze. I burst through the window, and luckily, Colonel Mustang's office was on the second floor, so I landed with ease. I ran straight without stopping and when I finally stopped for a breath, I was at the Central train station. Then, I realized something.
I didn't have enough money to the nearest stop.
"Crap," I said to myself, glancing around and occasionally looking over my shoulder in case they would arrive. I decided to hide in the Central library.
As soon as I arrived there it was raining (more like pouring) so if I wore dark clothes they wouldn't see me. I clapped silently to myself in case they were here and they would hear, and my clothes turned all black, and my hair into a navy blue. I stepped into the Library doors.
"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but the Central library is closed during these hours," a mousy girl with glasses and short brown hair said. She was holding nearly thirty books in her arms, and her glasses fell off her nose. I knelt over and picked it up.
"Here you go," I said, putting them on her since her hands were full. "Sorry for the inconvenience, Cheska."
"How… How do you know my name?" he asked, placing the books on the counter with care.
"Oh, I've heard lots of people talk about you," I replied truthfully. "They say, 'I can't believe Cheska is running that place all by herself ever since the boss left.'"
"Ah, I see," Cheska said, pursing her lips and tapping her chin. "By the way, who are you?"
"Now, before I say this, four people are after me: Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric, Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Riza," I whispered. "I nearly killed the Colonel because of my 'issues' so they're hunting me down."
"Why'd you get angry?" she asked. "Colonel Mustang recommended joining the Elric brothers since they were in search of the Philosopher's Stone. Now, if they're looking for Renea Haruhi, tell them she was just here, but you don't know where she went."
"Um, okay," Cheska said. "You can hide in the back room if you like. That place is always empty, and that's why I always spend most of my time in that place reading."
"Oh, thank you," I said, jumping over the counter and rushing to the back room. In case they got what Cheska was saying, I opened the window on the side wall, ready to jump out.
Several minutes later, I heard the bell ring for the doors. "Hey, Cheska," Roy said, panting and trying to catch his breath.
"Hiya, Colonel Mustang," Cheska said. If you asked her to hide you, she definitely sounded like she meant it.
"Look, we're looking for someone," Ed blurted out. He sounded like he got a workout looking for me. He was more fatigued than the Colonel. "Her name's Renea… Haruhi, I think. Did she come by here?"
"Actually, she did," Cheska replied. The four in front of the counter looked relieved. "But she left before telling me where she was gonna go. It's impossible to see which direction she went since the rain's so heavy. I'm sorry." Ed and Al sighed.
" I was really looking forward for somebody that has a lot in common with us," Al said. "She came from Resembool, remember, Brother? She was looking for the stone. But why was she?" Luckily, Lieutenant Riza didn't ask me why I was in search of the stone, so then that would create more problems between the brothers and me.
"Yeah, I remember, Al," he said. "We need all the help we can get to get your body back."
I gasped, shocked, and stood over by the door trying to listen. What did he mean by, '…to get your body back'? I asked myself, and I put my hands on the door.
"Sorry, you two, but if you do find her, I bet she'd be glad to help. She seems like the type."
"Can we wait here? I'm pooped," Roy said, slumping into the chair next to the door.
"Yeah, as long as you want," Cheska said, but instantly, she slapped her hand over her mouth.
"What? Is something wrong?" Ed asked, standing up straight after sitting. Cheska nodded. She ran over to the corner, where the bathroom was, and made throw-up sounds. Good cover, I complimented. The three others just seated themselves in the chairs by the doors. After Cheska was finished throwing up, she 'flushed' and ran to the back room with me.
"I'm so sorry Renea, I think this blew your cover—" I interrupted her by putting my hand over her mouth.
"They don't know I'm here," I whispered, "so don't yell so loud or else they will know." But, apparently, I spoke too soon.
All four of them were staring at us. "Ah, so we found the girl in hiding," Roy said, "again."