• Chapter Two
My body ached to have the arm attached. It wanted it, to get used to it, to put it to use, to fight and protect. Protect Dark like he had done for me. I yearned to have it attached, to feel whole. With Automail, but whole. Not mostly with a shitty arm, but with something that can be handy, something that will be a tool, something I want, not the prosthetic my body wanted fucking off.
"I'm ready." I told Pinako. She nodded.
"I knew that you would want the Automail as soon as I finished." She crossed her stocky arms.
"Thanks, Granny." I smiled, feeling I belonged here, not some outcast like I had felt in the second world, in MidChilda, where my energy was derived from the core in my body.
"You may not have grown up with Winry and the boys, but you fit with them all the same. Dark, Autumn and Krad included." Pinako started taking the shit off my body and my shoulder rolled after it's weight had disappeared from my body. I sighed happily in relief as my body rejoiced, one fraction closer to the arm that would replace the one I lost. Fullmetal Wings hadn't really responded since it was hard to wield her with one arm when it took two to properly hold any of the forms. Pinako led me to her operating room where the pain of my life (minus the searing pain of losing the black magic my body contained and the Gate ripping my arm off) would start. Pinako hooked some wires up to my shoulder and the hot flashes of pain made me cough slightly. My lungs started to feel heavy.
Don't worry. Your body is preparing itself. Tell Oba-sama that you'll throw up blood during the operation, and the pain will last for about two weeks after, fever and pain ravaging your body, but your body will be already adjusted to the installed Automail. A voice in my head told me. I frowned for a quick second.
"Ready?" Pinako asked.
"Yes, but something in my body told me that I'll be throwing up blood during the operation, but it's my body adjusting to the arm... It'll be fully functional after the operation, because my body wants it badly, not reject it." Pinako frowned at my information, then shrugged.
"Okay, glad ya told me, Shinji." She started.
Pain lapsed over my body ten minutes later. I gritted my teeth together, my lungs ready to hack up blood. Fire flamed up on my forehead, a fever raging. Pinako stopped whatever she was doing and placed a cool cloth over my forehead and eyes. I took a deep breath in. I let out a huff, the air whizzing from me. I licked my lips, the dry skin hurting slightly and stung a little. Pinako continued. In about another twenty, I was howling with pain and I had spit up blood twice. I felt nerves connected to something, but I wasn't going to pull off the cloth that Pinako had changed three times. I coughed loudly, blood filling my mouth and ending up on my chin and shirt. Pinako wiped the blood from my chin carefully as I heard the door open and the cloth changed.
"I'm helping you out." I heard Ed say. "It's the least I can do. I remember when I had mine..." I heard his voice crack with pain, as if his tone wasn't smothered in it already. Minutes passed by sluggishly, pain filling each breath. Ed loyally stood by me and wiped the blood off my neck and chin when necessary. My breathing had become labored as more of the Automail was set into my skin and nerves. My body rejoiced a little as each nerve was attached to it. After what seemed an eternity, Pinako huffed. Ed peeled the cloth off my face. I looked at the completed arm.
"Thanks." I looked up at Pinako, then at Ed, repeating it.
"No problem." Ed smiled. "Sis." I beamed. Ed called me his sister. Pinako chuckled at Ed.
"Take good care of her. She needs to get to wherever she needs to. Be her bodyguard." I glared.
"Sexist. I can protect myself thank you fucking very much." I threw the cuss out like a bullet from a sniper's rifle. Ed beamed as he ruffled my hair. I climbed out of bed and stretched, my new arm creaking in the joints, but it was fine. I felt pain in my chest, but the voice came back. Don't worry. It will subside eventually. I sighed as I swung my arm and looked at the hand. Each finger was made with detail and felt perfect. Like Truth hadn't taken my flesh and blood arm at all. "And I feel whole again..." I smiled. Then, I doubled over, throwing up a lot of blood. My lungs emptied themselves and I straightened up. I sighed, as they still felt heavy, but I almost passed out with the fever raging in my head. I reached over for my bottle of fever pills. They took my fever and nausea away. I had it since the Flame Pull, but it never came to mind before now. I popped one in my mouth and in about five minutes, my nausea and fever had left me for about... 12 hours.
"What's that?" Pinako asked me.
"Pills to relieve my fever and nausea. My body needs them or I throw up what's in my stomach and I can't get out of bed from a fever. It hasn't been that bad, but my nausea is an evil little bitch." I looked at my stomach, thinking it better behave. I felt Ed's cool hand on my left shoulder.
"It's late. Krad and Dark fixed supper. Winry made pie." Ed smiled. Where was I in the plot right now? If I was correct, two weeks is the time it took for Ed's... Oh. I'm there. He has the information about the library, but it was burned down... And I shouldn't tell him... Now that I'm here, the plot is going to change and I was defiantly going to make Envy miss Hughes. I don't want him to die! I walked down to the table and took my seat by Ed. Al sat polishing his head, as per usual. Poor suck, can't eat any of Krad's catering. Mmmmm. Hikari food. My gaze locked on the bowl of sticky rice. Ooh, Krad knew how to make the best. Once everyone was seated, we began the meal and Ed and I ended up in a battle for the last piece of ham. Damn, Dark cooks a great ham. We tied (the ham ripped from the force of our Automail) and I happily munched on the piece. Winry brought out an apple pie and set it down. My eyes bugged as I reached for the first slice. She handed it to me and I immediately started chomping down.
I thought of the code I was going to use for my notes. Maybe the form of a diary? Or a novel? I looked at the plate. Several grains of rice lay untouched on the plate. I sighed as I swept my left index on the plate and licked them off the finger. I was the first one up to bed, completely tired and wanted sleep.
I tugged my IPod out and turned it on, tucking it into my shirt as soon as I had the passcode in and Nana Mizuki's Black Diamond playing. I climbed into bed, my Automail beating the pillow into submission, folded it in half and slept on it. - No dreams came that night, not sure if it was lucky or not. I touched the Optimus Prime charm on my earbuds then the dream catcher. It looked more like a transmutation circle than the actual purpose. I bought it when I was twelve. A silver feather charm, about two centimeters long and five millimeters wide, hung off the bottom of the circle. A small black bead nestled itself on one of the silver strands. I smiled lightly as the song faded to Period from Golden Time Lover. I swung my legs out of bed and went into the hall and groggily walked to breakfast. I bumped into a wall. It was Major Armstrong. I looked up, and gulped. Sweat bunched on my face as an orange kira*1 appeared by his face and I wanted to get the fuck away from the psychopath male hazard. He took his shirt off and I ran several steps backward as he loomed over me.
"How did you loose the arm?" He asked in his normal, over the top, way. Of course I had to tell him. When I got to the part about my boyfriend, he started crying and I ran for it. Wings almost stretched out but my thief reflexes would have kicked in if I had to face off against him in a duck-jump-dodge-repeat pattern. I sighed as I walked back and ducked under his right arm. He clutched at air and I smirked the one that my father and his other half made famous. Now, with a face that looked like my dad's and his hair color, you could have sworn I was the manipulative git himself, minus the gender and the burnt gold eyes. I stepped down the stairs.
"So, today, we go to Central, right Al?" Ed asked. The suit of armor Al's soul was inside nodded. I sat down in my usual spot.
"Are Shinji, Autumn, Dark and Krad coming, Brother?" Al looked down at Ed.
"Up to them to decide." He shrugged, chomping down on some eggs.
"We're coming." I smirked.
"Great."
"And mostly, I need my certification for a State Alchemist. Poor Colonel Mustang, won't be the only flame alchemist in Central. But... I want to stop in East City, first." I looked at Ed.
"Okay."
"Because I want to get some new clothes, some female requirements, and a few other things. Not to mention, maybe give Colonel Idiot a scare." I smirked wildly. Ed rolled his eyes. I gave a quick snap. Flames flickered and torched the bacon on my plate into crisp strips of ash. Ed sighed as the meal passed.
-Ed-
I tugged my glove harshly over my right hand. East City, here we come... I thought grudgingly. Shinji worked at tying her hair into a braid. She secures the black strands into a loose, fat braid. Her gold eyes shone like twin suns and I felt attracted to her like a moth is to a flame. I wanted to claim and make her my own. Flames of desire swept up inside me, trying to burn my common sense away. I was curious about what it felt to have her, in bed, sleeping with her... But what do they say about the cat and curiosity? Curiosity killed the cat, common sense was framed, but satisfaction brought him back. Al constantly tries to get me to stop saying as a cat, and a dog instead (Sure. Make fun of me). We waved good bye to Winry, Pinako and Den and made our way to the station. Shinji walked into the graveyard on our way by and went through until she found a certain one. Mom's. Shinji stayed there for several moments before placing something on the grave. She came back down, her eyes glazed with tears. Dark kissed her on the forehead as he rubbed her back. Then, kissed her lips. It felt as if I had kissed her only yesterday. We got to the station and got on. Shinji pulled a book from her bag and flipped it open. Fullmetal Alchemist? I thought as I read the title. I turned my head to one side. That's MY title. The picture on the front was a picture of me and Al. A sticker or panel said three books in one. I bit my lip nervously.
"Hey, Shinji? Do you have volume four with you?" Dark asked, raising an eyebrow. Shinji nodded, digging in her bag and pulling out another one. The picture was of Scar and three other figures I didn't recognize.
"What's the book series?" I raised an eyebrow. Shinji looked up.
"Um, Fullmetal Alchemist, by Hiromu Arakawa. In my world, Dark, Krad, Mustang, Al and you are all from books." She admitted. She closed it and handed it to me. I opened the cover, seeing a cow in glasses holding the sides of it's underwear out. Fighting Panties read the text over it. I rolled my eyes after chuckling a little. I read the script that Cornello had preached. And the dialogue I had said then was about the same, but some words were changed. From 'Nope, I'm Atheist.' to 'Nope, I'm Agnostic.' and of course, the outburst. I stuck my tongue out.
"And I should explain some of this..." Shinji shrugged, Dark engrossed in Volume Four of my own story. If Volume one was were Cornello was caught... I kept reading until I came to the parts I didn't know. "So, In my world, there is a 'copy' of you, my brother, and he's almost a match, minus the Automail and eyes. They're coal black." She held her hand out for the book. I handed it back to her and she flipped through it. "I know the whole plot of the story. But since I'm here and so is Dark and Aut and Krad, I doubt that it will follow the plot." She started our own private conversation, Autumn and Krad talking with Al and Armstrong. She held the book open to me.
"We were here." I pointed to where I was using the replacement prosthetic. She let me read what might have happened. "And the plot changes into a darker tone after we get to Central." She looked at Dark before snatching the book from his hands and opening it to the front. She started reading it like she was in a play and voicing all the lines of the manga.
-Shinji-
When the train had pulled into East City, I woke Krad up. He had been napping on Autumn's shoulder. Dark looked out the window at the station. I got up, stretching and started to massage my right shoulder. I sighed in relief. I ran out, grabbing my suitcase, which was feather light. The leather pants gripped my legs, and the breeze as I ran through the station lapped at my bare stomach. I waited in the meeting area and looked behind me. The rest of our group were straggling behind me.
"HURRY UP!" I shouted, running out and to the East Mall.
I ran in and started looking for a good store. I picked some clothes out and went to pay. They all had a goth-y look, but it was a friendly one. I changed into one of the outfits. I went to a lingerie store and bought some bras and girl's underwear. Not a thong! Panties. Mainly black or white ones.
I changed into a pair after I bought them. I went to the drug mart and bought some pads. I was running low. I tucked all my purchases into my bag.
I went to the center of the mall, where the group was. Armstrong was sparkling. As per usual.
I smiled. "Now, to raise a little hell here."
