A/N: WOOHOO! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR LOVELY REVIEWS! I love you all!

Yeah anyways, I wrote a few of the next chapters (typing is such a pain, my hands get tired and cold. D:) and I don't think there will be anything funny in this story. And by the way, I forgot to put Hughes in it and then realized what happened so I'll just say he's on vacation or something. I don't want him dead and there will be no Homunculi. YEAH. HERE WE GO!
ENJOY!

Chapter 2

"I think we should leave our stuff at the inn and then begin asking people about the Stone and the murderer." Ed said, dragging his suitcase as he entered the village with his brother.

It was already afternoon by the time they came. The streets were deserted and the houses had their drapes pulled across their windows.

"I guess people are scared of the murderer." Al said, walking behind his brother. Even though Ed had told him that there was nothing wrong with him, Al could tell that he was hiding something. He had said that he couldn't sleep, he was awfully quiet and he wasn't smiling like he usually did. In overall, he looked pretty sad. "Brother, do you want to play some cards when we get to the inn?" he asked, hoping to cheer him up.

Unfortunately, it didn't work.

"Sometime later, Al. For all we know, there could be a Philosopher's Stone around here. And then I can return you to your body." Alphonse figured it would be better not to argue. Edward was already feeling really guilty and no matter how many times Al told him that it was both their faults, he couldn't let go. And that's why he wanted to correct what he thought was his mistake.

"And your limbs too, brother." He said, even though he knew he would get an ignorant response.

"Yeah yeah."

In a few more minutes, they reached the inn. "Hello, sir. We'd like to book a room for two please."

The middle-aged man in charge looked at the short kid and the armor. "What are you kids doing here? Haven't you heard about the curfew?"

Ed scowled and pulled out his sliver watch. "We're here to catch the murderer."

The man's eyes lit up at once. "State Alchemist?" he peered into Ed's eyes. "Golden eyes…Are you the Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric?"

"Yes. Now about the killer, are the-"

"Thank God! People haven't been able to come out of their houses for days in fear of being killed! The military finally noticed out little town! More than five people have already been killed. Please help us!"

Ed shook his head, clearly annoyed. "Yes, yes, we will. Now, are the rumor s about the killer using a Philosopher's Stone to kill his victims true?"

The man squinted his eyes. "What Stone?"

"Philosopher's Stone." Al said slowly.

"I thought that was just a legend. I don't know. But I do know that the killer stabs his victims till they die. I found one of the corpses with my friend…" The man looked grim for a moment before shaking his head and taking out a pen. "So, a room for two, you say?"

Al silently observed his brother who stared at the ceiling with a lost look on his face from the bed he lied. "You know brother, we'll ask other people tomorrow. They might know something about the Stone."

Ed turned around and gave Alphonse a little smile. "Of course, Al. We'll ask a bunch of people. I hope no one gets killed tonight though… But if we can't find a location then I'll walk around the streets at night and you can watch. That way we can lure him or her out."

Ed still looked sad, despite what Al said. And Al wondered: If Ed wasn't upset about what the man said about the Stone then what was wrong?

"Brother, I could walk in the streets in your place."

Ed's response was quick. "I don't think the killer is stupid enough to attack someone wearing a suit of armor, Al."

Al shook his head. "You want to play cards?" he asked again now that they had nothing to do.

This time, Ed sat up on the bed. "Sure."

"Alright , Al. Here we go, the first house." Ed said as he walked up to a light blue house. He nearly stumbled on the stairs but Al caught him. "Thanks."

At last, he raised his gloved right hand and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened, a chain between the wall and the door preventing it to be opened more than two inches. "Hello?" a woman whispered, proof that the people in town were truly scared of the killer.

"Hello, m'am." Ed started, taking out his watch from his pocket. "We're from the military and we're here to ask some questions."

The woman peeked her eye through the opening. "Really?" she asked.

"Yes, we're going to catch the killer so you need to help us. Can you please answer our questions?"

"Y-yes, of course." The woman finally opened the door, a confused expression on her face as she stared down at Ed.

"First of all, how many people have been killed?" Ed asked, ignoring the woman's wary voice and confused expression as she saw his height.

"Seven…Three man, four woman."

"Do you know the order?"

The woman stared at the ground, thinking. "First man, then woman…then man..then my neighbor…" she said, looking grim.

"So basically the next one to be killed will be a man if we don't catch the murderer, right?" Edward asked, staring at the woman so intensely that she almost looked scared. "I think so…" she mumbled.

"Do you know where the corpses were found? Were they always found in a specific place or were they all scattered around the town?"

The woman ran her fingers down the door, avoiding her eyes. "Well, one man was found in an alley a few meters away from here. Then another woman was found in the other side of the town."

Al and Ed shook their heads in unison. Edward smacked is hand on the door, slightly scaring the already shook up woman.

"I have one-last question. Did you hear any rumors about the killer using a Philosopher's Stone to kill his or her victims?"

The woman's eyes grew hazy for a while. "What's a Philosopher's Stone?"

Ed's face fell. "Nothing, it's not that important m'am. Thank you so much for your help."

The young woman shook her head. "You welcome. G-goodbye." She closed the door.

As they descended from the stairs, Al observed his brother, hoping he didn't look to crest-fallen. To his surprise, Ed's eyes were still determined. He took a deep breath. "The next house, Al. And then a few more. And then we'll wait till tonight."

"Right, brother."

Alphonse knocked on another door. The curtains slowly opened and the face of a middle-aged grumpy man appeared. A few seconds later, a voice came behind the door.

"Go away. Didn't you hear about the curfew?"

Ed took another exasperated breath. "Sir, I'm a State Alchemist and-"

"Not interested!"

Ignoring the man's outburst, Ed continued. "And I've been sent here to catch the killer."

A few seconds passed in silence as the creaking of the door showed that the man had made his mind. "State Alchemist? How old are you? Or is he the one in the armor?"

Ed scowled. "Fourteen. And no, it's me. But that isn't the point. We need to know if you've heard of the murderer killing his or her victims with a Philosopher's Stone."

"Never heard of something like that. But the victims are stabbed a lot of times and the knife that was used to kill them were still in them when they were found. I…I found one of the corpses…he was a friend of my mine."

"We're sorry, sir. Thanks for your help."

The man gave a little nod and shut the door.

They visited three more houses. Each person gave the same descriptions but no one knew about the Stone.

Ed sighed but surprisingly seemed fine. "Looks like we'll just have to wait till tonight. Then we'll know for sure that that Stone rumor was something the Colonel made up."

Those last words echoed in Al's head. Had Ed really said that? When you thought about it, he did kinda have a point. But would the Colonel really..? He decided not to say a word about it. If Ed thought that way, there was no telling what waited for them after they returned to East City.

"Flashlight?"

"Check."

"Flashy clothes?"

"Check."

"Boots that make lot of noise?"

"Check."

"Then I'm ready to go!" Ed said, flipping his flashlight on. He opened the door and stepped outside. "Watch my back, Al. But stay a few blocks away from mine. Make sure you're well hidden. Got it?"

"Got it." Al said as Ed closed the door and began walking into the darkness. He waited till Ed turned a corner and began walking after him.

Edward seemed to not look like he was waiting for anything to happen, so he walked towards the darkness with total confidence. He heard a few noises but didn't look behind him, giving the killer a good chance to attack him. But Ed wasn't worried, he was on guard. Even in this killer decided to stab him from the back, he'd know it.

He couldn't hear the clanking of Al's armor yet. Maybe he was careful keeping it down. Or maybe he was too far away. Or maybe he was lost.

There was noise behind him.

It was coming!

Ed turned around to dodge but the attacker wasn't trying to stab him. He fell on his back, a hand clamped over his mouth and a heavy weight appeared on top of him. The flashlight fell on the floor and the light pointed at the wall.

Ed bit down by reflex and pushed the attacker off of him. The attacker gave a shriek and backhanded him.

It was a woman.

Ed scrambled to his feet, met his hands and made a blade appear on his arm. He left the flashlight on the ground, staying a few meters away from the killer woman.

The flashlight was pointing at the woman. Ed could see the knife glinting at her hand.

"Who are you? Why are you killing people?" Ed asked, slightly raising his voice.

The attacker had once-pretty messy brown hair. Her eyes were black from what Ed could see in the dark and she had muscles, but wasn't fat. She laughed. "I don't know. I forgot a while ago. But now I do it because it's fun."

"Because it's fun?" Ed asked ridiculously.

Before he had a chance to react, the woman lunged at him again and slightly cut the side of Ed's arm. Ed waved the blade in front of him and the woman took a few steps back. She raised the bloodied knife to her mouth and licked it clean. "It tastes great. Young kids always do." She said, the crazy glint in her eyes showing her insanity.

Ed managed to ignore the burning in his arm and got into position once again.

Where was Alphonse anyway?

Somehow the woman appeared beside him, taking advantage of his distraction, moving quietly and quick. She pushed him onto the wall and his head rattled on the bricks. She was really strong and tall, and Ed couldn't push her off of him.

"You're from the State, aren't you? Poor boy." She whispered into his ear, goosebumps rising in Ed's back. The knife was ready in her hand, prepared to stab him anytime. "Don't you know they're using you? I never thought they'd go that low and allow a kid like you to join. I mean, you're a young man with a big talent for alchemy. Which Colonel wouldn't want that kind of men on their side? It would totally raise their reputation."

Ed suddenly stopped struggling, hearing the similar words twice in a row. He decided it's the best to ignore the words for now. If he payed any attention to things that were bugging him then he'd end up dead.

"Do you have the Stone?" Ed asked, desperately trying to sound calm despite knowing that the woman could stab him any minute.

The woman raised her free hand, her body still pinning Ed to the wall and began started brushing his hair with her fingers after taking the elastic off. Ed got a sudden feeling, a memory. His mother used to do that to him, to comfort him. But this woman was simply creeping him out. "What Stone?" she said with a tone that suggested that she was not interested. Ed's hair hung down his face, below his shoulders and the woman played with the strands, ignoring him.

"The Philosopher's Stone." Ed replied, breathing through his teeth. Where the hell was Alphonse?! "Don't you kill your victims with it?"

She let go of Ed's hair and settled on his face instead. She began running her cold bony fingers across his face, caressing every curve. "What a rumor." She said humorlessly. "The only thing I do is this…" The knife went up and into Ed's forearm. He gave a yelp, but couldn't move. The knife was removed and Ed could feel the blood running down his arm, staining his gloves and finally dropping onto the ground. "…till they die. I do it a bunch of times until eventually all their blood spills out. I don't need some legendary Stone to do that."

She smiled and switched her knife to her other hand. The crazy woman raised her knife in level with Ed's face.

Edward held his breath, the blade hovering so closely to his face, he could smell the blood on it. But the woman didn't cut him. She simply wiped the blood on his face and continued running her fingers on his face.

"You're beautiful. I wouldn't cut your face and ruin it." She said slowly, her voice haunting Edward. "Such a shame that the military only sees you as a tool."

As the woman slightly shifted on one foot, Ed felt the strength to move and kneed her in the ribs.

"Brother?"

Al.

The killer stumbled backwards, an amused expression on her face that made Ed's bones chill. "Your superior," she started. "He sent you here to deal with me. It's as if he's trying to kill you or…" She lunged at him and out of panic, Edward closed his eyes and waved the blade of his automail in front of him.

The movement stopped.

The blade of Ed's automail had pierced the woman through the heart when she threw himself on Ed. And her own knife had a few centimeters buried itself in Ed's stomach.

The woman released her grip on the knife and vomited blood. At last she raised her head and met Edward's eyes to finish her sentence. "Trying to turn you into a killer. Which is what you are now."

Her eyes rolled behind her head and she collapsed backwards, the blade of the automail coming out of her as she did so. Blood began to pool around her, making a grotesque image in the dark.

Edward didn't even notice the knife slowly coming out of his stomach and dropping on the floor with a thud. He didn't notice the pain or the blood that ran out of him to mix with the killer's on the floor.

"Brother, are you okay?"

Edward dropped to his knees, eyes wide and unnoticing anyone or anything around him. His hands shook as they made their way to the woman's neck, wrist, anywhere that could show a hint of life.

"No…" Ed mumbled as tears began running down his eyes.

"Brother, it will be alright."

"I…killer her." The last part came out as a whisper and Ed broke into sobs. The reassuring hand of his little brother appeared on his back, comforting him.

"No, you didn't! It was an accident! You're injured, come on, let's go! I'll take care of it!"

Alphonse's voice set off Ed and he went hysterical. "NO!" he yelled and lunged at the corpse. "Please, don't…You can't…YOU CAN'T BE DEAD!" he began shaking her, the sight in front of him, his blood and this woman's blood, it reminded him of the transmutation.

"Maybe…Maybe I can…The Gate-"

"BROTHER!"

Al's voice brought Ed back to his senses. He turned to him, Alphonse, who Ed told himself to be strong for, the one trying to comfort him.

"I'm sorry…" Ed began, knowing he wasn't able to be so strong now. He seemed to be in pieces. The face of the woman on the floor haunted him. It was somehow staring at him, even with her eyes closed. And Ed trembled, taking his brother's hand and holding onto it as if it may vanish. "I'm so sorry…" he said, finally giving into the suit of armor. He closed his eyes, the pain of his injuries, the exhaustion, and the accidental death of one woman wearing on him.

A/N: *GASP* OH NO, I DID NOT! How could I? It was an accident, believe me! And it was necessary, I'm sure you heard that woman's last words. It's just going to get worse for our dear Ed from here...

I don't write a lot at the parts where nothing really happens but when something important happens…I do it dramatically. YEAH. That's my new tactic. Hehe.

I hope you enjoyed that even with a death, a creepy woman, and yeah…

PLEASE REVIEW AND THANKS FOR READING! I'LL UPDATE SOON!