Chapter Two of "Fruits Basket/Fullmetal Alchemist Crossover" by Melinda-chan
Note: This fic will contain manga spoilers from Fruits Basket and Fullmetal Alchemist. You have been warned.
Extra Note: As usual with a PG-13 rated story, this fic will contain violence, profanity and sexual references. There'll be nothing too graphic, and most fans of Fruits Basket and Fullmetal Alchemist will be already used to them, but for some readers, reader discretion is advised.
The Fruits Basket manga was created by Natsuki Takaya (1999) and distributed by Hakusensha Inc. and TOKYOPOP. The Fullmetal Alchemist manga was created by Hiromu Arakawa (2001) and distributed by Square Enix and Viz (in May). No character infringement is intended. All original characters were created by Melinda-chan. I should note that since I have not seen the animes most of this story will be based on the mangas. So if you notice any differences, that may be the reason. But if you still notice a mistake, please let me know. I'll be very grateful.
Now that is over with, let the chapter begin!
"Kyo-kun! May I help you?" Shigure asked him. Kyo was at the door, holding the book. The orange-head showed him the brown-leathered book.
"Tell me about this book," Kyo demanded, putting the book up to his face. Shigure took the book from his hands and looked through it.
"Kyo-kun, do you know where you got this book?" Shigure asked.
"I actually got it from your room" Kyo replied. "I think it's on magic." Shigure looked down at the book again.
"I don't recall getting the book" Shigure replied. Kyo became shocked. "Or at least buying it. It looks interesting though."
"I think it's on magic," Kyo replied. "Do you know the meaning of it?"
"I know a bit of French" Shigure said. "It is the language of romance, after all." He looked at the various symbols on one page. "By the look of the book and the symbols, I say I may not be able to fully understand all of it."
"I thought so," Kyo said. "Anyway, the author's name is Nicolas Flamel. Do you know anything about him?"
"Kyo-kun, a lesson in French" Shigure told him. "It's pronounced 'Nicola' not 'Nicolas.' The 's' at the end of the word or name is not pronounced in French." An anger mark appeared on Kyo's head. "Don't give me that look! I do not recall a French author by that name. He's not a novelist so maybe that's why."
Kyo looked at the book in Shigure's hands. The symbols on the pages almost bounced at him. Shigure looked at him with concern.
"Kyo-kun?" Shigure said. Kyo snapped out of his trance. He then grabbed the book from his older cousin's hands.
"May I have this book for a while?" Kyo requested.
"I don't mind, but may I ask why you want it for?" Shigure asked him.
"I am just curious" Kyo lied. It was not totally false, but he did not want to tell Shigure the truth; it would sound too silly and he could tell Yuki, which would make it worse for Kyo to carry out his plan.
"Okay," Shigure nodded as he gave the book to him. Just as Kyo was about to turn toward the door, he left a hand on his right shoulder. "I do not mind you borrowing a book from my room, but next time ask me first, okay?" Shigure's voice was unnaturally deep. Kyo looked back and saw his cousin smiling. Kyo sweatdropped.
"Yes sir" Kyo said. Shigure was still smiling when he left. Kyo was so glad when he went inside his room. "Now I should write down some of the words from this book so I can look them up at school." He then jot down the words that he saw was common. It was then that there was a knock on the door. He got up and opened it.
"Kyo-kun! Breakfast is ready!" Tohru said. She then saw the book and the pieces of paper on his bed. "Are you studying something, Kyo-kun?"
"Oh yeah," Kyo said. "It's not for school."
"All right," Tohru nodded. She was too polite to inquire any further. "I have breakfast ready now."
"I'll be ready in a minute," Kyo said. Tohru nodded and left. Kyo went back to the piece of paper. He read it.
It says in modern French:
L'eau (Water)
Le feu (Fire)
La terre (Earth)
L'air (Air)
Le Grand Travail (Great Work)
L'or (Gold)
L'argent (Silver)
Le mercure (Mercury)
Le cuivre (Copper)
Le fer (Iron)
L'etain (Tin)
Le plomb (Lead)
Le poudre (Powder)
(Translations in English are for the sake of the readers, and not what was written on his paper).
He then put the piece of paper in a binder and, carrying it in his arms, went out of his room. After he left, a few pages of the book turned.
Kyo was at the school library now. He had one finger on a page of a Japanese-French dictionary while he used his other hand to write the Japanese translations.
'I'm done' Kyo thought as he put down his pen. Still a few questions remained. 'What is the 'Great Work'? Why is there so many references to the natural elements and metals?' Was the book an old chemistry book?
It was then that he saw a shadow over him. He felt something dark creep into him. He looked up and saw the source was no other than Saki Hanajima, the psychic freak herself.
"What do you want?" Kyo asked, rather rudely.
"It appears that you're translating words from a French book," Hanajima said. "I can be of assistance if you want it."
Kyo opened his mouth, but shut it again. He didn't want anyone else to know about the book- the exact reason he didn't know- but he suddenly realized that the psychic freak was probably the closest person that would know the subject of the book. Besides, she seems to know about French. He had nothing to lose. Why not?
"Do you know anything about magic a few centuries ago?" Kyo asked her.
"You got an old French book on magic?" Hanajima asked. Kyo nodded. "Do you know the name of the author?"
"His name is Nicolas-" Kyo pronounced it without the 's', remembering Shigure's counsel. "-Flamel. Do you recognize the name or what?" At that Hanajima sat down next to him.
"I guess you can say he specialized in magic," Hanajima told him. "Actually he specialized in alchemy."
"Alchemy?" Kyo said thinking. "But isn't that a type of magic?"
"It is in a way" Hanajima nodded. "Alchemists were interested in the mystical side of nature, as opposed to the physical side of nature. But alchemists use some scientific methods and principles in their work."
"So it's a mixture of magic and science?" Kyo asked.
"It's more toward the mystical side than the physical side" Hanajima replied. "But the alchemists and their works did have an impact on chemistry, and medicine as well." She paused. "This book…do you know the title of it?"
"I can't read French, as you should realize" Kyo replied. "Why do you care?"
"It could be a rare work by Flamel," Hanajima said. "His works are well-known, even today in the world. If the book you possess has not been seen since Flamel's time, it could be very valuable."
"You seem to know a lot about alchemy," Kyo noted.
"I have done research on different types of energy waves," Hanajima told him. "In my research I have come across studies by alchemists and those interested in alchemy. They believe that energy flows through the world in a circle. They also believe that this binds elements together."
"That explains why the book has so many circles in it" Kyo said. He then looked at the paper. "Do you know what it means by 'the Great Work?'"
"I believe that the 'Great Work' refers to the Philosopher's Stone" Hanajima replied. "Like most alchemists, Flamel was occupied with trying to make it."
"Philosopher's Stone? Is that the object that is supposed to turn stuff into gold?" Kyo asked her.
"Yes" Hanajima replied. "But the Philosopher's Stone is also supposed to give the user incredible power and long life. As you can imagine, it was coveted by many alchemists."
"Power, eh?" Kyo said. "That would be good to have." Hanajima then went closer to him.
"You know" she spoke in a very low voice. "If it was known that this book may contain the secrets of the Philosopher's Stone, many people will be after the book. You will need to be very careful, Kyo-kun."
"Like I'm going to let them take it from me," Kyo said. "Is there anything else you want to say?"
"I was just wondering why you would be so curious in such a subject," Hanajima said.
"I'm just curious that's all," Kyo lied. "It would be nice if I could read the book in Japanese. I would like to know what I'm dealing with here."
"Flamel wrote a lot about alchemy," Hanajima said. "Even if he did not discover the Philosopher's Stone, he was probably close to making it. And he could have made other discoveries as well. You should be careful when handling anything from the book. It could be disastrous if you do not know what you're doing."
"That's why I want to translate these words," Kyo said. "I especially want to know about the first three. Their symbols appear a lot in the circles."
"The elements play a big part in alchemy" Hanajima said. "That is why it is dangerous not knowing what you're doing."
"I'm done anyway," Kyo said. "Do you have anything else?"
"Just heed my warnings" Hanajima told him. "I also noticed that your waves have been very quiet. That is why I wanted to speak to you for. Did you made peace with the Prince?"
"Yeah right" Kyo replied. "I am never going to stop from trying to defeat that idiot!"
"I see" Hanajima said. "Just like a cat and mouse." Kyo's hair almost stood in end. However, she walked away before he could respond.
'I wish that she would explain that more,' Kyo thought. 'At least she waited until I was finished with my writing.' Indeed he was satisfied with his work. He got the most common elements and metals down. He then thought about what Hanajima told him.
'If a circle can bind elements together, then perhaps I can-" Kyo then drew a triangle on the paper. He then drew a ringed circle- like the ones he saw in the book- around the triangle. He made certain that the ends of the triangle reached the circle. After that was done, he plucked a strand of his orange hair and put it on the circle.
His eyes widened when the circle started to flow. WHOOSH! A small flame then appeared. When it disappeared, the area of the circle was blackened and there was a long line of black ash in the middle.
'I can't believe it!' Kyo thought. 'It really worked!' He then thought a little further. 'If I can do this, then I can work this against Yuki.' A wicked idea came into his mind. 'I can do this!' And with that, he put the piece of paper in his binder and left.
"Kyo-kun, why are you so quiet today?" Tohru asked him. They were walking with Yuki back home.
"I was just thinking" Kyo said. Yuki looked at him.
"That's a start for you" Yuki said. Kyo looked back in anger.
"What's that supposed to mean, you damn rat?" Kyo demanded.
"It's supposed to mean exactly what I said, you idiot cat," Yuki said. An anger mark appeared on Kyo's head.
"You don't even know what I'm thinking!" Kyo said.
"Knowing you, you are probably thinking of another pathetic way to beat me," Yuki said.
"Shut up! I found another way to defeat you!" Kyo told him. "You wouldn't know what I'm going to do until it's too late."
"You are pathetic" Yuki said, sweatdropping.
"I found a way to beat you without laying a finger on you" Kyo said. "You just wait."
"Now I'm worried," Yuki said, sighing.
"Kyo-kun?" Tohru sounded worried.
"Never mind," Kyo said. He said nothing the rest of the way. However, Tohru kept looking at him with concern. Yuki did not even look at him.
Kyo had just gone into his bedroom. He put his binder on his bed. He then saw the book, undisturbed.
"Maybe now that I translated a few words, I can understand a few symbols," Kyo said. He then opened his binder and got out the piece of paper with the translations.
'This looks like a whole list of symbols' Kyo thought. 'I should experiment.' And that's exactly what he did until Tohru came to his door.
"What's wrong, Yuki-kun?" Shigure asked. "Is something wrong with your place?" Yuki started at the cushions.
As for Kyo, he tried not to look at Yuki's place. He did not know if Yuki saw him put a piece of paper under the cushions where he normally sat. Kyo also wondered whether his words spoken earlier might have caused him to be a little suspicious. Nonetheless, he was relieved when Yuki finally sat down.
"Well, Yuki-kun" Shigure said. "What is wrong with you? You seem to be a bit more stressed than usual."
"It's just what a certain idiot said to me," Yuki said. Kyo felt red in his face but did not yell at him like usual.
"Oh well, Yuki-kun, you just have to let it go," Shigure said. "You cannot take every word seriously. Que sera, sera- 'What will be, will be.' You just have not let it bother you if the person does not have the means to back it up." At that, Yuki smirked. Kyo hunched his shoulders, knowing the smirk was meant for him. He looked at the place where Yuki was sitting, wondering when the effect of the piece of paper was going to show up.
It did not take long to do so.
"So, Kyo-kun, why have you been so quiet?" Shigure asked. "I swear that you have reached enlightenment after you have borrowed that book from me. If that book is the reason, I would love to have it back."
"They did fight before we got here," Tohru said.
"Oh," Shigure sounded disappointed. "Well, if that's not the reason, maybe we-" The smell of smoke caused him to look at Yuki's direction. "Yuki-kun!"
"Sohma-kun!" Tohru yelled. Now Kyo looked at him. He got a shock.
Yuki was literally covered in smoke.
"Ah…ah…" Yuki said, too stunned to say anything more.
"Yuki-kun, get up now!" Shigure ordered. The man got up to help him.
"Something to put out the smoke!" Tohru yelled. She looked all over the table and saw a flask at Shigure's side of the table. She grabbed it and went to Yuki.
As for Kyo, he was simply amazed. Not only did it work even under concealment but also it worked very well. Kyo figured that as long as he wrote it on a flammable material, it would work. He was also impressed that it did not start smoking immediately. No doubt if the cushions were thinner, the effects would have noted sooner. Still he was amazed by the results.
SPLASH! The small of sake must have roused Yuki from his smoke-induced daze because he immediately got up.
"AHHHHH!" Yuki screamed. Shigure grabbed him and pulled him away from the table. The lighter grey-head was too dazed to push him away. Meanwhile Tohru was using the rest of the sake to put out the smoke.
"Take the cushion away!" Kyo yelled. Tohru too was looking dazed, so he got up and grabbed it. He burned his hands in the process. There was now a rectangular piece of blackened paper on the floor.
"Ah! What is that?" Tohru asked as she looked down on it.
"Yuki-kun, are you better now?" Shigure asked him.
"I think I am okay now" Yuki replied. "But what happened?"
"That is a good question," Shigure said. He then looked at the floor. "What is that, Tohru-kun?"
"It looks like a black square!" Tohru said.
"I never saw that before" Shigure said. He attempted to take it but he quickly pulled his hand away. "Oooohhhh! Hot!"
"Be careful, Shigure-kun!" Tohru said.
"You were the one responsible for this! Tell me now!" Yuki demanded Kyo.
"What!" Kyo said. "Why do you blame me for this?" 'I did it though,' Kyo thought.
"You told me that you were going to get me!" Yuki said. "I didn't think you would be this stupid to pull off a trick like that!"
"What do you mean 'stupid,'" Kyo said. "I bet you wouldn't think of something like that!"
"Aha! So it was YOU!" Yuki said, pointing an accusing finger at him. It was then that Kyo realized that Yuki had set up a trap, and that he fell for it.
"Kyo-kun, did you really did that?" Tohru asked in horror.
"I didn't expect it to work that well!" Kyo tried to defend himself.
"As much as I admire what you did, please don't try to burn down my house," Shigure said. Yuki coughed.
"You stupid cat!" Yuki scolded. "You could have burned the house down!"
"I didn't do that, did I?" Kyo yelled. One could almost see cat ears coming out of his head.
"Now wait a minute. Calm down, Yuki-kun and Kyo-kun" Shigure said.
"Why should I calm down? He's the one that started this!" Yuki responded.
"Sohma-kun! Your clothes are covered in smoke!" Tohru said. Yuki looked down at his shirt. His perfect, white shirt was now a smoky black.
"You ruined my clothes too! I'll make you pay for that!" Yuki then shot an evil glare at Kyo's direction. "I can't wear this anymore! I have to change!" At that, Yuki left to go to his bedroom.
"All's well that ends well, I suppose," Shigure said. "Though seriously, Kyo-kun, I don't want you to do that again. It's not that easy to get smoke off the walls, and remember, Yuki-kun has asthma."
'I know that' Kyo thought. He then felt guilty. He did not want to kill Yuki, just defeat him. But how could he do that without killing him?
"Well, now, that is over with, we can go back to eating" Shigure said. Kyo sighed. Tohru still did not look comfortable enough to see him in the eye. Kyo knew that if he was going to use alchemy to defeat Yuki, he would have to do it without hurting or killing him, preferably away from Tohru.
"You know I always wondered what smoked rice would taste like" Shigure continued to say as he went down at the table. Kyo and Tohru did the same. As they ate, Kyo wondered what else he could learn from the book.
It was not a full moon but Kyo brought a flashlight to the roof. With the notepad and the pen in his right hand, Kyo skimmed the pages of the book, jotting down more words and sketching diagrams. He soon realized that most of the symbols have one thing in common.
'All of these circles have an element symbol in them,' Kyo thought. On one big page there was a whole group of symbols. These were not the simple symbols like in the first hundreds of pages. This looked like complicated work, perhaps too complicated even if Kyo could understand most of the words. 'L'Histoire du Grand Travail' was the title, but that was as far as Kyo could read. He shut the book.
'I got to find a way to get rid of Yuki without killing him or without anyone watching what I'm doing,' Kyo thought. He then put his head on the book and fell asleep.
He dreamed that there were five circles- two at the top, one in the middle, and two at the bottom. All of the circles were connected by a line that when done, formed two triangles. The top one was right side up and the other was upside down. The symbol glowed.
All of a sudden Kyo felt himself traveling through the symbol. He did not felt anything beyond that. No rushing wind, no feeling of motion, and no feeling of exertion in his body, nothing. Yet he knew that he was going somewhere, but where exactly?
He then saw a circle coming at him. Or was he coming at it? It didn't matter, because the force pushed him right into the circle. A blinding white light appeared. And then…
Kyo woke up and immediately went to the book. He spent a full half hour slipping through it. He then scratched his orange head.
'I don't get it' Kyo thought. 'Where did I go in that dream? I remember going through the circle like it was some kind of portal! Wait a minute! I know how to get rid of Yuki, without hurting or killing him! I can just make him disappear!' He then began drawing. After he was done, he plucked a strand of his hair. He carefully put it on the symbol. A white light appeared and his orange strand disappeared.
It worked!
Kyo cackled like a madman. He had discovered a perfect way to defeat Yuki and he did not have to left a finger to do it! He knew what to do.
Little did he know that he would literally be in a world of pain very soon.
"What are you planning to do now, you stupid cat?" Yuki asked. Kyo had led him outside.
"I saw something that I thought you should see" Kyo said.
"This better not be another of your traps" Yuki cautioned. "At least my death will be mourned." Kyo tried not to look angry as he watched the grey-haired boy walk all over the backyard. "Are you sure that you saw something?"
"I am positive!" Kyo replied. He kept looking over the patches of grass on the ground. The paper had to be under one of them.
However, he noticed that Yuki was avoiding stepping on the patches.
"Okay, I am freaking out! I don't see anything but dirt and grass!" Yuki said.
"I didn't say it was on the ground," Kyo told him.
"Aha! So it is a trap!" Yuki said. "You find it for me then, and then I shall have a look at it."
Damn! That dirty rat! Realizing that he had no choice but to comply now, Kyo carefully picked up every patch of grass hoping that it would not activate the circle.
"Now that's strange," Kyo said. "I swore I did see something."
"Are you sure you weren't dreaming?" Yuki asked, less accusing than before.
"I did!" Kyo almost screamed. He then stepped onto a small bundle of dirt. It was then that he realized that he also digged up mounds of dirt as well as grass.
CRUNCH!
"Ahh-ahh!" Yuki said as he saw white light envelope Kyo. The orange-head could only stand and hold the book, notepad and pen in his right arm as an incredibly force took hold of him. Through the white light, Kyo could see Yuki running toward him. However, it was too late for him to do anything.
For all purposes, Kyo was no longer there.
End of Chapter Two
Well, I am sure that my readers would know where Kyo is going next. This is going to be fun. Below are a few notes that should help you in this story. And do not forget to review!
Nicolas Flamel really did exist. He lived during the 14th century in France and was reputed to create the Philosopher's Stone from an ancient book called "The Book of Abraham the Jew" (which was promptly lost after his death). This was supposed to be the source of his vast wealth though documents proved he was a very good businessman. Legends about him abound, including one that says that thanks to the Stone, Nicolas and his wife Pernille are alive today among us mortals. One thing we do know is that his grave or his possessions have not been left in peace. In a desire to find his secret, people had attempted to consecrate his tomb and go through his possessions. Today, only his documents remained of his possessions. A bookseller by trade, he really devoted all his energy to alchemy. Even if he did not find the Philosopher's Stone, he probably came close to it.
The official symbol on Ed's State Alchemist certificate, which looks like a monster and a circle around it, is called the Flamel Symbol. Though the exact reason is not known for the name, it's probably because of Nicolas Flamel's legendary reputation as an alchemist, making his name synonymous with alchemy. Flamel's works would likely be known in Amestris, which would make Kyo's adventures in that land very interesting to say the least.
The caduceus (the symbol that appears on the front of Kyo's book) is the actual ancient symbol of alchemy. It was first used as a symbol of Mercury (Hermes in Greek), the god of alchemy, medicine and swiftness (among other things). The intertwining snakes represent medicine, the wings represent swiftness, and the rod represent power. Today, it is mainly used as a symbol for medicine.
The symbol on the back of Ed's jacket and on Al's left shoulder plate (the black snake and cross symbol) is an adaptation of the original caduceus. The reason for this change is probably because the original caduceus is an actual logo- it's the official symbol of the Red Cross and also used in some hospitals. You can also find it on the front of some medical books as well. The original caduceus in Kyo's book would mark it as a book of alchemy in this story. (Interestingly enough, a crucified snake is used as a symbol in alchemy for volatilization, which makes sense since Ed is known for releasing steam).
As any Furuba fan would know, the cat was tricked by the mouse into missing God's banquet, so it could not be part of the Zodiac. So there is no year, month or hour assigned to the Cat. Hence, the phrase "Year of the Cat" means a year that'll never come, or a year that never existed.
I hope that these notes are informative, if not useful. I'll be planning to add more notes as needed. See you at the next chapter!
Next Chapter: Kyo's Arrival and the Glass Alchemist