I AM SOSOSOSOSOOOOO SORRY IT TOOK THIS LONG TO UPDATE I AM AN EVIL EVIL DEMON CHILD WHO NEEDS TO KEEP UP WITH HER FANFICTIONS! I HAD THIS WHOLE THING PLANNED OUT AND I FORGOT A LOT OF STUFF AND URGH I'M REALLY FRUSTRATED BUT MOSTLY GUILTY SOOOOORRY! I'm updating all of my chapter fics soon, and STAYING UP TO DATE. I REFUSE to drop a story, and while it may take a very, very long time to update, update I shall. I hope this is ok, enjoy!
***EDIT: If you read this about 5 minutes after it was posted like half of the chapter was missing, so I fixed that***
Ed perused through the history textbook he had picked up at a bookstore as he waited for his train to arrive. While alchemically creating gold was illegal in Amestris, it certainly wasn't here, and Edward was all too eager to take advantage of this fact. A couple of "family heirlooms" and three pawnshops later, he had more than enough money to support himself for the months to come. It was difficult to figure out the value of the currency, and he had no doubt that the pawn shop owners had ripped him off, but so what? So had Edward; anyone back home would have had him locked up immediately after seeing the transmutation marks on the jewelry. Either way, they both benefited from the exchange. It was time to get out of Germany though, by the looks of it. The air in Munich was devoid of all traces of magic, that familiar tingle in the air long since gone. There had been several "magic hot-spots" when he had first arrived, places where wizards and the like converged to share wisdom, and when this blasted train arrived, he would visit the closest for clues.
But dear Gate had he missed a lot! An entire hemisphere discovered?! Two wars within decades of each other, covering the entire globe?! This was now in a country known as "Germany" as well. And, it seemed that not only had this dimension caught up to his in the way of inventions, but surpassed it as well. Had it not been for security reasons, Edward surely would have caved to the temptation of riding one of these "planes". To fly across entire countries? Preposterous! Though, the blond supposed, no more preposterous than magic…
A gentle tap on his shoulder stirred Edward out of his reverie, and as he turned to snap at the intrusion, his heart stopped. "Excuse me sir, but would you mind if I sat next to you?" Edward barely heard this as he stared into golden eyes that mirrored his own, eyes so familiar that he could be staring at his twin. "Entschuldigung, mein Herr?" But no, those eyes held a bright innocence to them that Edward lacked, a scintillating optimism and compassion that knew none of the sorrows of life.
"Ja, ja!" Edward said hurriedly, and the other man-no, boy, his face was far too soft to be a man-shot him a beaming smile.
"Danke!" The blond said, sitting on the other side of the bench and resting a small box on his lap. "Are you alright though? You seem worried." Those bright golden eyes softened with concern, and Edward felt his chest tighten.
"Nein, nein! I'm alright; it's just that you look like someone I know." Edward choked out eventually, tearing his eyes from the boy's molten gaze.
"I get that a lot," the boy laughed, brightening up like the sun. "My name is Alfons; es freut mich, Sie kennenzulernen!" Some bitingly cruel part of Ed's subconscious chuckled at the irony: that Edward was to meet his brother's doppelganger, and for them to share the same name, in a world of billions!
"Es freut mich, Sie kennenzulernen." Edward smiled.
It turned out that Alfons' ticket was in the seat opposite Ed's own. Alfons was more than happy to explain the on-goings of this world, not even pausing to ask why Edward didn't possess such basic knowledge. He did give Ed a couple of odd looks though, especially when Ed began to ask about magic. Quickly realizing that the wizards had either gone extinct or retreated into hiding, he changed the topic. If there were still witches and wizards, they would be discrete about their existence. He began to ask Alfons if there were any places nearby known for paranormal activity, any elite and secretive communities, or if there were famous people with something peculiar about them.
"What do you mean by peculiar?" Asked Alfons, cocking his head to the side. Edward mentally cursed, realizing how strange the question sounded.
"Like secretive, but not in a gossipy way. More like, cultish?"
Alfons was quiet for a moment, brow furrowed in thought. Ed was about to tell him to forget about it when he suddenly sat up, face lit with realization. "I think I know where you should visit! There's a peculiar man in London, who owns a little pub. I've travelled a lot, and he seemed to be the person in that area who knew everybody." He gave Ed an uncertain look. "Why do you need to go there though?"
Ed's mind raced, denial at the tip of his tongue. It would be easy; "I'm not going there, I was just curious" or "I study the paranormal, so I'm looking for references." But, as he opened his mouth to form the words, he found himself shocked at what he said.
"I'm lost, and I want to go home."
Heart in his throat, Ed moved to lie, to laugh it off as a joke, to say something, anything so that this last trace of home and family wouldn't dismiss him as insane. Yet, when Ed met Alfons' eyes….
"It's the Leaky Cauldron."
Ed blinked, surprised, and Alfons looked rather surprised himself. "….what?" Ed asked, startled.
Alfons smiled at him, so compassionate and understanding that it clicked in is head. Oh, did it click.
Alfons knew, he knew, because he was one too.
"So what you're saying is, I'm your brother?"
Ed had been explaining to Alfons for the past hour about his past and how he arrived there. While he trusted Alfons, he left out certain…details about his journey. Namely, the stone, his mother, and the homunculi. And the military-one mustn't forget the mass-murders and the like. But, aside from that, he told him of alchemy, of Resembool, of Alphonse and Winry, and of Roy. To be fair, Alfons seemed to be taking it well, only asking the occasional question to clarify details.
"No, you're my brother's double. It's like, every person has a doppelganger in the other universe. You look identical, and you share the same name, but aside from that, you're your own person. You could have very different personalities, though you two are pretty similar."
Alfons nodded slowly, seemingly lost in thought. "So, that's why you want to get in touch with the magical world?" When Ed grunted his agreement, Alfons sighed. "Well, I've never heard of dimensional-magic, but I'm more interested in muggle sciences." At Ed's confused expression, he elaborated. "Muggles are non-magical people. It's pretty racist, and I'm not particularly fond of the term, but you'd best get used to hearing it if you want to blend with this crowd."
Ed huffed in annoyance. "You wizard-folk used to be scared of your own shadow, and it seems like you're just as bad now. You mock those without your abilities because you're afraid, and you hide away in fear." Ed suddenly smacked himself upside the head. "Sorry, I'm being a saukerl. You're a nice kid, and I'm sure that not all of you are bad."
Alfons snorted at that. "Trust me, it's more than fine. Plenty of wizards are arschlochs, so I understand the frustration. My mother is a muggle, you see, so I'm a half-blood. It's not a pretty title, I can tell you that much."
Ed grinned, scuffing him upside the head. "It just makes you fifty percent more awesome than those arschlochs." He joked, warranting a smile from the younger blond. "You said you go to Hogwarts, right?"
"Yeah, but my mom wants me closer to home, so I'm probably transferring to Durmstrang this year."
Ed noted the hint of sadness in Alfons' eyes, and felt a pang in his heart. If only Alphonse had had the opportunity to go to school, growing up in a normal household. Well, Edward thought, going to a school for magic wasn't exactly "normal" by anyone's standards.
The two chatted lightheartedly for the rest of the train ride, and when Alfons' stop came, he hurriedly scrawled down his number on Ed's textbook. And as the train pulled out of the station, Edward felt his heart tear in two again.
***EDIT (3/20/14): Sorry I didn't add the translations, I'll do that now!
Entschuldigung, mein Herr: Excuse me sir?
Ja: Yes
Danke: Thank you
Nein: No
es freut mich, Sie kennenzulernen: It's nice to meet you
In no ways do I speak German, so if the translations are wrong please tell me! Thanks!
