Journey Again
Chapter 2: Good Morning
"Where the hell am I?" screamed into Ed's ear as his dear, brand-new, alarm clock.
"For that gorgeous dress, you aren't very lady-like," he mumbled as he sat up. It was fresh in the morning, the sun barely peeping through his door, since there were no windows in his little room. Al must have opened it sometime before Ed woke up.
"What did you do to me?" She started to dive for him, but her sore side got the better of her and a more pained scream emanated as she fell towards the floor.
"Watch out." He reached out his arms and caught her, letting her sulk for a minute in his arms before he let her go.
"What's going on?" Al yelped as he came through the door, his shirt in his hand and his hair a wreck.
"She fell off the bed."
"You sound so calm!" she screeched again.
"For it being this early…You sure do have a good set of lungs. I loved that number you sang last night." She paused, looking into his eyes. This was the man…who set the money on the stage. Her hand reached slowly up to her neck to grasp her usual crutch when she got nervous.
"Ed!" Al got out before anything else could happen. "You're face!"
"My necklace!" the girl interrupted. "Where is it?" She started squirming again, and Ed let her go. He was in no mood to put up with this energy at the moment. "Ow!"
"Stop moving and it just might stop hurting after a while."
"Huh?" Her thrashing stopped as she kept her eyes on him.
"You're hurting because you were hit by a car last night."
"A…car?" He perked up, awake by now.
"You didn't realize?"
"I thought…This will sound crazy, but I thought that was a train station. That's what I saw in front of me…People were every where with their umbrellas, mothers were holding their children close…I'm sorry, this is crazy."
"Not really." Ed reached over to the stand, opening the drawer and pulling her necklace out. "Here."
"Oh…Thank you…" Al hurried up to his brother's side, with a mirror in tow.
"Ed, your face," he reminded.
"Oh my…" the small girl echoed as she moved away from his embrace.
"What?" The mirror was up, and his face was drenched in horror. "He didn't hit me that hard!"
"That looks terrible…" She touched it lightly and his face flinched under the pressure.
"It looks worse than it feels!" His manly pride got the best of him as he showed them all a wide smile, which only made his face hurt more. But that didn't really matter, as long as they weren't worrying. If only they would worry about…The girl's stomach growled. The perfect distraction.
"Should I start breakfast?" Al offered to get himself out of the room.
"I'll cook," Ed told him.
"No! I mean…No offense, brother…but…You don't cook very well."
"Is that so? Maybe I should cook more often so I get better…"
"No!" The boy rushed out, getting started on their breakfast.
"It's not going to be much, but we'll share what we have." The girl was staring at her necklace, not really paying attention.
"Oh? Thank you." Her voice was so gentle, so sweet. It almost didn't seem natural. And as she looked up at him, it actually made a blush hint against his cheeks. There was something about her…She didn't even seem natural. Her eyes just swallowed him up in all the deep beauty. A dark brown like her hair, and it seemed to pull his very soul into them. Everything about her seemed to drown him, taking away his breath completely. She was just so elegant, exotic. "I would appreciate that."
"Don't move around to much. You have to let yourself heal. But, might I ask you something?"
"Sure…"
"If you saw a train station, what did you think hit you?"
"Something large and…metal. Definitely metal. But not a car…Maybe someone's arm?"
"That's ridiculous. They don't make metal arms."
"Then how do you have one?" Ed glanced down and silently cursed himself. He had changed into his pajamas before going to bed and now his arm was showing clearly. "You're leg, too." And his leg. He didn't exactly wear dress pants to bed. His favorite sleeping outfit was still a t-shirt and boxers. That wasn't the best thing at the moment, though, as it gave away his secret to the most unlikely person.
"Um…"
"Dad made those special for him," Al piped up. His stories were getting better. "But he died before he could tell anyone how to make them. So Ed's the only one with them."
"So I saw you hitting me?" She seemed a little angry.
"I guess…" Ed found his voice telling her.
"Well, keep your arm in check, will you? What I see tends to come true for someone else."
"You're a psychic?"
"Not by choice!" Her voice grew full of hate once again. "What I see is chances of other people's lives. Except…I don't know. I see it happen sometimes, sometimes I don't. But I know it always happens to someone somewhere. It's miserable, because I only find the person who gets the pain right before it happens, so I can't do anything about it."
"So…"
"Keep your arm from hurting anyone, alright?"
"Well, I can't promise I won't be hurting anyone. If someone picks a fight…"
"Ok, so some people are off-limits. But those Nazis are on." Ed let out a deep, roaring laugh.
"Is that so? Well, I'll make sure to pound the next one I see then."
"Train station."
"The next one I see at a train station." Ed smoothed out his pajamas a little as he stood, then offered his hand to lift her up. She tentatively took hold of it, but he had her up as soon as she did. "But you're not going to be leaving here for a few days."
"Why?"
"That injury. If you left, anyone who decided to chase you would catch you. Anyone who accused you of being a gypsy would be able to turn you over themselves. You need to heal, and rest while you're doing that."
"You don't mind…That I'm a…well, that I seem to be a gypsy?"
"Are you?"
"I don't think I am, but I do share some beliefs with them, and I live a little like them. But that doesn't mean…"
"How do you live like them?"
"Well…I believe in some of the things they believe in…Like the bit of seeing the future. And I can read palms."
"Oo, how fancy. Can you read mine?"
"Sure!" Ed smiled a little. He didn't exactly want to have his palm read, but anything to cheer her up. This girl was so gloomy. Maybe it was her foreseeing of tragedies, but that still didn't mean she always had to be sad.
"Ok, this here is your life line…" She gasped a little. "You seem…to be set up to have a rough life…"
"Already past that. This is probably going to be…"
"No, it'll all be rough. I'm guessing this is just some time-off. Something is probably going to happen in the future that will send you off on another strange adventure."
"Like in your song?"
"What?"
"From last night. Off again on another journey…"
"Oh…that…My mother used to sing that to me, to comfort me. I never met my father; he enjoyed his journeys more than his family. It was her song to him."
"Oh…Um…"
"This line here means that you will have a good love life."
"What?"
"Your heart line, it's the romance line." He glanced down. She was back to reading again. "It seems to say that romance is lucky for you, you're going to meet someone that's perfect just for you."
"I don't think so."
"Don't put down the palm. It tells your life story before your life begins."
"Right…"
"What happens after you meet her is up to you, but you will meet her. There will never be another girl like her. If you lose her, then to bad."
"You can't tell that?"
"My palm reading isn't that detailed. Now shut up and let me finish." She traced a third line along his hand "You have great skill…You're very smart."
"So I've been told…"
"Huh?"
"I'm a bit of a prodigy."
"Really now?"
"Yeah. All the things I know are several years ahead of my time."
"Is that so?" He nodded, getting up to leave. "Where are you going?"
"I'm leaving so you can raid my closet for something better, if you wish to change that is." She glanced down, her face lighting up red.
"You stripped me!"
"I tended to your injuries!" She paused, locking eyes with him. "Learn some gratitude, will you?" His face burned with anger as he slammed the door. She had such nerve, complaining about having her clothes changed when she was hurt as badly as she was.
"What took you so long?" Al asked. The younger Elric had expected the elder Elric to join him quickly, but had found enough time to make two plates of food while waiting. He was now starting on his own buttered bread and egg. It was a simple meal, but they couldn't afford much else. This was exquisite, compared to some other families.
"She offered to read my palm. I let her."
"Oh?"
"It was interesting, to put it simply. She says I'm going on another adventure and I'm going to meet my perfect match, love wise."
"Lucky you!" Al seemed so happy about that, so Ed couldn't help but smile too. It was so contagious when Al was happy; everything else seemed to brighten as well. Maybe it was just that innocence.
"Maybe, but she said it was up to me to figure it out before it was too late. She just said I'd meet my perfect match."
"Then just remember to pay attention and don't mess up when you really like a girl. That way you won't lose her."
"What if I lose because I think I love someone else?" Al shrugged and gave Ed his plate. The food, for there being so little of it, was wonderful. Ed had learned that eating so much wasn't always an option since his pay had been cut back several thousand dollars.
"What do you think boys?" the girl cheered as she appeared in one of Ed's old suits, one that happened to fit her perfectly.
"If you tuck your hair up, you could pass as a boy," Al told her, motioning to her spot at the table.
"Maybe that would be a good thing."
"You're a lovely girl," Ed reminded her.
"Of course, but a hated one."
"Now, we'll be leaving in a little while. I want you to get plenty of rest. You can read some books if you get bored, or play a game, but don't leave the house.
"Yes sir." Her voice was sarcastic, but the brothers realized they hadn't shared their names.
"I've had my share of 'sir.' If you want to be formal, call me Edward and him Alphonse. If you want to feel like you live here as our sister or something, call us Ed and Al."
"Oh…ok…"
"What's your name?" Al asked innocently, making her shuffle nervously.
"I…Do I have to tell you?"
"It would be nice to know."
"Eh…Call me Emilie."
"You make that sound as though you just made it up," Ed warned.
"Of course I didn't! That's the name my mother gave me." Her eyes didn't flinch. Either she was an amazing liar or she was telling the truth. Either way, that was going to be the name they knew her by.
"So, Emilie," Al said, nervously, "is reading books alright with you? After all, I don't think we have much else for you to do, and you really should get some rest and heal before leaving the house."
"I'll be fine!" Emilie laughed back. "I enjoy reading just about anything, I'm sure I'll be well entertained."
"I sure hope so," Ed mumbled around his breakfast. "I really don't need to see neighbors running up saying you got stir crazy and burned the house down trying to cook something for fun."
"Don't insult me so. I'm not a fool, I can cook well."
"Whatever you say. I'm off." Edward hurried up to his room to get dressed; re-appearing all dressed up in the usual suit. He was finishing buttoning his jacked as he grabbed his jacket to finish the dressy ensemble.
"What about your face?"
"It'll have to go as is. There's nothing that can be done to change it." His own hand lifted to the puffy bruise. It ached as though his teeth had been knocked loose. It was surprising there were still men around that could do that. All the strong ones had gone of to war; all the weak ones had been rounded up with the first batch of Jews and Gypsies. Shaking his head, Ed donned his favorite hat before disappearing out the door.
"Take care, brother," Al called, even though the door wouldn't let his words get through. Quickly he began to shovel down his food, schooling being in under an hour.
"Are you ok like this?"
"Huh?"
"Are you ok with him working and you going to school and all that?"
"Yeah. Just fine. We have to pass as normal, even if we're not the average family. Schooling and him at work, it's perfectly normal."
"Actually, normal is all boys going to war."
"I'm still a little young yet to go to war. Two years, then I'll be old enough. Our story will last us two more years."
"Will it really?" Her voice had become eerie, her face stoic. Al was quite creeped out by her, and pushed himself away from the table.
"I'd better get to school…"
"School and work…There's got to be a nice balance in there, right?"
"Yep!" Al was soon out the door, just like his brother, and he was heading down the street off to a school that only accepted boys. They were taught different things than girls, so it made perfect sense that they would be divided. The men were taught what they needed to take care of their future families and the girls were taught how to be good housewives. It made Al laugh as he passed every day. Winry's look-alike was in there, learning how to stay home and be good. The actual Winry would die in that room.
Emilie shook her head as she shoved down the last of the food. Her mood had changed again just as fast as it had deteriorated. Quickly, she washed up the plates and cleaned all the items used to make breakfast. It would please the boys to know she was returning their favor. She wanted to help them out somehow. After all, they had tipped her and now taken care of and fed her. It was the least she could do to help them.
Glancing at their food stores, she decided how she was to spend her day. It took her a few moments to find one of Ed's hats that would hold up her hair and she checked herself out in a mirror. She did pass as a very feminine boy. She was probably going to be attacked for being a gypsy boy, but today was sure to be easier. After all, she was dressed as one of the brothers.
