I'm reeeeeeally sorry this took foreeeeeeever!! Pleeeeeease don't throw things at meeeee!! Meep!
Chapter Three – Concerning Backpacks, Beef Jerky and a Journal
The train whistle blew loudly behind me, making jump and nearly turn completely. It seemed like this world was trying to remind me that this was not the home I was used to. I'd already had enough trouble trying to hide my surprise from the Rockbells when we arrived at the train station. I was used to the sleek metal design of trains in the twenty-first century, so seeing working old fashioned steam engines was strange, to say the least.
"Here," Winry said with a slight sniffle as she held two packages out towards me. I took them from her, but instead of opening them immediately, reached over gave Winry a tight hug. Her breath quivered slightly before she reached up and hugged me back.
"I'll promise I'll write, okay?" I reassured her, and felt Winry nod against me. I felt a pang of guilt in the pit of my stomach that I would someday, somehow have to leave the world entirely and leave her wondering about what had happened to me. "And I'll call and I'll visit, too, okay?" I added quickly.
"Maybe the next time you come the idiot Elrics will be there for you to meet," Winry laughed slightly as she pulled away from me. I laughed with her wondering how I would ever meet Ed and Al. I wasn't going to leave their world until I at least got to see them. After all, it's not every day you suddenly wake up and find out you're in the Fullmetal Alchemist world.
"Open your presents," Winry told me, sniffling a little as she said it. I grinned at her and quickly started tearing the wrapping paper of the two packages. The first one was rather large and thick, and when I opened it, I found that it was a fancy stationary set with a flowing R on each of the pages.
"Oh, Winry, it's beautiful," I said as I gently ran my hand over the slightly red paper. Just feeling the new papers under my fingers made me itch to sit down and start writing. It really was a beautiful set, and the romantic side of me wanted to sit at a desk and write on those papers in flowing cursive letters.
"Now you have no excuse for not writing to me," Winry grinned at me. "I even put some stamps in there so that you have everything you need. I gave Ed one of those sets too, but he never really writes to me, so you better write twice as much to make up for him."
"Yes, ma'am," I grinned back at her, knowing that writing would probably be no problem for me unless I was busy, which would end up giving me even more to write about. I then turned to the second package and began to tear the paper off it.
I grinned as a framed picture of me and Winry, arms wrapped around each other's shoulders fell into my hands. I could remember Pinako taking the picture sometime early in our 'sleepover,' but I had no clue that Winry had framed it.
"Thanks, Winry," I smiled and wrapped her in another hug. The picture frame certainly didn't look like it had been cheap, in fact, I wasn't used to getting such fancy looking presents when it wasn't even my birthday.
The train whistle blew sharply again, jerking me and Winry apart. I turned to the train slightly, not wanting to leave Winry, but at the same time anxious to start my journey. My bike had already been put in the cargo section of the train, while I kept my backpack with me.
"Go on, get out of here," Winry said, hiding her sniffles much more effectively than before. She playfully whacked my arm, lightly, but still hard enough for me to protest. "You got family waiting for you in Ellsworth, you better not keep them waiting."
I winced at the name of the city my train would be taking me to. When Winry and Pinako had offered to buy me a train ticket back home, I couldn't refuse without looking suspicious, so I had just looked at the map and chosen a random nearby town. Any farther and they would have wondered how I rode my bike to Resembool, any closer and a train ticket would have been completely pointless. Sensibility won out and I decided to get to get as close to Central as I could, knowing that I would eventually end up going there. I was, after all, the fangirl in Ed's world. I had read enough fanfics to know they always ended up at military headquarters, somehow.
"Bye," I said softly to Winry. The blond mechanic just nodded somberly to me, obviously trying her best to not cry. I gave her a sympathetic smile, turned and walked onto the train.
I quickly walked down the isle of the train car, found an empty seat and slung my bag onto it. I then quickly opened the window and leaned out of it, waving to Winry and Pinako. Pinako just kept her hands stuffed in her pockets as she looked me over through her glasses, while Winry waved back enthusiastically.
"Come visit soon!" she cried out just before the train let out an ear-splitting shriek and started chugging forward steadily. I jerked slightly with the movement, but continued waving to Winry.
"I will!" I promised. Besides, it wasn't like I had too many important things to do in this world. I wasn't an actual citizen, so I didn't have to go to school, and I didn't have any real family, so I had no home to tie me down. "Bye Winry!" I cried out just as my window reached the end of the station. Winry had run down to the end of the station, easily keeping up with the slow-moving train, but then it began to pick up speed and she stopped, waving to me from the edge of the platform.
I waved until Winry was only a speck in the distance, then pulled myself back inside the train and sighed. I reached for my backpack, but suddenly found that it was missing. I gasped, and saw two boys further down the car pulling it open and snickering. I quickly marched over to them and put both my hands on my hips, suddenly very angry.
"Give it back," I said as firmly as I could muster and trying to give both the boys death glares.
"Give what back?" one boy smirked at me while his friends continued to dig deeper into my bag. One boy pulled out my red Pirates of the Caribbean hat and looked at it curiously.
"Pirates for life?" he said, reading the words on the hat. He then looked at me in mock surprise. "Whoa! You're a pirate? No way!"
"Give me my backpack!" I said, my voice rising to a desperate plea. I knew the boys seemed to catch onto this and turned back to each other, making no attempt to hide their laughter from me.
"Give me my backpack!" one of the boys repeated with a sneer, his voice high and whiny. I nearly wanted to burst into tears, but I held them back and tried to stare angrily at the boys.
"I mean it!" I said, feeling my anger boil but my voice quaver. "Give it back now!"
"And what're you going to do if we don't give it to you?" the ringleader asked, clearing enjoying playing me like a cat would with a mouse. "You gonna hit us? Ooo, I'm so scared!" He turned back to his friends, who immediately starting laughing like the bunch of brainwashed idiots they were.
"I suggest you give the lady her backpack," a cool voice said behind me. I turned around and nearly fainted at the sight of Envy standing right behind me, crossing his arms and looking at the boys coldly.
"Oo, I'm so scared of two girls that probably never learned how to throw a proper punch in their lives," the ringleader taunted, and I saw Envy's grip tighten before he flew forward and started punching the boy in the face.
"I am not a damn girl!" Envy screeched, punching the boy in the face with each word. When he finally pulled away, the boy was unconscious and covered in blood, the other boys looked warily at Envy and quickly handed me my backpack.
"I everything in there?" Envy asked, not taking his eyes off the three still conscious boys. I carefully rifled through the bag and took a quick inventory.
"My hat's missing," I said softly after tallying up all the different items in my head. Envy glared at the boys, and one quickly tossed the hat to me, his eyes wide. Envy caught it right before it hit me in the head, and then handed it to me gently.
"That everything?" he asked, his purple eyes glinting in the light of the train. I nodded meekly as I clutched my backpack to my chest, sure that my eyes were a big as dinner plates. Envy nodded briskly, scowled at the boys, then grabbed my wrist and dragged me to a different car.
I noticed as he dragged me behind him how unnaturally cold his skin was. Thinking about it, I realized that it made sense, since homunculi weren't really human and seemed to only be living because of the Philosopher's Stone, but I hadn't really ever thought deeply about what Envy would feel like. In fact, most of the time I spent watching Fullmetal Alchemist I had disliked Envy, and here he was saving me from a pack of bullies.
Now where was the Equivalent Exchange in that?
"They shouldn't bother you here," Envy told me as he roughly shoved me into a seat. I guessed that he didn't seem to realize how rough it really was; after all, he was a homunculus, and a male one at that. Besides, he had just done one of the few compassionate things I had ever seen Envy do, fanfiction included. I had never thought that he could be… well, nice.
But as nice as he was, there was still something about him that unnerved me. I knew that he wasn't natural, and I had a feeling that I still wouldn't have felt completely comfortable around him even if I didn't know what he really was.
"Now, don't let them bother you, okay?" Envy snapped at me, and I weakly nodded. "And don't leave your stuff unguarded like that. You have any idea how stupid that was?" I nodded meekly again, slightly pulling my backpack up to cover the lower half of my face. Envy was reminding me way too much of the few mean dogs I had met throughout my life. Especially the way they barked and made me want to run away as fast as I could. His teeth were just way too sharp for an ordinary person. Envy nodded briskly at me, then turned and walked back into the other car, his long dark hair swishing sharply behind him.
I sighed and immediately slumped deep into the seat, breathing shakily. After nearly crying and then having Envy lecture me, I was feeling a bit out of sorts, to say the least. I then yanked open my backpack and pulled out Two Princesses of Bamarre, for lack of something better to do. I leaned my head against the cool glass of the window and tried to calm myself by reading the familiar words. I found myself wishing that the train were going to a town I actually knew rather than one I had picked off a map randomly.
The train suddenly screeched to a halt, making me and the other passengers look around in surprise. I quickly snapped my book shut and shoved it back into my backpack, worried that hijackers might have decided to take the train, just like in the first manga of FMA.
"I'm very sorry folks, but it seems that there's some trouble with the tracks up ahead," a voice over the intercom crackled. "We regret to inform you that this train will have to be detour to Dublith instead of going to Ellsworth like planned." The passengers around me groaned as the train started again.
Dublith, Dublith… I dug through my brain, trying to remember the connection to the strangely familiar name. I knew Dublith, I knew it, but I just couldn't put my finger on it. Ed and Al had traveled to so many different towns; it was hard to keep up at times.
Wait! I stopped thinking and nearly smacked myself on the head. Dublith, Curtis! That was where Izumi and Sig Curtis lived! Dublith was the home of Ed and Al's alchemy teacher! I nearly jumped at the thought before I realized the seriousness of it.
This was Izumi after all, the lady that could make even the brave Fullmetal Alchemist quiver in fear. And I had a feeling that since I was the fangirl magically dropped into the FMA world, I wouldn't be able to just sneak through the town without her noticing me. Oh no.
"Oh, we got trouble. Right here in Rivercity," I hummed under my breath as I stared out the window at the streaks of green rushing past. "With a capital T, and that rhymes with B, and that stands for blood." I sighed, hugged my backpack to my chest and rested my chin in the palm of my hand. Somehow, being dropped in the FMA world wasn't quite what I had imagined it would be like.
Oh yeah, just a barrel of fun.
I woke up hours later, extremely grateful to find that my backpack was still gripped tightly in my arms. I quickly rifled through it and was pleased to find that all my things were still inside.
"Now arriving in Dublith," the voice on the intercom crackled suddenly, making me jump a good inch, at least. "Please present your tickets to the man at the booth for a full refund. Thank you, and we're very sorry, folks." I quickly slung my back pack over one shoulder and joined the crowd steaming off the train, mostly mumbling about how mad they were at the train company, not seeming to think about how it probably wasn't really the train company's fault. Having problems with the tracks so suddenly like that, it was probably a complete accident.
First I hurried down to the cargo section of the train and claimed my bike, stroking the seat fondly before running away. I then hurried up to the ticket booth, and after a few minutes in line I managed to exchange my ticket for cold, hard cash. The paper felt good beneath my fingers, and I grinned at it as I rushed off.
I wandered aimlessly down the streets of Dublith, practically able to physically feel the money burning a hole in my pocket. And, predictably, after a few minutes I stumbled on the Curtis meat shop. I sighed to myself, and deciding not to delay the inevitable, walked inside after leaning my bike against on its side against the wall of the shop.
"Um… Hi," I said as I nervously eyed the man behind the counter of the shop. Sig didn't change his expression at all and continued to stare stonily ahead, a bloody cleaver clutched in one hand.
"Ham. 100 grams. 128 sens," Sig grunted.
"Um, that's… nice?" I said, smiling nervously at the large man. I tried shaking the thought of a large teddy bear out of my head, but it wouldn't leave. All right, a large gruff teddy bear, but a teddy bear, all the same.
"Chicken breast. 160 sens," Sig added.
"Cool," I smiled. I knew how this conversation went already, and I was pretty sure I didn't have muscles like Armstrong to compare with Sig. And even if I did have muslces, I wasn't going to tear my shirt off in front of a man, much less a married man.
"Cow shoulder chop, 200 sens."
"Really? How interesting," I sighed, trying to sound like I was interested. Sig cocked his head to one side and regarded me curiously.
"Minced pork and beef, 98 sens," Sig told me. I nearly banged my head on the table in frustration. It was like he was a prerecorded tape that just wouldn't stop. I suddenly looked up as I heard someone walk into the room. If it was physically possible to sweatdrop, I would have at the sight of Izumi.
There was just something about her that instantly commanded the attention of a room. She held herself tall and straight, making her look much taller than everybody else. Her clothes were neat and pressed, making me rub slightly at my wrinkled shirt in an attempt to look more presentable. I suddenly remembered back to when I had read the Mary Poppins book, and realized that Izumi reminded me strongly of the nanny. She was firm and strict like Mary Poppins most of the time, but there was also that soft side of her that would come out now and again.
"Well, who's this?" Izumi said as she looked me over. I felt myself shrink under her gaze, feeling as if I was specimen under a microscope. "Did your mom send you to buy meat?"
"Um… no," I said nervously, and then suddenly realized that I might as well buy meat. I did have a little money and if I was going to be on my own, I would have to have some food. "I'm actually buying for myself," I told Izumi, who cocked an eyebrow and regared me curiously. "Um… do you have any meat that doesn't need to be cooked… and doesn't need to be kept cold?"
"Beef jerky?" Izumi suggested, looking at me curiously.
"Yeah, yeah, beef jerkey!" I agreed, nodding my head enthustically. I loved beef jerky, but I hadn't had it for years. I quickly pulled the wad of money out of my pocket and sorted through the strange bills. Izumi reached under the table and pulled out a heap of beef jerkey and set it on the counter.
"How much do you want?" she asked looking up at me.
"Um, how much will this get?" I asked, holding out a bill. Izumi looked it over quickly and then smirked at me.
"About four strips." My stomach grumbled in protest, and I quickly pulled off about half of my cash supply.
"However much this gets," I told her, holding out the money. Izumi leaned over to look at the money, then turned back to the beef jerky.
"Leave it on top of the register," she told me as she pulled out strips of beef jerky. "I don't want to touch dirty money before I touch food." I nodded and carefully placed the money on top of the cash register, smiling nervously at Sig. Sig just grunted at me. I figured that was as good of a response as I could hope for. Izumi then held out a large white package towards me. I eargly took it from her with both hands, thinking of how I probably had enough beef jerky to last for months.
"Are you running away from home?" Izumi asked as I carefully slid the package of beef jerky into my backpack. I looked up at her quickly, and then suddenly realized how suspicious-looking a girl buying a pound of beef jerky probably was.
"No!" I said quickly. Izumi leaned on the counter and regared me curiously.
"Do you even have a home to run away from?"
"Er, I-" I felt blood rush to my cheeks and quickly turned away.
"You know, something about you seems familiar," Izumi commented, putting a finger thoughtfully to her chin. "We haven't ever met before, have we?" I looked up at her and quickly shook my head, thinking how impossible it was for us to have met before, since I came from another world. Of course, Izumi didn't know that.
"I didn't think so," Izumi said slowly as I stood up and slung my backpack over one shoulder. "I guess it's just because you just remind me of my own two boys."
Her own two boys? I thought curiously. But… Izumi doesn't have any kids… unless she means… no way! I sighed and nearly banged my head against the table. Why did everybody seem to think I was similar to the Elrics? I wasn't anything like them! Sure, I was honored that they thought I was, but I knew that I really wasn't. For starters, Ed and Al were actually brave. I was a wimp.
"Well, if you need a place to stay, we do have a few extra rooms," Izumi said, suddenly snapping me out of my Elric-Jacobson comparisons. "But- You would have to work for them. Have you ever heard of the law of Equivalent Exchange?"
"Yeah, a few times actually," I muttered. "Look, you really don't have to-"
"Say yes, we need the extra help," Izumi said, her lips quirking slightly into a smile. I grinned back and held out my hand. "Izumi Curtis," she said, grabbing my hand and shaking it firmly.
"Rebecca Jacobson," I replied, squeezing Izumi's hand back in an attempt to try and make her stop crushing mine. Izumi just squeezed even harder, making me want to fall to my knees, but I winced and tried my best to be polite. Izumi smiled at me and then let go of my hand. I quickly shook it back and forth a few times, feeling the blood pounding through my veins.
"You got spunk, Rebecca," Izumi said as she looked me over.
"Me?" I said weakly, noticing that my hand that the color of my hand could only compare to that of a ripe tomato. "Well, I try, but I'm sure that there's plenty of other people that have more spunk than me."
"You know what genius is, kid?" a new voice said, and I looked up to see Mason standing in the doorway. "One percent inspiration-"
"And ninety-nine percent perspiration," I finished weakly. I had heard the saying many times in my life. The first time it was cute, the second time it was a little cliché, and now it was just a bit on the annoying side.
"And trying for spunk certainly falls into the perspiration category," Mason grinned in reply. I smiled back at him, encouraged by his easy-going attitude.
"Mason, show the young lady to her room," Izumi barked before turning back to me. "I want you to put your things away and come back down here in no later than five minutes, ready to work."
"Erm, yes, ma'am!" I said quickly. Mason grinned at me from his spot and beckoned for me to follow. I quickly hurried after him and into a hallway with white paint on the walls.
"Here we go," Mason said with a grin as he opened a plain wooden door. The room inside had a rather simple dresser and a bed with white sheets that had been neatly made. "Been awhile since we had any kids around here," Mason grinned as I walked in the room and turned in a circle to look at in more effectively. "It'll be kind of nice to have someone to liven things up around here."
"Well, I'll try, but all I want is a roof over my head and food in my stomach," I said with a slight smile. The room seemed nice. It was certainly more open than my own room, which was already small and then had all sorts of furniture crammed into it. If only I my CDs worked in this world, then I would already thinking about dancing in the room when nobody was looking.
"Oh, I'm sure that just wanting place to stay and food will liven things up enough," Mason laughed slightly. "We never run low on excitement her in the Curtis household – at least, when there're kids around. I'm sure you'll be fine," Mason added, noticing my worried look. "Izumi can just get a little… energetic at times. Especially when there are guests in the house."
"Joy," I muttered, knowing just what Mason meant by 'energetic.' I tried to toss my backpack onto the bed, but it missed by about an inch and fell onto the floor, spilling out its contents.
"Oh, fudgemuffin," I groaned, quickly dropping to my knees and gathering up my things. I just barely saw one of my strawberry lip smackers roll under the bed. "I'll be there in a second," I told Mason, who nodded and walked off. I then turned to the bed and crawled onto my hands and knees, then slid onto my stomach so that my cheek was pressed against the floor.
I saw a dark shape against the wall, so I quickly reached out a hand and grabbed it. I felt the familiar form of my lip smackers tube, and feeling a slight surge of pride, began to pull away from the bed. As I did so, a small crack of light reached under the bed and illuminated a small section of the wall.
I, Edward Elric,
"I said no later than five minutes!" I heard Izumi call out to me. "That means you have one minute left!" The rest of the words on the wall were covered in shadow, so even though I was burning to know what they said, I backed away from the wall, tucked the lip smackers into my pocket, and ran down to a waiting Izumi.
"Right on time," Izumi said as I raced to a stop in front of her. "Tell me, Rebecca, do you know how to scrub floors?"
"Um, yes," I said slowly. True, I did know how to how to scrub floors, but I didn't really enjoy it. I hated it when the water got dirty and then I would have to stick my hand back in it just to get my scrubbing brush wet. And then I would be worried that I was making the floors more dirty instead of clean, and…
"But I'm better at scrubbing stairs," I added quickly. Izumi regarded me curiously. At home we had a set of stairs right by the front door, so my mom always wanted them to look clean when guests arrived. Usually I got stuck doing that job.
"I'll keep that in mind," Izumi said. She started walking, and I quickly followed behind her. "But today my floors are not dirty enough to be scrubbed. Instead, I want you to alphabetize all my books." I gasped as we walked into a room filled with books.
Sure it was small compared to normal libraries, or even libraries of other people with more space and money, but it was still a personal library. I had never seen a room in someone's house that was completely filled with shelves upon shelves of books. Though I had always known I would want one whenever I got a house, if I could afford it.
"I want these alphabetized by the last name of the author," Izumi said, and I suddenly realized how huge of a task lay before me. "A starts here," she pointed to the left wall by the door, "wrapping around and ending in Z here," she pointed to the wall on the right side of the door. "Have fun." I sighed and then slowly started pulling books off shelves.
A History of Alchemy, by Geraldine Aamt
An A. That would go right at the beginning. This was going to take a while.
Hours later, I finally managed to trudge up to bed. I had only stopped once to eat diner, and I ended up eating that very quickly. It was eleven thirty at night, and I had finally, finally, managed to finish alphabetize the whole darn library.
When I walked into my room, I saw plain white nightgown folded carefully on the bed. I rejoiced silently at the comforting sight, quickly closing the door behind me so I could change and go to bed. First I quickly tore off my shirt and slipped on the nightgown. The nightgown was achingly soft, almost like an old t-shirt. I felt my eyes slid a little more closed, and quickly moved on to my pants.
I quickly pulled off the pants and was about to just throw them carelessly on the floor when I suddenly felt a lump in the pocket. I reached in and pulled out the strawberry lip smackers I had stowed there earlier. I suddenly remember the mysterious writing on the wall and dropped to my knees in an attempt to read it.
No matter how much I twisted and turned, I couldn't see more than the words "I, Edward Elric," what I had already read before. I sighed and pushed myself into a standing position. I knew a way to find out what the words said, and now that I was curious, I wasn't going to leave the forgotten message. I quickly wrapped my hands around one of the bedposts and started pulling. It took a bit more effort than my bed at home, but I managed to slowly inch the bed away from the wall.
Once it was far enough away for me to slide between it and the wall, I quickly slid in and started pushing against the bed. It slid more easily, and before I knew it the bed had slid far enough away for me to crouch down and look at the wall. I easily found the words on the wall and read them eagerly.
I, Edward Elric, promise never to abandon Alphonse now that our mother is gone.
"Aw," I said softly and held a hand to my chest. I guessed that Ed had probably made that small carving when he and Al had first come to the Curtis house, before they tried to bring their mom back. And, as far as I knew, Ed had stuck faithfully to that promise ever since, even sacrificing an arm to do so.
I smiled to myself and after searching for any more carvings in the wall, began pushing the bed back up against the wall. When it was back to its original position, I hurried over to the light switch, put my glasses on top of the dresser and then darkened the room. I slid the door open a crack to let in light from the hall, and then quickly climbed into the bed, rejoicing in the thick blankets and soft pillows.
I tried to fall asleep for a minute or two, trying multiple positions until I finally realized that there was a large lump in the center of the bed. As if Izumi had decided to test whether or not I was a princess by putting a pea under a hundred mattresses, only it was just one mattress, and the lump was a lot larger than a pea.
I finally sighed in resignation and climbed out of the warm bed to investigate. I quickly slid my hand under the mattress, and jerked in surprise when I felt my fingers brush against a thick, hardcover book. I curiously pulled it out and ran a hand across it. No wonder the bed was so uncomfortable.
I quickly walked back over to the light switch and flicked the lights back on. I found that the book was a fancy leather book with a green leather cover. I reached over to the dresser, pulled my glasses back on and curiously turned the green book over in my hands a few times before flipping it open.
This book belongs to Edward Elric!
"Geez, Ed, you've left your mark all over this room," I laughed to myself. I realized that I was really talking to myself, but I didn't care. Besides, I usually ended up talking to imaginary characters or myself late in the night anyway. I checked around the book for any warning to "Keep out!" but found none, so flipped open to the first page with a victorious smirk.
April 14
Teacher gave both me and Al one of these things today. She said that it can be nice to get things off your chest by writing. Bleh. But Al is writing in his, so he's not going to play anytime soon, and at least Teacher doesn't try to do exercises with us when she thinks we're writing. So all I gotta do is keep writing until Al is done, and then we can both go play! Yahoo! Writing, writing, writing, writing, writing, writing, wri
April 15
Ick. It's raining outside today. Teacher said that since we couldn't do our usual exercises we could alphabetize her entire library! And the worst part was that Al and I could only reach the top shelves if we stood on each other's shoulders. And since Al was the younger one, he said that he couldn't hold me up as long as I could hold him up, so I had to hold him up practically very time! My shoulders really hurt now, and tomorrow we're going to have to go back to normal exercise. I'm going to tell Teacher I'm sick. Maybe she'll let me have a day off.
April 16
Teacher didn't believe me when I said I was sick. So I ended up doing the same exercises as Al. And Teacher ended up throwing me, just like every other time we practice. My shoulders really hurt.
I yawned suddenly, and knowing I wouldn't be able to read the entire book that night, flipped to the very last entry. I figured I could read the rest tomorrow, that is, if Izumi wasn't too hard on me. I noticed that the handwriting had improved greatly in the last entry compared to the first three I had read.
September 21
Wow, I forgot that I left this old thing here when Al and I went back home. I suppose it was because it was stupid and didn't want to have anything else to do with it. It's kind of weird to go back and read stuff from when I was little. But I'm going to leave this here anyway. All my important stuff is in my travelogue, and I bet Teacher would get a kick out of this if she ever finds it.
Anyway, I'm sixteen years old now. Al and I came back here for some help from Teacher. I was worried that she was going to be really mad at us. She was mad, but I think she kind of understood, too. But I'm not complaining, it was definitely better than being thrown over a roof somewhere.
So far we haven't had any luck with the Philosopher's Stone. I'm hoping that we might get a lead soon, but I'm not feeling too optimistic about it, really. I'll never admit it to Al, but I'm beginning to lose hope. We've been at this for what feels like forever, and so far everything we've found has turned out to just one rumor after another.
But I'll keep going, even if I don't feel like I can do it. Because Al needs me to. After all, we're brothers. If we don't look out for each other, then who will?
Goodnight.
"Oh, Ed," I sighed, running my fingers over the page. I wished I could tell him that there would always be people rooting for him, whether he realized it or not. I wished I could just somehow show him that everything would be all right. After all, the movie had ended on a positive note. Or positive compared to what he was going through now, since I was still aching for more.
I kept the book open to the same page and walked over to my backpack. I looted around in it for a few minutes, and eventually found a pencil. I then sat down on the edge of the bed and carefully started writing, making sure to make my letters neat enough for someone else to read.
Dear Ed,
Right now you don't know who I am, but I have a felling we will end up meeting someday. I can't put into words all the different thoughts inside of me, but I'm definitely going to try, okay?
First of all, you need to realize that people all around you care about you – yes, even love you – even with all the different mistakes you've made over the years. You are a good person, truly. I know that plenty of other people would have given up on the Philosopher's Stone long before you, even if it were for their brother's benefit.
Secondly, please know that everything will eventually work out. It may be hard at times, but you keep managing to make good choices even when pressed into a stressful solution. When you make good choice after good choice, even if you have had a few bad choices along the way, you'll usually end up with something good.
Thirdly, just think about how lucky you already are. You're still alive and healthy, you have a younger brother who admires and looks up to you, you're smart, you have a job that lets you access important information and a boss that lets you have more free rein than he probably is supposed to, and you usually manage to have three square meals a day. Even in the rough patches of life, there are still good parts. Believe me, I know, even though my rough patches are probably much smoother than yours.
Just try to have some fun even if life has got you down, okay?
Good luck!
I looked over the letter quickly, and after rereading over it twice, tore it out and stuffed it into my backpack. I knew that I was obviously tried and not thinking properly. It wasn't like Ed was going to listen to advice – and corny advice, at that – from a nobody of a girl like me. What the heck did I know about what he was going through? I knew I had never had parts of my life that could even begin to compare to what he was going through. I had been blessed with a reasonably good life, and I knew it.
I sighed, put Ed's journal and my glasses on top of the dresser and flicked the light switch off again before crawling back into bed. Somehow, the bed seemed so much more comfortable than it had before. I knew it was because I was just more tired, but I didn't really care about the explanations behind it, I just knew it felt good.
I sighed contentedly and rolled deeper into my pillow. I sniffed it a few times before I realized that it smelled like clothes that had been dried on a line outside rather than in a machine. My mom had always wanted to do that with our clothes, but she had never really gotten around to it. I could understand why she liked the thought so much. It saved energy, and the sheets smelled wonderful.
I wiggled my toes under the sheets, glad that I could actually feel the blanket rub against them. I started wondering for the millionth time what it would be like to be in Al's position. I knew that I would probably go crazy of I couldn't feel, taste or smell.
I then started thinking about what it would be like to have automail like Ed. You would be able to experience all five senses most of the time, except for that one little bit of you that was just machinery. I touched my fingernails together under the blanket. I couldn't feel them touch each other, but I knew they were touching. So far it was the closest I had ever come to understanding automail. Fingernails.
Eventually I managed to fall asleep, despite the strangeness of a different bed than the one I had slept in at the Rockbell's, and a different one before that, and despite all the different thoughts I had about the Fullmetal Alchemist world. It was like having a sleepover without a friend, and much, much more exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time.
Needless to say, I ended up waking up late the next morning, leading to Izumi making me do twenty-five jumping jacks as punishment.
AdventureAddict doesn't own Fullmetal Alchemist, especially considering that her name is certainly not Hiromu Arakawa. You didn't seriously think that, did you?
Ergh. I hope I got Izumi right. I've never actually written her before. At all. So that was my first ever attempt at her. And Sig. And Mason. How'd I do? –sweatdrops- And I figured it was about time that Envy had a few good things in his favor. Usually when that happens it's right before he starts makingout with Ed or someone else. No, Envy won't end up with me either. I don't date tropical plants. End of story.
Okay, I decided to answer to reviews this way now. I've seen a couple authors do it, and this way I know I'm replying to all the reviews. If I already replied to you once before, just feel doubly loved, and if I didn't, I'm sorry, it was probably because I was busy and didn't know which ones I had and hadn't replied to.
Anybody who reviews will get some sort of reply from now on. Just think of this as your Equivalent Exchange for reading and reviewing! –winks-
Just control F the name you used, I don't actually expect any of you to read all this babbling. Heh. Thanks again for all the response to this, I really appreciate it:D
Chapter One…it's a secret! Oh, thank so much! –blushes- Yeah, I actually have trouble with the whole description thing. I'm sitting there practically tearing my hair out and screaming "Action! Get into the plot already!!" So I'm glad to hear it actually worked pretty well.
Erebos Yeah, I don't really know where my fanfic falls either. I know I'm not a Sue, (though I do have an Aunt Sue, does that count?) but still… here I am, writing fanfic and putting myself in it… -sigh- As much as I hate to admit it, there must be some rabid fangirl deep inside me… -sigh- Thank you for reading and not going Jack the Ripper on me yet! –sweatdrops- Yeah, no pressure…
Dancing NightmareYay! Sugar! -throws sugar in air and attempts to catch it in her mouth-
Oh… oops… -sweatdrops- Yeah, I must have missed those. I changed the names for Paul and Michael a few times. Nathanael is Michael and Paul is Sean, in case I slip up in the future. But it's fixed now, thank you very much for pointing that out to me. Eh heh…
I love mangaverse too, since so many more things just seem to line up more properly. But I like the way homunculi are created in the anime, maybe partly because I don't know how they're created in the manga too well. And there's the whole "Sloth is Mom, but not really! Angst, angst, angst, angst…" Well, you'll see what I decide to do later! –winks-
Agent000Ah, thanks for reading yet another of my stories! Yeah, I remember in "My Body, Your Soul" that you said large chunks of it were based off your life, especially since the main character acts like Al. –snickers- There's been whole bunches of inspiration for this everywhere, really. In fact, a little while ago, Kairi thought she heard me call her "Brother" in the hall, while I was thinking that I heard her say "Stop calling me Brother!" But apparently neither of us said it… creepy.
Al's spirit is haunting me! Eep! –looks around suspiciously- Ghosts freak me out. But I don't mind writing about them, of course… :D
Pizza Matrix:D Thank you very much, I plan to keep it going, at least when I have the time to… -sigh-
Graceful[ExecutionWell, if you want to see what happens, you'll just have to read it, won't you? –grins- Thanks very much, I did try to make it more believable than some random fangirl inserts out there. Though when someone just happens to fall into the FMA world, how believable can you get, really?
CrazedNekoYes, she'll manage to get home. I'm not going to just leave my poor little brothers all alone with no big sister to annoy- er, I mean, look up to. I actually have a whole plan for this, now it's just a matter of typing it all out and making it decent. –sigh-
Kairi Angel A.K.A. Sabrina ... -sigh- You're not going to get arrested, Brother. First of all, how many people download stuff like FMA daily? Secondly, did I tell anyone your last name? No. You could be any Sabrina. So calm down, kay?
Why steal a crummy bike when you have enough money to go out and buy ten more that are twenty times better? –sigh- I needs to get a new set of wheels…
My walkman is reliable, at least! You know what happens when you drop an ipod nano? It breaks and you cannot fix it. My walkman, however, has been dropped at least fifteen times and still works great. –turns to walkman- She didn't mean it, baby, no…
Wait, they put poop in the river?! –falls over- Why wasn't I ever informed of this? I knew it was icky, but I didn't know they put that in there… -sticks out tongue- iiiiicky…
DEATHNOTE!!!
ZIM Of course I'll keep it going! I'm posting, aren't I? Anyways, thanks very much. Makes me feel fuzzy inside…
X-L09Thank you!
Suuki-Aldrea Thanks! Here ya go!
The Ultimate Showdown of Ul... Ultimate Showdown of what?! What is it?! –bangs head on table- Thanks anyway. Rebecca's not in too much trouble, she still has Ed and Al to look forward to meeting… meh heh heh…
Maira Luca Aw... –blushes and turns away- Thanks so much. I hate just having a paragraph about the main character before Ed and Al magically show up. I mean, one of the main things with stories is developing a character, but you can't really develop them if there's nothing to develop, now can you?! They did have a life before Ed and Al showed up! There should definitely be a bond between the reader and the OC, maybe even more than the bond between the reader and the Elrics, if you do it right… Hmm… -smirks- if Rebecca and Ed were in a fistfight, who would you root for to win? Muahahahahaha… Thanks again!
Jack-san: Thank you, I'll try to post more regularly. –sweatdrops-
tomato sauce Oh, man, do I feel your pain! Part of the reason I'm writing this is because I would love to be able to read a story like this in the FMA section myself! But, man, some of the stuff out there just suuuucks! So, if the world don't provide, then make it yourself. –rolls up sleeves- Wait, you'll be stalking?! Meeep! –runs off and hides in corner-
Firestorm23Ah, yes, Rebecca's last line. I hate how I can always think of zingers like that later, but never seem to be able to say them on the spur of the moment. So that's one of my few little unrealistic bits. But there aren't many, I swear!
Katty008 Oh, I hate showing people my writing. Except online, of course, where no one except Kairi Angel truly knows who I am. Though my writing confidence has gone up recently. I did just win a little writing competition in my English class, and I started a Writing Club that I'm the president of, and I'm going to be entering a real competition soon… -sigh- Writing is a very big part of my life at the moment.
But give yourself some confidence boosts! I'm sure that there are some older people that aren't patronizing you, and some classmates that are just too shy to talk to you about your writing. –gives Katty008 a thumb's up- If people online like your writing, then, logically, some people in the real world must too!
DESTROY-THE-HORMONES Yeah, hooray for stupid bikes! –high fives D-T-H- Yeah, I do rather like Mustang, but I realize that he would terrify me in real life. I mean, the man can make fire by snapping! By the way, nice name! Die hormones, die! Urgh, I do hate them so…
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Chapter Two
SasharuCookies! –grabs bag and starts eating them ravenously- Thanks! I'm glad you like the story and are also growing to like Rebecca! Hee! –suddenly turns serious and holds up Winry's wrench- Then again… She is the main character and based mainly off myself, so you'd better like her! –smiles-
BlueRose.xoxoGee, thanks! Oh, I can't count all the times that's happened to me with reviews. Sometimes I scroll back and quickly try to figure out what I wanted to say, but other times I'm exhausted and just go, "aw, screw it. –types- This chapter was cool. Um… there were some spelling mistakes… Write some more please." I realize as I'm typing how stupid it sounds, but I'm usually too exhausted to care.
Katty008Or better yet, they all speak Amestrisan, their natural tongue! Lol! That made me laugh! It's funny because it's true! That would be a funny little story, you should try writing it! But for the sake of my story, they all speak English. (Which will, believe it or not, be explained later… muahahahaha…)
Katatsubasa-no-TenshiWell, if it weren't for the readers, we writers would have no meaning to our existence. Thanks bunches!
Agent000 Oh, yeah, definitely. I would only play Truth or Dare with Roy if there was a girl in a miniskirt nearby, therefore diverting all his attention from me. –sticks out tongue at Roy- But Winry asked all sorts of nice questions, luckily. And, believe it or not, I was actually planning on having a game of Truth or Dare with Ed later. He'll be asking her all sorts of –ahem- fun –ahem- questions, and Rebecca will keep wriggling her way out of them. I actually had a plan on a conversation like… Rebecca: -sigh- Okay, Ed, Truth or Dare? Ed: Hmm… I'll do Truth this time. Rebecca: Really? Okaaaay… Um… What's your middle name? Ed: Um… Al: Come on, Brother, you did pick Truth. Ed: -mumbles- Rebecca: What was that? Ed: -sigh- My middle name is… Leslie. Rebecca: -stifles laughter- Really? Well, that's not too, bad, I guess… Ed: -glares-
My, my, I do enjoy torturing Ed. That's probably why he's going to butt heads with me a lot in this… -sweatdrops- I run away to Mexico now.
Dancing NightmareYes, you can never be too sure with me. I do enjoy throwing my readers off.
I'm so glad Rebecca is so very un-Mary-Sue-ish! I was upset just with the fact that Rebecca conveniently ended up at Winry's house. I mean, what are the chances of that happening? And there's even less chance that some random fangirl would just happen to meet Ed and Al first. But Ed and Al aren't even the second (or third, for that matter) main FMA characters Rebecca meets. It pains me to have so long without them, but it must be done. Besides, Ed will hate me when he meets me anyway, so why rush? –sighs and starts humming the death march-
Suuki-Aldrea Thanks again! Sorry it took me so darn long to post! –sweatdrops-
Firestorm23 Thanks! It'll get a whole lot better once Ed and Al jump in, I hope. Again, sorry this took so long to post. I was –ahem- busy –ahem-
Mew Sarin AlchemistYes. 'Cuz we all know that I am very ordinary. –sigh- And I do get sick of only girls falling into the FMA world. But I need to work on my boy-characterization before I can fix that little problem, alas. But boys do pop into the FMA world every blue moon. But compared to all the girls popping in, it's practically nothing. –sigh-
fadedphantom Yeah, a lot of people do bash Winry when she's really an okay chick. I think they're jealous that Ed keeps returning to her instead of them… -smirks- And I do try to keep people in character. It's easier now that I've written more fanfics and seen the entire FMA series plus the movie. Sorry the update took forever!
DESTROY-THE-HORMONES Yeah, when the questions in Truth or Dare get a little… erm… personal… I usually end up wriggling my way out of them, somehow. But other than that, it's okay, I suppose. Certainly not my favorite game. I hate doing Dares though. You'll never be sure what you'll end up having to do. Thanks for the fav, I appreciate it!
THANKS AGAIN TO YOU ALL! SORRY THIS IS LATE, UPDATES SHOULD BE QUICKER FROM NOW ON! PLEASE REVIEW!!
