WARNINGS FOR: Swearing, violence

Of course, I remembered my password after I already started new. :P I deleted the old story, though, as it was poorly written. Also, I was debating on whether or not to share a playlist of songs for you guys to listen to while you read this. If you would like that, I'll share it next chapter! A special thanks to my sister Isabella for describing an asthma attack to me for this chapter. Thanks again so much for reading!

-Elena

Chapter Two

Sanction's Sanctuary

The last thing Isabelle wanted to do was to stay at Resembool and take over the family orchard.

It was great and all, really, she absolutely loved apples more than the next guy, but she didn't want to feel like she was wasting her life away doing the same things as everybody else in the God forsaken town. She never liked the quiet, and she never liked doing things as mundane as picking apples off a tree. Especially having to peel them. That was the worst part.

As much as she loved her mother and spending time with her, she always hated peeling apples with her.

"Isabelle, make sure you twist off the stems before you peel, it'll make things easier for you."

"Yes, Mama."

She didn't mind the apples or the cooking or the picking, but peeling them was so tedious. Her mother was one of the biggest perfectionists that she ever knew, so if she cut too deep into the apple, she would get the look. The Look was not only simply terrifying, but it was always followed by an aggravated sigh and some comment about how she was wasting food.

Her parents seemed to enjoy this more than she did, and she was still strung along because she had no other choice but to obey them both.

It was also because Isabelle didn't have the guts to tell her parents about how she wanted to join the military.

Isabelle knew that her father would never approve of such things. She knew about her father being a State Alchemist by the age of twelve, and she knew the whole adventure as to why he did it, but he was still eager to join himself too. She never understood why he would be so adamantly against his daughter following the same path.

I mean, if Marcus can do it then why can't I?

Yes, Marcus wanted to be in the military once, but not as a soldier. He wanted to be an automail engineer that worked for the military. He knew that's where the money was. However, his mother suggested Rush Valley would be a better opportunity for him. "And besides," she had said, "The military goes there too." So, working under Winry as an apprentice, he started to study and work until he could have what it takes to have his own brand of automail in a little store at Rush Valley.

Isabelle wasn't too keen on mechanical limbs like her strange brother was. Isabelle instead fell into a deep love for alchemy. Edward never was able to do alchemy after he fought in the Amestrian Civil War years before they were born, but he was still able to teach her whatever he can. Everything else she would read from books or learn from Alphonse and May, or "Uncle Alphonse and Aunt May" as her mother would tell her to call him, whenever he would visit.

She became rather skilled rather fast. After all, she was being taught by two of the world's greatest alchemists. She knew her skills in alchemy made her apt for the military, but she knew the idea would immediately be rejected if her family were to ever find out. She couldn't trust her parents enough to tell them her deepest desires in life, especially since her deepest desires were becoming a dog of the military to fight.

Now her brother, on the other hand: maybe?

They trusted each other with more information than they told to her parents already, but Isabelle wasn't so sure about telling Marcus about how she wanted to be a soldier. At least not yet anyway.

"Isabelle, is something bothering you?"

She turned her head to see Winry staring at her. She glanced down at her apple she was currently working on, and not a bit of it was peeled, if anything, the blade was about to peel the skin off her fingers, if anything.

"No, I just got lost in thought," Isabelle shook her head, starting to peel the apple from the top to the bottom.

"What were you thinking about?" Winry carefully removed the blade and apple from her daughter's grasp, setting it off to the side and looking back at her. "You looked troubled."

"I wasn't."

"Look at me in my face," She said, tapping her fingers on Isabelle's cheek to have her turn her head. She did. "What were you thinking about?"

"Marcus," She replied simply. It wasn't exactly a lie, nor was it exactly the truth either. It was one of those responses that would fit on the tongue of either a liar or an honest. It wasn't hot nor cold, but simply lukewarm. Isabelle would become quite good at saying those kind of responses in the future.

"What about Marcus?" Winry asked, it wasn't uncommon for her daughter to talk about her brother, but it wasn't exactly her favourite subject to talk about, either. One thing that always worried her about her daughter was how she could manage to be so bold and open, but also so reclusive. Scratch that, that wasn't what worried her. What worried the mother the most is how she was just like her father.

"He's going to leave soon, isn't he?" Isabelle said. "To Rush Valley?"

Now there is the subject Isabelle has thought of many times, so even if she wasn't thinking of this at that particular moment, she still thought of it frequently. A loophole lie, so to speak. This would have been a statement that would fit nicely on the tongue of a liar, but the honest would spew it from its mouth. Isabelle never liked to lie, but she knew she couldn't tell her mother what was really on her mind. Not yet.

"You're going to miss him, that's what you're thinking about?"

Isabelle nodded at that, and Winry's face softened. "Oh, Izzy," She murmured and pulled her body to hers, wrapping her arms around her daughter and hugging her close. "Don't worry, he'll still come to visit, and he'll still call us."

"I know."

That night, Marcus woke her up early again. What the hell was up with him? This is the second time this week.

"What do you want now?" Isabelle asked, her voice groggy and her eyes still closed.

"It's a surprise for the love of God," Marcus shook her again, this time she blinked her eyes open and looked at him. "Don't make me repeat the Bucket Incident again."

"Asshole," she scoffed, "You would be in so much trouble. And why can't you just take me to see it during the day? You know, when I'm awake." She held this fire in her eyes, but it was a gentle flame. It wasn't a roaring ring of fire like her father had; it was instead a small flicker, the same you'd see when you'd light a match, the same that Alphonse had. Even while she was exhausted, the blue flame resided in her iris.

"Because I don't think Mom and Dad would approve of it."

This sparked her attention and she sat up. Her brother was never the rebellious type, it was her job to openly rebel. His job was to be a good kid and be the one rebelling from the inside if he wanted to. He set the example, she destroyed it. Simple as that.

But neither of them were stupid enough to disobey their parents. Or at least, let them find out.

"What is it?" Isabelle asked him.

"You'll have to come with me to find out. You might want to put some appropriate clothes and shoes on, if that's the case." He was already prepared, wearing a light hoodie and tactical boots. Where would they be going if he was wearing that? "Make sure your hair is out of your face, too." His hair wasn't long like hers and her parents', but it wasn't necessarily short either. It was shaggy enough to tie look like a bunny tail when he'd tie it back, which would only be when he's working on automail. He had it tied.

She pushed her blankets off of her and shooed him to leave so she could change. What does he want to show me? Isabelle opened her drawers and put on a black tank top and black pants that went down to the middle of her calf. There was a faint knock at her door, "Are you done yet?"

"Almost, I just need my jacket and my shoes," She responded quietly, braiding her hair and tying it.

Marcus walked in, holding up her shoes that she had left in the mudroom from her visit to their orchard. She only wore them when she knew she was going to get physical and/or covered in dirt. "Here," he said as she put on her blue jacket, "These would be a better pair for you to wear."

As Isabelle put them on her feet and laced them up, she told him, "What I want to know is how you found this."

"You see, Izzy," he said, "While you stay up late, go to bed late, and wake up late, I stay up early, go to bed early, and wake up early."

"So you sneak out while we're all asleep, is basically what you're saying?"

"If you want to put it that way."

This was a new side of Marcus that she has never seen before. It was foreign, at least it was to her. This made her wonder if any of his friends knew about this side of him. Of course Thomas would know. Thomas was another apprentice that Winry had, most of the time working right next to Marcus, and the two became very close.

"Let's go, or we won't have much time," he gestured to her window, which was ground level with the rest of the house. The front door creaked a lot, and it would definitely wake up their parents if they were to leave that way. Isabelle's window, however, would definitely be a quieter route.

Marcus crawled out first, then his sister followed suit, and then the siblings began to walk, the girl following his side. "It'll take a minute or so before we get there, but when we do, you're going to love it. I'm sure of it."

Isabelle wasn't sure what he was talking about, but she already loved it. Whenever somebody would go out of their way to think about another, it was something that always touched her, especially when she was the recipient. As much as she wanted to enjoy it, she couldn't just yet. There was something within her, something eating her alive.

The reveal.

She couldn't take it anymore. Somebody had to know, and she trusted her brother more than she could trust anybody else. She had to act now before she changed her mind.

"Marcus," she spoke softly as they walked, and he looked at her.

"Hmm?"

"I want to tell you something, but you have to promise to keep it a secret," She was shaking a little by this point, her knees felt weak, her arms felt heavy.

He nodded, "Of course."

"I want to be a State Alchemist."

Marcus stopped abruptly, followed by a sudden collision where Isabelle didn't stop soon enough, crashing into him. She took a few steps backwards and he turned around to face her. "You want to what?"

"I want to join the military," She swallowed hard. Already, she knew she had made a mistake, but it was too late to turn back now, "I want to be a State Alchemist."

He stared at her, his eyes wide and his mouth open just slightly in a state of shock and fear. It's not like he was afraid of her, oh no, he was afraid for her. "Isabelle, you know Mom and Dad won't let you. Even if they miraculously give the okay, Alphonse wouldn't approve either. Hell, even if every person in the damned world would somehow say yes, General Mustang would never let you in."

Shit.

She forgot all about General Roy Mustang. She knew her parents would be hard to convince, but she might as well not even try with Roy. He and Edward were too tightly knit, and he was so much more stubborn than her father was, in some ways. When it came to her and Marcus's safety, everybody else seemed to place that at their top priority. And the military definitely wasn't the safest place for her.

"When I'm of age, I'll be able to without anybody's permission," she was already close to being the age of parental/guardian consent, which was fourteen. But if she wanted to get in without needing somebody to say yes, she had to be eighteen.

"He could still reject your application," Marcus said. "Or fail you on the exam."

Shit!

Isabelle knew right then all of her chances were destroyed. Any hope of her becoming a State Alchemist was going to stay that way – just a dream. A dream lost in a sea of misguided hope and wonder and stranded on the island of unattainable desire.

"Think about it this way, Izzy," he placed a hand on her shoulder, "He's saving your life."

"I'm more than willing to die!" she blurted out suddenly. Right then she knew she had taken it too far. Marcus gave her this look, a look that she would never forget for the rest of her life. Disappointment, fear, shock, anguish…

He stopped trying right then, and he turned back around. Looking forward, he changed the subject, "Come on, Isabelle. You're going to love this."

She felt a pang in her heart, but said nothing as she followed him down the road.

They didn't say anything to each other for a while as Marcus lead her further and further away from home, away from town altogether, but then they came upon some trees. The trees extended farther than she can see, and she could faintly hear the sound of water running down a stream. She remembered seeing this place before, back when she was barely old enough to walk around. Her father had quickly pulled her away from this area, saying it was dangerous.

"All of Resembool thinks it's haunted," Marcus said, chuckling as he stared at the open mouth of the woods before them. "They slapped a forbidden label on it because they were scared."

"You've been here?" Isabelle asked, astounded. She remembered this place now. She's heard many tales about it at school about how the dead walk the earth there during the night. "Is it really haunted like they say?"

"Pfft, no," Marcus laughed, "It's all bullshit."

"Then what's the fun in this place?" She asked, feeling bold, like she knew how to fight for herself (which she didn't). Even if there wasn't any ghosts or ghouls running amuck, she still enjoyed new sights and adventure. "Then why did they say it was dangerous when it's not haunted?"

"Maybe because they don't want people in here messing with the wildlife," he said, "There's animals in here."

"Really?" Isabelle's face beamed. She's seen cats and dogs before and she's always adored them. But any different species of animals were only found in photographs. She's always wanted to see one in person. "What kind?"

"Mainly mice, rabbits, raccoons, deer, squirrels, and foxes." She'd seen a rabbit once, at the orchard. She begged Winry to keep it, but they had to turn her down because they weren't sure of what illnesses it carried. On the other hand she'd seen mice and squirrels plenty of times, but even then, it felt different knowing it was in the wild.

"Damn," she mused to herself simply, staring into the heart of the woods. She could almost hear it calling her name.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go," Marcus started to walk in when Isabelle grabbed his arm worriedly. "Say, you're not actually scared, are you? I came here last night and everything was perfectly fine, I even set up a trail for us to follow, so we won't get lost. Come on, Izzy."

She swallowed hard and followed behind him, walking close to him in case if she heard something she didn't comprehend. She took in everything around her as they walked along the trail, the moon and stars illuminating the darkness to where she could see this new world clearly.

She could stay here for days.

The two heard a twig snap, and their heads jerked to the side, Isabelle quickly grasping onto her brother's arm, tensing. She sighed at what they saw – just a simple female deer that had bent down to eat. The doe perched its head upwards at the two siblings, its ears pointed to the sky. She was in awe, letting go of her brother as Marcus whispered to her, "Hey, make sure you're very slow."

"Why?"

"They don't like bright lights or fast movements," He said simply, and slowly started to inch his way toward the doe, his arm extended to pet her.

"Marcus! It could have rabies!" Isabelle whispered in a high voice, a part of her wanted to pet it, but another part of her was too scared.

"That's squirrels, stupid," he laughed as he come close to the animal and gently placed his hand on her back to stroke. He had a cheeky grin on his face and turned his head to Isabelle as he pet the doe. He extended an arm to her, "Come here, it's really soft."

Her longings overrode her fear and she slowly walked toward her brother. How could something so beautiful be forbidden? She couldn't understand that much. Marcus gently took her hand and guided it to the doe. Nothing in her life could ever compare to this moment. As her fingers grazed across the pelt, she suddenly understood why. Something like this shouldn't be tampered with by humans; they'd just destroy it. It should be observed, watched carefully and appreciated from afar and admired over there.

In the moment, Isabelle never realized how significant this night of her life would be when she got older. She never realized how much she would learn to love the quiet, to love the apples and her stupid Resembool accent.

In the moment, there was peace, there was comfort. It was warm, clouded with the night sky and pure serenity.

Marcus took a few steps to the side, stepping on a twig in the process and breaking it with a loud snap. In fear, the doe quickly pranced away from the siblings. "Sorry about that," he said to his sister. Isabelle didn't mind, she enjoyed the moment for what it was. It was home. "What the hell was that?" He asked suddenly.

"What the hell was what?" Isabelle's smile faded as she turned to face her brother, who was now glancing around the woods.

"It sounded like a dog barking," he took a few steps here and there, walking around her and looking around like a man on a mission.

"Are there dogs here?"

"Of course not, stupid," he sighed. He turned his body to the northeast and started to walk in that direction. "It sounded like it came from over here–"

It all happened so fast that Isabelle couldn't remember what came first. All she remembers is her scream as her brother tumbled down the side of the hill. She didn't even see that there was a drop. She rushed to the edge of the decline and looked down to see her brother shakily pushing himself up to his hands and knees.

"Are you okay?" Marcus asked, looking up at his sister.

Good job, Marcus. You fall down and ask your sister if she's the one that's okay, he thought to himself as he stood up.

"No!" She yelled down at him, "You scared the shit out of me!"

He laughed, then saw her freeze. Her jaw dropped as her eyes widened in fear. "What is it?" He asked her. She wouldn't respond as she trembled. This worried him; following her eyes, he turned to see what Isabelle was looking at and he gasped out loud.

Before him lied a mangled body, torn in various ways as its dead arm still held tightly onto a pistol. It looked like it had been eaten alive. Marcus recognized the body – it was Thomas's father, Kirkland. Kirkland ran a livestock farm that mainly housed sheep, and it looked as though he died before he could even cry wolf. Beyond his body was a black wolf, its bared, bloody teeth and eyes piercing through the darkness. Marcus glanced back at the pistol, if he acted quick, he could kill it. But if he missed one beat, he would be the next body.

The wolf barked at them both, like it was trying to communicate. "Marcus!" Isabelle cried out to her brother, grabbing a stick as she edged closer to the decline. "Get out of there!"

The wolf barked at her louder, then looked back at Marcus, whimpering. At the time, the two were too afraid to realize how strange it was acting. At the time, they only thought of each other's safety. Marcus quickly swooped down and to the hand that held the pistol, managing to pry its fingers from the gun and managing to shoot at the wolf in time just as it pounced. The bullet pierced its stomach and it tumbled over, then it pushed itself back up, growling.

Isabelle by this point managed to slide down the decline and drew a circle into the ground with the stick she carried. The wolf lunged back at the siblings as she placed her hands on the circle, screaming. The ground rose as a barrier between the animal and the wolf pounded into the barricade. Isabelle grabbed Marcus by the wrist and yanked him away from the scene, both of then running as fast as their legs could carry them out of the woods.

They didn't stop running after they made it out of the woods, either, they kept running beyond that point. The only thing they could hear was each other – their hearts racing, their breathing heavy and their feet trampling across the pavement as fast as they could.

That's when Isabelle felt it, a jab in her lungs. Her chest tightened and her legs gave out, resulting in her collapsing onto the ground, flat on her back. Her upper body felt heavy, and it felt like she was trying to breathe through a pillow. Wheezing with every breath, she only felt pain with every inhale and exhale. It felt like her lungs were cracking.

"Isabelle! Shit!" Marcus called out to her as he doubled back and scooped his sister into his arms. "Now is not a good time for this to happen!"

He glanced back, trying to think fast, then he stood up, Isabelle in his arms. Then he took off, carrying Isabelle as they ran toward home. "Here's another reason why you can't join the military," he said, "State Alchemists do a lot of running, even if you train your asthma, it could still–" He trailed off on his words, focusing more on keeping his breathing in check as he ran with his sister.

Isabelle's asthma was one that wasn't too serious, and it didn't show up a lot. Often in situations that involved light jogging for a short amount of time, she would be fine if she stayed hydrated. If she overworked herself, however, she wouldn't be able to breathe.

About a minute or so later, the two found themselves at the orchard behind their house. He sighed in relief, setting her on the ground, "Look, I'm going to run inside and grab your inhaler and I'll be back out for you as quick as I can. Try and control your breathing."

She nodded as he ran towards the house, and she shook with every breath. The last thing the two of them wanted was their parents to see them like this. It wouldn't be hard for Isabelle to lie where she was, but not necessarily the same could be same for Marcus. He was covered in dirt and scratches from the fall – plus, he sucked a lying.

Isabelle's breathing was rapid, possessing an irregular pattern depending on how much her diaphragm wanted to work with her. She looked over yonder, then she could faintly see a crack of light. It was a small sliver of orange beyond the apple trees, slowly expanding in diameter and height. The trees matched the colour of this sunrise – oranges and yellows – and the wind would make the branches dance. The leaves flicker upwards, painting the sky with the shades of every flame.

If she wasn't breathing through straw-sized airways, Isabelle would have sworn this would have been beautiful.

"Isabelle, open your mouth." She looked over at Marcus and did so. They counted to three, and he sprayed the medicine into her lungs as she inhaled. They counted again, and repeated the process twice more.

She laid her head against his chest as she watched the sunrise, her breathing slowly returning to normal. Her brother held her close and looked over at the sunrise, watching it with her, "I'm so sorry," he spoke quietly.

She shook her head, "You're alright. It wasn't your fault."

He scooped her up into his arms again, "Come on, let's go inside before Mom and Dad wake up."

Isabelle nodded, closing her eyes as he carried her into her room and gently placing her under the covers. Marcus gently kissed her temple and moved her hair from her face, "Oh, I almost forgot, Izzy?"

"Hmm?"

"Happy Birthday."

They have ten hours.

Ten hours left to put the sticks in the sun.

Phew, I say! That was a fun chapter to write, and I can't wait to write chapter three! Thank you guys again so much for reading this, expect more soon!

-Elena