Chapter 3: Lost and Found
Ten Years Ago
Central City
Hidden away in the choir loft of an abandoned church, the Ishvalan man with the X-shaped scar on his face and no name sat surrounded by the stacks of documents he had stolen from the military the night before.
He leafed through the papers in his hands and scowled. He had taken a considerable risk breaking into Central Command to steal these files, records from the laboratory where he had rescued the little Ishvalan girl two years before. He had hoped to learn something of her identity, but there was nothing in them about who she was, only what had been done to her, and even that was coded in alchemic gibberish. The language of blasphemy.
Still scowling, he tossed the last of the documents aside and instead turned to stare out of the loft's leaded glass window, below which lay a neighborhood park where the Ishvalan girl and her Amestrian companion came regularly to play. Today they were engaged in a game of tag, with shrieks of slightly mechanized laughter emerging from their automail collars as their adoptive mothers looked on. He recognized the brown-haired Amestrian girl as the second child he had glimpsed in the laboratory, the one who had fled from him. It seemed that some thread of fate too complex for anyone but Ishvala to follow had brought the girls back together again. Despite their traumatic beginnings, both girls seemed to have adjusted to life with their new families, and seemed happy and reasonably healthy.
Frowning, he reminded himself that it no longer mattered who the Ishvalan girl had once been. Like him, she had left her name, family, and identity behind in the ashes of their homeland. And there were so few Ishvalans left that all those who remained were kin now. But he knew he would continue to try to find out who she was anyway, just as he would continue to watch over her in her new life, a self-appointed guardian of sorts. Perhaps, he thought, it was an attempt to reassure himself that he was more than just a killer.
But vengeance remained his primary mission, and now he descended the staircase from the loft, heading out the door and into the morning sunshine, ignoring the frenetic running and happy shrieks of the girls as he strode past the park. He had much work to do. There were many State Alchemists who needed to be punished for their crimes against the Ishvalan people, and he wouldn't rest until they were all—
—his thoughts were interrupted by the squealing of tires and the sight of the brown-haired girl dashing obliviously into the street just as a speeding car rounded the corner. In one swift motion he scooped her up, swung her round and deposited her safely on the sidewalk as the vehicle roared by. He kept going, disappearing around the corner himself as the girl stood rooted in shock and her distressed mother ran for her, calling her name.
The long-forgotten ghost of a smile touched the edges of the man's lips as he continued walking. No matter his own intentions, it seemed that Ishvala had appointed him as guardian to both little girls.
Present Day
Central City
"Good morning, Lieutenant Colonel!" Lieutenant Ross saluted Hughes cheerfully, handing him a steaming cup of coffee as he entered the Investigations Department office. "I heard you got an early start today."
He rubbed his eyes tiredly and glanced at the clock; it was already mid-morning. "Yeah. They called a bunch of us in early for a briefing. Seems there's a serial killer who's targeting State Alchemists." Ross gasped in surprise, while Hughes took a swallow of the much-needed coffee. "They're calling him 'Scar' because he has a huge X-shaped scar on his face. They actually think he's been around for awhile—there've been a couple of unexplained alchemist deaths over the years—but he's started hitting higher-profile targets lately, and someone finally got a description. So it looks we've got a lot of work ahead of us."
"Yes, sir!" Ross responded. "Oh, and Lieutenant Hawkeye's here to see you!" she added just as he stepped into his inner office and found the blonde lieutenant waiting.
"Good morning, sir. Colonel Mustang sent me to retrieve the files he lent you last night," she said briskly.
He sighed and smiled apologetically. "Unfortunately, Lieutenant, with all the commotion last night and being rushed in early this morning for the briefing...I'm afraid I accidentally left my briefcase behind."
Hawkeye frowned. "If it's at your house, sir, I would be happy to go pick it up." Judging by her expression, happy was a keen exaggeration.
He felt himself wince as he continued, one hand rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, actually…it's not at my house. You see, I went to dinner at my brother's house last night, and I left it there."
There was a long, glaring silence. "Lieutenant Colonel Hughes," Riza said quietly in a voice that could have frozen ice, "may I impress upon you how very important those case files are to our investigation? Not to mention confidential?"
"It'll be fine, Hawkeye," he hastened to assure her. "The briefcase is safe. It's locked, and even if it wasn't, my family would never touch the files. I'll go get it first thing after work." He swallowed, still smiling diplomatically.
"I will let Colonel Mustang know," she informed him tightly. She snapped her arm into a perfunctory salute, then spun on her heel and stomped out of his office. Hughes let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. The lieutenant's temper was legendary; but surely he had only imagined seeing her fingers twitch toward the gun at her waist...?
-o-o-o-o-
An hour later in Roy's office, a familiar teenage boy with long blond hair in a braid and a bright red coat was standing before his desk, fists clenched. "How can you expect me to just sit around and look at some stupid research notes when Nina is still out there?!" Ed shouted. Roy, long accustomed to the boy's tirades, sat coolly behind the desk with his elbows propped on its surface.
"Fullmetal, there are two platoons searching the city already, including most of my own team," he explained patiently. "Any soldier in the military can do that job. But you are the only one who can decipher Tucker's notes. Those notes might be the key to returning her to normal, and to finding other victims that might be out there."
"And what good will that do Nina if the wrong part of the military finds her first?!" the boy challenged, his eyes glaring directly into Roy's. "Do you really think Brigadier General Grand will just let us—"
"Keep your voice down," Roy hissed with a warning look. The last thing they needed was to be overheard plotting against a senior officer. "You have your orders, Fullmetal! Either follow them, or resign your post and leave that here." He pointed toward the State Alchemist's silver pocketwatch at Ed's waist. "…And lose any chance you might have had at helping Nina once we find her," he added tersely.
Scowling darkly, Ed reached for the watch, and for a moment Roy thought he really might pull it from his waist and throw it on the desk. But after a pause, the boy's gloved hand fell to his side. "Fine, Colonel Bastard," he snarled. "But your team had damned well better be the ones to find her!" With fists still clenched, the boy turned and stalked out of Roy's office. "Come on, Al," he growled to his brother, whose large armored form waited awkwardly in the outer office.
"Brother, don't you think you're being a little hard on the Colonel?" the younger brother's metallic voice faded out as they exited the office. Ed made sure to slam the door behind them for emphasis.
"He's right, you know," observed Hawkeye, who had been quietly filing papers in a corner of Roy's office. Her voice was sober. "If Grand's people find the girl first, they'll never let us near her."
"I'm aware of that, Lieutenant," he countered. "But the same is true of Tucker's research. It's just a matter of time before he confiscates that too, and the information it holds could be critical." He ran his fingers through his black hair, sighing. They were running out of time on both fronts, and even if they managed to beat Grand at every turn, there was still no guarantee that they would find a way to help the girl. What we really need is a miracle, Roy thought despondently.
-o-o-o-o-
Some hours later, Brooke yawned, letting the textbook in her lap fall closed as she stretched her arms over her head. "Oh hey, the sun's going down," she murmured, gesturing toward the window.
"Is it that late already?" Kayla looked up in surprise. Both girls were sprawled out on Brooke's bed, where they had been deep in their studying all afternoon. "Guess I'd better get home." She yawned likewise, then got up, gathered up her books, and slipped on her jacket.
"See you tomorrow," waved Brooke. "And don't forget this!" She tossed Kayla her hat, nearly forgotten atop one of the bedposts.
"Yikes, that would have been bad!" Kayla laughed as she fixed it over her feathers. With a wave, she headed down the stairs. "Good night, Mrs. Armstrong," she called to Raven in the kitchen on her way out.
"Good night, dear. Get a good night's sleep for your test tomorrow!" the older woman called back.
Kayla headed out into the dusk and began the long walk home. The weather was nice tonight, balmy with a cool breeze as she threaded her way through the quiet neighborhood streets. Her parents were out to dinner with friends and would be home late, so she took a detour and stopped by a convenience store to pick up dinner for herself. Ten minutes later she was on her way again with a ham sandwich and a bottle of sweet tea in a paper bag. It had grown dark in earnest now, so she quickened her pace.
But as she passed by the next alley, her attention was caught by a muffled whimpering sound. She stopped in her tracks—was that a child crying? Or a hurt animal? "Hello..." she called tentatively. "Is somebody there? Are you OK?" The whimpering ceased abruptly, and there were quick shuffling sounds and a muffled bang against a metal garbage can, as if someone were trying to hide. "Hey, um, I won't hurt you!" Kayla continued, not sure who or what she was even talking to as she squinted into the dark alley. "Why don't you come on out?"
After a long pause, there was more shuffling, and a large, lumbering shape emerged cautiously from within the alley. She saw now that it was a dog—an enormous, sad-looking one. And strange-looking too: it had tawny fur all over except for its head, which was covered in long brown hair like a lion's mane. Its eyes looked up at her with surprising intelligence, more like human eyes than a dog's. "See, it's all right, doggy," Kayla crooned, holding out her hand for it to sniff. "I'm friendly. Are you lost?" It made a low keening sound, and she tentatively reached out to stroke its head.
"Help," the dog said.
Kayla froze in place, her hand halfway to the dog's head. "Did you just...talk?" she gasped. That was impossible. Dogs didn't talk!
"Help," the dog repeated in a low, drawling voice. "I'm lost." Then, like any ordinary dog looking for attention, it shuffled closer and headbutted her outstretched hand—and Kayla felt a shock of energy rip through her, stinging painfully as she was engulfed in a blinding purple light.
She came back to her senses to find herself sitting in a heap on the sidewalk. Her body felt sluggish, as if she'd somehow been drained of energy. With effort she pulled her head upright to look at the dog—
She was being stared at by a completely ordinary dog, with tawny fur, no mane and utterly dog-like eyes, which panted happily and gave her a friendly little woof. Next to the dog sat a little girl of maybe four years old, with long brown hair and not a scrap of clothing.
"Help," said the little girl, her eyes filling with tears. "I'm lost."
Kayla slowly climbed to her feet, staring at the girl and dog. She was not normally one for swearing, but there were some occasions that just called for it. "What,"she demanded loudly of no one in particular, "the HELL just happened?!"
-o-o-o-o-
His long workday finally over, Hughes headed out the eastern door of Central Command. Don't forget the briefcase! he reminded himself. Otherwise Hawkeye really might—uh oh. Directly in front of him, parked by the curb next to the door, he spotted Roy's car, and Roy himself standing propped against it with his arms folded, glowering. Hawkeye stood rigidly next to him, her hands folded neatly behind her back, also glowering. Hughes mentally gulped as he tried to decide which of them looked scarier.
"Get in," Roy ordered gruffly as he opened the back door and pointed into the car. "We're taking you to your brother's." He slid into the backseat without another word, leaving Hughes to sigh and climb in beside him, with Hawkeye slamming the door shut behind them before taking the driver's seat.
"All right, I know I messed up," Hughes apologized. "I'm sorry I forgot the files. And now I won't even have as much time to help you with the Tucker case, since Command ordered us to drop everything and focus on this Scar person. But I've got some ideas, and I'll still do whatever I can to help. OK?"
There was no response, but neither of them was glaring or lecturing him, which Hughes took as a sign that he was forgiven. He took a deep breath and plunged on. "Anyway, it's great that you're coming to my brother's! You'll finally have a chance to meet the rest of my family. I have a beautiful sister-in-law, and an adorable, brilliant niece—she's definitely a Hughes girl even though she's adopted. Let me tell you all about them!" He continued on at length, enumerating his relatives' many virtues while discreetly ignoring the fact that Hawkeye was grimacing and Mustang was rubbing his forehead as if in pain.
-o-o-o-o-
The phone was ringing as Kayla staggered through the doorway of the darkened house with the little girl riding on her back, wrapped in her jacket. "OK, I'm putting you down now," she said as she maneuvered the girl down to the kitchen floor, narrowly avoiding a collision with the dog as it bounded past them. "I'm coming," Kayla muttered to the phone as it continued ringing insistently.
It was Brooke. "Did you feel something really weird?!" her friend exclaimed as soon as she answered. "Are you OK? Did something happen?"
"Yes, something really bizarre happened!" Kayla twirled her long auburn hair around her fingers anxiously. The little girl was sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor, looking dazed and hugging the dog, which was panting in happy obliviousness. "I'm OK. Everybody's OK. But you seriously need to come over right now!"
"Why, what happened?!"
"Just come over!"
"I'm on my way." Brooke hung up the phone without any further questions.
-o-o-o-o-
Lavinia and Vincent arrived home several minutes later. By then the girl was sitting at the kitchen table dressed in an oversized pair of Kayla's old pajamas and quietly devouring the ham sandwich. Kayla quickly and tersely filled in her parents on the strange events, then coaxed the girl into repeating the few pieces of information she had able to glean.
"What's your name?"
"Nina Tucker." The little girl's voice was small and anxious.
"Do you know what happened to you?"
"I was in Alexander." She pointed to the dog.
"Like, inside?" Kayla prompted. Nina nodded. "Do you know how you ended up…inside your dog?"
"My daddy put me there. With alchemy," the girl replied, her voice growing even smaller. Lavinia gasped and Vincent muttered a curse under his breath.
Kayla took a deep breath and continued. "Nina, who's your dad? What does he do?"
"He's a State Alchemist," she replied, drawing out the syllables carefully.
A dreadful silence descended over the family. After a few moments, Vincent broke the silence. "It's happening again," he muttered angrily. "And her own father!"
Lavinia was shaking her head. "This is bad," she murmured. "The military will be looking for her, Vince. We can't let them find Kayla!"
Vincent's mouth was pursed in a grim line. "But we can't turn this girl away, either." His eyes met Lavinia's. "We've done this before—we know what to do. We'll just have to keep her hidden until they stop looking."
"Really? She can stay here?" interjected Kayla hopefully. "And the dog too?"
Lavinia sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, then nodded. "All right—I don't see that we have a choice. Let's keep this little girl safe. And the dog too." She smiled at Kayla. "You've hinted a few times that you wanted a little brother or sister, right? I think the military just gave you one."
Kayla grinned, then turned back toward the kitchen table. "What do you think, Nina? Do you and Alexander want to stay with us from now on?" Swallowing the last bite of her sandwich, the little girl slowly broke into a smile.
-o-o-o-o-
"...There's just one thing, though," Hughes reluctantly concluded his monologue as Hawkeye pulled up to his brother's house and parked the car. "My niece has some injuries she got when she was a child. She always wears a hat, and uses an automail device to help her speak. So just promise me you won't stare, OK? She's a little shy."
Mustang rolled his eyes and sighed. "Hughes, we see automail every day. And stranger things than that. We're not idiots." Hawkeye got out and circled around to open the back door of the car for them, closing it again after they exited. The trio of officers walked up the paved pathway to the front door.
-o-o-o-o-
The slam of the car door alerted the family inside the house. "Oh, crap!" muttered Lavinia as she stared in alarm through the window. "I forgot that Maes was coming by for his briefcase—and he brought two other military people with him!"
"Kayla, get Nina and the dog upstairs and keep them quiet!" Vincent ordered frantically.
Kayla quickly scooped up Nina, whose eyes went wide with sudden fear. "It's OK. We're playing hide-and-seek. Come on, Alexander!" The older girl hustled them up the stairs and into her bedroom, closing the door just as the doorbell rang.
"Maes! Nice to see you again so soon," Vincent greeted his brother jovially. "And I see you brought some colleagues?"
"I've got your things right here!" Lavinia interjected as she appeared from the kitchen lugging the briefcase.
"Sorry to trouble you." Maes collected the briefcase with visible relief and a bit of embarrassment. "Ah, these are my friends, Colonel Mustang and Lieutenant Hawkeye." He indicated the black-haired male and blonde female officers, who were polite but stiff. "And where's my adorable niece? I've been bragging about her, and I wanted them to meet her!" Hughes continued cheerfully.
"I'm afraid she went to her friend's house—" Lavinia began, but was interrupted by the muffled sound of a dog barking from upstairs.
"Huh? When did you get a dog?" Hughes asked, confused. The barking abruptly grew louder as an upstairs door banged open. Above their heads there was the sound of frantic scrambling and running, then all at once the staircase in front of them burst forth with a bounding tawny dog, a small brown-haired girl in oversized pajamas tumbling after him, and behind them Kayla wearing an utterly mortified expression.
All three of them stopped short at the sight of the officers. "I'm sorry!" Kayla gasped, wheeling from the strangers to her terrified parents and back again. "Um, I can explain!"
But neither the strange officers nor her uncle were paying a bit of attention to Kayla. They were all staring in shock at the little girl and her dog.
"Is that…" began the blonde woman.
"Nina Tucker," finished the black-haired man, his voice filled with wonder. "But how…?!"
-o-o-o-o-
"OK, tell us one more time, Kayla," Hughes repeated gently. "You're sure you found Nina and Alexander just like this? Wandering around on their own?" His hand waved to indicate the little girl and dog, who were playing quietly in a corner of the living room.
Sitting on the sofa with all the adults standing around watching her, Kayla nodded, her hands unconsciously fidgeting with a throw pillow on her lap. "Yes, by the convenience store on 2nd Street. In an alley. I heard a little girl crying, and she was all alone except for her dog, so I brought her home." Kayla swallowed before continuing. "She said that her dad did something to hurt her, so I thought I should hide her in case he was looking for her." Her eyes flickered earnestly toward her parents. "I didn't even tell my Mom and Dad." Neither Lavinia nor Vincent contradicted her, their faces filled with veiled gratitude; being caught lying to the military could have gotten the adults arrested.
"And there was nothing strange about Nina and Alexander, other than the fact that they were alone?" Hughes prompted.
"I don't think so," Kayla shrugged. She hated the fact that she was lying to her uncle, but she didn't dare tell the whole truth since she suspected it had something to do with her own secret history as a military test subject.
But the blonde lieutenant was eyeing her keenly, frowning. "Kayla," she said calmly. "I still don't think you're telling us everything you saw tonight. You aren't in any trouble, we just need to know exactly what happened." Her eyes bored into Kayla's, and the teenage girl swallowed nervously. "So why don't you be honest, and tell us the rest."
Kayla felt like she was under a microscope. It was too much; she couldn't take that woman's gaze. "All right!" she confessed, her voice cracking as she hid her face. "There is more. I was just afraid to tell you." From the corner of her eye she saw Vincent and Lavinia hold their breath. "When I found Nina…" Kayla continued in a small voice, "...she was naked." She looked back up at her uncle pleadingly. "I think her dad was one of those sickos like you read about in the newspaper. Please, Uncle Maes, please promise me you won't take her back to him!"
Hughes let out his breath and stepped back. "Oh, geez," he mumbled. His eyes met those of the other two soldiers, who both grimaced; Kayla knew then that her admission had convinced them. After a moment Hughes turned back to Kayla, knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder. "All right, listen kiddo. Nina's father was a bad man. Not the way you're thinking, but very bad. He's in jail, and he will never be allowed to go near her again. OK?" Kayla nodded, sighing with relief. Hughes stood back up. "All right, give us a few minutes to talk this over."
As the three soldiers withdrew to the hallway for a murmured conversation, Lavinia went to Nina and put her arms around the small girl, while Vincent sat down and gave Kayla a quick hug. "You did good," he whispered.
Snatches of conversation were drifting in from the hallway. "This one's up to you, Roy," Hughes said to the black-haired colonel. "What do we do?"
The man was gazing into the living room at Nina and Alexander. "The military is looking for a chimera," he replied. "But all I see is a girl and a dog." Hughes and the lieutenant nodded in agreement, and all three returned to the living room.
"Vincent, Lavinia...are you willing to take responsibility for this girl?" Hughes asked gently. "It would be classified, so you wouldn't be able to tell anyone. Even other people in the military."
"Yes," Lavinia answered without hesitation.
"Of course, Maes," Vincent agreed. "She'll be safe here with us."
For the first time, the serious expressions on all three officers relaxed and gave way to smiles. "Then it's settled," the black-haired man declared. "I can't think of anyone's family I'd trust more." He turned to Hughes. "You'll help keep an eye on things here?"
"Definitely," Hughes responded with a grin. "I'll check in tomorrow. But for now, I guess we should get out of your way," he added to the parents. "And thank you, sincerely. From all of us." He made sure to retrieve his briefcase as the soldiers said their goodbyes and departed, leaving the family alone and relieved.
-o-o-o-o-
"Why does it matter how it happened, Roy?" Hughes was insisting as they got back into the car. "The little girl is OK. End of story."
"It's not even close to the end of the story, Hughes," Roy sighed. "We need to figure out why she's OK. If there are other chimeras out there, we need to know how to save them."
As the men continued to debate in the back seat, Hawkeye started up the car and began to pull away, then abruptly took her foot off the accelerator. Her attention had been caught by a figure walking briskly up to the front door of the house—another adolescent girl, this one with short brown hair. She wore a hat like Kayla, and the reflection from the porchlight glinted off an automail collar around her neck. "Who's that girl?" Hawkeye demanded of Hughes. "Why does she have the same injuries as Kayla?"
"Hmm? Oh, that's Brooke, Kayla's best friend. They were both injured in a fire when they were younger. They were in the same room when it happened." Hughes returned his attention to Roy. "What are you going to tell the Elric boys? They'll want to see Nina."
"Let me think about that one. We need to keep this quiet, and they aren't exactly discreet," Roy replied.
Ignoring the men's conversation, Hawkeye squinted curiously at the girl until she disappeared inside the house. Only then did she reluctantly put the car into gear and pull away.
