A/N: Sorry about the wait, I kind of got stuck on what to write next. Please tell me about factual errors and I'll do my best to correct them!

CHAPTER FOUR

Hohenheim collapsed right onto his bed as soon as he was in his room. True, Dante had made the party a little more enjoyable for him, but it still wore him out as did every other time. Rolling over onto his back, he gazed up at the ceiling, thinking only about Dante.

"If we combine our research I am almost certain that we will be able to accomplish anything," she said as they prepared to part ways previously that evening.

"What is it exactly that you desire from alchemy?" he questioned as one of the butlers stiffly handed him his jacket.

Dante merely smiled and began to nonchalantly button up her coat. "That remains to be seen. I will see you tomorrow for tea. Good evening." And with that, she turned and walked away after her parents so quickly that Hohenheim didn't even get to say good-bye.

"I do wonder about you, Miss Dante," he murmured to himself in the present as he watched a tiny spider crawl about the ceiling.

"And you make me wonder, Mr. Hohenheim," another voice said, causing Hohenheim to jump up to a sitting position on his bed. Louisa stood in the doorway, balancing a stack of towels haphazardly in her arms and giving him a look of pure curiosity. "Whomever were you talking to?"

"Just myself." was the answer, followed closely by a relieved sigh. He had been afraid that his mother decided to pay him an unfriendly visit before bedtime. Louisa smiled and hastily carried the towels over to the table outside his washroom. After straightening then to perfection so that they wouldn't fall, she turned back to him.

"The Lord and Lady have already gone to sleep," she explained, going about the room and doing last minute chores before he went to bed "though it took longer than usual today. They were in deep conversation about a girl named Dante. Sound familiar?"

"Yeah, I met her today at the party," he explained, taking his shoes off his aching feet while wondering what his parents might be plotting now. "What did they say about her?"

"'This one is a fine catch, he is sure to marry her.'" Louisa recited perfectly, evening getting the tone of his mother down right. Hohenheim had to laugh. After spending so much time with his mother yelling constantly at her, no wonder she'd picked up on how to mimic her. "'She is a beautiful and intelligent young woman with a respected backround, not to mention her wealthy family as well.' You would think she was a goddess from the way they carried on about her."

"Well, she certainly looks it," he said, still chuckling to himself. Good old Louisa, she was always good as a spy. "She told me that she has been studying alchemy for quite some time too. I must say, I'm impressed with the fact that she has been studying it since she was twelve. It's quite an amazing feat, actually. Oh, and she's coming over for tea tomorrow so you will get a chance to meet her. Trust me, after you see her, you won't doubt-"

"Alright alright, she's amazing, I get it!" Louisa interrupted, laughing as Hohenheim went red when he realized his ramblings. "I'll be sure to look my best and be friendly to her. Good night, sir!" And she exited the room, still giggling quietly to herself.

The next morning, Hohenheim was up before the sun, pouring over books for a topic to discuss with Dante. There was so much he wanted to tell her, and yet so much he needed to ask. All of it was pounding inside of his head, wanting to be heard, and before he knew it he had a headache. Louisa came in a little while after the sun had risen to bring him a tray of breakfast.

"Goodness Hohenheim, I just cleaned up last night!" she said in exasperation as her eyes landed upon the mess he had made of his alchemy books. With her hands on her hips, she walked over and bent down to pick one up. The corner of one of the pages had been folded down, so she flipped to that page and began to read. "'Human Transmutation: How a-' what's that word?" She asked, narrowing her eyes at it. "Huh-mun-coo-luss?" she pronounced slowly.

"Homunculus," he said for her, picking up a few of the discarded books on the floor and putting them back on the shelf. "It says that it's an artificial human, but despite the title, it doesn't elaborate on how to make one. That's one of the questions I want to ask Dante, so I flipped the page down in order to find it again."

"An artifical human?" she repeated skeptically. "Sounds like a fairy tale to me. Anyway, I have to go attend to the Lord and Lady now. Eat your breakfast and I'll come back for the tray later." She handed him the book back, then turned and walked out of the room. Hohenheim stared after her for a moment before looking down at the page.

"A fairy tale, huh? Maybe that's all a homunculus is. Still, I won't know for sure until I talk to Dante. Surely she will know what's a fairy tale and what isn't."

A/N: Sorry if it was too short or if I didn't explain enough here. I'm just feeling tired today. Please review!