Chapter 8 time! This one is pretty long so sorry about that!! The last section just was super long and I didn't really want to cut it in half or anything! I'm doing some mad updating after not updating in a long time! Sorry but I'm at college and sometimes I just have a hard time finding time to write! Hopefully I can find time to write more this semester though! Thanks for reading guys!!
Disclaimer: I don't own Full Metal Alchemist but I do own my OCs!!
Edit: Had to make some more grammar and spelling edits to make sentences make proper sense. Sorry! I should have read this more carefully ahead of time! I'll make sure chapter 9 doesn't have any annoying mistakes in it! I promise!
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Ed jumped off the train followed by his brother. Al's armor clanked loudly when he hit the cement.
"Aptos! Aren't you glad we got her letter before we left?" Al stated with a smile. Ed turned and smiled widely.
"Yeah! We should have known she would give us a huge lead like this!" Ed laughed. The two brothers started walking into the town.
"I wonder if Kitten is still here?" Al wondered aloud.
"Who knows!" Ed replied. Inside he hoped she was so they could meet up. Maybe she could follow them on their travels. She could even bring her new partner along, Hans, if she needed to.
Behind the brothers another person slipped off the train and hid behind a pillar. She looked around the cement block and followed the brothers with her blue eyes. She was determined to get to the bottom of all of this. She never knew what they were doing and now she was going to learn everything. Winry gulped and followed after them at a long distance. She hid behind things whenever she could. 'I'll find out everything! Maybe I'll even learn about this Kitten girl. They can't hide things from me forever!' Winry declared in her mind. She followed them through the city and hid behind a telephone poll when they turned down another street.
"HELP!" A child's voice rang through the street. Winry saw a boy around the age of 16 run up to Ed and Al. He had dirty blonde hair and freckles across his face. He looked terrified.
"What is it?" Al asked. He sounded concerned.
"You're the Full Metal Alchemist right?" The kid shouted looking right at Ed. Ed beamed and pointed proudly to himself.
"You bet I am kid!" Ed declared. Winry shook her head sadly as she watched the scene from afar.
"Then you have to help me! My partner! She's being attacked by a monster guy." The boy stuttered and then found his words again. "Just come with me!" The boy shouted. He turned and started running down an alley. Ed and Al took after him, running as well. 'I won't loose them now!' Winry thought to herself. She ran after them as well, making sure to stay far behind. The boy led them through the town and out. He ran up a hill and pointed.
"There!" The boy shouted and stopped. He was panting. Ed and Al ran up the hill and gasped when they saw the scene. Ed couldn't believe his eyes. Winry ran up the hill from a different angle and hid in a bush. She peered through the branches and could see a girl fighting a crazy looking guy off in the distance. The boy was pointing towards them. 'She must be that boy's sister or something.' Winry thought to herself.
Suddenly more people appeared. The man who looked like a human grabbed onto Greed and they all ran off. Kitten screamed in anger and dropped to her knees.
"KITTEN!" Ed screamed and started running towards her. Al was running behind him. Winry gasped in shock. 'That girl is Kitten! She was fighting that guy off too and with guns?!' Winry thought as she watched the scene. Kitten turned and looked at Ed in shock.
"E-Ed?" Kitten stammered. She was still on her knees. Ed dropped to the ground in front of her and threw his arms around her. He held her tightly against him. Kitten blinked in confusion. Al standing behind him and Hans was running up the hill after them. He looked confused and shocked.
"What happened? That was Greed wasn't it! Who were the others?" Ed asked. He held Kitten arms-length away from him.
"I'll tell you later Ed. We should get out of here now." Kitten replied, looking into Ed's warm golden eyes.
"Yeah." Ed agreed. He pulled Kitten against him again, hugging her tightly. Hans stopped alongside Al and looked down at Ed and Kitten.
"You know each other?" Hans asked in confusion.
"Yeah!" Ed exclaimed. Kitten just chuckled and shook her head sadly at Ed's excitement. Al chuckled as well. Hans just stared at them.
"I'm like…YOUR BIGGEST FAN!" Hans shouted. He was beyond excited now. He didn't have time to enjoy the moment before sine Kitten had been in terrible danger. Ed released Kitten from his hug and turned to Hans. Kitten noticed that Ed had grown a few inches, two at the most. Hans was only about ½ inch shorter than Ed. Al ran over and hugged Kitten as well.
"Hey there Al! I missed you!" Kitten exclaimed and slapped her hands around Al making a hollow clanging noise.
"Well are you now? You're Hans right?" Ed said. He was using a confident and proud voice. Kitten and Al stopped hugging and looked over at Ed.
"Here he goes again." Al whispered to Kitten. She giggled in agreement. Ed loved it when people knew about him; he loved to brag when given the chance. Hans was nodding fervently in agreement.
"I am! You are my role model! I want to be just like you!!" Hans nearly squealed. His eyes were glittering like his wish was just granted. Ed beamed; this was something he loved to hear.
"Really? Ah well it takes a lot of hard work to be like me!" Ed boasted and started laughing. Al and Kitten shook their heads sadly. Winry groaned inwardly from where she was watching in the bush. It looked like Kitten was really close to Ed and Al. She had never seen them run and hug someone like that before, except their mother. Winry bit her lip as she watched.
"I'm going to give it my best! I'm just so excited you are going to travel with us!" Hans exclaimed. He was fighting back the urge to jump up and down. Ed laughed and looked back at Kitten.
"Of course I'd travel with you guys. Kitten is a very close friend." Ed said. Kitten smiled and flushed slightly. Al nodded in agreement.
"That's so exciting!!" Hans replied. Kitten giggled at him. He looked like he was about to start bouncing around.
"Well we should get going." Kitten stated. Ed and Al nodded in agreement. The group turned and started walking down the hill. They walked through the town and into the train station. They bought tickets to the town the current train was heading towards. It was a far southern town called Mullian. Winry followed behind them out of sight. She was determined to get to the bottom of everything. She hated being left out of the loop. She knew that it could be dangerous, with those people after Kitten, but she didn't care. Winry pulled her hair into a bun and slid a large sunhat on her head. She then put on a pair of sunglasses and sat down in the train. She picked a seat where she could see them but they wouldn't be able to see her very well. She watched and listening closely. She wanted to find out what they were hiding about that girl, Kitten. Kitten sat down next to Ed, who removed his red coat and folded it next to him. Hans sat across from Ed and Al sat beside Hans.
"Kitten you need to explain everything to me." Ed stated and looked over at her. Kitten looked out the window first to collect her thoughts, then back at her old friend. She didn't really want to have to tell him everything, but it could be dangerous for them if she left something out.
"Okay. Here it goes. First Greed came out of nowhere and told me that the homunculi had re-formed. I didn't really believe him but then when Hans and I were at the library we heard something. We ran outside and got attacked by a homunculus named Wrath. His tattoo is on his left cheek. We got away from him and ran back through the woods towards a mansion, where the noise came from. I went inside and saw Greed fighting with a girl homunculus who looked a lot like Lust, with the same powers, but they aren't the same. There was an alchemist with them too, very skilled. He created a circle that sealed away Greed's human emotions and sane mind. Now Greed is a bloodthirsty monster and he is after me. I don't have any idea what they are after, but since they have an extremely skilled alchemist on their side it could get really dangerous." Kitten explained. Ed looked at her. She couldn't tell what he was thinking.
"An alchemist? Really?" Ed asked in shock. Al and Hans listened closely. Al gulped. This would be dangerous.
"Yeah. The girl called him Damned. I don't know what that means." Kitten answered. Ed went into thought.
"Could it be a military title? Like yours Ed?" Al spoke up. Kitten gasped, she hadn't even thought of that.
"It couldn't be, could it?" Kitten said softly. Ed shrugged.
"Who knows? But enough of this, let's talk about something else. How about the library?" Ed asked. He was smiling now.
"It was great! I'm sure you could have found out a lot! When this is all taken care of I can take you back there!" Kitten replied.
"Sweet! I'm holding you to that Kitten." Ed chuckled.
"Me too!" Al added. Hans listened to them all and smiled. He was so glad he got to be sitting here along with them all. In the back of his mind the secret to the stone burned, but he ignored it for now. There would be a time for that but he would have to keep it secret for now. They continued to chat about lost time and Hans joined in now and then to tell his own stories. It wasn't long before the sun had set and everyone was getting sleepy. Hans was the first to pass out, his head rested against the window as he slept soundly. Kitten fell asleep next; her head fell against Ed's shoulder. Ed smiled over at her and reached over with his free hand to grab his coat. He placed it gently around her shoulders as she slept. Al smiled over at his big brother. Al knew that Ed had missed Kitten. Winry looked away at this point and stared out the window. She tried to force herself to fall asleep.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Roy and his team continued to investigate as much as they could into Seve Betrug. So far they hadn't had much luck and Roy was getting pissed that Kitten wasn't writing to him. There was a loud slam and Roy jumped in his chair. Jean Havoc had just thrown to door open and jumped into Roy's office. The door bounced off the wall and shut with another slam behind Havoc. Jean stopped right in front of Roy's desk and pulled a chair over. He threw himself into it and grabbed his cigarettes out of his pocket. Mustang just watched him with curious expression. Havoc lit his cigarette and took a deep breath in. He blew the smoke out slowly and then looked across the desk at Roy.
"I saw something you aren't going to believe." Havoc stated. Roy's expression became serious and he looked at Havoc.
"About Betrug?" Roy questioned in a low voice, looking towards the door. Havoc nodded in agreement and took another breath on his cigarette.
"I followed him home. I didn't really mean to, I just happened to be behind him and I decided to see where he lived. So I followed him at a long distance and you aren't going to believe this Roy; he lives in an abandoned building!" Havoc exclaimed.
"Are you telling me there is a homeless man working at the command center?" Roy replied. He found this hard to believe.
"That isn't all! That building was recently bought by the State! There was a sign that said so! It said 'State property Stay Back' and there were other signs as well! It's creepy Roy! Why would an officer live in a huge abandoned warehouse thing!" Havoc stated in shock. It was like Havoc couldn't even believe his own words. Roy nodded in agreement.
"He does seem close with the Fuhrer as well. I always see him going in and out of his office. There must be something going on behind the scenes." Roy said more to himself than to Havoc.
"Do you think it's corruption or something?" Havoc asked in a low voice. He had been thinking that for a little while now but he didn't want to voice his opinion to anyone. There was something up with this Betrug guy.
"We can't jump to that conclusion yet. There isn't enough evidence that could point to that. Don't say that again in public Havoc, you could get arrested." Roy stated and narrowed his eyes. Havoc adverted his gaze and nodded in agreement.
"Sorry." He apologized.
"All we can be sure of for certain is that Betrug and the Fuhrer are close and could be working on a secret project of some sort." Mustang stated in a low voice. Havoc nodded.
"Should I go tell the others?" He asked.
"If you want." Roy replied and leaned back in his chair. Havoc rubbed his cigarette out and stood up. He bowed deeply and then left Mustang's office. Mustang spun around in his chair and stared out the large window. 'What is going on here? But more importantly….why the hell hasn't Kitten written to me again yet?!' Roy growled in his mind.
Down the hallway Seve slipped into the Fuhrer's office again. He had just been called on his private line and was smiling widely. Riza stopped when she saw Seve go into the Fuhrer's office. She looked up and down the hallway; no one else was around. She began to walk slowly down the hallway towards his door, she wondered if she would be able to hear anything.
The Fuhrer looked up from his desk at Seve who sat down in a chair. He smiled widely at the Fuhrer.
"What is it Betrug?" Bradley asked as he sat his pen down against the wood.
"I just received some marvelous news from the others." Betrug replied. Bradley smirked at this fact.
"What?" He asked.
"Well Greed has been caught and sealed, well not completely, but you know what I mean. Also I learned something else. The girl is working with a young child named Hans, whom we expect is looking for the stone. He had a book from the library, which means he might know the secret, but it doesn't seem to faze him. He may be perfect." Betrug stated with a devious smile stretched across his thin lips. Bradley smiled as well.
"This is good news! Wonderful! Make sure to get this child to join us and also make sure to have Greed collect the girl. We may need her later, she does have a lot of secrets inside her." The Fuhrer stated.
"Of course! There is a small set back though." Betrug added grudgingly.
"What is that?" Bradley growled. He hated it when things got in the way of his plans.
"The girl and the boy have met up with Full Metal." Betrug stated. The Fuhrer shrugged it off.
"That won't be a problem, he can't put much of a fight. Just make sure that they are all separated when they need to be. The girl, Kitsumi, is the only one who can really cause a problem." The Fuhrer replied.
"Don't worry, with Greed on our side now she should be taken of quickly." Betrug explained with a smirk.
"Good. Keep me updated." The Fuhrer remarked.
"Of course." Betrug stated. He stood up and bowed. Seve left the room and looked up and down the hallway; no one was there. He turned and walked down the halls until he was back to his room. He had a new job now and he knew what it was. If the plan was to work they needed to find the perfect location. Seve smiled to himself and sat down at his desk. It was time to get to work on something that actually mattered.
Riza skittered out of the hallway just in time. She let out a sigh of relief and continued onward. She had heard a little bit of the conversation through the wall but it wasn't enough to make out anything important. 'Marvelous news….sealed, not completely….book from library….perfect….secrets inside…girl and boy met up….no problem….don't worry. None of that makes any sense! Although this does seem to prove that Mr. Betrug and the Fuhrer and working on something. If only I knew what it was. It doesn't sound very good. We haven't been given any direct orders recently, so what could they be doing?' Riza thought as she continued up the hallway. She turned into the break room and fixed herself a cup of coffee. She sighed and started to drink it. The coffee in the break room tasted like dirt and milk but she ignored the taste. She wondered if anyone else had found something out. They didn't seem to be getting very far and yet Seve was moving forward quickly with his plans; whatever those plans were. She hoped that it wasn't anything bad; they had dealt with enough after the incident two years ago. Roy still had scars from that battle and the military cemeteries had been booked after that. It was a bloody battle, which they had tried to hide from the media. The military couldn't afford having information on Kitsumi slip out, it could lead to nasty wars. Riza sighed and walked back down the hallway with her coffee.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Ed, Al, Kitten, and Hans got off the train in Mullian around noon. After a quick lunch they found a motel, they all stayed in the same room. Kitten sat down on her bed and sighed. The room was pretty big. There were three beds and a couch bed as well. Hans insisted that Al have the real bed and he could take the couch bed. Al tried to get Hans to change his mind, but it didn't work.
"What should we do now?" Kitten asked.
"I'm not sure. We need to figure out what they are after this time." Ed replied. Kitten propped herself up on her elbows and looked over at him.
"Do you have any ideas? They needed Greed for some reason." Kitten stated. She couldn't help but look worried.
"I don't know. They might have just wanted to build up their forces. Maybe they want all your secrets to make themselves stronger. Or maybe they want something else." Ed answered; he was rubbing his chin in thought. He didn't want to say too much in front of Hans. It seemed like Kitten didn't tell him anything, most likely to protect him. Hans could be in danger if he got involved too deeply in all of this. Ed knew that Kitten didn't want anyone else involved if they didn't have to be.
"We just have to wait and see. They will probably attack again. We should play it on the safe side for now." Kitten declared. Everyone nodded in agreement. For the rest of the day they stayed in the room trying to plan out where they would go next. They went down to the café across the street for dinner. After dinner they went right back to their room to settle in for the night.
Winry had followed the group into the motel and was in the single room right beside theirs. She curled up on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She didn't understand anything that was going on. Winry closed her eyes and fell asleep before she knew it. She hadn't been able to get much sleep on the train.
Night came quickly and everyone else fell asleep. The peaceful night was soon shattered. There was a loud smash around midnight. Ed, Hans, Al, Kitten, and Winry next-door; jumped awake. Kitten's eyes flew towards the window, which was smashed in. Glass was all over the floor.
"KITTEN! WATCH OUT!" Al screamed. Hans squeaked in fear. Kitten turned and saw Greed standing at the foot of her bed. Kitten kicked off the covers and attempted to jump off but Greed moved faster. He grabbed her around the waist and sprung across the room. Kitten screamed and flailed around in Greed's grasp but he didn't release her. He was laughing loudly. Ed clapped his hands and transmuted the floor into a fist, which he sent at Greed. Greed went out the window before Ed's attack hit him.
"SHIT!" Ed swore loudly.
"We have to find her!" Al shouted as well.
"HURRY!" Ed screamed. He was tugging on his pants and hopping towards the door. Hans threw off the covers as well; he hadn't taken any of his clothes off. Hans had a bad feeling something like this would happen before they went to bed. Al was already at the door. The three men crashed down the hallway and out the front doors. Winry had heard everything and ran out after them. She only had time to pull on a sundress. By the time she made it out to the lobby they were already gone. She ran outside anyways hoping that she would be able to find them.
Ed, Al, and Hans ran after Greed. Kitten was still shouting and wriggling around but she couldn't get loose. Suddenly something flew out of an alley, forcing the three men to stop. The two other homunculi were standing in front of them.
"Shit." Ed swore he clapped his hands together and morphed his auto mail arm into a blade. Hans watched in amazement. He wished he could do something like that. Al moved into a fighting stance and prepared himself for battle. Wrath and Lust charged forward and the battle began.
"Stay back Hans!" Al shouted before punching Wrath in the face. The homunculus was sent flying backwards. Wrath hadn't expected Al's punch to be that powerful. Wrath thought he was empty armor, how could empty armor punch so hard? Ed blocked Lust's nails and swiped at her with his blade. Ed's blade sunk into Lust's stomach, blood squirted everywhere. Ed removed his blade and jumped back. Lust healed and whipped the blood from her chin.
"Oh that was mean Edward." Lust complained with a smile on her face. Hans watched in amazement. 'The homunculus can even regenerate? They are amazing! I wonder why they are so evil though! But I don't need them, I know how to create the stone now and that is more important than the homunculi. I can do everything I want with the stone! I don't need anything else now!' Hans thought to himself as he watched Ed and Al battle against the homunculi.
"We have to hurry! We need to save Kitten!" Ed roared and drove his blade into Lust's forehead.
"I'm trying brother!" Al complained as he drove his fist into Wrath's stomach. Wrath was sent back flipping across the pavement. Al had even been able to dodge all his hair spikes, which Wrath hadn't expected. All Ed and Al needed to do was knock them down long enough to run away after Kitten.
Greed ran through the warm night air in the city. He flew down alleys and scaled small buildings. He ran across the roofs and finally stopped in an alleyway. Abandoned and broken down buildings surrounded them. Greed threw her down to the dirty ground. Kitten turned and glared up at him. She had slept in her shirt and skirt, and she was thankful that she had. Greed was staring down at her with his crazy eyes and twisted grin. Kitten shivered when she looked at him. 'Shit! All my guns are back in the room! What am I supposed to do?' Kitten swore in her head.
"Mine. You're all mine Kitty." Greed growled and approached her slowly. Kitten scooted away from him on her butt. There was no point in running now; he would surely catch her at such close range.
"Damn it Greed! Snap out of it!" Kitten hissed at him. She continued to scoot away from him. Greed jumped forward, straddling her and pinning her down with his hands. Kitten let out a yelp as her skin was scraped against the pavement.
"You're finally all mine! MINE!" Greed shouted in her face. Kitten twitched and shivered again. She knew what he was after now, and he would do anything to get it. Kitten kicked at him but he had already grabbed her shirt. When her leg connected with him he was thrown off. He ripped her shirt off in the process and went rolling across the pavement. Kitten threw her arms across her chest, she was wearing a bra but it still felt weird. She pulled herself to her feet and started running. Greed got up and ran after her, he jumped and ricocheted off a building and landed in front of her. Kitten skidded to a stop. Greed threw himself forward. Kitten tried to get out of the way but he hit her, taking her down to the ground again. Kitten screamed and struggled but he held her down.
"I'll make you mine! I'll make you all mine!" Greed stated and started laughing.
"Greed stop! God damn it! STOP!" Kitten screamed and twisted around underneath him. Greed ignored her and bent his head down. He ran his tongue across her chest. Kitten kicked at him and tried to move but he was too strong. It seemed like when his human side was sealed he became even stronger. Greed reached down and tore her skirt up the front.
"Mine. All mine." Greed growled against her chest.
"NO!" Kitten roared. She kicked up with all her strength and sent him flying into the air. He had tore gashes in her arms but they quickly healed. Kitten jumped to her feet; her skirt ripped all the way off. Kitten turned and started running down the alley. She switched her eyes and took off as fast as she could go. She jumped over trash cans and dumpsters. She could hear him running after her. 'Shit! What am I supposed to do?' Kitten swore to herself. Suddenly she saw a girl wander into the alley she was running down. She couldn't let a human see her powers. She stopped and jumped behind a dumpster. The girl stopped and looked over; she thought she heard something. Her light blonde hair glittered in the moonlight. 'I can't believe I lost them so easily! I don't even know where I am!' The girl thought to herself. Kitten was pressed up against the back of the dumpster. She hoped Greed didn't come down here, it could put that girl in danger. Greed ran into the alley and spotted the girl at once.
"Oh look. You will make a nice snack." Greed growled. The girl screamed at once. She recognized him as the one Kitten had been fighting against in the field. The girl, Winry, turned and started the run but she was to slow. Greed raced around her and grabbed her arm. She screamed again she tried to pull away. Greed's black claws dug into her arm and drew blood.
"SOMEONE HELP!" Winry screamed. Greed was laughing. Kitten couldn't let a poor girl take the fall for her. She jumped up and out of her hiding spot.
"Leave her alone! I'm the one you want!" Kitten shouted at Greed. Winry looked back and gasped. Kitten was only wearing underwear. At once Greed threw Winry to the pavement and raced towards Kitten. Winry rolled over and stared in shock.
"YOU'RE MINE!" Greed roared. Kitten jumped to the side but Greed turned and shot his arm forward. He speared his hand through Kitten's chest, right through her ribcage. His hand protruded from her back, blood dripped off his fingers. Winry let loose a bloodcurdling scream as she watched. Greed lifted her off the ground with his hand still going through her. Kitten turned to look at the girl laying on the pavement.
"G-Get Out of H-Here!" Kitten choked out. Winry scrambled to her feet and dashed from the alley. She tripped over her feet as she ran. Kitten was dead. She died saving her life. Winry screamed again.
Greed slammed Kitten into the pavement with his hand still going through her ribcage. Kitten coughed blood out. Her body was trying to heal itself but it couldn't with Greed's arm still inside her.
"Now I can make you all mine Kitty. All mine. Mine. Mine." Greed stated in his deranged voice. He bent down and licked the blood off her chest. Her bra had ripped open. Kitten coughed and gasped. There was nothing she could do in this state.
Winry ran down the sidewalk screaming. Suddenly she crashed into something hard and metal. Winry bounced back and fell down on the cement. She looked up at the giant suit of armor in front of her and her eyes widened. Ed was staring down at her in shock; his expression quickly turned to anger.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE WINRY?!" Ed roared down at her in anger. Al stared in shock.
"I-I just wanted to see what you were doing." Winry choked out.
"YOU MORON! YOU COULD GET KILLED!" Ed screamed at her.
"KITTEN IS DEAD! SHE SAVED ME AND THAT GUY STABBED HER RIGHT THROUGH THE CHEST!" Winry screamed. It just came out. Ed stopped and his expression changed.
"NO!" Hans shouted. Al gasped.
"Where." Ed stated. Winry turned and pointed towards the alley with a shaking finger. Ed took off running with Al behind him.
"STAY HERE HANS! WATCH HER!" Ed shouted back at Hans. Hans nodded and looked down at the girl in front of her.
"I'm so sorry." Winry whimpered. Hans felt like crying.
Al was the first to reach the alleyway; he passed Ed quickly. Al saw Greed over her, just about to rip off her underwear. Al ran forward and punched, he hit Greed and sent him flying off of Kitten. Tears were streaming down Kitten's face and she pulled herself up to her knees. Her chest wound healed shut and she held her bra together.
"Al." Kitten whimpered. Al dropped to his knees with a clang. Greed was picking himself up from a pile of trashcans. Ed clapped his hands together and sent a barrage of pavement spikes launching at Greed. The homunculus dodged them all and then took off. Ed ran over and dropped to the ground in front of Kitten.
"Kitten." Ed said softly. She was covered in dirt and holding her bra together.
"Ed." Kitten replied in a shaky voice. Ed pulled off his coat and wrapped it around her tightly. Kitten held it closed in the front and bit her lip. Ed reached out and grabbed her in a hug. Kitten rested her forehead against Ed's shoulder.
"We should get her back to the hotel." Al stated. Ed released her and Al picked up Kitten in his large metal arms. Kitten rested her cheek against Al's cool metal body.
"It's okay now Kitten." Ed said softly. Kitten nodded weakly against Al's body. They left the alley and found Hans and Winry standing outside, waiting. Hans and Winry stared at the body in Al's arm, covered in Ed's red coat.
"Is she dead?" Hans asked timidly. Kitten turned and looked over at Hans. He squeaked in surprise. Winry's mouth opened in shock. There was no way that Kitten could have been alive after that attack. Winry had seen it all.
"We need to get her back to the room." Ed stated and looked up at Kitten worriedly. Winry didn't say anything.
"You can come with us Winry." Al added softly. Kitten looked at the girl. She had been the one that Kitten had saved from Greed. Ed and Al knew her? 'I'll have to explain myself to her now. I wonder who she is? I think I'll have to explain myself to Hans as well. Ah well, I knew this day would come.' Kitten thought. Her mind was still swimming. The five of them made it back to the hotel and Ed took Kitten into the bathroom and closed the door behind them. Al, Winry, and Hans sat down in the chairs in the middle of the room. Everyone was silent. Winry could tell Al and Ed were both mad at her. Winry looked over at Al timidly. Al was staring at the closed bathroom door. They couldn't hear anything from inside.
"Al?" Winry squeaked.
"What is it Winry?" Al asked. He turned to look at her. Winry shrunk back in her chair. Hans was looking over at her too.
"How is she, Kitten, still alive?" Winry asked in a soft voice. Al looked back towards the bathroom door.
"You can ask her that yourself when she comes out." Al stated. Winry closed her mouth and adverted her gaze. Hans wondered the same thing. That girl had said Kitten died, but Kitten wasn't dead at all. There was something deeper here that Hans didn't know about.
Inside the bathroom Ed turned on the tub and filled it with bubbles.
"Here you go Kitten." Ed said softly. Kitten slipped off Ed's coat and what was left of her bra and underwear. Ed adverted his gaze as Kitten slipped into the hot water. His face was red. The bubbles covered Kitten's body as she lay in the tub.
"Thank you Ed." Kitten replied in a soft voice.
"Well then I'll leave." Ed replied.
"No. Please stay." Kitten stated. Ed turned and looked back at her. Her eyes were pleading. Ed turned, his face still red, and sat down by the side of the bathtub. There was a small step stool to sit on.
"What is it Kitten?" Ed asked as he looked at her face.
"Who is that girl?" Kitten asked.
"Winry. A family friend and my mechanic." Ed answered. He was still mad at her for following them. She had put herself in danger and Kitten as well.
"I'll have to tell her. Is that okay?" Kitten whispered.
"I'm sure she wanted to know." Ed replied harshly. Kitten blinked in surprise.
"I'm sorry." Kitten uttered and looked away from Ed.
"No! Don't be sorry! I'm the one who should be sorry! I mean she followed us here and that's not your fault! Now you are going to have to tell her and I know you don't want people to know! Shit! This is all my fault!" Ed growled to himself. He buried his face in his hands. Kitten looked over at him sadly.
"Ed, don't blame yourself. You don't have to take care of me." Kitten whispered.
"But I want to! I want to help you and protect you but I can't even do that right! Something always goes wrong and it's my fault! I couldn't even save you before Greed—" Ed trailed off. He didn't want to say it. Kitten moved she reached out. The bubbles clung to her body as she leaned over the edge of the tub. She touched her hand to Ed's hand. He jumped and looked up at her. He couldn't see anything with all the bubbles but he still turned bright red. Kitten held Ed's face in her hand and looked into his golden eyes.
"You did save me Ed. Don't blame yourself for things you can't control." Kitten stated. She moved in closer and kissed him gently on the lips. "You do a fine job at protecting me." She added when she pulled away. Ed's face looked like a strawberry. Kitten pulled her hand back and slunk back into the water.
"K-Kitten." He stuttered. Kitten giggled and smiled over at him.
"Don't worry Ed. You can go out now, tell Winry I'll explain myself when I get out." Kitten said with a weak smile. Ed nodded, still red, and got off the stool. He tripped over to the door and slipped outside. Kitten sighed and slipped her head under the water. 'What am I going to do now? What about Greed? I mean like this, all he is after is well…no I don't want to think about that now. Not after what just happened. Is there a way to reverse that? Now I have to worry about more people as well. I can't put them all in danger! I don't even know what the homunculi want!' Kitten thought.
Ed walked out of the bathroom and shut the door behind him. Al, Winry, and Hans looked over at him. His cheeks were still a little pink but he shook it off and went to sit down next to his younger brother.
"Is Kitten all right?" Al asked worriedly.
"Yeah she's fine now. Her wound is completely healed." Ed replied. Winry kept her mouth shut and didn't look at him. She felt so guilty.
"That's good. I was worried." Al stated. Even though he knew Kitten was immortal he thought it must be scary to face death so many times. The four of them sat in silence until the bathroom door opened again. They all turned to look at Kitten. Her hair was still wet and she was wrapped in a fluffy white hotel robe. Kitten walked briskly across the floor and stopped behind the couch Ed and Al were sitting on. They both looked up at her but she was looking between Winry and Hans. Winry was still too nervous to look Kitten in the eyes. Kitten took a deep breath and tightened the grip on her robe.
"My name is Kitsumi Nakahara, or Kitten. I was born in Central. When I was around 9 years old my parents and brother were brutally murdered by the stray state alchemist Kimblee. I tracked him down and tried to kill him but failed, I was saved by another state alchemist. I then became part of a secret military project when I was 11. I was alchemically enhanced to become a superhuman weapon. Not only that, I am also completely immortal. The project was disbanded and I joined the regular military. I'm the only one from the project left, and I'm the only one who is completely immortal, I'm the only one who was completed before the military stopped funding and demanded the project be cancelled. I'm the perfect completed project. That's why I'm still standing here." Kitten explained. She hated to tell the story. Sometimes she wished didn't have to, she wished it could all be make-believe story. She didn't want her body anymore. She wanted to die like everyone else and have a normal life. Winry and Hans stared at her in disbelief. Ed watched Kitten. He was amazed that she stayed so calm while she told her story. He fought to urge to reach back and take her hand. Al watched her too. He could tell that she hadn't wanted to have to tell anyone this story. He knew how she felt; Al hated to tell people that he was an empty suit of armor.
Hans and Winry stared at Kitten in disbelief. Winry couldn't believe it, because she kept flashing back to the scene in the alleyway. That guy had put his hand and half his arm all the way through her chest; a normal human couldn't survive that. Kitten stared back at the two. 'I hadn't wanted to tell Hans about me. I didn't want to involve him so much either but it seems now I don't have much of a choice.' Kitten thought as she looked down at Hans. He looked beyond shocked and so did Winry. After a few minutes of unsettling silence Kitten turned and walked out of the living area and into the room with two of the beds. Ed stood up quickly.
"K-Kitten! Wait!" Ed exclaimed and dashed after her. Al stood up as well but didn't follow his brother. Al turned and looked down at Hans and Winry. Winry turned and looked up at Al.
"I-I had no idea t-that it was so hard for her." Winry stammered. She felt so guilty now. Kitten must have lived through some pretty horrible things. Winry wondered how many times she should have died. A shiver ran through her and Winry wrapped her arms around herself. Hans was still staring at the spot where Kitten had once been standing. 'This whole time she was immortal and she didn't even tell me? Although I guess I wouldn't have told anyone either, that must be why that scary guy is after her! I had no idea that things were so difficult for her! Why didn't she tell me? I could have helped her more I'm sure! Oh poor Kitten.' Hans thought as he stared into space.
"Don't worry Winry. She's okay." Al said softly, even though he knew that was a lie. Winry held herself tighter.
"K-Kitten?" Ed stuttered again. Kitten had stopped; she was facing away from Ed. He stopped a few feet behind her and reached out his flesh hand cautiously towards her. Kitten spun around suddenly before Ed had a chance to grab her shoulder. She threw herself against him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his shirt. Ed's breath caught in his throat as he looked down at the top of her head that was pressed against him. He gingerly laid his arms across her back and loosely held her.
"I didn't want anyone else involved! Why did this have to happen?" Kitten whimpered into his chest.
"It's okay Kitten." Ed replied softly. He didn't know what else to say.
"I always put people in danger! First it was you and Roy all those years ago! I got you both injured so badly just because you were around me!" Kitten cried against him. She felt so lonely in that moment. Kitten didn't understand why people still wanted to be around her after all that had happened. She didn't even want to be around herself half of the time. Deep inside her heart she bitterly wished that Roy was there, but it was too selfish of her to want to be with him. He was a human and she was an immortal weapon with no purpose. Ed patted her head gently.
"Kitten, don't say things like that! I wanted to protect you! So did everyone else!" Ed retorted, he hated how she always blamed herself. Kitten didn't reply. She sniffled one last time and then pushed herself away from him.
"Okay. I think I should go to bed." Kitten stated and turned. She sat down on a bed and adverted her gaze away from Ed. The robe slipped off her shoulder slightly, the air felt cold. Ed looked down at her sadly.
"Goodnight Kitten. You can always come to me if you need me." Ed stated and then walked from the room. Al turned when Ed came back out.
"Is Kitten okay?" Al asked.
"Yeah. She's going to sleep. We all should, it's been a rough night." Ed stated and stopped beside his brother.
"Yes, it has been." Al agreed.
"Where should I sleep?" Winry asked timidly. She still felt too guilty to look at Ed.
"There's another bed in that room." Ed stated and pointed to the room where Kitten had gone. Winry gulped but still stood up.
"O-Okay." She stammered and shuffled towards the room. Al watched her disappear into the room and sighed. Ed flopped down on the couch, almost falling on Hans.
"E-Edward!" Hans yelped.
"Huh? Did you think you were sleeping here? No way! You get a bed, go on now." Ed stated and flapped his hands.
"B-But you should have a bed!" Hans exclaimed. Ed laughed and nudged at Hans to move.
"Go on! Go to sleep! I want to be close in case something happens again." Ed replied. Hans looked over and Ed and then stood up.
"Well okay, I guess." Hans stated. 'It's so exciting to have the Full Metal Alchemist here! And he even cares a lot about Kitten! I'm glad she has close friends like this!' Hans thought as he walked towards the other bed area. Ed stretched out across the couch and groaned loudly. Al turned and looked down at his brother on the couch.
"Is something the matter brother?" Al asked in confusion. Ed opened one eye and looked up at his armor-covered brother. Then he closed his eye again.
"I was wondering if I should tell Mustang where we are." Ed stated in a whisper just in case, he didn't want Kitten to hear. Al gasped in surprise and turned fully to look down at Ed.
"A-Are you serious? You'd never want to do something like that!" Al stammered. Al did think it was a good idea; maybe Mustang could help Kitten. It seemed like she would be in danger after all. Things weren't going very well and another alley could be helpful. Al smiled brightly; it seemed like Ed finally was getting over his grudge against the Flame Alchemist.
"Eh, maybe not. He would probably hog all the spotlight." Ed growled and rolled over onto his side. Al sighed in defeat and slumped his shoulders. 'I should have known that he wasn't actually going to call Mustang. Why did I even get my hopes up?' Al wondered. Ed opened his eyes and stared over at the bathroom door.
Winry walked around the corner and froze. She couldn't help but utter a small squeak of surprise. Kitten turned around, she was only wearing her red tube top and a pair of underwear. Kitten looked slightly surprised as well.
"Oh! Winry!" Kitten exclaimed. Winry was surprised that Kitten didn't have any tone of resentment in her voice. 'I thought she would hate me for putting her through all of this! I mean, she is standing there smiling at me like nothing is wrong at all! I don't understand how she can be so strong in this situation!' Winry thought as she looked at the girl standing in front of her.
"H-Hello." Winry stammered, she quickly adverted her gaze to the floor and flushed slightly. 'She is so pretty too.' Winry thought as she stared at the carpet.
"You don't have to be so embarrassed! We are both girls!" Kitten exclaimed and chuckled. Winry flushed a little more but looked up anyways.
"O-Oh, sorry!" She apologized even though she didn't know why. Kitten was smiling at her warmly in the moonlight.
"Well Winry, it is pretty late. Sorry for dragging you into this, but I will make sure to protect you!" Kitten exclaimed and gave Winry a dramatic thumbs up. Winry blinked in surprise and shock.
"Y-You don't need to do that!" She stammered and waved her hands in front of her defensively. Kitten started laughing and plopped down onto her bed. The frame squeaked a few times from Kitten's movement. Winry moved slowly and she sat down on her bed gently. She still felt awkward being in a room with Kitten. The lights in the room were off but the curtains were open so the moonlight lit the room up with a blue glow. Winry looked over at Kitten. Kitten was staring up at the ceiling; it was hard to read her expression.
"Are you afraid of me?" Kitten asked in a soft tone. Winry was once again surprised.
"N-No! Not really!" Winry stuttered. 'Well I kind of am, I mean, the way she is immortal is a little scary. Not to mention how she fought against that guy. I wouldn't want to get on her bad side.' Winry thought as she looked over at Kitten. A small grin crossed Kitten's face but she didn't turn to look at Winry.
"It's okay if you are. Not many people understand." Kitten breathed out. She knew that Winry was lying. Normal people didn't accept her easily; she wasn't a normal human. Winry adverted her gaze again.
"No, really. I'm not really that scared of you. You seem like a very nice person." Winry stated, still not looking at Kitten. Kitten chuckled lightly.
"Maybe I am." She said in a far away voice. Winry turned to look at her. It looked like Kitten was just staring off into space.
"Um, Kitten?" Winry squeaked in an unsure voice. Kitten turned, broken out of her world, to look at the girl.
"Yes?" Kitten prodded.
"Could you tell me more about yourself?" Winry asked. Kitten looked over at her in surprise.
"Well, I suppose. What would you like to know?" Kitten asked.
"What is your life like?" Winry asked. She felt like it wasn't her business but Winry could tell that deep down inside Kitten wanted to get everything out. Kitten smiled and looked over at Winry.
"It's lonely. I'm the only one left from the project and right now I'm trying to bring back my best friend. She was part of the project too but she wasn't complete like I was. I miss being a normal human; I never had a childhood." Kitten replied. Winry felt herself want to cry. 'It must be so horrible for her! She feels like she is alone but really she seems to have friends all around her! It must be awful.' Winry thought to herself.
"But you have many friends don't you?" Winry asked.
"Of course, but I feel guilty for having friends. I won't die, and then one day I will have to leave them. It isn't fair to burden people with my problems." Kitten replied. Winry bit her lip.
"Don't you have a love?" She asked. She almost had to force the question from her throat. Kitten sighed and laid a hand against her chest.
"I do. But that is even less fair than friendship. I can never live a normal life, so it isn't fair to him at all." Kitten replied in a soft voice. Winry looked away out the window. 'Is it Edward? That makes me a little jealous; I hope it isn't. Wait! I shouldn't be thinking like that! I'm so selfish!' Winry thought bitterly.
"I'm sorry." Winry stated; there was concern in her voice.
"I'm used to it. I've already accepted my existence as such." Kitten answered. She then rolled over and stared at the wall. "We should go to sleep Winry, the sun will be rising soon." Kitten stated softly. Winry laid all the way down and looked over at Kitten's back.
"Yeah. Good Night Kitten." Winry breathed out softly.
"Night." Kitten replied in a voice that was almost a whisper. Kitten squeezed her eyes shut and clutched the covers in her hands. 'Roy, I miss you! I wish I could see you again somehow and tell you all about this! I feel so bad for just leaving like I did! I had to do it though, for Sakura! Maybe I should have told him about how she died, I never explained anything to him. I couldn't bear the thought of him knowing what I did that day! Why do I have to be so weak when it really counts! I just want to be able to live a normal human life with Roy! Although, that isn't possible is it? I can't help myself, I want to be selfish and keep him all to myself!! And all my friends as well. It isn't fair to any of them. Edward, I hurt him so much and in so many ways. I love him too, but not in the same way as I love Roy. It's like I'm leading them all on, and tricking them into thinking that it will all work out in the end when I know it won't. Maybe I shouldn't think about this now. I can worry about my future late; right now all I should focus on is saving Sakura. I wonder if there will be a way to bring her back? There has to be right? Will I have to make a homunculus of her? No, I shouldn't do something like that; it wouldn't be fair to Sakura. I wouldn't want to be a homunculus, so what will I do? What will I have to give up if I can bring her back? I wonder what is going to happen in the end?' Kitten wondered as she drifted off to sleep in the middle of her thoughts.
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Thanks for reading! I liked this chapter a lot! Winry has finally made herself known! Bwah haha! And there is some tension between her and Kitten! Hee hee! Thanks for reading and sorry again that this chapter was so long! R&R!!
