Brows furrowed in annoyance, Piper lifted up a lock of hair from the back of her head to its usual position (i.e. standing almost upright) and let go. Rather than staying where it was supposed to be, it flopped down rather sadly and splatted onto the back of her neck.

She groaned in annoyance. Obviously the gravity in Amestris was a lot stronger than it was in Atmos. Probably because the ground was all one solid lump rather than being spread out in between blocks, which would also explain why the atmosphere was so much thicker – unless Jean's car could fly, which she doubted. She had been wondering why Finn's hair was all slicked down and not standing on end as it usually was.

Ah well. Nothing much she could do about it.

She grabbed a nearby towel and gave her indigo locks a second thorough rub-through. She had done it before, but she didn't want to know how Winry would react if she got her clothes all wet. The shoulders were already slightly damp.

A plain button-up shirt and jogging trousers. Not exactly the most elegant of attire, but it was more than Piper would have expected, especially since it looked like they were made by the most professional tailor possible. They didn't even have any patches!

Winry must have been stinking rich to afford nice clothes like these, assuming she was the main breadwinner of the house. Did she have parents? Or was she in a similar situation to the Storm Hawks?

She looked at her headband, draped over the side of the sink. It would be a while before it dried out completely, and even then the elastic wouldn't ever be the same. It had been bad enough the first couple of times it had gotten wet. Pretty soon it wouldn't have any elasticity left at all.

Yes, it was a strange thing to be annoyed by, but annoying nonetheless.

She looked up at the sound of a knock at the door.

"Is everything alright in there?" called Winry. "I hope those clothes fit alright!"

"Yeah, they fit fine," Piper reported, trying to pull her damp headband back on. "I feel like I should repay you somehow-"

"No, don't worry about it," Winry replied. "I mean, Ed would probably go on and on about equivalent exchange, but as far as I'm concerned, since you and your friends are lost in an alien world and you'll need all the help you can get."

Wait, what?

Piper cautiously opened the door. Winry was standing out there, smiling in a friendly fashion, apparently oblivious to the implications of what she had just said.

"So…" the navigator said slowly, "…you know? About us? The Storm Hawks, Atmos, Cyclonia…?"

"I asked and they told," Winry said with a shrug. "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's being kept in the dark about things, especially where Ed is concerned. He didn't mention a single thing about you or that Atmos place when he came to see me for repairs! Unbelievable!"

"He probably figured you wouldn't believe him," Piper suggested as she stepped out and closed the door behind her. "I know if it happened to me – which it actually kinda has, come to think of it – I'd find it pretty hard to believe too. It feels really strange to be standing here in a completely different world."

"I can only imagine," Winry commented. "I suppose I should really thank you and your friends for taking him in back then. He likes to act tough, but really he's just as useless as the rest of us."

"It was nothing," said Piper. "If anything our lives got more complicated after he left."

"Why, because of Aerrow's automail?"

Piper froze in shock.

"How do you-"

"Like I said to him, I've been working with this stuff since before I could do long division," Winry said proudly. "I can tell whether a hand I'm shaking is made of flesh or steel."

Oh. That made sense.

"I was actually rather impressed with how well it was put together," Winry continued. "Who designed it?"

"That would be me," said Piper, sensing it was her turn to sound proud. "I based the blueprints on what I could gather from Ed's arm and I also did the fine-tuning with the wires and gears and things. It was quite a job keeping him occupied while he was recovering."

"Tell me about it," Winry said exhaustedly with a roll of her eyes, and she and Piper giggled.

"Seriously though," the engineer said once they'd calmed down, "thank you for helping him come home safely. It would have broken Alphonse's heart if he'd lost his brother."

"What about you?" asked Piper. "Wouldn't you miss him?"

Winry cast her eyes skyward, seemingly deep in thought.

"Can I take a raincheck on that one?" she asked.

Piper couldn't help but laugh again. She got the feeling that she and Winry were going to be rather good friends.

"So exactly how many of you are there?" the mechanic asked as they walked towards the stairs.

"How many of what?" asked Piper. "Because if you mean the Storm Hawks, there're only six of us. If you're talking sky squadrons, there are plenty of those. One for every terra, and if there's one thing Atmos isn't short on, it's terras. We haven't even charted all of it yet, there's still so much left to find!"

"Really?" Winry was entranced. "Wow, that sounds like it's really exciting!"

"It can be," said Piper as they descended the stairs, "but a lot of the time it can get a little dull. It's not like we stumble upon a new terra or have to fend off a Cyclonian attack every single day, and with Aerrow out of action we haven't really done much in the past twelve months. We were only just getting back into the swing of things when we…"

"Came here?"

"That."

"Well, look on the bright side," said Winry, and it wasn't long before they reached the bottom of the stairs. "At least you weren't still stuck with Edward. He's been so bored ever since he quit the military, it's ridiculous!"

"Ed quit the military?" Piper was alarmed. "Why would he do that?"

Winry opened her mouth to reply, but somebody behind Piper cleared his throat in an attempt to garner attention, and she looked round to see Alphonse standing there, lightly blushing.

"Um…" he said. "Piper? Your friends are waiting for you. They really want to talk to you."

"I'll be right there," said Piper.

Al nodded and scampered away.

"I think he has a bit of a thing for you," Winry said quietly in Piper's ear.

"Does he?" asked Piper.

"I think it's pretty rare that he meets a girl who doesn't instantly try to beat him up," said Winry. "Him and Ed both. I hope he's getting used to not having to constantly fight for his life."

Piper nodded.

A life like that did sound a bit dull.

"Pardon me, coming through!"

"Out of the way please, unless you want a support beam dropped on your toes!"

"Make sure that scaffolding's secure, alright?"

"WILL SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME WITH THIS MOTHERFUCKING TARPAULIN?!"

"Watch your language, Churchill! There are kids running around!"

Junko had never exactly wondered what it would be like to spend time on a construction site, but if he had, this probably wasn't what he would have imagined. The few clouds covering the sun may have meant that it wasn't quite as hot, but now the air was even thicker and muggier than it had been before and the mere act of breathing felt like it was scorching his throat.

And also, it was loud with a capital L-O-U-D. Everybody seemed to be shouting at everybody else about something and though he was helping wherever he could, what he really wanted was just to stay out of everyone's way as much as possible.

"Excuse me!" he said as he pushed past a couple of shoulders and tried to balance the stack of bricks he carried on top of his head, which wouldn't have been so difficult if it wasn't for the small child sitting on top of it.

"Mr Junko," said Basima, kicking her legs against the stone blocks, "how old are you?"

"Me?" said Junko. "I'm fifteen. Pretty much everyone else in my team is too. 'Cept Stork."

"But how come you're so strong already?" asked the little girl. "Is it because you're part rhinocebos?"

Junko would have shrugged if he were able.

"Probably," he said. "By Wallop standards, I'm actually pretty weak."

"You are?!" He could tell from her voice that Basima's world had been rocked. "But you're carrying me and all these bricks, aren't you?"

"I know, but I'm a Wallop," Junko pointed out as he ducked past more soldiers (he could tell they were military because they were all wearing the same blue uniform – hopefully they weren't like the Talons). "Being super strong is kinda in the job description."

"Ooooooh," said Basima, and Junko almost laughed at the tone of her voice. The way she said that word sounded like all the issues in the universe had just been made clear to her.

He could see his destination – a row of half-constructed houses – up ahead. He didn't have much further to go.

"Hey, do you see my big sister anywhere around?" Basima asked.

"Your sister?" said Junko, glancing around at the crowd. "I don't even know what she looks like."

"She's Ishvalan too, she looks like all of us," Basima said flatly. "Wait, there she is! Over there, by the well!"

Junko looked over to a well that stood on the street corner. There he saw a teenage girl who wore her white hair long, but in a tightly bound ponytail at the back of her head, pulling up a bucket and passing it, with a smile, to a woman who gratefully accepted it. She was then approached by a pair of soldiers who apparently also wanted water, who caused her to apparently halve in size and spend the entirety of her time pumping the crank sweating and trembling like a leaf.

"That's your sister?" asked Junko. "She looks…"

"'Fraidy?" said Basima. "That's 'coz she's a big 'fraidy cat. Hana's always been scared of people bigger than her, and everybody's bigger than her! Can I get down soon?"

Junko could have got whiplash from how quickly the subject was changed.

"Uh, yeah," he said. "I'm almost there."

He would have waved to the soldiers standing by the half-built houses, but his hands were rather occupied.

"Did you guys need some more bricks?" he asked. "I was told that since I had nothing to do, I could just deliver building supplies where they're needed."

"Whoa," said one of the pair, a young man with roughly combed hair and wide eyes, as he stared up at the stack of bricks Junko held and the small smiling child who sat atop it. "How're you holding all of those up? What kind of freaky chimera are you?"

"Why does everybody keep calling me a chimera?" Junko asked sadly.

"Ignore him," said the second soldier, a short-haired young woman with a mole under one eye, as she pushed her companion aside. "This is very much appreciated, um…"

She trailed off, obviously wanting to say the Wallop's name.

"Oh!" Junko said when he realised. "My name's Junko. That's Basima."

"Hello, Lieutenant Ross," the little girl said, presumably waving. "Hello, Sergeant Major Brosh."

"Now how do you know our names, young lady?" asked the woman, and she crossed her eyes and smiled slyly at Basima.

"Duh," she replied bluntly. "Everybody knows who you guys are."

"They do?!" asked the alarmed Brosh.

"They do?" Junko asked more calmly.

"Of course!" said the ever-knowledgeable Basima. "Lieutenant Ross helped Brigadier General Mustang get weapons on the Promised Day, and that helped him get rid of all the bad guys who were in the military. And then she got on the radio and told everybody what was happening. And Sergeant Major Brosh is her boyfriend who helped with the news stuff afterwards."

"What?!" cried Lieutenant Ross in shock.

"I am not her boyfriend!" shouted the equally shocked Brosh.

"He is not!" Ross insisted.

"We couldn't be!" Brosh argued.

"And even if we wanted to be-"

"There are laws against fraternisation!"

"Soldiers aren't allowed to date other soldiers!"

"You can get court-martialled if you do that!"

"Or dishonourably discharged!"

"Or both!"

Throughout this entire conversation, Junko and Basima exchanged knowing glances, or at least they tried to – it was difficult with the bricks in the way – both understand exactly what the situation was with these two.

"So, uh…" Junko had to interject eventually, otherwise they would never let up. "Do you guys actually want these bricks? 'Coz they're starting to feel kinda heavy."

Thankfully, the desperate pair noticed, and tried to wipe the sweat from their foreheads.

"That would be great, thank you," Brosh said weakly.

"Just put them down over there, thanks," said Ross, indicating a nearby spot with her finger.

Junko nodded and, straining with effort, he lifted the stack from his shoulders and placed it carefully on the ground. Basima hopped off, grabbed one of his fingers and started dragging him away.

"What's going on?" he asked. "Where are we going?"

"Haven't you seen the sky?" Basima demanded. "The wet's coming!"

"The what?" Junko looked up at the sky, which was gathering more clouds at an alarming rate. "You mean it's gonna rain?"

"Of course it's gonna rain!" Basima shouted back angrily. "Now hurry before we get caught in it!"

Junko would have focused on trying to follow her and keep his balance (he was significantly taller than this eight-year-old human, and having to bend over like this was really awkward), but just then, he bumped into something – or rather, someone – and sent them flying to the floor.

Basima stopped running and glared at the offender.

"Hana, you clumsy dummy!" she shouted. "That's what happens when you don't stop running!"

"I'm sorry!" Hana cried. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to crash into anybody, it was really stupid of me, I'm sorry!"

"Do you need some help?" asked Junko, and he offered her his hand.

Hana slowly looked up at him, and when her red eyes focused on his smiling face, they widened in terror and she ducked down again.

"Please don't hurt me!" she squeaked. "I'm sorry I bumped into you, I really didn't mean to and I won't do it again and I'm really sorry!"

"Get a grip, 'fraidy cat!" Basima ordered, and kicked her older sister in the shin.

"Ow!" cried the teenage Ishvalan, snapping out of her terror from the shock. "Basima, what have I told you about kicking?"

"You said not to," Basima said grumpily.

"Exactly," said Hana, much calmer now as she got to her feet. "So why did you kick me just now, hmm?"

"Because you were being 'fraidy again!" Basima pointed out. "Why are you always such a 'fraidy cat around big people? And you shouldn't be 'fraidy cat around Junko! Junko's nice, see?"

"Hello," said Junko, and he gave the girls a little wave.

Hana squeaked again and tried to hide her face. Basima gave the Wallop an exasperated look as her older sister, despite trying to hide, was simultaneously gathering her thoughts.

"You were supposed to be home over an hour ago," she said sternly. "You don't want Mama to worry, do you?"

"She never does," Basima grumbled. "She doesn't even talk."

"I don't care!" Hana snapped. "Come on, Basima. I'll need your help cooking dinner, remember?"

Basima pouted as her elder sister took her hand.

"See you later, Junko," she said, waving to him as she was led away. "If she doesn't squeak me to death."

Junko waved to her as she left.

He'd now spent at least a day in this place and despite all these people being nice to him, it still felt completely alien. He'd only learned what it was named a few hours ago, and even then it felt strange.

Ishval. What kind of name was that?

From what he could tell, this place was being rebuilt after a war several years ago, which raised the question of why it had taken so long to get started but he didn't want to worry about that right now. For some reason the army of the country that had helped to destroy it all was now helping with the restorations, as these people, these Ishvalans, had been driven almost to the point of extinction by the war.

Why would anybody want to do such a horrible thing? To try to wipe out an entire race of people, women and children included? At least Cyclonians tended to make such a big spectacle in their attacks that they were almost always seen coming, but this place didn't seem to have the advantage of flying ships.

He looked up at the sky, at the clouds now darkening the land and trapping in the hot air, turning the entire region into what felt like an immense pressure cooker.

Why would they even want this Ishval place anyway? It didn't seem like a very pleasant place to live, with all the heat and glaring sunlight and dry, barren desert as far as the eye could see.

There had been an entire civilisation here once.

Why would anybody want to completely wipe it out?

"Junko! JUNKO!"

He looked down when Amir and Ghada came running over to him, their eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Brigadier General Mustang's back!" cried Amir.

"You wanna go try to get a look at him?" asked Ghada.

"Mustang?" Junko was confused. "Who's-"

"You know, the Flame Alchemist!" said Amir, and he grabbed the teen's finger. "Come on, before he goes back to do official stuff again!"

"But wait- WHA!"

Junko didn't have a choice, he considered as he started running. Like it or not, he was going to accompany a six-year-old and a seven-year-old to try to catch a glimpse of somebody he'd never even heard of before, if only to-

Wait.

What had Amir called him?

The Flame Alchemist?

Alchemist?!

But there was only one place where alchemists were supposed to live (except Aerrow of course) or at least, that was what Edward had made it sound like. Alchemists came from Amestris, didn't they?

Didn't they?!

"Come on, we need to hide!" Amir said as they neared some building that sat next to what looked like a large minecart track.

"Over here!" said Ghada, and she led them to a row of barrels under a tarpaulin.

They crouched behind the casks, waiting and watching the door.

"There!" Amir said while pointing as several people came out of the building. "There he is! The black-haired guy!"

Junko narrowed his eyes to get a better look at a man with scruffy, dark hair and an exhausted looking frown.

"That's… the Flame Alchemist?" he asked. "I thought someone with a name like that would look, well, cooler."

"Are you kidding?!" gasped Amir. "Mr Mustang is AWESOME."

"He once took on an entire army of immortal soldiers by himself!" said Ghada. "They were eating people and they were immortal and he burnt them all to toast!"

"I heard he once got stabbed and he didn't even bleed until he said he could!" Amir chimed in.

"Well I heard he once punched God in the face!" Ghada added for the sake of one-upping.

"No, stupid," Amir said flatly. "That was the Fullmetal Alchemist. You know, Edward Elric? The one with the metal limbs and the brother and the shortness?"

Junko could only pray that they could tell he was internally screaming louder than he ever thought he would be able to.

If he was hearing this correctly, Ishval was not very far from Amestris.

Amestris.

The country Edward Elric came from. The country where Edward Elric lived. The country Edward Elric had returned to a year ago, which was always the most vivid incident involving that boy that stuck in the Wallop's memory thanks to what had happened on that fateful day, involving his squadron's leader, a stray cat and one heck of a lot of blood.

He could still hear Amir and Ghada arguing, but it took the back seat to the realisation that he had a chance of finding somebody he knew, even if it was a chance that was very, very, very slim.

He could…

Ed could help him find his friends and get home.

Couldn't he?

"Hey Junko, are you okay?"

At the mention of his name, he snapped back and looked down at Ghada.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he said. "Why?"

"I dunno," the little girl said innocently. "You just looked really scared right now."

"I would feel apprehensive too if I were a child near the Flame Alchemist."

The three dark-skinned youngsters almost jumped out of their skins at the sound of the gravel-voiced man who stood behind them, leaning against the side of a building and watching Mr Mustang conversing with… it was hard to tell if they were subordinates or superiors, but they were fellow soldiers either way.

"You children have no idea of the atrocities he has committed against our people, do you?" he asked with his usual stern frown.

Junko, Ghada and Amir innocently shook their heads.

"If you were ever to learn," said Scar, "I doubt any of you would be as enthusiastic to see him as you are now."

Confused, Junko looked back at the completely normal and actually rather friendly man, who was now engaged in conversation with an attractive blonde, who somehow looked completely calm and stoic and simultaneously on the edge of hugging him. How was that even possible?

That Mustang guy sure didn't look like a soldier, much less one of the sort Scar was describing.

But then again, they definitely wouldn't have called him the Flame Alchemist for no reason…

"Still," Scar continued, "he has shown willingness to make changes and the restoration of our civilisation is mainly in his hands, so we have all of what you see here to thank him for. It doesn't excuse what he has done, but the fact that he is actively seeking redemption is something to be admired."

To Junko's alarm, Amir let out a whine of annoyance.

"Mr Scar, why do you always have to go and spoil everything?" he complained.

"Because I'm a spoilsport," Scar replied seriously. "Now I suggest you all find something to do and stay out of the Brigadier General's way. I expect he has plenty of work to do now that his finished his leave time."

Amir and Ghada plodded away, pouting as hard as they could. Junko, however, remained behind for a little longer.

"Mr Scar, what happened here?" he asked. "I mean, I've been hearing about this war and-"

"Are you absolutely sure that you're ready for this kind of conversation?" asked Scar.

As if on cue, thunder rumbled ominously overhead. Junko decided that this coincidence was clearly a sign that he was not ready, and decided to leave it at that. Well, that and a frightened squeak. He'd never been a big fan of thunder.

When he looked back, Mustang was walking away.

"Aren't you going to go and say hi?" he asked. "You're one of the big shots around here, right?"

To his alarm, the scarred man smiled faintly.

"As far as Mustang knows, I was killed in battle months ago," he said. "I can't allow myself to be seen by him."

'Wait, wouldn't that be kinda hard?' thought Junko. 'They're on the same construction sight, aren't they? Wouldn't he have to be hiding all the time?'

"Not yet, at least," Scar added, and his smile grew in visibility. "I'm waiting for the opportune moment. General Armstrong has ordered me to only reveal myself to Mustang when he is least expecting it. I believe that woman has what one might call a sick sense of humour."

Poor Junko wasn't sure whether he was supposed to laugh or not.

Before the conversation could continue, another Ishvalan man exited the building Scar had been leaning against – this one with dark glasses, intimidating sideburns and long hair tied in a tight ponytail – and he and Scar exchanged nods of acknowledgement.

"I must go," said the scarier man, and he started walking away. "Safe tidings, young one."

As he pulled the scarf off his head (there wasn't much point in protecting himself from sunburn when there was no sun to burn him) Junko realised that he'd probably never get used to people referring to him as 'child' or 'young one'.

What he most wanted to be referred to as was 'buddy' or 'man' or 'dude' or 'bro' or any other strange and inventive terms Finn might come up with. He was pretty sure he'd heard 'bronana' and 'bropane' and even 'brosaurus' at one point.

He sat down on the ground and hugged his knees.

He missed Finn. He wanted to see his best friend again, to know that he was doing alright and hadn't upset anybody who might hurt him. More than anything, he wanted to be back home on the Condor with the rest of the team, with Stork talking about doom and Piper about crystals and Finn's wild exaggerations of himself and maybe Aerrow playing a game of Jenga with Radarr.

It wasn't long before the rain started falling, the heavy droplets thudding deafeningly down onto the tarpaulin over his head, but as anybody close enough to the homesick Wallop would hear, it wasn't the only water that was falling down that evening.

Temporary Squadron Log

Date: September 18th

Location: Rockbell Outfitters, Resembool, Eastern region, Amestris

None of us are entirely sure how or why it happened, but it would appear that the Storm Hawks have somehow been brought into Amestris, although it hasn't been determined exactly how many of us actually made it. Aerrow and Finn have been confirmed, but the others…

We were all lucky in a variety of ways. Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, seems to be something of a celebrity in this place, so finding him wasn't as big of an issue as it could have been if he was less well known. It was him that found Aerrow and brought him here, where Finn had already been found by his brother, Alphonse Elric, and their friend Winry Rockbell, a mechanic who specialises in automail.

She has been informed of the situation and is providing us with assistance whenever possible. At first I assumed she lived on her own with the Elrics, but apparently her grandmother is out of town visiting some old colleagues. Rockbell seems to be a rather famous name in the world of automail.

Finn is currently complaining about food, and Aerrow is complaining about Finn complaining about food. No truce in sight as of yet.

Needless to say, all three of us are glad to have been found and to have found each other, but we can't help but wonder for our teammates. As of writing there has been no news whatsoever of Junko or Stork, and Aerrow's not entirely certain if Radarr is in Amestris or if he could have been left behind on the Condor.

There isn't very much else that can be said, to tell the truth.

I personally hope that I never find out exactly who it was that brought us here to this completely alien world.

For their sake.

Piper laid down the pencil and read over what she had written several times.

"Watcha doin'?" asked Aerrow as he sat down next to her.

She sighed.

"I'm trying to get my thoughts together," she told him. "I'm not too sure if it's working so far. Has Finn stopped complaining yet?"

"I don't think so," said Aerrow. "Winry's trying to put a soup together but Finn wants pancakes. Just… listen to them."

Piper listened.

"I'm telling you, you idiot, that's the stupidest idea I've ever heard!" said the voice of Ed.

"But it could totally work!" Finn argued. "You haven't even tried if before, so how could you know it's bad?"

"I don't even know how that would work," said the much calmer Al. "How are you supposed to make soup out of pancakes?"

"In this case, you don't," Winry said sternly. "Now if you boys can just get to cutting up the vegetables like I asked you, we can all get something to eat a whole lot faster, okay?"

"Yes, Winry," said the dejected voice of Ed.

"Oh, cheer up!" the girl ordered. "Anybody would think I was Granny, the way you sound right now. They're only onions!"

"Yeah, but you know what onions do, right?" asked Finn. "And I'm a sharpshooter; I don't like stuff messing with my eyes!"

Somewhere, Den let out a little whine, probably confused by all the commotion.

"There is a way to cut them where that doesn't happen," Al stated. "Winry's shown me a couple of times."

"There is?!" said Ed. "Winry, how come you've never shown me?"

"You didn't ask," Winry pointed out.

Aerrow and Piper sniggered.

"I'm hurt, Winry," said Ed. "Right now, I am very hurt."

"He's so dramatic!" Piper giggled.

"That's one thing that hasn't changed," said Aerrow. "He really does like to exaggerate, doesn't he?"

Piper put down the paper and pencil and picked up the garment that had been lying on the couch next to her.

"Here," she said, handing it to the Sky Knight. "Sorry if it's a little wet."

"You hang onto it," said Aerrow. "You'll probably need it more than I do."

"Are you sure?" asked Piper. "I've noticed you're the only one of us who's still in his clothes from Atmos."

Aerrow frowned and looked away.

"What's wrong?" Piper asked.

"I can't change," he said, and his fingers closed around the fabric covering his left arm. "I can't risk Ed seeing…"

"You mean he doesn't know?" Piper whispered for fear of alerting the Elrics. "Aerrow, even if you don't tell him, he's bound to find out sooner or later!"

"I can't let him know!" Aerrow replied hoarsely. "He's been nothing but generous to me ever since I found him. The last thing I want to do is send him on a guilt trip. I don't want him to think that what happened to my arm was his fault, and I know it technically is but that's beside the point."

He rubbed his shoulder, massaging it as though it were hurting.

"I'm going to tell him eventually," he said. "Just not right now, okay?"

"But the longer you hold it off, the more annoyed he'll be that you didn't think he'd be able to handle it," Piper informed him.

Aerrow didn't reply.

"This isn't just about sparing Ed's feelings, is it?"

Still the Sky Knight remained silent.

Piper rested her hand on his shoulder, which he abruptly stopped rubbing.

"Aerrow, you know you can talk to people, don't you?" she asked. "If something's troubling you – if what happened back then is still troubling you – you can talk to us. You can talk to me. You don't have to keep it all bottled up inside."

Aerrow seemed to be trying his hardest not to look at her.

"It was the anniversary a few days ago, wasn't it?" asked Piper. "Of when you lost your arm. I don't think any of us would ever forget a date like that."

Silently, the Sky Knight nodded.

"Is it okay if I hug you?"

He nodded again, and she got up and pulled him into a hug.

"You should know you won't be burdening us," she told him. "Your friends are here for you to lean on. I've just spent a whole day wondering if I would ever see you again; the last thing I want is to see you like this!"

Slowly, and to her relief, Aerrow returned the embrace.

"I know," he said. "I'm sorry."

It had failed.

He had waited for over a day now, and there was no doubting it.

Nobody had appeared in his circle.

His transmutation had failed.

"Dammit," he muttered, leaning forward and letting his head collide with the table-top. "Damn it all to hell."

He loaded all of his possessions into the bag he had 'borrowed' a few months ago and closed the door behind him as he left the room.

His one hope of seeing his squadron again…

Ah well. Not much he could do about it now.

It looked as though he would have to go to his last resort.

Straightening his clothes and trying and failing to calm his ever-scruffy hair, he started walking in the direction of Central Command.