Hello dear readers! So this is a new story I submitted for this year's FMA Big Bang (#fmabb17). The talented Dzioo created the art for it and the amazing Bayalexison, my beta, is helping me iron out the wrinkles in the story. They are both amazing people that you can find in Tumblr and/or AO3. All related artwork will be posted on Tumblr and AO3 under hirstories and le_confidant, respectively. You can find specific tags for this story on AO3.
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Abraca—switch! Or The Tale of Edward Elric vs. the Mischievous Body-Snatcher
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Chapter 10
Edward knew that expression well. In the past, he always tried to keep his shock well hidden under the guise of smug indifference. Of course, there were instances where that mask had fallen off, and he'd experienced the effects of gravity pulling on his jaw. Now that he's been more or less forced to become a spectator, watching the jaw of his original body hang open from utter shock was something he was never going to forget.
Don Paco, the bastard he has come to abhor ever since their fateful encounter back in the western confines of Creta, was completely dismayed with what just happened. Edward dropped the blade on the floor. "My brother's right, Paquito, you couldn't have known the kind of person you decided to mess with," he taunted, even called him by Matilde's pet name just to rile him up. His fierce grin turned voracious. "I want my body back, cabrón."
Edward noticed that Don Paco wasn't paying him much attention. The bastard had the gall to look for another way out of the place.
"Give it up, sorcerer. There's nowhere to run," Alphonse said. "Turn yourself over—peacefully—and I'll make sure Brother doesn't get to hurt you too badly after you return him to his body."
Don Paco stopped what he was doing. He glared at Alphonse before locking eyes with Edward's. "If I turn myself in, who's going to escort me back to Creta? You Flea Bag?" He sneered, then returned his gaze back to Alphonse. "Or is it going to be you, Fumbles?" He gave a loud cackle. "I would pay to see that happening."
"Who extradites you is none of your concern," Alphonse said, curtly.
The corners of the impostor's mouth curled up in mischief. "Well, I'm not planning to stick around to find out," he replied. Then, looking past Alphonse, he shouted, "Now!"
"Alphonse-sama!" Mei screamed.
Alphonse turned only to see a piece of automail flying his way. Thanks to Mei's warning, he had a chance to move out of the way before the solid artifact struck him in the head.
Mr. Garfiel took a swing at the Xinguese princess. "You little bitch!" he growled as he threw another punch at her.
"Dammit!" Edward spat. They've both fallen for a ruse!
Both Edward and Alphonse heard clapping. The hand blocking the door to Atelier Garfiel shattered to bits. A second transmutation destroyed the front door; Don Paco made a mad dash out of the store.
"That fucking piece of shit!" Edward roared.
"Brother, look out!"
Another prosthetic flew their way. Edward managed to jump out of the way just in the nick of time. The prosthetic—a full-length automail leg—crashed into the wall, embedding itself into the drywall.
Edward flashed a menacing glare at Mr. Garfiel; Alphonse ran to his girlfriend to help her.
"I got this!" Mei yelled. She slid to the right, evading Mr. Garfiel's left hook. "Don't let that sorcerer get away!" she added before lunging at the master automail engineer.
Alphonse stopped in his tracks. "Thanks," he said with a proud smile. He made a one-eighty and ran back to his brother. "Let's go catch that man before he reaches Winry," he said as he scooped Edward in his arms.
Alphonse ran out of the shop, turning left on the street that led towards the end of town.
Don Paco was about one block ahead of them. He stopped next to a pedestrian; most likely he was asking for directions.
Alphonse tried to blend in with the crowd, but the sorcerer spotted them. Don Paco clapped his hands together, dropped down to one knee, and placed his palms on the sidewalk. The pavement opened up like the petals of a blossoming flower. Alphonse, and pretty much everyone transiting on the sidewalk, had to move away lest be struck by a piece of concrete. Alphonse lost grip of his brother, but Edward managed to land safely a foot away from him.
Edward turned around and clapped his forefeet together. He pressed them onto the broken sidewalk; blue sparks shot forward snaking towards Don Paco. But Edward hadn't been fast enough. Don Paco moved out of the way before panels of reshaped concrete caged him in.
Soon after, screams invaded the street as people began to realize what was happening around them. Some spectators began cursing at Don Paco for the destruction he was creating. Others were screaming in fear because a cat had used alchemy.
Edward heard Alphonse cursing under his breath. He wasn't surprised, he knew things looked bad from every angle—kind of like that time when they first met Ling, Ran Fan, and Fuu.
"We need to keep the damages to a minimum, Brother," Alphonse said as he scooped Edward up to retake the chase.
"Fuck the damages!" Edward spat. "We need to stop that man at any cost!"
"Ed, have you forgotten what we did to this town a few years back?" Alphonse countered, incredulous that his brother could still think so irresponsibly.
Edward scoffed. "Mustang can take care of it."
Alphonse let out a frustrated groan. "Newsflash, Ed! You're not in the military anymore!"
Don Paco stopped by some horses tied to a post next to a watering hole. With a partial transmutation, he was able to free one of the horses. He mounted the beast—a palomino—and flashed a smug smile at the brothers who were fast approaching. Since the reins were torn off by the transmutation, he fisted the horse's mane in his hand. "See ya, boys!" He boasted before kicking the sides of the horse. The beast complained about the rough treatment but Don Paco managed to quickly subdue him. The horse galloped away.
Alphonse ran faster. "Break the reigns of a horse!" He said as he let Edward on the ground.
Edward complied. Clapping his forefeet, he broke the reigns of a pinto horse with a simple transmutation.
Alphonse got on the horse. "Hurry up, Brother," he said as he reached for Edward.
"I didn't know you could ride a horse," Edward commented after his brother set him on the saddle.
"Alkahestry wasn't the only thing I learned in Xing," Alphonse boasted.
Edward couldn't hold off a laugh. "It sure looks that way, baby brother."
Alphonse frowned, not liking Edward's tone, nor his insinuation. "Not cool Ed. Not cool," he admonished.
Edward laughed harder.
Alphonse smacked him on the head. He then fisted the pinto's mane in his hand like Don Paco had done. "Hold on tight," he said as he kicked the horse's sides.
Edward didn't have a chance to yell at his brother for smacking him in the head, he was plenty busy making sure he didn't fall off the saddle.
Alphonse looked down. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Edward answered. He dug his claws deep into the leather to secure himself in place. "Just don't lose him!"
The Far West spread across the entire length of Creta, from another to South. The harsh conditions of the region made modern progress an almost impossible feat, but people of the region had learned to adapt to their unforgiving environment. People in the Far West didn't rely on technology to go on with lives, they learned to live from the land, and with the land. This was the first lesson Edward received when he first set foot on the edge of the Far West. Horses were priceless, and their lives were far more valuable than a human's. Almost all the people he met during his questing were highly skilled with managing such beasts; for their survival, they had to. Don Paco wasn't an exception. The man took a stranger's horse and rode it as if it was his own. And it was clear he knew how to make a beast gallop. The gap between his horse and Alphonse's horse was becoming wider by the second.
"Al, do something!" Edward shouted.
Even though the chase prevented both parties from using alchemy, the battle was still raging. Unfortunately for Dominic, it was moved to his territory.
Don Paco was already halfway across the bridge while Alphonse was still rounding the curve leading to the bridge.
"Can you make the horse go faster?" Edward asked.
Alphonse took his eyes off the road to look at his brother. "I don't think it's a good idea to do that, Ed. I don't know this horse's temper."
"Shit," Edward cussed under his breath. His brother was right, they shouldn't push a horse they didn't know. Right now wasn't the time for screwups.
Don Paco just finished crossing the bridge. He pulled back hard on the horse's mane. The palomino swerved at first, but he managed to force it to stop. The animal backpedaled, then turned around, and, with a loud neigh, reared on its hind legs. Don Paco held on to the horse's mane to prevent from being launched off the saddle. The horse got back on all fours. Don Paco then leaned forward to hush the animal. He heard galloping while he stroked the palomino's neck. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the brothers getting ready to cross the bridge.
Don Paco jumped off the stolen horse and walked up to the bridge. He clapped his hands together and placed them on one of the support beams. Blue electricity enveloped the beam. He did a partial transmutation so the entire structure would acquire the strength of balsa wood.
The first thing that gave out was the support beam he made direct contact with. The surrounding wood snapped, and the opposite support beam whined. Seconds later, they both collapsed. The entire structure on Don Paco's side fell into the canyon. The mid-section buckled under pressure, it also fell into the canyon along with the other support beams. The broken planks still attached to the beams on the other side of the bridge slammed against the sheetrock wall. Alphonse had to pull hard on the pinto's mane, or they would've fallen over the precipice.
Don Paco put his hands on each side of his mouth. "Good luck!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. He also waved them goodbye before returning to his horse.
The brothers watched as he rode away.
Edward jumped out of the horse and approached the rocky ledge. Don Paco was already starting the descent down the canyon's side. Soon, that man was going to reach Dominic's place.
"If that cocky bastard thinks he's won—" he began but stopped.
Edward clapped his forefeet together and touched the ground before him. A series of steps emerged from the sheetrock, similar to the ones he constructed to cut down a path into the canyon to intercept Paninya, who at the time, had stolen his State Alchemist pocket watch in an attempt to prove the prowess of Winry's automail.
Edward jumped on the first rock formation. He turned around to Alphonse. "Are you coming, or what?"
Alphonse rolled his eyes and shook his head slightly.
Edward knew why Alphonse was being difficult. He had to admit the scene unraveling before them was like deja vu all over again, but instead of chasing after a stolen watch, they were chasing after a stolen body.
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Edward and Alphonse found the palomino panting near some bushes after they arrived at Dominic's house.
"Dammit! We weren't fast enough!" Edward snarled.
"Calm down, Brother."
Edward offered Alphonse an angry glare. "Did you forget what he did to Mr. Garfiel?"
Alphonse burst out laughing. "How can I forget?" He laughed some more. "All I know is that Winry has some serious competition now."
"Ha-ha. My brother the comedian," Edward retorted. "For your information, Mr. Garfiel asked Winry once if you were into men. So there!—how do you like them apples?"
Alphonse turned bright red. "I'll enter through the front door while you enter through the back. That way the sorcerer won't be able to escape," he said, changing the subject.
Edward let him off the hook this time. There were going to be plenty of opportunities to make fun of his little brother for blushing at his comment after he returned to his original body. "You're cursed, Al, you can't fight him," he said, focusing on their mission.
Alphonse rolled his eyes at Edward. "Thank you for reminding me, Ed," he said in a snappish tone. "I know I'm useless against him but I can sure serve as a diversion while you go in for the kill."
Edward grinned. "Point taken." He gazed at the house towering over him. "Let's go," he said then sprang into action.
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Edward pressed an ear to the back door, keenly listening in for any signs of commotion inside the LeCoultre's home. Nothing yet. His tail was quivering with excitement—an expected reaction. He was mere seconds away from launching an assault on Don Paco, the man who not only had stolen his body but also wanted to steal his girl. Very soon that sunnovabitch was going to fall hard.
Edward took the opportunity to go over in his head about their newest plan. First, he needed to break the lock—a partial transmutation should suffice. Then, he was going to slip into the house, locate the bastard, and wait for Alphonse's signal. His brother was in charge of creating the diversion, he was in charge of attacking, and he was going to do this by using alchemy. His first of two transmutations would turn a portion of the flooring near the impostor into a fist, which he then would manipulate so it would ram against the right flank of his original body; the target area was the liver. Aside from his brother, not many people knew that this was the easiest way to incapacitate him. Don Paco can't even begin to grasp the world of hurt he was soon going to be hurled in. In his second transmutation, he was going to create some restraints from the rest of the flooring. Don Paco was probably going to be in so much pain that he wasn't going to notice the exact moment when his hands and feet got secured to the floor. Once the man was effectively immobilized, he was going to search his pockets until he found the Philosopher's Stone. And then—
Edward heard a loud noise. "About time," he said to himself as he clapped his forefeet together.
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Alphonse kicked the front door open. Winry, Dominic, Ridel, and the impostor stared at him in shock.
"Winry, you see now? Al's gone insane!" the impostor said as he nudged closer to Dominic.
Dominic gritted his teeth together. "Break something else and I'll start breaking things too—like an arm or a leg, for example."
Alphonse staggered. "I promise to repair everything in sight, Mr. Dominic." He turned a menacing glare on the impostor. "This man—" he began but the curse placed upon him made his throat cinch.
Ridel raised a brow. "Al, are you really okay?"
"Fuck!" Alphonse swore out in utter frustration. He turned to Winry. "You need to get out of here now!" It was all he could say without triggering the curse.
"Now you're threatening my Winry?" Don Paco shrieked. "You all heard him!" His eyes were darting in all directions.
"Did you lose something?" Alphonse taunted.
Winry, Dominic, and Ridel looked at Alphonse, perplexed.
Don Paco glared.
The sorcerer's composure was starting to come off at the seams. He looked like a cornered animal, and like a cornered animal, if pushed past its limit, would strike back.
It was time to signal Edward.
Alphonse launched himself at Winry while screaming, "Now Ed!"
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"Finally," Edward said to himself.
He sucked in a deep breath then came out of hiding. Everyone's eyes turned to the armoire from where he jumped out from. He was about to clap his paws together when Don Paco pulled Winry close to him.
"No!" Alphonse cried in despair.
"Don't you fucking dare!" Edward hissed at Don Paco.
The impostor's lips curved up just a tiny fraction.
Winry stayed still.
Edward realized something was wrong with the picture before him. Winry should've been upset with the situation, but there she was, looking too calm and collected.
Winry carefully moved her right hand along her utility belt. She was reaching for the monkey wrench. Once she had it in her hand, she turned to the impostor, and said, "I'm so sorry."
Winry swung too fast; Edward was only able to catch the glint of the wrench as it connected with the side of his original body's head. Don Paco hit the ground with a loud thud.
"Are you insane, girl?" Dominic yelled at her as he crouched next to the impostor to check his vitals.
Winry didn't say anything in return. She was staring at Alphonse whose relieved expression said to everyone she did the right thing.
Edward got close to his original body. Don Paco was out cold. He shivered, thinking how many times he'd been in that situation.
"How did you know?" Alphonse asked as he approached Winry.
"I already knew something weird was going on. I just didn't know what," Winry answered. She looked at the unconscious blond; her brow furrowed. "When he said that you wanted to hurt him"—she paused to offer Alphonse a knowing smile—"you would never hurt your older brother."
Alphonse reciprocated the smile.
Winry walked to the cat and knelt beside him. "Like I said; I don't know exactly what's going on, but it looks like Ed here holds the answer."
Edward gaped up at her. "Color me impressed," he blurted out. He couldn't be more proud of Winry, even if he wanted to.
Winry's eyes rounded. "The cat—!" she cried out. "The cat just talked!"
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The FMA Big Bang Challenge for 2017 ended on Sunday, November 19. I was granted an extension because life happens. Anyway, I will be posting chapters (probably 2x per week) until December 5, 2017.
Chapter 11 will be posted by the end of the week.