Hi, everyone. Sorry that I took so long to update this story. I'd been working on an awesome story called "My Body, Your Soul". I've finished that story now, so I can come back to this one, though I'm also working on the sequel to that story. Feel free to check it out, as it's my most popular story by far.
Hope that you like this chapter. Let me know what you think after you've read it.
Disclaimer: I don't own FullMetal Alchemist. Why do we say this on every chapter? Doesn't everyone already know this?
Everyone was silent for a minute of two after seeing Ed's auto-mail arm. Finally, the girl next to Ed shakily extended her hand and said, "Can I take a look at it?"
"Of course," said Ed, "If that'll help to convince you of my identity."
The girl grabbed his auto-mail arm and turned it this way and that, and ran her finger up and down all the various parts.
"Geez," said Ed, "You'd think you've never seen auto-mail before."
"I haven't!" exclaimed the girl.
"Oh…right," Ed said as he smacked his head with his free hand.
"It's unbelievable," said the girl after a moment of silence, "This is real auto-mail. There is no arm underneath it, so it's not a costume!"
"Then he's really Ed? Edward Elric actually exists?" asked the girl in the passenger seat.
"That's what I've been trying to tell you all along," muttered Ed.
"But if you're really Edward Elric," said the girl in the opposite side of the back seat from Ed, "How did you get here?"
Edward sighed. "It's a long story. How much do you already know?"
"We're familiar with what happened to you up until you came through the Gate," said the same girl.
"The first time or the second time?"
"The second time," said three of the girls at once. The fourth girl hadn't gotten that far in the series yet, but she wasn't about to blow her one chance of talking with Edward Elric himself. Ed sighed and told them the story.
"…And that's how I got here," Edward finished.
"Wow, what a story!" said the girl on the other side of the backseat. Edward took a good look at her for the first time since he'd hitched a ride with these girls. He noticed that she had glasses, blond hair, and a braid.
"Did you braid your hair to try and look like me?" asked Edward.
The girl blushed, and nodded her head. "I idolize you, Ed, we all do."
"This is sure a weird time I'm in." Ed sighed.
"Hey, we just entered Bend," the driver called out. The other girls started to get excited.
"What's so exciting?" asked Edward.
"Our trip is almost over," said the girl next to him, "And we can't wait to get out of the car."
"Why would you want to rush out of a nice car like this?" said Edward, gesturing towards the inside of the car.
"Nice?" said the girl next to him, "This is a cheap car."
"Hey, quit picking on my car, unless you want to walk!" said the driver. Edward chuckled.
Soon the car had pulled into a driveway. The girls and Edward got out and stretched.
"So, do you have anyplace that you need to go?" said the blond, braided girl.
"Not really," said Ed, "I'm pretty much just grabbing for clues wherever I land. I never know where I'm going to find them, since I'm not in my own world or in my own time."
"Would you like to come with us, then? We have a music lesson to get to," said the blond girl.
Edward shrugged. "Sure, I guess. I've got nothing better to do."
The blond girl go so excited that she bent down (she was taller, after all) and planted a kiss on his forehead. This made Ed stumble back a few steps while he said, "What was that for?"
The girl giggled. "Just got a little carried away, I guess."
Soon, the girls had their instruments loaded into the car: a keyboard, a guitar, a flute, and a clarinet. The five people hopped back into the car and drove to the music lesson.
"So, what's this music thing all about, anyway?" asked Ed.
The driver chuckled. "We're planning on starting an all-girl music group, but we have to learn how to play well first."
"Sounds interesting," said Ed, "How well can you guys play now?"
"Oh, so-so," the driver shook her hand back and forth. "We're not perfect, but we're getting better."
They arrived at the home of their music teacher, who came out to greet them. He spotted Edward. "Who is this?" he asked, extending his hand.
The girl that had always sat next to him said, "This is Edward. Edward, this is our teacher."
"Pleased to meet you," said the teacher, shaking Edward's hand. "Well, shall we all go inside?" The six people stepped inside the house and seated themselves in the spacious living room.
Edward listened as the girls practiced their pieces. They were quite good, actually. Edward was enjoying hearing them play immensely.
Then, he noticed that the girl who normally sat next to him was having some difficulty with her guitar. He might not be a music teacher, but maybe he could help a little.
He moved over to her and said, "It would be a lot easier if you held your hands like this." He repositioned her hands for her.
"You're right, that does feel better!" exclaimed the girl.
The teacher chuckled. "I owe you a debt of gratitude, son. I've been trying to explain that to her for I don't know how long, yet you explain it in five minutes."
Edward chuckled a little too. "It helps when you're practically worshipped by the one you're trying to teach." Everyone laughed. The music teacher didn't fully understand the meaning of what Edward just said, but he still thought it was funny.
"So, I take it you play the guitar?" asked the music teacher.
"A little," said Edward.
"You play the guitar?" said all four girls at once, which just caused the music teacher to laugh again.
"Show me!" said the guitar girl, handing her guitar to Ed.
"But," he protested, "The only songs I know how to play are these sad little songs I write when I'm feeling blue."
"You write your own songs?" said one girl.
"You sing?" said another.
"Show me!" said all four girls in chorus. The music teacher laughed again.
Ed could tell that he was outnumbered, so he shrugged his shoulders and took the guitar from the girl. He cleared his throat, strummed a few minor chords, and began his song.
I never thought myself to be the kind that would fall.
I learned how to walk before I learned how to crawl.
But into these hands was thrust a burden so wide.
I'd have never been able to shoulder it without you by my side.
So where are you now? I don't know where you are.
I can hear you calling to me from afar.
I need you here now. I can't live on my own.
Without you always by my side, I never would have grown.
We traveled on our journey. We walked hand in hand.
Searching for the thing we lost, to reach the Promised Land.
But a dream that is attainable is not a dream at all,
For when we found the thing we lost, again we did fall.
I may not be there now, but my spirit's still with you.
Blood is thicker than water, the saying still holds true.
I will find my way back home. You can hold onto that day.
For this is my greatest wish. Where there's a will, there's a way.
Edward finished singing the minor-key tune, and then proceeded to hand the guitar back to its owner. She didn't immediately reach for it. She and everyone else in the room had tears in their eyes.
"It's about Al, isn't it?" said the blond girl.
"Well, it's too Al, actually," Ed sighed, "I sometimes wonder if he hears it."
"Who's Al?" asked the teacher.
"It's his little brother," said the blond-haired girl, "They've been separated…and they're living far away from each other." She didn't particularly want to try and explain the whole story.
"I'm sorry to hear that, but I'm sure you'll see him again," consoled the music teacher.
"I hope so," said Ed.
Just then, the teacher's teenage daughter walked into the room. She smiled at the girls, and then caught sight of Ed.
"Hi, Suzan," said the teacher, "This boy here is Edw-"
"EDWARD ELRIC!" she shrieked.
"Oh, you know him?" asked the teacher.
"He's only the most awesome person that ever existed!" shouted Suzan.
"Wow, he must be a celebrity of some sort," said the teacher, "He must be famous for his singing ability."
"HE CAN SING?" shouted Suzan once again, "SHOW ME!"
Ed put his hand on his face. This was going to be a long day.
Heh, okay, that song's still kind of rough, because I just wrote it yesterday, but I hope you liked it anyway. If I can ever find a way to record it and upload it, I'll let you know.
Did you know that Ed actually can sing? I didn't just make that up. I know that at least the Japanese version of Ed can indeed sing. If you get a hold of the album Hagaren Song File – Edward Elric, you can actually hear him sing. There's an album for Al and one for Roy Mustang too.
Oh, and just in case you guys haven't figured it out yet, Ed's in Oregon, okay? Heh, I can't understand the people who aren't from the west coast, they know nothing about geography it seems. Hehe…anyway, he's in Central Oregon right now, specifically in Bend, Oregon, which is the biggest town for hundreds of miles around. (About 60,000 people now.) It's my hometown, so I just had to mention it, heh. I don't live there anymore, but I wish I did. The future chapters will inform you a little bit of the interesting culture that Bend has to offer, and how Ed responds to it. Heh.
Ok, now, click that little button and review!