Anything FMA related belongs to H/A. Alice, Clive and story belong to me.
Enjoy.
Chapter Eleven: Doubled
Alice clung onto Ed's arm tightly as the group of three trudged up the worn stairs of the inn. The blonde girl was shivering violently and would always cling tighter whenever another fork of lightening flashed. As they made their way up, Ed remained silent as Al kept on saying words of comfort to Alice, trying to calm her down.
Soon enough, they all came up to their room. The door stood old and damp. The inn was clearly cheap, but it was just a place to sleep the rest of the night and nothing more.
Ed groaned as the door swung open. There was only the one room, with two beds and a mattress on the floor. He lifted his hand up. "This is it!? There isn't even a bathroom" He snapped. Alice winced, clutching tighter as another flash of lightening sparked. Ed looked down at her. He then rolled his eyes and strolled inside.
The alchemist lifted the arm Alice was clinging onto forward, he then pushed her off, making her land on the bed closest to the door. "You can sleep here, its furthest away from the window" He then passed her her bag. Alice snatched it off him, opening it and presented her teddy bear from inside. She grinned. "Mr. Shincklepot says "thank you" and I do to!"
"Um... you're welcome?"
"Hmm," Alice hummed, lifting her legs onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling, her bear laid across her chest.
Ed glanced at Al. "I'll sleep by the window, OK?" He muttered, dragging himself over to the bed. Al nodded.
"Sure" The armour stepped inside, sliding the door shut behind himself. He watched Alice pull out her diary and a pen as she laid herself on her stomach. Al was tempted to ask her about the entry that he and Ed both read, but decided to keep it to himself.
"Hey brother," Al began, sitting down on the mattress between both of the beds.
Ed yawned, rolling over onto his side. "What?"
"Have you thought of that "plan of action" yet?"
In a heartbeat, Ed's body went tense. The alchemist chuckled nervously. "No... You?"
"No"
"Well then, isn't the morning going to be fun?"
"I am the music man, I come from down the way, and I can play! What can you play? I play the piano!"(1) Alice sang, causing both Ed and Al to send her worried looks. She looked over at them and giggled, continuing to write in her diary.
Al turned back to Ed, noticing that he was sending Alice a much more serious look, propping himself up on his elbows. Al could tell that he was thinking about the entry to. "Brother," he whispered, getting Ed's attention.
"Yeah?"
"Go to sleep, you look really tired and didn't you want to talk to those gunmen?"
Ed groaned, but didn't protest as he slumped down in his bed, pulling the covers over himself. "Night" He grumbled from beneath the sheets.
"Goodnight brother"
"Eeee!" Alice squealed, making both Ed and Al look at her again. The pen she had in her hand had fallen onto the floor, and a great big red cross was scribbled over her page. Alice rubbed her temples for a moment before reaching down for her pen.
"Are you OK, Alice?" Al asked as Ed sunk back under the sheets, mumbling curses to himself.
Alice grabbed her pen and sat back up on the bed. She sent Al a look. Al nearly shivered: something about it wasn't right. Alice placed her pen and book on the bed before sliding off the edge of it, not saying a word as she did. She then stalked over to the door, pulling her two pigtails out of her hair as she did, combing her fingers through it. Her hand fell onto the handle.
"Where are you going?" Al asked, sitting up straight.
Alice glanced coldly over her shoulder. She stepped out of the room and slammed the door shut.
Al blinked at the door.
"What's her problem?" Ed asked groggily, still under the sheets. Al shook his head. "I don't know"
The armour then rose to his feet. "Maybe I should go-"
"Leave her Al"
Al turned to his brother. "What?"
Ed peaked out from the sheets. "She might just want to be alone for a bit. That's my guess anyway, since that talk we had on the train" He muttered, shrinking back into the sheets.
Al sighed. "Yeah, maybe"
---
Alice swayed down the hall, kicking up her feet and looking down at her shoes. Pink trainers. She sighed, placing the chosen foot back on the floor. She stared at the window at the far end of the hallway. The rain pounded against it, almost knocking it from its frame, the outdoors was completely black, not even the moon was in sight.
Alice approached the window, glancing to her side where the staircase she travelled up before stood. Tucking a strand of yellow hair behind an ear, she scowled.
Those people are still following me. That armour and kid. I'm surprised that they haven't handed me in yet. She sighed, closing her eyes. It's only a matter of time, isn't it? Her eyes flipped open, staring into her reflection in the mirror.
She stretched her hand forward, tracing a finger around the jaw of the mirror image. She pressed her lips together, pulling her hand away. She looked down at her palm, shaking violently.
"So," she whispered. "Its already catching up on me"
Suddenly, something whipped past the window, cracking the surface a little. Alice's eyes snapped after it, watching it land in a nearby alley, that was lit with a dim streetlamp.
Swiftly, Alice padded down the stairs. She then ran through the reception, the inn-keeper being fast asleep at his post. She went out onto the street, getting soaked through as soon as she stepped out. She glanced around, searching for the alley she spotted upstairs. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a dimly lit streetlamp.
"There," she breathed, running in the direction of the lamp. Slowing her pace as she came up to the lamp, Alice peered down the murky alley before her. She couldn't see anyone, not in the light anyway. All she could see was the stacks of garbage dumped in bins and in piles. She narrowed her eyes at the shadows, swearing that she saw movement within them.
After a long moment, Alice slowly turned away from the alley. Just as soon as she was about to walk away, something swift and shape cut past her. She only just managed to fling her body away from it. She stumbled over, rolling and rolling until she forced herself onto all fours, arching her back like a cat.
"Huh. Maybe Lust was right, you might be so "perfect" after all" The feminine voice hissed. Alice looked up at the slender teen before her, grinding her teeth as the spike on his arm morphed back into a normal hand. She heaved herself up onto her feet. The teen smirked.
"Hello there, little Alice Anderson"
---
Al glanced out of the window, watching the rain as it plummeted down to the ground. He sighed, turning his gaze up to the clock that hung limply on the wall: 1:30am.
Alice had been gone for a long time now and Al wanted to search for her, but as Ed said, she might have wanted to be alone for a while. But then again, both himself and his brother were supposed to be taking care of this girl, and letting her go off alone didn't seem like the best idea. "Hey, brother..." Al whispered, tilting his had up to see his brother, asleep under the covers. Al paused, knowing that he wouldn't get an answer, he decided to get up and look for Alice.
Approaching the door, Al took a quick glance at his brother. "I won't be long" And with that, he stalked his way out of the room, ensuring not to make a racket all the while.
Outside, the thunder's roar began to die and the lightening forks weaker. Al stepped down the hall, noticing a crack on the window's surface at the end. A spark of suspicion came to Al's eyes as he walked up to it. That he was aware, the lightning hadn't touched any surfaces on the inn, so why was the window damaged?
Al shook it off. It probably was there before we came here, but still... With a turn, Al found himself facing the stairs. Hastily, Al came down the stairs, noticing the sleeping innkeeper on his way out. The front door was wide open, welcoming in the heavy rain with open arms. Slowly, Al stepped out into the pouring rain. The drops slid down his body smoothly, as he stood in the street, glancing up and down until he spotted something out of the corner of his eye.
"Alice!" He yelled, running over to the girl, curled up in a ball by the foot of a streetlamp. He crouched down beside her, placing both hands on her shouldes, helping her up. The girls head lolled around a little, her eyes shut lightly.
"Alice..." Al breathed. The blonde girl's eyes flipped open, she glanced at Al. Blood trailed from the corner of her lips and her hand was wrapped tightly around her stomach as she stared at Al. Then, both of her arms flew around Al as she sobbed into his metal chest.
"Mr. Phantom Armor Guy!" She cried, clutching hard onto him. Al sighed, rubbing her spine with a hand.
"What happened, Alice?" He asked, his tone relieved but serious. He glanced down at her as she shook her head wildly.
"D-Don't remember... just saw...saw..."
"What? What did you see?" Al questioned, feeling wave of fear as Alice began to go limp in his arms. The girl's head hit Al's chest lightly as her body slumped forward.
"Alice!?" Al yelled, panicked. He grabbed her by the arms and pushed her up. Her head was hung, blonde locks shadowing her face.
"Boogieman" She breathed, collapsing into Al again.
Abruptly, Al scooped her up in his arms and rushed back into the inn. He sprinted past the innkeeper, who was startled awake by the loud clanking noise coming from Al as he ran upstairs. The armour kicked their room door open and zipped inside, heading straight for Edward's bed. Holding Alice tightly with one arm, Al shook his brother awake. Ed snorted and attempted to swat Al's hand away.
"Go away Al, I'm not taking the milk no matter what you say" He groaned, pulling the sheets further over his head. Al rolled his eyes, ripping the covers from him. Edward stiffened as he felt the sheets being pulled away. With a grunt, he heaved himself up. "What's your problem?" He snapped, dark bags sitting under his eyes. Al looked down at Alice in his arms. Immediately Ed flung himself from the bed.
"What the hell happened?!" He barked, staring down at Alice. Al shook his head.
"I don't know, I found her lying in the street like this"
Edward growled, grabbing his long red coat, he tossed it over Alice. Al watched him questionably as Ed hopped his way into his boots. "Brother? What are y-"
"We're taking her to the hospital, we have to" He spoke, diving past Al and swinging the door open. "Its not far from here, we'll get there quickly if we run. Come on!" He yelled, running off without Al. Al nodded sharply, chasing after his older brother.
Racing out into the wet streets, Ed and Al darted straight down the road, heading for the larger building at the far end. As they ran, Al kept pulling Ed's coat back over Alice, trying to keep her at least a little dry. Although he couldn't feel it, Al knew that Alice would be shivering against him; she was out in the cold for so long, they had to get medical attention before hypothermia kicked in.
Booting the double doors open, Ed ran up to the women at the reception desk. She blinked at him as he slammed both hands on the white surface. "Get us a doctor!" He panted. Blinking again, the women looked past him and up at Al as he entered the room, holding Alice closely. Ed banged a fist on the desk.
"Now!"
---
Rays of morning sunlight creaped past the gap between the curtains, landing on the blonde girl in the hospital bed. She breathed deeply as she slept, her hair damp and skin freezing cold. Ed was fast asleep on the chair that stood beside the bed, his arms were crossed over his chest as he slumped back into the chair, snoring lightly. Alphonse sat beside Ed, watching the blonde girl as she slept, his hands clasped together between his knees.
Outside, the birds chirped merrily as the soared around the sky's of Dublith. The warm sun had dried up the rain, making it look as though it hadn't rained at all. Casually, people wondered around the streets, completely oblivious to the crumbling world around them.
Al rose from his seat and wondered over to the window, pulling the curtains open, staring at the cloudless, blue sky. Opening the window a little, Al allowed in a draft of fresh air. How he wished he could feel the wind on his face, but in time, he knew that he would be able to. Al laughed a little, feeling excited about getting his body back. He just had to be patient.
"Its... you"
Al spun around, finding the blonde girl looking at him from where she lay. Lazily, the girl lifted her hand up and pointed at Al. "You're the one... from last night" She whispered, her voice low and raspy; like she had a cold.
"Uh, yeah Alice, its me, Alphonse, you know," Al sighed, feeling stupid for even thinking about saying it. "Mr. Phantom Armour Guy"
The girl, Alice, lowered her head. Narrowing her eyes at him, she pulled herself up in the bed, her back resting against the barred headboard. She didn't bother to take her eyes off him to look at the white ward, she simply stared at him, saying nothing. And Al knew that he didn't need a calculator to put two and two together: Alice was acting different.
Hesitantly, Al walked back to his chair, pulling it a little closer to the bed, he sat down. "So, um, Alice, can you remember what happened to you last night?" He whispered, leaning forward in his seat. Alice glanced up at the ceiling, her mouth twisting into a tight frown as she tried to force up a memory.
Nothing.
"No... I don't" She replied, staring back down at Alphonse. "Why does it concern you?" She spat, glaring harshly at Al.
He really didn't need a calculator at all.
Al shot up like a bullet, causing his chair to fall back over. Clenching his fists by his sides, it was Al's turn to glare down at Alice.
"So then..." A voice spoke, Al looked down, finding Ed sitting up in his seat, arms folded and one leg crossed over the other. "Spit it out. Who are you?"
Alice sent Ed a quick look before turning her head away, looking out the window. Ed rose slowly from his seat, placing both palms on the bed he leaned over to Alice.
"I know you're not her, so don't bother trying," he whispered harshly. He clenched his fists, curling up sheets within them. "Who are you?"
Still not saying a word, Alice heaved herself from her bed. Her knees felt like jelly as she rested her weight onto them. Taking a steady step, Alice began to walk over towards the window. Ed's fists were closed so tightly now, the sheets became shredded beneath them.
"Don't walk aw-"
Bang!
The door flew open, a young, quivering nurse stood there, a rush of panic visible on her face. "Is-Is everything alright in here!? There was a loud noise, what happened!?" She looked over, finding a suit of armour knelt down beside the girl on the floor, dressed in a hospital gown. As she ran over to them, she noticed a blonde boy sat in a chair, rubbing the bridge of his nose and grinding his teeth.
The nurse crouched before the armour, assisting him in helping the girl up. "What happened!?" She asked, the girl looked up groggily at the nurse. The girl pouted, pressing her lower index finer against hr lip.
"I donny knows. A minute ago I was in the streets, with Mr. Phantom Armour Guy and then whoosh! I was here" The girl grinned up at the nurse. The older women pulled a concerned look as the armour hauled Alice up onto her feet. The nurse pulled out a file and began to flick through it until she came to a certain page, she glanced up at the girl and then back down at the page.
Spinning on her heel, the nurse left as soon as she came, not taking her eyes off the notes in hand.
"Alice?" Al whispered as he helped her sit on the bed. The girl swung her legs, smiling brightly at him.
"Yes, yes, that's me. How can I help Mr. Phantom Armour Guy!?" She chirped, giggling a little at the end. Al looked taken aback. His eyes flickered over to Ed, who was watching Alice cautiously. Alice noticed Al's gaze on Ed and turned around to see him. She waved a hand at him.
"Hello thar, Mr. Robot! How ish you?" She flipped herself onto all fours and crawled her way over to him. Ed blinked as Alice prodded him on the nose."'s wrong with yooouuu?" She sang, rolling over onto her back, crossing her arms over her chest. With a sigh, Ed shook his head.
"Nothing," he lifted himself up from his seat and turned away.
Alice tilted her head to one side. "Wheres you goin'?"
Ed glanced briefly over his shoulder at her. "I've got to go and talk to those gunmen now, you stay with Al, I'll meet you back here later" Ed's eyes turned to Al. "Or at teachers if you're not here"
As Ed marched out of the room, Alice looked over at Al. "Whose "teacher"?"
Al shuddered. "Its... just the women who taught us alchemy"
"Oooohhhh... Hey, Mr. Phantom Armour Guy"
"Yes?"
Alice rolled back onto her stomach, resting her chin on the backs of her hands. "Why do you look afraid?"
Alphonse Elric shuddered again. He knew it was only a matter of time until Ed and himself had to go and see her, and Al had a funny feeling that the trip isn't going to be a barrel of laughs.
A Moment With Clive: Clive In Wonderland: Part One
Personally, I was never the one to believe in childish fairy-tales when I was young: my family was far too caught up in the real world to even bother thinking about it. It was a true shame really.
I'd love to experiance a true fairytale.
"Clive"
Huh? Whose there? I'm trying to sleep.
"Hey Clive, get up will you!?"
Suddenly I felt something push me from my seat. I yelped as I tumbled over onto the floor, my long, brown trenchant flowing around me as I fell. Crashing onto the ground, I felt my top hat roll away from my head. I groaned.
"I was trying to sleep, Justine" I grumbled, my gloved hand reaching for my top hat. I dumped it on my head as I grasped my chair, pulling myself back up to my desk.
The young ginger-haired boy grinned, showing me the large gap between his teeth. With a roll of my tired eyes, I smiled at him. "Very nice, you finally lost you tooth" With a sigh, I pulled my wallet from the pocket of my waist coat.
"How much?"
Justine sent me a funny look. "Huh?"
"Well," I glanced down at my wallet. "Don't you give a kid some money when they loose a tooth?" I asked innocently. Justine burst out into laughter, flinging himself around my cramped study. I shot up from my seat, waving my arms round. "Don't knock them bookshelves over! They're the best scripts I have!"
Abruptly Justine stopped, still grinning. "No, its the Tooth Fairy who gives you it!" He corrected, smirking triumphantly at the end.
I looked back at my wallet, slipping it back inside my waistcoat. "Is that so?"
"Didn't your mummy tell you anything!? Come on!" He yelled, weaving behind my desk and grabbing hold of my wrist and dragging me from my study. The boy then pulled me through many different corridors, snaking past all the other drama students who came with us to the hotel. They all watched us walk by and then came after us, grinning mischievously.
Those grins always made me feel nervous.
Soon enough, I was forced into a large, empty room. Justine then spun around me, pushing at my back. "Go on!" He chirped.
"Yes, go on Clive" The other children echoed from the large, double doors of the room. My body went stiff, I slowly turned to face them.
"Hey, what's going on here? You're up to something, aren't you?" I wriggled a finger at the, narrowing my eyes and pouting my lips.
Justine shook his head. "Noooo" he grinned at the end. I lowered my finger to him.
"Yes you are. Saying no like that is the epitome of pure infancy evil, what are you all up to?"
"Just, walk into the room" Justine pointed at the rich, red carpet. I looked back. If it made him happy, I might as well, from my point of view, there were no traps lingering anywhere.
Wrong.
As I came to the centre of the room, the floor beneath my suddenly gave way, leaving a large open hole beneath only my feet. As I hovered in the air for a moment, I managed to glance at the children.
"Oh crumbs"
And with that, I fell.
I didn't bother to scream as I fell, I simply kept my body straight and stiff, my spine facing the ground and my face staring up skeptically at the slowly fading ceiling. With one hand, I held onto my top hat, not wanting to loose it. Then, from the ground above me, I could hear the children say something rather bizarre.
"OK, use the alchemy on him now Max"
I blinked. Max knew alchemy? Since when?
A flash a red light glowed from behind me. Looking back, I noticed a transmutation circle glowing dangerously behind me.
"Oh, those kids just take pranks too far" I mumbled s my spine connected with the light.
My whole wold then became black, with the sound of giggling children fluttering in the air.
Oh heavens. What good could possibly come of this?
To be continued...
Hope you enjoyed that, I haven't got much to say except:
(1) I love that song and one day I randomly started to sing it, so I put it on here too.
Please read and review.
